Bit by Bit

by IntoxicatingColors

If you have the bits, he'll turn your problems into bits. A lone mercenary who withstood the test of time wanders the outskirts of Equestria, only to end up in the cursed domain. Outcast by the princess herself and nothing but a failed science project, he who has no true place in the world makes a name for himself and a face fit for a wanted poster.

1. A Past Present into the Future

The night of Canterlot was as silent as any other. Ponies quietly slept in their homes while a few perused the streets for any late night debauchery. It was the same old same old that it had always been for years. That is, the city was accustomed to it. While the citizens were not aroused from their slumber, the higher powers were not allowed to share the same luxury. A lone mare sat upon her throne, her peak of power lying within the large palace that rose above the city. The mare in question had her hooves placed against one another in front of her face, the rest of her body sagging forward as if inspecting something. Her transparent mane and tail made up of blues, greens, pinks and purples flowed behind her, as if it were slowly passed through by an unfelt breeze. Her light purple eyes were narrowed in what would seem like annoyance at first glance. She was adorned in golden shoes that matched both her necklace and tiara, both of which held a beautiful amethyst. Her white coat stood out in the darkness, making her an easy target in the moonlight. While the rest of the world was silent this night, her chamber was invaded with the sound of clicking metal that echoed within her throne room. She took one more look around the room, examining all of the bodies of her guards that littered the floor. It was almost hard to notice the slow breathing of the stallions that could be mistaken for dead. Around forty of her guards had been downed and put out of commission and her eyes slowly moved to the cause of it all. In the middle of the room laid a feathery form that did nothing but spin some metal contraption on its talons. The strange thing about this creature was how it was made up of many different animals. The top half of its body was made up of an eagle and the bottom half was a lion. She couldn't tell if its head was any different since the creature was wearing a deep red hood that covered everything except the beak that protruded from underneath it. The only other thing she could see were the glowing light violet eyes that seemed to lightly illuminated the inside of the hood. The feathers on the top half of its body were a bright white and the bottom half was completely black, almost giving it the look of a panther. The tuft of its tail was lightly colored red at the very end. At the bottom of the feathers that skirted at the bottom of the top half of its body were tipped a dark blue. On both of it claws were sharp ring armor that elongated the reach of its talons, all of which were just a plain black. The creature just laid there on the ground, one leg propped up on the ground as if it was posing for her. They just stared at one another for some time, not really taking the initiative to talk first, just studying one another in silence. The silence was broken as the sound of hard hooves on marble echoed throughout the hollow chamber.

"Princess Celestia!" That was all that was said as the only door to the room was almost thrown off its hinges and thirty more guards filed into the room. That was when the feathered menace moved into action. The contraption it was twirling on its talon stopped as it gripped the object with a new purpose. The creature ran a claw through its feathers, pushing off the hood in the process. Its head feathers were white with some very mess feathers jutting out in front of him on top, blue tips adorning those feathers. He moved the hand that ruffled his feathers down to his hip were another one of those weird contraptions he had was holstered. The creature looked up to Celestia with a questioning glance, not really sure what she wanted from this encounter.

"Do you want me to waste them now or later?" The guards didn't take kindly to that question as they began to form a circle around the creature. They were halted as Celestia held a hoof up and leaned back in her throne.

"Gryphon, do you truly think you can handle the task that I have placed before you?"

"As long as you have the bits, there will be no question to my ability to complete the mission. Your task will be completed no matter what, you have my word."

"I would hardly trust the word of a mercenary, let alone some form of bounty hunter, but you have shown some very capable abilities. I will give you the benefit of the doubt and pay you for your services." The gryphon put his contraptions back on his sides before crossing an arm over his chest, standing straight at attention, and bowing respectfully to Celestia.

"I thank you for this chance Celestia. Just know that I do not take kindly to those that back out on payment." One of the guards didn't take to kindly to that threat and moved to attack the gryphon. He didn't get very far as the feathered fiend armed himself once more before swiftly pulling back some mechanism on his weapon that caused it to fire a bolt of something cerulean. The projectile impacted against the guards armor, sending him hurtling before Celestia caught him with her magic and gently set the injured soldier down.

"I promise you that you will be paid for your services. That is, if the task is completed. You may leave now gryphon, I will have a servant sent to you with a letter describing where your base of operations will be, along with a few other possible inconveniences." The gryphon bowed once more before turning and leaving the room. Celestia looked around at all her soldiers that had been downed by the lone gryphon and, for some reason, let out a sigh of relief. "Guards, get these soldiers to the infirmary and have them tended to. I have a headache to work off." The guards gave a silent nod as they all began helping to pick up their fallen brothers and sisters. Celestia gently massaged the side of her face, slowly contemplating just why it was she got to deal with all the weird ones.

The sun was high in the sky as a chariot raced along the clouds, making its descent to the ground below. On the chariot sat two passengers, one pony and one dragon. Both of them looked rather bored, but the pony looked absolutely miserable as it hung over the side of the chariot. The dragon looked up from some form of scroll he was reading before rolling his eyes at the ponies antics. "Come one Twilight, this won't be that bad. You needed to get out of that library anyways, it wasn't healthy to stay cooped up in there all the time." The mare just huffed in defiance as she continued moping. This mare was known as Twilight Sparkle, a lavender unicorn and student to the Princess herself. She sported a dark blue mane and tail, both of which had a streak of pink and purple running though them and her mopey eyes were a deep purple. Beside her was her purple dragon companion that used his light green eyes to send a deadpan stare to the unicorn. His underbelly and ear tufts were both a light green while the spines atop his head that reached down to his tail were a darker shade.

"I'd much rather be in that stuffy library instead of going to some town to try and make some useless 'friends', Spike. I could actually be using my time to find out about Nightmare Moon and the prophecy revolving around her. I feel like Celestia is hiding something from me and if that's true, then that just means my suspicions are correct." Spike just rolled his eyes as he listened to her spiel. He opened his mouth to respond, but the jerking motion of the chariot finally landing cut him off. Both of them jumped out of the chariot with Twilight bowing to the guard that had escorted them. He said nothing as he lifted himself back into the sky, leaving the unicorn to huff in annoyance. Twilight and Spike turned around and examined the quaint town that they had been told went by the name of Ponyville. She snorted at the very stereotypical name. Looking around she found what she had expected the town to be like. All different kinds of ponies, big and small, went about their day to day tasks with wide smile on their faces. She wanted to gag at the perfect picturesque town that she wanted nothing to do with. Without even a second glance she turned away from the sickening sight and decided to go ahead and finish what the princess had sent her here to do as quick as possible. If she could get all of that nonsense out of the way then she could dedicate her time to something much more productive. Sadly, all of her attention was turned towards her thoughts so she didn't see the mass she bumped into until it almost sent her toppling to the ground. After she finished stumbling and catching herself Twilight turned around to the one she bumped into and gave a small bow. "I'm so sorry for bumping into you sir, I ho-"

"Shove it you narwhal. I've got better things to do than deal with you horses and your clumsy demeanors." Twilight's face burned with anger as her horn lit up. Without even a second though she fired a non lethal bolt of magic at the bystander, only expecting to knock him to the ground. What she wasn't expecting was the individual to turn around with an open claw and slash upwards at the spell, sending it skyward. Before she could even register what happened or see him deflect her spell, the creature had some form of weapon shoved into her face. Twilight froze as she stared under the hood of what she could only assume was a gryphon, if his feathers were anything to go by. She tried to get a look at him from under his hood, but it was somehow pitch black under the hood, despite how bright it was outside. They stood there at a deadlock, many ponies of the town gathering around after the initial ruckus. After a few moments the gryphon put his weapon away, stood straight up on his back paws and lowered his hood. Twilight looked him over before getting a closer look at his face, noticing two light pink teardrops below each eye and pink wings that acted like a form of eyeshadow underneath his eyes. He flexed his wings out, each one ending in a splash of black at the tip of the feathers at the very bottom of each one. He looked her up and down, causing the unicorn to blush slightly, before crossing an arm over his chest and bowing, causing her blush to deepen.

"You must be Miss Twilight Sparkle. Princess Celestia has told me much about you." The gryphon stood back up to his full height, a claw on his hip and a smirk on his beak. "One of those things was not a hot headed nature." Twilight looked off to the side in embarrassment, pouting away her troubles. The gryphon was about to say something else before a large blue mass fell from the sky. The cyan Pegasus ruffled her rainbow mane as she rubbed her head and flicked her tail that matched. Her cerise eyes glared at the gryphon in anger. The Pegasus shot up in the gryphon's face, said gryphon losing any form of emotion as he met the Pegasus' stare.

"Mind explaining just why you blasted me from the sky again?" The gryphon just backed up and crossed his arms.

"I apologize Rainbow Dash, this time it was an accident. You were in the wrong place this time, I'm afraid. Did you get the sky cleared?" The Pegasus huffed in disdain and turned away.

"Yeah, I got that done a while ago. I told you it wouldn't take long."

"I never doubted you, but I'd rather have it done now rather than later." The Pegasus didn't say another word and instead shot off in some random direction. Twilight looked on after Rainbow Dash, not sure what to think of that encounter. When she went over what they were talking about, something in her head clicked.

"Wait, that was the Pegasus I was supposed to check on about the weather for the celebration. How did she already know to clear the skies?" The gryphon stood there and inspected his claws.

"I do not feel like playing along with Celestia to a tee, so I decided to get all of the useless preparation out of the way. I know that you are busy, as am I. So I went ahead and pushed things ahead a little. We still have a few more to talk to, but other than that, we are pretty much finished." The gryphon began walking, waving a claw over his shoulder to signal them to follow him which they did. As they walked, Spike, who had been silent during the entire exchange, tapped Twilight who in turn leaned down to the dragon's level. He leaned up to whisper, hoping the gryphon wouldn't hear anything he said.

"I don't know if we should trust this guy, Twilight. He says he knows Princess Celestia, but I have never seen him around the palace before." Twilight had to agree, but at the same time she felt like she might be able to trust him. No one except the princess knew of her schedule and who she was supposed to talk to. Yet this gryphon knew not only the cliental she would be speaking to, but also her own name. He also said that Celestia had talked to him about her, which just added to his credibility.

"I think we'll be fine Spike. I have a feeling we can trust this gryphon." Both went silent after that, opting to enjoy the silence of the walk. They had been walking along a path for a while before they hit a dirt path, some kind of farm off in the distance. As the were walking Twilight began to feel that something was off. Instead of playing it off like it was nothing, she acted on it and threw up a force field around the three of them. When she did the field caught the force of five water balloons pelting its side. Twilight looked around for whoever threw them, but couldn't find a soul.

"Alright, come out Pinkamena." At the gryphon's call, a light pink mare popped out of the dirt with a defeated look on her face. Not only was she pink, but her cotton candy like hair was also a darker shade of pink. The only break of the on color was he light blue eyes that stared at the party in sadness.

"Aw, come on! Just let me prank you once. I just want to plan a party for you, why do you have to be so stubborn?" The gryphon threw a look of utter boredom her way, as if to say 'why are you even asking'.

"Because that would defeat the purpose of me even bringing up the agreement. You agreed to this and if you can't prank me even once, then I guess I'm the first person that you won't throw a party for." The pink pony's world seemed to come crashing down at that last sentence. Twilight was a little confused as to why she looked so devastated. It was just some simple party, was it not?

"B-But I throw a party for everypony new that comes to town. There wasn't a single one that disliked them. Can you just please try it, I promise you wont be disappointed."

"The answer is still no, Pinkamena. You know my conditions on how you'll get your wish and won't get what you want until they are met." The downtrodden pink pony walked off, a bunch of water balloons somehow falling out of her bouncing mane. Twilight swore she heard her mutter something about a 'cheating unicorn' and 'unfair magic'. The unicorn just shrugged and followed the gryphon as he began to move once more. A few minutes later they came to the gate of a farm named Sweet Apple Acres. Twilight looked around the orchard, noticing that there wasn't much to the crops except apples, which was an easy guess given the farm's name. One thing the unicorn also noticed was the large group of ponies that were conversing around what she assumed was the actual house the farmers lived in. As they passed by them all they got a few stares and whispers, but nothing that really bothered her as the three of them sat at one of the open picnic tables that were around them. "These are the ponies that will be helping with the food during the celebration. This farm is run by a small family and these here are the other families that are out of town and have volunteered to help them with the food. I think you'll like them a bit more than the others. She's more calm and collected than the others and will be easier to talk to. I think your teacher would say the same thing she said to me, 'make some friends'." Twilight almost heaved at those words, still not sure why Celestia would tell her to do such a thing.

"I think I'll pass on that one. I'm not really the kind of mare that cares for making friends." The gryphon sent her a sideways glance before looking forward once more.

"I'll think you'll come to find that friends have their many uses to achieve your own goals." Before she could ask what he meant, an orange mare fell down into the seat across form them, giving the gryphon a rather stern look. Her light blonde mane and tail were put up in a ponytail with a brown Stetson placed upon her head. Her green eyes twitched in annoyance, shifting the freckles she had around her eyes. The mare stared at the gryphon as if she believed looks could kill while said gryphon just gave her a small smirk, his eyes closed. Without warning the orange mare across from them threw up her right hoof onto the table, still looking the gryphon dead in his closed eyes. "Come now AppleJack, there's no need to be like that." There was no answer as the earth pony just kept herself stock still, waiting for the gryphon to take her challenge. The gryphon sighed in defeat as he wrapped his claw around her hoof. "Don't say I didn't warn you." AppleJack gave a small smile as she looked over her shoulder.

"Applebloom, you know the drill." A small light cream colored filly jumped up next her. She had a bright red mane and tail with a large pink bow. Her gamboge eyes stared at the two appendages in determination.

"Alright you two, I want a good clean fight. Nothing below the elbow and no using two hooves." AppleJack slumped forward in preparation while the gryphon yawned. "Four." AppleJack's eye narrowed. "Three." The gryphon lightly picked his ear. "Two." AppleJack's ears twitched. "One." The gryphon stuck his tongue out and inched forward, staring the mare right in her eyes as she gave him a confused stare. "GO!" Before AppleJack could move, the gryphon slowly ran his tongue up the mares leg, causing her to freeze in shock. She didn't know what was happening as her hoof was slammed down on the table. She just looked up at the gryphon as he blew a raspberry at her from across the table. The entire crowd that had gathered around them went silent, not sure what to say about what had transpired. The only sound that was actually being made was the raspberry that the gryphon had yet to take a breath from. Spike jumped up on the table before walking over to AppleJack and waving a claw in her face, not getting any reaction. Twilight could only just stare at the gryphon in disgust and shock.

"You are a really weird individual." The gryphon slowly turned towards Twilight, unleashing raining saliva on her face. The raspberry slowed down until he finally stopped.

"Thank you." He then picked back up with his spitting, leaving the unicorn to put up a field that would give her cover from his spit. And out of nowhere the gryphon stopped and turned back to AppleJack as if nothing happened. "So AppleJack, how are the preparations coming along?" The mare was kicked out of her stupor as she stared at her hoof for a moment before looking back at the gryphon.

"Uh…yeah we've got everything under control. Would you like to sample a bit of it. We could use the opinions if there are any problems with the food." The gryphon turned his gaze towards the lavender unicorn next to him.

"We've got some time to kill, you okay with that?" Twilight just shrugged.

"Sure, I haven't eaten today and the food I saw and smelled while walking here was driving me crazy. Much better than the half baked treats created in Canterlot." That seemed to wipe the complete and utter horror off of everyone's face as they all bolted off to get their own special dishes that they had put all their work into. Twilight, Spike, and the gryphon all watched as the ponies rushed around them to get a few morsels that they had prepared fresh. She looked over at her gryphon companion to find him using his claws to carve what looked like a stegosaurus into the picnic table.

"So, can I ask you how you knew about me and what the princess said to you?" He didn't even look up, just went on to sketch some other doodle next to the other one.

"I'll tell you everything in time, although I can tell you she said because we needed to make some friends." Twilight just snorted at that. "And she is kinda right, for you that is."

"And what about you? You seem about as much of a social outcast as I am!"

"That's because I don't deserve any, not in my line of work. I'm not exactly the kind of person you easily become friends with if you knew what I did." Twilight just rolled her eyes at that.

"What, are you some kind of mercenary nay, a bounty hunter?"

"Yes." Twilight just blinked a few times before going silent, thinking that over in her head. It was at that moment that their food had been placed in front of them and the time for talking had passed.

After they had finished their meals the three of them set off for their next stop. Luckily they hadn't killed much time and the sun was still high in the sky. They were back in Ponyville in no time, easily beating whatever schedule they should have had. While they were passing through town they saw many different ponies walking the streets. One pony in particular caught they eye of their dragon companion, causing him to stop dead in his tracks to ogle the equine. "Twilight look at her, she's the most beautiful pony I have ever seen in my life!" Both Twilight and the gryphon followed his line of sight to a white unicorn mare carrying what looked to be sowing supplies. Her purple curled mane and tail bounced as she trotted along to her destination. Her dark blue eyes stared forwards, a small smile gracing her face. It wasn't until she turned her eyes for a second did she notice them, her body flinching lightly when she laid eyes on the gryphon. She stopped herself from trotting, turning to them and slowly walking over to them. The gryphon waved a claw at her when she stepped into earshot.

"Hello Rarity, how is everything going with the decorating?" She seemed to scuttle back a little when he raised his claw.

"I'm doing rather fine dear. Everything is going according to plan. Now if you don't mind, I need to get back to work." With that she quickly took off in any direction that didn't involve them. Twilight watched the unicorn disappear in confusion before looking up at the gryphon.

"What did you do?"

"I may or may not have threatened her when she came at me with scissors and dye." Twilight gave him a once over.

"Does that mean that these are your natural colors?"

"Indeed they are. I know that they are rather weird, but I enjoy being abnormal." Twilight looked up to his face while giving a little 'Hmmm' that she didn't address to anyone in particular.

"I rather like it myself. All of the ponies in Canterlot are so bland and uptight. This day definitely improved when I met you. Not many different races are found over here in Equestria and I had never seen a gryphon before. Plus I feel like we have a little bit in common, for better or worse." He didn't give a response as they kept walking on, their final destination not too far away. A few minutes later they came to a clearing with only a single occupant besides themselves. A light yellow Pegasus mare sat alone in the clearing, silently nodding her head to silent music. Her pink mane and tail gently shifted as she gently rocked back and forth. Her caring cyan eyes stared off into the forest as she disregarded all other sounds around her. That was when the gryphon went over to her alone before lying down on his back beside her, putting both claws underneath his head and crossing his legs. He sat there and enjoyed the gentle humming that no one except him could hear at the moment, feeling like he would slowly nod off should he get too comfortable. Twilight and Spike didn't exactly know what to do, so they settle for sitting a little ways away from the two. Almost an hour passed as they all sat in silence, enjoying the peaceful serenity that nature brought forth. Twilight and Spike had both fallen asleep and the gryphon was just on the verge as the mare next to him had finally finished her humming.

"As beautiful as usual Fluttershy." The pony didn't seem like she heard the light whisper from him as she kept looking forward.

"Thank you." The gryphon let a small smirk grace his beak. Out of all the ponies he had met in the week or so he had been here, Fluttershy was definitely one he didn't mind being around for elongated times. He had to get used to not talking too loud to not startle her, as she had a very shy demeanor. The gryphon sat up and pick a flower from the small field they were sitting in, placing the flower gently in the mares mane before standing up and walking over to Twilight and Spike. He jostled Twilight awake and held up a talon to his beak when he knew she could see him. She got the message and stood up, levitating Spike onto her back before they set off. When they were far enough away as to not disturb the Pegasus, Twilight broke the silence.

"So who was that?"

"That was Fluttershy, the mare who will be running the music during the celebration. She is a very shy individual, so you must be very quiet around her. If you can do that, she is probably one of the only ponies here that I would ever enjoy being around. Her singing is very soothing and eliminates pretty much any stress you've built up throughout the day."

"I can agree with that. I haven't felt this relaxed in a while. Being cramped in a library to study magic and always having to practice without many breaks can take a lot out of you." The gryphon stopped and turned around to face Twilight.

"That reminds me, just what was it with those wimpy magic shots? Celestia told me you studied under her personally, so I know that wasn't everything you had." Twilight blushed a little as she looked off to the side.

"Those were non lethal and I also got a bit ahead of myself. To be fair, you kind of called me a narwhal. I do have more powerful magic, that's what my cutie mark represents. My special talent is magic itself."

"Cutie…mark?" Twilight sighed and wiggled her backside, drawing attention to the mark that was plastered on her body. It was a white star with a pink star behind it, a bunch of smaller stars taking place around it.

"I know, it's a dumb name and please don't make me repeat it. They represent what you are best at in life. While you don't necessarily need to follow the predestined path, it is by far the easiest way to get by in life." The gryphon walked up to Twilight and gently traced the mark with his talon, a lot of surprise on his face. Twilight blushed and let out a small whimper, causing him to retract his claw.

"Sorry…so that's what those are for. I just thought it was a trend to get a tattoo on your ass." Twilight sighed in relief as the gryphon backed away from her.

"As much as I wish that was even a smidge true, these marks define our entire life. Although it doesn't entail exactly what you do with that talent. It is up to the individual what path they want to walk."

"Well, at least there is a small amount of freedom to it I guess." Twilight once again looked the gryphon up and down for some unaccountable time that day again.

"Now I have a question for you. Just how is it that you walk like a biped without any trouble. I know that its easier, given your catlike lower body, but why do you prefer it?"

"It gives me better maneuverability and allows me to use my full arsenal when I fight." He lowered his claws to the two weapons that rested in the black holster around his waist, housing two long weapons she had never seen before.

"So what exactly are those? I've only seen swords used for combat, but nothing like those two." The gryphon pulled both of his weapons from their holsters and held them out for her to see. They were almost exact twins of one another. The one in his right claw was a pure white with some kind of revolving mechanism in the middle of it. At the back of it was some kind of hammer looking thing and what also looked like a trigger that the gryphon had a talon on. The grip that his claw held looked like some kind of curved horn, causing her to gulp a little in fear. At the end was what looked like a hollowed out piece of the barrel that connected the weapon. She saw what looked like a small stream of blue that gently floated in some kind of breeze within. At the very end was a hole that was almost pitch black when she looked down it. She moved her gaze to the other weapon that was a shining gold. The grip on this weapon was more straight like a unicorn horn, causing her to sweat a little at what that thought might entail. The hollowed out part of this weapon had a small stream of a dark purple substance floating within it. At the end of this weapon was what looked like some kind of pumping mechanism. Both looked to measure about thirteen inches form the grip to the end of the barrel. The gryphon pulled them away and holstered them once more, leaving the unicorn in a small state of awe.

"These weapons were crafted personally for me with material I had gathered in my travels. They are very powerful tools that are not to be taken lightly or be handled by some novice."

"I would ask you to demonstrate for me, but I don't want to put anyone in danger while I'm here. Do you think I could get one when we aren't surrounded by civilians?"

"I'll think about it, the last thing I want to do is piss off the princess." Twilight just smirked at that.

"No need to worry. If she gives you any grief I'll just tell her it was an experiment and you should get off without any trouble. It may upset her, but it's not everyday we see items like this. I won't deny I'm a bit of the nerdy type, so I like to examine new things that peak my interest." The gryphon chuckled a little as he imagined the unicorn before him in black rimmed glasses and a bowtie.

"Knowledge is not something you should be ashamed of anyways. The more you know about a situation, the better you can plan for it. Never let someone shun you for knowing more than others. Learning can save lives, especially your own." She actually let a genuine smile grace her lips at his words.

"At least someone thinks that. Everyone complains about how I spend all of my time in the library studying. I know that it is rather unhealthy, but there really isn't much that interests me in Canterlot anymore. It was much different when I was younger and the mirth just wore off after time. I'm kind of glad to be out of the palace and somewhere new, but I also wasn't too fond of the idea of making friends. You're probably the only one I'd be interested in gaining any kind of friendship with and since you also find the idea stupid there aren't many others that interest me." The gryphon ruffled his wings and tweaked a few feathers back to their natural position. Twilight thought she saw something strapped to the inside of his wings and behind his shoulders, but decided to keep it to herself.

"I don't know, maybe I'll give friends a try while I'm here. So how about this, we can be each other's first friend here. Since we're both not intolerable like most of the equines here we'll get along better…hopefully." The gryphon held out an open claw to the unicorn mare. "So how about it, narwhal?" Twilight pouted when she heard the name that he had addressed her with when they first met.

"Aren't friends not supposed to insult one another?"

"On the contrary, some of the best friendships are those between individuals that can insult one another and still know it is nothing but a harmless joke. Just know that there are some that won't be the same as me, so just be careful with what you say." Twilight put a hoof in his claw and shook it.

"Gotcha, birdbrain." The gryphon chuckled as he let go of her hoof and proceeded to tousle her mane.

"Now you're getting it! Now come on, we have one more day of preparation after this and we should get you settled in." With that said he turned around and they both continued walking through the town. With everything done that they were initially there to do taken care of there were no other hiccups while they were walking. They passed the time with a little small talk here and there, arriving where they were going within thirty minutes. Twilight examined the building, very confused when they came up on the tree that was also made into a residence. The door was a light green to match the leaves on the tree itself. It also looked as if the door split into two sections. Next to the door was a small brown sign with a picture of a book, signaling that this was some kind of library. There were windows all over the tree giving a view of about everything there was in the small town. At the very top was what looked like a balcony with a telescope for late night star gazing. All in all, she was rather impressed with how the building looked. When she got closer to the door she notice something strange about it.

"Was this building in disrepair?" The gryphon shook his head and pushed the door open.

"No, I just repainted a little. It was an old building and needed it, but other than that I haven't found anything wrong with the building itself." They both entered the building to find that all of the lights were off. The gryphon just ran a claw down his face. "I really hope this party isn't for me Pinkamena, or I am going to be very upset." Twilight was about to ask him what he was talking about before the lights flicked back on and the sound of screaming ponies caused her to jump. Pinkie Pie was up in their face before the lights were even on, a splitting smile stretched across her face.

"Don't you worry my gryphon friend, cause this party is for Twilight since she didn't ban me from throwing her one like you did meanie!" Said gryphon just rolled his eyes and pushed past the pink fiend, making his way to a set of stairs that led farther up into the library. Twilight moved to follow him, but was stopped when Pinkie wrapped a hoof around her and dragged her into the sea of ponies. "Now don't let that gryphon ruin your party mood. He's been broody every since he got here and that isn't a habit you should pick up. Now let's party!" Twilight let her ears droop as she saw no way of getting out of this. She let the party mare lead her to all of her festivities without a fight, not like it would have done anything.

The gryphon had been sitting upstairs for the past hour and a half, waiting to see of Twilight could ever escape that mare's clutches. His answer was given to him in the sound of a loud pop as papers were thrown about the room when the unicorn mare phased into existence out of nowhere. The gryphon looked up from cleaning his weapon to see the mare walking over to the bed before falling onto it in exhaustion. "Welcome to Ponyville my friend. A living hell to those who want any privacy." Twilight just let out an exasperated moan that was muffled by the covers she buried her face in. "Luckily that should be the only party you'll have to deal with for a while. I've only seen them thrown for those that are new in town and heard she only throws them for her birthday and a few others. If anything just do what I did and make a bet with her that you can't lose at and that you won't have a party unless she beats you." Twilight repositioned herself on the bed so that she was in a lying position that allowed her to talk to her guest.

"It might just have to come to that, cause I couldn't do more of those if my life depended on it. I've been to a few parties here and there, but that is just hectic." The gryphon slipped the weapon he was working on back into its holster before leaning his back against the wall.

"Come now, you can be a little more friendly. I'm sure there's a reason your princess told you to do so." Twilight just snorted and levitated Spike over to a small basket that was stuffed with fluffy pillows and set a blanket over his sleeping form. "As your bestest friend in town, I suggest at least giving it a try. You never know, you might like a few of the townsfolk." Twilight glared at the gryphon as he was trying to hold back his laughter. She sighed in defeat and levitated some saddlebags she had been carrying around and set them on the floor before pulling a book from one of the bags.

"I guess it couldn't hurt. Knowing how deceptive the princess can be sometimes, there has to be a reason for it." The gryphon didn't say a word as he examined the dusty blank tome that she pulled up to her. "So let me ask you something, just why did the princess send you to Ponyville and why did she tell you about me?" The feathered beast picked up an apple he had taken from one of the party tables downstairs and took a bite out of it.

"There wasn't much that she told me, which I'm sure she kept you in the dark as well. The most she told me was that you were right and that you knew what to do." Twilight just let out a 'hmph' as she continued to read her book. "Wow, not even an bit of surprise from you. From all of the jobs I've done in the past, the client would be freaking out with something as ominous as that."

"Nah, as much as I don't like to toot my own horn, I already kind of guessed that I was right. There were too many signs pointing to the fact that this was going to happen. The only clue I have gotten that gives any hints to stopping what is coming is something called the Elements of Harmony. They are supposedly some ancient artifacts created by Celestia and her sister Luna, who I have never heard of. I tried doing some research on her, but it seems any history books pertaining information have been either wiped from existence or hidden away from the world. So with all that said, I'm guessing she sent you here to help me find them."

"Not really, to be honest. She seemed really confident in your ability to figure that part out by yourself. She just hired me as some kind of extra muscle for if anything goes wrong or gets in your way and that something needs a bit of physical attention. Other than that, I am just here to lend you some assistance should you need it. Just count gaining a friend as a bit of a bonus on the side." Twilight didn't say anything as she just flipped through another page. They both sat in silence for quite a while, just letting each other enjoy their own personal silence. It wasn't until something came crashing through the window that the gryphon had left open that they were interrupted. A very familiar cyan mare fell like a slip of paper as she peeled from the wall she had plowed into. The gryphon had one of his weapons already pointed at the point of impact before the mare hade even entered the home. He kept the weapon at the ready, but used his other claw to run through his feathered head. "Mind telling me why you came crashing through our house?" Twilight blushed a little and was about to question the sentence before the brash Pegasus got up in the gryphon's face.

"What are you talking about, huh? What's this about some secret plan you two are working on?" The gryphon narrowed his eyes at the mare, causing her to flinch back a little in fear. He took a step forward and she flapped backwards. He kept doing that until she was up against the wall before he shoved the barrel of his weapon right under her chin, the weapon turned sideways so that she could visibly see his talon twitching at the trigger.

"Since I wasn't given the okay to do as I please with those I disagree with, you will be let off with a warning. If this were any other situation, as a mercenary I would have to repaint my wall. On the plus side, I'd get a new rug." Her eyes shrunk in fear and when he pulled the weapon out from under her his eyes almost didn't track her as she bolted down the stairs. The gryphon spun his weapon around one of his talons as he watched were she disappeared to, as if challenging her to try her luck again. When he knew she wasn't coming back he holstered it and sat back down against the wall, pulling his hood up over his head as if he were going to sleep.

"So what did you mean when you said our house?" He looked up at her, his eyes slightly glowing from under the shadow of the fabric.

"Celestia told me that you and I will be sharing a house for the time being until the job is done. For all it's worth, I don't move around when I sleep." That lit up a fire in Twilight's face as she dropped the book from loss of concentration and began to stutter. The gryphon looked at her with a raised brow that she couldn't see, wondering just what her deal was. "Is there a problem? Will this be…the first time you've shared a bed with a male?" She didn't say anything and instead opted to look anywhere but at or near him. He just sighed as he knew just what she was thinking. "Listen," That caused her to focus her attention on him once more. "If it will make you feel better you can sleep under the covers and I can sleep above them. That way neither of us will be touching our physical bodies against one another. I know it doesn't sound like the best thing, and I would lie on the floor if it made you feel better, but this is a tree and I don't believe I could make it comfortable no matter how hard I tried. I would go get a cloud to make my own bed, but the town is very strict about anyone taking their weather supplies without permission. So no matter what you want to think, you're a bit screwed in this situation." She just sighed in frustration as she couldn't find any other way around the awkward, well for her, situation.

'"I guess I have no other choice. Just…try to give me some slack. I don't really do things with males and I have my reason for that. If you can give me a bit of patience then this can work out just fine." The gryphon just looked at her like she had just grown two heads.

"I'm not saying to make love to me, just share a bed for a couple of days." That got him an old tome to the face, toppling over as the large book bounced off his head.

"That right there is what I'm talking about. Keep saying things like that and your ass will be sleeping outside." The gryphon just laughed as he sat back up, rubbing his now exposed face.

"I don't think your teacher would approve of such a mouth on her star student." Twilight just glared at him, her horn glowing in a dangerous gesture.

"I'm not some kind of noble with a pole up my tail end. This world is a war of life and death. They hardly know that and think everything should be just as perfect as they." Twilight was surprised for a moment before smirking down the barrel in her face, her horn never dying down. The gryphon gave her a smirk when he noticed her spunk. He backed up and holstered his weapon once more.

"I like you kid, you are a lot more open minded then the rest of these town ponies. Peace doesn't reign everywhere you go, as I'm sure you know from reading."

"Hey, I'm not some kid!" The gryphon just knocked a talon against his cranium.

"I meant that mentally in a metaphorical way. You have yet to experience true conflict and death like I have. This is probably the easiest job when you look form the outside in, but there has to be more to it than that. I don't think Celestia would hire someone like me if it were that easy."

"That reminds me, I still don't know your name. I don't think anyone in this town that has talked to does."

"I like that, I hate those ponies that use words such as anypony. Those are very ignorant words. My name is Balthym."

"Balthym?"

"No, Balthym. Say it with me, Bal-thyme." Twilight just gave him a rather deadpan look. Balthym leaned forward and twiddled one of the straps of his holster. "Just keep that name to yourself, there are few that know of it outside of work and I'd like to keep it that way." Twilight didn't seem to answer him, but looked as if she was repeating his name over and over again to herself. After a few seconds her eyes widened in realization.

"I know that name! I've heard that name around a few bars in Canterlot and have even seen personal requests on some of the Work Boards that ponies post jobs that require doing rather less than…pleasant things. How did Celestia even get a hold of you?" Balthym just crossed his arms and slumped back, starring at the ceiling.

"Yeah, let's just say I tend to go for a higher paying job first to get some money to pay for supplies for the rest. It seemed like she had done her homework and knew that and put up the highest paying job on the board and I fell into her trap. There wasn't much I could do from there since she is the princess. Luckily she is paying what she posted so I can't complain." Twilight snickered when she heard of his predicament.

"Yeah, that sounds like her. So much time in politics can turn you into one deceptive monster. I can tell you right now though, this will probably be the easiest pay you've made so far. I've snuck a few scrolls from Celestia's personal collection and found out that these Elements of Harmony have defeated much more powerful creatures than a mare that has been locked away on a rock for so long without any form of magical practice to keep her up to date. Your services will probably not be needed, but I am actually glad to have some extra firepower especially from someone with experience in combat." Balthym opened his beak to say something, but instead pulled both his weapons from his holster and aimed it at a familiar blue Pegasus and a not so familiar farmer. AppleJack stepped forward with a look of anger on her face, but seemed rather cautious of the objects the gryphon had pointed at her.

"Okay, what the hay is all of this about a threat to Rainbow Dash and something about dirty work?" Balthym didn't even bother lowering his weapons as he eyed the two mares.

"It is none of you business farm girl. The Pegasus was listening in on a conversation that she shouldn't have heard and she got what she deserved. Just be lucky I let her live." That seemed to strike a cord inside the earth pony as she stepped forward, her nostrils flaring.

"You want to repeat that again partner." Balthym holster his white weapon and brought his gold one into both claws, pumping it. He then set it at his side, the barrel pointed at AppleJack.

"You have…five seconds." AppleJack seemed to flinch and step back, but soon hardened her glare and moved even closer. Twilight and Rainbow Dash were eyeing the two back and forth in a bit of fear. Both not very keen on seeing the outcome of this little argument. "Five." The purple light in the hollowed chamber began to glow brighter. AppleJack took another step forward. "Four." The beam began to move in a wave formation, stopping the mare as she eyed it with a hint of fear. "Three." The beam began to sporadically bounce within the chamber, fighting to get out of its prison. "Two." AppleJack got right in front of him and reared up to attack him. "One." The beam turned solid and stationary and before the farm pony knew what happened she was sent flying backwards as a deafening blast roared throughout the building. AppleJack was sent flying backwards and slammed into the wall above the stairs before sliding off the wall and tumbling down the stairs. Rainbow Dash recovered quickly and rushed to her friends side to make sure she wasn't seriously hurt. Balthym moved over to the window with weapon in claw, watching as the two flew off towards the farm. He just sighed as he put up his weapon before going over to the bed and flopping down next to Twilight. Said mare gave him an incredulous stare as he laid splayed out on the bed. Balthym shivered as he could just feel the stare boring into his body. "Come now honey, just give me a chance and I can show you a good time." Her horn lit up and Balthym felt something gently push him. "Oh come on." He was pushed to the edge of the bed, a pleading look in his eyes. "Don't do this to me girl. I can be good, I promise!" Twilight gave him a dark grin as he was finally pushed of the bed with a loud thud as he hit the floor. Balthym picked himself off the floor and glared at the unicorn who was giving him the most innocent gsmile she could muster without laughing. "I'd be careful if I were you or we may wake up in an awkward position." The smile soon turned into a disgruntled frown and a blush. While she was flustered he just laid back down on the be and stretched out.

"So, may I ask just what it was you did to AppleJack?" Balthym just sighed as he knew she was going to ask, but he was really hoping she wouldn't.

"Those weapons that I have are more identifiable as guns. They fire projectiles from their barrel that can be very lethal. What I used on the farm pony was what is known as a shotgun, a weapon that can discharge a large round that can devastate the body of whoever gets hit. I hit her with a non lethal round, but you saw just how bad even that was. She won't be critically injured, but she will be feeling it in the morning." They both went silent and nothing seemed to be disturbing the house any longer. "Looks like they finally finished their party."

"About time to, I would be forcing a lot of ponies out of here if it was still going on by now." Balthym looked to the window an noticed that it had gotten very dark in what felt like a short amount of time. He was taken out of his thought as something shifted under him. He craned his head to the side and saw the back of Twilight who had gotten under the bed covers. He shrugged and set his claws behind his head and closed his eyes, ready to let sleep take his mind.

"What is it like to be a mercenary?" He looked over at the unicorn and found that she hadn't turned to face him. He just closed his eyes again before answering.

"It is rather lonely, working alone. This is probably one of the first times I've ever interacted with citizens while working and it feels rather strange. I can't say I enjoy it, but I'm sure it could be much worse." She didn't say anything so he guessed that she was content with the answer, so he just rested his mind and finally fell asleep.

Later that night Balthym awoke to a quiet home, only the shallow breathing of the sleeping pony next to him the only sound he could pick up. He slid out of bed and check himself over to make sure he was well armed and none of his weapons had shifted out of place. When he was sure everything was in order he walked over to one of the many bookcases that lined the room and pulled a book from the shelf. Opening it he found just what he had been told would be in the book. The middle of the tome was cut out to hold a simple medallion that was in the shape of a sun. He picked it up and examined small object. He was probably being paranoid, but he had dealt with some weird situations when it came to the side effects of magic. He took the medallion and made his way down to the main floor of the library as not to disturb his guests. When he was downstairs he gripped the medallion tightly, causing it to slightly crack. With a little more pressure the medallion shattered and blinded him with a flash of light. Balthym blinked the white hot dots out of his vision as he tried to figure out where he was. When his vision finally came back he noticed that he was in an all too familiar throne room. What was noticeably different were all the guards that had him trapped within a circle. Most of them were earth ponies but a few of them were unicorns that had their horns lit up. Balthym studied the guards as he slowly lifted his claws in a sign of surrender. One of the earth ponies stepped forward, a victorious smirk on his muzzle. "Looks like we made a fool of you this time." Balthym looked up at the throne to find Celestia sending them a boring stare that screamed 'how stupid are you'. Balthym ruffled his wings and a small sound of metal on metal echoed throughout the room. Some of the guards noticed a small metal ring fall from under the gryphon's wing. Some of the guards got down into a battle stance while the guard that spoke first inched closer to him. Without warning Balthym's claws shot up to his hood and pulled it over his head and threw his wings up. Before anything could be said a loud explosion and a flash of light sent the entire room into a frenzy. "Unicorns fire!" Sounds of spells being cast one after another were the only sounds in the room for a few minutes. As the effects of the blinding light wore off a few of the guards finally recovered enough to notice that they were the last few standing. The number forty was quickly reduced to five in such a short amount of time. The guards jumped at the sound of a high whistle and looked around to find the gryphon leaning against the throne room door. The last three earth ponies, and two unicorns, were about to jump into action once more before the sound of clopping hooves stopped them in their tracks.

"That is quite enough soldiers, I'd rather you not tarnish the name of the Solar Guard anymore than you already have." They seemed to physically flinch at that, not expecting such backlash from protecting their princess. Once she was done berating her soldiers she turned her attention to the mercenary that had caused said guards such grief. "I apologize for the inconvenience that my soldiers burdened you with. It seems that the word of what happened last week became a word of gossip and they were getting ready for today. Now while I am glad that you decided to show up, surprising given how much you loathed the idea, but was it really necessary to bring my student with you?" Balthym was confused by that last question, which was answered when he heard someone yawn right next to him.

"Yo." He almost face-clawed when he heard the purple unicorn give them a half-assed greeting that was almost unintelligible since she spoke in the middle of her yawn. Twilight rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as her gaze moved from her teacher to her friend. "Well, at least that little power display was worth waking up at almost three o'clock in the morning." He flicked her on the horn, causing her to blush and become more aware for a moment before her eyes became tired again.

"How exactly did you get here? I made sure I was alone before I teleported."

"I tagged you with a beacon spell when I pushed you off the bed. I made sure it took me with you should something happen that would either abruptly teleport you or took you a certain distance away from the library. Call me paranoid, but I'd feel kind of bad should my first friend just up and died on me the first day." She gave him a small smile that was pretty adorable with how tired she looked. He chuckled as he turned his attention back to Celestia.

"Either she developed this kind of thought process herself or you are really good a breeding some scary mercenaries." Celestia had one of her own smiles as she gave a quick glance to her student.

"Twilight has always been a very mature thinker, despite her age. Despite what most might think, she is only childish when the situation doesn't need a clear mind."

"Knowing that she also has training from the almighty Celestia, I'd be afraid to be anywhere that isn't her side."

"Well, while I would love to talk about my star pupil we have other pressing matters. If you would Twilight, could you please give us some privacy." Twilight nodded and Celestia's horn lit up and soon it was just the gryphon and princess. After that the princess shifted into a much more serious position. "Now, how are the candidates looking. I'm positive they should have shown some potential after your week long stay." Balthym pushed himself off of the door, taking a few steps closer to Celestia.

"Yes and they are the exact ponies you called. They all show the precise characteristics needed for your artifacts. Although it will be very hard for Twilight to form a working relationship with them because all of them are highly immature and horrid individuals to be around. Two of them are way too hot headed for their own good, one can't keep her attention on one task to save her life, one is a complete pussy, and one is nothing but a judgmental bitch."

"The flaws are something I can understand, as no single pony is the picture of perfection, even me. As for the friend problem, that won't be a problem. Such artifacts of power would not be reliant on such feelings. They can be used without initial friendship, but the closer the individuals that wield them, the more powerful they are. Each one plays off the cooperation of the other, making them stronger. Luckily the danger that rears its ugly head is very weak after an elongated time of imprisonment. This is more of a test than anything and will need your full cooperation during the entire ordeal. From here on I will allow you to handle anything the way you see fit. I only ask that you not seriously harm my subjects if it can be avoided. Your track record has painted you as someone who does not accept failure, save the few mistakes that you made when you first began you profession. I have to say that I was not expecting to hire a mercenary to help, but when word traveled around town that you had showed up in public I had to take the opportunity to get your help." Balthym gave a deep bow to the celestial horse.

"I'm happy to assist. I would also like to inform you that if this job is a success that I will be staying for a while to complete more jobs. Twilight informed me that there have been many requests for my personal help since I have appeared in the vicinity. If that is true then I have a chance to make some quick cash that will help me supply myself and help me when I go back to traveling."

"I have no quarrels with that decision. I would honestly be interested in how you live your day to day life. There are very few mercenaries these days and I am positive that you will stir things up here for the better. This city becomes boring rather quickly and the occupants are very uptight. Don't expect acceptance during your time here though."

"I wouldn't have it any other way. Your student is the only person I have had any progress with getting along with, not that I'm complaining." Celestia nodded in understanding.

"That is no surprise, given what kind of individual you are. It only makes since that you get along with her, but there is one thing I am curious about." Celestia gave him one of her devious smiles. "Just what did she mean when she said she pushed you out of the bed?"

"We are sharing the bed since there is only one in the entire building and I refuse to sleep on a floor that hard. Nothing explicit came from it and she only pushed me off when I suggested something perverted. I was asking for what I got."

"A shame, I think it would do her some good to find someone she could have relations with. She has had some past…issues with that, but I'm sure there is someone who can help her with that."

"Well don't cross your…hooves? I have not found much of an interest in a love life and I'm pretty sure one won't start now. And I'm pretty sure your student would feel the same way seeing as how she hardly knows me."

"You'd be surprised. Anyways, I grow weary and I'm positive I have taken up more than enough of your time. I thank you again for your cooperation and wish you a safe return from your mission."

"I will not disappoint you princess." With another bow Celestia's horn lit up and Balthym found himself back in the bed at the library. The only difference was that he now had some weight on top of him. When he looked down he found that Celestia had put him underneath Twilight, who was now cuddling into his chest. There wasn't much he could do about it that wouldn't end in waking her up, so he just shrugged lightly and wrapped a wing around them as a blanket. He was pretty sure that he would pay dearly for this, but he really had no choice in the matter.

Twilight slowly stirred in her sleep, her eyes slightly cracking open from the sun assaulting her through the window. The first thing she noticed as feeling returned to her body was the unnatural softness that was beneath her. The second thing she noticed was the large wing that was wrapped around her form. Before she could even think about any rational side of the situation she began to lightly hyperventilate. A small part of her knew that he said he wouldn't try anything, but her mind wasn't fully awake and it went to the worst possible scenario. Her breathing had gotten progressively louder and her horn lit up in her frantic thought. She was on the brink overreacting and destroying the entire room in fear before something took hold of her horn. "Twilight, I'm going to have to ask that you calm down. Take deep breaths and slowly get out of bed without doing anything irrational. I gave you my word that nothing illicit would happen while we shared this bed. This reaction would be understandable should it be someone that you don't even know the name of. Now remember, we were with Celestia and you were sent back here and I stayed behind. Now how could we have done anything if I were somewhere else entirely?" As he was talking she had slowly lifted herself off of his body. She was slowly remembering everything he was telling her and it was making more sense than what she had come up with in her sporadic thought. Balthym lifted himself into a sitting position and corrected a few of the feathers the unicorn had shifted. Without saying anything he also took the blanket below him and threw it over his lower body. He looked over to find that Twilight was slowly calming herself, gyrating her hooves on her temples.

"I thank you for not blowing up on me and explaining the situation. I'm sure you know that waking up in a bed atop someone else is a little unsettling and can leave the wrong implications in your thought. Now that I think about it with a clear head, it was probably Celestia that put us in that situation. She has been the bane of my social life for quite some time and takes any chance to spite me in such ways." Balthym lifted his left wing up before sliding out what looked like a small metal canister that had suffered damage from what could be considered an explosion. He set it on a desk next to the bed and threw the covers back off of him, setting his paws on the ground and lifting himself up before walking over to a corner where a bag was set against the wall. Kneeling down he rummaged through it for a few seconds before pulling out a canister that looked identical to the destroyed one he had set down on the desk. Balthym lifted his left wing once more before sliding the canister into a strap that held three other canisters in separate sleeves. Once the canister was secured in place he put his wing down and turned back to Twilight who had been watching him with curiosity. He then pulled out the gold shotgun before pulling on some lever under the trigger that seemed to let out a hiss before he popped it back in place. He slid it back in its holster and put a claw on his hip, putting his full attention on the unicorn.

"So now that we have everything sorted out, is there anything in particular you would like to do today? I don't feel like staying cramped up in this house all day and I'm pretty sure I would regret inviting you back to bed." The glare that he had gotten from her proved that notion to be correct. "So do you have anything in mind?" She put a hoof to her chin, seemingly in thought about her options.

"I guess we can go check out the town a little more. I wouldn't mind stopping somewhere to get something to eat first seeing as how I haven't had the chance to stock up on anything to make any meals." Twilight walked over to the basket that the dragon was sleeping in before nudging Spike awake. "Come on Spike, we're going to go do a bit of exploring today." The dragon stretched his body out before rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Haha, who are you and what have you done with Twilight." Said unicorn just rolled her eyes before levitating the baby dragon onto the floor into a standing position.

"Look, you're the one that told me I needed to get out and socialize more. Why is it that when I actually decide to do it that you find it unbelievable?"

"Because I've been trying for years and it takes getting put into an unfamiliar area and meeting a random gryphon to do it. Excuse me for being at least a little skeptical of it."

"I guess I can give you that one. Anyways, get whatever you will be needing today and let's get out of this stuffy house. It looks nice outside and I'd like to be in the cool morning weather for a bit before it gets hot." Spike gave one last stretch before letting his body sag bag down.

"Well then, lets go. It feels good to get out more often and I'm not about to wait around so you can change your mind at the last minute." With that Spike and Twilight made their way downstairs, Balthym in tow. As they stepped outside Balthym closed the door and locked it before catching up to his companions. They walked through town for a few minutes, catching stares that were mostly focused on the gryphon since such a species was not common in town. Balthym had been leading them to a building that he knew would be open since it was one of the few that opened early for breakfast. The building they ended up standing in front of was reminiscent of a gingerbread house. The walls looked like a regular home and the roof was made of gingerbread, icing drooling over the sides. A tower of what looked like two cupcakes stacked on one another rose from the roof, the top cupcake having candles that looked to be lit. All in all, it looked to be a pretty strange building. They stepped up the stairs before pushing open the door, leading them to be basked in the smells of freshly baked goods. They all walked in and took a seat at one of the vacant tables, waiting for someone to serve them.

"So Twilight, I never asked but why was it that you were sent to this town?" She let out an annoyed sigh as she was probably remembering the reason.

"Aside from the whole making friends ordeal, I was sent here to make sure everything was in order for the Summer Sun Celebration. But from what you told me it was all a rouse to make sure that I wouldn't worry about the prophecy. Now I'm just patiently waiting for all of the pieces to fall into place. I hope that you will be there to help me along?" Balthym gave her an assuring nod.

"Indeed, it is what I have been paid to do. I am here to assist you anywhere you need it. Just know that I am not a pacifist like your pony counterparts. You will see things that will more than likely haunt you and any others that join us." Twilight seemed to shrink back at that. She had never been properly introduced to violence and it would be a new experience entirely. She was hoping that she wouldn't have to do it herself. She was about to continue the conversation, but a pink menace popped up beside their table with a pad and pencil in her hooves…somehow. Pinkie had a very unnervingly happy smile on her muzzle, those big eyes enamored by her customers.

"Hiya, how can I help you today?" Twilight seemed to flinch at how happy and ear piercing her greeting was. That didn't seem to effect the pink pony as she just seemed to shift uncomfortably closer to the group.

"Yes, could I get two soft baked cookies and a water please?" Twilight was frightened as Pinkie stared at her and seemed to write her order without even seeing what was being written. Luckily she turned on the gryphon before she bore a hole in Twilight's forehead.

"And what about you sir?" When she let that question slip out she seemed to be twitching, waiting for his answer.

"Nothing for me, thank you." Pinkie seemed to freeze for a moment, her eye twitching before she shot off towards the counter. Twilight watched the mare run off with a bit of worry.

"What is up with her?"

"I don't know, she was probably hoping for an open chance to prank me. To bad I'm a carnivore and don't eat the same food as ponies. Your sweets and more vegetarian diet would make me sick and wouldn't allow me to be at full strength. I'll probably go hunting in the forest later."

"Do you mind if I come with you when you do. I've always had a small inkling of interest in carnivores and we're too scared to study them in full. I know that Spike is one, but I can't help him in that department since I'm an herbivore."

"I don't care as long as you have a strong stomach and won't scare off prey. I could possibly help the dragon." She gave him a soft smile.

"Thank you, that'll help me and him out a lot." He just shrugged in conformation as a plate of cookies and a glass of water were placed on the table by a pink blur that rushed around to many of the other tables that held customers. They went silent from there as Twilight enjoyed her food.

Once they had finished with breakfast and paid for the food they left the establishment and began their trek around town. Twilight and Spike seemed to look around in wide eyed wonder while Balthym didn't seem to care as he had been there for some time. The only thing that grabbed his attention was when he heard a familiar voice chiming out in the town. He broke off from his group and walked over to a small booth that had a well known farm pony sitting behind it. Before she could notice him he walked up and tapped a talon on the wood of the booth. "How much for two apples?" AppleJack turned around before freezing when she saw her customer. Before she could say anything he put a talon to his beak, signaling her to not speak. "Just give me my answer and I'll be out of your hair faster."

"Four bits." Balthym said nothing as he placed the gold pieces on the counter and AppleJack put the apples next to them. He took his apples and walked off, not even giving her a second glance. When he came back he found the two he had left behind in front of, in his opinion, an ugly ass building. They had somehow stumbled onto the Carousel Boutique, a clothing store home to one stereotypical white girl. It was two stories high made up of blue and pink walls and roofs that had varying patterns on each section with a flag at the top. On the second floor were actual metal ponies that help solidify the name Carousel. Despite all of the gore and violence Balthym had been involved in, he was glad he hadn't eaten that morning.

"Here Spike." Spike had almost missed the apple that had been thrown at him. He examined the fruit in surprise, not sure why he gave it to him. "Go ahead and eat up. I know there is no way you like eating what the ponies do and I also know it isn't healthy. Fruits on the other hand provide nutrients your body needs, so they are safe." The dragon just shrugged and joined the gryphon in eating the fruit. "So why exactly are we in front of this horrid building?" Twilight just casted a disgruntled look to Spike.

"Because someone said they had to see the goddess that put the rest to shame. AKA this macho man wanted to try and hit on that white mare he became infatuated with yesterday."

"Well, I hope you have the grandest of times with that pipe dream. I, on the other hand, am not stepping foot in that building. I quickly developed some bad blood with that mare and I don't want to see hide nor hair of her." Twilight knelt down to eye level with the love-struck dragon. Balthym didn't hear what she said to him as he walked away from the building, not wanting to catch the attention of the marshmallow. As he went his own way he thought he heard the sound of a door closing and then hooves clopping against the ground. He stopped and looked to his side to find Twilight looking up to him with a smile. He shrugged and kept walking, changing his destination to the forest on the outskirts of the village. "So narwhal, what do you know of the forest that sits outside this boring town?"

"Not much, just that it was determined to be fairly dangerous. Another rumor was that the forest takes care of itself without the need of any ponies to monitor weather and plant growth."

"Indeed, but it is also known for its abundance of mythical creatures. I have seen things from chimeras to feral minotaur. The foliage there is just about as deadly as the creatures. Every moment you are in there it requires you to pay attention to your surroundings at all times. It is not an area that someone unexperienced to true combat should venture, so." Without warning Balthym's wings shot open and he jumped into the air before swooping back down and scooping the unicorn up in his claws. She squirmed in his grasp for a moment before calming down when she knew that the gryphon had a secure grip on her. When she got over the initial shock and fear of the sudden airtime she looked around the scene from her new vantage point. The twisted forms of the trees below was really the only thing she could see, as the forest had no signs of clearings or gaps in the foliage. Twilight was surprised once more when she was jerked up and then down as they began to quickly descend into the forest below. They touched down as quickly as they ascended and as soon as she had her hooves on the ground she notice that they were in front of some kind of house carved into one of the trees. She wasn't able to ask questions as Balthym walked up to the house's door and knocked three times. It only took a few seconds before his knocks were answered in the form of a zebra. The first thing Twilight noticed was how much more exotic the zebra looked. She had a large dark grey and white mane and a dark grey and light grey tail. On her ears were large gold earrings that matched the golden hoops that were wrapped around her neck and right front leg. She had multiple stripes on her body, mostly on each leg and one long one on her back that stretched out from left to her right all the way down to her flank. Lastly her hooves were visibly more black and her cutie mark was a swirl with small arrows lining one side. She looked at the feathered predator with a welcoming smile before moving to the side and waving them into her home. Balthym walked in without a second thought while Twilight stuttered for a moment before following. Walking in she noticed a large cauldron in the middle of the room, said room walls being lined by various masks of different shapes, colors and sizes. Twilight watched as Balthym sat down and leaned against a wall of the tree which she decided to join him in, not really knowing what else to do. When they were comfortable the zebra walked over to her cauldron and began to stir, presumably continuing whatever they had interrupted with their visit. All three were silent as the zebra stirred her brew while Balthym cleaned one of his guns and Twilight, well she was awkwardly sitting there with nothing to really do. Balthym raised his weapon up with one eye closed, pointing it at the zebra and seemingly lining her in his sights. "So Zecora, have you had any other problems with any animals coming too close to your home lately." The now named Zecora stopped stirring and removed her spoon from the pot before putting a lid on it.

"Many have been reluctant to disturbed me since you have been left to run awry. But there are still a few that seem more than prepared to die. These are also some of the few that have become braver and slowly move closer to town. Meaning that they don't have long before they need to be put down. If you have come here to hunt once more I ask that you keep your eyes sharp on the forest floor. I don't know much about your unicorn friend so make sure she doesn't meet an untimely end." Balthym lowered his gun, looking the zebra in the eyes.

"She can look after herself. I wouldn't have brought her here if it weren't for that. The sound of those ballsy creatures could be a problem though. It looks like my hunt turned into an extermination. Is there anything else I need to know about Zecora?"

"Yes, do not expect to get rid of them all in one sweep as they make their presence very meek. Try to find a way to make the town an alarm so that you can make sure the citizens are delayed any harm. Other than that there is nothing else. Now has anything happened to you yourself?" Balthym just shrugged, holstering his gun.

"Aside from becoming friends with the narwhal here, everything is the same. I will say this is a very odd job on my end. It feels weird not fighting for quite some time. I'm not complaining since a bit of a rest is a nice change of pace, but my trigger finger is becoming itchy."

"Just make sure you clean up the mess for violence is something these ponies will surely detest." Balthym scratched under his chin.

"Yeah, okay mom. It would do these ponies some good to see that the outside world isn't so pretty, but I'm sure Celestia wouldn't take too kindly to that." Balthym stood up and stretched out his body and wings before slouching back down and making his way towards the door. "Thank you again Zecora. I'll make sure to take care of those creatures as soon as I can. Come on narwhal, you're about to get a front row study session on carnivores." At the sound of knowledge Twilight's face lit up and she was behind Balthym and following him out of the house in the blink of an eye. Once they were out and the door was closed the two made their way into the forest. The sounds of the forest left them in silence, not wanting to sacrifice their ability to hear any threats for any small talk. After a few minutes of walking Twilight almost stumbled over her feathered friend when he suddenly stopped. She didn't open her mouth and instead looked over his shoulder to see what he halted their journey for. In front of them was some weird kind of abomination that was a mixture of a chicken and a reptile. Its red eyes seemed to glow even in the daylight and its claws were seen ripping apart its small prey, a now unidentifiable pile of gore. Her attention was stolen from the horrid scene by her gryphon friend when he turned to her, gesturing two talons at his eyes then gesturing at the creature and then giving her the cutthroat gesture across his neck. She nodded in confirmation, knowing exactly what they were dealing with now. Balthym pulled out his shotgun and gave it one pump, letting the gun charge. He slowly opened his wings and dropped into a dashing stance. Before the creature knew what was happening Balthym shot forward with blinding speeds and had his shotgun in its face. With one trigger pull the beast was put down, the forest undisturbed. He looked over to his unicorn companion in surprise to find her horn lit up.

"I figured that it wouldn't do us any good to alert the entire forest to our presence, so I silenced the sound around you. So, that's a Cockatrice? This is the first time I've ever seen one outside of a book." She poked the corpse with one of her hooves. "Not something I would've liked to come face to face with alone…literally." Balthym pulled the lever of his shotgun and released the pressure in the gun before holstering it.

"Yes, and there are only worse creatures the deeper you go. If there is anything in this forest that seems like it won't kill you then kill it because any innocence here is a lie." As if on cue they heard a whimper coming from close by. Twilight looked around trying to find the source of the sound before her eyes fell upon a plant shaking. There was no wind or breeze that they could feel so it was a mystery as to what was making it move. Twilight walked over to the strange plant and gripped it with her magic before pulling it up. What she found next made her heart swell. Connected to the plant was what looked like a root, but it had to big black eyes that barely refracted any light. The mouth of the weird root was opened in star struck wonder as it examined the world around it. But for some reason its face began to crunch up in sadness, leaving to look like it would burst into tears any second. Before she could even try to comfort the strange plant it was obliterated into pieces by a well placed round. The sound of the bullet firing sent all manner of life fleeing that area as it echoed off the trees. "That would be one of those lies. What you were holding there is known as a Mandrake. Once they are pulled out of the ground they will release a scream that will pretty much scramble your brains and possibly cause your head to pop like a balloon." That information caused Twilight to throw the remains of the Mandrake into the underbrush out of fright. "This is what I was talking about when I spoke of experience in combat. You can never hesitate, because every second can give you an advantage or disadvantage. I want you to take this little woodland walk to heart and use this as a stepping stone to understanding true conflict. While I know the sound of it is rather displeasing, it could help you with making more dire decisions that could decide the fate of others. Also know that the best learning experiences are those taught through life experiences and obstacles you face head on." Twilight didn't say anything as she just kept staring off to where she threw the body of the Mandrake. That could have been the end of her life had it not been for Balthym. She wouldn't be able to thank him enough for what he did. Twilight flinched when she felt a claw on her back and looked to see it was Balthym looking at her with some form of worry. She turned back to the pieces of the Mandrake strewn across the ground before lightly shaking her head before replacing her fear with a look of determination. She had chosen to come here with Balthym and he warned her about the repercussions, so there was nothing she could complain about. This is what the world outside truly was; a battle of who gets to survive to see another day. A battle she would not lose. Once she got her bearings they continued on deeper into the forest, looking for something that the gryphon could prey upon. It wasn't long before they came upon something worthy of a meal that was gutting one of its own. It was a large lion that had the tail of a scorpion and the wings of a bat. The amalgamate had its muzzle buried in the carcass of another of its species. Twilight and Balthym watched as it didn't show any sign of it noticing their presence, which was probably thanks to the blood its nose was drenched in. Balthym pulled out the white gun this time and just aimed it at the creature. Twilight watched in awe as the blue beam of energy began to build up and fluctuate like the shotgun, but instead of turning into a solid beam it split and formed into six small spheres. He pulled the hammer back, causing one of the spheres to slowly fade from existence. Balthym slowly bent down and picked up a rock, not putting his gun down in case it heard him beforehand. With his sights trained on the monster he threw the rock towards it. Once the rock left his hand Twilight's horn lit up once more. As soon as the rock touched the ground the amalgamate turned its attention on them before having a beam of energy being fired at it and piercing its head and killing it instantly, no sound but the soft chirping of the birds ignorant to the dastardly deed. When everything was said and done Balthym popped open the revolving chamber on the pistol and let steam hiss out of its confines, causing the unused balls of energy to evaporate. He put up the pistol and pulled out a blade that was sheathed behind the holster, quickly going to work on the corpse and cutting chunks of meat out of it. Twilight watched from a distance with more disgust than intrigue. She had never been in the presence of a carnivore and while the thought was sickening to her she knew they needed it to keep their bodies in peak physical condition. When he was done gathering the meat he wanted he cut off a large piece of the hide and set the meat in it before folding it up like a makeshift bag. "Okay narwhal, we should probably book it before an even large predator smells the blood and comes hauling ass over here." As soon as he said that a roar erupted deeper in the jungle, signaling that bigger game was on its way. Without a word Balthym shot into the air and scooped up Twilight in his bloody claws, the hide clamped tight in his beak. As soon as they got into the air the sound of cracking tree reached their eras as they were pushed out of the way of whatever was skulking that way, giving them a clue to how big the creature they would've had to deal with was. After about ten minutes of flight they reached an area outside of Ponyville with a small clearing and pond. Balthym flew over the pond and dropped Twilight without warning. The lavender unicorn yelled a mouthful of explicit vernacular before inhaling a mouthful of water. Balthym touched down at the edge of the pond, setting down the hide full of meat and then unstrapping his holster and setting it on the ground. He then spread his wings and unbuckled the shoulder straps that had more of his arsenal and set those down with the holster. It wasn't until he was taking his hood off of his head did Twilight emerge from the water, a very pissed expression on her face. He sent her a wide smile that didn't change how she was looking at him at all. He put his claws up in surrender and said nothing as his wings shot out and he took to the skies. He turned in the air to have his body shift into a backflip motion. Twilight watched the gryphon with her magic at the ready in anticipation to blast him out of the sky. What she wasn't expecting was him to wink at her as his wings flapped twice in rapid succession as he balled himself up and shot towards her in a deadly cannonball. Her initial plan was ruined as he impacted the water next to her in a matter of seconds at breakneck speeds, sending her washing away with the waves it created. Balthym reappeared on the water's surface ten seconds later, running his claws through the feathers on his head. He used his wings to propel his body backwards to the water's edge and pressed his back against its wall. He dunked his head underwater once more before bringing it up and using his claws to shake the water from his feathers again. He cracked open his eyes to find Twilight sitting a little ways away to his side, a blush on her face as she kept her sight forward.

"So was there any particular reason that you thought it would be okay to drop me into the water form so high up?" Balthym just shrugged and tweaked a feather on his head.

"Thought it would be funny and it was. Plus I was always told I could make the ladies wet." That got him a hoof in the shoulder. He rubbed the sore area while mumbling something about mares being hard-asses. "I also didn't want to get my weapons wet and blood dries quickly, so I got you in the water before it could mat your fur. I didn't have time to clean my claws before we left the carcass so I got blood on you when I picked you up, plus some from the cut meat dripped onto you to." She went silent after that.

"…Thank you."

"Don't worry about it. Didn't want those ponies freaking out over any possible imaginary injuries. They would also more then likely try to label me the bad guy and say that I did it. Not many of them like me since I'm not the friendliest of fellows."

"Their loss." Nothing was said for a solid thirty minutes as they both basked in the cold water and warm sunlight. It wasn't until the sound of shifting water caused Balthym to crack open one eye to see that Twilight had turned to face him. "Hey Balthym, could you tell me what it's like to be a mercenary?"

"I thought we already went over this last night." The unicorn just shook her head.

"No, I mean about some of the jobs you've done. You only told me the feeling you got as a mercenary. I'd like to hear about what being a mercenary entails. I know there are some that don't share what they do, and I understand if you're the same, but it would be interesting to hear what you could tell me." The whole time she was talking Balthym was fashioning his head feathers into a mimicry of a unicorn horn. He turned to Twilight to see her staring at the 'horn' he had made with an unamused frown.

"Yeah, I'm sure there are a few that I could tell you about. Do you want the more pleasant ones or the less pleasant?"

"Either is fine, it would do me some good to learn about what dangers lurk outside the safe haven of Equestria." And so for the next couple of hours Balthym entranced Twilight in his tales of dark deeds and a few innocent endeavors. She listened intently to every word that came from his beak, her mood ranging from heartbroken to overexcited. They didn't even care about the time that was quickly passing by as the stories kept on rolling. It wasn't until they were interrupted by something moving in the trees around them did everything go silent. Balthym looked to Twilight and held a talon to his beak. Turning around in the water he put his claws on dry land and hoisted himself up and out of the pond.

"It's getting pretty late. We should probably head back into town." He walked over to where he had left his holster and leaned down to pick it up. As soon as his claw got anywhere near his equipment something shot out from the forest at great speeds. He gripped the handle of the dagger behind his pistol, unsheathing it before jumping to the side and throwing and arm out that close lined the assailant. When he felt the weight hit the crook of his arm he folded it over the victims neck before he put the dagger up to their face. "Well Rainbow Dash, are you ever going to learn your lesson before I end up actually killing you?" The Pegasus squirmed in his grasp, not really regarding how dangerous that was with a dagger so close to her.

"Let her go you bully!" Balthym heard something galloping out of the woods and didn't even bother looking at who it was. Instead he threw his wings up and wrapped him and Rainbow Dash in them. What surprised the rainbow Pegasus and whoever was running at them was when he jumped to the side and a small metal cylinder was left rotating as it was falling to the ground. Rainbow looked at the thing in surprise before going blind as it exploded in her face. After the explosion she felt another body slam into her own, sending both her and her attacker into the pond behind them. Balthym didn't even bother checking on the spitting and sputtering pony that was thrown in the lake. Instead he began to put his equipment back on. When he was done and had put his hood up he heard the sound of splashing and looked over to see Twilight finally getting out of the pond. When she looked at him under his hood she saw one of his alighted eyes wink at her before putting up a claw that had two talons touching and forming a circle. The angry blush she had only caused him to chuckle at her predicament rather than entice fear like she was hoping it would. So she just settled for pushing him over with her magic. Afterwards she used more magic to dry herself quicker and walked over to the gryphon lying on the ground. She craned her neck over him and looked into his eyes, he met her gaze with a grin.

"Sometimes I wonder if you truly are a mercenary or just someone using that name to get whatever they want."

"Hey, my jobs usually don't allow me to relax and cut back a bit. This is a blessing and I plan on enjoying every moment of it." Twilight rolled her eyes and picked her featherbrained friend off of the ground and set him upright. Before he could thank her the sound of two more splashes of water signaled that their visitors had finally gotten out of the pond as well. "Well this was definitely something I expected from the Pegasus, but how'd you get roped into it Fluttershy?" The butter pony flinched at the sound of her name while Rainbow shook herself dry before putting on the angriest face she could.

"What's the big idea you jerk?" Balthym blinked in surprise before putting on the best 'you serious bitch' look he could muster up at that tiring second.

"I was protecting myself. You were the one who charged me after all." Rainbow just snorted at that.

"Pfftt, we were just trying to protect one of our own. I saw you reaching for one of those stick things, and if AppleJack was anything to go by, I know exactly what it can do to somepony. You've been nothing but shady since you've come to town and I don't trust you one bit." Balthym just shrugged.

"I didn't expect you to trust me at all when I came here, nor did I care. As for what happened to the farm pony, well she asked for it. Everyone except Fluttershy and Twilight here are the only two that have yet to provoke me or impede themselves. You don't know how to keep to yourself and I gave the farm mare the chance to back out and she decided to attack." Rainbow shot forward in a burst of rage only to be stopped in her tracks in an instants by Twilight's magic. The Pegasus didn't really know what happened, but what she did know was that there were razor sharp talons stretched out to impale her should she have gone any further in her flight. She was pulled over to the lavender mare, still being held in place.

"Rainbow Dash, I thank you for trying to protect me but he has yet to try and harm me and I don't think he will."

"But you saw what he did to AppleJack. Aren't you even a little scared?"

"Of course I am, but again he hasn't shown any ill will towards me. If it makes you feel any better you'll be the first one I'll come to if anything happens." That seemed to settle the brash Pegasus down a little bit, but she didn't seem entirely sure of the gesture.

"Okay Twilight, I trust you." The unicorn smiled before letting Rainbow out of the magic's grasp. "Come on Fluttershy, let's go." She began to walk away with the shy mare in tow, but not before sending a death glare to Balthym. Once they were gone Twilight dropped her smile and let out a tired sigh.

"I didn't think that would actually work. What is up with these mares?"

"You heard her, she doesn't trust me. Have you not noticed all of the stares I get when walking in town? She'll trust you because you're a pony. I'm something none of them have seen before so I'm just some monster."

"I know, I just wish they weren't so ignorant."

"I find it strange though. Why were you so willing to trust me when we first met? I just told you I knew Celestia and we even shared a bed yet you didn't question any of it."

"I don't know really, I just felt like I could. Call it stupid, probably was, but you seemed really trustworthy despite your appearance, the race you are, and what you do. Which is pretty funny because I was more prepared to be your friend than with one of my own species. I just felt that it would be very ignorant to only trust ponies because you're different. We all bleed the same color. All of the differences we all have are very insignificant despite what others say." She looked up when she felt a metal talon on the tip of her horn.

"Don't trust everyone you meet like you have with me. Other than that, keep that mindset. Everyone has skills to offer to you and sometimes they may be different than you in many ways. Always give others time and never push them away because you have differences. That will keep you alive in this world more than you think."

"Geez, what are you? My bodyguard, my friend or my teacher."

"A little of all three." She rolled her eyes as Balthym walked past her and began trekking back towards Ponyville. "Now come on, we don't have much longer before we need to put our serious face on. Maybe we can find one more fun thing to do before then." Twilight stood up and began to follow him, liking the sound of that idea.

Celestia sat alone within her throne room, her meetings with the public finally slowing down. Her horn lit up and covered the large door to the throne room as a small click bounced off the walls of the large room. The ethereal princess of the day removed her crown and set it on the arm of her chair, leaning back and running a hoof through her transparent mane. Looking out the window she saw that the sun was just about ready to be put to rest so that the moon may take its place. That just told her how close the hour of judgement was. Instead of worrying about it she relaxed her body and leaned further into her chair. Freaking out about it now wouldn't help with anything. She had already set all the pieces that she could and she had faith this game would play out in her favor.

"Thy foolish sister, the time of reckoning is near. Soon we shall show thou who is the true princess of this country, nay this world. Night shall rule over your beautiful ponies and the rest of the world for eternity."

Celestia said nothing as the strange presence left her to be alone once more, a small smile gracing her muzzle.

There was nothing but silence in the library as unicorn and gryphon sat in separate chairs in the main lobby. Twilight was reading through her dusty tome that she had brought with her from Canterlot while Balthym was reading some random book he grabbed off the shelves. The only sound that could be heard in the building was the occasional page turn from the two individuals every so often. The only thing that completely broke the silence was the sound of Spike coming down from the top floor. "Hey guys, it's getting close to night. Have you got everything together before we go to the party." Both Balthym and Twilight closed and set their books down before getting up from their seats. Balthym stretched out his body and wings, feeling stiff from sitting for so long.

"So Twilight, you ready for a welcome home party."

"Yeah right, I'm just ready to kick this mare's ass so I can get out of this town." They checked over themselves to make sure that they had everything they needed before finally heading out. When they stepped outside the first thing they noticed were the substantial amount of ponies that were traversing the town that night. Everyone seemed to be in very high spirits and were expressing their happiness through conversing and partying among the streets. Balthym scanned the crowds for anything suspicious, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. From what he had heard this was one of the only nights that everyone enjoyed being awake for. The three of them walked through the crowds not really paying attention to any that tried to converse with them and parted a few groups when they were seen heading their way. They didn't stop as they made their way to the building that was supposed to hold the true party for the Summer Sun Celebration. When they entered they were happy to find the place empty. The inside was pretty bland with the basic wooden floor and light brown walls. The only thing different in the entire room was the one balcony jutting out higher up on one of the walls. Dotting the room were some round tables with chairs set underneath the. Balthym grabbed a seat and leaned back in it as he placed his paws on the table.

"So what exactly does this little celebration entail for the night?" Twilight sat down beside him, not really wanting to get comfortable should something happen.

"You know, it was never really explained to me what meaning it actually has. All I know is that the princess chooses a town to host the Summer Sun Celebration. She then makes a public appearance in that town to personally raise the sun before everyone. That's what happens at them, but what they mean is beyond me." Balthym just looked around the room in boredom.

"Well we should set up before everyone else gets here then. Shall we begin?" Twilight's horn lit up as a dark grin spread across her muzzle.

The building was bustling with almost everyone that lived in town, yet it was still surprisingly easy to maneuver. Balthym just chalked it up to some kind of magic since he had seen weirder phenomenon in the world before. He, Twilight and Spike were all sitting at their own table and assessing the crowds. If there was a time to put an evil revolt into action, it would be at this moment. The fright and confusion that it would cause would be the easiest way to suppress everyone's hopes at once. Twilight didn't seem to show any care as she bobbed her head to some song in her head as she sipped at her drink and Spike just looked around in wonder, probably not use to seeing so many people at once. Balthym looked to the edges of the crowd to find a few Solar Guards here and there to make sure their precious princess wouldn't come to harm. The gryphon stood out of his chair and made his way to the door as the sound of a spoon tapping glass caught everyone's attention. No one even notice his leave, too focused on whoever called the toast. Said mare was a light brown mare that wore some kind of green tie with a white collar. Her mane and tail were grey with darker grey streaks in them. She wore a pair of half rimmed glasses that helped her dark blue eyes see. "I am happy to see everypony here having a grand time on this very special night. We are happy to have been blessed this year to help Princess Celestia herself conduct the ceremony for the Summer Sun Celebration and to also be graced by the princess herself." A round of cheers and hooves clopping erupted from the crowd. When the noise died down, the announcer continued. "We would also like to thank a few ponies personally for using their special talents to make this celebration the best that it could possibly be. AppleJack and her family for helping with the food and confectionaries. Pinkie Pie for planning when and where everything would take place and helping with the setup. Rainbow Dash for making sure that today would be a clear and beautiful night. Rarity for her sharp eye and beautiful décor. And lastly Fluttershy for beautiful musical accommodations. We thank you for all the effort and hard work you put in to make this celebration possible." The ponies once more erupted into loud praise, this time even more intense as family and friends put in extra effort to cheering. The named ponies all seemed to blush at the personal thanks they were given, except for Rainbow Dash who was basking in the attention. "Now without further interruptions, I give you Princess Celestia herself!" Everyone roared as Rarity, who was on the balcony, poked her head behind the curtains to usher the princess out onto her pedestal. What the marshmallow wasn't expecting was to be forced back hard enough to crash through the balcony and be sent flying through the air. To her luck, Rainbow Dash was fast enough to catch her before she was seriously hurt and set Rarity on the ground. A loud cackling caught the attention of the ponies as a dark wisp swept out from behind the curtains and began forming a more solid mass. What was once nothing but air turned into the solid body of a pony that could rival Celestia in height. The pony's almost black coat with a small blotch of dark blue on each side of her flank coupled with the almost transparent and ethereal mane and tail that was reminiscent of a clear night's starry sky appealed to her beautiful evil. The pony's horn was still glowing from its use of magic and its stiff wings twitched and stretched. The toothy smile it had was obscured by the metal helmet it was wearing that matched the chest plate and greaves it had. The almost glowing blue viper like eyes scanned all of the occupants of the room in a sickening glee.

"Ah, my subjects," The now identified mare began, "it has been so long since I have been able to see ponies enjoying my night. Too bad it is a little too late to cast forgiveness unto thee." The mare announcer from before stood up from her seat and slammed her hooves on her table.

"Just what have you done with out princess you fiend?" The dark mare didn't seem to give her any attention as she just continued on.

"Do not expect your precious princess to come to your rescue, for she does not hold the power to contain me any longer. I, Nightmare Moon, am here to rule over you in eternal darkness for the rest of your pathetic lives." She cackled as the ponies all began to mumble to one another in fear while a few others actually broke into tears. Some of their attention was caught though when a rainbow blur shot through the crowd, heading straight for Nightmare Moon. That same blur was swatted out of the sky, sending Rainbow Dash crashing into chairs and tables, completely destroying the furniture. "Come now, isn't there anypony willing to give me a least some form of challenge? Don't tell me my sister raised you all to be nothing but a batch of pathetic whelps!" Her answer came in the sound of a straw slurping annoyingly at that last drop of liquid that hid at the bottom of a cup. Nightmare Moon shifted her hateful gaze to the lavender unicorn who was levitating a jug of lemonade over to herself. The mare of night bypassed the unicorn's magic before levitating it over said mare and pouring it. Her efforts were unsuccessful though when her wannabe victim erected a protective field that kept the beverage from spilling on her. Twilight just looked up to the mare who ruined her drink with a deadpan stare.

"Rude." For some reason that made Nightmare Moon's blood boil. She moved to shoot forward to put the unicorn in her place, but was surprised when she found that he hooves were somehow glued to the balcony floor. The dark mare looked back to the unicorn, as if she would have the answers to why she was immobile. "Yeah, I was wondering when you would notice that. Funny thing is he actually guessed that you would be cocky when you showed up so it was easy to prepare."

"Fool, you think some novice seals can hold someone of my power?"

"Probably if I was some immature and stupid girl, but nah. That was just something to distract you." When she said that an eight layered shield erected around the balcony, confining the mare in one place. Nightmare Moon didn't look impressed as a bubble appeared before her and popped, letting a small metal canister fall to the ground. In less than a second the thing exploded and she hissed in pain as she lost all manner of sight. The shields made it so that the flash didn't effect the ponies on the floor, so they were all watching Nightmare Moon shake her head in an effort to clear the pain. What they also noticed was the figure that stepped out from the same curtains Nightmare Moon entered from and put a strange contraption to her head. Twilight watched with a little amazement as Balthym's shotgun shown brighter than she had ever seen it before. Balthym glared at the back of Nightmare's head and without a word pulled the trigger. Nightmare Moon let an ear-piercing scream erupt from her mouth as the large beam of energy ripped her head to pieces, leaving her to revert to the wisp form she had first appeared as. The darkness slithered out of the large hole in the opposite wall of the building Balthym's round had created and escaped into her element, for now. Balthym wasted no time as he spread his wings and shot to the door, using the air to drive his body into the door. He rolled as he hit the ground and pulled up his shotgun and scanned the area. He found what he was hoping to find; the form of Nightmare Moon trying to limp her way into the Everfree Forest. He pumped his shotgun as the energy returned to the hollow barrel even brighter. The mare notice a few seconds too late before a spread shot of energy pellets pelted her body and caused her to scream in pain and fall to the ground, blood seeping from the new holes the bullets made. She turned to smoke once more and made a mad dash into the forest, which Balthym was completely fine with letting her get away with. Balthym spun the shotgun around, pulling the lever out and stopping the gun mid spin with one of his talons to stop the lever from reconnecting as to let the steam release from the chamber. He spun the shotgun once more, this time letting the lever fall into its socket and pointing it to his side as he heard something creep up on him. When he looked over it was the same mare that had been announcing everything before the whole fiasco.

"Ah, Mayor Mare. Good, this will make things even easier. Go tell the ponies that they need to head home and stay there until they hear word from me. There will be no excuses for why they should disobey my orders. In fact…" Balthym walked back into the building, pumping his shotgun and firing it into the air as he stepped inside. All of the ponies flinched and looked to the door. "All of you, this is an emergency and you will do as your told starting now. If you value your lives and the safety of your children you will head home and barricade yourselves in them. I don't want any casualties and I sure as hell don't want the deaths of children to intoxicate my mind this night." That was about the correctly timed moment Rainbow Dash put in her two cents.

"Yeah right, like we're going to believe you. For all we know you could be friends with that creep." Balthym set the sights of his gun at the annoying Pegasus.

"Yes, because I shoot all of my friends in the back." That didn't seem to make her back down and some of her friends were even beginning to come to her side. AppleJack in particular stepped up with her.

"Rainbow Dash is right. Something isn't right and I think you know something we don't."

"You're right, I do. And I also know that it is none of your business. If it was, you would also know. Now, do what you are told and head home." This time Fluttershy stepped up, her eyes covered a little by her mane.

"They're right, you're being a bully and you n-need to t-tell everypony what is h-happening." Even the small glare she mustered up was as pitiful as her threat. Balthym ran a claw through his feathers and put his shotgun away…and pulled out his pistol.

"You get two seconds this time, because I have more important things to do." He pulled the hammer of the gun back and six spheres appeared in the hollow barrel. Everyone's eyes shrunk, knowing exactly what that weapon could do after they saw it push back Nightmare Moon. Rainbow Dash wasn't going to give him the chance though as she shot forward before he could begin counting. What she wasn't expecting was for him to rip her from the air before they collided into one another, his death grip around her throat. She couldn't say anything as he lifted her up and threw her to the ground, cracking the floor. He then put a paw on her face and held her there as he put the gun to the mare's chest. Before anyone could detest the action he pulled the trigger, creating a hole in the floor that the Pegasus was now cradled in. Balthym looked up at the rest as if daring them to speak up next. Without a word he pulled the pistol up to face AppleJack and fired a round before she could run away. The farm mare was railed and thrown against the wall, slowly sliding to the floor as her Stetson tilted over her eyes. Balthym stood tall and scanned the crowd, waiting for any more takers that felt like disrespecting his authority. "Let this be a warning as to what will happen if you do not listen to me. By the end of this night, if you have not followed my directions you will meet the end of your lifeline. Nightmare Moon is a dangerous individual that needs to be dealt with and I cannot do that with so many in the crossfire. So get to your homes and stay there! Twilight, we're getting this show on the road!" With that he began to walk out of the building, but not before being stopped by a random mare. It was a yellow Pegasus that was clothed in a light blue and yellow jumpsuit. Her mane and tail were a dark orange with a lighter orange on the inside. Her dark brown eyes gave him a disapproving look.

"I know why you're here and I can't say I approve. The princess will hear of this." She shivered when she felt a talon lightly trace from her shoulder to her wing.

"Watch yourself Spitfire. I don't believe the Wonderbolts could do without a captain for a month." She turned to mouth off to him about the threat when she saw the trail of blood from the cut his talon had given her. Spitfire bit her tongue and decided to say nothing. The look Twilight gave her as she walked by told her that she had made the right choice. Balthym and Twilight made it back to the library without any other hiccups and picked up a book and a few more supplies before leaving. After that they left the library and made a beeline for the woods. They stopped at the edge of the woods to make sure they had everything they needed. "Well Twilight, the stage is set and everything seems to be in our favor. What does that tell you?"

"That this bitch is crazy and that we are playing right into her little game."

"Good girl, you're learning. Yes, we have no clue what she has at her disposal so we need to be going in expecting anything. Our guards need to be up at all times." Balthym was interrupted when someone cleared their throat behind him. Before any words were exchanged he had his pistol at the ready, pointing at a very well known marshmallow. Balthym just sighed in aggravation, knowing exactly where this was going. "What do you five want?" He said five because it looked like Rarity and Pinkie Pie were carrying AppleJack and Rainbow Dash. Rarity flipped her hair and but on her bitch face as she just glared daggers at Balthym. "I believe you owe us an explanation darling. Especially after all of the trouble you put us through." He went to pull the trigger, but something stopped him before he could. He looked over to Twilight who had her horn alight with magic.

"That is a lethal round and we don't need any blood spilt here. You know what would happen if you did anything to them." Balthym just grunted and lowered his weapon, knowing that she was right. Rarity just put on a smug smile and raising her nose.

"I'm glad to know you can keep you beast on a leash and in check. Letting somepony like hi-" She was cut off as a bullet went flying past her head. She looked down to see Twilight facehoofing and the smoking barrel of the gryphon's gun. Rarity wasn't sure what to think until she felt something burning on her cheek. She lifted a hoof to the spot and pulled it to her field of vision before recoiling in horror. Balthym's bullet just barely grazed her and left a small cut on her face that let out a constant trickle of blood. The marshmallow just sat there agape as Fluttershy rushed to her side and put a bandage on the wound after cleaning it up.

"I kept him from doing that, but you were asking for it that time." Balthym lowered his weapon.

"Yes she did and now she is going to listen like a good little girl. I'm not going to be explaining shit to you. That being said I will not be able to stop you should you follow us but don't expect me to coddle your ass. I will not be putting up with any of your shit and will not be disappointed should you die. You are entering an entirely new world where you pretty pony ways are obsolete and you are introduced to the harsh judgement of the wild. So yeah, deal with that. Let's go narwhal." Balthym walked through the underbrush and into the woods, Twilight in tow.

"Do you think that was wise?" He listen closely until he heard the foliage being moved behind him.

"Oh, I believe it worked perfectly. Now, what does that book of yours say?"

"Nothing helpful, sadly. The only clues to their whereabouts were ones that pointed towards a war with one known as Discord. From what history says the battle didn't take place in the present day capital, so there must be a previous palace or castle of some sort that was the first. I believe that is where we will find any hard evidence." Balthym was a bit upset when he heard that as he could have asked Celestia about that. Though there wasn't much he could do now so he just tabbed that in his head and decided that he'd look out for that in the woods. He didn't mention that he knew the others had decided to follow them as he really didn't want to converse with them. They just continued to walk, not talking to hopefully protect them from anything that could hear them in the woods. The only sound that would have stirred the forest was moaning that he heard behind him. Turning around Balthym found that the farm pony had finally awoken, which wasn't surprising as he had definitely punished Rainbow Dash the hardest.

"Ow my head, where the hay am I?"

"In the realm of the living, be thankful. Stay quiet, as we are in the Everfree Forest and it would be a large hindrance if you got a predator on our trail." AppleJack seemed to flinch when she heard the gryphon's voice. He knew they were all frightened by him and he was fine with that. It made keeping them in line much easier, ruling by fear made these ponies easy prey. She didn't seem to try her luck, hopefully remembering what had happened the last two times. Now all they had was a very lazy Rainbow Dash splayed across Rarity's back should everything go to shit. Which came to bite them in the ass when they heard growling from close by in the bushes around them. Twilight and Balthym went on the defensive while the others looked around, presumably and metaphorically pissing themselves. The two true combatants prepared for whatever was about to attack. Balthym pulled forth his trusty guns and aimed out to his right and left with the respective weapon. Twilight put her flank to his back, covering all of the possible attack routes. Their opponent seemed to be smarter than that though, for a roar came from above them followed by the flapping of wings. They didn't waste anytime in getting out of there, not very keen on becoming dinner for a predator. Balthym rolled forward before pulling his weapons to his previous position. Twilight jumped forward, hitting the ground with her front hooves while using the momentum to throw her back around so that she was facing Balthym and their enemy. A Manticore slammed into the ground shifting his eyes between the two parties that entered his hunting grounds. He seemed to be wary of the two that had weapons and magic trained on it, waiting for the first move. He studied the second group of sniveling ponies and found that one of them was completely unconscious while the others seemed pretty defenseless. Balthym's grip on his guns didn't slack and Twilight's horn started glowing brighter. Balthym thought he heard a meek whisper before the Manticore went for the kill, choosing the weaker group of ponies as prey. Said ponies screamed and scattered, but one Rarity forgot her extra baggage that was unceremoniously thrown the ground. That seemed to be just what she needed to be jostled back into the waking world. Rainbow Dash slowly cracked her eyes open, but instantly went wide eyed when she saw the hulking beast rushing towards her. She knew she had to run, her body was screaming to do so, but the fear had her paralyzed and was nothing but a spectator to her own death. That was until the beat seemed to stumble and fall, sliding only feet away from the Pegasus. She then watched as the gryphon jumped into the air before dive bombing and slamming into the Manticore. Balthym used the momentum of the dive to drive the barrel of the gun into the creatures skull, cracking the bone and letting the barrel become submerged in brain matter. Without a second thought he pulled the trigger, sending brain, flesh and fur flying. The gore just about drenched the gryphon in blood while drops of blood spattered on Rainbow Dash's now horrified face. Only the shrill cry of Fluttershy echoed in the woods as Balthym stood up and removed his hood to show his stone cold expression, his face being the only thing still pure of life essence. "Twilight, please clean up Rainbow Dash if it wouldn't be a problem." He didn't even look for confirmation as he walked over to the other group of ponies who were trying to comfort the butter baby. As he stepped up to them Fluttershy put her eyes on him. Her look was a mixture of sorrow and anger. He was actually surprised when she began stamping her way over to him.

"You…we could have ended that peacefully. He could have gone along his merry way and there would have been no trouble. He could have a family and yet you murdered him in cold blood, you monster!" Balthym didn't change his expression and instead settled for crossing his arms.

"And what, pray tell, would you have done in this situation?"

"If you would have given me a few minutes I could have domesticated him long enough for me to run him off." Balthym just stepped aside and gestured a claw to the corpse and Pegasus Twilight was trying to copse out of shock.

"And yet we only had a few seconds to stop him before he made Rainbow Dash his meal. By all means, if you have the ability to do so then use it. But if you're going to be nothing but a weak and feeble pony that can't take action, then I think I will stick to my own methods. If you can pacify these creatures faster then I can kill them then I welcome the challenge." He stepped to the side and ended up dodging a buck from two white hooves. Taking one in his claw, he pulled backwards and caused Rarity to fall flat on her stomach. He then put a paw on her back, pinning her to the ground. "I'd watch yourself there, princess." She just growled in response.

"How can you be so uncaring about another's feelings? It is Fluttershy's life to take care of animals and yet you try to turn it into a game. Do you not have morals, a heart?"

"Those are things that do not belong in my line of work. My world is much more different than yours, one without your perfect world of peace and love." He stepped off of Rarity and made his way back to Twilight. It seemed the unicorn was able to get Rainbow Dash up and out of her stupor while he was hammering the other's asses. "Are you okay Rainbow Dash?" The Pegasus flinched in response to her name, but turned to him anyways.

"Uh…yeah. I-I'm fine, I think. Say…uh…thanks for…" She tailed off, trying to look anywhere but towards the bleeding corpse in front of her.

"Don't mention it, consider it a favor you owe me. I'll call on it whenever I find a moment I see fit to use it."

"O-Okay." He put out a claw and she put her hoof in it, letting him hoist her back on her hooves. "Alright everyone, let's get a move on!" His yell reached the ears of his group and they fell in line behind him as they continued, save Twilight who took her place beside him. They didn't meet any other resistances as they ventured deeper into the forest. It seemed that the sound of his shotgun scared off anymore possible predators…or they just hadn't made it to them yet. It wasn't long before they found a break in the trees and this time they came out to a small lake that split the land before them. Balthym narrowed his eyes when he saw the sight they came to. The left side of the river was a beautiful blue that allowed you to almost see the bottom, but as it flowed on it turned a deep crimson. Many of the ponies behind him started losing their stomachs as he moved towards the horrid scene. Looking at the elongated body he found his suspicions correct when ran a claw over the corpse's scales. What was a deep purple was now smothered in blood and entrails. Parts of the body were thrown to and fro around the clearing along with such things as intestines and other major organs. The face of the creature wasn't even recognizable as it had been torn to shreds by something completely inhumane. Rarity moved up next to him and the only piece of the cadaver that was still somewhat intact and seemed to inspect the scales. Her horn lit up a light blue before one of the scales came loose and floated over to her.

"Such beautiful scales for such a beautiful creature. I may not be able to give him or her a proper burial, but I just might be able to honor their life through never forgetting. It isn't much, but I hope it will suffice." Balthym didn't give her a voice as he walked away from the body.

"Twilight, ignite it." The body erupted into flame, much to the surprise of the ponies. Rarity seemed most agape as she turned on him in shock.

"What are you doing you brute?" Instead of answering, Balthym raised two talons to his left eye, putting one an each side of his eye and running them down his face to the side of his beak. He then put his left arm to his side and put his paws together before setting a balled claw in front of his beak and bowing his head, whispering something only he would hear. He looked back up to watch the ashes gently flicking along the breeze as the body was completely disposed of and the ashen remains floated along and above the water. Balthym then picked up Rarity without warning and flew her over the river and placed her on the other side before doing the same with Twilight. Rainbow Dash seemed to get the message and carried AppleJack and then Pinkie while Flluttershy just flew over herself. Without a word they continued on.

Nightmare Moon stumbled through the castle that she was so desperately searching for. Her last known safe haven before her banishment. She clumsily pushed the two large doors that stood in her path, finally coming to the end of her trek. The old and broken piece of architecture had somehow survived the test of time, unlike her. She did not know just how much weaker she had become while on the moon, and she almost paid dearly for it. She pushed her body on until she was able to sit on one of the two thrones that sat in the room. It felt both familiar and new to her to finally be back where she belonged. No more staring at the world from her one way window and dreaming of being able to go back to truly living. She had finally come back to 'her' life and she was going to make sure it stayed that way. Nightmare Moon's horn lit up a dark blue and her body stiffened. The wounds that Balthym's gun created began to seal and the flow of blood had finally stopped. Now that she had finally had the chance to heal she needed to think. One thing that confused her was the presence of that gryphon. If there was one thing she knew, it was her sister and she was almost positive Celestia would attempt to use the Elements of Harmony to cleanse her and get her precious sister back. The use of lethal force was a surprise for her and she didn't expect to be caught in a trap on her arrival. Celestia was definitely swinging in a completely different ballpark and she needed to accommodate for it. Her eyes turned black and a small wisp of smoke exited her body through her mouth and slithered out the door. It was time for a counterattack.

Balthym picked at his talons in boredom as he kept scanning the underbrush around them. He didn't want to stop, but he didn't want to listen to Rarity bitch even more. For now he would have to put up with the stop and hope they could get going soon. So he was just sitting there when he suddenly heard all of the ponies, minus Twilight, start screaming about something. He looked up to see nothing while they seemed focused on something around them. He looked to Twilight and raised a brow and she returned that with a shrug. "What are all of you screaming about?" Rarity gave him an incredulous look before going back to watching every direction.

"Are you just going to sit there or are you going to help us with these beasts."

"What beasts? All I see are you four flipping shit." He didn't get any answer as she resorted to screaming at her make believe nightmares. The only one that wasn't panicking seemed to be Pinkie who was laughing at and saying 'boo' to something.

"Come on girls, there's nothing to be afraid of! It's just all in our imagination. Believe that and they'll go away." It seemed that they all tried her tactics and one by one began to calm down. Balthym stood up and brushed himself off.

"Okay, before anything else stupid happens we're going to get a move on." He stepped up to the bridge that they had stopped by, examining the rickety thing. Looking at the ground he saw speckles of blood in the grass. Further inspection came to show that the bridge posts on their side seemed to be newer compared to the rest of it, even the rope holding it. He tested a paw on the wood and found that it was surprisingly sturdy for its age. He stepped back and turned to face his group. "Okay, it seems that our friend repaired the bridge for us. Seems like she was injured enough to keep her from transforming and flying so she came the old fashion way. Rainbow Dash, I want you to go ahead and scout out everything while we go across the bridge in case anything happens. I trust that won't be a problem?" She gave a silent nod and shot off while he turned around and began walking across the bridge. As they were walking Balthym put up a claw and stopped, casing the train to come to a halt. Something didn't feel right and it had to do with the fact that Rainbow Dash hadn't come back yet. He stretched his hearing ahead of them and since everyone had decided to stay quiet it was easy to hear what he wanted.

"You already despise him, so this task should be easy for you. He has mistreated you and your friends and deserves to die for his insolence."

"I…I can't. I won't! Sure he wasn't exactly the friendliest and I definitely want to kick his flank for what he has done, but he has helped us…and saved my life. I owe him and I won't betray him and my friends." Balthym pulled out his pistol and set his claw on the hammer. He then raised his wings and gave them a mighty flap, mustering up a large gust of wind that cleared the fog that was masking everything around them. When the fog was gone he saw Rainbow Dash and three surprised pegasi. He didn't bother with taking in their characteristics as he fanned the hammer three times, sending a bullet at each pony. The bullets cleanly pierced them, splitting them into black smoke that dissipated. Balthym put his gun away and kept walking, leaving everyone in a stupor. Rainbow Dash didn't even look at him as he passed. "I wouldn't…"

"Keep the loyalty you have, it is a good trait. Betrayal is something that would get you killed. Just be careful with who you give it to, for it can be abused and used as a double edged sword." Balthym said nothing more as he walked up to the door to the castle in front of them and kicked it open without a second thought.

Nightmare Moon gasped in surprise as her eyes returned to normal. She had not expected the gryphon to be as ruthless and uncaring for life as he was. There was no hesitation when killing three sapient creatures that he didn't know were real or not. It frightened and…excited her. It was something she could get behind and made her body shiver in delight. Her horn lit up and a pop echoed throughout the chamber as said gryphon was now placed in front of her. It confused her when she noticed he wasn't nearly as surprised as she thought he would be, but she jut shook that out of her mind. "Good evening, gryphon. Do you know why you're here?" The gryphon just shrugged.

"Nope, just got bought up for a protect and snatch and grab. I'm just doing my job."

"Well what if I told you I could pay you more. I understand that you have a current client, bu-

"Deal, what am I doing?" Balthym almost chuckled when he saw the utter shock on her face. "What are you so surprised about? I'm a mercenary meaning that I go for the highest paying job available. This wouldn't be the first time I did a team change." Nightmare Moon just snorted at his response.

"I see, it seems that the hunters of this day's time have little in the way of honor. No matter, I require your assistance in dealing with those ponies. Their presence is a…hindrance to me and I would like them removed now rather than later. Does thou think you can handle it?" Balthym scratched his cheek and gave her a shrug.

"I'll make sure their deader than two dead kids that are dead." She just gave him a flat stare. Anything else was interrupted as they heard conversation bouncing off the halls. "Lucky for you it'll be earlier. You gonna help out or bail like any other bad guy with the evilest of plots?" That question was answered when she popped out of existence. After she was gone he noticed a light coming from the window and looked to find activity at one of the towers across from his. Further investigation was halted as the door was pulled open. He turned to meet his VIP turned target waltz through the door. The first one to act was Rainbow Dash when she saw him as soon as the door was wide open, getting as close to his face as possible.

"What they hay dude, we we-" Her sentence was put on hold as he ripped her from the air by her throat, spinning her around with his body before tossing her back at the others. Without any time to recover the Pegasus crashed into Rarity and Pinkie. He then pulled two knives from behind his holster and held them at the ready in a reversed grip. Twilight was the only one that showed more confusion then the anger the other ponies were throwing his way.

"Sorry girls, it seems I was offered a new job that topped yours in pay. As a mercenary it is just in my nature to live whichever way the money flows most." He twirled his daggers as something along the lines of bloodlust twinkled in his eyes. "I'm sure you'll come to understand, especially went you won't have the breath to detest." Twilight stepped forward, her horn alit in caution.

"Where is Nightmare Moon?"

"She might be in the tower next to us, but that is just a hunch." Before she was able to teleport he had his claw around her horn, his armored talons cutting off in magic in the catalyst. Her surprise was coupled with pain when she felt a knee enter chest before she was spun by her horn and thrown to the side. "Sorry it won't be that easy to get past me. I've been doing this too long to slip up now." Rainbow Dash was up and down to clown as she rushed in to attack. Balthym crouched and put a claw on the floor before using his legs to spin his body into somewhat of a handstand. Rainbow Dash didn't know what hit her as he duck under the tackle and brought a paw down on her face, causing her to hit the ground. The impact was hard enough to make her bounce a little which the gryphon exploited by righting himself and planting another kick in her stomach that sent her into a wall. Balthym looked around the room and noticed that Twilight had escaped during that little session. He cursed at himself as flapped his wings to propel himself backwards as AppleJack brought two hooves down on his previous location. When he looked up he saw that Rainbow Dash had recovered again and was ready to fight. Oh, this was going to be fun.

The first thing Twilight noticed when she popped into the room was that there seemed to be an extremely pissed mare yelling all kinds of curses. The other thing she noticed was what she was being explicit towards. There were five stones that were lying on five pedestals and Nightmare Moon looked about ready to destroy them. "So it seems my hired help wasn't as dependable as I thought." Nightmare Moon turned to Twilight with a more serious expression, which Twilight met with her own.

"Quite the opposite actually. It frightens me to think about what would have happened had one of the others not attacked. I only had just enough time to teleport here before he came to kill me. Thankfully," Twilight summoned a gust of wind that curved a bolt of magic harmlessly around her, "I'll be able to take care of you before he gets here. That way I can get backup to deal with him." Nightmare Moon snarled and fired another bolt that Twilight curved once more. Twilight didn't have a chance to be surprised when dark tendrils shot from the ground and tried to grab her. She was barely able to teleport away, but caught a stone slab in the side that threw her to the ground.

"I don't think you should be taking me so lightly, worm. I have much more experience in magic than you could even fathom. I wasn't banished to the moon for my own health." The flapping of wings made her smirk as she looked to the window and found a gryphon perched on the windowsill. "And it seems your little friends are now awaiting your arrival in Tartarus little unicorn." Twilight was confused by her words until she caught sight of Balthym stepping off of the window. She was horrified to find that the parts of his body that weren't matted with the blood of a Manticore were now soaked in something else's blood. The fresh life essence dripped from his body and he left prints as he walked over to join Nightmare Moon.

"They were no real trouble. Those ponies lived a sheltered life, never seeing conflict to this day. Fighting to them was just using brute force to solve the problem." Nightmare Moon let out a soft, dark chuckle.

"It seems I was too quick to judge. You definitely have fighting prowess and thou does not disappoint when completing a task. Perhaps I could use your help for longer than I thought."

"Just keep the pay flowing and I'll have no problem with that." Balthym struck out at the magic projectile that came at him with his claws, breaking it into harmless pieces. The look of utter anger on Twilight's face was immeasurable. She looked about ready to kill anything that was prepared to look at her funny. Her sight were clearly set on the gryphon for the moment, ready to make him pay for what he had done.

"I thought we were friends!" She fired another bolt and he deflected it with his armored talons.

"That's what you get for thinking, narwhal. This world isn't as pretty as you'd like it to be." He jumped up as the floor closed in on itself to try and crush him.

"Don't call me that!" She fired another bolt of magic and he went to deflect it. He was surprised when the attack split in half before he could hit it and collided with his head and stomach. The force of the attack sent him reeling back into the wall, where he slouched down. Nightmare Moon snorted in disappointment, but before she could chastise him her ears twitched as she heard something coming towards them. Twilight and Nightmare Moon both heard voices coming towards the door that lead into the room they were. Before she could ask Balthym about it she suddenly went deaf in one ear as she was sent flying to the side screaming in anger and pain. Balthym turned to a surprised Twilight as he pumped his shotgun.

"Open the door and get them in here, quick." He jumped to the recovering Nightmare Moon and spin kicked her right in the side, making her stumble before he sent her flying again as he pointed his shotgun at her and fired mid-spin. He didn't give her any time as he was on her again. She was prepared this time as a barrier was erected between the two of them before he could strike. Nightmare Moon stood upright, spitting out blood that had built up in her mouth.

"Seems I was wrong about that honor. Mercenaries in my day would never abandon a contract for an overlapping one. Looks like today is full of me being wrong." Balthym said nothing as he shoved a claw into the barrier, grabbing the mare by the throat and pulling her towards him. She tried to escape his grasp and got her wish in the form of a balled claw that was slammed into her snout. She didn't even flinch as she kicked him back with her hooves. Balthym just barely blocked the kick and slid back a few feet. Both of them didn't waste a second and were circling one another, waiting for an opening. "I am surprised that one without magic can give me such a challenge." She smirked as he pulled out his signature guns. "If you think that I'll give you the range to use those properly you are sorely mistaken." Balythm's grin threw her off, as did his chuckle.

"You must truly think I am an amateur at what I do. If I was a one trick pony, then I would have never lasted as long as I did in my line of work." Nightmare Moon watched in awe as both beams in each gun went solid as lines appeared around the base of the hollowed barrel. The lines were cuts that began to form on the rest of the barrel, forming perfect squares. It wasn't long before the entire barrel and a little below it were covered in squares. She was surprised once more as the gun broke into cubes that seemed to float around in the air for a second before moving closer to the trigger and set up a constant orbit at that point. The two beams that solidified seemed to expand a little and then grow in length. The 'blades' were about ten inches and flickered every few seconds. He twirled them around before he had what was the shotgun in a traditional grip and the pistol and in reverse grip.

"Flashy, but I highly doubt it will level the playing too much in your favor."

"I have killed a lot of people who underestimated me. You will be an interesting addition." Nightmare Moon growled and fire a bolt of magic his way. What she wasn't expecting was for him to use one of his blades to swat it back at her. There wasn't enough time to act before she was thrown backwards by her own spell. Nightmare Moon shakily got to her feet, glaring at Balthym the entire time.

"How? You are but a gryphon, so how is it possible for you to use magic?"

"Call me a rogue science experiment if you must. My means of creation was a little…chaotic." Her eyes widened in realization before she caught a very misleadingly hard paw to the face. She teleported before she could hit a wall and fired more magic. She had to work harder then before as she had to dodge her own attacks along with the gryphon's. it was a one sided battle as Nightmare Moon took blow after blow, having no means to actually counter or fight back without taking double the punishment of leaving an opening for a lethal attack. After taking the pain for a few minutes their attention was caught by a glowing light in the back of the room. While duking it out Twilight and the other ponies began fooling with the stones. That seemed to make Nightmare Moon panic as she shot towards them. Balthym moved to follow, but was stopped as a wall of stone cut him off. Balthym snorted in annoyance and put his right sword in his beak. He pulled out a blank slip of paper from under his wing and placed it one the wall, leaving his claw on it for a moment before the paper started to glow. He retracted his claw showing that the paper had a cartoonish drawing of a bomb on it. He back away to wait for it to work and didn't have to wait long as it exploded and took a good chunk of the wall out. He jumped through the hole and put his sword back in his claw, finding that all the stones had been broken and the ponies were all cornered. Nightmare Moon turned to him with a wicked grin.

"Looks like your efforts were futile. The Elements are now useless and you're out of options. All that is left is you untimely demise." She was surprised when one of the sword blades went limp and he swung at her, the blade extending like a whip. It wrapped around her horn and he used her surprise to pull the mare towards him without resistance. He reeled back and slammed a fist into her face, sending her into the tile below. He looked over to Twilight and company to see the awe on their faces.

"Hurry up and get to it narwhal!" Twilight jumped to the broken stones, trying to do anything she could think of.

"There's nothing you can do. The Elements have been dormant for far too long and have no power residing within them." Balthym stomped on the mare's face to shut her up.

"You're wrong!" Both the gryphon and mare looked up I confusion until they saw the shattered remnants of the stone revolving around five of the six mares. "The Elements of Harmony don't hold their true power alone. Only through the power of their wielders can they reach their true potential. And I believe that these ponies specifically hold the ability to unlocking that potential." With that, necklaces formed from the remains of the stone bound themselves to the their necks. Nightmare Moon just chuckled.

"Foolish mare, you don't even have all of the relics! How do you hope to use their power?"

"Because the last one needed a spark, one that would bring them all together. And that spark was-"

"Get on with it narwhal, she's just trying to stall for time." Twilight huffed before a crown appeared on her head with a jewel resembling her cutie mark. She didn't say anything else as the Elements began to glow before firing an arcing rainbow down towards Nightmare Moon. Balthym jumped back as she was consumed in the epileptic array of colors. Her scream of pain slowly died down as her shadowy form melted into the night, leaving behind a much more pitiful sight. In Nightmare Moon's place was now a light blue mare with black splotches on her flank. Her mane and tail were a darker shade of blue. On her back were two Pegasus wings and on her head was a horn. Her cyan eyes flutter open and looked around in confusion. When she caught sight of the gryphon she shrieked and stared scooting backwards until she hit a wall. Balthym narrowed his eyes as he stared the small mare down.

"You are a pitiful little shit, Luna." Said mare flinched as he spat her name with such venom. "Rise and come here!" She jumped up and scuttled over to him, but was shocked when his shotgun reformed itself and was shoved in her face. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't send your ass to Tartarus."

"Because that would go against our agreement." Balthym turned to come beak to muzzle with the one and only so called god horse. Her wings twitched as she touched down and met the gryphon's stare. "You were informed that this mission involved keeping the target alive. I hope you don't plan on going back on your word." His pistol reformed and he holster both of his weapons and crossed his arms.

"I don't like playing cleanup crew Celestia, especially with a tyrant like yourself." Celestia narrowed her eyes and her horn lit up. All that stopped though and she changed to a wide eyed look of horror as Balthym held his claw up with two talons pressed against each other, ready to snap.

"Watch yourself, you majesty. I'll be the only one walking away and this place will be nothing but a crater."

"You dare threaten me? I could have you confined to a cell for such treason!" Balthym tightened to pressure on his talons.

"And I can kill your sister with but a whim. We will finish, you will pay me, and I will be left alone. I did not stay alive this long for you to attempt to do away with a mistake created by your friend." She seemed to calm herself and lowered her hostile appearance. Balthym followed and lowered his claw, depressing his talons.

"We gain nothing from this quarrel. Let us take my sister and return to the castle. I have so much to apologize for and would like to catch up with her."

"Very well. I assume that you want to return to that stupid little village so that they don't freak out anymore than they already have?" She nodded and turned around to walk to her sister. Balthym went the other way and met up with the ponies.

"You guys okay?" Twilight looked back at the other girls and didn't get a complaint and then nodded.

"Yes, we are all fine. What about you? You fought Nightmare Moon for quite some time." Balthym shook his head.

"No, and I know why it wasn't a challenge and also why Celestia was the one who hired me. We will discuss it further, but we are heading back to town." Before he could walk away Twilight stopped him.

"Can you at least tell me how you got covered in so much blood." Balthym looked down at himself and sure enough he was still very much drenched in blood.

"I killed a Manticore before I flew over to try and trick Nightmare Moon into thinking I had killed those guys." He finished by gesturing over to the equines behind her. "Now come on, we need to get going before those town ponies have another freak out." He turned around and made his way to the door at the same time as Celestia, the other six in tow. When they were in the hall Balthym took a spot next to Celestia while the others conversed among themselves. Luna would occasionally poke her head out around her sister to look at the gryphon before quickly retracting it.

"Tell me, how many years as it been? It has been quite some time since I locked you away in Tartarus."

"Roughly two thousand years. I left that hell the day after you put me in it. I don't really know why you thought I could be held there. I've been traveling ever since, making my own life the way I wanted it. I sure as hell didn't expect to get sucked into a job for you. Don't even know how you knew I was here to begin with. There's no one else alive that knows who I am, which means you've been keeping an eye on me."

"That I have. It is unwise to let a being with such strange power go unchecked. Yours is very unstable, such as the being that cursed you with it. It seems you even picked up his little tick when it came to using it. How is that?"

"Experimentation and last resort methods. Let's just say that I am not allowed back in the gryphon kingdom. Ever." They went into silence the rest of the way. The walk back to Ponyville didn't take long. Specifically because Balthym could fly there and Celestia teleported them the rest of the way. When they all finally appeared back in town the sun was ready to rise. Celestia pushed from their group and stood in the center of town. Many of the ponies that were confined to the safety of their houses slowly stepped out as Celestia's horn began to glow. They all watched in awe as the sun slowly picked itself over the horizon and was set in the sky. It truly was a grand feat that they would share with their families for years to come. Balthym watched everything with nothing but boredom. He had seen Celestia's display of power far too many times and it had become lackluster to him. Instead, he kept his senses open to the world around them. As he scanned the area, something was itching in the back of his head.

He pressed two talons together.

Celestia cut off her magic and lowered her head, a smile ready to greet her subjects turning into a dropped jaw. When she looked around she found that the world around her had turned white while there were black outlines of what looked like buildings and ponies. The reverberating sound of a snap made her flinch back as it sounded as if it were tight next to her ear. The world around her regained its color and inhabitants and she was left in the center of scorched earth and grass.

"Princess!" Celestia looked over her shoulder to find Twilight and her friends rushing over to her. She smiled down at her when the all skidded to a halt in front of her.

"I am quite fine, Twilight." Celestia looked around once more and found her eyes drawn to the gryphon. He held a claw out that had two talons pressed against one another, his eyes closed in deep concentration. When his eyes opened she gasped in horror at what she saw. His right eye had changed from its original violet to a bright yellow. She also noticed how the pupil to that eye had suddenly become absent. Balthym slowly moved forward, lowering his claw and putting both on each gun. He kept scanning the area as the guns turned to blades. The gryphon didn't even look to her as he stopped at her side.

"Keep everyone safe." Without another word he shot into the air and Celestia watched as he was joined by a shadowy mass that erupted from the forest. Balthym studied the entity in front of him with mild curiosity. It seemed to just dance in the air in front of him. He tensed up when it began to convulse before shifting around. After a few second it formed into the shape of a rough imitation of Nightmare Moon, her bright white eyes glowing in even the daylight. "So you just don't know when to die."

"Don't get cocky. I am no longer held back by that weak body that lost practice to time. I am nothing but pure darkness in its entirety and hold my true power." She shot forward, her movement so quick she disappeared from sight. Balthym put his blades up to block the horn that was set to penetrates his chest. "This will be our true battle, do not disappoint me." He planted his foot in her chest, sending her spiraling backwards. After catching herself she stared back at the gryphon in what looked to be reminiscence. "So it is you, Balthym. We thought you to be dead for so long after you escaped from Tartarus. Why, why do we fight one another now?" Balthym's expression seemed to sadden as the mare spoke of her memories.

"Because I have a job to do and a life goal to work towards. I cannot afford to lose." They both shot towards one another and began trading blows. Neither were getting hits on the other as the sound of sword on hoof and horn echoed throughout town. All the townspeople saw were blurs of blacks, whites, and reds as they moved at speeds Rainbow Dash could only dream of. Clap after clap of air rung in Celestia's ears as she watched a battle between chaos and darkness. Two giants butting heads in a battle that would never cease. She heard a snap as a tear opened up in the sky that was similar to what she saw after raising the sun. She only caught the afterimage of the pitch black lightning that rained down on the shadow. Looking around at the scorched ground she had finally figured out what had caused it and who had protected her. Balthym hailed bullets on the shadowy figure, unloading and reloading his guns repeatedly. Nightmare Moon met his attacks with shields that deflected the bullets back. Every time she did that Balthym would open a tear in the sky that would swallow the bullets. Soon after they clashed they stopped once more to stare one another down.

"You have gotten much better than when we first met, friend. I can see that you haven't been dormant at any time during your journey."

"I couldn't bear to be weak. You were one of the strongest people I knew, so I sought to be like you. What happened? Has the darkness consumed you that much?" Nightmare Moon said nothing as she ready her magic. What she wasn't expecting was for Balthym to snap his talons and multiple rips open up in the sky. Projectiles that Nightmare Moon had reflected back at him began shooting out of them at breakneck speeds. Nightmare Moon didn't know what hit her as the bullets collided with her body repeatedly, traveling from tear to tear and kept coming back to deal more damage. After a few seconds, the tears sealed themselves and left Nightmare Moon to fall into the forest below.

Celestia watched in shock as the apparition that had caused her years of hell fell in defeat. She looked over to Luna to find her sharing her awe as the gryphon defeated the nightmare that had burrowed itself in her mind. Celestia looked back up to Balthym as he raised a claw into the air. A snap echoed throughout the town as the gryphon disappeared and the day turned to night.

Nightmare Moon winced in pain as she tried to move, but settled for lying back down. She wasn't surprised that she lost. She knew just what Balthym truly was and what he could do. That thought was cemented when the sky suddenly turned dark and her beautiful night sky was dominant once more. She flinched in fear when she heard the crunch of leaves and looked over to see the gryphon that bested her. Nightmare Moon watched him closely as he walked over to her and stood over her shadowy form that was having trouble keeping her together. Balthym looked down at the mare who was now averting her gaze from him. "What happened to you, Dream Crescent? What caused such a respectable mare to turn into a maniacal demon?" Nightmare Moon finally turned her eyes on him, tears quickly building up as she began to hiccup and cry.

"Celestia, s-she…she found out about me during a dream walking session. She started suspecting something when she heard Luna talking to herself and kept a closer eye on her. She soon started telling her that I was some kind of evil parasite that was trying to turn her against Celestia. After that, Luna's image of me began to change me and my mind and I became something…dark. Because of that tyrannical princess I changed even Luna and caused her to get banished to the moon. Since then I never made contact with her until now in hope of being banished from her body and ending this pitiful life of mine. I'm nothing of what I used to be and I do not wish to hurt anyone else. Even you, the one I had promised to protect, got caught in the crossfire and I tried to hurt you and turn you against others." Nightmare Moon lifted her head and put her face to the night sky, baring her neck to the gryphon. "Please, Balthym. If it is you who finishes me off I will be content with my death. I have harmed too many and I do not wish to do more. I will vanish in the near future without a body to sustain me so I have no regrets about this choice." She closed her eyes and prepared for a swift death when she saw Balthym raise his claws. She flinched when she felt them wrap around her neck and waited for the long awaited sweet embrace of death. What she wasn't expecting was to be pulled forward to have the gryphon tenderly hug her and run his claws through her mane.

"There is no reason for you to die, Dream Crescent. It was not your fault for what transpired and I will not sit by and let my friend suffer for it. You were there for me when everyone else turned away, abandoned me, or called for my head. Now you need my help and I will return the favor and kindness you never hesitated to give me. Celestia will pay for what she has done, something that has been long coming. I ask that you come with me instead. There is so much we have to catch up with and I have become very lonely over the last thousand years. Time melds together without another and yesterday feels like centuries. Stay with me, please." A new stream of tears ran down Nightmare Moon's muzzle as she returned his hug. It had been so long since she had ever felt the embrace and care of another. Her time on the moon almost cause her to fall into madness, but she only kept her sanity through the thoughts of returning and repenting for her sins. The fact that she can live on with one of her dearest friends had made her the happiest she had been in a long time. They sat there in silence once Nightmare Moon's crying had finally calmed down and they seemed to bask in the peace and silence of the night. She was almost lulled to sleep by the gryphon caressing her mane, but was awoken when he pulled away. "I'm sorry to kill the moment, but I left the princesses and the others when I came here. I don't want them to come here and find out about you otherwise they may try to take you away." She smiled and tipped her head, touching his forehead with her horn.

"You have no idea how happy I am to finally see you again. I have so many questions about what happened to you and why you disappeared."

"I'll tell you about it later. You might be surprised just how much better I have come to be since the first day we met. I've made quite the name for myself."

"Yes, I'm sure you have all the ladies falling for you." He chuckled as the last of her shadowy form was absorbed into him. With that done he stood back up and stretched before snapping his talons, vanishing and turning the night back into day.

Celestia fell backwards in fright as Balthym burst into existence right in front of her. He put a claw on his hip as he narrowed his eyes at her, causing her to back up a little. Celestia regained her posture and stood up, clearing her throat. "So, where is Nightmare Moon?"

"She has been dealt with. There is no need to worry about that problem anymore." Celestia let out a sigh of relief and let a smile grace her face.

"Thank you so much, Balthym. You have no idea how much trouble she has given me. Because of you I now have my sister back home and back to her normal self."

"Don't mention it, please." Before anything else could be said between the two, Twilight and her gang came running up to them.

"What happened, Balthym? Where is Nightmare Moon?" Before he could answer, Rainbow Dash got in his face like usual.

"I bet you're working with her. Probably going to destroy the entire town when our backs are turned." She was surprised when she heard a snap right next to her ear and then suddenly fell to the ground. She rubbed her head in confusion and tried jumping back into the air, only to repeat the process. When Rainbow Dash looked behind her she found that her wings had vanished. She turned and tried to buck the gryphon and was shocked when he caught her hooves and tossed them up, causing her to flip over onto her back.

"If I were you, I would watch what you say and do to someone who almost killed you three times. So tell me, what are you going to do now."

"…Shut up." Balthym snapped his talons and Rainbow Dash sighed in relief when she could feel her wing once again. Twilight came up next and seemed to examine his body.

"Not even a scratch. Just how did you beat Nightmare Moon so easily?"

"Live as long as I do and you tend to gain some rather useful skills." That was when Celestia decided to step in and cancel out any other questions or conversations.

"While I am sure that all of you have questions for Balthym, I need to talk to him about his reward among a few other things. I'm glad that I got to come here and see all of my lovely subjects and I am also sorry I have to depart so soon. I promise that I will try and come and visit to make up for what happened during the Summer Sun Celebration." Without and further words, her horn lit up and the three of them were suddenly back in the throne room at the palace. Luna quickly jumped behind Celestia and peeked around her to examine the gryphon in fear.

"Sister, why have you allowed this monster to set hoof in the palace? I thought you locked him away for good?" Celestia smiled and pat her sister on the head gently.

"He was the one who helped save you and also got rid of that dreadful parasite that tried claiming your mind. I knew he was capable for the mission and so I hired him." Her expression got more serious and she narrowed her eyes at Balthym. "But I am also surprised. Just how is it that you escaped Tartarus without me knowing? The sentries never reported your absence."

"It seems that you forget who you are talking to when thinking some measly hellhole can hold me. As for the reports, none of them actually checked on me. They were too afraid of what I might do to them. I would have starved had I not escaped. My means of escape are unimportant to you and I believe I deserve my right to live if I can get out of there without even the benevolent queen noticing." The air seemed to get tense as the two stared one another down. Celestia couldn't believe that this abomination was standing in her own palace and insulting her. It was becoming very hard for her to not wipe him from existence at that very moment. "Now, about the payment." Celestia quickly put on a fake smile and clopped her hooves together.

"Yes, for how much you have done I have decided that you deserve more than just the initial reward. I will give you the choice of any one thing that is reasonable and that I may comply with." Balthym seemed to be in thought for a moment before nodding.

"Alright, Luna I want what I asked you to make me all those years ago." Luna looked surprise while Celestia was utterly confused. Celestia looked down at her sister with a frown.

"What does he mean, Luna?"

"It was something that he asked me to make for him when we first brought him here. Nightmare Moon said it was fine and that it wouldn't cause any problems." Celestia narrowed her eyes at the gryphon once more.

"Alright, go and retrieve whatever trinket he has requested. We will wait here for your return." Luna shot for the door, quickly opening and closing it. After she was gone Celestia's demeanor completely shifted back to anger. "You have some nerve coming here and talking down to me in my own castle." Balthym looked bored out of his mind as he examined his claws.

"You're the one that brought me here. Adding to that I don't serve you or look at you in the same light as your precious ponies. If anything, I serve the ruler of the gryphon kingdom, since that's what I have the body of at the moment. On the flip side, you don't really have the room to be talking about shit when you needed even my help to pull this off. I could've walked out at any time, like when Nightmare Moon offered me the opportunity to kill off those six ponies and not save your dear sister. Especially when it is your fault that Nightmare Moon was even created in the first place."

"And what exactly does that mean?"

"Nightmare Moon was once a caring mare, the only one that even tried to learn about me when you and your sister thought nothing more of me then some filthy experiment. I was forced into this world and therefore had no one, but she gave me someone to call a friend. After you sent me to Tartarus you found out that Luna was conversing with an entity inside of her mind. You filled Luna's mind with the thought that she was evil and in turn made your sister corrupt that very mare into becoming Nightmare Moon. You believed that there was someone that could tell your sister not to follow your orders and were afraid that you wouldn't get your way, correct?" Celestia's mane and tail flicked with licks of flame before reverting back to normal.

"If I were you I would watch my tongue. I could annihilate you in mere seconds." Balthym just chuckled.

"You really think I'm afraid of something like Solar Flare? Someone who lived through all of the experimenting and surgeries that I did fear nothing so basic. Your Tartarus was a luxury vacation compared to the lab of that deranged and wise creature. If I really willed it there would be a crater instead of a city here!" Celestia was about to retort, but was cut off as the door opened up and Luna walked through with a small wooden box in her magic's grasp. She quickly ran to her sister's side, who in turn took the box with her own magic. Luna sighed and turned to the gryphon.

"Honestly, how did you even remember about that thing. I hardly even remember making it." Celestia passed the box to him and he quickly took it and pulled the contents of the box out for the world to see. It was a simple metal piece of black armor that resembled a beak. On the base were two chains that lazily hung off the sides.

"Because it was very important for me, then and now." He put the armor on his beak, leaving the sisters confused when his glowing eyes suddenly disappeared under the shadow of his hood. He flashed a genuine smile as he took the hood off and showed that his eyes stayed their natural color, but had stopped glowing. Celestia tilted her head in astonishment, wondering just what properties the piece of metal held.

"So what does it do exactly?" Balthym waved a dismissive claw at her.

"Nothing you really need to worry yourself with, plus it's what I asked for so you can't really do anything about it now." His smile was wiped from his beak when he felt the armor leave his beak. Balthym's expression quickly became dark when he looked to find that Celestia was holding it with her magic once more.

"I will be taking this back under the terms of a ruler worrying for her subjects. You refuse to tell me what magical properties this strange metal holds so I can only assume that it is dangerous if someone such as yourself wants such an item."

"If you know what is good for you then you will return that which is rightfully mine."

"And if you know what is good for you than you will leave this place now unless you wish to anger me and rethink my kindness. If you wish it then you can have another item of your choosing that is not this one and one of which I know the capabilities of. If you will, please return to Ponyville. I will send someone to give you the initial reward that was promised. Until then please st-" Celestia was cut off as she choked on the dense air that filled the room. She struggled to stay standing and soon collapsed to the ground along with Luna. Each breath was labored while she tried looking over to Balthym. When she finally got her eyes on him the breath she was taking in almost became her death. Balthym had removed one of his pieces of talon armor which was now hovering over what looked to be the bone of what should be a talon. Two other frightening characteristics were the fact that, besides his eyes glowing again, they turned an all too familiar sickly yellow and he grew a single dragon horn on the left side of his head that swooped straight back.

"If you value the safety of your family and your citizens, I will be taking that back. I have no need for this senseless violence, but I am willing to change my mind. You can keep your coin and whatever else you would have given me as payment, I only want the armor."

"I w-w-will not allow it. You t-t-think you can threaten me in my o-o-own home and get away with it?" Her mane and tail changed to resemble fire while her eyes began to glow a heavenly white. All of that disappeared as the gravity became unbearable and the air was virtually unbreathable. When she looked to Balthym again she saw that he had taken another piece of talon armor that revealed bone underneath.

"Let us try this again." He pushed his two bones against one another and held his claw out towards Celestia and Luna. "Give me what I desire or the world will be wondering just why a country up and vanished in one mere morning." Celestia grit her teeth as she was put at the mercy of such a monster. She knew that she should have destroyed him when they pulled him out of that lab. He was nothing but a failure that deranged lunatic threw away.

"…b-b-b-beg…s-s-s-s-sister…g-give h-h-h-him…no…b-b-b-b-breathe…" Tears tugged at Celestia's eye as she couldn't even look at her sister to comfort her and only listen to her as each word got quieter with the loss of oxygen. Celestia didn't think for another second as she tossed the armor back at Balthym, who snatched it from the air and put it back on which caused the gravity in the room to lessen. He placed both talon pieces back where they belonged and suddenly it felt as if nothing in the room had ever changed. With everything settled, Balthym snapped his talons and teleported out of the room before the two sisters could try anything else on him. When he flashed back into being he found himself in front of a single statue out of the many in the royal garden. The statue was that of an amalgamation of many different creatures that made up a single entity. Balthym stared at the with such intent that he swore he could here that damn laugh that haunted his nightmares for so many years. The gryphon lifted a talon to the leg of the statue and tapped it, sending a flux of magic into the stone. A hairline crack began to form on the statue that webbed out a little before stopping. "Do you think this is such a wise choice?" He ignored the voice in his head as he spread his wings and took to the sky. It was about a ten minute flight before he dropped down in front of the only library in Ponyville. He walked up to the door and gave it a few knocks that were answered in seconds by Twilight Sparkle herself. She looked a little more than surprised to see him, but greeted the gryphon nonetheless.

"Hey Balthym. I was actually hoping to catch you. Here, Celestia sent you something." She passed a note over to him that he snatched and opened. He read over it once before snapping and turning it into cotton candy that he took a vicious bite out of.

"I guess that clears up a few things. I was actually going to ask if I could stay here, but it doesn't seem that will be a problem." Twilight stepped aside and let him in and he walked in before taking a seat on one of the couches. Twilight joined him a moment later on the couch across from him. Balthym snapped his talons and two cups of hot tea appeared on the table. He picked one of the cups up and took a sip out of it. "So how was everything when we bounced? Was anyone hurt after the lightning or any stray bullets or magic from the fight?" Twilight didn't answer immediately as she was trying to recover from the surprise of two cups blinking into existence. When she finally registered the question she picked up a cup with her magic and took a sip.

"No, surprisingly all of the attacks seemed to direct themselves away from the town along with your bullets. The lightning that tried to hit Celestia was consumed by that weird tear in space. Everyone seemed to return to their everyday lives without a single thought. I'm honestly still worried about Nightmare Moon. Was she really defeated that easily?" Balthym sat back in contemplation. So even though she was Nightmare Moon, Dream Crescent was still able to keep anyone from truly getting hurt. He knew there wouldn't be any casualties from his bullets since he was able to control them. Now the only problem he would have to worry about was why Celestia wanted him to stay here and just how much she would be looking over his shoulder.

"That's good to hear. How about you then? How was your first adventure and did you make some friends?"

"I would say that was enough excitement to last me a lifetime, but with being the new bearers of the Elements I'm sure I'll have much more to look forward to. As for friends, I'm sure I can develop something with those five. It might take some getting used to, but they're all tolerable. Now a question for you. Just how did you make these cups appear and what is that thing on your beak?"

"I can't answer the first thing, as it would surely anger Celestia and she would be all over me for revealing that historical secret. As for what's on my beak, it was a trinket I asked Luna to make thousands of years ago."

"And what does it do?"

"Nothing you need to worry about. Aside from getting the worse kiss you could ever dream of it serves no dangerous purpose." Twilight let out a little chuckle.

"Guess I'll have to wait a little while to get mine then." Balthym let out a boisterous laugh as he stood up and stretched.

"if that's the case then I'm going to go wash up. Care to join me?"

"Woah there big boy. I don't have a saddle lying around to train a newbie. Maybe when you pick up some experience." That earned her another round of laughter.

"Never thought I'd actually enjoy the thought of sharing a home with another person." Balthym couldn't see the blush on Twilight's face as he disappeared up the stairs. Nor did he see the small smile.

Silence reined in the royal garden with just the cool breeze disturbing the foliage. The statue that Balthym touched now had a much larger crack in it and had broken the stone enough to where it was beginning to chip. Underneath the stone was a wide arrange of colors that looked like it was sporadically changing and became something akin to static. The crack moved farther up the statue and caused more pieces to fall off, revealing more of what was underneath. A haunting laughter echoed throughout the garden as the statue slowly began to crumble.

"My child."

Another story for me to work on, I've just had a burst of inspiration lately haven't I? For those who checked this out and were a bit disappointed that it wasn't another Sins of the Fallen chapter, well I have an excuse for that. Somewhere along the line my main computer's charging port became damaged and jostled around in the computer. That caused it to bend and that meant I could no longer plug a charger inside it. Luckily I had enough battery to transfer the Sin file and Banishment file over before it died. In that time I was inspired to make another story after reading Diaries of a Madman by whatmustido, good stuff that is. I was graced by the fact that my grandmother was not happy with her small computer she bought and passed it on to me so I still had something to write a story up and since it doesn't have a USB port, I decided to write a new story for fun. I put a lot of effort into it because I would like to keep it going and I believe this is one of the first times I have asked for all of your input. If it gets shot down I'll probably still do it cause I'm a stubborn bitch and this is one of my only hobbies aside from art. So just know that for those of you who are waiting for updates on my other stories, they are coming. Thank you all for staying with me and being so patient.

Embodiment of Darkness