Baptism of Fire
Chapter 01
Snare
Soaring above an empty expanse of land was a sleek, black chariot drawn by four pegasi cloaked in ebony armor. The chariot held not one, but two alicorns. The larger of the two—a dark blue alicorn with a flowing mane—wore a somewhat bored expression.
The smaller, purple alicorn looked absolutely terrified. She readjusted her golden crown for what had to be the hundredth time since they had taken to the air. It was in imitation of the real Element of Magic. Princess Celestia insisted that the real thing stay within Equestria's borders.
"Thou should relax, Twilight Sparkle," the larger unicorn assured.
Twilight fiddled with her electrum shoes a moment before looking back up to the other alicorn. "I can't help it, Luna," she guiltily admitted. "I've never done anything like this before. What if I do something foolish? I might ruin relations between Equestria and the Griffon Kingdom!" Her eyes suddenly widened as she adopted a panicked expression. "Oh my gosh! What if I start a war!?"
A small giggle from Luna earned her just a bit of ire from the younger princess. "We are simply reviewing our trading treaties with the Griffon Kingdom. Thou hast been to the castle on several occasions where we hath renewed foreign relations," she attempted to assuage Twilight's fears through what the studious alicorn understood best: logic. "The only difference this time is that we shall be visiting another castle. My dearest sister seems to think this a wondrous opportunity for thou to learn more of being a princess. I wouldst agree."
Twilight looked down again as she felt a bit ashamed. No matter how much Celestia or Luna encouraged her, she just couldn't shake the feeling of dread that came from not knowing what would happen. Sometimes she really resented her own obsessive personality.
This, however, seemed…out of place. Twilight Sparkle did know how these meetings usually went. Not to mention that she had certainly studied the Griffon Kingdom enough to pretty much guess exactly how this would all turn out. So why was she still so worried? She should be confident at this point, but instead it took a fair amount of focus just to keep her knees from knocking together.
"Thou shall shine," Luna encouraged as she draped a wing around the smaller alicorn and pulled her flush against herself. "I hath faith in thy capabilities."
Twilight had been so consumed by her worries that she didn't even notice how chilly the air had become until Luna's warmth cut through her cool fur and feathers. The contact did manage to lessen her anxiety, even if it made the butterflies in her stomach more fervent. It was more than a little embarrassing that she needed to be treated so childishly in order for her to calm down.
"I'll do my best," Twilight promised.
Luna chortled. "I hath never known thee to do anything less," she earnestly praised the younger princess.
The praise only served to deepen Twilight Sparkle's embarrassment. The fire in her cheeks told her that she was blushing now. It triggered even more self-consciousness. The fact that she knew her blush must be visible only made her even more embarrassed, and that made her blush more.
Luna had not intended to tease the smaller princess, but even she had to admit that the little bundle of nerves at her side was quite endearing when she was embarrassed like this. More importantly, Twilight appeared to have forgotten her worries. Luna smiled warmly as she realized she had been successful at easing Twilight's fears. Looking away from the blushing pony under her wing, she saw massive cloud structures in the distance.
"Look, Twilight Sparkle," she urged as she withdrew her wing and pointed.
The sight before Twilight was breathtaking. Towering cloud structures akin to those found in Cloudsdale peppered the sky above a town easily thrice the size of Canterlot. In the center of the griffon city was an enormous, imposing castle. But, much like Canterlot, the security stretched out to the very edges of the city.
Twilight counted twelve guards watching as they crossed into the limits of the city. Each of them were dressed in yellow armor and wielding a spear and shield. Two of them took flight from the clouds and positioned themselves next to the pegasi pulling the chariot. Escorts no doubt. Luna didn't seem to worry, so Twilight let her own concerns ebb away as she took in more of the city.
All of the cloud structures seemed to house soldier griffons. It was as if the wispy structures were dedicated to it. It made Twilight wonder just how they took care of the weather. She certainly didn't read anything about it in the dozens of book she studied in preparation for this trip. Maybe the soldiers were also in charge of the weather?
Below them, there was a massive wall patrolled by even more guards. It stretched out all around the city, marking its border. Outside the gates seemed to be largely untamed wilderness, while the area just inside the protective wall seemed to be dedicated to shacks and small farms. Closer to the castle saw the ramshackle shacks give way to densely cluttered buildings that formed an immense maze of alleyways. The buildings and streets looked run-down even from above.
After the hopelessly cluttered homes came another wall. It wasn't as grandiose as the one wrapping around the city limits, but it was still impressive. The homes and shops protected by this divisive wall were much larger and in much better condition than those outside. This section was much smaller than the sprawling area that constituted the outskirts of the city, but it was still at least the size of Canterlot.
The homes and stores only continued to become more and more extravagant as they neared the castle itself. And what a castle it was. It wasn't nearly as pretty as Celestia's, but it was nearly twice as big. The style was far more…militarily oriented as well. It sported thick, imposing walls that were patrolled by even more guards. Above the castle was a massive cloud structure. Instead of spears, the soldiers occupying the clouds above the castle were mostly armed with bows and arrows. A weapon far more suited to griffons than ponies.
It didn't make Twilight feel safe. The whole city was overtly designed to be an impenetrable fortress. Just who were they trying so desperately to keep out? The Griffon Kingdom hadn't been at war in nearly a century. Or, at least that is what Twilight's books had told her.
The jostling of the chariot landing startled Twilight from her thoughts. She found herself on a mammoth balcony. There were several guards around the perimeter as well as two guarding a heavy door leading into the castle. The two griffons that had guided them there helped to unhitch Luna's guards as the princess of the night elegantly stepped free of the chariot. Twilight tried to follow suit, but tripped over her own hooves and tumbled unceremoniously out.
"I-I'm okay!" Twilight stammered as she got up and offered an embarrassed smile.
The attention was, thankfully, pried away from Twilight Sparkle as the gargantuan doors burst open. An oversized, muscular griffon in gilded armor marched out flanked by even more guards. He stood tall and proud. Although most griffons all looked the same to Twilight, this guy definitely stood out. His eyes were a shade or two darker than the golden yellow most griffons had. His head feathers were short and neatly tamed. As with all griffons, they were white, but Twilight could've sworn that they had a black tint to them near the tips.
As Twilight understood it, the griffon custom would have a chancellor greet them and take them to the royal family, but seeing Luna give him a full bow told her that this griffon was no chancellor. She quickly gave her own bow along with Luna's guards as Luna stood tall again.
Racing back through the volumes of knowledge she had attained prior to this trip told Twilight one thing: the only member of the royal family that could greet them in such a manner had to be the absolute ruler. But that was impossible! The queen was the monarch, not the king. So who was this!?
"Prince Vincent," Luna warily greeted. She had clearly noticed the anomaly as well. "Has something transpired?"
Vincent let a warm smile cross his beak. "Not at all, Princess Luna," he dismissed. He then turned his gaze to Twilight. "And you must be Princess Twilight Sparkle."
Prince Vincent? Twilight wondered. That would make this griffon the Queen's younger brother. Honestly, of the four royal family members, this was the one she knew the least about. She knew all about the King and Queen and quite a bit about their daughter, the Princess. But the Prince? She didn't even remember his name until Luna brought it up.
Twilight tried to give him a genuine smile, but the best she could muster was a lopsided, nervous grimace. There was something about those narrow, piercing eyes that completely unnerved her. "Y-yes," she managed to get out as she gave a shallower bow than before. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
The oversized griffon spun around as he headed for the door. "I will see you to the deliberations."
Luna shot Twilight an uneasy glance before trailing after the prince. "Come along, Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight's ears folded back as she followed Luna and the griffon prince. Something was wrong, and that look Luna gave her proved it. As she caught up, two of Luna's guards made sure to match pace with Twilight, protecting her on either side.
Entering the castle, Twilight felt even more nervous. The long, extravagant hall was lined with soldiers each only a few paces apart. Even her BBBFF's wedding didn't have this much security. This had to be more than a griffon cultural quirk. This was…wrong.
"How fares thy niece?" Luna carefully asked. "Queen Maria agreed that it wouldst be splendid if Princess Sophia could give Twilight Sparkle a tour. This is her first time visiting the Griffon Kingdom."
"Oh, yes," the prince dismissed without looking back. "The Princess is quite well, but I'm afraid that the tour will have to wait."
Luna frowned as she stopped in her tracks. "I doth believe that our newly coronated princess lacks the experience to take part in the negotiations."
Twilight's jaw dropped at Luna's cutting words. Weren't these negotiations the whole reason she came here with Luna? What the hay was going on!?
Luna gave her guards a stern look, and the two guarding Luna left and joined the two protecting Twilight, surrounding her. "If there is to be no tour, it would be best if Twilight Sparkle returned to Equestria."
Before Twilight could protest, the pegasus guards whirled her around and started marching her back towards the exit. They made it all of two steps before they were halted by a pair of spears blocking their path. All the guards between them and the exit were holding out their spears in the same manner. The message was clear: they weren't free to leave.
Suddenly, Twilight understood exactly what was going on. Luna didn't doubt her abilities nor was she upset with her. She was trying to protect her by getting her to safety. There was something egregiously wrong and, unless Twilight missed her guess, Luna and herself were in no small amount of danger. "Luna, what's going on!?" Twilight pleaded, not bothering to hide the panic in her voice.
"Take them away!" Vincent barked, causing a bevy of guards to grab Twilight and the pegasi protecting her. They immediately began to drag them down an adjacent hallway and away from Luna and Vincent.
Twilight screamed and struggled. Or, at least she thought she did. For some strange reason it was very, very hard to breathe. She tried to raise a hoof to her neck to relieve the discomfort, but it was as if she didn't have any strength left at all.
Her dark, blurry vision revealed a shapeless blob. It took a second or two for Twilight to recognize it as an outstretched arm. The feathers and yellow scales told her that it belonged to a griffon. That would mean that the clawed hand would be…around her throat?
Why was it so hard to think? Her head rolled a bit as the grip on her throat changed and she found her vision centered on a face. Gilda? she idly thought as she watched the griffon's beak moving. Gilda was speaking to her. It wasn't that Twilight didn't hear the words. She heard them, she just couldn't comprehend them. It was as if she forgot them as soon as she heard them.
Gilda's face was angry and something else. Disappointed? Suddenly, the griffon spat in her face. The next thing Twilight knew she was crashing to the floor. As she impacted, the present world again faded out of existence.
Author's Note - I worry that this chapter may have been too descriptive and comes out a bit...boring. The next one will be far more exiting.
At the end of the chapter I tore the events from the past and back into the present where Twilight is at Gilda's mercy (or lack thereof). I'm thinking of ending all the chapters in the same manner, slowly moving the present along as the past events catch up. My main concern is the transition. I wanted it to flow seamlessly from past to present, but I'm concerned that it may be confusing. I'd love some feedback on those issues, or anything else.