Chapter 2: Deception
Sometimes, you will need more than skill and luck to survive...
Drakenridge Mountain Range, En-route to Gryphus, Griffin Kingdom
April 22nd, 1045hrs
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As Riddle already predicted, Black Star's cover was blown to pieces the minute they entered the hospital. The doctors were kind enough to heal their injuries and give them some food but they still called the authorities. In response, the authorities called the Griffin Kingdom because Black Star is their responsibility.
The kingdom's royal guards arrived around 4 o'clock in the morning and they quickly arrested both Black Star and himself for helping a Class-A war criminal. The lead guard was surprised to see him of all griffins would help a fugitive like Black Star. When he asked why he helped him, Riddle lied that "He didn't know who Black Star was at the time."
Now, both griffins were contained inside a wagon pulled and escorted by the royal guards. They're already in the air for over six hours and they're scheduled to arrive in Gryphus in about two hours.
Riddle quietly sat in his spot inside the wagon with his talons and wings are cuffed. In front of him is Black Star, also cuffed with the addition of a muzzle on his beak to keep him silent. Beside him, is a royal guard stationed inside the wagon to keep an eye on both griffins.
Overall, the Griffin kingdom's royal guards' appearance is similar to the Equestrian royal guards. Some minor differences were the griffin guards have several blades attached to their wings and talons.
One thing that bothers Riddle was most the royal guards escorting them were young and judging by their expressions, had little battle experience.
"Must be new recruits." Riddle thought. "The war really exhausted the whole griffin community until there's no one with enough battle experience to join either the royal guard or the military."
The guards were all coordinated by a single lead guard flying in front of the wagon. The guard is an eagle griffin with dark brown feathers and coat. His body shows several scars and hoofmarks which tells that he also have been involved in the war. The recruits called him, Metal Sphere.
The trio remained silent most of their journey with the exception of occasional status updates asked by Metal Sphere to the royal guard inside the wagon.
"Metal Sphere to Red Tail. What is the status on the prisoners, over."
"This is Red Tail," the guard responded. "Everything is okay sir. Red Tail out."
Metal Sphere sighed as he closed the transmission. Everything is going well until one of his subordinates, a griffin with dark feathers and coat called to him.
"Sir, my radar is detecting several contacts heading for our location." He said worriedly.
Metal Sphere was surprised to hear this, but he kept his composure and replied, "Any IDs on them, Crow?"
"No valid IDs sir," the griffin guard called Crow replied. "Whatever they are, they're too small and fast to be griffin forces."
Metal Sphere knew what species that fits Crow's description.
"All royal guards listen up. Assume defensive formation." He commanded. "Stay sharp and keep your eyes open."
"Roger!" his subordinates replied as they went to their defensive positions. Four guards formed a V-formation with Metal Sphere leading them while the rest formed a defensive barrier around the wagon.
"Whose attacking sir?" a young guard asked Metal Sphere.
"The ponies." Metal Sphere hissed. "But they're not the Equestrians."
Both Riddle and Black Star heard the commotion and decided to take a peek from the wagon's small window despite Red Tail's protest.
"What's going on?" Riddle thought out loud as he watched the guards form a defensive barrier around the wagon. Black Star was analyzing the situation in his mind.
"I'm not sure." The dark griffin responded though his voice is muffled by the muzzle. "But it looks like we'll be expecting some company."
"Hey! You two," Red Tail shouted after his protest goes unheard by the two griffins. "Get back to your seats immediately!"
Both griffins just turned around and glared at him. In an instant, Red Tail's bravery was chucked out the window and he found himself pathetically being glared to death by two of the most dangerous griffins he'd ever known.
"B..but it's okay…if you don't want to…hehe." Red Tail chuckled sheepishly as cold sweat poured out from his skin, soaking his feathers.
Both griffins rolled their eyes as they turned back to see their current situation. From the distance, both griffins could see several dots coming from the southeast. They saw the royal guards tensed up as the unknown fliers got closer to their location.
Metal Sphere's hunch was correct, the unknown fliers consists of ten pegasi and they were all wearing gray suits with some blue streaks which conceals their manes, faces and cutie marks. Metal Sphere decided to contact these unknown ponies.
"This is the 14th Royal Guard Division of the Griffin Kingdom to unidentified flyers. Identify yourself and state your intentions immediately."
There's no response.
As they approached the convoy, the lead pegasi motioned his wingponies to separate and fly in groups of three while the leader flies alone in front of them. Each group separates and surrounded the convoy in short time.
"I repeat. This is the 14th Griffin Royal Guard Division to unidentified fliers. Identify yourself now!"
Metal Sphere squinted his eyes as his second demand goes unheard by the unidentified fliers. The ponies have the numerical advantage but that doesn't deter Metal Sphere a bit. He have fought in the Equestrian War and he remembered some tricks and tactics used by the ponies, but what worries him is his inexperienced underlings. They have just completed their training but they have little to no experience on battling the equines.
Metal Sphere watched as the lead pegasi motioned one of his wingpony to give him a megaphone. The wingpony flew back to his position as the lead pegasi turned the megaphone on.
"This is the Neue Gryphus 84th Tactical Pegasus Squad to griffin forces," he began. "You have someone that belongs to us and we demand that you return him immediately."
"Him?" Metal Sphere thought. "Must be Wonderfalke."
He turned to one of his underlings and requested a megaphone in which he complied. Once he received the megaphone, he turned it on and responds to the pegasi leader;
"This is Metal Sphere, leader of the 14th Griffin Royal Guard." the old griffin said. "I'm afraid we can't comply to your request."
"And why is that?" the pegasi leader asked, slightly annoyed. "He's the chief scientist of Grunder Industries and the company have requested us to take him back so he could finish his work."
"I'm sorry but I can't let you take him away," Metal Sphere argued. "You see…"
Riddle and Black Star continued to eavesdrop on the conversation. Black Star noticed that Riddle's frown got deeper and deeper ever since those pegasi squadron arrives
"You know them?" he asked.
"Yes." Riddle growled. "They're the ones who tried to recapture me last night and there's no such thing as the 84th Tactical Pegasus Squadron in the Neue Gryphus military."
"So they lied about that too." Black Star nodded thoughtfully. "It was all a set up so they could drag you back to their plans."
Black Star shook his head in disbelief, "This is a trap."
"You're a fast thinker Mr. Star." Riddle spoke. "We've got to warn the royal guards."
"Warn us about what?" Red Tail squeaked behind them.
The two griffins turned around and faced the young guard whose sitting in the corner, trying to make himself look tiny and unnoticeable.
"Really?" Riddle deadpanned. "All this time you didn't hear anything?"
"No, not really." Red Tail said sheepishly. "I was too busy being scared and all.."
Black Star sighed in disbelief and went back to the window while Riddle walked to the cowering griffin and said; "We need to warn your superior about this. Those pegasi are trying to get me and they're willing to kill you all to do it."
"Wait. What?" Red Tail yelled. "Seriously!?"
"Yes!" Riddle said impatiently. "Now warn him!"
"It's too late for that." Black Star said to the two griffins behind him. "They're already making their move."
Riddle and Red Tail looked at each other before rushing to the small window.
"…I knew there's no use talking to you griffins," the lead pegasi hissed. "You bird-headed freaks are always too stubborn for your own good."
"That's what makes us who we are." Metal Sphere shot back. "You are not taking him away."
"So that's your final word?" the lead pegasi sighed. "Very well. Blau Squadron, you're all cleared to engage! Eliminate all griffins except Hüttensänger."
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With that word, his wingponies immediately rushed towards the griffins in high speed. The griffin guards immediately grabbed their spears and hold their positions around the wagon while Metal Sphere growled as the lead pegasi charged at him from head on.
Metal Sphere dodged the pegasi's attack and grabbed his wings before throwing him away from the wagon. The lead pegasi growled in anger as Metal Sphere took a stance in front of the wagon, daring him to attack.
The pegasi charged at the griffin again. Metal Sphere was about to dodge when another pegasi strike him from left. The griffin used his blunt end of his spear to combat the pegasi but the leader sneaked up behind him and grabbed the spear and began to choke him with it.
"You should have taken our offer griffin." He spoke maliciously. "Now you will die for that mistake."
"Not today." Metal Sphere hit the leader with the back of his head and slashed the other pegasus on his chest before kicking him away. Metal Sphere used his spear to combat against the leader as both of them began to trade blows.
The leader was quick on his wings as he evaded every attack the griffin throws at him but Metal Sphere's defense were superb, the leader's blows were deflected effortlessly by the old griffin.
But the same thing can't be said to his subordinates.
The other griffin guards tried their best to hold Blau squadron's attacks but most of them were overwhelmed and attacked without mercy by the ponies. Crow managed to fend off two pegasi but another one jumped from behind and tackled him. He tried to free himself but the pegasi's attack were more than enough for him.
The pegasus punched him on the face, dazing him. The pegasi quickly flew towards him and delivered a precise buck to his neck. Crow's body slammed against the wagon before falling into the snow covered mountains below.
The griffin trio felt the wagon shake as they saw one of the guards' body fell downwards into the mountains. They also saw more guards being overwhelmed by the pegasi squadron. Both Riddle and Black Star couldn't stand and watch any longer, they need to do something before the royal guards are wiped out.
"Hey you," Riddle yelled at the frightened Red Tail. "Open our restrains. I know you have the keys."
"I can't!" Red Tail protested. "I only have the keys for the wing restrains. The keys for your talons are with Metal Sphere and he says I'm not suppose to free you!"
"Listen if you don't free us right now, we're all going to die." Black Star snapped. His cold voice frightened the young griffin a bit. "Riddle, your boss and I are the only ones who have experience battling equines."
Red Tail was about to retort but he was cut off when he heard one of his comrades screaming in pain from outside the wagon. The situation for the griffins looked bleak, the majority of the guards were dead or incapacitated by the pegasi squad. What's worse, Metal Sphere was slowly being overwhelmed by the squadron. Running out of options, Red Tail finally made his decision;
"Dear Celestia. I'm so fired!" He thought as he pulled out the keys and unlocked the restrains on Riddle's wings first before moving on to Black Star's.
Both griffins give their wing a quick stretch while Red Tail opened the wagon's doors. The trio flew out, just in time when the last of the two griffins who pulled the wagon was attacked and killed. The wagon proceed to fall straight down into the mountains.
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The trio managed get a glimpse of the situation. There's only four or five griffins left including Metal Sphere battling the pegasi squadron. The equines' attacks intensifies, slowly driving the griffins back.
Black Star frowned deeply, these equines are savages if compared to their Equestrian counterparts across the seas. Not being ruled by the princesses' love and justice really made their hearts grow dark.
The trio flew to Metal Sphere's location and helped him ward off some of the pegasi. But before Riddle could ask about the keys, Blau 1 grabbed Black Star from behind and throws him at one of his wingpony. Black Star stayed calm as he dodged the second pegasi's attack and retaliated by a swift head butt to the pegasi's stomach.
The pegasus was thrown off balance but Black Star is not finished with him yet. He flapped his wings until he gets enough momentum to slam his cuffed talons at the pegasi's head. The pegasi was knocked out as he fell into his death to the mountains below.
"You!"
Black Star turned and saw the infuriated looking Blau leader. The leader was about to attack but he found himself grabbed by a cuff-free Riddle. The pegasi hit the blue griffin with the back of his head and targeted his stomach. Riddle manages to evade the blow and retaliated with a vicious claw swipe to the leader's left eye.
The leader screamed as he tried to stop the bleeding in vain. His left eye's sight began to blur before turning completely black. He is now partially blind. Soon more of wingponies come to aid their injured leader.
"Are you alright sir?" one of them asked.
"My eye…I lost it!" he growled as he glared at Riddle with his one remaining eye. "You! You took my eye! YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!"
The lead pegasi roared as he lunged towards the blue griffin. Riddle dodges it with minimal effort but the leader quickly changes his course and flies at him again. Once again, Riddle dodged him effortlessly.
"Hold still you freak!" he roared as he flies straight for the blue griffin again. This time, Riddle didn't bother dodging the attack.
"If you say so." Riddle said as he quickly grabbed the leader's hooves and locked him in place. Once that's done, he curled up his back feet and kicked the pegasi away with all his might. The leader was thrown into an uncontrollable spin but his wingponies quickly catch him up.
The leader was beyond furious. Not only that Riddle managed to blind his left eye but he also humiliated him in front of his wingponies. He's had enough, he activated his comm and yelled to it; "This is Blau 1 to all units in the area! New orders, you're cleared to engage the griffins. Leave no survivors!"
"But sir," one of his wingponies objected. "We still need Hüttensänger—"
"I don't care!" Blau 1 snapped angrily. "Kill them all!"
The ponies halted their assault after receiving the order. Some of them were hesitant but in the end, they complied with the order and resumed their assault. Now their attacks are more brutal but less coordinated than before. Black Star, now free from his cuffs immediately targeted two pegasi whose attacking a young guard.
He turned to face Metal Sphere before he yelled, "This is Black Star, requesting to engage the pegasi at will."
Red Tail was hesitant about letting the criminal go on his own but Metal Sphere had different thought on his mind.
"Permission granted Black Star. Go ahead." He said with a stern tone. "Take Red Tail with you, I'm sure he'll learn some experience by watching you."
Black Star nodded and went to assist the remaining guards. Red Tail was shocked to hear this and was about to retort but Metal Sphere raised his left hand, silencing him and motioning him to follow the dark griffin.
"Stay close to him." Metal Sphere said to the young guard before flying off to assist the other guards.
Once Black Star arrived, the two Blau members stopped attacking on a guard and immediately snapped their attention at him. Red Tail panicked at this but the dark griffin just calmly took a defensive position.
"Red Tail." He said to the young griffin hiding behind him.
"Y..yes?" he stuttered.
"Go over there and tend your friend," he ordered. "I'll take care the rest."
Red Tail seems hesitant at first but eventually he complied with the order and rushed to his wounded comrade, leaving Black Star to face the two Blau members alone.
The first Blau attacked him with a punch to his torso but Black Star evaded it and delivered a blow to his stomach before swiping his head with his wing. Seeing his comrade disoriented, the second Blau member entered the fight.
He pounced the dark griffin from behind but Black Star quickly grabbed his hooves and throws him to the front. The member recovered and faced the dark griffin before giving him some punches at his body. Black Star blocked his attacks while keeping the first Blau member an eye, in case if he decides to re-enter the engagement.
Suddenly, a third Blau member dove into Black Star from above and bucked him back. The first Blau member rejoined the battle and began to throw some blows at the dark griffin. Black Star was slowly being overwhelmed by the attacks when the second Blau member decides to join in.
Red Tail watched as the pegasi continued their relentless assault towards Black Star. He didn't know if he should help him or not, fighting wasn't really his thing and he only joined the Royal Guards just because his parents forced him to.
"What are you doing?" His friend groaned, Red Tail turned at his wounded friend whose glaring at him. His face was badly bruised with hoof-marks and blood was seeping out from his nose. He's also breathing irregularly and he can't flap his wings normally.
"Don't just hover here and watch. Help him." His friend said again.
"B..but.." Red Tail tried to protest but his friend silenced him.
"Help him…" His friend repeated before the light of life vanished from the his eyes and the griffin soldier's limbs went limp.
Red Tail could only looked at his friend's corpse in disbelief. He just saw his comrade die in his claws, the screams of pain from other griffins echoed through his head. Slowly, he released his grip from his comrade's lifeless corpse and watched him fall into the snowy mountains. His anger boiled and his adrenaline began to gush out, just in time when a pegasus tried to attack him from behind.
Screeching like a hawk, Red Tail gave the pegasus an elbow jab to his snout before punching him away. The pegasus was dazed by this sudden retaliation, he quickly sets his sights on Red Tail as both combatants circled around. Red Tail attacked him first but the pegasus blocked his attack and punched him in his guts.
"Too weak!" the pegasus spat. Red Tail was thrown back but he quickly recovered from the blow and launched another attack. The pegasi evaded it but Red Tail immediately brought his fist to the pegasi's stomach. The pegasi gasped in pain, giving Red Tail enough time to kick him away.
The pegasi quickly recovered from it and growled in anger. He flapped his wings and flew towards Red Tail. Before the pegasus could even react, he was quickly taken down by Black Star who managed to break free from the three pegasi from above. The crippled pegasus decides to retreat from the action for his own good.
"T…thanks." Red Tail said between gasps of air. "But I..I thought you were…"
"I managed to knock one of them out, the rest flew away after they saw that." Black Star replied coldly. He saw the still ensuing battle around them, they were heavily outnumbered and couldn't possibly won the battle. They needed help.
"Hey kid." He called to the young griffin. "Do you have a frequency reserved for emergency situations on your communicator?"
"Uh yes," Red Tail replied while tweaking his comm a bit. "Do you want me to call for help?"
"Yes. We couldn't possibly win this battle." Black Star said. "Call them in."
Red Tail wasted no time and quickly tuned in to the right frequency. When he finally found the frequency, he immediately spoke, "Gryphus control Altair, this is the Griffin Royal Guard 14th Division. Can you hear me."
It took several seconds before a voice answered his call;
"This is Gryphus control callsign Altair. I hear you loud and clear GRG 14th Division. What is your situation?"
"Altair, we're declaring an emergency. We have been attacked by hostile equine fliers—"
"WHAT!?" the controller, Altair yelled in disbelief and anger, cutting Red Tail off. "Did those alicorn sisters lost their minds!?
Black Star decided to intervene to stop any misleading information get through the controller's head.
"It's not the Equestrians Altair control." He spoke to Red Tail's comm. "I think we're dealing with possible Neue Gryphonian rogues."
"Wha…? Who is this? Identify yourself!" Altair demanded.
"I think you already know who I am." Black Star smirked.
"B..Black Star?" Altair stammered. "I thought you…"
"It's a long story. " Black Star said simply. "Right now we have more serious matters to worry about. We didn't have any radar so I can't pin-point our last location directly but we're somewhere over the Drakenridge mountain range south of Gryphus."
"Ah yes, I can see you on radar." Altair responded again, surprisingly calm after the outburst earlier. "Sorry for that, the new recruit couldn't hold his own tongue. Hold on, I'm sending reinforcements ASAP. I'm also keeping this channel open if you needed further assistance."
"Roger that Altair." Black Star said before turning to Red Tail. "Alright, we need to survive until the reinforcements arrive. Stick close to me."
"Uh, okay. Acknowledged." The griffin responded worriedly.
Meanwhile Riddle was facing Blau 1 along with two of his wingponies. The first pegasus made his first move by flying towards Riddle at high speed in which the blue griffin easily evade, turns out this is a mere distraction to allow the second pegasus to attack him. The pegasi manage to land a hit on Riddle's right shoudler but the griffin retaliated with an uppercut to his jaw, effectively knocking him back.
The first pegasus charged again and so did the infuriated second one. Riddle quickly dodges the first pegasus' attack and delivered one blow to his stomach. He then evaded the second attack, he grabbed the pegasi's wings and throws him at his comrade.
Having seen enough failures from his squad, Blau 1 entered the fight and engaged Riddle on close combat. Both combatants trades blows and punches at each other though Blau 1 was having difficulties due to his eye. Finally, Blau 1 managed to slip an opening that Riddle needed, the griffin quickly took this chance to strike at the pegasi's face. But his attack was blocked by the first pegasi, giving Blau 1 time to deliver a buck to Riddle's stomach.
Riddle gasped and coughed in pain, he felt that one or two of his ribs were broken again by the impact. Blau 1 along with his two wingponies surrounded him, blocking any possible escape route.
"Did you think you can defeat us all by yourself?" Blau 1 scoffed.
"Wasn't planning to." Riddle said in pain. The two Blau squadron members didn't understand what the blue griffin said but Blau 1 understand it perfectly. As if on cue, Metal Sphere appeared behind one of the Blau members and hit his head with his spear. The other Blau member quickly lunged at the old griffin but Riddle grabbed his tail and throws him at Blau 1 who managed to evade it.
"Griffin scum!" Blau 1 lunged directly at Riddle but Metal Sphere blocked his path, forcing him to face the old griffin again. With an enraged growl, Blau 1 delivered his first attack at Metal Sphere but the griffin blocked it with his spear and retaliated with claw swipe aimed to Blau 1's face. Blau 1 narrowly evaded the swipe but he's forced to back down a bit, allowing his wingponies to attack the griffin.
One pegasus managed to lock Metal Sphere into a combat while the other one was pulled away by Riddle and soon, both combatants were now chasing each other. Metal Sphere battled the pegasi the best he could but his age and stamina were slowly depleting since the battle began. With each punch and swipe he delivered and every attack he blocked, his fatigue slowly began to affect his performance. Finally, Metal Sphere inadvertently gave the pegasi an opening, causing his spear to slip out from his talons. Blau 1 quickly dived in and grabbed the spear before flying up and faced the tired griffin.
"You're losing your touch old bag." He smirked before attacking Metal Sphere with his own weapon. The old griffin guard tried his best to hold out against Blau 1's attacks but his wingpony made it difficult to do so. With each blow Blau 1 delivered with the spear and every attack he blocks from the second Blau member, Metal Sphere became more and more disorientated.
Blau 1 saw his chance and brought the sharp end of the sphere and charged towards the tired griffin. Riddle who manages to knock the other Blau member along with his reinforcements, noticed Blau 1's attack at Metal Sphere. His eyes widen as every ounce of adrenaline was pumped into his muscles.
"NO!" he screeched as he flew as fast as he could to stop the attack. Metal Sphere also noticed Blau 1's attempt, he tried to evade but it's too late.
Seconds later, Metal Sphere found himself being impaled by his own spear. Blood began to pour out from the wound, the spear missed any vital parts but he's still in danger of internal bleeding.
He looked up and saw Blau 1's grinning wickedly at him.
"You're finished." He chuckled sinisterly, completely unaware of a fast moving blue griffin charging at him.
Riddle roared as he hit Blau 1 with the side of his body, Blau 1 felt his left arm and several ribcage cracking from the impact. Before he could even recover, another griffin; Black Star kicked him from behind and finally Red Tail whose enraged over what he had done to his leader delivered a powerful claw swipe at his body.
As if luck have decided to mock him that day, two more royal guards who managed to survive the first attack decided to join in and beat the living Tartarus out of the pegasus. Their motive for swarming a helpless pegasus varies, one wanted revenge for wounding their captain but the other one wanted some payback for his father whose killed by the Equestrians in the war.
Meanwhile, Metal Sphere started to descend. The pain was agonizing and it's affecting his flight. Luckilly, Red Tail noticed him and quickly flew towards him. The griffin placed his right arm over Metal Sphere's shoulders and the left arm over the bleeding wound.
"You're going to be alright Captain." Red Tail assured to the weakened Metal Sphere. "Help is on the way."
Metal Sphere can only nod in reply as he clutched his wound in pain.
"Captain!" one of the Blau members shouted when he saw Blau 1 getting mercilessly attacked from all sides. The other members noticed that too and quickly flew in to assist their captain. Riddle noticed the incoming swarm and warned the others.
"Incoming!"
The griffins saw the incoming attack and quickly breaks from the engagement. Black Star evaded a buck from a Blau member but Riddle was subdued by two members at once. Riddle struggled to break free but one member punched him on his face while the other restrained him.
"Be still griffin!" the member barked. Riddle just ignored him and struggled some more, causing him to be punched again by the pegasus. His cheek was red hot with pain but he continued to struggle, receiving blow after blow to his face.
"Keep him quiet Blau 3!" the other member shouted from behind. Blau 3 responded by preparing for a punch he thought will be strong enough to knock the blue griffin out. But as he brought his hoof down to Riddle's face, the griffin dodged in the last second and the hoof impacted his friend instead. The pegasi was knocked unconscious and soon fell down to the mountains.
"Blau 5 is down!" Blau 3 said in horror as the now-freed Riddle faced him. He recklessly attacked the blue griffin, only for Riddle to evade his attack but its soon followed by another attack in which Riddle also evaded. The pegasi's temper started to rise with each missed blow he delivered to the griffin in front of him.
Finally, the pegasi screamed and launched his final attack. Once again, Riddle evaded it but at the last second, he grabbed the hoof and pulled the pegasi towards him while preparing his own attack. Riddle punched the pegasi on his stomach, followed suit by an uppercut, effectively knocking him out.
Riddle saw the pegasi fell down to the mountains and shifted his attention back to the still-ensuing battle. He let out a loud sigh before he flew back to support anyone he saw.
1301hrs
Despite already losing six members to the griffin forces, Blau 1 was still determined to kill Riddle and the other griffins on the spot. Despite the loss of the six Blau members, the griffins were still heavily outmatched by the rogue equine forces. Riddle, Black Star and the other royal guards' strength were slowly depleting and Metal Sphere continued to bleed excessively through his wound.
The situation doesn't look good for the griffin forces.
But then, a glimmer of hope rises for the half eagle-lion creatures.
"Blau 7 to Blau 1, I've got several contacts coming from the north." A member called Blau 7 informed. "Contacts are confirmed to be griffin reinforcements."
"WHAT!?" Blau 1 snapped furiously. He knew his plan just went down the drain when he heard that. As much he wanted to kill Riddle right here and right now, he can't do it if his squadron is being attacked by the reinforcements.
In the end, retreating is probably the most logical action to take right now.
"Blau squadron. Cease attack immediately, we're going back." He ordered after setting his comm to a wide frequency. "Anypony who doesn't comply will be left behind."
"Roger!" his remaining wingmates answered in unison. Soon, the pegasi stopped attacking the griffins and retreated to the south. Blau 1 gave Riddle one last glare before retreating as well, just in time when the griffin reinforcements arrived on the vicinity. Riddle and the other griffins sighed in relief but to him and Black Star, their problems have just begun.
Riddle saw the reinforcement group getting closer to their location. Once they're close, Riddle could see whose leading the group. The leader of the reinforcement group is a female griffin with light brown feathers with a darker shade of brown on her coat. Her piercing eyes were green and several dark brown blotches covered her cheeks. She along with the reinforcements wore the same royal guard attire Metal Sphere's group wore.
The female griffin saw both Riddle and Black Star, her face immediately dropped into a frown when she saw the latter. She turned her focus to the wounded Metal Sphere, her face quickly showed concern for the old griffin soldier.
"Ridgeback, you and your underlings tend Metal Sphere's wound ASAP." She ordered one of her wingmates in which he obliged. Then he turned towards her two other wingmates.
"Corvine, you and Osprey restrain Black Star." She said in disgust when she spoke his name. She glanced the dark griffin, scowling. "Keep him contained and out of my sight."
"Roger Kestrel." Both griffins responded in unison before they flew towards Black Star. They expect the dark griffin to show some resistance but the two guards found Black Star willingly offered his talons and wings to be restrained and his beak to be sealed shut. The two griffins did their work while the leader; Kestrel approached Riddle with a thoughtful look though her frown was still present.
"Who are you suppose to be?" she asked.
"Just a griffin who got himself caught up in this mess." Riddle shrugged. Kestrel didn't seem impressed by his answer. "Just call me Riddle. I'll save the main intro later."
"Why don't you just introduce yourself right now?" Kestrel said as she crossed her arms. "We don't take kindly to foreign griffins. Especially Belkans."
"Relax. I'll reveal everything once we get to Gryphus but until then, no spoilers." Riddle replied. Kestrel's frown deepened. "Besides, shouldn't you be more worried about your superior?"
Kestrel was about to retort but the words ever came out from her beak. She glanced at her superior whose now being laid on a portable stretcher, his whole chest was wrapped in bandages though blood were still flowing out from the wound. In the end, she ignored Riddle's mind games and have him cuffed too though she still allows him to fly with his own wings
"I don't know who you are but if you try doing anything stupid. I will not hesitate to take you down." Kestrel warned the blue griffin. "So keep your beak shut."
Riddle didn't seem fazed by her threat and only nodded in response. Satisfied with the response, Kestrel ordered her underlings to escort the remaining griffin forces before beginning their long flight to Gryphus.
Blau 1 wasn't happy one bit. He just got humiliated by the griffins, lost his eye to Riddle and was forced to retreat when the griffin reinforcements arrived. Now, he's thinking on how to deal with his enraged superior for letting their High Valued Individual (HVI) escape to the Kingdom's talons.
"A..are you alright sir?"
His thoughts came to a screeching halt when he heard his wingmate's question.
"Do I look alright?" he bluntly replied. The member wanted to reply but Blau 1 gave him an one-eyed glare that practically says; "Don't answer it you idiot.". The member quickly gets his message and flew back to his formation.
Blau 1 carefully rubbed the dried scar below his eye, his anger boiled with each rub he made and each thought of that damned griffin.
"One day." He thought with a scowl. "One day, you will pay Ratsel Wonderfalke."