The Second Griffon War (Main Thread)

[GeneralTyrus]

Dreamweaver Avedon NevermoreStarsign Cyan Hide

Celestia had sat there quietly, nodding politely to the young Gryphon, hoping that maybe everything would be alright, that everything was fine. He'd brought up mention of peace, and her hope started to raise again, "I'm glad you feel honored, I'm happy to hear his message." She'd say, smiling warmly.

And then he began to read.

Slowly, Celestia' smile began to fade, her hopes of Luna's safe return dashed, and dragged through the dirt. She stared down at the Gryphon as he began the next paragraph, and she listened, her stare remaining neutral, though it was clear she was growing more irate by the moment. It was beginning to get warmer in the room. As he read aloud the date and place of meeting, she made a mental note of it, nodding slowly.

When she heard the children would be killed, she inwardly seethed, and slowly rose from the throne, stepping down towards the Gryphon.

Celestia took the box in her magic from her, staring at him for a moment before finally opening it, staring at the Gryphon before looking to see the contents of the box. The room became unbearably hot, as though someone flipped a switch. Everyone present could see Celestia's eyes widen, the look of shock, horror and worst of all, rage, on her face, as she slowly looked back to the gryphon, and smiled at him, "I see... This is a interesting gift he sent me." She'd levitate out the horn, so that everyone could see it, "And look at all the little notches in it! It must have taken hours to do this!" She'd yell, staring down at the Gryphon.

Celestia levitated up the gryphon by his neck, pulling him close, "You are very lucky that you had been innocent in bringing of this, otherwise you would be a puddle on that fucking floor." She'd whisper in his ear, before dropping him onto the ground, "Guards, lock him up, do not harm him, that is an order." She'd say, looking back to the horn held aloft in her magic, before slowly, carefully returning it to the box, and clinched her eyes shut.

Silently she spoke, just loud enough that those gathered could hear her, "I shall have such revenges on you..." She'd say, then teleport the box away, and stand up straight. The neutral face remained, and she looked to Twilight, Cadence, and Avedon, raising a brow, honestly just waiting to hear their thoughts now, and try not to focus on what she'd just seen.

 

[Avedon]

GeneralTyrus
Avedon's face was utterly impassive. Emotion outwardly absent. He dared not show it before it completely take control over him and carve any griffon he can find apart. His voice was measured and slow as soon as the messenger left.

"We will not have peace with such barbarism...to let a petty, gloating, coward of a king who suckles off the might of his vile patrons have free reign over our people..."

He stared to Celestia, knowing he wasn't dictating to her. He felt he was merely giving voice to the hate that now simmered between the two of them who knew Luna so well.

"I would see Equestria sink into the waves before such a petty tyrant saw himself lord...and I would bring the whole of the sun across the griffin's lands if you but order me..."

 

[NevermoreStarsign]

Dreamweaver GeneralTyrus
Twilight has been listening quietly, with a sort of expression of concern that grew deeper and deeper. It seemed like every time they came here and had another messenger bringing yet more threatenings and breathings of terror and doom and violence that it only got worse and worse.
Once the contents of the letter and the box are revealed, Twilight is unable to stop her jaw falling open, an utter look of flabbergasted shock on her face as she tries to process exactly what the hell she was looking at, at first, and then once realization had set in, the former look of concern was replaced with a look of anger.

"...Well, it seems apparent that the griffon king has some rather Funny views on torture." She says, voice dripping with uncharacteristic acid. Once she hears herself, she sighs and pinches the bridge of her muzzle and shakes her head.
"He's attempting to provoke us. To bring us down to his level. To increase the amount of disgusting and senseless violence he's inflicted on the world. We can't give in to that. Responding to violence with yet more violence will just justify more atrocities like this."

Avedon
"And when that's done, what would we do? There are innocents there. Is that the kind of kingdom we run here, one that brings utter destruction? It might be the Griffons today. But it could be dragons tomorrow, or something else the time after that."

 

[Avedon]

NevermoreStarsign

Avedon turned slowly to the alicorn. He kept his words quick, simple, and plain.

"Tomorrow means nothing. Luna is there today."

He snaps back to Celestia. Waiting and watching with an intensity that had every muscle and fiber of his body barely restrained back. He mad many vows to Equestria. He had given more than any man could be asked to give, more than he should have likely to the detriment of both himself and his family. He had given his life in every meaning of the word to the princess's, but right now, all he cared was that his friend was in the claws of this animal.

He was not conflicted by duty or vows to lead Equestria's military, or stay here and attend Celestia. Avedon's course was as clear as it ever could be. He would be on his way to Griffinstone by nightfall, alone or otherwise.

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Avedon NevermoreStarsign

Celestia looked up at Twilight, raising a brow, as she spoke about what was right and wrong, before looking to Avedon, "I understand what you're saying, but I'm not going to do that, the actions of one person should not decided the fate of thousands." She'd say calmly, and look back to Twilight, "And Luna is there today, so right now, I don't care about tomorrow, I care about now and how I can get her back without further harm done to her." She'd say, her tone having a bit of edge.

Celestia then rolled her shoulders, working out the sudden stiffness in them, "Ave, I would like to hear what you think would be a good strategy to deal with this, I have a few in mind, but I would like to hear your's, I know you cared about Luna." She'd say, sighing, then look at Twilight, "And when he is done, I'll listen to what your plan is, but I do not want either of you interrupting the other to talk about the morals. This is very important, so I want solutions, not talk about what is right."

Celestia sat back, and looked at them, "I should say it now, I won't lead soldiers into their capital, and plunder it, their citizens did nothing wrong, it's the king I want." She'd explain, then look at the two, waiting for their answers, wondering exactly they might have planned.

 

[Avedon]

"Anything that can incapacitate one of our two-princess's is enough of a threat to all of us that we cannot let it go unknown any longer. We have allies to call on and now is the time. We must find and neutralize this supposed power-source before this "peace-treaty". If I had such a force, it would be the perfect opportunity to capture you and leave Equestria helpless, regardless if you intended to surrender or not.

You use all your power and influence to keep his attention elsewhere, he would expect you to rage and create trouble here. I think he might even enjoy seeing it. But either way, his gaze would be kept away long enough for a smaller force to potentially infiltrate and find this source. If Luna can be retrieved and this power neutralized...then, we take the despot."

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Avedon

Celestia would nod, mulling it over, "That is a good plan, though, I think instead of a distraction, I should just go to the meeting, he'll be there, and not be able to easily influence what happens in his kingdom. That would be the best time for you to go in and find Luna and the Children..." She'd paused, seeming to think something over, "I give you permission to act as you see fit Avedon, use any means necessary, though, if you can do things peacefully, I would prefer it." She'd say, letting out a sigh as she looked at the ground.

NevermoreStarsign

Celestia then looked to Twilight, raising a brow, "Twilight, I greatly agree with Avedon's plan, and I'm going to let him go about it the way he see's fit. So, I'm going to ask you what you would do, or what you will do." She'd say, looking down at Twilight, waiting for an answer.

Celestia had a plan for the meeting. Hopefully by the time the meeting would be happening, Avedon's plan would be well underway, and they'd have the Children and Luna. Which meant that the King's petty threat wouldn't mean anything at that point, he'll have signed his own death warrant. Celestia couldn't help be smile at the thought of that Gryphon's face when she'd bring him down.

 

[Cyan Hide]

GeneralTyrus Avedon NevermoreStarsign

Cadence gasped when she was shown Luna's horn, and put her hoof to her mouth, horrified. What did they do to Luna? Cadence was the Princess of Love, and while that meant compassion to the innocent, it meant passion and fury to the guilty. She agreed with both Twilight and Avedon, and didn't think their ideas were opposites.

"I too agree with Avedon's plan. You have the full support of the Crystal Empire in your plan. I think this development has made it too late to worry about the loss of innocent life in our actions. Ending this war as decisively as possible as soon as possible is how we minimise innocent life now."

 

[Dreamweaver]

Avedon Cyan Hide GeneralTyrus NevermoreStarsign
Shining Armor had been silent since the messenger arrived, and remained so for a good majority of the time after he had left. He flinched slightly when Luna's horn was pulled out, but he wasn't really thinking or concerned with her; he was concerned with his kids. If that monster had done such horrible things to Luna, what sorts of things was he willing to do to their children? Shining Armor didn't want to think about it too much.

He had been listening quite closely to the situation being discussed at the moment, and finally decided to pipe in his own thoughts. "With all due respect, Princess Celestia... Cadence and Avedon are correct on the 'innocent lives' front. I think the time for peace has passed. We need to get behind enemy lines while this meeting in Fillydelphia is happening, and make sure that Luna and the kids are rescued before the king knows what's happening. That might mean collateral damage, and to that I say; ... oh well. They're griffons, not ponies, and as such are not your responsibility."

"Now, I have only one question for you, Celestia." Shining Armor looked directly at her and quite bluntly stated, "There's a chance Luna will be with the King during the meeting. We can't deny that chance, however ballsy it would be for him to bring her here. And if she is there, he will likely use her as a bartering piece. Are you prepared to live with the fact that your actions may result in her death?"

Avedon GeneralTyrus
"One more thing." Shining Armor motioned to both Avedon and Celestia. "Avedon's point about allies is a good time to ask for that changelings help. Luna was dealing with her. Queen Cada, yes?" He shrugged, assuming he got the name right but not totally sure. "Even a few hundred changelings disguised around Griffonstone could make a huge difference. We all know how deadly a Changeling Invasion can be in large numbers, and considering most of the griffons soldiers are down here... It would make for a wonderful slaughter."

"It's our troops that are the problem. My last estimations during the war were that we had enough spell-casters left for a teleport of only 500 troops per day. That isn't much in the way of reinforcements. Pegasi would be spotted flying over the sea, and would likely be killed before they left Canterlot. Earth Ponies... well, I don't think they can break the sound barrier by running, so they have no use besides in the teleportation circles to join the fight in Griffonstone."

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Dreamweaver Cyan Hide Avedon

Celestia listened to everyone, nodding her head, "Alright, you all seem to be of the same mind, so I'll give you my honest opinion." She'd take in a breathe, "Shining, I like the plan, causing chaos in their capital would be a good distraction, one that doesn't put me at risk." She'd say, seeming to have ignored his question.

She'd look to Ave, "I give you full permission, even thought I'm sure it wouldn't have mattered, to carry out your plan, we need them out and to safety before the meeting happens, and so it's best if you leave tonight." She'd say, nodding to him.

Celestia looked to Cadence, smiling weakly, "Thank you very much Cadence, I'm glad you're willing to help us, and that brings me a great deal of relief." She'd say, smiling as she looked over the group. If this all worked out in their favor, which was a longshot, but it was the best plan they had, and it was a good one. Disruption and madness in the capital would make it difficult for them to do much. Then Celestia got a more interesting idea.

"Shining Armor, if you could, see if you can get some Changeling into the army the King is bringing with him to the meeting, and if he does bring Luna..." She'd paused suddenly, everything seeming to halt for her. Luna, could she really die? Would the King actually do that if he felt it could get her to bow. Celestia stared for a moment, "... Shining Armor. You can handle the invasion however you see fit, and if my sister is at that meeting, she'll be leaving with me." She'd say, staring at him.

She'd pop her neck and looked at them all, sighing inwardly. If Luna did die... What would Celestia do... She didn't want to think about it. She shook her head, and focused on something else, memories, and smiled, then frowned, looking back up, "You all know the plan now... I suppose it's time to get things underway." She'd say, smiling and nodded to each of them, a silent thanks and wish of good luck.

 

[NevermoreStarsign]

Avedon Dreamweaver GeneralTyrus
Twilight's been listening carefully rather than speaking right away, clearly in deep thought. It's only Celestia's words that snap her out of her reverie.
"...If you both think that'll work, I'll do everything I can to support you. I've been quietly raiding griffon supply lines for some time. If you're going out on an expedition, the least you can do is arm yourself and feed yourselves with their goods."
A tiny smirking smile and self-satisfied expression creeps onto her face.
"If we're all going to go our separate ways, then I'll continue to do my part. I'll see about stepping up the ambushes on my end. I haven't been out of my laboratory socializing in months... Do... Any of you have any suggestions about some good help to aquire?"

 

[Dreamweaver]

Avedon Cyan Hide GeneralTyrus NevermoreStarsign
With Celestia calling the meeting to an end, there was nothing more for Shining Armor or the others to say. He shot Cadence a slight smirk, knowing that their troops would play a pivotal role in this battle, and the got up and left. He had things to attend too.

While he hated changelings, the fact remained that Celestia had ordered him to seek out Queen Cada and he knew that he needed to for the coming war effort. He said a quick goodbye to Cadence, and them sought out the Queen so that he could talk to her in private....

GeneralTyrus
He found Queen Cada alone in the Canterlot library. He approached her with more than a little disdain on his face, but tried his best to look friendly. After what Chrysalis did to him... well, it was hard to believe that a Changeling could be nice. But he had to try. "Queen Cada, I presume?" he asked, though obviously the answer was a resounding 'YES'.

"My name is Shining Armor. I need to talk to you, about helping with an upcoming expedition into Griffonstone...."

Assailant Avedon Cyan Hide GeneralTyrus Dumbledoof Wylfen Shepard
Meanwhile, Avedon had a very different task. He needed to gather the heroes of the Canterlot battle, and try to convince them to join the fight in Griffonstone.

The lunar guard had quickly worked to round up the heroes and bring them all to a solitary room in the lunar guard headquarters, where Avedon could discuss the situation with them and enlist their aid if they chose to accept.

(Please no more than 1 character each, the exception being Assailant since his 2 characters are sort of 1)

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Dreamweaver

Queen Cada had been reading a book quietly, then looked up when she heard her name, smiling tiredly. All of the recent events had taken a toll on her, and she hadn't even heard the worst yet now. Slowly, she stood, shaking herself out from under a blanket she'd used to stay warm, and then faced him, "Yes, that's me, a pleasure to finally meet you." She'd say, giving a slightly bow of her head.

She raised a brow at the subject of conversation, "I wasn't expecting action so quickly, but with war, I suppose that is unavoidable, what is it you wished to discuss?" She'd ask, sitting down, having no intentions of leaving the library, she had to learn more than her spies had allowed her.

 

[Dreamweaver]

GeneralTyrus
Shining Armor wanted to make this as quick as possible. As pretty as the changeling queen was, she was still a changeling... and that was a big NOPE in his books. Bugs? Bad. Shape shifting? Bad. Mental manipulation? Bad. Bugs who could shapeshift and drain you of your emotions to make you into an unfeeling husk?

UGH.

"... What we need, is for some of your troops to head into Griffonstone. Near the castle. When the time comes, and they will know when the time comes, Equestria needs your troops to come to their aid. We are thinking perhaps 1,000-2,000 troops would suffice, although the more the merrier."

"... You can take the appearance of griffons, right? Not just Equestrians?"

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Dreamweaver

Cada would be thoughtful for a moment, "I... I can spare rough 1,500... You should know that my Hive is not doing well... I don't want to send more the in needed, so that'd be a good middle ground." She'd say, raising a brow as she looked to the books she'd been reading, inhaling deeply. She'd look back to him, smiling, and she was clearly tired, "I hope that's enough..." She'd say, shaking herself.

She'd levitate the blanket to cover herself again, and sat down, looking to the book again, "I hope that was it Captain, but I need to catch up on the history." Then she looked at him again, sighing, "And please don't blame me for the cruelty of others, it isn't very kind. I'm not Chrysalis, and you need to understand that." One could say that was not her place to speak, but she was a changeling, and supposedly she knew well of Chrysalis' cruelty.

 

[Cyan Hide]

GeneralTyrus Dreamweaver NevermoreStarsign

Cadence returned Shining's smirk and nod, and as he passed her, grabbed him and gave him a brief kiss for good measure, continuing to smile at her husband as he left the room. It was clear what her role was now; to write some letters and amass the forces of the Crystal Empire and prepare them to march south as soon as possible. But before that, It seemed that Princess Twilight, though her equal now, might need her assistance one last time.

"Twilight, we may be able to acquire some help from Chief Thunderhooves and the Buffalo, Prince Rutherford and the Yaks, and Dragon Lord Ember and the Dragons of Dragonstone. The Griffins have seemingly got some Dragon help. So should we. I doubt any of them have good reason to go out of their way to assist us, but maybe you can appeal through friendship. I shall retire to write some letters to the Crystal Empire.

Princess Celestia, is there any other way I can be of help?"

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Cyan Hide

Celestia just gave Cadence a tired smile, "Thank you Cadence, but I think for now, trying to rally up our allies is what needs to be done." She'd rub her face, sighing "I'm going to retire to... my room, I need to think about some ideas I could do." She'd say, nodding at Cadence." Celestia turned and left quickly, making her way out of the throne room, leaving Cadence with Twilight and Avedon. The room had considerably cooled down by now and thankfully a guard opened a window, allowing a breeze to come in, cooling the room off further.

 

[Dreamweaver]

Assailant Avedon Cyan Hide GeneralTyrus Dumbledoof Wylfen Shepard NevermoreStarsign
This adventure will have 2 parts running simultaneously; the meeting taking place between Celestia and the King Eurus, and the covert team going to rescue Luna and the royal children. Please do not bring more than 1 character on each part of the adventure. I honestly do not know what characters everyone is bringing, so I am not going to name any here.

It had been a few hours since the meeting in the Throne Room had wrapped up. In that time, a few very important things had happened. The first of these things was that Queen Cada had been spoken to by Shining Armor, and she had agreed to help the Equestrian's during this invasion. Her troops were already on the way to Griffonstone, where they would lie in wait for the Equestrian's to begin their attack; after which time they would jump into the fray. If it all went according to plan, Griffonstone should be left nearly defenseless due to most of their troops being deployed to Equestria.

The second thing that had happened, was Equestria's heroes being gathered. At least, those who were still in one piece. At the moment all of the heroes of the Battle for Canterlot had been gathered by Avedon and asked to meet him in a room deep within the castle, where only royals and the highest ranking officers of the Lunar and Solar forces ever visited; it was a war room, where all of Equestria's planning took place. It was magically sealed and guarded by the most dangerous magic around; enough magical power that even Princess Celestia herself would be injured trying to force her way into the room.

A guard was waiting for them, and knocked precisely three times. The door swung open as Celestia's magic unlocked the door from the other side..

When the heroes entered the room, they would find Princess Celestia, Shining Armor, Arcus and Avedon waiting for them. The heroes had a lot to catch up on.

Shining Armor was looking at Celestia, expecting her to speak up first.

 

[Dumbledoof]

Dreamweaver
Expellix couldn't say he wasn't getting a bit run down by the war at this point. He certainly was no experienced soldier, that was for sure, and this was the first war he was caught in... well, that may be wrong. He had been there for the thing that happened between Celestia and Luna a little over a thousand years ago but it wasn't like he took part in that. Did it count anyway?

Regardless, he answered the call. Equestria still needed him around to help as much as he could. He didn't have any plans of taking off until this war was over and done with, where he would probably find somewhere nice and quiet to relax. Yeah, that sounded like a good plan. Unless Luna found something else for him to do afterward.

With the ground knocking and the door opening, he stepped inside the room and gave a low bow to them in greeting, then scurrying to get out of everybody else's way. He did not want to be stepped on.

 

[GeneralTyrus]

Dreamweaver Avedon NevermoreStarsign Dumbledoof Cyan Hide Wylfen Shepard

Celestia looked up from what she'd been doing, letting out a sigh as she saw all the heroes come in, and smiled weakly, not really feeling like she could put much more effort into it at the moment.

Celestia stood, looking over them, "Thank you all for coming, I'm sure you're all wondering why exactly you were called here, unless Ave filled you in on it already, but never the less, I will explain." She'd say, shaking her head as she took in a deep breathe, "Lulu was captured, after trying to go into Griffonstone and put an end to the king herself." She'd pause, looking over the group, then continue, "The other thing is, I cannot telepathically talk with her, which is something we had from a bond, and so, something very powerful has likely aided in her capture." She'd explain.

Celestia motioned with a hoof to Ave, "Avedon has come up with a plan, to rescue Lulu and the children from Griffonstone, while the king comes to discuss the terms of our surrender." Then she'd smile actually, "By then though, hopefully Ave and you will have rescued Lulu and the Children, and then while the King is gone from his capital, I can take his life, and Shining Armor can attack the capital with the help of Cada's Changeling's." She'd explain, "If this all goes to plan, the Gryphons will no longer be a problem, and Lulu and the children will be back in the safety of our arms." She'd say, closing her eyes, smiling warmly, before looking over the group.

"Do any of you have questions? I know I was a bit fast, explaining all this, and that it might seem confusing, but it's really simple actually." She'd look to Ave, "Want to explain your plan in more detail?" She'd ask, nodding at him.

 

[Avedon]

GeneralTyrus

The more news Avedon received from Griffonstone and its capabilities to bring down Luna, the more he began to fear the Griffin king was the least of their problems. Still, he knew better than to speak of such doubts aloud. Caution had it's place, but wanton speculation in the eve of such a dangerous mission would accomplish nothing but weaken resolve. He looked out over the assembled ponies...and rabbit.

"I see the weariness in your faces. The blood you've spilled and shed in your eyes. This war has gone on longer than any of us would have imagined. I likewise see the rage and anger etched on every line of your faces. We have all seen the callous “mercies” of these invaders. We have all had friends lost to us, friends maimed...scars on flesh and soul that will last long after all the weapons used in this war have rusted and fallen away from memory.

Avedon looks over to the side where the great tapestries of harmony and the tales of Equestria were detailed above the throne-room walls and the colored glass windows


“They say Equestrian's are creatures of peace and harmony. They're right...”

He turns with a quick snap, hoof slamming down with a nova of shadow, wings spread out, anger rising in his voice as his words became as fiery as the molten gold in his eyes

“We are EACH of us Equestrians! Not because we are ponies, not because we are from this land, but because we REFUSE to let such evil and cruelty gain any foothold within our domain. We will not suffer to live a tyrant such as Eurus upon this world!


“Heroes of Equestria! These heathens have despoiled your princess, taken claim of your lives and freedom, they have brought the fire of hate and flame to your homes! They thought their legions would break our harmony. They thought that their terror and talons would steal our spirits. Their blade and beaks rip our bodies. They have failed in every turn. The fires of war have kindled each of you into something more powerful than it began you as.”

“We stand more united than ever! Not merely as Equestrians, but an alliance of all those who would stand against tyranny. From our most ancient enemies to our most distant neighbors, all are joining you in this battle! “

“The flames of the field we have left, our fallen comrades, the suffering of our princess's who stand undaunted; each is a proclamation of our resolve! We will not allow their sacrifices to be in vain. These griffon bastards could not break us, but they will sunder, melt, and shatter from the bolts of wrath we hurl, and upon their ruined end our bloodied banners will stand unfurled to declare for ALL the world to see: Equestria is a land of peace and harmony, but we shall be the ones to teach them the true face of war! “

“Where they sent legions that stand mired in failure, we shall send 500 who will bathe in glory of victory by night's fall! Changelings and Ponies side by side! Buffalo and Crystalians! Shadow and Light! We WILL take their capitol! We will not set foot upon Equestria until we bear our Princess and her children with us! Our actions today will resound for centuries to come against all those who would watch our land with envy in their eyes and malice in their hearts.”

“My brave comrades, my allies...my friends...the risks are great, but if I fall today, I will fall holding my sword against the enemy with the last ounce of strength in my body. I will fall with a prayer on my lips to Luna and Celestia with the last breath in my lungs. I will stand tall with the last beat of my heart a resounding drum of war to call each of you forward and win the day in my stead. I will die knowing we will be victorious, for I am staring at the bravest and best the greatest empire in history has ever had to offer. We will fight as one in heart and soul, no matter the cost.”


“My plan? My plan is to see see how many of them we can make die friends! Let us wipe the taint of cruelty and tyranny from Griffinstone and let those among them who truly desire peace rise up alongside us, or fall beneath our blades as our steel carves it's way into the heart of King Eurus. “

“Our changeling auxiliaries will lead the vanguard, wearing the skin of those feathered cat's! They will point out every weakness in their line as our second wave arrives! The most vicious and experienced of the Lunar Guard's commando's and alongside them you! To exploit every mistake these cowards have made in their defense. At their head, I shall be there with you and a Soul Reaper to hunt down our Princess's location to the ends of Griffinstone and the earth if need be. Finally our legions shall march forward by the score into their burning city and by force cause their leaders to bow their heads to us or have them roll off their shoulders!”

“ROAR my Champion's of the Sun! My Guardian's in the Night! We are the writer's of our nation's destiny, wreathed in victory and glory by our Goddess's! This is our moment, this is our purpose! In this dark place...in this dark hour...we will stand against the enemies of Equestria and they will know, that not even here, will we suffer the existence of the tyrant. Not now. Not ever....”

 

[Assailant]

Silver bashed his chest with his hoof, letting out not quite a yell, but a sort of proclamation of his dedication and passion: a gutteral noise to mark his agreement. He was no stranger to giving speeches on the eve of battle to his fellow soldiers, but he had to admit that this Avedon spoke with an eloquence and passion befitting of his bloodsoaked era. He gazed upon a pony who made him rethink the relative weakness of the modern age... this was a stallion he could fight with.

Arc, however, seemed a little less moved. He looked around at the group before sighing. "I guess I'll be the voice of reason then." In his casual voice, both earnest and flippant, he spoke up as he stepped forward. "Not to question the judgement of anyone involved, admittedly I'm honored to be chosen for this, I have to question... do we actually have a plan?" He shook his head. "I've been on the battlefield with Luna all too many times. I do not know if she's grown weaker in her... I believe she was exiled? Anyway, my point is, two thousand years ago it seemed as though her mere presence was enough to wound the enemy. I don't need to tell any of you how powerful she is, I'm sure. Which begs the question... what could have possibly captured a being like her? I knew her personally, so I can tell you she's not one to give up without a fight."

Arc began to pace a tad, thinking as he spoke: dangerous in the presence of such authority, but oh so like him. "Even with an ambush, she would be nearly unstoppable. All of that lends itself to the notion that whatever beat her must be both very powerful and very desperate. They're not going to leave her unguarded... she's too valuable and too powerful. Even her guards would have to be the best of the best, surpassing even Equestrian guardsmen circa my day. And there would be magical traps and bonds galore there." He paused his pacing for a moment and grinned. "Actually, that would be a wonderful scholastic opportunity..." He hummed quietly for a few seconds before casually continuing his pacing and talking. "The point of all of this is to say... are we sure we stand a chance? While I have the utmost confidence in all of our abilities, I just do not know that we can go up against a force like that." Arc's face grew uncharacteristically somber. "I care about Luna... she's my friend, even if she doesn't remember it. I want to help her, I really, really do. But... I don't wanna fight on passion alone. Too many soldiers have died wielding passion as their primary weapon and leaving intelligence as their hoofprints."

Silver, once riled up by the speech, paused slightly. "My friend, however tactlessly," he glared at Arc who returned his sharp look with a nonchalant shrug, "does have a point. Do we have any intelligence? Insiders? Anything of the sort?"

 

[Avedon]

Assailant
Avedon didn't seem phased by the question. He folded his wings together before his chest, turning to look over the two who spoke. He nodded.
"I will not lie to you. There are forces at work and machinations we can only guess at. Keep in mind that while a soldier;s ultimate duty may be to sacrifice their life upon the altar of freedom and victory, I have never let any of my men sell that most precious of gifts cheaply or wastefully, and I shall not do so now. "

"We have Luna's scattered reports and we shall rely on the Changelings and our infiltrators to scout ahead of our moving party. We know that Griffinstone is relatively undermanned with the majority of all Griffin soldiers having gone to Equestria. They never dreamed we would be able to counter-attack them...and that will become their nightmare. We know their leaders will be gathered in their capitol to await news of the king's peacetalks and we know he will bring his absolutely best guards. We know his coward-heart. We know he will not honor any real talks or negotiation, and it is as likely a trap for us as it is for him....but that is not the battle I will lead, and I will trust into Princess Celestia to win it..."
He turned to look at the alicorn a moment

"...this invasion will not be easy, but this is our last stand. For Luna, for her children, for our nation to ever be the same as it was before this war we must return her before it is too late. We cannot hesitate or give in to doubt and fear."

>He moved over to put his hoof on Arc's shoulders, looking into his eyes

"We will not fight on pure passion whenever we have the chance. We will strike hard, fierce, and intelligently, but when information fails, when YOU are the vanguard that must find these secrets, trust onto your passion. Trust in the rightness of your cause. When all else fails around you, your courage is the one thing that shall never do so unless you are the one who fails it.

 

[Assailant]

Arc looked into Avedon's eyes and sighed. He looked down and thought to himself for a moment. He'd fought immensely powerful forces... King Morpheus was an incredibly dangerous adversary that threatened all of ponykind, and he and Silver had taken him on... but they hadn't won. They'd simply survived long enough for the Horns to deal with him, and evidently even THAT hadn't entirely succeeded. He... he wasn't sure about this anymore.

"I'm... I'm just a scholar. I fought when I had to, and the last time I went up against anything like this, I very nearly died." He let out a shaky breath. "My fiance and unborn foal... I will never get to see them because I fought something that powerful..." He closed his eyes. Silver slowly walked over and placed his hoof on Arc's back.

"You once told me you fought so that your foal could be born into a happier world." Arc looked over at Silver inquisitively. "You were always a scholar first and foremost, but you would die for your foal..." Silver gave his friend a rare smile. "Now you've got a whole bloodline... around 60 generations of offspring, assuming your blood survived. Now you have to protect all of them. Luna too. You're a master of magic... we need you. Equestria needs you." Arc looked at Silver silently for a long time before turning back to Avedon. He looked between the two of them for a few seconds before sighing and settling on Avedon.

"I... I can work with any magic they have. If they have anything arcane guarding her, I can figure it out and use my runes to try to counter it."

Avedon

 

[Avedon]

Assailant
Avedon smiled a bit, pulling his hand back and nodded.
"That's the spirit son. If nothing else, I'm certain you cant' stand the thought of leaving two children to rot like pawns as these griffon's prisoners. We know that griffons aren't as magically gifted or diverse as Equestrian's, but for all their cruelty and barbarism, they are not fools. I expect they would have at least hired mercenaries to handle any arcane rituals or rites that are beyond them. Beware the gas they used in Canterlot. The one that can steal a unicorn's magic. It'd be wise to prepare a few counter-measures to avoid that, and backup plans if it occurs regardless."

Avedon stepped back and looked over the assembled crowd

"Anything else? No one can force you to come. Not into something like this. We all know the price of duty, but I am only accepting volunteers for this operation. There can be no room for doubt in our actions. We will not be soldiers and mercenaries bound by duty. We will be brothers and sisters, bound by blood and glory to the end of our days."