The Prophecy

— Listen, Twilight, — I began irritably, — I'm not going to write a «friendship» letter to Celestia! I made air quotes with my hooves and indignantly stomped my foot on the table. The sun princess's student flinched and frowned. — Why? — The unicorn asked in bewilderment, — I'm writing a friendship letter. So many ponies around have become my friends in just three months, three weeks, and six days that I can hardly believe it! I sighed heavily, turned to Twilight, and stared at her intently: — I said no, — I said dryly and turned back to the shelf in search of a book on modern history. Twilight's library had a lot of interesting literature, so the books interested me more right now than her talk about what's right and what's not. — But why? — The mare persisted. — It's all quite complicated, — I replied evasively, taking another book with telekinesis and quickly scanning its contents. «I don't want to deal with Celestia again, that's all!» — I mentally fumed, but kept silent. — We're obligated to report to the princess about... I turned back to Twilight and looked at her again, saying angrily: — I'm not obligated to report to your princess! The country is a diarchy, not a monarchy. I swore allegiance to Princess Luna, not the solar mare. Twilight was silent for a while, looking at me. In those three days since we «reacquainted», she had somewhat gotten used to the fact that I'm not herbivorous and wasn't as afraid. However, she still feared me a bit. — But what about friendship? — I'm not interested in that right now, — I demonstratively turned away and started sorting through the books again. — You're just like I was when I lived in Canterlot, — The unicorn snorted, — I also saw no point in anyone's company. Knowledge seemed more important to me then, and I... — I'm trying to find a specific book, — I interrupted her again, — Please don't distract me. — Life isn't just about knowledge! «How I don't want this, but I'll have to speak out since you're forcing me», — I sighed heavily, trying to calm the tremor from the rising anger. I wanted to hit the unicorn over the head with a heavy textbook. I wanted to yell at her or scare her. However, I restrained myself and didn't give in to my anger. But in the end, I couldn't hold back: — Not just knowledge?! — I exclaimed indignantly and turned to Twilight again, — You might be a genius, but how stupid do you have to be to forbid Spike from eating meat! Twilight Sparkle first looked up at me in surprise, then narrowed her eyes discontentedly, guessing about our conversation with her assistant. — But dragons don't eat meat! — Declared Celestia's student. — Really? — I raised an eyebrow, no longer holding back. «That's it! Now I'll corner her», — I thought and growled quietly, making the unicorn press her ears to her head. — Even I, being a dragon-pony hybrid, eat meat, and in not small quantities! Read up on dragons instead of writing «friendship» letters! Don't you dare restrict your brother's food! — How did you even find out that I don't feed Spike meat?! — The unicorn exclaimed, trying to justify herself, — That's not true! — Trying to justify yourself, huh? — I grinned and moved closer, baring my teeth. — Then show me where you keep the meat. Twilight fell silent again, curling up into a ball, but then slipped into the kitchen. From there, she angrily shouted at me: — Yes, I don't feed Spike meat! Happy now, jerk?! «I'll probably ignore the insult». — Why don't you give him what his body needs?! Who are you to decide what someone eats?! This time, I decided to press the mare harder. I growled at her and stared even more intently to give my words more weight. — Protein deficiency seriously harms a predator's body. Or did you not know that? Seeing me in that state, she finally gave in and sighed heavily, shaking her head. — But, — She mumbled, — Eating meat isn't customary here... — He's your brother, — I replied calmly, sighing heavily and trying to calm myself, — You don't want to hurt him, do you? — No. I don't. — In that case, here's my friendly advice, — I assumed a relaxed pose again and smiled slightly, — Take interest in what's happening with your loved ones. Be interested in their habits, health, interests, relatives, and much more. Otherwise, you might lose the friendship you cherish so much. Or lose someone dear to you. Forever. Believe me, I know what I'm talking about. At that moment, a loud roar came from the street, as if a lion and an eagle were crying out at the same time. Distracted from the conversation, I approached the window and saw several Ponyville residents running from the market, saying something about an angry griffin. — What was that sound? — Twilight perked up her ears, looking out the window with me. — Clearly nothing good, — I pulled away from the window and approached the door, — Stay inside, I'll check. — But... — I said stay inside, — I went out onto the street and closed the door. I hurried to the market to make sure I remembered the episode from the canon correctly. «The griffin, the griffin... When was that? The first season. When we were introduced to Gilda, a brown griffin who behaves ugly. She earned the indignation of many viewers, including mine». And I had every reason to believe that in reality, she wouldn't be any better. Unfortunately, so far, I hadn't seen examples of characters who turned out better than they were portrayed in the animated series. Except maybe Spike could be an exception, but I didn't know him well enough. Arriving at the market, I saw a large brown griffin in its center. It was Gilda, a mix of lion and eagle, with a white chest and golden front paws. Next to her stood Fluttershy, who was shaking with fear and muttering something into her mane. One glance was enough for me to understand what was about to happen: Gilda was going to beat the shy pony. I felt something awakening inside me from the surging anger, and I didn't like it. However, I couldn't do anything about my feelings anymore. «You fucking bitch! I'm gonna rip off your fucking wings and tail so you can't fuck around anymore!» — I mentally yelled and darted forward like an arrow. — «You won't touch Fluttershy! Not on my watch!» I reached the griffin just as she swung her clawed paw at the yellow pegasus. I quickly stepped on her tail and pulled it sharply toward me. Gilda didn't react right away, but when she felt the pain, she tried to turn around. I yanked her tail toward me again, and she almost fell over. Standing sideways to me, the griffin glared at me, and I glared back at her. The griffin turned out to be much taller than in the cartoon. Gilda was slightly larger than even Fluttershy, reaching almost to the base of my neck. Her powerful beak, clawed front paws with four toes, and cat-like hind legs with equally large claws gave her an imposing appearance. The color of her feathers and fur was no different from her image in the canonical cartoon: bright wood colors, fur with white feathers that ended in blue and pink shades on her head in places. — Who else dares to ruin my day?! — The catbird was indignant, saying the phrase in a funny, as it seemed to me, sibilant accent. She raised her head, studying me. A shadow of fear flashed in her gaze for a moment, but it disappeared almost immediately, giving way to anger: — Who the hell are you? — Gilda snorted contemptuously, — Another loser? Huge in height, but small in dick, huh? «What a charge! Such cheap provocations don't work on me, dearie. I'd better distract you from Fluttershy before you cripple her». I mentally facehoof and snorted. «One of my acquaintances said that Gilda's behavior reminded him a lot of a gopnik from the alley, and now I've confirmed he was right about her. Ironic». — Do you even have brains in your head, or did they leak out through your ears along with the earwax since they're unnecessary? — I chuckled, releasing her tail and bending my legs slightly, as if before a jump. — What? — The griffin exclaimed, — The smartest one?! Haven't gotten clawed in the face for a long time? — And when was the last time your dad spanked you for not going to church? — I tried to press on one of the most sacred things for all griffins: religion. Gilda's eyes filled with blood at that moment, and she started growling at me, indicating that I had hit a nerve. Gilda assumed a low stance and shouted: — You'll answer for my father, you fuckhead! In the next instant, the griffin swiftly lunged at me. She started striking with her clawed paws, but hit only air. I managed to dodge, as the combat training in the barracks hadn't been in vain. I was more than prepared for a fight, so Gilda's chances of winning approached zero. From frustration and misses, the predator got even angrier. She started attacking faster and more fiercely, completely forgetting about defense. I took advantage of that and sharply pushed her in the back with my foot, diving under her side. From that, the griffin flew several meters, overturning the nearest apple cart. — You're dead! — The griffin screamed in rage and rushed to attack again. This time, I couldn't dodge the rush, falling to the ground on my back. Gilda was about to strike at my face, but I pushed her away with all my legs and rolled over on my stomach to stand up abruptly. At the same moment, I managed to take the leg of the overturned cart with my telekinesis in advance and hit the griffin with it right at the moment when she was flying towards me. The impact carried her several meters and she hit her back against the wall of the house. — Maybe enough? — I asked, trying to calm the opponent while she tried to stand, but there was no response. — Please, — Fluttershy's voice came from the side, — Stop fighting, I beg you. — Step aside! — I shouted, turning my face to Fluttershy, — I'd be glad to, but... While I was speaking, the griffin got to her paws and lunged again with a growl. I pushed the pegasus aside so that she would not fall under the hand again. I myself stood in front, preparing to repel the opponent's onslaught. The bird lioness, in turn, wanted to sink her claws right into my neck, but a stone flying straight at her head from the library's direction prevented that. — Get away from my friend! — Shouted the lavender unicorn at the top of her voice, holding at least a dozen stones in her telekinesis. Her face expression was angry, displeased, but determined. However, that didn't stop the enraged foreigner, and she dropped to all four paws, looking around. — Nobody asked you! — Gilda snapped at the lavender unicorn. I snorted discontentedly and prepared to fight back again. — Better find an opponent in your weight class! — I roared at the griffin, lifting the wooden leg with telekinesis again. Instead of answering, she continued to drill Twilight with her gaze. — I'm not fat! — The griffin finally reacted to my words, growling in anger. — I won't let you hurt my friend, you griffin scum! — The unicorn unexpectedly shouted back at Gilda decisively and angrily, — Don't you dare touch Fluttershy! — You're the dumbest of them all! — Gilda yelled and charged at Twilight, extending her paws with razor-sharp claws forward. Unlike me, Celestia's student wasn't physically prepared, so soon she was knocked onto her back. Then the griffin grabbed the unicorn by the neck and started choking her. All the ponies recoiled from us in horror, and a red haze began to form before my eyes, like back at the bank. «What the fuck is she doing? Enough jokes! I'll bite your head off, bitch!». I dropped the wooden leg from my grip and decided to look for something heavier. Since time was pressing, I grabbed the first thing that caught my eye. Ironically, that item was an iron pole from a sign, and I yanked it out by the roots. Then, by inertia, I struck Gilda with it. From the blow, Gilda released Twilight and staggered back, switching to me again. A bloody wound gaped on her head, from which blood flowed in a small stream. But despite that, the griffin stood on her paws, though swaying. — It doesn't hurt, — The bird-lioness smirked through force, — Too weak to hit me with your hooves instead of using that... boring tele... telekinesis? — I'm not too weak, but you've had enough, or you'll lose consciousness as soon as the adrenaline wears off! — I tried to convince her to stop fighting, but the opponent just looked at me indifferently. I had just thought that this was starting to remind me of some anime when, after a few seconds, Gilda rushed at me again. This time, I decided to demonstrate the flexibility of my tail to her. Right on the move, I wrapped her body with my tail, spinning around my axis. I had seen this move earlier from Steel, who spun a sword in the same way during one of the trainings. Now I had the opportunity to try it on a live opponent, which I did. Spinning like that several times, I hurled the griffin aside. She smashed through the door of one of the houses and cried out in pain. — Stop already! — I made another attempt at persuasion, — I won't forgive myself if you die from my hooves! At that moment, Rainbow Dash appeared, landing next to the house where Gilda had crashed. The griffin was swaying heavily, trying to stand by leaning on the wall inside the house, bleeding from the head wound. — What the hay is going on here?! — The blue pegasus gasped in horror, surveying the «battlefield» and Gilda herself. — She almost made Fluttershy an invalid and tried to strangle Twilight! — I took the initiative first, deciding to say it as it was. Rainbow Dash stood for a while, opening and closing her mouth, trying to find words, but in the end, she just sat down, hugged her head with her front legs, and looked at her griffon friend. Then she glanced at Fluttershy and asked doomedly: — Is this true? — Well, — Fluttershy began in her shy manner, — Gilda scared me a lot and wanted to hurt me. She wanted to hit me with her claws, and then Stevrian approached... Fluttershy didn't finish speaking as the approaching Twilight interrupted her: — This... your «friend» almost killed me! — The unicorn began to exclaim, trying to catch her breath, — How can you even be friends with someone like that?! Here, I was completely in agreement. «Gilda is a gopnik through and through. She attacks everyone, bullies. It's not far from killing. If she did something bad to Twilight Sparkle, Celestia wouldn't leave a wet spot of her. If all griffins are like her, then I wouldn't mind teaching them all a lesson in good manners». Rainbow was about to respond, but suddenly I got hit in the face with three ceramic plates at once, shattering them. When I came to, I saw the griffin charging at me. I wanted to grab her in flight, but then the blue pegasus arrived and with a kick to the chest sent Gilda back deep into the house. «How tough you all are, damn it! She's been hit so many times, and she's still conscious and aggressive. I'm freaking out over this world and its inhabitants. It's just some bullshit! Do I have to chain all your paws to calm you down?» I snorted and wiped the blood from the cut left by the pottery shards with my hoof. — What are you doing, Gilda? — Rainbow began to calm her friend, — Why are you doing all this? The words of the rainbow-maned pegasus affected the bird-cat, and she looked at the whole square with a more sober gaze. But, coming out of the house, she only smirked. Limping, she reached the center of the market square and, proudly raising her head, addressed everyone: — You're all fucking losers! — She shouted so that it could be heard throughout Ponyville, — You disgust me! Only two here deserve my attention: Rainbow Dash and this big guy who beat me. I don't want to see the rest! Come on, Rainbow, we don't need these freaks! — No! — The pegasus replied categorically, — They're my friends and would never abandon me just because I stopped being cool. — Well, screw you then! — The griffin snorted, — I'm leaving here. «What a creature! When it comes to bullying the weak, she's the first. She only respects strength, and until you give her a good whack, she won't start respecting. On one hand, this says a lot about the griffin mentality. Maybe I'm lucky to have ended up in Equestria and not with the griffins, where such a harsh cult of strength reigns. On the other, she's just some gopnik you don't feel sorry for beating up». Gilda hadn't taken even ten steps when she suddenly collapsed to the ground. I and the rest of the Mane Six rushed to her. When we approached, I used my ability to assess health status, glancing at the uneven but already faded aura of my former opponent. Based on what I saw, I concluded that things were bad. — Somebody! — I turned my head toward the townsponies gathered not far from us, — Bring alcohol, bandages, a few rags, a needle, thread, and a razor. Urgently! — Why? — asked, as I understood, Lyra, judging by the familiar mint-green fur color from the cartoon and the cutie mark with the corresponding musical instrument. — No questions! Bring them, quick! The necessary items were with me in a minute, and I began providing first aid. I wouldn't say I was a top-class specialist, but more than seven years of experience as a medical-laboratory technician took its toll. Thanks to this experience, I stopped the bleeding quite quickly. Setting aside the rags wet with blood and alcohol, I carefully shaved and plucked the blood-soaked feathers from the head area where the wound was. Using telekinesis, I began slowly stitching the wound to avoid causing new bleeding. I had to handle the thread and needle very carefully. Along the way, I noted that such manipulations were much easier with telekinesis than with my own fingers or, especially, hooves. Finally, after all the procedures, I wrapped bandages around the bird-lioness's head, though there were some initial difficulties in securing them due to anatomical features. When the mare paramedics arrived with the chief doctor, I had finished everything possible. In the end, I asked Twilight to cast a healing spell so that Gilda wouldn't die. «Looks like fucking hell awaits me this evening», — I sighed, realizing that we had started a fight right in the middle of the street in front of a hundred ponies, — «But I think I did the right thing, standing up first for Fluttershy and then for Twilight. And I have witnesses who will speak up for me».

***

— Why did you do that, Stevrian? — Luna asked me, not so much accusingly as with concern. Luna and I were in the middle of a mirror-like lake without shores, surrounded only by fog and no sounds at all. This place hadn't appeared in my dreams for a long time, and I was glad to be here again. Of course, I was sleeping like the dead after everything that happened that day, and Luna decided to seriously discuss what occurred right in the dream. However, this was no time for joy and nostalgia, as the topic of conversation was serious. — I couldn't ignore it, — I replied to the alicorn, — Besides, two out of the six embodiments of the Elements of Harmony were almost hurt. I couldn't let that happen. — I understand, — Luna smiled sadly, — Celestia was unhappy that you started a fight right on the streets of Ponyville. But you saved her student, for which she's grateful to you. «Well, at least she's grateful for something», — I sighed, realizing that if I'd gone too far and killed Gilda, it would have led a political scandal. — Maybe, — I pursed my lips and sighed heavily, — But I'll try to be more restrained in the future. I stretched and spread my wings. It was nice to be a dragon again, even if only in my dreams for now. But it was better than nothing. — For once, I'm back in my dragon body, — I said, stretching my shoulders and wings, — I hope I can return to it in reality too. — I hope so too, — The mare smiled wider, — You look much better this way. — Come on, — I waved my right front paw, — I'm just an ordinary dragon. Nothing special. — That's what you think, — Luna smirked. — Uh-huh. I smiled foolishly, and we were silent for a while, but then Luna decided to continue: — Judging by your memories and eyewitness accounts, you fought quite well, and your motives were noble, — The Princess of the Night stated, — It's just a shame that you had to use force like that. — She refused to give up, even seeing such an advantage in strength and preparation, — I admitted, shrugging my wings, — By the way, how's Gilda now? She didn't fall into a coma, did she? — As far as I know, no, — The mare reassured me, — Be more careful in the future, or sooner or later you'll destroy yourself. — Alright, teacher, I'll keep that in mind. Luna laughed until tears came, after which she said: — Oh yes, — She bared her teeth predatorily, — I am your teacher, and you obey US! — Of course, of course, — I bowed theatrically, not taking it seriously, — Only you, my lady. And we both burst into loud laughter, falling onto the water, laughing until tears. «How long it's been since I had such simple conversations... It's like I found a kindred spirit, no less! Otherwise, everyone either boss me around, threaten me, or complain about something. Luna is a first-class psychologist, not just a new resident of Equestria». — Shall we try another combat lesson today? — I asked when we stopped laughing. I remembered how in the past, in dreams, Luna taught me to fight — that's where my successes in combat training came from. In a dream, you could go all out without holding back — nothing would happen to you in reality anyway. But if Nightmare appeared in the dream, things would go bad. The training happened back during my time in the barracks. Now, I realized that there hadn't been any training for a long time, and it would be good to repeat them. However, remembering how Luna had decapitated me several times, I felt uneasy. Not because she killed me, even if not for real, but because then I had to search for my head, and that was damn inconvenient. — Not today, — The dark blue mare shook her head, — Today, I'll teach you to walk through others' dreams. I growled in bewilderment from surprise. «Walking through dreams? As far as I remember, I only accidentally ended up in Luna's dreams when she was tormented by nightmares, but to just enter someone else's dream like that? That's interesting!» — And why do we need this? It's not without reason, am I right? — Of course, — The lunar princess smiled, — But today, we'll try to influence a dream together. — Interesting, whose? — I inquired. — We'll see, — Luna shrugged and conjured a wooden door with her mind, which she immediately opened, beckoning me to follow. When we entered the stranger's dream, at first, there was nothing interesting. Empty space surrounded by many flying lights. Luna was just about to start the lesson when she suddenly noticed a rather ticklish scene nearby: a stallion was floating on his back in the middle of the empty space, while an exact copy of Princess Luna was giving him a deep blowjob, lying next to him and slurping as she swallowed his member down to the base. But it wasn't the process itself that caught my attention, but something else. Examining the scene closely, I noticed that Luna's copy had only one wing, which she was covering the stallion with, and the lower half of the double's body was missing. — Extremely... interesting fantasies, — Said the real princess, who was standing next to me, — This is even amusing. Saying this, Luna smiled and giggled into her hoof. I looked at the scene again and now paid attention to the stallion. The size of his endowment suggested good «prospects», as it reached the middle of his chest, which was unnaturally large. I would have whistled in surprise if my own size in unicorn form wasn't bigger. — What, jealous? — Luna asked, glancing with interest from me to the scene, occasionally casting a look between my legs. It seemed she was checking if I was aroused by what I saw. And, judging by her gaze, she was hoping for the latter. — No, — I shrugged, honestly admitting, — In pony form, mine is still bigger anyway. — Measured? — The mare smirked cheerfully. — Strangely enough, yes. — And how much? — Luna asked the new question with interest. — Seventy-six centimeters, — I replied, recalling the last time I measured my «club» out of curiosity. — Oh! — The Princess of the Night drawled, — A real stud stallion. — Yeah, very funny, — I snorted, — Shall we wake him? — Not yet, — Luna winked, — He doesn't have long left. Meanwhile, the stallion was already arching as much as he could, floating in the air and breathing heavily. The illusory princess had no intention of stopping and took the stallion’s member into her mouth right down to the base. After about a couple of minutes, he finally groaned deeply and fed the pseudo-Luna his seed, pressing her head down all the way with his hooves. After that, the real Luna dispelled her copy and turned the stallion so that he was facing her and levitating belly down in that position. When he was at the same level as the night princess, they started a conversation. The stallion, seeing the princess, was embarrassed and tried to hide his endowment in every way, not expecting to be interrupted so quickly after a pleasant note. Meanwhile, I stood aside and watched the conversation that was awkward for the stallion. It wasn't about lewdness, as I initially thought, but on a quite serious topic. During the conversation, it turned out that he was one of the few who did not believe in Celestia as a goddess, and fully supported Luna, although he dreamed in his dreams about something similar. This pleased both me and her. The stallion himself was named Shadow Runner, and he, along with other followers of the «Luna cult», as he called the gathering of the night princess's admirers. Naturally, such a name was in use among representatives of the official Celestian church, which, however, did not surprise us. Also, when the stallion and the princess agreed on a meeting, he mentioned that he would be waiting for her arrival. When Shadow woke up and disappeared from the dream, the princess of the night and I discussed what we had heard and decided to check the truthfulness of his words when time allowed. At the same time, we decided to continue the lesson on dream walking next time. When I finally woke up, I knew that Celestia would have more work because of me: ambassadors from the Griffin Empire were passing by on the road. And they were dissatisfied with the attack on their compatriot, even though she was in another country — on Gilda...