Intension VIII: Formidilosus

Twilight opened her eyes and blinked a few times. Looking out the eastern window, she noticed that the sun had barely risen, meaning it couldn't be past seven. Growling her displeasure at being awake this early after a party like last night's, she rolled over and buried her head between a pillow and Luna's neck. After a moment, she felt a wing softly drape over her back, and Luna's chest move with a sigh. Buried in the soft embrace, she was able to fall asleep again.

When Twilight woke up again, the angle of the shadows told Twilight that it was nearly noon. Looking around at her empty bed, Twilight stood, and went in search of her missing Princess. She found Luna in the kitchen, drinking some tea and that week's newspaper held in her telekinetic grip as she frowned at the Soduko page. Her back was to Twilight, who decided to see of she could sneak up on her lover. It something she had never managed to do, and was quite keen to achieve. Setting her hooves delicately on the wooden floor, Twilight inched closer to her unsuspecting prey. She was almost holding her breath as she got closer, and closer, and after several minutes of being as careful and quiet as can be, she was right behind Luna. She paused, contemplating her next move. However, the decision turned out to be for naught.

"Good try, but I knew you were there before you were halfway across the room."

"Augh! How do you do that?"

"I'm an immortal alicorn, with thousands of years of wisdom and knowledge at my disposal, and incomparable amounts of magical power. I've learned a few tricks."

"You should teach me those tricks sometime."

Luna turned from her puzzle to give Twilight a crooked grin.

"What, do you not remember last night? I'd say you actually taught me a few."

Twilight blushed to such a degree, she was sure her face was literally glowing. She did in fact remember what had happened last night, long after the rest of the ponies had left and the party winded down.

"But I..... I didn't know what I was..... I've never..."

Luna set down her tea and paper and leaned over to kiss Twilight softly.

"Fret not. You are an amazing mare, and last night was amazing. Now, I do think there is some toast and tea left if you're hungry."

Twilight's stomach answered for her, growling loudly in protest of the lack of sustinace so far. Reaching out with her magic, she levitated the plate with toast and the glass of tea over to the table, warming them at the same time. She ate with gusto, while Luna continued with her puzzle. The couple sat in peace for several minutes, the only sounds being the cruch of toast and scribbling of a pen. Twilight was absentmindedly chewing on some toast when she happened to look at the back of the paper Luna was holding, which was actually the front, as the puzzle was on the last page. She gasped loudly and dropped the piece of toast she had been nibbling on, causing Luna to flinch in her seat, dropping her paper, which fluttered to the floor, pages scattering. Twilight scrambled after the paper, confusing Luna even more.

"Twilight, what are-"

"The paper!"

"Yes, what about it?"

Twilight finally rose from under the table, holding the front page and staring at it in horror. Luna noticed this look, and began to inch around the table.

"Twilight, dear, what is.... Oh."

The Princess had moved around the table far enough to read the front headline, big bold print that she wondered how she could have missed. Leaning closer, she began to read the horrifying article.

______________________________________________________________________________

GRIFFONS DECLARE WAR ON DIAMOND DOGS
Hundreds killed in surprise attack!

In a completely unprecedented move, the griffons, led by Major General Stormwind and under the command of Emporer Frau Farbissana, have declared war on the Diamond Dogs. Wednesday morning, the Imperial Griffon Army launched a full-scale siege of the civilian Diamond Dog city of Salam, and by Thursday evening were in complete occupation of the previously peaceful city. So far, the only information we have is that many were killed, mostly civilians, with thousands being held in prison camps. Friday morning, Princess Celestia was planning to send a Royal Guard task force to ascertain whether or not the attack was justified and prevent further hostilities, when a letter from General Stormwind arrived, requesting the she resist intervention. Legislation was passed that the letter not be released publicly. It says the following:

"Princess Celestia.
I realize that our actions have both surprised and horrified you, and must seem unjust and cruel. However, allow me to say that we are completely justified in doing as we did, as the Diamond Dogs are responsible for several recent acts of gruesome terrorism against our government that we will not allow to go unpunished. I will order my troops out of Diamond Dog land as soon as we have the group responsible, and not a second before. If you attempt to intervene, it will be perceived as a hostile act, and will be treated as such.

-Major General Stormwind, Commander of the Imperial Griffon Army."

At this time, we are unable to confirm or deny any other news about the situation, other than the griffons are not accepting requests of peace talks from the Diamond Dog government. Remember to buy next week's Equestrian Inquirer for more on this story as it unfolds!
______________________________________________________________________________

Twilight finished reading the story and set the paper down, rocking back to sit heavily in her chair. The implications of what had just happened were astounding. War had not been declared between any countries in centuries. Luna picked up the paper and read the article again, scowling darkly. She growled and tossed the paper down, shocking Twilight.

"War is declared by two nearby countries, and she sees fit not to inform me!? What is this madness!?"

"I'm sure she was going to, but was busy or-"

"No, Twilight. I commend you for trying to see light in the dark situation, but I fear my sister intentionally kept this from me, for reasons undoubtedly shortsighted and narrow minded. I must go to the castle and demand explanation."

"I'm coming too!"

Twilight stood, and she was nearly certain that Luna was going to tell her no, to stay behind, that it would be safer, but instead the Princess turned and walked towards the front door.

"If you desire. However, you know how taxing Canterlot politics can be. Are you certain?"

"Yes. As one of the Elements Of Harmony, I feel it is my duty to try and facilitate peace. I will also alert the others, if need be."

"Well, that can wait until we know if it is needed or not. Come! We have no time to waste."

Twilight and Luna dashed to the door, and once outside they opened thier wings and took to the skies, aiming for Canterlot and going hell for leather. Twilight tucked into Luna's slipstream, as the Princess was a much stronger flyer. Since Luna's wings were also marginally larger than Twilight's own, she was able to tuck in behind and maintain speed for an amount of time much longer than she normally would have. Even given the urgent situation, Twilight had the presence of mind to watch Luna as she flew and examine her flying technique. The first thing she saw was how Luna kept her hind legs bent at the knee, tucked in under her hindquarters. Twilight had always just let her legs hang, letting the wind push them back into a semi-streamlined shape, but as soon as she bent her own legs, she noticed a vast reduction in the turbulence that was whipping her tail around.

As the scenery scrolled by peacefully under the pair, they steadily approached Canterlot. Twilight couldn't quite see the palace tower over Luna's head, and soon realized why. They were heading to the highest room in the highest tower. She wondered about this for several minutes, and then remembered a handy little spell she had discovered that allowed two unicorns to talk telepathically. Recalling the specifics of the spell, she gave a brief burst of magic to power it, and released it, targeting Luna.

Luna?

Twilight saw Luna shudde a bit in the air in front of her, then glance back and replied in kind.

Twilight? I forgot about this spell, I haven't used it in ages. What is the matter?

Are we heading to the apothecary?

Yes.

Why not the main throne room?

You shall see.

Twilight ruminated on this but did not answer, as they were nearing the palace anyway. Swooping into a gradual arc, Luna flew around to approach the tower from the rear. As they made thier approach, Twilight saw there was a small balcony, just large enough to accommodate a few landing pegasi, or an alicorn and one other besides. Luna made an elegant landing, touching down on her hooves with nary a sound. Twilight's landing was slightly less graceful, having come in at a more downward slope, not wanting to skid on the slick tile into the room. Luna raised an eyebrow at the thump as Twilight landed, but did not comment. Leading the way, she walked into a room that Twilight thought was the most beautiful room she had ever seen.

The ceiling was painted in the likeness of the night sky, with faint lines denoting the path of the planets and stars. The walls were navy blue, and the floor was midnight black tile. There were several shelves around the perimeter of the room with various devices for divining the night sky, but the center of the room was dominated by a large, low wooden table ringed with large and comfortable looking wing-backed chairs. Only two of the chairs were occupied at the moment, but the occupants were neither the ones Twilight expected, or wanted to see. One was occupied one by Celestia herself, while across from her was undoubtedly the largest griffon Twilight had ever seen. He looked to be as large as Celestia herself, and going by standard griffion physiology meant that his wings would be much larger than the Princess's as well. Both Celestia and the griffon reacted when Luna strode into the room, tall and regal as she could be without her royal accouterments, and again they seemed shocked when they noticed Twilight. Celestia's eyes grew wide, and she set down the cup of tea she was holding, and the griffon actually jumped out of his chair, spinning to face the perceived intruders. He opened his beak, and his voice barked forth, deep and rough.

"What is the meaning of this intrusion!? We demanded that we remain undisturbed!"

Luna's reply was as smooth as the griffon's was brash.

"I'm sure there's an exclusion to a Princess and her chosen guest. Who are you?"

"I am Lieutenant General Grous! Second on command to Major General Stromwind! And Queen Celestia has bade that NONE interrupt our meeting, as it is of the highest importance!"

"QUEEN!? WHAT DOST THOU MEAN QUEEN? SISTER, EXPLAIN!"

Celestia rose from her seat and motioned for the Lieutenant General to take his. He did so, fuming, while Celestia approached her enraged sister. When she was close enough, she whispered loud enough for Twilight to hear as well.

"Due to the way the griffon hierarchy is set up, they view Princesses as nearly powerless until they have ascended the throne. As such, you and myself shall have to go by Queens when we are dealing with them, or else we will be disregarded. Please, understand."

Luna seemed to roll this information around in her head before accepting it, at which time she gazed back at Celestia with fury, although subsided greatly from a moment before.

"I understand, however our system was never set up for queens. Remember to set the title aside when this is through."

"But of course. Lieutenant, this is my sister, Queen Luna of Canterlot, and my former protege, Twilight Sparkle of Canterlot. Sister, Twilight, come join us. I fear you may need to hear what we are deliberating."

They went to the table, and Luna chose to sit beside Celestia, and Twilight sat beside her. They looked across the table to the Lieutenant Major, who seemed to be having difficulty accepting the sudden appearance of two more audience members. Nevertheless, he shuffled his wings, then began talking.

"The situation with the Diamond Dogs is not quite what the media has portrayed. We did not attack a defenseless crowd of weak civilians. They had anticipated us, and have a strong defense. Whoever it was that lead those atrocious acts of terrorism, they are being very well protected, further proof that it was a dubious Diamond Dog scheme, no doubt for our lands and resources. We have been at odds with them for centuries, as you are no doubt aware. The uneasy truce between our races was doomed to fail, it was just a matter of when and what excuse."

"And what exactly were those acts of terrorism?"

Twilight felt like the Lieutenant was upset by her question, as he shot her a glare that was withering and vile.

"Four days ago, they attempted to assassinate one of our princesses as she was on a pilgrimage. She barely escaped with her life, and will most likely never walk on land again, as they damaged her two hind legs beyond repair or healing."

The room fell quiet, a crushing and dark silence. Celestia was the first to speak, to Luna and Twilight.

"And this is not the first attack. Two weeks ago, several Imperial Guards were found in thier barracks, strangled while they slept."

"But that is not the most infuriating part!"

Twilight jumped at Grous's sudden outburst, slamming his large, taloned fist on the table.

"Daimond Dogs are known to not have magic, relying on enchanted crystals bartered from unicorns or dragons. Killing five Royal Guards is a task that requires strength no crystal can achieve!"

Twilight had to restrain lowering her gaze as he said this, her mind on the Amaranth.

Not anymore....

"We think that the Diamond Dogs have recruited a rogue unicorn, one very strong in the magical ways. That is why I am here. The Queen and myself are attempting to find a way to track such a unicorn, and learn where he came from."

"I imagine you have already scoured the Unicorn Registry, Celestia?"

"Yes, sister. The only two unicorns of great power unaccounted for both disappeared hundreds of years ago, and have long since died. Gracious Charm, the inventor of several powerful mind control spells, vanished three hundred and seven years ago, and the unicorn known only as Black Star, just over a thousand years ago. The Registry has been complete ever since."

Twilight caught a small grimace from Luna as the name Black Star was mentioned, and understood. Black Star was an anonymous spellcaster who had caused a lot of trouble a thousand years ago, just before the appearance of Nightmare Moon. They had never been caught, and no motive was ever realized. One day, several building were destroyed, followed by more over the next few years, with several important members of the Royal Court killed. Then one day, mere months before Luna turned into Nightmare Moon, they stopped. There had been much speculation as to if the two were working together, but after much investigation over the next hundred years, it was disregarded, as no proof of correlation could be proven. The only evidence ever discovered was a note, found at the scene of the murder of an important Senator, signed with the name Black Star, claiming that they would bring the entirety of Equestria to it's knees. It was the last act of the mysterious Black Star, and no more clues were ever found.

"What about othe unicorns, maybe born outside Equestria's borders? That's certainly possible."

Once again, Twilight felt every eye in the room swivel to her in scrutiny. After a moment, Celestia spoke.

"That is what we are afraid of. A unicorn never registered, possibly never exposed to proper teachings, free to be melded into the barbaric ways of the wild country, far from any civilization. Unfortunately, if that is so, then the only way to track them is to wait until they act again, and attempt to track thier magic from there. It is risky and difficult, but may be our only action."

"Well then, that is what me must do. I cannot stand to let any more griffons die!"

"General Grous, is your purpose here to secure a unicorn team to find this rogue unicorn?"

"Yes, Queen Luna, it is."

"In that case, I may be able to assist you. Sitting right here beside me is one of the most powerful unicorns in Equestria, if not the world. She just might agree to assist you."

Twilight was confused at first, but then Luna looked at her, and understanding flooded through her, and she felt herself blush. She instinctively wanted to deny it, but she didn't. She decided to instead blush deeply and stammer her answer.

"I mean, I guess I'm good but, are there not far more able unicorns, maybe those trained for such a thing? I've never tried to track another unicorn through magic, though I know how it's done..."

"Twilight, it is entirely up to you if you choose to assist or not. However, I believe you may be one of the best options. As for more able unicorns trained in such arts, we do have a team, but they will need a leader."

Twilight made direct eye contact with Celestia for the first time sonce entering the room, and it made her uncomfortable. She squirmed in her seat, but she simply couldn't turn down an opportunity to assist someone in need, even if she felt out of her depth.

"I guess.... How long until the team is ready?"

"They are already assembled downstairs."

"Then I agree. As one of the Elements of Harmony, it is my duty to facilitate peace."

"Then is it done?"

"Yes, Lieutenant General. Twilight will lead the team in the investigation, and Queen Luna will oversee them from here. They will begin in Salam, and rendezvous with the field commander there, then will make their own way to where ever they see fit. Twilight will relay their progress via magical scroll to my sister, who will give it to me, and I shall send relevant information to either you or General Stormwind, depending on it's relevance. Is that agreeable?"

"Indeed it is. Now, I must go. I wish to be away from the Army as little as possible. Take care, Queen Celestia, Queen Luna, and good luck, Twilight Sparkle. I look forward to seeing you again soon."

With that said, Grous stood from the table and went out to the balcony, taking off and vanishing from sight. As soon as he was gone, Celestia stood as well.

"Luna, the team Twilight is to lead is stationed in the East Barracks at the moment. Please, go to them, and see that they are ready for departure. Twilight, please make what arrangements you must and depart as soon as possible. I have much to do, if you would excuse me."

With a bright flash of light, Celestia vanished, teleporting to where ever she needed to be, leaving Twilight and Luna alone. As soon as she was certain they were not being watched, Twilight leaned over to reast her head on Luna's shoulder, who wrapped her wing around Twilight, covering her in a soft embrace. They sat in silence for a minute, at which point Twilight sighed.

"That is definitely NOT what I was expecting this afternoon to be like."

"I can agree. This seems worse than we thought. You have quite a job ahead of you."

"I know. I can just hope my team is ready for it."

"If they are who I think they are, then Tia just assigned you to the best of the unicorns in service today, the Black Berets."

Twilight immediately sat straight up in her seat.

"No way. THE Black Berets? The best of the best of the best magicians of the Royal Guard?"

"The very same."

Twilight slumped back over to rest her head on Luna's shoulder again.

"Great....."

"Something the matter?"

"Well, it's just that my brother, Shining Armour, was so into them as a young stallion. He knows almost everything there is to know about them that there is to know, and by extension, I do too. They are a rough bunch."

"Only the mentally and physically toughest unicorns can be a Black Beret, so yes, a certain uncouthness is a typical character trait. However, they are among the most loyal and selfless soldiers known, so you should have no trouble from them. Would you like to meet them?"

"I suppose. Afterward, I need to go to the lab and tell Axion about this development. I guess she will have to carry on without me for the time being."

"Yes, this definitely takes precedence. Now, take my hoof. I will teleport us to nearby their quarters."

Taking Luna's hoof in her own, Twilight felt a peculiar sensation running over her, similar to hot water being poured on her. Before it could reach the point of discomfort, there was a flash of blue, then it was over. They were now standing in a stone hallway, from the end of which voices could be heard, singing in a rough chorus.

"....But the crew stayed at their post, and the capitan at his wheel!
We all endured the wrath of fate, we thought our fate was sealed!
A chain's as weak as it's weakest link, and rust had cut us through!
But strength in hooves and hearts and heads held, cause our course was true!"

Moving nearer to the door that the singing was coming from, Twilight felt nervousness clawing at her heart, though she refused to let it win. The old sailing song was rousing and stong, as undoubtedly were the stallions singing it. Just before they reached the door, however, the singing abruptly stopped. Questioningly, Twilight pushed open the door to find twenty tall, buff, and stern looking unicorns staring at her. One stepped forward to confront her, a light red giant of a pony. Twilight swallowed nervously, as her head barely came above his shoulder. His voice was shockingly smooth and mellow for a stallion of his size, though his tone gruff.

"You lost?"

"That is not the way you greet your new squad leader."

The assembled stallions all bowed as Luna entered the room, all shouting as one.

"Hail, Princess Luna!"

The stallion who had spoken to Twilight looked up, though he remained bowing.

"Our most sincere apologies! We were not alerted to the identity of our commander, Princess!"

"Please, stand. This is your new commander, Twilight Sparkle. She is more magically powerful than any one of you here, though she is not well versed in fighting arts. That is why she is not going alone. You are to give her your unquestioning loyalty and respect. Understood?"

The reply shook the floor with its volume, making Twilight cringe.

"Yes, Princess!"

"Twilight, you should get on terms with them. These stallions will obey your every command, and die for you without hesitation. You might as well be friends."

Twilight swallowed again at this.

"I certainly hope it never comes to that...."

"I do as well. Now, I have a few things to do. Find me in my quarters when you are finished here."

And so Luna left, leaving Twilight with twenty stallions, all of whom were no less than a foot taller than her, and at least a hundred pounds larger. They all still stood rock solid, still at attention, for thier commander hadn't ordered otherwise.

"Um.... You can relax now...."

A collective sigh was released, and soon the rigid statues turned back into stallions, smiling and friendly. The one who had spoken introduced himself first.

"Hello! I am Wildfire. I'm the Sergeant of this rabble, and your second-in-command. Tell me what needs done, and I see that these fools get it done."

There was some laughter at his good-natured insults.

"It's nice to meet you, Wildfire."

Leading the way around the room, Wildfire introduced Twilight to the others, starting with the biggest of them all. Twilight's head was level with his massive brick red shoulder, and his hooves were nearly as large as her head.

"This bruiser here has a proper name, but we all call him Little Bit. He's the demolitions expert. Point him in the right direction and get out of his way, 'cause let him loose and I've seen him level a small town on his own."

Twilight craned her head to look up at the hulk being introduced to her.

"Nice to meet you, uh, Little Bit. I sure hope that no town need leveling this time."

"And the same to you, Commander. And that's a shame, it's been too long since I've gone on a proper rampage."

Twilight felt her body reverberate with the bass from his voice, which was as deep and growling as a dragon's roar. Wildfire quickly moved on to the next stallion in line.

"This one here is Hawkeye. He can hit anything, from anywhere, in any conditions, from up to a mile away with them little sticks of his."

This was a light grey unicorn no bigger than Applejack's older brother Big Macintosh was, making him the smallest stallion in the room. Across his back was slung a quiver loaded with short spears, feathered on one end, large steel tips on the other.

"Evening, Ma'am. An honor to work with you. I know your brother, Shining Armour. A gallant stallion."

"An honor to you as well. And yes, my brother is certainly gallant. Mind if I ask, but how do you throw your projectiles distances of a mile?"

"With magic. I've been doing it since I was a foal, tossing sticks this way and that."

"And you can hit a pony sized target at that range?"

"Reliably."

"In a wind?"

Hawkeye snickered a little, as did a few of the stallion around him.

"In a thunderstorm, at night, uphill. Actually had to once. Remember that, Tank?"

The stallion beside him nodded. He was covered from head to tail in polished metal armour, which looked heavy to Twilight, but he bore it with ease.

"I do. Way off in the mountains, hunting that damn murderer. Wild night. Oh, pardon me, Ma'am, I'm Aegis, but they all call me Tank."

"Pleased to meet you. Is that armour really necessary here? Surely we won't be attacked."

"Ah, you're right, but it's gotten to the point I feel weird without it."

A dark green stallion beside Tank nudged the armoured soldier and laughed.

"Silly foal even sleeps in it! I'm Nightfury, covert ops extraordinaire."

"By that, he means he's really good at avoiding a straight fight, unlike a real stallion! I always prefer an open fight to all his sneaking around."

Twilight turned to the stallion that had just spoke, a brown unicorn with a light brown mane. He was very normal looking, except for his size.

"I see. And what is your name?"

"Bill."

"Bill?"

"Yupp. Nice and simple."

"Do you have a specialty?"

"Fighting."

"As I would expect from a Black Beret. Anything more specific?"

"Close range, within hoof's reach."

Twilight was about to ask the next stallion his name, when her eyes suddenly found a mare sitting in the back of the room, previously hidden behind the mountainous stallions surrounding her. She looked so normal and out of place that Twilight had to ask Wildifre if she was actually a Black Beret.

"Yes, she is. Come on, let's go say hi."

The mare had an off-white coat and a mane of black, with a single bright green streak that ran through her mane and tail. She was sitting calmly in the corner, smoking a cigarette, and stood when Wildfire and Twilight approached.

"This little hellion is Winter Mist."

"Good evening, Winter Mist."

"Please, just Winter. And it is nice to meet you as well, Commander. It's nice to see some estrogen injected into this testosterone fueled rage machine."

Twilight smiled. She liked Winter's sense of humor already, as well as her accent. Twilight couldn't quite place it, but it had a smooth and pleasant melody to it, drawing out some of the vowel sounds and clipping some of the consonants.

"I know the feeling. Pardon me for saying, but you seem a little out of place here."

Wildfire laughed loudly at this, as did the rest of the stallions, though Winter just smiled grimly.

"Aye, that's what we all said at first! This little mare, a Black Beret? Hah! But let me tell you, she has earned her place, time and again."

"What is your specialty, Winter?"

"Fire."

As she spoke, a small orb of green fire came from the tip of Winter's horn, and floated around the group. Some of the stallions laughed and attempted to swat it from the air, but it danced around them as gracefully as a dancer, evading all attacks, before returning to Winter's horn and vanashing.

"Controlling fire is what I'm good at. Big fire, small fire, makes no difference. I can burn a fly off the wall without singing it's wings."

Twilight talked with Winter for a few moments before being whisked off by Wildfire to greet the rest of the group, and Twilight was soon lost in all the introductions. Twenty names were soon floating through her head. Some, like Winter and Little Bit, were easy to remember from their appearance, but most of them looked too similar to Twilight, and so were harder to remember. After calling several stallions the wrong name, the Black Berets decided to put on their namesakes, which had their names embroidered on the front in gold thread. This made the proceedings much easier for Twilight, who was soon joking with the soldiers as if they had been friends for years. Soon enough, Twilight prepared to leave, and began to say her goodbyes. Just before she opened the door, Wildfire called to her.

"Commander! One moment please."

"Yes?"

"BERETS, SALUTE!"

Twenty stallion all snapped to attention, and brought their right hoof up to chest height, parallel with the floor. Twlight smiled and returned the salute, and called out one of the commands that Wildfire had tought her.

"Berets, what's your motto!?"

"MESS WITH THE BEST, DIE LIKE THE REST!"

"At ease! Good bye, and see you all soon!

"Good bye, Commander! See you soon!"

With the Black Berets farewell ringing in her ears, Twilight left them to their preparations and made her way to Luna's quarters. She was just about to open the door when it swung open of its own accord, and Twilight walked into the dark room. Abruptly, a candle flame sprang into life near the bed, and Twilight could see Luna lying on it. The Princess had a certain glint in her eyes, one that Twilight recognized very well.

"Ah, loyal subject. Please, come over to the bed."

"Of course, my Princess."

Twilight bowed deeply for a moment before walking to the bed and climbing in beside her lover.

"What does my Princess command me to do?"

"Blow out that candle."

Twilight extinguished the only light in the room, casting ot into complete darkness. She felt Luna wrap a wing around her and pull her close.

"Is there anything else Your Highness would like?"

"Shut up and kiss me."