# Chapter S1

The world was entirely too bright today. My head hurt like it never had before, and my mouth was drier than it had any right to be, not after the amount of water I’d already drank. Worst part? I was still drunk. The moment I’d woken up, the world started spinning.

Standing in rank with me were the other guards in training of House Hockney. Most of them were a few years younger than me, and even among the older ones, I was the only one of drinking age. So, even though yesterday had been one of the biggest occasions for festivities all year round—the conclusion of the trials of Soulfire—I was the only hungover pony in the room. Even though we were standing in rank, our supervisor was absent, and the usually calm chatter of the fillies and colts was enough to drive nails into my skull.

We weren’t supposed to chat while waiting in rank, damn it. Usually I’d be the last to care about such a stupid and arbitrary rule, but for once I just craved peace and quiet.

The silence that suddenly filled the room felt utterly orgasmic in comparison. I lifted my right wing in salute, and the rest of the room followed suit. "Alright fillies and colts, today we’ll be going back to our normal schedule," said Knight Pearflower, our main supervisor. Her eyes stopped a few rows behind me and she said. “Does anypony know where Recruit Sapphire Edge is?” There were exactly thirty—well, twenty-nine without Edgelet—of us in the room, and she could just tell at a glance who was missing. That part never ceased to amaze me, even when the entire world was painful. “Tulip, Tunic, you both share a room with her.”

"Well… uh…" replied a blue filly in front of me. “She got a two point six at the trial and decided she didn’t need to get up at dawn anymore…”

‘Two point six’ referred to her level of authority. A higher level meant that a pony had more control over the mechanisms in the capitol palace. I didn’t know the details, but it was said a pony with all five levels could disable the shield around the royal castle, and essentially become king or queen. We hadn’t had one of those since ancient times. Of course not a single pony managed to get such a high result on the Trial of Soulfire, or even remotely close. The highest recorded score was a four point one, and less than a dozen ponies in history got a four or above.

Pearflower groaned and muttered, "I’m too hungover for this." At least I wasn’t alone in my plight. She let out a short sigh and steeled her gaze, before saying in a calm but dangerous tone, “Well, that is up to me to decide. Until she’s granted a special position, I’m still in charge here.” She was usually very collected and understanding—perfect for dealing with adolescents. However, if somepony did manage to spark her ire, things would end badly for the ponies at the receiving end of her wrath. Usually in the form of chore duty for a few weeks or months. I had a feeling our little Edgelet was about to regret her decision.

"Tulip," commanded Pearflower, “go fetch Recruit Sapphire Edge. Recruits Daring Riposte, Daisy Hockney, and Silver String, come see me one after another. Everypony else, dismissed and see you at the range.” At the mention of my name, my ears perked up. I was in trouble, wasn’t I? There were many details I didn’t remember about last night. I did remember talking to her at some point, but our conversation was a blur. What if I’d hit on her while drunk? She *was* a very attractive mare, and only a few years older than me. Sweet Moon above, that had to be it. She was going to kill me.

As everypony else is heading for the door, I approach her desk. Daisy is already talking to Pearflower, with Riposte right behind her. On the one hoof, this gave me time to come up with ways to save my hide. On the other, I doubted there was a way to get me out of this grave I’d dug myself. More time would just give me longer to panic.

On the bright side, Pear didn’t seem *too* pissed off yet as she talked about the consequences of Daisy’s Trial of Soulfire result. Just like Edgelet, Daisy scored high, so there was a good chance she would end up leaving our regiment to become the family’s heir.

With a three point three, she’d gone from being the tenth candidate to the first. It was the highest score in nearly a decade. And yet, Daisy didn’t even bother bragging about it. I’d bragged about my score, and it wasn’t anywhere near as high, damn it! Show some self-love, filly!

But then, a pony’s Soulfire level was in *some* way related to their bloodline, as nobles tended to score higher. Edgelet, for instance, was from a relatively influential family, who’d recently fallen on tough times. It was why she’d been accepted as a guard, despite being so scrawny. I was on the smaller side as well, but I more than made up for it in muscle and agility.

However, it was not uncommon for a regular pony to score high enough to be adopted into nobility. It also wasn’t uncommon for some Houses to kick out their children if they scored too low, unfortunately.

In fact, the former was why I was even here. My family was poor as dirt, so when I scored a one point four, I immediately had doors open all over the place. It wasn’t a high level by noble standards, no not at all. In fact, it was well below average.

But it was high enough to be compared to *nobles*, not commoners. That single moment had turned my life around. Sure, I was one of the six bucks in my regiment. Sure, I’d started my training the latest and was thus the oldest. Sure, I was the only pegasus. Yeah, I had trouble fitting in, but I was here.

And so, that was the reason for my hangover. I was finally old enough to properly celebrate that one life-changing event.

"Recruit Silver String, I’m talking to you," said Pear in a low, threatening tone.

"If this is about something I said last night I’m very super sorry, Captain ma’am," I blurted out before I could get a hold on myself. “If I made any inappropriate comments I’ll make sure to learn from it and accept any punishment you would deem fitting.” Frankly, I wasn’t sorry, I just *really* didn’t want to get in trouble.

She squinted and furrowed her brow. "What exactly are you sorry for, Recruit?"

"I, uh, vaguely recall some things I said to you yesterday. Maybe I’m misremembering." Oh thank the Stars, things weren’t nearly as bad as I thought.

"Oh, you mean your shoddy attempts at courting me? You were out of uniform, so I let them slide." Oh, nevermind, things were *exactly* as bad as I thought. She gives a dry chuckle, “Maybe in a few years if your flirting skills get any better, and if you’re no longer my subordinate.” Nevermind again, things were even worse than I thought. By the Sun, if anypony found out about this I’d be *doomed*.

Pearflower seemed to take an awful lot of pleasure from my plight. Before her grin could turn sadistic, she shook her head and said, "Anyway, I have a job for you."

Oh? Was I finally to prove my worth? I had only been in training for a little over a year, but my skills with bows was far beyond any of my colleagues—it *was* my cutie mark, after all. I’d always known my life as a hunter with mom was bound to shorten my training, and if I was right…

Instead, my hopes were shattered as she said in an even tone, "I need you to deliver a letter."

I was tempted to shout "Oh come on!". In fact, the temptation was such that I didn’t manage to hold it back.

"Is there a problem, Recruit?" she asked in a tone that carried the implication that I needed to be careful with my next choice of words.

I thought about it for a moment, then replied, "When can I do something more special? Some of the other recruits get to help out guards and knights on duty. And all I ever do is deliver letters."

Her eyes softened a little. "Recruit Silver String, as skilled as you are with the bow, your ability with the sword is lacking. The reason you are assigned delivery jobs is simply because you’re the only recruit under House Hackney capable of flight."

"Ma’am, with all due respect, I grew up hunting in the Forest of Braymor; I helped kill monsters before I was even potty trained." Well, that was a bit of an exaggeration, but she got the jist of it. “And I’m already an adult. My mom had me when she was the same age. I can handle some more responsibility.” Well, she’d been a year or two younger, but that didn’t change my point.

Pear sighed, and I couldn’t tell if it was the type of sigh that meant I was about to be in trouble, or the type that meant she was about to admit her mistake. "Fine," she said. It was the latter! “We’ll look into ways you can help around the city when you get back. However, delivering urgent letters will also become one of your more regular duties as a guard of House Hockney.

"Thank you, Captain Ma’am!" My excited shout was enough to make my head feel like it had just been split open.

Apparently, I winced hard enough for Knight Pearflower to notice. "Recruit, are you okay?"

"…Do you have any tips to quickly get rid of a hangover?"

***

I landed on the front of the gates. Flying over the wall would get me vaporised by the city’s magical defences. As I approached the guards, one of them lifted an eyebrow and asked, "You’re not looking to go outside the city walls, are you?"

"I am. I have a letter for Lord Hammer Halterdawn, and I understand he is currently residing outside the wall."

The guard didn’t seem convinced. "Why are the Hockneys sendin’ young children to deliver shit outside the walls, all alone?"

"I’ll have you know I’m old enough to be hungover; I’m just short. I’m also in a bad enough mood that I’d be willing to get my superior here just for her to yell at you. So, are you going to stop wasting my time, yes or no?" Truth be told, I didn’t feel the hangover anymore since I had a unicorn cast a painkiller spell on me. Now, all I had to do was drink enough water—which I was doing.

Despite having been shorter than average for my whole life, it never bothered me much. One of my moms—the one that actually gave birth to me—was average height. The other pony I considered my parent was my aunt, who was a really tall unicorn. Well, obviously they weren’t like *that*, it just so happened that both had raised me. Because of that, I knew that my height was due to my father’s genes. Pegasi in general had a tendency to be more… aerodynamically sized. I’d never met him, but according to mom, he’d been about as tall as me.

Unlike me, he hadn’t lived past his sixteenth birthday. Such was the fate of pegasi who lived on this isle. In fact, it was almost a miracle I was in good health.

"Alright then, go right ahead," said the guard, clearly hoping to get an opportunity to say “I told you so” later on.

"Thank you," I replied with the smuggest, most shit eating grin I could muster.

***

I arrived in the nearby town of Coltchester, utterly exhausted. Usually, they had me deliver letters within Trottingham itself, so I was at least excited to be able to fly a bit further.

Only downside was that I’d completely and utterly underestimated the flight. Long distance flying was apparently *not* one of my strong suits. In my defence, I’d never gotten much practice. Us guards hardly needed to be able to march long distances; that was more along the likes of what the military did. In general, my endurance was poor.

I’d been flying for half a day, and I was more than glad to finally be here. Really, I should have realised how long this trip would be when I was given two bits for food, shelter, and drink before I made my way back.

Still, why send out a guard on such a long trip when couriers existed? The answer was fairly obvious. This letter was actually quite urgent. Maybe not *urgent* as it likely wasn’t all that important, but definitely time sensitive.

Half an hour after arriving in town, I found my way to the manor of House Halterdawn. The estate, I found, was much smaller than I’d expected. The hedges were improperly kept, and the building itself seemed like it had seen better days.

In fact, there was nopony at the front gate. I made my way to the front door and undid the crossbow attached to my left foreleg. I knocked on the door as I hid the weapon in my saddlebags. The one who opened the door was an old maid. By the looks of it, she was the only one.

The next ten minutes came and went very fast. When I informed her I had an urgent letter, she took one look at the symbol and disappeared into the building. She called the master of the house then disappeared to make tea.

Hammer Halterdawn came down the central stairs and took the letter from me. He was in his thirties, with a red coat and brown mane. As he read it, his face grew more and more pale.

Eventually, he asked, mortified, "H-how long did it take you to deliver this letter?"

I scratched my chin. "From the moment I got it? Maybe six… seven hours, top?"

His face lit up in relief. "Oh glorious pegasus colt, you’ve just saved me. You’ve come all this way from Trottingham in less than a day, you must be *exhausted*."

"Very much so." I said, nodding. “I was considering asking if I could stay the night, since I’m not sure if I have the energy to look for an inn.” I was strongly exaggerating, but he seemed grateful and might repay me. Then, I could keep the bits for myself.

"Well, I have a better idea, comrade. I shall be on my way to the Capital soon, would you care to join me in my carriage?"

I would get enough rest, and I would get home much quicker than originally expected. I’d need to find an excuse to hold on to the bits, but I doubted that would be *too* difficult.

***

The autumn night was pitch black. We’d been travelling for more than three hours already, and I was finally getting drowsy. Being able to rest my wings was one thing, but if my mind didn’t want to shut down, I wouldn’t be able to sleep.

Thankfully, these roads were kept safe by the military, so we didn’t risk much, even when travelling by night. Not that I couldn’t take care of a few bandits with my crossbow. After all, the symbol on my flanks was a drawn bow. Not only was it my namesake, but the talent I had for longbows translated very well into skill with a crossbow.

Yes, an arrow wouldn’t pierce full plate armour, and aiming for the gaps in it wouldn’t be as easy as up close. Still, as a flyer, it would be silly not to consider ranged weaponry.

Suddenly, the wagon came to a stop. "Lord Halterdawn, come out," shouted a voice from outside the carriage. “You’re surrounded and we are armed.”

"Don’t worry, I’ll protect you," I whispered to Hammer. He lifted an eyebrow, but didn’t protest any more than that. “Tell them you’re coming out,” I added while taking out my crossbow and bolt, loading one of them.

Hammer did as requested. "Alright, I’m coming out."

"On three, you open the door and drop down," I told him. “One,” I spread my wings as wide as I could in the confined space. “Two,” I focused on my wings. “Three!” With a flick of my feathers and a bit of pegasus magic, I readied a sharp gust, which I released in a single flap as he threw open the door to the carriage. I was pushed outside, propelled by the wind, and immediately aimed for a nearby earth pony.

My bolt hit true and sank a disappointingly short distance into his chest. I had no time to bemoan that as I started reloading the crossbow. Before I realised what was happening, a large mass crashed into me and dragged me to the ground, which it pressed me against.

For the first time since I’d left home, I felt it again. That awful sensation of excitement when a pony’s mind knows they are in mortal danger, and their entire body understands it. However, this rush of adrenaline was of no help for me right now, as I still lacked the strength to get out from underneath the large griffin who was pinning me down.

"Halterdawn! We got your little guard, no more tricks!" shouted one of the mares in a northern accent.

"Hey boss… the turkey killed Carrot," said another.

This caused her to look over in my direction. Despite the dim light, I could still tell her expression, and it turned from annoyance to confusion. "Wait, why the fuck did they send one of their own to protect the pony they wanted us to capture? Well, that’s on them; she’s going with him now, and they said no witnesses whatsoever."

When I heard that, my efforts to escape redoubled. The griffin, however, was having none of it as she lifted my head and slammed it into the cobblestone road. The last thing I remembered before falling unconscious was the warm feeling of blood running down my forehead.

***

I woke up in a mouldy dungeon cell alongside Lord Halterdawn. My head was pounding even worse than yesterday, while he quietly sobbed. I turned onto my back, only to be met with an black chasm that seemingly stretched on forever above me.

"What the fuck? Where in the Sun’s name am I?"