“Twilight, your back! Did you figure out a rescue plan yet? Do you get a lead on where Rarity might be?,” asked Spike.
“Sweetie Belle and I took a few moment to look around the Carousel Boutique. Besides some fur and a few sets of odd looking pawprints, we still have no idea where Rarity might be. As for our plan, we’re all here to discuss that now,” answered Twilight. “Did Princess Celestia have a chance to respond to my message?,” asked Twilight.
“She did Twilight. I left Celestia’s letter on your desk. While you were gone, I gathered the entirety of the ransom payment right here,” said Spike, while gesturing to the large sack in the middle of the floor. Twilight gave Spike a look of bewilderment as she eyed the massive bag.
“Wow Spike, did you really gather everything on that list while I was away?,” asked Twilight.
“Yep, I sure did,” Spike exclaimed proudly.
“Excellent work. That may come in handy later,” said Twilight, as her horn glowed with her magic. A protective purple forcefield formed around the large sack on the floor in the shape of a hemisphere. “That should keep it safe for the time being.”
“I’m sure that the diamond dogs would gladly give Rarity back after we shown them this.”
“Woah, not so fast Spike. We should see what Princess Celestia had to say in her letter first,” suggested Twilight, as she levitated her letter and the ransom note that were left on her desk. “I’m having some serious suspicions about all of this, and I want all of them satisfied before we act.”
“Like what?,” questioned Spike.
“Take a closer look at the writing of the diamond dog’s alleged ransom note that they left,” prodded Twilight, levitating the note up for the others to see. “Notice how articulate the language is. With what little we still know about diamond dogs we do know that they use vastly different speech patterns in their verbal communications. The grammar used in their note does not seem to match. Did ‘The Diamond Dogs’ really write this? If not, then what creature did?”
Twilight then lowered the note, and began levitating it around to be seen more closely. “Next, look at the style of writing. Upon a closer look, the text seems to have been made with a fine point, ink well pen. And notice how neat, precise, and consistent the body of the note is. Even most unicorns I know in Canterlot don’t write this neatly. I find it dubious that dogs that live in caves with minimal lighting, with little furniture to write on, and who are not at all associated with any mailing system that I am aware of, would ever bother to learn to write like this. And then take a look at the signature at the bottom. The sloppy letters that make up the signature don’t match the rest of the writing at all. Again, did the diamond dogs we met years ago write this, or is this some other creature’s writing?”
Twilight then moved the letter to Spike, and looked at him intensely. “Sweetie Belle claimed that the diamond dogs who tied her up, intentionally left this note behind to be found later. And yet, it is addressed to you Spike. How did the diamond dogs know that you were coming to see Rarity the following morning? And why did they address the note exclusively to you instead of any creature else?”
“Gee Twilight, I didn’t even think of that,” admitted Spike.
“And there is something else that I just cannot overlook. I understand that the diamond dogs might know more about gems, minerals, and the composition of the underground more than any other species in Equestria. I can see why they were as detailed as they were in deciding Rarity’s ransom. But I just find it extremely weird that all the quantities they listed were multiples of twelve. It could be a coincidence, but I have a feeling that it may not be. Just what could it mean?”
“Twilight, what do you recon is going on then?,” asked Applejack.
“I don’t know Applejack, but I do have a strong feeling that the diamond dogs did not act alone. They must have had some kind of insider. How else would they have known where Rarity lived? How did they creep through Ponyville undetected?” Twilight turned away for a moment to think, before turning back towards her friends. “Have any of you seen Pinkie Pie anywhere these last two days?” asked Twilight. “I know that she was away traveling around Equestria with Cheese Sandwich these past few months, but she said she would visit Ponyville this week. But yet, I couldn’t find a single trace of her.”
“I haven’t seen Pinkie anywhere either,” said Applejack.
“Me neither,” said Rainbow Dash.
“Exactly,” explained Twilight. “Why is Pinkie Pie suddenly absent now? I know what I am about to say next might sound insane, but I cannot ignore this feeling I have that Pinkie Pie may somehow be involved in all of this. It would explain how the diamond dogs apparently knew as much as they did.”
“That’s outrageous Twilight!,” outburst Rainbow Dash. “There’s no way that Pinkie Pie would work with the diamond dogs to take away Rarity!”
“I also doubt that Pinkie Pie would do such a thing Rainbow Dash,” responded Twilight. “But from what I could gather, I am starting to suspect that is all a lot deeper than some quick scheme to obtain some easy gems.” Twilight looked around at her friends. “And we still cannot rule out that the diamond dogs could be intent on foul play. Who knows if they will honor their side of the bargain to free Rarity if we pay the ransom, or if they are planning some sort of ambush, trap, or trickery?”
“Even so, we have to go now!” demanded Spike, as he took a step closer to Twilight. “We are running out of time, and we must do something. We at least owe that to Rarity, considering all that she has done for us. I say we give the diamond dogs the ransom now. If they refuse to free Rarity, we can enter their caves, do what we did last time, and free her by force.”
“Now that’s a plan I can get behind,” added Rainbow Dash.
“Oh dear, I hope it doesn’t come that. I’m not sure if I could fight off more than one diamond dog if they got up close to me,” uttered Fluttershy.
Twilight sat down on her haunches and clenched her eyes shut. She began to massage the sides of her head with her forehooves to combat her growing headache. “Spike, I already gave you several reasons why we can’t just do what they want, and why we can’t just rush into their caves if they don’t comply. On another topic, I think it’s about time to go over Princess Celestia’s letter now.”
Spike stomped his foot, and looked at Twilight with anger. “I don’t care Twilight! We can eventually take back any material payment from the diamond dogs later, but Rarity might be lost to us forever if we don’t act now. Rarity needs us. We must press on, even if it’s dangerous, even if it’s a trap, and even if it’s exactly what those diamond dogs want. And if it turns out that there is more to all of this than it seems, we’ll get to the bottom of this once Rarity has been saved.”
“I’m with Spike,” added Rainbow Dash. “I’m tired of waiting around and who knows how long we actually have. I say we take this to those dogs. And if it’s a fight they want, it’ll be a fight they get.”
“Now Rainbow Dash, Twilight has made a very good case as to why we shouldn’t do exactly what you just said,” said Applejack.
“And I really don’t want to go into their caves,” said Fluttershy.
“Fine, whatever, we’ll do it Twilight’s safe and lame way,” pouted Rainbow Dash.
“Spike, keep quite or leave us be. The rest of us have important matters to discuss, and we don’t need your silly distractions,” scolded Twilight.
Spike stepped closer to Twilight, looking her in the eyes. “What type of lousy friend are you to leave Rarity in danger like this?!,” accused Spike, raising his voice. “If none of you want to help, then I’ll just save Rarity myself. I’ll show you who’s being silly Twilight.”
“That’s enough Spike! Stand down and go to your room, or you’re in big trouble!,” ordered Twilight, clenching her teeth.
Spike put his face directly in front of Twilight’s. “Then why don’t you try and stop me!”
Twilight let out a frustrated snarl. “You little twerp,” said Twilight coldly, as her horn glowed the purple color of her magic aura. The same magical aura formed around Spike, as he was lifted in the air. Spike let out a wheeze, as he felt his entirely body constricted by Twilight’s telekinetic grasp. Then, with a significant portion of her magical power, Twilight slammed Spike back down onto the floor.
“AAAACK,” Spike cried out upon impact.
Twilight formed another forcefield around Spike’s body, similar to the one she used to secure the sack of money and gems. “The rest of us are going to continue this discussion elsewhere. Spike, you are going to stay here, until you get you head together, and are ready to do as your told,” Twilight spat, before turning away. “Let’s go the map room. It will be far more comfortable in there,” suggested Twilight to the others. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Fluttershy looked back at Twilight in bewilderment. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo stepped out of Twilight’s way as she walked towards the door. Spike remained silent, too ashamed to even lift his face off the floor.
The group of ponies left the throne room, and walked into the significantly smaller room across the hall. Within the room was a large circular table containing a map of Equestria, along with a set of six stone thrones, with a smaller one besides Twilight Sparkle’s. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Fluttershy took their respective seats. Sweetie Belle sat in her sister’s chair, and Apple Bloom and Scootaloo shared Pinkie Pie’s chair.
“Are there any other concerns to address before we move on?,” asked Twilight.
“Um, yes,” whispered Fluttershy. “I think you were a little too harsh with Spike.”
“Spike was out of line, and some pony had to show him his place,” responded Twilight.
“I agree with Fluttershy!,” said Rainbow Dash. “Sure, Spike might be out of his mind from this whole mess, but his heart is in the right place. He did not deserve to be hurt the way he was. I think you’re the one who was out of line Twilight.”
“Oh please, that was nothing. Spike has taken far worse impacts before, and always seems to end up fine,” retorted Twilight as she rolled her eyes. “If I didn’t take care to discipline him every so often, no pony would do anything when he misbehaves.”
“Now Twilight, I admit that I don’t know what it’s like to live with Spike every day, nor would I know him as much as you do. I’m not even sure if you would even consider him part of your family,” admitted Applejack. “But I do know that Spike deserves better than to be treated like some sort of pest. I believe I speak for all of us when I say that you owe him an apology.” Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy nodded in agreement.
“Look, fine, I was wrong!,” huffed Twilight. “I’ll apologize to Spike later when things settle down. But right now, we have more pressing matters” affirmed Twilight as he pressed her front hooves onto the table, and placed downs several papers. “Now unless any of you have anything else to say, I will read what Princess Celestia had to say about Rarity’s hostage situation.”
Twilight looked around the room. Fluttershy looked away, while Rainbow Dash and Applejack stared at Twilight. The younger fillies pressed their lips shut. After a long enough pause, Twilight lifted Celestia’s letter in front of her with her magic, opened the envelope, and read the contents of the message aloud.
To Princess Twilight Sparkle
I sincerely apologize for taking so long to reply. I was hosting a critical meeting with my administration officials and top advisors, and I put your message aside for later, assuming it to be of lesser importance. I was quite alarmed to learn about the situation that Rarity is in right now. Time is of the essence, and we must make an appropriate response immediately.
I have already promised other ponies to fulfill some equally pressing royal matters today. While I cannot come directly, I have sent out one of my most competent secret service agents out to investigate the case. This agent goes by the alias “770X”. After thoroughly investigating the scene, my agent should report any findings to you at your castle, sometime this evening. That should still leave you plenty of time to decide on your next course of action.
The diamond dogs will likely need to be confronted in order to resolve this conflict. I am well aware that force will need to be leveraged if a fair and reasonable negotiation cannot be met. I have already informed the newly appointed Captain Flash Sentry and several of Equestria’s finest soldiers, in the case where the diamond dogs will need to be engaged directly. He will remain on standby until you request his assistance, any time today.
Be smart and stay sharp Twilight. With the help I offered, and your friends at your side, I am more than confident that you can resolve this conflict.
Signed,
Princess Celestia
“Well, that sure is some good news,” said Rainbow Dash.