//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Empress Rarity's 250th Birthday // by Lord-Commander //------------------------------// "Are you certain?" The green crystal pony in front of him bobbed his head in confirmation as he moved a white Pawn forward, the opening gambit of their little game. "She’s been planning this for a while, but she's kept it secret from nearly everypony, even those she trusts in the Crystal Council." "Remarkable," replied the white unicorn as he moved a black Pawn on the chessboard before him. "Why do you say that?" asked the other pony as he moved his white Bishop in response to the Pawn's seemingly aggressive push forward. The unicorn waited for a moment, playing it as if he was simply looking for the best move before deciding to advance another Pawn into the fray. "Speaking frankly, as one Ambassador to another, that the Empress would choose to handle such complex dealings without your expert skills… well, it seems rather insulting." "Yes, it does," said the other pony with a huff. He moved his second Bishop out from the rear lines to harass Blueblood's weakened left. "I tell you, I’m not sure how we got on about all this expansionist nonsense, Blueblood. I love the Empire. I have ever since I was a small colt. But to see where it is now, where it’s going... it sickens me with dread." "I understand, Emerald Shine," said the Ambassador as he ran through the next few moves in his head. "Tell me, did your wife enjoy the play in Manehattan?” "Hmm? Uh, yes she did," replied Emerald Shine, suddenly taken back by the quick change of subject. "How did you ever manage to obtain those tickets?" "Come now Ambassador Shine," smiled the unicorn as he moved his first black Bishop, and took a pawn on the other side of the board, drawing first blood. "I’m allowed to have some secrets, am I not? I’m just glad that you two enjoyed yourselves that evening. She did look so dreadfully bored at the conference earlier that afternoon." The other Ambassador nodded with a chuckle and silence fell between the two representatives. Blueblood took the opportunity to lean back and stretch while Emerald plotted his next move. The Ambassador from Equestria winced dramatically as the other stallion took his baited Bishop from him with a white Rook. It was an acceptable lost, one intended to lull the other into a false sense of ease, much like the play tickets back in Manehatten were. "Excellent move. I didn't see that coming,” he lied. The Imperial Representative to the Griffons offered a victory smirk to the other stallion. Blueblood looked back down at the board, and stroked his chin in contemplation as he continued his discussion."Tell me though, where is Ambassador Pearl in all this?" "Ohh," replied Emerald as Blueblood rushed one of his Knights forward. "I believe she is out sick, the poor girl." "Really? That's a shame, but it’s to be expected with the elderly. I wouldn't be surprised if she chose to retire soon and the Empress would have to appoint a new Imperial Ambassador to Equestria. You, perhaps?" Emerald gave a snort of disbelief. "Oh I doubt that very much,” he said as he absentmindedly moved a center pawn forward. "Why?" asked the Ambassador with a smile of false friendliness. "Emerald Shine, you are noble and dare I say it, a brilliant diplomat. Why, I believe you could do wonders if given the right opportunities. Seriously, a stallion of your talent left to deal with these, these—" "Winged mules?" growled Emerald Shine, in reference to the headstrong Griffons. Blueblood gave a light chuckle. "You said it, not I… As I was saying, were you born on the Southern side of the border, I’d surely be out of a job, and you’d be here in my place." "You are too kind,” said Emerald Shine, his cheeks blushing slightly. "No, I doubt that very much. I simply believe in being honest," said Blueblood as he moved his black Queen into position for the upcoming deathblow. He loved this game. It wasn't as noble and direct as other ponies made it out to be, no, it was much better than that. It is a game of intrigue and manipulation. A game to deceive the other player as you drew them slowly into a trap. You would play the other player just as much as you would play your own pieces. By showing them what they wanted to believe, you would disarm the cautious and blind the wise that every move they made was because you allowed it. "Oh… Oh my, I do believe that was checkmate," Blueblood said, as he blinked in feigned shock. He looked up at his opponent’s face and relished in the confusion he saw there. It was priceless every time he did it. “Oh my, so it is.” "A fluke, to be sure. Up for another round?” The other stallion nodded mutely, and the two players reset the board. Blueblood offered a hoof across the table. “You first, I insist.” Emerald Shine nodded happily, and moved a white Knight to the fore. After he had done so, Blueblood continued his prodding. “So, Emerald— may I call you Emerald? Tell me more about this Shimmering Bay." * * * "— was simply grand. It was in this magnificent metropolis that I learned that while there are ponies who will take advantage of your generosity, you should never ever let that cause you to abandon your generous spirit. Nothing feels worse than taking advantage of the givi—" Lady Merry Sapphire sighed and shut the book in frustration. It was a thrilling discovery when Quick Name, the Head Librarian, had produced such a tome of remarkable insight into the lives of the Bearers of Harmony, and the lessons they learned. But the thrill had begun to sour in the middle of her second read through. "Horseapples," she said as she flipped through her own small notebook. While she found a lot of interesting information she hadn't known before, like Twilight's bizarre fondness for peaches, there seemed to be nothing on why Empress Rarity hated her birthday. If anything it had only added more to the mystery. She flipped to the last passage on the last page and scanned it briefly. “Perhaps there’s a second volume?” she asked herself aloud, considering the journal’s abrupt ending. Sapphire sighed and snuggled deeper into the couch in her personal palace suite, laying her head on a pillow. Suite was a bit of an understatement. It was more of a lavish apartment, truth be told, containing a sizable kitchenette, a front sitting room, a luxurious bathroom, and of course the bedroom. She’d only had it for a short while yet, but she was pleased with her decorative choices. They reminded her of days long gone by. Of home. Unlike the rest of the Palace, crystal was not used as an architectural accent. Nor did it have marble and stone work of the rest of the Imperial Suites. No, it was a suite generally intended for guests from Equestria proper. For example, the sitting room was more simplistic -and in her opinion- more elegant, than the lavish crystal work of the more public places of the Palace. It had earthen walls, bordered with wood. Sapphire chose to furnish it with darkly stained wood pieces, and she draped the walls with the majestic violets and blues that mingled and rhymed with her own beautiful coat. Gazing off into space, she suddenly felt something warm and fuzzy cuddle up to her hind hooves. She smiled warmly as she turned to look over at her sleepy-eyed pet fennec fox. "Hello, Severus," she said as she reached over to give him a pat on the head. "I hope you are having a better day than I am. I just don't know what to do." The fox gave a slight squeak from under her hoof. "I guess you're right, Sev," she sighed as she got up and found her saddlebags. "I’d better go check on Party Hats and ma— ouch, hay, what are you doing?" The fox squeaked again as he clawed his way up her mane. "Late? You silly-wittle thing, I am never late! My internal clock is perf— oh horsefeathers." Sapphire’s eyes shrunk to pin pricks as she caught sight of the clock on the wall. She was late. "I can't believe this is happening!" Sapphire shouted as she burst into a gallop out of the room. A series of disgruntled squeaks from just beyond her ears confirmed that Severus was still hanging on for dear life. She felt his little claws tickle and scratch their way down her back as her pet scrambled to get inside one of her saddlebags. "I don't need your sass, Mister! I know I’m late!" Lady Sapphire kept her pace for a few minutes and then slowed herself down to a quick trot. It would do no good to arrive at one of the Empress' meetings covered in sweat and looking like an absolute mess. She paused for a moment to catch her breath. That’s when she heard it. Or, at least she thought she did. Did she? She held her breath, mindful of where she needed to be, but also ensnared by curiosity. Silently, she slipped her way down the hall and strained to listen for the sound again. Sapphire slowed down to a crawl and crept along. She did hear it. Voices, whispering in… an argument? It was coming from a slightly ajar door on her left. She blinked several times and frowned. There were no scheduled meetings on this floor. It was supposed to be closed to all staff save for those involved in the evening’s party planning. The volume of the argument kept shifting, exacerbated grumbling one moment, shouted half-syllables the next. Sapphire couldn’t make heads or tails of it, so she did what anypony would do in that situation. She walked up to the door and peaked in through the crack to see what was going on. "... can still be recovered from this meeting," came the rich voice of a stallion with a prideful Canterlot accent. "Still, this wasn't completely unexpected. " "Could that be... no, it couldn't..." Sapphire muttered silently to herself. "Well it is... Wait, are you saying you planned this?" accused a raspy voice that definitely belonged to a mare. "Don't be ridiculous," snapped the first voice. Sapphire gasped as she caught a good look at the pony speaking. She knew that white coat and blond mane from anywhere - Ambassador Blueblood. "Why would I give her Shimmering Bay? It’s the last thing I want these Crystal bumpkins to have.” “So… what do you want me to do?” Blueblood was silent for a moment before answering. “I’ll think of something. In the meantime, you just keep doing your job, and make sure nopony’s the wiser. You've been a very valuable little mole, here in the Empire. We couldn't have hoped for more." "Buck you," hissed the mare. Sapphire's eyes went wide as the other pony stepped into her view. Her mane was done up neatly, but Sapphire had no problem identifying the other pony as Lieutenant Silver Dash, the guard liaison between the Crystal Empire and the Kingdom of Equestria. "You said I’d be out here for a year at the most. Well we’re pushing on two. I wanna go home. I did my job!" "Don't be so naive, Lieutenant," said Blueblood, his tone as cold as Rarity. "Naive?" repeated Silver Dash as she circled the unicorn. "I was naive when we first did this, when they said 'this is the line and we don't cross it'. But we are waaaaay past that line now. And here you are intentionally sabotaging relations for what? Your ego?" "Funny remark coming from somepony with such a colorful family history," replied the stallion, earning a glare from the pegasus as he continued. "Speaking of family history, how is your mother doing in Cloudsdale? I heard cancer treatment is a very exhausting ordeal... and a financially difficult one." "You leave my mom out of this!" Sapphire could hear the change in pitch in Silver Dash's voice as the mare fought to keep her emotions in check. "Then you listen to me, Silver Dash," hissed Blueblood, leaning closer to the mare. "And you listen good. You will continue to collect these internal intelligence reports for me and you will continue your little guard charade until told otherwise, or else." "Or else what?" she snapped. "Or else you’re fired. And exiled from Equestria." Blueblood grinned as he saw the color leave her face. "Oh yes, you figured it out, but it gets better. Without your support, your mother couldn't possibly afford her treatments. And I'm pretty sure the Imperial Guard here in the Crystal Empire won't let you stay when word gets out that you were a spy." Silver Dash looked at the hated stallion with tears welling in her eyes. "You wouldn't..." "Try me, I dare you." When the mare gave no reply, the stallion continued on. "Make sure you know where your loyalties lie, Dash." Lady Sapphire leaned back from the door in shock. She felt pity, disgust, and anger for what she just witnessed. Here was a diplomat, from Equestria no less, threatening exile of a citizen? Still, the citizen in question wasn’t entirely innocent either, judging from what Sapphire heard. She wanted so badly to step in right then and there and stop this. A part of her screamed at her to jump in and reveal herself to the two, and… No. It wasn’t her place. It wasn’t her time. It was Rarity’s. It wouldn't go well. It might just make war that much more of a certainty. A war she was bent on preventing. "The Empress must know," she whispered to herself as a plan settled into her mind. She shifted away from the door silently and, making sure that nopony would hear her, took off like a rocket down to the next floor where the Empress would surely be. * * * Lady Sapphire moved at a good pace, although her little fox would completely disagree, vocally and often, citing his complaints from the relative safety of her saddlebag. It squeaked the entire way about her needing to slowing down and berating her for having so much in her saddlebags pressed up against him. Sapphire frowned at the unusually rough treatment her pet was getting, but she had to find the Empress soon. Besides, she knew that after an egg or two, Severus would be as happy as a clam, and the whole incident would soon be forgotten. Sapphire slowed to a crawl as she heard voices coming from up ahead. She reached the meeting halls that were supposed to be in use today and heard voices coming from a slightly ajar door on her right. Quietly, she approached the door and listened in, mindful that all this eavesdropping was quickly becoming a bad habit. "... all that we could ever ask of you, and more," came a deep, yet hypnotizing voice. "Yes, I do think it will work, but it may take a while to move everypony," came a similar, but more feminine, voice to the first. The crystal mare frowned at this and edged closer to the door. "I wouldn't expect anything less, dear," answered back the voice of her Empress. She pushed her head a bit further into the door, and quickly muffled a soft gasp with her hoof. Severus hopped out of his bag of misery and climbed onto the top of her head to get a better view of the action. To him it looked like the cold white pony was talking to two flying ponies. No big deal in the fox’s mind. But what caused Sapphire’s reaction wasn’t that they looked to be fliers, or their well cared for dusky grey coats, no. What caught her by surprise was that they had bat-like wings instead of feathers, and cat-like irises instead of the usual wide ovals like the rest of ponykind. "Bat ponies," she whispered to herself, with a grin. "Empress, what can we do for you?" asked the stallion. "You've given us so much." "It's nothing, Star Chaser," Rarity said with a smile. "Nothing? Empress, I beg to differ here," said the mare. "Without your help, we would have no place to roost, let alone raise our foals in a land we could call our own." "Moonlight is right," agreed Star Chaser. "Nights ablaze, your actions here will save our colony, and may yet save our race from extinction. We cannot let such an act go without repayment." "I know Luna would want to have her Children of the Night taken care of," said Rarity. The bat ponies bowed at the mention of their sorely missed Princess of the Night. “Then with great respect, Empress Rarity,” said Moonlight. “You’d also know that She Who Is The Moon would expect us to repay such an act of generosity.” “I’m not getting out of this, am I?” said Rarity with a mock frown. The two bat ponies shook their heads. “Very well, I guess there are some things you can help us with, but it may require a bit more… social integration than your kind is generally considered to be used to.” “We, umm…” Star Chaser let out a sigh, before raising himself to his full height. “Your Majesty. We will pay any price for what you have done to save our colony. What did you have in mind?” “I assure you it’s nothing extreme,” she said to further ease her two guests. "The Crystal Empire seems to be short on air support these days, what with our limited pegasi numbers. This makes weather management tricky, not to mention routinely unreliable. Oh, and I guess our guard forces could always use a wing up," she added as nonchalantly as possible. “Ah? Is that all?” asked Moonlight, smiling. “I believe we can take these terms to the colony and round up a great many volunteers to aid you in these tasks.” Rarity tsked softly. “Oh, no no no, volunteers, nothing. I speak of jobs, Moonlight. Gainful employment with full wages earned for an honest da— night’s work.” “Milady is too generous!” nodded Star Chaser excitedly. “Yes, perhaps it is time that we make friends with our new crystal neighbors.” Sapphire was on the edge of her seat. That is, if she was sitting. But she wasn’t. She was standing. "Oh feathers," muttered Sapphire as she felt herself slipping forward. Her fox gave an alarmed squeak and pulled back on her mane in a failed effort to stop her forward motion. A sudden crystalline slap against the marble floor and an "oof" caused the three ponies to jump and look at the door. "Hi there," said Sapphire with a sheepish grin from the ground. Severus laid on his back in her hair and waved a small paw in greeting. The two bat ponies looked at each other and then back at the two and gave their own little nervous wave. "Oh, uh… Empress! There you are!" said Sapphire as she picked herself up and happily trotted up to Rarity, laughing nervously. "There I am? There I am?" asked Rarity in disbelief. "Sapphire, I've been in this hall for the last three hours trying to out-haggle a griffon, planning our Diamond Dog defenses, and convincing generals that the dragons are not going to eat them, simply because of their crystal coats. Where have you been?" "Sorry, Your Majesty," said Sapphire with a quick bow. "I-I was taking care of s-something, for the party, and lost track of time. I a-apolog-" "Lady Sapphire." She felt a cold hoof pull her chin back up and was greeted by the sight of the Empress' warm smile. "You’re stammering.” "So the meetings went well?" asked Sapphire. "More or less," she replied with a weary sigh. "Now then, Lady Sapphire, may I introduce you to Lord Star Chaser, and his companion, Lady Moonlight. They are representing their colony. My Lord and Lady, may I introduce Lady Merry Sapphire, my seneschal." "Charmed," replied Star Chaser as he picked up Sapphire's hoof and gave it a light kiss. She smiled as she felt his fangs brush against her coat. "Empress, please. You give us too much honor in such titles. Honor we have yet to earn," said Moonlight as she stood to leave. "We must be going though.” Star Chaser nodded. “Yes. And we will relay your offer with the colony. I am sure they will accept in light of your generosity." "It was my pleasure, darling," replied Rarity as she guided everypony to the door. She watched as Sapphire’s pet fox creature rolled over and raced back into his owner’s saddlebag. "Send a messenger when your colony has made a decision, and we’ll rush through the red tape as quickly as we can." They nodded eagerly as the two pairs offered their good-byes. Rarity watched as the two bat ponies flew off down the hall, a victorious smile on her lips. That went better than expected, said a voice in her head. The Empress nodded. Agreed. Who knew the bat ponies were in such dire straits? Sapphire remained in a daze, oblivious to her surroundings as much as she was to the conversation going on inside her Empress’ head. Moments passed before she felt a rather sudden and rather cold hoof press up against her face, causing her to jump with an “Eep!”. She looked over to the Empress, who was grinning impishly. "Anything else, Lady Sapphire?" she asked. "Those were bat ponies!" she half-shouted as the two mares began walking down the hall. "I had no idea there were bat ponies this far North! What did they say? What did you say? Did you give them something they needed? Oh please say tha" "Lady Sapphire." The crystal mare quieted herself at the sound of her name. Rarity continued in a low voice as they walked. "They came to us for help, appearing this morning after brunch. They gave the guard quite a fright, so I’m told.” “… And?” “Well… apparently, their colony has been struggling for quite some time, unable to find a home among their cousins to the South. They said I was their only hope, that they didn't know who else to turn to.” Sapphire looked away from her monarch and bit her lip. Maybe she could have helped, had she known. Maybe in another life. Rarity continued. “So I did the only thing I could. I offered them a sizable portion of Hillsbread. The volcanic cave system there should keep them warm through the long winters. If they accept, we’ll welcome them into the Empire and allow them to work and live as they will, provided they do so in accordance with our laws. Hopefully some of them will be interested in joining the guard. We’re desperate for fliers.” "Are… are you going to let them join the Empire as citizens?" asked Sapphire. Rarity smiled at her. “That’s the hope. Though I believe it might be a little early to celebrate.” They walked in silence, lost in their own thoughts for a few minutes. Rarity knew this was a fortuitous occasion for the Crystal Empire. However, convincing the skittish Crystal Ponies that Bat Ponies, long considered to be ill omens, would be their new neighbors… well, that would be a challenge in and of itself. Sapphire, meanwhile, was struggling with how to best bring up the whole ‘Silver Dash is a Spy’ issue. Rarity spoke up again, interrupting Sapphire's train of thought with a question. "Now then, I believe we have one more meeting before lunch, yes?" "Yes," said Sapphire as she pulled out the Schedule from her bags and checked it. "It's with the Equestrian Delegation. A presentation about some new technological marvel." "Great, I just needed to listen to Blueblood today," said Rarity as they turned a corner. They were coming up on the hallway that would feed into the Main Hall, near the throne room. Sapphire knew she was running out of time. "Empress, about Blueblood," said Sapphire, uncertain of how to tell her. "Be careful with him, I—" "Lady Sapphire, please," said the Empress, waving it off. "As my old friend Applejack would say, ‘This ain’t my first time to the Rodeo.’ I know Blueblood. Don't worry about it." "Yes, but I—" "Your care is appreciated, I can handle it." "I’m sure of that; it's just that I overheard him and Si—" "There you are Empress!" The two mares turned as one, unintentionally cursing as one too. Ambassador Blueblood trotted up to the two mares as they entered the Main Hall. A small group of crystal ponies followed after the Ambassador, clearly excited about something. A soft growl from Sapphire caused Rarity to look over at the mare and then back up at Blueblood. "Hello…" he said, looking Sapphire over. “And who might this be?” "This is Lady Sapphire." The Empress took a few steps forward and glanced back at Sapphire. Rarity could feel the anger and distrust radiating from the usually bubbly blue mare, and it concerned her that such a change could manifest in a matter of seconds. “Ah!” he said with sudden realization. “You’re that performer from breakfast, are you not? The one pretending to be drunk? Jolly good show, the—” Rarity winced at the memory. “That’s quite enough, thank you, Blueblood.” She took a few more steps forward to position herself to defend Blueblood, as if her little pony would dare to attack him. The Empress willed peace towards Sapphire through the magic she gained from the Crystal Heart. She watched as Sapphire’s face softened a touch. The anger wasn’t thereanymore, but the distrust held strong. A soft chuckle brought her attention back to the white unicorn before her. "Very well, Empress Rarity. I was beginning to worry that you'd miss my presentation." "I’m afraid I’m not that lucky today," she replied, and gestured to the heavy Throne Room doors. "Shall we get this over with?" "Of course," he said with a smile and a bow. Rarity waited for him to walk some distance away before she looked at Sapphire. "Darling… You worried me there. I don't know what you heard earlier, but I will hear your tale of it once the meeting has ended. And please work to keep that… temper I felt under control. I can’t have you assaulting a diplomat." Sapphire opened her mouth to protest but Rarity held up a hoof. "I know he can be... infuriating, but let me deal with this and we'll talk later over lunch, okay? “But, but I—“ “Am I making myself clear, Sapphire?" Lady Sapphire pouted with a slow nod. "Fine, but I shall have cake at lunch," she declared as she walked next to the Empress. "Do you know what all that refined sugar will do to you?" "It will make me most happy," said Sapphire, adding puppy dog eyes to the equation. "Ugh, fine," said the Empress as she melted at the sight of Sapphire. Rarity gave a giggle as the mare happily clapped her hooves together. "Just don't blame me when your looks begin to suffer. Oh, and speaking of cake, your friend Party Hats was looking for you." "Party Ha— Oh, Horsefeathers," said Sapphire as dread spilled over her face. A squeak from her saddlebag confirmed what she had feared. Sapphire had told that mare to meet her nearly an hour ago. Her reading had put everything else behind schedule. "I've got to go, My Lady. I'm sorry." Rarity watched with curiosity as Lady Sapphire spun around and galloped off. She smiled wistfully after the mare when Blueblood called after her about coming or not. Fuming slightly at being called out, the Empress turned and trotted into the throne room. The doors closed behind her in ominous silence, not a creak nor a groan could be heard from their well-oiled hinges.