New World: Land of Shadows

by Fire Feather

Land of Shadows: The Dinner

Once Fluttershy was sufficiently calmed down, Twilight sent her back to her quarters so she could finish calming down. Twilight then proceeded to stomp royally out the door, startle Rainbow Dash, and drag said blue pegasus down to the servant's area. She didn't care that her gauntlets and cape were missing, or that her mane and tail were slightly messy. The only thing she cared about was disciplining the pony who punished her hoofmaiden when she had done nothing wrong.

Arriving at the door of the Head of Servants, Twilight knocked impatiently, ignoring Rainbow Dash's questions. Within a few seconds, the pony had opened the door and almost panicked upon seeing Twilight's expression. "Prin-Princess. What are you doing here?" The Head of Servants was a slightly plump brown unicorn, and he had a pyramid cutie mark that symbolized a system of order. Presumably he was on top.

Replying in a haughty voice, Twilight said, "Why do you not bow before me?" Her tone was imperious, and Rainbow Dash could barely keep her laughter in. "Well? Bow!" Twilight demanded, giving Rainbow a slight shove with her back hoof.

Oh.....I get it. She's playing the angry princess and I'm playing the fierce guard. Dash immediately understood what they were doing. They had done it a few times before, and the servant's reactions were priceless. "Bow before your princess!" Rainbow Dash added in as the stallion took his time.

He immediately scrambled to bow faster, falling on his face in the process. Shaking, he looked like he was trying to melt into the ground. Twilight smiled in amusement, then quickly changed it to a fearsome frown. "I heard that you disciplined my hoofmaiden. Why is that?"

The stallion lifted his head, clearly trying to regain some of his pride. "Some items of yours were found in her quarters. Obviously, she took them from you when you weren't present, so I returned them to your quarters and had her disciplined accordingly." He stated this in a tone of voice that made him sound quite proud of what he had done.

"And how did you punish her?" Twilight kept her facial expression carefully neutral, betraying none of her emotions.

"By whipping, of course. Each of the various tribes has different punishments, and whipping a pegasus's wings and back is the most effective for their tribe. Walking across hot coals or nails are the best forms of punishment for earth ponies, and the best kind for unicorns is-"

"FOOL!!!" The force of the Royal Canterlot voice blew the stallion's mane and tail back and pushed him backwards a few steps. Twilight advanced on him, dark magic vapor trailing from her eyes. "Why did you not ask me why those items were in her quarters? Surely I would have noticed that they were missing. Or did you think that I didn't notice?" By now, her voice was a deadly whisper.

The stallion's rump hit the wall as he tried to distance himself further. "No, no! You do notice things! I never meant to imply that you didn't!" He stammered out a panicked reply, trying not to make her any angrier. Rainbow Dash just stood nearby, barely managing to conceal her laughter.

Twilight stepped back a few steps. Speaking in a calm tone of voice, she asked the terrified stallion a question. "In your cutie mark, who is on top?"

The stallion immediately replied, his response arrogant and stupid. "Myself, of course!"

Twilight brought her Shadowblades into existence, thoughtfully running a hoof over the sharp edge. "Is that so?"

"Quite."

One of the Shadowblades hovered at his neck. "No. The Queen is on top. I am directly below her. You are quite close to the bottom, actually." Twilight spoke simply, ignoring his hyperventilation. "My hoofmaiden is above you. She is a direct aide to me. You are not. You can be replaced. She can't. Understand?"

"Y-yes."

"Good." The Shadowblades disappeared. "You would do well to remember that fact. Come along, Captain."

Rainbow Dash followed Twilight as she walked away from the now passed-out stallion. "Was that really necessary?"

"No, but it was fun seeing how scared he could get." Twilight covered a snicker with her hoof.

The next few hours passed without incident. They got lunch and Twilight watched the Shadowbolts's aerial performance. When the bell chimed six times, the two headed towards the dining hall, stopping by Twilight's chamber to put her royal regalia on and make sure that Rainbow's armor was spotless.

Stepping into the dining chamber, they took their seats at the long table that was for the council. The seating arrangement was similar to that of the council room's, but the table was rectangular instead of round. Twilight noticed that Discord had bandages wrapped around parts of him, and multicolored bloodstains were present. Taking her seat, Twilight dipped her head to her mother. Standing up, Nightmare Moon declared, "Let the feast begin!"

Servants entered the room immediately. Some carried large platters, while others carried glasses. Pegasi quickly set the empty plates in front of the diners while unicorns gently placed large platters down. Levitating a fork, Twilight speared various vegetables and dropped them onto her plate. As she ate, Nightmare Moon leaned over to speak with her. "I heard that you traumatized the Head of Servants."

Finishing her mouthful, Twilight replied, "He deserved it. He found some old things of mine in my hoofmaiden's room and immediately assumed that she had stolen him. She was then whipped across her wings and back, rendering her unable to fly for some time."

"So you terrorized him with your Shadowblades."

"No. All I did was hold them in front of his neck. You're always saying that I should act more like you." Twilight then went back to eating.

Nightmare Moon facehoofed. Turning to her left, she began talking to Sombra. Just then, loud laughter erupted from where the high-ranking soldiers were sitting. A light blue stallion with darker blue hair was waving his hooves around wildly, reenacting some scene. "So then, he's all like, I should go kiss the Princess! Who wants to come with me to kiss the Princess?"

Rainbow Dash laughed. "Whadiya say this guy's name was?"

The blue stallion laughed. "Flash Sentry. Anyway, I was trying not to stab the guy as he ran out of the bar, still going on about kissing the Princess. But just as I was about to go after him, this group of changelings swoops down, drain him dry, and then they cart him off to some hive thing! I guess he was pretty tasty, because they looked really happy."

Chrysalis overheard them, and decided to interject her two cents on the matter. "Oh yes. That guy. You wouldn't believe his dreams about that girl! So much love......" She trailed off, remembering just how much love energy had been received.

"Okayyy.........anyway, have you guys heard about how Spitfire's got a crush on me? Crazy, right?" The blue stallion kept on talking, oblivious to the hurt expression of Rainbow Dash.

Rolling her eyes, Twilight focused on her mother, just in time to hear her say, "Would you be interested in.....visiting my chambers this evening?"

Sombra reply was quick and pleased. "But of course, my Queen. I exist to make you happy while I am here." The two shared a suggestive smile, then went back to eating.

Bleah. Remind me to steer clear of Mother's room tonight. And put up soundproofing spells. Twilight thought to herself, remembering the first and last time she forgot to do that. The noise had kept her up all night.

Shaking those thoughts out of her head, she turned to talk to Chrysalis's daughter. Chrysalis's daughter was pretty in a changeling sort of way, but like her mother, she was more pony-like in appearance than the drones. Twilight was pretty sure that her name was Amethyst, but she wasn't sure. "Hi."

"Hi."

The two lapsed into awkward silence. Soon, Nightmare Moon stood up. "The feast is over. You may retreat to your chambers." Chairs scraped against the floor as everybody got up and did just that.

Author's Note:

Yay! Another chapter!

I like feedback.

Comments

[Lighttone GryphonStar]

I really am enjoying this reality, especially with those two as an item.

[Fire Feather]

6536145 Yep! That ship is one of my favorites!

[SpikeyD]

Pinkie could be the chef of the castle, or a member of some sort of Chaos Corps, under Discord's leadership. Or her alter ego, Pinkemania Diane Pie, could be the Drill sergeant for one or all of the armies.

Rarity could be a seamstress for the royals, or kinda like pinkie, a Mage trainer for one of the armies.

Spike could be introduced in a number of was, like he cold be a rebel leader, and due to not being twilight's assistant, he is slightly older looking and stronger due to his small horde, or he could be the personal guard of one of the queens(Nightmare or Chrysalis) or princesses (Twilight or Amethyst). He could even be the Captain of the Crystal Army. In any of these, he could have wings, magic, or both. His flames could even be a different color, due to being raised differently.

Going good so far, keep it up. For now, have a stache'