Sumac had the disturbing realisation that he couldn’t remember how much he remembered about his father. Flam was familiar, but strange. They had the same coat colour almost, Sumac was a little paler, and the same green eyes. Even his father’s voice was familiar somehow, even though the last time Sumac had heard it was when he was teeny-tiny.
“Look, I didn’t come here to cause problems, I just stopped by to check up on you,” Flam said in a smooth voice.
Ears perking, Sumac realised that his father also had magic words, and now, Sumac was aware that he was using them. Flam’s smooth words carried with them magical reassurance and Sumac struggled to keep his guard up. Pebble bumped into him as she moved closer and her ears were angled out over her face in an aggressive manner.
“I’m not a bad pony, no matter what you might hear,” Flam continued, “it’s all rumour and hearsay. I was framed, railroaded, I’m just an honest businesspony. I had a chance to be a bad pony when Catrina raided the prison, many joined up with her on the spot and I didn’t. I didn’t like her terms. Flim did though, and so did Belladonna.” Ears drooping, the stallion sighed and looked quite sad.
Sumac didn’t buy it for a second. None of it.
“I understand that you’ve ended up with Trixie.” Flam’s well-practiced sadness vanished in an eyeblink and a strange, pleased smile could now be seen on his face. “Never has there been a better grifter and con artist than Trixie Lulamoon.”
Hearing this made Sumac grit his teeth together.
“For a time, she worked with my brother and I… she dazzled the crowd, kept them distracted, allowing Flim and I to conduct our business—”
“You just got done saying how you’re an honest pony and yet now you are bragging about swindling others,” Pebble deadpanned as her nostrils flared.
“Oh, that… a fool and his money are meant to be parted. No one can fault me for preying upon the irresponsible and the foolish. I can’t snooker those who are aware and prepared. Ponies get conned because they want to be conned, and I provide a service.” Flam offered up a greasy, slippery-looking smile and gave Pebble a wink.
Seething, Sumac wondered how Flam had not been caught, and then remembered that his father was magically gifted. Non-detection and misdirection spells were powerful. The colt came to one gritty conclusion; his father couldn’t leave this graveyard.
“Trixie was the best of us, why, Flim and I, we learned much of our trade from her. She’s the most gifted grifter of our age.” Flam’s eyebrows furrowed and he let out a slow, drawn out chuckle. “And now, from what I understand, she’s got everypony fooled, including that ditz Twilight Sparkle, into thinking that she’s a good pony. Why, Sumac, she’s made good use of you as a prop. Has she been teaching you the trade?”
His father’s laughter ringing in his ears, Sumac boiled over and he could feel himself developing a bad case of bubble-guts. Baring his teeth, he reached out with his magic, and using all of the magical strength he could muster, he lifted up a worn, eroded headstone. It was heavy enough to cause some real pain in his sinuses and the root of his horn, a thin trickle of blood ran down from both of his nostrils almost right away. Rage gave him strength though, and he ignored the pain of magical strain.
Swinging the tombstone, he caught his father a glancing blow alongside his face, sending Flam sprawling over the ground, the headstone connected to Flam’s temple with a meaty, solid sounding whump! The unicorn lay in the dead grass, his legs twitching, his body convulsing. More blood ran down in rivulets from Sumac’s nostrils, the consequences of lifting too much and asking too much of his underdeveloped thaumaturgical system.
“Oh, you little bastard, I’m going to kill you!” Flam cried out in a muffled voice thick from pain. “How dare you do this to me! I have half a mind to take you right now and sell you to Catrina, she’s offering a fortune for you, you wretched little imbecile!”
As Flam started to get up, Sumac hit him again, and this time, it wasn’t a glancing blow. There was a crunch as the hard edge of the headstone connected with the corner of Flam’s jaw and the stallion dropped down in a limp heap, no longer moving at all. Sumac, teeth bared in a bloody rictus of rage, raised the tombstone again and made ready to bring it crashing down upon Flam’s head.
“Sumac, don’t.” Pebble’s voice was flat and held no trace of feeling whatsoever. “If you do it, you’ll spend the rest of your life regretting it. Please don’t… I know you’re angry, and you have a right to be, but what you’re about to do is murder.”
The headstone quivered in the air above Flam’s head and Sumac’s whole body shook with the strain of holding it up as blood now flowed in a steady torrent from his nose. Letting out a choked sob, he tossed the headstone away and it landed in the grass less than a foot away from where his vulnerable father lay sprawled out in the grass.
“Sumac, I’m going to go and get help,” Pebble said, still sounding so very calm. “I don’t think he’s going to wake up soon. Stay here and try to calm down. I’ll be right back with help, I promise.” Pebble paused for a moment, then added, “Thank you for doing the right thing, Sumac…”
As Trixie wiped Sumac’s nose with a clean, dark grey cloth, a worried looking Twilight Sparkle stood nearby, taking in all of the situation. Quite a crowd had arrived, and had Sumac been a little more aware of his surroundings, he might have been surprised by who had shown up. The two most likely to draw the colts interest were Starlight Glimmer and Tarnished Teapot, who gave each other plenty of space.
Confused, a little disoriented, Sumac found himself staring into another pair of green eyes that matched his own—Applejack’s. His vision was fuzzy, even with his glasses on, but he could still make out the worry and the fury on her face. Her touch on his neck was firm, but gentle, and she looked him over as her sides heaved from her heavy breathing.
And then, just like that, Applejack took off with a snarl, launching herself in Flam’s general direction.
Cursing and spitting, spewing ear-burning profanity, Applejack shoved past Starlight Glimmer, pushing the startled mare right out of the way, and she laid into Flam, who was only half conscious. She began pummeling him, kicking him, over and over again in the face, including a few hammering blows onto his already broken jaw.
“You bloodied him, you worthless, no good, good for nothing skinflint!”
Nopony even tried to stop Applejack and Twilight watched with no emotion visible on her face, her mouth pressed into a tight, thin line. Tarnish began cringing with each blow that landed, and he pulled Pebble closer to him, shielding her eyes with her foreleg. Trixie held the cloth over Sumac’s snoot, trying to staunch the flow of blood.
“That’s enough, Jackie.” Big Mac’s command was bellowed and it boomed though the graveyard. The soft spoken stallion moved forward, pushing through the crowd, and he moved to his sister’s side, looking grim and a bit sad. “I done said that’s enough!”
Snarling, her teeth bared, Applejack pulled back her front hoof, going way, way back, and then slugged Flam right in the eye, one final blow for good measure, and then she ignored her brother’s stern grunt of disapproval.
“Sorry ‘bout that, family affairs can get a bit messy,” Big Mac said, his voice now soft again, but it still somehow carried through the crowd. “I’m powerful sorry that y’all had to see that.”
“Flam Apple, you picked the wrong town to come and visit,” Twilight Sparkle said, her voice cold and commanding. “It might have gone better for you to have been caught anywhere else in Equestria, but you came to my kingdom. You have shown yourself to have no redeemable qualities. I once argued for leniency and mercy for you, and you have squandered that away. Now, you’ve threatened to kill your own son from what I’m told, and even worse, you talked of selling him to our enemies. I have no reason to think that Pebble lied to me.”
Sumac could not help but notice that the two ravens were back, he could just barely make them out in his fuzzy, blurred over vision. Choking, unable to sob because of all of the blood and phlegm in his throat, Sumac went limp against Trixie and took comfort in her soft, velvety warmth.
Flam, who lay on the ground in a bloody, broken heap, said nothing in his own defense.
“Even worse, Sumac is now a protected asset of the Crown, and you tampered with his safety, his well being, and his security. This will not be a civil trial, but a tribunal, conducted on the very scene of your transgression against the Crown.”
A murmur went through the crowd and Twilight cleared her throat.
“Tarnished Teapot, as one of my most trusted and devoted subjects, I am appointing you as one of my tribunes. Starlight Glimmer, you as well. Big Mac, for your discretion, your wisdom, and the wise counsel you’ve offered me in the past, I know that you will serve me now—”
“Eeyup.”
“And for the last pick, Lemon Hearts, I know this will trouble you, but I need a pony with a merciful, tender heart and I can’t think of a finer pick than you. Can I count on you?” Twilight turned to face Lemon Hearts, who squirmed as her hooves shuffled in the grass.
“Okay,” Lemon Hearts replied in a squeaky voice.
“There will be no debate of your guilt or innocence, Flam Apple.” Twilight’s voice had a hard, flinty edge to it now, and a faint quaver could be heard by those with the most sensitive ears. “Only a discussion of how much life you have left.”
Several ponies in the crowd gasped.
“I don’t want him killed,” Lemon Hearts said, her voice squeaky and panicked. “As bad as he is, I don’t want him to die, not for this, but I agree that he needs to be punished.”
“He should live and suffer.” Big Mac eyed his sister, and Applejack gave him a nod.
“I agree that he should live.” Starlight turned her head and looked down at Flam, who lay in the grass beside her, squirming in pain as his face swelled into something unrecognisable. “I must say though, what will making him suffer accomplish? I doubt he can be rehabilitated, but should we resort to cruelty?”
“Letting him live means putting him back into prison, and we run the risk of him getting out again.” Tarnish’s soft voice somehow carried over the sound of the gathered crowd. “I have a solution that will allow him to live without suffering.”
“Tarnish, I already know what you are about to suggest,” Twilight said to Tarnish, “and I approve.”
Letting heave a weary sigh, Tarnish explained himself. “I can turn him into a tree. I’ve already done it to several ponies who attempted to violate the grove. He won’t suffer, and as far as I know, I am the only one who can turn him back into a pony. I actually tried this on Maud because I needed somepony that I could trust to tell me exactly what it was like. She said it was like going to sleep and dreaming.”
Looking a little disturbed, Lemon Hearts frowned, but she did not object. She looked over at Big Mac, who looked back at her, and the two seemed to be having some silent exchange. At the end of it all, Big Mac nodded, but said nothing, as Applejack kicked the ground with her bloody hoof and muttered with disappointment.
“So, we give him life and mercy.” There was unmistakable relief in Starlight’s voice. Her eyes darted from side to side, as if she was gauging the acceptance of the crowd, and then she added, “Before we do anything, I want the opinion of Sumac Apple on this issue, as he is the one who has been wronged.”
“You’re asking the poor colt to condemn his own father?” Big Mac gave Starlight an incredulous, wide-eyed stare.
Starlight’s ears perked. “He’s the one who laid his father low—”
“He did that in a fit of foalish temper, no doubt.” Big Mac’s voice filled with a soft, unmistakable worry and he looked over at Sumac, who was being cared for by Trixie. “It’s easy to get him riled… I don’t know that we should ask his opinion on this matter.”
“I don’t know,” Starlight replied, “but I think that asking his opinion is important on this issue. This is going to be a pivotal moment in his young life. Having no say over what happens next might leave him bitter, disillusioned, and angry. He needs to feel that he has some say in this matter, as I think it will leave him more trustful of authority in the long run.”
Big Mac snorted, looked thoughtful, and his withers quivered as he lapsed into deep concentration. Beside him, Applejack chewed on her lip, but said nothing. The gathered crowd waited and Tarnish stood with his head cocked off to one side. The big red stallion glanced over at Twilight, as if he was trying to read her opinion on this matter, but she was statuesque.
“Starlight, you make a fine point and I find myself agreeing with you.” Big Mac drew in a deep breath, his sides expanding like a blacksmith’s bellows, and he let out a long, windy sigh through his open mouth. “We should hear what the colt has to say.”
When Lemon Hearts and Tarnish nodded, so did Twilight and she made a gesture to Applejack.
“L’il Mac, you have something to say about this?” Applejack asked. “You look a bit upset. Do you think you can talk? Say a few words?”
In anticipation of Sumac saying something, Trixie pulled away the bloodied cloth that she was using to try and stop the colt’s nosebleed. Sumac was a mess, his face crusted with snot and blood, his eyes were filled with red spiderwebs. Trixie made a few last second swipes with the cloth, trying to wipe away the mess.
The crowd went silent as Sumac drew in a deep breath, and then, his eyes narrowing, Sumac found that he did indeed, have something to say. “I want him dead! Kill him! I want him—mmmph!”
Sumac’s words were cut off by Trixie covering his mouth and silencing him. The colt kicked and struggled, having an apoplectic fit of rage. The bloodied, snot-drenched cloth fell away for a moment and Sumac’s bloody nose, which had been a trickle, was now a torrent. Trixie held the cloth up to his snoot and held it in place, trying to get the bleeding under control.
Ears drooping, Starlight Glimmer looked disappointed, while Big Mac just looked sad. Applejack had a strange look of smug satisfaction upon her face, a worrisome expression indeed. Twilight bowed her head as the two ravens in a nearby tree began to caw and cause a ruckus. Pebble, clinging to her father’s leg, looked shocked and a little disturbed.
“I don’t think Sumac means that.” Lemon Hearts’ voice was a soft whisper that was difficult to hear. “I think he’s having a bit of a tantrum. Sumac can be a bit unreasonable if you say something awful about his mother, and what dutiful son wouldn’t be?”
“Sumac’s opinion has been noted.” Shuffling on her hooves, Twilight turned to face Flam, who lay on the ground groaning in pain, his face now an unrecognisable mess. “Come, let us convoke together as a tribunal and see if we can agree on the sentencing.”
In a nearby tree, the two ravens continued to caw.
Oh damn, Sumac = righteous fury.
Although, it was uncalled for in the end. I'm sure that if they listened to Sumac, he'd regret it for the rest of his days. So good on you, kudz.
Yikes, this took a dark turn. You never fail to impress Kudz.
I like the idea of turning the worst offenders into trees. It prevents them from ever interfering, doesn't hurt them, is reversible in an emergency, and lets them at least be productive in the sense that they're part of the environment.
I really want to explore this grove sometime...
On a positive note, I'm glad that we can see Starlight Glimmer and Tranish agreeing on something.
7876016
Under professional circumstances, they can work together, they just don't get along.
7876029 The sad thing is that Sumac has such an enormous temper, just like Hellboy! I think such a temper will make Sumac Apple quite sloppy.
7876041
Not only does he have a temper, but a magical silver tongue to go with it, a supremely dangerous combination. Had Trixie not silenced him, he may have shouted Flam to death right there.
7876052
Which is why Trixie gagged him, before he could have an effect upon the crowd and sway their decision.
7876052 He would have also drowned in his own blood from that nosebleed of his.
Woah. There's gonna be repercussions from this. Things have changed:
* AJ got medieval on Flam's ass (and other assorted body parts) - I don't remember her this mad ever. And I expect we'll see that again.
* Not to mention that AJ seems to approve of Sumac's final opinion of things
* Big Mac does NOT approve of his sister's actions, nor of Sumac's response, and I think this is going to cause him great concern over his loved ones and the differences between him and them in how they deal with situations like this
* Pebble is disturbed by Sumac's reaction (although, I think that Lemon Hearts really called the reason why) I don't think she truly knew how angry he could be and this is going to weigh heavily on her
* Starlight is disappointed in Sumac's reaction, and I think it's because she seems some of her own past actions and emotions in him which worries her
* Lemon Hearts is going to have nightmares regardless of the outcome
* And Twlight is furious - something we don't usually get to see. And I have a feeling that should anyone disapprove of the final outcome they will get a very cold and unforgiving explanation of her opinion on the matter.
* Only Tarnished seems calm about the whole thing, but he's The Druid and he's not known for being polite or pleasant when bad thing happen. But I think that how this effects Pebble will cause him concern.
And we have yet to learn Trixie's opinion on the matter...
7876084
Not even heaven will protect an Apple that falls from the family tree, for they are only fit for the worms and
crowsravens.So... Tarnish is turning ponies into trees for tresspassing now? Or did he mean something else by 'violate'.
Trying Flam for 'threatening to kill Sumac' is kind of skeezy since he only did that after Sumac tried to kill him. But, eh. He was probably planning *something* bad.
Sumac, SMASH!
And damnit, only half my bet was right.
Though in all seriousness, damn. In all honesty, in the hold of rage most people would be feeling with Samac on this. I agree with Starlight, to live and that alone is the suffering, though turning one into a tree is definitely a neat and... unique punishment.
Wonder how this will continue.
A so called father willing to sell his son to the enemy to be used as a weapon to overthrow your nation... death by bark beetles
Aww yes that went beautifully.
You all make excellent, cogent, points. It makes me a touch ashamed that my response was "Why are there four ponies on a tribunal?"
7876182
It has nothing to do with three, but more to do with the word tribune.
I'm trying to imagine being turned into a tree and it sounds quite tranquil and at the same time Absolutely Horrifying.
7876084
Applejack went medieval because she mistakenly believes that Flam hurt Sumac. She's not aware that it was the magical strain that gave him a bloody nose. There will be more about this later.
Because of this, this is the reason why she behaved the way she did, as abusing foals is something of a taboo amongst the Apples.
Big Mac believed the same thing, which is why he did nothing to physically stop her.
There is so much I wanted to include in narration, but that would be telling, and I stuck with showing, even if all of the reasons were not made clear.
7876056
I am incredibly pleased with this, Kudzu. The others might see it as childishness and such from him, but that's only because they can use his age to distance themselves from him. If it had been them in his exact position, with everything leading up to this situation as it had for him? They'd have done the same.
It's easy to fault someone for wanting blood when you can stand by without a horse in the race. When you don't have years of pain hanging on one person's actions staring you in the face. When your own personal boundaries aren't crossed and trammeled upon. Trixie did good in silencing him before his magic could work its spell, but with any luck the REASONS why he spoke them will sink in with the others, and they won't write it off as wrong or just the simple-mindedness of a child. Being calm and studious is not the proof of adulthood, like they seem to see it - this is. That primal feeling with the understanding of what it MEANS to feel it. Part of Sumac knows what issues it might create, but part, I think - already considered how much it'd solve.
Too often, characters, and especially readers in the audience, see a situation like this and go 'Oh that person is doing a bad thing feeling that way, or they're out of their gourd with emotions, they need to be more mature.' and completely forget that we're all this way, and it's not maturity that stays our hand, just distance.
7876187
Yes, I apparently had my etymology wrong. My mistake. They were all good choices for the tribunal, certainly.
7876222
Future spoiler! Far distant future!
When Sumac eventually settles in as Ponyville's mortician and the caretaker of the cemetery, he will spend time speaking to his father, who is now a tree in the cemetery. He sees that the tree is cared for and well tended to. Sumac is rather fond of said tree once it becomes a fixture in the cemetery and there will come a day when Sumac will bring his offspring to meet their grandfather, which just so happens to be a tree. A peculiar tree that sometimes, you can hear it groaning or sighing. Ponies say it sounds bored, so a lot of them go and have a talk with it and try to be nice to it.
7876236
The part I liked as a writer was the fact that Twilight went to Big Mac for counsel. It was a nice, quiet, subtle nod to the strength of his character. It implied that he had something to say, and it was something worth listening to. A lot happened in just a few sentences, and it added layers and layers to the story.
7876246
I can picture him growing into the role of one of Ponyville's elder... statesponies I suppose is the word. Everypony knows him, his family's been there forever, he has a natural sense of gravitas and connection to the past... I would be surprised if he doesn't at least start to be seen as the Voice of the Common Pony. His sister being one of the bearers and all, those who are too nervous of approaching such important ponies as Twilight and her court might go to him instead, and tell their problems and concerns to him.
I do read a lot into simple exchanges, yes.
One point: Flam has knowledge that may or may not be useful, it would be prudent to harvest his memories for any information on Grogar's agents or their movements. After all, he can not sell Sumac to Catrina without knowing where she or her middleman is, and Flam has a deep knowledge of the Shades, to reference Ankh-Morpork. Flam would be quite useful indeed once properly reprogrammed by a neuromancer
7876243
It sounds 'board'.
Holy crap back to back chapters is the soon chapter like next week or couple hours
Holy crap, that's like Spock levels of 'don't diss my momma' there!
One thing from Flam's monologuing, we know Flim & Belladonna are under Catrina's sway.
7876105
For all intents and purposes, Sumac is an "essential individual" to the functioning of the national government. Don't forget that he also then immediately threatened to sell him to Catrina. This establishes him, as others have noted, as being in contact with a national enemy who has sworn to kill Sumac, and who attempted already to kill at least two other ponies and a Princess.
That means that the threat was not only credible, but that Sumac was in real, clear and most of all present danger from Flam. Plus, Flam is a known criminal who escaped from prison, and is likely wanted in connection with numerous other crimes.
Yes, execution was an extreme solution, but Tarnish was nevertheless right; if they just put him back into prison, he would just be sprung again, and they would be wasting resources that could be spent elsewhere. Turning him into a tree and essentially freezing him in suspended animation is undoubtedly the best compromise, and perhaps most importantly, is still just and fair.
7876325 Sure, like I said he was probably up to something, but it sounded like killing Sumac or selling him to Catrina were specifically *not* what he was planning to do. So putting him on trial for that is just... I don't know. Lazy?
He was obviously lying about just being there to 'check up on him'. Maybe he was going to magic-voice Sumac into handing over the Lantern or something. Or try to talk him into changing sides?
7875953
*Gaint Worm Noises*
Kinda harsh of Twilight. I mean, she's not even looking to see if he really was working with Catrina. I mean, there's a difference between con artistry and selling your son to a lich and Flim only threatened the Catrina thing after he was bludgeoned with a freaking tombstone. Sumac is also entirely at fault for the blood because he lifted the tombstone that was too heavy for him. Seriously, Twilights a master of divination and she's relying only on witness testimony of two emotionally compromised foals and denying a simple con artist the right of self defense? That seems entirely OOC. Starlight Glimmer destroyed entire universes worth of lives and Twilight let her rant about Starburst. Granted that was arguably because she couldn't win, but you don't just call somepony as small potatoes as Flim irredeemable when far worse ponies have seen the light.
7876398
You mean the pony sprung from prison who didn't immediately turn himself in, but chose to run free even though he was given life in prison? The one that was supposed to never again breathe free air, but has been roaming the countryside in flagrant violation of the law?
That one?
The one that has been using magical means to shield himself from the authorities in flagrant violation of the law so he wouldn't be put back in prison again?
Is that the one you are talking about?
What, should he just walk free? Is that what you're saying?
7876398 Starlight destroyed other Universes by ACCIDENT. She never got to see the destruction that her hooves had wrought. Furthermore, Starlight wasn't trying to hurt anyone she thought was innocent. So when you look at what she was trying to do, it PALES in Comparison to PURPOSEFUL TREASON of SEVERELY HIGH ORDER.
Sure Twilight could do Divination, but again...Pebble is a rather honest pony. Furthermore, Flam WAS using Word Magic again and against HIS OWN SON no less! Furthermore, he showed NO GUILT or REMORSE for his Trickster Ways. Not only that, but he wasn't saying that he did NOT follow Catrina due to any sense of Morality, but instead that the deal was too much risk for too little reward. Furthermore, as it turns out that Twilight & Trixie are SISTERS and have grown close as battle buddies, she would be FURIOUS about Flam slandering Trixie's name to her son who is her NIECE.
There is a reason why she wanted Lemon Hearts on the Tribunal, because Twilight knew that she couldn't trust herself to NOT make a decision born of Wrath & Vengeance. Twilight was too furious to make any Fair or Just ruling in this case. Flam slandered her sister, was going to use violence against his son, admitted to still being a Grifter, and even admitted (though under duress) that he was planning on selling an asset so valuable to Catrina that it could turn the tide of the War against Grogar GREATLY in his favor. Also keep in mind that this is a decision that is made in War, with an enemy that they are not even 100% certain that they can beat. In fact in another timeline they LOST.
7876029 Is it bad that I imagine the end of every chapter ending mid sentence or mid scene like the Sapranos did?
Good news: No one dies today. Unless those Ravens mean something...
Bad news: The Ravens are being ominous, you're about to be turned into a tree, and if something happens to Tarnish, you will most likely be forgotten and live the rest of your life comatose until your eventual death and (depending on your view of the afterlife) everlasting judgment.
7876412
No, he shouldn't walk free, but the right to defend yourself is important. The right to a fair trial is important. The fact she's relying only on witness testimony when magical means to scan memories exist is a horrible act of bias. If the means exists to get a clear picture for judgement, the justice system has an obligation to use them. I have no knowledge of what Flim has done on the lam. For all I know, he didn't turn himself in because he was scared out of his mind that he would be tied to Flam and Belladona who he claims are working with Catrina. I can't trust his claim that Flam and Belladona are doing so, of course, but it's entirely reasonable for somepony with questionable moral fibre to have trust issues with the government that imprisoned him. Who is to say Flim wasn't really worried about Sumac? He's had a long time to regret things in prison after all. Perhaps he just wanted to see his son once more. Perhaps he has temper issues like Sumac and makes threats he doesn't mean. It just seems... wrong of her to not do more than take the testimony of two foals as all the evidence she needs to sentence him effectively to death. Unless his sentence is somehow revoked now he may as well be dead.
I guess what I'm saying is... Things like this make Twilight no better than the criminals she puts away. She has an obligation to all her subjects both the scum and the upstanding citizens. It's not enough to give them a second chance and go 'Oh, you blew it. Guess you're irredeemable trash.' They might just go break the law again, but she should take the time to make the punishment fit the crime. In this instance I only know that Flim did nothing but take advantage of a prison break he himself did not instigate, that he hid himself through magical means, and that he risked coming out of hiding and recapture just to talk to his son. None of those things seem remotely serious enough to warrant the equivalent of death by baleful polymorph, yet Twilight seems like she wants to do it anyway because she didn't take the time to iron out the truth and assumed he was there for the worst of reasons. That just doesn't sound like Twilight to me.
This doesn't accomplish anything more than keeping everyone's conscious free of guilt for not taking a life and disabling him for the foreseeable future. I suppose that's the intent, and would be no different than putting someone in suspended animation, if I'm to use a sci-fi fate I've read about.
Not that he doesn't deserve it, mind you. Threatening to kill and or sell his own child to an absolute monster working for an even greater monster destroys any innocence he might have had.
Given the option between being a tree for the rest of my life and being executed, I don't know which I would choose.
7876537
He is already guilty. This is not a trial about that. He was already sentenced to life in prison untill he is dead.
He threatened an asset of Equestria, so this went badly for him. Had he been caught elsewhere, he may have very well be executed for crimes of high treason, he does in fact have knowledge of the enemy. So this was fair.
As Tarnish already knows, Wardens are able to go inside the minds of pony trees.
7876412 ...have you noticed that you get a bit aggressive when someone questions the decisions your characters make?
7876562
Not aggressive, but I do point out the obvious. People tend to forget all of the important little details and that's irksome for me.
7876556
He threatened an asset after being assaulted. This would be clear if they looked into the memories of all involved and suggests he was probably emotionally compromised at the time because his son hit him with a tombstone for fondly reminiscing about his past with Trixie. Given his criminal nature, I wouldn't be surprised if he could not understand that such memories are not to be remembered fondly, and thus he might not have any understanding of why Sumac bludgeoned him.
For all I know his thoughts were 'like Father like Son' and he assumed both Trixie's and Sumac were conning all of Ponyville, and if I were assaulted without warning in what may have been a bonding moment for him, I'd be suitably upset. As Sumac has a tendency to run his mouth in anger, I'd be willing to bet he got that from his father and that there was no true intent to carry through on what was essentially an act of frustration in the heat of the moment. He also specifically said "half a mind" implying that he did not want to.
On top of this, while he was most assuredly guilty, the phrase "Innocent until proven guilty." Does not mean one is innocent or guilty. It means that the point of a trial is to properly establish the level of guilt and the most fitting punishment. That did not happen here. He was declared to have guilt of the highest degree with nothing but the testimony of two foals and knowledge that he broke out of prison. There is no proof of treason. Taking advantage of Catrina's prison break in no way proves he is working with her. He may have simply taken advantage of the chaos to slip away on his own. I have no way of knowing. Now Twilight might know if divination was done to examine the prison break, but a jail break is probably to chaotic to say which prisoners escape for what reason on testimony alone, and it seems that either A) divination wasn't used there for similar reasons to why it wasn't used here or B) Twilight isn't using it here to provide fair judgement despite it being used to gain an understanding of the jail break -- an understanding she doesn't sight as evidence here.
All I know is he broke out, spoke to his son, and was captured again. At no point did I or the foals witness treason, and nopony questions if maybe he just wanted to talk. Talking is not treason. Threats made under duress because of assault by tombstone is not treason. Knowing the enemy is not treason. For all we know, he took advantage of Catrina's prison break because he found out she wants to kill his son. Of course he knows her because of the prison break, but that does not mean he's working for her.
The fact that a con artist is viewed as so irredeemable as to sell his son to an agent of Grogar's -- which basically equate to selling your son to an agent of the devil or some other unspeakably evil entity -- suggests they have such a low opinion of him as to assume he's inequine. Something I have a hard time fathoming, especially after you wrote that one-shot on the plight of the hench pony. A con pony is hardly any more evil than a hench pony, and while I understand that the one-shot was obviously meant for comedy and isn't to be taken too seriously, this feels like a case of going the opposite direction. This feels like needlessly overpunishing a pony for being who they are because they don't know any better and can't help themselves.
I mean, Flicker can't help being Lord Death of Murder Mountain, and ponies applaud him for it. He is a sociopath -- or is it psychopath? -- that enjoys killing on a regular basis. Flicker's more of a monster than Flim as far as I'm concerned -- an adorable monster, but a monster non-the-less -- and the princesses have gone out of their way to reward him and make sure he knows his value and potential. Flicker is proof that even monsters can have feelings, and the princesses know this, but here we have a simple con artist sentenced to death -- a simple con artist assumed so iequine as to sell his son to the pony-devil because he may have said something he didn't actually mean under duress because his own son bludgeoned him with a tombstone and no pony checked to see if the testimony of two foals wasn't warped from emotions.
Also, sorry for ranting. This just really bugs me, and I'm trying to find the right words for why, but can't. Nothing I say seems to fully encompass the why of it all.
7876690
This is not America. Innocent until proven guilty does not apply here.
Hey, Applejack's back in this story. I've been meaning to comment on that for awhile. The Apple family has been absent from the story for quite a long time. It might not seem so long if you were binge reading this, but if you've been reading as the story's been posted, then it's been several months since they've been active players. If Sumac didn't have Apple in his name, or make the occasional reference to them, a casual reader could almost be forgiven for forgetting that the Apples are important ponies in Sumac's life.
The only issue regarding the tribunal I have is an issue of time. Namely, why did they have to decide immediately? I feel like taking a day to let tempers cool might have been a smarter decision. Also not entirely okay with Applejack being allowed to attack a prisoner unrestrained, but I feel like that's going to play into later events.
Is it weird that I don't entirely hate Flam? I don't like him at all, what he did was reprehensible, stupid, and his fate is probably the best he could have hoped for. It's just, he hasn't been around in the story long enough for me to build up a proper hatred for him. Maybe it just needs to sink in a bit. I only got so angry at Night Light after mulling it over for awhile. I'm certainly glad he's not being executed, because his actions were insufficiently bad to make me want him dead, especially with his unclear motivations.
7876690
He sold out his own brother for his own freedom in the past and then threw it away to continue conning ponies. If he is willing to throw his own brother under a bus for his own gain, a brother, his own flesh and blood, he spent his entire life with, he would have even less reservations over doing so to his son who is his own flesh and blood and only spent maybe a year with.
7876690
A con artist that sold out his own brother for a chance at redemption, then blew it. A con artist that lived on the lam with a newborn son, on the run, who used his own son as a hostage. A con artist that has already shown ill intent towards said son, and it was a big part of his own sentencing, his willingness to hold his own son hostage was part of the reason why he was declared irredeemable. Some of this has been revealed in the story, but not all of it, I wanted to string it out in little pieces at a time for good storytelling, but now I am dumping it in the comments section because I want to help a reader understand what is really going on here.
Flam has already shown a willingness to kill his own son to further his own ends. Does this make it a little bit clearer for you?
This isn't intended as being snarky, or aggressive, or anything like that. My other replies were made on my phone because I had my gaming laptop open, and it takes almost five minutes to open Chrome on that laptop. I've pulled out my Chromebook so I could actually type a real reply, rather just poke at words that my phone suggests to construct a sentence.
Also, I know the real reason why Flam was actually in Ponyville, and why he approached Sumac. He wasn't there to say hi, and that's pretty much all I can say on that issue. See, I could have said all of this in narrative, but that would be bad writing, telling, instead, I showed, and I realise the fact that all you can go on is what you have seen.
But he had a plan, and it wasn't a good one.
If you really want to know, read at your own risk.
He was there in Ponyville checking out the town's magical defenses and to check and see what sort of protections were in place around Sumac. He then planned to go and report to one of Catrina's agents with the hopes of making some quick bits, because information sells well. He didn't join with her directly, because he values his independence, but he is not above taking her coin.
Spoiler was spoilery!
7876701
Twilight's incredibly progressive and forward thinking, though. She gave Gosling that book from through the mirror portal, and while that world isn't earth, you went out of your way to suggest that she thinks practices from an earth-like planet should be incorporated into Equestria. That's one of the biggest reason's why this feels so wrong to me. She shows no remorse here, and none of the careful thinking I've come to expect of her through your works. Even if she has no choice but to automatically find him guilty, I'd at least expect her to scan the memories of all involved for something as serious as what he was being sentenced for.
This is something she could very well regret if she's wrong, and I thought she would be smart enough to realize that before committing.
Huh. I kinda thought it'd be Pebble, not Sumac. Makes sense though.
... Also I really like that Sumac has the same completely 'down to earth' response Applejack does.
7876753
Again, sorry for ranting. In no way am I arguing that Flim is innocent, only that he could be and that it feels OOC for Twilight to not double check things and make sure she understands what happened beyond the testimony of two obviously emotionally compromised foals when this would be something I know she would regret if she was wrong.
At this point I should probably just stop, though. I probably made my point long ago and just continued to dig a hole for myself as I needlessly tried to tweak an explanation that didn't need more tweaking. I still look forward to your continued work as always.