//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: Betrayal // Story: The Stone Queen // by albedoequals1 //------------------------------// Eight Years Later Over the next few months, Inferno’s following grew exponentially. She issued a formal decree that all slaves that joined her army would be freed, resulting in heavy desertion from nearby cities. The Fresian cities were too frightened to hassle her army at first, but they began to regroup. Rather than risk another costly battle, she withdrew to the northern mountains, and that was where she built her city. After consulting her friends, Inferno named the new city Elpída. Over the next eight years, the city was fortified and trade routes were developed. Three times the city was besieged, and three times it weathered the siege. On the eighth anniversary of the founding of Elpída, Inferno declared a holiday to celebrate more than a year of peace. Queen Inferno sat on a simple throne, wearing a floor-length robe. She tapped a forehoof lightly on an armrest as she tried to be patient with the ponies asking her for help. They were being polite and making a reasonable request, but as usual, there was just no money to do anything about it. How had it come to this? She wasn’t a banker. She was a soldier, maybe a tactician, but all she ever worried about anymore was money and hurt feelings. “I am sorry, Mr. Rockwall, but I do not have the funds to grant your request at this time. Perhaps if you speak to my accountant, he can work out some sort of compromise for you.” Sir O walked into the throne room with one of the twins on each side of him. All three were wearing expensive clothing, but that was where their resemblance to nobility ended. Nera wore a black eyepatch, Fotia’s wooden leg was visible below the hem of her dress, and O had a cup dangling from each of his ears. “Inferno!” O called. “It’s a holiday! Stop working and come party with us!” Inferno glared at him for a moment and then turned to the line of petitioners queued in front of her. “I’m sorry, but those are all the requests I have time for today. I encourage the rest of you to come back tomorrow. To compensate you for your time, please talk to my steward”—she nodded to the pony she meant—“and he will get you something nice from my kitchen. Please enjoy the festival; I hear some interesting events have been planned.” With that, she stood up from her seat and walked to meet her friends at the door. “I would appreciate it if you would show me a little more respect when I’m holding court, O. It’s hard enough keeping everypony happy without you undermining my authority just for the fun of it.” “Oh, lighten up, Inferno. Have some fun. We haven’t had fun in years.” “We were hoping you could join us at the new tavern that just opened,” Fotia explained. “I know you always eat at your house, but it won’t hurt just this once.” O shook his head, dropping one of the cups. Inferno’s hoof zipped out to catch it before it hit the ground. “Ha, looks like you’ve still got it,” O teased. “And now you have a cup. Come with us; we know just where to use it.” Inferno just smiled and shook her head, but she followed them out into the streets. The streets of Elpída were decorated with flowers and greens, and packed with celebrating ponies. O and the twins had to push their way through the crowd, but Inferno’s intense gaze afforded her a small pocket of personal space to walk in unimpeded. They arrived at the tavern to find Liquor already thoroughly intoxicated. He was standing on a table, leading the clientele in a boisterous song and doing a dance to go with it. “Fotia!” Liquor called. “Come dance with me!” “I can’t dance anymore, Li! You know that!” “Nonsense! Come on, you can do it!” With much urging from Liquor and the other patrons, Fotia finally climbed up on the table next to the half-drunk stallion, self-consciously hiding her wooden leg behind her healthy ones. Liquor started the crowd singing the song again, and Fotia started to do the dance. Even with only three legs, she was far more graceful than Li and received a round of applause when she finished and stepped down again. “I thought that would be you, O. You’re always the one singing and getting ponies worked up,” Inferno teased. “Any other day, you’d be right, but today I have you three to entertain, and that’s plenty.” O ordered drinks for himself and all three mares. Inferno took a sip from hers and nearly spit it back into the cup. “What’s wrong, Inferno? Used to that watery stuff your steward stocks?” “What’s in this stuff?” Inferno asked dubiously. “Alcohol, and lots of it,” O replied. “Try some more; it grows on you.” Nera took a swig from her own cup and turned around in her chair to watch her sister dance. “It’s good to see her dance again. I was afraid she would never be able to even walk normally again, but I think she’s pretty much back to normal.” “Hmm,” Inferno scratched her chin. “One more of these for each of us,” she told the bartender, “at that table over there.” Then she stood up and led the group over to a corner table. Fotia caught up with them and Inferno explained, “It’s been too long since we just hung around and talked.” The four friends spent the next few hours reminiscing, until they had all drunk too much to remember any more stories. When Liquor finally drank enough to knock himself out, O took over his job as the entertainment for the night, singing and telling tall tales. As it began to get late, Inferno offered the others rooms in her house for the night so they wouldn’t have to cook for themselves in the morning, but the twins decided to go home. O followed Inferno back. They were both more than a little tipsy, and when Inferno was showing O his room, he just leaned forward and kissed her. Inferno gasped. “What are you doing?” “I love you, Steph. Ever since we were foals together, you were always the mare for me.” Inferno stared at him stupidly for a second, then abruptly kissed him back. Then she kicked the door shut with a hind leg and started pulling off her clothes. * * * * * * Inferno woke with a pounding headache and blinding sunlight in her eyes. She was confused for a split-second by the wrong angle of the light. This wasn’t her room. Then she forgot about that when she became aware of the big warm thing she was pressed up against. Her forelegs were wrapped around another pony, and her head was laying against his neck. “O,” she said in a hoarse morning voice. “Mmm,” came the reply. “Don’t get up yet, Steph.” He moved around to a more comfortable position and put a leg over her shoulders. “We’re going to be a laughingstock,” Inferno whined quietly, but she did not try to leave. “Maybe, but I’m not sorry. I only wish we’d done it years ago.” “Did we…?” “Oh yes, I’m amazed you don’t remember.” Inferno blushed hotly. Now that she thought about it, she did remember a little. How had it gotten so far out of control? “O, how could you let me-” O gently covered her mouth with a hoof. “We may have needed alcohol to get up the nerve, but it wasn’t so bad, was it?” She pushed his hoof away. “O, that’s not the point and you know it. I have responsibilities, I can’t be a mother now.” O was silent for a moment. “Well, maybe you won’t.” “You didn’t even think about that, did you?” “No, but neither did you.” “No.” Inferno sighed. “I didn’t.” “Don’t be mad, Inferno. Didn’t you have a good time?” O nuzzled her neck. “I did, but I shouldn’t have.” “Don’t worry so much. It’s in the past.” O licked her ear. “Don’t let a little mistake ruin the future.” “Mmm.” Inferno got up and moved so she was laying on top of O, her long mane covering his face. She pressed her muzzle against his in a gentle kiss. “I have missed you. All this administrative nonsense is a poor substitute for time with my oldest friend. Now that I’m sober, I don’t think we should take any more chances, but”—she scooted further under the covers and laid her head on O’s chest—“there’s no harm in cuddling. I think Elpída can spare its queen a little longer.” Inferno was several hours late to her appointments that morning, and showed signs of coming straight from the bath. * * * * * * A little over three weeks later, Inferno paid Giatros a visit at his office near the city wall. “Your majesty? What are you doing here?” “Probably nothing, but I thought I should get you to take a look.” “Oh? Well, have a seat on the bed and tell me all about it.” Inferno adjusted her clothes and sat sideways on the bed. “I’ve been bleeding when I, er, relieve myself.” “Hmm, several things can cause that. Have you noticed any other changes?” Inferno blushed. “Well, my, uh, teats seem really tender of late.” “Ah. I see.” Giatros looked down his nose at her. “Have you known a stallion within the last three to six weeks?” Inferno facehooved. “O.” “Well, congratulations, your majesty. I recommend you avoid alcohol for the next ten months.” * * * * * * Theristis the mage was practicing a new spell on a stack of apples when a knock sounded on his door. “What?” he barked. “Letter for you, Sir.” “Just leave it on the step!” he shouted, not wanting to interrupt the spell. A quarter of an hour later, he finally had his hooves free to open the front door and grab the letter off the ground. He felt a chill in his gut as he recognized the queen’s mouthwriting. He had brushed off the queen’s messenger. He quickly broke open the seal and scanned the text. It was a summons. Inferno had an important announcement to make to her inner circle. Even though he was already late, Theristis rushed back into the house and changed his robes for something more formal. He had been waiting for months for an excuse to see Inferno, and he wasn’t going to let another chance pass him by. This was the day he would ask for her hoof. Theristis rushed out the door, conjuring a bouquet as he trotted towards the queen’s mansion. He imagined how it would play out. He would smoothly offer her the flowers, and she would remember his years of faithful service and tell him that she had always admired his intellect. They would have a huge, expensive wedding, and he would be the co-ruler of Elpída. He couldn’t wait to taunt that Sorraian buffoon that was always hanging around her. When Theristis arrived at Inferno’s house, he was directed to one of the back rooms. He found the door ajar, but something prompted him to stop just outside the door and listen. It seemed he was the last one to arrive, and the others were already talking. “Oh, I’m so excited!” Fotia cooed. “What’s the big news?” “Theristis still isn’t here,” Inferno replied. “Eh, we’ll tell him what he missed,” Liquor snarked. “I think O knows,” Nera suggested. “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about,” O said with fake haughtiness “Okay, okay. Fine. I don’t know what’s keeping Theristis, but I’m sure he’ll turn up.” Inferno took a deep breath. “I’m pregnant.” The twins gasped, and Vodi and Liquor snorted. “Heh, that would be me,” O said sheepishly. Theristis dropped the bouquet and clenched his teeth, but he kept listening. “When did this happen?” Nera probed. “A little over three weeks ago.” Inferno sighed. You remember when we went out drinking together...and O went home with me?” Fotia giggled. “So are you getting married?” “Well, we haven’t had a chance to talk that over yet, but it seems like the best thing to do, given the circumstances.” Theristis pulled back from the door, his pulse pounding in his ears. That ungrateful hussy had already chosen the skald. The others were all against him, he could see it now, but they would rue the day they crossed him! He started preparing the deadliest spell he knew. The friendly conversation in the other room stopped abruptly as Fotia screamed and pointed a hoof at Inferno’s hooves. Inferno looked down to see that the bottom few inches of her legs were white and shiny, like polished marble, and it was traveling upwards rapidly. She looked quickly around the group and saw the same change coming over all of them. “We’re all turning to stone!” Fotia started to hyperventilate and Nera started to cry. All of the stallions started talking loudly at the same time. Inferno tried to keep her wits about her. “It must be magic, we need Theristis!” She ran out of the room, stumbling over her numb hooves. She didn’t see the pony still hiding behind the door. Inferno reached the throne room at the same time the stone reached her knees. She stumbled to a stop with her legs spread, then straightened up and shouted to her guards. “Fetch Therisitis at once!” Several of the ponies present screamed and fled when they saw Inferno being consumed by the curse. One of the guards answered, “He went to meet you just a few minutes ago!” Inferno tried to run back the way she had come, but the stone had already reached her shoulders. “Find him and take him to the others, and then bring him here, quickly!” “Yes, my Queen!” The guards ran down the hall. Inferno hoped he would save her friends. Maybe he already had. The stone climbing her torso was making it harder to breathe. She glanced at the few ponies still standing in the room, watching her die in front of them, too horrified to look away. Inferno felt her heart stop as it turned to stone. The curse was moving faster now, rushing up her body as she lost whatever resistance to it she might have had. There was nothing left but to face the end with dignity. She looked straight ahead and clenched her teeth. Her thoughts strayed to her unborn foal and tears rolled down her face as the stone closed over her head, stealing the last of her life and leaving a dead statue with ruby eyes in her place.