A pair of beeswax candles burned at either side of the desk. Books were strewn in several piles around the desk, but it was the green book that held Twilight's rapt attention.
"The snowfall increased yet again this night, as the bickering between the pony tribes continued. Do they not know this only further strengthens the Windego? The hatred pouring out from above left a constant bad taste for everyone. Food reserves continued to dwindle, as a cold and hungry pony has little love to give."
"Our last hope that the pony tribes would resume cordial relations ended today in failure. Plush Pansy's dislike of the ground ponies doomed the negotiations. The decision was made to replace Pansy with one of the hive."
"We abandoned our hive today to follow the ponies whose three tribes decided independently to leave their lands. We had no choice but to follow."
"Lush lands were discovered, but they did not remain so. It was very close to all out war between the ponies, and the Windegos took full advantage of it."
"We breathed a collective sigh of relief as the Windegos left. Pansy reported in that she managed to come to an agreement with the other seconds to put aside their hostilities."
-----
Mayor Mare looked out her window and saw a trio of griffons flying by. She donned her vest and trotted to her office. Once inside, she approached one of her subordinates. "Lively Script, come with me please."
Lively Script fell into line behind Mayor Mare, as she left her office. The mayor greeted several of the more prominent citizens cordially as she passed through and beyond the town.
Mayor Mare ignored the griffons flying around as she walked into, or more aptly under Griffonville, making her way slowly to its mayoral building, an oversized monstrosity of cloud, hovering a couple of hundred trots off the ground.
"She wonders why I have issues when no self-respecting earth pony can even get to her door," muttered Mayor Mare to herself. She shook her head and glared at Lively Script. "Well? Get me up there."
Lively Script's horn glowed, and Mayor Mare started to float in the air. A few moments later, she found herself in front of the main door.
Mayor Mare tried to knock, but her hoof went through the door. She snorted and called out for Scootaloo.
"Hold on," said Scootaloo from inside.
The door opened, disintegrating into a mist, as it passed through Mayor Mare, leaving her coat damp with moisture.
"Mayor Mare, how interesting to see you here," said Scootaloo.
She glowered at Scootaloo. "There are griffons in Ponyville."
"Yes," said Scootaloo.
"And you are responsible for this," said Mayor Mare.
"Two for two," replied Scootaloo.
"When may I ask then are they going to leave?" said Mayor Mare.
"Quite possibly never," replied Scootaloo.
Mayor Mare snorted.
"If you give me a list of anything unreasonable the griffons do, I'll make sure they don't do it again," said Scootaloo.
"When," said Mayor Mare, with a severe edge to her voice, "the griffons cause trouble, and we both know they will, I'll do more than just give you a list." She then shouted, "Lively Script, bring me down."
Mayor Mare floated back down, next to a panting Lively Script who exhaled in relief as Mayor Mare hit the ground.
Scootaloo watched as the left and shook her head.
-----
"Like the earth ponies and unicorns had previously done before Celestia, the pegasus ponies of Cloudsdale bowed before Luna, thus joining the three pony tribes officially as one nation."
"The decision was made to attempt formal contact with the ponies, hopefully leading to establishing relations."
"Queen Tenacious met with Celestia today. It did not go well. Celestia demanded we leave her kingdom. We refused. Tenacious barely got out with her carapace intact."
"The ponies enacted several countermeasures against us, but all were easily overcome due to our being entrenched in key positions."
-----
Another griffon landed outside the town hall, bringing the number to twenty.
Scootaloo looked to Ruffled Bearing, who nodded.
"Welcome, newcomers, to the town of Griffonville," said Scootaloo. "There are many houses in the town, and more are being built daily. Feel free to claim one of them as your own.
"The most important thing to remember is that we want to make a good example. Many of you are used to having no neighbors other than other griffons. This is no longer the case.
"Very few ponies eat meat in any form or fashion. This means no hunting inside Ponyville city limits, or really any pony city or town. In addition, an area of one mile radius of Fluttershy's cottage is a nature preserve, and not to be hunted. She has a magical stare that can cow a cockatrice. Do not put it to the test.
"Try not make ponies uncomfortable by eating meat products in front of them, or cooking meat within smell distance. A wind pattern has been established so you do not have to worry about any smells generated in or near the city itself.
"Otherwise you'll find ponies and griffons have a lot in common. So long as you treat the ponies with respect, you will get along fine."
Scootaloo produced and raised the Idol of Boreas.
"Have pride in yourself. Your actions reflect not only on you, but on all of us as a whole."
As the assembled griffons started to disband, Scootaloo turned to Ruffled Bearing. "We seem to have more griffons than I saw in Griffonstone."
"They seem to be coming from the outlying areas of griffon territory," said Bearing. "Griffonstone actually only held a small percentage of their population. I expect the flow to stay at this rate for some time."
"What of the Clog Eye mine?" asked Scootaloo.
"Vacant, just like Gani Wild," said Ruffled Bearing, "for dozens of years. It'll take a lot of work just to make it safe for ponies, let alone having it produce anything."
"I'll see if Apple Bloom can get us some miners," said Scootaloo, "unless you have a better idea."
Ruffled shrugged, his wings drooping somewhat at his sides. "I don't know any pony who is in the mining trade. That would be the kind of thing I would have funneled up the command chain." Something seemed to click with him and he smiled widely. "Actually, you could try Princess Cadance. Under Sombra a lot of the crystal ponies were forced to work in the mines. I'm sure at least some of them would be willing to give it a shot."
"Good idea, Ruffled," said Scootaloo. "If Apple Bloom doesn't have any local mining contacts, I'll certainly ask Cadance. Thanks."
Scootaloo took to the air, and made her way to the part of the town that was under construction.
In the distance she could see Raindrops moving a cloud up to one of the incomplete cloud homes.
Raindrops was sculpting it into position as Scootaloo settled down for a landing.
"Have you seen Apple Bloom?" asked Scootaloo.
Raindrops pointed at another building, barely pausing in her work.
Scootaloo paused for a while until she was finished with what turned out to be a column. "How are things?"
"Quiet in the midst of activity," said Raindrops. "I've been..happy, quite possibly for the first stretch of time in my life."
"That's a far cry from the competitive Raindrops I knew," said Scootaloo.
Raindrops nodded, then went back to her cloud sculpting.
Scootaloo watched for a second, then flew over to the cloud home that Apple Bloom was working on.
"Hey Bloom," said Scootaloo, prompting Apple Bloom to turn around. "You seem to have a lot of connections lately, with your business and all, and I've inherited an issue that you might be able to help with. I seem to now have two major gold mines that are in severe disrepair," said Scootaloo. "Do you have an idea of who I could contact to bring them into service?"
"Most of my contacts are in Cloudsdale, which isn't the best place for miners," said Apple Bloom. "I could bring Filthy Rich into it, but this isn't really his line of work. He'd end up subcontracting it out while taking his own cut." She thought for a bit. "I don't even think my sister could help you much either. Farming and mining are very different. Maybe Pinkie Pie? Her family are rock farmers. They might know some ponies, but even that would be a stretch.
"I have been meaning to talk to you about the town though. At the rate it's growing, it's going to need quite a few more amenities, not just more housing. At the very least, I'd recommend a ground area, that is unless you want to do all transactions with flightless races in Ponyville."
"You're the expert," said Scootaloo. "Build anything you think the town needs. I'm sure whatever you come up with will be great."
Apple Bloom blushed slightly. "I'll try my best."
Scootaloo walked back to the edge of the cloud, then leapt back into the air. She flew away from her new town, over to Sweet Apple Acres, and the original cloud house. She gazed down at what was once CMC headquarters as she came in for a landing.
She opened the front door of the house, and glided slowly to the great room at its center.
Glad to have some privacy, away from all the griffons, she lounged in front of her writing desk.
After a while, She grabbed a scroll with her magic.
"Spike,
Would you mind relaying a few messages back and forth between me and Cadance?
Scootaloo"
In a burst of flame, she sent it off with her magic.
Soon after, a scroll appeared in front of Scootaloo.
"Scootaloo,
I'm bored stiff at the moment. Between Twilight's research, studies, meetings with Princess Celestia, and whatever else is the task of the moment, she hasn't had nearly as much use for me as she normally does. The castle staff handles most of the chores. I haven't even had the chance to cook. It would be nice to be useful for a change."
Spike"
Scootaloo selected some choice gems from the ones the Crusaders had gathered shortly after they became alicorns, and pondered a bit on just how much had happened in so short a time. Shrugging it off, she placed them with her magic onto the surface of another scroll.
"Spike,
Sorry to hear that. Maybe you can make something nice for yourself with these gems, since the staff are doing the rest of the cooking. Thanks in advance for forwarding these letters.
Scootaloo"
She prepared another scroll.
"Princess Cadance,
Part of what I was bestowed as ruler of the griffons was two derelict gold mines. These mines are in rough shape, but once produced large amounts of gold for the Griffon Empire. I was curious if any of the crystal ponies had a talent for such mining, and would be interested in putting the mines back into service.
Princess Scootaloo"
A scroll appeared in front of Scootaloo.
"Scootaloo,
There are quite a few ponies who have mining talents that are idle in the Empire. They have been stuck doing other jobs that are only related to mining in the most general ways.
How many do you need?
Cadance"
Scootaloo prepared another scroll.
"Cadance
Maybe a dozen ponies for each mine? I could send Ruffled and Fan over to the Griffonstone station to meet them, and they would guide them to the respective mines. There are even small empty hamlets near each of the mines, so housing and water wouldn't be a problem.
Scootaloo"
Moments later another scroll arrived.
"Scootaloo,
I'll have the ponies you requested at Griffonstone in three days at noon, along with rations for two weeks.
Cadance"
Scootaloo was about to get up, but stopped, getting another scroll instead.
"Cadance,
Thanks for the help.
Scootaloo"
-----
"Today from out of nowhere, a strange creature arrived in Cloudsdale. It seems to be made of parts from many different kinds of creatures. It brings pure chaos in its wake. The entire city turned to cotton candy and then fell. Ponies under his influence are completely insane and provide no love."
"Luna and Celestia have gone into hiding leaving the ponies to Discord's whims. Discord's influence continues to spread. The sun and moon appear randomly in the sky."
"It is day 34 of Discord. He spread his influence over Manehattan today. All cities west of Trottingham are lost. In the hopes of our survival, our Queen made the decision that we foalnap all of the foals between ages 3 and 6 from Trottingham and trek into bugbear territory. It is hoped that we will escape notice."
Twilight quickly read the pages which covered the changelings hiding in bugbear lands.
"The sun and moon returned to their normal cycles. Our scouts reported that Discord is gone from Equestria, conquered by the Diarchs of Sun and Moon."
"The decision was made to return the ponies of Trottingham, now between 11 and 14 years of age to the ponies. It is hoped that they will simply be counted amongst the many clusters of ponies who were under Discord's influence."
"The headlines of the major newspapers all chimed with outrage over the Trottingham foals. Tenacious refused an audience."
-----
Sweetie Belle came to a landing on Cloudsdale. She swiftly covered the distance to the library, then entered it, and walked quietly toward the research desk. Once there she placed a VIP ticket onto its surface.
Aqua Echo looked at the ticket then directly at Sweetie Belle.
"I wanted to thank you for giving me the information on wind harps," said Sweetie Belle. "I've been working with Luna for a couple of moons and I figured few ponies would appreciate hearing the first playing of the harps in an age more than you would."
Aqua Echo slid the ticket back towards Sweetie Belle.
"It was just my talent," said Aqua Echo. "I don't deserve anything special for using it."
"Then come as a friend," said Sweetie Belle.
Aqua Echo looked deeply into Sweetie Belle's eyes. "You really want me there, don't you."
"Mhmm," said Sweetie Belle.
"Sure, I'll do it," said Aqua Echo, "I'd be happy to see you perform."
Sweetie Belle leapt over the bench and Aqua Echo found herself the target of a large hug.
-----
"A magical plague hit Hollow Shades. All ponies and two changelings died. Celestia blamed it publicly on changelings, and quietly took control of the bodies of our fallen."
"The bodies of our fallen were recovered from the ponies."
"A fifth foal went missing in Vanhoover. Newspapers speculate it was changelings."
"Tenacious attempted to meet with Luna. She never returned, and was assumed killed on sight."
"The moon bears an ominous visage of a pony."
"Princess Chrysalis was crowned today. Long live Queen Chrysalis."
The book ended there.
Twilight closed the book and pondered.
She found it most concerning that the book didn't include any events with the current queen. There was obviously something she wanted to hide. On the other hoof, it could simply have been done that way such that Scootaloo couldn't read it. In that case it was a plan to get her involved as well, a two for the price of one kind of thing.
Twilight extinguished the candles with her magic, then carefully slipped the book into her saddlebags.
She made her way to Celestia's chambers, then rapped on the door with her magic.
In response the door slowly slid open.
"Hello Princess Celestia," said Twilight while entering the room.
"Greetings Twilight," said Celestia.
"I have sort of been wondering a bit about the changelings," said Twilight.
"I expected this," said Celestia.
"Really?" said Twilight.
"Yes, although it is a bit gratifying that you figured it out without any prompting on my part," said Celestia. "I was never in any real danger from the changelings, and even if everything went inexplicably wrong, Luna would have taken care of it."
"Actually, that wasn't what I was here to ask about," said Twilight.
Celestia looked directly at Twilight.
"I came across some interesting passages in a book about changelings," said Twilight.
"Interesting is a word and a half word," said Celestia.
"It portrays the changelings as good," said Twilight.
"May I see this book?" asked Celestia.
"Sure," said Twilight, as she levitated the book from her saddlebags.
"I know every book in the library and this is not one of them," said Celestia, as she rifled through the book.
"Still, what do you think?" asked Twilight.
"I think that further study is warranted," said Celestia as she teleported the book.
"But," started Twilight.
"Don't worry about the book," said Celestia, interrupting Twilight. "I'll treat it with ample care." After a short pause, Celestia added, "You do have your meeting with the zebra delegation to prepare for."
Twilight eyed Celestia with a tiny twinge of skepticism then sighed and said, "I'll go do that."
Twilight left the room, ground a hoof a few times into the tile floor, then leapt out a window. Moments later she found herself high enough to safely use a long range teleport spell.
Twilight appeared above Griffonville with a loud pop, then circled the town, coming to an awkward landing upon sighting Scootaloo.
Twilight charged up to Scootaloo.
"I let Princess Celestia look at the book," said Twilight. "She kept it. I'm sorry."
"Pine sap comes out of the coat," said Scootaloo.
Twilight tilted her head at an odd angle.
"It's a Crusader thing," said Scootaloo. "Many of our failed attempts at gaining our cutie marks ended up with us covered in tree sap. It was painful to get out, but eventually it did and we were ready for our next go at it. So you screwed up, but you learned something. In the end I think that's far greater than the loss of the book.
"Of course I am assuming that you read the whole book first," added Scootaloo.
Twilight pursed her lips, and in a voice dripping with sarcasm said, "No, the first thing I did was give it away. Of course I read it."
"Well then," said Scootaloo. "What was written in the book?"
"It was a history of our part of the world from before Hearth's Warming to a little under a thousand years ago," said Twilight.
"Now, I'm a bit more sad that Celestia got it," said Scootaloo. "Sounds like something I would have liked to read."
"I remember everything I read," said Twilight. "When I get the time, I'll make you a translated copy."
"Do you trust what was written?" asked Scootaloo.
"Well, there was a lot of data," said Twilight, "but there was a lot of data purposefully missing as well. While I am less willing to dismiss Chrysalis's offer out of hoof than I was, that she provided a book featuring her predecessor's reign, not her own is telling. I'd advise caution."
"From your original position that is almost a rousing endorsement," said Scootaloo.
"Well, I tend to look for friendship where I can find it," said Twilight.
"Same here," said Scootaloo, "and I think I am willing to take the next step."
"Caution," said Twilight. "Be careful."
"When have I ever not been careful?" asked Scootaloo with a smirk.
"Riiight," said Twilight.
"I plan to leave the next move up to the changelings," said Scootaloo.
"Keep me informed," said Twilight.
Twilight teleported away.
"She should really get some sleep," said Scootaloo to the empty air.
"I agree," said a griffon, as she descended from a nearby cloud.
Chrysalis dropped her guise with a flash of green light, and approached Scootaloo.
"So you've been here, watching us, this whole time?" asked Scootaloo.
"Did you expect anything less?" asked Chrysalis. "That wouldn't have been respectful."
"I guess not," said Scootaloo. "Celestia would probably ask you to sit down and discuss things over tea right about now."
"Celestia doesn't trust any species that can't drink tea," said Chrysalis. "It puts her off her game. Not like she really trusts any species that can drink tea either."
"It is quite a shame that she got hold of the book," said Scootaloo.
"That too wasn't unexpected," said Chrysalis. "It doesn't reveal all that much that Celestia didn't know already. True, it might put a bow on some of the details, but I am unconcerned."
"You definitely seem to have impressed Twilight Sparkle though," said Scootaloo.
"You got that from what she said?" asked Chrysalis.
"She has her tells," said Scootaloo.
"Very good," said Chrysalis. "I compliment you on your skills. You are certainly the right pony at the right time to finally heal the rift between our peoples." She ran her tongue over one of her fangs. "There is an issue that could imperil these efforts before they have a chance to flourish."
"Yes?" said Scootaloo.
"Thorax," said Chrysalis with a sneer, "an unstable renegade, somewhat recently fled the hive with many stolen supplies. He was last seen near the Crystal Empire. He is very dangerous, and it would be hard to overstate the threat he could pose if he managed to obtain the Crystal Heart. We'd like him returned."
"I didn't realize that happened with changelings," said Scootaloo.
"It is very rare," said Chrysalis, "but defective drones do happen from time to time."
"I'll see what I can do," said Scootaloo. After thinking a bit, she added, "Actually, in the interests of bringing Thorax to justice, and expanding the trust between our two nations, as well as giving me some leverage with the other princesses when it comes to improving relations...Assuming Thorax is disguised, how would we best uncover him?"
Chrysalis nodded. "You seek an easy way to detect us. Clever, and to show just how serious I am about our future as friends, I'll actually answer your question. No matter what form we take, we still weigh the same amount, that weight being somewhat lower than your normal crystal pony. It should significantly help you in finding Thorax should he try to find refuge in the Crystal Empire."
"I'll relay that information to Cadance right away," said Scootaloo. "I'm surprised at the level of trust."
"You've decided to take up our cause," said Chrysalis, "and I have every reason to believe that you will succeed."
Scootaloo looked somewhat askance at Chrysalis.
"Well, that was easy to see," said Chrysalis, as she pointed a hoof at Scootaloo's flank. "I do thank you for your confidence in me, and with destiny itself on our side, what could possibly go wrong?"
"My cutie mark!" exclaimed Scootaloo, as she looked at her new mark consisting of a claw, a hoof, and a holed hoof clenched in friendship.
Chrysalis sighed while looking up at the sky.