//------------------------------// // Chapter 35 // Story: Only One Speck of Dust // by TheMareWhoSaysNi //------------------------------// From the outside, the castle was dazzling like in a dream. The sound of harp and piano, along with laughter and discussion, chimed clearly in the freezing night. The whole place was plunged in a bliss nothing could seem able to stop. There were no more reasons to be on guard, the ultimate battle had been won, and the warriors could finally rest. The householders had so wide a trust in the future that none had thought about protecting their surroundings. Inside the huge gardens blooming during spring, there was no guard, not even a snow dog, or a single flashlight on. It was about sneaking in without being noticed and, unawares, the task had been made easier for them. Tonight, the Militia had traded the traditional red cloaks coined with the Cutie Mark of the bearers for the soberest and longest ones of the Masters of Rituals. It was not only because a greater discretion was guaranteed. These dark cloaks were a full part of the plan. When a Royal Wedding was celebrated, all the Masters of Rituals of the surrounding areas had to attend it, whether it was an official celebration or a more discreet one, if not a completely illegal one. There were a lot of protocols that a lot of ponies kept on following in Equestria, no matter how archaic these rules were. Undoubtedly, as far as Prince Blueblood was concerned, these old rituals were a good thing. Ah, how he might be savoring his victory! He certainly was far from suspecting that, at the exact moment when he was laughing and exulting about his triumph, hundreds of fighters were invading his gardens and parlors. The real battle was about to begin. Right before they would take separate ways, Rainbow Dash walked to Soarin. Applejack was doing the same with Caramel. After this quick conversation, they all would ceased being couples, friends, family… They would be nothing but warriors with a precise goal in mind, to abandon under no excuses. “Don’t die. Don’t even dare dying”, she said looking deep into his green eyes. No need to answer. There were promises hard to keep, and this one was among them. Yet, Soarin promised he would do his best, not only for the reason of the existence of this mare he loved, but also because it meant a victory for The Militia if they succeeded. Because this could be the ultimate one they would ever exchange, they both kissed without a care about the usual shackles. Now no longer was the time to worry about embarrassment, and reputations no longer were the most important of matters. This ultimate powerful and comforting embrace over, Rainbow Dash stepped back, and put her black hood over her mane. From now on, like she had repeated to every of them, they ceased to be who they intrinsically were to become nothing but soldiers on the behalf of a cause greater than everything else. Love, friendship, empathy, kindness, mercy, piety, any feelings stopped to exist. There was no room for them in what was about to start. Choked up, killed, even, they could only resurface once the battle won. Soarin looked at her, along with other pegasi, climbing to the balconies from which her team would sneak in the castle. His own team was expecting his signal… He searched under his cloak, and took the necklace with the padlock she had given to him on the night of Big Macintosh’s death. In his mind, he still could hear the sound of her broken hoarse voice telling him it probably meant something like ‘your heart belongs to me’. It had been real until then. His whole heart was devoted to her. With the short kiss he put on the silver metal, he erased for the duration of the battle everything this necklace meant for him, along with his feelings. In his turn, he put on the hood every Masters of Rituals had to wear before a wedding had to be celebrated, and turned his back on the light from the balconies to lead those relying on him to their place of infiltration. ---------------------------------------------------- Thousands of oil lamps lit the huge private room, the blinding light being reflected against the balcony’s gilts, against the marble on the floor and at the ceiling, and in every single plates and glasses near the guests. The True King's partisans were all here, gathered near the buffet table overwhelmed with food and beverages. Faithful to the custom, the traditional cider should not be drunk until the groom decided. It did not stop the guests to make the most of the refined dishes at their disposal. Once the wedding over, a huge ball would be given in the same room, started by the King and his Queen. Carefree, each thought splendor was finally here, and rejoiced from what was in store of them. Rarity had never seen so many of those ponies smiling. She was standing next to Blueblood, sitting in the balcony of honor, and if he was exulting from this party in the name of his glory, the white unicorn kept her jaws clenched and forced herself to look happy. None had to guess what she knew. It was not that hard to conceal since no pony seemed to pay the least attention to her, no matter if this so-called glory was partly due to her. They all were behind this pseudo king who never dirtied his hooves, except when he had tortured this former Member of the Head’s Council, Double Diamond. Just a few more minutes to wait. Just a few more minutes to wait and they all would know what it costed to rub shoulders with the wrong ponies. They could smile, stuff themselves, barely condescending to look at the soldiers from the Unavowed Army, here as well and obliged by protocol to attend this party only as viewers but never taking part in it. Yes, they would better make the most of these moments of bliss. Because within a few minutes, and Rarity could not wait, a lot of them would understand what it meant to see death near you. ------------------------------------- From where she was at, a few inches above the actual celebrations, Fluttershy could hear nothing but scraps, a few burst of laugh and notes of music, from time to time. It was supposed to be the most beautiful day of her life yet she was excluded from it. She had not even want to live this day. Not like this, actually, and not with this stallion. Her mother had visited her only to lead her to this room with her dressers, and these Masters of Rituals she did not know, and who, heads low like they should be, did not smile to her or even look at her. As far as her father was concerned, he had spent his whole day castigating orders to the house employees, and had not paid attention to her even a second. She would see them again only once she would go down to be married to Prince Blueblood, the pony she hated the most in the world, and who treated her like a worthless mare most of the time. A silent tear rolled along her cheek, that the mare in charge of her makeup noticed only because it forced her to do a modification. She probably thought she was crying of joy at the thought of being married to so handsome a stallion and of soon becoming Queen of Equestria. Fluttershy was feeling lonely and cornered. No pony tried to hear what was inside her heart, what her hopes were, and her wishes and desires. No pony was on her side. A pink flower was added in her mane, as a symbol of her blooming in the world of adults, in order to attach the veil in front of her eyes, and when the piece of muslin was lowered on her turquoise eyes, she felt as if she was being buried. The pony she had been until now had ceased to exist. Now, she was nothing but Prince Blueblood’s foil, the lovely decoration that would walk in his shadow, her irises towards the ground, her words impounded. Three knocks resounded at the door. The Main Master of Rituals was here. He was the pony who would preside over the wedding, bringing her to her father’s side, her father who also would no longer be her father once the ceremony done. She would then go from one authority to another one, without anyone asking her opinion about this. She had been raised for this ultimate purpose, and that was everything one needed to remember. Once the purpose reached, she would no longer exist. “The moment has arrived, Miss Fluttershy”, one of the dressers told her as if she was too dumb to notice it herself. She swallowed, and made a few steps forward, then her eyes opened wide, and her mouth opened even wider, letting a muffled scream escape. The Master of Rituals had just lifted up her face… Rainbow Dash. It was impossible. If tonight she would be given to the True King, it was because The Militia had failed, and their Head had died. It could not be otherwise. Yet, the mare pegasus with a multicolored mane was standing in front of her, screened under a black cloak. When she turned around, seeking a bit of help, though she suspected the dressers not to be of a great assistance, Fluttershy discovered in bewilderment that the other Masters of Rituals here, who had just taken off their hoods, were in reality more of the Members of the Militia left for dead. She recognized the purple unicorn who once been on the Unavowed’s side, and Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash’s energetic bodyguard… As for the third one, with an immaculate coat and a yellow-golden mane, she had lost a wing, which testified the fact she probably had been injured during the accident that so-called costed the life of the whole Head’s Council. “Because of you, my parents’ Wedding Anniversary had been ruined forever… It’s my turn now to ruin the most important day of your life”, Rainbow Dash declared with firmness. “Now, move!” Twilight and Surprise circled the young mare pegasus dressed in her wedding gown, to make sure she would not try to run away and to warn the guards. Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie went to cope with the dressers and make sure none of them would try to ruin the novelty effect which was a part of their plan. To this minute, the rest of the Militia probably had infiltrated the castle and was about to sneak inside the private room where the ceremony was scheduled, pretending to be Masters of Rituals. ----------------------------------------------- The entry of the black cloaks was the signal the ceremony was about to start. They all gathered in circle around the vast room, and in the middle, the bride’s parents went down, the father having to introduce his daughter to the groom before leading her at the center of the room, while the mother was in the background, watching in silence. But before the event they all were waiting for impatiently to start, they had to cheer in the honor of the couple about to marry. The traditional cider was served to each of the guests, even the soldiers, starting by Prince Blueblood. He used his magic in order to lift his golden glass encrusted with diamonds high in front of his muzzle, so that everyone would see why he was superior. Soon, he rejoiced, when he would have killed his aunts and gain back his throne, he would take over the ancestral magic of Alicorns, and would become the supreme ruler of Equestria, from the Frozen Shore where the Crystal Empire was buried to the Submerged Lands, where everything stopped. It was the moment he had long waited, always, he had dreamed of it. Since he had been banished, he had decided to revenge, and that once the day would come, he would take back what had been stolen to him. He never had any doubt he would find disciples for his cause, he knew he had the charisma and the strength to convince other ponies to follow him, although some of them had been harnessed only by selfish interests which had nothing to do with his cause. It was not important. What mattered was the moment, this precious moment, even better than what he had fantasized from the damp dungeons of this very castle. As the custom dictated, once again, it was Fluttershy’s father who claimed this toast in the honor of the future spouses. There was nothing revolutionary in his words. He wished happiness and success to the couple, had no doubt about the True King’s victory on the frauds his aunts Luna and Celestia represented, and gave with pride and a hint of heartache his only daughter to the legitimate King of Equestria, Prince Blueblood. After this, all the ponies finally could take their glasses and drink in the honor of the spouses, only once the stallion unicorn had started to drink his, and not before. As everyone’s attention was somewhere else, Rarity took an advantage from it to, discreetly, spill the content of her drink inside a vase on the low table by her side. There was no way she would drink this cider in the honor of a treason, both personal and national. Since always, she knew she would not have this toast, and for good reasons… the beverage had been a little bit arranged by her. The bride’s father demanded from the harp players to begin the nuptial march. All eyes conveyed to the door at the back of the room, slowly opening. But nopony appeared on the doorstep. Yet, he was sure, he had said a very precise hour to the Main Master of Rituals, and had repeated a bit earlier in the evening that once the honor toast had been made, the ceremony had to begin. There could be no down-time. Prince Blueblood and Fluttershy would only stay here for a small portion of the night, one hour and a half maximum. After this, it was planned for them to leave, along with the Unavowed Army, heading towards Canterlot via the Everfree Forrest, in order to walk to the capital, but at the same time avoiding the Ponies of the Cavalry sent to Ponyville while the Greater Council had to gather a new Head’s Council. The nuptial march kept on playing, and Fluttershy had not appeared on the doorstep yet. From his seat, still at the balcony overlooking the whole huge private room, Blueblood frowned and shifted twitchily. Nothing could stop him now, so why did this little fool was not here yet? Had she no idea of the insult it was to make him wait this way? She would pay for it; this he would make sure. An acclamation of disbelief crossed the whole room, rebounding to the heights he was at. Finally, his bride appeared, but not the way he had imagined her, all dressed in baby pink, a veil upon her face, her head low as a sign of her submission. She was with the Main Master of Rituals, who apparently was of the pegasus race, and who flew with her to the center of the room, aiming a sharp sword to her throat, holding it with the wings instead of the teeth. It was a perilous action, especially in the air. The fighters of higher skills were the only ones who could allow themselves such an eccentricity. He did not notice the half-smile Rarity made without a bother, now the twist was about to hit them full face. They did not know it yet, but they already were dead, most of them. The Master of Rituals threatening Fluttershy lowered the hood, and a new scream of bewilderment echoed, from the guests as well as the Unavowed Army soldiers. Rainbow Dash. It was Rainbow Dash who had just arrived, and ruined everything. “Sorry everyone, but this party’s over”, she claimed out loud. There must be a mistake. They all might be in the middle of a collective type of hallucination. Rainbow Dash and her Council, except the Second-in-Command who refused to fight since her beloved brother had passed away, they had passed away as well. He had trapped them, and their bodies had vanished away thanks to the blast of the former factory of the White. Every newspaper had talked about it, Canterlot had already sent a squadron in order to give help to the bereaved Militia. “Feeling bad? Like you’ve seen a ghost?” And she was making fun of him, with this. No doubt, this bitch was more than alive.