//------------------------------//
// Besieged 
// Story: The Commander's Compromise 
// by kudzuhaiku 
//------------------------------//

It was rare for Chartreuse to have a sleepless night, which somehow made them all the worse when they did happen. Bleary eyed, homesick, and out of sorts, she sat at the table in the study trying to put her head together. The back lot of her consciousness was populated by tentacle spore zombies that wanted to do dreadful things to her eleven year old body, like turn it into a shambling pile of tentacle zombie spore mucus, so she could go off and infect others. 

Closing her eyes, she thought of home. The front door was narrow, but tall, and it had always been rather frustrating to fit large items through the narrow door for her. The street level floor of the tower was a place for storage. Below was the cellar, which was made dangerous by the burrowing rats. Above street level, there was a small sitting area, a large dining area, and the kitchen. That was her favourite spot, the best place in the tower. The dining area could be cleared, and this is where her parents danced, much to her delight. 

Above that was the parlour and the library. It was a serious, solemn place, an austere place. There were no conspicuous displays of wealth there. The furniture was old, out of style, and had endured many repairs. The thoughts of home buoyed her spirit, helped to calm some of her worry, fear, and doubt. In that wonderful place she had become the pony that she was now. 

At least the Crystal Empire shared Canterlot’s tower aesthetic. Leaving home and going to someplace utterly unfamiliar would have been unbearable. Sure, this place was different, but it was also much the same. A tower was a tower was a tower, as the old saying went. One day, she might have her own, or maybe, she would return home and inherit her family tower. Maybe her parents would stay there with her, or maybe not. Her grandparents, her father’s parents, they had once lived in the tower, but after she had been born, they had retired from Canterlot to go and live in a nice sprawling stone cottage near a place called Lulamoon Hollow. 

The quiet of the early morning was destroyed by a pink explosion. Before Chartreuse even had a chance to respond, there was a flurry of movement in the room around her, the flap of wings, and then a brilliant pink blur was hugging her. In the span of an eyeblink, Chartreuse went from being half-awake to wide-eyed and bushy tailed as the predatory maternal form of Princess Cadance almost knocked her from her chair. 

“What’sgoingonandwhyareyouhuggingme?” 

“Becauseyou’reanadorablelittlefillyfarfromhomeandyoumustbescared!” 

This left Chartreuse taken aback, either because she wasn’t expecting it, or because she understood it. Her stuffing threatened to leak while Princess Cadance continued to apply the squeeze. She was scared, and she was far from home, and all of her hopes and dreams now lingered upon a precipice; all of her future depended upon the decision of another. 

When Princess Cadance pulled away, Chartreuse felt strong magic grip her. She found herself gazing into the princess’ eyes, and she could not turn away. It was terrifying, and just as it had been with Skyla, it was as if Princess Cadance was staring into her soul. Eternity awaited in those eyes, and while her gaze remained transfixed upon them, she could feel the bottom dropping out of reality. 

“Don’t give up hope,” Princess Cadance said in a voice warm with love. “My husband is a reasonable pony. You might not get what you want; in fact, I’m pretty sure that you will not get what you wanted, what you came for, but I am positive that my husband will find a way to give you what you need. I don’t know what that will be just yet, but everypony here is now invested in doing what is best for you. This might be a long day, but help will come!” 

Then, the spell broke, and Chartreuse found that she could blink again. 

“Sunburst is worried that if you are left on your own, you will succumb to worry.  I agree, so you are going to be kept busy until such a time that my husband makes his decision or arrives at his solution.” Grinning from ear to ear, she added, “Ooooh, I think you’ll fit right in here. I really must be going. I hope we’ll get a chance to get to know one another better!” 

And then, just like that, the pink alicorn was gone, leaving behind one confused filly blinking in her chair. 



 

When she had first met him, Sunburst had moved with a slow gait and a slight limp. Now, he hurried, and still had his limp. Chartreuse, an able bodied filly, had some trouble keeping up with him. Guards saluted when he passed, and Sunburst, even though he was in a hurry, gave them a nod of acknowledgement. A steaming hot cinnamon roll was passed to Sunburst by a crystal unicorn, and Chartreuse ended up with one as well. 

It looked gooey, and she feared making a mess with it. 

There was a tension here in the palace, and she could feel it. The early morning hustle was preparation for a siege. More ponies—more creatures—would come. The broken hearted, the crushed, they found their way to this place of healing. More students would come, seeking scholarly refuge. Chartreuse could feel the urgency here, the mad, compelling need to be prepared for the coming flood. 

“What will I be doing?” Chartreuse asked while she trotted after Sunburst. 

“Directing traffic,” was Sunburst’s nonchalant reply. 

“Traffic?” Chartreuse shook her head, not understanding, as she didn’t know anything about directing wagons or who might have the right of way. “Are you sure I am up for this?” 

“Positive,” Sunburst replied, and then he began to savage his sticky, gooey cinnamon roll. 

“But… but… I am no traffic constable…” Chartreuse stammered, hoping to make Sunburst see reason. 

“Your unique coat colour is perfect for safety applications.” This reply was spoken around a mouthful of hot, sweet, sticky bread, and Sunburst began laughing. “I feel bad for you, really, I do… Shining Armor himself demanded this assignment. He wanted you thrown to the wolves so he could have some idea of how you will do in a crisis.” 

Now frowning, Chartreuse nipped off a bite of her cinnamon roll, and wondered just what it was that she was getting into. Thrown to the wolves? Well then, if that was what it took to impress Shining Armor, she would turn the wolves into so much ash and charcoal. If she had to direct traffic, so be it, traffic would be directed. Still, something about Sunburst’s apology worried her though. 



 

When the Crystal Heart came into view, Chartreuse realised the enormity of her task. It floated in the air, rotating, and it glowed with a pleasing blue light. Barricades had been set up, along with an entrance gate and an exit gate. There were signs everywhere, and arrows on the ground to help direct traffic. There were guards here, three of them, two were young, and couldn’t be much older than she was. They might have been fourteen, the minimum age required to get into the guard. The third was older, a somewhat worn out looking crystal pegasus that had made a career of wearing a bucket. 

“Sarge, I’m scared,” one of the younger crystal ponies said to the older. 

“Son, we’re all scared,” the old pegasus replied, and when he shuffled on his hooves, his armor clanked. 

Now Chartreuse was scared, and she turned to look at Sunburst while waiting for instructions. Already, most of his cinnamon roll was gone, and his glasses were now askew. He looked amused, and she felt a tiny spark of resentment ignite within her. So this was how it was going to be; trial by fire. Steeling her nerves, she thought of Rarity’s seasonal sales and the inevitable stampede. She was no Sassy Saddles, but Chartreuse was no pushover, either. 

“Young Miss ain’t got no armor,” the old pegasus said to Sunburst. 

“She’s not here to be a soldier,” Sunburst replied. “She made that clear.” 

“Bloody balls, that’s cruel, that is, putting a civvy on the front lines with no protection.” The old pegasus coughed, cleared his throat, and one eyebrow vanished up into his helmet. “Get in trouble, Miss? Community service? Did ya try to lift something from the shops? A cryin’ shame, I see it all the time.” 

“No,” Chartreuse squeaked, and she became aware of the fact that she was now sweating—no, no! A lady never sweated, she glowed. She could almost hear Rarity’s voice correcting her even now. Sweating was prohibited, no matter how stressful the job became, but glowing was permissible. 

“You didn’t steal anything eh? A profession of innocence?” The old soldier now looked suspicious. “Refused to fess up, did ya? I’ve seen that before, I have. Your resolve will do ya no good, Miss.” 

“She stole nothing,” Sunburst said, and then he began to snicker while he devoured the last of his cinnamon roll. 

“Oh, I bet I know what you did.” The weathered pegasus grinned and began to nod. “You farted in the vestibule, and it echoed. You destroyed the sanctified silence of the Crystal Chapel, didn’t ya? I did that once. That’s why I’m here. Right in front of the Empress, too.”

“NO!” Chartreuse squeaked, and the sound of the two colts laughing was grating in her ears. This was worse than being back in school. 

“Oh.” The pegasus chuckled for a bit, grinned, and then said, “The job is simple, Miss. You stand over there near the entrance gate, and you let in just a few at a time. No more than ten or so. Closing the gate is the hard part, as everypony seems to think that they have a right to slip though. Keep them moving, Miss. They’ll want to look at the heart, but after they have a gander, keep them moving and get them out the exit gate. You’ll have to be assertive, Miss… and maybe even just a little bit mean. Not to worry, we’ll be here if things go wrong. And things do go wrong—” 

“What?” Chartreuse was almost panicked now. 

“Yesterday, we had what… maybe six thousand head?” The surly, salty, safety-minded pegasus gave his lip a thoughtful chew, and his vacationing eyebrow came back from beneath his helmet when his brows furrowed. “Ponies are real entitled. They don’t think about others, only themselves, and all of them want to see the Crystal Heart. They’ll push, shove, trample, and stampede. Little ones will get kicked. If you can keep order here, you can keep order anywhere. But not to worry, Miss, if there is trouble, I’ll save you.” 

“Save me?” Chartreuse asked. “How?” 

“I’ll raise my voice,” the pegasus replied, “and then we’ll need a mop and bucket crew…” 



 

One of the colts was almost certainly sweet on her. He stood near the gate, helping out, and glancing at her at every possible opportunity. She didn’t mind, as he was respectful, but she was also too busy to care or even take notice of his harmless, polite flirting. Already, she was exhausted, her throat was sore, and she could not recall a time in her life where she had worked so hard. Hundreds had been admitted, ten or so at a time, and now there was almost a rhythm to it. Open the gate, let a few in, herd them along, give them a few precious seconds, and then out the exit with them. 

“Welcome to the Crystal Empire,” she shouted, and her voice cracked. “Please, be respectful of others and come this way!” 

The flood came forward, and those waiting in the long, long line were growing impatient. This time, when the colt tried to shut the gate, the crowd pushed back. The colt strained, and his wings sprang from his sides from his effort. Still, the crowd pushed, and Chartreuse’s heart lept up into her throat. 

The gate closed, but the crisis was not averted: A lone colt, maybe five years of age, stood on one side of the gate, while his mother stood on the other. She was being pushed into the bars of the gate by the over-eager crowd, who surged ahead, anticipating the gate would be opened again. 

“Mama!”

“Come over here and stand with me,” Chartreuse said to the frightened foal. 

“Go to her,” the now panicked mother commanded, and her foal was quick to obey. 

With the foal out of the way of the gate, Chartreuse wasn’t sure what to do next. The current crowd was gawking at the Crystal Heart, and they needed to be herded along. A mother and her foal needed to be reunited. She was overwhelmed, exhausted, and on her last legs. Much to her relief, the other younger recruit was herding the current crowd towards the exit gate, which meant that she only had to make sure that the frightened son could be returned to his worried mother. 

With a creak and a roar from the crowd, the gate opened, and a flood of equinity spilled forth…