//------------------------------// // 17. Dominance // Story: Age of the Alicorns: Chaos Rising // by AleximusPrime //------------------------------// CHAPTER 17:  Dominance When morning came, Percy and Penny ran up the stairs to the princesses’ bedrooms, to see if they were ready for their big test yet.  They had been told by King Solmidas and Queen Chernalia that the girls wanted a few more hours to practice alone before meeting with General Leogle, but the General and his associates were almost there.  Penny suggested that they both warn them about the time so they wouldn’t be late. “Penny, I’m sure they’re aware that the griffons are going to be here soon.  We probably shouldn’t bother them.” Percy warned. “Aw, you worry too much, Bro!” she replied.  “We’re just going to remind them quick.  Do you want to see them be really late for the meeting?” “Well I guess not…” They stopped at the top of the stairwell, and knocked on the door to Celestia’s room first. “Who is it?” Celestia asked. “Tia, it’s Percy.  You gonna be ready soon for the negotiations?  The general will be here within the hour, according to what we heard.” Percy replied through the door. The door opened just a little bit and Percy saw part of Celestia’s face in there. “Don’t worry, Perseus.” she said.  “I’m aware of the time, and I’m just getting some things ready.” “Your studies?” he asked her. “It’s……a little more complicated than just the studies…” “Um…okay.  What about Luna?” “I’m……sure she’ll be ready too.” “Alright, well as long as you guys know.” Celestia gently closed the door with her magic.  Penny quickly knocked on Luna’s door over to the left of Celestia’s. “Hey Luna, it’s Penny.  You gonna be ready soon for the meeting with the general?” “I’ll be ready.” Luna said with her voice slightly muffled through the large wooden door. “Okay.  Just checking on you guys cuz they’ll be here soon.” Percy and Penny took a quick glance at each other and shrugged their shoulders.  They continued to walk on. “Well……I guess they’re ready then.” Percy said. “Think they’ll be okay?” Penny asked her brother. “They’ll be alright.  I hope…” Within the next hour, everything was set up in the main courtroom where King Solmidas and Queen Chernalia were seated in two large chairs in front of several tables meant for General Leogle, his guards and advisors who were coming with him.  There were some alicorn guards calmly standing on both sides of the tables, to keep order there as it was required in all meetings with the king.  Solmidas waited patiently for the negotiations to begin.  A messenger pony walked in and cued one of the announcers at the doors.  They both blew their trumpets loudly and the one on the left began to speak. “Presenting General Leogle of the Griffon Province!” The doors swung open and the General stood there with the other griffons flanking him.  Once the doors finished moving, they all began walking into the courtroom.  Leogle looked rather solemn and emotionless as he made his way to the table set before him.  He took a seat on the pillow, and several of his advisors did the same while their guards stood behind them. “General Leogle, my friend, it is good to see you here once again.” said the king. “We are honored by your presence.” The queen said as they both bowed their heads politely. “And I am honored to be here.” said Leogle, bowing, but still without smiling. “As you requested, Leogle, we will be having our daughters speak with you on the matter as my queen and I preside over the hearings.” Solmidas turned his head to his left and nodded to another announcer by the doors off to the side. “Presenting Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!” The doors opened, and before them all stood Celestia like she never appeared before.  She was wearing an elegant royal gown with bright and shiny golden highlights everywhere.  Her anklets had jewels temporarily fastened onto them and she wore a large crown that looked even more majestic and larger than her father’s.  It was unlike anything she had ever worn.  She stood with her eyes closed at first, and her nose high in the air.  Then she opened her eyes with a rather regal expression.  She looked fearless and ready for anything. For a second, Solmidas and Chernalia had no idea this was even their daughter.  They glanced at one another, confused over what they just saw.  The queen had a look on her face as if she felt something was wrong with Celestia.  The king was just as puzzled, but decided to shrug it off.  He figured perhaps Celestia just wanted to look her best this meeting, even if she had overdone it.  Suddenly he realized someone was missing. “Um……Luna?  Is Luna here too?” Hoofsteps could be heard behind Celestia, and she turned her head to look to her side as Luna walked up gracefully right next to her in the exact same fashion. Luna wore a dress as elegant as Celestia’s, though it was very dark blue with black highlights, and in contrast to Celestia’s gold, she wore silver anklets and jewelry and a rather large silver crown as well.  She had small ‘moonstone’ gems dotting her jewelry that glowed brightly almost as if they had a mystical aura emanating off of them.  Luna stood proudly next to her sister, who looked suspiciously at her little sister at first, but then turned her head back to the others and continued to stride on with Luna following close behind. The General and the other griffons appeared confused with what they saw.  Leogle himself barely recognized them.  The last time he met with them, they only wore their anklets and necklaces so it was surprising to see them dressed like this. The girls made their way towards two smaller seats next to the king’s and sat gracefully in them. Celestia cleared her throat and began to speak. “General Leogle of the Griffon Province, we are honored to see you here.” she said. Solmidas and Chernalia both looked at each other and smiled warmly.  They could already tell the girls were showing little signs of fear, and ready to do this. “Let us begin then.” Celestia started.  “First of all, General, you’re already aware of the downfall we’ve had in our economy recently due to the separation of the Griffon Province from the rest of Equestria…” “I am aware of it.” Leogle said, bowing his head in agreement with the princess. Celestia opened her mouth to speak but Luna continued in her place. “And I’m sure you’re aware of any financial shortcomings the Griffon Province has been experiencing as well…” The general paused for a moment and thought a little but replied attentively. “That would be correct, Princess.” he responded. “Well rest assured, General, if we play our cards right today, we can work out an agreement that will surely save both of our societies from further turmoil.” Celestia said proudly. The king watched the entire time as his daughters were talking.  Things seemed to be off to a good start, although it almost seemed like they weren’t working rather well together since Luna spoke when Celestia tried to.  Luna also had this look on her face while Celestia was talking almost as if to say “Tia, I wanted to say that”, but she eventually turned back to the general. One of Leogle’s aides whispered in his ear for a moment, and then the General began talking to the princesses again. “Well Princesses, I think what I should say first is that the last time we spoke I don’t think either side was on such good terms, and I behaved somewhat questionably…” Celestia and Luna both nodded their heads. “…well, my main concern was simply the amount of fairness the province was getting from your father but I suppose I overreacted.  However, our military has in fact suffered much loss in protecting my people and yours.  That was what had me worried.  Solmidas, since I haven’t met you in a while is there anything you would like to say to add on to this?” “Well, Leogle, I do recall my daughters telling me of this and yes, I see your point there.  Believe me, I don’t want to use the griffons as a shield, as you put it, but perhaps there is a way we could fix that, if it seems like a problem to you.” “But we also have to ask ourselves, Father, is the general’s opinion on your handling of the military any excuse for his behavior?” All eyes turned towards Luna who had just spoke. “Luna…” he said sternly.  “…we need to be respectful to Leogle.  I’m sure he regrets what he said last time…” “Actually I may have to add to that, Father.” Celestia said.  “Does General Leogle have anything to say about that?” “Celestia…” the king said, as if trying to stop her, but the general already started to reply. “I’m……I’ll say sorry if you would like, Princesses…” he told them in a rather reluctant voice.  “…but I believe this is beyond the point.  Is there anything we can do about the military issue, or is there not?” Solmidas sank back down into his chair and took a deep breath while staring straight forward.  Already the girls had insulted General Leogle, and he seemed impatient.  Even if what they said were true, it wouldn’t have helped the discussion. “I’m glad you said something, General…” Celestia said with a smile on her face.  She tried to continue but Luna started talking for her again. “General, perhaps if the griffons were trained harder that would be the answer to your problems?” Luna blurted out sarcastically. “Luna…” Celestia said. “…what in Equestria do you know about military tactics?” “Girls!” the king said a bit louder as they both turned their heads to look at him. “I will take care of the military concerns with the general, myself.  We’re going to move onto something else for now.” Back at Leogle’s desk, several of the aides started whispering to one another while Leogle himself was seen burying his forehead in one of his claws, as if he had had a very long and rough day. “General, I’m sorry; we didn’t get off to such a good start here...” Solmidas said, calmly while trying his best to cover the fact that his daughters were already bombing the exam.  “…but moving on.  General, we spoke earlier of the economies of the province and Everfree.  Can you tell me how things are going with the treasury of your land right now?” “Well…… as you can imagine I didn’t really think that through when I severed the diplomatic connections and claimed leadership to the province…” Leogle replied.  “My people have found it difficult to eat as much food as they used to and there’s been a surge in poverty.  That’s part of the reason why I came back here.” Celestia and Luna thought hard for a moment, and the former turned her head to her father to see if he would object to her continuing after how bad of a start they got off to.  The king looked sternly at his daughter for a while, and then slowly nodded his head to give her his permission to speak. “Well General…” she said.  “…that is a bigger concern than what I had anticipated.” “If we agree to bring both societies back together for the sake of your people’s survival, would you go with it, General?” Luna asked much more cooperatively than earlier. “Well I would have no choice really…” he responded. Celestia and Luna both closed their eyes and smiled in response to this but once the general continued to speak, they appeared bemused. “…however…once again, it’s the treatment of the griffon population I have to still question.” As Leogle spoke he lifted his head and his eye-brows moved down a bit.  It was almost as if the thought of the superiority of the pony race caused the anger to fester within him every time. While Celestia and Luna thought of how to respond, Solmidas quickly stepped in, fearing his daughters would continue to disrespect him and make the discussion worse. “Leogle, just what is it about my people that concerns you?” he asked. “Solmidas, like I told your daughters, you are powerful, and in a way, you’re also ‘feared’ by the other species you govern in this country.  You’ve relied on my griffons and I to protect you from the invaders of the north and I did so honorably but I lost many soldiers in the past.  It’s not just that.  When I look upon Everfree, I see prosperity whereas in the Griffon Province, there’s much less of that.  Our society demands equal treatment.” The king, finally hearing these words come out of Leogle’s mouth, felt the shock of being told this.  Despite such criticism, he did his best to quell the general’s suspicions. “Leogle, I am sorry if you feel this way but I think you may be taking this a bit too personally.  Even if this is true, why did you not let me know about this ages ago?” he asked. “I only started to think of it recently.  I am willing to reconcile on this but I demand that these needs be met.” The king froze for a second or two and then exhaled slowly.  These were some accusations he thought he’d never hear from an old friend and trusted general like Leogle.  Still, he was a persuasive king and he decided to respond as patiently as he could.  The last thing he wanted was for this discussion to fall apart and have his daughters fail once again. “Leogle…perhaps to some degree you are right.  As a king I need to know when I am making mistakes, and I will do all I can to correct them.  You personally told my daughters that I’ve mistreated your military, and I resolve to-“ “Don’t forget he also called you a tyrant, Father.” Luna interrupted. “Luna!” the king bellowed while closing his eyes angrily.  “I am perfectly aware of that...” Celestia was surprised at what Luna had said, and suddenly started to worry that perhaps they weren’t doing too well in this meeting.  Listening to her instincts, she decided to change her tone. “Luna’s only bringing up that the general was angry, Father, I’m sure of it…” she said frantically. “I believe you, but we are not going to resort to petty insults...”  said the king.  “…and you two would be very wise to remember your teachings, because this is not going very well so far.” Solmidas’s voice turned quiet but menacing.   Celestia could tell he was getting very angry because his hair and eyes started to shine a little brighter, and the air around her grew warmer.  She had seen her father lose his temper in the past before, which would usually cause his solar powers to overheat and knowing he could do it in this very room worried her. “Again, I apologize, Leogle.” the king said to the general.  “Look…” The king got up from his chair and paced about in the room, moving calmly and confidently as he spoke. “We’re going to do this the right way.  Leogle, your grievances will be heard so long as you are respectful.  And girls…” he said as he stood tall over them “…you will show respect to the general as you were strictly commanded to do in these negotiations.  Understood?” “Yes, Father.” they said in unison. “Good.” The room stayed silent for a moment.  The queen had her eyes closed and looked worried.  Her lips appeared to be moving a little almost as if she was reciting a prayer to keep everything under control.  She, like her husband, could tell this wasn’t going as well as they had hoped. The king finally spoke. “Now...” he said looking at both of his daughters.  “Both of you tell the general you are sorry and then proceed to discuss how we will adhere to his wishes to better the griffon society.”  He then went to sit back down in his chair. Celestia and Luna sat, frozen and nervous. “We’re sorry, General.” They both said in unison. General Leogle examined their faces carefully and his expression continued to look angrier.  He looked the way he did when they first met him.  He didn’t even forgive them after they said sorry this time. “Let’s just get this over with.” he replied. The king sat still as everyone else was talking, his eyes filled with tension and fixated on the middle of the room, not able to even make eye contact with the general or any of the griffons.  He was so on edge he could barely concentrate.  Chernalia put her hoof on top of his to calm him down, though it didn’t seem to help. “It’s going to be fine, Love.” She whispered to him. “If this persists I am calling the exam off and handling Leogle by myself.” he whispered back to her.  “I can’t believe they spent all their time studying only to have this be the result…” Meanwhile, Celestia and Luna appeared scared and anxious but they continued to hold their ground.  The General continued to glare at them.  He already hated this meeting and was sure he would not like anything more he would hear.  He seemed like he was actually willing to cooperate at first, but the princesses were not helping. “I have a question for the princesses.” Leogle said. The king slowly closed his eyes, knowing this would not end well. “What is your question, General?” Celestia asked. “Let’s all be honest with each other: we are both having problems and both sides are having difficulty compromising, but you must understand, in order for us to compromise, we must approach these issues with maturity and mutual respect.  So far, I have not seen any of that from you two.” “Leogle, I assure you my daughters have been training hard for this day and everything was fine up until now.” Solmidas said, frantically. “Then why are they behaving like brats?!” Leogle responded, raising his voice. “BRATS?!” Celestia and Luna exclaimed. “GIRLS!” the king said with his voice echoing throughout the entire courtroom. Celestia and Luna both froze at the sound of their father’s voice and looked behind themselves right at him.  He was gritting his teeth and his face had never looked angrier than now. “Celestia, Luna, I want both of you to leave this room right now and go to your quarters.  This negotiation is over for you.” “Over?!” Luna said. “But what about our test, Father?” Celestia asked. “YOU’VE FAILED THE TEST!  I will deal with both of you later.” he barked back. Queen Chernalia had her face buried in her hooves and appeared to be crying.  Celestia and Luna hung their heads and began slowly walking out of the courtroom as the king and Leogle continued speaking to one another. “Well now I see what wonderful parenting the royal family has.” Leogle said in response to what he just saw. “Leogle, that will do.  Pay no heed to my daughters.” said the king with tension continuing to rise in his voice. “Well what kind of a king am I dealing with here, Sol?  A dictator?!  Can you answer that?!” the general spoke, loudly. “LEOGLE, ENOUGH!” Suddenly Luna and Celestia stopped walking and Luna began to look very enraged.  Celestia was just surprised at what the General had said but she saw that her sister looked angry and worried that it would only escalate. “Luna, don’t do it…” she whispered to her sister. “How dare you…” Luna said with her eyes glowing white. Everyone else in the room then directed their attention to the princess of the night. “Luna, what are you doing?!” the king shouted. “HOW DARE YOU!!!” Luna’s voice went deep and menacing.  She turned around and tore off her dress with her magic.  Her eyes shone brighter and dark clouds and lightning began to form around her.  She hovered over towards Leogle to give him a piece of her mind.  Leogle appeared terrified at what he was seeing. “LUNA, NO!!!” Chernalia and Celestia shouted in unison. “THOU FOOL, DOST THOU KNOW WHO THOU ARE DEALING WITH?!?  THIS IS KING SOLMIDAS!!!  IMMORTAL ALICORN KING AND UNQUESTIONABLE IN HIS MIGHT!!!  YOU SHALL SUFFER FOR INSULTING OUR FATHER!!!” Luna got right up in Leogle’s face as he began walking backwards in fear.  Suddenly, Luna was surrounded by several magical auras at once.  The other three tried using their magic to bring her back away from him. “LUNA, YOU INFANTILE MENACE, STOP IT!!!  YOU’RE MAKING IT WORSE!!!” Celestia shouted to her feisty little sister. “UNHAND ME, PATHETIC SISTER!!  LEAVE THIS TO THE DOMINANT ONE!” “DOMINANT ONE?!  I’LL SHOW YOU DOMINANCE!!!” Celestia’s hair stood on end and began glowing radiantly like the sun.  She zoomed forward and tackled her sister to the ground and they somersaulted until they stopped.  They began fighting and throwing their hooves at one another as a cloud of dust surrounded them. “STOP IT!!!  STOP IT BOTH OF YOU!!!” the king said as he flew over and used his magic to pull Celestia away from Luna. “GIRLS, FOR THE SAKE OF EQUESTRIA, LISTEN TO YOUR FATHER!!!” the queen said, pulling Luna back. Suddenly a thunderous lion’s roar could be heard coming from Leogle.  He had just flipped the table over that he was sitting behind and had finally reached his breaking point and could no longer stand it. “ENOOOUGH!!!” he shouted after the roar. Celestia and Luna stopped what they were doing and suddenly came to their senses.  The strange magical aura that appeared last night when they spoke to their spirit guides then came back and went up their body showing their natural colors once again.  Whatever the spirit guides had done to them, the effect was now wearing off.  All four of the royal family members stood in horror at Leogle.  Several alicorn guards rushed over in front of the royals and pointed their spears at Leogle as he took deep breaths like a ferocious beast. “NO, STOP!” Sol said, using his magic to push the guards out of the way for fear they would antagonize the general.  He then rushed forward to his old friend to beg for forgiveness. “LEOGLE, PLEASE, THIS WASN’T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!  FORGIVE ME!” he pleaded. “SILENCE, EQUINE!!” Leogle shouted back.  “I’VE SEEN ENOUGH!!  You are all pathetic!  I was right to cut our ties!  It’s going to stay that way and now I know what I have to do finish you all off…” “Leogle, no…” “As of right now, I declare war on the country of Equestria!” “LEOGLE!!!” “You and your people shall feel the wrath of the griffons, Solmidas!  You’ve treated my people so poorly and you and your pathetic family can’t even handle simple negotiations anymore!  I’m through with all of you!  The next time we meet WILL BE IN BATTLE!” “LEOGLE…PLEASE, DON’T DO THIS, I BEG YOU!” Leogle stormed out of the courtroom followed by all of his aides and guards who looked equally disappointed.  None of them questioned Leogle at all.  It’s as if they had the exact same mindset as him and supported the idea of getting in a war. “LEOGLE, IF YOU GO TO WAR WITH US, THERE IS NO WAY YOU WILL WIN!!” the king warned, but the doors had already shut and Leogle and his posse were gone. “No…no…” Solmidas said nearly crying.  Then his face began to turn from sorrow to rage.  His eyebrows moved down and he gritted his teeth as his hair began to glow as bright as Celestia’s did earlier.  “DAUGHTERS…” he said with his voice echoing throughout the entire room.  The guards and other ponies in the room moved away to avoid the king’s wrath. Meanwhile, Chernalia was holding both of her terrified daughters close to her.  Sol turned around with his eyes glowing, and nearly lost it if it hadn’t have been for his wife. “SOLMIDAS, STOP!!  CAN’T YOU SEE THEY’VE BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH ALREADY?!” she cried out to her furious husband. Sol took one look at both of his daughters and his face slowly turned back to looking dismayed.  His hair went back to normal and his eyes stopped glowing. “Girls…why?”  he asked them. Celestia and Luna, with faces full of tears and smeared makeup, shared a glance with their father and then ran off crying profusely. “CELESTIA!  LUNA!  COME BACK!” the queen said, rushing after them as they left through the doorway they had entered. It did no good.  The princesses were already too far away for Chernalia to fetch both of them.  She stood motionless and saw Percy and Penny both ease out of the side of the entrance with faces distraught.  They weren’t in the room but they had more likely been listening the entire time.  Penny was shaking and tears streamed down her face.  Percy reached down and held her close and she hugged him. Chernalia turned to her king.  With his head bowed, he removed his crown with his magic and threw it to the ground with a loud clang. “Oh Sol…I’m so sorry…” the queen said as she moved forward to comfort her husband. The royals wept bitterly among the mess that had been left behind.  A broken table, papers lying everywhere, and torn up pieces of cloth and jewelry from Celestia and Luna’s gowns cluttered the floor around them.  The guards and other subjects reentered the courtroom to console their wise leaders, but there would be no way to stop the imminent war.  Substantial damaged had been done that day.