//------------------------------// // Observed and Reported // Story: The 8th Rank // by Winter Quill //------------------------------// Celestia tried to hold back a yawn as she settled down at the small conference table, but like all yawns it still came unbidden to her lips. Instead she lifted a hoof to her face, hoping to hide it in the back of her pastern, but that did nothing except cause her sister to giggle. She shot Luna a look, but not before yawning again, simply unable to help herself. It was late for her, the sun had been set three hours before. Sleep was dancing around the corner of her eyes, and causing them to droop slightly. The fact that it was the middle of summer just made it feel that much worse. The long days left her body aching for sleep well before the day was done. Any pony would have expected her to be in her bed, but some things were more important. Without a word, one of the palace maids brought her a fresh cup of tea, setting it on the table next to her. “Thank you,” Celestia said, too tired to remember the stallion’s name. She took a quick sip of tea to hide her embarrassment as the maid set a second cup down next to Luna before he slipped out of the room. The tea was a blend Celestia kept for the nights when she needed to be awake, but where coffee would have been too strong. Sadly, it wasn’t a flavor she enjoyed as it was far too bitter. It would keep her awake, and that was all that mattered. Luna took the cup in her magic and gave it a suspicious sniff before taking a sip. She then gently set the cup back down and pushed it away with her magic. The night was young for her and she didn’t need the extra energy. “Do you know why we have been summoned?” she asked a few moments later. “I do not, but it must be an urgent matter if we are both needed,” Celestia replied, taking another long sip of the tea. It wasn’t often that both of them were called by one of the guard captains, so it must have been truly important. A few moments later, the door opened again as captain Sidereal Equinox entered, his silver armor slightly dulled from a long day. He was part of the guard’s special task force; collecting, collating and processing information that came in over mostly unclassified channels. He held a number of papers in the blue glow of his magic, a worried look lining his face. “Thank you for attending to this on such short notice,” he said, closing the door to the room with a shove of his hip. He walked up to the table and took off his helmet, his blond mane falling across his face and into his eyes. Sidereal used his magic to slide one paper over to the two mares. On it was a map of the eastern coast with a number of lines drawn across it. “For the last few weeks, we have been tracking the movements of what appeared to be an unreformed changeling queen. This afternoon we received information that confirmed our suspicions.” Celestia’s head snapped up from the page. The last thing she wished to deal with was another attack from Queen Chrysalis, not so soon after the defeat of the Storm King. “And where is she?” Sidereal shifted the pages again, pausing for a moment to collect his thoughts. “We cannot be completely sure, but all signs point to her settling in the mountains to the north of Garnet Point.” He replaced the first map with another one, this one depicting the western coast of the Griffon Kingdom. Once again, it was marked with a number of lines indicating possible travel routes. “We have the possible location narrowed down to a few dozen square miles, but our resources in that area are severely limited. Even so, we believe that she intends to start a new hive there.” Luna took the map in her magic. “Garnet Point. That is part of the Griffon Kingdom, is it not?” “It is, and that’s the crux of our problem,” he replied. Luna frowned at the stallion, her ears slowly folding backward. “Even griffons should be worried about the older changelings. We must contact their city garrison immediately!” Celestia had a feeling that she was going to need something stronger than tea to get through the night. “There is no longer a garrison in Garnet Point.” “Ah” Luna replied, her ears flicked back as she tilted her head to the side, her eyes glanced down at the table then back up to Celestia. “Very well. Who are the authorities that we should contact to deal with this?” “There are none,” Sidereal said. Luna’s eyes went wide. “Surely there must be something! If it is a city, even a small one, then it must have a mayor, or even a local constable. It would not be left defenseless.” Celestia sank down in her seat, her flowing mane settling down limply around her shoulders. “Luna, there is no one. The Griffon Kingdom has not had a functioning government in nearly eighty years. There is no guard, no mayors and no King. There is not even a tax office. The only thing they have is an ad-hoc all volunteer mail service. There is nothing else.” The younger princess’s jaw slowly dropped as her ears sank down into her mane. “But… how is such a thing possible? They have an ambassador, do they not? I have dined with him in the past!” Sidereal spoke up before Celestia could. “There was an upheaval about a century ago, after the loss of the Idol of Boreas. Soon after that the nobles started leaving the country, taking their wealth with them. By the time the king died without an heir, there were no nobles left and much of the government had already collapsed. I believe the last garrison disbanded nearly thirty years ago, after a fire destroyed much of the royal archives in Griffonstone.” Luna seemed shaken by this news. She had been made aware of the Griffon Kingdom and that it had fallen on hard times, but not that they were in such dire straits. “How can such a thing stand? We must do something!” she protested. “I have done all that I can do,” Celestia replied. “I’ve tried sending aid, but it never arrived where it was needed. Too many griffons were hoarding food and medicine for themselves, and in the end they were simply left to rot. The borders have been thrown open, there are no longer tariffs or travel restrictions between the two countries, and even the train line has been extended to the border. Our secondary schools are open to any griffon that wishes to attend, which has become the only education many of them ever receive. The griffon nobles living here in Canterlot have completely refused our offers of aid, and many have even leveled empty threats at us if we try to intervene.” “Then to Tartarus with those jackdaws!” Luna snapped, slamming her hoof down onto the table. “Send the guards in to—” “So we should invade them?” Celestia asked. That brought her younger sister up short. “Yes, if we must. But if no government exists, then what are we invading?” “Unfortunately, while the government itself is gone, they are still a sovereign nation as far as our allies are concerned,” Sidereal answered. “And even if that was not the case, the local griffons would see us as invaders and fight us at every turn.” Celestia said with a slight shake of her head. ”We would not be welcomed with open wings, but with slings and arrows. They would never see us as helping them, not at the point of a horn.” Luna frowned deeply, which then turned into a scowl as her ears pressed down tightly to her head. “This is unacceptable! I cannot believe our hooves are hobbled in such a manner. What of the griffon ambassador that prances around Canterlot with his chest puffed out?” Celestia let out a long sigh as her wings ruffled, the primaries fanning out before she forced them tight against her back. “The current ‘ambassador’ is the grandchild of the last true ambassador. That is true of all the griffon nobility, none of them have put a single talon into the kingdom in a generation. At this point there is little to nothing we can do that won’t create far worse problems than having a failed state on our border.” “Unless we want to buy the country from them,” the captain quipped. Luna snorted. “And who would sell it?” Sidereal started to shuffle his papers, pulling one out from deeper in the stack. “I doubt any of the griffons living there would, they are very protective of their homes and land. It’s the only thing of value that many of them own, and they will fight wing and talon to protect it.” “What?” Celestia asked, suddenly perking up. “Every griffon owns land?” This was something that she hadn’t been aware of. The stallion chuckled. “There are no nobles to tell them otherwise, so they claim the land they nest on.” She paused for a few moments to digest that. “The nobles owned all the land in the kingdom, leaving the serfs to work on it. When they fled, they left the land to those who now claim it.” A smile started to spread across her face. “This is a very interesting development.” “Sister?” Luna asked. Celestia found herself wide awake as her mind began to race, nodding as distant memories of old laws started to bubble the surface. “I think you might be onto something, captain.” “What?” he asked, just as confused as Luna. Celestia’s hooves danced against the tabletop, pieces of a plan starting to form in her mind. “I believe there is a way we can aid the griffons, and without having to invade. We must take ownership of their country.” Luna and Sidereal looked at each other, hoping that the other understood what the elder princess was saying. “How?” Luna finally asked. “I do not wish to say until I can refresh my memory of their laws. The parliament is not going to approve of this, but it falls under the purview of the first charter, so they will have no say in the matter.” Celestia smiled and pushed her chair away from the table. “There is much research to be done, I need to review our copies of the Griffon Kingdom’s law books before I can proceed.” That made Luna chuckle. “Shall I summon Twilight Sparkle?” “No. This is law and politics, she is not ready for that yet. I will be closing court for the next few days until I have my answers,” she said to her sister, then switched her attention to Sidereal. “Thank you for bringing this to my attention, captain. Please insure the information you brought to us is passed onto the border garrisons, and arrange for extra patrols to search for changelings crossing the border.” “Yes, Your Highness,” he replied with a slight nod. He then gathered his papers and helmet and left the room. Luna watched her sister as she fanned her wings, her ears perked up high above her head. She could only shake her head at the sight. ”You are right, there is no need to summon Twilight. You seem to be filling in for her quite well at the moment.” Celestia did not respond to that, instead she just teleported away from the conference room. It left Luna shaking her head at how juvenile her older sister could be.