//------------------------------// // The False Kingdom // Story: Trail Blazer // by MagicS //------------------------------// One day’s march from the northwest coast of Equestria the three ponies were traveling through an evergreen forest. Despite the clear skies the weather had gotten a bit cooler but things were still mostly fair for now. Although Trail Blazer was worried that nightfall here might be exceptionally cold. The tall redwoods all around completely dwarfed the ponies, they were without question the tallest trees any of them had ever seen. The sky and sun barely peeked through their branches, giving the forest enough light but miring the world around them in shadows at the same time. However where the ponies were walking they had plenty of light and weren’t accosted by shadows at all. Because things were a bit different for them right now than how their usual travels were. For they happened to be on a road that winded deeper and deeper into the forest, all the trees only flanking the dirt path and allowing the adventurers to easily walk on through. “Who do you think made this road?” Lustrous asked his two friends. “It’s more of a path than a road,” Trail Blazer replied. “That being said I have no idea. There must be some ponies who have been out here for a while.” “Ponies? What if it wasn’t ponies that made this and it was something like those Diamond Dogs or Griffons? What then?” Lustrous was maybe a bit more worried than was called for. The map mare nodded. “It’s possible but I haven’t heard of any other creatures making something like this. I don’t think anybody was making roads before ponies came here.” “I’ll keep my eyes open just in case,” Steel Wing told the both of them. “Thanks,” Trail Blazer said back to him. And from there the three continued on through the forest. Things were quiet, they spotted some squirrels, some birds, but there was so far no sign of where this dirt path led or who might have made it in the first place. To Trail Blazer’s trained eyes it looked well-maintained, there were no weeds growing out in the middle of it and the grass along the edges seemed to have been cut within the last couple of days at most. No trees had been cut down to make way for the road so whoever made it either didn’t have the right tools to deal with these big redwoods or wanted to keep the forest nice and idyllic. And because it wasn’t a straight path the ponies were taking a bit of a longer time to get through the forest. But that was fine with Trail Blazer. She wanted to see where this path ended up going for the sake of her map and if they left the path and just started going straight west they might miss it. Lustrous at this point was gladly taking in the beauty of the majestic redwoods around him. It helped get his mind off his own paranoid thoughts and the trees would make a wonderful entry in his journal. Perhaps it wasn’t like looking out over the entire landscape of Equestria but this simple forest had its own quiet beauty. It was a calm place where Lustrous could see himself relaxing easily, taking a book and leaning up against a trunk and just reading until he fell asleep. The pegasus of the party was as always keeping his mind on more practical things. Although he didn’t see anything that looked dangerous or suspicious and saw no animal larger than a raccoon. Still, he kept a vigilant watch as was his job. In the sky the sun was still an hour or two away from reaching its peak, Trail Blazer had made sure they got an early start this morning because she wanted to hurry up and make it to the coast. Now even after they’d been walking for a couple hours there was still a full day ahead of them. This was called making the most of the daylight. Lustrous had happily noted that he was able to go for a lot longer without getting tired now. This may have still been very easy terrain but he was confident in his ability to handle anywhere after all the journeying and hiking they had done. Probably not to the level of Trail Blazer or some more weathered earth ponies but it was still a large measure of pride for him. The unicorn had come a long way. “You know I was just thinking.” The unicorn voiced to his friends. “But forests and mountains and everything get names don’t they? You think we can name any of the places we’ve been to?” There was a shrug from Trail Blazer. “Hadn’t really thought about it. If the Reps let us do something like that then by all means do all the naming you want.” “Gladly,” Lustrous smiled. It was probably only another twenty minutes of walking down the path when Trail Blazer and Steel Wing both noticed some obvious signs of changes, and perhaps civilization, up ahead. For one the forest seemed to end or at the least open up into a very large clearing or open space, and two there was smoke rising into the air that both the pegasus and earth pony could see through the trees. Trail Blazer could tell it was no forest fire or anything like that, she was almost certain it was from either campfires or chimneys. “So we’re coming up to something?” Lustrous asked them after he was notified of what was up ahead. “Looks like it. Must be where this path ends and whoever made it probably lives there too,” Trail Blazer said. As they got to the end of the path and exited the forest they saw something they really weren’t expecting to see. All three of them looked with wide, surprised eyes at a large wooden wall that stretched in both directions facing the forest. It looked like it went on for quite a ways before bending at a right angle and going back west away from them. Trail Blazer noted that judging by the size of the wall in front of them if it made a complete square it would encapsulate an area larger than their home city. What also drew their attention was that the dirt path continued forward a bit out of the forest and went right up to an entrance in the wall. It was large enough where a carriage could easily fit inside and there was a spear carrying pony on each side of it. “This is not what I expected to find here at all,” Lustrous dumbly stated. “Right there with you...” Trail Blazer said. Steel Wing meanwhile was silently eyeing both of the spear wielding ponies, obviously guards of… whatever this was. The two guards, one an earth pony and the other a pegasus, were staring right back at him and the other two. “Well, um, I suppose we should see what this is about, shouldn’t we?” Lustrous put forth to Trail Blazer. The map pony sighed but nodded. “It looks like something really troublesome, but yeah, we should.” She led the three right up to the open entryway, planning to just go right on through. However once they got close the guards walked into the middle of the road and crossed their spears, blocking them. “Halt. Who goes there?” The pegasus guard asked them. Well this annoyed Lustrous quite a bit so he stepped up to answer. “We’re travelers on a mission to scout and map Equestria. What is this place? Why are you stopping us from entering?” “This is the domain of Lord Maudlin Soul. It is not a part of Equestria, on whose authority do you travel under?” The earth pony guard asked. “Excuse me?!” Lustrous was in disbelief. “What do you mean “Not a part of Equestria”? This whole country is Equestria as decreed by Princess Celestia and the former rulers of the three tribes and maintained by the current representatives of the three tribes. Our mission was specifically given to us by those representatives, the highest authority in the land other than the Princess herself.” Lustrous finished angrily, his buttons easily pushed once more. Trail Blazer was considering hitting him again to shut him up and Steel Wing was watching the guards to make sure they weren’t getting too angry. Luckily they seemed more bored than anything at his rant. “Princess Celestia and the representatives have no authority here. Like we said, this is the domain of Lord Maudlin Soul. He rules here.” The pegasus reiterated. “But that doesn’t make any sense!” Lustrous angrily stamped a hoof. “Equestria is supposed to be united under the two sisters with no division among ponies!” “Well this isn’t Equestria,” The pegasus shrugged. “Yes it is!” Lustrous yelled. Trail Blazer sighed and shook her head. “For the love of… look can we just come in anyways? It’s just the three of us so obviously we can’t cause any problems and we still have a job to do. Our map is going to show this whole area anyways, maybe this Lord Soul or whatever will want to say something about his kingdom? We’re reporting back to the representatives eventually you know so something is gonna be mentioned about it.” The guards looked at each other before the pegasus shrugged and they both pulled their spears back, the earth pony now taking the lead in responding. “We’re not really meant to keep normal ponies out or anything, just to make sure no wild animals or obvious criminals come into the city. We just wanted to know where you were coming from. So if you want to go in that’s fine, just stay out of trouble.” “You’ll have no problem there,” Trail Blazer said. “And if you want to meet with Lord Soul you can find his mansion by following this road. It’s the big building in the middle of the city, the road will take you right to the front door,” The pegasus told them. “His mansion functions as our center of government too I guess you could say.” “Will we really just be able to walk in and say hi to him?” Lustrous asked. If he was the “Lord” of this city it seemed a bit simple. “He likes meeting with travelers so he can tell them all about our city,” The earth pony guard shrugged. “You shouldn’t have a problem, especially after you tell him about this job you’re doing.” “Works for me,” Trail Blazer said and already started walking past the guards and into the city. Lustrous and Steel Wing both hurried up to follow her, Lustrous giving one last indignant look at the guards before he passed through the outer walls. On the inside they saw something they never thought they would see on this journey. A real, fully functioning, city. Dozens of buildings were all around them with dirt roads woven between them all and directional signs posted at every intersection. The buildings seemed to be constructed in a professional and uniform manner as well, not random and haphazardly like you would normally see in Equestria at this time. Almost everything was made from wood, either boards or logs, with a few stone buildings around. One of the stone buildings was long and rectangular with a tri-pointed roof and three chimneys poking out of each point, the smoke billowing from them was part of what they had seen before reaching here. They couldn’t tell what that building might have been used for though. Most of the buildings around were houses too that had small family gardens around them. From where they were none of them could see a larger farm or orchard but they did see a number of wells that had been made for water. Trail Blazer looked around to spot other buildings and her eyes naturally drifted to what looked like a tavern but she managed to peel them away from that. The earth pony saw what looked like a general store, a granary, a place selling tools and another that looked like it dealt in fabrics. It almost seemed like whatever this little domain was it might have been totally self-sustaining. Another thing all three of them noticed was that there was a healthy number of ponies from every tribe. Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns all freely mingled with one another and none of them seemed to dwarf the others in population size. They didn’t seem to mind or take notice of the travelers walking through either. It was unusual for this era. It did bring a smile to Lustrous’s face, as surprised as he was, seeing the unity of ponies always made him feel a lot better. For the more suspicious Trail Blazer and Steel Wing it also did a lot to waylay some of their fears of this place, it seemed like an honestly nice city with lots of happy ponies. Whatever was up with this place it seemed to be just like it appeared. They only needed to find out who this Lord Maudlin Soul was and why he’s saying this city isn’t part of Equestria. Honestly only Lustrous was especially concerned with that. The other two were certainly curious, and Steel Wing in particular had a distaste for anyone that might have been going against the Princess or the tribes as a whole, but largely they felt they’d be fine just exploring the place like it was any other and then getting back on track with the rest of their journey. Trail Blazer, who was still in front, spotted what had to be Lord Soul’s place just up ahead. “Well if that aint it, then you can call me Princess Celestia.” The building was a huge affair, dwarfing Lustrous’s family’s mansion by far and made with the same high level of quality as the rest of the buildings here. It was three full stories high and the center of it was circular with two rectangular wings extending out of its left and right sides. While most of the building was made of wood, large stone columns had been built in the front, spanning the exterior of the circular part. It definitely looked like a fitting place for a “Lord” or “King” or anything else to live in. “I’d say you’re right,” Lustrous raised an eyebrow at the large building. It seemed a bit over the top to him for a pony that wasn’t even the Princess. Whatever castle she was making would likely be far more grand and extravagant but that’s just it, she was the Princess, this Lord Maudlin Soul was just a normal pony. “I haven’t seen any more guards or anything, have you?” The map mare asked the other two. “No,” Steel Wing replied, shaking his head. “This place seems very peaceful, the guards must only be needed at the gates.” “Guess they were telling the truth and everything,” Trail Blazer shrugged. The three travelers eventually made it up to the mansion, walking in between the central most pillars to the front door. It was a large door of intricately carved redwood, just making Lustrous more annoyed at the hubris, with golden handles and large knockers on it. They stopped in front it, unsure what would be proper next. “Do we knock or just let ourselves in?” Lustrous asked. “The guards made it sound like it was a public place,” Trail Blazer scratched her head. Finally she scowled and clicked her tongue. “Oh nuts to this, I don’t care, we’re going in.” She cracked and pulled open the door, all three of them quickly shuffling inside. The first room was a large circular atrium that took up probably the first half of the circular section of the building. A double staircase leading up to the second and third stories lied in front of them and to their right and left were hallways leading into larger conference and meeting rooms. The first floor of this mansion looked far more like a place of business than a home. And there were a number of ponies milling about inside it. Most of them were filing out of a meeting room but there were others talking with some robed ponies over by the stairs too. There were two unicorns wearing gray robes and carrying books with them, each of them talking to another group of ponies that looked like some of the regular citizens of the city. One burly orange earth pony seemed to be in a vehement argument with one of the robed unicorns before he finally huffed and turned away, walking right past the travelers on his way out the door, not even paying attention to them. The gray robed pony gave a sigh of relief before he noticed the three new arrivals. A look of surprise lit up his face before he smiled and beckoned the three over. Since they had no reason not to they followed his direction and came over to him. “Well hello there, from out of town are you?” He cheerfully asked them. “Yes, I suppose you must be able to recognize who lives here and who doesn’t?” Lustrous replied. The unicorn nodded. “One of my jobs. What brings you here then? We see travelers every now and then but you three have a different look about you, you’re not the typical family or caravan or lone adventurer.” Before Trail Blazer could cut him off or knee him in the chest again, Lustrous answered- “We have been sent on a sanctioned mission expressly given to us by the three representatives of the pony tribes to travel this new country of Equestria and create a map of it!” He said. “Our journey has now brought us here. However, I must say I am confused over what is going on here? While this city is a wondrous thing to be sure, we have no problems with ponies building themselves a city, apparently your guards say that this is not a part of Equestria and the representatives and even Princess Celestia herself have no authority here? All of Equestria is supposed to be under one banner. I would greatly appreciate it if we could meet this Lord Maudlin Soul and speak with him.” Lustrous finished and tried to stand as imposing and regally as possible. His peevish look didn’t help him a lot there though. However the robed unicorn didn’t have a problem with it at all. “Alright. I’m sure he’d love to meet with you all. Since you represent the, well, representatives, I’m sure he’d see this as a great opportunity to explain things.” The unicorn’s eyes drifted away and he scratched his chin. “Likely he’ll want you to send a message to the representatives and the Princess.” “Oh,” Lustrous flatly said, the air leaving him a bit. “Well when can we meet?” “Since it’s still early and this is a special occasion I’m sure he’d love to have you for dinner,” The unicorn smiled brightly. “I’ll make sure to convey the importance of meeting with you all.” “Great!” Lustrous smiled as well. He then turned to look at his two friends. “So where do you think we should go until it’s time for us to dine?” “Oh, don’t worry about that,” The secretary unicorn said. “We have so many guestrooms here. I’ll summon a servant and he’ll lead you to one you can rest in until dinner. That will make everything so much easier.” “Thanks,” Trail Blazer brusquely said. “I could use a real bed to rest in.” The guestrooms of this large and impressive mansion were similarly luxurious. Even more so for the time period the three ponies lived in. Trail Blazer wasn’t kidding about a bed, she was conked out on a large feather bed and snoring loudly while Lustrous and Steel Wing played cards. Honestly they were both happy to let her rest like this, she really needed it. The mare was still getting used to her new way of life and it was taking a lot out of her. She had done an admirable job of not getting angry lately but she seemed to get tired more easily too. “Straight flush.” “Ugh!” Lustrous banged his head on the table they were playing on, letting the full house he had fall onto the floor in despair. “I’m sure you’ll win one day,” Steel Wing told him. “Maybe I just need to play solitaire,” Lustrous grumbled. “Could help,” Steel Wing smirked. “Oh, wipe that smile off your face!” The unicorn frowned and stood up from the table. He went to the window at the back of the guestroom and looked outside it. It was well past noon now but still a while before dinner. His eyes now scanned over the back half of the town they hadn’t seen before coming in, it looked much the same as the rest, with mostly houses separated by a litany of streets and some other large buildings likely used for some kind of business or construction purposes. He saw no true farms still but it was very possible that they were on the outsides of the walls. This area was very green and certainly had the ground and space for farms. He thought that if Trail Blazer was awake right now she’d be able to point plenty of things out and clue him in on stuff but he didn’t want to wake her. And even though it was a nice, idyllic, place he was looking at, it made Lustrous frown. “Does it bother you that they’re dividing up part of Equestria and this Lord thinks he can just rule it himself?” He asked Steel Wing. “Yes. Very much so,” The pegasus responded and floated over to where Lustrous was standing. “It’s part of why I went against my grandfather after all. But at least the ponies here are all living together in peace and unity and it’s not just one tribe lording over the others or something like that. Still, this is Equestria, regardless of what they say. I agree with you on that. And they can’t ignore the will of the Princess or the good of all ponies.” “I would like to discuss that with Lord Soul at dinner, however it may end poorly and I suspect Trail Blazer would disagree on debating about it,” Lustrous glanced at the sleeping mare. “I’m not entirely sure I agree on bringing it up either,” Steel Wing said. “Regardless of what’s going on here we’ve been shown great hospitality so far, we should just eat and be on our way and then we can tell your cousin about things when we finish our mission. It’s not our job to deal with this city.” “But I’m annoyed!” Lustrous whined. Steel Wing smirked slightly again. “Yes, I know this is the kind of thing that really bothers you. You’ll just have to live with it.” Trail Blazer belched in her sleep and rolled over, snapping the two stallions attention to her. Lustrous rolled his eyes and sighed at the mare’s behavior. “Whatever, let’s just play some more poker for now. We can wake her up if it gets close to dinner time,” He said. The two ended up ignoring the mare or any of their reservations about the city for the rest of the afternoon, allowing themselves to just enjoy the day and have fun playing cards. Lustrous’s luck never got any better but he could live with it. At least they weren’t playing for money. he’d have gone broke multiple times over by now. Slowly the light outside drifted to a twilight orange, signaling that evening and the time for dinner was almost upon them. Lustrous and Steel Wing were still consumed by their card game and Trail Blazer hadn’t yet woken up. She looked like a cat sprawled out over her feather bed. This room did unfortunately also only have two beds so Lustrous and Steel Wing would have to share again but they were pretty large beds so there was more room. Time had gotten away from all three of them so they were surprised when there was a knock on the door. Lustrous bolted up in his chair and Trail Blazer’s eyes snapped open, the map mare groggily leaning up and wiping away a bit of drool dangling from her lips. “Oh, must be time,” Lustrous said and got out of his chair, heading to the door. Opening it up he saw the same servant who had led them here in the first place. Wordlessly, the servant bowed and gestured for them to follow him. Lustrous looked back into their room to see the still half-asleep Trail Blazer struggling to get out of bed. He scowled in annoyance and turned back to the servant. “Er, one moment please.” The second floor of the mansion looked much more like somewhere ponies would actually live. Bedrooms, laundry, kitchens, libraries, studies, and all manner of other rooms typically found in large households like this were on the second floor. The first floor was likely used as the common space and meeting area for ponies of the city, the second floor was probably for guests and servants and that left the third floor over as where the Lord and his immediate family resided. That’s what Lustrous thought at least. Currently the silent servant was leading them straight down a hallway into the northern wing of the building (the front door faced east) where there was likely a dining room or hall of some sort that Lord Soul entertained his guests in. Lustrous spied a set of double doors at the end of the hallway, their destination no doubt, and he steeled himself to be as polite and proper as he could be. He didn’t want this to turn out poorly or anything either. And he also didn’t want Trail Blazer to constantly kick him under the table when she thought he was going to say something stupid. The servant pushed open the doors and took them into what Lustrous had expected, a large hall. There was a dining table that could comfortably seat a dozen in the middle, already it had been set with plates, silverware, and candles. At the back of the large room there were two doors on the left and right sides of the wall that must lead deeper into the mansion. “Welcome.” The three travelers looked to their left to see the gray robed unicorn from earlier, he had been partially obscured by the door. “I do hope you enjoy your dinner, please take a seat, the Lord will be with you soon,” He waved to the table. “Thank you,” Lustrous replied and the three of them walked to the large oak table. Lustrous decided to seat himself at the back end of the table facing the head with Trail Blazer on his left and Steel Wing on his right. Like this he’d be looking straight at Lord Maudlin Soul when he came in. For now the three sat there quietly, Steel Wing was looking at the assortment of silverware in front of him with a furrowed brow. The pegasus had no idea why there were six different forks. The robed unicorn talked with the servant and the two walked to the back left door, the servant going in it and the unicorn waiting patiently in front of it. “Food better be good,” Trail Blazer grumbled. A pitcher of water was located in front of her and she poured some out into her glass. Lustrous frowned at her. “You should wait until our host is here.” She glared right back at him. “I’m thirsty.” The door at the back of the room opened back up again and the servant stuck his head in, whispering something in the unicorn’s ear. The unicorn smiled and nodded at the servant and then cleared his throat, walking closer to the table. “Please rise for the honorable Lord Maudlin Soul and his daughter Miss Poppy Hymn!” He declared to the room. Trail Blazer really didn’t want to rise. And neither Steel Wing nor Lustrous wanted to acknowledge his authority. But the proper etiquette that had been drilled into Lustrous and the politeness of Steel Wing made the both of them stand on command, and Trail Blazer rolled her eyes and went up with them. The door was fully pulled open by the servant, who now held it open and bowed his head as two ponies walked through. Lord Maudlin Soul was a regal looking white unicorn with a long mane and tail colored a deep violet. He wore an elaborate red robe and cape with golden lining and a fluffy white collar. His daughter was quite a bit more understated, she was an earth pony that looked to be a few years younger than our travelers, with a yellow coat and a curly red mane. Her cheeks were dotted with freckles and she had a warm and innocent smile on her face as she walked into the room to contrast with her father’s proud smirk. But Lustrous wasn’t thinking of that annoying smirk or Lord Maudlin Soul at all anymore. He wasn’t thinking about bringing up or challenging this city’s sovereignty anymore either. All of that had been shot out of his head with a cannon. For the moment his eyes saw Poppy Hymn an all new feeling rose up within Lustrous. His heart leapt out of his chest, butterflies floated around in his stomach, it was the first time in his life he felt something like this and he couldn’t understand it. That pretty face, that smile, it lit a fire within him. He felt his face flush and knew he was staring but he couldn’t help it. “Hello, a pleasure to meet you,” Lord Maudlin Soul said as he took his seat at the head of the table, his daughter on his left. The voice snapped Lustrous out of his trance. He shook his head and quickly replied. “Y-Yes, the pleasure is all ours. You’ve been a great host,” He said, an awkward smile on his face as he fought to not glance at Poppy Hymn every second. “When I heard what brought you here I knew we had to speak,” The Lord said. “I’ve been thinking of sending a messenger to the Princess or representatives but having you here is even better. Ponies that have an express route to the representatives that have even been tasked with a special mission? It’s perfect. And it’s better for outsiders to see my city and tell others about it, instead of my own people. It seems less biased.” Trail Blazer couldn’t care in the slightest about what was going on, she just wanted food. Steel Wing wasn’t much of a talker when it came to stuff like this and now Lustrous was horribly distracted by Poppy Hymn. All of what he wanted or planned on saying was jumbled up. “Er, right...” The bespectacled unicorn said. “Might I first ask just what exactly you’re doing here?” The Lord grinned even wider. “But of course! You see, I first came here with my family and some others shortly after the unification and we started building this community. It was then that I realized how big this country was and how we were getting along just fine without any of the “leadership” of Princess Celestia or the others. So why should we, who have always been on our own and have done just fine, bow to any outside authority? I declared this city a sovereign state and named it Tri-Point in honor of all three pony tribes.” He smiled at his daughter and held her hoof. “As I’m sure you’ve noticed we welcome all ponies here, my own wife was an earth pony.” “Yes that is very modern of you,” Lustrous nodded. The topic of the conversation he was rather passionate about had cleared his head somewhat. “But… I’m sorry but Equestria is all supposed to be united under the Princess. All of it. Ponies shouldn’t be dividing themselves into separate kingdoms. It’s just one more way for strife to be born.” “It’s not like we have any desire to be at odds with the Princess or Equestria. I just don’t see why I can’t be the King of Tri-Point,” Lord Soul shrugged. Lustrous frowned, he reached a hoof under the table to block the kick from Trail Blazer he knew was coming. The discussion was now going from making his head clear to angry. “So you’ll just ignore any laws or decrees the Princess passes? And you’ll of course be taking and using up the natural resources and land around here?” “That’s right,” The Lord nodded. His daughter had started frowning at the way this dinner was going, Lustrous’s eyes briefly flickered over to her and he blushed the moment she met his eyes. And lo and behold but the faintest of blushes also rose on her cheeks. Lustrous gulped and looked away. Had that really happened? He wasn’t just imagining things was he? She really did blush when they looked at each other, right? “You see I’m sure there will be some who have a problem with this-” Lord Soul continued. “But I’m not giving up my sovereignty just because someone says so. Our city is doing fine as you can plainly see. There’s no reason for us to change.” Now Lustrous and Poppy Hymn kept sneaking glances at each other, the mare shyly smiling and Lustrous gaining a big goofy grin on his face. He was hardly even paying attention to what Maudlin Soul was saying at this point. He wondered if any of the others in the room noticed how much he and Miss Hymn were looking at each other? Would they do anything? Surely Lord Soul wouldn’t be happy. “But enough of all that,” Lord Soul loudly stated after finishing up some speech that Lustrous had only half listened to. “If you are so inclined as to debate some more I would welcome it. But for now let us eat.” He clapped his hooves together. Out of the double door that the travelers had initially come through a whole set of caterers emerged. They put down all sorts of great dishes that the ponies were unused to eating even before they had left on their journey. Even for Lustrous this was extravagant. They all ate their meal in relative silence, Lord Maudlin Soul only occasionally asking them how they liked the food and what else they might have thought about the city. Lustrous normally would have been more talkative than he was but his attention was snagged by Poppy Hymn. The unicorn simply could not stop thinking about her, her cute smile, her adorable freckles, and the way she blushed whenever their eyes accidentally met. All throughout the meal things went on like that. By the time the dessert was being devoured by the ponies a pink fog had completely taken over the mind of Lustrous. He heard and saw nothing else and had to be shaken on the shoulder by Trail Blazer when Lord Maudlin Soul announced an end to the feast. “It has been a nice evening but I feel we should all retire now, the dinner has left me quite full,” The unicorn Lord said. “I implore you to stay the night, however. I wish to write a missive that you may take with you to the representatives when you finish up your travels. And I do hope you will be open and honest about what you’ve seen here.” Lustrous coughed and rose out of his chair, his legs trembling a bit thanks to nervousness with Poppy Hymn looking right at him now. “You don’t have to worry about that, we would never lie about your city. I will certainly give my opinion on things if asked but I will also relate what you wish the others to hear.” “Well that’s all I can ask for I suppose,” Lord Soul smirked. “Enjoy your room, if you need anything just find one of my servants.” Trail Blazer and Steel Wing both got ready to leave the hall but Lustrous’s eyes were glued onto Poppy Hymn. She was following her father back through the door they had emerged from when announced earlier. But right as they were getting to it she turned her head and looked straight at Lustrous. His breath hitched as she deftly nodded her head towards the door on the other side of the room at the back, then acted as if nothing had happened and walked with her father out of the hall. He felt his heart beating in his chest harder than it ever had before in his life. The travelers then went back to their room, Lustrous still in a pink daze. Trail Blazer belched loudly again the moment the door closed and went to collapse on her bed once more. Steel Wing on the other hand was looking weirdly at Lustrous, wondering what was up with him. “I’m beat, that was too much food,” Trail Blazer moaned from the bed. Steel Wing waved a hoof in front of Lustrous’s face but the dumb grin and spacey look on his face didn’t change. “Lustrous? Are you alright? You were being weird throughout the meal too,” Steel Wing asked him. “Let him be,” Trail Blazer waved a hoof, not even looking at the two of them. “I’m just happy he didn’t say something that got us kicked out of here.” “I think I’m in love.” The sudden words from the unicorn got both of his friends to stare at him in shock. Steel Wing raised a surprised eyebrow while Trail Blazer flat out gaped at him from her spread eagle position on the bed. “You’re what?” Trail Blazer asked in open disbelief. “In love. Poppy Hymn,” Lustrous answered. “Have you lost your mind?!” She asked, looking at him like, well, like he had lost his mind. “No. And I’m certain she feels the same way. We were sharing looks the entire meal and she even signaled me to meet her again,” Lustrous said, a far off look still on his face. “Oh,” Steel Wing said in realization. “So that's what all the glancing back and forth and blushing was all about. I’m not used to romance myself.” Trail Blazer sighed and dragged a hoof down her tired face. “Lustrous. You didn’t even speak a word to her.” “It was love at first sight. I was stricken with a sudden powerful feeling the likes of which I’ve never felt before, she must have felt the same thing,” Lustrous said to Trail Blazer. Her attempts to reason with him falling on deaf ears. "Okay, so what? What are you even going to do about it?” The map mare asked. “I’m going to go meet her obviously,” The love-stricken unicorn said like it was the simplest thing in the world. “What if her father or someone else catches you? And you say just meeting, but, you know… you’re not gonna get up to anything else?” She looked at him with concern. Lustrous blushed, instantly picking up on what she was getting at. “A-Absolutely not! I’m certain she m-merely wishes to talk, I certainly have no lascivious desires the likes that you’re thinking of.” He gulped. Trail Blazer flatly stared at him. “Lustrous, besides me how many mares have you even talked to?” The unicorn actually seriously pondered this for a second. “Um, six I think. More if we count those ones who attacked us in the swamp?” “What about not counting your maids or family members?” She asked. “Umm… zero?” “Ugh,” Trail Blazer held a hoof to her forehead and just sighed. “Go do whatever you want. If she was really looking at you and blushing all throughout dinner… you definitely don’t understand mares but I hope it turns out the best for you.” “Thank you,” Lustrous said darkly and went to leave. “I shall be back later tonight, I’m certain she just wishes to t-talk.” As he left, Steel Wing turned to Trail Blazer. “Should we have done anything?” The pegasus asked her. “He’ll be fine. Probably,” She said. Hopping off the bed to walk over to the pegasus. “I’m sure his new love knows how to go through this place without getting caught.” “If Lord Maudlin Soul finds out his one daughter is having a night excursion with a random traveler from out of his city he may be very put out,” Steel Wing said, frowning. “Well, yeah,” Trail Blazer admitted before a grin spread on her face. “Heh, don’t worry about him. I’ll distract him so he never has the chance to notice his daughter isn’t around tonight.” “Distract him how?” The earth pony licked her lips and smirked up at him. “How do you think?” Lustrous moved back through the mansion as quietly as he could. He didn’t know how many servants were in here or if Lord Soul had his own guards but he didn’t want to run into anybody else as he made his way to that door Poppy Hymn had told him to go through. The unicorn deftly moved on his hooves back to the large hall/dining room, slightly peeking in to make sure no one else was there and letting out a sigh of relief upon seeing that it had already been completely cleaned up and was now devoid of servants. He smiled and cheerfully trotted to the other end of the room towards the door on the back left side. With one last glance around to make sure no one was spying on him he quickly pulled it open and stepped inside this new room. It looked like a connecting room only about as large as the room he, Trail Blazer, and Steel Wing were given to sleep in. There was only a single faint lantern flickering above his head that gave it a fairly dark look and all Lustrous could see were four doors on the other side of the room. “Poppy Hymn? Miss Poppy Hymn, are you there?” Lustrous asked out to the darkness. A creaking sound filled his ears and the door to his left most opened up slightly, a sliver of light coming out before being obscured by the peeking form of Poppy Hymn. “I heard you come in,” A voice as light as feathers said to Lustrous. It set his heart on fire all over again. He walked like a pony possessed towards her and she opened up the door fully so they could see each other, a blush spread across her freckled face. “H-Hello,” He said. “Good evening,” She replied, looking at the floor in embarrassment. The two shuffled about there uncertainly for a moment longer, clearly neither of them had any idea what they were doing. “Um, y-you have a lovely city...” Lustrous said. It was sadly the best thing he could think of to break the ice. “T-Thank you, it’s very nice here,” Poppy Hymn replied, fidgeting with one of her red curls. “But I wanted to tell you that I liked what you said at dinner too… to my father. I like Tri-Point but I want to be part of Equestria too. No one else who lives in this city will say things to him like what you said...” “I only gave my honest opinion, it’s noting special...” Lustrous blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. Truly the praise she gave him sent him cheering on the inside. “Y-Yeah...” She looked up at him with her wide, doe-like, eyes. “We should go back into this room instead of standing out here, servants occasionally come through.” She looked over her shoulder at the room she had been in before Lustrous arrived. “But this is a spare room that no one uses… so we wouldn’t get caught… talking.” “Yes, talking… your father probably wouldn’t like that. Us talking about your reservations about the city,” Lustrous gulped, looking back into the nearly empty room that had some boxes, a table, and a single bed in the middle of it. The two awkward ponies stood there for a minute before walking inside. “Well...” Lustrous started. “Well,” Poppy Hymn repeated. They locked eyes again and any words on their lips disappeared. Slowly, ever so slowly, their faces drifted closer together. The following morning a Lustrous still in Lalaland was standing with Trail Blazer and Steel Wing as they were being seen out of the mansion by Lord Maudlin Soul and his daughter. The oblivious Lord was happily saying goodbye to them (Trail Blazer especially) and hoped that they would fare well on the rest of their journey. His motivations might have been less altruistic than he was on the surface but the well-wishing was genuine enough. “Hopefully in the future the three of you can return here. Perhaps as proper emissaries of Equestria,” The Lord said to them. “Then we can discuss terms of how our two countries will coexist.” “Ask Lustrous about that,” Trail Blazer said and lightly kicked Lustrous in the shin to get him to tear his stupefied gaze away from Poppy Hymn. “Hm? Oh, uh, yes. That’s something I’m looking forward to as well… discussing Tri-Point,” Lustrous said, his eyes drifting back to Poppy Hymn. “Returning here in the future already sounds like an excellent idea. It’s lovely. The city.” Lord Soul smiled widely. “Wonderful! And you have my letter, correct?” Trail Blazer reached into her saddlebag and pulled out an envelope before putting it back in. “Yep.” “Great, then I’ll stall you no more. I know you have quite a bit left to do on your journey,” Lord Soul said goodbye one last time and stepped back into his home, taking Poppy Hymn with him. Poppy Hymn was looking back over her shoulder the whole time, waving and smiling to Lustrous. The unicorn did the same until the doors closed and the two who fell in love at first sight were separated. He sighed deeply and looked up at the blue morning sky. Somehow it seemed more beautiful to him today. “Well look at you. What was it you were saying last night to me again?” Trail Blazer said to him, smugly grinning. He blushed and looked away. “F-Forget it, let’s just go!” “Nothing to be embarrassed about, obviously you had a really great time,” Steel Wing said, also grinning at Lustrous. “You too even?!” Lustrous fell to the ground and threw his hooves over his head in embarrassment. “Lustrous, we’re friends now,” Trail Blazer said as she patted him on the back. “And we’re going to be teasing you about this for a very long time.” The three travelers left Tri-Point after that. Going past the mansion and down to the exit on the opposite side of the city from where they had come in. The weather was still good, their spirits were high, and the rest of Equestria was right in front of them. By the end of this day they would reach the west coast again and begin doubling back, their journey on its last quarter. As for the city of Tri-Point and Lord Maudlin Soul, there is quite a long story to be told there. However that tale does not belong here. In summary, Lord Soul would never give up his sovereignty and refused to listen to the demands of Princess Celestia and the representatives to instead take the title of governor or mayor and relinquish claim to the lands around the city. This eventually erupted into the first wide conflict of the new land of Equestria that tested the authority of the Princess and the unity of the ponies and country. After a single battle (if it could even be called that) Lord Maudlin Soul would come to be deposed, imprisoned, and the city of Tri-Point eventually faded into obscurity, the land where it once stood eventually being retaken by the forest as former citizens migrated to other areas. This incident was used as precedent to declare Princess Celestia (Princess Luna was not mentioned in the royal decree, the reasons for this are lost to time but most suspect an apathetic scribe who simply forgot to write her name as well) the sole ruler of all the lands of Equestria and they could not be divided up by any other. Miss Poppy Hymn is not mentioned in the annals of the Tri-Point conflict. The reason for this is that according to some records recovered from the city of Tri-Point itself, it seems she left the city and traveled east well before the conflict began. Her reasons for doing so are unknown. But a curious note taken by the one recording her departure mentioned that the mare “Had been heard to have been arguing with her father and seemed to have put on weight recently”.