Another day, another accomplishment in the name of Psera. Zebrica had struck and struck hard, but plans were already being drawn out in a way to strike back within five days. Labeled folders with ideas were passed around inside of Safe Haven's meeting room between Queen Arcadia, defense strategists, and well known Senior Officers.
Each week on the last day, Queen Arcadia would open a portal all the way from Rayray to the Private Mausoleums in Lavender. Where the body of her husband Shimmering Madun lied in rest, and the flames of Fresh Dawn danced in the setting sun.
She was securely escorted by a mix of Elite Royal Guards and Arcadian Elite. Before she ever exits the portal the guards rush in first, secure the place by taking up positions in the air and on the ground. Then after she's given the clear, she steps out the portal onto quiet cool marble.
The fountain in the middle of these Mausoleums added a small beauty to the serenity of this resting place. Twilight's hooves lifted out of their golden and shimmering shoes for a Guard to pick up. Then took off her crown and chest plate to come not as a Queen, but a wife and mother. Once the Guards had everything, they stepped back to allow Twilight Sparkle her privacy.
The small torches on Madun's and Dawn's Mausoleums danced endlessly. Never burning out until they decided they would. Twilight stopped directly in between both of their Mausoleums and sat down on her haunches. Being here was always hard and it would not get any easier until she got what she wanted.
"Hello, my babies," she greeted. They of course did not respond. Just the sounds of Lavender, the cool winter wind and the splashing from the fountain behind her. "It's been a rather successful and repetitive day, if I can say that. We're officially going to war against Zebrica. All of our weapons, Aquatas, Pods, and soldiers are ready. And we're training a second generation of them.
"Secretary Manny and Defense Advisors are requesting that the first attack and any that follow remain dark until the second generation of soldiers are ready. That means untraceable. We're planning a strike of thirty Manual Delayed Marrials remotely on Hearth's Warming. And I'll be personally detonating them. Not just because they took you from me... But because they disgraced and violated my country and slaughtered over a hundred."
Twilight looked up from her briefing and turned towards Lavender. To the waters beyond holding Aquatas preparing for their night patrol. Pserateps and Pods were arming them with all categories of weapons. Some were very destructive and highly lethal, others were weapons that Twilight didn't know they would need now. But they were going to be thoroughly defended regardless. Whether they used them or not.
She turned back to face the Mausoleums with a small tear rolling down her left cheek. It sparkled in the sun and shimmered like a star before she wiped it away and straightened her long mane. "I lost my right eye," she explained. "I don't mean to sound repetitive, but... Things do get a little difficult seeing. But I am adjusting. Trying to move on."
Was there anything else to talk about? Anything but the impending attack on Zebrica? Twilight sighed and apologized, "I'm sorry that I have nothing else to speak on. Safe Haven and a lockdown has become our new home until the castle is repaired, which could take anywhere from six months to a year and a half. Which means most of our lives is going to surround government talk."
She chuckled and looked to Dawn's mausoleum. "Which I know you don't care about. We'll talk about our favorite teams later."
The blowing wind and thunder took over the conversation. Twilight's smile faltered into a frown, eyes narrowed in anger. She shouldn't have to do this. Talking to her family behind walls of stone.
"They'll pay for what they did," she growled. "You both, and my citizens will be avenged. Psera will be strengthened once more, babies. On this, I promise. Good night, sleep tight. I love you both forever."
Twilight turned around and walked back towards the portal she never closed and put on her regalia. Hoof shoes, chest plate, and crown. Turning from Twilight Sparkle into Queen Arcadia. Just a few more tasks before delivering a good ol' Hearth's Warming present to their dear friends in the far East. Past Equestria, past the Hippogriffs, and a few relative miles before the Neightons.
She stepped back through the portal into a busy Safe Haven. Into the warmth of their temporary home. She was quickly joined by her Secretary of Defense Manny before walking down the hall.
"All Aquatas are primed and ready to move, your Highness," she reported in her rough voice.
Wow, this early? Queen Arcadia smirked and asked, "Just to be clear, how many Marrials are on each Aquata?"
Secretary Manny answered, "Well their size only allows five at most per Aquata, ma'am."
"Good. Get me reconnaissance reports of Zebrica so we can find the perfect place to strike. The best places would be the most populated ones. Deep inside, and their chosen flee point. Go."
Something happened. Something happened in Psera! Twilight Velvet screamed and quickly covered her mouth before anyone else could notice. "Something happened," she said.
Sunset too was worried and a little anxious. She looked up to Princess Celestia and Queen Novo to ask, "Is there any way for us to get over there quickly?"
Celestia shook her head slowly at the Comm Block and answered, "No. We would have to cross by sea. And I do not think it would be wise to." She raised a firm hoof before Twilight Velvet could start. "Queen Twilight is fine, because she has been receiving my messages but has also been ignoring them. They never come back to me which proves my claim. But someone in Psera was affected and hurt in the Castle. Their military is on alert for danger. Going to Psera will be like diving into a hive of angry bees."
As true as that was, Velvet was resilient. "But we have to do something!" She shouted. She pointed her hoof to the back of the castle. "My baby and her daughter might be hurt!"
"Unless we are summoned for help, we cannot go to Psera, Mrs. Velvet," Celestia sternly stated. "Psera is extremely strict on visitors. And we have no profound reason for a full three day travel across seas. That and it is very expensive to go only because of speculation."
Celestia jumped over the desk with the grace of a doe and landed on the carpet leading up to the doors. Her hooves urgently trotted towards the exit. "I will let Cadance and Shining Armor know of our discovery. If they have any recommendations, we will listen. Until then, all we have is a theory and suspicion that something has happened overseas."
Her departure left them a silence. A thick serenity that Starlight broke by asking, "Guess we have to travel to Canterlot by train now, huh?"
Sunset sighed and decided she may as well grab her chair from the front. Those were really rare considering only a few of them were delivered here from Psera. She better not lose one of the last few.
Merry Fire was the last pony Twilight expected to see waiting in her Safe Haven office. Let alone in her chair. The second Twilight stepped in and saw her, she ordered, "Get out of it."
She of course didn't. Merry looked up from the Comp System in the desk and pierced her green eyes into hers. "They're still holding forty-six prisoners in Serl, you know."
Twilight wrapped Merry in an aura and lifted her from her seat into one of the two sofas across. "I am very much aware," she responded. Then slid into her soft and comfortable chair that Merry herself was previously calling home in. She gazed upon the records Merry was looking at and summarized, "Unsuccessful interrogations. It's as if their lips are bolted shut. Only saying yes and no."
Merry stomped her hooves on the floor and loudly suggested, "Then we have to pull the bucking answers out of them! There's no way in the Underworld that a secret will be kept from us after what they've done. Not if I have anything to say about it."
Twilight admitted that she too was becoming extremely impatient. The darkness bubbling inside of her was rising to the surface right now in frustration just thinking about their resistance. But she pushed it back down and thought of a plan. A plan that made her heart freeze. As cold as this plan would be, they were in a war after all. Everything was a weapon.
Twilight looked up to Merry staring at her and asked, "You'd say I'm a fair Queen, right?"
Questions are good and all, but Merry wasn't expecting that one. She deadpanned a look and answered, "Too fair, if you ask me. Which you did."
"Good. I want you to remember that, okay? Follow me, we're going to Serl." Queen Arcadia stood up with Merry from her seat and walked back around for the doors. "Where's Gardeen?"
"She went home for the day," Merry answered. She pushed the doors open and stepped out with Queen Arcadia. "Nothing else planned, right? Don't you ever take off your regalia? You wearing it at seven in the afternoon is sort of... Strange."
Twilight chortled and replied, "Not where we're going. Gentlemen, we're going to Serl. I have a little interrogation that needs to be ramped up."
SERL. Solid Energy Revolution Labs. A Top-Secret city in Psera Northeast of Cop that holds underground testing of new weapons, chemical compounds, and whatever else that is believed to be tested before mass production. It also serves as a small naval base further back holding many top range Aquatas, weaponry, and soldiers.
It was cut off from the rest of the world by a large concrete wall that shielded the inside from any eyes that dared travel two hundred miles just to see it. Entirely restricted from the public, this city is made only for science, Eggheads, nerds, geeks, and the top knowledgeable ponies in existence.
But even knowledgeable ponies had to sleep. So it interested the Guards, any lingering scientists or technicians heading home that a Royal Pod Escort rode inside at ten o'clock at night. The moonlight alone provided very little sight. The street lamps highlighted their ten vehicles traveling along the entry roads under the tall white buildings creating Serl.
It looked just like any normal city. Holding entertainment, movie theaters, offices, and jobs. But unlike other cities, this one was full of responsible, consenting, respectful adults. Barely any trash littered the streets because all were aware of the environment. All businesses and accordances were organized. Buildings clean and tidy. All inhabitants worked to improve.
The Princess and Queen of Psera's Pod rode directly in between four of their escort pods camouflaged in light brown. Riding towards the building where they were keeping the arrested Zebras. When they took over the castle, many of them were killed by either getting shot, sliced, or blowing themselves up. But there were still many that lived and were now withholding valuable information. No more will their strength hold back the Pserateps. Queen Arcadia was going to pull that information out of them. No matter what she had to do.
Merry was seeing a new side to Twilight. Out of all the years she's known her, she's never seen her angry. But right now, she's passed that. She's furious. Even at this moment directly across from Merry, Twilight was glaring at the window thinking. It took them four hours to get here, yet she hadn't spoken a word. In the moonlight, the glare born from anger and trauma deepened. She knew her enemy was in there, and they were fighting against her. A grave mistake.
Their Pods parked on the side of the road in front of a tall white building near the rear entrance of the city. Its structure was similar to the embassy in Cop for Equestria, but more basic. Lights from the ground shined up through the darkness to highlight the Crest of Psera above the entrance. Columns supported a hanging roof overshadowing four steel doors protected by security out front.
The doors for Queen Arcadia and Princess Merry were opened, then they stepped out from the Pod's heating into the chill winter air. Merry was so happy to stretch her wings again. Even if it was inside the most brainy places on the planet.
Queen Arcadia put on a heavy coat over the purple latex suit beneath it. A single shining six-pointed star on her chest pierced through the night, a violet brightness among this dark atmosphere. In favor of light wear, she left a majority of her regalia at home, save for her crown. The Zebras would know who they were talking to when they saw that. The Queen's legendary wing length was already a cue card.
After urgently walking up the marble steps to the front doors held open for them, they entered in through into the foyer, very much familiar. Marble floors, spacious, and beautiful. The only difference would be the low ceiling. Overhead lights were dimmed to match the time beyond these walls. The lower levels weren't even near this state of peace and serenity. But they weren't here for the serenity.
A tense trip down in a pair of quiet elevators and they were now in the belly of the beast. The hidden basement. A place in this building not many knew about. A long cold stone hallway greeted them with leaking exposed ceilings for pipes. Warm hallway lights illuminated only specific areas of the trip down.
Queen Arcadia could make out the cells further from their position when they arrived. Unguarded. No reason to guard them, they couldn't get out even if they ate their hooves off. Queen Arcadia saw to that.
It seems Secretary Manny was becoming a little impatient as well. She was down here too, seeing to the interrogation with her own team circled up and talking. The second the clamor of hooves reached their ears, they stopped talking and turned to the source.
Upon immediate recognition, Secretary Manny and the Guards gasped and bowed.
"Queen Arcadia!" Manny greeted. "We weren't expecting—"
Arcadia stopped in front of her and sternly interrupted, "Where are they?"
Oh boy. Secretary Manny straightened up and glanced to Merry for a reference. She only shrugged. She didn't know what the Queen wanted to do. Arcadia was vague on the way here.
Manny focused back on Arcadia and answered, "In here, ma'am."
She turned to face a thick steel door with a single window and flipped on a switch next to it. The darkness beyond was cast aside for light so they could see the horrors within. Forty-Six Zebras held to a very long arching white wall. Their front hooves were chained to the ceiling above their bodies while their legs and heads remained free below. Evidence of torture was clear. Some were starved, beaten, and even shaved. But they still didn't get any information.
The second the lights turned on, they opened their tired eyes filled with fatigue and trained them on the door. Arcadia glared back with anger and ferocity in her heart. The murderers of her children were right there living, refusing to participate. This shall not be.
"Wake them up fully," she spat. "I'm going in."
One of the Stallions saluted and waved to eight more to follow him. He unlocked it and rushed inside with the other two.
"Wake up, don't sleep, open your eyes!" He shouted. "You have a visitor and you will show respect!" A few grunts and hits later, and the Zebras were awake and growling at them. At least eleven were mares, and thirty-five were stallions. No matter, they too would talk.
One of them, a Zebra with a big build and shaved head scowled and retorted, "We will never talk." A Guard knocked his head to the side with a baton.
"No one asked you to, wake up!" The captain shouted. Once all forty-Six were awake and glaring, he looked to the door's window and nodded. They were ready.
The door was opened and the Elite Guards moved in to take up positions along the wall across from them. The Zebras watched them with hateful yet careful eyes. Then looked to the door when the last pony they expected strolled in. Their expressions changed from anger and resentment to curiosity and uncertainty.
The smell made Twilight want to gag. But she trudged through and took off her fancy coat. One of the Zebras snorted and shouted, "Just because you are Queen does not mean you will always get your way!" That earned a punch to his already bleeding mouth.
His comment did not deter her. Once Queen Arcadia had her coat off and peacefully passed to Merry, she turned back to the Zebras. Forty-six, which one to pick? She hummed and tapped her hoof against her chin in the thick silence. Oh why not all of them?
She started off by sighing through the thick silence. All were silent before the Queen, for she speaks first. "Before I lived with the Pserateps, I was always interested in the Zebras. Your culture I saw as one of the most respectful ones. Full of color, love, fashion and honor."
Secretary Manny walked into the room and locked the door behind her while Arcadia continued her active speech. Her pacing was a signature, her words the unmatched calligraphy. "But I've also seen the Zebra have ceremonial battles. I've traveled a bit of the world and have witnessed your kind battle each other for the honor of another. For a position, for food, for love. And I have come to the conclusions that all of you are warriors. Your nation has a build similar to Psera's: Fighting and war. You're all fighters. You're all warriors."
She stepped towards the wall and stopped in front of the only big Zebra here. She leaned forward to smolder into his face. "Am I right? That you're all soldiers? You train your foals to be strong. To take on any enemy that tests them." He smoldered hatefully himself as a response. He remained tight-lipped. Not for long.
She rose back up and continued her pacing speech. "So where am I going with this? Why am I here so late at night talking about Zebrica of all places? Well..." she looked down to another and answered, "Because you bit the Queen without any reason in one of your battles. And she will not let you get away with that. Let's begin, shall we?"
Secretary Manny, Merry, and the Captain could feel the tense air she whipped up with those words. Merry had to shuffle her position just to get comfortable again. It was as if a bad gas spilled into their atmosphere.
Now that she had their attention, Arcadia stepped to the side and said, "Just like soldiers, you have taken an oath to protect your nation. An oath you have sworn to honor with your life. And all soldiers fight because they are motivated. They are pushed.
"What are you fighting for? I want to hear you say it, just this once. What are you all fighting for? Your country? Your honor? All soldiers seem different, but in reality we all have the same motivation. Do you know what that is?"
She trotted back to the Zebra from before and whispered aggressively, "We all fight for family. There is a flaw in all oaths that only I—despite all my years of witnessing takeovers and altercations—have seemed to figure out. You fight and die for your country. You kill and aim for your country! For your family!!"
The Zebra she was talking to was suddenly pulled from his sitting position up into Queen Arcadia's face. Really close. She could smell his horrid breath. Reeking with anger. One of her Elite Guards held a blade from his wings to the neck of one of the other Zebras attempting to retaliate. "But riddle me this: Are you willing to sacrifice everything you love for your country?" He glared into her eyes with anger and distrust. "Answer me, Zebra. Are you willing to sacrifice everything you love for your country?"
His answer? "I'll slaughter your family for my country," he snarled.
Queen Arcadia smirked and dropped him back to the floor with a loud pain-filled grunt. That smirk never left. "Good. Because I'm willing to sacrifice a lot too."
She turned around and walked towards the wall holding all her Elite Guard. "I'm sure all of my citizens know I'm a pretty fair Queen. I try to ensure all my ponies gets an equal share of what they're owed. And I've been like that all my life. A Shim for a Shim, an eye for an eye..."
Twilight stopped and raised her hoof to wave around. "Do you see where I'm going with this, Zebra?"
Oh please, this again? He grunted and replied, "My soldiers are willing to sacrifice themselves in the name of Narmeelah. You do not scare us, Sorceress."
Twilight smiled a dark smile to the wall and slowly turned around to face him with a shake of her head. "I wasn't talking about your soldiers," she said. Then whispered, "I was talking...about your family."
His scowl slowly dropped. Something they were all looking for. A look of fear. Queen Arcadia reached out with her magic into the world. She tilted her head back and looked to the ceiling with a glowing Violet eye. Her hair pushed away to display the burned side of her face.
"My soldiers are highly limited when it comes to interrogation," she said through her spell. "Even when you killed ponies on our land in a mass attack they still respect you and your lives. They follow the principles that I set for them. I on the other hoof have become impatient and forgone those reservations. I'm tired of waiting and I want my bucking answers. And you're going to give them to me because if you don't... Well let's find out right now."
Queen Arcadia lit her horn and summoned one of her endless amount of spells. The sound of sparkling resonated through the room while she worked her magic. This isn't the first time the Zebras have witnessed magic. But they were getting a bad feeling about this.
"It's not hard for me to find a pony with your magical signature," she explained. "All ponies on Equus have one. And if you're strong enough, then you can find them, and bring them to you."
Secretary Manny and the rest of the room glanced from the Zebra to Queen Arcadia before the brightness in the room intensified through a teleportation spell. A teleportation spell that brought three more ponies down in between them and their prisoners. Three more Zebras that pulled gasps out of the rest.
Two were clearly teenagers, with dark blue and black stripes, and short wild manes. One a mare, the other a stallion. Young and in their teenage years. The other was clearly their mother. She had dark red and white stripes with a short dark red mane and tail. There was a single braid on the right side of her face decorated with colorful wooden beads.
The three of them were sleeping peacefully in a bundle of love. Stacked on top of each other. Until Queen Arcadia said, "Remember, I am a fair Queen. An eye for an eye, right? Is that not the code for your military?"
The stallion she referred to attempted to move forward, but his hooves were chained to the wall. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. This must be some kind of magical trick! Some kind of rouse! But something was telling him it wasn't. That this was his real family!
The colt opened his eyes and immediately sat up straight. They weren't home. They were in a room packed with other Zebras chained up!
"Momma!" He cried. "Sister, wake up!"
The two mares were up and looking around before jumping to their hooves. The mother jumped in front of her children and shouted to the pony with the crown, "Who are you?! Let us go this instant!"
"Love!!" They turned their sights towards their father and husband and gasped. Helplessly chained to the wall bruised and battered.
The son gasped and slid down to the wall to attempt a rescue. "Father!" He shouted. Then turned to the pony responsible. The violet one with one eye and a long flowing Ethereal mane. The likes of which he's never seen before. Shimmering with stars and dancing to nothing. He cautiously stepped back to his mother and sister.
"Love" and the daughter ran over to try and break out, but the chains were too strong. Love turned to Queen Arcadia and ordered, "What have you done?! Unchain my husband, sorceress!"
Queen Arcadia spat, "Throw them in the corner. Do not be gentle."
Five elite guards rushed forward, grabbed their hooves, and lifted them off the ground kicking and screaming.
"No!" Their father shouted. He and the rest of their prisoners fought against their chains in an attempt to break free. But they held strong.
The three zebras were recklessly thrown in the corner on top of each other with grunts. Then the Guards stepped back to their prior positions. Queen Arcadia moved her nonchalant sight from the family to the prisoners. "Now, we're going to try this again. But this time with a twist."
Merry Fire has never seen anything like this before in her life. It left her speechless and uncertain. Hopefully she wouldn't do what she thought she would do. But Twilight's next action buried her doubts.
At the raise of a single hoof, all the cannons on the Elite Guards dislocated themselves from their suits. They floated into the air, like three dozen flies that attracted all eyes and floated towards the left corner of the room aimed straight for the family.
The prisoners shouted obscenities and curses. They knew what those things could do. They witnessed it with their own eyes. But Queen Arcadia was resilient. She looked down to the father gasping and crying in anxiety and said, "Now we're going to play a little game. I call it Ten Seconds. You have ten seconds to start talking, and I don't shoot for ten seconds straight. Now let's play. Ten..."
Secretary Manny stood from her seat and whispered, "Queen Arcadia, I don't think—"
Arcadia turned to her and answered her unasked question among all the screaming, "Our prisoners want to die with their mouths shut, that's why they blew themselves up in the castle! To make them talk, you have to play dirty! Eight!.. Seven!—"
The Father shouted, "Please! Please, not my filly!"
"Funny, that's what I said when my daughter died in my hooves! Six!! Five!!! Four!! Three!"
"Okay! Okay! I'll talk, I'll talk, just let them go, please!" Good. She had them right she wanted them.
Without removing the weapons from the crying family, Queen Arcadia shouted, "Why did you attack my country?!"
The Prisoner cried quickly, "There was a prophecy! A prophecy about the end of Equus following the birth of 'The Foal born from Darkness'!"
Dawn, Queen Arcadia thought. "What is this prophecy?! Do you know it?!"
"No, I don't know it, I swear!! Only the high priestess knows and she sacrificed herself!!"
Queen Arcadia didn't like that answer. The memory of her husband and daughter dying flashed through her mind and her heart once again burned with rage. She barely nudged one of the cannons and shot four times at the space directly above Love's head. Merry gasped and looked away when she fired. Then locked her gaze on the Zebras quaking in fear.
"I swear it!" He shouted. "That's all I know, I promise, please!!"
Arcadia shouted, "If you were after the child, then why a massacre?!"
"We had to keep you away from the child! That's it, that was the plan, distract you and sacrifice the child! That's it, that was our mission, I swear it! Please!"
Arcadia smoldered with her hoof still raised. Controlling the weapons of death and fear. Now the Zebras were shaking. She had them right where she wanted them: Fearful. Scared. Negatively anticipated. The emotion of satisfaction washed over her. The power to control. This was what she wanted from them.
Arcadia floated the cannons back to the soldiers they belonged to and clipped them back to their places under their wings. Assuring the lives of this Zebra's family.
"Thank you," she said to him. He stopped shaking and moved his scared eyes from his family to her. She bent low and glared into his eyes. A glare she hoped he would forever remember. "Remember... I am a fair Queen."