The Olden World

by Czar_Yoshi


Mares Are Stubborn Sometimes

"If it looks like trouble," Valey said, standing near the entry to the room where Meltdown's suit was being engineered, "and smells like trouble, there's a decent chance it's trouble."

There were three ponies already in the room as Shinespark and Valey entered: Princess Celestia, President Kinmari and Meltdown herself, the latter standing in Shinespark's latest prototype. It was complete enough that Meltdown could stand and move, but was tethered on an incredibly short leash to the cooling block.

"Good evening, my little ponies." Celestia greeted them coolly, Gazelle missing from her aura. "There is much to discuss."

Valey blinked. "Where's the cat?"

"Imprisoned with the best security my entourage can offer," Celestia replied. "And under constant surveillance. He is quite battered, and should he try anything again, I will immediately know."

Meltdown frowned.

President Kinmari looked to be the least-happy pony in the room. "If these are the ponies we've been waiting for, your highness... may I request an explanation?"

Celestia and Meltdown had a staring contest.

"So, uhh..." Valey cleared her throat. "Gazelle went berserk and attacked some students."

"I am aware of that much." Kinmari's mane was frazzled in a specific pattern that suggested he was wearing a toupee. Had the situation been any less serious, Valey would have laughed. "What I want to know is why the prince of a supposedly-allied nation tried to kill my students!"

Meltdown's eyes shadowed, thoroughly put on the spot. "I don't know. I need to speak with him to understand his thought process."

Kinmari raised an angry eyebrow. "Are you volunteering to be the one to tell that first to my school board, then to the parents of the students who were hurt, then to the media who come for my school's reputation, and undoubtedly the politicians as well?" His face fell, pleading... though he had made it clear that he didn't need to. "Give me something more, here."

Valey cleared her throat. "Not to put too fine a point on it, but this is a dude who flew off the handle in the Empire as well. I had to beat him up once before, and the pony who recently destroyed the place probably wouldn't have if he didn't push her over the brink." She glanced between Celestia and Meltdown. "I really don't wanna point hooves, but he probably should have been locked up. And I was busy being stuck on a submarine."

"We tried to commit him," Kinmari stiffly replied. "Standard psychiatric care for someone with his level of apparent unwellness. But our hospital is not equipped for containing something that can do... that. We needed help."

"And to provide help, I would have needed to be more aware of the situation in the first place," Celestia added, glancing to Meltdown. "You and I had a conversation regarding the prince's wellbeing when I arrived here a week ago."

The tension in the room was almost enough to make Valey's coat bristle. No one was blaming each other yet, but who didn't have a clear case to pass it off on someone else?

Fortunately, Shinespark stepped in. "While I'm sure the parents and media outlets would love to have someone to blame, there are more important things to discuss. How are the students, and what do we do with Gazelle?"

Celestia looked faintly relieved. "Meadowglade, the one who was worst off, has regained consciousness. I have done what I can for all of them. The doctors believe she in particular will have a very uncomfortable night, but should be able to make a full recovery... with the possible exception of her cutie mark, which has vanished. That may require counseling once she is less distracted by the pain."

"Nice. Glad she's hanging in there." Valey wiped her brow. "As for Gazelle, is there any reason we can't put him out of his misery? Knowing our luck, if we leave him alive, we're inviting something to happen again."

President Kinmari's eyes widened. "Something like that surely would carry international repercussions..."

"Do not kill him," Meltdown cut in. "He is of my nation."

Celestia and President Kinmari both turned to regard her intensely. "Are you taking responsibility for him and his actions?" Celestia asked.

Meltdown narrowed her eyes. "Gazelle is mine. As the representative of the Griffon Empire, you may not kill him for this."

The heat in the room rose slightly. "I would hear your reasoning," Celestia said evenly.

Meltdown met her gaze without flinching. "He is one of the last of his kind and the high prince. It is true that he lead to issues before, but he had repented and was making a recovery prior to our exodus here. A true leader must have an intimate understanding of their own fallibility to make the most of their strengths, and with the present condition of the Empire, we need such a skilled prince to recover. Return Gazelle to Grandbell with me. I request this with the authority of Garsheeva."

Valey loudly cleared her throat. "You think he's gonna get better? Did you even see him back there?"

Meltdown's head whipped around. "Did you?"

"No, but I saw him in Izvaldi." Valey didn't give ground. "Cackling like a lunatic, being cruel because he thought everything was a joke. Someone who has to be beaten into submission twice is dangerous. I'm all for second chances, but this went past number two long ago."

"And after that episode in Izvaldi, he changed." Meltdown's voice was impossibly calm. "As I said, he was making a recovery. This is likely a truth most of you know, but sphinxes have an inherent chaotic side to their nature. It is something they must learn to fight against and control all their lives, and to expect one to fail only once is foolhardy. How many times have you done something you regret?"

Valey raised an eyebrow. "Like enabling someone to kill every last batpony on the continent? Including me? That's a little above and beyond normal regrets, lady. Why are you defending him!? If you had seen what he did in-"

"You didn't see him in the archives either," Meltdown forcefully interrupted. "I appreciate your concerns, but his future is my responsibility and I wish to see him returned to Grandbell as my charge."

"Enough." Celestia's voice was quiet, yet it carried a weight that stopped both mares in their tracks. "Meltdown, you act on behalf of the whole Empire, not just Gazelle. It is in your hooves. You cannot allow the Empire to accept the duty of deciding his fate without also allowing it to accept responsibility for his actions. I have ponies who will ask for justice. If you take him, will you give it to them on their terms?"

Meltdown eyed her evenly. "Out of all the ponies here, I would have expected you most to believe in the ability to be redeemed."

"I believe in it," Celestia replied. "I am also aware that the world is far broader than one sphinx and those who care about him. Your argument is made from care, not pragmatism, Meltdown. It is within the rights of your position to request his custody, but whether I give him over freely or refuse your request, it will strain the bonds between our nations in ways the Empire is not strong enough to accept."

Meltdown held her stance. "If you are our friends, you will give us this chance to recover our strength."

"...Allow me to rephrase things." Celestia straightened up, less welcoming than before. "It was on your counsel, which I trusted as Garsheeva's appointed representative of the Griffon Empire, that no action was taken earlier to further restrain High Prince Gazelle and keep him under higher security. In fact, at no point during that meeting was the possibility that he could be dangerous even discussed. And unless things have changed since my last visit to this school, the meeting room where we discussed this is bugged. Should a court for any reason request any evidence pertaining to this that President Kinmari has to offer, he would be legally obligated to turn such a recording over. If you wish to absolve your prince of Equestrian judgement, it will involve taking responsibility for his actions directly onto your own shoulders. I am not your princess, and I ask you this as your friend, not your superior: please put yourself and your nation first. Whatever your feelings for Gazelle, whyever you are trying to spare him from my own ponies' judgement, set them aside and do what leadership calls for."

Meltdown's ears fell, and for a moment she didn't have a reply. Eventually, she turned to Shinespark and Valey. "Help me. Please..."

Shinespark took a deep breath. "Come on, Valey. I think we need to adjourn and discuss for a while."

"Agreed." President Kinmari had been sitting stiffly to the back for a while, and was the first one out the door.

Celestia sighed, giving Meltdown a last look over her shoulder before she departed as well.


Several rooms away, everyone who had left caught up with each other, Celestia looking frustrated and President Kinmari clearly worried. "So what am I to do, Princess?" he asked, scuffing one hoof against the other. "I need stories to tell my ponies, and between you and me, I want one too. And the narrative I'm hearing is that the Empire's representative has terrible decision-making. Is that what you want me taking to the presses?"

Celestia sat down and sighed, rubbing her face with her hooves. "That stupid mare... Why does Garsheeva leave higher government functions in the hooves of a child...?"

"Not reassuring," President Kinmari warned. "You've been good to me and my school, Princess, and I want to be in your camp, here. But if I hold my silence about this past morning, it's going to look like school negligence was involved, and I can't do that even for you. I'm aware you have your own problems to deal with, but this is about to add to them unless I get answers I can use."

Celestia shook her head. "Meltdown is right, you know, when she says she speaks with the authority of Garsheeva. Garsheeva has a habit I disagree with of choosing her delegates with random and obtuse methodologies. Prince Gazelle is clearly at fault, and if for any reason he isn't made to answer it, it's going to create a problem. It will be a problem either way, but it would be a bigger one. But if he is forced to stay here, that could incur the ire of Garsheeva herself... provided she returns from wherever she's vanished to."

"Your Majesty," Shinespark interrupted with a bow. "I have to ask... how heavily is this going to involve us? Because this is exactly the kind of situation we prefer to stay clear of."

"Right. We have you to deal with as well." Celestia groaned and got up again. "That is almost impossible to estimate, but I would advise you to be prepared. While I could keep my earlier deal and either bestow you writs or allow you to collect them on your own, I feel you would rather avoid the attention that could come with any sort of investigation."

Valey frowned. "Real quick, what even is there to investigate? The important stuff's all plain to see: Gazelle's a psycho and he hurt some kids, and we kicked his rear."

Shinespark cleared her throat. "Like I told you, anyone who has anything to gain from this that doesn't involve caring about us, Gazelle or the students could come and look for anything they want to try to make evidence for an unrelated case."

Celestia glanced at her and nodded. "You're not new to this, I see. Would you permit me to make a suggestion?"

"Shoot." Valey shrugged.

"Are conditions in Ironridge survivable?" Celestia asked. "What would be the consequences if you had to return there?"

Shinespark frowned. "Last we were there, the city was without power, infrastructure and any sort of import export capability, with a denser population than it probably should have had. They still have food production capacity and should be able to meet basic sanitation and nutrition needs, and have a capable stallion in charge, but they're very isolated. They were working to fix that, though."

"Then I would advise you to return there as quickly as you can," Celestia replied. "I will give you my word as princess that once any furor from this has died down, I will visit Ironridge and find you, and we can resume our discussion. But if you wish to stay clear of whatever proceedings follow Gazelle's attack, I believe the north may yet be the safest place for you. How quickly can your airship do this?"

Valey cleared her throat. "Forget the airship, what about Felicity? The doctors just said she's not cool to fly."

Celestia folded her ears. "You have Writs of Harmonic Sanction. I think it would be much easier for a lone mare to avoid attention than a large group of northerners."

"They are saying you saved my students from Gazelle," President Kinmari added, addressing Valey and Shinespark. "If you asked me to keep one friend on the down-low who needs our hospital, well... I wouldn't like having her around if there are going to be investigators poking about, but I suppose I owe you a thank-you."

Princess Celestia nodded. "I could also arrange to have her brought to Canterlot via boat and train, where it would be much easier to keep her out of the public eye... if this is what you desire. I understand that you do not want to leave your friend. And I can promise that once she is able, if she wishes, I will help her return to Ironridge as well to rejoin you."

Valey frowned and looked away. "I'll... have to see how she feels about that..."

"There's still the matter of my projects," Shinespark interrupted. "How long would I have to prepare the Dream, if returning to Ironridge was our best path? And what about Meltdown's cooler?"

Celestia shook her head. "For your ship, I would allow yourselves no longer than it takes for me to return to Canterlot. The earlier, the better. As for Meltdown, that will be something you must discuss with her, as we could potentially make this much easier with her cooperation regarding Gazelle. Perhaps you can talk some sense into her yourselves, even." She got up again and started walking away. "I have a very eventful morning to prepare for, and I suspect the rest of you do as well. You should likely get whatever sleep you can. President Kinmari, let us discuss what we do next..."

"Yeah." Valey glanced at Shinespark. "You gonna stay here and bug Meltdown? I wanna check up on Starlight and maybe some other stuff."

"...Perhaps." Shinespark nodded. "Good luck, then. I'll see you around."