Its 2300 hrs, late evening, Grand Royal Palace, Royal Ward, City of Canterlot, Capital City of Equestria, Main entrance into the Royal Palace, a rainy day in Canterlot.
The light rain that starts earlier that evening has steadily increased to a medium downpour soaking the Capital city of Canterlot in a cooling shower. Slouching through the downpour on her way back to the Grand Royal Palace was very soggy and stressed Princess Celestia Silverlight. her long golden blonde mane and tail hair hang lifeless on her body.
The raindrops slowly ran off her gold tiara from on top her head to her snout and onto the shoulders of her drenched lilac-colored, below the knee-length dress. The gold collar around her neck is soaked with rain and tears.
Her twelve and two-third inch long, white with hint of pink bare feet squished in a soggy pair of golden heeled sandals as she approached the main entrance of The Grand Royal Palace, her home with her beloved Royal Foals.
After finishing her late afternoon court session in the throne room of the palace, Celestia received a ransom letter from a pony calling himself the 'Master Blackmailer'. In the letter the Master Blackmailer demanding that she pay 7,000 bits or the letters he has will be released.
At first, Celestia pays no attention to the letter until she continues to read the content of the message. At the bottom of the letter was a passage from one of her personal letters. Shocked, she ran to her Private bedroom and discovered that were stolen from her room. She dashes out and heads to the address on the bottom of the message to get her letters back.
~earlier that same evening at the home of the Master Blackmailer~
Princess Celestia Silverlight sits in the study of a charming Canterlot home in the Obsidian ward of Canterlot. Across from her sat a red unicorn stallion with a blond mane and tail. A defiant smile was on his smug snout. This unicorn stallion is Master Blackmailer, Coerce Money.
"I demand you return what was taken from my private bedroom, right this minute!" Celestia said sharply, slamming her fist down on top of his table, cracking the wood under her fist.
"Now, why would I do that, your highness? Right now, you are in no position to demand the letters. They are hidden, and if you don't pay up, your highness. I know a few nobles families willing to pay top bits for those letters, who want to get you off the throne of Equestria. Am I clear, your highness." Coerce said as a knowing smile form on Celestia's snout.
"I have not ruled Equestria for this long, without knowing the nobles families that want me off the throne of Equestria. As a matter of fact, many of them have tried and failed to do so. So I say you are in no position to keep my letters, Mr. Money!" Celestia said unconcernedly as Coerce rolls his eyes.
"I have forgotten you have gone through several scandals over your entire rule of Equestria and know how to weather them like a good little Princess. But what about your precious royal foals, your highness. Your nobles would love to get their hands around one or all of your foals. If they control your foals, they control you. So once again, you are in no position, what so ever, to demand anything." Coerce said, flashing a superior grin as Celestia gives a startled gasp.
Forgetting it's no longer just her and Luna. It’s her, Luna, and her babies, she must protect them from those evil nobles they are looking for any chink in her armor.
"By my light! You can't involve my foals in this! There's no telling what my nobles will do to my precious foals if they get control of them! They might threaten to hurt or kill my foals to get at me! I can't allow that to happen to my foals!" Celestia cries out in a voice raw with terror as tears begin to fill her light purple eyes.
"Save the tears, your highness, for some pony that cares. I don't care about what happens to those precious foals of yours. To me, those foals are nothing but a tool to get what I want. If few useless foals get killed, so be it, just as long as I get what; I want bits and more bits." Coerce said as he puffs up with self-importance looking at the time on the grandfather clock in one corner of the study.
"You are a vile and miserable little pony!" Celestia said bitterly as she gets to her feet and dashes out into the rain shower outside.
~back to the present~
Slowly the front door of the Royal Palace opens. Walking through the door was a soggy Princess Celestia. Her steps were heavier than usual as she gulps air furiously. The raindrops falling from her body masked the tears that caused her eye shadow to run.
The day Princess Celestia became a mother to her own foals was the happiest day in her long life. Now that happiness has been replaced with fear and panic. A vile and hateful Master Blackmailer has hold of some letters she wrote long ago when she was young.
'If one of my nobles' gets hold of my letters I wrote when I was younger, he or she would use them to gain the cooperation of one or all my foals. My babies would do whatever they are told to keep their mother's letters from being released. I would be under the thumb of that noble. A puppet Princess being protected by the ones she loves the most, her babies.' Celestia thought as she wandered aimlessly through the hallways of the royal palace for several hours.
She found herself in the private living area of the palace, standing in front of her son's bedroom door Prince Somnus. She felt strangely disembodied as her legs refused to obey the commands given to them by her brain. With the stubbornness of an old mare, Celestia steps slowly forward. Once over and through the threshold of the door, her legs started to obey her brain once again. Celestia's stomach fluttered as she stood in the darkened room, looking at her peacefully sleeping foal. She willed herself to speak, but the words never came to her lips.
'How hard can it be to simply ask my foal for help? I know he will say yes because I am his mother. Then why is it so hard to speak. All I have to say is "baby mommy needs your help". But I can't find the words to say that to him.' Celestia thought as tears once again fill her eyes. She quickly turns on her heels and runs out of the room.
The sudden sound of running woke Somnus up from his sleep. He opens his eyes just long enough to catch a glimpse of the end of a golden blond tail exiting his room. Interested Somnus rolls out of his bed and reeling with astonishment, as he finds himself standing in a puddle of water. After quickly drying off his dark blue, bare feet with a towel from his private bathroom, he touches the base of a half-moon shaped lamp on his nightstand; lights up his room nicely.
"Huh?" Somnus exclaims, noticing the large puddle about the size of a large and very tall mare.
"Mother?" Somnus exclaims he remembers seeing the end of a golden blonde tail leaving his room.
When he was fully awake, he came to no other conclusion than his mother being soaked and standing in his room. Somnus pulls on his robe and leaves his room in search of his mother, so he may ask her what she wanted.
"Mother!" Somnus called catching her as she was about to walk into her room for the night. Upon seeing her son face, Celestia begins to grind her teeth.
"Yes, Somnus, is there something wrong?" Celestia inquiry as she got an uncomfortable feeling as he performed a long and slow appraising glance of her.
'Mother is on pins and needles she's very nervous about something. Her body language is telling me she doesn't want me to get involved but her eyes are begging me to help. If I confront her by asking her why she was in my room, she will most likely clam-up and make up some excuse, so different tack.’ Somnus thought as he walks-up to his mother.
"I love you, mother, that's all I want to tell you, Good night," Somnus said loving, hugging his mother. The sudden gesture caught Celestia totally by surprise in doing so she once again tear-up.
"Somnus! Come back!" Celestia calls as he turns and walks back over to his mother
"Yes, mother?" Somnus inquiry
"Baby, mommy is in a very terrible predicament that needs your help. But its late if you are going to help me, please return to my bedroom in the morning, and I will tell you everything ." Celestia said in relief as she hugs him with her arms and wings and plants a kiss on his horn.
"All right, mother, see you in the morning," Somnus said as he heads back to his bedroom to return to sleep.
Its 0900 hrs, the following morning, Canterlot Royal Palace, Royal Ward, City of Canterlot, Capital City of Equestria, Private Living area, Royal Bed Chamber of Princess Celestia Silverlight.
'You are becoming so much like your father, my dear Somnus. A unicorn knight that not only comes to my aid but to the aid of the good ponies of Equestria.' Celestia thought as she watches Somnus through the mirror of her private bathroom.
"Somnus! On top of my desk, you will find a letter addressed to me. Have a look at it, while I get ready for morning court." Celestia called as Somnus walks over to her desk.
Walking towards the desk. He sighs aggravated as the desktop was littered with royal and personal documents. Sitting on top the pile of papers was plain-looking envelope address to Princess Celestia Silverlight with no return address. One end of the envelope was torn open, revealing the end of a folded letter.
Figuring this is the letter his mother wanted him to read, Somnus pulls the folded letter out of the envelope, unfolds and begins to read it. As he read the contents of the letter, his eyes start to sharpen and his jaw becomes unyielding. As sometimes he doesn't agree with his mother's decisions, this letter from this pony calling himself the "Master Blackmailer" is a different matter entirely.
"Mother!" Somnus calls as Celestia padded barefooted out of the bathroom and walks over to Somnus, who standing in front of her desk.
"I see you found the letter from the Master Blackmailer, Somnus," Celestia comments as she floats her gold tiara onto her head.
"Is this what you want my help with, mother?" Somnus inquires as Celestia shook her head as a single tear ran down her cheek. Her chest becomes heavy as a very protective mother; she never wanted to involve her foals in something like this, but the Master Blackmailer has forced her hand.
"Indeed I do my dear foal, this is the first time something has felt out of hand. I am unable to figure out a solution for this difficult situation. So I am putting my faith in you, Somnus." Celestia said her voice cracking as Somnus hugged his mother.
"I promise to aid you, mother," Somnus said reassuringly as his mother returns his hug and kisses him, once again, on his horn.
"But now ,I must ask you, mother. How far do you want to go with this?" Somnus inquiry as Celestia's eyes haunted by some inner anxiety.
"I am willing to pay the ransom, but not for the price the Master Blackmailer is demanding of 7,000 bits. If I do that, your sister will surely take notice of the withdrawal from the Royal Treasury of that amount. It's bad enough I have to involve you, Somnus, in this but I don't want to drag your sisters into this as well." Celestia explains as she pattered back into the bathroom to lightly comb her mane, followed by Somnus.
"I understand what you mean, mother. With Aurora as your bookkeeper if you take out that much from the Royal Treasury, she will start asking questions about it, and from what I gather, you want this affair to be handled very quietly." Somnus comment as his mother shakes her head again.
"So with that mother, how much are you willing to pay?" Somnus inquiry as Celestia sighs slowly.
"I can safely withdraw 2,000 bits from the Royal Treasury without your sister noticing the transaction that the normal amount I take out for personal use. If the Master Blackmailer is willing to take that much, I can have it sent to him by the end of the day. As a way to thank you for helping me, Somnus, I will fulfill your royal duties for your aunt today, so she will not get mad at you. Good luck, my dear foal, and may the sun bless you." Celestia said hopeful, as Somnus ran out of his mother's bedroom to try and negotiate with the Master Blackmailer for the lower price.
Its 1000 hrs that same day, Coerce Money's Canterlot townhouse, Obsidian ward, City of Canterlot, Capital city of Equestria, Coerce's study.
Ever since arriving at the home of the Master Blackmailer Coerce Money, Somnus has gotten down to business with the Master Blackmailer trying to negotiate the return of his mother's letters and a lower pay-out.
"The Princess is willing to pay you 2,000 bits by the end of the day for the return of her letters," Somnus explains very businesslike as he taps his finger against the lower half of his snout.
"Tell the Princess the price for the return of her letters is non-negotiable. The price is 7,000 bits, or I will sell the letters to one of her nobles." Coerce said, ruthlessly staring blankly at the stallion who was negotiating for the Princess. Upon arrive at the home of the Master Blackmailer, Somnus has not revealed who he really is.
"Everything is negotiable, Mr. Money. So I repeat, the Princess, by the end of the day, will pay you 2,000 bits for the return of her letters, not a bit more. I would say that's a great deal for you, especially for a pony that is only looking at the bits he can get out of the beloved Princess of Equestria." Somnus said sarcastically looking at the back of his hand.
"Like I said, Mr. Silverlight. The price is non-negotiable. I will take 7,000 bits in payment for the return of the Princess' letters, or should I say your mother's letters." Coerce said, knowing as Somnus recoil in horror when he said it was his mother.
"Yes, I know who you really are now. You are Prince Somnus Silverlight, the only son of her highness Princess Celestia Silverlight. If the Princess is willing to send her only son to negotiate for her letters, the letters are more valuable than I first thought and will command a great sum from her nobles." Coerce said greedily as he pushes Somnus out of his home, slamming the door behind him.
"Damn it!" Somnus exclaims as bleak, wintry feeling wash over him.
Upon arriving back at home, one of the royal guards told the Prince his mother wanted to see him in her private office. A sadden Somnus took his time walking to his mother's office not wanting to inform her, he failed to get her letters back and might have made it worse.
"With that done. How did that small assignment I sent you on, go, Somnus?" Celestia inquires friendly, clearing her office of Palace staff, leaving her and Somnus alone in the office.
"I-I am a sorry, mother! But I failed. The Master blackmailer will not take 2,000 bits for your letters. Plus, I might have made it worse. He's more willing to sell the letters to your nobles now." Somnus said with a hitch in his voice as he started to weep. At that moment, Celestia's maternal instinct kicks in, and she wraps her arms and wings around her sadden foal.
"It ok's baby, I should have known he would never go for something like that if that pony is willing to sacrifice my own foals for profit. Why would he take fewer bits for my letters? But at least he didn't hurt you, and you came home safely. But now I must ready myself and my family for the coming storm." Celestia said, comforting and caressing Somnus mane as her stomach constiricts to a tight ball.