//------------------------------//
// 2.3 - Questioning 
// Story: Royal Rewrite - The winner wrote the history 
// by Zalmax 
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Celestia’s interrogation was interrupted as the doors to the throne room flew open. The ponies in front of her, already nervous and agitated from the questioning, trembled in their hooves at the sudden sound. Some of them turned to look but most didn’t dare turn away from the Queen.

Luna was in full Royal appearance. Gone was the blue pony and in its stead was a Goddess dark energy swirling around a black body. Her appearance was appropriate for a court session but it was very different from how it used to be. Instead of regal, it was intense, with her powerful aura flaring across the throne room, much like how Celestia used her bright aura to fill up the hall.

Celestia noted her sisters mood and couldn’t care less. Instead she patiently waited for her sister to approach her, as she knew she would. And she waited for her sister to speak her mind, as she knew she would.

Celestia would then tell her to calm down or something to that effect, because court protocol required it. Her sister would then throw a tantrum. And while the assembled ponies would be in shock, history itself would soon forget the incident as quickly as it had all the previous.

Luna floated the bundle to the empty space between Celestia and the assembled guards. She put it on the ground and let it slip open for all to see. Gasps could be heard from the all the guards. The only one who didn’t blink an eye was the Queen. She just waited.

Princess Luna floated the scroll over to Queen Celestia whose magic grabbed it with a silent sigh, as she unfolded it and started to read.

She quickly scanned its content and proclaimed with her royal voice: "It would seem that Princess Luna has found the traitor."

Celestia looked out over the agasp assembly as she continued, "What is troubling is how Lieutenant Ladyhawke was written off as a suspect from the investigation. Wasn’t it Captain Quicksmite who said it was impossible for Lieutenant Ladyhawke to be responsible as Ladyhawke hadn’t been guarding the prison during the time the prisoner was there? Also, did you not personally vouche for her and assured the investigation that she was innocent?"

Captain Quicksmite had been in a catatonic state looking at the corpse since it was revealed on the floor but as the Queen’s voice adressed her she came to attention, trying to process what was said.

The silence that followed was deafening. Eventually Captain Quicksmite’s broken voice could be heard in the halls, "Yes, it was I who insisted that she’d be written out of the investigation."

She really struggled to get the words out as she continued, "And I was deceived in my royal duties and failed my vocation, effectively lying to the her Divine Grace and Gurdian of the World about what had transpired." 

Celestia didn’t pay much attention to Captain Quicksmite. Deceived ponies wasn’t really anything new for someone who had been around for as long as she had. Usually a quick execution would prevent anyone else from repeating her mistake until a new generation replaced the old and everything they had learned.

Her main focus was on Luna. Celestia was wondering why Luna hadn’t thrown a tantrum yet. The logical explanation was that she had more troubling news from the Dragon Land and that kept her from getting distracted by this incident. 

"Princess Luna, what can you contribute to the current situation?"

The dark energy from the princess blazed in her fur as she royal voice filled the throne room, "Contribute!? Contribute!! Our Queen asks what can be contributed to this horrible situation? A tragedy above all else has taken place and our Queen wants me to contribute?"

Oh boy, here it comes, Celestia thought but her stoic appearance didn’t reveal any of her thoughts.

Luna trotted up to Celestia, putting her nose close to Celestia’s ears as she quietly spoke between grinding teeth, "Your harsh punishments continue to rip apart, not only the kingdom, but even the court itself. It must stop!"

"VOICE!" Celestia shouted back at her, "Nopony should ever wonder what a royal is saying. No pony within earshot should fail to hear our voices. We do not whisper and susurrate leaving ponies in doubt of our thoughts. The royal will shall be done, and the royal intentions must always be publicly known by everypony, and never hidden in whispers or one-on-one meetings."

"THEN LET THIS PRINCESS SPEAK SO EVERYONE CAN HEAR." Luna screamed loud enough for everything inside the castle walls to hear before she continued, "The harsh punishment from the Queen must cease immediately. We will no longer accept it. This has gone on for too long and it’s wrong. So very, very wrong!"

"MANNERS!" Celestia angrily replied. "We are glad your voice is restored, but you still need manners. Do not pretend you know the intrisic details of creating balance in a kingdom as large as Equestria."

Celestia having Laydyhawke’s scroll floating in the air, suddenly pushed it towards Luna, "Here you can find your next assignment. It would seem that the source of all this trouble are the minotaurs you recently brokered peace with. Perhaps our Princess should ask them why they perform escalating hostilities that caused the current situation? If it’s war they want, I can personally eradicate their little tribe from the surface of this world, but you brokered peace, did you not? You didn’t want their hostilities to be met with violence. Isn’t that so? No?"

Luna was shaking with anger as she grabbed the scroll with her magic. Her first thought was to destroy it as an act of contempt for her Queen’s assignment, but she reminded herself what it was. The final testament of a loyal pony who worked hard her entire life to satisfy the will of the crazy royals in Everfree forest. Her legacy deserved better than being torn to pieces in a petty squabble.

Luna looked at Ladyhawke’s remains. With her magic she wrapped it up in the blanket she had used on her way in as she once again started carrying it.

"It’s our intention to go out and give the Lieutenant a funeral. Anypony here who wish to attend may do so."

Luna stood still and waited for the ponies to react. The lieutenant may not have been the most popular pony around, but Luna knew she had at least some close friends. If Ladyhawke had been the assistant of a less fanatic captain she surely would have had more friends, even if all of them would now officially disown her due to her branding as a traitor. 

Nopony dared to move so Celestia decided to speak.

"We have found the traitor, and we know who caused the investigation to miss her involvement. Anyone who wish to oversee the dispatching of the corpse is welcome to do so."

Several of the assembled guards finally decided to bow down and back away. It was difficult to know if they really wanted to pay their respect to Lieutenant Ladyhawke or if they just wanted to get away from the Queen, but they did move up to Luna who started to trot out of the throne room.


~*~*~*~*~


The castle and its garden was surrounded by a big wall with a single gate. The road leading through the gate led out out of the Everfree forest. Just outside the gate there also was a big path leading towards a settlement where all the ponies working in or at the castle lived. Since ponies weren’t allowed to share roof with the divine royals, they all had to live in the settlement outside the walls.

The settlement was obscured by trees and not visible from the road. This was by order from her majesty the Queen. The royal castle in all it’s glory made the settlement look simple and the Queen didn’t like the idea of a visible shantytown huddling next to the castle wall.

Opposite the path to the settlement was a smaller trail leading deeper into the Everfree forest. It was mostly unused since it was quicker to exit the forest through the main road and use various roads leading around it. Atleast if you were pulling a cart or a wagon which was the customary way to bring what you needed when travelling.

The smaller path also led to a cemetary where ponies could be buried. The ponies following in Luna’s hoofsteps knew the rules regarding that cemetary. Traitors weren’t allowed to be buried there. They had to be buried or burnt someplace else. Someplace where an honest loyal pony shouldn’t have to go.

As Luna was levitating the corpse towards the official burial ground she could sense the unease in the ponies following her. This may be a good time to tell them that the harsh punishments must end and the burial of Ladyhawke marks a new era. Then again, with all the poison polluting the lieutenant’s body, it may be prudent to bury it a bit on the side.

Luna figured a bit outside the official graveyard would be fine. It was probably closer than allowed, but Luna didn’t care about that. She didn’t know how the poison worked but she considered it wise to bury the body away for the sake of future diggers.

The ponies following in her hooves then saw something they never seen before. Princess Luna using her magic to dig a hole in the ground. Luna using her magic wasn’t anything new, but for a royal goddess to sink so low as to dig graves for a regular pony, was a serious breach of etiquette.

There were ponies in the settlement assigned to groundskeeping, so this odd behaviour made the guards in the procession feel uncomfortable. The unease and malaise could be seen in their faces had Luna but turned and looked, but she didn’t, as she focused on the body of the mare she so recently had tried to save.

Even if they had said something she wouldn’t have cared. Luna didn’t really care much for protocol or ceremonies. Her sister used to nag her about how very important it was. Not because the royals had any use for it but according to Celestia the regular ponies did.

An awestruck pony facing a royal Goddess could rely on strict protocol and ceremonial greetings to give them confidence and assurance that they handled the situation properly. If it wasn’t for those rules, how would they know if the divine visitor were pleased with their performance or disgruntled and expected more?

Luna didn’t care for any code of behavior during her nightly court and wished the day would adopt the same policy. Let different ponies greet royals in a different way if they like. Celestias notion that ponies who did it differently would start worrying that they did something wrong or worse than the other was ridiculous. A pony could always ask. That’s what she encouraged during the night. To question, to listen and to think. Luna was convinced that it worked if you just had the patience to let them get used to it.


~*~*~*~*~


Back in the throneroom the commotion after Princess Luna’s revelation had settled and the Queen had taken charge of the situation. She had given out instructions. Guards had been dispatched to uphold different duties or to spread the word of what happened through the proper channels. Celestia made sure that every citizen who wanted to know what was going on had a full transcript of the Queen’s interpretation. As all the important tasks were arranged, she looked at the miserable pony in the throne-room.

"Captain Quicksmite, can you tell us what the apropriate punishment is for your crimes against the crown?"

Captain Quicksmite took a deep breath before she answered, "For a royal officer deceiving her Divine Majesty, the punishment is execution."

"You are correct. Even though your intention wasn’t to mislead, intention is for common crimes among commoners. But lacking intent is not an excuse when working as a royal officer who requires exceptional behavior in every possible regard. However, in this case we believe our Royal Guard can learn from this. By our authority as Queen and ruler of Equestria, I hereby sentence you to hobble, but unlike other ponies punished in that way you will not be discharged from the guard. In fact you will remain a captain, so everyone can see the aftermath of your mistake and learn from it."

Barely a voice, and more of a whisper, Captain Quicksmite squeezed forth, "Yes your Highness, may your divine will be done."

"You’re still a captain, so go ahead and make sure the order is carried out. We give you the choice of leg. Dismissed!"

Captain Quicksmite was shaking in her hooves as she performed a formal bow and backed away. She slowly rose and looked around, still reeling from shock and acting in slow motion. She selected a guard known to wield the axe with good proficiency, and commanded her to follow. Again, with a voice barely more than a whisper.

Celestia looked on as the jolted Captain stumbled away so destitute of the powerful authority she usually wielded. It was a pity really. Celestia would never play favorites. All ponies in her Kingdom were equally valuable and any punishment of a single failed pony only served to guide the rest.

That Quicksmite was allowed to live wasn’t because she was a favorite. It was because she was good at explaining to others the correct way of how to be loyal and how to serve the crown. Yes, that’s it. That was the reason she was still a captain. Not because the Queen valued her more than the others.


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