There were less ponies present than I expected.
Instead of a large room bustling with journalists, the fancy looking presentation room had less than thirty correspondents in it. Each one had their journals, cameras, interns, and other equipment to help them record their stories. At the front row, Applejack and Twilight Sparkle sat patiently, deep in a quiet discussion.
Celestia stepped up behind the podium at the front of the room. The rest of us, that being Princess Cadence, Princess Luna, and King Myself all took seats behind her.
“Good afternoon, everypony. I’m glad you all could make it here today,” Celestia welcomed the press. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions, so to get used to the way things were, we’ll start slowly. We’ve got a lot to cover today, so let’s get started with the basics. As I announced yesterday, we have begun negotiating peace between changelings and ponies. King Phasma is here today to answer questions you might have. Please keep your questions limited to him, the Fifth Hive– that being the kingdom he rules, the peace between our kinds, and changelings in general.”
She stepped away from the podium and motioned for me to take her spot.
“Starting right away, huh?” I whispered to her as I passed her.
“It’s going to be a long day, so it’s best to start immediately,” she explained.
I stepped up behind the podium and looked out over the small crowd. The flash of cameras made me flinch, but I cleared my throat and greeted the food.
“Hello everyone. I am King Phasma, but I hope you all know that already. I was hatched… not too long ago, but I’m older than I appear. I am the sole son of Queen Chrysalis still alive, and I have established the Fifth Hive after failing to usurp Queen Chrysalis during the invasion. I suppose I’ll take questions now.”
There was a flurry of flashes as the journalists all said their questions. They didn’t shout, they were professional enough not to do that, but they did immediately try to voice all of their questions at once. I picked a pony at random for the first question.
“You, over there in the ugly fedora.”
‘I wonder if he wore that fedora to get noticed, regardless of how tacky it looks. If so, he’s a genius.’
The pony stood up, “News Reel, Las Pegasus Weekly. What do you have to say about your involvement in the Invasion of Equestria?”
I blinked, “Ah. I was ordered to plan and execute the invasion by my mother, Queen Chrysalis. I did not have a choice, as refusal was simply not an option, and there were no alternatives. I had tried to search for any way to avoid war, but my token effort was not enough to uncover anything. I had too much going on to properly search for a peaceful solution.”
“Such as?” The stallion asked.
“.... I was working to uncover the fates of my siblings, plan the invasion, create a loyal power base, and appear nothing less than completely loyal to the Queen. Before you ask, my siblings, the last one having died around three hundred years ago, had… mysterious fates. My investigation into that matter yielded disturbing results.”
“What was your personal involvement in the Battle for Canterlot?”
‘Err….’
“I provided the main distraction, as planned, and searched for Princess Cadence while Queen Chrysalis dueled Princess Celestia. Then, finding Captain Shining Armor of the Royal Guard was added to my list of duties. I fought him, won, and captured him and Princess Cadence. Then I went and tried to kill Queen Chrysalis. I didn’t succeed. Next question.”
Several hooves reached into the air, with the ponies attached to those hooves asking their questions aloud.
“Mare with the tan coat,” I pointed to one.
“Name Drop, Canterlot Consortium. Why have you sided with Equestria, and why should we trust you?”
“Asking quite the question there. I have sided with Equestria because it was shown that peace was indeed possible. One of my closest friends discovered a way to solve our hunger– that being the sole and unavoidable reason for the invasion– without hurting ponies. Immediately, I dropped any other plan and embraced that idea. As for why you should trust me… I don’t think I can possibly answer that. It’s up to you all to decide if you can trust me, not the other way around.”
The ponies all diligently jotted down my words as the mare asked her next question, “When did you first decide to side with Equestria?”
I frowned, “That question is more complicated than it appears. I sided with a Princess of Equestria around December, before the invasion. Specifically, I was approached by Nightmare Moon, the banished-and-possessed Princess Luna, and was eventually offered an alliance. I was as desperately in need of allies, so I accepted the alliance. Equestrians wouldn’t be reduced to chattel slaves at best, and though it would most certainly suffer under her rule, Equestria would survive in the end. And, most importantly to me, I would gain a powerful ally that would help me kill Queen Chrysalis. It was the lesser of two evils.”
After taking a moment to finish writing my response, the mare raised her hoof again, “One last question, King Phasma. You are very insistent on your mother, Queen Chrysalis’s death. Why? For what reason have you founded this new Kingdom and declared war against your own mother?”
‘Now to call back to the seed I planted.’
“To answer that, I would have to start at the beginning of our relationship. One year ago, I was hatched from an egg.” There was a relative uproar in questions and confusion in the air. “Yes, one year ago, I was born. I’m… not actually that young, but that’s a longer, more complicated story. One year ago, Queen Chrysalis hatched me from an egg she laid and genetically modified. Then followed several months of intense training and learning, starting from the very first day. Not particularly full of motherly love, but what pushed me to outright treason against her was the aforementioned fates of my siblings. Their explained deaths didn’t add up, and I worked hard to uncover the truth. What I learned was that following my successful invasion of Equestria, I would… share their fate. My siblings, the few that had not had their lives callously thrown away and used up like matchsticks, were…”
I paused and rubbed the side of my head, leaning against the podium. If I concentrated hard enough, which I actively tried not to, I could feel the Nightmare’s drilling pressing against it.
“... They were alive. About five of them, in the absolute barest definition of alive. Caught on the brink of death and refused that release, Queen Chrysalis had taken their often horribly torn-apart and mutilated still-living bodies, and… and lobotomized them. Trapped for centuries, dying but unable to die… I ordered their release to happen once Chrysalis and I were too far away from the Hive, but there was something else I found. An empty vat, similar to the vats that each of them were kept in. One empty vat. One foolish Prince who followed mother’s orders… It seemed obvious to me that Chrysalis had no intention of sharing power following the end to our starvation. It was her, or it was me.”
“So you sided with Equestria purely out of fear?” A pony asked, out of turn.
I scowled, but could not rebuke him. It would have looked bad if I refused to answer a question like that.
“N–no. I had searched for alternatives to war, but I failed. I admit that I failed to find a way for peace, and that I didn’t dedicate as much time or resources as I could to finding an alternative path. But I tried from the beginning to avoid the invasion. I even sided with an obviously-evil demon to avoid dooming your species, but to be fair, I gained quite a bit from that alliance. Next question.”
More ponies asked questions. One in particular glared at me in a way I could not ignore.
“Applejack,” I said, pointing to her.
She stood, then suddenly froze before she could speak. Casting a look around, she cleared her throat, “Applejack, Element o’ Harmony. Do ya feel sorry for your actions during the invasion? For tearing families apart, and–” Applejack cut herself off, staring past my shoulder, where I knew Celestia was sitting.
‘A helpful glare from the small sun Princess? Who knows, I’m just glad she shut up.’
I sighed, “I am sorry it happened. One action taken by me during it was… perhaps too far. I had taken a ‘shortcut’ so to say, and hurt a pony I shouldn’t have. However, at the time, I was far from the most collected individual, and I made that mistake in pursuit of something I cannot apologize for; the invasion was to save our species, and for that reason, I cannot condemn it. I am relieved beyond words that such a violent status quo is no longer needed and that we can work together, but as a Prince then and King now, my first duty is to my people. I am sorry the invasion happened, but I cannot be sorry that I did everything I could to save my species from extinction.”
“And what about whatchya did after the invasion?”
‘You better not…’
“Any ponies harmed afterward were harmed due to self-defense. I go out of my way to make sure things are handled as bloodlessly as possible. Next question.”
“Who were these hurt ponies?” Another pony asked, taking advantage of the immediate silence following my answer.
More camera flashes meant that ponies really wanted an answer to that.
“The ponies captured by the Fifth Hive consist entirely of either Division-P inquisitors, whose actions will be covered later today, and individuals under the employment of Count Double Dealings. Next question.”
Applejack raised her hoof again.
“You, the stallion with red eyes,” I pointed away from the Element o’ Harmony.
“Hot Take with the Canterlot Times. King Phasma, what are your plans following the end of the war with Queen Chrysalis?”
I glanced back at Luna. She gave me a half-nod.
“The Fifth Hive will work towards bringing back our species from the edge of extinction, as well as furthering our ties to Equestria.”
“Could you give me some examples of quote, ‘furthering ties?’”
“The Fifth Hive has numerous economic interests, and the amount of involvement of changelings in Equestrian economics grows with each passing week. Our two militaries will be cooperating at a much closer level as time goes on, as the need for a united front grows. Finally… I hope to further our ties to Equestria at the top level.”
‘That’s one way of saying it…’
“Could you clarify that last statement for us?”
The sudden thought of yelling ‘I’m banging Luna,’ did nothing to help my sudden nervousness. If changelings could blush, this would be ten times as awkward.
“Ah, well, you see, Princess Luna was the one who befriended me and helped bridge the gap between our kinds, and, uh…” I tapped my forehooves together, “... has pursued me in courtship.”
‘There.’
I breathed out slowly as all the reporters jumped from their seats and belted out questions.
Celestia returned to the podium, and I made room for her, returning to my seat next to Luna. When I sat down, she reached over and held my hoof.
“You know, they must be suffering from quite the whiplash seeing the Prince of Dread act like a nervous teenager,” she whispered.
“Uh huh, I’m so very fearsome,” I muttered.
“You did well, Phasma. You were endearing, if nothing else.”
“Thanks, Luna. Your support means a lot to me.”
She smiled and nodded as Celestia managed to get the crowd back in control.
“Yes, it is true, Princess Luna and King Phasma are in a relationship,” Celestia confirmed. “What that means for our two Kingdoms is up in the air, however, I am happy to see my sister have such an opportunity for companionship. From complete isolation to… Ah, forgive me. I shall answer any questions you have regarding the peace from our end, my little ponies. Yes, Quick Read?”
The pony she pointed at stood up, “Your Highness, what changes to our daily lives will this bring?”
“Effectively none. This is a great leap forward for our effort to end the war, but there are less than a thousand changelings within the Fifth Hive at the moment. The odds of anypony even seeing a changeling in their life at the moment is almost zero. Exception being anypony in Canterlot, as that’s where the Fifth Hive is temporarily located.”
“One more question, Your Highness,” the pony said. “The ponies held captive by Queen Chrysalis will still be released, right?”
Celestia nodded slowly, “Of course. That was never in question, my little pony.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Next question?” Celestia prompted. “Hmm…. Sir Double Check, go ahead.”
‘Double seems to be a common name–’
The pony, a brown unicorn, stood and spoke, “What will be done about the disappearance of Count Double Dealings?”
‘... Fuck. Family, I take it? Guess he didn’t trust any answer from me, or something.’
“Count Double Dealings’ status is being investigated by the Crown. The matter will be properly investigated, and handled with justice and future matters in mind.”
“Future matters?” Double Check quoted back.
“The war is not over, my pony.”
Double Check stomped angrily, “So my nephew’s disappearance is to swept under the rug–”
Celestia’s voice drowned him out, “Your Nephew will receive justice, but there are thousands of lives at stake. Putting everything on hold or at risk for a single life is something I cannot do.”
“You did it when you failed to prepare us for Nightmare Moon’s return,” Double Check snapped.
The ponies gasped, and Celestia leaned back from the podium. She took several moments to recollect herself and stamp down on any errant emotions. This I could tell only due to my empathetic senses, as her body language and facial expressions were kept under complete control.
“Sir Double Check,” Celestia said in an all-too-harsh tone, the kind that your mother used with your full name. “The matter. Will be. Investigated. I have no intention of letting anypony go unharmed, unfreed, or unavenged, depending on their status. However, we must do this with patience and calmness. Making demands will only get more ponies hurt, or any due process irrevocably destroyed. The Crown extends its sympathies to all ponies affected by the invasion in any way, especially to those whose loved ones' statuses are in question.
“Now. Sit. Down. I understand how fearful you might be, so emotional outbursts are not only understandable, but expected, but we must conduct ourselves with decorum. This is still Equestria. We are still in Canterlot. Let us not forget that.”
Celestia cleared her throat, “Now, I believe that should do it for the first round of questions.” She gestured to several aids who stood to the side of the room, and they began distributing papers to the press. “This is the official first debriefing on the matter of Division-P. Since there is much rumor and speculation about Division-P, we shall go over the basics first. Division-P was a covert organization in all but name, whose purpose was to pursue changelings within Equestria. To pursue this effort, in conjunction with the Royal Guard, Division-P hunted down all known changelings within Equestria, following what evidence they had. Several innocent ponies lost their livelihood due to their errant accusations, and several were incarcerated for extended periods. I will give you all a few moments to read over this in detail, now.”
I raised an eyebrow and looked at Luna.
She noticed my expression and whispered, “You have one half of the story, we have the other. ‘Tis all true.”
“Oh. That makes sense. These ponies would have petitioned the Crown, and so their petitions– probably suppressed– would now be in your possession?” I guessed.
Luna nodded. Celestia began again once many of the ponies looked back up at her.
“These are the lightest of the crimes and accusations levied against Division-P, and are not the cause for its liquidation and arrest of all former members. After capturing changelings– and very rarely in the beginnings of its operations, ponies– Division-P held the changelings in the dungeon known as Locksdale Prison.” With another gesture, the aids distributed a second packet. “This contains the preliminary report of survivor eyewitness accounts of their incarceration within Locksdale. Under the orders of Princess Daybreaker…”
As Celestia explained the Inquisition’s actions under her Nightmare-possessed self, I sampled the ponies’ emotions. Growing discontent, disgust, and frustration underpinned every pony’s confusion.
‘Good.’
Several looked to be sick at points, especially when they got to the included photograph of the changeling who had starved to death in Locksdale.
‘Scalene. She was twenty years old. Served in the Third Legion, under my direct command. No one knows how she was captured, but many saw her die. She was experimented upon before she succumbed to her slow death, her injuries proving too much for her to survive while on the small rations she was eventually given. The dossier doesn’t have any of that, just a caption listing her as ‘A changeling who succumbed to injuries due to starvation.’ No name. No story. Just her end.’
I missed Celestia ending the presentation of facts, and her invitation for questions.
Several ponies raised their hooves quietly, with most still glued to the papers in their hooves.
“Princess…. How could you let this happen?”
I also missed who said that, but I didn’t miss Celestia’s response.
“I am sorry, my little pony. I myself had succumbed to feelings of hopelessness during the Invasion of Canterlot, and was possessed by an otherworldly apparition known as a Nightmare. Princess Daybreaker, the melding of myself and this Nightmare, ordered these atrocities to be carried out. I…” Celestia momentarily glanced back at Luna, much like I did. “I cannot accept responsibility for these actions, but I accept all responsibility and blame for letting Daybreaker into this world. This all happened due to my failure to protect you all, and for that I’m sorry.”
There were several more questions about the specifics of Division-P: who was in it (typically Canterlot unicorns), how they got away with this (Daybreaker had given them carte-blanche), how they could even come to do this (still being investigated), and so on.
Eventually, questions came back around to Daybreaker.
“Your Highness, what’s stopping this Daybreaker, or Nightmare Moon even, from returning?”
Celestia nodded to the two Elements in the front row, “In addition to being prepared with the Elements of Harmony for such an occasion, us alicorns are working together to investigate all matters pertaining to Nightmares; from their creation, to how they manifest, to pursuing their extinction. Their primary form of possession requires the subject to be at a very low point in their life, so together we must learn ways to counteract this, and to make sure none of us are so emotionally vulnerable.”
Twilight Sparkle looked– tasted even more so– surprised, and raised her hoof. She waited for the Princess to call on her, “Princess Celestia, what do you mean by exterminating these Nightmares?”
“I believe King Phasma can answer that,” Celestia said, stepping down and inviting me up.
I took the podium and nodded to Twilight, “These Nightmares are longtime enemies of changelings. Though this fact was unknown even to us until extremely recently, they have been the chief driving force for our extinction, having toppled at least one changeling civilization already. It is hypothesized within the Fifth Hive that they are the ones who have driven us to living far out in the Badlands, away from any form of civilization and in a particularly defendable position. As for their extermination, they have made their desire to end the world quite clear, and no form of peace can exist between us.
“They are demons in every sense of the word; their morals are incomprehensible, their nature is unknown, and their intent cannot be understood. All we know is that they want power, and for us to be hosts for them, therefore ending our civilizations. Their leader, known only as Epitaph, is currently missing, locked away somewhere, and must be “freed,” to quote one Nightmare. In conjunction with Equestria and Vallachia, we will scour Equus for these abominations, and put an end to them for the safety of Equus.”
I stepped back, but Celestia held up a hoof.
“Any questions?” She asked the crowd, keeping me next to her.
Together, we answered more questions about the Nightmares, the three known possession cases– we had left out the case of the lone changeling being possessed. I suspected Celestia didn’t want them to think that any person could be possessed, only alicorns and changeling royals.
All the while, I kept my focus on Twilight and Applejack. The two had drastically shifted moods since the beginning of the press conference, much like every other pony here. Applejack for her part seemed to have lost much of her anger, or rather, redirected it elsewhere. When she looked at me, the spite no longer lingered in her gaze. In its place, a concoction of complicated emotions clouded any clear reading.
‘I suppose that’s a win for me.’