In a quiet and well shaded section of the outer city ring, straddling the border between the titanic airship docks and the opulent upper estates of higher nobility, sat a section of the upper Canterhorn that was, perhaps surprisingly, underdeveloped for such an ancient and prestigious city. Streets were charted and lain in matching with the rest of Greater Canterlot's disk, many a structure was built, and kept maintained by the deep pockets of the Royal Treasury, yet one could be forgiven for seeing the area as something of a black hole in the usually bright and shimmering city of white gold, over the last handful of centuries it had garnered something of a reputation as a jinxed money pit. Many tried to move into the area, or open businesses, a number of whom had their applications rejected outright by the Crown, and those that did not tended to pack up and leave within a hoof's breadth of time.
This was the Argent Quarter. It remained a mystery to many why the regal Princess of the Sun kept this place so functionally barren. Rumors circulated aplenty of strange happenings in the Quarter at night, strange ponies and sounds. Trysts, tales of crimes, lovers, and the lost... but most such tales were just that, tales. Of those that chose to make a living in this seemingly empty part of the city, most lived, or operated their businesses along Artemis Circle, the outermost radial of the Argent Quarter, that ran the length of the area from Citadel Way, bordering the Government Quarter, to Starfall Boulevard and the Knowledge district. Here, an eclectic sort tended to reside.
Off of Artemis Circle, along a cul de sac known simply as The Artemis Court, sat the headquarters of Cerise Crossroads Freight&Shipping, one of the few businesses that stood through the test of time in the otherwise empty region of the city, as it had for some centuries.
"So, why her?"
"Hm?"
"You heard me Cerise, Why Her?" the pale sarosian stallion intoned irritably, "Are you finally going senile old mare?"
"We can't go senile, Cross…" the mare deadpanned, finally turning her draconic gaze from the file spread across her desk, to look at her compatriot, "...though you, sometimes I wonder if something slipped during your Blessings."
"Shove it you old hag," he grumbled, taking a step closer to the desk, eyeballing the file, "I mean it, why her? She's nothing particularly special. Could see that when I met her for the final paperwork. Nothing outstanding or especially exemplary, no real connections, some experience in interior demolition which could be helpful, but has never been through a Gate before, so there's an additional week we'll be losing on the front end for her acclimation period. All she really has is that truck, the clothes on her back, and a string of medications that will be... less than ideal to procure because of the Screeners. The best I can say is that she's eager, and willing to drop most of her old life near permanently."
"Always so temperamental, you'd think after so long it would have mellowed a bit…" Cerise tutted, shaking her head, "...That's part of the reason actually. She's... unremarkable is not the right word, but doesn't really stand out. Though…. I'm sure that will change in time, the point is, while she has people in her life that will miss her if something happens, there's not anything about her worth searching for by anyone with real connections that side of the Glass. Our business is discretion, and though I could set up a thaumproof stack of non-disclosures and agreements, if something happened to any of the other candidates, at any point, even just general injuries one would expect from this kind of work, we'd get more scrutiny than we need," she paused, moving a particular sheaf of parchment in the cherry glow of her magic, "Besides, I've already taken the liberty of procuring a supply of the primary medications she requires... I.. called in an old favor," her expression shifted to a grimace.
The sarosian's eyes went wide, his stance shifting as he circled the desk to stand next to his boss, staring at the sheet, "You.. got Him involved. The Daybringer will know about this now, you realize that, right? So much for avoiding scrutiny."
"She knew about it the moment the long term residency forms were signed. The Daybringer still reads all of them personally, since such things are few as of yet. You act like she wouldn't know anyway, we may be beneath notice to most, beyond the reputation of dependable delivery, but after all this time she has not forgotten. By the Moon, you have gone senile Cross, I knew something went wrong all those years ago," the mare shook her head.
"Hardy har, seriously Cerise, why'd you get that old doublecross involved?"
"My brother is many things, but he is not a traitor, regardless of your thoughts on him. Sterling is still loyal to the Moon, he just..."
"Felt it better to work with the one who banished her in the first place as the most direct method of bringing her back," Cross finished for her with a severe frown, "I've heard that excuse plenty. Whatever the case, he still works for ol' sunny shine, and those pricks that worship her are part of why we still keep our heads down."
Cerise sighed and shuffled more parchment and regular paper sheets with her magic, slipping a few into a file and into a lockbox, before rolling the remainder up and tossing it unceremoniously at Cross, "She's also why our business continues to go unimpeded," she said simply, watching as the sarosian caught the bundle with a leathery wing, "just bring those forms to Citadel Circle for me... Sterling will be waiting on those so he can finalize our newest employee's requisitions..."
"I just hope you know what you're getting us into this time," he shook his head with a snort, tucking the bundle of documents into a saddlebag, "we've made something to be proud of these past several centuries, I don't want to see you throwing it away on some new curiosity."
"We'd both be long dead if I were prone to careless flights of fancy guano brains," the Noctis managed with a weak smile, pulling a crystal decanter from under her desk as she watched her oldest companion leave, pouring a glass of crimson to sip on idly.