Chapter 3
The sun gently carressed the land of Equestria with its warm beams of light as it slowly rose above the mountain tops. Every creature great and small emerged from their homes to greet the new day.
Princess Celestia lighted down on her balcony, having set the sun on its daily course. Today would be another uneventful day of court. What made this day different, however, was the company she was expected to recieve later that evening. It would certainly be a nice change from the monotony her rulership had slipped into, even if dragons could be so rude and ill-tempered.
Of course, even the mighty dragons had to respect the pony who had managed both the sun and the moon for a thousand years. She would also keep plenty of guards nearby; despite the peaceful gathering this was meant to be, her little ponies didn't trust dragons, and for good reasons.
But Celestia would treat this one with all the respect she did with any other foreign dignitary. It was her duty as princess to ensure peace between her people and the outside world, after all.
At long last, the day was ready to come to a close. As Celestia began the sun's descent, the powerful gusts of giant wing beats heralded the arival of the ambassador. She went down into the courtyard to greet him.
"Lord Brimstone, at long last," Celestia said warmly, "It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person. We trust your journey was safe?"
Brimstone nodded. "Indeed, Princess. And might I say, the stories of your fair beauty hardly do you justice." He brought down his head towards her and took a hoof in his claw, delicately kissing it.
Celestia tried not to giggle, but apart from Spike, it was rare to see a dragon behave so politely. "Shall We show you to your guest room? We're sure you must be tired from your long flight."
The princess led her guest through the castle down the long corridor. As they made their way to the guest chambers, an entity with neither image nor shadow followed close behind, scrutinizing the dragon.
Trace silently moved closer to the lumbering beast. Outsiders actually found these creatures majestic? The great lizard dragged his heavy tail on the ground, scuffing up the floor as he went. Not to mention his talons clacking hard on the ground and his scales grinding against each other with each movement. The assassin actually felt sorry for how easy these creatures were to sneak up on when they walked; nopony would hear his hoof steps of this big oaf.
Of course, Trace loved stealth. A creature like this was built more for direct combat, with its powerful muscles and fully armored hide. Trace had to respect the natural plating they had in common, even if Brimstone's was less refined.
The ponies, on the other hoof, were thoroughly undesirable. Their whole bodies were soft and fluffy, and most had only wings or a horn. Some had neither and had to rely purely on physical strength. It was a miracle such soft creatures had built such a thriving society. It was probably because other outsiders found them beautiful.
Trace realized he was in the perfect position to destroy the princess of the land that had defeated the changeling army and humiliated their queen. To exact such revenge seemed favorable, but disloyal; his orders were no collateral. But was the commander in chief to be considered as such? The queen hadn't said "kill no one else," only "no collateral."
Better not to risk it. Trace determined that if he were to make an attempt on her and fail, a being of such ancient wisdom would undoubtedly find a way to extract the hive's location from his mind. Then she would let him live long enough to see the destruction of his home and the death of his beloved queen. At least, that's what he would have done in her position.
The abassador's room was guarded from the outside, but from the inside, the dragon would be alone. Trace climbed onto the wall and slipped in at the same time as Celestia after the dragon.
"I hope you will find your accomodations satisfactory," said the princess, "You will have an attendant present at all times for anything you need."
"Thank you, your highness," Brimstone replied.
Trace glanced out the window at the garden where the princess's animals were settling down for the night. Several rare and exotic fish swam about lazily in a marble-rimmed pool. One of the fish caught his eye: a round, red one with purple spikes.
He remembered reading about this particular type of fish during his training. It was called a poison puffer fish, and was known to inflate its body and extend highly venomous barbs all over its body when swallowed by predators. The hungry animal would either suffocate, or if the fish was completely swallowed or managed to escape, the predator would likely succumb to the poison.
Trace smiled. Not only could he do this, but make it look like it wasn't even an assassination.
Brimstone called in the room attendant. "I'm feeling rather peckish. Would it be any trouble to ask for an assortment of gem stones?"
"Not at all, good sir," the pale pink unicorn mare responded and turned to leave, "I shall have them to you shortly."
"Thank you."
Trace climbed the wall in search of a good hiding spot where he could shed his cloak for just a moment to rest. He found a dark corner behind one of the decorative tapestries depicting pony knights wearing golden armor. This princess had too many of these tapestries; it didn't take someone with his abilities to sneak around in here.
The room attendant returned with a large, regailed cart filled with gems of all kinds from the royal treasury. Useless junk to a changeling, but a delicacy to dragons. Brimstone thanked the pony and waited until she left before taking the cart to the other side of the room.
The changeling sat on the ceiling and rested while he watched his new mark sit down in front of a large lecturn and begin writing a letter as he crunched contentedly on his last meal.