//------------------------------//
// Prologue 
// Story: Metal Working 
// by 1000Fights 
//------------------------------//

	Princess Celestia had just raised the sun when Ignatius and Aquinas emerged from the blacksmith's forge. The yellow locks of the sun's hair flowed gracefully over Equestria as the golden star rose happily into the sky. The door to Metal Ringing shut softly as Twisted Horns said good day to the pair and went off to finally get some sleep. The brothers on the other hand, were now both wide awake and walking in the corridors leading toward interior of the castle. The light was shining beautifully past the windows, and when the siblings got to the portion where the hallway became open to the air, the real magic was revealed. Ignatius and Aquinas were both met with the sight of the Canterlot garden. Fall had arrived. The leaves had already changed color, and almost all fallen off, but the beauty only intensified when all the brown and red hues of the season's bloom were revealed to them.

"Magnificent. Isn't it?" Aquinas asked his brother when the Marine halted in his tracks and looked upon the sight in awe. The officer himself smiled when he noticed the bushes he would sit by and read his magic tomes were now a heterogeneous mixture of every fall color. 

Ignatius himself was entranced by the trees and how through the holes that were made when the leaves had fallen from made them all look like exploding stars when the light of the sun shone through them. "Yeah." was all he could say.

"A changing season, for a changed man." Aquinas chuckled as he spoke.

Ignatius only repeated the previous word.
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The brothers had taken in all they could stand from the Canterlot garden and now have moved on. As they walked, Ignatius couldn't help but strike up a conversation. 

"Has a lot changed since I have been out?" he asked. "I would have thought something would have happened."

Aquinas' smile faded to a face of hard stone. He let out a deep sigh before speaking. "A lot of things have changed since you have been in that coma. King Hansvilter has become increasingly more hostile. He is sending troops to the outer reaches of the Equestrian provinces and certain precious materials, along with traded goods, have gone missing, though we have no evidence it was their doing. The Zebra Kingdom has fallen into a civil conflict with the government facing off against guerilla forces. And if that wasn't enough, things here on the home front are just as chaotic. Riots in the streets of Canterlot have broken out now to twice a week rather than just once. The icing on the cake however is the fact that the upper crust seems to make it a point to push the lower and middle class over the edge a little farther, which seems to be making things even more dangerous. Everything seems to be going to shit."

"What has Princess Celestia done to offset all this?" Ignatius asked.

"Next to nothing." Aquinas stated truthfully. "Then again, she can do next nothing. Everything that is going on is out of her control. She can't help anyone out of these holes. Even herself."

"Surely, you're just trying to hide her laziness." The older brother chided.

"I wish I was." Aquinas stated grimly. "It would make things easier. Economics, the main root of the problem, is out of her realm, both in law, and study. Shitty behavior is something that the Princess can seldom correct; and the Zebra Kingdom won't accept aid from us; plus we have no evidence to support the claim that Hansvilter is behind the missing goods. It seems that the Princess has acquired a problem that she herself can't fix."

Ignatius let the reality of the situation sink in. If all this was going on, and Princess Celestia could do nothing about it, then what were they to do about it? "If Princess Celestia can't help with any of this, who can?"

"No one, as of now." The officer stated. "As I have stated before, we have nothing concrete at the moment on Hansvilter. The Zebra Kingdom must survive on its own until the conflict involves outside help or civilian casualties. And the riots are insinuated because the workers are out of jobs. The rich have retreated to their wealth and left the lower and middle classes without pay."

"Then it seems that we will need to do two things." Ignatius said. "We need to get those workers working again, and we need to build up our forces enough to where we can seem like a threat."

"It's not like we have jobs readily available for people." Aquinas reasoned. "Not to mention the aristocrats don't want a full standing military force underneath Celestia."

"We can sway their judgment." Ignatius' smirked deviously. 

"How?" Aquinas questioned. Though, upon seeing his brother's face, he grew a might concerned. "What are you planning?"

"I think we can do all these things in one foul swoop." Ignatius said. "All I need is some support." 

"What kind of support?" Aquinas was being drawn in by his brother's mischievous smile.

"Military, political, and financial support." The Marine stated. "If I can gain the ear of a militant in standing, the voice of a politician, and the pocket of the aristocracy, then we should be able to create a way to restore some sort of balance."

"How do you intend to do all of this?" Aquinas' intrigue was through the roof now. What sort of plan was his brother planning? 

"Elementary, my dear Aquinas." Ignatius stated. "We go partying!"

Aquinas' nose twitched. "Partying? PARTYING?!" The large naval officer was now in a fury. "That's your big plan?! GO PARTYING?!"

"Where else are we going to find rich snobs with tons of money and rich drink to loosen their grips on their purses?" Ignatius' questioned without skipping a beat.

Aquinas opened his mouth to answer, but after a second of it hanging there in the wind, he closed it. He withdrew for a moment before saying. "I don't really know." He honestly didn't.

"Benjamin Franklin" Ignatius went on. "was able to gain the support of the French upper class by using his knowledge of French custom to gain the favor of the aristocracy and then the aid of their military. He did this, not by sitting in board rooms and talking to politicians from dawn till dusk, but rather going to parlor parties at two in the morning and having drinks with them till all hours of the night." 

"So, Aquinas, yes. We are going to go partying. Not to enjoy ourselves, though. No. Rather, to help everyone else enjoy themselves. With our faces and words, we will be able to gain their support."

"But what about the militant and politician?" Aquinas wanted to know.

"The militant will have to be someone of high standing." Ignatius explained. "Not too high as we will never reach their ear, but rather someone who has a position, as to be invited to the party, but still low enough so that we may speak and be heard."

"Got anyone in mind?" Aquinas asked.

"Not at the moment." Ignatius stated plainly. "However, I will find one in due time."

"What about the politician?" Aquinas asked. He looked to his brother for an answer, but when he did, he found him looking up at Canterlot Castle's tower outside the window. "It seems a little out of your reach." The officer stated.

"That is why we need the others first." Ignatius reasoned. "If we have the militant and the aristocracy, we have but to ask of the princess to be our voice."

"What if she refuses to help?" Aquinas asked. "You aren't exactly on good terms with her."

"Leave that to me." Ignatius stated. 

Aquinas nodded in affirmation. If this plan worked, those mounting problems will subside and Equestria will be back on firm ground. "When do we get started?" The officer inquired. 

"As soon as I take on things on the personal front." Ignatius stated. Aquinas turned his head just in time to see the castle courtyard where a certain purple haired scholar was sitting on a stone bench while reading a spell tome. 

"You know it's going to take a lot in order for her to even begin thinking to consider forgiving you, right?" Aquinas' words had a bit of poison in them that he did not want there.

Ignatius nodded. "I understand that." he said. "I just want to at least attempt to make things right between us. I, at the very least, should apologize to her."

"You're going to have to do a lot for her if you want to get her back." Aquinas stated plainly. 

Ignatius and Aquinas came to a stop at their vantage point above the court yard, and noticed three other Unicorn blessed students walking up to Twilight. The exchange of words was not heard, but from Twilight's expressions, they could both tell that they weren't friends. Especially when they all started laughing while the purple haired scholar's face and shoulders sunk. 

"Does this happen often?" Ignatius asked. 

"It does." the officer said with a nod. "She used to tell me about how she was bullied constantly. It subsided when she became my teacher. However, it seems that it has come back with a vengeance."

Ignatius growled lowly. He hated bullying. For most of his life, he was a victim. It all stopped when he had entered the Air Force. Then he became a sort when he was the Wolf. He wanted to fly down there and drive the wicked edge of his dagger into their eyes, but that would only bring more harm to him than help to Twilight Sparkle. He needed a way to rid Twilight of these problems. The answer to this, as most times before, came in a very unorthodox manner. Above the brothers was a blur of orange that seemed to be traveling at incredible speed. Ignatius smiled as his planning drew to an end. 

"I think I know how we are going to do this." the Marine said. 

"How?" Aquinas questioned.

"Just follow my lead."