Chapter 6
Princesses
Davis was walking around a room full of crystals. He had found it while walking around the palace, thinking.
He had left the six ponies and the Lunar Princess as soon as he could to get some time to himself. He had unexpectedly lost himself in the millions of hallways in the palace and had ended up in there. He sat down on a chair that was resting in one wall where there were no crystals.
He sighed as he placed his rifle beside him and laid his head back. He felt his belt. He jumped once he realized something was missing: The grenade. He looked around concerned and when he saw nothing he stood up and prepared to go look around for it.
"Ehm... I think you lost this," came a voice from behind he immediately recognized.
He turned and saw the lavender princess. She was holding the grenade with her magic.
Thankfully it still had the lock.
"Thanks Twilight," he said, taking it and placing it on his belt again, making sure it was not going to fall again. He looked at the crystals again. He had not seen how beautiful they looked because he had been too worried for the grenade. He saw the different colors that they were tainted in. Red, blue, yellow...
He looked at Twilight. "What are all these crystals?" He asked curious. The princess looked around as well.
She smiled slightly. "They are a gift to the princesses from the Crystal Empire." She walked and placed her hoof on top of one of them. "They have very special magical properties, according to princess Cadence."
"Princess Cadence?" Davis asked, wondering if there were even more princesses apart from the ones he had already met.
Twilight nodded. "Yes, princess Cadence. She's another Alicorn princess, just like the two sisters and I."
Davis nodded and kept looking at the crystals. The more he stared into them, the more attracted he felt... He realized he had been staring into one for a long time, so he looked away. "I think I'll get out. Those things are starting to make me nervous." Twilight sighed.
"Alright," she said, walking out with him.
Davis began to walk away again. Twilight tried to keep up, but he was walking pretty fast.
"Tell me Davis. What do you think of Equestria?" she asked. Davis remembered how she seemed to like to ask questions. That was probably the only reason she was with him at the moment. That, or she was just checking that he didn't do anything while not under supervision.
Davis shrugged. "I... well, it's pretty good," he said, unsure of how to answer the question. He wasn't sure what to say, after all. The town of Ponyville had been a little overwhelming with all its pink and cheerful inhabitants, but Canterlot seemed different. A little more familiar to human cities back on Earth.
Yeah, maybe medieval-style, but more alike nonetheless.
"I mean, what do you think of the cities, compared to your own world," she cleared out.
“Alright, now that's easier to answer” he thought. "Well, Canterlot seems to me like one of those Medieval cities on my world. Those were cities from hundreds of years ago. Now they are more populated and it's even difficult to move in some of them, like on called New York, from my country."
Twilight nodded. "Alright..." she cleared her throat and looked at some windows they were passing beside on the hallway. "You say like cities from hundreds of years ago on you world. Does that mean your cities are more advanced?”
'How on Earth does this... mare... comes out with those questions?' he thought slightly confused. He knew what to answer, but why would a pony want to know that?
Wait, right...
The princess' ex-student.
He sighed. "Technologically and in the way of life," he finally said after thinking on the answer. "We have more technology than you in many ways, as well as our way of life has changed throughout the years. I don't think you'd understand how to go around a city. You'd probably get lost or something."
The princess nodded. Davis looked at her only to notice a faint glow of magic on her horn. He looked behind her and saw a pen and a paper floating beside her. She was apparently hiding them so he would not see them.
She blushed slightly. "Err... I was just... taking notes," she said. Davis sighed and kept walking.
"Why do you hide it then? I don't mind you taking notes of what I say."
She looked slightly surprised. "You... don't?"
Davis shook his head. "Just please don't make it a common thing when we speak. It could get a little awkward and uncomfortable... for both," he said. Twilight nodded as she floated the paper and pen in front of her. Davis sighed again and kept walking.
Just then he heard the sound of hooves going towards them.
"Princess!" said a guard, kneeling once he reached them. "Princess Celestia sent for you and the human. He wants you to meet her in the war room," he said, standing up. Twilight nodded.
"Thank you. Dismissed."
The guard bowed on more time before walking away. Davis was surprised how princess Twilight, that had been normal with him, and with normal referring to not speaking like princess to peasant, but rather friend to friend, and she had suddenly turned all regal and had spoken with interesting authority to the guard.
The kind of made Davis feel slightly intimidated.
Wait.. He was feeling intimidated by a pony? Well, she could do magic and, from what he had heard so far, she was very powerful as well.
Maybe enough reasons to feel intimidated.
"Alright..." she said. "Maybe we should go. I don't want to keep princess Celestia waiting."
Davis nodded. "After you."
*** *** ***
Louis and princess Celestia walked side by side, talking. They had begun to walk soon after she had appeared to Louis. The german had simply followed, hearing as she spoke, trying not to be rude.
She was the ruler of the land after all.
"So Louis, tell me..." she began. "I heard a lot about your... weapons from princess Twilight. I'd like to know a little more about them," she asked. Louis wasn't sure if to be surprised by her question or merely intrigued. He had not imagined he'd get that question from the princess.
He cleared his throat, thinking of what to answer. "Vell... they are not like any weapon you probably know about. They are designed to launch a projectile at high speeds and hit a target."
The princess nodded slowly, pondering the answer. "Alright... And how does it work?" she asked. Louis stopped walking. The princess stopped as well.
"About how it works... I hope you don't want a demonstration in here, because it'd be pretty hard, I mean the sound, being inside a building with a lot of echo," he said, raising an eyebrow. Celestia shook her head.
"No, I merely want to know how it works, not a demonstration. Princess Twilight already described that to me very well."
Louis nodded. He looked at his pistol. "Vell... they work thanks to a type of powder that ignites easily called gunpowder. It is made of a mixture of..." he stopped, trying to remember. He knew, how did he forgot it! "I... don't remember very well, but it explodes inside this barrel, sending the bullet, that is the projectile, out with a lot of force."
Celestia nodded. She looked curiously at the gun. "Can I..." she asked, pointing at it. Louis looked at his pistol, unsure of whether he should or shouldn't give it to her. He slowly extended his arm towards the princess. She took the gun with her magic and marvelled at it.
"You say this things are a powerful weapon?"
Louis shrugged. "They are, at least compared to swords and bows. There are stronger and more powerful guns, like my rifle," he lifted it so she could see it. "Though all work in technically the same way."
Celestia finished looking at the gun and gave it back to Louis, who put it back onto his belt.
"Thanks for showing it to me. I..." she looked at him. Her face had changed. She suddenly looked tired. "I fear this war is very difficult to win. We don't even have a proper army ourselves, at least not like the griffons, and even then you see how they are," she looked at his rifle. "I believe those are the key to victory." Her voice was soft, as she reached for the rifle. Louis moved it out of the way and out of reach from the princess' hooves.
The princess seemed slightly shocked. "I'm sorry princess, but..." he looked at his rifle. "I don't think that'd be a good idea."
The princess looked at him with a neutral face. "Why do you say that?"
Louis gulped. He was worried he had offended the princess, but he thought he should make his point known. "I'm afraid that this weapons can be also your..." he tried to think of a good word for that moment, but as much as he knew english he sometimes lacked a good word or the perfect word to say something. "I... am afraid they'd be your... undoing," he finally said, happy for the word he had said. Perfect to make an impression. He smiled slightly to himself for coming up with such a good word in english.
"Oh... And why do you say so?" the princess asked, obviously now paying attention to him thanks to his great word.
"Well, this things have caused much pain and suffering since they existed. I don't think you'd like that to happen here," he said truthfully. "If you think this are your last hope, well... I warned."
The princess was now looking at him. She looked slowly outside. She nodded slowly. "You... may be right," she said softly. She smiled at him, her kind face returning. "I think we should meet with the generals and discuss about what to do next." She saw a guard nearby. "Guard!" the guard looked at her.
"Yes princess?" he said, bowing.
"Go find princess Twilight and the human and tell them to go to the war room. We'll be meeting them there.'
The guard saluted and walked away.
The princess looked at Louis at the same time Louis looked at her. "Now..." she began. "...let's see how the war will greet us."
"In favor..."
"...or against us."