//------------------------------// // Correspondence // Story: Diplomatic Relations // by Nameless Narrator //------------------------------// Morning shimmer of the rising sun caught a yawning deep-sea blue alicorn on the way to her chambers in the Canterlot castle. Moments earlier she had woken her sister up and after a heated pillow fight and subduing the alicorn of the Sun she'd been free to go to sleep she deserved for protecting Equestrian citizens from nightmares during the night. Luna yawned again. She enjoyed, especially after recent events, trudging through the troubled sleep of her subjects as it helped her not to deal with her own. She'd felt isolated since her return but even during the first days there had been somepony by her side. He'd known the solitude of being judged by everypony around him as well. Sharp Biscuit used to be called colt cuddler, gay, abomination and yes, it had affected him despite not showing it too much. His dedication to duty, determination never to fail and bright outlook on life had carried him through the bile and venom of ponies around him. In that he'd been an inspiration even to an alicorn millenia old. She'd met him the first day she'd gathered the courage to finally go outside of her room and he'd changed her life. She'd expected to slowly slip into the world protected by her sister but having found out there were ponies living for her and hoping for her return every day she'd been able to step out of the shadows and spend hours on end talking with thestrals who had later become the Nightguard. Sharp Biscuit had been the catalyst of that change and he'd been granted the post of her bodyguard in addition to his Royal Guard rank. With the formation of the Nightguard he'd taken his place as their leader, the mirror of the captain of the Royal Guard Shining Armor. ... and now he was dead, killed by somepony considered a hero who had betrayed everything he'd stood for and everything he'd saved before, the bronze changeling, bearer of the Element of Betrayal. They had it coming and both she and her sister should have had him watched more closely but they'd believed him to be a friend after stopping the invasion from the mirror world and saving Equestria from king Sombra... by working for him and betraying him. Luna smiled bitterly. Her thoughts kept turning to Sharp Biscuit whenever she was alone and she'd never been able to stop her depression from swallowing her. Fortunately that happened less and less as she kept throwing herself into the dreams of her subjects who had to be protected from remembering the atrocities caused by Sombra's army during the second invasion. In the blissful exhaustion after that she'd always dropped off into a sleep resembling unconsciousness. Nothing could stop the minutes between those two that were a living nightmare though. She knew she'd get over it eventually, she knew it was a part of her undying nature but after a thousand years of loneliness and insanity it had been pure joy having somepony to keep the solitude away whenever needed. Now it was no longer the case. Luna didn't bother lighting the fireplace in her room or turning the electric lights on. The darkness held no threats for her as her sight surpassed that of batponies and other nocturnal creatures and without even stumbling she found her way to the bed and crumbled on it. She was out before she hit the satin blankets. The darkness around her felt different this time, familiar but not hers. That didn't make sense though and she attributed her confusion to having a dream after such a long time successfully avoiding it. Unfortunately the first shape appearing from the void surrounding her formed into precisely the pony she'd been expecting. He looked exactly as he was burned in her memory. Tall, sinewy thestral with the expression of somepony completely satisfied with the world around him and the calculating mind ready to deal with anything said world might present. His yellow eyes, partially overhung by short black mane looked directly into the eyes of the alicorn of the Night. "It was my fault," Luna broke the silence. "Don't be silly, your Highness. The call to station a group of elite Nightguards near the rift was what gave you the little time you had to prepare. On top of that I have to admit it was my attempt at protecting queen Chrysalis that helped seal the current peace." "I should be happy about it but I would gladly hunt changelings again just to see you doing paperwork in your office." Sharp Biscuit chuckled a little. "I have to admit I'd love to go on a drinking binge one last time, princess." "At least I avenged you. The scum is not disgracing Equestria anymore." "Are you sure?" Luna felt a chill run up her spine. "What do you mean?" "I'm not real, I'm just the form your subconscious finds the most useful right now which means you know what I mean." Her thoughts raced as her bodyguard kept staring at her. All Sombra's troops had disappeared after the dimensional rift had shattered. Everypony expected it had something to do with Sombra's disappearance after conquering the Crystal Empire again but nopony actually knew what had happened that day. She'd studied the details of the dimension linking spell and she knew that nopony from one world could stay in the mirror world without an existing stable rift for more than few hours. "But he wasn't from the mirror world, right?" Sharp asked, grinning. "He wasn't from this one either but he landed here permanently. I haven't managed to identify the magic that brought him here." "It seems like you might need to ask somepony more versed in the art of magic if you want to find out more." "You think he might still be around? I'm sure he's dead, I cursed him to never sleep again and my alicorn ability is unbreakable." "Did you see his body?" "No, but-" "Did you see his body?" Luna sighed. "No, I didn't." "Got you, your Highness. You shouldn't doubt yourself that much." "I... you're right. I have responsibilities now, I can't doubt my judgement but neither can I blindly follow it. I have to make sure things are what they seem." The wicked smile on Sharp's face was completely lost on Luna focusing on her next action. "I am sure you will do fine, Luna." "Heh, even when you're gone you're watching over me and Equestria." "Speaking of which, the real danger is still around." "What do you mean?" "The rift has closed but what assurance do we have of it not opening again?" "Sombra is dead." "Really? Even with him leading the conquest of Equestria there was somepony else taking care of the logistics on their side. I doubt he could have done all that alone. To make sure Equestria really is safe you need to make sure no rift can be opened again." "I've been researching dimensional travel with Twilight and we're thinking about erecting magical barriers around the Tree of Harmony to prevent it." "Short-term travelling spells would work anyway though and mirror Twilight managed to steal the Element of Magic from Canterlot vault itself once before." "Yes but Void brought it back to us after the second invasion had ended." "Is he trustworthy? After all, his marefriend was the cause of all that." "I think so. He's never been one to lie and manipulate others." "And Scream?" "She is... the exact opposite." "Then it wouldn't hurt to make sure Equestria is safe by yourself, right?" The thoughtful expression on Luna's face turned into one of pure determination. "That means the Tree of Harmony has to be destroyed. It is the only way to be completely sure but wouldn't disarming the Elements of Harmony put Equestria into more danger?" "Discord seems to be on our side and while he is unpredictable he is one of the ancient gods and as such he is the most ultimate force in the universe. He is personally on the level of the Elements." "You want me to put my trust in him, Discord?" "How useful were the Elements during the invasions? The destruction of the Tree would also render the mirror Elements powerless." "That's correct," Luna had to admit, "It is the only way I can think of right now. I should ask my sister about it." "Why?" the agression in Sharp's voice grew, "It's her fault this entire thing happened. Only thanks to her shoving the evil Elements to the mirror world was Sombra able to gain so much power. Who's to say she's not keeping the Elements just in case YOU become trouble again?" "I see," Luna scowled, "That's true, isn't it?" "Indeed." "I have to be the one to set my sister straight if the need arises and I have to be the one to do the things she can't." "Exactly," Sharp nodded, "You have to supplement her weakness with your strength." "Thank you." "I will always be with you, Luna." With a sharp breath Luna woke up. The evening was coming but she still had time before having to raise the moon and thanks to the clarity her dream had given her she knew what to do. To be precise she knew who to ask and she wouldn't take silence for an answer. Without bothering to make herself presentable she just focused her energy into her horn and disappeared. She was expecting resistance but her spell allowed her to slip into this reality unrestricted. On the first look this place looked like a huge mountain with blurry surroundings everywhere around but she knew the heart of this place lay behind the sheet of inky darkness imitating a cave entrance. She didn't hesitate for a second and stepped inside. No matter how many times she visited here she'd never understand the meaning of piles of bones lying inside a huge well-lit cavern. It didn't help that the entire place looked otherwise as one of the exquisite dwellings of concubines serving some sultan in sandy deserts of Griffon Empire. It also didn't help that her entire body grew hot when she saw the figure lazily standing up from one of the skull piles. That quickly passed though as she noticed the second inhabitant of this place looking at her while levitating a book next to him. The first pony, a golden alicorn with white, shimmering mane, rose up and smiled at her. Luna could easily spot that the smile was at least partially fake but outside of the current situation tarnishing the other alicorn's name she didn't really have anything against Scream, the alicorn of Lust. On the other hoof, if there ever was a manipulator and a scheming bitch then Scream was one. The second alicorn's smile was way warmer and the most noticeable thing about him were his eyes, glowing golden orbs sharply contrasting with his completely black exterior only complimented by dark purple wings and tail slowly burning with fire of the same color. Luna smiled back at Void, the alicorn of Death. Contrary to his aspect Void had always been friendly and warm to Luna and even in her current state she didn't want to needlessly anger him. The two of them were the living example of opposites attracting and one couldn't separate them from each other even with the use of a huge crowbar. "Scream, I'm here to ask you something," Luna didn't waste time. "Feel free to do so, you know the rules." Luna did. Here, in Scream's dimension created by her unparalelled magical power she could focus her power to grant the knowledge of anything to anypony as long as the price was paid... or, of course, if Scream herself wanted to do so. "I want to know how to destroy the Tree of Harmony, step by step." Expecting the price to be something drastic, Luna was surprised to hear a simple request for dropping her dream protection from the Wonderbolts for few days. It seemed that the information she wanted to know wasn't as difficult to find as she thought. With the promise finished, Scream's eyes glowed and she began speaking. "Destroying the Tree is impossible for a non-deity. It is the embodiment of the balance between good and evil of existence and grants absolute power over the evil side of pantheon. Were the darkness to unite though then the possibility of breaking the ancient pact between gods would arise." "A bit clearer, please," Luna rolled her eyes. "Pfff, kick a girl for trying," Scream stuck out her tongue, "The Tree can only be destroyed by Discord and Nightmare working together with no Element bearers in the way. May I ask why did you want to know that?" "Just making sure I know of all weaknesses of Equestria," Luna shrugged, "and your price was more than acceptable. I hope Spitfire enjoys the wet dreams you bring." "I'm sure she will. Anything else?" "No, thank you for your help." "No problemo, kiddo." Luna snorted and disappeared. The darkness swirling around Scream's horn would surprise a casual observer but Void knew his marefriend was an avid user of what others would call dark magic. "So?" the alicorn of Death asked. "She's a terrible liar. I'm gonna need you to take Discord out of the equation, nopony other than you can even attempt it." "That is an exhausting deal." Scream spread her legs. "Pretty big reward though." "You are going to come up with something really interesting for this." "Don't worry, Voidie, I will." In a burst of black flames Void disappeared, leaving only thoughtful Scream behind. On the other side of the dream veil, Luna appeared back in her room. Destroying the Tree seemed impossible so she turned back to thinking about barriers and their use to block magic around it. There was one thing bugging her even after all that. If she and Twilight eventually erected the protection spells and restricted the access to anypony from the mirror world there would still be a chance of somepony from here ruining the security. A certain somepony. This really was something she would have to talk about with her sister. Sole Regret was a mercenary bar and everypony knew that, at least everypony in a certain line of business involving sharp objects and using them in either effective or threatening way. The patrons here were either strong drinkers who preferred their privacy or weak drinkers who wanted the company of others similar to them to share stories with. None of that meant that they were unfriendly to occasional visitors who would gladly pay for drink to hear something amusing or informative during the evening. Thanks to that nopony paid attention to a cloaked figure entering the bar outside of some snickers at the pretense of cloak and dagger deals. The figure looked around and its eyes fell on a pony seemingly not belonging here in every aspect but one. The pony was a pegasus whose coat was blinding white, or at least it would look like it were it not for the yellowish light turning it into more creamy hue. He was tall even while sitting, that was more than obvious, and would tower over most earthponies but he wasn't close to being as bulky as them. Those features wouldn't be the ones to set him aside from the other patrons, that honor would fall to his blonde mane, long enough to belong to a high-class mare, and his sapphire blue eyes. When the cloaked pony looked into those blue eyes he knew he found the right candidate for the job. Everything about the pegasus screamed he was just a model that could be found on any page of a Playcolt magazine aimed at mares but the eyes proved he'd seen more than normal pony would see in a lifetime and that he belonged in this place in heart and spirit. In short, the pegasus could be slightly over thirty, looked to be in his late twenties and inside was, just like any other sword for hire, about three hundred years old. The cloaked pony approached the pegasus. "I'm looking for the right pony for a job." "One bad joke about my mane and a hoofjob and you'll be leaving this place in pieces," said the pegasus in low voice. The agressive tone made the cloaked pony step away. "It is just a find and capture mission." "I want to see who I'm dealing with." "You are dealing with a reward of ten thousand bits." Contrary to the pony's expectations that wasn't enough of a sweetener. "That isn't a price of a search mission. Show your face." The cloaked pony withdrew his hood, revealing an unremarkable brown earthpony. "Ten thousand bits in advance, another ten thousand on successful completion." Even the pegasus had hard time not coughing in shock. "I hope it is enough to entice you, mister..." "Icy Gaze and the only reason you know my name is because I'm agreeing to your offer. So, who's the target?" "At the moment there are two of them but the number might change," the earthpony presented a sealed letter, "The details are inside. The seal on the letter is a talisman that can be used to report your progress to us." Icy looked at the rolled up parchment and gulped when he saw the seal of the sun. The amount of bits for a mission like this meant that the contract would have been set by either the crown or some noble families and the seal just, heh, sealed the deal. The guy bringing the letter didn't look like a guard of any sort though and Icy Gaze was sure the princesses would send somepony capable of defending himself in case the... MASSIVE BAG OF GOLD THE GUY HAD JUST PRESENTED. ... attracted the attention of shadier denizens of Canterlot. Somepony wanted to make it look as if this was a high-class deal, that was the first thought running through Icy's head but the sheer amount of money involved didn't allow him to leave it. The earthpony left the big bag on the table which upon opening revealed it was filled with smaller pouches of bits for easier carrying. For a second Icy hoped he'd been scammed but the gold was as real as it could so he just slipped the piece of brass adorned with solar seal off the letter and unrolled it. To whoever opens this letter, Equestria is in danger. Whether you are compelled by your duty to your country or just the gold connected to the service, we thank you for your cooperation in advance. The crown would take the matter into their own hooves but current situation and lack of resources doesn't allow us to intervene directly. On top of that your first targets would know how to spot a guard of any sort looking for them. Concerning your targets, Your main mark is a male, pony-resembling changeling of bronze color with sandy blonde mane, grey eyes and a cutie mark of white and black rings interlocked together. He is wanted for assisting in the last military incursion into Equestria and thus for high treason. His strength lies in his mastery of hoof to hoof combat unseen in Equestria and his experience in fighting opponents of all sorts, especially those with polearms and other extended weapons. You should avoid close combat at all costs in case of trying to apprehend this traitor and never fight alone. He is to be brought to justice at any cost, either captured or dead. In case of finding his whereabouts just send a letter with the target's location using the talisman binding this scroll and a detachment of forces will be sent as assistance. In case the target is already dead, either of natural causes or for any other reason the reward for this mission will be paid in full. Your secondary mark is a female thestral sporting a black coat, red eyes, and red mane. She used to work in the Nightguard but left right after the second mirror invasion. She is also the main reason for us being unable to send any part of the Guard to look for her as she has very close ties to many of them. When trying to approach her you should be aware of her speed and agility but outside of that she isn't a serious threat in direct engagement. There is also the possibility of piquing her interest in case you are a stallion of handsome features as one of her weaknesses lies in heavily engaging in party scene and one-night stands. Her capture is preferrable to her death but do not hesitate in case she offers significant resistance. Both your targets might or might not be working together but finding one should help you in finding the other. A good place to start your search would be the battlefield around the disappeared rift to the mirror world in the Everfree Forest. The mission is over the moment both of your main marks are under arrest or proven dead. We keep the right to change any specifics of the mission outside of the reward in special circumstances. In case the contract gets altered and you do not agree with new objectives then the advance payment will remain in your possession. We wish you the best of luck. Icy Gaze was bothered at first as to why the courier would choose him over other experienced-looking mercenaries but he had to admit his looks were at least above average which wasn't the best in his line of work but considering the insane reward he got in advance now there was at least one instance of them being useful. Hiding the bags of bits in his saddlebags he stepped out of Sole Regret. He wasn't bothered about other patrons ganging up on him to steal his payment. There were no real rules about being a mercenary but most of the older mercs had been on the recieving end of the bastard stick at one point in their lives and knew not to make enemies when it wasn't necessary. Icy has been living in Canterlot for few weeks now while doing odd jobs here and there and looking for a caravan guard position and his apartment was one of the cheapest one could find with one of the most expensive locks and doors protecting its contents. It made little sense to casual observer but when ponies didn't have much of their own they wanted what little they had as safe as possible and the landlord of this building knew that. Icy could just go and visit the Everfree in the morning but he decided to spend a little more time tomorrow by gathering information. If his targets used to be guards then they had to be known to other guards and now he had the right tool in the solar seal to make them talk. With a bit of politeness, hidden threats, his presence, and maybe a little bribe he might be able to find out something helpful. With that in mind he just went to bed. Not that he was too tired but soldiers, mercenaries and other exhausting professions knew to rest whenever they could in case that any little mistake caused by fatigue and not being in top shape would cause them to rest forever. There was very little chance of getting information from the guards on duty but there might be a chance of finding out where those guys go after that to unwind... ... and every city had a guard bar, without exception. So, the changeling guy used to be a unicorn supposedly and that little batpony 'helper' was his marefriend. The evening among guards had proven otherwise uneventful and uninformative and Icy was now on his way, flying above the Everfree Forest and landing where the rift used to be. There wasn't much of anything now. According to the guards who had been cleaning this place up after the invasion there might still be remains of weapons and small valuables that nopony had picked up. Apparently everything in the possession of enemy soldiers had appeared here after the rift had broken and Icy could still feel his hooves crunch on something not belonging in the forest from time to time. While he had the necessary skills for outdoor survival he wasn't really used to living in the forest and his eyes weren't trained for looking for small items in the snow. Now, nopony in the Crystal Empire had seen the bronze guy leave the castle but he had not been found inside. Icy Gaze had his experience with magic, generally being shot at him, but his knowledge of its workings was basically limited to - when it makes a big boom, run. Thus he theorized that if everything had reappeared here, the same might be true for his target. It was an awful guess but the best he had. Now, if the target had indeed teleported here then he'd either have been eaten by some hydra, any other abomination living here, or even the changelings before the peace treaty. If that was the case then there was nothing for Icy to do. If that wasn't the case though then the target would very probably have headed for the closest safe location and the possibility of getting food and shelter. That meant the small town called Ponyville. Icy sneered into the crispy air. The pony founders of that place had really gone over the top with creativity in naming places but according to rumors they had been earthponies so... Walking to a road visible even from the trashed battleground he noticed a life-sized statue depicting a batpony holding a spear propped against his wing and having a shield strapped to one of his front legs. Aside from that he didn't look anything special. Curious, Icy Gaze leaned down to read a small plaque on the bottom of the statue. Sharp Biscuit, The Guardian Of Peace Between Changelings And Ponies. Apparently, every conflict needed heroes and villains but if this guy was of the first sort then why was his statue here and not adorning some of the Canterlot landmarks? Maybe the real heroes weren't talked about that much and this place only served as a memory for those closest to him. Whatever the case was it had nothing to do with Icy's job so he left towards Ponytown or whatever the name was. Ponyville, right. Just like every small town it had its law enforcement that thought it was the top of the world and wouldn't really talk to him until presented with the solar seal upon which the armored ponies almost pissed themselves and began presenting their servile, kissrump attitude. "So, since you've turned around so eagerly. Did you have any unusual or new visitors after the invasion? Somepony with no explained reason for being here." "Not that I can think of, sir." "No seventh cousins of a local resident, random travellers looking for job or anything? Crazy ponies trying to take over the world and starting small?" "Come to think of it, two of my guys found a unicorn walking through the forest." "How did he look?" "Empty would be the best description." "Physically!" "Bronze coat, blonde mane, broken horn, no cutie mark, sir." "Good... what was with the empty part?" "Well, he didn't talk at all, didn't seem to understand anything anypony told him. He just kept following the closest pony so they dropped him off at local mental asylum. They know how to take care of the braindead ones there." "Thanks for your cooperation." "No problem, sir." "By the way, any batponies around?" "Don't really know, Ponyville has always been a mostly earthpony town though. There are rumors about pets gone missing from time to time thanks to vampires but usually that's just boulderdash parents spew not to make their foal sad they had to flush a dead pet down the toilet." "Okay," Icy nodded and left the guardhouse. So, an unresponsive unicorn of exactly the same color scheme wandering the forest after the invasion had ended here. Well, at least Icy had a place to see now. "SPIIIIIIKE! Where is the copy of Ancient Canterlot Customs I borrowed last month from royal library?" The following silence annoyed the small purple alicorn and she stomped the floor of her new library, castle or whatever it was now after being transformed by the Tree of Harmony. "SPIIIKE, stop sleeping till the afternoon and help me here!" Still nothing. With Twilight Sparkle finally being a princess of something she would have thought that her closest 'subject' would be close to her at all times but apparently... "Ehm, right." Twilight blushed. She'd completely forgotten that Spike was now 'assisting' with a certain research in the lab underneath the library and was 'bound' by his duties... ... and tentacles, lots of tentacles. A small candle burning seemingly forever on her table turned its flame from orange to dark red and burst out, leaving a letter right in front of Twilight. The candle had been made personally by princess Celestia to serve as a communication device in case of Spike's absence and Twilight was supposed to carry it with her whenever she had to travel. Now it found its use when Twilight needed Spike to take care of other things. The letter flew up surrounded by purple glow and Twilight unrolled it and began reading. My most faithful student Twilight Sparkle, With you being crowned the princess of Friendship and your ascension into the alicorn of Magic I think you are the right one for a special mission vital for the safety of Equestria as a whole. Fine, I might be overselling it a bit. As you know, queen Chrysalis seems to be mindful of our peace treaty but there still are the changelings that happened to travel through dimensions following Blazing Light under the leadership of his daughter. Normally I wouldn't be worried about them because young Guiding Light seemed a very likable and peaceful individual during the short time she spent with me. Unfortunately, from what I heard Luna killed Blazing Light which caused the Nightmare changelings to leave our ranks and disappear. Therein lies the problem. According to what Blazing Light said they were created by Nightmare Moon from different dimension and managed to devour an entire world before escaping here from starvation. That means even the remaining ten of them could become a serious threat if left unchecked. That's where your rank and also your first test comes in. Friendship doesn't always have to mean the close relationship you have with your friends. Right now it also means that your experience might help us in reaching out to Guiding's changelings in good will and start a warm relationship with her hive. The peace treaty affects only queen Chrysalis and her hive and I fear that the animosity Guiding must hold towards us might bite us in the future. That is not the only reason for my concern. The Nightmare changelings emit a certain type of energy connected to Nightmare Moon that I've been able to feel around the castle for some time now. Supposedly all of them left with Guiding but if there is one among us then it means Guiding must be planning something and it would probably threaten my sister. Unfortunately, their unique nature doesn't allow us to use magic to track them and I don't want to order an open investigation in case panic broke out. Minding that, I want you to go to a small village called Pine Hills on the other side of the Everfree Forest where Guiding Light and her Nightmares seem to have found home and report to me about the situation there. I will keep an eye out on my sister and protect her from any danger while you do so. That is all. Good luck, princess. There wasn't a single second of doubt in Twilight's mind and she immediately rolled the letter back up. She might need her friends for this test but that could put them in danger. Nightmare changelings, even in low numbers, were supposed to be a devastating force and there was very little the Elements of Harmony would be able to do in case diplomacy failed. She would have to go alone then. Packing some food, locating the small town on the map, and planning a route didn't take too long. Packing some books to read on the way and during her stay took even less time and in about an hour she was able to close the library, leave for Ponyville train station, and head towards the closest trade hub from which she would be able to hail a carriage to the town itself. Ponyville would have to survive without her helpful tips and the wisdom of her books but in the worst case she would just have to use her ability to make lists to get the town running again when she returned. She would make Guiding Light listen to reason and she would make princess Celestia proud.