//------------------------------// // Wanted // Story: Diplomatic Relations // by Nameless Narrator //------------------------------// "Your Highness!" The frantic knocking on the door of Luna's room broke through her trance and she left the dream of somepony currently trying to run away from a giant horseshoe chasing him. "Your Highness!" Luna shook her head. What could be so important for the guards to bother her while she was doing her nighttime duty, especially with her sister finally able to rule Equestria again? Yawning, she raised herself from the bed, stretched and opened the door, revealing a shaking guard. "What is going on?" "It's princess Celestia. She's been attacked!" "WHAT?!" "Somepony shot her down with magic while she was flying around the castle." Damn her! Luna had asked her to take things easy for a while. She should have known Celestia wouldn't listen, she never did. She never respected Luna's opinion. Sharp had been right and Luna should have ordered her sister to be tied up and guarded. "Are you sure it was an attack? She has just recovered from a nearly mortal wound." "We aren't hundred percent sure. The Royal Guards on duty saw some unusual activity in the sky and unicorns outside said they could feel a huge charge of magic building up." Luna was too tired for this. Interrupting her dreamwalking ability was risky every single time but today she felt as if she had just finished running a marathon. Right now there were only two important things. "Is anypony following the culprit?" The guard shook his head. "The only trace the unicorns had simply disappeared several seconds after the attack, after the presence of magic we presume to be the attack." A feral growl from the lunar princess caused the guard to reconsider his vocation and for a second he wished to be anywhere else. With the look on Luna's face even the bottom of a volcano would be preferrable. "I want everypony who was even in the area rounded up and questioned. Now, how is my sister?" She wouldn't eat him. That was something the nervous guard had to keep repeating to himself. "Princess Celestia isn't too hurt physically. Her alicorn regeneration dealt with the damage caused by her fall very quickly but the unicorn doctors say she is being kept inside her own head by some sort of magic. They have no idea how to wake her up." Luna breathed out. That... wasn't too bad, considering what might have happened. If the problem was a powerful spell then there had to be a counterspell and Canterlot library was home to the biggest assortment of secret magical texts in Equestria. On top of that, Luna was the most experienced magic user in the world. Dismissing the guard, Luna forced herself despite her exhaustion to pull an all-nighter and went to the library. The real problem was that whoever had attacked her sister had possessed enough power to break through an alicorn's defenses. That also meant she would have to be on her guard at all times. There was a huge difference between her and her sister. The moment Luna would feel a strong presence near her would be the moment all her power would be unleashed to eradicate it. There was time for talking in peace and this wasn't it. Her mind focused on one thing. Who could be strong enough to successfully attack an alicorn, even by surprise? From the top to the bottom the possibilites were deities which meant Discord or somepony bearing the Elements and other alicorns. There was also the small chance of some anti-government organizations hiring a group of unicorns capable of pulling off some sort of tactical spell strike. No, that couldn't be the case. Something of such scale would leave enough magic hanging in the air for the unicorn guards to work with, same with any sort of high magical charge meaning the spell used was a complex one but not requiring too much power. That left open only the possibility of there being a single attacker who was a superb mage. Luna arrived at the library and began looking through magical tomes for one focused on suspended animation, forced sleep and mind suppression. Discord would be the first suspect then but his magic was something even he had difficulty of controlling fully. Had he attacked her sister then there would be enough clues everywhere around... possibly a part of the castle turning to jelly and whipped cream. So... Element bearers. According to the witnesses there had been only one Bearer from the mirror world capable of seriously harming an alicorn and that one had been killed by Blazing Light. Her talk with Void after the invasion when he'd brought the Element of Magic back left her with the information that the other mirror Bearers had no reason or desire to continue and had been only forced to work with Sombra. Void himself was out of question. Yes, he had a good reason to hate Celestia but he'd never acted on it. On top of that, Luna had to admit, if Void wanted her sister dead then she wouldn't have been able to stop him. His power was... irresistible. No, it couldn't have been him and the best clue was that Celestia was still alive. He might have been living with the most powerful magic user alive but his alicorn power inhibited Void from using complex magic in a way similar to her sister. Now for the best mage in the world herself, Scream. She would be the prime suspect had it not been for the fact that all her desire to kill Celestia had been set aside by Void's release from Tartarus. Scream definitely wasn't a friend but in the same way, with Void finally back by her side, she had no real reason to be an enemy. Luna flicked the pages of a book that dealt with exactly the symptoms the guard had described. The counterspell was easy enough and well explained. Luna could easily just return to the infirmary and release her sister. The lunar princess yawned and slumped to the ground. "You're looking for the too obvious solutions, your Highness," said Sharp Biscuit in an academic voice. "Hey, send me back! I have to help my sister." "All in due time. I am not holding you here, by the way. It was your mistake to go on for so long and fall asleep right as your goal was within reach." "Fine. Still, every time I've been here you had something for me so I suspect you have an ulterior motive for bringing me here." Sharp smiled. "Indeed. I honestly agree with your assumption that this wasn't an attack from the mirror world but you forgot about two other alicorns." Luna masked her chuckle as a snort. "Cadance? No, that's just impossible. Not only is her power incomparable to ours but there is no possible reason she would have for attacking my sister." "An alicorn of love living so close to the Crystal Heart having no power?" Sharp burst out laughing, "Silly Luna... Cadance might be the most powerful alicorn currently living in Equestria. Still, I agree with there being no real reason for her involving herself in this. Unfortunately, I wasn't talking about her being the real threat." "You can't mean... Twilight Sparkle? No, just no. She loves my sister over anything." "Love can turn sour very fast. Remember the time you princesses gave her your power to fight Tirek? That might have been a taste of power that tipped the scales." "Twilight was never interested in power." "Really?" Sharp facehoofed, "All that studying. All that hunting for ancient knowledge in your old castle and you still say that? She is the Element of Magic that got a sniff of alicorn power. The last thing she needs is to somehow steal a bit of Discord's chaos magic and she would become a god." "You really believe she could... attack her mentor?" "Celestia was attacked by somepony able to use very complex magic and yet she is still alive. An alicorn who knew their body would also know that a fall from that height wouldn't hurt even an unconscious one. Who is the youngest alicorn who might unconsciously be avert to hurting Celestia?" "Twilight," Luna hung her head. "Don't look like that. I am not saying she did it, I'm just saying she looks like the most likely suspect. There's also the possibility of her not being herself." "What do you mean?" "As you know, your sister sent her to see the Nightmare changeling queen who has... issues with you. She might feel it would be a good idea to take revenge for your deeds against her father by targeting your family." "I need to call her back to Canterlot but Celestia didn't tell me where exactly Guiding's hive was." "She might not come willingly anyway so writing to her might prove a mistake. Send the guards to find her. Wanted posters might be enough for her to notice and come back." "Wouldn't it send the wrong message about her?" "Not really. It's not like those would be Dead or Alive posters," Sharp grinned, "Just something along the lines of lost - come home, little lamb." "That sounds like a good idea. Thank you for helping me this way." "Any time, Luna," Sharp bowed. Luna blinked. Why was she in the library again? Oh right, the search for a remedy for Celestia. There was nothing in this section so she decided to take a rest and try again when she wasn't so tired. After all, her sister wasn't in any immediate danger and was guarded by Canterlot Guard elite. The lunar princess desperately needed sleep. For Icy Gaze the day, or more likely the evening, started in a very similar way. Unlike the princess he was fresh as a daisy even after his last night's efforts and he jumped out of the bed as he heard the knocking on the library door downstairs. It sent a clear message that whoever the knocker was he didn't want to intrude but also wasn't going to walk away. As much as the pegasus considered himself to be a hardened veteran he didn't consider himself being a killer. Still, if somepony had seen him carrying an unconscious Element bearer last night then he might have to fight his way out of the library. Hiding a thin lance, his weapon of choice, under his wing he trotted downstairs. *Knock knock knock* "Yeah, yeah. I'm coming," he tried to sound as annoyed as possible at somepony bothering him when this place was obviously closed. "Knock knock" Apparently him reassuring the... ...guards outside caused them to resume knocking faster. "This place is closed. Reshelving day- oh hello, officers!" Icy smiled innocently. "Who are you?" the leading guard said bluntly. "Frosty Stare, temporary assistant librarian. I take care of this place while the princess is away." "Do you know where she went?" "Eeerm," Icy put up his best impression of a nervous bookworm, sharply contrasting with his physique, "She left few days ago for some village called Pine Hills, no idea why." "Thank you for the information, citizen. In the case she comes back tell her she is to immediately return to Canterlot. Or better yet, tell the guards to escort her." "I'll be sure to do so, sir," Icy smiled, having no intention to visit the local guard post again. Whether his charisma worked its magic with the guards or they just didn't want to bother with him anymore Icy wasn't going to question his luck. The armored ponies left him alone to think about the situation. The guards looking for the princess could mean two things - either his employer was dissatisfied with his performance and had other agents doing similar work or the guard orders were to protect the princess and the disappearance of the Bearer was now publicly known, at least to the right sort of public. Nevermind that. The evening was coming and while Icy was averse to rushing things the guards were a sign that something was up and it was threatening either his reward or the success of his mission. That meant tonight he would have to take care of another bearer. The only pony remaining an easy or easier target was Rainbow Dash. From reading the newspapers about Equestria Games Icy knew she was some sort of athlete excelling in aerial acrobatics. Trying to remember as much about her as possible, Icy made himself a late, very late, breakfast. Rainbow was slim and from the pictures in papers she didn't look overly muscular. All he could think of would be guesswork from scraps of information relayed by unreliable reporters but he had nothing to go on. His target didn't look like a bodybuilder which meant precisely nothing but at least it made sure Icy would win in contest of raw strength without a doubt. Unfortunately, such contest was something a pegasus could easily avoid and turn it into a chase. Now, Icy Gaze was sure he would win a stamina race and his large wings might give him an edge in long-distance flight but if the target managed to avoid getting caught immediately then she would get away with high probability and then everything would be over. He cursed the orders not to harm the Bearers in any way. If only he could just clip her wing the entire thing would be so easy. Speaking of which, he should check on Fluttershy. Her random escape would also mean the end of his mission and setting guards on his back. Damn, her starving might also pose a problem later. While buttering more sandwiches Icy got an idea he should try out. There was no reason for him being the bad guy here, right? The Elements should be in close relation with the crown so he just might have the right tools to distract them. Humming thoughtfully, he opened the door to the cellar where Fluttershy was currently tied up. "Mmmph mf!" the yellow pegasus began struggling as soon as the light from the hall penetrated the darkness of the storage cellar. After walking down the entry stairs her captor turned the lights on. "Shhh. I'm not gonna hurt you," Icy said in a matter-of-fact voice, "Now, once I untie the gag you aren't going to scream, right?" "Mmmrpf!" "I'll take that as yes. First of all, it might not be so obvious but I'm here to help," he presented the solar seal amulet, "Recognize this, girl?" Fluttershy nodded after inspecting the item for a while. Seeing her stop struggling, Icy untied the gag and Fluttershy's front legs. "Here, you must be hungry," he pushed the plate of food to the yellow pegasus. "What is going on?" asked Fluttershy slightly more aggressively than Icy would expect. "I'm not exactly sure but I was hired to keep you and the other Element bearers safe. The guards are looking for you for some reason. They left when I told them princess Twilight wasn't here, saying I should 'escort' her to the local prison as soon as I saw her." "What? Why?" "I have no idea, I just have to gather all of you and not let anypony hurt you." "Alright, let's say I believe you. Who are you?" "Frosty Stare, a free agent. Read this!" Icy pulled out the second letter from whoever his employer was, "I'll be killed if any of you get hurt." The despair in his voice was enough for the soft-hearted Fluttershy to nod and for Icy to congratulate himself for a job well done. "Can you untie me completely then?" "Sorry, no can do. In all honesty, I don't trust you to trust me. I can leave the light on when I leave and bring you a book or something." "Thanks, I guess. Can you bring me some fairy tales? I need to refresh my repertoire so I can tell them to my animals from memory." "Sure thing. By the way, can you tell me something that would help me get to Rainbow Dash?" "Why don't you just tell her what you told me?" "What would you do if I just walked up to you and told you to follow me and get tied up in some cellar." "If you put it like that..." "Exactly." "I'm sure if you explain she'll just-" "I'll explain the situation to her when she's tied up here. Sorry but I'm not getting executed by having to accidentally harm one of you while chasing." "Well, if there's no other way..." Icy left and rummaged through the foal section of the library for anything about animals. Fortunately, happy little critters were the focus of most of them and he picked two books up and returned to his captive. Binding her front legs again but leaving her ungagged so she could at least turn the pages, Icy left the library. This time he didn't have any solution or advantage. All the physical stats were in his favor outside of speed which meant he wasn't allowed to fail in his first strike. Planning every step an amateur might take in fighting him, Icy Gaze walked through Ponyville night. His desire to avoid flying in this frosty weather proved the right choice as on one of the street lights he spotted a poster with a picture. Wanted, dead or alive: Twilight Sparkle For: Murder attempt aimed at princess Celestia. "Holy balls!" Icy couldn't stop himself from cursing. Something was going on and whoever hired him knew it would happen, making Icy Gaze responsible for ensuring the positive outcome of things. That didn't sound right. Icy tore the poster off and rolled it up into his saddlebag. This thing actually might give him the leverage to get the first strike tonight. If he could suppose the guards had arrived this evening then not many ponies around would know about this yet. Grinning, he now had just the right thing to catch Rainbow Dash off guard to strike the first blow. Still, something about the entire thing smelled wrong. Mercenaries were very unlikely to get hired by the law abiding citizens so the second possibility was that Icy had been hired to make sure the Bearers don't get the protection they might need. For a merc, though, the dilemma was nonexistent. He was doing what he was being paid for, no matter the end result. Yes, it was one of the aspects of his job he wasn't completely comfortable with but it was an important one. The lights in the sky above him announced to everypony that the cloud house of Rainbow Dash was currently occupied and the owner was fully awake. For once this didn't present a problem. *Knock knock* "What's going on at this crazy hour?" a voice from behind the door asked. "A personal message from princess Celestia to Rainbow Dash," Icy imitated a stern Royal Guard voice. The door clicked and a blue face with rainbow mane peeked out... "What does the prince-" ...just to get punched with the force of a sledgehammer. Icy had to internally praise the mare for not getting knocked out but there was no time to stand there astounded so he jumped on her and pushed her to the ground. Before he could say anything he already had to shrug off few kicks to his sides. Thankfully, the blue pegasus mare was not in the position to pull a good blow off. "Stop," Icy shifted his weight to Rainbow's windpipe, "struggling!" Rainbow groaned and headbutted him weakly. "I'm really from the princess. Stop messing around for one second and I'll prove it." The movements from underneath him slowed down. "Good," Icy was much bigger than Rainbow so his sitting on her was still enough of an obstacle and he pulled out the wanted poster, "Now THIS is what I'm here to prevent." Rainbow's eyes went wide as she read the piece of paper. "What's that?" she groaned. "I have no idea," Icy pulled out the solar amulet and showed it to RD, "I've been hired by the princess personally to keep you and the other Bearers safe. Now, I'll slowly stand up and you will pack your things and follow me. Fluttershy is already at my place reading some fairy tales and told me where to find you. Understood?" Rainbow nodded and Icy pulled his weight off her. "I'll stay here. Grab only the important stuff because we have to go fast. The guards are already roaming through Ponyville." With another nod the blue pegasus turned her back at Icy who grinned. Knocking somepony out from behind without seriously injuring them was infinitely easier than doing so against their will. With one blow to the back of her neck, Rainbow Dash was out like a light. Turning all lights off, Icy closed the door and with another pegasus on his back flew through the sleet back to the library. These young and naive fillies were almost too easy to trick. Twilight spent most of her day in Pine Hills by walking around. She wasn't worried about being randomly attacked by Guiding's changelings unless she tried to get back into the hive. What she was worried about was the letter she'd recieved from her mentor. She was smart enough to gather that the reason for her staying here wasn't just to find out about Guiding but to stay out of possible danger. Still, the only thing that meant was that her mentor didn't believe in her and was right to do so. The only thing Twilight's 'diplomacy' achieved was insulting a changeling queen and making her even less friendly to Equestrian royalty than she'd been before. The evening came and she was no closer to formulating her next step than in the morning. After her brush with Guiding Light she'd woken up back at the inn meaning the queen wasn't keen on having guards set on her. Threats wouldn't result in anything though and she wasn't sure what her current objective was anyway. Perhaps she could try to undo the damage she'd caused? Blazing Light used to be a hero whom nopony knew aside from the princesses. His breaking the mirror Crystal Heart had stopped the first invasion and he'd been the sole reason for the princesses taking warm stance towards his daughter and her hive. Twilight had insulted that memory in the heat of the moment. Blazing's betrayal had been something completely unexpected and... ...mostly unexplained. Just like the ending of the second invasion that Twilight had spent hiding and trying to find a way to break the rift in the Everfree Forest. If she looked at the events from a different angle then it just might have been possible that Blazing hadn't betrayed anypony. He might have known Sombra's goal all along and had played things just right to get close to him to stop him in the only place possible... ...and Luna had killed him for it. Breathing heavily, Twilight let the book she was holding drop on the table. That would coincide with two things - his marefriend leaving the guard and disappearing into thin air and his daughter doing the same. The ones closest to him had refused to think of him badly no matter what. Twilight had no real evidence to support that claim but it would nicely round up things that still remained a mystery after the invasion. Leaving the inn, she headed to Shieldbreaker's house. His marefriend had helped her gain an audience once already and might be willing to let Twilight apologize. The door opened, leaving surprised Shieldbreaker to wonder at another Twilight's visit. "What is it, princess?" "Is your Nightmare around? Errm, what's her name?" "She's still thinking about it. They didn't really have names in their old world so I think Guiding Light is the only one who has got it," Shieldbreaker looked behind him "Honey, can you come here?" The changeling came out of the kitchen wearing an apron. Twilight wanted to ask about changeling cooking but she was supposed to make friends, not enemies. "What's up?" asked the Nightmare, "Oh, hello, princess!" "Ehh, can you ask your queen to let me see her again? I made a huge mistake last time." "Yeeeeah... you did," she nodded, "I think I can talk to the queen again but-" "I want to apologize. What I said might or might not have been true but no side has enough hard arguments. Me badmouthing her dad was just a slander." The Nightmare smiled. "Okay, I'll help." "That easy?" "Yep. The first time Breaky saw me disguised as his passed marefriend he pummeled me really bad and I didn't understand what I did wrong. It took me a while of him not talking to me and even refusing the order to let me follow him around but I did so anyway without telling anypony-" "I was really mad... memories are strange things," Shieldbreaker mumbled. "-then I got attacked by some ponies who weren't exactly friendly to changelings in general. Nopony aside from the princesses and the guys who caught us on the train knew about us being in Canterlot at the time. I could have defended myself easily but I was afraid it would tarnish our reputation so I didn't." "I couldn't just let them kick her to death." "Why are you telling me this?" asked Twilight. "Huh? No real reason. It's just that misunderstandings happen and the important thing is to solve them at least partially, not to avoid them." Twilight had rarely found herself in a situation where magic or her friends couldn't help but sometimes she just had to put herself on the line. Sometimes she just had to start again while having nothing and try and try and try. She was a princess now... ...and all that meant was she was just a filly who had been chosen by a bunch of ancient jewels to do their bidding. Working on magic and knowledge had always been her way and now she was realizing that she had forgotten to work on herself. Perseverance was the key and so was patience. Twilight thanked the couple and returned to the inn. She would stay here as long as necessary and she would prove her worth as a pony, not as a Bearer. With renewed vigor she went to bed.