Chapter 8: Summer Sun Celebration
By Octavia Melody
The next few days passed without much to note. I ended my daytime walks in the city due to the incident with the guards. The news of the chase spread through the capital like fire. Vinyl even showed me my wanted poster. She found it humorous because of my wrongly shaped nose. She kept the poster and hung it on the wall in her room. Today however, was the longest day in Equestria, and the Assassins rose before dawn. The Bearer of Magic gathered us outside the Den in the cool Canterlot air.
"Alright Brothers, this day is vital to us. The city is furious about the recent events in Appleloosa. They are going to make it absolutely clear to the Empire that this appalling display of joy is not proper behavior for the times. The Templar would love a riot. I fear that their supporters will purposely aggravate the population further. We are going to silence the voices that try to rouse the common folk."
"Bearer, the Templar are for Order. What makes you think that causing Chaos will help them?" An Assassin asked.
"Any harm to the Empire's government is beneficial to the Templar. The only way they will take control is if the Empire is weak enough to do so. They do not care how it is accomplished."
With that, Twilight turned north and made her way to the Great Royal Palace. The other Assassins and I followed. The streets were already active as folks had risen early to see the dawn. Ever since the heralds announced the Appleloosan events, the city had been quiet and without life, except for the occasional provocative speakers.
The Palace towers surrounded us. The sky was brighter than the ground as the sun approached. The Great Royal Palace was far larger than any other building in Canterlot. Three fourths of the North District was covered by it. Crowds gathered on the colossal platform that extended west of the Palace and out the mountain. The same mountain that delayed the sun from its arrival, as it overshadowed the city in the east. We, hidden in the crowd, shadows, or bushes, closely watched the civilians' behaviors. I could hear muttering and murmurs around me.
"What do the Sisters think? We gotta go help Appleloosa, not sit here and dine!"
"Those damn rebels! They think they are helping, but all their doing is causing fear and death."
"Let us hope that General Silverstar can regain control."
"Bloody nobles drink while my folks die? My brother's down there."
"What are they rebellin' for anyway? Nothin' wrong with the Empire..."
"If the rebels want it so bad, they can have it!"
"We don't need to stand for this! If the Empire doesn't want to help, we'll make them!"
This last voice was louder than the others. I turned to see a man in crimson standing on a table. The people nearby gave heed to him. I slowly walked towards him.
"The Sisters have had their rule. They have become weak with the years. Look! Our land is shrouded in criminals. Killing and raiding at will! Yet they sit in their palace and do nothing. It's high time to reforge the Empire, with a new leader to guide this generation."
I got closer. The man's right sleeve possessed a red cross, barley visible due to the surrounding colors. He was a Templar agent. Reaching my hand to a throwing knife, I was determine to end him. Stop. Think! I could not simply kill the man with a crowd around me. I pulled my hand away from the knife and continued listening to the Templar, pondering what to do next.
"Listen to me! The Sisters do not believe in justice anymore. They only adore their haughty nobles and their expensive banquets! A ruler that does not care for ALL of their subjects does not deserve to be ruling. This is when tyranny ends! This is when we build a new government that rules ALL of their subjects equally!"
He was about to continue when a loud noise emitted in the distance. The gathered crowd jogged in the direction of the noise to investigate. The Templar stayed on his table, annoyed by his listeners' abandonment. I walked over and leaned on the table he stood on.
"That was a lovely speech, Templar. It is a grievance that it landed on deaf ears." I casually complimented him.
He turned to look down at me. Upon realizing who I was, his body lurched away from me. I was quick to grab his ankle and pulled him down into the cobblestone. I proceeded to swiftly stab his thin neck, being careful not to let the blood taint the ground. Dragging away his corpse into a nearby bush, my job was complete.
My mind then turned to the noise. It sounded like a pistol. I began following the Templar's former listeners. They led me to a large crowd surrounding an empty circle, in the middle of the circle appeared to be small amounts of blood.
"There was a body here I swear!"
"The man fell over and was gone!"
"Empress Luna save us! There is a demon on the loose!"
"The sun is not even up and already I regret not staying in bed."
The confused crowd continues to mumble as they gawk at the nothingness in before them. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around to see Twilight. The Bearer of Magic gestured for my silence and nodded her head to tell me to follow.
"The Sisters are about to exit the Palace, let's go." She whispered to me.
We took our station in front of the Palace gates. Citizens surrounded the Palace, lining up along the empty white path that the Sisters will ride through. Royal Guards also lined up along this path with halberds raised perfectly straight up. The sun's rays touched the land far below the city. A small man stepped through the gate, shouting and waving his arms in unison.
"Make way! The Sisters have arrived! Make way!"
Behind him, a massive golden chariot followed. The chariot was being pulled by six large horses dressed in the same gold as the chariot. The chariot's front was carved with elegant wings. The back supported the Equestrian flag. Everyone was not looking at the chariot though. Their gaze was on the chariot's occupants.
The Two Sisters waved at the crowds. The taller of the two, Empress Celestia, was adorned in a long white silk dress. Her sister, Empress Luna, was wearing a similar dress, but instead of white, a rich dark blue. Their long hair flow with the wind of their movement. Behind the Sisters are Princes and foreign nobles on horses. The crowd, surprisingly, cheer at the appearance of all this.
The chariot made it way to the far end of the platform. Twilight and I followed along on a high fence. Her pistols rattled at the steady movement. I saw other Assassins making their way through the crowd. Let us hope that they are not needed.
My eyes found a hooded man sharpening a dagger in a dark corner, away from the crowds. I pointed this out to Twilight. She nodded and disappeared in flash of purple light. I was temporally bewildered by this act. I looked back at the man to see Twilight crouched behind him. In a smooth movement, she placed the man in a choke hold and silently wrestled him to the ground. Once his body was unconscious, she placed him in a sitting position in the dark corner. She then teleported back on the fence next to me.
"I did not know his true intentions with the dagger, so I let him live. Hope he enjoys the nap." She told me.
The procession continued. The Sisters reached the end of the platform and elegantly stepped off the chariot. Guards followed them and symmetrically placed themselves on either side of the rulers. The adopted Prince Shining Armor and his wife, the New Crystal Republic's young princess Mi Amore Cadenza, stood off to the side. The Empire's other prince, Prince Blueblood, was nowhere to be seen. I assume he did not wish to rise early for the ceremony.
Empress Celestia took a step forward. Even from my view, I could see her soft smile. She cleared her throat and addressed the now silent multitude. Her angelic voice easily reached my ears.
"Greetings my dear Equestrians. Today is the Summer Sun Celebration. The day in which we welcome the new season. A season that will bring prosperity to the Empire. Although that is up to you, my subjects. It is you who lift this nation above the rest. It is you that bind this Empire together. It is you that will let this nation survive. These are troublesome times, however, we cannot falter. We cannot give in to the violence that surrounds us. We shall rise above it all. The Freedom and Justice of this Empire shall last. So let us celebrate today! Let us shout back into the faces of our trials. Let us gaze into the future with confidence and purpose! Know that we shall pull through, no matter the value!"
The short speech was received with mixed emotions from the masses. Mutterings and whispers filled the enormous platform. A skinny man in the front row stepped forward and shouted at the Two Sisters.
"Celebrate? Really? Wha' good is there in celebrating? What about Appleloosa? They'ze in a war zone down there. No. We can't celebrate simply to shrug such things aside. We must act! Clear the place of such violators."
"Hush thy tongue peasant! It is not of wise of thou to address..." The younger Empress was cut off by her elder.
"Luna, enough. The man has the right to speak his mind. Now, young man, I understand your concern. The matter is already being resolved. I have personally assigned General Silverstar of the Sixth Royal Legion to oversee the matters in Appleloosa. I fear for the people down there just as much as you do. We can only wait for the outcome. We are not forgetting them in celebrating, we are honoring them. We cannot let such tragedies affect our Empire. We must overcome them. We hold this celebration to look beyond our failures and to honor those that have given us the opportunity to celebrate."
The man stayed standing in front of the masses. After a short silence, he turned and disappeared back into the crowd. The sun's rays shines down on all of us. The sun had arrived and not a soul cared or even noticed. I heard Twilight incoherently mumble beside me.
By midday, the ceremonies had finished. The music and entertainers were lively and joyous, but their audiences remained stern and unhappy throughout their performances. Very few speakers lifted their voices against the Empire after the skinny man's confrontation of the Sisters. We Assassins lingered but quickly began feeling that our task here was completed. Once the midday feast commenced, the Bearer of Magic had sent the majority of us back to our respected Dens. A couple Assassins remained at the feast in case of any suspicious activity.
Upon returning to my home, my stomach growled with hunger. I had no need to enter my quarters, so I headed down into the lounge. I sat down with my meal while Assassins discussed the events of the morning. Most of their ceaseless chatter was on the subject of General Silverstar and Appleloosa. I payed no heed as I did not find their opinions on the matter interesting. As I chewed my food, the jingle of weaponry came towards me. I looked up from my meal to see Twilight standing in front of me; a large sack was slung over her shoulder.
"Pack your possessions, Den Master. We are going to Ponyville."
~