//------------------------------// // Chapter 28 // Story: Ein Sof Zealotry // by ZhaoZoharEX //------------------------------// Original Title: Watch Your Temper This chapter is part of the older version of "Ein Sof Zealotry" and is to be considered non-canon in lieu of the pending rewrite. This along with the rest of the old story remain for the purpose of comparison. The dining room of Canterlot Castle would host up to fifty guests if needed. The tables for such occasions were moved to the walls, holding flowers most of the time. A table of ten usually sufficed and would be also prepared every morning. Having just one pony eating, the room seemed rather forlorn, as if deep in memories about the dies of glory. So did the pony, but most spectators would mistake her expression for resentment or anger. That’s because they never took the time to get to know her. They made an assumption, they created an image of a ruler in their heads and then assigned it her name. For a vast majority of ponies (and other species) there was no problem with such practice. Neither them nor her had time to acquaint themselves properly. The picture they made about her varied from pony to pony according to their status and their feelings toward the crown. Thus a common citizen would see her as a benevolent loving being who watched over their lives keeping them safe. To the countries she would be a fierce warrior, barring even the thoughts about invasion from their minds. To the apparatus of the government she would look like an inconceivable judge of their proposals. All of that without her ever meeting them. The system worked almost flawlessly and saved Equestria and her much trouble. But would it kill the small group she was meeting on daily basis to take the effort and try forming some semblance of relationship? What would it cost them to be actually interested in the answer when asking ‘How are you doing today?’ She was providing opportunities for that, these breakfasts being one of them. She would strike conversations about various topics, appear on their celebrations from time to time, organize tea parties… All for nothing. In conversation they would weigh their every word, thinking it to be some kind of test. Whenever around her, ponies went either rigid or try to win her favor with compliments. Those who tried to throw dirt on others to climb higher wouldn’t stay in her company too long, thus she didn’t even count them in the equation. As for the breakfast, they thought she didn’t see them when they peeked in the room through the slightly open door. They would gaze upon her for a second, judge her expression as angry or resentful and vanish as quietly as possible. By this point she wasn’t even sure how she really looked. How long and how many ponies does it take to change what we are without our consent? Once again silent steps approached the door. She didn’t even bother to look up, they would leave soon anyway. The door creaked a little. Well, it must have been some corpulent dignitary, as the others didn’t need to move the doors at all to take a peek. Then the door closed. How rude. What about the poor ponies who would come later? They would have to betray their presence to her by opening the door again! The hooves clopped on the parquets and turned into muffled thuds once the pony reached the carpet. Celestia lifted her eyes from the pattern on the tablecloth and gazed in surprised into smiling eyes behind black-rimmed glasses. “Good morning, Princess. How are you doing today? You look like you have seen a ghost just now.” Oh yes, then there was Raven. Smiling most of the time and sincerely concerned about Celestia’s feelings and life. Without her, Celestia would probably start talking to paintings and sets of armor. The land wouldn’t run as smoothly either, since organization skills of plates of steel didn’t reach further than reliably forming piles when dropped. “Good morning to you as well, Raven. Not a ghost, but I didn’t expect anypony else for the breakfast.” Raven glanced around at the empty room and then pointed back at the door. “Me neither. That’s why I closed the door. Nevertheless,” she pulled the chair opposed to Celestia away from the table and sat down comfortable, levitating the chair with herself back to its place, “with a bit of goodwill, I will find a place with the current company.” “Did you just call me fat, Raven?” Celestia raised an eyebrow and sprinkled some sugar on the spoonful of oatmeal she was about to eat. “No, your majesty. That was you. I just covertly suggested you could keep your legs under your side of the table.” Celestia was left speechless for a few seconds, then nodded. “You win this round.” She poured Raven some coffee and levitated a tray with sandwiches toward her, knowing well her secretary wasn’t fond on cereals in the morning. When Raven tried to answer, Celestia used the opening to slip one in. “Oh and please don’t remind me about the score, agreed?” Only once Raven nodded did Celestia release her magical hold, smirking the whole time. They ate in silence for some time, sometime exchanging light kicks under the table just for good measure. What most would consider grave disrespect toward her majesty princess of Equestria, Celestia saw as a welcomed relief. There was nothing malicious in Raven’s behavior, she was just teasing Celestia. What’s more, she sincerely and wholeheartedly considered her a friend. Celestia didn’t know many ponies like that. By the end of the breakfast Celestia’s mood improved drastically. Sure, the matters at hoof would turn her day bitter, but at least she was certain she would manage. “The meeting with the Dominion is set for ten o’clock as you asked, your highness,” Raven said as they were leaving the dining room. With the plates and cups used and chairs casually standing slightly away from the table, it also seemed in much better mood than before. After all, ponies, just just a pony spent some time in there. “Thank you, Raven. I hope you will attend. You know how I hate dealing with them.” “I do and I will, your highness.” Raven turned a page on her clipboard and studied the data scribbled in. “There is also a delegation from several villages from the northern regions. They ask for audience regarding the attack.” “They probably want their friend released. Let them join the hearing, they can state their request once the main report is dealt with.” “As you wish, your highness. But they seemed rather angry.” They parted ways to perform final preparations for the audience, Raven to inform the delegation about princess’s decision and Celestia to retrieve her crown. She didn’t look forward to the meeting. The only topic on the agenda was the attack against Canterlot from yesterday. She still couldn’t comprehend how that even happened and felt a strong bitterness about it. That was also another reason why the ponies assumed her angry at breakfast. The bell on one of the castle’s tower stoke ten times and Celestia walked down the red carpet leading from the door of the audience chamber between the chairs toward the throne risen above the floor on few steps. Everypony in the room stood up once she entered and didn’t sit down until she made herself comfortable on the throne and gave them permission. The only ones who remained standing were the guards positioned around the walls, next to the door and behind the throne. The Dominion insisted on such precaution back when the groups of bandits roamed the land. After an excessive number of demands she gave in. She scanned the room with mild curiosity. Not too often would small delegation from villages come to address her personally. Big merchants, cities or guilds, sure. But common ponies had little reason or time to come. She feared the latter. She could discern them easily. They were sitting further back in the chamber, the members of Dominion taking the first row. They also didn’t wear any fancy clothes or expensive jewellery and they gazes were roam all over the place, taking in the furniture crafted by artisans, gobelins and overall luxury. They were also throwing hidden looks at the nobles, probably realizing that the stones on their earrings and necklaces would buy their whole villages, fields included. Another great difference lay within their expressions. While the nobles maintained a composed look of smugness and contentedness with themselves, as if the attack didn’t concern them at all, the villages were overall nervous, unsure and most of all upset. “Welcome, everypony. I am happy to see all of you at this day.” Such a blatant lie. As if the chamber itself cringed at it. “The meeting would bring me much more pleasure if we were to discuss a less grave topic. Alas, we rarely order fate what to bring us.”   She looked to the side where Raven was sitting next to the throne. She was smiling encouragingly, the only ally Celestia felt she had in the whole room. The only one she was happy to see in fact. “May the speaker of the Dominion report on the attack deflected yesterday,” Raven ordered. As a master of ceremonies she stood above the social ladder in these situation. A dark green stallion, Sequoia Crown, stepped forward. While the Dominion supposedly worked on the principle of equality, everypony knew that Sequoia Crown called the shots. Nobles couldn’t simply ignore the old hierarchy, however hard that tryhard Covenant Seal seeked alliances and supporters. He was still just a new merchant nobility, something generally seen as uncouth. Sequoia Crown on the other hoof knew perfectly well his place was on the top. “Your highness, praised society, dear-” he looked over his shoulder at the delegation, hiding his disdain with difficulties, “-citizen,” he finished with a bit of a pause. He would find many different names for them, most of them rather pejorative. “It is a great pleasure for me to inform you that the threat posed by a rabble rebellion was successfully deflected and that our army achieved an absolute victory.” “Hey, who are you calling rabble? They were normal ponies!” a yellow mare from the delegation called out, only to be hushed by her peers. Sequoia wouldn’t leave such opportunity be and turned to her. “I would like to remind the attendants of this audience that there is a protocol to maintain and that breaching it may be considered disrespectful to the crown and lead to being escorted out of the audience chamber.” The mare shrank into herself and Sequoia adopted a smug smile. Petty slimy fool. They both reverted to normal once they caught Celestia’s benevolent smile. “I will decide myself which acts disrespect me, Sequoia, thank you. Now please continue.” “Of course, your highness.” Part of his smugness was replaced with suppressed anger. The result of the fight for influence in Dominion depended on every little victory and defeat. He just received an equivalent of a slap. “As I was saying, the army achieved a glorious victory. Thanks to careful planning and brilliant strategy the whole rebellion was suppressed and didn’t bring any losses on lives and almost no material damage. All that thanks to-” “We object!” An elderly grey earth stallion got up from the midst of the delegation and started walking toward the steps. He had trouble walking, probably suffering from arthritis. If he decided to travel all the way to Canterlot, his reasons must have been very serious. “What this good sir is telling you is no truth, your highness!” Sequoia Crown magicked a truly ugly smile on his face. This was his triumph. “Guards! Escort this stallion out of the chamber. He was warned.” Two guards immediately stepped forward, pointed their halberds on the stallion and started maneuvering him toward the door. He had no choice but to obey, He wouldn’t be intimidated though. “Listen to me your highness! They didn’t send anypony to protect us! The rebellion robbed us and killed our loved ones!” “Guards, let the stallion be. I am interested in what he has to say.” To Celestia’s surprise the guards didn’t react to her at all, continuing their march. “The word is given to Autumn Sta- ack!” Raven tried to keep up the protocol, but stopped in surprise. Sequoia stared Celestia directly into the eyes, all his contempt in that gaze as Celestia stood up from her throne. “Guards, I command you to step back!” They just glanced back at Sequoia who gestured them to continue. “I said, step back!” Celestia shouted and with a flash of her horn the two guards were flung through the air, a thin ribbon of smoke rising from their chests. Immediately the spears of all remaining guards in the room were pointed at her. While most of the attendants were trying to get away from her and any danger, Sequoia stood his ground, his right forehoof pointed at her. “The command of the army and royal guard falls within the competence of the Dominion, your highness. We are protecting this country and we do so how we see most fit and no soil-eating scum will give us advice!” He nodded to the guards who started advancing. “I have to arrest you for an attack against the armed forces and for usurpation of powers. Guards, appre-” Celestia spread her wings and descended upon him like a falcon upon his prey. While in the air, white lightning shot from her horn in direction of every guard like a cobra, hitting their necks and incapacitating them quicker than any venom could. The door burned white as well, white snakes intertwining around the handles to prevent anypony from escaping or entering.  She tumbled Sequoia with her landing, one foreleg stepping on his neck, the other one shattering his horn with a loud crack. Another one could be heard next to the throne among the noise of chairs being overturned or smashed. She spent a glance in that direction, seeing Raven standing over a guard over twice her size. He was bleeding from his nose, his jaw horribly disfigured. “I am allergic to blades on my neck, remember that!” Raven hissed at him, but it was doubtful if he could hear her in his fog of pain. Celestia nodded in acclaim at her, then shifted her attention to her own victim. Sequoia Crown was lying under her hooves with his mouth agape, gasping both from pain and for air as she was still suffocating him. She relieved some pressure and bowed her head close to his. “I am not one of your pitiful friends, Sequoia,” she told him gently as if she was talking to a foal on a school excursion, who expressed a wish to become a princess. The contrast between the kindness of her voice and her violent actions seconds ago made the ponies press against the walls even more. “You can’t boss me around. Raven?” “Yes, your highness?” Raven joined her side, absentmindedly rolling the shards of Sequoia’s horn from side to side with her hoof. Unlike others she seemed completely unfazed by the events. “Please find captain Fiery Swirl. My personal guard is to replace guards in the castle immediately. Furthermore, the guards from this chamber and dear Sequoia Crown are put under arrest for high treason.” The snakes from the door disappeared and Raven ran away immediately to fulfill her orders. It wasn’t the first coup attempt in the history of Equestria, although it certainly ranked very high in the charter of foolishness. There were plans for these situations, standardized and assigned numbers. “Oh dear Sequoia. Wth me your bloodline started. I am sorry I didn’t keep a closer eye on it, we may have avoided this.” Her horn touched his forehead and Sequoia lost consciousness, an act of mercy in his state. Then Celestia looked up at the frightened ponies. “I am very sorry for this spectacle. Now even more than before my statement applies. I would much rather see you under happier circumstances. With this out of the way though, would you please share what information you have for me, Autumn Star?” The stallion hesitated for a second, but then made his way back to the front and took a bow. “Your highness, it is not true that the rebellion didn’t cause any damage. We come from villages to the north from Canterlot. They travelled through our homes, took our supplies and burned houses when somepony dared to stand up against them.” “And no help was sent to defend you?” “No, your highness. And the few guards positioned in the surroundings retreated to Canterlot. They said they were ordered to.” “Does the Dominion wish to deny this information?” Nopony spoke up, all the unicorns fervently trying to avoid her eyes. “Very well. I, princess Celestia, hereby apologize for the choice of such ruthless strategy by the high command of our army. You will be paid damages increased by twenty percent for the suffering you sustained and your traveling costs will be compensated as well. Furthermore, I will personally see to it that this will never repeat.” “Thank you, your highness!” Autumn Star rejoiced as did his fellow delegates. “That is more than we expected!” “I am glad we found a mutually agreeable solution.” Celestia smiled and pointed at the door. “If that is all, I will ask you to wait in the entrance hall. As a gesture of goodwill I would like you to be my guests until the technicalities of the refundation are solved. My servants will be with you in a short while.” As the door behind the excited delegation closed, their happy chattering audible for few more seconds - oh how little is sufficient to take pony’s mind from a horror witnessed - Celestia centred her attention fully on the remaining members of the Dominion. They didn’t even attempt to sneak away along with the ponies leaving. “I am sure I don’t have to remind you it will be you who will compensate them. Now though, I would like to hear the full version of how the attack was deflected. You must understand I am a bit suspicious.” Without making any move, Covenant Seal found himself in front of the others. He would finally get his time in the spotlight. That’s what happens when you try to make those above you remember you. They will, but only once they need a scapegoat. “Well, your highness, you see we tried to minimize losses on lives, so we set up a trap in the lower city-” “As in inside the walls, but far enough from your own homes, I take it?” Celestia inquired. “Y-yes, your highness. But we made sure not too many of them would get there! The ballistas took care of that!” “So you used ballistae.” She got a nod. “The heavy siege weapons?” Another nod. “Against a group of farmers with pitchforks.” “There was five hundred of them, your highness!” Covenant tried to defend their methods. “It seemed the most reliable way.” “Sure. May I ask who came up with that idea?” “Prince Blueblood, your highness. He took command of the whole action.” Celestia closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. When she opened the eyes again, she regained her composure fully. “Thank you for the answers, Covenant. You were giving them effectively and correctly, just like when you were still in my service, not Dominion’s.” “I did my best, your highness. Can… can we leave now, please?” “In a second, my dear. I need to tell you something very important first.” They all relaxed a bit and gathered closer to her to hear better, as the volume of her speech returned to normal. “I hope I don’t have to explain to you just how upset I am. You abused your power, allowed harm to befall ponies, everything to ensure your possessions would stay in complete safety. Along with previous activities of the Dominion, I feel obliged to disband this organ. It proved to be completely dysfunctional.” “But-” “You can’t just-” “That’s a breach-” They protested, but fell silent when Celestia raised her hoof. “The Dominion will disband voluntarily, without protests or problems. Otherwise, I will order a thorough control of your undertaking and taxes. I am certain my auditors would find enough violations of the law to put you all in prison and confiscate all your cherished possessions.” They all suddenly found their hooves the most intriguing thing in the chamber. “Very well. Now please return to your homes and await the couriers with payment orders for the damages. And one last thing.” The stopped in their tracks and looked back at their ruler, unrivaled in her authority. Celestia stood over the body of Sequoia Crown, her mane waving, wings spread and eyes speaking of determination. “Do not try to sabotage the efforts of the crown, you will meet the same fate.” She intentionally left out which fate, whether the auditors, or that of Sequoia, letting them choose for themselves. Who knows which they found worse? She turned away from the picture of destruction and left the chamber through the door behind the throne. She still had a lot to take care of. As if fresh wind pervaded the air in Canterlot. He could breathe much easier and the whole place seemed to relax as if it waited in suspension for a very long time. Fancy Pants left his house with a mixture of anticipation and animosity in his thoughts, huddled in a thick raincoat as aside from the metaphorical winds of change the very physical ones were blowing, carrying like needle sharp droplets of rain. Fancy Pants never understood what the point of orchestrating the weather was. Of course, the weather wouldn’t be changing without the efforts of pegasi at all, due to some ancient concept suggesting a grave shortsightedness of planner behind it, but the pony who decided that the best course of action would be to follow the pattern of seasonal weather from Everfree must have suffered from either very low imagination or very big mental disorder. While he travelled a lot, he never got a chance to visit Everfree Forest, knowing of its autonomous weather management only from the stories. In all honesty he didn’t regret it either and even if he did, he wouldn’t have any way to change that by this point. As the last act in its existence the Everfree visited every citizen of Equestria after all and in the form of ash would become an integral part of their bodies. They would be carrying it forever in their hearts. And lungs. He frowned at the mud that stuck on his forehoof after an inattentive step resulting in a splash. Just for what reason did the plants need the autumn sleets? Probably to make the leaves rot quicker. Their smell mixed with the smoke from the many chimneys of the city. The smoke signaled fires burning in fire places, comfortably warming up the rooms and inviting ponies to spend a pleasant afternoon with a book. When he thought about it, the day would be quite scenic from that suggested position. Instead he was hurrying up the street toward the castle, slowly learning to ignore the puddles and the obtrusive cold. Maybe now with Everfree gone pegasi would forget about certain aspects of its folklore - or naturelore? - and make the life more bearable during these months. Somepony should probably see to their records being burned as well, just to be sure. During such days only the most determined or the most desperate would venture out. Either way, they needed a very good reason to. Fancy Pants had such reason, the change he was sensing. While most of the city still lay in ignorance, Fancy Pants knew of the event from that very morning in detail. The nobles naturally didn’t spread the word, nor was he in any regular contact with them. They embodied the very counterpart of how noble should behave in his opinion. To name one of their flaws, they didn’t know how to lose with grace. To name yet another, they thought the servants didn’t have ears and mouths. Thus they talked freely and often in anger in front of their maid and never asked their butler what was new. Fancy Pants did ask and since he cared for his servants genuinely and treated them much better than was common practice in Canterlot, he also got the answer. Serving in a noble house was a profession with a low fluctuation. One could even say that whole families of nobles and servants lived in symbiosis for generations. Therefore the servants knew each other about as well at the nobles did among themselves. And since the servants weren’t plotting against each other, information travelled much faster among them. Fancy Pants knew that Covenant Seal spent the last few hours trying to beat the world record in speed consumption of whiskey, that Sequoia Crown never returned home from the Dominion meeting, and also the reasons behind both phenomenons. There was change in the air. There was also pegasus hurtling at him. In the opposite direction in the air, clearly thrown out of balance by the wind. Fancy Pants charged his horn quickly and caught the flyer in a telekinetic field, carefully bringing them to a stop just before they would impact. “Thank you, sir,” the pegasus said and adjusted his cloak with slits for wings. There was Celestia’s cutie mark embroidered on its deep red waterproof fabric. “I lost control in this mess.” “Cycle of seasons or seasonal cyclone, that’s the question,” Fancy Pants mused taking some time to shake down the water from his coat. “What brings Celestia’s messenger outside though?” “Actually, you, sir.” That gave Fancy Pants a pause. The messenger unbuckled a case hidden under his cloak - he was handling it with utmost care, dragon skin cases were a rarity even among the most accomplished in his trade, providing maximal protection to the documents transported - and retrieved a single roll of paper. “I was on my way to your residence when I spotted you in the street, sir. Sorry again for the landing.” “Nothing bad happened.” Fancy Pants broke the seal on the roll and read the letter. Celestia apparently reached a similar conclusion to his own at approximately the same time. With the Dominion gone, he would find his way to the castle again. “Thank you for delivering the message so quickly. Here.” He retrieved a twenty-bit coin from his saddlebag and handed it to the messenger, who saluted with a smile and flew away. While he was expected in the castle, nopony assumed he would arrive so early. The guards, wearing cloaks in the same color as the messenger, identifying them as members of Celestia’s personal guard, directed him briskly to one of the conference halls though. Being surprised wasn’t part of their job. He knew his way around the castle perfectly and soon opened the last door, after only a light knock. He wasn’t the only guest of the princess at the moment. Captain Fiery Swirl, a light yellow pegasus with a namesake mane was sitting by the table along with ex-ambassador Wintershades. Quite unusually Raven was sitting with them, not standing close behind Celestia, ready to run away on an errand. He had to smile. It took her a long time to promote herself. They all stood up with their mouths agape as he appeared at the threshold. His smile only widened at that and before the butler could help him with his coat, he lifted one of the flaps, hiding half of his face behind it. “Why so silent good messieurs, did you think that I have left you for good? Have you missed me good messieurs? I have returned to you in castle!” he sang, prompting a giggle from Raven. Celestia stepped forward and answered his dare. “Fancy, I hear you. Speak, I listen. Stay by my side, guide me. Fancy, my soul was weak, forgive me. Enter at last, my friend.” They exchanged a bow and another bright smile. It had been a long time since they met face to face, at amicable conditions even longer. Fiery Swirl tapped on the table with his hoof impatiently, “I would be the last pony to speak against art, but I am afraid we have more important matters to handle than theatrics, your highness.” “I am awfully sorry that I interrupted you, captain,” Fancy Pants said with a nod at the pegasus and being gestured by Celestia to the remaining free chair, he took his place at the table. “I hope my early arrival isn’t causing any trouble.” “Not at all, Fancy Pants,” Celestia said and poured him some tea from a china kettle. Nothing about her betrayed just what transpired earlier that day. “I am actually glad, you showed up so soon. You will get into picture of matters much smoother. Please, continue, captain.”   “As I was saying, the interrogations of the captives from yesterday’s attack have been finished before we even overtook the prison as you ordered. They must have been performing them throughout the night, which shouldn’t get out either. Ponies are on edge already. If they learnt of such ruthless behavior, we could be facing another rebellion.” “Prepare a list of interrogators who participated in that and of their commanding officers. They will face disciplinary commission.” “Yes, your highness.” “Have they at least learnt anything useful?” “As a matter of fact, they did.” He turned few pages of his notes, before he found what he needed. “They revealed the group wasn’t united in their motivation. While a majority wanted to take revenge on the nobility, just as we expected, a small group intended to mainly free the preachers arrested in span of previous weeks. We can’t confirm that though as only one of the prisoners testified in that way.” “So that new movement could have been involved in that, intere-” “How dare you bar me entrance, you scum?!” The door was flung open following that exclamation and in came Prince Blueblood, seething like a cat somepony poured a bucket of ice-cold water on its head. He even looked like such cat, courtesy of the sleet. Maybe that weather served some purpose after all. “Auntie, I demand an explanation!” he cried out, pushing the spear of one of the guards to the side with his magic. “Captain Dart Chaser informed me that my guards had been put off duty and replaced-” His eyes narrowed when he spotted Fiery Swirl. “You! You were the one who ordered that, you feathery canon futter!” “If I were you, I would watch my tongue, prince. There are no ballistas around to hide behind and your cutie mark is much bigger than the targets I practice with.” Fiery Swirl lifted a dessert fork and scrutinized its pointy ends. No gentlecolt would draw a weapon in the presence of the princess. There were no rules about cutlery though. “You little dirty-” Blueblood started, now truly enraged, but he shut up when Celestia got up. “That would be quite enough, thank you.” She looked to the side at Fiery Swirl and removed the fork from his hoof with her magic. “Don’t stain the silver, captain. You will need it for the dessert later.” Then the full weight of her gaze rested on Blueblood again. In Fancy Pants’ opinion the day was getting better still and he wasn’t alone in that assumption. “It was I who gave that order, Blueblood. I came to the conclusion that the guards you chose were not reliable enough for such important task.” Blueblood seemed baffled with that revelation. For a few seconds the only sound in the room was caused by the droplet falling from his mane and coat onto the ornamented tiles, forming a small pool. “But the army is under the command of Dominion!” “The Dominion disbanded this morning, prince,” Fancy Pants stated between the sips of tea. For the second time that afternoon, he drew surprised looks from his companions. “What? Is it a secret?” “You are dangerous, Fancy Pants. But you are right. Thus all the power of the Dominion returned to me, if it weren’t mine all along,” Celestia explained and seconded Fancy’s sipping. “But-” “As for you, I was told some very valuable information. According to the report I received, you were commanding the defense of Canterlot all by yourself yesterday. I would like to thank you.” Blueblood relaxed a bit and started fixing his mane, grinning smuggle at the gathered ponies. “Well, that was nothing really. I wouldn’t let some idiot hazzard the fates of us all.” The amount of arrogance cummulated threatened to inflate the room a little to stay in tolerable concentration. “Yes, I have a lot to learn from you, as you apparently did.” The cat just received another involuntary shower. A kick would follow. “As I said, I would like to thank you. I doubted your intelligence and abilities before. Now you provided me a definite proof. In which way does using siege weapons against our subjects seem like a good idea?” “They were rebelling! I had to stop them. You should be glad they didn’t get further!” “They got so far only because you allowed them to, Blueblood. Nopony had to die!” Celestia rounded the table and stood face to face with her nephew. “I am deeply disappointed and disturbed.” “They only got what they deserved.” He gathered the last of his defiance and gazed her directly into the eyes. Fancy Pants laid a hoof on Raven’s shoulder, as the petite unicorn gasped in expectation. The confrontation was playing out too similarly to that with Sequoia. Celestia caught the sound and as she glimpsed back at her friend, who shook her head in rejection, withdrew some of the anger from her eyes. “What they deserved you say, Blueblood? You should see what they really got. Guards?” The two stallions in dark red stepped forward, saluting her promptly. “Take him to the battlefield and explain to him what he will see there. Then take him to his house. He is to be put under home arrest and will wait there for further punishment.” They saluted again and grabbed Blueblood under the armpits, dragging him toward the exit, which he resisted with all his might. :”Let me be! I’m a prince, you better show me some respect, you ruffians!” “Only by name, Blueblood. Any country would do better in anarchy than with you as its ruler.” As the door slammed shut behind the guards, Celestia returned to her place and helped herself to another cup of tea. “I am sorry for the scene everypony. I would have gone and found him after we would be done, but as he saved me that trouble I wanted to be over with that.” “It’s no trouble at all, your highness. I am actually quite happy that I got to witness Blueblood’s fall. Some of my friends will certainly enjoy the story.” “I will assign few of the guards to rotate watch at his house, your highness,” Fiery Swirl added. “Thank you. Now back to our original problem. The movement may have been involved and the word has it the preachers are coming from the Empire. Can you tell us something closer to that connection, Wintershades?” “It is rather complicated to answer that question, your highness,” the silver stallion said and stroked his chin in thought. “I can confirm the presence of the preachers in the Empire, that is for certain. But I don’t recall anything that would signal their connection to queen Cadance. She is tolerating them in the very least though.” “We shouldn’t jump to conclusions, your highness. We all remember Cadance from when she lived in Canterlot. She isn’t stupid.” Fiery Swirl and Raven both nodded in agreement with Fancy Pants’ statement. “Despite her recent unfriendly actions, she wouldn’t send a direct attack against Canterlot, let alone one with such a low chance of success.” “You are probably right, Fancy Pants,” Celestia said. “We can’t connect this to her reasonably. Regardless though, I promised the delegation that the northern regions would get better defense. There is not only the Empire, but Griffon border is rather close as well. Fiery Swirl? I would like you to study the landscape of the region with Wintershades and choose three spots for new fortresses. That should sufficiently improve the situation and lower the crime rate as well. That will be all, thank you.” While the other three ponies got up and started leaving for their further tasks, Fancy Pants remained seated and sipped his tea. Celestia didn’t notice at first and let her guard down, slumping in her chair tiredly and sighing deeply. “Something the matter, your highness?” he broke her from her thoughts, actually startling her. “Oh, you are still here, Fancy Pants? I thought you left.” “Should I?” “No, I’m glad you didn’t. It’s that coup from this morning. I still can’t believe Sequoia went so far. He was always arrogant, but I thought he knew his limits. I should have suspected something from his speeches though, I guess.” Fancy Pants tried to recall as much about the stallion as he only could. He didn’t keep in touch with him too lively, for the same reasons as with the whole Dominion, but still he would see him from time to time at the social gatherings. Sequoia Crown was always an elitist. But when Fancy thought about it more, it seemed that Sequoia’s attitude sharpened within the last few weeks and his views were getting more extreme. “He changed a lot lately. I think it started around the time when that second cupola was spotted in the Frozen North territory. Maybe some mental disorder? It would explain both the personality change and lack of judgment.” “I’m afraid we will never know, Fancy Pants.” Celestia wanted to pour herself another cup, but discovered the kettle was empty. “His horn was broken in our skirmish. You know what that means.” Of course he did. Sequoia’s mind must have been in a horrible turmoil. Losing the ability he had for his whole life, an integral part of himself, must have thrown him into madness if he wasn’t there before. There was no helping him. “It doesn’t matter in the end,” Celestia voiced his conclusion and got up.”I know that I should judge in dubio pro reo, but in this case reus is dead anyway. Execution and a pardon became one for him.” “And his son?” Fancy Pants asked after the retreating princess. “He shouldn’t suffer for his father’s sins.” “I will be lenient with him, Fancy Pants. I promise.” “That’s all I ask.” There was nopony to hear him already. Fancy Pants looked into his cup and saw half of it still full. If the princess had paid attention and acted in time, she would have gotten that tea instead as well as prevented the coup. Now his attention was in her service.   Dear citizens of Equestria. Allow me to begin with something we all very well know, even though we often refuse to admit it out loud. Our land is not flourishing. The great potential of us ponies is not put to proper use. Enormous groups of us create goods nopony has any need of, while others still starve. That would still be tolerable though. What’s worse, we are living in a morally corrupt atmosphere. We became sick because we learnt to say something else than we think. We ignore others, and love, friendship and compassion lost their meaning, turning into abstract concepts   We were not created to live this way though. We suffer and desperately seek for cure. For guidance and advice. We are willing to grasp at straws, just to get out of this cold suffocating fog. Sometimes that wish blinds us. Quite recently it seemed such straw appeared within our reach. Humble and smiling ponies started talking to us all over Equestria, teaching us about virtues and better way to live. Their words were sweet and the visions attractive and truly in what they were saying lay no malice. In the shine of dragon’s scales there is nothing evil either. We get blinded too easily and swayed from the right path without noticing. Thus the courage merged with hatred, friendship became exclusive, picking ones and condemning others, and violence ruled over compassion. I ask you, oh virtuous preachers. Why did you chase good ponies against others? What was gained through their death? Why didn’t you teach them to tolerance? Where were you, when your herd was rampaging our fields? Don’t judge our friends too harshly, dear citizens. They may have raised weapons against us, but their hearts were pure, just beset by wickedness and contention. Forgive them and learn from their error. Beautiful words of others may be just as empty as ours. Don’t trust them, dear citizens. Judge by their actions instead. –Gumshoe. Canvas put the newspaper down and looked at her friends. They all gathered in their living room. Sunset was surprised how composed she looked. She was certain Canvas would be taking it much harsher, what with her idealistic views. Then again, maybe they were exactly the reason why she stayed calm. That rebellion was asking for that. Not everypony around was sharing that view. “He has a point, you know,” Canvas said after a moment of silence. “He could express it in a less theatrical manner, if you ask me,” Trixie said and adjusted the pillow she was leaning on. To her, the affair was over, damage done and they would have to live with it. That was actually very close to truth, although a comment about theatrical behavior coming from her… “It’s nicely written,” Canvas defended the writer. “He knows how to play on ponies’ feelings.” Sunset decided to not comment on that though. “That rebellion indeed started with our preaching,” she admitted instead. “One of my preachers returned and informed me of the incident in Hayfield. The core of the rebellious group was formed after he finished his speech. Needless to say the rest of the inhabitants weren’t too fond of him after that, so he decided to return.” “That’s great, Sunset,” Lightning Dust spat out cattily. “Another great example of your teachings, always rushing everything!” “Wasn’t it your fanfilly who caused this whole mess?” Sunset countered cooly. “She wouldn’t get to do that if you didn’t motivate her and if your security measures worked!” “So now they are my measures? Last time I checked we designed them together.” “Girls, calm down!” stepped Twilight into the discussion, quite literally as she stood between them. She then took a step back, so she would talk to them both from eyes to eyes. “Arguing and accusing will not help us. It happened, so make sure it doesn’t happen again.” “I actually meant he was right in something else.” Everypony looked back to Canvas who didn’t move a single bit during the heated exchange. “We are constantly talking about being virtuous and making life better for ponies, but it stayed by the words.” “You are right.” Twilight returned to her seat, which Trixie acknowledged by a content smile. “If we had rescued the preachers before, nothing of this would have transpired. We should fix that. And we shouldn’t leave the survivors in the prison either.” “Not that there are too many,” Canvas said and her expression changed for the first time. It showed that even she was deeply affected by the whole affair. “Haven’t you heard the rumor? The guard weren’t exactly gentle. They wiped them out with ballistae.” The room fell silent. While for most the deed meant only cruelty and brutality, to Sunset and Lightning, the only ponies with military knowledge, it was worse. Whoever ordered that, broke every rule of leading a war. “I guess they presented us with a great opportunity to prove we don’t just speak into the wind,” Lightning said quietly. She looked completely serene all of the sudden, a hint of smile playing on her lips. Sunset knew that state. She found herself in it back when she was about to light the first ember in the Everfree. “Let me go to Canterlot. I will bring our ponies back. And I will see to it that justice is met.” “If you want to help me with justice,” Canvas said with a small smile, “I will help you with your temper. We can’t afford another excess.” Lightning looked up, intending to repay the insult, but from Canvas’ outstretched hoof she realized that the younger mare meant her words sincerely. She smiled and shook the offered hoof. With that, everything was settled and the discussion moved to topics of inner functioning of the Front. Sunset paid very little attention to the matters at hoof. She found Canvas’ behavior much more interesting. She acted calm for such problem and Sunset noticed several secret nods exchanged with Ditzy. Then the newspaper caught her attention. It was Canterlot Daily, which, quite peculiarly, wasn’t sold in the Empire at all. There were also few small smudges around the edges of the paper, as if the pony making it was in hurry. She scrutinized Canvas’ face a bit more. Canvas was smiling directly at her and slid the newspaper further behind herself. When she was sure nopony else was watching her, she raised a hoof to her lips. After a moment of contemplation Sunset repaid her the smile and nodded in agreement. Justice didn’t have to see to know what was right. A lot had changed since her last time in Canterlot. Canvas was sitting on a fountain in Limestone Boulevard. It was surprisingly empty from what she used to remember. It used to be there wouldn’t be a single day where the street wasn’t at least a little bit crowded. It was a major tourist revenue source. Right now, she was the only pony to be seen this early in the evening. Aside from the fountain and the statue across from her, almost none of the sculptures she remembered where there anymore. Quite a few of the shops were either closed down or replaced Canvas glanced at the clock located atop one pole. Almost two hours went by since she arrived and started a small art project to pass the time. She knew it was going to take some time for Lightning Dust to catch up with her, having taken a detour. Unlike herself, Lightning didn’t have a passport stating she was native from Canterlot, and given the recent events, travelling from the Empire to Canterlot just for a trip may rise suspicion. But she should have arrived already. Canvas continued to draw more in her sketch book to keep her mind off the possibilities. Dusty could handle herself, she was strong, right? Fifteen more minutes went by before the sound of hooves approached her and a wing tapped her. “So why exactly did you pick this place to meet? It’s kinda hard to spot from the air.” Canvas glanced at her and smirked. “You know, you could have just looked at the map at the station. That would have saved you time.” “I uh… So why exactly did you pick this place to meet?” Lightning Dust said with an embarrassed blush. “This place just holds sentimental value to me, that’s all,” Canvas replied as she put away her sketch book. “What took you so long, anyway?” “Cloudsdale is not exactly close to Canterlot, you know. And then the train was delayed because somepony messed up a downpour and we had to slow down because of an unstable slope. The weather ponies these days...” Lightning twirled with her hoof next to her ear, making her opinion on mental state of those pegasi clear. “Anyway, where should we start now that we’re both here?” “Well, give me a second.” Lightning Dust sat down and put a hoof to her chin to ponder their options. “First things first, we need a base. Somewhere we can stay and plan things out. I don’t think we should stay in an inn and the streets are out of the question. I thought of three possible places on the way here, but if none of those work out we’ll be in trouble.” Canvas stood up from her sitting position, a little bit wobbly as her hind legs fell asleep, and took a deep breath. If Lightning’s suggestions didn’t work, she had an idea of a place to stay. However, she wanted to avoid that location for as long as possible. She had no idea how she would even explain it. “Well, we ain’t gonna get anything done just by sitting around,” Lightning said jumping up. She started trotting in one direction before she stopped mid step and turned around sheepishly. “Uh… You don’t happen to have a map on you?” The magenta earth pony stifled a giggle and took out a street map from her bag. Lightning skimmed through it while she waited for Canvas to put her art supplies away and once she was ready, Lightning Dust lead the way to the east. Silently, she was uncertain the building she was looking for would even be occupied. The duo proceeded through the streets of Canterlot. They noted some neighborhoods looked slightly worse than others, whether it was because of crime rate, budget cuts, or simple negligence. Lightning Dust scrutinized her surroundings, looking for a specific feature or landmark that she could use to identify the house. “So where are we going exactly, Dusty?” “Oh, I guess I never told you. My bad. Well, I’m looking for houses that my relatives live in. Two belong to my cousins, and the last one my uncle.” “And you need a map to find them?” Canvas said suspiciously. “You’re the Canterlot native, not me. I don’t see you trying to find us housing.” Canvas rolled her eyes and shook her head. “The last kind of housing I had when I was living here was a school dorm room. I don’t think it would go over well.” “If you come up with anything, we’ll need some kind of plan B just in case.” They remained silent for the rest of the walk. As the sun’s light grew dimmer, the street lamps turned on to compensate. The clock was ticking and the mares found they couldn’t hold back their yawns much longer. Lightning Dust was also growing hungry with much of her energy spent flying. Finally, they found the first of the houses on the list and thankfully, the lights were on to indicate somepony was inside the beige two story home. “We’ll, here goes nothing,” Lightning quietly said. She walked up and gave three knocks on the door. Several seconds passed before hoofsteps on the other side were audible, followed by a feminine voice. “Who is it?” “Hi, is there a Static in there? Pegasus?” “May I ask who this is?” “I’m his cousin, I would like to ask him something if that’s alright.” “Um, hold on a moment, let me go get him.” Lightning Dust could hear some muffled speech through the door before more hoofsteps approached. This time the knob turned and the door opened inward just enough for the stallion’s face to be visible in the gap. “Lightning Dust? That really you?” “Hey static. I know it’s been about eight years but do you think we could come in?” “Yeah, sure.” Static removed the chain lock from the door and opened it completely. “Come on in, mom and dad will be happy to see you again.” Lightning Dust and Canvas stepped inside, placing their bags next to the door. “Uncle Strom and Aunt Typhoon are here too?” Lightning inquired. “Family dinner, but we can make room for you and your friend.” “Thank you sir,” Canvas nodded with a smile. Static led the two into the dining room where the aroma of food instantly caught their attention. The room wasn’t anything fancy, aside from dark hardwood flooring and simple neutral white wallpaper. In the center stood an oval shaped wood table with a small chandelier above it. At the table sat an indigo pegasus stallion with streaks of dark gray in his silver mane, and a plump pale orange pegasus mare whose blonde and teal mane had been tied back into a large bun. “Everypony, look who stopped by,” Static announced as he sat down. “My word, Lightning Dust! It’s been too long,” the orange mare gasped. “Hi aunt, hi uncle. I hope you don’t mind that we kinda interrupted the dinner,” Lightning Dust said awkwardly. “Oh don’t be, Dust,” Strom said with a wave of his hoof. “I haven’t heard from my favorite niece in years, how can I possibly pass this opportunity up. Come sit with us, you and your friend look famished.” “Got that right.” Lightning Dust and Canvas sat down as Static pulled two spare cushions for his guests. However, he didn’t sit down just yet as he noticed one pony was absent from the table. “Excuse me for a second, I’ll be right back,” he said before he walked into the kitchen “So who is your friend?” Typhoon asked with a smile. “Oh, uh, my name is Acr-” Canvas stopped herself quickly and cleared her throat. “Sorry, hiccup. My name is Clay Craft. Dusty and I have been good friends for a couple years now.” “Really now? Tell us a little about yourself.” “Well, I’m a native of Canterlot, but I had to leave due to reasons I would prefer not to talk about.” “Of course, I understand.” Canvas continued to hold a conversation with Typhoon while Lightning Dust savored the taste of her hay casserole. Strom leaned over and tapped her on the shoulder. “I’m glad to see you again. I was worrying about you ever since I heard from Blitzschlag.” “I figured you would have heard about that. How has dad been? Is he alright?” “Big brother has been a bit of a wreck ever since he had to cut you loose. He may keep a stoic exterior, but I think deep down he really wants to see his little filly again.” “Yeah, I kinda share that sentiment…” Unfortunately, I don’t really have the time. I’m on a mission, I can’t really deviate from it. “Where’s Plasma by the way? I would’ve thought he’d be here.” “Baby brother moved to Fillydelphia when Luna moved to her territory,” Static said walking back into the dining room with a timid Golden Cage following behind. “She needed guards for her palace, he wanted a better home for his wife and sons.” Lightning Dust made eye contact with Golden Cage, who slid further behind Static despite Lightning’s neutral facial expression. “Speaking of wives, am I correct in assuming?” Static nodded. “This is Golden Cage, my wife of almost four years. Golden Cage, this is my one and only cousin Lightning Dust.” Golden Cage gradually inched to the table with what Lightning Dust could only assume was a feeling of nervousness. “Hello Miss Dust, it’s good to meet you.” “Yeah, likewise. I knew my cousin had his eye on a pretty mare, but you are quite beautiful,” Lightning said with a sincere smile. Golden’s nervous face softened and relaxed a bit with a small exhale. “Thank you, that means a lot.” Static sat down across from Lightning Dust and next to his wife. Even now, Lightning Dust was uncertain why Golden was apprehensive in the first place. Then again, first impressions are important. “So now that everything is out of the way, what brings the both of you here?” Static asked once everypony was settled. “Well, Clay and I travel frequently and we just arrived in Canterlot not that long ago. Thing is, we’ve been having issues with getting a room at the inns for different reasons. We were wondering if either you or Uncle Strom could take us in temporarily.” “What do you say, dear?” Static whispered to Golden, who nodded. “Sure, we can do that. How long do you expect to be staying in the city?” “About a week, maybe two. I mean if that’s not a problem.” “Not at all.” Canvas stood up yawned. “Since that is all set, may I go lie down please? I’m kind of tired,” she said removing her glasses and rubbing her eyes. “You want to turn in now? It’s still early,” Lightning Dust said incredulously. There were many times were Canvas was the last to go to sleep, yet the first to wake up. How could somepony who gets so little sleep still maintain so much energy? “I was sitting outside in the chilly air for two hours, sleep sounds good right now.” “Fair enough.” Lightning Dust stood up, placing her utensils to the side of her plate. “I’ll help move our bags into the guest room.” Golden stood up and after the mares retrieved their luggage, she escorted them to the guest bedroom on the second floor. The room, lined with white wallpaper that was noticeably yellowed from age, had a loft set to the left of the door consisting of a full sized bunk bed with a small futon sofa under it. The place was also noticeably cluttered with boxes stacked atop each other on the opposite wall, leaving a single window on the wall across from the door. “Huh. I can’t believe this is still here,” Lightning Dust said referring to the loft set. “Static insist it still has its uses. Sorry for the crates, we’re in the middle of packing to move. If you give me a minute, I will go dig out the blanket and pillows.” “Don’t worry Mrs. Cage, I’ll be okay.” Canvas opened one of her bags and pulled out a small travel pillow and placed it on the futon before crawling on top of it. The sofa, not pulled out, was small for her, but it didn’t matter so long as she got the rest she wanted. “I’m going to go to sleep now if that’s alright with you.” “Are you sure you don’t need a blanket, Canv- Clay?” Lightning Dust asked with a quick backpedal in her speech. “Not right now,” Canvas responded as she removed her glasses and placed them in a case. Lightning Dust shrugged and turned for the door as Canvas laid her head and closed her eyes. “Well alright. Good night then.” Leaving her own bags in the room for when she would turn in, she gently closed the door behind her. She and Golden proceeded back downstairs. Golden used her magic to stack the empty plates and utensils and took them into the kitchen to wash, Typhoon joining her to help. At the table, Lightning sat down where she was previously with Static and Strom. She had with her a small black case that she carried with her from her bags. “Either one of you up for a game of chess?” she said opening the case to revealing her Elysian themed chess set, made of polished quartz rather than traditional wood. Strom tapped the table. “Sure, I’ll play. But just remember the last time we played, you didn’t do so well.” “Yeah, you threw a tantrum when you lost,” Static smirked as he exchanged seats with his father. “Oh shut it, that was a long time ago,” Lightning blushed. She removed both king pieces, each of which resembled griffon Ein Sof, from the case and held them out, allowing her uncle to choose which color he desired to play as. She already knew which one he was going to pick though, as he would always choose black whenever he played. So too was this the case as he took the green crown black king, along with the rest of the pieces from the case as his niece took her white king which possessed a yellow crown. With their pieces set up on the outside of the case, which became the board when layed out flat, Lightning placed the game clock to her right and moved her pawn E two spaces forward before pressing the button on the clock. “I noticed some crates in the guest room earlier. You guys are really moving, huh,” Lightning stated as Strom moved his pawn D forward two spaces, he too punching the clock. “I guess I can’t blame you with everything that happened.” “The recent attack put everypony on edge, rightfully so. Golden already hasn’t been feeling well living here, but that just sealed it. I don’t want her to worry anymore,” Static said closing his eyes. Lightning moved her queen’s knight to C3. “How bad was it?” “A large majority of the ponies who attacked were killed before they even got through the gates. The rest were taken down rather easily. Physical damage was very minimal. Emotional damage on the other hand…” Golden came out from the kitchen with three glasses of water held with her magic and strategically placed them among the others at the table. “Got some refills for you.” “Oh, thank you dear. You are a gem,” Strom said a smile. Golden sat down next to Static and nuzzled him to lighten his mood, an affectionate gesture Lightning Dust would have smiled at if not for the current subject. Strom moved his pawn G forward one space and took a sip from his water glass. “Static and I were on the front lines, I can confirm that it was very violent.” “I heard rumors about ballistae being used… That’s not true, is it?” Lightning asked, moving her king’s bishop to E1. Though she attempted to keep a stoic face like her family members, her voice displayed a level of worried plea. “Unfortunately, it is,” Strom responded grimly, confirming her fears. All three of them knew the severe breach of law involved with simply using one in this situation, let alone a set. “The aftermath was more than grizzly to say the least,” he continued as he moved his queen to D2. “Poor Static was on the verge of throwing up after everything quieted down.” “I hated every minute of that siege,” Static hesitantly added looking down at his hooves. “The stench of blood, the mangled bodies, the actual fighting, I hate that I was involved in it to begin with. And that… it was the first time I’ve ever had to kill another pony.” As he hung his head, Golden leaned in and tilted his head for sad kiss. “It’s not your fault, liebchen,” she cooed soothingly. “You were only doing what had to be done. I don’t want to see you blame yourself like this.” Lightning broke her already flimsy stoic expression and replaced it with a mixture of horror and sadness. She had no doubt that war was a very messy thing, doubly so if you are an active participant. Her uncle and father were veterans in the trade, therefore they were more jaded when it came to first hand combat. But there was not a word Lightning Dust could say that could take away the trauma her cousin had experienced. She quickly moved her king’s knight to F3 and averted her eyes for a brief moment. “There… There were survivors, weren’t there? Please tell me some survived,” she pleaded. “Yes, yes we have some in captivity,” Strom assured, moving his bishop to H3. At this point, Typhoon joined the table between Strom and Lightning Dust. She touched her niece’s face with her motherly hoof, yielding a twitch. “A few of them wisely surrendered, others were injured but alive. They make up the minority, I’m afraid.” Lightning took a deep breath and turned back to face her uncle. She wanted to ask about those among the survivors. She had her mind on one pegasus and her brother. Did they make it… or were they going through judgment right now? When it came down to it though, there simply wasn’t much that she could do about it. After shaking her head in attempt to rid her mind of her personal plight, she decided to shift the subject. “After all that, I guess moving isn’t such a bad idea. Change of scenery, get your mind off it.” “Golden has certainly had enough here,” Static said looking over to his wife, who cuddled closer. “She was really scared when I had to go out there. Mom and dad came by tonight to help get away from that negativity.” “I can imagine.” Lightning took a long pause to ponder her options based on everything she heard, though it could easily be mistaken for deciding her next move in the game. That settles it. Something has to be done. But at my current state, I’m at a disadvantage. I need to dig deeper. “Dusty, you do know it’s your turn, right?” Strom said after Lightning didn’t so much as blink for an extended period of time. “Yeah… Right.” The game continued further as subjects that evening gradually turned more light hearted and pleasant. Golden, though at first apprehensive of meeting her husband’s cousin, eventually grew to like her a bit more after hearing about her exploits in the Wonderbolt academy, and genuinely enjoyed some of the stories she and Static told from their foalhood. “Remember that time you, Plasma, and I went hiking in mountains with our dads?” Static mentioned as Lightning captured Strom’s last rook. “Yeah, part of the traditional family training program, surviving in the wilderness. We weren’t allowed to use our wings for most of the trip. My dad taught us how to determine direction without a compass based on the position of the sun and the stars.” “And during night, how to find the north star. It was a lot of fun. Though Plasma was a bit of a baby in the dark and he didn’t like the ghost stories at campfire. You’re in check by the way.” “Huh? Oh, right.” Lightning moved her king out of the way of Strom’s queen, one space down at E1. “It’s kind of hard to believe that Plasma even applied for the royal guard at all for how much of a softy he was,” Typhoon giggled at the memories of her younger son. “Yeah, that’s for sure. Then again-” “Checkmate,” Strom grinned as he moved one knight to a space two squares in front of the white king. “Aw c’mon! I was doing so good!” Lightning half shouted in disappointment. “How did I lose?” “Well for one, you weren’t paying much attention to the game,” Strom pointed out. “Not very wise to do that in the battlefield.” “Stupid knights and their weird movement patterns…” Lightning grumbled, producing a collective chuckle from the rest of the family. Although he does have a point. I’m going to have to concentrate on the goal a little more if I am to achieve the desired outcome. It’d be no use if I back myself into a corner. “You wanna play again, Dust?” Strom offered. “It’ll give you a chance to play for real.” “Nah, I think I should turn in now. I’m used to a certain sleep schedule and I don’t want to mess it up.” “Yeah, it is getting a little late,” Typhoon said as she stood up and popped her back out. “We need to be going home too, Strom.” “Ah, that we do. It has been very good to see you again, Dusty. Please consider visiting sometime during your stay. And Golden, I hope everything will turn out okay. Don’t be afraid to ask Lightning Dust for help if you need it.” “Yes sir, thank you for visiting tonight,” Golden said with a respectful bow. “Good night everypony,” Typhoon said in a sing-song voice. She and her husband retrieved their jackets from by the door and stepped out. Lightning took great care in putting away the pieces of her chess set and as she did, Golden nuzzled Static for a bit longer before both stood up. “Why don’t you go ahead to bed,” Golden cooed in his ear. “You’ll need your rest if you’re patrolling the prison tomorrow. I’ll help your cousin settle in, then I’ll meet you there.” “Always looking out for me, huh liebchen,” he responded, sneaking a quick kiss on her neck. “You always look out for me, it’s only fair,” she playfully retorted. Static nodded and started upstairs. Golden then turned her attention to Lightning Dust. “Well then, shall I get a pillow and blanket for you?” “Better get one extra blanket for Clay, I don’t want the poor girl getting colder than she needs to,” Lightning Dust said with a smile. Golden’s own smile seemed to be rubbing off her. Golden escorted Lightning Dust back to the guest bedroom and quietly opened it so as not to wake Canvas. Though it seemed she was already in a pretty deep sleep if the drool on the side of her mouth was any indication. Lightning successfully suppressed any attempts to chuckle at the amusing picture and helped Golden move a few boxes out of the way of the closet. “It’s a good thing I haven’t packed these yet,” Golden whispered. “These would have been a pain to find in the boxes.” “Don’t you label the boxes? I find it makes it easier.” “...Oh. Yeah, I supposed I could have done that. Hehe…” Golden smiled sheepishly as she opened the closet to reveal a few comforters and quilts folded and stored in plastic storage bags. Pillows were on the higher shelves and there was a surprising variety of bedding in the small closet. “What type of blanket would you like? Cotton? Fleece? Wool?” “How about a cotton for me and a fleece for Clay. By the way, why so many blankets? That’s kind of a lot even for guests.” “I took up sewing as a hobby and a lot of these are my creations.” Golden used her magic to levitate the two blankets and one pillow out from the closet. The fleece blanket was draped over Canvas’ sleeping body while the cotton blanket and pillow went up to the top bunk. “There you go, all set. If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask. You are our honorable guests.” “Thank you. For now, I think both of us should get some shut eye. It was nice meeting you today, Golden Cage. I can see why my cousin likes you.” Golden blushed at the compliment and her smile grew bigger, though the limited visibility of the room made it semi-difficult to see. “You have a good night, Lightning Dust.” “You can just call me Dust. Or even Dusty if you wish. You have a good night as well.” Golden exited the room, closing the door behind her, and Lightning Dust put her chess case next to the rest of her bags before climbing up onto the top bunk. After pulling the blanket overself and resting her head on the pillow, it wasn’t long before she drifted off after a long day. Military training had many perks that some might not immediately think about. Sure there was the obvious benefits such as the physical conditioning and mental discipline, but over time one would subconsciously adapt to an array of different things, often resulting in instinct becoming very malleable in the process. In Lightning Dust’s case, the combination of her training in the military and her experience with her Elysian mentors resulted in a very flexible mare who could adapt to most given situations. Lightning Dust woke up at half past four in the morning with the only light in the room coming from bright street lamps outside. It appeared that an overcast blocked whatever remaining light of the moon, along with a light haze in the streets. The spring mattress she slept on during the night made her realize how superior her bed back in the Empire was, discomfort subtracting from an already weak rest. Even her bunk back in the Wonderbolt academy wasn’t this unpleasant. How did Static sleep on this thing for fifteen years? she thought in irritation as she sat up to rub the crust from her bloodshot eyes. Now I understand why Plasma opted for the bottom. Speaking of which, the occupant on the futon was still long asleep and wrapped up in her blanket after rolling during the night, one hoof tucked fleece burrito with the other sticking straight out off the sofa. Canvas’ left cheek was also slimy due to the drool that accumulated. Upon climbing down and seeing this sight, Lightning Dust snorted with suppressed laughter. Okay, that was worth waking up early. She took the time to correct the pudgy mare’s awkward sleeping position, untangling her body from the blanket and laying her in such a way that would cure any snoring. After doing this, Lightning Dust stretched out her limbs and let out the biggest, yet quietest yawn she had done in a long time. There was a bigger reason she came to Canterlot other than to reunite with family, but where should she start now that she was here? She walked down the stairs with this thought in mind, though her stomach took bigger priority. Planning could not commence without some food first. A simple bowl of cereal was enough to keep her stomach busy as she considered her next course of action. Okay, first I need to do some scouting. I need three things: the location of the preachers, the identity of the pony who ordered the massacre, and a good escape plan. She pondered further as she finished off the last bits of the wheat cereal. But Canvas will hardly get us out of here. She has no experience. After sipping the milk from the bowl, she took it to the kitchen sink and rinsed it before putting it off to the side. She took a peek through the window blinds to assess the visibility she had to work with. The second half of a cloudy November was not going to make it simple for her, but the same could also be said for anypony out there right now. With a nod to nopony in particular, she quietly stepped back upstairs to the guest room, silently turning the knob, and went to her bags a few things she would need. One was a hooded gray sweatsuit which was folded and neatly packed in one bag. Aside from protecting her a bit from the weather - though as a pegasus it didn’t bother her as much - she brought it along with the expectation of stealthy, illegal activities. Another item she retrieved from the bag were a pair of thick metallic bangles, one green and the other yellow. Lightning Dust unzipped the sweatsuit and began to put it on when she heard a yawn from the direction of the bed. Canvas was rubbing her eyes as she sat up groggy and squinting. “How do you wake up so fast, Dusty,” she said, her speech slurred from another yawn. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you up,” Lightning responded as she zipped herself up in the sweatsuit. She pulled back the sleeves on her front hooves and slipped the bangles onto them before covering them back up, bangles unseen from the eye. “Your going out already? But it’s barely light out!” “Exactly. Almost nopony is going to be out at this time. Makes things easy.” Lightning Dust was all set for her excursion into the city. It was a decent cover, a pony going for an early morning exercise. “Canvas, would you mind staying here at the house to keep Golden company? I’m kind of worried about her after what she told me last night. Besides, it would be a little suspicious if we were both gone. She at least knows my family’s military history.” Canvas stretched her back out like a cat as though she were about to get up, only to plop right back down like her pillow was a magnet. “Sure thing, Dusty. Still feeling a little tired anyway.” “Get all the rest you need, Canvas. We’ve got a rough time ahead of us.” As her friend rolled back over, Lightning Dust stuffed a small pair of binoculars inside her sweatsuit and carried the map that she still had in her teeth as she snuck back down stairs and walking out the front door. Outside, she walked to the nearest street lamp and opened the map. The area on the map with Static’s house was circled so that she would not forget it later. Her main goal for the day was to locate the prison in which the preachers and survivor of recent attack were being kept. In a most cases, a correctional facility tends to be located away from the rest of the population for various reasons, typically in a more isolated region. But where would such a place be located on a cliffside city? She wasn’t going to find out by just standing under the lamp, that much she knew. The hardest part of anything was the ‘how to start’ phase and Lightning Dust did not have much to go on at this moment as she started her jog. Given the amount of prisoners being stored, the preachers, survivors, and the normal criminals that would probably add up to a slightly cumbersome number. There is also a chance that they are not all being held together. Lightning Dust formulated a route as she went about her jog. She tried to keep an idea in her head of the general idea of what she was looking for: large facility, isolated building or buildings, high amount of security measures such as fences or a plethora of guards, anything that might indicate some sort of restricted area. As she neared the highest points of Canterlot, she stopped before entering the richest districts and looked at her map under another street lamp before turning tail. A major prison was not likely to be in this area of Canterlot, nor did she believe the castle dungeons would suffice for those individuals she was looking for. Possible for the treasonous ponies that assaulted royalty, but too impractical for harmless preachers and disarmed rebels. In order to save some time, she took to the air once she came to the outward edge of the city, putting up her hood before taking off. Being just below the edge of the cliff and the darkness of the pre-crepuscular hours would cover most of her chances of being seen by anypony, most of all authorities that might be suspicious. While by no means a slowpoke on her hooves, she was much stronger in the air and reaching her original starting point only took half the amount of time as it did to get to the top. From there, she landed on a tall building to get a better view ahead of herself. I’m missing something here, she thought as she overlooked the downslope part of the city. Let’s see. If prisoners aren’t kept at the top, then the next step would probably be the foot of the city, maybe the foot of the mountain. That might be the next best place to look, but if that’s not it where they are, I might have to do something else to find the place. Lightning decided to keep with an aerial search rather than remain on ground. It was faster and the likelihood of somepony seeing her would be reduced, assuming the few ponies out and about would even be looking for her. As she was flying, she made a mental note of landmarks that could be used for future planning in various routes. It may or may not turn out to be useful, she had no way of knowing at present time. When she neared the foot of the mountain, she noticed path that she previously didn’t spot coming into the province. There was a more isolated district with a decently large set of buildings that were very well lit. The main building seemed to be built into the mountain itself while other outside buildings were watchtowers with spotlights scanning the ground below. When she got closer, she was a sign with the words ‘Canterlot Penitentiary’ printed on them. Call it a hunch, but I think I found it. There was a problem though. You don’t just walk into a restricted area filled with armed guards and plenty of criminals. As it stood right now, this wasn’t a rescue attempt, at least not yet. Right now the most important thing was to determine if a rescue attempt was even possible and given the stress of recent events, security would more than likely be tight. Most anypony else would find the task daunting with much of the odds against their favor. Lightning Dust on the other hand was always one to test her limits, in one way or another. She made a perch atop the roof of an abandoned four story building that was far enough away that ponies in the prison perimeter would be hard pressed to see her with the unaided eye, not unless she was telegraphing her moves. This would be her scouting position all the way into the later hours of the morning, watching the movements of the guards through her binoculars. She was fortunate for the location of the facility as the mountain blocked any potential rays of the sunrise, thus keeping the district enveloped in shadows, aside from the watchtower spotlights. Four hours in, she saw an opportunity in the form of a convoy with a prison wagon sporting the solar monarch’s seal and its soldiers wearing similar designed uniforms. She had to make an educated guess that the convoy was transporting one or more high priority prisoners, likely from the royal dungeons. Whatever the case, it provided a window of time in which she could probably sneak past security. Lightning Dust stashed her binoculars away and bolted to the underside of the watchtower platform furthest left of the compound, being cautious not to be spotted by either the convoy or the spotlights. Using the sounds of the hoofsteps atop the platform, she assessed that there were two guards occupying the top of the tower, one operating the spotlight and one keeping watch on the facility grounds. She followed the hoofsteps of the guard walking and quickly dove down to ground level, landing in a pile of hay.          Now that she was inside the fences, the more difficult part would start. The pegasus could not risk exposing herself with flight at this point. From this point on, she was essentially an earthbound reptile who slithered in. She waited until the convoy was completely inside the gates and most attention aimed towards it, she advanced forward, dodging patrols and making little noise. She slithered off to the left of the crates and stalked behind a guard who turned right into an open space, allowing her to swiftly pass with the guard being none the wiser. However, she came to a point where she trapped herself between the sound of guards coming from one end and a spotlight threatening to expose her from the other. There was no other choice but to take a gamble and hide in a storage shed which happened to be unlocked. Due to the quick thinking and perhaps a bit of luck, she successfully kept herself safe inside. Nopony else entered the shed and continued walking by with the spotlight passing soon after. “That was close…” Lightning whispered to herself with a sigh of relief. She decided to stay inside the shed for a few minutes to study the patrol and spotlight pattern through a window. When the spotlight passed over again, she saw the contents of the room: batons and less-than-lethal weapons, uniforms and body armor, clear shields, much of the typical equipment found in an officer supply shed. Right there, a lightbulb lit over Lightning’s head. “I don’t know if this will work, but it’s worth a shot.” She grabbed a long sleeved uniform and some light armor that matched her body size and ditched her sweatsuit, keeping the binoculars, before donning the new clothes and clipping a belt with a baton on it. The uniform covered most of her body, including her tail and cutie mark, leaving only her head exposed, something she attempted to remedy with a riot helmet. Though she looked convincing enough - enough to blend in with the guards outside anyway - it was not entirely flawless as the badge she clipped on was blank. While it would fool anypony from a distance, it would be problematic if they were to ever get a closer look. She would have to further exploit the lack of sunlight to stay undetected. “I hope this is good enough…” She waited until the next patrol and light passed by before exiting the shed. Her new disguise allowed her to walk more freely within the grounds, though she maintained a healthy distance from alert eyes. Thanks to her military discipline, she perfectly mimicked the behavior of the guards and was even able to guess their patrol routes. She was also correct in her assumption earlier that new prisoners were being brought in from the castle dungeon, noticing five male ponies in jumpsuits being lined up with chains hindering their legs, as well as the wings of one pegasus. They will probably be lead into the main population building. I could probably use this to get in myself. Lightning Dust continued to ‘stand guard’ around the area and patiently waited for Celestia’s guards to escort them to their cells. She followed behind alongside a trio of other prison officers in a diamond formation, making sure to place herself in the back. Inside the primary building, she would have to be more careful as she no longer had the lighting advantage. When nopony was looking in her direction, she silently walked away from the formation. Unfortunately, the gray walls did not give her a clear indication of where she was going now. Keeping in mind to stay in character, she disguised her wandering of the facility with a patrol. She kept her head facing forward, only moving her eyes to see to the sides. Though it seemed like she knew what she was doing, she was sweating beneath her disguise as the tension started to rise. Any minute now, she expected to be exposed and detained, leaving her with little choice but to fight her way out. As long as she kept a low profile, the risk of that occurring was manageable but not implausible. Her wandering started to pay off when deep into the mountain facility, she came across a path to the sublevels, used for holding inmates in solitary confinement and death row. She walked down the long flight of stairs and was just about to open the door to the special housing unit when her worst fear came true. “Hold it right there.” Crap, crap, crap, crap! This isn’t good! I can’t get out of this one! If it were anypony else, she could have incapacitated them right then and there. But the voice. It was all too familiar to her. In fact, she had spent the previous night talking to the pony who owned it. She swallowed hard as the stallion approached her. “Authorized personnel only, let me see your ID.” Static got closer in and noticed a distinct lack of engraving on the badge, which put him on guard. But despite the vest and helmet, the outline of the pony was too small compared to other guards he was familiar with. That along with the color of the wings… “Quickly, follow me,” Static said in a hushed whisper, his tone shifting drastically. “Stay completely silent.” LIghtning Dust had no choice but to follow. She wouldn’t dare strike her own family member, least of all the one providing shelter to her and her friend. Static used a key to open the door to the unit, locking it again when he and Lightning Dust were on the other side, and led her to an unoccupied interrogation room. With the only other guards in the unit keeping watch on the inmates, they would be free to talk uninterrupted. Static gestured her to sit down at one side of the desk and he sat down in the chair facing the door. “I can’t wait to hear you explain this one, Dust. Honestly, I’m impressed you made it this deep in, but this better be good.” The mare sighed as she removed her helmet; there was no reason to wear it if Static already knew. “Sorry about this, Static. It completely slipped my mind that you were working here today.” “You were lucky that I was here. If it were anypony else like one of Fiery Swirl’s elite, you would probably not be leaving here. What the hell is going on? This is the last thing I expected to catch you doing. I mean, I can understand breaking out of prison, but breaking in?” “I guess there’s no getting around this, is there?” Lightning Dust sighed. She took a deep breath and collected her thoughts as she prepared to face the music. “I came to Canterlot with an ulterior motive. I’m sure you are familiar with the Hexarete Front, correct?” Static’s eyes widened. “You’re…. You’re affiliated with them aren’t you?” “Not just part of it, I’m a collaborative leader. But please, before you judge, hear me out. I have no desire to seek revenge of any kind, only to get my brothers and sisters back home. They don’t deserve to be locked up here. They only want to promote good will and fairness among fellow equines. Surely you can understand where I’m coming from?” Static rested his chin on one hoof and thought further. In truth, he had listened to some of the words of virtue since the preachers were transferred to Canterlot. Furthermore, he fully sympathized with their views as he knew full well the corruption that plagued Equestria and in fact had experienced it himself. The stigma of his marriage to a unicorn noblemare was not looked upon very kindly by some of his peers. “I suppose so. But what has violence have in common with virtue?” “You make a valid point. For awhile, we were only words and not actions. And the recent attack sparked from one of our own directly contradicted their intentions. However, the one who initiated it all only wanted what I’m here to do now; the freedom of her brethren. I’m sure she didn’t intend to start a full scale controversy.” Is she referring to… to her? Static replayed the image of the survivor he saw from much earlier. The look of shock and horror on her face. It was the look of a pony who had completely lost control, the look that told him something had gone horribly wrong. “I understand the intentions, but the damage is done. It caused a lot of panic, not to mention collateral damage to villages leading here.” “We don’t approve of the actions that these destructive ponies have done. We do not want to destroy Equestria, nor do we want to  conquer it. Our goal is reformation, an attempt to fix long standing problems. I will not deny that this group was in the wrong to do what they did. I even understand the efforts to neutralize them. But you and I both know that how excessive the whole thing was, on both sides. You’ve seen the result of having selfish, corrupt ponies in charge. Not only did they completely disrespect the law, but they had a blatant disregard for everypony else.” The male pegasus delayed his response to let her words sink in. He was having a difficult time trying to think of a rebuttal, but as he thought more on it, he once again realized the full scope of the riot’s attempt. “They expected, neigh ordered you and uncle Strom to put your lives on the line to protect their own skin and possessions! Think of how devastated Golden Cage would be if you were severely injured or worse. And what exactly did you get for this? Gratitude from them or your neighbors? If they felt it, they certainly aren’t showing it. You’ve said it yourself, Golden has had enough of living here. And it’s not hard to see why. Unfortunately, there aren’t many better places in Equestria.” Static found more truth in her words than she likely realized. His employment in Canterlot had more or less become a double-edged sword. The job had benefits, but it wasn’t helping him and his wife anymore. A soldier’s salary was not much higher than anypony else’s and it was becoming more difficult over the years to support the family. That was on top of all the contempt and ridicule. So when he came into work one day, it was a refreshing change to get to talk to a few of the new preacher inmates who had been brought in from other cities. They didn’t curse or threaten him, they instead smiled and treated him with respect. Even behind bars, they still continued to share their words of wisdom with other inmates and guards who would listen. In truth, he knew they didn’t belong in the special housing unit, the only reason they were here in the first place was because of a command from the former Dominions to shut them up. In spite of all the things they had endured, they maintained a positive attitude, eager to help their fellow equines. Lightning Dust hung her head for a bit before looking back at Static with a sad smile. “Look, I understand if you don’t sympathize with the Front and I won’t hate you for disagreeing with me. Sometimes though, we have to do things we don’t like to get anywhere in life. But if you decide you do share our views, we can help each other. I can offer you much better living conditions in the Crystal Empire. You or Golden would have a much better job, you will be treated with the respect and love you deserve, you could even start a family in peace. In return, all I ask for is your help just this once. And yes, I am asking for your help, not demanding it. I won’t force you to do anything. What do you say, cousin?” Lightning Dust extended her hoof to offer a hoofshake, hopeful, but not expecting too much. Static hesitated for a moment to think, but he too smiled and reciprocated the offer. “I’ll be leaving this dump soon anyway. I might as well do something with it. You have my support Lightning Dust, I’ll tell you whatever you need to know. But after my shift ends. I can’t be away for too much longer or else I will get in trouble with the brass.” Static gave a wink as their hooves returned to their bodies. “We’ll talk later tonight. I can’t thank you enough for your help on this, Static. It will make things easier on myself and Canvas.” “Canvas?” Static raised an eyebrow. “You are referring to your friend right?” “...Maybe,” Lightning Dust timidly responded. I really gotta work on that. “You can explain that one later. Right now, I think you should get out of this place. If you climb to the higher floors, you should be able to fly from the rooftop of the main building. The searchlights won’t be angled there, so if you’re careful you should be able to escape unnoticed.” “Thank you. I’ve got this far, I should be able to get out.” Lightning Dust put the riot helmet back on and stood up. “By the way, I’ll leave this stuff somewhere on the rooftop. I found it in a supply shed to northwest of the yard. I had to leave a sweatsuit in there to wear this.” “I’ll see if I can retrieve it for you when I get off work.” Static stood up and unlocked the door of the interrogation room and just before he opened the door, he turned to Lightning Dust with a quizzical grin on this face. “Hey before I let you go, if I had refused to help, what was your plan for getting your friends out of here?” “To tell you the truth, I didn’t have a plan yet. I only wanted to record the layout. But I can think of a couple ways to do it,” Lightning Dust responded cryptically. “I’ll explain it when you have time. For now, try to have a good day.” “Yeah. You too cuz.” All alone, Lightning gone and there was nothing to do. When Canvas agreed that morning to stay behind at the house while Lightning would go scouting, it sounded like a good idea. She wasn’t too fond of going out into the city. She knew all the sites and she wouldn’t be much help in the task either. She didn’t think it through though. She didn’t have anything to busy herself with. In the Empire she would always organize, teach or run errands, occasionally even spend time with Ditzy’s daughters. In her absence all of that, except for the spending time, became Rallying Net’s task. Back when she went down to grab some breakfast, Golden hadn’t been up yet, so she returned upstair. Next time she would travel somewhere she wouldn’t forget to pack a book. That was it! She recalled seeing a bookcase down in the living room. There was a slight chance she would find books in there, if her general experience with bookcases was to be trusted. She jumped off the sofa and started downstairs. The house was quiet. To her knowledge Static left early in the morning and Lightning followed several hours ago. Since then Canvas was trying to come up with anything to do in the guest room, as to not pose any trouble for anypony. In the light of day the living room looked even more cozy than the previous evening. If Canvas could judge, all the furniture was quite new and designed primarily for comfort, not to impress. It would provide for a perfect reading environment. She stepped to the bookcase and started the choosing process. “Military Training for Dummies, Advanced Military Training, Short History of War, The Art of War - it’s never the war of art. Art doesn’t wage wars,” she mused for herself, “Tactical Movements, Tactile Movements, Tic Tac Toe Rule Book - seriously? - Communication through Cloud Patterns, Embroidery Patterns, Paternity Guidebook. I give up!” The biggest problem with most bookcases wasn't the lack of book. If that occurred, one would simply start calling it simply a case. Almost all the bookcases contained books, too often books either not worth reading at all, or not on desired topics. This particular bookcase managed both. Canvas returned to the armchair she considered so appropriate for reading earlier and slumped in, throwing her forehooves to the air in exasperation. “Oh Creator, grant me a distraction!” “There you are, Clay,” a soft pleasant voice came from the door. “I made you some hot chocolate and took it upstairs, but you weren’t in the room. You like hot chocolate, don’t you?” “And a good book, a million bits, pet kitty...” Canvas muttered to herself, hope filled eyes turned toward the sky. “Are you alright, Clay?” “Oh, yes, I’m alright.” For many ponies it would be hard to learn reacting to a different name. That is, unless they were used to being called many different names, most of them pejorative and degrading, for the entire time of their school years. Clay wasn’t such a bad name and Canvas picked it herself after all. “I love hot chocolate, thank you.” “I thought it would come in handy. You looked really tired yesterday. Are you feeling better?” “Much.” Canvas daintily sipped on her beverage while Golden sat down in the other arm chair and retrieved sewing material from a drawer. “This tastes wonderful.” “I put cinnamon and honey in. It makes the chocolate feel even warmer,” Golden explained with a smile. She unfolded the fabric and showed Canvas her work. It looked like a cloak with a hood of lavender casmer with rich silver embroideries of lilies and falcons along the rim and on the top of the hood and on the back. With the black satin lining it would provide exquisite protection against the cold while looking positively fabulous. “Wow, did you make that yourself?” “I did. It’s a present for a good friend of mine. He’s going through a very hard time.” “I am sorry to hear that.” Canvas took the cloak carefully in her hooves and inspected the fine details of the decorations. “This must have taken ages!” “About five days, though I had the base ready beforehand.” Golden took her creation back and threaded a needle. “There’s not much else to do since I don’t like to go out alone. I don’t feel safe.” Under her hooves another branch was getting its shape. The needle was flying in her magic, bringing the smallest leaves into existence as if they were painted, but real at the same time. “That friend must be dear to you to expend so much effort.” “He is.” Golden smiled and changed the thread for a longer one. “Back when I was a child, I didn’t have too many friends. I never cared about what they did. Looks, money, that sort of things. You can imagine that didn’t sit well with them.” “I don’t need to imagine at all. I grew up here.” “Oh, right, sorry. Well, he never judged me based on that. He was getting along well with others, but would treat me kindly. And now this affair…” “What exactly happened? Canvas asked, placed her empty cup on the table and assumed a more comfortable position in the armchair. “It’s a sad story and I don’t know all the details, but the gist is that his father has gone mad and attacked Celestia.” Golden sighed and levitated a book from the bookcase to herself. “I mean, yes, it is an outrageous act and all, but his family shouldn’t suffer for his crime, right?” “That they shouldn’t,” agreed Canvas, although deep in thought. Attacking Celestia is really a silly idea… for now. But it’s not right to punish ponies for crimes committed by somepony else! “There. Just few more leaves and the cloak will be finished. I wonder how he will react once he unpacks it.” “Why, won’t you give it to him personally?” “I think we won’t be in Canterlot anymore. I still have to find a fitting clasp for it. What do you think would fit?” Canvas looked at the cloak again. Injustice suffered. “Do you have some paper and paints, Golden?” “I will look.” She left the room and soon returned with few tubes and few sheets of paper. “That’s all we’ve got. I don’t even know since when it laid there. Will you design a clasp for me?” Canvas inspected the paints and found out they were still in a usable condition. “Better. Just watch.” She worked quickly, outlining the clasp and carefully adding an engraving of scales in a circle of leaves based on how she remembered her halo. Above the scales she added the same symbol the preachers had embroidered on their cloaks. “Now watch.” She caressed the paper with her hoof and then made one last small stroke with the paintbrush. “What’s going on?” Golden cried out as the clasp started materializing from the paper, leaving the sheet clean. “How did that happen?” She lifted the clasp carefully, visibly surprised from how cold it was, and inspected it from all sides. “I told you I liked to create,” Canvas said with a smile and handed Golden the cloak so she could attach the clasp. “Now just finish the embroidery and we can deliver it in person.” “But the thugs-” “Will do best if they stay out of my reach. We don’t have anything better to do anyway,” Canvas finished and with that it was decided. Soon afterwards they were outside and well on their way. The weather didn’t pick up any - if there was a change, then it was purely negative - so they were taking the most direct route they could, or at least Golden assured Canvas they were, as Canvas had no idea where they were going. “See?” Canvas said as they entered one of the more prominent quarters of the city. “No trouble at all. It’s too cold for thugs to roam. Am I right, you there?” she shouted at a pony looking at them in a way she didn’t find appropriate. He quickly started pretending he didn’t even notice them. “No trouble at all.” “That’s the only thing I miss from when I was small. You could walk the streets safely even at night. Not that I did. My parents held me at home a lot.” “That means they cared, I guess.” “Or that they didn’t find it proper for a noble filly to just walk around,” Golden supplied with contempt. “Let me guess, you don’t get along very well?” “I visit them from time to time. But they didn’t even come to my wedding. They found Static too lowly.” “I am sorry.” She stopped for a moment and gazed wistfully in the direction her former home lay. It had been so long. “I left home because I was afraid that my father would be ashamed. I don’t even know how he is doing.” “If he loves you, he would feel no such thing. My parents love me despite my choice. If you want, I will go visit him with you later. You’ll see everything will be just fine.” “I will think about it, Golden. Maybe one day.” Canvas couldn’t be feel somehow warmer in Golden’s presence. As if the unicorn radiated calmness.  “Let me know when you decide, okay? Look, we are here!” They arrived at a decently sized mansion with a garden around, the gate to open, although something told Canvas that not from hospitality, but neglect. The curtains in both storeys were drawn and nopony in sight. Despite the forlornness, the house looked majestic with its column portal and marble walls. Golden didn’t bother decoding the meaning of open gates, instead making a beeline directly for the door, pulling the cord of the bell strongly. There was silence for a few seconds before the hoofsteps neared. “Go away! I’m not admitting any visits!” “Not even me, Pine Diadem?” Golden called out cheerfully, despite the harshness of the rejection. Canvas jerked at the name. “Wait, Golden. Your friend is Pine Diadem?” The door opened before Golden could answer though, revealing a unicorn the color of pine wood, his mane only few shades darker. He had dark circles under his eyes and overall looked like he could use some rest. And food. “Golden? I didn’t expect you at all! You are of course welcome to come in and your friend-” He took a better look on Canvas, who tried to hide in her jacket completely. She recognized the stallion immediately. You don’t forget childhood friends, especially if you didn’t have many. They would play and even sneak out at night from time to time to explore. He would protect her from bullies, being from a mighty family. Then their friendship faded a bit, as it often does among foals. But if she recognised him… “Is it really you, Acrylic Canvas? I thought you were dead!” he exclaimed and ran toward her, pulling her into a hug. “Pine, wait! Her name is Clay Craft,” Golden said, grinning at the picture. To her, Canvas’ inner fight must have looked like a standard panic attack. In reality, Canvas was debating her next course of action. She could just push Pine away, sticking to her false identity, maybe forging a story about a distant relative or something. Instead she reciprocated the hug. “It’s alright Golden. It has been very long, Pine. Let’s go inside, I will explain.” They sat down in the living room and Canvas couldn’t but admire the exquisite tapestries and comfortable yet tasteful furniture, the unifying hue being light beige. “I am sorry, Golden, for lying. My name really is Acrylic Canvas. I had to change my name.” “Not that I am surprised. I mean, you can make only so many slips of tongue before it gets suspicious, right?” Golden wasn’t fazed at all. “After all, the name doesn’t matter much as long as the pony is nice. But why?” “I had to. Officially I am dead. It makes things easier. I’m also not a tourist, but that’s not important. Are you angry?” “Not at all. Are you, Pine?” Golden said to the stallion returning with three glasses of white wine. Liquor would have to wait for few more hours before it would be proper to serve it. At least officially, since the bottle standing on the table wasn’t full anymore. They all took the glasses with nods of thanks. “That Canvas isn’t dead? Of course not. It’s the first good news in a while.” “Are things going downhill?” Golden asked with concern and pulled the package with the cloak inside. “Well, depends how you take it. I was in the castle this morning. Celestia won’t confiscate the estate against the payment of one hundred thousand bits and loss of title.” He downed the glass quickly with an apologetic smile. “But she refused to pardon dad or change the punishment and I am forbidden from visiting him as well.” “We feared that much,” Golden said as she got up and unwrapped the package. “I’m so sorry about your loss, Pine.” She hugged him and wrapped the cloak around his back. “I can’t do anything about your father, but rest assured that you are the noblest of all for us, no matter the title.” “Thank you, Golden. It is beautiful.” He looked at himself in a big mirror on the wall, “This must have taken days of work. Hm. What’s that symbol on the clasp?” “It means justice,” Canvas explained. “Something you need.” “There are ponies who need it more, I would say.” Pine slipped from the cloak again and carefully folded it. “Like Blueblood. My father will die, I am losing my title and that disgrace will probably get away again. Despite all that blood!” “But Celestia declared she would punish him, didn’t she?” Golden asked with outrage. “She did, but so far he doesn’t look like being punished. At least from the invitations he is sending all the time.” Canvas took a bigger sip from the glass for courage before she asked, “Was it Blueblood who ordered that massacre at the gates?” “Yes, that was his work and he is even bragging with it,” Pine said and Golden nodded in agreement. They were looking at Canvas worriedly and Pine even got up and walked over. “Are you alright? You are shaking.” “It’s nothing,” Canvas said and placed the glass on the table gently, making sure to suppress the shaking. “I promise that your wish will come true, Pine. He will meet Justice.” Pine levitated the bottle of whiskey toward them along with three clean glasses, acting in stark contrast with Golden’s shock. “Cl- Canvas?” she said with a gasp. “You don’t mean that…” Canvas gave her a weak smile. “I am not a tourist, Golden. Far from it.” Take him to the battlefield and explain to him what he will see there. Any country would do better in anarchy than with you as its ruler. For some weird reason, the prince could not stop thinking about those particular words his aunt said to him, robbing him of the nap he intended to take. Why did he care? Maybe it had something to do with what he did see out there. The guards who escorted him to the remains of the battle from the previous day. There, the armor clad stallion who was in charge of supervising the clean up only stared daggers at him and did not once let go of his malicious look. While at this point there were very few bodies left inside the walls, the stench of blood and rage maintained a dominance in the air, only growing more overpowering as he neared the exterior of the gates. The aftermath of the ballistae was no prettier either. For many, their gravestones were the very bolts that killed them. Even if he never saw the mangled corpses, the implication of the damage was enough to tell him the story. So much violence tainted the memory of the residence that still lived in the area now, no doubt uneasy despite having been evacuated during the conflict. “They were just no good rebels,” Blueblood rationalized to himself, though with a hint of uncertainty. “Maybe it got a little excessive, but they weren’t anymore innocent than we were…” Blueblood rolled over in his king sized bed. He tried and failed many times to forget about the ordeal, only growing more restless. After a glance at his alarm clock, he decided it would be pointless to try and continue this endeavour and got out of bed to wash up. He had a social gathering tonight, it would be a faux pas if the host had a matted mane or coat. He opted for a quick rinse in his luxury shower and used his magic to blow dry and brush himself, a routine he was more than used to by this point in his life. After spending some time checking for split ends in his mane, he trotted off to the lounge where he would find his longtime lady friend, a scarlet red unicorn with jewels tied into her pink mane, sitting on the sofa and munching away on small bites of cheesecake as she read the newspaper. “Y’know? For all this talk of justice and reform, these ponies always fail and fail hard.” “Dare I ask what it is this time, Ruby?” “Eh, usual plebian stuff. Commoners always complain about stupid stuff and they always expect us at the top to fix it or surrender power to them. Guh, stupid.” “Y-yes, I supposed it is a trifle amusing.” Ruby put the paper down on the table and finished off the cake, licking the spoon rather suggestively. “Follow, hon. I’ve got something to show you.” The corridors of his large mansion always held quite a few pieces of art, whether it was purchased or made by Ruby herself. It was always questionable to some if she really did paint them, but Blueblood himself could vouch for their legitimacy. That is all except for one: it was a painting of an androgynous white alicorn stallion that appeared to be praying in front with a set of ripples while it appeared the feathers on his wings were falling off and being sucked into a crosshatched dark void. The furthest edge of his tail had burst into white hot flames and was also being sucked into the void. A prominent feature of the whole thing was a decorative vertical purple ring sitting behind the stallion’s head, and the look of sadness on his face. It was almost as though he was accepting his own demise out of shame or guilt. “Remember this old thing?” Ruby asked as she stared at the painting, adopting a smug grin. Even if she didn’t actually create this piece of work, she still considered it one of her favorite paintings. “Still can’t believe the brat actually did it. Just goes to show you how naive and desperate freshmen are.” “Apparently she died a while ago. In that warehouse fire, you remember that one, right?” Blueblood said trying to mimic Ruby’s smugness, though the tone in his words almost contradicted it. The memory of the filly always stuck with him. At the time, he did not exactly care for her feelings, evident in what he made her do. He always felt invincible since he was a prince and that he could get away with just about anything. Though he always looked back on that memory fondly, he recently could not help but feel a bit dirty from it. Even he had to admit that what Ruby did to her was a real dick move. Yet for some reason, he just couldn’t say no to her. She would always find a way to make it worth his while. “Eh, who cares? One earth filly died in a warehouse when she shouldn’t have been in there in the first place. Big freaking woop. One less weakling in the world. Anyway, I thought the picture would look nice for the party.” “Yes… Yes it would.” Ruby threw a disatisfied look at her mate. Is that all he really had to say? He could at least try to put some energy in his compliments, not sound so uninterested. “Princy, you’ve been acting like a stick in the mud lately after your aunt grounded you. I mean, I get it’s not fun having to stay in your house but what’s the deal?” Blueblood threw his head back and acted as if he was trying to pop his vertebrae. “Yes dear, I’m just tired. I did wake up from a nap fifteen minutes ago.” He knew better than to tell her what he had on his mind. It’s not like she cared about the kind of concerns he was struggling with, let alone try to understand them. She always had to be the center of the world, nothing else mattered. Right now, Ruby was more interested in the party in his mansion. Why else would she show off her old trophies? She was perfect for him. “Whatever you say, Prince. You know, we’ve got forty-five minutes before the guests start showing up,” Ruby purred into Blueblood’s ear. Her hoof began to stroke his chest, a signal he was quite familiar with. “Plenty of time for some private time.” Blueblood only rolled his eyes before cracking a grin as his mind - and hoof - went other places. Perhaps it would distract his mind, at least temporarily. At least his house arrest wasn’t a complete prison. “Do lead the way, my dear.”