“She’s at my old house…” The peach-colored unicorn with the yellow mane said slowly, then convulsed with a sob. Despite all the evidence she had, and in defiance of all her logic, Luna felt a glimmer of hope, for this unicorn that had claimed to be Silver Chalice, had finally confessed to being an imposter. Perhaps Silver was indeed still alive! But the peach unicorn – Tiara Dreams – wasn't finished. Once her sobs had passed, she continued speaking to some spot below Luna’s chest. “…buried in my backyard.”
Luna’s felt her eyes widen and her breath leave her. If she could have wished for anything at that moment, she would have wished to return to the lie. Her sister had been correct from the first night. Silver Chalice was dead, she had insisted, and the pony claiming to be her was an imposter. While Luna stood there stunned, Tiara raised her head to show eyes overflowing and spoke yet again, but this time sounding like her heart was lodged in her throat. “I killed her.”
Deep inside her, Luna felt the Taint rejoice. Her view of the cave first went as black as her despair. Then her vision colored everything red with her rage. In the next few moments, she imagined the pony in front of her dying a thousand agonizing deaths. And at each morbid thought, the Taint shouted its approval and supplied her with justifications.
What more do you need? She confessed her guilt! It is blood for blood! Take your vengeance and be satisfied!
But thankfully, Tiara and Luna were not alone in the cave. At hearing Tiara’s confession, Millstone broke the ensuing silence when he staggered backwards and fell on his haunches, stupefied.
“Huh?” Thunder next eloquently supplied.
Brass Hammer spit out bloody sputum and grunted. “No wonder she didn’t care about everypony knowing her name. Silver Chalice was already dead. She had the perfect cover. Any search by the guard would be for a dead mare.”
The ponies’ commentary, both silent and spoken, shook her out of her bloodlust. Her eyes snapped shut and she took a deep breath as the Taint's frustrated howl echoed soundlessly in her mind. Above all, she had made a promise with herself to never again act on strong emotions alone, but to temper all of her white-hot feelings with reason. Proceedures existed for circumstances like this, and she would follow them. When her eyes opened, the Princess of the Moon stared into the hopeless eyes of Tiara Dreams.
“The secondary responsibility of a Princess of Equestria,” Luna said haltingly at first, but then her speech started to flow, “is to maintain law and order for her subjects. Tiara Dreams, Thou will return with us at once to the Palace, where we will open an investigation.” She swept her head around. “Due process will be given to thee and thine.”
Tiara blinked twice and shook her head. “Open a what?” She sputtered, “Why do you need to do that? I confessed. I told you I killed her. What more do you need to convict me?”
“Indeed, Thou did say: ‘I killed her’, but what of thy method and motive. Why did thou murder Silver Chalice? Did thou plan and lie in wait? Did thou commit murder cold blood? When and in what manner did thou come to know Silver Chalice? Give answer!”
Tiara huffed and puffed at each of Luna’s rapid questions, but could form no reply.
“What did we ask that is so difficult.” Luna said at last.
Tiara dropped her head and stared at her hooves.
Luna didn’t wait. “We intended from the beginning to discover the truth, and we remain steadfast in our goal. Go now, and stand by Brass Hammer in the midst of the orbs.”
Tiara bowed and started toward the orbs when a strangulated voice stopped her.
“You’re not Silver Chal-” Milstone choked on her alias and his head swayed from left to right. His brow was knit in deep thought as he processed this new information. “What else have you not told us? Were you planning on killing Princess Luna next? Huh? Killing her instead of letting her go so she wouldn’t be able to describe or find us?”
“No.” Tiara’s eyes widened and she shook her head at his accusation. “I would never…”
He stood, squared his body, and lowered his head with a snarl. “Or were we all next on your list… That was your plan all along, wasn’t it? To kill us all, seal us in this cave, and then keep all of the ransom for yourself.”
“No.” Her voice strained near the breaking point, and the slow back and forth wagging of her head continuously and mournfully denied the accusations. “How could you even think that?”
“Shut up!” He shouted, then angrily swept away some rebellious tears with a hoof. “I thought you were somepony who I could lo…who I could trust, but you are a murdering Jezebel!”
Luna blinked back some tears of her own as she saw Millstone’s stoicism crumbling. Deep inside her, she felt the Taint cackle with delight, savoring the pain and gleefully anticipating the violence at the very scene she watched regretfully. This was her fault, for she had seen the potential for them, but had not given any thought to this progression. Most of the pain he was feeling now was because of her encouragement. And the Taint was only too happy to remind her of that fact.
Failing to see that the stallion facing her was a loaded siege cannon, Tiara took ill-conceived steps toward him. “No, it’s not like that.”
A battle-cry erupted and Millstone reared and threw himself at Tiara. She had triggered the cannon, and he aimed all the energy of his broken soul at her.
Quick as a flash, Brass intervened, knocking Tiara aside and locking forelegs with Millstone to hold him back. “Easy! Take it Easy!” Brass struggled to reason with him as he fought to reach Tiara, who again stared up from the ground transfixed at the violence of unbridled earth pony rage.
“Look at me, Millstone! Look. At. Me.” Thankfully, he saw reason return in Millstone’s eyes, and his struggle lessened. “Don’t do this to yourself, because she isn’t worth it.” The fight against him lessened some more. “I don’t want to see you throw your life away over a treasonous, bone-head, piece of tail.”
Millstone’s head cocked back at the foul-worded description and he looked over Brass’ shoulder.
Brass followed his eyes and found that they led to Princess Luna. “Umm, no offense intended at you of course, Princess.”
Luna didn’t answer, and kept herself from reacting any more than to grin wryly.
Brass turned back to Millstone. “I know that she lied to you; she lied to us all and we all fell for her lies.” Millstone stopped resisting entirely and they backed up against the wall. “I know she hurt you and I know you’re hurting and I know that the pain you feel is huge, but you can’t act out on those feelings.” Millstone sat back on his haunches and began to weep.
“Hey!” Thunder interjected and muscled his way up to Millstone. “Cut that crap out and suck it up! You are a stallion, so act like it!"
Brass rolled his eyes. “What our friend is trying to say, is this can’t defeat you unless you let it. Are you going to let it have the best of you?”
A shaky hoof defiantly scrubbed off the tears and he looked up. “No, I’m good,” He croaked.
Brass smiled. “You almost broke my jaw with that upper-cut you mud-brained plowpony!”
Millstone weakly grinned back. “Yeah, well those right-crosses you landed showed me all of the southern constellations, ya black-lunged hillbilly!”
Brass chuckled. “Are we good?” He held out a hoof.
Millstone returned the gesture forcefully, and the thunderous clop that resulted echoed through the cave. “Yeah, we’re good.” He stood up and hugged Brass. "I’ll see you in four days.”
“Stallions.” Luna shook her head as Brass walked past her to the center of the orbs. Then she pulled Tiara to her hooves. “Just a few minutes ago, they were ready to kill each other. Now, they are making jokes about their fight and planning on having a drink together.”
Tiara twisted her head around to look back at Millstone, but he was pointedly avoiding her gaze. Then an indigo-colored wing blocked her view and directed her after Brass.
Positioning herself between Brass and Tiara in the center of the orbs, Luna spoke once more. “Thunder and Millstone, on the dawn of the fourth day hence, thou art commanded to appear at the Palace gates, bearing with ye, all evidence in this cave, and all devices used in this foul enterprise.” Princess Luna said and she spread her wings over Tiara and Brass at her sides. “If thou fail to appear, thou wilt suffer the wrath of the Princess of the Moon!”
They both nodded their assent and bowed.
The orbs blazed with violet flame and Princess Luna and her charges disappeared from the cave.
The next instant Princess Luna, Brass and Tiara were in the courtyard of the Palace, squinting against the exceedingly bright light of the morning sun and the reflections bouncing off the polished white stone. There existed no way to bring up the lights slowly out of a teleport from a dark place, but as her eyes watered and ached, Luna made a mental note to task the unicorns at her sister’s school with finding a solution.
A lance of Guardponies recovered quickly from the shock of seeing their co-regent suddenly appear from out of the air and raced up to her. “Princess Luna!” The white guard with sergeant’s stripes said with obvious relief as he bowed. “We are so glad you have returned…”
The way he ended his statement through up a red flag in Luna’s mind. Something else was going on. “What more do you have to say, Sergeant?”
The Sergeant stood and looked from Tiara, to Brass, and then back to Luna.
Luna nodded once. “I command that a quad pegasus chariot be brought and placed under this pony’s direction. They will take him to the place he specifies and wait there until the time they require to return on the morn of the fourth day.”
The Sergeant looked to the two guards on his left, who moved to flank Brass and led him away between them to carry out Luna’s directive.
Luna then faced the guard to the Sergeant’s right. “You will watch over this pony till I return. Luna pushed Tiara forward with her wing.
The guard nodded, but looked up at Luna with wide eyes. “By myself, Princess?”
Luna smiled. “She will be no trouble.” She assured him, and then used the tip of her wing to turn and lift Tiara’s head. “Tiara Dreams.” She said and exhaled forcefully into her face. “Sleep. And dream.”
Tiara felt Luna’s breath and a flowery aroma filled her nostrils. “Moondrake.” She said, unable to mask her surprise at the scent that heavily laced Luna’s breath. Her eyelids began to flutter and her head suddenly became too heavy for her to keep upright. “You… You’re immune to moondrake.” She concluded as the day began to fade behind her closing eyes.
Luna chuckled as Tiara fought against succumbing to the sedation effects of moondrake. “Not immune, but that enchanted flower is in my realm. It is as effective on me as I desire it to be. Now go. Start walking and find shade. Then lie down, and dream.”
Tiara grimaced, “Will I have nightmares?”
“Yes. But you will have pleasant dreams too.”
“Can you take away the nightmares?” Tiara pleaded, looking like a frightened child on the verge of tears.
“No.” Luna answered, and used her wing to start her and the guard walking away. “I have withheld your dreams for too many days. You need to dream whatever may come.”
Tiara sniffed and nodded, her eyes were fully closed now, and she leaned like a drunkard against her guard as he led her towards a large shade tree.
Luna wheeled about and faced the Sergeant. “Now. Tell me what is the problem.”
“After you were taken, Princess Celestia commanded us to do nothing outside of our normal routine.” The Sergeant said simply, but he twitched nervously.
“Yes, go on.”
“We are to do nothing at all out of our routine, unless we were specifically ordered by her otherwise.” The Sergeant restated emphatically.
“Go on, Sergeant.” Luna said evenly while her hoof began to twitch
The Sergeant swallowed. “I think you should go and meet Princess Celestia for breakfast.”
“Zounds!” Luna stamped her hoof. “Wilt thou speak plainly!”
The sergeant stiffened to attention. “Princess Luna, your personal guard has grown impatient. They have broken Princess Celestia’s directive. They have taken up arms and are right now moving into the Palace against Princess Celestia!”