It had just turned to November when the next notable incident hit. In another month or so it would be Hearth’s Warming, the ponies’ version of Christmas, again. The castle staff were already fetching out the decorations, trees, lights, banners and decorations of all kinds. Celestia even liked to set up a phonograph in the throne room sometimes to pipe in some Hearth’s Warming cheer. On occasion, we were even treated to live music, when Octavia or somepony else from the Canterlot symphony, played for Celestia.
It was just before nine o’clock. I had just gotten in by my usual train. With the imminent weather change, it was a possibility that I would soon be making the trip via chariot, should snow block the line.
That is another thing that is odd about ponies, though it is something I’ve learnt to accept. The pegasi here, in addition to their ability to fly, also have the ability to manipulate the weather, moving clouds and so on, so everything is entirely organised, rather than being based on random chance. In the summer, they ease off on the rain and raise the humidity a bit. For autumn, they lower the temperature, increase the wind speed, and begin to introduce the odd shower. And come December, thanks to the technicians at Cloudsdale’s weather factory, Equestria is covered in a blanket of snow. It was this that we were expecting in the next few days; Celestia herself had signed the authorisation not last week.
“Morning gents,” I called to the two Royal Guards who were standing watch on the front gates. I quickly flashed my identification to them, not that they needed it. There was only one other human on the whole planet after all.
“Good morning, sir,” one of the guards replied. I actually recognised the pair now that I looked closer. This was Duck and Cover, both good friends of mine. Having worked here so long, I am starting to get good at identifying guards despite the enchantments on their armour. “Day Court is just about to open, sir. I suggest you get a move on.” Duck then returned my pass. It’s amazing how professional these two can be when the occasion calls for it. I distinctly remember seeing them both drunk as lords at a party my wife and I threw a few months back.
Glancing up at the clock, I saw I was running a little behind and quickened my pace. The first thing that happened at every Day Court was the official opening. Celestia had a number of advisors who could be called on for various issues. However, everypony had to appear for the court opening first thing.
Making my way up the steps and through the large, open, and deceptively familiar looking hallways, I headed for the throne room. Here I encountered another pair of guards. These two were much higher up the food chain than the previous two, and did not care to make idle conversation. Celestia was, despite her immense power, still a potential target. And, with the memory of the Changeling incursion a few years ago still fresh in everypony’s minds, security around the throne room was tight. As I approached, the pair blocked my way, crossing their very sharp looking spears.
“Halt, who goes there?” the one on the left demanded. Again, I fished out my credentials from my coat and handed them over.
“Roger Owen, Legal Advisor to Her Grand Royal Highness Princess Celestia. I’m here to attend the opening of the Day Court,” I stated. The two carefully examined my ID, before returning it.
“Alright, sir. You know the drill.” Opening my arms wide and widening my stance, I allowed one of the guards to scan me with a spell. It was similar to going through a metal detector, only it did far more than a machine did.
“No weapons detected,” the guard said. “No poisons or toxins. No infections or diseases. No radiological emissions. No magical anomalies. No illusion magic.” He nodded to his companion and the pair parted, opening the door for me.
“You are clear to enter, sir.” Nodding to them both, I made my way into the throne room.
It was a long room, with a lush red carpet running from the door to the throne upon which Celestia would sit. Currently it was empty, as the princess had not yet arrived. To my right were the various stained glass windows which depicted various events in Equestria’s history. Some of these had recently undergone repairs and replacement, due to damage sustained when that bastard, Tirek, broke into the castle following his escape from incarceration. I knew a fair bit about most of them by now. There was Princess Luna being freed from the influence of Nightmare Moon, Discord being turned back to stone for a second time, the successful rout of the changeling incursion, the return of the Crystal Empire (a protectorate of Equestria), and lastly, the repaired image of Princess Twilight ascending to alicorn-hood, and Tirek being defeated by her and the other elements.
Gathered in the room were the various advisors that aided Celestia. I merely covered matters of the law, though sometimes I think I have a bit more influence than others. For some reason Celestia seems to trust me more than her other advisors. I don’t think anypony else regularly takes tea with her, Luna, and Discord after all. In addition to myself, there were advisors on finance, defence, education, and foreign affairs. In effect, she had what could be likened to a Privy Council.
However, rather than all meeting to discuss national policy and other matters, we were each called individually. In each session of court, Celestia would meet with anypony who sought an audience with her, from private citizens to the leaders of other nations. In the event she required advice on a particular matter, an advisor such as myself would be summoned to the throne room for the duration of the petition.
My initial experience had been somewhat different. Given how I got this job in the first place, I needed to learn court proceedings quickly, so I sat in on most court proceedings for the early part of my career, taking notes and learning the ropes as best I could. After all, I had to learn the laws of Equestria, which were at times greatly different from those I was familiar with.
At that moment though, my reminiscing was interrupted as a trumpet blared. As all of us stood up, with my own frame rising higher than any of the ponies, Celestia herself entered. Wearing her usual crown, horseshoes and regalia, she settled herself down in her throne, before motioning us all to be seated.
“Good morning to you all,” she greeted warmly. We all returned with our own greeting and bowed. The princess then outlined the itinerary for the day; aside from the usual wave upon wave of petitioners, there were typically some pre-booked meetings, usually with important dignitaries, such as ambassadors, representatives of cities and regions across Equestria, as well as the nobility.
There was nothing particularly major on the books today. Of course, as I said before, we were expecting an imminent change in the weather. The Equestrian Royal Summit was due in a few months also. And of course, there was the still on-going talks between Equestria and representatives of the notoriously isolationist Yakyakistan, with a possibility of them opening up again to trade with us. But for today, it was all quiet. Unless I was unexpectedly called to court, of which there was a decent possibility, all I would be doing today would be catching up on paperwork.
You would have thought living in a land of sunshine and rainbows, where magic rules the day, and good always triumphs over evil would be a great experience. However, despite Equestria’s storybook nature, it still required a vast bureaucracy to run. Everything I did, every petitioner I advised on, every case I oversaw, all had to be written up, signed, dated, and filed away.
Given how busy things had been around here recently, I had a fair bit of catching up to do in the free time I had available. I had to write up my acceptance of Ms. Lulamoon’s appeal request, and prepare for the fallout if she was released early. Then I had to tally up my expenses for the month; train fares, lunches and so on. Then I had to begin looking through the case files for upcoming cases for this month. There wasn’t too much though. Equestria is fairly peaceful after all. It’s rare you see a crime severe enough to get kicked up as far as the castle.
Then again, fate is a funny thing.
I first became aware of the distant rumbling when some of my stationary began to fall off of my desk, and the portrait of the two princesses also dropped to the floor. Getting up, I could feel the entire palace shaking.
“What the hell?” I asked myself as I looked around for a source of the disturbance. It felt like an earthquake, but we were well away from any fault line. Heading over to the large open window in the office, I looked out.
It was clear everypony else was feeling the effects to. Down below, guards were already rushing to stations and preparing themselves. These guys were known for their bravery. They’d all, on their own volition, stood up to Tirek when he attacked the castle, and they’d gone toe to toe with the changelings a few years back. They’d even done what they could to shield the princesses from Discord the first time he got out.
Further down in the city, I could see ponies starting to panic. Luckily though, all the buildings seemed to be holding up. Though I must admit, knowing that the city was perched precariously on a mountain left me feeling a little worried myself. I still couldn’t see anything though that would suggest a cause.
Just then, the door to my office burst open and a guard came galloping in. It was Buttercup, one of the bailiffs from the court, a massive pony you wouldn’t dare trifle with.
“Roger!” he called. “You’ve got to come see this! Cloudsdale’s going crazy!” Without offering any further explanation, he headed out of the room, with me following as fast as I could.
My office in the castle looked inward; that is, it overlooked the city of Canterlot, rather than the valley beyond. So when I was working, I couldn’t see Ponyville or any other town out that way. It was this view Buttercup wanted to show me. The hulking earth pony skidded around the corner and came to halt at one of the large panoramic windows that punctuated many of the large open halls in the castle.
“Look, can you see it?” he asked, gesturing with an outstretched hoof. Looking out, I could see only two major features, the valley below Canterlot, and the floating city of Cloudsdale. The latter of the two was the pegasi capital, and also home to the weather factory which created all the rainclouds, snow clouds and other phenomenon that were required to change the season. I’d actually been there once and gone on a tour of the place with my family and Rainbow Dash. It’s an amazing, and beautiful place.
Right now though, the place looked to be in some kind of distress. The weather factory itself was emitting all kinds of clouds, along with a fair amount of smoke. Even from this distance, I could hear alarms going off, and just about make out pegasi tearing out of the place as fast as they possibly could. Something had gone very wrong up there.
“What on earth is going on up there?” I asked Buttercup. The earth pony shrugged and shook his head. “Beats me, sir. But they’re sending some of our guys up there now and some rescue teams.” I saw a formation of pegasi guards leaving the castle and heading for the factory.
“Right, come on,” I said. “Let’s get to the throne room; see what the princess wants us to do.” And so, the two of us ran hell for leather towards the throne room to get instructions from the princess.
The throne room was already filling up when I got there. Celestia herself was now ringed by a group of guards. Everypony though, Celestia included, was looking out as Cloudsdale, which was continuing to rumble and cause frequent tremors. Whilst she didn’t look frightened, as she had when she had closed the court during Tirek’s escape, she did look very concerned.
As we continued to look on in confusion, it happened. The weather factory all but exploded. I had a sickening feeling that I might be witnessing Equestria’s version of Chernobyl; only in this case, it was a massive outpouring of weather.
A few moments after the blast, we saw the result. A huge, and I do mean huge, snowball. It rocketed out of Cloudsdale and began to fall in a steady arc toward the ground. Watching it fall, it was clear that ground zero was going to be in the valley below us. Bracing ourselves, we all watched the spectacle unfold.
As the massive snowball neared the ground, it began to lose its shape, turning into a large blanket. And then, it hit the ground. In an instant, the entirety of the valley below was covered in pristine white. There was enough mass so that even some areas in the lower part of Canterlot were affected. Still, with that final impact, the shaking stopped and Cloudsdale appeared to be in one piece. Although the weather factory looked to have taken a beating; with a huge breach visible even from here. Whilst we were all still shocked by what happened, given that there was no immediate danger, we were ordered back to work. However, Celestia did temporarily close the court while she waited for news from Cloudsdale and Ponyville.
For the next few days, very little happened. Investigations took place all over and statements were taken from anyone who saw what had happened, myself included. However, the only result at first, was the report that there had been some sort of malfunction in the snow labs. This had caused a build-up of snow far beyond normal levels. Eventually, the containment vessels couldn’t handle the strain any longer and had ruptured. This caused a chain reaction that caused the whole system to fail, ejecting the produce out through vents, windows, and doors. The question though, was what had caused the initial malfunction.
I got the answer a few days later when a new file landed on my desk. Most legal cases were the defendant against the crown, only those cases were deemed important enough, as they usually affected more than one area or were extremely serious crimes. However, this one was more local. The charges were being brought not by Celestia or Luna, but by the ‘Congress of Cloudsdale’, this was Cloudsdale’s local governing body, akin to a local council. It was also a holdover from the old pegasi military junta, but that is beside the point. What was important, was the name of the defendant.
“Rainbow Dash?!” I exclaimed incredulously. There had to be some mistake surely? As captain of the Ponyville Weather Patrol, Rainbow Dash had nothing to do with the weather factory, she just looked after whatever was sent her way. Hell, she was my daughter’s boss. Flicking through the file I looked at the charges.
“Trespassing? Criminal damage? Destruction of private property? What in the name of…” This had to be some sort of mistake; a typo or something. This was Rainbow Dash, a respected officer in the Weather Patrol, an Element of Harmony, and a bloody national hero! Grabbing the file and tucking it under my arm, I quickly left my office and headed for the throne room to see Celestia. This had to be some kind of cock up.
As I half walked, half jogged to the throne room to see if I could get a brief meeting with Celestia, I looked over the files I had; witness statements, investigation reports, as well as photographs. From what I could gather, Rainbow had for some reason, attempted to ‘hold off’ winter. She’d briefly confined her activities to Ponyville, but given that all winter weather was produced at Cloudsdale, she later headed there. Somehow, she had gained access to the building just as the shifts were changing. She’d then gotten into snow production and thrown a literal spanner in the works. That was what had initially caused the malfunction.
Consequently, the resulting near catastrophe was being blamed on her alone. The weather factory had been badly damaged by the explosion of snow and weather. It was only good fortune that the snow didn’t cause significant damage when it made landfall. At a first glance then, the evidence was overwhelming. Okay, she wouldn’t be going to jail; any lawyer worth his salt could claim some degree of diminished responsibility (she was trying to stop winter after all), plus the charges were really only trespassing and criminal damage. Even if she was convicted, it would probably be a hefty fine and a community order.
However, any fool could see this would not be a pretty sight if it came to trial. Putting a mare that has played a crucial role in saving Equestria around half a dozen times on trial? There would be an uproar! While it fell outside my own remit, I figured there was a good chance Celestia, or perhaps Twilight, would be able to convince the Cloudsdale authorities to drop the charges and settle this quietly.
Reaching the throne room doors, I found the court quiet for the moment. Celestia was sitting on her throne, tending to some paperwork. A scroll hovered in front of her, whilst a quill danced around in her magical grip. As I walked up to the dais, she promptly dismissed it.
“Roger,” she greeted warmly. “I was expecting you to drop by. I take it you’ve seen the upcoming case Cloudsdale wishes to bring.” I nodded.
“Yes, your highness,” I replied. “Is there anything you can do? I mean, surely you can see this case is kicked. There’s no way we can let it all come to trial.”
“It is indeed a serious matter, my advisor. But I am not about to overrule a city’s right’s to redress. It is quite clear to me, and Twilight agrees, that Rainbow Dash did cause that incident. I cannot dismiss the charges simply because of her position as an Element of Harmony.” At that moment though, her eyes became cunning. “But I’m sure a good legal counsel, such as yourself, knows that that is only half the battle.” She smiled knowingly.
Now for the uninitiated, allow me to explain. Knowing that something happened, and proving that something happened, are two very different kettles of fish. The two of us knew that Rainbow had, in some way contributed to causing the incident at Cloudsdale. However, the case was not as watertight as it first seemed.
Firstly, there was the matter of solid evidence that Rainbow was to blame. As advanced as Equestria is, they have yet to develop the necessary technology to create closed circuit television cameras, nor do they have much in the way of forensic science. Hooves, after all, are not as unique as fingerprints. All that could be proven was that Rainbow was there around the time of the incident, and was subsequently caught in the blast. There were no witnesses that could testify to her guilt, nor was there any physical (surviving) evidence of her actions. The only evidence Cloudsdale prosecutors could bring to the table was her previous actions in Ponyville.
Secondly, there was the matter of intent. Had Rainbow done this intentionally, then the crime, and consequent punishment, would be quite severe. If I recall my old country’s ‘Articles of War’ on the subject of malicious intent relating to damage, the section ends with the oh so familiar phrase ‘…shall suffer death.’. However, if her intent was not to entirely destroy the snow producing department of the weather factory, then it was a case of negligence. Whilst still a crime, since her inaction or inattentiveness resulted in the damage for which she was blamed, neither the crime nor punishment was so severe.
As such, it was quite possible that I could argue that Rainbow’s actions were negligent, not malicious. While she would still be guilty of the crime, it would be far less severe and could be settled away from the glare of press cameras. I quickly summarised my argument to Celestia.
“You do make a reasonable argument,” she admitted. Straightening her posture, she gave me her orders “Alright, I will set up a meeting with Cloudsdale’s representatives. The two of us can meet with them tomorrow, show them the difficulty of prosecuting their case, and then I will see about settling the issue of redress. With any luck, we will be able to put this unfortunate incident to bed.” Bowing briefly, I then took my leave, returning to my office to begin preparing for tomorrow’s meeting.
I spent that night going over all my notes in preparation for the meeting. Undoubtedly, Cloudsdale’s governing body was not going to take this issue lying down. It would take a fair bit of negotiation and persuasion to convince them to take the deal we would be offering. Looking at things from a logical standpoint, it was in their interests to settle things quietly. Regardless of what happened, bringing Rainbow to trial would put them in hot water with a lot of ponies. Hell, the whole thing would probably descend into a ‘trial by media’, with the end result of the population being polarised on the matter. I’d seen that nonsense happen too many times, particularly in cases involving racial issues. And like it or not, this case had the potential to devolve into an argument between the three tribes. Stupidity always finds a way, after all.
As I continued to read through my own notes and the documents I had brought home with me, I felt my wife, who I thought would be asleep by now, tug on my pyjama sleeve.
“For goodness sake, it’s gone midnight. Will you please turn that light off?” she complained. To be fair, we had both gone up to bed at half ten, since we both had early starts the next day, and I was still sat up in bed, cramming like a college student. Taking a moment to set everything aside and remove my reading glasses, I leaned over to her.
“Sorry, I just want to be sure I have everything sorted for tomorrow.” At this point, everything was still very hush-hush. Not even Twilight knew yet. I’d hate to see Rainbow getting picked up by a couple of guards and hauled away. Don’t get me wrong, what she did was wrong, stupid and could have ended quite differently, but the way Cloudsdale was going about this was foolhardy. I explained this to she who must be obeyed.
“Pegasi have always been hotheads,” my wife replied. “It’s in their nature, the same way earth ponies can be stubborn.” Racial stereotypes aside, she was probably right. In a few months, most ponies would probably have forgotten about this whole mess. It was just a case of running damage control in the meantime.
Deciding that I could do no more, I placed the mass of notes back in their folder and placed them on my bedside table. I then leaned over and turned the light out. I was asleep almost before my head hit the pillow.
It was eleven o’clock the next morning when the officials from Cloudsdale arrived. They’d been booked into a slot in Day Court so that everything would be out in the open. Given the way this was hopefully going to be settled, it would be very easy to misconstrue it as a shady backroom deal.
Celestia sat in her throne as per usual, whilst I was seated beside her. As legal advisor, I would be there to ensure everything was done on the level and that all parties were fairly represented. Celestia would be doing the negotiating proper, whilst I would be providing back-up in the finer points of the law.
Cloudsdale sent a trio of officials down to Canterlot, each one dressed prim and proper for the court. Like me, two of them carried a hefty amount of papers, presumably case notes. The third pony however, wore a noticeably different outfit. Dressed in Weather Patrol blues, with a couple rows of ribbons to match, Captain Spitfire of the Wonderbolts walked up to the dais with her two associates and bowed.
“Princess,” Spitfire greeted neutrally.
“Spitfire,” Celestia replied, more warmly. “A pleasure to see you again. How is your mother, Stormy Flare? I haven’t seen her since the last Wonderbolt derby.”
“She’s well, thank you, your highness.” It seemed that small talk was not one of Spitfire’s strongpoints.
“Now, I understand you wish to bring charges against one of your own,” Celestia began. Rainbow had made it into the Wonderbolt reservists not too long ago. She’s been trying for years to get into the legendary squadron somehow. I just hoped that it wouldn’t be used as leverage today.
“Princess, Rainbow Dash caused a massive explosion that all but destroyed half the weather factory!”
“Allegedly,” I replied. Celestia turned to me, pretending to have just noticed my presence.
“Ah yes, of course, you two haven’t met. Captain Spitfire, allow me to introduce my Chief Legal Advisor, Roger Owen.”
“Captain,” I greeted, nodding. The fiery pegasus mirrored my actions.
“He will be advising me on all matters relating to the law in this case.”
“I doubt you’ll need much in the way of advice, princess. Rainbow Dash is as guilty as could be. The mare went crazy, held up half a dozen operations in Ponyville, and then went on to blow up the weather factory.”
“And what proof do you have of this?” I enquired. Spitfire seemed mildly offended. Like Rainbow, she could be a bit of a hothead at times.
“Proof? There’s a giant hole in the Weather Factory!” she exclaimed.
“That doesn’t prove that Rainbow Dash caused it, though. If you wish to bring her to trial, you must first show cause.” Having laid the groundwork, Celestia now stepped in.
“Indeed, I cannot have a pony arrested on another pony’s say so,” she said. “You need witnesses, physical evidence; something that eliminates reasonable doubt.”
Spitfire turned to her two associates. Evidently, they had been expecting a positive answer from Celestia, consequently they were not well prepared. Well, that’s what happens when you try to run before you can walk. Celestia however, continued.
“I understand that Cloudsdale requires some form of redress. I have seen the damage reports myself. But I fail to see how prosecuting Rainbow Dash would help.” At this point, one of the two suits spoke up.
“Our plan was to have her make restitution via monetary payment, your highness,” he said meekly. Celestia merely raised an eyebrow in response.
“You know how much a patrol officer makes, do you not? It would take years of payments to fix everything.” By this point, Spitfire could see how the land lay.
“Alright, princess. What do you suggest?” she asked. Celestia smiled and her temperament softened.
“Cloudsdale will receive proper redress. However, the crown will put up a portion of the funds. Sufficient at least to begin repair work and have the snowflake labs repaired in time for next winter. The rest will be taken from Rainbow Dash’s salary as you requested.” Spitfire’s expression showed her keen interest. “If you agree, I will send word to Princess Twilight, who will pass it on to Rainbow herself. Twilight has assured me of Rainbow’s full cooperation. This can all be settled out of court and without the difficulty posed by a public trial.” Celestia paused a moment, before hammering the point home.
“Of course, if you wish, you may petition me to take the matter to trial. But your case is far from watertight. And in the event of a not guilty verdict, my hooves would be tied on the matter.”
Spitfire sighed, I expect that she wasn’t looking forward to a trial either. I certainly don’t want to think we backed her into a corner. Celestia after all did mean what she said; if need be, she would take the case to trial. Spitfire briefly conferred with the two suits. They were getting a pretty good deal, Celestia would take most of the financial strain, Rainbow would be justly punished for her actions, and repairs could be completed. At length, Spitfire addressed us.
“Alright, we would be willing to accept that deal. Once everything is official, Cloudsdale will drop the charges.” Celestia bowed her head slightly in response. With that, the three ponies left the throne room.
“Well, I think that went rather well,” I said after the throne room was empty again. Celestia merely nodded, undoubtedly moving dozens of political chess pieces around in her head. Everything after all has the potential to affect everything else. A minor incident, such as this one, might be used someday against her, and so she carefully planned ways to counter such eventualities.
God, I’m making Celestia sound like some sort of emotionless psychopath, aren’t I? She is, in any case, skilled at playing the political game though. Having been at it for over a thousand years on her own, I imagine that she sees quite a big picture. And to be fair, particularly around the nobility, you do have to be careful with the moves you make. At length, Celestia spoke up.
“As well as can be expected, I think. It’s one less issue to think about. If it’s not too much trouble, could you go over things with Rainbow when you head back to Ponyville?” I nodded.
“Of course, princess.” With everything sorted and settled (I’d write up the paperwork later), the princess rose from her throne and signalled the guards to close the court for its usual recess.
“I suppose now would be a good time to take a break for lunch.”