//------------------------------// // Meet the Great Minds Behind Canterlot: Part 1 // Story: Canterlot: Her Creation and Her Architects // by vren55 //------------------------------// Meeting the Great Minds of Canterlot: Part 1 Coltchester, a month later... Baron Byzas was sitting at his desk when he heard the pounding of a frantic hoof on the door of his chambers. Clenching his teeth Byzas got up and opened the door to reveal a fern colored mare. “Baron! I just got back from town! The entirety of Coltchester is about to march onto the keep!” panted the mare. At this, the stallion raced to the window of his chamber and stared out into the night. Almost immediately, Byzas’s byzantine eyes saw a crowd of flickering lights gradually approaching the keep. “Nonononono,Whynow.Whynow.Whynow.Whynow!” stammered Byzas as he paced back and forth across his chambers. “I don’t know! They have been wanting to do this ever since the war started! I guess they only felt safe to do it now when the war has ended,” replied the mare. The colt nodded in agreement and turned to the fern pony. “Laurelyourememberthe-. Sorry. You remember the plan right?” asked Byzas. Through long hours of exposure, Laurel had grown accustomed to her master’s speed-talking and had actually got the message the first time. Byzas knew that, but he just repeated himself out of habit. “Of course master, but are you sure about this?” asked Laurel. “WellwhatchoicedoIhave?” Byzas sighed as he trotted back to the window again. His entire body was immediately illuminated by the torches carried by the great crowd of ponies that were approaching the stout keep that was his home. They were shouldering a battering ram as well. As he watched the ponies prepare to attack his castle, the baron tried to block out the slogans they were chanting. “Lover of night!” Sun hater!” “Down with the traitor!” “Kill him!” “Milord?” whispered Laurel. Unable to bring himself to watch the spectacle any longer, Byzas turned his fearful purple eyes away from the mob and back toward the mantis colored eyes of Laurel. “I’mfineLaurel... Take care of yourself when I’m gone... If anypony asks you about me, tell them I was horrible to you and you were glad to see me gone,” said Byzas. Laurel’s eyes teared up and began to flow from her green eyes. “But... how can I? You were anything but horrible to me! You picked me off the streets! Gave me another chance as your servant. You were only the Artist of the Night Court and in the war you didn’t even raise a hoof against Celestia! All you did was what you do best, paint. What did you do to deserve this besides just BEING a member of the Night Court?” sobbed Laurel. Byzas patted Laurel’s head with a red hoof. “PerhapsifIfought...Sorry. Perhaps if I had fought against Luna maybe the mob would have spared me. Then again, even if the mob had not come, the Princess would have. Now go Laurel or else somepony will suspect that you sympathize with me,” ordered Byzas. The green mare gave a sniff, quickly embraced the stallion and galloped off to leave the castle before the mob arrived. Leaving his chambers, Byzas began to walk through the halls of his home. The pony doubted he would see them again. The baron soon arrived in the entrance hall of his keep and trotted up to a pile of paintings. They had been carefully stacked, one upon the other. Each of them were masterpieces of art, each brush stroke delicate, each of them had colours perfectly balanced. There were night skies, sunny skies, fields and towns, and castles. How he wished he could take these pieces of his soul with him, but to much to his regret, he could not. crack, CRASH!! Ponies poured into the keep, and into the hall. They stopped the moment they noticed Byzas standing in front of them, unarmed and his face frozen with fear. “I’llneverletyoutakemealive!BaronByzas,Nightcourtartist,diestoday!” yelled Byzas. He was about to drop the oil lamp when he was interrupted. “Say what? You speak too fast!” yelled one of the ponies. “BaronByzas,courtartist,diestoday!” stammered the stallion. The ponies stared at him, their expressions varied from confusion to outright disbelief. Byzas had spoken so quickly he had been totally illegible. The pony had meant to make the line sound epic, but as usual, he had spoken too fast so it had come out completely garbled. “Just get the bloody speedtalker!” yelled somepony. Not waiting for the mob to assail him, Byzas finally dropped the oil lamp he had been holding onto the stack of paintings. Immediately they lit up and set fire to the wooden floorboards. Within seconds, the entire entrance hall was alight and blazing, forcing the mob to retreat outside. Then, deprived of the focus of their anger, the mob watched as the building began to disintegrate. What they didn’t know was that their target had slipped through their clutches. The stallion coughed as he made his way through his home. Smoke was beginning to blacken the ceiling and the stallion needed to make his escape. The pony reached the pre-opened doors of his cellar. Quickly jumping in, he closed the heavy oaken barriers behind him and dashed down the staircase. Though it was dark, Byzas had rehearsed the route many times and effortlessly galloped down the stairs. Soon he reached the bottom and found his heavy saddlebags. He quickly checked that his bulging sketchbook, his bits, and his arts material were inside. Then, with a neigh to nobody in particular, the sandstone-red stallion galloped off down a dark tunnel, to the light at the end. Vaultaire’s Castle , three months later... Large cloud structures such as cloud castles can only be built if the pegasus in question has obtained a Royal Writ. This Royal Writ can only be gained if one pony has connections, or lots and lots of bits. Lady Vaultaire was associated well with a particular member of the Royal family, and had been able to build her own cloud castle. It wasn't as large as some, but it was built more toward socializing and security, as opposed to being a full castle. Light flowed in through masterpieces of stained glass windows, illuminating the vaults of the castle. Right now, the sunflower-yellow mare was reclining on a cloud sofa inside the pavillion in her castle’s courtyard while unsealing a scroll with the Royal Seal stamped on it. As her dark green eyes scanned the letter, Vaultaire paused to push a curl of her scarlet mane out of the way. When she had finished the letter, the pegasus mare placed it carefully on her sofa. Then she proceeded to rip it to pieces, scoop a small portion of cloud out of the couch and sweep the remains of the poor piece of parchment of it. After she had resculpted the sofa to fill in the hole, the young pegasus took a nearby jug and poured some Rainbow-Cider into her goblet. The cider was a powerful, hard, pegasus alcohol that warmed the wingtips in any weather. “Celestia, if you HONESTLY think that I will just forget the fact that you threw me out of the Day Court after I suggested we should negotiate with Princess Luna then ask me to accompany you to this ‘Gathering of Artists’ and not tell me the reason why, then you’re more mad than I thought you were!” stated Vaultaire to nopony in particular. “WE did not thinkest thou would just forgive us,” spoke a voice. Normally, most ponies would just freeze and then prostrate themselves if they saw a white alicorn with the power t smove the sun hovering next to them. Vaultaire didn't. The pegasus had too much pride for that, and the Princess had quite recently insulted her. She wanted to annoy Celestia as much as possible. “Your highness, to what do I owe thee the pleasure?” replied Vaultaire evenly. Celestia seated herself so that her greyish-magenta eyes stared directly at Vaultaire’s green ones. “We expected that our letter would not be satisfactory. So we came in person to ask thou to accompany us and to explain the reason why we request thy presence,” explained the alicorn. The pegasus initial reaction was to be overjoyed that her sovereign, and sometimes friend, would hold her in such high regard. However, she was determined not to let that feeling soften her. Instead, the pegasus gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes, causing the alicorn’s wings to flicker uneasily. “Celestia, why should I accept your proposal when you banished me from your Day Court?” demanded Vaultaire. The princess flinched and hesitated. “We did not banish thee young friend. We asked thee... to politely take a leave of absence,” said Celestia. The pegasus was undaunted by this flimsy defense and pressed onward. “That’s practically the same thing. I know you well enough to recognize that that wasn’t a request,” retorted Vaultaire. The princess opened her mouth and closed it having no answer to this question, further enraging the baroness, who rose to her hooves and spread her wings. “I told you about my family! You should have known how I would feel and yet you banished me, humiliated me in front of all the other nobles. Some ‘friend’ you are!” roared Vaultaire. “I gave you that order for your own safety Vaultaire!” cried Celestia. The pegasus stopped for a moment, her mind giving a mental gasp. “Did you just use ‘I’?” Celestia didn’t reply as she turned away from the pegasus. Vaultaire’s teeth ground against each other in frustration. Her mind was caught in a mental tug of war. The pegasus could not help but remember the whispers and the giggles of the other nobleponies as she had left the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. However, Vaultaire was very much aware that without her friend's intervention, the pegasus would have faced the same fate as many of the members of the former Night Court. “I hate to admit it, but by humiliating me you saved my life,” the mare said bluntly. The alicorn shifted uncomfortably and responded haltingly. "I did what I thought was best at the time... I haven't been the best of friends lately... actually I never have been....That wasn't the first time I did something so inconsiderate of your feelings." Celestia paused. "Vaultaire, you may not be able to trust me in light of recent events, but I really need your help because I trust you.” The pegasus examined Celestia warily and sighed. "I'll help you." Vaultaire would help Celestia. Their friendship...would need some work, but what better way to fix it than by working together and the pegasus was keenly aware that her alicorn friend had always had the pegasus’ best interests at heart. Most important of all, Vaultaire valued the princess’s company and friendship despite the latter’s inconsiderate ways. The alicorn gave a sigh of relief at Vaultaire's response. It wasn’t a massive sigh of relief, but it still looked as if a weight had been lifted off her chest. “Thank you my friend. I had hoped you would help me on this mission,” said Celestia, smiling. Vaultaire smiled back and gestured if the Princess would like some Rainbow cider. Celestia conjured a goblet of her own and poured herself a cup of the drink. “So what do you need my help for?” inquired Vaultaire. Celestia raised herself from her drinking vessel and licked her lips. “Have you heard of The Great Gathering of Creators?” asked Celestia. “Yes, it’s been the talk of Equestria since it was announced a few weeks ago,” said Vaultaire, raising an eyebrow. “The Great Gathering of Creators is being organised for one reason that only I and a few of my advisors know of. It is so that I will be able to choose a group of ponies to design and oversee the construction of a new capital,” elaborated Celestia. “I suspected as much. Will the old geezer Golden Triangle be there?” asked Vaultaire. Celestia frowned, mock disapproval plastered on her face. “Old he may be, but geezer he is not. He shall be there; however, he will not be directly in charge of choosing the candidates; you and I will be.” Blinking with confusion, Vaultaire tugged at one of her red curls. “Sorry Celestia, but how will I be able to help you? How are we choosing?” Celestia gestured to Vaultaire’s cutie mark of a drafting compass, divider and a curved template. “You are an architect and interior designer, are you not? Many of the furnishings you have designed were highly successful, and most of your projects show ingenuity and style that defies the expectations of your critics. During the gathering we will be accessing other artwork and projects and the knowledge you have in your fields of expertise will be invaluable. Additionally, I need somepony who will be able to provide an alternate perspective, and I value your opinion.” Vaultaire was flattered, but the mare still had one question. “You haven’t told me how exactly we shall be choosing,” said Vaultaire. At that moment, Celestia replicated the cryptic smile she had given Golden Triangle, though the pegasus had no idea of that. Vaultaire’s reaction was to copy Celestia’s smile. The two burst out in a small fit of laughter as they shared an inside joke. “I will elaborate on that later my friend. For now, content yourself with the fact that you are already in the group that will be constructing the new capital,” announced Celestia as she trotted out of the pavillion. Then with a powerful stroke of her great wings, the alicorn lifted off from the cloud garden. The pegasus behind her bowing until her sovereign was out of sight. Immediately after Vaultaire was sure Celestia was nowhere near, she jumped into the air with a mighty leap, yelling at the top of her lungs. “YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES!!!!!” The pegasus architect and designer could scarcely believe her ears. She was going to be designing the new capital of Equestria! A structure and monument that would last for Celestia knows how long. Her stoic air dispelled, the pegasus raced to her drafting table, leaving a yellow-red streak in the air. She had a lot of planning and drawing to do. As Celestia flew back to her undoubtedly-worried advisors, she couldn’t help breathing another sigh of relief. The alicorn was truly thankful that Vaultaire was assisting her and that they had resolved their argument. Not only was Vaultaire totally dependable and skilled, Celestia saw the pegasus as the one pony who wouldn’t think twice about criticizing her. Ponies like that were becoming a rarity. Moreover, since Luna's banishment, Vaultaire was quite possibly Celestia's only true friend.