Hoofsteps echoed throughout the halls of dull stone, as princess Twilight made her way through the darkened corridor, escorted by a lone guard. "You'll have 10 minutes with the prisoner, for safety purposes. Are you sure you don't wish for me to accompany you?" the guard asked, earning an affirmative nod from the monarch. The guard cautiously raised the barrier door that led into a large chamber, and as she stepped inside, he closed it with a wary look.
"Ah, princess!" a familliar, flat-toned, yet lightly pleased voice said, as she walked up a small flight of stairs to the prison pedestal. There, sitting calmly on a rock in the center of the circular pedestal was Far Reach, wearing only a thin smile, and a look of dull interest. It unnerved her that he had the same expression now as he did when she had first met him, but she showed no outward display of concern.
"Reach. I see you've gotten comfortable here," she stated, looking him over, noting his lack of the chained ankle that more dangerous prisoners like Tierek wore.
"Yes, Tartaurus is not so bad a place, over time. It just takes a little adaptation. But, let us not dwell on me... look at you! Wearing those twin, gold trimmed, red sashes I see! The look rather suits you, Twilight, I must admit." Reach seemed oddly relaxed around her, and not vengeful in the slightest. The fact that he was so calm here seemed to put her on edge, but she offset it with her primary reason of being here.
"I've recieved reports that you have been oddly well behaved... I needed to be sure you weren't up to anything," the princess explained simply, eyeing him carefully to look for any signs that something was amiss.
"Oh come now, I've been well behaved since you imprisoned me here! You mean to tell me that it hasn't been cause for concern for over a year?" he asked, wearing a slightly incredulous expression.
"I just had to see for myself," she replied dryly, eyeing him suspiciously. The thin smiling face stared back at her, sending a mild chill down her spine.
"By the way, how IS the Trident now? I can't imagine the council would let something as small as a change of command interfere with their operations. At least, not to any significant degree," he inquired, watching her patiently, and with intent.
Twilight was quick to respond. "Actually, the council is running much smoother now, I think. Mandating that no pony ever be left unbranded seemed to make them far more cohesive an entity."
"Ah yes, though I suppose acceptance is to be expected. After all, the purpose of Marking was and still is unity," he said, standing and revealing his more recently branded flank. It bore a series of metals and crystals, all with a sort of dull texture, arranged in a circle.
"Oh, but I simply must know how the old stallion felt when you told him that you were in charge now. I imagine he was somewhat relieved at my... replacement," Reach said, leaning towards her slightly, but not threateningly.
Twilight walked around the pedestal, checking the rocky protrusions serving as "walls" for anything suspicious, as she delivered her answer. "While Mark Maker wasn't exactly enthusiastic that the Trident was still operating, he was quite happy that the Unbranded were a thing of the past. I think I made the right decision."
"As do I, my dear," Reach said, keeping his own eyes on her as she strolled about. These words seemed to catch her completely off guard, as she stopped dead in her tracks. Good. "You know Twilight, I like you. You may have pushed me out of power and thrown me down here in chains, which of course the guards eventually found unesessary, but you did it all with the 'greater good' in mind. We're not too different, you and I..."
The princess had an aghast expression at his suggestion of a similarity between the two of them. "I'm nothing like you!" she defended, trying to maintain her air of authority.
Reach merely smiled and visibly relaxed. "Is that so? Think, Twilight, you and I both wanted the best outcome for the greatest number of people. Both of us see the logic of the Brander and Marks as a whole, and both of us do what needs to be done to ensure prosperity overall. I say again, we are not so different." His conclusion was solid, but she stood her ground.
"You were a murderer. I disbanded your little assassin squads within the first week, removed them from deployment, and mandated no fatalities by our hooves," she explained, matter of factly. Her tone seemed ever so slightly colder than when they had first met...
He got oddly quiet for a moment, needing to think of how to convince her otherwise. He chose his words carefully before speaking up again. "Twilight, would I be wrong in saying that, generally, inner city crime has risen since your appointment to the position of council head?" He waited camly for her to respond despite her now-surprised expression.
"How would you know about that?" she inquired with concern, only to have him ask another question.
"And did you have to fight off a pretentious young self-proclaimed 'lord of the Mustangs'?"
"How do you know these things? Who is your informant?" Twilight asked, pointing a charged horn at him. He did not flinch or hesitate for even a second.
"I don't have an informant, Twilight. But I did have plans in place for those problems. I don't use assassination and murder as a go-to, princess. I used it when necessary and ONLY when necessary. The inner-city gang leaders were often deposed by my orders, like trimming hedges that overgrow their bounds," he said smoothly, blankly.
"But the death is entirely unecessary!" Twilight cried, eyeing him with an intense stare.
"Unesessary? While it may be true that actual murder cases rarely happen if ever these days, it is due to the Trident that this is the case. We took out anyone who Marks couldn't control, we removed the troublemakers, we SAVED lives!" Reach's expression was far more serious now, his lightly amused eyes replaced now with a look of bored concentration.
"But to kill at all is an atrocity! Why was death needed?"
"Because Twilight. One day I realized that I could prevent 100 deaths by killing one pony. For every mourning friend we caused, thousands were spared. Had I imprisoned them, Equestria would not only have to invest time, energy and money into prisons everywhere, but we would also run the risk of breakouts and significant violence. You see me as a cold, calculating stallion Twilight, and I don't deny it. But I wasn't always this way. I was much like you, I wanted a perfect world. But as much as the Brander allows us some intense influence, we cannot directly control throusands of ponies. Just look at yourself! But I realized I could help MOST of the world. And that's what I did."
Twilight was silent for a moment as she pondered his words, silently looking him over. He clearly wasn't lying, but she couldn't agree with his methods.
"Everything had a purpose Twilight. The Squads of the Trident, the assassinations, the monarchal control, the factory in Cloudsdale, the mass information collection... it all may seem horrific to you, but all of it, every part of it, went into making the carefully balanced, prosperous world that Equestria is today. But now it's your turn to take charge," he concluded, looking directly into her eyes with a blank, yet rare not-bored expression.
Twilight had heard enough, and after a brief pause, she turned to walk away. "Don't cause any trouble now," she said, trotting in the direction of the door. She was about to head down the stairs before Reach spoke up again.
"Twilight, wait. Before you go, I have a recommendation." He was cool and calm, and she turned around to see a bored, yet sincere look on his face.
"What do you want, Reach?" Twilight asked in annoyance, eyeing him suspiciously.
"There's a politician who should be lined up to run for governor of Fillydelphia. His name is Smooth Talker. He has a plan to increase police patrols in the inner city. It may cost taxpayers a bit more money, but you'll see a crime drop, and avoid killing, if he wins the election." He paused here to let her think.
"And why are you telling me this?" she asked briskly, still annoyed but curious.
"Because, Twilight, you run the Trident now. It's your duty to ensure the greater good, and I know you want to. I'm suggesting you ensure his election via media campaign support through some of our front companies, coupled with internal government support," he explained, looking serious as ever.
The princess had on a mild look of disgust... but kept listening. "Why would I remove the people's power to vote?"
"You're not removing it at all. You are merely influencing the most desireable outcome. I had intention of doing so, but it's in your hooves now," he concluded solidly, a dry smile returing to his otherwise blank face.
Though I hate to admit it... he may have a point there. After all, it would help everyone in the long run... Part of her couldn't believe she was considering advice from Reach... and yet, the rest of her found logic in the support. After all... it was for the greater good.
"I'll consider it," she finally said, walking down and knocking on the door. Just as the guard opened it, Reach spoke up for the last time that day. "I'm not evil, Twilight. Just cold."
With that, she turned and walked down the hallway, not looking back as the door shut behind her. She had a Council meeting to conduct.