//------------------------------// // Chapter 28 // Story: Rise of an Empire, Fall of Another // by Kyuubi325 //------------------------------// Britainia England HMS Progress Airship Super Dreadnought class Lower observation deck 9:12am Theo sighed as his "private" airship slowly circled around the capital, the crew running the ship through it's paces. While he would have liked to leave right away, he understood the necessity of testing the ship's engines and components for faults. Luckily, he observed that they were nearly finished as he drank a warm cup of Irish coffee to help calm his nerves. He smiled; from this altitude he could see across the English Channel over into France. A wonderful view. However, what truly caught his attention was the massive HMS Reckoning as it slowly made its way out of the water. While at first glance one could easily mistake it for a sea going dreadnought, it was in fact one of the 12 super land ships he had designed. He watched the massive construct slowly rise out of the water, it'slarge centrical legs slowly pumping to move it forward. "I remember when we first laid down the hull of that ship... most were convinced that such a thing would never work at such a scale, but now? We have 12." He says, mostly to himself, ignoring the servants in his private observation deck as they silently cleaned up his breakfast of eggs and steak. He couldn't help but swell up with pride as the massive walking dreadnought made landfall, rising above all but the London Nautica. The massive walker stopped in a grassy plain just outside of London. The eight cylindrical legs almost gave it the appearance of a spider, though it wasn't much of a surprise; walkers were generally inspired from organic life. As the airship lazily flew over it he saw that it's sea based sister ship was currently sailing nearby, along with a small fleet representing the most decorated ships in the navy. As he stood near the railing that separated him from the glass enclosure around him one of his maids came up to him holding a ringing phone. He looks the cocker spaniel over before picking up the phone and holding it to his ear. "This is the Bridge reporting... we have finished the final tests of the HMS Progress. We are ready for the send off on your order sir." The emperor waited for a few moments. "I am ready. Commence." The small fleet had finished getting into formation and slowly raised their cannons before firing ceremonial shots into the sky just below us. Even the HMS Reckoning raised its elephantine cannons and fired, adding to the already impressive display. The airship slowly changes course heading for the west. iIts engines hum loudly, being pushed to nearly full tilt. The Emperor nearly lost his balance from the sudden increase in speed before righting himself with the help of the railing. Theo continues too hold the phone in his hand before lifting it up to his ear. "Push the engines, I want to arrive in Equestria ahead of schedule." Crystal Empire Abandoned Shimmering Bay Settlement Snow Crab Peir 12:26pm Sir Amethyst watched as the ships unloaded there cargo onto the the frozen piers. If it wasn't for the freezing weather they would have rotted away a long time ago. As he looked around the abandoned settlement he couldn't help but swell up in anger. When they had left he was worried that they would have to improvise down south since Cadence had been promising to start allowing the Crystal Empire to rebuild their trade routes. But once again it seemed to be an empty promise, since after sending stallions to search the forgotten settlement they hadn't seen any hint that anypony had been here since they left. The old town was once the center of sea trade in the world, with countless warehouses, taverns, homes, and even stores serving he trading hub, but now? It was blanketed in thick snow and many of the buildings were unable to be discerned from thick ice that covered them. It was almost haunting to look at, seeing a town he once remembered as full of life and culture reduced to a frozen ghost town. He sighed, climbing down the boardwalk onto the frozen Pier and making his way to the old warehouse. It was just down the pier and had a number of icicles hanging off the roof with a thick layer of snow blanketing it all. He forced the door open, cursing a bit since it was nearly frozen shut. He was happy to find that the inside was slightly warmer. "Sir Amethyst? We have just finished unloading the first Galleon and are currently trying to unload the rest of the arms we were given. Are you sure you wish to continue with the plan? We arrived behind schedule and six days isn't nearly long enough to train our recruits. Can we not just wait?" A former noble by the name of Glittering Shroud asked, after pulling off her thick scarf. Amethyst sat down on on of the crates and shook his head at the brownish crystal mare. "Princess Cadence is planning to burn all the books and priceless works of art the Equestrian guard has collected over the past few years in a massive Bonfire. She says its so we can let go of the past and move forward but what it truly is... Is cultural genocide. Whether she is truly aware of what her actions are initialing or not if we lose the basis of our Empire then all this..." He waves his hoof around the warehouse where countless Crystal Ponies are stacking up the arms crates and reading the simplistic manuals given to them. "Will all be for nothing. What is the point of kicking them out if we have nothing else?" The mare sighs and nods. "What of the child? Their infant nearly destroyed our home and despite this they allow it to remain with in our borders. If not for that crimson maned stallion the Empire would be trapped under ice and snow..." Sir Amethyst gives her a hard look. "I will deal with the child when the time comes." "Surely you're not saying what I think you're saying! Dangerous or not it's still an infant!" She shakes her head backing away. "I will do what ever it takes to take back our land. I will try to avoid hurting her." He pulls out a ring from his thick leather fur lined jacket. "I was given a number of these Valdium rings. I know little of how a simple element could potentially render even the stronger spell casters helpless but it does. Those strange mutts have found that by creating alloys using this metal they can block certain kinds of magic. This one is made of an alloy of Nickle and Valdium.. Useful for rendering Unicorns helpless... I just pray to the gods that the old folk tales of Alicorns having unicorn magic ring true." He sighs. "If not, I can't allow the child to escape with her parents; her powers are already far beyond the pink Alicorn's... She is a threat to our very existence, but they refuse to reign in her power. Such powerful magic can not be allowed to be free. For if it does, when she grows up what will stop her from coming to take back her mothers ill gotten throne?" He gets up and leaves to help with training the recruits. "In the end I will do what has to be done, so no other stallion have to have the burden." Equestria Canterlot Castle Lunar Guards Barracks Lunch Hall 3:00pm Luna walked through the halls of the old Lunar Barracks that were now completely empty. Despite her sister's protests she had decided to disband the Lunar Guard; she knew the last remaining Thestrals only stayed out of loyalty but as keeper of dreams she knew what they wanted in their hearts. She released them of their service, giving each of them a considerable sum of bits so they could reach Zebrica safely, and bid them farewell. She kept a neutral face during all of it but now? She sat in the lunc..... No Mead Hall..... Who cared what her sister thought. "A toast." Luna lifts a glass of distilled Moonshine in the air with her magic while looking around the hall in a drunken haze. "Long live the Lunar Guard and to all the ponies who made this possible!" She laughs dryly to herself before pouring the glass' contents into her mouth. As she entertained herself, slowly drinking from her hidden stash of Moonshine a number of nobles had worked there way into the empty barracks. "Now that those pesky half breeds are gone we can finally use this place for something useful. After we disinfect everything, of course; you never know what sorts of diseases those freaks carry! Maybe convert it into a ballroom? With all the commoners Celestia insists on inviting its getting so crowded, never mind how none of them know their place. I can see it now; this will be our private ballroom. If Celestia wants to mingle with commoners then let her, but we shan't have to suffer." They continue to walk down the old barracks. "Look at this; one of those little freaks left behind a picture of its family." One of the snotty nobles chuckled as he levitated a discarded charcoal sketch of a family. "I suppose one of the few good things to come out of trading with those filthy zebra and mutts is that we finally got rid of those half-breeds. Now, if only we could get Celestia to let us put high tariffs on foreign goods like we used to; our houses will be in the clear again!" He laughs while the rest follow suit as he rips up the old picture letting the pieces fall to the floor. "Now we just have to figure out how to get rid of the Princess" the mare stutters before giggling. "That out of touch windbag still doesn't get it! You think that after seeing her empty night court and her pathetic royal budget she would get the message we don't want her around! She's always 'bla bla bla introduction of public census, bla bla bla public forum, bla bla bla relaxation of taxation of the mud ponies'." They all share a laugh. As they continue to make their way through the old Lunar barracks none of them noticed the eyes of the younger princess watching them, hidden in the rafters above them. She took a long sip from a bottle of antique Crystal wine before downing it all and sneaking out through one of the skylights. Equestria Canterlot Starswirl Station 5:00pm Hard Law was currently boarding the train heading for Ponyville. He stopped for a few moments to look at the unicorn stallions resting in the control car, likely preparing their enchantments. Any lesser stallion would feel pity for them, since Canterlot was currently negotiating a deal for Zebrica to sell one of their countless steam locomotives. It would likely put the train enchanters out of business, but that wasn't his problem. No, his job was to deal with the seemingly impossible amount of bootleg booze poring out of Ponyville, since it seemed like the local guard was unwilling to try and fight them. He boards the wooden car and rests on one of the empty seats, as the car start to lazily pull forward. "Hard Law, right?" The brown coated grey maned unicorn looks behind him to see a Grey colored mare wearing a veiled black hat and a thick black wool jacket. "What's it to you?" He asks, snorting; most ponies just ignored him. "Oh, nothing. I know your work very well. I'm just going to give you a warning." The mare says, smiling ever so lightly. "A warning? For what? I'm just on holiday." He says. "That's cute... no, I know Celestia herself is sending you to Ponyville to clean up all the corruption. I'm just here to say... go home." She says first smiling and giggling, before speaking evenly, not as threat but almost like she was asking him. "I guess my gig is up. Am I to believe that you're somehow connected to all the corruption? I could always take you in I suppose." He says, only for the mare to laugh. "You could try. I won't stop you but the thing about Ponyville? There's a new status quo now, the old system of corruption in the ranks of the old Cloudsdale Weather Bureau and unicorn bureaucracy has been over thrown there. You want to know why the local garrison hasn't done anything to stop the crime? It's simple; they stay out of the way, Ponyville remains peaceful, but if they start trying to make a few arrests? The sleepy town becomes a war zone. It's that simple. The old rules no longer apply." She says as he looks at him, her bright yellow eyes almost showing through her veil. "So you're saying the crown and guard should just sit idly by while ponies break the law?" He leans back to get a better look at the mare. "Oh no... continue to uphold the law, but bootlegging, spice, and illegal gun running? Just walk away. By letting them do as they wish the foals are safe and the town is thriving thanks to them. You think the ponies their will be on your side? No, they see those criminals you have been sent to arrest as heroes. If you try to change things well... you may just force their hoof and find out what they really think about Canterlot and the crown. Is it any different they what you did before?" She slowly gets up from her seat. "I'm going to have to ask you to sit back down till we reach Ponyville miss; I have questions, and I feel like you may just have the answers. You seem confused. The weather bureau and unicorns were in no violation of the law." He says standing up. "Is that right? So some crimes are protected while those who upset the system must be punished?" She says standing there for a few moments. "My roommate was right; Canterlot ponies don't know how to thank somepony for good advice." She drops something down of the floor of the car only for it to explode filling the car with smoke. "Stop in the name of Celestia!" He says as he tries to keep his stinging eyes open, only for the smoke to clear thanks to a few of the passengers opening windows. He looked around frantically, but the strange mare was gone. Equestria Ponyville Old Carrot Homestead 11:00pm The old Carrot homestead had seen better days, with the house still having a few scorch marks from what came to be known as the "Tragedy of the Harvests", but the old property had served her well. Almost nopony ever came around thanks to the "accident" so it was a great place to store contraband until they could unload it. The fields remained barren with countless weeds and thorn bushes ravaging the soil. The creek, however, seemed to be as pure and clean as it was when Carrot was just a filly. If one were to look closely they would see a number of old ditches splintering off the creek into where the fields once were. "Hurry up with those crates. I can't have them in the open for the whole town to see!" Carrot said annoyed as her stallions unloaded the illegal guns and weapons into her hidden root cellar for safe keeping until she could figure out how to distribute them. "Boss Carrot!" A small half grown cult runs up to her. "Pipsqueak, what did I say about coming out here at night!" She sighs, looking down at the small colt. "I'm sorry miss Carrot....." The small colt looked down. "But this couldn't wait!" He says looking up at her with determination. Carrot just sighs. "Well come down to the cellar Pipsqueak. I have some hot chocolate brewing and I think I have some canned peaches around somewhere. Let's get you warmed up and fed before you tell me anything." She says smiling as she leads him down to the root cellar where a steaming kettle rests on a small stove. "You don't have to call me Boss Carrot, you know Pip. I'm just Aunty Top to you" she smiles pouring some hot water into a cup and then some instant hot chocolate. "Where's that old thing of peaches..." She starts looking through the old shelves at the labeled jars. "Ah!" She grabs a jar and rests it on a dusty table, popping off the lid as Pip sits down on an old creaky chair, He grabs his cup and starts to drink. "Now have some food and drink then you can tell me." She waits a bit letting the small spotted colt warm up with hot chocolate and peaches. "Now what were you gonna tell me?" "It's from Mr. Rich. He says one of his contacts told him that some stallion is coming down from Canterlot! I think his name was... Hard Law!" He says, looking up at her with a small chocolate mustache on his face. Carrots eye twitches for a second before she takes a deep breath. "Thank you Pip; you did a very good thing coming out her to tell me." She smiles again. "Now do you still have that little peashooter I got you?" She smiles trotting away to look through some of the crates stacked up around them in the dusty cellar. "Yep! I pratice with it every day like you told me!" He smiles as she comes back with a few boxes of .22 cal rounds. "Here's about three hundred rounds for my little messenger!" She ruffles his mane and smiles. "Now remember what I always tell you; don't load it unless you plan to shoot it. Caramel! You're about to head home anyway, take Pip home while your at it! It's not safe at night." She says to the stallion who nods his head, leading the young colt out of the cellar. Making sure Pip was out of hearing distance she snorted in frustration."Gizmo! Handle the cataloging while I'm gone!" She yells at the lankly dirty white and brown maimed stallion as she trotted up the stairs. Zebrica New Timbuktu New Prosost Prison The Pit 12:01pm The first thing Rainbow felt when she woke up in the darkness was a throbbing pain in the back of her head. She slowly sat up from the stone floor and looked around, seeing little in the darkness. "Welcome back to the land of the living pony..." Her eyes widen, hearing the familiar voice as a chill goes down her neck. "You're not bad, but you fight like an Equestrian, that's for sure." She looks around futilely in the darkness, only for a lamp to be lit and rested on a stone shelf. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness before she manages to get a look around the cell. It was fairly Spartan compared to what she was used to back home, with a stone bed, a stone shelf, and a barred wooden door that was held shut with a large stone on the ground but no sign of the gryphon. "W-where are you?" She stutters out. "Up here..." He says as she slowly raises her head to see the gryphon looking down at her with a blank face as he rested on an iron bar the ran across the ceiling. "Sorry for ruffling you up a bit but that's how it goes; think of it like hazing back in Cloudsdale. Only here you're my prison wife now." "What?! I'm noponys wife!" She yells as she stumbles over to the door only for the gryphon to land in front of her. "Hey hey you can't open the door now! The bats are flying around if you open it we both die! Besides its either me or the fruitcake zebra who believes in female mutalation or as he calls it..... female circumcision." He does air quotes saying it. "Besides, you're going to have a cell mate; no matter where you go they're all occupied unless you want to see what it's like to be eaten alive by thousands of vampire bats." He says while the sounds of bats flying and theirchittering became louder. Rainbow, remembering what had happened when the warden throw out a hunk of bloody meat, shudders. "S-so what do you want?" She asks trying to get into a fighting pose, backing away as her tail instinctively is held between her legs. "What do I want?" He raises one of his talons to his face and seems to think. "I want many things; money, power, drugs... I will admit I'm a greedy creature but you can't offer me what I really want... No I think I will keep you around, after all you don't live long down here without friends." He smiles. "Friends? That sounds like something Twilight would say..." She sighs sitting down. "Welcome to the Pit, pony. it's not so bad when you get used to it." He says yawning climbing onto his makeshift stone bed throwing her some rough spun blankets. "They're basically potato sacks but they keep the chill at bay... mostly. Get some sleep. Tomorrow, I'm showing how you survive down here..."