Upheaval: Breaking Point

by Visiden Visidane

Laws and Punishments

Upheaval: Breaking Point

Chapter 28: Laws and Punishments

As any settlement of the Barrier Lands would be, Bastion City was honored to receive Prince Terrato. Especially since his timely arrival drove back the menacing presence of the King of Wolvengard. At the same time, they were terrified of the implications. The last time Terrato and Fenrir fought still lived in infamy throughout the north. Ponies of the Barrier Lands often referred to "the Unyielding Gray Sentinel" when referring to their prince. "Harbinger of War", however, was just as accurate.

The Grand Meeting Hall was easily converted to Terrato's audience hall after the morning's incident. Inside, he and Luna held a meeting. Among the participants were Commander Dreadstep, Mayor Snowsteam, and Commander Galefeather of the Bastion City garrison. As if an afterthought, Recruit Twilight Sparkle was also among them.

"Our supplies will hold us well into spring, your highness," Snowsteam said. "Even with the additional ponies from Fangbreaker."

"That may be because we are lacking in defenders," Galefeather added. "Even with the drafts, we are sorely pressed to deal with a wolven army this size."

"I had expected that the city closest to Wolvengard to have more reserves," Terrato said.

Galefeather all but pressed his forehead against the floor. "Forgive me, your highness. Yearly recruitment has been on a decline for the past few years."

"Convenient timing," Terrato muttered. "I'll leave the city's maintenance to the two of you. Keep those supplies guarded, and the city safe. I don't want to hear about some 'accidental' fires or contamination. "

"Yes, your highness."

Terrato waved a hoof to dismiss the two. With them gone, he turned his attention to Dreadstep. "And there I was just days ago telling you how I don't need to be constantly breathing down your neck," he said. "Sorry about that, Dreadstep, that was about as idiotic as asking 'what could possibly go wrong?'."

Dreadstep knelt, and bowed his head. "I accept full responsibility for Fangbreaker's loss, your highness. I am ready to pay with my life."

"And what could I possibly do with your dead body?" Terrato asked. "You wouldn't even make good catapult ammunition." He snorted when Dreadstep didn't reply. "Enough theatrics. I'm not going to kill you, Dreadstep. Now, what's this I hear about saboteurs?"

"Special Operations has already started cracking down," Dreadstep said. "We've killed several of their cells and captured some of them."

"What have you learned?" Terrato asked.

"The traitors still have more cells within the city. From what we've gathered, this is another Black Rose rebellion."

Terrato still held the strand of hair in his hoof. He put it close to his nose, and breathed in. He could smell perfume, a light scent of wildflowers growing on the peaks of the Western Barrier Land's verdant mountains. It was his favorite scent. Of course, she knew that. "Not just another Black Rose rebellion," he said. "We're dealing with Black Rose herself."

Dreadstep raised his head out of turn. Terrato didn't mind given the surprise. "Black Rose? As in the same Black Rose you killed centuries ago?"

"Yes, that same Black Rose," Terrato replied. "It's not exactly a popular name."

"I beg your pardon, your highness, but isn't she dead?"

"She was," Terrato said. "But the signs are here, and I know her work. Keep your eyes open, Dreadstep. Ensure the loyalty of every pony investigating these traitors. I want them rooted out, and hung before they get out of control. Treat this matter as urgently as you would those dogs outside our gates."

"I will, your highness," Dreadstep said. Terrato smiled. There was still some fight left in this old earth pony. He had little room for failure, but he had followed Dreadstep's career through victories and defeats, and he knew that the commander would find a way to earn redemption from this loss. Even if it meant wading through the wolven as a final expiation.

"Big brother, who is this Black Rose?" Luna asked.

From her spot, Twilight's ears perked at the name. Terrato snorted, and the smile was gone. Ever-curious Twilight Sparkle now wished to delve into Black Rose's story. He wouldn't have allowed her in here if he didn't have some business with her. He let out a sigh. "To put it simply, Black Rose was my Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight Sparkle raised her gaze. She looked in disbelief at Terrato, likely wondering if he was joking. Even Dreadstep leaned forward to hear well. Terrato decided to treat their eagerness as being honored to hear the prince's own account of an important event, not because they were annoying busybodies.

"What do you mean, big brother?" Luna asked.

Terrato was silent for a while, surveying every pony in the room. They couldn't quite meet his gaze as he did so. He had never spoken to anypony about Black Rose for the hundreds of years that passed since she died. Nopony dared to ask, and he was fine with that. Now that there was no more avoiding it, he had to address this.

With one more deep breath, Terrato finally spoke. "A long time ago, I discovered a unicorn mare with a ridiculous amount of potential. I was impressed, and she became my protégé. Does that story sound familiar, Twilight Sparkle?"

Twilight nodded.

"Potential wasn't good enough a word. Everything that she did, she did perfectly: every battle was a victory, every campaign was a success. She had the ursans on the retreat, the wolven too scared to attack, and the ophidites slithering into hiding. I was happy to delegate authority to her. At her prime, she ruled almost all of the Barrier Lands in my name."

Luna pressed her lips tightly against each other for a while. She dragged a silver-shoed hoof against the floor briefly before speaking. "That sounds too good to be true," she said.

"And it was," Terrato said with a sigh. "Black Rose eventually decided that she didn't like Celestia's division. She expressed her disagreement, and I punished her. Just like Twilight Sparkle, am I correct?"

Twilight nodded again, the need to know more all over her face. He didn't want to say more. To go into details would be painful. Even hearing Black Rose's name stirred up an old ache inside him.

"If things were that simple, we wouldn't be dealing with her now," Luna said. She shared the same look as Twilight Sparkle.

"Things got...complicated," Terrato said. He dropped the casual tone. Telling this was hard enough without pretending that it was nothing. "I allowed Black Rose to get too close. She gained knowledge that she shouldn't have. I had to put a stop to it. There was only one way to put an end to the matter."

"You killed her," Luna said. "But she survived that somehow."

"And now she's back," Terrato said. "If she plans to push through with her old plans, then her objective will be Celestia."

"What did she want with the princess?" Twilight asked.

Terrato shot her a stern look. It was becoming more and more obvious that Celestia spoiled this mare. She had no sense of when to speak up, and when to sit down and shut her mouth. "Black Rose wants Equestria not just united, but united under her. To accomplish that, she planned to slay Celestia, and absorb the power of sunlight."

"That's impossible!" Luna said. "No mortal pony can hope to take on big sister! Just even thinking it--" She stomped a front hoof hard enough to leave cracks.

Twilight quivered with suppressed anger as well. For once, Terrato approved. Despite being banished, Twilight Sparkle still cared deeply for her mentor and likely wished for the impending demise of any pony who dared to try to kill Celestia.

"What will you do now?" Luna asked. "You can't allow this Black Rose to even try!"

"Don't tell me things I already know!" Terrato said. "I will deal with Black Rose just as I have dealt with her in the past. Before that, I'm going to settle two matters right now."

Terrato's horn glowed with gray light. All Twilight managed was a short gasp before she was helplessly floating in the air.

"Big brother, what are you doing?" Luna asked. She stepped forward to intervene, but a look from him brought her up short.

"What's the matter?" Terrato asked Twilight. "Celestia's gifted protégé should easily break my magic, right? You certainly had no problems with my memory lock!" Twilight flailed helplessly in the air for half a minute before he dumped her on the ground. "Apparently, my analysis isn't entirely true. You can't break my magic, Twilight Sparkle. At least, not without help. You had a trigger that let you break my memory lock. What was it, and who gave it to you?"

Twilight froze, then looked around. She stank of desperation. Terrato had half a mind to start beating her against the floor to set her straight. "I…I can't tell you, your highness," she said.

"Why not? " Terrato asked. "You have a working mouth, don't you? So much for ponies being creatures of honesty!"

"I was the one who told her, big brother!" Luna said.

"And how did you know what Twilight Sparkle had been up to? Celestia wouldn't have gone around blabbing about it! Obviously, it was because she showed you something she found!" Terrato turned towards Dreadstep. "Bring me the ponies who came in contact with Twilight Sparkle the first time she came here!" he ordered. "The ones still alive that is."

Commander Dreadstep bowed before hurriedly leaving. From her spot, Twilight quivered, and closed her eyes. It was getting harder by the second for Terrato to keep from hurting this foal. Dreadstep eventually returned with two stallions: a red pegasus, and a black-barded earth pony. The two stepped forward, and knelt. "Let me get to the point," he told them. "Which one of you gave Twilight Sparkle the trigger to break my memory lock?"

The pegasus looked confused. The earth pony, on the other hoof, had no such problems. "It was me, your highness," he replied. "I gave her my legionnaire emblem."

The upper corners of Terrato's lips curved slightly. "Lies from the chosen, honesty from a Barrier Lands pony. How about that? Take off the champron, and give me your name and rank, legionnaire."

The champron fell to the floor with a clang. The bright red eyes of a wolven looked up at Terrato; respectful, but unafraid. The stallion had the coat of a wolven too: gray, and rougher than a pony's. His curly, black mane looked a little coltish, but the somber, and worn look on his face more than made up for it. "Captain Vanguard Clash of the Northern Equestrian Legion, Special Operations, Third Squad." Even the voice had a wolfish growl to it.

Terrato's eyes narrowed. "I recognize you. You're Sharpfangs's colt. I spared your grandfather's life, and he repaid me with rape and murder. Now, you've added betrayal to that sordid mix. A pity. I would have thought that the rank, and the nightsteel full plate meant that you were a good soldier."

Twilight stood up, and stepped forward. "Your highness--"

"Quiet!" Terrato boomed. The floor and the walls to reverberated. "You may be Celestia's favored student in the Heartland, Twilight Sparkle, but you're a bottom-rung legionnaire here! Now, sit still, and let me lay down my laws!"

Twilight fell on her tail, stunned and shaking. The entire hall fell silent at Terrato's thunderous outburst. "Tell me, Vanguard Clash," he said, "how is spreading information about the Barrier Lands to the Heartland classified as a crime and what is the appropriate punishment?"

"Spreading information about the Barrier Lands to the Heartland is considered treason, your highness," Vanguard replied. "Punishable by hanging."

"Smart boy," Terrato remarked. He turned towards Dreadstep. "What are you waiting for? Hang him."

"Hanging?" the red pegasus exclaimed. He flew up, but Vanguard caught him, and forced him to a kneeling position. "Hanging? Then you'd better hang me too if the Captain's hanging!"

"Your highness," Dreadstep said. "Vanguard Clash is one of our most reliable legionnaires!"

"Couldn't rely on him to keep a secret, could you?" Terrato asked.

Dreadstep hesitated for a moment. He frowned, the lines on his face crinkling as he did so, before venturing to speak again. "Perhaps--"

"He made a clear confession, and the law is even clearer," Terrato snapped. "I didn't open this matter for debate, Dreadstep."

"Big brother, let us hear him out, at least!" Luna said.

"Fine," Terrato muttered. He turned towards Vanguard Clash, and raised his voice. Explain yourself, then. Why did you give her a trigger to break my spell?"

"I have no excuses, your highness," Vanguard said. "I gave her the trigger, so she may remember everything that happened to her."

Terrato shrugged. "At least somepony is trying to make this easy."

"Your highness, please!" Twilight cried out. She stood in front of Vanguard, her forelegs outstretched in a futile attempt to defend him. "There's nopony more loyal to you than Vanguard! He doesn't deserve to die for what he did!"

"Did you do it to break my sister's barrier because you opposed the division?" Luna asked.

"No," Vanguard replied. "I did it for Twilight Sparkle's sake. That's all."

"This pony is loyal to you," Luna said. "The battle will be hard enough without us hobbling ourselves like this."

Terrato looked Vanguard over. Here was the one pony in the room that had any semblance of unflinching duty. He didn't not so much as blink from the scrutiny. Terrato was beginning to like how this developed. "I will accept that what you did was a horribly stupid mistake, Vanguard Clash," he said. "Temporary insanity. I can relate to that." He glanced at Luna. "I will consider that the damage did not spread beyond Twilight Sparkle and her friends, that you intended the damage not to spread, that my little sister has some interest in keeping you alive, and that we do need every loyal pony alive. In light of all these things, I am compelled to change your sentence from a traitor's death to a slap-on-the-fetlock public flogging."

A collective sigh of relief escaped Luna, Twilight, and Dreadstep.

"Sixty lashes will do."

The collective sigh caught in their throats like a poorly swallowed bit of grass.

"Your highness, that is still a death sentence," Dreadstep said. "A much more painful death sentence if I may add!"

Terrato shrugged. "True. Forty is the limit so we don't kill them." He looked slyly over to Twilight. "I will allow Twilight Sparkle to take as many as she wants and apply them to herself."

Terrato raised an eyebrow as his gaze swept his audience. There was no reason to punish Twilight Sparkle for her part in this whole mess. Celestia had already banished her. That should be punishment enough. But Twilight Sparkle also left Celestia in despair. He should take some measure of vengeance just for that. More importantly, Twilight Sparkle was currently showing something that he could admire. He was willing to bend the law to see just how far she would go to protect the things she cared about. "Is that satisfactory?" he asked.

"I will take half," Twilight replied, her face calm and resolved.

Finally, this annoying mare did something that didn't give Terrato the urge to smear her on his hooves. "There you go," he said. "Thirty each. A slap on the fetlock for treason. Now, get out there, and enforce my will!"

With one more bow, almost everypony left the meeting hall. Only Luna remained.

"Is there no mercy at all in you, big brother?" Luna asked.

"That was mercy," Terrato replied. "They're alive aren't they? You have to temper your mercy with some sort of justice, or you'll never get any laws respected. Now, it's time I settle the other matter. You've done plenty in my realm: you secured Twilight Sparkle and her friends, you've attempted to negotiate with Fenrir, and you blotted out the full moon to suppress the enemy. There can only be more fighting at this point, and I can't have you involved. It's time you went back to the Heartland."

"What?" Luna asked, her eyes wide. "No! I can still do much here! I can fight!"

Terrato shook his head. "If you so much as kill a single wolven, Celestia will never forgive me."

Luna brought both her front hooves down on the floor hard. "Why does she get to decide what I can and can't do?"

Terrato glared at his sister. "You are in my realm, Luna! Here, you will respect my decisions. If you want to help, blot out the full moon from the Heartland. I need you to stay by Celestia's side in case Black Rose tries anything."

"No!"

"Don't argue!" Terrato roared. He quickly checked himself when Luna flinched. "I need to be assured that Celestia has a sibling by her side. I can't do my duty while constantly having to worry about her!"

"Then go to her side!" Luna said pleadingly. "Or better yet, have her come here, and stay by yours!"

"You already know why I can't do that," Terrato said softly.

"You say that big sister won't forgive you if you let me fight, but the truth is that she's never forgiven you for going out to fight yourself. She's afraid of what you've become. Isn't that why you never visit her in the Heartland?"

Terrato didn't reply.

Luna's eyes widened further. "Is that why you let Black Rose get so close?" she asked softly.

"Not another word, Luna," Terrato growled. "Or I will show you what exactly I've become."

Luna walked out of the hall. Before she made it past the doors, however, she turned around one last time.

'How can we mend the rift between the Heartland and the Barrier Lands, if we can't mend the rift between you two?'

---

For Vanguard and Twilight, the walk from the Grand Meeting Hall to the main plaza was a humiliating and endless parade.

"Thirty lashes!" Vanguard said. "Thirty lashes for something you had no part in!"

Twilight frowned. "No part in? What was that 'for Twilight Sparkle's sake' you were talking about? The last time I checked, that's me!"

Vanguard shook his head. He had been stripped of his barding which Scarlet had taken for safekeeping. Around him, the accompanying guards made no reaction towards the bickering. A group of curious citizens followed the odd procession down the street. "At least, change it to twenty for you and forty for me," he said. "I've been under the whip before, while your back is as fresh as a newborn's."

"It's thirty for the both of us," Twilight insisted. She put on a brave front, but the thought of what was going to happen made her quail inside. Vanguard was right. She had never been whipped. She had never even thought that such a thing could happen. Now, she was going to take thirty lashes in a single day. Part of her wanted to back out, and just pray that Vanguard could take sixty lashes. Another wanted to take his offers. Between the two, a third one remained steadfast. 'Thirty,' she thought. 'Thirty is fair.'

By the time they got to main plaza, they were already being followed by a crowd. "Twenty five, thirty five," Vanguard said.

"Stop haggling like you're buying vegetables!" Twilight whispered harshly. "It's thirty-thirty, and that's final!" She searched the crowd for her friends, unsure if she wanted them there for support, or not so they didn't have to see.

They were led to a spot with several wooden posts, then prodded to take their positions. Both of them were given coiled bits of rope. Taking her cue from Vanguard, Twilight placed hers between her jaws, trying to ignore the thought of other ponies having done the same to the unwashed piece of rope. She reared up, hugged the pole, and swallowed when a pair of earth pony stallions stood behind her while holding coiled whips. Two more ponies came up, and bound their forelegs securely to the posts.

The time between her biting into the rope and the first lash stretched out to breathless eternity. Just as Twilight was starting to think that there was something wrong, the first lash struck between her shoulders.

She nearly dropped the rope. Searing, white-hot pain lanced through her back, and buckled her legs. Tears sprang from her eyes. She nearly fell to the ground, but she remembered it was only the first one. There were twenty-nine to go. She glanced over at Vanguard just as he took his first. He clamped hard on his rope, but his face didn't even change expression.

Twilight braced herself just in time for the second strike. 'Two,' she thought. A third one struck in rapid succession. Something trickle down her back. The fourth one struck low, where her cutie mark would be. Were the star symbols going to be forever marred by a scar? The fifth and sixth strikes burned the thought out her mind, along with anything else she could think of. By the tenth, or at least she thought it was the tenth, she was no longer sure if she was counting right, she cried out between her teeth. Her jaws were clenched so tightly that she feared that the bones would shatter. The pain sapped the strength from her forelegs, each strike stabbed into her hide, tore at her insides, and came out through the other side. There was a fire raging on her back, an unrelenting blaze that tore off shreds of her skin, and flung them away with smoking, hooked claws. Her forelegs hung slack, but the ropes held her securely. Her vision dimmed as she gazed at Vanguard weakly, her mind still making futile attempts to recall just how many she had received, and how many more were coming.

The lashing continued anyway.

Comments

[Etyco Filly]

Alright.... I didn't like him from the beginning, but now I'm really starting to hate that retard terrato...

[eucatastrophe]

2003795

It is justice, you start bending rules for 'favorite' subjects and suddenly your rule come closer to resembling suggestions. A Traitor with just motive is still a traitor. Celestia on the other hand, Celestia needs a nice common-sense smack upside the head. She is going to end up doing something that everypony will come to regret.

[iloveportalz0r]

>Ensure the loyalty of ever pony investigating these traitors
y u no y ;_;

[sorenxoras]

stead fast as winter. buck getting lashed, hurts more than a tree in apple bucking season. i took one lash and pissed my pants, a bit sad but i drank to much water that day. didn't lay on my back for two days.

[HideMePlease]

To quote Star Trek: "There can be no justice so long as laws are absolute. Even life itself is an exercise in exceptions."

[PaulAsaran]

Well, I'm conflicted. Part of me is in agreement with Terrato about the order of law, but the other part of me says he's too rigid. I'm willing to accept Twilight's part in this punishment and the fact that he didn't have Vanguard killed, though I question how valuable Twilight will be in battle with thirty gashes on her backside.

It strikes me that Celestia and Terrato are two ponies who have been at the same thing for 1,000 years and have no idea how to do anything differently. Their unwillingness to change is going to doom Equestria, and that they can't see it might not be all that surprising after all. Luna, in comparison, has a fresh mind in regards to Equestria and can thus see the cracks in both of them. I hope, when this story is all said and done, that her siblings will recognize Luna for her efforts to break them from their unflinching ways.

[DragonMaus]

5500239
If anything, Terrato's being shockingly lenient here.

[Aziraphael]

2992890
I know this is a really old comment, but I feel I have to comment here for the sake of clarity.

What Terrato did was not justice. It was law. They are not necessarily the same thing. Justice is giving someone what they deserve, and it necessarily devolves into a matter of opinion at that point, but in and of itself that fact cements my own argument.

Justice is flexible and easily altered by the situation at hand. Law is not; it is rigid and unbending, no matter the situation. If law was capable of being truly just in all situations, no one would ever complain about court proceedings.

We are the sum our parts, and to seal away part of Twilight's memory was tantamount to killing a part of her. I would make the argument that the one truly deserving of justice here is Terrato himself for taking that from Twilight, while Vanguard was delivering it by correcting his leader's crime.

This was Terrato's chance to prove that he was more than what Celestia feared him to be and he blew it. This was his chance to mend things with Luna and he blew it. This was his chance to cement his support with the ponies that willingly gave up everything to help him and his ponies and he blew it.

And all because he's so blinded by his misplaced faith in Celestia that he refuses to see the truth of his situation.

[Giltor]

First Celestia... Now Terrato... It's not even cruelty. It's rigidity. Both of you so much about the rules, but let me ask you: "Where these rules have led you both?" Hello, Terrato! It's not wolwen cursed and want to kill Celestia! It's pony. It's Legion, who kills himself. So maybe need to change something?
Luna - you are the only reasonable alicorn here. Twilight - you're the best pony. Keep it up!

[Follower of Chaos]

Terrato has a point that laws should be enforced and law breakers should be punished. I wouldn't dispute that but the problem here is that he's not enforcing HIS LAWS, he's enforcing CELESTIA'S LAWS, reinforcing the blind loyalty thing Luna was talking about earlier in the story. If a ruler is doing something wrong or the law itself is flawed (like Celestia's barrier and Terrato's defense of it) the people or ponies not only shouldn't agree with it, they can and should actively oppose it.

The division is wrong, even Terrato himself has acknowledged this yet here he's punishing LOYAL ponies for breaking a law he himself disagrees with. That's blatant hypocrisy and his assertion that this is mercy is straight up bullshit. This is nothing more than him being spiteful because Celestia got a little bit sad. He even admits that Twilight has been punished enough and if he had looked into recent events, namely Vanguard almost dying trying to DEFEND THE DIVISON, he'd have realised neither of these ponies deserved this punishment.

This wasn't about justice, this wasn't about law, it was about nothing other than spiteful selfish vengeance. He does bounce back from it later but this really is the absolute low point of Terrato's character. Still the best character in this story.

Damn I forgot how good and thought provoking this story was even though the Wolven aren't enough of a threat in my opinion since they pretty much need the ponies to fight amongst themselves to make any progress in this war at all. I also don't like that they seem to be inherently evil as a species, I'd like to see some more morally ambiguous Wolven or even outright good pure blood Wolven characters. They're just too cool an idea to be limited to being one-dimensional antagonists.

[Zenith Sparkle]

8648394
I think Regiskra is a sort of kind of morally ambiguous wolven. She did let Vanguard live, if only because she believed he was the “Breaker” from her vision. I don’t think they’re inherently evil though. I think they have a different way of life than ponies, and they’re at war. Remember that this war started because Fenrir wanted Luna. They’ve been forced to fight by their God-King, and even if they don’t dislike killing ponies, any wolven who dissents would probably be killed. The wolven aren’t totally lawless, their laws are just very different and much more ruthless than pony laws. “Evil” means something very different and very specific.