The Royal Gamer

by Test4Echo

Chapter 10: Boss Incoming

"What?!" Luna and Resonance both blurted at the guards statement.

Shaking her head in amazement, Luna snapped, "Thou art insane! I came here of my own free will."

"Yeah, in case you didn't notice," Resonance quipped testily, "she's kinda moving about freely."

"Why dost thou think that he marenapped me?" Luna demanded, glaring at the one guard, who backpedaled away from her.

"Y-your majesty," the guard said between nervous gulps, "a few of the servants reported this stallion sneaking past the guard patrols, and leaving soon afterward with you struggling to escape."

"And," the other spoke up, "one of the chefs came to the guardhouse and reported he was forced to slip the poison into your breakfast."

"Some of us checked your quarters and the castle, but we couldn't find you, so we were dispatched to follow on this lead," the first one said, warily backing away from his princess.

Luna's mouth hung agape. Resolutely, she continued to glare at the guards, bringing as much weight as possible into her next words. "THOU COME AND ACCUSE OUR FRIEND OF MARENAPPING, WITH THE WORDS OF A FEW SERVANTS? DOTH NOT OUR WORD MEAN ANYTHING?" she boomed, shaking the building and knocking over the two guards.

Rising slowly to their hooves, the guards glanced uneasily at each other, one of them cautiously suggesting, "Your majesty, you are still weak from your attack, perhaps you imagined what happened?"

"WE ARE IN FULL COMMAND OF OUR MIND! DO NOT TAKE US FOR A FOOL!" she replied, knocking the guards off their hooves again.

During this time, the two police officers cuffed Resonance and sat him down on the couch. When Luna had finished berating the two guards, and by extension, the officers, Resonance smugly stated, "As much as you have 'witnesses', I have some too, plus, where's your evidence to me having Princess Luna poisoned?"

"You mean like this?" one of the officers replied as he found a small glass container in one of the kitchen drawers, marked clearly with a skull on it. "It looks like it matches the container reported missing from a chemist's lab a few days ago."

Resonance paled. Stuttering, he asked, "W-w-what is t-that?"

"Looks like evidence enough for me," stated one of the guards. "You may not get a marenapping charge, but treason will stick."

Luna stared at Resonance, shocked, pleading with her eyes that he didn't do it. Meeting her flabbergasted gaze, he whimpered, "I've never seen that thing before! I would never try and upset the monarchy!"

While the officers read him his rights, Resonance put his face to his cuffed hooves, and began sobbing. Luna's mind was a blur. The evidence just found, plus the supposed witnesses, presented what was before her as the truth.

Shaking her head, she noticed that the guards had left the room. After a second of checking that nopony was watching, she snatched Resonance's smartphone from where he left it on the counter.

Looking back at Resonance, Luna watched as the officers led him away, him still pleading his innocence. When the officers left, the two guards entered again, bidding her to follow them to a chariot waiting for her. "I won't believe it," she thought in determination. "I'll find a way to make sure Resonance is freed. This smells of Blueblood, but how will I prove it?"

***

Luna felt sickened, and not just from any lingering effects from the poison. Currently, she was sitting beside her sister, listening to what little of a defense that Resonance could muster: not much given the short time everypony had to prepare.

After a short trial, he was convicted with what evidence and witnesses there were, of treason. At the proclamation, Luna gritted her teeth, and stormed out of the court, Celestia only shaking her head at her sister's anger.

Later that night, Luna visited the dungeons, ignoring the guards' insistence to not enter. Marching down the hall, she finally reached Resonance's cell, the tan unicorn forlornly lying on the meager cot within.

At the sight of Luna, he slowly rose from his position, grumbling, "What are you doing here?"

"We are here to let you know that we-- I will get you out." Luna replied, sitting down outside of the cell.

"You're the reason I'm in here!" Resonance snapped, getting up from his cot and jabbing his hoof in her direction. "If I never sent you that friend request, I'd never be locked up, waiting for my execution!"

"I-I'm sorry. I should not have come to thy home." she mumbled, staring down at the cobbled floor.

"You're damn right about that," he retorted, swiveling to stare at the broken mirror hanging next to the cot. Sighing, he turned back to face Luna, "But," he began, "you're probably one of few ponies I could honestly say was kind to me and was my friend." He slowly trotted up to the cell bars, sitting down, and looking back at her. "I guess, you could say it was worth it." he answered, smirking sadly.

"But that container they found, why didst thou have it?" she inquired, looking back up at him.

Resonance slammed one of his hooves into the ground. "That's it. I never saw it before in my life. If it weren't for that showing up, I'd be scot-free." Looking away, he continued, his voice quivering slightly, "But why would somepony want to frame me? I'm not special."

Pondering for a moment, Luna replied, "Not all of the nobles were happy with my return, perhaps one or more decided to make my life a bit more miserable."

"Who would want to do that?" he countered, moving back to his cot. "Who would be bold enough to do that?"

"I believe I know, but it would need more than my word." Luna answered, rising back to her hooves.

Leaning his head on the wall behind his cot, he chuckled, "You're still thinking it's Blueblood?"

"We will free you, Resonance. Keep thy hope." Luna stated, dashing back towards the exit to the dungeon.

***

"Your majesty!" Luna heard Nightshine call as she galloped down the hallway towards Celestia's room. Turning around, Luna slowed her pace and stopped face to face with her servant. "What is it?" Luna huffed, annoyed at the delay.

"I just wanted to say: I'm sorry." Nightshine said, looking down to the carpeted floor. "You never let me have the chance these past few days."

Sighing, Luna asked, "What art thou apologizing for?"

"For what happened. It must've hurt to see somepony you thought was a friend turn out to be the culprit of the attack." Nightshine replied.

Luna didn't say anything. She glared back at Nightshine, who turned to leave and go back to her duties. Finally, Luna said, "Wait."

Turning back to look at her mistress, Nightshine asked, "Yes, your majesty?"

"We need somepony to talk to," Luna replied, beginning to trot down the hallway again. "We have a few questions to ask of thee."

"Like what?" Nightshine gulped, striking pace with Luna.

"Do you know which servant claimed that I was taken by Resonance?" Luna inquired, looking down to her servant.

"It was Silver Platter; Prince Blueblood's head servant." Nightshine answered, raising an eyebrow at Luna's question.

"And the others who agreed to his statement?" Luna asked, turning down the hall and coming to a stop outside of her sister's chambers.

"Let's see. I think it was Swifthoof, the prince's personal messenger; Feather Duster, the prince's head cleaning maidservant; Balancer, the prince's personal..." She trailed off, staring incredulously at Luna. "You're not implying that Prince Blueblood had something to do with this?!" she demanded in shock.

Luna didn't affirm the question, instead asking, "And the cook who claimed he was forced to poison me?"

"The chef who gave me the meal was a substitute. His story checked out: the normal chef was sick that day." Nightshine replied, still looking unsure at Luna's accusations.

"He could have bribed that chef," Luna mused quickly. "That is all we needed to hear. Thou art dismissed." she commanded, nodding her head and waving her hoof for Nightshine to leave.

Unwillingly at first, Nightshine cantered back down the hallway, looking over her shoulder in concern before turning the corner. Luna smirked. What Nightsine said confirmed her suspicions of Blueblood, now only to convince her sister and the courts.

Knocking on the elaborate doors of Celestia's royal chambers, she waited for her sister's response.

"Come in." she heard Celestia say from inside.

Luna pushed open the doors and stepped into the ornate room. Somewhat unlike her own suite, which was more simplistic, Celestia's chambers were wide and spacious. Along the marble walls stood a few statues, scenic paintings of valleys and mountains hanging over them. At the end of the large room was Celestia's bed, the Sun Princess was wearing a regal bathrobe and quietly reading a book.

Taking a sip of from her teacup that was on her nightstand, Celestia looked up and put down her book, smiling to hide her surprise. "Luna," she began. "What are you still doing up?"

"How could I sleep when my friend is in the Royal Dungeons?" Luna replied with a slightly berating tone.

Celestia sighed, rubbing one of her temples with her hoof. "Please do not start this again, Luna."

"He is innocent; I know it to be true!" Luna cried, stamping her fore-hooves on the floor.

"There was clear evidence that that isn't the case," Celestia responded, trying to hold her temper. "My sister, I know that you are trying to catch up with the times, and I tried to be patient, but I can't continue. The evidence is there, you yourself admitted that he acted guilty when they found it."

"The actions to not make sense, Tia!" Luna protested, glaring at her sister. "There were sheets of paper--"

"They're called posters," Celestia interrupted.

"Yes, posters," Luna said, rolling her eyes at the correction. "He had posters of night events, he was genuinely friendly; I could tell if he was trustworthy or not. Would somepony suddenly change how they acted on a whim?"

Shaking her head, Celestia sympathetically looked back at Luna. "I would like to believe him and the ponies that came to be his witnesses, but,"--she glanced away, then looked back, contemplation on her face-- "the nobles were demanding somepony to blame. They are not happy, now that everypony knows that you are spending the majority of your day playing video games, neglecting your duties. They were afraid that news would get out about your poisoning, and there would be panic from the citizens."

"And that gives you and they the right to condemn an innocent pony?!" Luna demanded, gesturing her hoof in outrage.

"I already said: I would like to believe your friend, I really would; but unless the real perpetrator confesses, I can't repeal the action. A story has already gone to all the news channels: I can't do anything." Celestia bowed her head, mumbling, "I'm sorry, Lulu. But there is nothing to be done."

"What happened to my sister who could do anything she wished? The one who would always push me to do something?" Luna asked, turning her back to face Celestia.

"She's long gone, Luna," Celestia whispered in reply. "That happened once the citizens started demanding a right to have representatives via the now nobility. They hold most of the power; we just sit there to approve things and control the day cycles now."

Turning back around, Luna said, "What could you do if I found the pony responsible for this?"

"Luna, there are no clues to who did," Celestia stated, looking evenly back at her sister. She sighed. "But, I suppose it would let your friend go free."

"We suspect it to be our nephew, Blueblood." Luna said.

Celestia did a small start, raising an eyebrow in question. "Blueblood?" she asked flatly. "You think he would do something like this? I really don't think--"

"We-- I believe his return and Ponymus' appearance are too coincidental." Luna replied, nodding her head to affirm her thought.

"Who?"

At the inquiry, Luna remembered she never told Celestia about her bane in gaming. Chuckling awkwardly, she brought Celestia up to speed on Ponymus and how when she "borrowed" his TV, that she saw a PlayStable of his own there.

"You know you could have blocked his profile, right?" Celestia deadpanned, still not convinced of Blueblood's guilt.

"I must defeat him: I feel I must." Luna stated, before telling Celestia about what Nightshine told her.

"Even if Blueblood is this Ponymus, and even if he was the one who planned the poisoning, how are you going to get him to confess?" Celestia pointed out.

"I have an idea..." Luna said, rubbing her hooves together and smiling wickedly. Without saying what, she left Celestia's chambers, and dashed for her own suite.

Watching Luna leave, Celestia sighed and smacked her hoof to her face before going back to her reading.

***

Luna stormed into her suite and fired up her PlayStable. Booting up Pony Ops, she signed in to her account. After signing in, she was notified that Twilight was online. Struck with an idea, she opened a voice chat with her sister's student.

"You think what?!" Twilight demanded after Luna told her about her suspicions. "I'm sorry, princess, but there isn't any hard evidence to support it."

"My servant, Nightshine, informed me that some of Blueblood's servants were the witnesses against Resonance." Luna persisted.

"But that's only her word, princess," Twilight interjected. "You need a confession, or something that would stick."

"That is why I need thy help," Luna said, grabbing Resonance's smartphone from beneath her wing. "I'm confident that Blueblood is Ponymus Prime, I only need him to confess."

"And I'd be a witness to it?" Twilight asked flatly.

Luna hummed an affirmation. After a moment of silence, Twilight said, "Let me see if Rainbow Dash would be in."

Over the open mic, Luna heard Twilight trot back up to the main floor of her library, and few moments later, she was notified that Dash was online.

"So... You think that Prince Jerkblood is Ponymus, huh?" Dash said after joining the chat.

"It is our belief that he is." Luna answered, throwing off her regalia and stretching in preparation for a long night.

"I think I know somepony who'd be up to whip his flank!" Dash stated emphatically. Dash's mic quieted for a moment, then in the background Luna heard her talking to somepony over the phone.

"...So yeah, Rares, that's the gist of it." A moment of silence followed as Dash listened to whoever was on the end of the conversation. "Princess Luna thinks it was Blueblood." she told the other pony.

Even over the distance of wherever Dash was in her room to her mic, Luna could clearly hear the other pony cry out in outrage. After a moment of yelling, the pony stopped, probably to take a breath.

"So... Are you in?" Dash asked. "Great!" Coming back to the mic, she said, "Rarity is all for teaching Blueblood some what for."

Soon, Luna was hit with a friend request from Rarity, who she now recognized as the pony who beat her in Nations 5, Rarity's gamer-tag that of The Gemfinder.

"You actually already had a PlayStable?" Dash laughed as Rarity came online. "What happened to it being a 'brutish game'?" she asked, imitating Rarity's voice.

"Just because I'm a lady, doesn't mean I can't enjoy a game like this during my leisure time." Rarity replied sourly. "Although I have you to thank for it." she grumbled into the chat.

"Girls," Twilight sighed, "now isn't the time. I suppose Rainbow Dash told you why you were asked to join?"

Whilst the three friends were chatting, Luna brought the party into a lobby to wait for a match to start. Why bother talking when you could play and talk? As the lobby filled up, Luna broke into the conversation. "Can I count on thy help?" she asked.

"Well, I suppose. If you're right about that little knave Blueblood, though." Rarity growled. She cackled, "I'd love to teach that obnoxious upstart a lesson."

After that odd statement, the other three ponies only sat in silence. Dash finally broke the silence, chuckling uncomfortably. "Okay," she said. "Maybe you have a bit too much of a grudge against him?"

"Ladies never carry grudges, darling. But his insult to gentlestallions and chivalry must not go unpunished!" Rarity replied vehemently.

Luna remembered what Celestia told her about the Grand Galloping Gala the one year she had to miss it. Apparently, Blueblood had not made a friend out of Rarity.

"Perhaps thou wouldst be best to stay away from our nephew." Luna suggested.

"I would be good for your team," Rarity countered. "Sniping is not for everypony, but it is something that I feel I am good at."

"Then show us your skills, Rares." Dash said as the map loaded up.

"Search and Destroy? Pray tell, what is this game mode?" Luna inquired, feeling a bit foolish for not knowing.

"You've never played--? Ugh. Just don't die." Dash grunted at Luna's question.

As the match started, with announcer quickly stating what Luna's side was to do, Rarity bolted towards one of the two targets. "I'll cover the left target," she said. Luna noticed that Rarity's pony was levitating a sniper rifle before it dove into cover.

"'Kay. We'll take the other one." Dash affirmed, sprinting her pony to the other site.

The three ponies set up for defense, the other ponies that were on the team inching through the map. After a minute, a few pops of gunfire were heard, and a couple of notifications of eliminations from both teams were seen.

"Hah!" Luna heard Rarity laugh through the voice-chat as a single shot resounded. Another popup on the bottom of the screen informed the ponies that she had scored a headshot on some unlucky victim.

Soon there were only two ponies left on the other team, with the four friends constituting the other. As the timer began to run out, Luna heard a faint clink, and her pony's vision onscreen was suddenly whitened. Before she could react, the two opponents rushed in and shot them down, one being taken in the incursion.

"It's just you, Rarity," Dash cried. "There's one left. He's at the other bombsite!"

Watching Rarity's point of view, Luna saw her jump up from where she was hiding, and sprint towards the other target. When she reached the site, the other pony was gone.

Out of the corner of Rarity's vision, Luna noticed movement. "Watch thyself!" she called. "Thy opponent is trying to flank thee."

Rarity heeded Luna's warning and dove for some cover, bullets splattering on the ground where her character stood seconds before. Spinning around to where she heard the bullets come, Rarity brought her rifle to bear, brought her scope to aim, and fired, barely a few seconds before the bomb would detonate.

With a fleshy splat, her shot hit, and the team won the round.

"Way to go, Rares!" Dash congratulated."That was too close!" Twilight and Luna echoed her congratulations before the next round began.

After a couple of losses, Luna's team pulled it around, and won a narrow victory. Leaving the lobby, Luna brought the three ponies with her. "Thou art very impressive with thy weapon," Luna stated. "Wilt thou accept to play with us against our foe?"

"Well here's your chance," Dash interrupted Luna's inquiry. "I checked his profile: he's on right now."

Gulping, Luna invited the hacker into the party. A moment later, Ponymus joined. Nervously coughing, Luna composed herself and said flatly into her mic, "Hello, Blueblood."

At first, Ponymus made no reply. Finally, a familiar sophisticated voice came through from Ponymus' slot in the party. "Hello. Auntie."

Comments

[tranhdxrbntd]

WHY MUST YOU CLIFF HANG?!?!?

[Test4Echo]

3622963 Because I can!

Rush and Pony on!
T4E

[The Dimension Traveler]

Phase 1 of Busting: Complete

Commence Phase 2...

[Clopian26]

"You think what?! " Twilight ejaculated after Luna told her about her suspicions. "I'm sorry, princess, but there isn't any hard evidence to support it."

Well, that’s a hilarious mistake