Spectre of the Past

by Juntao112

Chapter 3

Good afternoon, and welcome to Voice of Equestria, with your host Rainy Meadow. In today's programme, we will be discussing the finer points of classical symphonies with our guest Octavia Melody, first chair cellist at the Royal Canterlot Orchestra–

Fellow Equestrians, I come to you in the wake of recent events to issue a call to reason. Let no pony deny the perils of consorting with hostile creatures; the hard lessons learned by our ancestors during the Griffon Wars must not be forgotten! We have seen first hand the devastation wrought upon Canterlot on the day of Princess Cadance's fateful wedding, and again when the black swarm struck Ponyville, home of our beloved Princess Sparkle.

As a proud Equestrian, it pains me to question the leadership of our kind and gentle Princess Celestia, but I cannot sit idly by as this alien influence on Equestrian soil grows steadily stronger. If you feel as I feel, if you desire an Equestria run by Equestrians, for Equestrians, then do not hesitate to proclaim your support for the Patriotic Order of the Nation of Equestria and protest against the intrusion of changelings in our society!

— off the broadcast, then! What, we're back?

Listeners, I apologize for what you have just heard. Our radio tower has been hijacked by an unknown source; I wish to assure you that the message in this unauthorized broadcast does not in any way reflect the position of Voice of Equestria!

---

A well–furnished office in the deepest dungeon of the Castle of the Two Sisters became filled by a violent purple explosion. Princess Twilight Sparkle soon emerged from the smoke, in the center of a scorched stone floor. She stood in front of a solid mahogany desk littered with paperwork, behind which crouched a grey pegasus.

"Your Highness!" He cautiously stood at attention and saluted. "I didn't know you were coming to visit. Is everything alright?"

"Everything's great! Just great!" Several hairs on her mane spang out, and her left ear twitched. "Except for the fact that a group of radicals has undermined Celestia's authority by broadcasting an anti–changeling speech on public radio."

"Your Highness, you need to breathe in deep. Your mane is doing that thing where it–"

“It certainly won't lead to a series of events which spiral out of control and lead to a second civil war, with thousands dead on both sides!"

"I think you'll find, Your Highness, that the Lunar Rebellion came as the result of many conflicting social and political issues that were never fully resolved when the three pony tribes merged–"

"And that will cement my place as the worst princess in Equestrian history! What if Celestia is disappointed in me and revokes my crown? What if she can't risk letting me be a bad example for future generations and de–alicorns me? What if that's not enough and she erases me from the history books?

Thunderball grabbed a glass full of water and shoved it in Twilight's muzzle, forcing her to drink it slowly. "Your Highness, Princess Celestia hardly strikes me as the type to go George Orlov on you. And I hardly think a little subversion will threaten the stability of our country."
Twilight finished off the water, but clutched the glass nervously in her hooves. "I know, but what if this is a sign that I'm just not fit to be a princess?"

"Nonsense. You're smarter than you realize, Your Highness, and what you don't know, you'll soon learn. You have my fullest confidence, and my support no matter what happens, or who gets in your way." He gently led her to the sofa in one corner. "Please, straighten out your mane, preen your feathers, and then we'll come up with a course of action."

---

"Go Go Gambit Radio Tuner."

Ace Gambit laid his head down on the counter as the spell automatically sought out whatever station would best compliment his mood. It settled on the classical music station, and the opera ‘Death of Hanover’ came blaring over the airwaves. It was just the chaser he needed; the finest of depressing Germane opera.

The door of his shop rattled from somepony's hooves.

"We're not open!" Ace kept his head on the counter, not even bothering to look.

The door became silent, leaving Ace alone with his thoughts. Equestria was a peaceful land ruled by a benevolent sun–goddess, but some days, it did not feel that way. Sure, some ponies were uneasy about the changeling presence, but they had never gone so far as to hijack a radio station and stoop to demagoguery. There was a spate of fiery newspaper articles decrying the hostage situation, and questioning the wisdom of making peace with Chrysalis, but Princess Celestia had managed to allay those fears.

If he wanted to Ace could have walked about Ponyville in changeling form and suffered nothing worse than stares from part of the population — though part of that was no doubt due to Princess Twilight's presence. Even so, the big cities were still free from open conflict.

He supposed that, ultimately, ponies had been living a mostly peaceful existence under Celestia's rule, and many were too used to normalcy to easily handle a disruption in their daily lives. Rather like becoming used to fine food and comfortable accommodations; the longer one lived in the lap of luxury, the harder it became to tolerate anything less. One only needed to look at Prince Blueblood to see the debilitating effects of a lifetime of pampering.

The herd mentality, which kept each pony subtly in tune with the crowd around them, hardly helped matters. It kept society well–ordered, and allowed spontaneous song and dance routines to break out on important occasions. (How this extended to knowing the lyrics of random songs Ace was less clear on — perhaps low level telepathy like the changeling hive mind?)

However, when something was even a little bit off — say, the presence of a pony who was not really a pony — the herd would be put off ever so slightly, and this unease would needle their subconscious minds until trouble broke out. In the meantime, ponies would be on guard against danger, or, in the case of the Flower trio, find a comfortable spot to faint.

He shook his head. Ponies were such strange creatures.

Click.

The lock opened, followed by his door, and the hoofsteps of two ponies filled the shop. Ace looked up to see Stiletto looking at him with concern.

"Excuse me, Ace, but are you alright?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Ace grumbled. "Not like everypony hates me."

"Oh dear, this isn't about your lack of business, is it?" Stiletto ran her hoof through his messy purple hair. "Come now, just because the shop hasn't been doing so well doesn't mean they hate you! Why, I've been told that Princess Twilight herself has been trying to improve the literary appreciation in Ponyville for years without much success!"

Ace turned to face them, but still kept his head on the counter. "I appreciate Princess Twilight's efforts, but sometimes it feels like a never–ending struggle against a wave of ignorance."

"Nonsense." She took his hooves in her own and fairly dragged him over the counter. "Where's the stallion that organized the book club I've been looking forward to? You just need a break from all of this to recharge your batteries! I say we have a quick breakfast." Stiletto winked coyly. "I'll buy."

Ace's ears immediately perked up. "Sure thing! If anypony's up for a date, it's Ace Gambit, lover for hi– ok, that did not come out right."

Stiletto giggled and led him into the shop. The second story turned out to be her apartment; it was barely furnished, but there was a couch for Ace to sit on. Ace hummed as Stiletto busied herself in the kitchen and gently inhaled the scent of food wafting through the apartment.

Pony food was much more varied and tasty than the fungi, desert plants, insects and small animals changelings subsisted on, and Ace would have lived off of it if he could. Alas, unless he was going to make a large amount of changeling goo, he only needed physical sustenance once a week. Still, the taste and texture of pony food was enjoyable, and eating it in the right company produced a lot of love to feed on (Not that his interest in ponies was predatory — it just happened to be a tasty benefit).

Stiletto trotted into the living room with a look of satisfaction on her face. A small armada of plates and glasses floated behind her. "Tada! Prench toast with whipped cream, mixed berries, and orange juice!"

Ace's heart jumped. "My favorite! How did you know?"

"Because Prench toast makes everypony feel better!, of course," she giggled. "So, feeling better about things?"

"I do now that I have something sweet in front of me." Ace grabbed a bowl of whipped cream and spooned a generous portion onto his toast. "The food is also good."

Stiletto grinned and swatted him in the face with her tail. "I bet you say that to every mare who cooks you breakfast."

"Only the pretty ones." Ace drank in her affection — literally — and fixed her with his most charming look — the one he had practiced for months — before he went in for the kill. "So, want to do anything after I get off? Skeleton Key comes in the afternoon to relieve me, and I was thinking of picking plants in the Everfree."

There was a brief, almost imperceptible moment of hesitation before Stiletto answered. "Oh, no. I'm sorry, Ace, but I have to tend to the shop."

"No worries; there'll be plenty of opportunity for adventure later with Ace Gambit, alchemist for hire!" He struck a daring pose and played off the rejection the best he could, even as he mentally kicked himself for inviting her to a place most ponies considered unnatural.

"Sure, Ace." Stiletto brushed against him as she took his empty plate to the sink. "But for now, we've got jobs to get back to."