Yeah... I gotta sympathize with Twilight here. Finding out that you only narrowly avoided an incestuous relationship by dint of hot babysitter isn't something many people would want to think about. And now Twilight's finding out that Cadence quite obviously has no idea what's going on in her own kingdom and seems to rely almost entirely on advisers and word-of-mouth to figure out how things are going, and Equestria is taking advantage of that.

Really interested in seeing where this goes. Hope it doesn't go too over the top with Celestia-evilness. I like the gray.

...welp, I can safely say if Twilight doesn't go Nightmare from all this Celestia will be right next on the docket. Worse, after hearing what she did to Luna's children, and in general what happened to so many other ponies then and even ponies right now? ...not gunna lie, this is gunna blow up big time. And I'm not sure Celestia will even care, or if she does she'd even take it a a sign to change for the better. This all screams inevitable train wreck and we're just seeing the brakes come off as speed begins to build.

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Everyone is the hero of their own story. Celestia doesn't see herself as evil and she isn't doing anything blatantly evil as far as we can tell.

She is probably doing some Real Politik that Twilight can't see from just the paperwork.

I'm getting the feeling that the talk with Discord is gonna be really fun.

I really like how you write culture into your stories, keep it up!

I thought Canterlot gets many resources from other cities, because it seems Canterlot can not product many sources.

So.., I think Twilight should not treat the thing as a problem.

That does raise a good question. In the show, Canterlot is the height of economic status yet they don't produce anything. Food? Farmers all over Equestria including (but not limited to) Ponyville, Appleloosa, that pepper farm from the comics, and Dodge Junction. Manehattan is big in the arts such as cloths and theater. Pegasi literally control the weather and most industrial creations. Crystals themselves are found in the ground like potatoes, the Crystal Empire just has a much more pure supply. Even Everfree gives more with the plants that can produce medicine (courtesy of Zecora). So what does Canterlot do for the economy?

7344502 What about the gigantic crystal caves under it? They had mining equipment down there, even if it did seemed abandoned.

Also Canterlot has racetracks, theaters, art galleries, and has a large number of important ponies that produce art and music, Sapphire Shores, Photo Finish, Hoity Toity, along with Fancy Pants. It doesn't seem to have a large number of generalized exports but it does have plenty of culture along with rich institutions. It's also quite likely that many ponies inside Canterlot own land outside of it in other area's that they can use to produce and send back goods to canterlot, either by ownership of businesses or various other things.

They also seem to host alot of social events as well, the national Dessert Competition was held there, alongside the Equestria Rodeo competition, so it seems like they are the social hub which would make for plenty from tourism alongside how much the events would bring in to the main city itself.

7344583 Good answer, although I doubt the hidden crystal mine would make much difference. Not because it was abandoned, it's because crystals are very common in Equestria. We've seen Rarity dig up crystals in her back yard more than once in the series.

7344647 They come in varying costs, a tiny one that was paid to the CMC managed to buy a huge industrial fan.

There could be like in real life crystals that come in a variety of costs, common value, and overall use. I mean sure we see many crystals but how many of them are the exact same? Maybe some are valued for look and cost more, or certain ones are valued higher because of magical usage.

Like an example of Zelda, all the currency is gems, but a green rupee is certainly not worth as much (1) to a gold rupee (300). Sure you can dig up 100 gems, but would they all be the exact same crystal?

7344502 I think it is the same thing that makes Washington DC such a powerhouse. It is the political capital of Equestria. Even New York City doesn't do much exporting in the traditional sense but it is still a major economic center.

Ok, I was NOT expecting this... and by the gods, now I MUST read the next chapter!

there's a lot going on here, and i'm not entirely sure what's going on with twilight. it seems like she's putting up a shell to let her process information, but the depth that she looked into the crystal empire records seems to contradict the shell idea. chechov's nuke there seems to indicate that actions have been set in motion that will rewrite the history books, and severely weaken equestria's position across the board.

also shiny is a provert

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!

There lies the problem. Most people don't get it, but I know why the Elements of Harmony wont work with Celestia and Luna anymore.

And you know what the answer is? POLITICS!

The moral liberties, combined with the occasional bought of strategic ruthlessness & apathy needed to keep Equestria wealthy, prosperous, and in peaceful neutrality are acts of deceit and betrayal that The Elements of Harmony will not tolerate.

Celestia & Luna stopped being worthy of their use the moment they placed Tiaras on their heads. And the worst part is that had they remained Harmonious, and Pure of Heart Equestria would have suffered for it, because they would have been too naive to rule.

Equestria remains relatively happy and stable at the cost of the rest of the world. That is something that I have always suspected, and that is something that I will and do integrate into my universes.

Celestia did what she thought was best for her people/ponies despite it being cruel. Luna did what the people/ponies wanted despite overindulging them. In the end Celestia cared, but was too arrogant to see that she wasn't always right. And Luna was too egotistical and stubborn to care about what the cost of the Massive Orgies in the palace was, not to mention what the rest of the world would think of Equestria if they found out.

At the end that is the reason why I believe that you cannot have political power, and then remain a good person. The things you do for the good of all have a personal cost on your soul.... It eats away at you little by little....

In the end Twilight. If you want to be good. You have to bee an individual. Not a leader. But a person/pony that cares. That is all.

But do you ever thing she could... you know...

think

two stallions, one mares, and a griffoness.

mare

Good read! Keep it up!

Nice chapter. I'm liking this story so far.

seems like a great idea but it will take some effort

Hey Somber! I know you've been busy with Homelands, but is there a chance you have stuff on the back burner for this? It's one of my favorite looks at Celestia, and it's fascinating.

Much love! Thanks for sharing your tales with us!

Hello Somber-san. Ive read project horisions, and your first fic with Rarity, and soon will be starting in on homelands. I stumbled across this little jewel and noticed its been a while since you updated. Do you still have eventual plans to continue this one?

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The problem with continuing this one is that "A royal problem" pretty much was this story in a nutshell. It took the wind out of my sails, so to speak. I'd like to. Occasionally I add a paragraph or too, but the drive isn't there anymore.