10 - Surprise, Surprise
When you go to a diplomatic summit to try to get laws overturned, one of the things you don’t want to hear from the king is that they never made any laws like that, and that they never got any of the letters you sent to them concerning said laws. That makes things a bit tricky.
“None? None at all?” said Livingstone, her mouth agape. “I, I sent dozens of letters, yes. Are you…?” Her voice trailed off. Of course, she was already doing better than Twilight figured she would have; Twilight was so used to things being in order in Equestria that she’d probably flip out. As it was, she had to keep her wings from rustling a lot and giving away her anxiety.
“I never received any of them,” repeated Inkosi. “I cannot imagine why anyone would want to keep people from traveling. We’re not at war with anyone. Not even close.” She poked at her food for a moment, then said, “I shall send an impundulu to Bandari Mji notifying the town of the miscommunication. It won’t be much, but it will clear up some issues.”
Livingstone blinked, smiled, and looked ready to deflate like a balloon. Twilight didn’t need to guess why. “Thank you.”
“And this must be investigated,” said Inkosi in a deadly serious voice. “I cannot have someone sending out false edicts in my name. No.”
Kutengwa stared at Twilight for a moment and coughed. “Your Highness, I can understand your worry, but is that really necessary? I realize that, yes, someone trying to prevent travel is undesirable, but if it was restricted to this single port town, I fail to see the greater problem. The issue has been cleared up, so why the worry?”
After a brief pause, Inkosi cleared her throat.
Something about the way she did it just made Twilight take notice, sit up, and pay attention. It had nothing to do with the sound itself or Inkosi’s actions. It was what Twilight had taken to calling the “atmosphere of authority”. It was nothing tangible or visible, nothing specific that you could point to and say that this was what made her noticeable, what made you listen to her. It simply was. It was why your eyes were drawn to Celestia or Luna whenever they entered the room, why you automatically slipped into more formal speech around them, why you always felt more self-conscious about them, why you never interrupted them unless it was of absolute importance.
It was what made a princess a princess, or a king a king, rather than just a pony or zebra with a nice hat. And Inkosi was now surrounded by it.
“Kutengwa,” Inkosi said in a low voice. Not one that was threatening or menacing, but one that would brook little to no discussion. “I can understand your lack of concern, but please: think about what this could mean. We have someone capable of sending out laws in my name at will. That is hardly a small problem.”
“Bandari Mji is quite isolated. If it came in the mail,” Kutengwa said slowly, “it might just be in the postal system.”
“The postal system spans the entire nation,” said Inkosi, her words hitting like a hammer. “There is no ‘just’. Furthermore, even if this one town is the only one that has been compromised, that is one town too many. I will not have any corruption within Zebrabwe.”
Kutengwa looked down at her plate with a look Twilight recognized well, one she’d worn herself a few times in her talks with Celestia. She’d bring up a certain point, only for Celestia to counter it so easily that Twilight would wonder why the heck she hadn’t thought of the counter before. When she’d look back on it later, she’d see that she’d been viewing things through her own, rather narrow lens. Kutengwa was almost definitely feeling the same way right now. So what was her lens like?
“Last, and probably, I’ll admit, least,” said Inkosi, “Bandari Mji and similar port towns provide an excellent starting point for oceanic navigation. These ponies came here on a whim. How many adventurous, exploratory zebras have been unintentionally denied the same chance? For all we know, contact between our two nations could have been initiated years ago if not for this false law.”
“Your Highness,” Kutengwa said again, “is an alliance-” (Twilight really wanted to say “friendship”, but knew it’d be rude to interrupt.) “-with Equestria really necessary? Zebrabwe is self-sufficient. With a travel time of weeks, any attempt at trade would probably be detrimental to us and them. Particularly since their only real reason for being here, by their own admission, is ‘because’.” She glared briefly at Twilight, maybe for half a second. Unlike Mhate, who at least had the decency to act embarrassed when she realized Twilight’s group knew what she was saying, Kutengwa evidently didn’t care in the slightest about what Twilight heard. Or saw. Considering she’d just seen Twilight move the sun, she was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. Or both; there wasn’t much of a difference at times. Twilight flicked her ears, flapped her wings once, and glared back.
Inkosi tapped her chin for a few moments. “You know what? You’re right. It’s not necessary. Not in the slightest.”
Livingstone jumped slightly and Spike dug his claws into the table. Twilight, however, didn’t react. She couldn’t say why, but Inkosi’s words didn’t sound quite right. She was leading into something. But what?
Then Inkosi continued. “In fact, none of this is necessary! Why do we have servants when we can wash our own dishes, get our own food? Why have this much food at all, as a matter of fact? We can live on less. And that cloak!” She pointed at Kutengwa’s golden cloak. “It goes brilliantly with your eyes, but is it necessary? Of course not. So why don’t you tip it over the wall, since it’s not necessary?”
Kutengwa twitched, pulled her cloak tight around her, and looked down at her plate again. She opened her mouth a few times, obviously hoping some retort would jump out, but none did.
“As I’m sure you’re aware, there is a difference between living and surviving,” said Inkosi. “As for me myself, I much prefer living. But living is made up of what is not necessary. What we have here is something that is very much not necessary. So it only makes sense to live it up.” She raised her cup to Twilight in a sort of toast, but drank before Twilight could return it.
“Besides, necessary and useful are not mutually inclusive. For example, we have a postal system that can deliver messages around the country in just a few days. But suppose Equestrians can give us the secret of…” Inkosi’s voice stopped and she turned to Spike. “I beg your pardon. Spike, was it?” Her authoritative tone vanished for that specific sentence.
Spike jumped a little at being addressed directly. He hesitantly nodded. “Y-yeah.”
Inkosi nodded back, then turned back to Kutengwa, her authority returned. “Suppose they can give us the secret of Spike’s fire so that we can work its equivalent ourselves. We can cut a time of a few days down to a few seconds. Even if they can’t, consider the other things they can teach us. At the very least, shipbuilding. They came here, and not the other way around.”
“Do you really want to base an alliance,” grumbled Kutengwa, “on ships?”
Twilight could take no more, and decided it was time for her to speak up. “Things can have intrinsic value on their own,” she said. “Just because you don’t get anything out of it doesn’t mean it’s not good. Can you give me any reason why it’s important that we not form bonds of friendship, as opposed to why it’s not important that we do so?”
Kutengwa didn’t even bother trying to come up with a response, simply glaring at Twilight and going right back to her food. Twilight glanced at Inkosi, who threw her a brief smirk that did not befit royalty.
It took a few moments of rather awkward silence for everything to start up again. Twilight briefly looked up to see Kutengwa glaring at her again. Twilight didn’t return the glare, but just went back to her food. She ignored Kutengwa so heavily that it took Spike jabbing her in the ribs for her to realize he was trying to talk to her.
“Hey, Twilight?” said Spike. “Mtendaji wants to talk to you.”
Mtendaji had moved to Spike’s other side and was grinning broadly. “Hey,” she said. “Just wanted to chat a little. Kashata?” She levitated a tray of some bright, snacky-looking bars.
“Spike, why don’t you and I switch?” Twilight suggested. They did, and Twilight accepted one of the kashata. It was crunchy, nutty, and, much to her surprise, so sweet that she immediately went for her water. She snatched another bar and passed the tray on to Spike and Livingstone.
Chewing on her own bar, Mtendaji asked, “Well? You like it?”
“It’s a bit sweet,” said Twilight, “but it’s still pretty good.”
Mtendaji laughed. “Yeah, these things are real popular in Zebrabwe. Not just Kulikulu, mind you,” she added, wagging a hoof in Twilight’s face, “all of Zebrabwe. And a lot of Wilayabada, for that matter.” She took another bite of kashata. “Originated in Zebrabwe, but in my experience, food has a way of crossing borders.”
“Are your two countries close?”
“Not close close, but a decent amount. There was once a war between us, but that was centuries ago. And, uh, don’t ask me about it, ‘cause I’m terrible at history that far back.” Mtendaji grinned sheepishly, like a foal with their hoof caught in the cookie jar.
“Anyway,” she continued, “I think you’re handling yourself well so far.” She looked over her shoulder, out at the sunset. “Pretty impressive that you can move the sun, even that little. And you managed to shut down Kutengwa without being too snooty about it.”
“I didn’t think being snooty would be good,” said Twilight. “Just because I don’t like her doesn’t mean I can’t treat her halfway-decently. But what’s her problem with me?”
“It’s not you specifically, she’s just a bit of an isolationist.” Mtendaji waved a hoof. “Doesn’t exactly like the idea of Zebrabwe opening itself up this much. Almost blocked Imayini from getting the land it needed just because it’s based in Wilayabada.” (Twilight remembered just in time that Imayini Yamahle was Mtendaji’s company.) “She eventually caved when Inkosi pushed her a little and she saw just how much coal we’d bring in.”
“Lots and lots and lots?”
“And lots,” laughed Mtendaji. “Hey, all this electricity’s gotta be powered by something, right? Zebrabwe produces a lot of its own coal, but, well, Imayini’s run and staffed mainly by abadas. We have magic, zebras don’t.” She shrugged. “We can do things they can’t, get the coal they can’t. It’s a shame our species can’t be equal, but they’re not, and there’s no sense beating around the bush to pretend otherwise.”
“So…” Twilight glanced at Kutengwa. “If she’s that set in her ways, do you suppose she might be responsible for the whole… fake law thing?”
“Can’t say, I don’t know what she’s really capable of. I wouldn’t put it past her to try, but then, given what you’ve seen of Mhate, you might not put it past her to try, right?” Mtendaji laughed.
Twilight, however, couldn’t muster up more than an amused snort. “Probably.” And now, unfortunately, they were getting into even more politics than usual. This person could’ve done that action for those reasons, or it could’ve been these people for this reason, or something else entirely Twilight couldn’t guess at. And she didn’t know a thing about what everybody wanted for this or that.
Mtendaji leaned around at Twilight and took a look at Spike. “Mind if I talk with your ko-”
“Not a kongamato,” interjected Spike. “I’m a dragon. And you can ask me that directly, you know.”
“Dragon,” Mtendaji said. “Draaaa-goooon. Gotcha. And, sorry, it’s just kinda strange to see someone like you in the middle of a group like this. No offense,” she added quickly, “but… it’s just… you know, right?” She grinned awkwardly.
“Apology accepted,” said Spike. He looked up at Twilight.
“Go ahead.” Twilight and Spike swapped seats again. The first question Mtendaji asked was about Spike’s fire, and Twilight, knowing that subject backwards and forwards and leftwards and rightwards and upwards and downwards and probably fourth-dimensional-wards that she didn’t know the names of, tuned it out almost on instinct.
She began picking at her dinner again, but slowly became aware of a gaze boring into her. It wasn’t a particularly intense one, nothing against Celestia’s or Luna’s, but it was still very much there. She looked up to see who was staring at her, and it took less than a second to find out who.
Okubi. No contest. She sat on her cushion, staring intently at Twilight, barely moving a muscle. She didn’t eat or drink or anything. Twilight was sure she wasn’t even blinking. She just sat and stared with a weird intensity that made Twilight’s face tingle.
Twilight tried staring back, but looked away after about ten seconds. She couldn’t take it. Okubi looked… creepy was really the only word for it. Thin and bony and scrawny and just plain unhealthy. She was clean enough — she had to be for this dinner — but Okubi was all sorts of things you couldn’t just cover up with makeup and half an hour in the shower. Not the kind of person you want staring at you like they were going to enjoy your stomach rotisserie-style.
And she didn’t look like she was going to stop any time soon.
Twilight leaned over and nudged Livingstone. “Uh, hey? Livingstone?” she whispered.
“Hmm?”
“What do you know about… about Okubi there?” She pointed.
Livingstone cringed a little. “Barely anything, sorry. Just that she’s been a part of Imayini for a considerable amount of time, yes, since the first time I arrived in Zebrabwe. Not very…” She coughed. “Not very photogenic, is she?”
“Or tactful. How’d she get to be so high up in Imaya- In Imy- In…”
“Imayini.”
“In that company when she acts like that?” Twilight gestured at her. Okubi seemed to be listening, but since she wasn’t making any attempt to hide it (her ears were quite clearly angled toward the two of them) or having any reactions, Twilight decided she didn’t need to hide it. If Okubi didn’t want to be offended, she shouldn’t go around looking for ways to be offended.
“I cannot imagine. Perhaps…” Livingstone tapped one of her forks against her plate a few times. “Perhaps she didn’t always act like that. Perhaps she was more, ah, restrained when she was lower in rank, and she’s just abandoning it now that she doesn’t have anyone to suck up to.”
“Maybe she killed off her competitors,” mumbled Twilight.
Livingstone paled slightly and grinned nervously. “Well, I… wouldn’t go th-”
“Joke,” said Twilight. She rubbed her hoof in her face. It was still tingling. “It was a joke.”
“Hem. Right.”
“If nothing else, your honesty and openness are refreshing.”
After having Okubi silently stare at her for so long, it took Twilight longer than it should have to realize Okubi was talking to her. She looked at Okubi, but Okubi had barely moved at all. Her voice was surprisingly smooth for her appearance, but still rather scratchy, particularly on her F’s and her S’s.
Twilight and Okubi engaged in another staring contest. Twilight blinked first. “So,” she said, “do you have something you want to say to me?” It was a tricky question to ask, the tone balanced on the edge of a knife between casual and aggressive. It was one of those tones you learned quickly once you became a princess.
“Not especially,” said Okubi. Her jaw moved oddly, like it was detached from her head. It was the only part of her body that was moving. Okubi, it seemed, did not like moving.
“Uh-huuuuuuh,” said Twilight. Great. One of those people who only answers your questions in the simplest form possible. “And you’re staring at me because…?”
“Because because.”
“Oh.”
The silence continued again. Livingstone glanced up at Okubi and started squirming on her cushion. Twilight couldn’t blame her. Her interactions with Okubi were making her hooves tingle. She tried to change the subject. “What about Mtendaji?”
Livingstone blinked and ripped her gaze from Okubi. “Who?”
“Mtendaji.” Twilight pointed to the other side of Spike; he and Mtendaji were still in conversation, something about his internal organs and the effect of fire on them. “She’s the abada executive of Imayini. Don’t you…?”
“I have never heard of her, no,” said Livingstone. “She must have gotten into her position in the past decade, when I was outside Zebrabwe or stuck in Bandari Mji.”
“Oh. And Kutengwa?”
Livingstone laughed humorlessly. “Her I know well. She has been, ah, vehemently opposed to my presence in Zebrabwe since I arrived, yes. It’s not tribalism — well, I suppose that here, it would be… species… ism? In any case, she doesn’t dislike me because I’m a pony. She dislikes me because I’m a foreigner.”
“So why’s she here? The whole reason the dinner is happening is because of a foreign company.”
“My guess? She was in town at the time and obligated to come. She can’t exactly turn down an invitation from the king, after all, but with the argument against Equestria and Zebrabwe becoming friends, she’s obviously here under protest.”
“She doesn’t want us to become friends even though she just saw me move the sun?”
“Selective memory, my princess,” said Livingstone. She tapped the side of her muzzle and grinned. “She doesn’t want to admit just how good she can have it if she changes her beliefs, so she ignores the evidence. Didn’t you hear her arguments? She’s grasping at straws to try to keep you out, yes.”
“Hnng.” Great. A zealot. Just what Twilight needed, alongside a high-tempered consul and a just plain weird executive. That was just super. “And the others?”
“I was just about to research the court when I arrived here six years ago,” said Livingstone, “so, I’m sorry, but I don’t know any of them, no. At least, not the ones here. I only know Kutengwa because she’s been forcing herself into my life. Sorry.”
“Alright. Thanks, anyway.” And Twilight went back to her food, keeping an ear out on Spike’s and Mtendaji’s conversation. They were really involved in it; Mtendaji wanted to learn a lot about how dragons worked.
On a whim, Twilight looked up. Okubi was chewing on something, but was still staring her. It didn’t look like her stare had changed at all, either. Just what was with her? It was making Twilight’s chest ache.
…Wait…
Twilight put a hoof to her chest and took a few deep breaths. Her chest still ached a little. That wasn’t Okubi, that was an actual… something. Twilight wasn’t sure. Well, it wasn’t that bad. She could ignore it, at least for now.
But over the next few minutes, it gradually grew to the point where Twilight couldn’t just look the other way. Maybe the food didn’t agree with her (although it tasted excellent for the most part). She laid her silverware down. “I’m sorry,” she said, “but I’m not feeling great. I should probably get some rest.” Please don’t be a terrible breach of protocol.
Inkosi nodded. “I understand, Princess. I would prefer your company, but your health is more important. And once I find a more proper time to speak with you, I’ll send word.” She waved Twilight away.
“Can I go, too?” piped up Spike. His voice sounded a little strained. “I’m not feeling so hot either.”
“Yes, indeed,” said Inkosi.
“Thanks.” Spike jumped onto Twilight’s back, which drew a few angry titters from the guests until they realized Twilight didn’t mind.
“And thank you as well,” said Twilight. “I’m sorry to cut this short.” She got to her hooves and Stormwalker immediately fell into line behind her. She took a quick look over the guests; none of them seemed all that concerned over or interested in her early departure, except for Okubi, who stared at her expressionlessly for several seconds before going back to her food, and Uvivi and Mtendaji, who were giving her a look of pity. Twilight nodded at the two of them and left the room.
“So how’re you feeling?” Twilight asked Spike.
“It’s not bad,” Spike replied. “My chest just hurts a little.”
“Hmm.” Twilight unconsciously rubbed her own hurting chest.
As Twilight made her way back to the apartments, the ache in her body slowly grew worse. She placed a hoof on her chest and took deep breaths, but it didn’t lessen in the slightest.
“Your Highness?” Stormwalker asked. “Are you sure you’re feeling fine?”
Twilight coughed. “No, bu-”
Suddenly, she and Spike were draped across Stormwalker’s back at a full gallop. Before she knew what was going on, they were back in the apartments and Stormwalker was lowering them onto a bed. “Wait here,” said Stormwalker. “I’m going back to the dinner, see if there’s anyone who can get a doctor. If it’s going this fast, you might’ve been poisoned.”
Twilight’s brain skipped a few beats. “Poison?” she coughed, lifting her head up. But Stormwalker was already gone.
Twilight laid her head back on the bed. Poison? Really? But for once, it seemed like Stormwalker might actually be right. This just didn’t feel natural, not at all. But why? Why would someone want to poison her? She’d been here less than a day and had barely talked to anyone!
“Poison?” Spike whispered from his bed. He coughed. “Is… is she serious?”
“She might be.” Twilight reached out and rubbed Spike on the head. “But she’s getting a doctor. We’ll be fine.”
Would they, though? The rational part of Twilight’s brain said someone able to poison them there, in the middle of a diplomatic dinner, might have gotten to any number of doctors. For all they knew, the doctor trying to “cure” her could just be finishing the job. Even Stormwalker’s paranoia could only protect against certain threats.
She didn’t know how long she lay there in her bed. It couldn’t’ve been longer than a few minutes, but it felt like hours. The room started to spin and pins and needles began racing up and down her limbs. Breathing became an effort. Twilight was terrified; she couldn’t do anything against it. She could only lie in bed and wait for Stormwalker to return.
And hope she got back in time.
The door slammed open. Behind it was a veritable party, headed by Stormwalker. Close behind her were Uvivi, Cumulus (with an unhealthy-looking Livingstone hanging across his back), and an abada Twilight didn’t recognize.
“Princess!” yelled Stormwalker. She dashed over to Twilight and leaned over her. “Princess, what do you feel like?”
“Not good,” mumbled Twilight. Before she could say anything more, her stomach heaved and she puked all over the floor and Stormwalker’s hooves. Twilight wiped her mouth down and continued, as best she could, “Head’s spinning, legs hurt, chest hurts, nauseous, can’t feel face.”
“Okay, okay,” muttered Uvivi, her tail flicking, “um, uh, just, just stay in bed, okay? I can, I can get help.”
“I swear,” Stormwalker hissed, “if she dies under you-”
“She WON’T!” yelled Uvivi.
Something poked through the haze surrounding Twilight's mind. Did Stormwalker just…? No. Except she had. That was just too far. Twilight tried to push herself up, to yell at Stormwalker, but her legs throbbed and she collapsed. With a moan, she rolled onto her back. There wasn’t much else she could do. As she lay in bed, trying to breathe, the voices slowly faded away.
“Get the grinder, Udokotela! GET THE GRINDER!”
“Ma’am, are you-”
“Yes! I’m sure! I’ll do it myself! Just get it, and get it NOW!”
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Well, that's... great.
I wonder what AJ will do when she finds out about this...
Kutengwa seems like the obvious culprit... but it's rarely that the most obvious one really is the perpetrator. Was it the kashata that was poisoned? The intense sweetness could have been used to hide the flavour. Mtendagi was the one who gave them the kashata, but she was also eating one. She could have been poisoned herself, or left one unpoisoned. Hm.
We'll just have to see what unfolds!
Intriguing! So it seems that the letter-disappearing mystery is likely to at least have been conceptualised at the capitol. I still have a nasty suspicion that Zecora and Applejack aren't quite safe just yet, though, and there might be an attempt to make them go the same way as Livingstone's letters...
Keep up the good work!
The plot thickens!
Well, this is unexpected. And has a diplomatic clusterfuck written all over it.
Poison certainly seems like one option, but I wonder ... poisoning food during a dinner where certain items get passed around and everyone seems to be able to pick anything they like seems way too risky - you could end up poisoning all the participants, or getting someone you don't want.
I suppose it's possible to slip something in the food during dinner, just before passing it to Twilight ... like the kashata, but that would make the potential culprit too obvious. It's for this same reason that I don't suspect Kutengwa - way, way too obvious. If she had planned to poison anyone, I imagine she wouldn't have displayed open hostility to that person throughout the whole dinner, as that makes her a very obvious suspect.
Then there is the fact that this thing got to Spike as well - a species vastly different from ponies, one who chows down rocks and minerals as parts of his diet and can slurp down molten lava like one would juice. It's almost inconceivable that mere poison meant for a pony would cause similar symptoms in draconic biology. Though Spike did seem less affected, but still ...
I am almost tempted to peg this down as something magical in nature. Perhaps there was more truth in Twilight's "joke" about Okubi having killed off her competition than she knew? Perhaps the intense staring was Okubi trying to inflict some magical malady on Twilight, akin to how a cockatrice does things for example (via a stare)?
Though for all we know it might just be the case that something in the sweets disagreed with Twilight's stomach, violently, something that the locals have long since been accustomed to and are thus immune, making the whole thing a red herring :P
Still, I'm surprised Twilight didn't try any cleansing or otherwise medical spells once she started feeling really bad. Surely she knows of some?
Oh this ain't good, i imagine Inkosi too be pissed that someone did this in her court and would demand a complete investigation as not only did they try to kill a guest in her court but a diplomat to a country that just prove it has REALLY strong magic and also has who knows how many soldiers.
Though now i'm curious as to what could have poison twilight, It took a Tatzlwurm to poison Discord (And for those who don't know tatzlwurm are said to be so poisonous that even its breath could kill a human in mythology). Granted Twilight a young alicorn but still, theres only a handful of creatures that could do that like a Catoblepas or something.
I have the most important question now inlight of the cliffhanger you made~
When is the next chapter?
Well next two as i know there be one with Applejack to increase the cliff hangin effect 
Brilliant read thus far, can't wait to see more
Great work on this chapter. Who could have poisoned Twilight?
I quite don't understand this sentence. What did she mean with ‘because’? I mean, Twilight came to improve diplomatic contacts, which is a valid reason.
Welcome to diplomacy, Twilight.
Great chapter!
And quite an cliffhanger.
After reading the ending, Twilight's joke regarding Okubi may not only been a joke.
But am I the only one who thinks it could also be Voodoo (because of the staring)?
I can't wait to see what will happen next!
7318859 Because zebras and ponies haven't had any significant diplomatic relations yet, Kutengwa's pointing out that the ponies came over with nothing to offer except for an alliance, so in her eyes, Gondwana's not getting much out of any potential partnership. Of course, coming over to open diplomacy for the first time is still a valid reason; being an isolationist, Kutengwa's trying for something, anything, to try and keep the Equestrians out.
Well, Livingstone turned out to be a red herring, so I suspect Mtendagi. She's the only one who wasn't creepy or an asshole.
7329690
Yeah, and she gave Twilight that drink. She probably shaved her horn to cut herself from suspects.
The truth is twilight is not a diplomat. The ones that have experience in diplomacy are spike, rainbow dash and pinkie.