Chapter XII: Thorns and Roses
Chapter XII
Thorns and Roses
Police covered nearly every of Fancy and Fleur’s manor. The dapper owner sat in the kitchen of his mansion. Blood staining his dark blue robe. Fleur sat beside him and held his shaking hand in her own as she gently rubbed his back. A man with short silver hair knocked on the door frame.
“Sir?” Fancy looked up at the man like he was in a daze. “Two representatives from the castle are here.”
“See them in Silver.” The manservant nodded and left the room for a moment and returned with a familiar woman with raven black hair and golden colored eyes. To her right was a man on the opposite end of the spectrum with hair like ash. He had met them last night. “Captain.” He said with a gulp.
“Sir,” Ebony nodded. “we’re here to take over the investigation and get to the bottom of this.” The lord was still digesting what happened.
“I hear one of your maids was found with the knife used to kill Lady Thorn and was covered in her blood.” Saber said. Fancy glared at him.
“Daisy wouldn’t do that!” He yelled. Fleur put a hand on his shoulder. Saber held up a hand to calm him. “My apologies, it’s been a very frightening morning for all of us.” He shook his head. “To think there was a killer in my own home.” Ebony took a seat across from Fancy.
“I know it is difficult, but we need you to tell us what happened. Step by step.” Fancy let in a deep breath and exhaled.
“I heard screaming and I got out of bed. When I went to investigate with a few other servants I saw Daisy shaking and covered in blood.” He swallowed. “Then I saw Lady Thorn on the bed, oh gods. Silver called for the constable and sent a runner to the palace.” Saber nodded as Fancy looked at him. “Forgive me, but I thought you were an advisor to Princess Sparkle?”
“Part time.” Saber stated in a blunt tone. “What can you tell us about the accused?”
“Daisy has been a loyal maid and friend for the past three years.” He stated firmly. No hint of a lie was present on his face. “She may break the occasional dish or vase, but she’s always been a bit jumpy and shy.”
“The poor dear was a mess when we found her.” Fleur added.
“Found?” Ebony asked with raised eyebrows.
“Four years ago while Fleur and I were visiting Manehattan, we came across Daisy being fired from an inn. The innkeeper was a brutish man and outright ridiculed her in front of the staff and patrons.” Fancy said as a wave of anger washed over his face. “I couldn’t stand to see a girl that age on the street with nothing, so I gave her the option to come work for me in my mansion and the rest is history.” He said as he sat back.
“Any information you know prior to this? Her parents, where she grew up, anything?” Ebony asked.
“The poor girl has no one.” Fleur explained. “Her parents died two years before we hired her and had been living on the street ever since.” Saber nodded in understanding.
“I’d like to see the room.” Fancy nodded and gestured for the manservant to show them the room. Saber and Ebony followed him up the stairs into the large hallway. The maid stopped a few paces from a door where a few constables were crowding around. Many of them looked sick to their stomach.
“Has anyone been inside?” Ebony questioned.
“No one except the constables who took Daisy away.” Silver stated as Saber reached for the door. Saber looked to Ebony.
“You may want to wait out here. I have no idea how bad this will be.” Ebony snorted at the remark.
“I can handle it. It’s not the first time I’ve seen a corpse.” Her tone had a sharp edge to it. Saber shrugged and open the door. The room was quite lavish with a king sized bed that had dark green sheets that were stained with blood. The woman on the bed was just as beautiful when Saber had seen her the night before.
He looked around the room and put a hand on her skin that was cold to the touch.
“I’d say she’s been dead for at least three hours, no more than five.” He inspected the cut in her neck that also had a large, odd bruise on it. The cut was deep and was probably the cause of her death by blood loss. Saber ran his hand along the cut line while his other hand trailed down her front to see several stab woulds on her stomach. “These cuts were made post mortem, why?”
He got off the bed and looked around the room. There was a smashed mirror that had blood on some of the broken fragments. The same with a vase that was in the corner of the room near a window that was opened. Saber walked over and looked out to see a roof no more than a hop, skip and a jump away. Anyone could have made that jump.
Saber stepped in the middle of the room and started taking everything in. He approached the bed and looked at the massive blood stain on the bed. He looked at the floor and saw the rug pulled from the hardwood floor. Saber slid it aside and saw scratch marks leading to the closet. He opened it and saw a bit more blood on the floor.
“This is where the maid was found with the knife in hand.” Saber walked back to the middle of the room and closed his eyes. He took in everything in the room. The blood, the torn curtains, everything.
“Stand back.” Ebony raised an eyebrow but stood by the dresser as he walked to the door and turned. When he opened his eyes he saw the still living beautiful blonde woman clad in green in front of him. “I see my target. I have watched her and studied her. I know not what she’s done, nor do I care. All I know is that she must die.” He pulled out a knife and his hand covered her mouth with his other.
She tried to get away from the killer, by jumping back, but her back crashed into the mirror. Thorn tried to scream as the broken shards cut into her back and head. She frantically reached for one of the broken shards at her side and stabbed the assailant’s hand that held the blade. “She struggles and forces me to loosen my grip on the knife, but my hold on her neck is like iron.”
Thorn continued to struggle in his grip and bit down on the assailant’s hand hard. His grip loosened enough for her to let out a single scream before she felt cold metal against her neck followed by something warm and wet running down her shoulder. She opened her mouth to scream, but nothing escaped her lips.
“Something went wrong right here.” Saber said as he looked to his side and saw a maid standing in the doorway. “An interloper, an intruder on my hunt.” He released his grip on the woman and reached for the maid. He caught her by the neck and threw her to the floor. She scrambled to get away, but felt a firm hand on her ankle drag her back inside and throw her across the room. The maid’s head hit the wall and she was knocked unconscious.
The attacker turned to see the half dead woman charging at him clumsily with a shard of broken glass. His hand latched around her throat and lifted her off the ground before throwing her onto the bed and buried his knife in her chest. She squirmed for a few seconds before her body went limp and the light left her eyes. He took the knife and stabbed her five times in the stomach before throwing the maid inside the closet and putting the blood covered knife in her hands. He also spilled some of the woman’s blood on her uniform before exiting through the window.
Saber looked back at Ebony who was wide eyed. “That’s my assumption of what happened.” He said as he looked back at the woman’s body.
“But why the gut stabbing?” Ebony asked.
“Probably revenge for injuring him?” He said as he closely examined the body. “No, these were deliberate.” Saber reached into his pocket and pulled out a sharp blade. He started to delicately cut the dress down the middle along with the corset. He put a hand on the woman’s lean stomach and focused.
His eyes shot open in surprise and removed his hand. “Where’s the suspect?”
“She’s being held by the constables downstairs.” He got off the bed and closed the woman’s eyes before putting a sheet over her body before he muttered something under his breath. She couldn’t make it out but she swore it sounded like praying. Saber looked at the body once more and sighed before exiting the room.
“We have a maid to question.”
~~~
One hour earlier
Saber turned on his heel to exit the grand hall where the royal family and their guards sat.
“Stop,” Luna commanded. “you’re not going anywhere.” The blue Princess stated in a firm tone. She turned to the messenger. “Explain.”
“Lady Thorn was killed with a knife and we have the suspect in custody.” He cleared his throat. “One of Fancy Pants’ maids was found at the scene with the murder weapon.”
“It sounds like everything is taken care of then.” Solaris stated and dismissed the messenger. Saber let out a boisterous laugh at the words. All heads turned towards the man.
“You’re joking right? That is the oldest trick in the book. Knock someone out and plant the murder weapon.” He said in a casual tone. “Do you all honestly think a maid with a butter knife would have the spine or skill to kill Lady Thorn?”
“Do you have a better theory?” Twilight asked. Saber walked up and took a seat at the table.
“That party hardly had any security. It’d be too easy for someone to slip in and out of there without anyone noticing.” He said as he folded his hands. “I’d heard that Lady Thorn had gotten caught up in some trouble, considering her family’s business is floundering.”
“You’re suggesting an assassin killed her?” Sabe shrugged at Ebony’s question.
“How should I know? I’m just stating the obvious.” He pulled out the glass he took from the party the night before. “I did some digging and this glass was laced with nightshade, a very powerful drug that can kill if the dosage is high enough.” Ebony gulped and realized how close she was to drinking it.
“This was not the case, it would make too big a scene if the two of us suddenly dropped dead, but if we got sick then someone would have just chocked it up to being drunk. I did’t know why, so I assumed whoever poisoned the drink was after Twilight. Clearly that was not the case.”
“So who did it?” Saber looked at Twilight blankly.
“How should I know? I’m not psychic.” He said with a roll of his eyes.
“But you could find out who did?” Ebony asked. Saber shrugged.
“That depends.” He said as he sat back in his chair. “What’s in it for me?” Ebony’s expression darkened. “My job is to keep Sparkle safe, I did that. What you’re asking for falls outside of the agreement.”
“A woman is dead.” Twilight stated.
“People die everyday, should I mourn for them too?” He said in a flippant tone. “It’s nothing personal, just good business.”
“Fine, if that’s the way you want it. Let’s bargain,” Celestia said in an irate tone. “what do you want? Money?” Saber stroked his chin as he thought.
“Money is good but I’ll also take a favor from the good captain here.” He gestured to Ebony who stared at him.
“A favor?” She asked.
“Yes, a favor. Meaning I do this for you now and you do something for me in return down the line.” His tone had a fine air of smugness to it.
“I know what a favor is.” She said in an annoyed tone. “What kind of favor do you want?”
“I don’t know, just something I want or need some time in the future.” He shrugged. “Do we have a deal?” Ebony bit her lip and let out a deep sigh.
“Very well, but I have the right to know what the favor is and refuse it if it’s too ludicrous.” She said as she pointed a finger at him.
“Fair enough,” Saber got to his feet and stretched. “lets get to the manor before the trail gets cold. Stay here Twilight, for all we know who ever killed Thorn could still be there.” Twilight nodded as he turned to Ebony. “Captain, you will accompany me to the crime scene. I’ll need you to deal with the constables and keep order while I work.”
She nodded and stood up before she followed the man out of the shining white castle and back into the city.
~~~
Saber and Ebony found themselves in Fancy Pant’s study where several constables were talking amongst themselves. Nearby was a maid not even in her twenties with short blonde hair shaking in her chair as she felt eyes on her. Ebony ordered the constables leave them and they obeyed. Saber approached the woman as reached inside his coat and pulled out a handkerchief. He offered it to her. She had some blood on her cheek and he gently wiped it away.
“Daisy?” Ebony said as she stood in front of her. “We’d like to ask you some questions.” The maid slowly raised her head, her eyes vacant and devoid of any focus. Saber snapped his fingers in front of the maid’s face to catch her attention, but no response came.
“She’s still in shock.” Saber stated as he looked at her closely. Something seemed familiar about the woman, but he couldn’t place it. He looked at her uniform and saw that bits of her clothing were dyed red but not from blood. It was different than the standard black and white uniforms the other maids and butlers wore.
Suddenly it clicked. “You’re from Mistral aren't you?” As the words left his lips the woman’s pupils shrank to the size of pin tips and a shiver ran through her body. Ebony had heard of the Western continent, yet never been there. She heard it was a dead land that nothing ever grows in, or where anyone ever goes, no one sensible anyway. “It’s all right. We’re not here about that, I believe your innocent Daisy.”
He gently put her hand in his. She slowly locked eyes with the white haired man. “We need you to tell us what happened last night.” Her throat bobbed up and down and she let out a breath.
“I was going about my duties last night.” She began. “Then I heard a commotion coming from one of the rooms, when I opened the door I saw Lady Thorn being strangled.” She wrapped her arms around herself and started to shake. “Before I could even call for help he was on me. His hand around my throat.” She gently touched the bruising on her neck and her eyes filled with tears.
“The last thing I remember is him grabbing my ankle and throwing me against the wall. Then I woke up this morning in the closet.” She had started to sob and shiver. Saber put a gentle hand on her shoulder and rubbed her back comfortingly.
“Do you remember what he looked like?” Ebony asked.
“He was wearing dark clothes and a hood with a mask.” She said as she dropped her head in shame.
“You were a great help.” He said sincerely. “May I see your ankle and neck?” She nodded and pulled off her shoe and sock to show the same odd bruise that was present on her and Lady Thorn’s neck. Saber stood up and stared in no particular direction before turning to Ebony. “Has Lord Thorn received word about his wife?”
“I’m not sure.”
“That’s where we’re headed next. Get the carriage around, I’ll be out in a minute.” Ebony raised an eyebrow in suspicion, but left the two alone as she went to fetch the driver. After she left Saber turned to Daisy who looked up at him.
“Why do you believe me when everyone else didn’t?” She asked with a quivering lip.
“Not true, Fancy and Fleur never once doubted your innocence.” He said with a smile. “Did your parents die on the voyage over from Mistral?” Daisy’s shoulders slumped and nodded. “I see, I’m sorry.”
“Why should you be?” She said as she lowered her head more.
“Because I care.” He meant it.
“But why? You don’t know me.” She said with tears running down her face.
“I know what it’s like to lose someone.” He left the maid and rejoined Ebony who had a carriage waiting. The two got inside before telling the driver where to go. The carriage took off and Saber leaned his head against the back of the seat with a sigh.
“How did you know she was a foreigner?” Saber turned his head and looked at Ebony.
“When you’ve traveled as much as I have you tend to pick up on these things.” She doubted that was the truth but didn’t believe him. Rather than getting into another argument, she decided to change the subject.
“Do you have any idea on who killed her?”
“I have an idea who the culprit is, but I can’t say for sure. Rumor has it that Lady Thorn had several gentlemen callers and spent a lot of time with them. I can’t imagine her husband was happy about that.” Ebony looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
“You suspect Lord Thorn?”
“A powerful and egotistical businessman like him with a wife that? It’s a tale as old as time. He gets angry about the fact his wife is fooling around and hires someone to teach her a lesson.” Ebony glared at him.
“And I’m sure you know all about things like this.” She said with a scoff. Saber met her gaze.
“No, I’ve never done a job like that, but assassins I knew said that it was quite common.” The rest of the ride was silent until they pulled up to another lavish mansion scattered around Canterlot. It wasn’t as impressive as Fancy’s but it was still spectacular. The two got out of the carriage and were greeted by a butler with thick brown hair and goatee.
“Greetings sir and madam,” He said in a posh tone. “my name is Stapes, the head butler. How can I help you?” Ebony stepped forwards.
“I am Captain Northwind of the Royal Guard and this is my assistant.” Saber scoffed at the word. “We must speak with Lord Thorn at once on a matter most urgent.” Something lit up in the butler’s eyes and he understood.
“Does this concern Lady Thorn?” They nodded. The butler sighed heavily and showed them inside. “A constable came by the house this morning with the news, simply dreadful.”
“Were you two close?” Saber asked.
“I have served Tiberius Thorn for many, many years along with his wife. She could light up the room simply by being in it.” He lamented. “She was always so kind even when the Lord was in the foulest of moods.” He said as they climbed the staircase.
“Where is Lord Thorn?”
“After the runner came he secluded himself in his study.” The butler led them through the halls until they stopped in front of a pair of brass double doors. The butler knocked on it three times before opening the door. The study had a large desk on the far wall while the other three walls were lined with bookshelves and paintings. Sitting in the large leather chair behind the desk was a man in his late forties with silver streaked brown hair.
Despite the news he heard that morning, he looked well. He was clean shaven and his clothes were void of any wrinkles. His brown eyes glanced up form his papers and he frowned.
“I asked not to be disturbed Stapes.” He said in a firm tone.
“A thousand pardons sir, but you have guests that have news about your wife.” The man set down what he was doing and bid the newcomers to come in before he sent Stapes away. Ebony approached him first and shook his hand.
“Captain Ebony Northwind M’lord. My condolences.” He waved the words away as he went to sit back in his chair. Saber looked at a large painting of the Lord and lady that hung on the wall.
“Was this done by sir Inkwell?” Saber asked. The lord turned his attention to Saber as if noticing him for the first time.
“Yes, I had him commission it for my anniversary.” He said as he poured himself a glass of auburn liquor. Ebony couldn’t blame the man for drinking this early in the morning considering the news he’d received. “Now, what has been done with the maid who murdered my wife?”
“It wasn’t the maid m’lord.” Saber stated as he turned to face the man. Tiberius raised an eyebrow. “The real killer tried to frame the poor girl.”
“You’re absolutely sure about that?” Saber approached the desk and nodded.
“Yes, the maid clearly didn’t have the strength to kill your wife.” Lord Thorn frowned intensely at the white haired man’s smug grin.
“Any other proof?”
“Yes, I noticed an odd bruise on your wife’s neck and the maid’s ankle from where the real killer had grabbed them.” He said as he sat back in his chair.
“What odd bruise?” Saber turned to look at the captain.
“Come now captain, you were there, you saw the body.” Ebony only frowned at him. “Very well, I’ll explain. The bruising was too large for the maid’s dainty hands along with something else.” They both looked at him curiously. “Whoever killed your wife has six fingers on their right hand.”
“They what?”
“They have an extra thumb thats what the bruising on their skin tells me anyway.” He shrugged. “So it’s physically impossible for the maid to be the culprit.”
“Then shouldn’t you be out finding who did?”
“Before that I’d like to ask you some questions.” Saber said before sitting down in one of the chairs in front of the desk. Ebony was glaring at him with an intensity to melt steel. The dark haired man scoffed.
“I already told the constables everything I know. I was here last night finalizing a shipping deal with the East Mill Trading company. There are over half a dozen witnesses to corroborate my whereabouts including my staff members.” Saber smirked.
“Oh no, not those kind of questions. I meant ones pertaining to your wife.” The man’s eyes shrank a little and he couldn’t help but start feeling hot under the collar. “Tell me had Lady Thorn been acting strange leading up to the events of the party?”
“Strange?”
“Eating habits off, was she nervous, acting out of the ordinary at all?” Tiberius thought for a moment, but nothing particular came to mind.
“Nothing to note, why?” Another chill went down the man’s spine as he locked eyes with the white haired man. He didn’t know why but he felt like he was locking eyes with the devil himself.
“Are you all right Lord Thorn?” Ebony interjected. “Should I send for your butler?”
“No, that won’t be necessary captain.” He said as he gulped.
“Just wondering if there was anything off about her health.”
“Now why should that matter? She was stabbed in the neck wasn’t she?” Saber raised an eyebrow.
“How did you know that your wife was stabbed in the neck?” Ebony asked. The man’s face went paler and looked down at his desk as if he didn’t mean to say that. “No details were revealed to anyone about how Lady Thorn died.” He looked away from the captain but was met with Saber’s gaze.
“Easy now Captain, we’re not accusing the man.” Ebony looked at him in surprise and he shot her a discrete wink. “After all he lost the two most precious things in the world today.” He turned to the man in the chair. “My deepest apologies m’lord, Captain Ebony can be blunt at times.” The captain was close to frothing at the mouth.
“What did you mean by the two most precious things?” Saber’s expression shifted to one of shock and embarrassment. Saber rubbed his forehead and put on quite the show of looking embarrassed.
“It appears I must now apologize m’lord, I thought you knew which is why I was inquiring about the late lady’s health.” Tiberius was getting annoyed and narrowed his eyes on the man. “Upon further investigation of your wife’s body, we discovered that your wife was with child.”
The room went silent for several minutes on end. Ebony looked dumbstruck while the lord’s expression was neutral. “She wasn’t far along, if I had to guess she was no more than three weeks pregnant.” The lord’s face went pale as paper and he felt a massive knot form in his stomach. “Again, my deepest apologies.” He said as he bowed his head.
Ebony was about to speak up but the sound of a metal tray clattering against the wooden floor cut her off. All their heads turned towards the doorway to see stapes shaking. A tray with three broken tea cups were on the floor n front of him. His expression was like that of someone who’d just witnessed a massacre.
“Stapes,” Tiberius said in a serious tone. “I told you to leave us alone.” The butler looked at the white haired man with shocked brown eyes.
“Is what you say really true?” Saber nodded to the butler. The gentleman clenched a fist and stared at the man with anger filled eyes. “He’s lying captain.” Ebony looked at the butler and then to Saber.
She hadn’t personally inspected the woman’s body and she didn’t know if what he said was true. “Lord Thorn wasn’t meeting with a group of businessmen, it was just one man clothed in black.” She turned her attention towards Lord Thorn who had a bead of sweat on his brow.
“Stapes, you don’t know what you’re talking about.” The butler only glared at him.
“I will be the first to say that Lady Thorn was not the best woman in the world, but she was still your wife sir.” The last word had enough of an edge to cut steel. Tiberius waved a hand as if brushing off a piece of lint from his coat.
“I’ll find another one, maybe one that will actually remain loyal.” Ebony’s golden eyes sharpened and the air around the captain started to grow cold. She turned to her side and saw Saber’s gaze was one that could got to bat with the devil. Even Tiberius seemed aware of the bloodlust radiating from the assassin.
“So,” Saber said in a tone that could freeze over a lake of fire. “you admit to having something to do with her death?” The man simply shrugged.
“Who can say?” Tiberius blinked and swore that he thought the assassin’s eyes had turned a dark red, but all he saw was the icy turquoise. He looked around and saw that the room was growing darker. Eventually everything in the room, safe for saber and they were surrounded in shadow. “What is this?”
“You know, I hear there’s a special place in the afterlife for people who kill unborn children.” The shadows stared to twist and turn behind the white haired man until a figure could faintly be seen. The shadows formed a large monstrous creature with red horns protruding from it’s long blood stained white hair. It was wearing a long sleeved cloak that looked to be made from patches of human flesh, some were even whole faces that were screaming in agony.
“They say that the reaper of souls rips their soul from their body and eats it whole. They then spend an eternity swirling around in the reaper’s stomach for all eternity.” The reaper’s soulless eyes glared down at the dark haired man. The creature spread its lips into a wide grin that showed it’s razor sharp teeth that were the size of butcher knives. It’s long forked tongue spilled out of its mouth and drooled as it looked at him.
Tiberius felt his blood run cold and his heart was beating so fast he was worried it’d break out of his chest. His eyes were fixated on the creature’s vacant eye sockets. “Some say that it appears before those who’ve done terrible things in their lives to let them know what awaits them in the afterlife.” The creature let out a low malicious laugh accompanied by the faces stitched into it’s cloak. The man sprang from his chair in a panic.
“Stay back!” He yelled as the creature only continued to laugh as he covered his head with his hands and shook. “I didn’t know she was with child! Had I known I would have never hired that assassin!” He opened his eyes again to see the room with the captain, the butler and assassin looking a him.
“I think that qualifies as a confession if ever I heard one.” Saber said as he stood up and turned towards the butler. “Stapes, would you please fetch the constables?”
“It would be my pleasure.” The butler turned on his heel and marched out of the room. Tiberius looked around for any sign of the creature, but saw nothing. He narrowed his eyes on Saber.
“You! You tricked me!” He yelled as he pointed an accusatory finger at him.
“I have no idea what you’re referring to. I asked you if you had anything to do with your wife’s death and then you jumped out of your seat and admitted to hiring an assassin.” He flashed him a wolfish grin whit Ebony walked over and roughly gripped the lord's shoulder.
“Tiberius Thorn, you are under arrest for the murder of Rebecca Thorn.” The man struggled in her iron grip and started saying some very un-lordly things that were anatomically and physically impossible for the captain to do. The butler and captain explained things to the constables who promptly put the lord in irons and hauled him away in a carriage. Once he was pulled away Ebony and Saber got in a carriage bound for the castle to report back to the Princesses about the culprit.
Ebony mostly glared at Saber during the ride and the assassin did his best to ignore it. He tried to focus on the city streets that passed by. Eventually, the glaring started to irritated him and he met her gaze.
“What?”
“What did you do back there?” She asked. “I know you did something to make Lord Thorn react like that.” Saber simply shrugged.
“All I did was instill a little fear in him to make him talk.” Ebony frowned at him. “What? It worked didn’t it?" Shook her head and turned her attention to the passing streets and remained silent for the rest of the trip back to the castle.
Once they arrived they were met by one of the Princess' servants that lead them through the shinning marble floors of the palace. The servant led the two to a large room where Celestia sat behind a desk along with Luna. The two stopped working when the servant announced their arrival. Celestia dismissed the servant and waited for the door to close behind him. Once they were alone, ebony explained the entire situation to the Princesses.
“I see, excellent work captain.” Luna stated. Saber cleared his throat rather loudly.
“You did admirably as well.” Celestia added. Saber crossed his arms and reveled in the praise. “So where is the culprit?” Saber looked at Ebony and then back to the Princesses.
“Probably in a cell where he'll stay for a long time.”
“We are aware of Lord Thorn, what of the assassin who murdered Lady Thorn?” Saber looked at the Princesses and burst out laughing. “Is there something funny?”
“You’re kidding right?” He said as Twilight stepped into the room. “He’s probably fifty miles away by now or has gone underground. It’d be like trying to find a glass needle in a hayfield on a moonless night.”
“I paid you to find the killer.” Celestia stated.
“I did. He fully admitted that he hired someone to kill his wife. The captain and his butler were there.” He said as he looked at the dark haired woman.
“He confessed under duress because of what you did to him.” Ebony stated as Saber glared at her.
“What did you do?” Celestia asked.
“So I may have used a bit of magic on him to alter his visual perception.” He said in a nonchalant tone. “I got what I needed from him. It was either that or I start breaking fingers.” The calmness in his voice sent shivers down her spine.
“You can't just do that to someone.” Saber turned to look at the indigo haired woman as if she’d just appeared out of thin air.
“If it wasn’t for me then that innocent maid would be taking the heat for that prick.” He said with as he stretched. “Besides what’s better, finding the murder weapon or the murderer?”
“I’m not following.” Twilight said.
“Assassins are only tools to be used like a knife or sword.” His tone was hard and serious. “Tell me, do you punish the weapon or the murderer?”
“You have a very skewed way of thinking.” Luna stated in a blunt tone. Sabe instead chose to stare at the two women with a perplexed look on his face for several minutes until Luna spoke up. “What are you doing?”
“Just imagining how the view must look from that throne of glass you’ve got there.” A vein was pressing against the blue Princess’ forehead as red rose to her face. “I don’t have the patience to argue with individuals who are too blind to see that they’ve got more blood on their hands than I do. So I’ll just take my pay and leave unless you want this conversation to turn unpleasant?” Luna was practically foaming at the mouth when Celestia stood up and tossed him a small bag of coins.
Saber caught it in one hand and weighed it. He raised an eyebrow at the bag. “It feels a little light.”
“Second rate pay, for a second rate assassin.” Luna muttered, but Saber shot her a dark glare.
“You caught one of the culprits, therefore you get half of what we agreed on.” Saber let out a frustrated sigh, but let it go.
“I suppose I should be grateful I got anything at all.” He said as he pocketed the pouch and turned to leave. “Pleasure doing business wth you.” Saber saw himself out of the room paying no mind to the captain or Twilight. He closed the doors with a rather hard slam and wandered back to his room while whistling a tune.
Hours later at dusk, there was a series of hard knocks on his door. He rose from his bed and yawned as he walked over to the door and opened it. “Oh great, what do you want now?” He said as Twilight entered the room.
“Tell me do you enjoy pissing off me and the other Princesses?” She said as she put her hands on her hips and huffed.
“Only when the situation calls for it.” He said as he laid back down on his bed. “Am I in for another lecture Princess, because if that’s the case I’d rather have Ebby come in here and knock me out.” Twilight let out a sigh.
“I came by to tell you I think you had a point back there.” Saber sat up and looked at the Princess in surprise. “It’s more important to catch the mastermind than someone he hired.”
“Well give me a pair of wings and call me Celestia, that has to be the most sensible thing you’ve said to me since we met.” Twilight just looked at him with a blank expression on her face. “Thank you, it’s comforting to know not every Princess doesn’t see the big picture.” He said as he sat up and leaned against the wall.
“You mentioned the maid, the one that was going to be framed for the murder.” Saber nodded. “Why did you care about what happened to her?” He shrugged at the question.
“I just don’t like seeing pricks like Thorn getting away with things like that just because of their status and using an innocent girl like that as a patsy.” He said with disdain clearly present in his voice. “The girl already lost her parents coming to this country and now she’s being blamed for something she didn’t do?”
“I heard that she was from Mistral.” Saber gave her a neutral nod. “I don’t know much about the continent.”
“Few people do. I’ve never traveled there myself, but I’ve met people who have. From what I hear it’s not a nice place to be. The whole continent is trapped in an endless storm.” Twilight was surprised at this.
“An endless storm?” He nodded. “How is that even possible?”
“No idea, I’ve never traveled there remember? Just what I heard.” Saber noticed Twilight still held a question in her curious purple eyes. “Anything else?”
“I heard how you and Ebony quarreled, again.” Her expression shifted to one of annoyance. “You two have been at each other’s throats from day one.” She was tired of seeing the two quarrel in front of her and dreaded the day one of them would take an argument too far and things would get violent.
“What do you expect? I’m an assassin and she’s a guard captain. We’re liked fire and ice, we don’t mix well.” He huffed. “Besides, she’s been a thorn in my side since I took this job.”
“Maybe if you tried being nice and stopped goading her, she’d let you have a little more breathing room.” Saber rolled his eyes at the words. “If you two are going to work together then you two need to learn how to be civil with one another.” He groaned and saw the determination in her eyes. She wasn’t going to let this go.
“Fine. I will attempt to smooth things over with the Captain, but I promise nothing.” That brought a smile to the Princess’ face. The man then stood up and stretched.
“You’re going now?”
“No, I need to get a few things before we leave tomorrow morning.” Twilight didn’t bother asking what he was going to buy, and didn’t want to know. Once he left, Twilight returned to her own room.
~~~
The next day, Twilight and her other companions boarded the train bound for Ponyville as Celestia and Luna started their daily routine in the court, which meant a lot of boring meetings. The first was a disgruntled noble complaining about his neighbor. As they all took their seats a shriek escaped the blue Princess’s lips and she immediately stood back up while she rubbed her posterior.
“Luna, is everything all right?” Celestia asked as Artemis came to her side. The guard looked down at the throne and squinted. He picked up the cushion and there was a needle pointing straight up on the bare metal throne along with a folded piece of paper. Luna opened the letter and gritted her teeth.
This needle could have been poisoned, but not this time. I suggest you take great care where you sit that fat rump of yours Princess.
Sincerely,
Your favorite second-rate assassin.
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I liked it. Nice ending, BTW.
HA suck it you royal bitches
Those two princesses really need to pull their heads out of their fat asses, their narrow sightedness is going to eventually going to come back and bite them in the ass.
Hm, that ending. You haven't read the night angel trilogy by any chance have you?
7767870 Yea, they need to learn that they are still human, and to err is human. Plain and simple.
7767842
7767913 Night Angel Trilogy?
7767938 Shadow is quite edgy isn't he?
..Wow..
7768033 Oh god that ruined the Devil May Cry series for me. I didn't want some Emo punk I want this asshole back!
67.media.tumblr.com/d14a654807805604e4fa53163a6b1742/tumblr_nk7ewfoYMa1rotr3yo1_500.gif
7767985 love the the chapter hope the next 1 comes out as soon as possible but i do not want you to rush it take your time with it
Best revenge to an insult ever my god I was laughing my ass off at it while trying to be quiet (shite at spelling).
7768143 Nero was a badass. Him and Dante are awesome.
Sabre is a savage
Great chapter as always Silent. Drama ending with a joke is always a classic.
I even got a chuckle out of the joke, and that's saying something considering it's 5am here, I'm dead tired and in a pretty bad mood. So thanks for cheering me up.
Fucking savage just stated he could kill her when ever the fuck he wanted to.
That's redundant.
7767913 Acaelus Thorne for the win!
It looks like the reaper of souls has just been risen from its grave.
It looks like he'll be having so much fun.
P.S. Love it!!!!!!!!
7767935 Awesome adult fantasy book that centers around magic assassins called "wetboys".
The main character's mentor who's supposed to be the best assassin in the world pulls the same needle on the throne trick on the corrupt king with a note attached saying "I could have been poisoned" along with a bottle of antidote that will save him if he is poisoned but kill him if he's not.
He also leaves daggers under the rest of the royal family's pillows while they were sleeping on them as a warning.
OH BURN! XDXDXD I LOVE HIM SO MUCH GOD. I look forward to the next chapter!
7769493 Sounds awesome! I'll have to check it out.
7769889 First book is called "The Way of Shadows"
Heads up, its a VERY dark, grim story.
7770283 Sounds good to me. I love that stuff.
I see saber's character in a new light, but i still wish to know more of his past. Cant wait for te next update.
Really now? A reference to The Princess Bride?
I'm feeling sorry for the way the princesses (excluding Twilight) treat him. They practically cheated him with his wage, knowing well he couldn't do anything against it and with that practically abusing the power they are holding over him. The reason to not pay him full because he couldn't do the impossible and arrest the assassin too was a rather weak excuse after all. I'm just glad Twilight actually sees this too. Makes me wonder when she will step in between him and the princesses since she just stepped in between him and the Captain. Though the situation might be a bit harder to solve seeing as I doubt neither Celestia nor Luna will easily change their opinions on him. Heck, saving an innocent didn't do anything to the situation, considering how they still cheated him with his wage afterwards and without getting red to boot!
7798073 his anger.is understandable yes but the ones i want to kill are the pergatory guards
Ehm... if the husband didn’t know she was with Child. .. then why did the assassin stab her womb?
7770290
The Night Angel Trilogy is an ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC read, I wholeheartedly recommend it!
7808065
Just a guess but the assassin may have known. We see how much saber knows no reason to think others don't know the same. And with that knowledge the assassin acted believing that to be the motive of his hiring.
Kinda have to remind myself this is on fimfiction
7773733
i wondered if someone got that reference?
7817271
i love the night angels series
oh the references the night angels series, the Sherlock Holmes deduction methods, princess bride,
Oh man. That ending!!