Only One Speck of Dust

by TheMareWhoSaysNi

Chapter 31

Since the beginning of the operations against The Militia, though he remained cautious, Prince Blueblood had left the unhealthy and wet basements. His return wasn’t quite a secret anymore and unbeknown to the rest, he jubilated to know his aunts did not have the power to get him arrested, forced as they were to respect old stupid royal rules.

A few days before, the Highest Cabinet and all the deputies had gathered in order to try to amend the law, but nothing could be done. The oldest members cared way too much about their old-fashioned guidelines and stood by them. It was up to The Militia to take care of the issue he represented. As long as the Princesses were not in a direct danger, they could do nothing except waiting.

The room in which he now spent most of his time, with guards at the entrance and all around him, was a huge living-room with ceilings as high as those of the royal palace. All the furniture embellishing it was smart as can be, made of precious wood, gold, marble and diamonds, and a red velvet carpet crossed the whole room. In fact, his hooves could only be in touch with the fluffy blood-colored material.

Sitting on a couch large enough for a whole family, but that was for his sole personal use, separated from the white unicorn by a table on low which rare pink berries from the Frozen North were inside a tumbler, his suitor sitting close and staring at the floor, he was looking scornfully at his Main Servant with the coldest of eyes.

Blueblood did not know what was upsetting him the most… The disaster of the night before or the fact Rarity withstood his scrutiny with her chin up, as if she had nothing to feel ashamed of. Yet he was convinced he had been able to definitely bring her into line, pretending to give his heart to her on many occasions.

Why did she not seem to fear him, or at least to fear she would lose his love? It was incomprehensible. She should have been trembling, on her knees while crying in front of him. Her suitor’s own parents, the discreet and maneuverable Fluttershy, had been more than fawning toward him all day long, and he would have bet this was only the beginning.

“I wouldn’t act proud if I were you, Rarity. Last night attack should have been our victory. The Head’s Council asphyxiated, just when they expected it the less.”

“My King… All the ponies out there were armed, even the Dissident Rainbow Dash’s parents. They obviously were expecting it.”

Prince Blueblood could not help but open his eyes wide in front of Rarity’s nerves. She hadn’t lowered her eyes, had kept on staring at him, and had delivered her words with resolution and the self-confidence of the good soldier sure to have given the best.

How did she dare? He started to regret he had given so much responsibilities to her. She was nothing but a female after all and females were unable to understand the stakes of war and power plots.

His hooves hit with all his might the marble of the low table, and a few berries leaped off the tumbler to crush against his Main Servant’s face who, finally, lowered her head… her jaw tensed, and her eyes still wide opened, filled with a ferocity it was better not to show.

“What happened is inexcusable! I’ve prepared the perfect plan… Most of the Council’s bodies should have been exposed in a temple by now, hooves bond by a thread of silk and their eyes blindfolded! Instead of this, half of my own soldiers sent yesterday had passed away, and you had killed only ONE of them.”

“It’s Applejack, the Second-in-Command’s brother and I think it is…”

“Don’t interrupt me, Rarity! I don’t care even if he were Ponyville’s Deputy’s brother. I want this damn Rainbow Dash’s head and the one of her rustic Second-in-Command!”

If she had not fear to have her head chop off, she would have let him know what she was thinking about his plan. It was not badly conceived and would have worked if he did not always underestimate the ones they were forced to call “dissidents”, convinced as he was that his fighters, numerous and mainly male, were enough to slaughter an organization such as The Militia.

She was from Ponyville, unlike him, and she knew how things were around here. The best were for the competition, and said competition was training everyday with no exception, tirelessly.

It was certain he had in his ranks exceptional fighters, but it was arrogant of him not to send them when he decided to launch a major operation like the one of last night, thinking a superior number of combatants would be enough to overcome the best adversaries of all Equestria, and that these adversaries could be helpless just because the circumstances were not the best for a fair fight.

And she had not even been raised to plan military strategies, unlike him… His biggest problem was that irascible side of him, and the way he was taking everything for granted.

Until now, her love for him had been so huge that Rarity never get herself fooled by the Prince’s flaws, despite them being striking, and she had always dismissed any objection her mind could have whispered about his behavior, giving privilege to what her heart was saying. Today, the layer of paint which she had covered Blueblood with unconsciously was beginning to split.

Since she could not let him know what she was thinking about this all, she chose to remain silent. If she said nothing, he could not get carried away again.

It was to be mistaking about the murky personality of the one they all called the Fallen Heir Apparent. The poseur who refused to get stained and spent a lot of time admiring himself in the big mirrors of the castle was also a pony full of spite, with easy anger outbursts, and a limitless cruelty in the heart. Proof was how he had enjoyed torturing this white stallion for days, healing him with zeal only to bring him back to the edge of death after that.

Blueblood showed his fury again, and with one blow of hooves, made the tumbler of pink berries flow so that it would land on Rarity’s mane. It hung on her horn and the fruits crushed against the unicorn who had to clench her teeth not to let tears appear under the humiliation done to her.

“You already should be calling our troops to find another plan. I don’t want to see your face again until you’d have repaired what your silliness has costed!”

They all knew Rarity barely had a word to say about last night’s intervention. Almost everything came from him, even the idea to brand his own suitor in order to fool Rainbow Dash. It had worked, undoubtedly… but now this young and lovely mare Pegasus was forever marked with the seal of one of the worst prostitution shack of the city. It was an incomparable sacrifice he had imposed to her, and all the crueler that he swore to the Emgok of love and Rarity that he would never marry her.

Fluttershy, unaware of the confront it was, stepped to Rarity and gave her a handkerchief of cloth she always kept inside the pocket of the white dress Blueblood had forced her to wear. Really well-educated, and of a helpful nature, in her opinion it was the least she could do than to bring a bit of comfort to the pretty unicorn.

Before she could even reach for her, she wobbled and fell flat. The stallion had just violently kicked her hind hooves, and crushed the tip of her tail to make sure she would not move, all this under the eyes of Rarity who found it more and more difficult to swallow her bitterness.

“I haven’t allowed you to help her.”

“But, I…”, Fluttershy babbled, almost crying.

It was a vision he enjoyed more than words could say. Nothing could please him more than to see mares under his hooves, called to order and submissive, what he regarded as their true position. If Rarity had not been part of a former aristocratic family, and if she were not a pawn to fun to move, she would never had had the position that was hers now.

It was also worth for the traitor Twilight Sparkle that he had chosen only for what she could tell him about The Militia thanks to her former rank – now regained.

“Rarity only gets what she deserves. Serves her right… if I were you, Fluttershy, I wouldn’t say nothing, would do nothing as well. We’re also here because of you. If you had really thrown yourself into it…”

“Well, I think she had thrown herself into it enough. She’d been perfect, even”, said a hoarse voice behind them.

They all three turned their necks, surprised, and caught sight of Rainbow Dash in the middle of the living-room, on the red carpet she had stained with smears of mud and snow. They had been so monopolized into them in camera settling of scores they had not even heard the noises behind the door.

“How—How did you come in?!”, Blueblood yelled at her.

“I only messed up a bit the ponies placed at the entrances. Not on my own, of course…”

In front of the wide opened door where were piled up guards, sitting directly on the stallions dressed in white, was a pink earth mare, a big smile on her apparently harmless face.

As for Rainbow Dash, also dressed in white – as a sign of mourning – she was standing at a few inches behind them, her sword tied at her flank and her wings spread. Remnants of her wound was in fact still visible, some kind of scab between vermilion and black. She displayed a bandage on a hind thigh and seemed to be feeling no shame to show him she had been injured last night.

Suddenly embarrassed, Rarity shook her head in order to get rid of the wicker tumbler hanging on her horn. Nerves were necessary to walk into the lion’s den this way, with only one sword and one bodyguard, as dreadful as she was. It was really daring… and really stupid as well.
Against all expectations, Blueblood waved at the Servants of the room waiting for his orders not to do anything, and let Fluttershy’s tail go, the mare going to take shelter, rolled into a ball, behind the couch, and he made a few steps in Rainbow Dash’s direction.

“What do I owe this absurd visit from you? Do you realize that if I decide, I can get your throat cut in the second?”

“By a henchpony? What a sign of bravery! What if for once you were the one staining your hooves? You want my head on a plate, don’t you? Come and chop it yourself!”

This was a simple idea. Everything could be settled down right here and right now. Since he wanted to be king, since he regarded this role as his natural right, all he had to do was to prove his determination to her. He could get rid of the threat represented by The Militia immediately if he wanted to. It would only take him to grab his sword and fight against her.

Enough ponies had suffered because of this cause he believed in so much he was sending others to bite the dust. She was exhausted and preferred to die right now while doing her duty than to wait for somepony to stab her in the back… or to kill one more of the ones she loved the most.

If that was Equestria he wanted, she was here so he would show her how bad he longed for a conquest of the nation.

She had expected anything, but not him to laugh in her face as if she had delivered the worst nonsenses. Even Rarity, silent by his side, opened her eyes wide from his reaction. His laugh was crystalline, sincere, something from deep inside.

It was cute to come under the enemy’s roof in order to demand them to fight immediately so they would settle down all the scores, but that was not the way he worked. To kill her right here would do nothing but arouse anger from the rest of her Council whom would dash to apply the Sacred Law and so to avenge her. That was not how things were supposed to happen.

“Hilarious. I’ve never heard anything so funny in ages. Look around… If you make a single step with your sword unsheathed, you won’t even have time to brush my mane that you’ll already be dead and gone. And I’d take an advantage from it to hang your pink friend over there… Then I’d cut your family member’s throats and before I’ll kill her, I’d raped your mother and her pair of deformed wings. Kudos, by the way. Even I had not crippled my mother by coming into existence!”

Rainbow Dash’s face was painted in red. Frowning, a vein was pulsating right beside her ears, at each side of her face. A lightning went through her eyes, as if for a second it almost had taken the same color than the carpet on the floor.

Blueblood was secretly exulted. All he hoped was for the Black Blood to display, so that she would be unable to suppress her anger and then, the Servants around would have a good reason to use their weapon against her. If she got carried away, The Militia would not be able to shake under his muzzle their thing with the Sacred Law since he would be in his right to demand to apply it, being the victim.

But like him right before, she avoided his pitfall. Herself, she succeeded in not letting the curse emerge, despite all the horrible things he could have implied. She had learned a lesson ever since August Charmer. Of course, sometimes schemes and strategies were not the most appropriate solutions, but in this case, to think and to put things into perspective were the best things to do. He wouldn’t trap her so easily, as if she was nothing but a rookie fighter.

“Alright”, she said with her chin up and sticking out her chest. “Let’s keep it that way for now… But we’ll take a raincheck.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

“Beware. Next time, that could be us who’ll catch you off-guard. And when this day will come, you’ll have to be accountable for your actions, Blueblood.”

“I’m shaking”, he added with disdain.

“That’s it, have fun while you can. When we shall see each other again, I swear on Time Stellar’s sepulcher… I’ll be the one chopping your head off, and I’ll send it to Princess Luna and Celestia in a lovely wrapping paper.”

As a sign of defiance, and to show she really meant what she had said, Rainbow Dash spat on the floor. Then, she left the room flying backwards to make sure no guard would try to attack her in her back, until she had joined Pinkie Pie, still sitting on the guards, her hooves and her croup crushing a certain amount of them.

Right after, both disappeared after a pink sparkle, an evidence that Twilight was not far or at least that she could follow their conversation one way or another.

There were a few seconds of wavering, where each of them were thinking about what had been said. Something had happened, for sure, because after this short moment of assimilation, Blueblood looked in a sunny mood as sudden as it was unexpected.

Yet, according to Rarity, there was nothing to be very pleased with. He had just been threatened to death by one of the most redoubtable fighter ever, and none ignored what kind of fate had met ponies like Wind Rider or August Charmer, after they had suffered from her anger.

“I owe you apologies, Rarity… I’ve been blinded by vexation.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Thanks to his magic, he made flown the handkerchief Fluttershy had tried to give to her, and wiped away the juice from berries on her mane and face.

“The plan was good yet not successful enough. I should have thought they would respond the way they did. You weren’t to blame at all. No, you’ve been just perfect.”

After he had humiliated her so much, he finally acknowledged his faults. She was happy, she could not help yet at the same time, she couldn’t deny that his unpredictable behavior kept on unsettling her. Each time he gave her words like this, she could not resist. And she hated it.

He turned around and walked to the back of the room where his other Servants were standing and had seen everything without moving an inch.

“The Militia think they’re going to attack first, that they can use our own methods against ourselves. They’re wrong. Let’s change our way to operate. This time the plan will be perfect and will allow us to get rid of the whole Council at the same time.”

Author's Note:

Busy, busy, busy, so I don't have time to fix any mistake, sorry
(I'll do it as soon as possible)

Comments

[Dusk_Writer]

I fear for Equestria if Blueblood ever did win…

This time the plan will be perfect and will allow us to get rid of the whole Council at the same time.”

Haha, you're funny Blueblood!