A Diplomatic Visit

by Evilhumour

Chapter Twenty Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

The inside of the Wolf’s Den was a spectacular sight, to Twilight’s eyes. The hall was massive, and though nowhere near as fancy-looking as the throne rooms of Canterlot Castle or the Crystal Castle, it had its own beauty that Twilight was in awe of.

It was full of painted murals of past events that Twilight guessed were from the various packs’ histories. From the ceiling hung globes of a glowing white stone, and in the center of the room an enormous white slab was set up as a table. It was surrounded by several rings of raised stone, which were clearly meant to serve as seating for the various attendees, of whom she could see over a dozen or two already in place.

She was uncertain of where exactly she should go, before she saw Wise-Mind in one seat next to several older-looking wolves who were as large Wise-Mind, gesturing for her to come to him. Doing so, she sat down quietly by his side, and began looking around the walls at the murals, marveling at the skill that must have gone into them. Wise-Mind, seeing where her eyes were going, gave her a friendly smile of his own. “It is a wondrous sight, yes, young Grace Sparkle?”

“It is,” Twilight said. “It’s amazing.”

“I am pleased you like it,” Wise-Mind told her. “Generations of stories are recorded on these walls, both in this Den and around the many other caverns within the Great Mound. It is our history, and we treasure it greatly.”

Her eyes darted around before noticing the slightly annoyed looks on the other Packleader’s faces and the amused look on the older wolves, who were no doubt the Elders of their packs. She was confused by it before remembering what it was like in Canterlot with the nobles and no doubt this was something similar and the Elders were just being like Fancy Pants.

Finally, after a last few groups had entered and found their seats, another wolf with grayish fur, faintly streaked with a color that she couldn’t quite make out, entered the room and took a standing position at the table in the center. Like the Packleaders were to Swift-Pad and other normal wolves, he was much larger and more intimidating than the other wolves present, as she had felt about Wise-Mind when he first arrived. This wolf also wore several strings of complex-looking runes, and had a sort of... deepness to his eyes that she was unable to quantify.

“The Gathering has begun,” he announced in a rumbling voice that reverberated around the room, commanding complete attention from everyone present. “To the latest changeling nobility, I bid you welcome, Prince Thorax.” He raised his paw towards the group of changelings, where Twilight could spot the Queens she had met yesterday surrounding Thorax who stood up shyly in front of everyone, waving meekly as she would have done before all of this. Pharynx, who was standing by his brother, simply rolled his eyes at Thorax’s timidity, but she could see a hint of pride in his eyes at the same time.

“And to the first Equestrian ambassador we have permitted to enter our lands in almost a century, I also bid you welcome, Princess Twilight Sparkle,” the wolf announced.

Twilight could feel every eye in the room on her, along with several quiet murmurs, as she stood as well and bowed with her right wing at her barrel and kept her head upright. “Thank you, for allowing me to be here,” she said as she brought up her head.

“It is my pleasure, your highness,” he said with a twinkle in his eye. “I hope you have found my land to be… acceptable to your tastes?” He growled the last part with a faint chuckle. Twilight felt a small sense of dread as she was aware this wolf was immensely important and yet had no idea of his identity.

“The Packlands have proven to be a highly educational experience for me,” she replied. “A land full of life, and wonderful people, many of whom I am proud to call my friends.”

He chuckled again as he leaped onto the table, and began to stalk towards her, seeing he was roughly the same height of Celestia. “You have no idea who I am, do you?”

“No sir, I do not,” Twilight admitted, maintaining eye contact with him.

“I am he who cast aside his birth name long before your Princess Celestia and her sister began to rule Equestria,” he said, a light growl in his voice. “I am the wolf who drove Grogar the Necromancer out of the southern regions and towards the Frozen North, where the unicorn you would know of Gusty the Great was able to finish what I began by depriving him of his iron bell and banishing him into the deepest caverns below the Yaket Range. I am the wolf who brought the individual packleaders of this continent together to form a united nation of wolves, which welcomed all who felt they needed a home. I… am the Lord of Summer and the Alpha of this land, he whom all wolves answer to.”

Twilight, still maintaining eye contact, gave him a deeper bow. “I am honored to meet you,” she said.

He stared at her and chuckled again. “I see that Celestia has yet to teach you all that she should have,” he continued to chuckle in a large rumble as he paced in front of her. “No matter, time is something not of concern and thus a chance to learn what you should know and may need to know.”

Twilight felt a slight shiver in her heart as she heard his words and remembered, faintly, what Luna had said during their last talk. She shook it off though. “I have learned much, and yet I know I still have much to learn,” she said. “My time here has helped me to see that.”

Still chuckling, the Alpha returned to his spot in the center of the room. “Well then!” he boomed. “Let us continue. The first matter is, of course, our most infamous prisoner, the Grand Queen Chrysalis, the Ancient One. Now that Thorax has ascended to the level of a Prince, we are forced to once again to determine what to do with an old and powerful changeling.” He barked out, pacing along the table, eying everyone as he spoke. “We are still left with three options for her and her hive. Death, Sealment into the form of our choosing, or she remains as she is to ensure that thirty thousand five hundred sixty changelings do not die from her hive rupturing as a result of two leaders struggling for dominance.” He turned sharply on the changeling group. “Are you ready for the last transformation, to go from innocent spring into mature summer or are we looking at a poor harvest?”

Thorax looked embarrassed at the attention forced on him but managed to reply. “No, Alpha, I am not,” he said shaking his head glumly. “While Princess Sparkle’s willing donation allowed me to complete this stage, the fact is that at this time, I do not have enough love energy gathered to fuel the final metamorphosis.”

“A poor harvest then,” the Alpha said with grunt. “So we are left with no option at all then; either we accept Chrysalis’ demand to be reunited with her hive or we let all those changelings perish or be changed away. Failure at all points, though the blame does not rest at your hooves, Prince Thorax.”

There was a low unhappy murmur at this announcement with Twilight looking around, seeing no one was offering a solution to this problem. Biting her lip, she thought back to her instructions of not making any declarations on Equestria’s behalf as she still did not have any official training before she stood up, causing everyone to stare at her. “Alpha, I may have a solution to this.”

“May?” he asked, turning to face her with a pointed look that was causing her instincts to go wild and it was only a force of will that kept her from running away. “I do not care for possibilities when there are so many lives at stake. Do you or do you not have a solution, Princess?”

“I know of a solution, but I do not know if she will be willing to help though I doubt she will say no,” Twilight replied back, standing her ground as he stalked back to her, a fierce aura radiating off of him.

“It is my understanding that in order to achieve his final metamorphosis, Prince Thorax requires a great deal of love energies,” she continued. “I might be able to persuade my sister-in-law Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, the Alicorn of Love, to donate those energies.”

“Do not dangle a promise like that in front of us, Princess,” a changeling Queen she did not know said sharply, glaring at her. “After what the fallen Queen did to her, why would she ever wish to help one of our kind?”

“And to that, how are we to know that you will not just use this as an excuse to hold the young Prince hostage until such a time the hive ruptures and dies as revenge?” another Queen buzzed angrily with voices from the Gathering demanding similar questions.

“If I had meant to let him die, why would I have willingly given him the magic, and my own emotional energies, that he needed to achieve his current form?” Twilight countered back angrily. “As I have said more than once in recent days, my only quarrel is with his former Queen. The changeling race as a whole is not my enemy nor is it Equestria’s. As a Princess of Equestria myself, I recognize the changeling race as being innocent of the crimes that one Queen and part of her hive committed against my home, my ponies and my family and I give Prince Thorax and those who accompany him the same protection any one of my citizens has under the authority vested in me by virtue of my status as an alicorn and a Princess of Equestria.” She stated this loudly, allowing her magic to radiate off of herself as she spread out her wings, quelling the voices of dissent in the Gathering with the Alpha walking up to her.

“Do you really mean all that you said, young Princess,” the Alpha said, eyeing her with the same intension she had experience when Celestia was imprinting serious matters to her.

Twilight nodded. “If I lie, may my horn be broken, my wings clipped and my legs broken,” she said sharply, recalling the old oaths to the Princess Sisters, hoping it would resonate with the Alpha.

He tilted his head slowly, a smile appearing on his face. “Then I thank you, Princess of Equestria, for your unexpected generosity and kindness and I am forever reminded of the true power of the principles of friendship that your nation based itself on, as we all should be.”

“I wish that to be for all of us, Alpha of the wolves,” Twilight said. “I wish we can forgive the past and forge a new future between our nations, remembering and celebrating the friendship we have now and the one we can grow in the future together.”

“As I do I, your highness,” the Alpha said, nodding his head. “And I see no reason that it cannot be.” He held his paw towards her, with Twilight taking it in her hoof. “To forgiving the past and forging a better future, oh Lady of Magic.”

“To forgiving the past and forging a better future, oh Lord of Summer,” she returned.

As they shook paw and hoof, the Alpha suddenly let out a barking laugh. “Oh, you truly have learned much,” he said, still chuckling loudly with the sound bouncing off the walls. “You speak well for one who has not yet completed her full training. Yes, this includes forgiving all transgressions, including one that a long-gone citizen of your nation has made.” He turned and looked among his wolves and said loudly. “Blueblood, descendent of Nobleblood the Shameless Fool is absolved of needing to fulfill the debt of honour his ancestor left for him.” There was a larger outcry to this, with many wolves arguing with each other which the Alpha let go before silencing them with a long piercing howl. “Enough,” he snapped, causing all to jump back. “We will, of course, be in discussion with your nation, Princess of Equestria, to see who exactly will be forgiven. And rest assured, Chrysalis is not to be given clemency by this decree. Though she might have sought sanctuary here, she lost that the moment she attacked your nation.”

“Understood,” Twilight nodded her head.

“I see you fully do,” the Alpha said, smiling at her. “You may be seated for we have much more to discuss and I doubt you wish to remain standing for the entire meeting, Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight nodded again and sat down.

“Now that that is done,” the Alpha said as he stalked back towards his seat. “We can begin the second matter of this meeting. The reports from our Observers.”

Twilight watched as Well-Hidden rose from his own spot and began to speak, reading off some of the events they had discussed on their way to All-Home. The temporary departure of Cerberus from his duties, the discovery that two creatures had escaped Tartarus during his absence, one Bugbear that was still being tracked and one unidentified being that they were still seeking to locate; their observations regarding the return of the Crystal Empire and the final destruction of Sombra’s horn, the gathering at Slice n' Dice’s farm where a small group of ponies had freely and gladly mingled with the citizens of the Packlands.

“There is also the matter of another who has been freed from his prison,” he announced. “Though he had earlier made an escape and was subsequently re-sealed in stone after creating much havoc, more recently the Grace Celestia chose to give parole to Discord, the Spirit of Disharmony and Champion of Chaos. Through learning the ways of friendship and discovering that he had come to value it, he has chosen to aid her nation, and it is my understanding that while he has made more than one friend there, it was Fluttershy, friend of her Grace Twilight, who played the greatest role in his decision at the time. I have personally witnessed his declaration of protection towards her.”

There were several low mutterings from the crowd at that.

“Though I am greatly disappointed in Equestria withholding such information from us and the world,” the Alpha said, shaking his head slowly. “Princess Celestia is not known as the Teacher of the World without reason. She is among the wisest of us long-lived ones and her experience has led her to make decisions that, though they seem odd at first, have in the long run brought in a bountiful harvest for us all. It seems she has done so once more, twice over,” he said before narrowing his eyes. “Though that does not mean she is perfect; she is mortal like any one of us and can err. This will, my pack and friends, will be brought up in the next international gathering of leaders from across the world.” That seemed to calm everyone down and Twilight found herself nodding in approval at his words before she was aware of what she was agreeing with.

After a few more items, Well-Hidden completed his report.

After this, the Alpha called other wolves up to report on the news from their own packs, along with representatives from other non-wolf groups that had come to the Gathering. Twilight listened carefully to each speaker, most of whom seemed to be giving routine news from the reactions of the other wolves, though she paid special attention when it was Wise-Mind’s turn. She heard more than a few surprised exclamations from the audience when he announced how Twilight and her friends - including a member of the Apple Clan - had met and accepted Slice n' Dice without a second thought, in spite of the mare’s history and exile from her birth clan, and told of how it appeared that the Equestrian Border Guard was getting a severe tongue-lashing from Princess Luna as a result, with more than a few of its members being dismissed outright for wrong-doing - something he had apparently had one of his pack-members confirm since Twilight had told him what she thought was happening.

Finally, the Alpha called up a wolf from the Packlands’ Diplomatic corps to read the report Swift-Pad had made.

“Ambassador Swift-Pad’s experiences in Equestria went rather well, all things considered,” the wolf announced. “He met a number of ponies who were welcoming to him, once they had learned his identity and were assured that he sought to do no harm.” The report went on, telling of a few things Twilight recalled, such as the run-in with Spoiled Rich, though Swift-Pad had been quick to note that it seemed the snobby mare turned her nose up at anyone whom she did not recognize as being of higher social status than herself.

He also read of the meeting in Canterlot, of Twilight’s desire to visit the Packlands, and her earnest and genuine desire to complete the work Nobleblood had spurned through his insults. He read several notes regarding Twilight and her friends, and what he had observed of them, including their opinions regarding the PVE. In particular, the section on Rainbow Dash and her using their pamphlets as firelighters resulted in roars of laughter from all over the room, including from the Alpha.

When they had finally calmed, the wolf read the final section. “The most startling element of the Ambassador’s time in Canterlot,” he announced, “Came during his meeting with her Grace Celestia and her Grand Grace Luna, blessed be She, during which he presented her Grand Grace with the warhammer we crafted for her over a thousand years ago. During this presentation, she was able to offer solid proof that she was indeed her Grand Grace of old, returned to this realm after her long imprisonment.”

There was a sudden uproar at this, and it took the Alpha calling for order before everyone in the room calmed down.

“At the same time, she made the statement that neither she nor her sister were divine beings, nor had they ever claimed to be. What’s more, their Graces have informed the Ambassador that they do not want to be worshipped, on the grounds that it distances them from their citizens and all other non-alicorns.”

Twilight flattened her ears as the uproar returned.

“The Ambassador feels that the story of her Grand Grace’s return is one that is best told by her Grace Twilight Sparkle, as she was not only present for this event, but played a key role in her Grand Grace’s return to herself,” the wolf stated, as he rolled up the report and stepped down.

The Alpha once again turned to Twilight. “The Ambassador’s statement has been made,” he rumbled. “Then, Princess Twilight, come forth and tell the story you have carried.”

Twilight nodded, approached the table in the center of the room, took a deep breath to calm herself, and then spoke.

She told of how she had learned the Mare in the Moon was due to return, how Princess Celestia had seemingly dismissed her fears and sent her to Ponyville, advising her to make friends. She told how she had seen the shape of the Mare in the Moon disappear from the skies, how Nightmare Moon herself had presented herself to the citizens of Ponyville when they expected Princess Celestia. Of the journey she and the five ponies she had met made through the Everfree Forest in search of the Elements of Harmony, facing Nightmare Moon’s challenges all the way. How she came to realize that her newfound friends were the ones to represent the powers of the Elements of Harmony, and the spark that would ignite them was the spark of Friendship. How they had called upon these powers to purge Luna of the Nightmare that had taken over her body, restoring her to herself and reuniting her with her sister, before learning the full truth of Luna’s identity and how Celestia had been forced to banish her away in the first place.

“Since then, we have used the powers of the Elements to defeat Discord, and later to release him when Princess Celestia asked,” she said. “With their power, I and my friends-” My human friends, she thought to herself - “Were able to purge another mare, the unicorn Sunset Shimmer, of dark powers that she had unwittingly channeled when attempting to seize the power of my Element. And through them, we were able to restore the energies of the Tree of Harmony that protects the Everfree Forest and stop the Plundervines that were wreaking havoc there, having finally sprouted more than a thousand years after Discord originally planted them.”

The room had been utterly silent as she told her story. Now that she had completed it, one of the Packleaders rose.

“For restoring our Grand Grace to herself, you and your friends have my thanks,” he said. “Mine and my pack’s.”

One by one, several other Packleaders rose and made the same statement. Finally, when most, if not all of them, had done so, the Alpha faced Twilight.

“Harmony has chosen well,” he said to her, nodding his head in approval. “We shall take a short recess before we continue once more. Your highness, if you will accompany me, I will have the papers drawn up to ratify the promises we made with each other’s nation and you can send them off to your fellow Princesses so they can prepare for the arrival of Prince Thorax and the entourage of changelings that will be accompanying him.”

Twilight gave him a nod of agreement and walked towards him, entering a side room in the Great Mound that appeared to be like Celestia’s own study, with rugs covering the floor and a desk buried with papers.

“I am going to guess this is just more than simply signing some papers?” she asked, raising an eyebrow as the Alpha walked towards a cabinet and pulled out a bottle of apple cider that appeared to have been made at Applejack’s farm.

“Of course it is,” he said, offering her a glass silently with Twilight politely shaking her head in the negative. “While she is your mentor, far older and wiser and a greater Power than I, I am still a Lord and I would be failing in my responsibilities if I did not aid you more, Twilight.” He poured himself a glass and raised it to his lips. “There is a reason I called you Lady of Magic as that is who you are; who you have been since the day you awoke your Element and used its powers, in conjunction with those Elements of your friends, to free Princess Luna from her Nightmare, also known as the former Lady of Nightmare Umbrea of the shadow magic pony sect, the same that spawned that monster Sombra into the world.”

“Wh… what do you mean by…” Twilight said, stumbling to comprehend all of this.

“There is a greater order to our existence, Twilight, and you have been a part of it for a long time,” he said and shook his head as she began to grind her teeth in frustration. “You are mad at Celestia, I can tell but don’t be. What we are, while important is not that important, and at the time, you would not be ready for such challenges when you were coming into your own and growing your friendship with your friends in Ponyville. You are still very young and she was just protecting you and letting you grow to become the mare you are now without feeling the pressure of this newfound duty. Do you honestly think you would have coped well to know the full extent of being a Power like you are back when you first left her side?”

Twilight bowed her head. “There are times I still have a hard time coping with being a Princess,” she admitted. “Now, now I don’t know what to think.”

“You do,” the Alpha said, fixing his eyes into her. “You are better and smarter than that and do not insult me by giving me a filly’s answer. I saw a Princess out there and I expect her not to just vanish into thin air.”

Twilight took a breath of air and then straightened herself, feeling a surge of confidence return to her. “If you’d seen me earlier this week, the night I caused such a panic by teleporting, you’d have seen me at one of my lower points,” she admitted. “I have much more to learn, but I am certain that knowing all of this was waiting for me when I had just moved to Ponyville would have been a disaster, let alone being a Power. Whatever that is.” Twilight shook her head. “The fact that Princess Celestia withheld this from me is upsetting but I can understand I was not ready for it. I hope that I am able to prove to her that I am ready when I see her again,” she replied with a confident smile on her face.

“When you see her again,” the Alpha replied with his own smirk. “That implies you are not going back to Equestria after this diplomatic visit.”

“No, I’m not.” Twilight answered him. “I have been thinking about it for a while and it would be wrong of me to just go back to Equestria when there is an entire world out there. I am the Princess of Friendship and I would be failing in my duties if I did not extend my hoof out to all those I could. That means I will visit the other countries of the world if they will have me and do what I can to mend the divides and foster a new age of friendship in the world.”

“In that case, let me be the first one to hail you for your successes,” the Alpha said, holding his head up high. “To you, Lady of Magic, Princess of Friendship and Equestria, Librarian of the Golden Oaks, Twilight Sparkle of Ponyville, may your mission be bountiful and bring a fresh crop across the world.”

Twilight blushed. “And to you, Alpha of the Packlands, Great Uniter of the Packs, Lord of Summer, I give my thanks,” she said.

Comments

[SpikeSmolder fan]

That was quite the fast update, it was a very interesting first part of The Gathering so far, of course that could all change depending on what *Chrissy* will do when she shows up around here.

Also glad to see this side of Twilight in terms of re-establishing the bonds of friendship well beyond the borders of Equestria, wonder if she will try contacting the dragons again before the Gauntlet of Fire comes about?

Can't wait to see what else happens at The Gathering when recess is over!

[Asolem2]

“To forgiving the past and forging a better future, oh Lord of Summer,” she returned.

I didn't think about it until she called him "Lord of Summer" in response to him caller her "Lady of Magic", but is he the actual Lord of Summer, the Power and does this mean that the various seasons have their own Power?

“Though that does not mean she is perfect; she is mortal like any one of us and can err. This will, my pack and friends, will be brought up in the next international gathering of leaders from across the world.”

Oh cool they have one of those

“Of course it is,” he said, offering her a glass silently with Twilight politely shaking her head in the negative. “While she is your mentor, far older and wiser and a greater Power than I, I am still a Lord and I would be failing in my responsibilities if I did not aid you more, Twilight.” He poured himself a glass and raised it to his lips.

So seasons really do have Powers... neat

[Earthpatriot117]

Huh....I was expecting something big to happen/kinda go wrong.
Thou twilight visiting other countries was a twist. Xd