For his hard work to the Crown, the Royal Engineer of Equestria has been honored with a retinue of VIP bodyguards who protect him everywhere he goes. Their ordinary, everyday adventures together wind up being anything but ordinary.
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Update! Yeeesss
Well, that was thoroughly unsatisfying.
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Yeah, sorry, this installment is a bit of a buzzkill. But then, that's life sometimes, isn't it? On the other hand, The Royal Engineer is now feeling rather motivated to learn how to fight...
What the fuck was that.
Welp, started reading last night, binge read to chapter 49, fell asleep, and now I got to read the new chapter. This is a good day.
This is a great story, thank you for sharing it with us and for the updates
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Yeah, that's how it goes sometimes. I figured something like this was coming, but it was still deflating to read. Ah well.
I actually really like the political explanation for why this guy is getting away with his attitude. It makes perfect sense and feels like a real bureaucratic and social standing headache.
Worst Pone is growing on me tbh. He's the kinda antagonist I like; skilled, intelligent, dangerous, and fully aware of it. I hereby dub him Dangerpone!
i.pinimg.com/originals/fb/03/1e/fb031e693a735ae19be465c53c95d83e.jpg
Who else is very dissapointed that this idiot get away so easy and dont care how mutch he messes up damn the non existing consequences? Cant Anon show Celestias memorys of this meeting?
Seriously that fucker is dirty as hell and Celestia couldnt possible keep him after all this shit! Hes not even remotely sorry.
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I think we all are.
A smug, slimy asshole with power and privilege who faces no consequences for his actions, not even a good clock on the jaw.
How realistic.
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Politics.
Lieutenant Killfeather seems to be very certain that he could get away with almost anything with his current position. He's politically backed up by some of the highest-ranking meritocratic reformers in the Royal Guard looking to get rid of useless noblemen buying Officer commissions with their wealth and noble status. The Pas-De-Sabots organized by Major-General Hoofstrong and implemented and exploited by the Lieutenant did much to embarrass that nobility in front of the common ponies. To throw the Lieutenant under the bus with a court-martial would be nothing short of bowing down to the noble ponies who'd want to see Killfeather removed and the status quo restored.
I am not entirely sure what sort of trouble could the Lieutenant get Anonymous into by denying his request, but having allies in such high positions in the Royal Guard but it certainly might not help his plan to industrialize Equestria. The Royal Guard bigwigs could paint Anonymous as another Elitist Nobleman and make his own reforms unpopular with the common pony. They could harass him with endless bureaucratic hurdles. I am unsure if it could be possible, but they might even put charges against Glamerspear for theft of Royal Guard property by unlawfully taking Killfeather's helmet if they can prove it. Without a clear benefit to keeping his helmet other than slightly inconveniencing him, it'd be in Anon's best interest to return it.
Though at least it seems that this awful encounter has made Anon find reinvigorated interest in his own combat training. ⚔
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You'll then be very excited to learn that this is nowhere near the last time that Anon will have to delve into the politics of Equestria. He certainly didn't know all that he was getting into when he propositioned his plan to revolutionize Equestria. 😉
Yep Ebonshield is about to regret all of her lies, Anon is officially mad. Otherwise he will not be in such a hurry to start training. He needs to vent frustration and if Ebonshield is not careful she will be the punching bag for him.
Je what comes around goes around, I suppose, time to see how the magic of Equestria affected his strength. If he is now able to slash a dummy in half with one swing then she will be in big trouble
This was an interesting chapter.
Looking forward to the Engineer bringing down Kilfeather though.
Hopefully Politically as well as just in a duel.
Icepone needs his wings clipped a little.
Somehow I'd managed to convince myself that this had gone to weekly, instead of every second day, so pleasantly surprised to see another chapter up!
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Well, He did get a really good beating back at Newstirrup Bridge, alongside two of his cronies.
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I am certain he could, with the Princesses magic, albeit all that it might do would be to show what a slimy ass Killfeather really is, not prove any particular misdeeds he might've done.
The Princesses might be, in the end, too busy to deal with this particular issue by themselves. As mentioned before, the Princesses' time is invaluable and even taking the time to drink cookies and tea with the Royal Engineer outside of court takes precious time off their hooves. They might also not be so keen on getting into a political internal conflict between their subjects in the interest of not giving the impression that they're taking a side on the issue. They've also made sure to create the bureaucratic structures to deal with such issues so as to not lose all of their invaluable time micromanaging their country when someone else can do it.
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I think Ebonshield merely lied to make things easier with Lieutenant Violetta, who already seems to mistrust her. As for why Ebonshield seems so eager to have the Royal Engineer train in combat... well, it does bring a few questions into mind.
oh you just gotta love politics
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Oh my god you are right! What if she is a spy?
You'd think someone so obsessed with noble protocols would be aware of how often nobles simply hire assassins to do away with annoyances. And as chance would have it, the Royal Engineer just so happens to have a trained assassin in his retinue.
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I hate that you are right What nice a bullshit situation to endure...
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Nice idea but hes not worth that mutch trouble... yet
---
I know its not going to happen but i remotly hoped for anything like that ( 0:30 )
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Ponytics. Just as slimey as the real deal.
Always annoying when you deal with an ego that seems to be capable of ignoring any and all damage it receives.
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I mean Kilfeather already got mashed. He's within the law to request the helmet back as it technically belongs to the royal guard and had been assigned to him. I don't think that Anon's going to undermine Celestia's laws for the sake of a little pride. This is especially important since he'll want people to trust in the rule of law and safety standards of the new world he's engineering.
Was hoping he would record the confrontation, like a good non idiot. That sort of thing might not exist, perhaps?
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If it does. Its probably magical in nature and he doesnt have one.
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True, but he’s still up to no good even after that.
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As gratifying as that would be to happen, it would go against normal moral obligations pesky things.
Plus, there is something soo~ satisfying about beating the villain at their own game. And I can't wait until it happens.
There she goes changeling on us again!
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Just a hint of contextual vaguery, this time; Kilfeather was doing the grinning as (Lily's) VIP laid into him. The vaguery has been removed.
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Which lies, again?
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Disappointed? Maybe. But I think Anonymous made the right call here -- Kilfeather is ultimately not worth raising a stink over a mere wrecked helmet over, and technically that’s all he asked for this time.
That said, I can keep my temper in check well enough by just looking at the matter as giving the smug asshole that bit more rope to eventually hang himself with. It’s pretty obvious that he’s not actually quite as clever as he thinks he is, and that’s just the sort of character flaw that tends to not only invite poetic justice, but also draw it a map and hand it a schedule...
Kilfeather is both politically backed enough and small enough fry to not be worth the effort to fight with. Just a symbol for necessary reforms that is smart enough not to make unnecessary enemies, but cocky enough not to leverage how troublesomely petty he can be. Politics indeed.
Anon not only recognized that, he also recognized that although he's assumedly an asshole he was also a test. Not antagonizing him needlessly will likely go up the ranks by the time he needs top brass support. At the very least as someone smart enough to become competent in combat, getting his weird hooves dirty and not being an enemy of the armed forces.
On getting armour, let's see how the stone throwing monkey handles himself. Get strong enough steel (once he introduces it) and he'll certainly show them ponies how to properly grapple!
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Oh just a little white lies but in retrospective just very minor ones.
All this time it has been her who suggest (and well I wouldn't say insist and more like remind it) the idea of him learning to fight. Anon never even phantom the idea of fighting even once, not even after she mentions how others might challenge him, and he finally relinquish as a 'you know what? why not? It might curious to try at least once, I'm already excersising so maybe I could add just a bit more'
It wasn't until now he actually wish to learn how to fight.
But when requesting the armor everyone keep saying no, telling how he is a politician not a soldier so it will not make any sense or necessity for him to learn anything, and to that she keep saying "Oh I told him that but he keep insisting" Making it look like it was Anon who was pressuring her in the first place.
I get that she only want to speed things along but still she keep spouting lies and making him look a bit like a spoil brat just demanding what he wants.
That is why I think those lies will come back to her eventually. One way or another, because she is altering the facts to get her way, and as much as it pains me to say. What she is doing it similar to what Klieffeather did. Both are bending the facts a bit to get her way. And I bet the author is aware of that and is planning something with it.
Jeez... Kilfeather’s being really driven across as something that, while already beaten once, is bound to be a constant thorn in everyone’s side.
Like it’s all part of some grand plan beyond just what was said here thus far.
Slimy bastard...
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"Those whom the Gods would destroy, they first make proud. "
And
"Pride goeth before a fall. "
Icepone is very, very proud, and I'd not be at all surprised to see a fall (or maybe even a Humiliation Conga) in his future.
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Yep. If there’s one vice that you can pretty much rely on karma eventually punishing (at least in works of fiction, jury’s still out re: reality), it’s hubris. (Which is technically not quite synonymous with “pride” since one absolutely can have healthy amounts and forms of the latter -- hubris is just bad.)
That’s also where I think I see a key difference between Ebonshield and Kilfeather. They may both be playing somewhat fast and loose with the truth, but so far I’m happy to believe that Purity isn’t doing it for herself so much as in the name of simple efficiency in the line of duty and for the benefit of her appointed charge. Val Kilfeather, meanwhile? That guy pretty definitely is all about the ‘me-me-me’, so I’m not convinced it’s even really a contest. (Will this eventually come down to bite our favorite batpony anyway? Well, I suppose the chances of her little white lies eventually being discovered actually are pretty good, and misrepresenting your VIP is likely to be a fairly firm no-no for obvious reasons...but I kind of doubt the ‘bite’ will end up stinging too much in her case.)
I am kinda interested in the industrial revolution when do you think we will see that progress. And I don't mean the bit with that mine owner that got skipped over but more the actual ground work like opening factories and what not
Forgiveness IS the pony way- even when the smug (or rich) bugger doesn't deserve it.
Being slapped by karma if you didn't really mean to make amends is ALSO a very Equestrian thing to happen. Harmony doesn't show much kindness to the herd-breakers.
Kilfeather is an arrogant asshat that has ZERO clue what he's gotten himself into.
Kilfeather shook his head, twitching his ears. "They won't court-martial me. Not for all the outraged howls coming from the nobles I accosted at Oldstirrup Bridge. Not even for what you say I did. The leaders of the Royal Guard won't prostrate themselves towards the landed nobility and the idle rich -- not any more. They're trying to do away with purchased commissions and build a professional officer corps. They won't dare put me -- a non-noble officer, who cut his chops in the academy, an MXP champion and a decorated warrior -- on trial. It'll undo everything the Chiefs of Staff and the Minister of Defence have worked for."
(...)
And Major-General Hoofstrong knew it, too: the 'Pas de Sabots' was her idea in the first place. I just came along and implemented it for her, with glorious results. She'll fight to defend me, and she has friends. They'll even try to suppress the first encounter at Newstirrup Bridge."
He has very powerful people behind him and thinks he's untouchable. He is SO SURE of his immunity to consequences that he decided to meet with the Royal Engineer and demand his helmet back along with threatening to become an enemy if he didn't get it back. The smart thing to do in this instance was to shut up and pay the fine for loss of equipment or whatever.
Kilfeather understands NOTHING about the Royal Engineer.
Anonymous is not a member of the landed nobility, He is not one of the "idle rich."
He got his Noble Title through MERIT. The exact thing the Royal Guard reformers are trying to push for. Meritocracy.
Kilfeather's "friends" will fight to defend him for as long as he is useful. The moment they get the reforms they want they are going to do one of the following.
1. "Ask" him to retire and move on to opportunities in the civilian sector.
2. Reassign him to a great sounding unit and posting that is actually a career dead end. The equivalent of being put in charge of a radar post in northern Alaska.
3. They'll wait till he screws up again, which he will, and now that they have a fully meritocratic guard an officer that causes division in the guard or sets a bad example will no longer be tolerated and he will discharged, quite possibly dishonorably.
I sincerely hope if there is a next time, Kilfeather gets his wings shattered.
While unsatisfying, Anon made the right choice. There isn’t a good reason for him to get animosity with the upper ranks of the royal guard over a feud between the LT and his guard.
Kilfeather also thinks he untouchable, and people who think that of themselves usually get what they deserve.
Ah the joy of politics. There's a lesson here, short-term satisfaction is not worth long-term problems, better to be done with it and get on with things that actually matter.
Kilfeather is like Icarus, making passes at the sun. One day he'll fly to close and the Icepone will burn up. And I suspect, with Anon's penchant for justice, he'll be holding the proverbial spear that Kilfeather will fall on.
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Kilfeather gave too much information. He named who the "brains" behind the operation was, even if it was relative knowledge.
Any real commanding officer would try and bury the situation with what-ifs and conjectures, but a but if pressure and a general understanding will cause a lot of light for investigation it at least a lot of scrutiny, that would chafe people who regularly had free reign.
I mean, if the demotion or court-martial of a singular individual to be used as an example, say, one brazen, open mouthed idiot, no matter how skilled, would loosen the reigns on any spotlights on their operations...
So, why didn't Anon record that meeting? There were multiple admissions of treason from killfeather, and the guard couldn't let that slide if a confession showed up.
I have the odd feeling that someday killfeather and Anon will meet on the field of battle directly.
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I too, believe that's Anons Plan, he just used his position to get something that HE wanted, from a HIGH VIP, with at least three ponies confirming the act, and if the military trial have a "tell only the truth" Magic, he can't deny what he just said and did, "HERO" or not, there is consequences for everything.
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I suspect that Anon is working on getting the pieces together. He knows from history what worked and what did not, and what pitfalls to avoid to make it more seamless than what humanity experienced. Add into the mix that there are some things Magic could do to help alleviate or eliminate potential issues and you have a mix for a slow buildup, followed by a rapid onset when unleashed.
With his intelligence, he might take the initiative and have a testbed setup to try his ideas and ensure they are feasible on a large scale.
All of that takes time sadly.
Don’t know why Anon is being such a cuck. KillFeather literally wouldn’t let him pass unless he won a fight or gave him his property and a hostage which is illegal as fuck, even if it’s under an old law. That’s like saying if Equestria had an old Prima Nocta law that lets Anon rape a pony’s wife on their wedding existed it would just be okay. If Anon or anyone else tried doing something fucked up but an ancient law said was okay they’d still get in trouble because it breaks modern laws. It reminds me of how stupid modern day Germany is. It’s illegal to kidnap people, steal from ships and randsom people but because if you do all three it’s technically piracy. The only law punishing the crime of piracy is an old one that goes against no cruel or unusual punishment so whenever a pirate gets captured in Germany they’re literally just released slightly later because they’re going by a piracy protecall which they technically can’t enact anymore instead of just charging them for the crimes that make up piracy. It’s so stupid. If there was an ancient law that said a guard can kick a noble out of their home or literally anything else it would just be over written by modern laws that say you can’t just steal peoples homes and you can’t discriminate against someone for something, including for being a noble.
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There really isn't as much to be scrutinized from the ordeal than you may think.
The Pas-De-Sabots is, as mentioned before, a perfectly legal tradition of Pony culture potentially dating back centuries. Only noble ponies are halted in the Pas-De-Sabots and made to do battle and win or relinquish a coward's price in exchange of safe passage, as it's expected of these nobles to be warriors who should be ready at the beck and call of their ruler and defence of the realm. Meanwhile common, non-noble ponies and else are allowed safe passage without having to render battle or anything else, as they're not inherently expected to be warriors due to their lowly station or lack of allegiance to the crown.
The demand for a coward's payment is only performed with the explicit consent of both parties involved. The Royal Engineer had every right to and could've simply turned back and taken the longer road through Oldstirrup Bridge to get to Bitsmount mine or return to Canterlot and the Pas-De-Sabots would've let him go, as several nobles must've done when the Pas-De-Sabots moved to Oldstirrup Bridge, but the fact that the Engineer was under pressure to return the borrowed items in time made the situation most dire. The ponies in the Pas-De-Sabots are not highwaymen, even if some of them are scoundrels with a jousting permit.
Requesting a hostage as a coward's price is quite the demand from the Lieutenant, yes, but not outside of of the law (as mentioned before, the release of a coward's payment is done with the explicit consent of both parties, including the hostage (although Sparkshower is under service to Anonymous, she is still a Royal Guard and not his servant, and is well within her rights to reject any request to). All that being a hostage (in the context of the Pas-De-Sabots) would entail would be to be a guest of the hosts of the Pas-De-Sabots and bare witness to the accomplishments realized there until the end of the Pas-De-Sabots, after which she'd be let go on her merry way. Glamerspear herself mentions that Killfeather would never try anything with Sparkshower in there, as there would be too many witnesses. He'd therefore probably only try to use the opportunity to charm her and get closer to her.
Mayor-General Hoofstrong was perfectly within her legal rights to set up a Pas-De-Sabots and Lieutenant Killfeather also had the right to host it (despite being a non-noble he's still an officer and, therefore, considered a gentlecolt with the same rights as a noblepony), and probably most ponies with a bit knowledgeable about the situation between the nobles and the Royal Guard and the events at Oldstirrup Bridge would know this.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pas_d%27armes
In truth, the only things that Killfeather was outright in contradiction to the law were:
1. That he lost his equipment, property of the Royal Guard (It was Glamerspear who took it and is now retrieved, so the charges can only be taken back).
2. Moving the Pas-De-Sabots from Newstirrup Bridge to Oldstirrup bridge; as Lieutenant Colonel Percheron mentioned, Pas-De-Sabots are not meant to be ambulatory.
The claim that the Lieutenant's actions and words are treasonous would really not hold any water in court, even if they really are ruthless and immoral. Killfeather didn't say or do anything that could be interpreted as having a lack of loyalty to Equestria or the Princesses. The threats against the Royal Engineer are foreboding, yes, but are not any more unlawful than a lawyer threatening legal charges against a person or organization in defence of their client. Killfeather has enough backing from people high in the Royal Guard hierarchy that he'd be a fool to use violence or similar unlawful actions as a threat instead of the more effective and appropriate threat of political and legal actions against him.
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As mentioned, buried. But due to the small issues such as the challenge moving from place to place, it is completely within the rights of the upper courts to demand or submit an audit or an observer in all of the General's operations. And if you've ever seen or worked in any modern unit, and from some historical record back in the medieval and iron ages...
No CO has ever been able to escape the bean counters without getting super pissed.
Now whether or not that actually *does* anything is another question and situation entirely.