The Chef's cafe

by vincent789

Improving, and advancing part 2

It was the evening after Twilight's declaration to stay inside the slum district. She was given a reasonable home, but nothing too special. As she laid on bed she recounted the times she wanted to atleast stay a night inside the slums herself after the disaster. And after a while she chose to eventually she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Dream realm

Twilight walked around the now new and improved slums. It was quiet, she was the only one. As she inspected the city from above and below. She made a mental note to inspects the current sewage and water way situation. Regardless, this was one of the most tame dream she has had for years now.

While walking around, she bumped into someone. It was Luna. She also entered her dreamscape to keep an eye on Twilight's nightmares. When she entered, she expected fire to be around Twilight. When she saw none, she smiled.

"Have you finally gotten over your nightmares?" Luna asked Twilight. Her smile was soft, but behind her eyes you could tell that she was surprised to say the least.

Twilight shook her head, "I doubt I ever will. But this is a nice interlude. This is the slums in Canterlot by the way. I am currently sleeping in that house." Twilight points at the house on top of one of the buildings that had a small garden next to it.

"I see. Would you like to continue this nice dream? Shall I get going?" Luna asked curious. Her smile not leaving her face.

Twilight taps Luna with a more serious face. "Actually, now that you are here. I would like to discuss something important."

"Is that so?"

Twilight nodded, "Yes. It's about the future of Canterlot, or the Slums to be precise. You see, despite the fact that plenty of ponies are rich enough to increase their rank, they won't. And there is a good reason for it."

Luna's eyes widen, "Do tell. I will discuss this with my sister. What is the reason?"

"The next level in the slums rank is lower commoner. The lower commoners live inside the industry district. But according to a report, the living conditions inside the industry district is so terrible. Nopony dares to increase their rank because of it. We, the slums control center, will be looking into ways of solving it. But we don't have the power to control both districts."

"You need us, right?"

Twilight nodded, "That is correct. All we can do, is to solve the immediate issue. Which is the health concerns. By form of clinics and extensive medical knowledge. Some of our brightest within one of the many schools, will do their best to assist. But that is all we can do for them. The rest lays on the shoulders of you and Celestia."

Luna made a serious face for a moment. "You mentioned terrible living conditions. What does that mean exactly?"

"I don't know the extend. But it is serious enough to put the whole city in trouble. If nopony in the slums dare to increase their rank, than businesses in the commoners areas could soon lose out on potential workers and customers in the thousands. Since I talked to all manners of beings inside the slums, none dared to increase their rank due to stability issues inside the industry district."

Luna's mental gears were turning as she thought deeply about it. "I see."

"That is not to say that inside the slums its rainbows and sunshine. But they are a lot more intelligent. The people understand that there is problems. They know, and attempt to deal with it themselves. But as far as I know, the industry district doesn't have such good gears. If the workforce is ill, than companies and business suffer, if the conditions inside the companies are terrible, then nobody will replace the workforce. Which could eventually lead to the collapse of the industry district. Simply put, I am worried. I am going to attempt to iron out the issues in the slums, but I will leave the rest of Canterlot to you three." Twilight explained.

"That is fair. Good luck Twilight. I am going to need some luck too." Luna said before departing from the dream realm.

Twilight woke up a moment later herself. Twilight smiles to herself, she knows that she once again pushed a button of someone else to get the right reaction. That said, Twilight stood up from the bed she was sleeping on. She carefully inspected herself for a moment, before heading out to grab a breakfast inside one of the many cafes.

After eating a bagel and drinking some coffee. Twilight headed outside and towards the control center, also known as district center. While walking there, she spots a bunch of ponies that have some poor hooves, struggle to walk over the road. Road condition was worsening. Twilight knew this, but seeing the people suffering from it, crossed the line.

'Priority number one, fix those roads as soon as possible.' Twilight thought as she rushed towards her destination.

In mere moment later, Twilight entered into the district center. She was surprised when the amount of ponies that were working yesterday and tripled. Though most weren't working. They were waiting for something. They were waiting on her.

As soon as Twilight entered the conference room, everyone stood up straight and awaited further information. The forestallion nodded as Twilight as he pointed at her chair. Twilight nodded as she took a seat.

"Alright. Seeing as there are dozens or so of creatures waiting. Status report!" Twilight ordered.

The stallion that went to investigate the industry district came forwards, he tapped his papers together. "I got good and bad news. The good news is that the workforce isn't ill inside the industry district. The bad news? Well their physical living conditions inside living spaces, houses, parks, businesses, is down right illegal. It is so terrible, I almost thought that I was standing inside the slums as it used to be." he explained.

"I see. Give me a full paper report on that. I will send that information to Princess Luna. She will take care of it, for now." Twilight requested. The stallion nodded as he took a seat once more.

The stallion that was tasked to look into the reconstruction of the toolsmith came forward next. "I bring mostly good news. After we dismantled the tool smith, some creatures disagreed with us. And constructed a whole area within the district in charge of tool manufacturing. They have the tools and advanced tool manufacturing processes we lack at the moment. We do not need to worry on that front. Though they did want you to take a look."

Twilight nodded smiling, "I can do that. Anything else?"

"Yes. They want a spot within the trade area. Apparently they are unable to pay for ores required to make those tools. They want to, but are currently unable to do so. They want to sell those tools." He continued.

"Tell you what. I will firstly take a good look at their tools, before deciding such a matter." Twilight compromised.

"They hoped you would say that. Gladly. Take this," The stallion gives Twilight their business card. "That is the location of the tool smith in charge of that area."

"Understood. Thank you very much." Twilight said as she beacons the next stallion to the podium.

The forestallion actually came forward this time, "I want to give a more extended report on the road conditions and current situation in that regards." He explained.

"Go ahead."

"I checked the roads up once more. And well, the roads terrible conditions is now causing the comfort in the district to go down. Because of this, I drafted a few ideas for road designs. Please take a look." The forestallion placed three pictures in front of Twilight.

"Please explain them to me. While I inspect the pictures." Twilight requested, causing forestallion to nod.

"Alright. The first picture is how the road used to be. It gets repaired but no improvements will be made. It is said to last ten years." The forestallion explained, Twilight could tell it was an older design. The road appeared to have been made with cobblestone in a halve circle form to allow the water to flow off the road itself. It wasn't very walk friendly.

"Second one is the design used in the noble and commoners district. It's flatter, it has better ergonomics and is also cheaper to construct. It will last five years." It was a flat more tile like cobblestone. Much better for walking on and traveling on by cart. But it was a copy of an existing road system. Twilight was unsure if this was a good idea. It could create conflict among the nobles.

"The final one is a weird one in my eyes. It's a modern design, made with our youngest and brightest students. Made using a combination with tiles and hardened gravel. It is designed to separate the use of traffic and the walking folk. It also has advanced and improved water drainage system in the form of water tunnels leading to the outskirts of Canterlot. The hardened gravel can be increased or entirely removed in areas not meant for carriages." The forestallion explained. Twilight was impressed by it. It was something original, yet very advanced.

*The readers of the book could compare it to modern day road systems. It had hardened gravel in the center of the road, on the side sat tiled stone for a fancy and comfortable way to travel. And safe, since the chance of getting hit by a carriage will be reduced greatly. Twilight was beyond impressed.

"So which is it?"

"The modern road system. I want to see that one being made. Give me an estimate on resource and workers costs. I will pay it out of pocket. I also want the road system to get a map made, to specify areas where we don't want carriages and areas where we only want carriages." Twilight requested.

"Very well. That is all, I will give the ponies downstairs the good news." The forestallion said before leaving the conference room all together.

Twilight suddenly smiled, "I had a feeling those ponies knew me best. The truth is everyone, looking at the past or others will not improve a place. It is the actions of ponies that try something new, and improved, that will push the boundaries and ask the question, Is this really good enough? I like that, I hope to see more of that in the future."

"Well that is good then." The stallion that was put in charge of solving the fire hazard investigation, admitted. "I got some more of that, if you don't mind."

Twilight smile became larger at that, "Go ahead."

"So in regards to the serious fire hazard. I asked some creatures about it. And that is when it began. After I asked one creature about it, and told them about how serious it was. Everyone jumped into action without being given instructions. The smarter creatures began researching about the forming of fire itself and what is fire resist or not. But the ones that aren't smart, simply chose to begin making measurements in case they need to deconstruct buildings, and reconstruct them using anti-fire materials." He explained.

"It was then, that a certain invention blew everyone's minds. A smoke detector using magic power. It is a small device that sounds alarm when a certain amount of smoke gets build up, causing it to go off. When it did so, everyone in the area was immediately alerted by the sudden onset of smoke. Causing the cause to be immediately resolved." He continued.

"I see. Then let me give you a different request." Twilight said smiling.

"Go ahead."

"Please research the effects fire could have if it broke out in our area. Test which materials are anti-fire. Produce temporary solutions regarding fire safety, until a new draft in regards to house construction is made. Until then, no new houses are allowed to be constructed. I also want a set of rules made, in case of fire or disaster. An escape plan is necessary. We can rebuild houses, but not lives after all. And lastly, those smoke detectors will now be mandatory. I need atleast a dozen spread among the slum houses. After you finished that, please begin the sale of them across Equestria." Twilight requested.

"Understood!" He said as he quickly exited the room to make those requests a reality.

The stallion in charge of crew took the stand next, "So... I have some important news. Firstly we reordered everyone back to their original workstation. This was received both positively and negatively to a degree. The ones being overworked disliked it, the ones that were helping loved it. Apparently they really disliked helping the other workstations."

"We then forced the overworked creatures to take more breaks and increased the waiting time on maintenance. This relieved some of the more serious overworked creatures in the group. We also made some of the jobs more specific, so jobs that didn't belong to them, has been moved to other workstations. And lastly, we doubled the overworked creature's salary. Which was extremely well received." He continued.

"And finally, we created a priority list. Things that are more desperate will be done first. Any maintenance must be done within one year, if that fails, we need to check the location again if it needs more extensive repairs. And if it continues to be called maintenance in general, or simply repairs and improvements. That is all." He finished.

"Very good. Keep it up. Next please."

The stallion in charge of trade was next, he is the second to last stallion that wants to take the stand. "I put those restrictions on. It was obviously negatively received. We had to fine some that refused to listen. But, with a reduction on those requests, we did have more money to spend on expanding the trade center itself. So we expanded it, we also gained another kingdom outside of Equestria that wants our cloths. That is all."

"I see. Please keep overbuying things to a minimum. If there is any complaint, then they need to explain why they want so much of a single object. And also if they have a good reason, then atleast ensure that they buy only what they immediately uses. No more stockpiling is allowed." Twilight ordered.

"Very well. It will be done." The stallion stated, he once more took a seat.

"Now, can the stallion about politics go onto the stand please?"

"..." Nobody took the stand on that front. Causing Twilight to look at the host slightly confused. The host looked more concerned than confused.

"What is the matter?"

"That stallion..." The host began, "He is always on time, unless... Unless one of nobles called for him a few minutes before this conference. Which is a bit worrying."

Not a few moments later, the stallion in question ran inside. He appeared exhausted as he quickly took the stand. "I am sorry for being late your highness. But I had an emergency call from one of the nobles."

Twilight frowned, "Well spit it out, what was the emergency?"

"Before I can talk about it. I believe some context is in order. Stallion of trade, could you explain to Twilight, on the ways we trade with other people and countries?" The stallion requested. The stallion in question nod as he stood up.

"The way we trade is similar to other districts to a degree. We either uses carriages or flying boats to move cargo from Canterlot to Manehattan and forth from there. However recently, we have begun construction of our own section of port within Manehattan's flying boat port. With it, we build six flying boats. We send those out to collect information and in turn, the cargo we want to areas hard to get to." He explained.

"Well. On one of the flying boats sat a little girl. She is a noble and wanted to travel alongside them. But recently the family and in turn us, have lost all connection to the boat the girl sat on. So since we are in charge of that boat, the family that employed us, demanded us to find that boat and recover the girl." The stallion about politics explained.

"Which was successful. But their family demands that we pay for the unnecessary worry they were subjected to. When we were unable to meet their demand. They cut us off from a single trade source, which is damaging our entire economy. I begged them to let us continue our trade, to no avail." The stallion admitted.

"Which means, our supply of rubber has been entirely cut off." The stallion of trade added for context.

"What do we use rubber for?" Twilight asked confused.

"Advanced construction methods. And technology." The stallion of trade admitted.

"Hm... While I can't condone the actions of the noble. I can help you with that rubber problem. The issue I run into, is that I am able to create a trade for resin, the resource that turns into rubber, but not the actual rubber. Is that able to serve as alternative?" Twilight asked.

The many stallions in the room blinked, slightly confused. "Your highness, may I ask were this resin is coming from? As far as we can tell, you never did business in that side of the trade market." One of the stallions asked confused.

"Well. I have a friend that has lots of unusual trees. Not the Apple family, but someone else. She has been destroying the resin, since she only cares for the fruit from said trees. But if I could find a better use for it, she would gladly sell it." Twilight explained,

"Miss Nut Tree, has plenty of trees that generate lots of resin, but also lots of nuts. I use those nuts all the time, but the resin is currently greatly underused. If you want, I could make contact with her, to establish some kind of resin deal." She added for context.

"That would be... Amazing!" The stallion about technology shouted, "We have a resin processing plant, since we try to reduce the cost of rubber, by create a bit of our own. How much do you think it will cost?"

"Probably not much. But how much did the rubber cost initially?" Twilight asked.

"Five thousand bits a ton." The stallion of trade admitted.

Twilight eyes widened, "You were getting ripped off then. The price for rubber a ton, is five hundred bits."

The stallion of trade's eyes bulged at that, "What?! I... Crap buckets." he swore unhappily.

"No matter. We can deal with that little issue later. Right now, we need to establish a proper resin deal, and begin production of rubber as soon as we can." Twilight said with a sigh, she slightly facepalmed at the actions of the stallion of trade.

"Now that we have touched the major points. Lets talk about something else notable. How has the sewage and water drainage systems have been?" Twilight asked.

The stallion of infrastructure stood up to answer that, "No issues at the moment."

"Are you sure? Have you ensured that the drainage system is able to reach some of the high rise gardens?" Twilight questioned.

The stallion in question blinked, "Uh... I..."

"Please investigate and report on that front. I need to know if the current water and sewage systems are still in order." Twilight requested.

"Will do!" He said as he sat back down. He appeared to write it down.

"Next up, we need to improve the lives of our maintenance crew. I suggest creating template plans and protocols to ensure proper work gets done, as soon as physically possible. Besides that, we need to create work tools that best fit their work. And lastly I want a proper stockpile of objects that needs often replacements." Twilight requested.

"Will be done." The stallion in charge of that said.

"Stallion of trade, Please create a way for us to financially assist companies and those in debt. Help them in getting a job, or to simply create a form of banking. I am sure you know what I mean, yes?" Twilight asked.

The stallion of trade nodded, "Understood. We already had that on our priority list, I will make it our current primary objective."

"Please do. Now, we need to do, one final addition to the district center. Please create a group in charge of communications. They will communicate to other districts, communicate to the castle and are in charge of appeasing nobles." Twilight requested, "Right now, there is simply too many ponies trying to create contact to nobles, they like it when a single or several designated ponies are in charge of that."

"I can't believe we haven't done that ourselves. Will be done." The host admitted, surprised.

"Good. I will go ahead and make contact with the source of resin. And with that, this conference is dismissed." Twilight said as she brought the hammer down. The entire conference took five hours. It was a satisfying conference, everything everyone wanted to deal with, has been done with. For now.

Twilight then rushed past everyone to catch a train to Ponyville so she could begin the communication with Nut Tree. To get her side of deal going. Meanwhile everyone else began to enforce Twilight's requests. To a positive degree. And while Twilight was away from Canterlot, a whole different conversation was being undertaken somewhere else in Canterlot.

After Twilight's dream and the rest of her shift. Luna finally had time to approach her sister, Celestia. Luna was walking around the castle with some of her royal jewelry on. This was merely a formality, since she came here to impede on Celestia's territory. That being Canterlot. Regardless, after walking around for a bit, she saw her sister being pestered by her cousin, Prince Blueblood.

"As I said earlier. Are you sure it isn't possible?" Blueblood asked Celestia.

"Again, I can't decide for the district. Especially since that district is Princess Twilight's territory." Celestia said with a business smile.

"Since when does Princess Twilight own the lower income district?" Blueblood asked surprised.

"Since she accidentally blew it up and after she was crowned."

"Hm... I see. Well nevermind then." Blueblood said surprising Celestia.

"Lost interest?" Celestia asked surprised.

Blueblood gave Celestia a rare genuine smile, "Well if its her. Then I know the district is in good hooves. I need not make such decision for that district. Atleast she does her best to improve it, you on the other hoof."

Celestia growled at Blueblood, whereas he merely gave Celestia a hardened look. "You and I both know that I am not lying. Unlike your holy butt." He said before leaving annoyed.

"Lying? I don't lie!" She shouted at him.

"Tell that to the elements of harmony." Luna countered equally annoyed. Celestia snapped at Luna surprised. Blueblood laughed in the background as he left the area.

"I... Well..." Celestia had no counter to that.

"Regardless sister. I do hope you interfere with the districts. Otherwise I will have to take action alone." Luna commented.

"I do take action. Its just... He asked for something unreasonable."

Luna made a soft smile appear on her face, "Well, do tell. What was this unreasonable request?"

"He wanted to own a small tower of homes inside the lower income district. I thought that such a thought was unreasonable." Celestia admitted.

"Is it though? I think such arrangements could be possible. If he offers something in return of course. I see no reason for its viability. I think its possible. I suppose I will talk to my dear cousin about it later." Luna commented, "Anyways, that is not why I am here. Come, lets talk in my personal thee room. It's rather important."

Celestia blinked before nodding. She then followed Luna into a thee room, on the table of the thee room already sat lots of plates with cakes on it. But instead of taking a seat there immediately, Luna guided her into taking a seat on the couch instead. Luna then took a seat opposite to her.

"I had a little chat with Twilight. And there is major issue, that she is unable to solve due to her status inside of Canterlot. That issue can only be solved by us. It's about increase your rank from slum dweller to lower commoner." Luna admitted.

"Too many wants to increase their rank?" Celestia asked, but Luna shook her head.

"Opposite of that, actually. Nobody wants to increase their rank. The living conditions inside the industry area is a downgrade from the living conditions inside the lower income district. Nobody wants to move away due to this." Luna admitted.

Celestia blinked, "A downgrade? But the industry district has schools, clinics, higher grade businesses."

"You are right. But the lower income district has those too. Schools, clinics, businesses, a small industry area. Better trade and overall living conditions. The people simply do not want to go to the industry district due to this. They are happy where they are, whereas the people inside the industry district is very unhappy. And possibly ill."

Celestia started blinked harder, "That is the first time I heard of this. Hmm... What is Twilight response?"

"She can assist people in growing their rank, but only if we improve the living conditions inside the industry district."

"Well..." Celestia was about to comment until a guard suddenly entered the room.

"I apologize for the sudden entry. I got a report from one of Twilight's people. It's about the current situation inside the industry district." The guard said, he had a small briefcase on his back.

"Give it here." Luna ordered.

"Here you go. Now if you excuse me." The guard gave it to Luna afterwards he departed from the room.

Not wasting any time, Luna opens the briefcase and began reading through the material. What she read, shocked her. "This is... Oh my Moon. This is horrible."

"What is it?" Celestia said worried as she watched Luna's face contort in shock.

"Well. The workforce isn't ill. But the living conditions is as bad as how the slums initially looked. And that is besides the abusive employers, and poor working conditions inside the factories themselves. This explains everything. Here." Luna gave Celestia the report, "If this is how that district currently functioned, then whoever is in charge of it, must be hang. I cannot believe it."

Celestia read through the report and frowned, "I see. Guards!" She shouted.

"Your highness." Two guards appeared besides Celestia.

"I need Blueblood right now. I order you to get him to my side. I need his input."

"Yes, your highness." The guards left the room as Celestia continued to read the report.

A few moments later, Blueblood appeared and took a seat next to Celestia. "What is the matter, aunt?" he asked worried.

"Take a look at this, and tell me what you make of it." Celestia said as she gave him the report.

Blueblood grabs the report and reads it. Instead of acting shocked, he frowned. Then nodded, "That is a correct situational statement from whoever made it. Yes, that is in fact the current situation inside the industry district."

"You knew?" Celestia asked gasping.

Blueblood nodded, "And so did you. You were given these reports each and every month. But you did nothing with it. I knew, and tried to make the best of it. But I am merely the stallion that is in charge of keeping an eye on the nobility. I am not in charge of making changes to districts."

"But... you did do something I assume?" Luna asked.

Blueblood smiled, "I did. I offered people a chance to reduce their status back to slum, since the slums, or lower income district appeared to be doing so well. Many accepted it, many also didn't. Regardless, this is all I can offer these ponies."

"I see." Luna said in understanding.

"Should I call for a district conference?" Celestia asked somewhat unsure.

"Perhaps. But I think we really need to figure out who let things go this badly. Putting it all on Celestia is not necessarily the best solution. She is after all just one pony." Luna commented.

"Are you suggesting that we need to go field research a bit?" Blueblood asked with widened eyes.

"Yes."

"I see. If you want, I can make those appointments." He suggested.

"Please do. Celestia and Blueblood should check it out. Meanwhile I am going to figure out who the Tartarus is in charge of that district. And do a few well chosen background checks. I might even ask for Moon's help. She might know something I don't." Luna explained.

"That sounds like a good plan. Let's do it." Celestia said smiling, she was happy that Luna took the leadership role.

"But first. Lets eat those cakes, I didn't grab them to sit there and get stiff." Luna offered.

"I am sorry. After seeing that report. I suddenly don't want any cakes." Celestia said as she and Blueblood quickly left the room.

Luna sighed, "Hey Moon. Interested in some cakes?" she telepathic asked her.

"Sure why not. Do you need my help afterwards?" Moon asked in return.

"Yes. I need some background checks after I figure out who is in charge of the Industry District."

"Oh him? I know the stallion. He isn't a bad guy, it's just... His people are corrupted, but he is trying to improve the district. Even if he is lacking due to it." Moon replied instantly.

"Corruption? Do you perhaps know who is behind it?" Luna asked curious.

"No. But let me eat some cakes first. Then I am going to investigate it deeper, alright?"

Luna giggled, "Sure thing, sis."

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Meanwhile Twilight had returned from Canterlot and was making her way to the tree farm owned by Nut Tree. On the way there, she made sure everything was going alright with her cafe. And after doing some extra checks, she saw that Ditzy was beginning to get used to working there. Spike was also getting used to having Ditzy around.

Nonetheless, she had no time to stand around. She had a job to take care off. So after passing Fluttershy's cottage and the chopped wood facility. She eventually made her way to the tree farm owned by Nut Tree. Not a moment later, she entered the farm.

"Miss Tree?" Twilight shouted, hoping that she was merely standing around doing minor labor.

"I am over here!" Nut shouted from across the farm, she appeared to be draining a tree of resin.

Twilight calmly walked up to Nut and give her a quick greetings. Nut replied similarly, as she continued to focus on the tree. After a few moments, Twilight quickly replaces the full bucket with an empty one. As Nut was only paying attention to the tree. Nut stopped when she realized this, giving Twilight an apologetic smile.

"Sorry about that Twi. So how can I help you?"

"I finally found a buyer for your resin."

Nut's eyes widen, "Really? Who is it?"

"The lower income district in Canterlot. Also known as the slums. They want to turn the resin into rubber. Since a noble ripped them off and cut off the supply of rubber all together. They use the stuff like mad. So the economy is grinding to an halt without it." Twilight explained.

"How too much exactly?" Nut asked worried.

"They added an extra zero for a ton of it." Twilight admitted.

Nut's eyes bulged, "Oh my. That is... Poor practices. I... Will talk with a friend of mine about it. We are trying to get rid of scum like that. Anyways, sure I will gladly sell it to them."

"So um... How much is it?" Twilight asked slightly worried. Nut looked at Twilight worried expression, after which she hit her on the back with a laugh.

"Don't worry." She laughed, "I talked with some friends about the price of resin. And told them about you. They suggest a reasonable price."

"Actually, they don't want a one time buy. But a proper sales contract for constant sales." Twilight stated.

Nut nodded knowingly, "I know. So here is the catch. I can do it, but I need more help from extracting resin. I can maintain the trees and pluck the fruits. But I am unable to also constantly extract resin from the trees as well. It is simply too much work for one pony."

"I see. I can make that happen. Don't worry. I will contact the pony in charge of that. Now about that price..."

Nut walked over to her bulk storage of resin. "I am going to offer a simple deal. If you supply me with workers and a small cut of the profits from the sale of rubber. I will supply an infinite amount of resin. How about it?"

"Like 10%?" Twilight asked.

"Hm... No. Something more concrete. Based on past sales, I want fifteen percent. So if I did my math correctly. I want at the very minimum. One thousand bits each three months. Which is roughly, five percent of sales in that time frame." Nut replied.

"Hmm..." Twilight said in thought. "I will contact the one in charge of trade in that front. I simply lack the numbers. I am sure you two will come up with some kind of contract."

"Very well. And Twilight. I have another small issue. Do you mind?"

Twilight blinked, "Does it involve me somehow?"

Nut shook her head, "Not like that. But you might be able to do something."

"I see. Go ahead. What is the situation."

"For a while now, I did business with the mayor of the industry district in Canterlot. He always consulted me on helping his people. He also bought fruits and nuts to help his citizens. But recently he admitted something rather... desperate." Nut admitted.

"Well I am atleast glad that he is a good stallion. So what is the matter? You seem rather... worried." Twilight said worried in turn.

"He admitted that everyone he works with is corrupted. And he is powerless to stop it. The party in charge of corrupting them, offered the people around him, something they can't refuse. Medication and food. The industry's budget is so terrible, that some days, he has to watch his people die around him. It is also the reason why he doesn't fight the corruption. That party saves lives, and he is stuck watching from the side-lines." Nut explained.

Twilight gasped, but Nut continued. "He admitted that sometimes he saw ponies die in his hooves. Either due to sickness or starvation. At one point it became so bad, that he considered suicide. Many times, he considered it. That was until you came around. After you resurrected the slums into what its now, he hoped you would rescue him also one day. The industry district is in such terrible state, he fears for his own life plenty of times. I know you aren't in charge of that district but..."

"Please help him, Princess Twilight Sparkle. He needs help! Please! I beg of you. They need your help." Nut Tree finished by practically begging on Twilight's hooves.

"I..." Twilight was stunned by this display. Her mind began turning. As the plea of help didn't fall on deaf ears.

"Please. He even attempt to commit suicide** on broad daylight. On my farm. As this place was his last place of heaven. I stopped him of course. But he is at his wits end. He was so pale. He explained that a popular orphanage caught fire, the day before his attempted suicide. All the children had died. Including the adults. The cause was a suicide done by one of the children. I... I don't know what to do anymore. I am stuck." Nut explained as she fell to the ground, sobbing slightly at the mental image.

As Twilight gasped, a switch went off in her head. Her princess duties are required. More than ever. And meet my word, she will help. No matter what, she will find a way to assist. As she grabbed Nut, she asked the most important question ever. "Who is the helping party?"

Nut looked at Twilight's determined face, "They were mafia. An organization called, Lunarium."

Author's Note:

*In the real world, they use asphalt and concrete. The world of Equestria isn't quite advanced enough to use these yet. Asphalt for roads, concrete for the walkways.

**If you ever think about suicide, please call the call line in your proper area. It isn't worth committing suicide. I promise.

That being said, it seems an old mafia organization has reappeared. I wonder what happens next.

Comments

[Comickook]

Sorry I took so long getting around to reading and reviewing this (nothing to blame for that except self-admitted laziness), but you did a great job on the exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up. Definitely appreciated the dialogues between Twilight and Luna, both in the dream world AND in the waking world. Particularly liked Twilight commenting on just what is required to truly help out in the slums, particularly the higher up help required. And, yeah, the dialogue concerning suicide was definitely appropriately emotional and made some great points. And it sounds like Twilight is going to have to do a bit more dealing with the mob.

Really looking forward to more of this.