Pale Scepter POV:
The Lord-Duke of Fillydelphia knocked back his glass of whisky in a single gulp before slamming the tumbler down on his mahogany desk with a scowl on his face.
The noble was not having a very good day. Not a good day at all.
To be fair, he rarely ever had any good days. Between disobedient New Towns undermining his authority at every turn, disgruntled peasants refusing to pay taxes, and opportunistic minor nobles nipping at his heels, he found no end to his daily frustrations.
However, today was a special kind of awful that went far beyond his usual minor irritations.
The project that he had spent months planning was falling apart around him. He had invested so much into this venture, called in so many favours and made so many promises that if lost this gamble, he would lose everything.
However, the rewards promised to him for success were so great that it was worth the risk…
…or at least he thought that it was worth the risk. Now that he was staring down the barrel of complete an abject failure before the preparation phase of his plan had even concluded, he was starting to reconsider some of his recent life decisions.
He was in too deep now though. He has promised too much to too many powerful parties.
He should have been smarter, more diligent, planned more redundancies and had more viable candidates waiting in the wings for a situation like this but he never imagined that he would be so badly undone by such an unlikely run of foul luck.
That storm.
That fucking storm.
A ‘once in a decade tropical cyclone’, the Harbour Master had told him.
A ‘freak event’, had been assured by the Head Weather Director.
Apparently, the ESS Sunrise had been one of six vessels that had been lost at sea that day off the coast of Trottingham. Sunk along with its entire crew, including his assembled crack team of leading experts, veterans and specialists that he had hoof-chosen and vetted over the course of months for his mission.
Now the window of opportunity was rapidly closing and he had nothing to show for his efforts.
It was as though the universe itself was plotting against him.
With a snarl, he picked up the glass in his telekinesis and hurled it against the far wall of his large office. The shattered shards fell to the floor.
He held his head in his hooves for a moment, resting his elbows on the desktop and let out an explosive sigh in an attempt to relieve some of his built-up stress. He tried to think logically about his situation.
His plan could still work. He just needed the right team to get it done. He could try to recruit ponies locally, in hopes of salvaging the expedition but he was unlikely to acquire the expertise he needed to succeed in such a short timeframe.
The door to his office crept open slowly. “Are you alright, sir?” A nervous voice asked with trepidation.
“I'm fine, Vermilion.” The Lord-Duke replied in a terse tone, not lifting his head from his hooves and hoping that his young assistant would get the hint that he would like to be left alone to his brooding.
However, instead of leaving him in peace, Vermilion opened the door fully and trotted inside. The noble was about to snap at the young stallion but his assistant spoke first.
“I have the report that you requested, sir.” Vermilion spoke in a nervous, soft-spoken voice. “The one from Valley Dale.”
Pale Scepter's attention peaked at that. He lifted his head and gave a small, wry chuckle. The Lord-Duke had laughed himself hysterical when he had heard the news about how the mighty Las Pegasus pegasi had gotten their muzzles bloodied by a plucky New Town in the backwaters of his province.
Details about the failed raid were incredibly sparse, even for a pony such as himself, and he had been eagerly awaiting the full report to make its way to him. Ever since Las Pegasus had so ruthlessly plundered his family's summer manse in Silver Shoals a decade ago, he had despised the pegasi raiders with a burning hatred. He couldn't wait to indulge himself in all the finer details of their deserved humiliation.
“Give it here, please.” The noble requested in a much more pleasant tone. This was exactly the balm to his bitter mood that he needed at the moment.
Somewhat caught off-guard by the sudden whiplash of his employer's mood, Vermilion nonetheless complied and gave over the bound stack of parchment papers.
Pale Scepter began to read through the papers. However, his catharsis soon gave way to deep fascination the more he read. His small, lighthearted smile turned into a contemplative neutrality as he sat straighter in his chair.
Vermilion still stood across from his boss's desk. He quietly scuffed his hoof on the carpet in an involuntary, habitual tick as a result of his nervousness and discomfort. He hadn't been dismissed as usual and still needed the report back so that a copy could be made and sent to the Everfree Castle. So with no choice, he awkwardly stood and watched his employer wordlessly read through the lengthy report as the minutes ticked by.
Sometime later, as Pale Scepter finished the last page of the report, he slowly set the stack of pages down on his desk and leaned back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling with a pensive look, as though pondering a momentous choice.
Eventually after looking to come to a decision, Pale Scepter met Vermilion's gaze with a serious expression. “Who else has read this report?” The noble asked, his voice deliberate and business-like.
Vermilion, still somewhat perturbed at his Lord's complete change of tact, answered promptly regardless. “Commander Tungsten brought the report directly to me and I brought it directly to you. So the three of us, plus presumably some of the ponies under Tungsten's command who collected the information.”
Pale Scepter merely nodded in understanding, taking a further moment to digest the words. He then picked up the report with his telekinesis and tossed it to the edge of his desk, directly in front of Vermilion. “Rewrite this report and burn the original.” The Lord-Duke of Fillydelphia ordered. “Remove any and all mention of Starry Night. Downplay the significance of the battle. Say that it was a small, splinter raiding party from Las Pegasus that got defeated by a particularly heroic defensive effort by the town's guards, not the actual cloud city itself and not by a single Mage. Tell the Commander to make similar edits to his reports and to swear his soldiers to silence.”
Vermilion stood stunned at the barrage of commands that was directed at him, incredulous at the blatant fraudulence that he was being ordered to commit.
However, the noble was not finished with his instructions. “Have all of the criers and newsreaders under our employ relay this new version of events to the populace. After that, pass the revised report on to Everfree.”
“Sir!” Vermilion exclaimed, scandalised at the prospect of willfully lying to their Princesses.
Pale Scepter didn't acknowledge his objection though and charged right ahead with the planning of his scheme. “This Mage is still at Valley Dale, correct?” The unicorn inquired seriously.
Still not entirely certain how to react to the highly illegal plot proposed by his employer, Vermilion resorted to the mask of obedient professionalism that he had trained to wear when dealing with nobles. “Yes, she is still unconscious from her injuries and recovering at a local clinic.”
The noble grinned at that. “Good. Dispatch a squadron of guards to Valley Dale. I want Starry Night brought to me as soon as she wakes, forcefully if necessary.”
Vermilion's eyes widened at that. “Ummm, you want her… arrested, sir?” He asked in confusion, glancing down at the report that detailed the selfless heroics that the Mage had performed.
“No, no. Certainly not!” Pale Scepter chuckled slyly. “I simply have a job opportunity for her.”
Not knowing what to do with that piece of information, Vermilion simply walked slowly out of the room without another word to carry out his orders.
As the door closed behind his assistant, the Lord-Duke leaned back into his chair and magically poured himself another glass of whisky. A toast of celebration this time, rather than an attempt to numb his misery.
His plan might not be dead in the water after all. It was still a tremendous risk but he was feeling confident. The emergence of this Mage was exactly the windfall of good fortune that he badly needed.
She was perfect in every way for his plan. From her power to her background. The written testimonial from one of Valley Dale's surviving gate guards was of particular interest to him.
One way or another, he would have her on his leash. The stakes were too high for him to accept her refusal.
Unlocking a hidden compartment in his desk, he retrieved a Trillium Crystal and set it delicately on the desk in front of him. He had to inform other interested parties that his part of the venture was proceeding as scheduled.
His Benefactor had promised him a seat on the Council of Nobles upon completion of his given mission.
I’m tempted to offer to be a beta reader just so I can get early sneak peeks at the story LOL but I don’t have that kind of time.
Great chapter! Can’t wait to see where this heads next! Luna is in for quite a ride when she wakes up LOL
A noble about to embark on a quest of self destruction to the Angry Alicorn degree.
I'm gonna make the prediction that there is a plot to remove the Princesses control so the "nobles" will have all the power they want.
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The same
But my English is very bed for this job
Andi suspect the noble is going to get a title, just not one he wants. Walking dead pony.
This is going to go badly. Luna hates the nobles as much as they hate her. She would never turn down the chance to take down a corrupt noble.
11832078
Don't be so quick to assume. I never would have added such a plot line if the issue was so cut and dry.
Luna is in a very weakened state at the moment and you haven't even heard Pale Scepter's mission... or his offer for compensation.
Dang, I love this story!
11832083
It's hard to wait for updates. When the story is this good, I could read all day.
Poor bastard has no idea how badly he's fucking up. You don't bend gods to your will. They bend your spine around whatever appendage they have and throw you out of this life into the next for being such a massive disappointment.
Even if he manages to string Luna along, there is only one ending to his story. Be it at her hooves or another's.
The term you can't break the yoke comes to mind, my guess is that this guy has a diabolical scheme and if Luna helps him he'll blame her for it, or if she doesn't help him him he'll use his political power to frame her as a fugitive and cause her to be on the run for the foreseeable future.
I dont think you have the capability for that big man
This ain’t gonna end well… hah
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The Duke certainly doesn't but his Benefactor just might.
Stay tuned...
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They throw you into the nex life… if you’re LUCKY. If you’re really unfortunate, they might keep you as a plaything.
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It does work in Luna's favor a bit, him burning the report especially. If it got out that a single unicorn drove off the Las Pegasus raiders, it would attract much more unwanted attention to Luna, likely all the way to Celestia.
A short comment for a short chapter that I think summarizes this quite neatly would be this:
“Does he know?”
11832083
I am liking your plot threads.
In regards to the mysterious benefactor having the "power" Perhaps Celestia herself is the benefactor... she in different incarnations is very good at subterfuge?
It's funny to see how a possible conspiracy against the princesses unknowingly helped Luna stay hidden from Celestia :)
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More like walking ground chuck. Because that is probably about the best identification the forensic examiner will be able to make of his corpse when Luna gets through with him. After she wringes the information from the survivor among whichever poor sods get the task to "bring her in".
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I would be VERY careful with the whole "I have something to hang over your head" bit. Its a badly (to put it mildly) overused cliche based on the idea that "good guys are 100% straight-laced always-follow-the-rules black and white morality" bull from cheap stories written when kids were seen as stupid blank slates in need of programming. Something that really does not play well with a complex character. And the Luna you have crafted here is definetly complex. I would hate to see her getting the "Superman treatment" - aka becoming a one-dimensional "always do the right thing by the rules even when its clearly going to cause worse problems in the future" caricture of what could have been.
If you absolutely have to have the meeting for the story then I highly recommend that whichever goons are sent out are actually diplomatic and make sure to provide enough information that Luna would reasonably be tempted. Instead of the usual "you're coming with us one way or the other and we just got a McGruffin so you logic goes out of the window".
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I've put a lot of thought into this encounter. It will definitely be more of a complex arrangement than "Do as I say, or else!". Ive been planting the seeds of this meeting for a while.
Also, I only mentioned the benefactor in that previous comment as a way to remark that they are quite powerful. Not the sort of individual that Luna will be able to fold in half. However, Luna will not encounter them directly until MUCH later in the story.
She is only dealing with the Duke for now and he is desperate enough to offer Luna quite a lot. Don't underestimate her ability to strike a deal.
And another player joins the table. Wonder how Big C reacts to this news.
It seems these guys are kinda like the corporate sector in Star Wars (whatever those private security forces in Andor were) so the only thing I do hope is that they are better tacticians than the guys in Andor because 2 or 3 guys absolutely destroyed a fireteam of like 6-8 of the Star Wars people while the security guys had a more advantageous position.
Apart from some somewhat weird grammar things that I don’t really like this is a great chapter, and the grammar mistakes were pretty insignificant so I don’t want to spend any amount of time looking for it unless it persist in later chapters.
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Can you be more specific about the grammar issues?
This is how I sometimes word my own stuff (YT comments, FIM comments, or just general story writing I do for myself.) and honestly it’s not hard to fall into this trap. Specifically the “that if lost this gamble, he would lose everything” part. It just reads off as very clunky and clumsy while also making little sense if you think about it. It’s not a big deal as long as it’s not going to return in more chapters. Like I said before I do this constantly without double checking my own work. It makes sense in the heat of the moment, and is pretty easy to gloss over.
A better choice here would probably be something along the lines of:
Or:
Anyway, hope this is enough to be useful in any capacity, and I also wish that you have a great day/night, whichever you’re currently experiencing. Foxtrot over and out.
Even Moore intriguing. I wonder what happens next!
Oh, I'm looking forward to how this shakes out.
"Bring me the mage that fought off a small army by herself, use force if you need to. What? What do you mean you quit? Come back here!"
I do hope we get a glimpse of how things are going for Celestia. Magic 8-ball says 'Not so good' and I'm inclined to agree.
That may actually work in Luna's favor, because otherwise somepony noticing Luna's absence might be able to put things together.
Something like this?
Good chapter!
I enjoyed reading it.
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Awesome! (Same for your other hints.)
I look forwards to see where it goes.
Hmm, I wonder if Luna accidentally gets involved in a plot against Celestia... That'd actually be funny af.