A pony on hard times

A few weeks had passed since Cadence had moved into the mansion and she had learnt a lot about the mobs operation. However, as of yet she didn't have the smoking canon: the one piece of proof that would make sure that they would get a successful conviction. But as she was worming her way slowly into the group she knew it would only be a matter of time.

It was a rainy afternoon and not wanting to go outside and get wet, Cadence had decided to spend her day off reading in the mansions extensive library. Fortunately Stainless seemed to have a fondness for reading, and whilst his library may not be as well stocked as the one at the castle, or Twilight Sparkles bedroom, there were still a large number of novels she had never read and new ones arrived every week.

As she was lying there lost in the world of the book, she was disturbed by the boss and some of his gang. As they opened the door she jumped up a little on the couch and spread her wings a little, as if surprised. Of course, she wasn't really surprised as she knew they were coming having now placed various sensing spells all over the mansion. But it made sure that they knew she was there and helped with the act she was living.

“Sorry Crystal, we didn't mean to startle you” the stallion spoke, the alicorn lowering her wings in responce.

“No need to apologise Mr Spur. Should I leave?”

“No need, we are just looking for information” Stainless responded.

Cadence returned to reading her book, and the other ponies started looking through some books in a section on culture. It was quite an extensive section, as the mob boss entertained all sorts of creatures and ponies from across the whole world, and he always wanted to be prepared for all local customs.

After a while the group started getting a bit annoyed, as they hadn't found anything useful. Cadence could overhear them talking about a Griffon visitor, but most of the books had nothing on their culture. Cadence knew that the Griffon would be an important out of Equestria contact, and probably a sucessful meeting with him would lead to something big…

Recalling her knowledge of the species she knew exactly what they could do, but had to decide if it was worth it. She realised that not only would it help the meeting, it may be just the thing she needed for the mob to finally trust her. Cadence looked around the room and seeing the book she needed levitated the book from the bookcase the others were looking through over to her.

The other ponies stopped to look at her as she flicked through the book, before levitating the book over to Stainless opened on a certain page. The group looked over to the reading mare who just looked back at them.

“Sorry Mr Spur, but I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Knowing the odd thing or two about the Griffon culture, I knew exactly where to look!”

The stallion picked up the book and read through a few pages, his eyes growing a little “So, to have his respect, I have to have been victorious and enslave an animal stronger than me?”

“That is their culture, yes. Griffons were much more aggressive in the past than it is now, Celestia..." she paused for a moment, feigning sorrow "...helped to calm them as part of our growing relationship. The old ways are still in the cultural background though, although now it's usually symbolic through artwork. But you would really impress this visitor if you could have an animal under your command. Do you happen to have any dragons or Ursa Majors to hand?”

“No, of course not!” Stainless scoffed, a few of the other ponies joining in. Nopony can vanquish an Ursa Major!

The mare then put down her book, got up of the couch and stretched out her legs “Then it’ll have to be me…” Cadence sighed

It was the day of the meeting with the Griffon, and everypony was busy going over the preparations. Cadence had found a couple of items required for the ruse in the Manehattan antique district and was filling Stainless Spur and his associates in. But some of them were being surprisingly stupid.

“You expect that cheap looking object to fool anypony. You think that looks like a magic suppression ring capable of controlling…well you?” the mob’s second in command, a black Pegasus, scoffed in the alicorns face. Cadence held a simple, rough looking metal ring with only a few runes inscribed on it in her Aura.

“Who is the most competent unicorn?” Cadence asked, looking around.

“Probably me?” an older grey haired unicorn approached. Cadence made a note of this, although from the security spells she had continuously overcome she knew he couldn't be that good.

“What do you make of this ring?” the alicorn floated the ring over to the unicorn, who accepted the ring in his aura and

“Yep, it’s just a normal ring, nothing magical about it at all. Any creature could sense that!”

Cadence then pulled back the object from the unicorn, deliberately overpowering his aura to annoy him, and placed the inanimate ring over her horn “And now?”

The unicorn tried to read the ring again, straining as he did “I can’t read anything” he grimaced almost with resentment “Crystal Heart's natural power makes sensing anything attached to her impossible”

Cadence made a slightly smug look towards the other ponies, her point made.

“But it still doesn't look like an ancient powerful relic” the second in command snorted, still unimpressed and annoyed on how the mare was working her way into the organisation.

The alicorn rolled her eyes in a noticeably sarcastic fashion and turned back to the unicorn “What does a suppression ring look like?”

“I don’t know…nopony has seen them for over a thousand years since they were banned and most destroyed!”

Cadence then turned to the boss “Mr Spur. What was ponies’ knowledge of metallurgy thousands of years ago?”

“Pretty rudimentary when it came to jewellery” he mused

“So surely such a ring would look basic? Much like this one?”

Mr Spur laughed “Princess, you are a master of this aren't you”

“Well, I might have a slight insider knowledge of how things used to be thousands of year ago!” she smiled, shooting a smile  to the second in command, who return it with a scowl. The conversation then moved on to the rest of the plan.

Cadence made her way downstairs to prepare for the guests arrival shortly. She had no makeup on, her mane and tail were styled elegantly but plainly with no decorations, and for the first time in entertaining she had no clothing. She only wore two objects, the ring over her horn and an ancient looking collar locked around her neck.

“Are you sure about this Princ…Crystal” Ms Platter asked waiting at the bottom of the stairs “It goes against everything I stand for”

“It’s just an act…I won’t come to any real harm” Cadence tried to reassure her.

The older looking mare leant forwards and gave the alicorn a hug “Just be careful, okay”.

Cadence felt the heartfelt concern from the mare, and she knew that like most of the ponies she had met during this mission, they really did have feelings for the former Princess. She then proceeded through the mansion and into the drawing room where Stainless was waiting to entertain his guests. Cadence lay down on the floor next to chair he was in, and levitated a leash over to Stainless.

“Are you sure about this?” the stallion asked nervously, taking the end of the leash and connecting it to Cadences collar, before latched the other end to a ring in his chair.

Cadence just smiled back “No, but it’s worth it for an upgrade to my bed”

“What upgrade?” the stallion asked confused.

“We’ll talk later” she giggled back, breaking the ice a little.

Just then, one of the bodyguards came over and announced that the guests had arrived at the gates. Spur tensed up a little, knowing this was a very important meeting. Suddenly, he felt a comforting hoof hold his, and looking down he saw Cadences pink unshod hoof in his. The Princess hadn’t touched the Stallion before, but he found the mares touch very calming.

“I’m not sure how important this meeting is to do, but you’ll do great!” she smiled, before removing her hoof and taking her lowly position again. The visiting group then entered the drawing room, led in by Ms Platter. She saw Cadence on the floor and her blood boiled – to see the former Princess like this was an outrage! But she was a professional and trusted Cadence completely, so she just announced the guests and made a hasty retreat.

Cadence tried to pay no attention as the group entered the room, trying to act like the broken mare she was supposed to be. But out of the corner of the eye she saw there were four ponies; two earth, a unicorn and a Pegasus. But it appeared the leader was the Griffon of the group.

Stainless got up out of his chair and went to greet his guests. The Griffon soon noticed Cadence shackled to the chair and lying on the floor, and interrupted the conversation. “Is that Princess Cadence?” he asked a little bemused, slowly walking over towards the alicorn with an authoritative swagger.

“Former Princess” Stainless replied deliberately smugly, as one would if he had ownership of a goddess “And we call her Crystal Heart now.”

Cadence lifted and tilted her head towards Stainless when he mentioned her new name, as if awaiting a command, but when none came she resumed her lying position.

“Impressive! I heard that she had fallen from grace, but how did you manage to capture her?”

“Well, we do have our ways” the mob boss strutted next to his guest “I’m not sure we can fully crush her, but with her magic taken away she was easy to break…she had lived such a pampered life after all!"

The Griffon was a little suspect of the whole situation, as is a common trait for his kind. “Really, that little ring can hold her magic? I find that hard to believe. Arcing, check it out!” he snapped at one of his bodyguards.

The unicorn visitor approached the Princess, who outwardly completely ignored all that was happening around her and the guest cast his sensing spell. He turned back to the Griffon “No idea what it is boss, but whatever going on in and around that horn it’s powerful”

Stainless sort of snorted a little gruffly “Do you think this is some sort of ruse?” in an aggressive tone towards the Griffin, having had Cadence teach him about how aggression is an important part of their culture, especially when in a position of power.

“I’ve always learnt to be careful in this business” the half bird got in the pony’s face and met his stare, but with a slightly impressed grin.

“Why doesn’t she fly away?” the pegasus asked, thinking the natural thoughts for the freedom loving race.

“Because she knows better then to do anything without an order” Stainless replied. Thinking fast, and hoping Cadence’s sharp mind would be up to speed and ready to play along, he approached his alicorn. He unclipped the leash from her collar, freeing her but she didn't even move a muscle. But he decided that if he was going to convince his guests that he had broken the mare, they needed to push it further.

“Crystal, there’s some comfortable cushions over there, wouldn't you rather rest on one of them?” The pony lying on the cold marble floor looked at her master, but didn’t respond knowing this wasn't actually a question a creature in her position would usually respond to.

“Crystal, please bring yourself a cushion over to rest on” Stainless then ordered more directly. The alicorn nodded softly and slowly got up to retrieve the cushion with her mouth, before settling down again without a single emotion visible. Stainless then reached and reconnected the leash to Cadences collar, looking confidently at his Guests as he did.

“Impressive…if it’s not an act” the griffon growled and leaped forwards. With an adept spatial awareness, he placed a sharp talon right against the Alicorns neck, close enough that the Princesses soft fur parted each side of the razor sharp point. Mr Spur tensed up, fearing what the powerful princess may actually do now threatened, but to everybody’s surprise the pony did not even flinch despite the immediate apparent threat to her life.

“Wow, you really have broken her haven’t you?” the Griffon asked impressed as he withdrew his talon, the pony seemingly not even concerned for her own safety anymore.

Stainless was almost stunned silent, but managed to keep in the act “Do you expect anything less from me, the leader of the most powerful organisation in Equestria? I’m almost insulted!”

Cadence just continued to play the part of a broken mare, looking dispassionately at nothing in particular, but inside she was practically dancing – after this she suspected she would have Stainless’s unconditional trust.

That evening Cadence lay in bed, her mind working a mile a minute. The plan had worked perfectly – as she was Mr Spurs “slave”, she was kept by his side all night and it was to the benefit of hearing all the discussions between the two crime syndicates without having to cast any spying spells.

When it came to the dinner, Ms Platter nearly gave the game away as Cadence was forced to eat from a bowl on the floor, like the animal she had apparently became. The alicorn ate it directly as neatly as one would expect of a civilised creature but without any of the grace a Princess would be expected. She could see out of the corner of her eye Ms Platter fuming, and luckily one of the other servants got her out of the room before the guests noticed.

But the outcome was worth having a little humiliation, as it meant that she knew exactly when and where to now spring the trap, it just had to be arranged.