Wings of Deceit

Moonrise

Word traveled quickly about what happened over the Griffon Sea. By the time Windigo squadron had debriefed, the information had reached Equestria’s highest generals. The Griffons had attacked without provocation. Something had to be done.

Princess Celestia leaned her head back against the throne, letting out a long sigh. Twilight Sparkle had nearly destroyed Ponyville today, and while she’d learned a lesson in the process, undoing the damage done, especially with the Smarty Pants doll she’d charmed, had been tedious to say the least. Celestia loved her student’s eagerness to learn, but sometimes that eagerness was more than capable of getting the best of her. Ruling a country and being a mentor at the same time wasn’t easy.

She raised her head, looking up at the great clock on the wall. Luna’s duties were to begin in ten minutes. Ten more minutes, and she was free.

Or at least she should have been free. Truthfully, Celestia preferred running royal tasks all day. They kept her distracted from the inner demons that came out at night, when she had nothing to do but think, and tonight especially, she knew a big one would keep her up for a while. Her decision to cut off travel to the Griffon Kingdom was not only controversial- in her eyes, it was wrong. Luna had seen it, too, and while her sister was slowly adjusting to the decision, Celestia knew she would never be fully comfortable with it.

A flash of scarlet alerted Celestia to the presence of her pet phoenix, Philomena. The majestic bird glided down from above, coming to perch lightly on the side of her throne. Celestia stroked the bird’s head affectionately.

“And what have we here?” she said, levitating a scroll the phoenix had been carrying into reading position. As she pored over the scroll’s contents, her heart beat faster, and her eyes grew wider. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. Policy was here for a reason, and yet… somehow she’d known this day would come.

The creak of the throne room door signalled Luna’s approach, but Celestia barely looked up from the scroll.

“Sister?” Luna called from the other end of the throne room, “we are ready to assume royal duties if thou art ready to relinquish thine for the night.”

“After taking delivery of this scroll, I’m not sure I can,” Celestia said, levitating the scroll over to Luna. “the Griffons attacked a squadron of Aviators this morning without provocation. I received the report moments ago.”

Luna’s eyes moved left and right as she, too, read through the report. “No…” she whispered. “But sister, why? Why would they do such a thing?”

“I do not know,” Celestia answered, leaving her throne. Philomena took off, heading back to her perch for the night. “But Luna- what I do know is that if it weren’t for my decision to follow…” she trembled, and bent her head down. When she looked back up at Luna, a solitary tear trailed down her cheek, “to follow this damned policy, we would not have lost that Aviator today!” In her anger, Celestia put her hoof down hard, inadvertently firing a bolt of magic into the ceiling above. The hole quickly sealed itself.

Luna stepped forward to comfort her sister, putting a hoof around her neck as Celestia bent over again.

“Sister, do not trouble yourself. None of us knew this would come.”

“You knew it would,” Celestia pressed, “and I ignored you. I completely ignored you, just like-” she stopped, but Luna knew what she was about to say.

“Celestia,” she said softly, “dost thou still blame thyself for that? The fault was entirely mine, and besides- that was over a thousand years ago. Perhaps thou did not listen to what I had to say, but we knew thou understood us. If we had gone to war, the blood of hundreds more might have already been spilled.”

“But because I acted foolishly, the blood of one is certainly on my hooves,” Celestia countered, “and I can’t just let that go.” Celestia stood back up, drying her eyes as best she could. “Unfortunately there’s something else, too- something about this matter that troubles me further.”

“And that is?”

“The Griffon resistance wants us to fight on their side; they’ve already made that point clear.” Celestia frowned, “which means that we can’t dismiss the possibility…”

Luna’s eyes went wide as she looked at her sister, startled. “Celestia, no… dost thou really think… could they have really broken tradition? Art thou implying the resistance may have attacked our forces to force us into this conflict?”

“I’m not confirming anything,” Celestia said, turning to gaze out one of the throne room’s giant stained glass windows, “tradition tells me that the Griffons would never break their honorable way, but logic tells me otherwise. They know we want to help them, and if they need us pushed to the breaking point, would it not make sense to commit such an act?”

Luna furrowed her brow, troubled. “These are strange times, sister. Millennia ago, the Griffons would never have considered such actions. What dost thou propose?”

“Simple. We contact both sides of this civil war. I highly doubt we’ll get anything useful from either, but at least it will give us the chance to better assess the situation.

“Situation?” Luna raised an eyebrow, “Celestia, if thou wish to declare war, we-”

Celestia shook her head, “no, we cannot declare war. With Discord’s return earlier this year, combined with the wedding in a few months, our ranks are too weary to fight a war. I agree that something must be done, however…” she began to pace, silver moonlight reflecting brightly off her white coat, “Luna, did I ever tell you about the Expeditionary Force project?”

“No,” Luna shook her head, “we have not heard of it.”

“A simple concept really,” Celestia continued, “something our military advisors came up with recently. A select few squadrons are constantly on call to assemble under individual task forces, in order to meet any threats abroad. Such forces can be deployed before a declaration of war is ever released, to bolster foreign troops’ ranks. Perhaps if we sent ours over to the Kingdom…”

“They would be able to observe the Griffons, and prepare to retaliate if necessary,” Luna finished.

“Precisely,” Celestia said, charging up her horn, “we simply need permission.”

Luna sighed, “permission from the Griffons. Of course. Not exactly something we’re looking forward to asking about, especially if they truly are attempting to deceive us.”

“But it’s the only way to prevent this from happening again,” Celestia finished, opening up a bright blue magical portal in the air. The circular formation crackled with energy for a moment, then expanded, revealing something akin to a window, behind which stood a grey Griffon.

“Princess Celestia,” he said, voice thick with a Griffon accent, “I wasn’t expecting to see you. To what do I owe this honor?”

Celestia narrowed her eyes. “Commander Treugrau of the Griffon Resistance… there is a matter I must discuss with you.”

“Oh?” the Griffon cocked an eyebrow, “have you reconsidered our terms? Will you fight with us to overthrow the old government?”

“We shall see,” Luna said, “for now, we seek information- a flight of Griffons trespassed through Equestrian airspace today; dost thou know anything about this?”

“And do not lie,” Celestia added, horn glowing, “we will know if you are, and if it turns out that your troops were responsible for this…”

“What?” the Griffon recoiled, disgusted, “dare you bring our honor into question? Ma’am, with all due respect, I am aware of my troops’ actions at all times. I never gave such an order- it is against our code to attack without intention to declare war.”

“Perhaps you do not see this situation as we do,” Celestia went on, pacing slowly, “the way my sister and I see it, you want our country’s assistance, but know we won’t lift a hoof to help as long as we are not attacked, in order to maintain neutrality. With that in mind, would it not be beneficial to you to launch an attack with full deniability in order to push this nation over the brink?”

It took a moment for the Griffon to process what was being said. “Are you… are you accusing me of lying?” he said finally, “to claim such a thing is a mark against my honor. I swear to you- those Griffons were not mine. They acted under someone else’s orders.”

“Please forgive us if we’re not entirely convinced by thine argument,” Luna said drily, “nevertheless, we’ve agreed to do something about this- art thou still prepared to receive aid?”

The Griffon’s eyes widened. “Yes, of- of course! Are you changing your minds? Will you-”

“We will deploy our Expeditionary Forces to the Griffon Kingdom for the sole purpose of observation,” Celestia answered, “we will not provoke the old government unless given a reason to do so. If we find they are responsible, we will fight with you. If not,” she paused, making sure to stress her point, “we will withdraw all troops. You will be alone, and if these actions were in some way caused by you, you will pay. Do we have an agreement?”

“Yes ma’am,” the Griffon replied, “I’ll tell my soldiers to prepare right away. Thank you.”

“We will see,” Celestia said, shutting down the portal. She turned to Luna. “One more Griffon to contact.”

“Dost thou believe the Commander is truthful?” Luna pressed as the portal opened again.

Celestia lowered her head, “I don’t know. I didn’t detect dishonesty, which puts me somewhat at ease, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t capable of clouding his mind.”

This time the portal opened on a much older Griffon, covered in ornate armor. This was none other than King Sturm, the ruler of the Kingdom, and unlike the Griffon before him, he was clearly displeased.

“And why have you contacted me, Princesses?” he sneered, “come to mock me? Perhaps rub some salt in the wounds? Don’t pretend you weren’t looking forward to this day.”

“We weren’t,” Celestia growled, deciding to try a bluff, “and we weren’t expecting to be attacked on our own soil, either.”

“Ah yes, I heard about that,” Sturm chuckled, scratching a talon below his gnarled beak, “I must say your Aviators put up a good fight. Four of us against four of them, and only one casualty on your side. I only wish my own warriors put up such a fight.”

“Thou were unaware of this?” Luna asked.

“I don’t pretend that I wish it wasn’t my troops,” Sturm responded, sneering, “but no- we will fight another day; today is not that day.”

“Both you and the leader of the rebels have denied these attacks,” Celestia said, trying her best to keep her emotions in check, “and we cannot let this go unpunished. We’ve already decided to send our expeditionary forces to your shores, as a deterrent from future attacks. Give us safe passage, and we will not retaliate.”

“And what makes you think I’d do that?” the Griffon barked, “I realize my country is in the grasp of war, but I will never allow your kind to set hoof on my land!”

“You will if you wish to survive,” Celestia said softly, “I cannot imagine the government will be able to hold out long against two factions.”

The only response Celestia received was a grunt. Truth be told, it was hard to tell if the Griffon was lying as well. He was considerably less cooperative than his counterpart, of course, but his words still seemed sincere. Finally, he turned and addressed the sisters.

“You will be granted safe passage on one condition…”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “Go on.”

“Raise a hoof in anger against my troops or support the resistance in any way, and I will consider it an affront against the Griffon Kingdom. As you can imagine, I will respond in kind.”

Celestia nodded, “we would expect nothing less. Well met.”

Again, the Griffon only grunted in response as the portal died out. Celestia turned away without speaking, instead regarding the walls of the throne room. Each one bore massive stained glass windows- tales of heroism immortalized right here for all time. Ponies from across the ages lived on in these works of art, reminding all those who entered of Equestria’s rich, proud history. It was a history that, both Celestia and Luna had once hoped, would never again be touched by conflict. Now, though, neither was sure this would be possible.

“Will thou be alright, sister?” Luna asked taking the throne as Celestia quietly walked away.

The Alicorn looked back at her sister, illuminated by the soft light of her moon, and managed a faint smile.

“I’ll manage.”

“Goodnight, sister. Rest well.”

A standard goodnight, and one that Celestia returned in kind, but as she climbed the stairs to her chamber, the Princess wasn’t sure her night would be restful at all.

…

For a creature almost as old as time itself, the Changeling queen had to admit- this was not one of her better days. Four warriors had left the hive hours ago, and none had returned. To make matters worse, their telepathic links had been broken. More than likely, they were dead. Wonderful. As if she wasn’t busy enough keeping up her current facade, now she had drastic failure to deal with.

Groaning, she rolled out of her plush, velvety bed and grimaced. Living like a princess had lost its appeal long ago. She longed for her hive, to hear the comforting, never-ending hum of her subjects. Instead, she was stranded in the North, feigning an heir to a throne that, for what it was worth, really wasn’t worth much. What had once been a glorious, crystalline empire was now nothing more than a husk of its former self. She hardly had to lift a hoof to keep her “subjects” out of the throne room. Most were nearly as drone-like as the Changelings that called her mother. Simply barring the doors was all it had taken. Naturally, she suspected some rival forces had a hoof in the downfall of this city, but it was of no consequence to her. When she eventually captured the throne- and, she reminded herself, she would, and soon- this frozen glacier of a city could rot in perpetual depression for eternity, for all she cared.

.As she walked down the stairs to her throne, she smiled. The palace’s former rulers had probably never envisioned what she’d do to their precious throne room. Clearly, it had been created to make full use of the crystals with which it had been built, using them to amplify ambient light and create a warm, cheery atmosphere. Any source of light had since been covered, and the only light now came from the cold, green glow cast by a few cocoons here and there- her personal elite guard, probably almost mature enough to emerge by now.

She blinked once as green sparks danced across her body, and frowned as once again, she donned her new disguise. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, she’d decided long ago, had very few things going for her. Not quite spindly enough to be beautiful, too happy to be content, and most of all, too… pink.It was a mystery what Shining Armor saw in her. She would be happy to shed this disguise one day, but for now, it was of the utmost importance that she remain concealed. As she sat down in her throne, a flitter of wingbeats caught her attention. As she turned around, now seated, one of her subjects approached from the shadows.

“Hive-Mother, I bring news of the four missing warriors.”

Chrysalis’s eyes narrowed. “Go on.”

“They perished fighting the Aviators, though they were able to take one down with them, it seems.”

“And the bodies of our fallen?”

“Lost to the ocean,” the Changeling replied. Chrysalis nodded.

“Well done, scout. You are relieved of your duties for tonight. Rest.”

“At your command, Hive-Mother.” The Changeling backed away, disappearing back into the darkness and leaving Chrysalis alone to ponder. Clearly she’d underestimated the Aviators once again; Chitin should have been her first lesson. He was to be her mate, and she’d spared no expense building him into the perfect Changeling. The wretched creature hadn’t lasted more than thirty minutes against the Aviators and their allies. This time was supposed to have been different. Still…

She regarded the moon above, dimly shining through the skylight- the only window that had remained untouched during her “renovations.” Luna would be sitting the throne right about now, wouldn’t she? Luna… a face she hadn’t seen in a very long time. Soon, they would meet again, she was sure of it. Absently, she ran a hoof down her waxy, stringy mane. She was getting off the matter at hoof, something she had a tendency to do in her old age. Where was she? The Aviators… no, she decided, perhaps leaving them alive was really the best course of action. After all, they were only ants in the grand scheme of things. When tension between the world’s mightiest governments snapped, when arrows and magic filled the skies, when cities crumbled beneath the hooves and talons of conquest, then and only then could she finally decide what to do with them. Perhaps they would die in the coming conflict. After all, it wasn’t a matter of if the Griffons would finally launch a major attack against Equestrians, it was a matter of when. She’d see to that. Still, she rather hoped the Aviators might survive, at least for a while. She seldom had the opportunity to indulge in luxuries like revenge, but if they could survive just long enough to watch their beloved princesses fall… she sneered, sharp, white fangs sparkling in the darkness; if they could survive that long, perhaps she’d finally have some semblance of justice.