Author's Note
And here we go...
(As ever, feel free to point out the misspellings, yada yada yada...)
Hope you like it,
Bloody Duchess!
Farewell to Mount Salerno
The thumping sound of hurried hoofsteps echoed through the ancient archways of Mount Salerno - They ran as fast as possible, dodging from the many statuettes and medieval armors on display in the hallways. This unexpected (and extremely unpleasant) uproar had awoken almost the entire castle.
The problem was that this specific castle, was inhabited not by a family of nobles- let alone by a princess. No... Mount Salerno had a peculiar owner, as well a peculiar past - that most ponies decided to forget.
A pair of guards suddenly stopped; they were exhausted, panting and sweating from head to hoof. The younger one seemed to be in shock, his fur had several burnt marks, as well his armor. He gulped, nervously trotting in place.
A majestic door surrounded by equally huge lines of pillars towered over the ponies, after so many decades this sight still made them speechless.
Unfortunately, silence wasn't an option anymore.
"O-open the door L-luce" One of them muttered hesitatingly. "C-come on, we don't have time for another of your nervous breakdowns." It was Scudo Chiaro, captain of the guard. He shouldn't be afraid- not after all those years.
"Y-you g-go first..." The sergeant stuttered. "I'm not g-good with... Um- Doors." He started to back away from the atrium.
"Sergeant, stop being such a spoiled little filly and open it!" Hissed the captain.
"I-I... B-but I... I"
"It's an order Sgt Luce, open the damned door!"
Still in the darkness of his room, he stretched his neck and shoulders. From the faint light rays sneaking through the curtains he could presume it was already morning.
A Saturday morning.
But why? - He wondered. Why for Celestia's sake, would two guards argue right outside his door. In a Saturday morning!
The stallion sighed. Sightly annoyed, he decided to personally check the source of his problems. He rose from the bed, and silently as a ghost walked to the door.
What a shame... A few hundred years ago he wouldn't even bother to get up, only a simple curse - and the 'problem' would be gone.
Oh, they better give me a good reason. Or somepony will end up in my- He purposely burst the large wooden doors open with a spell.
"Captain Scudo what-" He stopped in mid-sentence, looking at the gloomy hall in front of him. "May I ask why your guard is unconscious on the floor?" The unicorn cocked an eyebrow.
"S-sir? You... I-I s-suppose the d-door knocked him out." The captain said.
"Oh... He's not dead- Is he?"
"Y-yes- I mean... N-no, I don't t-think so, L-lord Gray." He tried to regain the composure.
A muffled moan drew their attention back to the sergeant. "Aaah- My hoorn" He rubbed his head. "Stupid door almost cracked my hor-"
"The door did what?" Gray's question caught him by surprise.
"L-lord G-gray, I'm so so sorry. I w-was completely unaware-" He stumbled on his hooves, trying to stand. "It was m-my fault please sir... D-don't- k-kill me"
Scudo facehoofed.
"Very funny of you, guard. But I wouldn't do such a thing..." A weak smile started to form on Luce's face. "...Unless you were the creature responsible for that fuss right outside my chambers. Because that, my broken-horned friend-" Gray placed a hoof around the sergeant neck "Would be just the perfect reason to kill you!"
And then, silence.
Luce desperately looked at his captain eyes, trying to find out if he should laugh or cry hysterically.
"Lord Gray we are, de facto, responsible for all the noise. We sincerely apologize for that- Isn't it sergeant?" Suppressing a sob, he nodded. "But I'm afraid to inform you sir, that it's a matter of utmost importance, and can't be postponed."
Slowly, Gray Compass loosened the grasp around Luce's neck. (Ignoring the fact that he silently walked away from him)
"Utmost importance?" He frowned. "Now you made me curious, captain... I don't hear these words together in a sentence since our self-proclaimed Princess Sunbutt sent her little sister to the moon."
"Ah, yes my lord... This shall be explained in no time. But w-why don't you have a seat first? It might help."
The captain worriedly observed as the slender unicorn poured himself a goblet of wine and looked across the room at him. The curtains behind Gray were thick and almost no sunlight escaped from its folds, though, even in the dim light, his eyes sparkled with a reddish ochre glow.
"An angry mob you say?" He took a sip of his drink.
"Oh please, Scudo... Why would an angry mob try to invade Mt. Salerno grounds?" He laid the goblet aside, and sat down on his armchair. "Have I forgotten to send my contributions on Boxing Day again?" He snorted sarcastically "Maybe Winter Wrap Up? I'm sure they must have missed me down there in the village."
The guards exchanged glances awkwardly.
"No s-sir... They claim that-"
"They 'claim' what?"
"My Lord... They want Duchess Felice Cadenza back."
One more time, an uncomfortable stillness took over the place. Still in his chair, Gray thoughtfully stared at an empty space between the guards.
At least apparently, he was calm and emotionless as ever, but it didn't take long for them to notice there was something wrong with that eerie silence.
"Is that so?"
Ever so slowly, he raised his glass of wine again and finished drinking. The whitish golden aura of his magic illuminated his face, as Gray smashed the empty goblet into pieces.
Scudo and Luce flinched at the disturbing crackling sound of Gray's hoofshoes stepping over the shards of glass, unwittingly backing away as he walked towards them.
"But sir-"
"Those ignorant villagers disrespect our treaty, step into my lands, trot up the stairways of Mt. Salerno, and knock the doors of my castle..."
He paused.
"Looking for their stupid Duchess?"
"Yes sir." They spoke in unison - Young Luce almost in tears.
Unexpectedly, Gray turned around and took a deep breath, pressing his temple with a hoof.
"I don't think that's possible anymore."
In a heartbeat, the curtains sprung open, bathing the entire room in a blinding light. When their eyes finally adjusted to the sun, the guards gasped at the scene.
There, lying limply over the bed was a beautiful mare. Her yellowish coat - as well everything around, was stained in blood, not even the dark crimson sheets could mask what happened there.
A deep bite mark could be clearly seen in her neck, dried blood tarnished all of her fur and attire.
"Y-you..."
Scudo Chiaro approached, and stopped by his side in front of the bed. Lord Gray morbidly observed her face, those beautiful violet eyes lifeless staring at the arched ceiling.
"You killed her. You killed Princess Cadance's sister!" He stated in shock. "Lord gray, do you know how bad that is?? What Celestia will do with us when-"
"I didn't killed her!" Gray shouted.
"I never planned to do so... It was her fault, she was too weak for me!" With a spell, he closed the curtains around the bed. "Felice was supposed to live, I wanted her by my side."
"You sucked her dry! We both know how their bodies are sensitive to the venom. Gray, y-you shouldn't have-"
BANG!
The stained windows exploded, sending shards of glass and chunks of the curtains everywhere. After the debris settled, everyone in the room (except the defunct duchess of course, that would be weird) stared dumbfounded at the scene unfolding down in the castle gardens.
Hundreds, maybe thousands of ponies of different races and sizes, crowded around the inner walls - they lifted torches, spears, and plenty of other tools that could easily tear a dragon apart. Among them all a distinct group could easily be spotted beside a jet-black carriage, they wore dark coats and scarfs, without any exceptions, all of them carried some sort of gun.
"No."
"N-no, this can't be possible..." Gray sat on the ground tremulously, his face for the first time showing any signs of fear.
"Sir, we can-"
"Shut up!" He yelled. "How did they came in? We have a treaty dammit! What for fuck's sake the Haylician Mafia is doing here?" The unicorn teleported to the captain's side, angrily pining him against the wall with a spell.
"Answer me! What Salvatore is doing inside Mount Salerno??" His eyes glowing in a mix of rage and panic.
"Y-you killed h-is fiancee. The treaty is over."
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