The Fall of Morninglight

(( This entry is dated August 26th of last year ))

It is another brilliant morning within the Empire.

I had the opportunity to spend some all too rare quiet time on the balcony of my chambers this morning, simply enjoying the fine chocolate mint tea that has become one of my favorites of late.

With all that has been happening these last few days - it was very nice to be at peace, if only for a little while… To simply feel the wind in my mane and the world slowly turning beneath my hooves is a fleeting pleasure.

The Changeling issue has reached an interesting point of rest, though I do not see this lull in the storm lasting for long, unfortunately.

Yesterday morning I received another missive from the Equestrian Diarchy... This one was in regards to Princess Luna’s unannounced weekend visit to Roanoak, wherein she took it upon herself to avoid official channels and opted to directly query a few citizens about Miss Silvermane’s hive – and then write me a letter regarding that what she had heard was giving them pause.

This I find rather humorous. I do not believe Luna has completely come to terms with this modern age and its complexities of political geography. Hers seems to be a rather brash and direct style – easy to read, and just as easy to lead. And it is a potential political weakness that I sincerely hope does not cause the Equestrian crown any dire troubles in the future.

As for the end results of Luna’s little visit – Roanoak and Equestria are old neighbors who share a laugh and a cup of sugar over the back yard fence. There are few legitimate secrets between us, and the agreements in place are mostly of a loose and convenient nature. This ‘open door’ policy between us could explain her temerity, but ultimately it has little impact save for the smile it gives me.

I do need to respond to their recent letter though … I shall do that a bit later.

What has brought about this lull in the drama and intrigue of late? I will guess my final determinations for the Changelings in Roanoak.

After seeking the thoughts of those closest to the situation, hearing the impassioned pleas of both sides, and enduring the seeming endless deliberation of every angle I could find, I determined it was best to recognize the sovereignty of the Silvermane Hive.

So, with this act I have granted the Silvermane Changelings the same status the other visiting races enjoy, which means the Silvermane Hive has embassy status within Roanoak.

The reasons for this determination are many and convoluted – but in general it satisfies my legal requirements under the Roanoak Constitution, which stipulates the recognition of foreign leadership. It also places the Silvermane Hive into a category where it is only subject to action at an Imperial level… And given the sensitive nature of this gambit, I feel it is best if any action comes by my own hoof versus that of an unruly mob.

Last evening, as I spoke of this ruling to Miss Silvermane, the look on her muzzle was priceless and is something I shall carry with me for as long as I can. She is so impossibly young and inexperienced for one who is to lead a people – but we must all face our destinies when they come to us, and that is rarely when we are ready…

That the sharper edge of this decision did not appear to occur to her does give me pause, but I shall give guidance as I can, and hopefully this will work out as well for her and hers as it was intended to for me and mine.

The instant I signed that writ of sovereignty the Changelings of the Silvermane Hive were no longer Roanoak citizens, and became the subjects of Queen Silvermane. This means that if there is an incident, at worst Roanoak can only be accused of harboring them. Our destinies are no longer entwined and the decisions of Queen Silvermane, or her people, do not as heavily impact Roanoak.

Now, they still live within Roanoak and in that regard I am still the regent of authority for all international issues. This allows me to hold them under my wings and protect them from the unsure footing of the international stage – until such time as they are ready to stand on their own.

The final piece to this gambit places any legal proceeding against a changeling within their Queen’s purview. This means she has the right and privilege to intercede on any legal action.

If she does, the political turmoil with the wronged party belongs to her and her alone… If she does not, then by default she is in agreement with Roanoak and this means Roanoak cannot be called into question.

In either case, there shall be no more talk of the Imperial Guard persecuting Changelings.

Whilst Miss Silvermane was in attendance I detailed the function of the Registry detector that was recently finished, and the laws I had just finished drafting for its use. She was in agreement with me that its use is fair for all involved – and as the regent for her people, this is law.

In short, the Registry Detector is a magical apparatus that can sense and record the infinitesimally finite magical signature of a being placed within its field.

Everything alive in our world has a unique magical signature, a bit of random chance in the magical flow that sustains them – and the Detector can sense this. Unfortunately the apparatus is quite large and is immovable, and as such it has been placed in the area of the holding cells in the lower levels of the castle.

Its use is regulated to those who volunteer to be catalogued, and those who are brought in on charges. Once catalogued, anyone placed back in the field can be identified with 100% certainty – regardless of any disguise, magical or otherwise.

This means we now have the ability to directly identify any Changeling that has been found to be a troublemaker, or anyone who desires to be able to have their identity verified with certainty – such as myself.

I was the first being catalogued by the machine, and afterwards signed a decree that Imperious can call for my verification before executing any Imperial order if he feels it is out of character.