Sand on the Doorstep

The three companions entered through the massive double doors, entering a throne room that would have overshadowed that of even the mightiest king. A balcony extended over their heads as they walked down the crimson carpet which ran down the center of the room. When they emerged from underneath it the actual ceiling proved to be well over 60 feet above their heads. The room itself was massive, tiers of benches lined the walls behind wooden fence that encircled the center court. The carpet on the floor made its way from the doors all the way to the high thrones of the Royal Sisters, yet the thrones themselves were empty. Roland felt a sudden burst of pain shoot through his head as they came out from under the balcony, but it passed in a matter of seconds. He looked to either side to see if either of his new friends had felt but they made no sing that anything was wrong, merely walking at his side, their eyes a bit wider than he remembered them being a moment before. Perhaps they felt it after all, only not as strong... Or perhaps I'm just going soft in the mind...

When Roland and his escorts entered the room, instead of finding the Princesses entertaining a court full of Equestrian citizens from their spot upon the thrones as they would at most other times, they found them seated at a large circular table that had been rolled into the center of the room. Around the table sat a small assortment of lords and ladies, politicians and aristocrats, advisors and diplomats from many different portions of Equestria. Celestia and Luna sat beside one another, with the other members of the council flanking them on either side. A space was open directly across from the Princesses so that they had a clear view of the door and anyone who might happen to come through it. However, the shear volume of the doors opening had alerted all present at the table to the newcomers entering the room, so they were all watching as one when Roland, Nimbus, and Clarion stepped into the center court. "And who is this that comes before the council," asked one old grey stallion, his voice shaky from age. "Hmmm? Who is it that has entered our presence? Somepony, tell me who they are!" It was then that Roland noticed the old earth pony's eyes: pale, milky, with little sign of a pupil behind the film that had formed over them. This one's blind as a bat and as easily frightened, yet still present on the Princesses' council. What purpose does he serve, I wonder?

"Calm yourself, elder, we're not being invaded. It would appear news has come back from Everfree." This time it was a far younger stallion just to the left of Princess Luna. He was a lighter grey than the old codger, nearly white in fact, and had bright red eyes. He was also clad in a black cloak, the hood of which was thrown back, revealing him to be a unicorn. "Tell us, is the Princesses' castle safe? Has the blaze been brought under control?"

"It has, Chancellor, we were sent to give our division's report on the situation directly to the Council. Fortunately the fire barely made it passed the forest's border, though extinguishing it proved to be significantly harder than simply containing it." Nimbus nodded toward Roland. "We also brought along this traveler who happened to have gotten caught in the inferno. He has some rather important information that he wished to share with the Princesses."

The Gunslinger stepped forward, conscious of the small sea of suspicious eyes that now rested upon him. The council seemed anything but welcoming and he could not say that he would have chosen any of them for the positions they held had the decision been up to him. Still, Celestia and Luna sat amongst them, two beacons of genuine good intentions within that crowd of corruption and mistrust. Another step and he was standing before them with Nimbus and Clarion at his back. He looked at the Royal Sisters and took a deep, formal bow that would have been far more elegant had he still been in his own body. A few of the council-members exchanged confused glances, the gesture was clearly foreign to their eyes.

As he rose from his bow Roland began to step toward the open spot at the table directly in front of him. Immediately, a pair of guards darted in front of him, spreading their wings to bar his approach. "Another step and ye shall be removed from the court, outsider!" He was about to proceed anyway when two shouts of protest rang out from behind the guards.

"No!" Her voice was startled and straining to be heard, a sense of urgency hung in the air after she spoke.

"Stop!" This one was calm and collected, her statement clearly an order rather than a plea.

The Royal Sisters had both spoken out at once, causing the whole room to turn toward them. Luna had pushed herself onto the table in her rush to halt her guard. She remained there for a moment, front hooves planted firmly on the wooden surface, then suddenly realized the crowd of expectant eyes upon her and quickly returned to her previous position beside Celestia. She looked up at her sister, still only little more than half her size.

Celestia cleared the air of anticipation in the room with grace. "This pony is here to bring us news that will surely interest the council. As such, it seems only proper that he take a seat at our table." The guards looked at each other for a moment, then stepped to other side of the open space at table, heads lowered in an apologetic manner. Still, both the nightguard and the sunguard gave Roland a suspicious look as he walked past. The Princess must have noticed, as she made sure to send a few more words their way. "You must trust our judgement on this matter. Besides, I have it on good faith that he is not an assassin."

She acknowledged the Gunslinger with a smile, but nothing more. Luna had a bit more difficulty hiding her excitement at the sight of this unexpected visitor. Her eyes were wide and shining, and she hung on his every word as Roland went about recounting the events of the past day. He left out any mention of the door or the name of the invader who had started the fire. "For I know for a certainty that this hellish blaze was no accident. It was no ordinary flame that burned at its heart, and it could only have been set into motion by one who had control over such arcane forces. He was either attempting to keep me from following him any further, or he wished for something in that forest to be lost in the inferno. Though, it would seem more likely to me that the coward would simply have used it to accomplish both tasks and thought himself quite clever for it."

A long moment passed, during which Roland noted the look of deep reflection and contemplation crossing Celestia's eyes. Theres something out there, something important that Walter wants or wants to make certain I do not reach. What is it that you know of this matter Princess? And would you see fit to tell me even if we were not surrounded by so many untrustworthy others? She took a few another few moments to consider the possibilities of what she had just been told, then finally, she turned to the unicorn who had spoken before. The albino, that is why he appears so strange to my eyes. That had been bothering the Gunslinger since he first saw the creature seated beside the Princess. The pale coloration was easily explained, but the red eyes were a far stranger trait, one which would have unsettled Roland had he not become thoroughly desensitized to such reactions long ago.

"Chancellor, you mentioned the castle before. Do you really think that that could be what this invader was hoping for then?"

"I admit, I had my doubts at first. Everfree Forest is massive and that blaze could have spread to any part of it... Still, in light of this new evidence I think we may have our answer after all."

"I had hoped it would not come to this, that castle was always so well protected and hidden away... I suppose I simply thought that sense of security would last forever." She looked around the room and suddenly realized that no one else seemed to have any idea what she was talking about save for Luna and the Chancellor, and Luna was far too distracted to hear more than a small portion of what her sister had been saying. "My apologies everypony, Chancellor Revenant and I had discussed a matter earlier that we believe may relate to this incident as well as the possible assassin rumored to be in Equestria now, and I believe Roland has just confirmed one of our suspicions on the subject."

The Princess rose from her cushion and motioned for Luna to do the same. "My sincerest apologies to all of you but I fear we must cut this meeting short; there is a great deal that Luna and myself need to discuss in private and there is still a moon which needs to rise tonight." Luna seemed to wake back up at that, having forgotten all about her most essential duty to the land during all of the excitement that had occurred. "I hereby offer you each an invitation to stay here in the castle tonight as our honored guests. We will surely want the three of you present at tomorrow's council as well. This fire matter still has a great deal which needs to be considered before we put it to rest. Rest well, all of you." She turned from the table and began to walk toward the exit near the thrones, a wooden door leading to the Royal Suites.

Luna left the table, stopped for a moment, and then turned to Roland and said in a much calmer voice than he had her use all night: "Long days and pleasant nights." She turned again and followed her sister out of the throne room. The council members dispersed without so much as a word of parting, the Chancellor doing his best to assist the old blind elder in getting out of the room.

A pair of household guards, far less threatening than the two who had stopped Roland from nearing the table, appeared and informed Roland, Clarion, and Nimbus that they were to show them to their guest chambers. Roland and Nimbus accepted the offer gratefully, both looking forward to the idea of a private room and a real bed, albeit for different reasons. Much to the Gunslinger's surprise, however, Clarion began to act very nervous, and when questioned about what type of room she would prefer, she immediately began to stumble over her own words in an attempt to answer. "Oh, me? I, um, well, uh, you see... The thing is I, uh. I uh, I didn't know we'd, um... Well, that is, I don't. I. I just don't think it will be necessary to... Um... I'msorryIhavetogo!" And with that, she darted over out the main door and down the hall, taking to the air the moment she reached an open window to fly out of.

Befuddled by what he had just witnessed, Roland turned to Nimbus in hopes of gaining some kind of answer. Instead, he was met with a simple, disappointed-looking head shake. "It's not the first time, she does this every now and then. Just up and leaves so long as there's nothing important for her to be doing. She tends to dart off as soon as any of our training runs are, but none of us have ever really bothered following here to see where it is she goes."

They continued their conversation as they followed the guards to their sleeping quarters. Something Nimbus had mentioned earlier had been weighing on Roland's mind. "When you introduced us back there, crying our names to the guards so we could enter, you called Clarion the Second Seat in your tet... in your group. What does it mean?"

"Its a rank, it means that she is second in command in the Brigade. Should Windsor ever reach a point where he is unable to fulfill his duties as leader, she is the next in line to take over."

"And you are Fourth Seat then?"

"Caught that part as well, did you? Yes, she outranks me, but no I'm not bitter about it. Trust me when I tell you, she earned that rank and all the benefits and responsibilities that come with it."

"I cry your pardon, it was not intended as an insult, nor an inquisition. Its just that she has not as of yet struck me as the type who would fit an officer's role."

"I know she can come off as a bit... detached at times, but let me assure you her heart is always in the right place. It also doesn't hurt that she is easily one of the fastest flyers in Equestria." They had reached the first of the three chambers that had been lays out for them to use. The guards told Nimbus it was his and ushered him inside. "We can discuss this more some other time. Just rest assured Clarion is a more than capable leader when she needs to be. If she feels it necessary to disappear every couple days or so when nothing important is going on, I'm not going to be the one to tell her otherwise." He bid Roland good night and disappeared behind the room's wooden door.

The guards continued down the hall until they reached a similar door that led into a small, but well-furnished sleeping chamber. The Gunslinger entered cautiously, all too aware that letting his guard down now could very easily result in Walter getting the jump on him. The room had everything one would need in a short-term living quarters: a bed, a chair, a fireplace, candles for lighting, some artwork upon the otherwise bare walls, a dresser, a mirror, and a windowed door which opened onto a small balcony. All in all, a simple but comfortable place to spend the night, far more comfortable than anywhere Roland had slept in years.

He had just finished examining his surroundings and was preparing to settle into the warm-looking bed before him when something clicked against one of the glass panes of the balcony door. The Gunslinger whipped around, one foreleg going to his revolver. Though he knew attempting to draw it would be a fruitless endeavor, the reaction had become too ingrained to ignore. He moved toward the door, eyeing the glass suspiciously. There should have been enough light to be able to see who or what was tapping on the glass, the moon was nearly full and filling the outside world with its pale glow. Yet there was nothing but darkness beyond the doorway, shadow covered it entirely.

He reached the door, suddenly certain that he knew what was waiting behind it. He pushed it open, stepped onto the small balcony, and saw what had been trying to get his attention. He was not disappointed.

"Hail Gunslinger, it has been far too long." The little Princess had shrouded the entire balcony in shadows, no light penetrated through from the world outside. Luna was standing against the railing, her sister just beside her. They had clearly been waiting for some time, staying out of sight until Roland had been completely alone.

"I fear we have much to discuss, and very little time to speak before I must bring the sun back around. I hope you don't mind having our little meeting here on the balcony." Celestia's horn began to glow as she shut the door behind Roland, sealing them within Luna's personal bubble of twilight. Their palaver would last for another hour before they would emerge again, and it would uncover many more questions than answers.