Shattered Moonby NightsongWritesChaptersChapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3Chapter 1 Chapter 1 A late afternoon sun shone brilliantly into the lowland meadows and forests of Equestria, and it gave a friendly red color to the pastel houses that made up the large town of Ponyville. Its peaceful denizens trotted happily through the streets to finish up their shopping, visit with friends, or return home from a hard day at work, with a carefree attitude that belied years of facing countless threats and shenanigans. Oddly enough, for all of the antics that the town had been involved with, on top of the fact that it was home to the six Bearers of the Elements of Harmony (affectionately called the Mane Six by close friends and relatives) and that the town was home to the newest Princess of Equestria, Ponyville remained a relatively ignored blot on Equestria’s map. To the peaceful citizens, though, that was perfectly acceptable in such times. Ponyville was a retreat from the hustle and bustle of the larger cities and the looming threat of war on the borders. In the massive Golden Oaks Library near the town’s center, Princess Twilight Sparkle was curled up on her reading couch and staring down at some historical texts on the Everfree Forest. An expected firm knocking sounded at her door, and her muzzle split into a smile. “That must be her,” she chirped to herself pleasantly. A burst of violet magic zipped the young alicorn across the spotlessly cleaned room and to her door, where she took a moment to go over a quick mental checklist. Early dinner prepared? Check, the casserole would be done in exactly three point five minutes and she had the wine ready to serve. The research material Luna had asked for? Check, all of the books on Griffon military stratagems, customs, and maps of their homeland and colonies, all were ready on the research desk. More than likely to help her learn more about the aggressive nation that had recently struck a few towns on the border. Twilight gave a small wince. She hoped she could keep Luna in a good mood, and not let her brood and war-plan all night. Satisfied that her home was ready, Twilight reached out with her magic and swung the door open, smiling brightly at her guest. Princess Luna looked… strained. That was a word for it, certainly: her face was pinched with worry, and the bags under her eyes spoke of little sleep or rest of any kind. She had thankfully left her guard at home it seemed, and she inclined her head to Twilight, a small smile splitting her muzzle. “Thank you for letting me visit, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said softly, rolling her withers and flight muscles a bit, “I… needed to get out of Canterlot for a spell. Might I come in?” “Of course, Luna,” Twilight replied happily, giggling faintly, “If you ever need to come over for a ‘spell,’ my door is always open and my horn ready!” Luna paused for a moment and gave Twilight an incredulous smile, chuckling quietly and lightly shoulder-checking the smaller alicorn, “T’was a terrible jest. But welcome.” Get Luna to laugh and relax a little? Check! Twilight recovered from the check gracefully, wings fluttering a bit as she led Luna over to the research area. Several fluffy chairs had been dragged over from the reading corner to be clustered around a table bedecked with the research books, notebooks, quills, and one of the new gas lanterns being sold out of Manehatten. It had been somewhat expensive, but Twilight was rather fond of the clockwork contraptions. She was rather hoping the mayor might get them set out on the town streets… “Someone was prepared,” Luna teased quietly, giving Twilight a warm smile before tugging herself up onto a chair with a weary, relieved sigh, “Is Rainbow Dash not going to be joining us?” Making a face, Twilight shook her head and gave a rueful chuckle, “As soon as I said the words ‘study session’ she was volunteering herself to take the Crusaders out into the Everfree for a camping trip.” That got an eyebrow raise out of the Princess, and she tilted her head just slightly. “Isn’t that dangerous, Twilight? The Everfree is hardly a place for young ones…” she replied softly, ears laying back. Luna knew all of the Crusaders personally; she had visited them in their dreams many a time, and found them to be good little ponies, with their hearts in the right place, even if their heads were not always. It was hard to be friends with too many ponies simply through visiting their dreams- there were just too many- but through Twilight and her friends, she had gotten to know all of them rather well. And if anypony knew the dangers of the Everfree thoroughly, it was Luna. Manticores and chimeras were hardly the worst things in its depths… But Twilight merely smiled, horn lighting up; as nothing in the room was moving, Luna assumed, with some degree of surprise and respect, that Twilight must be using her magic to manipulate something in the kitchen. She has truly grown, she thought happily to herself, swishing her tail, How Celestia must be proud… A wince came unbidden to Luna’s frame, one she was grateful to keep hidden from Twilight. Celestia. The thought of her sister was enough to send her into barely controlled frustrated shakes. The village raids had angered Luna as well; greatly angered in fact, and she had sent her own Night Guard to the help guard the borders between their nations. Griffons had been a problem back in her old lifetime as well, as brutal raiders and slavers. Her attendants, and Twilight, had been quick to reassure her that Griffons were by and large not at all like their ancestors. Even Celestia had made that point a few times. Which is why it frustrated Luna so much that Celestia seemed to have completely forgotten this fact. Their last few talks on the Griffon problem had gotten fairly… dark. Which was wholly unlike Celestia; Luna had always been the warmonger, the warmistress. To hear Celestia entertain the idea of a sustained naval bombardment of the Griffon sea-side and cliff cities… It was somewhat disturbing. Nonetheless, the Griffons had certainly provoked Equestria to war, hence this study session. Luna needed to figure out exactly how she could hit the Griffons in such a way as to force a surrender. Before Celestia did something… rash, and further skewed Luna’s view of her sister. “You know how Rainbow Dash is,” Twilight finally replied as she levitated a tray of steaming casserole into the room, “Nothing is too scary for her.” She rolled her eyes at that, but giggled, “And I made her take a few enchanted objects to keep the worst things away. She wouldn’t risk Scootaloo. And Sweetie Belle’s magic has only grown as she’s gotten older.” Smiling cheerfully, she carefully cut out a slice of the aromatic, somewhat cheesy food and set it out in front of Luna, smiling hopefully. Luna gulped. Twilight’s cooking was… generally hit and miss. One day it could be absolutely delicious! Like the pizza she had made for Luna’s birthday! The cheese and the veggies had been to die for. But the hayloaf she had made for the Summer Sun Celebration last year… well, suffice it to say, Twilight Sparkle was forbidden from making hayloaf for anypony, ever again. … Ever. Taking a deep breath, Luna gripped a fork in her magic and slowly moved it to the casserole, eying it to check for anything out of place. Flakes of hot pepper? Whole cloves of garlic? Unchopped onions!? Gulping thickly, she slowly bit into the bite. One chew. Two chew. Oh thank the stars. “This is is delicious, Twilight,” she purred out around the mouthful of cheesy bliss, eagerly diving in for more. Luna needed it too; all the frustrations and unease at home had been upsetting her stomach more often than not, and she had gone without dinner for several nights past. It did not take her long at all to rip her way through the casserole, barely giving Twilight enough time to grab a single plateful of her own. Thankfully she did not seem to mind, a bright smile on her face, ears perked as she watched her fellow princess enjoy her meal. Speaking of ears… A smile widening on her own lips, Luna stared up at the brilliant little rainbolt ear-stud shining near the tip of Twilight’s ears. Seeing the smile, Twilight flushed; everypony else had already commented on her new accessory, especially Rarity, who found it adorable. Fidgeting her front hooves, Twilight gave Luna a sheepish smile, but kept her ears perked. “I-it’s our six month anniversary. She um… s-she got it for me. I-I got her a bracelet, with m-my cutie mark on it.” “Too bad it was not a ring,” Luna quipped, darting back with a giggle as Twilight’s left wing instinctively darted out to bap her nose. “S-she will when s-she’s ready!” Twilight shot back shyly, face a deep crimson, “I-it’s only been six m-months, w-we’re taking things-” “Calm, dear Twilight,” Luna whispered soothingly, giving her a playful grin, “I only jest. Rainbow Dash loves you a great deal; that is easy enough to see, even without looking in her dreams.” Though after seeing those, it was fairly hard to look Twilight in the eye. The courtship of Princess Twilight and the Element of Loyalty had been a passionate affair, if Twilight’s friends were to be believed. Years of pining on both sides, only for the tension to come to a boil during a vacation to Mareami. According to Pinkie Pie, who loved to tell the story to all who would listen, much to Twilight’s chagrin, the whole hotel had heard their escapade. But embarrassments aside, both mares had been thick as blood from then on: Rainbow Dash had moved her cloudhome overtop the library, and a runic signal on the floor of Twilight’s bedroom took her right up into Rainbow’s beautiful home. As much as she loved her library, most of Twilight’s time was spent among the clouds, at least when Rainbow was home. “I love her too,” she whispered shyly, blushing deeply at Luna’s playful giggle, “I do! More than anything in the world… b-but uh, s-shouldn’t we g-get to studying?!” Very smooth, Twilight, Luna thought with an inward chuckle, turning herself towards the stack of books. Studying had always been a soothing past-time for Luna; a way to let her fast-working mind tune in on one subject and not think of anything else. But today, it was simply… not to be. She was fidgety- wings and hooves twitching every few moments, her tail audibly smacking against the soft cushions of her chair. A deep-bodied sigh rolled out before Luna could stifle it. Her mind could not delve into her studies. It could only focus on the cold stare Celestia had given their map of Equus, pink eyes boring into the Griffon Kingdoms with what seemed like… like… Hunger. “You alright, Luna?” Twilight’s voice cut through the thought, and the Princess of the Night jumped a bit in surprise, flushing. Twilight was watching her with wide, worried eyes, a hoof raised and resting gently on Luna’s shoulder. Despite herself, Luna leaned into the warm touch, sighing quietly. “Want to talk about it?” she asked quietly, rubbing across Luna’s silken fur gently, a kind smile on her lips. Princess of Friendship indeed. But also Celestia’s prized pupil. Luna was worried. Deeply worried. Something was niggling the back of her mind; a memory buried so deeply that even in all her mental discipline, she could not pull it free. Every time she spoke with Celestia, or heard her giving orders, that feeling would return. Something in Celestia had changed since her visit to the raid sites. And it was not the steel for war that Luna would have wanted to see. It was something… more. She could use an ally, should the need ever come up to speak with Celestia about this. But… not Twilight. Not yet. The poor mare had enough on her plate being a new princess, and one in a committed relationship at that. Perhaps she could contact Cadence and Shining Armor should things get too heated. But for now, Luna had to do what she could to watch over Celestia and this war, and find a way to soothe her sister’s wrath. “It’s nothing, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna whispered quietly, forcing a smile, “Can you fetch me an atlas of the coastlines of Griffonia?” For a moment, Twilight looked like she might argue, a small frown stretched across her muzzle, but she finally nodded, turning to head for the atlas section of the library. Luna sighed quietly, both relieved and disheartened. She hated to lie. She truly did. She had long since taken on the mantle of justice-keeper of Equestria, and lying tore at the very fabric of her core. Especially to a friend. But… I can’t make her doubt Celestia. Not yet… it would destroy her. She glared half-heartedly down at the map, eyes glued to the stretch of dense forest that ran north to the mountain range that separated Equestria and the Griffon Kingdoms, eventually joining up with the Everfree. Something in those woods had changed her beloved sister. “What did you do to her…” ****************************************** Scootaloo let the laugh bubble out of her as she raced after Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, all three eager to get to the campsite Rainbow Dash had described on the trip up. This was the best camping trip she had had since grade school! All three of her best friends with her, her big sister, AND enough marshmallows in her bag to keep them all on a sugar rush for the whole time. Getting out of Ponyville was practically saving her mind from snapping too, if Scootaloo thought about it. She enjoyed school, to a degree- shop class was awesome, and she was finally learning how to use a magical welder- but the amount of homework piled on from other classes was weighing heavily on her shoulders. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle seemed to handle it just fine, but… Smooth move, Scootaloo, trashed your own mood. Shut up, me. Glancing up, Scootaloo blinked in surprise, whipping her head around. Lost in her thoughts, she had managed to wander off the path and into a glade of tall oaks. Tall… leafless oaks. In the middle of summer. Ominous, much… Slowly stepping through the glade, Scootaloo nervously kept her head on the swivel, ears turning this way and that. The boughs of the oak trees hung low in gnarled bunches, gouging chunks out of the loamy soil and even out of other trees. Several smaller pines were wilted and drooping, the branches of one tree entwined so tightly around it that Scootaloo had the mental image of a gigantic constrictor snake, in for the kill. She gulped thickly, and stepped down.. and immediately sunk down to her fetlock. Jerking her head down in surprise, the young pegasus let out a surprised cry, finding her right foreleg stuck fast in a pool of bubbling liquid, almost like tar. But at the same time, it… wasn’t tar. Tar didn’t feel this cold, nor did it feel… good. Almost like a massage, wrapped around Scootaloo’s hoof and seeming to undulate and press gently over the sensitive hoof and fur. It felt good, but… Grunting and pulling with all her might, even buzzing her stunted wings to give extra lift to her efforts, Scootaloo struggled to pull her leg from the pool, but the suction was tremendous. To her horrified eyes, tendrils of the black substance seemed to be rising up out of the pool itself, questing their way towards her… “R-rainbow Dash! Sweetie Belle! S-somebo- yah!” With a sucking and tearing sound, Scootaloo finally broke free of the pool, tumbling end over end several times before finally coming to a rest on her haunches. As the dizziness died away, Scootaloo frantically swiped at her previously leg, certain that the strange, clinging liquid would be there… only, it wasn’t. Did it get sucked back in too? ...w-weird… Skin crawling and goosebumps rising, Scootaloo turned tail and fled from the strange glade, glad to be free of the tar… but strangely curious of the feelings it had induced in her. Her hoof till felt tingly with each step she took on the grass and dirt… as did certain other parts. Scootaloo shuddered faintly and ran faster, determined to bring this up to her friends… well, as soon as she found them again. ************************* Thankfully, Rainbow Dash had stuck to the path and made their camp within eyesight of it; two tents were already set up, and Rainbow was rushing back towards the path, likely having just realized that Scootaloo was missing. She both scowled and sighed in relief when she saw the little orange pegasus teen, which in turn made Scootaloo blush deeply beneath her fur. Whoops. “There you are!” she exclaimed in irritation, mixed with a dash of worry, “I was about to go searching for you, kid! I told you, don’t leave the path!” Wincing, Scootaloo glanced down at her foreleg; the tingle was still there, though somewhat lessened from before. Visually though, it… SEEMED fine. Maybe it was just some weird part of the Everfree she had never heard about before! She definitely had to tell the girls then. Maybe it was something Applebloom could use in her potions for the Crusaders. Despite already having their cutie marks, the Cutie Mark Crusaders had lived on as the original Crusaders taught the next generation. Now it went beyond just looking for Cutie Marks; all thirty of their members had regular meetings to discuss bullies, problems around Ponyville in general, and discuss ways to deal with them. To date, their biggest accomplishment had been finding and rescuing some foals that had gotten lost in the White Tail Woods. In thanks, the Mayor had officially recognized the Crusaders as a community outreach program, much to the pride of Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. “Sorry Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo replied quickly, wincing, “I uh… was thinking too hard, I guess, heh.” Wrong thing to say, Scootaloo realized too late as Rainbow’s ears lowered, and she sat down on her haunches in front of the teen, giving her a worried look. “What’s wrong, Scoots? Is it school?” she asked gently, giving her mane a mothering stroke that she would have NEVER done in front of any of the other girls, “Teachers giving you a hard time?” Yes. And I nearly got… eaten, or… something, by some weird magical tar. But hey. “N-nah, it’s nothing, Dash,” Scootaloo replied quickly, doing her best to give the older pegasus a reassuring smile, “Just a… hey, are Applebloom and Sweetie Belle in the tent already?” It was getting fairly late in the day, with the sun already behind the tallest trees and casting the area into shadows. Rainbow Dash was fairly easy to distract, as she blinked at the sudden change, glancing over to a red-white-and-purple tent set up a little ways from Rainbow’s cyan-and-purple one. “Oh err, yeah. You uh, you guys should probably get some rest. Today was a pretty hard march. ...you sure you’re-” “Yep, never better!” Scootaloo replied in an instant, charging for her tent without looking back. She didn’t want to see any look of hurt or worry there. This was supposed to be a fun trip, after all. As Scootaloo approached the tent, a soft moan and a devious giggle reached her ears, tinting her cheeks crimson. “Stah-pit, Sweetie!” Applebloom whined, voice juuust a bit husky, “R-rainbow Dash is right outside!” There was coy giggle from Sweetie Belle, and several soft, wet noises, combining with Applebloom’s sheepish little moans and pleased noises, “I just wanted a little taste…” Rolling her eyes, Scootaloo hurriedly unzipped the tent, darted inside, and re-zipped it, turning her gaze down on her best friends. Applebloom was reclining on her back, her forehooves tied together with her red bandana, and a deep crimson blush on her admittedly adorable cheeks. Sweetie Belle, for her part, was settled down comfortably beside her, horn gleaming in the darkness of the tent as her magic held Applebloom’s legs spread wide open and vulnerable, sex glistening from recent lickings. Scootaloo sighed, but a smile was impossible to keep hiding. She loved these girls. “Just pointing her right at the opening, huh?” she quipped, smirking at Applebloom’s stuttering, “If I had been Rainbow, I’d be flying back to Twilight to get my mind scrubbed. I don’t think she wants to see the ‘squirts’ doing… this.” Sweetie Belle blinked and snickered, hoof quickly rising to her lips to hide her grin, “Oh, I dunno, she might appreciate the irony of seeing a ‘squirt’ squirting-” “Will ya hush about that!!” Applebloom exclaimed frantically, wiggling in place and glaring up at her friends, both of whom merely giggled. Scootaloo smiled as she settled into the pony-pile, stroking Applebloom’s stomach and kissing Sweetie Belle firmly, eager to forget the strange occurrence from before, at least for the moment. She hardly noticed as Applebloom began to shudder with each stroke of her earlierly-affected hoof, nor when Sweetie Belle quivered and moaned into Scootaloo’s open mouth when she stroked her cheek moments later. As long as she had her friends by her side, Scootaloo could get through anything, be they school, teachers… or weird tar pools. ****************************** Rainbow Dash felt a smile growing on her lips as she sat in front of the fire, ears perked and facing the little red-white-and-purple tent. The girls were not as quiet as they thought they were, and Rainbow had a good snicker at Sweetie Belle’s quip about ‘squirts squirting.’ She could get a damn good blush out of Twilight with that one. Despite Rainbow’s best efforts, Twilight could sometimes be a tad prudish. At least, till she got going. When the moans started up in the Crusaders’ tent, however, a blush filled her own cheeks, and Rainbow swivelled her ears away from the source. Young love, she thought quietly, chuckling to herself, At least they’ll get into it without all the awkwardness that me and Twilight had. Not that Rainbow Dash regretted that wonderful night in the Mareami hotel for one iota of a second. Twilight had surprised her; that bookish little mare that she had pined for, that she had watched away and lusted after for years, had returned her adoration with love and care. And a surprising show of dominance. For the first time in her life, Rainbow Dash had been able to let down her guard, to lay back and revel in the trust and pleasure of her best friend. Just thinking about everything Twilight’s magic, and teeth, had done to her that night left Rainbow Dash a shivery mess. Blushing a bit, Rainbow Dash hurried to smother the campfire with sand and dirt, making absolutely sure no embers remained before all but sprinting into her tent. Not aware for even a moment of the crowd of shadows and fogs rolling in off the road. Darkness, streaming down from a little black pool in a grove of battling oaks… ****************************** Settled together in a sweaty, happy pile that night, the three Crusaders slept a dark, nearly-dreamless sleep. The first to “awaken” was Scootaloo, who blinked around blearily, eying the strange, greyish plane she had found herself on. All around the little orange pegasus and her friends were little tendrils of black, quite like the strange tar she had found herself stuck in earlier. But in this dreamscape, it did not give off an air of unnaturalness. If anything, Scootaloo scooted closer to them, reaching out to pet one slowly with a hoof. It was warm, and gently coiled around her affected hoof with something akin to affection. It made Scootaloo smile, and she reached to gently shake at her friends. As Sweetie Belle awoke, she was startled to be confronted by a single tendril of the blackness, which gently stroked itself along her cheek. Blushing, she gave a small smile, the warmth of the strange thing counteracting the cold of the dreamscape. It slithered up and through her mane, its tingling surface making the young unicorn shudder and slowly stand on shaky legs, though as it engulfed and seemed to merge into her horn, the pleasure nearly drove her back to the ground. The loud, lewd moan from her friend quickly drove Applebloom to awakening, leaping up onto all fours… only to give a surprised, soft mrr as tendrils stroked her back and belly gently. Other tendrils rose from the blackness, corralling the three as close as they could to each other, bodies pressed firmly together and minds adrift in a sea of soft, gentle pleasure. Never noticing the dark, predatory shape of a shadowy beast on the edge of the shadows, prowling around them angrily. Angry dragon eyes watched them hungrily, but kept a wary distance from the nest of tendrils, all of which seemed to watch the beast just as warily. It could not approach and feed. For now. Chapter 2 Chapter 2 It was mid-morning in Canterlot Castle, but it was stunningly hot inside the normally cool, plush interior. Servants were rushing to and fro, earth ponies panting raggedly, pegasi fanning themselves with wings, and those unicorns that knew how were conjuring cooling spells to keep themselves from passing out. Most believed that the cooling crystals that usually kept the castle at a nice, even temperature had simply burned out, and needed to be changed. Only Celestia’s closest advisors and guards knew the the heat was coming from the Solar Monarch herself, rolling out from her private chambers in great waves. Which was exactly where Steel Buff, messenger from General Iron Skies, the commanding officer of the invading forces in the Griffon Kingdoms, had to go. The somewhat small, off-white unicorn stallion gulped thickly as he approached the Princess’ chambers, passing his seal of passage to one of the guards. Both guards ran separate magical scans on the seal before letting him through; Steel had no idea how either guard was managing to stand in such conditions in full armor. They weren’t even sweating! Or so it seemed at least. Once their spears uncrossed, Steel Buff hurried inside the chambers, wincing just slightly. He was determined not to appear weak in front of his Princess. Celestia was settled calmly in front of the War Map; it was a gigantic stone tablet, magically carved to represent the known world. Studs and pieces, shaped like different ponies and representing armies, were settled all over Equestria- though Steel Buff could count at least ten figurines settled in the southern Griffon Kingdoms. Ten thousand ponies, his brothers and sisters in arms, fighting for the justice demanded by the families of those civilians slain. He had seen the devastation the raiders had left in their wake; three villages, thriving little burgs on the cusp of township, burned to ashes, their citizens slain or scattered. Over three hundred slain. Settled around the War Map were four of the top Generals of the Equestrian military: the sea blue-pelted unicorn, Admiral Salty Breeze, of the Equestrian Navy; the roan-colored pegasi Commander of the Air, Gale Force; a grizzled, saltpepper-colored Earth Pony that led the main body of the Equestrian Army, General Garlic Clove, and the teal unicorn General of the Mage Corps, Hourglass Eye. Most seemed to be incredibly tense, though Steel Buff was hardly an expert in pony mood, just… observation. Pipes were lodged in the mouths of all but Gale Force, smoke billowing about the room. It stung at Steel’s eyes, but he was determined not to show weakness in front of such military might. As the Solar Monarch’s eyes rose, Steel Buff bowed low before they could meet, his message perched in his magic. “Your Highness, I come with a request of instructions by General Iron Skies,” Steel Buff exclaimed warmly, “And a declaration of victory over the Griffon port of Ambersky. Rough casualty estimates run quite low, and the city is mostly intact. However, the civilian population did not evacuate, and we captured a number of the garrison forces. All in all, there are roughly eight thousand prisoners, and the General-” “I do not recall giving the General orders to take prisoners,” Celestia’s voice, while calm and quiet, cut through Steel’s report in an instant, leaving a thick, almost tangible silence. “...m’lady?” Steel Buff replied dumbly, hesitantly glancing up to meet her gaze, “What do you… mean…” Looking up had been a mistake. A very big mistake. Celestia was peering down at the soldier, and her eyes… her eyes were far different than those of the pictures he had seen. They were were neither warm, nor motherly. They were… dark. Cold. Despite the horrific heat of the room. Steel Buff’s blood ran cold as he was stared down like a hunk of meat and metal. Turning her gaze back to the Generals at her table, the Princess’ muzzle straightened into a firm line, “Are we prepared for such a refugee problem in that theater?” “No, Your Majesty,” Garlic Clove rumbled out quietly, one hoof raised to thoughtfully scratch his chin, “I’m afraid we are not. The Griffon Kingdoms are mountainous enough that supply lines are… difficult to maintain. Even with the capture of the port, supplies will take several weeks to get into place for such a crowd.” “It has to be the same tactic the birds used in the last war,” Hourglass spat, glancing at one of the books in the pile at his left side, “As soon as we begin to take ground, they flood us with all of their refugees and citizen trash, to overburden our supply lines to the breaking point. They know we will not turn them away.” “With the Internment Act in place, we can mitigate some of that damage,” Celestia replied quietly, a small smirk spreading across her lips, “And perhaps make a little bit back. However…” One hoof slowly ground down on the grain of the wood, and the sharp tang of burning wood wafted across Steel Buff’s nose, making him tense in surprise. “Fifteen hundred years ago, I signed the treaty that bound the Griffons to peace,” Celestia whispered, voice cold and biting in her displeasure, “And I told them that an example would be made of their nation, should they ever take up their raiding past. This mockery of my word cannot go unpunished, or we will lose all standing in the world eye.” Turning her eyes back to the frozen form of Steel Buff, she let out a quiet breath, seeming to steel herself for her next words. “Send this word to the General, messenger. All Griffons, soldier or civilian, under the age of sixteen, will be placed under arrest and kept under heavy guard until such time as they can be brought back to Equestria. All others will be executed by hanging. Am I understood, my little pony?” “Y-yes…. yes, Princess,” Steel wheezed, eyes wide as he stared at the marble floor, “P-perfectly understood.” “Then you are dismissed.” Numbly, Steel Buff saluted once, a hoof to the forehead, but spinning around and practically lurching out of the room at the same time. He should not be running in the halls; it was not proper behavior for a guard, and he was certain to hear of it later. But he simply had to get away from that furnace-like room as fast as he could. He couldn’t breathe, he could barely think. I’m about to tell a stallion to… murder nearly eight thousand people. Bile rose in Steel Buff’s throat, but he galloped on past the guard post, heading for the communication outpost nestled in the west wing of the castle. As much as he hated to, Steel Buff had a duty. Didn’t he? Glancing around, Steel paled as he spotted the eyes of several Solar Guardstallions on him, watching. Searching. Of course he had a duty… in front of these ponies. Looking bleakly into the communication room, face lit up by the purple glow of the arcane crystals, Steel Buff sighed heavily and strode inside, tail firmly tucked between his legs. For Equestria… **************************** The newspapers rustled loudly in their odd, ear-screeching kind of way as two mint-colored hooves slammed them down onto Octavia’s table, making the quiet mare sigh quietly. Lyra was in a tizzy about something, that was for certain. She just wished her friend could wait till after breakfast. It had been a long night; Vinyl had gotten home late from her ‘gig,’ and the two had spent the late night curled in each other’s hooves. Now, her little ivory lover was sleeping it off inside, while Octavia was left trying to tank the sleepiness with copious amounts of caffeine and waffles at the local diner. “Can you believe this?” Lyra Heartstrings exclaimed in a furious whisper, as even in the height of a tizzy she had her manners, “An Internment Act!? In Equestria! I thought we were better than this.” “What do you mean, ‘internment?’” Octavia asked curiously, reaching out to carefully slide the paper over enough so she could read it. “Exactly what it says!” Lyra snapped, though there was no bite towards Octavia, and she effectively ignored the tone, “‘All Griffons or Griffon-blooded must report to the nearest internment facility until such a time as the war in the Griffon Kingdoms is concluded. This is for their own protection against species’ violence, and to stop the spread of partisan violence.’ Can you believe that? There hasn’t been one terrorist attack since the war started!” “Calm down, love,” Bon-Bon soothed from her spot at the table, grinning around a cup of coffee in one hoof, “There’s nothing we can do about it now but protest to our parliament representative.” Huffing loudly in consternation, Lyra slammed herself down into her seat, leaning lightly against Bon-Bon’s side. Octavia allowed herself a small smile at her friend’s antics; Lyra had always been an outspoken critic of the government, but lately it had been getting far more… intense, especially when it came to war talks. The news of the Ambersky Massacre, where thousands of Griffon civilians had refused to surrender and charged the Equestrian Army en masse, resulting in their near total destruction at the trained hooves and spears of Equestria’s finest, had rubbed many the wrong way. The Pegasus City Councils were condemning the slaughter as a wanton waste of life, which was quickly backhanded by a victorious and cheerful Unicorn Noble Council in Canterlot. The Earth Pony village leaders were split down the middle in opinion: some were willing to believe that it had been the only available option in order to take Ambersky and step closer to victory. Others were unwilling to admit the idea that killing thousands was the only way. And still others believed that the government was not giving them the whole story, that Celestia was holding something back. As for Octavia? “Girls, please, it’s Celestia,” she replied calmly, a hoof reaching under her collar to press warmly at the sun emblem she wore at all times, “She had to have had a good reason for not having the army stop them some other way. IF there was even another way in the first place.” Lyra’s follow-up groan stoked a little flame of annoyance in Octavia, but she quickly quenched it. “Come on Octy, don’t preach to us,” Lyra begged, ignoring Bon-Bon’s steadily increasing pokes and jabs, “You HAVE to admit that it’s really, really strange.” That… did plink just a teensy, tiny chink in Octavia’s otherwise impenetrable faith. On a purely logical standpoint, looking back at Celestia’s past actions in the realm of war, her current stance on the war with the Griffons was… remarkably different. In the past, territorial disputes with the Griffons, and in some respects with the Zebrican Islands, had been resolved through mutual gifts of supplies, gold, and asundry aid. Very rarely had physical conflict broken out between the nations, and those tended to be skirmishes on the borders. A full scale invasion such as this, perpetrated by Equestria, had not happened in several centuries. And a massacre like this? Sighing quietly and glancing down to study the grain of the wood of their table, Octavia acquiesced with a tiny nod. It certainly was odd, she had to admit at least that. Did not mean she had to like it, of course. As the waitress languidly trotted over to retrieve their quickly emptied plates, Octavia sighed, quickly setting out her bits. Admitting that her goddess might, just might, have made some kind of mistake was leaving Octavia’s stomach in something of a tumult, the coffee and toast duking it out inside. ...perhaps she would visit the Solar Shrine that day after all. Praying over her reservations just might help ease her mind. Bidding a quiet goodbye to her neighbors, both of whom seemed apologetic for Octavia’s troubled state, the cellist quickly trotted out of the diner, the Shrine her destination. ...and then she saw her. Peering out of her window like a dragon overlooking their domain, Vinyl was smiling brilliantly, bed-headed blue mane flickering about in the morning breeze. Spotting Octavia at nearly the same time, the DJ’s smile only brightened, and she waved happily to her love before disappearing into the home, likely to get ready to go out for the day. Octavia chuckled faintly, but shivered; overhead, several clouds had drifted in, covering the side of her street with shade. Further down the street, perched on a steep hill, the golden steeple of the Sun Shrine gleamed brightly in the morning sun. Perhaps for a moment… too brightly. The Shrine hardly seemed… welcoming anymore, not with the doubts in Octavia’s mind. And certainly not with a beautiful, loving mare waiting for her inside. Turning towards her home, Octavia promised herself half-heartedly to go to the Shrine later that day, and hardly noticed as the clouds covered the town in nice, soothing shade. *************************** Luna frowned deeply as she stared down at the shining streets of Canterlot; her presence had eased the burning heat of the castle, but the heat itself unnerved Luna. As did Celestia’s attitude. During their nearly two thousand years of life, Celestia had always been a fairly emotional general. Sending her troops into combat, knowing many could and would die, had never sat well, and Luna had often had to comfort her big sister. It was what she had prepared for upon returning from Twilight Sparkle’s several days prior. What she had found instead was nothing short of shocking. Celestia had not left her War Room, not once; even raising the sun simply by force of habit. Messengers came and went, many of them seeming sun-struck or simply terrified; hardly the usual awe that came from the common pony spending time with their princess. And, far more disturbing, Luna found that her sister was increasingly tight-lipped about the orders she was sending out to the armies. “They are nothing, dear sister; trivial matters.” “The less you know, the better.” “You will see, Luna, do not fret so.” It was, in a word, infuriating. And unnerving. She had had to learn about the Internment Act through the Canterlot Times, for Mother’s Sake! Even now, Luna watched with a sad heart as families of Griffons, citizens of Equestria for generations, were lead through the streets by armed guards, to be placed into armed trains and trekked out to internment camps just south of Ponyville. From what her Night Guards had told her, the internment camps were massive, easily able to contain many more than just Griffons. The thought of what they could hold sickened Luna. Equestria had been a model of freedom for the rest of the world for generations now. Why was that changing for a simple war? One hardly greater than the wars that had plagued Equestria in its youth. It made no sense. “Something wrong, my sister?” Celestia asked from inside the War Room, her tone somewhat strained. Luna bit her lip as she gazed at her elder sister, wings fluttering in her nervousness. Celestia had changed after her visit to the site of the raid. For years, before and after her time as Nightmare Moon, Luna had struggled to get Celestia to look past her sentimentality when it came to dealing with Equestria and its threats. A series of skirmishes did not a war make; nor were they effective deterrents. In some of Luna’s more impassioned speeches, she had even gone so far as to describe them as cowardice, and shameful to the families of those who had lost their lives. Luna often regretted saying such words to her sister. But now… had something gotten through to her? The Night Princess was not sure how to feel about that now… “Tis nothing, Tia,” Luna replied quickly, looking back to give Celestia a gentle smile, “Was just… thinking. Perhaps… perhaps my Night Guard should watch over the camps!” That got a reaction at least. As Luna watched, a flicker of some emotion came to Celestia’s eyes, and she peered over at Luna thoughtfully. Luna reigned in her emotions and hesitance, and met Celestia’s gaze full on. She had to appear in control; powerful, but subservient to her big sister. Willing to follow her lead on this Internment Act. Even if it tore at the edges of her soul to go along with it. Freedom had always been espoused by the Lunar Court, to… certain extents. While Luna believed in a firm hoof in governance and little bureaucracy, she had always let her champions have a mostly free hoof in matters. Imprisoning an entire species for the crimes of others did not fall into Luna’s view of justice. Not at all. But if this could be a chance to learn more about Celestia’s motives, well… “I believe that is a marvellous idea, Luna,” Celestia quietly replied, a smile slowly stretching across her muzzle. To Luna’s relief, while the smile was faint and relatively joyless, it did hold a faint iota of her sister, locked within its depths. Perhaps things were not as dark as they seemed! Once this war was over, they could talk things out again, just like the old days! The good old days, before Equestria, before all of this responsibility... “Yes… yes, dear sister, place your Night Guard in charge. I will send in the requisite staff for the… care of the Griffons. But your soldiers will certain keep them in line.” In a flash the smile was gone, the cold eyes focusing on Luna firmly, “Won’t they?” By Mother’s Grace and Father’s Strength, sister, what’s happened to you… Chapter 3Lord Fancy Pants looked back on his mentor and friend, former Lord Silver Tongue, with appreciation, fondness, and a generous amount of fond exasperation. The former Unicorn Noble Councilor had been an odd duck for a politician. Living up to his name, Silver Tongue could sweet-talk any snobbish noble’s delicate egos into compliance with his whim (a principle skill that he had passed onto his young prodigy while he groomed him to take his place in the Noble Unicorn Court); at the end of the court session, he would then travel to his estate, bring out large silver plaques with the other Lords’ and Ladies’ visages on them, and blast them into pieces with magic, then collect the pieces and have them smelted down to make new copies. “Fancy, when your time comes, you’re going to need a source of stress relief to get away from those pedigree nitwits,” Silver Tongue had advised Fancy Pants one evening when he had invited him over to look over trade laws. “No matter how you may praise them or whatever they’ve done, the fact of the matter is that there will always be someone out there who is a demonstrable idiot, and you’ll need something to stave off the urge of blasting their faces in on any given day.” How Silver Tongue would’ve rued the day that the entire rest of the Council consisted of said idiots when they passed the Internment Act. Fancy Pants sank further into the armchair of his office at the Council Bureau, rubbing his temples with his hooves to stave off the massive headache. Even as head of the Unicorn Noble Council, he was powerless to the overwhelming majority of other Canterlot unicorns who had not only proposed, but passed the Internment Act to seal away any griffons in Equestria, away from the public eye. Fancy Pants could see precisely what it was; a gesture of supposed good will and protection for their citizens was Councilor Blueblood’s way of staying within Princess Celestia’s good graces and line his pockets. The other unicorn nobility (aside from himself and Lady Maple Leaf, thank the stars) had nodded eagerly at such phrases as “removed for the protection of the species”, “seizure of property”, and “liquidation for administrative costs.” Administrative costs, his flank! It was a clear move by the unicorn nobility to solidify their own power base in Canterlot and Equestria by stripping the citizenship from a different race. As much as Fancy hated to admit it, it was a clever way to push a growing unicorn-superiority agenda that he did not support. “Mr. Pants, a Miss Rarity Belle is waiting in the front office for you,” the nasally voice of his secretary crackled over his magical intercom. Fancy Pants sat up a little straighter at that. Rarity, his good friend and one of Ponyville’s Element Bearers? From what he had last heard, the designer was still bound to the small town that he had only visited once in his youth. What could she possibly be in Canterlot for- oh. With trepidation, Fancy Pants reached over to his on-desk intercom port and pressed the button before responding, “Please send her in, Corn Maze.” Nary a second later, the door to his office burst open with enough force to tilt the photographs nearest it, and a rather miffed yet beautiful white unicorn stamped into the room, glaring at him from under her bejeweled hat. “Fancy Pants, forgive my intrusion,” Rarity ground out with the most angry form of politeness that he had heard from anyone, much less a self-declared noble. Fancy, always the calm and considerate politician, stood up from his chair. “Miss Rarity, it’s no trouble at all,” he replied smoothly, keeping his years of etiquette training in mind. When confronted with an angry woman, try to remain calm yourself while calming her down as best as possible. Listening is important. “My door is always open to you. Please, would you like to sit down? Can I offer you a drink?” He offered a chair to her while trying to wrap his magic around a constantly boiling kettle in the corner, but she passed up his offer and shoved a magically levitated copy of the Canterlot Times into his face. He didn’t have to focus on the print to know what it was, and his horn ceased its golden glow. “How could the Noble Unicorn Council pass the Internment Act?!” she demanded harshly, letting the paper fall from her grip. “We’re a nation at war, but that DOES NOT mean that we should be a divided nation! It goes against the very tenets of Harmony that we’ve tried to emulate, doesn’t it?” “Rarity-“ Fancy tried to interrupt, looking to the open door. He could see the silhouette of a particularly unwelcome visitor that looked about ready to come through the door to the waiting room, but the mare continued on her tirade. “Instead, politicians have decided that they want to divide our nation further and remove established Equestrian citizens from their homes, then seize their lands and property for ‘administrative costs’?” Rarity spat out, reading directly from the paper where the Act had been published in whole. “Miss Rarity, I must insist-“ Fancy saw the outside door start to open, and he quickly slammed his office door shut with a burst of magic and quickly erected a soundproof barrier around his room. The slam of the door had startled Rarity into silence while the soundproof spell applied a buzz akin to soft radio static that was felt more than heard by the two unicorns. “I need to make sure that we aren’t overheard,” the older unicorn sighed, moving behind his desk again. Rarity directed a suspicious look in his direction. “Why?” “There are unforgiving ears who might accuse you of treason. I understand that you have every reason to be angry about the Internment Act, Rarity, but I wish you would direct that anger at someone else except for me,” Fancy Pants replied wearily, but not in a begging tone. Politicians (those that were adept, anyways) didn’t beg. “The papers would not have published this, but I did not support the Act by any means, and neither did Lady Maple Leaf.” “You and Lady Leaf?” The alabaster unicorn pondered his statement for a moment, tapping her chin with a carefully manicured hoof. “That’s all?” “There was…overwhelming support among the other nobles,” Fancy admitted sadly, stroking his moustache. “Believe me, if there was something that I could’ve done to block the action altogether, I would’ve. It was an emergency action, though, so there was no before-hand lobbying or any sort of notice.” “There are some dissenters in other parts of Equestria, Fancy Pants,” Rarity mused solemnly, tapping her chin in thought. “The fact that they are a minority, however, is what’s troublesome.” “A minority by just a hair, my dear,” Fancy offered in comfort, taking her hoof in his as a gesture of friendship. “That there are those who find this morally deplorable is a sign that there are some good ponies out there-“ “Sir, Prince Blueblood wishes to speak with you immediately,” Corn Maze’s voice crackled through the intercom again, interrupting the mood between the two friends and causing them both to grumble simultaneously. “Some good ponies, but not that one. I’ll take my leave, Fancy,” Rarity said finally with a small, apologetic smile. “I apologize for coming in here with such an unseemly temper.” “Always a pleasure to talk, Rarity,” Fancy Pants replied calmly and giving her a friendly nudge with his shoulder. He moved back to his seat and gave a quiet sigh of relief at the finding of a non-Council kindred spirit. It might just be the only good point to his already terrible day, and the smug look on Prince Blueblood’s visage as he strutted into the office was not helping. Were he a different sort of pony, Fancy might have forgone the silver and just melted Blueblood’s head here and now. Slowly and painfully. Start with the eyeballs or the frontal lobe? Hadn’t there been some sort of accident somewhere that led to the miraculous discovery that someone could live without a good portion of the frontal lobe? “Afternoon, Fancy!” Blueblood belted out in what might’ve been a friendly sort of voice to anybody else; to Fancy Pants, it was anything but, with his blatant lack of title or respect. “Lovely day today, isn’t it?” “Depends on your definition, Councilor Blue Blood,” Fancy Pants replied with forced enthusiasm. All of the Unicorn Councilors had their various vices that they were loath to admit but could be easily found out if one paid attention (if one were to look at Fancy Pants’ behavior intimately, they’d discover his rather interesting love for the scent of jasmine). Blueblood’s vice was his very attitude. Whenever he entered a room, every single pony tried to find any excuse to get away from his arrogant, annoying nature. “What can I do for you?” “Oh, simply to discuss the cut of the griffon property liquidation is afforded to you.” Blueblood lounged in the chair that Fancy had offered to Rarity without an invitation like the office was his home (he probably treated it with just as much respect. Fancy discreetly wrote a note to sanitize the chair and donate it before buying a new one). “I want to make sure that every Councilor was being offered as even a cut as possible.” “Of course.” Internally, Fancy gave a vindictive grin. Blueblood might just get an awful surprise with the wealth that he anticipated receiving. He might not support the Internment Act, but he could at least soften the blow as much as possible against the targeted griffons. “Now, the liquidation of the griffon assets in Canterlot seems to be quite profitable,” Blueblood drawled, helping himself to a floating decanter of fine whiskey from the liquor cabinet. “The total acquirement from dissolved individual savings accounts in the banks has yielded over fourteen million bits. The liquidated lands and seized properties is another sixteen million, so we have a total of over thirty million bits. If we divide it between the other fifteen court members, it’s only a 2 million bit increase-“ “Not that it matters, since it will be going towards such a good cause,” Fancy answered with a soft smile, putting on his monocle and writing down some of the numbers while working with his calculations. “Yes, indeed,” Blueblood chuckled. “Liquidating the rest of the property when the rest of the griffons are interred successfully will yield a larger sum for us-“ “You mean for the army and the citizens, correct?” Blueblood froze and stared. “What?” The idiot really hadn’t notice the change, then, which was just fine as it were. “You didn’t see the memo? I could’ve sworn I sent one out.” Fancy stood up and began pacing. “Councilor Maple Leaf went to Jet Set and enacted the Power Check clause from the bylaws, so we added the Restoration of Equestria’s Citizens Clause. All the liquidated funds are to be divided; sixty-five percent are to be given to the Equestrian Military Forces, and thirty percent will be to ensure the well-being of our citizens in the internment camp for the remainder of their stay. Food costs, basic necessities…I think you’ll find that the funds will be put to better use in that manner.” He continued to grin at Blueblood’s dumbstruck face. “The other five percent will be to give them aid when they reintegrate into society. “ “Fancy Pants, you can’t be serious!” Blueblood whined piteously, sliding half out of his chair in his foppish despair. “We’ve worked hard to get back those bits from the peasantry! And you’re just giving it BACK?” “Peasantry or no, Councilor Blueblood, we swore an oath to serve all of Equestria’s citizens, not just unicorns and certainly not just ourselves,” Fancy pointed out calmly. “Despite their current status, Equestria’s griffons are still citizens under the Diarchal Crown and are under the protection of Princesses Celestia and Luna. We cannot abandon them in their time of need.” “But but but but…” the pure-white unicorn prince stammered abruptly, his throat bobbing as he gulped. “They’re the enemy!” he shrilled finally, once he’d come up with a mildly intelligible thought. “We’re fighting against their home country, and they killed our citizens!” “Griffonia citizens killed those villagers. Our interred griffons have not.” There was a grinding of teeth from Blueblood, and he stood up straight with angry desperation in his eyes. “We won’t give one gold flake to those lousy scavengers! I refuse! I’ll-“ He pointed a shaky hoof at Fancy Pants. “I’ll have you arrested for obstruction of justice! You’ll be arrested and your wife tossed out onto the street like the common gutter tramp that she-” Now, Fancy Pants held a good few ponies in high regard. First and foremost to him was his beloved wife, Fleur de Lis. He constantly announced to the world, literally and metaphorically, that he would travel to beyond the moon and back to ensure his wife’s happiness (which had led to a rather embarrassing bar fight in Fillydelphia once upon a time, involving a toilet plunger, two bottles of bourbon, and a cuteceñera dress). If Blueblood was going so low as to threaten Fancy’s beloved wife, then he would go even lower to stop him. By Tartarus, he would aim for the hateful stallion’s pitiful reproductive organs if he had to. “Blueblood,” Fancy Pants snapped, all jovial, polite pretense foregone, monocle drifting back into his waistcoat pocket. “Must I accuse you of treason for putting your own self interests ahead of the state of Equestria?” If it had been possible to tell, Fancy would have assumed that all the blood had drained from Blueblood’s face at the threat. “You know your duty as a member of the Court, those tenets that you swore to uphold when you were inaugurated. If you go back on your oaths now, I will publicly denounce you to the newspapers from here to Manehatten,” the older unicorn noble growled threateningly. “Even if you are proved innocent before a war tribunal consisting of your peers, you will never hold office again. You will always be seen as a selfish coward and a traitor to your nation, and nobody will acknowledge you as an authority figure. Everyone will call you a disgusting, sniveling worm who would bring down the Princesses and Equestria solely for putting a few extra bits into your pockets.” Blueblood was giving off little gasps and whimpers of terror, sweat profusely dripping from his brow and eyes wide and staring. Fancy’s hoof snagged into Blueblood’s pressed collar and dragged his face close, so close that their horns clacked together, and the prince whined at the discomfort. “You will stay in line, and send a notice to the Times by tonight, announcing the Restoration Act and your full support. If anyone asks, this conversation did not happen. Do I make myself clear?” he hissed viciously at the spoiled, terrified prince. Fancy bared his teeth when all he got in response was a quivering of lips, so he tightened his grip on the prince’s collar until he finally got a wheezing yet committed gasp of affirmation, and let the other unicorn drop to the floor. The door to the Bureau office opened for the third time in fifteen minutes, and a disheveled, off-yellow unicorn mare with a bright orange mane stood in the doorway. Ignoring Blueblood, she waved a piece of parchment in her yellow-tinted magical grip. “Sir, urgent notice from your estate!” Fancy Pants hurried out from behind his desk, stepping over Blueblood’s sprawled limbs on the floor. “You may see yourself out, Prince Blueblood,” he said calmly, as if nothing important had transpired between them. He took the parchment with his magic and read through the few hastily scrawled letters with frozen dread. “Corn Maze, you…are dismissed for the rest of…the day,” he whispered hoarsely and haltingly, letting the letter flutter to the floor as he raced out of the office like Tartarus was at his rear hooves. The secretary took a small glance down at the letter on the floor and shot a glare at the melodramatic Blueblood still cowering on the floor. “Disgusting coward,” she whispered silently to herself, then held the letter in the air and let a magical fire start consuming it from a corner. Fire licked the messy ink and tear splotches on the parchment as Fancy Pants’ letter burned. Fancy, come home. The Solar Guard are trying to take the Twins. Three years ago, the wedding of Fleur de Lis and Fancy Pants was the biggest event in Canterlot since the wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Captain Shining Armor. The ceremony had been relatively calm and private, the reception less so, and the two newly-weds had settled into their bedroom that evening, tired and their high spirits slightly marred by a doctor’s note delivered just before the nuptials; by some cruel turn of fate, no matter what treatments they pursued, neither Fleur nor Fancy would be able to produce foals of their own. Dear Fleur had been able to keep her emotions together for the wedding with only a few tears slipping out (she hastily credited them as tears of joy), but what had been best for both of them to escape from the suffocating social scene of Canterlot to celebrate their union properly, without the speculation by the social elite about a foal that would never come. So, before there came to be so much animosity between Griffonia and Equestria, Fancy Pants and Fleur escaped to the griffon’s country as a honeymoon trip. They loved the countryside, the griffons were nice, and it was interesting to see how the griffons lived their lives in the capital city of Griffonstone. On one fine day, the couple had gone out for a hike with only a saddlebag apiece of food and enthusiasm to forget what scrutiny would meet them back in Canterlot. They came back later that evening with completely empty saddlebags, renewed lust for life, and two downy, slightly dirty, orphan griffon chicks clinging to their backs while they snacked on some dried apple slices. Nobody came to claim the chicks as their own, and the proper Griffon authorities allowed a fostering period for the pony nobles with proper consultation with the Griffonian Embassy in Canterlot. Both Fancy and Fleur loved the chicks as they would any foals, and they chose traditional griffon names for the brother and sister: Greta and Hans. When asked about if a foal would be expected in the Pants/de Lis estate sometime in the near future, the joyful parents laughed quietly and said, “Oh, we only have enough energy for our chicks, but we wouldn’t give them up for anything in the world!” The day of the griffon attacks on the border of Equestria had been the day that Fancy Pants had prepared to send the finalized adoption papers to the Griffonian Embassy. Since then, Equestria had gone to war, the Embassy had been shuttered and ransacked, and Fancy Pants was racing to his estate at a full gallop, urgently pushing his way through crowds of ponies. Cries of panic and anger came from the other side of the boulevard, where Solar Guard ponies ushered harried griffon citizens along in a tight pack. As much as Fancy wished he could help them, the most important thing for him right now was to get home to his chicks. Even when he missed a step and slipped into a brackish black puddle, he just clambered out of the sticky liquid and galloped through the gates of the extensive estate. “Why…” he puffed in between gallops, “didn’t I…learn teleportation…when Princess…Twilight…offered?” Finally, though, he was at the polished steps and hung his neck down, trying to regain his breath. He froze, however, when three different voices screamed in terror from inside the foyer, and Fancy was inside so fast that it would’ve appeared to passerby that he had spontaneously developed the ability to teleport. The eyes of about a dozen maids and stallion-servants peered out from cracks in heavy oak doors at the battlefield that was the main foyer. Fleur was crouched at the base of their grand marble staircase, squarely in front of the twins in a defensive manner. Hans and Greta clutched at her hind legs with their tiny talons, shrunk down as small as possible in the vain hopes that they wouldn’t be seen by the two burly guard ponies squaring off against his wife. “Ma’am, just give up the chicks and-“ “No!” Fleur screamed, grabbing a priceless vase from a corner table and hurling it at the speaker’s head. A defensive blast from the guard shattered the pottery into porcelain powder, but Fleur kept hurling objects at them, backing up protectively to get away from the threat. “YOU! LEAVE! MY! BABIES! ALONE!” “Fleur!” Fancy Pants yelled, trotting past the guards to his wife’s side, pressing against her in reassurance. “Fleur, my dear, it’ll be all right.” “Ma’am, we have the authority to write you up for assaulting an officer-“ “Gentlecolts, I do apologize for this unfortunate occurrence,” Fancy cut across the Guard smoothly and calmly, hiding his own desperate desire to calm the situation and protect his children. “Please, my wife and I are merely distressed at the immediacy in which you’ve come to take our children.” The other Guard who had remained silent, a muscular specimen by the name of Golden Shaft, stepped forward at last to speak. “We were ordered by Princess Celestia to begin rounding up griffon citizens immediately, Lord Fancy Pants. She believed that it was best not to delay.” “Wise of her to do so.” Fancy Pants hesitated from spitting out the complimentary words about their war-hungry princess, but at least Fleur seemed to realize that he was hiding his distaste. “Now, may we at least have some time to gather our children’s belongings? Perhaps you can go gather other griffons and come back?” he asked in his most appealing voice. Oh, he should’ve known that idea would’ve had a cake slice’s chance on Celestia’s plate of being accepted by the Solar Guard. “Lord Fancy Pants, these children are not registered as Equestrian citizens, and we cannot leave them unsupervised-“ “Please!” Fleur begged, tears leaking down her face in her dismay. “We were just submitting the adoption forms to the Embassy when the war started! Nobody else would take the papers!” Hans and Greta gave cries of distress as she collapsed onto the floor, sobbing and pleading with the guard-ponies, but they stayed huddled close to their adoptive mother and father. “Please! The children did nothing wrong!” She turned watery eyes to her husband when the guard didn’t reply. “Dear, do something!” Fleur wailed, and Fancy’s heart went out to his beloved wife and their children, but what could he do? If he were to intervene, they would never get far if they tried to escape, and their arrest could lead to the permanent separation of the griffons from their adoptive parents. The guards, however, remained unmoved by the extreme emotions. “Failure to surrender to the Crown will result in your arrest and execution-“ “Enough.” A bone-chilling, hoarse voice called from the open doorways, and the temperature in the room seemed to have dropped several degrees. Two different guard-ponies, darker colored than their Solar companions and garbed in the dark colors of the Night Guard, strode into the building purposefully. Their hooves seemed to make almost no noise against the marble tiles. The speaker drew up level to the Solar Guard and flared his nocturne wings. “Lieutenant Shaft, you’ve been ordered to the transports. The Lunar Guard will resume supervision of the griffons.” “Captain Breeze!” Both Solar Guards saluted the higher-ranked guard without question, but Golden Shaft looked about ready to try and argue. Star Breeze gave a face of ‘if you try anything, there won’t be enough of you to be considered a stain on the floor’, and the Solar Guard retreated without another word. Star Breeze and his companion approached the lone family with a much less threatening air. “I apologize for the behavior of the Solar Guard, m’lord,” Captain Breeze mumbled softly, as was the way of the Night Guard. “Princess Luna has just assigned us with the transport and guardianship of Equestria’s griffons.” There might be some hope yet for Fancy and Fleur. “Please…is there any way for Princess Luna to be merciful and leave our children with us?” he asked quietly. Hans gave a small, shy grumble and hugged Fancy Pants’ foreleg anxiously, staring up with wide eyes at the nocturnal pony speaking to his adoptive father. Sadly, Captain Breeze shook his head. “Princess Luna, ever merciful and kind, loves all of Equestria’s inhabitants, from the very young to the very old. It was a blessing for her to assume responsibility of the griffons’ imprisonment from the Sun Princess at all.” The nocturne looked down at the tawny chick clinging to Fancy with a soft frown on his face. “I am sorry.” Greta and Hans sniffled softly and stared at their parents with wide eyes. “Momma?” Greta rasped softly, her tiny talons splayed across Fleur’s slender foreleg. “Do we have to leave?” The pale pink unicorn pulled the chick into a hug and tearfully nuzzled her silvery crest. Fancy Pants hugged Hans closely to him, and his son hung onto his neck with talons in his carefully groomed blue mane, but Fancy never cared about how roughed up he became when his family was involved. The household staff began creeping out of their hiding rooms, and two of them had the foresight to bring down small bags of belongings for the twins. Captain Breeze slowly moved forward and gently shepherded Hans into his hooves and turned slowly. Fancy felt the nocturne’s tail gently press against his coat pocket, in a manner very familiar to corrupt politicians. No bits were slid into his pocket, though, just the soft rustle of parchment against fabric. Like a corrupt politician that he was not, however, he made no acknowledgment of his reception of the Captain’s paper in front of so many ponies. Instead, the unicorn knelt down beside his wife to give his daughter a gentle kiss on the cheek before she was ushered away by the other Night Guard. “My babies, I love you!” Fleur cried after them plaintively, reaching a shaking hoof out towards the doors that Hans and Greta were being pushed towards. Fancy stayed by his wife, watching his family being pulled apart by forces far beyond his own considerable control. “We love you so much, chicklets!” he called towards his distressed children. “We will see each other again!” “Momma! Papa!” Hans and Greta shreed, looking around the legs of their guards. “We love you-“ The impressive double doors were shut with a bang, drowning out their words. The staff hurried away while Fancy Pants gently held his grieving wife in his forelegs, still sitting on the floor and gently rocking her slowly. “How could they?” Fleur whispered hoarsely. “How…how could th-th-they?” “I know, my dear,” her husband murmured into his wife’s ear, giving her a kiss on her horn. “I know…” “Princess…Princess Celestia shouldn’t be able to do this,” she whimpered back. “Not in a just Equestria.” As Fancy continued to rub her back and let his own tears fall, he had to wonder if wartime Equestria could be a just Equestria, and doubted.
Chapter 1 Chapter 1 A late afternoon sun shone brilliantly into the lowland meadows and forests of Equestria, and it gave a friendly red color to the pastel houses that made up the large town of Ponyville. Its peaceful denizens trotted happily through the streets to finish up their shopping, visit with friends, or return home from a hard day at work, with a carefree attitude that belied years of facing countless threats and shenanigans. Oddly enough, for all of the antics that the town had been involved with, on top of the fact that it was home to the six Bearers of the Elements of Harmony (affectionately called the Mane Six by close friends and relatives) and that the town was home to the newest Princess of Equestria, Ponyville remained a relatively ignored blot on Equestria’s map. To the peaceful citizens, though, that was perfectly acceptable in such times. Ponyville was a retreat from the hustle and bustle of the larger cities and the looming threat of war on the borders. In the massive Golden Oaks Library near the town’s center, Princess Twilight Sparkle was curled up on her reading couch and staring down at some historical texts on the Everfree Forest. An expected firm knocking sounded at her door, and her muzzle split into a smile. “That must be her,” she chirped to herself pleasantly. A burst of violet magic zipped the young alicorn across the spotlessly cleaned room and to her door, where she took a moment to go over a quick mental checklist. Early dinner prepared? Check, the casserole would be done in exactly three point five minutes and she had the wine ready to serve. The research material Luna had asked for? Check, all of the books on Griffon military stratagems, customs, and maps of their homeland and colonies, all were ready on the research desk. More than likely to help her learn more about the aggressive nation that had recently struck a few towns on the border. Twilight gave a small wince. She hoped she could keep Luna in a good mood, and not let her brood and war-plan all night. Satisfied that her home was ready, Twilight reached out with her magic and swung the door open, smiling brightly at her guest. Princess Luna looked… strained. That was a word for it, certainly: her face was pinched with worry, and the bags under her eyes spoke of little sleep or rest of any kind. She had thankfully left her guard at home it seemed, and she inclined her head to Twilight, a small smile splitting her muzzle. “Thank you for letting me visit, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said softly, rolling her withers and flight muscles a bit, “I… needed to get out of Canterlot for a spell. Might I come in?” “Of course, Luna,” Twilight replied happily, giggling faintly, “If you ever need to come over for a ‘spell,’ my door is always open and my horn ready!” Luna paused for a moment and gave Twilight an incredulous smile, chuckling quietly and lightly shoulder-checking the smaller alicorn, “T’was a terrible jest. But welcome.” Get Luna to laugh and relax a little? Check! Twilight recovered from the check gracefully, wings fluttering a bit as she led Luna over to the research area. Several fluffy chairs had been dragged over from the reading corner to be clustered around a table bedecked with the research books, notebooks, quills, and one of the new gas lanterns being sold out of Manehatten. It had been somewhat expensive, but Twilight was rather fond of the clockwork contraptions. She was rather hoping the mayor might get them set out on the town streets… “Someone was prepared,” Luna teased quietly, giving Twilight a warm smile before tugging herself up onto a chair with a weary, relieved sigh, “Is Rainbow Dash not going to be joining us?” Making a face, Twilight shook her head and gave a rueful chuckle, “As soon as I said the words ‘study session’ she was volunteering herself to take the Crusaders out into the Everfree for a camping trip.” That got an eyebrow raise out of the Princess, and she tilted her head just slightly. “Isn’t that dangerous, Twilight? The Everfree is hardly a place for young ones…” she replied softly, ears laying back. Luna knew all of the Crusaders personally; she had visited them in their dreams many a time, and found them to be good little ponies, with their hearts in the right place, even if their heads were not always. It was hard to be friends with too many ponies simply through visiting their dreams- there were just too many- but through Twilight and her friends, she had gotten to know all of them rather well. And if anypony knew the dangers of the Everfree thoroughly, it was Luna. Manticores and chimeras were hardly the worst things in its depths… But Twilight merely smiled, horn lighting up; as nothing in the room was moving, Luna assumed, with some degree of surprise and respect, that Twilight must be using her magic to manipulate something in the kitchen. She has truly grown, she thought happily to herself, swishing her tail, How Celestia must be proud… A wince came unbidden to Luna’s frame, one she was grateful to keep hidden from Twilight. Celestia. The thought of her sister was enough to send her into barely controlled frustrated shakes. The village raids had angered Luna as well; greatly angered in fact, and she had sent her own Night Guard to the help guard the borders between their nations. Griffons had been a problem back in her old lifetime as well, as brutal raiders and slavers. Her attendants, and Twilight, had been quick to reassure her that Griffons were by and large not at all like their ancestors. Even Celestia had made that point a few times. Which is why it frustrated Luna so much that Celestia seemed to have completely forgotten this fact. Their last few talks on the Griffon problem had gotten fairly… dark. Which was wholly unlike Celestia; Luna had always been the warmonger, the warmistress. To hear Celestia entertain the idea of a sustained naval bombardment of the Griffon sea-side and cliff cities… It was somewhat disturbing. Nonetheless, the Griffons had certainly provoked Equestria to war, hence this study session. Luna needed to figure out exactly how she could hit the Griffons in such a way as to force a surrender. Before Celestia did something… rash, and further skewed Luna’s view of her sister. “You know how Rainbow Dash is,” Twilight finally replied as she levitated a tray of steaming casserole into the room, “Nothing is too scary for her.” She rolled her eyes at that, but giggled, “And I made her take a few enchanted objects to keep the worst things away. She wouldn’t risk Scootaloo. And Sweetie Belle’s magic has only grown as she’s gotten older.” Smiling cheerfully, she carefully cut out a slice of the aromatic, somewhat cheesy food and set it out in front of Luna, smiling hopefully. Luna gulped. Twilight’s cooking was… generally hit and miss. One day it could be absolutely delicious! Like the pizza she had made for Luna’s birthday! The cheese and the veggies had been to die for. But the hayloaf she had made for the Summer Sun Celebration last year… well, suffice it to say, Twilight Sparkle was forbidden from making hayloaf for anypony, ever again. … Ever. Taking a deep breath, Luna gripped a fork in her magic and slowly moved it to the casserole, eying it to check for anything out of place. Flakes of hot pepper? Whole cloves of garlic? Unchopped onions!? Gulping thickly, she slowly bit into the bite. One chew. Two chew. Oh thank the stars. “This is is delicious, Twilight,” she purred out around the mouthful of cheesy bliss, eagerly diving in for more. Luna needed it too; all the frustrations and unease at home had been upsetting her stomach more often than not, and she had gone without dinner for several nights past. It did not take her long at all to rip her way through the casserole, barely giving Twilight enough time to grab a single plateful of her own. Thankfully she did not seem to mind, a bright smile on her face, ears perked as she watched her fellow princess enjoy her meal. Speaking of ears… A smile widening on her own lips, Luna stared up at the brilliant little rainbolt ear-stud shining near the tip of Twilight’s ears. Seeing the smile, Twilight flushed; everypony else had already commented on her new accessory, especially Rarity, who found it adorable. Fidgeting her front hooves, Twilight gave Luna a sheepish smile, but kept her ears perked. “I-it’s our six month anniversary. She um… s-she got it for me. I-I got her a bracelet, with m-my cutie mark on it.” “Too bad it was not a ring,” Luna quipped, darting back with a giggle as Twilight’s left wing instinctively darted out to bap her nose. “S-she will when s-she’s ready!” Twilight shot back shyly, face a deep crimson, “I-it’s only been six m-months, w-we’re taking things-” “Calm, dear Twilight,” Luna whispered soothingly, giving her a playful grin, “I only jest. Rainbow Dash loves you a great deal; that is easy enough to see, even without looking in her dreams.” Though after seeing those, it was fairly hard to look Twilight in the eye. The courtship of Princess Twilight and the Element of Loyalty had been a passionate affair, if Twilight’s friends were to be believed. Years of pining on both sides, only for the tension to come to a boil during a vacation to Mareami. According to Pinkie Pie, who loved to tell the story to all who would listen, much to Twilight’s chagrin, the whole hotel had heard their escapade. But embarrassments aside, both mares had been thick as blood from then on: Rainbow Dash had moved her cloudhome overtop the library, and a runic signal on the floor of Twilight’s bedroom took her right up into Rainbow’s beautiful home. As much as she loved her library, most of Twilight’s time was spent among the clouds, at least when Rainbow was home. “I love her too,” she whispered shyly, blushing deeply at Luna’s playful giggle, “I do! More than anything in the world… b-but uh, s-shouldn’t we g-get to studying?!” Very smooth, Twilight, Luna thought with an inward chuckle, turning herself towards the stack of books. Studying had always been a soothing past-time for Luna; a way to let her fast-working mind tune in on one subject and not think of anything else. But today, it was simply… not to be. She was fidgety- wings and hooves twitching every few moments, her tail audibly smacking against the soft cushions of her chair. A deep-bodied sigh rolled out before Luna could stifle it. Her mind could not delve into her studies. It could only focus on the cold stare Celestia had given their map of Equus, pink eyes boring into the Griffon Kingdoms with what seemed like… like… Hunger. “You alright, Luna?” Twilight’s voice cut through the thought, and the Princess of the Night jumped a bit in surprise, flushing. Twilight was watching her with wide, worried eyes, a hoof raised and resting gently on Luna’s shoulder. Despite herself, Luna leaned into the warm touch, sighing quietly. “Want to talk about it?” she asked quietly, rubbing across Luna’s silken fur gently, a kind smile on her lips. Princess of Friendship indeed. But also Celestia’s prized pupil. Luna was worried. Deeply worried. Something was niggling the back of her mind; a memory buried so deeply that even in all her mental discipline, she could not pull it free. Every time she spoke with Celestia, or heard her giving orders, that feeling would return. Something in Celestia had changed since her visit to the raid sites. And it was not the steel for war that Luna would have wanted to see. It was something… more. She could use an ally, should the need ever come up to speak with Celestia about this. But… not Twilight. Not yet. The poor mare had enough on her plate being a new princess, and one in a committed relationship at that. Perhaps she could contact Cadence and Shining Armor should things get too heated. But for now, Luna had to do what she could to watch over Celestia and this war, and find a way to soothe her sister’s wrath. “It’s nothing, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna whispered quietly, forcing a smile, “Can you fetch me an atlas of the coastlines of Griffonia?” For a moment, Twilight looked like she might argue, a small frown stretched across her muzzle, but she finally nodded, turning to head for the atlas section of the library. Luna sighed quietly, both relieved and disheartened. She hated to lie. She truly did. She had long since taken on the mantle of justice-keeper of Equestria, and lying tore at the very fabric of her core. Especially to a friend. But… I can’t make her doubt Celestia. Not yet… it would destroy her. She glared half-heartedly down at the map, eyes glued to the stretch of dense forest that ran north to the mountain range that separated Equestria and the Griffon Kingdoms, eventually joining up with the Everfree. Something in those woods had changed her beloved sister. “What did you do to her…” ****************************************** Scootaloo let the laugh bubble out of her as she raced after Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, all three eager to get to the campsite Rainbow Dash had described on the trip up. This was the best camping trip she had had since grade school! All three of her best friends with her, her big sister, AND enough marshmallows in her bag to keep them all on a sugar rush for the whole time. Getting out of Ponyville was practically saving her mind from snapping too, if Scootaloo thought about it. She enjoyed school, to a degree- shop class was awesome, and she was finally learning how to use a magical welder- but the amount of homework piled on from other classes was weighing heavily on her shoulders. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle seemed to handle it just fine, but… Smooth move, Scootaloo, trashed your own mood. Shut up, me. Glancing up, Scootaloo blinked in surprise, whipping her head around. Lost in her thoughts, she had managed to wander off the path and into a glade of tall oaks. Tall… leafless oaks. In the middle of summer. Ominous, much… Slowly stepping through the glade, Scootaloo nervously kept her head on the swivel, ears turning this way and that. The boughs of the oak trees hung low in gnarled bunches, gouging chunks out of the loamy soil and even out of other trees. Several smaller pines were wilted and drooping, the branches of one tree entwined so tightly around it that Scootaloo had the mental image of a gigantic constrictor snake, in for the kill. She gulped thickly, and stepped down.. and immediately sunk down to her fetlock. Jerking her head down in surprise, the young pegasus let out a surprised cry, finding her right foreleg stuck fast in a pool of bubbling liquid, almost like tar. But at the same time, it… wasn’t tar. Tar didn’t feel this cold, nor did it feel… good. Almost like a massage, wrapped around Scootaloo’s hoof and seeming to undulate and press gently over the sensitive hoof and fur. It felt good, but… Grunting and pulling with all her might, even buzzing her stunted wings to give extra lift to her efforts, Scootaloo struggled to pull her leg from the pool, but the suction was tremendous. To her horrified eyes, tendrils of the black substance seemed to be rising up out of the pool itself, questing their way towards her… “R-rainbow Dash! Sweetie Belle! S-somebo- yah!” With a sucking and tearing sound, Scootaloo finally broke free of the pool, tumbling end over end several times before finally coming to a rest on her haunches. As the dizziness died away, Scootaloo frantically swiped at her previously leg, certain that the strange, clinging liquid would be there… only, it wasn’t. Did it get sucked back in too? ...w-weird… Skin crawling and goosebumps rising, Scootaloo turned tail and fled from the strange glade, glad to be free of the tar… but strangely curious of the feelings it had induced in her. Her hoof till felt tingly with each step she took on the grass and dirt… as did certain other parts. Scootaloo shuddered faintly and ran faster, determined to bring this up to her friends… well, as soon as she found them again. ************************* Thankfully, Rainbow Dash had stuck to the path and made their camp within eyesight of it; two tents were already set up, and Rainbow was rushing back towards the path, likely having just realized that Scootaloo was missing. She both scowled and sighed in relief when she saw the little orange pegasus teen, which in turn made Scootaloo blush deeply beneath her fur. Whoops. “There you are!” she exclaimed in irritation, mixed with a dash of worry, “I was about to go searching for you, kid! I told you, don’t leave the path!” Wincing, Scootaloo glanced down at her foreleg; the tingle was still there, though somewhat lessened from before. Visually though, it… SEEMED fine. Maybe it was just some weird part of the Everfree she had never heard about before! She definitely had to tell the girls then. Maybe it was something Applebloom could use in her potions for the Crusaders. Despite already having their cutie marks, the Cutie Mark Crusaders had lived on as the original Crusaders taught the next generation. Now it went beyond just looking for Cutie Marks; all thirty of their members had regular meetings to discuss bullies, problems around Ponyville in general, and discuss ways to deal with them. To date, their biggest accomplishment had been finding and rescuing some foals that had gotten lost in the White Tail Woods. In thanks, the Mayor had officially recognized the Crusaders as a community outreach program, much to the pride of Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. “Sorry Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo replied quickly, wincing, “I uh… was thinking too hard, I guess, heh.” Wrong thing to say, Scootaloo realized too late as Rainbow’s ears lowered, and she sat down on her haunches in front of the teen, giving her a worried look. “What’s wrong, Scoots? Is it school?” she asked gently, giving her mane a mothering stroke that she would have NEVER done in front of any of the other girls, “Teachers giving you a hard time?” Yes. And I nearly got… eaten, or… something, by some weird magical tar. But hey. “N-nah, it’s nothing, Dash,” Scootaloo replied quickly, doing her best to give the older pegasus a reassuring smile, “Just a… hey, are Applebloom and Sweetie Belle in the tent already?” It was getting fairly late in the day, with the sun already behind the tallest trees and casting the area into shadows. Rainbow Dash was fairly easy to distract, as she blinked at the sudden change, glancing over to a red-white-and-purple tent set up a little ways from Rainbow’s cyan-and-purple one. “Oh err, yeah. You uh, you guys should probably get some rest. Today was a pretty hard march. ...you sure you’re-” “Yep, never better!” Scootaloo replied in an instant, charging for her tent without looking back. She didn’t want to see any look of hurt or worry there. This was supposed to be a fun trip, after all. As Scootaloo approached the tent, a soft moan and a devious giggle reached her ears, tinting her cheeks crimson. “Stah-pit, Sweetie!” Applebloom whined, voice juuust a bit husky, “R-rainbow Dash is right outside!” There was coy giggle from Sweetie Belle, and several soft, wet noises, combining with Applebloom’s sheepish little moans and pleased noises, “I just wanted a little taste…” Rolling her eyes, Scootaloo hurriedly unzipped the tent, darted inside, and re-zipped it, turning her gaze down on her best friends. Applebloom was reclining on her back, her forehooves tied together with her red bandana, and a deep crimson blush on her admittedly adorable cheeks. Sweetie Belle, for her part, was settled down comfortably beside her, horn gleaming in the darkness of the tent as her magic held Applebloom’s legs spread wide open and vulnerable, sex glistening from recent lickings. Scootaloo sighed, but a smile was impossible to keep hiding. She loved these girls. “Just pointing her right at the opening, huh?” she quipped, smirking at Applebloom’s stuttering, “If I had been Rainbow, I’d be flying back to Twilight to get my mind scrubbed. I don’t think she wants to see the ‘squirts’ doing… this.” Sweetie Belle blinked and snickered, hoof quickly rising to her lips to hide her grin, “Oh, I dunno, she might appreciate the irony of seeing a ‘squirt’ squirting-” “Will ya hush about that!!” Applebloom exclaimed frantically, wiggling in place and glaring up at her friends, both of whom merely giggled. Scootaloo smiled as she settled into the pony-pile, stroking Applebloom’s stomach and kissing Sweetie Belle firmly, eager to forget the strange occurrence from before, at least for the moment. She hardly noticed as Applebloom began to shudder with each stroke of her earlierly-affected hoof, nor when Sweetie Belle quivered and moaned into Scootaloo’s open mouth when she stroked her cheek moments later. As long as she had her friends by her side, Scootaloo could get through anything, be they school, teachers… or weird tar pools. ****************************** Rainbow Dash felt a smile growing on her lips as she sat in front of the fire, ears perked and facing the little red-white-and-purple tent. The girls were not as quiet as they thought they were, and Rainbow had a good snicker at Sweetie Belle’s quip about ‘squirts squirting.’ She could get a damn good blush out of Twilight with that one. Despite Rainbow’s best efforts, Twilight could sometimes be a tad prudish. At least, till she got going. When the moans started up in the Crusaders’ tent, however, a blush filled her own cheeks, and Rainbow swivelled her ears away from the source. Young love, she thought quietly, chuckling to herself, At least they’ll get into it without all the awkwardness that me and Twilight had. Not that Rainbow Dash regretted that wonderful night in the Mareami hotel for one iota of a second. Twilight had surprised her; that bookish little mare that she had pined for, that she had watched away and lusted after for years, had returned her adoration with love and care. And a surprising show of dominance. For the first time in her life, Rainbow Dash had been able to let down her guard, to lay back and revel in the trust and pleasure of her best friend. Just thinking about everything Twilight’s magic, and teeth, had done to her that night left Rainbow Dash a shivery mess. Blushing a bit, Rainbow Dash hurried to smother the campfire with sand and dirt, making absolutely sure no embers remained before all but sprinting into her tent. Not aware for even a moment of the crowd of shadows and fogs rolling in off the road. Darkness, streaming down from a little black pool in a grove of battling oaks… ****************************** Settled together in a sweaty, happy pile that night, the three Crusaders slept a dark, nearly-dreamless sleep. The first to “awaken” was Scootaloo, who blinked around blearily, eying the strange, greyish plane she had found herself on. All around the little orange pegasus and her friends were little tendrils of black, quite like the strange tar she had found herself stuck in earlier. But in this dreamscape, it did not give off an air of unnaturalness. If anything, Scootaloo scooted closer to them, reaching out to pet one slowly with a hoof. It was warm, and gently coiled around her affected hoof with something akin to affection. It made Scootaloo smile, and she reached to gently shake at her friends. As Sweetie Belle awoke, she was startled to be confronted by a single tendril of the blackness, which gently stroked itself along her cheek. Blushing, she gave a small smile, the warmth of the strange thing counteracting the cold of the dreamscape. It slithered up and through her mane, its tingling surface making the young unicorn shudder and slowly stand on shaky legs, though as it engulfed and seemed to merge into her horn, the pleasure nearly drove her back to the ground. The loud, lewd moan from her friend quickly drove Applebloom to awakening, leaping up onto all fours… only to give a surprised, soft mrr as tendrils stroked her back and belly gently. Other tendrils rose from the blackness, corralling the three as close as they could to each other, bodies pressed firmly together and minds adrift in a sea of soft, gentle pleasure. Never noticing the dark, predatory shape of a shadowy beast on the edge of the shadows, prowling around them angrily. Angry dragon eyes watched them hungrily, but kept a wary distance from the nest of tendrils, all of which seemed to watch the beast just as warily. It could not approach and feed. For now.
Chapter 2 Chapter 2 It was mid-morning in Canterlot Castle, but it was stunningly hot inside the normally cool, plush interior. Servants were rushing to and fro, earth ponies panting raggedly, pegasi fanning themselves with wings, and those unicorns that knew how were conjuring cooling spells to keep themselves from passing out. Most believed that the cooling crystals that usually kept the castle at a nice, even temperature had simply burned out, and needed to be changed. Only Celestia’s closest advisors and guards knew the the heat was coming from the Solar Monarch herself, rolling out from her private chambers in great waves. Which was exactly where Steel Buff, messenger from General Iron Skies, the commanding officer of the invading forces in the Griffon Kingdoms, had to go. The somewhat small, off-white unicorn stallion gulped thickly as he approached the Princess’ chambers, passing his seal of passage to one of the guards. Both guards ran separate magical scans on the seal before letting him through; Steel had no idea how either guard was managing to stand in such conditions in full armor. They weren’t even sweating! Or so it seemed at least. Once their spears uncrossed, Steel Buff hurried inside the chambers, wincing just slightly. He was determined not to appear weak in front of his Princess. Celestia was settled calmly in front of the War Map; it was a gigantic stone tablet, magically carved to represent the known world. Studs and pieces, shaped like different ponies and representing armies, were settled all over Equestria- though Steel Buff could count at least ten figurines settled in the southern Griffon Kingdoms. Ten thousand ponies, his brothers and sisters in arms, fighting for the justice demanded by the families of those civilians slain. He had seen the devastation the raiders had left in their wake; three villages, thriving little burgs on the cusp of township, burned to ashes, their citizens slain or scattered. Over three hundred slain. Settled around the War Map were four of the top Generals of the Equestrian military: the sea blue-pelted unicorn, Admiral Salty Breeze, of the Equestrian Navy; the roan-colored pegasi Commander of the Air, Gale Force; a grizzled, saltpepper-colored Earth Pony that led the main body of the Equestrian Army, General Garlic Clove, and the teal unicorn General of the Mage Corps, Hourglass Eye. Most seemed to be incredibly tense, though Steel Buff was hardly an expert in pony mood, just… observation. Pipes were lodged in the mouths of all but Gale Force, smoke billowing about the room. It stung at Steel’s eyes, but he was determined not to show weakness in front of such military might. As the Solar Monarch’s eyes rose, Steel Buff bowed low before they could meet, his message perched in his magic. “Your Highness, I come with a request of instructions by General Iron Skies,” Steel Buff exclaimed warmly, “And a declaration of victory over the Griffon port of Ambersky. Rough casualty estimates run quite low, and the city is mostly intact. However, the civilian population did not evacuate, and we captured a number of the garrison forces. All in all, there are roughly eight thousand prisoners, and the General-” “I do not recall giving the General orders to take prisoners,” Celestia’s voice, while calm and quiet, cut through Steel’s report in an instant, leaving a thick, almost tangible silence. “...m’lady?” Steel Buff replied dumbly, hesitantly glancing up to meet her gaze, “What do you… mean…” Looking up had been a mistake. A very big mistake. Celestia was peering down at the soldier, and her eyes… her eyes were far different than those of the pictures he had seen. They were were neither warm, nor motherly. They were… dark. Cold. Despite the horrific heat of the room. Steel Buff’s blood ran cold as he was stared down like a hunk of meat and metal. Turning her gaze back to the Generals at her table, the Princess’ muzzle straightened into a firm line, “Are we prepared for such a refugee problem in that theater?” “No, Your Majesty,” Garlic Clove rumbled out quietly, one hoof raised to thoughtfully scratch his chin, “I’m afraid we are not. The Griffon Kingdoms are mountainous enough that supply lines are… difficult to maintain. Even with the capture of the port, supplies will take several weeks to get into place for such a crowd.” “It has to be the same tactic the birds used in the last war,” Hourglass spat, glancing at one of the books in the pile at his left side, “As soon as we begin to take ground, they flood us with all of their refugees and citizen trash, to overburden our supply lines to the breaking point. They know we will not turn them away.” “With the Internment Act in place, we can mitigate some of that damage,” Celestia replied quietly, a small smirk spreading across her lips, “And perhaps make a little bit back. However…” One hoof slowly ground down on the grain of the wood, and the sharp tang of burning wood wafted across Steel Buff’s nose, making him tense in surprise. “Fifteen hundred years ago, I signed the treaty that bound the Griffons to peace,” Celestia whispered, voice cold and biting in her displeasure, “And I told them that an example would be made of their nation, should they ever take up their raiding past. This mockery of my word cannot go unpunished, or we will lose all standing in the world eye.” Turning her eyes back to the frozen form of Steel Buff, she let out a quiet breath, seeming to steel herself for her next words. “Send this word to the General, messenger. All Griffons, soldier or civilian, under the age of sixteen, will be placed under arrest and kept under heavy guard until such time as they can be brought back to Equestria. All others will be executed by hanging. Am I understood, my little pony?” “Y-yes…. yes, Princess,” Steel wheezed, eyes wide as he stared at the marble floor, “P-perfectly understood.” “Then you are dismissed.” Numbly, Steel Buff saluted once, a hoof to the forehead, but spinning around and practically lurching out of the room at the same time. He should not be running in the halls; it was not proper behavior for a guard, and he was certain to hear of it later. But he simply had to get away from that furnace-like room as fast as he could. He couldn’t breathe, he could barely think. I’m about to tell a stallion to… murder nearly eight thousand people. Bile rose in Steel Buff’s throat, but he galloped on past the guard post, heading for the communication outpost nestled in the west wing of the castle. As much as he hated to, Steel Buff had a duty. Didn’t he? Glancing around, Steel paled as he spotted the eyes of several Solar Guardstallions on him, watching. Searching. Of course he had a duty… in front of these ponies. Looking bleakly into the communication room, face lit up by the purple glow of the arcane crystals, Steel Buff sighed heavily and strode inside, tail firmly tucked between his legs. For Equestria… **************************** The newspapers rustled loudly in their odd, ear-screeching kind of way as two mint-colored hooves slammed them down onto Octavia’s table, making the quiet mare sigh quietly. Lyra was in a tizzy about something, that was for certain. She just wished her friend could wait till after breakfast. It had been a long night; Vinyl had gotten home late from her ‘gig,’ and the two had spent the late night curled in each other’s hooves. Now, her little ivory lover was sleeping it off inside, while Octavia was left trying to tank the sleepiness with copious amounts of caffeine and waffles at the local diner. “Can you believe this?” Lyra Heartstrings exclaimed in a furious whisper, as even in the height of a tizzy she had her manners, “An Internment Act!? In Equestria! I thought we were better than this.” “What do you mean, ‘internment?’” Octavia asked curiously, reaching out to carefully slide the paper over enough so she could read it. “Exactly what it says!” Lyra snapped, though there was no bite towards Octavia, and she effectively ignored the tone, “‘All Griffons or Griffon-blooded must report to the nearest internment facility until such a time as the war in the Griffon Kingdoms is concluded. This is for their own protection against species’ violence, and to stop the spread of partisan violence.’ Can you believe that? There hasn’t been one terrorist attack since the war started!” “Calm down, love,” Bon-Bon soothed from her spot at the table, grinning around a cup of coffee in one hoof, “There’s nothing we can do about it now but protest to our parliament representative.” Huffing loudly in consternation, Lyra slammed herself down into her seat, leaning lightly against Bon-Bon’s side. Octavia allowed herself a small smile at her friend’s antics; Lyra had always been an outspoken critic of the government, but lately it had been getting far more… intense, especially when it came to war talks. The news of the Ambersky Massacre, where thousands of Griffon civilians had refused to surrender and charged the Equestrian Army en masse, resulting in their near total destruction at the trained hooves and spears of Equestria’s finest, had rubbed many the wrong way. The Pegasus City Councils were condemning the slaughter as a wanton waste of life, which was quickly backhanded by a victorious and cheerful Unicorn Noble Council in Canterlot. The Earth Pony village leaders were split down the middle in opinion: some were willing to believe that it had been the only available option in order to take Ambersky and step closer to victory. Others were unwilling to admit the idea that killing thousands was the only way. And still others believed that the government was not giving them the whole story, that Celestia was holding something back. As for Octavia? “Girls, please, it’s Celestia,” she replied calmly, a hoof reaching under her collar to press warmly at the sun emblem she wore at all times, “She had to have had a good reason for not having the army stop them some other way. IF there was even another way in the first place.” Lyra’s follow-up groan stoked a little flame of annoyance in Octavia, but she quickly quenched it. “Come on Octy, don’t preach to us,” Lyra begged, ignoring Bon-Bon’s steadily increasing pokes and jabs, “You HAVE to admit that it’s really, really strange.” That… did plink just a teensy, tiny chink in Octavia’s otherwise impenetrable faith. On a purely logical standpoint, looking back at Celestia’s past actions in the realm of war, her current stance on the war with the Griffons was… remarkably different. In the past, territorial disputes with the Griffons, and in some respects with the Zebrican Islands, had been resolved through mutual gifts of supplies, gold, and asundry aid. Very rarely had physical conflict broken out between the nations, and those tended to be skirmishes on the borders. A full scale invasion such as this, perpetrated by Equestria, had not happened in several centuries. And a massacre like this? Sighing quietly and glancing down to study the grain of the wood of their table, Octavia acquiesced with a tiny nod. It certainly was odd, she had to admit at least that. Did not mean she had to like it, of course. As the waitress languidly trotted over to retrieve their quickly emptied plates, Octavia sighed, quickly setting out her bits. Admitting that her goddess might, just might, have made some kind of mistake was leaving Octavia’s stomach in something of a tumult, the coffee and toast duking it out inside. ...perhaps she would visit the Solar Shrine that day after all. Praying over her reservations just might help ease her mind. Bidding a quiet goodbye to her neighbors, both of whom seemed apologetic for Octavia’s troubled state, the cellist quickly trotted out of the diner, the Shrine her destination. ...and then she saw her. Peering out of her window like a dragon overlooking their domain, Vinyl was smiling brilliantly, bed-headed blue mane flickering about in the morning breeze. Spotting Octavia at nearly the same time, the DJ’s smile only brightened, and she waved happily to her love before disappearing into the home, likely to get ready to go out for the day. Octavia chuckled faintly, but shivered; overhead, several clouds had drifted in, covering the side of her street with shade. Further down the street, perched on a steep hill, the golden steeple of the Sun Shrine gleamed brightly in the morning sun. Perhaps for a moment… too brightly. The Shrine hardly seemed… welcoming anymore, not with the doubts in Octavia’s mind. And certainly not with a beautiful, loving mare waiting for her inside. Turning towards her home, Octavia promised herself half-heartedly to go to the Shrine later that day, and hardly noticed as the clouds covered the town in nice, soothing shade. *************************** Luna frowned deeply as she stared down at the shining streets of Canterlot; her presence had eased the burning heat of the castle, but the heat itself unnerved Luna. As did Celestia’s attitude. During their nearly two thousand years of life, Celestia had always been a fairly emotional general. Sending her troops into combat, knowing many could and would die, had never sat well, and Luna had often had to comfort her big sister. It was what she had prepared for upon returning from Twilight Sparkle’s several days prior. What she had found instead was nothing short of shocking. Celestia had not left her War Room, not once; even raising the sun simply by force of habit. Messengers came and went, many of them seeming sun-struck or simply terrified; hardly the usual awe that came from the common pony spending time with their princess. And, far more disturbing, Luna found that her sister was increasingly tight-lipped about the orders she was sending out to the armies. “They are nothing, dear sister; trivial matters.” “The less you know, the better.” “You will see, Luna, do not fret so.” It was, in a word, infuriating. And unnerving. She had had to learn about the Internment Act through the Canterlot Times, for Mother’s Sake! Even now, Luna watched with a sad heart as families of Griffons, citizens of Equestria for generations, were lead through the streets by armed guards, to be placed into armed trains and trekked out to internment camps just south of Ponyville. From what her Night Guards had told her, the internment camps were massive, easily able to contain many more than just Griffons. The thought of what they could hold sickened Luna. Equestria had been a model of freedom for the rest of the world for generations now. Why was that changing for a simple war? One hardly greater than the wars that had plagued Equestria in its youth. It made no sense. “Something wrong, my sister?” Celestia asked from inside the War Room, her tone somewhat strained. Luna bit her lip as she gazed at her elder sister, wings fluttering in her nervousness. Celestia had changed after her visit to the site of the raid. For years, before and after her time as Nightmare Moon, Luna had struggled to get Celestia to look past her sentimentality when it came to dealing with Equestria and its threats. A series of skirmishes did not a war make; nor were they effective deterrents. In some of Luna’s more impassioned speeches, she had even gone so far as to describe them as cowardice, and shameful to the families of those who had lost their lives. Luna often regretted saying such words to her sister. But now… had something gotten through to her? The Night Princess was not sure how to feel about that now… “Tis nothing, Tia,” Luna replied quickly, looking back to give Celestia a gentle smile, “Was just… thinking. Perhaps… perhaps my Night Guard should watch over the camps!” That got a reaction at least. As Luna watched, a flicker of some emotion came to Celestia’s eyes, and she peered over at Luna thoughtfully. Luna reigned in her emotions and hesitance, and met Celestia’s gaze full on. She had to appear in control; powerful, but subservient to her big sister. Willing to follow her lead on this Internment Act. Even if it tore at the edges of her soul to go along with it. Freedom had always been espoused by the Lunar Court, to… certain extents. While Luna believed in a firm hoof in governance and little bureaucracy, she had always let her champions have a mostly free hoof in matters. Imprisoning an entire species for the crimes of others did not fall into Luna’s view of justice. Not at all. But if this could be a chance to learn more about Celestia’s motives, well… “I believe that is a marvellous idea, Luna,” Celestia quietly replied, a smile slowly stretching across her muzzle. To Luna’s relief, while the smile was faint and relatively joyless, it did hold a faint iota of her sister, locked within its depths. Perhaps things were not as dark as they seemed! Once this war was over, they could talk things out again, just like the old days! The good old days, before Equestria, before all of this responsibility... “Yes… yes, dear sister, place your Night Guard in charge. I will send in the requisite staff for the… care of the Griffons. But your soldiers will certain keep them in line.” In a flash the smile was gone, the cold eyes focusing on Luna firmly, “Won’t they?” By Mother’s Grace and Father’s Strength, sister, what’s happened to you…
Chapter 3Lord Fancy Pants looked back on his mentor and friend, former Lord Silver Tongue, with appreciation, fondness, and a generous amount of fond exasperation. The former Unicorn Noble Councilor had been an odd duck for a politician. Living up to his name, Silver Tongue could sweet-talk any snobbish noble’s delicate egos into compliance with his whim (a principle skill that he had passed onto his young prodigy while he groomed him to take his place in the Noble Unicorn Court); at the end of the court session, he would then travel to his estate, bring out large silver plaques with the other Lords’ and Ladies’ visages on them, and blast them into pieces with magic, then collect the pieces and have them smelted down to make new copies. “Fancy, when your time comes, you’re going to need a source of stress relief to get away from those pedigree nitwits,” Silver Tongue had advised Fancy Pants one evening when he had invited him over to look over trade laws. “No matter how you may praise them or whatever they’ve done, the fact of the matter is that there will always be someone out there who is a demonstrable idiot, and you’ll need something to stave off the urge of blasting their faces in on any given day.” How Silver Tongue would’ve rued the day that the entire rest of the Council consisted of said idiots when they passed the Internment Act. Fancy Pants sank further into the armchair of his office at the Council Bureau, rubbing his temples with his hooves to stave off the massive headache. Even as head of the Unicorn Noble Council, he was powerless to the overwhelming majority of other Canterlot unicorns who had not only proposed, but passed the Internment Act to seal away any griffons in Equestria, away from the public eye. Fancy Pants could see precisely what it was; a gesture of supposed good will and protection for their citizens was Councilor Blueblood’s way of staying within Princess Celestia’s good graces and line his pockets. The other unicorn nobility (aside from himself and Lady Maple Leaf, thank the stars) had nodded eagerly at such phrases as “removed for the protection of the species”, “seizure of property”, and “liquidation for administrative costs.” Administrative costs, his flank! It was a clear move by the unicorn nobility to solidify their own power base in Canterlot and Equestria by stripping the citizenship from a different race. As much as Fancy hated to admit it, it was a clever way to push a growing unicorn-superiority agenda that he did not support. “Mr. Pants, a Miss Rarity Belle is waiting in the front office for you,” the nasally voice of his secretary crackled over his magical intercom. Fancy Pants sat up a little straighter at that. Rarity, his good friend and one of Ponyville’s Element Bearers? From what he had last heard, the designer was still bound to the small town that he had only visited once in his youth. What could she possibly be in Canterlot for- oh. With trepidation, Fancy Pants reached over to his on-desk intercom port and pressed the button before responding, “Please send her in, Corn Maze.” Nary a second later, the door to his office burst open with enough force to tilt the photographs nearest it, and a rather miffed yet beautiful white unicorn stamped into the room, glaring at him from under her bejeweled hat. “Fancy Pants, forgive my intrusion,” Rarity ground out with the most angry form of politeness that he had heard from anyone, much less a self-declared noble. Fancy, always the calm and considerate politician, stood up from his chair. “Miss Rarity, it’s no trouble at all,” he replied smoothly, keeping his years of etiquette training in mind. When confronted with an angry woman, try to remain calm yourself while calming her down as best as possible. Listening is important. “My door is always open to you. Please, would you like to sit down? Can I offer you a drink?” He offered a chair to her while trying to wrap his magic around a constantly boiling kettle in the corner, but she passed up his offer and shoved a magically levitated copy of the Canterlot Times into his face. He didn’t have to focus on the print to know what it was, and his horn ceased its golden glow. “How could the Noble Unicorn Council pass the Internment Act?!” she demanded harshly, letting the paper fall from her grip. “We’re a nation at war, but that DOES NOT mean that we should be a divided nation! It goes against the very tenets of Harmony that we’ve tried to emulate, doesn’t it?” “Rarity-“ Fancy tried to interrupt, looking to the open door. He could see the silhouette of a particularly unwelcome visitor that looked about ready to come through the door to the waiting room, but the mare continued on her tirade. “Instead, politicians have decided that they want to divide our nation further and remove established Equestrian citizens from their homes, then seize their lands and property for ‘administrative costs’?” Rarity spat out, reading directly from the paper where the Act had been published in whole. “Miss Rarity, I must insist-“ Fancy saw the outside door start to open, and he quickly slammed his office door shut with a burst of magic and quickly erected a soundproof barrier around his room. The slam of the door had startled Rarity into silence while the soundproof spell applied a buzz akin to soft radio static that was felt more than heard by the two unicorns. “I need to make sure that we aren’t overheard,” the older unicorn sighed, moving behind his desk again. Rarity directed a suspicious look in his direction. “Why?” “There are unforgiving ears who might accuse you of treason. I understand that you have every reason to be angry about the Internment Act, Rarity, but I wish you would direct that anger at someone else except for me,” Fancy Pants replied wearily, but not in a begging tone. Politicians (those that were adept, anyways) didn’t beg. “The papers would not have published this, but I did not support the Act by any means, and neither did Lady Maple Leaf.” “You and Lady Leaf?” The alabaster unicorn pondered his statement for a moment, tapping her chin with a carefully manicured hoof. “That’s all?” “There was…overwhelming support among the other nobles,” Fancy admitted sadly, stroking his moustache. “Believe me, if there was something that I could’ve done to block the action altogether, I would’ve. It was an emergency action, though, so there was no before-hand lobbying or any sort of notice.” “There are some dissenters in other parts of Equestria, Fancy Pants,” Rarity mused solemnly, tapping her chin in thought. “The fact that they are a minority, however, is what’s troublesome.” “A minority by just a hair, my dear,” Fancy offered in comfort, taking her hoof in his as a gesture of friendship. “That there are those who find this morally deplorable is a sign that there are some good ponies out there-“ “Sir, Prince Blueblood wishes to speak with you immediately,” Corn Maze’s voice crackled through the intercom again, interrupting the mood between the two friends and causing them both to grumble simultaneously. “Some good ponies, but not that one. I’ll take my leave, Fancy,” Rarity said finally with a small, apologetic smile. “I apologize for coming in here with such an unseemly temper.” “Always a pleasure to talk, Rarity,” Fancy Pants replied calmly and giving her a friendly nudge with his shoulder. He moved back to his seat and gave a quiet sigh of relief at the finding of a non-Council kindred spirit. It might just be the only good point to his already terrible day, and the smug look on Prince Blueblood’s visage as he strutted into the office was not helping. Were he a different sort of pony, Fancy might have forgone the silver and just melted Blueblood’s head here and now. Slowly and painfully. Start with the eyeballs or the frontal lobe? Hadn’t there been some sort of accident somewhere that led to the miraculous discovery that someone could live without a good portion of the frontal lobe? “Afternoon, Fancy!” Blueblood belted out in what might’ve been a friendly sort of voice to anybody else; to Fancy Pants, it was anything but, with his blatant lack of title or respect. “Lovely day today, isn’t it?” “Depends on your definition, Councilor Blue Blood,” Fancy Pants replied with forced enthusiasm. All of the Unicorn Councilors had their various vices that they were loath to admit but could be easily found out if one paid attention (if one were to look at Fancy Pants’ behavior intimately, they’d discover his rather interesting love for the scent of jasmine). Blueblood’s vice was his very attitude. Whenever he entered a room, every single pony tried to find any excuse to get away from his arrogant, annoying nature. “What can I do for you?” “Oh, simply to discuss the cut of the griffon property liquidation is afforded to you.” Blueblood lounged in the chair that Fancy had offered to Rarity without an invitation like the office was his home (he probably treated it with just as much respect. Fancy discreetly wrote a note to sanitize the chair and donate it before buying a new one). “I want to make sure that every Councilor was being offered as even a cut as possible.” “Of course.” Internally, Fancy gave a vindictive grin. Blueblood might just get an awful surprise with the wealth that he anticipated receiving. He might not support the Internment Act, but he could at least soften the blow as much as possible against the targeted griffons. “Now, the liquidation of the griffon assets in Canterlot seems to be quite profitable,” Blueblood drawled, helping himself to a floating decanter of fine whiskey from the liquor cabinet. “The total acquirement from dissolved individual savings accounts in the banks has yielded over fourteen million bits. The liquidated lands and seized properties is another sixteen million, so we have a total of over thirty million bits. If we divide it between the other fifteen court members, it’s only a 2 million bit increase-“ “Not that it matters, since it will be going towards such a good cause,” Fancy answered with a soft smile, putting on his monocle and writing down some of the numbers while working with his calculations. “Yes, indeed,” Blueblood chuckled. “Liquidating the rest of the property when the rest of the griffons are interred successfully will yield a larger sum for us-“ “You mean for the army and the citizens, correct?” Blueblood froze and stared. “What?” The idiot really hadn’t notice the change, then, which was just fine as it were. “You didn’t see the memo? I could’ve sworn I sent one out.” Fancy stood up and began pacing. “Councilor Maple Leaf went to Jet Set and enacted the Power Check clause from the bylaws, so we added the Restoration of Equestria’s Citizens Clause. All the liquidated funds are to be divided; sixty-five percent are to be given to the Equestrian Military Forces, and thirty percent will be to ensure the well-being of our citizens in the internment camp for the remainder of their stay. Food costs, basic necessities…I think you’ll find that the funds will be put to better use in that manner.” He continued to grin at Blueblood’s dumbstruck face. “The other five percent will be to give them aid when they reintegrate into society. “ “Fancy Pants, you can’t be serious!” Blueblood whined piteously, sliding half out of his chair in his foppish despair. “We’ve worked hard to get back those bits from the peasantry! And you’re just giving it BACK?” “Peasantry or no, Councilor Blueblood, we swore an oath to serve all of Equestria’s citizens, not just unicorns and certainly not just ourselves,” Fancy pointed out calmly. “Despite their current status, Equestria’s griffons are still citizens under the Diarchal Crown and are under the protection of Princesses Celestia and Luna. We cannot abandon them in their time of need.” “But but but but…” the pure-white unicorn prince stammered abruptly, his throat bobbing as he gulped. “They’re the enemy!” he shrilled finally, once he’d come up with a mildly intelligible thought. “We’re fighting against their home country, and they killed our citizens!” “Griffonia citizens killed those villagers. Our interred griffons have not.” There was a grinding of teeth from Blueblood, and he stood up straight with angry desperation in his eyes. “We won’t give one gold flake to those lousy scavengers! I refuse! I’ll-“ He pointed a shaky hoof at Fancy Pants. “I’ll have you arrested for obstruction of justice! You’ll be arrested and your wife tossed out onto the street like the common gutter tramp that she-” Now, Fancy Pants held a good few ponies in high regard. First and foremost to him was his beloved wife, Fleur de Lis. He constantly announced to the world, literally and metaphorically, that he would travel to beyond the moon and back to ensure his wife’s happiness (which had led to a rather embarrassing bar fight in Fillydelphia once upon a time, involving a toilet plunger, two bottles of bourbon, and a cuteceñera dress). If Blueblood was going so low as to threaten Fancy’s beloved wife, then he would go even lower to stop him. By Tartarus, he would aim for the hateful stallion’s pitiful reproductive organs if he had to. “Blueblood,” Fancy Pants snapped, all jovial, polite pretense foregone, monocle drifting back into his waistcoat pocket. “Must I accuse you of treason for putting your own self interests ahead of the state of Equestria?” If it had been possible to tell, Fancy would have assumed that all the blood had drained from Blueblood’s face at the threat. “You know your duty as a member of the Court, those tenets that you swore to uphold when you were inaugurated. If you go back on your oaths now, I will publicly denounce you to the newspapers from here to Manehatten,” the older unicorn noble growled threateningly. “Even if you are proved innocent before a war tribunal consisting of your peers, you will never hold office again. You will always be seen as a selfish coward and a traitor to your nation, and nobody will acknowledge you as an authority figure. Everyone will call you a disgusting, sniveling worm who would bring down the Princesses and Equestria solely for putting a few extra bits into your pockets.” Blueblood was giving off little gasps and whimpers of terror, sweat profusely dripping from his brow and eyes wide and staring. Fancy’s hoof snagged into Blueblood’s pressed collar and dragged his face close, so close that their horns clacked together, and the prince whined at the discomfort. “You will stay in line, and send a notice to the Times by tonight, announcing the Restoration Act and your full support. If anyone asks, this conversation did not happen. Do I make myself clear?” he hissed viciously at the spoiled, terrified prince. Fancy bared his teeth when all he got in response was a quivering of lips, so he tightened his grip on the prince’s collar until he finally got a wheezing yet committed gasp of affirmation, and let the other unicorn drop to the floor. The door to the Bureau office opened for the third time in fifteen minutes, and a disheveled, off-yellow unicorn mare with a bright orange mane stood in the doorway. Ignoring Blueblood, she waved a piece of parchment in her yellow-tinted magical grip. “Sir, urgent notice from your estate!” Fancy Pants hurried out from behind his desk, stepping over Blueblood’s sprawled limbs on the floor. “You may see yourself out, Prince Blueblood,” he said calmly, as if nothing important had transpired between them. He took the parchment with his magic and read through the few hastily scrawled letters with frozen dread. “Corn Maze, you…are dismissed for the rest of…the day,” he whispered hoarsely and haltingly, letting the letter flutter to the floor as he raced out of the office like Tartarus was at his rear hooves. The secretary took a small glance down at the letter on the floor and shot a glare at the melodramatic Blueblood still cowering on the floor. “Disgusting coward,” she whispered silently to herself, then held the letter in the air and let a magical fire start consuming it from a corner. Fire licked the messy ink and tear splotches on the parchment as Fancy Pants’ letter burned. Fancy, come home. The Solar Guard are trying to take the Twins. Three years ago, the wedding of Fleur de Lis and Fancy Pants was the biggest event in Canterlot since the wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Captain Shining Armor. The ceremony had been relatively calm and private, the reception less so, and the two newly-weds had settled into their bedroom that evening, tired and their high spirits slightly marred by a doctor’s note delivered just before the nuptials; by some cruel turn of fate, no matter what treatments they pursued, neither Fleur nor Fancy would be able to produce foals of their own. Dear Fleur had been able to keep her emotions together for the wedding with only a few tears slipping out (she hastily credited them as tears of joy), but what had been best for both of them to escape from the suffocating social scene of Canterlot to celebrate their union properly, without the speculation by the social elite about a foal that would never come. So, before there came to be so much animosity between Griffonia and Equestria, Fancy Pants and Fleur escaped to the griffon’s country as a honeymoon trip. They loved the countryside, the griffons were nice, and it was interesting to see how the griffons lived their lives in the capital city of Griffonstone. On one fine day, the couple had gone out for a hike with only a saddlebag apiece of food and enthusiasm to forget what scrutiny would meet them back in Canterlot. They came back later that evening with completely empty saddlebags, renewed lust for life, and two downy, slightly dirty, orphan griffon chicks clinging to their backs while they snacked on some dried apple slices. Nobody came to claim the chicks as their own, and the proper Griffon authorities allowed a fostering period for the pony nobles with proper consultation with the Griffonian Embassy in Canterlot. Both Fancy and Fleur loved the chicks as they would any foals, and they chose traditional griffon names for the brother and sister: Greta and Hans. When asked about if a foal would be expected in the Pants/de Lis estate sometime in the near future, the joyful parents laughed quietly and said, “Oh, we only have enough energy for our chicks, but we wouldn’t give them up for anything in the world!” The day of the griffon attacks on the border of Equestria had been the day that Fancy Pants had prepared to send the finalized adoption papers to the Griffonian Embassy. Since then, Equestria had gone to war, the Embassy had been shuttered and ransacked, and Fancy Pants was racing to his estate at a full gallop, urgently pushing his way through crowds of ponies. Cries of panic and anger came from the other side of the boulevard, where Solar Guard ponies ushered harried griffon citizens along in a tight pack. As much as Fancy wished he could help them, the most important thing for him right now was to get home to his chicks. Even when he missed a step and slipped into a brackish black puddle, he just clambered out of the sticky liquid and galloped through the gates of the extensive estate. “Why…” he puffed in between gallops, “didn’t I…learn teleportation…when Princess…Twilight…offered?” Finally, though, he was at the polished steps and hung his neck down, trying to regain his breath. He froze, however, when three different voices screamed in terror from inside the foyer, and Fancy was inside so fast that it would’ve appeared to passerby that he had spontaneously developed the ability to teleport. The eyes of about a dozen maids and stallion-servants peered out from cracks in heavy oak doors at the battlefield that was the main foyer. Fleur was crouched at the base of their grand marble staircase, squarely in front of the twins in a defensive manner. Hans and Greta clutched at her hind legs with their tiny talons, shrunk down as small as possible in the vain hopes that they wouldn’t be seen by the two burly guard ponies squaring off against his wife. “Ma’am, just give up the chicks and-“ “No!” Fleur screamed, grabbing a priceless vase from a corner table and hurling it at the speaker’s head. A defensive blast from the guard shattered the pottery into porcelain powder, but Fleur kept hurling objects at them, backing up protectively to get away from the threat. “YOU! LEAVE! MY! BABIES! ALONE!” “Fleur!” Fancy Pants yelled, trotting past the guards to his wife’s side, pressing against her in reassurance. “Fleur, my dear, it’ll be all right.” “Ma’am, we have the authority to write you up for assaulting an officer-“ “Gentlecolts, I do apologize for this unfortunate occurrence,” Fancy cut across the Guard smoothly and calmly, hiding his own desperate desire to calm the situation and protect his children. “Please, my wife and I are merely distressed at the immediacy in which you’ve come to take our children.” The other Guard who had remained silent, a muscular specimen by the name of Golden Shaft, stepped forward at last to speak. “We were ordered by Princess Celestia to begin rounding up griffon citizens immediately, Lord Fancy Pants. She believed that it was best not to delay.” “Wise of her to do so.” Fancy Pants hesitated from spitting out the complimentary words about their war-hungry princess, but at least Fleur seemed to realize that he was hiding his distaste. “Now, may we at least have some time to gather our children’s belongings? Perhaps you can go gather other griffons and come back?” he asked in his most appealing voice. Oh, he should’ve known that idea would’ve had a cake slice’s chance on Celestia’s plate of being accepted by the Solar Guard. “Lord Fancy Pants, these children are not registered as Equestrian citizens, and we cannot leave them unsupervised-“ “Please!” Fleur begged, tears leaking down her face in her dismay. “We were just submitting the adoption forms to the Embassy when the war started! Nobody else would take the papers!” Hans and Greta gave cries of distress as she collapsed onto the floor, sobbing and pleading with the guard-ponies, but they stayed huddled close to their adoptive mother and father. “Please! The children did nothing wrong!” She turned watery eyes to her husband when the guard didn’t reply. “Dear, do something!” Fleur wailed, and Fancy’s heart went out to his beloved wife and their children, but what could he do? If he were to intervene, they would never get far if they tried to escape, and their arrest could lead to the permanent separation of the griffons from their adoptive parents. The guards, however, remained unmoved by the extreme emotions. “Failure to surrender to the Crown will result in your arrest and execution-“ “Enough.” A bone-chilling, hoarse voice called from the open doorways, and the temperature in the room seemed to have dropped several degrees. Two different guard-ponies, darker colored than their Solar companions and garbed in the dark colors of the Night Guard, strode into the building purposefully. Their hooves seemed to make almost no noise against the marble tiles. The speaker drew up level to the Solar Guard and flared his nocturne wings. “Lieutenant Shaft, you’ve been ordered to the transports. The Lunar Guard will resume supervision of the griffons.” “Captain Breeze!” Both Solar Guards saluted the higher-ranked guard without question, but Golden Shaft looked about ready to try and argue. Star Breeze gave a face of ‘if you try anything, there won’t be enough of you to be considered a stain on the floor’, and the Solar Guard retreated without another word. Star Breeze and his companion approached the lone family with a much less threatening air. “I apologize for the behavior of the Solar Guard, m’lord,” Captain Breeze mumbled softly, as was the way of the Night Guard. “Princess Luna has just assigned us with the transport and guardianship of Equestria’s griffons.” There might be some hope yet for Fancy and Fleur. “Please…is there any way for Princess Luna to be merciful and leave our children with us?” he asked quietly. Hans gave a small, shy grumble and hugged Fancy Pants’ foreleg anxiously, staring up with wide eyes at the nocturnal pony speaking to his adoptive father. Sadly, Captain Breeze shook his head. “Princess Luna, ever merciful and kind, loves all of Equestria’s inhabitants, from the very young to the very old. It was a blessing for her to assume responsibility of the griffons’ imprisonment from the Sun Princess at all.” The nocturne looked down at the tawny chick clinging to Fancy with a soft frown on his face. “I am sorry.” Greta and Hans sniffled softly and stared at their parents with wide eyes. “Momma?” Greta rasped softly, her tiny talons splayed across Fleur’s slender foreleg. “Do we have to leave?” The pale pink unicorn pulled the chick into a hug and tearfully nuzzled her silvery crest. Fancy Pants hugged Hans closely to him, and his son hung onto his neck with talons in his carefully groomed blue mane, but Fancy never cared about how roughed up he became when his family was involved. The household staff began creeping out of their hiding rooms, and two of them had the foresight to bring down small bags of belongings for the twins. Captain Breeze slowly moved forward and gently shepherded Hans into his hooves and turned slowly. Fancy felt the nocturne’s tail gently press against his coat pocket, in a manner very familiar to corrupt politicians. No bits were slid into his pocket, though, just the soft rustle of parchment against fabric. Like a corrupt politician that he was not, however, he made no acknowledgment of his reception of the Captain’s paper in front of so many ponies. Instead, the unicorn knelt down beside his wife to give his daughter a gentle kiss on the cheek before she was ushered away by the other Night Guard. “My babies, I love you!” Fleur cried after them plaintively, reaching a shaking hoof out towards the doors that Hans and Greta were being pushed towards. Fancy stayed by his wife, watching his family being pulled apart by forces far beyond his own considerable control. “We love you so much, chicklets!” he called towards his distressed children. “We will see each other again!” “Momma! Papa!” Hans and Greta shreed, looking around the legs of their guards. “We love you-“ The impressive double doors were shut with a bang, drowning out their words. The staff hurried away while Fancy Pants gently held his grieving wife in his forelegs, still sitting on the floor and gently rocking her slowly. “How could they?” Fleur whispered hoarsely. “How…how could th-th-they?” “I know, my dear,” her husband murmured into his wife’s ear, giving her a kiss on her horn. “I know…” “Princess…Princess Celestia shouldn’t be able to do this,” she whimpered back. “Not in a just Equestria.” As Fancy continued to rub her back and let his own tears fall, he had to wonder if wartime Equestria could be a just Equestria, and doubted.
