Chapters Disclaimer: Obviously i do not own any portion of the MLP: FiM franchise.
Reference map used is also not my own and can be found here: http://hlissner.deviantart.com/
Thank you and enjoy.
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Chapter 1
Placing the Board
A young unicorn, no more than 22, stood in the throne room of Princess Celestia as the petitioners filed out at the end of the day. His raven black coat nearly glowed in the brilliant light of the throne room, barely visible on the bits not covered by the uniform of Celestia's first general which also kept his black mane nicely tucked out of view. His cutie mark could barely be made out as a white chess piece, a knight. As the last petitioner left the stallion approached Princess Celestia on her throne and bowed.
“Rise General, what news of our borders?” Celestia asked letting her usually sweet smile slip a little, she never liked the military part of her duties but knew it as a necessity.
“The borders are well, your highness,” replied the young general returning the Princess' smile back to it's usual state “however, we are receiving disturbing reports from the Everfree forest. It appears a band of militant ponies have started gathering there. We do not yet know their origins but we do know they are not friendly forces.” With that the general fell silent awaiting Celestia's orders, even if he knew them already.
“Very well, I will trust you with this. You know what's best.” Celestia had grown pale from the distressing news. The general bowed and began to leave when Celestia stopped him, “General, where at in the Everfree?”
“Near Ponyville, your highness.”
“Don't you come from Ponyville?”
“Yes, your highness, I was raised there. With your permission I would like to oversee this operation personally.” At this the Princess smiled and nodded. With that the general continued out of the throne room and started making his way towards the barracks when a shout caught his attention.
“General Checkmate!” The call came from above and behind him and he turned around just as the dark form of an alicorn landed. On instinct Checkmate bowed to the princess of the night as she continued, “your late general. I still need to get you back for last week.” The general feigned a smile before responding.
“Forgive me Princess Luna, but an urgent matter has called me away from the palace. May I please post pone our weekly chess match?”
“Very well general, I think your just afraid of finally getting beat.” Luna put on a confident facade even though in over sixth months of these weekly matches she has never won once.
“Perhaps that is true, however I must begin my preparation, your highness, if you would excuse me.” Luna smiles and nods her permission.
oOoOoOoOoO
Meanwhile in a small mine outside of Ponyville Pickin Stone was hard at work. The small yet strong earth pony was hard at work with a pick clenched in his teeth, his gray coat and mane were dampened by the sweat of long hours working in his tunnels and his cutie mark, a hammer standing on end behind a lantern, was caked over with dust. He had just received an order for a large quantity of rubies and was trying to fill it before the end of the day. As he picked away he saw a slight red glimmer in the lantern light. Not wanting to damage the precious gem he took calculated gentle swings. With the final parts of his order safely placed inside his cart he made his way out of the mine and made his way into Ponyville.
Once he had reached Ponyville he went directly to the customer's home and shop, a blue and pink building with a sign of a carousel horse. He gently knocked on the door and a very refined voice replied “Who is it?”
“Miss Rarity, it's Pickin, I have your order.” With that the door magically swung open to reveal a white unicorn with a purple mane trying to fit a dress on a rather rambunctious pink pony.
“Oh thanks dearie,” said the unicorn “I usually gather my own gems but I just have been so busy lately.” Before Pickin could speak the pink pony was already revving up her mouth.
“Oh, that's a lot of gems. I bet Spike would explode if he saw all those, fwoosh. Don't let him see those, I don't want him to-” the pony suddenly stopped mid sentence.
“Pinkie dear, is something the matter?”
“My pinkie sense is going off...” Pickin and Rarity slowly close in on her trying to read the sense, her legs started shaking, then her tail twitched, and finally her ears started flopping.
“I haven't seen that one before,” Pickin noted.
“What does it mean?” Rarity questioned.
“It means...” Pinkie replied in a slightly hushed tone, “it means....” the ponies drew in closer, “it. Means....” the three were huddled in almost touching when Pinkie joyfully shouted “an old friend is going to visit!”
The two ponies jumped out of their horseshoes at that outburst and when their hearts settled Pickin decided to inquire further.
“Who? Who is visiting?”
“How should I know?” Pinkie replied, “but it should be a lot of fun.”
“Well at any rate, thank you both for your assistance but I truly must get back to work. Hoity Toity wants these dresses by tomorrow.” With that the white unicorn made her way upstairs towards her work room and the two earth ponies left the shop.
oOoOoOoOoO
As the pegasus drawn carriage made it's way toward Ponyville Checkmate allowed his thoughts to wander back to his days as a young filly in Ponyville. He remembered his fear about getting his cutie mark, he tried many new things but nothing earned him his mark. He was by far the very last to get his cutie mark.
He remembered his lazy days sitting around playing chess with anypony that dared to challenge him and whenever he did have a challenge all the ponies who passed by would stop and watch his perfectly calculated movements. He was completely undefeated until he was 10 years old when a new pony offered to 'play with him.' That phrase was new to him, everyone else stated a challenge but this young filly, brand new to Ponyville, wanted to play.
Every move he made was completely countered or destroyed by an unexpected move, no matter how hard he tried to control his opponents movement she would just make a different move that no one would expect and by the end of the game, she was victorious and he lost. When the game was over he had to know the name of the pony that beat him, and she simply replied “I'm Pinkie Pie and your my new friend.” He smiled in his musings as he remembered that pink mare and her odd ways.
His mind continued to wander over to the two hardest workers he knew in Ponyville, Applejack and Pickin. Even from a young age those two knew how to work hard and never stopped until the job was done. By the time he was 11 both of them, though a year younger than he, had already gotten their cutie marks yet his flank was still bare, this agitated him greatly.
Through the years he spent his time either helping any pony he could in an attempt to find his special talent, or playing chess with Pinkie, sometimes resulting in his victories, other times not. This continued for 4 years before he figured he would have to leave Ponyville, for he had yet to find his cutie mark. 15 years without a cutie mark was unheard of and he had exhausted everything he could in Ponyville. He made his way to Canterlot and joined the army, they had plenty of jobs and maybe he might find his cutie mark in there. He made sure his flank was covered at all times to avoid the ridicule of the other recruits and within a year he was promoted up through the ranks of the military and yet, to his dismay he still had no cutie mark.
After being granted a squad of his own he was deployed to the Gildedale border to help secure it against the attempted invasion. A week after their deployment the line was broken and it looked like Equestria would lose all the way up to Manehattan. Not wanting to allow that Checkmate tricked the invading forces into a small pass in the Drackenridge Mountains where he promptly split the force in half thus securing the battle and pushing Gildedale back. He smiled remembering the feeling and what came next with exact detail.
His body was filled with a rush, knowing that his superb tactics saved Equestria, but it was more than that, he loved the planning, outsmarting the enemy, controlling the enemy, and making them do exactly what he wanted them to. He knew how powerful a well placed piece was and he wanted nothing more than to be able to move the pieces around. He had been so caught up in that rush he almost didn't notice that his men were gathered around staring at his flank. He hadn't noticed his military cloak had been torn and heard many whispers between the men.
“I've never seen it before.”
“Who knew?”
“So this is the stallion we have been following?”
His embarrassment took over and he just wanted to die as he placed his head on the ground and covered it with his hooves. After a while he noticed something odd, they weren't laughing at him, he expected laughter, or jokes, something! But they just stood around him and whispered, he slowly turned to look at his flank and noticed a white knight had appeared on it, he finally earned his cutie mark. His mind was yanked back into the present as the carriage landed on the outskirts of Ponyville.
“Well, the rest of the forces aren't due here for 2 days, I suppose I should go pay a visit to the mayor to inform her of what is going on.” Checkmate noted the weird looks he was getting from the two pegasi and barked, “What, haven't you ever heard a pony talk to themselves? Off with you.” With that the carriage flew off and Checkmate made his way into town to find the mayor.
oOoOoOoOoO
Pickin was just about to head back to his mine when he spotted a pegasus carriage flying away and wondered if it had anything to do with the friend Pinkie Pie said would visit. He galloped as fast as he could towards where the carriage took off from until he had spotted a pony, he knew was not a resident, walking toward the center of town. After a few moments of thinking the name finally came to him and he shouted out,.
“Checkmate.”
Checkmate's ears perked up thinking their was a rousing game of chess being played nearby, the biggest problem about his name, however seeing no chess board he shrugged it off thinking he was hearing something when a call came out again.
“Checkmate!” By this time the gray stallion was already galloping towards him and before he knew what was going on he was tackled to the ground and ensnared by a suffocating hug.
“Oh boy Checkmate, it's so good to see you.” Checkmate was rapidly running out of air and violently tapped the foreleg around his neck, when Pickin caught the hint he quickly released and Checkmate stood dusting himself off.
“You do know I could charge you for assaulting an officer of the military, correct?” Checkmate's voice was cold and hard as he glared at this strange gray pony.
“Checks? Don't you remember me? It's Pickin, Pickin Stone...” Pickin held his breath waiting for Checkmate to respond.
“Yes I remember you, that 'hug' reminded me well enough, and it's GENERAL Checkmate, not 'Checks.'” Checkmate's temperament did not change as he glared at the poor miner. “Now if you don't mind I am here on official business. Would you be so kind as to point me in the direction of the town's mayor?”
“oh... yea... sure, city hall is in the middle of town.” Pickin's ears were drooped down and his voice filled with sorrow, Checkmate was always kind of an introvert but in the time he'd been gone he had grown cold, almost like ice.
“Thank you Mr. Stone.” With that Checkmate made his way to city hall leaving Pickin to sadly sit there, his old friend not even giving him a second look.
Chapter 2
Setting the Pieces
As General Checkmate made his way over the bridge leading him to town hall he noticed many ponies were staring at him and whispering. It's not surprising, since no military level threats to the small town have occurred they must never have realized that Equestria even had a military. They must not recognize the uniform of a first general. He just shrugged it off and made his way into town hall where he was stopped by the Mayor's aide, an earth pony mare with a brown coat and a messy blonde mane, her cutie was a quill and scroll.
“Greetings sir, how may I help you?” Asked the aide.
“Yes, I am First General Checkmate of Equestria's armed forces and I require to see the mayor of this town.” The aide gave him a confused look before responding.
“Yes... I will go see if she's free.” The pony stepped through a set of double doors and after a few moments heard a very surprised holler from the other room.
“What?! Let him in right away.” Checkmate smirked assuming it was the mayor and made his way to the door just as the aide came out.
“She will see you now.” The poor mare was obviously shaken by the Mayor's sudden outburst and could only watch as Checkmate passed her into the Mayor's office shutting the door behind him. The mayor was scrambling to clean up the paperwork on her desk before she noticed the general had already seen it and gave up her pursuit.
“Greetings First General, I am Mayor Mare.” The gray maned pony stood stock still unsure of how to act around her prestigious guest, “please forgive my assistant, most of our citizens are oblivious to the existence of any sort of military.”
“That is quite alright. You may relax Mayor.” Checkmates words were cold and calculated as he continued, “I am afraid I must inform you that a hostile armed force is gathering in the nearby portion of the Everfree forest.” The Mayor's heart skipped a beat as she fell to a sitting position.
“I-Is that why you're here General?”
“That is correct, I am expecting my counter force here in 2 days time and I would like to be prepared when they get here.” The Mayor only blinked a couple times before catching on that this was his way of asking for help.
“Oh, is there any way I can assist you?”
“Actually there is,” The Mayor shuddered at the cold words Checkmate spoke, “I need a location for my men to set up camp and our operating base. I also need information on the layout of the woods.”
“Yes, of course. There is a field east of the Apple family farm that you can use, and Zecora should be able to help you with the... 'layout' of the forest. She lives in them.”
“Excellent, where may I find this Zecora?”
“I don't know, but Twilight Sparkle visits her often, maybe she could help you. She lives in the library tree on the south side of town” Twilight Sparkle that was a name he could recognize, Princess Celestia's personal protégé. He had seen her many times with the Princess but has never spoken with her.
“Thank you Mayor, I will visit her immediately.” With that Checkmate made his way out of town hall and toward the library.
oOoOoOoOoO
In Sugarcube Corner Pickin was sulking and chugging down his third cup of Pinkies “special” sugar, which was little more than crystallized, hyper-sweetened, rum mixed with regular sugar. Sitting with him was an orange mare with a blonde mane and three apples showing on her flank.
“Don't take it too hard sugarcube,” the farm pony said with her southern accent, “ah bet he was just busy.”
“Heh, doubt it. You didn't hear the way he spoke 'it's GENERAL Checkmate.'” Pickin downed another small cup of sugar.
“Well if you got to be a general wouldn't you want people to call you that?” Applejack pondered a moment, “what is a 'general' anyway? Is that some fancy speak for a salespony?”
“I don't know, but whatever it is it must be a very lonely job, he was so... cold... almost...” Pickin hesitated a moment before sighing “heartless.”
“Now don't go sayin that, truly he must be very busy. Salesponies have a lot to do.”
“Oh just forget it. Pinkie, 5 more sugars!” Pickin was depressed, he used to be such good friends with Checkmate, and now.... he didn't want to think of it. Almost in a flash pinkie was at the table with a tray of sugar glasses.
“You should be happy, Checkmate's back in Ponyville. I know, let's throw him a 'welcome home' party.” Pinkie was off on another of her party planning hypes, “oh we're gonna need balloons, streamers, cake... lots of cake...”
“Pinkie.” Applejack tried to stop the pink mare.
“and a big banner saying welcome home, oh this is gonna be so much FUN.”
“Pinkie...”
“Oh what games would he want, pin the tail on the pony? I love that game.”
“Pi.... oh forget it.” the orange mare gave up figuring it was too late, Checkmate was getting a party whether he liked it or not.
“Chess...” Pickin muttered, “Checkmate loved chess.”
“Oh that's right, duh. I'll go find my chess board... and the PARTY CANNON!” Pinkie was gone so fast Applejack found herself staring at an afterimage while Pickin just continued his sulking.
oOoOoOoOoO
Twilight was busy taking stock of the books and finding out who was overdue when she heard a solid knock on the door.
“I'll get it.” Spike said already halfway to the door. He opened it to reveal A solid black stallion dressed quite regally in the uniform of a military officer, Twilight recognized him immediately.
“General Checkmate? What are you doing here?” She inquired.
“I am told you may be able to assist me. May I speak with you?” Checkmate glanced down at the small purple dragon, “In private?”
“Oh of course, Spike do me a favor and go deliver these late slips.” Twilight levitated a stack of paper to Spike who grumbled a little as he left.
“Thank you, now I understand you know a pony in the Everfree forest by the name of Zecora. I must speak with her.”
“Oh yea, but she's not a pony,” Checkmate raised an eyebrow “she's a zebra.” Only a very trained and attentive eye could have noticed Checkmate tensed at the word, but he there were no other signs of his distaste.
“Well could you take me to her?” Hate it as he did, he needed information.
“Sure, tomorrow I am going there for my favorite tea. Now, what is this all about?”
“An armed group of ponies is gathering in the forest and I am here to prepare for our preemptive strike.” Twilight became very pale as the blood drained from her face.
“Why hasn't the Princess told me about this?! If there is anything I can do to help General just say the word.”
“Well, seeing as how my camp will not be set up for another 2 days perhaps you could point me towards a hotel for me to stay at.”
“I'm afraid there aren't any, most ponies visiting Ponyville are here for friends or family, so they just stay with them. You can stay here if you like.” As she finished her sentence Twilight suddenly realized what she did, and a slight blush caressed her face. What am I thinking? It's not like I've never had anyone stay the night, but those were just my friends. This is a stallion, and a general, and... oh dear.
“That's alright Miss Sparkle, I would not want to impose.”
“Oh no, it's no problem at all. Spike is going on vacation starting tonight and I have plenty of room.” What am I saying? Oh dear, this is awkward. Luckily the ever growing blush went unnoticed by Checkmate, who could only assume it was the blood rushing back to her face.
“Well if you insist, it's not like I have a lot of options. Thank you Miss Sparkle.” Twilight nervously nodded her approval.
oOoOoOoOoO
A little while later Twilight walked into Sugarcube corner to find Applejack tending to a passed out Pickin, Pinkie getting things ready for another of her parties, and Rainbow Dash slowly finishing the sugar Pickin could not.
“Uh, hi girls. What's wrong with Pickin?” Twilight asked, concerned for the well being of the small miner.
“Ah think he had a bit too much sugar,.” Replied Applejack as Twilight noted at least 2 dozen empty sugar glasses.
“Why would he drink that much sugar?”
“Oh, some old friend of his came to town and didn't want to hang out with him.” Said dash, still sipping away at her sugar, “Some guy named Checkerboard, or something like that.”
“You mean Checkmate?”
“yep, that's the one. He was a superdy duper awesome chess genius.” Piped up Pinkie Pie, “do you know him Twilight?”
“Well I know OF him, but I can't say I know him. He's a tactical mastermind and Princess Celestia's First General.”
“What's a general anyway?” Asked Dash.
“You mean you don't know?” Twilight was amazed, sure this was a small town but they still should have at least learned some things related to the military. Before she could continue an elegant voice from behind her spoke up.
“A general is a commanding officer in the military, the title is given to three stations each with a a large number of soldiers under it's command.” Everyone turned to see that the voice belonged to Rarity who didn't miss a beat in her explanation. “The lieutenant general maintains the smallest portion of soldiers and advises the next general. A general maintains command over a region and usually has a few lieutenant generals under his command. There is only one first general, the leadership of the whole military force and direct military adviser to the Princess. This office is currently held by First General Checkmate, the youngest First General in history, 20 years ahead of his time.” For some unknown reason Twilight thought she detected a hint of pride in that last statement.
“Uhhhh.... exactly. How do you know this?” Twilight asked.
“Oh Twilight dear, what kind of sophisticated lady would I be if I didn't know these things?” Rarity scoffed lightly as if it should be obvious. “Now, am I to understand that the First General himself has graced our town with his presence?”
“Yea, he's kinda... well... staying with me for a couple nights.” Every other jaw in the room, except Pinkies, hit the ground.
“Twilight dear, are you sure that's proper? I mean a grown mare and stallion together... ALONE?”
“Twilight, you know ah trust ya judgment and all, but.... are you sure?”
“Yea, seriously. What if he tries to take advantage of you... or worse?!”
“Oh Rainbow, Checkmate isn't gonna take advantage of her.” Pinkie pie chuckled at the thought, “If anything he'll drive her crazy with endless games of chess.”
“Yea, that's even WORSE.”
“Uh guys,” Twilight interrupted her friends banter, “I'll be fine. Don't worry. Anyway I need to get back to set up his bed.” And so began the most awkward night of Twilight Sparkles life...
Chapter 3
A Night With a Knight
Twilight sat in the dim candle light of the library trying to continue studying but her nerves just wouldn't let her focus. Checkmate hasn't said a single word to her all night, he just sat there staring out into space, unmoving. Except for the faint signs of breathing one may assume he was dead.
“So... First General.... How did you advance so fast?” Twilight nervously asked, trying to spawn some conversation and ease the tension.
“Strategy.” Checkmate responded so seamlessly it almost seemed like he was expecting the question. “Tactics, and manipulating your enemies. These are the signs of a great military leader, and I posses all these skills.” Having answered the question Checkmate fell silent again.
“Oh... I see... but what about loyalty?” Twilight tried her best to keep him talking.
“I am loyal to the Princess.”
“That's not what I meant... I mean wouldn't gaining the trust and loyalty of your troops be important too?”
“No.”
“Why not?” Twilight was a little irritated that he would only give basic answers.
“Must I explain it?” Checkmate sighed as Twilight just stared at him, “very well, loyalty is not an issue if you know where the disloyal are. The rest mindlessly follow instructions so the fear of consequence keeps the less loyal from speaking out. I do not lead them to foolish or self serving goals and I get them back out with minimal casualties. They are loyal to the Princess, they do not need to be loyal to me.” Twilight blinked a little while she registered what he was saying.
“Oh...” she couldn't respond, his views were really dark, cold, they seemed very familiar. That's right... I thought that same way before I came to Ponyville.
“Are you through with your questions Miss Sparkle?” the room fell silent for another hour while Twilight tried to figure out what she would do. Finally, she decided she would teach this cold stallion about the warmth and magic of friendship. First step, get him talking.
“So... Do you have a special mare waiting for you in Canterlot?” Twilight suddenly blushed and realized she may have gone too far.
“No.”
“uhhh... family?”
“No.”
“Friends?”
“No.”
“Anypony?”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
“Princess Luna.” Twilight's heart stopped, did he have a thing for Luna? Noticing her reaction Checkmate decided he would elaborate, “every week Luna and I play chess, I missed this weeks game to come here.”
“Oh...” Twilight settled a bit before trying to force further conversation. “So, you were born in Ponyville?”
“Yes.”
“Grew up here?”
“Yes.” Still, short matter of fact answers. How could she get him to relax?
“So... you play chess with Princess Luna every week?”
“Yes.”
“Is she any good?”
“No.” Ouch, he could have been a little nicer about it.
“Would you care for a game?” even twilight noticed the shift in Checkmate's stance. This was it, she could finally get him to relax.
“I guess.” Finally a two word answer! Twilight dug out her chess board which was covered in dust, most ponies in Ponyville didn't like chess so it hadn't been used in a while. After setting it up Twilight sat on the white side and Checkmate on the black, while they played Twilight continued to try to spark a conversation, with more relaxed results.
“So, General, do you like Canterlot?”
“It's alright, it has it's charms. How about you? Do you miss it?” Twilight took a second to respond, not expecting him to lighten up so quickly.
“Oh... yea, a little, but I couldn't imagine living there again without my friends.”
“I can see that, you rely heavily on your friends.” Twilight couldn't help but feel there was an insult under that remark.
“Why don't you have any friends General?”
“They are a weakness. You turn a blind eye to them because you trust them and then when they finally stab you in the back it hurts even more. I have seen this happen many times, and even caused it to happen from time to time.” Checkmate's words sent a chill down Twilight's spine, how could anypony think so negatively?
“Oh, that's not true. Friends are wonderful, they make you laugh and smile, they help you whenever you need it, and a true friend will never betray you.”
“Calling somepony a 'true friend' is like calling an apple the perfect apple. It's not really perfect, just the best one you have seen yet.” Twilight fell silent hearing those words, there was no way she could respond. “On a lighter subject, do you have a special stallion somewhere around here?” Twilight jumped at the thought her face turning as bright as one of Applejack's apples.
“No, just me and my friends. Why do you ask?”
“No reason, I thought it was only fair since you asked me the same question.” Twilight wondered if that was a joke, his voice gave no indication.
“I see, well no I don't have a....” she was cut off by a very proud yet cold voice.
“Checkmate.” No, it wasn't someone calling for the general, it was the general claiming his victory. Twilight blinked a little.
“How... how did you beat me so easily?” For the first time the General smiled.
“I kept you talking.” This answer surprised Twilight.
“But... I started the conversation.”
“Which I could have ended at anytime, but I didn't.”
“So, everything you just said... Wasn't true? It was just you prolonging the conversation?” Twilight was clearly steamed about this, being deceived and put through that much awkwardness for a game.
“No, everything I said was true.” suddenly all the anger turned into sorrow, she needed to help this pony out... but how?
“Why do you think so poorly about friends?” she asked her voice filled with sorrow.
“Because...” He paused a moment before continuing “I used to have them...” Twilight could hear through the ice and cold a small bit of sadness.
“What happened?”
“I was betrayed... I didn't get my cutie mark until I was 16 years old. When I lived here in Ponyville I just started wearing a cloak around town. People would try to guess what my cutie mark was but of course... they were all wrong. I had a friend once, the best friend in the world, and we shared everything. He was the only one who knew the truth... We were inseparable and completely loyal to each other until...” by this point the ice was all but gone and the General's voice was hollow.
“until...?”
“He met a mare. A beauty for sure but none-the-less they talked about everything... including me.” Twilight saw where this was going but before she could stop him he was already burning with rage. “He told her, and she told EVERYPONY! In a day I went from 'that silent colt' all the way back to 'blank flank'. Everypony knew, and everypony laughed! 15 years old and no cutie mark, no clue who I was in the world, and now no place to call home either. All because of HIM!” He slammed his hoofs down on the table knocking over the chess pieces. Checkmate quickly calmed down and just slouched down. Scraping his hoof along the ground he continued with a voice devoid of any good, only sadness and pain “I trusted him.”
Twilight understood his anger, most ponies got their cutie marks around the age of 9, but he was 15. That would have been awful to go through, for anypony... but was this really a good reason to rid yourself of all friendship?
“So just because of that one betrayal you are going to shun friends forever?”
“No... It was what came after...” He sighed remembering, “two years later I ran into the mare again, she had joined the military and was even put under my command. She felt horrid for what she did and in time we became friends... or so I thought.” Checkmate removed his officers coat and began undoing his shirt, Twilight assumed he was finally relaxing, but his voice kept getting more and more hollow. “Not even 6 months after her assignment I woke up, in the middle of the night, to loud explosions as our armory was blown up, but even more prevalent...” he let his shirt fall off to reveal a large scar to the left of his spine, “was her blade in my back.”
Twilight walked over to take a better look, tears welling up in her eyes. How could anyone do that? That is horrible. For anypony, especially a friend... it's terrible... it's ruthless... it's heartless... it's... EVIL!
“That was the day I learned the value of friendship... ten thousand bits.” Twilight burst out in tears crying at the story and the sight of the scar.
oOoOoOoOoO
Checkmate was confused, not only at the sheer amount of emotion this one pony was showing for him, but also why he would have told her so much. She wasn't important, the information wasn't required, so why? Why did he tell her? He looked down at the chess board for a while, just letting her cry into his shoulder. When she started to calm down he picked up a white knight piece with his magic and looked at it, the purple unicorn sniffled and started staring at it too.
“You know...” He started trying to find a way to cheer her up, “The knight is my favorite piece in chess.”
“Why?” she asked sniffling again.
“Because it's the hardest to use, yet at the same time the most potent. This piece can jump clean over any other, yet it always has one set path, you can't make it slow down or speed up, it always moves at the exact same rate.” Through the glow of his magic Checkmate could see the tear stained cheeks of this beautiful purple mare lift into a small smile.
“I suppose it does,” Twilight nodded before using her magic to lift a white pawn up beside it, “but the pawn is pretty good too, it can only move forward and will protect you no matter what, and when it reaches the other end, it can become something spectacular.” Checkmate couldn't help but smile. They weren't talking about chess anymore were they?
“So... care for a rematch? No tricks?” Twilight nodded with a nice big grin.
“Gladly, maybe this time I'll win.”
They played deep into the night, game after game, even after the candles went out they kept playing by the light of their horns. Twilight was relaxed now that Checkmate's icy cold demeanor was gone, and Checkmate could at least pretend to be while he sorted out the meaning of the night in his head, he couldn't understand what was so special about this mare to make him open up so much. He had to think, but he couldn't let her know, so they played... all through the night.
Chapter 4
Pickin awoke the next morning in a strange bed with the worst hangover of his life. As he rolled out of bed he noticed many trees out the window, upon closer inspection he noticed they were all apple trees. With one mystery solved he slowly made his way to the bedroom door, each step rattling his hyper sensitive brain. When he opened the door he was startled by the sight of a large red stallion already standing in it.
“Wha... oh... Hi Big Mac.” even the sound of his own voice sounded booming and painful, he continued on in a mild groan, “Did Applejack bring me here?”
“Eeyup.” Big Mac never wasted words.
“Was I passed out?”
“Eeyup.”
“Did I make a mess?”
“Nope.”
“That's good, where is Applejack?”
“Kitchen, downstairs, to the left.” Pickin nodded and made his way past the large earth pony and followed his directions to the kitchen to find Applejack chewing on an apple.
“Well good mornin partner, sleep well?” Applejack was in good spirits and apparently forgot to keep her voice down. She nodded to a glass of ice water on the table before continuing, “ah don't think ah've seen anypony take that much of Pinkie Pie's sugar, ah wasn't sure if I should take you to the hospital or home.” Pickin slowly made his way to the glass wincing at every other word Applejack spoke. He never really noticed till now, but Applejack has a VERY thick accent.
“Yea,” He mumbled, “Thanks.”
“Glad to see you're still kickin, now d'ya mind tellin me what in tarnation made you drink that much?” Pickin sipped on the water letting it cool his brain down bit by bit.
“I thought I told you yesterday.” His voice started picking up as he got used to it.
“You told me somepony was being a jerk, but that can't be it.” Applejack glared at him for a bit.
“Alright, I'll tell you... but can it wait till my head calms down?”
“Sure thing partner. Lemme go get you some medicine.”
OoOoOoOo
It had been a rather restless night for Twilight, she couldn't stop thinking about how much pain Checkmate had gone through. Such a betrayal, it was no wonder he had such a poor view on friendship. When she finally felt like getting up she noticed him reading a book on magic. Weird, I have plenty of books on ancient battles... Maybe he's already read them all before.
“Good morning General.”
“Good morning Miss Sparkle.” His voice was even colder than it was the night before. Twilight tried to carry on to get him to open up again.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yes.” Again, back to short answers.
“Uhhh.... Okay.... What are you reading?” Checkmate merely held up the book so she could read the title, “'Magic and the Mind', interesting choice, I've only read it once or twice. I haven't tried the spells in there, it seems too.... invasive.”
“It does.” He closed the book and stood up, “Are you ready to take me to Zecora?”
“Oh right, let me just fix my mane and we can go.” He nodded as she walked upstairs and half an hour later they were a good half mile into the Everfree forest standing in front of a house built into a tree. Twilight knocked on the door and a zebra answered.
“Come in come in my dear Twilight, Your presence here is a great delight.” Checkmate immediately noticed how the zebra spoke in rhymes, “Tell me dear twilight, so I do not offend, who is this dark one, is he your friend?”
“Not exactly. Zecora, This is First General Checkmate, he needs some information regarding the forest.” Checkmate stepped forward and gave a stiff bow, Twilight could feel the tension building up as Checkmate started speaking in his cold manner.
“I need to know the layout of the forest and if you have seen any armed ponies or unusual encampments.” The General eyed her thoroughly trying to keep her in his sight.
“I have seen no ponies good or bad, except Twilight and her happy band. Though a map I see is what you seek, and one of those I do keep.” Zecora walked over to a shelf and pulled down a scroll. Unrolling it revealed a map of the Everfree forest, in high detail. The map covered the entire section near Ponyville and had small symbols all over it, the legend revealed that they were primarily herb locations and some old structures. “If a bandit force is what you fear, then I suggest you start your search here.” Zecora pointed at a castle marked on the map.
“Thank you, Would you mind if I borrowed this to make a copy?” Zecora nodded and Checkmate rolled it back up with his magic before making his way out the door without another word.
As Checkmate neared town again he heard a familiar voice call his name, “Checkmate, General Checkmate.” He looked up and saw the source of the voice, It was Dark Eye, the leader of his scouting force. Dark was a dark brown earth pony with a gray mane and an unlit lantern as his cutie mark.
“Major Dark Eye, impeccable timing.” As the pegasus carriage carrying the Major landed Checkmate once more unrolled the map and showed it to the Major, “I need you to scout out this castle here, if you find something report back at once, if not, scout the surrounding areas until you find the opposition. I want to know who their leader is.”
“Yes, sir.” With that Dark Eye made his way into the woods without another word.
“As for you two,” The general turned to the two pegasi attached to the carriage, “Inform Lieutenant Colonel Irons that the battalion will make camp east of the Apple Family farm. Security clearance Bravo Delta fifety-seven. Also tell him to consult with the land owners to insure proper distance, we don't need to be stepping on any hooves here.” The General started back towards Ponyville when one of the pegasi spoke up.
“Sir, if he asks, which one is the Apple family farm?”
“Well, I would assume it is the farm of apple trees.” Checkmate rolled his eyes as the two quietly set off.
Checkmate continued on to a busy yet slow day. He started by copying the map from Zecora, except the herb markers. Then he had a quiet lunch before expanding the map to include the section of Ponyville where his camp would be before returning the original map to the zebra. He spent the rest of the day sitting outside Ponyville near the forest, studying and planning. He took in everything, noting the layout of the forest, counting his strengths, and even marking possible ambush positions in the forest. He was going to leave nothing to chance so he planned every detail. Twilight stopped by once in a while to try to start conversation again, but he was not going to let her know anymore than he already had.
As the sun was setting Major Dark Eye returned from the forest, easily finding Checkmate almost exactly where he left him the Major walked up and saluted before delivering his report.
“First General, sir. I have completed my reconnaissance.”
“At ease Major.” Checkmate spoke coldly without even looking up from his map.
“Yes sir,” Dark Eye relaxed as he continued, “the enemy force was in the castle as you anticipated. They are about five hundred strong but are expecting more within the week. Their leader...” Dark Eye paused earning him a nasty look from Checkmate, “sir, their leader is an alicorn.” Checkmate's attention was now completely on the Major, yet he showed no signs of the the emotional torrent that was occurring inside. “He is going by the name 'Overlord' though my guess is that this is an assumed name.”
“Very well.” Checkmate spoke carefully, he knew showing any signs of the fear and confusion he felt would diminish the moral of the troops. “What of the structure? Is there any weaknesses to it's integrity? Or a secret access we can use?”
“The castle is old sir, but it's structure is even. There is no location that would be better for striking. All hidden accesses have already been found by the hostiles and sealed off. Sir it would appear this will have to be a basic siege.”
“We can't afford the time, they are anticipating reinforcements within the week. We cannot lay siege, our troops can't handle a fight on two fronts. Thank you Major, you are dismissed. Meet me at the camp tomorrow night, Lieutenant Colonel Irons should have it set up by then.”
“Yes sir.” His report complete Major Dark Eye made his was back into the Everfree forest, if nothing else the stallion was diligent.
OoOoOoOo
Twilight was deep in her studies when Checkmate burst through the door,
“Miss Sparkle, what is the fastest method of transport to get back to Canterlot?” His words were as cold as ever but also held some heat, maybe fear, or anger, whatever it was Twilight didn't have time to figure it out.
“Well, that would be by pegasus carriage.”
“I don't have time for that, I need to speak with the Princess tonight!” His desperation was bursting at the seams, “Don't you know teleportation magic?”
“Well yes, but I've only ever used it for short hops, not something like Canterlot.”
“Try. Now.” This caused the poor unicorn to jump before settling down and approaching.
“What is going on General?!”
“No time. Just get us to Canterlot. NOW!”
“Alright.... here goes.” Twilight focused as hard as she could, she imagined the royal court and started to create the path, she felt her knees buckle as she pushed all the magic she could into the spell and in a split second they went from the quaint library in Ponyville directly into Princess Celestia's chambers in Canterlot.
“Twilight Sparkle? And General Checkmate? What in Equestria is going on?” The Princess was noticeably startled while Twilight seemed dizzy and weak from the force she used.
“Thank you Miss Sparkle but now I must speak with the Princess in private.”
“It's quite alright General, whatever you have to say she is permitted to hear.” Checkmate was unsure if he should continue but with a nod from Celestia he did.
“We have discovered the identity of the enemy leader.” Celestia was clearly intruiged as was Twilight, she didn't understand how this information was so important. “He goes by the name Overlord, and... He is an alicorn.” The room was silent for a time before Princess Celestia spoke up.
“Are you sure?”
“This information was brought to my attention Major Dark Eye ma'am.” Celestia nodded knowing Dark Eye to be an excelent scout. “Ma'am, this may seem personal but I need as much information on alicorns as possible, I need to know average strength, both physical and magical, I need to know possible weaknesses, and any detailed information you have about this 'Overlord'.”
“Very well,” Celestia Sighed as Twilight stood there caught in there conversation, “On average an alicorn's magic is about the same as a unicorns, obviously with some exceptions. They have the strength of an earth pony, and all the capabilities of a pegasus. This makes them without weakness any physical weakness since they possess the strengths of all three types of ponies.” Twilight sat there stunned, her dizziness was gone but her amazement kept her from saying or doing anything.
“And what of Overlord, do you know him?”
“He may be using a new name but I am pretty sure I know who he is, he has gone by many names in the past; King, Emperor, Mastermind, and even Judgement. Though his true name is Terra, Prince of the Earth. He... is my older brother.” Again the room was filled with silence... Princess Celestia has a brother? Twilight thought. but how? Her thoughts were interrupted by General Checkmate.
“Your Highness, this pony is threatening to wreak havoc in Equestria. With your permission I would like to stop him.”
“You have my blessings General, but please... Do not slay him. He can be redeemed, I know it.”
“As you wish Your Highness.”
The ride back to Ponyville was quite. Twilight was to weak to teleport them again and to busy sorting out the information she just gained to even try to start a conversation. The night was restless, and before she knew it dawn was breaking on the first day of a war...
Chapter 5
Checkmate made his way through the camp on a fine spring night, each soldier saluting him as he passed. They set up camp 3 days ago and the general immediately sent out his scouts to gather as much intelligence as possible. Tomorrow they were due for their report, at which time they would finally act. The presence of the alicorn still disturbed the young general but no matter what he would protect Equestria. As his tent came into view he started to relax, it was a long day and he was ready for it to end.
As he stepped into his tent he was greeted with a large “Surprise!” from five ponies. He could recognize all but one of them. Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, and who else but Pinkie Pie, likely the orchestrator of this event. He also recognized Rainbow Dash, from her victory at the Best Young Flier competition. The only one he could not name was a rather quiet yellow mare with a pink mane.
“What in the world? What are you all doing here?!” Checkmate did nothing to hold his rage as he glared at each of the ponies. Pinkie Pie, clearly unaffected by his outburst was the first to respond.
“It's your 'welcome home' party silly.” Checkmate took note of the giant banner at the back of the tent reading 'Welcome Home'.
“Pinkie Pie... no. No party, I have work to do. Now all of you out.” The room was silent, no pony said 'no' to a Pinkie Pie party. Pinkie Pie was obviously the most effected, as she slowly led the group out Checkmate sighed, “Fine... but keep it tame. No loud music, just a quiet, relaxing night, alright?”
This roused everyone back up and they started the party, though significantly calmer than the norm. The music was quiet and everypony was chatting, each taking a turn to talk to Checkmate over a game of chess. Rainbow Dash wasn't very skilled but she kept trying, once they had started their third game Checkmate surprisingly started the conversation.
“Miss Dash, I understand you are an incredible athlete.”
“Yes sir, winner of the Best Young Flier Competition in Cloudsdale.”
“I know, I was there.” Rainbow Dash gave him a funny look then remembered how her friends made it to the competition.
“I didn't see you there, and I think I would have noticed if some wingless pony was in Cloudsdale.”
“Chameleon spell, not as effective as outright invisibility but good enough to fool ponies who aren't looking for you.” Rainbow nodded her understanding while the general got to his point, “Miss Dash, I would like to put your athleticism to use.”
“What? You want me in the military? Sorry but I’m holding out for the Wonder Bolts.”
“Actually I think the military would be a great stepping stone for the Wonder Bolts. Little known fact, almost every Wonder Bolt served a time in the military and the team itself acts as a reserve for military missions. I can give you a pass on basic training, and even perhaps send you on a mission or two with the Wonder Bolts.” Suddenly Rainbow Dash was all ears and ready to go.
“Where to I sign up?”
“We will handle the formal paper work tomorrow, report in bright and early for your assignment. Oh and one more thing... checkmate.”
Rainbow didn't expect to win and after three straight losses she gave up and went to tell her friends about her decision. Next to play was Applejack who, as soon as she sat down, started a new conversation.
“So Checkmate, how ya been?”
“Busy.”
“Why haven't ya visited? Been here 5 days and didn't even stop in for a 'hello'?”
“I've been busy.”
“You know... ah talked to Pickin the other day.” Applejack knew she was setting hoof on shaky ground but continued anyway. “Look, Checkmate, he's real sorry about what he did, he truly is. Why don't you go talk to him?”
“I don't blame him.” Applejack blinked a few times.
“What?”
“I don't blame Pickin for what he did.”
“Then why in tarnation haven't ya talked to him yet?”
“I've been busy.”
“aww horse-apples, you've been spending most of your time at Twilight's library. What is goin on between you two anyhow?” Applejack's raised voice gathered the attention of the rest of the ponies as Checkmate replied.
“Nothing, I've been studying.”
“Studying what exactly?” Applejack noticed Checkmates book filled saddle bags sitting next to the chess table. Curious about their contents, she picked them up and dumped them onto the table knocking over all the pieces. “'Mind Control: A Reference Guide'? '101 mind control spells'? 'Spells of Subtlety'?! What in Equestria are ya doin to Twilight?!”
“Nothing, I was just doing some research.”
“Research for what?” Asked Rainbow Dash, also concerned for Twilight.
“For...”
“Are ya trying to corrupt Twilight?”
“No.”
“Have you been taking advantage of her good nature?”
“No.”
“Ah know. Yall are trying to brainwash her and turn her into some weapon!” Applejack finally made Checkmate snap.
“NO! She is Princess Celestia's student and I am Celestia's loyal servent! I. Would. NEVER. Try to control her!” Twilight stepped in curious about the books herself.
“I believe you General, but what is with these books, you must have read every book I have on mind manipulation...”
“I... I...” Checkmate was backed into a corner, he had not anticipated this but with the five ponies closing in on him his rage rapidly fell into shame, “I was trying to find out if Twilight had used that magic on me...” The room was silent so he continued. “My first night in Ponyville I stayed at the library. During the night Miss Sparkle somehow got me to reveal something of a personal nature, I couldn't understand how she did it so I assumed magic was involved. I've been reading these books to figure out how she did it...”
No one spoke. Twilight was hurt that he would suspect her of that, Applejack was sad that she forced him to admit this, Rainbow Dash still didn't quite believe him. That was it... the party was over... all the ponies left. Checkmate wasn't sure how he felt about this night. It did drive away his distractions so he could focus on his mission, but it also drove away his best hope of friends. It didn't matter, friends were a weakness. None of the five returned, and Rainbow Dash did not show up in the morning and since she was not technically part of the military yet so there was nothing he could do.
The next day after the scouting had been done and the plans had been made General Checkmate stood in front of his troops and began the briefing.
“All right ponies. Today we start a series of raids on the enemy supply and reinforcement routes, We have a pony inside their stronghold to feed us the schedule. This will continue for 1 week before ending in a siege on the enemies stronghold. Without their reinforcements or supplies the enemy will be weakened thus securing our victory. Today's raid is to be conducted on a supply caravan coming from the east. Any questions?” No one spoke up so he nodded and finished his speech, “very well, report to your commanding officers for your assigned duties.”
Checkmate left the briefing stage and made his way to the armory to get his armor on. As he undressed to don his armor he stared at his scar and remembered his first night in Ponyville. Why did I tell her all that? There was no way she manipulated me...
“General?” Checkmate blinked a couple times, after being pulled from his thoughts, before he looked to the source of the voice. Lieutenant Cassidy Irons, a navy blue, red maned pegasus mare with a crossed sword and blacksmith hammer as a cutie mark. She was both an armorer and part of the aerial assault force.
“What is it Lieutenant?” Checkmate didn't hide his disdain for being pulled from his thoughts.
“Oh... Sorry sir... You're armor is ready.”
“Oh right, thank you Lieutenant.” Checkmate stood still while Cassidy began putting his armor on. “Lieutenant... Do you like me?” Cassidy stopped, surprised by the question and Checkmate doubled back to clarify, “I mean as a pony, like... a friend.”
“Oh...” Cassidy sighed in relief then continued, “Well, I can't honestly say... we never really speak unless it's about military duties. This is the most personal conversation we have ever had.”
“I see, do you have many friends Lieutenant?” Cassidy went back to armoring Checkmate while they spoke.
“Yes sir, I have plenty of friends. Oh, but I don't let that get in the way of my duties.” This intrigued Checkmate.
“How do you manage that Lietenant? Not allowing friends to get in the way?”
“Simple, I make sure to tell them when I am busy with work, and they respect that.”
“I see, but to be fair your position doesn't really possess the same dangers of betrayal.” For the first time Checkmate wasn't sure who he was trying to convince.
“I grant that sir, but sometimes it's nice to have someone you don't have to be suspicious of. There you go sir, you're all done.” Checkmate blinked, getting armored felt a lot longer.
“Oh, thank you Lieutenant.” Checkmate left the armory still going over his conversation. 'Sometimes it's nice to have someone you don't have to be suspicious of.' Those words echoed in his mind, yes... it would be nice wouldn't it... but I can't afford that. He didn't know why he was thinking so hard on these things. After a while he finally chalked it all up to the highly unusual week he was having. He then proceeded to the rally point to lead the mission.
After gathering the troops they continued on to the ambush sight where Checkmate placed his men, insuring there would not be a survivor of this ambush, he didn't want anyone catching wind of what happened.
As they waited Checkmate inspected his sword, it was amazing what the pegasi could create, a blade that even an earth pony could use. It was like a unicorn blade but instead of a handle it had a fitted loop that would connect just above the knee. An earth pony would rear back on it's hind legs and strike leading with the front knee, where the blade extended from. It was cut to a perfect length to allow normal walking too, it was amazing.
As the caravan approached Checkmate readied himself for the fight. The forest was perfect for this ambush, he looked around to prime his teams. The pegasi hiding in the trees, the earth ponies in the bushes, and the unicorn artillery hiding a ways from the path, all were ready and as the caravan hit the trigger point Checkmate shouted.
“Attack!” With that one word the ambush commenced, starting with the unicorns firing a volley of fire magic instantly setting the caravan ablaze, from there they worked to maintain the fire and keep it from spreading. Next the Pegasi leaped from the trees down onto the guards taking out about a quarter of them in one strike. With the window of surprise closed the earth ponies burst from their bushes and the battle commenced in full.
Thanks to the ambush the battle was already tilted in Checkmate's favor, but not by much. There were a good deal more guards than anticipated and Checkmate knew there would be casualties. Checkmate stepped out and singled out their leader, an earth pony at the head of the caravan. The enemy leader noticed Checkmate as well, and both knew the value of the other so they locked in battle. Not wanting to risk hurting their own leader both sides' forces continued combat around the dueling commanders.
Checkmate knew a standoff would only give the enemy time to collect himself so he lunged right in aiming his blade right for the heart. His opponent parried and attempted to disable him with a strike along his front legs. Checkmate kicked his front hooves off the ground to dodge and then kicked with his back hooves and lunged over his opponent slicing the shoulder blade. The wince of pain gave the perfect window to continue pressing. Checkmate sliced again and again often being parried or dodged but occasionally getting a nick in and pushing his further and further opponent back until finally a fatal mistake was made; the enemy's leader tripped over his own hooves and fell back into a tree. Before anypony knew what was happening Checkmate thrust his blade into his opponents chest.
With their leader slain the enemy force lost morale and concentration and soon all had fallen. Checkmate surveyed his surroundings, out of the 75 he brought to the ambush about 10 were injured, none dead. He smiled at himself, even with that flaw in his intelligence he made a zero loss plan.
“Good work men, now lets clean this up. No evidence.” He emphasized this point by slaying a an enemy survivor. It was not entirely honorable to slay the defeated, but he couldn't afford survivors, not even as prisoners. “And see what you can salvage out of this caravan.”
Checkmate made his way back to camp leaving the clean up to his men. Upon arriving to his tent he found a small letter on his bed, too exhausted from lack of sleep he moved it over to his desk and collapsed on his bed, it wasn't official so whatever it was could wait; This was his time to sleep.
Chapter 6
Twilight spent the entire night after the party trying to figure out what to do. It wasn't like she blamed Checkmate for what he did. After everything he went through it was no surprise he would be suspicious of other ponies. She still didn't understand why he would have told her all that he did. He needed another chance, that much was for certain. Maybe she could talk her friends into giving him that, and who better to start with than Applejack.
The next morning Twilight immediately went to the Apple Family Farm, Applejack would be tending to the trees already so she would be easiest to find. After a quick search She found Applejack on her rounds and approached.
“Hey Applejack.”
“Oh, howdy Twilight, what can ah do ya for?”
“Well, about last night...”
“Yea... I'm sorry about that.” Twilight blinked.
“What?”
“Well, ah was just so worried 'bout ya that ah caused a huge scene.”
“So... You're not still angry with Checkmate?”
“Lookey here sugarcube, ah've known Checkmate since we was little. Ah know he has some serious problems with trustin' ponies, especially after what he's been through.”
“I see, so you believe him?”
“Of course ah do, I can tell when that stallion is lyin' and last night was no lie.”
“Oh wow, that takes a load off already. Have you apologized to him yet?”
“Not yet, ah thought ah'd fix this mistake before ah went and apologized.” Twilight nodded a little.
“Well leave that to me, you just think about what you're going to say to him alright?” With that Twilight trotted off to find the other four. Pinkie Pie was very forgiving and by the time Twilight had found her she was already planning a 'We forgive you' party, which Twilight quickly talked her out of. Fluttershy didn't take much convincing either, her kind nature allowing it after Twilight explained a little. She finally came to a problem when she found Rainbow Dash...
“Rainbow Dash.” Twilight called up to the cloud her rainbow maned friend was sleeping on. “Can we talk?”
“Why, so you can try to make me one of Checkerboard's pawns too?!”
“What? No! And his name is Checkmate, now come down here and talk to me.”
“Not until you are no longer under his evil spell.”
“I'm not under his spell! There are no spells that would last this long without the caster nearby.” Rainbow Dash looked around.
“Alright Checker, come out of hiding! I know you're down there!” Twilight was getting more and more frustrated. Finally she used her magic to teleport Rainbow Dash straight down to her. Before she could fly off Twilight shoved an open book in her face with a few lines underlined. “There is only one spell that allows mind domination without constant casting... yadda yadda yadda... Before constant effect can take hold the pony to be dominated must be placed under entrancement for a total of 1 week. So, what's the deal?”
“Do the math Rainbow Dash, This spell takes a total of 1 week to cast, Checkmate has only been here for 6 days. I am not under any sort of spell.”
“How do I know your not a Twilight imposter? Or an illusion?” Rainbow Dash was even more stubborn than usual, Twilight knew this would take a while...
OoOoOoOo
Meanwhile Cassidy Irons was just finishing armoring the troops for General Checkmate's first raid. Due to the nature of the mission her presence wasn't required so she had the rest of the day off. She took this opportunity to go meet some of the ponies of Ponyville, and where better to start than the owners of the nearby farm. After a short walk Cass spotted two ponies working the fields, one was an orange mare with a blonde mane, and the other was a red stallion an orange mane.
“Excuse me, are you busy?” Cass got a short and simple reply from the red stallion.
“Nope.” The orange mare on the other hand was a bit more talkative.
“Nah, we ain't terribly busy. What can ah do ya for?”
“Oh, nothing much. I just wanted to go around and meet some of the local ponies.”
“Really? You onea Checkmate's ponies?”
“Yea, do you know him?”
“Uhhh, somethin like that. He used to live here ya know?”
“Really? He never mentioned that... Might be why he wanted to oversee this mission personally.”
“Wait, you mean he came here by choice?”
“Well, yea. He's the First General, typically he just stays in Canterlot and directs campaigns. He couldn't possibly oversee every little insurgency.” Applejack couldn't wrap her head around it, Checkmate chose to come to Ponyville.
“Wow...”
“By the way, My names Cassidy, Cassidy Irons, but you can call me Cass.”
“Nice ta meet ya, my names Applejack and this here's my brother Big Macintosh,” Applejack motioned to the quiet stallion, “though we just call him Big Mac.”
“He doesn't talk much does he?”
“Oh don't mind him, he's just a bit shy, but he's got nothing on...” Applejack was interrupted by a quiet, gentle voice from behind Cass.
“Um... excuse me. Applejack, I was wondering... I mean, if your not busy, but could you help me?” The voice sounded familiar to Cass and when she turned to see the pink maned mare her heart skipped a beat. “Oh... am I interrupting something? I'll come back later...”
“Oh don't be silly Fluttershy, I was just talkin with a new friend. Come say he...” Again Applejack is cut off, this time by Cass.
“Fluttershy?” Fluttershy looked up to acknowledge her, “What, don't you remember me? Cassidy. We went to flight school together. Well until you up and vanished... I heard what happened at the race and searched for days, I thought you were dead.”
“Oh, no. I just decided to stay down here with all the cute little animals.” She nuzzled Angel a bit. “Well, it was nice seeing you again but I must tend to some of the animals.”
“Well hold on, you mentioned needing help. Maybe... If it's not to much trouble,”Cassidy's heart was racing, her cheeks were turning red, and her knees were trembling, “maybe I could help you?”
“Oh that would be very nice of you, I have a lot of medicine to give out.” Cassidy nodded and they both trotted off leaving a rather dumbfounded Applejack.
“Hey, Big Mac... ya don't suppose Cass...”
“Eeyup.”
OoOoOoOo
After what felt like ages of arguing, lots of small magic tricks, and answering countless question only the 'real Twilight' would know, Rainbow Dash finally listened to Twilight and would forgive Checkmate. With 4 out of the 5 taken care of she just had to counter any rumors Rarity might have heard. As she approached Carousel Boutique she spotted Rarity cheering up a somber Pickin.
“Hey you two, what's up?” Twilight asked eying Pickin.
“Oh, hello darling. Pickin has been real depressed since Checkmate's return.” Rarity shook her head, “I've tried everything to cheer him up; hooficure, facial, sauna...” Twilight held her hoof up to silence the white pony.
“Why don't you go prepare some tea, let me talk to him.” Rarity nodded and disappeared into the boutique while Twilight sat next to Pickin. “So, do you want to tell me what going on?”
“No...” Pickin spoke somewhere between a grumble and a sigh.
“Come on Pickin, I know Checkmate was cold towards you but he's been like that for everypony.” Twilight gently rubbed Pickin's back as he started to speak.
“I know he's cold... I know it's not just me... But... It's my fault.” Pickin was on the verge of tears as he continued, “I betrayed his trust, I caused him a world of misery, it's all my fault.” Twilight wipes a tear from the gray stallions face.
“He doesn't blame you. I heard him say that last night.” Twilight thought back to Checkmate's story. “Besides you told someone you trusted, it's her fault, not yours. You can't beat yourself up over this.”
“But if I hadn't told her... Checkmate would never have left, and we would still be friends.” Twilight nodded a bit. She understood his feelings but knew there was a silver lining.
“Pickin, listen. If Checkmate hadn't gone through that embarrassment when he did he may have never found his special talent. Think about it, if he hadn't left Ponyville he wouldn't have joined the military, and military tactics is he special talent.” Pickin smiled and nodded.
“You're right, I just wish it coulda been done in a nicer way.” Rarity returned carrying a tray with a beautiful tea set.
“Oh, Pickin, it is wonderful to see you smiling again.” Rarity set the tray on the table and poured out three cups as she continued, “I always thought you looked a dozen times better with a smile. My, with a smile like that you could almost be a prince.” These words got Pickin smiling more and more.
“Now that that's settled, Rarity. I wanted to know, what do you heard about Checkmate?” Twilight sipped on her tea while she awaited the response.
“Well, Rainbow Dash came around this morning and told me all about some 'evil' plan he was hatching to take over Ponyville, but I told her there is no way he would do any such thing. That mare has quite an imagination.” Twilight groaned remembering the ordeal she just went through.
“Tell me about it... Anyway, why do you have such confidence in him?”
“Well, he is Princess Celestia's First General, there is no way he would do anything like that. The Princess is a wonderful judge of character.”
“Is that all?” Twilight eyed rarity a second before Pickin spoke up.
“She's going to find out eventually Rarity, you might as well tell her.” Rarity shot a nasty glare at Pickin.
“What ever do you mean darling? There is nothing to 'find out'.”
“Do recall, you are talking to the most studious pony in Ponyville.” Pickin sighed shaking his head before continuing. “Plus she runs the library, where all Ponyville's records are kept.”
“Well maybe if you hadn't said anything she might not have bothered to look.” Twilight watched this exchange in silence.
“Look, she already knows Checkmate was born here, she obviously has a big interest in him, she is bound to check the records eventually so just tell her. He's not a child, and he's not an embarrassment anymore, so just tell her.” This was getting more and more confusing, how could Checkmate be an embarrassment to Rarity?
“Alright, fine. Twilight... Checkmate is kind of... well not kind of... He... happens to be...” Rarity looked down, “my older brother.” This week was threatening to make Twilight's heart stop. First Princess Celestia and now Rarity, next she was gonna find out Pickin was Applejack's brother.
“Wait... you have a brother? Why didn't you tell me?”
“Well, you see darling, Checkmate is kind of the 'dark horse' of my family... in more than one way. Let's also say his origins are less than sparkling.” Rarity sighed, avoiding Twilight's gaze as Pickin picked up the explanation.
“To be a little more accurate, Checkmate is only Rarity's half brother, same mother. Before you suggest it, her mother was not a willing participant in the act.” Twilight sat there dumbfounded, it seemed like she found a new dark secret every day since Checkmate arrived.
“Please Twilight, don't tell Sweetie Belle about this,” Rarity was finally looking her in the eye, “She is to young to remember him at all.” Twilight nodded, Sweetie Belle should grow up in a beautiful world until she's old enough to understand the darkness.
“Alright, but you have to tell her eventually.” Rarity returned the nod. “Now while we're on the topic of family skeletons, Pickin, do you have any siblings I should know about?”
“No,” Pickin said with a slight chuckle, “only family I have are my parents out in Fillydelphia.”
“Hmm, why did you leave?”
“No good mines near Fillydelphia. Anyway, Twilight, can you come to the library with me? I'd like to check out a book.”
“uh, yea... but why?”
“It's a secret.” Pickin gave her a wry smile and Twilight nodded as they took off towards the library. Rarity smiled as she watched them go, Pickin looked pretty handsome with his confidence.
After Pickin had his book and left Twilight sat down to begin writing a letter. Without spike she would have to send it personally. Now, how to put it...
