One Last Job

The Grand Galloping Gala was an occasion that every hoity-toity (or at least, that was how Applejack phrased it) noble in Canterlot attended. It was considered a status symbol just to get a ticket – and Lazuli was fairly certain she was the only Dracony to ever get in as anything more than service staff.

It didn’t help that her last trip to Canterlot had not exactly been pleasant. With her faked execution that she was fairly certain was the cause of any nightmares she still had, the time she spent in the jail cell and it being the staging area for her essentially overthrowing the government of her own land, it wasn’t exactly seen in a positive light for her.

Fizzlepop was a similar way. While most ponies had either forgotten about her or forgiven her, she felt out of place. It was her that had brought an entire army to Canterlot, turned their princesses to stone and nearly brought Equestria to ruin by stealing their magic for her old master. Both Lazuli and Fizzlepop did not have fond memories of Canterlot, but they hoped that this night would help.

Both of their dresses were simple, as much as Rarity tried to convolute them. Fizzle was fashioned in a dark black dress with bluish fringes, somewhat matching the style her armour used to have. She wore hoof cups that were made out of some kind of solid material, she just couldn’t place what it was.

Lazuli’s dress had her in a state of constant grump, even though it was quite gorgeous. The blue hues matched her eyes, and the dress itself had room for her tail to stick out the back – if it had pushed the skirt up to stick out, obviously it would not have been attractive, so there was a hole at the back for it. She also had hoof cups on, but hers were not as solid.

They had both arrived and were currently walking with Twilight and her friends, all of whom were in their own fancy and quite a bit more exotic dresses.

“I do not go ‘tink tink’ when I walk.” Fizzle growled, but it was a playful sort of tone. “And it is not adorable.”

“Whatever you say~” Lazuli bumped her hip up against Fizzle’s side, giggling softly. “Still, it’s cute.”

As Fizzle walked, her hooves did in fact clink and clack against the ground, much like they had when she wore armour. “Hrmph. Well…you…uh.” She glanced at Lazuli, looking around her to find something to make fun of in turn, but there wasn’t much. “Mmph…notch-ear…”

“Oh wow, good one.” Lazuli couldn’t hold back a bit of a louder laugh, but something was hiding beneath it. Fizzle knew her well enough to tell.

“Hey.” She stopped, letting Twilight and her friends go ahead. “You’re nervous, right?”

“Oh come on, we had a good thing going…”

“Lazuli, all you need to do is relax. It’s a party, like Pinkie’s! Just…less balloons, and more erm…rich.”

“It’s…not that.” Lazuli sighed and looked over at the drawbridge to Canterlot castle. “That party is going to be filled with noble ponies.”

“So?” Fizzle tilted her head.

Lazuli closed her eyes and gently let her head sway from side to side. “I’m a Dracony. And I’m not anypony important. Even if I told them the princess invited me, they’d think I’m some kind of charity case.”

“Oh, don’t be like that.” Fizzle frowned and put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Nobles look down on anyone who isn’t…a noble.”

“Yeah, well…mmp. You’re right I guess…”

“Come on. You’re being silly.”

Lazuli resigned herself, and started walking across the bridge with Fizzle.

The Gala was the same as Rainbow Dash had cared to call it – dull. That wasn’t the word she had used, but Lazuli didn’t have a problem with it, in reality. The quiet music, gentle conversation…it was relaxing in some ways.

At the gate, the two of them handed the guards their tickets. Fizzle’s was barely given a second look, but the Pegasus who accepted her ticket was careful to turn Lazuli’s over a few times before letting her pass. She shot Fizzle a look, and the unicorn just winced.

Already she had lost track of Twilight and her friends, so her plan to stick with them was already failing. She kept close to Fizzle anyway.

A few nobles gave them odd looks. Fizzlepop was regarded with at least a normal amount of respect, though her broken horn drew more than a few stares. Lazuli, however, was the target of multiple smirks and snickers. It took a bit of restraint to avoid saying anything.

It certainly didn’t help that Lazuli walked with a bit of a limp, given she had decided to forgo her leg braces for tonight. It wasn’t extremely noticeable, but with ponies already scrutinizing her very existence it was hard not to be a point of conversation for the whispering (or very audibly remarking) nobility filling the ball room.

Smells of coins and desperation, Lazuli thought to herself.

Celestia was easy to spot. She was standing at the top of a flight of stairs in the rear-center of the room…with a long line of ponies walking up to greet her. Twilight was there as well, and presumably Luna was either spending time in the dreamscape or just avoiding the Gala altogether.

“Um.” She spoke out loud, glancing briefly at her taller unicorn companion.

“Um…” Fizzle parroted, clearing her throat. “What, exactly?”

“I don’t want to talk to her.”

“What? But she invited us, Laz.”

“Let’s just avoid her, okay?”

“We’re spending at least a little time here, okay? The princess was nice enough to let us in for free with Twilight and her friends, it’s not something we should just push aside. You know?”

“Fine. But we’re avoiding her.”

“Whatever you say, miss party-pooper.”

The two of them wandered around the party for a bit longer, taking in the sights, sounds, smells and – when they got to it – some of the food. Lazuli had to admit that Canterlot food was pretty amazing, even though her only point of comparison was street food and Ponyville fare – ‘carnival’ fare, as nobles would put it.

It wasn’t until later in the night that Lazuli was starting to feel a bit worn out. They briefly encountered Rarity, who mentioned – after multiple mentions of how gorgeous their gowns were – that they planned to leave in about an hour, if the two of them wanted to come back with them.

“Should we go now?” Lazuli asked, turning to Fizzlepop, who looked just about as tired as her.

“Yeah, whenever they go.”

“Mmhm.” The Dracony yawned, and shifted to one side.

Lazuli began to turn around, only to come face-to-metal with a golden chestplate beset with a purple jewel. She nearly bumped right into it, and Celestia stepped back just a bit.

“Oh, Lazuli!” The princess smiled warmly, having apparently abandoned her ‘post’ to come and mingle within the last thirty seconds or so, and conveniently had walked to the exact spot Lazuli was headed. “I’m quite glad you decided to come. I know parties like these aren’t exactly your style…”

“Well, it’s more the ponies.” Lazuli smiled back at her. “But thank you, Princess. I was hoping to get to talk to you again.”

“Ah, as was I! Er…wanting to talk to you, of course. But…there is something I would prefer to discuss in private. Shall we?”

The Dracony looked back at Fizzle. “You’ll be okay?”

“I’ll be fine, Laz. Go on.” The unicorn waved a hoof.

With encouragement that she wasn’t leaving too early, she trotted alongside Celestia. The sight of a Dracony walking beside the princess was clearly giving several nobles the early stages of an aneurism, which Lazuli couldn’t help but grin at.

Celestia and Lazuli’s walk took them to the castle gardens, which were devoid of any ponies wandering outside. Once they were far enough away from the castle, Celestia began to talk.

“How have you been, Lazuli?”

“Well…” The Dracony shrugged. “Decent. About the same as when you came to my party a few months ago.”

“Mmm.” Celestia nodded. “I suppose it is not worth wasting your time, here. I shall get to the point.”

The two of them walked for a few more seconds before Celestia stopped. “I need you to do something for me. Something for us.”

“And what would that be?” Lazuli tilted her head.

Celestia cleared her throat, thinking for a moment about how to phrase her request. “I want to make it very clear that you are under no obligation to say yes to what I am about to ask.”

“…mhm…”

“And I apologize if it is in bad taste…”

“…mmmhmm…”

“But…there is a noble at this party who is known to be…how do I put this…an extremely unsavoury character.”

Lazuli stayed quiet and maintained eye contact with Celestia. “Erm…right.” The princess cleared her throat again. “Well…are you at all familiar with a group known as the…Gifts of Mutation?”

“…the GoM? I’m…kind of aware, yeah.”

“Well, they are a group known for raiding small towns and committing mass arson and burglary. Their most notable feature is that all of their members have been mechanically enhanced in one way or another.”

Lazuli rubbed her chin with a hoof. “Uh-huh…sounds familiar. Run by a zebra, by any chance?”

“That is them, yes.” Celestia nodded her head, glad that she wouldn’t need to explain every last detail. “As of late, this group has become…quite an issue. Their actions have been growing bolder, and their numbers are increasing. The Royal Guard had been attempting to arrest its members for quite some time now, but…well…”

“Too strong?” Lazuli asked.

Celestia frowned and slowly bowed her head. “Yes. Their enhancements are typically too much for an average pony to overpower. We have been trying to get at their leader, which we believe would easily topple an organization run with only her at the helm – but as I’ve just said, it is nearly impossible.”

The Dracony held up a hoof, closing her eyes. “Right. I can already tell where this is going. You want me to kill her, right?”

“Well, I wouldn’t put it so bluntly, but…”

“The answer is-…” Lazuli paused. Her mind began to race, gears turning in her head. Celestia stood by, inquisitively regarding the mare before her as she considered her response. “…what would I get out of this?”

The Princess winced. “Well unfortunately, we have no idea what you would desire. If you were to take the job…what would you like to receive in return?”

“Well…” Lazuli scratched her chin. “I…I have no idea, actually. I kind of have everything I want…” Her tail gently dragged along the ground, digging through the dirt. “And I’m not exactly sure I want to take on a legion of robo-ponies at the risk of losing it all.”

Celestia’s expression went from hopeful to somewhat downtrodden, a grimace forming on her face. “I was afraid of that. I do apologize.”

“But…” Lazuli continued, and hung her head a bit. “I do still owe you, of course. My rap sheet wasn’t exactly expunged just because I killed one corrupt noble, and even if you say you won’t hold it against me, I feel like I’m kind of obligated.”

“Lazuli, you truly do not have to accept this if you do not wish to.”

“Well…I’m accepting it anyway. That’s that. Do you have some sort of information package for her?”

A brown folder materialized in a golden flash of magical energy, levitated in the air by Celestia. “This has all of the information you will need.” She lowered it to Lazuli, who tucked it between one of the bands on her dress and her body. “I wish you luck. There isn’t a time limit, of course…but I would prefer if you could take it on before they lay waste to more homes.”

“I’ll do it, don’t worry.” Lazuli ran her tail along the surface of the folder, then slowly dragged the blue band tight against it to hide it from view. “I’ll write you a letter when I’m done.”

“Are you sure you want to do this, Lazuli?”

“Yep.”

“Are you sure you…can?”

Lazuli paused, the question hitting her a bit harder than it should have. In all honesty, she wasn’t sure. She needed braces to run for extended periods, she didn’t have her wings, and she was out of practice. She’d need to train a bit before she could be confident in her abilities, but…

“…yes.” She finally said, nodding her head slowly. “I think I can.”

“If you’re sure, then I wish you good luck.” Celestia bowed her head, the tip of her horn nearly touching Lazuli’s forehead before she took a few steps back. “Now, I must get back to the party, and I think you should get back to Fizzlepop.”

A smirk came to Lazuli’s lips, and she couldn’t help but giggle a bit. She didn’t know why, but something about this felt…right, even though it really shouldn’t have. “Yeah. She’s probably not gonna be happy…”