The Pawn Who Would Be Queen

Orzel didn't blame anyone in particular for the increase in workload that'd arrived in the weeks following the conclusion of the Global Series, as most of it was a struggle of her own making... Most. From the unexpected pitfalls of trying to purchase her workshop to the ongoing obstinacy of the Equestrian Navy, there was plenty to keep the Princess busy. The level of redundancy and overall waste that existed in Equestria's bureaucratic system was staggering, but not surprising...

As she was both a minor and a non-citizen, she couldn't legally own government or private land under her own name. There was a loophole in the way that the law was worded, at least according to Celestia. If Orzel was the owner of a private company, she could buy land under the company name instead. Of course, the land could only be purchased from the government, which would've been fine in and of itself. The issue arose when it came down to actually registering a business, even a small 'one person' operation.

Not content to be denied on any sort of technicality, Orzel had done what she always did when confronted with a problem, and read every form, document, or book she could get her hands on relating to the matter...The various redundancies and inefficiencies contained within those pages numbed her mind to near insensibility, a first when it came to anything to do with reading. Orzel had since lost count of how many hours she'd spent filling out three page forms to get the six page forms to get twelve page forms, each of which then had to be signed, notarized, and submitted in triplicate to three different agencies that all more or less did the same thing, and reported to the exact same people.

The result of it all was the successful founding of Orzel's own private company, which she'd dubbed 'Basilisk Defense Technologies', after the powerful cannons once employed by the Imperial Armada for shore bombardment. It'd been a toss up between that and 'Watchtower Defense Solutions', but considering that at present her workshop was her tower, the latter was a tad too on the nose for her liking. The property she'd sought out afterwards hadn't taken all that long to find, though Mother wasn't entirely pleased with the location. Ultimately Orzel settled on the acquisition of 'Prado Dorado Army Air Base and Arsenal', some twenty miles west of Ponyville.

For five years it'd been abandoned, due to mix of budgetary issues and local protestations over concerns for the nearby wildlife. It had all the facilities she'd need to build and test her various prototypes, but the main point she'd made the purchase was the price... It would prove too costly for the Army Air Corps to demolish the buildings and tear up the runway on site, and no one wanted to take it on as a civil airport. The longer the base sat there, the more they Equestrian military had to pay to keep the place secure against looters or vandals. So, it was with a great deal of enthusiasm that they agreed to the price Basilisk Defense Technologies offered them, forty-five thousand bits. Their asking price had initially been sixty, which gave some indication as to just how much they wanted to get rid of the place. The deal would be closed in a few days, after which there would still a lot of details that needed sorting out. At least Orzel was making progress.

That brought her thoughts to the cherries on top of the whole heaping stress sundae. At least they were cherries she'd added herself. Two new personal projects, both of which she decided her Mother needn't know about quite yet. The first was sure to bring about some sort of heated discussion. She'd dubbed it 'Operation Firewatch', a real-world simulation of a series of 'Nightmare Scenarios' that would test in exacting detail the true preparedness of Equestria's government to respond to a major catastrophe. If Equestria's existing infrastructure failed to live up to the task, which Orzel suspected it likely would, Operation Firewatch outlined a series of programs that would likely fix that problem. Not the least of which would be the creation of a new 'Civil Defense Agency', which would be built from the ground up as a model of efficiency and speed.

The second project, that which was least likely to cause an uproar, would considerably expand Orzel's horizons in the field enchanting and the world in general... Literally, in the case of the latter. It was upon this project that the Princess worked now. Unlike most of her previous forays into her beloved field, this project in particular had the added pressure of a fast approaching deadline. Judging by the recently installed clock on the Enchantitarium's wall, she had less than thirty minutes to complete her task, change into something more comfortable, gather her things, and meet up with her Mother in the castle courtyard. It was Nightmare Night, after all, and Luna planned on surprising the people of Ponyville with a visit... Orzel, meanwhile, would be going to visit Spike. More incentive for her to work at an increased pace.

Thankfully she was more or less finished with the nitty-gritty details, though she would've liked to have had more time to test the finished product as a whole. At first glance it might've looked like a normal old broom, and prior to Orzel getting her hands on it, that's exactly what it was. Its dark wooden surface had remained more or less unchanged since the Princess's acquisition, the only difference being that the gnarled surface was filled with runes that coiled and spiraled around its exterior.

The already completed runes flickered every now and then, with vibrant emerald flashes that displayed only a faint hint of cerulean. Of the many other 'changes' she'd noted of late, the coloration of her eyes, and by extension magic, was hardly the most noticeable. The onyx colored headscarf she wore now not only represented her faith in Lexicos, it also served the purpose of covering up a rather unsightly and embarrassing emergence, the growth of a pair of black fluted horns just above and behind her ears. They were short, and curled not unlike those of a mountain goat. She'd also noticed that her muscle definition had increased substantially...

The other changes Orzel could deal with, but that and the horns...? Every day she found she looked more like the 'Future Her' of her visions, and while that didn't scare her, it didn't do her any favors in terms of self-esteem. She was short, musclebound, with skin marred by occasional splotches of metallic scales, and sported pair of razor sharp fangs... Now add horns jutting off the side of her head... It always felt like there was always some sort of freak staring back at her, whenever she happened to look at herself in the mirror. Her family told her it was nothing to worry about, that her change in appearance was yet another part of growing up...

Thankfully the changes were easy enough to hide. Compared to most Equestrians she'd always been a conservative dresser, and the horns weren't that noticeable beneath her headscarf... Yet... Odds were that she'd soon need to start filing them down if she was going to maintain any illusion of normalcy. Here in the Enchantatarium there were no mirrors, nothing to distract her mind from the task at hand, save for her mind itself. If nothing else, she could take solace in the work that she was doing, and all the various notations and discoveries she'd made along the way.

Sweat beaded on the Princess's forehead, her tongue just barely emerging between her lips as her focus remained solely on the completion of this, the final string of runes. Her hands were completely steady, her breathing slow and calm, and the resultant runes reflected as much. Each symbol that took shape was virtually flawless in both size and rendition, far more professionally executed than some of her older work. Midnight observed the ongoing work from the pocket of Orzel's lab coat, the fuzzy little mouse's attention just as narrowed and focused as that of her dragon companion.

Each rune was rapidly absorbed deep into the wooden surface, ensuring it would be strong and secure when all was said and done. This was courtesy of the enchanting medium Orzel had chosen, a blend of her own devise. It was something she'd dubbed 'Wzbogacony Krystaliczny Destylat', or 'Enriched Crystalline Distillate' in Equestrian... More simply labeled as 'WKD'.

Developing it had been the culmination of all her studies into Enchanting thus-far, and her first true attempt at approaching Enchanting as a science, with each step along the way carefully notated and cataloged for later review. The method of manufacturing WKD consisted of combining fiffty-five percent Alicornium with twenty percent Arcanium, the resultant mixture was then dissolved in ethanol. Once blended to homogenization, the Princess would then boil the ethanol away, leaving a faintly glowing residue. This was then ground into as fine a dust as was physically possible with the tools Orzel had at her disposal. The powder was then combined with fifteen percent 'Stabilized' Enchantium and five percent 'Stabilized' Incandessium.

The latter two were were byproducts of the processes used to refine Alicornium and Arcanium respectively. As a result, they were generally considered 'Low-Grade Mediums', primarily due to their high porosity and remarkable capacity for capturing moisture, which in turn could quickly degrade their bond with the enchanted object. Orzel's experiments revealed that steadily heating the two low-grade mediums together in a ceramic crucible not only removed any moisture they might've absorbed from the air, it also rendered them non-porous, thus rendering them 'Stabilized'. The resultant mixture, which the Princess had dubbed 'Sokolite' in her notes, was endowed with a twenty-fold increase in Bond Potency, which would make it one of the most powerful binding agents in the Enchanting field.

To achieve this effect the crucible had to maintain a temperature of no less than five-hundred-eighty Kelvin, but no more than seven-hundred Kelvin, for no less than three hours, but no more than five. Moreover, anything above seven-hundred-ten Kelvin, even a few minutes, would render the entire batch of Sokolite dangerously unstable. A fact Orzel had learned the hard way when she'd accidentally spilled a few unstable granules on the floor. The blinding flash of light and deafening 'Bang!' that followed, not unlike that of a gunshot, nearly sent every guard in the Castle into a tizzy. Of course, they all calmed down after Orzel explained what'd happened.

She'd gotten a talking-to from Mother about warning people before conducting experiments, though even Luna admitted there was no way Orzel could've known anything like that would've happened. Incandessium and Enchantium were classed as 'Low-Grade Mediums', after all. Overall she'd found the experience to be remarkably gratifying, all things considered. She'd filled at least half a dozen new notebooks, and in the end was better informed of her craft than she was at the start. Even if her experiments had failed, she would've counted the new insights she'd achieved as a resounding success.

The Princess swiftly shook her head, she was becoming distracted again. When fully combined, her WKD formula was great for making sure an object would maintain its level of enchantment indefinitely, but the margin for error correction averaged less than three seconds. Each stroke of the stylus had to be perfect and precise the first time, every time, especially now as she neared the final runes... It'd taken some tweaking of her knowledge on animation enchantments, as well as an extensive look at one of the 'flying chariots' occasionally employed by the Crown, but as with the development of WKD, the results were bound to be astounding.

Her reason for doing all this, aside from the costume she'd opted to wear to the Nightmare Night festivities in Ponyville, was to comply with her Mother's wishes. As Orzel was purchasing a workshop situated some forty miles away from Canterlot, she'd also started examining means by which to reach said workshop. Learning of this, Mother had ruled that Orzel couldn't own or operate an automobile or motorcycle until she was eighteen... Seeing as the workshop had a functional airstrip, Orzel had then approached the Army Air Corps about possibly purchasing a surplus Manticore biplane, with the aim to acquire a pilot's license upon her next birthday. Luna predictably put the kibosh on that plan as well...

Thus was born a need for mode of personal transportation that not only didn't pose a considerable risk, but didn't rely on an internal combustion engine. At first, the answer seemed obvious, a bicycle, but bicycles were too slow to be of use over such a great distance... More importantly, as Orzel had discovered with further embarrassment, most bicycles couldn't stand up under the weight of even a small dragon, as she was more commonly referring to herself. That wasn't to say that she was trapped at the Castle, she could request an automobile to take her wherever she wanted, or take a train, but... That was also slow, and would require her to interact with a larger number of people...

She'd therefore decided on drawing inspiration from Equestrian myth, which wasn't all that different from Szafirian in some instances. Equestrian witches were depicted as riding brooms, while those of the Szafirian persuasion rode about in gigantic 'mortars', or in houses on giant bird legs. Funnily enough, acquiring a broom was far easier than a giant mortar or avian-house hybrid. In this instance, the broom was going to be a lot more than a mere cleaning implement. Orzel made sure to include more than a few safety features, mostly in anticipation of placating Mother. There were also plenty of other features she'd added for the sake of comfort, or just to see if she could... In truth, she might've gone a tad overboard.

The girl briefly looked up at the clock. Fifteen minutes to go. Thankfully she was just applying the final rune, from there it'd be a simple matter of finalizing the bonds of all her runes and imbuing the broom with enough magic to self-sustain its enchantments. With eminent care, the stylus glided across the broomstick's surface, leaving a trail of faintly glowing WKD in its wake. The rune took hold with characteristic speed, carving itself deeply into the wood... Exhaling a sigh of relief, the Princess quickly set to tidying up her workspace, ensuring that the surface of the great enchanting table was clear of any possible contamination.

"Okay..." Orzel mumbled to herself in Szafirian, tucking her hands into the pockets of her lab coat and pacing to the large security door she'd recently had installed in the Enchantatarium. It, and a series of newly installed switches, were part of her bid to create a safer 'quasi-laboratory' environment. Just in case anything got out of hand, not that Orzel thought it would. The Princess pushed the door shut, then turned the locking mechanism until the door hissed, indicating the room was now hermetically sealed. Flicking one of the switches beside the door, labeled 'Intercom', Orzel cleared her throat. "As per the request regarding warnings when experiments are underway, please be aware that an enchantment finalization will take place in the Enchantatarium in the next five minutes. Thank you." With that she flicked the switch again.

"Now, have you anything further to suggest before we begin? Have I missed anything?" Orzel returned to her native tongue, addressing Midnight. Taking a pair of tinted safety goggles from a nearby drawer, the Princess approached the table with appraising eyes. Midnight scampered out of her lab coat pocket, hopping onto the smooth stony surface and sniffing around the broom. The familiar nodded when she appeared satisfied that all was well, so Orzel allowed the mouse to scamper up her arm and perch on her shoulder. Seating the goggles over her spectacles, the Princess took a deep breath and looked down upon her creation with remarkably cold intensity.

Moonlight streamed down from the great skylight above, helping to illuminate the waiting broom and the domed chamber beneath. Yet another reason she needed to complete her work tonight... According to Luna, the gravitational pull of the Moon had an influence on the Arcane Barrier. That, added with the Enchantitarium's location above one of the most powerful intersections of ley lines in Equestria, and a considerably sized vein of untapped Alicornium crystals, would further amplify how much magic Orzel would be able to call upon. It would all contribute to making this perhaps the most powerful enchantment Orzel had attempted thus far... All too necessary considering the level of power she calculated she'd need to infuse the broom with to be truly 'safe'. Atmospheric and gravitational conditions wouldn't be this optimal again for another two years at least.

Typically, this was the point where she would get some vague instinct as to what the proper rhyming incantation might be, usually this would be followed by a need to bust out a dictionary or thesaurus to better craft the spell's structure, but... Orzel wanted to try something different tonight... She'd come to learn that the language she used was just as important a component of the spell as her words. Generally, the older the language, the stronger its influences on the Arcane, though she'd yet as to figure out the cause as to why. Tonight she didn't feel a need to constrain herself to some clunky rhyming incantation. The rhyme was a means to add support to the spell, making it much easier to cast, but it also meant the spell might be weaker... In order to cast a spell without doing so, Orzel's focus had to become absolute. Summoning the first wisps of magic to her mind, the Princess breathed deeply.

"Powers of the Moon and Stars, hear my voice and obey!" She loudly proclaimed in Szafirian, her voice taking on a distinctly two-toned sound. Straightening to her full height, Orzel stretched her arms out to either side. She could afford no sign of weakness now, the rest of her magic would not come unless she was in complete control. So Orzel put every worry, uncertainty, and insecurity out of her mind... Every session of meditation, every prayer service, and all the relaxation techniques she'd learned from Doctor Scratch, culminated in one glorious moment of mental serenity. "I am Crown-Princess Orzel! Heir to the Obsidian Throne! Heir to the legacy of the Thestral Empire! Future Warden of Dreams and, whom shall be Regent of the Night itself! At my command, the forces of the cosmos shall bend to my will!"

Orzel's dominance over her own mind asserted her will like a conquering army, intent on bending the very powers of the universe to her vision. So came forth the coiling emerald vines of energy, lancing towards the waiting broom and the runes so carefully scribed there upon. If this was to work, if she was to make demands of the forces of the very elements of universe itself, her words would need to be spoken with the absolute authority and power of a monarch...

"To the furthest reaches of creation, let my word be absolute! Let my power take hold within this construct, that it might better serve my interests!" The room was flooded with the increasingly brilliant emerald glow, not only from the swirling vortices of magic, but from behind the tinted lenses of Orzel's goggles as well. Every surface was soon bathed in that most potent glow, punctuated by long black shadows that joined the ribbons of eerie verdant illumination... Gusts of wind followed shortly thereafter, each heavy blow carrying with it the tingling sensation of magic.

"Invigorated by my might, I am she who commands you! Take your new form, and arise into my service!" The magic was pouring forth from her mouth and nose, the girl's voice ringing out with an unyielding will of steel that shook the very air. When next she spoke, it was with all the calamitous thunder of an artillery barrage. "I will not be denied!"

All at once, the streams of energy coalesced around the broom, weaving themselves together into one massive blinding ball of light. So intense was the strength of illumination that a one guard would later recount how a great chartreuse beam stabbed forth from the enchantarium's skylight, striking nearly a mile upwards into cloudless night sky, balefully defiant of the darkness. This too cast the surrounding area in the unsettling emerald glow.

Meanwhile, within the Enchantatarium, a sudden pulse of energy rippled throughout the chamber, forceful enough that the very ground trembled underfoot. Countless bottles and containers vibrated on their shelves, though thankfully nothing took the opportunity to fall over. For a few moments Orzel could see nothing but the emerald light that could only come about through her magic, a pulsating conflagration that blazed brighter than a thousand suns...

Her labor, her craft, now given strength by her decree... It was a truly awesome sight, to see her will carried out without hesitation or question. No forms, no complaints, no questions. The sensation of power Orzel felt in that moment was intoxicating beyond measure. This must've been what Seeker Topaz meant, when he said that she would soon experience her true dragon strength.

Once more, a voice in her mind screamed out that what she felt was wrong, that she should've been more afraid of herself, but... It was so very far away, and quiet... Insignificant. In that instant, all her insecurities over how her appearance had changed seemed miniscule... What cause for worry over physical defects could ever hope to supplant such raw strength. For however many times she'd assured herself she was in control, none could come close to that moment... None, save for those few brief moments where she'd been on the verge of Elemental Transformation. Free of the boiling rage, there was nothing but euphoria. Was this how dragons were supposed to feel all the time? Unfortunately, she had little time to contemplate the question any further.

Just like that, the spell was cast and the blinding light winked into nothingness, plunging the entire chamber almost entirely into darkness. Within a matter of moments, the carefully maintained focus of tranquility was broken, replaced by a splitting headache and a dizzying sensation of vertigo... The Princess found herself leaning heavily on the table, legs quaking, heart pounding thunderously in her ears. In a matter of moments her skin was glistening with sweat, and with trembling fingers she haphazardly removed her goggles, tossing them onto the table and blinking the spots from her eyes. Eventually the spots vanished and her vision returned more or less to normal... Lingering sparkles of emerald light twinkled in and out of existence, lazily floating about like countless of tiny fireflies. She watched them for a time, then looked at the clock on the wall... Less than ten minutes.

"Just need to... Sit down for a moment..." Orzel mumbled, supporting herself on the table as she grabbed a nearby stool and pulled it closer. It became far easier to focus once she was off her feet, and in her summation that meant she still had to ensure her work was successful. All that expended energy would be wasted if the enchantments hadn't bound themselves properly. Not wasting any further time, the Princess examined the broom with renewed purpose.

Visibly it appeared entirely different, nothing like its previous worn out self... The wood was a strikingly deep shade of black, its surface polished to a glossy finish, the bristles affixed by tightly bound bronze rings. The broomstick curved upwards like the blade of a sabre, sharply tapering into an aggressive point. Running her fingers along their surface, Orzel found that the runes appeared to have been filled in by a black obsidian-like material, rendering the broomstick almost perfectly smooth. Situated at the 'nose' was a raised polished bronze 'badge', depicting a pair of cannons crossed over one another. Occasionally the runes would pulse with more of that vibrant emerald energy, but this effect rapidly deteriorated as time went on.

The broomstick's most prominent change, however, was the fact that it currently hovered approximately two feet off the table. Orzel quietly whistled, and the broom lunged towards her. She plucked the broom from the air as it moved, finding that in her hand it felt more or less exactly as one might expect... Perhaps it was a little heavier. It was, as far as she could tell, exactly what she'd pictured in her mind when casting the spell. Already her headache was subsiding, as were the sweats and vertigo... The Princess held the broom horizontally at about waist height, then let go. To her increasing satisfaction, it remained floating more or less exactly where she let it go...

"Interesting..." Orzel hummed whilst straightening her lab coat... So far it seemed her enchantments were holding up, but there was only one way to be sure. "Now, to test the handling." With a good deal of effort, the Princess stood on wobbly legs. After a few moments gathering her strength, she swung her leg up and over the broomstick, mounting it as one might mount a motorcycle. She actually found the 'seat' to be rather comfortable, no doubt aided by some of her other enchantments, and the broom overall certainly felt sturdy enough.

Tentatively Orzel lifted her feet from the floor, still the broom remained airborne, more than easily supporting her weight. She thought about commanding it to move forwards, and without even saying a word the broom glided slowly ahead. The same thing happened when she wanted it to go in reverse, then side to side. That was good, but the real test emerged when she tested the broom's abilities for roll, pitch, and yaw. It responded rapidly to each command, which briefly renewed her sense of vertigo, and nearly caused her to vomit. Despite that last bit, however, it seemed all the basic mental flight controls functioned worked as she'd imagined they would.

"Most satisfactory." Though her voice maintained its typical monotone, to say Orzel was anything less than ecstatic was to do that word a grave disservice. Typically she would've called it done there, but there was one last thing she needed to do before she could call her creation finished.

All of her earlier projects had either been undertaken out of necessity or as a means of furthering her knowledge of the craft... While this one was also a necessity, it was the first time Orzel had allowed her creativity to 'run the show' when it came to the final product. So it was only fitting that this latest creation of hers be given a name... After a few moments of careful consideration, she settled on the moniker 'Piorun', in honor of her father's ship. It was about that time that Midnight abruptly began squeaking, pointing with her tiny forelegs towards the clock.

"Right, of course..." Orzel mumbled whilst rubbing at her forehead, her faculties were returning to fuller clarity with every passing second. Despite the headache and lingering dizziness, she had no intention of missing her trip to Ponyville that night. Though, as she looked upon her simple clothing and lab coat, it was hard to imagine she'd make it in time. Her current attire would hardly do for tonight's festivities, and usually it took her a good while to make it to her tower. Then again, usually she didn't have 'Piorun'. It would serve as a decent test of the controls... "Well, let us be off." With that, the Princess picked the mouse off the table and tucked the insistent rodent into her jacket's breast pocket.

Riding upon Piorun proved to be surprisingly intuitive, and Orzel found little issue in navigating it over towards the door. Quickly she unsealed the chamber, opened the door, and zoomed out into the hallway. While her creation was theoretically capable of going much faster, at present Orzel was content to glide along at just above a sprinting pace. She did notice, to her slight disappointment, that Piorun was far from completely perfect... Specifically she noted a distinct trail of dull black fog left in its wake. It wasn't smoke per se, and it evaporated after about ten seconds... She'd intended it to be a trail of stardust, but her rush to finish things in time had led to her prioritizing the accuracy of the fundamental runes as opposed to the cosmetics... Better time management, in the future, would prove just as crucial as the work itself. Yet another lesson learned.

Undeterred, the Princess pressed on, gathering more speed along the way. Within a few moments she'd already reached the spiral staircase leading up to the castle proper, which the broom managed to negotiate with similar ease... Mentally, it felt just as easy as walking. Orzel passed several of the cleaning staff and guards, taking care not to run anyone over as she continued putting her Piorun through its paces. All those she passed stopped to stare at her, as if to ask themselves whether they were losing their minds or not.

Pleasingly, Orzel managed to accomplish the journey from the Enchantatarium to her tower in less than a quarter of the normal time, this time utilizing the interior hallway as opposed to venturing out into the Castle gardens. The heavy door unlocked itself and swung open just as she came upon it, courtesy of another of the many proverbial 'bells and whistles' she'd included in the nimble little cleaning implement... In retrospect, she might've gone a tad overboard in that department, considering some of the other features she'd managed. That didn't even include all the stuff she'd been forced to leave out on account of nearly running out of 'enchantable mass'... Next time she'd need to get something bigger.

Passing by her workbenches on the lower floor, Orzel ascended the steps of her tower at blazing speed, reaching her bed chamber in a matter of seconds. Bringing the broom to a stop proved to be a bit tricky... It stopped exactly when she told it to, but doing so at her current pace nearly sent the Princess toppling forward, a fate mitigated only by one of the safety enchantments. Perhaps she'd made the 'brakes' a bit too... Grippy. Nothing she wouldn't get used to with practice.

With that, Orzel dismounted Piorun, rolling her shoulders and rubbing at her forehead. By now the headache was fading to a dull throbbing sensation, while the vertigo, dizziness, and sweating had since stopped completely. She still felt a tad wobbly on her feet, but that was it... Without pausing to consider the toll casting such a powerful spell had taken any further, the Princess quickly took off her lab coat, and prepared to change out of her daily clothes in favor of something a bit more... Well, she wasn't exactly sure.

The sense of urgency Orzel felt up to that point evaporated, replaced by a rapid onset of anxiety. She'd already chosen her outfit for the night a few days ago. Nightmare Night was fairly simple to plan for, in theory. In practice she found herself suddenly paralyzed by the worst case of the jitters she'd ever had. In just a few short minutes, she and her Mother would depart the Castle for the town of Ponyville, and once there...? Well, Orzel was going to meet Spike again... It was supposed to be a 'just friends' thing, but... She'd spoken and written to Spike several times since that first night she called, and though at times Orzel was worried she might be making a mistake, or saying too much, she nonetheless carried on.

She'd read the book he recommended, the idea of soldiers wearing camouflage wasn't entirely unheard of, it'd just never been implemented on a wide scale... Already she was thinking of ways she might incorporate such information into her own work, the 'Ballistic Cuirass' in particular. The Princess wasn't exactly an expert with a needle and thread, but she was a lot better at it than most... Being virtually blind had forced her to become exceptionally adept at doing so by 'feel', and so it was even easier now with the aid of sight.

Sewing was one of the many skills Sokol taught her throughout her old life, much like cooking, cleaning, and other staples of home life. All would've been expected for a typical 'Lady of the House' to know in Cesarski. Considering that was the only way she would've maintained her status as a member of the Warrior Caste, they were absolutely vital for someone deemed 'defective' like her.

It was the only time Orzel recalled actually ever being afraid of Sokol... The intensity with which her Mother spoke, how harsh she'd been about getting the details right, because the alternative was at best a life condemned to begging on Cesarski's cruel streets, and at worst...? Orzel didn't want to think about it. That memory didn't really help her with the sense of nervousness she felt now, especially at the thought of meeting Spike, this time in an even less formal setting than the Grand Galloping Gala.

"Enough!" Orzel suddenly growled at her spiraling thoughts, straightening her posture. It didn't help all that much. Though she wanted to call upon her earlier confidence when she'd cast her spell, her mind was just too 'fuzzy' at the moment to even come close to summoning such force of will again. More over, enchanting and socializing were two entirely separate fields. When it came to her knowledge of the former, it had swelled beyond the encyclopedic, and still it grew with every passing day... When it came to the latter...? Well, she was hopelessly outclassed by virtually everyone she knew. "It is just like talking with those people at Aunt Celestia's fundraiser, only this time I need not pretend to be happy to see him." She assured herself, even though that was decidedly not the limit of the story.

Throughout their letters and conversations, she'd found herself more intrigued by Spike's recent views... He'd challenged her perceptions of Equestria, even offered rebuttals... Specifically, that she was more likely ostracized on political grounds as opposed to her simply being a Dragon. More importantly, he was neither a Noble nor a Black Crown... Evidently he had little interest in the politics of either party, and so long as Equestria prospered and he was left alone, he cared little for the causes of his more vocal peers. The only cause he took any interest in was the safety and well being of those who couldn't help themselves...

Complicating matters was the fact that Spike now regularly referred to Orzel as 'My Lady', both by telephone and in his letters. While that was well and good in Equestria, it held a far different, and frankly literal, connotation among Imperial society. So why then had the Princess said it was okay? She didn't really know... Perhaps it was just a moment of weakness, part of her foolish hope that their growing friendship might become something more. Whatever the reason, it was too late to put the genie back in the bottle.

With those worries firmly in mind, Orzel set to getting into her witch costume. She'd decided to go as historically accurate as possible, the creation of which served as decent practice to shake the cobwebs off of her sewing skills. It wasn't perfect by any means, and more than once she'd needed to ask her Mother for help. Aunt Celestia said that the imperfections 'gave it character', which Orzel supposed she could live with. The looseness of the black fabric helped to conceal Orzel's increasingly defined muscles, the long sleeves and tight collar likewise adding to that effect. The only thing that Orzel wasn't happy about was the skirt, which was just a hair too short for her liking, only barely covering her ankles...

Sure, Equestria was the land of liberated fashion norms, but some 'Old World' sensibilities were harder to shake than others. The hat was by far her favorite part of the entire thing, the floppy brim and conical pointed top further adding to her headscarf's ability to conceal her horns. Looking at herself in the mirror, the Princess straightened the hat, then put her hands on her hips... For the most part she actually felt she looked rather pretty, at least until she got up to her fangs.

Deciding that she wanted to look her best when meeting Spike, she grabbed a crimson scarf from the wardrobe and used it to cover her lower face. She also grabbed a pair of 'pilots goggles', which she'd acquired in anticipation of finishing Piorun. These she pulled on over her head, seating them above her spectacles. From there she walked to her desk, grabbing a olive drab messenger satchel she'd left resting beside a neatly ordered row of model paints. The satchel was characteristically heavy, as it contained several books. Furthermore, a metallic rattling sound emanated from within whenever Orzel jostled it around.

A look at the ticking clock indicated there was less than three minutes until she'd be late, odds were Mother was already wondering where she was. So with her costume settled and her satchel secured, Orzel hopped back onto Piorun and took off down the tower steps. There were less obstacles between her and the front courtyard if she went outside, so this time Orzel made her exit through the battlement, out into the Castle gardens. The guards stationed beside the door both emitted audible yelps of surprise, but that was all of their reaction Orzel managed to hear before she took to the skies.

No longer constrained to the Castle hallways or the concern of running someone over, Orzel was free to see just how fast Piorun could go. It was a miracle she didn't lose her hat with the amount of wind rushing past her, cold enough to nearly take her breath away. Her costume was thankfully made of several layers of wool, which at least spared the majority of her body from the frigid cold... It couldn't have been more than forty degrees.

With startling agility the broom carried her up and around the towering spires of Canterlot Castle, over its glittering gold-plated rooftops and wide-open skylights. Illuminated as it always was, the Castle looked remarkably different from above... That alone would've been enough to make the whole project worthwhile, but there was yet more to see. The vast metropolis of Canterlot, with its brightly lit skyscrapers and brilliant neon signage, was enough to give the Princess pause... For thirty seconds she lingered more than a thousand feet up, heart pounding with excitement, an unexpectedly broad grin spreading beneath her scarf. Were she not on a deadline, she might very well have stayed there for a good while...

Still, she was on a deadline, and so Orzel put Piorun into a rapid descent towards the Castle's main courtyard. There she could see a waiting carriage, hitched to a pair of dark horses. It was done up in the typical Gothic style Mother preferred, unlike the bright and often gaudy gold-plated carriages utilized by Aunt Celestia. Drawing closer to the ground, Orzel slowed the broom down, this time more gradually than had been the case on her first attempt. The result was her swiftly, but not too swiftly, coming in to hover more or less next to the carriage, much to the apparent surprise of the horses, a pair of Lunar Marines, and two familiar faces... Mother, of course, and Piercing Gaze... Oh joy...

The way Luna remembered the first 'Nightmare Night' so many centuries ago, snow had just started falling when first she stepped forth onto the balcony of the Castle of the Two Sisters. A would-be Queen, greeted by the echoing patriotic shouts of tens of thousands of loyal Thestral warriors, all of whom waiting to hear her speak. There she'd stood, fueled by the rage and anguish of countless injuries she'd suffered for so long in silence, certain that her's was the only vision under which Equestria, nay, the world, should be ruled. The speech she'd given, passionate and stirring, spurring her subjects down a path of bloody civil war...

She'd no idea that her attempted coup would ignite a conflict that would span the next decade. Nor could she have foreseen that her inevitable defeat would come at a cost of two million lives, or that said defeat would see one of the largest Empires in the world reduced to little more than a historical footnote. These were the memories that Luna ruminated on now as she made her way through the halls of Canterlot Castle, adorned fittingly in a black hooded cloak of mourning, not unlike that worn by the Grim Reaper. For her, the memories of that first 'Nightmare Night' were anything but jovial, especially as she recalled all those young men and women she'd led in countless battles, most of which died fruitless deaths. Luna had never been able to understand just how Nightmare Night became as widely celebrated as it was...

It was only at Celestia's urging that Luna was taking an unannounced trip to Ponyville, the site of her most recent defeat, arguably the 'final battle' of the Nightmare War. Luna still contended that there were some things that she couldn't be forgiven for, but Celestia of course countered that a thousand years consigned to solitude on a soundless, heatless, crater-strewn, gray barren space rock was penance enough. She insisted on forgiving her sister, no matter how much the guilt haunted Luna's dreams, and Luna couldn't help but love Celestia all the more for that. Luna need only look to the man walking beside her to realize just how important forgiveness was, because in her eyes all had been forgiven when it came to Piercing Gaze.

Piercing wouldn't be accompanying her and her daughter tonight, for a number of reasons... Firstly, he didn't particularly care for the holiday. Seeing as he'd been a stark naked raving lunatic when last they'd met, meeting with the Elements of Harmony again was also likely to prove awkward for all involved. Chief among his reasons for remaining in Canterlot, however, was the fact that Director Orcus had 'matters' to discuss with him. Luna didn't know what he meant, aside from the tear in the Arcane Barrier. She supposed she'd learn from Piercing when she returned and talk to him...

Looking over at Piercing, hands tucked into the pockets of his peacoat, Luna could see that distant glint in his eyes. Her suitor was off in his head somewhere, probably pondering the great mysteries of life, or the setting of some fantastical story he'd yet to write. Often times Luna wished she could become so lost as he did, to so easily walk the verdant hills of a paradise in her waking mind...

"As per the request regarding warnings when experiments are underway, please be aware that an enchantment finalization will take place in the Enchantatarium in the next five minutes. Thank you." Orzel's voice suddenly crackled over the Castle's intercom, drawing Luna from her thoughts of the past, on to the concerns of the present. Of all the many worries she'd entertained that day, none were quite so numerous as those that drew upon her concern for the precious precocious Princess Orzel...

Tonight she would accompany Luna to Ponyville, not for the sake of meeting with the public in general, but to spend time with one particular group of people. Spike and his 'gaming group', where together she would join them in playing something called Ogres and Oubliettes. Luna was vaguely familiar with the game, but regardless of that fact, it'd led to another case of her being unsure of how to feel. Certainly she was happy to see her daughter engaging with her peers, but... There had been some shameful part of Luna, an exceedingly small part, that thought such a day might never come. Now it was here, and Orzel was once again striking out on her own.

To Luna, the two years until Orzel became an adult were fast feeling as fleeting as a mere handful of seconds. Then she'd be free to go off out into the world on her own... Odds were she'd rush to college, and that'd mean long periods where Luna wouldn't be able to take part in her daughter's life. The overwhelming majority of the woman's heart knew it'd be for the best, that Orzel couldn't stay sheltered behind the Castle walls forever, but there were so many different obstacles she might face then, obstacles Luna likely couldn't do anything about...

For all those future worries, there were just as many in the present... Her daughter's foundership of a private company, particularly the ominous name she'd bestowed upon it. 'Basilisk Defense Technologies', or just Basilisk for short, was a decisively un-equestrian name. Granted, Orzel wasn't one for following Equestrian naming conventions, but the fact that she'd gone out of her way to name it after a weapon told Luna that sooner or later, body armor and other equipment wouldn't be the only thing her daughter dreamt up... She still had trouble imagining her daughter actively creating something that's purpose was to take lives, though that did little to keep her from contemplating the accidents that could happen as a result...

Orzel's subsequent purchase of her own personal air base and arsenal was another issue entirely, especially considering said air base's location. Luna was hoping the deal would fall through before the closing date, or that Orzel would realize commuting over such a vast distance wasn't worth it when there were plenty of other places closer to home... Realistically Luna was all too aware that if Orzel wanted to get something done, odds were she'd find a way of making it happen, regardless of whether or not the end goal was actually a good idea. Not that getting a workshop wasn't a good idea, just... Luna would've preferred it at least be in the same county as Canterlot.

These thoughts were interrupted by Orzel's voice booming in the vague direction of the Castle gardens. Tonight Luna could physically feel the vibrations of the Arcane Barrier, whatever spell Orzel was casting, it was magic of a considerably high caliber... The Castle staff were used to such disturbances by now, but there had been occasional complaints from apartments a as a few blocks away. Then there were the generally outrageous business and property tax rates that came with living in Equestria's capital.

That didn't even include the explosive incident with the girl's development of 'Sokolite', something Luna would've put a stop to were it not for Orzel's extensive note taking prior to the accident... There was a good chance Enchantium and Incandessium would find themselves reclassified from 'Low-Grade Mediums' as a result, which would hopefully make Equestria safer in the long run. Really, how many other 'perfectly safe' arcane products weren't so perfectly safe after all? Perhaps it would be up to Orzel to really find out...

So long as Orzel kept to the conditions of the deal, Luna supposed her daughter was free to waste as much time as she wanted commuting back and forth. Actually, as Luna thought about it from that perspective, it wasn't as bad as she thought. Any time Orzel spent going back and forth from the workshop was time that couldn't be spent tinkering with dangerous contraptions or otherwise putting herself in harms way. She still didn't like the idea of Orzel traveling so far away, but she could understand the appeal of seclusion.

The girl's thunderous voice grew even louder, until Luna felt the ground tremble beneath her feet, bringing both her and Piercing to an abrupt halt. There was powerful magic, and then there was powerful magic... The vibrations in the Arcane Barrier were far more pronounced, more so than typically might've been possible given Orzel's skill level... Luna then recalled a conversation she'd had with her daughter about the phases of the moon, and how the effects of celestial bodies could influence the flow of magic.

"Clever girl..." Luna mumbled, and while she was impressed at the attempt to maximize spell power, she nonetheless worried about how much magic her daughter might be using. While Orzel's reserves of magic were theoretically as boundless as Luna's own, accessing those reserves was like exercising a muscle. Pushing too hard too quickly could be hazardous enough to a Spell-Caster's health to require hospitalization... Luna looked to piercing, to gauge his reaction to it all. A wizard of his ability, not to mention his knowledge of Kwarczkie physiology, would tell her if something was wrong. Thankfully the woman was relieved to see that his primary emotion in that instant was one of felicitous intrigue.

"She's a Drake, Lu. She's built differently, I wouldn't worry..." He shrugged simply, as if reading the woman's mind. The man had an uncanny ability for understatement. He'd probably deduced everything she'd just thought of, or at least had a general idea of it. "Alright, out with it... What's going on in that big beautiful head of yours?" Luna couldn't suppress a smile as the two resumed their walk to the Castle courtyard. Judging by the significantly modern decorations of this particular hallway, they weren't far from the front entrance. "Let me guess..." The man theatrically closed his eyes and held his hands up, pantomiming a spell casting technique. "You're... Worried about something!"

"My my... That is exactly right. How do you do it?" The woman's voice was dripping with sarcasm, nonetheless she was unable to keep from feeling a little better... Just a smidgeon. "She is getting stronger..." The woman nodded her head towards the gardens, then allowed Piercing to take his hand into hers. "I know she is working to get out more now, but... Do you think she is... What is the term? 'Burning the candle at both ends'?" The man realistically couldn't answer, Luna knew that, and he responded with a simple shrug of his shoulders. "It feels as if she is obsessing over everything, I cannot help a worry she is at risk of burning herself out... It is not as if she needs to prove herself to me, I thought she would have realized that by now..."

"I think it's safe to say I know a great deal about that last bit." Piercing's voice carried a hint of wistful irony, which did little to dismiss Luna's lingering question. "I don't think she's trying to prove herself to you... I think she wants to prove herself to the world. When I was her age I was absolutely certain of my abilities, but my instructors weren't... So I wanted to take on the world, to prove them wrong, to be the young man that, when he walked down the street, people admired and respected. More than that, I wanted the world to behold the brilliance that was me!" Piercing trailed off in a joking manner, only for his shoulders slump as he sighed.

"She briefly had that platform when she was running the country, but now there's little call for her to hold nightly court with the same frequency." The man continued, rolling his shoulders and puffing out his chest. "So, like any decent tinkerer, she must adapt. She must find a new platform to claim as her own. Whether that's in the field of politics of private industry is hard to say..." He shrugged, tucking his hands into his pockets. "Either way, given enough time and just a little leeway, I think she'll surprise us with the fruits of her labor, then she'll ease back and rest on her laurels." Luna pondered that for a few moments, glancing over her shoulder in the direction of the gardens.

"Resting on her laurels is not something that strikes me as a particularly 'Orzel' thing to do." Luna countered, pausing briefly. "Politics... Private industry... Armor and weapons... These are fields for adults, not children." She lamented, shaking her head as she returned her eyes forwards.

Luna recalled the conversation she'd held with Piercing on the first night she'd returned to Canterlot, the journey up the steps of Orzel's tower. He'd assured her that worrying over if she should've adopted Orzel was hardly worth the effort. Try as she might to convince herself that it was, with every new challenge her daughter insisted on undertaking, Luna still couldn't help but think that by giving Orzel the title of Crown Princess, she'd taken something from her as well... That most precious gift of all, which could never be recovered once it inevitably faded away. Childhood.

Another part of the woman knew that Orzel was hardly a child, even before the 'Fall of Cesarski'. The Empire had robbed her of that gift long before the girl had ever heard the word 'Equestria'. It'd been beaten out of her, not through force, but through threats and fear... Luna still recalled the flashes of Orzel's nightmares quite vividly. Whatever ephemeral remnant of childhood that might've remained, even following the death of Sokol, had since been thoroughly burned away... Jadedly cast aside in favor of cynicism.

Now, when Luna looked at her daughter, she saw an ever inquisitive mind, someone that wanted to change the world for the better, and that was good... Just as important, if not more so, was what Luna didn't see. In Equestria, Drakes were known for their boldness, their thirst for life. It was that aggressive pursuit of greater fortune and glory that often put them at odds with Equestria. That same desire for conquest and adventure was something that every Drake Luna had ever encountered proclaimed was what made life worth living.

Orzel certainly had no trouble taking bold action, but every day she was becoming... Colder, more distant. She didn't smile, nor did she laugh... She didn't listen to her opera records anymore, and the fleet of model ships that'd once expanded so rapidly had more or less slowed to a trickle. Whenever she spoke, her voice came across as monotonous and quiet. There was a fire burning deep down, the Luna knew that much. With every passing day it became difficult for even Luna to discern what her daughter's true feelings were on a given subject, if she even had feelings... Of course she had feelings, but it was what she was doing with those feelings that worried Luna. For that, Luna also blamed herself. She'd set the example of cold aloofness, and as with so many other things, Orzel had not only adopted it as her own, she excelled at it.

"For the common people of Equestria, perhaps, but you know as well as I do that Monarchs are not common people." Piercing countered sagely, bringing Luna back to the moment as he clasped his hands behind his back. "By nature, a Monarch must be exceptional, they must be the ideal to which the rest of the nation looks to for guidance, else that nation shall lose its way. A Monarch must inspire their subjects to greater feats than they otherwise might think themselves capable of. Sometimes through oration, and others... Through action." Luna looked at the man, jaw slightly slackened.

"That last bit was..." She started.

"From your coronation address, yes." Piercing completed the sentence readily. "I still say it's one of your better speeches. Then again, you did consult an exceptionally talented, and handsome, author beforehand." A cheeky smile spread across his face, his head cocking back ever so slightly. Luna shook her head with the faintest of chuckles, a ghost of a smile managing to crack through her stoney facade. "I'm more concerned with how she's going to handle having me around. Considering she seems to want nothing to do with me..." It was true, Orzel's distance when it came to Piercing had increased dramatically since the Global Series, and lately she'd only come to family dinner if Luna specifically requested her presence. "Then again, I'm sure she'll warm up to me once we get that workshop of hers up and running! If there's one thing she'll respect, it's a healthy worth ethic!".

"You are truly excited to work with her? It is not just because she will be teaching you a dead language?" Luna asked, Piercing held up his left hand and made a sort of fifty-fifty gesture.

"I admit, the chance of being the only one of my ancient peers to actually learn Kwarczkie from a native speaker is hard to pass up, but..." The man trailed off, then nodded with stout determination. "Yes, despite my trepidation about children in general, I'd say I'm excited. For numerous reasons... Mostly because I'm flat broke and she's paying me two Bits an hour. I don't know if it's much, but it's something!" Luna nearly burst out laughing at both Piercing's excitement and the mention of his salary.

"Actually, two Bits an hour is quite a lot. The national minimum wage is a quarter of that." She explained, matter-of-factly. Deciding to press him further on his comment, Luna raised another question. "Though I fail to see how you could possibly be 'broke'... Last I checked, you have transcended into an immortal being of pure chaos... Reformed of course. Could you not just snap your fingers and become a millionaire?"

Piercing shrugged as the two of them passed through the Castle's main entrance hall. It was darkened now, the various help desks and reception area dimly lit by desk lamps. A radio on the reception desk echoed faintly through the cavernous space, Mister Ocean Swells from the 'Andromeda Theater on the Air' was apparently presenting a rendition of 'The Clash of the Planets'. Meanwhile, a rather rotund pegasus in blue coveralls mopped the floor off to one side, his focus almost entirely on his work. He eventually spotted the two of them as they moved towards the front door, at which point he abruptly snapped to attention, gripping the mop as if it were a rifle, which resulted in droplets of dirty water cascading onto his boots. Luna merely nodded to the man, and just like that he went back to work.

"Sure, I could do just 'snap my fingers', but that hardly seems sporting to everyone else." Piercing agreed with a shrug, gesturing towards the janitor to emphasize his point about 'sport'. "Also, wouldn't I go to jail? I'm reliably informed that counterfeiting is a felony." Piercing pointed out with greatly exaggerated inflection, ever so faintly emphasized by his Trottingham accent. "The alternative is to take existing money from somewhere else, which is robbery. Also a felony." Luna couldn't help but chuckle as the man took mimicked holding onto a set of prison bars.

"I only just got out of the clink, I'm not goin' back in. Although...?" He stopped beside the castle's front door, grabbed the handle, and held it open... A wave of slightly chilly air washed over the two of them, allowing Luna to step into the night with the man not too far behind her. "I suppose I could snap my fingers and use my nigh-omnicience to take money from mobsters and other criminals...? It's not like they deserve to have it anyway, and they very well can't go to the police about it either." Piercing shrugged. "Meh, maybe that's an idea for when I'm bored of working for a living... For now, on top of a job at BDT, I suspect my prospects for gainful employment will greatly increase following my meeting with Orcus tonight."

"Indeed." Luna's tone implied that she would expect a report on the happenings, just in case Piercing didn't already understand that bit, or might think of acting contrarily. Together the two of them made their way out into the courtyard, overlooking the weathered stone steps to a waiting horse carriage parked below. Darkly painted, sporting sharp angles and spikes, it was more than appropriately themed for the coming festivities. Two Lunar Marines stood ready beside it, likewise attired for an evening of spooky shenanigans...

Much to Luna's expectation, and slight annoyance, Orzel was nowhere in sight. Regardless, the two of them descended the steps to the carriage, with Piercing reaching into his jacket pocket and withdrawing an tarnished old brass pocket watch. He'd secured it from the of the Castle's 'Lost and Found', it'd been sitting there for about a month, so he was fairly certain no one would come to claim it. Luna would've purchased him a new one, but Piercing insisted he wanted that one in particular, because 'it had character'... Luna could see the hands as Piercing flipped the lid open. Just two minutes and Orzel would be late... Of course, she also noted a small photograph of herself somehow affixed to the inside of the watch cover. Odds were he'd added that himself.

"It still amazes me that we have clocks that can fit in our pockets!" Piercing grinned enthusiastically, leaning forward and examining the watch. After a few moments he reached into his pocket and withdrew his glasses, which he insisted he only needed for reading small print. While it was indeed night time, the courtyard was bathed in the buzzing glow of streetlamps, and even looking at it from a distance Luna could see the digits clear enough. "You'd think they'd make the numbers easier to read." The woman bit her lip, nervously sucking air through her nose.

"Have you been having more trouble reading things lately?" Luna tried to hide the concern in her voice, of course that didn't help with Piercing, he was too good at reading her. The man closed the pocket watch and restored it to his jacket, then shrugged, offering a half smile.

"Just a little extra fuzziness, that's all. Nothing to worry about." He assured her, Luna crossed her arms across her chest as they arrived at the carriage. He then removed his glasses and tucked them back into his pocket. "But you're going to worry anyway..." The man deadpanned, watching the woman climb into the vehicle and take her seat. "Luna, I'm fine. It's nothing I'm not used to." Luna shook her head, sighing tensely while leaning back in her seat.

"Did it start getting worse before or after you were freed?" The woman asked pointedly, Piercing pursed his lips and looked at the paving stones. Not the response Luna was hoping for... "We still do not fully understand the long term effects of prolonged stone imprisonment, my love... If you are feeling unwell, even if it is minor, you must tell me." She was relieved to see him nod, rubbing awkwardly at the back of his neck.

"Okay... It started getting worse at the baseball game." The scholar admitted sheepishly, lifting his eyes to meet Luna's. "Other than that, I feel fine. I just have a little trouble reading different things sometimes." Luna reached out of the carriage, resting her hand on the man's shoulder. He of course clasped it in his own, squeezing it tightly. "Come on, Luna. It's not that bad."

"It is not troublesome at present." Luna corrected pointedly. "We have no idea if the condition will deteriorate further over time. Never fear, it is a problem that can easily be examined." Already the woman was plotting what needed to be done, what specialists she'd need to see.

Orzel had an appointment with her optometrist and her optician coming up in a few weeks, she could probably call and pencil Piercing in as well. Both of them were bar-none the best practitioners of their trade in Equestria. Her daughter had 20/600 vision, but they'd managed to create lenses to get her back to 20/20. If the duo of doctors could prescribe and fabricate lenses to correct that level of impairment, Luna had no doubt they'd be able to help Piercing...

It'd also give Piercing and Orzel another opportunity to interact with one another, maybe even foster a better relationship between the two... Luna just hoped Piercing wouldn't mind what Orzel intended to do before hand. The appointment was on a Sunday afternoon, and Orzel would be attending morning services before her appointment. As Luna had come to learn, they tended to last anywhere between two or four hours, typically towards the latter half of the scale. She was still uncertain about her daughter's renewed religious tendencies, so maybe having Piercing accompany Orzel under the guise of going to the optometrist later might grant the woman an insight into just what went on there.

These thoughts were dashed when, much to the surprise of everyone present, a costumed figure descended out of the darkness above, her face hidden beneath a red scarf and a pair of pilot's goggles. Still, given the persons size and the thick glasses beneath the goggles, it wasn't hard to figure out who it was. Orzel glided down atop what looked to be a stylized broom, moving at a speed that made Luna inwardly wince. With surprising agility the girl swung the broom down in beside the carriage.

"Hello, Mother." Orzel greeted monotonously, taking the goggles off and more carefully seating her pointy hat. "Mister Gaze..." She nodded to Piercing, then dismounted the broom and plucked it from the air. Luna quickly found herself needing to subdue a hiss of annoyance... Just what she needed, another thing to possibly give her a heart attack.

"What do you think you are doing with that, young lady?" Luna asked coldly as Orzel stepped up into the carriage and took her own seat. She rested the broom in her lap, the surface was absolutely brimming with faintly glowing runes, too numerous and intricate for Luna to discern exactly what each did.

"You said I could not purchase an automobile, nor could I acquire an aeroplane or pilots license." Orzel stated simply, Luna looked intently at the broom, as if to point out that it was an aircraft. "Under statute six-two-nine-seven, subsection C, paragraph two of the Aviation Standards Act, any flying vehicle that falls beneath a maximum takeoff weight of four-hundred pounds and possesses a fuel capacity of less than ten gallons is not legally an aeroplane and may be operated by individuals not possessing a pilot's license." The girl patted the broom tenderly, then shrugged. "My Piorun weighs less than ten pounds, and has no fuel tank whatsoever, easily meeting those parameters and therefore not violating your ban on airborne transportation."

Orzel just stared at Luna blankly as the woman's mind scrambled to come up with some sort of response. Every time... Every time she thought she'd gotten through to her daughter, the girl would find a means of twisting her words around so that she could fall within the letter of something Luna said, but not the spirit... Almost like a smaller version of Jet Set, except less smarmy. Anger didn't quite do justice to what Luna felt at the moment, because on some deeper level she knew, with unwavering certainty, that this was the exact same sort of thing she'd put Celestia through at her daughter's age. It wasn't helped by Piercing quietly snickering off to the side, he too saw the irony, and unlike her he could freely revel in it... Well, almost freely. Luna cast a less than enthused glare at him, the sort that said 'You are not helping, stop not helping.', at which point the man quickly reined himself in.

"With this, I may quietly make my way to Mister Spike's home without detracting from your glorious arrival." Orzel added, offering the broom to Luna for inspection. "Before you pass judgment, know that I included considerable safety measures in anticipation of your hesitance. Should my word not convince you, you may see for yourself."

The woman quickly took the broom and examined the runes in question, passing some of her magic through the object made them glow brighter. What caught her interest first was the intricacies those enchantments were implemented with, inscribed in flowing, spiraling, verdant vines. The care and talent that'd gone into their creation far surpassed anything Orzel had thus-far presented. Here Luna saw, for the first time, the truest depths of the girl's passion for her craft... It was just as much an enchanted item as it was a work of art, undoubtedly crafted through a combination of scientific experimentation and artistic flare. A method so outlandish, that it'd likely never before attempted by modern practitioners. It surpassed Luna's ability to reliably divine if Orzel's words held truth, and so she passed it along to Piercing.

"My my my..." Piercing mumbled as he too examined the runes, his entire face lighting up with childlike excitement. "This is something..." He grinned broadly, turning his attention to Orzel. "This is Starswirl's poly-direction matrix, but you've tied it into an adaptive thought contingent and routed it to..." The man's grin grew wider. "A modified Observos levitation sigil. See, I always thought it could be applied to something smaller than a carriage, but not this small!" To Luna's surprise, she saw her daughter's eyes actually widen. "How did you compensate for the lesser mass?"

"I diverted the excess energy into the inertial compensation and pilot retention strings near the middle..." Orzel's voice briefly lost its monotone, replaced by one of faintest excitement. Luna therefore deduced the girl was inwardly ecstatic, a good step towards warming relations between the two. Almost mechanically, she gestured to a section of runes near the bristles. "Whatever was left is supposed to feed a stardust illusion generator, but... All it makes when I fly is black smog." Piercing nodded in evident understanding, then handed the broom back to Orzel.

"If you're seeing black smoke it means you're not flying fast enough." Piercing explained simply, which immediately set Luna's heart racing. "There's too much arcane energy flooding the generator, whatever isn't being used by the other runes is overpowering its ability to create the illusion, so it defaults to something that's easy to make and consumes the excess energy. Black smoke, for example..." Orzel nodded, and Luna was unsurprised to see her familiar appear on her shoulder, holding a small leather notebook. The girl quickly took the book, as well as a pen that served as a sort of bookmark, before feverishly committing everything Piercing had just said to paper.

"Was that rumble we felt earlier for this?" Piercing asked, jerking his thumb towards the castle. Orzel nodded, still jotting down what he'd said so far, the man smiled again. "The problem with the illusion generator is that you put way too much power into your final bonding incantation..." The man looked at Luna as Orzel finished taking her notes, at which point she handed the book to her familiar, who whisked it away with a puff of black vapor. "Other than the illusion generator? It's solid enchanting work, there's plenty of safety enchantments.. I actually wouldn't mind having one of my own." Orzel's eyes brightened again... Luna wondered if maybe this was Piercing trying to get in on the girl's good side, but she trusted that the man wouldn't risk her daughter's safety for that.

"Okay... Fine. You can use it tonight, but if you are going to use it in the future, you will have a curfew of no later than seven in the evening, and you must not go faster than forty miles per hour... Deal?" Luna's tone offered no room for negotiation, and despite the stoic facade there just the slightest hint of hesitation in her daughter's posture. "The curfew will be waived you are attending prayer services, or going the library, or for some other function, but only if you ask permission first..." The woman added, and after a few more moments Orzel reluctantly nodded.

"I accept..." She looked at the broom in what, for Orzel, was one of great excitement. Luna couldn't help a smile at that, but there was little time remaining for further discussion.

"Right then..." The Princess declared, clearing her throat. "I shall see you upon my return, my love." Piercing grinned back and offered a friendly wave, only for Luna to lean out of the carriage and plant a kiss square on his lips. Leaving the man slightly surprised, there was little more reason to hang about the Castle. "Let us be off, guardsmen."

The Lunar Marines mounted the carriage and started the horses trotting forwards, propelling the carriage along the ground for a short while before ultimately taking to the sky, utilizing a mechanism not so different from Orzel's broom in its general function. The journey to Ponyville by flying carriage would take considerably less time than it would by train... Still, it was more than enough time to ponder the great many new worries that'd been heaped onto Luna's plate in the past few minutes.

She'd tried to keep Orzel from getting an automobile, or a motorcycle, or anything of the like... In so doing she'd forced her daughter to be creative. That was good, in that she was pleased to see Orzel's creativity stimulated, but at a future cost of always having to be exceptionally specific... Again, what worried her most, more than the idea of her daughter moving around on her own, was what it all represented.

At her current rate of knowledge absorption, odds were Orzel would be pestering Luna any day now for permission to take the Home Education Battery. It was essentially what the name said on the tin, a battery of questions to determine whether someone that'd been educated at home met the standards of someone that'd attended the public school system. Normally the HEB was taken when a child came of age, but it could be taken earlier with a parent's permission. Once Orzel passed it, she'd be issued a diploma from the EEA, and from there be eligible for university education. With skill like Luna had just seen, and a staggering level of raw arcane power, there was no mage's college in the world that wouldn't accept the aspirant enchantress.

There stood a good chance Orzel wouldn't run off right away, she still had work she'd want to complete at home, or near it at any rate. Tonight wasn't the time for such concerns, and the woman did her best to keep them out of her mind. In twenty minutes or so they'd be nearing the outskirts of Ponyville, Orzel would take her broom ahead then, and Luna would be all on her own. Hopefully her worried state wouldn't make her come off as overly intense or too standoff-ish among the people of Ponyville...

Trudging along through Ponyville's busy streets, hauling over his shoulder a bag of apples, Spike could to little more than sigh with mild annoyance. Manual labor wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he'd agreed to help set up some of the Nightmare Night games. Big Macintosh was busy, and Applejack needed someone with considerable upper body strength to help her carry the goods into town, so naturally all eyes turned to Spike. Odds were she could've done the work herself, but Spike wasn't about to raise the pressing issue of his hidden schedule with the Element of Honesty... The less anyone knew about just whom it was that was coming to visit Ponyville the better.

Looking ahead at the gathering merrymakers, it was hard for Spike to maintain any sort of dour mood for very long. Excitement abounded through the thoroughly turned out town, and the laughter of countless people had a funny way of making everything just seem... Better. It was a brisk autumn night, with temperatures dipping closer now to winter norms than summer. Spike was fortunate enough to be a dragon, the presence of his inner flame made it easier for him to soak in the atmosphere without undue chill. Indeed, there was much to absorb, both in the festivities and the night itself.

As with so many nights lately, the sky above was particularly striking... His best estimates put the change in the night sky at roughly about the time Twilight had gone off to fight Discord, but as he was coming to realize, Discord was a subject on which she was exceptionally tight lipped. She insisted it was best he not know, that she'd been sworn to secrecy by Princess Celestia herself, and even telling him that much was pushing things... Perhaps it was something he'd need to ask Orzel about? No... Best wait, given how new their friendship was she'd think he was trying to get secrets out of her. Technically accurate, but he wasn't entirely sure how Orzel felt about technicalities yet.

Setting the sack down beside the apple bobbing tub, Spike wiped some of the sweat from his forehead. Nearby he could hear someone had put on a radio, adding the sound of an up tempo swing band to the ongoing festival. Every now and then someone would need to clear out of the nearby road, making room for an old tractor that'd been brought back into service for the purpose of providing hay rides. Kids scampered about in costumes, carrying sacks of sweets and giggling. Spike just about had a heart attack when one group of kids pushed passed him, rushing out into the street, skidding to a stop just as a pick up truck slowly trundled past.

If their near miss with a traffic accident had the same affect on the kids as it did on Spike, it certainly didn't show. Off into the night they ran, laughing up a storm whilst Spike's heart slowly stopped trying to burst out of his chest. The sooner he got out of here, away from all the noise and calamity, the better. Sighing heavily, the boy glanced down at his slightly ruffled clothes. It was a good thing he'd waited to put on his costume, as he suspected the nature of the garment would not only have made the trip from Sweet Apple Acres difficult, but also likely lead to its partial destruction...

Originally he'd thought about doing something ironic, coming to the festival in a dragon costume, but... The Princess was coming, and he wanted to make another good impression. Lately he'd found it hard not to think about the girl, just as had been the case with Rarity... Ironically, it was with a healthy helping of needlework from Rarity that Spike's costume had come together. He'd ultimately decided on a 'Commodore' from Equestria's age of sail. It helped that Spike thought the get-up actually made him look fairly handsome, downright heroic even... Not that that was important, or anything... The boy cast a few quick glances in either direction, inwardly worried someone might somehow be listening to his inner thoughts.

Putting his hands on his hips, turned his attention to Applejack herself. The woman was in the process of speaking with some other festival goers, attired as a scarecrow, not that bad of a look as a matter of fact. Much like Orzel, Spike couldn't help finding some sort of faint draconic beauty in the blonde haired farmer's athleticism. The boy quickly shook his head, he hardly had the time to get distracted by that sort of thing. Blowing some air out his nostrils, he took a moment to glance at his watch, unable to keep from tapping his foot out of nervousness. Inching a little closer, one small step at a time, Spike couldn't help overhearing the conversation...

"Snow'll be comin' soon, and we can thank Faust for it. Should kill any bugs dead, give us some time to start cleaning up the town proper." One of the men, a pegasus that simply wore farmer's clothes, stated with his thumbs hooked in his belt loops. "Damn lucky we made it past the final harvest 'fore that chocolate rain came in. I reckon them Ministry of Agri boys are gonna be mighty busy, gotta make winter count while the bugs is layin' low. Might have to look to subsidies if they can't get it done in time."

"The Missus and I ain't fixin' to let the government anywhere near us if we can help it. It'll be a bitch of a winter, but I'd rather do the job myself." Another farmer countered skeptically, puffing faintly on an old wooden pipe. "I mean, who wants to risk one of those overpaid weasels finding somethin' while he's workin'? What if they find gold, or oil? Then they kick us off the land for a pittance, then keep it for themselves. We seen how them folks in Canterlot act, they's as shifty as they come. Last thing we need is some pencil pusher from Canterlot, who don't know nothin' about how we do things, comin' down here and kickin' us off our own GD property!"

Spike didn't really pay attention after that, this was gonna be one of those conversations. As with so many things to do with Equestria's politics, the boy cared very little for specific causes. He understood the sentiment of those that did, and would remain content so long as they left him out of it. He highly doubted the government would do something like come in and pull someone's land out from under them, it'd surely make all the papers... Surely. Thankfully it didn't take Applejack long to to notice Spike's presence, or his apparent lack of interest in the discussion. She acknowledged him with a small smile, turning her attention fully to him as the conversation reached a lull.

"You got everything here in one piece, sugarcube?" The woman asked cheerfully, Spike gave a quick thumbs up, nervously looking at his watch, then glancing in the direction of the library. "What's up, hon? Not keen to hang out with ol' AJ a spell, or have ya got a hot date?" The woman asked jokingly, if only she knew how close she'd come. Granted, tonight's visit wasn't a date per se, but... Spike inwardly shook himself. "I'm only kiddin', you've done a fine job. Run along now, I figure you've still got time to grab something from Sugarcube Corner before the mayor gathers all the other kiddos together for that story thing."

"Don't you think I'm a little old for that sort of stuff?" Spike asked rhetorically, taking a moment to straighten his hooded sweatshirt. AJ merely smiled at him, as if she found his question the most adorable thing she'd ever heard. The boy opted not to stick around any longer, lest he risk getting roped into another task. "Alright, I've gotta get changed. I'll see ya around."

Without any further pause, Spike took off towards the library, navigating through the costumed crowd as best he could. Carefully he crossed the street, passing by several houses decorated in various spooky fashions. Jack-o'-lanterns, cobwebs, fake tombstones and paper skeletons abounded. Some had their lights on, others were entirely dark, their occupants likely out and about among the merrymakers.

Eventually Spike made his way through downtown, passing numerous businesses of varying sorts, each in the process of giving out treats. From the Stationary/Furniture shop to the general store, there wasn't a place that wasn't thrumming with people. The area wasn't nearly as well decorated, and he could see that what pieces of ornamentation were strategically placed. None risked concealing the various advertising posters in various store windows, or painted as murals on nearby walls. Some were themed after the holiday, others not so much...

The one that stuck out to him the most was mounted in the window of a rather unassuming structure, the only building not currently overwhelmed with people. The poster depicted a warship on fire, as well as an empty fire fighter's uniform and a discarded fire-hose. It asked a simple question in bold white lettering, 'What's missing from this picture?'. It was the newest poster Spike had seen in that particular building, which made sense, seeing as that was Ponyville's local recruiting office. It catered to the various branches of Equestria's military, not just the Navy, but that was the only one Spike cared about.

He'd thought about the Lunar Marines, or maybe the Army, but not nearly as much as the Navy. It wasn't like there was much for him to do in Ponyville, and the more he read of adventure, the more he pondered actually going in there and signing up. What was more, as far as he understood it, the Navy seemed a perfect place for someone like him to go to express himself more freely. A rough and tumble place, where he wouldn't need to keep so tight a rein on his more aggressive tendencies. Other posters explained that women loved a man in uniform, and while that wasn't a deciding factor, it certainly added to the appeal. At the very least, it'd be a chance to get some job experience other than shelving books. Being a librarian was Twilight's dream job, not his... The more Spike thought about it, he didn't really have much of a 'dream job'.

Of course, all his pondering on whether he should or shouldn't sign up didn't matter. He wasn't old enough yet. His fast approaching seventeenth birthday would present him a chance, even if he'd need to get Twilight's written permission first. Odds were she'd say 'No', that he was 'too young' and it was 'too dangerous'... Spike sighed, tucking his hands into his sweatshirt pockets. Perhaps he was just over thinking things, but as with so many things, it felt like there was little for him to do but think. Maybe he'd talk to Orzel about it.

The library came into view after another couple blocks of walking, all the windows lit up... Including the one at his room. It struck him as odd, seeing as he was pretty sure he'd turned the light off, but... Maybe he was mistaken? There were far less people in this section of town, and the decorations were likewise less pronounced. It didn't really matter, in an hour or so he and his friends would sit down with Twilight to a game of Ogres and Oubliettes, allowing the troublesome goings on of the outside world to fade into the background.

As he came within twenty yards of the building, Spike became acutely aware of two men he hadn't spotted before. Both of them were attired as the grim reaper, their faces concealed beneath the dark shadow of their hoods, their massive hands clutching a pair of razor sharp scythes. Both stood silently, unmoving, unflinching, flanking either side of the library's entrance. To anyone else, they'd maybe look like exceptionally realistic Nightmare Night decorations. They were far more terrifying to Spike, considering certain feelings he had regarding a certain Princess.

Agents Grim and Fable, Princess Orzel's personal bodyguards, were in a word... Enormous. The sheer size of each man was hard to overstate. This was the closest Spike had ever gotten to them before. Orzel had assured him when last they spoke that the men weren't there to make trouble, merely to keep her safe. What unnerved Spike most of all was that both men had just manifested themselves out of nowhere, one moment they weren't there, then they were. He could see both were facing straight ahead by the time he reached the door, standing perfectly at attention.

Up close Spike determined that despite the sun having gone down some time ago, both wore mirrored aviator sunglasses. Even with their eyes concealed behind the lenses of those glasses, he nonetheless felt the gaze of both behemoths boring into him. Coming to a stop, the boy rubbed nervously at the back of his neck.

"Uh... I live here, can I go inside?" Spike asked cautiously, for fear of being picked up and broken in half. He received nothing but the barest of nods, simultaneously given by both of the twin titans.

They hadn't been there when he left half an hour ago, so Spike took that to mean Orzel would be arriving soon. Maybe that was why the light in his window was on... Had they searched his room? Probably not, he was just being paranoid. Opening the door, Spike stepped into the library proper and rolled his shoulders. The lights were low, but it seemed Twilight was already in the process of setting up the game table for that night's special session of Ogres and Oubliettes. The woman herself was nowhere to be seen, likely in the kitchen preparing snacks.

Spike paused, noting the presence of a pointed witches hat and a red scarf hanging on a hat rack. He'd never seen either item before, but they looked like decorations. The sound of the closing front door evidently drew the attention of Twilight, who peeked her head out from the kitchen. She was more or less in her full costume, though it seemed she'd forgone the beard for the moment, as well as having donned a pink apron.

"Hey, Twi!" Greeted Spike, walking into the library proper and taking a moment to examine the game table. "Nice hat, by the way, its pretty spooky..." The boy gestured at the hate for a moment, only for Twilight to shake her head, smiling serenely as she stepped fully into the doorway. She was wearing pink baking mitts in addition to her apron, and held a glass baking pan, filled with what looked to be marshmallow crispy rice treats... They smelled quite delicious.

"Oh, no, that's Princess Orzel's." Twilight explained, stepping back into the kitchen with the baking pan. Spike furrowed his brow, looking at the hat, then noted a distinct lack of any Princesses presently present in the room. Rubbing at the back of his neck, he moved towards the kitchen and peeked in there... Nope, no Princesses, just Twilight and a vast array of various Nightmare Night themed snacks. Sensing the boy's confusion, Twilight adopted another smile. "I told her she could wait in your room for you while you were out. Speaking of, I thought I told you to clean it up before you left!"

Spike felt every scrap of color drain away from his face, and he was unable to hide a growing look of mortification. His room had been left in such a state that it very well could've been declared a disaster area, one of the many reasons he preferred to turn the lights off in his room. Now he was reaping the fruits of inaction, because a Princess had not only seen that disaster area, she was evidently sitting in it as he and Twilight spoke.

"I would've done it myself, but my hands were a tad full. Don't worry, she said she didn't mind tidying it up while you were out..." Twilight trailed off, likely because Spike's eyes had at that point bulged to the size of dinner plates. "Don't give me that look, you wouldn't be having this problem if you'd cleaned it up like I asked you to." The boy sighed tensely, bringing his hand to his forehead and dragging his palm down along his face.

Without another word, Spike walked out of the kitchen, shoulders slumping as he moved through the library and up the steps, only to come to a halt at the door to his room. Peering inside, his complexion somehow became far more ashen when, much to his horror, he found all was not as it should've been in his fortress of solitude. Where once his room had been a haven of dirty laundry, garbage, dirty dishes and cups, now everything was... Unnervingly clean.

His unopened model kits were organized according to size, as were his pencils and paint brushes. The paints themselves were arranged according to color gradient, almost like they would've looked on the model store shelf. Every important piece of paper that'd been on his desk, whether it was to do with home school work, letters, or just random notes, was neatly ordered in a series of manilla folders that Spike didn't recall owning. The garbage bin was devoid of any trash whatsoever, most notably the mountain of crumpled up failed drafts of his first letter to the Princess. Even the posters and shelves on his walls looked just a little different, as if someone had gone ahead and straightened them with a level or some such.

Gone were the piles of laundry that'd once concealed the hardwood flooring, Spike didn't even remember having hardwood flooring to begin with. The clothes now found themselves in a large hamper, yet another item he didn't remember owning. Additionally, the lumpy pile of pillows and blankets that'd once sat precariously atop his bed was gone, replaced by a proper setup, whose corners were pulled exceptionally tightly. It was upon that freshly made bed that he found the culprit for this most he wanton act of cleanliness.

Princess Orzel sat daintily on the edge of his bed, her eyes set firmly upon the pages of a book, the title of which, 'Conflict and Conciliation', was written in draconic. Her witch's costume looked to be hand made, and included an incongruous headscarf like that she'd worn to the gala... This one was of a solid black coloration, and seemed to bulge slightly out at either side. The reasoning for this discrepancy was unclear, but the fabric nonetheless accented her bronze skin tone quite well. She had a satchel bag resting on the bed beside her as well, filled with what looked to be half a dozen other books. Utterly gobsmacked both by her appearance and the changes to his room, Spike struggled to find words, until finally he could do nothing more than blurt out the first thing that came to mind.

"Y-You actually cleaned my room?!" He finally uttered, gripping his head with both hands as he inwardly cringed. Even now, Spike's eyes settled on a broom that seemed to be moving of its own volition, sweeping a pile of dust and crumbs into a waiting dustpan. The Princess behind it all lifted her eyes from the book at his question, then closed it and set it gently on the bed beside the satchel. The girl's eyes were also brighter than Spike remembered, and she'd since grown a pair of sharply tapered fangs, as if she couldn't be any prettier.

"You would have preferred I wait for you to do it upon your return?" The Princess asked in that iteration of flat monotone that Spike now recognized as genuine confusion, tilting her head ever so slightly to the side. "It was little trouble. Friends help one another, yes?" She added innocently, only for Spike to sigh with exasperation.

Twilight's words about not having cleaned the room himself came to mind, he supposed a portion of the blame fell on him. Still, there was something utterly bizarre at the knowledge that a member of the royal family, the future sovereign of his country, had seen and felt compelled to clean his room... With that surreal realization, the boy strolled across the room, unzipping his hooded sweatshirt and taking a seat at his desk. He swiveled around so he was looking at the Princess, who was staring at him with those magnificent almond shaped emerald eyes.

"Don't you think it's kinda weird for a Princess to clean someone else's room?" Spike asked bluntly, Orzel rubbed her chin, then shook her head. "Really? So if I came to Canterlot Castle and cleaned your room, you'd be fine with that?" The girl looked at the floor, biting her lower lip ever so slightly, ultimately responding with a meager nod.

"Yes. You are my friend, I trust you, therefore I would find no fault. Though, you would have no need to clean my room." The Princess explained with simplest honesty. "I was told I had less than half an hour, hardly enough time to properly clean the floors." The Princess explained simply, looking at the broom and the dustpan. "I would have scrubbed the floor, had I another half hour." Spike barely restrained himself from bringing his palm to his face, but the Princess merely whistled softly. The broom leapt up from the floor and hovered through the door, out of the room. Meanwhile, the Princess leaned down and picked up the dust pan.

"As I said, you are my friend. I am told friends help one another, regardless of if one of them is a Princess or not." Orzel's earnestness took Spike by surprise. With her eyes set on the dust pan, the Princess mumbled something in her native Szafirian. To Spike's slight curiosity, the pan and its contents quickly vanished in a flash of emerald light, at which point Orzel rubbed her hands together. "Friends also do not let other friends sleep in toxic waste dumps." Her last statement was punctuated by just the slightest upward inflection, Spike therefore deduced she was attempting to lighten the mood with a joke.

"Okay, I get it, I'm a slob..." Spike stated with faux annoyance, leaning back in his chair and stretching his arms out to the side. "I guess I'm just a bit embarrassed, I wanted to make a good impression." Orzel nodded faintly, folding her hands into her lap. "Anyway..." Spike sniffed the air, at which point he became aware that even the familiar funk that he'd come so accustomed to was gone, replaced by that strange fragrant aromatic perfume that'd scented Orzel's letters to him. "Did you make your costume for the game tonight?" Orzel cast a glance down at herself as Spike took in the whole costume, from her head to her feet. For a few moments the Princess couldn't meet his eyes, and the silence that settled over the room was deafening. Was she... Blushing?

"Oh, no, it is just for the holiday... Do you like it?" Orzel mumbled timidly, which struck Spike as just about as peculiar as her presence in his room to begin with. It lacked that particular monotone he'd become so accustomed to, and bordered on actual human emotion. She abruptly turned her attention to Spike's desk, where spike found the only thing that seemed in its proper place, a model of an SB-71 Citadel, which he was still in the process of weathering. "How do you accomplish the effect of paint chipping?" She leaned forward, gesturing to one of the areas of chipped paint on the wing.

"Uh... Salt." Spike stated simply, earning him a raised eyebrow. "First I do the base coat, then I let it dry... Then I moisten the area I want to chip and sprinkle some salt on there. Not too wet that it dissolves, just enough that it sticks. After that I paint over it, then I wait a day for it to fully set. When it's done I come in with a toothbrush and get rid of the salt, and that leaves it looking chipped." Spike flinched slightly when a small black mouse materialized on the bed beside Orzel, holding in its paws a leather notebook. The Princess quickly picked up the book and a pen from within, apparently jotting down everything Spike had just said.

"Never fear, this is my familiar, Midnight." Orzel stated simply, not taking her eyes away from the page as she continued writing. "Say hello, Midnight." The mouse stared at Spike intensely, far more intensely than a mouse had any right to stare. Its faintly glowing golden eyes managed to convey a simple idea, that it'd been watching him even when he couldn't see it... After a few tense moments it waved one of its little paws, but the boy got the feeling it wasn't a genuine greeting. The mouse narrowed its eyes at Spike, then, to add to the continuing surreality of the evening, made an 'I've got my eyes on you' gesture. "Will you help me review my 'character sheet' before the game? I am sure I read everything properly, but I want to get your opinion." Spike tore his eyes away from the mouse, settling them back on the Princess.

"Of course, I'd be happy to take a look, my Lady." The boy offered courteously, for some reason hoping to make a better impression on the familiar. Once again, Spike noticed the Princess's cheeks became slightly flushed. The familiar meanwhile stared at him, then watched Orzel finish with her notations. She offered the notebook back to the mouse, who took it and vanished in a puff of black vapor.

The girl reached into her satchel and withdrew a series of papers, as well as a small metal container, which rattled with the unmistakable sound of dice. Orzel offered him the papers, then opened the metal container to reveal not only a small collection of dice, but a miniature figurine as well. Spike took a brief look at the sheets he'd been provided, which as Orzel had said seemed completed well within Twilight's parameters for the game. The figurine looked to have been produced with considerable care, though the paint seemed a little heavy in some areas.

What stuck out immediately regarding the Princess's sheet was her chosen class, a female rogue by the name of 'Medlanka Jaeger'. The Princess had used the 'Ex-Military' background, from one of the O&O expansion books on Twilight's list of approved sources. To date, Spike hadn't seen that particular background get much playtime in his group. As with most rangers, the character was exceptionally well equipped for the stealth, specializing in assassination and making use of a longbow. She'd also taken a few special abilities that granted her additional bow accuracy and the option to pick one basic 'Free Spell'. She'd taken a spell called 'Terra Sculptor', another item Spike couldn't recall ever encountering before.

Going by the stats Orzel had rolled, as well as the way she'd built her character, Spike deduced the Princess to be a bit of a 'min-max'-er. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing on its own, of course... Still, Spike would've hoped she'd just focus on making a character that was fun to play considering this was her first game. While he'd yet to see her play, Spike had to wonder just how her character would interact with the rest of the party. Oddly, under the character's alignment, she'd selected 'Lawful Good'... Yet another first, most of the rogues he'd encountered topped out at 'Chaotic Neutral' at best and 'Chaotic Evil' at worst.

"So, what's the deal with the alignment? How can she be an Lawful Good character if she's an assassin rogue?" Spike asked curiously, setting the papers on his desk. Orzel reached into her bag and withdrew another leather notebook, slightly smaller than the one she'd summoned via her familiar earlier. Flipping to the first page, the Princess cleared her throat.

"Well, Medlanka only uses her skills to help people, and, other than killing people, she more or less tries to follow the law." Orzel explained simply as Spike took another look at the Princess's miniature. Again, it was done in remarkable detail, from the character's hood, to her cloak, to her basic clothing. Spike couldn't help but smile as he realized the Princess had painted the miniature's clothes in a camouflage pattern, much like those he himself had picked up recently. "Therefore she does good and generally follows the law... Is that not how alignment works?"

"To be honest, no one really knows how alignment works..." Spike admitted with a shrug, straightening the various pages of the Princess's character sheet and handing them back to their rightful owner. "Other than that, I think it looks just about fine." Orzel hummed thoughtfully, tucking her sheet back into the satchel.

"Spike!" Twilight suddenly called from downstairs. "Come on down, everyone else is here! We're about ready to get started!" Orzel chuckled faintly, then rose from his seat and opened his desk drawer. Its contents were neatly organized, as with everything else, including his own character sheet and dice box. Grabbing both items, he and Orzel made their way to the door, only for the boy to stop abruptly and stand aside.

"After you, my Lady..." The boy offered, again he saw the Princess blush, and to his amazement the girl adopted a demure posture as she made her way out. "Please, let Twilight know I'll be down in a minute, I just need to get into my costume." Orzel nodded at his request, once again unable to meet the boy's eyes.

With that, Spike closed the door to his room and moved to the edge of his bed. As he had little in the way of space, he stored not only his treasured belongings underneath, but also his clothes as well. Changing into the Commodore outfit would take him some time, as Rarity had sewn it to be historically accurate, and that presented him with a brief period to reflect upon the events of the previous fifteen minutes or so. A Princess had cleaned his room, she'd asked him for advice on paint chipping and character sheets, but... There was more to it than that.

Spike couldn't ignore one simple fact, that fact being that Orzel had a habit of becoming the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. It happened every time she blushed, or couldn't meet his eyes, or any combination of the two... Part of him thought perhaps he was reading too much into things, that he was picking up on signals that weren't actually there. She was a Princess, he was a schlub from Ponyville, it was hard to imagine her going for a guy like him.

The more he thought about it, the more he realized that he actually might've felt better if he was just imagining things, because he if wasn't... If the Princess did share the feelings he felt... He had no idea as to what the heck he'd do at that point. With Rarity there'd always been some part of him deep down that knew it'd never get anywhere... Only now, presented with the possibility that someone he had a crush on actually might have a crush on him back, did Spike realize the immensely dangerous waters he was straying into. What if he told her how he felt? What if she told him she felt the same way? He'd never actually thought that far ahead...

"I need to talk to Big Mac..." Spike resolved to himself as he finished fastening the golden buttons of his blue frock coat, pausing for a moment to examine himself in a mirror mounted to his wall. The dangling epaulets clinked against one another with every move he made, according to Rarity they'd been the most difficult thing to replicate. In addition to the coat he wore a white buttoned shirt, blue trousers, polished leather boots and a sabre belt, sans sabre. To top it all off, he donned an onyx 'cocked hat', a strange sort of 'bi-corn'. This was adorned with the rank insignia of a Commodore, which quite nicely completed the ensemble.

Rubbing at his chin, Spike felt a rough crop of stubble coming in, giving him just the faintest look of five o'clock shadow. If anything, it added to the image of a rugged Naval officer, even if his boyish face didn't quite live up to the paintings of real life Commodores he'd drawn inspiration from. Overall, Spike determined that in the grand scheme of things he looked just about as rugged and handsome as he could get, short of getting a couple battle scars or an eye-patch. Casting a look at the door, Spike supposed he had little choice now but to go downstairs and join the game group. Hopefully the costume would better endear him to the Princess... There was nothing left to do but try.

There was no way for Piercing Gaze to hide a profound sense of woe for the loss of life's simplest pleasure, that thing which so many long to regain, that they do not cherish until it is ripped away from them. Ignorance... For Piercing, the memory of his own ignorance was forever fleeting, and the sting of its loss was made harsher with his realization of the ease with which he'd given it up. Tonight was Nightmare Night, and all throughout Equestria, the blissfully ignorant citizenry carried on in celebration... Handing out treats, going to parties, telling 'scary' stories, all in good fun. It was hoped that they would never learn the true nature of their world, for if they did, they would recoil in such disgust and horror that the word 'celebration' would never again be uttered by humankind.

It was a fact that Piercing had known for quite some time, a bitter truth that he could never hope to deny. The world inhabited by everyone he loved was in a perpetual state of jeopardy, more often than not existing a hairs breadth away from utter annihilation, the true extent of which could scarcely be put into words. To the outside world the Nocturne Agency was just another intelligence agency, but to those in the know, it was anything but... They existed to bear the knowledge of the unbearable, to gaze long into the abyss, for the sake of all mankind. Now, as Piercing followed Director Orcus through the darkened halls of the Nocturne Agency's Headquarters, he was reminded of just how difficult the job of policing the strange, weird, and unusual could be.

A thousand years ago, the Agency had been limited to just him, Luna, and Orcus. Three people of considerable skill and ability, taking it upon themselves to shield Equestria first from rogue wizards, then moving on to protect the world from factors of a sort no mortal mind should ever be forced to confront. What fools they'd been, to think they could ever hope to scratch the surface of the morbid and macabre realm of the occult. Now the Agency was larger than Piercing could've ever dreamed, but even with a seemingly boundless budget and thousands of hard working agents, the world was no closer to safety than it'd been a thousand years ago.

"Read this..." Orcus stated firmly, passing Piercing a manilla folder as the two of them made their way into a waiting elevator. Piercing did as instructed, opening the folder to the first page. There were four small photographs affixed there via paperclip, two depicted frightening chitinous monsters, one was evidently an autopsy photograph of a dead woman, and the fourth depicted a familiar teenaged girl. "Forget the pictures, turn to page two." Piercing hesitated for but a moment, then turned to the next page. Orcus meanwhile pressed a button on the elevator control panel, prompting it to start a gradual descent downwards.

The second page described in detail the autopsy of the two chitinous monsters, termed 'Exo-Changelings' in the official report. There was much on their physical characteristics, including tests of their chitin against various types of weapons. While it would prove a potent defense against the weapons of the Early Equestrian era, modern firearms seemed more than adequate for penetration. It was all jumbled in with about half a dozen paragraphs of technical jargon and other notations that said a lot, but conveyed nothing. What caught Piercing's eye was a section at the bottom, labeled 'addendum' by the Agency pathologist responsible for overseeing the storage of the remains.

"Oh, well I can see your cause for concern..." Piercing muttered, looking up from the page. The elevator rumbled faintly, its lights flickering as it passed deeper and deeper. Wafting wisps of smoke arose from Orcus' omnipresent cigarette, collecting lazily below the ceiling lamp. "When did it start?" The Director lifted his arm, pushing back the sleeve of his suit jacket and revealing a gold watch affixed to his wrist. Piercing was dressed almost identically to the Director, his own black suit having been tailored to fit his stocky frame some days ago. It seemed more appropriate than what he'd been wearing before, especially now.

"First indications began approximately six hours ago." Orcus declared simply, lowering his arm and taking a drag on his cigarette. "The boys in astronomy say it has to do with the gravitational influences of the moon, or some passing comet, or half a dozen other things..." Piercing pondered the initial 'Moon' theory, it was certainly possible that the presence of a stronger gravitational pull could have an effect, especially considering the high level of arcane material situated below Canterlot proper. "The cause is irrelevant, your primary concern for the moment is in regards to how this phenomenon may relate to the tear in the arcane barrier... I want to know if we're at risk of more of these things coming through."

The elevator came to a stop, the door chiming softly as it slowly clattered open. Before the two men lay a darkly lit hallway, far less well appointed than the upper floors. Bleak white walls, flickering fluorescent lights, and dull brown floor tiling gave the impression of a meatpacking plant or slaughterhouse... Not that far off, considering this was the Nocturne Agency's private morgue. Stepping out of the elevator, Piercing was abruptly stopped by Orcus, who faced him and took a moment to straighten the scolar's lapels. In the process he produced a small laminated badge from his pocket, which he affixed to Piercing's suit by way of a small metal clip. The bad had Piercing's photograph, as well as a series of details regarding his security clearance...

"I almost forgot..." Orcus muttered, patting his comrade on the shoulders. "The guards would shoot you if you tried to go any further without that." While the Director likely intended to come off as joking, Piercing got the impression that he was anything but completely serious. "Welcome back to the Agency, Sub-Director." Piercing nodded quietly, and with that the two of them started back down the hallway.

The newly minted Sub-Director soon detected a sound that sent chills down his spine, one that he was a hauntingly familiar with from several previous escapades with the Agency. Animalistic howls and thrashing metal, echoing off the cavernous walls, shaking him to his very core. One never truly forgot the sounds made by the undead, the wretched screaming and snapping of ravenous jaws. Together Piercing and Orcus approached the only set of doors in sight, which at present was guarded by a pair of Lunar Marines, each armed with pump action shotguns.

Even in the early days of the Agency, the blunderbuss had been a most potent weapon against the undead. Shotguns, the modern equivalent, were likely to have an even greater effect. The weapons, coupled with the shrieking howls and the very nature of the place he now tread within, gave further credence to support those words scrawled hastily in the file. 'Time approx. 13:25 Hours: Subject reanimated.'.

The two marines examined both the Director and Sub-Director's badges, then pushed the doors open, allowing both the Director and Piercing passage into the morgue. Now the sound of howling was joined by the snapping of vicious teeth and the splattering something upon the floor, immediately conjuring to Piercing's mind all the disgusting remnants that might've been spilling out of whatever lay within.

Turning a slight corner, they first came upon a wall lined with polished chrome doors, each approximately two feet wide and one foot high. Some were closed with padlocks, others appeared enchanted and sealed with wax. The names and dates of death were listed on little paper placards, but Piercing hardly had the time to examine them in detail. At the other side of the room was a laboratory counter, undoubtedly a place for the conduction of various medical tests. It was lined with numerous beakers and test tubes of different colored liquids, some of which glowed faintly in the pale fluorescent tubes overhead.

At center of it all were two examination tables, and it was upon one of these tables that the source of the noise was made apparent. A quartet of four Lunar Marines loomed in the shadows at the edge of the room, each armed with a shotgun, while a short blonde spell-caster in a lab coat silently observed one black chitinous form... A Exo-Changeling. It was strapped down in its entirety, though the thick leather restraints struggled to keep it from thrashing about. Its jagged thrashing teeth snapped and chomped at the air, the lips snarling savagely.

Streams of viscous glowing green fluid oozed from wounds all over its body, but the floor was sloped towards the center, where a drain waited to collect the foul ichor... The room itself wreaked of formaldehyde and other chemicals, which almost was enough to conceal the foetid stench of deceased flesh. There was no other word but putrid to describe the aroma, and Piercing found himself envying the four marines, each of whom had donned gas masks. The pathologist was evidently unfazed by the stench, still silently taking notes on a clipboard as both Orcus and Piercing approached. The Director took a drag on his cigarette and nodded wordlessly towards the table, indicating that Piercing should be the one to speak. The Sub-Director took note of the pathologist's name tag, identifying her as 'Dr. Kolju'...

Closer now, Piercing could determine that she was apparently not from Equestria. The slightly swarthy complexion, coupled with a pair of slightly narrowed eyes, indicated she likely hailed from one of the islands of the South Luna Sea, but the name was common to the border area between the Eastern Dragonlands and the Griffon Empire. It didn't really matter either way, he supposed, but nonetheless the man found it interesting. The man then noted one of the creature's arms, specifically a fairly clear cut seam where more of the green ooze was emerging.

Opening the file once again, Piercing skimmed through the findings, determining that the creature's hand had been reattached post mortem. Originally severed by Sokol on the night of Orzel's arrival, it was stapled back onto the body for ease of storage and transportation. Now, the ichor oozed and bubbled from the seam with a steady rate of flow. Again, of little importance, but no less interesting. Examinations of the Exo-Changeling following its initial reanimation indicated it had no heartbeat, nor was it breathing, yet somehow it was producing that liquid in such vast quantities. It wasn't blood, at least, not any sort of blood known to modern men of science. The beast's two vast milky eyes caught sight of Piercing as he loomed over it, briefly prompting it to renew its attempts to break free. Piercing remained unfazed, closing the file and setting it on the unoccupied examination table.

"Good evening, Doctor Kolju..." Piercing greeted, earning a silent nod from the pathologist. "Could you be more specific with your concerns, Director?" Piercing asked curiously, removing his suit jacket and tie. These he also placed on the examination table, then he proceeded to roll up the sleeves of his white dress shirt. "What reason do you have to suspect our not-so-dearly departed friend here is interacting with the barrier?" The Director merely pointed to the still thrashing monster, as if that was enough... Piercing didn't blame the man. Orcus was a fine practitioner of the arcane arts, but when it came to the quirks of the Arcane Barrier, Piercing's knowledge was second to none. With the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, he reached over to a small cardboard box filled with blue latex gloves.

"I take that to assume you fear it is interacting with its kin on the other side?" Piercing asked, earning a silent nod from Orcus as the Director continued to observe from a slight distance. Pulling on his gloves with a sharp 'snap!', Piercing stepped closer to the Exo-Changeling and gripped either side of its head. It snapped and thrashed, to such an extent that the guards stepped closer, but Piercing remained unfazed. He'd made sure to place his fingers well out of biting range. "I assure you that's quite impossible, even for a Changeling from our realm. It would take a spell of a magnitude similar to that which brought this nasty bugger here in the first place."

"I keep telling the Director that there's no existing link between these things and the hive-mind, but he won't listen to me." Doctor Kolju finally spoke up, her voice possessing a distinctly Equestrian accent, further adding to the mystery of where she came from... Again, Piercing supposed it didn't matter. "In my professional opinion these convulsions are just a spasmodic response to random arcane stimuli... Certainly disturbing, but hardly a threat."

"I believe that you are partially correct." Piercing responded softly, twisting the creature's head from side to side. It resisted, of course, but Piercing was more than able to overpower it. The beast snapped and snarled with greater tenacity, flinging droplets of the glowing goo in all directions. "It hates me so much..." The man practically cooed. After a moment the man held his hand towards the sky, conjuring a small ball of blue energy... It persisted for a few seconds, fizzled out. "Just double checking. I can't feel any sort of interference in the barrier, nothing to suggest they're interacting with the hive-mind of their native realm." Piercing then snapped his fingers, sending forth a small burst of chaos magic. It was, by definition, the most random of magic there could be. The creature didn't react in the slightest, other than trying, and failing, to bite Piercing's finger. "I'm afraid, however, that I must disagree with her assertion that it's responding to random stimuli. Were that the case, my little parlor trick there would've sent the subject into a frenzied spasm."

Piercing returned his hands to either side of the creature's head, this time the creature's reactions were far less severe. Silently it watched him, leaning its head upwards, growling and snarling but otherwise refraining from resisting. Piercing had entered into a state of mind he'd not adopted for some time, that of the cold calculating researcher, and he examined this beast before him with the same scrutiny he would bestow upon a particularly interesting species of insect. He'd conducted experiments on other Changeling specimens back when they were a common threat to Equestria, nothing overly intrusive, just enough to get a better idea of what was going on inside their heads. In this instance, he decided to replicate one of those procedures.

"Are you alive...? Nod your head for yes, shake for no." He asked curiously, and after a few moments Piercing removed his hands from the creature's head. Free of his restriction, the beast did nothing but thrash about, apparently going back to its former self. "It was worth a shot..." He mumbled. "What we are witnessing is a freak occurrence, brought about by the proximity of the moon and the convergence of ley lines in this city. It is a happening of such infinitesimally small probability that I cannot hope to properly calculate it." The man removed his gloves, discarding them in a nearby bio-hazardous waste bin.

"The Doctor was actually correct, these are spasmodic convulsions, but they are not the result of random arcane stimuli. The body is reacting to a disturbance in the hive-mind. Somehow, despite his being dead... Somehow its brain is receiving signals from a hive-mind of our realm." Piercing couldn't keep himself from faintly smiling. "The signals must be exceptionally strong, something must be happening within Changeling society that is generating a considerable amount of buzz, if you'll pardon the pun..." He exhaled, staring grimly at body. "I, unfortunately, have little information to go on other than pure speculation... At least at present." Orcus circled around the table, the ember glow of his cigarette flaring slightly before he exhaled a small cloud of smoke.

"It's receiving signals, can it transmit as well? Can they use the corpse to spy on us? Are they watching us right now?" The Director's tone was cautious, Piercing took a moment to ponder the capabilities of the Exo-Changeling versus those of Changelings he'd had the fortune of studying. After a minute or two of careful contemplation, the man merely shook his head.

"Any attempt to use the subject for espionage would kill it, were it not already dead." Piercing concluded, casually moving around the table to get a better look at the creature in its entirety. "The brain is far too primitive, just evolved enough to broadcast and receive the vaguest of transmissions from its collective. If it were transmitting to the hive-mind, I suspect they would receive little more than white noise." He rubbed at his chin. "It is fascinating, I never would've thought that a hive in the badlands could be strong enough to provoke such a response from a literal corpse." Orcus' features grew troubled, and though his cigarette was still far from finished, he nonetheless withdrew a fresh one from his pocket.

"Or, it could be that their hive is far closer than we believe." Orcus countered darkly, instantly Piercing felt a chill race down his spine, he hadn't considered that. There were no Changelings living in Equestria that he knew of, even in the early days. Where their primary hive happened to be, likewise, had always remained unknown...

The largest one was generally believed to be within the Badlands, a hellish scorched wasteland that marked the border between Equestria and the Southern Dragonlands. According to some light reading he'd done in preparation of getting back to work, it was from there that the last recorded Changeling Raid had been launched, and it was to that dismal place the raiders had retired. There was a time he'd pondered perhaps that the Changeling Raiders and the Dragon Reavers might've been one in the same, a clever ruse to make it appear there were more threats than actually existed. By now, more than enough Reavers had fallen in battle to do away with that notion.

Changeling hive's were notoriously difficult to pin-point, and those few that had been discovered were remarkably well hidden. Concealed in rocky cliff areas, unexplored forests, even in the early sewer systems of several small Equestrian settlements. By now they were little more than myth, anyone claiming to have seen one would be derided as superstitious or a crackpot. They could go anywhere, do anything... Be anyone. He couldn't keep from eying the four guards in the room, each carrying a shotgun that could easily take out Orcus, Doctor Kolju, and Piercing in a matter of moments. The odds of all of them being Changelings were slim, he knew that, but it only took one.

How many people interacted with Princess Celestia and Luna on a daily basis...? Cadence? Blueblood? Orzel? Together they had to encounter hundreds of unvetted 'people'... Any single one of them potentially an assassin. Then his mind turned to the debacle that'd unfolded following his return, all the paperwork 'foul ups' and other delays. They could sew just as much chaos and confusion in low ranking logistical roles as they could in a position of power, if not more so... Piercing felt his very skin crawl, this was the exact sort of threat for which the Nocturne Agency had been founded.

Under the enormity of his realization, Piercing reached out and took the cigarette from Orcus, placing it between his lips. Orcus offered his lighter, allowing the man to take a few short puffs before he broke out into a slight coughing fit. He managed to bring it under control, and was surprised at the rush of calm that washed over him. The tobacco smoke tasted vile, and he was certain he'd catch all sorts of trouble from Luna, but he could see now why the Director made such a habit of smoking.

"I'll call Princess Celestia, she needs to be informed of this immediately. Stick around, we'll need to advise her when she arrives." Orcus' tone was calm, but it was clear he was growing more concerned with every passing moment. "You and you, secure the Elevator, no one departs the morgue without my authorization." The man pointed at two of the guards, both of whom quickly moved to comply. "As of this moment, everything we've discussed in the last half hour is officially classified." Piercing and Doctor Kolju both nodded in acceptance, and upon securing their agreement the Director made his way across the room to the laboratory counter. Among the various testing equipment was a bright red telephone, which Orcus readily picked up.

Celestia stood beside one of two cold steel slabs lined the center of the morgue, buried below the Nocturne Agency's Canterlot Headquarters. The air was heavy with the smell of rubbing alcohol, tobacco smoke, and other chemicals. The cold tile floor dotted with indiscriminate stains from autopsies long past, joined now by a continuing flow of putrid green ooze. No amount of mopping or scrubbing could evict the blotches, the last remnants of the many creatures that had come to lay in that silent and otherwise sterile temporary tomb.

Celestia observed the sole vaguely humanoid shape, for which she'd been so urgently summoned, with a growing sense of fascination and revulsion. The chitinous armor plates and leathery hide had gradually taken on a vague brownish-yellow tint, a far cry from the pitch black she'd recalled on the night of the creature's arrival. It was undoubtedly the result of the beast's preservation in pungently odorous formaldehyde, the fumes of which currently pervaded the space.

The beast's slathering jaws were arrayed with row upon row of razor sharp teeth, that were no less terrifying to gaze upon, especially given the nature of Celestia's summons to this unknown corner of Canterlot's underground. With wide slitted eyes, clouded white by death, they scanned the room unblinkingly, heedless of the blinding fluorescent lights. Two Lunar Marines stood silently at the head of the slab, each holding a shotgun at the ready. Their face's hidden beneath respirators, their black fatigues marked with Nocturne insignia. Though the creature was thoroughly secured to the table, they nonetheless watched with great scrutiny, just as one might gauge the threat of a rabid animal.

A Doctor stood quietly to one side of the slab, her posture and demeanor professional and calm, though it was obvious she had uncomfortable reservations about being there. Princess Celestia could certainly understand her discomfort, as the thrashing corpse presented on that hideous slab chilled her to her core... Given the current date, she supposed it was appropriate that such a revelation was made now.

The aroma of tobacco smoke wafted doubly strong through the morgue, and out of a gloomy alcove Celestia could see two distinct glowing embers, one belonging to Director Orcus, the other to the newly appointed Sub-Director Gaze. Stepping into the light, the both mens' features were locked in an understandable scowl of seriousness. Together they came slowly towards the table, standing beside the Doctor, whom Celestia deduced was named Kolju by the name badge the woman wore.

"Director... Sub-Director..." Celestia greeted each man cordially, surprised to see the cigarette dangling from Piercing's lips. That both disheartened and disturbed her, as she knew it took quite a lot to get Piercing rattled. Granted, an alien monster coming back to life could be rattling, but even so... Celestia's feelings towards the Director had likewise become... Complicated.

She'd known him first as her trusted friend, and then as her old enemy, Legate Orcus. He had taken up arms against Equestria, against her, and secretly inserted himself into Equestria's government for centuries... Leading the Agency, advising her as he always had, whilst she remained blissfully unaware... Yet the seriousness with which he carried himself, and the trust still bestowed upon him by both Luna and Piercing, had widely mitigated any level of betrayal Celestia might've felt... Largely because there was none. Yes, he'd kept a terrible secret, but in so doing had given her sister a gift that was as rare as it was precious... A second chance with her true love. For some reason he had summoned her, to this place, without Luna...

"What's the situation here?" Celestia asked the Director, who scowled, then nodded at Piercing. The creature, whom Celestia recognized as the one with its arm cleaved off by Sokol, jerked about on the slab with greater ferocity. Teeth gnashing, claws flailing, writhing uncontrollably like a worm atop a bed of ants. A guttering, soul rendingly clear shriek suddenly erupted from beyond its curling lips, sending flecks of glowing ooze and formaldehyde spewing forth with all the indiscriminate coverage of a garden sprinkler. Neither Piercing or Orcus flinched, though Celestia took a step back for fear of sullying her white blouse and skirt.

So she was informed of all that'd transpired in the hour or so preceding her arrival, all the speculation and study, as well as several tests conducted in the time since she'd first been contact. She was told of the great disturbance in the changeling hive that was likely at play, the odds of a Changeling hive nearby, the chances that there could, at this very moment, be infiltrators among the ranks of the armed forces and the Castle staff. The clock on the wall chimed ten times, and as the last bell came and went, the writhing mass of flesh fell eerily still. The glowing ichor ceased oozing, and a final nightmarish rattling wheeze passed those devilish fangs.

A deathly silence followed, which lasted for a moment or two before Piercing continued his report. Through it all Celestia listened carefully, staring intently at the gruesome face for herself. She still remembered the last Changeling Raid, how desperately she'd hoped to find the threat once and for all. At the time, however, Equestria had been in the midst of a lengthy drought. As a result there was little desire to launch operations into the Badlands in search of the Changelings, operations that would've consumed a lot of water rations. Now, it seemed that lack of drive was coming back to haunt her.

It was impossible to discern just what was the cause of such apparent upheaval within the hive-mind might be, there certainly weren't any changelings around for her to ask. That she knew of... On the recommendation of both Orcus and Piercing, she'd need to institute a sweep for Changeling infiltrators. A difficult enough task on its own, to be certain, but made all the harder for the simple fact that no one had seen a Changeling in several centuries. Not counting the beast on the table, of course. It was a process that would need to be carried out with utmost discretion as possible... The past two years had been filled with plenty of National Emergencies, and with the hit the Stock Market had taken in the wake of Bill 250 and the Discord Crisis, Celestia feared another such scare could do serious harm to the livelihoods of countless thousands of her people...

Given the tremendous expense involved in cleaning up the ecological contamination inflicted by Discord's 'Chocolate Rain', a sudden economic downturn could have disastrous consequences. Equestria's food reserves would last long enough for the work to be completed within two years, assuming it remained on schedule, but it could only do so if the value of the Bit remained more or less steady. The safety margin was far too narrow for Celestia's liking, and the idea that her people might suffer from food shortages at best or rampant inflation at worst was especially heart wrenching.

Of course, she needn't keep the new threat a secret for long, perhaps six months to a year. Long enough for the collective nerves of Equestria's citizenry to relax, long enough to go to the press with a cohesive plan of action, something that would assure the Equestrian populace that the situation was well in hand... If even a whiff of what was happening leaked, though... Changelings were, by their nature, creatures that sewed paranoia wherever they went. Celestia shivered at the thought, of brother turning on brother, friend turning on friend, all for fear that the other might be a shape-shifting monster? It would be a nightmare, the likes of which no one in Equestria was prepared for...

"Now I understand..." Celestia realized softly, clasping her hands behind her back. She recalled a conversation she'd had with her niece Orzel, the very first conversation in point of fact. That it was better to prepare for the unexpected than to wait for a threat to emerge... Celestia could go face to face against evil doers and powerful villains, but she couldn't be everywhere at once, she couldn't be there to assure everyone that their neighbors were still their neighbors... Without some system of cohesion, without some form of community trust, the nation would collapse.

"Nightmare Moon, the Arrival Incident, and now the Discord Incident. Had our people been more prepared... Well, hindsight is twenty-twenty." The Princess trailed off, sighing pensively while pursing her lips. There was another aspect to consider, that the crisis would actually arrive before any meaningful steps could be taken... Keeping the threat a secret might help maintain a level of calm, assuming nothing else happened, but the threat actually emerged...? The effect could be even worse. "Another Crisis Scare could dangerously disrupt the Economy, but not nearly as much as a Changeling raid." The woman quietly pinched the bridge of her nose, pondering just what to do. "I want options on my desk by noon tomorrow." She glared intensely about the room. "Otherwise, news of this revelation does not leave this room, is that clear?" The Marines, Doctor Kolju and Piercing all nodded. "Good... I trust you will inform Princess Luna, Sub-Director." Piercing nodded again, taking a drag on his cigarette.

"What of Princesses Cadence and Orzel, and Prince Blueblood?" Orcus asked tentatively, looking between the table and the Princess. "They were most displeased to be left uninformed last time, and ordered me explicitly to inform them of such things." Celestia hummed in somber contemplation, looking back at the table. Cadence could be brought into the loop, perhaps as Princess of Love she might even have some insight into what areas might be the most likely target of a Changeling raid? Blueblood was running for a seat on the Council, which had indeed been determined to be legal, if a tad unorthodox... There would be immense scrutiny upon him, best not to risk a security breach by an over eager reporter.

That left Orzel, a person whom would likely have much to say regarding Changelings, if made aware. She was certain to hold a grudge, and her studies in Enchanting, coupled with her analytical mind, might even prove helpful in devising a method of weeding out infiltrators... If properly assisted, as would likely be the case with Piercing joining her 'company'. Orzel seldom left the Castle, and though that was bound to change in the coming weeks, the risk of her accidentally revealing the threat remained low... For a moment Celestia almost nodded, but she realized the nature of this threat would be of a deeply personal nature for her Niece. Orzel's entire life had been shattered by Changelings, though she didn't know them as such. The creature laying before Celestia on the slab had been one of those that brutally killed the girl's Birth Mother right in front of her. The Princess briefly glanced at the Director, wondering for a moment just where the stalwart Shield Matron's remains had wound up, they still had yet to be returned.

Bringing Orzel into the knowledge of the threat would likely send the girl spiraling, just when she was starting to make a go of things... Could Celestia do such a thing to her niece? Perhaps more importantly, should she? The fact remained, Celestia realized, that it wasn't her place to decide what was best for Orzel. Much as she'd come to love her, Celestia wasn't Orzel's Mother, Luna was. The burden would ultimately fall to her sister, and Celestia didn't envy her sibling in that respect.

"Leave that task to the Crown, Director..." Celestia finally decided quietly, a frown tugging at her typically exuberant features. "Luna and I shall need discuss the issue first and foremost." The woman straightened silently. "Should they ask you in the meantime, by some unlikely coincidence or otherwise, instruct them to come to me." Orcus nodded wordlessly, resting the cigarette between his lips. "Have Field Marshals Redwood and Arcturus meet me in my office tomorrow, around midday, you will join them... Whatever we wind up doing, I suspect your trio shall play a large part..." The woman scowled, once again catching a whiff of the corpse. "Firstly, please, let's get away from this... Thing."