A Mercenary's Ending

Megan leaned against the window in her train cabin, looking out at the beautiful country landscape outside as it swept past them. Trees passed by in mere moments only to be replaced with new ones. The sun shone down into the cabin with the warmth of a summer day. She reached up and slightly opened her window, letting the breeze cool her. Closing her eyes, she listened to the old fashioned sounds of the steam engine that was pulling the coaches.

There wasn’t much being said in the coach. She and her siblings were sitting in the same spot, whereas Gregory’s mercenary group, along with the changeling queen named Chrysalis, sat in their own place. Gregory himself sat alone as he, too, stared out at the landscape. The alicorn sisters sat near the front of the coach, whispering to each other so softly that Megan wondered if they could read lips. The six former Elements of Harmony sat at their own benches, also whispering.

Megan closed her eyes and forced her body to relax. There wasn’t much that she or anyone else could do while they made their way south. The train they were on wasn’t going too fast, so it was likely that they wouldn’t reach their destination until long after dark. It was fortunate that they were on a private train owned by the Equestrian Crown, meaning they wouldn’t need to stop at any of the stations along the way.

She felt the train slowly turn, pushing her harder against the wall. Molly slid against her slightly before the train began moving straight again. Across from her, she heard a soft voice saying, “Sorry.”

“It’s all good, my guy,” Daniel said.

Megan opened one eye to see the fourth person who was sitting with them, the young changeling Thorax, adjusting himself as he sat up straighter. Megan hadn’t known him for very long, but she had grown a little fond of the young equine creature. He seemed so eager to be useful and also sought out friends. Sadly, with the current events playing out as they were now, there wasn’t much time for him to build a rapport with anyone.

She was about to close her eyes to get some rest when she saw his ears twitch forward slightly. She watched as his dark purple eyes focused forward. Then, a small smile formed on his face as he shook his head.

Daniel noticed this, because he leaned over and asked in a soft voice, “What is it?”

Thorax jumped a bit, startled by Daniel’s sudden appearance. “Ah, it’s my mother. I can feel her emotional state from here.”

“Is she being teased by Tobias or Gregory again?” Daniel asked.

Thorax nodded. “Looks like it’s coming from Miss Dengal this time,” he said. “Mr. Graystone is sitting alone right now.”

Megan closed her eyes with a small smile of her own as the two continued talking. She, too, had noticed the way that Gregory and Tobias would tease the newly transformed changeling queen, only for her to act embarrassed and, in Megan’s opinion, rather cute. She had even made chirping noises similar to those of crickets whenever she was extremely embarrassed, much to her apparent chagrin as this elicited more teasing.

Taking a deep breath, she thought back to the past three days after learning that a castle in a city called Canterlot had been razed by Majesty. The two sisters had wanted to immediately return, but Megan and Gregory had both argued against that. They all needed a plan, so they had spent three long and grueling days trying to think of a means to find Majesty and what needed to be done when she was found. Gwaihir and his group of eagles were asked by Gregory if they would be willing to look for Majesty, and a few volunteered to do just that, including Gwaihir himself.

In those three days, much began happening down south. For one, the number of a group known as True Harmonists had apparently doubled in size since the attack. Either that, or they had hidden their true size until that time. Something else that began happening was a mass exodus of nonponies from Equestria, something which began to stall Equestria’s economy since it quickly became clear that the nonponies were being paid less than a livable wage in various factories and other businesses around the nation. This was quite a personal blow to the Equestrian princesses, who vowed that when Majesty was defeated they would take the time to make sure these businesses were suitably punished.

The news of Canterlot Castle’s destruction had apparently been a massive blow to the entire kingdom of Equestria from what Megan had been able to gather. There were mass protests in various cities through the nation, demanding action be taken with more urgency against this ancient alicorn. True Harmonists were calling for radical change, or radical for their nation. Change in policies regarding the treatment of nonponies in their lands. Older ponies were calling for there to be a mustering of forces to search for Majesty and punish her for the destruction of the castle.

Majesty was smart, that was for sure. She was making herself look less like the bad guy and more a deliverer of justice for nonponies. And knowing the old Majesty, it was possible that she truly believed that what she was doing was beneficial.

And it was working, too. The younger generation of Equestria, specifically the True Harmonists, were calling for massive reforms, sharing stories of nonpony abuse at the hooves of ponies. Megan had been horrified to hear some of these stories from the others in the car with her. No pony she knew of from back in her time in Ponyland would ever be so callous. She agreed with the True Harmonists that change was needed, but not with her methods.

She opened her eyes, deciding that she needed some more alone time with Gregory. She excused herself and made her way down to the back of the car where Gregory was sitting, wearing his usual black garments, the futuristic mask sitting in his lap. He was leaning on his elbow, watching the trees go by, His eyes moved slightly, tracking everything easily. Megan sat across from him, placing her hands in her lap and looking out at the beautiful countryside that sprawled out before her. It amazed her that while the kingdom itself was undergoing such a crisis, nature was thriving. They were passing by a small farming town on the shores of a lake, and she thought she caught some foals playing on the beach next to the lake.

She took in a deep breath, then exhaled. “This world is beautiful, isn’t it?” she asked, glancing over at Gregory, who’s bright arctic blue eyes hadn’t glanced in her direction.

He adjusted himself a bit, then replied, “Yes. It’s a shame that this part of it is full of xenophobic ponies.”

She frowned at that. She could understand his less than stellar view of the ponies of this world despite his knowledge of them coming from a children’s television show that didn’t exist on her Earth. Still, he was being overly general, and she decided to speak in defense of them. She did, after all, see herself as a bit like a mother to the ponies regardless of their horrible actions. “Not all of them are like that, you know,” she stated.

“I know,” he said after a beat, “but none of them are in positions of authority, except maybe two, and those are big maybes at best.”

Megan inwardly sighed. She felt the call to help this man thanks to her renewed contact with the Rainbow of Light around her neck, but he wouldn’t make this easy, she knew. Two years of having to be a mercenary in a desert city that sounded like that one city from Star Wars couldn’t have been good for him. She saw one scar across one cheek, and she guessed he had more. Still, she had to try more. “I agree that the two princesses aren’t perfect, but it seems like they’re trying,” she said.

Gregory still didn’t glance her way. “A whole lot of good that did for Jason Wright, don’t you think?”

Megan lowered her eyes. Celestia and Luna had shed some further light on how they had handled Jason’s initial arrival in Equestria. She was disappointed to hear that they had sent him to Ponyville with only enough bits for one night in an inn. Only. One. Night. They both admitted that they had seriously dropped the ball and had trusted too much in Twilight Sparkle. “Gregory…surely you can’t just see that these ponies are all evil.”

“Give me more credit than that,” Gregory scoffed. “I know not all ponies are like this, but from personal experience, a majority are.”

“That’s hardly fair,” Megan said. “You told us that you only ever had dealings with one Equestrian town.”

“Again, that’s a fair point,” Gregory retorted, “but need I remind you of the movement of the True Harmonists. All of their movements have been peaceful, and a majority of them are non-ponies. The opposing side have been mostly ponies.” He exhaled. “There’s a part of me that wonders if Majesty may have the right idea, after all.”

“She is taking the law into her own hooves,” Megan argued despite seeing the argument from Majesty’s side. “Vigilantism is only ever heroic in comic books and movies.”

“Are you Majesty’s J. Jonah Jameson, now?” Gregory asked.

She couldn’t help but snort at that. “No. I don’t have the mustache for that.”

Gregory smirked, then turned to face her. “You’re cute enough as it is. You don’t need a mustache marring that lovely face of yours.”

She blushed at the compliment, but quickly regained focus. “Gregory, I can’t argue that her intentions are good. Still, Majesty is not a queen anymore despite her previous rule over Ponyland.”

“Celestia had these so-called ‘good intentions’ too,” Gregory argued, “but at least Majesty is doing something. Crime doesn’t pay, and Celestia is only doing anything now to maintain her image.” He turned away, eyes dark as he looked at the landscape. “Look out there, Megan. Look at the beautiful landscape.”

Megan did so, trying to see what Gregory was seeing. They had already passed by the town, and were now seeing several farms. “It is beautiful,” she agreed.

“Beautiful,” he began, “and built on false harmony. There is an underlying darkness there. If pushed just so, the ponies would turn on each other like they did before the founding of Equestria. Each tribe would resurrect old hatreds and prejudices without so much as a second thought. Ponies are a herd species. If one of them in a position of authority acts a certain way, say, by ignoring a human, they will all act in a similar fashion, if not worse. They are quick to judge, and their harmony they live by now is more than likely a façade to hide their inner demons.” Slowly, he turned back to her. “The ponies that you knew are not the same as the modern day ones.”

Megan was speechless. She didn’t even know what to say. Gregory here knew things about the modern day ponies that not even she could know in so short of a time. Not only that, but he had seen a television show that depicted ponies during this time. Sure, it was simplified and the real world of Erda wasn’t some simple cartoon like it was in the show he had shown her and her siblings, but he knew things. “You’ve seen this happening in the show?” she asked after a while.

Gregory leaned back. “The series finale of Friendship is Magic shows how easily a few words here and there can have the ponies turn against each other,” he said, crossing his arms. “I don’t have a very high opinion of them, with a few exceptions.” He glanced over at Sunset, who Megan could see was leaning against her bench and dozing comfortably. When she turned back to him, Gregory was not looking back out of the window as he continued. “Of course, since it was a children’s show, they all reunited after some more words. And then there’s other examples from the show about speciesism, even among ponies. Celestia has a school only for gifted unicorns. Most of Canterlot’s nobility are unicorns. They have a clearly racist organization called the Equestrian Education Association who would not have allowed nonponies to get any sort of education in Equestria. Like I said, I can see clearly where Majesty’s coming from. Now I’m torn on whether to be involved in this fight or just let her be.”

“Everything you’ve said is correct,” a new voice said from beside the bench. Megan turned sharply to see a somber looking Celestia standing there, ears flat and eyes haunted. “May I join you?”

“Of course,” Megan said as she scooted aside, giving Celestia room to sit. Gregory was still looking out of the window, barely acknowledging Celestia’s presence.

Celestia sat down and looked at Gregory. “You are correct. The kingdom is far from the paradise that it is meant to be. Even after it was newly founded, we were wary of each other, and even more so of outsiders. We have only grown worse as the centuries have gone by, and I will take responsibility for everything because it happened all under my watch. Still, ponies are not getting a just and fair trial for their actions, and Majesty is acting as a unilateral judge, jury, and executioner. Many innocent ponies could be hurt or even die in the chaos that could erupt.”

“Do you know what could have happened had you made the foolish decision to make Twilight Sparkle your replacement?” Gregory asked suddenly, quickly turning to her. He slowly stood and towered over her as he continued. “An ancient alicorn named Opaline Arcana would have returned and stirred up trouble among the ponies, and in desperation, Twilight would have removed all magic from Equestria. And all because you put a neurotic perfectionist into a position of power way before she was ready. You never even gave her the choice to become an alicorn. You forced it on her.” He sat back down, glaring daggers at Celestia. “You may have held Equestria together for a thousand years of peace, but corruption breeds under a complacent ruler. How will you be better than Majesty at dealing with the darkness coming from within?”

Celestia looked chastened by Gregory’s words and she lowered her head. “I have treated my little ponies more like a lenient mother, I see that now,” she said, “but I can’t let her act as she pleases, above the law.”

Gregory waved his hand in a circular motion. “We could sit here and argue in circles until the cows come marching home,” Gregory responded, “but the true question remains: why should I, or any of us for that matter, act against Majesty? Her methods might seem cruel, but they could also fall under tough love, something you clearly failed to give your ponies. Wasn’t it true that after Nightmare Moon’s banishment, you slunk away into a depression? While clearly understandable, this let the nobles of the time have carte blanche to act and place certain laws into place.”

Celestia flinched at that. “Yes, that was a time I wish I could return to and take back.”

“Yes, well, fortunately for you, Star Swirl’s time traveling spell is gone,” Gregory said, “but your complacency led to the current situation. Hell, it also led to Jason’s death. Who the fuck gives only a day’s worth of money and food to a man? Who the fuck just sends him away to be someone else’s problem? In fact, a lot of your modern day problems have stemmed from sending problems away because you were too lazy to do anything about it. Banishment seems to be the modus operandi here, and that works out soooo well for you. Seriously, putting monsters in Tartarus for acting on their nature? How harmonious of you.”

Megan was shocked to hear this. Majesty may have had her faults, sure, but at the very least, she dealt with crime in her kingdom effectively. She turned to Celestia. “Is that true?”

Celestia took a deep breath. “He’s correct,” she said. “Ponies nowadays have an attitude like that. If they can’t see it, they think it’s not their problem.”

“And just where the hell do you think they learned that from?” Gregory asked. “Certainly not from the damned Tooth Fairy. Equestria has too many skeletons in its proverbial closet right now.”

Celestia straightened and looked at Gregory with what Megan thought was resolve. “I intend to change that.”

“It might be too little, too late,” Gregory said. “Majesty is insanely powerful. She’s clearly moving up to some big finish. She’s openly dismantling your system of government. I’m sure that in her mind, the castle was some kind of symbol for opulence, noble greed and avarice, and such.”

“Not everything is lost,” Megan insisted, pulling out the Rainbow of Light and displaying it to both human and alicorn. “My siblings and I know Majesty. We could talk with her and try and get her to stand down. If that doesn’t work, we might need to use this, of course.”

“The Rainbow of Light…doesn’t that only work on true villains like the Elements of Harmony do?” Gregory asked.

“It also responds somewhat to the wielder’s wishes,” Megan said, “and currently that’s me.”

Gregory opened his mouth, seemed to think better of what he was going to say, then shut it again. Celestia spoke up once more. “Mr. Graystone, my little ponies have done wrong by many in our history,” she admitted, “and I agree something must be done. But what Majesty is doing is going too far.”

“Is it?” Gregory asked, turning back to Celestia. “What about that report you got from Maretime Bay? Didn’t the former mayor of Ponyville somehow get her earth pony abilities back while still staying as a human? Her strength, connection to the earth, all that? And what about one of the stratadons from Dodge City changing into a human? What do you think that means?”

In the couple of days since Gregory had escaped from Majesty’s grasp, a couple reports had come in about certain incidents from those two cities about individuals who were hit by Majesty’s punishments undergoing transformations or regaining some abilities they had lost. These reports indicated that the individuals in question had some sort of revelation, and as such moments after said revelation, they had undergone another transformation, this one slightly more positive. One thing Megan knew about Majesty was that she always left room for many punishments she placed on enemies to be lifted if they were ever truly repentant, whatever that looked like. Majesty had told her about that once shortly after Megan had witnessed a furious Majesty change Tirac.

Megan looked up at Gregory. “Gregory,” she said softly, “playing Robin Hood only works in fiction and adventure stories. This is real life, regardless of what that television show you showed us would say.”

Gregory sighed. Megan wondered if, when they inevitably faced Majesty, her fellow human would have his heart fully into opposing the alicorn. Or perhaps he would simply abandon the fight altogether. He personally had no stakes in this. Sure, he had been abducted by Majesty, and while his experience may have been one where he was treated like an honored guest, he was still kidnapped and held against his will. Who wouldn’t want to get away from that, Megan mused.

“Real life or no,” Gregory began, “neither of you are getting it.” He pointed to Celestia. “You had two years to actually get shit done after Jason Wright’s suicide, but all you really did was provide preferential treatment to your little ponies in Ponyville. Some punishment for a town of xenophobic asswipes, huh? They get to stay together to lick their metaphorical wounds and blame everyone but themselves. And then here comes Majesty, and mere days after she lays down her own punishment, one pony actually understands her own wrongdoings and is granted her magic back, if not her body.”

Celestia stiffened. “I did what I thought was right to keep other ponies from harming those from Ponyville,” she said with a scowl.

Gregory stood slowly, glaring at the alicorn princess. “A true ruler doesn’t make excuses,” he said with an even, dangerous tone, “but instead, they dispense justice no matter who the person is. Even if that person happens to be your family or a close friend.”

“What would you have me do, now?” Celestia asked in just as even a tone, her mane beginning to move faster and the carriage beginning to rapidly heat up as she looked back at Gregory. “The ponies responsible for Jason’s abuse and those who ran you out of Dodge City have gone through too much already. I don’t kick a pony when they’re down.”

“You think Majesty will stop there?” Gregory asked. “Surely, there are others in Equestria who are guilty of something similar. Perhaps a group of ponies committed a hate crime against a gryphon. Maybe there are corrupt politicians or businessponies who have clandestine business practices by hiring non-ponies for less than whatever minimum wage is here, assuming that’s a thing here. Maybe there is even a secret sex slave trade ring in your nation. And don’t try and deny the possibility. Every race, even ponies with their exalted connection to Harmony, have their dark sides. You’d think Jason’s suicide would have made you and Luna spring into action. That’s why Majesty destroyed Canterlot Castle. It’s the center of all political authority in this kingdom. If your nephew Blueblood’s brief depiction in the show and if the noble snobs who live in Canterlot are any indication of how life is at the top of Equestrian society, Majesty may go for them next. There is always corruption under a complacent leadership.”

Celestia’s mane and tail caught fire, her eyes became slits, but it was only for a brief moment before she slumped back down. “Damn it to Tartarus…you’re not wrong…despite how I want to deny it…” she muttered.

“Sister, are you well?” Luna’s calming voice came from behind her as the alicorn came rushing to Celestia’s side.

Celestia slowly stood back up and took a seat next to Megan, who had moved aside so Celestia could sit. Luna sat on the bench where Gregory had been sitting. The human sat back down next to the window, his eyes never leaving Celestia’s face. “I haven’t received such a scolding since I was a filly, and never from someone as young as you,” she said as she looked up at Gregory. “You make excellent points. Furthermore, while I am currently unaware of any criminal organizations in our kingdom, you’re right. I have been negligent. While I hope no such organizations exist, it would be prudent now to look into it.”

Luna’s eyes narrowed. “Unless Majesty gets to them first.”

Lady Tycoon, one of the biggest businessmares in Equestria, sat in the high rise office in Manehattan where her biggest business venture, Ascendal Enterprises, held its headquarters. The middle-aged unicorn mare was taller than most ponies, with a slightly slender build, dark red fur, rust colored mane and tail, the former tied back in a professional ponytail, and golden eyes. Her cutie mark was, coincidentally, of an office chair and desk. She wore a dark blue blouse and a tight black skirt. Despite her age, she looked much younger than her fifty three years would suggest thanks to modern magical procedures that helped her keep her youthful appearance and help her keep her health as well. After all, not as many would do business if the face of the company, her, was old and wrinkled with gray or white in her fur, mane, or tail.

She was looking over the quarterly reports from the average sales that the parent company, which dealt in a few different areas such as grocery, farming equipment and book printing along with a few others, had in the past three months. Comparing their sales with wages and other expenses was showing a drop in profits, a rather record one. She scowled. The last quarter before this one, they had shown some losses as well. If the projected sales decline continued until the end of this second quarter, she would have to make some hard decisions.

“Grant! Come in here!” She shouted to his personal secretary.

A younger gryphon tom came walking in, eyes nervous. “Y-Yes ma’am?” he asked.

Lady gave him an appraising look. The tom was in his early twenties (she didn’t know his actual age as that wasn’t what was really important), had dark crimson fur, a pale teal set of plumage, and brighter teal feathers. His eyes were red and his claws were a cheery orange. His plumage was longer than most and fell down his sides like hair would have. He wore a dark blue blazer over a white button down shirt with a red tie. Lady suppressed her grin at Grant’s current attire. She could enjoy that later. “Has the mail come in, yet?” she asked as she stood and walked around the desk towards him

“I-I was just about to check, ma’am,” Grant said, holding up a set of keys.

“Good tom,” Lady said, almost cooing as she stood in front of him. “I’m expecting a large envelope full of reports from the outlying offices. It should say that it’s from the Big Down franchises at the edge of our Equestrian territory. It should be here today or tomorrow. Bring it to me at once if you see it and don’t let anypony see it, understood?”

“Yes ma’am!” Grant quickly turned and vacated the office, leaving Lady alone once more, but not before the latter gave his posterior a light swat with her tail. She let a small grin escape when she heard Grant yelp slightly.

The unicorn then shut the door, blocking out most of the office noise as she looked back at the desk. Sighing, turned and walked over to her personal coffee pot, realizing too late that the pot was nearly empty. She grew frustrated at Grant’s lack of competence. She would have to…punish…him later tonight, it would seem.

Thankfully, there was some left, and she poured some into her mug, then turned back to her desk. Only to freeze as there was another pony sitting in the chair. Lady had no idea who this pony was, and just stared at her in shock.

The pony was a mare, as far as Lady could see. She had pure white fur, a brilliant blue mane with a lighter streak through it. Both mane and tail were flowing like the princesses did. Which made sense considering that Lady saw that this mare had a horn and feathers. The mare sitting in Lady’s desk was wearing a black blouse and black business skirt while wearing black rimmed glasses. She was carefully looking over the papers on Lady’s desk.

“Such a shame,” the mare said in what sounded like a sincere tone, “business is not going so well, is it Lady?”

“Who the buck are you?” Lady demanded to know, putting her mug down. Turning to the door, she shouted, “Somepony get the building security!”

“I wouldn’t bother with that, Lady Tycoon,” the unknown alicorn mare said as she stood, pushing up her glasses as she turned to face Lady. “Nobody can hear you, and nobody can enter this room unless I say so.”

“Horseshit,” Lady said as she galloped to the door, using her magic to pull on the door handle to get it open. To her horror, though, nothing happened. It was as if the door was made of stone. She tried again with her hooves. The door handle didn’t budge a single inch. A wave of fear washed over the unicorn as she turned to the mare, who stood where she had been earlier with a bemused expression. Lady was beginning to realize just who she had in her office. “Y-You’re her…the pony who destroyed Canterlot Castle…” she said in a trembling tone.

“My card,” Majesty said, bringing a small business card out of her blouse and floating it over to Lady, who shakily took it in her hooves and looked it over.

MAJESTY

THE FIRST OF HER NAME, THE UNBROKEN, QUEEN OF THE FIRST PONIES, BREAKER OF FATE, BRINGER OF TRUE HARMONY AND SLAYER OF ALL DEMONS

The card was written in a crisp, golden script. Nothing else was written on it. Lady looked up at Majesty, who still hadn’t moved. “What do you want here?” Lady asked, her professional manner returning to her, but the fear never going away.

Majesty’s expression darkened. “Let me ask, is it common practice for businessponies like you to sexually harass employees?” Her tone had become a dangerous even one. “Like I just saw you do to your hardworking secretary?”

A shiver went down Lady’s back. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she stammered. Despite years of experience hiding behind her business persona, something about this Majesty was causing her to break.

“You can’t lie to me, my dear pony,” Majesty said. “Sadly, I have seen more abuse of nonponies in this city than most other larger cities.” Majesty sounded genuinely saddened by this.

“Are you here to k-kill me?” Lady asked, her back against the door.

Majesty shook her head, which made Lady relax. But only for a bit as Majesty replied, “I don’t kill, but I do not hesitate to punish those who abuse others. You are the first.” Majesty raised her horn, and it began to glow…

Grant walked into the building’s mail room, a haunted look in his eyes. He felt so dirty. He felt like the filthiest gryphon in existence. The look of hunger in her eyes…it was growing to be too much.

He, his wife, and his daughter had left Gryphonstone to try and find a better life in Equestria after the birth of their daughter Gemma about a year ago, but had come to quickly find that the grass wasn’t greener on the other side. He had gotten a job at a rather prestigious office, but he had soon found that he wasn’t hired because of his résumé, but because he was…he was eye candy.

He was severely underpaid and overworked while being harassed not just by his new boss but by other ponies in the office. He was the only nonpony. He’d been forced to buy nice, expensive suits or risk being fired. They lived from paycheck to paycheck, not able to leave and when he tried to find other work, he ran into excuse after excuse.

His wife…his darling Gerta…she knew about what happened here, but…what could they do? Nopony would hire him, and they couldn’t hire a cubsitter…

He paused, the key in the PO box lock. The world around him became blurry, but he wiped his eyes. “Grover give me strength,” he pleaded as he pulled out the mail from the box.

“My name’s not Grover, but will I do?” a feminine voice asked from the doorway.

Grant jumped in alarm, the mail in his claws going everywhere. He turned to see a tall alicorn mare wearing a business suit standing in the doorway, a warm and kind smile on her face. He backed away in fear. “W-Who are you?” he stammered.

The alicorn raised a hoof calmly. “I’m a friend, Mr. Grant. Just a friend. A friend who can offer you, your wife, and your daughter a much better life.”

Grant then recognized her. Her image had been seen in the newspaper. His eyes widened when he realized who she was. “You’re the pony who destroyed Canterlot!” he exclaimed.

“Only the castle,” the pony clarified.

“I-I didn’t do anything, please don’t hurt my wife or daughter!” he pleaded.

The alicorn’s face saddened. “Mr. Grant, I would never in a million years lay a hoof on you, your wife, or your daughter. You have done nothing wrong.” She took a step forward, but Grant stepped back. She paused, nodded, and sat down. “Mr. Grant, you have suffered terribly at the hooves of my dear ponies, especially the cunt upstairs. But I can promise that she will never be able to hurt you or anyone else again.”

“H-How can I believe you?” Grant asked, heart pounding in his chest.

“Allow me to show you,” the alicorn said, raising her horn. In an instant, they were back in the office. “Look around you.”

Grant did so, and was stunned by what he was seeing. Almost every pony in the office, with some exceptions, were all frozen in place. All of them were statues, all except for their heads. All of the heads moved around and apparently attempting to scream, but nothing came out of them. The pony led him to his boss’ office, where he saw her sitting in her chair, all of her body made of gold except for her head. Her eyes were wide with terror and she was trying to scream something, but nothing came out. “What…what did you do?” he asked.

“I gave them a literal taste of their own medicine,” the alicorn said, pushing her glasses up again. “They all made you feel trapped and unable to speak in a metaphorical sense, so they now get a taste of how you felt.” She turned to Grant. “Abuse of any kind is not something I can stand, and the kind you endured is one of the worst. You didn’t deserve it, and neither do others. Ponies, gryphons, dragons, I don’t care who or what you are. If you are abused, those who abuse you must be punished so they learn their lesson.”

Grant couldn’t believe this. He turned to the alicorn. “I...I have nothing, now…”

“That is not true, Mr. Grant,” she replied. “I can offer you and your family safe haven. You will have plenty of food, your daughter will be cared for properly, and you will be able to make some actual friends who care about you.”

Grant latched onto the only hope he’d had since arriving in this Grover-forsaken country. “C-Can I trust you?” he asked.

“A wise question,” she replied with a sagely nod. “I can show you the land where you and your family can live in peace, joy, and harmony. If you do choose to live with us and then decide later to leave, then nobody would dream of stopping you. I would never hold anyone against their will. Here, let me show you.” She raised her horn again, and what looked like a portal appeared in front of them.

Grant collapsed onto his haunches, the emotions that he had suppressed for the past year boiling over. Before him was an idyllic valley with snow-capped mountains in the distance. There was a lake closer, and he saw the young of various creatures running around, apparently playing a game of tag. He regained his strength, stood, and stepped through the portal, feeling the warm summer sun on his back, inhaling fresh air instead of the dirty smelling air of the city or the nasty smell that came occasionally from the air conditioning. The grass beneath his claws was soft and had a slightly sweet fragrance, but not enough to be overwhelming. There were a couple of houses scattered about and he saw some older creatures of various kinds sitting, talking, laughing, and generally enjoying the company of the other.

“Is…Is this a dream?” he said, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“No, Mr. Grant,” the alicorn said as she stepped up beside him, wings spread as she looked at the vast land before them, “this is your new home. If you want it.”

He turned up to the alicorn. “I need to show my wife!”

“I can take you there,” the alicorn said as she raised her horn.

“Wait!” Grant stopped her, raising a claw.

The alicorn paused and looked quizzically at Grant. “What is it?” she asked.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

She smiled warmly. “My name is Majesty,” she said.

“Thank you…for offering this to me…Majesty…” Grant said, holding back his tears.

“You deserve the happiness that Equestria has denied you,” Majesty said. “Now then, shall we go and show your wife and daughter this land?”

“Yes, please!” Grant said happily.

Majesty nodded, raised her horn, and in a twinkling, the portal, Majesty, and Grant vanished.