I give a tired sigh as I sit in the trolley coming back from Topaz Falls. Miles and I spent most of the night studying and discussing what happened to that guard. As of now, all we know for sure is that his power has grown tremendously. At least double what he was before, if not more. It's hard to tell due to the fact that he doesn't quite understand how to push his magic that high yet. It seems he feels as if he's still at a normal level of magic, when he has the capacity of more.

Then there are the more physical changes. He doesn't need to breath. With no mouth, I'm also guessing that he won't need to eat either. Even though we were there all night, he didn't require any sleep either. Miles claims that he can see into the other planes as well, but I'm a little lost from that one. My magic is at a high level and I can't do that. But I can tell that he's still beneath me when it comes to raw power. So that leaves the effect coming from the mask.

And that mask. It changed his skin to wood, according to the scanners at least. What benefit would that give him? With such a high level of an enchantment, one would think it would change to some sort of metal or gem. Something that would have a higher capacity for magic. I don't think it's any kind of specialty wood. It's hard to tell really. Miles's computers couldn't register what it more specifically is. It's apparently made of wood, such a surprise.

I tried to ask Miles what sort of practical use this would have, but he wouldn't answer. Said there wasn't enough information to go off of, which is fair enough. But that doesn't put me at ease. My fear is that he'll suggest using an army of masked ponies for wartime use. While I agree that they would be invaluable, I cannot stomach the idea of that many powerful unicorns being subjected to wartime. Having that much power goes to a pony’s head, but add in the physical changes one has to undergo... Even if just one of them turned, the threat would be too much. And that's not even considering what would happen if the enemy figured out how to make these masks. We cannot assume there will not be any unicorns on their side. To do so would simply be foalish. They'll have unicorns just as we'll have griffins.

If we barely have the forces to hold onto our lands, what would happen if they gained one of these Praetorian Guards? It would be devastating. I have to do everything in my power to keep this mask from being mass produced. The hope of a quick victory isn't worth the risk of losing everything, despite what Celestia thinks.

Celestia... I don't know what to make of what she said. On one hoof, I get it. If this could win the war in a shorter amount of time, we should invest in that scenario. But I can't stand by tactics that use ponies as throw away pawns. Even Nightmare Moon wouldn't use tactics like that. Because even she saw the value in keeping all of your pieces on the field. What if we make them, and they don't win the war for us? What if in the time they are active they die off before any meaningful impacts could be made? What then?

This is pointless to debate by myself. Even more so when there is still so little we understand about these masks. Like everypony else, I will have to wait until there is more information before I can make any real judgement. Which is why I'm glad Miles has the picture of the enchantment. This way I won't have to worry about Celestia trying anything behind my back. Who knows what one of these ponies will be capable of, let alone two.

DING-DONG

The trolley comes to a stop and the doors slide open. I set my thoughts aside and allow myself a moment of silence to flight home. It's a relatively short flight, and I enjoy the brief solitude to its fullest. The next week is going to only become more and more hectic, so I'll have to enjoy this while I can.

I let out a sigh as I land before the house and make my way inside, absentmindedly grabbing the mail along the way. Most are letters for Shadow for school, but one is addressed to me. Odd, nopony sends me mail here. I take the letter and open it up, reading it quickly. It would seem that Sugar has made some sort of progress. She won't say what, in fear of somepony catching this before we do, but she urges us to speak with her.

What could be so important that she would need to speak with us immediately? And who does she fear will try to read this message? I should be going to bed to get what little rest I can, but I can't ignore this. I'll just have to try to get extra sleep tomorrow then. I charge my horn and teleport to Sweet Apple Acres. I take a quick look around before walking up to the door and knocking on it. A few moments go by before the doors opens and Rampant steps forward.

"Heya Momma Luna! What brings you here today?" he asks cheerfully.

"I need to speak with Applejack... shouldn't you be at school?" I ask him curiously.

"Nope," he answers simply, turning to walk inside. I go to question him further, but decide to leave it there. I'm sure there's a perfectly logical explanation or him skipping out on school. And if there isn't, it's not really my place to question it. I wait at the door until Applejack comes to talk, though I pause when I see her.

It's not completely obvious, but I can see the stress getting to her. Her eyes are a little red, her mane isn't as well kept as it usually is, and there are some bags starting to form under eyes. She's smiling and trying to look as casual as possible, but I can see right through that.

"Well howdy Luna, what can ah do fer ya?" she asks in her usual manner.

"I... received a letter from Sugar. She needs to talk with us," I tell her cautiously. I can't help but feel a bit conflicted about this. I don't want to cause her undo stress, but she needs to know what's going on.

"Right... uh... can ya give me a minute? Ah need ta see iffin ah can get a baby sitter fer Apple Slice," she tells me nervously.

"Well... how about I just go? You seem to have a lot on your hooves right now-"

"Don't sweat it Luna! Just give me a few minutes and ah'll be right back!" she tells me before shutting the door in my face. I growl in annoyance as I take a step back. That stubborn mare is going to work herself to death one of these days.

As I wait for Applejack I hear the sound of pots and pans clanking together. What is she doing in there? And who is she even going to get to watch Apple Slice? Do we even have the time to wait for her to get somepony? I really don't think we do. And it seems as if Applejack could use the breather... at least in this small way. When I hear a piece of glass shatter I make up my mind. I am going alone and I will come back to talk with her afterwards.

I march my way straight into the house and into the kitchen where I find Applejack. She's trying to throw something together on the stove, but it seems she's letting her stress get the best of her. She keeps making small mistakes because she's trying to do several things at once. I'm sure the soup she had in mind would have been nice, but the black tar in that pot looks diabolical.

"I am going to talk with Sugar," I announce, getting her attention.

"Ah'll be along in a minute-"

"No, you are not," I tell her, getting a scared look from her. "Applejack. I know you are worried, I'm worried too. But you need to calm down. Nopony is going to take your farm. I won't allow it. Miles won't allow it. It's not going to happen, okay?"

"We're losing the farm?" Rampant asks from the table.

"Go to your room," I tell him sternly. He groans in protest, but complies.

"Luna... ah know ya mean well, and ah really appreciate all you've done. But ah can't just sit here and do nothing. If ah'm not sellin' mah apples, it doesn't matter what you and Miles say. We'd go under anyways."

"I understand that. But I need you to trust me right now. I can handle this. All I need you to do is to make sure that when this all blows over that your farm will be ready to resume as usual. Can you do that for me?" She gives me a nervous look before removing her hat and holds it to her chest.

"Ah guess ah really don't have a choice right now, do ah? Sorry fer workin' ya like this Luna. Ah'ma make it up to ya, somehow."

"You're welcome Applejack. And don't worry about that. I am your friend and would have done all of this with or without you asking. It's what we do." She gives me a smile to which I return. I charge my horn and cast the illusion over myself again, becoming Dew Drops again. "Please try to relax Applejack. I have this under control."

"Ah'll try. An thanks again Luna," she tells me as she puts her hat back on.

"And I think your pot is trying to crawl away." I tell her before casting my spell.

FLASH

I take a moment to compose myself as I look up at the brothel before me. Whatever she has to say better be worth all of this stress. I just hope it isn't bad news. We could really use a win right now. I take one final breath before stepping inside the building.

Everything seems the same as the last time I was here. With the exception that the dancer on stage is male this time. I go to the bar and take a seat there, waiting for Sugar to come out. I guess I could just go to her room, but I'd rather wait for her to show up instead. Knowing my luck, I'd see something that I'd really rather not.

"Back already?" the bartender asks when he comes out from the back.

"Yes... well, I-"

"Sugar is talking with somepony upstairs. I'll go let her know you're here... your highness." I can't help but blush when he whispers that last part. I thought Sugar said my secret was safe with her! Who else did she tell!? He leaves before I'm able to ask any questions, so I just sit here and fume. Why is it every day gets a little worse and worse as they go by?

"Everything alright?" some stallion asks as he takes a seat beside me.

"I'm fine, thank you. I'm just waiting for my friend," I tell him, using my tone to tell him to go away. Sadly, he doesn't take the hint.

"Yeah, me too. We were supposed to leave an hour ago but he's still somewhere around here. Actually, we were supposed to leave last night, but he got distracted... and drunk. Names Digit," he sets his beer down and reaches over to shake my hoof. I try to ignore him, but decide against it. I don't really have it in me to be rude to ponies that are just trying to be nice. And he doesn't seem to be mean, for now at least.

"Dew Drop," I tell him, trying to keep it as simple as possible.

"Dew Drop. So... have a fun day planned with your friend?" And so the small talk begins.

"One could say that. What about you? Came here for a fun night and over did it?" I try to use my tone make it as obvious as possible that I'm not actually interested in this stallion. This is just to pass the time.

"Yeah, something like that. We work for a firm in Canterlot doing boring paperwork. Had to come all the way down here to investigate some farm. We got the paperwork we needed, but my friend wanted to have some fun and we ended up spending the night." I turn to look at him with renewed vigor. He's working with the pony that's auditing Applejack! "Like I said, boring."

"Well... not entirely," I lie, turning to give him all of my attention. "I mean; a story is only as interesting as the pony telling it. There has to be something interesting about it, right?" I lean forward to show him that I'm interested. I can't lay it on too thick though. I did spend the beginning of this conversation trying to shake him off.

"Well... I mean, there are a few odd points, here and there," he tells me, returning his attention to his drink. I wait patiently for him to continue. He brought it up, for the most part, so I'm sure he wants to talk about it. And I'm sure he doesn't want to talk about it with his colleague either. I'm just some random mare, what would telling me do?

"Well... alright. So have you heard about that new nation forming right here in Equestria?" he caves, turning back to me to talk.

"I've heard bits and pieces, why?" I ask, letting him fill in the blanks.

"Well, these Terradisians sprouted up right here in our territory and have been annexing land over the past six or so years. But rather than stopping this guy, the Princesses seem to have just allow him to do what he wants!"

"I'm sure there are... extenuating circumstances for that," I try to tell him, my smile wilting slightly. He doesn't seem to notice though.

"Somepony, somewhere, started asking the right questions. It seems the Element of Honesty was brought into their ranks and now they own their land. First they he takes the Elements, then he takes those tracks of land in the Griffin Colonies and wherever else he wants to, and now he's taking the very Bearers themselves!"

"I don't think he's taking them. I mean, from what I've heard around town, it's more like a joint ownership."

"That just sounds like complacency to me. I mean, it was ours before he got here. And now we share it? That doesn't add up to me. But, like you said, there are probably some extenuating circumstances that the public isn't aware of. Who knows, maybe he's sleeping with Celestia." I blanch at that, taking personal offence to it.

"Or Luna, for that matter." He chuckles at that, taking a swig of his drink.

"Eh, sure. But I don't see her having that much pull at the time. Plus, Celestia would be better for his height, but that's just me speaking. Maybe now that she's found that other alicorn she could pull something like that off, but who knows really. All I'm trying to say is that there's something fishy happening in this town and it's starting to garner a lot of attention. My friend and I are only the beginning of it. Just you watch, we may not even be able to call this town Equestrian before long." He downs the last of his drink and slams the bottle down, letting out a loud gasp as he lets the alcohol settle. "Sorry to spout all of that. I just needed to say something to somepony."

"It's alright. If anything it's an interesting take on what's going on around here. By the way, you mentioned somepony started asking the right questions. Do you know who that is? And I only mean to ask to see if they are credible."

"Hm... I don't know them. I'm just the pencil pusher really. You'd have to ask my friend for more information really. But I do know it's not just a single pony... well... it all depends on what issue you're talking about. The embargo on Terradisia, the Apple audit, the land tax sanction, they're all coming from different ponies with similar goals."

"Dew Drop!" Sugar calls from the stairway. She motions for me to follow before running back up. I hesitate to follow her though. He mentioned something that I didn't know about. What land tax sanction? I didn't approve something like that, and I know Celestia didn't. What is he talking about? But, I'm here for a reason. I'll have to inquire about that later.

"Well... Digit. It was an interesting conversation but I must be off now. Do take care," I tell him as I stand and start to leave.

"Of course. Have fun Dew Drop. While you can that is," he tells me before sliding off his stool and heading for the door. I watch him leave for a moment before forcing myself to head upstairs. He brought up a lot of questions that I have no answers for. I don't know where to start with all of this, but it will have to wait until at least after this conversation. But, that's how it goes though, isn't it? Something new always pops up right in the middle of something else. When else would they come up?

When I make it to the top of the stairs Sugar motions for me to come closer, so I do. When I approach her she tells me to keep quiet and takes a look around, making sure the coast is clear.

"He's in my room over there," she whispers to me. "I've tried to convince him to stay longer, but he's determined to leave today. If you have anything to say to him, now's the time."

"I understand...is it okay to walk in?" I ask, hesitating for a moment. She stares at me for a moment before blushing.

"Oh, yeah. Don't worry...it's... uh... it's clean. In there." She avoids my gaze at that. I blush as well from the comment. I don't know how I'm going to thank her for this, even with her slip up before. But we'll talk afterwards. Right now I have to deal with this. Taking one last breath, I stand tall and set my resolve to convince this pony to change his mind.

The room is as familiar as I last saw it, with one exception. There's a stallion standing by the bed packing his suite case. He's an unassuming earth stallion with a grey coat and white hair. He doesn't seem to have noticed me yet, so I make sure to shut the door loudly to get his attention. He looks back at me and smirks, eyeing my completely.

"I swear, you'd think my cock was magical with how hard you all are trying to keep me here," he remarks, turning back to his suite case. I hum in thought in response. How should I go about this? I could drop my spell and try to talk to him directly. But I don't think that would be the wisest choice. If I can't convince him, then I just give him the story about the Queen being in a brothel. I think I'll save that for last and try to convince him as Dew Drop for now.

"Hello, my name is Dew Drop," I use my sweet business tone with him. Attractive, but to the point.

"Index," he tells me smugly. He thinks this is going to work out in a certain manner. I guess I should start out by letting him know why I'm here then.

"I don't work here Index. I'm working for Sweet Apple Acres in accordance to the recent audit of their farm." He stops everything he's doing and turns to me, taking a much more serious look about himself.

"Did the Terradisians send you?" he asks cautiously. Should I go with that? I could use that name to intimidate him, but I don't think it would work with him. I might, but if he's gone this far then why would it now? Then again, he might be thinking that this would never cause him physical harm. Maybe that's the kind of push I need. Let's test the waters and see.

"Who sent me is not relevant. I'm here to discuss the audit you are performing on the farm. Do you have a moment to speak?" No direct answers. Just enough to make him start thinking on his own. He'll do the rest. He takes a look around before nodding to me. I can see his face contort in thought. I have him worried, thinking. I can exploit that.

"Well Index, to put it simply, we believe that the audit on the Apple farm is simply foalish. As I have come to understand it, they have met every standard for Equestrian pest management requirements. And since they were originally a part of Equestria only a few years ago, putting them under such unjust scrutiny is clearly for some personal agenda. Who did you say sent you here?"

"I didn't. I received my orders from Canterlot. Just a memo to take a look into things here. I'm sure you understand the typical procedure." I study his face, trying to learn his tells. He avoids eye contact at times and furrow his brows. If that's his tell, then I can guess it wasn't just some memo. Somepony specifically sent him here, but who?

"Of course. But you have to see where I'm coming from. This is joint territory, Index. It's doesn't fall under foreign lands according the law," I tell him, casually walking around the room. He stays by the bed, watching me cautiously.

"At first I thought so too. But look at how we deal with other foreign territories. The Crystal Empire falls under the same sort of scrutiny as any other nation."

"Yes, but there's a reason for that. They were simply gone from the world. We have to make sure there weren't any diseases hiding with them. They're even in track to becoming consider natural bordered." I counter, getting him to shake his head.

"But we don't know what the Terradisians have done to their crops. Better to be safe than sorry."

"But to audit them so aggressively and without any prior warning from the government? If the Princesses had wanted them to fall under new law, they would have forewarned the Apples." Except we wouldn't have to do that because they've never left Equestrian territory.

"Well, I guess they had a change of heart," he shrugs, looking down and furrowing his brows. "The memo I received was very... deliberate. Maybe the Terradisians did something that finally pushed them too far this time."

"Or maybe somepony has an agenda against the Terradisians." He gives me a stern look. I'm certain that at this point he knows that I'm don't believe anything he's saying. Time to get to the bottom of this. "Who sent you? Why are you really doing this?"

He considers me for a moment before moving towards the door. I watch him go, waiting to see what he does. If he was going to make a run for it I don't think he would leave his brief case. He pokes his head out the door and speaks with somepony out there, I'm assuming Sugar. He closes the door quietly and walks to the bed, keeping a calm tone about himself. Without saying anything he climbs into bed and relaxes onto his back, letting out a sigh as he does so.

"If we're going to have that talk, I'm going to need a drink first. So, before we delve into it, which Terradisian sent you? I've read about them a bit. I doubt the human sent you. He seems more like the warmonger than the politician if you ask me." I hum to thank, inwardly agreeing with him; in only slightly.

"As I said, I'm here for the Apples." I tell him, keeping it vague as possible.

"So Macintosh sent you? Interesting. I didn't think he was capable of thinking outside of farming and killing." I bite my tongue to keep myself from defending Big Mac. I know this is only the opinion of a cold hearted stallion sent to ruin a family. I can't let him get to me like this. "What exactly did they tell you? That they're treason was somehow justified? That they did it to protect others? What's their reason for leaving Equestria?"

"As I understand it, they didn't. They still are citizens and consider this their home, regardless of the flag that flies above-"

"What does the Terradisian flag look like anyway? For a country that's growing so rapidly, they seem to lack some form of universal representation." I bite my tongue a little harder at his outburst. He's trying to mess with me. He's not talking about anything until he decides he wants to. I need to rein this conversation back under my control.

"I'm assuming one of the nobles sent you, but who? How high up are we talking?" he chuckles at that, rolling his head over to look to me.

"Join me on the bed and I'll tell you more," he says, patting the bed space beside him.

"I'm fine over here," I tell him flatly. He chuckles again and goes back to looking to the ceiling, closing his eyes in content. "Perhaps it was Monoculture? She is the head of the Royal Agriculture Ministry. Perhaps she doesn't like the idea of such a large farm joining other factions."

"It might be. You can either wait until my drink gets here or join me here. It's up to you really." I scoff and turn away from him. "I'll give you this though, it's not just one pony. Though it was spear headed by an individual, it took a collective to really get things moving."

"Oh? But what group of ponies would want to persecute such a widely acclaimed family? What would they gain from that?" I ask. He chuckles again, choosing not to answer my question. I let out a small huff of annoyance and resume my pacing. He's stubborn, but I've broken worse. I'll wait until his beverage is here and see what he has to say then.

"Isn't this all strange?" he asks aloud, keeping his eyes shut. "If you had told me six years ago that one of the Bearers of the Elements would turn against her own people just because their sibling wanted to become a warmonger, I'd call you crazy. But, then again, if you told me some power freak crawled its way out of the forest and started taking land freely from the Princesses; I'd send you to the loony bin myself."

"He did not just take land. There were concessions. He was only allowed to keep what he took by providing raw resources as payment." I snap back at him, taking personal offense.

"If you ask me, it was a bad deal." I growl internally at his ignorance. He clearly doesn't know what he's talking about. Or, he thinks he does, but he's basing this all on misinformation and second hoof accounts. Miles has paid nearly two billion bits in metal manufactured goods. And that deal wasn't of his own volition! We forced him to do it! "Who knows, maybe there's more to his payment than what's being presented."

"Perhaps," I say bitterly.

"Maybe he's doing their dirty work for them. Killing off opponents they couldn't face directly. It would make certain actions make more sense. Who knows? Maybe he's just sticking it to the Princesses. Lord knows they could use-"

THUD

I flare my magic and grab him by the throat, lifting him up and against the wall. He tries to struggle free, but stops when I drop my illusion.

"You will silence yourself if you know what's best for you!" I yell at him, adding more pressure to his neck. He tries to gurgle a response, but I don't allow it. "I thought I could speak to you as an honorable pony, but I was clearly mistaken. You will reveal to me who is pressing these charges and you will-"

SNAP

A cold chill runs over my entire form when he goes limp. I stare at him for a moment before I drop my spell, more out of shock than anything else. He falls onto the bed into a heap and stays perfectly still. I stare at him as I try to register what just happened. I wasn't adding that much pressure! I wasn't going to kill him! This wasn't supposed to be how it turned out! I didn't do this!

I did this.

Everything starts to go hazy as I try to wrap my head around the situation. How could this happen? He's dead! I killed an innocent pony! What am I going to do!?

You will do as I tell you. Destroy the body, leave nothing. Embrace your power.

Oh Mother above! Oh Father! What have I done!?

Listen to me! Do as I say! Teleport away. Destroy the body and leave nothing. No one will know of what has happened.

Tears start to roll down my cheek as I stare at the dead pony. Soul Fire is right; I need to get rid of the body. I can sort through this later, first I need to act. I try to think of somewhere to teleport and settle on the Everfree.

FLASH

I need to act quickly. There's no telling who could be lurking around these parts. I use my magic to dig a shallow grave and quickly lay his body inside. I try to think of a way to destroy the body and settle on only one solution. I use soul fire to turn the corpse to ash. As soon as the deed is done I levitate the soil back over and do my best to cover the small mound.

With everything done, I start to think. I just killed this pony, burned his body and tossed him in a shallow, nameless grave. There were ponies in there, ponies that knew we were in there and who I was! This can still lead back to me! What am I going to do about this? Maybe I can make up some story? Should I go back? I don't think I should. I'll just say he offended me and I left. Who would question me? Those that know who I am wouldn't dare go against me. And the others didn't know who I really was. They'd be chasing a ghost. All I need to do is keep quiet and let this all fade away.

I start to walk away when I feel the need to look back at the mound. He deserves a name plate at least. But how am I going to do that without giving myself away? I can't. Not now at least. I will come back at a later time and give him a more proper burial, but for the time being this will have to suffice.

...

...

"I'm sorry," I mutter before leaving.

Theoretical Conquest Round 2

Brony on!