The next few hours go by in a blur. I'm not really sure of the details, but I get Sugar sent home with Steely's body. I'm sure I told her we will cover whatever costs, but that's not what's important right now. I don't know what went wrong though. Even when I would blow through those magical readers it never blew back on me. The machine might go up, sure. But I never thought it could kill someone like that.

Then again, I never had ran it against someone at such dangerous level before. Sure, it works on Luna and Twilight. But their souls are stable. I didn't even think to take that into account. And, if memory serves me right, don't pony souls operate differently? Something like... inverse polarity? Or something like that. I remember Twilight talking about it once. From way back when. How could I have forgotten that?

It should have been the first thing to come to mind! FUCK! I bang my fist against the counter and start to pace around. I can't think straight right now. I know there are few things to do immediately, but I can't think of which to do fist. Should I talk with Luna first? She'd probably help calm me down. But I should talk with Celestia first just so no one else has that happened to them. But is it even something to fear? Maybe it was just a bad reactions to Terradisian technology. If there was someway of getting Equestrian tech up to par, then we could-

NO! No, we can't do that. This curse is clearly too dangerous to try again! There's no way I'm going to allow something like this to happen. Okay, that settles it. I'm heading to Canterlot to speak with Celestia. She needs to know what happened. She's probably going to use this to get something out of me. This is going to be a pain in the ass for sure.

I take my tablet and start downloading what little information I was able to get. Nothing we didn't already know, but it's better than nothing I guess. I make my way out of town and up the tram towards home. I try to keep my mind empty. Just to avoid overthinking things. But, of course I fail at that. I go over every event in obsessive detail as the clatter of the rails fades in the background.

It was such a simple idea really. I should have started with a smaller reader and gone from there. Though, in truth, I did. I ran the portable reader back in my shed. There weren't any problems with that. He didn't voice any concerns or receive any wounds back then. So what was different this time? Was it a capacity issue? Did the magic coming from the portable reader not have enough to cause harm? Or was he trying to hide it all? Was he trying to act tough in front of the Spartan or the Princess? How much of this is to blame on me?

Not that most of that matters right now anyway. What's done is done, and there's no changing it now. All we can do from here on is move forward and try harder next time. Though, I guess there won't be a next time for this. But why is this civilian death weighing so heavily on me? I am a Spartan. This shouldn't matter nearly as much as it does. This is what we were made to do. We sacrifice our humanity so that others don't have to. We aren't suppose to feel guilty for the death of others...

But a human can only do so much.

When the tram nears the exit I notice a pony waiting there. I've never seen her before, but I can tell her type. A plain, level look about them. Her white mane combed neatly to sit in perfect order. Her coal suit sitting neatly pressed against her grey coat. She's here on business. I guess Sugar went straight for litigation. Can't say I blame her though. But that damn pimp of hers works fucking fast.

"Mr. Eremita, I presume." she says as I step out of the tram. I wanted to mouth off, but I stopped myself. Now isn't the time for that. "I take your silence as an indication that you know why I'm here. So let's cut to the case. Murder will not be tolerated, Mr. Eremita. No matter how high up the ranks you may be."

She speaks firmly, every word having been chosen long ago.

"Look, I've barely had time to even start to sort this thing out. Whatever document you need signed or delivered just hand it over and I'll get it back to you as soon as I can." I tell her. I don't have the energy to deal with litigations right now. She doesn't seem to care though. Pulls over her briefcase and meticulously opens it. After flipping though several papers she produces a single scroll for me. Seems pretty light, but I guess that's something to be grateful.

"Try not to look too pleased. This is simply a court summons. I am here with two goals. The first is to deliver this scroll." She pointedly offers the rolled up paper, so I take it. "And my second goal is to make you understand one simple thing. This, is a court order from the Equestrian government. If and when you comply with the summons, it will also be an acknowledgement. By coming to this court order, you will be recognizing the authority of Equestria over the Spartan Regiment. You will comply with our laws and obey our rules. There will be no room for argument. You cannot escape the rule of law, Mr. Eremita. Everypony, and I mean Everypony, is accountable to somepony."

She methodically closes her briefcase and begins to leave. She opens the door but stops when a thought occurs.

"For the sake of the nation you are trying to build, I would suggest you comply, Mr. Eremita. It is better to have allies than enemies. Especially when you have so few true allies."

I don't say anything back to her. There's no point to it really. She came he with a mission, and she accomplished it. I fold up the paper and stuff it in my pocket. I don't need the details right now. This is something that I can deal with tomorrow. Or, at least, when I'm forced to. That seems to be the trend as of late.

I push the aggravating thoughts aside and make my way to the Mooseden. With Tempestive home and me in my human form, I can't use the mico platform at home. Though, the one in Canterlot is closer, so it's not too much of a loss. As I walk through the forest I try to keep my mind occupied on the rest of the day. What to do next, who I should speak with, that sort of thing. When everything starts to get chaotic and messy, it's good to take a moment and step back. Try to see what actually needs attention versus what's just asking for attention. When I start to near the edge of the Everfree I see a familiar face walking towards me.

"Zecora," I greet as we stop before one another. "It's been a minute. How are you?"

"Greetings to you Captain . It is good to see you during these trails. These northern winds sting at the hide, but with so many friends nearby, I think we can set it all aside."

"Yeah, it's getting to be about that time again." It's getting close to be fall again. And the Everfree being the Everfree, of course it starts to turn sooner than other places. Although, that isn't to say the heat waves are done for. I take note of the large bags on her sides brimming with supplies. She sees me looking at them and shrugs to me.

"The winds are not the only terror in the woods Captain. Of this, I know you are certain."

"I understand. But don't hesitate to ask for any help though. We still owe you for destroying your home way back when." It annoys me that she hasn't asked for any form of assistance since I trained with Damian that day. I get the impression that she's holding out for a specific request or some dire situation. But, when it comes to Zecora at least, you can never really be sure.

"I appreciate your offer but for now I must supply my own coffer. And although my stores have no paucity, in time, I may take you on your generosity." I shrug back to her and bid her farewell. She's an odd one, that's for sure. Perfectly content to live alone deep within the forest. Though she's no hermit, that's for sure. I see her frequenting many of Ponyvilles stores often. And she's friendly enough with everyone. At least as far as I can tell.

I eventually make it to Canterlot's market district. Moosden now has a pseudo world hub of mico platforms, so getting here was as easy as standing in two spots. Though to keep any jack-off from walking into Mooseden, we bought a building in the market district to act as a border check point. It's only manned by a few bots, so it's not the most intense of borders.

I have a routine for telling Celestia bad news now. Didn't mean to make one, but when it kept working I saw no reason to stop. First I go to this bakery called Diable Traite and get her an order of their triple chocolate devil cakes. The store next door, Larmes De' Ange, sells this punch that she loves too. When shit really hits the fan though, you have to add some sunflowers and possibly some alcohol spiked ice cream. I don't think I need the latter, but about half the time I'm wrong.

There's a specific way of getting into the castle that I take now. Well, unless I'm invading again that is. I take this way to both avoid the crowds and have an easier time getting in. Not all the guards just let me wonder around the castle as I please. They say it's for security reasons, but I don't believe them. What security threat could possibly threaten me!?

I take the western entrance into the gardens, go through the dinning hall into the servants corridors, jump into one of the side halls and stop and the guards door to the main throne room. I pass a few people here and there. Some stare dumbfounded, while the more veteran offer their greetings to varyingly different levels of accuracy. Most guards salute, the head maid tells me I should have gotten the ice cream, so that's a bust.

I flag the guard at the entrance to the main throne. He waits for the current petitioner to finish before telling me to go in. I take one last deep breath before making my way to Celestia.

"Miles, and here I thought I'd see you sooner." Celestia chastises from her seat as I approach her. She has that arrogant look about her. The kind a parent gets when they catch their child breaking the rules.

I hesitate to respond when I see the Unfamiliar man with her. The Nether Walker. I almost forgot he was here. Almost. I was more hoping he'd fucked off somewhere else so I could speak in private. But I guess today is the day where I don't get the things I want.

"No... I take it you know already." I respond, trying to pry my glare from the Unfamiliar.

"Mr. Miles!" he belts in joy. "Celestia has been kind to me! She was just showing her... eeeeh... justice! Or laws? One in the same, no?" Even without looking at her, I can still see that smug look on her face. As if this is going to change anything.

"Right... Anyway, so you know. I'll be honest, that stupid fucking pimp works fast. I only got the damn summons about an hour ago." When I make it to the base of the throne steps Celestia takes the treats I was hoping to bride her with in her magic. I have to literally bite my tongue when she offers some to the Nether Walker.

I'm not here to make things worse. Just talk it out and leave before something stupid happens!

"Well, when you kill someone in their private property and don't even offer an apology, these things tend to spring up fast." She tells me as she summons some papers. "We think we have an ID, but we're not certain yet. If you could fill in some gaps we could get the remains settled."

"... what are you talking about?" I ask, finally getting her to look at me. "The wife left with the remains... and that was Terradisian property." We stare at each other before we both go wide eyed.

I pull out the summons and give it a quick read. Most of it is bureaucrat nonsense. But the part that draws me in is the allegation. I am wanted for the murder of some guy named Index. Not for the death of Steely Focii.

"Who the fuck is Index?" I blurt out as I read it all over again.

"Wait, what did you think you were in trouble for!?" Celestia demands.

"The masked guy died during screening! Who the fuck is this jackoff! Why are they saying I killed him!?" We stare at each other for a moment as we try to wrap our minds around what's going on. Someone named Index was killed and they think I killed him. And somehow that pimp in Ponyville is connected!? How in the literal fuck is all of this tied together!?

"Where is Luna?" Celestia asks slowly. I think about it for a moment before looking back to the summons.

With a name like Index, there's no doubt he was trying to pry into Sweet Apple acres. He probably was trying to find a way to bury us even deeper. And I'm willing to bet the only remains they found were ash. Otherwise they would have had an easier identification. There's no way I did this while gone or blacked out. When things like that happen to me the mess is huge and obvious. It would never be this small and quiet.

So that only leaves one other person.

But why would Luna do this? She's more methodical than this. Blatant murder? And leaving the body? It makes no sense. At the very least I don't think it was premeditated. Could Luna just kill someone like this and actually pretend like nothing happened...

"Oh Sweet Barbra..."

"Miles," Celestia says again. Snapping me back to the conversation. "Where is Luna?"

"..."

"I imagine she's back in Ponyville. Very well... I'll head there now to speak with her. This isn't going to be easy, but we'll get through this-"

"I killed him." I blurt out. She stops and stares at me for a moment before going wide eyed. She understands. But she's struggling to go along with it all.

"You are lying." The Nether Walker says from the side. We both stare at him as he looks between the both of us. "And you... you want to go along with it? But that is wrong, no? Aren't you both people of justice? And Captain! I took you as an honorable man! How could you so simply-"

"I'm protecting my wife you dumb fucking asshole." He stops and stares at me before looking to Celestia. She looks to me and I nod back to her.

"He is protecting my sister," she tells him plainly. He contemplates this for a moment before looking to me with a quizzical, scared look.

"What are you?" he asks, sounding scared for the first time since I've met him.

"I'm the one doing what must be done. Because it has to be done." I tell him before thinking. I need to get out of here. I need to get back into my own jurisdiction before any of those conniving mud muckers figure out that I'm here.

"Congratulations Celestia." I tell her as I start to leave. "Looks like you'll be leading the Equestrian forces. I'll see you on the battlefield then. And you," I stop at the door and turn back to point out the Nether Walker. "You do as she says. I'm releasing you to her charge. Don't make me regret this."

I go to leave but before I could he appears before me. It throws me off when he uses those powers, but I manage to keep my composure as he stares back at me.

"I know it will mean very little to you, Captain. But... for what it's worth. You are an honorable man. When you see the Kroth on the battlefield, and you see the Torm of purple and gold, tell them to dream on, and dream big. They will understand."

I don't say anything back to him. I don't have the time to, but even if I did there's nothing for me to say. The Unfamiliar are not a people I'll ever have on my side in any sense of the word. Not after what I've done to them. Not after what they've done to me. How could two people even face each other after so much bloodshed and mayhem. No, this is how it is. This is who I am...

But maybe Celestia can succeed in my place.

I escape the city as quickly as I can, taking ever alley and backway I know. I don't think there's anyone following me, but you can never know. Especially with a two faced city like Canterlot. I only passed a few guards here and there. Maybe six total. I've trusted most of these guards in the past. Most of them I even know on a first name bases. But I can't trust them fully. I can only trust my Spartans now. And that's where I need to be now.

I take the mico platform at the top of the mountain that connects to my bedroom. When I flash into the hidden back door of my closest I contemplate destroying the platform. I might just be paranoid. No one knows about this except for family. But should I really take that big of a risk at a time like this?

No. No, I'm overreacting. The people after me want to make a big affair about this. That's why they gave the notice. They don't want to slit my throat at night. They want to bleed me dry in the courtroom and make a spectacle of it all. I can leave it there for now. I might need it later anyway.

I crack open the door and listen. I can hear Luna breathing lightly as she sleeps in the darkened room. The kids must be out somewhere, probably getting into some form of trouble. I step out and walk to the bed, staring down at Luna. Her ethereal hair is waving behind her, placing her peaceful face perfectly in her night sky. A small strand washes over her forehead, so I reach down and brush it back. As I do so I place my hand behind head and gently run my thumb along her jawline. Her silky coat brushes my hand and puts me at ease, if only for a moment.

I'm sure she'll learn about this eventually. And the sooner she knows, the better. For now, in this perfect little moment, all she needs to know is sleep.

Diable Traite = Devils Treats

Larmes De' Ange = Angel Tears