A pegasus with a green coat and scruffy brown mane, wearing a dark blue suit with a light purple tie, trotted quickly down a stone hallway, his hoofsteps echoing off the polished walls and floor. He panted lightly as he hurried; his master would be eager to hear this.

He reached his destination: a set of wide doors. Music could be faintly heard from behind the doors Two burly unicorns stood guard outside the door, passing a smelly cigar back and forth. As the pegasus approached, both guards instinctively reached for their shotguns, but relaxed when they recognized him.

"He's been expecting you, chief," one of the unicorns said through the cigar. "He's waiting inside."

"Thanks," the pegasus nodded, taking a moment to adjust his tie and smooth out his mane. A guard used his magic to push the door open. The pegasus swallowed and entered slowly, with a deep mixture of reverence and fear. The door slowly shut behind him with a soft click that echoed in the dark, cool cavern. A crystalline chandelier hanging from the ceiling cast a strange mixture of dim light and weird shadows upon everything, including on the great painting on the wall to the messenger's right. He couldn't help but glance at it as he passed by, intently examining the terrible scene before him: a rendition of the final judgement, where the damned were cast into Hell for their eternal punishment. Terror and pain was splashed across the face of every sentenced soul as they were dragged off by grinning, red-coated demons.

His master sat at the other end of the room, his back to the door, his pale golden magic dancing across the keys of a great, golden pipe organ: Beetcloven's Fifth Symphony, First Movement. The messenger strode up to stand a few feet behind the unicorn and waited patiently, breathing in the calming scent of the Saddle Arabian tobacco.

The unicorn finished the song and sighed contentedly, breathing out a cloud of cigarette smoke. He turned to face the visitor, his cold black eyes affixing him with an emotionless stare. "Yes, Star Watcher?" Zugzwang asked.

"Master," Star Watcher greeted with a slight bow. "We just received the last shipment of weapons. They'll be distributed to our sleeper agents within the week."

"Gut," Zugzwang nodded, extinguishing the cigarette in a nearby ashtray. "But I did not summon you here for a status report." He looked over the younger pegasus. "Do you know why I made you my apprentice, Star Watcher?"

Star Watcher swallowed. "I don't know, sir."

"Because you have a good mind," Zugzwang replied, looking down at the other pony's cutie mark: a golden telescope imposed upon the Big Dipper constellation. "Your ability to observe patterns and predict future events is an admirable quality, and you are certainly possessed of an intellect higher than most of my assistants." He graced the younger pony with a brief smile. "Of course, your loyalty and your exceptional performance in every aspect counts as well."

Star Watcher smiled. "Thank you, master."

Zugzwang gestured with his head. "Come with me. I want to show you something." He turned and walked up to the pipe organ and pressed some of the keys in sequence, summoning a short arpeggio from the golden pipes. As the last note died away, a hidden door opened in the back wall.

"Have I ever told you the key to winning a game?" Zugzwang asked Star Watcher as he led his apprentice through the open door.

"Yes, sir," Star Watcher answered, entering a room enshrouded in darkness. "You have to be able to control your opponent's movements."

Zugzwang lit up his horn and in an instant, the room was suddenly awash with light. Hundreds of crystals imbedded into the walls began to glow, and Star Watcher saw that the room was much larger than he had originally thought. Images burst into bloom like flowers, floating in the air. Star Watcher gasped as he recognized many of the ponies within the moving, flickering mirages: live feeds from an armada of surveillance crystals.

Rainbow Dash snored on her cloud mattress, the latest Daring Do book laying open next to her. Rarity was hard at work at her sewing machine, stifling a yawn behind her hoof. Fluttershy was curled up beneath her sheets, Angel laying on her belly. Applejack wearily stacked the last of the day's apple harvest in the barn. Twilight, Flash and Starlight sat around the study table, talking about their latest adventure. To Star Watcher's surprise, he even saw Princess Celestia sprawled across a regal golden mattress and Princess Luna writing a long scroll in her study.

"Absolutely," Zugzwang agreed, walking towards the back of the room, his eyes fixed on the largest image. Phillip Finder was curled up beneath the sheets of his bed, his eyes closed peacefully. Zugzwang reached up and stroked the enlarged face with his hoof, as if he longed to reach through the projection and touch the detective's face. "And in order to control the game, one must be able to see the entire board."

Author's Notes:

Oh, surprise, surprise. And not a good one.

But Zugzwang's masterplan will have to wait a little while longer, I'm afraid...