“I can’t believe we have to do this…”

Cadence smiled tremulously over at her annoyed husband, stretching out a wing to brush along his tense back. As always, it relaxed him quickly, the big, powerfully built unicorn letting out a snort.

“Sorry Cadence, it all just seems pretty.. Barbaric?”

He waved a hoof in front of the pair; Cadence knew what he meant. The throne room was packed with ponies, not much different than most Court days in that respect. What was different, however, was that most present were not Crystal Ponies at all- half a dozen noble families from Canterlot and Cloudsdale, and a burgher from Manehatten. The Crystal Pony nobles had not sent any of their own as a form of protest for the need of all this. The panalopy settled high on the walls; great banners boasting of the deeds of old ponies through heraldic sigils. They were all quite gaudy, even to Cadence’s tastes.

The ponies were not much better. As an accomplished and natural empath, Cadence could feel the self-assured pride and smugness rolling off all of them- that in and of itself was not entirely a deal-breaker, as it spoke to their noble upbringing and could mean a self-confidant pony. But what was underneath the surface, varying between them admittedly, did not help Cadence’s reservations. They were here for her, after all.

This abortive process had started a month prior, when word had leaked to the nobility that Cadence and Shining Armor were looking to begin a herd. As expected, it had caused an uproar. The kingdom was still in the middle of a political row over herd marriages, though in the Empire it had long since been made legal. Cadence had expected to hear the outrage from Equestria. What she had not expected as how fast the nobles would adapt.

Using old Imperial and Equestrian laws and tradition, they had demanded that the couple declare a tournament for the honor of joining their herd, open only to the nobility. Definitely not what Cadence had had in mind, or Shining, but they had little choice in the matter. Calling it off would would bad, and the Empire could not afford to cause a rift with the Equestrian nobility by ignoring them entirely.

‘And so here we are,’ Cadence thought with a suppressed growl, studying the nine contestants again.

There were four Canterlot unicorns, all of them classically trained and well built, but easily the top of the four was Duke White Knight. The same coat color as Shining Armor, but with a coal-black mane, Knight put out an air of regal confidence and charm, which had swooned several of the Crystal Pony servants, who eyed him eagerly from afar. And it did not fool Cadence for a moment. Entitlement and greed had spiked during his introduction to the couple as he looked them and the castle over, as easy to spot for Cadence as a sore. Those golden eyes turned now to Cadence, but she ignore them, moving on.

Behind him stood the four Cloudsale pegasi in attendance, though only two really stood out: the Commanders Sunstreak and Lightning Snap. All were dressed in Equestrian officer uniforms, a well-known weakness of Cadence’s, as was the predator-at-rest air a properly trained and disciplined solder gave off. But even a quick study of their emotions made their intentions plain.

Sunstreak had little affection for Cadence and Shining Armor, beyond the usual lust for somepony based on attractiveness. Duty had his heart locked tight; he had only spoken coldly and automatically, saying what needed to be said to be entered into the tournament. Cadence knew that House Solar Wind had much to gain from their scion winning, and gaining an in to royalty. Not mention an unhealthy, codependent attachment between Sunstreak and the House matriarch off to one side of the Court.

What disturbed Cadence more, however, was the dark-coated, silver-maned stallion behind Sunstreak. Lightning Snap’s eyes had not left Cadence since he entered the throne room, and adoration and love radiated off him in waves. But not in the calm, peaceful pink of her husband, or even the soft spikes of red of those deeply and lustfully attracted to Cadence. But the red-black, roiling tide of obsession, and the need to control. Whether a brewing mental illness, or a truly damaged soul, it was hard to say, but he certainly did not belong at a tournament, or by her side.

“I don’t much like the look of that earth pony, Caddy,” Shining Armor whispered to her, his stoic facade cracking just a sliver.

And neither did Cadence. Unlike the others, no strong emotions stood out in the bulky, fit stallion. He was dressed in a simple dark suit that clashed with his carrot-red mane and brown coat, and stood entirely at ease, gaze sliding over his competition. Cadence could not put a hoof on where her bad feeling was coming from, other than wondering why exactly he as there to begin with…

“I wish we could just call this off,” Cadence muttered, rubbing her eyes, “I’m sorry I brought you into this, Shiny.”

Shining Armor shot her a smirk, tail snapping against her side, ignoring the murmur of the Court.

“Wouldn’t have it-”

The doors to the court opened with a rumble, cutting off conversation in the throne room in sheer surprise. Cadence sat up straight as the herald took his announcing pose. A latecomer?

“Announcing, Baronet Golden Dream and her retinue, hailing from the skies of northern Equestria!” the Crystal Earth Pony called out, unable to keep some surprise out of his deep baritone voice.

The newcomer had the Court in a chattering rumble within moments, the same word or phrase passing from pony to pony.

“Mare.”

A smile slowly grew on Cadence’s muzzle as she studied the mare. Outwardly, the pegasus was not particularly beautiful. Her face was graceful and well-built, framed by wide, amber eyes, but marred by several thin white scars across her cheeks, and one that ran perilously close to her right eye.

‘A duelist,’ she mused inwardly, recognizing the scars that Shining shared in places on his face and neck.

Golden Dream’s coloration was interesting, though. Her coat was a soft golden hue, speaking to her name, while her mane was colt-cut short, and two-tone: an oddly glittering silver and sapphire, showing a recent and close Crystal Pony ancestry. Her wings were sleek and slim- a speedster, much like Twilight’s marefriend, Rainbow Dash. The pegasus was dressed in a simple Equestrian-style blue uniform, with a triple lightning bolt design on her shoulders and on a shield emblem on her chest. It was a familiar design…

“Bolt scum! Traitor!”

Steel rang as dress wing-blades were drawn from their scabbards, echoing in the hall. Sunstreak was stalking towards the mare, wings stretched into a battle-ready position, blades glimmering in the soft pink lighting of the Court. His face was set in offended rage, which boiled off him in waves to Cadence’s sight, while Golden Dream merely glared back, not drawing her own weapons.

“You dare show your face here?!” the commander spat, tail swishing angrily, “You treach-”

“ENOUGH!”

Shining Armor’s roar had been developed and perfected on the training yard and battlefield of the Royal Guard, snapping across the distance from the throne to the angered pegasus like a catapult crack. Violet magic formed into a wall between them, crackling with power.

“You will not break peace in our castle!” Shining snapped angrily, stomping a hoof to the crystal floor, “Sheath your blades, now!”

To his credit, Sunstreak obeyed in an instant, turning to bow to the royals as he slid his blades back into their fine-tooled leather sheaths.

“My apologies, Prince-Consort, Princess Cadenza. But surely you know what this pegasus is?”

“I do, Commander Sunstreak,” Cadence replied loudly, wings lifting- perhaps a little reminder to them that she had once been a pegasus herself, “House Bolt. The old royals of the northern pegasus kingdoms, and later the cities.”

“And banished for being traitors,” Lightning Snap added, bowing almost embarrassingly low, “For supporting Nightmare Moon herself. She cannot be here, my princess.”

Cadence closed her eyes, letting out a slow breath. By law, both pegasi were wrong, the baronet had every right to be here. Celestia and Luna had pardoned all the banished families that had supported Nightmare Moon during the Rebellion, some time ago. Hence why the Bolts could be living in any part of Equestria at all. But seeing one here of all places… Interesting. She turned her soul sight back onto the Bolt.

Golden Dream was nervous; not a crippling fear, but nerves connected more to the two squire-colts behind her, holding her equipment and bags, and dressed in the same livery. Brothers, maybe. Towards the nobles, there was wariness, but not outright hate. Surprising, that. Towards her and Shining Armor, there was nothing but respect. Cadence caught her eye- and smiled at the slight blush that creeped up the mare’s neck. Very interesting.

“You wish to compete for a hoof in my and Shining Armor’s herd, Baronet Dream?”

“I do, Your Grace,” the pegasus replied instantly- her voice was young and had a slight Trottingham accent, maybe in her twenties, “If you and the Prince will allow it.”

Cadence shut out the grumbling of the Court as she peered back at her husband. Shining Armor was studying the mare as well, looking curious. Knowing how he thought, Shining would be looking at her stance, her expression and how she carried herself. After a moment’s thought, he gave an approving nod to his wife, and Cadence smiled warmly. Finally, someone to root for…

“Very well, Golden Dream. Welcome to the Crystal Tournament. Enjoy what we have to offer in the castle, and prepare yourself. Your first match is tomorrow morning.”

Golden Dream let out a shaky breath of relief as she nudged the door open, guiding her brothers Silver Switch and Thunder Clap inside. The Crystal Palace had excellent guest rooms at least; the twins would have to share a bed, but. She was just glad that they had been allowed her. When that pegasus had called her out…

“Woooah!”

“Awesome!”

Golden smiled over at her brothers as they set down her gear and moved to jump onto the bed, while she moved to stare out the room’s window. They had a good view of the Crystal Empire city-state; well planned streets and beautiful buildings, gleaming and shimmering in the eternal spring sun. The recently built tournament grounds were in few as well, empty as of now. Her weapons and armor were under lock and key there, being scrubbed and searched for any spells. Golden was glad for that- this tournament ought to be fair, no magic or hidden enchantments to tilt it in anypony’s favor. She scuffed a hoof sharply.

“What did you think of the Royals, Goldie?” Silver asked softly, sounding… a little worried.

Golden Dream could not blame him. She had forced her parents to wait till they knew if they’d been thrown out or not before coming to the Empire, after all. No one in the family had been sure that their pardon would be held to, especially in the Empire. But…

“Everything I had hoped, so far,” she replied quietly, trying to will her blush away.

Those gorgeous pink eyes…

Ahem. She smoothed back her mane a few times before turning to her brothers, ignoring their grins.

“So far I… I like them,” she managed, flexing her wings, “They seem fair, at least for now. We’ll see more as the tournament goes. When I win, well… w-we’ll see what happens.”

And Golden Dream was going to win. She was certain of that. The pegasus rolled her shoulders, feeling the well-defined muscles of her shoulders and back rippling. Commander Sunstreak and the Duke looked like they’d be some tough opponents- unicorns always were- but the Earth Pony was an unknown variable. He looked strong, though could just be a thug. Mm.

“Did the gifts make it?” she asked Thunder suddenly, but relaxed at his sure grin and nod as he set out the pack.

Golden Dream had been trained in two things since she was old enough to hold the tools- smithing, and fighting. Smithing had been partly the reason why the exiled House Bolt still had any money at all: they had always been a household of industry, and their smithy back home churned out a mix of iron, copper, and silver goods for the local market. Golden had been trained in the working of all those metals- indeed, she and her father had created all of her gear themselves. She could firmly trust in their work.

But she alone had made the gifts for the Royals. They were her masterworks; taken quite alot of time, indeed. But she was certain that the Prince and Princess would love them. She gently patted the pack with a hoof before setting it back to the ground, closing her eyes as she centered herself.

‘Goddess of Love, guide my hoof… this is going to be a long week.’

Let me all know what you think!