April 5th, 1001 Domina Solaria

“Couldn't help but make the place look like home, huh?”

Princess Twilight Sparkle briefly looks up from the veritable hurricane of paper surrounding her. She hadn’t bothered to examine the intricately detailed maps pinned to every wall of the commandeered captain's cabin, or the volumes on Equestria’s neighboring cultures. It does remind her of the Golden Oak’s walls, and how much she misses them. She’d probably be madder at the comparison if it wasn’t so on the muzzle.

Standing in the doorway is her herd’s ‘stallion’, the only human in Equestria, Prince-Consort Doug Apple. The rising sun glints off his ceremonial armor, polished cobalts and radiant oranges complementing his bright expression. If only she felt the same.

“You destroyed my home,” she replies, a touch of her exasperation seeping through as she glances outside through the porthole.

Much of the hustle and bustle around Canterlot has died off, leaving only a swarm of black spots staining an otherwise pristine sky. Colorful specks scurry among the abandoned remains of her Festival of Friendship, the nobles desperately trying to salvage the situation. Trixie, Starlight Glimmer and the seven fillies and single colt of the herd have paused in their efforts to keep everypony’s spirits up, congregating close to the departing airship and waving. A dejected sigh replaces her friendly smile as the glance turns into a long stare, the papers she was examining forming neat stacks as her raspberry aura snuffs out. She’d miss them, even Trixie, but the other mares in the herd would miss them even more.

His face falls for a moment, then perks back up in a valiant effort. “In my defense, I built you a castle to replace it. Just slightly less visible.”

Doug’s jovial tone fails to lift her spirits, her head bowing slightly to rest the tip of her muzzle against the thick glass.

“Sorry your party got thrown off track?” Doug tries again as he walks to her side. A gloved hand tussles her ear as he joins her, arm lightly squeezing her barrel. He can’t help but smile, even with the somber mood; with every passing day she gets a little bigger, and it’s hard to tell if that’s because of her alicornication a little over a month ago or his twins growing inside her. He waves at his pack, sorrowful at leaving them, but Klugetown is no place for the overly curious and rambunctious fillies.

Twilight stares at the gloves Rarity made him. Nine marks adorn the knuckles; the ornate sun and moon on his thumbs are the most recent additions, her own on the third finger on his left hand. She fondly remembers the night her mark joined that of her friend’s, barely beating Trixie for the nugatory placement, yet her muzzle remains a tightly pursed line.

“It’s just been one thing after another,” Twilight says, her voice heavy. “Discord at the Gala, getting my wings, Sombra and the Crystal Empire, Chrysalis and the changelings, them joining us, Tirek and Discord nearly destroying everything. And now this!” A flash of rage crosses her face as she angrily waves a hoof at the largest of the armored black airships, the pink smear across the bow of the flagship not enough to buoy her spirits. “What right does the Council of Creatures have to blame Princess Celestia for what happened? It’s not like it was her fault!”

“Yeah,” Doug commiserates bitterly. He takes a deep breath as both hands work their way down her long neck, digging into the tense muscles. He relishes the guttural groan, how her wings inch away from her sides, the way her head raises and eyes close in something akin to ecstasy.

“I just want...” Twilight says through gritted teeth, struggling to force the words out. She loves the contact, but hates herself for getting distracted at such a precarious time. She needs to spend this time researching, not… delighting in base pleasures! “A month. A week. A day, an hour! to figure this all out without some disaster looming on the horizon!”

A faint whine signals the starting of their engines. They barely notice the floor lurching, watching Canterlot slowly fall away as Equestria’s finest airship, the Lunaris Priestess, rises into the sky.

The corners of Doug’s mouth twitch. “I’m sure everything will be just fine.” He ducks down to avoid her tail swatting at him as he comes to her withers. His strokes become longer, pausing more, even twisting the mare toward him in the hopes that she might reciprocate. It’s only once a wing stretches out to lightly press against his back does he finally relax, hugging her close. The two rest for a long moment, enjoying the view of the alabaster city until the airship turns to the south. Two quick pats signal the end of his impromptu massage. “Though you’ll need to enjoy your respite after this is all said and done; come ten months from now, none of us will get any rest.”

“Aww, you stopped,” Twilight playfully teases, a quick flick of her head brushing her mane against his arm. She grins as he scratches her coat, a hoof joining his hand and lightly guiding him to her belly. Her eyes close as she leans her head against his chest. She wishes the breastplate wasn’t there, a cold reminder of the dangers of their destination. And the stacks of papers, legal precedent and previous suits that might pertain to their situation. She can feel the anxiety building in her, a fierce desire to dive headfirst into the cases.

“So,” she asks with a slight smirk, forestalling that arduous task a moment longer. “Did you come here just to distract me?“

“Maybe.” Doug leans close, nuzzling his mare, the soft touch turning to a light kiss. He sighs as a knock comes at the door, breaking away to a less conspicuous distance. “Spike?”

“Your dragon is on his way,” Prince Lunaris Blueblood states neutrally as he walks into his quarters, an exquisitely well-tailored yet plain saddlebag on one side. The long, thin bag containing his twin rapiers is on the other. “Apparently he had an issue securing all the papers in his possession when we took off.”

Twilight huffs, sticking her head up to the porthole. A colorful cerulean blur darts this way and that, often disappearing behind the airship.

“But if you’re here,” Doug asks jovially, “then who’s flying this thing?”

“The esteemed Commander Tempest,” Lunaris replies icily, “though the thought of the Princesses fleeing with their tails between their legs is laughably ludicrous. She will likely return to the Roephelle Strompair once we are cruising. Did you want to try your hoof at the helm again?”

“Better than being cramped down here,” Doug says, elbowing Twilight in the side. She returns with a jab of her hind leg, snaking under his faulds to poke his thigh, both of them grinning.

“Good.” Lunaris ignores the banter as he trots to his desk, dropping off the saddlebag. He idly moves one of Twilight’s stacks of paper so the detailed map of Equestria underneath is visible. He taps a hoof at the bottom of the main continent. “Are you familiar with the... city of Klugetown?”

Doug frowns at the contemptuous way Lunaris spits out the word ‘city’. “Not especially, besides that it’s to our south.”

“It’s one of the more prosperous port cities on the southern end of the continent,” Twilight supplies helpfully. She misses the way Lunaris’ eyes roll, still watching Rainbow Dash flit back and forth. “An independent city-state, or principality, that serves as the home of the Council of Creatures. The Storm King provides security and protection at their behest. Not that anycountry would think to conquer it, but there are lots of factions that vie for control of not only the mercantile industries but also manufacturing and...” She grins meekly. “Too much?”

“Far be it for me to criticize the information a Princess deems necessary to provide.” Lunaris’ throat rumbles with an irritated sigh. He stays focused on Doug. “You have your bits on you?”

A sharp clearing of the unicorn’s throat stops Doug’s hand as it goes toward his back pocket. “What?”

“For the duration of your stay in Klugetown-” Lunaris' cobalt aura pulls out of his saddlebag a nondescript brown bag with a cheap, easily broken drawstring. It jingles with the clink of gold. “-This is where you think you keep your bits.”

“‘Kay,” Doug says, a slight hesitation before he takes the bag and loops it around his neck. He frowns slightly as a second bag, exactly the same as the first, follows into the air. “What’s this?”

“Everycreature knows,” Lunaris continues dryly, “that Equestrian nobility keep a second bag of bits to keep their real bag of bits safe.” He passes it over.

It jingles in much the same way as Doug stashes it around an arm. He frowns as a third bag comes out.

“Everycreature knows,” Lunaris drolls out in the same monotone, “that Equestrian nobility keep a third bag of bits to keep their fake bag of bits safe in order to keep their real bag of bits safe.”

Doug’s shoulders slump as he massages against the headache he knows is coming. “How many bags do you have for me?”

Lunaris glances inside his saddlebag. It is packed to the brim. “How many do you think I have for you?”

“Six?” Doug asks hopefully.

“Then I have seven.” Four more identical bags join the two in Doug’s hand. A quill checks off Doug’s name from his list that Lunaris passes to Twilight. "Do try to keep them safe."

“That was fast,” Twilight says happily, filing the completed checklist with dozens of others. She checks a little box on her master checklist. “Want another?”

“Perhaps later,” Lunaris says, walking to the bunk at the back of the room. He lays ponyloaf on top, a disinterested glare at the alicorn invading his cabin before he closes his eyes. “Wake me for dinner; I should not like to miss a meal before I take over.”

“We’ll be flying all night?” Doug asks.

Lunaris nods slightly. “It is not a day’s walk, unless one pushed themself to the brink of exhaustion. And that’s assuming you took the train to the Bone Dry Desert. I pity anypony foalish enough to attempt such a trip.” He shakes his head once before going still, head slumping as a light snore escapes his muzzle.

“Well,” Doug says, tussling Twilight’s mane another time. “I guess I’ll see how everypony else is doing.”

“You do that,” Twilight says, exchanging a light kiss. “Thanks for coming to see me.” She grins as he leaves, returning to her papers with a heavy sigh.

Next Chapter: Ch. 2 - Fortified Legion, Part Two Estimated time remaining: 31 Hours, 59 Minutes