The State of the Empire: A Civic Assembly (Open)

[Bellosh]

Princess Cadence looked forward to today very much. This marked the first in what hopefully would become one of many informal civic assemblies on the grounds of the Crystal Palace. She was already known for hosting numerous balls and other events, but none of those sorts of occasions lended themselves well towards discussions of matters involving the governance of the Crystal Empire. Never one for grand speeches, the pink princess always preferred soliciting input from her subjects whenever feasible.

For this first public forum, Princess Cadence thought it would be excellent to have it take place beneath the Palace undercarriage, where the Crystal Heart resided for all to see. As she was but one of two co-rulers of the Crystal Empire, Cadence made arrangements so that her loving husband, Prince Shining Armor, could be freed from his Captain of the Guard commitments so he could also take questions and engage with his subjects. As a matter of fact, this would be the first time in nearly a month that the royal couple was able to do something together other than sleep in the same bed, both ponies being especially busy lately with their other duties to the Empire.

Mid-afternoon arrived, but as the first guests filtered to the immediate area around the rotating Crystal Heart, the pink princess wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Cadence instead waited in a palace foyer, waiting for her magnificent husband to get ready. The alicorn insisted that she and Shining Armor arrive at the assembly side-by-side.....

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[Hippo]

Shining Armor galloped in a haste towards the palace service entrance. Had he approached the crystal castle from the ceremonious front, he would have dodged several acres of pony festivities, games, photo opportunities, and food. Shining probably would have taken a bite of anything he was so famished. But nonetheless, he executed a hurried trot inside to the palace front after throwing on an informal attire of a chest piece. Honestly, he would have just gone blank, but even informal for a prince meant he was wearing something. Still buckling it into place, he ran up next to Cadance, and treated her presence like it wasn't a thing. His wife was here, right on schedule. "Alright, I'm here," Shining panted. "Don't worry. Not going to have to do it without me this time!"

Shining Armor's schedule was a mess. Any chance of making room for relaxation was easily filled with another royal duty, for the tasks that required for someone like Shining to deal with were always more horsepower hours than he himself had available. It was stressful to say the least. Today, he had just got done reviewing the recruits for the next wave of Crystal pony guards. In fact, one of the drill leaders came running behind him this moment as well. Shining looked back and saw him coming. "I said tomorrow! I'm in the middle of something. I told you that if jousting wasn't something that Gold Rush and Vortex Flash were ready for, than they shouldn't be at this stage of training!" Shining scolded the sergeant before the pony indefinitely turned tail and ran away, either by fear or regret, but motivation anyway.

Shining faced forward towards the door with a frown. But then with a small glance towards Cadance smirked positivity that he couldn't help but express. "Sorry I'm late. I swear if I could just get some hoof-to-hoof trainers that I could trust, I wouldn't be wasting so much time in the barracks." Cadance couldn't possibly understand. After all, the pink princess had a professional scheduler, a mare to take care of her fixings, and another to see to it her appointments are all on time. The Princess of the Empire required the forefront of attention to her citizens. Not so much the Prince, although some mares of the kingdom might find him interesting. As for Shining, his schedule was his own. No pony was there to wake him up when he overslept. And no pony had the courage to stand up to him and tell him he was late for his next appointment. Shining was at the mercy of Celestia's sun, and how it spun every so quickly. She was obviously playing a trick on him. Making the days shorter and shorter. Yup, that certainly was something she would do.

"Are we ready to go?" Shining licked his hoof and pushed back his shaggy mane.

​

[RarityDash]

Alexandrite TIlt stood at the ready, the armor of the Crystal Imperial Guard worn proudly as she looked out upon the crowd assembled in the Crystal Hear Plaza under the castle. The Princess was set to address the Empire through an assembly shortly and though her and her husband had yet to arrive, already many crystal ponies were gathered to hear what their leader had to say. That's where Alexandrite came into the picture. As a guard, it was her duty to ensure that the crowd did not get out of hand. Of course, it was unlikely that anything bad might happen. Crystal ponies were generally a civil lot and the princess was very much loved. All the same, security was always an important thing. Alexandrite was more than ready to act at the first sign of trouble.

She was also interested in hearing what things the princess had to say. She had a deep respect for Princess Cadence, and having now spent some time training under Shining Armor she genuinely admired him too. There was still a lot to think about. It all seemed like it had happened so fast, despite the fact that it framed a gulf of one thousand years. Alexa could still recall the face of their old Queen speaking to them in this very plaza before she was deposed. She could just as easily recall how this part of the empire had looked twisted as it were during the reign of that tyrant Sombra. Just thinking about it made her stomach turn, even as it filled her with a sense of pride for what the new Princess had done for them upon their return.

Now there was much to get excited for. An anticipation filled the guardsmare as she looked up at the Crystal Heart and waited for the Princess to grace the assembled there with her presence.

​

Toward the front of the crowd a crystal filly with a black coat sat with a bored expression on her young face. She was Tourmaline Glass, a crystal filly with a plethora of questions and a desperate need for answers. Tourmaline had just recently encountered the ruler of the Empire by chance one day at the Empire library. For the most part, the princess had seemed kind of reluctant to give straight answers to most of Tourmaline's questions then, but she was undeterred. It was only likely that that had simply not been the best place for it. The princess had been there for personal reasons and had surely been quite busy. Today she would apparently be appearing specifically to entertain the questions of her subject.

This sounded promising. Sure, she would likely prove evasive. it was Tourmaline's understanding that public figures always were. All the same, she held on to some optimism. if all went well, she would be able to find at least some interesting information from this event. For now, all she could do was wait for the princess to make her appearance.

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[Mojo]

Tilly Tome

An elderly crystal pony mare galloped into the hall and took a seat. Tilly Tome had tried very hard to be on time, but some last minute patrons of the library kept her busy past closing time. Tilly realized how important meetings like this were for the smooth functioning of the Crystal Empire. It was a laxity of government that had allowed the evil King Sombra to seize power over 1000 years ago. The elderly crystal mare was not about to spurn an appearance by the Crystal Princess and Prince!

"Oh my stars! Isn't this exciting?" Tilly Tome whispered to Alexander and Tourmalane, whom the thrilled crystal mare was sitting in between in the audience. "The Crystal Princess's very first State of the Empire address! We are eyewitnesses to HISTORY here! I wish I had one of those camera things I read about to capture this moment with! We simply MUST get more Equestrian technology here in the Empire! Don't the two of you agree?"

[Bellosh]

"Alright, I'm here. Don't worry. Not going to have to do it without me this time! .....Sorry I'm late. I swear if I could just get some hoof-to-hoof trainers that I could trust, I wouldn't be wasting so much time in the barracks."

“Shining, you made it!” It may sound cheesy, but Princess Cadence always flashed a smile upon glimpsing her husband. Here he was, trying to play it cool like always… that always brought amusement to the alicorn, especially when she remembered the wildly different Shining Armor of yesteryear back in the Canterlot Academy.

Cadence would have pecked the stallion of her dreams on the cheek, had he not been pestered by one of his subordinates. The mare silently chuckled, herself having minutes ago to rebuff a surprise request from the representative of Aquellia’s Razorclaw family for an immediate audience. Sorry Prof. Razorclaw, but the princess’s subjects always came first; even before friends and family.

For now though, Cadence satisfied herself with promising her fellow prince that; “Next time I write to Princess Celestia, I’ll ask if she can assign some REA drill instructors to come up and help you train the Crystal Guard.” As things currently stood, progress on integrating the Crystal Guard with the rest of the Royal Equestrian Army was proceeding slowing than expected. Such was royal life.

​

"Are we ready to go?"

Shining shouldn’t really have asked that question. “You’re obviously not,” quipped his wife with a jesting tone; “But I suppose our subjects deserve to see the real you.” Only now did Princess Cadence peck her stallion, letting him know that she didn’t mind Shining’s ill-prepared appearance (he better not dare pull that stunt for their wedding anniversary however). Gently taking a grip of her husband’s hoof so they’d walk hoof-in-hoof, the pink alicorn sweetly beckoned; “Shall we?” Thus did Cadence exited the palace, trotting towards the Crystal Heart for all the assembled ponies to see.

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[Hippo]

Shining gave a quick look of displeasure towards Cadance's small criticism of his look, but relaxed it immediately from the almost instantaneous calming sound of his wife's voice. Throughout their marriage, the split second of being offended to turning soft in realizing that she means for the best was going to be a unit of time that would constantly decrease into nothingness. A vivid look into the future shows the response time practically simultaneous as and older Shining Armor yields to a Cadance who has aged very well.

"Yes." Shining grabbed the hoof of his better half and started slowly walking towards the doors, which were opening and causing all kinds of light adjustments to the ponies' eyes as it reflected off the crystal architecture that littered the land. Shining remembers when holding hoofs and walking was a task and a half. Enough practice with Cadance though and they finally got it down to a second nature. Wouldn't want the Princess and Prince tripping over each other as they walked to get in plain site.

When they reached the edge of the platform, Shining let go of her hoof and gave her space to speak. He smiled regally at all the ponies he could see as the presentation started.

​

[RarityDash]

"Oh my stars! Isn't this exciting? The Crystal Princess's very first State of the Empire address! We are eyewitnesses to HISTORY here! I wish I had one of those camera things I read about to capture this moment with! We simply MUST get more Equestrian technology here in the Empire! Don't the two of you agree?"

Tourmaline looked back at the sound of a quite familiar voice. Considering all the time she spent amongst her books, the librarian at the Crystal Empire Library was probably one of the adult ponies in the empire she was most familiar with. Though it often felt like she had lost touch with things in her advancing age, as adults went she was one of the less insufferable Tourmaline had encountered. She certainly understood the importance books held, which was something few ponies young or old seemed to fully grasp. All the same, Torumaline wasn't really sure how to respond to her words. Was it historic? She supposed it was, but perspective made things hard to understand. In her short life, she had seen the empire conquered by tyranny, cursed to time and then restored to its once glory. Some silly little speech by the new ruler now hardly seemed to be so important.

"I must say I'm intrigued," Tourmaline said in a low voice. "Even if I cannot as of yet know how truly significant all of this shall be..."

​

Alexandrite, meanwhile, happened to be making a rounds around the crystal heart, ensuring that the audience stayed under control as the event got set to begin when she heard Tilly's comments. She knew the librarian well enough, being a pony who enjoyed a good book every once in a while. She shook her head at the thought and decided to speak up.

"I cannot say I quite fathom the fixation so many of us have found with the unusual new toys that have been trickling into our empire, Ms. Tome. We have proud and beautiful traditions here in this land, and I do believe we should do our best not to forget as much, even in the face of so many new distractions," Alexandrite said. Perhaps hers was an overly traditionalist way of thinking, but as far as she saw it, it was important to stay proud. Whether under a tyrant or under a benevolent rule, a Crystal Empire where Crystal Ponies had lost their distinct identity was not a place she wanted to find herself ever again.

She didn't have much time to mull on that thought before she heard a murmur through the crowd. Her eyes found the princess and the prince approaching the podium. She nodded and stood at attention, ready to do the job she was here to do.

​

[Mojo]

The excited Tilly Tome listened eagerly to the ponies answering her.

"Miss Tourmaline, what we are witnessing here today is democracy in action!" the elderly Crystal Pony neighed, "you're probably too young to remember what things were like before King Sombra seized control of the Empire. We once had very benevelant, caring rulers who truly valued the thoughts, dreams and opinions of their subjects. The royal rulers would often hold gatherings such as this one to hear our concerns and address them. They treated us with respect and honor, two words that vanished from our land when King Sombra turned us all into... slaves..."

Suddenly, Tilly Tome's body lost a bit of it's shine, but the elderly mare quickly threw off all the bad memories and the luster of her body returned.

"This is why I am so happy to be a part of this! Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor are truly benevelant rulers who do care about the ponies they rule over."

Tilly Tome then turned to Alexandrite.

"Those toys as you call them are bringers of progress to our Empire! After all, the world has changed a lot during the thousand years our nation was exiled. The Princess and Prince have brought a wealth of new technology and knowledge to our Empire. Where would we be today had not the ancient Crystal Pony inventor Hippodrome discovered the wheel? I believe we Crystal Ponies can learn much from our Equestria sister and brothers and make good use of their advancements in technology and.. HAY! Looks like our glorious leaders are about to speak! HOORAY!!! HOORAY!!!"

The enthusiastic Tilly Tome now leaped up into her seat, standing on her hind legs cheering, waving her front hooves in the air as she cheered and whistled for the rulers of the realm.

[Bellosh]

Princess Cadence remembered the first few times she had to speak as a princess towards a crowd of assembled ponies. Back in those days, she couldn’t believe that she somehow made the grade to be crowded, and that doubt showed itself big time though her obvious uncomfortableness. But Cadence got better with time and practice; nowadays, she felt comfortable that she’d be able to address the public without mucking things up.

For a minute after she stepped onto the platform with the Crystal Heart, Princess Cadence worked the adoring crowd by waving in nearly every direction, her radiant smile visible to all. Once it sounded like the clamor died down just a little, the Crystal Princess began her greetings; “Thank you..... thank you all for coming! It’s always an honor to speak to you admirable ponies.” Cadence refrained from speaking further, waiting for the crowd to hush completely. Some of the onlookers were still cheering quite loudly, especially Ms. Tome of all ponies. Who knew she had such strong vocal cords at her advanced age?

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[Lux]

Heart Healer was running as fast as she could from her home to the central square. Her crystalline coat which was normally shiny was a bit dulled and her mane and tail were also unkempt but she couldn't stop to tidy herself up nor was her looks ever top priority of the nerdy psychologist's mind. She already saw a herd of ponies gathered around the Crystal Heart, something that fascinated Heart's wildest imaginations with the way it responded to emotions, an aspect that she frequently studied and counseled. And look, there was Princess Cadence and Shining Armor, the new co-rulers of the Crystal Empire! She had yet to meet this pair so widely talked about amongst the Crystal Ponies. Now was a chance to meet them face to face.

"Sorry I'm late," she said to no pony while panting as she tried catching her breath, "Never try to read an entire book on Behavioral Modification in one night. I think after reading all one thousand five hundred and sixty three pages I was beginning to see dancing books. It also disrupted my regimented sleep schedule of two four hour periods making me of all the worst things sleep in. So how is everypony?"

***

Diamond Cut upon hearing that there was to be a State of the Empire event began plans for something big, something that he dreamed of doing long before the Empire became lost in time and space and only heightened by the return to the world. For several nights ponies could see some faint lights on in his jewelry store, aptly named Wearable Art, glowing in the back rooms. There his shop was lined with plans like an architect planning a building as he began to shape and adorn what he believed would be his greatest work in his career, perhaps even greater than anything he would even do in the future. There as ponies gathered he stood wearing saddle bags that held his latest creations, ready for the appropriate time to present them.

Nearby Tilly Tome, the resident librarian excitedly heralded the arrival of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor with as much spunk as a filly at her birthday!

"Ah Ms. Tome, I can see that you are quite excited to see our leaders. Admittedly this will be my first time to see them, something that I too am excited about."

[Hippo]

The crowd was wild with enthusiasm. They sure did enjoy seeing their Princess. Almost as much as Shining himself, even if sometimes he was too busy or too tired to express it. This moment was for the ponies of the Empire for the representation they deserved. The Princess was always destined to lead them and Shining was proud to be fused with that in support. He would never let that important bond break. It reminded Shining much like the articles of ancient days when theories about how Equestria was made back when Celestia and Luna began ruling over a land of ponies that were stricken with horrible disharmony and malice. How the early ponies of Equestria must have felt the day the Princesses took control.

Shining made a small wave to the crowd from behind the princess. Enough to acknowledge, but not too much to steal the attention that the Princess deserved. But suddenly, energy from underneath the empires streets started receding towards the castle from all directions, and when the energy came to its vertex at the crystal heart, the crystal heart spun and spun faster as it exploded a large light of energy that covered the castle and then lit the sky above with several colors ranging from everywhere in the spectrum. Yup, these ponies loved their princess. Shining wasn't surprised. He loved her, too. Maybe they should have these addresses more often.

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[Bellosh]

A half-minute went by, and the crowd didn’t get any quieter one bit. Princess Cadence hoped she’d be able to speak again shortly, but she lacked the heart to tell the crystal ponies around her to quiet down. Content to let her audience do its own thing, the alicorn followed her husband’s lead and gave her subjects a more timid wave. It shouldn’t be long now until they run out of energy to cheer.

But before that happened, enough light force from the admiring crowd made its way to the spinning Crystal Heart, causing it to blast out enough magical power to coat everypony in the area with feelings of immense love. As before when this magnificent event occurred, Princess Cadence basked in the Heart’s glow, subjecting herself to every bit of light that passed through her body. In only a matter of moments, the alicorn transformed into the true form of a Crystal Princess; a glittering figure with a crystalline coat, an enlarged crown, and a more formal mane style:

​

Not expecting the Crystal Heart to do something like this so soon into an event not intended to be momentous, Cadence looked a bit surprised as she asked those within hearing range; “Does that usually happen every time there’s a public forum here?”

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[Mojo]

"Heart Healer, glad you could make it!" Tilly Tome neighed, "You're just in time, our glorious leader's about to speak!"

Suddenly, Princess Cadence transformed into the Crystal Princess in front of the entire audience. Witnessing this change before her very eyes just made the elderly crystal pony even MORE excited.

"HAY EVERYPONY! DID YOU SEE THAT? THE CRYSTAL PRINCESS IS HERE! ALL HAIL THE CRYSTAL PRINCESS!"

Tilly Tome now bowed in silence before Princess Cadence. She didn't care what everypony else was going to do, she was going to show the leader of the Crystal Empire proper respect!

[Bellosh]

Nopony expressed a willingness to answer Princess Cadence’s question, but it wasn’t that much of an important one. More importantly, the alicorn’s transformation finally quieted the crowd enough to give her a chance to address her subjects without interruption.

“I’m glad you were able to take time out of your busy routines to participate in this civic forum,” Cadence started to speak (thankfully, she scheduled the forum for a Sunday, allowing most crystal ponies to attend); “Since ’m not much of a mare for long speeches, let’s get straight to the point, shall we? For the next few hours, Prince Armor and I are here to listen to all opinions about how you feel the Crystal Empire is doing. With the Equestria Games coming up, now more than ever is a time when we need to get together to discuss what works, and what needs improvement. So, who'd like to be the first pony to get our meeting properly started?”

The Crystal Princess planned on waiting until near the end of this assembly until shooting a couple proposals of her’s towards the crystal ponies. But before that, the Voice of the People needed to be heard.

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[Lux]

Heart Healer was about to address Tilly Tome's response when suddenly the mare let out a shout that made the pink mare's ears ring and could have possibly been heard in all corners of the Crystal Empire! Shaking her head as her hearing returned to normal, the psychologist gazed at the shimmering beauty that was Princess Cadence. Shining Armor was quite a handsome stallion himself. The effect of the Crystal Heart washing over the crowd filled Heart Healer with a sense of love and joy. Being that all crystal ponies could feel other pony's emotions, the psychologist was no stranger to different feelings. Most of them sadly started out as negative like sadness and uncertainty but it brought great joy when a patient's life and emotions were turned around. But feeling this pure of love and joy was a sensation like no other, one that she would remember for a long while.

"Err... yes Ms. Tome. It is nice to see Princess Cadence and Shining Armor here. I admit that since the Crystal Empire and we ponies have been saved that fateful day I have not seen much of the two. I know they are busy but I am glad that we are able to be here and hear about the state of our home."

With the brief speech made by Princess Cadence, the meeting was opened to the masses. The mare thought about what she would like to say about the Crystal Empire and the ponies that lived there, not knowing if such a chance would be given for some time. Finally she came to an idea, something she had in mind for some time.

"Princess Cadence," she said raising her voice slightly over the crowd, "I am Heart Healer, a psychologist this fair Empire. Let me be first to say that it is an honor to have you and your husband Shining Armor as rulers and the many improvements to our lives that you helped to make. As a psychologist I am concerned about the mental and emotional state of a pony, having dealt with their grandest dreams and their most terrible fears. My question is actually two fold. The first relates to those ponies who are not Crystal Ponies. Admittedly I have not had the chance to venture beyond the borders of the Empire and have only seen a few who are from the rest of Equestria. My question is: Are ponies outside of the border generally more or less happy and satisfied with their lives than here? The second question is rather a more personal one, perhaps advice given between ponies who share in promotion happiness like you and I. We both know how emotions affect ponies and the triumphs and trials we experience and both of use have seen the devastating effect that a certain stallion that i dare not utter his name has done. My question is what would be your best advice to somepony like myself in helping those who are confused or sad?"

[Hippo]

After the explosion, Cadance seemed surprised, just as she was the first few times it happened when she became the princess of the realm. And then she asked everyone like they would have the guts to answer to exactly how often they reacted like that. "The only time I've ever seen it is when you're talking to them, Cadance." Shining muttered under his breathe. Cadance would hear it she was able to block out all of the noise from the crowd.

As Cadance addressed the ponies with questions on new business, Shining felt it an interesting exchange as it didn't seem like most of the ponies were immediately comfortable with the way the Princess was addressing them. They loved her dearly, but most of them didn't know how to respond. Shining went ahead and got into the business and stepped forward. "Crystal ponies, Princess Cadance and I don't want to lead over you, we want to lead among you. We want to talk to you on a personal level. So if there is anything you want to talk about, please don't feel shy. And in a moment, I think we'll even turn this into a mingling session with snacks and drinks."

Shining looked nervously at Cadance and whispered. "There are snacks, right?"

A pony finally spoke up, and their topic was of psychological effects from a not-so-distant past. Shining nodded. "Yes, it would be a good idea to do something that helps remove whatever alienation anypony feels here. We are a comonwealth to the rest of Equestria, and everyone should have the freedom to travel like anyone else. Just as soon as we get some of the boring beauricratic stuff out of the way." Shining smiled at Cadance as if she had something to add.

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[RarityDash]

"Miss Tourmaline, what we are witnessing here today is democracy in action! you're probably too young to remember what things were like before King Sombra seized control of the Empire. We once had very benevelant, caring rulers who truly valued the thoughts, dreams and opinions of their subjects. The royal rulers would often hold gatherings such as this one to hear our concerns and address them. They treated us with respect and honor, two words that vanished from our land when King Sombra turned us all into... slaves... This is why I am so happy to be a part of this! Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor are truly benevelant rulers who do care about the ponies they rule over."

Tourmaline grimaced slightly and sighed. Ms. Tome did have the unfortunate of really treating her like an ignorant child sometimes. It was unfortunate, though she supposed understandable. Truth be told, she did not exactly recall very much of the time before Sombra's rule. She was quite young at the time, after all. She could vividly recall Sombra's reign, however, and at the very well was aware to know that that was not the way of things in tradition. Indeed, she actually likely knew more on the subject of the history of the empire than many of the ponies assembled there. She had of course read many volumes on the subject.

Whatever the case, she didn't entirely get it. Sure, the return to freedom after Sombra's tyrannical reign would undoubtedly add to the allure of an event like this, but it still was hardly a very meaningful thing as she saw it. The empire was not a true democracy, after all. The power was in the princess, who was herself imposed on them by a foreign power. It was kind of interesting to observe what passed as a happy circumstance for adults after being shown darkness. All it took for them to put on smiles and become convinced that they were a part of the system was for their rulers to put on an effectively meaningless little display like this on occasion. Sombra was gone, but to act like this Cadance was a return to the great history of the rulers past was far overselling it. Those times, that empire, they were all as gone as the years they had missed.

Still, Tourmaline wasn't quite prepared to act out. Instead she decided to just stay quiet and watch as the event began. The crowds were really buying into it, enough so that the heart reacted and gave the crystal princess a more proper form. Soon the questions had begun, though at least at first not much of interest to the filly was being asked...

​

Alexandrite was pleased at how the assembly was unfolding. It was good to see the pride and passion brimming over from her compatriots. When the heart reacted and gave the princess a crystaline form, she couldn't help but smile. It felt right to her, like the legacy of the old empire had finally been restored and set right. Alexa had a high opinion of Princess Cadance. Not only was she poised and quite beautiful, but her kindness and love for her subjects was immediately apparent. The guardsmare could see just from the fact that this event was happening that she cared and wanted to understand the citizenry's concerns with life.

Heart Healer, a local examiner of matters of the heart and mind, began the forum by asking some good questions. She asked about how life outside the empire compared to their own, and followed it up with a question of how the ponies of the empire might cope with their unfortunate past and the feelings it might have wrought. She was eager to hear what the princess might say, but there was something in the prince's initial reply that kind of stuck out to Alexa and caught her attention. She hadn't intended to say a word. She was not there to take part in the assembly after all, she was a guard stationed there to keep the prince and princess safe and the event in order. All the same, if openness was what was truly sought, perhaps that might extend to her.

"Excuse me for out stepping my place, Your Highness Prince Shining Armor. I realize that I am but a humble servant of this empire and to express myself as I have chosen to flies in the face of what might be expected of one tasked with protecting both you and the empire, such as I," she began in a steady, building voice. "But as you have invited us to speak freely and earnestly this day, I can not help but express some concerns that have lingered with me."

The guardsmare straightened her stance and nodded. "Your words 'to the rest of Equestria' leave me with a certain sense of unease when I hear them. I realize so very much was lost to the twisted hoof of evil and that it is not possible for things to return to the way they once were. The former greatness of our empire, in all of its expansiveness and solidarity however remains vivid in the hearts of so many. We owe a debt to Equestria that can never be paid for what they have restored to us, but all the same, I fear the day when our Empire has lost a sense of itself and has been swallowed up entirely by a foreign ruling power, no matter how much that power has blessed us with."

Alexandrite paused a moment and looked downward, then back up at the prince. "I have great pride in my empire, and though I have travelled to Equestria and find it a pleasant enough land, I worry for what might come if we were to continue down a path of increasingly lessened autonomy. Our rich traditions, our culture, our sense of self, our present way of life... I worry what might become of such things if we were to let ourselves become a mere state of Equestria."

​

[Bellosh]

".....So if there is anything you want to talk about, please don't feel shy. And in a moment, I think we'll even turn this into a mingling session with snacks and drinks. There are snacks, right?"

Snacks and drinks? Shining never mentioned anything about having snacks and drinks earlier, or so Princess Cadence remembered. Why didn’t he suggest anything of this sort while the couple planned the event? Did he realize how much of a scramble it’d be for the palace staff to start catering for the crowd now? Which by the way, would experience disappointment upon discovering that Shining Armor inserted a hoof in his mouth. But anger over this potential gaffe failed to materialize itself inside the Crystal Princess’s mind. Rolling with the new monkey wrench, Cadence quickly whispered to her husband; “You know the Palace staff always keep the pantries stocked with refreshments. I’ll go ask right now.”

While subtly sending for one of the guards stationed around the Crystal Heart right behind her, Princess Cadence listened in as a local psychologist asked two relatively softball questions. Something about Heart Healer seemed a little familiar, but the pink alicorn could not put her hoof on it right now. She let Shining Armor speak to Ms. Healer while informing the guard of their emergency need. Once he was sent on his way, Cadence fielded the two questions:

“Well first Heart Healer, I’d like to tell you of what I felt when Captain Armor and I first reached the Crystal Empire. As somepony accustomed to seeing lands where happiness always prevailed, and not knowing anything about crystal ponies other than what my mentor remembered about them, I was dumbfounded to find all these dreary ponies who lived in fear, and dared not to smile. I questioned how in the world did these downtrodden ponies managed to spread love around the entire world a thousand years ago?

“But then something remarkable happened. As I struggled to keep You-Know-Who outside this city, you started remembering your histories. All the good, joyous moments in your lives. So when the Crystal Heart standing before us was recovered by my friends, you all unleashed a tremendous power of light that I have never seen anywhere else; not even in Equestria. I can’t say for certain whether ponies here or in Equestria are happier than the other, but that in itself should suggest that both lands are united by a commitment to the happiness and well-being of all.” That was some pretty good impromptu speechwriting thought the pink alicorn.

“As for your other question, I believe another psychologist asked in my Ask Cady column a very same question. I think I even have my responses on me right now, give me a moment.” In fact, Cadence did in fact procure said newspaper on the spot. Clearing her throat, the princess began repeating the relevant parts of her message to “Mind Matters”:

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Make no mistake; the traumas inflicted upon your patients by King Sombra may take many long years before they heal. Even then, the dark memories will never fully go away for many ponies. I know this personally because once in a blue moon, I still end up dreaming about the changeling queen and how she imprisoned me in the crystal mines beneath Canterlot.

Getting back on-topic, remember how King Sombra was defeated? If you immediately say it was because the Crystal Heart was recovered, you’re missing half of the picture. Had my dear friends found the Heart the first thing after they arrived in the Empire, you and your fellow crystal ponies would have not found the light to power the relic. Your spirits needed to be lifted first with the Crystal Faire; through revelry, all of you kindled the will to provide the Crystal Heart with enough life and love to ensure that King Sombra never returned to his throne.

Even though it will be a while until the next Crystal Faire, there is still much you can do to lift up the spirits of those still fighting with the Shadow still in their hearts. Find ways to bond with such patients through any fun activity you can think of. Game nights, book discussion clubs, tea parties; any of these, and much more, can be organized by a single pony. The sky’s the limit!

One of the guards next relayed her concerns over a formal union between Equestria and the Empire. That question was aimed at Shining Armor, and so Cadence confidently left the answer up to her husband. The princess could always step in if she needed to raise an additional point left unaddressed by Shining.

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[Mojo]

Tilly Tome was simply livid with excitement! Not only had the glorious leader of the Crystal Empire given a brilliant speech, she was even asking for questions from the audience! The elderly crystal mare turned to Heart Healer after the mare had asked her question and whispered, "good question, excellent question young mare."

Then Tilly Tome heard other questions and was delighted! This sort of royal interaction was unheard of, even in the days before the era of King Sombra. However, when Alexandrite asked the very serious (and somewhat frightening) question implying that Equestria would take over the Crystal Empire, her facial expression changed to worry. Tilly wanted to lighten the mood again, so she began to think, and think hard, of a good, positive question she could ask the royals. What should she ask them about? More funding for the library? When would Princess Celestia or Luna come for another royal visit? How are preparations going for the upcoming Equestria Games? The elderly crystal mare dismissed all those questions, settling upon asking them a rather personal question instead.

"Princess Cadance, Prince Shining Armor," Tilly Tome began to speak, "I would like to know how you both are settling into your new home here in the Crystal Empire? I believe I can speak for all of the citizens of our realm when I say how grateful we all are that you both proved your love for the Crystal Empire by helping us bring that tyrant King Sombra to a final defeat! But I'd like to know how you are both adjusting to life here in the Empire? I know this realm is much different than what you are both used to in Canterlot."

[Hippo]

Alexandrite freely spoke of her concerns, and she did so directly at Shining Armor, which was something he wasn't particularly used to. More often, words and information came to the princess first, if not for her decision-making but because she's much fairer to look at. But Shining kept composure as a guard he was very familiar with addressed him with a long concern about the traditions of the empire being kept sacred from the rest of Equestria. "Alexandrite, thank you for asking this concern of yours and I appreciate your honesty." Though Shining was secretly surprised by such a doubt coming from someone who is supposed to help uphold the law, it wouldn't be fair to call her out on this now, especially since her emphasized speaking freely. "The Crystal Empire's traditions and way of life will not be affected negatively by the rest of Equestria. Believe me, the ways of life and love and happiness that helps this kingdom become a special place in what is otherwise a frigid north has astonished ponies and embassies all over Equestria and beyond. You have all bared witness to the high influx of tourism the empire has gotten from other pony townships, and as our transportation routes to the empire's core become more and more convenient, so will the rate of incoming traffic.

"But take away that special trait the Empire has with all of its traditions and out way of life. What would tourists come to expect? Sure the empire might be filled with more strangers. But we are no more strangers to them, then they are to us. And deep down inside, we're all ponies anyway.

"Let me ask you. What was it that brought our empire together? Tradition. What was it that kept our hearts ringing, much like Cadance just spoke of? Tradition. What is bringing the Crystal Empire's economy to its feet? Tradition. What is Equestria bringing to us this next season in the form of a nation-wide competition of the games? Tradition. Our city, our empire, our villages all rest on the foundation of tradition. It will never change. Though we may make new traditions, like this one right here with us bringing and address more intimate to its ponies, the old traditions will never fade."

Shining Armor scratched his head. "I'm not too sure we could get rid of the traditions even if we tried." Shining gave a confident smile as a phantom tear rolled down his eye. It wasn't much like Shining to really get beaten up emotionally, but he really did believe in the kingdom, and he wanted his followers to know that.

Shining turned to the question of the castle. "Oh, yes the crystal palace is great home. Though we miss Canterlot, I don't think we'll be wanting to move back anytime soon. And actually, since me and Cadance couldn't possibly use all of it's space with how busy we are outside the palace anyways, we are considering opening more of the halls to the public for access, as a token of our trust in you. Of course, we will still need some security measures in case of impending invasion." Shining chuckled, but then realized what he said might be taken out of context. And he worked nervously hard to correct it. "Not that there is an invasion coming. No threats right now!"

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[Lux]

Heart Healer waited hoping that her questions were not too troublesome for the co-rulers to address. Still they were very important to her profession and her life in the Crystal Empire. Shining Armor gave a brief answer about allowing soon the travel of Crystal Ponies to other lands, a good thing to note for the pink mare for the future. Still travel wasn't her main interest as much as was learning first what the ponies in Equestria were like. Still she nodded in recognition to the Prince's reply and waited for Princess Cadence to speak.

Before this a graudspony asked a very deep and rather disturbing question about the fate of the Emipre and its relationship to Equestria. Although Heart was interested in the culture of other lands, she too didn't want to see the traditions she grew up with disappearing to time as too long they were stiffed but King Sombra. Tilly though helped to lighten the mood by congratulating the mare and asking about how the two new rulers were getting used to their new home.

It was Cadence's turn to address her question, and she admitted that the Crystal Ponies were indeed looking depressed upon their return to the timeline of the present. Heart knew this all to well having to treat many of those who even with Sombra's final defeat were still reeling from bad memories. Her question though could not be answered as admittedly Heart realized that trying to compare the lives of two pony groups wasn't so clear cut. Then came a familiar letter that made Heart Healer remember about what was told to her.

"Oh I remember now. That was a letter that I wrote to you Princess Cadence. Guess it slipped my mind though when I came here. You're right that through activities we can bond together and that can help improve the well being of everypony here. As to how we were so happy those many years ago, I'd say that it was because we were such a close knit community and that although hope seemed delicate we never lost it, not even when he appeared. Anyway, thank you for answering my questions."

She turned and nodded towards Tilly Tome who congratulated her before listening to Shining Armor's speech on tradition and how to hold fast to the old customs while accepting new ones. The prospect of the upcoming Equestria Games greatly interested the mare even though she was by no means an athletic pony. It was just something new like those tourists who ventured from their homes to see this new land.

[Bellosh]

Once Princess Cadence replied to Heart Healer, Shining Armor adequately addressed the issue of the Crystal Empire remaining its unique identity. But there was a couple of things the pink alicorn wanted to add to her husband’s words; “I’d just like to mention also that Equestria itself is a very diverse place, full of regions that appear and sound totally different from one another. In the city I grew up in, Roam, we speak with an accent unlike anything else found in the nation... although you can’t tell anymore from my current voice. Then you’ve got Canterlot, where Princess Celestia rules her kingdom, and that city prides itself as a showcase of the ancient past. Between here and Canterlot, there’s Stalliongrad, a complete reverse where industry and modernity are praised instead. And then there’s the western frontier, where big cities are few and far between out in the desert.

“But for all of their differences, every part of Equestria shares the same values as one another. Values like believing in the power of friendship. Giving our love freely to kindle the light within others. Coming together to courageously overcome any challenge. And understanding that all ponies are stronger through diversity instead of rigid conformity. In time, you’ll all come to see that the values cherished here are no different from the ones also celebrated in Equestria. So if we do formally unite with Equestria as an united country, rest assured that not only will the Crystal Empire still keep its traditions, but that the entire pony race benefits from us preserving our culture for all to enjoy.”

Tilly Tome asked the next question, which didn’t require as long of an answer from the royal couple. Shining was the first to answer, and then Cadence chuckled as she replied; “Like Prince Armor says, it’s finally hard to adjust to the fact that we’ve got an entire palace to ourselves now. But aside from that, living in the Empire itself isn’t much different from our old lives in Canterlot. I suppose if I could wish for just one thing, it would be that Shining and I get to see our friends and loved ones from Equestria. But you know what they say,” Cadence ended her thought on a positive note; “Distance can never come between those that deeply cherish one another.”

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