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Dealing with Empires of Gold and Dirt (Closed:Icy)


Blueblood

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Wordsworth Psmith had been uncharacteristically concise when he'd relayed to Ice Storm that Blueblood wanted him to have a little word with her.  A more accurate statement would be that the Prince was requesting that Psmith accompany her back to Canterlot for a personal discussion by the fastest available transport to resolve a political pickle that was souring his domestic life.  Whether that be by train or airship, Psmith would vent his normal loquaciousness in exposition, forgoing any urge to be too flowery, as there was quite a lot to get through.

 

"I hope you will forgive any discursiveness, Comrade Icy."  He'd open, with several packed folders of documents and newspaper clipping held in his magic.  He stifled a yawn as he offered them to Ice if she wanted to peruse them herself.  "His Highness were up late untangling the rather odd history behind this situation.  I'll attempt to cover as much as I can before we arrive, but don't hesitate to interrupt with any questions.  Having gone to the trouble of obtaining facts, I should hate to have any sleepless hours be spent in vain."

 

"To begin with the more flamboyant case, one Norton Breakbeak III, current and only claimant to the titles Emperor of Griffonstone and Lord Protector of Equestria, although in his latest communications he has dropped the latter.  As far as we can tell, he was born on the Clopton Coast, in the far western territories of the Aquellian Republic.  He graduated Cum Laude from the Talonopolis Military Academy and entered the famed Griffonian Marines, achieving the rank of Captain.  At which point, he was put underneath a Major Silverbeak in a routine desert patrol mission that went horribly wrong.  A matter of misnavigation and supply shortages, that left the whole regiment either suffering sunstroke and delirium, or else dead.  Norton seems to have contracted an especially severe case, though he eventually recovered to some form of lucidity, to the news that he had been medically discharged, and that Major Silverbeak would not be court-martialed, officially due to lack of compos mentis testimony against him.  The fact that he was one of the Silverbeaks, high clan in the Republic, of course did not factor in his acquittal whatsoever."  Psmith dealt that statement with the bitterly ironic smile that it deserved.

 

"We surmise at this point that he took his half-pay pension to a place where the cost and standard of living matched his circumstances, one Breakbeak City, at the time a record holder for the dirtiest industrial city on the continent.  We say surmise, because the next documented evidence of his existence is a letter to the Breakbeak Gazette denouncing the corrupt Republic and proclaiming himself the true and rightful Emperor of the Griffons, claiming an ancestry back to the Imperial line of Griffonstone.  As of yet, we can trace no real evidence of such a descent, though the known profligacy of the latter emperors does lend some possibility of some kind of connection.  If those are counted, however, it may well be easier to list griffons of note who cannot claim descent from some branch of the Imperial dynasty.

"His neighbors seem to have demonstrated a remarkable degree of tolerance for his eccentricities, elevating him to the rank of 'colorful local character.'  Interestingly enough, he seems to have parlayed that goodwill into civic action.  He made a great deal about cleaning the streets with soot, often seen scrubbing the facade of his apartment complex, to reveal brick of an unusually picturesque shade of yellow.  This attracted attention, and a small following, with similarly driven businessbirds and residents being given 'tokens of Imperial esteem and approval', which seem to have favored their prosperity.  This revival of civic life and character boosted his popularity in the city, forming the core of the following which accompanied him to Griffonstone, where he apparently aims to repeat his success on an, if anything, more moribund subject."

 

Psmith would have gone on, had he not had to pause to actually yawn.  "Huah, that is his story in brief, though there are any number of details that may prove relevant... I don't know if you or STAR have been keeping an eye on him as well, Comrade Icy?  Up until recently he hardly seemed of any significance, hence the rush at the Foreign Office to piece his story together."

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

 

AS they started to depart from the candy shop, Ice Storm lead Psmith through her casino that was right next door. She then led him up to her office where she always had one of her destroyers on standby in case she needed to get somewhere in a hurry. Straight lines were faster than following the curves of the lands after all. She further led Psmith back into her quarters on the ship, which were no more spacious than any other part of the ship, but they were secure and there was a table. 

 

From there, she listened as Blueblood's assistant spoke of a political manner that had been bugging him as of late. He began to set folders out and she started looking through them as he explained everything. The subject of interest was one, Norton Beakbreak III. She'd seen that name come through the grape vine a few times, but it was never one that landed on her desk. Psmith explained some of the backstory of Beakbreak, and some of it didn't sit well with her, but it made sense. Every creature handled combat differently, and losing an entire squadron... would be rough on any one, but to lose them in a non-combat situation because of... supply shortages? That didn't make any sense, and Silverbeak didn't get court-martialed because of lack of evidence? She made a note to get more information on Silverbeak and open her own investigation into that matter. That kind of negligence made her sick

 

"I've seen Beak's name come through a few times, but nothing that ever really caught our attention. I'm surprised that we never picked up on Silverbeak though, that's usually the kind of thing that we handle. I plan on reopening that investigation myself and see if we can find anything out. That level of negligence is unacceptable and retiring with half a pension to still live comfy after leaking however many to their deaths because they didn't ration properly or they were under supplied to begin with... That being said though, it seems that Griffonstone has been gardening a lot of attention here recently then. I myself was at one point looking to establish a base of operations for STAR there, but no one in their government even replied back to any of my attempts to parley with them. I still have Equestrian permission to build there, but I need Aquellian permission to continue." Ice started. 

 

"As far as the political ramifications go, monarchist regimes are common. Despite an illusion of democracy in some places, we ourselves are a monarchist regime. As long as they are doing things to improve Aquella, then I think that's a good thing. Now, how long that lasts is a different story all together. The biggest problem will be if unrest starts to grow on oneside or another. It's definitely a situation to be monitored. With that in mind though, I do have one very important question though. Do you feel this Beakbreak poses an actual danger to Equestria? As in, do you believe I need to make him a primary target for STAR?" Icy asked while the skiff traveled through the air. 

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"Given that the incident with Major Silverbeak occurred some time prior to the founding of STAR, it would surprise me rather more if you had picked up on it.  One only finds such stuff after the fact by digging through archives and hunting through byzantine mazes of bureaus and boffins to find the one chap who actually was keeping track of this stuff all along.  You're a rich mare, Icy, but your payroll hardly supports hypothetically useful pencil pushers.  That's what government budgets are for."  Pmsith shuffled the papers back into their folder.  "I don't know what else there is to find out, beyond what everyone knows but cannot bring before a court of law.  Rank incompetence covered by nepotism is common enough in the less functional hierarchies of this world.  What is troubling the Foreign Office is that up until recently, the Aquellian Military seemed eminently functional, even exemplary in many respects."

 

He paused in his work, grimacing like a professional lawyer would at hearing an amateur brush over a contested point of legal theory, or a mechanic told to repair 'the doohickey over there.'  "The reason, Comrade Icy, that Aquellia has not responded to requests for your permission to base in Griffonstone is that, technically, they have no legal basis to authorize one way or the other.  Their territorial claim over Griffonstone is... disputed.  I won't go into the full legal details; it has to do over whether the Aquellian Republic's legitimacy derives from being a seccesser state from or a successor state to the old Griffon Empire.  Less controversial is the fact that the residents of Griffonstone have over the years held multiple referendums over joining the Republic, and refused each time; therefore, never ceding any claim to sovereign status.

 

"Ergo, it has made the most sense so far for us to treat Griffonstone as a separate and sovereign state from Aquellia, albeit one which they have some special relationship with.  Given its long-assumed lack of any real resources of economic value generally, that meant not dealing with it very much.  That may well be why the Republic never sent in the frankly trivial amount of troops it would take to occupy the territory; the subsequent efforts of pacifying and developing the region deemed not worth it as long as it was left alone."  He tapped one of the unopened folder with a pencil held in his magic.  "Said assessment, however, may be due for a redo, to say the least.  But before we move on to that, your last question: Is Breakbeak a potential threat to Equestria?  In terms of intentions, Comrade Icy, no indication of outright hostility is evidenced, though like most rulers and patriots he weighs the interests of other countries much lighter than that of his own.  His current ambitions would not be advanced in any way by attacking Equestria.  In terms of capabilities... Well, given that nopony expected him to get as far as he had, we must treat that as a wild card.  The true extent of his network is as yet unmapped, but it is growing.  He has already established quite friendly relations with Tenochtitlan."

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

 

"Just Icy, will be fine," she started with a smile, then continuing. "I suppose then, that it would make sense that I wouldn't have gotten a reply back from Aquellia, but it does open up a bit of confusion to begin with. I was actually in Griffonstone to scout out the area after I had received permission to construct there. Both Twilight and the griffons in Griffonstone directed me to the Republic of Aquellia before proceeding. Unless they were intentionally trying to stonewall me. I could believe that from the griffons themselves, but not from Princess Twilight. She's generally pretty straight forward with her intentions," Ice Storm replied when she heard that Griffonstone was more or less it's own sovereign state. "I suppose it's also quite possible that there was just no one there that was capable of making such a decision on such a manor. I personally still think it would be better than the alternative that was planned there. While I was there, I ran into a dragon that wanted to turn in into a mining city, and excavate the mountain for gems. I know that Griffons love bits, but I could easily see them in a military before I could see them in a mine."

 

"As far as funding goes, I am aware of how much further a government stipend can go. After all, part of STAR is on government payroll now since we are officially recognized as a branch of the Equestrian Navy, Specifically Aeronautic development and combat. I've also used a bit of that funding to try and become something akin to internal affairs, but more for nobility. More or less, we go after those that use their wealth and status to step and grind on others to maintain their wealth and status. We've already taken down two corrupted houses... though one kind of took down itself after dealing with dark magics... but that's neither here nor there," she shuddered remembering what happened in that court room with Harlee, her ex's parents that routinely framed her for crimes, whom Ice herself caught red hoofed doing after claiming Harlee stole a precious gem from a display in Manehatten. The time stamp of the paper making the accusation of the crime overlapped time that Ice had spent with the griffon at her base. It was the first time that she had gone into full internal investigation mode, because she was tired of ponies trying to ruin other's lives.

 

She shook her head though. Now wasn't the time to reminisce about things from the past like that. She also sighed when Psmith told her that there probably wouldn't be much to go on in the Silverbeak case than what was already known. "If it was as long ago as you say it was, then you're probably right. It also wouldn't help the fact that I really wouldn't have any jurisdiction there. STAR is Equestrian Internal affairs, Though I did spearhead the alliance between Neighpon and Equestria. There's still some things that need to be discussed and finalized on that, but hopefully we can start making use of some of that magitech that they have very soon," she spoke again, picking up the folder that he had tapped. She started to cipher through the information as commented that it was possibly time to reevaluated that assessment. He also added that while nopony expected him to gain so much in such a short amount of time, he at the moment has shown no interests in hostility. He added that his current ambitions would not be advanced by attacking Equestria. If he did, I would certainly prevent those advancements, Ice thought to herself. He said that the true extent of his network was unmatched, but it is growing and has established friendly contact with the Tenochtitlan.

 

"That just means that we are potentially dealing with someone that knows exactly what they want, what they are doing, and has a means to execute their objective," Ice said aloud. "Honestly, that makes it sound a bit scary now that I've said that out loud. Reminds me a lot of myself honestly. Before the Crystal Faire, not all that long ago, I was just an ice cream pony. After that , I'll admit, my life got very ambitious, very quickly all in the efforts of keeping something like that from happening again, and EPIC's failure is what led me to make STAR. Too much red tape and bureaucracy in EPIC. The entire point of STAR is to take that red tape and turn it into confetti. But yeah, if I was any sort of intelligence group of another nation, my own rise to power would have been a red flag for me and would have been something I would have put spies on the ground in, just to make sure that it didn't warrant any major reactions. That said, the politics of this part seem pretty cut and dry. We send a few infiltrators to see what Beakbreak is up to, find out how big his network is, and what his actual motives are. Unless we haven't gotten through the whole story yet, which if that is the case then by all means continue," Ice Storm said, looking through the files and making notes on different things that she found important, and dogearing documents that could hold inside into motives, personality, and tendencies to try to create an idea of what this Beakbreak might be trying to do next.

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"From what I understand of the fairly anarchic state of Griffonstone governance, prior to Norton's assumption, or perhaps presumption of power, there may well have been no other authority to appeal to on the ground.  I doubt Twilight was aware of this; her efforts to cut through bureaucratic red tape have often led her to bypass the inputs of those bureaus who actually store information on such places.  His Highness was rather testy about this when we found out."  Wordsworth himself, of course, was the picture of mercurial calm, breezily aloof from infighting.

 

"Which, speaking of said dragon, that brings us closer to the present day.  This dragon, Ridge... how much do you know about him?  The Foreign Office collects more information on political than economic actors; you would have more connections in the business world.  For all we were able to find out, he started his life outside of the dragon lands as... a circus performer, under the stage name 'Puff the Magic Dragon.'"  The unicorn could not resist a quirk of amusement around his lips at the recollection.  "That... was about all we were able to find, actually.  Somehow he goes from stage performer to venture capitalist, with no real indication of where on earth he got his starting capital from.  There were no loans, he seems to have been funding his initial efforts directly, but the wages from the circus hardly seem sufficient to account for all the bits.  And that's just for all the expenses we could track.
"But he managed to land an appointment directly with Princess Twilight to plead his case; apparently Norton 'nationalized' the mining interest, citing exploitation of local labor with profits accruing to foreign interests.  Standard rhetoric for that sort of thing.  He has put the operations under his own control, using the proceeds to fund trading agreements to bring in both necessities into Griffonstone... as well as the distribution of such patronage as would secure his regime with the locals.  Naturally, Ridge brought in a protest to the Princess over this, and Twilight agreed to send an envoy on Equestria's behalf.  Word is she is planning for that envoy to be her old student, Gallus."
  Psmith slid all the papers back into their folders, having more or less exhausted their contents for now.

 

"And that brings us up to date.  His Highness only found out about this due to the fact that he currently serves as the archancellor of the School of Friendship, and thus had to approve the extended absence.  Hence the scramble to figure out the situation, and as I have said, he was none too pleased to be left out of the decision loop.  Not to mention the personal complications this introduced in his domestic situation, but I shall leave that for him to explain himself."

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

 

Ice listened as Psmith elaborated further on the situation at hoof. Now that everything was in front of her, it made sense to suspect that there wasn't a real authority figure present when she was there. In fact, there probably still wasn't much of one in place. He talked about Twilight wanting to bypass the red tape herself but doing so bypassed all of the ponies with information on the matter. "I can't say that I'm not the same way myself. Oftentimes that red tape gets in the way of stopping the one thing that actually matters. As are the case with most spec and black ops missions but I still have access to the Canterlot, EPIC, STAR, REN, and REA databases. So I am usually able to track down any information I want and so far have been pretty good in determining what is an actual threat. Unfortunately my hunt for the Sorceress hit a dead end on her island. Without knowing all the aliases that she goes under, she is a hard pony to find. But she's not why we're here," Ice commented, still a bit sore that she'd lost the trail on the Jade Sorceress. 

 

When the conversation came back to Ridge, Ice nodded. "Yeah, that was about all the information I could find on him myself. His interests in mining checked out, and while I don't know if Griffonstone holds the mining value that he thinks it does, but there wasn't anything to post an intervention with. However I can see the political dilema here now. Beakbreak is claiming the rights to Griffonstone, Ridge has gained a backing from Griffonstone for this mining operation, as well as backing from an Equestrian Envoy... Honestly, I'm a bit irritated by that as well though. That means she gave us both authorization at the same time to use the same area. While I suppose that wouldn't have been too difficult, there just wasn't a lot of space there, and not sure that dividing Griffonstone would be a good idea. Though Gallus is originally from Griffonstone, is he not? Sure he's on Twilight's payroll, but that could make things a bit easier. I can see why Blue was frustrated by all of this. It's very low-key at the moment, but if handled incorrectly, it could in the most dramatic, worst-case-scenario, lead to a war with Griffonstone. That would take some hilariously bad decisions and poor politics to accomplish though. The most likely case would be disgruntled borders. Where do things stand now?" she asked.

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"All we ask is that you understand why a thing exists before you bypass or cut it.  If one cannot answer 'why?', one cannot explain 'why not?'."  Pmsith smoothly replied, more or less out of dutiful responsibility to report and represent the views of his employer.  His own commentary followed, "Time sensitivity and a literal dragon at the doorstep usually suffices as justification, naturally; one simply must account for the waste which comes from haste."

 

Returning to the matter at hand, the secretary once again sighed.  "I don't know if I have fully communicated, Comrade Icy, that Griffonstone and Aquellia are not the same thing?  Ridge had registered his company under Equestrian Tax Law, and received a mining concession from the Aquellian governor, but the actual territory of the mine is claimed by Griffonstone.  This ambiguity of jurisdiction is the whole crux of the conflict, one which unscrupulous actors may exploit for personal gain.  Hence, the diplomatic headache.  For now, if you can manage it on short notice, one or two of your agents could be dispatched as part of Gallus' security and eyes on the ground; we doubt that Princess Twilight will object to such measures.  In any case, Gallus is probably the ideal candidate for this little jaunt, though I can't say he relishes the trip home.  He was quite glad to leave the place, and had no plans to return.  On the other hoof, this does make him something of an ideal judge for how positive Norton's impact on the place actually is, versus what is claimed.  Said proposal has, at any rate, quieted Ridge's demands upon the bureaucracy, so the situation is currently stable.  In so far as the politics of it is concerned, anyway."

 

That was the conclusion of the briefing, which covered the journey.  With a pit stop at the station for Icy to send any telegrams or communications as needed, the young stallion would then escort her to Platinum Manor, just in time for tea.  The parlor was set for the afternoon repast, a pot each of jasmine and blackcurrant blends set to steep, with all the little treats one could desire there, including a stunningly beautiful mare.  "Ah, Icy, good to see you could make it!  I trust Psmith gave you the thorough rundown of the situation?"  Princess Bluebelle smiled from her seat, though Icy would be able to tell that some significant amount of fatigue was affecting her.

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

 

"Okay, I think I understand now. I understood that Griffonstone and Aquellia were different nations, but I initially thought you said that Ridge already had Norton's approval, but now I can see the error, Twilight wouldn't need to send an envoy to Griffonstone if that were the case," Ice Storm started as they departed the train. When Psmith asked if she had any agents to spare to accompany Gallus, she nodded. "If anything only to make sure a safe return, but based on everything so far I don't think we have a leg to stand on here," she spoke, moving over to the communications booth at the Canterlot Station. She made her way inside before approaching one of her agents that she had there. "Corporal Steller, I need you to relay a message to base. I need two Mockingbirds to Platinum Manor for delivery. More instructions upon arrival," she ordered, knowing that the agent would know what she meant. The pegasus in front of her nodded and started sending the message as she left.

 

It wasn't too much longer before the two of them had made it to Blue's manor. By the time the two arrived, it looked like it was just about time for afternoon tea, which also meant, that she would likely be dealing with Princess Bluebelle rather than her male counter part. Sure enough, the mare was sitting at the table and seemed to be waiting for them to arrive. Blue always did have an impeccable sense of timing. She was quite a bit more fatigued than she usually was, and nodded about being given a rundown of the situation. "I have, but unless I'm misunderstanding something, the politics here are pretty cut and dry. At this point, Equestria has nothing to stand on here. If Norton denies the envoy, the Ridge will have to cut his losses. If the lands he wishes to mine are Griffonstone controlled, and Griffonstone is already mining them, then permit or not, there's nothing we can do. It's not within Twilight's liberty to give land away that's not Equestria's to give," Ice stated.

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"Hmm, you think so?"  Bluebelle asked as she poured them both some tea, sounding mildly surprised at Icy's assessment.  "As a matter of domestic politics, the land rights are not within Princess Twilight's writ, but foreign relations must always consider the presence and possibility of... The Final Argument of Kings.  Or Princesses."  Her lips curled in evident distaste for the euphemism for war.  "My main difficulty is this: for taxing purposes, Ridge registered his company as an Equestrian corporation as an Equestrian National.  Which means that Emperor Norton's nationalization technically stole Equestrian property from an Equestrian.  In international law, that can be presented as sufficient fig leaf for a cassus belli.  There's precedent, if Ridge chooses to so lobby for it.  And while I don't wish to profile either merchants or dragons... neither tend to be very forgiving when their property is abstracted from them.

 

"Given how much of an unknown he is, I don't know how good he is at political warmongering, but its never difficult to get certain elements of the populace riled up about this sort of thing if you know the right ponies to serve as mouthpieces.  Ridge seemed satisfied for now with the offer of an envoy from Princess Twilight, but I don't know how long its going to be before he starts seriously moving things to get the military involved... or gets fed up with waiting and hires mercenaries.  Either way, in my official capacities, I have no legal grounds to stop him from doing either, as by the letter of the law, he's trying to simply recover stolen goods."

 

She sighed, leaning back in the chair as she treated herself to some impromptu aromatherapy from the steam from her teacup.  "All that would be problem enough for me; I detest pointless war, especially when I'm in no position to stop it, but my current travails are more domestic.  Norton's rhetoric has captured the sympathies of my wife, Dunnie, and my lack of legal means of supporting him have led her to accuse me of 'Backing a capitalist oppressor of the people against one striving for their liberation.'"

 

A distant noise from somewhere in the manor caused Bluebelle's ears to perk up, but as it was quickly quieted she returned to the conversation.  "Mind you, she and I just had our first foal, little Pax, but that means neither of us are operating under full sleep and a balanced mood.  Nevertheless, while this situation persists, I'm in the doghouse."

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

Ice's brow furrowed a bit as Blue explained the situation a bit more. The more Blue told her, the more confused she became as to why there was even an issue here. She shook her head immediately when she said she had no legal base to support Norton. "Actually, you have all of the legal grounds to stand on. As it's not with in Equestria's rights to give Land that is not ours to give, Equestria also cannot legally tax those lands, and by the letter of the law, Ridge registered his business as an Equestrian National, for land that was not his. At his point I would advise reimbursing his fees, or looking for an alternative plot of land if Griffonstone does not want to split the mining operation and thus the mining profits. It's Griffonston's land, they have the final say on what gets done with it. As far as the final argument of kings goes, if that's the direction that Ridge tries to go, I will lend my aid to Griffonstone, and if he tries anything while he's there my agents that I'm sending with the envoy will immediately detain him," she paused for a moment.

 

"If that's the direction that Twilight wants to go, then she becomes the very thing that I swore to protect Equestria from when I created STAR. She would be sowing the seeds to a pointless war that only benefits greed. One that if STAR takes any part in at all, will be again, to send aid to Griffonstone. I'm not going to let innocents get hurt because a couple of ponies can't control themeselves and behave like adults, which is rich, coming from me. Twilight of all ponies should know that, and I honestly don't see her even attempting that route either. The only way she would do that would be if Norton tipped his claw. Now, on the other hoof, if Norton chooses to be the aggressor in this, and choose to make a bold statement where a simple no would suffice, then at that point I have no problems ordering The Shadow to raze what military they have. Otherwise, by law, Equestria has no hooves to stand on here. This is pretty cut and dry to me. You can't procure stolen property if the property was never in someone's possession to give. Now, another alternative would be, Ridge can keep his registration, and I can keep a look out for mineral rich areas in lands that we are friendly with, such as Whitescar, Long Guo, and Yakyakistan. I would also recommend Neighpon, but I already know that Shiroi will not go for that. She's completely paranoid about others reverse engineering their tech. But yeah, it's Norton's land, not Ridge's if he doesn't want to share, we can't force him to," she finished.

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"While it is true that Equestria cannot tax the land, we could tax the capital."  Bluebelle gave a none-too-happy smile.  "Welcome to the wonderful world of tax law, and why it has specialized accountants.  But that, ultimately, is a side issue."  With a long drink, she emptied her cup and returned it to the saucer.  "As far as your argument goes its correct; provided that Norton is in fact the legitimate government.  Ridge would, and in fact has, argued that Norton Breakbeak is little more than a bandit who has seized control of an area by use of thuggery, bribery, and charisma.  Which isn't exactly the sort of thing one ought to encourage, you know?"

The Princess sighed, brushing back her mane with one hoof.  "I'm just frustrated by this whole situation because, if I'm playing the part of an advocate, I can argue either side rationally enough to take it without burdening my conscience.  If I'm acting as a judge between them, I feel too pressured by personal bias to make a fair judgment.  And if I'm acting like a diplomatic civil servant... I can see little recourse to prevent violence if violence is desired.  I have appealed to law, but there is no court which can compel sovereigns to obey its orders."

 

After rubbing her temples a bit, Bluebelle seemed to relax a little, pouring herself a second cup of tea.  "Really though, I do have to thank you for your offer to balance the forces either way.  Honestly, I just needed somepony to unload these problems onto; at the end of the day I can see where both sides are coming from, and how each could be right or could be wrong.  I just felt that Twilight and I were being pressured to make decisions based on either legal technicalities or class prejudices, rather than on grounds of true wisdom, you know?"

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  • 2 weeks later...

~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

Ice also downed her cup of tea while she listened to Bluebelle talking, and describing the situation. Talking about how she would be ultimately correct if Norton was the legitimate government, rather than, how Ridge is arguing that he's just a bandit that seized power through the use of thuggary, bribery, and charisma. That statement have Ice pause. "Isn't that exactly what Ridge is trying to do though? He sounds exactly like the kind of Nobility that one been using or resources to weed out. I mean, just because founded, built, and organized STAR as a private military organization, doesn't make it any less of an actual military branch now. It's the same as essentially calling me a bandit, when I'm the furthest thing from our. How Norton got his power is irrelevant. The fact of the matter is, he is the leader now," Ice spoke, pouring another cup of tea. 

 

"I, honestly can't see any situation where Ridge wins this. If I were judging right now, based on everything presented, then it's not even a case. There is no authority in the world that has the right to dictate how another country is run. That is how wars get started. Whether a land was conquered, or someone came into power that we didn't like, we can't just say, 'sorry, we don't recognize your authority, so it doesn't count.'" she continued.

 

"Apologies if this isn't the answer you were going for, I just genuinely think the only legal choice in the matter, that Equestria has any bearing over, is to tell Ridge to cut the losses and look elsewhere. And I have no problems presenting that case to Twilight if necessary, if you think she needs to hear it," Ice finished, deep in thought herself of what would become if Twilight made the first move. It would put a scar on Equestria that would never heal, and divide the nation. Ice would not allow STAR to be used on a war that she did not endorse.

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"So... the De Facto power is to be treated as De Jure with full sovereign rights, regardless of the means of ascension used and the existence of disputes?"  Bluebelle tried to sum up the position Ice seemed to present her with, trying to figure out if that argument could fly.  "That's... one way to treat international relations, I suppose.  Possibly a rather good way to ensure international peace; I'm just not sure how we could adopt it without accusations of hypocrisy, given that we are publicly and substantially supporting one side in an ongoing civil war in Whitescar..."

 

With a sigh, the Princess shakes her head, placing her teacup down as she stretches, popping a few joints with a grunt.  "Oy... listen to me talk, as if I was advocating for the war lobby!  Truth be told, I personally quite agree with what you've said, so much so that... well, in my line of work, if somepony comes at you with exactly what you want to hear, that's a reason to suspect a catch somewhere."  She gave a small, apologetic smile to her friend.  "No reflection on you, just... wanted to make sure that I had more solid ground for my advocacy than mere class prejudice and family drama.  I'd thank you to take that case to Princess Twilight, though, as your judgment may be perceived as less biased."

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

"Ah," Ice Storm started when Bluebelle started speaking of the events in Whitescar. "There is a major difference in recognizing someone's authority, and supporting someone's authority. Just because they are a sovereign leader, didn't mean we have to support them. Thus, if a rebellion is justified, it would be acceptable to support the rebellion and provide aid to it as needed, so as long as the proposed leader of the rebellion is one that acts with honor and humility," she continued.

 

"This is especially true if they are victorious, and must recognize that any combatants on the opposing force that have surrender, are to be treated with humility and respect. Most infantry are fighting under orders, and as such, should not be held accountable for their actions unless they are especially heinous. At that point they are die hard supporters of the primary regime, and are likely not going to allow themselves to be taken captive anyway. That's also not saying that there are those on the side of the rebellion that would be guilty of such events as well and should be dealt with accordingly." she added, refilling her tea cup.

 

"Essentially, we wouldn't want to support a rebellion against a corrupt ruler only to have an equally corrupt ruler or in charge. This changes nothing and only results in ponies getting hurt for no reason. These are usually wars like the one that we are discussing as a possibility here. Where greed is the potential catalyst. There are no winners in a conflict like that, only suffering that doesn't need to happen." Ice concluded. 

 

When Blue further added that when somepony said the exact thing that they wanted to hear, it usually came with a catch. She started that it meant no reflection on her, but she herself needed a stronger foundation for advocacy. Ice let out a small laugh. "Ha! Well, you should know by now that despite my ice cream background, I don't sugarcoat things. I make observations based on the facts that are given to me and I'll tell it how it is. As it is, my goal, since creating STAR is to make sure that Equestria is prepared for the unexpected, and have a defense force that can mobilize instantly when needed and be on a scene within hours. No catch needed with me."

 

"As far as things go with Twilight, I'll put a few feelers in the palace, but wait to approach things until I get more of a feel for how she views the situation. There's no since in rushing in with a pretender of information that could very well be inaccurate for the situation. Honestly the one I'm most concerned about is Ridge doing something stupid and igniting a conflict," ice finished, taking a sip of her tea.

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"Having seen from the ground level what a slog and quagmire civil wars can be,"  Bluebelle replied, with a grim look, "I tend to err on the side of non-intervention even when one could argue for one to be justified.  Not that we haven't done good work in Whitescar, and the fact that the rebel clans projected power to us does push it over the line... It's just that I find it frustrating that even after years of fighting, and the work IMAGINE has done there... so little seems to have changed, either on the front lines or on the ground.  All the aid I've arranged to try and build a peace gets requisitioned ultimately in the service of a war, and it just puts blood on hooves that try to be clean..."

 

The Princess let the matter drop, cleaning her palate with a well-sugarcoated bit of pastry.  "Well, here's to hopes for a peaceful resolution, and a restraint to the steps of fools.  Let's move on from business, it's been a bit since we talked, and I'd like to catch up!  How is your herd doing?  Any new additions lately?"

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

Ice nodded as they started moving away from the discussion of politics. She actually enjoyed talks like that for the most part because it let her get a glimpse inside to what a pony was truly thinking, as well as let her express her own, unfiltered opinion. And it wasn't like she was unfamiliar with how things worked anymore. After being part of EPIC, founding STAR, creating a desert franchise, owning and operating a hotel and casino in Las Pegasus, and as such being on the Las Pegasus City couch council due to owning said casino, she had more than enough experience with politics at this point, and she approached it all the same way, with facts and emphatically dissecting any information given to her to make sure that things were understood in a clear and concise manner. Still, the politics in this situation were delicate, and they had to be approached as such. After all, Foreign affairs were a whole different ball game compared to domestic ones. 

 

When the conversation shifted, and Blue gave hopes for a peaceful resolution. "Agreed, as for as the heard goes, we've been doing well. Things have been quiet for the most part. Down in the base itself we've been further working on advancing prosthetics. We're in the final stages with the prosthetic horn that will restore the Aether flow of a unicorn, giving them full access to their magic again. We're in the final safety tests, but those can be a bit tricky to do, and we won't know how well it actually works until we get a volunteer that actually has a broken horn," she smiled. "How about you and yours? The previously mentioned issue non-withstanding?"

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"Good to hear things have been going well for you.  I wonder if Tempest will be able to take advantage of your research; she's pregnant now, did you hear?  Apparently got knocked up by a caribou."  Bluebelle sipped her tea, aware that she was starting to slip into gossip mode.  "I mean, not to blame her... Dunnie and I, well, we both got up to some fun times in our day, and yes, once with a caribou ambassador who was in Canterlot at the time!  I'm just glad she's decided to be responsible in becoming a parent.  I admire that; honestly, I don't think either of us were exactly close to our parents.  Me and Temmy, I mean; you were, until the rift opened... 

 

"I guess in our own ways, we're all trying to be better to our families than our parents were to us."  That was a sobering, but also encouraging reflection.  "For my own part, Dunnie, Star and I have resisted the temptation to hire nursemaids and the like.  Being rich means you can afford to be a worse pony sometimes, and you constantly have to guard against falling into that pattern of behavior, you know?"

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  • 3 weeks later...

~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

 

Ice nodded as Blue spoke. "I believe I might have been one of the first to know that she was. The entire reason I started that research was to give Tempest what was promised to her at the very beginning of everything. To be better than the Storm King, and surprising her with it when it was ready. Tempest was actually my second in command until her pregnancy. When she told me, we were already on the same page because I want going to let her risk her life anymore with a little one on the way. That wasn't going to be on my conscience. I'll admit though, unless we can figure out a way to duplicate your curse, or find the right spell, it will be hard to start a family the natural way, at least for me," Ice spoke.

 

When she talked of wealth corrupting others, Ice nodded once more. "I'm sure some of the workers in my desert stores feel similar to that. Ever since I've started STAR, ice barely had time to visit and check up on them, where as before I would easily spend a few weeks to a month or two in each location. It's not that I don't want to, but I've got so much to do now, I can't physically do it... Unless I make a visit to the mirror pool or get Starlight to teach me that combination duplication spell. That would be interesting, and weird... Bring about to see, hear, and react to multiple conversations at once..." Ice added, thinking about it for a moment before shaking her head. "Yeah, maybe not. That's how a pony becomes insane, and I don't need any help in that department," Ice laughed.

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"Mmm, yes... pregnancy is not a good time to be the test subject of medical experiments."  Bluebelle nodded in agreement.  "And, as far as my curse goes... I mean, technically you'd only need the transformation to be valid for one night, since you're all mares.  That means that using alchemical potions is pretty riskless, actually, as you don't have to maintain integrity of the transformation for a full 11 months.  I do have a supplier, if you're interested... and even contacts for the more permanent means of gender-swapping.  I mean, as I'm sure you're well aware, Dunnie wasn't born a stallion."  Indeed, given that Ice Storm was an ex of Dunder back in the day, she would know that quite well.  Perhaps it was for the best that she was currently busy upstairs with the baby.

 

"None of us need help going insane, if we ever decide to do so we could do a bang-up job of it all on our own!"  Bluebelle chuckled.  "Can I just ask... did you ever entertain villain fantasies?  I'll admit I did, in some of my darker times.  They never amounted to much, though.  Basically getting my hooves on some artifact like the Alicorn Amulet and forcing all the peasants to bow to me.  I really didn't have any other plans beyond that; all I wanted was respect, and, well, I think I've actually earned that legitimately now."

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

Ice Storm would nod when she heard Blue mention Dunnie and how she wasn't born how they were. Considering that she had at one point, dated, and had been engaged to Dunder, she knew exactly what Blue was talking about. She talked about having a supplier of potions that would accomplish their goals. Since they were all mares, they didn't have to do anything other than a one night thing and it wouldn't compromise the integrity of anything. "I had thought about that, I had thought about magic to... but as much as I want to try, if we did anything like that, I would have to be on the receiving end myself. I have some... rather personal issues going on back there, and I don't know if magic or potions would make it any worse or not. I definitely know it won't make anything better. The doctors have made that quite clear several times, so I've just learned to deal with it." she spoke.

 

When Blue asked if she'd every entertain some of her villainous fantasies, Ice bit her bottom lip. "Actually... very much so... like I mentioned earlier, STAR was initially founded with rage and anger because of the incompetence of every other agency at the time when it came to dealing with invasions. The Royal Guard was a joke, I watched them get brainwashed and turn against their own princesses, Tempest got an entire fleet of warskiffs on Canterlot's doorstep without any of them being detected... and then everything that happened afterwards... The Shadow of Ice... I actually built it to be a roaming headquarters for STAR. It was supposed to be the hidden organization that did the dirty work for Equestria, and ultimately... might have bordered on piracy a bit. Anything that was seen to be a threat against Equestria would have been razed, and I would have turned into the very monster that I was trying to protect Equestria against..."

 

"But, I did one thing... that I think kept me on the right path. For starters, the bond with my family helps a lot, but The night that I first created the concept of STAR, I went to Luna, before she retired. She was the only princess I trusted with the information at the time and I couldn't risk it getting out too early. Some of the tech that we were working with was highly advanced and I didn't want it falling into the wrong hooves. I made an arcane blood pact with the moon, binding my loyalty to her, and through her, Equestria. Her will was mine, and by all technicality, still is, though now she's part of STAR herself, which has made things interesting to say the least," Ice finished.

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Ah, right.  That... little issue.  Bluebelle could quite understand the desire to avoid complications in that respect.  "Quite, quite.  Although, I must say, I'm not sure if pregnancy would have any less an effect, just based on all testimonies and observation.    But, I'm no medical pony.  In any case, I do hope to see your own herd with some little ones soon; it would be nice for Pax to have playmates his own age among family friends, you know?"  There was a slight strain of pleading in her voice, that of a mother wishing to provide her foal advantages she herself had not enjoyed.

 

Listening to Icy recount her potential villain origin story, and what ultimately disrupted it, Bluebelle couldn't help but reflect on what parts of it she herself had observed.  Star Crusader, her other mate, had served with her together in the brief period of time that Icy was a part of EPIC, before she branched off to create STAR.  She too had left, though more to serve domestically without being taken so far and so long away from her new family.  As far as the Princess knew, that left EPIC either defunct, or just Twilight's personal Black Ops team, just as STAR was closely associated with Luna.  It seemed redundant, but perhaps having some redundancy was key to resilience.  Blue was just grateful that other mares more competent in that area than her were handling it.

 

"I knew you were close with Auntie, but I hadn't known it was that close, hm."  She mused, draining her cup again, not refilling it this time.  "If... I may ask, that sort of close mentorship is the sort of thing that makes one an... ascension candidate.  Has anything of the sort been mentioned to you?"

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

"Knowing my luck, it's going to get worse no matter what I do. I mean, as soon as I got these," Ice started pointing to the amulet holding her opalus spheres. "Not only did it give me a massive power boost, it's already made the issues worse to where it's not even secluded to being overnight anymore, but whenever I am ill, I have to be careful or I won't even realize what's happening. Though that does correspond to what the doctors last told me about it. Somehow it's tied to my magic. The stronger my magic gets... The less control I have. But no sense in moping about it. I can't change it, and my fiances all still love me regardless, so it doesn't even really bother me anymore."

 

The last comment certainly got her attention. Ascension? "Ascension candidate? What would I be ascending to? I'm already the founding/commanding officer of STAR and a prominent business figure looking to create a safer environment for those around me," Ice commented, before the realization hit her. But there's no what that was what Blue was meaning. Her? She didn't think that she was that special... She was just doing what she felt anypony else in her position would do.

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It took a moment for Ice to realize what Bluebelle was getting at; it was amusing in some way for the Princess to watch it dawn on her.  "You're doing what almost everypony thinks they would do in your position, given power, resources, and influence.  Most prove to incompetent to use them well, or fall to some temptation along the way.  Or else end up preferring the safe to the heroic.  And as you just said, you were only one or two bad decisions away from falling yourself.  I don't presume lightly upon the intentions of my aunties, but it has rather occurred to me that, as Equestria was founded as a Diarchy, and functions best as one, it didn't make much sense to have Twilight rule alone after they retired."  There was, if Icy cared to listen for it, just the faintest note of envy in Bluebelle's voice.  She couldn't help it, even after all these years.

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~~~Ice Storm~~~

 

 

 

 

Ice Storm was only mildly surprised that Blue knew what she was thinking at that moment. After all, how could anypony in her position be thinking any different? When she started explaining it though... The more it... It started to make sense. Blue was right. A lot of ponies think they would do great things, but almost all of them succumb to their own temptations... Something that she herself was almost guilty of as Blue had reminded her. Granted, she added that she doesn't schedule know anything for certain, but said that at least for her, all the signs were there.

 

For the first time in a long time, Ice felt a new emotion. Apprehension. And a bit of fear. Sure she was doing great things... But one of the biggest things about being a princess, let alone an alicorn princess was being approachable and acceptable in the eyes of that subjects. How would others feel... Would they be happy? Could the rest of Equestria look past her issues? Though now that she thought about it, that would give her an even bigger platform to try to help those with similar issues feel accepted. "Well, of that turns out to be the case, I will simply endeavor to continue the path that I'm on to help others, and set a positive example for those around me. If that's not in the cards and things continue as normal, them I guess I'll still be doing much of the same regardless. Whether I'm am alicorn or not, won't change our stop me from making sure everypony ain't me feels safe and accepted," she smiled.

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"That's the spirit."  Bluebelle said in a voice of quiet encouragement, pretty certain upon hearing it that she knew exactly what was going to be Ice Storm's destiny.  Humility was the final test of whether the Princesses granted ascension, one not every candidate passed (e.g. Sunset Shimmer).  It wasn't that Bluebelle wasn't happy for her friend, but she couldn't help but feel in some way that she was falling behind, and she didn't like thinking in that way.

 

Shaking her funk off of her, Blue decided that she could at least show off one way in which she was ahead.  "Oh, to change the subject, I don't think you've seen my new foal, have you?  He's being watched by Dunnie right now, but I can take you up to them!  Little Pax is just so wonderful!"  Glowing with the enthusiasm of a new parent, she hardly waited for assent before getting up to lead the way into the manor, excitedly prancing up the stairs.  "Dunnie, Dear!  We have a visitor!"

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