Prices And Values
"So Miss Rarity, what do you say? Shall we work together?" Fort Knox asked the element of generosity with his front hooves crossed, and with a smile on his face, watching as she enjoyed a cup of tea in the cafe near city hall. "We share a common enemy here; don't you wish to end his nonsense schemes and put our prince in his place?"
Rarity simply finished her drink and looked the stallion up and down with a critical eye before putting her cup down. "Well Mr. Fort Knox, as much as I agree that a certain petulant prince needs to be teach a lesson. I don't think I can be of any help." She said in a respectful manner.
"Nonsense! Ms. Rarity, with your aid, I'm more than confident that we can both find the prince's weakness and exploit it for our common goals." He told her with a big smile, showing a golden tooth. The stallion was certainly starting to unsettle Rarity a bit. "Just entertain me for a bit and try to picture this scenario; the snotty and unfit prince brought to his knees and forced to kiss your hoof anytime he wants to do anything. The entire world of Canterlot noble society opening for you, and your clothing line worn by only the most elite of ponies."
"I have already achieved that." Rarity told him in irritation, but Fort just continued with a sinister smile. "That buffoon turned into our personal puppet like he should have been from the moment he was born..." He extended his hoof toward her, Rarity starting to get afraid, thinking she was face to face with the devil himself being offered a deal. "Doesn't that sounds incredible? All that and more can be yours,IF you just tell me what secret you and your friend are hiding about our beloved prince."
Rarity eyes widened and she looked at him in anger. "You were spying on us?"
Fort Knox just chuckled and backed away. "Come on miss, there no reason for you to act so surprised, it is just honest business. And please don't be a hypocrite and tell me that you haven't indulged yourself in a bit of gossiping." He brought his cup up and start to sip from it before opening an eye. "We are both ponies of noble status after all, of course we are familiar with the world of gossip. Besides, it's not my fault where you and your friends have fights, neither if others heard bits of it." He put his coffee down and smiled again. "So instead of getting mad over spilt milk, why don't we rise beyond petty squabbles and work together?"
"Are you honestly suggesting me that I should betray my friends?" She then started to think of his actions and gets scared in realization of something. "Wait a minute, how exactly did you manage to get backstage again? That place was supposed to be under surveillance at all times."
Fort just shook his head and laughed. "Oh you poor naive mare, you claim to know the world of high society, and yet you still don't know the first lesson of it?" He burst into laughter. "As long as you have the bits, there isn't any place where you can't enter."
His laugh was definitely making Rarity feel uncomfortable. "And back on topic, who cares how I ended up in that building? What is important is crushing that pain in our flank, right? After all, that is the one aspect we share, our common hatred and loathing for the prince, and how we will stop at nothing to destroy him." He growled with emotion as Rarity started to panic, not from his actions but how she was seeing herself in him. How, ever since she heard the truth, she never once took the opportunity to give Blueblood a chance. She always pretended to not hear when Applejack insisted over and over again, on how he really changed and wanting to start over. She didn't want to admit it, but she was becoming the monster she despised so much, and in front of her was a reflexion of what she would end up becoming if she keep on this path.
Was I really that heartless? Oh Rarity, you and your melodrama. Once again, you decided to play this like a novel and took everything just too far.
She looked down in shame, now realizing what was happening before shaking her head. No, apologies will come later.
She lifted her head and decided to let her companion to finish his rant with a neutral expression.
Now I need to ditch this brute as soon as possible.
"I think I have heard enough." Rarity told him with indignation before paying for her cup and standing up. "Thanks, but no thanks, Mr. Fort Knox. I understand the intentions behind your words and although I don't like the prince much, I realized now that I was being unreasonable and petty. Plus I can't condone what is clearly an act of treason." She said with a stern voice. "So as a way to gratitude for helping me see how horrible I was acting, I decided to look the other way and pretend I didn't hear anything." She prepared to leave but the stallion grabbed one of her hoofs.
"I suggest you reconsider Ms. Rarity," Fort told her, increasing the force of his grab."Is he really worth the effort? How much is he paying you for your loyalty? Whatever the price is, rest assured, I can easily double it."
"I said no." Rarity firmly tells him, before forcefully removing her hoof from his grasp. "And come to think about it, if Discord was offered a second chance it's only fair we give him one too, plus my friends trust him and that is good enough for me to give him the opportunity." She said, backing away and lifting her snout into the air. "Good day ."
She is about to leave the establishment when two bulky unicorns in suits stop her. "It's a real shame..." Fort Knox said with a sigh as he resumed drinking his coffee. "I really thought that we could have resolved this like civilised ponies." The goons lifted Rarity in the air with a spell and then placed a suppressor ring on her horn before she could cast anything before, tossing her back inside at the hooves of Fort Knox who continued his drink. "I had such high hopes that we could have come to a nice and profitable agreement." He put the cup down. "I suppose that is what I get for being such a romantic."
"What is the meaning of…" Rarity is immediately gagged and put on her knees as Fort Knox stands up and looks at her with a glare, and she soon notices that all the clients had vanished, and the unicorn barista of the place ended the spell she was casting before casting a glance at Rarity with a smirk, as she covers the windows.
"You see Ms. Rarity, in my line of work there is this old slogan I'm particularly proud of, and follow to the letter as my personal mantra. 'If you want it, I got it. And if I don't have it, I obtain it!'" He said, caressing her cheek with his hoof. "And I never ever get denied of what I want." He brought the hot cup near her face. "Right now, I want to know exactly what you and that little godly locks friend of yours were discussing about." He splashed the coffee on her face, luckily it wasn't so hot as to burn her but the sensation was enough for her to scream in pain. "Regardless of what it takes..." He used a napkin to clean some of the coffee of her face as well as her now dripping mascara. "I hope, that this explanation helps you understand why I can't let you leave now."
He stands up and looked at his goons. "Take her to the basement and put the closed sign on, it appears I will be entertaining a special guest today." He said, looking at Rarity and licking his lips which make her shiver in fear and flinch in terror. "Oh don't be afraid Ms. Rarity, this is not my first time digging for valuable info from some pony's head." Fort said, kneeling in front of her with a calm smile. "You are in safe hoofs, and I give you my word; You will be reunited with your friends and family soon enough without any single damage to your body or brain. Well minus the fact that the memory of what would happen to you will be complete erased, but hey, do you really want to remember that? I know I wouldn't..."
She tries to make a break for it by kicking one of the goons who fell on the table, breaking it and headed for the door, but the other goon jumps and grabbed her before she can do anything else and soon is knocked out with a sleeping spell. "Ja! we have a feisty one today boys! We better be on high alert around this one." Fort joked as he and the other unicorns brought Rarity to the basement.
Back at City Hall
A very light yellow mare with a two-toned blue patterned mane and tail, a red flower on her head and a neck with a scarf with a saddlebag as her only piece of clothing approached Applejack, Blueblood and his bodyguards who looked on as Princess Celestia spoke to the reporters. The prince was holding a pack of ice against his cheek while Applejack looked at him with some worry.
"Are you sure you feel ok? That looks like a pretty nasty slap you got there."
"I'm ok Applejack." He replied as he took the ice pack away. "It doesn't hurt that much now and the swelling is almost gone." Blueblood mentioned with a smile.
"I just can't believe Rarity would actually slap you..." She mentioned in disappointed. "That mare can be as stubborn as a mule sometimes, but to actually result to that…"
"Hey I was the one that brought up a touchy subject for her, so maybe I did say the wrong thing. I just won't let it bother me too much." He mentioned, "If you want to talk to her I won't stop you, but let's not escalate this even more than what it already is." He said, and Applejack eventually nodded. "Yeah perhaps it's for the best, the last thing I want is to make matters worse, but seriously, if there was only a way for her to actually give you a chance I…"
"Hm, excuse me?" The light yellow mare called for their attention as the guards stood to attention and stayed near the prince. Applejack looked at her and then smiled. "Well howdy Coco, so nice to see you!" She said with a wave.
"Hello Applejack." She mentions with a small smile. "It's nice to see you too."
Applejack then looked at Blueblood. "Prince, this is the mare I was telling you about, Coco Pommel, a friend of ours." She mentioned, introducing one to the other.
"It's very nice to meet you Miss Pommel." Blueblood mentioned, given her a small bow, which causes her to blush and look away.
"I just, am…N-N-Nice to meet you too your highness." She stuttered, trying to control her blush.
"What bring you here Coco?" Applejack asked, trying to dissolve her blush by changing the subject. "Not that we don't want you here, but shouldn't you and Rarity be on your way to see the pyrotechnic team by now?"
"Oh yes." Her eyes widened remembering why was there. "I was actually about to ask you about that, have you seen her? I was supposed to meet her at the entrance of city hall ten minutes ago but she never came." She said with some worry.
Blueblood and Applejack looked at one another before turning to her. "You mean that she is not outside?" Applejack asked, and Coco just shook her head. "I asked some guards, but none of them answered to me, I even had to show them by backstage pass just to let me enter." She said, levitating a backstage pass to them before putting away. "And when I entered, the only one that answered me seemed confused and told me that he assumed that she was still inside."
"Ok, that definitely doesn't add up..." Applejack said, getting confused by the guard's reaction.
"Agreed." He looks at his guards. "Amber do you think you can rally the guards that were guarding the exit really quick?"
"I can." She said with a nod before looking at the stage. "But shouldn't you be informing the princess about this?"
"While she is in the middle of a press conference and calming the audience that is still afraid of changelings? That is just the formula for panic, no matter how subtle we give her the tip. If we do, it needs to be after she is done talking and comes back."
"But your highness…" She complained, getting worried about what he was doing.
"Look Amber I understand you are worried, but please, Rarity might be in danger, and we need to do something. The more time we take the further away she could be." He argued back. "I promise I will stay away from any danger, if there is any in the first place."
Stellar put her hoof on Amber's shoulder and nodded, getting close to the prince. The guard just sighed and nodded as well. "As you command my prince, but do not move from here and stay with Stellar until my return!"
"I will." The prince told her with a nod as they watched Amber rush away from them.
"Even after what she did, you're are still going to help us?" Applejack asked in surprise.
"I don't care if she doesn't like me or not, but I'm certainly not going to turn a blind eye if something happened to her." Blueblood replied back.
"Is Rarity in trouble?" Coco asked in panic, and the prince held her hoof. "We don't know yet Miss Coco, but rest assured we would find out." He said, trying to calm her down but she only blushed even harder at the reaction and his touch. "I-I just…am…actsxm"
She started to blabber nonsense which just confused the prince, until Applejack pulled her away. "I'll go get her some water Blueblood, the poor mare must be scared out of her mane right now." She explained.
"Ah, of course, go ahead Applejack but don't take too long, we need to solve this as quickly as possible." He said to them with a smile.
"Will do your highness." Applejack said as she guided Coco before looking back at her. "By Celestia's mane Coco, I know he looks attractive but control yourself!" She whispered harshly.
"I can't help it! I have never been near a prince before..." She whispered back.
Sometime later, Amber returned and placed all the guards stationed near the exit in a straight line. "These all the guards that were supposed to be the lookout near the exit your highness." Amber explained, pointing at them.
Hmmm let's see, two pegasi, three earth ponies and two unicorns
The prince pondered as he approached them. "Perfect, thank you, Amber."
"Ok listen up everypony!" Applejack yelled at the soldiers. "One of our friends went outside not long ago and was suppose to meet with Coco Pommel." She explained, pointing at the mare in question. "So if there were so many ponies watching the exits can somepony please explain to me how no one saw her leave?"
None of the guards answered her and just remain silent. The prince thought it over and placed his hoof on Applejack's back. "Let me try AJ." He said before approaching the guards and clearing his throat.
"Attention!" He yelled, and immediately all of them looked forward in formation as the prince walked back and forth along the line. "Just like my friend said, not too long ago, the element of generosity exited this building without making any attempt to avoid any of you, so I want to hear what explanation you have for not seeing her."
"We were patrolling the sky, sir! Our focus was on the clouds and the pegasi in the area!" One of the Pegasi said, taking a step forward alongside his companion. Blueblood took a quick glance at AJ who confirmed his story.
"Understood." He then moved to the earth ponies. "What about you?"
"We were needed on crowd control, sir!" One of them answered. "Paparazzi and princess fanatics were trying to sneak their way inside the building, sir. For how many they were, we were almost about to request reinforcements, especially after your speech." He explained, and once again Applejack nodded.
"Which leave us with you two." The prince said with a raised eyebrow as approached the unicorns. "If I understand correctly, you were in charge of guarding the back door, am I right?"
"That is correct sir." One answered. "But we never saw anyone else enter or exit all day."
The prince raised an eyebrow and looks at AJ who just nodded too, confusing him until he noticed a bulge on the other guard's chest under his uniform. Not only that, but he could start to see a flicker of fear on his face as the unicorn started to sweat. "Is that true soldier?"
"It is sir, just like my companion said, we never saw an angry unicorn leave."
That catches the attention of the prince. "I never say anything of her being angry..."
"Ah…well you see, I just assumed that your swollen check was because of her and…" He tried to defend himself, now the mares noticing his actions as even the guards began to look at him.
"Well, I have to say, you really have a very good eye soldier." Blueblood compliment him with a nod. "And you are right, this was because of her. She and I had a heated argument and things kind of escalated before we knew it. I thought that she only needed some time outside to vent and think."
"Mares, am I right sir?" He said with a smile earning a glare from the mares present, and a chuckle from the prince.
"You know, soldier, you just earned my respect. I mean standing here, talking right to my face, while I have the element of honestly literally at my left and two extremely skillful soldiers at my right, and still trying to lie your way out?" He shrugs as Stellar pulled a knife and in a swift motion made a cut on his uniform, releasing a mountain of bits on the ground which paralyzed the unicorn in fear immediately. "That takes guts, too bad you are lacking on the loyalty department."
The guard tried to make a run for it, but Stellar intercepted him immediately and brought him down, grabbing one of his upper hoofs into a shoulder lock while pressing her other hoof against his neck. The other guards moved to capture the other unicorn, but Blueblood lifted his hoof. "At ease soldiers, this traitor worked alone." Amber touched his horn with her own, and it flashed for a brief second before nodding and addressing the prince. "Funhouse spell confirm sir. He enchanted his companion so he didn't hear or see a thing."
The prince nodded, and looked at the traitor who was now glaring at him. "Wow, a discreet fun house spell? That's a particularly tricky one...must have been really hard to pull off without anyone noticing." He said, honestly impressed. "Now tell me, why did you lie to us?
"Go to hell you brat!" He spat at him and spit on his face, making Stellar press even harder to the point where the cracking of bones was starting to be heard. "We got you now jerk, once Rarity generously tells us your secret, you will no longer be untouchable." He laughed at him.
"Rarity would never do that!" Applejack yelled at him in anger.
"Plus she already has plans with me." Coco added. "She wouldn't just ditch me..."
"Not even to expose that slime here?" The traitor tells looking at Blueblood. "I sure would if it meant taking away this scum from the throne."
"Not Rarity." Coco insisted. "She at the very least would have excused herself to go find me and apologize for having to cancel our appointment."
"Well, there is a first time for everything right?" He smirked at her. "Even if she refused to talk, which I see as very unlikely, it doesn't matter. I have friends that can be particularly persuasive."
AJ was clearly scared by implication of that before getting rather angry. "Enough of this!" AJ got closer to the guard. "Tell us where you took Rarity before I kick you all the way to Appleloosa." She warned him, but the guard just laughed at them.
"Boy today I'm definitely not here." Blueblood mentioned with a chuckle as he cleaned the spit off his face and then glared at the traitor. "Now let's try this again, where is Rarity?"
The soldier just laughed at his attempt. "You think any of you scare me?" You are just a joke Blueblood, a spoiled brat that only knows how to cry and complain when his tea is too hot. You are not a prince, you are a slug!" He looked at the other guards. "You should be defending me! What power does he have over you? How many times has he had abused his power? Aren't you tired of how he keeps using us like his personal toys?"
He wanted to continue until Stellar choked him with her hoof on his neck a bit more.
"Somepony really didn't listen to a thing I say on the podium..."
"You think that changes anything? You think we would just forgive you right away just because you say 'sorry'? I say the creature should have let you burn." He said, still glaring at the prince.
"Perhaps." The prince nodded. "But she didn't, and because of that, I decided to act like the prince I should have been in the first place." He said with a serious expression. "Starting by looking after my subjects." He pressed his hoof under the traitors face with a glare. "Now consider this, the easy and only merciful way out of this mess you brought yourself into. Tell me where is Rarity and I will tell my aunty to just kick you out of the Guard."
The soldier just smirked at him. "Is that your attempt at being threatening? Please don't make me laugh."
The prince sighed and stood back, Applejack glaring daggers at this point and Coco being particularly afraid.
"I really didn't want to resort to this….I honestly wanted this to be solved differently, but I'd rather have this on my conscience than letting you get away with it." He sighed with a shake of disappointment before looking at Stellar. "Tell me Stellar, can a stallion still feel his hoof break after being dislocated?"
The traitor's blood froze in that instant when he saw the soldier on top of him nod. "Can you show me?"
Before the unicorn could say anything, Stellar starts to pull his arm even further making him scream from the pain to the point of tears. "Ok, ok! I give!" The traitor yelled in desperation. "It was Fort Knox! It was him, he took her to his own coffee shop near here 'The Golden Leaf', that is all I know, I swear." He yelled in pain, and once the prince confirmed with Applejack he turned to his guard.
"Stellar stop!" She abided by the command, and forced the stallion to stand up as he got surrounded by other guards who do a quick job in subduing him and cutting his magic with a suppression ring.
"Should we rally the troops, sir?" One guard asked.
"No, that would draw too much attention and the last thing we want is to create more tension and panic, plus if this Fort Knox see us coming he could try to escape with Rarity . For now, lock this traitor up and reinforce security around city hall, but be discreet about it. Also, inform my aunt of what is happening as soon as she finishes her speech."
"Yes, sir!" The soldiers saluted and the other unicorn guard placed the traitor in a bubble before levitating him away with the other soldiers.
The prince sighed and shook his head. "Well ladies I don't know you, but right now I could go for a cup of coffee." He told them with a serious expression.
"Absolutely not!" Amber intervened. "I would let you speak with the soldiers, but I will not let you go towards potential danger."
"It will be easier if it is just a small group, besides we don't know if she is against her will yet, Amber."
"She never misses appointments unless its an emergency Blueblood." AJ explained. "Less when it comes to friends, I can guarantee you that even if she hated you, she wouldn't ditch Coco. She is held against her will." She looked at Stellar and Amber ."And I assume that with all your secret missions you two also came to the conclusion, that this just turned into a hostage situation, am I right?"
Stellar nodded.
"That or she missed the time, but someone as organised as her wouldn't let that happen." Amber explained before glaring at the prince. "Which is why we can't have you risk your life by heading straight on toward danger, your highness." She mentioned before smiling. "So, if we are going to perform a rescue mission it's going to be on our terms." She said, before looking at AJ and Coco. "And I suppose you two are not going to stay here either, am I right?"
AJ shook her head. "No way I'm letting them take my friend away."
"I…um… I want to help in any way I can too." Coco mentioned, although a bit more unsure.
"Good." Amber said with a smile. "Because Stellar and I know exactly how can you three can help." She said in confidence, confusing both the prince and the two mares.
That will be all for now folks, the next chapter will be posted this Wednesday 11, and it will a particular big one. So to those that would like to read it before that, it is already posted on . Link on the profile page, thanks for reading