Tectonic Scale News

Once they both ensured that no pony was eavesdropping and various sound and vision spells were cast in Blueblood's room, the monarch of the night turned to her nephew-in-law. "That will suffice. No pony will be able to hear us now." She mentioned as she went and stood next to Shining Armor.

"Perfect! Now we can finally talk properly." Shining chipped in with a nod.

"Indeed... now, what exactly am I looking at, Shining Armor?" Princess Luna asked him as they both stared at Blueblood's bed.

Before responding, the prince walked towards the bed and pulled off the sheets and cover, revealing some sweat in it with a perfect shape of a pony. "Our crime scene, as well as Blueblood's cause of death," Shining told her as he turned to look at her and pointed at the stain in the bed.

The princess looked at the spot before turning her attention to Shining Armor. "You believe that he was... dehydrated to death?"

"At first I thought so, yeah, since this seems like the only thing unusual in the room. No matter how you look at it, at first glance it just seems like Blueblood had sweat a lot, but this level of sweat is ridiculous. With all the fur on our body, we just couldn't make this much... not even in my trips to Saddle Arabia have I ever sweat so much. Not only that, but when I talked with some old guard friends of mine, they confirmed that for the last months Canterlot hasn't had any particular hot nights, so it's impossible for this to have happened naturally. And that is when after further inspection I found out that this was something else." He looked at the sweat stain again and used his magic to levitate a spray bottle and a piece of paper.

"This is not sweating." He sprayed the paper with some liquid and then pressed it against the bed. Seconds later, the paper turned pink and he presented it to the princess with a serious expression. "It's blood hidden as sweat."

"By my stars!" Luna's eyes widened in realization as she looked at the blood stain, which had a perfect shape of her nephew. "All of that…is blood? But how? Doctor Caliber didn't find any injuries or poison in his system, and the maids would have found the blood on the bed sheets, how could that have been hiding?"

"That is the thing, princess. Like I said, it's disguised as sweat. When I registered the room, I didn't find any forced entry on the door or the windows, there wasn't any magic residue other than the maid's levitation, and as far as I've gathered, there has not been any unusual activity in the guard schedule patrolling. Whoever did this simply walked in, released some type of poison, and left as the prince literally sweat blood until he perished from anemia, while the poison most likely diluted or evaporated," The prince explained with a grim face. "It must have been an exotic poison too, since it also made all his blood look like simple sweat to the naked eye, AND after finishing its job returned his body to relatively normal, leaving no trace behind. My guess is that it was airborne and was unleashed here, so it could only work in closed spaces. Otherwise the guards on duty securing his door would have suffered as well, and I already confirmed that they did not. That, or his food was drugged and it required the victim to fall asleep before attacking. In either case, it was a clean job."

"My nephew… he died while sleeping," The princess whispered in shock. "I could have saved him if only I had noticed." She looked down in guilt before shaking her head and looking at Shining Armor with a serious expression. "Good job, Shining Armor. We finally got our first clue, now we know how to start." She started to levitate the bed "I'm going to send this to the royal lab for analysis. With any luck, there is still some residue of the original poison on it. In the meantime, I need you to continue digging around among the royal guards and the staff on duty during that night. No matter how subtle it was, some pony must have heard or seen something unusual during that night. We need to find more clues."

"Will do," Shining nodded, giving her a salute. "But at least with this we can be sure of something. The killer must have know what he was doing, has the means to acquire something definitely shady and most likely expensive, and has a good understanding and layout of the castle… so we can cross out the middle and lower class in almost all of Equestria. Leaves only the staff on duty that night…"

"And the upper class in Canterlot," Luna finished for him, looking down in thought while glaring. "I see what you are saying, Shining, and I agree. We have just reduced 3/4 of our suspect list, and with the reports my spies have given me, I'm starting to picture various strong suspects. We are close to catching the killer now, but we still need to tread lightly if we intend to grab them by surprise." She then looked at him in determination as she prepared her teleportation spell.

Shining nodded and headed to the front door. "Then I will be heading back to work. I think it's time I go hit the bar with some buddies of mine." He then started to smirk. "I'm sure some cider will help them clear their heads and tell me anything unusual they've seen."

"Best of luck," Luna commented as she teleported away with the bed as Shining left the room.

Days later, in the Court of Canterlot

After the initial surprise of the addition of changelings into nobility, Princess Celestia had no other option but to delay Fort Knox's trial until things calmed down a little to avoid associating them with his arrest. Luckily for her, with the aid of the element of laughter and some well-placed news and parties in her city, the unification proceeded as smoothly as putting on a horseshoe.

So even though it was inevitable for the news to be made public almost immediately, the trial of Fort finally arrived without arising any rumours and, despite his connections and lawyers, the outcome was as clear as day. He was found guilty of high treason, illegal possession and selling, contraband, attempted murder, and regicide. There was no way for him to escape, and his only remaining option was a bargain for a reduced sentence. Yet, despite being cornered and about to be sentenced, the stallion in question remained calm and collective during the entire trial, even when his lawyer quit in the middle of it, leaving the poor stallion to fend for himself. That calm demeanor was almost unsettling, and it was definitely irking the princesses acting as judges during the whole ordeal.

Hitting her gavel a couple of times the princess of the day once again demanded order in the court as she proceeded with the sentence of Fort Knox as the jury delivered their clear verdict.

"We declare the accused guilty, your honour."

"Very well." The princess nodded to the jury before looking at the condemned stallion in question. One of his eyes was still swollen, his left front hoof was in a cast, and he was currently wearing a neck brace… all reminders of his last fight against Blueblood. "Mister Fort Knox, before I proceed with your sentence, I will grant you one final moment to speak. Is there one final thing you wish to declare?"

"I do, your highness," The stallion announced before standing up. "Although I applaud your success in bringing me to justice, and I do not deny the jury's verdict, I'm afraid my case is worth a royal pardon." Fort then smirked at the royal sisters. "I'm just too valuable for you to put away." The statement made the entire room explode into angry screams, ponies standing up from their seats and trying to force their way through the guards, who are forced to restrain them so as not to attack him.

"Order! Order!" Celestia hit her gavel repeatedly, demanding everyone to calm down.

"SILENCE!" It wasn't until Luna used her royal voice that silence was achieved, and the princess looked back at stallion on trial.

"How dare you demand such an idiotic request," Luna scolded in anger before pointing at him. "What could you possibly have in your possession that makes you so sure that you can have a pass from these kinds of transgressions?"

Fort just chuckled and looked at them with a raised eyebrow. "Isn't it obvious, your highness? I'm the Duke of information and goods not only of Manehattan, but also all of Equestria. My deals go far and wide in the underworld, and if they were to be exposed Equestria's economy will have a substantial loss!" He declared in confidence. "Making it public will risk our economy grinding to a halt, and keeping quiet means that you have no right to arrest me."

"Why you…" Luna was starting to lose her patience when Celestia put a wing in front of her as she spoke to Fort with a neutral expression. "Your threats are worthless here, Fort Knox. This is not the first time others have tried to intimidate us with wealth, and it sure will not be the last. We are already aware of all your deals and contacts you could possibly offer us, and their arrests will not even phase Canterlot."

The smile on Fort Knox's face wavered a bit, as the princess smirked in victory. "You have nothing of worth, so now it's time for your sentence. Fort Knox, for your actions against the crown and crimes against equinity, I sentence you to be exiled and taken to Gelid Maiden for life, for your rights as an Equestrian citizen to be completely revoked, and to be cursed so that any attempt in returning to your homeland will result in your transformation into a statue forever with your rights as a living being be erased with it." She then whispered to him. "If you return, and as a rock are destroyed, you will be classified as an object." She then looked at the security. "Guards!" She called, but Fort pressed on.

"Wealth is not the only thing I'm worthy of, princesses. My web of information goes even farther than the badlands, perhaps we can negotiate a deal," He chided as guards started to surround him. Celestia raised an eyebrow in disbelief, Fort's demeanor slowly starting to crack as he started to feel scared, and searched for a solution. "Your nephew!" He yelled before shrinking a bit once the room got really cold, and the gazes of both monarchs hardened. "Choose your next words carefully," Luna warned him with venom in her words.

"I know of crimes he's committed in the past! Times where he has abused his status for shallow reasons. More than enough to give you a reason to lock him up! If you put me away, they will be exposed, and then you will be placed in a hot spot. Surely you wouldn't risk soiling your image as rulers?"

"They don't have to risk anything, Fort," Blueblood mentioned as he stood up from his seat next to his guards. "Just like I promised at the press conference, I'm a changed stallion now, and as such I will own and make up for all my past sins, every single one of them." He looked at Fort with determination. "The only thing you will be doing is giving me a 'To Do' list, so please go right ahead. In fact, I demand you expose all of my secrets." He started to glare at him.

"What?! A-Are y-you serious? Do you have any idea what you are demanding? Your title will be dragged through the mud, ponies will see how wicked and twisted you really were, no pony will ever trust you!"

"Then I will build that trust from scratch," He responded with pride.

"Enough of this! Guards, take him away!" Luna ordered, and guards soon grabbed Fort Knox and started to drag him away from the court.

"No, wait! Princess, listen, I'm telling you, you need to reconsider! I'm more worthy here than in Gelid Maiden! Please!"

"There is nothing you can offer us that can be of interest for us," Celestia stated coldly as she and her sister stood up and were about to finish the session. "Case clo…"

"…NOT EVEN INFO ON PONIES PLANNING A REGICIDE?!" Fort screamed, fighting off the guards.

The room went completely silent as the princess was a hair of distance from hitting the gavel as she slowly turned her head to look at him in surprise. "What did you just say?"

"You hear me, there are those that wish to destroy the royal family for one reason or another your highness." He looked at Blueblood with a glare. "Some even with justified reasons..." He then looked at them. "If you are willing to reduce my sentence, I can give you a list of them. My safety in exchange for yours, what do you say? It's a good deal, right?"

Both Luna and Celestia entered a mental chat as soon as they registered his words.

Sister, he might know about the case! One of the ponies on the list might be the one that killed Blueblood!

Relax Luna, we can't be too hasty… it could easily be a scheme to save his fur. Yet we can't just let the opportunity go to waste.

With a sigh, the princess shook her head. "Guards, bring him here," she ordered and put the gavel down as the monarchs looked at him intently. "This is one serious matter you are claiming Fort Knox, you'd better be telling the truth. Lying to us now will result in an even worse punishment," Luna warned him, which caused Fort to gulp.

"I'm dead serious, your highness. At the moment all of them are all talk and no actions since all of you are here, but as we speak they could be preparing for something bad."

Celestia closed her eyes and weighed her options before opening them and then looking at him. "In light of such a revelation, we are willing to revoke your sentence."

"Oh thank you." Fort sighed in relief, letting go of a breath, until Celestia continued.

"But do not relax yet, Knox… we will not grant you a pardon, we are merely reducing your sentence. One that will only be as good as the information you give us." She lifted her gavel once more. "As such, you will be given a will to write down the name and directions of a pony you trust. Think very carefully in your choice, for that pony will be entrusted in looking after you for the next 50 years, while trapped in a small, silver statuette of yourself." Celestia informed, and then Luna continued.

"During that time, we will investigate and arrest the names of the list of traitors you will provide, and this will be your only warning, Fort Knox. If even one name turns out to be false, you will not be placed on a 50 year sentence inside a silver statuette… it will be 500 years one inside a Wooden one, and if the pony and his or her decedents decide to get rid of you and you are destroyed by any means, your death will be placed as lost object."

Fort's blood froze to such cruel treatment as Celestia hit the gavel "Case closed, take the prisoner back to his cell. You will have 24 hours to decide on a will and who will be entrusted with your safety. I advise you to think hard in who will be, Fort," Celestia suggested to him as everyone left the courtroom.

The verdict was spread like wildfire, and was well-known throughout all of Equestria as ponies gasped and looked at their newspaper in shock while reading the final fate for Fort Knox. His family had broken into tears once they received the news of how far their son had gone and even old clients were completely terrified at the implications of his arrest, like the case with Upper Crust and Jet Set, who after reading the newspaper started to sweep their mansion from top to bottom, looking for anything that could associate them with Fort Knox, as well as anything he might have given them that could be suspicious.

"Ok Jet Set, I think that is all. Are you completely sure that we got rid of everything?"

"Uhh… um…" Jet Set looked around their house in worry until Upper Crust held his shoulder and shook him.

"Answer me, stallion! Did we or did we not?!"

"Yes!"

"Good! Now remember, we are the representative of the upper class, sweetie, so we must remain calm," She told him, but she looked like she was telling it mostly to herself. "We didn't try anything against Blueblood, we are not traitors to the crown, and we are not accomplices of any criminals... we are just two more victims of the noble class who were tricked by him." She looked at their reflection.

Jet Set approached his wife. "You are right honey, there is nothing to be afraid of." He gave her a smile and kissed her cheek. "By Celestia, how I envy your confidence sometimes..."

"It's a gift from my lineage," She chirps with pride.

Meanwhile in her own mansion, Scarlet finished reading the news and cut out part of the newspaper article. "So, old Forty just up and got himself arrested. Well that is what he gets for hurting my sweet prince..." She then looked at the image of Blueblood with dreamy eyes before drawing a heart around it with lipstick. Oh, my poor brave prince, mama is going to make sure to kiss all your booboos goodbye.

She then kissed the image, leaving a mark, and then pasted the article against the wall where other images of Blueblood were spread around.

Meanwhile in a spa resort in Appleloosa

Sharp Shot took a glance at the article before he resumed drinking his cider.

"Anything good?" A female voice called from behind him.

"Fort Knox just got himself arrested," He calmly replied.

"Knox? Knox? Knox?" The mare kept repeating herself as Sharp turned to look at a very fat pegasus mare who, with her light grey mane, overly big wings, and straight and short mane and tail, looked like a living pillow. She leaned on a sofa while sunbathing near a pool, the two being the only ponies at the place. "Did I know him? Ah, doesn't matter, I'll just ask Blueblood once he comes again," She replied, making Sharp Shot roll his eyes as he turned back and continued his drink.

In a cave near the Badlands

Two hooded ponies walked inside, guided by the light of their torches, as they approach a room in the heart of the cave, with electric light in it. A pony that looked exactly like Blueblood with the exception of this one having a black mane and tail as well as being an earth pony, got startled at their arrival before smiling and then sit at a wooden table in the middle of the room.

"Oh, hello there." He greeted them with a calm smile. "Sorry for the mess, but, well…" He looked around his room as the hooded ponies stared at millions of dolls of Blueblood ripped to pieces, the words 'Die Blueblood, Die' engraved on the walls everywhere, as well as various wanted posters with daggers on their faces, and all sorts of weapons spread around on the floor, as well as the recently shredded newspaper. "…I haven't had any visitors in quite some time," He told them in a friendly manner "So, what can I do for you? Anypony you want me to collect?"

The hooded ponies looked at one another before showing him a wanted paper with the image of Prince Blueblood, which caused the stallion's eye to twitch as he continued to smile. "Ok then! Let's talk about prices. What about the special of the day, first one free?
Hmmm?"