Panzer Lehr

Chapter 7

Prince Blueblood stepped back, furious that he had been halted mid sentence by the door slamming in his face. He had half the mind to throw it open and continue his tirade, but decided against it. The last thing he needed to do was draw unwanted attention to himself. He headed back into his room, making sure the door was locked and sealed, then walked behind his desk.

An ornate looking letter sat on his desk, sealed with a wax stamp bearing a long forgotten seal. He produced a small knife from a cupboard and sliced open the end of the letter, producing a slightly aged paper. To any other pony, the writing would look like unintelligible gibberish, but to Blueblood it had a meaning. He gave a sardonic smirk. Everything was unfolding precisely as planned.

There was a knock at his door. Blueblood quickly scrunched the letter and tossed it in a nearby fireplace. “Yes?” He said.

“Princess Celestia has called a meeting of the High Council Sir.” Came a voice of one of the palace Guards.

Blueblood frowned. The High Council was only called to an emergency meeting for just that, an emergency. His frowned deepened as he realized that the time frame of his operation had just been kicked forwards a few weeks. This could cause unforeseen complications, but it could also work in his favor. He suddenly had a fair amount of ammunition to toss around.

“Very good.” He replied to the Guard. Most of the high council were gullible idiots or petty nobles, it wouldn’t take too much to sway them. But the core nobles would be a problem. He would have to do something about that.

A while later...

Schlesinger took a moment to straighten his cap and dust down his jacket as she stood next to Celestia at a set of large, ornate, double doors. “I must address the high council.” Celestia said. “Although overall command of the Equestrian military falls to me, its deployment falls to them. I must plead my case for full mobilization without letting them know we face invasion.”

“Are you sure I am allowed to attend, your Highness?” He asked Celestia.

“Of course.” Celestia said. “This meeting is secret, but as my military advisor, I will allow you entry, and even the right to speak on my behalf if necessary.”

Schlesinged nodded. The doors swung open to reveal a horseshoe shaped room. Banks of seats filled the sides of the room, coming together to form an archway over the entrance. At the head of the room was a slightly raised pedestal where the speaker of the high council would sit, and behind it, a higher pedestal with three thrones, obviously reserved for the royalty. The room was filled with hundreds of ponies, there appeared to be roughly 300 in all. All stood and fell silent as Celestia and Schlesinger entered.

Schlesinger caught more than a few glances as he accompanied the Princess up to the high pedestal. “You may stand by my side.” She said as she quietly took her seat, the rest of the council following suit. Schlesinger stood alongside the throne.

The speaker, a blue pony wearing a black robe addressed the assembly. “This emergency meeting of the high council is now in session. Princess Celestia, as you are the one who called this meeting, please address the council.”

Celestia stood and faced the crowd. “Thank you Mr. Speaker. I have called this meeting to address an emergency issue, which could not wait until our monthly meeting.” She had to pick her words carefully. “Over the last few months, intelligence reports have indicated large numbers of griffon troops moving towards the Equestrian-Griffon border.” There were sounds of concern from some areas of the room. “While this may amount to nothing, I propose to trot on the side of caution, and to immediately deploy the Equestrian armed forced northwards to deter any griffon intentions of hostile action.” There was a small chorus of “Heer heer” from some ponies. “I move that a vote be called on this issue.” She slowly sat down again.