Shining Armour looked over the Navy surrounding his small Schooner. The ships spread across the horizon, everywhere one looked, there was a ship,never any smaller than a Brig, with it's cannons pointed at either the palace that Shining Armour was making his way towards or towards the city he had just exited.
'I know everypony is on edge, but that's a little extreme...' Shining Armour thought to himself. He'd been away for a few months and he had no doubt that the conditions here had worsened, but the country's own Navy pointing it's guns at it's own people was still uncalled for. All this and more weighed heavy on Shining Armour's mind. The toll was seeping through to his body. Even the regal coat he wore - a black woven trench-coat, it's collar coming up to his neck and it's flowing back coming down almost to the tips of his hind hooves, felt heavy on him. He was thankful for it though; it had served him well over the years. The coat was embroidered with gold along the cuffs, and bore the royal insignia on the shoulder straps - the front of it was also embroidered with a gold silk, the design being a simple rectangle, divided horizontally with lines every few centimeters, stitched into the chest. Not only did it show that he was of a high stature among the government in which he served, it was also functional - the coat came with a great many inside pockets in addition to the usual outside ones a coat of this design would have, and the decorated chest was done so as a deliberate target - that area was made of a much thicker fabric, doubled over in layers, to serve as a basic form of concealed armour. It wouldn't stop a bullet, but it might lessen the blow of a melee weapon. The design was a combination of the usual military overcoats that were assigned to high ranking individuals, and the more elegant overcoats that those who were high in the aristocracy wore.
"Here we are sir - New Canterlot Palace" the helmsman remarked, shaking Shining Armour out of his musings.
"Have they got the gate working this time?" Shining Armour asked, remembering the disaster when entering the water lock a few months back. He still hadn't got the smell out of his mane.
"Should have sir; it's been almost half a year after all," the helmsman commented. He attempted to maintain a cheery disposition at the latter half of his sentence - but one could tell that his voice was shaken with nerves; whether from the water lock or from the state that Equestria was in one could not tell.
The boat approached the large concrete gate, its gaping hole showing a wall of cogs and other machinery working to perform the feats the entire country was built on. Even the whale-oil fuel tanks lining the walls were visible - how many had died to power this monstrosity?
"Look alive men, the Lord Protector is home!" came a call from above. Shining Armour looked straight up to gaze at the sheer height of the building. He couldn't see the top - the roof disappeared into darkness. What Shining Armour could see, however, was far more busy - the balconies dotted along the walls, each populated with around four or five ponies, working feverishly at the various parts of exposed machinery to keep the water lock running smoothly. At the top, the level that the boats stopped at, there were various guards crowded around the abyss that the boats - such as the one Shining Armour was in now - emerged from. Mechanics were sprinting between the posts they had been assigned, producing creaking and shunting from the effort of getting the technology to operate.
The raising alarms sounded, and large metal screens slid down on either side of the building, shielding those working on the lower levels from both view and the water. Large pipes extended from the top of the hole, and they locked into place, strutting out from the metal sheets that protected the lower-level workers from drowning. Water came gushing from the pipes, and the opening behind Shining Armour's boat slammed shut, the solid sheet of steel clanging as it hit the sea floor below them. The water level gradually raised, and the boat along with it. "Welcome home sir," The Helmsman said warmly, truly relieved to be back from his trip. Shining Armor felt the same way, though he vocalized it a lot less.
The ship stopped rising, and there was an echoing creak as the valves within the pipes closed and the water flow stopped.
"Release the water - slowly this time!" a gruff voice came from seemingly everywhere and nowhere, as was the case with the water lock's acoustics. It was almost unnerving in a sense - the echoes of the booming voice of an Officer felt as if it was piercing one's skull and resonating inside the brain.
The grated drawbridge lowered, and Shining Armour stepped out onto the concrete floor. It still wasn't solid land, but the pony-made structure was the most solid thing Shining Armour had set hoof on in weeks. The bustle continued around Shining Armour, but he didn't care for what everypony else was doing. He was home, and that was all that mattered.
Shining Armour stepped out into the palace gardens. The place was well maintained, the flowerbed still blooming even in the now chilly air. The sun was shining, it's rays keeping Shining Armour warm against the cold wind. All in all, it was a beautiful day. The walkway leading to the main palace was clear, it's railings even having a few birds sat chirping on it. A stark contrast to what lay in the city only a short trip from here. At the end of the stone walkway lay a small outcropping where the Spymaster, Miss Luna, stood completely still. Before her stood a large canvas, clearly still not finished, and a black and grey figure stood at the canvas, adding stokes of paint here and there to try and capture the likeness of Miss Luna, leaning over occasionally to get a look at her. Over to the left of the outcropping, up a small flight of stairs, there stood a large gazebo, it's woodwork still as flawless as the day Shining Armour left.
A sigh of relief escaped his lips. He was home. Regardless of the circumstances around him, no matter how grim or bleak things may seem, he had a family and a home. That was all that mattered.
"Shining Armour!" a slightly high pitched squeal came from down the walkway. Running towards Shining Armour, as fast as she could, was the young Twilight Sparkle. "Shining Armour!" she repeated, this time more ecstatic than the first.
"Hey Twi," Shining Armour replied, the relief of being able to see his little sister was okay after he had been away for so long making his voice seem weary. Shining Armour knelt down, and embraced the young Twilight. "It's good to see you again," Shining Armour said, the happiness now seeping through his intonation. Shining Armour let go of Twilight, and she backed up a little to give him some space. Shining Armour stood back up, and assumed a more business like manner - but soon dropped it altogether. Perhaps it was the correct thing to do, but Shining Armour didn't care. He was in familiar surroundings, whereas they had been strange and foreign to him for so long. He had had that stiff stand for so long - if there was a time for him to relax a little, it was now.
"Where have you been?" Twilight asked, clearly excited to hear the tale of Shining Armour's travels around the continent. Twilight almost had to run to keep up, but she kept by her brother's side as he made his way along the walkway. "I've been... away," Shining Armour said after a time. He didn't know how to phrase what he had been doing. Was Twilight privy to what was happening outside the castle walls? Shining Armour didn't know. Better to play it safe with his information. "Where have you been?" Twilight pressed. Shining Armour chuckled internally. Twilight hadn't changed at all - always trying to get to know everything she could. "I've been traveling to all sorts of places," Shining Armour answered. That was the truth - Shining Armour had been to almost every single place that the hand of civilization had touched. So long as Twilight didn't ask... "Why?"
Shining Armour couldn't help but let out a smile. Twilight had a habit of asking all the wrong - and thereby, right - questions. "I'll tell you whatever you want Twi - I have to go see Empress Cadence first though," Shining Armour responded. Twilight let out a whine. "Fine... but I want to hear about everything when you get back!" she demanded. "I'll tell you all about it when I have some time. Every single detail - I promise," Shining Armour told his sister. 'There.That should give enough time to decide if you want to fabricate a story' Shining Armour thought to himself as Twilight ran ahead of him, likely to inform Cadence of his arrival. "Ah, the Lord Protector Mister Shining Armour," Spymaster Luna remarked, turning her head to face Shining Armour and shifting a little in her place. "Back two days early - always ahead of schedule, as always,"
"I try," Shining Armour sputtered out. He wasn't too fond of the Spymaster - she seemed a little shifty whenever the hierarchy was mentioned, and the rumors surrounding her were none too positive either.
"Hold still, oh high Spymaster - with this much movement, my brush may falter," the rhythmic tone of the artist drummed out. "Yes Zecora, sorry," Luna responded, stiffening herself again. Zecora - artist, alchemist, and one of the wealthiest ponies in the city to boot - Shining Armour sometimes wondered why she hadn't been brought onto the royal payroll sooner.
Making a sharp turn up the stairs, Shining Armour's eyes were greeted by Cadence's figure looking over the sea, similar to how Shining Armour had. Maybe she too was examining her Navy. "Lord Protector," Cadence said, never turning to look at him. Her tone was cold, as it was supposed to be, but Shining Armour could hear the underlying warmth with which Cadence always greeted him. "Do you come bearing results?" Cadence asked, her formal tone now completely overwriting any sign of their relationship. Twilight was off in the corner of the gazebo, engrossed in a book. Fearing for her youthful innocence, Shining Armour simply held out the letter that was within his coat with his magic. No need to let Twilight hear what evils the world can truly offer - let the heroes and villains be confined to her fictional worlds for now. Cadence took the letter off him, and opened it to read. "A blockade..." she uttered after a while. "They're going to wait us out, let the entire city turn into a graveyard!" Cadence said, her hushed voice audible only to Shining Armour. Shining Armour was unable to find words. He had been carrying that knowledge for months now. "No help is coming, no," he eventually sputtered out. Sometimes, words were simply not enough to express emotions.
Cadence's face fell. "I should have expected as much..." she blurted out, her eyes closed and the sorrow almost weeping from her face.
"Hey, they're on the roof!" Twilight piped up, awed but a little confused. Shining Armour turned to face the foal. "What're you reading Twiley?" he asked. Twiley - he shouldn't have called her that. Twilight had figured out long ago that when she was called that, bad news was on the way. "No, I'm not reading; look, they're actually on the roof!" Twilight clarified, indicating with her hoof the roof of the palace. Sure enough, two hooded figures were sprinting along the roof tops. As soon as Shining Armour saw them though, they vanished - as if they had never been there at all. Shining Armour's entire body tensed. His mind ran faster, his eyes darted around the area. The sword, concealed in his overcoat, was gripped by his magic, ready to be drawn at a moments notice. Even Shining Armour's left fore hoof was ready to do it's job at the flick of his wrist. "Cadence, take Twilight somewhere safe," Shining Armour said, his voice commanding and grim. Cadence didn't talk back, she merely beckoned Twilight over to her, and knelt down to explain where they were going. Then it happened.
One of the hooded figures materialized in front of Shining Armour. The hood covered a gas mask, it's breathing apparatus jutting out from the mask a little, and it's round, green eyes concealing the wearer's identity. It looked as if the mask had been weathered on purpose to make it intimidating, but that aspect was lost on the steel-nerved Lord Protector. Shining Armour knew there was no messing around when it came to situations like this - before the mysterious pony could react, Shining Armour's sword had already cut open the neck of his foe. The pony fell to it's knees, then turned to ash and vanished into the wind. Twilight screamed, and buried her head into one of Cadence's wings. Another three figures appeared around Shining Armour, blocking him from the left, right and center. Behind him Cadence and Twilight were curled, attempting to minimize any target that they showed. Shining Armour readied his sword, moving it a little closer to his person to give him those precious milliseconds of reaction time if he needed them. Sure enough, he did.
The figure to Shining Armour's left raised a sword with it's own magic, and swung a clumsy overhead blow at Shining Armour. He swiftly dodged to the side, cutting open the attacker's stomach as he did so. Once again, no blood or gore was produced - the attacker merely faded to ash. Doubting they expected such aggression, Shining Armour assumed the offensive to tackle the assailant that had been facing his center. Dashing toward them, Shining Armour made a few hard and fast swipes against the figure, but it bore no results. The figure was able to parry each of the strikes made against it, though not without a little panic coming through in the opponents foot work as they moved to get around to a more open position to fight Shining Armour. Seeing this, Shining Armour realized he had the upper hoof psychologically, and smirked a little. He lowered his guard - enough to be noticeable to even the most untrained eye. The opponent took what they perceived to be their chance. Using a sharp swipe at Shining Armour from the side, they prepared to have their muscles relax as the blade pierce deep into flesh. Instead, they were thrown to the side as they impact of steel on steel ricocheted through their fore hoof muscles. Seeing that they were off balance, Shining Armour stepped forward and plunged his own blade deep into his opponent's chest. The body turned to ash and was carried off by the wind before Shining Armour's sword had even been removed from the body. The last figure was over the opposite end of the gazebo now. Shining Armour figured the range was justified, and the time correct to use it. He raised his left fore hoof in a flash, and flicked his wrist in the direction of his enemy.
There was a small, localized explosion as fire flashed for a moment inside the sleeve of Shining Armour's coat, the device strapped to his wrist worked it's mechanical magic. A small ball of lead hurled towards the enemy and buried itself in their head. The body was blown back, hurtling through the air before it too turned to ash like the others - bullet and all.
Shining Armour only now remembered to breath out. "Are you two alright?" he asked the two mares, keeping his sword at the ready but sheathing it for this situation. Cadence nodded and stood, Twilight following suit. "Good. Now, I need you to -" Shining Armour was cut short by a choking sensation. He felt his entire body be raised into the air, and the constriction on his throat tighten. He spluttered, trying to gasp for air. He was gripped by magic! In his view of Twilight and Cadence, he saw another figure strut into sight. This one wore neither a hood nor a mask - bold. The auburn mane of this one fell over the neck and onto the red overcoat they were wearing. Like the others, Shining Armour could tell not whether they were male or female; even though he could see the head of this one, their features were covered by the mane and any defining features of either gender hidden by the coat. "NO!" Cadence shrieked, standing up and spreading her wings to prepare to defend Twilight. The hood-less figure punched the Empress straight in the face, causing the sound of breaking bones to fill the air amongst the otherwise silent garden. Cadence stumbled to her side, her wing stretching over to hold her now bleeding cheek. The hood-less figure produced a large dagger from the depths of their coat, held it aloft with their magic, and plunged it deep into Cadence's neck. Blood spurted out from the wound, and Cadence fell to her side as she used both her fore hooves to grab at her neck and stem the blood flow. Shining Armour could only look on in horror, unable to move a fiber of his being; no matter how hard he willed himself to do so. Out of the corner of his eye, Shining Armour could see Twilight too look upon the event, unable to look away. If Shining Armour could have shouted then he would have done so - instead, the strangulation had forced all the air out of his lungs, and was preventing him taking in any more. A third figure appeared behind Twilight, took her in it's hooves, and then vanished as quickly as it had arrived. Twilight's scream at being taken was cut short as she was whisked away.
The figure vanished, and so did the magic holding Shining Armour in place. He fell to the floor with a thud, coughing roughly as his airway put itself back into shape.
Twilight was gone. He had failed his job as Lord Protector and as a brother - these thoughts, and those like them, ran around Shining Armour's head over and over again. But for now, he had one pony left in his life he could try and succeed. Crawling over to the crumpled body, now lying in a pool of her own blood, Shining Armour tried to speak to Cadence. He called her name, but she did not respond. Reaching the body, his coat now stained with the blood of the mare whom he loved, her turned it over to face him. Cadence's eyes were still open, staring with terror at one who was no longer here. The wound in her neck had stopped bleeding now, and was merely a gash - but that made it no less horrific. Cadence's hooves were practically stained red with her own blood, while thick trickles and streams of the stuff ran over her torso. Shining Armour's eyes widened. He had been talking to this living pony only minutes ago - she had been filling his thoughts for what seemed like the eternity he had spent at sea. How? How could she be here one moment, and gone the next? Shining Armour tried to cry out, to use his voice to express his pain, but no words came out. Only silence filled the area that Shining Armour and Cadence... no. Cadence's corpse and Shining Armour occupied.
At that moment, the Spymaster Luna and members of the guard arrived, looking over the distraught Shining Armour and the dead Empress. "He has..." Luna started, unable to finish her sentence from shock. The guards, however, had already taken the precautions. One, a unicorn, had produced his sword and had the tip pointed at Shining Armour, while the other, an Earth pony, put his hoof on Shining Armour's chest. Luna looked down over the broken Shining Armour, looking straight into his eyes. "How could you? One so close to her?" Luna asked, the ice cold dagger of sorrow that her voice was assuming laced with the tone of one who had earned a victory. Shining Armour had little energy, but he had enough to look into Luna's eyes. Luna's now turquoise eyes, their slit pupils staring straight back.
Shining Armour screamed as the scorching poker was pushed into his flesh once again. The large brown pony administering the torture was hidden under an executioners mask, hiding his face. Regent Luna, however, was content to stand out in the open, staring directly at Shining Armour. In addition to the eyes, Luna’s coat had grown darker over the last six months, almost black as the night sky now. “Has our guest decided to speak yet?” Luna asked. The torturer shook his head. “Apply it once more, then leave me to him.” Luna instructed, speaking with the casual nonchalant tone of one who had been through a routine like this many times. The fire-poker was taken out of the nearby brazier where it had been cooking, and stabbed into Shining Armour’s side. He once again screamed in pain, despite himself. He wanted to keep quiet, to not give either of the two ponies in the room the satisfaction of his pain – but he had almost been broken over the last six months. Half a year in captivity. Half a year to do nothing but think to himself about what he’d let happen, about how best to extract revenge on those who conspired against him and the empress. Half a year of nothing but Hell; his body was broken, his tolerance for pain had given out, and his mind was corrupted by rage when in company, but sadness and regret when alone.
The poker was removed from Shining Armour’s body. The wound was cauterized naturally by keeping the poker in fire when unused; this was a both a blessing and a curse. Though cauterizing any wounds wouldn’t allow the plague to infect Shining Armour, keeping him alive (though he daren’t imagine what for) but causing him excruciating pain on top of the surge he felt every time his flesh was pierced by steel. The torturer put his weapon of choice back in the brazier, the only source of light in the room. Regent Luna walked toward Shining Armour, casting an eerie shadow across the room as she approached. “I’m not fazed…” Shining Armour wheezed, his voice rasp and his throat sore. “My intention is not to intimidate you – do not think I would be so foalish as to think you would be swayed by mind games,” Luna responded.
She started walking around the Lord Protector, knowing he was unable to strike her with anything except a forked tongue from the chair to which he was bound. Luna’s hooves made echoes as she walked on the concrete floor, each step being the only sound that could be heard when she was not speaking. Shining Armour had grown accustomed to this sound; but that made it no more pleasant. “Do not mistake my mistreatment of you for a lack of respect,” Luna continued. “I simply wish for you to confess – it makes both our lives easier.”“I’m… not going to… because I didn’t,” Shining Armour sputtered out, fighting desperately the desire to cough and injure his burnt throat even more.
Luna sighed, and sped her pacing a little to face Shining Armour once again. “But if you say you killed the Empress, everything works out better. I get to take my position as ruler, you can finally have the sweet embrace of death by hanging – I’ll even tip the hangman. You can have your neck snapped, instantaneous death.”
Shining Armour did not respond, instead electing to keep silent for the time being. Luna stepped closer, practically touching his face with her own. “And the young Twilight will be spared…” Luna added. Shining Armour had to crane his neck to stare her in the face, but he made the effort. No amount of towering over him would stop him from facing her like an equal.
“Leave. Her. Out of this.” He demanded, his voice hushed but forceful.
Luna suppressed a smile. Within her own mind, she had already one this argument. “Well, then I suppose you’d better save her then. As you were unable to do with Lady Cadence,”
If Shining Armour was a lesser stallion, he would have spat in her face. Not that he could have anyway, the moisture he could produce was reserved for coating his throat and getting the stale, sickly food he was served into his system. He need not waste it on the Alicorn before him – he had more honor than to resort to petty shows of disapproval.
“I’ll give you some time to think about it,” Luna said, tilting her head slightly but keeping her eyes locked on him, before turning and walking into the darkness that shrouded most of the room from sight.
As she left, Shining Armour’s vision was taken by a sack being stuffed over his head. His body was lifted of weight as two Pegasi picked him up carried his body off the floor, away to his cell.
The relief of carrying his own weight was something Shining Armour was quietly thankful for – it didn’t give him an opportunity to run, but it gave him a few moments of relief.
* * *
The sounds of the ocean could be heard through the small window. “Window” was a strong word – it was more of a hole covered by bars that somepony had forgotten to repair. The thing wasn’t big enough to even get a hoof out of, but it was plenty big enough to give a taste of the sound and sight of unattainable freedom.
Shining Armour led on the stone slab extending from the wall that passed for a bed. It was adorned with no sheets or blankets; the only thing keeping Shining Armour warm was his own will power. The winter months were still a season away, and if Shining Armour wasn’t executed by that time, he knew he’d likely freeze to death overnight.
It felt odd to him to think about his own demise. Most would count down the number of days until their death. Shining Armour had learned a few things from his time with the Military before becoming Lord Protector – instead of counting down the days until he passed, he counted up the days. Not of time he had spent, but of the days he had resisted. Every single carving on the wall, to him, was another point to him; another day that he had survived despite them. Despite her.
The tally Shining Armour kept occupied over half the wall facing him, and was nearly ready to turn the corner and begin on the back wall facing the door. Since there was nothing in the cell except rocks and, on occasion, rats, carving a line into the wall took the better part of a few hours; constantly beating into the wall with a stone. There was nothing else much to do though, and the repetitive motion kept Shining Armour’s mind straight and his magic honed. He had been told off older stories when Unicorns possessed magic that could do more than just hold things – the ability to do short range teleportation, create tangible objects, even if only for a short time, even create small presentations. Stories of The Old World even told of rulers powerful enough to raise the sun at consistent times. But these times were long gone – not since the rise of a technological surge and the consolidation of power into New Equestria – though the ‘new’ had been lost from its name. It was no longer new; the country was present, and the Old Kingdom was now the one to adorn a title.
Shining Armour liked to think of the Old World from time to time. Even if it was just the pony-tales told to foals. Stories of Celestia, the noble ruler; her battle with Discord, the embodiment of Chaos; the schism created with her sister, Nightmare Moon. There were old folk tales of Celestia using her power to ascend those worthy to Alicorn hood – even down to Cadence. Shining Armour considered this fodder, but the thinking time he had had allowed him to form theories from what was known.
Not that it mattered. Stories of times long gone were of no matter – whatever the “Elements of Harmony” were, they had been used to give rise to the technology now occupying and controlling most lives. They didn’t exist anymore.
There was a clanging on the jail door, shattering Shining Armour’s images of what the Old World had looked like and taking him back to the dampness of the air he lived in.
“Eat up Armour, this is from a friend. Better than the usual grub,” An armored Mare told Shining Armour, sliding a tray with some fresh bread on it through a near the bottom of the door.
Shining Armour nodded in thanks and got up from the bed. The Guard was indiscriminate with its hiring – mares and stallions alike were assigned to do basic jobs. The larger part of the actual military was made up almost entirely from Stallions, but the home guard was a little looser when it came to regulation. The only rule was that Pegasi wishing to join the guard be reassigned to the domestic military – their flight was invaluable, to the overseas efforts if push came to shove with foreign affairs.
Still, it was because of this loose formation of ‘The Watch’, as they had become known, that Shining Armour was able to hold a conversation with some of the prison guards – they needn’t be loyal to whoever was in power. Some of them believed that he had been framed, and a couple even talked to him. They never discussed anything important, but it was nice to hear about what was happening outside the four walls – even if it was talking to Moonshine about how her filly was doing in school.
Shining Armour knelt down to examine the food he had been given. The bread was fresh and golden – half a loaf. Shining Armour couldn’t help but grin for half a second – given that most of the food here was served with maggots inside it, this was probably smuggled by somepony. When he had joked that he could do with smuggled goods, he didn’t actually mean it! Still, better not to look a gift pony in the mouth.
The unicorn wrapped a magical aura around his meal, and lifted it to his mouth. Indeed, this was fresh food. He gratefully swallowed his first easily edible food in weeks, then looked down to examine the tray for anything else. There was the usual cup of water – though even the cup looked cleaner! – and… a note?
Shining Armour frowned. A note was an odd thing indeed – prisoners didn’t receive any mail. Perhaps it was from one of the more sympathetic guards? Pushing any preconceptions from his mind, the Lord Protector levitated the note up to eye height and began to read.
"Armour,
Forget who we are. Just know that we are friends. Look to your bread to find a chance to leave - I'm sure you'll figure out some way to get out. If you need a helping hoof, one of the guards will leave you a weapon.
Once you're out, make to the river and go through the sewers. We've left something else and further instructions in a special place; you'll know it when you see it.
Good luck!"
Shining Armour folded the note and put it into an inside pocket of his coat. He hadn't been allowed to change, and the coat almost felt like another layer if his skin now - it kept him warm over the nights, so he didn't take it off. Now, to look to the note.
The bread? Shining Armour looked to the bread levitating to his left, and moved it to the center of his vision. It didn't look overly odd. Shining Armour raised a hoof and turned it face up. Laying the bread in his hand, he let the bread lie flat on his hoof, feeling it's weight. It did indeed seem to be a little heavy. Perhaps...
Magic tore the bread in half, and it's user looked into the side of both halves. On the right side, the fluffy white inside stared back at Shining Armour. On the left side, there was, sticking out a little, the end of a key.
Shining Armour's eyes widened. Stashing the bread into his mouth, Shining Armour took the key with his magic. He examined the key carefully, checking for any sign of a trap or forgery. It seemed genuine. But the proof of the matter was in the doing.
Slotting the key ever so gently into the lock in his cell, Shining Armour swallowed his meal and let out a long breath. There was a slight click, and the door swung a little. It had opened!
Shining Armour very carefully checked that the patrols had all passed his route. There was nopony around. Breathing out once again, Shining Armour pushed the door open and took his first tentative step into freedom.
