Rainboom Revolution

The entire main assault of the rebel Agents of Chaos against the Royal Guard officer barracks was held in suspension until the electric-blue streak screaming down from the night sky came close enough to determine what exactly it was and what it was going to do. It wasn't until desperate rebel scrambling away from their positions just outside the protective magic bubble that the loyalist defenders - most prominently Captain of the Guard Gibraltar and Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor - realized that the streak was generated by a speeding pegasus aimed at the rebel attackers!

The rebels continued to scramble out of the direct path of the electric-blue energy, but it ended up being in vain - as the pegasus passed through the rebel cluster, there was a crackling KABOOM and an electric-blue ring shock of energy released in a variation of the sonic rainboom. The speeding pegasus quickly pulls around parallel to the ground, as Rainbow Dash had done after performing her rainboom rescue, prompting more scattering from both rebels and loyalists on the ground. The rebels unfortunate enough to get caught in the "wash" of the energy ring immediately dropped to the ground, blue electrical bolts surging across their bodies.

The rebel attack stopped immediately, and chaos of the unhelpful kind immediately broke out as the loyalists counterattacked in response to the rebel confusion. First were the loyalists under Lieutenant Skyver's operational authority that had been attempting to contain the rebels, then others personally lead by Captain Gibraltar out from Shining Armor's shield (that had survived the ring's impact on it but was now removed to let out the other loyalists).

Panic broke out immediately among the rebels, now realizing many of their number were injured and they were in imminent danger of being crushed between the two loyalist forces. Agent Animosity's second-in-command rushed down to where Animosity had fallen after being caught in the electrical energy wash, and very quickly the pegasus stallion realizes the limp, burned and bleeding Animosity is dead - the electrical shocks had stopped his heart and "shorted out" his entire nervous system - and that every other pony caught in that ring of electrical energy had met, or would soon meet, the same fate.

The second-in-command looks left to see loyalists closing on him. He looks right to see the same thing happening. He looks up and sees pegasi (later revealed to be a mixture of civilian castle staff and concerned citizens of Canterlot) coming through the previous opening in the cloudbank above and chasing after the fleeing rebels, making it clear they weren't the hoped-for friendly reinforcements. Finally, over the confusion din of the renewed conflict, he hears Agent Cruelty emitting a cry that he recognizes as a signal used amongst the old pegasi tribes calling for general retreat. The pegasus realizes he has little choice but to follow the retreat order if he doesn't want to get captured and takes off, gripping with his teeth the Lieutenant's star on Animosity and ripping it off the uniform as he ascends to prove the latter's death and allow him to assume command once the rebels have a chance to reorganize.

The two loyalist attacks run into each other, allowing most of the uninjured rebels to get away and causing some "friendly fire" attacks before Captain Gibraltar can restore order. Of the approximately 65 members of the rebel attack squad, about a dozen had been killed or critically injured by the electric imitation of the sonic rainboom and a few more injured in the melee with loyalists. All the injured became prisoners of the loyalists, along with a few other rebels that had been rounded up by the chasing pegasi. The rebels also lost the guillotine-style machine that had been used to execute three unicorns, which was impounded by Lieutenant Skyver and began to be dragged away to storage for usage in later criminal proceedings.

Captain Gibraltar called a hasty meeting involving himself, Shining Armor, Princess Luna and Lieutenant Skyver in order to piece together what exactly was going on. All the while he was getting updates of the other rebel attacks around the city and the situation just outside the officer's barracks - civilians and Royal Guards working together to clean up the battlefield and secure whatever prisoners the loyalists could grab.

"The evidence is clear and irrefutable! They are deliberately trying to generate chaos, and if they succeed in their efforts there would only be one solution: the Elements and their Bearers!" Princess Luna exclaims as she thumps a hoof on the table the meeting was conducted around.

"I agree that we need to summon the Bearers just in case, but how exactly is that going to work? Conventional messaging will take much too long to be useful." Captain Gibraltar questions.

"Then we wake Celestia and have her send a message by Spike. She needs to know about the rebellion anyways!" Shining Armor answers.

"Assuming the castle communications haven't been cut off, sir." Lieutenant Skyver cautiously adds.

"We can restore them if they are, odds are good part of the rebel plan is deliberately delaying Celestia coming to know of the rebellion." Captain Gibraltar states.

"Then what are your orders, Captain?" Shining Armor asks, all eyes now focusing on Gibraltar.

"We return to the castle, capturing or driving off any rebels we come across. Once there, we wake Celestia, either to alert her to the rebellion or to enable her to alert the Element Bearers." Gibraltar firmly replies in Shining's direction. "Meanwhile, our subordinates will capture and repulse any rebellious ponies in the city to protect the citizenry and preclude further spread of chaos. Their treachery means extreme measures are now justified, and I will not be afraid to order them!"

"Then we waste time by talking. Certainly they will rally somewhere within the city, and that place must be found and cleared as soon as possible as a secondary objective to our own efforts." Princess Luna affirms.

"Absolutely, Your Highness." Gibraltar replies, turning from her to Lieutenant Skyver for his next words: "Lieutenant, I am leaving you in operational authority as I need the Lieutenant Captain's help for the castle operations. As soon as you can find the rebel rally point, you are to organize a force and lead an attack to clear the place. Lethal force IS being authorized against any active opposition. Understood, Lieutenant?"

"Yes, sir!" Lieutenant Skyver replies with a salute, grim worry on his face.

"Very good. Now we go to alert Celestia. Dismissed!"

The meeting was over, but not all the twists of the night's events. As the Luna lead party exited the officer barracks heading toward the castle, a pegasus mare rushed up before Luna and bowed, telling that she had news for the Captain of the Guard.

"Go ahead, mare!" Captain Gibraltar replies directly as he rushes to beside Luna, temporarily overlooking proper protocol due to the fluid nature of the situation.

"The pegasus behind the electrical shockwave is right behind me! You see, sir, he hurt his wings in the effort and had to make his way back on hoof..." the mare begins in a rambling explanation.

"Never mind the details, civilian! Just tell him we're right over here!" Captain Gibraltar cuts off, waving off the mare with a forehoof as Shining Armor also moves up out of curiousity - Lieutenant Skyver decides it's best to stay where he is to watch the back of the others despite his own curiousity about the stallion that generated that electric shockwave.

"Yes sir!" the mare exclaims, quickly turning and running back off in the direction she'd come. A few moments later, she returns with a pegasus stallion, orange-coated with a neatly-trimmed mane and tail in stripes of different shades of blue. The stallion lets his wings hang down - an obvious result of overexertion - and the pegasus mare directs him in the direction of Luna's party.

The members of Princess Luna's party exchange looks with each other as the stallion approaches, and all Royal Guard members notice the stallion is wearing a now-rumpled dress uniform, decorated with the insignia of a Guard Lower Class. The stallion finally stops in surprise at Luna and bows, somewhat ungracefully due to his exhausted state.

"Arise, stallion. Your superiors may wish to discuss some things with you." Luna graciously replies, stepping aside to let the other party members address the pegasus stallion directly. The pegasus complies, but quickly shifts into a salute upon seeing his superior officers arrayed in front of him.

"Your name and shift assignment, Guard." Captain Gibraltar asks of the pegasus as Shining Armor and Lieutenant Skyver exchange looks again.

"Flash Sentry, Guard Lower Class, afternoon shift at the castle, sir." the orange pegasus quickly clips out while retaining his salute, also finally remembering his splayed out wings and blushing a bit as he folds them back up to his side.

"Tell me, Flash Sentry, did you rally the civilian counterattack in addition to performing the imitation of the rainboom?" Captain Gibraltar asks with an interested but firm tone in his voice.

"Yes sir, I was out on late duty and saw the rebels coming out of the opera house..." Flash starts to explain, but is interrupted by the raising of a forehoof by the Captain of the Guard.

"You can give a briefing on the details later, Guard. Let's just say we're all very impressed by your actions." Captain Gibraltar says with a smile, affirmed by nods of the other members of the party.

"Thank you sir, it was the least I could do sir." Flash replies as frankly as possible, returning the smile given him.

"Tell me, though, when was the last time you handed out parking tickets on the streets of Canterlot?" Captain Gibraltar now asks, referencing the "bottom-feeder" job of the Royal Guard in the city of Canterlot - only the lowest on the seniority lists did this task.

"Parking tickets? I don't think..." Flash Sentry starts replying in confusion.

"Sir, I believe he was one of those called up early because of Luna's arrival..." Shining Armor helpfully interjects.

"Oh that's right, you must've come from the field early because of the sudden need for an expanded service. Thank you, Lieutenant Captain." Gibraltar replies gratefully, turning first to Luna and then Shining Armor in turn in acknowledgement of the context of the statement. Luna blushes slightly in return, while Shining gives a gentle nod in his superior's direction.

"Yes sir, I was called up early from field tour after graduating Academy." Flash Sentry affirms with an uneasy smile.

"True true, but valor and quick thinking can be in a stallion of any age. The Lieutenant Captain here is an example of this in action, and in this hour of need we need more stallions like him and like you, Guard." Captain Gibraltar replies warmly.

There is a brief pause as Flash's face changes to surprise as he begins to realize what is going on. Captain Gibraltar uses his brown-colored unicorn magic to pull out from his saddlebag the double bars of a Guard Upper Class insignia, dirtied and twisted slightly from being suddenly being pulled off its previous placement and dropped to the ground.

"This was recovered from one of the main rebels. Whoever it is has forfeited the right to wear it, and now I give it to a much more worthy candidate." Captain Gibraltar explains, manipulating with his unicorn magic to take off Flash's Guard Lower Class single-bar insignia and pin the Upper Class double bars in its place. "Effective immediately, you have been promoted to Guard Upper Class, and for the duration of counter-rebellion measures you are to remain attached to this party. Understood, Guard?"

"Yes sir, thank you sir!" Flash Sentry replies, finally feeling free enough to give a smile as he saluted.

"We would appreciate if you would join us in the trek to the castle, Guard. You can tell us more about what you know on the way there." Princess Luna offers.

"Yes, Your Highness. I will tell everything I know." the now-Upper Class Flash Sentry replies to the princess of the night.

"Good. Take station on the outside of the Lieutenant Captain. The Captain will be on my right, the Lieutenant Captain on my left, the Lieutenant on the outside of the Captain. We will move in a wedge formation directly to the castle." Princess Luna orders.

"You heard the Princess, everypony. And Upper Class, try to straighten out that uniform while we move, please?" Captain Gibraltar adds as he moves to the position dictated by Luna.

"Don't worry, sir, I will." Flash Sentry replies with a chuckle as he moves to beside Shining Armor, who is already on Luna's left.

As the five ponies assemble in the ordered wedge formation, Luna gives a dramatic point with a forehoof in the direction of the castle, and the small group begins moving out in military march. The main rebel attack had been stopped, but the rebels were not yet defeated, there would still be more fighting yet that night...