Flash sighed heavily as he left the barracks. Word had just gotten out that Twilight Sparkle and the Elements of Harmony had saved the day yet again. He was grateful for their protection, honestly he was. Them, Discord, the Princesses, and just recently the Pillars were brought back from Limbo! He sighed again at the thought. It was all well and good that there were so many powerful forces keeping Equestria safe... But where does that leave the Royal Guard? Are they even necessary at this point anymore? With questions and doubt plaguing his mind, he decided to pay a visit to Prince Shining Armor. As a former Captain of the Royal Guard, he must have some insight to set his mind at ease.
As he passed by several houses that shone brilliantly, he came across a giant blue statue of a familiar-looking baby dragon. He had one hand on his hip and the other was outstretched, holding up an oversized replica of the Crystal Heart. Flash's ears drooped. Even a baby dragon was more useful, he thought miserably. He trotted at a slower pace until the underside of the Crystal Castle was within view.
No matter how many times Flash would come to the castle, the sight of the Crystal Heart always put him in a serene mood. He smiled warmly as he galloped to the underside of the Crystal Castle and closed his eyes as he neared the light blue heart, listening to its humming. A soft and warm wind blew, something he rarely felt since he was in his uniform most of the time. He took a deep breath, then exhaled. He opened his eyes, then trotted up to one of the four entrances. He went inside and ascended the stairs, hoping that Shining wasn't too busy. He may have felt better from visiting the Crystal Heart, but he still needed to get these frustrations off his chest.
Flash reached the throne room to see Princess Cadance reading a magazine. She looked up and smiled. "Hello, Flash," she said, spreading her light pink wings. "What brings you here?"
Flash had been a part of the Crystal Empire's Royal Guard long enough to know the need to call Cadance 'Your Highness' or 'Your Majesty' instead of her name was only on either an official basis or in the case of an emergency. Today, however... "I need to speak to Shining Armor. I've been having some, well, uncertainties," he said, drooping his ears.
Cadance tilted her head. "Oh," she asked. "Maybe I could help."
Flash smiled. "I appreciate the offer, Cadance, but this is about the Royal Guard."
"Ah," Cadance said with a knowing smile. "I see." Flash became visibly confused at the Princess's reaction. "Never mind me," she said with a laugh, "He should be back soon, he's just putting Flurry Heart down for a nap." Flash nodded in understanding, then sat down. "So," she said with a sly grin. "Any mares catch your eye lately?"
Flash's wings unfolded immediately, shocked by Cadance's sudden question. He began to sweat and kept his gaze away from her as heat rose to his face. "I-I... ummm... I... I..." He stammered, then stopped when he began to hear hoofsteps behind him and turned around to see Shining Armor. "Oh, thank Celestia," he exclaimed in relief.
Shining took notice of this and arched an eyebrow at Cadance. "Honey, were you teasing Flash about potential love interests?"
Cadance giggled, then rolled her eyes and smiled. "Maaaaaybeeeee," she said in mock innocence.
Shining trotted over to Flash, then leaned into him. "Don't worry, she does that with just about everypony," he whispered with a reassuring smile.
Flash heaved a sigh of relief, then recoiled momentarily as the scent of mashed peas and dirty diapers filled his muzzle. "Oof," he exclaimed as he covered his mouth with a foreleg. "I'm guessing Flurry didn't go down without a fight."
Shining grinned sheepishly. "Sorry about that. Even with all the spells Sunburst cast, she's still quite a hooffull." He then blinked, as though suddenly realizing there was a new pony in the room. "Why are you here, by the way?"
"I wanted to talk to you in private about something, but could you please take a shower or something first," Flash asked, his voice muffled by his hoof. "I can hardly take the smell!"
Shining shook all the water off of his body, then trotted up to Flash. "So," he said, "What's up?"
Flash took a deep breath, then sighed. "Lately I've been feeling wondering why we even need a Royal Guard," he said. His ears drooped. "Between Nightmare Moon, Discord, Queen Chrysalis, Tirek, and countless other threats, I and my fellow guardsmen have been either swatted away like flies, incapacitated, or otherwise rendered..." he sighed heavily. "...useless. It's like we don't even matter! We're hardly making a difference, if even that," he exclaimed, throwing a foreleg up in frustration.
Shining nodded attentively.
"Meanwhile, there's many, many forces of good out there that save the day on what seems like a daily basis! Every so often, another new group of heroes will appear, and it just..." Flash paused for a moment, then continued, averting his gaze from Shining. "It just feels like there's no point, you know," he asked quietly. "Do the Princesses even need us? Each of them has more power than countless armies. I mean, for all we non-Alicorns know, they could even be holding their power back out of fear of endangering us!" he sighed again, then lowered his head. "I'm starting to wonder...'why bother?'"
"Hey, now," Shining Armor said as he put a shoulder over Flash's neck. "Let me tell you something that'll put some things into perspective."
Flash nodded.
"Think about this," Shining said, extending a hoof. "Somepony in the streets is getting mugged. Could you imagine one of the Pillars, Elements of Harmony or Princesses stopping it?"
Flash quirked an eyebrow. "Of course not, that's basically overkill."
"Right," Shining said with a smile. "Now think about this. Why are the Royal Guardsponies always the first to charge into battle?"
Flash scoffed. "Well, that's easy! We're..." he paused as his eyes widened in realization. "We're the first line of defense!"
Shining grinned widely.
"And the Pillars, Elements, Princesses and such would be wasting their energy if they just worried about all the small things!" Flash smiled widely.
"Now you've got it," Shining said.
"I knew you'd be able to help me. You used to be Captain of the Royal Guard, after all."
Shining laughed. "Well... that and the fact that you're not even close to the first pony who's come to me for this sort of thing."
Flash's eyes widened again as another realization dawned on him.
"I appreciate the offer, Cadance, but this is about the Royal Guard."
"Ah," Cadance said with a knowing smile. "I see."
Flash smiled and laughed. "Thank you, Shining Armor," he said with a salute once he calmed down.
Shining smiled and returned the salute. "Any time, Flash. Any time."
Filled with renewed confidence, Flash Sentry galloped back to the barracks, proud to be a member of the Royal Guard.
