The Convoluted Life of Gleaming Shield

The pungent aroma of antiseptic and disinfectant assaulted Gleaming’s senses as she regained consciousness. A constant beeping—both high in pitch and in annoyance—sounded off right next to her ear. That, coupled with the stiffness of the bed and the staleness of the air meant she could only be in one place.

A horsepital.

Uuugh… why am I in the glue factory? Opening her eyes, Gleaming sighed as she confirmed her location. The white walls, the beige floors, the uninteresting decor. She most certainly was in the castle infirmary. In one of the common rooms to be exact. A dozen or so beds lined the wall, each one equipped with its own set of medical equipment.

Apparently she wasn’t important enough to warrant a private room. Still, she was somewhat thankful that she was the sole occupant of the room. All the other beds were empty and bare. And they also placed her in the bed closest to the window, which, incidentally, was the furthest from the door, so ponies wouldn’t be able to see her when they walked passed. Hooray for little miracles, I guess…

Strands of hair fell into her vision as she moved her head. She lifted a hoof to brush her mane out of her eyes, only to notice a long tube was attached to her foreleg. It led up to an IV bag which was half-full of liquid.

Gleaming blinked as she gave the tube an experimental tug. W-what? An IV? How long have I been here?

Deciding to leave the IV alone before she accidentally ripped it out of her leg, she turned her attention instead to the window. She could see down into the Lower Courtyard where a herd of nobles was gathered around the fountain, talking quietly amongst themselves in the cool morning air. Unicorn guards patrolled the outer edges of the courtyard, walking along the curtain walls, while a flock of pegasus guards drifted by overhead.

The sight caused Gleaming to frown. There were more guards on patrol than usual; almost three times as much. What happened while I was out? Tearing her eyes from the pegasus squad passing by her window, Gleaming felt around her bed until she found the call button. She pushed it then sat back and waited.

It wasn’t long before one of the medical staff arrived.

An older mare wearing a nursing cap poked her head through the door, only venturing further inside when she saw Gleaming was awake and alert. “Oh good. You’ve finally rejoined us. How are you feeling, dear?” she asked as she approached the bed.

“Sore,” Gleaming answered. She winced as her words came out scratchy and hoarse. Sore and stiff. Like I was forced to work as a piñata for a day.”

“That’s to be expected,” the nurse replied. “You have multiple contusions and lacerations across your chest and barrel. You’re going to be a little tender while they heal.” Picking up the clipboard hanging off the foot of the bed, she flipped through it. “Your higher-ups have been asking about you. I’m going to give you a quick once-over, and then we’ll notify them you’re awake.”

Placing the clipboard down, she pulled a tongue depressor from out of her pocket. “Now, open wide and say ‘ah’ for me, please.”

Gleaming did as instructed, opening her mouth as wide as she could and sticking out her tongue. She didn’t even flinch when the depressor practically touched her tonsils— “Wow, look at you go, girl!”

“Gah?” Her ear twitched at the excited whisper, and her eyes darted around the room, searching for the speaker. It hadn’t come from the nurse, who was too caught up in studying her mouth, but there was nopony else in the room. Great. Am I hearing things now?

The rest of her check-up went by without any strange happenings. Marking down the last of the info, the nurse smiled. “That should do it. Everything looks good. Now, you wait right here and I’ll get your superior. Alright?”

“A-alright,” Gleaming stuttered, her heart already sinking in her chest. There was no telling what kind of tongue-lashing she was about to receive from Captain Firestorm.

Much to Gleaming’s relief, it was not Captain Firestorm who showed up thirty minutes later.

“This is all my fault,” Lieutenant White Out groaned as she collapsed into the chair beside the bed. “All of this is completely my fault. I messed up everything.” Without her armor, the mare looked much more sickly. Her ribs were visible beneath her dress uniform and her collar bones looked about ready to rip through her skin. The Lieutenant looked so much like a skeleton that it was hard to believe she was younger than Gleaming’s mother.

“It’s not your fault, ma’am,” Gleaming said.

“It isn’t it?” White Out asked, her head in her hooves. “I’m the one who changed the shift chart. I’m the one that put you in the Vault. I should have just left things as Firestorm wanted. I should have just stuck with the original plan. Why did I have to make changes at the last moment?”

Gleaming shook her head. “You couldn’t have known, ma’am. Don’t beat yourself up over it. Besides, if you hadn’t assigned me to the Vault, nopony would have been present to stop the intruder, right?”

Slowly lifting her head, White Out started at Gleaming for a long moment, her expression unreadable. She worked her jaw, as if unsure what to say, before eventually sighing and hanging her head. “You are correct. If you hadn’t been there, nopony would have discovered what had happened until much later. Still, it’s also the reason you are injured.”

“It’s nothing too serious, ma’am,” Gleaming said with a forced grin. She had to fight back a wince as the large bruise in the center of her chest twinged when she shifted.

“Regardless,” White Out said softly.

“I’ll be fine, ma’am,” Gleaming insisted, “but, if I may, what happened after I was knocked out?”

White Out leaned back in the chair. “We weren’t able to catch the intruder. They got away through a broken window before we could apprehend them. We aren’t even sure how they got in, as none of the wards were tripped. As such, we’re currently on high alert.”

“That explains the extra guards,” Gleaming muttered, glancing out the window.

“This is the first time in known history that somepony has gotten into the vault,” White Out said. “The Empress has ordered increased security. At least, until we can figure out if anything else was stolen.”

“Stolen?”

“We aren’t entirely sure, but so far we believe that two items have been taken from the Vault. Maybe more. We know for sure that one of the items is a one-of-a-kind amulet. The Empress is not happy.” Gleaming bit the inside of her cheek, but remained silent. “We have ponies working around the clock, reorganizing the Vault in order to take inventory. They’re about halfway done sorting through the mess.”

“Halfway done?” Gleaming’s mind flashed back to the massive mess that had been created during the scuffle. “Wait… how long have I been out?”

The corners of White Out’s mouth crept upwards. “Two nights have passed. It’s the dawn of the third day.”

“T-three days?” Gleaming blanched. “I’ve been asleep for three days?!”

“Unconscious,” White Out corrected. “You’ve been unconscious for three days. The medical staff tell me that it’s not the same as sleeping, so you won’t be well-rested.” She chuckled as Gleaming’s ears splayed back. “That reminds me though.” Getting to her hooves with a groan, she adjusted her dress uniform before taking a more professional stance. “Private, you are hereby relieved of active duty—”

“What!?” Gleaming yelped.

“Temporarily,” White Out continued, lifting a hoof in a placating manner. “It’s only temporary. You are being taken off the schedule for the foreseeable future for medical leave. Both physical and mental.” She gave Gleaming a stern look. “Go home, Private. Go home, relax, recuperate, and most importantly, rest.”

“But, I…”

“That’s an order, Private. Get some sleep.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Gleaming replied meekly. “Understood, ma’am.”

“I hope so.” White Out sighed. “Now, if you excuse me. I have to get back to work.” Giving Gleaming one last look—one that seemed more calculating than anything—she turned and trotted out of the room.

Gleaming waited until she could no longer hear the Lieutenant’s hoofsteps. Slumping against the headrest, she stared up at the ceiling for a long while before finally uttering two words.

“Buck me.”