Ponyserk I- Egg of the High Queen

Minister Whooves
It had been a long time since the throne room had seen any use for a ceremony such as this. The plain and rather bare marble room was only brought to life by the red carpet running down it's center, bringing to light the only other feature of the room: the golden steps and platform that held the throne of the king. The windows were plain glass, the sunlight shining through to illuminate the room and signify the coming of the sun's apex at the middle of the day. It was when all knights were dubbed, the mid-day sun was significant of reaching new heights and achieving great things, a sign of being risen up to greatness. It had been that way ever since the splitting of the kingdoms at the end of the rule of the Great Princess: There had once been many stained glass murals in this hall depicting the heroes and great deeds of an age long since passed. A world where a great monster ushered in an era of chaos, of battles between goddess' of night and day and finally of a princess that had brought together all the world to form one empire. It was strange how the legends referred to her as a princess and not as a queen or empress, but the texts told that it was to show she was not above her subjects. In the end, it had all fallen apart and the kingdom had fractured into several. But this castle, which later formed the center of the empire of Canterlot, was where the great princess once ruled from and had been the capital of the once great empire.
However, much like the era's the windows had once shown they too had fallen prey to time. The earth pony still remembered his sorrow when a peasant revolt had broken out and they had attacked by throwing rocks through the windows: All of the history they told, all the stories they had contained and even the beauty they held was destroyed in a single night. It still weighed heavily on the ministers heart to know the windows had been lost to time: Even if the legends had been silly, they were still a crucial part of history and the windows were no less important. Besides, the clear glass just made the atmosphere of the throne room depressing. He had even tried a few times to see if they could be remade, but each time the king had expressed disdain and believed there were better places to spend bits. The newly appointed king didn't have the same historical interest as himself, but the minister still wandered if he could persuade him next time he was able to get ahold of the kings ear.

The various knights and lords that existed only to serve their king, or like the minister their own ambitions, had all gathered neatly on both sides of the room. Some shifted uncomfortably to create some more space between them, others tried to move their weight from one hoof due to having to stand for so long. The minister was close to the front of his row, standing in the middle on the left row of ponies that surrounded him. They all wore varying expressions of disgust, embarassment or, much like the minister, utter indifference. Oh, it was a truly despicable event happening and the precedence it would set was equally as horrifying. But, the pony had learned long ago that it was best to treat ones face as a mask to conceal ones emotions rather then reveal them.
“This is absolutely absurd! A rogue mercenary being knighted, a rogue MARE mercenary no less!” An elderly unicorn knight to the ministers left spoke quietly under his breath.”And she's receiving a noble title too...absurd! This is absurd!”
“What is the king thinking? Allowing common rabble into our court: It's unheard of!” Another to the ministers right, a younger pegasus knight spoke quietly in reply.
“But, on the battlefield the Phoenix soldiers were a great help to us” Another pegasus spoke, smirking slightly.”Besides, this is all just a way for our king to keep them loyal to us: It's like what you do with any mercenary, beat the price of your competitor. And if we give them a title...then it means they won't go gallavanting off to fight for our enemies”
“That's my point! Mercenaries are no different from bandits. We shouldn't be doing this for a commoner, not when there isn't even a war on!”
“Still, it's best to keep our assets close to home is it not? Better they serve for us then against us, wouldn't you say minister?”

Realising he was being addressed, whooves turned his head slightly to see the three knights now staring at him. It was as if they were hoping to have him sort this argument out for them, to act as a referee in the gossip of children. And whilst he had his own opinions on this matter, he felt it would be better to keep his cards close to his chest for now.
“I think it would be better if we left such talk until after the ceremony. Gossiping like this in the middle of a knighthood ceremony isn't what knights do, wouldn't you agree?”

Rarity

“In the name of God and the holy spirit, I make you a knight. Be courageous, be courteous and be faithful to god and to the kingdom-”

The mare was grinning like an idiot, unable to contain her joy at what was happening: All of those years they spent clamouring across battlefields, risking their necks in the dirt and mud, going from place to place with only a tent and bed roll to call home. All of it was, finally, coming to an end.
The sight of Pinkie Pie kneeling before the king, who gently rested the flat edge of his sword upon the mares left shoulder was something she had been hoping to see. Sure, she was envious that it wasn't herself in Pinkie's place but the sight was a joy all the same.
Looking down to her left she noticed Applebloom standing there, the younger mare looking quite happy with the ceremony.

Out of all of the Phoenix soldiers in the room, the young applebloom had been the most awestruck by the throne room. Sure, it was a bit sparsely decorated but it was still a throne room: Commoners like them were lucky to enter a palace even once in their lifetime, so to be allowed into the throne room was nothing short of remarkable.
“This is it, we can finally kiss this wretched mercenary business good-bye. Say hello to life in the regular army!”
“R-really?” Appleblooms shock just made Rarity's smile all the wider.
“Yes! You see, Pinkie isn't just receiving the title of Knight but also Viscount. That means, while we don't get any noble titles we are all considered apart of the regular army under Pinkie's command” The unicorn reached up to brush back some of her hair that had gotten in her face, pushing back some of the greasy and uneven strands from her face.”Now, even the lords have no choice but to acknowledge our value!” She let out a slightly louder then normal chuckle, only to find the air swiftly lost from her lungs and a pain in her side.

“Now that we're apart of the army, you should learn when to be quiet Rarity. We're going to be judged from now on by our actions, and those actions will effect Pinkie Pies reputation. And I won't have you embarrass her at her own ceremony” Fluttershy's stern voice was still no less irritating at a moment like this. Could she even go one minute in her life without having to adhere to her personal code for Pinkie? The unicorn started to think not. Fluttershy's life had been tied to this band since the day she had joined it, a day Rarity had been present to see. She had watched her grow as a warrior, but also in how she had taken to following the earth pony down to the letter. If Pinkie was to disappear out of thin air, the unicorn doubted the pegasus would be able to last more then a second before losing her cool.
Not that she didn't appreciate the loyalty or having her with them, but it was frustrating to deal with even on a good day. Besides, couldn't she tell that she was explaining something important to Applebloom?
“Yes, I know Darling” Rarity huffed.”Honestly, you have to stop getting yourself wound up over every little thing. I already have one mother, I don't need another. I don't need a replacement for my overbearing younger sibling either..”
Once more, Rarity found Fluttershy upon her. Grabbing a hoof-full of her plate armor, the unicorn felt the normally quiet pegasus drag her close until their foreheads almost touched. She normally would have jested about being so close like this, but the glare in the aerial warriors eyes made her reconsider.
“What was that!?” Her voices volume raised noticeably. It was thankfully not enough to draw too much attention, still keeping to a reasonable enough volume to not disrupt the-
“Ceremony! Ceremony! Ceremony! CEREMONY!” Rarity desperately hissed, attempting vainly to calm the pegasus before she embarassed herself and the unicorn. As much as she hated to admit it, Fluttershy was right about one thing: They couldn't disrupt the ceremony, especially not when their leaders future reputation was now at stake.

As if sensing this, Fluttershy unhanded the still shocked unicorn, who quickly surveyed the room around her. Thankfully, aside from one or two knights glancing back, nobody had cared to notice them. The ceremony still continued on.
“Hey, uh...where's Dash?” Applebloom's query made the previously calmed Pegasus' wings twitch, the unicorn noticing her furrowed brows. It was the look someone gave if they wished a violent fate on something, or in this case someone. Not that she could blame Fluttershy for this, her own expression quickly sinking at the mere mention of their....'Comrade'.
“Where do you think she is? Same place as always...” Rarity grumbled, taking a sideways glance out of a nearby window.

In the furthest corner of the courtyard, between two small tree's was an all to familiar blue shape. She moved in a single motion each time, striking the air from above with her sword. The familiar two handed blade let off a glint of light whenever it was raised, the sun catching the edge and reflecting itself off of the surface to any who bore witness.
Why would she waste her time swinging at the air? This was a major event in their careers, the start of their new lives in the royal court: Sure, they weren't lords but when compared to three years earlier they had gained so much more then any of them had ever hoped to be able to achieve. And she chose to do something that she could do whenever she pleased. Or rather, something that she had done without fail every single day for the past three years? It was truly despicable!

“Arise, Sir Firehawk”
The words of the king made the mare remember why they had all gathered, turning her gaze back to the center of the room to see Pinkie rise to her feet. Their commander turned with her usual smile, inclining her head in a respectful manner to all present.

Silence hung in the room for some time, many of the lords appearing to take some time to register that the ceremony had ended, obviously lost in their own thoughts as the unicorn had been. But, with a quick clearing of the kings throat, the whole room slowly burst into applause. It was a slow clap, gradually spreading along the columns, the lords and knights at the back of the room beginning the applause first before it made it's way to the front. It was an odd phenomena, but the unicorn found herself caught up in it anyway.
Before long, everypony in the room had begun to clap. She could tell most of the nobility was far from happy about their raised status, a fact that Rarity was all to pleased to see on the depressed or angered expressions of numerous ponies around the room. It brought that malicious and smug smirk right back onto her face, instantly negating any of the bad feelings she felt prior. The unicorn would normally have tried to get Pinkie and the others together for a party, but if what they had heard on their way back to the palace was correct they couldn't afford to. There was an old keep that Cavolian troops had long held during this centuries war. All other forces sent to the old keep hadn't survived, and then there was the rumors of a demon killing canterlot troops in the area...

She quickly disregarded the last part. Demons? There was no such thing! It was likely just some units excuse to try to explain away their failings, which wouldn't be the case this time. After all, with pinkie leading them, this was bound to be as simple as the time they held that fort.
“Demons? Hah! Honestly who do they think we are, Foals?”