The Changing of the Guard

Shining Armor stepped out of the carriage and surveyed the Canterlot cityscape. The unmistakable smell of smoke pervaded the air, and he could hear the distant chants of the crowds below. With a deep breath, he turned to the two members of the Royal Guard at the helm of the carriage. They saluted their commander and Shining Armor returned the gesture with a nod. He took a few steps towards the tower doors and was about to open them when one of the guards spoke up.

“Are the rumors true, sir?” he asked, prompting his comrade to give him a rough nudge. Shining Armor froze in place for a moment before turning his head just enough for his line of vision to pick up the two soldiers.

“I’m afraid so,” Shining responded, avoiding eye contact with the two soldiers. He heard the rustling of their harnesses as they recoiled. A few seconds of silence followed, punctuated by the muffled sounds of explosions in the distance.

“W-well... then what happens now, sir?” the other soldier asked.

Shining walked back over to both of them and placed a hoof on the second soldier’s shoulder. He smiled at the guards reassuringly before saying in a hushed voice, “Just return to your post and wait for orders, soldier. Both of you, now.”

Regaining their composure, the two soldiers puffed out their chests and gave Shining Armor one final salute, which he dutifully returned. The guards then took flight, carriage in tow, and Shining watched as they disappeared below the sightline of the tower balcony. With a heavy sigh, the commander opened the doors and began his descent.

With each step down the tower staircase, the sounds of the crowds outside became louder and louder, even through the heavily fortified masonry of the castle walls. By the time Shining Armor had finished descending the staircase, the content of the chants became clear: “Out! Out! Out!”

The commander opened the tower base door which led into the main hall of the castle and did a double-take at what he saw: The hall had been almost completely stripped of its adornments. Nearly all the portraits, vases, tapestries, and even carpeting that had previously been a staple of the hall were missing. A few torn streamers and shattered bits of a few ceramic vases were essentially all that remained. As he surveyed the appalling scene, Shining Armor walked towards the base of the main staircase. He fixed his gaze towards the spot on the wall above the staircase where a portrait of Princesses Celestia, Luna and Twilight had once stood proud. In that moment, as the chants of the crowd outside grew louder and louder, Shining Armor could not help but whisper to himself, “You’re alone, Shining... This is it...”

“Commander!” echoed a familiar voice through the bare hall, snapping Shining Armor out of his state of reflection. He turned to see that it was his second-in-command, a charcoal pegasus named Cloud Rider, who was sprinting toward him rather quickly, a frightened look on his face.

“Commander, the crowds are on the move towards Canterlot Castle!” Cloud Rider reported breathlessly upon reaching Shining Armor.

“I’m well aware of that, Lieutenant,” Shining responded as he started ascending the main staircase, “and proper precautions have been taken to hinder their entrance, I assume?”

“Of course,” the lieutenant responded, following Shining up the stairs.

“So... what happened here?” Shining Armor asked.

“What do you mean, sir?”

Shining Armor gestured over the bannister at the main hall.

“Oh. Right,” Cloud Rider said. “Castle staff, sir. Once you left, they started looting the entire interior, taking anything they could find. Most of them managed to escape undetected, but we did manage to capture a few that we’re currently holding in the dunge—”

“Priorities, Lieutenant,” Shining interrupted.

“Sir?”

“There are tens of thousands of angry citizens closing in on this location right this second, fully intent on seizing control, and valuable horsepower that could be used preventing them from doing so is being spent guarding a few maids and butlers who tried to make off with some paintings and vases?”

Cloud Rider froze, apparently unable to comprehend what Shining Armor had just said. “B-but, sir, they w—”

“Release the offending staff members and have the dungeon sentries reassigned to a position outside the castle immediately,” Shining interrupted again.

The lieutenant was silent. His commander glared at him. “That’s an order, soldier!” Shining Armor barked.

Cloud Rider gulped loudly before bucking up and saluting his commander of the Royal Guard. “Yes, sir!” he replied before walking back down the staircase. However, he paused for a moment and turned back towards Shining Armor, who was now at the top of the flight of stairs.

“Where exactly are you headed, sir?” he asked Shining Armor.

“The main tower. A protective shield may be able to prevent the demonstrators’ advance for a few hours,” Shining replied.

Cloud Rider’s eyes widened. “Wait... ‘a few hours’?! But... the Princess is returning shortly, is she not?”

Shining Armor merely sighed and hung his head, his back still turned to his second in command. The few seconds of silence which followed were the only answer the lieutenant needed.

“So... it’s true, then,” Cloud Rider finally said. “The rumors... they were all true... This is it... We’re going to die here, aren’t we? Aren’t we?!”

Shining Armor took a few steps back down the steps toward his lieutenant, who was becoming increasingly hysterical, and had begun furiously pacing the main hall. “Soldier, get a grip!” Shining admonished him.

“We’re all going to die at the hooves of these damn lunatics, aren’t we?! Aren’t we?!”

“Lieutenant, calm yourself,” Shining Armor said.

“How in Equestria do you expect me to be calm in a situation like this?! I don’t want to die! I can’t die! I have a wife and foal at home to feed!”

“So do I, soldier! Do you see me acting like a damn coward?!” Shining bellowed.

“What did you expect?!” Cloud Rider shouted as he threw his standard-issue scepter to the floor. “You come back here and tell me that nopony is in charge and you expect me to be calm?!”

“I expect you to conduct yourself in the manner all members of the Royal Guard are expected to conduct themselves, soldier,” Shining answered as he turned around, addressing the opposite wall, “With integrity, composure, and collectedness. That’s what the Royal Guard Code of Conduct demands of all its members and it is what I, as the Guard’s chief commanding officer, demand as well.”

The sound of an immense metallic crash reverberated through the hall. Shining turned his head around sharply to find that Cloud Rider had removed his golden Royal Guard helmet and had slammed it to the marble floor.

“To Tartarus with you and your codes!” he shouted at Shining Armor before turning around and beginning to trot towards the massive double doors at the other end of the hall.

“Where do you think you’re going, soldier?!” Shining yelled after him.

Cloud Rider reached the castle entrance and turned around to face Shining Armor. “Home, Shining Armor,” he said in a voice just loud enough to be audible from across the landing. “Equestria is dead... and I’m not about to be buried along with it. My family needs me... We’ll make do in whatever society comes next... but this one is finished.”

“You’re being a fool, Cloud Rider,” Shining Armor implored. “You know that the second they assume full control of this city, they’ll hunt you down like a mule.”

“Then I’ll change my name. My whole family will change their names. All I know is that whatever happens, I’ll stand a better chance out there than staying here and fighting to protect an empty throne... Goodbye, Commander.” Cloud Rider turned back around to face the double doors and tried to push them open, but was halted in his efforts by a purple aura which slammed the doors shut..

“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that, soldier,” Shining Armor told him, releasing the magical hold he had placed on the doors. “If the brigade stationed outside those doors witnesses you abandoning your post as you intend to do, they’ll be inclined to do the same, and that is something I refuse to allow to happen.”

Cloud Rider began a mad dash towards the grand staircase, shouting back at Shining Armor, “Then I’ll escape from the main tower!” About halfway up the staircase, however, the deserter was stopped in his tracks and lifted off his hooves by the same purple aura from before.

“Put me down, Shining!” Cloud Rider shouted down at the unicorn now impeding his movement.

“Like I said, soldier,” Shining Armor said, pulling the helpless Cloud Rider down to the floor next to him, “I can’t allow the selfish intentions of a single high-ranking deserter to jeopardize the cohesiveness of the Royal Guard!”

Cloud Rider tried to break Shining’s hold over him, but no matter how hard he strained himself, he was unable to move any of his limbs more than a few inches. After about half a minute of struggling, Cloud Rider gave up and turned his attention to Shining Armor, whose back was now turned to him.

“And what exactly do you plan to do with me? You said so yourself that you don’t want resources spent guarding anypony in the dungeons! You just going to carry me around like this with you?” asked Cloud Rider.

Shining Armor turned back around. “I’ll do what I have to do to keep order here, soldier! And if that includes keeping you in this state and supervising you myself until the situation is resolved, then so be it!”

Cloud Rider began to chuckle, slowly descending into a kind of maniacal laughter. After calming down, he looked again at Shining Armor and said, still laughing, “You-you-you actually believe that you can prevent this castle from being taken over by those traitors out there?!”

“I don’t believe, Cloud Rider, I know!” Shining Armor stated, answering Cloud Rider’s rhetorical question.

“Oh?” Cloud Rider said, the pitch of his voice beginning to rise, “And how exactly do you plan on regaining control of the other cities?!”

“Never you mind that, soldier!” Shining snapped. “Those plans are reserved for loyal members of the Equestrian Royal Guard, not deserters.”

“DAMN IT, SHINING! LET... ME... GO!” Cloud Rider yelled, beginning to strain against Shining’s hold again.

“I will do no such thing, soldier! You’ll remain under my supervision until such a time as you can be formally and properly court-martialed for insubordination and desertion!” Shining replied, this time getting face-to-face with the immobilized Cloud Rider.

“Umm... Commander Armor?” sounded a voice from the other end of the hall. The two quarreling officers immediately turned their attention to the voice to find a young private in the Royal Guard standing there. “Private Hammerbolt reporting, sir... Is now a bad time?” he asked, giving Shining Armor a somewhat timid salute.

“Private Hammerbolt!” Cloud Rider shrieked. “Oh, thank the gods! Quickly! Tell the others the Princess is--”

Shining Armor promptly zipped Cloud Rider’s mouth closed and interrupted, “Is... returning to the castle shortly, Private. We’ve merely been given orders by Her Majesty to establish a secure perimeter to ensure her safe return. Please inform the other officers once you return to your post.”

“Yes, sir,” Private Hammerbolt responded, while being distracted by Cloud Rider’s muffled screams. “Is... everything all right with Lieutenant Cloud Rider, sir?”

Shining nodded as he moved Cloud Rider behind him almost out of sight, though his stifled yelling still echoed through the hall. “Perfectly fine, soldier. Pay it no mind. Now, your report?”

“Oh, yes, sir! I was dispatched by Corporal Firestorm to inform you that the crowds are continuing to move in this direction and are approximately half a mile from the main gate of the castle, sir.”

“Thank you, soldier! Please inform the Corporal and the other officers to order their units to establish a perimeter,” Shining Armor replied, saluting the private.

“Yes, sir!” Hammerbolt replied, returning the salute. He turned around and started sprinting back down the hall. Once the private was out of earshot, Shining unzipped Cloud Rider’s mouth and entered a brisk trot up the main staircase with him in tow.

Cloud Rider gasped for air, but after a few seconds, refocused his wrath on the unicorn controlling him. “I hope you realize you’re going to get us all killed!” he yelled as Shining weaved them both through the halls of the castle in a bid to reach the main tower. After Shining Armor ignored him, Cloud Rider then said after a moment or two, “How exactly do you plan on telling the others that what you just told Hammerbolt is a flat-out lie?

“One step at a time, soldier,” Shining Armor responded, stepping through the doorway leading to the main tower balcony. He lowered Cloud Rider to the floor of the balcony and momentarily released his hold on him. Cloud Rider attempted a flying escape, but was immediately pulled back down to the balcony floor by a pair of shackles Shining Armor had procured and attached to his wings. Shining Armor stepped toward the balcony railing and looked down at the scene below.

The crowd was moving briskly toward the main gate of the castle. By this point, they couldn’t have been more than a thousand or so feet away. Their chanting was growing louder and louder by the second, and by this time had transformed from “Out! Out! Out!” into, “For students, for workers, for prisoners and for soldiers!”

“Tell me again how you expect a forcefield to guard against that,” Cloud Rider said, gesturing with his head at the crowd below.

“Just you watch, soldier,” Shining Armor replied, taking another step closer to the balcony railing. He closed his eyes and, with a great deal of focused meditation, managed to flush out the noise of the crowd as he prepared to execute the spell. After a few seconds of intense concentration, Shining Armor’s horn shot a beam into the air, which, upon reaching the top of the castle, began to expand and descend. Once the beam had completely protruded from his horn, Shining Armor stood in a daze for a moment, grunted, and began rubbing his pounding head with one of his hooves.

As the migraine subsided, Shining Armor watch as the forcefield descended closer toward the ground around the castle. It appeared as if the front of the crowd and the forcefield were going to converge at the same point a few hundred feet from the main gate. It was at that moment that it occurred to Shining that this moment was the first time he had stood on the main castle balcony since that fateful day more than year ago, the day that all of this started...