Every Prince Deserves a Princess

The rush of air was the only warning I had that the strike was incoming, and I began praying to every deity I could think of, none of which I believed in, that I would survive the assault. In my mind, I could feel the grip of piercing fangs around my neck, and the oncoming pain that would be visited to me as my lifeblood flowed out onto the floor from what was sure to be a set of fatal wounds. The anticipation made it so much worse, and I screamed as I felt the splash of hot blood running down my neck and chest... but there was no pain to accompany it. Only a wet, squelching noise met my ears, followed by total silence, and so I opened my eyes. The blood was not my own.

I trembled and quivered as I gazed at the horrific sight before me- there stood Sundance, frozen in mid-lunge with his demonic looking maw opened wide, and the blade of a kitchen knife piercing through the back of his mouth. The blade was lodged into the back of his head, exiting through his mouth as though it was a glimmering tongue of steel, shaking violently as the life drained from the impaled pony's eyes. He wasn't a pony. He couldn't be. All around the knife's entry point, the blood was blue. A generous spray of azure liquid had hit my chest and neck, dripping down and staining my coat as the corpse continued to bleed all over me before slumping into my lap as the knife was removed from its head. There was little I could do but catch the falling body on instinct, utterly bewildered as I looked up into my savior's eyes, awaiting an explanation.

"What... the fuck... is that thing...?" Moss asked through shuddering breaths as he dropped the knife, the clatter against the tile floor much louder than it would normally have been. "Let it go! Don't touch it!"

The words took a moment to register as I looked down at the body in my hooves, only to shove the cadaver away in horror. Where fur of brilliant ivory once was, there was only a black, smooth, chitinous shell. Twisted, papery wings rested at the creature's side, and the telltale fangs and tongue that I had seen before were still in place. Suddenly, everything clicked, and I scrambled to my hooves as quickly as I could before dusting myself down and trying to flick the blood from my legs.

"A changeling! He's... Moss, this isn't a pony! Have you not seen what these creatures can do?"

Moss, true to form, looked absolutely clueless as he surveyed his stained outfit with a look of disgust. His eyes snapped back to the dead or dying bug, and from then on, never left the body. "What? No, I've never even... I thought they were just a myth."

"They are very much not. You'd heard nothing of Shining Armor and Cadenza's wedding, several years ago? You truly haven't seen even a picture?" I asked, incredibly worked up from adrenaline and fear. A small rush of excitement washed over me as I began piecing the puzzle together in my mind, awaiting his answer.

"Nope. I'm not from around here, remember? I never really got the news back home." Moss ran a hoof through his mane, looking somewhere between confused and horrified.

"It doesn't matter, I can explain later. We need to comb the castle for Silver Shield. If Sundance... or rather, this changeling, was posing as one of the corpses we found, his accomplice may not be far! This all makes so much sense, and places us in grave danger. Come!" I commanded, as I began trotting for the doorway.

"What? Why... oh, fuck it, I'm coming!" Moss gathered up his kitchen knife and followed as I scooped up my rapier from one of the many pools of sapphire blood painting the white tile floor. As I reached the doorframe, I ran directly into Luna's chest, bumping her hard and somehow, falling upon my ass instead of bowling her over. Needless to say, she was not amused.

"What was all of that yelling, just now? You will explain what is going on this instant," Luna demanded, her trademarked glare in full effect.

"Auntie, we need to hurry! Shining Armor is in serious peril! Have you see a white unicorn with a purple mane about, possibly dressed as a chef or server?" I returned to my hooves, breathing hard as Moss helped me up.

"No, I have not. I was waiting to spring the ambush, and then you came to me and lead us into another room to chase the would-be assassin. Stop being foalish."

It took a moment for the words to register in my mind, before my heartbeat sped up instead of beginning to calm. "That wasn't me! Auntie, there are... we need to hurry!" I shoved past Luna and stormed out into the hallway, not bothering to explain myself. Luna poked her head into the kitchen and ignited the wall torches, taking in the scene for a split second before she rejoined my side opposite Moss, not needing the explanation I was unwilling to give.

"He lead me back here, to the kitchens, and then seemed to vanish as he stepped inside. The intruder could be anywhere, and I highly doubt he will match the description of that unicorn, you, or anypony else here!"

Without a clear plan in place, I began to thunder through the halls, looking for anything suspicious as my hooves carried me with an apparent destination in mind. I found myself heading back toward the dining hall, from which the sounds of screams and stampeding hooves could be heard. Moss was the next to speak, my own mind too busy to formulate even a sentence as we ran together as a team.

"Wait... you said something about a wedding, and Shining Armor. Where's he at now?"

"The infirmary, with any luck. Sister likely took him there immediately after the attack, unless she is attempting crowd control," Luna replied.

I snorted, shaking my head. "Let us hope she was not so stupid! He needs medical attention, and... you!" I deviated from my course, chasing down a guard just ahead who was patrolling alone. Without warning, I slammed the pony into a nearby wall with a body check, bracing my foreleg against his throat with a snarl. "Identification!"

The poor colt, a silver unicorn, stammered and fumbled about as he began to choke underneath the pressure of my leg.

"H-h-here!" The guard produced a legitimate badge, holding it out with a shaking hoof so that I could read the finer details. I cursed aloud and stomped the floor, feeling very much like an idiot as Moss took the opportunity to inform me of what I already knew, his hoof upon my shoulder.

"Shit, man! Chill out! We can't just go around stopping every single guard, civilian, and what have you to see if they're a... a thing. If you're worried about Shining, ya need to make sure he's even alive, first!"

I released the guard and let him drop to his hooves, the familiar urge to punch Moss rising up within me. It was entirely unjustified, for once, but the stress of the situation had reinforced a fact that I had long been aware of- I was no leader or great decision-maker.

"I shall go to my sister and assist where I can. The guard will be directed to let none leave the palace until they are thoroughly searched, and you two are to collect any evidence that you can, before locating me with a report." Luna struck me with a piercing gaze and left no room for argument in her orders. As I opened my mouth to reply, she vanished in a shroud of black mist, not unlike that of the creature that had been haunting my dreams, and now, my reality. Could it have been her? Was it the changeling queen, a menace from so long ago, and one that I had never personally met? The possibilities caused my head to throb, and the waning adrenaline within my body left me feeling utterly exhausted. I reached a hoof to my forehead, the familiar feeling of being an utter failure creeping up around my heart and mind as my head began to pound.

"Hey. Hey." There it was again, Moss' hoof upon my shoulder, beginning to rub. I had not the energy, nor the inclination, to slap him away as the gravity of the situation began to sink in. I was feeling nervous, unfulfilled, and honestly, quite terrified. "You gonna be alright, big guy?"

"...you saved my life. I owe you my life," I stated matter-of-factly, though I wasn't sure if it was to explain the notion to him, or myself.

"Whatever. I'll collect my debt later, but right now, you need to chill out, and think. Are we collecting evidence and playing good little lap dogs for tall, dark, and scary, or do you have another plan?"

"I don't know. I don't know, Moss. I was almost slaughtered like a common sow, mere moments ago! Shining Armor is likely dead, it's going to be seen as my fault once the truth gets out, and I c-"

My ranting was interrupted with a set of lips upon mine, and for the second time, I received a kiss from another stallion. Once again, it wasn't returned, and I merely stood in confusion as the act lasted for several seconds. Without another option, I slapped his face away, leaving a bright, red welt on the cheek of my savior.

"What the hell are you playing at!?"

"Excuse me for trying to make you feel better!" Moss rubbed at his cheek, though he didn't look angry. He looked almost as if he had expected the hit. As though he had wanted it.

"Well, stop trying! We need to search the kitchen for any clues, and then... find Shining Armor, I suppose." I pulled a face, trying to get the taste of Moss off my lips as I turned back and began trotting for the kitchen. Moss followed along, completely unfazed by the slap, my mood, or the gore before us as we entered.

The kitchen was alight, but not alive, as the torches that Auntie had lit along the walls cast an eerie glow across the metal equipment. The very much dead changeling lay slumped atop a fallen assortment of pans, rich blue blood spilt across the floor and pooling around his corpse. The changeling's skin seemed shriveled, more unnatural than usual, as though he had already begun to decay. His eyes were lifeless, lacking a pupil, and a rather large hole was torn through the back of his head, revealing a lack of bones within the creature's head. I had been so lucky...

"Yo, chubs. What's that?" Moss pointed down next to the corpse, where a few tatters of my outfit lay in a sticky pool of blood. Clung to the outfit and wet with the blue liquid was a grouping of three long, flowing strands of orange hair, quite unlike that of a pony. I lit my horn and levitated the strands, looking on as they danced in a wispy motion, their very appearance almost... ghostly. I watched, transfixed by the simple strands as a rippling black mist swirled nearby, and my heart stopped in automatic response. Aunt Luna stepped forward from the swirling blackness, and I had never been so thankful to see her as in that moment.

"He's alive, but only just. Celestia and Cadance are watching over him."

I released a breath I hadn't been aware that I was holding, and with it, my very will to stay awake. With the outward sigh of relief, the magical grip around the hairs fizzled out, and with it, so did my consciousness.