Luna's nightguards searched high and low, all over Canterlot for the ponies who had carried out bombings in an abandoned building. The blasts had awakened many ponies who came out into the streets, either because they were being evacuated or they were curious to find out what was happening.
"Where are the whelps?" Luna demanded as a night guard landed before her. "Where are they? Did you find them or not?"
"We couldn't find them anywhere," answered the guard. "We will keep looking until we can't find anything anymore."
"Do so," hissed Luna, stamping her left front hoof down hard on the ground. "And if anypony with the slightest suspicion is spotted, bring them to me. Understand?"
"Yes, your highness!" replied the guard and took to the air.
Luna then proceeded to move towards the scene of the blast. The building was blown out and fires were popping up at random. Using her wings to cover her eyes, Luna made her way into the building and no sooner did she get inside did the Princess of the Night discover a horrifying sight.
"Oh, you vile, vulgar barbarians!" Luna gasped in disgust as she saw a dismembered pony's foreleg at her feet. The sight of it almost made Luna feel sick to her stomach and even made her close enough to vomiting. Flashing several lights from her horn, a small group of guards came into the building, using their magic to put out the fires. "This pony is dead!"
"Over here, your highness!" called a guard and Luna ran over to see another dismembered body part. Now, Luna was becoming more and more suspicious of what was happening. "It looks me its from the same pony."
"I found something else!" called a guard and he came over holding what appeared to be a piece of parchment that had miraculously not been burned or harmed in any way and Luna hastily snatched it away when she saw what appeared to be a message written on it.
"TO THE DICTATORS HOLDING OUR LEADER CAPTURED,
THIS IS A MESSAGE DEMANDING THAT UNLESS YOU DROP THE CHARGES AGAINST OUR BELOVED BLACKHEART, THE NEXT BOMBS WILL BE DIRECTED AT YOU AND YOU ALONE! THIS ENTIRE NIGHTMARE YOU ARE PUTTING OUR LEADERS IS UNACCEPTABLE AND UNTIL YOU HONOR OUR REQUEST, YOU WILL SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES!
SINCERELY YOURS,
THE DEFENDERS OF OUR BELOVED MAYOR BLACKHEART"
…
After reading the scroll, Luna immediately left the destroyed building and hastily returned to the castle.
"Princess Luna," cried Green Sleeves opening the door to her quarters. "What's going on? What's happening?"
"A message has been spoken to us," answered Luna, ignoring Green Sleeves. "A message from those who wish to free Blackheart and it is a message that ponies will be put to death if we don't comply."
Green Sleeves felt her heart sink and wondered of the possibilities of being targeted at last by the devils who hunted her and Irish Coffee down. Just then, the doors to Celestia's quarters opened and the Princess of the Sun darted over to her younger sister.
"Sister, what happened?" she asked. "Is anypony hurt?"
"Only the perpetrators," answered Luna, handing Celestia the scroll. "It seems as if they want us to free the condemned prisoners we are keeping."
Celestia read the note and threw it down onto the floor.
"Well, I will say this," she said, firmly looking at Luna. "That we will not bow to their demands. This trial will go on and we will not release a monster like Blackheart like cowards."
Celestia then stopped for a moment and realized that there was a possibility that whoever carried out the bombings were being directed by somepony, somepony who was in confinement but still having the ability to carry out orders.
"Sister, what's wrong?" asked Luna.
"That foul scum!" remarked Celestia and she stormed away from the scene, leaving both Luna and Green Sleeves to wonder what was going on or what Celestia was intending to do.
…
Celestia stormed faster and faster down towards the dungeons and it didn't matter if she didn't have her royal accessories on. She was still a princess and it showed. Approaching the cell holding Red Flames, Celestia banged on the door loudly and angrily.
"RED FLAMES!" she yelled in her Royal Canterlot voice. "GET UP AT ONCE! I KNOW YOU ORDERED A BOMBING TONIGHT IN CANTERLOT!"
Red Flames didn't stir and Celestia motioned for the guards to open the door to the cell. Celestia furiously entered and Red Flames was found lying on his bed trying to pretend like he was asleep.
"Get up, Red Flames, you sniveling coward!" snarled Celestia, grabbing Red Flames, who was clearly wide awake, in a strong aura. "Do you even realize what you have done?"
"What I have done? All I did was send you a message in the form of a massive explosion?" he laughed. "That's what we do to enemies who threaten us, my dear enemy. We send explosive warnings."
"Red Flames," snapped Celestia, growling as she threw Red Flames against the wall of his prison cell. "You have tested my patience and have harmed my subjects for the very last time! Now, you are about be given a punishment that is only reserved for the most cruel and unforgiven ponies of Equestria!"
"What do you plan to do?" laughed Red Flames again. "Kill me? You don't have the guts to do such a thing, just like when you left Equestria on a silver platter for that centaur who almost stole all the magic or left that whore of a wife alive…"
Furious, Celestia forcefully opened Red Flames' mouth and she caused him to scream loudly in pain, which Celestia ignored. Chanting a spell, she pointed her horn right at Red Flames' throat and she kept doing these chants for several more minutes as Red Flames screamed louder and louder.
Then, almost as quickly as it began, it was over and Celestia released her grip on Red Flames, throwing him back onto the bed. Red Flames tried to say his displeasure, but to his shock and horror, he couldn't say anything. All he could make was the sounds of strained screams and grunts.
"Now, you will learn to silence yourself, Red Flames!" Celestia said. "I have taken away your ability to speak and until you learn to accept your fate, you will remain unable to speak and thus, will no longer be able to carry out any threats similar to what you have done tonight!"
Red Flames continued to glare at Celestia as she left his cell, having lost his ability to speak any clear words.
"Let that be a lesson, Blackheart," Celestia thought as she left Red Flames' cell. "That if you cannot learn to keep yourself quiet, you will suffer the consequences."