Shining Armor tugged on the boots, flexing the joints above his forehooves. To his surprise, they bent easily, his flexibility completely unhindered by the thick crystal plating. He'd be able to run in these.
"They fit, Prince?"
Perfect Match, the earth pony who ran the palace's armory, stepped forward to examine the way that Shining's armor hung on his frame. Every piece of it fit perfectly, of course--it hadn't taken long at all to outfit him. Match's talent was taking one look at a pony and knowing exactly what armor or weapon would fit them.
"Yes, perfectly," Shining responded, igniting his horn experimentally. The entirety of his armor lit up magenta, cleverly refracting the light. The crystal armor and weapons of the Amore guards--as they called themselves when they were out of earshot of their modest princess--never failed to impress him. "Thank you."
"Weren't nothin', sir." Match was from one of the outer precincts. His accent reminded Shining of that of one of Twilight's friends. Applejack, he thought her name was. "But might Ah ask--why'd ya want ta be fitted fer armor?"
"I'm joining the wall guard." He examined a display of swords on the wall. As a unicorn, he'd never seen the need to carry one, but maybe it was time he started.
"That's gonna go over well," Match observed dryly.
"A Changeling got in," Shining emphasized. "I have to protect my people."
"Yer wife don't see ya as any less of a stallion when yer not in armor," the earth pony replied in an understanding tone. "Ain't no need ta make the pegasi on the wall think yer spyin' on them."
Alright. That hurt, just a little.
"Is that really what everypony thinks is going on here?" Shining muttered, turning towards the door.
"Jest what Ah've heard, Prince." Match's voice took on an apologetic cast. "Didn't mean ta offend ya."
Shining left without another word. The armory master's accent was beginning to get on his nerves.
His boots clicked against the floor of the palace. The armor was heavier than what he was used to, and definitely covered more. The light coming through the soaring windows turned him into a walking prism, throwing pastel rainbows on the walls. He failed to notice.
So ponies thought he was doing this to impress Cadance. Was the whole country laughing at him, a prince playing soldier to get his wife's attention? Or did they think that, after the incident with the Changeling, he didn't trust the guards?
Shining trusted them. He just thought that they might be better off if he were among them.
Suddenly, a loud flapping of wings startled him out of his thoughts. He glanced up to see an iridescent blur swooping wildly above him.
"Hey, Fighting Chance! Just what do you think you're doing deserting your--oh. Oh, buck. I'm, uh, I'm so sorry, Prince."
A blue-gray pegasus flapped into a clumsy landing in front of Shining Armor. He hastily bowed, armor clunking against the floor, then straightened up. He looked terrified.
"I, uh, didn't recognize you, Your Majesty." He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I thought you were somepony else."
Shining smiled widely, hoping to put the other stallion at ease. "Relax, it was just a mistake. Hey, you're Downpour, right? Flew right over a mule dignitary last year and made him spit out his false teeth?"
"That's me." Downpour spread his wings and puffed out his chest in pride, then remembered who he was talking to and hastily added, "Prince."
"Aren't you part of the wall guard?"
"Yeah. But the boss sent me down to the city to check the train that'll be coming in soon. I was supposed to get one of the unicorns so we'd have magic just in case somepony turned out to be a Changeling, but then I thought I saw my buddy Chance and...yeah. Sir."
"I can go with you." Shining turned around, and headed for one of the many doors that led out into the city.
"Uh, are you sure, Prince? I mean, don't you have, like, royal duties or something?"
He stopped and sighed, glancing back at Downpour. "Cadance and I discussed splitting up the duties of the country even before we were engaged. Now, she handles the political stuff, and I'm in charge of the military. Just like always."
Shining emphasized the last part. Nopony ever seemed to remember that he had been captain of the Solar Guards before marrying Cadance, not some Canterlot elitist.
"Guess it's okay, then." Downpour trotted over to the door and shoved it open, jumping into the air. He oped his wings and took off for the train station with absolutely no regard for the fact that his companion couldn't fly. Shining bit back a laugh. The soldier's mindset was the same everywhere, it seemed--pegasi assumed everypony had wings, unicorns figured everypony was telekinetic.
It was a long, hard gallop from the palace to the train station, since the former was pressed up against the city wall and the latter was near the main gate. But Shining Armor welcomed the exertion. Even with the heavy armor, he was able to keep up with Downpour fairly well.
Nopony seemed too interested when he passed. Either they didn't recognize the iridescent-and-blue blur as their prince or Amore guards thundering through the streets was a commonplace occurrence. Maybe both. Shining almost wished for widespread panic caused by his speed--back home, before he had been promoted to Captain, he and his friends used to scare the Canterlot elite half to death by running everywhere they went, like there was some horrible emergency that they needed to attend to.
"Air traffic's light today," Downpour noted, touching down on top of the sign that announced the train station. He glanced to the east, where a plume of smoke was visible through the translucent wall.
Shining nodded. They watched the train pull into the station.
Immediately, Downpour was in the air again, pounding on the only passenger car that appeared to be occupied.
"Amore guards!" he yelled. "C'mon, get out!"
"Is that really necessary?" Shining called. Downpour glanced back and wilted slightly.
"Well...I..."
The ponies filed off, most shooting dirty looks at the armored pegasus hovering above them. Shining recognized Landmark, a mapmaker who had been in the court several weeks ago offering to chart the lake to the north. And there was Twister, a pegasus who had broken his wing so badly that he had to come up here once a month for therapy. Behind him...
"Oh my goddesses."
Shining rushed over to the pony who had just stepped off of the train. She glanced at him, not really paying attention.
"Oh, do you want to check my bags?" She turned to undo the harness around her torso. "One second."
"Somehow, I don't think you're hiding a Changeling in there," he replied.
Twilight looked up, an incredulous smile breaking across her face. She threw her forelegs around him, armor and all.
"Shiny," she said warmly. "I haven't heard from you since the wedding!"
"I've been busy." He grinned as he pried his foal sister off.
"I can see that." Twilight raked her lavender eyes along his armor. "That looks a lot more dense than anything Equestrian smiths make; it must be heavy. Are you the captain of the guard here, too?"
"Claymore's the captain." Downpour touched down, having finished harassing the incoming ponies. "My boss, Frost Damage, answers to him because he's the head of everything. But he answers to Prince Shining Armor."
Twilight leaned in close to her brother, whispering, "'Prince'? They actually call you that?"
Shining made a shooing motion to Downpour, who grinned sheepishly and took off. He stepped off of the platform with his sister right behind him, blending in with the departing crowd as well as he could while wearing a full set of crystal plating.
"It's just an honorary title," he explained. "I'm not an alicorn, so I don't have any power beyond overseeing our militar, but I'm married to a princess. So technically, I'm a prince. At least, that's what Celestia told me."
"But they actually call you that?"
"Some slip up a lot," he admitted. "They're not used to having a male ruler."
They walked in silence for a few seconds, Twilight taking in the foreign beauty of what outsiders called the Crystal City. She turned her attention back to Shining, right as he was about to ask her why she had come.
"So is...this...recent?" she asked, waving a hoof to encompass his armor. When he nodded, her eyes grew worried. She leaned towards him conspiratorially and lowered her voice, "It's really that bad?"
His heart sank. She already knew about the Changeling? Then that was why she was here. It was unfortunate that the news had traveled into Equestria so fast, but probably unavoidable. He knew for a fact that at least a third of the guards that had helped to capture the thing had family under Celestia's rule. Of course they would have told them.
"I'm afraid so," he sighed. "We found one, and now most of the military leaders think that it might have just been a distraction. Frost Damage and Claymore especially. They've been sending their stallions out to observe."
"What? What happened? Tell me everything, Shining. Don't leave a thing out."
"You don't already know?" Shining came to a stop right next to a stall selling pastries. More out of shock than hunger, but the griffon vendor still took the opportunity to try and sell him something.
"All I know is that something horrible happened and you need my help," Twilight frowned. "At least, that's what Cadance said in her--"
She suddenly froze. Shining followed her startled gaze, expecting to see the Changeling queen herself. But, no; red dragon wings instead of gossamer, a strong scorpion tail instead of a limp teal one, and fangs much larger and more effective than Chrysalis's. A manticore, padding stealthily across the road.
"Twilight--"
"It's alright, Shining," she murmured, horn igniting magenta as she slowly approached the beast. "I can handle this."
A/N: This chapter was boring. I'm sorry.
The next chapter will probably also be boring. I'm sorry for that, too.
The chapter after that will be better.