Chapter 7 preview · 5:23pm Apr 17th, 2021
Chapter 7 has been slow going, but recently I've made some good progress on it. While it's nowhere near ready for release, I was feeling excited for what I have written down and wanted to share a teaser for some of the content you can expect to see in the near future.
*Author's note: the following passage is still a work in progress and subject to change.
A knock on the door interrupted the perfect quite in Shining Armor’s stateroom. He glanced down to make sure he was presentable, then cleared his throat. “Come in.”
The door swung open to reveal Sergeant Stone Wall, his second in command, wearing a saddlebag and standing at attention. When the door was fully open, he saluted his wounded superior.
“Permission to enter, sir?”
“Permission granted, and there’s no need for ‘sir’ here. Even if I was inclined to stick to formalities in my room, I’m not on duty, so do me a favor and pretend I'm not your commander for a little bit, will you?” Stone Wall nodded and stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
“How are you feeling?”
“Better,” Shining Armor said with a half shrug. “The doctor said I could start walking a little bit tomorrow, but for the most part I’m supposed to stay off my hooves for a few more days. How’s everypony holding up?”
Stonewall shook his head. “Morale took a hit after your fight with the assassins, though it started to recover when we found out you would return to duty soon. Most of the bodyguard are acting like they have something to prove to the rest of the troops, and there's been a few minor, and one not-so-minor incidents since you went into the infirmary.” He opened the saddle bag and took out a folder. “This is a copy of a Letter of Reprimand given to Corporal Storm Front for disrespecting a Princess. I already filled out the paperwork, you just need to sign it.”
Shining Armor took the folder gingerly. “A reprimand? What happened?”
Stonewall stiffened at the question, his mannerisms falling back into the formal tones he used with a superior.
“Sir, the first night Princess Cadance visited your stateroom, Corporal Storm Front was on guard rotation outside. The day after, during morning mess, she was heard speculating openly about the nature of the Princess’s visit, claiming to have heard noises indicating unbecoming behavior of you both.” He nodded to the paperwork in Shining’s hoof. “I took the liberty of writing the reprimand, under the assumption that there was no merit to the gossip.”
Shining Armor stared at Stone Wall with a baffled expression.
“... She claimed that Cadance and... excuse me, Princess Cadance and I are in a relationship?”
“More that you had relations, if you catch my meaning, sir.”
Shining Armor frowned at the papers in front of him. An infraction of this nature would have likely resulted in a transfer back in Canterlot. As it happened, they were heading into a potentially volatile political situation. As the commanding officer, while he could remove the troops under his command from duty, he had no authority to place them there, and with the limited pool of potential replacements available to him, it was entirely possible that no one would be considered suitable, leaving him down a soldier until they returned home or received reinforcements.
“Has the Princess been made aware of this incident?”
Stone Wall nodded slowly. “Not officially, but I know that she heard about it and expressed concern and outrage. She did not, however, submit a request that the Corporal be reassigned.”
Well, that settles it. If Cadance had been so bothered by Strom Front’s comments that she didn’t want her around, she would have made it abundantly clear how she felt. “I’ll sign it, but withhold further action on the condition that it is not repeated.”
Stone Wall nodded again. “I will inform the Corporal of your decision. I am certain she will not do it again.”
That makes one of us. “What do we know about the assassins? Did we learn anything from the remains?”
Stonewall took out a second binder and presented it to his commander. “This is everything we know, and quite a few things we don’t know but suspect strongly. Unfortunately, interrogation was not an option, but we did make some interesting observations about the gear they were carrying. In particular, we found field kits containing medical equipment similar to what is used for collecting blood and tissue samples by our medical staff.”
Shining Armor raised an eyebrow. “Tissue samples?”
“Yes sir, though we aren’t certain that was their intended use. We don’t know it was intended for use at all, it could be that it was just a part of the medical kit that they had procured.”
Shining Armor looked though the files, not letting his thoughts show. While it was possible that the equipment was a fluke, it would be quite the coincidence. Still, there was another matter that concerned him even more. “What can you tell me about their weapons?”
Stonewall glanced behind him, as if to make certain that he had not somehow missed another party sitting in the corner of the room when he walking in, then scooted closer to the bedside. “The crossbow, bolts, and wingblades are of griffon design, no surprises there.” He leaned in and said in a low voice, “The daggers however, are made from Haematite.”
Shivers ran down Shining Armor’s spine. Haematite, or Cold Iron as it was more commonly known, was a rare mineral that was found in scattered pockets throughout the world, and had the unusual property of being highly resistant to magic in all its forms. It had long been banned in Equestira and not available on the wider market. Officially, this was the result of its scarcity and high demand in industrial sectors where magical contamination needed to be kept to a minimum. In reality, it was mostly used in the creation of the anti-magic vaults beneath Fort Ox, where dangerous magical artifacts were kept away from the public eye. This served a double purpose, as Cold Iron was one of the only non-magical materials that bypassed the supernatural toughness inherent to Alicorns, rendering them almost as vulnerable as anyone else to weapons crafted from it. As such, it was a closely kept secret from all but a few within the government and military itself.
A secret that only someone close to the Princesses could have known.
