The castle’s home theater was a recent addition, commissioned by Princess Luna a while after her return, and was frequented by Sombra as well. It had a big silver screen, the latest movie projector, perfectly tuned surround sound system, and it even had a snack bar in the hallway outside, like at a real cinema!
Both Luna and Sombra (due to both of them having been imprisoned for millennia) had been fascinated by modern technologies, including motion pictures. A story they could see as much as hear. While Sombra took a broader interest in the various technologies, Luna got hooked into video games (not that she’d ever admit it… unless you were as devoted a gamer as she).
At the moment, Cadance was with the others sans Twilight and Blueblood, watching a movie called “Little Wagon on the Prairie” detailing the adventures of an earth pony filly named Laurel Wild and her family. At first, the pegasi were… not all that enthusiastic over a film about pioneering earth pony settlers but in no time at all, even Rainbow Dash was tearing up as much as Big Macintosh.
Cadance was glad this movie was serving as a distraction to Twilight’s friends but even as she watched the film, in the back of her mind, she worried about Twilight and how her talk with Celestia would go-
A depressing chill caused Cadance to shiver her feathers as she felt a nearby source of sadness. As the Princess of Love, she was also in tuned with relating emotions, like joy, passion, anger and hate, and even anguish and depression. She looked towards the double doors that led to the hall and knew somepony out there needed some cheering up and she had a strong suspicion of who it might be.
As Cadance stood up from her seat, Rarity, who was sitting next to her, whispered, “Little filly’s room, dear?”
“Actually I… need some more gummis,” Cadance fibbed, “Be right back.”
Cadance slid out of the row of seats and stepped out into the hallway, seeing the snack bar next to the doors that led to the theater, but she looked past it and saw…
“Twilight?” she called gently, and noticed her sister-in-law flinch and hesitantly look back at Cadance.
The look on Twilight’s face was heartbreaking. She wasn’t crying but the look on her face, the way she seemed to drag as she’d been walking, she definitely needed a hug. Cadance went over and gave it to Twilight, who gratefully accepted her sister-in-law’s embrace, shuddering and shaking, so twisted and tangled up inside, struggling not to cry.
“C’mon, I know someplace that’ll help,” Cadance whispered calmingly as she stroked Twilight’s mane.
The Castle Library, one of the biggest and most extensive literary collections of history, sciences, novels, magic, any subject you could think of you’d find it here. For as long as she’d been Celestia’s student, this place had been sacred to Twilight. She could recount the many – Many! – study sessions, cramming, and casual readings she’d done while surrounded by the written word. Nothing like it could calm Twilight, and it helped when Cadance brought her here.
A little.
Sitting at one of the reading tables, Twilight however wasn’t all that interested in reading. Even as Cadance levitated over several textbooks and tomes, hoping Twilight would dive into one of them, refresh her memory on some favorite subject of hers, revisit a historical event of significant intrigue, admire a remarkable individual from times long past.
But no. Twilight just slumped in her chair (in a decisively unladylike manner that Rarity might have had a few words to say about) and Cadance sighed before asking, “I guess… things didn’t go well with Celestia?”
“I… I don’t think I want to talk about it, Cadance,” Twilight responded with a tone morose.
“I understand-” Cadance tried to say only for Twilight to suddenly ask:
“But I do need to ask you… How much do you know? About… about Midnight, the Brotherhood and… well…”
“I know enough,” Cadance admitted with a deep exhale, knowing this wasn’t going to be easy. “I wanted to tell you after Midnight- Well, the Midnight now was finally able to reveal himself.
“When I brought it up with Celestia, she… she promised that she would tell you everything! I thought she’d keep her promise and tell you soon, but since Shining and I were away leading the Crystal Empire, I guess…”
She paused, not sure of how else to explain but suddenly realized she might’ve made things worse by implying- She quickly cleared her throat, and said, “Let’s talk about something else, I- Oh! We can… talk about Midnight.”
“…Mmm…” Twilight’s despondent moan told Cadance that Midnight wasn’t going to be easy to talk about.
“Twilight, I know that you and him had… a disagreement last night at Twinken’s birthday party,” Cadance insisted on this subject of discussion.
“But what relationship doesn’t have its ups and downs? I know your brother’s and mine can still be occasionally… complex.”
Twilight looked at Cadance as though she’d been told Starswirl had never even had a beard.
“You two?! But… you’re perfect for each other! I mean, granted, I was rather miffed that I didn’t hear about the wedding in advance but… Back when you both went to Canterlot Academy together, you and I looked into it, and you yourself concluded that you and Shining are perfect for each other!”
“That is true,” Cadance could remember that little research she and little Twilight dove into when she came to foal-sit Twilight while her parents, Night Light and Twilight Velvet, attended Shining Armor's flugelhorn recital.
They took extensive notes on his likes and dislikes, made several comparative charts about Cadance’s popularity back in the academy and Shining’s, all using 37 colors of paper for label markers, an abacus to calculate percentages for their pie charts, all on wide-ruled paper for foals.
Conclusion: Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Shining Armor truly were perfect for each other, and all compiled data had pointed to a happily ever after (at least, in the minds of two academic yet emotional fillies).
“But, if we’d been a little more open towards each other about our feelings, we’d have saved ourselves a night of madness and misunderstanding at our Fall Formal.”
“As I recall, you two still got crowned Fall Formal King & Queen, even though you both went with different ponies,” Twilight brought up, “Uh, I still remember that jerk you went with, Buck Withers.”
“True, he wasn’t the nicest guy around back then,” Cadance shrugged, “or the most gentlecoltly. But, last Shining and I saw him, Buck has actually turned out a kinder and more mature pony. But that’s beside the point, Twilight:
“I meant to bring up that when we finally began dating after that night, things were great! I mean, really great. Fantastic, actually!”
“Get on with it,” Twilight grumped while waving her hoof in a ‘move it along’ gesture.
“Ahem!” Cadance mock-cleared her throat, “But… We might have been perfect teenage couple, from a... certain point of view, but we didn’t have a perfect relationship. As time went on, we both didn’t get to spend as much time as we liked together. I had to focus on my royal studies to prepare for my role as a full-fledged princess, and Shining Armor had to go away for advanced training in the Royal Guard, remember?”
“I do remember that…” Twilight recalled that lonely part of her foalhood which occurred a while after she became Celestia’s student. “Wait… wouldn’t that have been-”
“The same time Shining Armor was away training with Midnight and the other colts Midnight’s father hoof-picked to be his son’s bodyguards,” Cadance confirmed with a nod.
“Because Midnight’s existence then had to be a top secret, Shining Armor was only allowed very limited correspondence with his family and me, and oftentimes it was weeks, sometimes even a month or two, before I heard anything from him.
“While it was unconventional, since Shining Armor was training directly under the tutelage of Ignitus, who was the captain of the Royal Guard at the time, he got all the training he needed and put in twice as much effort to prove himself. But… after all the bad that happened to Midnight and his family, Shining Armor came back to complete his guard training in Canterlot, and he dedicated himself to becoming the very best of the best, and it got in the way of our relationship!
“I began to doubt how important what we had was to Shining and I went looking for him one day to give him a piece of my mind… what I found was a young stallion with his own emotional baggage.”
“What do you mean?” Twilight had never heard of this before though she could recall (through the lifting fog of forgetfulness Celestia cast long ago) of how Shining Armor had dived into his training with a zeal and drive that had equaled, if not outmatched, Twilight’s own dedication her studies. She could recall him spending entire days, even hours into the night, training in combat, magic, and strategy, and his collapsing into total exhaustion happened more than once.
“When I went to go and give him a telling-off,” sighed Cadance as she recalled that memory. “I found him, beating a training dummy with his bare hooves. He was going at it so hard his hooves were beginning to crack, and I heard him… ‘Why wasn’t I there?’, ‘Why didn’t I protect them?’, ‘If I’d just gotten there in time’…”
When Cadance paused sullenly, Twilight realized, “W-was he… was he talking about Midnight and his family?!”
“Not just them, but one of the cadets who’d been training with them,” Cadance nodded, “a pegasus named Flash Sentry. From what I was told, during a training exercise, Midnight and Flash were separated from their group and… some… wicked and horrible being captured them. Midnight was tortured and Flash was murdered right in front of him. Midnight would have been killed too had Shining Armor and Ignitus not been able to track them down and chase off the killer. But…
“That day, Shining Armor felt responsible, like… If he’d been more vigilant, been faster, any excuse he could think of! That perhaps he might have saved Midnight and Flash!”
Twilight felt the pain in her sister-in-law’s words as Cadance continued, “I went to those training grounds to give Shining Armor a piece of my mind. Instead, I saw a dedicated and driven stallion with an even bigger heart that I ever imagined, and he was suffering. So… I went down to talk with him, I convinced him to seek help from a guidance counselor, and he was able to move past some guilt he didn’t deserve to feel. We talked to each other, we listened to each other, and we grew closer.”
The way Cadance spoke of talking and listening, Twilight realized that instead of doing the same, she’d only accused and judged Midnight without really giving him a chance to explain himself, especially in a situation where his hoof was forced.
Cadance quickly noticed Twilight was beginning to feel bad herself, and the pink alicorn pulled Twilight into a warm sisterly hug, “Things could have been handled better, that is true. But it doesn’t mean they still can’t be. When the expedition team returns, you should take Midnight aside, and just talk. Talk to him and make sure he listens, let him talk to you and you listen. Don’t judge, don’t blame, just work it out. And don’t you dare think it’s too late, because the pony you love and loves you back is somepony you can always have faith in.”
Twilight looked at Cadance and shed tears of deepest appreciation and gratitude, smiling at her old foal-sitter, the big sister she never had. Cadance levitated over a box of tissues and offered one to Twilight, which she accepted to wipe away her tears.
“Thank you, Cadance.”
“The first fight between special someponies are often the hardest,” said Cadance, “but true and sincere love is what helps them work them out. Now, if you’re feeling up to it, would you like to join me and our friends in the theater? We can even play your favorite documentary, narrated by Bill Neigh?”
“That sounds nice, Cadance, but…” Twilight looked at some of the books Cadance had brought over and noticed a history book. “I… think I want to do a little research, y’know… Just something to take my mind off things.”
“I understand, come when you’re ready,” Cadance gave Twilight one more hug before leaving.
Once her sister-in-law was gone, Twilight looked into Equestrian history a little more, particularly the historical Graypaddock Murders in the year 788 into the Celestial Era, the thousand year interim between the banishment and return of Nightmare Moon.
The murders detailed the grisly killings committed by the individual who popularly became known as Beck the Tramper. All of her victims had been stallions, and each one had a history of being playcolts, studs, or just plain sexual deviants, with a few having had charges of sexual assault against them that were dropped because the mares involved were either too afraid or ashamed or even amorous to testify. In early April of 788, the first victim was found beaten to death, and his genitals had been ruthlessly stomped on and crushed before he was killed, by having his throat torn out.
More and more murders occurred in similar ways but due to inconsistencies only five victims were adequately linked and believed were killed by the same murderer (although it was believed the murderer killed over fifty). Such inconsistencies was how the victims were killed, a lot of them were killed with blunt force trauma while others had their throats slit or torn out, and only half of the victims overall had their genitals crushed. Some even had internal organs removed, especially the vocal chords.
In February of 790, a letter (along with a jar of vocal chords) believed to have been sent by Beck the Tramper was received by the Land Lush, the chairpony of the Graypaddock Vigilance Committee, a letter that would thereafter be infamously known as the “From Tartarus” Letter, which read:
‘From Tartarus:
Dear Mister Lush,
Please accept these vocal kordz I got from sum bastard rapist who got away wit hurtin somepony. His willy was hard and icky so I soffend it up for him but th wanker wouldn stop whinin so I made sure he’d never whine again
Mayhaps I’ll send you th shooz I used since they’re all messy now, but u must b patient
Most assuredly yours,
Catch me if you can, Mister Lush’
The sender of the letter was never identified but a spell linked the vocal chords to one of the five “official” victims of Beck the Tramper. Further reading showed Twilight that the terror of Beck the Tramper ended in 791 when the killings simply stopped. That dark period haunted Trottingham for years after as her citizens feared the Tramper might have simply gone into hiding and would come back. Years passed, then decades, and even after the citizens sighed in relief that Beck the Tramper was all but certainly gone for good, the blood she’d spilled and terror she’d propagated never truly left that district of Trottingham.
Bitterly recalling Celestia’s explanation, Twilight figured that must’ve been when the mare, an Evening Hood gone rogue, was put down by the leader of the Brotherhood at the time. Celestia had moved in to force the investigation not to reveal anything about the murderer lest the Brotherhood might have been linked to her.
As she considered it, Twilight had to accept that if the Brotherhood had been discovered, then Celestia might have been linked and she might have been exposed and seen as corrupt, which could’ve spurred anarchy or rebellion against a ruler who had been deemed flawed instead of pristine. A shining and benevolent example, a paragon of virtue and wisdom, a princess whom Twilight had always viewed as somepony who always made the right choices and could do no wrong.
Now she knew better, and she wasn’t sure what to think of her old teacher anymore. She’d hoped researching about the Hood gone rogue might have helped her get inside Celestia’s head and understand her a little better. It had helped her understand her a little better, yeah, but then…
Why can’t I… accept it?!
She knew it was the truth. She’d been given all the evidence and heard it straight from the princess’s mouth, so why couldn’t she shake off that clinging perspective of her mentor being a flawless and benevolent figure when all that she’d learned was in contrast with it?
“Having trouble, my little pony?”
“Eep!” Twilight startled and turned to see, “P-Prince Sombra! You… what’re you wearing?”
Sombra chuckled as he considered his aviator’s jacket, scarf, and pilot’s cap to be a little… much, but when he’d asked Blueblood to take him for a ride on one of his airships he thought he’d… milk the situation.
His horn lit a soft red mana and the jacket, scarf, and cap vanished, leaving his cobalt blue crown with the golden crown jewel, his hoof boots, regalia, and even his royal cape. Clearing his throat, he shrugged, “Well, I just got back from quite a thrilling ride on one of my… nephew’s airships! Heh! Nephew… It’s such a nice feeling to be an uncle, even if it’s adoptive.”
“Well, I’m… glad to see you and Blueblood enjoyed your time together,” Twilight wasn’t sure she wanted to get back into this but it felt like a golden opportunity here.
“Prince Sombra, do… do you mind if I ask you something?”
“By all means, young princess,” Sombra came over and sat at the table with Twilight, politely levitating the books aside so they’d have nothing between their conversation.
“Well, that’s the thing, being a princess… Being royalty, for that matter! Despite it being a while since I gained my wings and was given my crown, it’s still new to me. A role I never expected to play, being a leader.”
“From what I’ve seen and heard, you’ve already been a leader to your friends for some time, Twilight,” Sombra pointed out.
“Well, that’s- That’s nothing compared to being a princess! To being an alicorn as well,” Twilight elaborated, “we’ve gone on all kinds of adventures, that is true, but… How does that compare to this?!”
“It is not nothing, Twilight, but rather it is everything,” Sombra assured, “Your friends look to you for guidance, and all the adventures you and they have shared have been lessons and experiences to make you a better and stronger pony.”
“But I look to them for the same guidance,” Twilight debated.
“As well you should, for it is a lucky pony indeed who can rely on so many good and wonderful friends, “chuckled Sombra as he lit up his horn and conjured a book that Twilight had read plenty of times.
“That book!” Twilight recognized it as one of Star Swirl’s most basic yet helpful books of magic, one he’d written himself but went through many editions over the centuries to make sure the magicks it detailed were up to date.
“Star Swirl was as smart as they come,” Sombra reminisced as he looked at some old spells he could remember his old mentor teaching him and the sisters.
“As a matter of fact, young Twilight, you rather remind me of him.”
“Really?! He’s… always been kind of a hero of mine… and so was Celestia,” sighed Twilight.
“Both are wonderful examples to live by,” nodded Sombra but he sensed Twilight might have a difference of opinion. Especially by her next question.
“Prince Sombra, if you could decide between being a prince or a normal pony, what would you choose?”
“Twilight, I am both!” Sombra’s answer was confusing to Twilight, so he went on. “I am a normal pony who is merely also a prince, and once upon a time I was a king. Both titles I earned from the ponies around me, who became my subjects. I made the best choices I could and worked out the results as best I could. I wasn’t perfect, obviously, but all of my mistakes and flaws have helped me learn and grow and persevere.
“I mean, look where I am now! I am an alicorn prince of Equestria, married to the pony I’ve always loved, and have an apprentice I love like a son. If it weren’t for them I wouldn’t be here at all. Odds are, I’d still be under the corruption of the Whisperer and I would either have risen back to power and carried on terrorizing the Crystal Empire or the Crystal Heart would have destroyed me. Despite the odds, Celestia held onto the hope that I could be saved and saved I was, by Midnight!”
Twilight sighed, for this wasn’t exactly what she wanted to hear, and Sombra knew it.
“I can understand what you’ve learned has shaken everything you believe in, Twilight. Celestia has taught you well but she’s allowed her past mistakes to cloud her judgment and make decisions that, well… Decisions that didn’t turn out as well as she’d hoped. However, this should serve as a perfect lesson for you, Twilight.”
Twilight looked at Sombra as he explained, “Admiration can blind us to the flaws of those we admire, even if they are right before our eyes. Ponies today set those they admire up on pedestals, Twilight, because they feel such individuals are above them somehow and that they are to be admired, respected, and sometimes never even questioned. It is nice to be admired and respected but being worshipped can be damaging, to the one being worshipped and those doing the worshipping.
“Do not forget, Twilight, that Celestia has had to rule on her own for almost a thousand years. She had help, from Star Swirl, who passed away, and then her Aristocracy, but those individuals come and go with the passage of time, and each generation doesn’t always have the right interests. Can’t you imagine how isolating it’s been for her? To be set up high on a pedestal, where she is admired from afar but made to be alone, while any and all friends she made over the centuries eventually died.
“I am not asking you to just forgive her for her mistakes and misdeeds, Twilight,” Sombra reached over and placed a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “All I ask is that you try to understand that your teacher is as flawed and equine as any other pony, that she makes mistakes – has made mistakes – and strives to do her best with what she’s given and what she faces, as well as to make up for her mistakes. But she still needs support and encouragement from those she cares about and those who care about her in return.
“You know, she admires and loves you so very much.”
Those words weren’t really that surprising but they still gave Twilight a reason to pause.
“While she’s made her mistakes with you, she has always appreciated you, not merely because you’re her student but also because of how you inspire her, and she is always so very proud of you… although she has admitted she wishes you wouldn’t fret so much over being perfect.
“Because really, Twilight, what is perfect?
“Not me, not Luna, and certainly not Celestia or Midnight, your brother, Cadance, or you or your friends. In my opinion, Perfection shouldn’t be about being flawless but rather it should be about satisfaction. Being not the best there is but the best you can be.”
The wisdom in Sombra’s words made Twilight think even more as he went on.
“What I'm trying to say, Twilight, is that whatever kind of pony you are, be a good one. I’m sorry if that’s not very helpful-”
“No, no! It is, actually,” Twilight interrupted, “At least, a little. I mean… I’ve always thought as Princess Celestia’s personal protégé I had quite an example to live up to. The fact I love learning and studying contributed to that, which I guess is how I was able to meet the standards I thought I should be striving for.”
Sighing, Twilight recalled many lessons and sessions where it was just her and Celestia. That warm and encouraging smile, how she beamed whenever Twilight succeeded in casting spells she was teaching, got the best grades on her assignments, but as the nostalgia sunk in, Twilight could also recall something in Celestia’s eyes that seemed… sad.
“She never gave up on me, even when I was hard on myself,” Twilight was grateful to feel Sombra wrap a comforting wing around her shoulders.
“But… I guess there was some part of her that seemed… disappointed.”
“She wasn’t really disappointed in you, Twilight,” Sombra assured her. “She was sad that you gave so much of yourself to studying and being the best student you could be that you came to disregard the importance of friendship and having friends in your life.
“She blamed herself for that, too.”
“I don’t know what to think, Prince Sombra, I…” Twilight felt the tears well up in her eyes and she was tired of crying as she blinked them way.
“I’ve always loved her like another mother, but… I’m still so tangled up about all this brotherhood business, the things about her and Midnight, I… I just don’t know!”
“You know… there was a chance that Celestia could have been Midnight’s mother,” Sombra brought up, causing Twilight to gawk at him like he’d grown a third eye. That was exactly what he was hoping for, some kind of crazy information to help take her mind off her gloominess.
“She told me all about it; when Midnight was dying after being struck by a dark spell, Celestia saved him from truly dying by casting the Spell of Reincarnation, but do you know how that spell works, Twilight?”
Twilight shook her head but felt that familiar interest in magic.
“The Spell of Reincarnation was invented by a unicorn mage who’d studied alongside Clover the Clever under Star Swirl,” Sombra explained. “It is a method to cheat death not by resurrection but by reincarnation, to be reborn into a new life.
“The caster casts the spell upon somepony and when that somepony dies their spirit does not move on. Instead, it is... tethered to the caster, and the caster must choose whether to birth or sire the deceased spirit or pass the spirit on in the form of a blessing to somepony else to birth or sire the spirit.”
“Wait, so…” Twilight processed what Sombra had just told her, “When Midnight died, his spirit was linked to Celestia so he didn’t move on… and she… blessed Ignitus and Faerie Tail so they would be Midnight’s parents when they had their own child together?”
“Exactly,” Sombra nodded. “Celestia told me all about it – She considered giving birth to Midnight’s reincarnation herself and raising him as her son… but due to circumstances and educated guesses, she correctly realized that she never birthed a child and to do so would have raised complications or set time on another course, and… Ugh, time travel is such a complicated mess.”
“True, but it can also be rather interesting to puzzle out,” Twilight shrugged with a silly smile.
“Anyway, Celestia decided to bless Midnight’s spirit upon a couple she felt she could trust to raise Midnight’s reincarnation,” Sombra went on but smiling back at Twilight.
“So she chose her then-Captain of the Royal Guard, who turned out to be my descendant, Ignitus Enflame of House Obsidian, and his wife, Faerie Tail. You know the rest of the story and here we are now.”
“Huh…” Twilight considered the scenario but put it out of her head as Sombra went on.
“Things are likely to become more complicated before they are resolved, Twilight,” Sombra sighed, sounding like a tired father. “But I have faith that with patience and understanding, each of us involved can work it all out…. and I look forward to seeing your father walk you down the wedding aisle where he’ll give you to my son.”
“Sombra!” Twilight was aghast, Sombra laughing at her reaction, but secretly the idea was rather appealing to her-
A loud horn sounded, the kind used to herald the coming of royalty, and Sombra and Twilight looked out the windows of the library to see three pegasus-drawn chariots, one of them hauling something covered, flying in to the platform where the team had taken off hours ago.
Sombra and Twilight shared a look and the same words:
“They’re back!”
They quickly hurried off to welcome the returning heroes.
The head surgeon of the castle medical staff, Steady Hoof, wailed his orders out to his team, struggling to get the other doctors and medical technicians moving at a pace faster than a snail's crawl. Never in the yellow-coated unicorn's life had he ever seen such a sudden demand for wound surgery. The expedition team had returned, but only in the worst shape he had ever seen in his life as a trauma surgeon. Hemmeraoging, bruises, broken bones, and ruined coats lay underneath smashed armor and blown off helmets. One of the Zapper-Saddles had clearly gone critical, leaving a nasty electrical burn all over the back of one of the guards, who cried like a foal at even the softest touch. Strangely, despite the blood soaking through their own clothes, a hooded figure had refused treatment, hoping to save all the medical supplies and attention for their allies. One of them pulled aside a nurse, and directed her gently to a covered object the team had crawled back with.
"You guys need care, come with us!" demanded Steady, "Whatever that crate is can wait, damnit!"
"Steady," grunted Shining Armor, in lackluster shape himself, "take care of the wounded. That 'crate'... are the ones we lost. Don't lose any more."
"You know I won't," he growled, confidently but in defiance of Shining's patronizing statement.
"Get us a coroner," ordered Shining Armor, preparing to help some of his stallions lift the bodies to a nearby examination platform, "we need to identify them. Let's not forget what's important."
"We'll get you a medical examiner," assured the head surgeon before spotting a massive piece of shrapnel lodged behind Shining's left wing.
A younger surgeon helpfully suggested, "Sire, let's get you on the table too."
"Get the others first," he responded.
"That piece is in a vital atery..."
“Lay off! Check on the others first!” Shining Armor fanned out his wings, stained with blood and grime, angrily trying to intimidate Steady.
“I said check on the others first!” Shining Armor yelled, “I can wait, they’re injuries can’t! Now get to it, I'm ordering you!"
Steady Hoof pushed forward angrily and planted his hooves firmly on the floor, "Telling us how to do our job? Let me tell you something, just this morning I hear a group of the patients I look after are going out 'on simple manuevers', and come back in this condition. I never lose a patient who comes home, because I have the medical skills, you do not. Your skills are what brought these stallions here to me like this. Now, if you want to get in line and put their needs over your own, so be it! But don't you dare think for a moment you're off the hook with me or my staff just because you're a pissed-off royal. So, please get on the table, or shut up and wait."
Shining Armor didn't have a response. He understood he would only make things worse if he continued to argue, and taking out his own feelings of failure on the doctor really did nothing to help the situation.
"If you say so, doctor."
"I do say so, Prince Shining."
"Just take care of them first, please..." he said slowly, letting go of his anger.
Steady Hoof took his apprentice and left, whispering something about keeping an eye on Shining Armor just in case he pulled the fragment out and started bloodflow again. The royal felt odd having been yelled down at by the surgeon, but he knew he was right. He had helped create the mess, and he deserved whatever anger came his way.
He looked up wearily and felt his heart lift to see his wife running to him. To avoid the inevitable screaming, he tucked his wing over the piece of broken armor in his back, sending a small spike of pain through his spine. Groaning, he forced himself up and embraced her, resting his head on her shoulder, allowing him to see his sister and the rest of the Bearers and Guardians of Harmony approach. The sight of his sister caused Shining Armor’s heart to sink while Cadance fussed warmly,
“I’m so glad you’re back… I guess Midnight kept his promise.”
She let go and stepped back, looking around, “Where is Midnight? I want to thank him. Midnight!”
Shining Armor stood silent, grave sadness deep in his eyes. Things couldn't get worse.
“Shining!” Twilight ran up to give her brother a hug but his drooping forelegs instantly told Twilight something wasn’t right.
“Shining, what is it? You look like you’ve been through a lot! There's a chunk of metal sticking out of your feathers!!! And- And…?”
Looking around and hearing Cadance calling out for Midnight… and his lack of a response caused Twilight to fret. Even more when she saw the look on her brother’s face.
“Shining… what happened? Where is Midnight?! Why-why isn’t he answering Cadance?!”
“Twily…” Shining Armor wrapped his wings around Twilight, his voice and shoulders shaking as he sorrowfully answered.
“Midnight, he’s… he’s… He’s missing. I'm sorry, Twilight. He's gone.”