//------------------------------//
// Chapter 112: Royal Guard Graduation 
// Story: My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Stallion Edition 
// by SuperPinkBrony12 
//------------------------------//

"Bet you're glad to be back in Canterlot, talking to the new recruits again, huh Captain Armor?" Commander Silverbolt lightly questioned.

Shining Armor nodded a little. "Yeah, it does. Feels just like old times. You, me, and Captain Gleaming Shield, all working together or just hanging out during those poker nights. Those were the days, weren't they?"

"Gettin' a little nostalgic, are we?" Commander Silverbolt teased. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm sure Captain Gleaming Shield would approve of the job you're doing. Last I heard, she's off living her retirement in a nice beach house near Neighra Falls, though she still comes to Canterlot on occasion to visit her grandfoals. Speaking of which, when's the little one expected to arrive?"

"Doctors say it should be any day now," Shining replied, trotting down the halls of the royal guard barracks. "I really wish I didn't have to give a commemoration speech at the graduation ceremony for the next batch of recruits today, and that Twily wasn't off giving a speech at Celestia's School for Magic, 'cause that means I'll have to go back to Ponyville and watch over the castle until she gets back."

Commander Silverbolt laughed a bit, as he reassured his captain. "Relax, I'm sure Flash Sentry and Sunburst have everything under control. And if they really need you, they'll send for you. You should be more worried about the speech you're gonna give soon."

Shining smiled a little. "Thank you, Silverbolt. But to be honest, what I'm really worried about is Starlight Glimmer. It's been months and nopony's seen hide or hair of her. But I know she's out there, waiting for the chance to do something, anything."

"What, are you afraid some wannabe dictator's gonna be a match for the almighty Prince of Friendship?" Silverbolt remarked as he rolled his eyes. "You and your friends took her down pretty easily once you saw through her lies, and security's tightened in all the likely locations since your visit to her little village. She'd have to be a fool to try anything now."

"Guess you're right, there is such a thing as being too paranoid. Though there's also this saying I don't entirely disagree with that goes: 'Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean everyone's not out to get you'." Shining replied to Silverbolt.

"Look, just stop worrying about Starlight and worry about what's actually important to your life right now," Silverbolt said firmly to the captain. "Like what you're gonna say to all those new recruits to motivate them to serve. I've gotta say, this batch is looking particularly impressive if I do say so myself. But then, I learned from the best."

"And I'm glad to know you've managed well in the absence of both myself and Flash," Shining said to Silverbolt. "At this rate, I may just have to abdicate the position of Captain to you, at least for the Canterlot guard. I'm not quite sure if Flash is ready to be Captain of the crystal guard just yet, even if he is supposedly the descendant of the legendary Flash Magnus."

"The kid probably just made that up to sound important, Flash Magnus is just an old pony's tale like Rockhoof or Mistmane." Silverbolt scoffed.





A short time later, Shining Armor stood on a podium outside the barracks, with all the royal guards seated in make-shift bleachers that had been erected overnight for the ceremony. Speaking loudly for all to hear, the alicorn began. "Fellow royal guards, it is my great honor as your captain to see you all here today, ready to join the ranks and protect and serve the crown. It's funny though, a few years ago, if you'd told me that I would one day be standing here and giving a speech to you all, I'd have thought you were crazy. But as Captain, I've been thrilled to see the royal guard continue to get better and better."

Shining paused for a second, then added. "I know it hasn't been easy. There's been a lot of threats to the safety of Equestria that caught us off guard, most noticeably Queen Chrysalis and her changelings, and then Tirek's invasion. And I know too that many of you probably feel threatened by Luna's night guards that serve under her. But I feel like we need to focus on the positives, there are plenty of threats we've successfully thwarted. Many would be problems that were contained and quelled without violence. But those don't make the news, because the good news doesn't sell like the bad news does. Yet, the fact that we're standing here today, in what has been the longest continuing streak of peace Equestria has ever known, is living proof that we must be at least doing something right."

A wave of applause echoed through the crowd, and Shining briefly basked in it before he moved up a hoof to quiet things down. "I know, I know, but my speech isn't done yet. Peace is no excuse for complacency," He cautioned quite seriously. "We must still be vigilant, we can't afford to neglect our responsibilities. The second we let our guard down, is the second that all those threats kept at bay creep up on us and catch us by surprise. There is still the possible threat of rouge changelings scouring Equestria for sources of love, and let's not forget that Queen Chrysalis remains at large. Now, I'm not naming names, but recently I learned that some of you left your posts one night when a trespasser offered you cake. And the end result, was a case of foul play for the Wonderbolts that resulted in one of their reserves being framed for a crime they didn't commit. Had it not for been detective work from a trusted friend of mine, the one responsible for the crime probably would've gotten away with it. So I think it goes without saying, but just because someone offers you stuff like cake, doesn't mean you can just accept it without question. So from now on, I'd better not catch any of you abandoning your posts, or learning about such behavior. Because if I have to, I will have you court martialed."

Shining was about to move on to the next point of discussion, but at that moment as he was scanning the crowd, his eyes spotted somepony he knew for sure wasn't supposed to be there. It appeared to be a very familiar pale light grayish-purple coated unicorn mare, with eyes a moderate persian blue, a mane and tail a two toned purple with light grayish-aqua colored highlights. And the mane and tail were styled to be as evenly distributed as possible. Could it be?!

Shining blinked and rubbed his eyes. When he looked out at the crowd again, the mare he thought he'd spotted was gone. Shining shook his head, trying to regain his focus. "That was just an illusion, my mind playing tricks on me. There's no way I could've seen who I think I just saw. Right?" He thought to himself. But right now, the prince couldn't worry about what he may or may not have seen. He had more pressing issues to deal with.

But unknown to Shining Armor, his eyes hadn't deceived him. That mare had indeed been real, and she was in Canterlot for a very particular reason. "Oh prince, you really should train your guards better," She thought to herself, as she made her way through the streets of Canterlot. "Now, all I need is to find that so called 'Starswirl the Bearded Wing', and I'll be able to put my plan into action! You'd better enjoy yourself while you can, Shining Armor! For soon, you'll have nothing to be happy about."