Gilded Shield trotted down the hall of Canterlot General, hiss gilded blonde mane and silver coat shining in the light. He had various feelings of anger, fear, and worry, but most of all, hatred for changelings. The attack on Canterlot infuriated him to his core, as his sister had been injured badly in the attack. He arrived at his sister’s room and walked inside. His sister lay there on her bed, unconscious. Her horn was cracked and her right hind leg was broken. He came to the side of the bed and ran his hoof through her mane. “Hey there sis, it’s me, Gilded. They say that when ponies are out like you are, they’re able to hear things.” The sound of hoofsteps caused him to gaze toward the door.
“Ah, Mr. Shield. Your sister seems to be recovering well from her wounds,” the doctor said, trotting in with a second pony.
“Two doctors? Is her condition that bad?” Gilded asked, surprised upon seeing the two doctors. One was a pegasus with a black mane and tail, with her mane in a large bun. Her coat was ash grey and she had bright blue eyes. Her cutiemark was a medical insignia with a pair of wings. The second doctor was a forest green unicorn/Zebra mix with a snow white mane, tail, and long beard. He had lemon yellow eyes and green stripes, and his cutiemark was a bottle of healing herbs with a bell shaped flower.
“I’m Dr. Blacken Well. She was in worse shape than we thought, so we brought in Dr. Billroot here to assist,” the pegasus explained.
“Your sister is suffering from magical backlash. Was she doing any spells at the time of her injury?” Dr. Billroot asked.
“Yes, she was doing a shield spell while protecting some ponies from those monsters!” Gilded snapped.
“Corporal Shield, you need to calm yourself. I understand you’re frustrated, but it won’t help you sister heal,” Dr. Billroot calmly replied.
“Then what will?!”
“We can’t do much until her horn is fixed. We are using means other than direct magic to heal her,” Dr. Blacken Well added.
“I understand.” Gilded took a deep breath. “Is that everything, Doctors?”
“Unfortunately, yes. We can’t really do much until your sister wakes up. I’m sorry.”
“Alright, then.” Gilded nodded his head, leaving the flowers he’d brought on the table by his sister’s bed. “I’ll be back soon, sis.” He walked out the door and went down the halls. He hung his head glancing upwards to see where he was going.
He’d always been there for his sister, and now he was powerless to do anything. Trotting outside the hospital, he looked to the sky, the mid morning sun beat down on him. “I need a drink.” Since he was off duty, he trotted to the enlisted club for the guard.
“Hey, Gilded,” the bartender greeted. He was a stallion with a cutie mark of a beer tap, going by the name of Humble Tap. It was early in the day, which explained why there were only five members of the guard there.
“Hey Tap, gimme a beer, would you?” Gilded asked.
“Didn’t even need to ask. Your sister alright?” Humble asked as he poured Gilded a nice tall one.
“Doctors say they can’t do anything until she wakes up.” Gilded didn’t waste time chugging his beer after he got it.
“I’m sorry to hear that. I’m sure she’ll wake up soon.”
“Hmpf, what makes you so sure?” the guard asked.
“I just have a feeling. I’ve met her before. She’s a tough mare, so it’s only a matter of time.”
“And if she doesn't?”
“You gotta stop with them negative waves, Gilded. It ain’t gonna help.”
“Ah… b...buck those chan… changelings!” a patron, Longshot shouted, clearly having had on too many.
“Hey don’t be like that, Longshot!” his friend, Sturdy Stone, said, trying to keep his friend calm.
“Ah, shut up!” the other pony in the group, Purple Rain, shouted.
“I… I hear we cap… captured one of th… them changelings!” Longshot rambled.
Gilded perked his ears up, as he’d also heard the same thing. “I say we should go there and kick his dirty bug flank!” he shouted.
“W… who the buck are you?” Longshot asked.
“Gilded Shield. Those damn bugs put my sister in a coma!” He chugged most of his beer in one swing.
“Gilded, I think you need to calm down. Not the best time to be making decisions,” Sturdy said. In the meantime, Purple Rain had already fallen asleep by now.
“Corporal.”
“Pardon?” Sturdy replied.
“That’s Corporal Gilded Shield to you.”
“Do you know who I am? I am Sergeant Sturdy Stone.”
“Oh my apologies, sir. I forgot to salute.” Gilded mocked, raising his hoof in a silly fashion.
“You salute proper! And don’t you think of going near that changeling!” Sturdy scowled.
“Oh, but of course,”Gilded saluted properly before returning to his drink. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Sarcasm isn’t helping your cause, Corporal.”
.
“Really? Changelings are filthy disgusting creatures. The way they hide in plain sight, how they pretend to be your friends while you spill your guts to them, everything!” Gilded spit in disgust. “If I had my way, we’d go and kill every last one of them.”
“Corporal Gilded!”
“Yes, Sergeant?”
“You should go home.”
“Heh, go home. With changelings everywhere? Including the guard? Please, I had a ‘friend‘. but he turned out to be a changeling! How can we trust them if they take every opportunity to stab us in the back!”
“Yeah!” Longshot shouted in agreement. “What he said!”
“Hey! No fighting in the bar! You fight, I’ll throw you out myself!” Humble shouted, charging his horn.
“Yeah yeah, whatever you say.” Gilded sat back down and had a little more of his beverage.
“Got it, Humble.” Sturdy sat down next to his loudmouth friend.
“I...I tink I knew a...a changelang vance. I dun know if she vas but man she vas fine.”
“Longshot?”
“Ja?”
“Would you mind shutting up?”
“Dun tell me ta shat up! I’m valking.”
“You’ve had too much to drink, Longshot.” Sturdy turned to Humble. “Could you call my friends a cab?”
“Yeah, he’s in no condition to get home by himself.” Humble picked up the phone behind the bar and dialed a cab. Sturdy finished his drink and helped his friend up. “Come on Longshot, let’s get you home.”
“Your a n...nice ssstallion…” Longshot slurred.
“Ew. No. And you need a nice bath...and some breath mints.” Sturdy recoiled when he was ‘treated’ to Longshot’s breath.
“Bucking lightweight,” Gilded thought, looking at Longshot and how drunk his was. He then turned his attention to Humble. “You always the only one keeping bar?”
“No, I usually have another pony here. Haven’t seen him since the wedding.”
“What was his name?”
“Whiskey Well. He specializes in whiskey cocktails.”
“I see. Well, too bad he’s not here. I like those kind of cocktails.”
“Yeah. I’ll make sure to kick his plot when he gets back. Disappearing like that on me, tsk tsk tsk.”
“I’d hate to be him.”
“Ah, that’ll be the cab for you two,” Sturdy noted, hearing trotting outside the bar. “Come on, Sleeping Beauty.” Sturdy shook Purple Rain awake.
“Wha? Time to go?” He asked, looking around and wondering what planet he was on.
“Yes, come on!” Sturdy used his magic to steady his friends as he took them to the cab. He told the driver where to drop them off, and make sure they made it to their front doors. He paid the cabbie more to ensure that.
“Awright let’s get you home,” the cabbie said in a Tottingham accent.
Sturdy reentered the bar after that, taking a seat at the counter. “Another beer, Humble.”
“Yes, sir.” Humble poured another beer and placed it in front of Sturdy.
“Thank you.” Sturdy sipped his beer and turned to Gilded. “I hope you realize that you will be punished if you do anything to that changeling.”
“Pfft, why would I?’ Gilded scoffed.
“Because we don’t abuse prisoners, not anymore. That passed a long time ago.”
“He deserves it.” It turned out that Gilded ordered another round, and he started on it now.
“Why, though?” Sturdy wondered.
“He and his kind put my sister a coma.”
“How do you know he was involved, though? He wasn’t alone,” Sturdy pointed out.
“He’s a changeling and he’s in the dungeon. What more proof do you need?”
“He hasn’t caused any issues, other than bugging the ones guarding him for a book. That’s what his file says. I don’t think he’s a threat.”
“He’s trying to lull you into a false sense of security.” Another gulp of another round.
“The princesses are checking on him as we speak.” Sturdy countered. “If there’s anything else to learn, we should leave it in their hooves.”
“They’re not moving fast enough. For all we know, Chrysalis could be under the guise of one of them. She did take Cadence’s place for who knows how long.”
“I’d watch your next words carefully, Corporal. Saying things like ‘the princesses aren’t moving fast enough’ isn’t particularly wise.” Sturdy finished his drink and set the empty mug on the counter. “Report back to the barracks. I’ll deal with you tomorrow morning. Consider yourself confined to quarters.”
“Yes, sir…” Gilded grumbled. He finished his drink and watched Sturdy pay the tab.
“Have a nice day, Sergeant Stone,” Humble commented, as he put the bits in the register.
“You too, Humble,” said GIlded.
Sturdy and Gilded left and walked down the street to the barracks. As they approached the castle, Gilded took a quick note of where they were.
“So how long is my confinement?” Gilded asked.
“For as long as it is deemed necessary.”
“I see. I do hope it’s not too long. I would like to see my sister again.”
“That all depends on you.”
“Understood, sir.”
Gilded and Sturdy soon came into view of the barracks. However, GIlded was scheming something.. He once again took note of his surroundings, noticing they were in an area where one could be hidden easily, and as a bonus, there were no cameras pointed in their direction.
Seeing his chance, Gilded judo chopped Sturdy across the back of the head, knocking Sturdy out cold. Gilded dragged his unconscious body out of view into a bush. After that business was concluded, he headed towards the dungeon.
“Afternoon, Gilded,” a pegasus guard greeted him.
“Oh! Hey Firebolt, didn’t see you there.” Gilded calmed down as he recognized the guard trotting over to see him.
“How’s your sister?” Firebolt asked.
“Not good, my friend. She’s still unconscious.”
“I hope the best for her. I’ve been praying to Faust every night.”
“Hey, I know you have feelings for her!”
“Heh, what gave it away?” Firebolt chuckled.
“The fact you sent her that card on Hearts and Hooves Day. You’re not subtle at all.”
“You… saw that?” Firebolt’s face turned into a deep red color.
“Yeah, I saw that. I’ll tell her you said hi next time I go see her.”
“...okay…” Firebolt was still too embarrassed to say anything else. He trotted off without another word.
“Now then, let’s go see that changeling.” Gilded walked to the door and opened it, approaching the desk at the front.
“What’s your business here, Corporal Shield?” the guard pony asked at his desk, not bothering to look up from his paperwork. Even then, he knew who it was.
“I’m here to see the changeling,” Gilded announced.
“He’s in cellblock 7, cell 12.” The guard replied. “Hope you know what you’re doing. Changelings are weird.” He pushed a button to open the door for the corporal.
“Thank you.” Gilded walked down the hall towards the cell, his heart racing. However, he didn’t count on hearing singing when he approached the cell, recognizing it as a popular pegasi nursery song. Finally, he got to the cell, finding the changeling sitting in the cell. The foe sat on his bed with his hooves cross legged, and his eyes closed while he was breathing, almost like a meditation. The singing stopped when he saw his visitor.
“I know why you are here, and let me tell you, you don’t want to do this,” Wing calmly stated as he sat up on his bed.
“And why don’t I, bug?” Gilded spat.
“Because this will not end well for you,” Wing replied in a zen like way. “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.”
“Enough!” Gilded swung at Wing with his left hoof. The changeling leaned into his swing and pushed it back with his right hoof, causing Gilded to miss him completely. Gilded growled and swung again with his right limb, but Wing dodged it with ease and deflected it with his left hoof.
“You have much anger and hate in you. You think it makes you stronger, but it only makes you blind,” Wing quipped as he deflected yet another punch. “You think by hurting me or even killing me, it’ll make you feel better, but it won’t.”
“Shut up!” Gilded took another swing at Wing. That blow was also deflected.
“Someone you care about was hurt in the attack, I take it? I’m sorry that Chrysalis’s attack has blinded you to the fact that she doesn’t rule over all changelings.”
“Stop!” Gilded raged. He was not going to let this bug tell him how to act.
“I understand how you feel. I’m away from my own family as well.” Wing dodged the next attack. He didn’t even need to deflect that one.
“I… said... SHUT UP!” Gilded delivered a swift kick to Wing’s abdomen, the first strike to make its mark. Wing doubled over on the floor and clutched at the spot, he didn’t show an ounce of pain. Gilded, however, gave Wing a sinister smile and giving a short but ‘sweet’ message: “Die.”
He raised his fore hooves and rained down blow after blow on a defenceless Wing. The changeling could not do a thing as the guard let out all his pent up rage. However, what he did not know is that he wouldn’t be alone for long. Two more ponies were about to come into the dungeon.
“Mr. Hooves, are you sure about this?” a buff pegasus asked.
“He’s been one of my most trusted workers, Batter,” the other pony replied. “My daughter made it clear that I am not to harm him in any way. I don’t plan to go behind her back on this.”
“I understand. Let’s just get this over with. There has to be something more urgent than patrol right now.”
“Where art thou going?” A regal voice asked. Batters and Mr. Hooves turned to see Princess Luna, flanked by two guards.
“Ah, Princess Luna.” Mr. Hooves bowed. Batters followed suit without a word.
“Mr. Hooves, I’ve heard many things of you. Unfortunately, not all of it was good,” Princess Luna spoke.
“I am sorry to hear that, Your Majesty. I am but a simple business stallion.”
“We shall see,” Luna retorted.
“I am only here to see Wing. Surely, that is not a wrong thing to do?”
“No, it is within your rights. Given the urgency of the matter, we will follow you to his cell.
“Your Majesty, this isn’t really necessa--” Batters started to say.
“If Princess Luna wants to accompany us, she is more than welcome to,” Mr. Hooves cut him off.
“Precisely. You don’t have to speak for royalty, although we respect the gesture,” Luna replied.
The princess and the guards followed Mr. Hooves and Batters to the dungeon entrance amidst the busy street. The sight of Mr. Hooves and royalty caught a lot of eyes along the way.
“Princess, are you sure this is wise?” one of Luna’s guards whispered to her.
“We are sure. Are you questioning us?”
“No, of course not, Your Majesty,” the guard bowed apologetically.
“See that thou doesn’t repeat thy mistake.”
“Why are you up this early if you don’t me asking, Your Majesty?” Mr. Hooves noted.
“Our sister requested us to talk with the changeling. There’s important things to discuss.”
“You mean Wing? I can see why.”
“Pray tell, what does thee know about him?”
“Other than he worked at my pizza place in Cloudsdale for years, and I view him like a son? Not much, honestly.”
Princess Luna nodded her head as they headed inside the dungeon doors and walked in. The guard at the desk was still occupied with his paperwork, so Luna’s guard approached him.
“TEN HUT” he shouted.
“Sergeant!” the desk guard stood up, startled by the shouting.
“Have thou not been paying attention to who comes in here?!” Princess Luna demanded.
“Eh… n….no, Your Majesty, I’ve been t...too busy…” the guard stammered.
“Silence!” Princess Luna interrupted. She then turned to Batter and the other guards. “Stay here. In the meantime, Mr. Hooves is to accompany us into the cell.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Mr. Hooves nodded. He followed Luna past the desk into the dungeon’s hallways. “Where is the prisoner, anyways?”
“Cellblock 7, cell 12.” Princess Luna stated.
As they came to the block together, they were caught off guard by the sound of a old fashioned beating.
“Thought you were tough? Fight back!” echoed through the cell block. Luna opened the door just in time to witness Gilded Shield kick the changeling hard in the abdomen.
“Hey, stop what you’re doing!” Mr. Hooves shouted. He rushed into the cell and grabbed Gilded by the hooves, throwing him into the hall outside. Gilded got back up and rushed at Mr. Hooves, but he found himself stuck in place in a magical aura. He felt Luna’s breath on his shoulder and dared to look Luna in the eye. That would be something he’d regret.
"HWÆT TIMBRIAN ÊOW SÊ ÐÂ ÐE WEORÐUNG ÛTWEARD EDSIHÐ ÊOW GLENG MACUNG, DOCGA?!" Princess Luna blasted Gilded down the hall with her Royal Canterlot Voice. It left him in front of another guard on patrol who arrived to see what was going on.
“Throw this dog in a cell. We caught him beating the changeling prisoner,” Luna told the patrol guard. Gilded looked up to see that Princess Luna had already crossed the distance between them.
“Yes, Your Majesty.” The patrol guard picked Gilded up with his unicorn magic and threw a magic suppressing ring on his horn, dragging him away.
“Hey kid, you alright?” Mr. Hooves asked Wing as he checked over the changeling’s injuries.
“I take it I’m out?” Wing chuckled before gritting his teeth and holding his side.
“We will get the doctor, stay here with him,” Luna told Mr. Hooves.
“Right. I’ll make sure nothing else happens.”
She nodded and left the cell to get the nearest doctor. That left the two stallions alone.
“Yeah, he got you good,” Mr. Hooves explained. “Don’t worry, nothing will happen to you. Course, somepony will need to to take your place now.”
“Right,” Wing breathed. “I know who you mean, and he’s loyal.”
“You understand it may not happen, since some will view it as illegitimate?”
“Heh, maybe, but we both know it’s the right choice.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Soon after, the dungeon medical personnel arrived at the cell with a stretcher in tow. Mr. Hooves helped the doctors pick Wing up into the stretcher, and the changeling was strapped in for safety.
“Okay, he’s good. Let’s get him to the OR,” the lead doctor ordered, a black earth pony with a white mane.
“But we don’t even know his physiology! Changelings have to be different from ponies in that way, right?” the second doctor argued.
Wing looked to the lead doctor and smiled. “You can keep me awake and I can help you through the process.”
“We can discuss that later. You need to get out of here ASAP.” They carted Wing off to the dungeon’s OR.
Mr. Hooves smiled and shook his head. “It’s better he gets out of the business anyways.” He trotted back to the entrance, where Batter was waiting for him. “Let’s go home.”