//------------------------------//
// A Brother's Decision 
// Story: The Ties that Bind 
// by the7Saviors 
//------------------------------//

As he reached the wall he had seen Gale trot through, he hesitated briefly before stepping through himself. As he emerged from the room, he notice two things immediately.

The first was Frigid Gale and a maroon coated unicorn stallion standing directly in front of him. Well, the unicorn was standing and from the looks of it, he had just finished casting a spell because Shining caught a glimpse of an orange colored aura right before it died down. Gale on the other hoof, was sitting on her haunches with an amused grin.

The second thing Shining Armor noticed was how similar the corridor was to his prison - stone walls and dim lighting via wall mounted sconces. He looked down both ends of the corridor and saw much of the same in both directions, though he could just make out a staircase going further down at the end of the path to his right. 

"Glad you decided to join us after all, kid."

One of Shining's eyebrows twitched at the name but he didn't say anything about it. He turned his attention to the tall unicorn stallion instead. The maroon unicorn's expression gave nothing away. His white mane was slicked back and like his magic aura, his eyes were a brilliant shade of orange. 

"And who is he?" the colt asked warily.

"Him?" Gale said gesturing to the stoic looking stallion, "that's just Red Storm, he's harmless - most of the time."

Shining continued to eye the stallion but Red Storm didn't seem to pay the colt any mind. His bright orange eyes didn't appear to be resting on any one thing for long and he gave Shining the impression he was looking for something the colt himself couldn't see.

The stallion glanced at Frigid Gale when she jabbed him in the shoulder.

"Come on, Storm," she chided, "you're weirding the kid out."

"Apologies, ma'am," the stallion said in a surprisingly gruff voice that didn't seem to fit his rather wiry stature. Gale rolled her eyes and rose to her hooves.

"We're wasting time," she began trotting down the corridor towards the staircase, motioning for the colt and stallion to follow, "I wanna get this show on the road."

Red Storm followed without question or hesitation and Shining Armor trotted after them a bit more reluctantly. 

"Where are we going?" Shining asked after a few moments of trotting along in silence, "you said you wanted to show me something?"

"Patience, kid," Gale replied glancing at the the colt from over her shoulder, "I know you got questions, but just hold on for a bit and you'll get your answers."

Shining Armor wanted to press for more information, but he was a smart colt - maybe not as academically brilliant as his little sister, but he knew when to keep his mouth shut and listen.

Discipline like that was a must for a Royal Guard after all, and that's what he aspired to be - even now.

Frigid Gale led them down the staircase where they reached another corridor, this one well lit to Shining's surprise. As they continued down the hall, they passed several busy looking ponies moving to and fro, traveling from door to door. Some of them stopped to give Frigid Gale a salute or a simple nod to which Gale gave a nod of her own. Shining Armor even saw a few griffons here and there. 

What he didn't see however, were other thestrals like Frigid Gale.

"What do you know about Celestia, kid?"

Shining blinked in confusion at the sudden question. He looked to Gale who had taken on a more serious look as she trotted.

"I... don't really know much about the Princess herself," he admitted, "most of what I know has to do with her Guard."

"A regular Colt Scout, are ya?" she said with a chuckle, "big dreams of defending our Perfect Monarch and her kingdom."

"Not really," Shining answered. Frigid Gale turned to the colt with an intrigued raise of her brow.

"Oh?"

Shining Armor shook his head.

"I wanted to join the Guard so I could protect those I care about, like my family," he glared at the ground, "not that I have a family to protect anymore."

Frigid Gale observed Shining silently for a moment, a look of pity briefly crossing her face. It disappeared before anypony could see and she turned to face the path ahead.

"And you don't know anything about Celestia," she surmised, "well that's-"

"Actually..."

Gale turned back to Shining Armor expectantly.

"I don't know a lot about Celestia," he said shaking his head, "but I don't really trust her either."

That made Frigid Gale stop in her tracks.

"Really now?" she said, immense interest seeping into her voice, "do tell."

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow at the mare's reaction but continued nonetheless.

"A couple of years ago my sister entered a contest for a magazine she was subscribed to. She wrote a paper," he scrunched up his face, "I... can't remember what it was about, but I remember mom and dad were worried about it for some reason..."

"And?" Gale pushed, "go on, what happened next?"

She furrowed her brow when she noticed the colt staring off to the side with a vacant expression. She grabbed his face and turned towards hers.

"Hey, come on, kid," she said in a soft understanding tone that caught Shining off guard, "I know it's tough losing your family, believe me, but I need you to focus on the here and now."

Shining Armor pulled away from Gale and glared at her. He opened his mouth to question how she could possibly know, but froze at the look on her face.

He saw it in her draconic eyes.

She did indeed know the pain of having your family suddenly and violently ripped away from you.

He closed his mouth and gave a dejected sigh.

"...My parents submitted the paper and four days later we received a personal invitation to the castle to speak with the Princess herself," he frowned thoughtfully, "I thought it was weird because we hadn't received anything from the ponies who run the magazine."

"And you went with them?"

"No," Shining said with a shake of his head, "I was in school at the time, but when they got back from the castle, I knew something was wrong. Very wrong."

"What happened?" Frigid Gale asked. She began trotting forward again as they spoke.

Shining grimaced at the memory.

"I got back to the house before they did, and when I asked about how the trip to the castle went they all looked at me like I was crazy. I asked about the article, but they had no idea what I was talking about," he snorted, "I know they went to castle, they were picked up by Royal Gaurds!"

"Hey, hey calm down, kid," Gale said, raising a placative hoof, "so you think Celestia had something to do with their weird behavior?"

"I don't know for sure," Shining replied, "I dropped the subject because I knew it would've been pointless if they didn't remember, but I never stopped thinking about it. I tried sending a letter to the Princess through official channels, but it was returned almost immediately exactly as I had sent it with a form letter attached saying she was unavailable to take anymore letters that day or something."

"Sounds pretty suspicious," Gale said with a knowing nod, "especially since that's not how the regular mailing system works in Canterlot."

Shining Armor was about to reply when Red Storm suddenly spoke up, startling the colt.

"We've arrived My Lady."

"Finally," Gale said turning back around to face a large metal door, "you can go now, Storm, I'll take it from here."

"As you wish, ma'am," he replied. Shining Armor watched in awe as the maroon unicorn stepped back into a shaded corner of the corridor and vanished.

"Neat, huh?" Frigid Gale said with a wink, "that's Shadow Magic for ya."

Shining Armor frowned.

"Dark Magic..."

"You got a problem with it?" Gale asked curiously.

Shining Armor shook his head.

"Not particularly, it's just..." he let out a melancholy sigh, "my sister was interested in it for awhile. That's actually what the article was about," he looked off to one side, the blank look from earlier making a return, "...I hope she survived."

"What if I told you she did?"

Shining Armor's head snapped in Gale's direction and the thestral mare could see an almost manic desperation flare up in the colt eyes.

"Don't joke about that," he whispered, "if you're messing with me-"

"I'm not," Frigid Gale replied solemnly, "and the proof is just beyond this door."

Shining made to push the door open, but Gale held him back with a hoof.

"Easy there, kid," she said, cutting off his protests, "let me go first."

She stepped forward and place a hoof to the door. Shining watched as her hoof glowed a light blue, and after a second, the door followed suit - strange symbols lighting up around the glowing hoof.

Eventually the light died down, the symbols disappeared and Shining heard a soft click. The door slowly swung open and Shining didn't even hesitate as he rushed inside.

"Twily?" he said sweeping a frantic gaze around the surprisingly small room, "are you-"

"She's not here you bonehead," Gale admonished as she stepped into the room. Shining Armor stopped and took a closer look around. The room was small, circular, and very well lit. It almost reminded the colt of an office, what with the many cabinets surrounding the walls. There was a single desk and chair in the back that he hadn't noticed before.

An old female griffon glared at the colt from over a pair of thick rimmed glasses.

"A pleasure to see you as always, Gale," the mare said, not taking her eyes from Shining, "tell me, what is this... brat doing here?"

"He's with me, Astrid," Gale replied casually, "I'm just here to show him something, then we'll be out of your hair."

The gray coated, white feathered old griffon clicked her beak a few times before rising from the chair.

"Very well," she said walking around the table, "and what can I get for you, Gale?"

"I need that orb the Doctor modified."

Astrid nodded and walked over to a specific  row of cabinets. She traced a talon across each of them until she found the one she was looking for. Opening the cabinet, she pulled out a small black box and walked back over to Frigid Gale. Shining watched the whole thing with both curiosity and mild irritation.

"Here we go," Gale said, taking the box from the griffon, "this is that proof I was talking about kid."

She clicked open the box and pulled out a very familiar looking orb. Shining gave the thestral mare a bemused frown.

"Isn't that an Orb of Insight?" he asked skeptically, "how is that supposed to help me find my sister?"

"This isn't just any old Orb of Insight, kid," Gale replied, hoofing it to the colt, "One of the brainiacs down at the labs modified it to track magical signatures - don't ask me how, I have no idea how he did it."

Shining Armor took the orb into his hooves and his eyes widened at the gently pulsating magenta glow within.

Even if he couldn't sense it, he'd know that glow anywhere.

"Twily..."

Gale nodded.

"That's the residual mana we managed to recover from your house after..." she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, "...y'know."

Shining Armor's ear twitched and he narrowed his eyes at Gale.

"And why were you at my house?"

"Reasons," she replied with a shrug, "what's important is that as long as the mana in that orb is glowing, your sister is alive."

The colt once again suppressed the urge to ask more about her statment and instead focused on the fact that his sister was actually alive somewhere.

"Do you know where she is?" he asked.

"If I did, you wouldn't be here," the mare replied. She continued on before Shining could ask what she meant, "the search for your sister is still ongoing even as we speak."

Shining mulled over her words, the questions in his mind piling higher and higher with each thing Frigid Gale said.

"Why are you looking for my sister?" he finally asked, "what do you want with her and why am I here instead? Who even are you guys?"

"I'll be happy to answer... most of those questions," Gale said, taking the modified orb from Shining and placing it back in the box, "but first, I need you to do me a favor."

Shining narrowed his eyes again.

"What kind of favor?"

"Oh, don't be like that, kid," Gale said with a roll of her eyes, "this'll be beneficial for the both of us."

After a few moments of glaring, Shining Armor huffed and sat on his haunches.

"I'm listening."

Gale nodded and hoofed the box back to Astrid who placed it back in the cabinet.

"I'd like you to work with us to find your sister-"

"I'll do it."

Frigid Gale blinked in surprise.

"That's it?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, "don't you want to know the details?"

"Of course I do," Shining said with a resolute frown, "but you obviously want her for something, you're not going to hurt her, and I want to see my sister again - to know that she's safe," he gave a single nod, "that's good enough for me... for now."

"And how do you know we aren't going to hurt her?" Gale challenged.

"Because you" - he pointed a hoof at Gale - "won't allow it."

"Oh, really?" Gale shot back, inwardly impressed with the colt's insight, "and what makes you say that?"

"You could've hurt or killed me at anytime, but the only reason I got hurt at all was because I attacked first," he shook his head and gave the mare a look that almost seemed appreciative, "I could also see that you were actually worried about me back in the room."

He looked Frigid Gale straight in the eye - his own cerulean eyes shining bright with the newfound hope of finding his still living little sister.

"If nothing else, I think you care about foals at the very least."  

Gale stared at the colt incredulously for a few moments before she let out an amused snort.

"You know what?" she said pulling the colt into another one legged hug and ruffling his mane, "I like you, kid!"

Shining pulled himself out from under Gale's leg and the mare chuckled before giving him a solemn frown.

"But seriously though, kid, you need to hear the details if you're gonna help," she said motioning for him to follow as she opened the door, "this isn't some small time operation I'm running here. There's more at stake than just the safety of your sister - a lot more."

Shining nodded as he stepped through the doorway.

"I don't care, as long as I can see Twilight again."

"It might take longer than you think," Gale warned.

"As long as I'm not just twiddling my hooves, I can deal with it," he hung his head, some of his earlier sadness coming back, "she's the only real family I have now."

Frigid Gale looked at the colt for several moments, an unsure expression making it's way across her face. After a moment she let out resigned sigh and placed a reassuring hoof on his shoulder.

"We'll find your sister, kid," she said with a warm - if slightly strained - smile, "I promise."

Shining Armor returned the smile and Gale ruffled his mane again before trotting forward.

"Now come on, let's see about getting you a better room."