//------------------------------//
// Friends and family, enemies and anomalies 
// Story: Cryo-7 
// by Metal Pony Fan 
//------------------------------//

Down in the holding cells, Blueblood and Fire Brand stood in front of the cell holding their young pegasus attacker.  Primitive looking iron bars and stone walls were lit by fake candles.  It was a stark and depressing place by design, lifted straight from a former movie set and reinforced to suit its new purpose.

A quick medical exam of the prisoner showed some oddities, like intact eardrums and lungs despite the sudden pressure change.  No unusual electrical activity in his synapses despite the many stunbolts.  No burnt skin despite the massive fireball he leapt through.  In fact, there were no injuries.  The minor cuts and bruises he did have recovered while he was being scanned.  And there was no scar tissue present anywhere on him, which made them wonder, was he just that good at healing, or had he just never sustained a serious enough injury?  But, still, he wasan approximately seventeen year old pegasus colt, he didn't even have all his feathers in yet.

And he had taken down exactly fifty of their soldiers, twelve on the platform, thirty-six in the rafters, one in a sparrow-class fighter craft, and one with boosted magic from an ancient artifact.

"He had no Identification on him," Fire Brand told the Prince.  "The shuttle's computer is too far damaged to pull anything off of."

Blueblood shook his head.  "Hard to believe, he brought nothing but his vehicle to attack us?"

"I didn't say that," Fire Brand corrected, scratching at his embedded gem.  It was itching after using its power, but so far, there were no mental effects.  "Just, no weapons, unless you count the antique phase pistol he left in his duffel bag.  A search of the shuttle turned up nothing.  His duffel bag had the mentioned phase pistol, an encrypted pad, a medical scanner, a full kit of emergency medical gear, a rather nice, rather expensive suit, complete with the classiest, Zarrian holo-silk tie I've ever seen, and half a dozen fruit flavored condoms."

Blueblood blinked.  "I'm sorry," he looked over at the lieutenant, 'half a dozen what?"

"Condoms, Blue," Fire Brand repeated with a chuckle, "fruit flavored."

"Yes, that's what I thought you said."  The prince cleared his throat as he looked back at the unconscious prisoner.  After a few seconds, he looked back at his fellow unicorn.  "Ok, but, why?"

He shrugged, trying to keep a straight face.  "Maybe he had a date after this?  Something you have no experience with."

"A date?"  Blueblood said, rolling his eyes and ignoring the jab at him. "After storming the largest bounty hunter's fortress in the galaxy?  Alone?"  He looked over at the prisoner with a sigh.  "You're saying he expected to be successful, and able to leave, but not in time to go elsewhere to grab clothes and prophylactics?"

"Propha-what, sir?"

"Prophylactics," the prince repeated, "condoms."

"Oh."  Fire Brand nodded slowly.  "It sounds ridiculous when you say it like that, sir."

"Why?"  Blueblood frowned.  "Prophylactic is a far more professionally appropriate word than-"

"No, not that," the lieutenant corrected, "I mean the part about him successfully pulling off an attack on the base."

"Ah, yes."  Blueblood coughed quietly.  "Absolutely absurd.  He only took out two percent of our fighting force and destroyed a modified sparrow in the space of what?  Two minutes?"

"Minute and a half?  Yeah, but he had to be hurting by the end of that.  Expecting him to repeat that over and over through the various sections of the Nemeton is frankly bonkers."  With a laugh, he added, "it's almost as funny as prophylactic sounds."

Blueblood sighed miserably.  "Can we please be done talking about this?"

Fire Brand saluted.  "Sure thing, Blue."

"Thank you."  The Prince stepped closer to bars as the unconscious pegasus wheezed out black and purple smoke.  "He's waking up."

Wheezing became coughing, and the colt rolled over to purge the miasma from his lungs.

"Holy crap," Fire Brand muttered, "it's only been a few minutes.  He should have been out for hours."

Blueblood nodded.  "It seems he has some natural resistance to my shadow's powers."

"I doubt anything about this kid is natural, Blue."  Fire Brand scratched his chin.  "You know that planet that's joining the Assembly right now?"

"Furia?"

"Yeah, you've heard the rumours, right?"

"I have."  Blueblood chewed his lip.  He wasn't sure if he believed them, but they would explain this colt's abilities and fighting skill.  "A child experiment?  A genetically engineered monster in pony skin?"

"Look at him, and look at what he did, and tell me he's a normal kid.  He went from twenty atmospheres to one, and held his breath.  That alone should have killed him."  Fire Brand sighed.  "Still doesn't explain the condoms."

"You said we were done with that," Blueblood reminded him.

"Oh, come on!"  The lieutenant laughed.  "You can't tell me you aren't the slightest bit curious."

"I..."  Blueblood shrugged helplessly.  "I admit, I find it odd, but I'm sure further investigation will turn up some sort of explanation."

Inside the cell, Radio slowly stopped coughing, as the last of the magic smoke escaped his lungs.  He took his first clean breath, and remembered where he was.  With a yelp, he spun around, scrambling his way back from the door until his back hit the far wall of the cell.

He stared at Blueblood, eyes wide, sweating, and panting in fear.  "What are you?!" he demanded.

"I could ask you the same thing," the Prince countered.  "I'm guessing your name isn't Rider?"

"Radio," the pegasus corrected.  "Yours?"

"I am Prince Blueblood the Eighteenth," he answered.  He held a hoof up to indicate his friend.  "And, this, is Lieutenant Fire Brand."

Radio scoffed.  "I should have hit you harder."

"The feeling's mutual," Fire Brand replied, mockingly polite.  "Why did you attack us?"

Breathing coming under control, Radio crossed his hooves in front of him.  "Guess."

Blueblood and Fire Brand exchanged glances.  Fire Brand frowned, pointedly glancing down the row of cells behind them.  Blueblood shrugged and looked back at Radio.  "Does it have anything to do with another prisoner of ours?"

Radio's ear twitched, betraying him as he fought to keep his face unreadable.

Fire Brand saw it, and pointed out a particular cell.  "Across the hall, two cells down.  Somepony you know?"

Radio growled at him.  He couldn't see it from here.  This cell was stone on three sides, not bars all around like the ones across the way.  He slowly made his way over to the door.

He lunged at Fire Brand at the last moment, getting his hoof through the bars.  But, the unicorn hopped back, grabbing the hoof with magic and pulling.  Radio's face planted into the bars, nose first, before he was shoved back.

Fire Brand stepped back towards the cell as the pegasus lay sprawled out, nursing a bleeding nose with his hoof.  "Do that again, kid, and we'll find out exactly how fireproof you are."

Blueblood held his hoof up, motioning Fire Brand back.  "He's contained, there's no need for threats."

"Just keep telling yourself that," Radio taunted as he rolled back onto his hooves.

"I have no doubt you could escape this cell," Blueblood conceded.  "But, I'm out here.  Surely, you noticed how dark we keep it?"

The colt shivered.  He didn't want to experience that again.

Blueblood saw the reaction.  "Nightmares?" He asked with a smirk.

Radio swallowed hard.  "How long was I asleep?"

"A few minutes," the Prince shrugged, "most ponies remain unconscious for hours after getting hit with that."

"Hours?"  The colt tried not to shudder.  He wouldn't want to see those images for another second, let alone hours.  He knew it wasn't real, Ribbon would never do that to him.  But it still felt so real.  Two siblings, locked in battle, trying to kill each other.  And Ribbon finally banished him to... somewhere, a harsh landscape he didn't recognize, a land of featureless white and grey.  Stars above, no air to fill the lungs.

"It can be a traumatic experience," Blueblood sympathized, "I have seen it myself on occasion."

"What was it?"  Radio swallowed hard.  "Who was that pony that appeared?"

"I must have missed that part," Fire Brand admitted, as he looked over at Blueblood.  "Care to share?"

"I would if I knew myself."  The Prince shrugged.  "Some of the ponies I use this power on have described briefly meeting another pony, but I have never exactly met her myself.  She is my shadow, and she helps me protect those around me.  I know little more than that."

"Freaky," Radio muttered.  "The both of you."

"We get that a lot," Fire Brand scoffed.  "Now, did you, or did you not come to free this other prisoner?"

With a loud snort, Radio cleared his nose of blood, splattering the floor, much to Bluebood's disgust.

"Why in Tartarus does everypony keep doing that?" He muttered to himself.  "It's unsanitary!"

"Buck you," Radio muttered back.

"Oh," Fire Brand raised an eyebrow, "so, that's what the condoms were for."

"What?!"  Blueblood looked over at his friend, fixing him in a disbelieving stare.  "How could even imagine that's an appropriate joke?"

"I had a date before this," Radio quickly defended himself, going red in the face, "I forgot to leave them home."

"Wait," Blueblood looked over, "really?"

"Told ya he had a date," Fire Brand boasted, "why else would a teenager be carrying condoms?"

Radio wanted to sink through the floor.  He really should have ditched the suit and condoms when he grabbed his pad and medical gear.  "Can we please not talk about this?"

"My thoughts exactly," Blueblood quickly agreed.  He pointed back at the other prisoner.  "Just tell us if you know him."

"Him?"  Radio smirked.  "Probably not."  But, he walked over to the door anyway, taking great pleasure in Fire Brand stepping away from the bars.  He peeked out, saw the other prisoner, and started laughing.  He did know him.  "Yo, Iron Hoof!  I hope you rot!"

The currently three-legged cyborg looked up, face contorting in rage as he recognized Radio.  "I'll kill you!"  He slammed his body against the door of his cell.  "Let me out!  I'll mutilate that fucking monster!  Abomination!  Unnatural affront to existence!"

It took Radio a moment to scoff at the insults.  They actually stung, even coming from a cyborg.  But, he recovered quickly.  "So, who took your leg this time?"

The cyborg's words devolved into incoherent screaming, as he thrashed about, trying to tear his cell door off with his organic hoof.

Radio chuckled as he looked back at Blueblood.  "Yeah, I have that effect on ponies.  I blew a hole in his ship when he tried to raid a pharmaceutical lab on my planet.  He lost his leg attacking me with a sword."  There was a pause, and the colt added, "he had the sword, not me."

Blueblood's mouth scrunched to the side.  "Brand, go knock him out before he hurts himself."  The Prince eyed the colt with suspicion as his lieutenant walked away.  "So, you mean to tell me that you are responsible for him becoming a cyborg?  Ten years ago?"

Radio nodded.  "I was seven, so it sounds right.  I was a terror back then."

This drew an amused snort from the Prince.  "And what are you now?"

The pegasus pointed his wingtips at him.  "Chill."

"Of course you are."  Blueblood sighed.  "Is that why you dialed back the power of that sniper rifle?"

Radio shrugged, sitting down and crossing his hooves.  "Who knows?"

"Or why you didn't attack the medic?" Blueblood continued to prod.  "Or spent valuable time to warn them off?  Or why you didn't attack me or Brand until we got involved?"

Radio scoffed.  "You were unarmed."

The Prince shook his head.  "A White Flag isn't unarmed until they're unconscious, and even that only applies to most of us."

"White Flag?  You guys are-"  Radio brought a hoof to his head.  "Oh, crap."  Radio swallowed hard.  The White Flags were legitimate bounty hunters, and a sovereign entity outside the Galactic Assembly.  They were famous for their code of honor, strict ethics, and daring exploits in defense of the galaxy as a whole.  They were about as good as good guys got.  And he just attacked them.  "I didn't know."

Blueblood walked up to the door, leaning a hoof against the bars.  "Look, Radio, I think I have an idea why you did all this, but why don't you go ahead and tell me?"

The colt squinted at the unicorn.  It would be so easy to dash forward and bash his mug in right now.  He already tried it once.  And that would have been the plan again if he didn't know better.  Blueblood must have realized that.

Radio hung his head.  "I'm here to save my friend."

"I thought so," Blueblood said with a nod.  "I'll bring her down."

"Really?"  Radio's head jerked back up.  He wasn't expecting it to be that easy.  "What's the catch?"

"No catch," the Prince explained.  "The situation is complicated, but she is not currently a prisoner.  Unlike you."

The colt went pale.  "I don't suppose an apology would help?"

"Not for a few days, at least.  Perhaps weeks."

"Understandable."

"And they would have to be individually hoof written," Blueblood said coldly, "for every member of the White Flags that was in the landing bay.  I'll bring you a list."

Radio winced.  "Yeah, that's still better than I was expecting."

"Intent matters, Radio."  Blueblood stepped away from the colt's cage.  "Your reasons were noble.  And, though my crew was your enemy, you still considered our safety as you fought.  There were no serious injuries.  That is the only reason you even get this chance."

The colt nodded slowly.  "Thank you."






"What do you mean she's not here?"  Blueblood looked around the rapidly filling medical bay.

Radio's victims were still limping in, or being carried.  Luckily, most of them only needed to sleep off stun blasts, but there were one or two broken limbs, and plenty of bruises to ice.  And pulling unconscious soldiers from all corners of the catwalks was proving to be time-consuming.

"Exactly that," answered an annoyed Dweveli doctor.  "She left with a guard after having a nutrient shake.  It's not my job to keep track of her from there."  A human limped over, with an earth pony slung over his shoulder, and the Dweveli threw his hands up, and started gesturing all over the place.  "Wherever there's room!  The floor's soft enough if need be."  The doctor turned back to Bluebood as they left quickly.  "What happened?!  How are there so many injuries?  And where are the enemies?"

"Enemy," Blueblood corrected, "there was just one.  He is in a holding cell, and not in need of medical attention.  He apologizes for... this.  He said he didn't realize who we were."

Shaking his head, the doctor walked away, muttering in his native language.

"Wait!" Blueblood called after him, "what guard did she leave with?  What was his name?"

He replied with a scoff.  "How should I know?!  I'm colorblind, you ponies all look alike to me!"

With a sigh, Blueblood headed out of the medical bay, dodging incoming patients.  Fifty soldiers downed by a teenage colt, and he held back.  Apology or not, his threat level just bumped straight to a one.  How dangerous would he be when he grows up?  Possibly a zero?

But, he was contained, and apologetic.  He shouldn't be a threat at the moment.

The real issue facing Blueblood now was, where was Grinparch's heir?  He had already checked the guest quarters, but she wasn't there.  She was under guard, but only one guard.  Protocol stated a minimum of two, but the flood of patients probably made that difficult.  Was two even enough?  Doubtful.

He headed back towards the guest quarters.  It was possible she just wasn't there yet when he checked.  And he took a different path to get there than most would.  But, if she wasn't...

Did he make a mistake in trusting her?

Blueblood touched a hoof to his comm.  "Control, patch me through to all on-duty guards, earpieces only."

There was a pause, followed by a gruff answer of, "go ahead, sir."

He took a breath.  "This is Prince Blueblood.  Has anypony seen an unfamiliar mare in her twenties?  Short for her age.  Pink coat, mane, and tail.  She is supposed to be under guard, but may not be."

He waited three, maybe four seconds before there was an answer.  "Um, sir?  Are you talking about that mare you unchained in medical?"

"Yes!"  Blueblood winced at how loudly he said that.  He was worried, and it showed.  "You know where she is?"

"She's here with me, sir.  She's been completely cooperative.  We stopped by the flight control training room to grab some food from the break room."

"In the common area?"  Blueblood tried to process the information, but it only resulted in confusion.  "Why would you do that?  There's food in the guest quarters."

"Well, we were forced out of medical to make room for everypony that got stunned, and she barely even finished her nutrient shake.  The break room was Juki's idea-"

"He's there?!" Blueblood shouted into the communicator, scaring a dazed soldier who was shambling towards the medical bay.  The Prince mumbled an apology, and stalked away for a little privacy.  "Are you telling me my little brother is with you and Norland's Granddaughter?"

"Yes, sir?"  The guard sounded confused.  "You unchained her, and said she wasn't a prisoner, so I figured it would be ok when Juki asked to speak with her."

"And if he asked for your side arm," Blueblood all but screamed, "would you give it to him?!"

"I, um, maybe?"  The guard on the other end of the comm answered nervously.  "He has that authority as Prince, right?"

"No!  He's twelve!"  With a groan, Blueblood tried to remember where the training center was.  "Guard, what are you?"

"An idiot, sir!"

"Apparently," Blueblood muttered.  "No, what species are you?  Human, pony, Dweveli?"

"Oh, uh, earth pony, sir."

"Good," Bluebood's horn lit up, "repeat after me..."





The guard let out a slow breath as the magic faded.  "That felt really weird, sir."

"Get over it," Blueblood ordered.  Using the guard as a conduit to cast the locator spell gave him the layout of the room for teleporting, but the surge of magic would make the earth pony's skin crawl for the next hour or so.  The Prince looked around the room full of computer panels and equipment, and quickly noticed that he and the guard were the only ones in here.  "You didn't-"

"Didn't what?" The guard asked, trying not to squirm.

"Shut up, just, shut up."  Blueblood quickly moved to the door to the breakroom.  He entered slowly, quietly.  Juki and the pink earth pony were sitting at a table and didn't notice him enter.  They were too focused on something in front of them.

Blueblood felt his chest tighten when he realized what it was.  It was Juki's craft kit, scissors, needles, laser pen, and countless other sharp objects.  And Norland's Granddaughter had a craft knife in her hoof.  She was cutting paper with the curved, razor sharp blade, tracing the outline of a paper doll that he had drawn for the colt yesterday.

Blueblood brought his hoof to the dial beside the door, dimming the lights.  It announced his presence, but he could react faster this way.  Both ponies looked up, and the earth pony waved before going back to her work.  She set the knife down after making one last cut in the paper.

"Done," she said happily, pulling the folded paper apart, and revealing the chain of pony shapes, every pair connected snout to snout.  "Heehee, they're kissing," she whispered.

Blueblood slumped against the wall, drawing a surprised shout from his little brother.

Berry hopped up and ran over.  "What's wrong?"  She asked quickly.  "Are you ok?"

"Yes," he sighed, "sorry, it's been a trying day."  Straightening up, the Prince looked over at his younger sibling.  "Juki, I need to speak with her a moment, please clean up all the paper pieces."

He nodded, and started sweeping up with magic.  "Can we keep playing after?"

"Maybe later," Blueblood told him, "this is kind of important."

"Oh," the colt pouted, "OK."

Blueblood wasted no more time in ushering Berry out the door, and closing it behind him.  "Thank you for coming with me quietly."

Berry was a little confused, but shrugged it off.  "Well, you said it isn't good for him to get excited."

"You remembered," Blueblood sighed.  "I turned out to be the one causing a scene.  I'm sorry, I saw you holding the knife, but you put it down without me needing to ask.  I can't tell you how much of a relief that was.  Thank you."

Berry's face twisted in anger, and Blueblood was taken aback by it.  She looked about as angry as she had back on the landing pad.  She slapped him across the face, and for a moment, he was stunned.  Given the anger he could clearly see, it shouldn't have been a surprise.  Also, it reminded him that he hadn't yet taken the time to treat his face for the needle wounds.

"You thought I would hurt him!"  The earth pony shouted in his face.

The guard stepped in, putting his hoof on Berry's shoulder.  "Ma'am, please st-"

Berry jerked her head back, popping the guard's mouth shut on his tongue, and she twisted, throwing him by his outstretched hoof.  By the time he hit the ground, his knife was in her hoof, and at Blueblood's throat.

She and Blueblood stared at each other as the guard groaned and picked himself up.  He reached for his stunner, but it was no longer at his belt.  It was on the floor near Berry's hoof.

"I would die to protect anypony on this station," Blueblood growled, "especially my brother and sisters.  So, don't think I'm above being a little mean about it."

Her angry glare softened, but she didn't look away.  "You don't have to protect them from me."  She pulled the knife away, then offered it to the prince, handle first.  "What can I do to prove that?"

"I don't know," the Prince answered.  He took the knife, and carefully set it down with the stunner.  "I want to believe that, but this gesture aside, I still don't know you."

Berry nodded.  She could understand that.  She didn't know him either, beyond their brief interaction earlier.  "Do you even want to?"

Blue seemed to lose track of the conversation there.  "Want to what?"

"Do you even know my name?"  Berry asked quickly.

"No," Blue admitted, "I do not."

"You never even asked," She pointed out

"When did I have time?"  Blue demanded, more than a little annoyed at the insinuation that it was his fault.  "Between you showing up, and the fight with that friend of yours-"

"My friends wouldn't just attack you," Berry interrupted.  "And, they don't even know where I am!"

"Really?"  Blue sat down with a harumph, and crossed his hooves.  "Then, you don't know a pegasus colt named Radio?  Because he tore apart our landing bay, and took down several of our troops, looking for somepony."

"He got my message," Berry winced, "I didn't think it sent."

The prince slowly uncrossed his hooves.  "Wait, when did you send this message?  You were in a cell with no computer access until half an hour ago."

Berry shrugged.  "While I was being held in the shuttle, I tapped into the communication and navigation systems through the wires in the wall, but I didn't have a display to tell me what I was doing, so I had to guess at sending the destination coordinates out on a copy of an existing communication."

"How is that even possible?"

"Well, galactic unicode characters are easy enough to input even with a numerical keypad like the one on a power conduit's diagnostic node, and it's just a matter of connecting the right wires, and inputting the right string of commands for the operating system, which I guessed after hearing the computer's voice response to commands."

Blueblood sighed.  "I see you inherited more than Norland's fighting abilities."

"Um, Radio," Berry rubbed her leg with a hoof, "he's not hurt, is he?"

"Not physically," Blueblood assured her.  "He's better off than the soldiers he sent to the med bay."

"How many?"

"Fifty.  He may just be more dangerous than you."

"He's not dangerous!  He's a doctor."

"A doctor?  He's a teenager."

"I don't know how old doctors are supposed to be, but he really is a doctor.  He saved my planet, Sevus, from the cough, and found out what caused it.  He kept hundreds of ponies of dying."

"So," Blue sighed, "he's a net positive, you're saying?"

Berry nodded slowly.  "If my word means anything to you."

"That is not fair."  The prince frowned.  "Try to think of this from my situation.  By not locking you up, I am responsible for you now.  Anything you do is on my conscience.  If I am wrong about you, I am to blame for anypony you hurt.  I want to trust you, but I can't risk it."

Berry stared at him a moment, then turned her head, muttering, "I guess that makes sense."

Blue sighed miserably.  This would be a lot easier on him if she was consistently defiant, or confrontational.  "I thank you for your understanding, but please know it makes me feel so much worse about-"  He was interrupted by a series of beeps from his earpiece.  With a groan, he held up his hoof.  "Excuse me a moment."  He turned around and touched his hoof to his earpiece.  "Now what?" he asked wearily.

"We have another vessel inbound.  Receiving an automated request for docking permission."

"This day gets better and better," Blueblood muttered.  "Identify them.  We still have a squadron scrambled, right?"

"Yes, sir.  They will be in transponder range in a few moments, fighter craft are standing by."

"Good, I'll be up in a moment, keep me posted."  He looked back.  "Miss, I...  What are you doing?"

Berry looked up from inspecting the Prince's cutie mark.  "Grandma told me you can tell a lot about a pony by their cutie mark.  There's a lot of details here."  She pointed at the mark of a needle and thread looped around a compass, on a background of black, the only mark of color on his coat.  "The compass needle is a diamond, and the thread is purple and yellow, like your mane.  I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be able to tell from this, but it's a good mark ."

His mouth opened and closed like a broken bellows, moving no air as he tried to respond.  He took a single shuffled step to the side, more than doubling Berry's distance from his flank.  "Thank you?"  Before Berry could respond to that, Bluebood's earpiece beeped again, and he held his hoof up once more.  "Yes?"

"The approaching ship has been identified.  It is the Opalescence, we are clearing a berth now."

"Really?"  Blueblood let out a sigh of relief.  "They're early, but I'm not going to complain.  I will head up to greet them.  Contact Lieutenant Brand, and have him bring our newest prisoner to join us."

"Greet who?"  Berry asked quickly.  "Why are you bringing Radio?  I won't let you hand him off to anypony like you were going to with me," she warned.

"Relax.  Radio doesn't have an official bounty, he has nothing to worry about from us."

"Unlike me."

"Unfortunately.  But, my parents have returned from Zargon, and you may plead your case with them, as may your friend."  He raised his hoof towards the exit door.  "I will escort you to the landing area."  He looked back at the guard as he quietly recovered his knife and stunner.  "Bring Juki to the throne room, and gather my sisters as well."

He gave a hasty salute.  "Yes, sir, sorry about-"

"Save the apology for when I let you off kitchen duty.  You can ponder the meaning of, 'kept under guard,' while rehydrating carrots for a month."

"Of course, sir.  I bucked up pretty bad."

"It's a confusing situation all around," Blueblood comforted him.  "As long as you realize your mistake, two weeks kitchen duty, and an essay, will suffice."

"Respectfully, sir, no it won't.  I put the young Prince in danger, and then you, when I lost my weapons."

"Then what do you propose?"

The guard was silent for a moment.  "Remedial combat training," he said quietly.  "I shouldn't have have lost my weapon, that alone could get somepony killed.  And I'll take the entire month's kitchen duty."

Blueblood gave a satisfied nod.  "Then hop to it."

The guard stood up straight, and offered a better salute.  "Yes, sir," he said before letting himself into the break room where Juki was.

Berry watched quietly.  That guard volunteered himself for a harsher punishment, out of respect for his prince, and a desire to prove himself.  She looked up at Blueblood as he turned to walk away, regarding him for a moment.  He certainly was a commanding presence, but a compassionate one.  She wasn't surprised that the ponies working for him respected him so deeply.  And she could respect the fact that he was at least giving her a chance at his own expense.  "So, um, what should I call you?  Blueblood?  Prince?  Prince Blueblood the Eighteenth of the White Flags?"

"However you wish," Blueblood replied, "you are neither a subject of mine, nor a soldier."

Berry nodded.  "Then, I'm gonna call you Blue."

The Prince paused for a moment.  That was an awfully familiar way to refer to somepony who was essentially her captor, but he had no grounds to object.  "Then, how should I refer to you?  As you mentioned, I still do not know your name."

"Strawberry," she answered  "Most ponies just call me Berry."

Blueblood nodded.  "I like strawberries.  It's a good name."

She smiled, for the first time that Blueblood had seen.  He would have remembered a smile that vibrant.  "Thanks!"

He smiled back, but somewhere in the back of his mind, he could faintly hear laughter.  It worried him.  "You are welcome.  Now, please, follow me."