//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: Celestial Intervention // Story: An Epitaph // by TimeSolidMetal //------------------------------// Chapter 4 The murder of Senator Iron Sides was immediately brought to the attention of Princess Celestia, who was troubled greatly by the news. Not many people are killed in the city of Canterlot, and the news of the senators death was very shocking to her. She sat patiently in her throne, awaiting the return of a letter sent to Prince Shining Armor requesting that he returns to Canterlot immediately, stating that his services are needed once again. As if on cue, a letter spawned from a flash of light blue magic, landing on the red carpet in front of the eager princess. "Is this him?" She asked herself, her horn glows a calming celestial yellow as she lifts the scroll from the ground and to her throne. Unraveling the scroll, she reads aloud: "Dear Princess Celestia, At your request, I shall return to Canterlot Castle to fulfill my duty as Captain of the Royal Guard once again. I'm tremendously sorry for what happened to Senator Iron Sides, and I promise I'll do everything within my power to see that the murderer is brought to justice. You can expect my arrival within the next couple of days. Best Regards, Prince Shining Armor Celestia scrolled the note back up, and with a sigh, whisked it away to her private mail room for safe keeping. As she did this, her younger sister, Princess Luna, approached her own throne beside Princess Celestias. "Is something the matter, sister?" Luna asked solemnly, she walks up and sits in her own throne of equal stature beside her sister. "You didn't hear? The murder of Senator Iron Sides was announced the other day." "Oh, I did not know..." Luna looked down at the ground, she's often quiet, but never this brooding. "Forgive my drowsiness, my sleep schedule has not been very satisfying to me lately." "I understand... Are you still having those nightmares, Luna?" Celestia spoke softly, the throne hall was very large, and a mundane quietness filled the room to the brim. Luna did not speak, the only acknowledgement of the question asked was a slight nod. "I'm very sorry to hear that... you're always welcome to sleep with me in my room, dear sister." "It's okay, Celestia. It's nothing I can't handle." Luna reassured, still fixing her sight to the ground. It was unclear to Luna who she was trying to reassure; her sister, or herself. "You know I hate seeing you like this." "I know, Sister..." Meanwhile, down in the morgue, Schizo Phrenia was still hard at work analyzing the body. He still wore his surgeons mask and grey overcoat, but his goggles were now over his golden eyes, too. "Let's see here..." He murmured to himself, he stood on his hind legs, with his fore hooves on the operating table. "No, Honey, I'm not going to feed you this one." He spoke to the furnace once again, a stern tone in his voice, as if the question is asked a lot. The chest of poor Iron Sides was opened up for examination, revealing all of his innards. "Seems like this was very strategically executed, the only damage I can see is a clean cut to the heart. Barely even a tear from the entrance and exit... No, I don't know who could of done this, honey. Please stop pestering me while I'm working. This is EXACTLY why I shut you when that silly pony came down here. Whoever did this was obviously someone very skilled." He pushed his goggles up with his hoof and stepped away from the table, walking on all four hooves. "Hello, Mister... Phrenia?" A female voice spoke out from the door way. The ajar door pushed open all the way, revealing the magnificent Princess Luna. "Schizo Phrenia, yes? I've come to see the body. I... Oh, am I interrupting you?" "Oh, no no Princess! Of course not." He said with a smile. "Um.. one second, please." He trots over happily to the counter and slides over a large bottle of prescription medication, which he promptly uncaps and swallows about one or two pills. "Let me just clear my head." "Uh... yes, please do?" She replied to him with a quizzical look, unsure of who he is or what exactly those pills are for. And suddenly, as if under some magic influence, Schizo Phrenia seemed very mellow and, for lack of a better term, more stable. "Uh... yes, anyway. You wanted to see the body? Fair warning, he's... not in the best shape right now." He spoke calmly, leading her to the autopsy table. "Yes, it's fine, I can handle it. First off, a few questions. When exactly did he die, and what caused it?" "A knife wound, which seemed to be stabbed almost impossibly accurate, through his heart killed him. He must of died in about 60 seconds or so after the wound was inflicted, which was probably a week or so ago." "I see... do you think it'll be easy to find the murderer?" Lunas gaze was fixated down onto the corpse of the Senator, she sighed and looked over at the coroner. "Possibly... it takes lots of skill to make a knife wound this precise, so hopefully we'll have a few suspects rounded up soon. "Right... could you keep me posted about all of this?" Luna sighed out. "Yes, of course. I'll send you a report once I'm done examining the rest of the body." "Thank you." Luna nodded her head and looked back down at the body, and, after examining it for a couple of minutes, headed out abruptly, closing the door behind her with her magic.