Habeas Corpus — Part II
In the innards of Canterlot Castle, down several levels of stairs, through a series of dark, twisted corridors, and behind multiple sets of heavy, guarded, triple-locked steel doors, laid the dungeon. The stallions who were assigned to guard this prison often joked to one another that it laid in the bowels of Canterlot Castle for good reason, given the inhabitants there.
While torture belonged to a much darker time in Equestrian history—before the founding of the nation itself, during which the three tribes waged war against each other—the punishment criminals met here in this enlightened and modern age wasn’t much better, Orion thought. A dark, lonely cell, furnished only by a single desk, chair, rock-hard bed, and toilet, coupled with meals of oats and hay (complimented perfectly by the most tepid water he’d ever drank), made for hard times indeed.
And that wasn’t even getting started on the squeezing limiter around his horn, or the snickering Royal Guards who hoofed him meals, or the draft. Oh, Celestia, the draft.
Although he’d only been behind bars for two days, he had already become an expert on the dungeon. Along with Orion, four others were currently imprisoned: two Canterlot art thieves, whose zest for rare paintings was unmet with a competency in crime; a Manehatten counterfeiter, who made bits in his basement, and would’ve gotten away with it, too, if it wasn’t for “those damn foals”; and an attempted arsonist from Appleloosa, who had been caught trying to set the local salt-bar on fire. This last criminal had pled guilty by reason of insanity, but his thick accent and slow wit weren’t proof enough.
While the four others were true criminals, Orion refused to believe that he was deserving of living amongst these scum. He spoke to them only when spoken to, and refused to humor the smug guards with any conversation. He kept to himself, waiting, biding, thinking of Clover. This passed the time sufficiently enough, not that he would be able to keep time, anyway.
Like the finest of Las Pegasus casinos, there were no clocks down in the bowels of Canterlot Castle, and no windows to show the exchange of princesses and their stars. Not that he found anything lovable about the sun or moon anymore, anyway.
As he pushed away his second offered meal of the day—another bowl of hay and oats—Orion’s monotony was interrupted by another Royal Guard arriving to “greet” him. This one—sporting purple armor and even more pride than the rest—he recognized as the Captain.
The Captain bucked a hindhoof against the bars of his cell, drilling a loud rattling into Orion’s ears. “Wake up! It’s time, scumbag.”
“Time?” Orion snorted, meeting the Captain’s steely eyes. “Time for what? More verbal abuse? My name is Orion, not ‘scumbag’ or ‘slimeball.’”
“Anypony who raises hoof or horn against the Princesses is a scumbag.” Ironhoof clapped his forehooves. Two white pegasi guards trotted up to join him, along with a hulking brute that Orion recognized as one of the dungeon guards. All four stared daggers at the prisoner.
“I am innocent until proven guilty,” Orion said flatly, “and you are not the judge of either.”
Ironhoof flared his nostrils, sparking his horn. He directed his aura towards two pairs of hoof-cuffs hanging from nails on a nearby wall. “Pleading innocence will only drag out your misery, slimeball. We have four witnesses. You have nothing.”
Ignoring this, Orion leaned up on his hindhooves against the bars. “That is what you believe,” he said, unflinching from the Captain’s gaze. “I am entitled to a fair trial if I so please, and that is what I shall receive.”
“You sound awfully calm for somepony who went berserk over Princess Twilight Sparkle telling him a simple no, like a colt being denied a cookie.” Holding the hoof-cuffs in his aura, Ironhoof said with a smirk, “You won’t be throwing any more temper tantrums while I’m around, scum. Nor will any of my soldiers allow it.”
Orion smirked back. “We’ll see about that.”
Captain Ironhoof said nothing, narrowing his eyes in reply. He gestured towards Orion with a forehoof and took a step back, holding the hoof-cuffs steady in his magic. The large, scarred dungeon guard levitated a set of keys in his aura, then unlocked the bars of Orion’s cell in a quick motion.
Before he could climb down from the bars, Orion was on his belly, the two pegasi pinning him to the stone floor. He groaned and arched his back, flopping like a fish out of water beneath the strong stallions’ hooves. Instinctively, magic surged through his body, tunneling through his bloodstream and finding its way up to his horn. The achingly tight limiter around his horn dismissed any hope of spellcasting.
Though he continued to struggle, it was soon in vain. His forehooves wretched behind his back, he cried out when the hoof-cuffs were slapped around them. His hindhooves met a similar fate, pinned together and useless for anything but waddling.
Lifting the prisoner in his silver aura, Captain Ironhoof barked, “Feeling proud now, are you, scumbag?!”
Fidgeting his forehooves, Orion scowled in response, muttering, “None of you better tear my suit.”
His fine, silk suit remained mostly unchanged from the day he’d worn it into Royal Court, albeit with a little dust on the sleeves. The diamond necklace, however, had been confiscated as soon as his hooves met the cobblestone floor of the dungeon. Its sharp edges, he was told, could be sharpened further into a weapon, brought against a guard’s neck.
It was horseapples, and he knew it.
Ironhoof laughed again, lighting his horn to grab two sets of lead-chain from another dungeon wall. “Boy, in a few weeks, the last thing you’ll be worrying about is that damn suit.”
Turning to the two pegasi holding the squirming stallion, Ironhoof levitated the chains over. “Fly him to Royal Court! Silver Shield and I will meet you in a few minutes. Flash Sentry should be there, along with the Princesses and Prince.”
The pegasi nodded, securing a length of chain around each of Orion’s forehooves. Before they could depart, however, Captain Ironhoof trotted over, lifted Orion’s chin, and smiled.
“Good luck, worm."
~
Comforted only by the fact that Princess Twilight was met with a steady stream of visitors once Royal Court began, Flash Sentry somehow survived that morning. It had taken every last ounce of his self-control not to simply feign sick or worse after that encounter.
I knew I would have to face her again. I was just hoping that I could have handled it a bit better. I thought last night would have helped.
Throughout the rest of the day, Flash and Twilight had barely said a word to each other. In her few minutes of downtime, Twilight perused a book of Equestrian law, drinking in every word like a parched mare would an oasis. Celestia’s comfort helped to only temper her anxiety, not eliminate it.
Noon stampeded into Royal Court, brushing the previous few hours past with all the regard of a rampaging storm. As soon as Princess Twilight’s last visitor, who left with a bow and a gracious smile at eleven-thirty, exited the Royal Courtroom, a slurry of ponies entered.
Almost all appeared to be servants. A whole team of Earth pony stallions carried four separate podiums into the room and began setting them up near the steps to the throne. Other servants unrolled the long train of red carpet that led from the doors to the center of the room, revealing the full, checkerboard pattern of the Courtroom’s floor. Still others brought glasses and pitchers of waters to complement the podiums.
The sole entrant who did not seem to be a servant was an elderly unicorn mare with a large roll of parchment, a few inkpots, and several quills. She appeared to be a stenographer. The mare began setting up her own table and stool near the podiums, then laying out the tools of her trade.
About fifteen minutes later, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna entered through the great doors, accompanied by a scowling unicorn stallion trailing behind them.
All in the room along with Flash Sentry froze for a moment, bowing. Many mutterings of “Your Highnesses” filled his ears. Princess Luna was the one to flick her mane, dismissing everypony back to their duties.
As he rose, Flash Sentry caught eyes briefly with the whining stallion following after the Princesses. He waited until he had passed before he shook his head.
To say Flash Sentry was not fond of Prince Blueblood would be more than an understatement. Thankfully, he had never been assigned to escort or guard the prince, and had only seen him a sprinkling of times in the five years since he had become a Royal Guard. Of course, those few times had been memorable for several reasons—and none of them were good.
“Auntie, I’ve already told you that I have no interest in attending this hearing,” Blueblood protested, trotting up to Princess Celestia. “I have nothing to say regarding this scoundrel Orion, and, quite frankly, I have more pressing matters at hoof than to spend an hour here!”
Princess Celestia spun on her hooves, glaring at her nephew. “Blueblood, it is law that all ruling Princesses and Princes be in attendance during any hearing of habeas corpus, barring an emergency. We have been over this many times,” she said, poking his chest with a forehoof, “and the law will not change for your laziness.”
“Lazy? Me?!” Blueblood scoffed. “I am not lazy, Auntie! In fact, I am being pragmatic! There is nothing to gain from me being here!”
Princess Luna sighed, shaking her head. “Nothing you say will change our minds. Now—” extending a wing, she pushed him towards one of the podiums—”get ready. The hearing will begin in around fifteen minutes.”
Throwing up his forehooves in surrender, Prince Blueblood groaned again and spat, “Fine! I will be ready for this joke of a hearing!” As he stomped towards the farthest podium on the right, he added, huffing, “You know he’s guilty, anyway!”
Glaring at him with the intensity of her own sun, Celestia exclaimed, “That’s enough, Blueblood! Bite your tongue and take your place.”
Blueblood stuck his tongue out at her, which Flash Sentry regarded with the raise of an eyebrow. More of a colt than a stallion… And HE is a Prince? He noted as well that either Princess Celestia did not see his gesture, or did not regard it as worthy of a response.
Flash Sentry did not have much more time for contemplation. While the last of the servants finished preparing the Royal Courtroom, all three Princesses and the Prince took their places. Princess Twilight set her thick book of Equestrian law down at her podium, while the others left theirs bare. The stenographer waited patiently, her forehooves crossed in front of her and the aura of her stubby horn keeping a quill alight.
Once the Courtroom was ready, Princess Celestia cleared her throat, then addressed the crowd of servants assembled near the middle. “Thank you all for your assistance in setting up a special session of Royal Court today. You may have the rest of the day to yourselves.”
Cheers of joy and gratitude followed, making all three Princesses smile brightly. Prince Blueblood merely slumped over in his podium, resting his cheek against his forehoof and grumbling to himself. Flash, too, found himself smiling. At least a few ponies won’t have their day ruined by this.
I have stood post at hearings before, but none like this.
After the last of the servants filed out, Princess Luna closed the doors with her magic, shutting the Royal Courtroom into silence. The Princesses, Blueblood, Flash, and the stenographer were alone now, waiting for the final arrival.
The prisoner.
Flash Sentry held his spear with both forehooves, looking around, avoiding the eyes of all the royals—especially the one in the podium beside Prince Blueblood, with her nervous muzzle and enormous lawbook. C’mon… It has to be close to noon. Let’s just get this—
The great doors beside him flung open, a silver aura prying them apart.
Captain Ironhoof led the way, followed by Silver Shield, the dungeon warden. Behind them, two pegasi guards dragged Orion into the Royal Courtroom. Each pegasus held tightly to a length of iron chain connected to one of Orion’s cuffed forehooves.
In spite of having seen this with other prisoners several times before, Flash felt his jaw drop a little. They’re leading him like a dog.
Once all five were inside, Captain Ironhoof shut the doors behind them with his magic. The Captain then bowed deeply, lowering his chest to the checkered floor. The other guards followed suit, as did the stenographer and Flash Sentry.
Orion did not bow.
Princess Celestia gestured for all to rise. As she did so, she stared across the room at the stallion in chains, locking eyes with him.
Orion said nothing.
Twilight cleared her throat. “Captain, please have the prisoner approach the—”
“Princess!” Silver Shield rose a forehoof, thrusting another towards Orion. The hulking stallion darted his eyes from the prisoner to Twilight in dismay. “Your Highness, he did not bow!”
Twilight bit her lip. “Oh. Um…”
“That is fine, Shield,” Princess Celestia said, still staring at Orion. “Please, no further interruptions.”
“Yes, Shield,” Ironhoof muttered, scowling at his underling, “no further interruptions.”
“No further interruptions of any sort, Captain,” Celestia corrected. On her right, Luna nodded.
Ironhoof bowed. “Forgive me, Your Highness.”
Celestia flicked her mane. “It is alright,” she said stiffly. She turned to Twilight, mustering a warm smile. “Please, Twilight, continue.”
Taking a breath through his nose, Flash steadied himself against his spear, watching Twilight do the same, only with her forehoof on the book.
“Captain,” she said, louder and bolder this time, “please have the prisoner approach the podium.”
As Twilight spoke, the stenographer began jotting down her exact words with the quill in her flickering magic. Flash glanced over, seeing that she was hunched over the parchment, determined to write every word.
Captain Ironhoof nodded to the two pegasi. His soldiers complied eagerly, yanking the chains and forcing Orion forward. The guards advanced with their prisoner, though the accused did not lower his eyes to the floor, hang his head, sigh, weep, bow, or anything of the sort as he approached the four podiums.
This prisoner kept his muzzle high, his gaze steady, and his steps light. He did not struggle against the chains, nor halt and resort to dead weight, nor hesitate a single moment. He followed Captain Ironhoof and Silver Shield to the Princesses and Blueblood, to the center of Royal Court, to the epicenter of his first brush with his fate.
Twilight waited until all five stood below them in the center, then nodded. “You—you may now be seated, if you so desire.”
Ironhoof, Shield, and the two pegasi sat down on their haunches. Orion stood on all four hooves.
Flash Sentry stood up straight, holding his spear firmly.
Princess Twilight paused, reading over something in her book again. Silence followed, permeating the Royal Courtroom, palpable with her anxiety. Princess Celestia and Luna were looking at her with nothing but encouraging smiles on their muzzles, while Prince Blueblood appeared downright bored.
Though he had taken Ironhoof’s order to observe Orion to heart, Flash Sentry couldn’t help but glance at Twilight Sparkle and silently will her on himself. You’re doing great. The next is, “This special session of Royal Court has—”
Twilight cleared her throat and looked down at the five. “This special session of Royal Court has been convened for the purpose of fulfilling the promise of habeas corpus. Equestria’s founders outlined in the very first outline of the Equestrian Charter that any and all accused of a crime shall be brought before Equestria’s rulers within forty-eight hours to have the charges against them read…”
That’s… that’s perfect, I think, Flash thought, a dumb grin forming on his muzzle. She sounds exactly like Celestia or Luna rec—
Shaking his muzzle, he snapped his attention towards Orion. Focus, focus!
Orion made no indication that he had heard Twilight’s explanation, and did not remove his eyes from Princess Celestia.
“... In accordance with Section X.II of the Equestrian Charter, this session has been convened within the forty-eight-hour timeframe. Do you understand?” Twilight asked, glancing down to the prisoner. Her prisoner.
At last, Orion tore his dark, fiery eyes from Princess Celestia and drilled them into Princess Twilight instead. “I understand, Princess,” he replied, uttering the last word as if it were a curse.
Captain Ironhoof glared at him. Orion didn’t flinch.
“Al-alright.” Twilight turned the page of the lawbook with her magic. “At this time, the charges shall be read to you. Each charge will be accompanied by a number of counts, or accusations of instances, in which Equestria’s rulers believe that the law was broken. For example, four separate instances of theft shall be charged as four counts of theft.”
Twilight looked down at him again. “Do you understand?”
“Yes, Princess,” Orion replied, almost mockingly.
Ironhoof sent another glare his way—sharper, colder, an icy knife meant to pierce his arrogance. Orion didn’t even blink.
Involuntarily, Flash gripped his weapon tighter.
“After all charges are read, the final possible penalty shall be explained to you. The penalty may include a fine, prison time, or both. The penalty shall be the result of all charges, and may or may not be reduced in exchange for a guilty plea, and or good behavior while imprisoned.”
Although there was no stammer in her words, Twilight appeared to have lost a bit of her edge. She hesitated slightly in looking down at Orion, Flash noted, and seemed to draw her head back a bit, preparing for an outburst.
Princess Celestia and Princess Luna still had one eye on her, the other now focused on Orion. Prince Blueblood, too, must have noticed the shift, and, for the first time, seemed to be interested in the trial. The Prince divided his gaze as well.
After an eternally long, split-second pause, Twilight asked of Orion a third time, “Do you understand?”
“Oh, yes, I understand,” Orion seethed, baring his teeth as he glared back up at her.
The hostility in his words and his stance and his eyes was more discernible than a summer breeze or a winter’s chill. Anger proliferating through him like cold fire, icy and blazing, Orion stood tall, ready for what was to come. Waiting. Biding.
Flash Sentry could feel it from here, and it sent chills down his spine.
Sparking her horn, Twilight bought herself a moment with a glass of water. Perfectly healthy, there was no tickle in her throat, no thirst on her tongue.
She knew it was coming, too, and needed a moment.
When she was finished, all eyes locked upon her, Twilight Sparkle glanced up from the lawbook and spoke directly to him.
“Orion, son of Comet Trail and Starlight, you have been charged with three counts of assaulting an officer of the Royal Guard and one count of attempted assault upon a member of the Royal Family. The maximum penalty for these charges is ten years in prison.
“How do you plead?”
In four words, all attention and oxygen shifted to him. Orion, son of Comet Trail and Starlight, a noble’s noble, now commanded the attention of the Royal Courtroom. Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Prince Blueblood, Princess Twilight Sparkle all looked to him, waited, hanging on his words.
His tormentors had him in shackles, in chains, and asked him if he were guilty or innocent.
In the silence—thick, hot, nauseating—Orion savored this moment, committed it to memory, and relished it more than he would any delicacy. If he had been a lesser stallion, he might have licked his lips, or laughed, or grinned.
He didn’t.
”Innocent.”
The stenographer’s quill hung in a wavering aura, useless, lost. Captain Ironhoof’s muzzle upturned into an expression of pure outrage and mated with his wide eyes and flattened ears. Shield and the two pegasi guards let their jaws fall agape in shock.
Leaning against his spear like an old stallion would a walking stick, Flash Sentry should’ve caught the moment in his teeth when it came, but he didn’t.
You just…
It was not Princess Twilight who broke the silence.
It was Prince Blueblood, with a gasp and a scoff. “Innocent?! How can you even—”
“Blueblood, enough!” Princess Celestia snapped, rounding on him. Her wings began to flare. “Silence!”
“But he is a fool!” Blueblood pointed at Orion. “He is wasting our time! Just put him in the dungeons already and throw away the key!”
Celestia narrowed her eyes on her nephew. “Everypony is entitled to—”
“Oh, you would like that, would you?”
All eyes snapped to Orion again. Celestia turned her head slowly from Blueblood to the prisoner below her, meeting his gaze.
Dropping his mask, Orion allowed himself to pierce through, and gritted his teeth as he stared back up at the hypocrite. “You would like to lock me up and throw away the key, wouldn’t you, Celestia?” He snarled, drawing his lips back in a twisted, smug display of aggression. “You would like to see me rot in—”
Both pegasi yanked his chains, pulling him to the ground. Orion groaned as his belly met the floor. Flash took a step forward and braced himself, holding his spear normally.
His eyes wild, Captain Ironhoof spun on the prisoner. “You shall NOT talk to our Princess that way!”
Orion looked up, growling low as he said, “She is not my Princess, and she should not be yours!”
Ironhoof raised a forehoof and began to draw it back. “How dare y—”
“ENOOOOOOOOOUGH!”
The Royal Canterlot Voice ricocheted off the walls and ceiling, piercing through the eardrums of all in attendance, including Luna herself. Flash groaned, bringing a forehoof to his head, as did the others. Holy—
“There will be ORDER in this Courtroom!” Striking her podium with a forehoof, Luna lurched forward and leaned down towards Orion and Ironhoof, her majestic wings flared fully. “Both of you!”
Orion began to laugh, filling the Royal Courtroom with a series of maniacal cackles. “Order? Order?! Ha! Ha, ha, ha! Kek, kekeke! Order, order!”
Luna struck the podium again. “SILENCE!”
Rising to his hooves, Orion whooped another laugh. “Order! Order!” Calming quickly before Luna could object to him, Orion stared into Princess Celestia, saying, “That is all you care about! Order! All of this is because you would not let me marry my wife!”
Twilight brought a forehoof down on her podium this time. “Please! Silence!” she exclaimed, unable to hide a slight reluctance in her words.
Captain Ironhoof, his face a mix of disbelief and fury, gestured to Flash Sentry with a flick of his muzzle. Catching the signal immediately, Flash flared his wings and tightened his grip on his spear, ready to fly.
Luna raised her forehoof again, but Celestia cut in.
“That is NOT true!” Celestia shouted, rising to her hindhooves. Her mighty wings began to unfurl, the light in her eyes overwhelmed by a building blaze. “I care about far more than you would ever know!”
Princess Twilight reached over to her mentor, her eyes wide. “Celest—”
“No you don’t, you haughty old TYRANT!” Orion writhed against his chains as the pegasi pulled them, struggling to keep himself on his hooves. “You only care about yourself! You know nothing of LOVE!” He screeched with all his might on every word, squirming and writhing and thrashing against the chains as Silver Shield joined the fray.
Celestia’s wings extended to their full length, banners of white that would not surrender. Her mighty horn was lit in a blinding-white aura. Her keen eyes were aflame, not a trace of violet to be found in them—only black against white, tempered by red. “You—you—you—!!!”
Captain Ironhoof sparked his horn—the final signal.
Flash Sentry propelled himself forward with his wings, rocketing across the Courtroom in the blink of an eye. Colliding with Orion, he toppled him over, pressing him down to the floor with the spear against his throat. This time, the limiter prevented any chance of a counterattack. Orion thrashed and squirmed, screaming gibberish as the two pegasi, Shield, and Flash held him down.
With his silver magic, Captain Ironhoof brought Orion’s head up to face him. “Give me one damn good reason why I shouldn’t just bucking muzzle you right now!”
“This,” Orion said, and spat on him.
The saliva trailed down Ironhoof’s cheek, forming the last straw. With another burst of magic, a blue muzzle engulfed Orion’s mouth in a swath of silence, rendering his screeches mere whispers.
Royal Court was now in complete disarray. Princess Luna kept banging her forehoof on the podium, shouting, “ORDER! ORDER!” Prince Blueblood was gesturing with his forehooves to the thrashing prisoner on the floor, a complete expression of “I-told-you-so” written on his muzzle. Princess Twilight was flipping through the lawbook with her magic at an impressive speed, appearing to be searching for any possible solution to the madness unfolding before her.
And, in the middle of it all, Princess Celestia—lone ruler of Equestria for a thousand tumultuous years, who’d raised hooves against Discord, Sombra, her own sister, and a Changeling Queen—stood, silent, stone, statue.
Then, when Twilight glanced up at her for guidance, Celestia stepped back from her podium, turned around, and galloped out of the Royal Courtroom.
“CELESTIA!”
Rolling over onto his side, Flash Sentry looked up to see Twilight Sparkle, taking to her hooves as the last strand of a multicolored tail slipped through the back doors.
Underneath his muzzle, Orion grinned so widely that it hurt.
Prince Blueblood dissolved into a fit of hollow laughs. Smacking his forehooves against his belly, he declared to the chaos as he stepped down, “Court is adjourned! Court is adjourned!”
Still laughing, Blueblood stumbled through the back doors, almost tripping over his own hooves.
Leaping from the podium, Princess Luna landed on her hooves a few feet from the fray of guards. Lighting her horn, she engulfed Orion in a haze of purple magic, levitating the stallion up towards her. Orion struggled against his restraints and the aura, but could not resist.
Her patience exhausted to the bone, Princess Luna decreed as she tightened his limiter and his hoof-cuffs with her magic, “Your trial shall be in four weeks' time! For now, back to the dungeons with you, troublemaker!”
Setting Orion back down, she spun on Captain Ironhoof. “Get him down to the dungeons as soon as possible! I don't want him spitting in any more faces!”
Ironhoof bowed, prompting the rest of the Royal Guards to do the same. “Yes, Your Highness! Of course, Your Highness!”
Her own eyes a fire of their own, Luna nodded and turned to the stenographer. “I must go and console my sister. Please, Bright Quill, tell me that you recorded everything?”
Trembling, Bright Quill nodded as she bowed her head. “Y-y-yes, Your Highness! Several sheets were needed due to the in-interruptions, b-but—”
“Good. You are dismissed, Bright Quill.”
In another flash of magic, Princess Luna was gone.
Left alone with his wards, Captain Ironhoof took charge. Pointing at Silver Shield and the two pegasi, he commanded, “Take the prisoner back down to his cell immediately! Remove the muzzle only once he is inside! He shall not disturb anypony else more than he has!”
With quick bows and mumbles of, “Yes, sir,” the three headed towards the exit, two hovering and holding Orion in the air, the third stomping towards his sanctuary.
Once Silver Shield closed the doors behind him, Ironhoof turned at last to Flash Sentry. “Good work, Flash,” he said, unable to manage a smile.
Flash leaned against the spear, catching his breath in an attempt to calm the racing of his heart. “But, sir—”
“No buts. That scumbag is a nightmare!” Ironhoof lit up his horn, using his magic to adjust his armor where it had been knocked about. “We did all we could. The Princesses wanted to let him speak, and he did. I didn’t muzzle him until he assaulted me.” With a smirk, he added, “Another charge to be brought against him in the trial.”
Feeling himself begin to pale, Flash muttered, “Y-yes, sir. Trial…”
“I must ensure that our Princesses are alright. Flash, lead Bright Quill safely back to her chambers.”
“Y-yes, sir.”
“Good.”
With a kick off his hindhooves, Captain Ironhoof galloped out of the Royal Courtroom the same way as the others.
Flash Sentry was alone with a mare again. He trusted himself to be professional with this one.
Still continuing to pale, Flash Sentry walked over to Bright Quill and bowed his head. “Madam Bright Quill? Shall I escort you to your room?”
Bright Quill sighed and began gathering her supplies, securing them in her magic. “I suppose. Thank you, Flash.”
He stepped aside and waited for her to finish. “Not a problem.”
Shaking her head, Bright Quill said as she looked over to him, “All of that rage over a law everypony knows about? Attacking the Princesses and the Royal Guard over something that’s been in place for over a thousand years?” She scoffed. “How can one be so stupid?”
“I—”
Not now.
Flash Sentry bit his tongue and nodded.
How indeed…
As he led Bright Quill out of the abandoned room, Flash Sentry let his thoughts tunnel down to, as Spitfire would have said, the low places.
And he wondered.