Everypony in the room stared at Blueblood, jaws dropped and eyes wide, as his horn crackled with residual mana-sparks, and the mirror shards clattered to the floor. His own eyes were fixed firmly to the spot where the magic mirror had stood seconds earlier, though they now stared into space, seeing nothing.
His silence lasted mere moments, before he rounded on Shining Armor.
“Captain Armor!” He shouted, his voice imbued with royal authority, and Shining snapped to attention, ingrained habits kicking in.
“Secure the Palace grounds. The entire area is now under lockdown, effective immediately. All troops on duty are to comb the castle and seal any and all doors, gates, passages and paths into or out of the compound. The troops who are off duty are now called into service. I want Pegasi securing the air-ways, Unicorns magically scanning and sealing all zones, and all Earth Ponies on full combat alert. All Guards are to stop anypony who is not a member of the serving staff or another Guard. If aforementioned Pony is unescorted, they are to be taken into protective custody. Send some ponies to guard the dining rooms. Prepare for a media blackout; I want no word of any of this to reach any ears outside the castle.” Blueblood spun around to face the stunned maids next.
“I want you to gather all the serving staff and tell them to gather in one of the dining halls. The kitchen, library, and servant quarters are off limits, and anypony not in a dining room in one hour is to be taken into protective custody. Spread the word. Also, anypony who seems suspicious or is acting strangely is to be reported to the nearest Guard.”
Silence reigns for a moment, the Guards looking to Shining Armor, while the new price just stared at Blueblood. In addition the maids shuffled nervously towards the doors, to carry out Blueblood’s orders, but they too were shocked.
“This was not a request!” Blueblood barked, and the maids scampered away while the guards bolted, led by Shining Armor. “This is not a drill! The Palace’s security has been compromised! Do as I’ve ordered!”
“Blue, what are you…” Cadence begins, but the blond maned prince turned to his older cousin with a hard look on his face.
"Just now, a threat was made against Equestria and its rulers. Furthermore, the threat was delivered via a large, magical mirror enchanted for communications. What I want to know is, how it got into the palace in the first place.”
A few of the ponies in the room, including Twilight and Princess Luna, opened their mouths to offer a suggestion, but Blueblood quickly shot them down before they could even speak.
“It appeared in the throne room, according to the maids. That means there is a traitor in the palace, or perhaps less likely a sneaky pony who maneuvered past the guards and day staff.”
“The reason I am locking everything down is it has to have been a pony who did the delivery. It could not have been teleported into the palace, as there is a magical shield around the area at all times that prevents teleporting, shifting or blinking into or out of. Only the Royal family has express permission to teleport within the barrier, and we can only do so once our magic is attuned to the barrier’s frequency; hence, no pony or other creature could have teleported it.”
“Spike’s flame…” Twilight hesitantly began, still shaken from having her earlier ideas shot down so easily.
“Only works because Princess Celestia attuned his flames to the barrier’s frequency. As far as I know, Dragon Fire does not do that naturally. True, our opponents have revealed themselves to be led by a Dragon, so anything is currently possible, but for now, assume that there are hostile agents within the castle grounds and act as if we are under attack. Does everypony understand?” Blueblood looked around at the ponies still in the room. All of them, from the Princesses to the Mane 6 plus Spike, gawked at him.
‘Sweet Sun, Moon and Stars, Blueblood is hot when he’s all take-charge and dominating!’ Lusty Rarity swooned.
‘…’
For once, Rational Rarity and Rude Rarity had nothing to say, having been shocked senseless by it all.
“…When did you become Mister Organized?” Cadence asked after a moment of awkward silence.
“Ever since I took over as Head of the Canterlot General Affairs Office, obviously,” Blueblood said, rolling his eyes. “And FYI, most of the Security Re-vamps have been thanks to myself and my staff. I’m not going to let another disaster like the Wedding Fiasco to occur again, if I can help it.”
Princess Celestia coughed, both to clear some of the awkwardness and to make the rest of the ponies look to her.
“Very astute, Blueblood, I commend you for your fast actions and quick thinking,” the Solar Ruler said, and smiled down at her nephew. “We shall take all available efforts to increase security.”
“Well, you should hurry. I want this all cleared up before nightfall.” They all gave the Prince a bemused and confused look, and Blueblood sighed.
“Did you all forget that tonight is the Grand Galloping Gala?” Shocked expressions, soon followed by sheepish ones, covered the faces of the ponies, while Spike face-clawed and Blueblood sighed again.
“We need to set up strict defenses, and thorough searches on all guests, leaving and entering. They’ll be expecting high levels of Guard security; after all, just last night there was an attack in the city.” Blueblood frowned as he recalled the events of last night at the hospital. “That way, there won’t be too many protests or suspicions on the abnormal levels of defense.”
Blueblood turned to the Mane Six as his aunts and cousin thought it all over, and gave them a soft smile.
“I’d like to request that you attend the Gala this year,” he said, much to their surprise.
“It’s so I, we, can keep an eye on you. With the attack last night, and the recent revelations from our enemy, I’d feel more comfortable if you were here, in the castle, under my, our, protection. At least, for tonight.” Though he had verbally stumbled a bit getting his words out, for the most part none of them seemed to notice, and he was silently glad of it. Only Twilight had caught the misplaced and misspoken phrases, but she had kept quiet.
“Well, we don’t have much, just our dresses from last evening,” Rarity began, and the others looked hesitant, but it was Twilight who decided for them.
“We’re grateful for the offer, Prince Blueblood, and I think we all would like to attend the Gala this,” Celestia’s student said, and reluctantly, the others agreed.
“I suppose it would be safer here than out on the streets at night,” Fluttershy whispered, and Pinkie nodded happily.
“Maybe this year they’ll not be grumpy pants and enjoy my musical song and dance routine?” the pink pony pondered, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack just shrugged, going with the flow. Only Rarity still seemed worried, and she gave Twilight a suspicious glance. She hadn’t forgotten the scene she and the girls had walked in on last night, before it all went to Tartarus on a Train, with her purple unicorn friend passionately hugging Blueblood.
She also couldn’t forget the odd feeling of discomfort she had felt when she had looked at them doing such a thing. She was certain it wasn’t jealousy; she was totally over the handsome, tragic-past ridden stallion! But it bothered her, and made her feel uncomfortable.
So Rarity just forced a smile, and wondered how this would all play out in the evening.