//------------------------------// // Security Breach // Story: Under the Moonlight // by Thunderblast //------------------------------// Later that night, following the massive security meeting with the princesses, a few of the high ranks and Captain Armor himself, Thunderblast, as well as many other guards, were given most of the day off to get rest to help the Night guard with their duties, to make sure the mysterious visitor was caught if he did appear again that night. The stallion stood at his post like earlier, with First Sergeant Featherhoof. The night went like clockwork for the two, mostly since they were staring at black for a long while. Normally, they would have been swapped for the night guard gear, but the guard had been lacking extra armor for a while, so they were forced to wear the same golden armor like any other day. Every once and a while, a lunar guard would walk by on patrol, most of them not batting an eye at the two pegasi as they stood at constant attention outside the closed room, which they soon found out belonged to Prince Blueblood. When Thunder realized it was safe, he decided to bring up a quiet conversation with Featherhoof. "Just so you know, I really hate Blueblood," he smirked. Featherhoof cracked a smile on his face, making him look like an idiot, before he begun to snicker. "I do too. I don't know anypony who likes him, to be quite honest." Thunder quietly laughed. "Perhaps they should have named him Prince Blueheart, since his heart is as cold as ice when it comes to being a gentlecolt." The stallion remembered the Grand Galloping Gala a couple of years back, when his marefriend, as well as her friends, came and literally wrecked it, and her friend, as well as a pony he despises, attempted to grab Blueblood's heart, only to find he had no heart. The two joked on a bit, slowly befriending each other, until another lunar guard passed by, which is when they returned to their attention state. "I heard you two talking down here." The pegasus Lunar guard chuckled quietly. Thunderblast and Featherhoof didn't say a word or moved a muscle, which is when the stallion decided to stop what he was doing and walk up to them, staring them closely in the eye. Featherhoof kept his cool and didn't blink, causing the charcoal grey pegasus to give up on him, and move on to the black-maned stallion to his left. Thunder remained at attention like Featherhoof while the Lunar guard eyed him closely, until they became muzzle to muzzle, where his eye twitched slightly. Unlucky for him, the lunar stallion caught his sudden eye movement, and smirked. Before anything else, he gave him a sudden peck on the muzzle, causing Thunder to lose his cool completely. "AAAAW NIGHT SHADOW!" Thunder screamed, dropping his spear and wiping his muzzle frantically. His scream echoed throughout most of the halls connecting that one, and he quickly covered his mouth, irises shrinking beyond tiny. Night Shadow broke down laughing, falling onto his side and trying his best not to laugh too loud, while Featherhoof stared at both of them in some shock, before walking over to the lunar guard and putting his hoof in his mouth, causing him to shut up instantly. Night squealed, which was thankfully mostly muffled due to a hoof in his mouth. He spit it out, leaving saliva all over Feather's hoof, and wiped his tongue very quickly. "Eugh! Do you even know what is on your hoof man?!" "Yeah, your saliva. Eugh." Featherhoof lifted his hoof from the floor, which left a spot of Night's saliva on it, as well as some thick strands of it connecting the floor to his hoof guard, which was half-covered in the sticky substance, which made him gag slightly as if he was about to throw up. Night picked up his spear and glared at Feather, before continuing his patrol down the hall and into the darkness. Feather pulled out a handkerchief he had in his armor, something all guards have if needed, and removed his hoof guard to wipe it clean, then wiping Night's saliva from the floor to avoid a storm of anger from Blueblood, being the clean freak that he is. Thunder couldn't help but snicker at the sight of Featherhoof's predicament, only to receive a dirty glare from the fellow pegasus. Moments later, they heard a scream, and quickly looked in the direction it came from, which as frightening as it was, was coming from the direction Night Shadow just went. They had no choice but to find out what it was, and begun galloping down the dark halls to find the source. Thunder kept the lead as they ran down the maze of castle hallways, before coming to a dark corridor and finding one of Night's hoof guards and his spear. "Night!" Thunder yelled, running to them, looking around frantically for the stallion. "Where'd he go?!" Featherhoof also looked around, before a pair of doors in between them slammed shut, seemingly on their own. "FEATHER!" Thunder yelled, running to the door and banging on it. "Are you alright?!" He was replied with a low-pitched scream, presumably from the white pegasus, which was then followed by the clatter of armor. Thunderblast continued with all of his might to open the door to rescue his friend, but failed badly. After a minute, the doors finally opened. What Thunder saw, or didn't see, shocked him even more. Feather was completely gone, everything except not only his spear, which laid untidily on the floor, but also a small picture of him standing next to a slightly smaller unicorn stallion, he presumed to be his brother or a good friend. The pegasus picked it up and looked at the photo, his hooves beginning to tremble. "I-I will find you two... I promise." He stuttered as tears begun to form in his eyes. Moments later, three lunar guards rushed to his distress, and he looked up at them in some shock. "What happened here?" A unicorn guard eyed Thunder closely. "It happened again..." Thunder trembled. "Whoever this pony, or whatever they are is, we need to find them ASAP." "What do you mean Night Shadow and Featherhoof are gone?!" A near-wide awake unicorn with a multi-shaded messy blue mane said in shock, as he stared at two guards who had awakened him to inform the stallion of what just occurred. "Sergeant Thunderblast said they just vanished, sir!" One guard said to the unicorn. "Did he see what happened?" The unicorn asked. "No, sir. He said him and Featherhoof ran to Night's scream, and found he was gone. Then, Thunder said the doors shut between him and Feather before he could save him." Another guard replied. The unicorn, Shining Armor, trotted over to a window looking out at Canterlot and groaned. "This needs to stop...We can't go on like this. Guards are going missing left and right, we have somepony breaking into the castle and no one can see or confront him long enough to stop him. This has got to be something big." He then turned to the guards. "I want Canterlot on full lockdown."