Chapter 12 - A Bow Filled Mane
Warden Lockup leisurely trotted across the grass field as the sun warmed his back, followed by Padlock, who lagged slightly behind. The short, soft grass folded under his hooves, while Padlock pushed it over as her hooves dragged through it, roughing it up occasionally. All around them, Padlock could hear guards training, though she didn't bother to look up, causing her to ram her head into Lockup's hindquarters.
"Oww," Padlock cried, rubbing her forehead. "Why'd you stop all of a sudden?"
Lockup extended a hoof to the mare, helping her back up before replying, "Just admiring Celestia's sun upon this open field of green, and wondering what's got you so down."
"Nothing," Padlock said, slumping to her haunches and looking away.
In truth, she was thinking of Cassie. She couldn't get the last image she saw of Cassie out of her mind: pure, unadulterated terror, the likes of which Padlock had never seen from the girl. So much so that the nurse had jumped on the bed in an attempt to calm her, and the doctor had had to sedate her immediately. Padlock hadn't stayed; she just grabbed the papers and flew out the door, ashamed of the panic she had caused.
The old red stallion sat on the ground, picking a large blade of grass. "Don't give me that 'nothing' horse crap. You're thinking about Rings… I mean Cassie, aren't you?"
"Yeah. You should've seen her, Warden. I think she might’ve had an actual heart attack if the Doc hadn't been there. And all because of me," Padlock said, flopping to the ground.
Lockup shifted the blade of grass to the other side of his mouth, then placed a hoof on Padlock’s back, causing her to tense. "Now between me and you, not Warden and Vice Warden, that was a good thing," he said.
"How is that a good thing?" Padlock snapped back.
"Whoa now, settle down," Lockup said as he started rubbing the tension out of her withers. "If I recall, the Princess said part of your new assignment is to ease Cassie's fear of us. Well, how were you going to do that without knowing why she fears us? Her reaction to your outburst gives you a good starting point."
"But…" Padlock trailed off, fiddling with the grass a few moments. "…That's a great point!" Padlock exclaimed as she sat up, giving her wings a little ruffle. She then scratched her chin and gave him a thoughtful gaze. "Thanks for helping me get rid of that tension I’ve been holding. Anyways, I think I may have figured part of it out. I believe she may have been attacked from above, which means it could have been pegasi, but she’s never shown that kind of fear to me… Though I'd never flown in her presence before, so that could be why. Since she's definitely not from around here, it could be one of those larger horse breeds that attacked her. Then again, she's kinda weak, so maybe it was just her being in a bad position—like on the ground or something—with the ponies looming over her and attacking. Either way, it seems to all lead towards an equine attacking her from above."
Lockup spit the mushy blade of grass out before replying with a smile. "Very good, Padlock, very good. I agree with your conclusions. Next will be trying to figure out which one it is, provided one of your guesses is correct. The pegasus theory will be easy to test, though I have a feeling your… animated gesturing when you get too emotional might have played a bigger part than just you flying around."
Padlock turned away, her ears splaying back. "Sorry… it just happens sometimes," she said in embarrassment.
Lockup rose to his feet, chuckling. With a wave of a foreleg, the two ponies continued their path across the field, both trotting a little faster. Reaching the door to the jail administration building, Padlock raised her hoof to a metal panel until the lock registered her unique magical signature, allowing the pair to enter. Padlock's wings ruffled when the cold tingling feeling of the anti-changeling detector field at the entrance passed over her body.
"Enter into the log: Warden Lockup and Vice Warden Padlock, visiting prisoner #101280SS, Steel Shackle. Purpose of visit: initial questioning of additional abuse and misconduct in the pending case listed in his file," Lockup said, without changing his speed towards the dungeon door or looking to the guard at the desk. The guard narrowed his eyes and mumbled something too quiet for the two officers to make out as he watched Padlock pass through the dungeon door.
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Padlock and Lockup made small talk with several prisoners as they made their way towards Steel Shackle's cell. Unlike the older section of the dungeon where Cassie had been placed, this newer section had a few extra amenities, not to mention better lighting. The two passed by a lounge, usable by non-violent inmates, on their way to the wing that housed Steel. Two prisoners briefly looked up from a board game, giving them a polite hello from the other side of the bars, as the wardens waited for the lock to register their magical signatures and open the door.
Their pace through this section of the dungeon was slightly quicker, as the majority of these prisoners were out on yard time. Of the ones still present, some gave curt greetings, or just ignored them. One particular resident stopped them to plead his case for more yard time… again. They politely denied his request, knowing full well why he really wanted it. Soon after, they stood outside their destination.
"Hello and good morning, Steel," Lockup announced as he and Padlock took a seat outside his cell.
The slate gray unicorn rolled over on his bed, his tangled, brown mane flopping over the dull metal covering his horn. He craned his neck back until his green eyes fell upon the two senior staffers. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company, Boss?"
"It is not I who has come to speak with you, Steel. Rather it is my colleague here, Vice Warden Padlock," Lockup said.
"Before she and I… talk, when can I get this heavy thing off my horn? Its magical dispersion sucks. It builds up too much within me before the excess gets expelled; it’s giving me headaches. Where's my lightweight, magical restrictor ring?" Steel complained.
Lockup tugged at a short, rough patch on his chin a few times. "Hmm, oh yes. You should have it in a day or two… probably. The Enchanters Guild is currently reapplying the enchantments."
Steel snorted, "Figures."
Padlock coughed into her hoof to clear her throat. "Hello, Steel. I’ve come to inquire about a cut on Cassie's back."
"I know not who this Cassie is. Go bother somepony else," Steel retorted, grabbing the edge of his sheet and rolling back over.
Padlock rubbed the bridge of her muzzle with a hoof, letting out an audible sigh. "Cassie, the one you know as Rings."
With a huff, Steel rolled back over and let the sheet fall to the floor. He stood, letting a few pops echo in his cell before sitting down close to the bars, flashing a smile. "Ahh, the murdering hairless thing. I don't know what you're talking about."
Padlock's hoof dug into the floor. "Don't play games with me. I saw her reaction to you in the hall. I also have this picture she drew— a very well-done drawing, I might add. It fits you all the way down to your cutie mark," Padlock stated, shoving the picture into Steel's view.
Steel's eyes widened when looking at the picture, before quickly turning away. "I will not answer without my lawyer present."
Padlock let out a dejected sigh, tucking the page back under a wing, and turning on her hooves. "Fine. If you want to make it harder on yourself… so be it."
Padlock started trotting down the hallway, barely making it past Lockup, when Steel decided to speak.
"Be sure to tell the Captain of my willingness to cooperate when you are servicing him later. Or was it Prince Blueblood? I bet there’s a good chance it was both… at the same time," Steel sneered.
A slight popping sound and a swift breeze tickled the hairs on Lockup's coat. He turned just in time for his ears to splay back as Padlock rounded on the stallion behind bars, slamming her hoof to the floor with a sharp crack. The mare before him had her wings fully extended, her legs crouched, and her face bright red with anger. He knew instantly that Steel had pushed a few more buttons than he could handle.
Padlock screamed, “WHAT DI—”
"SILENCE!" Lockup shouted, cutting her off and holding a forehoof at her while turning his neck to face Steel. "Sonny, WHAT in Tartarus is wrong with you? Do you like digging your hole so deep that you can't even see the top anymore?" he snapped.
"Pfft. We all know it's true, just ask around… you'll see. How else do you think she gained so much rank unless she used her… feminine ways? Hell, you're probably in on the fun times, too."
Lockup put his hoof down to spin towards Steel with narrowed eyes. "Oh, shut up. That was a rhetorical question."
"Whatever, old-timer," Steel said, picking his bed sheet up, and flinging it lopsidedly over his back.
Lockup shook his head, letting his unkempt mane swish back and forth. "Steel Shackle, you, and those who think like you, are so very wrong. Padlock earned her promotion by doing her duty, and doing it well above what needed to be done. She is a shining example of how a jailer should be, while you are the blackness she shines to snuff out. Do you really think the Captain would cheat on his wife, the beautiful Princess Cadance? Or that Prince Blueblood would have a relationship with somepony in the guard without it being public knowledge, like all of his other flings, as to avoid perceived favoritism? And ME! While Miss Padlock is a very pretty mare… I love my wife and would not dishonor her, or my marriage, for a little 'fun'. No, sonny. She earned her rank the proper way; she honors her uniform by her actions, while you… you disgraced yours."
Lockup turned to see Padlock's nostrils flaring, and face still bright red with anger, but her aggressive posture no longer present. He trotted up to her and placed a foreleg over her shoulder. "Come, let's not waste any more time here. I'll fill out the report and send it off so that he can enjoy the full questioning procedures by an interrogator, with his lawyer present. You, on the other hoof, have someone to go check on."
Padlock snorted, and flicked her tail before stiffly turning and marching back down the hall, Lockup following behind her.
"Wait!" Steel hollered, his hoof outstretched through the bars. "I changed my mind; let's not get too fancy now. I'll answer her questions."
Lockup paused to look back at the unicorn’s pleading eyes. "Sorry, you've already wasted the time we had to give you," he said, before continuing back down the hall, a slight smile on his muzzle at the sound of a slow, repeated thunk of something hard hitting the bars of a jail cell.
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Padlock trotted up the carpeted stairs to the floor where Cassie's room was, careful not to drop the bowl of fruit on her back. She smiled as she heard whispering up ahead, glad that Cocoa Puff was getting along with the regular guard. After rounding the corner, she had to flare her wings to keep the bowl on her back. Her jaw hung open, and her eyes went wide as dinner plates at the scene before her.
"…" Padlock's mouth flapped, but no words came out.
The brown mare quickly whispered to the guard before trotting over to Padlock. "Pads, I can explain, just come with me," Cocoa said, pushing Padlock's mouth closed, and nudging her with a shoulder to turn and follow.
Cocoa Puff led Padlock back down the hall to an empty room near the stairs. "Take a seat, Pads. This will be a few minutes," she said, running a hoof through her short, black mane.
-- One Hour Prior --
Cocoa Puff's ear swiveled towards the door upon hearing the handle being turned. She glanced over at the royal guard with her, who just shrugged his shoulders. She shifted slightly when the door was flung open, and her charge strode into the hallway carrying a wooden spear shaft. Her eyes widened briefly, both at the unexpected presence of Rings, and because she had never seen Rings this close.
A shiver went through Cocoa, from her muzzle to her hooves, when she looked up to see Rings’ toothy smile looking back down at her. "Uhh… hi, Rings," she nervously squeaked.
Cocoa's tail tucked underneath her, and her back legs started shaking when Rings reached out towards her, freezing completely when Rings' hand touched her. She felt her mane being mussed by Rings’ hand, then the strange feeling of its bare skin running along the side of her face to the end of her muzzle. Rings spewed gibberish, and patted Cocoa on the side before looking over to the royal guard.
It was now the royal guard's turn to adopt a deer-in-the-headlights look. Cocoa flashed a quick smirk before expelling the breath she had been holding. "Thirty Eight, I don't think she's here to do anything bad, but look at her eyes," Cocoa said quietly.
"Stop calling me that—I have a name, you know," he said while failing to keep his statue-like pose.
"Well, stop being last in your unit's training every single time, and I might," Cocoa snickered, bringing a hoof over her mouth to prevent herself from laughing too loud.
Cocoa looked on as Rings crouched in front of Thirty Eight, scratching under his chin while cooing unintelligible words at him. A minute later, she had sucked in her lips and bit down on them to stop herself from completely losing it. Rings had moved on to pushing down lightly on his rump while saying the same thing over and over again.
Eventually Thirty Eight relented and sat down on his haunches, which caused Rings to excitedly bounce in place while clapping her hands, before scratching the top of his head. "What is she doing, Cocoa?"
"I don't know," Cocoa sang, her muzzle scrunching up as she looked away.
Thirty Eight let out a content sigh when Rings stopped rubbing his head, and instead scratched behind his ear. He then felt Rings tapping the side of his leg a few times. His ears drooped, and his shoulders sagged, as he let out an anguished sigh before lifting his forehoof up to Rings’ outstretched hand. He looked into her eyes as she shook his hoof up and down a few times, before petting him on the head again.
"This sucks. By the way, I looked at her eyes. That blinded one is just straight creepy-looking, but the other is glazed over as bad as my brother's after he’s eaten a fresh batch of his 'special plant'," Thirty Eight said with another sigh.
"Deal with it. We were told to let her do whatever she wants, as long as nopony is getting hurt. Also, I think she’s more than just high. We know she doesn't act like this with ponies—with how she's treating you, I'm willing to bet good bits that she's hallucinating us as dogs."
"Yoo fink?" Thirty Eight muttered around the wooden spear shaft Rings had gently maneuvered into his mouth.
Cocoa couldn't take it anymore, and fell to the floor clutching her sides. Her laughing abruptly stopped when she felt Rings’ hands running down her torso. She opened her eyes to see Rings sitting next to her, still smiling.
"Your turn," Thirty Eight said as he spat the shaft onto the ground with a loud clunk. His ears instantly folded back as he looked up and said, "What did I do to deserve this?"
Cocoa snickered as Rings instantly stopped petting her, and moved back over to Thirty Eight. She bit down on her foreleg when Rings waved the shaft around tauntingly in front of Thirty Eight before throwing it down the hallway. "Better go get it," Cocoa said, as tears finally escaped her eyes.
"I should get hazard pay for this," Thirty Eight said before trotting after the stick, his armor jingling the entire way.
When Thirty Eight returned, he was 'rewarded' with another scratch behind his ears. While he would deny it if asked, he did like the feeling. He froze when Rings trailed her fingers through the hair on his chest, and then started undoing the buckles on his armor. "Help, she's taking my armor off," he pleaded to Cocoa.
"Just let her, you're not going to melt," Cocoa said between gasps of air.
Thirty Eight reluctantly stood there as his armor was removed from him. He heard the soft shimmer of the glamour enchantment ending, his coat returning to its pale yellow color. A frown dominated his muzzle as he watched his armor being unceremoniously dropped to the floor with a clank. Rings then proceeded to have him fetch the shaft a few more times, swaying unsteadily and giggling whenever she tossed it. He took his mind off the demeaning task by thinking of all the scuffs and scratches he would have to polish out now.
It was Cocoa's turn to get Rings’ attention again. After she was done making Thirty Eight chase the shaft for a while, Rings skipped back into her room, bouncing off the doorframe with a giggle, and returned with a brush. During that brief window, Cocoa had sent Thirty Eight off to find the nearest guard, maid, or random visitor to have them get the doctor. Cocoa relaxed into the brushing she received, with a slightly dopey look in her eyes.
"I have to chase after a stick, while you get pampered," Thirty Eight grumbled, returning to his post and pawing longingly at his armor. "Doc's busy, but will be here as soon as possible."
"I feel bad for her. I had to slightly lean over to her because her first try to reach my mane with that brush was off by a little bit," Cocoa whispered.
"You mean because of her eye?”
Cocoa nodded. “I wonder if there is any healing magic the docs could use to fix it.”
“I hope so,” Thirty Eight mused. “Glad I’m not in Candlewax’s horseshoes. Scuttlebutt is, that apparently an arch-battlemage not only put him in the hospital for a couple days with a cracked horn because of that, but they also restricted his magic completely. And they are treating him to an intensive retraining course over magic use or something. Not to mention he's been demoted a rank, and placed on restriction for two months."
"There goes that squad leader position he wanted. Hopefully he learns. He was always fun at joint trainings, and he never seemed like a bad pony to me."
With a look back over his shoulder, it was Thirty Eight's turn to laugh this time. He watched with bemusement as Rings put little bows in Cocoa's black mane. Unfortunately, he failed to be quiet about it. Rings instantly descended upon him, gently pushing on his back to get him to lay down. His face turned bright red as she rolled him over onto his back and started scratching his belly. He could hear Cocoa snickering when his hind leg started kicking, causing his face to somehow become even more tomato-like.
Thirty Eight rolled back onto his belly as Rings stood back up, turning to Cocoa. The action caused his forehoof to brush against her leg. Rings turned back to him with a smile, though a startled cry came from her throat soon after as she tangled her feet up, falling to the floor. Cocoa rushed over to Rings, relieved to hear her laughing. Rings’ hand found its way behind Cocoa's ear, causing the mare to push into it.
Suddenly Rings stopped, and let out a scream. Cocoa's ears splayed back, and she backed away. Rings started yelling in her strange language, clawing at her right leg frantically. Cocoa gagged, turning away when Rings’ fingers slipped under the material that looked like flesh, and peeled it back. A chinking sound, like a bit falling to the floor, and a louder thud, caused her to take a deep breath and look back.
Rings clutched the shaft again, this time leaning against the wall for support on one leg. She started screaming again, while slamming the spear shaft onto her detached leg repeatedly, until Cocoa flinched at the loud crack of wood breaking. Rings hopped to the leg, bent down, and picked it up like it was a dangerous animal before throwing it at the window. The window, not expecting the new force to be bestowed upon it, shattered, letting the leg continue on its way.
Cocoa heard labored breathing coming from next to her. She turned her head to see Rings laid out on the floor with an arm over her forehead, and wet streams on her cheeks. She quickly trotted over to the female, nuzzling her cheek before lying down next to her. Rings’ other arm started absently stroking her back, and Cocoa could feel Rings’ heartbeat slowing down. A few minutes after that, Rings moved over to Thirty Eight and climbed on his back, hugging him around the neck with her foot hooked over his rump, leaving her other leg to hang down. Soft snoring sounds followed soon after.
-- Present --
"And there you have it, Pads," Cocoa finished as they arrived outside Cassie's room.
"You know, you'll have to get used to calling her Cassie, instead of Rings," Padlock said, spying the leg next to the door. "By the way, how did you get the leg back already, and when will the doctor be here?"
Padlock smiled when Cocoa trotted over to Thirty Eight and Cassie, nudging the female slightly to re-center her on his back. "A pegasus guard saw it fall, and brought it back up to us. The nurse that stopped by said he shouldn't be too long."
"That's good. So, why is she still out here, drooling into your mane, instead of back in bed?" Padlock asked, removing a shard of glass embedded in the leg, then playfully slapping Cocoa in the shoulder to stop her snickering.
Thirty Eight grumbled under his breath then closed his eyes, sucking in a deep breath through his teeth before exhaling loudly through his nose. "The nurse said not to move her yet, since she’s sleeping. She was obviously given too much sedative earlier, due to… well, too much. Said it's better if she can sleep it off. Though the nurse said she also took the pain pills that she wasn’t supposed to take on an empty stomach, and they might have helped her fall asleep again with the other stuff still in her system."
Padlock’s tail drooped slightly, remembering just why she had been over-sedated. Her silvery blue mane flashed in the sunlight as she shook the thoughts from her mind. "Cocoa, where's the pin for this?"
"Uhhh…" Cocoa voiced, while looking intently at the floor. "Oh, it's right here."
"Thanks," Padlock said, taking it from Cocoa’s hoof with a wing.
Padlock entered Cassie's room, setting the leg and pin on the end table next to the bed, then trotted back outside just in time to see the doctor approaching.
"Hi, Doc," Padlock and Cocoa said in unison.
"Good late morning to you too, ladies," the Doctor replied, trotting up to Cassie.
He lit his horn up, while softly poking at Cassie for a minute. "Hmm. I was already pretty certain I gave her too much earlier, but this confirms it. Along with what you all told the nurse, I'm going to mark in her medical file not to give her this specific sedative anymore. While it works, and I am sure I know the proper dosage now—pretty sure I knew it before the… incident—she seems to be highly susceptible to the hallucinations that can be a rare side effect. Anyways, you can put her back in bed; she won't wake 'til about lunchtime."
The doctor spied the broken shaft. "If that broke when she was beating her leg like a dirty rug over a railing, then you might want to check to see if that leg is still okay. I've work to do, but if you have any other problems, just send somepony to get me," the doctor said, before giving one last look and a snicker at Thirty Eight before trotting off.
"Easy for him to say; we don't even know what it's made of, or how it's put together," Padlock lamented. "Well Thirty Eight, don't just stand there, get her back in bed."
"Yes, Ma'am," he said with a salute, before slowly moving Cassie back towards her bed. “Ugh, I can feel the drool in my mane. I can’t wait until I’m relieved.”
“You’ll be okay, it’s not… that much,” Cocoa said, giggling, before waving a washcloth in front of him.
Padlock assisted in transferring Cassie from Thirty Eight’s back and into her bed. Almost immediately, Cassie rolled next to a pillow and clutched it to her chest. Padlock smiled at the scene as she pulled the blanket up over Cassie, wondering how anypony could ever see her as a horrible killer. Her lip twitched, and a hoof scraped the floor at recalling how Cassie had been treated, wishing she knew just who was behind it all.
Moving to the desk in the corner, Padlock took a seat, and began trying to draw out what happened. Before Cocoa left the room, Padlock sent her to tell the maid to get a cold lunch ready and bring it up so it would be available when Cassie awoke.
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Cassie awoke with a groan, clutching her head between her hands for a minute. With the headache a little more bearable, she scooted to the edge of the bed, swinging her legs over the side. She stopped just before pushing off, and looked down at her legs with pinched eyebrows. She briefly wondered if the ponies had stolen her leg for some reason, until she spotted it on the end table next to the head of her bed.
Grabbing the leg, Cassie felt some grit under her fingers. Upon inspection, her eyebrow arched when she noticed some dirt on it, along with a couple new cuts. She could have sworn she had completely cleaned it earlier, then her eyes went wide. Cassie barely recalled an image, like a dream slipping from her mind, of her ripping a snake off her right leg, beating it with a stick, and throwing it out a window.
While Cassie reattached her leg, her thoughts went over everything she could remember, and they all came to the same conclusion. Whatever they gave her when she had that panic attack must have been the same thing they gave her when they tried to give her a shower. Even though she had a feeling it wasn't meant to be a hallucinogen, whatever that drug was caused her perceptions to change. Cassie gave a little smile, silently thanking the doctor for the positive side. Whatever he had done stopped her dizziness, and caused her fever to finally break, leaving her only slightly warmer than normal.
Deciding to bring it up to Padlock later, Cassie looked around, smacking her dried lips. Spotting what she sought, she moved over to the table, noticing a covered serving tray with small stack of parchment on it. After setting the glass down with a soft chink, she looked at the top picture on the first sheet. It looked somewhat familiar, showing a picture of her smiling, holding a cup covered by a red X which contained two small pills. Next to that was a picture of her with her face contorted while holding her back and putting the pills in her mouth. It took her a minute to figure out the bottom pictures, but she came to the conclusion they were possible side effects. She glanced out the window; it seemed to be around noonish, based on her inability to see the sun and the presence of the serving tray. With that little bit of knowledge, and having just woken up, she wrote 'probably' next to the image that depicted sleeping.
Hair flying every which way joined her loud groaning. Cassie leaned back heavily into the chair, starting at the ceiling, while the other pieces of parchment lay strewn about the table. After a few deep breaths, she checked her hand for any bite marks, then her arms. Satisfied there were none, she tugged the front of her dress forward and looked down at her torso for any new bruising. Satisfied that the ponies outside didn't do anything mean to her, her shoulders relaxed.
"I think I owe a few ponies an apology," she lamented.
Cassie made her way to the door, pausing with her eyes closed and her hand wrapped around the handle. After a deep breath, she turned the handle, and pulled the door halfway open. Sticking her head out, Cassie looked to see the brown normal pony from yesterday. Looking at her rump, Cassie realized her tattoo of a yellow bowl with chocolate balls in it was the same as the one in the picture Padlock had shown her. Cassie's face flushed, and she looked to the floor when she spotted the little bows in the pony's mane.
"De, Cassie," the mare said.
Cassie's head snapped towards the mare, wide-eyed. The mare repeated what she said, while waving a hoof with a smile. "Umm… Hi, uhhh… I'm sorry I treated you like a dog, and for tying bows into your hair. I think the drugs made me hallucinate," Cassie said, looking away.
"Cassie, dana," the mare said, slowly pushing a hair brush towards her.
Slowly, Cassie crouched down and reached outward. Her fingers skimmed over the soft bristles of the cushion brush until they reached the handle. "Thanks, sorry," Cassie said, a light crimson hue on her cheeks.
While Cassie spent time apologizing to the mare, she failed to spot the guard to the opposite side of the door, quietly pushing a washcloth back towards the wall with a hind leg. Now 100% sure that the pictures she had just looked at in the room did actually happen, she turned to the guard and said, "And sorry to you for making you play fetch. ~Bye~," before ducking back into the room and closing the door.
Sliding the serving tray across the table, Cassie removed the lid and plopped down into a chair. Her hand twitched towards the brownie, but she forced her attention towards the sandwich instead. A quick check showed it had those large lettuce-like leaves again, but this time, instead of potato slices, it had carrot shavings. Several minutes later, scritching filled the room. While Cassie finished her meal, she wanted to make sure they didn't give her that sauce again; it was much too spicy for her liking. Putting the parchment down, she took a moment to press her finger to the plate to collect crumbs left behind from the brownie, and then licked them off.
Cassie ran her hand through her hair, only to have it stop on a tangle. She grabbed the brush the pony had returned to her from the other side of the table. With a frown, she made her way into the bathroom to retrieve one of the brushes in there. She held the cushion brush in her hand, debating whether or not pulling all the long black strands out was worth it, or if she should just use one of the other brushes in the little closet. For now, she chose a different brush, making sure to remember to clean the other out, as she liked that one more.
Once her hair had been tamed, she placed a hairband over it to hold the hair back, not wanting to put any style into it. Moving back into the main room, she refilled her glass of water and relocated to the corner desk. Pulling out a quill and fresh piece of paper, she hunched over the desk and began to work.
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A smile parted Cassie's lips as she stared down at the parchment. While she wished she had her colored pencils, the partly shaded ink drawing still looked nice to her. Gently blowing on it to help the ink dry, she bit her lip, wondering if she should draw a second one.
"Maybe that glowy, aura-thing they do can magically duplicate it… magic…" Cassie said, her smile fading. "Hahaha, like that's what it is. It has to be some sort of anti-gravity device in those horns, or something," she laughed with an unsure smirk.
Cassie's brain decided to chime in at that moment, questioning how that option explained the healing-aura. "Shut up, brain! I don't need this now. Everything is freaky enough as is. There're alien ponies that talk, not to mention the fact that a lot of plants and animals have near-direct comparisons on Earth. So don't start trying to throw any mystical mumbo-jumbo into the mix," Cassie said, clenching her hands while staring at the windows
A pegasus flew by pushing a cloud, but Cassie wrapped that and the healing-aura fact up, and shoved it into the 'figure it out later' file before it could pipe up again. Leafing through the papers Padlock had left behind, she found the one she was looking for and folded it up. Though her dress didn't have pockets, it did have a belt, and in the back of the belt was a hidden pocket, just big enough to hold an ID. After a little forcing, Cassie had the parchment secured. With a newfound smile, she grabbed the drawing she'd just finished, walked to the door, and slid it under before moving to the bed.
Several minutes later Cassie peered down at the garden below her window. The distance didn't look to be too far, but with no depth perception, she was unsure how far it actually was. With a grunt, she tossed the sheets out the window. Looking back down, she was glad she used all the ones she could find. Grabbing the blanket closest to her, she pulled with all the force she could muster, then checked the knot around the foot of the bed. Satisfied it would hold, and that the bed seemed to be a good anchor, she checked the skies and garden for any ponies.
Cassie tracked a pegasus flying past a domed tower. Once out of sight, she climbed on a chair and onto the windowsill, looking down for footholds to assist. Gripping the blanket, she laid on her stomach, trying to feel for the ridge in the stonework with her foot. Scooting back, she let the prosthetic foot hit it, and then slid out the window, ignoring the fact that her dress was pulling up. Cassie wished for proper rappelling gear as she leaned back slightly, and started shuffling her feet down the wall to the next little protruding edge of the blocks making up the wall.
Nearing the ground, Cassie's hand slipped on one of the pillowcases she’d used to hold the twist on the sheets in place, causing her to fall a short distance. She rolled back and forth on the ground clutching her leg at the connection point, hissing through her teeth. Once the pain from the jarring landing passed, Cassie spread her arms out, running her fingers through the grass while staring up at the bright blue sky.
Standing up, Cassie brushed herself off. Her eyes danced from flower bush to flower bush. The fragrant scent of the flowers all around her filled her nose. Cassie took a few steps towards the closest row of flowers, but immediately stopped and looked down, her smile fading. Rocking back and forth, she could feel a hitch in the movement of the ankle: not enough to prevent movement, but definitely noticeable.
"Peachy," Cassie said, holding her head against her palm and rubbing her fingers back and forth across her forehead.
Deciding she could deal with it later, Cassie moved farther into the courtyard garden. Passing a small fountain in the center, she glanced around for any ponies. There weren’t any to be seen in the windows that surrounded the courtyard. A slight smile came to her face as she checked the sky and saw none there, either. Turning, she made her way to a medium-sized tree next to a short wall, which allowed a view out past the castle.
Cassie sat under the leafy canopy near the trunk of the tree, gazing out towards a waterfall, and the pool of water it spilled into. A rainbow formed in the misty spray. Suddenly she was pulled back in time, a half-smile forming on her lips.
------------------------------
Luna landed in one of the castle's small gardens. A disruption in the dream realm had awoken her, and its source had led her here. Approaching a tree, she had a good idea as to the cause. Spotting strawberry hair and a pale leg, she finally had confirmation of the source. Luna moved slowly, as to not disturb the daydream of a memory Cassie was experiencing.
For weeks, Luna had been seeing glimpses of dreams and nightmares flittering in and out of the dream realm. Every time she actually saw any of them form more solidly, they vanished almost immediately when approached. Her ears drooped, now knowing the source of the intangible nightmares she had no control over. It also gave her a couple of theories as to why she didn't have any ability to interact with them. Two of said theories tied into other suspicions she had already had that Celestia refused to discuss.
Luna's ears perked up, and she smiled faintly. Though she could not see into the current daydream, she could sense the feeling. She watched on, wishing she had a way to see what Cassie saw, to maybe understand the unknown visitor more. As she understood it, the dreamer was just as flighty as the dreams. She observed the visitor for another moment before cautiously moving.
------------------------------
It was late morning, during the summer between her sophomore and junior year of college. Their group of friends had decided to go camping for a long weekend. The camp had been set up rather quickly, and the boys went off to do some rock climbing, leaving Cassie and Maggie to head for the swimming hole at the base of a waterfall. The scene shifted, and now she and Maggie stood on the rocks overlooking the swimming hole. Cassie's lips tweaked up briefly seeing she still had both her natural legs in the scene. Screams of joy filled the air as she watched her and Maggie jump into the pool of water fifteen feet below. A separate memory of how she had been so afraid of underwater rocks the first time she stood on the rocks, before being told they had all been cleared out decades ago, briefly surfaced.
The memory playing out before her shifted again. This time she raced against Maggie from one side of the pool to the other, just a tad ahead of Maggie.
"I know you're holding back. Let's do it again, this time without holding back," Maggie's voice echoed in her head.
Cassie grinned at the results, having beaten Maggie by a full third of the pool. "You could've beaten me now, Maggie," Cassie whispered, rubbing her hand across her cheeks.
Looking back up at the waterfall, their group of friends sat around a good-sized campfire. A giggle left Cassie as she watched Kozlov's marshmallow catch fire, and then it went sailing through the air to land on his tent when he yanked it out of the fire too fast. The resulting scramble of he and his then-girlfriend dumping their beers on the tent to stop it from melting any further would never leave her mind, nor would the follow-up several seconds later.
"Don't look at us like that, Kozlov. We're just helping," sounded the two guys holding now empty buckets.
The mid-morning sun shone down on the little campsite with everyone packing up all their belongings. Slowly, each person started to fade away one by one, until only Kozlov and Maggie remained. Kozlov's appearance shifted from cargo shorts, an open safari vest, and shaggy hair to his military working uniform with his short-spiky hair; Maggie's appearance shifted to the one-piece swimming uniform of their college with goggles hanging around her neck.
The image of Kozlov gave her own image a hug before standing back, and then Maggie's image filled the spot and repeated the gesture. Cassie's own image faded, leaving just Kozlov and Maggie. They stood there in the now dimming light of dusk, hand in hand, both waving towards her as they too faded into nothing.
Cassie reached out towards the fading memory, the waterfall cascading down the mountainside blurring out. She brought the heels of her palms to her eyes, and then wiped her fingers over her cheeks. Bending forward, she grabbed the front of her dress and used it to finish wiping her eyes and cheeks, adding more dark spots to the ones already dotting the maroon dress.
Blinking her eyes, and staring back at the waterfall in the distance, Cassie tried to replay the memory. However, the vision of the memory would not return. Instead, she leaned back against the tree with a soft smile adorning her face while visualizing the very last scene on the inside of her eyelids, and wishing it was somehow true.
Several minutes later, Cassie's hand scratched the back of her head while the other reached for the sky, eliciting a small groan, then they switched. She then twisted to the left, holding it for a few seconds before twisting to the right.
"Ahh!" Cassie screamed and fell sideways.
She quickly scrambled to her knees, putting the tree between her and a large, deep sapphire blue equine sitting mere feet from where she had been. She watched the semi-translucent cobalt blue mane ripple in the soft breeze flowing through the garden. Other than the sparkling silver glitter that seemed to accessorize the mane, it reminded her of Padlock, as the color nearly matched. Cassie then spotted the equine's rump, and instantly hoped that she hadn't spilled ink on the equine when she had her incident earlier.
"Umm, could you please g-go away?" Cassie asked, her hands starting to shake.
"Cnaapejco, Nejco… Cassie. Q iu Xquvkmaa Zibo" the equine said in a feminine voice with a small dip of her head.
The newly identified mare's cyan eyes stared into Cassie's own red-rimmed, puffy, blue eyes, then shuffled towards Cassie a few steps and extended a wing. Cassie rolled back, away from the appendage, and the sparkle in the mare's eyes seemed to slightly fade, and her ears dropped somewhat while she shuffled back to her original position.
The small action lowered Cassie's fear of attack. Looking the pony over, she noticed the mare had wings and a horn like Apolla. Really hoping it was indeed not her fault for the black splotch on the pony’s rump, she decided to call her Ink Splotch. Her mind instantly changed from Ink Splotch to Princess Ink Splotch when the breeze changed direction and a small, black crown became visible just behind her horn.
Cassie backed up to the wall, frantically looking all around for the entourage and guards that would be following a Royal around. Her heart picked up pace, and the drumming slowly started in her ears as she was unable to find where they were hiding.
"Cassie, come," Princess Ink Splotch said with an extended wing.
While she didn't want to, Cassie didn't want to displease royalty either, especially in what was probably the mare's own castle. She nearly stumbled when Princess Ink Splotch rose to her hooves. She knew Ink Splotch was larger, but she didn't expect to be eye to eye with the mare. She walked past the pony, in the direction indicated by the wing.
At first, Princess Ink Splotch stayed just off to the side of her. Cassie's shoulders relaxed when the pony dropped back a few paces behind, and didn't come too close even when she stopped to admire or smell the flowers.
They wandered around the garden aimlessly until they approached the fountain at the center. Plopping down on a bench, a long breath of air whistled past Cassie's lips. She tilted her head towards the sky, rubbing her right thigh with her eyes closed while listening to the fall of water.
A quiet tinkling sound jerked her upright. Looking around, she saw a white flower, edged in a deep purple, floating inches from her face in a pale blue aura. A quick turn of her head revealed Ink Splotch on the bench to her right, sporting a matching glow around her horn. The flower moved down into her hand, the glow stopping once it touched her. Looking up to the mare, she too had a similar flower held to her nose. Taking the hint, Cassie brought the flower to her nose, giving it a sniff. Her lips instantly parted, and she inhaled deeply. She couldn't place the fragrance; strawberry mint was the closest thing she could come up with.
"Thank you," Cassie said to Ink, twirling the flower past her nose.
Cassie twisted on the bench so that she could keep Princess Ink Splotch in her vision, while resuming rubbing her thigh. She heard some clopping sounding off the stones around the fountain. Looking up, Princess Ink Splotch stood with her wing pointing towards the bench she had just been sitting at. Not wanting to upset the mare, Cassie slowly pushed off the bench and shuffled to the other, silently praying the mare would not sit next to her on it.
After watching the mare move towards the bench where she had been sitting, Cassie's shoulders relaxed. She didn't know if the mare knew about her blind spot, but appreciated the gesture nonetheless. Some of Cassie's thoughts while enjoying the garden further anchored themselves in. Here, sitting next to her, was apparently a royal. Cassie had no idea how much pull Princess Ink Splotch had, but the fact that no guards had shown up since she climbed out the window, nor had any come to protect Ink Splotch, had greatly lowered her earlier paranoia. Bundled with the fact that the mare had never once impeded where she wandered or stopped, had recently handed over a lovely flower, and now accommodated her comfort, allowed for Cassie to somewhat relax, though not nearly as much as if it had been Padlock.
The walk had tired Cassie out more than she had expected. She already knew most of that was due to the lack of proper nutrition until recently, and not moving much while in jail probably didn't help. However, she also knew of another reason. She gave a weak smile to Ink Splotch before turning to the right, and propping her leg up on the bench. Giving quick look over her left shoulder, Cassie saw the mare leaning towards her in an effort to see what she was doing.
Seeing the shining interest in Princess Ink Splotch's eyes, Cassie decided it would be rude to deny the royal what she wanted. Letting out a sigh, she beckoned with her arm and said, "~Come~."
Cassie pressed into the back of the bench when the mare scrambled from the bench and nearly stuck her muzzle into her face. Short, quick breaths escaped Cassie's mouth as she started sliding towards the end of the bench. She stopped when Ink Splotch gave a sheepish grin, backed up, and laid down on the ground with all four legs under her like a cat.
Cassie wiped the back of her hand across her forehead. Looking down at her leg, she spotted the thin black ring encircling it. Normally she would have had access to costume glue: it helped conceal the connection plate by making sure the tight, thin rubbery material designed to cover it stayed in place. While the tightness alone could usually keep it covered, sometimes it slipped down a little, like now.
Hoping the mare next to her wouldn't freak out at this next part, Cassie gently pressed around the connection plate with her thumbs until finding the lower edge. Once found she sunk them in until she hooked them on the inside of the fake skin. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched as the mare's interest stayed, instead of turning away like most did the first time, though it did seem her face slightly greened. Pulling the skin outwards, she rolled it down once, then pulled it down over itself until the entire knee joint was exposed. Without some extra measures, that was as far as she would be able to go at the moment.
Working the cotter pin free, Cassie pulled the pin through the anchor holes. Not wanting to lose the two pieces, she put the pin back together and tucked it into her bra, while ignoring the quizzical look from the Princess. Cassie almost giggled when the mare tried to slyly shuffle forward on her belly for a better look when she pulled her leg off. The puppy-dog look from those large cyan eyes broke her. Reluctantly she held her leg out towards the royal mare.
"Please, please, please be careful with it," Cassie whispered as a pale blue aura engulfed it, floating it into the air.
Luna smiled at Cassie, hoping to put the girl at ease. While she really wanted to look at this marvelous piece of craftsponyship and medical technology, she didn't actually think Cassie would let her do more than observe whatever it was she was going to do. Luna sat up, kicking her silver shoes off before gently grabbing the leg with her hooves. Though she had never touched Cassie, she had a feeling this probably felt close to how her skin felt. Luna wished she could ask Cassie how her people made something like this. Everything about it was far beyond anything she had ever seen or heard of. Granted, she was a little behind the times in some respects. If only she could visit the female's dreams, some of the communication issues could be solved, as the dream realm would assist in translating thoughts and ideas. Unfortunately, Cassie's strange lack of magic hindered that.
Running her hoof over the leg, Luna's excited smile diminished. Nopony had been quite sure of anything before Twilight had found her, but the marred surface of the leg seemed to show that not everything had been sunshine and rainbows. Her eye twitched, knowing full well that some of this damage was directly related to her ponies.
Turning it over in her hooves, Luna looked at the part that connected it to Cassie’s leg. She had been sure Twilight mentioned a local pony having spent time trying to fix a part that had bent during her stay in the hospital, and doing a serviceable job, but had marred up the metal in the process. Her brows pinched as she looked it over; there were barely any tool marks, and few signs that it had been beaten back to shape, though you could still tell where it'd been bent. She made a note to ask Twilight if Cassie had done additional repairs herself. For a brief moment Luna's horn sparked to life, before she let the spell fizzle, deciding that an attempt to repair the flesh-like material would cause more damage, since she had no knowledge of its exact composition. Smiling, she instead levitated the leg to the bench next to Cassie's thigh, and gave a small tilt of her head.
Cassie let out the breath she had been holding, thankful that the royal equine had only looked at her leg. Picking it up, she inspected the knee joint. She already had a good idea that there were no issues there, and it only took a few flexes to confirm. This left the ankle joint. Unfortunately, she could only do a half-assed inspection since the skin could not be removed out here. Placing the foot on the bench, she gripped the ankle with one hand, and then pulled the leg back with her other. Cassie nodded to herself when the motion felt fine. Next, she pushed it forward. She sucked her bottom lip in and bit it lightly as she repeated the process. Sure enough, about one third of the way through the motion, the joint briefly caught, and did so again at the same spot when returning to the upright position. Letting out a huff, she tested a few more times, and determined it would be annoying, but didn't need immediate repair.
Twisting and scooting to the side on the bench, Cassie brought her other leg up next to her thigh and laid back. She closed her eyes, placing one hand on her prosthetic, and one in her lap, listening to the babbling of the fountain, and enjoying the fragrant mix of flowers wafting in the breeze.
Sorry it took so long. 
As this appears to be needed and for or the sake of clarification, this is not a 100% hard science, sci-fi story. Cassie is from a future time, not our present day time. They don't have to rely on craptastic rockets that can only get a select few humans to a measly lower earth orbit... when not failing in spectacular fireballs. Her civilization is closer to Star Trek's Federation, only contained within the solar system.
Not may translations in this chapter, but here's the link.
Protocol D: Translations Document
Pre-readers: Admiral Biscuit and Busstop
I thank them both for all the help they gave me this chapter. You should check out their stories, they have some really good ones.
Edited By: Level Dasher
Thank you all for reading, I appreciate it very much. 
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First!
6494817 Seconded
Or you mean first to pre-read?
Take it and run Luna! I mean good chapter. Needs more Rarity.
6494936
Sorry, Rarity is unavailable at this time as she currently in a tight squeeze under the pressure of Big Mac's latest order.
Yay! It's back, this chapter was really funny and cute.
It's sweet that Luna is being gentle with Cassie. But I'm wondering when we'll see Discord, I don't remember if he hasn't shown up yet?
Can't WAIT for the humans to meet the ponies and REALIZED what they did to Cassie! Equestria better be rich, cause they're making one HELL of a withdrawal!
6495192 Eh, they're led by politicians, they'll either sweep it under the rug, or make a big apology ceremony about it, then sweep it under the rug.
Update!
6494907
I don't know if I was the first to pre-read. But that's a good idea--on the draft for the next chapter, my first suggestion will be "FIRST!!!!!!!1!!!"
Unless I'm not, of course.
6495822
Bus had the document first. And thanks for volunteering. :)
6495855
It was my pleasure
6495855 Another great chapter.
6495862 You should get back to writing OTPP.
6495439 Almost everything that the ponies have done to Cassie can be chalked up to misunderstandings and isolated incidents, and can be swept under the rug, by the politicians.
Except for one thing.
Countries guard their military secrets jealously, by necessity. Abducting a citizen of another nation and interrogating them about their government's secrets can only be construed as an act of war. At Cassie's trial, everyone is going to find out that Celestia rooted around in Cassie's head, and helped herself to who knows what classified information.
Celestia basically declared war, when she mind-raped Cassie. At least that's how the war hawks will spin it. Since Celestia is refusing to grant diplomat status to Cassie, and using Cassie to appease her crooked nobles, she's left herself no pathway to smoothing that over. If Humanity needed a convenient excuse to invade and plunder Equestria's resources, Celestia just served them one on a silver platter.
Heh, well, this have been a delightfully silly chapter, full of pettings, belly rubs, and a good ol' ear scratches. And the whole business with Luna was wonderfully sweet. But, in all this positivity, the dark foreboding of 'Protocol-D' from a few chapters ago still hangs over everyone's head, just waiting to kick in and ruin things...
C&C:
"Sorry… it just happens sometimes," she said in embarrassment.
> Remove the extra space.
I'm still enjoying it, but chapters like these really slow the pacing of the story down and add tons of unnecessary fluff.
"making Thirty Eight chase the shaft for a while"
Tell me that ain't a euphemism. That going to be your Skype status next?
Edit: Yes, yes! Down vote me. Call me a dirty little… wait, where am I? Oops, sorry. Thought this was something else.
6494992
Egads, that certainly had no other connotations to it.
But... Cassie! There's a legendary winged unicorn right there! Hug her! It's a moral imperative that you hug and pet and try to put bows in Luna's mane so Celestia can have a laugh at her sister's expense... (or until Cassie gets a whole bag of bows, from Luna, and decorates the even bigger alicorn with 'em, heh heh)
The 'fetch' scene was hilarious however. Those guards probably deserve a commendation in compensation for their pride.
6496442 I can assume at least partial responsibility for that. I keep encouraging her to add/keep stuff that keeps the tone light so as to to not rush the wrapping up of the prison-arc before moving on with the story and skip on the closure of the whole thing.
6497976 Oh. Tone it down?
6498054 Man, time will prove me right
I think.
6495954 Thanks.
And, yes.. yes he should. 
6496277 It can't all be doom and gloom. Thanks, fixed the extra space.
6496442 Well, I have said I like fluff stuff in stories.
However, the next chapter should not have as much, though I am sure most will not like parts of it anyways.
6496844 Nope, its not.
6497363 I can neither confirm, nor deny those allegations. In her defense she was high as a kite and hallucinating them as dogs at the time, but not with Luna. Still, that does sound like something Luna might put her up too.
Thirty Eight needed the exercise anyways. He is last in all the training stuff after all.
6498054 6498061 To be fair Bus, he's not seen the current plans of the side story, or other notes and ideas that have not been used.
6498135
Oh yes, Luna should encourage Cassie's new habit of "accessorizing" pretty ponies, especially the giant one that won't fuss (in front of Cassie) as nimble fingers get to work. Luna will have a camera to memorialize the event of course, the photo(s) to go in her personal stash of blackmail material.
DHX really needs to have an episode just with the Princess sisters since stuff like the above would go on constantly. Although I see Luna as the tactical prankster, striking while the iron is hot, as opposed to Celestia being more of a strategist, playing the long game by setting up her jokes long in advance with equally epic results.
6495439 The Equestrians ARE NOT dealing with politicians but soldiers! Sorry ain't CUTTING IT!!!
Your readers ask for more. I have absolutely no issues with this chapter, in fact I liked it very much.
6498135
Oh youre no fun anymore
6499484 Thanks.
6499525 No true. I'm still fun.
6499587 The comments have taken a pleasant turn— that's good to see.
Apologies for the editing delay: thanks 6497976 and 6495862 for stepping up to the plate. We'll hopefully get some work done today, do a little cleaning up (if necessary), and head on to chapter 13.
6501194 No problem, I guess. I was under the impression that I just ended up rambling about barely related topics whenever I looked at it
6502430 Nopes, you and the Admiral helped me a lot. Which I am very thankful for.
Poor Thirty Eight...
When he was on his back, getting his belly rubbed, he was probably thinking 'Don't initiate "Protocol D"!'
6501194
It was my honor. I'm willing to go more in-depth, if that's needed.
6502430
Heh, you and me both.
6502675 Whoo!
6503733 *clop!* Ramblehoof!
The way they learn each other's language reminds me of Homesick.
Yay! Another chapter! And I'm only three weeks late... but this was a good chapter, very nicely written!
I really like how Luna and Cassie react to each other.
...Moar!
6576236
Thanks.
6683258 Thank you. The two instances where it was spelled wrong have been corrected.
6683258 6703610
Thank you for the catch.
I must have been very tired that day.
6717082 Was only two times, nothing to worry about.
6563979 or like in Misunderstandings
6789699
Ah no worries about that i have learned to keep reading even if i want to throthle all parties involved in a story. Usually there is a reason for things. Problem here as it see it is that this is Celestia's kingdom, something she is proud of and has had a long time to mold in her image. It is telling how things are. Retroactive correction does little to ease things.
EDIT: And yes it happens even in countries that consider themselves civilized it is an utter disgrace... when someone is taken prisoner they are responsibility of the STATE.
*Tinfoil and possible plot theory*
Then again it all seems to be playing in very specific kind of a gain. If certain Griffons would guide certain idiots to do all this and THEN offer her an Asylum in Griffin kingdom it would all be VERY sleek manouvering. Basically making ponies commit political suicide and then picking up the pieces. Equestria would be disgraced in eyes of all local nations, relations to humans with interesting tech would be in tatters and odds are the Equestrian goverment would be seen as attacking CORE VALUES of most people. With luck it could even cause infighting between princessess... all done in VERY leagal ways. All they would need to do is to incite the fools.
But thats just iddle musing am reading forwards still. And dont worry i do not keep reading bad stories, this story has a lot for it but leagal issues like this just really drive me to full "RAWR!" (See exclamation mark!) mode.
6789826
Just remember, no matter how proud Celestia is of her ponies and her kingdom, she does not and cannot control them all. And some are just bad apples as you have read.
Well, there is that trial in the future. Maybe some of those RAWRs will be present.
6791580
Well that is true but there seems to be a LOT of bad apples in main policing force. These are not some outlier local backwaters but the CASTLE dungeon and she was permamently injured by strike force lead by CAPTAIN OF THE GUARDS.
These are supposed to be best of the best, i shudder to think what is going on in smaller towns which do not fall under Celestial monitoring. But then again this is a story ;) dont mind crotchety old man who wants to see problems in all things and knows things are getting from bad to worse.
I have a bad feeling about this bit.
Poor Thirty-Eight. I wondered if Cassie had been given "the good stuff"...