A Just Cause

by GJT_Productions

Hornpoint

The cream-colored unicorn mare was racing through the streets of Canterlot, her normally well-coiffed mane and tail freeflowing and unkempt as she zoomed toward Canterlot Castle, hoping against hope she could stop disaster with the information on the scroll she was levitating with unicorn magic beside her. As she approaches the drawbridge leading into the castle proper, she notices said drawbridge is currently raised up and skids to a stop in front of the two pegasus Royal Guards posted, one on each side of the path, on the near side of the small creek that acts as a kind of moat for the gatehouse.

"Woah, young mare, what's the hurry? And what business do you have here?" one of the guards asks as he and his partner stare down curiously at the young unicorn mare.

"My name is Java Jive, sister of Moon Dancer, and I need to speak with the Captain of the Guard immediately!" the mare exclaims, still panting from her effort.

"What do you need to speak with him for?" the Guard naturally asks in return.

"I have an idea where Prince Blueblood might have disappeared to after he went missing last night!" Java Jive exclaims again, prompting the guards to exchange looks in surprise as a result.

The Guards whisper between each other for a moment, then the original speaker looks down at Java Jive, pausing a moment before speaking again: "My partner will open the drawbridge. You will come with me under escort. Any information which can locate the missing prince will be most appreciated..."

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A LITTLE LATER...

A worn-out, sleep-deprived Captain of the Guard Gibraltar and Lieutenant Captain Shining Armor were huddled in a meeting with Lieutenant Captain Stratocumulus. As usual with the shift change, Stratocumulus was being briefed on the events of the previous night's Gala, including warnings for his patrols to keep an eye out for the still-missing Prince Blueblood. The entire Royal Guard was operating under the assumption that Blueblood was still "hiding" in Canterlot somewhere, perhaps in a hospital, judging from the ditched clothes that had been found during the initial searching efforts. This assumption was not only seriously mistaken, but it also prevented searches outside the city until it was too late for them to have been of any help.

"I hope that's good news, we could use some right now. Come in!" Gibraltar states to Shining Armor and Stratocumulus when a knock on the closed door interrupts the briefing. The door opens, and Java Jive enters the room with the pegasus escort beside her.

"Who is this, and why is she here, Guard?" Captain Gibraltar naturally asks the escort upon seeing the young mare.

"I know who she is, sir." Shining Armor interrupts. "Moon Dancer's sister, and it must be important if she asked to come to us directly!"

"That's correct, sir. She claims to have an idea where Prince Blueblood may be." the pegasus escort states.

Captain Gibraltar and Lieutenant Captain Stratocumulus exchange glances with each other, and then with Shining Armor. Finally, Gibraltar speaks to the escort again: "Well, we don't have any leads currently, so we might as well hear her out. Let's see what the young mare has in terms of information."

"Thank you, sir!" Java Jive exclaims, putting the small scroll she had been levitating with her magic on the briefing table. Gibraltar unrolls it, holding it open with hooves, as Shining Armor and Stratocumulus slide up beside him to read what was on the scroll.

"'Meet outside southwest gate, Hornpoint will begin tonight... lead by the Unicorn Prince and Captain Troilus'!" Gibraltar reads out loud, sending out a palpable wave of surprise through the room.

"Blueblood must be the 'Unicorn Prince' in the message, I don't see who else it could be, sir!" Shining Armor exclaims.

"Yes, but what is 'Hornpoint'?! If it's an operation of some kind, I didn't authorize anything like that!" Gibraltar responds, looking over at Java Jive as he speaks.

"I think 'Captain Troilus' came up with this operation all by himself, sir." Java Jive answers quietly. "He and the Prince were supposed to lead a bunch of unicorns against the Agents of Chaos supposedly still southwest of Canterlot, in two forts. My sister and I were supposed to be involved in it."

"Unarmed civilians? Against a position fortified by pegasi? Are those ponies out of their minds?!?" Stratocumulus exclaims in horror.

"Maybe, Stratocumulus. And even if they aren't, this operation is very, very illegal." Gibraltar replies darkly. "The question I have for the young mare is where is her sister and why she and her sister didn't go with them."

"We were supposed to go in this operation, sir." Java Jive starts answering. "But Moon Dancer wanted to try to talk to Twilight Sparkle at the Grand Galloping Gala first, however when she was trying to find a way to sneak into the castle she got caught up in an animal stampede of some kind. She got knocked around and scratched up pretty badly, so I had to take her to the hospital to make sure she was alright. By the time we got her bandaged up and checked out, the city gates were closed for the night and we couldn't join the group outside."

"I see." Gibraltar nods, knowing that at the Gala Fluttershy had indeed triggered some kind of animal stampede - the chasing of animals through the castle hallways to catch them had lasted a good portion of the night.

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Silence briefly - and somewhat awkwardly - fell upon the room, Shining Armor and Stratocumulus exchanging looks as Gibraltar remains lost in thought. Finally, Gibraltar looks over at Stratocumulus and asks a question: "What was the status of Lieutenant Troilus during reveille this morning?"

"I was about to talk to you about that before the interruption, sir." Stratocumulus answers. "Lieutenant Troilus and two members of his squad were not accounted for at reveille - their cots were empty but the sheets were still made, as if they had not been slept in at all the previous night."

"Did the remaining squad members have anything to say about why the leader and two comrades were missing?" Gibraltar asks, his suspicions raised higher than before by the new information.

"The last anypony saw of Troilus and the two members was last night before the Gala, that they were headed down to the Quartermaster's office to restock supplies for the morning. I haven't yet checked with the Quartermaster whether they actually went there or not, sir." Stratocumulus replies.

"A very convenient excuse for disappearing into the city, especially considering the Quartermaster wasn't on duty that night and they would've had to leave the castle grounds to find him for authorization to take supplies from the store." Gibraltar comments with a scowl. "At this point, it doesn't really matter whatever they did, the career of Lieutenant Troilus and his two subordinates with him in the E.U.P. Guard are finished. As is the board of inquiry Troilus was supposed to prosecute."

Shining Armor and Stratocumulus again exchange looks at the last statement. Ending the board of inquiry over the riot at the abortive attempt at a Wonderbolt show without pressing a "trial" would let Shining Armor off the hook for any potential negative consequences, but certainly sow seeds of future distrust of the E.U.P. Guard in the process. And, as it turned out, that was exactly what Lieutenant Troilus was counting on happening.

At the moment, though, the circumstances of the time meant Captain of the Guard Gibraltar could not make a better decision than he did. He was about to start issuing a new set of orders when another pegasus Guard - different than the one that had escorted Java Jive to the meeting - gallops up to the doorway leading into the briefing room! At this point, the looks of those already present in the room become more worried than before.

"I can't take any more surprises at this point in the morning..." Gibraltar sighs out, before turning to look at the new arrival. "Please tell me that Prince Blueblood has been found alive and well."

"No Blueblood, sir, but there is something you should see at the groundskeeping buildings. We believe that there is missing equipment and possibly supplies, sir!" the newly arrived guard comments.

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The worry in the room now turns into alarm, and reacting on instinct Gibraltar snaps out a series of orders, standing from his seat around the meeting table as he does so: "Shining Armor, come with me to the groundskeeping buildings! Stratocumulus, stay put here - we'll have to finish this briefing later. The young mare can be escorted back out of the castle. Everypony moving, doubletime!"

Everypony else was stunned just long enough for any thoughts of immediately objecting to fade away, and the others in the room take but a moment to respond to the orders given to them: Shining Armor following Gibraltar out, Stratocumulus shifting nervously to a more comfortable seated position, and Java Jive's escort beginning to lead her back out of Canterlot Castle. A blanket of urgency began descending on the entire scene, arguably much later than it should have...

Author's Note:

(Moon Dancer's sister - who I initially called "Java Jive" in the first story I included her in back in 2015 - has been given a quasi-official name on the MLP:FiM Wiki as "Morning Roast". For the sake of internal consistency, I have decided to keep using the name I originally gave her, but if I ever rewrite the stories, I will definitely change the name during the rewriting process.)