The Prophecy

Ever since I found out about the intrigues surrounding my personality, sleep has become restless. Although several days had passed since that conversation in the library, tension was building in my soul, and when I woke up in the morning, I felt mentally and physically exhausted. I've spent the last few days in this state, and it's become annoying. I couldn't even see the moon in my sleep, which caused me additional anxiety. My thoughts were full of questions: «Did something happen to her?» or «Did she decide to distance herself from me?» I could only hope that this was not the case. It was with such gloomy thoughts that I lay in the middle of the snoring guards in the barracks tonight. I was already getting tired of this condition, and decided, contrary to the daily routine, to go and unwind. It's better than lying down and imagining the worst possible scenarios. Holding my breath, I slowly, millimeter by millimeter, got out of bed. Considering how squeaky they can be, I did this maneuver with extreme caution. The result turned out to be good: he managed to get to his feet without a single noise. Looking around, I made sure that the whole company was sleeping peacefully, as far as it was possible to say about the barracks. I could hear prolonged snoring from different parts of the sleeping arrangement. After looking around once more and making sure that no one was following me, I cautiously looked out into the corridor and then slipped like a shadow to the exit. The orderly who was supposed to guard the peace in the barracks, to my surprise, was just sleeping peacefully at his post. Except that he did it standing up. I've always wondered how you can sleep standing up: it's terribly uncomfortable and unusual, but in time I remembered the stories of one friend who had served, who spoke about the importance and necessity of sleep in the army. And that any soldier will do his best to snatch at least five minutes to sleep. «Either this horse is a bastard, or I don't understand something... he sleeps like a baby,» — I shook my head, — «Not that I blame him for that, but it looked extremely irresponsible. Unless one of my friends tried, which is very unlikely. Otherwise, why would Luna intruder into the sleep of some day person who is snoring so peacefully at his post?» Shrugging my shoulders, I walked on in the direction of the exit. When I reached the door, I pulled out the horseshoe I had already prepared in advance and carefully brought it to the handle, inserting it into the recess. There was a soft click, and the door opened soundlessly, and I was outside. Now it's just a small matter: to close it back in the same way, which I did. I breathed in the fresh night air with great pleasure. I've always loved the night time. I often felt depressed during the day, but at night I really woke up and became more active. It was like I was made for this time of day. Night vision, characteristic color of scales, psychological state in the dark. And the local night air was clean and fresh, like a morning breeze, because Canterlot was located at an impressive height in the mountains. I stood for about a minute at the main entrance to the barracks, thinking about where I should go. «I've already seen Celestia's palace and I don't want to go back there yet. But I have never seen the city itself in all its glory. So I'll take the opportunity to walk around it. And later in the morning, I will quietly return to the barracks» Unfortunately, at night, the Canterlot was guarded by patrols of guards, who were assigned to the squad every morning. I could have run into them if I showed up in the city itself, and then the problems would begin. So it was necessary to remember their driving routes, which I have been trying to remember all this time. «Eh... If there were wings», — I thought with annoyance. Unfortunately, I couldn't transform back into a dragon and take off, and teleportation by magic is not yet available to me. So I started improvising on how to get out of the palace grounds without raising the alarm. In an attempt to come up with something, I began to carefully walk along the inner walls of the castle, looking for any opportunity to enter the wall through the observation tower. But after a couple of minutes I was lucky: suddenly, a deep tunnel covered with a metal sheet caught my eye under the wall. At first glance, he was inconspicuous, but it's not hard to notice him up close. «Yeah, so I'm not the only one sneaking into town at night. The only question is: who did this excavation at all? In any case, I am grateful to the one who dug it here» I pushed aside the metal sheet and looked inside, assessing the depth and width of the tunnel. Fortunately, its dimensions more or less matched the size of my body, so after a little thought, I ducked in there, not forgetting to cover the entrance back. It was a little cramped in the underground tunnel, so I had to literally push myself in order not to get stuck. But as a result, I managed to end up on the opposite side of the wall. At first, I quickly looked around and, making sure that no one saw me, straightened up to my full height. Canterlot itself spread out in front of me with its cozy tall buildings, clean streets and night lights that illuminated the city at such a dark time of day. Glancing towards the palace once more, I noticed that it adjoins the cliff on one of its sides, and the other part of it overhangs the sheer cliff. It was there that I stood and observed the surroundings a few days earlier. And that's where Celestia's student noticed me. Stepping carefully on the cobblestones, I moved along a small city street, looking around from time to time. There were no guards yet, but he had to keep an eye out. However, I had not gone more than a hundred meters when suddenly I felt the same feeling that haunted me on the observation deck in the palace. «Someone is watching me!» flashed through my mind. — Who's here? — I said, not too loudly, and looked around dumbfounded. «There doesn't seem to be anyone. You can't even hear the squeaking of mice or the sounds of birds. It's strange» Sighing heavily, I turned into a darker street and began to walk there. Night Canterlot is a quiet place. Not a single soul, no one is fussing on the street. Only a few windows had lights on, and even then: only through ornate, often thick curtains. The nobility of Equestria lived here, so it's not surprising that they could afford to live in luxury cottages. The dwellings themselves, in turn, were multicolored and shimmered in the light of the night moon, as if they had come off the cover of an animated series, only in a more realistic style. There were roughnesses and irregularities somewhere, but this even gave an additional charm to the city, unlike the canonical Canterlot. Some houses also had balconies facing the street, and somewhere I saw a locked descent to the basement. The city itself turned out to be much larger than in the canon. Everything was here for a carefree life and eternal entertainment: squares richly decorated with garlands and colorful flags, fashionable boutiques, restaurants, ateliers. Of course, they were all closed now, but I could imagine what the city would look like at a busy time of day. «I think it would be a wonderful sight», — I grinned as I passed another locked store. However, I was not allowed to enjoy the night Canterlot for a long time. At first, the feeling that I was being watched increased many times. I started to look around in a puzzled way, but the next moment a black figure in dark leather armor fell from the sky right at me. With one sharp thrust in the back, she almost knocked me off my feet. But the blow was so unexpected that despite the difference in size, I still could not resist and fell on my stomach, and the attacker ended up on my back. He clanked his claws out on his limbs and growled at me in Equestrian right above my ear: — Stop right there, criminal scum! Nobody breaks the law on my watch! * «The emptiness of you! I got caught!» — I thought, annoyed. Squinting and turning my head slightly to the side, I was able to determine that I had met no ordinary pony or even a pegasus. I saw the real thestral. The shape of the body and the voice indicated that it was a mare. There could be no mistake — webbed wings, fangs, dark and tough-looking fur. Small tassels grew on the ears of the thestral, and she, like me, was the owner of vertical pupils and glowing eyes in the dark. She was small, of course, even by Pegasus standards, but she had the strength and ability to neutralize with one blow. I immediately guessed that the presence of the Thestrals was a matter of the hooves of the night princess. On the one hand, it was pleasant to realize that Luna was really making efforts to restore the personal guard and recruit a race of beings devoted to it. On the other hand, the thestral woman who caught me, who clearly took a couple of lessons from the guard from the game TES: Oblivion, is going to take me to places not the most remote, where there will be a checkered sky, and striped friends. Anyway, that's exactly the comparison that came to mind. While I was in a complete stupor, unable to say anything, the thestral put claws screwed to my throat by a special mechanism to the accumulators and growled: — Stay down and don't move! You're under arrest! I really panicked when she said that. Out of desperation and misunderstanding of the situation, I began to squirm under her hooves and mumble to myself in a trembling voice: — I'm sorry… What are you going to arrest me for? I didn't do anything! She looked at me and narrowed her yellow eyes, snorting with displeasure. «I don't have to answer your questions, brat», — she said to me, and then suddenly took out an object from her shoulder bag that looked very much like a bracelet. One deft movement and it was already fastened on my horn, and she herself pressed down on the base of my neck and the middle of my back, slightly digging her claws into my flesh, smirking smugly. Startled by this, I tried to reflexively move under her, but suddenly felt a strong stabbing pain in my spine and the base of my neck. I couldn't stand it and growled, sprawled out on the road exhausted. It felt like I'd just been electrocuted. «What the?.. Did she use a Chinese acupuncture technique to disable certain muscle groups in her body? I didn't think that such a technique was practiced here» I panicked even more, but I didn't lose my clarity of thought. Realizing that resistance was definitely useless now, I decided not to resist, although I really wanted to. «All this is good, of course, but why am I?! Apparently, the Moon Guard has a much tougher arrest technique, just like the guards from «The Elder Scrolls» series. And what have I done to be treated like this? Where is justice?» — Don't even bother, — The thestralka grinned and bent over my muzzle, hissing, — This bracelet on the horn won't let you do magic. Now answer me: who are you? I was about to get indignant, but suddenly I found that I couldn't even speak. I convulsively began to make ridiculous grunts, as if demanding that they let me go and remove the effects of this strange technique. After a while, the mare finally removed her claws from my neck and back. I started to feel like I could move and talk again. — What the fuck is going on here... — I shouted at first at the top of my voice, but when I saw the derogatory look of the mouse-winged pony, I bit my tongue and continued in a calmer tone, — Couldn't you just stop and ask normally? What kind of manners? — Don't push it, brat, — The mare said sarcastically, — I don't work the way my colleagues from the Day Guard do. I nodded understandingly and sighed heavily. «Yes, it's obvious. It's just special forces compared to the police» — Let me guess, — I replied, after a short pause, — By more violent methods and do you prefer to stop crimes before they are committed? — What a shrewd stallion, — She remarked with irony in her voice, as if purring, — Let's see how you talk when you stand before the Mistress's court. But this one put me in a bit of a stupor. «Mistress? What a strange nickname for Luna» — Mistress? ls that Princess Luna? — Lord of darkness and night, fool! — The guardian of the night blurted out, holding her claws dangerously close to my muzzle, — Don't you dare talk about her like that, otherwise, I'll skin you. Is that clear? «What an impulsive person. She's just burning with the desire to slash my whole face» Dark thoughts crossed my mind when I imagined what would have happened if she hadn't held back. «Brrr! It's creepy!» I wanted to get rid of her company as soon as possible, but it was not possible. I did not like such personalities, but it seems that it will not be so easy to get rid of her, and therefore I could only say: — I see, I see! But I don't think she would approve of such bravado. — Why is that? — The thestralka was a little surprised, getting off me and taking a step back, — Do you really know her? — I know, — He snorted in annoyance, — I personally saved her. My name is Stevrian Anlas. If that name means anything to you, then I advise you to let me go now. I didn't do anything and just walked around the city! The expression on the mare's face changed from indignation and contempt to surprise, and then completely to misunderstanding. — Are you really Stevrian Anlas? I've heard about you. The thestral was confused. It seems that she remembered something, and therefore hurriedly moved away from me and blinked several times in amazement, shaking her head. «Yeah. Don't tell me you're going to start blowing dust off me again», — I thought irritably, — «First you beat me, and then you stroked me, kissed me and put me to bed! I exaggerate, of course, but it's still an outrage!» I nodded and snorted, still annoyed by the situation. I wanted to reproach her for what she had just done and literally press her muzzle into the dirt, pointing out the mistake that she had made, but I remained silent. Being rude and rude to everyone I meet is not what I should be doing right now. — Mistress talked about you, but she didn't mention your appearance and she spoke well of you, — With these words, the mare slowly came up to me and took off the bracelet from the horn, and then nodded to me. I got to my feet and shook my head slightly, coming to my senses, simultaneously discovering that my entire belly was covered in road dust and abrasions. «That's rubbish — she took it and ruined my whole walk from scratch!» Instead of grumbling, I just took a deep breath of irritation and dusted myself off. She might not have blown away the specks of dust, but she would have relaxed by looking guiltily to the side. — My name is Vulpa, and I apologize for the unexpected attack, — She tried to smile, but her smile turned out to be like a grin, — Just Vulpa. The thestral stretched out her leg in front of her, expecting a «hoof knock» as a greeting. At first I looked at her with condemnation, then at the outstretched leg and after a short pause I answered it. — I forgive you, — I muttered gloomily. But they didn't let us talk any further: we heard the clatter of approaching hooves. — Someone is approaching us, — I noticed immediately, trying in vain to find at least some kind of shelter. — Most likely, it's the guards, — Vulpa explained in response, looking in the direction of the approaching noise, — They heard our screams. Don't be afraid. I'll cover for you. A lone day guardsman in full gear appeared around the corner of the house. He jumped out to us and stopped a few meters away, holding his weapon in front of him. But when I looked at his face and realized who was in front of me, my heart immediately calmed down. — Star? — I called out to him, — Are you on patrol today? I don't remember it being your turn today. — Stevrian? — He was sincerely surprised in response, — And where are you from here? Shouldn't you be in the barracks? — It's a long story, — I said, smiling. I was lucky to come across a friend! It's like a stone from the soul! — Is there no one from the guards nearby? — I asked and went up to Star. We bumped hooves just like I did with Vulpa. — No. I'm the only one patrolling this area today. But we'd better move away — passers-by shouldn't see us. The stallion hastily looked around and said: — There's no one here yet except the three of us. Vulpa, ready to say something to him at any moment, just looked at us in bewilderment, not expecting such a denouement of events. — Do you know each other? — That's all she could ask. — Yes, — Dark and I answered at the same time, but I decided to finish, — We are friends. — So you shouldn't be here? — Thestralka asked me, frowning again. I immediately recoiled from her in concern, fearing a repeat of the situation with my neutralization. — He should be in the barracks and having sweet dreams with Princess Luna, — Star snorted back. This answer surprised me — I even gaped. «What kind of jokes? Does he already know everything, or is he only indirectly guessing? If the first option is correct, then I may have problems if he talks about it from right to left. A friend, of course, but I'm not sure if he knows how to keep secrets. I should have thought about it earlier» — I was going to see the city while everyone was sleeping, — I quickly replied, returning the old expression of the muzzle, — I even found a tunnel under the wall that I could crawl through… And I guess I shouldn’t have said that about the sapping. But here my tongue overtook the thought, and I regretted it a bit. — What kind of tunnel? — My interlocutors asked at the same time, clearly surprised. I cursed myself inwardly, but answered as if nothing had happened, so that they would not have time to accuse me of anything. — Like what? It was covered with a metal plate. I nodded my head in the direction where the palace was supposed to be. — However, I do not know who needed him, — I shrugged, — He was just there. Vulpa and Star exchanged glances, then looked at me with concern again. — Someone could have got into the palace, — Thestralka broke the silence, — If they are saboteurs or spies, we need to find them urgently! — I agree, — Dark nodded, — To raise the alarm in the barracks? Vulpa shuffled her hoof thoughtfully, and then shook her head: — It's not worth it. First, we need to scout the situation. You will act with me! — Okay, okay, — The stallion immediately calmed down and turned to me, — Stevrian, since you're here, could you help us? I sighed inwardly, realizing that I was getting involved in another adventure. «It looks like all these adventures on my lazy ass are going to haunt me until I die! But if this is the case, then you can't get away with it» — What needs to be done? — I replied readily. "I've heard that dragons can see through invisibility, so you'll be our eyes and ears, — Vulpa said, squinting. Of course, I was a little surprised, but I nodded, pretending to understand the situation. «Can dragons do that? I didn't know that. It's not like I'm a local. Can I really do that too?» With a slight whistle, I realized my potential. «If you think about it, the ability is cool! Do all dragons have it? This is very interesting! I'll have to read about it» But while I was thinking what else the local dragons could do, Vulpa was already giving us orders: — I'll check the palace grounds, and you'll scour the city. If they are saboteurs, we must take them as soon as possible! Having said that, Vulpa flapped its wings, took off from the spot and tore off in the direction of the palace, leaving the two of us on the road. We slowly exchanged glances with Star. — I don't like this whole situation at all, — the stallion shook his head, clanking his armor, — Why did you decide not to sleep today? — Is that a reproach? — I raised an «eyebrow» questioningly. «You've found something to discuss now», — I was indignant to myself. — More of a rhetorical question with a bit of reproach, yes, — Dark snorted and frowned. — Okay, it doesn't matter, — I sighed, rolled my eyes and then pressed a hoof to my forehead just below the horn, — So are we going to inspect the territory of the palace or not? — Of course we will, — The stallion snorted again, — Follow me and look around more carefully. If you see anything, tell me right away. I nodded, and we set off together. For a while we wandered the streets, looked at the houses, examined the walls surrounding the city and even climbed the walls themselves to explore the surroundings. Being on one of the walls, it began to dawn on me that some things here do not correspond to the canon. For example, the city turned out to be much larger than I had imagined, and only now it dawned on me. The palace, it turns out, did not hang over the abyss, but was located near a cliff, although it was facing the slope on one side. The one from which I surveyed the surroundings of Canterlot. And there is also an emergency exit from the palace, through which I was first brought to Celestia. «Yeah. Looking for saboteur spies is like a needle in a haystack. So you can spend the whole night searching in vain» Reflecting on the scale of the city, I disappointingly noticed that the situation was not the best. It was quite similar in size to a large medieval city, in which at least fifty thousand citizens lived. And looking for possible saboteurs among them is a really long and tedious task. Several hours passed in this way. I was already starting to feel sleepy, and I was already thinking about giving up this event, when suddenly I noticed a slight fluctuation of the aura near the local «elite» pub. It was open around the clock, and at the moment there was fun and loud noise. Looking closer, I saw a faint distortion of the air, as if someone was under invisibility there. And judging by the contours, one of the hiding ones was an earth pony, and the other was a unicorn. I began to suspect that there was clearly something wrong with these two. For who would hide under invisibility in the middle of the night? Only ponies are not well-intentioned. Realizing this, I stopped Star with a light kick and whispered to him: — I see two translucent figures at that pub over there, — I pointed to the pub with my hoof, — One of them is a unicorn, and the other is an earth pony. It seems that these are exactly who we are looking for. What are we going to do? Star slowly led me under the shadow of the buildings and answered, peering towards the main entrance to the pub: — I'll take off my armor and put it over there, — The stallion pointed to a dark corner near the boxes, — And pretend to be an ordinary visitor, and you try to sneak around them from the other side and block the escape route. We don't attract too much attention, otherwise the onlookers from the pub will come running to stare at us. — I wonder how I'm going to do it secretly with my... dimensions? — I raised an «eyebrow» and stretched one leg up as far as I could. I used my hoof to reach the top of Star's head, as if to show the difference in size. — There are two of them, and it's like chasing two hares at once, — I continued meanwhile, — They may well scatter in different directions. And wait, why would you take off your armor? Is it safe? — So that they don't run away as soon as they see me, — Dark winked and then grinned, — That's why there are two of us. We'll catch at least one. Now let's get started. Star took off his armor without a single noise and stacked them near the boxes so that they would not show through. Then he nodded at me and headed towards the «elite» pub, pretending to be a drunken guest. He staggered, then shouted loudly, then hiccupped and stumbled. In a word, he convincingly played the drunkard who came for a drink. I, trying to stay in the shadows, walked around the pub and began to approach the spies from the other side. Dark got to the supposed door of the pub first, and he began to stagger from side to side, allegedly trying to get into the door. I clearly noticed how a couple of invisible men began to move away in my direction, trying to avoid meeting with a violent visitor, and soon I was very close to them. One more movement and I could have grabbed one of them, when suddenly the earth pony turned around and, meeting the gaze of my dragon eyes, screamed loudly, disrupting the operation. «Great. Just fine!» — I thought with displeasure. Before I could do anything, the stallion deftly twisted around and hit me in the face with his hind legs, after which he rushed to run, knocking his partner off his feet. The blow was very strong, which made me stagger. But I did not lose my head and abruptly stepped on the still lying second stallion with my foot, not giving him the opportunity to get up. As soon as I did that, his invisibility immediately fell off. — Let me go, you skank! — The unicorn protested loudly, trying to escape, — I don’t want to get into that pit! I still didn't understand what he was screaming about, but the next moment there was a quiet click, and a purple stone appeared at neck level, which suddenly flickered and turned white. At the last moment, I noticed how the opponent closed his eyes and turned away, and I immediately realized what it could be. «Grenade! Fuck!» But it was too late, and I didn't have time to turn away. Bright light hit my eyes sharply, and the cotton made my ears buzz. Blinded, I took a step back, feeling several blows being thrown at me. I tried to blink, quickly moving my head from side to side, trying to throw off the effect of blinding, but because of this I missed the criminal, and he ran away, clacking his hooves loudly. «Fuck! It’s an analogue of light-noise? How fucking painful!» I cursed in my head, growling and stepping back. My eyesight never returned, but Dark helped me get my bearings — he gently nudged me in the side, saying he would help me, and quickly took me to a dark corner while onlookers from the pub gathered at the noise. Fortunately, they didn't have time to notice me, even though it was close. I shook my head again and blinked rapidly, trying to come to my senses. Finally, my vision, albeit very blurred at first, began to return to me. — Bitch! — I yelled, angry, — That bastard. What the fuck was that? Is this a gre… — Be quiet! We've attracted too much attention, — Star interrupted me, looking around. I looked at him, squinting, and still nodded, then examining myself for damage. I didn't get anything but minor bruises, but I noticed something shiny in my fur. As it turned out, small fragments of the crystal itself, very sharp in appearance, got stuck in me. But it's good that they got stuck in the wool and did not get inside the body or, for example, into the eyes. Otherwise it would be much worse. «Not only the luminous noise, but also the fragment. Fuck! How lucky that I have such thick wool, and small pieces to cause harm» Surprised at what had happened, I thought, realizing that I was very lucky to get off with little blood. My colleague, noticing my confusion, shook his head and commented: —It seems to be a Hellfire lightstone. This is the special equipment of the Royal Guard! Where did they get it from? — It looks like a stun grenade, — I said, trying to figure out who this Hellfire was, because it sounded like the name of some secret weapon, — Now we have to be careful. There, even the lights were on in the windows. I looked around and noticed how lights began to appear in some houses, and alarmed ponies came out on the balconies, trying to figure out what had happened on the street. Someone even started calling the guards loudly and talking loudly with the others about what had happened. I literally had to squeeze myself into the wall of a dark alley so that I wouldn't be caught on the spot. — That's not the right word! — Dark stamped his foot irritably and spat, — Now we have to catch both of them again… That's griffin shit. — Aren't we going to raise the alarm? — I asked, noticing that Star was starting to hurriedly head down a dark alley to another street, in a hurry to hide from other people's eyes. I slipped behind him. — No. It's too long. We'll only scare them more, — The stallion called over my shoulder. — Okay... — I sighed, — Let's go look for this «thief». We ran through the streets again, clacking our hooves and looking out for any suspicious activity or ponies that were walking around the city at this time of day. We occasionally came across passers-by, but we successfully avoided them by side and alleys, remembering that I should not be seen. But after what happened at the bar, the city became a little more lively, and interested citizens of Canterlot came out of their houses in order to look around and understand who had raised such a fuss. So as a result, we had to turn into another area of the city, where it was still quiet and everyone was asleep. Along the way, we decided to have a little conversation to ease the tension: — Y-yeah. We will be looking for criminals for so long. Let's think about where they would go now, considering that we burned them down? — I suggested, slowing down a bit on the spot. — Hmm, — The guardsman mused, — I think they would have found some secluded place to hide. Probably somewhere in the area. Precisely! There are also abandoned buildings here! Should we check them out? I nodded in agreement. A sound idea. But on the way, I decided to discuss one more thing with him out of interest: — And what are these crystals that were blown up? The Hellfire Stone. — This is the equipment that the Royal Guard uses, — The stallion said dryly, — No one uses such equipment except them. I was really surprised. «The Royal Guard? Where did they get such equipment? This is already a serious cause for concern, right?» — If I understood correctly, then they are Celestia's personal guards, or rather her elite, so to speak, — I said with a guess, still wondering how they differ from the usual day guard. — Not only that, — Star snorted, shaking his head, — They also play the role of special forces. They go into battle when the official guard and the army are powerless. I nodded understandingly. «Yeah, so it’s something like SWAT? Peculiar» It was unclear in this case, there was only one thing: — But where did they get this equipment? — I don't think it can be so easily taken and stolen, — Suddenly Dark stopped and thought deeply, — Maybe they are connected with the guard? What do you think? — Anything is possible, — I shrugged, but then I suddenly realized an idea, — What if they're from there themselves? It sounded logical, though strange at first glance. But I would not be surprised if, with all the corruption of the authorities and officials, even in the royal guard, such incidents occur. — Then their fate is unenviable, — The stallion shook his head, — As is the reputation of the guard, too. — And how dangerous are they? — Judging by the stories, — the companion sighed, — They are very dangerous. The fact that you caught them off guard suggests that they are either bandits or recruits. — Recruits? — I raised an «eyebrow» and chuckled, — Ordinary soldiers? No, they don't really look like them. They have honed combat skills and good reactions. — No, not the privates. They are all officers from lieutenant up. «It turns out that we are dealing with officers, if these are not ordinary criminals?», — I sighed, anxiously realizing what was happening, — «Then this explains a lot. And their level of training, and the availability of special equipment. But not the motivation for their attempted sabotage. Why would the Royal Guard be doing this?» — And why would they want to harm her... «Majesty»? — I frowned back, throwing the last word caustically. — That's what we'll find out when we grab it. In the meantime, are we moving on? — Yes, let's go, — I nodded, and we continued on our way. After a while, we reached the outskirts of the city, where empty and unfinished houses were already beginning. Some of them looked almost like cottages in the center of Canterlot, only empty, and some looked askew and unfinished. And luckily for us, no one was here. «I don't like this place. Are you sure there's no one here?» — I thought, looking around. Just as I was thinking about it, a flower pot fell next to me. I took a couple of steps back from the surprise and, stopping, looked up. — Look! I found him! — Noticing how some kind of unicorn-shaped shadow was trying to climb onto the roof through the second-floor balcony, I shouted. Hearing this, the enemy got worried and speeded up, and Star came running. — Smart, but it won't hide from me! — Having said that, Dark run to the door and beckoned me to follow him, — Kick down the door, and I'll rush in and try to grab one in the house. His partner should also be sitting there. Take the other one on yourself. — Is this house empty? — I asked, looking around. — Yes, — Star nodded, — Don't stand there and help me! Realizing that I couldn't delay, I quickly walked up to the door and, turning my rump to her, smacked my hind leg against the door with gusto. It cracked long and broke out from the hinges inside. — Wow! That’s power. But be careful with it, Stevrian! You’ll kill someone. We need to catch them alive. — I’m sorry, — I groaned, and I turned around looking into the darkness, — Go! To be honest, I was surprised at my own strength. I didn't have that much power in my previous life, even though I've been playing sports for a while. However, I now realized that the physical strength in the new body far exceeded the abilities of the average pony. And it was not only about my height, but also about my nature. I really should have been careful in using my abilities. Dark rushed inside the house, and I followed, looking around. One of the earth pony criminals was waiting for us at the entrance, who swung to hit me with his hooves. I barely managed to take a step back, but a second blow immediately flew into my chest. Staggering, I pounced on the enemy with the speed I was capable of and, ignoring his resistance and rebuff, sent him to a meeting with the wall of the house with several hooves on his chest and head. Fortunately, I was in a larger weight class, which means I had an advantage in narrow spaces where the opponent could not maneuver. His consciousness did not survive such an unexpected turn of events, and the criminal immediately passed out after my short series of blows. I had previously practiced it with the rest of the soldiers in training. At the same time, Star went to the second floor to get the second criminal. And a second later, when I finished with the first opponent, there were sounds of a struggle, and then a bright flash lit up the entire second floor. Deciding to help my friend, I immediately went up the stairs, but I saw a criminal piled up with furniture and a tired but jubilant Star above him, who shook his head a little, as if he was seasick. — Oh these are light-noise crystals. But I managed to catch this bastard by surprise! Useful my ability to quietly get to the enemy. Star smiled at me, then shook his head, trying to regain consciousness. He was only slightly battered, as could be seen from the abrasions on his shoulders and neck, but overall, he was fine. It made me happy, even though he was screaming loudly, almost deaf. — Are you okay? — I mocked, running up to Star, — I stunned the second criminal on the first floor. The unicorn squinted and pointed its ear. — I can’t hear you! — He cried again, — Caught you? Well done! «I hope he will soon recover» — Mentally added and nodded him, going down. — Let's take them to jail! — Star shouted at me again, finding several coils of rope on the second floor and telekinetically handing me one of them. — And how will we lead them? — I grinned, accepting the rope, — Shall we tie it to my back and carry it away like this? — It's a very good option, — The stallion smiled, — You're so healthy! You'll drag them both away. — Are you serious or are you joking? — I was genuinely perplexed. «No, it’s not serious, Star! No time to joke!» — Does it look like I'm joking? — Dark chuckled. All I could do was shrug and breathe hard. «Okay. I’ll also be a tractor horse today» Tying both stallions to my back, we headed towards the castle. On the way, Star left for a short time to find and put on his armor set, and closer to the entrance to the palace, we crossed paths again. Arriving at the main entrance, we split up, after removing the still unconscious scoundrels from my back. Dark thanked me and signaled a Vulpa flying in the sky, and I decided to use the previously discovered tunnel and thus get back to the palace grounds. The day, or rather the night, turned out to be very active and eventful, so I decided that for now I had enough adventures and problems. After that, I was supposed to go to bed and get a good night's sleep, which I planned to do. «It seems that adventures find me themselves, and I am gradually drawn into the maelstrom of events, not wishing it so», — I thought ironically, — «It seems that this will continue, and this will certainly not allow me to get bored in the typical gray everyday life in the barracks. So I will probably just have to get used to it. The prospect is not the best, but the other is not yet» Already on the territory of the palace, I suddenly came across a group of guards in full gear, who were quickly and noisily heading in the direction from which I came. I quickly retreated to the darkest place I could find. They were too worried about their own affairs, so they didn't notice me. Guessing that they were raised about the captured criminals, I hurried to miss them, and went straight to the barracks before anyone thought of stopping me. I used the horseshoe again to open the door of the barracks, I clicked the lock and found myself inside the location. The orderly on the bedside table was still fast asleep, although it was already three o'clock in the morning on the wall clock. «You are sleepy. Even yesterday’s storm did not wake you up!» — To quote a phrase from Morrovind, I shook my head and gently walked past him, trying not to linger. At the very entrance to the dormitory, I paused and, after thinking about it, decided to wake up the would-be guard. Taking a ruler left by someone from the stand with telekinesis, I stepped back into the very passage of the bedroom and aimed it directly at the stallion, which caused him to wake up abruptly and look around in fright. Before he could look in my direction, I hid in the sleeping arrangement and headed for my bed. When the puzzled orderly came into our room, I was already lying in bed and pretending to be asleep, so he didn't notice anything suspiciously, and soon returned to duty. I could only hope not to sleep any more. In general, there were no incidents until the morning, but I slept poorly for obvious reasons, and then nodded off in the morning. However, there were absolutely no consequences, and the day after the divorce, some unknown stallion of a black suit and with a red mane approached me: — Stevrian, — He called me sternly by name and put one of his bags on the floor next to him, — Do you know anything about the events that happened last night? I took a closer look at the patches on his military uniform and determined that it was one of the sergeant commanders of the unit. — What are you talking about, sergeant? — I asked by rank, asking a question and pretending that I sincerely did not understand the situation. He sighed and shook his head in displeasure: — During the night, Star caught two criminals and a small group of guards was sent to deal with this situation, — He began with a serious expression on his face, — One of the soldiers noticed someone who looked like a big unicorn. Also, another fighter who joined the outfit that night said that at one point someone threw a ruler at him. The stallion took a ruler out of his bag and showed it to me, nodding at another stallion at the opposite end of the corridor: — Everyone says you were here. Suspicious, don't you think? — I find it. But I have no idea who it was. Anyway, who would let me out on the palace grounds at night? I shrugged my shoulders, remembering that I shouldn't even have that miracle horseshoe that opens some doors. — Okay, — The sergeant sighed with relief, — But if you find out something, then keep me and the command informed. — Yes, sir! With that, he turned around and went on to do his business. I breathed a sigh of relief and went back to my business. I got carried away today, but will I be so lucky in the future? Is unknown. Therefore, you need to be careful with night walks. Towards the end of the day, the entire company was informed that Star had been promoted to private first class by order of captain Shining. Of course, this was only in words so far, because this procedure still has to go through bureaucratic hell, but it pleasantly surprised me. He was noticed and appreciated, which was good news. Although at the same time I was thinking about the army of this country: «What are the ranks of the Army of Equestria? Private, sergeant, lieutenant, captain... And the rest? For example, generals? Or major, petty officer, ensign. About the latter and at all a lot of anecdotes compose in Russia. It will be necessary to study this issue» In the evening of the same day, an extraordinary divorce took place, at which captain Shining Armor noted that due to the activity of criminals, security should be vigilant, and ordered to strengthen the outfits. And then he announced the official promotion to the rank of Star: — ...by order of captain Shining Armor, that is, mine, and our Princess Celestia, you, Dark Star, have been promoted! — The blue and white stallion announced loudly, — Dark Star, get out of line! The hero of the occasion came forward and stood in front of the captain with his head held high «at attention». — From now on, you are no longer a private, — The white unicorn continued loudly, —You have been promoted to private first class. — I serve Equestria and the princess of our Celestia! — The stallion rapped out and, after a nod from the captain, returned to the line. «You deserve», — I thought, standing on the parade ground, looking at all this from the side. Of course, they didn't mention me — I wasn't in the military, and I wasn't supposed to be there. But I still felt joy for my friend, who did not lose his head and caught the criminals, although not without my help.