Celestia closed the door to the medical ward gently behind her, so as to not disturb the activity currently going on within. Not that the Royal Healers would have been distracted by such noise, as professional as they were. Still, she felt that they deserved some consideration. She sighed heavily before glancing up, her good eye landing on Black Spark, who was standing patiently in the shadows on the opposite side of the torch-lit hall.

Upon being noticed, the Archduke cocked an eyebrow. “Well?”

“She’s settled in, for the most part at least,” Celestia said softly before turning and beginning to walk slowly down the hall. Her gilded shoes clicked loudly against the marble, the noise echoing in the silence.

As Black Spark fell in line beside her, she continued. “It took a while, but the Healers are now currently taking a look at her. They should be able to see if there are any big issues and have them fixed up shortly. While I do trust the doctors and nurses in Ponyville, I’ll feel much better having a second opinion on the matter at hoof, especially from my own personal doctors.”

“And the mare?”

“Tired and a little stressed, but she should feel better tomorrow after a good night’s rest,” Celestia murmured. “She just needs sleep at the moment.”

“Well, that’s to be expected,” the Archduke hummed.

Celestia gave him a sideways look. “What do you mean?

Black Spark scoffed. “I mean, considering all that she’s been through the past couple of hours. It was a lot to take in, and in a short amount of time too. That can be stressful for anypony, let alone a young mare such as herself. You’re lucky she didn’t pass out at some point.”

“Oh, come now. It wasn’t that bad—”

“You declared her the next Lunar Princess and then, without any explanation to her, or the surrounding ponies, had us pull her out of the hospital to be brought back here to Canterlot, despite her protesting against it I might add.”

“We have better doctors here,” Celestia defended. “She’ll be cared for better, and have easier access to medication.”

“That may be, but according to the Healers, she had a non-stop panic attack the minute the chariot lifted off which lasted the entire ride back. It nearly resulted in her falling out of the carriage at one point.”

“W-well, that’s—”

“Not to mention they reported that she was sick three times due to motion-sickness,” Black Spark interrupted. “And the last time she threw up, there was apparently blood in the bile.”

“All the more reason for the Royal Healers to take a look at her,” Celestia sniffed.

“Princess—”

“I want her cared for, Black Spark, and I want her cared for here,” Celestia said. “Here in Canterlot, she has access to better care and treatment than if she stayed down in Ponyville. We have the best of the best here already looking after me, and I would feel much better knowing that they are looking after her as well.”

“While I’m sure the medical staff in Ponyville General are competent in their job,” she continued as they rounded a corner. “I have more faith in my own Royal Healers. I am sorry for her rough transition, I truly am, but it was necessary to move her back to the palace in order for her recovery to go more smoothly.”

“And the fact that the ride here probably did more harm than good due to the stress?” Black Spark asked, cocking an eyebrow. “She was a lot paler when she arrived here than when she left Ponyville.”

“I’ll have one of the Healers give her some sedative,” Celestia said, nibbling on her bottom lip. “That should help her relax, and allow her to sleep better as well.”

Black Spark snorted softly. “Drugging her is not a solution, and you know it.”

“It’s better than leaving her awake and stressed. I’m trying to help her, and until the Healers can give her a full physical, this is the best way I know how.”

“You’re going through an awful lot of trouble for somepony you didn’t know existed less than twenty-four hours ago,” Black Spark said.

Celestia halted suddenly, yet Black Spark kept walking for a few more paces before noticing. Stopping, he turned and glanced back at her.

The Princess stared down at him, her gaze becoming steely and her voice firm. Even her hair began to fan out more, taking on a more flame-like appearance. “I believe we discussed this on the ride over, Black Spark, and I will not speak of it any further. You have expressed your concerns, yes, but my decision remains the same. End of discussion.”

Black Spark lifted his hoof in a placating gesture.

“I’m well aware of that, Princess,” he said calmly despite the temperature slowly beginning to rise, “and I will stand firmly behind you in your judgment and decision, as I always have. However, surely you must realize that that won’t be the case with everypony. You know as well as I that none of the nobles will be pleased about this.”

“They never are unless it benefits them in some way,” Celestia snorted, her hair calming as a smile spread across her muzzle. The temperature returned to normal as she began walking again. “However, they will not complain.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“It was I that claimed this land from Discord, Black Spark, not them,” Celestia said as they rounded the corner, “and it is I who has defended it throughout the centuries. Alone. Without me, Equestria would have fallen long ago. Without me, this land would be in chaos. As such, if I say that Selena is the new Lunar Princess, then it is so, and any noble that fights it shall soon find that power is a privilege, not a birthright like they so naively believe.”

“They still aren’t going to like it,” Black Spark said airily.

“Just let them try and dispute it,” Celestia smirked. “Unlike these pompous, arrogant nobles nowadays, who are only where they are due to power and greed, Selena is a Princess by blood. She has Luna’s blood flowing through her veins, which makes her more qualified than any of those sniveling, ‘purebred’ cowards.” She paused, before a warmer smile came to her face. “I take that back. There are a few that might stand beside her. A few that have stood the test of time. Did you know, Black Spark, that house Blueblood and house Sparkle are the only original noble houses left? The rest rose to where they are now due to their money or their connections.”

“And what does that have to do with the current situation?” Black Spark asked, bemused.

“Simply that if the nobles can’t handle this new development, then they are more than welcome to give up their position and not come back. I’m certain there are several charities that would love to have some donations sent their way,” Celestia hummed. “In fact, I might do that anyways. The nobles are getting paid a ridiculous amount to just sit around and complain about meaningless things. It’s about time that money goes to good cause. Maybe a few orphanages as well.”

The pair came to a stop at the bottom of the main staircase. It was silent in the massive hall, nopony in sight. The faint sound of clanking metal drifted in through an open window, indicating that some of the guards were already awake in the early hours of the morning and were beginning to make their way to the mess hall.

After a few seconds of silence, the Archduke sighed.

“So this is it then,” he said softly. “You appear to have everything under control and planned for, so I guess this is where we part ways. It was fun, Princess, and I do wish you the best of luck in the days to come. You’re going to need it when it comes to the nobles.”

Twisting her head about, Celestia gave the smaller unicorn a confused look. “Whatever are you talking about?”

“You just found a new Lunar Princess,” Black Spark chuckled. “That means my job as steward of the Lunar Court is over. I’m out of a job, it seems. Strange… I never thought that would happen in my lifetime. I’m must admit, I’m not entirely sure what to do with myself now.” Humming to himself, he cocked his head to the side. “Maybe I’ll find a nice, quiet place out in the country to retire too. Get a break from all the complaining nobles and noise of the city. Write a book or something… what?” His musing was cut short by Celestia’s gentle giggle.

“My dear Black Spark,” she said with a smile. “You most certainly aren’t out of a job just yet, my friend, so put those plans of retirement aside for now. The book will have to wait.”

Black Spark blinked. “But…”

“While it is true that Selena is the new Lunar Princess, and thus is now technically in charge of Lunar Court, your expertise are still needed here,” Celestia hummed. “She’s not quite ready to take the throne just yet. You’ll still be in charge of the court, especially while she’s recovering.”

“So this my ninety day termination warning instead?”

“Hardly,” Celestia said, rolling her eye. “Oh, don’t give me that look, Spark. Even when she does finally take the throne, she’s going to need your help. Help getting the hang of things, as well as help with the nobles. You can toughen her skin for her, and teach her the ways of the job.” She chuckled, her eye twinkling softly. “And in turn, she might just be the thing you need in order to pull that abnormally large branch out of your plot.”

Black Spark gave the princess an unamused look before rolling his eyes as well and bowing his head. “If that is what you wish, your majesty.”

“It is,” Celestia said, sticking out her tongue. “Oh, don’t be so stuffy, Black Spark. This will be good for you, and her. You’ll see. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must go find Captain Blaze. There are a few things we must discuss before I can go make myself presentable for Solar Court.” Turning, she started up the steps.

After only climbing a few however, she turned and glanced back. “Oh, and Black Spark?”

“Hmmm?”

“Tell nopony about her yet. She’s to remain a secret until I myself say so.” With that, Celestia resumed climbing, leaving the Archduke to his thoughts.

“So, my hoof’s totally stuck in there, right? I’m freaking out, the diamond dog’s now having a seizure or something, and I still got half a pie left to go!” the guard finished before stuffing a forkful of scrambled eggs into his mouth.

Across the table from him, two other guards were howling with laughter, banging their hooves on the table. This drew some confused looks from the surrounding ponies, but most just shrugged it off before returning to their own meals.

The mess hall around them was almost full. Guards milled about, chatting with one another or simply getting something to eat before their shift started. The morning meals were always the busiest. The night shift was just getting over, while the day shift was getting ready to start. You could usually tell who had been on duty during the night as they were disheveled, some of the guards even halfway out of their uniforms. Messed up manes and tired eyes were the final touch, most of them looking close to passing out.

In contrast to these poor souls, the guards just getting up were bright eyed, and their armor was polished and fitted properly.

Despite being seen as stoic by the general public, the Royal Guard was more relaxed than most ponies knew. Several tables had guards that were playing cards, betting anything from bits to double-shifts with each other as they gambled away. Every so often a flask would appear, being passed around the group before disappearing again.

And some of the more adventurous guards had even taken after their Princess, and developed a bit of a troublemaking streak. It was not uncommon for an unaware guard to become the target of a prank or two, especially if there was an officer scheduled to make the rounds for the day. Helmets would disappear, armor would become tinted pink, and several unfortunate souls would find themselves the next victim of hair-growing spells.

Still, most of the time the atmosphere in mess hall was relaxed and calm. A place the guards could come to escape from the stress of the day.

“That gets funnier each time you tell it,” one of the laughing guards gasped, wiping a tear from his eye. He sat up, his loose armor clinking slightly as he reached for his goblet. The symbol on the collar of his undervest marked him as a private.

“Yeah,” his companion—also a private—agreed, “but you never did tell us how you got out of there, Briarheart. It couldn’t have been easy.”

“Well, it wasn’t easy, I’ll tell you that,” Briarheart said from around his mouthful of eggs. He swallowed and pointed his fork at his friends. “After I managed to get out of the shack it took me almost three hours to lose the diamond dog, and I ended up twisting my ankle in the process. Luckily, my squad was able to pick me up before the dog came back with reinforcements, or I’d be SOL.”

“Yeah, yeah… keep talking shit, private,” a guard further down the table called out. The insignia on his collar marked him as a sergeant. His uniform was disheveled and he had dark bags under his eyes. “I know for a fact your sergeant had to pull the dog off of you and save your sorry flank. Maybe that’ll teach you to think before you speak next time, especially to a bitch in heat.”

Briarheart puffed out his cheeks, giving the speaker a dirty look but remaining quiet. His friends snickered before returning to their food.

“Aw, let the colt have his fun,” an older mare called out from the next table over. Her uniform was neat and tidy, and she had a light-blue armored saddle resting on her back. “We all have a few stories we like to embellish a little. Let the colt be. There’s no harm in it.”

“Yeah, until it goes to your head,” came the reply. A murmur went around the table, several guards nodding their heads in agreement, while others just snorted and rolled their eyes.

The mare didn’t lose her smile.

“I’ll remember that the next time you’re telling one of the newbies about your night with the three mare over in Baltimare,” she said, cocking an eyebrow at the speaker. This caused the sergeant to sputter and blush, and he lowered his head, focusing on his breakfast.

Briarheart gave the mare a thankful smile, but didn’t return to his story. Instead, he focused on finishing up his breakfast so that he could get to his post on time. A sentiment shared by the other guards, and the conversations around the hall trailed off as they focused on their food. Several of the faster eaters got up and discarded their empty plates before leaving the hall.

The lull in conversation lasted until the main door suddenly swung open, and a new pony limped in. Instantly, she became the focus of most of the hall. As she made her way through the mess hall, one of the younger guards called out. “Hey, tripod! You’re late! What’s wrong? Stairs hold you up again?”

Black Night paused and glared at the speaker, her lips pulling back in a sneer.

“Actually I’m late because of your marefriend,” she growled. “You really need to start satisfying her more, Short Stack. I know you have a small dick and all, but I can’t keep doing it for you. My tongues gone raw again.” Laughter exploded from the table, and Short Stack gaped at her, wide-eyed.

Ignoring him, Black Night continued on her way, limping along on three legs.

Reaching her intended target—a table in the far back corner of the room—Black Night pulled out an empty chair and sat down. As she did so, one of the guards on the other side of the table slid a full plate over to her.

“Thanks, Backdraft,” Black Night muttered sleepily, earning her a nod and a soft smile from the red unicorn. Closing her eyes, she took a bite of her hash browns, chewing slowly. After a moment she swallowed and opened her eyes again.

“Here,” the auburn pegasus next to Backdraft said, pushing over a mug of coffee. “This should help wake you up, Nighty.”

“Thanks, Breeze,” Black Night murmured.

“No problem,” the pegasus said, closing her eyes and smiling, her head tilting slightly to the side. “I know double-shifts are hard, especially when you’re used to sleeping during the day. You’re going to need all the help you can get in order to survive.”

“Yeah,” Black Night growled. “Next time I decided to bet shifts with Surprise, hit me, okay?”

Breeze and Backdraft both nodded, and Black Night returned to her breakfast.

“So,” she grunted after a couple of minutes, “anything exciting happen last night?” She took another bite of food. “I mean besides standing around and staring at walls.”

Backdraft shook her head.

“Not really,” Breeze said. Nursing her own cup of steaming coffee, she took a sip before continuing. “It was rather quiet, actually. Black Spark cancelled Lunar Court, so there wasn’t really anything to do. It was a nice change of pace. Usually I have to stand there and listen to the nobles whine and complain about stupid things. ‘I’m Emerald Gel, and I don’t like having to look at ponies poorer than I am’. Ugh… makes me want to hit them sometimes.”

Black Night nodded absentmindedly before perking up, pausing mid-bite. She gave the pegasus a confused look. “Wait… why did Hardflank cancel Lunar Court? He’s never done that before, like, ever. Even when he’s sick.”

“Supposedly it was because he covered Solar Court for the Princess,” Breeze hummed. She took another sip of coffee before her eyes narrowed. “Although I think something else was going on as well.” Beside her, Backdraft nodded vigorously.

“Like?” Black Night asked, one of her eyebrows raising slightly.

“Well, you heard that the Princess arrived back from her trip to the Griffon Empire in the morning, right?” Breeze asked. When Black Night nodded, she continued. “Well, normally if Black Spark covers Solar Court, the Princess just takes over Lunar Court, then calls for a day of rest, right? So where was she then?”

Breeze paused, causing Black Night to roll her eyes and motion with a hoof for the pegasus to continue.

“That’s just it!” Breeze continued. “She disappeared shortly after returning, and nopony saw hide nor hair of her for the rest of the day. Supposedly it was because she was relaxing after a hard negotiation with the griffons, but she just drops off the radar completely. Not even Raven knew where she was. Then I heard from Steel that Black Spark left Canterlot in the evening with the Royal Healers, and they appeared to be in a hurry.”

Black Night’s eyes narrowed. “The Healers you say? Where were they headed?”

“Not sure,” Breeze said, sitting back in her chair, “but I do know that I saw them returning very early in the morning, with the Princess in tow, although they appeared to be trying to be stealthy about their approach.”

“There’s nothing strange about them not wanting to be seen,” Black Night huffed. “Especially if the Princess was injured. Remember when the tabloids caught the Princess out flying without her regalia? They had a field day about some unknown lover she was seeing. The last thing we need is them getting ahold of a picture of her covered in blood. The press would have a stroke over it.”

“But that’s just it,” Breeze frowned. “She had no visible injuries. Looked perfectly fine. No blood, no broken limbs, no nothing!”

“Maybe she was sick?” Black Night offered.

“Maybe… but I highly doubt it,” Breeze muttered, rubbing her neck. “Besides, she hasn’t gotten sick in decades. Not even a cold or a sniffle. No, something fishy’s going on here. They’re hiding something, I just know it.”

“Well, whatever it is, it’s none of our business,” Black Night said as she finished off the last few bites of her eggs and turned her attention to her hash browns. “The Princess is allowed her secrets, the same as anypony else. She already has the press poking around, she doesn’t need her own guards as well.”

“I know, I know… geez,” Breeze sighed. She ran her hoof around the edge of her coffee mug, pouting slightly. “I’m just curious is all. It’s not every day something mysterious happens around this place. It’s usually all routine and boring. Forgive me for getting excited about the prospect of something new happening.”

Black Night opened her mouth to say something else, but was cut off by a sudden eerie silence that fell over the room. The trio looked at each other in confusion before glancing around. Every other guard had stopped whatever they had been doing and were now facing the entrance to the mess hall, ears perked.

Glancing over her shoulders, Black Night’s eyes widened in shock.

A unicorn in purple and gold armor had pushed open the doors and was now standing in the doorway. Her gray eyes slowly drifted over the assembled guards, an unreadable expression on her face. Despite the fact she barely came up to some of their chests, most of the guards seemed to shrink back beneath her intense gaze. With good reason too.

Captain Ivory Blaze was not a pony you wanted to mess with, even on a good day. She was friendly enough when out of uniform, but when that armor was on, she was no nonsense.

Many an unfortunate guard had learned that the hard way.

Many toothbrushes would never be the same.

The silence in the hall continued for a few more tense seconds before one of the guards suddenly blurted out, “Captain in the mess hall!” As one, everyone stood and saluted.

“As you were,” Ivory Blaze said, her voice calm as she stepped into the mess hall. After a brief moment of hesitation, most of the guards returned to their seats, although a few remained standing.

“I am here,” she continued as she stopped in the middle of the room, “to inform you all of some impending changes that will be happening within the Guard in the upcoming weeks. It affects most, if not all of you, although only a select few will truly face the consequences of said changes.” Worried looks began to spread throughout the room, causing Ivory to smirk. “Now, I know what you all are thinking, and no. Nopony’s getting laid off, let go, or fired in any way. We are not downsizing. In fact, we’re actually expanding.”

Worried looks morphed to confused, several of the guards glancing at each other with mystified expressions. Expanding? How could the Guard possibly be expanding?

“I just finished talking with the Princess,” Ivory continued as hush conversations broke out. “Due to recent events, she feels this change is appropriate, as well as necessary. While I can’t go into detail about said events at the moment, I can tell you that I agree with her decision.”

Black Night glanced sideways at Breeze, who was giving her a knowing smirk. Rolling her eyes, Black turned her attention back to Ivory, who was waiting for the silence to fall again.

“More information will be available to all as the situation develops,” she continued when everyone had finally stopped talking. “However, I’ve been informed that I can tell you all one thing for sure.

“The Lunar Guard is being reinstated, effective immediately.”

Anything else Ivory had been going to say after that was lost in the sudden explosion of voices and guards jumping to their hooves. Excitement rippled through the ranks like wildfire, all decorum forgotten as ponies shouted back and forth to one another. Several even raced out of the hall, eager to find their friends who were currently on shift in order to spread the word.

Through all the chaos, Ivory just stood there, a small smirk on her face. She couldn’t really blame them for their excitement. Every pony in the guard was practically raised on tales of the legendary Lunar Guard. They had been the pinnacle of Equestria’s militaristic might up until their disbandment after the death of Princess Luna.

Catching movement out of the corner of her eye, Ivory turned and watched as a thestral suddenly took to the air. Flying to a nearby window, he pried it open before launching himself outside. It took a brief moment for him to reorient himself, but when he did, he streaked off to the east at high speeds.

Ivory’s eyebrow rose. Interesting. Should tell the Princess to expect some visitors soon.

As the ponies around her chatted and gossiped energetically, Black Night turned back to her friends. “Well, I’ll hand it to ya, Breeze. Looks like something was going on after all. Lunar Guard, huh? Somepony should go inform Darkfur.”

“Oh, this is so awesome!” Breeze giggled, bouncing in her seat and clapping her hooves together. “I thought something was up, but I would never have guess it was something like this! Oh, there hasn’t been Lunar Guard in one thousand years!”

“E-excuse me,” a nearby pony spoke up, “but I thought we already had a Lunar Guard.”

“Nope,” Black said with a shake of her head. “The Lunar Guard hasn’t existed since we had a Princess in charge of the Lunar Court.”

The pony frowned. “But… I thought there were guards active at night.”

“You must be new here, right?” Breeze asked, giving the mare a warm smile when she nodded nervously. “That’s fine. To answer your question, yes we do have guards that are active at night, but they aren’t Lunar Guards. They just cover the night shifts. The Lunar Guard were a different branch of the Guard, separate from the Royal Guard, or Solar Guard as they were called a millennium ago. They operated differently, and even had completely different armor.”

“There’s even a rumor that they were originally made up entirely of batponies,” Black Night added as she took a sip of coffee. “It was said that Princess Luna felt a kind of kinship with them, as both of them were more nocturnal than diurnal.”

“I wonder what happened to cause the Princess to decide to reinstate it,” Breeze hummed.

“Well, whatever it was, life certainly got a lot more interesting around here,” Black Night grunted as she returned to her breakfast.