Hospital time is slow time, and you don't even have the food to look forward to. Phillip was currently trying to pass the time with some composing. His eyes shut in concentration, he gently wafted his right hoof through the air, imagining that he was dancing it across an ivory keyboard, eliciting a calming melody that filled the still air...at least until he was interrupted by a loud noise from the hallway.

"Ah-CHOO!"

Opening his eyes, he smiled softly at the small mare entering the room. "Still fighting that cold, Sergeant?" he said.

Miley's eyes widened when she saw him. "What happened? Where's Lieutenant Knight?"

"He's fine," Phillip reassured her. "He saved my life, in fact." He gestured into the chair next to the bed. "You might want to sit down."

Miley took a seat and for the next quarter of an hour, Phillip supplied her with a full account of his adventures with Silent Knight, from their meeting at the hospital to their discovery of Soft Step's apartment to the fight at the park and his subsequent rescue. Miley proved to be a good audience, gasping in all the right spots. When his story was finished, she sat in silence for a few moments, absorbing the new information.

"Tandem Check," she said softly. "We should have known. We should have known!"

"The only way you would have known is if he was bad at his job," Phillip replied. "And Zugzwang only lets the best be his spies. It's how he's so well-informed."

"But I don't understand," Miley frowned. "Why would...Zugzwang tell you how to go after his own spy?"

"It's all a game to him," Phillip growled through his teeth, his hackles raised by the mention of his enemy's name. "He doesn't care what happens to Check. He just wants to see how smart we are." He looked back at Miley. "And you, Sergeant, strike me as being very smart. You think you can get into his office, find that envelope?"

"I'll have to be sure of what I'm looking for," Miley said with a thoughtful grimace.

"That envelope will probably hold some evidence of some kind: maybe notes or messages. It'll probably be in plain sight, somewhere where he'll have access to it if it contains vital information. It'll be plain-looking, something that you wouldn't look twice at normally."

Miley nodded. "I'll do my best."

"When you get the envelope, bring it to Silent. He's at the Red Oak Hotel in the east end, room 15."

"I will," she said, rising. She hesitated at the door. "Phillip...thanks. For all the help."

"Best way you can thank me is by getting that wanker," Phillip replied. "And stay out of trouble while you're doing it!"

"Don't worry about me," Miley smiled as she exited the room. Her reply was almost immediately followed by a skidding sound, a cry of "Whoa!" and a loud crashing. A plastic yellow "Caution: Wet Floor" sign flew past Phillip's door.

He stared out after the Sergeant, an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. This was a game in his opponent's eyes, but it was always to Zugzwang's advantage, never theirs. He could never see all of the pieces, couldn't always tell what the next move was...sometimes he wasn't sure he knew all the rules. Had he just sent Sergeant Hooves off to her imprisonment or death?

He no longer wished to think about the things he couldn't control, but he couldn't calm himself with imaginary melodies. Turning to the morphine drip, he increased the dosage by a couple of notches and settled down into a drug-induced haze. He knew it only hid him from the world, but for a while, he could find some peace in the ability to feel nothing.

Lieutenant Tandem Check walked down the hallway of the Canterlot Palace, past the tall windows that revealed the darkening evening sky outside. He was a tall, lean earth pony with a dark blue coat, a pure white mane and tail and small, intelligent dark green eyes that always seemed to be squinting, darting around in a snakelike manner as he observed everything and everypony, as if calculating distance and trajectory. His cutie mark was a pair of black chess rooks. A brown leather holster slapped rhythmically against his right hip as he walked.

"Is everything all right, Sergeant?" he asked. His voice was soft, but carried as though he was speaking directly into Miley's ear. "You seem unusually...terse."

"Yes, sir," Miley replied, walking alongside the traitor as she gave her end-of-shift report. His green eyes hovered over her for a moment, and she wondered if he could somehow see through her, sense the tumult of fear and rage that boiled inside her, threatening to overwhelm her self-control. But he nodded and continued walking.

"If that will be all, then you're dismissed, Sergeant," he said, moving past her. "I need to meet with Princess Luna."

"Yes, sir," Miley said, forcing herself to salute, then turning and smartly walking away. This was her chance! Glancing back over her shoulder to make sure that Check was no longer watching, she walked quickly down the hallway towards the lieutenant's office. The hallway was clear, no witnesses to interrupt her. Opening the unlocked door, she ducked inside.

The office was empty and undecorated, with only a large oak desk in the center of the room, loaded with scrolls, letters and stationery—Tandem Check, they had learned long ago, was one of those ponies that liked to write down everything—and a few chairs. The silence of the room, save for the ticking of a small clock on the desk, made Miley even more nervous than she already was, but she pushed it aside: she had a job to do. Stealing to the desk, she began to peruse the stationery on it, looking amongst the envelopes, searching for one that she wouldn't look twice at normally.

Empty...empty...empty...sealed...hello. There was a large envelope, held closed with twine, labeled "FTAO: Lieutenant Tandem Check" in pen. It was a completely ordinary envelope, and Miley would have passed it by normally. But looking closer, she found it odd that there didn't seem to be a return address on the envelope, and also noted that the end of the twine was separated, as if it had been bitten on repeatedly. Looking up once more to ensure that she was alone, she took the twine in her mouth, unwound it to open the envelope, and pulled out one of the multiple letters within.

"Notes: Iridescence is in romantic relationship with Winterspear. Could possibly use this to advantage? Must investigate Winterspear further, find regular habits and vulnerabilities.

Runic Phial: Miley's coltfriend. Alchemist, appears to be fairly skilled. Could possibly recruit to make poisons, etc.? Need to speak to Miley about him."

With every sentence, Miley's eyes widened. Blackmail plans, observations of unusual activity, notes on overheard information...before this moment, some part of her had doubted the possibility that Tandem, the loyal and organized but quiet Guard, had been a spy, but the proof was right here in front of her: Tandem Check's habit of writing everything down had just destroyed him. Now she had to...

The sound of approaching hoofsteps interrupted her train of thought. The doorknob turned and the door began to open. In a flash of panic, Miley ducked into the only hiding place available: underneath the desk. The door opened and shut and the hoofsteps approached the desk. She recognized Tandem Check's legs as they appeared in front of her lifted up onto the chair. For once, she thought herself lucky that she was so small: it was the only reason she was able to hide inside the little hole.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem like Tandem had any intentions of leaving anytime soon. She heard the sound of paper's rustling and a pen scratching across the desk surface less than an inch above her head. He was filing out reports: that could take hours! Go away! Miley thought as loudly as she could, but the stallion took no notice, continuing to work at his steady pace.

Suddenly, a horrible sensation took hold: a sudden itching in her nostrils, followed by an involuntary gasp. Oh, no! Not now!

"Ah...ah...AHH..." At the last moment, Miley covered her mouth and nose with her hooves, blocking out the sneeze. Unfortunately, Tandem must have heard something because he stopped abruptly. The chair creaked as he turned, looking around the empty office. Slowly, the chair scooted back a little, and his torso began to bend down to look underneath the desk...

The door suddenly opened. "Lieutenant, have you seen Tiberius?" Iridescence's voice spoke.

There was a long sigh from Check. "Little rascal's hiding again, isn't he?"

"Yes, sir. Princess Luna has asked for everypony's help finding him."

Tandem Check sighed again. "All right, I'm coming." He got up off the chair and exited the room, closing the door behind him.

Miley sighed in relief, for once grateful for Princess Luna's pet opossum's intervention. Without another moment to waste, she got out from beneath the desk, checked the hallway to make sure it was empty, and hurried away. She had a meeting to get to.

The sun had long disappeared beneath the horizon when Miley arrived at the Red Oak Hotel. Entering the lobby, Miley snuck past the snoring clerk at the desk and crept down the hallway, knocking at the door labeled 15. It took several seconds for anything to happen: the door slowly opened a crack and an eye peeked out.

"Boss?" Miley whispered. It took several seconds for her to recognize Silent Knight from underneath all that hair.

"Miley," Silent said in relief, smiling as he opened the door for her.

"Beards and long manes don't suit you, sir," Miley said, closing the door behind her.

"Do you have it?"

"Yes, sir," Miley said, putting the envelope on the desk and opening it up, spilling the letters within out onto the table. Silent began to examine the notes and messages within. Lists of contacts, notes on possible blackmailing strategies, cipher keys and methods for contact, copies of letters...every one was noted and catalogued in the ponies' minds, evidence to be used against the traitor.

One letter in particular caught both of their attention: "We spent a lot in bribes to make sure that Silent got in prison and I got his position, and that could come crashing down on our heads now that he's gotten out. If I know him, he'll be coming back here to get to the bottom of this. I told you we should have just killed him. If you won't take care of this, then I will. Keep in mind who you're dealing with: if I go down, I can take you down with me."

Silent just stared at the letter, the admission of guilt, for a long moment. This was the truth: the proof that he was not mad, that he had not failed in his duty, that his life had been stolen from him by a traitor, not lost by his own actions.

"This is it," Miley whispered, as if the two had just discovered a gold mine. "This is the proof we need."

"No, it's my insurance," a voice growled from the door. "And I'll take it back." The sentence was punctuated by a distinctive metal click. Miley and Silent looked up in shock to see Tandem Check standing at the doorway, aiming his pistol directly between Silent's eyes.

"Don't try anything, Silent Knight," Tandem growled. "If you even twitch, I'll shoot you both." Glaring, Silent forced himself to relax. Miley took a couple nervous steps back, eyes on the gun.

"You're not as good a spy as you thought, Sergeant," Tandem said, keeping his eyes on Silent Knight. "I saw you creeping out of my office and followed you here. And you, Silent...you're too clever to live. If it'd been up to me, we'd have dumped you out in the middle of the North Sea with an anchor tied around your wings." He nodded to the table with the papers on it. "Now give me back those papers, or I'll rectify that mistake right here and now."

Silent's mind raced, trying to think of a solution. At this range, he stood little chance against a loaded gun aimed directly at him, and without any weapons, he couldn't fight back. He heard a sniffling sound from Miley and glanced at her to see her nostrils twitching. Getting a sudden, desperate idea, he slowly gathered the papers up, slid them back up into the envelope, and tossed the bundle to the floor in front of Tandem. The gunpony bent down to collect the envelope. Once he was distracted, Silent extended his wing and began to tickle Miley's nose with the tip. Her eyes widened and she began to quiver. "Ah...AH...AH-CHOO!"

Startled by the explosive sneeze, Tandem jumped, the gun firing at the ceiling. Seizing his opportunity, Silent leapt forward, knocking the weapon aside and tackling Tandem Check out into the hallway. The two began to wrestle, exchanging blows as they tussled. Both seemed equally skilled, but Tandem managed to get on top and started throttling the pinned Silent. Recovering, Miley charged in to help, but Tandem bucked her in the face as she approached, sending her flying back into the wall. She slumped to the floor and did not move again.

Like a dam bursting beneath a flood, Silent's fury broke at seeing his comrade, his friend hurt. Headbutting Tandem in the face, he knocked his attacker off him and rolled over, pinning the griffon to the ground, for it was a griffon that he was fighting now, a griffon captain with blood on his claws, screeching in defiance as he fought. Growling deep in his throat, Silent began to pummel Alastair in his sneering face with all his might, feeling his flesh breaking and skull fracturing beneath his hooves. Slowly, Alastair stopped struggling, going limp.

Seizing his enemy around the throat with his hooves, Silent began to squeeze. There would be no mercy. There would be no escape. Kill him, kill him, kill him!

"You have the mind of a murderer. A cold-blooded killer," Zugzwang whispered in his ear, causing him to freeze. His grip slackened for a moment, doubt battling with his resolve. Was this who he was now? A bringer of death?

"No," Phillip's voice replied. "You're a Royal Guard. You're better than that."

"Silent." Silent felt a hoof on his shoulder and looked up to see Miley Hooves, giving him a firm, warning look. "That's enough."

Her words reached through his fury, and he calmed down, The hallucination faded away, and he could see Tandem Check, lying unconscious on the floor beneath him: a traitor, a rat, but deserving of justice, not death. Breathing slowly and heavily as his heart calmed, he slowly stood up.

"It's over," he declared to Miley. The two friends smiled and embraced one another in relief at the long nightmare having finally ended.

"Good to have you back, boss," Miley said. "Ah-choo!"

"Bless you."

"Thanks, lieutenant."

Author's Notes:

And it's Miley's time to shine, along with Silent Knight!

One more chapter and we'll be finished! I'm very excited to wrap up this special project and hope that you've all enjoyed!