After returning the equipment I borrowed for the run, I hurried for the war room inside the Crystal Palace. I swallowed the anxious lump rising in my chest as I approached the tall, crystallized double doors. In my years of service to the Crystal Empire, we’d never had to use such a high-priority alert. There was only one instance where I had to answer an emergency call, and that was when changelings had invaded Canterlot back when I was stationed there as a recruit. As I knocked, I silently prayed this was not a repeat performance of that nightmarish event.

“Come in,” Shining’s voice echoed from inside.

I pushed open the doors, and entered the spacious war room. It was a rare occurrence to hold any meetings within these polished walls. Celestia’s late morning sun filtered through the windows and fell on the crescent crystal table where my Captain waited patiently.

“First Lieutenant Flash Sentry, reporting for duty, sir!” I saluted, standing ramrod straight at attention.

Shining Armor produced a welcoming smile as he returned the gesture. “At ease, Flash. Close the door and take a seat.”

“Yes, sir.” I closed the door as instructed, and made my way into one of the two seats in front of the encircling table.

Shining eyed me curiously for a moment, which made me even more nervous. Was he going to ask me about my progress? Surely I couldn’t tell him I only found Shine Spark after a month of searching, could I?

“If this is about the team setup I asked you for earlier, don’t worry about it for the moment,” he said as if reading my mind. “And I made sure we were alone here, so speak freely.”

I released a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. “My bad, boss. You mentioned this meeting was about the project you had me running?”

"Yes," he nodded. Then he paused, closing his eyes, and took a deep breath before speaking again. "It's time I finally briefed you on what's going on. I was hoping you'd have more time to prepare, but the situation has... escalated."

My features tightened slightly. "What do you mean?"

Shining seemed to study me for a long moment. "What I say here concerns the security of the Royal Family, and cannot leave this room, under any circumstances. Is that clear, Flash?"

"Yes, sir," I responded automatically, focusing all my attention on Shining, rather than the icy nugget of tension settling in my gut. His eyes reflected a restrained fury I'd only seen glimpses of before.

“We received word that Queen Chrysalis has returned, and she is planning an assassination attempt. The target is my sister.”

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees. I gaped at my captain, shock and anger burning at my veins. It took a moment to find my voice. “Princess Twilight? Why would she be targeting her?”

“Revenge.” Shining leaned back, his clasped hooves coming to rest on the crystalline crescent table that encircled me. “Since Twilight was the one who ruined her plans in Canterlot, their botched scheme and subsequent setback seems to have driven the queen over the edge. As of this moment we have no idea of when or how, but there is little doubt she's going after Twilight.”

“Then let’s rally the guard and warn Princess Twilight! I’m sure we can—”

“Flash. Calm down.” Shining Armor’s tone held no room for argument. I forced myself to comply and listen. “I’ve talked to some of the strategists and my wife regarding the matter. Sending in an army will only make things worse. Chrysalis and her army of changelings will likely use those numbers to blend in and get closer to Twilight. Previous means of detection no longer seem to work, so until we find a weakness in their disguises, coming in with a large force will only work against us.”

“Then what about warning Twilight?” I pressed. “That way she could prepare accordingly. From what you’ve told me, she’s more than resourceful enough to handle those changelings.”

“That was my initial plan, too. That is, until my wife brought up an important point. My sister has a tendency to over-complicate things, and her paranoia gets the better of her at times. If we tell her that the queen of deception and trickery is planning to kill her without any means of knowing when and how she will strike, we risk throwing Twilight’s paranoia into overdrive. In her panic, she might think her closest friends are changelings at the slightest hint of suspicious activity and lock herself away to keep everypony around her safe. Chrysalis would use that against her and catch her when she’s alone and vulnerable. I want to have faith that my sister is smarter than that, but telling her without confirming the threat or having a solid plan is too risky.”

I recalled the rumors of times Twilight had lost herself to paranoia. Something about the parasprites, an enchanted doll, and at one point even a time traveler. I didn’t know how many of those were true, but it did add up to what Shining Armor was telling me. “If we can’t tell Twilight or rally the soldiers to aid her, how about taking out Chrysalis herself?”

“We don’t know where she is. Trust me, I wish it was that simple. Unfortunately, we don’t have anything to go on at the moment, and we can’t round up all of Ponyville’s citizens to check them without arousing suspicion. Doing that would definitely tip her off, and we would lose our chance of catching her unaware.”

It took some effort to keep myself from groaning with frustration. Just then, something occurred to me. “How do we know all of this if we can’t even find her?”

A small grin made its way onto Shining’s muzzle—the face of a stallion who had an ace tucked away in his hooves. “It’s all thanks to a very special informant who came to us in good faith to put an end to Chrysalis’s plans. She—”

A knock interrupted Shining, leaving me in a state of suspense. What pony managed to gather that much information and escape Chrysalis unscathed? “Ah, right on time. I believe that's our informant at the door. Would you mind letting her in?”

There was something cryptic about his suddenly wide grin, but I dismissed the feeling. I pulled open the door—and was greeted by none other than Princess Twilight Sparkle.

“Good afternoon, Princess!” With practiced professionalism, I quickly recovered, and stood at attention.

Twilight’s eyes swiveled towards me as she entered the room. My mind whirled with questions and concerns as she drew uncomfortably close, to the point I could feel her breath beating against my snout. Her hoof moved to caress my cheek, lighting up my muzzle like a match. I might have enjoyed this moment, had her own brother not been in the same room. “Why so tense, handsome?”

My eyes nearly bugged out of my head. I shot a quick glance at Shining, who merely raised an inquisitive eyebrow at us. Twilight’s sultry gaze and persuasive tone was not doing my blood pressure any favors. It took all of my discipline to keep my twitching wings under control. “I-I’m just fine, Princess. Thank you for your compliment.”

“You should relax.” Twilight learned into my ear and whispered, “I’ll help you release that tension right now if you want. My brother can watch.”

Before I could stop myself, my defiant wings flared out. Had my blood rushed any faster I was sure I would have died, though whether it was due to embarrassment or cardiac arrest was anypony’s guess. I tried to voice an objection, or at the very least question my sense of reality, only to release a strangled gasp.

“That’s enough. The poor stallion’s gonna die on us if you keep teasing him like that.” Shining looked just as uncomfortable and surprised as I was, though likely for different and equally mortifying reasons.

Then suddenly, before my eyes, ‘Princess Twilight’ became engulfed in a blaze of green flames.

I flinched back, though my instincts translated it into a half-combat crouch before I even properly registered the sight. I knew this. This was the same kind of spell Chrysalis and her minions had used before.

Mere seconds later, the petite unicorn was replaced by a black, insectoid creature with a hard carapace in place of fur, and hollow holes running clean through its legs. The spiral horn twisted and elongated into an upward-turned spike, sitting just below a curtain of translucent green hair I didn’t remember on any normal Changeling.

Then the deep violet eyes I remembered shifted to a pale blue—and most disturbing of all, took on normal irises akin to the Queen herself.

The changeling began clopping a black hoof on the crystal floor, in what I quickly realized was a slow mockery of applause. "That was priceless, Buttermilk. Five stars!"

Her voice reverberated similarly to how Chrysalis spoke, yet with a brighter and more chipper tone.

I wasn’t thinking too hard about that, however. I was too busy shoulder-checking her into the wall.

Or, at least, trying to. The creature nimbly sidestepped me, then hopped over the sweeping kick I followed up with in an attempt to trip her. But my wings were already working, and I used my low position and a powerful flap to launch after her like a coiled spring, teeth bared in fury.

My opponent seemed to take all this in stride. Her wings flared out and buzzed rapidly as she folded herself into a ball to—

Move!

I mirrored the motion, twisting sideways to avoid what would have been a vicious clip to my back legs when she swooped underneath me.

Damn. She knew how to fight airborne, and she’d avoided my attempt to disable her quickly. This wouldn’t be easy.

Still, I was no slouch. Launching into a tight midair flip, I pulled an about-face to orient towards her again. And then I caught a glimpse of the changeling’s leering face as she perched on top of a small crystal table.

“Spicy,” she purred. Clak. Clak. Clak. Her hoof tapped mockingly on the surface.

The sound of her voice triggered memories of the changeling invasion— of all of those soldiers who had turned on each other, unable to tell friend from foe. The devastation in Canterlot and the lives lost due to their assault.

“Shut up and die!” I roared back, darting across the distance straight towards that smirk. The changeling narrowly dodged, and my flying drop-kick instead smashed into and left a spiderweb of cracks in the middle of the table, just behind where she was a second ago.

“Not bad!”

I whipped my head to the side, and found—a white pegasus pony staring back at me, a mocking grin on her face. She was right at the double doors leading out of the War Room, which in all the confusion were still left wide open.

“Let’s see how many guards I can take out before you catch me! Better hurry!” With a wink, she half-dashed, half-flew out, already flapping her new mockeries of pegasus wings.

I bolted out of the door after her moments later. I refused to let the Canterlot invasion repeat itself.

I hadn’t noticed during my first pass, but the main hall of the crystal palace was oddly quiet. Normally, there were a few patrols and servant ponies who would roam the epicenter of the towering building where the enormous spiral staircase resided. Still, I was grateful for their absence, as the changeling had nopony to hide behind. My eyes swept around the empty hall, trying to guess which door she could have flown through.

“Look alive, Buttermilk!”

I looked up to see the grinning, disguised changeling waving at me from the fourth flight of stairs. Wasting no time, I took up after her. Before I could catch her, she took into the air as well, quickly climbing in height as I chased her along the stairwell.

She was annoyingly agile, slowing down just to narrowly slip out of my reach. My teeth gnashed together with effort and fury as I tore after her. But swift as she was, I was still able to keep up with her, catching onto her quick maneuvers and dips that were meant to throw me off or have me crash into a wall.

Halfway up the stairs, she dove into one of the corridors. The sudden change of direction threw me off for only an instant, but I followed through the opened doorway, wiping off the torrent of sweat that threatened to blind me. I didn’t know what her game was, but I knew this was a trap. Regardless, I could not let her get away. I had to kill this changeling before she could attempt to destabilize the empire.

My pursuit eventually led me to a series of empty bedchambers. I’d only lost sight of her for a few seconds, but it was enough for her to hide away. Dropping to the ground, I carefully moved down the carpeted hallway, listening for any signs of movement.

“I’m glad you were fast enough to chase me all the way here. Gives us a chance to get to know one another. Have a little one-on-one.” Her voice echoed down the hall. I tried to grasp the direction or source, but I couldn’t make heads or tails where she was. I had no choice but to keep her talking.

“If you want to hear more, you should step out and talk.”

“I would, but I just love having stallions chasing me around.”

It was getting louder, but I still couldn’t pinpoint her location. I walked forward still, bracing myself for any signs of an ambush. “You have a lot of nerve showing your face here. I’ll make you regret it.”

“You’re still sore about that whole Twilight thing, aren’t you? To be fair, I had no idea you would react like that. At least it was easy to tell how strong your wings are.”

“Buck you!”

“Ladies first.” I felt a tap on my flank, followed by a rush of wind. I spun an about face, catching nothing but a flurry of dust spinning in the air.

I vaguely remembered this tactic being used against my squad during the Canterlot invasion. I can’t lose myself like I did back then. I needed to stay calm, and—

"Stop hiding!" I barked. Damn it, I’m better than this. Why can’t I stay calm?

“Not bad. Good reflexes. Strong legs. You put most of the other rent-a-guard colts here to shame. Buuuut I’m not quite satisfied with you, yet. Still have one last thing I want to see, but first: Wanna play a game?”

My eyes darted around my surroundings. She was close. I could feel it. “And what game would that be?”

“Two truths and a lie. Find the lie, you’ll find me.”

“Bring it,” I growled, tensing my muscles.

“I’m your best friend.” A rush of wind brushed by me. I whipped my head around, but saw nothing.

“I’m your worst enemy.” Another gust of wind. Still no sign of the changeling.

“And I’m right behind you.”

Shock rushed through my veins as I flinched and jumped to hover mid-air. No sight of her on my flank, or even anywhere on the ground. Just how fast was this changeling?

“Well, you’re definitely not behind me, and you’re sure as buck not my best friend. That’s two lies.”

“All of them were lies.”

I froze.

Slowly, I looked up to see the changeling in her natural form hanging from the ceiling and barely an inch away from my face. And then she closed the distance in one move—and gave me a peck on the lips.

“What the—”

The very next second, the changeling pushed off her legs and crashed into my back, slamming me down to the ground. The blow winded me, giving her enough time to bounce away before I could retaliate.

Using my wings as props, I quickly sprung back onto my hooves and dashed at my opponent. The first few punches I threw were baiting attacks, quick and light. After the third strike, I mixed in swift stabs with my wing tips, aiming for soft points such as her eyes or throat to stun her. To my surprise, she was able to parry some of those attacks with her horn as well as her hooves, placing us in a constant influx of clashing hooves, wings and horn. In terms of skill, we were mostly even.

While our forehooves locked against each other in an attempt to throw the other off balance, I caught the changeling’s grin fade into a scowl. “So, ready to talk about saving Twilight, or do you want to just fight me all day? Chrysalis doesn’t plan on waiting, and the sooner we find her, the sooner you can save your princess.”

I refused to break the lock and give her the upper hoof, but a small shred of logic slipped through the seething rage boiling inside me. “Go on…”

“Did Shiny get to the part where he mentions the special informant?”

“And?” I did not like where this was going.

“Did you think it was weird how somepony could know so much about Chrysalis’s plans and live long enough to tell Shiny?”

Definitely did not like where this was going. “So?”

“So… you’ve got a brain somewhere in there. Do I need to spell out everything for you?”

My eyes narrowed. I couldn’t believe it. I wouldn’t believe it. “What are you up to? Why help us? We’re enemies.”

“I’m gonna level with you; I absolutely loathe the idea of working with ponies. If this was another time and place, you’d probably be in a cocoon right now and I’d be schmoozing with your chain of command. But even you have to agree saving Twilight is more important than a coltscout and a lowly changeling, wouldn’t you agree?”

Well, at least she was aware the feeling was mutual.

“You still didn’t answer me. What do you get out of this?”

“Would you believe me if I told you love and friendship?”

“Don’t buck with me!” I pressed hard against her. “Give me one good reason why I should trust anything you say!”

“Because Shining Armor does, and you don’t have a choice. Let’s say you somehow do get lucky and kill me. You’ll only have yourself to blame as you watch your captain hold Twilight’s lifeless corpse in his hooves. He’s not willing to take that chance.” The changeling sneered as her eyes narrowed. “Are you?”

Seconds rolled by as everything she said sank in.I had to admit that there was some truth in what she said. To think: A changeling would help save Twilight, a pony who was key in the fight against Chrysalis? It was a painful irony to face.

I felt the informant relax and lower her guard once she saw I was no longer hostile against her.

A critical mistake on her part.

I grabbed her hoof, then flung her as hard as I could against the adjacent wall. She gasped, but all her air rushed back out when she crashed into the cracked surface. In an instant, I charged towards her, hoof raised for a coup-de-grace strike.

At the last possible second, I adjusted my aim and drove my hoof into the wall next to her head, leaving a deep indentation mere inches away. My face hovered right before hers, eyes burning with restrained fury.

“If you try to betray us, I will kill you.”

Despite being smashed into the wall and nearly having her skull split in two, she grinned. “Oh, believe me. If I wanted you dead...”

I flinched as I felt something sharp pressed against my neck. I looked down to see a serrated dagger tucked in her hooves and held against my collarbone. “You would’ve been dead when you were too busy getting hot over Twilight.”

She took a deep breath, then released a relieved sigh. “And with that, you pass with flying colors. Did you catch all of that, Shiny?”

“Most of it. The repair crew is going to have a field day, though.”

I snapped my eyes over to see Shining Armor standing at the end of the corridor we had flown from.

Shooting away from the pinned changeling, I landed smoothly before him and stood at attention. I was about to question how he had gotten here so quickly when I remembered that he’d learned how to teleport a couple years back.

Right then, it occurred to me that I had almost killed the informant who was supplying us information about Twilight’s peril.

“I’m sorry for my reckless actions, sir!”

My captain just shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I deserve a bit of the blame for this one. She wanted to test you, and I went along with it. It was a risk, but she refused to work with anypony who couldn’t keep up with her or hold their own. She’s a demanding one.”

I might have imagined it, but Shining seemed more satisfied than angry that I tried to kill the changeling helping us.

“Why don’t we head to my office? We still have a lot to discuss, and I’d rather have a room that doesn’t have a broken table in it.” He flashed a smile at me, his way of silently telling me not to feel bad about it. It did little to curb the stab of guilt I felt regardless.

“Yes, sir.” I fell into step behind Shining Armor, fighting every instinct I had to ignore the short buzzing of wings followed by a third set of hoofsteps coming from directly behind me.

Well, at least she had enough sense to keep her distance. A little vindictive part of me liked to think it was because I’d just thrown her full force into the wall.

The walk to Shining’s office was awkward and quiet. I took slow, deliberate breaths through my nose as we made our way to the office. My heart was still hammering in my chest, though not as fiercely as when I had been trying to kill her. I was constantly shooting her glances over my shoulder to make certain she wasn’t trying anything suspicious.

That’s when I noticed a metal choker on her neck, with a green gem embedded in the center. She noticed where my eyes landed then, and winked back at me. I glared, but stayed silent. Thankfully the awkward walk was a short one, as Shining’s office was only a few flights of stairs higher.

Captain Armor’s office was an excellent example of his character. Hanging on the walls and resting neatly on his file cabinets were several plaques and medals which defined his accomplishments and prestige. I recognized the story that went behind some of these medals. From the crystal badge of honor given when he personally rescued the group of trapped crystal miners from a massive cave-in, to the golden plaque marking his achievement when he led small team of guards to rout a menacing group of raiding trolls who had been terrorizing our trade routes for months. I’d gotten a medal myself for taking part in that harrowing mission.

The office was impressively clean and orderly: nothing too flashy or out of place. On his desk were his most important valuables: pictures of his lovely wife Princess Cadance, along with his adorable and growing daughter Flurry Heart, and another with him and his sister Princess Twilight Sparkle smiling together, and—the one that embarrassed me the most—an older picture with me, Shine Spark and him slinging our forelegs around each other's shoulders, wearing silly, drunken grins. I recalled that being the day I was promoted to first lieutenant, one of the happiest moments of my life.

Shining took his seat at his mahogany desk, while the changeling and myself took the two seats across from him. “Alright, Flash. As she mentioned earlier, she’s the informant who told us about Chrysalis. Her codename for the mission is Trojan. I’ve already explained everything to her, but now that you’re both here, we can start the mission briefing.”

Suspicion itched at my instincts. I had a bad feeling about this. “What do you have in mind?”

“I’m assigning you two on a covert mission together. Both of you are going to save my sister and stop Chrysalis’ plans. As this is an undercover mission, we will have extremely limited backup for you. Any and all mission details are completely confidential and on a need-to-know basis, so it’s imperative that you keep this under wraps and gather as much information as possible. I know I’m asking for a lot, but you two are my best hopes in getting this resolved quickly and quietly.”

I carefully processed the captain’s words. This changeling and I were going to save Princess Twilight Sparkle and stop the Queen of the Changelings, somepony who was able to overpower Princess Celestia in one-on-one combat and almost took down Canterlot. There was a swell of pride in my chest at the thought of how capable Shining Armor felt I was. However, that pride was overshadowed by the crushing weight of responsibility on my shoulders. Paralyzing terror held me at the idea of facing this monumental task with little to no backup.

“Isn’t that great, Buttermilk?” Trojan chirped. “You and I are going to be together, saving the Princess and stopping my crazy queen. Isn’t that romantic?”

That last comment broke me out of my daze. I glared incredulously at the loony changeling. “Romantic?!” I couldn’t stop the rising panic in my voice. “How am I supposed to stop somepony who was able to overpower Celestia herself?”

“Flash, hear me out.” Shining Armor’s serious tone captured my attention, giving me a focus other than the internal freak-out I was suffering. He walked around his desk and placed a comforting and firm hoof on my shoulder. “I would do this myself if I could, but I need to stay here and watch over the Crystal Empire. If I leave, there’s a good chance she may attempt to take the kingdom in my absence. I thought it over and over, but of all the royal guards at my command, there is nopony I trust more than you to spearhead this operation.”

I should have felt some sort of inspiration, and on some level I did. Yet I was only one pegasus, and there was so much riding on this mission. If I failed, his sister would be killed, and I could not bear the thought of looking him in the eye if that happened. In combat with my bare hooves, I could throw down with the best of the them.

Magic, on the other hoof, was something I could never compete against. I stole a glance at… ‘Trojan’, suddenly realizing that she’d forbore using magic in our fight—at least, not that I knew of. But they had it. Chrysalis had it. Every single Changeling had it too. How was I supposed to...

“I need you at your best, buddy,” Shining continued. “We only got one shot at this. My sister needs you, Flash. I need you.”

I shook the doubts out of my head. When the Royal Guard are called, we answer. Especially when our loved ones are being threatened. Failure was not an option.

I slammed my hooves together, throwing Shining a smile. “Count me in, boss. I swear on my life no harm will come to the Princess.”

The captain steadied his eyes on me for a moment. Then he smiled broadly. “I knew I could count on you, Flash.” He looked at Trojan, who gave me an approving nod. “Mind getting everything set up, Trojan? I just want to go over some quick details in private.”

“Don’t mind if I do. I’ll let you colts get some alone time.” With a wink, she assumed the form of a royal guard earth pony and left the office.

“…With all due respect, sir, she weirds me the hay out,” I admitted.

“You, err, will get used to it.” The hesitation in Shining’s voice promised otherwise. “And sorry about earlier. I considered warning you, but she insisted to keep you out of the loop until she’d assessed your readiness.”

“Don’t worry about it; water under the bridge.” I had a sneaking suspicion this was not going to be the last time I had to deal with her ‘testing’ me. I paused. “How the hay did we get a changeling for an informant?”

“Oddly enough, she came to us. She caused quite a stir when she snuck up on me and some of the guards. It took some time and a few...compromises, but she agreed to help us save Twilight from Chrysalis.”

“Compromises?”

“Nothing to be concerned about. So,” Shining cleared his throat, “Trojan will give you further details about the mission when you meet up with her later. But before you go, there’s something a little more personal I wished to discuss with you.”

He leaned closer to me, lowering his voice. “My sister is a great and brilliant leader. She’s very strong, and with such wonderful friends by her side to provide backup I believe there is no challenge she cannot overcome if she puts her mind to it. Yet, I want her to have something a little closer. Something special her friends may not be able to give her. I’d sent a transfer request letter to Twilight ahead of time to give you a cover to conceal your real objective and keep her from asking too many questions. She was reluctant until I mentioned your name. I was amazed at how quickly she changed her mind.”

I blinked. I could vaguely recall meeting her once or twice, but mostly just in passing. “Why did saying my name make a difference?”

“My wife and I have a theory... but never mind that. Now, Flash, speaking not as a Captain of the Royal Guard, but as your friend and her brother, there’s something I need to get off my chest.”

Shining Armor leaned even closer and slung a foreleg around my shoulders, causing me to shift back out of nervousness. The last time I had seen him this serious was when he had confided in me about Cadance’s pregnancy. “Flash, should you and Twilight decide to become a couple, I want first dibs on pictures of you two being cute. Do that, and you will have my blessing.”

An obscuring fog overcame my mind, blanking my thought processes. I’m sure in some strange alternate universe, Shining Armor had just suggested he was okay with me dating his sister. But not this reality. Maybe Trojan had done some sort of mind warping spell to mess with my hearing, or I had hit my head harder than I thought. I shook my head, hoping what I had heard was just some messed-up illusion. “I’m sorry, boss, but I didn’t get that. Could you repeat what you said?”

“I said I want adorable pictures of you two if you guys decide to get close. Super cute ones. One of them’s got to have a cute kiss in it.”

Knowing what was coming, I practiced Cadance’s breathing technique. Deep breath in. Deep breath out. Then I freaked out.

“W-W-W-WHAT?!” I exclaimed. Thankfully I was able to keep my wings down, though with excruciating effort.

“I’m just messing with you about that last part.” He chuckled lightly for a moment before giving me a serious look. “But seriously, I’m trusting you to take care of my sister. No matter what happens, do your best by her and always keep her best interests in mind, alright?”

“O-of course!” I answered instantly, cursing the heightened octave in my voice.

“Glad to hear it!” Shining Armor retracted his hoof, standing straight on all fours again.

“As far as the mission goes, obviously you will act as leader for this shadow team. You have my full authority to handle this mission however you need to. Just remember not to tell anypony about this mission or the fact that your partner is a changeling. Any finer details of the mission will be left up to your discretion. If we come up with anything on our side, we will keep you informed, but as it stands your primary mission is keeping Twilight safe. Catching Chrysalis and gaining any intel you can is a close second. If you get a shot at Chrysalis, take no chances. Is that clear?”

I nodded. “Crystal.”

“Good. There’s one thing I need to give you before you set off.” Shining dug into one of his drawers and handed me an… oddly familiar metal choker?

“You saw this before, I’m sure,” he noted. “This is a shielding device. It’s made to nullify the Changelings’ particular brand of mind-altering magic, and it camouflages with your coat so nopony can see it. We don’t have too many of these, so don’t break it.”

I hesitantly lifted a hoof up to the accessory. “How did we…”

“Trojan,” Shining confirmed. “One of her first bits of good faith, in fact. It was helpful to be able to analyze the Changelings’ unique magical aura so we could attune an enchantment to it.”

Accepting the choker, I immediately equipped it. As soon as the locking chambers connected, I felt a shock ripple through my body, startling me. “What did that choker do to me?”

“Ah, the shock? That’s the device connecting with your magic. If somepony’s trying to alter your mind, you’ll be able to tell. Trojan will fill you in on the shield’s other capabilities once you meet up with her.”

“Thanks, boss.” That certainly addressed my concern regarding Chrysalis trying to control me. Being able to beat her, however, was a different story altogether.

“I’ve already arranged transport for you by train. It will leave Sunday morning. That gives you all day tomorrow to assemble your team.”

“My team?” I asked. “You mean it won’t be just me and the changeling?”

“That ‘changeling’ has a name, Flash.” Shining’s eyes narrowed. “Changeling or otherwise, she is helping us save Twilight, so please show her some respect.”

I glanced down at the choker again, chagrined. I took a deep breath. "I... sorry."

He was right. If I was going to be working alongside her—Celestia, I was still reeling at that idea—getting hung up on her race wasn't going to help.

Didn't mean I was looking forward to it, though.

“I know how you feel, buddy.” Shining gave me a hefty pat on the shoulder. I looked up to see his bright smile. “You should’ve seen Cadance’s face when she first saw Trojan. I thought she was going to have a heart attack.”

I’ll bet. My lips turned up in a brief smirk.

“Back to what I was saying earlier: that assignment I gave you some time ago was for this very operation. Whoever you pick will be your only field support for the mission, so you need to pick carefully. For the duration of your mission and stay at Ponyville, you will be a royal guard captain serving under Twily— er, Twilight.”

I blinked. That was certainly news. “...Sir?”

“You heard me, soldier.” My Captain smiled wanly. “Congratulations.”

My own squad. Captain status. It was a major promotion from being a first lieutenant serving proudly under Shining Armor. Most ponies would be overjoyed to have the authority of a captain, even if it was only for the sake of cover. I was just glad it was temporary so I could come back to the Empire once everything was over.

There was still the concern with the team assembly, though. With a mission this big, only the best could be involved, and even then a small number so they can move quickly. If I had a hard time finding ponies in a month, there was no way I could do it in a day.

Thankfully, I had a solution that could fix that problem.

“With the team, I would like to entrust its assembly to Sergeant Shine Spark, and have her take part in this mission.”

Shining tossed me a curious glance. “That’s... highly irregular. Granted, Shine Spark is a very capable pony, no argument there. But this is your team, and you should be the one to pick out the members.”

“I know, and that’s why I want to have Shine Spark handle the recruitment side. Of course, I will discuss every angle with her to make sure this team is perfect. I’ve worked with Shine Spark long enough to know that when it comes to picking out talent, she’s unrivaled, and she knows me as well as you do. I have complete trust she will only pick and train the best.”

“Interesting.” Shining paused as he digested my reasoning.

This would also let me focus on protecting Twilight and keeping the cha- Trojan in check. But I kept my mouth shut about that for now.

“Alright, Flash. I’ll allow it. Trojan will meet you at the train station early Sunday morning and have all of your mission details.”

“Thank you, boss.”

“Of course,” Shining nodded. “And I know I threw a lot at you today, so I want you to focus on resting up and getting everything sorted out with Shine. You know where to find me once it all clicks.”

Perfect. “Alright. I’ll touch bases with you by the end of tomorrow to finalize the team formation.”

“Sounds good. I’m counting on you, buddy. And when you see Chrysalis, show her what happens when you mess with the Royal Guard.”

“You got it!” On reflex, we both gave each other a strong hoofbump. This was it. After tomorrow, I knew there was no going back. Either I saved the Princess and defeated Chrysalis, or died trying.

“Alright, Captain Flash Sentry,” Shining emphasized with a hearty grin, “that concludes the meeting. You’re dismissed. Good hunting.”

Author's Notes:

Trojan is an absolute joy to write.

I really love the changelings. It's one of the few villains of MLP I've truly been invested in other than Discord. They have an absurd amount of potential and Chrysalis is a treat to watch in action. With Trojan, I particularly enjoy the air of mystery, cleverness, and especially dat sass.

With this chapter, originally this was going to be my first chapter, but after some suggestions I opted for the previous one. I know its a popular thing with some stories, but I really do adore the idea of Flash and Shining being buddy-buddy with each other. Not to the point of being unprofessional, of course, but I can imagine them being a sort of dynamic duo in a crisis. I could easily write a fic solely on Shining, Shine and Flash as an epic trio.

As usually, leave a comment/critique and a like if you enjoyed it. Look forward to see you next chapter!