In the castle garden, Celestia's private guards watched on in shock as her own student knocked her out cold with one hit. The seconds passed as Twilight continued to fume, and to further vent her rage she kicked the picnic table, sending tea pots, cups and saucers flying everywhere; and nearby guards to take a defensive stance.

A few seconds later, Celestia began to mumble and slowly regained consciousness. Her guards quickly came to her aid and helped her to her seat, Celestia still in a daze when she looked at the debris before her and her student.

"Twilight? Did you do this?" Celestia asked, straightening her tiara.

"Yes, I did."

"Why?"

"Why?"

"Yes, why? And why did you hit me?" Celestia demanded to know, nursing her jaw.

"Is that all you're concerned about? You sit on your plot sipping tea while Gordon is being tortured in the dungeons below," Twilight scolded, anger flowing through her veins at Celestia's misplaced priorities.

"What are you talking about? I hardly consider being locked in a dungeon cell to be torture."

"What about being shackled to a wooden post while YOUR Solar Guards whip his back?"

Celestia began to take on a more serious look and tone of voice, realising how serious Twilight's was being, but at the same time resenting what Twilight was accusing her of.

"What? Are you suggesting I had my guards whip Gordon?"

"Suggesting?!" Twilight screamed angrily, "I saw his wounds myself!"

"Twilight, please-"

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why did you do it?"

"Do what?"

Twilight felt the urge to pull her mane out at Celestia's ignorance.

"Everything?! Why did you interfere with Gordon's experiments? Why did you provoke him into an angry response? AND WHY DID YOU ORDER YOUR GUARDS TO TORTURE HIM?!"

Twilight was now right in Celestia's face, their noses almost touching. Though she would never admit it, Celestia was slightly fearful of Twilight at the moment, her anger overriding her usual level headedness.

"It sounds like you've been spending a little too much time around the human," Celestia said disapprovingly.

"And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"It means you are becoming more like him. Just now you hit me and are being violent and aggressive."

Anger suddenly spiked in Twilight, "YOU PROVOKED MY FRIEND AND THEN HAD HIM TORTURED BY YOUR GUARDS! I HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO BE ANGRY!"

Celestia too could feel her own anger rising. What ever Gordon had done to Twilight had affected her far more than she realised.

"I must say I'm disappointed, Twilight."

"With what?"

"With you. You've become violent, aggressive, rude, confrontational. In other words, you've become more like-"

"More like a human? Is that what you were going to say?"

Celestia stood up and looked down to her student, "What happened to you Twilight? What happened to the little filly that was my student?"

"She grew up. Very quickly in fact. Particularly these last few hours."

Celestia shook her head in disbelief, "What did Gordon do to you to make you act like this?"

"He didn't do anything. You did. And what Gordon's experienced, particularly from you, reminds me of a book Gordon lent me."

Celestia snarled in anger, "You read a human book! Twilight, do you have any idea what you've opened your mind up to?"

"Yes actually. It pretty much slapped me in the face when I realised how we were assuming Gordon of being violent and what not, simply because he's human."

"What are you talking about?"

"The book he leant me is called 'To Kill A Mockingbird'-"

"So now you're reading a book about killing. Well, it seems-"

"SHUT UP!"

Not for the first time today, Celestia was shocked into silence by being told to 'shut up'. Hearing Gordon speak to her in such a manner she expected, but hearing it from Twilight was beyond unbelievable, and all but confirmed her worst fears. Gordon had polluted her thinking. But student or not, Celestia couldn't tolerate being spoken to in such a manner and would have to act accordingly.

"I will not be spoken to in such a manner!"

"What are you going to do then? Have me dragged down into the dungeons and whipped as well?"

"Do not take that tone with me Twilight Sparkle!"

"Do you even know what the book is about?"

Celestia huffed, "No, nor do I care. But you're going to tell me anyway."

Twilight ignored Celestia's tone and wasted no time in explaining, "It's about prejudice and the destruction of innocence. A mockingbird is a creature that symbolises things that cause no harm, and two of the book's characters are synonymous with mockingbirds. One of them, a black skinned human, is on trial for a horrible crime but the thing is....he's innocent."

"If he's innocent, then why put him on trial?"

"Because the human in question is black, or to put it another way, not white. The character is deemed guilty solely based on his skin colour, and despite the best efforts of his defence counsel, he is found guilty. The other 'mockingbird' at the start of the story is presumed evil and insane by the neighbours who think they know everything about him, when they really know nothing at all; and that same character actually saves one of the protagonists of the novel, a young girl."

"Your point Twilight?" Celestia asked harshly.

"You are treating Gordon the same way, just like I did. We presumed he was like the first humans simply because he is human himself. We presumed he is a blood thirsty savage only to realise he's nothing of the sort, and in fact has been very friendly and courteous to us considering how we've been towards him."

"It's just an act, Twilight. Give him time, and he'll show his species true colours."

Twilight thought back on some of the things Gordon said about Celestia, particularly about how she manipulated history to portray humans in an entirely negative light. And the two times she witnessed her mentor assaulting Gordon; the first time in the hospital just after meeting for the first time, and the second the morning after he stayed at the castle for the night.

She looked up to her mentor, and on the brink of tears, spoke words she never thought she'd say to her mentor, "I think it's you, who's starting to show their true colours."

Twilight didn't give Celestia a chance to respond before she walked away, leaving a stunned Celestia to watch on.

Meanwhile, in the castle infirmary, a sleeping Gordon was being gently moved onto a bed where the doctor and nurses began administering treatment. Rainbow was outside with Blueblood, albeit reluctantly. Though she wanted to be at Gordon's bedside, she would only be in the way if she went in now. She was still fuming however, and was angrily pacing up and down outside the infirmary.

"Princess Celestia better have a damn good reason why she had this done to Gordon!"

"I assure you Miss Dash, I will get an answer," Blueblood replied.

"You better!" Rainbow snapped, "What she's had done to Gordon is inexcusable!"

Blueblood didn't flinch at Rainbow's tone, "Miss Dash, I understand your anger but please do not allow it to push you into rash actions. Gordon needs you right now."

Rainbow stopped pacing around and sat down on a nearby bench, slumping back into it, "Yeah, I know; but I'm so angry about what those bastards did to him!"

Just then the door opened, revealing the royal physician. A unicorn stallion with white fur and a light blue short mane and tail.

"Prince Blueblood."

"Doctor Thessalus, how is Gordon?"

"The nurses are applying bandages now. His wounds will heal, but he will need plenty of rest and avoid resting on his back for at least the next few days. And there will be scarring left behind."

"How many lashes did Gordon receive?"

"Around twenty."

Blueblood, Thaddeus and Rainbow winced and shuddered in discomfort; all of them though, wondering how Gordon managed to survive.

"How long before he recovers?" asked Rainbow.

"It's hard to say, I know little of human healing capabilities, but I believe it will take many weeks; and his bandages will need changing during the healing process. I'll inform Ponyville hospital about the situation."

"Can I see him?" asked Rainbow, a few tears trickling down her cheeks.

"Once the nurses have finished, you may. But try not to disturb Gordon too much, he needs his rest."

"OK," Rainbow replied, fighting back tears once more.

"If you'll excuse me," said the doctor, "I must return to my patient."

"Of course," replied Blueblood.

The doctor bowed and went back inside the infirmary, leaving Rainbow with Blueblood and Thaddeus.

"What now?" she asked.

"Now, I will go and take a statement from the guard who reported this to me."

*ELSEWHERE IN THE CASTLE*

Luna strode confidently out of her office, a content smile on her face as she now had some assistance in helping Gordon. A noble friend of hers directed her to an up and coming barrister, one who was quickly making a name for himself and in the process, making enemies in the establishment. The pony in question was called Bill Brawn. An earth pony stallion, Canterlot born and raised; well spoken and passionate about the law. In his mind, everyone was innocent until proven guilty in accordance to the law, and had the fundamental right to a fair and impartial trial.

Just the kind of pony I need, she thought.

As she was on her way to his offices, she encountered her nephew, accompanied by his right hand stallion, Thaddeus.

"Blueblood, how are you today?"

"Not in a good mood at all Auntie," he replied, a fierce scowl on his face and a clenched hand on his sword supporting his claim.

"For what reason?"

"Are you aware of the human being brought to the castle dungeons?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact I was on my way now to Bill Brawn, to employ his services in the matter. I've already spoken to my sister and she refuses to have him released."

"Did Aunt Celestia mention anything else perhaps?"

"No, why?"

"The human, Gordon; is no longer in the dungeons."

"That is great news," Luna replied with a smile, "But why would that give you reason to be unhappy?"

"Perhaps you should go to the infirmary immediately. You would not believe me if I told you."

The seriousness of Blueblood's tone and demeanour made Luna slightly fearful. Her nephew wasn't a liar, nor would he knowingly send her on a wild goose chase. If he was telling her to go to the infirmary, then it was in her interest to go.

"Very well. Good day to you Blueblood."

"Good day Aunt Luna."

Luna carried on, as did Blueblood and Thaddeus, to their destinations. It didn't take long for Luna to reach the infirmary, all the way wondering why Blueblood wanted her to go. Whatever the reason, she would have her answer in a few moments.

She walked down the hallway approaching the infirmary, only to see Rainbow Dash sitting on a nearby bench. Curious as to why she was there, she approached the worried looking mare.

"Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow looked over and upon realising who it was, quickly jumped to her hooves and bowed, "Princess Luna!"

"At ease Rainbow Dash. I came to go to the infirmary, at my nephews insistence; but he would not explicitly state why."

Rainbow said nothing for a few seconds as tears once again started falling from her eyes, "It was horrible."

"What was horrible?"

"What they did to him!" Rainbow snapped.

"Who did what?"

Before Rainbow could answer, the door opened revealing Doctor Thessalus.

"Princess Luna?"

"Doctor Thessalus, you are tending to Gordon?"

"Yes."

"What happened?"

"Perhaps you should see for yourself ma'am," the doctor said, stepping to one side an opening the way for Luna.

"Very well."

Luna walked into the infirmary, followed by Thessalus and Rainbow. As she approached, the horror of what she was seeing began to register.

"What happened to him, doctor?" she asked, feeling sick to her stomach at the sight of Gordon's back.

"After he was taken into the dungeons, the guards on duty took him into a room and whipped his back around two dozen times. One of the guards on duty, who didn't take part in the whipping, managed to sneak away and inform Prince Blueblood."

"And it was then my nephew intervened?"

"Yes. He went down with his own guards and apprehended the guards, five in total including Second-Lieutenant Short Fuse; they're currently held in the dungeons."

"Good," Luna replied, restraining her anger the best she could, "What of the guard who tipped off my nephew?"

"He's in his barracks as far as I'm aware. Prince Blueblood said he'd be taking a statement from him later. Twilight Sparkle arrived also, with Miss Dash here."

"Where is Twilight Sparkle now?" asked Luna.

"She went to find your sister," replied Rainbow.

Luna looked back at Gordon, watching the nurses clean his wounds. She wasn't just angry at what had been done to him, she was beyond furious; and her sister would have to answer for what she had done to him. It took all her mental discipline to prevent her intense alicorn emotions overwhelming her and causing a huge magical outburst that could destroy the castle, and cripple Canterlot severely.

"Is there anything else that can be done to help Gordon?" asked Luna.

"Not really," replied the doctor, "We don't know enough about humans to administer proper treatment."

"What about Zecora?"

Everyone turned to Rainbow.

"Who's Zecora?" asked the doctor.

"A Zebra shaman, really knowledgeable with potions. She treated Gordon the other day after he was attacked by Timberwolves, she might know what to do."

"He was attacked by Timberwolves?" asked one of the nurses.

"That would explain the bite marks on his legs," the doctor replied, "Very well. If you can contact her, we'd be grateful for any assistance. With your permission of course, Princess?"

"Of course. How soon can you bring her here Rainbow Dash?"

"Well, if I can find Twilight we can get a message to Ponyville and they can pass the message on. That'll speed things up."

"Very well," replied Luna, "In the meantime, I shall allow you to continue your duties."

Luna quickly left to find Blueblood, eager for more details; while Rainbow went to find Twilight.

In the castle barracks, Brick Dust was being questioned by Blueblood on the incident in the dungeons. The young stallion was visibly shaking, shocked and traumatised to his core over what he had witnessed.

"So," Blueblood continued, "To summarise, you did punch Gordon in the gut whilst he was shackled to the wall."

"Yes," Brick Dust replied, ashamed of himself and his actions.

"And you watched as he was stripped naked and dragged away to be tortured."

"Yes."

"And it was after the first few whippings and Gordon crying pain, and pleading for mercy; that you decided to seek assistance?"

"Yes."

"Why did you not attempt to stop them yourself?"

"There was more of them than me. And I'm just a private only a few weeks out of basic training. Short Fuse is an officer with several troops in the room under his command. If I had tried to intervene myself, they could very well have decided to shackle me to a post and whip me as well."

"So you sought my assistance?"

"Not exactly. I was seeking Princess Celestia; since we're Solar Guards she was the ideal choice to end what was happening."

"Why seek her? Did she not instruct you to whip Gordon?"

Brick Dust looked up in shocked and insulted, "Absolutely not! How could you even say that?! Princess Celestia would never order us to do such a thing! I didn't even know that room existed!"

This was both good and bad news for Blueblood. Good in that it seemed his aunt did not order Gordon's torture, but bad in that one of her officer's did. If just one of them could commit such atrocities, how many more could there be amongst her guard?

"So, what you're saying is....Short Fuse took it upon himself to commit those acts?"

"Yes."

"Why would he do such a thing?"

"He was angry over being chastised by Princess Luna the other day. Short Fuse and I were stationed outside Duke Fancy Pants' mansion to prevent uninvited guests from getting in. When we saw the human, we attempted to arrest him, as was the law, but his bat pony guard intervened....Captain Star Cross I think her name was."

"What happened afterwards?"

"Short Fuse was angry he had, in his eyes, been humiliated in front of a human and by a bat pony. But I didn't know he was so angry he'd do what he did, it's not like him."

"Anger can make us do things we normally wouldn't do," Blueblood replied.

"Maybe, but the past few weeks Short Fuse has been more short tempered than usual."

"Regardless, he will still face a court martial for his crimes; as will the others."

"What about me?"

"You will be called to testify as a witness, but it's highly unlikely you will be dishonourably discharged."

"What will happen to me though?"

"A hearing most likely, but I can't see a court martial being brought against you."

Brick Dust sighed deeply, deflated over what had happened, "If only I did more."

"Private Brick Dust, if you had not done anything at all then Gordon may very well have died. You did the right bring by reporting this as you did. In the meantime though, I'm placing you on medical leave for a week. Go and visit your family, I'm sure they'll be glad to see you."

Brick Dust cast a sullen look down to the floor, "I don't deserve a leave."

"You are in no state to carry out your duties. Leave is what you need right now."

"But-"

"That's an order Private!" Blueblood replied firmly, but not angrily.

Brick Dust nodded meekly, "Yes sir."

Brick Dust began to make his way out of the barracks and was soon followed by Blueblood, only to meet Luna as he did so.

"Aunt Luna."

"Nephew, did you speak to the soldier who notified you?"

"Yes. According to him, Short Fuse and the others acted of their own accord; and Aunt Celestia did not order anything to be done to Gordon."

Luna breathed a sigh of relief, "That is a relief, but it does not excuse her actions earlier though."

"Actions?"

"She deliberately tampered with an experiment Gordon was conducting so that it would fail, and then deliberately continued to provoke him into an angry response. That is why she threw him into the dungeons, even though he did nothing that would warrant such actions...unless you count telling my sister to shut up."

Blueblood's eyes lit up and grin formed on his face, "Gordon told Aunt Celestia to shut up?"

"Indeed."

"......it's about time someone did."

Luna raised an eyebrow at the comment but said nothing.

He's not exactly wrong, she thought.

"Anyway," Blueblood continued, "I have other business to tend to. If you'll excuse me Aunt Luna."

"Of course. Good day to you nephew."

Blueblood went off on his business, leaving Luna to ponder what to do next. She considered going back to her sister but given what happened earlier, decided against seeing her again so soon. However, she still had the option of seeing Bill Brawn. Smiling contently, she decided on that and immediately teleported to her office to first collect some supplies. Most notably a suitcase containing money to employ his services.

Without warning the door to her office opened and in burst some of her Thestral guards, startling Luna and causing her to look in the direction of the door.

"Hands up intruder! You're under-" one of the male guards began, only to realise who the 'intruder' was.

Luna smiled and raised her hands, "I'll come quietly Veren."

Veren stumbled over his words, his face beat red in embarrassment, "That er....th-that w-won't be n-necessary ma'am."

"Oh? You do not wish to put me in handcuffs and take me to the dungeon?"

The other thestrals couldn't help but snicker, while poor Veren's blushes only got redder.

"Relax Veren," said Tyla, a female thestral, "Mother is only teasing you."

"I know," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

Luna lowered her hands and walked over to Veren, "Cheer up Veren, I'm not angry. Quite the contrary, I am impressed you all acted so quickly. It's good to know the alarm wards work."

The praise lifted Veren's spirits a little, "Thank you mother."

"You're welcome Veren. Now, I will be leaving the castle and heading into Canterlot to visit Bill Brawn, the barrister."

"May we ask why, mother?" asked Tyla.

"Have you heard of the human that has been in Equestria this past week?"

"Yes, Captain Star Cross was talking about him. Is he in trouble?"

"No...but my sister is abusing her authority and Gordon's rights to see that he stays in the dungeons."

"That's awful!" Tyla cried.

"Indeed, but it gets worse."

"How?"

"A short while ago, Gordon was being held in the dungeons, for no legitimate reason I must add, where Solar Guards took it upon themselves to torture Gordon by shackling him to a post and whipping his back approximately two dozen times."

Veren, Tyla and the other Thestrals all went ashen faced in horror. Even for hardened soldiers like them, hearing such abuse was a bit too much.

"Why would they do that?" asked Tyla.

"I don't know, but the guards responsible are themselves being held in the dungeons."

"How did you find out?" asked Veren.

"One of the guards, who did not part-take in the whipping, snuck out and alerted Prince Blueblood. My nephew stormed the dungeons with his private guard and apprehended the Solar Guards."

"Can you tell us the names of the guards?"

"Second Lieutenant Short Fuse-"

The Thestrals all groaned in displeasure. The name having recently made itself notorious in the Night Guard, mostly due to Short Fuse mocking the Thestrals with vampony related 'jokes' and leaving bottles of fake blood in their quarters.

"..was the one who lead the whipping. Private Brick Dust was the one who alerted my nephew."

"At least one of them had the sense to do something," Tyla commented, "What happens now?"

"Now," Luna began, "I will go to Bill Brawn, Gordon is receiving treatment in the infirmary, and Rainbow Dash is attempting to contact a Zebra shaman by the name of Zecora who may be able to help Gordon's recovery."

"We'll keep an eye out for her. What about Gordon though, do you want us to watch over him? Make sure no further harm will come to him?"

"I suppose so. If you and Veren go now and inform the doctor and the rest of you return to your posts."

"Yes mother," replied Tyla, "Come on Veren."

Veren quickly bowed to Luna before following Tyla out of the room.

"Now, if there's nothing else," Luna said, "I'll be on my way."

*ELSEWHERE IN THE CASTLE*

Rainbow was hurriedly looking around for Twilight, the quicker she found her then the quicker Gordon could get Zecora's help. She had already searched the Throne Room, the Ball Room and the Dining Room.

Come on Rainbow, where would an egghead be in a castle?

"The Library!" she suddenly yelled, scaring the maid next to her in the process, "Sorry."

The maid huffed and got back to her cleaning. Rainbow was about to set off until she realised she didn't know where the library was in the castle. She turned back to the maid.

"Excuse me, do you know where the library is?"

"Go up the stair case in the East Wing and follow the staircase all the way up to the top," the mare replied with restrained annoyance.

"Thanks!"

Rainbow quickly flew away, the flapping of her wings accidentally causing a vase to nearly fall of its table; being caught just in time by the now grumpy maid. Rainbow quickly reached the East Wing staircase and flew up to the top on a matter of seconds. Landing at the top of the stairwell and looking around, she saw a pair or large doors with a gold sign reading 'LIBRARY'.

"That was easier than I expected," Rainbow said aloud to herself.

She walked over to the slightly open door and went inside. The large room, with glass ceiling, was filled with rows and rows or large, tall bookshelves that almost went as high as the ceiling. Taking to the air once more to get a better vantage point, she flew around to look for Twilight; assuming she was here.

After a minute or so of searching, a voice called out.

"Rainbow, I'm over here!"

Rainbow looked to the source of the voice and flew over. Right in front of a large window giving a panoramic view of Canterlot, was Twilight with a stack of books. Flying over and landing next to her, Rainbow immediately got to business.

"Twi, I need your help. Can you send a letter to Spike who can deliver a message to Zecora?"

"Why?"

"She might be able to help Gordon. She helped him before remember?"

"No. When was that?"

"The other day when he snuck out in the morning."

"Oh that. Wait a minute, how did you know he met Zecora?"

"He said she helped him after he was attacked by those Timberwolves. I just thought she might be able to make a potion or something to help heal his wounds."

"It's possible, I'll write to Spike straight away."

"Great! Thanks Twi!" Rainbow replied, hugging her friend.

After the hug, Twilight grabbed some freely available ink and paper from the table and began writing, "Do you think I should mention what happened to Gordon to the girls?"

"I would, otherwise they may want to know why we need Zecora's help. By the way, what happened when you went off earlier?"

"You mean when I went to find Princess Celestia?"

"Yeah, what happened?"

Twilight didn't immediately respond, instead she concentrated on writing the letter.

"Twilight?"

"Yes?"

"What happened?"

Twilight sighed and reluctantly began to tell Rainbow, "I went to find the Princess, and assuming she was in the gardens like she usually is at this time; I went there."

"And? Then what?"

"I......"

"Yes?" Rainbow asked, becoming increasingly desperate to know.

"I er.....hit the Princess."

Rainbow blinked. Did she hear that right?

"You hit Princess Celestia?"

"Yes," Twilight replied sheepishly.

"Hit as in, a proper punch to the face?"

"Yes. Although it was unintentional, it knocked her out for a few seconds."

"YOU ONE-HIT KNOCK OUT'D PRINCESS CELESTIA?!"

Twilight nodded, almost ashamed over the act, "I never thought I would, but I was so angry; she woke up a few seconds later and after arguing she accused me of being influenced by Gordon, and becoming more like a human."

Rainbow scoffed, "That's ridiculous. Did she say anything else? About why she did what she did to Gordon?"

"No. I did ask but she didn't admit or deny it. Only saying that he would soon show his true colours, to which I responded that if anypony is beginning to show their true colours, it's her."

Rainbow was taken back a little in shock. Hearing that Twilight and Princess Celestia had been arguing about anything was unheard of, never mind Twilight hitting her.

"So what did you do after that?"

"I just walked away and came here to calm down."

"Cool. By the way, are you hungry? I'm starving."

"Let me write and send this letter, then we can go and get something to eat."

"What about Gordon?"

"He'll still be in the infirmary. Besides, we're only going down to the kitchens."

"OK. I just don't want to be too far from him right now."

"Don't worry Rainbow, I won't make you leave."

Celestia walked very slowly down the castle hallway, still in shock from her conversation with Twilight. Just a week ago her faithful student was obedient, almost to a fault. Now she openly defied her and accused her of having Gordon tortured by her Solar Guards.

Utterly ridiculous. I may not like Gordon, but I would never order such a thing.

I made that mistake once........and have regretted it ever since.

Ever since the arrival of Gordon, memory after memory of humanity's first appearance continued coming back to her. All the misery, all the bloodshed was a stain on Equestria's history that she would never be able to clean. She still didn't know why Gordon has appeared.

Why him specifically? What is so special about him?

And the more she looked at him, the more she knew she'd seen that face before.

Why do I recognise him so much?

As much as she wanted answers to her questions, she knew the likelihood of getting them was slim to even more slim. During the few days he had been in Equestria, his behaviour had been erratic. One moment he was friendly, the next he was fighting with her former Captain. Not to mention his rapidly blossoming relationship with Rainbow Dash.

What her subject saw in him, she'd never know.

He's violent, aggressive, confrontational, disrespectful......just what he did earlier, how he spoke to her proved that.

Or so Celestia thought.

She came to an abrupt stop as she mulled over her thoughts. For all she was accusing Gordon of being a savage beast, she had hardly behaved in a respectful and polite manner.

The same which could be said of some of her subjects. The attempted arson on his house endangering his and Rainbow's lives, the disgusting graffiti on his property, the false accusation of attempting to poison her subjects with contaminated cakes.

And of course, her own assault upon him the very first time they met.

On that thought, Celestia sighed deeply and looked down in shame; her hypocrisy now the one assaulting her. Her mind was particularly drawn to Twilight's parting comment, accusing her of showing her true colours.

Maybe I have been too harsh on him. If Twilight considers him a friend, then the least I should do is give him the benefit of the doubt.

Spotting one of her Solar Guards, she approached him.

"Guard, I want you to go down to the dungeons and release the human. Bring him to the Throne Room, but not in chains."

"Yes ma'am," the guard replied with a bow, before quickly setting off. Celestia meanwhile, went to the Throne Room to await Gordon's arrival; having not believed Twilight's claims.

TEN MINUTES LATER

Celestia was sat comfortably on her golden throne, awaiting the return of the guard. Both her sister's and student's verbal assaults on her had knocked some degree of sense into her, forcing her to come to the realisation she had been unduly harsh and biased against Gordon. She decided to bring him to the Throne Room where she would apologise for her behaviour, and propose that they start over again, pointing out that both of them had been acrimonious to one another.

She wasn't waiting much longer when the Throne Room doors burst open revealing the guard, but no Gordon.

Celestia did expect this; after all, considering how she had been towards him, she didn't expect him to want to come to see her in her seat of power.

"Your majesty," the guard said nervously.

"Yes Lance Corporal?"

"The human isn't in the dungeons."

"What? But he must be. I placed him there myself."

"I am not accusing you of lying ma'am, but he is not in any of the cells. But there is something about the other cells that did strike me as odd."

"Oh? Please tell me," Celestia replied, genuinely interested.

"Apart from the ones already occupied by the accused rapists and arsonists, the others were filled with Solar Guards, one of them being Second-Lieutenant Short Fuse."

Celestia began feeling an uncomfortable lump in her throat, "Why is this?"

"According to Corporal Antonius, a member of Prince Blueblood's personal guard, the human was removed and taken to the infirmary after Short Fuse and the other Solar Guards severely whipped the human, causing serious injury."

Celestia started to feel numbness take her. Her own guard was telling her what Twilight accused her off, that Gordon was tortured by her own guards and believing it to be under her orders. Celestia's breath began to become shaky and, trembling a little, got up from her throne and began walking towards the door.

"Ma'am? Are you well?"

"I am fine, thank you. You may return to your post."

"Yes ma'am," the guard replied, bowing and following his instructions.

Celestia meanwhile, made haste for the infirmary as her heart thumped and hooves pounded the floor faster and harder respectively than they ever have done in many years.

Within a minute, she was outside the infirmary, the entrance being guarded by two of Luna's Thestral Guard. Her hand trembling furiously, she nervously opened the door slowly. As the door opened, she saw Doctor Thessalus and his nurses huddled around a bed. The doctor could be heard giving instructions as she walked slowly over. The clip-clop of her hooves on the tiled floor alerted the doctor and nurses to her presence.

"Princess Celestia?" Thessalus said, looking slightly shocked, "Is there something you require?"

Celestia said nothing and instead kept walking up to the bed.

Upon seeing Gordon's back, she gasped and reeled back in shock. Even though his wounds had been cleaned, what she saw still wasn't a pretty sight. All over his back, were the tell tale signs of the severe whipping she was told he had received.

"Princess?" Thessalus said.

"What is his condition, doctor?" Celestia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Not good," Thessalus replied, confused at the Princess's question.

Why is she asking? Didn't she order he be whipped herself?

Despite his confusion, he carried on his report, "He lost some blood and there'll be scarring. We've cleaned his wounds and are applying bandages. Rainbow Dash is attempting to acquire the help of a Zebra shaman she believes may be able to provide further assistance."

"Understood. Keep me informed of his progress."

"Yes ma'am. Is there anything else you require?"

"No thank you," she replied sadly, her downcast eyes causing not going unnoticed by the doctor or nurses, "I will leave you now."

Celestia left the room without another word and made straight for her quarters. Entering and closing the door, she walked over to a large portrait painting of Canterlot Castle and opened it outwards, revealing a safe behind. Entering the combination and unlocking it, she levitated out a box and walked over to the bed and sat down.

She opened the box, and pulled out a picture taken many years ago. Holding the picture in her hands, awful memories of deception, betrayal, bloodshed and regret overwhelmed her.

It didn't take long for sorrowful tears to fall.

MEANWHILE IN THE DUNGEONS

A small contingent of Blueblood's guards, the Soyuz Brat'yev, had been stationed in the dungeons by Blueblood to watch over the disgraced Solar Guards. As standard procedure for a crime they committed, they began examining the scene of the crime and documenting evidence. Amongst the items, was a familiar looking torture device.

"Hey Antonius," said Corporal Ice Wind, "You seen this?"

Antonius walked over, "A brazen bull. I've seen one before."

"They were used to torture ponies weren't they?"

"They were used to kill ponies. And in a most painful way as well."

"How were ponies killed in them?"

"Ponies were placed inside via the opening door, and a fire was set underneath. What would happen was the fire would heat the metal and slowly roast to death the poor soul inside."

Ice Wind grimaced, "Sounds horrible. Why shape it like a bull though?"

"There's pipes inside to make the victim's screams sound like an angry bull."

Ice Wind looked at the contraption and shuddered in thought of anyone being inside, "Do you think this one's ever been used?"

"Probably, but not in centuries. The use of them was made illegal by Princess Celestia shortly after the last human died."

Ice Wind's curiosity got the better of him and he slowly moved his hand towards the hatch.

"What are you doing?" Antonius asked.

"Looking inside."

"Why?"

"To see what's inside, if anything. Besides, there could be more evidence in here from before."

"Fair point. Open it up."

Ice Wind undid the hatch and opened the door. Grabbing his torch crystal and switching it on, he almost immediately reeled back in shock and dropped the torch.

"What is it?" asked Antonius, noting Ice Wind's odd behaviour.

A shocked Ice Wind could barely answer, "Th-th-there's s-s-somthing i-in th-there."

Antonius picked up the torch and took a look himself, sceptical at Ice Wind's claims and unamused at him being easily overcome with fear. He moved the torch closer to the opening and after examining the inside for a few moments, he saw and removed one particular piece and held it in view if Ice Wind.

"W-what is it?" asked Ice Wind.

"A skull," replied Antonius, "A human skull."

In his cold, dark, damp and rancid cell, Short Fuse huddled himself into the corner the best he could, no longer bothered by the slime trickling down the wall; the shackles on his wrists and ankles dug into him, causing significant pain and some bleeding. His ears twitched as he heard movement outside and the sound of the cell door being unlocked.

"Well, how is our guest doing today?" asked the guard.

A disconsolate Short Fuse said nothing, instead he just looked back to the ground.

"Awww, you're not in the mood for talking? What ever happened to that fiery temper of yours?"

Short Fuse still said nothing.

The guard shrugged his shoulders and sighed, "Such disrespect."

The guards grabbed a bowl of gruel from the trolley his colleague was pushing and threw it at Short Fuse, "Here. Bon appétit."

The dish hit Short Fuse on the head and the gruel began trickling down his face as the dish fell to the floor. The guards burst into laughter and began leaving the cell, "That's a good look for you! Bye bye now!"

The cell door was slammed shut and the sound of it locking reverberated through the cell.

Almost immediately, Short Fuse burst into tears and sobbed uncontrollably into his knees.

What did I ever do to deserve this?

Author's Notes:

Bill Brawn is based on a real person (albeit one that lived in the 18th/19th centuries). Anyone want to guess who?

Veren is Finnish for Blood.
Tyla is Lithuanian for Silence.
(According to Microsoft Translator at least)

Luna isn't their blood mother. They only call her mother as a term of affection for watching over them and giving them a safe home.

Also, in chapter 9 it is mentioned that Luna and Celestia were unicorns, as seen in a photo by Gordon. I've removed that part. So to clarify, Luna and Celestia were born Alicorns.

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