The tension flowed out of Ice as they flew further away from Afghanistan and closer to the Crystal Empire. It was as if a giant rubber band were stretched between her and Crystal City and the strain was slowly going out of it as they flew closer to home. The tension had been leaving in steps. The first step had happened when they'd flown out of range of the guards who had been shooting at them with their rifles. The second step had happened when they had left Afghan airspace. The third step had happened when they were over the coast. The fourth step wouldn't happen until they crossed into Crystal Empire airspace. That would happen in about fifteen minutes.

The truth was she probably could have stopped worrying a long time ago. Theoretically, they could be intercepted by American fighter jets until they were safely inside Crystal Empire airspace, and with no Pegasus Guard interceptors to engage those fighters, they were sitting ducks in the chariot. But in reality, it was extremely unlikely that would happen. Even if the guards had told the American military what had happened, it was very unlikely they would get involved in what was essentially a local kidnapping case. And that was especially true if they had to engage the chariot in international airspace. And even if the American Air Force or Navy did want to get involved, it was unlikely they'd be able to find the chariot anyway. They were flying low to avoid radar contact. And they didn't make a good radar target anyway. That was something the Americans had learned all too well during the Contact War. They had had an extremely hard time detecting Pegasus Guard flights or Bat Team Alpha flights on radar. Living bodies absorb microwave radiation instead of reflecting it back, which made ponies very bad radar targets. The chariot would make a slightly better target, but not by much. Anyway, just a few more minutes and they'd be home free.

She looked over at the girl again. Her eyes were still closed and her head still rested on Ice's flank. She'd been sleeping the entire trip. That was just as well, since Ice didn't want to talk to her anyway. She had to be extremely careful to avoid tainting her witness. If there were any hint at all that she had influenced the girl, or had somehow coached her in what to say, then she'd be useless as a witness. It would be better if she didn't talk to the girl at all. She had no experience dealing with young sexual assault victims anyway. Far better to hoof her over to one of the criminal psychiatrists who had experience working with that kind of thing.

The chariot pitched up into a climb. That would mean they had crossed over the coast and were inside Crystal Empire airspace. The guards no longer had to be concerned with being spotted on radar. The last of the tension left her like the last remnant of fog evaporating from a meadow in the morning.  But it would still be another two hours before they reached Crystal City. The tension that had left her was being replaced by the lesser tension of trying to figure out how she was going to explain the bullet damage to the chariot. She turned her gaze to the side window. The curtains were shut, allowing no direct light in, but a golden rim surrounded the edge suggesting it a was a clear and sunny afternoon. She checked her watch, confirming that it was mid-afternoon. Then, she rested her head on her forehooves and allowed herself to nap the rest of the flight.

The feel of the chariot slowing down and the pressure changing in her ears brought her out of her light slumber. She gently placed a forehoof on the girl's shoulder.

“We've arrived at Crystal City. We'll be landing soon.”

The girl opened her eyes and raised her arm, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes with the palm of her hand. Then she sat up. Ice reached into her saddlebag and pulled out her UV blocking sunglasses and put them on. Then, she opened the curtains on the window, letting the golden shaft of sunlight stream through. She nodded toward the window, and the girl moved to look out of it. The girl's eyes were awe stricken, widening like saucers as she stared at the capitol city below them. A wide smile formed on her lips as she glued her face to the window, her hands pressing up against the walls on either side of it to support herself. Ice had never seen Crystal City from the air herself, and she could only imagine how majestic the city must look from up here with Celestia's golden sunlight reflecting off the crystal buildings. A tear of joy fell from the girl's eye and ran down her cheek.

Ice fought the urge to look out the window herself. She didn't want Crystal City to end up like Canterlot. She didn't want her head loaded with aerial pictures of the city so that every time she walked down the street and saw a building, her mind would visualize what it looked like from the air. That had been part of the reason she'd left Canterlot, after all. Because she couldn't even go outside without being constantly reminded that she could no longer fly over the great city.

But then, she remembered the dream. The words of Cadance and Shining Armor. Fuck it, she thought to herself, turning to the other side of the chariot and pulling open the curtains. What she saw filled her with a sense of awe.

The majestic city below sparkled like a crystal pool. The prism effect of the crystals reflected light in all the colors of the rainbow so that it was like looking at a giant, three dimensional kaleidoscope. For as far as she could see, the buildings of the great city sparkled and twinkled as they moved over them, like thousands of stars shining in the sky. It was as if they entire city were lit up with millions of lights for Hearth's Warming. Even the streets sparkled like pristine mountain rivers flowing through the city, connecting its various districts.

The chariot banked as it flew the approach pattern for Crystal Skyport, causing the breathtaking view of Crystal Palace to swing into view. Its tall spires reached for the sky like giant icicles, silver, white, and gold light dancing off of them in all directions. The flags of the Crystal Empire stood proudly on top the spires, galloping in the wind. The walls of the castle itself were like giant frozen waterfalls, reflecting the blue sky and clouds in colorful, sparkling patterns like a mirror. Ice's fear of having a montage of aerial photos permanently burned into her mind quickly gave way to regret. Regret that she had lived here for ten years and had never known how majestic and stunning the city she called her home looked from the air.

The window wasn't large enough for two faces to look out of, and part of Ice wanted to be selfish and cherish the view of the palace for as long as she could. Instead, she forced herself away from the window and turned around, tapping the girl on the shoulder and motioning her over. The girl did so, her smile getting even wider as she plastered her face to the glass, her eyes fixed on the royal palace and sparkling with tears. Ice moved away a bit to give the girl more room. As she did, she realized there was something even more beautiful than the view outside the window. And that was the expression on the young girl's face. At least for now, the girl was able to focus on the wonder of Crystal City and forget about everything that had happened to her back in her village. Ice's vision blurred as salty tears started to fill her own eyes. Never had she actually thought she'd care about any human.

But now, seeing the happiness that the mere sight of Crystal City brought to the girl had shattered the last remaining walls of the fortress she'd spent twenty years building in her mind. And the ghosts that had long tormented her – that she had long feared would overrun her defenses and shatter her mind when that fortress fell – were no where to be found. There were no enemies, no human soldiers rushing in to destroy her. There was only a vulnerable, tortured human girl who she had saved and given hope to. Given the chance of a happy life to. A life free of daily torment. A human girl who would never again be chained to a bed, and never again have to wake up to the face of a rapist hovering over her. Again, she was reminded of why she'd gone to law school. It was for moments like this. But now, she also knew why she had originally joined Bat Team Alpha. Yes, it was true she'd learned dozens of different ways to instantly kill someone with her bare hooves and fangs. But the true reason she'd joined the elite unit was not to take life, but to save it. She was certain that at some point in the distant past, she had known that. But after her injury, she had forgotten it, and it had become all about killing and vengeance. Twenty years ago, she had forgotten who she truly was. Oh, sure, her true self had come out in brief spurts, like tiny breaks in the clouds on a stormy day. But it had taken a defenseless and vulnerable human girl to truly restore her.

A yellow light illuminated on the forward wall, bringing her out of her moment of bliss. She tapped the girl gently on the shoulder to get her attention. The girl turned her head to look at her.

“Yellow light means we are about to land. We need to get away from the windows and into the landing harnesses.” She wasn't sure exactly how much English the girl could understand, but she demonstrated by sitting on her haunches and sliding both her hind legs into a set of harnesses, then looping both her forelegs through another harness. The harness system wasn't designed for securing humans, but they were able to improvise by having the girl sit on the floor and place her legs through the harness, then lean forward and hold onto the second harness with her hands. It wasn't ideal, but at least it would keep her from flying around the cabin in the unlikely event of a botched landing – an event made just a little bit more probable by the fact that it was possible one of shots fired by the guards could have damaged a wheel or axle on the chariot. They wouldn't know until they touched down.

As they neared the ground, the chariot slowed down and pitched up to maintain a slow rate of descent. The guards pulling it were coming in slower than normal, and at a lower descent rate than usual. No doubt, they had also considered the possibility of damage to the chariot's undercarriage, and wanted to land as slowly and lightly as possible in case it collapsed. But she barely felt it when the wheels touched the ground a few seconds later and the chariot gradually rolled to a stop. Any fears about damage to the undercarriage had been unfounded. Or if it was damaged, the guards had landed softly enough to prevent it from collapsing.

Ice undid her harness, then helped the girl undo hers. She looked out the window. A white chariot painted with a red heart with a bandage across it waited next to them, along with two emergency medical ponies. Fortunately, the medical ponies' help wasn’t needed.

They’d landed in the military portion of Crystal Skyport. Since there were no civilians milling around this portion of the skyport, it was possible to bring things in and out of the Crystal Empire with relative secrecy. The bullet damage to the chariot would have attracted unwanted attention. And if anypony had seen a human girl exit the chariot accompanied by no one other than a thestral, the press would have descended on her like Equestrians storming the gates of Sweet Apple Acres on the first day of cider season. It’s not like it’d be hard to figure out which thestral had arrived with the girl. She was the only one in the city who met the description of a wingless bat pony mare. And questions about why the girl was in Equestria, and why they had arrived in a bullet damaged chariot would be … awkward to say the least.

She was about to open the door, but then winced and stopped. Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor were both marching towards the chariot in a stiff-legged military-like fashion. Somepony must have notified them we were coming. But even worse, if the two Royals had been notified, that must have meant Cadance had specifically requested to be notified once the skyport had word that they were approaching. Ice had been gone longer than she'd intended, and there had been no opportunity to send a message back to Crystal Palace letting them know why she'd been delayed. Shining Armor's expression was unremarkable, as if the marks on the chariot where the bullets had hit and the spiderweb cracks on the rear window were all in a day's work. But Cadance wore a mixed expression of concern, relief, and anger. The Crystal Princess lowered her ears and narrowed her eyes, lashing her tail as she approached the chariot. Well, time to face the music, Ice thought to herself as she pushed open the door and stepped out. The girl, however, seemed unnerved by the activity outside and pushed herself back to the corner of the chariot, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. Ice's heart ached as she watched the girl revert to the exact same behavior she had demonstrated in the house, pulling her knees up, and retreating as close as she could to the wall. She quickly closed the door, shielding the girl from the tail chewing she expected to get from Cadance. She bowed to the two Royals as they stopped a few feet from her. It was Cadance who spoke first. Her voice was filled with genuine concern, like a mother who had been worrying over a missing filly. But it was impossible to miss the undertone of anger in it.

“I was getting worried, Ice Moon. And why does the chariot have bullet damage? I thought I told you not to take risks.”

“I apologize, Your Majesty,” Ice said as she came up from her bow. “It took me longer than I intended to find someone who was willing to talk. And with all due respect, you told me not to take unnecessary risks. These risks were necessary to rescue the girl.”

“Girl? What girl?” Cadance asked, her expression looking confused. She looked briefly at Shining Armor, who simply shrugged as if he had no idea what Ice was talking about either. So neither one of them remembers the dream. Had Ice dreamt the entire thing, then? But at least part of it had to have been real. After all, they had told her she hadn't blown it, and then Duncan had shown up at her door shortly after and all but admitted that Luna had visited him and told him to go to the inn as well as told him what room she was staying in. There was no way Duncan could have dreamt that unless Luna really had walked in his dreams. And the timing had been too coincidental for her own dream to have been just a normal dream. Anyway, there would be time to worry about that latter, if it was ever worth worrying about.

“I brought back a young girl. She's a witness. And a … well, a refugee. It's a bit of a long story and I'll tell you the whole thing during debriefing.”

Ice turned around and opened the door to the chariot again. The girl continued to cower against the corner of the back wall. “It's okay. You can come out,” Ice said in the most gentle voice she could muster.

Timidly, the girl lowered her knees from her chest, then crawled out of the chariot. Upon seeing the Prince and Princess, she recoiled slightly, looking to Ice, then back at the Royals, as if she were unsure what she should do next. Finally, she gave a bow at the waist. Cadance blinked in response, her expression confused for a moment before she recovered.

“Please, there's no need for that. I bid you welcome to the Crystal Empire” she said to the girl. The girl rose from her bow, and smiled, the love and compassion in the Crystal Princess's voice appearing to put her immediately at ease. Cadance turned to Shining Armor. “Will you please take her to the palace, get her a guest room, a warm bath, clean clothes, and food, while I talk with Ice Moon?”

Shining Armor took a step towards the girl and smiled. “I'll –”

He stopped as the girl jumped backwards, her eyes wide with fear. She quickly ran behind Ice, using her as a shield. A sudden scent of terror flowed off the girl in waves. Ice frowned, and put a forehoof gently on the girl's shoulder before turning her attention back to the two Royals.

“She has a strong reason to be afraid of males,” Ice said, her stomach trying to twist around itself as she thought of everything the poor girl must have been through. “It would be better if you took her, Your Majesty,” she said nodding at Cadance. “But take her to a locksmith first and get the shackles removed from her ankles. I don't have the key for them. And it's very important that you not talk to her about her life in Afghanistan. She may have important testimony that cannot be tainted. I want her to have a psychiatry consult with Doctor Fjord as soon as possible. Both to talk to her about her experiences, and to help her deal with them. The girl … she has a long road of recovery ahead of her.” Ice again felt sick, thinking about the ordeals the girl had been through. Again, she found her mind thinking of all the ways she could kill, and would like to kill, the man who had done this to the poor girl.

Cadance raised a concerned eyebrow when Ice mentioned the shackles. The girl's long robe covered them, so the Crystal Princess wouldn't have known about them until Ice mentioned them. Cadance's expression then turned to a mixture of confusion and concern, but she nodded once. The girl slowly stepped out from behind Ice, and Cadance knelt down on all four of her legs to put herself at the young girl's level.

“My name is Princess Cadance,” she spoke in a loving and reassuring tone. “But you can just call me Cadance, or Cady if you'd like. I'm the co-ruler of the Crystal Empire, and I promise you'll be safe here and taken care of. No one will hurt you.”

The girl looked at Cadance for a few moments, then turned her gaze to Ice for reassurance. The girl's trust in her brought a warm feeling to Ice, like hot cocoa on a frigid winter day. She gave a comforting smile to the girl. “Cadance is going to get you a bath, some clean clothes and something to eat. Then she's going to take you to a mare I want you to meet. Someone who will take care of you and help you.” The girl still hadn't spoken much, and Ice still had no idea how much English she understood. However, the fact that she had quickly obeyed Ice's instructions when they were fleeing the police chief's house was encouraging.

The girl slowly took a step towards Cadance. Then moved more quickly. She stopped in front of the alicorn, and hesitated, then timidly lifted her right arm and placed her hand on Cadance's shoulder. As she felt the alicorn's warm fur, she smiled, the touch seeming to have wiped away her fear. Cadance rose from her kneeling position and turned towards the royal chariot that had brought her and Shining Armor here, the girl walking along side of her.

“After we get you cleaned up a bit, I'll take you to the royal dining room,” she said warmly. “My personal chef will make you something to eat. He makes the finest strawberry tarts in the world. Would you like that?”

Ice smiled slightly to herself as the girl nodded and Cadance continued to talk comfortingly to her. Then she turned her attention to Shining Armor. He was staring at his wife and the girl, wearing a dejected look on his face, as if some foal had run away from him screaming that he was some kind of monster.

“It was nothing you did, My Lord. She's had a very rough time. It will become clear when we debrief,” Ice said, trying to comfort the poor stallion. Shining Armor turned to her and returned her smile, but then he frowned again as he watched Cadance and the girl board the royal chariot.

“It seems my wife has stolen our ride,” he said with a corny expression. “I guess we'll have to take a cab.” He turned and trotted towards the civilian portion of the skyport, which was a significant trek from the military area. Ice turned back towards the chariot intending to grab her two saddlebags, only to remember that she'd left them at the hotel in Afghanistan. Her entire wardrobe had been in those bags! She frowned and turned around again, cantering for a moment to catch up with Shining Armor before slowing to a trot and falling in slightly behind him. The Prince turned his head and looked back over his shoulder at her.

He said, “I should warn you that there are quite a few reporters camped out in front of your office. We tried to keep a lid on things, but the story broke somehow. We suspect our own news agents heard the story from American media.”

So much for keeping a lid on things then, Ice thought with a frown. She hated reporters. Well, she didn't hate reporters, but she hated talking to the press. By nature, thestrals weren't the most sociable of ponies to begin with. They preferred small, intimate gatherings rather than large crowds and mass media. But also, she had had it drilled into her that you did not talk to the press. Not ever. It was strictly taboo. Of course, that was a holdout from her Bat Team Alpha days, and it didn't really apply now that she was a legal agent. Now, it was inevitable that she would have to talk to the press sometimes.

But for the last twenty years, there had been another factor at work: Ice was slightly agoraphobic. She'd developed a self-consciousness about her lack of wings, and because of that, she hated being on camera, or having her picture in newspapers. She always thought the ponies watching were probably focused on where her wings should be, thinking she was some kind of deformed mutant, staring at her as if she were some kind of unknown monster who had just walked out of Everfree Forest. Rationally, she knew that really made no sense. The millions of ponies who would tune into the Crystal Nightly News would do so because this was turning into a major international story. Not because they wanted to gawk at her missing wings. But phobias didn't listen to rational thinking.

At least she was reasonably certain nopony had seen the damaged chariot or the human girl. She’d be able to avoid the most difficult questions.

“Just pony press?” she asked.

“For now. But human news agencies are hammering us with requests for press visas. CNN, Fox News, ABC, NBC, CBS, BBC, Al Jazeera. All the big names. So far, we've denied all of the requests, but I don't know how long that's going to continue. The United Nations is asking for more transparency because they want guarantees that the prisoners' human rights aren't being violated.”

“If the UN is worried about transparency, and human rights, perhaps they should be focused more on the American military. General Faulkner of the Marine Corps has already labeled the prisoners as guilty, despite the fact that there's been no trial. And JAG has been withholding evidence from me and falsifying personnel records they've sent me. And besides, certainly the UN must understand that I can't discuss an active investigation with the press, and that I would advise the prisoners not to talk to the press either because anything they say could potentially be used to incriminate them. So with all due respect, My Lord, tell the UN to go jump in a pile of horse manure.”

“That's what we have been telling them … in slightly more diplomatic terms, of course. But at the same time, we do want to use this opportunity to show the humans that our justice system is fair. Some human nations have doubts because we don't have juries or defense attorneys. But we are trying to balance our desire to show that our system works, with our desire not to turn this whole thing into a media feeding frenzy.”

Ice nodded. “Well, given what I learned on my trip, I strongly suspect the Americans, or at least the American military, will be singing a different tune about wanting transparency. They are probably going to want this whole thing as hush, hush as possible.”

Shining Armor's ears perked up. “Teasing me, are you? Never mind. Say no more until we get to where we can talk safely.”

“Of course, My Lord.”

The two of them arrived at the taxi stand and walked to the front of the line where a grizzled crystal earth pony stallion wearing a checkered flannel vest and a tan newsboy hat stood with one leg cocked and his head lowered, eyes closed as he snored lightly. His tail flicked an insect off his flank, but he didn't wake. Shining Armor glanced back at Ice with an amused smirk on his face before stopping next to the cabbie.

“Slow day?” Shining Armor asked loudly. The cabbie's eyes shot open and he nearly kicked out his hind legs in surprise, turning his head. Ice didn't think his eyes could get any wider, but they did when he saw who had addressed him.

“My Lord!” he said, awkwardly trying to bow, which was quite a feat of athleticism given he was harnessed to his cab.

“Relax,” Shining Armor said with a good-natured laugh. “We need a ride to the palace.”

“My Lord?” The cabbie's muzzle wrinkled in confusion, no doubt trying to figure out why the Prince of the entire Crystal Empire would need a common cab to take him anywhere.

“Princess Cadance had to return to the palace on a special errand, leaving me and my guest stranded here,” Shining Armor explained. It was basically the truth, told in a way that wouldn't start any rumors.

“My Lord?” the cabbie asked again, looking just as confused as ever. Shining Armor shook his head and opened the door to the cab himself, holding it for Ice. She climbed inside, giving him a nod of thanks. He climbed in and sat next to her, pulling the door shut with a forehoof.

“To the palace, please,” he said. Finally, the cabbie seemed to come out of his semi-dazed state. He started at a walk, turning towards the skyport's exit, then turned down one of the crystal streets, speeding up to a trot towards the palace. The two of them said nothing during the trip. It would be better to wait until they were inside a debriefing room where no ears could hear, and no rumors could start circulating to the press.

After a short ride, they arrived at the palace gate. The cab stopped to the sound of muffled arguing between the cabbie and the guards at the gate. The cab windows were tinted such that it wasn't possible to see into the cab from outside. Apparently, the guards didn't believe the cabbie that he had the Prince inside his cab. Who could blame them? Shining Armor opened the door, and showed himself to the guards. Like the cabbie, the guards' faces became a cloud of confusion, but after a few seconds, the senior guard motioned them through the gate. The cabbie moved at a trot until they reached the entrance to the palace, then stopped. Shining Armor opened the door and climbed out, Ice following him. The Prince pulled some bits from the small saddlebag he wore and gave them to the cabbie.

The cabbie's eyes went wide and he recoiled as if he thought the bits might jump up and bite him.

“I couldn't possibly, My Lord … I mean for Royalty … consider the trip complementary.”

“Nonsense,” Shining Armor said with a shake of his head. “I insist on paying just as every other pony would. If you really want to give a free cab ride to somepony, give it to somepony who actually needs it.”

“As you wish, My Lord,” the cabbie responded with a respectful bow of his head, then took the bits. “Thank … thank you for your business.”

“You're welcome,” Shining Armor said with a smile. Then, he lead Ice inside the palace.

He said, “I would take you to the receiving room in the royal apartment, but I suspect Cady and the girl you brought with you might be there. So we'll have to settle for one of the other meeting rooms.”

“Of course, My Lord,” Ice said, continuing to follow him. Only half of her mind was there, though. The other half was busy thinking about Reid. She couldn't wait to tell him what she'd found out. That she had evidence that under the Uniform Code of Pony Justice, this might be a justified killing because it was done to stop serious imminent physical harm to a child. Well, the Uniform Code of Pony Justice used the words colt, filly, or foal, but the spirit of the law was clear. A human child would receive the same protections under the Uniform Code that a colt, filly, or foal would. Her only regret was that she wouldn't be able to see the expression on Reid's face when she told him that his attempts to withhold information from her had failed. Oh yes, she'd won this battle. It was time for Reid to throw up his hands and surrender.

Shining Armor stopped in front of a nondescript door and opened it, motioning her inside. She stepped in and he followed, closing the door behind them. The room they were in was small, but well furnished. It consisted of a round crystal table in the center of the room, with a smooth see-through top that was as clear as the water in one of the Crystal Palace's fountains. Plush, crimson sitting cushions surrounded the table on four sides, and a pink quartz fireplace adorned the wall of the room, although it was unlit in the summer heat. Wall mounted lamps with crystal reflectors to make them look brighter than they actually were illuminated the room. Tapestries showing the flags of various nations friendly to the Crystal Empire adorned the walls, intended to make visiting dignitaries feel more comfortable. There were tapestries depicting the flags of Equestria, Saddle Arabia, Griffonstone, Germaney, Prance, the Forest Kingdom of Thicket, Dimondia, The Dragon Lands – which had been added thanks to improved relations after Princess Ember became the ruling monarch there and established a close friendship with Twilight's assistant, Spike – and the newest flag, the Changeling Kingdom, which had been added after the dethroning of Queen Chrysalis and the coronation of King Thorax who was much more friendly to pony interests. So far, there were no flags of any human nations. Less than two days ago, Ice had hoped it would always stay that way; that no human flags would ever be displayed anywhere in the Crystal Empire or in Equestria. But now … well, despite the fact that she was warming up to some humans, she wasn't quite willing to accept the idea that the flags of any human nations should be hanging anywhere in Crystal Palace. But at least now, she was willing to entertain the idea that maybe a time would come when she would be okay with it for at least some human nations.

She sat down at the table, Shining Armor sitting across from her, and proceeded to tell him everything that had happened on her trip to Afghanistan. He nodded a few times and flattened his ears in disgust when she told him Duncan's story about the militia commander's activities with young boys and girls. When she told him about how she had found the girl chained to the police chief's bed, he bristled, anger permeating his scent. Based on his expression, he would have gladly helped her kill the police chief if they had come upon him, and then helped her dispose of the body afterward, possibly by magicking it into oblivion.

“Of course, right now, I don't have any proof. But I'm hoping that's what the girl will be able to provide,” she said after she had finished telling him of what she had learned. “The militia commanders basically own the police over there, and are tight with the police chiefs. If the girl can implicate the militia commander, that will validate Duncan's story enough in my mind to create reasonable doubt that this was cold blooded murder. And if the killing was done to protect a child from imminent serious harm, then it's a justified killing under the Uniform Code of Pony Justice, and I'd be inclined to recommend asylum.”

Shining Armor nodded once. “But if, as Duncan said, as disgusting as the militia commander's actions were, they were not a crime under local village Afghan law, then it's still a vigilante killing, isn't it? Aren't the prisoners bound to follow local law in the country they are in at the time?” Shining Armor asked. Ice knew the Prince wasn't defending the militia commander's actions. He just wasn't educated in the law like she was, and wanted to make sure they actually had a valid reason for refusing extradition and granting asylum.

“Technically, it would make them vigilantes, yes,” Ice responded. “But the Uniform Code of Pony Justice allows me to consider whether something would be a crime under our own laws when I decide whether or not to recommend extradition or asylum. And in this case, if true, the actions of the militia commander were such an egregious violation of everything we hold sacred, that we would be perfectly justified under the Uniform Code for refusing extradition and granting asylum.”

Shining Armor was silent for a few moments as he processed the information before responding.

“Well, it sounds like you've done excellent work. And I think you've pretty much justified the bullet damage to the chariot.”

“Thank you, My Lord,” she said, feeling a sense of pride. It seemed clear to her now that Shining Armor remembered nothing of the dream that Luna had placed him in. Given his reactions to her story, all of this had been new to him. Briefly, she considered asking him whether he remembered meeting her in the dream, but she decided against it. It had obviously been very difficult for him to tell her about how his hatred for Chrysalis had become so obsessive that it had nearly destroyed his relationship with Cadance. If he didn't remember telling her about that, there was no reason for her to dig it up. But there was still the issue of the girl to deal with.

“The girl will need asylum as a refugee, My Lord. At least temporarily until we can figure out what to do with her.”

“It's granted.”

“Not even going to consult with Cadance on it first, My Lord?” Ice asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Nope. No reason to. She'd grant the request anyway if I did consult with her. But what are your long term plans for the girl once Doctor Fjord has interviewed her?”

Ice took a deep breath, let it out slowly as she considered before responding. “I don't know. I hadn't thought much beyond getting her out of that Tartarus hole village, and I obviously have no inclination to send her back there. She's going to have a difficult recovery, and she's going to need professional psychiatric help. We could put her in foster care here in Crystal City, but ideally it would be best if she were raised by human foster parents.

“What about bringing her parents here as refugees too?”

“I only saw her father briefly, and I know nothing about him. I never saw her mother at all. But if her parents subscribe to the local culture and customs as Duncan put it, then it's not a culture I want her being raised in. I don't want her growing up thinking it's normal or acceptable for young girls to be put in the situation she was put in.”

“I completely agree. We'll get a social worker assigned to her and see what we can do.”

Ice lowered her ears, looking at the floor with a sinking feeling in her stomach.

“You see a problem?” Shining Armor asked. Ice looked up at him again.

“I'm afraid we might have a hard time finding any human nations that want to touch this, My Lord. It's too hot. After all, being completely honest about what happened, I kidnapped the girl, whisked her away from her legal guardian, and illegally took her out of the country. It may not matter much that her legal guardian had her chained to a bed, or that the kidnapping was not against the girl's will. It's still awfully radioactive from an international diplomacy standpoint.” Ice returned her gaze to the floor. “And even if I thought we could find a human nation willing to get involved, I’m not even sure we should try. I’m worried that anywhere we send her might just end up shipping her back to her Afghan village because of international pressure.”

“Well, whether it was technically kidnapping or not, you did the right thing in getting her out of there, Ice. Don't ever second-guess yourself on that.”

“Thank you, My Lord.” The sinking feeling in Ice's chest was replaced with a feeling of satisfaction.

“Anyway, at least until the whole issue with the human prisoners is resolved, we're going to treat this like an official Bat Team Alpha mission. If anyone asks about the girl, we're going to say we have no idea who kidnapped her or why, and we have no idea where she is, but we are performing an investigation to try to locate her. In the meantime, the girl will stay in the palace with Cadance and me. We will be her foster parents for now.”

“Thank you, My Lord. That's very kind of you.” Again, Ice found herself touched by the humbleness of the two Crystal Empire Royals. That they were willing to take in an orphaned human girl from some no-name village in Afghanistan. But then, Cadance herself had been an orphan and had been taken in by Celestia herself. It was no wonder she had that kind of compassion for other orphans.

“So what was the weather like there? Cold?” Shining Armor asked. Ice tried to suppress a frown. Shining Armor did have a tendency to be rather talkative. It came from a desire to make the commoners feel comfortable, she thought. To make them feel like they could carry on a normal conversation with him, and that he was interested in their daily lives, experiences, and so on. But sometimes, he tried a little bit too hard. Normally, she wouldn't have minded indulging in casual conversation with him. But she really wanted to get back to her office and confront Reid with the new information.

She said, “It was colder, than I thought it would be. I'd love to stay and talk more, My Lord, but I have a lot of work to do on the case with the new information. But perhaps I can tell you more about Afghanistan when we've wrapped this up?”

“Ah. Of course. I'll not keep you, then.” He smiled a slightly sheepish smile. He was well aware of his own tendency to draw out conversations. Then, he stood up from his sitting cushion and walked to the door. Ice followed. “I'll walk you to the castle entrance.”

“Thank you, My Lord,” she said, smiling, as she followed him out of the meeting room. Next Chapter: XV Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 21 Minutes