Chapter 2
The Captain, Sargent, and Soldier
"Nimbus Vanguard?" a cool voice rang out from behind the desk. The mare that was serving as the current secretary to Captain Valiant stared down at the papers in front of her, ignoring the silvery-white pegasus as he jumped up from his seat. Unsure of himself, he trotted up to her and coughed nervously.
"Th-that would be me, ma'am."
"Mhm… The Captain will see you now. Try to not seem like such a timid foal, though. He hates that in his subordinates," she said with a flick of her tail, gesturing to the door. Nimbus nodded, turning to face forward before giving the door a firm tap with a hoof. He had meant it as a knock, but it caused the door to swing open instead. He flinched. The secretary sighed and then gave him a shove that sent him sprawling. He landed on his nose, and turned just in time to see the door slam shut behind him. Before he had time to be offended, however, a gruff voice caught his attention.
He quickly jumped to attention, not even daring to dust himself off as he faced Captain Valiant. The older unicorn shook his head and mumbled "at ease". Slowly, Nimbus lowered his hoof and brushed his wings against his flanks to wipe away the dirt. The Captain was much quieter than normal. Whenever Nimbus had seen him before, he was shouting crisp, clear orders across the battalion. This grumbly old pony approach was making him nervous.
His eyes followed the Captain's every movements as the unicorn's horn lit up, lifting a stack of papers to his eyes. Nimbus recognized them instantly. "Is that… My file, sir?" he asked, doing his best to sound only curious and not freaked out. Valiant nodded slowly, still reading. The two stallions continued to stand there in relative silence that was only broken by the sound of the papers turning. It seemed like he was reading for eternity, and the pressure felt like it was weighing down on Nimbus. Just as he was sure he was going to pop; the papers fell into a neat stack on the desk and the Captain looked up.
"So," he began, "the night shift?"
"Uh- Yes sir. If it is possible, that is," came Nimbus's painfully strained reply. He coughed, trying to settle his nerves. Captain Valiant raised one eyebrow, then looked down at the top paper once more.
"Says here that you've been part of the Day Patrol for almost a year and a half now. Why the sudden desire to change?"
"W-well sir, you see…" Nimbus looked down at his hooves. How was he supposed to explain himself without saying something stupid? He let his eyes drift around the room, trying to think, when he spotted a mural of the princesses. His eyes fell on the beautiful deep blues, and found himself speaking without realizing the words. "Princess Luna… Princess Luna recommended I do it."
He shifted his gaze straight forward once more and found the Captain looking back curiously. A sense of duty washed over him, and he stood straighter. But his newfound resolve wavered as the Captain said "Ah, yes. I was there when she brought you back to the barracks. I've been meaning to reprimand you about that."
"That was because-!" He caught himself just before he said anything foolish, but he knew he had to give a reason now. Captain Valiant was growing impatient. "B-because… I wanted to be sure the shift change was completed. Sir," he added quickly. "I hadn't seen any of the night guard in the hallways yet, and I was worried that no pony would be around while Princess Luna was doing her nightly rounds with the lavender."
What he said was true, but he was also doing his best to avoid giving away his other motive of wanting to see the night. Valiant nodded slowly, his eyes never moving from Nimbus's face. The pressure was starting to increase again, and Nimbus could feel his heartbeat in his throat. Finally, the Captain moved from his seat and trotted up to the pegasus.
"Nimbus," he almost seemed to sigh, "I'll be honest with you. I like your devotion to keeping the Princesses safe. I don't see that in enough of the guards, at least not as their top priority. But I'm worried about you making the shift to becoming nocturnal. You've got a long history of falling asleep in the hallways, you know."
"I can do it! I promise! It was just how early I had to wake up before, I know I can make the change if I can sleep during the day!" He would have continued to excitedly plead his case, except that he caught sight of the Captain's expression and realized his insubordination. He immediately fell silent, looking mortified. Then, to his utter shock, the Captain laughed.
"Well, if you're that enthusiastic about it, I'm sure I don't have to worry about you. Just make sure you keep your composure around the Princesses. And," his face suddenly grew hard and his voice cold, "don't you ever interrupt your superior officers again. Got it?"
Nimbus waited several seconds before answering. "Y-yes, Sir."
"Good. Now go report to Sargent Starfall for your assignment."
"Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir," Nimbus said in a hurry, saluting as he backed out of the room. The second the door was closed, he leapt straight into the air, throwing his head back to let out a small shout of joy. The secretary rolled her eyes, but she had a slight smile on her face anyway. His joy was much too infectious.
He landed a few moments later and trotted down the hallway towards Sargent Starfall's office, a room which he had never been in before. He didn't know much about the Sargent, which made him nervous. But he was so excited that he could be part of the guard for Princess Luna, and see her night once again, that he wobbled his way forward and knocked on the door with no hesitation.
"Come on in!~" called a soft and alluring voice. Nimbus pushed the door open and peeked in. An especially pretty pony sat behind the desk in the middle of the room, leaning on one hoof as her magenta mane fell over half of her face. She was a deep purple color, and on her visible eye she had a much lighter purple four-point star. The whole place was full of the scent of jasmine and vanilla, and it was making his head swim a bit.
"Erm… Are you Sargent Starfall?" Nimbus asked, raising an eyebrow at her. She laughed, a gentle sort of giggle, and stood up to walk towards him. Nimbus, for his part, was still unsure of who he was dealing with and decided to stand at attention. The strange mare walked around him, the smell growing stronger as she looked him over.
Finally, she stopped in front of him, her nose inches away from his. "You can call me Haven, handsome," she said with a grin, her face approaching his. Reflexively, he jerked backwards.
"Pardon me, ma'am. I seem to have entered the wrong room. I'm terribly sorry to have bothered-" he was cut off as her hoof pressed against his mouth, which he frowned at.
"Darling, it's alright, you can stay with me for a while. No one will interrupt us.~"
Nimbus gave her a stern look and gently pushed her hoof away. "I'm afraid I have to decline, miss. I am on duty right now, and must report to my superior officer. Perhaps when my shift is finished, I can come back and we can converse with each other. For now, though, I have to go."
He offered her a small smile, then turned to leave and walked right into a dark grey pony with white flecks across her coat. He took a small step back, and then looked up at the stern expression. Slowly, it cracked into a smile, though it didn't reach her eyes.
"Well, it seems you passed that test. Well done Nimbus. And thank you, Star Haven."
"Sure thing, Sis!" the purple mare said, flashing Nimbus a wide grin before blowing him a kiss. Side-by-side, he could see the resemblance in their facial shapes, but beyond that they were like night and day.
The grey mare, who was clearly Sargent Starfall, spoke with her commanding voice again. "You must not have been in the infirmary a lot, if you have never seen my sister."
"Actually… I've really only ever seen Nurse Soft Spot and Nurse Heart Breaker, ma'am."
"Right, right, day shift… That's gonna be a real switch around for you, kid. Let's go," the Sargent said, already turning to leave. Her tail was cut incredibly short, and somehow that intimidated Nimbus. He followed her quietly, keeping a respectful distance.
They passed through the halls of the castle as it fell more and more silent around them, and Nimbus glanced out the windows in time to see the moon rise. Instinctively, he began to yawn, but quickly tried to stifle it. It strained his throat, but he managed to conceal it. The scent of fresh lavender drifted around them, which wasn't helping. He stifled another yawn, and Sargent Starfall said over her shoulder "Don't worry, I won't keep you long. But you will be waking up later in the day. And feel free to ask questions. You're making a very big change, after all."
Nimbus thought about it, tapping his chin with one wing as they walked. "I suppose I would like to know… Where we're going? Ma'am?" It was hard to tell, but he thought he saw the corner of her mouth lift.
"We are going to the night barracks, so that you know where they are. Everypony should already be out of bed by now, so you should have no trouble going to sleep."
"And… All of my things?"
"Already moved while you were on shift today."
He nodded thoughtfully, feeling a small twinge of curiosity still, but unsure if he should satisfy it. "Will… Will I be starting tonight?"
The Sargent stopped dead in her tracks, and Nimbus in his tired state almost walked right into her. She then looked back at him in concern. "Are you kidding? There is absolutely no way I would ask you to work a second shift. You would not only be too tired to be an effective guard, you would likely hurt yourself. No, no, we're going to ease you into a new sleep schedule over the week. Half shifts only until you've grown accustomed to the change, understand?"
"Yes, ma'am." Nimbus tried not to sound too relieved. They finally reached the end of the hallway, and Sargent Starfall pushed open the door to reveal a room completely lit up, despite the lights being extinguished throughout the rest of the palace. She sighed when she saw that, and shook her head as she led him in.
"These were supposed to be doused when everypony left. I'm sorry, I'll send somepony along to take care of it shortly. Your bed is right here. Please try and stay awake as long as possible before falling asleep, and try to keep falling asleep throughout the day. Yes," she added with another faint grin, "I am ordering you to take naps. Sleep well, Nimbus Vanguard. And… Welcome to the night shift."
She left him alone then, still smiling, and once her hoofsteps had faded, he fell into the bed with a sigh. He glanced up towards one of the high windows, which were small to prevent daylight leaking through them, and noticed something. A balcony. And standing on the edge of it, overlooking the world below, was Princess Luna. Nimbus smiled, and then the exhausted pegasus fell asleep.