Lovers of the Night

It was a sunny day at Canterlot. The streets were bustling with ponies. Shops lined the streets and picnic tables were scattered around Canterlot's parks. A train had stopped at the station and let out several ponies. There were many that came out of the train. But, there was one pony that caught some of Canterlot's eyes. He was a silver colored unicorn who looked quite fit. He had a jet black streaked hairstyle and had a short tail. But those details weren't the ones that were focused on. It was his mechanical wings. They matched the color of his fur and other than that, they were unique.

"Are those mechanical wings?" a pony asked. "Yes," replied the unicorn trying to rush out without attracting anymore attention. It didn't seem to work. It actually drew a crowd.

"That is amazing! Can I touch it?" asked a pony as he and several others chased the unicorn down Canterlot. He ran through alleyways and through narrow areas. The crowd still didn't let up. Of course they wouldn't give up that easily. They had never seen anything like the unicorn's wings. Luckily, he managed to lose the crowd by hiding in a shed. "Phew. Glad that's over," said the unicorn as he continued to the castle.

As he entered the castle, he looked at the towering windows and their beautiful designs. He continued walking until he ran into the captain of the Royal Guards, Shining Armor. "Excuse me sir," said Shining Armor. "What business do you have at the castle?"

"I wish to become a Royal Guard," replied the unicorn.

"What is your name?"

"I am Silver Lance."

"Well, becoming a Royal Guard isn't as easy as signing a job application. I'm gonna need to see your skill. Come."

The two ponies began to walk down the hall. Shining Armor was telling Silver Lance about the rules and responsibilities of being one of them. "So, you have to always be watchful not only in the castle, but with your surroundings. Always check what is going on because there could be trouble close by," explained Shining Armor. "But I have to ask, where did you get those wings?"

"I made them myself. I wanted to experience how it felt to fly," replied Silver Lance.

"That is interesting Silver Lance."

"Please. Call me Lance. I never did like 'Silver.'"

"Alright. We're here."

They had arrived at the training course. There were exercises on speed, agility, and strength. "Get on the speed course. I want to see how fast you can run," said Shining Armor. Lance gave a nod and went to the starting point. There were obstacles that he had to dodge. But nothing he couldn't handle. "Alright! Get ready," shouted Shining Armor. "Go!"

Lance bolted from the starting point. He ran past each obstacle and reached the end point in a matter of seconds. Shining Armor stared in amazement. Lance had finished the course in record time! "Fifty-three seconds! A new recruit record," said Shining Armor. "Alright, let's head over to the agility portion of the test." Both ponies moved to a ring where Shining Armor grabbed a wooden sword and shield. "Alright rookie, let's see how fast you can dodge."

Shining Armor swung the sword back and forth trying to hit Lance. Shining Armor may have been fast, but Lance was faster. He bobbed and weaved dodging every incoming sword slash. After a while, Shining Armor thrust the sword down with enough strength to get it stuck into the floor. This was Lance's chance. He kicked Shining Armor who stumbled back. "Great job rookie. Ouch... Alright, let's head onto the-" Shining Armor was interrupted by a guard who burst through the training room doors. "Sir, we have a problem," said the guard. "What is it?" asked Shining Armor.

"There is another crazy prophet outside. He's scaring the citizens again."

"Not this fool again. Alright."

Shining Armor turned to Lance and said, "I have to go deal with something. Your in, recruit. You can have the room down the corridor. You'll get your armor and other equipment later. Your official training will start in two days."

"Yes sir," replied Lance. Both of them left the room going in different directions. "Awesome! This really is a dream come true," said Lance talking to himself. "Wait 'til Logan hears about this!"

Lance entered his quarters and began to settle in. His room was medium sized. It wasn't as big as he hoped it would, but it'd have to do. He walked around in his room and opened the windows to let the fresh air enter his room. The wind felt good. He looked out the window to see the view of Canterlot. He smiled and went over to his desk and began to right a letter.

Dear brother,

Looks like what I thought would only be a dream actually came true! You heard me, they let me in! The entrance test was pretty easy. Shining Armor, the captain said I broke a speed record. I am really excited to see what would happen. If only my parents were here to see me now. I wish I could see those murderous bandit bastards myself. Well anyways, hope to see you here in Canterlot one day.

Signed,

Silver Lance.

Lance placed the letter in a small envelope and saved it for later. He wanted to explore the castle himself. He walked out of his room and began to walk down the hall. But as he did so, somepony's eyes were locked on him. He didn't seem to friendly. In fact, that pony didn't even seem friendly.