The Fire: Golden Armor
Captain Skyfeather and several other guards winced inwardly as they shielded themselves from a fiery blast. They were attempting to breach into the burning apartment from where they had heard a filly’s scream from one of the upper floors. An air extraction would not have been possible as the huge amounts of choking smoke would not only block vision, but it would definitely send any normal pony comatose from the lack of fresh air. Attempting to put out the fire was not an option since all efforts to do so earlier had proved futile.
That forced them to pick up a rather large scaffolding that, thank Celestia, was still intact and therefore was good material to be a makeshift ram. Despite the earth ponies in their ranks, moving it was still a herculean effort, and ramming it into the debris that blocked their path was even harder still. They would have been sweating rivers by now, had the fire not been present to take their sweat away. At least it would not get into their eyes.
Their limbs ached and smarted from the exertion of carrying and thrusting the heavy ram. The guards grunted as they continued to pound against the fiery wall. But how could they rest, knowing that a pony’s life was in danger and would surely perish if they did not intervene? It would not rest well in their conscience if they decided to take a rest while precious seconds ticked by to save that pony?
With a final heave, the ram penetrated the burning prison, creating a gap large enough for the small group to enter. The unicorn guards cast protective wards, a somewhat pointless act as the heat was so intense that it could even penetrate magic barriers. They would have to be extremely cautious inside the building.
Just as they entered the apartment, a shower of rocks pelted the group, noisily clanking off their armor. One gave a shout of surprise and shock as a hot stone struck his hoof and kicked out instinctively, but was otherwise unharmed.
Skyfeather licked his lips, tasting ash and feeling its cracked ridges. They had to move quickly or they would suffer from dehydration. It didn’t help that they could not sweat effectively. Also, more debris was falling over around them. If they took their time, their escape route might be blocked by falling scaffolding and they would surely die.
Everypony was on edge, not only because they had somepony to save, but because anytime, with the building already partially destroyed by the fire, everything could come crashing on their heads. Not even magic could save them from such a fate. Eyes darted about, breathing became ragged, hoofsteps became shakier as the potent mix of adrenaline and anxiety coursed through their body. Despite that, they were all united in their single focus: rescuing the filly still trapped in the burning building.
Thank Celestia that the stairs they were using to get to the upper floors was still in relative good condition and had not been too damaged by the fire yet. But where was the filly? Skyfeather split the group into three, two ponies would search each upper floor and were given five minutes to search each floor. If they couldn’t find the filly by then, they would have to regroup outside of the building. They hope it would not come to that scenario.
Each team began the arduous task of kicking down the doors to each apartment, shouting over the fire, hoping they would get some form of response from the filly. The fire scorched unforgivingly and ash scattered throughout the air, forcing the guards to slow their progress as they struggled to search with tearing eyes. Occasionally they would hear a scream of terror, but they could not be sure of its location, as the loud crackling of burning and the falling of debris would interfere with their hearing.
Time was running out. The protective wards had long vanished and it was useless to renew them. The guards’ armor was beginning to turn from a royal gold to an unrecognisable black. It had also started to burn against their skin and though it protected them from being pelted by molten droplets, it would soon turn into ovens. By then it would not matter if they were crushed or not.
“ANYPONY THERE?!” Skyfeather hollered over the roar of the flames and a wall of rubble. Beside him, his partner Stonehoof bucked away loose pieces of wood, concrete, whatever that blocked their way. Already, his hooves were burned in several places where they had touched hot surfaces, bleeding where he had cut himself on sharp glass.
Skyfeather swore as a blast of scorching air shot ash straight into his eyes, forcing him to back away and blink rapidly to clear his eyes from the stinging particles. While doing so, he vaguely heard Stonehoof scrambling over rubble shouting something incomprehensible. It was only when he cleared his vision that he saw his partner was over the rubble and next to a large wardrobe partially buried in debris. More importantly, there were muffled shrieks of terror coming from the wardrobe.
“SHE’S IN HERE, HELP ME WITH THIS!”
Even though their hooves were sore and injured from clearing hot debris, they worked at an astonishingly fast pace, kicking away the stones and wood blocking the entrance of the wardrobe. FInally, they managed level away the rubble to open the wardrobe to reveal a pink filly clutching a teddy bear close to her chest, the latter stained with tears.
“ARE YOU ALRIGHT MISS?”
The little filly nodded, still sobbing. Her face was still buried in her toy Skyfeather grimaced. She must be thinking about her parents. He hoped that they were alright.
Picking her up, Skyfeather placed her on his back, instructing her to hold on tight. Jumping over the wall of rubble from earlier, he turned to Stonehoof…
...Only to see a large scaffolding fall from the flaming roof and strike Stonehoof on the back. With a cry, Stonehoof fell to the ground, pinned.
“NO!”
Skyfeather rushed back to try and push the scaffolding away, but try as he might, it would not budge at all. Curse this pegasus body! He gritted his teeth and pushed, ignoring the cries of pain his injuries and sore limbs telling him to stop.
Stonehoof grinned in spite of the pain, and took off his helmet, letting his blonde mane run down his face. His green eyes glittered in the glare of the fire. “It’s been nice knowing you Skyfeather, hope you guys get out safely.”
“Damn it! I’m not leaving without you!” Again, Skyfeather futilely pushed against the scaffolding, this time ramming his shoulder into the hard wood repeatedly. The filly looked at him now, her eyes widened in terror at the scene that was unfolding.
“Stop… stop. I’ll only slow you down. Get her and the others… out of the building… before it’s too late…” Stonehoof wheezed. The impact had broken a few ribs and he was struggling to talk, let alone breathe. He held out his helmet, it’s golden gloss only visible in patches in a sea of grey and black.
Skyfeather took it.
“Don’t… forget me…”
Skyfeather backed away slowly, his mind refusing to accept what was happening. Yet, as he turned and ran back to join the rest of the guards, a cold acceptance swept over him, blocking all other sensations. Stonehoof was going to die, and nothing he could do would change that.
Duty, Honor, Courage. These were the three values that each of the Guard remembered since initiation. It was by these values that they wore the golden armor that identified them with the group dedicated to the protection of the citizens of Equestria. It defined their work, be it guarding the princesses, or even patrolling the streets of Canterlot, the Royal Guard always made sure that ponies could see these values through what they did.
Yet, as Skyfeather ran from the building collapsing behind him, he could not see any of these values in the work he had just done. All he could see was the scene where his friend said his last words, before he turned to flee.
Stonehoof. His first friend during initiation. Who always stood by him during tough training sessions. Who always partnered him during patrol duty. Who laughed with him during their times off in bars. Who rose through the ranks with him. Who fought off the changelings with him during the invasion.
Who he left in the apartment to die a horrible death.
How can he claim to be a guard when he could not save his friend?
“I’m sorry about your friend, mister.” The filly hugged his neck tighter, burying her face into his armor.
And with that, Skyfeather straightened, his eyes widening as he realised the answer to his unspoken question. Even though she was just a little filly, no doubt she was a Equestria citizen, one he had sworn an oath to protect. One that he had promised to give his life to protect. Stonehoof had certainly done that, and he had died, not a horrible death, but an honorable death. Despite knowing the dangers, he had gone in, demonstrating his great courage. And finally, with his last words, he had reminded Skyfeather of his duty.
To remember Stonehoof by continuing his duty in his absence. He had not run away in cowardice, but to save the filly, and that was what they were supposed to do as guards. Turning the helmet so that the front faced him, Skyfeather used a hoof to dust some of the ash off the headwear, revealing a dull sheen of gold beneath. He could almost see Stonehoof’s face behind the helmet, telling him once more not to forget him. Resolve filled his being once again, and he dashed off to regroup with the rest of the guards.
No matter how scratched or dirty the armor became, it would always be gold.
Author's Note
Comments and reviews are greatly appreciated as usual. Somehow, I felt that the end was a little abrupt, but because the event was so sudden, I thought maybe the end could come as quickly as 'it' did.