CADANCE POV, BEFORE NOIRE'S RETURN

I was at my bed, curled up into a ball and trying helplessly to hold back a small trickle of tears from my face. However, I was hanging my head low so the tears just fell on the sheets, forming a dark, wet patch on the expensive sheets I would have avoided crying on. I didn't bother going back to talk to him. He was already gone then; with a flash of magic, I felt his presence grow further away from me. Shining was gone and probably out with another mare. This sounded obvious to me at the time; the distance between us for months, how he never seemed to be available enough to give me more than a kiss on the cheek, him disappearing into the city for a reason he would always lie to me about. He was with someone he loved even more than his own wife. I couldn't even be mad at him; I'm the Princess of Love. I'm supposed to help ponies find love but there was the fact of him loving my nemesis; Queen Chrysalis. There was also the possibility of him being mind-controlled by her, forcing him to think the things he does. I prayed that Shining was going to be okay. Then there was the issue with Noire. He was off to what was expected to be an area full of changelings. He could be hurt, captured or even killed. There were too many worries going through my mind and so little things in my room to quell them so I decided to get off and work my stresses away. That was when a letter fell from under the sheets and onto the floor so I could see it. The letter was written on a crumpled up piece of parchment, a sign that the writer was in a rush and had to finish it quickly.
The contents of the letter left my mouth and heart agape, making my tears fall even harder than they did before.

Dear Mi Amore Cadenza,

I want to get to the point instead of dancing around it like a doctor; I can't love you anymore.

I have been experiencing nightmares for a long time, ever since we got married in fact. I have had nightmares about your worst enemy; Chrysalis. Before last night, I hated this feeling I got in my nightmares. The feeling of pure joy at seeing her face and having her pleasure me for the entire night. However, now I can only call those nightmares dreams now and soon a reality. She is calling out to me and I cannot wait for her any longer. Even now, I can feel her voice in my ears and her heart on my chest. I must respond. Goodbye Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.

Hers only, Shining Armour

I couldn't believe it. He couldn't even say Cadence or Cady like he usually does. The Shining I knew was gone
"No... No! NO!" I howled out to no-one. I ran out into my balcony and checked my love link with Shining. It would allow us to know where the other was at any time, regardless of the distance. It was weak, so very close to shattering. The only thing keeping it stable was my love for him but even that was slowly fading. I could feel it. "CHRYSALIS! YOU HAVE HURT ME FOR THE LAST TIME! YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO MY SHINY!!!". My cries reached the ends of the Crystal Empire but I was overshadowed by an explosion sounding from the general direction of where Mr Mindful's Mind Study. Another sound came from outside my own door. I rushed over to find Noire and an unknown changeling in his arms. There were dull grey lines that ran his arms and he was completely empty of magic. Whatever went down at the mind study must have been intense. I held my hands at my mouth, looking down at the pool of red and green blood that was forming at his feet.

"Cadence, we got some things to talk about but first get a guard to take into custody and maybe a towel to clean up the mess I made in here," he said before dropping the changeling and falling over, unconscious. I could only look on in shock. There was just an explosion and from both his and the changeling's injuries and Noire's significantly scorched clothes, I could only presume they were caught in the explosion for a brief moment before they were teleported. If Noire could flash teleport such a long-distance then how strong will he be when given standard training? I thought as I grabbed Noire in my magic and hauled him off to Doctor Curdle. I would take him to a hospital but I wanted what was happening to be confidential to reduce panic. Plus, Curdle was the only one who knew of Noire's physiology. I ordered the closest guards to take the changeling to the dungeon; I wouldn't have cared if she were to die but we still needed her.

CADANCE POV, PRESENT

I walked back to Noire's room after calling the Crystal Generals but remaining vague on details since this wasn't something to announce just yet. I wanted to talk to Noire about the events of what happened before he teleported back here. Fortunately, he was let out of the ward after a brief argument between him and Curdle, which Curdle surprisingly lost. He was in a new set of armour, much more durable than the one he used to wear. It was like Shining's except some of the armour pieces were missing. All that was left were the white and blue greaves, the breastplate and the gauntlets. He wore this over a black, leather coat. "This feels much better. I swear the armour was so stuffy and heavy, moving at anything above a walking pace impossible. This seems SO much more free and functional" he said, sighing in relief. A black and blue sword was in his grasp and was swinging it around like a pro.

"And the coat?" I asked from the door. The sudden sound caused Noire to jump and quickly turn to me. He lost balance while turning and almost fell over. After a bit of fumbling around, he finally regained his balance and sheathed his sword, pretending the incident never happened. I giggled quietly. Even now, Noire can make me laugh with his antics. He was a long ways away from being a guard but already a capable fighter.

"Ok, the coat is only to look cool but wouldn't it be nice to be looking cool when we kick some changeling ass," he said defensively. I had to be honest; it did make him look cool to an extent and it would help him stand out in front of the guards. Speaking of guards, we had to think of a plan with some of our elites. Those elites were expertly trained in a specific field in order to complete very specific tasks in case Shining wasn't around. Noire finished fawning over his new armour and sat down at the bed and patted a space on it for me to sit on. I accepted the offer, taking a seat next to him on the bed. We were silent for a moment, both of us trying to find out a way to start the conversation. In the middle of my thoughts, the thought of whether Shining should be rescued. If he is 'willingly' co-operating with Chrysalis then maybe he is now a threat to the kingdom, maybe even Equestria. Maybe I should make this a mission to retrieve a wanted criminal I thought to myself.

"Noire, I need to tell you something," I said, thinking that Noire should probably know about this before went to retrieve Shining "Before you came back here, I found a letter from Shining. Just see for yourself" I said, quickly handed him the letter, wanting to be as far away from the thing as possible. Noire carefully went through the letter, studying every single word. Each one caused him to tighten the grip on it before finally having enough, crumpling the paper up and throwing it away. "Noire. I don't think Shining loves me anymore. I don't think he ever loved me at all" I said, tears letting loose and falling like raindrops "I mean how could he ever love such a high-maintenance princess who can't even be around him. I mean, I've betrayed his trust so many times just to feel like more of a princess of love instead of a guidance counsellor. I bet he's having such a great time with Chrysalis; giving him all the love and trust he could ever want. I bet he's loving sticking his dick between that fla-"

I was stopped by a strong hug from Noire. His embrace felt the same as all the others we shared but this one was stronger. I could feel his compassion, It was like a seedling growing in the sunlight. It was growing with each passing second and finally
bloomed, letting loose a flurry of emotions that could not be contained or controlled "Please, don't ever call yourself that again! I don't want you to feel bad about yourself for no reason. You are a beautiful, strong and kind woman who should never beat herself up like you are now. Whether you want Shining arrested or rescued or dead is fine by me but please don't make yourself out as the problem. I will do anything to make you feel like a princess now and forever."

I couldn't see Noire's face through all of that but I could tell he was livid and probably thinking of ways to beat Shining into a bloody paste. I couldn't take any more heartache; I needed relief, a break from all of this. Even if it only lasted a couple of seconds. I subconsciously drew closer and closer to the man beside me until we were practically swapping air. Noire was noticeably very uncomfortable and even more embarrassed when I leaned into him and whispered in his ear "Noire. I know what I am about to do may seem wrong for you but trust me when I say I need this from you,".

This caused Noire to grow red in his whole face, literally radiating heat but I couldn't care less. He was right in front of me. I had to take the chance. I backed away from him for a few moments before smashing my lips into his, quickly penetrating through the barrier of teeth and dancing around his tongue. His eyes widened so much, they were almost the same size as my own. He quickly struggled to pry himself away from me, squirming around frantically before slowly resigning himself and kissing back. I could tell he didn't do this often as he seemed to lack the experience but slowly improving in technique. This continued for almost a whole minute before we broke away for air. We could only pant and think over what we had just done, faces were both completely red from the lack of oxygen and the embarrassment. When we finally regained control of our breathing, Noire quickly stood up and readjusted the loosened pieces of armour. "So..... about that plan..... on getting him back..... we should probably get to doing that with those guys..." he said, facing away from me in a desperate but fruitless attempt to hide his satisfaction. I noticed instantly that he was trying to change the subject back to stop the potential destruction of Equestria. I silently nodded and followed him out of the room the same way as if nothing ever happened. However, something did happen; and it was better than I thought it would be.

NOIRE POV

I was shocked. Nothing complicated about it...... Ok, unless you count the fact that I was going to save the husband of a princess I may have just had an affair with. When it happened I didn't know what to think until I remembered the person who was kissing me and thought NO! I can't just make out with a married mare! but when I thought of the person she was married to, I thought 'Maybe just this once...' leaving me confused as to whether I liked it or not. Cadence, from where I was standing, seemed to be going through the same problem. She was avoiding eye contact, looking at random objects whenever she got the chance. Our awkward silence was interrupted by a pair of purple doors outlined with gold. "Noire, can we talk later?" Cadence whispered, still avoiding eye contact.

"Sure" I whispered back, immediately knowing what she meant. With gusto, I opened the doors and walked in with Cadence not far behind. We were welcomed by three ponies. all in very unique looking armour compared to the guards. The first one, a unicorn in white and purple armour stood up first from their seat, causing the other two, an earth pony in white and orange and a pegasus in white and green, to follow suit. They all sat down except for me since I was still just a guard but with the privilege to change his armour.

She put on a serious face, telling all of us that she meant business. We all went silent, allowing her to speak.
"I am not going to dance around this with you as this needs to be done as soon as possible. Captain Shining Armour has been taken by changelings and will be taken to Queen Chrysalis within the next 24 hours. We must retrieve him before this or else my bonding spell will dissipate and we won't be able to track him. His knowledge will be exploited for Chrysalis' unknown agenda. We have found the exact location through a captured changeling and have fully prepared our main units. My 'personal guard', Noire here will explain our course of action."

To say I was surprised would be an understatement. I did not expect Cadence to just push the attention of three of the strongest and influential ponies in the Crystal Empire onto me like a spotlight. However, this was not about my issues with talking to ponies, let alone three pony generals. This was about how we were to foil the changeling' plans and rescue or capture Shining Armour so my lack of confidence and experience would have to wait. "We have located the changelings' so-called 'bunker' to an abandoned orphanage on the outer limits of the city. It is surrounded by many large buildings, preventing any pegasi to fly in and forms of transportation like our carriages from being unseen by changelings. However, this also serves to our advantage as there are little ways of escaping. This means that the only way of escaping is through the gates" I laid out a map of the city I got from Cadence and pointed towards two marked areas on the perimeter of the city " This is why we must have guards stationed at these points to prevent any way of escape. We must also have guards stationed around the train stations, stopping any disguised changelings from entering. Finally, we need a large squad of elite guards to infiltrate the building to recover Shining. If he at any time attacks, you will have to incapacitate him as he might be a..... possible traitor"

The generals took the time to let that information sink in. I couldn't blame them; to think their captain and prince could be a possible traitor must weigh heavily on their minds. The unicorn general broke the silence plaguing the room "We will need a distraction to allow the squad to enter. The balconies in that area are high enough so they could easily spot your team a mile away." The unicorn, who I now know is female, made a good point. A distraction would be needed to draw their attention away from the infiltration squad.

The pegasus general stood up and walked over to me, pointing towards two buildings in front of the building's entrance "My pegasus corps are expertly trained in marksmanship. We can easily shoot them down, giving you guys enough time to enter before anyone would notice." I hoped our way of distracting them was a little bit less lethal but I couldn't see another way.

"Okay, this can work. Can I rely on your forces to keep the citizens safe and block off the escape routes?" I said to the earth pony general, only answered by a brief nod. I could assume he was not the talkative type "Okay, we set off in an hour. Is that enough time for you to get your forces debriefed and prepared?" They all nodded in response, standing up and saluting towards me. The pegasus general took the opportunity to hang his arm around my shoulder and ruffle up my hair "You did well for a new recruit. By the way, my name's Windy Wing. The silent one is Burning Fist" he said, pointing to the earth pony "And last but not least, the uptight unicorn is Tidal Horn. I hope you stop by my corps station and see what a true guard can do." He let go of me and walked off with the other generals. At the time, I was in awe of his power. My magic absorption allowed me to feel his magic power and it was immense. Was this the result of extensive training or a rare trait? I wonder if the other two were of similar magical potential as him? That would have to wait; we had the battle ahead to win.

WINDY WING POV

I ran up to the other generals, curious as to their opinion on the rookie. When I caught up to them, I walked in front of them and leaned into the two asking "So, what did you think of the princess' new guard? He sure looked strong from the looks of him." Burning Fist merely shrugged his shoulders and Tidal Horn scoffed and crossed her arms in a dignified manner.

"HA! That boy! A guard!? He couldn't measure up to even ONE of our guards! He'll be lucky if he manages to get two feet into the place before getting his face blown off by a changeling! And let's not ignore the fact he wants us to apprehend our CAPTAIN!!! This is a suicide charge that our princess is allowing purely because she's upset he doesn't have her toys under her heels!" Tidal Horn continued to rant and whine until Burning Fist had enough and stopped her in her tracks.

"Tidal, this is NOT a suicide charge. The boy's plan actually is clever and we must accept it, regardless of whether he is a new recruit. On that note, he isn't a weakling either; he is the one who took out one of my own guards and survived the explosion at Doctor Mindful's study. You have to get over this jealousy you feel for Cadence taking Shining and focus on the mission at hand seeing as it will be your corps that will be the infiltration team along with him" He let go of Tidal and immediately braced for Tidal's terrible response.

"WHAT!!!?"

"Your corps guards are trained in infiltration and stealth. They can also sense other magical signatures. Windy's corps will be observing the entrance from above and I will be at a distance, blocking off escape routes with my corps so yours is the only one left. It looks like the boy's plan is more clever than you thought," Burning said with a small smirk.

"Woah! Talking about the kid made Burning smile?! He must be special!" I was already super interested in our new recruit. Burning only sighed and followed us to the end of the hall where they split into our own paths to prepare for the coming battle.

"Boy, I hope this plan works. For Shining's sake."

NOIRE POV

40 minutes. 40 minutes I spent training up my swordsmanship that Shining taught me. He said that I was learning faster than any guard he's ever trained. However, I wasn't going to be a normal guard according to Cadance. It was only supposed to be a test to see whether I was capable of protecting Cadence and if I was trustworthy enough to be near her. Now, I'm less sure of my abilities and even less sure this will only be a one-time thing. Cadence did announce rather nonchalantly that I was her 'personal guard'. Was she being serious or was it just for show? There was also the Crystal Generals, whose immense power could probably deal with every changeling in the place and Chrysalis if there was time to spare. Unfortunately, I had the privilege of infiltrating the changeling hideout with the unicorn general, Tidal Horn, who I believe hated my guts.

Breaking me out of my thoughts was Cadence, dressed in rather slim and small armour almost like Tidal's except it was ( a tight, pink (duh) outfit "I decided that I had to come with you. I had to face Shining again and make him say what he said in that letter to my face," When she finished, we remained in silence for a few moments before she finally gained the strength to speak again "Sorry about the whole 'personal guard' thing. I just.... liked the thought of you..... protecting all of my subjects and..... me so it just came out." It was obvious that she was having a hard time getting everything out, I was having the same issue. I just stood there and listened in silence. ".....I know you hate me for the kiss. I just wanted an outlet so I satisfied that by using you and it was the greatest mistake I've ever made in my life. I am so sorry about that. I hope... you can find it in your heart to forgive me." She was about to turn away from me before I grabbed her by the arm and hugged her. She didn't move or even breath for a moment before hugging me back. I felt a tear land on my unprotected shoulder and Cadence hugging me even more than before.

"You could do nothing to make me feel any differently about you, Cadence. You were the only one to show me compassion when I first landed here. I still have the scar to prove it. I also appreciate the extra magic boost. Did Curdle tell you about it?" I received a nod from her as a response. Curdle discovered that the more willing the subject is to give the magic, the more magic I receive. However, I could still take the magic, regardless of whether they refuse to or not, but the magic is very small compared to the magic she gave me. It was a lot! Almost three times as much magic as the magic I had before the incident at the study.

A bell tolled from outside the training area, signalling the time everyone would be sent to their respective jobs. "We should get going now. Tidal is a real stickler for punctuality," said Cadence. She quickly grabbed my arm and dragged to the place where we were expected to meet with Tidal and her forces. I could feel the sweat on her hands.

Outside of the castle, a squad of 30 guards stood diligently, all of them unicorns specifically selected by General Tidal Horn for the mission. Speaking of her, she was pacing back and forth, waiting for another guard to show up. "Where the hell is that novice guard!? He was supposed to be here a minute ago," she yelled. She was about to rally her troops and leave without him before she heard two pairs of footsteps closing in. It was Noire and Cadence, getting a rise out of Tidal Horn. "What is she doing here? This is a mission for trained warriors, not a pretty pink pony princess," she yelled, causing Cadence to glare at her which Tidal reciprocated with pleasure.

"She insisted on coming and I'm not one for defying my princess. That would be going against my vow to her and we can't have that, can we?" I said while shrugging my shoulders. This caused Tidal to grit her teeth in rage before resigning herself. She turned away from the two of us and went back to her troops. Noire turned his attention back to Cadence "There's a long way to the changeling hideout. We should get to the carriage and tell Tidal we're ready to go" he said. Cadence nodded and went to the carriage next to her; a relatively normal carriage but necessary as we wanted to have this a secret to the changelings and the public. "Okay Tidal! We're ready to go!" he hollered in her direction but she didn't respond to him. However, she got the message and commanded all of the guards to get to their respective carriages and head to the changeling hideout.

While avoiding Noire and Cadence, Tidal, in her mind, was praying "I hope Shining is okay" Tidal murmured to herself. She quickly snapped herself out of the trance she was in and focused on the matter at hand and addressed her guards "ALRIGHT EVERYBODY! ONWARDS!"

The trip was not long with the pace the pegasi were moving at and before I knew it, we were already at our designated locations. The pegasi and earth pony guards were also at their positions and awaited the signal to start. Cadance and I were at the front with Tidal, with a mental communication spell between me, Cadance and the generals if anything went wrong.
"Infiltration squad is at the designated location. Awaiting signal."

As expected, there were changeling guards at the balcony, five to be specific. One at each corner of the building and one at the very front balcony. There didn't appear to be anyone else around it though so it was even more beneficial for us. "All pegasus guards have a shot lined up. Awaiting signal."

At the train station, Burning Fist was with his guard at the back of the hideout, outside of the changeling guards' vision. "Barricade is set and all trains in and out are delayed. Awaiting signal."

The time had come. The time to rescue Shining and foil Chrysalis' plans. It pained me to fight my princess' and best friend's lover but at this point, I couldn't tell what is going on with their relationship. The pain would have to wait for later as I could tell Cadance had enough of waiting for what she was dying to know. "Sending out the signal to move out. NOW!" Cadance said, signalling for the pegasi to commence.

"FIRE!" yelled Windy. Five of the pegasus guards fired lightning on the changelings. All at once, the changelings fell to the ground dead. With that obstacle out of the way, we had a clear shot of getting inside the hideout. Tidal motioned for all of us to go before anyone found out about the dead changelings. Our squad ran to the entrance but left three guards at the entrance as the lookout team.

The inside of the hideout didn't look like an orphanage at all. The walls were covered in a green ooze to the extent that you wouldn't be able to believe this used to be an orphanage. The same went for the floor but parts of it were charred up and there was ash everywhere. However, it didn't look like it was recent. More like it was ages ago.

I didn't have time to think about though as the squad was already leaving the main entrance. The squad was then split into three groups of 11 people to increase the chances of finding the changelings; the last consisting of me, Cadence and Tidal. I followed behind Cadence and Tidal, not saying (or thinking) too much to them as I could hear what was going on and I was sure the others could too.

CADANCE POV

"I still can't believe you let this happen to your husband of all people," said Tidal while continuing her pace through the sticky halls. Everyone knew that her admiration for Shining was stronger than most others but I, with my empathetic powers, could tell it was way more than that. She loved Shining deeply and as The Princess of Love, I couldn't tell her not to. I just remained silent and endured Tidal's verbal onslaught "If you just spent less time pandering to useless nobles who don't even belong here and cared for your husband, none of this would have happened. Makes me wonder if you ever loved him at all..."

That was more than I could take. I couldn't argue with that but it sure as Tartarus hurt. A tear rolled down my face which I quickly brushed off to prevent anyone to see. However, Noire clearly saw me crying and put his hand on my shoulder, calming my nerves. "If this is how you treat your superiors, general, then I seriously doubt your abilities to protect them. Maybe you should go back outside and cool off for a moment before Shining becomes the least of your concerns." he said while glaring at Tidal intensely, causing a similar response from Tidal. They continued this until Tidal grunted in anger and turned away.

With that out of the way, we started our search through the rooms; all of them being empty except for some ooze covering the furniture inside. It looked like the entire building was abandoned and I was starting to lose hope of ever finding Shining until Noire pointed out something "We're having no luck looking through all of these rooms. Shouldn't there be a main hall for the changelings to group up at? Maybe they're all there," he said, getting me to cheer up a little bit.

"From what we saw on the map, there was a large empty area at the back of the building. That must be the main hall" Tidal said. Now I was cheered up even more but also surprised that Tidal Horn, even if unintentionally, was the one doing it. I pushed this aside though, casting an enhanced sight spell to check if there was one. I held back on this as this was a large area and it would take a sizable amount of magic to cast. There was also the fact that I expected there to be a lot more changelings around so I didn't think it would be necessary. I could see in the hallway to the right a large door guarded by two changeling guards but the spell was negated before I could reach any further.

"There is a large, guarded door that looks like it leads to the main hall but it has a barrier so I couldn't see past it," I said. Tidal charged past us and Noire followed suit. The guards and I quietly followed until we reached the corner. I silently commanded the guards to stop and allow Tidal and Noire to take them out. I saw the two guards yell at them and started firing magic bolts but were immediately blocked by a shield summoned by Tidal. Noire quickly charged up to them, slicing off the first one's arm before stabbing him in the throat and covering his mouth to stop him from screaming. Tidal summoned a water sword from thin air and pierced the second changeling's legs, causing him to keel over in pain.

"You won't get away with this, bitch. Our queen will kill you easily. It was a mistake to come to this pl-AAGH!!!" That was all the changeling could say before she plunged her sword through its face, killing it instantly. In most situations, I am against the act of killing but I couldn't care for changelings at all after what they did to me at my wedding. No more needed to be thought about though as Noire motioned for us to move forward to the door. We moved closer to the door and hid at either side of the door. The feeling was nerve-racking; having the final battle so close you could even smell it. The time had come to face him again as either an ally or an enemy. Tidal went up to the door and used her magic to dispell the barrier and without a second thought, kicked it open.

NOIRE POV

The doors led into an enormous hall big enough to fit hundreds of people and ponies alike. However, there was no-one present, neither pony or changeling. The only exception was on a podium at the front for presentations, which was being occupied by a single changeling. However, unlike the other changelings, it can be instantly recognised as a 'she' and had long, blue hair; It was Queen Chrysalis. Everyone who saw her was either struck with anger or fear. Cadence was a perfect example of anger, sending a magic bolt her way which was quickly blocked by a barrier formed by Chrysalis. Tidal sent a signal to the rest of the squad, alerting them of her presence "All unicorn units, converge on my location. We have Chrysalis in our sights and requesting backup."

Cadence marched to the front of the group, crying a little before yelling at her violently "WHERE IS SHINING YOU MONSTER?!!!" She started firing more bolts of magic but were completely ineffective, Chrysalis merely waved her hand and a shield reflected every single one with ease. Noire thought she would do this Of course she would do this. She wants this to be over because she already knows what became of Shining. She knows but is still in denial. Chrysalis merely tisked at Cadence's outburst and looked down on her smugly.

"If you were a good wife, you would have seen the seed of love that had grown within him ever since your wedding day. His love for me is genuine and pure, love at its finest. Perfect for me to use to destroy you all with!" she began to charge a magic bolt. However, it was much larger than any attack Noire had ever seen. As soon as she was going to fire, Tidal gathered everyone and surrounded them in a magic shield. Chrysalis fired the bolt which collided with the shield. Tidal put more magic into the shield, causing it to expand and push the bolt back but it easily pushed back harder. Cadence put her hand upward, adding her own magic to the shield. The shield pushed back the bolt completely and sent it hurtling towards the ceiling. Tidal and Cadence then collapsed onto the floor, only having mere shreds of magic left.

"Awww come on you lot! Can't you stand after even one attack? You all must be weaker than I thought or Shining's love must be a serious magic buff!" she exclaimed, laughing maniacally while firing bolts at the guards, sending them all flying away. Their entire squad was easily decimated by Chrysalis' power, leaving most guards gravely wounded, incapacitated or dead. We were outmatched, unprepared and at that rate, we were going to be dead.

"This power... It is the power of love... It has made her several times stronger than at the wedding. So it must be true... Shining's love for me is gone..." Cadence managed to wheeze out. Tidal managed to keep consciousness for a few more seconds to ask her the question she needed to be answered. She stood up and pointed her blade towards Chrysalis.

"Chrysalis... WHERE IS SHINING ARMOUR?!!!" she exclaimed with all she had left. Chrysalis only smiled and looked at the curtains behind her. She lifted the curtains with her magic to reveal a fully armoured Shining Armour with a giant, black claymore. His armour was of the same colour and resembled the skin of a changeling. He had an empty stare that pierced the hearts of all that was watching. He walked up to Tidal, his footsteps growing louder with every step he took. He lifted up Tidal's chin so she was looking him directly in the eye. He whispered something into her ear that no-one could hear and immediately stabbed her. He retracted the sword and Tidal immediately collapsed. She clutched her stomach, trying to stop an immense amount of blood that threatened to come forth. I saw her then summon a vial with her magic and drink it, closing the wound. However, the pain appeared to be too much as she passed out afterwards. I turned my attention back to Chrysalis, who was celebrating her victory, completely unaware of my presence.

"Oh darling, can you get rid of these pests so we can get out of here?" she called out to him "I can still sense two magic signatures. One of them is very... potent and may pose a threat to us if we don't stop him now," Shining nodded and faced the dust cloud that was formed from the attack. In the centre was Noire, with his exposed hand on the back of the incapacitated guard. He tightened the grip on his claymore and took a stance, ready to begin.

"Thank you all for your magic. I can't do this without you" I whispered before standing up and drawing my sword, ready for battle as well "Shining, I don't want to hurt you but if you won't come with us I will," Shining responded by leaping into the air, holding his sword up high before bringing it down on his descent. "Have it your way," I said. That was the last thing I said before my eyes closed and reopened them as a golden yellow.

Our swords collided, creating a massive shockwave. Cadance slid backwards from the collision while Chrysalis was unfazed "Such power. It looks like that boy has the same power as him..." she said to herself as she took in the spectacle that was before her.

Shining landed behind me and swung his blade at my back but was quickly blocked by Noire leaning backwards with his sword, planting it in the ground behind him. Leaning forward and turning to face my opponent again, I delivered several fast slices at his chest but Shining blocked with the flat of his blade. We continued to swing their swords at each other but we were evenly matched, the other could block and attack just as quickly. After half a minute of an intense struggle for the first blood, it looked like no-one could get a solid hit on the other. "This is getting us nowhere," I thought, charging up my sword with magic, causing it to glow blue and the blade extended. I sliced at Shining's left arm, causing him to scream in agony. I wasn't finished as I went down and sliced the inside of his right leg, causing him to keel over. I stood over the fallen soldier with my sword aimed at him "Please Shining, let's go home. You have a wife, waiting for you and a kingdom that needs you to protect them. Please Shining, stop," I begged "I don't want to have to kill you too,"

Shining growled in a distorted voice and got up from his position "If that poor excuse of a wife and her kingdom are the only people in the way of me being with Chryssie forever" he headbutted my neck causing me to stumble backwards "THEN I'LL DESTROY THEM ALL!!!!" he fired a green magic bolt at Cadance who was still struggling to get up. I responded quickly and jumped in front of the attack, taking the full force of it.

CADANCE POV

"NOIRE!!!!!" I yelled. Noire was still standing but his armour was blown away completely, leaving him in scraps of clothing. This only thing left unscathed was his sword which disappeared in a flash of blue light as he fell flat, unconscious. Shining limped towards us, leaving a bloody trail in his wake "I told you in the letter Cadance; I don't love you" I crawled over to Noire in his nearly dead state. She reached out for his hand slowly "I betray you and this kingdom to be with someone I truly love but you can't have that, can you? You just had to get back your little plaything, didn't you?" Cadence's hand was mere millimetres away from his own "What even are you to ponies; The Princess of Love or the Princess of the Crystal Empire because we now know you can't be one without going against what it means to be the other. However, it doesn't matter anyway" when I got close enough, Iaid on top of him. Even if it was futile, I wanted to protect him as he did for me that whole month "You failed at being both!" He brought his sword done to finish us both. I closed my eyes and drew out every bit of magic she had left to teleport them both away.

CHRYSALIS POV

"Well, that was certainly interesting," I said, walking up to Shining. I embraced him and nibbled his neck before biting it, causing him to wince in pain. Seconds after, the wounds he suffered were completely gone, leaving behind only broken pieces of his armour "Maybe we should keep an eye on that boy. Who knows what strength he will come into in the future."

"What about the other changelings?" he asked.

I laughed at his comment "Oh, I slaughtered all of them except for that girl who disguised herself as your therapist. She didn't have the best improvisation skills but it managed to get you on the right side. Why would I even care about them anyway? They were a waste I kept giving precious love to just to waste it on failed missions. They were a thorn in my side I had to pull out" I turned him around to face me "Now, let us go. We have much more to do and our new 'friend' has some new 'toys for us to use" Shining growled passionately and kissed me before I cast a spell, teleporting us both away.

Celestia, Luna and the Main 6 had arrived at the Crystal Empire's entrance. They were surprised to see that there was only one guard at the entrance. Celestia went in front of the group "Guard? Why is there only one of you here? What is going on?"

The guard gulped and cleared his throat before answering "Your Highness, the princess and her personal guard has taken some guards for a mission with some rogue changelings and some kidnapped civilians. That is all I have been informed, sorry". This got Celestia to frown and open her mouth to ask another question but she heard a flash from behind her. When she turned around she saw something she hoped she would never see in her immortal life; Cadence on the floor and Noire covered in bruises and blood. Luna and the Main 6 gathered around the unconscious alicorn and human.

"By the Heavens!"

"Holy Shit!"

"Oh golly!"

"Oh my!"

"Goodness me!"

"Sweet Celestia!"

"CADENCE!"

Celestia had no words that could describe the pain she felt; sadness, guilt, rage. She pushed past the circle and knelt down before Cadence and asked herself "Who did this to you?". To her surprise, Cadence opened her mouth and muttered two words that sent a chill through her aunt's spine before she fell back into unconsciousness.

"...I did..."

??? POV

I sat on my throne, having just finished watching the entire fight. The fight was short, almost boring, to say the least, but each individual there had the potential to grow even stronger, especially my precious 'guinea pig'. He indeed has shown much promise ever since he showed up at the little princess' doorstep...figuratively of course. My new allies proved to be stronger than them at the moment but that may indeed change with the new 'toys' they will receive will either make or break them. Either way, it benefits me. "I can't wait to see what they do next."

TO BE CONTINUED IN ACT 2

Author's Note

Sorry about it taking so long for this chapter. I took a short break from writing to relax for a bit. Half term is coming up next week on Thursday so I'll have all the time in the world (If I don't get too much homework which will probably happen)

Besides that, what did you think about the three new characters I've introduced. My thoughts when coming up with their characters is having characters to show how Noire's development as a fighter. Their dynamic seems kind of cliche though; the carefree younger brother, the perfectionist sister and the wise but quiet older brother. However, you need not worry, they will be developed more in both side chapters and plot drive chapters.

On a final note, do you like longer or shorter chapters? Don't want to bore any of you too much.

Stay dizzy. Wuzzy out.