By the time the six Guardians had returned to Ponyville for the night, mounted on their Sparrows, the sun had lowered over Equestria, and the moon had risen to its place. While they headed back to Twilight's Castle and Silverback Nova's dorm cabin, David stretched his arms out and gave a sigh of relief at hearing his shoulders loosen.

"You tired, David?" Seahawk asked.

"Yeah, for the most part." David replied. "Weird."

"What's weird about being tired?" Rainea asked. "I'm exhausted myself."

"Guardians can go for days without getting tired in some cases." David shrugged. "Titans can go even longer, thanks to the Light. Now, I just feel like sleeping."

"Well, why wait?" James replied as they boarded the Silverback Nova. "Let's get some rest, Guardians. We don't know what tomorrow will bring, so we had best be prepared for it."

"Agreed." Anubis nodded. "Let's hit the hay."

As the Guardians' Ghosts exchanged their armor for night clothes, Anubis made sure that the ship was locked tight before being the last to fall asleep. As Ponyville and the ship quieted down for the night, a few shooting stars came down overhead.

====

The first Guardian to wake the next morning was Seahawk, who quietly and manually changed into his armor as to not wake his fellow Guardians. After leaving a note behind to alert the others he'd left, he exited the ship to find a clear, crisp morning outside.

As he walked past Twilight's Castle, he could see a few lights on inside an assortment of buildings in the town. He stopped for a moment, and watched the morning dew fade from his perch on the plaza fountain.

"What's up?" Talon asked, hovering next to him. Talon, instead of the Hunter Sigil on James's Ghost Evs, bore a Snake sigil, recently adopted by the Vanguard, alongside Lions for the Titan sigil, and Eagles for the Warlock sigil. Though their class icons and these sigils were interchangeable, some Guardians used one on their armor and their Ghost used the other.

"Just thinking." Seahawk replied. "About an idea of mine."

"And what idea is that?" Talon asked.

"I noticed a schoolhouse when we got here yesterday." the Exo Hunter replied. "Maybe we could pay it a visit, tell some stories to the students. do some community outreach."

"Not a bad idea." Talon nodded, hovering in the air. "Let's go see if the teacher's there and ask."

Talon vanished, merging with Seahawk, and they proceeded through the town. A few residents were up and about, and a mint-green unicorn mare with a white mane beckoned him over.

"Hello, are you one of the Guardians?" the unicorn asked.

"Yep, Seahawk-2. What's the matter?" he replied.

"I'm Lyra, and...can I have a look at your hands?" she asked sheepishly. "I'm kinda fascinated by humans and how they do things...no offense."

"None taken." Seahawk said as he nodded. "Take a look."

Lyra gave a happy squeal, and she began to closely examine Seahawk's mechanical hands, a notepad by her side held aloft with magic. After scribbling some notes and making a sketch, she was finished.

"Sorry if that was a bit odd." she said.

"It's fine. How'd you know about humans anyway?" Seahawk asked.

"I've read stories and done some amateur studies of my own." Lyra said. "I just never thought I'd get to meet one myself."

"No problem, but I'm not human myself, I'm an Exo." Seahawk replied, showing his mechanical face. "But I could ask James or David if they could help, seeing as they're human."

"Thanks!" Lyra replied happily. "Anyway, see you around!"

As Lyra waved goodbye, Seahawk did the same as they proceeded to the schoolhouse.

"She was interesting." Talon mused. "I wonder what stories of humans there are on this world. Could be worth a look."

"Maybe." Seahawk said as he knocked on the door. "If we have a moment."

As the schoolteacher opened the door, Seahawk cleared his throat.

"You teach here?" he asked.

"Yes, I do. I'm Miss Cherilee." she replied. "You're one of those Guardians?"

"Yep. I was hoping to ask you for a favor." Seahawk said. "If it's at all possible, I'd be willing to do a question-answer session with your students. I figured it'd be a good way to get them to be less nervous around us while we're here."

"Well, Guardian, your timing was perfect." Cherilee replied. "We've got a free hour-long period as soon as the bell rings in a few minutes, so that'd be a good way to spend some time. Come on in."

"Thanks."

As Seahawk looked around the schoolhouse's classroom, he gave a small "Hmm" of thought.

"Is something wrong?" Cherilee asked.

"I think I'm too big for any of your chairs, or your furniture in general." he sighed. "Mind if we take this outside?"

"I don't see why not."

As they returned to the playground, Seahawk sat down on a wooden picnic table and watched as the school's bell rang, and the students arrived. After Cherilee explained what was going on, the students all took a seat on the grass, ready and at sharp attention.

"Whenever you're ready." Cherilee said.

"Thanks, Miss." Seahawk replied. "Alright, first off, my name is Seahawk-2, I'm a Hunter and a Guardian of the Last City. I figured you all have questions about who I am and what we do, among other things. So, raise your hooves if you've got one."

Hooves shot upwards and Seahawk pointed to a small white pegasus with a brown mane.

"Where are you from, Mr. Seahawk?" he asked with a slight lisp.

"I'm from the Last City, on Planet Earth, Sol System, Milky Way galaxy." Seahawk replied. "Really far from here, and even though I'm sure you'd love to visit it, it probably won't be happening, seeing as we don't have room on our ship. Next?"

"What's the thing on your leg?" a dark-coated pegasus asked.

"This is a Vanguard-issue Hand Cannon." Seahawk said, unholstering the weapon. "It's one of the many weapons I have available to me. Being a Guardian isn't a peaceful job. We're almost always fighting something or in dangerous scenarios when we're outside the City's walls."

"So you're like a Royal Guard?" an earth pony mare with a blonde mane asked.

"Sort of." Seahawk replied. "Our duties aren't just limited to fighting the enemies of the Light. We survey dangerous areas, undertake important missions, and basically do all the things that would get most people killed in a heartbeat. It sounds tough, but we're up to it. We all are."

"So, are there, like, bad Guardians?" asked a colt with a black mane.

"It depends on what you mean by bad." Seahawk replied. "All of the Guardians report to our mentors and leaders, the Vanguard, who keep pretty close tabs on us. If by bad, you mean doing bad things, like breaking into a house, no. That would be a crime for starters, and it would probably be punished severely by the Vanguard."

"But there are Guardians who have lost their path." Seahawk replied. "They left the Light and joined the Darkness against their former friends. I can name one of these in particular. This Guardian's name was Dredgen Yor."

"That's a really weird name." Scootaloo said.

"Dredgen isn't a name, it's a title of some kind, and I don't know the meaning of it." Seahawk replied. "Yor was one of the finest Guardians to ever live. He was swift, and brave, and powerful..newer Guardians looked up to him as an inspiration. That is, until Yor's downfall from the Light."

"What happened?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Yor was prideful, and very much so." Seahawk said. "He was also arrogant, and ambitious. He wanted more power than the Light would give him. This would lead him to forsake the Guardians and the Traveler and join the Darkness. You see, Yor forged a weapon, and it was known as Thorn. Now, Guardians like me are nearly immortal. As long as the Light was with us, we essentially can't be killed. Yor's new weapon could stop other Guardians from coming back to life...permanently."

"Essentially, Dredgen Yor could kill other Guardians with this weapon and they would die their final deaths." Seahawk continued. "After betraying his lifelong partner, his Ghost, Yor murdered several Guardians in cold blood and without mercy. One of his victims was Thalor, who was the most powerful Titan in the Crucible, which is a sort of combat tournament for us Guardians."

"That was when he publicly denounced the Light and the Traveler, before fleeing the City." Seahawk said. "The Vanguard commanded that he be brought back dead for his crimes. Many Guardians went after Yor to kill him, but none came back alive. Eventually, a Guardian named Shin Malphur, a living legend in the eyes of Hunters, stepped up to face Yor for the last time."

"After an intense debate between them over the Light or Darkness, a battle broke out. Shin Maplhur used his Light to burn Yor away, leaving no trace behind of the fallen Guardian except a massive burn against a rock. Dredgen Yor was finally ended." Seahawk said. "Shin was hailed as a hero, but he left the Vanguard soon to find his own way amidst the Light. Dredgen Yor is the reason the Vanguard keep close tabs on us, to make sure it doesn't happen again. It's also a cautionary tale for us to remember that we must be humble with the powers we have been given."

"And believe me, Shin Malphur is a longer story than that." he smiled. "Shin's exploits are so many and so amazing, it'd take at least seven volumes to catalog it all, at least according to me."

The students were transfixed, in awe of the Guardian's story. There were multiple exclamations of wonder and excitement after that.

"Anyway, are there any more questions?" Seahawk asked. "I'd like to get off the subject of Dredgen Yor, it's not a tale Guardians like telling."

Hooves shot up once again. Seahawk smiled, knowing this would take more time than he had thought. Which was perfectly fine with him, as he loved teaching others. As he continued to take and answer questions, the clouds blew away, leaving a clear blue sky behind.

Author's Note

Update!

Yeah, Seahawk is a sucker for kids. It's part of his charm.

Next time - The Guardians are summoned to Canterlot, and Savathun begins to rally her forces beneath the eastern ocean...