As the sun started to rise over Equestria, as it was bidden to by Princess Celestia, in a ornately decorated train that was approaching Canterlot, Princess Twilight Sparkle and her friends, the Elements of Harmony, could hardly contain their excitement.

Because, at long last, Twilight's meticulously planned Festival of Friendship was to occur at eleven o'clock sharp. All of Equestria had been waiting for this moment ever since Twilight first became a Princess, and she had drawn up the initial plans for the event several months ago.

"Well, today's gonna be totally awesome, that's for sure." Rainbow Dash said, looking out the window at the city on the mountainside.

"No kiddin'" Applejack nodded in agreement, as she spun her stetson hat around her hoof to pass the time. "I'd reckon all of Canterlot is gonna be swarming here as soon as the festival opens."

"And not to mention what's going to happen during the Festival!" Rarity said with glee. "A concert by Songbird Serenade, countless games and delights, everything's going to be just perfect!"

"I'd agree, but you have to remember, it's not for another five hours." Fluttershy said. "You never know what could happen during that time."

"Come on, why would you say that, 'Shy?" Pinkie Pie said, putting a hood around Fluttershy's shoulders. "Don’t jinx it! Everything's going to be fine!"

"She has a point." Twilight Sparkle said, drawing the attention of everypony else. "I mean, remember what happened at my brother's wedding? Everything was supposed to be perfect then, and you know what happened."

"That is true." Applejack acknowledged. "I guess we really can't be sure. I guess if something bad does happen, we'll deal with it!"

"I guess so." Twilight sighed. "I'm sorry I've been so distant, girls, I've been so busy setting up this Festival, writing nonstop letters, arranging for concessions, crowd control, music, decorations, et cetera…"

"It's just fine, Twilight." Rarity smiled. "We're all here, and we understand completely."

Twilight gave her friends a relieved smile, and as the train came to a stop at the station, Twilight and her friends were soon greeted and escorted by Solar Guards to the palace.

However, had they stayed and looked to the north-eastern horizon, they would've seen pitch-gray storm clouds beginning to gather on the horizon. Or, had they looked up at the mountain's face, they would've seen a faint flash of white light appear from a cave near the base of Canterlot…

====

Inside that cave, hidden behind a canopy of rock that masked the entrance from view, a lone figure perched at the entrance peered through the scope of a Vanguard-Issue Sniper Rifle at various points inside the city below. The figure was equipped with a set of Kali-GNT Hunter Armor, modified to its wearer’s specifications, and colored with the Bloodpact Shader.

His Sniper Rifle was not aimed at anything in particular, and as he scanned over the surrounding area, his eyes turned northwest, and he glanced at the wayward storm clouds gathering on the distant horizon.

"Is something wrong?" a voice asked through his mind, a voice the figure recognized as his Ghost, named Evs.

"Just some storm clouds gathering to the northwest of the city." the figure, a Hunter and Guardian of the Last City, named James Mendoza, shrugged as he shouldered his Sniper Rifle and unloaded the magazine. "Doesn't look good to me. They might be coming our way at some point."

"Well, I'll alert Cayde, but is the weather concerning you, James? That's a little strange." Evs replied. "We only just made it to this planet, and through a Vex Portal Gate I might add. It might be natural to this planet."

"Or it might not be. You never know." James replied, as he stood up and headed back into the cave, towards the center of the mountain. "Can you just keep an eye on it, Evs?"

"Sure thing, Guardian."

As James entered a large cavern that lay partially open to the sky due to a fissure in the roof, he stopped for a second to glance at a massive Vex portal buried in the rock of the mountain. James and his fellow Guardians in fireteam Horizon, along with Fireteam Tradewind, had been scouting through the ruins of the Ishtar Academy of Venus to retrieve data as an errand for the Vanguard. For a while, the Guardians' efforts had turned up nothing but corrupted data, and what wasn't corrupted was unreadable.

However, they soon stumbled upon a Vex Gateway being constructed deep in the Ishtar Archives, defended by Precursor Vex. It was a rare sight, as Precursors were rarely seen outside of the Vault of Glass. Their presence meant something big was going on, right in front of them.

It was an opportunity the Guardians jumped on, and they engaged the Vex. After defeating its Gate Lord protector, and then a Vex Mind, the six Guardians journeyed through the gateway to this planet. The six of them soon found out that this world was inhabited and seemingly untouched by the Darkness.

After several hasty discussions with Commander Zavala and Ikora Rey, the Tower dispatched Cayde-6 and the six Guardians already there to prepare for a first contact proceeding, a task unheard of since the Collapse.

Now, both Fireteams and the Hunter Vanguard took seats around the central area of their modest campsite. Calling it a "campsite" was too kind, as the sudden nature of the operation meant the Guardians lacked a few necessities, such as lodgings and a satellite array for their Sparrows.

"Alrighty then," Cayde-6 said as James settled in, the last to arrive. "What've we got?"

"Well, the locals appear to be setting up a party or celebration of some kind." Anubis-13, the leader of Fireteam Horizon, said, reviewing some photos his Ghost took on a datapad. "And from what I can tell, it's going to be big."

"Big enough that we'll be found out?" Rainea Thoren asked.

"That's what worries me." said Seahawk-8, the leader of Fireteam Tradewind. "We're going to have to introduce ourselves sooner or later. And how we do that is going to make all the difference."

"Plus...we're still under orders from Zavala to keep a low profile." David Paulson sighed, placing a hand to his chin in thought. "We can't just walk on into that event and say "hello, we're here in peace". The reactions might not be good."

"Good point." said Adrianne Titus, who was looking at her Crucible-Issue Scout Rifle.. "And seeing as we've brought enough firepower to stop a Cabal detachment...weapons might not be a good play here. We don't know what the locals are capable of, either."

"So, keeping all that in mind, what's the plan here, Cayde?" asked Seahawk-8. Cayde gave a huff and walked over to the cave entrance, before turning back to the Guardians.

"Let's watch and wait, I guess." Cayde said quietly. "if something goes wrong on the locals' end, we'll intervene accordingly. But for now, let's get some rest. I think it'll do us all some good."

The Guardians nodded, and Anubis-13 turned off a central lamp, dimming the light in the cave significantly. As the others settled into a set of sleeping bags, James walked back over to the cave exit, and took out his Sniper rifle.

"What's up?" Evs asked.

"Just a gut feeling." he replied. "That there might be some trouble on the way. Those storm clouds to the northeast are getting bigger, and they're coming closer."

"Then I'll tell Cayde you'll be keeping watch for now." Evs said. "Be careful, James."

James shrugged and adjusted the zoom on his scope.

"Aren't we ever?" he said to himself.

Author's Note

This is my first ever story remaster that is taking place outside of Season 4. I hope it lives up to the expectations of the old version.

Next time - The Storm King’s arrival, and the Guardians’ timely intervention.