Survival Begins at Home

Chapters

Chapter the First: Disquiet
Chapter the Second: Calm Before the Storm
Chapter the Third: The Raid of San Palomino
Chapter the Fourth: False Positive
Chapter the Fifth: Manehattan
Chapter the Sixth: Black and White
Chapter the Seventh: Arousal
Chapter the Eighth: Lurking in our Midst
Chapter the Ninth: Tight Lips
Chapter the Tenth: Assault and Battery
Chapter the Eleventh: Test Fire
Chapter the Twelfth: Storm the Gates
Chapter the Thirteenth: A Moment Alone With Unbeknown
Chapter the Fourteenth: Cruelty
Chapter the Fifteenth: Punishment
Chapter the Sixteenth: On the Road Again
Chapter the Seventeenth: Canterlot
Chapter the Eighteenth: Good Night
Chapter the Nineteenth: New Orders
Chapter the Twentieth: The Trot Inn
Chapter the Twenty-First: Shining Spectre
Chapter the Twenty-Second: Breakdown
Chapter the Twenty-Third: Clarity
Chapter the Twenty-Fourth: Return to Ponyville
Chapter the Twenty-Sixth: Fear of the Light
Chapter the Twenty-Seventh: Leaving Equestria
Bonus Chapter: Ponyville Falls
Chapter the Twenty-Fifth: Stand Up

Chapter the First: Disquiet

Shining Armor bolted upright with a scream. He was gasping for breath. Tears streamed down his cheeks and mixed with his cold sweat. He couldn't wipe the image from his head. It was so clear every single time.

Cadance stepped into the room. She'd been in the restroom, but now she rushed to his side and wrapped her arm around his shoulders. "Do you want to try talking about it?" He shook his head. "Come on, Shiny. I know it hurts, but you can't just keep going like this. You won't go to see a therapist, you won't talk to anypony about it, and it's eating you alive from the inside. Just talk to me."

Shining rubbed his hands all over his face. "Talking about it won't change anything. My sister is going to stay dead no matter what I say or do. Every time I close my eyes, I see her, bleeding everywhere. I was right there by her side, and I couldn't do anything to stop it."

"Exactly," said Cadance, grabbing him by the wrist. "There was nothing you could do. You did everything right. It was all by the book, and you provided all of the protection you could. You called for a medic right away and used your own body to shield her from any more blows. She could not have had a better protector, Shiny."

"Some protector," he scoffed. "If I was any good at this, she'd still be alive. I'm a shitty protector. I don't eve--"

Cadance slapped him across the face. "Don't you dare say such horrible things about my husband! He's the most selfless, caring and protective pony in the world. He's the greatest guardian Equestria has ever seen, and you can quote me on that."

Shining lowered his head. Cadance had been hoping he would crack a smile, but this wasn't quite enough. All she wanted was for him to be happy; to move on from Twilight's death and focus on keeping the rest of Equestria from succumbing to the same fate. She knew it wasn't going to be easy to lift his spirits, but she was trying her best.

"Thanks."

"What?"

"Thank you," said Shining, his expression unchanging. "I needed that."

"Oh. Well, good. I'm glad I could help you." She leaned forward and hugged him. "I just wish I could help you more."

Shining embraced his wife, wrapping his chin around her neck. "I love you, Cadance."

"I love you, too, Shiny."

After a few minutes of Cadance rubbing Shining's back while he choked out a handful of tears, they separated. "Okay," he said, climbing to his feet. "I think it would be best if I had a shower, before I start my day."

"I think that's a splendid idea," said Cadance. "Would you like me to join you? I can help you reach your back."

"No, I... I'd rather do this on my own. Just for a bit, okay?"

Cadance slowly nodded. Shining's depression had been very strong, and the therapist he refused to speak to had told her that, for a few months, he shouldn't be left completely alone. It was almost three months since the incident, and during all of that time, she'd either joined him, sat next to the tub and had a conversation with him, or had her ear pressed to the door. She'd been devastated when Twilight died, too, but she had to stay strong for her husband. He needed her love more than anypony.

As she heard the shower head kick on, she walked away from the door. She wanted to make him feel as if she trusted him again. She felt as though he had earned some time alone in the shower. Besides, she had something else she wanted to do.

Shining leaned against the wall and let the cold water run down his chest. He hadn't had a good night's sleep since the incident, and it was showing. His eyes had sunk down further into their sockets, giving them a dark, weary look. His hands were trembling all the time unless he had something to steady them. He hadn't spoken to a therapist, other than telling him to go fuck himself. He hadn't even spoken to his parents about it. He'd promised their father that Twilight would be safe at this event, but he had failed. He couldn't bear the guilt that he would feel if this were all brought before him.

It took him quite awhile to scrub up and exit the shower, on account of the fact that he'd scrubbed his mane multiple times. It wasn't because he thought it was unclean, it was a veiled attempt to scrub the thoughts from his mind. As he looked at the stallion in the restroom mirror, he narrowed his eyes. The stallion staring back at him was responsible for Twilight's death, and he knew he would never forgive him.

Patting himself dry, he stepped out of the restroom and into the bedroom. Cadance wasn't there. Usually, she was waiting by the door anymore, but this time, she was nowhere to be seen. "Cadance?" He moved to the main living area of the suite. There she was, standing in her underwear while a serving pony looked wide-eyed at Shining's completely nude body.

"I ordered us some breakfast," she said, lifting one of the cloches. "I thought you might like to eat something before you left."

Shining picked up one of the sofa cushions and covered his loins. "How thoughtful."

The stallion who had been pushing the cart of food hadn't moved. His eyes were still glued to what little of Shining's shaft was still visible. Cadance took note of his nametag before physically pushing him out of the room. If everything worked out just right, and she could be sure that it would help Shining, she might invite him back later for some fun with the prince, but now was not the time for it. She closed the door behind him and returned to her husband. "Sit. Eat."

Shining moved one of the plates to the small dining table and sat down in front of it. He wasn't really hungry, and hadn't been for quite some time. He'd lost over forty pounds in the past three months. Still, he tried to eat something. Scraping off the smiling face made of whipped cream with strawberry dimples, he ate his pancakes in relative silence. A few bites in, he looked up at his wife, who was watching his fork's movements. He knew she was trying to help him, and that she wanted him to feel better. He cursed himself for being a total arse to her in his current state. A part of him wanted to be a better husband to her. Deep down, he truly wished he could tell her how much he appreciated this. He wanted to just suck it up, take her into the bedroom, and show her just how much she meant to him. A voice in his head was screaming "Do it for her, arsehole! She's going to leave you if you don't let her in!" Sadly, it was drowned out by all the other screaming voices.

He managed to make it about a third of the way through his pancakes, and about halfway through a banana. Before this incident, he could eat two full servings, with an extra side, but not so much anymore. He stood up, walked over to the window, and flung open the drapes. Looking out over the canyon, he took a deep breath. "Let's see if I can protect San Palomino."

Chapter the Second: Calm Before the Storm

Despite his body not being in as good a shape as it once was, Shining's captain's armor made him look very strong and confident. As Cadance pulled his helmet into proper orientation, she pressed her lips to his. "It won't be so bad," she said. Our intelligence suggests it'll be a few days before we see any zebras. The princesses just want you to assess the weak points in the city's defenses. An easy task for one so great as my Prince in Shining Armor."

Shining looked down at her, worried. "Are you sure I'm ready for this?" His voice was shaky and uneven. "I certainly don't feel ready..."

"You'll be fine," assured Cadance. "Before you were my husband, before you were my prince, you were my captain of the royal guard. You were the best of the best. This will feel like nothing to you. I just know it."

"If you say so..." He took a deep breath. "Here I go."

As Cadance watched him walk away with a tremble, she called after him. "Knock 'em dead, Shiny!" As he turned the corner and left her field of view, she closed the door and began planning to check in with him at lunch. She was so proud of him, even for this simple act of committing to his job.

Shining swallowed hard. He'd been away from work for months, and he wasn't sure if he'd do well coming back after such a long break. Before the incident, he might have described himself as the cutting edge. Now, that edge was rusty. He wasn't as sharp as he used to be, and his nerves were starting to flare up. Pressing his hands together to keep them from shaking, he found the beginnings of a stress rash forming on his left thumb. Steeling himself, he walked out into the street.

It was actually a very pleasant day. Smiling citizens of all ages lined the streets, going about their business, blissfully unaware of the danger that would be upon them in the next few days. They chattered with each other, buying and selling things, laughing at jokes, discussing plans for the future... It was as if things in Equestria hadn't changed at all.

With another deep breath, Shining stepped into the sun. It was warm and cozy, exactly as one would expect from a summer day in the San Palomino canyon. And yet, chills ran down his spine. He was so afraid he would blow this like he had his last security detail. While his previous failure had only caused half a dozen deaths, this one could potentially be in the hundreds.

He made his way to the guard depot. It was a short walk for most, but it took him nearly half an hour, and by the time he arrived, his chest was heaving. Leaning back against a pillar, he took a moment to calm down. He'd successfully cleared the first step. He'd made it to the guard depot. He almost felt a smile coming on, but it dissipated as the armoured mare behind the front desk called out to him.

"Checking in, Captain?"

Shining turned his attention to her, returned to standing on both his feet, approached, and saluted. "Yes, ma'am."

She stood and saluted back. Saluting was a formal measure, but if he was going to salute her, then this usually informal check in must be handled with formality. "I will need your signature," she said, pushing forward a clipboard and pen with her other hand. Shining released his salute, a measure that he now saw was foolish and unnecessary, and signed his name on the clipboard, along with the date and time.

"Can you tell me where Captain Loft is?"

"He's in his office, sir. I can take you to him, if you like?"

Shining shook his head. "No, I need to... I mean, I can do that on my own. At ease."

She saluted again and slowly sat down. "Permission to speak freely, captain?"

Shining looked down the hall and swallowed hard. "Granted. What's on your mind?"

"You look like you're going to be sick, sir. I think you should go to the infirmary, instead."

Shining shook his head. "I'll be fine."

"If you're sure, sir."

Shining walked down the hall, stepping into the captain's office. "Reporting in, sir."

The captain stood up and extended his hand. "Prince Shining Armor. A pleasure to see you again."

Shining Armor took the hand and shook it. "Captain Loft. I'm here to look over your defenses."

"If I may, highness, you were expected yesterday. I have looked over all of our defensive structures, and we're doing just fine."

"It's my job to check anyway."

Loft Wing took a deep breath. "Fine. You want to see our defenses? I'll take you on a tour. Come with me."

Shining Armor followed the captain out of his office and stayed close to him throughout the tour of the city. He didn't see it as going to new places, but rather staying close to somepony who could and would make sure everything was alright if he had a manic episode. All things considered, The town did seem to be well-defended. There were patrols at the top of the canyon, and the inner walls where the ponies lived had large carved stone crenellations. Even if the zebras brought cannon ships up the river, it would be very difficult to take this place. They were incredibly well-defended.

"Happy now?" asked Captain Loft, at the end of the city tour. "All of these ponies are as safe as they possibly could be. I know you want to be certain of that, but if any harm befalls them, it will be on my head, and I will not allow that to happen. Do I make myself clear?"

"As a crystal pony," responds Shining. "I just needed to be sure, because your neck isn't the only one on that chopping block."

The captain turned around and walked to a balcony overlooking the canyon. "I won't lie to you," he said, clasping his fingers, "I respect you too much. I'm terrified, highness. I don't know what the zebras want, or why they're here. If it's to make us pay for past crimes, there are none alive who have committed them. At least, as far as my knowledge goes. I would hope that whatever their intent was, we'd talk it out like civilized creatures. I like my current rank in the royal guard, and I like all of the ponies that work under me. We work well together. I demand nothing less from them. If they have any problems, I encourage them to come to me. We are like a family. I don't want to be ranked up and torn from them, nor do I want to see any of them die."

"Seeing a loved one die is one of the worst things that can happen to you, Captain," said Shining, standing next to him. "It happened to me."

"I am aware, highness. It was a sad day all across Equestria. I cannot imagine how much that must have hurt; how much it still hurts."

They stood there in silence for a bit, then Loft picked himself up. "It's about lunchtime, wouldn't you say?"

Shining shrugged. "I suppose."

Loft walked across the street, finding a sandwich vendor. He bought two of them, giving one to Shining Armor. While Loft ate his entire sandwich, Shining wasn't very hungry. After managing to choke half of it down, he offered the other half to a starving homeless stallion that was sitting on a park bench, begging passersby for change. He thanked the prince joyously, even going so far as to hug him. Just as Shining was about to smile again, he heard a horn being blown by a pegasus guard.

Loft Wing returned his helmet to his head. "That's the alarm. The zebras are here. Everypony, go home now! Stay there until you hear the all-clear!"

Chapter the Third: The Raid of San Palomino

Civilians rushed to their homes all over the city. Shopkeepers locked up their stores from the inside and stayed crouched down behind the sturdiest furniture they could find, keeping their customers close, as well. Meanwhile, all of the soldiers took defensive positions against the canyon wall balconies. Archers took to the recently added merlons with built-in arrow loops to protect themselves while firing. All of the melee guards were fully armored and pressed against the crenels, ready to descend to the base of the canyon if need be, or ascend to the top if the enemy was rappelling down.

The answer came soon, as ropes were tossed over the lips of the cliff. The defending ponies kept their breath silent as the zebras began descending the cliff walls into the canyon. As the zebras made their way down, the archer next to Shining began preparing an arrow. Crouching down and aiming up, she pulled the string back, took a deep breath, and loosed it.

The zebra it hit was one of the anchors holding the rappelling line in place at the top of the opposite cliff. With him no longer holding the line, the other zebra acting as an anchor was pulled forward by the weight of the zebras making their way down. As they pulled him over the edge, the archer smiled. With one arrow, she'd taken out no less than five enemy soldiers in a single shot.

Several arrows flew after that, coming from both sides. Not just from both sides of the conflict, but from both sides of the canyon. A lot of the zebra warriors had little in the way of armor, but had big, sturdy shields to protect themselves. Before long, they had their own wall, with their own arrow loops. To make things even better for themselves, they began rappelling down with their shields on their backs to prevent being shot at. This might have paid off, if not for the very easy pincer formation afforded to the ponies who had set up their town on both sides of the canyon. The rappelling zebras may have protected their backs, but it had left their bellies fully exposed.

Shining Armor was suddenly feeling much better about their chances. The zebra bodies were piling up at the bottom of the canyon, and the river was carrying them out of Equestria and eventually back into zebra lands. Things were looking up.

Suddenly, over the shield wall, he saw something horrifying. A cluster of large rocks was flying right at them.

"Take cover!" shouted Captain Loft, pressing himself and another guard against the sturdy stone wall. The rocks smashed against the defenses, but the wall held firm. A few of the rocks had sailed over the wall and hit the front of a small café, smashing the front window and the security cage. They were made to stop thieves and vandals, not siege weapons. Shining could hear the pained shriek of a mare coming from inside, as well as the owner calling for help.

"Call me if you need me back," he said, patting Captain Loft's shoulder before leaping through the hole in the wall. For once, he was glad of his new lithe frame, as he might not have made it through if he was as ripped as he had been. He found the mare hiding behind an overturned dining table that had a large chunk taken out of it. He rushed to her side, lifted her up over his shoulder, and brought her further back, all the way to the kitchen.

"Do you have a first aid kit?" he asked the owner, grabbing a dishtowel and pressing it against the mare's laceration.

With a nod, the owner ran off and collected it from his office. "She needs more than just simple first aid. We need a doctor, right away."

"We don't have a doctor here," said Shining, ripping open the first aid kit and grabbing the disinfectant wipes, "unless one of your cooks here has a second job that I don't know about." He cleaned the area as best he could before applying a gauze pad. "I'm going to do my best to make sure she lasts long enough to reach a real doctor. The moment we sound the all clear, I want you to make sure she receives proper medical treatment." He wrapped the bandage around her leg and secured it in place. "She's going to need stitches, so make sure, okay?"

"Stitches?" The mare looked worried. "I'm going to need stitches?"

"They're not as bad as you think," said Shining, pulling his plated pauldron aside. "See here?" he pointed to a scar. "Nine stitches. You'll only need three or four. It won't even hurt that much."

The mare sniffled and nodded as Shining made his way back outside. He was a royal guard, and he was a prince. If he said she would be alright, she was ready to believe him.

Just as Shining Armor left the restaurant, his armour back in place, he was met with the sight of a breach in the wall. Some zebra warriors had made it into the city, and her now advancing with their shields facing forward. Drawing his hand-and-a-half sabre, he advanced against them.

As he came close enough, a spear lunged at him. He sidestepped it easily, grabbed the shaft, and with a strong chop, nearly cut the head off the spear. As the offending party tried to pull it back, a lower ranking pony struck again, a few centimetres away from where Shining had hit, chipping off a piece large enough that the shaft could no longer support the head. It snapped, and the sharp edge was now in Shining's hand. Climbing up on top of the shield, he launched it down, skewering the shoulder of the zebra holding him up. The zebra collapsed to the ground, and Shining had just opened up a gap in the shield wall, large enough that a few quick-thinking archers were able to make short work of the zebras.

The battle didn't last much longer. After several hundred deaths, more than half of the zebras were gone, and most of the walls had held securely. What was left of the zebra forces either retreated back to their commanders, or surrendered and were captured as prisoners of war. The losses were great for the zebra forces this day.

The ponies, on the other hand, celebrated their victory. Three dozen ponies had lost their lives in the city that day, and only two of those were civilians. As the sun set, all of the guards that were off duty were treated to food and drink, courtesy of the civilians they had helped to defend. There was much celebrating, and Shining was glad to see it. Though nopony really noticed, not even himself, his hands weren't shaking, and his breathing was steady. As he saw the victorious guards celebrating their success, he even smiled.

Chapter the Fourth: False Positive

Shining returned to the hotel room to immediately be tackled by his wife. She wrapped her arms around his chest and squeezed tightly. "I'm so sorry, Shiny," she sniffled, tears running down her cheeks. "The zebras weren't supposed to be here yet. This was supposed to be safe for you."

Shining pried away Cadance's hands just enough so that he could turn around and hug her. "It's okay, Cady. It's alright." As he gently shushed her and rubbed his hands along her back, he began to sway back and forth. "The zebras showed up a little early, that's all. The defenses held, we barely lost anyone, and I can now say with the utmost confidence that this city is safe and sound. We have nothing to worry about here."

Cadance looked up at him. "Are you sure? What was the cost we paid?"

Shining smiled down at her. "Including both the injured and deceased? Less than sixty total."

Her eyes lit up. "Shiny, you're smiling!" She squeezed him even tighter. "I take it that's a good number?"

"A very good number indeed," he responded, gently nuzzling her horn. "We wanted low numbers, and that's what we had. Under a hundred is a good day. Under sixty is a great day."

Cadance smiled. Finally, after the longest three months of her life, her Shining Armor was beginning to open up to her again. She began shifting her feet to the rhythm of his swaying, dancing with him to some inaudible band that was playing only for them. To her great surprise, he joined her, dancing his way over to the table. She'd ordered dinner an hour ago, and while it was cold, she lit up the candles anyway. If he was feeling this good, maybe she could convince him to eat something. She really wanted to keep dancing with him, but she would be even happier if she could still dance with him well into their sixties.

After separating from Shining and sitting down, he really dug into his meal. He behaved as though he hadn't eaten in a week. While such manners were unbecoming of a prince, she was just happy that he was eating something for once. He wasn't choking it down or just making a show, he was scooping it up by the forkful, chewing it, and swallowing it with fervor.

After their meal, she helped strip his armour off as they climbed into the shower. It had been a long day under hot metal plates for him, and he certainly smelled like it. After a good scrubbing, they looked into each other's eyes and began to lose themselves. They pressed their lips together, filled with need for one another. The water was shut off, They stumbled back to the bedroom without taking the time to dry off. For several minutes, Cadance enjoyed being eaten out for the first time in ages, then Shining climbed on top of her and made her feel like a princess again. When they were done, they fell asleep in each other's arms, smiling and satisfied.

Cadance woke up suddenly in the middle of the night to Shining screaming in fear. When she regained herself, she looked over to him. Once again, he was crying into his hands. He'd gone to bed in such a great mood. The evening before had been the best he'd felt in months. Now his hands were back to shaking, he'd not had a good night's sleep, and he was covered in sweat again.

She put her hand on his shoulder. "Do you want to talk about it, Shiny?"

He shook his head. "I'm sorry," he whimpered. "I didn't mean to wake you. You can go back to bed."

She pulled herself closer to him, pressing her cheek against his neck. "Are you coming back to bed with me?" He gave no response, just more whimpering. "Then I'm not going back to bed. Not without my husband by my side."

Shining just sat there for a few minutes, unmoving. When he finally did lean back, it was into Cadance's comforting embrace. She wrapped her arm around his shoulder and let him use her breast as a pillow. It was the least she could do for him. Knowing he would have trouble returning to his slumber, she took him by the hand and gently rubbed the back of it with her thumb, humming softly a melancholy tune. It wouldn't work, but she could hope.

Shining Armor was out the next day, doing some damage analysis with Captain Loft. He wasn't going to be a captain for much longer, as he had sent out to his superiors a report of the events, and they had sent back their commendations, along with noting their desire to have him promoted to Major. He was planning to push back against it, as he had before, but he also had a strong sense of duty, and if they ordered him to take the promotion, he would do so.

While he was out, Cadance was trying to come up with ways to cheer him up. Other than the nightmare, last night had been wonderful, and it was good for Shining to have more days like that. She had written a letter to the therapist he'd declined explaining the situation, and all of the good that had come of it. She wanted her husband to smile again, but she didn't want him in danger. While awaiting a response, she was trying to think of ways she could show him that she wanted that version of him back.

Just after lunch, which she had with her husband this time, a scroll appeared in front of her, bearing a royal seal. The therapist worked in the castle, and his letters were always marked with a seal. She immediately popped it open.

"Expecting good news?" asked Shining, poking at his potatoes. He'd eaten more than yesterday's breakfast, but it wasn't as much as Cadance would like.

"I want to make you feel like you did last night," she smiled, blushing, "so I asked somepony for advice."

"Oh, yeah? Did they say anything good?"

Cadance slowly lowered the document. "This isn't the response I was hoping for. Time to pack up your things, Shiny."

Shining lowered his fork to his plate and grabbed her hand. "I can't make you stay. I regret dragging you down into this pit of misery with me. If they said it was best that you leave me, I wouldn't blame you, but I--"

Cadance turned the scroll around. "It wasn't what I wanted to hear because it wasn't something I was even expecting. We're being reassigned to Manehattan."

Chapter the Fifth: Manehattan

The carriage bounced up and down on its shocks as it made its way toward Manehattan. The intelligence suggested that the zebra forces were attacking not only by land, but by sea as well. The zebras weren't known for their seafaring qualities, but several Equestrian cities along the coast had already fallen to zebra forces. But these had all been small conquests. As much as it was hard to lose South Hooven, it was only a tiny sport fishing city. Their docks were made to host no larger than leisure yachts. They couldn't hold a full size ship, nor were they a shipping hub. Losing Manehattan would give the zebras all they needed to conquer the waves.

"We're facing attacks from the land and the sea this time," said Cadance, reading through the reports. "You've seen how the zebras fight on land, so you should be able to prepare for that. As for naval combat, I have no idea what you should be looking out for. There aren't any reports on the ships that attacked the cities, so I don't know exactly what you'll be up against. You'll have to figure that out on your own, if you can."

"I've trained on ships," nodded Shining. "I will give the men the best advice I can."

She placed a hand on his knee. "I'm sure you'll do fine. You did so well in San Palomino."

Shining looked out the window at the passing trees. "I certainly hope so..."

The trees turned to fields. Fields turned to small buildings. Small buildings turned to large buildings. And after ten hours on the road, plus a few stops, Shining and Cadance stepped out of their carriage and made their way up to their suite. It was larger and nicer than the one in San Palomino. Shining wished it was a little closer to ground level, but it would have to do. In the event of an emergency, at least his wife would make it out okay.

Unpacking was a short process. Shining wanted to prove to himself that he could still save lives, so he only had a few outfits, most of them different iterations of his guard uniform. There was also a suit and a set of business casual. Likewise, Cadance hadn't packed a large wardrobe, either. Business casual took up most of the space, but she also had a fancy dress just in case she needed to attend an event, however unlikely that may be. If the zebras suddenly offered up a peace treaty, for example, she would want to look her best for the negotiations.

After clearing out their suitcases, Cadance received a letter from the therapist and Shining left the room. He had other ponies he had to report to today. Lieutenant Commander Stone from the Equestrian coast guard and Major Pyre from the Army. This would be a battle fought on two fronts, and as a result, he would need to coordinate with both of them.

As Lieutenant Commander Stone was the superior officer in this meeting, it was held in his office at the coast guard command post. "Gentlecolts. I need not remind you how important it is that we work together," he said, bidding them to sit. "To that end, I suggest we put aside all the dick measuring for now and focus on keeping the citizens safe from the zebra threat. Do I make myself clear?"

"Let me be frank, Lieutenant Commander," said Major Pyre. "I think you still carry a lot of resentment towards me. What was our last match up, thirty-eight to seventeen?"

Major Pyre was silenced with a hard smack to the back of the head. "Knock it off, or I'll have you replaced with a janitor," threatened Shining. "We need to work together, so follow his lead."

"Actually," interjected Stone, "I was planning on following your lead, highness. You have experience against this enemy, and I was hoping you'd share it with us."

Shining shook his head. "It was just one battle, a few days ago, and we had stone walls to protect us."

Stone pursed his lips. "That's not a option here, I'm afraid. We don't have the time, nor the resources to build a wall around the city. Our best bet would be to barricade the bridges to the main island, but that would leave over a third of our city without good protection. Even worse, it would cut us off from a supplier if it was a long siege. What else can you tell us?"

"When the zebras did break through the wall, they liked to advance in lines. They put up their tower shields as a sort of mobile wall." There was a short pause. "What do you know about caltrops, Major?"

Pyre shrugged. "You throw them on the ground, and they stick in your boots. Why?"

"Zebra warriors don't wear boots like we do. They have padded sabatons covering their feet. Which means--"

"Which means there's nothing between their feet and the ground," finished Stone. "Good observation, Highness. I'll see to it that we have any trappers come forward and help us set up against the zebras. Mayhaps caltrops aren't the finest choice, but knowing that their feet are exposed from beneath gives me a few ideas as to how we might be able to funnel them into a chokepoint."

"Oh, really?" asked Pyre. "What, you're going to tickle them?"

"I was thinking some quick-growing brambles," answered Stone. "Smattered with shards of broken glass. A city this big, we have countless broken bottles. Let's see them walk over that."

Shining shook his head. "They can lay down their shields and walk right over the top. What then?"

"Watch towers," answered Pyre, finally being serious. "If they're walking on their shields, they won't be able to have them up over their heads. It's their choice: arrows or broken glass. What do they want to be stuck with?"

Shining clasped his hands together. "That's going to require a lot of towers."

Stone leaned forward. "The city loves its towers. I don't think that's going to be an issue."

Shining leaned back and nodded. "Okay, then. I see no reason it shouldn't work."

Chapter the Sixth: Black and White

Emperor Zaka sat on his throne, enjoying the chest rub being given by two of his harem slaves while three others danced in front of him. He was enjoying a zesty peach limeade and a pressed cheese panini on rye with spicy pickles. After all, as the emperor, he was entitled to such things. He had earned them, simply by being born better than his subjects. They had to work for their right to own slaves, and pay for their more plain food.

Just as he finished his sandwich and was about to make himself a bit more comfortable with one of his slaves, the doors swung open. He had a visitor in his palace. Three, in fact. One was a mule, and a rather large one. The other two were donkeys, a male and a female.

Zaka stood up. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked as they came within earshot.

"We were hoping you could tell us," said the mule, opening a scroll from Zaka. He'd summoned the donkey matriarch, but it seemed she was either unable or unwilling to join the negotiations personally. "We've been sent to answer your summons on behalf of Lady Marianne. She asked us to come in her stead."

"Very good, very good. Would you care to have a seat?" Zaka gestured to the comfortable-looking sofa that he regularly lounged upon. "Perhaps a drink? A mare of comfort perhaps?"

"A drink would be very welcome," said the female donkey, sitting down on the sofa and producing a binder from her saddlebags. "Anything you have is fine."

Zaka pointed to his own drink, which was nearly empty, then held up four fingers. The young serving slave that had brought him the drink and sandwich in the first place ran off to the kitchens to prepare four more. He returned three minutes later with one for his master, and one for each of his guests.

"Now, then," said the mule, joining his compatriot on the sofa. "What is it you wished to discuss with our matriarch?"

Zaka returned to his throne and lay down among his harem. "You and yours have been working on a new weapon, based on mining equipment and fireworks. I want that weapon. Not for free, mind you. I am willing to negotiate with you."

The male donkey shook his head. "That weapon is still in development. It's only in the testing phase. It's not ready for full scale war yet."

Zaka scratched his chin. "You say that, but didn't you use it to fend off a gryphon attack in one of your major cities a month ago?"

The mule furrowed his brow. "That was supposed to be privileged information. Since you seem to already know about that event, let me inform you that what happened was an emergency field test. The new weapons were not yet well-distributed, and so we mostly relied on our older, more reliable setup, with a few of our soldiers using the new stock. While they have proven to be effective against aerial assault, every soldier that used these weapons was hospitalized. Some of them have been released, others have been discharged due to the severity of their injuries. Unless you plan on building a new army after every battle, we respectfully decline your request to look into our research and development."

Zaka frowned. "I'm not an unreasonable man. I believe it would be in both of our interests if we were to help expedite your development. After all, we have disposable test dummies."

"You are referring to these fine ladies?" asked the mule, gesturing to the mares draped over Zaka's lap. "Sorry, but we're exclusively anti-slave. Your offer is most generous, but if we were to take it, it would be an insult to our matriarch, and that is not something we can do at this time."

"What would you even need them for?" asked the male donkey. "You have one of the largest armies on the planet, and your population growth indicates that this is unlikely to change. Furthermore, your weapons are not outdated, even in the slightest. In the battle you cited, the most effective tool keeping the gryphon aggressors at bay was your arbalest design. The longbows were second, and the common spear was third. You use spears all the time, what makes you think you need a dangerous new weapon that is just as likely to kill the user as it is the intended target?"

Zaka smirked. "The results." He tossed forward a manila envelope, inside of which was a stack of photographs. "I saw the damages your new weapons did. If we can mitigate the damages to the user, it would help to end our battle with Equestria much quicker. The war would be over before you knew what was going on. Fewer casualties, more survivors, and definitely less injured to take care of. There's no recovering from this."

The mare stood up. "Equestria has, for a long time, stood at our side as allies. Longer than the two of our nations have stood together. If you would use these tools against the gryphons, perhaps we might come to some arrangement. However, with your victims being Equestria, we are stoically against this conflict. Thank you for your hospitality, Emperor Zaka, but it seems we must be departing now. Our matriarch will want our full report right away."

As the others stood up to leave, Zaka leaned back. "Of course, the Equestrians are like family to you. I understand. As they say in Equestria, 'be cool or be mule.'"

The mule froze in place in the middle of putting on his jacket and leered at Zaka. "What was that?"

Zaka shrugged. "It's just something they say in Equestria. Like 'stubborn as a mule,' or 'donkey-brained.' You didn't know they said that?"

"They're very common sayings," agreed one of the dancers, a unicorn slave captured from Equestria some years ago.

"I also have this book of fables from Canterlot," said Zaka, snapping his fingers. Immediately, a slave came forward and presented him the book. "Can you tell me the name of the story on page thirty-eight?"

The mule looked closely. "The Tale of Donkey Do-Little."

"It's a story about how being lazy is bad. Nopony likes Donkey Do-Little." Zaka smiled condescendingly and closed the book. "Ah, but I'm rambling again. I'm sure you are great friends with Equestria. I'm sure they never say mean things behind your back."

The female donkey scowled. "And how can we be sure you don't say cruel things behind our backs?"

"Easy," chuckled Zaka. "I say them right to your face. I don't let my bad intent fester, hiding it away like some coward. I come right out and tell you the truth, like a close friend would."

There was a long, silent, uncomfortable pause. The dancers continued to dance as ordered, but that was the only movement until the mule took a deep breath. "We'll send over some materials for you to work with." With that, the trio left the room.

With a cunning smile, Zaka returned to his throne. "Alright, ladies. Who wants to suck away my stress?"

Chapter the Seventh: Arousal

Shining and Cadance gently swayed to the music she'd prepared. Whatever had happened that wonderful day, Cadance wanted to recreate it. When Shining woke up, before he could shower, she insisted that he dance with her, not only to help him calm down, but to show him that she was still standing next to him, still ready to support him, and still in love with him despite his circumstances. It may have just been confirmation bias, but she was sure it was working.

When the music was over, he gently nuzzled her. "I don't know what it was, but this kind of made me feel better." He leaned down and kissed her lips. "I owe you for this, Cadance."

"It was my pleasure, Shiny."

As she began directing him to the shower, he stopped her and pulled her toward the bedroom. "I want..." he trailed off. "Forget it, nevermind."

"No, no, tell me," urged Cadance. "What would put you in a good mood?"

Shining took a deep breath and looked into Cadance's eyes. "I want to be a better husband to you. I want you to be proud of me again. You've done so much for me, and I want to make it up to you."

Cadance smiled. "Shiny, you don't have to make it up to me. You needed cheering up, I came in to support you. That's what wives do. They support their husbands. You don't have to repay me for that."

Shining shook his head. "It doesn't matter if I have to; I want to. I've been a real sad sack these last few months, and you deserve better." There was a short pause. "I want to feel like I'm worthwhile again."

Cadance stepped closer and wrapped her hands around his body, letting them drift down to his buttocks. She stretched her lips up to meet his. "You're definitely worth my while. You're a good husband, even if you're going through a difficult time right now. Once you find your feet again, you can show me every day how wonderful a husband you can be."

He reached down and squeezed her arse gently. "I'd like to show you what your love means to me."

She chuckled as she moved to the bed. "Show me, then."

Shining followed his wife to the bed, grabbed her by the shoulder, and gently pushed her onto her back. He pressed his lips to her neck, slowly moving down to her breasts, gently tickling her nipples with his tongue. He then moved down to her navel, digging his tongue into the bundle of nerves and tasting the salt of her sweat. He continues to make his way down, stopping between her legs. Dragging his tongue between her labia, he gently pushed his hands against her thighs. This was her moment, and he wanted to do it right.

She pressed against his hands as he found her clitoris. Sealing it between his tongue and his upper lip, he sucked gently on it, eliciting a moan as his wife clenched at the sheets. He pulled his face away, separating from her with a loud slurp, then immediately digging his tongue into her vagina, pressing her walls apart. She was already sopping wet, having started with the slow, intimate dancing. She tasted sweet, like she was drizzling honey from a bottle she had stuffed up inside herself, an apt analog, considering how sticky it was.

Cadance grabbed her husband by the mane and brought him back up to her face, sucking his wonderful tongue into her mouth and licking every square centimetre of it. Her other hand reached down and guided his hard length between her lips, as she was very ready for him.

With a strong but gentle thrust, he buried himself in her velvet folds, gliding in easily due to how slick she was. He had already hilted, and they'd only just begun. He pulled back until his medial ridge popped out, then pushed back in, brushing the tiny mound of flesh against her clitoris and slapping his testicles against her arsehole. Barring a few days prior, there had been a long pause in their sex life, and his testicles had swollen up in the interim. Every thrust, they would smack against her until he came close to the edge. Leaning down and digging his tongue into her mouth, he picked up the pace as his cock throbbed and his testicles scrunched up. A moment later, he was filling her womb with hot bursts of his seed, his grunts of ecstacy muffled by her mouth.

As the crashing waves of their combined pleasure quieted down to soft ripples, they lay next to each other, staring at the ceiling as they listened to the sounds of their own heavy breathing, the only noise in the suite. Shining rolled onto his side, looked deeply into his wife's eyes, and said honestly, "I love you, Cady."

After his shower, he put on his armor and made his way to Lieutenant Commander Stone's office again. He was feeling much better after his morning exercise, and he was ready to provide aid wherever it was needed. He knocked on the door, which was already open, and Stone waved him inside.

"How goes the plan to set up the barricades?" asked Shining, sitting down. "Have you collected enough glass?"

"We have," nodded Stone. "Like I said, with a city this big, there are plenty of broken bottles. I asked the street sweepers not to send the broken pieces to the recycling center, but to a number of special bins. Other trash, certainly, that all goes to the same place, but the glass came to us. The recycling plants also helped out, sending in their stock of broken glass, so there's plenty to go around. Enough to put up a five metre wide barricade around the city, leaving our main roads open. If the zebras are going to march on us, we know from whence."

"And the towers?"

Stone waved his hand. "Like I said, the city loves its towers. A few steel support beams, a wooden platform, and a protective wall with lookout points and arrow loops. There's one every two hundred metres surrounding the north half of the city, and by tomorrow, the south half, as well, each covered by a trio of archers. Let Major Pyre take it from here. He may be an incorrigible arse, but I have faith that he at least knows how to cover this."

Shining nodded. "Sounds like you have all your bases covered."

Stone pursed his lips and furrowed his brow. "For the land battle, yes. Zebras are known for their formations and armies, but not for their navies. We have no idea what to expect at sea, so I was hoping you might come down to the docks to see the men and perhaps offer some encouraging words."

Shining looked up. "Really?"

Stone nodded.

"I accept your offer."

Chapter the Eighth: Lurking in our Midst

Shining sat at the edge of the docks, staring out over the ocean. He was going over what he would say in his head in preparation for the soldiers he was about to address. He didn't have a lot to say, but what he did have needed to be said. He was just waiting for the admiral to call him up onto the deck. This was a speech meant for the officers, not for the enlisted. That would require too many ponies in one place, or the same speech hundreds of times. It would be much easier to just let the officers make the speech to the enlisted under them.

The admiral called for Shining to come aboard the ship. It was a huge carrier, designated as a floating fortress. It was one of three ships of this size, the largest in the Equestrian fleet. It was also made of steel, a relatively new material for ships to be made from in Equestria. These all made it a force to be reckoned with.

Shining looked out over the deck, with all of the officers in formation. Even those that outranked him were saluting him. "At ease," he said, stepping up in front of them. "We have not received any reports of how the zebras managed to take our other port towns thus far. What we do know is that the ships they've taken have not returned to port. Some of them have been seen being towed south, indicating that the zebras are taking them there, but we do not yet know why. No Equestrians have been seen aboard these ships, so we can only assume that they're dead or under excessive custody. If they are alive, I don't envy them.

"I do not want to see the same happening to you. You are all valued members of the Equestrian military, and you deserve to be welcomed back to your homes when the war is over. However, in order for that to happen, you must be alive, and with a home to return to. Look to your left, then to your right. Can you honestly say that those stallions and mares do not deserve to rest easily? I cannot.

"That is why you need to be on the lookout. If not for yourselves, then for your fellow officers and sailors. If you see a ship on the horizon, you need to signal it right away and check its status and callsign. If everything checks out, you can move on, but be very wary. It's possible that the zebras may have infiltrated our fleet using one of our ships, so communicating with each other will be key in identifying who is friend, and who is foe.

"You need to be looking out for your fellow soldiers to make sure that they make it back home. You owe it to them to keep them safe. After all, they could be giving their very lives to protect your families from an army of zebras that want to make them slaves. You should give them no less.

"Now, as for the enemy we will be facing, I cannot tell you how the zebras will behave on their ships or the ships they've stolen from us. I wish I could prepare you better, but all I can say is that you have been trained in naval combat. You know how to keep from being boarded, and how to react when boarded. If something goes horribly wrong, I want you to light up the sky with flares. Likewise, if you see a flare in the sky, I want you to join on its position, as they need your help. Do not, under any circumstances, try to take on an enemy ship alone. That way, not only will you manage to fend them off, but you'll also be able to report back how they moved, and with that information, we can set up new, better protocols for dealing with the zebra threat. Thank you."

As Shining turned around and walked back to the docks, the admiral dismissed all of the officers, and they, too, left the ship. Most of them had to return to their own vessels to inform their crews of the changes that would be occurring. The rest were land-based and had no ships to return to, but still needed to inform their crews. Communications, weapon repair, hull repair, it didn't matter. They needed to know.

As they each stepped off, Shining greeted them with a firm handshake before they moved on, usually just a second or two in passing, though some of them had a few short words. A "thank you for your help," here, an "I do not take orders from you. Be glad the rear admiral is watching, else this would never happen," there. All seemed to be in order with the pissing contest that was ranking officers.

That is, until Shining took note of a very clear uniform violation. "Commander, would you step aside for a moment?"

"Of course," he said, stepping out of the way. There was a bit of a pause in the line, as this was a strange occurrence. "I'm happy to help. Whether lieutenant such as you, or just a young whelp."

"It's Captain, actually. Different branch, you know? At any rate, I wanted to ask why your breastplate is on backwards."

"Is it?" He looked down at his breastplate and shifted it around on his shoulders. "I hadn't noticed so. I did put it on in a bit of a rush, though."

"How did you not notice? I imagine it would be exceptionally uncomfortable."

"I usually find it to be uncomfortable. I don't think it's the right size. But what does it matter? We're all tough guys."

"You know these are custom-made, right? If it's the wrong size, why don't you have it replaced with something that is the right size?"

"I guess I just haven't been free. You lose a lot of time when you're at sea"

"See that you find the time." Shining extended his hand and the Commander shook it, both of them grasping with both hands. As the Commander walked away, Shining had a look at his left hand. There had been some residue on the commander's wrist, the same colour as his coat. Something wasn't right. "Commander?"

He turned around. "What is it that you want now? Something wrong with my helmet's brow?"

"Just one small thing. It would be all kinds of embarrassing if a somepony of your status was walking around with your armour on backwards. Why don't you turn it around? It will only take a moment."

The commander scowled. "I'm not exposing my chest to you. I'm not gay. This conversation is through."

"Nopony said you were," shrugged Shining. "I just know that if my uniform was on backward, I'd be really embarrassed."

"Well, I'm not, and I'm pretty sure I outrank you. I don't need to act on what you say to do."

"Well, I outrank you," said the Rear Admiral, wondering why the officers has stopped on the gangplank. "Fix your breastplate, Commander."

The commander froze for a moment, then ran off. A captain and two ensigns managed to stop him and keep him from running off. As he fell to the docks, his helmet fell off, revealing stripes all over his neck. He was a zebra who had coloured his exposed mane, tail and coat in order to infiltrate the meeting.

Chapter the Ninth: Tight Lips

Shining made his way down the hall toward the prison cell. He'd requested the opportunity to question the hostage, and had been given the chance, under the condition that a professional be there to make sure everything went smoothly, without any unnecessary harm coming to the prisoner. Smacking him around was okay, but breaking his jaw would limit the amount of information he could disclose.

The zebra kneeled on the floor of his cell, completely nude with his wrists tied behind his back. He'd been wearing the uniform of an officer and nothing else, so there was nothing to put him in once he'd been stripped and scrubbed. Equestria wasn't big on loin cloths, the go-to outfit zebras were known for. He'd only just been washed, so he was still dripping when they walked in.

Shining kicked the zebra. Not particularly hard, just enough to draw his attention. "Don't go falling asleep yet. Your day's not over until I say it is."

The zebra looked up and spat at Shining Armor. "You will never make me talk. You may as well turn around and walk."

"Oh, come now, zebra scum. You took the time to put on an officer's armour and sneak into our meeting. You went so far as to make sure your uniform was the right one, even if you put it on backwards. It must have been really uncomfortable wearing armor, and more importantly, wearing clothing. I bet you felt really hot with all that cloth covering your body."

The zebra said nothing, making good on his promise not to speak.

Shining grabbed him by the mane and pulled his head back. "I suppose there wasn't a question in that list of statements." Shining pressed the zebra's large penis between his boot and the stone floor. "Let's try this again. Was it uncomfortable wearing actual clothing?"

The zebra clenched his teeth and whimpered in pain. When Shining pressed a little harder, the whimper turned into a yelp.

"Answer the question, or I'll do worse."

"It was certainly very hot," winced the zebra. "If bidden again, I would rather not."

"Good boy," said Shining, raising his boot a bit, but not releasing the shaft. "Now tell me something else. On which vessel did you sail into harbor?"

The zebra chuckled. "You ordered me to protect my fellows. I will, no matter how much you bellow."

"So you'll just sit there, silent as the grave?"

"My soldiers know what to do if I don't return. My only regret is that, from here, I won't see your city burn."

"So you won't mind if I cut this off?" asked Shining, twisting his foot a few degrees and grinding the zebra's penis against the brick floor. "Because I am authorized to do that, if you don't talk." He wasn't, actually, but he was allowed to make such a threat. "After all, you don't need it to tell us what ship you sailed in on."

The zebra was in incredible pain. One of the incentives that had convinced him to join the war effort was the promise of new slaves, meaning that the price of buying one would go down, and he could finally afford one. That would do him little good if he couldn't use them.

"I can promise you that they will not be excessively harmed if they surrender and come quietly into the prison. If they try to fight back, I can make no such promise."

"If I tell you in which ship I came, they'd know exactly who to blame. You threaten to perform on me a castration, but treason would bar me from my own nation. You don't know what they'd do to me, if my face they were to see."

Shining squatted down and grasped the zebra by the balls, firmly but gently. With a few soft finger movements, the zebra was rock-hard and tiny droplets of blood were oozing out of the pressurized microlacerations on his skin. "I can grant you certain protections if you talk. I can make your time easier. I can make sure your food is better. I can keep a guard on you at all times to make sure that you come to no harm." He squeezed the zebra's balls and pulled them to the floor, scraping them against the bricks in the process. "Or, if you don't talk, you will receive a harsher punishment, as you will have to endure all of the punishment we would give to your crew. We have ways of keeping you alive against your will if we have to , to make your life excruciating." He let go and stood up. "I will be back in two hours. Think about it. But don't take too long, because if we find your ship before you tell us, I can't offer you my protec--"

"The Aeolus is the ship we sailed," whimpered the zebra. "The prior commander, we left impaled. He's dead, with his male crewmates, on an unmarked sandbar. The mares are in the cargo hold, being trained for the bazaar."

"Are the mares still alive?" asked Shining. "What manner of harm has befallen them?"

"Our soldiers number at eighty-three. It was eighty-four, including me. You'll need a big ship to block their escape, but don't sink them, for the mare's sake."

Shining held out his left hand, into which the jailor deposited some keys. He unlocked the zebra's wrists, and allowed him to stand up before walking out of the cell. "See to it that this prisoner is given a sandwich, some water to drink, and some boxer shorts."

As Shining made his way out of the prison, he began putting together a plan. He would need at least a hundred and fifty soldiers to take over the Aeolus, if what the zebra said was true. If they came willingly, perhaps not, but if it turned to violence, he would need them. He actually considered taking three hundred, just for the intimidation factor. Multiple ships would blockade them to keep them from running.

All of that thinking changed as the wall behind him suddenly broke down with a loud crash that shook the floor. Shining turned around and looked out through the hole in the wall. There, in the harbor, was the Aeolus, firing large, round rocks from black tubes on the deck. These were not Equestrian weapons. This was something new.

Chapter the Tenth: Assault and Battery

Shining and the other guards rushed to the battlements and to their ships. The Aeolus was firing on the city while also attacking other ships in the area, and it had caught everypony off guard. As the Equestrian navy scrambled to free their vessels from the docks, the land-based members of the coast guard cleared the docks and streets, funneling everypony they could into solid, stable buildings for their own protection.

Shining stepped up onto the trebuchet platform, which had just finished realigning itself to aim at the Aeolus. "Grapeshot and chainshot only!" he shouted. "There are Equestrian citizens aboard that vessel!"

"Aye!" came the response of the soldiers as they loaded the sling with flak. As the latch was released, the counterweight came down, flinging the shrapnel out of the basket and right at the Aeolus, ripping through her sails. Several other trebuchets launched shortly after, though not all of them had been given the order not to sink her, nor had the ships. Thankfully, a smaller ironclad had made its way in close and was ready to board. Two smaller ships, both brigantines, pulled up along the front and back of the Aeolus, blocking her movement, but taking heavy damages from the Aeolus' strange weapons. They would both be needing significant repairs, but they had her becalmed.

From both the port and starboard sides, the Aeolus was boarded. Had this been done at the dock, rather than in the bay, this would have been a standard inspection with no need for deadly force. Having fired on the city, the crew of the Aeolus had given the Equestrian forces reason to employ their weapons to their full capabilities. As the zebras rushed forward, throwing their stolen armour aside, archers from the Equestrian ships rained arrows down upon them. With no tower shields, the zebras were quick to fall.

The boarding party then cleared every room in the boat, killing off any zebra that failed to surrender. In total, they managed to capture seventeen prisoners. Some of the zebras were unarmed, as they were down in the cargo hold, handling the female sailors that had been captured. They had been stripped down and hung by their wrists from the ceiling. Great care was taken in cutting them down, as they had spent days without standing while their bodies had been abused. Among them, half dead and covered in her own blood, was the first mate.

The Aeolus was towed back to the docks and moored, and all bodies were unloaded, both living and dead. Shining had rushed to the scene to make sure that the Equestrian soldiers knew about the mares in the cargo hold, but when he saw them being carried off covered in cheap cloth to preserve their dignity, he breathed a sigh of relief. He made a mental note to talk to them as soon as they had recovered, then began to assist in escorting the new prisoners to their cells. He wanted to know more about these new weapons the zebras had created, and that meant it was time for another interrogation.

Just as he was arriving at the prison, a soldier ran up to him. "Prince Shining Armor! The zebras are here!"

"I am aware of that," answered Shining, gesturing to his prisoners.

"No, I mean by land!" gasped the soldier. "They're approaching the barricade! We need your guidance!"

"Take me there," Shining ordered, handing off the prisoners to a Junior Grade Lieutenant and following the soldier to the other side of the city. On the way, he had plenty of time to look at the uniform, informing him that the soldier escorting him was a specialist. The scuffing and grease stains on his coat made it seem as if he was a mechanic. I was likely that he worked on military vehicles. He certainly had the build for it.

Lieutenant Commander Stone was already at the scene, as was Major Pyre. "Glad you made it, Shining," announced Stone as Shining climbed up into the tower. "I'm sorry I missed your speech, I was called away to deal with this." He gestured out onto the plains where tens of thousands of Zebras were marching around the city, just outside of the range of the Equestrian archers. "Did I miss anything good?"

"Big naval battle," said Shining, looking out over the encroaching army. "Nearly sank a boatload of hostages, interrogated an enemy soldier, lots of death... So no, nothing too exciting."

"Nothing exciting, indeed," chuckled Stone.

"How long do you suppose this is going to take?" asked Pyre. "We've been here since noon, and all they've done is march with their shields pointed at us."

"You'd rather they rushed our border?" asked Shining. "I'd rather we not have to fight them at all, honestly."

"Really?"

"If they surrender and go back home, I'd be fine with that, too," agreed Stone.

"Yeah, that would be great," answered Pyre. "But I'd still like them to come close enough for us to kick their arses. They started this war, and it's high time we ended it with a decisive victory."

Shining shook his head and turned his attention to the army that was slowly surrounding the city. They had not turned their attention to the roads, nor had they approached. It was possible that they were supposed to line up and wait for the sound of the Aeolus' new weapon, which made a lot of noise, but if they never heard the call, they had no signal to move on.

"I think I need to go back to the prison," decided Shining. "We captured quite a few of their comrades, so odds are one of them might know the plan. One of them I have a small rapport with already."

"Making friends with the enemy, are we?" joked Stone. "Are you sure you don't need a babysitter to keep you from feeding him our secrets?"

"Ya caught me," smirked Shining. "I had so much fun rubbing my foot against his cock this morning that I just can't think of anything right now but tasting it. So long, boys. When next we meet, my arsehole will be super wide and dripping with zebra penis paste."

Chapter the Eleventh: Test Fire

"I would help you if I could, but my expertise lies in wood. I'm not familiar with the new designs. Frankly, I think they're over the line."

Shining rubbed his temples. This was going nowhere. All of the zebras he'd captured were only recently trained in seafaring, and all of the soldiers trained in the use of the new black tubes had been killed in the process of taking the Aeolus. There was no one in here who knew how to use the new weapons. They were probably so green that they couldn't tell the difference between a bowline and a sheepshank.

"Did you ever see a demonstration of its use?"

The zebra shook his head. "I only know that it works with fire. You light some part with a glowing red wire, and it makes a loud noise and launches special stones. It was supposed to be devastating to even the sturdiest homes."

"Do you know which direction is the end you point at your enemy?"

"We always pointed the hollow end out to sea. That being the business end sounds right to me."

Shining nodded. "And these special stones. They're the round ones?"

The zebra nodded. "We had boxes of those, along with the kegs. I was having enough trouble finding my sea legs."

"Kegs?" asked Shining. "What kegs?"

The zebra scratched the back of his neck. "There were these kegs with the weapons, full of black... stuff. They gave us a lot to make sure we had enough."

"'They' refers to your superiors, yes?"

The zebra nodded. "I was just a First Lieutenant leading a scout force. I was supposed to find and bring back information, of course. However, my troop was supposed to wait for me to come back. I was very surprised when they chose to attack."

Shining leaned back. "Apparently, a few of the ranking officers were concerned, and started asking questions of every ship in the bay. That spooked your men, and they lashed out." There was a brief silence as Shining stood up and walked to the door, stepping through it. "Enjoy those hay fries. I'm going to look into some of your claims."

Walking out of the prison and down to the harbor, Shining found the impounded Aeolus tied up and being guarded. Under orders from the Rear Admiral, it was off-limits to all except ranking officers O-6 or higher, but Shining was given a special pardon to do so, as he had the most knowledge when it came to repelling the zebras, and his entire purpose in coming was to help show how best to do that. If he could glean anything from the devices, he would be doing his job.

He stepped up onto the deck and looked around. As expected, the weapons were still secured to the deck. The special round rocks were sitting in large boxes next to them, with big kegs on the other side filled with the black powder. Seeing them next to each other certainly did make it seem as if they were related to each other. There was also a long stick near many of the tubes, and one end had a cloth bound to each by wire. At the other end of these rods were large flat disks, exactly the same size as the inside of the tubes and the special stones. Picking it up and pushing it into the tube, it slid in very smoothly.

Shining found himself no longer alone as a captain climbed aboard. "Shining Armor. Good to see you again."

Shining looked up. "My apologies, but I don't really remember your face, captain. Can you remind me of where we met?"

The captain removed his helmet and shook loose his mane. "We bunked together at the Canterlot Royal Naval Academy."

Shining's eyes lit up. "Boom! You're a captain now?"

Boom smiled. "That I am. I was promoted recently, actually, after a campaign in the Stardrop Sea."

Shining Smiled wide. "And look at you now."

"Me? Look at you! Prince of the Crystal Empire, married, and to the Princess of Love. How lucky!"

"Yeah." The conversation dropped off for a moment. "So, what brings you aboard this ship?"

"I talked to one of the mares rescued from this vessel. She had some very interesting things to say about these tubes that I'm just dying to know if they're true."

Shining smirked. "I interrogated a zebra officer and learned a few things, myself. Care to compare notes?"

Boom approached the one shining was messing with. It was pointed at one of the ironclads moored in the harbor. "I think we should. It would be instrumental in fighting them off if we knew how they worked. We could find the weakest points and exploit them."

Shining placed his hoof on the open end. "The special stones come out this end, but I don't know how. Really powerful stuff."

"The process for loading should be to put in a fuse, add the black powder, tamp it down, put in a ball, and light the fuse."

Shining looked around. "Have you seen any fuses?"

"No. Have you seen any black powder?"

Shining lifted the lid off a powder keg. "It's in these barrels. If we can find the fuses, we can do a test fire. What do they look like?"

Boom shook his head. "She didn't see them, she just heard her captors talking about them. Apparently, some of the soldiers were unsure of how these things worked, and had to go over it several times. She memorized it just in case."

Shining smirked. "Smart girl." He made his way along the deck until he found a weapon that still had a fuse. Tilting it forward, one of the stones rolled inside the tube. "This one seems ready to fire. While I would like to not cause a panic, I think we should fire this one, both to learn how they work, and to make sure it doesn't go off accidentally."

Boom came over. "Excellent. Let's turn the ship and fire it out into the harbor."

A few sailors were brought on to shift the ship's position until the weapon was pointed out over open water. As it was lined up, Shining set loose a spark from his horn. An ear-splitting explosion sounded as the ball launched off into the open water, landing with a large splash. It set off the tinnitus of everypony standing on deck.

When their ears stopped ringing, Boom came over and patted Shining's shoulder. "That was loud. Really loud. What do you think? Worth it?"

Shining nodded. "Yeah. At the very least, we know for certain how they work."

Chapter the Twelfth: Storm the Gates

After the test fire, Shining disembarked the ship and left it in the capable hands of Captain Boom. He had more training with ballistic weapons than Shining did, having been an expert before they parted ways, and then going into the Coast Guard where long range weaponry was very commonly employed. If anypony could figure it out, it would be Boom Stick.

He was planning on just checking in with Stone and heading back to his suite for the night, as the sun was just setting on his second day in Manehattan. However, upon nearing the front line, he heard the cacophony that had since erupted. He quickly rushed forward to find Lieutenant Commander Stone launching his own volley of arrows from behind the barricades of the tower.

"I'm here," said Shining, taking a place behind a crenel. "What happened?"

"They heard that loud boom from inside the city and they all charged at once," answered Stone. "Then, all at once, they began collapsing and trampling each other. The barricade wasn't quite wide enough, but it did take out hundreds of their soldiers all at once."

"And you've managed to hold them off otherwise?"

"None of the towers have reported a breach thus far. They may have experienced one, but if they're not reporting it, their neighboring tower would."

As if on cue, a horn sounded two towers down, joined by the next tower over. Shining stood up. "I'll take care of it."

"No," commanded Stone. "I'll reach it faster in the air, with better evasive action. I trust you can use a bow?"

With a nod, Shining took Stone's bow and slipped into the arrow loop, drawing back an arrow. There was no shortage of targets within range, but Shining wasn't as good a shot as Stone was. He was a melee fighter, more at home with a sword and shield or spear than he was with a bow. His accuracy was not nearly as good as Stone's was, and he missed several of his shots. Luckily, he wasn't the only archer atop that tower, and the other was quite good with the bow. She was capable of picking off anything Shining left behind, which was quite a bit.

The bodies were piling up quickly, which meant the zebras were needing to slow down. It was taking two hands to climb the wall of bodies, which means that their shields were uselessly strapped to their backs. They had thought that a swift and defensive advance would be easy, but the ponies of Manehattan had prepared in ways they had not expected, and it had caught the zebras off-guard. They weren't expecting an attack from below, especially with their connection to the earth itself. A few of them were visibly spooked, but kept moving forward.

"How long do you think they can keep this up?" asked the archer.

"Until they run out of soldiers," came the answer. "I imagine it won't take that long, though. I expect they'll sound the retreat soon; they look shaky."

"You sure? They have yet to slow down."

"Trust me, they're losing morale," said Shining. "One more devastating blow, and they'll run off with their tails between their legs."

"Any idea what that blow might be, or where it will come from? I'm running out of ammo, here."

Shining shook his head. "No idea. Mayhaps we'll hit a general, or something."

Suddenly, from behind them, there was a loud bang. A few seconds later, a large crash in front of them sent dozens of zebra bodies flying backward. Without even waiting for orders, the zebras went into a panic and fled, leaving the fields open. Further north, another boom and another crash. It was not unlike the sound of the tube weapons on the Aeolus.

"That will do it," said Shining, tucking the arrow he'd nocked back into its quiver on the wall. "Do you think you can cover this spot while I go check on the source of that?"

"I'm pretty sure I can cover this area well enough," smirked the archer.

Shining slid down the ladder and rushed to the river road, then sprinted north. Sure enough, the Aeolus was making her way under the bridges, firing its weapons with remarkable accuracy. As soon as he was close enough to make the jump, he teleported to the deck. Captain Boom was there to meet him.

"Good news, Shiny!" he smiled, holding up a box. "I found the fuses!"

"And you learned how they work!?"

"Mathematics!" shouted Boom, tapping the side of his forehead. "Plus, the mare in the hospital bed gave me all the specifications she remembered! After that, we could make some educated guesses as to how far we needed to go and fired accordingly!"

"Well, it worked! the Zebras are in retreat!"

"I know! We have scouts relaying messages with lights!"

Shining looked up at the rooftops, and sure enough, there were ponies holding glowing batons, rotating them to indicate different distanced and elevations, and others signaling to cease firing.

When they reached the northern exit of the delta, everypony's hearing had returned to normal and the ringing had gone away. "You sure set everything up fast," chuckled Shining. "Really glad you were on our side."

"It's not for no reason that I was made captain, Shining. Sometimes, you have to think fast. If you don't, you die. Now that the zebras know that we have their weapon, what do you think they'll do in retaliation?"

Shining looked out over the sea as they coasted into the port. "I don't know. I hope they give up. This was a big loss for them, and I'd prefer if that was the end of it."

"I didn't ask what you hoped for. I asked what comes next."

"This was supposed to be just a scout ship. Even for this size. I bet the Zebrican Emperor has more of these making their way up. We need to counter with more of our own."

"You think our smiths would be able to make one of these?"

Shining turned to Boom. "Our survival may depend on it. You'd better hope to Celestia that our smiths are that good. If not, we're all goners."

Chapter the Thirteenth: A Moment Alone With Unbeknown

Shining made his way up the stairs of the hotel he was staying at. It was now after midnight, and Cadance was probably asleep. He'd had a long day, and what he needed now was rest. He didn't expect to find it, but all of today's excitement and running around had made him very tired. If he had one night where he would see a full eight hours, this was it. It had to be. The zebras would be coming back for certain.

He fumbled with the door handle a bit, then gently pushed the door open. The light next to the couch was on, and Cadance was sleeping under it. After briefly considering carrying her to the bedroom, he decided that it would be best not to wake her, and he brought out a blanket to cover her up, and a pillow to keep her neck from going stiff in the position she was in. It would have been nice to curl up next to her, but he was sure he would be best off in a bed. Hopefully, she would understand.

He moved into the bedroom and stripped off his armour, stopping only when he was down to his undergarments. It was fairly warm tonight, so he needed only a topsheet to cover himself. He slipped into bed alone, and fell asleep in mere minutes.

He climbed out of bed the next morning and had a quick shower. As he slipped into his armour, there was a knock at the door. He answered it to a salute from a soldier. "Captain Shining Armor, your presence is required at the docks, immediately. A princess is coming in, and she requests your protection, specifically."

Shining nodded. "Of course. I'll be right there." He gave Cadance a quick kiss and made his way out of the hotel and down to the docks. The ship coming in was elegant and beautiful, with pristine white sails carrying it safely into the harbor. Shining rushed forward, and was the first to grab a mooring line to tie the ship down. As the gangplank descended, he ordered two soldiers to form up on him and keep their eyes peeled.

"Prince Shining Armor, it's so nice to see you again!" called a voice. Shining looked up to see a beautiful lilac unicorn mare descending toward him. He wasn't sure if she was blocking the sun with her head, or if she was literally radiating a brilliant light everywhere she looked. A blush came to Shining's face as he was embarrassed to be around somepony so pretty. He hoped Cadance wouldn't see him like this and come up with the wrong idea.

Shining only bowed and listened, hoping somepony around him would say her name, but nopony ever did. He heard her shoes against the gangplank as she descended toward him. They were quiet, graceful little clops. As she stood next to him, she placed a hand on his shoulder. "Arise, my champion. You are supposed to escort me, and keep an eye out for anypony who might wish to harm me. You can't do either of those things on the ground like that."

Shining stood up and rubbed the back of his neck in ebarrassment. "My apologies miss...?"

"Miss?" The mare chuckled. "You know I'm a princess, Shiny."

"O-of course, Princess. My humblest of apologies. I must have forgotten."

"Apology accepted. Now, where should we go while we wait for this event?"

"My apologies, princess, but we're kind of in the middle of being attacked. I suggest we go somewhere safe, preferably around midtown, where we're less likely to be hit."

"Is there somewhere in midtown where we can sit down and have a meal? I'm rather famished."

Shining nodded and beckoned with his hand, commanding one of the other soldiers to lead and the princess to follow him. Shining himself would take a position behind the princess with the other guard walking backwards in front of him to make sure their rear was covered. After a few blocks, he spoke up. "It has been quite some time, Princess. It almost feels like a distant memory."

The princess let out a small, delicate laugh. "Oh, Shiny, you know you don't have to address me so formally. You can address me by my name, you silly stallion."

Shining swallowed hard. He didn't want to ask this, as it seemed rude to have waited so long, but it had to be done. "And what name is that, again?"

To his surprise, she wasn't mad. She laughed. "Oh, Shiny, don't ever change. You clearly remember how much I love your dumb jokes."

"Yeah," chuckled Shining nervously. "I just wanted to hear you speak a bit more. You have such a pleasant voice."

"But my name sounds much better rolling off of your tongue. Come on, Shiny, say my name. I want to hear it from you."

Shining had placed himself is a very uncomfortable predicament. She hadn't taken the bait, and he still didn't know her name, merely that she was a princess. It bothered him that he couldn't remember her. As he was about to admit his ignorance, the guard at the front stopped. Shining looked forward at him. They hadn't reached midtown Manehattan yet, so they definitely weren't at their destination. "Why are we stopping?"

"Something doesn't feel right," answered the guard. "I don't know what it is, but my gut is telling me something is wrong with this path. I think we should go back."

Shining stepped forward. "Hold your position. I want to have a quick--"

THUK!!

Shining turned around, and to his horror, the princess had an arrow sticking out of her throat. He rushed back and caught her as she fell to the ground, gasping for breath and drowning in her own blood. "Princess! Hold on!" He looked up at the guard covering the rear. "Bring me a medic, now!" He ran off as Shining turned to the other guard. "Open that door, we're taking her inside!"

As Shining pulled the princess inside the closest public building, a dance studio, he knew she wouldn't make it. Tears formed in his eyes as he watched, unable to do anything to help her. "Don't leave me, princess..."

"Don't worry, Shiny," she coughed, spraying him with what blood had made its way into her mouth. "Your little Twily will always love you." As her eyes glazed over, her coat fell from lilac to lavender, her wings unfurled from behind the bow of her dress, and her skirt fell aside to reveal her cutie mark. Princess Twilight died there in his arms.

Shining bolted upright with a scream. Holding his head in his hands, he let out a pitiful whimper. "It always ends the same way. It always ends the same..."

His outburst had awoken Cadance, and she rushed to his side. As she placed her hand on his shoulder to comfort him, he shrugged it off. He was sick and tired of hurting her. All he wanted for her was a good night's sleep, and he'd fucked it up with his inability to move forward. He couldn't live like this, and he couldn't just keep dragging her down as he had been. He made a promise to himself right then and there. Things were going to change. They had to.

Chapter the Fourteenth: Cruelty

Shining was out the door earlier than usual today. Cadance had slept beside where he had been all night while he was packing up his things. He was going to pay for a smaller room closer to the ground floor so as not to wake her up in a screaming fit again. He thought it best that she have the opportunity to sleep comfortably. He paid for the room and had his luggage brought there, and requested that the staff not tell his wife. They were clearly uncomfortable with the notion, but agreed to do so as professionals.

He made his way down to the harbor to see if Boom had started work on the new weapons. He had, as there were five smiths taking measurements of one in preparation for casting. That was certainly a faster response time than Shining had expected.

"Trouble sleeping?" came Boom's voice from behind him. "I spent my night trying to find out everything I could about these things. Very cool stuff. All of these smiths together were able to quote me ten of them by the end of the week, so we're going to mount some on an ironclad."

"That sounds like a good idea."

"Don't I know it. We've also received reports of ships we thought lost making their way up here. It's no secret that we suspect that the ships are loaded with zebras. I was about to take the Aeolus out to meet them head-on. Give them the surprise attack they gave us. Except, we hope to survive the attack.

"I'm pretty sure they all hoped to survive their own attack," chuckled Shining. "If we're going to survive it, though, we need to know how to surrender."

Boom shook his head. "My crew is mostly stallions. We would all be killed off. We aren't suitable slaves, as far as the zebras are concerned."

"Then I suppose we'd better win, then."

Boom laughed as he boarded the Aeolus, which was shy one weapon, one crate of special stone, and one keg of black powder. The fuses were very easy to produce, it was just a paper tube with some black powder twisted tight. Making new fuses was not a problem now that they knew what they were made from. A whole box of them was really no problem. Boom would be taking command of that operation, and to be perfectly frank, he deserved the glory.

Shining would be serving as both the distraction and as backup. He would be taking an ironclad out after the Aeolus, launching his catapult after her, conveniently missing every time. This would continue on until the Aeolus was surrounded by enemy ships that thought she was still on their side, turning their attention to the ironclad. When no zebras were watching, the Aeolus would turn around and fire at them.

Shining would not be alone in his pursuit. Four other ships were to follow him to make sure the zebras were pinned down. There wasn't a number attached to the ships, so they didn't know exactly how many were coming. They estimated thirty ships unaccounted for, and a possible ten more might have been built according to the schematics. They were all small ships, though. Fluyts and schooners, mostly. The Aeolus was one of three brigantines that had disappeared, and those were the largest ships that had disappeared. A handful of galleons, an ironclad cruiser, and a brigantine with the element of surprise was probably enough to take care of the entire zebra fleet at this point, even with their new weapons.

At the end of the day, everything went according to plan for Equestria. Some of the smaller ships were sunk after all of the damage they'd sustained, but these were not recent captures. There were no slaves aboard these ships, only zebra soldiers. After all was said and done, Shining was left in charge of one of the schooners, sailing it by himself with all of the zebras that surrendered tied up in the cargo hold. He couldn't believe that he was treating these prisoners better than they had treated theirs. The pony stallions that had worked aboard this vessel had all been killed, and the mares had either joined the men or been sold as slaves. These horrid beings were to be placed in a secure stone building and given food, water, a place to sleep, and release at the end of the conflict. There would be no such release for the Equestrian citizens. Thinking about it made him sick.

"You're going to regret this, you doughy pawn!" called one of the prisoners through the grate. "We'll have broken out into your city by dawn!"

"You will do no such thing," growled Shining, doing his best to remain calm. "You'll be lucky to have your own bed. You're already in luck, because you're zebras captured by ponies. If you were ponies captured by zebras, we'd just kill you and dump your bodies on a sandbar. So you can shut your mouth and let this happen, you rancid cunt."

"You would not be so tough if you were down here with us. Come on down below, so we can better hear you fuss."

Shining shook his head. "That would do you little good. You'll have plenty of time to think about what you'll say to apologize to me from inside your cells."

"Joke's on you, because in the afterlife, we'll be treating your bitch sister as our cumdumpster wife."

Shining's eye twitched. His blood pressure spiked as his hands began to shake again, though it was less out of fear this time. "Keep your mouths shut. Not another word."

"We'll spent the mornings dressing her in naught but socks, then the whole afternoon, she will worship our cocks. In evenings, we'll take turns stretching out her arse. Your desperate attempt to save her was no more than a farce."

"Shut your gobs!"

"Or maybe we'll hold her with her head down south, force open her jaw and shit in her mouth."

"THAT'S ENOUGH!!"

"And your wife, when she joins us, will lick up our piss, all while being watched by your bitch of a sis."

Shining couldn't take any more of this. He was alone with the zebra prisoners, and they had driven him over the edge. As his blood pressure skyrocketed, the world around him blurred away, and turned black as he collapsed against the wheel.

Chapter the Fifteenth: Punishment

When Shining regained consciousness, he was underwater. He immediately panicked, inhaling a lungful of seawater. As the burning sensation spread through his chest, he swam desperately for the surface, holding tightly to whatever breath he had left until finally he reached the top. There were a few pieces of buoyant material up here, most notably a keg of black powder that had been mostly emptied in the battle. He grabbed that and lifted himself up above the water's surface, coughing out what he could.

He looked around. There was a ship coming toward him, one of the fluyts that had just been reclaimed. Shining shouted and waved, as best he could under the circumstances, trying to gain their attention somehow. It took several minutes for them to reach him, and a few more minutes before they were able to bring him aboard.

Shining coughed and spluttered on the deck, trying to remove the rest of the seawater from his lungs. "What happened?" asked one of the crew members. "We were on our way back, and we heard this loud explosion. We look back, and your ship's on fire and sinking."

"I don't know," said Shining, shaking his head. "I don't remember. I was having a conversation with the prisoners, then I just... I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was waking up underwater. I don't know what happened in the interim..."

The ensign in charge of the vessel came forward. "What about the prisoners?"

Shining looked up. "If you have a diving bell, and they've managed to hold their breath for the last five minutes, you may be able to save a few of them, but they were questioning why we didn't just kill them. I think they were ready to die. Or at the very least, they were willing."

The ensign raised his eyebrow, but said nothing. He returned to the helm and started the ship back toward the harbor. On arrival, he had to file a report, and as he was unsure of how the ship managed to be sunk, he posited a few theories. One of them was that Shining had sunk the boat of his own accord. He couldn't prove it, but he suspected it.

Shining went back to his hotel to see the new room. He hadn't been there yet, so he wasn't really expecting much. He found the room. It was on the second floor, not the tenth, as he had been. He took off his armour and dropped it in the corner, walked across the dimly lit room to the bed and sat down, letting out a soft sigh.

The light clicked on in the corner, revealing the chair. In it sat Cadance, a disappointed scowl on her face. "Shining."

The single word hit Shining harder than any weapon could have. The feeling that he'd betrayed her hurt worse than almost drowning. "Hi, Cadance..."

She folded her arms and looked around. "I must say, I didn't think you were the type to run off like this. What else should I change about my expectations? Is there a young lady coming to keep you company tonight?"

Shining shook his head. "No, nopony's coming. Not unless I order something to eat, anyway."

"Why would you do this, Shining? Why would you just pack up and leave me alone up there? Don't you love me anymore?"

"Of course I do, it's just..."

"Just what? I've been very patient with you all this time. I've done everything I can to try to help you through this. I've ignored my own pain in losing Twilight because I wanted to help you first. I don't understand why you would try to shut me out like this. Do you not care about my feelings in this?"

"Of course I care about your feelings. That's why I did this."

"How could you think that reserving a second room so far away from me would be good for me?"

Shining sniffled. He was in tears now. "Every night, I wake up screaming. Every night I wake you from your slumber, and I'm sick of it. All of it. I don't like having the same nightmare every night. I don't like waking up in fear. I don't like being unable to receive a full night's rest. And most of all, I don't like throwing you onto hotel floors in a fit of panic." He put his head in his hands, his fingernails digging into his scalp. "I don't want to hurt you anymore. I'm sick of it. That's why I left. I want you to sleep for a full night, and not wake up groggy and lethargic. There's no hope for me, but at least you'll be better off."

Cadance took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "You did this so I would sleep better? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

Shining said nothing, he just nodded. He couldn't bring himself to speak.

Cadance stood up, walked over to the bed, and placed a hand on her husband's shoulder. "Look at me, Shiny. I want you to look me in the eye." Slowly, Shining looked up at his wife's face. The look she was giving him was stern, strong and stoic. She pushed him back a bit to help him meet her gaze. "My place is next to you. If you're suffering from these nightmares, I want to be there to make sure you're alright. I realize you want me to be taken care of, but you need more help than I do right now. I wouldn't be able to sleep well at all if you were somewhere else, and I couldn't know if you were alright. I'd worry myself sick."

She continued to push him back onto the bed, pressing her lips against his as he lay down. "I love you, Shiny, and I want to be there for you. But if you're sure that the thought of me sleeping well will help you to do the same, I suppose we can give it a shot. But if you change your mind, and you want me there beside you," she placed in his hand a keycard, "you know where to find me."

She stood up and walked to the door. As she placed her hand on the handle, her other wrist was grabbed by Shining. She turned back and looked at him. He was visibly terrified. "Please, wait." He took a step closer. "Cady... I-I'm sorry. Please, stay with me. I was wrong."

She pushed herself forward into his arms. "Of course I will, Shiny."

Chapter the Sixteenth: On the Road Again

Shining and Cadance were once again in their carriage, leaving one city for another. Manehattan was well-defended, and had been a massive victory for Equestria. In the unlikely event that the Zebras returned, Manehattan would be ready to meet them. Even better, with the new weapons, dubbed 'cannons,' they could take back the coastline from the zebras.

Shining didn't know what awaited them in Canterlot, merely that it was imperative that they go right away. Cadance looked concerned when she read the summons, but she hadn't shared what it said yet. She had said she would bring it up on the road, but so far, she'd said nothing.

They were about halfway there before she said anything. "Shining, do you want to know the reason why we have to go to Canterlot right away?"

Shining looked over. He'd been staring out the window thus far. "I don't. Do you?"

Cadance nodded. "Yesterday, when you supposed to have brought in that ship full of prisoners, it sank. There were some of the higher-ups that needed to ask about it. Now Shiny, you know I love you, and I'll stand behind you no matter what, but I need to know what happened. I need you to tell me the truth. What happened out there?"

Shining sighed and looked down at the floor. "I don't remember everything. There was a point where everything goes blank, and I lost everything between that moment and the point where I woke up underwater. My first thought was that I fell off the ship."

"There were theories that you blew up the ship. How likely is that?"

Shining shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I did, but I don't remember."

"There's also a theory that you let the prisoners go, and they blew up the ship."

Shining shook his head. "I can almost guarantee that's not what happened. I would have liked nothing more than to lock them away forever. I would never set them free."

"Not even if ordered to?"

Shining looked away. He didn't have an answer.

Cadance shook her head. "I know how much you despise them, Shiny. I know you want to make it clear how much they hurt you, but this wasn't the way. To kill off the surrendered soldiers is cowardly."

"I couldn't stomach them anymore," admitted Shining. "They were all bragging about how they were going to defile Twilight in the afterlife, and that they were coming for you next. I couldn't take it anymore. I just blacked out, and I don't know what happened after. Maybe I blew them up, maybe it was an accident. I don't know."

Cadance stood up and moved to the other side of the carriage to Shining's side. "When they question you, it would be best if you were sure of your answers. I can't be in there with you for all of that, so we need to be sure of it all before we arrive."

"I know," nodded Shining, placing his hand on his wife's knee. "I'm going to be honest with them, as I have with you. I did not set them free, I did not help them release themselves. I may have tried to kill them, I may have tried to kill myself, it may have all been an accident. I don't know what caused the explosion."

Cadance was about to say something, but the carriage stopped suddenly. "What's happening?"

There was a knock at the carriage door. "Prince Shining Armor, you're needed out here."

With a kiss to his wife, Shining stepped out of the carriage onto the road. Looking forward, he saw an Equestrian soldier dragging himself toward them. He was wounded, with arrows protruding from his lower body. His face was very pale, and he'd very clearly lost a lot of blood. Shining rushed toward him and assessed his wounds. He was in very poor shape.

"We're going to take you into town," promised Shining, picking him up. "You're going to a medic, you're going to be in the best care I can give you." He climbed back into the carriage, laying the soldier down on the floor at Cadance's feet. She immediately came down to meet his level, doing everything she could to ensure his survival, which came down to just putting pressure on his wounds and giving him some water to drink. She was no medic.

"Where's the nearest town?" asked Shining of the escorts. "We need one with a doctor."

As Shining stepped back into the carriage, the answer came in the form of his escorts taking off back up the road they'd just come from. The nearest large city was behind them. They took off at a higher pace than they had been going, but slow enough so as not to create undue turbulence that would knock the injured soldier around.

"What company are you from?" asked Shining, pressing down around one of the arrow shafts. He looked over the uniform and saw that he was a Private First Class, barely any kind of rank. His uniform also told Shining that he was a member of the 108th division. "I need you to stay with me, and I need to know who you are."

"I belong to the one zero eight," he wheezed. "They tortured me, their bloodlust to sate."

"What happened to the rest of your group?"

"Zebrican soldiers stormed our encampment in the dark of night. They killed the others, but saw me as a blight. I was made an example of those who don't return. They shot me several times and left my body to burn."

Feeling suspicious, Shining shifted the soldier's garment forward. Running along his body were stripes. He was a zebra. Despite this, Shining believed his story. There were burns on his legs, and more importantly, the arrows protruding from his body were zebra arrows. It would be foolish to pull out Equestrian arrows only to stab zebra arrows in their place. The soldier was wearing some light armor, very basic stuff, just restricted to a breastplate. That hadn't protected his legs at all.

"What's your name?" asked Cadance.

"Jericho," he gasped. "My friends called me Jerry. I was born in Equestria, and I'm not your adversary."

"Hold on for just a little longer, Jericho," said Shining, holding onto him. "We're almost there."

Chapter the Seventeenth: Canterlot

The carriage arrived in Canterlot a day later than it was supposed to. After escorting Jericho to the hospital, Shining had gathered a handful of guards, brought them back to where they had found him, and followed the bloodstained drag marks back to the wooded area from whence he'd come. After looking over the area, Shining concluded that Jerry had been staked over the fire, and had managed to break the stake he'd been tied to. There was a knot in the wood at that point, which probably helped him. He undid his bonds somehow and then there was evidence of him checking all of the others to find out if they were still alive. He hit all of them, not leaving a single one behind. They were all dead.

As the carriage pulled up to the castle steps, Shining and Cadance stepped out and made their way inside. They hadn't changed clothes, as there wasn't a lot of time, and changing in the carriage was not an option, as there had been blood on the floor, and it would have done them little good.

They made their way inside and found the courtroom where Shining was supposed to have his hearing. It was a small courtroom, roughly the size of a conference room. He sat down on the far side of the table and waited. In the meantime, Cadance went to a courtesy room to clean herself up.

An hour and a half passed before the tribunal came in. At the center was one of the brigadier generals of the army, and at either side of him sat Celestia and Luna.

"Good afternoon, Shining Armor," said Celestia, opening a manila envelope. "How are you this afternoon?"

"Fine, thank you."

"You are aware that you were supposed to be here yesterday?" asked the general, raising his eyebrow.

"I am, yes. Unfortunately, we ran into an emergency situation on the road, which delayed us. Cadance and I have only just arrived."

"We might have guessed from your attire," posited Luna, gesturing to the bloody clothing and armour. "What was this emergency?"

"A young soldier, PFC Jericho of the hundred and eighth, was badly injured and in desperate need of medical attention. He is now under the care of a hospital in Tailedo. I did not stay long enough to gather his medical report, and instead opted to investigate his story. The rest of his group seems to have been wiped out, but I didn't have a list of their names, nor did I write down all of their tags. I placed five guards in charge of cleaning that up and continued out here for this as soon as I was sure it was taken care of."

"Commendable," chuckled Celestia. "Of course, we'll have to check into that later. For now, let's focus on the purpose of this meeting: the destruction of the Whinnypeg and her prisoners. The report we received indicates that you did not say what caused the detonation on board, so let us begin with what the explosion was. What kind of device was used to destroy the ship?"

"I don't know. I would guess that it had something to do with the black powder we found down there. I guess they didn't remove all of it."

"Except they had," interjected the general, pointing to a particular section of a document. "The report clearly states that all kegs of black powder were removed from the ship before the prisoners were tied down in the hold."

"Not so fast," said Luna. "The report also says that when Shining was fished out of the water, he was holding onto one of those kegs. At least one was clearly left aboard, so I find it possible that there were more. Likely, even. If there was one, there were probably others."

"Let's assume that there was more powder on the boat," shrugged the general. "How then would the prisoners be able to access it? They were tied up, were they not?"

"I can confirm that they were," replied Shining. "I personally made sure the bonds on their wrists were tight."

"And their ankles?"

"There was no place to tie them down. The Whinnypeg was filled with other cargo, and the tiedown anchors on the floor were crowded enough as it was. We also considered that we would have to just untie them again to drag the prisoners to their cells. It was deemed unnecessary."

Celestia clasped her hands and brought them up to her mouth. "Let's talk about why you were alone. Who decided that was a good idea?"

"She had... the ship, I mean... had damaged one of her masts, and as a result, she sailed significantly slower than usual. We knew that it would be slow going, so the plan was for me to turn the ship the right way and let her drift toward the harbor. In the meantime, other, smaller ships were to be deployed my way to help me come in. We never made it quite that far."

"I meant just you being on the ship."

"There was a weight limit, and we were fast approaching. If we had one more body on deck, we'd be easily taken out by a rouge wave."

The general looked up. "Were there rouge waves?"

Shining shook his head. "I didn't see any, but they can come out of nowhere with little warning." The door suddenly opened and a guard rushed in with a scroll, placing it in front of Celestia before leaving. "If the wind suddenly shifted and picked up speed, the ship might have sunk, with or without an explosion if we put another sailor on it. Essentially, all I had to do was hold the wheel to the right until we were facing land, then straighten it out and hold us on course. That really only requires one pony."

"So does blowing up the ship," scoffed the general.

"Yes, but he didn't do that," answered Celestia, looking at the scroll. "I've just received word from another ship that they picked up a survivor on their way to look into the explosion. After Shining passed out, the ship listed to one side, and an oil lantern fell on top of the powder stores. This was not a willful destruction of property, nor a war crime. This case is dismissed. Prince Shining Armor, you are dismissed. Take the rest of the day to clean yourself up, we may have an assignment for you tomorrow."

As the tribunal filed out of the room, Shining just sat there. He had been unaware of any survivors. He'd convinced himself that he'd actually blown up the ship, and was planning to turn himself in. Seeing Jericho suffer had caused him to reevaluate his stance on the matter, and he was afraid that he might have harmed somepony who hadn't deserved it. To hear that he was definitively not guilty was a relief, but it was harrowing to him to believe that he almost wanted to be. He would have to take greater care in the future.

Chapter the Eighteenth: Good Night

Shining woke to the sound of a bird twittering on the balcony railing. It was a pleasant morning in Canterlot. If one was asked if the country was at war right here and right now, the one being asked might be unable to tell. Shops were open, ponies walked around the streets with smiles, and the guards were rather sparse. Still, Shining knew it was folly to walk around pretending that everything was alright. He slipped into his armour, just in case there was an attack today, and made his way to the castle barracks.

"Captain Shining Armor reporting in," he said, saluting the receptionist. "Awaiting orders from the princesses."

"Good morning, captain," saluted the mare with a smile. "I've only just received orders for you. They're considering you for a mission, and they want you to stay close. In the meantime, you're free to walk around Canterlot today. We'll send a note when they're ready. Enjoy your day off."

Shining dropped his salute. He had a day to himself. Part of him wanted to go back to bed, but Cadance wasn't there, so that would do him very little good. Without her, it was just an empty room. He was unlikely to be able to join her, either, as she was meant to be in meetings all day with the other princesses.

So, with nothing better to do, he made his way into Canterlot proper. It would be nice to see the ponies of Canterlot not needing to be heavily shielded. Perhaps he could even buy something nice for his wife. Canterlot was, after all, a fashion capitol.

His time among the citizens was a pleasant one. They would wave, he would smile at them, some of them would come up and talk to him. It was mostly mares telling him that he looked very strapping in his uniform. A part of him knew that he could have any of them he wanted, or even all of them. Cadance had never minded before, as long as he always came back to her at the end of the day. Likewise, she could bring home anypony she wanted, and everything would be okay with him.

He gathered up a small group, two mares and a very flamboyant stallion, and he spent the morning looking around at the many shops throughout the city with their commentary to aid him. He was very interested in hearing their opinions on what would look good on Cadance. The stallion was actually the same dress size and shoe size as Cadance, so with a couple of grapefruits to fill out the bust, he was able to model the outfits they chose. At the end of the trip, Shining had three new outfits for his wife purchased, with new shoes to match. It was important that the shoes not only look good, but were comfortable to wear. Cadance deserved the very best, after all.

After paying for the new clothes, he went to lunch. His group had other plans for lunch, so they all split and went their separate ways. Shining decided to go to an outdoor café, one that he'd gone to several times while growing up. This was actually the same place he'd taken Cadance on their third date. Their first had been at a fancy restaurant, to which Cadance said he was trying too hard, and that she wanted to talk to him, not watch him fidget nervously about the bill, which she ended up paying for anyway. Their second had been at a coffee shop, and was rather unplanned. This had been the first really good date they'd had, and a part of him wished she was here now.

"Do you mind if I sit?" came a voice from behind him a few minutes after his food came. He turned around to see a violet alicorn with a somber smirk. "We need to have a word, Shiny."

Shining immediately leapt from his chair, looking around him, horrified that some foul being would kill her suddenly.

"Calm down," ushered Twilight, gently placing a hoof on his shoulder. "We're completely safe here."

As Shining took a deep breath, he heard the twang of a bowstring and the whistle of an arrow. Before it could hit Twilight, though, it shattered into millions of tiny pieces and dissolved into dust, blowing away in the wind. "H-how?"

"Sit down," said Twilight, bringing up a chair. Shining did as he was told, but in the back of his mind, he was horrified. "I know you feel guilty about what happened to me. I know it was unexpected, and that you blame yourself for not protecting me. I'm here to tell you that you did everything you could, and you need not blame yourself. I've had a lot of time to think about what happened, and I can say with absolute certainty that there was no avoiding this. It was destined to happen, Shiny."

"But it wasn't," reasoned Shining, his voice cracking as he held back his tears. "If I hadn't turned away in that one moment, you'd still be--"

"You can't think like that, BBBFF," scolded Twilight. "You cannot account for everything that could possibly happen. You can only protect against what is reasonably foreseeable."

Another arrow was fired and burst into ash. "Well, what am I supposed to do?" asked Shining. "I want to move on from this nightmare, but it just keeps coming back. I don't know how to stop it."

"Don't you?" asked Twilight, raising an eyebrow. "I can help you with that. I can help you resolve this nightmare, and end this cycle of misery. Don't you want that? Don't you want Cadance to have a good night's sleep for once?"

"Of course I do," said Shining. "I just don't know how to do that. Please, Twilight, help me." He fell to his knees, clasped his hands together, and begged to her. He was in tears. "I just want all of this to end. Please."

Twilight nodded. "On the table there is a set of binoculars. Grab them."

Shining did as he was told, not knowing where his food had gone, but now knowing that this was a dream.

"Now I want you to look at the roof of that building." Twilight pointed to a multi-story building just across the street. "Up there is the pony who keeps firing arrows at me."

Shining looked up, and sure enough, a stallion was just over the railing, his bow drawn and an arrow nocked. He looked through the binoculars, and he couldn't believe who it was. The pony who fired his arrow as Twilight looked just like him.

"Do you see what the problem is?" asked Twilight. "Your own self-loathing is what's trying to destroy you. You don't need to forgive the Zebrican Empire for invading Equestria, that's something you are more than allowed to lash out against. That's why your mind feels so clear when you're fighting them. That's why bringing them to heel makes you feel better about yourself. Cadance loves that side of you. When you're protecting the ponies of Equestria, she could not be more proud of you. But when you attack Equestrian citizens, namely yourself, she doesn't like what she sees."

Twilight stepped forward and placed a hand on her brother's shoulder. "And neither do I. You're my BBBFF, Shiny. I have always loved you, and I forgive you for what happened. It wasn't your fault. If you want this nightmare to end, you have to give up this hatred you have for yourself. Forgive yourself for this behaviour. It's the only way." Another arrow shattered against her shield. "This is it, Shiny. Forgive yourself, or I die here again."

Shining closed his eyes tight. He didn't know what to do. He wanted all of this to be over, but could he really just forgive himself? For three and a half months, he'd convinced himself that his inability to protect Twilight was his greatest failure. He'd watched her die over a hundred times, and he'd given up on sleeping well ever again. Twilight said he just had to forgive himself, but could he really do that? He heard the twang of the bowstring, the zip of the arrow, and then...

Nothing.

He opened his eyes and looked down. From his chest protruded an arrow's shaft. He looked behind him, where Twilight was standing. She had a hollow look on her face, as she sometimes did when she was focusing on something very intently. After a moment, her eyes returned to him. "Is that really the path you've chosen?"

"I don't know what else I can do," sighed Shining. "I couldn't just watch it happen again, and I don't think I'm ready to forgive myself just yet. Instead, I think I should focus on something I know I can do. Something that will push me toward respecting myself again. I may not be able to forgive my own actions, but I can protect the ponies of Equestria. If I do well enough there, I may be able to forgive myself someday. But not today."

"If that is what you wish to do, I can't stop you," said Twilight, shaking her head. "I do wish you would find love for yourself in your heart, but if you cannot, I suppose you must build it back up." Slowly the dream faded away, and Twilight with it. Shining found himself in complete darkness, utterly alone.

Shining woke to the sound of a bird twittering on the balcony railing. It was a pleasant morning in Canterlot.

Chapter the Nineteenth: New Orders

Shining reported to the throne room when called. He was feeling better already, having actually slept fairly well last night. Perhaps it helped that Twilight hadn't died, perhaps it was that he was more in control of himself, or perhaps it was simply realizing his own limitations that had changed his mood. Whatever the case, it didn't matter. He was feeling better, and that was all he needed to know.

Luna gave him a look of respect as he approached. She either was involved with his dream, or she'd seen it. Likely the former, as she did that regularly. That would also line up with Cadance's disappearance the night prior, as she said she was going to speak with her aunt. He'd assumed Celestia, but Luna made more sense now. He bowed at their feet as he arrived. "Princesses."

"Rise, Prince Shining Armor," responded Celestia. "We have new orders for you."

Shining stood up, half expecting to be sent somewhere else, due to his inability to bring back the prisoners alive. While it wasn't really his fault, he had been partially responsible, and held himself in contempt for it.

"Given what happened on the Whinnypeg, we were unsure as to whether or not this was the best task for you to take charge of," said Luna, stepping forward. "It had troubled us for several days, before we even summoned you. In truth, we were actually considering sending Cadance alone, with you staying behind in Manehattan. However, given the recent developments, we have reconsidered our options, and we think that it would be best if we sent you both, with you taking the lead, and her being in an advisory position."

Shining furrowed his brow. "What exactly do you want me to do?"

"We're sending you to Whinnyapolis," answered Celestia. "The zebras have already taken the town, and it's a little too close to Canterlot to be in zebra hands. We need that territory taken back as soon as possible, but we would rather not be forced to redeploy, as our defensive effort is only barely hanging on right now. Having protected two of our prime cities, being the main gateway to the Empire and the largest city in the country, we want you to take the city back for us."

"Are you sure I'm the best choice?" asked Shining. "I'm not exactly at my peak right now, and even if I was, I couldn't fight them all off."

"We're not asking you to fight them off," replied Luna, shaking her head. "Not unless you have to. We would rather it not come to that. In fact, the reason we considered Cadance for it was because she'd proven very skilled when it comes to diplomacy. We just have to convince the zebras to leave. If we can, we'd like to have the civilians returned, as well. The enemy may be close to us, but they're not able to leave, so we know the citizens are still there, and we assume most of them are still alive."

Shining scowled. "The citizens should come first, though. If we're sure they're safe, I have no issue razing the town to the ground with the zebras inside."

"How you handle it is up to you," interjected Luna. "It doesn't matter how you do it, but we cannot have an enemy base so close to our command center. We can stomach to lose a thousand Equestrians if it means saving a million. We certainly would like to keep those thousand, but that may not be an option. You must use your discretion in this matter. If you can convince them to leave, that would be preferable, but if not, you must destroy them."

"Not if I would harm a hostage," growled Shining. "I would gladly lay down my life to save them, but I cannot condemn them to death."

"We know," smiled Celestia. "That's why we have selected you for this. If we tell you to clear the city of all zebras, we have faith that you will do so with as little harm to the citizens as possible." Her smile faded into a frown. "Unfortunately, if you take too long, it may force our hands, so do proceed with haste. We don't want them building weapons at our front gate, nor do we want them taking our citizens back home to be made into slaves."

Shining sighed. "It won't be easy."

"We never said it would be. That's why we're sending somepony reliable. Somepony we know to do exceptionally. Somepony that will do the job quickly and correctly." Luna smiled. "Somepony that we believe the zebras are scared of."

Shining raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean, they're scared of me?"

"That's just a rumour," scolded Celestia, glaring at Luna. "We have no idea if it's true, but a few of our citizens that were captured and somehow managed to escape their zebra captors spoke of a 'shining spectre' that was protecting the major cities in Equestria. We brought it up with Major Loft Wing, and he said that some of the captured zebra soldiers spoke of it in hushed terms. He had no idea what it meant, but part of us thinks that it might be you that they're talking about. Captain Boom Stick says much the same, as well as noting your involvement in turning their own weapons against them. He said he considered himself more ghostly, but your alias seems to have invoked fear in their hearts. You may very well be one of our more useful officers, moving forward."

Shining considered it for a moment. If the zebras really were afraid of this 'shining spectre,' he would have to look the part. On top of that, he would need to keep winning. He looked up at the princesses. "What must I do to complete the look of this spectre?"

Luna let out a chuckle. "You need not do anything. We simply need you to keep succeeding."

"You and Cadance are bound for the Trot Inn in Ponyville. Whinnyapolis is not so far away, so you can feel free to use that as your base of operations. Keep us informed of your decisions, as we need to keep sight of our options. Do you think you can do that, Shining?"

"With certainty, Princess. You can count on me." With a salute, he turned and walked out. This day was only turning better and better.

Chapter the Twentieth: The Trot Inn

Shining and Cadance stepped into their hotel room. While it wasn't really very nice moving around from place to place so often, it was at least a blessing that the rooms were always clean and organized. Moving from hotel to hotel was certainly better than staying in encampments or barracks.

"What was it they called you again?" asked Cadance, chuckling.

"'Shining Spectre,'" replied Shining, a big smile on his face.

"So menacing," smiled Cadance. "So intimidating. If I heard he was coming after me, I'd be terrified. It just sends shivers down my spine."

The two shared a laugh before unpacking. It had been a long time since Shining had felt this good, so a bit of levity was something to be treasured. Whatever Luna had said to Shining in his dream had worked. He had slept through the whole night, and so had Cadance as a result.

"So, I have a small confession to make, right here and now," said Cadance, slipping off her shirt and sitting down. "I may have asked Aunt Luna to help you with your nightmare. I know you said you didn't want help, but I just--"

"It's fine, Cady," smiled Shining, removing his breastplate. "In truth, I'm glad you did. I don't know what I was thinking."

"You were thinking that you didn't want to appear weak. You were thinking that your subconscious hatred for the zebras was pushing you forward."

Shining shrugged. "You're not entirely wrong. Nor was I for thinking so. I was just missing what was holding me back. Luna made me see reason. I was mad at myself for my inabilities. Unreasonable as my expectations were, it was pushing me backward."

"I'm still upset that you won't forgive yourself. It wasn't your fault, Shiny."

"It was partially my fault. As much as one percent is enough to make such a claim. I will one day feel better about it, but for now I'm going to focus on just improving and keeping the good things in my life." As his greaves fell to the floor, he stood in front of her, and put his hands on her shoulders. "Good things in my life include my beautiful and loving wife, who knows to help me despite the fact that I'm either too stubborn or proud to ask, or even accept it when offered. Thank you for setting me right, Cady."

She leaned up and kissed his lips. "You're still my big, strong beast of a stallion, even if you sometimes act like a big oaf. I love you, Shiny."

He returned the kiss, gently lowering her down to the bed. He was lucky to have her, and even luckier that she'd stayed with him through the worst time in his life. He was going to make it up to her, somehow. He didn't know how just yet, but he had to try. Not for his sake, but for hers. She'd gone above and beyond what could have been expected of her, and she deserved every ounce of praise he was going to give her.

After a night that began with a flurry of raucous sex descending into peaceful slumber, Shining was stepping out of the shower. He looked into the mirror, and for the first time in ages, he didn't outright hate the stallion staring back at him. He'd finally come to accept himself, a sign that things were beginning to improve for him. Now he was just angry. That was much easier to contend with.

As he slipped into his gear, he looked at Cadance, still sticky, and just slipping into her lingerie. "You're sure that you're going to be okay on your own?" he asked, his concern clearly marked on his face. "Ponyville isn't exactly the most well-defended place. Remember, this spot was selected because it was close to an enemy city."

"I'll be fine, Shiny, don't worry," she smiled, latching her bra together. "Honestly, I'm more worried about you. You're walking directly into enemy territory, where you'll be outnumbered a hundred to one. What if they decide you're not allowed to leave?"

Shining shook his head. "If I'm not back by tomorrow morning, tell Celestia that this was a trap. Divert soldiers to me if you have to, but let's hope it doesn't come to that."

"I hope so, too. Now remember, we received clearance from Celestia to bargain two of our captured soldiers for each of their captured civilians. Since we aren't barbarians, we have plenty of living zebras to give back to them. You don't have to start that high, but that's the highest we can go. I say this so that you don't make promises we can't keep. Are we clear, Shiny?"

He nodded. "I can give them two captured soldiers maximum for each civilian, and I can grant them all safe passage back to the Equestrian border of their choice. What matters is that I clear them all out and save as many Equestrians as possible."

"Right. Think you can do that, Shiny?"

"I don't know." He took a deep breath, and looked out the window. "I suppose we'll see. Just promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

He turned around, leaned down, and gave her a kiss. "If I don't survive, please remember me at my best, and find somepony who can make you happy again."

"I promise, on one condition."

"What's that?"

She kissed him again. "Survive."

He chuckled as he made his way to the door. "I'll see what I can do."

An hour and a half after he left, Cadance was writing a letter to the therapist again. He'd given her a lot of advice, and the first third of the letter was thanking him for the parts that worked. The second third was the largest, detailing what had and hadn't been helpful. The final piece asked for more help, now with new problems rather than the ones that had been solved. She had just sealed it and sent it away when she heard the lock click open and the squeak of the door hinges. She turned around to see three soldiers, all male, entering the room.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, boys?"

The first of the guards smirked licentiously. "Your darling spectre has gone away, and now it is our turn to play. You may have bested us to the east and south, but now I'm going to feel your mouth."

The second closed and locked the door. "By the time we reach tomorrow's dawn, your husband will be but a pawn; a tool to use as we see fit, until we have grown bored of it."

The third threw off his helmet and breastplate, revealing the stripes Cadance had already suspected were there. As his belt came off, his big black cock stood at attention. "There's not a place for you to run, so let's all have a little fun. There's nowhere you'll go that we can't hunt, so make this easy and display your cunt."

While Cadance certainly had the option to run away, seeing three horny zebras afforded her an option that was not available to most Equestrians. She unclasped her bra and stepped out of her panties. "You want to fuck me before we go?"

Chapter the Twenty-First: Shining Spectre

Shining sat in a carriage with two other guards, with two more pulling them. This was all just a precaution, as going into the territory claimed by the zebras was Shining's responsibility alone. There was a chance that this was a suicide mission, and the fewest lives lost here, the better.

"You're sure this is a good idea?" asked one of the guards. "I know this is an important mission, but shouldn't we send someone a bit more... expendable? You're a prince."

Shining shook his head. "First of all, the title of prince is misleading. I'm actually a royal consort. You have to be born royal to be a prince, and I just married into it. Second, it is an officer or a diplomat who needs to undertake negotiations rather than an enlisted soldier with little control over the military or the country as a whole. Third and most important, the Equestria I fight for has no expendable citizens. There is not a single one of them that I would say is worthless enough to send into this hornet's nest. We do, however, have ponies that are well-equipped to deal with this, and likely to survive."

"I still have qualms against sending you alone. I think you should have some backup. Shouldn't we come with you?"

"If this is a trap, it'll be safer for you out here. I should be back by sunset. If I'm not, you need to be alive to return to my wife." The carriage came to a stop, and Shining took a deep breath. "This may be my last day. If it is, send these striped bastards to the stygian abyss. I will be waiting for them there with a cactus and a croquet mallet."

"What are you going to do with those?" asked the other guard.

Shining said nothing, just smirking as he donned his helmet and stepped out of the carriage. His smile immediately faded as he was faced with four zebra spearmen and two zebra archers, their weapons pointed directly at him.

"I am here to speak with whosoever is in charge of this township at this time. We sent word of our coming to negotiate. Stand down at once, and call to us your local authority."

There was a pause, and some hushed murmurings among the zebra guards. After some deliberation, five of them stepped aside, both archers slowly released the tension on their bows, and one of the zebras lowered his spear and shifted his shield aside. "You are to come to the center of town. That's where the hearing is meant to go down. I will escort you, but do take care. Any harm to our soldiers, and your men we won't spare."

Shining pointed to his left hip, indicating that his sword was still in its scabbard. "I do not come to do harm, far the opposite. I am here to ensure that none from either side perishes unnecessarily. Lead the way."

Using the head of his spear to indicate direction, the zebra soldier led Shining to the town center, staying at least two metres away at all times. Shining took note that there were no ponies in the street, only zebras. There were some ponies watching from windows, but they kept quiet and watched intently. The zebras also watched from afar, clearing space for Shining as he walked. He caught the look on some of their faces, and he knew that it wasn't respect that shifted them aside, but fear. Part of that gave him some solace, but it had to be acted on quickly.

He soon reached the Whinnyapolis civics center, and was escorted inside. He'd been here twice before, the first time being a class trip, the second being a simple security check before a parade. Both times had been jovial, and both times he was greeted by the receptionist with a big smile. This time, she looked up and began to smile, but a firm hand on her shoulder pushed her back into her seat, as well as her despair. She gave Shining a pleading look, hoping that he might be able to save her. He nodded to her, hoping the exact same thing.

In the mayoral office, Shining found the zebra leader, sitting behind the desk. Four guards surrounded him, each armed with either a spear or some variety of wooden club. "The Shining Spectre has come to our meet. Come, take your helmet off and have a seat."

"If it is all the same to you, I'd rather remain standing. I do not need to be off my feet to discuss the terms." He took his helmet off as a sign of good faith and placed it on the chair he was indicated to sit in. With a firm press of his hand, belts sprang from the chair, strapping his arm to the back. Others surrounded where his arms, legs, and waist would be if he had sat down, indicating that the chair was trapped. With a flick of his knife, he freed his right arm and smirked at the zebra leader. "Now, given the level of courtesy you have shown me thus far in these negotiations, I'm having trouble seeing why I shouldn't send in my army to wipe you all away. Refresh my memory: why are your men outside of their prison cells?" One of the guards took half a step back. Another was squeezing tightly the handle of his mace. Shining really had them spooked.

"You have no authority to do that just yet. What say we discuss this until the terms are set?" The leader was showing no reaction to Shining's display, other than having lowered his hand so as not to offer a seat. "I apologize for the chair, someone must have been frightened, but it is good to know that your senses are heightened. Go ahead and tell us what you have to say. I have nowhere else to go today."

"Let me be perfectly frank," said Shining, trying not to smile. "Most of the reason I came here was to remove the civilians from your care. They are civilians, not soldiers, and are innocent bystanders who have done no harm to you or your men. I am here to negotiate for their safe return."

"What a sentimental guy. Honestly, you bring a tear to my eye." He reached up and pretended to wipe a tear away. Shining knew it was sweat that had run down from his brow. "However, they have become our charge. What you offer in return must be quite large."

"I offer you safe return to our border. Which border is entirely up to you. North, south, east or west, whichever you choose is where I can send you. I can guarantee that you will find no harm on your way, as I will be sending escorts alongside you to act as protection from other Equestrian soldiers."

"What makes you think we need your guard? Walking into Equestia's easy; walking out won't be hard."

"You'll be reunited with the rest of your army. You can rest, resupply, and begin your assault all over again. What say you to that?"

Chapter the Twenty-Second: Breakdown

Shining shook his head. "You're asking too much. I cannot release every captured zebra for you, and even if I could, half of the citizens of this town is not a fair trade for them." He'd been in negotiations for several hours now, and every demand that Captain Jaxton had suggested had been unreasonable. His first suggestion was to return one hostage in return for a long stretch of territory between here and San Palomino, over a hundred kilometres of road. He would return the rest of them in exchange for the town of San Palomino and all of its residents. Equestria would receive around seven hundred civilians, and lose nearly two thousand, as well as a strategic point that was defending itself particularly well.

"I cannot report back with my hands empty," replied the captain. "In exchange for these slaves, you must give me plenty."

"You can't expect me to give you all of Equestria on a silver platter," growled Shining. "I want you to take these negotiations seriously. I gave you an offer that is more than fair an hour ago. One soldier in exchange for one civilian. Two soldiers per civilian if you vacate the town, and we'll escort you back to the border safely. It's in your favour, it's simple, and nopony comes to harm. If you can accept those terms, I urge you to do so. If you have a reasonable counteroffer, I cannot wait to hear it."

Jaxton thought for a few minutes before replying. "We'll return half the slaves in exchange for one life. Four hundred of our slaves in exchange for your wife." Knowing full well that his newest offer would not be accepted, Jaxton folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. "Numbers accounted for, it makes perfect sense. Send her right to us, and we'll release our prey thence."

Shining's scowl intensified. "It seems to me that you're just toying with the idea. You have no intention of releasing any of our civilians. I've been more than generous with my offers, and with each one, you've spat in my face. I shall return tomorrow with all of my patience restored. Hopefully, by then, you'll have learned some civility."

Grabbing his helmet and slipping it over his head, Shining noticed one of the guards place his hoof on Jaxton's shoulder and whisper something to him. "Wait!" called Jaxton a moment later. "Let us not be hasty. I apologize for my misconduct and offer you something tasty. It may very well be that we have skipped lunch. My demeanor is because of that, I have a hunch."

Shining pursed his lips. "I certainly doubt that had much to do with it, but if it will put you in a more agreeable mood, I will wait for you to eat before we continue this discussion."

"Surely you can join us for our meal. Your trust in us would grant you a greater appeal."

Shining placed his hand on the back of the chair that they'd tried to ensnare him with. "I can't trust you enough to not booby trap a chair. What would give me the impression that you wouldn't poison my tea? No, I think I'll be best off taking care of myself." He slipped his hand just down his leg, lifted his fauld, and pulled out of his pocket an MRE, a dry one that he could just pop open and eat. He almost always had one of these on him, just in case he needed to eat while marching. He was actually considering popping part of it open on the carriage ride back home, but now was as good a time as any.

The captain had one of the guards bring him a plate of eggplant parmigiana while the soldiers guarding him ate nothing. As a sign of good faith, Shining offered part of his lunch to each of them, still sealed in the packaging. Only one of them accepted, and had an okay snack of dehydrated mango slices. They were eight months old, but tightly sealed and still tasted just fine.

When the captain had finished eating, he clasped his hands. "Now that we have finished our meal, what say you now to our little deal? Give us your wife, lovely and fair, and we give back half the foals and mares."

"Your request is just as unacceptable now as it was before you ate," growled Shining. "A full stomach has done nothing to change your mind, and I'm beginning to suspect that you knew it would not. As for me, while I do usually feel better after a meal, the fact that you did not exchange your guards to allow them time to eat tells me that you care little for them. My assessment of your command style has only become worse. You have my most generous offer, which ends with you alive. Think it over tonight, for I shall return tomorrow. Good day, Captain Jaxton." As Shining began to make his way out of the room, the one soldier who had taken Shining up on his offer of lunch tried to return what remained, but Shining just held up his hand. "Keep it."

Shining walked out of the office, not waiting for an escort to come take him back to the carriage. He knew the way, and the walk into town had informed him that all of the zebras would step out of his way. Nothing would stand in his path. In the lobby, he passed by the receptionist again. She looked up at him hopefully, but he shook his head. He'd not managed to free her yet. "I'll be back tomorrow," he promised, determination in his gaze. She nodded in response, holding onto the hope that he would succeed.

As Shining stepped out into the street, several zebras either jumped or froze at his sight. They were frightened of him when he'd come in, but now he was unattended and looked to be angry. What few of them had merely been spooked by him before were now terrified, making a path for him to the exit.

He had walked in complete silence for several blocks before he heard any sound aside from the clip clop of his boots. When he was about halfway to the city limits, he heard the sound of a door being forced open, and his instincts turned his attention to it. In an alleyway, a unicorn mare who looked to be in her early twenties was running away from three zebra soldiers, bruises on her back and completely nude. It didn't take long for the zebras to grab her and push her up against the wall. She turned her head to Shining, seeing him in his plate mail and screaming for help from anypony that would listen. Two of the zebras were laughing as the third one spoke in a low tone something that Shining couldn't make out. The mare's eyes pleaded with Shining to come save her.

The world around Shining seemed to spin. The mare almost looked like Twilight. Could this be another nightmare? Was he about to watch his sister die again? Things began to blur and fade away. As it all turned black, Shining heard himself scream and felt his body convulse. He was waking up.

Chapter the Twenty-Third: Clarity

Shining woke up in a strange room that he'd never been in before. He propped himself up to take a better look around, but a sharp pain in his shoulder alerted him to his bandages. He was injured, but he did not remember being in a fight. He didn't remember much of anything after the negotiations.

"You're awake." The sudden voice startled Shining, and as he quickly turned to face the speaker, the pain in his shoulder suddenly became much worse, and he let out a yelp. "Easy there. Calm down. You don't want to rip out your stitches." The elder mare approached slowly and presented him with a paper cup. "Would you like some water?"

Shining nodded, taking the cup and sipping from it. "Where are we?"

"This is my son's room," answered the mare. "He's in Manehattan right now, protecting the citizens of Equestria. I'm sure he wouldn't mind my offering his bed to you while you recover, though. Especially after what you did for us."

"What did I do?"

"Don't worry about that now. You need to rest." With a gentle push, she lowered him back to the bed and tucked him in. "I'll check on you again in the morning."

Shining shot up again. "Wait! How long have I been out?"

"Just a few hours," shushed the mare. "Just rest for now."

"No, I have to make sure my wife knows, or Whinnyapolis is going to be overrun!"

"We've already been overrun by the zebras. You have returned our freedom to us. The least we can do is make sure you're alright. Now, I insist you go back to sleep. I will send a messenger to your wife."

"That won't be good enough. I have to go back."

The mare let out an exhausted sigh. "Fine. You need to go back? I'll set it up personally. I will be going with you to make sure you're not hurt again. Now please, sit still while I fetch a wagon?"

Shining nodded in agreement, and the mare left the room. He leaned forward and swung his legs out of the bed. He was covered in bandages, but nothing seemed to be worse than some simple lacerations and a few contusions. He wasn't sure if there was anything worse at this point, but he didn't see any splints or hard casts, so it was unlikely that he'd suffered a broken bone. His breathing was normal, he was allowed to drink water, and his head felt fine.

Aside from the bandages, he was completely nude. His armor, covered in blood and dented in places, sat in the corner over a towel, which was on top of a painter's drop cloth, presumably to avoid staining the carpet. His sword and shield were not among them.

As he took another sip of water, he nearly choked. Another mare walked in, wearing only a sheer nightgown. It was the same mare he'd seen right before passing out. He quickly covered his genitals as a sign of civility. As he did, she held up his sword. It was not only cleaned up, but polished to the point where he could see her face in it. "I couldn't think of a better way to thank you for saving me," she said, offering him the handle.

He took back the blade and admired the work she'd done. It must have taken hours. "You didn't have to do this," he replied. "In truth, I don't even remember saving you. I thought it was just a nightmare I was having, honestly."

She pulled up a chair and sat in front of him. "Well, your nightmare saved me from mine. I had to do something for you."

"You're a citizen of Equestria, I think. That means it's my duty to ensure your safety. That's what guards do."

The mare chuckled. "You're an injured pony. That means it's my duty to ensure your health. That's what nurses do. And you don't have to cover yourself, I was the one who stripped you down. I've had a good, long look at it."

Shining blushed. "I'm sorry you had to see that."

"I'm not," she smiled. "Your wife must be very happy."

"She says she is," smiled Shining, "but I think she's holding back for my sake. I wish I still had the drive I used to."

The mare brought her hand up to her chin. "Lowered testosterone, perhaps? I can check on that, if you like."

"I need to be leaving soon. I can't wait around all night."

"It won't take more than a few minutes, I promise."

After a moment's hesitation, Shining nodded. "As long as it's quick."

With a smile, the mare dropped to her knees, and ducked under the blanket Shining had covered himself with. A second later, he felt her fingers on his balls, feeling them for size, shape, weight and firmness. At least, that's what she told him. In reality, she was seeing how fast she could coax an erection out of him. Turns out, it was pretty fast. Shining thought that might be the end of it, but then he felt the familiar touch of a tongue against the base of his shaft, slowly dragging its way up to the tip.

Shining closed his eyes. For a moment, he forgot about the pain and was brought back to a happier time. He reached down under the cover and brushed her mane out of her eyes. It was a short mane, slipping through his fingers easily. She responded to his touch by taking the whole thing into her mouth, sucking on him enthusiastically.

She was very skilled with her tongue, and as a result, Shining didn't last very long. As he let loose his load into the mare's mouth, she pulled back to taste it. "Very masculine," she chuckled, swallowing all that he'd given. "There's certainly nothing wrong with your reproductive system. It's in top shape."

Shining smiled, leaned forward, and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "When this is all over, you're more than welcome to join me in the Crystal Empire anytime you wish. I cannot thank you enough for this, miss..."

"Sparkling Punch," she smiled, stepping out into the hall. A few seconds later, she returned with a large robe. "You can't wear your armor again until it's repaired. Too many dents and punctures. You can have it fixed at home."

Shining slipped into the robe. It was comfortable and cushiony. She slipped into one of her own, covering up her body as the other mare returned. "I see you've met my daughter," she said. "Your chariot awaits, my prince."

Shining and the two mares returned to the alleyway where Shining had first seen the assault take place, where a wagon was indeed waiting for them. One of the guards that had accompanied Shining to the city limits was pulling the wagon with a third mare. Sparkling Punch had loaded up his armour into the back and carried with her Shining's sword in its scabbard. As soon as they were situated, the quintet set off for Ponyville.

Chapter the Twenty-Fourth: Return to Ponyville

Shining stepped into his hotel room to immediately be thrust into the arms of his wife. "Shiny!" She squeezed his shoulders until he let out a pained yelp. He dropped his robe a bit, showing her the bandage. "I figured out it was a trap an hour after you left. I was so worried for you."

"I hope you didn't have to send the army after me," smiled Shining, pulling his wife into another, more gentle, hug.

"I also knew you would be alright," smiled Cadance. "They were after me. I was presumably a weaker target."

"How did you figure that out?"

She escorted him into the next room, where there were three zebras tied up and completely nude. They were face down on the floor, their arses up in the air. Egg vibrators were taped to their dicks, and gyrating dildos were shoved up their arses. Their arms were behind their backs, and their ankles were forcibly spread apart. "I may have resorted to a bit of my own trapping."

One of the zebras let out a shout as his testicles squeezed themselves, and he fired off a blank shot. He was long since drained. His voice was muffled by a ball gag, as were the other two. "How long have they been like this?" asked Shining.

"About half the day," answered Cadance. "But I suppose it's time we turned everything off, since you're safe at home now."

They turned everything off and let the zebra prisoners lie down. They'd endured Cadance's special brand of torture, and they passed out and shriveled up as soon as they hit the floor.

Shining climbed into bed next to his wife, tossing his robe onto the chair until tomorrow. Sparling Punch and her mother were staying next door on Shining's request, and they were holding onto his armour, as well, giving him an excuse to see the young mare again, and for Cadance to confirm her invitation. He soon fell into a restful sleep in his wife's arms.

The next morning, following breakfast, Shining escorted the zebra prisoners to the Ponyville detention center, for which they were very grateful. Another day being tortured by the princess was not in their favour. He then took Sparkling Punch around town with Cadance while his armour was being repaired at the smithy. She was much more shy with Cadance watching them. Shining had, of course, disclosed the activity to his wife, as he knew she wouldn't mind.

During lunch, Punch made a visit to the restroom. She looked at herself in the mirror and took a deep breath. "Calm down, Sparky. He's a charming prince, but he's not your charming prince. He has a wife; he doesn't want you."

"That's certainly not true," came Cadance's voice. "He's been flirting with you all morning. He's very interested in you."

Punch spun around to see Cadance standing at the entrance to the room. "You're not mad?"

Cadance laughed. "Why would I be mad? We have an open relationship. He can sleep with anypony he wants, and the same goes for me. If you're worried about me being angry, it's really not a big deal."

"You're sure you won't mind?"

"Not in the slightest. In fact, I'll even join you, if you like."

Punch swallowed hard. "Really?"

Cadance nodded. "Let's go have some fun."

The girls returned to the table, and finished their lunch. After that, Cadance suggested that they return to the hotel to await the return of the repaired armour. Once there, Cadance immediately removed her shirt and pulled down Shining's pants. Sparkling Punch was a little unsure about this, but with a bit of loosening of her shirt, Cadance came over to help her. Before too long, Shining was the only one wearing anything, and it was restricted to his bandages.

Cadance took point, being the first to cradle Shining's balls. Shining beckoned Sparkling Punch over, and she complied. With his left arm, he pulled her into a sort of half-hug, his fingers dancing on her navel. Slowly, his hand climbed her body, slipping over the bruises on her ribs, and propping up her breasts. He was very careful to not cause her any pain with his massage.

Now fully erect and lubricated with Cadance's saliva, Shining led Punch over to the bed and sat down. Seeing the trepidation on her face, he gently brushed her cheek, guided her face down to his, and gave her a reassuring smile. Slowly, she leaned in and kissed him, then looked back to Cadance, who had pulled out a rather large dildo for herself. She smiled and nodded, coaxing the mare to continue without fear of repercussion.

Taking the hint, Punch lowered Shining to the bed and straddled him. With a bit of guidance, she enveloped him in her velvety folds. She no longer had any fear of her actions, a necessity if she was going to enjoy herself. Slowly, she began to ride him, enjoying every inch of his member, from the flared tip, to the medial ring, all the way down to the well-groomed base. He was caught off-guard by the fact that she could contain the entire thing. There were only a few mares that were capable of that, and he had yet to find a stallion that could do the same. Such was the curse that came with having a large dick; one could never be sure it would all fit.

Punch slowly raised herself, clamping down on him as she did, sucking his cock with her lower lips. When he was most of the way out, she slipped down again, her hips slapping against his audibly. This excited Cadance, and she stopped teasing herself and slipped the toy into her pussy, matching their pace. She intently watched her husband and his most recent marefriend making love in their bed. It was incredibly arousing for her, almost like watching herself in action. Sometimes, she even learned something.

Sparkling punch rode Shining for well over an hour, constantly changing speeds to build him up close to a climax, then lock it away, then build it up again, then let it fade. When she finally brought him up over the edge, he came buckets inside of her, and she clamped down tightly on him, locking them in place. They were both hot, sweaty, and out of breath. Today had been a good day for them. She collapsed immediately after, laying her head on Shining's chest, lost in the pleasure he'd given her.

Cadance had enjoyed the ride, too, despite not actually being a part of it. The chair she'd been watching from would need to be washed, but for now, she wanted to feel the warm embrace of her husband, who was happy to oblige.

Chapter the Twenty-Sixth: Fear of the Light

"I told you to breathe through your nose!" growled Zaka, holding down the mare's head on his cock as she began to turn blue. After her sclera began to turn red, he threw her to the ground and turned back to her trainer. "Her inexperience, you must disclose. It's obvious she's never sucked a cock in her life. She must be trained, if you want her to be my wife."

"I shall retrain her and return in full haste," said the trainer, bowing to his emperor. "It would be a shame for her pussy to go to waste."

As the trainer pulled the four slaves he was offering out of the room by their collars, another slave in the employ of the emperor rushed in and fell at his master's feet. "My Dominus, you have a visitor; a gryphon."

"If his name is Gygax, send him through. He and I have business to do."

"Yes, Dominus." The slave quickly exited the room. Zaka flopped down onto his throne and called over a slave. She didn't ask what he wanted, se simply went down on him right away. He let out a comfortable sigh as the door swung open again.

"Zaka, I'm here!" shouted a gryphon, walking towards him. "I hope there's a good reason for having me come all the way to your capitol city."

"Gygax, my good friend, come and sit down. I am sorry to hear of your poor trip into town. Come, over to the couch and have a seat. If you wish, one of my slaves will come and lick your feet."

Gygax walked over to the couch and pulled off his boots, waving for one particular slave to approach. "Just tell me what it is you want from me."

"I need you to have a pony removed. Morale for my men needs to be improved. They seem to be afraid of him; I do not know why, but so much of them are frightened of just this one guy. I need him disposed of if we are to succeed. I not let him stand between us and our need."

Gygax moaned as his younger sister sucked on his toes. He'd sold her to Zaka years ago in exchange for a young mare that, for all most of his compatriots knew, was simply his wife. In reality, she was nothing more than a well-trained slave. But he did enjoy seeing the hatred on his sister's face whenever he came to visit. "You'll have to tell me his name," he smiled, flexing his toes. "I can't be rid of him unless I know who he is."

Zaka snapped his fingers, and a slave brought over the file folder he'd prepared. "He goes by the name of 'the Shining Spectre.' His presence turns soldiers into defectors. At this rate he'll tear my whole army to shreds. That's why I want you to bring me his head."

With a second snap of his fingers, Zaka sent the slave over to Gygax. The slave presented the folder, and upon seeing the picture inside, he burst out laughing. "Zaka, do you know who this 'Sthining Spectre is?" Zaka shook his head. "It's the Equestrian prince, Shining Armor. He married into the royal family a few years back. Now you're asking for his head?" Gygax chuckled. "You're asking a lot."

"If you can't do it, I'll send someone else in your place. Someone with whom I can trust to keep pace."

Gygax suddenly scowled. "It's not my fault your men didn't all strike at once. The troops you gave me were right on time. It was those bastards on the ships that couldn't keep up. If anything, I blame that shoddy lesson they were given on how to sail." Suddenly unzipping his pants, he grabbed his sister's head and shoved his cock down her beak hole. she gagged for a few seconds, then began doing what she was trained to do.

"You put blame on my soldiers, but none for yourself. I can find several reasons to put you on a shelf."

Gygax growled. "Fine. I'll send one of my most trusted soldiers to take him out. I'll assign them to gain his trust and become close to the stallion that's doing so much harm to you, and when they're alone, he'll take out our little prince. I made a path for you to take out his sister, and she was actual royalty. Taking out a royal consort should be little trouble at all. Leave it to me."

Zaka smiled and was quiet for a moment. "I'm curious, what is exactly your plan? A knife in the back from a member of your clan? With subtlety like that, they'll catch you for sure. I can only assume that you want to be a lure."

"I suppose you have a better plan?" scoffed Gygax, rolling his eyes. "Let me guess, you want him captured and made a slave? I admit, he'd probably be good at following orders, and he might even be good at sucking cock, but his tenacity is pretty strong. You'd certainly have to train him into servicing you."

It was Zaka's turn to laugh. "While I admit, his arse is delightful, I'm afraid your assessment is simply not insightful. I still want him dead, of that I am certain. In the play of his life, you will draw the final curtain. Your method, however, leaves much to be desired. I was hoping for something more inspired. I want you to not just end him, but to destroy his team's spirit. Their lamentations are like music to me, I simply must hear it. Wear him down down until he's running on fumes, then he and his soldiers will be sent to their tombs."

"I trust that you have a method to do this, and you're not just waxing poetic. You want his reputation destroyed. I can understand that. I can think of no reason not to do so, either. It's adding insult to injury, and it will spell Equestria's downfall for certain. One question, though." He paused for a moment as he came down his sister's throat. He did not dismiss her, keeping her right where she was to keep going. "How do you propose we do that?"

"I have a potion that will do the trick," smiled Zaka. "It's a plan that I think you'll find quite slick. It will destroy his magic, and not let him cast. The best part is, the draught works rather fast. Slip it into his meal the night before you act, and his death will most certainly be a fact."

Gygax smiled. "I'll be damned. You really did think of something good." Zaka nodded as Gygax laughed. "Where can I pick up this potion?"

Chapter the Twenty-Seventh: Leaving Equestria

"You're going away?" Cadance was not hiding the worry in her voice. "Can't you just keep protecting Equestria from inside her borders? Surely there are other Equestrian towns that need your help. Why can't you be assigned to one of those?"

"Because I would be best utilized elsewhere," answered Shining, stuffing his pack with necessities. "Celestia thinks that, since I seem to be falling into a bit of a bloodlust, I should be surrounded by enemy zebras, and not by innocent civilians. Until I can control my anger, I'm inclined to agree with her."

"But you haven't hurt any civilians. You were very in control when it came to protecting them. You should focus on keeping our citizens from becoming slaves. That's why you fight, anyway, right? To protect the citizens of Equestria? I thought you wanted to keep them safe."

"I am keeping them safe, Cady. I have a chance to remove the zebras from Equestria by cutting them off from their leader. To do that, I need to go to the place where this war started and show them exactly what they've done to us. If I'm successful, I may not even need to draw my blade, though I doubt I would be so lucky."

"How long do you think you'll be gone?"

Shining looked up. "I have no idea. If the conflict ends as soon as my boot touches foreign soil, I'll be back within the week. If not, I'll write you every opportunity I find. You will continue to hear from me for as long as I still draw breath."

"Don't say things like that, Shiny! It makes me fear that you won't come back."

"Cady, you have to accept the possibility that I might not make it back. It's a war, after all. I'm walking into enemy territory. It's not exactly the safest profession, and I know it all too well. We both know what it's like to lose loved ones to this conflict. The faster it ends, the better it will be for everyone."

Cadance sighed and sat down next to Shining's bag. "You know I can't argue with that. So many families that won't ever be whole again suddenly... It's just that I was hoping mine would stay as it was."

Shining stopped packing, kneeling down in front of his wife and placing a hand on her shoulder. "So do all who live to see such times. Alas, that is not for us to decide. All we can decide is what to do with the time given to us."

Cadance chuckled. "You stole that line from a book."

"That doesn't make it any less true," smiled Shining. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not going to just roll over and die. If they do manage to take me down, they're going to need a lot of zebras, and even then, they'll need to outsmart me, outnumber my group, and be armed better. I won't go down nearly as easily as they want. Trust me, Cady. I'll be fighting until the very end. If it's at all possible that I can come back to you, you can be damn sure that I will, with every fibre of my being."

Cadance sniffled and wiped a tear away. "I love you, Shining Armor. I have never loved anypony more than I now love you. I don't want to lose you, even though I know that you'll save so many lives. I know it's selfish that I would send somepony else in your place, possibly making some other mare a widow. I wouldn't wish that fate on anypony else, even if it would save me."

Shining leaned forward and kissed her. "Mayhaps it is selfish, but you have a right to think that way. You want to protect your family, which is a noble cause. I want to protect my family, too. If it means I have to leave and watch my back the whole time, that's nothing compared to knowing that you're safe. If I can come back, I want you to still be around, even if you're not waiting for me anymore."

Cadance looked deeply into Shining's eyes. "I will always wait for you, until I know for sure that you cannot come back. No matter what, I will wait."

As Shining stood up, he smiled down at her. "I do have to go, but I don't have to leave you alone." He zipped up his bag and set it aside. "I know we've disagreed in the past, but if this is my last chance, I'd like to have a foal with you. If everything goes wrong, we'll never have this chance again."

Cadance looked up at her husband. "You mean it?" She'd been wanting a child for some time, but she and Shining hadn't wanted to push aside their political needs to account for the hassle of raising a child. They had planned to do so when things cooled off, but with Twilight's death, that had all changed as they were thrown into upheaval. Shining was correct, there wouldn't be much time left if he couldn't return. Tonight could be his last chance.

They both had magical locks blocking the other from creating children, as that meant that they both must have been in agreement to create life. That night, both locks came off, and for the first time in their marriage, they tried to create their first child.

The next morning, Shining and Cadance returned to Canterlot. Cadance made her way up to the castle to act as a stationary leader, and Shining made his way to the castle grounds to take control of his new army. He would be leading a troop of fifty soldiers into the Zebrican Empire, and taking over a small town near the zebra capitol. Once that was done, they were to expand their influence and build siege weapons.

Just as they were about to head out, there was a call from the main gates as an army of gryphons lined up outside the city. Shining was the first to meet them, followed by Princess Celestia. "What is the meaning of this?" asked Celestia to the leading gryphon, who had come forward. "Why have you sent soldiers to our front gate?"

"My apologies," he said, bowing. "Doubtless, you are aware that gryphons are fickle creatures, and we often do not come to agreements. In this case, we have gripes with the Zebrican emperor, as he's opted out of paying for our services in his campaign against the Donkey/Mule alliance. We don't often work for free, but we would relish the opportunity for payback against Zaka. We wish to show him exactly what happens to those who betray the gryphons. Please, allow us to join you in your fight."

Celestia nodded. "Very well. We accept your offer, Mr..."

"Talon," smiled the gryphon. "My name is Talon."

Bonus Chapter: Ponyville Falls

Author's Note

This was an extra chapter meant to be placed in the middle of 'Survival of the Fittest.' It tells the tale of what happens to Ponyville after the call goes out of the death of the 'Shining Spectre.'

Bonus Chapter: Ponyville Falls

All seemed well in Ponyville. The citizens were going about their day as they normally would; tending to their gardens, selling their wares, building up their stores for the war effort and most important, keeping their town clean and well-kept in case any soldiers came back. They would need rest, and a boost to their morale. Ponyville was ready to give it to them. They couldn't give anything more substantial, as almost all of their local guards had been called away to protect more important and populous places.

That's why it was such a shock when loud booms were heard outside of the city, and absolute bedlam took hold moments later as the first building collapsed. Screams rang out as the second volley came in from the other side, striking Sugarcube Corner's main support beam. Pinkie's quick response was enough to usher seven of her customers out safely, but three more were trapped under the collapsing building, not including Pinkie herself. The third and final volley of cannon fire rained down from the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.

The town was surrounded on three sides by cannons and the zebras manning them. There was nowhere for the citizens to go. There were a few guards and even a few civilians that were armed, but not very many. As the zebras rushed into the town, a few pegasi tried to flee. This would be the first time anypony in Ponyville would see or hear the wrath of the zebra hand cannons.

Surrender came quick, to nopony's great surprise. Everypony was brought to the town square and lined up. Ponies that didn't do as they were told were whipped. Ponies that still fought back were tied up. Those injured were either killed off to end their suffering, or quickly bandaged up if they were deemed both useful and capable of recovering. Only a few were tied up and carted away, and what remained were left for the inspection of the commanding officer.

"My, my, my, what a fine-looking lot. What a lovely collection of ponies we've caught. Many of them are mares, I see. I may take one of you, just for me."

At that moment, the zebras from Sweet Apple Acres approached. They had taken the farm early this morning, before setting everything up. They brought with them Apple Bloom and Applejack. They were bound and gagged. Apple Bloom was very clearly scared and unsure. Applejack, on the other hand, was very much frenzied and enraged. It took six zebras just to drag her along. She wasn't responding to the whip at all, despite the fact that it had already torn though her shirt in multiple places. A single Zebrican stallion was able to direct Apple Bloom with only one hand on her shoulder.

The commander approached Applejack, well outside of her range of motion. He had a smirk on his face, an indication that he had some plans for her. His smirk soon contorted into a sneer, and he pointed to the ground. "On your knees before your new master, peasant." She picked up a rock on the tip of her boot and flung it at him. It struck his shoulder, not particularly doing much damage. "It seems you want your life to be even less pleasant..."

Turning away from Applejack, the commander approached her younger sister. Apple Bloom's eyes went wide as he pulled out a knife. As he grabbed her by the shirt collar, she closed her eyes tightly. She'd just seen them kill Big Mac and Granny Smith. She was prepared to have her life ended in a similar way, but what she felt instead was the cool blast of Ponyville air against her bare stomach. He'd cut off her shirt, and a moment later, her skirt went with it. Putting away his knife, he grabbed Apple Bloom by the shoulder, directed her in front of Applejack, and placed his hand over her navel.

Apple Bloom was humiliated. She was now standing in her panties and training bra in front of the whole town, shaking in fear, and her sister, her only protector remaining, was tied in front of her, watching as a strange stallion rubbed his hand over her abdomen. The commander looked right into Applejack's eyes. "I've issued one command, do not make me issue another. Unless, of course, you wish worse for your sister than the fate of your brother." Neither moved for several seconds. The zebra commander's hand began to slide down Apple Bloom's body. By the time he touched her waistband, Applejack had surrendered and fallen to her knees. As a show of good faith, he pulled his hand away from the filly, sending her over to one of his soldiers, who took her by the shoulder and lowered her to her knees.

The commander walked up to Applejack, removed her Stetson, and patted her head. Rather than return her hat, he placed it on his own head, letting it hang on his upturned mask. He then turned to the crowd, whapping his tail against his quarry's face as he did so. "Let this be your first lesson on the path to your new home. Do as you are told, and you may be allowed to roam. If you defy us, and fight at every turn, you can expect to suffer worse than simple rope burns."

The ponies settled down a fair bit more, some of the weaker-willed ones falling to their knees in acceptance of their fate. To them, it was far better an option to cooperate and have a better chance of survival than it was to fight back and risk injury or death. They weren't soldiers, they were civilians. Fighting was not something they could do with any degree of certainty.

The commander, seeing their submission, smiled. He turned to his second in command, waved him over, and whispered, "Take the feisty one back to camp and tie her down to my cot. There is a particular way I want her will to be fought. As for the rest, remove their outer clothes. For what they will be doing, we won't need those. Take the mares and the foals, box them up in carts. Dispose of the ones with the less fun parts."

The soldier nodded, and relayed the order to all of those under his command. The mares were to be taken as sex slaves and brood stock, the fillies would be trained so as to be better slaves to their eventual masters, the colts would either be made into fieldworkers or painted soldiers, and any full-grown stallions that could not prove their usefulness would be beheaded. The elderly would go the same way. Such was the cruel tyranny of Zaka's Empire.

Chapter the Twenty-Fifth: Stand Up

Shining stepped out of his carriage into the streets of Whinnyapolis. There were Equestrian guards all throughout the town, and not a zebra in sight. The citizens were cleaning the place up, now that they had the freedom to do so. After he moved out of the way, Sparkling Punch and her mother stepped out of the carriage and made their way back home as one of the guards approached Shining.

"Glad you're back," he said, smiling. "Lieutenant Vine has taken control of the town, and is waiting in the mayor's office."

"Does he know what's happened here?" asked Shining, adjusting his freshly-repaired breastplate. "I'd like to discuss the events following the negotiations."

"Of course. Come with me."

As the guard led Shining through the town, the citizens whistled and clapped, cheering for him. Shining knew from conversations with Sparkling Punch that he had either killed, captured, or driven off the zebras, but he had no idea how. Even she couldn't tell him everything, as she had only witnessed part of it.

On returning to City Hall, the receptionist stood up and smiled uncomfortably at Shining. It was clear that she had a fear of him, as well, but when he smiled and waved back, she let out a sigh of relief. Clearly, something about him had shaken her since his last visit.

Shining stepped into the mayor's office, where he found her and Lieutenant Vine, who was often in command of communications. "Captain Shining Armor," he said, standing and saluting.

Shining saluted back. "Lieutenant Grape Vine, good to see you again. At ease."

"We were just discussing a request for medical aid," said the mayor, not rising from her chair. "A lot of the citizens were beaten, as you are, no doubt, aware."

"Good news, then," smiled Shining. "Sparkling Punch and her mother have just returned, now that they've finished with me. I'm sure their assistance will be most beneficial."

The mayor furrowed her brow. "Cream Punch is a veterinarian."

Shining shrugged. "A bruise is a bruise, a laceration needs stitching either way." Inside his head, Shining had alarm bells going off. He calmed himself with the thought that he was alive because of her actions, and that if he was unhappy with her care, another physician would be able to clear it up.

"I've been around town," interrupted Grape Vine, "and I've compiled a list of stories from the locals. I plan on giving it to Celestia later today when she arrives, but I was hoping you might check it for accuracy, first." He offered a clipboard to Shining, a few sheets of paper held in the clamp.

The story began with Shining running down an alleyway and emerging with three severed zebra heads clenched in his fist. On his march back to the building, he killed two more zebras, while others ran off in fear. The select few frozen in place were ordered by him to find a jail cell to live in, which they promptly did. He then made his way into the mayoral office, made his demands, of which only three of the enemy soldiers complied with. The other two were killed. Shining then went out into the street with the captain's dead body and put it on full display, calling the attention of any remaining zebras. Any that fought were killed, with some actually managing to strike Shining with their weapons. As the last few retreated either out of the town or into the detention center, Shining limped back toward the entrance to the town and collapsed in the street. He then disappeared into the alleyway just before sunset.

"I certainly can't deny that any of this is true," shrugged Shining. "I don't recall most of it. I just sort of blanked it out, I guess."

"Are you saying you lost control of yourself?" asked Grape Vine. "If you aren't in control of yourself, can we be so sure that you are mentally stable?"

Shining shook his head. "I'm not sure myself. I'm probably not the best for the job, but if I am needed, I will heed the call."

"I suppose, if nothing else, you're very patriotic," shrugged Grape Vine. "In the end, I suppose you had enough lucidity to protect the civilians and let the zebras run. You even convinced a fair few of them to imprison themselves. That's the part that impresses me the most."

The three of them spoke for a few minutes more before a guard came in to alert them to Celestia's arrival. They filed out of the office into the street while Celestia's chariot landed in front of them. Grape Vine was the first to approach, handing over his report. Celestia scanned through it, then looked up at Shining and furrowed her brow. "Is this true, Prince Shining Armor?"

"I cannot say for certain," he replied. "I don't remember."

Celestia sighed and took a few steps toward him. "It seems as if you have no further business serving as a defender of Equestria. I'm going to have you reassigned."

A young colt broke away from his mother and rushed over between Shining and Celestia. "He saved my mommy!"

Another mare stepped forward. "He did a great deal more than that."

"We owe him our lives," said another.

"You cannot mean to lock him away?"

"How dare you fire him!"

Soon, the crowd had gathered around Shining, and they were shouting their discontent at Celestia. She tried to calm them down, but she was only one alicorn, and they were an entire town, albeit a small one. She was losing control of the situation, and fast.

"Enough!!" Shining shouted from the middle of the crowd, calming them. "I am a servant of the ponies of Equestria, and I go where I am needed the most. If what Equestria needs is for me to be situated behind a desk, I will gladly take up the chair. If I am unfit to be of service, then I must step down. I know you all have strong opinions over what I did here, but if you have families out of town, think on what you would feel if I stopped fighting for their safety. Whatever is best for Equestria, it needs me to be somewhere else. While I'm gone, I'm sure Lieutenant Vine will do a fine job of protecting you. It is, after all, his job as much as it is mine. Stand down."

The crowd stood still for a moment, then cleared a path between the two. Celestia cleared her throat. "Perhaps we should continue this conversation inside."