Shining the Enduring
A curious chill drifted through the Crystal Spire, cutting through heavy curtains and leaky windows alike. From his vantage point on one of the balconies, Shining Armor welcomed the cool tendrils as they wrapped around him, keeping him awake and alert despite his fatigue.
Looking out, he could see much of the city, which twinkled with dimmed streetlamps and the occasional lit window telling of other ponies still awake at such a late hour.
In a perfect world, he would have been soundly asleep some time ago, snuggled up against the soft form of his wife, Cadance. She was such a key part of his life, and it was all he could do to feel worthy of being in her presence, let alone be married to her.
It hadn’t always been that way. There had been a time he’d felt confident, and sure of anything. As the Captain of the Royal Guard, marrying a princess had been a bit of a stretch, but it had also felt right, somehow, especially when he’d known her for years.
Cadance was gone that evening, their bed cold and empty. While not without cause - she’d been called to Canterlot on an emergency – it was an increasingly familiar occurrence for him to be left out of more important things.
“Can’t sleep again, sir?”
Shining looked back, spotting the approaching form of Edge Sheen, the head of the night watch and third-in-command of the Crystal Guards.
“Just keeping an eye on things,” Shining replied, hoping to keep the interaction cordial but short. He didn’t feel like delving into his recent bouts of insomnia, something he’d taken great pains to keep hidden from Cadance. “Any news to report?”
“Quiet as can be, sir,” the pegasus – the only one on the night shift – replied. “Almost too quiet.”
The faint prickle of unease Shining had been ignoring bubbled up in his gut. “It does feel like things are under some sort of spell, doesn’t it?”
“That it does. I suppose if we were normal ponies, this would seem like any other night, but I can’t recall a night that felt like this.”
One of the oddities that came with living in the Crystal Empire was accepting that most of the ponies you interacted with had been frozen in time for lifetimes. Edge Sheen was technically younger than he was, and yet her experience stretched back further than he liked to imagine.
Having come to distrust his own instincts, hearing that she was feeling the same thing he had been was something of a relief.
At least I’m not wrong all the time, he thought, before replying, “Tell the Guard to be alert for anything out of the ordinary."
A silly order on its face – of course the Guard was on the alert for things that were out of the ordinary! – but one that Edge understood. It was distinct from telling her to put the Guard on a high alert, which would have meant rousing sleeping ponies and making their presence very visible. Having them paying closer attention just meant that the Guard would be a little more alert than the night usually warranted.
“It will be done, sir.”
“Thank you. Dismissed.”
She saluted before departing, leaving Shining alone with his thoughts once more.
Why did ponies listen to him? Was it just because of his title, an incidental thing that came solely from his marriage to Cadance, and not because of any real merit on his part? He’d at least earned the role of Captain of the Royal Guard, even if he’d screwed things up enough that he no longer considered himself worthy to hold the position.
But nopony seemed to consider those screw-ups as much as he did. Following the fiasco with the Changelings at his wedding, Princess Celestia had refused to accept his resignation, insisting that he retire as originally planned, with benefits and privileges intact.
His life had felt like a comedy of errors since that day. From getting himself incapacitated during the fight with Sombra, to the almost-disastrous Equestria Games, to not simply blasting Discord out of Canterlot when he’d shown up with Tirek, his once formidable confidence had taken blow after blow.
When he took those things into account, it made sense that the Princesses didn’t call on him to help.
I’d probably just screw things up anyway.
When Tirek had taken his magic, it had done more than leave the unicorn drained. It had also resurfaced all the repressed feelings of anxiety and helplessness that he’d suffered under Chrysalis’s dark influence.
He’d hoped he’d gotten over that, had tried his best to not think about it, even going so far as to avoid the subject with Cadance when she tried bringing it up. But it hadn’t worked, and now he felt like he was sinking ever deeper into a bottomless pit, and it was all he could do to not give in and let the darkness claim him.
He spent another hour on the balcony in silence, watching the stars, before he felt tired enough to possibly try for a few hours of sleep.
The guards in the hallways all saluted respectfully as he passed, making his way to the rooms he shared with Cadance. He returned their salutes with curt nods, not looking for any further conversations if he could help it. Not tonight.
As he entered the Royal Suite, that faint prickling feeling he’d felt earlier returned. He ignored it; the feeling wasn’t a new one when it came to these rooms.
After much pleading, Cadance had finally given up trying to get his input on the décor, and had simply told the decorators to do what they wanted. That had led to an elegant, well-coordinated style, one that had been all the rage in the home fashion magazines of Canterlot and Manehattan.
He’d told Cadance that it was fine, but in truth, Shining hated how their rooms looked. Everything felt too neat, too perfect, serving as a reminder of everything he wasn’t. Stepping in here always made him feel like he was going to put a hoof wrong any second. When Cadance was here, he could ignore such feelings; her beauty was enough to distract from greater problems than décor, but with her absence he was forced to focus on the nauseatingly artificial look of the room.
In Shining’s view, the homes of married couples were supposed to have eclectic pieces, or odd curios, or ‘that one ugly chair that was too comfortable to get rid of’. That was how his family home had been, and while he recognized that being royalty came with certain expectations, these were their private chambers. Any guests they entertained were either family or very good friends, the kind unlikely to be concerned about something less than perfect. But Cadance seemed to like it as it was, and with that in mind he had forced himself to try and be content.
He continued through the sitting room and private dining room into their bedroom, which smelled of jasmine and rosewater, the comforting scents of his wife. Now that he was alone – truly alone – he felt safe to let all his enchantments drop, including the beauty ones that nopony even suspected he would use.
Walking slowly over to the mirror that Cadance used each morning, his true visage was revealed. Dark bags hung under his bloodshot eyes, his irises seemingly hazy from fatigue. Edge Sheen might have noticed that he’d been having trouble sleeping, but she didn’t know the half of it; he hadn’t slept well in months, a mixture of stress and night terrors keeping his eyes open as long as he could manage. Cadance had taught him the beauty mask spell long ago, when they’d used it to hide the evidence of late nights spent together in the Canterlot Gardens.
He’d never dreamed he would need it for a scenario like this.
Luna had recently taken to helping him to dispel the worst of the terrors, something which had him feeling equal parts thankful and ashamed. He knew he needed her help, but he hated that it was necessary at all. There were plenty of other ponies more deserving of her help – he was sure of it.
I’m just glad she was willing to be discreet. I’ve already disappointed Cadance enough for one lifetime.
Turning away from the mirror, his tired eyes fell on the fire crackling in the hearth, which looked warm and inviting. And yet, somehow, the room still felt cold. Far colder than it should have.
He felt the hairs of his mane tense on his neck. This was more than discomfort over the décor. He now had the distinct feeling that he was not alone in this most private of rooms.
A lesser stallion than Shining might have started to shake from nerves, or simply left the room outright, but for all his self-doubt, the core of a Royal Guard still beat in his chest. Seizing a poker from the fireplace in his magic, he brought it to bear in front of him as he slowly made his way around the room.
The windows were securely fastened, as was the door to the balcony. His check behind the curtains and in the walk-in closet were likewise fruitless. But that itch continued to bother him.
His tired eyes narrowed as he focused on the one spot he had yet to check: the bed. As he pondered the best way to look underneath – bending down and poking his snout under it seemed like a particularly stupid idea – the lights in the room flickered and died, leaving only the light of the fire and the faint pinkish glow from his magic that surrounded the poker.
Then the fire died as well, snuffed out by some unseen force.
He slowly walked backward until his hindquarters were against a wall, his eyes sweeping back and forth in the new darkness. Lowering the poker, to try and give his eyes a chance to adjust to the lack of light, he strained to hear anything over the low roar of blood pumping through his ears.
There was courage, and there was stupidity, and being in a room with a possible assailant, largely unarmed with no armor for defense, leaned heavily toward the latter. Trying to move quietly, he started to sidestep toward the door, keeping his eyes peeled for any movement.
He caught the faint snick of the doors locking, the sound confirming that he wasn’t alone. Whatever was in the room could see him, had known he was trying to leave.
“Shining Armor…” a voice hissed.
He strained his ears further, trying to determine where the sound had come from.
“Shining Armor…” it repeated, sounding closer this time.
“I don’t have time for games,” he called out. “What do you want?”
The voice chuckled, a sinuous, rasping noise. “We want several things…but we shall settle for your head!”
It was instinct that saved him. He dove to the side just in time to miss the large scorpion’s tail that swung where his head had been only moments before. The stinger impacted on the crystal wall with a sharp thud, cracking it and sending shards everywhere.
As he scrabbled to his hooves, he looked up in time to see a shimmering black creature appear by the fireplace, with eyes that glinted in the faint aura from his horn.
Aware how woeful his weapon was, Shining nonetheless swung out with the poker, trying to score a hit on the monster.
He was rewarded with a cry of pain when the point of the poker drove into the body of the beast, though it was short lived. The monster batted the poker away with one heavy paw, throwing it to clatter against the far wall. Recognizing he was still in an unwinnable scenario, Shining continued backing toward the doors, intent on kicking them down if need be.
Spotting this, the monster leapt to stop him. Shining fell to the floor, feeling the icy cold breath of the beast as it passed over his neck. It slammed into the doors, the force of the impact breaking them out of their frame.
Conscious of the thrashing tail, Shining got back to his hooves, leaping over the monster and re-entering the well-lit dining room. He blinked rapidly to clear his eyes as he continued moving toward the entrance to the sitting room, determined to reach the guards outside.
The monster charged at him, leaping up and crushing the table, a trail of destruction trailing in its wake. Shining forced open the doors to the sitting room and continued onward, firing a few blasts from his horn as he ran. The energy bounced off the creature, the ricochets burning into couches and other decorations.
“No, no, you can’t escape!” the creature screamed. With a swing of its mighty tail, it flung one of the heavy sofas through the air, sending it crashing against the doors and wedging it against the wall, blocking Shining’s exit.
With nowhere left to run, Shining turned to face his attacker, getting a real look at the beast for the first time in proper light.
A manticore? He’d thought the beasts were merely creatures of legend, but the monster currently staring at him was very real. The head was that of a pony, the eyes cruel and intelligent, paired with the body of a lion and tail of a scorpion.
And somehow it had gotten in the Spire, past all the guards and enchantments. Sheer curiosity, mixed with a need to stall for time, prompted his next words.
“Why do you want to kill me?” he asked.
The manticore growled. “It is not for you to concern yourself with the doings of the demon realm.”
“The demon realm?” He started to slide away from the door, ever so slowly, keeping his body tensed to leap if were necessary. The manticore tracked his movements, but otherwise remained in place.
“Celestia fought us off once before, but that was long ago, at the height of her power. Centuries of peace have left her weak, while we have only grown stronger. And we came prepared. Four demons, one for each of your foolish princesses.”
Shining felt a burst of fear for his wife and sister, but he pushed it back down, focusing on the threat in front of him. “And they sent you to kill me?”
“Of course,” the creature hissed. “If we are to leave Equestria truly leaderless, then you cannot be allowed to live, princeling. Ponies would rally around you in an endless rebellion.” It raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Surely, a leader such as yourself could have guessed at this? Are you truly surprised to find yourself a target?”
“You haven’t done your research very well,” Shining replied, continuing to move to the right. “Any ponies that tried to follow me would quickly realize what a bad idea that was and look for another leader.”
The manticore’s eyes narrowed. “You jest, princeling. Your ponies would follow you into the depths of Tartarus itself, because you would be at their head, never yielding, never faltering.”
“You mistake the Guard with ordinary ponies,” he replied, trying to judge the odds he could make it back to the bedroom to escape through one of the windows. He knew his teleportation was lousy, but there was a possibility, however faint, that with his current motivation he might manage a short one to another balcony.
He would take a faint hope over certain death.
Hooves began to beat on the door to the suite, the guards outside trying to get in. When the manticore turned to look at the door, distracted, Shining made a break for it.
He made it roughly halfway across the dining room before tripping on one of the strewn bits of furniture, falling to his chest and earning several cuts from the wood shards scattered on the floor. Without thinking, he cast his shield spell, the pink dome appearing over his prone form just in time to stop the manticore from stabbing him with its tail.
The manticore shrieked, bringing the tail down again and again, only to be repelled each time, growing angrier with every blow. As Shining got back to his hooves, he felt a flicker of pride at annoying the beast so well. He might be a failure in many respects, but his shield spells were second-to-nopony.
“Arrogant fool! Accept your fate with dignity!”
Shining wanted to laugh at the absurdity of his predicament, but he knew the game couldn’t go on forever. The shield drew on his own personal stores of energy, stores that he’d been depleting for months between his insomnia and his near-constant use of masking spells. He guessed he could keep it up for no more than a minute before he’d be too exhausted to hold the manticore off, and then that would be it.
As last stands went, it wasn’t bad. Being murdered in your own chambers was embarrassing, sure, but being killed by a thought-to-be-mythical creature had to count for something.
No, he thought. Buck that! An ember of anger formed in his chest. If I'm going to die, I want to go down fighting!
The pounding on the doors intensified, which seemed to spur the manticore onto greater efforts. Shining could only watch as his shield began to crack, buckling under the strain as he struggled to keep it fed with magic.
A bright flash of light to his left followed by the sound of an explosion drew the attention of both attacker and erstwhile victim. Shining had just enough time to catch a glimpse of an orange blur before it slammed into the manticore, sending it sprawling.
“Your Highness, get to the door!” Edge Sheen shouted, putting herself between Shining’s faltering shield and the manticore, which was thrashing about on its back.
Shining let his shield drop, and started to pull her with him into the sitting room. Having just been granted an unexpected extension on life, his mind was racing. “We need to get the door unblocked before we can get out of here. Think you can budge that sofa?”
She glanced at him only briefly, keeping her focus on the threat. “I’m a pegasus, not an earth pony, sir.”
“Right. And I’m guessing you can’t carry me out.”
A nervous giggle. “No offense, Your Highness, but…”
He grinned despite the situation, feeling strangely alive. “Then you get to be the distraction. Keep that thing occupied, would you?”
Leaving her to the task, Shining quickly ran to the couch, shoving his shoulder against it. The enormous thing barely budged.
Next time, I pick the furniture.
He heard the manticore snarl, and dared to glance back.
Edge Sheen was leading the creature through a merry dance, zigging and zagging around the chandeliers as she dodged the swinging tail. He briefly admired the talent on display before trying to budge the sofa again.
“Uh, sir, if you can hurry up!?” Edge yelled.
“Doing my best!” he shouted back. He squinted his eyes, trying to combine what little magic he could summon with another shove. It wasn’t enough.
“Sir, I don’t think I can-“ Edge began, before cutting off at the same time a loud clanging noise echoed out. He turned just in time to see her sailing across the dining room, where she slammed into the wall above the hearth with a sickening crunch. The manticore bellowed a challenge, obviously having clipped her with its thrashing tail.
Seeing one of the ponies who had sworn to give their life for his thrown like that broke through the chains that Shining had spent years forging for himself. Self-pity and despair, his two familiar companions, found themselves set ablaze in the fire that sprung up in his heart. He didn’t care if his magic was spent. He didn’t care if he’d failed time and time again.
He was going to stop that manticore, no matter the cost.
“Beast!” he called out, steadily approaching the manticore with fire in his eyes. “Your quarrel is with me.”
The manticore, which had been advancing on Edge’s fallen form, stopped, turning its head to look at Shining.
“Excellent,” it hissed.
Shining smiled. With his magic surging from his anger, he reached out behind the manticore, picking up two wooden shards from the ruined dining table, their edges jagged. Then, with two deft slashes, he sliced at the hind legs of the monster.
It screamed, falling to its stomach as its hind legs gave out from the pain.
He slashed again, taking out its forelegs and leaving it stuck on the floor. Then he turned, picking up one of the stone slabs that made up the coffee tables in the sitting room. A small part of his brain reminded him that it had taken four ponies to set those in place, a thought he idly acknowledged as he repurposed the slab for something more immediately important than holding drinks.
Bringing it to hover over the manticore’s body, he didn’t hesitate before letting it drop. It landed square on, punctuated by the noise of cracking bones, drawing more screams from the beast.
Straining once more, Shining raised the slab as much as he could before letting it drop again. There was a crunch as one of the manticore’s forelegs snapped, pinned as it was by the weight of the stone. Its cries grew louder, and tears poured from its pain-wracked face.
In other circumstances, Shining might have felt pity for the creature. In that moment, however, he had only one thought in his mind.
Kill.
As the manticore struggled under the stone, Shining decided that the tail had to be next to go. He used his magic to rip one of the metal torch holders from the wall, aimed the sharp lower edge at the base where the tail met the manticore’s back, and stabbed downward.
Blood and smoke spurted out of the fresh wound, but Shining did not relent. He brought the holder down again, and again, until the tail was fully severed.
“Mercy! Have mercy!” the creature screamed, fear pouring from its eyes.
“Mercy?” Shining blinked, frowning. The rage that had seized him ebbed, if only a little, leaving him more in control of his instincts. He glared down at the manticore, the harsh overhead light and the expression on his face making him a great and terrible figure to behold. “Why should I show you mercy?”
“We…we do not have a reason to give you. We can only beg for your mercy!”
Shining studied the creature’s eyes, looking for any hint of remorse, but there was none. Only deceit and hate shone in their depths. Any mercy he could extend would be met by betrayal.
“You may not have chosen your lot in life, but you chose to try to end mine.” He glanced over at Edge Sheen, who still hadn’t moved. “And hers as well.”
With a flare of magic, Shining broke the manticore’s neck, using the same method he’d taught to Cadance during those nights in the gardens all those years ago. The room fell quiet as the creature exhaled in death, with only the continued hoofbeats on the door as a backdrop.
As the magical surge he’d been experiencing started to ebb with his fading adrenaline, he made his way over to check on Edge, who was stirring fitfully on the ground.
“Edge?”
She mumbled something, not quite awake yet.
“Commander Sheen!” he barked, dropping into his Command Voice, something calculated to rouse any sleeping soldier.
Her eyes flew open, and she immediately tried to get to her hooves before he stopped her, dropping his voice back to normal.
“It’s okay,” he said, meaning it. “It’s dead.”
She craned her neck anyway, and he stepped aside to let her get a glimpse of the crumpled beast.
“Good,” she spat, letting her head flop back. “Sorry I was late.”
“By my recollection you came just in time to save my flank,” he said, letting out a nervous laugh. “Now, there’s no way being thrown like that didn’t leave a mark. What hurts?”
“Left wing is definitely broken,” she said, gritting her teeth. “My left foreleg hurts too, but I’m hoping it’s just a bruise.”
One glance at her wing was all he needed to know it was beyond merely broken, but he didn’t want to stress her out more than she already was, especially if she was hyped up enough on adrenaline to not really feel the injury. He was trained in first aid, but lacking any supplies, there wasn't much more he could do than to keep her calm.
Finally roused, the other two pegasi members of the Guard flew through the ruined window, trying to look sharp and ready for action. From their disheveled appearance he could tell they’d been out on the town earlier.
“Get that sofa out of the way!” he barked, jerking his head toward the doors. “And someone get the medics up here! Commander Sheen’s been hurt.”
“Yes, Your Highness!” they replied, doing as he’d ordered. His sharp ears didn’t fail to catch the mutterings of ‘did he kill that thing?’ or ‘what in Tartarus is that?’, but he didn’t have the energy to reprimand them for losing focus. Besides, he wasn’t exactly focused himself. As the crash started to hit him, he sat down on against the wall, doing his best to breathe slowly and not pass out from exhaustion.
He wasn’t too worried about that last part. If there was one thing he could do, it was endure.
He'd proven that several times over.
Shining watched from his perch on one of the ruined couches as several guardsponies and members of the staff struggled to shift the stone slab in an attempt to begin cleaning the sitting room. They’d been trying to move it for the past fifteen minutes, with various unicorns barking orders until somepony with more sense had finally sent for a team of earth ponies to help lift it.
“Still don’t know how you lifted that by yourself.”
Shining glanced over at Flash Sentry, who’d removed his helm to wipe at his sweat-soaked mane.
“Well, a mixture of being pissed off and terrified is a good magical enhancer, as it turns out,” Shining replied.
Flash barked a laugh, nodding his head. “I guess can believe that to an extent, but seeing as you kept cool enough to kill the blasted thing, you either weren’t that scared, or you’re the toughest pony I’ve ever known.”
“Like I said, I was pretty mad at the time,” he repeated. “I didn’t stop to think if I could. I just wanted it dead.”
“Either way, I’m glad you didn’t die. I hate to think of how we could have explained it to your wife.”
Shining raised an eyebrow. “Cadance is-“
“Shining!” The melodic voice of his wife cut through the undercurrent of chatter in the room as she half trotted, half glided into the room, making her way to his side. She plowed into him, wrapping her forelegs around his barrel and bumping the couch back a few inches.
Eager to put her at ease, Shining nuzzled against her neck, noting that she smelled like fire and ash rather than her usual soft perfumes.
“You’re hurt!” she said, noticing the bandages wrapped around his barrel and right leg.
“Not from the monster,” he quickly reassured her. “Just from my own clumsiness. They're just scratches, really.”
Pulling back, she took in the sight of the ruined suite more fully, her eyes widening.
“What happened, exactly?”
He took a breath, deciding how best to tell her. He was about to give it to her straight, but an idea popped into his mind, and he smiled.
“Well, honey, I have a confession to make,” he began. “I’ve always hated the décor in here.”
She half-laughed, half-choked, hugging him again. “And so you decided that the best way to communicate that was to ruin all my hard work by fighting a monster inside our rooms?”
“Uh, yes?” He gently pushed her back so he could see into her eyes, noting the worry and love in them. Gently giving her a peck on the nose before pulling her close again, he whispered, “Since you’re not in a full panic, I take it all four of you are okay?”
The hitch in her breath told him that she wasn’t, but he wasn’t going to press her on it in front of all these ponies. Later, they could both talk.
“I’m okay,” she lied. “And yes, the others are as well, though Twilight looked a little shaky.” She pulled him into another hug. “How do you know what happened?” she whispered in his ear.
“I only know a little bit. You'll have to tell me the rest.” Sliding off the couch, he pulled her close. “C’mon, you look dead on your hooves, and I’m probably not much better. Let’s find some place to bunk down for the night. Gotta be a room here somewhere. It’s a big palace after all.”
“Shining Armor, you are incorrigible. Princesses do not bunk down,” she scolded as they made their way into the hallway, but there was no venom in her voice. “We grace the bed with our presence.”
He grinned. “Well, how about you grace me with your presence tonight, Princess?” Judging from the faint coughs from behind them, at least a few of the guards had heard.
“Incorrigible!” she said, smiling despite her tiredness. “What am I going to do with you?”
“I’m sure you’ll think of something,” he replied. “That’s why I love you so much.”
The next morning, neither of them were in a hurry to get out of the bed they’d pilfered.
In truth, the bed was in one of the rooms saved for important visitors, and therefore hadn’t been in use, but Shining preferred to think of it as pilfering. It felt more roguish that way.
As was custom, Shining had woken up before his wife, and after checking with the attendant outside to confirm that Edge Sheen was stable and recovering, had returned to the bed to simply lay there and enjoy the feeling of being alive.
He hadn’t done that for longer than he cared to remember.
While Shining had joked last night about what they should do when they got to a room, reality had been much more serious. As soon as they were alone he’d asked her to tell him what had happened, which she’d done, though he could tell she was holding things back from him.
After that, he’d shared a toned-down version of the attack, trying to avoid how he’d been too tired to fight properly with his magic. She’d seen through it, and he’d ended up explaining his night terrors and insomnia.
To his surprise, she hadn’t looked hurt or upset, but had merely listened, neither judging nor commenting. Once he’d started talking, it had been like a dam in his chest had burst, and he’d poured out many of the things he’d been struggling with.
By the time he’d finished, he had felt drained, but in a positive way. And, instead of offering advice or chastising him for not telling her sooner, she’d merely given him a kiss and told him to get some rest.
Now, in the light of the day, he turned his attention to Cadance, who was just starting to stir. As her eyes opened, and he saw the love and warmth pouring from their depths, he felt like the sun had finally risen on his shadowed life.
“Morning, babe,” he whispered, a smile forming on his face.
“Morning, Shiny,” she replied, sliding her head forward to kiss him.
“Sleep well?” he asked.
She yawned, nodding. “Mostly because I was exhausted.”
“I think you can sleep the whole day if you want.”
She rolled onto her stomach, allowing her wings to stretch out. “Mmm…tempting, but I know you won’t stay with me, so I might as well get up too.”
He reached up and started gently caressing the wing that was hanging over him, drawing a gentle moan from her. “Duty calls?”
“Something like that,” she said, yawning once more as she pulled her wings back in. “I’ll probably end up making another trip to Canterlot in the next day or two. Celestia will want to discuss what happened.”
His face fell slightly at the prospect of being alone again, but he did his best to hide it.
Cadance wasn’t fooled. “You’ll be coming with me, Shiny. Even if you didn’t have some incredibly important information to share, I don’t want to let you out of my sight for a while.”
“Worried I’ll run away on a wild adventure?” he teased.
Normally, this would have provoked an eye-roll from her, but not now. She quickly slid over, pinning him to the mattress with her forehooves.
“Don’t joke like that, Shiny,” she said, her eyes boring into his. “Not right now, not when I almost lost you!”
“I’m sorry,” he quickly replied. “I didn’t mean-“
As quickly as she’d gotten hot, she cooled once more, and her gaze softened. “I know,” she said, sliding down to snuggle next to him. “I just…I’m worried.”
“About the meeting?”
“About the meeting, about Twilight, about you.”
He nuzzled her. “I’m fine, Cadance. I always pull through.”
“I want you to do more than pull through. I want you to trust me enough to share when things are bad, so I can help you.”
“I do trust you,” he started to protest.
“Not enough to be honest with me,” she replied.
He could see the building storm clouds of her argument, and decided to head them off straight away. “You’re right,” he admitted. “I do need to be more honest with you. But that goes both ways, Cadance. You held out on me last night, and I didn’t think you would do that. Now I’m worrying about you.”
She opened her mouth to reply, paused, then closed it again.
“If we’re going to help each other, we have to be honest with each other,” he added.
“I know,” she groused, clearly not thrilled about having been out-argued. “I…I’ll share more when we meet with the others. I don’t want to ruin this day.”
He frowned, but decided not to push harder just yet. “Promise?”
“I promise,” she replied.
“Thank you,” he said, kissing her. “Love you, babe.”
She was still miffed about having been rolled. “I love you too, you big meanie,” she replied, her lips pursed in a cute pout.
“And since we’re being honest, I have a secret I need to confess.”
“What’s that?”
He leaned in again, gently kissing the base of her neck and moving upward with successive smooches. “I figured today was going to be a bit of a weird day, so I ordered us breakfast in bed. Should be here in a few minutes.”
She tried to hold the pout, but he knew she loved sappy romantic gestures. His words had the intended effect, and he watched her face turn to a smile.
“My handsome stallion,” she replied, kissing him once more. “Well then, since we’re sharing secrets, you’ll love what I have to tell you,” she teased.
“Oh?”
She leaned in close. “If I’d known that a monster was what it would take to get you to admit you hated our rooms, I would have arranged for one to attack months ago.”
At first he laughed, but at the serious look on her face, he felt his jaw drop. “You’re serious?”
Now it was her turn to laugh, that rich laugh that he so loved to hear. It felt like months since he’d heard her laugh that way, and he wanted nothing more than to close his eyes and luxuriate in the feeling of it.
“Shiny, do you know what makes me happy? Truly happy?"
“Chocolates and sleeping in?”
She gave him a wry look. “Putting those two very important things aside, I’m happy when the stallion I married is happy. You never looked happy in our rooms, but any time I tried to bring the subject up, you would clam up and claim things were fine.”
“I thought you were happy with the way things were, and that was enough for me.”
“I was okay with the rooms. I’ll be much happier when we both have input on how they should look. Promise me that this time, when the decorators come around, you’ll actually speak your mind?”
“Even if I want to put the ugliest chair imaginable in the room?”
“So long as you don’t want comic book sheets for our bed, I think I can handle a chair or two,” she replied.
He grinned. “Then it’s a deal.”
“Good,” she said, leaning back against her pillow with a very particular smirk. “Now, how about you make good on that talk from last night, and come grace your Princess?”
At that moment, there was a knock.
"Breakfast is ready, Your Highnesses," one of the guards called through the door.
Shining paused, eyeing his wife, who was staring at him with one eyebrow raised, still smirking.
"You boys go ahead and have it," he called back. Then, lowering his voice to give it a husky tone, he added, "The Princess and I have some important business to attend to."
Epilogue: Polished To A Sheen
Edge Sheen shifted uncomfortably on the mattress, trying to find a decent position. She would have preferred to lie on her back, but the damage her armor had taken from the manticore's tail had left several cuts that were still healing, which meant that she was forced to rest on her chest and stomach until her back had healed.
At least as far as hospitals went, this one was better than average. The Crystal Guards had access to the same facilities and doctors as the Princess and Prince, one of the perks of the position.
In her case, it felt like one last consolation prize before her inevitable dismissal from the Guard.
She didn’t see how they could keep her. It was bad enough that she had failed in the task the prince had assigned her, but now she was a cripple.
The doctors hadn’t even needed an x-ray. They’d taken one look at her ruined left wing before deciding that amputation was the only viable option. If she’d been able to retract it before the impact, it might have been salvageable, but it had been fully extended in her attempt to try and recover from the blow, meaning it had crumpled like an accordion when she hit the wall, pulverizing most of the bones and shredding the tendons in the process.
She closed her eyes in pain at the memory. Even though the wing was gone, she could still feel phantom tingles from where it had been. They’d told her that would pass with time, just like they'd assured her that nothing could have been done to save her wing.
They’d told her a lot of things she wasn’t sure she believed. All she knew was that her time in the Crystal Guard was over. A pegasus that could not fly was not fit to serve.
She heard hoofsteps approaching. Careful to make no sudden moves, she kept her eyes closed and slowed her breathing. With luck, whoever it was would think she was asleep. She really didn’t feel like talking to anypony right then.
“You know, I haven’t spent much time in this infirmary, but I’m betting the food is as lousy as the one in Canterlot.” Shining Armor’s tone was amused, and she felt his hot breath on her ear as he leaned down to whisper, “Commander, you can’t fool the former Captain of the Royal Guard with the fake-sleep trick.”
She opened her eyes reluctantly, watching as Shining moved a chair over to the front of her bed.
“Maybe I was just trying to sleep, sir,” she replied, trying to balance being curt with being respectful. Even if she were discharged from the Guard, the prince was still royalty.
“Well, you shouldn’t sleep on an empty stomach,” he replied, pulling a few fresh haycakes from his satchel with a conspiratorial grin. “Pilfered these from the kitchens on my way down here. Thought you might be hungry.”
As unhappy as she felt, the smell of the warm food did brighten her spirits, if only a little. She took the cakes gratefully, quickly eating them before any of the nurses came to scold her.
“I won’t ask how you’re holding up,” he continued, and now his visage turned serious. “I’m damned sorry you had to lose your wing.”
The warm haycakes in her belly clashed with the cold feeling in her chest, the ice contracting around her heart. “It’s my job,” she mumbled, staring at the bedsheets. She couldn't quite face him just yet, not after she'd failed him.
“Horseapples!” he snapped. Her eyes widened in surprise – she’d never heard him speak quite so frankly before. Then again, he was a member of the Guard before he became a prince.
“There’s nothing in the oath or laws that say losing a wing is part of the job. What happened to you was wrong.”
She looked up at him.
“It was wrong that you were caught up in something I should have been able to handle myself,” he continued. “I was too damn stubborn to admit I needed help with my own problems, and it nearly cost both of us our lives. It cost you your wing.”
He sat there in silence for several seconds, as if choosing his next words carefully.
“At any rate, I don’t intend to let you saunter off into the distance. And not just because I owe you my life, something I intend to see you properly rewarded for, though I suspect Princess Cadance will handle that. I’m here to give you some options.”
“Options, sir?” She tried to keep the note of hope in her voice controlled.
“The first thing you should know is that you are absolutely not going to be discharged from the Crystal Guard.”
She felt her heart leap in her chest, and a smile broke out on her face.
“Of course, you’re not required to stay, but given that you look like I just told you that Hearth’s Warming is here early, I’m guessing you’re fine with sticking around.” He grinned. “Now, I do have to tell you that a spot opened up in Canterlot for a transfer, if you wanted to get out of here and move to the place where all the action is. Princesses Celestia and Luna both said they’d be happy to have you serve on their personal guards.”
“This an attempt to get rid of me, sir?” she asked, still smiling.
“Oh no, not at all. I’d much rather have you stick around. But I wouldn’t be much of a leader if I didn’t give you all your options.”
Edge knew some of her fellow Crystal Guards wanted that transfer, wanted what they saw as greater glory.
It had never been what she wanted. Her heart remained in the Empire, and always would.
“I’d prefer to stay here, sir.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Because I was hoping to offer you a promotion. Even Keel has submitted his retirement papers, and I need a new Captain of the Crystal Guard.”
“Me?” She blinked. “But wouldn’t Lucky Lance be next in line?”
“I’m asking you, aren’t I?”
“But – “
Seeing she wouldn’t be deterred, he sighed. “You’d have found out soon enough anyway, but Lance will be handing in his resignation in the next week. He won’t be a problem.”
It was a lot for her to take in. Just a few minutes prior, she’d been expecting to leave the Guard; now she was being asked to lead it instead. But she'd long prided herself on being quick on her hooves, and so her answer was quick in coming.
“I accept your offer, Your Highness,” she replied.
“Excellent.” His relief was palpable. “It’ll be a few weeks before the announcement, but Even Keel will want to see you as soon as you feel able, to start discussing the changeover.” He started to rise from his chair, making to leave.
“Sir?” She hated to ask, but she knew it would bother her if she didn't.
“Captain?”
She bit her lip. “Can I ask why me?"
Shining stared into her eyes for several seconds, before giving her a gentle smile. “Because you’ve already learned the most important lesson, Edge. You know what it’s like to lose.”
He gave her a pat on the hoof. "Let me know if you need anything else while you're in here."
She nodded, lost in thought. She wasn't sure what to make of his statement just yet, but at least it had given her something new to think about.
"Captain of the Crystal Guard..." she said, letting her voice trail off. It was a big responsibility.
She hoped she was ready for it.
Author's Note
Some of you might recall that I originally wrote Cadance the Unbroken after seeing a conversation in which she was repeatedly called useless/helpless, etc.
After seeing Shining get the same treatment recently, I thought I'd give this story a shot. It ended up much longer than originally planned, but not without reason.
Twilight and Luna got some catharsis from their experiences in the Four Princesses, Four Demons series in a later story, and when writing this one I decided it would be best to just build that in from the start, rather than do another short story down the road. That lead in unexpected (but fun!) directions, like having some tender moments between the couple.
I've touched on it in a blog or two, but most of my stories are building up to a much more epic, novel length idea I've been working on for a while. Captain Sheen, as introduced here, will have a part to play in that story.
And, I know this is likely committing some kind of writing sin, but since I didn't see a clean way to insert it into the story without making it feel info-dumpy and I expect someone to ask: The windows to the Royal Suite were reinforced, and too tough for Edge Sheen to simply fly through. The explosion that takes place prior to her entrance is a spell fired off by an eagle-eyed unicorn guard on the ground, which shattered them (and also gave her a grand entrance).
As always, feedback is appreciated.
