The Monument to All Your Sins.

On the outskirts of the crystal empire, the freezing storm lashed against the gigantic glacier that stretched as far as the eye could see, the permafrost that had been there for hundreds and hundreds of years, remained pristine, solid and unfathomable, at least until a thunderous sound was present, a blow, and then another blow, and another blow, and another blow.

In a somewhat sunken part of the glacier there was a huge group of ponies, they were almost the entire royal guard, dressed in huge garments to protect themselves from the cold, they poked the ice with huge metal rods, again and again they hit the ice fractured and creating holes that gradually became deeper, Finally, and after hours of hard work one of the ponies turned away from the crowd, walking towards two hooded figures lying on one side of the work area, with huge carts on their backs full of tools of all kinds.

The pony removed his own hood revealing it to be Bek, shouting over the wind so the figures could hear his voice.

“Alright, that's deep enough, are you sure this is going to work!”

Twilight and Shining Armor removed their own hoods, flashing their horns in unison to lift from the carts a myriad of small crystals that glowed in shades of pink and purple, these crystals levitated until they were over the dug holes and without further ado, the magic went out and they all fell, sinking into the ice.

“Don't worry...!” shouted Shining as he ordered his guards to back off ”Twilight did the calculations, they should have enough power!

“Which is why I recommend we retreat even further!” exclaimed Twilight.

Everyone moved away from the area of holes, pushing the large wagons away and even Shining Armor raised a shield around the entire group.

“Alright Twilight, anytime!” the captain of the guard winked as Twilight closed her eyes to concentrate.

She lit her horn, focused on the crystals and, just before giving the order, exclaimed.

“You'd better cover your ears!” and then came the blast.

Although the ice cushioned most of it, the roar was so intense that it overpowered the deafening sound of the storm, making it seem as if the storm had stopped.
Shining Armor deactivated the shield after the smoke of snow dissipated, revealing that the permafrost had cracked prominently, huge chunks of ice were separated and lifted slightly above the previously uniform layer, creating an area of approximately thirty square meters.

Everyone looked amazed at such an incredible feat, admiring it for a moment before Shining raised his voice again.

“Alright, it's done, time to get to work, quick before the cold puts the pieces back together!”

Then they all start working, the few pegasus in conjunction with the unicorns fly over and use their magic to keep the ice blocks apart as much as possible, among them is Rainbow Dash, who struggles to keep her balance due to the wind, but still taking one rod after another and starting to drive them into the ice with firm and precise blows, Twilight herself and ShIning also help, using their powerful magic to hold the larger blocks as best they can, taking large and long ropes from the carts to start tying them to the rods.
The ropes are then received by the earth ponies, among them Applejack and Bek, who attach them to plow bridles that are set up and begin to pull, in unison and forcefully, the ice blocks, gradually pulling them out of the newly created hole.

Bek peats hard, feeling the pressure of the bridle on her chest, thankful for the horrible cold that prevented her body from sweating properly when a tap on her side made her turn her head, next to her was Applejack, equally pulling on the thick ropes, despite the effort the farm girl gave a smile to the unicorn.

“Hey, I bet you I can get my block out long before you can!”

As Applejack noticed the look of confusion on Bek's face she realized she needed to explain herself further.

“Oh you know, a race!”

“A, race?!” the unicorn asked even more confused as she planted her hooves firmly as she felt the ice block slip backwards.

“You know, like a competition...!”

“A competition...!?” said Bek finally understanding ”And why would we do something like that right now?”

“Because it's fun! It takes a little fun on a gray day like this!”

“I...I don't get it...!”

“You don't have to understand, just make sure you get your block out before I do or it'll be your turn to take the wagon back!” and with that said, Applejack pulled harder on the rope, taking a couple of steps away from Bek.

The unicorn didn't understand, they were in the middle of something important Why did she look so relaxed and so...cheerful, at that moment Bek felt a current of pain running through her whole body, so intense that it almost made her trip and drop the block of ice she was holding.

“Bek!” shouted Shining Armor as he noticed this ”If you need help I can send you a couple of ponies...!”

“No!” shouted the mare in response ”No, no, no, no,no, I'm..I'm fine, I just tripped, I can do it...!” Bek took out the bottle with the medicine in it and took an even bigger gulp, relieving herself and walking steadily again.

That could have ended badly, the effect of the medicine was becoming less and less lasting, the unicorn reflected on it, she thought she would have more time but her deterioration seemed to have accelerated thanks to her recent injuries, she didn't want to think about how much time she actually had left, so instead, she decided that if she would play along with Applejack, pulling hard and reaching in no time, and so she continued for the rest of the day, removing the ice blocks, then piercing the layer below, popping it and removing the ice again.

By the time dusk began to turn the light gray of the clouds to dark gray everyone stowed the tools in the carts and began the arduous trek back to town, making their way across the difficult terrain of the glacier.
The walk was silent, only allowing the sound of the wind to fill the atmosphere, a sound that became fainter and fainter the closer they got to the city, and at the same time, more comments from the guards began to aori, such as what they would eat when they arrived or how much they needed a hot bath after that, at the front of the group were Shining and Twilight, talking quietly while reviewing some plans.

“At this rate the forge should be finished in a couple of weeks, although we could speed it up if we could get more volunteers...” Twilight began.

“That could be a tricky thing to accomplish...” replied Shining Armor ”With the monster attack and this massive mobilization of the empire's forces, many ponies are now really freaking out, locking themselves in their homes and some are already planning to leave the empire...and I don't really blame them.”

“But the new batch of recruits and volunteers train with Bek tomorrow don't they? Those aren't enough?”

“I'm afraid not, I already did the calculations, we don't possess a military force capable of protecting the entire empire and the training was overnight for us, we need more help...What happened to the reinforcements you contacted?”

“They already responded, but they will take time to arrive, they are coming from far away...”

“How long?”

“A couple of days at least...”

“Well...let's hope we don't need them before then...”

Further back in the crowd were Applejack, Bek and Rainbow, in the end, Applejack's competition ended in a draw, still the farmer offered to pull the wagon on the way back,noting the difficulty Bek was having walking, now both were walking side by side again while Rainbow curled up and napped in the back of the wagon.

“She's...low energy isn't she?” asked Bek referring to the pegasus.

“Well, she's not used to such a demanding workday..” replied Applejack with a chuckle.

“From what I see you are.”

“Well, I'm a farm pony, I've always worked the land, since I was a little girl, so a little extra work doesn't bother me.”

“Wow, a farmer, well I guess I should have figured that out the first time I saw you with your hat...” they both let out a laugh before falling silent again, after a moment, Bek spoke again ”You know...I was always curious what the farmer's life was like...”

“Really?” asked Applejack in surprise ”There were farms in your day?”

“But of course, they were the livelihood of the entire empire, and there were all kinds, crops for food, rocks for structures, iron and coal for weapons and armor, and...well, also for labor...” Bek pushed that last idea out of his mind and continued “If a farm was successful that meant that the family in charge, no matter if they were unicorns or earth ponies, would have a secure future, just a quiet, peaceful life in the countryside...I don't know, I guess I, who lived my day to day life running from place to place, was curious what a quiet, stable life would be like, without fear of hunger or cold...”

Applejack didn't know what to say, she felt it wouldn't be appropriate to interrupt Bek's vulnerable moment, so she decided to just stay quiet and listen.

“And...well, when I finally got that kind of life, I never thought it would become my worst nightmare...”

“What do you mean sugar cube?” asked Applejack genuinely curious.

“Let's just say, in the end, it's better not to wish for anything if the one who's going to hear your wish is a demon and not an angel...” she was saying this while lightly stroking her neck scar, Bek then realized how sinister the conversation was getting, she definitely wasn't ready to dig that up yet, so she quickly cleared her throat and changed the subject ”Hey...what's with you and the little pegasus back there?”

The sudden question made the farm girl blush slightly, she didn't want to give a direct answer, but she didn't want to be rude either, so she quickly answered the only thing she could think of.

“Ehhh...well, she and I, we're just friends..”

“Good friends?” asked Bek as she arched an eyebrow and couldn't help but smile slightly.

“Uh, yeah, we've known each other for...quite a few years now...”

“And do you and her spend a lot of time together?”

A slight piquant tone came through in the unicorn's voice, which caused Applejack to blush even more, she tried, out of habit, to cover her face with her hat, but, not having it she only found herself pulling her mane absentmindedly, at this Bek let out a shrill laugh, silencing it quickly so as not to wake Rainbow and apologizing.

“Sorry, sorry, it's just, I'm surprised that romance nowadays had become so modest.... Maybe it sounds a bit bad but in my day if you felt something for someone and that pony reciprocated, there wasn't even room for words, everything just became an avalanche of unbridled feelings and emotions, released in a wild carnal frenzy, a union of passion that pushed the lovers' bodies to the limit, it was that kind of love that you took full advantage of because you didn't know when it might end, I guess you guys don't have that problem, it makes sense that you take it so easy..... but listen to the advice of an expert, it's not worth waiting so long, if it only keeps you apart. ..”

Applejack listened intrigued, for just a soldier, Bek handled the word equal or even better than Twilight, listening to her was like reading a poem, a passionate and full of feeling one, perhaps feelings that, in the middle of battle, have no place, at this the farmer took courage and decided to inquire even more.

“Hey where did you learn to talk like that?”

“Uh? What do you mean?”

“Well, from what you've told us and what Twilight has shown us, your world didn't seem to be the kind that prioritizes things like education or even basic understanding of non-essential things, yet you speak like an educated pony with impeccable lexicon Why?”

Bek pondered for a moment, she remembered how, when she was with her companions, conversations didn't go beyond the simplest sentences and grunts, their place as animals bred for war were reflected in their behavior, she wondered what her former friends would think of her, if they heard her talk like that.

“Well...” she finally said ”Remember the life of peace and quiet I wanted?”

“Yep...”

“I think from that life it's one of the few things that stayed with me...”

“And what other things stayed?”

Bek paused before answering.

“Just scars and bad memories...”
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

The group finally reached the city, advancing at a slow pace through the streets, the ponies roasting watched them with faces of concern and anguish, some even left what they were doing to return to the safety of their homes, noticing this, Shining Armor could only lower his head in disappointment, at this Twilight quickly put her helmet over her shoulder and spoke to him.

“You need to talk to Cadance, only she can alleviate the anguish felt by her people...”

“I already tried...” the stallion replied quietly ”But no matter how I approach it she refuses to talk about it, to her it's like it's not even happening...”

“But you can't let it go on like this, this is a real thing and the danger is real, you know her better than anyone else, even more than me, you must make her react and start acting like the regent she is, otherwise we will be unprotected, not only physically anymore, but in spirit...”

Shining was silent for a long while, looking ahead he thought about it, Twilight was right at least in something, he, as the prince of the empire, did not have half of the influence and the gift of the word that his wife had, he was only a glorified guard, in charge of the security of his people and the proper care of the empire's resources, but he was not respected beyond those labors, as far as the thinking of the people and the handling of politics was concerned, he was just the pretty face standing behind the princess of love, if Cadance was willing to lend her assistance, he was sure that more than half the kingdom would offer to fight Celestia, and it would certainly help the strength of the hearts of the empire to be renewed, quelling fear and doubt, finally Shining came to a resolution, turning to look at Twilight and saying.

“It's okay Twilight, I'll convince her...”

Finally arriving at the castle the group dispersed, the guards headed to the barracks to clean up and finish their day while Twilight and the others walked to the castle entrance where Rarity and Pinkie Pie were waiting for them.

“Welcome everyone!” exclaimed the unicorn ”How was your first day?”

“I think well, we got a good pace and enough tools How did you guys do with your jobs?” asked Twilight as she took off her cold weather attire.

“Well, I tried to get Cadance out of her room with a breakfast party in bed, but she wouldn't even open the door for me...” said Pinkie somewhat dejectedly, sitting with her hooves on her chin on the stairs.

“And me, well, I've never had to design armor before, at least not a functional one for a fight, but I think I'll be able to find a superb balance between design, functionality and style...” Rarity exclaimed before pausing and flashing her horn, she held up a small package “Although, I did have time to finish something I've been thinking about since we got here, a little gift for Bek...”

“Me?!” the unicorn asked incredulously.

“Of course dear, I couldn't help but notice that you have a certain umm well...aversion to ponies looking at you with nothing on, I also noticed your marked limp, so I thought I'd help you out a bit...”

Rarity handed the package to Bek, who quickly opened it with her magic, finding a strange dark brown garment.
“Uh...thanks?” said Bek holding it up not quite understanding.

All the others also looked at Rarity quizzically, to which she simply cleared her throat and replied.

“Ahem, well, I know it's not my most glamorous job, but as they said I should focus more on functionality for the moment, it's a supportive garment dear, very snug and firm, it will help relieve some of the pain in your muscles and joints, it will also help with your silhouette, leveling the thickness of your fur so that your scars don't give it a, well.... ungraceful, it will cover you up and allow you to move around without inconvenience, not to mention that you will no longer suffer when it comes to sitting in a chair...”

“Rarity, that's very thoughtful!” exclaimed Twilight.

“Well I wasn't going to let a poor mare walk around wearing uncomfortable, hideous clothes and feeling self-conscious...”

“Thank you...” Bek was heard to say, everyone turned to watch as she folded the garment and placed it on her back ”Really...” Bek gave Rarity a smile which she responded by looking away and coughing.

“Yeah, yeah, you don't think much of it, just let me know if you feel any discomfort, I didn't get a chance to get your measurements right.”

After that they all retreated back inside the castle while Bek returned to her little tent, exhausted and with a lot to think about, they all prepared for the next day, trying to push away the bad thoughts.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next day, early in the morning, Bek was in the training field of the royal barracks in the company of Shining Armor, Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Applejack, in front of them was a colorful group of ponies of all kinds, some were royal guards, others were assorted palace staff and a few were ordinary citizens of the empire, all were standing silently waiting to be given instructions.

Bek for her part is nervous, not only because of her new outfit which made her feel strange, but because she wasn't sure how to approach this, her clothing was a one piece garment, which covered almost her entire body, it is as Rarity said, it was quite tight and firm, keeping an even pressure all along Bek's body, she could feel how the back seemed to exert a greater pressure, holding her hips and reducing the pain caused by her left paw limp, also her shape was accentuated, leaving aside the unpleasant appearance that most of her scars cause, in fact the only parts of her body that the garment doesn't cover, besides her head and part of her neck, was the lower half of her front hooves and just the tip of her hind hooves, as much as she didn't want to admit it, having it on helped her feel less uncomfortable in front of everyone's watchful eyes.
As she struggled with making peace with the feeling Shining Armor stepped forward and exclaimed.

“First of all I want to thank each and every one of you for coming, it means a lot to me and the entire Crystal Empire that you are here, ready to face an enemy never before seen in this land, an enemy that has proven to be cunning as well as brutal and now threatens the safety of everything we care about...”

Bek scanned the crowd, she saw several familiar faces and a few new ones, but no matter which direction she looked, she found one constant, each and every pony in front of her, had fear carved in their eyes.

“That is why we must learn to defend ourselves...” continued Shining Armor ”And that is why today we have brought a pony, who knows this enemy very well, who has fought it, studied it and understood it, and now, she will share that knowledge with all of us, so that we can be prepared, when they attack...”

“And are we sure they will attack again?”

A voice interrupted Shining's speech, he couldn't even begin to look for the one who asked the question when yet another one pierced the air.

“How do we know it wasn't a one-time thing?”

That question was followed by another.

“How do we even know that the enemy they're telling us about is even real?”

And then another.

“And what about Princess Cadance? Shouldn't she have told us something by now?”

And another.

“Does this have to do with the plot they announced by Princess Celestia and Luna?”

And suddenly an avalanche of questions came upon Shining, who couldn't keep up with the torrent of questioning, barely being able to half-answer a couple of questions, the crowd slowly began to get out of control, approaching menacingly as the stallion could only back away.

At one point Shining was about to stumble when a mighty roar shook everyone.

“Everyone shut your mouths!!!”

Everyone turned in surprise, including Shining himself, only to find Bek standing firmly in front of the crowd with a determined look on her face, before anyone could say anything else, the mare once again bellowed in a firm and serious voice.

“I can't believe my eyes, wannabe soldiers doubting the orders of your commanding officer, what a fucking shame” Bek walked to stand in the middle of Shining and the crowd, causing the latter to back up a couple of steps ”I can guarantee you that your captain, has not withheld any information from you, everything he knows, you know, that you don't want to believe it is not your fucking fault...” Now it was Bek who was walking towards the crowd at a slow pace as the crowd slowly backed away “Before we begin you should be clear on two things, two things I hope you will accept and believe with all your being from now on, the first, the monarchs of Equestria are lying, sadistic whores, who will do anything in their power to prevent their thrones from being dethroned and their influence over this land dissipated, and second and more importantly, when I say they will do anything, I mean anything, unleash monsters, torture and slaughter innocents, go against any law of nature if it guarantees them to keep even a shred of the power they wield over everything.... ! ”

The entire crowd now had fearful looks on their faces, clearly intimidated by the presence imposed by the mare in front of them, no one was left wanting to question what they heard, they just stood there, noticing this Bek changed his tone of voice to a more solemn and understanding one before continuing.

“Once you accept that, then you will be willing to give your lives to fight, not only for what you believe is right, but also to defend all the things you love and once cared about, that is the reason you are here, to learn how to fight.”

There was silence for a long moment, it seemed that Bek's speech had been enough to silence the doubts of the aspirants, but at that moment a voice became present, the same one that asked the first question.

“And who the fuck are you?”

This time the crowd opened up to reveal the troublemaker, there he was, a stallion with dull yellow fur, a dark purple mane and a gan bandage covering his right foreleg, it was Quiet Trench, who looked with contempt and distrust at Bek who responded with a similar gesture before answering.

“I am a soldier, who comes from a different world than the one you know, a world full of fear and hunger, a world that now, threatens to devour yours, and if you want to prevent that from happening, then you better listen to everything I have to teach you, otherwise..there is no guarantee that there is going to be a tomorrow...”

The stallion lowered his head still with an annoyed expression, but said nothing more, that said they all lined up again, sitting down on the grass, ready to start their first lesson.

Applejack and Rainbow then brought a bunch of sticks of different sizes, some with rocks tied to their ends and others with improvised grips, they left them on the ground and stood in line with the rest of the volunteers, while Shining Armor stood in front next to Bek, finally and when everyone was silent, the unicorn began.

“Alright, today I will teach you the basics, what kind of threat you will face, basic combat strategies and we will finish with a real practical training; The first point to cover is the nature of the enemy, the truth is quite a broad topic but I will try to summarize it as best I can, these creatures, monsters of the night, living nightmares, no matter what you call them, besieged the land before any of your pony ancestors were even born, no one knows for sure where they came from or what brought them to these lands in the first place, what we do know is that, once the pony race settled in what they now call Equestria these creatures found a new kind of pleasure in hunting, torturing and consuming equines, for them, it was almost a drug, addicted to pain and misery, which is why, each and every one of them, evolved over the centuries to fulfill one purpose and one purpose only, to kill as many ponies in the most satisfying way possible.... ”

You could feel the tension in the group rising, some felt a sudden headache, others felt nauseous and a few others kept shaking slightly.

“By the time the ones you call Celestia and Luna arrived to proclaim themselves the rulers of everything their eyes saw, these beasts had already been slaughtering ponies for hundreds of years, they created the first imperial legions, whose sole purpose throughout their service, was to fight and learn how to kill those things, that knowledge was passed down from generation to generation, updated every time a new type of monster appeared and now, I will share that knowledge with you, I will teach you how to hunt, capture and destroy those things, even so, do not have many illusions believing that it will be something easy once you have mastered it, never forget that you will be fighting against the natural predator best adapted to end your lives, neither be confused believing that they are just dumb animals that only attack by instinct, they are intelligent, malicious and sadistic creatures, and believe me when I tell you, they will do everything in their power, to make your death as horrible and agonizing as possible.... ”

A couple of ponies in the crowd released their stomachs just at that instant, staining the grass and causing some to turn away in disgust, even Shining Armor himself felt a twinge in his stomach, remembering the beast from the other day, at this Bek simply spoke again.

“Okay, now that you understand what you're up against, let's start the real lesson...”

Bek instructed everyone to stand up and approach where the sticks were on the ground, once there everyone stood in a large circle while Bek stood in the center.

“Right, now, every beast is different, even two specimens of the same species have determining differences between them, so you must assume that the possibilities when facing one of them are endless, you could try to attack head on a climber that spits acid, or try to attack from afar a digger that can launch magic missiles, even so there are vital biological rules that if or if they share the vast majority of monsters, here is a list that should be the first thing you memorize today, with the idea that it will help you to evaluate almost any situation, and a well evaluated situation almost always guarantees your survival and those of your companions .... ”

Some of those present took out small notebooks and began to jot down notes while others just kept staring.

“Number one, the ones that look like insects do not have good peripheral vision, Number two, the ones that look like reptiles you cannot climb nor are they very fast, Number three, the small ones always hunt in packs, Number four, invertebrates are always, I repeat, always, poisonous to the touch, Number five, aquatic ones are out of the question, stay away from water, Number six, the flying ones are very fragile, but very fast, and Number seven, and most important of all, if you come across one that looks like a pony, and I don't mean a cheap costume that is noticeable when you just get a little closer, if it talks, acts and looks almost identical to a regular pony, I want you to, no matter what happens or whatever you hear or see, run, run and hide wherever you can, other than that there is nothing else to do, facing him is suicide, trying to run away is suicide, once your luck is cast with one of those, I hope you have a god to pray to..... ”

Applejack swallowed saliva, she had no idea that there were so many variables concerning those creatures, she also didn't think she could feel more fear from it than she experienced with the spider monster or the horrible thing under the castle in the forest, now she knew that there were things that could be much worse.

“Okay, now, combat strategies; Once you have identified the type of creature and have taken the necessary measures you must initiate the counterattack, so each of you must choose which role of it you want to specialize in...”

Everyone then exchanged confused glances, at which point Bek drew the hilt of his sword, drawing everyone's attention and continuing.

“In the near future there will be a great variety but whether or not you will have to choose which type of weapon you will learn to master, for general parameters there are two types of weapons, closed and blunt...”

At that moment the magical blade of Bek's sword flared up, startling most of them to subsequently leave them in awe.

“The closed ones are light and fast weapons, specifically designed to cut, lacerate and maim, the job of soldiers carrying closed weapons is to identify the enemy's weak points and exploit them, they are in charge of delivering the killing blow and ensuring it is effective, already when it comes to solo combat they do better with small targets, this type of weapon makes it easier to keep up with particularly agile enemies, so the wielder must be able to match that speed...”

The options hadn't even been presented but Rainbow Dash was already sure of what she was going to choose.

“Blunt ones are quite the opposite, they are heavy and crude, made to fracture, knock down and pulverize, they are the first line of defense, their job, to unbalance the beasts so that those with blunt weapons can attack, break their bodies and cause as much impact damage as possible, obviously they do better with targets of great size and strength, their armors, by the same token, are more resistant, this added to the physical resistance their bearers must aspire to allows them to stand their ground against the fiercest of enemies...”

Applejack was really considering this, she wasn't sure why, enlisting for this made, her promise to return home in one piece, was at risk, still, she couldn't stay with her hooves crossed.

“I want to make it clear that this I will say is not an imposition of any kind, I am only sharing the most common choices around the biological capabilities of all pony species.... “ Bek began to say, again catching the attention of those present “By simple anatomy and facility, there are specific jobs that both earth ponies, unicorns and pegasus can perform to maximize combat strategy, I think you can get a proper idea of what type, so I recommend you consider all of this when choosing your fighting style, now, please choose...”

Bek stepped back revealing the sticks at his feet, this earned another wave of confused looks.

“I know this isn't optimal, but we won't have real weapons to work with for a while, we adapted these woods to meet the minimum characteristics of all weapon types, they'll do for practice in the meantime, now who here has minimal combat training?”

Obviously the guards, along with Applejack and Rainbow Dash raised their hooves, and to Bek's surprise some of the volunteers did too.

“Alright, in that case, grab a stick and show me what you can do...”

The crowd came forward and began taking the sticks, most took at random without much idea of how this resembled real weapons, only a few like Applejack and Rainbow gave it the slightest bit of thought, the pegasus took one of the longer sticks while the farmer took one of the ones with a large stone tied to the end, once everyone had taken one Bek came back in front of everyone.

“Alright, we will start with the basics, I must assess everyone's skill, so we will do a test fight with each of you...” that made everything suddenly tense up ”Don't worry more than a fight will be you attacking me, I will not return the blows, now, this is important, this will determine what kind of training you will be given, and we are in a bit of a hurry, if any of you are able to connect a single blow to my body, you will be promoted to brigade captain...”

They all looked at each other in disbelief, muttering to each other until Shining Armor interrupts.

“That's right, due to the fact that we need soldiers ready in as much time as possible, anyone who proves to be skilled enough will be promoted to the highest position and help train the others..”

“That being said who wants to go first?” asked Bek as from the ground he picked up one of the sticks that was about the size of his sword.

Everyone was silent, looking from side to side and looking down in embarrassment, not even Applejack and Rainbow wanted to step forward, not because they thought Bek would hurt them, they just didn't like the idea of being the first to bite the dust.

“I'll do it!” an excited voice was suddenly heard.

Once again everyone stepped back to reveal a pegasus, Applejack recognized her as one of the ones watching Bek train, her fur was a fiusha color, her black mane was shaved on the sides and painted red at the tips, her wings also had the outer feathers painted red and her Cutie Mark was an orange tornado.

“Well, you go ahead...”

“Bold Breeze!” suddenly exclaimed the pegasus, standing hurriedly in front of Bek, she held two small wooden sticks between her wings, extending the quickly and spinning them with great skill.

“Sure..very well, I want you to understand that we are training you to fight as a unit, it's not about...”

But there was no time to finish the sentence, the pegasus lunged at Bek, trying to hit her with the small wooden sticks as if she wanted to stab her, her attacks were fast, but Bek was only backing away calmly, staying out of the wood's reach.

“As I was saying...” he continued while blocking one of the pegasus' blows ”It's not about standing out above the others, of course if you possess exceptional skills you should use them to contribute as much as possible, but that doesn't mean you leave your companions behind...”

The pegasus rose into the air, taking one of the sticks in her mouth and attempted to lunge at Bek, the unicorn in response turned and buried her own stick in the ground, blocking the path of the lunge and causing the pegasus to have to swerve sharply, crashing to the ground and fouling herself with dirt.

“And while I greatly appreciate your enthusiasm pegasus, I think you're missing the point of the training...”

The pegasus stood up heavily, coughing lightly and wiping her face.

“Ugh, I thought the point of all this was to beat her to rank up...” she said as she turned away back to the crowd.

“It's about knowing if you have what it takes to fight, you for example, made a mistake ranging from your choice of weapons, you are a pegasus, fast but not very strong, risking attacking at close range compromises not only the integrity of your body and wings, if not it can also mean a broken defense against a siege, if you are pegasus don't forget, you must use weapons of, minimum, medium range, to ensure optimal use of your speed and flying ability... very well who's next?”

At that moment Applejack stepped forward and planted herself in front of Bek, they both looked at each other for a moment before the farm girl delivered a powerful blow with her stick, one that Bek blocked with her own, though this time the impact was so powerful that it caused both sticks to girdle Bek's body and push her slightly, Applejack stepped back thinking that perhaps she had overdone it with her strength, and despite the fact that yes, Bek looked sore from her shoulder, she rose again and continued speaking.

“Now, if you possess a particular ability that is unique, my job is to make those the best they can be, things like strength and stamina are good to have as a base, but if you don't know how to use them it's almost as bad as not having anything remarkable...” Bek motioned for the farm girl to continue and Applejack was quick to charge forward again.

This time Applejack's sweep was dodged as Bek leapt over the pole landing gracefully on the ground as the farmer once again made a huge sweep.

“It's not the same to kick and punch than to handle a colossal solid metal weapon, as crude as it may seem to use this kind of weapons the truth is that they require a minimum of control to be used, otherwise you'll just be a blind chicken with a sixty kilos paperweight, with an open defense and with too high risks of hitting one of your own companions...”

Applejack threw a few more punches, this time from the top down but no matter how much force she put in Bek would only move out of the way at the right moment, a couple of times she even hit the back of the farmer's neck gently with her own stick, in the end the pony decided to leave her for the sake of peace, moving away from the center of the circle sweating and panting.
The next one was Rainbow Dash who did not hesitate to start flying from the first moment, taking the elongated stick between her hooves and trying to hit the unicorn from different angles, this time Bek limited herself to give firm blocks without moving from her place, before this the pegasus increased more and more the speed trying to block her defense but without success.

“Nor is it about attacking without stopping, you must wait for your enemy to attack first, fighting is not a simple exchange of blows, it is a dance full of balance that allows you to connect with your opponent in a unique way, that it is a violent act or that it can even become life or death does not take away the importance of understanding that...”

Bek shifted her stance a bit and as she received Rainbow's next blow the pegasus' pole broke from the speed making her lose her balance and slamming on the brakes, more and more, the rest of the crowd stood with their mouths open, fascinated with the spectacle.

“Make no mistake, you must assume that your enemies will use any kind of trap or ruse to defeat you, they will fight without honor, without rules, but that is, where your discipline and your control comes in, your cunning and your ability to think fast, and more importantly, your ability to synchronize and affinity with your teammates...”

“That's pure garbage!” was heard again.

Quiet Trench emerged from the crowd with a furious look on his face, holding a stick about the same size as Bek's, the unicorn turned to face him, looking as closely as she could, she paid more attention to the wound on his foreleg, noticing that his cutie mark was all about a clump of barbed wire.

“You...you're one of the ones who survived the attack aren't you? Do you have a problem with my philosophy and teaching..?”

“Your corny crap isn't guaranteed to save any of our lives!” Abruptly interrupted the stallion, Bek didn't lose his cool and gave him a pitying look before replying.

“I didn't say my advice would save you from dying, I said it would prepare you for battle, in battle there is never a guarantee of anything...”

“Then what the fuck are we here for then?! If you can't even guarantee that we'll be victorious what's the point!” As angry as he sounded, it was obvious to everyone that the stallion was trying to fight back choked sobs and tears trying to well up in his eyes.

“Look kid...” said Bek letting out a sigh ”I won't be the one to tell you lies, the enemies we are going to fight are far more powerful than us, we are talking about two goddesses that have lived centuries and centuries, with a power so immeasurable that it made the very darkness itself retreat, against that...I can't even guarantee that there will be anything left of the world you know...”

Quiet Trench looked down devastated, there was no hope, this was complete madness and they would all end up dead, a thought that seemed to be shared by all present, but before the stallion could drown further in his despair, Bek continued.

“But, my companions and I were also capable of impossible feats, together we moved mountains and faced oceans, we fought hoof to hoof against horrors beyond comprehension and emerged victorious, we turned the tide of battle when all seemed lost and, although many brothers and sisters perished, we never surrendered...” At that moment Bek raised her voice to address everyone “So, this day I do not ask you to give me your loyalty or your blind obedience, today I only ask you to have courage, to be brave and stand together in the dark times ahead, so that even if we all die in battle, that courage will inspire someone else, someone who will undoubtedly rise up in the future to honor our sacrifice...!”

The unicorn walked in the direction of the stallion, stopping right in front of him, Quiet Trench looked up and saw the mare's stricken face before she spoke again.

“I...I am not a heroine, I am not an honorable warrior, I am not even a pony like you, I am only...an animal, who exceeded her termination date, I cannot promise you a victory, I can only prepare you with all I know and hope it will be enough against the unknown, I am very sorry I can only offer you that...”

Quiet Trench exchanged glances with Bek for a moment, Shining Armor watched dumbfounded, he didn't expect that, putting Bek in front, he would come clean like that, the whole crowd seemed moved, even Applejack and Rainbow were taken aback by the display of words.
The stallion then brushed away the few tears forming in his eyes, looked up getting firm and raised his wand over his shoulder.

“In that case, you will have from me what you need ma´am...”

Bek saw the determination in the stallion's eyes, turning to see it now reflected in the eyes of most, there was still doubt and fear, but they seemed to have been diluted after her speech, she finally returned her gaze to the pony in front of her and let out a heavy chuckle and sighed.

“Don't call me ma´am kid, I'm not that old...”

After that the day went on as normal, the training continued and despite the fact that none of the people present managed to connect a single hit on Bek, the mood seemed renewed and it was more than clear that the small group would meet again the next day.
Towards the end of the day, when Bek, Applejack and Rainbow were collecting the last of the sticks, the farmer spoke up.

“Bek, I thought you said you weren't good at teaching?”

“Yeah! That was twenty percent cooler!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash enthusiastically.

“I...I don't know what you girls are talking about...” began Bek as she laid on her back a large amount of sticks now subjects ”I just told you the truth, I didn't embellish anything and I was frank, any one of you could have done it.”

“Are you kidding me?!” asked the pegasus ”That was amazing what you did!”

“Rainbow's right, you inspired those ponies, better than any of us could have done it”

“Well, I just remembered the speeches that used to inspire me before a battle, the ones that filled my soul with hope and my body with strength...if any of the legion elders had been here, I assure you I had gotten the whole empire up in arms...”

The three mares stored the training material in the barracks, the dim light of dusk adorned the entire empire, a prelude to the darkness of the night, once calm, now striking fear in the hearts of the citizens, fearing that some other monstrosity would slip into the shadows and snatch another life.
When the three finished they stood outside enjoying the silence for a moment, Bek let out a wide sigh, feeling the pain return as the effect of the medicine faded again, gritting his teeth to keep from groaning, he cleared his throat and spoke.

“Well...I think it's time for me to start my night watch, I must make sure the guards have contingency measures ready in case of attack...”

“Oh uh...yeah, sure...we'll go back to the castle and...” Applejack stopped in mid-sentence, she admired Bek for a moment, she could notice how she lifted her left hind hoof slightly, avoiding supporting her weight and noticed her uneven breathing, she thought for a second before coming to a resolution “Hey, why don't you let us come with you?”

“Really?” said Bek after a brief pause.

“Yeah! It would be nice to start practicing to get your amazing ability to sleep only two hours a day, not to mention you could give us more lessons on fighting...”

“Uh, I don't know, I wouldn't want to compromise what could be one of your last peaceful nights...”

“You don't have to worry about that!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash ”I'm an expert at naps, if I end up too tired, I'm sure I'll be able to pull myself together during the day..”

“And also...” continued Applejack ”I think you could use the company...”

Bek thought about it, it wasn't a bad idea, after all, that pair of mares had already become her battle companions, the more she got to know them the better her performance in battle would be, besides, Applejack wasn't wrong, she would really enjoy their company a lot.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Shining Armor finally reached his room, to his surprise, the door was open, something he was grateful for as he was starting to get tired of sleeping in one of the guest rooms, besides, he missed his wife and daughter very much.
He entered cautiously and quietly, just in case they were already asleep, the room was dark, only illuminated by the dim night light of Flurry Heart, which moved and projected figures of dancing ponies on the walls and ceiling, he walked with extremely slow steps in the direction of his daughter's crib, The stallion couldn't help but smile at this, he felt a weight leave his shoulders and felt his body relax, after such a demanding day it had suddenly been completely worth it.

Shining bent down gently and placed a tender kiss on his baby's forehead, feeling the softness of her fur and her warmth, at that moment a very low whisper was heard behind him.

“Don't go waking her up...”

The stallion turned to find Cadance, sitting on his large bed, partially wrapped by the blankets, her face reflected exhaustion, with pronounced dark circles under her eyes and an unpleasant grimace, the two exchanged glances for a long moment, before Shining took a couple of steps forward, sitting on the edge of the bed and letting out a sigh.

“How are you...?”

“How do you think I am?”

“Yeah hehe...what a stupid question...”

There was a long pause.

“I don't agree with what you're doing to our kingdom...” said Cadance.

“And why not?”

“You're filling everyone with fear and doubt, I can feel the crystal heart weakening with each passing day...”

“And what was I supposed to do?” interrupted Shining ”You didn't do anything to help us...”

“And what were you supposed to expect me to do?”

“Talk to them, calm their fear, give them hope...”

“There is no hope Shining Haven't you been paying attention? We're all lost...”

Shining then fell silent, he realized that Cadance had already passed the denial phase and was now going through a surrender phase.

“You don't know that...”

“Oh please, don't be condescending, you know perfectly well it's the safest thing to do.”

“Maybe, but that doesn't mean we're giving up, we have to fight...”

“Fight what?” there was a faint tone of desperation in the mare's voice.

“Uh I...” Shining couldn't answer.

“See, even you haven't fully accepted it...”

“Well, even though you're still processing it doesn't mean you're not in the process of accepting it, I'm trying to hold my ground while I finish understanding it...”

“What is there to understand? It's about dethroning Celestia and Luna, the mare who raised me and her sister...” Cadance began to cry silently.

Shining was quiet for a moment, hesitating if he should reach out to comfort his wife.

“I...I just...I can't believe it, even when I've seen it with my own eyes I can't believe it...” Cadance covered her face with her hooves as her tousled mane fell forward.

“Me neither...” said Shining finally, making Cadance look at him ”She was my sister's mentor, practically her second mother, she guided her to become the great pony she is now, damn if it wasn't for her you and I wouldn't have even met...and yet, she threatened Twilight and Spike to death, locked Bek in a dungeon, kidnapped Fluttershy and...there are mountains of corpses buried under her old castle...”

“And then there are the memories of Sunburst and that deranged mare...” began Cadance ”Those damned memories...of a world that shouldn't exist, an impossible world, capable of boundless cruelty and evil...”

“It's hard to stay hoof-crossed with evidence like that...”

They both looked directly into each other's eyes, losing themselves in their gazes and, from one moment to the next, the two melted in a very tight embrace, giving each other a deep kiss while they both cried and let themselves fall on the bed, this lasted several minutes, they just stayed in silence, hugged between the sheets, Cadance with her head against Shining's chest while he clung to her, finally, and once they managed to find the perfect position, the princess of love whispered again.

“I don't know how to fix this Shining, I just don't know what to do...”

“I don't know either, I don't think there's anything in particular we can do...”

“But, we are the guardians of the north, our job is to keep our subjects safe and at peace, starting a war goes against everything we swore to when we took the throne...”

“I know... I never in all my life believed that I would have to initiate a war against my own species, I always believed that, whatever the threat, even if it was horrible, at least I would have the certainty that it would come from outside, from unknown and malevolent lands, not from the very home where I was born and raised.... but, if we don't do this, if we refuse to act, it is likely that this ancestral evil that has accompanied us since always will only continue to grow and but even, it may even drop its facade of kindness and harmony, showing its true nature and causing suffering and pain...”

“But what if that evil no longer exists? What if they really did change and this is all just a big misunderstanding?”

“There's no way to know, even so do you really want to take the risk? Even though everything could be at stake?”

Cadance didn't answer.

“Look I love you, you and Flurry more than anything, I wouldn't forgive myself if because of my lack of actions something bad happened to them, I must take whatever precautions are necessary if it means being able to keep them safe and also being able to keep our people safe...”

Silence again, a long one, for a moment Shining thought his wife had finally fallen asleep, but was startled slightly when Cadance spoke again.

“Then I guess, as a princess of love, my duty is to defend all that I love...”

Shining couldn't help but smile, bending down to kiss her beloved on the forehead, which elicited a quiet sigh from the alicorn.

“I think I'll have to make a few apologies before anything else...” spoke Cadance again.

“Yes, I'm sure certain ponies appreciate it...” Shining let out a chuckle before settling back on the bed, hugging his wife wider and covering himself with the sheets.

Both ponies kissed and cuddled at length, until they finally fell asleep, resting peacefully as the lights in the room continued to spin and little Flurry Heart settled into her crib.