Brother's Lament

Chapter 17: The Grand Galloping Gala

One thousand Years ago

Snow fell from sky blanketing the land in a white sheet, Trenches lined the land with a few hundred yards of ‘no ponies land’ in between it was nearing Hearth warming day as the eve approached, Warsong stood in the trenches looking towards the Lunar Republic lines. The war would have been an easy win for many ponies remained with the Solar Empire but Nightmare moon attracted an ancient and long forgotten race of Nega-ponies, the polar opposite of Ponykind. They could not stand the light and remained nocturnal with reptilian eyes, sharp teeth, tufted ears and bat like wings for the Negasus. They worshipped Nightmare moon as their moon goddess and supported her eternal night idea.

This made fighting a bit harder, since it tripled the Lunar Republic numbers and the fact they still repelled attacks during the day by wearing protective clothing from the sun and the ferocity of the Nega-ponies dwarfed the fighting spirit of the Solar Empire soldiers.

Some of Warsong’s stallions erected a Hearth Warming tree in a small alcove they built into the trench system, they sat around it now giving each other gifts, and mostly just rations while they all received gifts from family back home.

A young Earth pony galloped at full speed up to Warsong, panting from the run through the trenches “General Sir you should come look at this!” Warsong followed after the soldier to the front line of the trenches where a skeleton crew of soldiers guarded against any potential attacks, stepping up to the front line and looking past ‘No Ponies Land’ towards the Lunar Republic trenches he began hearing Hearth Warming carols being sung a dim blur of lights that seemed to form into a tree to they had too erected a Hearth Warming tree, it wasn’t until he began seeing a small trail of candle lights they marked a small procession of Lunar Republic soldiers making their way towards their lines when Warsong ordered a stand-down.

The General of the Solar Empire stepped over the Trench into No Ponies land, followed closely by some of the more curious soldiers; they met the Lunar Republic soldiers half way to their trenches to see they were led by their leader for this region, a Negasus with colonel insignia on his armour “Comrade General it is honour to vinally meet you vace to vace” The Negasus spoke with a strange foreign accent that could be related closely with ponies from Stalliongrad.

Warsong frowned at the smaller pony “I don’t believe we are comrades Colonel, but it is likewise in meeting you” The Negasus shook his head “Ve are comrades in zis time of celebration, ve Nega-ponies may be separate from regular ponies but ve have similar holidays. Ve simply vish to ask for a twenty vour hour temporary truce?” Warsong nodded towards the Colonel before looking at one of his subordinates “Go gather the Stallions, we’ll turn No Ponies land into Everyponies land” The Negasus smiled up at Warsong “Unicorn humility, I didn’t vink zomzing like zat existed” The Solar Empire General shook his head “It normally doesn’t, we’ll set up a big tree and celebrate with some carols, how does playing some hoofball later sound?” The Negasus Colonel simply smiled, ruffling his bat like wings “Ve zay bring it on”

***

One Thousand Years later

“Warsong!” yelled a voice to break the ancient warrior from his daze as memory of the war seemed to blur once more, shaking his head slightly he looked down at his student .

“What is it?” Bass Rhythm was frowning up at him as they stood in the foyer of the Canterlot palace as the guests began to arrive for the Grand Galloping Gala.

“No it’s just your eyes glazed over like you were asleep with your eyes open” They both wore their best suits, Warsong wore a black suit with red shirt and black tie, he had let his mane grow during the twenty six weeks he’s been awake and his mane had grown much longer since his suit was hand tailored by Darling Rose who was to be his date to the Grand Galloping Gala.

Bass Rhythm wore a different suit tailored to his new muscular figure, the jacket was black with a Navy blue shirt and a silver tie, he even wore different spectacles though the only difference being that the lenses were tinted dark blue and shone in the light of the foyer making his eyes look blue rather than light green, he was told by Celestia that Luna would not be joining them tonight which disappointed the unicorn but decided to only show his face tonight before going up to spend time with the princess.

Lowering his spectacles to get a good look at the mares entering the foyer to be greeted by Celestia, he recognised several of the Lunar guard who were not in active service yet until tomorrow after the event spotting the Lunar Four shocked to see Grass Blade attending as Cross winds date while Heavy Hammer seemed to have the yellow Earth mare Selly as his date, Lightning flicker walked with a red Mare who looked like she belonged on the cat walk as a model which caused Bass Rhythm to raise an eyebrow, gesturing them over to him they gladly went to meet their captain.

“It’s good to see you guys, though I never expected Cross Wind to get Grass Blades attention” The foreign mare lowered her gaze as a light blush came to get face.

“I was the one who asked Cross Wind here. Hammer asked Selly whose a friend of Cross and Flicker and much to Hammer’s dismay Flicker asked his sister Slender Hammer” Warsong and Bass both raised eyebrows when they looked at Hammer then at his sister Bass Rhythm frowned.

“I can’t see the family resemblance…” Warsong simply smirked “I can, in any case enjoy the evening” The Lunar four and their dates bowed before walked back to the stairs to be greeted by Celestia herself.

“Warsong?” Came a gentle voice with a Prance accent spotting Darling Rose make her way over to Warsong, she wore a dress of beautiful design that seemed to reflect the fashion of Warsongs time, leaving the fore shoulder bare while it wrapped around her entire body, a delicate chain of gold woven in her hair, the colours reflected Warsongs suit with black and red “It’s good to see you Darling Rose, Bass I’ll see you later” Rose greeted Bass quickly before she and Warsong left the Stallion alone, sighing softly he looked towards the door, his ear perking up at the sound of singing as fireworks started to explode above

“Oh dear…I know those voices, I should go before I’m dragged into the song” He trotted briskly nodding towards Celestia as he passed, rounding the corner towards the Midnight wing he found his long sword awaiting him against the wall remembering Luna’s words ‘She wishes to be at your side’ attaching the blade to his waist he made his way towards the Princess of the night’s quarters, knocking on the door he was greeted by a voice in distress “If that is Bass Rhythm we do not wish to speak with thee yet, please go enjoy the Gala until we call upon thee” Bass frowned deeply looking down at his waist towards the blade that reflected Luna’s desires and mood, the fact that it wanted to be at his side told him of Luna’s desire to be with him but the fact she’s pushing him away right now confused the unicorn.

“Alright well…I’ll be back later…Though they’re breaking into song outside, I’d rather not get caught up in it, but I’ll go” he stepped away from the room looking down at his sword at his wait in confusion before raising an eyebrow looking at the large double doors that led to Luna, he simply shrugged before singing a little song to himself under his breath “I know you want me, you know I want cha”

***

Bass Rhythm had stepped back down from the midnight wing several of the guests stared nervously at the sword at his waist before they recognised him as the pony who lost gracefully to Prince Blueblood and became the Captain of the Lunar Guard many whispers followed after him, the stallions ears perked and flicked hearing the whispers that followed in his wake.

He clenched his teeth before arriving at the VIP area approaching the bouncer who stood in his way “No weapons allowed in the VIP area” Bass Rhythm rolled his eyes “She’s just going to follow me, I can’t explain it.” The bouncer frowned in reply before Bass sighed and lifted the left side collar of his jacket to show a small chrome badge of Luna’s Coat of arms showing proof of him being a Captain of the guard.

The bouncer moved out of the way quickly recognising the badge. “I apologise for the holdup sir.”  Bass shook his head before walking past “Think nothing of it.” Looking over his shoulder he noticed a wonderbolt approaching with a pie in his mouth recognising Soarin’ and a second wonderbolt which he recognised as Spitfire  he turned his attention away just as Soarin’ began speaking to Spitfire not noticing a rainbow maned Pegasus diving for the falling pie.

He yawned at the less than lively party around him as he took a seat at the table reserved for the Royal guard hierarchy however several of the Wonderbolts were mixed among the VIP tables “Darn I could use a cig right now…” he grumbled to himself before a couple of nobles joined him at the table their seats being reserved for them

“Good Evening Captain Rhythm” spoke the stallion of the couple he wore a white tuxedo with a blue bow tie, he had purple mane and a cyan blue coat, his wife had a white mane and purple coat, her dress represented the newest fashion of Canterlot “Good Evening Noble Shield and Lady Turquoise Bloom, how is the mining industry?” The mare giggled in a posh manner “Blooming as usual” Bass Rhythm smiled though the emotion never touched his eyes; luckily it was behind his spectacles so the nobles wouldn’t notice his smile was false.

“Are you enjoying tonight’s festivities” Noble Shield asked curiously Bass Rhythm kept his smile to hide his boredom “Yes of course, this is my first time to the Gala however.” Lady Bloom’s tail flicked slightly causing her dress to shuffle slightly from the movement “In my honest opinion it’s even more boring than it was last time, myself and Shield don’t usually come to the Gala unless my husband has business to do here with clients, otherwise we spend our time down at the local pub” This statement from the lady caused a sudden rise in Bass Rhythms eyebrow “That was a…Surprising statement what changed your minds to come here tonight then?” Noble Shield smiled as he adjusted his bow tie “Why the return of the stallion that stood up to Prince Blueblood from his training of course, we were hoping to meet you and tell you we and several nobles were rooting for you all the way. How is the scar?”

Bass Rhythm lifted his sleeve to show them the scar that had healed but left a slight discolouration on his fur in the shape of the original wound the couple leaned forwards intrigued by the scar before Bass lowered the sleeve once more Turquoise Bloom frowned suddenly  “What about the wound across your chest? It looked pretty bad when you collapsed.”  Bass Rhythm shook his head “It didn’t leave a scar but I can still feel where it cut, going from a lying to a sitting up position…It’s a very painful experience” Bass Rhythm rubbed a hoof gently across his chest before he felt a cool sensation against his brain hearing Luna’s voice call to him “I…Have to go, duty calls” he bowed his head respectfully to the noble couple before he left, trotting out of the VIP area, spotting a very familiar cotton candy pink pony singing a song of ‘Pony Pokey’.

***

Making his way to the Midnight wing once more he felt a strange sensation against his waist, looking down at his blade it seemed to be vibrating slightly gaining strength as he approached the room, pushing the door open his blue lensed spectacled glowed slightly in the shadows looking over the dark interior of the room that was illuminated only be several lit candles, stepping inside the door closed behind him, the curtains of Luna’s bed were pulled around to hide anything inside the radio turned on and began to play a long song, causing Bass Rhythms eyebrow to raise “Have a drink” came Luna’s voice as it echoed around him, he looked at the table that held a silver platter with a bottle of fifty year old wine with a full glass just for him, picking it up in his magic he took a testing taste closing his eyes at the taste of the aged wine < 0:45 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4\_M5PcJQmU>

“Like honey…” He whispered before his nose caught a certain scent that spoke to the deepest instincts inside his mind “A mare going through heat…” his eyes moved to the bed instantly as the curtains around the bed pulled apart to show Luna seated at the head of the bed with her eyes placed upon Bass Rhythm with a gaze that didn’t hold just her heat fuelled lust but also the love for the stallion, she wore socks over her hooves along with an unusual sight of a pair of underwear on her lower body which caused Bass Rhythms eyebrow to raise “Come hither” spoke the princess of the night Bass couldn’t help but smirk as he made his way towards the bed, undoing his silver tie while singing a little song “I know you want me, you know I want cha”

***

Warsong had changed his body to be that of a normal sized stallion so not to gather too much attention, he sighed gently as he watched Bass Rhythm leave after a conversation with a couple of nobles, he had been in conversation with Darling rose having been on some dates with her over the past three months only having revealed his tall form a few weeks ago to which she reacted very acceptingly loving the idea of him being ‘Tall, dark and handsome’

Warsong’s ear perked up noticing music similar to Bass Rhythms beginning to play “What in the name of?” he wondered looking towards the stage seeing a pink pony behind a turn table before dashing around in the crowd Darling Rose frowned “What is it Warsong?” The ancient warrior looked towards his date with a look of concern “My gut tells me something bad is about to happen.”

The mare continued to frown, before looking towards the door where a blonde earth pony began trotting in with a large cake turning her attention to the stage diving pink mare “I believe you are correct” Warsong took a step forwards, his horn beginning to glow to stop the cake that was suddenly sent flying when the Pink mare hit the cart it was sitting on before spotting it’s trajectory to fall upon Prince Blueblood. His magic dissipated as a smirk came to his face allowing the cake to fall towards him but the white stallion suddenly pushed a young white unicorn mare in front of him to take the full force of the cake “Oh dear…” muttered Darling Rose as she gasped, Warsong had a look of embarrassment knowing he could have stopped it but didn’t.

The Purple maned mare turned on Blue blood a look of pure rage on her features as her white coat seemed to become red in the face walking towards Blueblood who backed away in fear of the cake covered mare “You sir are the most uncharming prince I have ever met! In fact the only thing royal about you is that you are a royal pain!” Warsong couldn’t help but smile at the scene “I like her attitude…” he whispered to Darling rose who giggled softly

“Eww! Stay back! I just had myself groomed!” cried Prince Blueblood, the young mare simply replied “Afraid to get dirty!?” before shaking herself, sending the contents of the cake all over Blueblood sending him roiling backwards before crashing into the pedestal of a statue causing it to begin falling over “Ok parties over” Warsong mumbled before his horn glowed once more with red energy but a sudden rush of wind and a rainbow coloured blur broke his concentration a cyan Pegasus with a rainbow mane catching the statue before it fell on anypony but she suddenly began losing her balance causing the statue to hit a column sending it crashing into others causing them to crash to the ground, the statue itself breaking in half off of the Pegasi’s back.

By now Princess Celestia and her student entered into the door way, Warsong looked towards Celestia with a sigh “I’m surprised Discord hasn’t awoken from all this chaos…” he whispered to himself before the ground began to rumble the doors to the gardens outside breaking open suddenly as scared animals stampeded into the room followed by a butter coloured Pegasus Mare “You’re going to LOVE ME!” echoes of the Royal Canterlot voice could be heard by her statement, Warsong looked towards her “She must be a descendant to Sky Flicker…Master of the voice…Who took an arrow to the knee...” he thought to himself just as the crowd began to panic hearing a sharp whistle over the chaos seeing six mares including the butter coloured Pegasus fleeing with them Warsong looked towards Darling rose before changing back to his full height “Let’s go!” he galloped past Celestia nodding towards her “I’ll be back just now” he called to her before he charged to a clear area in the foyer out of the sea of panicking ponies “Well this has been interesting, shame my nephew missed it.”