Shadowmere

The train continued to rumble along the tracks, plowing through any Daedra foolish enough to stand in its way.

The survivors of the Battle of Canterlot were in various states of disarray throughout the train, some passed out on the floor from wounds or battle fatigue while the few unicorn medics that had survived raced up and down the train, desperately trying to keep as many of the wounded alive as possible.

Others lounged around in the carriages, playing blackjack or poker while they bandaged their wounds. More leaned against walls, swapping stories of the battle or mourning for lost comrades in arms.

Some rubbed wounds with hastily made bandages to clean them. A few who had survived relatively intact watched the countryside from the windows of the carridges, alert for any signs of Daedra.

Nightwing, captain of the Night Guard, was lying on a padded bench, silently sobbing.

"I didn't expect war to be like this. The Day Guard said it was just knocking your foe out, giving them a bloody hoof. Not actually killing ponies for proper." He hung his head to his hooves as he recalled all the good stallions he had lost today.

He wasn't to know that this was the first time Equestria had been subject to total war, with no quarter given by either side.

He heard the sound of the door opening and looked up to find Katana, the highest ranking survivor of the Day Guard and a veteran of many battles, walking in and coughing.

"First battle, Commander?" Katana asked.

Nightwing nodded.

"Mourning for all your lost comrades? For Canterlot?"

Nightwing nodded again.

"It happens to the best soldiers. The first time they see battle, some snap and run. Others remain and do their duty. It shows you what you're made of. And not to snap in that battle... Congratulations to you, Commander." Katana coughed again, more violently this time.

"For what, Katana?" Nightwing said quietly as he looked at the white pegasus, some parts of his gleaming white coat still stained with Daedric blood and his armour thoroughly ruined. "For not breaking? Or for killing hundreds of ponies that could have survived if I didn't try to be a hero by holding the city?"

"For not snapping. That had to be one of the most brutal battles in Equestrian history, if not the most brutal. You kept your cool Commander, and without us staying behind, the evacuee columns would have been overrun."

Nightwing let a hint of a smile touch his now scarred face after a bad fight against a Spider Daedra. "You're not the one that's going to have to tell the Princess her Spymaster's dead. Are you alright?"

"Shadowmere'll be back. And I'm fine."

"You didn't see him get swarmed by all those Daedra. Nopony could survive that."

"He'll be back. Trust me. Unless you see somepony actually go down properly, they are M.I.A, not K.I.A."

"Besides," Katana shrugged his armour off, letting it clatter to the ground before he sat down beside Nightwing, still coughing. Nightwing could have sworn he saw a few specks of blood in it. "He struck me as the type of pony to simply shrug off something like that. You need to be strong for your troops, Nightwing. Something tells me that this won't be the last we see of those Daedra."

"You're right." Nightwing got to his hooves. "If I'm not strong, who will be?" Nightwing walked out of the carriage, leaving Katana to his own devices.

The battered white Pegasus smiled to himself. "We could do with more ponies like him." He began to violently cough up blood, the spasms causing a old, unhealed wound his side to break open once more. As his life left him, Katana smiled. "I had a good flight in life. Now it's time for some well earned R&R."

Nightwing walked towards the front of the train, contemplating what he would tell the Princesses about Shadowmere. Nightwing had counted him as a friend and comrade for the short time he had known him. He was also quite possibly the only source of knowledge that Equestria had on the Daedra.

As he walked down through the carriages, he received nods from his stallions, some in acknowledgement, others in respect for the Commander that had led them alive out of the bloodiest and most brutal battle in Equestrian history.

Nightwing nodded back and he eventually found Iron Wheel at the front, driving the train.

"Captain."

"How long until we arrive at Ponyville, Iron Wheel?"

"About five minutes or so. Worried about what you'll tell the Princesses?"

"Yeah." Nightwing admitted.

"Don't worry laddie. There's always worse news to tell them."

"Like what?"

"We could all be dead, for one. And you won the kill count contest."

Nightwing sighed. "No, Shadowmere won. That big black brute of a pony won't go down that easily."

Iron Wheel chuckled. "Somethin tells me that isn't the last we've seen of 'im either."

Nightwing continued to stare ahead into the gloom, trying to put his thoughts straight and hoping Ponyville wasn't already under attack by the Daedra. His stallions could use about two months worth of R&R.

The door to the engine and one of the Night Guard walked out into the drivers compartment.

"Five more stallions have died because of their wounds, including Katana."

"What?" Nightwing turned to the guardspony. "I was talking to him a few minutes ago, and he was fine!"

"The battle reopened a old wound and he bled out before any of our few medics could save him."

The guard turned and wandered back into the carridge, presumably to continue a game of blackjack or poker.

Nightwing rested his head on the rail. "Can anypony die, no matter their rank, age or experience? Does it really matter what we do, if it can all be ended with a simple spear thrust?"

"Calm down laddie. Your life will always mean somethin to somepony somewhere. No need to go philosophical and give me old brain a headache."