//------------------------------// // Cold Mourning // Story: The Veins Run Deeper // by Thunderblast //------------------------------// "Bloodvein?!" The mare gasped, gradually standing from where she sat in the crowded car. She moved up to Night slowly. "Actually, it's... Night Shadow now," he weakly smiled. "I went with the name you and Specter gave me." Glitter softly smiled up at the now-grown pony. "And here I believed we would never cross paths again." "And what a day for that to happen," Specter chuckled softly. "I see you've made rank. How long did that take?" "Not very long, actually," Night smiled still. "It was quite the promotion." "So I see," Specter nodded once. "Thank you for saving us, Night Shadow." "Please, just call me Night." "Thank you, Night. Had you not pulled us on board, neither of us would have made it," Specter gently scratched up his arm. "Without Night, none of us would be here," Skywatcher added. He looped a dusty hoof around Night's neck, smiling. "I wouldn't normally take credit, but, it is true. Then again, none of us would have seen the second blast coming without the Governor's warning," Night stated. "Hey, speaking of which," Midnight stepped up to them. "Where is the Governor? Nopony has seen him." Night and Sky's smiles faded, the mood immediately returning to that of melancholy and grim of the reality of the situation. Both knew that even if the pyroclastic cloud hadn't reached the upper city, survival after the fact was still far too unlikely. But in all reality, he was not the only one. Many wouldn't make it. Many did not make it. Night knew that after discovering the buried corpses before leaving. This was far worse than the cave flooding when he was a colt. There was no more denial in that. As the train exited another tunnel, leaving behind clouds of dust as the wind whisked away the ash that covered the roofs of the cars, Canterlot became visible on a nearby mountainside, gleaming in the early-evening sunshine—and nopony on board could have been more happier to see it. *** Royal guards sat in position at the train depot, accompanied by numerous medic guards and nurses from the local medical center. The worst case scenario was that every pony on the train would need serious medical attention, which would leave them far overwhelmed. In the castle nearby, a refugee center was being set up in the ballroom, full of cots, sleeping bags, mattresses, and even hospital beds brought in from the Guard medic's station with the proper equipment set up nearby. The near-greyed out train screeched to a halt for possibly the last time, guards rushing up and prying the doors open, having been somewhat locked shut by the intense heat it endured. Stepping back, the guards pulled bat pony after bat pony off of the train, families reuniting and filing in as they were brought inside the station building, where more guards awaited. To them, the cold autumn air was a tremendous relief after just hours ago being practically standing in a massive furnace enveloping the city. Some disembarked, leaning down and pressing their lips to the concrete platform, planting soft kisses and thanking the stars above for their safe arrival. Last off of the train were Night Shadow, Thunderblast, and Skywatcher. Midnight and Dawn were taken out just prior when Dawn had begun coughing heavily, nearly to the point where she was choking. They stopped to look around them at the ensuing chaos as thestrals bawled into their hooves or another's shoulder, guards attempting to calm the hysterical ones, and the injured lay on stretchers, some slowly dying. "The day's not over yet," Night exhaled deeply. "Dad, go with Mom and Dawn." "Are you sure, son?" Sky turned to the smaller stallion slowly. He knew if Night had not gone now, it would be hours, possibly days before he would be able to see them again in the mix of everything occurring at the moment. "We all have things to do. I just would like for you to stay with them, I will catch up as soon as I can." Sky nodded once, pulling Night into a final tight embrace. "Alright. I will see you later, Night." "Likewise," Night returned the hug, then pressed his hoof to his father's chest, nodding once right back. With a final glance, Skywatcher floated over to Midnight and Dawn, Dawn being laid carefully down on a stretcher by two paramedics who prepared to take her by carriage to the hospital, along with many others. Panning around some more, Night noted Rescue Sunstreak kneeling to a bat pony stallion and wrapping his injured hoof in some field bandage, inaudibly speaking to him above the chatter around him. "So..." Thunderblast began, glancing down to his hooves briefly. "What are you going to do now?" Night stared forth, then slowly shook his head after a few more moments. His ears pinned back. "I don't know." Thunder shifted to look forward with him. "Frankly, I don't either." Night nodded slowly, then motioned his hoof for them to help the other guards and medics. *** It was not until just past two in the morning when Night and Thunder could, at last, go home. Both were beyond exhausted, almost to the point where they could simply collapse on any surface and be asleep within seconds. Night entered his quarters, striding toward his bed with slightly blurred vision and bloodshot eyes, kicking off his armor and stopping. He desperately needed a shower he realized as he scanned over his grim, spectral appearance thanks to the soot that covered him. A quick shower would do, he thought. Part of him hoped it would not turn out worse than he hoped, knowing what ash could do to a pony's lungs when introduced to any type of moisture. He let out a hard cough, some of the dust floating down to the floor at his hooves from the jolting of his body. Night reached into the shower and started the warm water, waiting a few seconds for it to heat up before stepping in, soaking beneath the water and easing his aching muscles. The soot covering primarily his back and also the rest of his body turned to thick, rocky lumps that became rather tricky to remove from his thick coat, turning the shower into a long bathing session that lasted at least a half an hour, before finally, his body was clean, and he could breathe normally once more. Even with himself free of ash, his body continued to tremble, and his heart pumped quickly in his chest. His breathing was gentle and slow, yet he could not get his heart to stop beating as fast as it was. Night strode with continuing strain from all over to his bed, weakly crawling on top and simply dropping in place, one hoof hanging off the edge. He no longer cared about covering himself up or settling into a proper position. He just wanted to sleep. *** An ocean of ponies stood throughout the palace courtyard, in their hooves and held up to almost eye-level sat basic white candles, a gentle flame flickering about as a gentle shower of snow came down from the sky. The darkest of clouds blocked away much of the sunlight, signalling an approaching storm. The breeze itself was plenty enough warning, albeit no pony around Canterlot minded at the moment. Now was the time for memorial, a time to mourn for the bat ponies who they once neglected and ignored, now taking them in as if they were family. Night stood in center of the crowd, out of uniform with only a purple-striped scarf around his neck and the candle in his hoof, his mother, sister, and father on either side of him with their own candles, all with their eyes closed and muzzles down. They all held each other close, truly thankful to be alive following yet another tough week of recovery. A light ignited above the crowd, formed by pure magic as Princess Celestia lit her own candle flame that surrounded itself with golden light, much similar to the sun's rays. In the cold, it provided much-needed warmth. In their hearts, it provided comfort and assurance to the once more-relocated colony that Equestria will not leave them behind again. The group held each other a little bit tighter, some tears being shed collectively, even from Skywatcher in the moment. Over top all of the hard emotion, however, the crowd remained primarily quiet, aside from the occasional shifting of hooves. It wasn't just Canterlot, though. The whole country had paused—as if time had completely frozen around every pony and everything, even if it truly had not. Canterlot to Ponyville, to Appleloosa, Los Pegasus, San Prancisco, Mareami, Manehattan, all the way up to Gander Cove and the Crystal Empire, all taking time to join in on the massive moment of silence. Of course, elsewhere, the memorial was far shorter than in Canterlot, but respects were given nationwide. To the tens of survivors who escaped the catastrophe before the worst could happen, it was truly outstanding to know in the worst of times, ponies from all over would come together to help each other out. This was the true magic of friendship, a message the newly-coronated Princess Twilight has been trying to spread for almost a year now. The times were most certainly different now. *** Walking down the corridor of the Zodiac wing, Night Shadow then stopped at the door of the meeting room and opened it, being tailed by Zipline who had a look of concern. He froze at the door, one ear falling back and observing the Captain set down some semi-full folders of reports down on the table. "I'm sorry, Night," he said, sighing. While it was far out of uniform, now was most certainly the time to show his friend side. "Thank you, Zip," Night replied lowly, laying the folders out while he stood between two chairs, opening each individual one and flipping quickly through the paperwork to ensure they were sorted out. "Are you sure you want to be here?" Zipline asked with some worry. "Here is home. Here is where my family is now. I still have a duty to perform for Equestria. I appreciate your concern, but I will not be going anywhere for the time being," Night stated, giving a glance to the white pegasus. Zipline nodded once, eyes moving down a bit. "If you say so. Just don't work yourself to death, you hear?" "I can't guarantee it. Besides, I survived breathing toxic air for a whole day. This certainly will not kill me." The white pegasus nodded once more, resting a hoof on the edge of the door. "One other thing, too. Paladin Redflare and Princess Luna wish to see you." Night turned to him with an eyebrow raised. "Both of them? At the same time?" Zipline shook his head. "Individually." Night nodded, easing up a bit. The thought of those two ponies together, hoping to have a word with him at once, was beyond ludicrous. Neither associated with each other, so it would make little sense for them to ask for a meeting. "I'll see Luna first," he answered. *** With a soft click of the door knob twisting and the door creaking quietly as it opened, in peeked Night's head as he scanned around for the lunar matriarch who had requested his presence. "Luna?" He called out, further entering the shaded room slowly. Just barely beyond the door, it creaked shut behind him as if in a magical grip, but it wasn't. The door closing startled Night slightly, causing him to snap his gaze back at it. The princess was not happy, not one bit. The vibes her room gave him spoke many words, as well as the door slamming shut behind him. Advancing into the room, Night glanced around for the alicorn mare, only guessing as to where she might be the longer he searched. "Luuuunaaaaa?" Night called again, pausing when his ear swiveled, catching a light scuffle from nearby. Upstairs. He slowly and quietly made his way to the staircase and up to her observatory tower, stopping when he saw nopony there. Night heard another noise, coming back down the stairs, ears slightly back as he tried to think of where the noise was coming from— A door. A secret passage. Every princess had one built into the palace, mainly for emergencies. Knowing Luna, she would turn hers into another part of her quarters. Halfway down the poorly lit staircase, Night stopped as his ear swiveled, turning to his right. He lifted his hooves up, feeling the wall with them carefully until there was a noise of a lock opening, the section of wall just barely the width of a normal pony and the height of an alicorn pressed inward, splitting in half and sliding into the walls. Night's eyes widened, having not actually expected this to work. He stepped hoof into the shaded room, finding it to be much more of a relaxation room with bookshelves on two of the walls from just above the floor to the ceiling, the third having a gorgeous stone and wrought iron fireplace, and the fourth having a couple of small cupboards and a mini refrigerator, likely for snacks. Facing away from the door sat a dark red chair, the tip of Luna's horn just hardly visible atop it. Night approached carefully, his shadow growing to his right as he passed the gentle crackling fire to his left. "Luna, you could have told me you were in here," Night began. "Thou art an intelligent pony, Night Shadow. Thou solved the riddle with little issue and found us in here," Luna replied, still facing away. "Riddle?" Night's brow raised. "What riddle? I simply remembered your safe room. I'm surprised I even found it." "We should have shown thou earlier, and we sincerely apologize." "...Luna, why are you talking like this?" Night grunted softly. Her form of speech determined her mood most of the time, he'd come to learn in recent years. The dark blue regal alicorn rose from her chair, moving around it to face Night and staring in silence with a rather emotionless expression. She blinked slowly. "Princess?" Night asked again. "Yes, Night?" "What's wrong?" Luna blinked slowly again, before her chin lowered slightly. She took a couple of small steps toward Night. "I feared for two whole days that I would never meet you again," she began. "I feared that was the last time we would see each other." The dark blue alicorn now stood inches from Night. He looked up at her quietly. "Night, you need to stop running into danger like this. There very well may be one instance where you will not make it home." "Princess, I—" Luna glared at him. "Luna..." He restarted. "I did what I had to do. Not as a guard, either." "You endangered yourself and Lieutenant Thunderblast for the third time your career, Night. I understand your reasoning, but have you possibly considered losing your life in the long term?" "There's many guards out there that could be some sort of replacem—" "I am not talking about Equestria. I am talking about us," Luna cut in sternly. Night went quiet, recoiling slightly with widened irises. "Us?" Luna levitated a pair of cushy pillows from a small pile near the bookshelves, bringing them to her and Night. The two rested themselves on the pillows carefully. "I have lost many captains in the past. My sister has, too. For you to be killed in recent events would be devastating to everypony. Worse yet," she sighed, pausing and closing her eyes. "Do you promise to not be offended?" Night's brow raised, and he slowly nodded. "I try to not become too attached to guards, especially my own, knowing I will far outlive them. This is to avoid much emotional distress. It is a cycle, and it will return when it is your time, which I pray to the heavens will not be for decades to come." "What are you saying, Luna? Are you saying you don't want to be friends anymore?" Night kept an eyebrow raised. The thought stung in his heart, despite his contained outward appearance. "Goodness, no, Night," Luna replied, sighing. "Look. I understand your duty is to protect others. It is part of mine, as well. I simply wish for you to understand that it may not always be worth running face first into danger. Do you hear me?" Night nodded after a pause. "Yes, Luna. I hear you." "Good," she nodded. "Alas, what you did was heroic. Above and beyond the call of duty. Yet, no appreciation from your fellow ponies?" "I've received a few 'thank yous'. Many of them don't know what happened. It was too chaotic. They believe the Governor saved them by sacrificing himself, though." "What role did he play in the evacuation?" Luna questioned. "No role. He believed it would be best if everypony remained put to wait out the event. What he did was not a sacrifice, it was suicide! Despite his beliefs, he would have gotten every pony killed in just a few hours time," Night sighed and glanced down to his hooves. "I know well it is ill to speak of the deceased, but the story they have been told is far from truthful, Luna," his eyes moved back up to the alicorn mare seated before him. Luna bobbed her head in an understanding nod gently. "Considering you are the one to lead in the mass exodus, I shall take your word for it." "But even then," Night had a chill run up his spine, rubbing a hoof on his lower shoulder with his teeth slightly showing, grit together as he winced. "Twenty-five others... twenty-five ponies who didn't make it. Twenty of them did not even make it to Canterlot, or the train for that matter." "How is your family handling?" Luna asked, levitating some drink glasses to them and a tall, dark bottle. "Better, for the most part. My sister needed a type of surgery where a tiny tube is lowered into her lung to liquefy a blockage and vacuum it out so she can breathe properly. She inhaled enough dust that it could have very well killed her over time." "And what about your mother and father?" Luna continued, pouring some wine into the glasses with her magic, eying Night carefully. "Mom is still grieving, Dad is still mourning. A good portion of those lost were Legion soldiers, most of which were under his command," Night answered, eyes briefly flicking to the glasses. "I can imagine that is extremely hard for him, to lose not one, but numerous of his own ponies he swore to protect. Worse yet, this is not war they were lost in." "He's tough. Hell, he took a spear to the chest that impaled him and survived! Albeit, he's not tough enough to not have one ounce of compassion in him." Luna lowered the glasses onto some cup holders resting on the floor beside and between them and the fireplace, then moved a hoof to raise Night's chin. "Loss takes time to heal from, but only if thou allows thyself to heal. These are the words me and my sister have gone by since our rule began and we outlived our own generation. We lost many friends together, as we have continuously over the years. "This returns to our earlier conversation regarding me losing you when your time comes, or sooner. These words have helped keep my mind straight, even after days, or even weeks of grieving. Our parents taught us that to remain in the past is harmful to our mental stability in the long run, and damage can be done if you think too much of loss." Luna sighed and straightened her back, eyeing Night coolly. "I do hope these words mean something to you, especially in a time such as now." "Of course, Luna," Night smiled faintly. He could no longer be too sure if those words truly did mean anything to him. He was no psychiatrist, and neither was Luna. It was typically wrong to doubt her judgement or word, even though now he found himself to be disregarding it. Loss was just a feeling to him. It hurt when he lost Sharp. Now it hurt to lose multiple ponies on his shoulders in an act of nature that was far beyond his control. This only sparked a larger question. How will I handle losing my squad?