//------------------------------// // Entries 37 - 46 // Story: Memoirs of A Guard // by TheWingman //------------------------------// Monday, July 12th, 1020 ESY I do apologize for my lack of updates to my Journal. Patrol duty has been a bit, shall we say… tedious. Apart from that, we recently had to deal with a few crises here and there. One of which involved the port city of Manehattan having experienced a flood brought on by a hurricane. Along with us, my mother joined in on the frontline of the disaster relief efforts. She always wanted to help her subjects in times of great need. Truly inspiring. I often looked at such displays and kept musing on her abilities as an alicorn. She has powers that I can barely begin to fathom yet she welcomes the assistance of her protectors. Maybe she’s holding back her but that is a question I’ll have to ask her someday. But, as I think about it, I realize that along with her, the guards and I are part of a whole, like an entity composed of individuals to complete a task. She relies on us as we rely on her. I know what concept that was from my lessons in my youth and I was amused that it also applied in that context. Then again, that is just my rambling. Wednesday, July 14th, 1020 ESY Well, by the end of this month, we’ll have another Summer Sun Celebration, and everypony in Equestria is excited about it. I always loved the ceremony, seeing my mother hoist the sun for all to see. Seeing her radiate along with the sun in view of all is more than deserving to be immortalized in a painting. Yet, it was more than just an annual ceremonial raising of the sun. It marked the day that Celestia had defeated her sister, Luna, who became Nightmare Moon, and was banished to the moon. This year would be the 1000th anniversary of that fateful day, the source of my mother’s loneliness. I understood that she was her sister and I can only imagine how hard of a decision it was to make. When a crisis becomes evident, the many take priority. Been hearing some ramblings of a prophecy of sorts that goes something like on the thousandth year, Nightmare Moon will escape. To be honest, I never really paid much mind to such things but then again, in a world full of magic, anything is possible. Still, I’ll keep that in mind and bring it to Shining Armor. Maybe, he’ll consider an increase in security. Hope Big Macintosh from Sweet Apple Acres brings more of that cider. So good. He seems like a chill stallion. Wednesday, July 16th, 1020 ESY Today was another escorting duty and like many times before, we were escorting my mother’s prodigy, Twilight Sparkle. She seemed a bit more bookish than usual as of late. Maybe it was due to the Summer Sun Celebration and she’s using it as an opportunity to catch up on some work. Though she is bright, she needs some more socializing time with others. That amount of time perusing through books just isn’t healthy. I asked her if she was going to join us for the event but she declined, as I expected she would. Though I do give her props for having a sharp and focused mind, her lack of desire to make friends does her no favors. Since she is my mother’s pupil, I hope she can meet with her parents to steer her on the path that balances academics and friendship. That can go a long way for her. After today’s rotation, I met up with Shining Armor for another of our weekly sparring sessions. As always, we shot the breeze as we clashed and he wholeheartedly agreed with my assessment. Also, from what I gathered, my mother seems to be aware of it. Hopefully, my mom can help her out with that. Though how I’m not sure. Friday, July 18th, 1020 ESY With the SSC (Summer Sun Celebration) fast approaching, we were put on mainly PR work and to aid with any and all prep work. Apart from visiting schools and various other places to chat with the citizenry, we helped the organizers prepare and get things set for the festivities here in Canterlot. To be honest, it was a welcome change of pace from the patrols we did. We even got to visit Ponyville and the first thing our squad did was pay Sugarcube Corner a visit. We didn’t do any help with the prep work there as we felt that things were in order for the most part. Since the last time we were there, we saw that The Cakes had hired another helping hoof. Some bright pink earth mare that goes by Pinkie Pie buses the tables and other stuff. Oh wow does she have the most bubbly personality I’ve ever seen. I always made sure to get my favorite apple-cinnamon hay doughnuts they make on occasion. How in tartarus do they make them taste so good? Well, I guess that secret is what makes them one of the most respected bakeries in Equestria. Well, gotta lay off them for now. Starting to get a little chubby. Tuesday, July 22nd, 1020 ESY It has come to my attention that a few people from the citizenry had become, well… agitated, for our PR campaign. I’ve had this rather belligerent mare come up to me and accuse me of, among other things, ‘promoting militarism’. I continued to let her use me as a vocal punching bag until I grew weary and in a joking tone, told her who I was. Honestly, the look on her face was rather hilarious as she walked off. Hey, I’d be embarrassed too. But yeah, there is a common misconception that we’re strictly a military force. While we’re trained to fight, that isn’t our sole function. As I mentioned, with the hurricane impacting Manehattan last year, we provided disaster relief efforts and rescued any who were trapped. I took part in the rescue efforts over at the port where the worst of it was. I feel that the whole feeling stemmed from them always seeing us on patrol which is a primary duty for us to keep things safe. I also understand that it would give off a certain impression to a few ponies but in the end, we’re always there to protect the innocent and save those who were harmed. That was what I dedicated myself to when I figured what I wanted to be and I held that dream close for years. Thursday, July 24th, 1020 ESY Well, today could’ve gone a little bit better and just when I get done with one thing, I get shifted to another without a break. For one incident, there was a bank robbery in Central Canterlot that we had to put an end to. As part of the plan, they were distracted long enough for us to enter via the roof and catch them off guard. While we did disarm the perps, we regrettably couldn’t save one hostage. My guess was that the leader got impatient. Later on the same day, we were dragged to a warehouse outside the city where we felt was used by a rogue group as a hideout. When we went in there, we expected that they wouldn’t allow themselves to be taken alive. The fighting lasted an hour or two before we cornered their leader who took his own life. After the investigation that followed, we found they had help from a third party and the most likely theory was that they were the... usual suspects. I swear that this upcoming Summer Sun Celebration has caused an increase in chaotic activity here. Maybe… the so-called ‘prophecy’ has some weight. As this goes on, I’m starting to believe more in that. I just hope that my mother would consider investigating. My gut tells me that we’re in for a bad time if we don’t prepare. Thursday, July 27th, 1020 ESY Looks like everypony is getting all giddy for next week where the celebrations will begin. Since we were ahead of schedule, we were given free reign to slack off and have fun. Due to that, we were able to have a bit of a planned stallion’s night out for just the four of us. Due to our busy work schedules, we rarely ever got an opportunity like that. So, we decided to hit a few bars and catch the final day of the carnival just outside the city. We decided to hit the carnival first for obvious reasons before we did a bit of a pub crawl. To be honest, I think we hit about six. At the final one, there was a bit of an incident between Aqua Breeze and an unruly patron. They argued and what sparked the scuffle was the patron saying a word to him that I wouldn’t repeat but it began with the letter ‘F’. Apparently, while he was normally chill, it really upset him hearing it. After arresting the instigator, I checked to make sure he was alright. While he claimed he was, his body language told me a different story. He never was the stallion to let mere words get under his skin like that. Perhaps, there was something he was keeping in that the word would set him off in such a way. I may ask him about it but I hope he’ll be willing to tell me. Friday, July 28th, 1020 ESY Today, we got another recruit that was put into our merry band. She goes by the name of Holiday and she trained as a combat medic. While she was very soft-spoken, she had bested Buckwheat in a hoofwrestling match when they first met. Honestly, somepony cheerful like her was a much needed change of pace here. Plus, we needed somepony who can patch us up if need be. We all decided to treat the new recruit to lunch to make her feel welcome. She talked to us about her hobbies like quilting and living with her significant other. Lofty was her name, if I recall correctly. She also showed us pics of her niece, Scootaloo, and we remembered her from doing PR work at the one of the schools from Ponyville. She does have big aspirations despite being afflicted with a disability. But, oddly enough, a friendship was sparked between her and Aqua Breeze. I mean, they got along and he found comfort in talking to her about what happened on Thursday. My guess was their shared attitudes and perspectives on love was what sparked the friendship. All that mattered was Aqua recovering from the incident. Saturday, July 29th, 1020 ESY I went about my day today, instructing the newbie from yesterday and doing the usual patrol stuff. I was able to catch a small nap when our shift ended. But, it happened again; the same nightmare from the past years had come again. I kept seeing their deaths until the fire engulfed the entirety of my vision but this time, I heard their names: Chisel and Vanilla Swirl. When I decided to retire for the night, I used it as an opportunity to do some investigating, knowing my mother was hesitant. Due to my status as prince, gaining access to the city’s news archive was purely trivial. Since I didn’t have a date, I went about it by their names alone. It took me a good half an hour to find what I was looking for and I recognized them right away. From what I found, they were indeed murdered but it appeared to be that someone powerful in the city’s criminal underground was implicated but not named. What I don’t get is why am I seeing this? Who were Chisel and Vanilla Swirl and of what importance were they to me? I try to understand why I kept seeing their deaths if, from how I see it, could only happen to someone close to them. Was I related to them somehow? Feeling too tired to dwell on that. Must get sleep. Monday, July 31st, 1020 ESY Yesterday was the annual Summer Sun Celebration and to say that a lot of things happened would be underselling it a bit. I thought… We thought we took every precaution to make sure things went smoothly. Oh boy were we wrong. Nonetheless, it was something I found memorable. It started out with us traveling between Canterlot and Ponyville to ensure things were orderly but apparently, my mother neglected to tell me that Twilight Sparkle was going to handle it for Ponyville. From what I heard, she took notice of her issues and sent her there to make friends as well. We decided to go back into the city for some last-minute inspections. When the night came, our squad remained at our post, keeping a close eye on my mother. We were to escort her to Ponyville to kick off the event. Right as we were about to leave, a swirl of a magical void enveloped her, and just like that, she vanished. In her place, a figure I knew was real stood before us. Nightmare Moon had returned and she foalnapped my mother. After she gloated about bringing eternal night, she vanished and all were left in chaos. Then, Captain Shining Armor approached me, asking for orders. Realizing I had to act in the same authority as my mother, I immediately ordered all guards to fan out and search for her. It felt weird being in charge but I couldn’t let it get to me. All throughout the night, we searched every place between here and Ponyville, even a brief incursion into the Everfree Forest, but found nothing. As we returned to the castle, we saw a bright flash of light coming from the old castle in the forest, followed by the sun rising. Somehow, from what I learned that night, Twilight and her newly made friends, used the elements of harmony to dispel the evil that was Nightmare Moon. When I saw my mother later on, she introduced me to my aunt, Luna. It was a shock to me as I never saw her before. Both her and I were overcome with emotions and neither of us knew how to react. Though, it was I who hugged her first. I was so happy to see her that I struggled to hold back tears. I was so happy to meet her, my aunt. My guess was that she was happy to see her family accept her. I’ll never forget that hug. It was nice.