//------------------------------// // XV - A Bleary Start // Story: The Countryside Knight // by Dark Krystal //------------------------------// Ratimir rubbed his eyes with a single hand as he fought against the lancinating feeling of annoyance that was occurring inside him. “What the hell is this…?” `Did any of them… get any sleep? ` Twilight looked over the Lunar Guard as she stood by Ratimir's side, a look of concern washing over her as she examined the guard. The Lunar Guard stood lined up horizontally in front of Ratimir and Twilight. To the untrained eye, the squad could be seen as normal, as their armor covered up most of their facial features. However, underneath their visors, all members of the guard had bags under their eyes, along with the faint shaking of their legs and the occasional drooping head as the moment they dropped their guard, the devil of rest would start taking them. “Apologies… Captain.” Faded Light bowed her head. As she bowed, her body slowly tilted forward and forced the mare to shoot one of her forelegs out to stop herself from falling. “I’m not used to waking up this early…” Great Star muttered before he let out a yawn. “I was practicing through the day and neglected to rest, I'm sorry.” Moonfall bowed his head. Dusk Blade said with agitation in her voice, “I let Northern Light sleep at my place.” “I'm, oh, so, sorry that I wanted to catch up with my cute little comrade!” Northern Light frowned and lifted a canteen up to her mouth in her magic. The action itself caused her legs to weaken slightly and make her stumble, a small ‘EEP!’ left her. Moonfall quickly moved and caught the falling unicorn, earning a relieved sigh from her. “Holy hell…” Ratimir pinched the bridge of his nose. The squad shared a bow and said in unison, “We’re sorry…” Ratimir turned his attention to Twilight. “Twilight Sparkle, how long is this… “Train” ride?” “Oh! Um… let me check…” Twilight turned her head and pulled out a map from her saddlebags, rolling open the map and looking at their designated spot. Slowly following along the railroad tracks from the designated spot to Canterlot, muttering under her breath all the way before abruptly rolling up the matter and putting it back in her saddlebags. “Three hours. Four, if Princess Luna ordered the train to be more discreet.” Ratimir nodded and turned his attention back to the guard. “When we get on the “train”... get some sleep, that’s an order.” “Understood! Thank you, sir!” The squad shared a bow once more. Twilight looked up at Ratimir and smiled up at him, earning an annoyed look from him and a “tch”. “Now then, let’s not waste any more time…” Ratimir reached into his pockets and tossed out a pair of metal shackles at Faded Light, the mare quickly caught them with an outstretched wing. The guards shared a quizzical look with each other than. Their eyes widened as they remembered that their facade was a prison transport. “We need to get going.” Ratimir enveloped himself in a dark brown hooded cloak, quickly pulling the hood over his head that made the upper half of his face barely visible. Twilight’s eyes focused on the cloak, it was aged, with the edges that reached down to his knees being ripped and torn. `If Rarity saw this, she would faint… ` “Bind my wrists, then we’re leaving.” Faded Light stared at the captain for a moment before her eyes widened. With a nod, she trots over with the shackles and places them over his wrists, the room filling with a metallic ‘clink!’ as the shackles locked in place. Ratimir huffed and lowered his arms down. “Alright, let’s head o—” Everyone in the room watched as the shackles slipped down his wrists, smoothly going over his hands and letting out a ‘clink!’ as they hit the floor. “................” Everyone's eyes were fixated on the shackles, staring at the metal construct in silence. After a minute passed, Ratimir kneeled down and picked them up. Wordlessly, he slid the left shackle back over his left hand and then abruptly he threw his arm out and watched the shackle launch out and fly over a few feet before hitting the floor. “................” Ratimir lifted his head up and put both of his hands on his face as he sucked in his breath. “I’m going mad…” “Captain! Permission to take off my armor until the train arrives!?” “No.” Northern Light released a whine, as her legs shook. “But it’s so heavy, sir…” Ratimir scoffed, “Your fault for not doing muscle training.” Northern Light grumbled as she sat down on her haunches. The rest of the guards let out a sigh as they stood together on the wooden platform and stared at the dark forestry in front of them. “I guess you really are a crystal pony, Northern. You’re just as fragile as a crystal.” Great Star snickered as he glanced over at the unicorn. Northern Lights’ eye twitched and slowly she turned her head over, glaring over Dusk Blade to Great Star. “Great Star, shut that ignorant mouth of yours before I shut it for you! I’ll have you know that my crystalline properties need to be awakened by the crystal heart! Until then, I'm merely a normal unicorn, but the moment I gain the crystal heart’s magic! You better bet your flank I will gladly show you the amazing density a crystal body has by crushing your pathetic skull against my rear. After all my family bloodline has—” Great Star’s smirk faded. He slowly lowered his head and the tired look in his eyes became more apparent. As Northern Light continued her rant about the density, endurance theories, and potential of the crystalline physique of the Crystal ponies, along with her bloodline, the regret the stallion held within started to become visible despite his visor. Twilight silently took notes regarding Northern Light for future references when talking to her. “Northern Light.” “My family line has a long history of—Yes, captain?” “Shut up.” Northern Light’s face scrunched up briefly before a sigh escaped her. “...Understood.” Twilight hummed to herself as she continued to write in her notes, slowly lowering her back end down as she got more absorbed into her notes until she eventually plopped down onto the wooden platform. ‘Squeak!’ The guards' ears perked up, and everyone's eyes snapped onto the sitting unicorn. Their postures relaxed as they silently realized the sound came from Twilight. “Congrats, Northern Light.” Northern Light looked over at Ratimir and raised a brow as she took another sip from her canteen. “Despite your neglect for muscle training… You’re more fit than Princess Celestia’s student.” Twilight’s ears flickered, and she froze, slowly lifting her head away from her notes and glaring at Ratimir. Dusk Blade and Great Star burst into laughter. Moonfall and Faded Light let out a light chuckle. Amidst the laughter Northern Light stared at Ratimir for a moment before the compliment registered, making the unicorn tilt her head upwards and smirk. “Thank you, captain! I do take care of my physique~, it’s better to be slim and agile after all.” Dusk Blade out of curiosity raised her right foreleg and pressed against a wooden board, staring at it for a moment before leaning in to add more weight. ‘Squeak!’ “Twilight’s has more weight in her butt than my whole body, and that's me wearing my armor too! Kehehe!” A blush spread across Twilight’s face at the statement. The laughter grew louder. Moonfall couldn’t hold himself back at that statement and burst out into laughter, while Faded Light shook slightly as her hoof tightly covered her mouth. Twilight stood up and pointed her hoof at Dusk Blade. “I-I am not heavy! I am the a-average weight for mares!” “Then why did the board squeak when you sat down?” “Because this platform is old! It probably hasn’t received proper maintenance in the moons!” “Kehehe! Then how come you're the only one who made it squeak? We all walk up here together, but the board’s didn’t make a sound.~” “It was a coincidence! If Great Star were to sit down, then the same would happen to him!” Twilight threw her hoof out and pointed at the stallion. Great Star’s laughter died and slowly turned to look down at the unicorn. “You calling me heavy?” “Yes!” Great Star paused, staring at her, before he looked up in thought. Slowly, he lowered his back end down until he sat down onto the wooden platform. A squeak refused to come out despite his weight. Twilight’s face scrunched up as Dusk Blade flared up in laughter once again. “Twilight’s butt weighs more than Great Star! Kehehehehe!” Twilight’s face turned red at the statement. “N-no! This is just bad placement!” Twilight stomped her hoof against the wooden platform, only furthering the laughter amongst the squad. Twilight let out a groan and covered her face with her hooves, lowering her backend down to sit on the platform. ‘Squeak!’ Dusk Blade wheezed as she collapsed down onto the floor. —Five minutes later— Moonfall patted Dusk Blade’s back as the small mare took small breaths, filling her lungs back up while wiping some leftover tears from her eyes. “I… I have not laughed that hard in moons! I love you, Twilight!” Twilight grumbled as she hid herself from everypony by hiding around Ratimir’s side and using the width of Ratimir’s cloak. Moonfall smacks Dusk Blade lightly on the top of her head, making the mare let out light hiss before the two resume their positions. “Soo… Twilight.” Twilight peeked out from Ratimir's side, looking at the Great Star with narrowed eyes and a slightly red face. Great Star patted his chest and straightened his posture. He looked over at Twilight and smirked as he raised a curious brow. “...You like heavy stallions?” Dusk Blade released a pained groan. Northern Light spat out the contents of her canteen mid-drink, and snapped her eyes over to Ratimir. “Captain! Please grant me permission to cast a mute spell on Great Star!” “For how long?” “...Until he fights?” “Then no.” “Damn it all…” Northern Light let out a groan and lowered head down, glaring at the forest ahead. “Ugh… I did not miss you at all, Great Star.” “Don’t worry, Northern Light. No pony missed you at all~” Northern Light snapped her head back at Great Star, granting a death stare at the stallion with a visible vein pulsating on her forehead. “Great Star, I will shove so many crystals up your—” “Anyway, Twilight. I will let you know that I do like heavy mares… and I am single, ready to mingle.” Great Star stuck out his chest and gave a confident grin. At the moment, a ray of moonlight landed on Great Star’s exposed teeth and granted a twinkle to them. “Great Star.” “Yes, Captain?” “If I hear another attempt at seduction from you right now… I’ll hit you.” Great Star’s grin faded as fear washed over him. He hesitantly gave an understanding nod and focused back on the forest ahead. Twilight let out a sigh and hid away from the group again, taking a moment to look at her backside, prodding it with her hoof. `I’m not that heavy… I think…` Ratimir turned his attention over to Moonfall. “Moonfall.” Moonfall perked his head up and looked over at Ratimir. “Can I trust that you’ll be okay?” Twilight peeked around Ratimir again. She watched as Moonfall’s eyes looked down with uncertainty in his eyes. Faded Light and Dusk Blade watched him with faint worry in their eyes. After a moment the stallion sucked in his breath and closed his eyes, letting out a heavy exhale after a brief pause and glaring at the sky. “Yeah… I’ll be okay, captain. I’m ready.” “Hmpf, I hope that you’re not saying that for show. Don’t waste this opportunity.” Moonfall nodded and returned his gaze to the forest, a fire of determination and anger was well lit in his tired eyes. Twilight couldn’t help but look between Ratimir and Moonfall for a moment before nudging his leg, gaining his attention. “What?” Twilight whispered, “Is there something going on with Moonfall? I-I know he used to be in the Solar Guard… Did something happen?” She stared up at the man with curiosity. Ratimir stared back with an unreadable gaze then gave a glance to Moonfall before letting out a soft grunt. “Ask him yourself. He already heard you.” “What do you…” Twilight froze as the memory of her notes regarding the Bat Ponies hearing came back to slap her brain, quickly she peeked around Ratimir and found Moonfall looking in her direction before looking off to the side. Twilight quickly hid back around Ratimir and smacked her face in her hoof. “I’m so dumb…” Twilight groaned as she ran her hoof down her face. `I’ll ask him once we get on the train… I hope he doesn’t mind. ` Twilight couldn’t help but scowl. She remembered back when Luna announced this event, out of everypony, Moonfall was the only one who was visibly uncomfortable about it. Even back then, the other guards gave worried looks for him. `Moonfall used to be in the Solar Guard… Something must have happened to him during that… but what? ` Twilight glanced over to her saddlebags, remembering “Monstrous Manuals; the 5th Edition”. ` That book is often used as a foundation for learning about Equestria’s monsters. The chances that the Solar Guard uses it are…` Twilight frowned as she squinted her eyes. ` High… But… sure not! It’s the guard under Princess Celestia! Sure they wouldn’t…` Twilight looked off to the side as her face darkened. There is no doubt that Canterlot has a lot of history regarding Bat Ponies; a lot of bad history. The Bat ponies already had a bad reputation before the Lunar Guard was established, then the rebellion and imprisonment. The possibility that the Solar Guard still held the same prejudice to Bat Ponies was high. In the back of Twilight’s mind, it also explained why Princess Celestia agreed to this event. `Did the Solar Guard hate the Lunar Guard… or do they hate Bat Ponies? Did they treat Moonfall badly because of that? But surely Princess Celestia would’ve caught wind of something like taking place… right? No, no! If that happened then surely Shini— ` Twilight’s eyes widened. ` Shining…` A coldness swept over her. Did Moonfall join the Solar Guard under Shining Armor? The last time she heard of Shining Armour was him becoming the captain of the Royal Guard. Did he carry a dislike towards Bat Ponies? Did he treat Moonfall badly? Did he even know anything about Moonfall? Twilight closed her eyes tightly and took a moment to catch her breath, pressing a hoof against her chest. After silencing her mind, she opened her eyes and stared at her shaking hooves. She couldn’t deny that she was scared. Scared to face her brother, scared to see the two guard units interact, scared to learn more about this situation. Yet, she wanted to know more, she needed to know more. Princess Celestia tasked her to help Ratimir and perhaps the Bat Ponies by extension. A pony-made race that has always been one of the many icons of fear to the race they once belonged to… a fear that ever grew stronger as time passed by. A sparkle lit in Twilight’s eyes as the distant sound of the train rang throughout the forest. She was going to see this through the end, even if it meant she was going to have to go against her brother. If there was a possibility that she could learn more about Ratimir and the Bat Ponies that could help her, so she could help them… then every hardship would be worth it. “Everyone, positions.” Immediately, all members of the guard went on the move, fixing their armor and circling around Ratimir. Faded Light positioned herself by Twilight, nudging her and silently motioning her to move up front. After taking their positions, everyone watched as the forest in front of them became engulfed in white light as screeching metal filled the forest. The Bat Ponies ears folded against their heads as the train skidded to a stop in front of them. A relieved sigh left them once the train slowed down to stop. Twilight looked over the train and paused as the first thing she noticed was the lack of windows and the train's dark colors. The cars of the train were made of black metal with golden trims on the outlines of the cars, the place where windows would be, had been replaced with faint square outlines, the gangway connection for the cars were tightly connected with strange flexible metal between cars with the car roofs covering them from above. “This doesn't match what you told me, Northern Light.” “That’s because this is the mythical EFT war train! Oooooo! To think these fine creations were actually real! I must give my thanks to Princess Luna for allowing me the honor to ride this!” Twilight’s eyes sparkled as she listened to the conversation. The Equestrian Frontline Transport war trains were often said to be nothing more than a myth. Invented by a paranoid inventor who feared that Equestria was not prepared for war against the griffons, the yaks, and the dragons, They feared that one day, one of them would invade Equestria unprovoked, and would easily take over. Thus, they decided to make something that could quickly turn the tides of battle all over Equestria. They designed trains that could safely transport Equestrian military and military supplies. They were designed to be faster to the average training while being able to withstand any attempts to destroy it. The train was able to withstand most attacks with its enchanted metal shell, break through any blockades with its strong plow at the front, and supposedly hidden holes that allowed the soldiers on the inside to shoot their attackers. It was said that when the inventor brought these trains to Princess Celestia, she destroyed them on the basis that Equestrian didn’t need them because we would never go to war in the first place. Twilight stared at one of these supposedly destroyed, mythical trains. Twilight lit up her horn and scanned the metal on the train, she could feel the multiple traces of leftover magic spells all over the train. It was enough magic that even a blast from a cannon would not even make a dent in its shell. Its only real threat would be a large creature, derailing the train. Ratimir mumbled under his breath, “To think she would keep something like this in case of war… I guess my advice finally did get into her thick head.” ` Advice?` Twilight's thought is interrupted by the whistle of the train’s expelled steam as it finally came to a complete stop. “Twilight, you take charge. Everyone else, not a word.” The guards gave a silent nod and adjusted their visors and stances. Twilight snapped her head over to Ratimir. “Eh?” The sound of moving gears forced Twilight’s attention away as the door to the train opened. Stepping out was a middle-aged periwinkle-colored stallion with a black handlebar mustache, outfitted with a blue vest, white collar shirt, and red tie. The light from inside the train had forced Twilight to rapidly blink, so she could quickly adjust to the sudden light. “Hello! I am, All Aboard, the temporary conductor of this train!” The stallion took a quick bow, fixing his circular glasses and hat as he rose back up. “I will be escorting you to…” The conductor froze, his eyes widened, and his pupils shrunk as he looked past Twilight. He stared directly at the Faded Light, taking in her bright eyes sharpened pupils. He broke out in cold sweat as his eyes washed over the rest of the guards, his legs bucking as he found a majority of them sharing the same traits he heard of long ago. “The… The… The…” Twilight tilted her head as she watched the conductor's lip tremble as the hairs on his black handlebar mustache started to turn gray. “Um…Are you alrig—” “THE-THE-THE-THESTRALS!” The stallion screamed, turning around and running back inside the train. Unfortunately, in his panicked state, his hoof collided with the stairs up. A yelp exited him as he tripped and collided face-first. Twilight stared blankly at the panicked conductor, her mind dazed by the situation taking place. After a few seconds, her brain clicked back into gear, the realization of what he just said forced her to look back. Dread found itself filling Twilight, all members of the guard had their eyes fixated on the conductor. Twilight felt a shiver crawl down her spine as she felt the malice the Bat Ponies were radiating off at the moment, their pupils had shrunken down and sharpened significantly. It was almost similar to the pupil’s of Hydras. Twilight could tell that if Ratimir gave them the order to murder this man… they would do it before anyone could even blink. ` I need to fix this! Now!` Twilight quickly turned back to the conductor, trotting over to him and reaching a hoof. “C-calm down, they are just here to—” “T-t-to drain m-m-my blood!? Is that what h-happened to the guard that was supposed to be here!?” Twilight flinched at the accusation. “What!? No! We are the guar—” “W-wait! Y-you’re Twilight Sparkle!” The conductor’s pupils widened, and a smile came on his face, he launched forward and wrapped his forelegs around Twilight’s right leg. “ You defeated Discord and Nightmare Mare! P-please save me! I-I have a wife and child at home! I can’t d-die!” “What!? I’m with th—” “This is taking too long.” Twilight paused as Faded Light’ spoke out in a cold tone. Twilight quickly turned around as the sound of hooves approaching her came. Faded Light approached, slowly closing in on the conductor, who yelped and hid behind Twilight. A shiver ran down Twilight’s spine as her eyes met Faded Light cold glare. “We’re escorting a prisoner under Princess Luna’s orders. You have been ordered to escort us, failure to do so will give us the right to judge you as a traitor to the crown, and judge you with treason.” Faded Light stopped in front of Twilight, moving her head forward and almost resting on Twilight’s neck as she glared down at the conductor. “If that were to happen then regardless of how bad your blood tastes… I’ll drain you dry before killing you.” Twilight opened her mouth slightly, her eyes widened as she listened to Faded Light’s cold voice. Sweat started to form as she could feel the genuine sincerity of her words. Faded Light grinned, showing off her fangs to the conductor. “And I’ll make sure my unit get their fill with your fam—” ‘Clink!’ Before Faded Light could finish her state, a sudden cold wave washed over the area. Twilight’s pupils shrunk as she felt the side of her neck cut. Her eyes darted down only to find her neck perfectly intact. ` This feeling!? It-it’s the same as back when Ratimir opened the door!` Twilight followed her instincts at the moment and looked at Ratimir. Fear struck her heart the moment she did. Despite standing perfectly still, despite pretending to be shackled, and despite wearing a hood. Twilight could feel it, she could feel the cold, murderous glare coming from Ratimir. As if he was ready to kill someone in the very next second. Around him, she found all the other members of the guard had backed away from him, all of them in a mixture of entering fight or flight. While, staring at Ratimir with frightened eyes. Twilight looked over at Faded Light, finding the once aggressive mare to be as stiff as a metal pole. Cold sweat dripped down her face and tears almost threatened to exit her eyes, Twilight could tell that the mare was putting all her remaining stamina in just being perfectly still. As Twilight watched the situation play out, it finally clicked to her what this feeling was. It was something she read about in books regarding duels, and something Shining Armor was fascinated by, back in his younger years. Bloodlust. In normal stories it is often used to describe the murderous lust of killers, but in the books regarding dueling… It was often referred to as the most powerful tool in combat. The ability to make your opponents feel your desire to kill them, it was a skill that could beat both weak and strong warriors. The weak could feel your desire to end them, while the strong could feel it and see the skill you possessed that can kill them. In one book regarding the accounts and experiences of duelists. Bloodlust was not the fear of death, but rather the fear of how an opponent would take your life. All it took was the feeling that your opponent was going to kill you, and then visible indications. The gaze the opponent had, a slight shift in their posture, the number of breaths they took, any small change could make the opponent think they had already been attacked. It didn’t help that the more you know about your opponent, the more susceptible you were to bloodlust. If you knew the opponent could hit you that far, if you knew your opponent could easily catch up to you, if you knew how fast your opponent could react to your attacks, all of this while getting the feeling that your opponent wanted to kill you. It often led to many duelists forfeiting the duel, retirement, or thoughtlessly attacking. Twilight was able to figure that because she had watched Ratimir’s spar against Faded Light, she had an idea of his speed, his striking range, and reaction time. She became more susceptible to this phenomenon. As she observed Ratimir, she could almost see faint outlines of what he could do. If Ratimir had a sword on him, then at the moment everypony was within his striking range. Ratimir was fast, and the oversized cuffs would only delay him unsheathing his sword by a single second. She could see Ratimir’s right hand quickly slipping out of the cuff and grabbing the handle of the sword that would be on his left side, while he was doing that he would take a single step forward and then strike at Faded Light's neck. But Twilight knew that was an idea based on her current knowledge of Ratimir’s combat abilities. The Lunar Guard who most likely saw Ratimir’s full skill set… were probably able to gain a higher understanding of what he could do. Which was a terrifying thought to Twilight. After a minute passed, the cold chill in the air vanished as Ratimir’s eyes returned to his indifferent gaze and his arms relaxed. The guards visibly relaxed and hesitantly returned to their positions. Faded Light let out a small gasp and nearly collapsed against Twilight as she relaxed, after a bit her eyes went back to the conductor. “...We’re… going inside now.” “I-I… I u-understand.” The stallion, trembling, lowered his head down and stepped off to the side. Faded Light backed away and walked back to the group. Briefly she looks up at Ratimir only for the man to narrow his eyes at her causing her to quickly look away. Resuming her previous position, Faded Light glanced at the other guards than to Twilight. Twilight released a heavy sigh and waved her hoof forward for the group. Faded Light took lead and walked towards the train, Great Star pushed Ratimir forward, making him grunt before walking forward. As the group entered, Twilight turned her attention back to the conductor. “I’m so sorry about them! But also, please don’t call them Thestral’s! Thank you!” Twilight gave him a quick bow before trotting after the group, leaving the traumatized stallion behind in the dark woods. Twilight entered the train, taking a moment to admire the interior of the train. Much to her surprise the interior was far from what she expected. Inside the train was well lit in golden light from the center, and well furnished with carpeted floors for the comfort of hooves and numerous cushioned benches. All the walls held string mechanisms connected to the square slots that could be seen from the outside; they were definitely the holes made for the military to shoot their attackers from within the train. Twilight shook out the thought from her head and quickly walked through the gangway to the next car, catching up to the group and following behind them. Everyone walked in silence as they went through multiple cars that ranged from seating cars, to storage, to dining, and finally close to the second to last car was the sleeping car. Small gasps left the guards as doors to the sleeping car opened. The light on inside was different compared to the other cars, dimmed yellow lights filling up the car. Rows of bunk beds lined the sides, each one having a cleaned mattress with laid out pillows and sheets that they could easily tell was recently purchased to replace the previous older mattresses. The bunk beds had personal privacy curtains for the sleeping occupants on both levels, and a climbable ramp up the second bunk. Dusk Blade broke away from the group and pranced over to one of the beds, patting it with her hooves and letting out a squeal before slamming her face into it, her body going limp not long after. “...Fallen, make sure she didn’t pass out just now.” Fallen Shine nodded and walked over and prodded her side. Dusk Blade instantly snapping her head up. “This is better than my bed!” Fallen Shine grunted as Northern Light chuckled, after a bit all the guards looked back to Ratimir. The human stared at them all before giving them a nod as he slipped his hands out the shackles. The guards smiled and scattered throughout the car, quickly choosing their bunks and starting to remove their armor. Ratimir popped his neck and started to make his way towards the end of the train. “Faded Light, what was that…” The guards stopped mid-movement to look at Twilight, tensing up slightly upon seeing her visibly upset. Slowly all the guard's eyes shifted over to Faded Light, who stared back at Twilight with a neutral gaze. “He insulted us, and was close to abandoning his duty. So, I reminded him of his duty.” “By threatening his life!?” “Yes. You weren’t making any progress, and we’re on a time limit. I just decided to take charge.” Twilight furrowed her brow. “It wasn’t my fault! I was put on the spot! But threatening him was unneeded, Faded Light!” Faded Light narrowed her eyes. “He insulted us. All I did was remind him of his duty and what we’re allowed to do should he fail it.” Twilight closed her eyes as she rubbed her muzzle with her hoof. “I understand that, but did you really have to do that!?” “Tch, What makes you think you unders—” “Lieutenant Faded Light.” Faded Light froze as Ratimir’s voice cut her off. Hesitantly she turned her head and looked at Ratimir. He had removed his hood, letting everypony see the annoyed look on his face. He slowly turned his body towards the duo and narrowed his eyes. “Twilight Sparkle is correct. What you did was unnecessary, not only that but…” Ratimir furrowed his brows and scowled. “You disobeyed orders.” Faded Light’s eyes widened at that statement. “I ordered everyone except Twilight Sparkle to not speak, and stay in position… but you not only broke off from your position, you also spoke to the conductor and unnecessarily threatened him, and I will not pretend that I didn’t hear that you were about to threaten his family too.” Ratimir walked towards Faded Light, the guards quickly cleared a path for him as they watched him with anxious looks. Faded Light’s eyes fell down as she heard him approach, shutting her eyes when he stopped directly in front of her. After a moment of silence she felt his hand rest on the top of her mane, gently ruffling her mane up. Faded Light snapped her eyes open and looked up at him. Ratimir’s anger had faded, defaulting back to his uncaring look. “I’ll let it go just this once, and only this time. Under the belief that you acted out because of your lack of sleep, but the next time you do something like this… you will be reprimanded.” Faded Light looked away, a look of shame crossing over her features while a blush crept over her cheeks as he ruffled her mane a little bit more before pulling his hand back. “But still… I told you this before. In fact, I told all of you before that you will be called “Thestral” a lot.” Ratimir’s gaze moved away from Faded Light and over to the rest of the guards, who looked down at the floor. “You will face looks of disgust or fear. You will be insulted. You will be looked down on. Not only that, but you will face unfair treatment.” Twilight couldn’t help but frown at each line. A part of her wanted to make an argument that they wouldn’t face any type of treatment like that… but, she knew if she did that then she would just be lying to them, and herself. “That’s why it’s important to keep your calm. If you lose yourself in battle, then that makes you easier to kill… and makes you say things you may regret later.” Ratimir’s eyes briefly glanced over at Faded Light and Twilight. “Let Faded Light be an example of what happens when you lose yourself to your emotions. If any of you make the same mistake that she did, then you will be reprimanded. Do you all understand?” With no hesitation, all members of the Lunar Guard nodded their heads. “Good. Now, go to sleep.” Ratimir turned around and walked away from Faded Light. Silently opening the gangway doors and entering the next car over. For the next few minutes, the car stood silent, no pony making a move. Eventually the first one to speak up was Faded Light. “I’m… sorry, Twilight Sparkle. I lost control of myself back there… and now.” Faded Light turned towards Twilight and bowed her head. “O-oh it’s okay. I was.. In the wrong, too. I was worked up because you threatened him… I had forgotten about your feelings.” Twilight bowed her head back. The two mares rose at the same time and shared a smile. The rest of the guards smiled in turn as the two made up. “The captain is right.” Everypony's eyes focused on Fallen Shine. “We’ve been overreacting too much at being called Thestral’s. If a conductor calling us that can make us lose our cool… then we won’t last long in the battles to come.” The guards looked at each other briefly before nodding. “Let’s get some rest now.” “Agreed.” “Mnf! You’re free to bunk up with me, Twilight.” “Or me…~” Dusk Blade and Northern Light glared at Great Star, the stallion turning his head away from the two mares as he saw Northern Light ignite her horn. “Never mind…” With Great Star’s resignation, the guard began their preparations, finishing the removal of their armor and slipping into their bunks. As Moonfall finished taking off his armor, a light knock from the next bunk grabbed his attention. Moonfall looked over and found Fallen Shine looking back at him. The two stallions silently stared at each other before Moonfall sighed, and the two shared a nod before Fallen Shine slipped into his bunk. Twilight prepared to walk down the car to meet with Ratimir only for Moonfall to walk up to her. “You know, I heard you and the captain earlier.” Twilight folded her ears back and looked down. “Y-yeah, sorry about that.” “No, no, it’s alright. If you’re still curious, I’ll tell you… after all you’d find out later on anyway. Plus it’ll help you understand us better.” Moonfall gave Twilight a comforting smile. “Is… is it bad?” Moonfall’s smile slowly faded, and he looked off to the side. “Yeah. It is…” “Are you sure you’re okay with telling me it?” Moonfall nodded and looked at Twilight. “Yeah, like I said… you’ll find out eventually. Once we enter Canterlot I don’t plan on hiding it.” Twilight raised a brow at that statement. Moonfall snorted and walked past her. “Let’s talk in the next car over.” Twilight nodded and followed after Moonfall, the two going into the next car together.