It might have only been for a moment, but the dimming of the sun had everypony worried. If Shining Armor did nothing, they were moments away from a stampede. Panicked cries and worried murmurs blended into an indecipherable mess. It was so bad he had to use hoof and light singles to get his ponies into place.
A quick teleport and he was atop the wall. The crowd below had simply been through too much. Nightmare Moon, Discord, Tirek, Twilight's foalnapping, the Blight and now this. As much as he sympathised, as much as his duty made him act, he resented them, for his heart called him elsewhere.
IT HURTS! The memory of his sister's voice slammed into his senses again. It was all he could do not to look back towards Ponyville. His duty was here. There were ponies that depended on him, as much as he wanted to gallop off.
The shifting wings, hooves scraping the pavement and sparking horns were signs he had no time to waste, especially for merely personal things. Please be alright, Twilight. He prayed before he addressed the crowd.
Our sister is a very capable mare. Gleaming offered as she observed the world through his eyes. Her calm, controlled surety bolstered his resolve even as he noted she had not said Twilight would be alright. He would just have to trust she would be. He just wished he could believe it.
The fact she was even there in his mind was one of the oddest things about loving an Alicorn. The Fragment of his wife, Gleaming Shield, was like one of her roleplay characters, just real. There were subtle hints of Cadance's kindness or warm humour behind every word, but it was as if she had lived a different life. Every time he talked to her, each time she guided his magic, it felt both like he was growing closer to Cadance and like he was betraying her just a little bit. When everything was settled, they were all going to need to have a long talk about this.
There, Gleaming said.
It no longer felt odd to let her guide his attention. On overwatch, a single Night Guard's stance had changed. Their muscles were tense and ready to spring into action, but that was only secondary. They were no longer looking out for external threats, no longer watching the crowd. No, their narrowed, angry eyes were sizing up the Royal Guard.
The thestral locked their eyes on his. Burning anger blazed in those orbs. Hate and murderous intent. For a moment, it seemed like they might attack him. The impromptu staring match lasted only a few seconds before the thestral slipped into their own shadow.
Gleaming readied his magic, but Shining's eyes snapped to where the other two Night Guards were stationed. They were all gone. Not good.
You think? Gleaming asked, mentally reaching for spells as if gearing up in an armoury.
Something happens to the sun, and now all the Night guards are abandoning their posts? "What is going on?" He asked the empty air.