Shining’s Log-Entry: Graduation
Sometimes time just seems to pass so fast. It feels like only yesterday I was just a fresh cadet. New barracks, new duties, new commanders. And now, I’m a rookie guardspony. With new barracks, new duties and new commanding officers. Huh. I guess not that much has changed. But either way, I’m an official member of the Royal Guard, one the ponies who keep all of Equestria safe. I couldn’t be happier.But now that I’m going to be going into active situations, I need to ask these questions of myself, even though I already know the answers; Am I capable of doing all that a member of the Royal Guard can be called upon to do? Am I willing to give my life to protect those I love? That answer is easy, yes, I would give my life in a heartbeat if it meant Twily, or my parents would live. Am I willing to give my life to protect those I serve with, my friends and Equestria in general. Yes, I love them all, and I will protect them with my dying breath. But now for the hard question. Am I willing to use my training, to fight, and possibly kill in order to protect those I love, my friends and this land in general? … Yes.
Moving on, my first posting is going to be a small fort North-West of Vanhoover. It’s not a large outpost, a dozen ponies at most, and there isn’t really that much to defend against with the magical barriers preventing any hostile forces from entering Equestria from the frozen northlands. This promises to be a boring post, but fortunately Rock Boulder and Fiery Hammer are both going to be posted there as well, so at least I’ll have some of my friends with me.
Shining Armor, Signing Off
An explosion rippled through the air, tossing two ponies against each other. “Move, move, move!” Sargent Lucky Skipper ordered, “Unicorns, front and center, use magic to attack. Earth ponies, give them cover! Physical attacks won’t work!”
The howling winds surrounded the small fort, as the dozen guardponies inside scrambled to face the enemy forces which had unexpectedly struck. Glowing blue eyes appeared and disappeared in the darkness around the fort, large semi-solid shapes forming and vanishing randomly.
The four unicorns present each had their horns glowing, and were shooting beams of light at the misty forms, but each time, the figures would just shift out of the way of the oncoming beams.
“I thought windigos were just supposed to make ponies fight, or make it freeze, not attack directly!?” Rock questioned, while attempting to block the strong winds battering his companions.
“I guess the stories aren’t right,” Fiery responded, “It’s been centuries since one has been in Equestria anyway.” He continued firing blasts of magic from his horn ineffectually.
“This isn’t working,” shouted Shining Armor, while still shooting magic from his horn, “They just dodge our shots!”
Fiery Hammer was next to his friend, also directing his magic to attack the windigos. “Then we’ll just have to try something else!”
Fiery stopped attacking, before a look of intense concentration came across his face.
Fiery Hammer’s horn glowed a fearsome, brilliant red, and instead of shooting a beam of light, a massive cone of fire spread before it.
The windigos just flowed around cone of fire.
The windigos then responded with tremendous gust of wind blew back the pony defenders. Two earth ponies are sent flying, but Sargent Skipper jumps and grabs them, before cushioning their fall with his body. Shining spared a glance at the pile, but it was obvious all three were out of the fight.
“What I wouldn’t give for some fire of friendship right now!” shouted Rock.
Yet another massive gust of wind buffeted the remaining defenders. This time Fiery Hammer couldn’t maintain his grip and went flying.
Shining Armor saw his friend in trouble, and the glow around his horn intensified in brightness. A matching rose-colored glow appeared around Fiery, and brought him back to the ground.
“We can’t keep this up!” Fiery shouted as he reached the ground, “But I don’t know what to do.”
“I’m not going to give up!” Shining responded, “If these windigos can cause this much damage here, just imagine what will happen if they reach a town!”
Shining dug his hooves in, and stood in defiance of the raging winds. “I will not let them past us! I will protect my friends, and those I love!” he shouted to the winds.
The glow around Shining’s horn intensified even further. “I will not give up. I will protect!” A beam of light shot out of Shining’s horn, but instead of going all the way to the windigos, it instead formed a glowing barrier around the small fort.
The windigos recoiled from the glowing shield, and the winds could not reach through it. They rushed around the perimeter of the fort, trying to find a weakness in the shield, but found none. With a final howl of rage, the windigos disappeared, to the north.
The defenders just stood there in the sudden calm, relived that it was over.
“Corporal Armor,” a large, roughed up pegasus, who had bruises on her side shouted, “Report to my office, immediately!”
---
Shining Armor stood before his commanding officer, poised at attention. The office was a mess, with papers strewn everywhere, and a hole in the wall letting in a stiff cold wind.
“Corporal Armor,” he saluted, “Reporting as ordered.”
“At ease,” Lieutenant Solar Shaker ordered, standing behind her disheveled desk. She shuffled some papers around, attempting to fix the mess a bit, before turning her gaze on Shining.
“Are you are aware that I personally asked for you to be assigned here?” she questioned.
“No sir,” Shining said, confused.
“I suppose you’re wondering what that has to do with the price of hay in Fillydelphia,” Solar questioned.
“Yes sir,” Shining answered honestly, before his eyes widened, “I mean, no sir!” he corrected himself.
Solar laughed, “Don’t worry son. Reflexes can get the best of us.” As her laughter faded, a more serious look crossed Lieutenant Shaker’s face. “I asked that you be assigned here because you have potential,” she smiled again, “And probably even more than I thought, given your performance outside.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” Shining responded, “But if I may. What does that have to do with the situation at hoof?”
“The situation at hoof, is that the wards protecting this part of Equestria from the dangers to the north, have failed, Private,” Lieutenant Shaker said sternly. She started to pace as she continued, “There have been signs that they were going to fail for at least three months now, but I was assured that they should have been strong enough to repel an attack like this one for at least six more.”
Shining Armor looked confused, but Shaker moved on, “I asked for an expert on defensive magic to come and repair the wards, but the experts, all three of them, are busy on the southern frontier, working on establishing safeguards against the dangers that wander the Badlands, and won't be available for at least four months.”
Solar Shaker stopped pacing and turned to face Shining full on. “Then I heard about you. An up and coming cadet, top of his class, who just so happens to have an amazing affinity for defensive magic. So I thought to myself, ‘if I can’t get one of the experts to come, then I’ll just have to make my own.’”
“But sir!” Shining protested, “I don’t know anything about these wards. I wouldn’t have a clue how to recharge them!”
“Don’t give me that, Corporal,” barked Solar, her whole body going tense, before wincing at her bruised side, “I am fully aware of your capabilities. Even if it seems, you are not.” Solar’s pose relaxed a bit, “You are the single most talented unicorn at defensive magic that your academy teachers have ever seen, and I know that Cobalt Shield went over at least the basics of warding with you. Although, I was going to have you brush up on the wards using the books here, before having Sargent Skipper lead a small expedition to the ward stone, so you could recharge it.”
“And now, that plan has gone belly up. Sargent Skipper is in no state to lead a party. I can’t do it myself, because I need to organize for a possible second attack,” Solar Shaker said with a gesture to her messed up office, “And I can’t even find the proper books anymore, even if there was enough time for you to read them.” A strange look crossed the lieutenant’s face. “But we still need to locate that ward-stone, and get it charged up, otherwise there will attacks all over North-Western Equestria.”
Solar turned her head, and looked Shining Armor right in the eyes. “I need you to lead a small team and locate and recharge that ward-stone.”
Shining Armor looked stunned, his ears flat on his head, and he looked down. A moment later, he raised his head, a determined look in his eyes. “Sir, I’ll do it. But I’d like permission to choose my own team.”
Solar Shaker smiled. “Permission granted, but I can only spare two ponies. We just don’t have the guards to spare.”
“Then I want to take Private Hammer and Private Boulder, sir,” Shining stated.
“Two rookies?” Solar questioned. Shining stiffened, but Solar just shook her head, “I shouldn’t question you. I’ve already given you an impossible task, and I’m not going to make it worse by ordering you to take ponies you are not familiar with.”
Solar took a deep breath, before releasing it slowly. “Very well, you know what your orders are. Time is of the essence. Take care, Corporal.”