//------------------------------// // Battle of the Nyrs Part 1 // Story: Soren The Alicorn Part 2: The Effects Of War // by KingNyroc15 //------------------------------// -------------------- Three Days Later -------------------- The past few days went by too fast in Soren's opinion. After the night when he and Luna changed Twilight's dream, Soren only studied for one more day. Although he wanted to study more, Luna practically forced him to relax until the eclipse. At this point, the eclipse is one week away. Earlier today, Princess Celestia sent letters to every trustworthy city and town. These letters stated that everypony who is going to be fighting for Equestria is to report to the Royal Palace as soon as possible. As of right now, many ponies from anywhere imaginable are being escorted via chariot and train towards Canterlot, including Soren, Luna, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Spike. The weather was grim, for it was snowing. Although it was depressing, the weather set the mood perfectly for tonight and tomorrow afternoon. The cold chariot ride to Canterlot gave Soren the necessary amount of time to think and reflect on things. He thought about the eclipse and what it would do to him and Nyra, he thought about how the battle would effect the ponies participating in it, and he hoped that there will be zero major injuries or worse. The last thing Soren thought about before reaching Canterlot was where the Doctor went. The Doctor could easily help in this conflict, so where was he? Soren pondered on this subject some more to pass the time. Eventually, he had a realization: The Doctor explained to Soren that when Soren was unconscious, he went to see the librarian to explain what happened, and then he came back to work on the TARDIS. Except Soren deducted that either the Doctor didn't only work on the TARDIS, or he went somewhere and then worked on the machine; either way, the Doctor was hiding something. As Soren was sleeping, the Doctor had to have gone through time to tell Nyra to follow through with her plan because he knew that Soren would be the one who would care about her. But something happens in the future, something that caused the Doctor to want to stop him. Soren stopped pondering on the subject as he saw that Canterlot was less than a mile away. Within the minute, at least six chariots, all carrying about three to four ponies, landed near the train station. As ponies were disembarking from their rides, a train came up to the station. Soren and his friends knew the train had ponies riding on it, so they wanted to see how many. They were not disappointed; compared to the amount of ponies the chariots carried from Ponyville, about three times as many ponies exited the train. Although their numbers were great, the ponies were still nervous. How many did the Shadow Horses have? The group of nine friends paused at the gates to Canterlot. They looked at each other with grim expressions. None of them wanted this to happen, yet they had no choice at this point; it was fight or...(They refused to think of the alternative). Soren walked in front of his friends and faced them. "I need to say something," Soren started. "These past few months that I have been in Ponyville have been exciting and fun, yet dangerous and stressful. I'm glad you all stuck with me until today. Without all of you, I don't know what I would be. You have showed me what true friendship is all about. It's all about trust, loyalty, generosity,... basically the Elements of Harmony. I have done nothing but put you all in danger, yet you still stayed by my side. I have put your lives at risk, but I have managed to save you at the same time. Whether it was me being possessed or shadow creatures stealing my voice, all of you stood by my side. I have actually started to feel what the Doctor felt: putting the ones you love in danger. The stress of danger has gotten to all of us, but we will push through it. Now, all I have to say is: Be strong, be brave, and then we will not lose. We will win and we will save Equestria!" A simultaneous "Yeah!" was yelled by the group of friends. Soren smiled at his loyal friends. 'I have already put them through so much, yet they stay by my side. Hopefully everything will be fine after this week.' All of them began walking towards the castle to go see the princess. ------------------- Six Days Later ------------------- It was the night before the battle. Everypony that was participating tomorrow had gathered in the theater hall in Canterlot for a speech from Princess Celestia. The building was nowhere near as packed as if a play was occurring, but it still held a good amount of participants, including the Royal Guard. A single spotlight shined on center stage. Her Highness walked onto the stage and stopped when she reached the center. The look on her face told everypony that she wanted to be here as much as anyone else. "My little ponies, tomorrow will be a grave day for Canterlot, especially since Hearth's Warming Eve is on said day. The Shadow Horses' numbers are unknown, even with the recent spy we planted into their ranks. But do not fret, for we will be successful in defending our shining capital. Now then, I would like to ask my sister and our best chance at defeating the Nightmare Guardian, Soren, to say a few words." The sun princess nodded to the front row, where Princess Luna and Soren were standing with their friends. Soren became nervous; he never had to speak to a crowd of this size. "Luna, can you start first?" Soren whispered to his marefriend. Luna agreed. The two alicorns joined Princess Celestia onstage. They faced the audience once again, and Luna began. "Over the course of this month, we have deduced that these Shadow Horses are located within the abandoned Canterlot Caves. The plan is to send Soren here into these caves to confront their leader, while we defend Canterlot from destruction. Some of you may recognize Soren, but for the rest, this is your first glance at the newest Elemental Guardian. One last thing: We have noticed that a certain amount of you believe that the Shadow Horses plans are entirely foolish and pointless. We would like to say...you may be correct, but it does not give any of us excuses to not defend our homes from these traitors. I now wish to pass over the speech to Soren." Luna nodded to Soren, who returned the gesture, still nervous. Soren took a deep breath and tried to relax as much as possible. "Some of you may be wondering what's so special about me. You may be wondering if I'm from the royal family, and I can easily say that I am not. I don't know where I'm originally from, but my adoptive family is from this very city. I am the Elemental Guardian and what is known as a Nyr." Whispers of surprise and confusion could be heard. "The Nightmare Guardian is also a Nyr. I am one of the few ponies that can ever hope to defeat her. The princesses made it their duty to protect Canterlot, for they couldn't forgive themselves if they failed to protect all of you." "How can we trust you to beat her?" a random stallion asked. "Some of us haven't even seen what can you do." "You can trust him because I am trusting him with the lives of Canterlot," Princess Celestia intervened. "For over 150 years, not a single pony died from an unnatural cause. Tomorrow...that streak may end, but hopefully it will not come to that. I know that all of you that have signed up know what you are getting yourselves into, and I am honored by the gesture. Do not fear for your own death but instead fear for the death of your loved ones. Use their love to strengthen your spirits and lift your hearts to the task ahead. The eclipse will happen around noon tomorrow. I will need all of your to wake up early and prepare yourselves for the inevitable. We can win this, we will prevail. Now go...go rest for the day ahead. I believe in all of you." The spotlight faded, the princess sisters walked off stage with Soren in tow. The crowd dissipated and left the hall. Everypony left to get as much rest as possible, for tomorrow was the Battle of the Nyrs. ---------------- Soren woke up early in the morning. Him and his friends had received rooms next to each other at one of the higher floors of the castle. Sitting up in his bed, Soren rubbed his eyes and looked towards his room's balcony; he saw that the sun was in the process of rising. Soren walked onto the balcony and looked upon Canterlot. It was a beautiful sight in morning; the snow was brightly lit by the sun's rays, which caused the entire city to shine with unmatched beauty. "It's beautiful to see in the morning, isn't it?" a meek voice commented. Soren turned around to see Fluttershy walking up to him. He didn't hear her knock. She must have let herself in. "It is," Soren responded. "Too bad this bright gem had to be found during the darkest day." Fluttershy stood next to Soren as she put her forelegs over the railing. "How are you feeling today?" "Scared and nervous, but that's only because..." The yellow pegasus stopped her sentence. "Because?" Fluttershy quickly looked at Soren with a sad face. "Because I'm scared that this may be the last time we see you." Soren could see that she was fighting back tears. Even Soren felt like he might start crying because of how sad she looked. Instinctively, Soren walked over and hugged her. He shushed her softly so she would relax. "Fluttershy...no matter what happens, I won't die, nor will I allow any ponies to die, at least if I have the power to prevent it. The Shadow Horses on the other hoof, they chose their path and they have to pay the consequences. I don't know if I could find it in myself to actually kill a pony, but..if it has to be done..." Fluttershy sniffled before continuing. "How are you feeling today?" "Nervous. I still don't know if I'm going to make the right decision today." Soren paused. He really didn't want to talk about the battle right now. "Do you miss your home? We have been here for six days." Their hug broke. Soren could still see sadness in Fluttershy eyes, but at least she was smiling at this point. "Of course. I miss my home and my animal friends, but it's ok because all of my friends are here with me. Do you miss singing? You haven't sung a song in quite some time." Soren was surprised by this question. It's true; Soren hasn't sang a single song in awhile. "I do. It's surprisingly how I got my cutie mark. When this is all over, I'll sing a song for all of my friends. How does that sound?" "That sounds great. Everyone should be awake by now. Let's go see them." Soren agreed, so the two friends left Soren's room to meet up with everypony.