//------------------------------// // 25. Warrior by Goldenarbiter // Story: The Sun and the Stars: A Twilestia Prompt Collab // by Fuzzyfurvert //------------------------------// by Goldenarbiter *** An inauguration. A nation in delight. An army disciplined. Row upon row of guards were stacked in file upon file. Countless guards stood at attention in the massive canterlot parade square, where the inauguration was being held. They were merely decorations. Celestia was making her public address with Luna, formally declaring Twilight Sparkle a Princess of Equestria. The crowds were cheering, seeing a national hero turned goddess. The soldiers eyed the scene with stoicism. “You’re a hero!” they called. “We love you!” they yelled. “Congratulations!” they screamed. At the end of the speech, in short order, the guards commanders called the stallions to present arms. The flawless movement was performed simultaneously by hundreds of trained troops. A light applause was what they received. ----- A flood. A nation in crisis. An Army dispatched. The brave soldiers waded through water and wreckage, risking life and limb for the poor ponies trapped in the city. When it was done and over with, they stayed behind to help rebuild. Countless hours were spent repairing public institutions, housing, and infrastructure. Seldom few were thanked by the ponies who they saved. Princess Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia made an appearance once the town was rebuilt. They wished the town the best of luck, and rode the cheers of the impoverished all the way back to Canterlot. The soldiers all marched home, nary a word said. ----- A war. A nation in conflict. An Army deployed to the front. Stallions and mares alike tossed aside by explosives. New weapons of war being used against the nation. Some return broken and crippled. Some return with mental instability. Some don’t return at all. Those that do return, are met only by close family. They are judged for not being able to function in society as they once had. They are alienated. They are isolated. They are forgotten. The Princesses make public the ceasefire between nations, and are lauded as heroes. ----- This is our Duty. This is our Loyalty. This is our Courage. This is our Sacrifice. We are Warriors, and we live only to serve. The Princess are our charges, and unto our dying breath they shall not fall. We seek no fame. We seek no glory. We only seek the safety of our nation. We will be forgotten. We will be beaten. We will never surrender. We will never stop. We are warriors.