Shining Armour stood at the would be altar next to his soon to be Aunt-in-law and Spike. The arch behind them was decorated in wreaths of purple and pink flowers. From the windows the entirety of Canterlot city could be seen, and the ever present pink hue of the shield protecting them from an unknown threat. Spike stood a couple steps below Shining, holding the pillow upon which the wedding ring rested. All their attentions were drawn to the door as Five of the bearers of Harmony, now acting as substitute bride maids to Cadence, Walked in slwoly and in Sync, all of them smiling happily. "Perfect Girls, no need to rush." Celestia praised them from afar. Rainbow dash winked to Rarity, and they both stopped, bringing their front hooves to their face giggling happily. "Then of course, Cadence will enter." the princess of the sun cut in. All eyes turned expectantly towards the doors once more. The two unicorn guards enveloped each door in their magical, one glowing gold, the other azure, and opened them up to reveal the bride-to-be.
A goofy smile overtook Shining's face as he saw his fiance, watching her intently as she slowly made her way up to the altar. Celestia then continued running through how the ceremony would take place. "I will say a few words, and then we'll begin with the vows." Cadence and Shining Armour nuzzled each other slightly, before looking at Celestia once more. "Shining Armour, you'll get the ring from your best mare." Shining turned to look behind him expectantly, but his smile was quickly replaced with a frown and look of confusion at seeing where Twilight was supposed to be standing empty. Instead, all they saw was Spike sitting on the steps, playing with the little dolls of Cadence and Shining Armour again. "Do you?" he said, imitating Shining's deeper voice, then responded to himself in a high voice as he accidentally let shining's doll go flying "I do!"
"Hey, has anypony seen Twilight?" Shining asked. At that moment, the distinctive sound of magic was heard as Twilight threw both doors open with a look of determination on fer features. "I'm Here!" she announced, shooting daggers at everyone and yet no one with her eyes. She began marching forward towards the soon to be married couple, announcing her intentions along the way. "I'm not going to stand next to her, and neither should you!" Shining grimaced with embarrassment, his eyes darting to his fiance briefly, and then to spike, before facing Cadence once more. "I'm sorry, I don't know why she's acting like this." Cadence looked sideways at Twilight, her own eyes full of anger and daggers now as well. "Maybe we should just ignore her."
"You have to listen to me!" Twilight shouted from across the chamber. She gritted her teeth together and glared at Cadence. "Oh goodness!" Fluttershy exclaimed floating over to her friend. "Are you ok?" "I'm fine." Twilight responded, moving herself away from her friend, only to find Applejack in her face. "Are ya sure bout that?" Frowning in annoyance Twilight used her magic to shove Aj's hat into her face and resumed her march towards the altar. "I have something to say!" The rest of her friends watched on in horror as she continued her march. Once she reached the stairs, she raised her hoof and pointed accusingly at Cadence. "She's evil!"
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Due to the wedding taking place in the afternoon, student and teachers got the day off as a public holiday was called. A few shops were still open as he trotted through the city, but they to would close when the wedding actually began. Guards still patrolled every street and stood constant vigil, but even the threat of aggression couldn't stop the cheer of ponies on this day. It was almost intoxicating, quite literally in Spell's case. Everyponies happiness seemed to float into him and his head began to spin. Seeking a reprieve from the bombardment of emotions, he made his way towards the Canterlot gardens. Oddly deserted, seeing as everypony was crowding around the front gates hoping to get in, Spell walked through the gardens in utter silence, a sense of serenity flooding through him. He paused briefly to stare up at the statue of Discord. It stood in a different position than that which he remembered, before recalling how the spirit of Disharmony had broken loose during the summer of last year.
Shaking his head, he entered the restored Canterlot maze, heading towards the center. As he entered, he paused briefly, hearing a strange buzzing and clicking sound, followed by a soft melody. Deeply disturbed, he cast his eyes around him, trying to find the source. Unable to find anything, he warily continued on his path, unaware that above him a swarm was gathering to batter at the magical shield. Upon reaching the center, Spell attempted to meditate in peace, drawing in energy from the plant life around him. His peace was disturbed by a voice that was not his own going off in his head. "Begin the attack my subjects. Time to feed."
Spell's eyes shot wide open and he jumped to his hooves, eyes darting everywhere, trying to find the cause. He was in the process of working himself down from a panic attack when a loud cracking noise came from above him. Looking up, he saw lines appearing in the shield, and hundreds if not thousands of black flying creatures battering into the shield. Rooted to the spot, he could do nothing but watch as the defensive barrier fell apart, and came crashing down into the ground. The creatures hovered in the air for a precious few seconds, before enveloping themselves in green fire and dive bombing the city.