//------------------------------//
// Captain Night Shadow 
// Story: The Veins Run Deep 
// by Thunderblast 
//------------------------------//

"Thunder, are you able to move yet?"

Thunderblast grunted and groaned as he struggled to move his limbs, then gave up and sighed in frustration. "Nope."

Night Shadow sighed and walked over to him. "Alright, I'll carry you there."

"What about the Governor?"

Night turned his head and faced the severely injured dark blue bat pony, then shook his head. "Leave him here, let him think things over. He isn't getting up anytime soon, trust me," he said, lifting a limp Thunderblast onto his back and galloping down the street, away from the slight destruction left behind from the fight. 

"Where ... agh! Are we headed now?" Thunder asked.

"To find my dad and Lancer, then to find my sister if they haven't already!" Night galloped faster.





Further into the city, the squads of the Legion were mostly gathered in one part of the city, all armed with spears and surrounding the only two stallions not following their orders. One soldier stepped forward through the group, staring directly at Skywatcher and Lancer with a cold glare, but also a light smirk. The two turned and eyed him, the first thing they noticed was the black eye patch over his left eye.

"Oh, Skywatcher. Always finding a way to disobey orders. What made you different from the rest of us, hmm lieutenant? Is it because of your son, the pegasus?"

"Different, or more open minded?" Skywatcher replied, gripping a sword tightly in his hoof. "Unlike you, the one who doesn't care what his orders are, even if they are to harm innocent lives. Out of everypony in our colony, my son is quite possibly the greatest mind to come up in decades, and even he knows the orders you follow are wrong, captain!"

"You say all of this, yet I do not see him anywhere. What, did he run back to Canterlot crying to his Royal Guard?"

"In fact, he stayed to deal with the Governor," Sky smirked.

Some of the soldiers in the group gasped, and a slight chatter went about the crowd.

"Stayed to deal with the Governor, huh?" The captain dropped his smirk. "And you left him to take care of us, am I correct?"

"Perhaps, but I am here for something else. Now, where is my daughter?"

"Don't worry," the captain said in a fake, calm tone. "She's safe with us."

"Hand her over, before I take her from you."

"And why should we?" The captain chuckled.

"Because if you don't, I will have to tie your wings and drop you from a rooftop."

Both Skywatcher and Lancer, as well as many of the soldiers and the captain looked around, trying to find the source of the new voice. Finally, they glanced up to a building rooftop, staring directly at Night Shadow. Once again, a few of the soldiers gasped, most staring in surprise.

"I ... how did you get here?!" The captain yelled.

"I can fly you know," Night replied, a tone of anger in his voice. "Your leader is down, and let's say he won't be giving orders for a month or two. Now, hand over my sister, or you will come to rest beside him. All of you."

"Such a threat, especially coming from you, is preposterous."

"Oh, please. I took down your leader, you have no orders to follow. Your plans are foiled, captain. You're better off going home, before what happened a thousand years ago happens again. You don't want that to happen again, now do you? Our colony may have grown, but so has Equestria, and at this point, you would be even more outnumbered than the last time."

"And what proof do you have of this?"

On Night's back, Thunderblast grumbled loudly and squirmed some more. Finally, his hooves and legs cracked, and slowly were able to move again. He rolled off of Night's back, wobbly standing up.

"Meet my trainer, Thunderblast, a sergeant of the Royal Guard."

"That's right, and we're not alone. In fact, in Vanhoover alone, there are at least a hundred ponies who have previously served or are active in the Royal Guard. Which, also spells disaster for you. So, I would suggest listening to Night here, before he puts a major hurting on you. Also, I wouldn't forget, Night still has deadly venom in his system. One bite, and you have hours to live."

Many more of the soldiers gasped, and instead of staying where they were, a large portion of them took off into the skies and away from the city, and soon followed by the rest.

"What the, where you all going?! Come back you imbeciles, that is an order!" The captain hissed.

"Oh, what's this? It seems they don't follow your orders anymore, 'captain'." Skywatcher moved closer.

The captain hissed again. "Stay back, you idiot!"

"You may want to run," Night smirked.

"I would not do that if I were you," Skywatcher showed his fangs and growled deeply, approaching the other stallion.

The captain took some steps back and kept his spear drawn. "I said stay back, damn it!"

Instead of stopping, Skywatcher lunged at the near-black bat pony. Before he could, a sharp pain tore through down his spine, and his eyes opened up wide. He stopped mid air, and slowly fell to the ground, staring down at himself, seeing the spear had gone through his right chest area. Above, Night Shadow and Thunderblast watched in total horror as drops of blood fell onto the ground.

"Lieutenant!" Lancer shouted, his ears flattening.

"Dad!!" Night yelled.

Skywatcher laid on the ground, his head still up as he hissed in pain, staring worriedly down at the deep wound. Shutting his eyes tightly, but then reopening them moments later, he grabbed the spear with his hoof and yanked it free. More blood shot from the small hole it made, adding to the already large puddle on the ground. The captain's eyes widened, and his ears pinned back.

"S-stay back!" He dropped the spear, and backed further away.

Skywatcher hissed again, and grabbed his neck. "No dungeon time ... for you!" and raised a hoof.

"No, please...don't kill me!" The captain trembled in Sky's hoof.

"You stabbed me, the least I could do is this!" He grabbed the stallion in both hooves, lifting him up and moments later, slamming him down into the cobble street with a loud crack. Thunderblast cringed slightly at the sound, continuing to watch the scene down below. 

Skywatcher panted, then soon collapsed next to the captain. Night gasped and quickly glided down to him. "Dad!"

Sky held a hoof to his chest, groaning and covering the wound. "Well..." He coughed. "He missed my heart," he faintly chuckled.

Tears built in Night's eyes, and he turned to Lancer. "Get a medic, right now!" then turned to Thunder. "Go get my sister!"





"Well, he's suffered a deep injury and has lost quite a bit of blood. I can't say much else, other than he's extremely lucky to be alive, and that the spear went in clean. The good news is, he should be out by the end of the week. The bad news is, he won't be able to talk for up to two weeks."

"That's a big relief," Night sighed and laid back in the chair, glancing over to Skywatcher, who laid asleep in a hospital bed. 

"Although, I will say this. His genetics, as well as his body build may have contributed towards his survival. He does have very thick muscles, after all."

"Well, there's no denying that," Night chuckled a little. "Thanks doc, I appreciate it."

"No problem. But, you really should get some rest as well. You're banged up too."

"I would, but I really shouldn't. After yesterday, I'm expected back in Canterlot."

"Well, if it's that important, I'll let you off, but not without some meds. How does that sound?"

"Alright, I guess," Night stopped. "Actually, now that I think about it..."





Two more days later, Night Shadow sat on the train, staring outside the window and watching as Canter Mountain approached. He smiled faintly, staring upwards at the approaching city as the train made it's way up the winding slopes. Minutes passed, and soon the train began to slow as it pulled into the city, and screeching to a halt at the train station. The conductor opened the doors, greeting ponies into Canterlot. Night exited the train, and made his way towards the Canterlot castle. He showed his tag, being granted entry by the guards standing at the door who had stopped him, and they saluted him which surprised him a little. 

He shrugged it off, and walked through the castle halls, eventually arriving at a tall pair of golden doors with the sun and moon engraved on both sides, also guarded. Instead of them asking for identification, they granted him entry on the spot. Once again, he was surprised by the random generosity of the guards, and entered the throne room. The doors shut behind him with an echoing thud, and he stared forward, smiling towards the two alicorn mares who ruled over the land. He stopped just feet before their thrones, bowing to them.

Princess Celestia let out a small chuckle. "Please, Captain. There is no need to bow."

Night's eyes shot open, and he stood back up. "Captain? Your highness, I don't...understand?"

Unexpectedly, the solar princess turned to her younger sister, who sat beside her and was also smiling down at the pegasus.

"Thou has proven himself of great skills in combat, and great loyalty to this country," Princess Luna cleared her throat. "You, Night Shadow, are a great example of a Lunar guard."

"After the events that occurred a few days ago, both me and my dear sister have decided, that you deserve much more than great praise on behalf of all of Equestria. You showed that when hope seemed lost, you prevailed alongside your friend and trainer Thunderblast, as well as your father. Speaking of which, we give our deepest condolences to you, Night Shadow, and we are very happy to hear that your father is doing much better in the hospital."

Night Shadow nodded once. "Thank you, your highnesses."

Princess Celestia smiled even more. "And, our decision is, that you should be reassigned of your duties."

Night stared towards the two alicorns, he tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. "I do not follow?"

"Night Shadow, as my sister addressed thou moments ago, we believe thou would be more fit to lead my personal escort, alongside the Captain of my Lunar Guard."

Night's eyes opened up wide, and he gasped softly. "Two captains...?"

"Yes, except Captain Fallen Star leads the whole of the Lunar Guard. Your position, would be leading one of the two squads I have for personal defense."

"But, I thought you already had a captain for your personal escort, your highness?"

"I do, but, a back up captain is always necessary in case of situations. We will announce your promotion at the upcoming Fall Gala. We expect you to be there, by the other captains' side," Princess Luna smiled.

Night Shadow's eyes widened even more, and he soon smiled. "Thank you, your highnesses. I ... can't thank you enough, but, is this position really for me? I'm only a corporal, such a large promotion is unheard of."

"If thou shows great honor and loyalty to their country, it is our decision, with the consent of the other high ranking officials of course, to promote you. And, both Captain Armor and Captain Star appreciate your actions sincerely, and agreed with us on this decision. Therefore, you are to be reassigned to being second in command of my personal escort. Once again, we expect you at the Gala in two weeks, I would love to have a casual talk with you there as well."