//------------------------------//
// Chapter 64: Captain and Prince 
// Story: My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Stallion Edition 
// by SuperPinkBrony12 
//------------------------------//

                As soon as King Sombra was destroyed, Princess Cadence flew up to the top of the tower in the Crystal Castle, and sure enough she found Shining Armor right where Spike said he would be.

Oddly enough, despite having a shiny crystal coat (just like everypony else currently in the empire), Shining Armor had passed out. Laying beside him were broken shards of dark red crystals big and small alike, and it didn't take long for Cadence to realize what they were.

"The leftover fragments of King Sombra's spells," Cadence thought to herself "He's got some nerve hurting my husband in the hope of getting to me, or turning him against me! It's a good thing he's gone now, I hope I never have to see that coward of a king ever again!" And she quickly pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind, as the crystal princess she had more important things to worry about, namely the well being of the stallion that was her husband.

Carefully scooping Shining Armor up, Cadence placed him on her back, and carried him out of the tower. She brought him safely down to the balcony overlooking the restored Crystal Empire, and gently set him down.

"B.B.B.F.F!" Twilight exclaimed, immediately dropping everything as she rushed to his side. Fortunately, when she got a good look at him, she saw that he was still breathing normally. And there were no signs of lasting injury anywhere.

"He's exhausted from fighting against King Sombra's dark magic," Cadence explained to Shining Armor's friends "Fortunately, the magic of the Crystal Heart destroyed the crystals causing this. Now he just needs time to rest, he'll be fine when he wakes up."

"Good," Big Macintosh replied, breathing a sigh of relief "We were really worried about him."

"Well, there's one thing I still don't understand," Soarin commented "If he was unconscious in the top of the tower, then how did he get Spike to pick up the Crystal Heart, and leave him?"

"He probably didn't pass out right away, he must've had enough time to give Spike the order first." Thunderlane concluded.

"We can worry about those details later," Rarity replied seriously "For now, let's get him into the castle, and place him somewhere comfortable and out of the way of curious eyes. I don't think he'd want a lot of ponies to see him in this condition."

"There should be a bed for two somewhere within the castle," Cadence said to Rarity "That should do the trick."





Shining Armor slept soundily for a long time, despite the loud and joyous celebration that the Crystal Empire hosted to commemorate the defeat of King Sombra. Pinkie Pie and Braeburn even headed up the celebration, which concluded with the presentation of a blueprint for a statue to be made of pure crystal, honoring the hero that had saved the empire in its moment of great peril, Spike.

At last, after a lengthly slumber, Shining Armor woke up to find himself within the bed chambers of the Crystal Castle. His entire body felt refreshed, and he felt better than he had felt in months. It was as if all of his woes had been washed away, replaced with feelings of tranquality and peace.

When he opened his eyes, Shining Armor immediately found himself gazing right into the eyes of Princess Celestia. Normally, Shining Armor would be rather concerned about meeting her on such short notice. But considering everything he'd been through, he was glad to see a familiar face.

"Nice to see that you have awakened, Prince Armor," Princess Celestia greeted warmly "How does it feel to know that you are now the proud prince of the Crystal Empire?"

"To be honest, it feels like an honor I don't really deserve," Shining Armor admitted "Spike's the one who got the heart to Princess Cadence, and the one who pulled me back when I was trapped in an illusion of self pity by King Sombra. All I did was figure out where the crystal heart was."

"You did more than that, Shining Armor," Princess Celestia said with a smile "You didn't realize it, but when you made the decision to tell Spike to take the Crystal Heart, you passed a test that I knew you would need to pass at one point or another. A test of self scarifice, to see if you understood the concept. I had hoped for it to be under less world threatening circumstances, but I am still relieved that you passed it with flying colors."

"I see." Shining Armor nodded.

Princess Celestia continued to smile, as she said to Shining Armor "You have proven yourself to be a capable leader on more than one occasion, and have faced big fears. If you ask me, those are the kind of traits that any great prince should have. More importantly, you have proven that you are ready."

"Ready for what?" Shining Armor asked Princess Celestia.

"For what lies ahead of course," Princess Celestia replied "If I told you what it was, it would spoil the surprise, and you would overthink the situation. But now that it will come sooner than you might think. You will know when it has happened, for I will be there to see your accomplishment. And by the time it is over, you and your friends will know more about the magic of friendship than anypony in the history of Equestria, even Starswirl The Bearded himself."

"But what will I do in the meantime?" Shiing Armor asked.

"That, is up to you," Princess Celestia told him "As of now, your role as prince of The Crystal Empire does not amount to much, other than ensuring that the Crystal Heart remains where it belongs, and that love and hope remain in strong supply. If you wish, you may return to the royal guard and serve as their captain, while also maintaining your role as prince. But there will undoubtly be times when your loyalty to both will lead to conflict, and you will have to choose which side to help. Alternatively, you may permantely relinquish the title of captain, and pass the torch to a pony of your choosing. You will recieve the benefits that all retired captains recieve. The choice is yours, and yours alone."

"I want to return to helping the royal guard, so that Equestria can depend on it for protection," Shining Armor said "But if I do, what will become of First Lieutenant Flash Sentry? He's been leading the royal guard in my absence."

"He will return to his usual post until called on to serve at a new location," Princess Celestia explained "I should also mention that you and Cadence will need your own personal guard now that you are both royalty. You may appoint at least one pony of your choosing to serve in the Crystal Guard."

"Then, I shall choose Flash Sentry," Shining Armor immediately replied "He deserves to be repaid for stepping up to take charge in my absence, and I would really like to get to know him on a personal level. He sounds like a nice guy."

"Very well then," Princess Celestia nodded "When I return to Canterlot, I shall inform Flash of your decision. Speaking of Canterlot, you may come and go from that city, Ponyville, or this empire as often as you wish. But I would advise you not to travel too much too often. You may be the Crystal Prince, but you are still just a pony, and your body will need time to rest. If you try to do too much at once, you will overexert yourself and be of little use to anyone."

"Thank you, your majesty," Shining Armor bowed "I shall keep in mind your advice at all times. And hopefully, the next time we speak, it will simply be a casual talk that does not concern the fate of Equestria."





And so, with a new title and a new location to contend with, Shining Armor's life had once again changed drastically. For the near future, he and Cadence agreed it would be best for him to remain in the Crystal Empire to fully recover from what King Sombra had done, and Flash Sentry would lead the royal guard for a little bit longer. Once Shining Armor was fully recovered, he would take back the leadership role, and Flash Sentry would move to the Crystal Empire to serve with the Crystal Guard.

But Shining Armor had no way of knowing that all of the changes he'd experienced in the past couple of months, were all preparing him for a great big change that would come on a faithful day not too far down the road.