Nocturna Eternal

by Sleep Sonata

Prologue

It was a joyous day, a day to celebrate. The new princess was about to be crowned in Zodiac Square. Sergeant Eclipse had made it clear that heads would roll if any of us jacked up the event, and I made sure mine wasn’t one of them.

I made a second head to count, to make sure I had all of the members of my squad. All were present and accounted for, although some uniform corrections had to be made. I expected it of them, but I never let them know that. Eventually, they would need to be perfect first time, every time. Better to develop that habit sooner rather than later.

Just as I finished correcting the last of the privates, Sergeant walked in, his scars still frightening, even after knowing him for the past year. “Corporal Crow! Are your men ready?”

I snapped to attention, facing him. “Yes Sergeant. We await your command.”

He gave me a nod, and as quickly as he arrived, left our tent, on to inspect the other squads. I turned to the stallions, who all stood stone faced at attention. We were the first one to be checked, and the Colonel needed to inspect the rest of the Battalion. There was no point in keeping them here forever. “At ease, privates. We’ll be waiting a while.”

They heaved a collective sigh of relief. They had learned to respect their NCOs, but I think a few of them still had a genuine fear for them.

“Corporal, what if I’m not feeling too good about this parade. What if I screw up? Sergeant will have my head.

“He’ll tell you straighten up. I’m the one he’ll put the blame on if you all are sloppy.” The stallion didn’t seem convinced. He kept looking around, fidgeting with the tassels on his armor. He wasn’t going to march well acting like that. “Calm down, Private. All you have to do is look good and march straight. We’ll get you through the rest.”

This seemed to put him at ease, at least for the moment. He was right though. Coronations are a once in a lifetime event. Nopony could live down the shame of screwing this up. They’d probably volunteer for banishment. Negative thoughts wouldn’t help, though. I had to lead these stallions through streets filled with the entire city. They were my responsibility.

Noon came, and the procession began. I could only assume, hope, that we all looked as professional and intense as possible. If we didn’t, we could only hope the crowd wouldn’t notice.

The crowds were cheering as we entered the parade. I can’t describe in words the feelings I had at that moment. Whatever they were, I hid them well, behind a facade of military intensity. The privates did as I did, so I had to look the best.

Still, it was a great relief to have a new ruler on the throne. Prince Orion had retreated into obscurity, and nopony really knew what had become of him. The new princess was supposedly vibrant and youthful; exactly what this nation needed to recapture our glory.

Our battalion filed off to the right, and we took our positions amongst the rest of the guard. Now came the easy part. All we had to do was be statues, while the Duchess of Polaris crowned the new princess. We’d only seen the Lords at our inspection. The Duchess and the Princess had their own personal guards. We all held our breath as we saw our monarch for the first time.

She was truly a sight to behold. Her main flowed elegantly in the night breeze, and her gown, adorned with amethyst and diamonds, was as perfect as could be for the occasion.

A squire approached the Duchess in a bow, holding the royal crown. She lifted the crown with her magic, and lay it gently atop the new rulers head. The two walked to the edge, and the Duchess cast and amplification spell. “Hail, Princess Starry Night! Ruler of all the Thestrals! Nocturna Eternal!”

A thunderous cheer erupted from the crowd. I tried to hold back my excitement, until I saw the Colonel embracing the other officers. I gave in then, and started jumping up and down like a school colt. Nopony cared. From now on, we would have a princess with empathy for her ponies, and would take action to end their suffering and build our nation anew.

At least, that was how it was supposed to be.