We all know Shining Armor to be the hero that gets thrown around and beaten by the abnormal enemies of Equestria.
We know him to be the good guy that keeps going headstrong in a fight.
He's done it with Sombra.
He's done it with Tirek.
This new challenge, however, is going to be his most difficult one ever. He is alone and broken by the lies his friends and family have used to keep him in the dark.
Now that his loved one have brought the truth to the light, there are going to be consequences to lying about what has happened with Cadance' pregnancy.
Shining Armor is not going to understand for them. But they will understand this. . .
He is hurt.
He is angry.
He is done with his friends and family, especially Cadance.
Author Notes
Inspired by Zamairiac. Thank you by the way. 
A Semi-Dark Short Story to the alternate universe of Shining Armor and Cadance having a screw-up in their marriage. And by "Screw-Up" I mean they are both in the wrong of what has put the gap in their love.
No, there is no rape or gore in this story. The twist of their conflict, however, is going to be a little messed up.
Liked it, faved it, waiting for the next chapter.
But if i may say the ending of the first chapter is a bit off putting.
Like how can she play that card, when she got what she deserved for what she tried?
I hope that Shining won't give into false guilt when he is not wrong.
Depending on how the next chapter will be, i may unfav this story.
Sorry.
But then again considering your type of stories and Zamairiac im pretty sure i won't unfav this one. :P
For a moment there I felt like I was reading a mash up of my various stories. Carry on though, I'm intrigued :)
6410228
Yeah, Chrysalis is definitely in the wrong. It'd be really annoying if she tries to make it sound like he's the bad guy and she was just the poor, misunderstood tragic hero and Shining buys that story.
Why are they treating him like a fugitive though, straight up to sending the guard to apprehend him broken bones and all? He's done nothing wrong or illegal, he's just leaving a home and family he feels betrayed by. He's in an unstable emotional state and just wants some space and some time to himself. They're treating him like a prisoner who's escaped rather than a scorned husband and brother. Also, why is it that Cadence didn't discuss this with him first? That's like the number one thing you do when you're in a relationship - discuss major decisions and changes with them - especially when it comes to children and reproduction. Cadence as the Alicorn of Love should know that; it shows blatant disrespect and distrust in Shining Armour that nobody tells him about what has happened, or even let him know about the idea before they go through with it.
6410318
The flow of this short story is inspired by you, but I assure it is not a "Lunar Chrome" story.
Remembert that guy?
Oh. Yeah. That's right, you stupid, ugly, worthless bitch. Blame Shining for all of that, why don't you?!
Because if I remember correctly, you were the one who decided to abduct Cadance, imprison her down in the Crystal Cave (and to probably starve to death ('cause you really just cared soooooo damned much!)), take her place and impersonate her, brainwash her fiancee, try to take over Canterlot (and then presumably the whole of Equestria), which got you and your slimy little abominations blasted out of Canterlot by Shining and Cadance to wherever, which obviously killed a whole bunch of the little bastards and rendered you sterile.
Yeah, you're Little MIss Innocent, and so none of that was your fault, and so Shining is totally, totally to blame for all of that.
Right. Suuuuuuure he was.
Typical villain mentality. Always blame the other guy; never, ever blame yourself.
You stupid, selfish bitch.
I hope that Shining doesn't fall for this load of bullshit.
I really do.
Anyway, great first chapter, hun! It was well worth waiting for, and I can't wait for Chapter 2 to find out what Shining's response to her load of horseapples will be.
He oughta just laugh at her, and throw what I just said right back in her ugly face.
Something along the lines of "Oh, you mean because you decided to invade our country, use our people as a damned food source, you filthy, ugly bitch? Sorry if I don't have any sympathy about your current situation, then."
And dang you and your cliffhangers! Just when it was getting good!
But you've whetted my appetite for more, so that's good.
And as I said above, I can't wait to see what you have in store for us in Chapter 2 and beyond!
I like the story
6410952 The funny thing if this wasn't Celestia and their eternal "forgiveness" (Except for Shining... Who they are hunting down...) Chrysalis would just be hunted down and killed for her crimes of: Attacking the Monarch, Subduing the Capital, attacking National Heroes, planning to turn the kingdom into a Farm, taking the Monarch prisoner, and many, many more crimes.
6410952
No, no, no, my friend. Shining Armor is at fault for her children dying.
Just remember that Shining Armor is showing signs of malice and wrath already.
Trust me, there is a twist that will be revealed about Shining Armor and the changelings.
6411245 That was exactly my point.
Which is why, out of all of the villains and enemies that the show has introduced so far, I hate Chrysalis and he changelings the most.
Followed very closely by Starlight Glimmer.
6411277 Okay.
Well, that was just my opinion, anyway.
And do tell. Looks like you've got a bit of a roller coaster ride planned for us with this one.
As I said earlier, I can't wait to see what happens next!
6411323
I cannot tell you how Shining Armor is at fault. You have to read the next chapter when it comes out. :)
6411408 Well, that's fair.
Nor would I want you to.
Finding out is half the fun, no?
And when you publish it, I shall do just that.
Btw, have you noticed anything weird about any of the chapters that you might have read this morning?
Because I sure have!
6411458
To be honest I have not read anything. I've been doing everything I can to write some more and get more chapters uploaded.
That twist. loving the feelings of betrayal and that no one is right. waiting eagerly now.
6411521 That's okay.
Mainly because it was my own flub-up for hitting the little "arrow in a l'il box" thing up in the upper right and corner of the story itself, and turning on something or other.
But it's fixed now, so it's no biggie.
As ever I would like to see what this story of yours has to offer.
More than seeing your wife give birth to an egg?
There's so much foulness here that I can hardly fathom it.
Short of physical abuse, there are no acts in a romantic relationship more horrifying and revolting than betraying the trust of your partner and cheating on them. Even if actual sex was somehow avoided in impregnating Cadance, the difference is next to nil. It may be worse, fact--at least normal infidelity only involves sex.
Women have the right to their bodies. But part of being married is realizing that what each side does affects the other, and that together they are more than just two individuals who like each other. She gave up all her embryos (was Chrysalis so needy she couldn't leave any?) to bear somepony else's child. Cadance and Shining Armor have been planning to make a family for an age--but due to her decision, he has been forever denied blood children. At this point, if he wanted children he would have to leave his wife or have sex with another mare (and judging by his response here, he wouldn't find that an acceptable substitute). She didn't just decide what to do with her own body, she destroyed Shining's future.
What did they expect would happen from this? Were they going to keep him in the dark forever? Did they think that nothing would ever happen to reveal this? What would they do when Cadance has no more excuses to keep from making a foal with him? What about when after they--he--try and try to make a baby but never succeed? Would they say she's infertile? What excuse would they make for this?
Were they trying to do the whole "It's better to ask forgiveness than permission" thing? Because that does NOT work when it comes to extramarital affairs. Sex outside of their marriage needs permission and consent to keep the trust and love alive. To cheat is a betrayal of the heart of the rankest and lowest sort.
How did they hide the pregnancy? Did they just let Shining Armor think it was his? When the time for childbirth came, did they tell him it was stillborn? Would the changeling have quickly hatched and assumed the form of a foal? Would they take an orphaned child and substituted it in as their own?
And what if they did adopt? As two immortals, it is likely that their children would be very long lived, if not immortal themselves. But if they adopt normal foals, then they will raise them and love them and watch their own children die. No parent should outlive their children--it's one of those things that are undeniably the most justified reasons for the immortality blues, and Shining Armor will know, as he buries his adopted kids, that he would never have had to experience this if his wife hadn't done what she did.
I don't understand Celestia. Shining had a point--earlier, she acted as though his wife cheated on him in one of the worst ways was a minor offense (ha!). Her dismissal of his feelings was just so... what happened to her empathy? Twilight confuses me too. She knows Shining Armor better than anypony else. She should know that he would likely accept this if they had actually talked to him. How could the Princess of Friendship betray her BBBFF like this, to the point that she was the one who pushed to keep him in the dark? Did she not want him to know that he would go without children? How did she of all ponies think he would never find out?
He's in the wrong, too. But especially when he saw Cadance's attempts to make a solution as a gift to pacify him. She's just trying the basic problem-solving method of finding the middle ground (or as much as she could) to make something happy come out of this.
Unless dark magic twists memory or makes you see things differently from reality, his reaction really doesn't look influenced by dark magic (and there's nothing in the chapter that suggests that he's studied or used it before today). It all falls under what you might expect of someone who suddenly found themselves in this situation. He was... extremely harsh with his words, perhaps more than the situation demanded, but it wasn't something to treat like corruption from dark magic. And all he did after that was leave--which is a pretty common reaction to finding that your spouse cheated on you.
Although you'd normally go to family or friends for comfort rather than leave the nation... of course, that's a pointless endeavor when those are the ones who helped betray you in the first place.
Sending the military out after him was a major overreaction. The populace is going to think he's a criminal, even though he isn't (although after attacking the Princesses, he certainly is now), and there's no way this won't be smeared all over the news. Hounding him, a soldier, like that is going to make him feel threatened for himself and his freedom, and it is only natural that he lash out. There was nothing in their pursuit that said "come back home to our love and explanations" save from Cadance (and all she offered was repeated claims of love that she had to know would fall flat to him after what she did); but there was a whole lot of "return to the Empire to face judgment" vibes.
But what he did to Flash and Cadance... he actually seemed to think clearly after using dark magic, for the most part, but you can definitely see its influence on him. Brutalizing Flash to hurt Twilight, and doing... whatever he did to Cadance's eyes? And liking it? *shiver*
But to me, Shining Armor is in the lesser wrong. What Cadance did is revolting. I believe in second chances--even for infidelity, in the rarest circumstances--but unless there's a huge change or big reveal, there's no way Shining Armor should let himself hook back up with her.
It's interesting what you did with the alternate Tirek history and characters. It seems kinda odd to just throw in that sort of thing out of nowhere--will it be important?
6411277
What do you mean he's "showing signs of malice and wrath already"? It's been years since the Canterlot Wedding, "already" doesn't apply to that (unless he killed them now, somehow). Even if he was wrathful, he couldn't possibly corrupt Cadance's love magic, and there's no way love magic would curse someone by making them infertile (unless it was just the effect of too much magic in her?).
Why does Chrysalis care enough to hunt him down for a talk? How is Cadance bearing someone else's child his fault? Even if he did play a role in their deaths, that doesn't force Cadance to make the final decision. Was this supposed to be some sort of penance on her sort? How is it "stupid" for him to run away from a supposed love who decided to give up her body to someone else and keep it hidden from him? Why does she say that he's ignorant and full of himself? He actually seems quite knowledgeable about the situation (how did he learn all this, anyways? He seemed to know everything from the moment he saw the egg, but he didn't know anything about Chrysalis and the egg until then.
Assuming the love bomb is responsible for killing off her hive (and she should frankly have been prepared for the possibility that everybuggy might die when she decided to bring all her children to war), why would this surprise Shining Armor? If he knew that the changelings were on the verge of going extinct, then he'd have to realize that blasting them with a magical explosion would contribute to that (unless he's in disbelief that magic based on love would do that--although he seems to have a pretty bad opinion of love magic now).
Sorry, I'm ranting. Please feel free to ignore most of the above questions. A goodly number were rhetorical. Have a fav.
I love it.
6413319
Love bomb, no and yes, but Shining Armor contributed to the endangerment of Changelings, somewhat intentionally.
6413551 Even if he did 'intentionally' kill the changlings, they were at war with Equestria. In war, people die. Chrysalis is the only one at fault in that situation for attacking in the first place and placing all her subjects at risk.
I'm getting the vibe that she showed up later asking the Equestrians to save her species or something, but she is the one who endangered them, not Shining. Then Cadance performs the betrayal, and it is entirely on her, not on Shining for protecting his country.
If Chrysalis tries to pull a morality card here, Shining really needs to beat her upside the head.
6413960
You're thinking one-sided, I believe. Try and think outside the perspective crime and punishment falling on the one who started it all.
Think of it like this, in the reality setting of what Chrysalis meant. . . . ."Two negatives do not make a positive."
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Don't take this entirely as Shining Armor being the victim, because he played an unknown role to her desperation.
You'll understand what I am gettinga at in the next chapter.
6413969 Well, I'll just have to wait and see about what role he played, because just looking in from the Love Blast at the wedding, I really can't fault him for defending himself, his family and the rest of the ponies of the city
6413319
Oh, I forgot to counter your statement of the military pursuing Shining Armor being an overreaction.
It's not an overreaction, actually. That is really an option you would find in Royal Affairs. And given that Shining Armor is a Prince-Consort, but still a prince, it is only wise to send the Royal Guard to search and retrieve a royal that has been captured or has run away from home.
I have to agree with Shining Armor on this one, hell if it was me I would just kill Chrysalis right where she stands, go back and crush that changeling egg so it is never fully born, and if I am able to take it a step further, forcibly remove every single changeling egg that is inside Cadence and burn them so the changelings are permanently dead. The shit he went through man, that is rough. First his friends, family and wife all lie to him and kept him in the dark and when he finds out and lashes out they all act like he is the monster. No they are the monsters for even thinking of such a thing.
I might be wrong but... Isn't this the second installation of the 'Short Story Chronicles', not the third
Correct me if I'm wrong I'm just a curious little filly
what the fuck is going on?
i still dont see how how shinning is in the wrong about any of this
edit: this this marriage was Doomed from the start wasint it?
cadence possessed! by her mother!?
media2.picsearch.com/is?mJb-L4A1RrM-9CfiR8963TBb-eruMyDboSUFJFwJzIg&height=230
Dang, I'm feeling even worse for Shining now, and despise Cadenza and crew even more. Heck, this chapter only makes me feel that he was even more justified in his actions (despite the Word of God saying that he was just as much in the wrong). When Chrysalis decided that armed conflict was the only way to help her people, she received the consequences that action caused and I can't empathize with someone who tried to harm others but only brought that destruction onto herself. That's the cost of trying to wage a war. She started it, and then she got burned by the very fire she started. Shining only did his job, and cannot be held responsible for actions he was forced to resort to in order to defend his nation. Until I'm shown otherwise, I don't see him as intentionally going out and murdering noncombatants, only engaging hostile combatants and winning by using the very source of their power against them.
Still, while I do feel that genocide is never acceptable, that's a whole separate issue from what Cadenza did, and there is no way Shining is in the wrong on this.. Getting a divorce is the kindest thing Shining could do Cadenza.
Also, when did Shining get dragged back to the Empire? Wasn't he on the train that was leaving Equestria, where Chrysalis stated that she wasn't going to take him back, only make him realize that he was a fool? Or is this just a "dream" sequence/backstory-filling sequence? There is a major error if the latter is true, since Shining wouldn't know the status of Flash Sentry from being outside of Equestria.
6531471
Yeap, and I should know. I was (though arguably, once your in, you're always in) one
I could see that play out (save for being at the other end, as that would be outside their borders and they have no authority there), but whatever happened should have been explained clearer.
EDIT: I hate my tablet's autocorrect system. It doesn't recognize actual words a lot of the time and changes them to other words...
6531458 both would make sense... i just assumed mother because of cadences gender... maybe we will find out next chapter.
Yeah, I'm still trying to figure out where Shining is supposed to be at fault for any of this shit, cause at this point, it seems to be an informed attribute rather than an actual one. He's the VICTIM here in every sense of the word, and nothing they're doing is logical or sensible. They want him to be happy. He provides a way for that to happen. They whine and bitch about it and say they won't do it. So he asks for a divorce. Makes perfect sense to me. If they don't give a damn about keeping that marriage happy or trying to make things right by his standards, they have no reason to be shocked if he wants out of the marriage. Let alone be upset about it.
6531866 you have my support.I also think he is the real affected..Like cmon they could at least tell him about the whole egg thing and maybe he would have said yes
6531481 indeed
Shining Armor very dangerous to all this royal gang. If population will know that Princess of Love feared made sacrifices for her family, that she prefer have children from enemy (and don't give me s
t about genocide) and not from her lawful husband, that she do ALL to save illusion of "happy" family...
After all, her magic the most dirty and decay of all Princesses...
Tell me Cadenza, tell me truthfully - are you Princess of Love or of shameful sex? Because that love, that you control is the most primal and primitive.
Shit
Okay okay okay
Lets stop right here.
Alright candance cheated on him okay, it was bad and she should have defiently talked to him rather than wait for the truth to be revealed
He has all the right to be angry and dont wanting to be with her.
But now...
Marriage has the objective of procreation and education of the sons or daugthers
But they can marry if this objective cannot be achieved as long as both parties KNOWS aboit each other condition, i mean that thay must be aware that theothr cannot or doesnt want kinds.
So candance based her marriage in a lie, shiny has all the right to ask for invalidation of said marriage.
Anther thing there is a difference between love and possesion.
The final voice... I wonder if there's some other manipulator behind the scenes for this.
Also jeeze, they'll let her buck a bug but they won't let him have a child under any condition...? I'm starting to massively wonder if there's something going on in the background we don't know at this point, what started simple has grown more complex! And I love it!
The princesses can certainly go fuck off at this point though, there's just something really, really creepy how Cadence constantly goes through all this despite Shining constantly saying no, considering she's practically trying to rape him and force him to love her.
Oh god this is killing me! Those four alicorns think that Shining is in the wrong when what he was right, and they get all butthurt when he wants nothing to do with them and when he wants a divorce with his lying cheating wife shit hits the fan and turns on him. Wow man, if Shining cant get what he wants he could always just find a way to off himself to spite them.
can't we all stop for a second and thank this amazing writer for writing such a story ?
6538216
That's sweet of you, but gratitude is not at all necessary. Writing on Fimfiction is a recreation and learning experience for when I become a serious writer for my novel.
Still, it is nice to know many readers enjoy my work, although it is mediocre compared to the real writers of Fimfiction.
Strange. In my opinion, the best thing princesses could do with Shining is to let him go. First of all, he is fucking hurt. Maybe there are reasons in this he can understand, but now he cannot even think straight, and they coming everyday is like salt for his wounds. He definitely needs some time alone and as far from them as possible. Yes, they want to explain and to apologize. But right now Armor won't listen to any explanation and there is a lot of Cadence's fault in all of this, so suck up without forgiveness for now. From their side, it is selfish.
Even better, Chrysalis is working on it with princesses. So why the hell not to let him vent the steam abroad, while keeping an eye on him? Shining is hurt and enraged, but he is clever. He wouldn't stay angry forever, and would soon want to find out why did Cadence did so? And this is exactly the time for her to appear, beg for forgiveness and explain it all. Of course this is not possible now, as the conflict was deepened even more from both sides. At least, nopony died..yet.
Also, strange to hear from Chrysalis about Shining's fault in all of this. Yes, from her perspective he is the one to blame along with Cadence, but she sympathizes and does her best to help. But from his - what he could do differently? When he was mind controlled, his bride - kidnapped and left to die in caverns of Canter mountain(did changelings feed her?) along with his loved sister, when enemy attacks people he vowed to defend as Royal Guard, when the only thing that can help is a miracle - what he could do differently? If they were humans(or at least more cynical), there would be an offensive operation to drive changelings from Equestria, or decimating them completely. Again, for Chrysalis he is guilty. But from his perspective, he had done the rigth thing. And when she's not an enemy anymore - that also confuses..and hurts.
6587556
You have to bear in mind that this is an AU story, and that the author has outright said that Shining encountered the Changelings prior to the wedding incident and was at least partly responsible for that desperate attack on Equestria (which itself may have played out differently). That shifts the moral calculus, albeit in an unknown way until we learn more about what happened*. Further, for all we know, it may be the case that all surviving changelings are being held in internment or reeducation camps and only allowed outside under strict monitoring spells.
We may assume that Cadenza does not believe that he intentionally caused the near-extinction, for the obvious reason that she would have sued for divorce or worse (from the story, about an incident earlier in their relationship,
); of course, judging by Shining's inner monologue throughout the story so far, she is in love with someone who no longer exists or never did exist.
Conversely, Chrysalis definitely does blame him. At best she accused him of negligence at the end of Ch1; more likely she believes he acted with malice under the impression that changelings were more numerous and less vulnerable than they actually were. However, her motives for confronting him are enigmatic. She is unlikely to desire reconciliation between Shining and Cadenza in the same way most people do not want their friends to hook up with, eg, racists (and, conversely, racists do not want their friends to get together with someone of the wrong race); however, she may feel obligated to help Cadenza in her attempts at reconciliation, though she is not stupid enough to try to overtly help her.
As for the issue of "let[ting] him go" and adoption and forbidding a "bastard foal", Cadenza and her fellow princesses are probably in a bind, given the author's statement about prince-consorts who try to run away (unless it implies coverture laws that make married stallions property of their wives, but that would be very cynical). This implies that there are special laws about royal breeding practices as one would expect of a hereditary monarchy: The monarch has an obligation to produce an heir (hence the term hereditary) and, more generally, the line of succession needs to be unambiguous to minimise the risk of civil war.
However, that is no excuse, since the law can be changed.
Ultimately, there are four possible resolutions:
First, divorce or annulment or permanent estrangement;
Second, laws (and certan princesses' minds) are changed so that the royal family can expand to Princess + Prince-Consort + Princess-Surrogate;
Third, Cadenza somehow regains her fertility; or
Fourth, the young changelings transpire to be genetically Shining's children with Chrysalis.
* If you assume that Shining is sympathetic no matter what will be revealed about what happened, I suggest you read Reversing Hearts by FlimFlamBros.. It also has a Shining who "from his perspective[,] had done the rigth[sic] thing", but that story's Shining deserves less than no sympathy.
More MORE MORE!!!! The blood God demand a noter chapter
Please sir.......we would like some more!!!!!
Sooooo, she didn't want to have a Child with him because it hurts ten times as much as a usual childbirth, but she's taking it like a champ when it comes to popping out a frikking changeling egg? Wow Cadance, you are such a silly little cheating wife.
6413551 She attacked, she invaded, he defended himself and his own. The risks of permanent damage was there, and she signed her own waiver. Live by the bow, die by the arrow.
Neither you nor anyone has the right to blame the guy defending his own home.
Okay, I'm calling it right now. The mother of Cadence is Nightmare Moon. She just used a voice changing spell to sound masculine. If I'm wrong, then I give the author the right to point and laugh at me until the next chapter comes out, the story goes on hiatus, or it gets cancelled. I don't want to be laughed at for years to come.
Well, just to add my two cents: What's Cadence's problem with Shining having a foal with a surrogate mother? She essentially did the exact same thing with Chrysalis and adopted foal would still likely be considered a bastard foal since neither Shining or Cadence were the birth parents. Shining's request was totally reasonable as was his anger at the situation because - regardless of what his feelings on the matter would've been - Cadence was his wife and he had a right to know that she was going to sacrifice their chance of having a foal together, but she went behind his back and did it anyway just because she didn't want to go through childbirth. She should've talked to him about it and the fact that this happened shows that their relationship needs a LOT of work. Add to that the fact that Shining was a soldier and they're trained to protect their nation from threats and I think I'm right in saying that Shining did what any good soldier would've done: he stopped an enemy of Equestria from threatening it again and, yeah, Shining looks to be the one in the right in this situation.
Well, I'm enjoying it so far and I'm hoping to see more
7179846 I agree with what your saying. also I'm not sure if you noticed but hypocrisy seems to be a large thing when it comes to leaders of any type in mlp. or just doing stupid shit when we can instantly think of another, or that the route tken is just plain fucked up.