> Foreign Relations
>  by Erol carstein
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the Train pulled away from the platform, slowly gaining traction as it accelerated forwards, Celestia felt melancholy settle over her soul.

On the other side of a glass window, sat within the plush confines of a royal rail-carriage, Shining Armour, Warden of Canterlot and Patriarch of the Celestial Guard, bowed to his Princess once more before slipping out of view. For the brief few seconds he was still visible, Celestia practically drank him in, taking in every detail she could before he was gone, and all that she'd have left of him for the next week-and-a-half would be his image in her mind and the fantasies in her dreams. The train had been gone for five minutes before the light coughing of a guard beside Celestia scattered her thoughts and returned her to the present.

"You seem amiss, my liege. Is something upsetting you?"

Celestia allowed herself an aggravated sigh, frowning at the guard and turning away from the platform before making her way back towards the entrance of the Canterlot Terminal, the crowd of busy ponies parting before her. "Drop the act, Chrysalis. Please?" she spoke in a quiet voice  "I'm already reaching the end of my tether with you."

The armoured mare pouted in a decidedly unmilitary fashion, though Celestia could clearly detect the faint twitches of mirth that pulled at her lips. Giggling, the guards purple eyes briefly flared an intense emerald green, revealing the true nature of the creature as the changeling Hive-Queen readjusted within her current form.

"Oh please, Celestia. Do you have any idea how hard it is to actually have a real conversation with you?" The guard jibed in a manner that only two thousand years ago would have resulted in summary execution. "Yeah, yeah, 'I raise the sun' and all that crap. but seriously, no wonder you've never gotten laid if this is what you're like all the time. I bet you clench hard enough to crush rock!"

"Ember!" Celestia seethed, using the codename she kept for whenever the Hive-Queen was in public like this. "Hive-Queen or not, talk about my... personal matters in such a way again and I swear to Faust I will end you!"

The Changeling didn't make much of the threat, holding Celestia's threatening gaze a moment longer before bursting out in a fit of laughter, drawing the attentions of several confused citizens as they made their way out of the Terminal and into the glorious summer afternoon of Canterlot, the streets alive and bustling with activity. For a brief moment the sight of her ponies happy and content, safe and protected from the dangers of the world, proved enough to calm the storm with the Solar Monarchs heart, Celestia taking a few moments to remind herself exactly why she was so dedicated to her ponies: she was the only one who could truly protect them from the true horrors of the world.

"I don't get why you don't just bag him already. I mean. come. On. Celestia. You're his Faust-damned Princess! Surely there's an ancient law or some bullshit like that which lets you sleep with him? Primae Noctis, you know?"

"Have some decency, Chrysalis!" Celestia reprimanded, a little ball of fury slowly building in her soul as the Changeling continued to taunt her. "Hive-Queens may be whores, but a Princess is expected to act with decorum, respect. Dignity, have you ever heard of it?"

"Wow you get preachy quickly."

"That's beside the point."

"That's my whole damn point, Celestia! Loosen up a bit, you silly mare, get some drinks in you and get down the bar. Sweet Faust, have you heard what everypony in this city says about your damn flank? Have you heard what every damn being in the whole bloody world says about your flank?!" Chrysalis let out a gasp of exasperation. "How on earth you didn't get some on your first heat is a mystery to me."

"Maybe it's because I don't have to sleep with nearly every male I see in order to stay alive."

"For your information, that's a life-style choice. If necessary I could survive on the love of my beloved husband alone, but now you've gone and sent him to the roof of the world, I'm gonna have to find somepony else to munch on, aren't I? Perhaps that Flash Sentry?  Yeah... if one of the Elements is into him than he's gotta be packing something, right?"

Celestia rolled her eyes.

"You're insatiable."

"Damn right."

Celestia sighed.

"What's even the point in sending Shining Armour to the Crystal Empire anyway? It's not like there's anything of value up there."

"On the contrary, to the north is possibly the most valuable resource there is in a world like ours: soldiers." Chrysalis cocked her head in confusion. "The Crystal Empire has been famed for millennia as possessing the finest soldiers in the world, my annoyance. And in a world of peace like ours, good soldiers are rarer than gold."

"And what of your precious elements?"

"One can't invest all of one's eggs in one basket, Chrysalis. As a prudent leader, I am obligated to prioritise the security of my nation above all things. The Elements alone may be able to win a battle, but they cannot fight a war; and I am not hubristic enough to think myself or my sister are any different. It is my hope that in the north, Shining Armour will be able to secure and alliance between our two realms."

"Our two realms?"

"Oh, excuse me. My realm and the Empire."

Chrysalis shot Celestia a dirty look. "What makes you so certain that he shall succeed?"

"I have been engaged in personal correspondence with Queen Umbra for some time now. Though we disagree on several issues, it would seem our goals are closely aligned enough to permit an alliance. In time I hope to see such a bond strengthened through inter-marriage, perhaps maybe even a union of our two powers, but until such a time I trust the Patriarch to perform his duties."

"Yeah, cool politics and all that, but why send my husband again?"

"Queen Umbra requested him personally. It would seem that our knight in shining armour has carved himself quite a reputation amongst the military powers of the world, she was quite eager to test the tales of his skill."

"Ah, yes. Just like he was tasked with eradicating what's left of my swarm." Chrysalis gave Celestia a very obvious wink. "Don't you ever worry if he'll find out about what he's done. You know, how you wiped his memory and everything, twice?"

"Though I have the highest regards for the Patriarch, Chrysalis, there is no doubt in my mind that shall be unable to access memories of his previous two... incidents "        

"And if he ever does?"

Celestia paused for a moment. What would happen if Shining Armour ever found out about what she'd used him for? Errant thoughts ran through her heard, the Solar Monarchs own mind filling with the sound of the stallions shouts, accusing her, reviling her, hating her. Something within her quailed at the idea, that she might lose the closest thing to a lover she could ever have. She shivered before replying. 

"Let's just go home."
	
> I: Welcome To The Empire.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Under the cloudless sky of high-noon, the tundra was blinding white.

Stretching away for as far as the eye could see, rising and falling with the gentle curvature of the landscape, the snow-dunes of the Crystal Empire glittered like diamonds; a million pinpricks of winking light in a formless wasteland. From within the well-heated, comfortable, plush confines of his private train-car, looking across the empty vastness, Shining Armour took in the view with a tired mind, watching as the world slipped by in a shapeless blur of white.

He'd been on the move for three days straight, living a temporary life aboard his train-car as the locomotive up front, a fine demonstration of the latest advances of steam-based technology, had slowly hauled him across the continent towards the roof of the world. He could hardly complain: the facilities provided were of the highest standards, he'd managed to catch some fairly regular sleep in a pretty comfortable bed, and it sure as hell beat the three month trek he would've had to make if the railway system hadn't been in place.

But it all still failed to assuage Shining Armour of the tight knot somewhere in his gut.

True: he'd been a member of a diplomatic delegation before, and, true: he'd been much, much further afield than the Crystal Empire on such missions. But in every previous incident Shining had never played a more prominent role than that of the Royal Champion, sent along as a representative of the crown's honour and martial ability. Now: switching from the role of champion to fully empowered diplomat with the invested authority of the Solar Princess to make or break relations with the Crystal Empire as he saw fit? That was what niggled away within his soul.

It had been a week previously that Celestia had first charged him with the role as Equestria's official ambassador to the Crystal Empire, the heavenly sister stating in no uncertain terms what she expected of him: Shining Armour was to travel north, and do all that was possible to secure an alliance between the two nations. In times past the Empire had been a steadfast ally of the equine nation, and if one were to look back far enough within the esoteric annals of the Royal Archives, it was even hinted that it had been colonists from the fertile plains of Equestria that had been the first to settle the wastes of the arctic tundra. But in recent centuries, relations between the Empire and Equestria had begun to degenerate; official contact between the realms breaking down as the rulers of the Empire implemented progressively more and more isolationist policies that all but forbid contact with the outside world.

Now, more than four centuries since the last official delegation, Equestria once again extended the hoof of friendship towards her northern cousin.

Exact details of the situation in the Empire had always been patchy. In the four-or-so hundred years since the Empire had first placed a blockade upon its own borders, all attempts to send get any spies of agents into the realm had failed, usually followed by the grisly death of those assigned to such missions and the subsequent denial by the crown of the individuals very existence. Thanks to its isolationist policies, however, this blackout applied to more than just physical entry into the Empire, and all forms of scrying, even the mysterious, ethereal rituals used by the Celestial Sisters, had failed to penetrate whatever protective barrier hung over the provinces of the Empire.

However, in recent years, word had begun to trickle into Equestria that a new ruler had ascended to the throne of the Crystal Empire. Initial reports had all gone unverified; at the time such whispers being brought in by the likes of merchants and traders who crossed between realms, more often than not little more than exaggeration and ridiculous hyperbole. Then, like the first trickles of water from a breached dam, more and more information had begun to pour in, the accounts becoming a little more factual and a little more realistic each time. When he'd been born, Shining Armour had known little about the Empire, save as a fairytale realm of ice and snow for young foals; yet within his lifetime he'd had the privilege of watching as an entirely new realm had begun to open itself in the desolate reaches in the far north, a place with a culture and national identity radically different to his own. Now, here he was, the diplomat on the first official delegation to be sent to the Empire in four hundred years. 

Faust worked in some pretty strange ways.

Yet, for all the historical and theatrical pomp that had been bestowed upon his mission, for all the long winded speeches made by drunk politicians, and for all the joyous cheers of the ponies in Canterlot's streets when he'd been escorted to the station by his diarchs; it wasn't fear of failure that gnawed at the Patriarch's soul, but what awaited him once he reached the north.

Little information pertaining to the history Crystal Empire was available in the Royal Archives, and even less still available relating to the culture and traditions of the ponies who lived there. Thus it was that the Patriarch of the Celestial Guard had literally no idea what he would find at the terminus of his four-day journey. He was aware of only the very basic tenants of Crystal Society; that they were a highly militarised nation, strictly divided along gender differences, with harsh limitations as to which avenues of employment were available to each sex. In general, stallions and colts seemed to be expected to take up military service and little else, whilst it was actually the mares and fillies of the empire that provided the logistical support necessary for the running of a nation; serving as merchants, labourers, bureaucrats, and practically every other available position.

Turning his attention from the window, Shining looked about the empty cabin with tired eyes, sighing to himself. His own military service to Equestria was tiring to say the least; in the last year alone he'd been a member of three diplomatic missions, and personally overseen the reorganisation of Equestria's armed forces; not to mention he had also been brainwashed by a changeling queen who was planning to take control of the nation, only to later be rescued from its influence by his wife. Life had been busy recently, but it wasn't the requirements of the job that caused Shining Armour to sigh thus. 

To be as honest as possible, he was just lonely.

It had been some time since Shining Armour had seen his wife, and longer since he'd been able to fully his express his appreciation of her. Though Cadence was an understanding mare, who knew implicitly that the requirements of her husband's service would frequently retain him from her, Shining Armour couldn't help but feel that he was betraying his wife in some, that in keeping away from her for so long he was cruelly denying her something close to her heart. In an ideal world they would never have need to part, but unfortunately the reality was not so rosy, and thus it was that wherever he went, Shining kept Cadence close in his heart and mind. 

In truth, Shining Armour was hardly a stud. Though he did his best to keep himself in peak physical condition, and had always tried hardest to be polite, kind, and respectful to those around him, he'd simply never had much of an eye for mares. Of course the same couldn't be said for the those of the opposite sex, and Shining Armour was well aware of the fact he served as a pin-up poster for experienced mares and budding young fillies across the length and breadth of Equestria. Yet regardless of the private letters that had been stuffed in his locker at the barracks, regardless of the looks he received when out on patrol, and regardless of the surprisingly tasteful collections of photographs he regularly received from one particularly enamoured fan, Shining Armour had never had eyes for another mare.

Only ever those for his beautiful, beautiful wife.

Yet as he lingered on the thought of her, something uncomfortably familiar flared at the back of his mind, something that seemed aggravated and inflamed. Groaning, Shining Armour leaned back in his chair, eyes closing as he let the head-ache run its course. They'd started about a year ago, a few months before he'd been married to Cadence, and the vehemence of them seemed to increase each time they returned. He'd been to the castle infirmary, visited several hospitals across Canterlot, and even, at the insistence of his sister, been to see some sort of tribal-mystic called Zecora in Ponyville. But regardless of which remedy was offered to him, they all still failed to have any effect on his condition: the headaches kept coming and kept getting worse.

Looking inward, Shining Armour focussed his consciousness on the sensation of the headache, attempting in his mind to trace the discomfort to its source. As he delved deeper into his own mind, blurred images began to form of scenes he was certain he'd never witnessed. One moment he saw himself stood amongst decrepit ruins, silently stalking forwards through the aged dust. The next he was sprawled across the ground, paralyse and helpless as the luminous form of a goddess stood over him; glorious, radiant, terrifying. As quickly as the vision came it went, instead replaced with a sight Shining found far too familiar; that of the Changeling Hive-Queen Chrysalis, grinning at him with emerald eyes and a lascivious smile.

Jolting upright, Shining Armour took deep breaths, slightly shaken as he pulled himself from his thoughts. As quickly as the images he'd bore witness to appeared, they submerged back into his consciousness, leaving the stallion with a blank mind and the remnants of a fierce head-ache. Shining wasn't totally sure what he'd seen, but he was certain that when he returned home the first thing he'd do was visit a physician. The image of Chrysalis had been terrifying in particular, the stallion shuddering as recollections of his time as the Queens consort came to the fore of his mind. Of all the creatures in the world, Shining most emphatically hoped to never encounter Chrysalis again.

Maybe he just needed to catch more sleep; perhaps he'd been working too hard?

The sound of the door at the opposite end of the train-car opening caught his attention, the stallion leaning across in his seat to look down the aisle. Visible at the end, her head poking out from the crack in the open door, a crystal mare curtseyed  politely, her glittering purple coat iridescent in the sunlight beneath her black and purple uniform. "We'll be arriving at the Empire Terminal within the hour, Patriarch," she said in a calm, dignified manner, her pastel pink mane falling across one gem-like eye. "Queen Umbra has sent ahead instructions that once we reach the Empire Terminal, she shall meet you personally at the platform and escort you to the Imperial Spire." curtseying again, the mare made a quiet retreat, leaving the Patriarch in solitude once more.

Shining Armour sighed.

Though he always fully committed himself to any task set by his diarchs, Shining Armour suspected that perhaps he was reaching the end of his tether, the batteries were finally starting to run down. Maybe when all this business was done he'd file for a brief leave of absence; take Cadence to see the Grand-Lake in the East, catch some sun, and take in the local sites. Yes, that sounded like a sound plan of action. Standing from his chair, Shining Armour made his way across the carriage to the small basin that had been provided towards the back end, inspecting his visage in the mirror. 

The trip had been smooth, he was certainly no worse for wear. Perhaps a quick shave to correct the light build up of stubble on his muzzle, and maybe a quick wash to do something about the grey bags under his eyes – he certainly wasn't getting enough sleep as of late. Wetting a wash cloth, Shining Armour set to work, gently massaging his fur; thoughts of Cadence and the Grand-Lake predominant in his mind. When this was done, then he could allow himself some R-&-R, but not a moment sooner

As for now, there were matters of state to attend to.


≤ΘΘΘ≥


The train pulled into the Empire Terminal in a billowing cloud of white smoke, the rhythmic pumping of the steam engine up front filling the cavernous space like the industrial beating of a mechanical heart. Stood in the entrance compartment to his carriage, Shining Armour waited patiently as the vehicle came to a gradual halt, conductors shouting up and down the length of the platform as they opened the carriage doors and hopped down and out. Waiting for his own door to be opened, Shining Armour finally stepped out onto the remarkably well-lit platform of the Empire Terminal, resplendent in his official panoply.

Clad in the golden armour of the Celestial Guard, Shining Armour practically gleamed in the bright arctic sunlight. Golden plates covered his body from neck to hoof, tightly encapsulating him within thrice-blessed cladding, yet leaving just enough room for the agile movement required by his combat style. His head was enclosed within an elegant helm, a plume of phoenix feather rising above it in a vibrant crest, the feathers still lit with warm fire. Strapped to his flank was the hereditary weapon of office for the Patriarch of the Celestial Guard; the twin-headed axe Starlight Wrath, the two blades shimmering with arcs of cyan energy. Scrawled across each plate were minute engravings of flowing, intersecting patterns, each segment representing years worth of work. 

Ordinarily Shining Armour would never have worn such an opulent suit of armour. Though it represented a glorious achievement of Equestrian metallurgy, from a practical point of view the armour itself was far too heavy and cumbersome for the Patriarch, the unnecessary embellishments adding needless weight. Even when on parade, Shining much preferred the standard armour set provided to members of the Celestial Guard, the lightweight plating providing him with maximum agility. Originally he'd intended to bring such a set with him to the North, but Celestial had been certain that he instead take one of the royal sets kept in the vaults beneath Canterlot; the Solar Monarch insisting that in the militarised society of the Crystal Empire the apparel of war was considered the greatest fashion.

The Patriarch took a moment to take stock of his surroundings, taking in the details of the environment with a soldiers instincts. The Empire Terminal was grand to say the least, in a spartan sense of the word. Unlike in Canterlot, where every building, bridge and balcony was considered to be a work of art, the Empire Terminal was decidedly short of embellishments; the interior design of building possessing a decidedly blunt, plain aesthetic of grey stone. Above, light was streaming through a collection of stained-crystal skylights, sending dazzling rainbow refractions scattering across the floor. Aside from his own train, the platforms of the Empire Terminal were alive with the sounds and movements of life; the air filled with the huffing of steam-locomotives, the shouts of conductors, and the general hubbub of urban life.  

That was when he saw her; the warrior queen of the Crystal Empire.

There were not many things that could arouse the interests of the Patriarch. Dedicated to his career, his family, and his wife, Shining Armour didn't possess the wandering eyes of other stallions; but as his gaze settled on the armoured form of the Queen barely fifteen meters away from him, he felt something surge within his heart, something too frighteningly familiar to the rush he'd felt when he'd first laid eyes up Cadence all those long years ago. 

Queen Umbra was beautiful.

She was a warrior first and foremost, that was plain to see; yet, there seemed to be something behind the armoured facade. Clad in utilitarian plates of black metal, devoid of the ornamentation that adorned his own set, the Queens body was greatly emphasised by the protective armour she wore; the plates hugging tightly to each and every curve. Cold, seemingly aloof eyes held him in a level gaze, purple streams of fire seeping from their green iris', whilst a smile of piqued interest held prominence on her elegantly formed muzzle. Her mane tumbled down her neck in rippling waves of darkness, the queen idly flicking her head to send her mane flowing in the breeze of the Terminal, whilst a cape of blood-red trimmed with ermine rested across her back in sharp contrast to the mares dark aesthetic. Stood behind the mare were the heavy forms of fours stallions, all clad head to hoof in thick black plating, only the eye-slits indicating there were actually ponies inside. 

Shining Armour felt himself pause for the briefest moment, a flush threatening to stain his cheeks as he took her in. He didn't know why his body suddenly seemed to react so intensely, the sight of a mare in battle-armour was a common occurrence in the armed forces of Equestria; but for some reason, as he gazed upon Queen Umbra, Shining Armour felt something... stir within the depths of his soul, brought up by his admiration for the martial apparel of the mare before him. The way the armour clung to her, the sheer aura of dignity and authority that practically radiated from her. This was a mare of valour, courage, honour.

He seized the fleeting emotion in his soul with both hooves and crushed it.

Perhaps if he were here on a social call, Shining might have been tempted to appreciate the sight of the queen for a few moments longer; might have been. But, as Shining Armour promptly chastised himself, he was not. Celestia, the Solar Monarch, had sent him North with explicit instructions to secure an alliance between Equestria and the Crystal Empire, not to dally about like some bumbling colt on vacation fawning over pretty fillies and colourful vistas. Straightening his posture to a military standard, Shining Armour approached Queen Umbra until he stood only a few feet away before bowing deeply, lowering his muzzle until it was only an inch for the gray-marble floor. Holding the position for a few seconds, Shining Armour raised himself to find Umbra regarding him with a cold, calculating eye; the way one might regard an insect.

"Queen Umbra, ruler of the Crystal Empire" Shining Armour acknowledged.   

"Shining Armour, Ambassador of Princess Celestia." Umbra replied in a factual manner, raising a gauntleted hoof forwards. Taking it gently in his own, Shining Armour placed the faintest of kisses against the cold metal, aware of Umbra's eyes fixed upon him.

For a moment Shining Armour felt his internal composure slip once again; Queen Umbra was certainly not what he'd expected. True, he'd been informed enough about Crystal Society to know the Empire was highly militarised, and true, he'd been preparing himself for a leader who lacked the opulent flamboyance of the southern kingdoms; but it seemed that even with his mental preparations, Queen Umbra undercut everything he'd been expecting. The fact that she planned to personally meet the arriving diplomat at the train-station alone separated her from nearly every other ruler he'd ever encountered; even maternal Celestia didn't interact with the public and foreign officials in such a personal manner.

And yet, Shining Armour couldn't shake the sense that there was something beneath the metal  armour and leather padding; something cold, patient, and viciously intelligent. It was in the way the Queen regarded him for the briefest of moments, in the same manner young Twilight would scrutinise a lab experiment or some new specimen; distant, calculating, and analytical, probing for strengths and weaknesses: what could be exploited, and what couldn't.

Shining became implicitly aware he would have to remain on the very tips of his hooves.

"I trust your journey was satisfactory?" Umbra asked, her voice cold; the slightly distasteful edge in her tone implying that this was a mare above those around her both socially and intellectually.

"Your staff were most accommodating, and the ride exceptionally smooth. It would seem the artisans of the Crystal Empire have a higher affinity for such mechanical matters as trains than the ponies of my own country." Shining Armour turned give the locomotive another piece look, the colt in him awed by the sheer size of the steel leviathan. "A brilliant specimen of steam-powered technology."

"Indeed. We developed them for war." Umbra allowed a predatory smile to suddenly flash across her muzzle, which, in lieu of her distant, calculating behaviour thus far, caused a sense of disquieting in Shinings soul. Turning away, her black mane tumbling like liquid ink, Umbra beckoned for Shining Armour to follow, the mare proceeding forward without checking to see if the colt followed. "Come, Patriarch. Time is short and I have other matters to attend to. I have a carriage waiting to take you to the Royal Spire. Once there I shall give you several hours to unpack your belongings, then we shall meet in the armoury to begin negotiations."

"The Armoury, your highness?" Shining Armour asked, frowning slightly as he kept pace with the armoured mare. "Pardon me, but surely there are better places to discuss matters of the state?"

Umbra smiled at the stallion before allowing herself to giggle, the noise oddly feminine when coming from such a martial mare. "Ha! Perhaps in your southern lands, Patriarch, with all their civility and culture" Umbra practically spat the words out. "But here in the north you will find there is no room for such concepts as informed debate and reasoned discourse, Patriarch. Out here life is too harsh for such wastes of time."

"Again, begging your pardon, your highness." Shining Armour responded. "But if there is to be no debate or discourse, how are our nations to negotiate an alliance?"

Umbra paused, weighing Shining Armour with a critical eye before formulating her response. "You come from southern lands, Patriarch, from a world of plenty and ease. Long summers and short winters have made your realms soft and indulgent, unable to understand or bear the thought of actually toiling for your living. Out here on the Tundra you will find no place for your civility or culture, Patriarch; here the Waste's have no love for politics. This is a harsh realm, and I rule only because I have proven I have the strength to do so. Perhaps in your realm royalty is simply a hereditary title to be given without being earned, but in my country, only those who have set an example may wear such a mantle. Thus, if Equestria wishes to secure an alliance with the Crystal Empire, she shall have to learn that there is no speech grand enough to sway the hearts of the Crystal Ponies."

"And what is suffice, your highness?"

"A pact of blood, Patriarch." Umbra stated, her voice as hard as iron. "If Equestria truly desires an alliance with her northern cousin, than she must prove her strength in a trial of combat."

"You wish for a battle between our two realms?"

"No, Patriarch, not a battle between our realms. Such matters have been part of the Empire's culture for centuries; we have traditions that address such matters. The rules are clear: a representative of each nation shall meet in combat, and to the victor goes the spoils."

"You wish me to prove the strength of my nation by defeating your champion in combat, your highness?" 

Umbra giggled once more, the sound causing something within Shining Armours soul to sigh in content, for some odd reason. The Queen looked to the Patriarch with genuine mirth upon her features, a surprisingly light-hearted glimmer in her eye. "Oh, Patriarch; you and your southern ways!" A few more seconds of giggling followed before Umbra calmed enough to continue. "I understand that in your southern realms your rulers aren't expected to actually prove themselves as creatures of capability, but as I've said; in the Crystal Empire, one may only lead by example. It's not a champion you shall have to fight, Patriarch, it is I." 

Shining Armour continued on for a few moments longer before the implication of the mares words truly hit him, turning to face the mare in disbelief to only find that Umbra had him fixed in a piercing gaze, her scarlet eyes swimming with thoughts and emotions, yet all but unreadable even to him.

"Does this surprise you, Patriarch?"

"I... Well..." Shining paused for a moment, trying to summon the right words to his mind. "To be honest, your highness? Yes."

Umbra chuckled.

"Southerners; you always get yourselves so worked up about propriety and ceremony and civilisation. I am no Southern Rose, Patriarch; if you pick me I shall not wilt and die. Perhaps the mares of your land do not take up the sword, but in the Empire the martial traditions of my ponies have been passed on for generations; father to son, mother to daughter. As my Grandmother bore the blade so did my mother, and as my mother did so do I." They had finally reached the great doors to the Empire Terminal, Queen Umbra pushing them open with a single pulse of scarlet magic. Stepping out onto the elevated steps outside the building, Shining Armour took in his first true view of the Crystal Empire.

Everything, from the buildings to the ponies going about their daily lives, seemed to radiate an aura of martial strength. Trotting along on their various chores and duties, the citizens of the Empire were silent and respectful, the street they emerged on surprisingly quiet. Though polite conversation could be heard all about, the noise never rose above a subtle background drone. Here and there, threading their way through the crowd, multiple individuals in military uniform patrolled the streets, the citizens nodding respectfully as they passed, eyes open for sign of disturbance of dissidence. Even the clothes they wore were restrictive and militarised, the predominant colour being black, with stallions being marked out by scarlet highlights, and mares with purple highlights; certainly more akin to a uniform than anything else.

Descending the stairs, Umbra led Shining Armour down to street level, where a carriage drawn by another four soldiers in black armour stood waiting. As the descended, Shining Armour noted with interest that, unlike in Equestria, where any public outing of the Diarchs would have been cause for celebration; here Umbra simply moved with the crowd, simply another pony amongst the masses. Though the citizens nodded respectfully as she passed by, the stallions bowing slightly whilst the mares curtseyed, there was none of the reverence Equestrians held for their princesses. Here it was clear to see that Queen Umbra ruled through the respect and consent of those she led, not simply because she had inherited such a title.

The soldier within him admired her for that.

A stallion of experience, Shining Armour was no novice when it came to matters of war. He more than anyone, perhaps save Celestia, understood the necessity of strong leadership, of being led by a someone who you would willingly follow. As his own drill-sergeant had informed him, all those years ago when he'd first joined the Celestial Guard, a ponies courage and valour were only a strong as the charisma of the one who led him. What must have transpired for Queen Umbra to gain the consent of an entire empire, Shining Armour wondered, what trial could the mare have passed that denoted her as being fit to bear such a responsibility?

Umbra looked to him, violet fire streaming from her blood red eyes, the green tint of her iris' impossibly intense in the arctic sunlight.     

"Unfortunately, I have business across the Capital that I must attend to. This carriage shall take you to the royal spire; my servants shall see to you once you arrive. Food and refreshments will be waiting, and should you require anything you need only say the word. I ask only that you treat the citizens of my realm with respect"

"Of course, your highness." Shining Armour replied, nodding his head in thanks. "And when shall we meet to begin... negotiations?"

"Midnight. I'm afraid the traditions of the Empire require I perform an inspection of the city daily." Saving the Patriarch one last glance, Umbra nodded her goodbyes before turning away. "Your baggage is already being seen to, you shall find it in your apartments upon your arrival."

Nodding in acknowledgement, Shining Armour moved to enter the plush interior of the  carriage, but not before the voice of Umbra caught him once more. "Oh, and Patriarch?"

"Yes, your highness?" He replied.

"Sharpen your blade," The mare stated in a strange voice, her tone at once mocking, distant and... lascivious? "Tonight, you shall see how a true mare of the Crystal Empire takes her steel."    
	
> II: Aggressive Negotiations.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The mind of a warrior must remain as sharp as his weapon, for in the reflex of his mind, the warrior is able to understand his actions, and beg Faust’s forgiveness.”

Shining Armour drew the whetstone along the head of Starlight Wrath with calm, patient, practiced strokes, muttering the litanies of battle under his breath as he prepared himself for the coming bloodshed. There was something comforting that the stallion found in the simple, repetitive action, the rasp of stone-on-steel serving as a highly appropriate counter-point to the complex, arcane prayers that tumbled from his soul.

“Yet if the warrior becomes dull, and his blade loses its edge, he shall lose himself, and wander a killer with no compassion for the dead.”

Hefting Starlight Wrath into the air, Shining Armour inspected the weapons edge for a few moments before nodding to himself in satisfaction, spinning the axe in his grip so that he could begin work on its other head, slowly honing its razor edge. He’d been like this for several hours now, simply propped on the edge of the magnificent four-poster that had been provided for his comfort, methodically working his axe as time slipped by, edging closer and closer to his duel with Queen Umbra.  Indeed, once he’d been escorted to his assigned chambers and unpacked his meagre belongings earlier that day, the first thing Shining had done was to grab his axe and begin honing the edge, seeking tranquillity in the warriors bond with his weapon as he prepared himself.

It was in the rare moments like these, in the calm before the storm when there was nothing but him, his axe, and silence that Shining Armour would openly admit that he was truly at peace, otherwise hiding himself behind the emotionless façade of the Patriarch. Though hardly a troubled individual, and certainly lacking any detriments to his mental health, Shining could never truly feel as care-free as when he was working on his axe, the soothing repertion of the whetstone-on-steel opening something in the stallions heart that only a hoofful of ponies had ever seen, something divorced from the brisk and blunt sentiments of his militarised mind, and more open to contemplation of the endless convolutions of existence.      

Currently, as they were always prone too, the stallion’s thoughts rested on the ultimate recipient of his affections; his loving wife Mi Amore Cadenza, so many hundreds of miles away from him in the verdant summer-lands of the south. In his mind’s eye he could see her, the stallion wincing faintly as a pang of loneliness overcame him, Shining Armour realising that it had been close to a month and a half since he’d last been able to lay in his wife’s embrace, to take in her scent and the heat of her body against his. Yet no sooner had the loneliness overcome him was Shining’s mind suddenly filled with a horrible sense of guilt, the pangs so strong the stallion found himself unable to think of his wife without a sense of deep personal shame overcoming him, as if he’d wronged her somehow. 

From seemingly nowhere, a knot of self-loathing seemed to tighten in his gut, the stallion grimacing as confusion filled his mind; confusion at how thoughts of his wife could make him so self-disgusted. True, Shining had always felt some guilt whenever he’d looked to his wife, guilt at the fact he’d allowed her to be taken from his side and then duped into devoting himself to her foalnapper. But this seemed deeper, worse, as if something that he’d specifically done was the route of the issue, something deeply heinous to the morals he valued and upheld. Keeping the whetstone to the axe, Shining Armour allowed himself to ponder a while on the issue, though not without some minor self-concern.

The subject of Cadence was something that Shining Armour always held very close to his heart. Raised in a married household, it had always been impressed upon Shining Armour that getting married and raising a family was the highest accolade a stallion could aspire to; the succession from one generation to the next the most honourable action he could ever partake. Thus it had been that when he’d first laid eyes on Cadence all those years ago, when, under the brilliant light of Celestia’s sun, as a young colt, he’d spied the filly pushing his giggling sisters on the swing-set in their back-garden, Shining Armour had known instinctively that this was the mare he would grow up to love. 

Of course the reality was never as simple as the dream.

From step one Shining had known that in order to gain Cadence’s hoof in marriage, he would have to prove himself to be a superior specimen of Equine-kind. Though born to a noble family, the inherited credentials of the Sparkle household were nowhere near enough to allow Shining Armour to even approach the young princess, let alone court her. That had perhaps been the beginning of his aspirations for rank in the Celestial Guard; knowledge that a position of authority in the Celestial Guard would give him the access required to approach Cadence serving to fuel his drive. Perhaps others would have seen such a path as a track to wealth and fame rather than love, but not once had the thought to abuse his position within the guard ever came to Shining Armour’s mind, he’d been far too focussed on Cadence for that. 

Starting from the bottom of the ladder, Shining Armour had, through dedication, ceaseless work, and the passion of a driven soul, pulled himself rung by rung up the ranks of the Celestial Guard. When he’d joined at the age of sixteen he’d been tasked with cleaning blades and looking after the barracks, barely able to hold his own in the sparring ring. After two years he’d managed to rise to the rank of praetor and command a contingent of a hundred guardsmen, to the chagrin of more experienced individuals present. By the age of twenty-four he was a shoe-in for the title of Patriarch, capable of besting any challengers. By the age of twenty-eight he’d risen to stand at the right hoof side of Celestia herself, the efforts of his sister and himself pushing the Sparkle household to new heights of power. Through fortune and good luck he’d somehow found the courage to approach Cadence during those years, eventually being lucky enough to be awarded the accolade of her guardian. Yet still it had taken time; months, years, before he’d finally been able to truly approach the object of his desire, and confess his true feelings.

Somehow, he’d been unsurprised when Cadence said that she’d always known of his affections. 

Yet, though he stressed the point over and over in his mind, Shining Armour realised on some innate level of his soul that he would never quite be able to quantify just how much he loved Cadence, just how deeply dedicated he was to her in mind, body, and soul. Though there would have been nothing from preventing a stallion in his social and financial position from amassing quite a herd of fine mares (and certainly no lack of volunteers), it had simply been the case that Shining Armour had never turned his eyes from his wife, never paused to consider that he could possibly indulge his carnal and emotional desires with another partner other than the mare he loved. Even his marriage was unique in that regard; with only a bare fourteen percent of Equestria’s population being male, the statistic itself an all-time low, the average herd size was larger now than ever: seventeen mares, excluding their stud. 

Yet still he’d only ever had eyes for Cadence.    

The stallions down in the barracks had laughed at the notion, many simply unable, or unwilling, to believe that a pony with such stance and acclaim as their Patriarch could possibly be so bent around the hoof of a mare that he would actually go and get married. Others, most particularly his female admires, found the gesture to be the greatest form of romance, many swooning at the thought of being the sole recipient of his passions. But despite the opinions of those around him Shining Armour continued on, unknowing, or perhaps uncaring of what others whispered when they saw him with his wife, simply content to dedicate himself to the mare in heart and soul.

It was this very dedication that Shining Armour took with him wherever he went, the tenants of his belief; respect in his fellow equine, love for his wife and family, duty and honour, imprinted into him by his mother and father before he’d been old enough to walk or talk. His mother in particular had taken the most interest in his moral development, certain to mould her colt into the desirable young stallion he was today. To be honest, it wasn’t as if the mare had even hidden her goals from him in the first place; Shining Armour very aware of the emphasis his mother had placed upon being a good husband, someone reliant, dedicated, and willing to do the impossible for his family if needed. Though the modern climate produced stallions more accustomed to sampling a little of everything, Shining Armour was strictly a traditionalist at heart; one stallion and one mare united in a common bond of love. 

So why did thoughts of Cadence make him feel so guilty?

There were three well-timed knocks on the Patriarchs door, Shining’s ears perking as he raised his head from Starlight Wrath. His armour rattling faintly as he approached the door, the Patriarch opened the heavy oak doorway to discover a pony-shaped mountain of steel waiting outside; only the centimetre wide eye-slit betraying that there was somebody inside the metal leviathan. From within emerged a harsh voice, like stones grinding each other to dust, “Shining Armour; Diplomat of Equestria, Warden of Canterlot, and Patriarch of the Celestial Guard?”

Shining reeled slightly, a little put off at the full use of his titles. “Yes?”

“My Queen has requested your presence in the Armoury; the time of combat has arrived.”

“I understand. Let me grab my helmet.”

Returning to his chambers long enough to don his plumed helmet, the golden metal glinting in the unburning fire of the Phoenix feathers which sat atop, Shining Armour followed his somewhat large escort down the large corridor outside his chambers; their footsteps surprisingly silent amongst the rafty  vaulting. The main construction component of the Imperial Spire was a strange, onyx black crystal, the substance possessing a dark, smokey quality about that seemed to blur the hard lines and edges of the walls; like the whole tower were nothing but black, frozen ash. Currently the Patriarch and his companion navigated the wide, radial corridor around the circumference of the tower, eight smaller corridors at regular interval leading to a central stairwell with access to vast areas of the Spire, save for the chambers of Queen Umbra. Their armoured hoofsteps were muffled by the thick, scarlet red carpet that ran beneath them, the plush, soft material providing some respite from the chill of the crystal floors.

Looking about himself, Shining Armour noted that whilst the particulars of decoration may have varied, there was really little difference between the Imperial Spire and the Royal Palace back in Canterlot. Lining the walls, vast, magnificent portraits of former Regents gazed down upon him with stern, unyielding eyes, their long dead glory captured for the briefest moment within the canvas and paint. The style was not all too dissimilar to those back in Canterlot, though it seemed that unlike in Equestria, where the portraits of the Lunar and Solar Princesses depicted the Celestial Sisters as beings of creation, dedicated to the learning, wisdom, and peace, here, the portraits of the Crystal Empire proudly displayed their long dead rulers as soldiers and little else. Where in an Equestrian portrait would have been found the usual symbols of peace and prosperity: the plough for agriculture, the book for wisdom, a crescent sun and moon for universal stability, In a portrait of the Crystal Empire there were only renditions of combat and war.

Very few of the portraits depicted something other than bloodshed.

One particularly grandiose portrait caught the Patriarchs eye, the stallion feeling himself slowly grind to a halt as the sheer power of the imagery overwhelmed him. Depicted on a massive canvas a good five meters tall, a charcoal-black stallion, his features swathed in the shadows of a hooded cloak gazed down upon the Patriarch, his expression inscrutable beneath the blackness. Unlike the portraits on either side, which depicted scenes of war, the lone stallion of this portrait stood alone out on the tundra, surrounded by an endless waste of ice and the fury of a windigo’s blizzard. Armoured in baroque plating from a bygone era, Shining sensed something deeply unsettling about the lone figure; the only light visible beneath the cloaked hood being that of two emerald green eyes, pitted by pupils the colour of blood. Streams of purple fire wept from the two orbs, whilst rising above was a jagged horn of scarlet ivory, glowing with aethereal power.

There was something disturbing about the portrait that Shining Armour couldn’t quite pin; something a little… off. Staring up upwards, Shining Armour felt somewhat captivated by the canvas, the image upon it painted in such a way as to be looking straight into the eyes of an observer, the ancient king commanding in death the same respect and fear as he had in life. “Who is depicted here?” the Patriarch asked his guide, the heavily armoured stallion snorting loudly.

“The Mad King.”

When Shining Armour turned with a questioning look on his muzzle, the escort was silent for a few moments, the stallion looking back and forth beyond the Patriarch and the portrait before replying. “Beneath the frigid stars, before the emergence of the Crystal Empire, the ponies of the tundra survived by fighting as tribes, united by bonds of common heritage and divided by ties of mutual hatred. From this wilderness emerged a tribe that none could oppose, a tribe that enslaved all they met and massacred all else. This tribe, led by a stallion who had sold his soul beneath a moon of blood for the power to crush nations and slaughter empires, drove their way across the roof of the world until they stood poised to break-out into the southern lands. Yet, though the ponies of the tundra held no love for the decadent weaklings of the south, it was known that such ponies were unversed in the ways of war, and that if the horde were to burst loose from their frozen cage Faust would drown in the blood of her foals.”

“So it was that a last defence was mounted at Shatter-Peak, the few remaining free tribes preparing to sell their lives in defence of their southern cousins. There were but a hoofful to repel the enemy, barely a few thousand warriors; stallions, mares, and foals alike, yet in the face of impossible odds they had the pass for eight hours under continuous assault. Surviving the first day, those that remained returned to their camp to lick their wounds and prepare for death, for though they had killed many hundreds that day, all knew that the horde always had more reserves to call up, more slaves to throw into the meat-grinder. Despairing, the leader of the survivors, the last living king of the united tribes, locked himself away within his tent and barred any from entering. To tell the truth, no one knows what transpired within that night. Only that as the sun rose the next day, little more than a pale disk smudged in the sky, the last king stepped forth from his tent, no longer a pony, but the beast depicted here, a Daemon robed in mortal flesh.”

“When battle was joined, it was carnage. Though there were only a few hundred remaining ponies of the free tribes, the Mad King tore through the ranks of the enemy, unleashing forces that stained the souls of their targets. In a battle that lasted from the suns rising to its setting, the Mad King routed the horde, slaughtering the soulless stallion that led them and dispersing the survivors into the Tundra, for Mother Winter to finish.” The armoured stallion paused in his speech, looking from Shining Armour to the suddenly much more imposing portrait, shivering ever so slightly beneath the baleful gaze of those bloody eyes. “In the aftermath, of the battle, no trace of the Mad King could be found; not a plate of armour, or a shred of his cloak. Some believed that perhaps he’d died on that battlefield, but in the centuries since those dark days, there have been many tales of a black creature stalking the Tundra’s wastes, its eyes burning like the furnaces of Dis.”

Shining Armour looked to the portrait with a much greater sense of trepidation than before, no longer entirely comfortable beneath the gaze of the stallion framed within. Certainly no legend of such darkness existed in Equestria, much less an actually historical event. True, there were times in the nations past when the situation had been dire, but never something so… 

Shining Armour held the stallions gaze, Images flashing through his mind; the choked ruins of the Everfree Palace; the dust begrimed carpets within; the shattered stain-glass windows and the broken masonry; the glowing form of a deadly predator. The rush of fear as surges of frigid cold ran up is hind legs, paralysing him. A weight on top of him. Heat. Movement. The sensation of silk. The face of Nightmare Moon suddenly emerging from the shadows, her mane flowing in an astral wind as an impassioned blush stained her cheek. Snapping himself from the images, Shining Armour shook his head, taking an abrupt step backwards. His escort looked to him, Shining Armour eyeing the portrait with a sense of great unease. 

“Is everything alright, Shining Armour; Diplomat of Equestria, Warden of Canterlot, and Patriarch of the Celestial Guard?”

“Yes, yes, everything is… everything is fine.” Taking his eyes from the portrait, Shining Armour could feel another headache coming on, a painful, deep throbbing in the back of his head. Groaning to himself, the stallion raised an armoured hoof to massage the bridge of his nose, trying to alleviate some of the pain. Now was the last time he needed something like this, not with a highly important ritual duel about to begin. Lowering his hoof, Shining Armour did his best to bite down on the pain, giving his escort a nod before they both continued on their way; leaving the portrait of the Mad King and its lonely occupant behind. 

“If I may?” Shining Armour asked as they continued, turning off from the corridor and beginning to make their way towards the great central stairwell. “The eyes of that king, they resemble those of Queen Umbra.”

The escort tensed slightly, the movement visible even beneath mountain of plating that covered his form. Shining Armour realised he may have caught onto something that was taboo within the confines of the Spire, but after a few moments of thought the stallion relaxed slightly, though there was still some tension in his movements. “Since the Mad King, there have been born those who are like him in flesh, charcoal coats and black manes, with blood stained spears for horns. These foals are said to be the twisted offspring of the Mad King, the remnants of whatever foul powers he used haunting the ponies long after his death. Though many of these foals are killed at birth, those that survive have gone on to do both great and terrible things in service to their nation, their loyalty beyond question. My lady is one of these individuals.”

“And the Mad King. What was his name, his real name?”

There was another pause, this one longer.

“Sombra. He was the Mad King Sombra.”


≤ΘΘΘ≥


The Armoury was a series of wide, open rooms filled with weapon racks, the glint of steel everywhere in the flickering torch light. Resting in their places, Shining Armour spied halberds, spears, pikes, falchions, claymores, broadswords, short-swords, crossbows, helmets, barrel plates, hoof-guards, and much more, all lined with military precision; clean, polished steel simply waiting to deal death. Though a few torches were lit down the central aisle to allow ease of access, the majority of the armoury lay in darkness, the rest of its deadly secrets hidden from view. Ahead could be heard the sound of blade-on-blade contact; the Patriarch’s keen ears quickly picking up the familiar harsh rasp as metal sheered and sliced. 

Travelling the full, shadowed length of the Armoury, Shining Armour emerged into what could only be described as a magnificent amphitheatre; rows upon rows of stone ledges leading down into deep depression in the ground, surrounded by viewing boxes. Descending the long stairway and reaching the very lip of the great hole at the centre, Shining Armour looked over the edge to discover the depression was a seven meter deep hole that ended in a sandy floor, banners and torches lining the walls. The arena itself was a good thirty meters wide; plenty of space for two combatants to fight to a stand-still or death. Within, a whirling maelstrom of metal and flesh took place.

A lone combatant fought against four heavily armoured opponents, all of them armed with fat-bladed falchions that had enough strength to easily cut clear through a limb. The lone warrior seemed to be armed with only a thing blade in comparison, a blade that glowed with a vibrant scarlet energy, something about the colour causing the remnants of Shining’s headache to briefly flare; a strange sense of wrongness seeming to emanate from the blade. The scarlet weapon moved with deft, swift movements, gracefully launching into each strike with deadly precision before elegantly returning into a perfect defence stance, the blade aligned down the length of the warrior’s body to provide maximum protection.

The four opponents circled warily, communicating to each other through subtle twitches and taps of their blades. Surrounding their quarry, the four prepared to strike, their blades raising as they launched forward into the assault. It was a perfect manoeuvre, the four blades falling in such a way that made retreat difficult, if not impossible. One of the four came in with a low cut: designed to take out the legs, while another two came in with direct thrusts to their opponent’s barrel, the final stallion performing a wide, downward strike that had enough force to severe a pony in two. For a few moments the Patriarch thought the lone warrior was surely doomed, before, with movement that seemed impossibly quick, the pony dodged, throwing their body in a graceful roll through the tiniest gap in the enclosing mesh of steel, sparks flying as the blades skimmed the surface of their armour. Landing outside the closed ring, the warrior turned their head, a hoof raising to tear off the helmet of black metal that covered their head.

Shining Armour gulped.

Queen Umbra’s smile was like that of a vicious predator, grinning in feral triumph as it closed with its prey. With but a mere tip of her horn, Queen Umbra sent the scarlet blade by her side rocketing forward, encased within the grip of her aethereal talents. In a single, elegant side-wipe, the blade took of the stallion stood directly before the queen, the combatants only just realising they’d missed their strike. The stallion went flying, landing in a heavy mess of metal and flailing limbs. Roaring with a viciousness that bellied her form, Queen Umbra leapt forward forwards, her hooves gripping tightly around the neck of another foe as she collided with him, the force of the impact sending both to the floor even as the scarlet blade swept another opponent off his hooves. Stamping her hoof down on the opponent beneath her, Queen Umbra turned her flaming eyes to the last remaining stallion, who, commendably, had enough nerve left to raise his weapon once more.

He didn’t last long. 

Before the colt had time to blink Queen Umbra was on top of him, an armoured hoof smashing into the side of his muzzle before Umbra spun and delivered a devastating buck to his flank, sending him sprawling. Raising his sword, the colt managed a final charge, his blade coming down in a series of swift, rapid strikes that would have been deadly if they’d made contact. As it as, Umbra merely danced through the hail of deadly blows, her gauntleted hoof once more smashing the cot on the other side of his muzzle. Leaping back, Queen Umbra giggled, Shining Armour realising she was merely playing with the whelp. Leaning towards his escort, Shining Armour asked: “A training exercise, I presume?”

“Correct,” the mountain replied. “All who wish to join the ranks of the Imperial Guard are tested by Queen Umbra personally. Though, admittedly, they have no hope in defeating such an opponent, the Queen in always stringent about the process, and it would be wrong to say that her insight into the finer details of a warriors mind don’t put her at an advantage when selecting new recruits.”

Nodding, Shining Armour returned his attention to the arena, just in time to see Queen Umbra finish off the final survivor. Dropping her blade, Queen Umbra charged her opponent, gracefully dodging through the colts defence efforts. Reaching her opponent, the Queen leaped onto the colt, forelegs grappling round his neck as he instinctually reared on his hind-legs, braying as he attempted to shake the Queen loose. Anticipating the move, Queen Umbra pulled back with all her force, the colt toppling onto his back as the Queen locked him in a choke hold, armoured legs gripping tightly around the colt’s neck.

For several long seconds Shining Armour thought Queen Umbra was actually about to choke the colt to death, but after a few moments longer the Queen released her captive; the colt gasping for air as he rolled off his Queen and gulped down sweet oxygen. Rising without a moment’s hesitation, Queen Umbra marched across to her discarded helmet, the three other applicants groggily staggering to their hooves as they tried to make sense of the world. Forming up in what would have been a disgrace of a parade line, the four trainees waited in silence as the Queen paced in front of them, looking at each in turn with her burning, bloody eyes. “I see potential,” her voice echoed around the chamber, ringing back and forth. “But I also see wastes of my time.” Raising a hoof to the colt she had nearly choked into oblivion, Queen Umbra smiled slyly as the colt snapped to attention, his stance sub-par after his recent beating. “This one is the only warrior with any spirit amongst you. The rest shouldn’t have come, the Imperial Guard is for legends, not lackeys.”

Dismissing the colts, Shining Armour watched as the three failed applicants trudged with heavy heads towards an armoured gate at one end of the arena, the successful colt heading to another gate in the opposite direction. Queen Umbra herself remained at the arena’s centre looking up towards Shining Armour, who suddenly felt somewhat less confident of himself after such a display of martial prowess. Snapping himself from his own doldrums, Shining Armour mentally chastised himself, berating himself for being so negative. Of all things necessary when about to enter any form of combat, a positive state of mind was perhaps the most important; the confidence to win being a prerequisite to victory itself. Shoring up his mental guards, Shining Armour cleared his mind, readying himself as Queen Umbra called out.

“Patriarch, thank you for coming.”

“My pleasure, Queen Umbra.”

“I trust your chambers are adequate, and the staff on form?”

“Your hospitality has been impeccable, dear Queen.”

“Indeed.” Queen Umbra replied, her scarlet blade coming alive by her side as she took it in her aethereal grip and raised it in Shining Armours direction. “But enough of the pleasantries, shall we?”


≤ΘΘΘ≥


“The rules of the duel are simple. No magic. Biting and physical contact is permitted, within the realm of minor injury, and, though this isn’t a duel to the death, there is no penalty for inflicting bodily injuries, within a reasonable extent.” Queen Umbra drew her blade through the sand of the Arena in a wide circle around herself before bringing it upright before, a slight malevolent edge to the blades scarlet glow. “Victory shall be established in the traditional manner of the Empire. I trust you understand the principles?”

Shining Armour nodded, swiftly calling to mind the required information. From what he understood of the matter, victory of a traditional duel amongst two citizens of the Crystal Empire was decided by one combatant establishing dominance over their opponent. Though the texts available to Equestria were outdated, it seemed as if dominance, in both a literal and social context of the word, was a highly established and valued trait amongst the citizenry of the Crystal Empire, much as confidence was valued in Equestria. The practice in itself was simple to understand: in the highly militarised society of the Crystal Empire, those individuals with the charisma, will, and strength of personality to lead often ended up in positions of authority, their ability to make others follow an important tool for the reigning government. As to the exact mechanisms of establishing dominance, Shining Armour was well versed; a demonstration of skill at arms, a demonstration of his speed and ability, and finally a display of his physical strength – the reason duels in the Crystal Empire involved such a high level of hoof-to-hoof combat. 

It was simple really: all he had to do was beat Umbra, and be kinda flashy about doing it.

Grinning, Umbra dropped herself into a fighting stance, scarlet blade glowing as she raised it into the traditional guard position. Her form was impeccable, clad in tight, utilitarian plate that was at once bluntly austere and flagrantly exhibitionist with how tightly it clung to her curves, the dull-grey plating of her armour highlighting each and every curve the mare possessed. Dropping into his own fighting stance, Shining Armour tried to clear his mind, attempting to expel his rousing thoughts from earlier, when he’d first met Umbra face to face. Then, as now, he’d felt a colt-like flush of wonder run through him at her beauty, and then, as now, he’d tried to fight the rising tide within him, tried to remain cold and aloof, analytical, like Princess Celestia would expect. Slowly the two combatants began to circle each other, movements slow, cautious, Shining Armour alert and ready for the first strike.

Umbra lashed out with her blade, the weapon little more than a scarlet blur as it rocketed forwards. Shining Armour parried with ease, Starlight Wrath flaring brightly as the two weapons came into contact; the superior mass of the axe allowing it to absorb the blow without damage. Umbra withdrew for another strike, but as the mare pulled away Shining Armour pressed his own advance, Starlight Wrath lashing out in a series of three rapid strikes that pushed Queen Umbra backwards, away from the centre of the arena and towards the encircling wall. The flight was brief, the Queen swiftly reversing the situation with another attack of her own, regaining her lost ground in mere moments. Sizing each other up once more, the two began to circle again, probing attacks finished as they prepared for a full assault.

The arena was empty now; aside from the clash of steel on steel, no other noise of movement threatened to disturb the duel. Shining Armour held his orbit around Umbra for a few moments longer, weapon held in a defensive stance before he launched forward, Starlight Wrath descending in a wide, deadly arc that had enough force to cleave a pony clear in two; Umbra merely dodging the deadly blow by dancing out of reach, Starlight Wrath embedding itself deeply in the sandy floor. Seeing her chance to attack, Shining Armour leapt away as Umbra’s scarlet blade came down upon him, rolling away to the right as the blade severed several of the fine hairs in his tail. Light on his hooves, Shining Armour barely managed to dodge Umbra’s next assault, the Patriarchs flank tingling slightly as the Queen’s blade came down right beside it, sparks flying from where it was blocked by his armour.

Already Shining could feel himself slowing. This plate metal was far too heavy for him to be able to move at full haste, the unnecessary ornamentation slowing him to a deadly extent. Ahead of him, separated by the armoured form of the Queen, Starlight Wrath glinted faintly, embedded deep within the ground, the Patriarch growling as he drew a dagger from his flank, his only auxiliary weapon. Umbra came at him again, her movements so lightning fast as to little but a blur, yet still Shining Armour managed to avoid each blow, ducking and dodging each strike for the chance to leap within and around Umbra’s guard and retrieve Starlight Wrath. Seeing his chance, Shining Armour leapt forward, his form twisting through the air even as the Queen’s scarlet blade came down up where he’d been standing only moments before. 

Launching past the Queen, Shining Armour landed bodily, having just enough time to scramble to his hooves and retrieve his weapon, Starlight Wrath flaring brightly within his grip as the weapon recognised the touch of its master. Raising the axe high, Shining Armour brought it down in a deadly two-hoofed stroke that forced Queen Umbra back a good few feet, the two warriors circling each other once more. Shining could feel the blood pumping through his veins, feel the exhilarating rush of heat and fear and adrenaline that soaked him in combat. Already his senses were heightening, his awareness closing in as he wrapped his attention around a single object, a single recipient of his consciousness. He could smell Umbra in the air, the scent of her sweat, blood, excitement, the taste of her resting tauntingly on his tongue. He could feel his conscious self begin to slip, reason and logic retreating inwards as his world became one of instinctual reaction.

Umbra lashed out again.

He barely dodged this time, Shining Armour only having enough time to move his head out the way before the scarlet blade went roaring past, skimming his ear by millimetres. Reacting without thought, Shining Armour seized the weapon in his own telekinetic grip, forcing the blade deep into the sand beneath them. For the briefest second Queen Umbra struggled to withdraw the weapon, but it only took the merest fraction of time for her to realise the weapon was now lost, and begin charging forward, vicious fangs exposed and gleaming.

She hit hard, an armoured hoof slamming into his muzzle as the two opponents went sprawling. Shining had barely had any time to recover before Umbra was on top of him, fanged maw grinning viciously as she raised another hoof. Shining dodged the blow, the Patriarch seizing the incoming hoof in his own, his superior physical build allowing him to halt the hoof in its track. For the briefest moment, Umbra scowled at him with the same look of an irate foal, before, with a gasp of surprise, she was pushed off him, Shining Armour using his considerable bulk to roll himself over and launch into another strike. But where he had the gift of strength, Umbra far outclassed him in terms of speed, and with each attack Shining Armour could feel himself slowing ever so slightly, unable to land even a single blow on the spritely mare.

A hoof came from nowhere, smashing into the side of his muzzle before being followed by a harsh buck, the force of the impact sending the Patriarch flying and threatening to knock loose more than a few teeth. Groggily raising his head, Shining Armour had enough time to realise that Umbra was on top of him before an armoured hoof smashed down on his gut, buckling his barrel-plate with the force; no easy feat. “Impressive, Patriarch.” Umbra managed, panting for breath as she raised her hoof and brought it down once more. “But not quite enough.” The mare smiled, her cheeks flushed with what could only have been more than mere heat. A scent hung in the air around the mare, musky, heavy, and familiar 

“I haven’t yielded yet, dear Queen.” Shining Armour replied.     

Before Umbra could manage a response, Shining Armour swept out his hide leg in a wide arc, knocking the mare’s legs out from beneath her. Umbra had enough time to mumble “oh” to herself before she was suddenly met with a fine view of the ceiling, the rattling of metal filling her ears. Rolling over, the mare moved to stand, but not before a weight suddenly made itself present upon her back, a pair of strong, heavy hooves forcing her fore-legs to buckle, forcing her back to the ground. Cold steel appeared at her front, one of the razor heads of Starlight Wrath nicking ever so gently at the flesh of her neck. The weight on her back became greater, Shining Armour forcing the mare to the ground even as he took a bit of her mane, pulling her head back to a sharp, uncomfortable angle, whilst his hind-legs spread her own. 

The mare whined, instinctively trying to escape such a compromising position. But even as she tried to break free, Shining Armour held her firmly in his grip, keeping the mare pinned beneath his larger bulk. “Do you yield?” he asked in a breathless voice, pressing the mare’s delicate flesh ever so slightly against Starlight Wrath. “Do you yield, Queen Umbra.”

The mare didn’t reply for several long moments, eyes closed as she drew deep, rhythmic breaths, her body seeming to tense and twitch beneath his own. Slowly, opening a single eye, the mare looked to Shining Armour with a pupil of blood, purple fire streaming free all the while. The miasma around her seemed to thicken, the familiar yet illusive scent tickling at the Patriarchs peripheral awareness, triggering mechanisms that only the subconscious mind could access. “Do you yield, Queen Umbra?” Shining asked again more forcefully, the edge of starlight Wrath cutting at her flesh ever so slightly. For a few moments longer the mare struggled, her movements weak and small beneath his own, before finally she fell still, ears submissively folding back as she lowered her head in defeat. 

“I yield, patriarch.”        

Shining Armour held his grip for a few brief moments longer before releasing the mare, his body retreating from her own as he took a few steps back, removing the deadly edge of Starlight Wrath from Queen Umbra’s throat. Taking stock of the situation, Shining Armour examined himself for injury, quickly making note that while he’d been fortunate enough to avoid physical injury, one of Queen Umbra’s earlier strikes had left an ugly gouge along the plates of his flank, irreparably scarring the delicate hoofwork. The Patriarch winced slightly at the damage, aware that it would require great deal of the armour to be melted down, reformed, and then meticulously worked back into a shape fitting of a royal suit, but at least the armour had served itself purpose. Shining Armour looked back to the Queen.

Umbra hadn’t moved an inch from her previous position; forelegs bent; head lowered; ear folded back; hind-legs raised; tail flagged…

“Queen Umbra?!” Shining Armour half-yelped at the sight, turning his sight from the mare’s exposed sex to spare her dignity. “Your highness, please, what in Equestria are you doing?!”

Queen Umbra raised her head, turning back to look at the averted eyes of the Patriarch, a healthy blush staining the stallions cheeks as he looked in an direction other than at Umbra herself. Frowning, the mare gave the Patriarch a questioning look before replying. “I am yielding,” came her blunt reply, “What else would I be doing?”

“But your highness!” Shining Armour replied, his voice uneasy, “The duel is over, there is no need to… expose yourself to me!”

There was a moments silence before Umbra began to giggle, the noise oddly feminine and innocent for a battle-armoured mare in such a provocative state. Shining Armour’s blush intensified at the sound, the health glow strengthening into a deep shade of rose. For a few moments the mare simply mocked, before, after tiring of her amusement, she replied; “This is how duels are conducted in the Empire, Patriarch. I assumed you knew this.”

“But… I’ve read the studies, I established myself as the dominant party by overcoming you and forcing you to yield. That’s sufficient in itself, it does not require me to mount you and…” Shining Armour’s blush deepened severely, threatening to become a permanent stage. 

“Maybe if I were a stallion you would be correct. But, as it just so happens-” The mare waved her tail, the silken fibres spreading her feminine into the air. “-I was born a filly, Patriarch, and by law of the Crystal Empire, when a mare challenges a stallion and loses, she is put back in her place.” 

“But… That’s…”

“There’s no need to be agitated by it. Had I won, you would have been ridiculed across the Empire for being defeated by a mare. Suffice to say, you and your nation would have been… weak in the eyes of the wider populace. But no, fate has spoken, and thus tradition dictates.”

“And you knew this when you accepted my diplomatic mission?”

“Of course. Why do you think I requested you be sent? I have heard many tales of your prowess, Patriarch, and those tales I have been eager to test. But just as many are the rumours of your prowess in more… intimate matters. I won’t lie that they may have… influenced my choice in ambassador.”

The Patriarch stood aghast for several long moments, his mouth opening and closing as he tried to formulate a reply, only to come out with a hoarse groan. Shining Armour could feel his headache returning with a vengeance, blurred images flashing in his mind, too fast to comprehend.

“I… I can’t… I have a wife…”

“And no one doubts your love for her, Patriarch. Even in the Crystal Empire, the bards sing ballads of the young lovers. But this has nothing to do with matters of the bedroom, this is statecraft, and unless you fulfil tradition, you will have to surrender, be ridiculed, and return to your princess with an empty hoof.” Umbra raised her tail. “The choice is yours, Patriarch.”

This couldn’t be happening. There was no way this could be happening.

Shining Armour felt a knot begin to tighten in his gut, threatening at any moment to squeeze too tight and make him hurl. Though he knew on every level that what he was contemplating was wrong with every belief he held dear, his analytical mind refused to die, reminding him over and over, as he sought another way out, that the only way to secure the final objective was to mount Queen Umbra and… and…

Thoughts of Cadence ricocheted through Shining’s mind, the knot in his gut tightening to the very brink of his limits, the stallion’s coat paling as he realised what he had to do, the great betrayal he would have to enact. Taking a deep breath, Shining Armour gathered what thoughts of Cadence that he could before shoving them back into the darkest parts of his mind, in the places where they wouldn’t come back. Steeling his gut, the Patriarch ground his teeth and marched across to the mare before him; bent submissively with her tail raised and core exposed. It wasn’t anger that Shining Armour felt churning in his gut, but something that made him cold and mechanical; performing the actions of a machine, not a thinking stallion

Seizing the mare's flank in his magic, Shining Armour held her still in his grip as he inspected her, the mare squirming beneath his gaze. Leaning in Shining Armour trailed his tongue up Queen Umbra's sex, the mares tail batting at him in excitement as he gently lapped at her folds, probing her. Umbra whined as she felt the Patriarchs tongue beggin to lap at her, the inner muscles of her sex gripping him as he teased her, a thin trail of liquid dripping down his muzzle from where the mare's excitement became too much for her. Pulling back, Shining Armour watched Queen Umbra wink, indicating her willingness to her partner. 

Shining Armour mounted the mare, his horn flaring as he gripped the armoured plates around her flank and pulled them loose, buckles coming loose and slackening as he stripped her of her protection; fully exposing her shame. Removing his own barrel, the Patriarch pinned the mare beneath him with his weight, his greater muscle and mass proving too much for Queen Umbra to resist, gripping her forelegs with his own, Shining Armour bit the mares mane between his teeth, tugging her head back sharply as he began to grind his cock against the Queens heated flower, his length growing as he teased the captive mare beneath him.

Queen Umbra whined, the bite of her earlier comments as Shining Armour pushed her head into the floor of the arena. A blush, barely visible beneath her charcoal coat, stained her cheeks as she felt the stallion grinding against her, preparing to fuck her. Being the Queen that she was, Umbra was not prone to indulging in her urges; perhaps she took a lover when the brief heat swept the Empire at summer’s peak, but otherwise she was a mare dedicated to her nation. Of course, that was no easy task, and with the Crystal Empire being as sparse, vast, and inhospitable as it was, overseeing such a realm took a strict discipline of the mind. More often than not, the winter that her citizens celebrated threatened to damn them if anything else, yet through strict, precise control, she was able to ensure the survival of her ponies, and the prosperity of her empire. 

That level of involvement demanded a lot from a mare. 

Another fillieish whine leapt from the mare’s throat as Shining Armour abruptly drew his whole length across her sex, coating his cock in the mare’s excitement before bringing the very tip to her entrance, teasing the mare. Umbra let out a begging whine at the move, ears flickering against her head to indicate her submission as she bit her lip, looking up to the stallion above her with lidded eyes.

Shining Armour held the mare gaze for a few moments, tormenting her, steeling himself for what was about to happen, before, finally, he made his move.

“For Celestia and Country.”

With a single, swift thrust, Shining Armour hilted himself within the mare, forcing her body to take every inch as he plunged into her depths. Shining Armour grunted as he felt the mare’s sex clench in excitement, Umbra visibly shaking as Shining withdrew and began to thrust with harsh, continuous strokes, her eyes rolling as she let out a deep groan of satisfaction, feeling the stallion press deep into her being with each thrust. Shining Armour took deep, measured breaths as he fucked the mare beneath him, moving with dispassionate, mechanical movements whilst Umbra whimpered beneath him, her sex gripping his tightly each time he hilted within her.

Upping the pace, Shining gripped the mare’s flanks in his hooves, squeezing each harshly. Both were demonstrations of the female physique at its finest, toned muscle running beneath supple, silken skin and fur, the Patriarch stroking the mare’s cutie mark for a few moments before raising a hoof and bringing it down hard, spanking the mares flank loudly. Umbra squeaked loudly, her sex clenching tightly around him as she tensed at the blow. Snorting, Shining Armour raised his hoof again, raining another three sharp blows against the Queen’s flanks in rapid succession, the mare squealing in delight at the action.

“You said… that when a mare loses to a stallion… she is put back in her place,” Shining Armour whispered into the Queen’s ear between thrusts, the mare blushing deeply as Shining began to nibble on the tip of her ear. “Is that what you want, dear Queen? For a stallion to put you back in your place?” Shining Armour emphasized the question with hard thrust, his flank smacking against that of the Queen’s audibly. Umbra, panting hard, shook her head, her eyes half-lidded as she tried to reply.

“How… dare you… I’m a… Queen, a QueEENN!”

Shining Armour grunted as the mare climaxed around his shaft, the inner walls of her sex gripping him tightly as they tried to milk him of his seed. Umbra let out a hoarse groan, twitching beneath the Patriarch as her sex tingled in satisfaction, weakly gripping him even now. The stallion chuckled as Umbra let out a deep sigh, her eyes nearly closed as she basked in her afterglow. “I’ve never met a Queen that squeals like a harlot before.”

Umbra’s cheeks turned red with indignation, the mare’s mouth opening to reply yet the only sound emerging being a foolish squeal as Shining Armour began to thrust into her again her flesh too sensitive after so recent a release. Each thrust was met by a squeal on the Queens part, the sounds echoing around the empty arena as the two rutted on the cold floor. Shining Armour grunted gently with each thrust, the Queen’s sex instinctively trying to milk him, even if the mare was too delirious to respond. “I’ve also never met a Queen as deviant as you. Fantasising of rutting a married stallion, hardly behaviour fitting of royalty.”

“Not! True!” Umbra squealed as another climax overcame her, her sex weakly milking him. “I’m a Queen, you’re an ambassaDOORRR!” Queen Umbra tensed, her sex gripping Shining Armour’s shaft with surprising strength. “I can order you to do anything I want! I am a Queen!”

“Ah, ah, ah.” Shining Armour said hilting himself within the mare as a foreleg wrapped itself around her neck, squeezing gently on her throat. “But you’re not my Queen, are you? And as I remember-” Shining Armour spanked Umbra’s flank hard, the unexpected shock causing the mare to squeak loudly, followed by a long moan as the stallion kept up the barrage, mercilessly spanking the mares toned rump. “-you need to be put in your place.”

Shining Armour returned to his thrusting, Umbra being able to do little more than simply lie beneath him as the stallions grip around her throat tightened, choking her ever-so-slightly. Aware that the mare had already had her pleasure, Shining sought his own, mercilessly driving into the mare as his pleasure built, exciting himself off watching a monarch squirm in his grip. A familiar knot built at the base of his shaft, Shining Armour keeping his place until his brought himself to the very brink, before abruptly pulling out, Umbra gasping as he painted her exposed flank with his seed, coating her charcoal black coat with thick ropes of white.

The Patriarch suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion overcome him, sitting back on his flank as he took deep, calming breaths. Inhale. Four seconds. Exhale. Four seconds. Opening his eyes, Shining Armour watched up rise to her full height, the mare shivering slightly as the cold air of the arena met the sensitive flesh of her sex, the mare letting out a whine as a thin stream of clear liquid escaped her sex, her flower winking lewdly at him. Turning, the mare approached, smiling at Shining Armour in an oddly shy fashion before bowing her head and taking his shaft into her mouth, her tongue lapping at his flesh.

Shining Armour sighed, his body relaxed as the mare cleaned him of their combined mess, the soft mass of her tongue brushing up gently against his still sensitive head. Pulling herself back up, Umbra met the Patriarchs eye before tilting her head back and swallowing.

“I trust the alliance between our two nations has been secured?” Shining Armour asked, his voice oddly detached and aloof. 

“At ease, Patriarch, your duty is done. I shall send word to the trade guilds that there has been a shift in policy to facilitate immediate economic contact, but a diplomatic mission of our own will be dispatched to Equestria to hammer out the final details.” Queen Umbra blushed, seemingly shy even so recently after their debauchery. “But come, why talk matters of state, if you wish we can retire to my chambers? I shall have the kitchen send up something for us to eat.”

“No thank you.” Shining Armour said sharply, in a tone that brooked no argument. There was a coldness about the Patriarchs features, an expression of dispassion that had been refined through years of service, through months of being screamed at in the face by irate, possibly senile staff sergeants. “I shall return to my quarters and rest for the night. If you would send word to my train, I shall be leaving tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Umbra frowned slightly. “Pardon me, Patriarch, but you delegation is meant to last a week, you can’t leave only a day after arriving.”

Shining Armour disregarded the mare, turning away to make his way across the arena floor to the closest exit. “I’m afraid an issue has cropped up that I must see to with the utmost urgency.”

“Issue? What issue?”

“I have to go back to my wife-” Shining Armour turned back to the Queen, Umbra gasping as she saw the faintest hints of tears on his cheeks, “-And beg her to forgive me.”
> Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shining Armour felt sick.

Pacing back and forth, the only light available begin faint flicker of the candle on the bedstand, Shining Armour felt tears running down his face, leaving trails of wet fur as he wept openly. “Oh, Cadence,” Shining managed, his voice broken by the pain he felt. “Cadence, I’m so sorry! Please, I didn’t mean it!”

He could see it in his mind’s eye; Cadence’s reaction when she found out; her tears, the pain in her eyes as she left, the knowledge that he’d caused this, that his own actions had caused this.

And yet, they hadn’t. What he’d done, he’d done as part of his duty. Celestia had sent him north with full vested authority, and precise instruction to secure an alliance with the Crystal Empire. She’d invested her faith in him, her trust, and as Patriarch of the Celestial Guard he was honour-bound to fulfil the goals of his monarch until his dying breath.

But that didn’t help to assuage the guilt in Shining Armours heart. It didn’t help to dispel the knot in his stomach that threatened to choke the life out of him at any minute. It didn’t help him feel like any less of a scumbag for cheating on his wife.

“Oh Faust, please! Please don’t let my wife leave me, I’m sorry! I’ll never do anything like it again, I swear! Please! Just don’t take Cadence from me!” Shining Armour sniffed, wiping away the tears as he tried to get a grip of himself. This was no way for a warrior to behave, much less the Patriarch of the Celestial guard. What would his father think of him if he saw his grown son bawling like a colt, what would his mother?

A knock came at the door.

Doing his best to make himself presentable, Shining Armour opened the door to find a unicorn maid standing outside, a mug of some hot liquid held before her. “Pardon me, Patriarch. But Queen Umbra requested that this be brought up to you. It’s a traditional broth of the Empire, warriors traditionally drink it after battle to ease their slumber.”

“Thank you.” Shining Armour mumbled, taking the mug from the mare, who curtseyed before turning away along the corridor. Closing the door, Shining Armour gave the liquid a sniff, the beverage rich with the aromas of black-pepper and spices. Taking a sip, the Patriarch found the broth to be equally delicious on the tongue, the spicy tang of the mix putting a gentle fire in his gut that eased at his worries, if only a little. The stallion yawned, his eyes suddenly much heavier than before.

Funny, he didn’t remember feeling this tired.

Finishing the drink, Shining Armour climbed into bed, his movements unusually awkward and uncoordinated. Turning his thoughts back to Cadence, Shining Armour felt the wave of guilt return, but oddly, he couldn’t seem to quite recall why. It was something that he’d done, he was certain, but he couldn’t reach the memory, though he was certain it had been on the tip of his tongue a moment earlier. The broth left a strange after-taste in his mouth, oddly herbal for some reason. Though he knew he should have been trying to figure out the source of his guilt, Shining Armour felt another wave of exhaustion wash over him at the concept, his eyes too heavy to hold open any longer.

He collapsed into a sea of forgotten memories.