Author's Note: As said in the summary, this is my first Fanfiction. Please take the time to review, if only to comment on a single thing. Flames will be used to make s'mores. Help proofreading would be appreciated.

Disclaimer: If I owned My Little Pony I wouldn't be writing fan fiction, now would I?

Storm fidgeted, ruffling his feathers before he settled them back again. The slight movement caught the hawk-eyed sergeant's attention and for a brief moment he thought he was going to get a "Quit moving!" from the burly officer. To his relief, Celestia decided to have mercy on him and Staff Sergeant Tempest looked away and continued on the proper way to clean the enchanted armor. Storm was nervous because he was about to ask something and wasn't sure of old Tempest would take it as straying off task and assign him fifty laps around the palace – or worse.

Gathering what courage he had left, he decided to ask. "Sir?" he hesitantly said as he slowly raised his hoof in the air when the Sergeant was done. Tempest turned the glare he always seemed to have to the young pegasus. "What now?" he gruffly said.

Storm gulped visibly before continuing, suddenly wondering if this was a bad idea. Well, too late, he thought. "Sir, I was wondering why our armor is enchanted. What's the point?"

The burly old stallion studied the recruit until the latter felt his heart sink, but to his surprise Tempest merely sighed. "There's always one in every bucking batch that ask that question," the Staff Sergeant finally said and the rest of Storm's recruit unit sighed in relief as they relized they weren't going to see their friend die a horrible death.

Tempest got a far-away look in his eyes before he started.

"You see, long ago, about thirty-five years back, something happened.

I had enlisted in the Royal Guard with two friends, a pegasus and a unicorn – Cloud Chaser and Valens. Cloud was a fun-loving mare, while Valens was more reserved, quiet, always hiding behind his books.

We were all on Day Guard, and back then the armor wasn't enchanted, so everypony could identify us. One day we were making our rounds in the Market Place when one of the more powerful unicorn mages went looney. His name was Praepotens. You wouldn't know him, but back then, he was famous.

Well, it seemed the famous thing went to his head. One minute he's there buying apples, and the next he's proclaiming that he should be the ruler of Equestria instead of Princess Celsestia."

Storm and his friends shivered. Such public betrayal couldn't have been received well.

Tempest caught the shiver and nodded. He continued somberly, and surprisingly a bit sadly:

"We weren't a match for him, but we were able to hold him off from destroying Canterlot. When the more experienced guards hauled him off for trial, he promised that he would find and kill the three of us."

Suddenly it all clicked together – the sadness, the distant and painful recollection – "He did, didn't he?"

The burly old pegasus nodded again. "I was reassigned to the palace while Cloud and Valens continued on the Market Place. One day I was notified that Praepotens escaped from prison and killed them. After that he disappeared."

"So that's why…"

"Yes. Princess Celestia blamed herself for overlooking the safety issue and ordered that all the armor be enchanted so that our identities remain anonymous."

"And was – "

"Cloud had a snow-white coat and blue eyes with a blue-striped-sky-blue mane. Valens had a grey coat and a white mane with silver stripes and golden eyes."

There was silence in the room that was thick and heavy. Storm felt a pang in his heart, not unlike what one gets when one realizes just how much some gave.

Tempest cleared his throat and became himself again. "Alright, enough wandering off topic. Now you maggots show me how to clean armor properly."

As the young stallion picked up the armor pieces, he silently thanked the pegasus and unicorn, although he did not know them.

Author's Note: Yes. As I said, any reviews would be appreciated.