Truth From Lies

Chapter 1

Revelations – Part 1

Edited by Cpt. Fox

A cool stream of gales easily weaved their way through the towering structures Canterlot, whirling and spiraling through the pavilions and homes that cluttered the streets of the city in the pre-morning dawn, a collection of trees wavering in their movements. Luna's pristine moon was slowly sinking back into the horizon, making way for the glorious warmth of Celestia's welcoming and enduring sun. As the heavenly body fell out of sight, its patron swiftly flying back to resting place, its polar opposite soon rose to take its place. And with time almost coming to an absolute stop, eagerly waiting in anticipation for the explosive beginning to a brand new day, the blazing power the golden sun gleamed over the horizon, splitting the skies apart as it drowned the cliffs of Canterlot in pure sunlight.

The golden radiance of the burning Topaz shimmering in the skies above continued to stretch over the city, bathing the buildings and streets in a warmth that one could only feel, no, experience in a land such as this. The denizens of Canterlot sleepily made their way out of their abodes, instantly coming to wake upon being blanketed in the dawn of the new day that had so graciously been presented to them. The earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi greeted the new day with open hooves, shop-keepers in particular greeting the day with open doors. Even the snobbish, high class men and woman put their stuck-up demeanors aside to enjoy the radiance, just like the normal citizens that they so eagerly looked down upon.

Up in the towers surrounding Canterlot Castle, the epitome of beauty in Equestria and the home of the Celestial Sisters, lay a pure white unicorn with a lightning blue mane, and his blushing new bride, curled up against his body, wrapping both of them within her gentle, caressing wings.

Shining Armor and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, though more commonly known as Cadence; Equestria's newest married couple, though the wedding itself had been rather hectic. An attack against Canterlot in a plot to usurp the throne from the Royal Sisters and eventually take over all of Equestria; a plot that had been stopped by Shining's sister, Twilight Sparkle, a resident of the town of Ponyville that lay just a few hours away from Canterlot. Shining, in the mass hysteria and chaotic events, had been brainwashed by the Changeling queen, Chrysalis, and had been lucky that his wife had been able to break his trance, as well as sending the Changelings packing.

A sliver of sunlight broke through the window of the sky-scraping tower, slowly creeping into the room, covering inch after inch in its illumination. Reaching the bed of the two equines, still deep in slumber, the golden light of the sun blanketed the mare and stallion, slowly bringing them back into consciousness as their eyes fluttered open to adjust to the sudden exposure to the bright light of day.

Awake, Shining Armor looked down at the mare that he loved so, smiling with the love only a true husband could hold, leaning down to nuzzle his bride, bringing her back to life as she reflected the loving stare back into his pupils.

"Good morning, Shining." Cooed the mare, pecking the forehead of the stallion as he returned the gesture.

"Good morning to you, Cadence." Shining replied.

Cadence unfurled her wings, allowing Shining to rise from the bed, walking over to a bright set of violet armor, outlined with a frame of gold and a six-pronged star embedded on the front of the chest-plate. The armor of Captain of Royal Guard was made functional, but made to fit the wearer as well. Slipping on piece after piece of the uniform, Shining turned back to his wife, still lying in the bed.

"I'll be home after work, dearest." Shining said to his wife, wandering over to the doorway to their castle-top tower. "I love you." He cooed before the handle to the doorway began to glow a midnight blue hue, the unicorn gripping it with his magic.

"I love you too, Shining." Cadence replied, rising from the bed sheets and making her way over to her hubby, gently pecking his lips before and causing the unicorn's cheeks to flush a bright pink. "Be careful at work, okay?"

"I'm the captain of the guard. I pretty sure I can handle myself." Shining replied, gaining a chuckle from his wife, though it quickly died down with the anxiety that came with his occupation.

"I know, but still…" she muttered to herself. The attempt on Canterlot was a tragic series of events that had utterly horrified Cadence. Being sent to Celestia-knows where as a creature of pure apathy went gallivanting around in her figure, watching from the confines of the caverns as her torturous exploits drove the stallion she loved into a unthinking shell of what he was. She had come so close to losing Shining before, it was heartbreaking. While his occupation never did deal with anything major, leaving major, out-of-city problems to the Canterlot Task Force, a haunting premonition loomed over her very soul, constantly in a state of worry over her stallion.

Shining looked back at Cadence with the same anxiety she held. He hated seeing his wife, the mare that he loved, in such a state of unwanted fear. It brought him to tears. He had been the working man ever since the Changeling Invasion, even more so before that. The fact that another random threat could come barging into town square, leaving shops, pavilions, restaurants and all other structures burning and crumbling in its wake. Taking a hoof, he gently caressed the chin of his wife, calming her with the gesture and bringing the smile back to her face.

"I'll be home after work Cadence. I love you." Shining cooed before walking into the hallway outside the castle-tower suite, trotting off to his duties of repair and reconstruction from the assault that had transpired just weeks ago.

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"How are the Cliffside garden repairs going?" Shining asked one of his colleagues, Pantheon, an earth pony who had been the overseer for most of the repairs following the Changeling attack. His coat was stained an ashen gray, with a bright golden mane flowing from his torso, representing ruins of a city that lay destroyed, yet still held all manner of wonder and splendor.

"The gardens just outside the Royal Ballroom have only been partially repaired." The gray stallion replied, rolling up a set of blueprints and shaking his head in annoyance. "We're still waiting on that order of flowers from Ponyville, and staff members are low. They're all out repairing the rest of the courtyards and bridges."

Shining sighed in irritation as well. These procedures were going so smoothly, only to have a misfire put them between a broken bridge and a blockade. The Royal Sisters weren't going to be happy that their precious garden had gone through a full recovery, and he would have to be the one to deliver the news. Today was not starting out like he had hoped.

"Try and see if any of the soldiers on stand-by can help with the restoration. I need to check on the border patrols." Shining said, taking his helmet and placing next to him on the table, scanning the different schedules, schematics and construction plans that littered the flat slab of stone.

"Yes sir." Pantheon replied before rushing off to the barracks, hoping that at least one pony would assist him in this maddening restoration sequence.

Sighing, Shining Armor began to slowly rub his temples, trying to keep himself calm under this maddening workload. Things had been this way for days. Wake up, go to work, go to sleep. This cycle had gone completely unbroken, and Shining, to say the least, hated it. He longed for a moment's rest; just a day that he could spend with Cadence and get away from this series of what had become formulaic events.

'Oh well.' Shining thought to himself before placing his helmet back onto his skull and trotting off to the guard patrols for their reports.

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Just outside the town square, Shining had met up with a squad of pegasi, bringing in a criminal they had just apprehended, catching him in the act of theft and returning the items to their owner. The patrols themselves, however, had been just as mundane and repetitive as they always had, either having a stray beast breaching the city's perimeter or a caravan of nomads from Celestia-knows where. It was just another normal day in the life of being captain of the guard.

Little did Shining know, things today were about to take a turn that not even Pinky Pie could predict.

"Shining!" cried a voice from the crowds that constantly bustled through the square, most of them having their noses pointed up to high heaven.

The cry instantly caught the unicorn's attention, turning his head as he scanned the crowds for the source. Among the high-class prudes and visiting citizens from Ponyville, Stalliongrad and what-have-you, the lone individual that the colt was searching for seemed to blend into the crowds like everyone else. Once he found the owner of the voice, however, his eyes instantly shot open with shock, and a smile growing ever-wider on his face at the sight of the mare.

"Twily!" Shining replied, running up to his sister from Ponyville and instantly embracing her. Sure, it had only been three weeks, but when you're both constantly caught up in the never-ending river of life, even a minute can seem like an eternity. "What are you doing in Canterlot?

"Princess Celestia said that she needed to speak with me. Something important." Twilight replied. "When's the earliest you can get off from your shift?"

"Around noon. We can catch up on anything and everything that you want to talk about."

"Alright. Where do you want to meet?" Twilight inquired.

"Hmm. How about outside Pony Joe's? I haven't been there in ages."

"Sounds like a great idea! I'll meet you then."

With that, Twilight was off to Celestia, eager to accept the message that the matriarch was wanting to give her. However, before Shining could get a lone moment of peace to himself.

*CRASH!*

"Oooh" Shining groaned in annoyance, seeing a group of pegasi assisting in the reconstruction of a federal building, only to drop an entire slab of steel onto the outside roof and bringing it back to rubble. This was going to be a looooong day.

"Guys, I told you to use the pulley system to lift those gutters!"

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Finally with a free moment to himself (and no incompetent colleagues to rain on his parade), Shining stood outside the famous (and somewhat infamous) Pony Joe's Donut Shop. He and Twilight had always come here to talk when they were younger, so he thought that they could relieve some of the nostalgia that they failed to catch up on before the wedding. Scanning the streets for Twilight, Shining eventually found the lavender unicorn, though something was… different about her. The heartwarming smile that she had worn earlier that day had faded from view, replaced with a sobering frown that reminded Shining of a fellow soldier that had just lost a close friend to a Chimera attack.

"Hey, Twily. Why so glum?" Shining inquired, though gaining no initial response from the unicorn.

"Shining… Princess Celestia wishes to speak with you." Twilight replied with nothing less than utter depression dripping from her tone.

Shining's face fell back into the worried look that had been plastered this morning upon seeing his worried wife. Something had gone terribly wrong between her and Celestia. Should circumstances be different, Shining would've had a heart-to-heart talk with his dear sister, but Celestia herself wished to have an audience with him, and whenever one of the Royal Sisters requested to see you personally, you knew something was up.

Swallowing a lump in his throat that had been growing for quite some time, Shining motioned Twilight to lead the way, feverishly trembling at the thought of what the princess would need to speak to him about.

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Just outside the great doors of the Throne Room of the Royal Sisters, Shining Armor stood adamant. Adamant, yes, but nervous. As a man of war (to an extent), Shining had been taught to always keep his composure; to keep his emotions firm in his grasp, lest the enemy know the fear that swarms his being. But even he had his limits. Thankfully, much to his Shining's relief, the gargantuan twin doors to the Throne Room slowly began to ease open, revealing the Royal Sisters, side by side at the head of the room, Twilight and Cadence standing next to them.

Without a second to waste, Shining began walking towards the royals, stopping mid-way to bow in respect, before rising to accept the message the matriarch had called him in to hear. Upon looking up at the royals, Shining noticed something… peculiar. Peculiar, yes, but very, very wrong. The two princesses, Celestia in particular, both had looks of anxiety across their faces. They were well hidden, of course, but the feeling was so great one did not need to see the faces of the sisters to have contact with their emotions. If such feelings of doubt and uncertainty were being expressed, than nothing less than a cataclysm was on the horizon.

Or so Shining thought.

"Shining Armor" Celestia began, even her tone dripping with worry "You have been a valued and highly respected soldier in the legions of this city." She continued, stepping down from her throne, sweat beginning to drip down Shining's face with each step the princess took.

"You know that you are one of my most trusted individuals, and I would place my very kingdom in your hooves." The princess stopped for a moment, turning to stare into a portrait of stained glass depicting the chaotic times of Discord. "However, I have been keeping secrets from you. Secrets that I have only shared with those closest to me" she paused, taking in a breath of calm to regain her composure. "And I believe that it is time that I told you."

"Shining Armor, Captain of the Royal Guard of Canterlot, I, Princess Celestia of Equestria, am your mother."