Chapter 3
The flight to canterlot was quiet beside the sound of the jumpship engine running. The artifact was now in the hooves of the changeling queen, Chrysalis. Cloud, who was pondering against the small window, He turned his head round to see Dusk. His hands tighten on the stick, unable to see the expression behind the helmet. Dusk finally broke the silence, slamming his fist on the dashboard, making a den.
Cloud muttering the quote that the vision shows them, but only low enough that Dusk couldn't hear "The Moon has risen once again"
He was still wondering what it meant until a bright light was flashing on the dashboard.
Dusk pressed and holded the communication button "This is SS-Paladin requesting to land… and tell the highness that it important" He putted his hand over his face, stress out.
"Roger that. You're on platform 5… The highnesses are already on their way to the deck"
Cloud sat up on his seat while Dusk looked up. "D-did they know" knowing that they have failed the mission. Not only that, but they also lost the item that the princess give them "They can't know that, r-right? I mean how the hell they knew if they weren't there" Dusk said, Cloud shrugged at this answer.
Once the ship landed, they teleported out to see the two princesses walking onto the platform with four royal guards, half of them wearing different armor, Yellow and purple armor. The other alicorn was slightly shorter than Celestia; she had a dark blue coat. Her eyes were teal, and have a picture of a moon on her flank.
"Guardian Dusk, Private Cloud. Please tell me why you have left your post and mission" Celestia demanded as she walked to the Guardian with the smaller alicorn following along her side.
The two soldiers didn't dare to speak, knowing that there will be consequences. The two alicorn looked at them with concern faces. "Follow us to the throne rooms. We need to discuss about why you abandoned your mission"
None of them notices the three figures walking toward them, with a griffon in front of them.
They were the ambassadors and general; Dusk heard about, they were different races; human, griffon, and pony.
"Celestia, you mind telling why they left their mission" The griffon demanded. "Gray, that enough… I pretty sure they have a good reason why they came back. Apologize about that, I'm Andrew; the ambassador for the equestrian here. That was Graywing, the second in command for the griffon general" The Human sticked out his hand out which Dusk gladly shaked.
"Gentlemen, would you kindly follow us in the throne room" The white alicorn walked pass the ambassador, whom followed right after.
Throne room
The room was intriguing. The long rose color rug on the floor. Banners that have an image of a sun and the moon, lying against the wall near the high window. In the middle of the far end room, was a throne: it had red cushion, the exterior was yellow. There were at least five steps to the throne. Two Pegasus in golden armor were standing still next to the throne and the entrance. Celestia was on her throne, with Cloud and Dusk.
"You WHAT! What do you mean YOU LOST IT?!" Graywing yelled, so loud that the entire room heard him, making nearby guards flinching. "We needed that data, and now you lost it!" Graywing tried to hit cloud but was stopped by Andrew. "That enough Graywing! You should get out of here before you cause more trouble" Graywing stomped out of the Throne room, with Andrew following "You two should explain this to the royals, I'll go help the human" The light purple unicorn ran after the two ambassador, leaving Dusk and Cloud with the alicorn
"I see that the mission was a failure, care explaining what happened, and why you abandon your post" She continues to stare at them. Dusk stood up, opening his mouth to speak until Cloud said it himself
"We lost it" He said quickly, looking at the alicorn then slightly lowering his head and ear down in shame.
"What do you mean, you lost it" She asked, turned to Dusk that looked away. It then hit her.
"Doth thee knoweth who is't t wast 'r nay" other alicorn shouted, getting impatient. Both soldier didn't' know what she was saying until she stood up and spoke much louder.
"DOTH THEE KNOWETH WHO IS'T DID ATTACK THEE'R WAST I NOT CLEARETH" the soldiers flinched of the volume on her voice. The white alicorn signal her down. "Luna, Perhaps using your normal voice maybe more comfortable" The dark blue alicorn looked in annoyance. "I am but I am used to my royal voice, sister"
The white alicorn nodded then looked at the guardian "Did you at least found anything beneficial or who took the artifact" Dusk stepped forward a few steps "We believe that the… changeling and their queen, took it. But at that time, we were knockout by something, and it wasn't any organic species we know… we…" Dusk stopped his sentence, unable to finish it.
"Permission to speak, your highness" Cloud asked. "Go ahead"
Cloud cleared his voice "Your highness, do you know anything about this? The Moon has risen again" Cloud knew that there was no point of saying. Believing that she wouldn't know anything about but said it anyway... but the blue alicorn expressions was the face of shock, then to anger a few second later.
She immediately latched on to cloud, teleporting to a different room and pinning him to the ground. "Who. Told. You. That" Cloud said nothing, his ear flopping down. Pupils turned to a size of green peas. He stutter to say the quote again, afraid that there will be more consequences.
Back in the throne room: Dusk POV
Celestia, the four guards, and me, stared at the spot where Luna and cloud were. I pointed at the Pegasus guards "You two find them. You two guard the door" I commanded. the guard saluted before running to their assignments. The first two went to find the two missing ponies, and the other two to make sure no one knew what happen; I turned to the white alicorn, with an interrogation look.
"Now your highness, Mind telling me why your sister just attacked that guar- Private Cloud" Celestia hesitated about the question. "I don't know guardian, but I do remember someone telling her the one sentence every time they met. But that was years ago before he vanish" she answer. I thought about it for a while "Wait… you said, someone instead of somepony, isn't that your sort of thing to say pony"
Celestia nodded her head "Yes, but this wasn't a citizen of equestria. They both adore each other, but he was here before and after the war"
When she said before and after the war, I was puzzle, but it could have been anyone immortal. Celestia stood there, staring at me, not moving her eyes.
"Ok look, I going to think about this later, I going to find the private" I said, bowing before moving toward the door until Celestia stopped me.
"Guardian, before you go. After you find Cloud, come to the conference room, We need to talk more about what happen in the badlands" She said, then I started to take my leave.
Cloud POV
I was panicking, sweating like it was the desert, and pin down by one of the powerful ruler in Equestria. Her hooves were on my shoulder, which were crushing me. Her eyes were the sizes of bottle caps but she had the anger in her eyes and was breathing heavily on me. The room was dead silence until she spoke.
"Where… Did You…Heard that… from"
She said in a deep dead tone. I said nothing until she lift up both of hers hooves off my shoulders and then slam it right next to my head, which I flinched. She lit up her horn with a blue aura surrounding it, aiming it toward my face. I started stuttering and panicking at the same time while trying to explain and not to be killed. "It-it-it was the Artifact!-I-I-I… We don't know w-what happen ok! All I-w-we know that we were chosen for-for something-and - and that there-there were oth-others who were chosen"
Right after I explained what happened, I closed my eyes for the worse to happen. I open one my eyes to peek at the lunar princess. She just stared at me for a moment. I couldn't make out her expression, but her anger had died away, but her wicked look was still there until it faded away. She lifted herself off of me and walked to a nightstand, pulling out a drawer. She was holding something in her hooves, a picture of two figures. I couldn't really get a clear look but it look like a picture of two couples. She broke the silence of the room
"We will notify my sister and ask her to call an assembly with the others, you and the guardian must find the other wielder. You may leave" I nodded shaking and quickly walked out of the room, still shaken by the event.
Canterlot castle hallway 3rd pov
Cloud started to walk to the location until a familiar voice call him. "Cloud, over here" He turned his head to see Solar walking to him with Dusk right next behind him. He waved them over. "So what up" Solar said.
"Well Princess Luna want me and Dusk to meet Princess Celestia in room down the hall. Something important I thi- Ow, that bucking hurt" Cloud helded his left shoulder in pain. "Oh man, Cloud are you ok? What happen" Solar tried to help him. "Haah… it was the princess doing. She was mad about something I said… But I'm fine" He explained. After they talked for a while, Solar continue his patrol around the castle while Cloud and Dusk walked to the conference room.
When they enter the room, there was a round table with relaxing chairs. The window were connected to a small platform that had the whole view of the city. The carpet were rosy and soft. There were banner of different alliance on the wall, each one inch away from one another. There was a white figure sitting on the balcony, with a colorful mane flowing continually. Cloud and Dusk walked to the figure, being curious and cautious before an voice stopped them both.
"You may stop now warriors" Celestia started stand up and walked to the table, but it wasn't her voice that was talking, a voice that Dusk know. "You may wonder why you are here… It because there are other light wielder, like you, guardian... But different" Another figure showed up behind the pillar, he had an almost decorative, opaque mask and a long white robe.
Dusk bowed on his knee, respecting the man "You may rise guardian… Celestia informed me of what happen. Is it true, about the Iron wolf's vision, and the Vex encounter" Cloud looked in confusion. "It one of the lost member of the wolfs of steels, Cloud. And this, is the Speaker, An ancient scholar among the guardian and their people" Celestia explained, Cloud nodded.
"Sir, the Vex…they… helped us for unknown reason, we are unsure why: but it looked like they were commanded to help us, or what it seem" He explained.
"I see… Perhaps that some things are what it not as it seem, what else can you tell us" The Speaker said.
Dusk looked at Cloud, saying that it was his turn to explain. the unicorn cleared his throat before speaking. "While we were… well… having an vision. An figure was… well there was an bright round light" he said, making an circle image with his hoof "It almost look like the sun… Something about, a new threat rising and me becoming a warrior of light or a guardian" He explained.
The speaker nodded, waiting until the stallion to finish speaking, then said "I see… I believe that it was the Traveler that gave you the gift. What you had was a unique experience, but it had been centuries since the traveler gave an vision to an, guardian" he said.
"So do you know why I was chosen, Dusk… who is a guardian" Cloud pointed at the guardian "Is something I understand" then he pointed to himself
"But why me. What so special about me" Cloud questioned, the Speaker and Celestia exchanged glances at each other for a bit before looking back to Cloud. "We're not sure, but I sense a dominant power in you for a quite sometime" Princess Celestia said, making Cloud nervous.
The Speaker walked to cloud "It may because of the artifact you may have encounter a long time ago. I need to discuss this at my Observatory and the warlocks about this, back at the tower… Please excuse me" The Speaker then walked out of the room. The princess then spoke to the two wielders.
"You two may take some rest and a few days off; it will take time for you to find the others. And Cloud… I'm promoting you to Captain, there will be a office for you," She said, making Cloud was speechless. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"I-I… I don't think I deserve this, Being one of the wielder things and getting rank up with all that" He knew that he didn't deserve a promotion, believing that he was just a simple guard and nothing else. Unknown to them, a nearby guard that was walking past, overheard the conversation, eavesdropping though the door,.
"I once believe that Twilight Sparkle had the magic to save my sister and equestria. And now we believe you can save us as well" she said. Cloud nodded until Dusk signaled Cloud to exit the room. Cloud asked Dusk what he will do now during his day offs.
"Well… I got to check on the paladin, making sure she is good to go… what about you" he asked "I got to uhh, get my stuff from the quarter, and move them to my... new quarter, or office. Then head to my … my friend house in ponyville" he sigh, wondering what Solar is really up to.
As Dusk and Cloud parted ways, Dusk headed to his ship. Cloud walked to the barrack, noticing a few soldier saluting as he walked pass them. As he walked in, the room with at least seven angry stallions stared at him, like they were waiting for him. The room was dead quiet for a short moment.
"So… you're now a Captain huh…"
Cloud notice an unicorn emerging from the shadow, walking toward him: angrily and jealous. He was holding a flip knife with his magic. His coat was dark green. He had an orange color eye, his mane was white. His cutie mark was a picture oval line; half of it covers with red and black. "W-what are you-" before he can finish his sentence, the unicorn held the knife against Cloud neck, pushing him to the wall.
"That should have BEEN ME! MY PROMOTION, AND YOU STOLE IT, You stupid blank flank!" Cloud's emotion was climbing up to him: Angry, he teleported behind the stallion and punched him so hard onto the ground, that it made one of the stallion's tooth out and dropping his knife on the floor.
Some of the stallion friends came and helped him up off the ground "Damn… you alright Silver" Silver shoved his friends off of him: furious, he try to punch Cloud, but missed. Cloud then grab him by the hoof and threw him down onto the ground again, He was shocked at how strong he became.
After He counter Silver 's attack, his friends started to pin Cloud down on the floor, continuing to kick and punch him for a few moment. Cloud closed his eyes until he began sounds of footsteps running inside the rooms, grunting and shouting happening as the punches begin to stop. Cloud peeked one of his eyes open, seeing a dozen of human and pony guards rushing in the room, pulling the attacker off Cloud and out of the room. A human officer came up to Cloud, helping him up as a few ponies were escorted out the room in cuffs
"Are you all right Cap? You took a beating" Cloud left eye was swollen, leaving a black mark. His body had a few cut and bruise.
Cloud look up at the officer; He had a cap with the United Shield symbol on it; it was a picture of extended wings with short tail feather on the bottom. In the background was a shield. The officer had a silvery faired hair; He wore a black armor vest with a gray shirt behind it, and a blue naval pants. Both of them could faintly hear Sliver shouting in the hallway with guards preventing him from getting back in the room. "Silver Star, You're under arrest for assault of an high ranking officer"
"Gah, Let me go!" Silver shouted as he was being drag down to the dungeon.
Cloud tried to stand up but fell down. The officer helped him up. "Thank uhh officer…" "Evan Blake, Officer Blake sir" he answered. Cloud made a fake smile but turned into a curious expression "Wait… how did you know I was in trouble... and know that I'm a Captain now" Blake smile "Well… most of the officer know your promotion, and somepony told the rest of the canterlot guards. When we came to your office congratulate you, we couldn't find you in our office, until we heard the sound of fighting in here"
"So what… do I get a gift bag or something?" Cloud said.
AN: So i was planning to have the green unicorn name to Onyx Silver, but i changed it to Silver Star at the last second. There will be only a few POV of some characters later in the story like this one in this chapter.