( Ponyville 19:00)
Darkness had overcome the land of Equestria as Luna brought out the moon. However, Ponyville wasn't quite asleep yet, not if Pinkie was to have anything to do with it. Sugar cube corner was very much alive with house music and the stomping of hooves to the beat. above the Front entrance was a banner reading " Welcome to Ponyville TwillyGuards!" Four guards stood underneath it looking up at it.
" It's not the most dignified welcome...but it's not bad…" Sage said looking up at the banner. Pal was rubbing dirt off his armor and the two pegasi stood close by to Sage keeping their distance from the overbearing smell of pig pen.
" It's….Flamboyant." Star Tail said flatly.
At Town Hall, Ash trotted out to the now dark streets with Fluttershy. Fluttershy had been working with the birds once again as a choir. It took all day for them to finish since Ash and Fluttershy were late due to the earlier incident. There wasn't much for Ash to do since he wasn't musically inclined. His only contribution was moving around furniture with his magic to make room for the group to practice. He felt out of place.
Now they had finished, they were on their way to sugar cube corner. Pinkie had stopped by with Rarity and Sage to give Ash his personal invitation. After all, he was one of the Guests of honor So off they were to the welcome party.
" Um… Captain. I just wanted to say thank you for helping me?" Fluttershy's face was half covered by her main. This was on purpose as Fluttershy had blushed cheeks to hide. She had kept this up the entire day she was with him. Most Guards to her were mean and intimidating and Ash was every bit tough looking, but he was more calm and easy to be around. All Ash was trying to do was be as nice to Twilight's friends as he could for obvious reasons.
" You can call me Ash if you want and you're welcome." Ash smiled back at Fluttershy. Ash Felt he was walking on eggshells as he knew she was easy to scare. He didn't want her feeling that way of course so he was as relaxed as he could be.
"Ok...Ash…." Fluttershy hid her face even more.
" You know, I'm not sure what exactly what I helped with today to merit a thanks." Ash alluded to his ability to hold up town hall's walls as he had little to do the entire rehearsal.
" No! You helped me a lot today, especially with finding Mrs. Swan's son!" Fluttershy actually turned her face towards Ash. She was shocked to hear that Ash thought he did nothing at all.
" Well, if you say so. Thanks. " Ash flashed a genuine smile at her. This of course made her look forward as a means to hide her blush yet again.
" You're… welcome." Fluttershy said in a faint squeak.
The two walking in sporadic bouts of silence with Ash doing most of the talking until they had reached Sugar Cube Corner. Fluttershy looked up and saw the eccentric pastry shop.
" Oh, look, here it is!" Fluttershy said with a hint of enthusiasm. Ash didn't know exactly where the party was going to be held so Fluttershy showed him the way. The other four Guards were standing outside waiting for their friend and commander to join them. They looked over and spotted him.
" Well look who's showed up." Pal said with irritation present in his voice. He was still feeling sore from having to work at the farm all day. He was still covered in sweat and mud.
" …and who is that? " Blue Star asked while ogling fluttershy from a distance.
" I have no idea, Im sure it's another one of the Princess's friends." Sage answered. Ash waved a hoof at fluttershy as she flew away, heading to the entrance of the shop. Then, Ash trotted over to the guy's standing off to the side. Music could be felt vibrating through the ground.
" How'd yall do?" Ash asked in a country accent while he looked at Pal, clearly as a joke towards him. Palomino was not pleased at all and even frowned at him.
" Why do you smell like pond?" Sage bluntly asked.
" Why are you covered in confetti?" Ash asked back.
" Why is Pal covered in …..what is that?" Star Tail asked Ash.
" Want to find out?" Pal threatened. Star Tail began to hover and move away from Pal. Ash looked over at the front door to the shop, making sure no pony was there. Then he turned back to the group.
" Ok, so what do you have for me, guys?" Ash leaned in and asked.
" Well I have a new smell that could be weaponized." Pal jested.
" I found that Miss Pie can be very useful to us in identifying who actually lives here in Town. Apparently she makes it her business to know every pony….us included.'" Sage suggested.
" I agree. What about you two?" Ash looked at Blue Star and Star Tail.
" The Town has a population of roughly 300 residents of various species but mostly ponies; Earth, pegasie and unicorns a like. There are fifteen major streets with three leading out of town, One train station and a market district." Blue Star answered nonchalantly.
" Not to mention, the Town is practically surrounded by different forests, one in particular, the every Free, is full of trouble. Also, from what we could get, the town is regularly visited by small disasters. In a nutshell, this place looks peaceful, but we'll have to be on our hooves." Star Tail added.
"Let's not forget There's a stream that runs through town." Ash pointed out.
Just then a guard pulled chariot descended from the night sky down towards the Sugar Cube Corner. It landed in the front of the shop close to Ash and his squad. Ash had watched it as it landed and he trotted up to the chariot, to his surprise, Spike hopped out of the back. The two pegasie guards saluted Ash.
" Captain Ash! I have news from Twilight!" Spike was eager to deliver his impera...impera….Important message for Ash. As he drew close to the stallion he presented a rolled scroll with Twilight's royal seal.
" It's nice to see you again Spike." Ash told him as he took the scroll and opened it with an orange aura. The letter read,
" Dear Ash,
It's only been one day but I already miss you. I can't wait to see you again and the anticipation is overwhelming! However I have something to tell you, Princess Luna is heading a pony hunt to find an escaped prisoner from the canterlot prisons. Im sure you recognise his name. Former General Glory escaped last night and it is apparent that he had help. No one knows where he has gone but he has killed two lunar guards, he is considered dangerous. We are warning all surrounding towns and cities of the pending danger. Also, Royal guards and Equestrian army personnel are on a kingdom wide hunt for the general.
Despite my objections, Princess Celestia believes we should continue on with the celebration. I'll be heading down to Ponyville tomorrow instead of in two days. Until then, Spike will be aiding you in any way you need. Safety of Princess Celestia, Luna and Cadence , as well as my own safety, are in your hooves and it is vital that we continue the celebration in spite of this potential threat. I'm counting on you and I know you will do your best. I will see you soon love; take care.
Love ,
Princess Twilight Sparkle."
Ash lowered the letter slowly, his face was expressionless. Music boomed in the back ground as he was silent. The rage inside his heart built up, but he never lost control. He couldn't believe the stallion responsible for so much destruction and death was once again free to continue that mayhem. Even worse, that one object that haunted Ash's past was still elusively missing. Things were potentially on the brink of chaotic ruin. Worst of all, Ash couldn't do anything about it. His orders were clear to stay in Ponyville to help provide security to protect the most important ponies in the kingdom. He looked at Spike who looked at him expectantly.
" Thank you Spike, would you be able to send Twilight a message?" Ash rolled up the letter and stuffed it under his armor.
" You bet cha! Just tell me what to write!" Spike pulled out a fresh scroll and a quile. Ash began to tell Spike his message.
" Dear Princess,
I have received your message and i acknowledge your orders, I will perform my duty as you have asked here in Ponyville and i expectantly await your arrival to this town. It will ofcourse be good to have you here.
Faithfully your's,
Captain Ash."
Spike finished writing the letter, rolled it up and sent it with his green flames. Ash thanked him and he turned to talk to the others about the news. His expression was grim.
Pinkie pie hopped cheerfully out of the shop with bits of streamer stuck in her mane and tail. She hopped up to spike and hugged him.
" Spike! Its so good to see you! YOu came all this way to come to my party!" Pinkie snuggled him. Spike shoved a claw between his face and Pinkie's.
" It's...ugh… nice to see… ugh… you too Pinkie!" Pinkie carried him into the party and the swinging doors swung behind her.
" So what? Are we just gonna stay here and let him have free rain on Equestria?" Star Tail asked.
" We don't' have a choice, we have our duties here and we cannot afford to stray from them, even if he's escaped." Sage replied calmly.
" Beside, I have a feeling he'll show up here. We need to prepare here. " Ash added.
" You of all ponies should know I want to go find this guy… but we are professionals and we have our jobs to do." Ash finished explaining.
" Look's like you ought to call in the rest of the Guards so we can get started soon." Pal mentioned to Ash.
"We'll have our work cut out for us tomorrow then. In the mean time, there is nothing we can do tonight." Ash said with defeat in his tone.
" Well maybe we ought to going in with the rest of these folks, hopefully there's plenty to drink." Pal looked to the Shop with smile across his face. He had a long day and despite not having any time to wash, he was ready to get partying.
" Yeah I suppose we could." Ash agreed as he took a step towards the doors but then Sage spoke up.
" Hold on Captain, I believe we've neglected to carry out a certain tradition." Ash turned to look at Sage who was levitating a bag of candles and was shaking them.
" It's a few days late." Sage added,
" Try a few years" Blue Star corrected.
Ash looked at the bag and his face grew more somber.
" Of course, we should do this somewhere quiet. " The others agreed with Ash as they nodded. Pinkie hopped out of the bakery and waved to Ash.
" Hey are you ponies gonna party or what?" Pinkie was of course full of cheer.
" We'll be in shortly, just give us some time, we're taking care of something important." Sage Answered back.
" Well Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie replied. Sage waved back and the five headed out into the street.
Pinkie watched for a bit before going back inside.
The five guards walked into a secluded area of town in a grassy field, each one carried a candle. They got into a circle. Ash lit the candles on fire one at a time as he held his with his magic. The other non magic wielders held theirs with a single hoof. Ash began to speak.
" You guys Ready?" He looked at each of them. Their expressions were somber. They all nodded to him.
" Ok then…." Ash took a deep breath and concentrated in the middle of the circle. He then spoke,
" We light these candles tonight in memory, not of our grief, but to honor those we've lost and the lessons we've learned that the actions we take in this life continue on into eternity. let this candle be a symbol of the light that guides us on our paths to peace with understanding, loyalty to Equestria, our Princesses, and Friendship…" The others looked up at Ash with puzzled looks. This speech was a tradition that they had started the first anniversary of the fall of Bridletowne, but friendship was not a word they used. Ash looked back to each of them to cement his intention of adding the word. The others pondered this change, then they spoke up in unison.
" … and friendship!"
They all stood in silence for a few minutes pondering the events that had brought them to this point in time. They thought about what had happened so long ago and how it could have been a worse given any minute detail of the past being any degree different. They were Thankful and they were determined to one day set things right. Then they were off to the party.
