Although they were perfectly capable of flight, the brothers chose to ride the Princesses’ backs. “Staying together will decrease the chances of somebody lagging behind again,” Chen had explained, and everyone had accepted this. In reality, of course, he really wanted a bit of time with Celestia. They had a lot to discuss.

“Princess, let me apologize for the late response in coming to your aid,” he started almost as soon as her hooves left the ground. “Mars’ power is such that he is able to block our ability to scan for power signatures from a distance, including yours. It took time to even find you.”

“The fault is mine, Mr. Li. I shouldn’t have left in such a hurry, even with one of our own in danger. Mars had a trap ready and waiting for us, and if…” she sniffled ever so slightly, but suppressed it with that calm every Princess developed over years of diplomatic meetings and state dinners. “…If it wasn’t for Discord’s actions, I would be dead right now.”

“Truly, he was a noble beast in the end.”

“He always was,” she said coldly. “We were just fooled by that persona he projected, too stubborn to see the hero lying just underneath.”

“Princess,” Chen rested a hand on her shoulder in concern. “It is starting to sound like you blame yourself for Discord’s death.”

“And who would you blame, Swarm dearest?”

“Mars,” he said flatly. “But this is not the biggest concern on my mind.”

“I figured it wasn’t,” she sighed.

“Princess, I saw the bodies of those men. They had hoofmarks on them, and some had burn-marks identical to those solar bursts only your horn is capable of producing.”

“Nothing escapes your gaze, does it?”

“Some things do,” he replied. “Mars did. This didn’t. Do you feel like explaining why there are a pile of bodies back there with your name written all over them?”

After a bit of debating with herself, she whispered: “What I am about to tell you can never be repeated again. Only Luna is aware of this, and only because it was absolutely necessary that she be warned.”

“Warned about what?”

“About the monster she was harboring, the one all Alicorns must learn to deal with, the one that manifested itself in her consciousness all those millennia ago. Thankfully, she was able to keep it somewhat controlled, allowing it to manifest as a power-hungry tyrant, rather than a creature like the sort responsible for those bodies back there.” Celestia’s gaze drifted up to the moon, allowing it to shine in her eyes. Swarm gave her time: he was her captive audience. “Inside every Alicorn is a self-defense mechanism, one born during the chaotic years of early Equestria to keep our tiny numbers from disappearing entirely. It’s the reason there aren’t many tales of encounters with Alicorns in pony lore. Back then, it was an asset. Now, unfortunately, it can appear at any point during combat, turning an Alicorn into a rage-fueled beast with hardly any memory of friend or foe, just barely capable of the rational thought needed to kill. It is a separate personality, filled with hate and a need for destruction, lying dormant until such a time when an Alicorn feels endangered.”

Swarm’s eyes widened, hardly able to believe his ears. “You’ve kept this a secret all this time!?”

Celestia nodded.

“And only Luna knows!?”

“Our parents informed us of this terrible power upon our reaching adulthood, when this…’monster within’ first begins to take shape in all of us.”

“But there are so many legends about you being in combat without going on some sort of rampage,” Swarm started counting the tales off on his fingers. “Your first battle with Nightmare Moon, you and your sister’s desperate fight to depose Discord, those Pegasi insurrections right after Canterlot’s founding…”

“The Elements of Harmony are not called as such just because they require a spirit filled with the six elements behind peace and joy to activate them,” she explained. “Once activated, they also increase the strength of those elements within the user’s mind. Kindness to stay her hoof, laughter to keep the darkness within at bay, generosity to prevent her from seeking new Empires to build (as with Nightmare Moon), honesty with herself so she can tell when she has gone too far, loyalty to her subjects’ best interests, and of course, a bit of magic to keep the Dark One asleep.”

He sat there in stunned silence for a full three minutes before he asked: “The Dark One?”

“Do you have a better name for it?” She asked, a sheepish grin on her face which faded almost as quickly as it appeared. “This is why I have not raised a hoof in combat since the Elements of Harmony chose their new users. Perhaps an errant magical bolt in surprise, yes, but never full-on combat: for the longer a fight goes on, the more likely it is that the Dark One will manifest.”

“But you and Luna both fought today! You were right next to me in the void!”

“Only because I knew you would be there, and that you were powerful enough to…put a stop to us if things got out of hoof.”

“My God, Princess…”

“If anypony knew,” she sighed. “Well, they might start to wonder if Alicorns are even worth the risk. They might start debating with themselves if, perhaps, our kind should be wiped out entirely, just to be safe.”

“They might, or they might take the lessons you’ve taught them over the millennia and show mercy, maybe even take your past examples of righteousness and love as a judge of your amazing character and your obvious qualifications for being their ruler.”

Celestia’s face turned bright red. At the same time, her wings froze for a second, throbbing with ecstasy in an attempt to straighten out. The pair plunged a few feet out of the sky. “Woah!” Swarm gasped, wrapping his arms around her neck to keep his balance. “Princess, what was that about?”

“Nothing! Nothing at all!” She gasped, her entire face and neck turning bright red as she flapped to keep them aloft. “So, not to change the subject or anything, but I need to ask you about your brother.”

“Ah, go right ahead.”

“His reaction to his learning about our assailant’s identity was…interesting, to say the very least.”

“You’re wondering why he said he’d raised Mars from a child?”

“Indeed.”

“Princess, you’ve entrusted me with one of your great secrets, now I will entrust you with one of ours.” Swarm sighed. “It’s because he was. Mars is our son, he has called each of us ‘father’ at some point or another, myself included. But the title really applies best to Michael.”

“Why is that?”

“Michael was the one who took Mars in when we first discovered him,” Chen continued, his heart warming with the memory. “Michael gave him a roof over his head, taught him his first few lessons in science and ethics, was there when Mars had a bad dream, and taught him the things only a father can teach a son. We all had our parts to play in Mars’ growth, but we were more like his aunts and uncles. Michael was the one truly deserving of the title ‘Father’.”

“I see,” Celestia looked over her shoulder to her sister, still sailing along with a stone-faced man in a leather jacket on her back. “He doesn’t seem like a man who’s just lost a son.”

“Out of all of us, Michael has always been the worst at expressing his true emotions. I think he just wants to be the rough-and-tough cowboy like in all those horrible Western films of his, and he wants it so badly that he just buries anything which threatens that image.”

“That’s not a very healthy way to go about life.”

“Well, you try telling him that,” Chen snorted. “I believe he is grieving, but not in a way any of us can see.”

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Just a few yards behind her sister, Luna glided along, flapping her wings occasionally to remain on the air currents. She wished she had chosen Chen to ride with: her sister seemed to be chatting rather amicably with her passenger. All the man in the leather jacket had done was sit there, asking her to ensure that Celestia wasn’t watching them.

“Princess?” The man asked, derailing her train of thought. “Is your sister still looking at us?”

“Not that I can see, Mr. Sawyer.”

“And she told you my name too,” he said lightly. “That’s good; you’re all caught up then.”

“Indeed I am,” the Princess of Night replied. She waited a few moments before asking: “Mr. Sawyer?”

“Yes?”

“Why are you so interested in knowing whether or not Celestia is looking at us?”

“Oh,” he replied, catching a few silver tears in the palm of his hand and throwing them over his shoulder while suppressing the urge to clench Luna’s back and sob his heart out. “No reason, Princess. No reason at all.”

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“Now, you’re sure you’re absolutely alright?”

“Of course I am, Twilight!” Shining Armor rolled his eyes and shifted in his cot. “Honestly, I don’t even know why I’m in triage. I’m fine!”

“90% of the skin on your back was burnt off, Shining,” Ramirez replied, smiling down at his friend. Behind his head, the canvas of the massive tent serving as the triage center rustled with a gentle night breeze. “The only reason you’re still alive is because of that ‘Swarm’ character, and we’re not even sure how in the hell he did it.”

“But I’m fine now! I mean, just look around,” Shining sat up in his cot and motioned to the numerous cots around them. On the cot just to his right, a SEAL slept with a blood-covered gauze bandage wrapped around his arm while a nurse switched out his blood pack. To his left, a small filly rested in her parents’ arms while a vet looked over a massive burn on her flank, an IV packed with painkillers flowing into her stomach. “There are tons of humans AND ponies that need way more help than me! All I’m doing now is taking up a cot! I should be out there; helping you guys hunt down the last of these jerks so we can…”

“Shining, sweetheart, just stay here for me, alright?” Cadence pulled him in close. “I’ve watched you die once tonight, and that is more than enough for me.”

“Oh, shoot,” he grumbled, crossing his arms and pouting. She continued to snuggle with him, completely oblivious to the barely-ordered chaos surrounding them: the cries of nurses for more antibiotic or more plasma as another group kept a steady stream of cots flowing into the surgery tent, set up just across the square.

“Y’know what? I got an idea,” Ramirez said. Standing up, the SEAL managed to grab the attention of a nurse rushing by with a clipboard in one hand and a bag of plasma in the other. “Excuse me, but could I grab you for a minute?”

“Ehh,” the nurse checked his watch and scanned around for his patients, but begrudgingly agreed. “You’ve got thirty seconds.”

“Y’see, my friend here,” Ramirez motioned to Shining, “Was in a…set of strange circumstances. He’s supposed to remain under observation, but he’d really like to…”

“Nobody under observation is allowed to leave their bed until they’ve been cleared by an on-duty Medical Technician,” the nurse drawled. “That is standard triage procedure, soldier, and we have found no cause to alter that rule for ponies.”

“Yeah, I know the damn rules, but my friend…uh…” Ramirez leaned in close to whisper: “An hour ago, my friend had all the skin on his back burnt off and a few pieces of shrapnel embedded in his chest.”

The nurse’s eyes widened. “My God, where’s your friend!?” Ramirez simply pointed over to Shining, who removed a hoof from Cadence’s side just long enough to wave back at the nurse, whose jaw dropped in turn. “Oh my shit, it was the Major, wasn’t it?”

Ramirez cocked an eyebrow. “Now, how didja…”

“We’ve been briefed on some of the Major’s actions before,” the nurse replied, still watching Shining in stunned silence. “I…I thought they were just stories or rumors. It sounded like magic or something.”

“Before? You mean this isn’t the first time he’s done something like this!?”

The nurse could only shake his head in reply.

“Well then, you of all people should know just how well-off my friend is now! So if you could just give him something to do around here – he feels so useless sitting in a cot!”

“I still don’t know,” the nurse scratched his chin. “Wartime triage procedures are VERY clear when it comes to patients under observation.”

“Oh, please, sir!” Shining gasped, throwing his blanket off and kneeling at the nurse’s feet, Cadence’s arms still wrapped around his body and Twilight right on his hooves. He summoned his best “sad puppy” face to beg: “I’m in tip-top shape, really!”

“Now hold on,” Cadence released his neck to face him. “Shining, I already told you that I can’t worry about you anymore than I already have! Can’t we just…”

“Cady dearest,” he took one of her hooves in his. “You know I love you more than life itself, but you must also know I have to do this. As a member of the Royal Guard, I need to be there for everypony who needs me, and these ponies…” he motioned to the wide array of cots spread out before them just as another cot carrying a pony writhing in pain for a broken leg was carried in, “…these ponies really need me. They need somepony they can trust to tell them it’s all gonna be okay, and as a Royal Guard, that’s me.”

“I…honestly can’t see a hole in that logic, as much as I hate to admit it.” Twilight sighed.

“Shineeyyy…” Cadence moaned.

“Listen,” he continued. “I’m gonna stick around the tent. I promise I won’t stray too far, so if something does happen to me, I’ll be right where I need to be, surrounded by the best doctors the humans have to offer.”

“Y’know what?” The nurse finally said. “That’s convinced me. Hell, we could use a few extra hands…uh…hooves around here. So tell y’what: if Ms. Cady gives us her ‘OK,’ I’ll let you do a few non-strenuous chores around here.”

Shining immediately turned his puppy-dog gaze towards his wife, clasping his hooves together under his chin and whimpering ever so slightly, his lower lip quivering. The Alicorn rolled her eyes and relented almost immediately: “Alright, but nothing too bad. And you better let me know if you start feeling off!”

“Love you darling,” he said, giving her a quick peck on the lips before rushing to the nurse’s side.

“And on the condition that I come with you!” Cadence quickly added as she rushed to be near him.

“Alright, with that settled, we need…” the nurse led the ponies off, leaving Ramirez and Twilight behind as Uris came jogging up to them, dodging IV stands and EKG machines.

“Sorry to break up the reunion,” he panted sheepishly. “But my fa… the Captain needs to see you immediately, Ms. Sparkle.”

“I…um…alright,” she sighed, casting one last look over her shoulder at her brother before trudging along towards the tent’s exit. “I guess seeing him is the least I can do after the way I’ve acted.”

“Think nothing of it, Ms. Sparkle,” Uris chimed before turning to Ramirez. The men sized each other up. Though Uris was considered a second-line trooper and had nowhere near the training or experience the SEAL had, he figured he worked out enough to pose something of a challenge. They stared one another down, eyes narrowing, arms crossed. “You’re the one who pulled that awesome shit on the rooftops earlier, arentcha?” The pilot asked the SEAL.

“Yeah, that was me,” Ramirez shrugged. “What about you? I’ve been hearing some crazy stories about a chopper pilot who managed to wipe out an enemy squad with a pistol.”

“I had some help,” Uris replied, shrugging in Twilight’s direction.

Ramirez looked over his shoulder at the little violet unicorn, then back at Uris, and grinned. “Yeah, so did I.”

“Probably not as much as me,” Uris grinned back as the men strode towards the tent’s exit, right behind Twilight. “Seriously though: this officer had a pistol right up to my skull, and that unicorn, right over there,” he pointed towards her, “pulled some teleportation shit at literally the last second! Barely had time to get my bearings before…”

“Oh yeah?” Ramirez said, holding the tent flap open for the pilot. “Well, her brother kicked my ass!”

Uris’s jaw dropped as he raised his hand. “You win, dude. You’re the guy who fought a unicorn.”

“Damn straight,” Ramirez laughed, and the men clapped one another on the back as they followed Twilight to the Commander’s office, setup in a small general store just off the square.