"General they’re not complying!" A nervous guard shouted over at him.

"I can see that lieutenant!" Steadfast shouted back.

It had been several hours since Princess Luna's tragic return to the city and the news of her defeat at the hooves of Sombra had spread panic through the citizens. By dusk, thousands of ponies had clogged the streets leading to the castle, fearfully demanding assurances of protection. Steadfast had ordered the Royal Guard stationed at the castle to create a defensive line while also sending a messenger to inform the military to go on high alert.

"Any word from the Princess?" Steadfast shouted to nopony in particular.

"None sir. She’s with Princess Luna and the doors are barred to all save medical personnel."

"What idiot gave that order?!" A red faced Steadfast shouted.

"Princess Celestia did, sir."

"Dammit!" Responded Steadfast. He quickly looked around seeing even more ponies join the already too large crowd. "This could quickly get out of hoof." He thought. Channeling magic through his horn, Steadfast augmented his voice to be heard over the shouting crowd.

"Everypony there is no need to panic, please return to your homes. This gathering is disrupting military training."

The crowd grew quiet after Steadfast spoke and he tentatively believed they would now disperse, but then one pony spoke up and dashed that hope.

"If Princess Luna couldn’t stop Sombra what hope would an army have?!"

The faceless voice sent a wave through the crowd as other voices joined in.

"She’s practically a god and still couldn’t defeat him!"

"They would send us against Sombra knowing we would all be killed!"

"That’s not the case!" Steadfast shouted, his augmented voice barely heard above the crowd. Their attention one more on him, Steadfast quickly racked his brain for the right words to end this peacefully. However before he could, a grey pegasus stallion took to the air above the crowd and began shouting down at Steadfast.

"We cannot hope to resist Sombra! Already he has defeated Princess Luna, what hope would we mortals, no matter how numerous, have against him?!"

A murmur of agreement swept through the crowd as the pegasus continued. "They would see us slaughter!" He pointed directly at Steadfast. "The General knows this, the princesses know this!" The pegasus flew to the air above Steadfast and turned to face the crowd. "We must surrender to Sombra that is the only way to ensure our survival!"

Steadfast had heard enough. "Guards! Arrest that pegasus!" Quick as lighting, two pegasus guardsmen flew up and grabbed the grey pegasus.

"They know I speak the truth and seek to silence me!" The pegasus continued to shout even as the guards did their best to quiet him. "Do not let them sacrifice your lives so needlessly!" The guards finally managed to clamp his mouth shut but the damage was already done.

Other voices of dissent rose up from the crowd. The Royal Guards looked to Steadfast nervously as the crowd began to edge forward, Steadfast cut the magic to his voice and turned to a guard next to him.

"Send a detachment of unicorns to the main gate of the castle. I want it fortified immediately."

"Yes sir!" The guard saluted before running off, signaling for the unicorns as he did so.

Once more augmenting his voice Steadfast addressed the crowd. "The city is now under Martial Law. All citizens are to disperse and return to their homes. Any who do not comply with be dealt with severely."

His words had little effect, down the line a pony lashed out and struck a guard in the face who returned in kind, knocking the pony flat on his back.

A roar like a manticore erupted from the crowd as they charged the guards line.

"Shield!"

A two story tall, multicolored shield appeared along the length of the guard’s line just as the crowd slammed into it. Repeatedly they rammed the shield attempting to break it. Bottles, rocks, and the occasional spell were also hurled at the shield, each sending a ripple along its shimmering surface. Steadfast ordered the pegasus and earth pony guards to form a line in front of the unicorns and added his own magic to the shield. Each hit on the shield sent a jolt into Steadfast's head. Already he could see the strain affecting his guardsmen. The shield was slowly being pushed back, along with the guards.

"Major Sure Shot!"

A moment later a teal pegasus with a short cropped mane appeared beside Steadfast. "Yes, General?" She asked, eyeing the crowd nervously.

"Get out to the army and tell them to move into the city." He flinched when a fireball struck close to him. "Hurry up!"

Sure-Shot took off without a second thought. She quickly flew over the shield in the direction of the military encampment. A few rocks found their way up to her but she easily dodged them as she poured more energy into her wings. Several moments later Sure Shot touched down just inside the military encampment just as the sun disappeared over the horizon. A few soldiers were standing nearby and they quickly snapped to attention. “Major!” They shouted.

“You lot!” Sure Shot shouted, pointing at the nearest soldier. “Where’s your commanding officer?!”

“Ma..Ma’am! He’s in the central command tent, just over there.” The soldier stammered out. Sure Shot dashed over to the tent and threw the flap open. Inside she found Lt. Colonel Dux and Rarity, both looking over various maps. Dux looked up at Sure Shots hasty entrance.

“Sir, Captain-General Steadfast needs assistance. The crowds turned violent and is currently trying to break into the castle.”

“Damn. I was afraid this would happen.” Lt. Colonel Dux jumped to his hooves and donned his helmet. “Major, tell General Steadfast to hold out until we get there.”

Sure Shot snapped off a quick salute and a “Yes sir,” before flying out of the tent.

“Rarity you’re with me.” Dux called on his way out of the tent.

“Sir.” Responded Rarity before joining him. Once outside, Lt. Colonel Dux began shouting orders. Within moments a force of 2 thousand were ready and waiting. “Forward March!”

The rhythmic sound of 4 thousand hooves sounded out into the night as the army moved towards Canterlot.

“Once inside the city head straight to the castle. We need to make sure our brothers are safe. Do not harm the civilians!”

Rarity marched behind Lt. Colonel Dux. She could feel the tense excitement radiating off those beside her. It was the same excitement she too felt. They were marching into battle, a different kind of battle but a battle none the less.

They smelled the fires long before they saw them. The sweet smell of burning wood drifted down to them on the late evening breeze. Minutes later they saw the fires reaching high into the sky.

“Double time!” Dux shouted.

They broke into a fast trot just as they were trained to do. Passing through the main gate they could see the fires were quickly growing larger as they spread. Judging from the placement of the flames it was somewhere in the Castle district. They hurried further into the city, each step bringing them closer to their goal. Angry shouts reached their ears as they entered onto the street leading to the castle. The fires illuminated the night revealing a seething mass of ponies trying to batter down the castles main gate. Along the street several stores and residential building were already engulfed in flames. Here and there groups of ponies were breaking their way into others to loot or set fire to.

“Artillery!” Dux shouted. “Three volleys of smoke!

A moment passed and then a noise akin to a deep breath sounded out as hundreds of smoke balls were fired into the air. They traveled on an arc before landing with a loud whoosh in the center of the crowd.

“Secure the Castle! Stun only!”

Rarity and the army surged forward with a loud war cry. The violent crowd had been reduced to a coughing mess and those that could broke and ran. A few brave or stupid ponies attempted to fight back but were quickly beaten down and promptly arrested. With the crowd disperse the castle gates opened and a slightly battered Steadfast and Guardsmen greeted their saviors.

“What kept you?” Steadfast said as he approached Dux and Rarity, both of which saluted him. “Never mind that, Dux get some ponies on fire detail.”

“Right away sir! Alright, you heard the General, let’s get these fires under control!”

“General are you alright?” Rarity asked as Dux ran off, still shouting orders.

“Fine, just fine.” He answered as he wiped some blood off his lip. He grimaced down at the blood on his hoof before looking at Rarity. “Blasted fools nearly broke down the gate. It’s not bad enough that we have to fear a Monster trying to destroy us, now we have the same fear threatening to do the same.”

He turned to look out over the soldiers now battling the raging inferno. “Now’s not the time, come on.”

The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon when the last fire was put out. It had been a long and arduous battle but in the end they had succeeded. The tired soldiers of Eqestria’s Grand Army returned to their camp for a much needed rest.

Rarity stood on the battlements surrounding the castle, watching as the army slowly made its way out of the city. She gingerly scratched the white bandage tied around her left foreleg, she had gotten burned while pulling an elderly pony from a burning shop. She was not the only one, while there had been no deaths thankfully, many had to be treated for burns and broken bones, the latter restricted to the rioters who had been arrested.

At the last count, 56 ponies had been arrested, including the pegasus who had instigated the riot. Most were looters who were captured during the ensuing fire fight, they were to be detained until Princess Celestia passed judgment on them. Likely they would be sentenced to community service, helping the owners of the shops they vandalized repair the damage they caused.

Rarity looked out over the city, her eyes lingering over the many burned piles of rubble that now surrounded the castle. “It will take a long time to repair all the damage.” She thought sullenly. Her mind then turned to the cause of all this, Sombra and the fear he commanded. “A long time indeed.”

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of fast approaching hoof steps. Turning she was greeted by a unicorn guardsmen. “Rarity?” He asked, pausing a moment to catch his breath.

“Yes?” She responded.

“Captain-General Steadfast requests your presence.”

“Thank you.” She said, walking past him to the stairs leading down off the battlements. A short walk later, Rarity stepped into Steadfast’s secondary command tent which he had pitched in the courtyard just outside the castle. Steadfast looked up from the stack of papers in front of him and beckoned for Rarity to join him. She did so, levitating a small chair over from the corner and placing it beside Steadfast own.

“How’s the leg?” He asked looking back to his papers.

“Better now sir. One of the healers bandaged it for me.”

“Good.” He said with a nod.

“Any word about the Princess?” Rarity asked.

Steadfast sat back with a sigh. “We finally managed to get into that damned room when the medical personnel left. The guards I had stationed there were informed that her highness was stable and would live.” Steadfast brought a hoof to his forehead and began to massage it gently. “However Princess Celestia has yet to leave her sisters side, she’s even magically locked the door.”

“So she still doesn’t know what happened.”

“Not in the slightest.” Steadfast answered with another sigh, letting his hoof drop. “I understand that she’s concerned for her sister but frankly her behavior is unacceptable. We cannot afford to wait until she decides to rejoin us.” He turned in his chair to look at Rarity. “In light of this I have decided to name myself Regent and assume full authority over Eqestria until our Princess decides to return.”

At first Rarity was taken aback by Steadfast’s words, but after a brief moment of shock she came to terms with the idea, even agreed with it. “I believe that is the best course of action.” She said.

“I’m glad you agree. Know that I did not come to this decision lightly and I will gladly give control back over to Princess Celestia when the time comes.” Steadfast pushed back from his desk and stood up while Rarity followed suit. “Now onto my first act as Regent.” He walked to the tent entranced and called out to a waiting guard. “Bring in the prisoner!”

Steadfast then walked back to stand in front of his desk and motioned for Rarity to do the same. Several moments later, two Royal Guards entered the tent dragging a bruised and bloody grey pegasus. The guards brought the pegasus and dropped him at Steadfast’s hooves. One of the guards bent down and grabbed the pegasus’s head, raising it up so that he was looking at Steadfast.

“Grey Skies. You stand on trial for the crime of instigation, by your actions several hundreds were injured and thousands of bits worth of damage was caused to the city. How do you plead?”

The grey pegasus known as Grey Skies didn't answer. His eyes were firmly shut and it appeared as if he was unconscious. Steadfast opened his mouth to speak again when Grey Skies started to giggle. It started out low but quickly grew to loud hysterical laughter. His eyes flew open as he fixed Steadfast with his bloodshot stare, his laughter abating so he could speak. “What does it matter?” He said looking back and forth between Rarity and Steadfast. “None of it matters!” He screamed at the top of his lungs before his voice dropped to a whisper. “The Dark Lord as returned, we will all soon join him.”

“I’ll never join him.” Rarity hissed, stepping forward threateningly, drawing Grey Skies eyes to her own. “All become one in the darkness. It is inevitable.”

A powerful white hoof slammed into Grey Skies face, knocking several teeth loose and rendering him unconscious. The guards on either side of him jumped back in surprise as Rarity stood over him, a bloody hoof raised. “Never!” She screamed at him.

Steadfast jumped forward and grabbed Rarity, throwing her back into his desk. All the while she never took her eyes off Grey Skies. He then faced the guards who still showed surprise on their faces. “Put him in a cell, I’ll deal with him later.” The guards gave a hesitant salute before picking up the unconscious pegasus and dragging him out of the tent.

With them gone, Steadfast turned to Rarity who was still glaring after the trio in anger. He walked past her and reached under his desk and pulled out a large plain box. “Royal Guards do not strike unarmed prisoners, nor do we let are anger rule us.” He placed the box on the desk, finally drawing Rarities attention away from the entrance and onto him. “You have more cause to hate Sombra than anypony else, but do not let that hate dictate your action.” He pushed the box forward. “This packaged arrived for you an hour ago.”

Steadfast walked to the tent entrance but stopped to glance back at Rarity who had yet to move. “Fear and hate is how Sombra rules, give into either and he wins. Remember that.” With that, Steadfast threw aside the flap and stepped outside, leaving Rarity alone with his parting words.

With Steadfast’s words echoing in her head, Rarity turned to the box on the desk. A small label adorned the top with her name written in simple block letters. Next to it was a small envelope also with her name written on it. Using her magic, Rarity levitated the envelope close to her and opened it, inside she found a letter addressed to her. It read.

Dear Rarity;

Always remember.

You’re Friend, Pinkie Pie.

The letter was unlike any Pinkie Pie would ever have written but she had not been herself since the Crystal Empire. Pondering the strange letter, she neatly folded and replaced it in the envelope, with a quick spell she opened the box.

Time seemed to stop, at first she thought her eyes were mistaken but the pain in her heart confirmed what her brain could not fathom. Inside the box was Applejack’s Stetson, Rarity reached in with shaking hooves and reverently lifted the hat out of the box. She looked at the hat even as her vison blurred with tears. She brought the hat to her chest as memories of Applejack came unbidden into her mind, memories both joyful and sorrowful.

“Oh Applejack.” She whispered, once more looking down at the only object her friend had cherished. With slow, determined motions, Rarity lifted the Stetson and placed it on her head. She adjusted it so it sat just like Applejack liked to wear it. The comforting feel of the Stetson on her head brought peace to her heart, peace only love could bestow.

“Applejack, my friend, my love. I will carry you with me, always.”