Chapter eleven

The training court yard to the castle is always open to whoever may want to use it whether it be rain, shine, sleet or snow. Having a nice open space with dummy targets to practice both blade and magic alike. Along with racks of weapons to choose from for those that prefer to get up close and personal. Even several engraved plates with basic combat spells, their description, and how to cast them for the adept unicorn in the time of combat. It’s a simple attachment to the castle that helps the guards that have the soul duty to guard royalty hone their skills over time for when they may not be able to bask in actual combat. Something that is lost on many of them seeing as a lot of issues over the years have eventually been talked down and reasoned with before any actual battle did break out. Although where you have testosterone fueled colts showing off their skills, there are bound to be good natured skirmishes between them to see whose better.

Flash brings out both his fore hooves and boxes the ears of a colt trying to on rush him, causing the attacker to freeze for a second at the ringing in his ears. During which, Sentry whips around one of his wings and slaps the hoof holding a training sword in it, sending a surge of nerves up his leg and forcing the muscles to react. Knocking the sword out of hoof and the guard himself defenseless to the follow up hind kick that sends him skidding across the ground. Flash lands gingerly across from him. Extending a hoof to help up his fellow comrade. “Ya alright there?” Flash asks hoisting him up on to all fours,

“Yes sir!” the guard pops to attention. Rather proud of himself that he lasted this long against his superior.

Although he is younger by many of their standards, Flash outranks quite a few of the other guards that one may come across in the castle. However, when a subordinate asks to see what you can do in the ring. Do you really say no to them? That’s how all this started in the training yards, with just a simple show of skill… that was five guards ago. Each one tried their hoof at the new comer, and each one got beaten in one way or another. So far through this Flash has gotten the attention of quite a few onlookers, and also one father in particular.

Discord sits off to the side by himself watching his kids play with a toy sword and shield against one another, along with the occasional playful spell. The father is bouncing back and forth between watching his own kin, and the newcomer. The light orange Pegasus pony guard has never been seen in these parts to his knowledge, nor does Dissy remember seeing him anywhere in the castle. Whoever he is though, he sure is making a name for himself with the others in the crowd. A few of the other guards even stomp their hooves as Flash helps yet another guard up after showing him a thing or two.

“You seem to put too much strength in your run when you try to slash,” he shows the guard. Letting him see the error of his ways, “making you over stepping your mark. Try to hold back some and judge what you need to use by your opponents own strength.”

“Didn’t really think of that. Thank you sir,” the guard salutes after taking the sword and putting it in the sheath. All of them pause for a moment when they hear a slow clap from the back ground. Turning to see the royal prince of chaos himself, Discord, slowly walking up to the little group as he eyes the single guard there in the center.

“Bravo, gentle colt,” he claps his lion paw and eagle talon together, “bravo.”

It takes only a moment for Flash to recognize the creature in front of him, quickly getting to one knee on his fore legs, “Prince Discord… it’s an honor.”

The master of chaos was never one for formalities, look who he is after all. Gesturing for the guard to rise he waves off the comment with a simple talon, “Oh please by all means, just call me Discord… I’m still not used to being a prince,” he looks down on the wedding ring on his claw, “nor do I think I’ll live up to that title.”

“Understood, Discord,” Flash salutes once more, still the prince in front of him not being able to identify the guard.

“Now I know every guard in this castle by first name, last name, their wife’s name, kid’s name if they have one…” he goes on and on, “…buck it, I mean even their great, great, great grandfather’s name,” he says nonchalantly, “however you I have no clue who you are?”

“My apologies sir,” he says, kicking himself that he didn’t introduce himself at first, “I’m-”

Before he can answer though, a small little creature teleports just a few feet above him and lands on Sentry's back with a dull thud against the plating. Unknown to Discord, Havoc just saw the new guard earlier, and as his mother stated after he left, has taken a shine to him almost instantly.

“Flash Sentry!” the young prince yells as he straddles the back of the golden armor and holds himself up, “I didn’t know you were playing out in the court yard as well.”

The father though is stuck on the name that was said by his son. ‘Flash Sentry… now why does that name sound familiar. Wait? Isn’t that?’ it clicks to him in an instant and he waits for the guard to place his son down first.

“Easy there, young prince,” Flash says to him softly, “I wouldn’t want you to cut yourself on my sword,” he taps the weapon as it lays strapped across his back in the sheath.

“Mr. Sentry?” Discord says while Rosebud quickly catches up to her brother and starts to play around the now familiar guard, looking at their reflections in the armor and even chasing one another through and under his legs. “Would you happen to be the Flash Sentry, from the Crystal Empire, once under Princess Cadance and prince Shining Armor, now here in Ponyville to watch over Twilight Sparkle?”

He pauses for a moment at the explanation. Realizing that he must have been filled in at some point about this, “the very same actually.”

Not another word is said as Flashes hoof is grabbed up in the mighty lion paw and shuck repeatedly, while Discord beams with pride. “Well it’s a pleasure to meet you Flash Sentry, I didn’t know that Cadance got somepony so capable to watch over our dear Twilight.”

“Actually, more than capable,” Princess Celestia says while her and her student walk in to the court yard after seeing the small gathering and the Pegasus at the center. The others all around them, and even Flash himself bow at first when they see both Princesses coming in to see them. Quickly rising soon afterwards to draw their eyes to the solar princess. Celestia walks right up to her husband and kisses him in front of them all, getting a snicker from their kids at from what as far as they’re concerned is a ‘disgusting display of affection’. After recovering from their lips and composing themselves from the kiss that lasted a little longer than originally intended, and now leaves Discord with his own cheeks flushed, Celestia continues with what she was going to say. “Flash here so far has proven that he is more than capable of protecting Twilight, from what I have been filled in with.”

“Oh really now?” Discord says. Not knowing the details about the unexpected guest found in Twilights house, and how he was handled by the guard, “How do you know this exactly?”

Celestia simply giggles at first before giving him a simple peck on the lips, soon afterwards cringing at the thought of her own student almost being hurt, “that, I’ll explain to you soon. For now all you need to now is that Twilight is in capable hooves when it comes to her wellbeing,” she finishes off with a smile at the young colt guard as Tia watches his own eyes go to her then to Twi as he starts to flush red. Discord though, has already seen him in action against one guard. And as a result from that, and his own twisted mind, he has a little more of a challenge for him in store.

“That’s always good to know,” the prince says with wicked grin, “However, I’d like to see it myself.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asks after seeing the look on his face. Knowing Discord, there is something else going in his mind then what is on the surface.

All Discord does is snap his finger, and all of the ponies in the yard are slid to the outside making a circle for them all to see. The only two remaining in the center are Flash with Discord himself. A single lion paw resting on the guard’s shoulder, “Whatever my wife knows about how you are capable, I’ve also seen it just from watching you in the ring with a few of the guards here and there,” he points out, reassuring Flash that he is still the right one for the job. However, once that little ‘pick me up’ is done with. The crazed eyes of the prince turns back from one of a father, to a tyrant bent on throwing a little anarchy in the mix. “Then again… I’d like to see how you do with more of a trial put forth to you,” Discord again snaps his finger. Drawing forth five guards from the crowd as he speaks to them all. “This is more for my pleasure than anything else. Seeing as I haven’t seen a good old gladiator match in centuries,” he announces first. Many of the on lookers faces spelling out simple disgust at the traditional fights to the death. While Celestia simply glares at her husband, himself picking up the tell tail ‘you better know you’re doing’ look. Though in that he also picks up the show of concern from Twilight as she eyes her guard. “Oh calm down Twilight, this is a training court yard, not a battle field. It’s not to the death,” he calls the princess out, now watching her turn sunburnt in front of them all as Discord ponders the thought of bringing up an actual death match in the future. “Flash Sentry… do you think you can best five soldiers at once?”

The lone guard stands there looking at the five that were brought up, none of them has he fought before, and on top of that. He is getting pretty tired of going back and forth sparing all day. Never the less he looks at the pony who has her eyes on him the whole time. Twilight stands there looking, almost worried at what Discord said, that Flash may hurt himself if he tries this. However, this is to prove his worth to the crown as a guard capable of protecting their princess, and to prove it to the princess herself. Plus in some way it’s to show off a bit for the mare. That much he’ll admit to himself. Sentry didn’t quit his whole life at whatever he started to do, so why start now?

“Whelp… I’ll give it a shot,” he says trying to hold back his breath as he controls his breathing for the fight to come as he rolls his wrist back and forth along the joint.

The look on the ringleader's face grows ever brighter as he takes a place next to his wife and two kids. Snapping his fingers yet again to place training weapons in front of each of the ponies. “You may begin… now,” he says with a single clap, before holding up a claw, “oh and by the way. There are no rules…” The six ponies in the ring take the weapons in hoof and get to a fighting stance glaring at one another through their helmets.

Celestia leans over to her husband as they watch the others slowly close the gap between them all, “what’s your game here?”

“Oh… I just want to see what this guard is capable of doing when surrounded and cornered,” he tells her like this actually has a point to it.

“Don’t play games, Dissy…” she warns him, “you just said it yourself, ‘this is more for your pleasure than anything else’…” she quotes him. All her husband does is place Havoc atop his head while Rosebud props herself up on his shoulder as he tries to explain more to his wife.

“Bear in mind I did say ‘more’ for my pleasure, meaning there was a part of this that actually has a point to it and I-”

“Flash killed a changeling when he and Twilight came back for the night yesterday,” she states bluntly cutting him off.

Discord almost feels his jaw lock up at Celestia’s bomb shell. ‘Well that one wasn’t expected.’ he tells himself looking for more information. “Why didn’t you say something earlier?”

“I just found out myself,” she says elbowing him in the side, “besides I didn’t want to say anything in front of the others. A single changeling being around could cause all sorts of rumors after all.”

“Well I see your point,” her husband reasons in his twisted mind. Never the less though he shrugs it off in the end, “although id still like to see what he can do in an unfair fight.”

“Humph,” Celestia scowls at him, raising her muzzle off to the side and away, “tell that to a particular alicorn who will still worry for him even in a training ring. I mean look at her.”

Discord looks and sees the look on Twilight’s face. His wife is right, the face says it all. Even though this is nothing more than a training ring, she still has a whole look of concern over it for the colt. Seeing as many guards can get overzealous in their practice, leading to many training injuries. With ever strike, parry, attack, and lunge her eyes grow wider and wider the longer time goes on. Even the master of chaos is feeling a little guilty with putting him in this, almost forced, position.

“I’m sleeping out on the couch aren’t I?” he asks his beloved.

“If Flash gets hurt, and I have to comfort a hurt mare as a result,” she leans in and whispers in his ear, “You aren’t getting sex for a month.”

Flash head butts a guard to get him to stumble off. Considering anything can go, the other guards are pulling out all the stops against one that they just saw beat five others one after the other. So there’s no reason he should either as he does his best to hold back the onslaught. One guard rushes him with shield thrown over his wings to bash against him like a battering ram, building up speed, the only issue is that now he can’t see. Using this to his advantage, Flash leaps up and pushes the shield on the edge, matching the speed by hovering backwards, right in to the ground. Making almost a pivot and causing the other guard to flip head over hooves.

Taking a moment to breath, Flash looks at his handy work. The guard is out cold, but still alive, so that just means he has the others to deal with. ‘One down… Four to go,’ he thinks just before taking a hoof across the face and it sends him doubling over in pain back a few steps from the attacker. Checking his jaw for any breaks, Flash looks up to see the other guard that delivered the hit.

Chuckling to himself that he was basically the first one to land a hit against Sentry, he now has the new guy at the castle to deal with. Flash boxes both the guard’s ears together with his wings, while ducking to dodge a wobbly swipe from a guard and returning the hit with a leg buck to the breast plate. Focusing on one guard at a time while dodging the others seems to be working as he quickly finishes off the second one by a haymaker to the side of the jaw, lifting him clear off the ground and tumbling over in the air before his face meets the floor once again and his own tongue is left dangling out of his unconscious mouth tasting the dirt. The second notch on his belt lands just as the guard did, and it’s clear, he’s out of the fight.

Twilight on the other hoof is the one who has her legs probably shaking the most out of the entire group. If she thought that only happened when she set eyes on the guard out there fighting, she had no idea it was this bad when she thought he may get hurt. With every hit he dishes out to his opponents, she winces and her teeth start to cringe. Although the ones he himself may take are few and far between, whenever it happens she has to catch herself just from the sight of it all. ‘Why brain do you do this to me? Flash can more than hold his own against these colts, this is nothing,’ that last thought passes through as she even winces, along with half the crowd, from Sentry taking a buck to the side his armor that causes him to skip across the ground like a stone on water before quickly coming back to his feet, ‘okay that was pretty bad.’

‘Well not that bad,’ she hears a voice in the back of her head.

Looking around, the tell tail glow of Celestia’s horn lets her know that it’s she who is contacting her via magic, ‘I mean he took the hit quite well.’

‘What are you doing in my head!?’

‘Listening to you argue with yourself…’ Celestia responds in their silent conversation.

‘With the utmost respect to you, princess,’ she pauses for a moment so her head can take a breath, ‘Get out of my head!’

‘Oh… fine.’

Once she’s sure she really is the only one there. Twilight continues her mental discussion, ‘This is only a training fight, it wasn’t nearly this bad when I saw him last night going at it with the changeling… then again that went by all too fast anyway,’ she starts think while seeing him weave back and forth from hits, and taking only a hoof full.

Twi has been in fights before during her stay in Ponyville, mostly because of the adventures she has gone on with her friends. All of them she cared about and saw them almost get eaten by a dragon, attacked by and army of changelings, fight a Manticore in the Ever Free Forest, combat half a dozen Timberwolves… the list is endless… ‘So why is this different?’ she asks herself before the answer mentally sucker punches her in the face, ‘right… because you have a huge crush on this colt.’

The three guards left see what the strategy he had was and now tear it apart by attacking none stop, not giving him an opening to take them on individually. Flash has no time or place to throw a counter move anywhere with having to twist his body and occasionally take to the sky to avoid a hit. With the three guards encircled around him, Sentry is all but being worn down as he gets wearier and wearier. Lifting another guards hooves though during a swing, he pushes the practice spear in to the side of another guard giving him some breathing room. Acting as fast as his mind will let him, Flash uses his wings and flaps them furiously, kicking up as much dust as possible without leaving the ground. The cloud that is made is enough to give the others in the audience a hard time to see what’s going on, but more importantly, blankets the arena in a dust cloud.

“I can’t see him?” Twilight and Celestia says at the same time.

Discord though stands there with his eyes wide as he peers in to the confusion, “don’t worry… I see everything.”

The three guards though in the mist of things though have not a clue what is going on. One steps on the back leg of another and almost beats his fellow comrade in the head thinking it was the bright orange guard they’re trying to fight. That is until he, finds them.

Taking a soft step between the three, Flash brings up his own practice blade and drops it down in one strike on a guards head, putting him down in one go. The other two take notice from the clank of metal hitting the ground behind them and in the chaos almost end up hitting one another yet again. Flash though grabs one guard by an out stretched hoof from the attempted swing and hurts him over his shoulder in to the other, causing the force of the hit to nearly flatten the pony on the bottom knocking the wind out of him while the pony on top comes too quickly and proceeds to swing wildly in the dust at their opponent. That is until the dust is settling, and the final guard realizes that the only guard he knocked senseless, was his own comrade below him.

Until he gets a single tap on the shoulder.

Turning around, his eye just makes out a single hoof as if almost in slow motion making contact with his cheek. The impact delivers enough force to put the guard out of commission, and out colt, before he even hits the ground.

Flash stands there while all the on lookers see the final hit, now the single guard standing triumphant, and of course a little tired after this ordeal. The five guards lay thrown around the court yard, and the last of the three covered in dust after his little confusion technique with his wings. Everything is silent, mostly by the fact that one guard managed to do all this. Soon enough though, like before, a single clap is heard.

As Discord starts off, many of the others follow suit and even start too crowd around the guard who starts to sway side to side. Twilight is one of the first out there as she starts to blabber uncontrollably. “That was amazing! I wasn’t expecting you to actually go fourth and try to take on all of them… I mean I figured you could have taken them anyway…but it’s surprising none the less-” she beams at him as her mouth seems to move faster than her own mind for a while. At the same time Flash stands there blushing to the point that blood might start to flood his eyes as he bites down on his teeth to try and at least keep his grin under control. Finally she realizes what she’s saying, snaps her mouth shut, and composes herself, “I mean. Well done, Flash,” she bows slightly after saying his name.

Sentry himself starts to chuckle, after seeing the Princess tumble over herself yet again, “thank you, Twilight,” he returns the favor.

Soon enough Discord takes him aside and congratulates him, “well, Flash you’ve done good. Just be sure to keep that blade of yours sharp in case you run in to another changeling in your travels,” the prince leaves off with that as he walks out of the group twirling his tail in his claw. Flash ponders for just a second on how he found out about the changeling already, but then remembers that Discord and Celestia were both off to the side lines while he was… preoccupied.

Celestia now makes it to the young colt as the crowed starts to disperse, especially after hoisting off the other guards that were downed so they can be taken to the infirmary to treat their own wounds. She still finds Twilight right next to her personal protector, as if she would expect anything less at this point, after seeing them interact with one another. “Well I think it’s safe to say you impressed my husband from your little display of skill in the ring, even if he may not admit it out right to you,” the Princess says proudly while both her kids stand off on either side of her, “Keep in mind that’s not something that happens all too often with a creature of chaos,” she winks at him.

“Glad to know I can do my job well, thank you, Princess Celestia,” he nods to her.

While Twi takes a step away from him so it’s not too obvious what’s going through her mind about the guard in the flawless armor next to her… well nearly flawless now.

“And very well indeed,” Celestia says to them as they all start to walk out the court yard and in to the castle. The days seem to be getting shorter and shorter, seeing as when they step inside, the sun is ready to be put down for the night to make way for the moon. “Twilight is done for the day Flash, and I’m sure you yourself could use a rest after your little, training exercise,” Tia says peering over her shoulder at the two ponies behind her.

Twilight looks at her body guard. His armor is rather dusty from his last trick in the ring, not to say anything of the other nicks and dings it has. Along with some of the bruises, cuts and scrapes that he got himself through the horse play out in the yard. The guard removes his helmet, letting the blue mane show and go in to its normal style while Twi tries to maintain her balance as she watches the sweat run down his neck and on to his covered chest. Shaking her head to get some sense back in her mind, Twilight straightens out her walk as she goes side by side with him.

“What are you offering, Celestia?” she asks curiously, knowing that there is something to come from her mentor.

“You two are more than welcome to stay for dinner, and for that matter the night if you’d like,” she exclaims to them both, while raising a brow to Flash as notices the same sweat on him, “although I’m fairly sure you would want to take a shower first?” she points out with a slight chuckle.

“I appreciate your hospitality,” he thanks her as the princess quickly shows them their rooms. Twilight right across from her guard, just like at her house. Celestia then leaves the two be to get ready for dinner and to have a moment to themselves.

Once she is out of sight though, the awkwardness between them returns for a moment or two. Twiddling their hooves and lazily kicking the ground not sure what to say to one another. That is until Twilight breaks the silence, with a question that starts to bug her now that the young alicorn thinks about it. “Why did you take on Discord in that little trial of his?” she ask Flash out of the blue, catching him off guard.

“Well,” he scratches the back of his head at first trying to think how to put this as he feels the blood leave his face for once while he’s been in her presence, “I wanted to prove to those that hold you dear, and to yourself, that I was capable of protecting you from harm.”

“The changeling incident should have done that,” she points out at first, “Although Discord probably didn’t hear about that one in time, and even Celestia says he was impressed.”

“Good to know…” he slightly chuckles to himself. There isn’t much he can say to her other than that reason. Unless Flash really wants to say it was also to show off in front of a beautiful, smart, intelligent, and chic Princess? He can’t…

“…plus, I’ll admit, I did it to impress you a bit as well.”

…And he did.

Twilight stands there for a few moments in a blank stare. Did she really just hear that right? Flash did that to try and impress her? Part of the Princess wants to go off saying that it was careless to try and do so, especially when you consider the fact that Discord said no rules. However the other part wants to wrap her fore hooves around him and give him another tender kiss on the cheek that he even wants to impress her. Twilight mulls over the idea for but a moment, before she quickly opts for the middle ground.

Reaching out towards the guard with her hooves. At first what he would have expected to be a slap to the face for the display, is something much different as in the last moment she follows one side of her mind more than the other as she puts her fore hooves around him and pulls him closer in to a tender embrace.

“Now that is something you don’t have to worry about doing,” she speaks softly to the colt directly in his ear, “You’ve already impressed me enough at is with your previous display. And if you didn’t hear my rant out in the court yard after your fight,” there’s a small pause as the two of them share a slight chuckle, “Flash, I more than trust you in that field by now.”

Even through the armor she can feel the warmth radiating from his body. A warmth that she has never felt previously, and one that she would love to have even closer to her more than ever before. Twilight is lost in thought alone that she is this close to her one and only, Flash Sentry. She met him a few years back, by chance, nothing more and nothing less. As if by fate though, Twilight needed a guard and thanks to her sister in laws intervention. She now has a guard that she could have only dreamed of, and has dreamed of on a few occasions, even if she wasn’t ready to accept it outright.

Fate seems to be playing its part now in her favor, and she isn’t complaining. Even if she can’t quite figure it all out right now. ‘Why am I tormented with these thoughts of him?’ Twi pains herself thinking about, ‘I mean Celestia thinks he feels the same way. Why can’t I only get the courage to ask him, or Tartarus! Even tell him what I have on my mind… I mean with him…so …close!?’ the young alicorn realizes the position she is in and starts to panic at the end of her thought.

That is until she feels a single hoof wrap around her, one that isn’t hers. Flash is returning the hug to her much to the princess’s surprise as it doesn’t even register in her head yet, and both of their heads pull back just enough so they can see each other’s lovely eyes yet again. “I thank you for the trust that you have in me, Twilight,” he says to her as they both smile to one another, “and trust me. I did hear your rant.”

Twilight goes a little red in the face as she holds her tongue for a moment to stifle back another laugh, “I hope so, because I’m not saying it again. Although let’s get ready for Dinner, shall we?”

They let go of one another and bow respectively after that little moment they had, ‘at least you could call it a moment, of sorts,’ Twilight ponders as she catches herself looking over her shoulder at the guard now walking in to his room, and slowly closing the door. Then she realizes, ‘wait a second…’ she pauses in the middle of her room with a hoof to chin, ‘did he really put his own hoof around me!?’ thinking about what it could mean, and probably over thinking it. She removes her crown before taking a bath, while questions start to fill her mind. Does this mean we’re not as nervous around one another as we used to be? He’s opening up and getting more comfortable around me? Can I manage to do the same more often? For now she can’t decide, all Twilight can do is turn on the water, and wash up.