The halls of the hospital were silent, ponies moving quietly about as they tended to the many wounded from the recent battle at Cloudsdale. Some of the injuries were physical, many more were mental. Every doctor, nurse, and janitor was needed to deal with the influx of patients. One earth pony nurse was on her way to check on a special patient, the human who was leading the soon to be combined forces of the human Marines and the pony Royal Guards. The young mare was astounded by his determination, for it had only been two days since he had awakened and yet he was already out of his bed. Now the mare could hear the sound of a crash and low cursing coming from his room. She pushed open the door to see him on his knees carefully picking up a set of dishes that had fallen to the floor.

“Still trying to get used to that hand?” she called out with a smile.

“Yeah,” the tall biped replied tiredly, “I still have trouble keeping up with where it is.”

“Don’t worry; you’ll get the hang of it.” She gave the soldier a smile and bent to help him pick up the tray and dishes, but was quickly waved away.

“I’ve got this; I need this kind of practice to get back my fine motor skills.” He started picking up the dishes, stacking them gently on his natural hand. It took him several minutes to accomplish a task that would have only taken seconds normally. Yet he still accomplished it, and this fact brought a hope to his face. I can get over this, he thought with grim determination, I can still be me.

“You’ve made good progress, Colonel Armand.” the nurse remarked. He smiled happily for the first time since he had awoken and handed her the stack of dishes. She promised to send his midday meal soon and left for the kitchen. As soon as she was gone, the smile slid from his face and the frustration returned. He flexed his robotic hand, watching how it moved. He no longer cared so much that he had lost the hand; his only worry was how it would affect his abilities. There were too many people that were counting on him to allow something as small as losing a hand to slow him down.

He was sitting on the edge of his bed when the door rattled and in stepped Trixie, Zephyr in tow and her saddle bags thrown across her back. Jaze rushed over to relieve the unicorn of her burden, and received a thankful nod while she stretched her back. She nosed open the bags and used her hooves to remove several of what appeared to be juice boxes, setting them on the table next to the bed. The Colonel thought they must be liquid vitamin supplements, or at least something very similar.

Trixie seemed tired, worn thin by days of worrying. She had obvious shadows under her eyes and her mane was not as neatly brushed as usual. The unicorn gave the assassin an exhausted smile and pulled one of the visitor’s chairs over to him. Zephyr, on the other hand, displayed the resilience of youth and seemed no worse off than before.

The pegasus filly jumped into his lap and threw her forelegs around his neck happily, “Hi Jazer! You feewing better?”

The soldier threw his arms around the tiny pony, “I always feel better when I see you.” He threw a smile to Trixie, “And how is my favorite little magic user?”

Jaze could just see the flinch in her eyes, “I have been better. I will be glad when you are out of here.” She pointed towards the boxes, “The human doctors said that you should drink one of those once a day. They said something about rejecting the hand. I can’t remember.” She turned her face away and looked out the window, avoiding his gaze.

“Trixie,” She turned back to him, “What’s wrong? It isn’t like you to forget things like this.”

The unicorn yawned and stretched in her chair, “I am fine; I just have not been sleeping too well.”

“Why not?”

“I have just been worried about you. It has been hard to sleep knowing that you were up here, in pain.” She gave him a stern glare, “Now I think you should stop worrying about me and drink your juice. I don’t want… whatever the doctor said could happen to happen to you.”

“Nerve/cybernetic rejection.” the soldier explained, “It can happen when the flesh does not want to mate with the cybernetic nerves that allow someone to control their robotic limb like a natural one.” Without looking, Jaze reached out with his left to grab one of the boxes and in the process he knocked several to the floor. An exasperated sigh crossed his lips and he set Zephyr aside to start to pick them up, muttering darkly under his breath.

“Here, let me help.” Trixie started picking up the boxes with her hooves and setting them back on their table.

A hand grabbed one of her hooves and she looked up to see Jaze with a worried look in his eyes, “Trixie, why didn’t you use your magic?”

“I just did not feel like it, that is all.” the unicorn responded defensively.

“Don’t you shut me out like that.” the soldier warned, “Something is wrong with you; you’ve been telling me to open up, so don’t you close up and start lying to me now. What’s wrong?”

“I don’t want to talk about…”

“I haven’t wanted to talk about a lot of things, but I did. I’m your friend, and friends help friends with their problems.”

“But that is just it!” the azure unicorn cried, tears forming in her eyes, “You are the problem!”

“How am I the problem?” asked the stunned Colonel.

“It is not so much you,” she explained, “it is just what I did to you.”

“Uh, I’m lost. What did you do to me?”

“I nearly got you killed. I nearly killed you myself.”

“You know,” the assassin said thoughtfully, “I don’t remember you trying to kill me. All I remember is you saving my life from Daren. I can’t seem to remember any time that you hurt me.”

“Stop it Jaze,” she whispered bitterly, tears flowing freely now. “You know that it was me and my magic that nearly got you killed. Maybe if I had not hit you with that lightning you would not have lost your hand. Magic has caused me nothing but trouble, I am done with it.”

“That is not true!” Jaze exclaimed, “If not for your magic, we would never have met.”

“And you would not be sitting in a hospital with a fake hand.”

“You’re right; I would be lying in a grave several times over by now. And I what about your other friends? Without magic, you wouldn’t have met them either.”

“It still would have been better if I never had magic.” She tried to leave, but the grip on her hoof was too strong. Instead, she contented herself with staring at the floor.

“Look Trixie, I have been looking at me crashing on this planet as a good thing. Despite all the pain it has caused. You should try to do the same.”

“But I hurt you; if not for me and my accursed magic you would still have all your original parts.” A cold metal hand reached up to gently brush the tears from her eyes. She nearly jumped at its cold touch, but she forced herself to remain still.

“Trixie,” The catch in his voice made her look up to see tears in his eyes now, “if you think that I blame you, or that anyone else does, you are sorely mistaken. I could not blame you for what happened; if I had not grabbed the barrel of the gun I would have been fine. This is as much my fault as yours, probably more so.” He forced a smile to his lips, “Besides, I think this hand will be better than the old one. Maybe I should put some racing stripes on it, make it a little sportier.”

“No Jaze, I won’t let you think that you got yourself hurt. I am solely responsible for that hand. And I am done with magic for good.”

“Look,” the soldier said, his worry making him seem angry, “magic is part of who you are. Denying your magic is denying who you are. I care for you as you are, that includes your magic.” He sighed and wrapped the crying unicorn in a tight hug, “If you really are done with magic, then I won’t push you. But just like I can’t deny that I am a soldier, a killer, you can’t deny your magic forever.”

“Thank you Jaze; I know you do not like it, but I do not think I can use magic right now. Every time I try, I see you lying on the ground after I hit you with that bolt.” Trixie looked over the soldier’s shoulder to see Zephyr on the bed, her hooves pressed to her cheeks and her tongue sticking out at the unicorn.

“You gotta stop cwying.” the tiny filly ordered, “You a big filly, big fillies don’t cwy.” She may not have understood what was being said, but the pegasus knew when she was crying her mom and dad had always made funny faces to cheer her up, so that is what she did for Trixie. A laugh was forced past her lips at the tiny pony’s antics, which made Jaze turn to see what was happening. Zephyr had started pulling her face into an exaggerated frown, mocking the tears in the adults’ eyes. “No more tears, no sad face. Smile is the on’y thing that should be on you face.”

“Okay then Zephyr,” Trixie said, a smile plastered to her face, “I won’t cry again. Don’t you worry about that.”

“And Jazer!” the filly glared sternly at the soldier, “The docor said you gotta dwink you juice, so you dwink the juice and wike it!”

Jaze could not bite back a laugh, “Yes ma’am, I promise.” He carefully grabbed one of the supplement cartons, “Why don’t I drink one right now?” The young soldier cautiously stabbed the attached straw into the box and sipped the liquid; it tasted far better than he had come to expect from medicine.

Zephyr watched him drink the box down to the last drops before turning to Trixie, “Twixie, I thirsy.”

“We can go get you something from the cafeteria, little one.” the unicorn said.

“Here,” Jaze handed over a box of the medicine, “she can drink this.”

“Won’t that hurt her?” Trixie asked, giving the box a distrustful look.

“Not at all. In fact, the vitamins and nutrients in it will be good for her.”

“But that’s Jazer’s medicine,” the filly pulled a face, “it gonna taste bad.”

“No, it’s good.” The assassin poked the straw into the box and offered it to the small pegasus, “Trust me, you’ll like it.” Zephyr took the box in her hooves and gave it a cautious sip. Her eyes flew wide and she greedily drank the whole box in a few sips.

“That’s good, I can have more?” the filly asked quickly while she licked her lips.

“I think that you should leave the rest for Jaze.” Trixie gave the gray filly a quick hug, “You don’t want Jaze to get sick again because you drank all his medicine, do you?”

The pegasus’s already large eyes opened even wider in her terror, “Oh no, I don’t want Jazer to get sick anymore! I won’t dwink his medicine!”

“Well this is a good thing to see.” Sands suddenly laughed from the door. Jaze looked up to see Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Dmitri standing in the doorway to his room. Applejack was wearing a bright smile while Dash seemed distant, as if her mind was on another planet.

“Ya doin’ alright Jaze?” the farmpony asked enthusiastically.

“I feel like I’ve been beaten and kind of like I lost a hand, but it could be worse.” the assassin said with a grin.

“Hey, I know how you feel.” Dmitri smacked his left arm, “I have a fake arm too.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” the Colonel asked with a slightly hurt tone.

“I didn’t want to give you a reason not to trust me.”

“So yer a cyberg too?” Applejack looked at the arm in question curiously, “It don’t look no different.”

“That is because I have it covered in synth-flesh.” the young pilot explained with a childish grin.

“I guess that makes us brothers in arms?” Jaze joked, waving his metal hand.

“I think you’re right sir.”

“You bet I am.” The assassin’s eyes fixed on Rainbow Dash. The mare’s eyes were staring off into space, she had been through a lot in the recent days and it was catching up with her. “Is something wrong Dash?”

“Huh?” the weather pony shook her head, “Nothing… Actually…” She glanced around the room, “Can I talk to you alone?”

“Of course.” He looked to his friends, “Do you guys mind leaving for a few minutes?”

“Sure thing sir.” Sands quickly left, muttering something about getting food. Trixie excused herself with a silent nod and took Zephyr with her. Jaze took a seat on the bed and offered the rainbow mare the chair next to him. She sunk into the chair with grateful sigh, her eyes roaming anywhere but the soldier and his fake hand.

“What’s wrong?” the soldier asked quietly.

“First off, I just wanted to say that I wish you didn’t lose your hand.” The pegasus finally let her regretful eyes land on him and the hand, “You could have died, and the last things that were between us were angry words. I didn’t want you to think that I hated you.”

“I know you don’t hate me,” the soldier assured, “fear and anger can make someone do stupid things.”

“I wanted to tell you that I’ve been to Cloudsdale.” Jaze was stunned into silence at this admission, he had not expected anyone, pony or human, to go anywhere near the destroyed city so soon. Least of all the stricken pegasus before him. He could see tears forming in the corners of her eyes from the memories of her home, “That was Zephyr, right?” She got a nod from the soldier, “What happened to her mother, Cumulus? She’s a white pegasus.”

The assassin shook his head sadly, “I tried, god did I try.” The tears that had been forming in the athlete’s eyes finally overflowed, and she began to quietly sob. The soldier could only gently place his hand on her shoulder and offer quiet words of comfort.

“She was a good friend, why did she have to die?” the cyan pony’s tears refused to quit, “It’s all so unfair! She didn’t even do anything, none of them did! They weren’t part of this war!”

“They didn’t have to be, Dash.” the weary assassin explained, “Carn just wanted to cause pain. But he is gone now, he can’t do this to anypony else.”

“It doesn’t matter; Cloudsdale is still gone. I couldn’t help any pony; two of my friends are hurting and I can’t help either of ‘em! I feel so worthless!”

“I know… wait, two?” Jaze held the pegasus out at arm’s length, “If I’m one, who’s the other?”

“Twilight.” Rainbow sobbed even harder at the thought of her stricken friend, “She went with us to help clean up Cloudsdale, and she just went weird. She won’t so much as talk to most everypony, and all I can get her to say is nonsense.”

“Why didn’t anyone tell me she was hurt!” the soldier yelled as he sprang from his bed, “Do you know where Twilight is?” Dash nodded, “Then take me.”

Jaze followed closely behind Rainbow Dash as she led him deeper into the hospital. He felt the walls closing in around him; the whole place had an atmosphere of unpleasantness clinging to its every surface. He could hear the horrid sounds of the ponies in this wing; they seemed to be in the part for long term mental patients. The soldier’s eyes grew worried and he wondered why Twilight would be in a place like this. He urged his cyan guide to move faster, he wanted to be away from this place as soon as possible. Dash nodded and broke into a near gallop, the assassin close at her hooves.

They stopped next to a door with a small plaque next to it that read “T. Sparkle”. Jaze assumed this was their destination and slowly pushed open the door. Inside, the room was far nicer than he had anticipated. It had a window overlooking a beautiful garden path, with a wash basin set up next to the window. A couple chairs occupied the wall next to the door, while the room’s single occupant lay in a bed opposite the chairs.

Twilight was dressed in a hospital gown, her eyes utterly devoid of any emotion. She sat staring at nothing, eyes unfocused and glazed over, a gaze Jaze had only seen on the dead. If not for her gentle breathing and the occasional twitch, the Colonel would have assumed that she had passed on. As it was, her mind was obviously gone, having retreated to try and spare her the horrors that she had witnessed.

“See,” Dash whispered, “she’s been like this since we went to Cloudsdale.” She looked to her human friend with wide, pleading eyes, “Do you know how to help her?”

“I don’t know, Dash.” he said despondently, “I can treat fractures and cuts, sometimes even small bullet wounds. But injuries of the mind… they’re different. Most often, the only thing to do is let the problem run its course.” The soldier reached out to the stricken unicorn, his metal hand catching and throwing the light back into the room. Twilight’s eyes locked on the metal limb and she began to thrash in her bed from fear, her legs lashing out at invisible enemies.

“What did you do?” Dash whispered softly.

“I didn’t do anything!” the assassin defended, “I just reached out.”

“Quick, grab her forelegs! She’s going to hurt herself!” Jaze jumped for the bed and grabbed the flailing unicorn’s limbs, while Dash held down her legs.

The sick mare thrashed harder, trying to pull away from the cold, metal hand that had a grip on her. She was whimpering in fear; her hoof broke free of his grasp for a moment and whipped into his mouth, splitting his lip against his teeth. He heard a sickening crunch and caught the weather pony’s fall from the corner of his eye. She had been kicked in the face by her ill friend, and without a word the cyan mare grabbed her friend’s legs and kept holding them down.

Suddenly, they could hear the ill unicorn speak. “Don’t, no!” she whimpered, “So many… twisted, hurt… can’t help you… Get out of my eyes!” She thrashed even harder against the things holding her, not realizing that they were her friends, “No, no, no, no! Stay away! You’re dead, I can’t help you!”

“Jaze!” a terrified pegasus cried, “Do something!”

“What can I do?” he cried back. He spotted a set of restraints attached to the bed and quickly fixed them around her wrists. He helped Dash secure the restraints around her ankles and then stood back. Twilight continued to thrash for a moment before finally settling down into a crying heap on the bed.

“Please…” she whispered, “leave me alone. I can’t help you…” Twilight did not make a sound for several minutes; it seemed she was too absorbed by the past to be in the present. No amount of caring words or whispered comfort seemed able to reach her. Dash’s eyes were clenched tight against the sight of her friend tied to the bed for her own protection.

“This is so stupid,” the pegasus whispered, “why can’t she hear us?”

“Her ears hear us, but she can’t process what the sounds we make mean.” the assassin explained, “She is wholly in the past, nothing we say can reach her right now.”

“But, why aren’t I shaking and going crazy? I saw the same thing!”

“I think you are so much tougher than Twilight is. And you already had prepared for what you were going to see. You had already dealt with death; Twilight had yet to see it up close. I think that more than anything is why she has lost herself.” The pair of friends fell silent as Twilight began to pull against her restraints again. She was muttering unintelligibly, and the worried human and pony drew close to hear what she was saying.

“No, I don’t want to see that…” she murmured, “Go away, you’re dead… can’t help…” The unicorn’s eyes suddenly focused once more, albeit on the ceiling, “Can’t fall asleep, they’re waiting for me to fall asleep…”

“Twilight?” Jaze‘s voice was barely above a whisper, “It’s Rainbow Dash and Jaze, can you hear me?”

Dash stood next to the unicorn’s head, “Twilight, are you in there? Please come back, everypony needs you.”

Twilight’s head slowly turned to look at the cyan pegasus, “Rainbow Dash, is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me.” She whispered, “Jaze is here too.”

“Jaze?” The unicorn turned again to look at the Colonel, who quickly hid his hand behind his back. “Jaze, why were there so many bodies? They were all twisted and broken.” Her eyes were filled with confused tears; she looked ready to break down.

“It happens in war,” the human said bitterly, “I wish I could go back and change it. But I can’t. We just have to keep moving for now, for those who lost their lives.”

“I can’t do it Jaze.” Twilight admitted, “Every time I close my eyes I see those poor pegasi and I just…” Her eyes began to glaze over as her mind was drawn back to the terrible things she had seen, “No no no no, don’t look at me. It’s not my fault, I swear!”

“Twilight!” Dash practically screamed, “Don’t leave again! We’re still here, please don’t leave!”

“Twilight,” Jaze somehow managed to sound calm, “nopony is blaming you for what happened. The man who is responsible is dead, and now we need to keep moving forward.”

The soldier’s calm voice managed to bring the unicorn back from the brink, “Is he really dead?”

“I killed him myself. I swear he is gone.” The Colonel released the bonds holding his friend, “Are you going to be okay?”

“I don’t know,” the purple unicorn breathed, “I think I might be.”

“Good, because I need every soldier I can muster right now. With the rain gone, the Cye will be on the move soon.” He gave the stricken pony a quick salute, “Then get up, get back in uniform, and get ready for duty, Private. We’ve got a long road ahead of us before we can rest again.”Twilight managed a shaky salute and a “Yes sir,” as the Colonel left, followed by an irate pegasus.

“How could you order her out of bed so soon?” Dash demanded, “That’s so cruel!”

“Trust me; a purpose is just what she needs now.” Jaze said quietly.

“You’re going to hurt her!”

“Dash, if I had let her stay in that bed for even another minute she would have slipped back into the past and would not have come back. I gave her something to think about, something to fill her mind and distract her from what she saw.”

“How can you be so sure?” asked an incredulous weather pony.

“Because I know what it is like to have your mind shut down.” the assassin explained, “I… when Evelyn died, I shut down. A lot like Twilight did, to be honest. I was able to keep going only because I still had my duties. If I had taken Gaston up on his offer for rest, I would’ve become worthless, would’ve become an empty worthless shell.”

“So this is really the best thing for her?” Rainbow Dash asked almost pleadingly.

“Yeah, at least I think so.” The pair continued to walk in silence for a few minutes. Jaze was retracing their steps back to the entrance to the mental ward of the hospital. He kept throwing glances to the pony walking next to him and praying that she would understand. His thoughts kept turning back to Twilight; he was worried that she would try and drown herself in work to forget the things she had seen. At the entrance to the mental ward, the soldier spied a white unicorn with a voluminous purple mane.

Rarity turned at the sound of the pair’s footfalls and gave them a wide smile, “Well hello darlings!”

“Hello Rarity.” Jaze said with a wave of his metal hand.

“So it is true that you lost your hand.” the fashionista stated sadly.

“Yeah, and to be honest I get sick of people telling me about it.” He gave his friend a false glare, “We have established the fact that I am missing a hand, is there no other juicy gossip to be had? A dancing bear, cake eating princesses, anything?”

“I am sorry, I did not realize it bothered you so.” The unicorn tossed him something “This may make you feel better, at least people will not notice you have a fake hand as soon as you meet them.”

The object was a black glove that slid perfectly over the metal hand, “Thanks Rarity; that was very thoughtful of you.” The soldier flexed his hand inside its new skin; the glove did not seem to hinder the mecha-limb in the slightest.

“Well, I could not have a friend of mine walking around with such a… augh, dreadful hand. Especially if he is going to be a Guard.”

“Well, it will still be nice to have something to cover this up with until I can get some synth skin for it.” He gave a slight bow, “So thanks again.”

“Or you could just let me spruce it up a little.” The dressmaker’s eyes lit up with the thoughts crossing it, “Oh think of it! We could set some gems into it and then…”

“Ah no, this thing is going to be hard to hide already!” Jaze protested, “Nobody would take me seriously if I had a sparkly hand.”

“Aw come on Jaze,” Dash teased, “all you would have to do to convince people you’re still a bad flank is to kick a couple of ‘em around.”

“Yeah, because I really need to worry about soldiers snickering behind my back while we get ready to fight. No thanks, the glove will do nicely.”

“But you could be a soldier of fashion!” Rarity pleaded.

“You should totally let Rarity spice that hand up.” Dash agreed.

“No. Way. Not going to happen.” the Colonel said adamantly.

“Well fine.” the fashion conscious pony huffed, “Honestly, what is it with soldiers and staying bland.”

“We are a bland bunch.” Jaze retorted, “Besides, it doesn’t pay to have a standout outfit in battle, it tends to draw bullets like magnets draw metal.”

“Speaking of battles and soldiery things, I believe that Princess Celestia wished to see you.”

“It must be time for my ceremony to make me a Guard.” Jaze gave the fashionista a friendly nod, “Thanks for the message and the glove Rarity. It means a lot that you would go out of your way for me like this.”

“No problem; that is what friends are for.” Rarity gave a dismissive wave of her hoof, “Now get going, a gentlecolt does not leave a lady waiting. Especially when that lady is a Princess.”

Jaze stood in the throne room of Canterlot Castle in his full dress uniform. Before him were Princesses Celestia and Luna standing side by side, the former wearing a calmly regal look, while the latter bore an encouraging smile. To Luna’s right stood Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Dmitri, Vincent, and Shelby. To Celestia’s left stood Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Trixie. The soldier could see Celestia throwing furtive glances to her pale and drawn protégé; somehow the unicorn had managed to pull herself from her bed to stand with him for this ceremony.

The Colonel could hear the multitude of Royal Guard ponies arrayed behind him shifting in place as they waited for the ceremony to start. He could feel the hundreds of pairs of eyes focusing on his back, and felt like each one was judging him silently. The entire contingent of Royal Guards, roughly seven hundred strong, had gathered to witness something unseen in a thousand years. A token force of one hundred Marines was present as well, making this the first of hopefully many peaceful human and pony ceremonies.

Knowing all this did nothing to quell the butterflies in the assassin’s stomach. The one thing he had come to fear and hate over the years was a crowd. Now he was standing in front of eight hundred pairs of eyes and he was feeling decidedly nervous. He had to force his eyes to stay on the Princesses and not dart looks over his shoulders. Every small sound the assembled humans and ponies made grated on the scarred Colonel’s ears.

Thankfully, Celestia stepped forth to begin the ceremony, “Ladies and Gentlemen, Fillies and Gentlecolts, on this day the Royal Guards welcome to their ranks a new member. This marks the first non-pony member in over a thousand years. It also marks the first time in a thousand years that somepony was named Knight-General. This honor the royal diarchy bestows upon the being before us.”

Celestia stepped back and allowed Luna to step forward and speak, “Jaze Armand, you have been asked to take up the title of Knight-General of the Royal Guards. This means you have been hoof-chosen as the one being deemed ready, willing, and able to lead the Guards in this time of dire need. Do you accept this auspicious title?”

This was it, his last chance to back out. Jaze looked from the Princesses to each of his friends in turn. Shelby gave him a wink of encouragement, Vincent a grim nod, Sands gave him a furtive thumbs-up, Dash showed a confidant smirk, and Applejack gave an honest smile. Twilight’s face was still drawn, but she managed to give him a tight, encouraging smile. Fluttershy hid behind her mane when he looked into her eyes, while Rarity almost seemed to be ordering him to accept, and Pinkie mouthed “party later”. And finally, his eyes landed on Trixie; she still seemed tired, but she was still able to give him a caring smile and a nod.

His eyes swept across each of his friends one last time before he pronounced in a loud, clear voice, “Knowing my full responsibilities and of my own free will, I accept this title.”

“Good,” Luna spoke loudly once more, “Then by the power vested in us, we bestow unto you the title of Knight-General of the Royal Guards.”

Celestia stepped forward and the Princesses called out in unison, “Then kneel before us, and repeat this oath: On my life and honor I do swear to serve my Princesses in time of need, to lay down my life for those in need, to act with honor and dignity in times of peace, and to do as needed of me in time of strife. The lives of those I protect before my own life.”

Jaze fell to his knee and carefully recited, “On my life and honor I do swear to serve my Princesses in time of need, to lay down my life for those in need, to act with honor and dignity in times of peace, and to do as needed of me in time of strife. The lives of those I protect before my own life.”

“Now rise, and don the armor that is rightfully yours.” From behind the Princesses a pair of Guardsponies wheeled out a mannequin dressed in a highly modified set of Royal armor.

It was made of three layers molded together; the first was a form fitting black suit, the second was a high density crystal lattice designed to absorb the shock from a rifle round, and the final layer was the black and gold armor itself. The metal plate covered his chest and back, his forearms, and his shins and thighs. He removed the armor plate and pulled on the skin tight black suit; the material had the same feel as the material used for space suits and it came up to the top of his neck. Vincent and Shelby stepped forward to help him put the rest of his armor on. The complete set was far lighter than he had expected, nor did it hinder his movement at all.

Until at last, a winged helm was all that was left on the mannequin; the Colonel removed the helm and reverently placed the helm on in his own head. He looked to the Princesses, and a smile graced his lips. He was no longer fighting for an ally and her people; he was fighting for his people now, and that realization made him all the more determined to see this through.

Jaze clapped his fist to his heart, directly of the symbol of the diarchy emblazoned on his chest, “Thank you for this honor, Your Highnesses.”

“You wear that armor well.” Celestia whispered to the kneeling man, “But now I believe your comrades, new and old, wish a speech from you.”

“Whoa wait what?” the confused assassin stammered, “What do you mean a speech? That was not part of the deal!”

“You need not do it, but it is expected.” Luna whispered, “Besides, it is just a little speech. Are you nervous?”

“No! Well maybe a little,” Jaze’s face turned beet red, “What should I say? I’ve never really given a speech before.”

“Just say what you feel,” the Solar Princess encouraged, “it does not have to be long.”

“Well,” the soldier gulped, “here goes nothing.” He stood before the assembled ponies and humans, and was more than a little pleased to see them mixed together. They had already begun treating one another as equals, as if they were not two different species.

The newly knighted Guard cleared his throat and began, “If I could say something please,” the already hushed room fell silent, “I know that you all want something inspiring, something about how we will all win this fight. Maybe you want me to say that it is going to be easy now that we are all acting as one. But I have never been one to lie about something like that. Marines, we have stood as the only force ready, willing, and able to combat the threat the Cye have posed to humanity for six long years. We’ve won, and lost, key battles and have somehow managed to stay one step ahead of destruction at every turn.”

The Colonel could no longer stand still and began to pace, “Guardsponies, never before have you been asked to do something like this before. Since time immemorial, you have stood as this land’s only defense against anything that wished harm on Equestria. But this is a greater threat than you have ever faced; it does not want to rule you, only to destroy all you have worked so long to protect. Today, the StarSide Marines and the Royal Guards have something they have never been given the pleasure of having, an ally against a threat bigger than themselves. For humans, this is more than just a fortuitous turn of events in a nasty war. This is us learning that we are not alone in the universe; there is another race that shares hopes, dreams, and fears. And unlike the many would have us believe, they don’t want to be our betters, or our conquerors, just our equals. They want to welcome us, as friends. I want you all to look to those around you, these men and women, mares and stallions are going to be the ones to pull you through the coming days. Dismissed.”

Princess Celestia smiled to the shaky Colonel as he turned back to her, “You did well enough. Was that so bad?”

“Yes!” Jaze sighed, “That is one of the most horrifying things I’ve ever done!”

“I think you did a smashing good job.” Rarity assured the worried looking human, “And that armor is simply perfect.”

“You designed it, didn’t you?” Vincent asked the white unicorn quietly.

“Yes, I did.” she replied with a haughty air, she turned back to Jaze and began happily talking about the new armor “And this was the first time I have ever worked with metal for an outfit like this. Do you like it? It took forever to get everything just right so that you could wear this at a formal gathering and not look out of place…”

Celestia shook her head with an almost silent laugh and took Jaze aside, “Would you like to know what this armor can do?”

“Very much so,” the assassin replied.

“Very well,” the Princess began, “we designed this with all the abilities of your standard Marine armor in mind, and all the tasks that may be required of you. It is sealed for use in a vacuum, the helmet seals just like Marine helmets. The metal itself it specially enchanted to make it thin and light, while still maintaining its strength and protective capabilities. I would not stand in front of your foes and let them shoot at you, but this armor will offer better protection than either standard armor. The sets of armor for your friends are already being made and they should be ready in a few days.”

“That’s good to hear, but for now we must…”

A sweating Marine pushed her way through the crowds towards where Jaze and Celestia were talking. The pair fell silent as she finally made her way to the stand and called in a fear stricken voice, “Sir, the Cye! They have begun their advance!” before she collapsed in exhaustion at the monarch’s feet.