The loud sound of the crackling campfire, accompanied by the trance-like dancing the flames performed engaged the mind of the beautiful princess, her hands resting flat on her knees, fingers resting comfortably on the fabric of her dress as she sat on the log, her eyes reflecting the flickering performance of the warm, welcoming flames.

The snap of a twig got the attention of the princess, her eyes flicking over to the source of the sound just in time to see a large shape loom into her view. Her fingers tensed briefly before a gloved hand was placed softly on her shoulders and the loving smile of her husband became illuminated by the campfire.

"Sleeping troubles?" he asked softly, sitting down next to her and placing his arm around her shoulder, the tired princess resting her head on his chest.

"Yes" she nodded softly, placing a hand on his chest and toying with a loose thread in the stitching "I... I'm afraid Shining" The man shook his head with a soft sigh, looping a lock of his wife's hair around his finger as he spoke.

"There's nothing to fear my love, this little visit shouldn't trouble you so" Shining whispered, watching the logs on the fire spit embers every so often.

"Of course there is something to fear, we've been sent to secure peace in a land I have no experience with, with people who I know nothing of with a king I've never encountered" Cadance sighed, her eyes falling from the fire and down to a single pebble on the forest floor. Shining was silent for a long second, his eyes looking up at the pale moon while he gathered his thoughts, unsure of what to say to comfort his beloved wife.

"Would you prefer if one of your relatives had come with us?" he asked softly.

"Yes" she responded "Aunt Celestia would be much better at dealing with this problem"

"Do you believe that she has made a mistake in sending you in her stead?" Shining asked quizzically, relaxing his legs and extending them to sit more comfortably.

"I do" Cadance nodded.

"Do you wish to return home?" Shining continued.

"I do" she said after a moment's hesitation.

"If that is what you wish my love then we shall do it, all you must do is give the order to the other soldiers tomorrow at dawn and we can return to Equestria within the week" Shining said, hugging her tighter "You are not being forced to do this"

"I am fully aware of that" Cadance said, pulling away and standing up, much to her husband's dismay "But I feel I can not retreat lest I be branded a coward!" Cadance placed a hand to her face and exhaled a shaky breath, her body tired and cold both from the long trek and the biting temperature of the night.

"So you're staying simply for the sake of your own honour?" Shining asked, standing up and walking over to her "My dear there is not one person in Equestria that will wish you ill will for leaving this matter alone, I myself wish that we did not have to perform this task ourselves and wish that we were both in our own bed sleeping soundly"

Cadance turned around to look at him, wrapping her arms around the taller man's torso and holding him close, resting her head on his chest again. Shining gently rested his hands on her hips and began to slowly sway, trying his best to comfort her.

"My love, I care not for the plight of this country, nor do I care what they think of me" Cadance began, her voice beginning to shake with emotion "And I am more than aware that our own citizens will bear us no ill will for my actions..."

"Then what makes you suffer so?" Shining asked in a confused tone "If you do not care for the people and their opinions and know you will still be loved at home then why are you still here? Who are you afraid of calling you a coward?" Cadance looked up at him with bright eyes, a pouting expression on her fair face that Shining stared lovingly at.

"I fear... I fear disappointing my Aunts, I feel as if they will begin to resent me and begin to question my ability to rule if I return without completing my task" Cadance sighed "I wish for them to think of me as a capable ruler and a skilled politician but I fear that my nerve is weak and my tongue weaker"

"Cadance dear, you are one of the most lovely, gifted and articulate speakers I have ever had the privilege of conversing with" Shining said slowly "I believe with all my heart that your voice alone will be enough to bring reason to this country and that your mind will sow the seeds of stability this country needs" Cadance was silent for several moments, simply listening to the steady heartbeat of her lover and contrasting it to the pounding, terrified beat of her own.

"If we were dealing with Equestrian diplomats then I would feel much more sound about my own abilities, but as it stands my confidence has fled into the woods and left me as scared as a child staring down a ravenous wolf" Cadance muttered. It was as the last sound left the princess's quivering lips that the howl of a wolf pierced the near-silent night, causing the woman to cling to her husband tighter and allow him to be her protection.

"Do not worry my love, there is nothing to fear in the cry of a single-" Shining began before a second howl came, followed by a third and a fourth, the responding howls sounding closer and deeper. Shining removed one arm from Cadance and looked around the dark campsite, an alert look on his face as he furrowed his brow and reached for the hilt of his sword.

"Shining?" Cadance asked in a worried voice "What's the matter dear?" Shining didn't answer, he instead let go of Cadance entirely and moved over to the alarm bell stationed by the fire and giving two short rings.

"Units!" he barked "On guard now!"

"Shining, what's going on?" Cadance demanded, her previously nervous voice now sounding shrill and terrified.

"Its a pack of wolves" Shining answered "They're hunting"

"H-How can you tell?" Cadance asked, beginning to wring her hands in a panicked fashion.

"They're calling out to each other, there's not too many of them, a female hunt leader and three males at least" Shining explained "Normally I wouldn't worry about this kind of thing but the wolves here are nothing like the ones in Equestria, they're bigger, smarter and much more aggressive" There was the faint sound of bushes rustling in the distance and Shining drew his weapon, ringing the bell a third time and barking orders to the groggy soldiers who were climbing out of their tents.

"Captain?" a tall man with greying hair and a thick moustache asked, belting on a sword as he walked over to Shining "What's the matter?"

"Wolves" Shining answered curtly, surveying the area with eagle eyes "Get the others to get their weapons and to form a perimeter"

"Captain, its just a few measly wolves, can't we just light the torches and scare them off or something?" the man asked. Shining's eyes flicked over to him with a cold expression in them, the older man nodding and mumbling to himself as he walked over to the other tents, shouting about needing to get up and get ready. The rustling in the bushes grew louder as the wolves approached, Shining moving over to Cadance and placing an arm around her protectively.

"Stay close to me" Shining whispered.

"Shining, what are we going to do?" Cadance asked, her beautiful face now deathly white with her body shaking in fear.

"We're going to try and make noise and stick together, they may be large wolves but they're certainly not stupid, they won't attempt an attack on a larger group of people, especially with the normal size of a human" Shining explained "Just stay close to me and I'll protect you my love" The rustling was now accompanied by a chorus of wolf howls, going from possibly five to the high twenties. There came snarls from the brush and seemingly organized barks and whines as the predators seemed to converse with one another.

"Frederick!" Shining yelled to the man with the moustache "Get the men to form a circle around Cadance!"

"Aye sir!" Frederick yelled "Move up on the princess lads!" Cadance's heart began to beat wildly as the armoured men surrounded her, her eyes frantically flicking back and forth between the faces of the soldiers, some more familiar than others, and the moonlight reflecting off their weapons. Cadance could feel the tension in the air as it became harder for her to breathe, the blood pumping in her ears as he heart pounded faster than it ever had before.

"Shining..." she whimpered, beginning to feel the rush of adrenaline surge through her veins, preparing her to run.

"Cadance, stay calm" Shining ordered "If the wolves attack we'll be able to fend them off without much difficulty, we can protect you" There then came a bird whistle, followed by several more howls and finished off with a loud click. The click of a tongue. A human

And then the night was shattered.

A ferocious growl came from an enormous black wolf as it threw itself from the bushes, its shaggy fur barely covering the metal-tipped claws that protruded from its toes. Its mouth was a bright pink, contrasting greatly with the solid black of its body with its razor-sharp, yellow fangs slicked with saliva. The men were prepared to handle the stray who broke the line but one thing Cadance noticed before the others was that the wolf had a collar on, a simple leather ring, but a ring that was attached to a chain.

"Shining!" Cadance shrieked, a split second before a flurry of arrows was released from the bushes, the sharp heads of the arrows piercing through the armour like a hot knife through butter, one such shaft burying itself in Shining's right shoulder causing him to drop his weapon and fall back. The other soldiers cried out and fell to the ground while others were lucky enough to dodge the arrows or have them miss completely.

"Princess!" Frederick yelled, an arrow having completely pierced through his chest "Run!" Cadance wanted to leave but she couldn't, she would not leave her husband.

"Shining!" she hollered, watching her husband grab his fallen sword with his left hand and slash at a man wielding a crude dagger and dressed in tattered leather. The man's knife missed Shining, partly due to the wielder's inexperience with the weapon and Shining's superior combat skill, and Shining's blade moved through the air, the polished steel slicing clean through the man's arm and severing his hand, leaving a gushing bloody stump as the hand and knife fell to the floor. Shining pushed himself up and ducked low under another man's slash, the blue-haired knight slashing his sword downwards and taking the man's leg off before standing up and cleaving his chest open.

"Princess, we need to go now!" one of the soldiers ordered, grabbing her by the wrist and trying to pull her along.

"I'm not leaving him behind!" Cadance barked, tears welling up in her eyes. Shining turned around after dispatching another two men and screamed at his wife.

"Get out of here now!"

"I won't leave you!" she screamed, the tears flooding down her face. There was the sound of another arrow loosing from a bowstring followed by blinding pain in her cheek, the skin parting on the area just above her cheek bone and blood beginning to gush out. She screamed in agony before two more arrows were loosed, one going through her thigh and another missing completely. As she fell to the ground, unable to walk, one of the surviving soldiers caught her in mid fall and pulled her up into his arms, sprinting out of the camp with two other soldiers behind him.

"Stop them!" a furious voice boomed from behind them "We've got the prince now bring that bitch back here alive!" Another arrow was loosed and it pierced the neck of the soldier behind Cadance but she was unable to see his body fall to the ground. The sound of heavy breathing mixed with pounding paws was heard alongside them as one of the black wolves threw themselves at another soldier, its powerful jaws closing around his leg and tearing him to the floor.

"Don't look Princess!" the soldier carrying her said as he sprinted, the sounds of the battle fading away but the sound of the pursuing attackers still as loud as ever. Several more arrows were fired but they all missed by a hair's breadth. The pain in Cadance's cheek and leg had taken her mind off all other things, the pain so agonizing and surreal that she was unsure whether it continued to hurt or whether it had stopped only to have it send another wave of agony as she began to ignore it. The soldier carrying her suddenly broke away from their pursuers and into the treeline, approaching a waterfall by the sounds of it.

"Where... where are we..." Cadance attempted, only to discover she hadn't the energy to speak.

"Don't speak Your Majesty, we're going to get out of here" he promised her, the two of them exiting the treeline and running alongside a river that lead to an enormous waterfall that dropped down into a dark cave.

"We're going to escape these monsters and then we'll-" he tried before an arrow pierced the back of his skull, spilling blood onto Cadance's weak body and the two of them began to fall to the ground, sending Cadance flying out of his arms and rolling towards the waterfall. She attempted to stop herself by slamming her hands onto the ground, trying to find some kind of handhold to stop her momentum but this attempt only caused her to tear the skin on her hands and have her once-beautiful dress torn by the sharp rocks surface.

"No!" she screamed as she felt half of her body go over the edge of the cliff, her lungs filling up for a final scream only to have her head slam into the rock and knock her unconscious, her limp body falling like a ragdoll into the mouth of the cave the waterfall entered and plummet into the plunge-pool of the waterfall, however far down it was. Next Chapter: Chapter 2 Estimated time remaining: 12 Minutes