It was a quiet, brisk morning on the knights encampment when Twilight awoke without the feeling of chains on her wrists and ankles but she had a long way to go before being fully recovered. Her horn was still on the mend as were her wings that had been bandaged until her feathers grew back.

"Good morning!" Said a nurse walking in with a tray of food. Twilight looked down to see a fresh stack of pancakes steaming in the morning light with syrup oozing down the side and a tall glass of applejuice next to it, she wasted no time in tasting the food and the flavor was nothing short of amazing. Her meal was slightly interrupted when Shining Armor walked into her tent with a tray of his own and joined her for breakfast.

"Shining Armor!"

"Morning Twily."

The prince seated himself next to his sister before helping cut up her pancakes, the siblings enjoyed each others company even as Shinings men began their morning drills around the camp.

"How do you like the pancakes?" Shining asked to break the silence.

"They're delicious, especially the syrup." Twilight replied while taking a few more bites.

After their breakfast, Twilight stepped outside to stretch her legs and tour the camp when she noticed her friends all together at the camps bonfire in a friendly conversation.

"I'll leave you to catch up with your friends." Shining said as he left to attend to his duties knowing his sister would be safe around her friends.

"Twilight!" Pinkie shouted with a gentle hug to her friend before letting her join them around the campfire.

"Morning girls. So what's everypony up to?" The princess inquired when Applejack told them they were going to take a look around the camp.

"Wanna join us sugarcube? It's been a while since we hung out together."

"I'd love to Applejack."

The friends toured every inch of the camp while being greeted by some of the soldiers, Pinkie of course could not help herself around the new sights and sounds and began zipping around the tents like a school filly in a museum when she heard the clashing of steel coming from a small crowd just outside the camp.

"Ohh! what's going on?" The pink mare asked curiously before spotting Shining Armor sparring with Marshall and Bronze Pommel.

The prince stood still as a statue with his poleax planted in the ground while his opponents stood on opposite sides of him ready to attack.

"Whenever you're ready." Shining said before Marshall came in with an overhead strike while Pommel charged in with her shiled. In the blink of an eye, the prince instantly twirled his weapon off the ground and parried the wardens blade before weaving past Pommels attack and sending both of them to the ground. There was a mix of cheering and laughter as the soldiers and Twilights friends continued to watch and throughout the whole fight, Shining did not activate one ounce of his magic.

"No more! I yield..." Marshall huffed in defeat as the weight of his sword became too much for his arms.

"So do I!" Cried Pommel dropping her weapon and with her surrender the match ended.

"Okay. Who wants to go next?" Shining called to the crowd but no one seemed interested in taking him on after witnessing just how skilled he was with his weapon.

"I'll take ya on!" Called the familiar voice of Wulfric as he and a few of his warriors came marching through the camp. Needless to say, Shining Armor was not very happy to see them.

"What are you doing here Wulfric?" The prince asked spitefully while the vikings began seating themselves wherever they pleased.

"We heard you boys were training and thought we'd join you."

"Is that so?"

"It is."

At first, Shining thought of just telling them to leave but figured he could use this opportunity to learn about their fighting style and weapon skills.

"Alright, you can choose anyone to be your opponent." The prince offered while letting Wulfric decide who would fight him when he gave an unexpected answer.

"I pick...you." The chieftain said with his finger pointed at Shining Armor who seemed surprised.

"You did say Anyone."

"So I did."

Both warriors stepped into the circle ready to fight when Wulfric made a little request to the knights commander.

"How about we do this my way? Three shields for each fighter. if you break all three of your opponents shields, you win."

"Sure, why not?"

Just as agreed, both warriors were given three shields and one sword as they prepared to fight. Wulfric banged his shield twice to show he was ready along with Shining Armor and within seconds the duel started.

"HMM!! RRG!!" The chieftain struck first with an upward swing and slammed his shield against Shining Armors before pushing him back with a barrage of attacks.

Much to Shining Armors surprise, Wulfric was well adept at using a broadsword and his swings had enough force to send the prince staggering back with each blow of his sword ringing like a bell.

"Damn! He's strong..." Shining mumbled to himself before the next swing broke his shield in half and sent him toppling into the mud. The vikings cheered for their chieftain while Shining went to retrieve another shield and could feel that most of his left arm had gone numb from the force of Wulfrics blows.

"Are you alright sire?" Asked the soldier handing him his second shield.

"I'm fine." Shining replied while rubbing the numbness out of his arm. The second time they clashed, Shining Armor was more nimble in his movements and was able to weave past Wulfrics attacks while delivering a few of his own until finally destroying his opponents shield with a powerful strike.

"Pff! Luck." Wulfric scoffed while tossing the broken shield aside. Shining quickly asked his soldiers for some water, having exhausted himself in the second round thanks to the shields weight.

Both fighters began trading blows in no time after Wulfric retrieved his shield and just like in the first round, his blows were powerful and staggering. Shining did his best to avoid any unecessary blocks kept moving in circles around his opponent while striking at his shield.

"What's wrong? Getting tired?" The prince teased after noticing Wulfrics movements had slowed down.

"Oh don't you worry about that!" The chieftain shouted back before unleashing another barrage of strikes that were easily parried by Shining Armors blade. The crowd was eating this up as both sides cheered on for their leaders, even Twilight and her friends were getting into the spirit of things.

"Come on Wulfric! Show em what ya got!" Rainbow Dash shouted over the crowd.

"You can do it Shining!" Yelled Twilight after seeing her brother stand his ground against Wulfrics attacks. The fight seemed to be at a stalemate until both swords came crashing into each other and shattered like glass thus ending the duel before a winner could be decided.

"Well then, I guess that's that." Said Wulfric before tossing the broken sword aside.

"You sure you don't wanna get another sword?" Shining Armor asked when the chieftain gave him a rather odd answer.

"It seems the gods do not wish for us to fight Shining Armor, perhaps another time."

As the vikings returned to their camp, Shining Armor kept his eyes fixed on Wulfric and could not help but feel a small sense of pride now that faced him in a fair fight for it is said you cannot truly know another warriors character unless you have crossed swords with them. It was after that moment, the prince was interrupted by his sister and her friends who came to congratulate him on his match.

"That was amazing!" Pinkie shouted slightly in excitement.

"I'm impressed Shining Armor. I've never seen anyone take a hit like that." Said Applejack who was looking at the dents in the princes shield.

"The way you two were fighting was like out of a video game! So! Awesome!!" Rainbow Dash squealed.

"It was pretty amazing. I've never seen someone fight like him." Shining admitted while looking at his reflection in the broken sword.

"Perhaps he isn't as bad as I thought."

"I know! Let's have a party! That way you guys can get to know each other." The pink mare shouted once again while jumping for joy.

"I think that's a wonderful idea Pinkie." Said Twilight in agreement along with the rest of her friends but Shining wasn't so sure.

"I don't know girls, party might be kind of distracting."

"Don't think of is as a distraction, think of it as a reward. It's a known fact that soldiers throughout history have always held a feast after a great victory." The princess argued using her collective knowledge on military history and at that point, Shining Armor knew he was beat and allowed Twilight and her friends to organize the victory feast while he told his other officers to spread the word.

Pinkie had never been so excited now that she was planning a party for the first time since the stonehooves took over and didn't waste a single second. With the help of Fluttershy and Applejack, she was able to whip up some food for the feast and left the organizing to Twilight who was already arranging the tables and chairs around the camps bonfire with the help of Rainbow Dash.

"All set. This is gonna be sweet!" Dash squealed in anticipation, knowing that a party usually meant cider.

"Now we just need to...." Twilight had suddenly stopped mid sentence when she saw a surprising sight; Wulfric and his vikings were marching up to the camp holding baskets of food and barrels full of ale.

"Applejack said you were planning a feast. Thought we'd help." The chieftain said with a friendly smile as his warriors began spreading food across the tables.

"But...why?" Asked Twilight.

"Call it a friendly gesture. We were going to throw a feast of our own anyway."

Later That Evening

By the time night had fallen, the entire camp was filled with the sounds of laughter and music. The vikings and knights sat next to one another as if they were old friends and began exchanging stories and telling jokes, it was a display of true friendship and one Shining Armor did not expect to see.

"I don't believe it." The prince said in disbelief as he watched the two factions laughing and drinking together. Even the changelings were invited to join in the festivities and among them was Crafty Dodger sipping from a small white bowl near the bonfire.

"What's that stuff?" Wulfric asked as Crafty Dodger offered him a sip with a fair warning.

"Sakè; Rice Wine. It's very strong so be careful."

"Looks like regular water to me." Wulfric replied before taking it all down in one gulp and before he knew it, a strong flavor attacked his tongue and he began sputtering the drink while the others laughed.

"I warned ya." The orochi said while taking a shot of Sakè like it was nothing.

As Wulfric grabbed the nearest mug of ale to wash out the taste he noticed Applejack leaning against a tree, far secluded from the others with a troubled look on her face.

"Something troubling you my friend?" The chieftain asked while taking another sip from his mug.

"I was...just thinking about my family." Applejack admitted while staring out to the horizon.

"I wonder if I'll ever see them again...it's been so long that I can barely remember their faces..."

"We'll find them, I promise." Wulfric said with a smile and a friendly tap to her mug that seemed to cheer her up a bit.

"Mind if I ask where y'all are from?" The farm mare inquired after finally taking a sip from her mug.

"My home is in Valkenheim, a land far to the north. You'd love it there Applejack." Wulfric sighed with nostalgia as he recalled the memories of his homeland.

"In spring, the north wind caresses your face with the gentlest touch and the sun warms your very skin in the morning light. The land is lush and green and full of life, untouched by the modern world." The chieftain could not help but let out a cheerful smile as if he were already there.

"It does sound nice. Maybe one day I'll come visit." Applejack said with a smile of her own.

"Hm. I'd like that."

Once she felt better, Applejack returned with Wulfric to the feast where Shining Armor and the others had been waiting for them.

"Wulfric, I'm glad you're here." The prince said getting a surprised look from the chieftain.

"You are?"

"Yes. I've talked with some of the refugees from your camp and have heard some incredible things so....I wish to thank you." Shining paused for a moment while looking at the warriors surrounding him.

"Before me and my knights came, you and your clan stood up to Dainn and his followers. You gave my people hope and even helped reunite my sister and her friends. At first, I thought you were no different than Dainn Stonehoof and his warriors but now I see I was wrong." The prince paused once again before raising his glass high in the air for a toast.

"To brothers old and brothers new!!"

The soldiers joined Shining Armor in his toast and raised their mugs with a mighty cheer along with Twilight and the others. Now the armies were bound by both honor and friendship in the war against Dainn thanks to the efforts of Princess Twilight and her friends.

End.