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Equestrian Guardian Book 2: Children of The Guardian

by Darklordcomp

Chapters

Chapter 1

The Equestrian Guardian

Children of the Guardian

Chapter 1

13 years later….

David awoke to the sun shining directly in his face.

"Ugh… up with the morning sun again." He grunted as he slipped out of bed.

He shook his head and stretched out his legs. He looked over to the mirror hanging on the side of the room and stared at the stallion muzzle looking back at him. His reflection stared back at him, the silver eyes unblinking as he walked closer.

He slowly put his front right hoof against the mirror to make sure it was really him. Even after being turned into a stallion and marrying Twilight he still couldn't believe that it was really him in the mirror.

"13 years… you'd think I would have worked it through my thick skull by now." He said smiling.

His eyes looked over his stallion form once again. He had not only been giving the gift of a unicorn horn, but he had kept his original hair color. Dark black strands of hair covered his eyes along with a silver streak that passed through it, along with a tail that did the same thing. The strangest thing in his mind was the cutie mark on his dark green flank. It was two crossed swords; One white, one black. They represented his Guardian and Darkness blades.

"Who would have ever thought that being the Guardian would actually be a good cutie mark?" He mumbled as he walked out the door to the room and into the hallway of Canterlot Castle.

He was immediately bombarded by a group of servants that galloped up to him.

"Good Morning Mr. David" they all said happily.

"Good Morning ladies." He said kindly.

They all sighed as he passed by. (Can't help being hot.) He thought as he walked past them and headed down the hallway toward the throne room. As he expected the castle was very quiet at sunrise.

(It's cause everyone's asleep) He thought as he continued to walk.

His eyes looked around at the familiar sights around him. The once white and blue banners that had belonged to Princess Celestia and Luna had been taken down and replaced with bright lavender colored banners that bore Twilight's cutie mark. David sighed at the changes that had occurred in a 13 years' time as his mind flashed back to the past. It had happened only a few weeks after he had married Twilight. Princess Celestia and Luna had stepped off the throne and handed control to Twilight.

It was by their own choice of course, but the true reason was kept a secret from the pony public. Both of them had lost their alicorn powers to bring him back from the dead. Only Twilight had the magical prowess to take the throne in their place. Months were spent training her to raise the sun and the moon on her own. Often her body would not be able to take the stress and she would fall ill, but David was always at her side and got her to push through her pain. Soon after their 6 month anniversary she had mastered raising both the sun and moon and she was crowned Princess Twilight Sparkle.

David had cried at her crowing ceremony but he wasn't alone. All of Ponyville and Canterlot were in attendance and it wasn't just tears for Twi. It was also a farewell to the wonderful princesses that had protected all of them for so long.

Princess Luna fulfilled her long standing dream to marry Captain Bio. He accepted of course and they were happily married. Bio had then tried to retire from the Equestrian Military but David had been able to talk him out of it. He returned to the military but now with the title of: General of Equestria's Armies. He was still David's closet friend and ally whenever he needed advice.

Princess Celestia on the other hand fell in love with Primary Colors the traveling artist. At first this shocked many ponies, but not David. He knew that Primary's attention for detail and love for his work would attract Celestia who loved paintings. They were quietly married a few months after Bio and Luna. This wedding was followed by a surge of budding romances.

Applejack had gotten together with Commander Devin, who then left AJ on a journey across Equestria despite pleas from David and Twilight not to go. Even so he did leave, but he soon returned a year later and he and AJ now ran the farm better than ever.

Fluttershy had gotten together with Blank Canvas the other traveling artist pony and they were happily married.

Rainbow Dash had gone on to join the Wonderbolts and she was quickly made Captain of the team which hadn't surprised David. She made sure to send Twilight and he tickets to all of her shows and they had never missed one.

Pinkie Pie had gone back to running Sugar Cube Corner. She still throws parties but Twilight makes sure to let Pinkie know if she ever needs a party planned and wants it BIG.

Rarity hadn't been able to fulfill her dream of designing for Celstia, but she got the next best thing. Designing for David and Twilight which made her extremely happy, and she made sure to always grace the Princess and her husband with the BEST clothes. She didn't do alone though, Spike had finally gotten through to her and she had taken him on as an apprentice. He didn't know anything about clothes but as he grew older he learned and grew closer to Rarity. They still haven't married but David knew that day would come at some point.

As for he and Twilight they're love and only grew and grew with each passing day, as did Twilight! Since she had become an alicorn it was only natural for her to take on an alicorn's stature. After only a year however she was bigger than David. He hadn't been bothered by it but it did cause him some slight irritation. However Celestia came to the rescue again and had enchanted David with a magic spell that made it so he would always be equal to Twilight in size. This had not only made him happy, but it also gave him the edge in important arguments. Many ponies didn't want to argue with an alicorn sized unicorn that could crush them with one hoof. The biggest shock he had gotten had been from King Gryphonas the leader of the griffins who was SURE he had been dreaming when he saw David.

Gryphonas, along with King Stallonis the leader of the Western Stallions, and King Draconis the leader of the Dragons had aided David in the Eclipse War. The Eclipse War had been the battle against Nightmare Moon's evil spirit, and after the war David created an alliance with the three kings and their lands all merged together. This new land was called the Equestrian Alliance and stood as a shining beacon to free all those oppressed by evil.

However recently the Alliance had suffered a horrible loss, King Draconis had died of old age. There had been a massive ceremony honoring the fallen hero in Ponyville and David had dedicated a statue of his fallen ally in Canterlot. What hurt him the most was that Draconis had not lived long enough to see the dragons receive the land that David had promised them. When David did give them the land Draconis's son Dragos made a vow that the land would always be dragon. As time passed the leaders of the land changed.

King Gryphos was now a strong, wise leader who always voiced his opinion. Stallonis had become quieter but always spoke up when he disagreed. King Dragos had a fiery temper, but he was extremely loyal to David when it came to discussions. The leaders always met every year to discuss things. It always made David smile to see the golden griffin, the black stallion, and the massive red and black dragon that he called his friends.

Many anti-David ponies believed that David was the one leading Equestria since he was always the one making decisions at the alliance meetings. He denied these claims completely, he did lead the alliance debates but when it came to Equestrian policy Twilight always had the final say.

Twilight…

David's mind drifted as he thought of the beautiful mare that he had married. She had always been a book worm when she was younger but he had been amazed at how fast she grew up once she was made Princess. She had grown so mature in such a short period of time that he was sure she was Celestia in disguise. His mind returned to the present as he opened the door to the throne room and walked inside.

"You're up early David." Twilight's voice said cheerfully as he entered.

"Yeah well it's kinda hard to sleep when the sun basically rises in your face!" He said jokingly.

Twilight laughed as David walked up the steps and sat next to her. He looked at the beautiful face of the Princess he loved sitting on her throne. Her long hair didn't flow freely like Celestia's but it was still long enough to show off its beauty to any who saw it. Her lavender body and eyes were reflected beautifully in the rising sun. The royal crown and plate hung on her head and body as she sat facing the entrance to the throne room.

"What are you looking at?" She said playfully as one of her wings brushed David's muzzle. "See something you like?"

"I like everything about the mare next to me." He replied. Twilight giggled and levitated a scroll up to her that a servant had delivered. "Well let's see… nothing important on the schedule today…" She said quietly as the scroll levitated in front of her, glowing from her magic holding it up. "Oh wait… you're supposed to visit the Canterlot Military Academy today at noon." She said rolling the scroll up.

David groaned, he ALWAYS had to visit Military Academies across Equestria. Stallions hoping to join the military needed to learn from the best, and who was better than the Guardian? "I HATE going to those academies." David grunted.

"I thought you told me you loved talking about your battles and tactics." Twilight said playfully scolding him for lying to her.

"I DID like doing it. Now it's just so repetitive. It's go in, introduce yourself, talk about a battle, answer questions, and then leave. I don't see why Bio can't go to these." He sighed.

Twilight's wing reached out and picked his head up. "Please go to this one. For me?" She said batting her eyelashes at him.

"Oh fine." David said kissing her cheek "But only cause you asked nicely" he said. They both laughed. David knew that a little laugh always made Twilight feel happy, after all the stress she had to go through she needed every bit of fun she could get.

A sudden noise caught David's attention as a guard pony galloped in at full speed. "Your Majesty, Guardian... I have news for you." The soldier gasped as he bowed before them. "Speak man!" David said as the stallion rose. "You're children are arguing again and it's beginning to get violent." The stallion said quickly.

David rose and dashed past the stallion and ran toward the gardens. If the children were getting violent, then it wouldn't be long before the spells started flying and if that happened… David shook his head at the thought as he dashed past servants and royal guards. (Please kids… keep yourselves under control until I get there.)

Chapter 2

Children of the Guardian

Chap 2

The images of the royal garden spun around and around as her head pounded.

Sunlight Flash struggled back onto all four of her legs after getting knocked to the ground by her brother.

"Enough Sunlight…One of is gonna get hurt." Her brother Midnight Eclipse said looking at her and shaking his head shamefully.

Midnight was a tall, strong, well-toned alicorn. His coat was a majestic dark blue like the night sky, and was only further darkened by his black hair. (He got that from Dad) She thought as she stood up and faced him. She stared into the deep silver eyes that continued to stare a hole through her. Unable to compete with his cold stare her eyes fell down upon his cutie mark. A black starless sky with a full silver moon illuminating it. She always loved how it looked EXACTLY like the sky on a clear night.

At the moment however she was more focused on kicking her brother's flank than admiring how handsome he kept himself.

"The only pony getting hurt today is YOU!!" She roared as she charged at him.

She ran full speed dropping her horn forward meaning to impale him but she only got a few steps until she noticed she couldn't feel the ground anymore. She looked down to see that she was surrounded by a grayish/white aura that was holding her in the air.

"How many times are you gonna keep doing this sis?" Her brother said as his horn glowed and he walked around her out of reach of her hooves so she couldn't hit him.

"You're never gonna be able to beat your older brother." He said as he gently tossed her back to where she started a few feet back. Sunlight stumbled a bit, but before she hit the ground she was caught and sat back up by a yellow pony with a small white hat.

"You okay Flash?" The pony asked concerned.

"I'm fine Flame thanks."

The pony smiled and turned toward Midnight with gritted teeth. "You need to back off!! Your sister can make her own decisions!" She barked.

Sunlight looked over her friend Saturated Flame. She was a brightish yellow with beautiful velvet red hair. She had braided that hair into a LONG pony tail that nearly reached the ground and was held together by a bright purple ribbon. Her bright brown eyes burned with a fire equal to Midnight's as they stared at each other. Sunlight was jealous of Flame's burning courage and fiery personality. She hated conflict… the only person she ever argued with was her brother and that was it. Not Flame… she argued with EVERYPONY if she disagreed, and she DEFINITLY disagreed with Midnight.

"I'm not stopping her from making decisions... I'm merely being a guide for her." Midnight retorted.

Sunlight watched Flame's wings flash up in anger and then lower again. "A GUIDE?? You told one of her classmates to beat it!!" She said angrily.

Flame may have only been 13(The same age as Sunlight) but she had the inner fire of a 16 year old like Midnight.

"I SAW him touch her flank!!" Midnight roared.

"It was an accident!!!!" Sunlight roared back as she stomped her hoof.

As she did her white and gold mane turned a bright fire like red and orange. Sunlight had a rare magic that her mane glowed red hot when she was angry, and right now she was furious! Her mane hovered and jumped like sparks from a fire as she and her best friend stared down her brother. She felt the hot blood flowing through her white coat and bright lavender eyes as her horn started glowing and fire ball appeared on the end of it. Unlike Midnight who could only use his magic for basic tasks, Sunlight was a magic prodigy. She had already mastered her first fire spell at the age of 4, and conjuring a fire ball was easy for her.

"Stop both of you!!!!" A voice called out as she nearly finished the spell.

A tall white Pegasus ran in front of Midnight and shielded his body from Sunlight. Sunlight recognized her immediately.

"Get out of the way Brushie!!" Midnight pleaded as he tried to move her.

"Brushie" was the nickname that Midnight had given his girlfriend Celestial Brush. She was the daughter of Princess Celestia and Primary Colors, and both of her parents traits had been inherited by her. She had her mother's burning love and sympathy for others, and her father's patience and hatred of conflict. She stood in front of Midnight her red and gold mane constantly changing colors like the sun and flowing freely without a breeze, just like Celestia's. Her light blue eyes were slightly dimmed by the glasses on her face but her gritted teeth showed her determination not to move. Sunlight looked at the cutie mark that she always found interesting on Brushie's flank. It was a picture of a half sun and half-moon being painted with a paint brush.

A symbol of her mother's "Former" role and her father's profession.

"You're not touching him! You hear me!" She screamed as her red and green plaid scarf fluttered in the wind. Sunlight had always thought that her scarf had looked pretty, but right now the only thing she cared about was showing her brother a thing or two.

"Brushie move!!" Midnight said as he gently pushed her aside.

"I don't need you fighting my battles for me." He said as he faced down his sister.

"Nobody should be fighting any battles in this castle to begin with!" A strong voice rang out. All 4 of the teens looked up to see David standing at the top of the stairs that lead into the castle.

David slowly walked down the steps toward the 4 teens whose expressions were ones of shock and fear. Sunlight's mane and fire ball faded instantly and returned to their normal colors as she staggered backwards.

"What's going on here?" He said as he looked at all of them.

All 4 remained silent as he stared at each of them.

"All right here's what's gonna happen. Sunlight, Midnight you're rooms NOW!" He barked.

"BUT DAD!!!"

"NOW!!!!!" He roared raising his voice.

Both of his children bolted past him and up the stairs leaving only Saturated Flame and Celestial Brush in the garden with him.

"Saturated I need you to go home." He said gently.

"Yes sir." The yellow mare responded as a pair of guards arrived and took her away.

"Celestial… I need YOU to explain what happened here." He said sighing as he rubbed his head in embarrassment.

"Yes sir." She responded as she sat down on the nearby fountain. David paced back and forth as he motioned for her to begin.

"It all started when Sunlight brought a friend of hers home from class. He was a nice colt, I don't remember his name but while they were talking he accidently bumped up against her flank and Midnight kind of… freaked out." She sighed.

David once again rubbed his temples with his hooves. Midnight did have a problem of overreacting at the slightest things. He motioned at Celestial to continue.

"They started arguing after Midnight chased the boy off and Saturated Flame and I tried to stop it, but…" She stopped short and David motioned for her to stop.

"I get the picture Celestial, I'll talk to the two of them about this. You better head home." He said calmly. Celestial bowed and spread her wings.

"Hey tell your dad to write me a letter for Celestia's sake! It gets REALLY boring here if you can't talk to a friend." He called as she took off.

"You got it! Later!!" She called as she flew off.

David sighed and turned back toward the castle. Now came the tough part of being a father… getting two different stories and trying to determine who was telling the truth.

Chapter 3

Children of The Guardian

Chap 3

David slowly climbed the stairs to where his children's rooms were. In the 13 years since they had been born he had memorized the route from his room to theirs. As he climbed the stairs his mind began to recall the days when they both had been born. It had been a rainy April afternoon when Midnight Eclipse had been born.

Almost everyone had been there to see it. AJ and Devin had brought homemade apple baby food which David thanked them for. Rarity had prepared a very soft and comfortable baby blanket which had "Midnight Eclipse: Child of the Guardian and his Princess" embroidered into it. Fluttershy had brought a stuffed animal that she gave to Midnight as soon as he opened his little eyes. It had been a tiny little rabbit doll that she said was a present from her parents and that it meant a lot to her. David had been amazed that she gave up something so precious. Rainbow Dash had brought a signed picture of herself which she claimed would someday be worth tons of money. It had been a cheesy gift, but it was a gift none the less. Pinkie had thrown the biggest baby shower anyone had ever seen a few days earlier and she was so tired that she wasn't able to make it. Pinkie Pie… TIRED. The thought still made David laugh whenever he thought about it.

His reminiscing ended however when he noticed that he passed right by Midnight's room and had stopped at Sunlight's.

"Well… I guess I'll get her side of the story first." He said as he opened the door to her room.

The first thing he noticed was that Sunlight was on her round sun colored bed; face down crying her eyes out.

(Great… this is not gonna be easy) He thought as he lay next to her on the bed and lifted her head up with his hoof.

"You wanna tell me what happened?" He said gently.

Sunlight only stared at him before her tears built up again and she threw her face against her father's body and stared crying again. David said nothing but merely stroked her mane with his hooves while she cried. As he did he took the opportunity to look around his daughter's room. As his gaze passed over different items, from the Sun shaped rug, to the giant wardrobe which contained dozens of dresses (All designed by Rarity) his eyes fell on a small picture that was attached to her nightstand. He levitated it over with his magic and noticed that it was a drawing of their whole family.

It was drawn in crayon and had 4 ponies on it. One Lavender, one green, one purple, and one white. His eyes then noticed under each pony was a name. "Mommi, Dady, Midneight, Me."

(I remember now… she drew this for me when she was 5.) David thought as he slid the picture into his cloak that was draped over his body.

(I'm been busy with Royal work and the Alliance that I haven't been spending ANY time with them.) He cursed himself for acting that way. (I promised myself when they were born that THEY would come first.) He said as noticed that the crying had stopped.

Sunlight dried her eyes and looked up at him. "Dad…" was all she said before David put his hoof to her lips. "Shhh… I want you to tell me what happened okay? You're not in trouble; I just want to hear your side of things." He said as he sat her up next to him. Sunlight sniffed and started talking.

"It happened after school… I met this really nice boy…"

"What was his name?" David interrupted.

"His name was Kuni." Sunlight answered rubbing her eyes. David knew that Kuni was the son of AJ and Devin; he made a mental note to go apologize to them for Midnight's rude behavior to their son.

"I invited him back to the castle so he could see the garden, he told me he liked flowers so I thought it would be a good idea to show him the royal garden and let him look at all the really pretty flowers we have."

She sniffed as David nodded his head. That was just like Sunlight, she always put others first even when she should have been thinking of herself. He remembered on her 8th birthday she had given her best gift to a poor filly that had nothing to call her own. The filly's family had gone and sold the gift for food and clothing, but Sunlight had made somepony happy and that was all that mattered to her. His thoughts flashed back to the present as she resumed her story. "While we were sniffing the flowers, I sneezed and Kuni put his hoof on my back asking if I was okay. I said I was and then a bee landed on my flank… and… Kuni…" She stuttered trying to get the words out.

"He slapped your flank to kill it didn't he?" David asked.

Sunlight nodded her head. "I gasped in shock when he did and he told me what happened, but before I could say something Midnight came charging over and knocked Kuni to the ground. He started yelling at him, telling him that he was foolish to touch my flank when he was around."

Sunlight's voice suddenly grew angry. "I TRIED to explain what happened but Midnight ignored me, that's when I jumped on top of his back and told Kuni to run. He did and Midnight threw me off and onto the ground." She finished as she wiped her eyes one last time. David sighed as he absorbed her story.

Midnight ALWAYS had a problem of overacting to the smallest things. He knew that he was partially to blame for that since he had made Midnight promise at his 10th birthday that he would watch over his sister and never let anything happen to her. He had meant for Midnight to be to Sunlight what he was to Twilight. A guardian and advisor, but of course Midnight turned the dial past 11.

"Dad I'm sorry for losing my temper…" Sunlight sighed as she lay back against the pillows on her bed. "I know sweetie. I know you were just trying to protect a friend. You're not in trouble so you can leave your room now." He said smiling. The sparkle suddenly returned to her eyes as she jumped up and trotted to the door, but she stopped as she opened it.

"Hey Dad I'm having some trouble with my homework. Do you think you could help me with it later?" She asked.

"Sure I can. We'll do it as soon as I get back from the Military Academy today all right?" He said happily.

"Okay Dad. Don't burn yourself out at that meeting okay?" She said jokingly as she shut the door to her room.

"Yeah… don't burn myself out." He sighed as he got off her bed and exited her room.

(You need to spend more time with her you idiot. Make time if you have too, but spend time with her.) His mind scolded him. He continued to think of ways to spend time with his daughter as he opened the door to his son's room.

His eyes were assaulted by the exact opposites that both of his children's rooms were. Whereas Sunlight's room was bright and colorful, Midnight's room was dark and mysterious. It made sense though, Midnight preferred the night to the day. David turned to see his son playing with a chess board that he had enchanted so the opposing pieces would play against him even without another player. His son looked up from the board right as the opposing pieces knocked his king off the board.

"Checkmate" David said as he sat on Midnight's dark blue and silver bed.

"Father I…" Midnight started as he looked up but David put his hoof up telling him to stop.

"Midnight how many times do I have to tell you NOT to overreact to everything you see?" he started.

Midnight tried to speak but closed his mouth when David turned and glared at him.

"You and your sister will one day share the rule of Equestria, and being the oldest you will be in charge of all political decisions. How do you expect me to trust that you will be able to handle those responsibilities if you overreact to everything?" He asked looking at his son.

"Father you know that I can handle political decisions!" Midnight protested. David sighed and looked around his son's room. It reminded him of his own room back on Earth when he was 13. There was a small brown desk in the corner where Midnight studied and did his homework. Across the room from the desk was a bookshelf filled with Equestrian history books and biographies of famous military and political figures. David saw in those books a form of himself. Sunlight had inherited Twilight's love for magic and knowledge, but Midnight had inherited David's love of history, battle, and tactics. It was that love and burning loyalty for Equestria that made him see so much potential in his son.

"Yes Midnight I know you can… but if you can't show the control and maturity that comes with that position then I can't give you that power." He sighed. He expected further argument from Midnight, but instead all he heard was a sigh and the creaking of a bed post as he sat on his bed.

"Father all I want to do is keep Sunlight safe like you wanted." He said quietly.

David walked over and put his hoof over his son's shoulders. "I know… but you need to understand that your sister is an alicorn just like you. She may be 10, but don't forget that she has more skill with magic than you do and she's a force to be reckoned with. Who knows… she may end up saving YOU someday."

He joked rubbing his son's mane. Midnight turned and smiled at him as he nodded.

"Alright look… I'm letting you off easy this time. You're not in trouble now… but if you do something like this again, I will punish you. Understand?" He said sternly.

"Yes Sir." Midnight answered. "Good… Now get going, you have combat practice with General Bio today don't you?"

Midnight's eyes shot open as he realized that David was right.

"Oh hayfeathers I do!! Thanks Dad!!!" He cried as he ran out the door.

David laughed and walked out of his son's room and walked toward the main area of the castle. "Sir the chariot to take you to the Canterlot Military Academy has arrived!" A guard said as he rushed up to him.

"Thank you for informing me. Please let Princess Sparkle know that I am departing." He said kindly.

The guard snapped a salute and walked toward the throne room. David turned the opposite direction and headed toward his and Twilight's room. Once there he opened his wardrobe to see his armor and swords set up on a rack waiting for him.

"Alright…" He said as he touched his armor and felt the warmth run through his hoof as it magically teleported itself onto his body. "Let's do this." He quickly grabbed his swords from their resting places and attached them to the sides of his armor. As he was standing up he heard the door open behind him. He turned to see Twilight standing directly behind him smiling from ear to ear.

"I never get tired of seeing you in that armor." She said as she ran her hoof through David's hair.

"It always makes me think of the day when you saved me from Nightmare's castle."

She slowly leaned and kissed his cheek. The warmth of her breath and tongue made David's heart soar. "I thought I would see you off before you left. Have fun, but be back before three okay? Sunlight really needs some help with her homework." She finished as she straightened his mane and adjusted his swords so they hung correctly.

"Thanks Twi, for everything." David said as he closed his eyes and let his wind powers swirl around him, and teleport him away to the chariot platform.

Chapter 4

Children of the Guardian

Chap 4

David slowly opened his eyes as the feeling of rushing wind from his teleportation spell faded. Only to be replaced by a scorching hot feeling running over his body. He looked up to see the sun directly above him, sending rays of heat down on top of him. (Of course the day I choose to wear my armor is the day it's hot as hell.) He thought as he walked toward the military academy.

The academy itself reminded him a lot of a large college campus. It was open and covered in different buildings where the students had to go to take other classes. The academy itself was shaped like a V with the open end facing David. It was 3 stories tall and at the end of each point of the V there were two chimneys. The main entrance into the academy was also part of a large tower that appeared to be 4 stories tall, and was connected to the main building itself. As he approached David noticed the large letters hanging over the entrance.

"CANTERLOT MILITARY ACADEMY: Shaping the leaders of tomorrow." David read as he looked up at the words that were being flanked by two very large statues of soldiers in battle armor. As he continued to study the words and building under the statues unflinching stone gaze he suddenly felt something hit him upside the head and splat against him.

"OW! Who threw that!!??" He yelled wiping the side of his head clean from the egg that hat hit him as he looked around trying to find out who had thrown it. He suddenly spotted movement to his left behind some bushes, and with a flick of his left hoof the bush was torn up from its revealing two large earth pony stallions. The stallion's eyes grew wide with fear when they noticed that their hiding place had vanished. David slowly walked down the steps of the academy and headed toward them. The stallions began whispering to one another as he grew closer and suddenly smiled and met David in the middle of the grass between the bush's former position and the stairs.

"Gotta admit… you're pretty tough for a unicorn." One of the stallions said smirking. David cast his gaze over both of the stallions. They were both equal in size maybe a few feet taller than Big Macintosh back on Sweet Apple Acres. (Only difference is that these two don't have brains) David thought as he continued to watch them walk around him, keeping him pinned between them. One stallion was a dirty black, and the second was a pale brown. They both had blue eyes and black manes so David assumed they were brothers.

"You know we don't like seeing unicorn stallions showing up here and thinking they own the place!" The pale brown stallion said spitting at David's hooves.  

"Yeah so why don't you just run on home with your magic before we hurt you." The black stallion said cracking his hooves. Normally David would ignore fights like this and move on, but these two were really starting to piss him off.

"Why don't YOU two get back to class before I kick you there myself?" David said quietly as he slowly slid into a fighting stance. Both of the stallions suddenly grew angry and advanced on him. The black stallion threw a punch but David stepped out of the way and kicked the stallion in his chest while simultaneously grabbing the other stallion's arm and flipping him over front hooves with a quick jerk. Both of the stallions lay on the ground in agony as David brushed himself off and walked back toward the entrance where he saw a pegasus pony in a green uniform waiting for him. The uniformed pony snapped a salute as David reached the top of the stairs.

"Thank you for coming Guardian. I'm Major Lighting Strike head of the pegasus air training program." He said as he shook David's hoof.

"It was my pleasure Major. I understand you have a class you would like me to talk too."

"Indeed I do sir, but first…" The pegasus turned toward the stallions that were now getting back on their feet. "YOU TWO BETTER GET YOUR FLANKS IN GEAR, OR I'LL HAVE YOU ON KP DUTY FOR TWO MONTHS!!! NOW MOVE!!!" The pegasus roared as the stallions jumped up and ran. David was surprised at this aging pony's display. Lightning strike was a tall red pegasus with a black mane that looked slightly gray. His muzzle displayed signs of age as it was covered in minor wrinkles, but David knew that just because he looked old didn't mean he couldn't kick butt if he had too. The aging trainer turned and cracked his back as he looked at David.

"I'm getting to old for this Guardian. You want to trade jobs?" He asked jokingly as he led David inside.

"Trust me Major having my job will only make you age faster." David smiled as the pegasus laughed. "Well then I guess I'll just stay here a little longer." He said sarcastically. Lightning Strike leads David down hall after hall of the building. Each hall was lined with pictures and statues.

"On your left are statues of famous leaders in Equestrian History, and on your right are pictures of famous battles." He said as they walked. David was amazed at the statues and artwork, he was even more impressed when saw a statue of himself! It was a statue that had been carved out of marble and was an image of him in full armor standing at attention. He was amazed at the detail that had gone into creating this image of him; it was perfect down to the last detail, from the carvings on the hilts of his sword hilts to the designs on his armor.

"That's nothing. Take a look right there." Lightning said pointing at two large paintings that hung on either side of the statue. The picture on the left was an oil painting of the battle of Manehattan where the Guardian Army had one its first battle of the Eclipse War. It depicted David in his human form leading a charge down a hill into an oncoming enemy. Memories of that fateful day flooded back into David's mind as images of clashing swords and the sounds of battle cries reverberated through his head.

"Manehattan… My first command." He whispered as he stared at the painting.

"The other painting is The Battle of Canterlot Mountain." Lightning Strike said. David shuddered at the name of that battle. Canterlot Mountain had been the climactic battle of the Eclipse War. He had gathered an army of dragons, griffins, and stallions that totaled 11,000. They had been outnumbered nearly 3 to 1 but Devin (David's commander) had been successful in drawing up a successful battle plan. The Guardian Army swept the Eclipse Army from the field in a decisive stroke but David was not there to witness it. He had gone into the castle to challenge Nightmare Sol and did not see the great victory the army had achieved.

"Guardian… we need to keep moving or you'll be late." Lighting Strike's voice brought David back to his senses as he shook his head and began following the red pegasus again. As he followed Lighting even farther into the academy he noticed rooms marked with different titles. Rooms with the words; "Training Room", "Tactics 101", and "Strategy" passed through his vision as he continued to walk through the unfamiliar academy.

"I need to talk to you about those two stallions who hit you with that egg." Lightning said suddenly.

"You need to understand that earth ponies don't really like unicorns at this academy."

"Why's that?" David asked. "Most unicorns reach officer ranks and end up commanding the earth ponies in practice battles and training exercises."

"So?"

"So… a deep rift has developed between the two types. They HATE each other and are always trying to prove whose better in war. That's why those two threw that egg at you; they were hoping to scare off another "recruit"." Lightning said shaking his head. David frowned.

"That's pretty pathetic if they have to result to tricks and harassment to make themselves feel good. If I were you I would've put my foot in their flanks and told them to straighten up." He growled.

"We've tried that… but it never works. Anyway let's change the subject." He coughed.

"Sure. What kind of class am I talking to today?" David asked.

"You're going to be given a lecture on warfare to our top class. It's mostly unicorns and earth ponies so good luck." David rolled his eyes.

"I'm not scared of a bunch of idiots who can't tell their allies from their enemies." He said as they approached a large brown door.

"Good. This is the lecture hall, you're lecture is from Noon to three." Lightning said as he opened the door. "Go get em!" He whispered as he shut the door leaving David in a massive class room. Maps lined the walls, along with pictures of famous battles. What caught his attention immediately was how many stallions were in the room itself. It looked like there were at least 200 of them. The left half of the room was filled with earth ponies wearing black uniforms. The right half was filled with unicorns in brown uniforms, with a small number of pegasi in green uniforms in the middle. The noise was deafening as David walked toward a small podium that faced all the ponies. He slowly walked toward the podium and noticed out of the corner of his eye the two who had egged him. They were too distracted to notice him.

(You'll notice this.) David thought as he pulled his pistol from his armor and fired a shot into the air. Everypony in the room jumped and looked toward the podium where the sound had come from.

"Good Afternoon." David started. "I am David Arman the Guardian of Equestria, though I'm sure you already knew that." He said calmly as he looked at the serious expressions on the faces of the soldiers.

"Before I begin I would like to say something. I have seen MANY armies and soldiers in my time. Not just on my planet of Earth, but here on Equestria as well. However…" David stopped and glared at all of them.

"This academy has been the BIGGEST disappointment of them all." He said harshly. The soldiers all turned and began mumbling to each other. Some of them glared at David with hatred, but he was about to call them out.

"A unit in ANY army must have compatibility with the rest of its troops. I have seen that everywhere but here. No… All I see here is a bunch of brain dead, slack jawed, blank flanks who believe they should spend their time arguing over who's better than the other." David noticed that those words had gotten through to the class.

"I'm gonna let you in on a secret. In an army… NO unit is better than the other. In fact if they don't work together, every unit is worthless to a general!!" He shouted.

"A general needs to focus on commanding his army, and must pay attention to the battle at all times. The last thing he needs is a bunch of big headed earth ponies…"

The unicorns chuckled at this insult.

"And a pack of stuck up unicorns distracting him." David barked. It was then time for the earth ponies to laugh. David slammed his hoof on the podium reducing it to rubble.

"SHUT UP!!!!!!" He roared at the top of his lungs. The room was completely quiet. "I suggest all of you get your act together and pay attention. Now then… let's get this lecture started."

Chapter 5

Children of the Guardian Chap5

by ~Sunjian54

Children of the Guardian

Chap 5

"All warfare is based on DECEPTION." David said as he paced back in forth in front of the military students.

"Achieving a crushing victory is not a true sign of victory. True victory is winning a war without picking up a sword." He said turning toward them. All of the students exchanged glances.

"You think I'm crazy don't you?" David joked. "Well I'm not. That's the way a smart general or leader fights wars. He never lets the wars happen. Every leader cares enough for his people that he won't endanger their lives in a war. As soldiers of the Equestrian military it's your job to make sure of that. In your hooves are the lives of your loved ones and families."

He turned and picked up a piece of chalk with his magic. "But this is a military school. So let's look at some tools you can use if you have to fight." He turned and wrote on the board, "Battlefield Essentials".

"Now then can anyone name any battlefield essential?" He asked looking at the stallions in the classroom. They all just stared blankly at him hoping he would give them the answer. David sighed.

"This…? Is the top class here at this academy? THESE…? Are the soldiers whose hooves hold the fate of the Equestrian Alliance?" He asked sarcastically. He was about to say something else when a sudden noise caught his attention. It sounded like a heartbeat at first, but as he focused on it the noise became a rhythm.

(Music?) David thought. (Where is it coming from?) He began scanning the faces of all the ponies in the room, looking for some clue that would give them away. He didn't have to look far. His gaze quickly fell on a pure white pegasus on the top row, eyes closed, bobbing his head to music that was bursting out of his headphones.

David placed the chalk back on the tray and began walking up the stairs to the row where the pegasus was. His anger was rushing through him like boiling water, his eyes burned with a blazing fury. He walked down the row of seats until he was directly in front of the pegasus, who was still bobbing his head and smiling, oblivious to what was going on. David reached forward and tapped the pony's head.

"Hey man what's the big idea-a-a-a…" The pony stuttered when he saw David in front of him.

"Good song?" David asked flashing an evil smile.

"Yes sir, UH I mean NO sir!" The stallion said as he took his head phones off and set up in his seat.

"What's your name soldier?" David growled looking into the pegasus's neon green eyes.

"White Noise sir. 5th battalion Radio op." The stallion said shaking. David began looking over the stallion as he talked to him.

"Well listen here White Noise. I don't care if you're a Radio pony I want you out of that seat and down in front of this lecture NOW!" He barked.

"YES SIR!" White Noise quickly jumped out of his seat and ran down to the front of the class.

"I see that there are some of you, who think this is a joke." David said as he walked back down the stairs. "But because none of you seem capable of telling your flank from your muzzles Corporal White Noise here is gonna give me a hand." He said as he walked up next to the white pony.

"Alright corporal, name one of the battlefield essentials." David growled as he looked at the pony. He was a pure white with a small scar across his nose directly under his neon green eyes. His hair and tail were pitch black but had a red streak running through them. His cutie mark was a black music note being drawn by a pencil. What made David the angriest about him however was that he had a neon blue earring in his left ear.

(He doesn't even look like a soldier) He thought angrily. "Well?" He said glaring at White Noise. The pegasus just continued staring at the board. "That's what I thought…" David sighed as he turned back toward the class.

"It's obvious to me that NONE of you have a clue about anything. I now know that it was a waste of my time to come here. I…" before he could continue he turned to see White Noise, headphones in his ears, writing on the board. At first David was annoyed that the pegasus was still listening to music, but the anger faded when he saw what the pegasus had written on the board. Underneath "Battlefield Essentials" was a list of essentials that he had been waiting for.

White Noise put the chalk down and turned toward David with a huge smile. "Is this enough sir?" He asked grinning from ear to ear. David looked over what he had written.

"Terrain, Intel, Supply, Leadership, Health, Strategy, Morale." He said to himself as he ran a hoof alongside the word.

"Yes this is more than enough White Noise. You can take your seat." He whispered. White Noise nodded and returned to his seat music still playing in his ears. (This is amazing…How could it be… that he could know all of these. He's a musician… not a soldier.) David thought as he continued to stare at the board. As he did however a sudden realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

(I was judging a book by its cover.) He thought as he looked back up at the pegasus who had returned to his seat. (He may not look it, but he has the mind of a true leader.) David shook his head and turned back toward the class.

"Everything White Noise has listed up here is correct, but now let me explain it to you. First on the list is terrain. Does anyone have any idea what that means?" He asked. David looked around and saw no hooves in the air except one.

"Yes White Noise?" He said pointing to at the pegasus.

"Terrain is knowing the lay of the land and using it to your advantage sir."

"Correct, and what kind of terrain does a good leader want?"

"A good commander wants the ground that benefits him, but hurts his enemy sir." White Noise said proudly.

"Correct White Noise any good commander picks the battleground himself so he can use it against his enemy." David finished as he checked off terrain on the board.

"Next is intelligence, can anyone give me an idea of what that means?" One of the stallions who had egged David put his hoof up.

"How smart your men are sir." He said confidently. David laughed as he walked up to the stallion.

"WRONG!!!!!" He roared at the stallion. David's voice echoed throughout the whole room, this was mainly because he had learned how to use the Royal Canterlot Voice from Twilight. His voice was so loud that it knocked over a few stands and students.

"That is incorrect. Anypony else have an idea?" He asked calmly. Once again White Noise put his hoof up.

"White Noise?"

"Intel is the information you have on the enemy, his intentions, and his forces SIR!"

"Correct again. White Noise is putting you ALL to shame." David said as he walked back up to the board and checked off Intel on the board.

"Since none of you seem capable of answering any of these. White Noise please enlighten the rest of the class to the meanings of the other essentials." David commanded.

"Yes Sir! Supply is the amount of food and materials you and your enemy have during the battle. A successful officer will have double the amount of supplies he thinks he needs.

Leadership is the understanding of how you're soldiers look up to their leader and if they will follow his orders, it also applies to understanding the temperament of the enemy leader.

Health is the overall wellness of your soldiers.

Strategy is the essential of being able to carry plans that will defeat your enemy with the lowest loss of life on your side, and the greatest loss on your enemies.

Finally Morale is the spirit that your soldiers possess. Soldiers that are strong in the cause will fight harder SIR!!"

White Noise concluded as he collapsed back into his seat. David nodded and smiled.

"He is correct on all accounts. I'm very impressed." He finished just as the bell rang to dismiss the class.

"Thank you all for coming to this lecture, now go eat and come back ready to learn." The scraping of chairs as the students left was followed by the conversations of what lunch was going to be. David turned and began to pack up his things until he suddenly felt a presence behind him.

"Thanks a lot for the lecture sir." David turned to see White Noise grinning ear to ear, headphones still pounding away.

"You're welcome, but why is a music pony like you in a military academy?" David asked confused.

White Noise took his headphones out of his ears and sighed. "I was in music school but then the war started and the school was destroyed. The only thing my parents could afford was military school so here I am."

David cursed under his breath. Yet another pony whose life had been ruined by the war. "Are you happy here?" He asked upset.

"Oh yeah I love it here, but I do miss music school Mr. Guardian. Anyway thank you again for the lecture." White Noise then turned and walked toward the door.

(Don't let him go. Think… what about Vinyl Scratch!) David's mind screamed at him.

"White Noise wait, what if I pulled some strings and got you an apprenticeship under Vinyl Scratch? Would you like that?" White's eyes got as big as his head would allow and leaped back toward David.

"YES!! YES I WOULD LOVE THAT!!!" He continued hugging David as he continuously thanked him.

"Okay then that's what we'll do. Come on let's go." As David led White Noise out of the academy he realized something very important. It didn't matter if the entire head class was idiots, because the one genius who knew anything was walking alongside him.

Chapter 6

Children of the Guardian Chap 6

by ~Sunjian54

Children of the Guardian

Chap 6

David had been correct in thinking that White Noise and Vinyl Scratch would make a great team. As soon as he had introduced White to Vinyl they both started talking full speed ahead about music and turntable style. It was all way over David's head so he excused himself as they both continued to talk.

"That was a nice thing you did David." A voice emanated.

"I know Solaris, but I kinda felt responsible for what happened to him. After all, the war did destroy his music school." David said answering the voice.

A soft light glowed from the Guardian blade around David's body as the form of an alicorn appeared beside him.

"Sorry to show up unannounced but I need to stretch my wings." The alicorn said as he took to the skies and then landed back down beside David.

"It's alright Solaris, I know it's been a while since you and I talked." David said as he began to walk through Ponyville.  The town itself was still bustling with activity even though it was only 1:00 in the afternoon.

"It has been a while my friend. How are you?" Solaris asked as he walked along beside the Guardian. David sighed and smiled.

"Things have been… different."

"Different good? Or different bad?" Solaris asked smiling.

David smiled and looked into the mighty alicorn's green eyes. He had always been amazed with Solaris and the way he looked. Solaris was just as tall as Celestia, but he was a bright white with a long gold tail and mane. His cutie mark was an image of the sun over a planet that represented Equestria. Besides his green eyes however Solaris also wore armor like David. It was jet black with streaks of silver. The designs across it were images of the sun and vast expanses of what looked to be stars and universes. What was even more amazing however was that the armor was almost alive! The galaxies and stars moved and shifted, comets shot by. It was if Solaris had taken a piece of space and formed it into a suit of armor to wear.

"Different good. I always wanted to see this world and peace; I'm finally getting that chance."

David said as he and Solaris walked by the mayor's office.

"But you miss the old days don't you?" Solaris said suddenly. David thought about that.

"I guess I do a little. I don't miss the war and the destruction it brought on the innocent, but I do miss the action and the adrenaline. Is that wrong in your eyes?" He asked the mighty god.

Solaris laughed, "Of course not. You're a human, you humans love the… how do you say it… Adrenaline Rush that comes from those types of events. I kinda miss it myself as well."

"You DO???" David asked confused.

"Yes. When I was free of that sword, and you and I worked together to fight Radious I had never felt more alive in my immortal life. I was free, and I could finally do something to protect the world that I worked so hard to make with my sister."

David knew that Solaris's sister Eclipseus had used up all of her power crafting half of the planet; it was then that Solaris had taken it upon himself to finish the job. He crafted the remaining half of the planet and then introduced it to Light and Darkness.

"I'm sorry that she's not here with us." He said as he comforted Solaris.

"I am as well, but her memory lives on through me and the world she helped create." Solaris answered quietly.

"So… why are you walking through town?" He asked changing the subject.

"It's only 1:00. So I thought I would say hello to some friends before I head back to the castle." David answered as he approached Carousal boutique. "Ah… a friendly reunion sounds like a great idea. I'll take my leave then." Solaris concluded as he vanished with a flash back into the Guardian Blade as David knocked on the door to the boutique.

"Coming hang on." A slightly low toned male voice answered. The door opened to reveal an older spike wearing a black dress tuxedo.

"Welcome to Carousal boutique where…" the dragon stopped when he noticed David standing at the door.

"DAVID!!!" He cried as he wrapped his massive arms around his friend lifting him a few feet into the air. "Hey Spike!! Ow! Put me down buddy!" David begged as the dragon squeezed him. Spike let go and smiled.

"It's great to see you David. You look great!" Spike said as he led David inside.

"Thanks Spike. You look older and tougher." It was true. The once young assistant had matured into a young adolescent. David guessed he was most likely 17 in human years. He was about three quarters of David's height. His scales on both his back and face had grown out and became sharp. His fangs were razor sharp and still poked out of his mouth on the sides of his lips.

What surprised David however was the size of his friend's claws and arms. They were as big as Big Macintosh's whole body!

"You been working out Spike?" David asked as he sat down in a nearby chair.

"A little." Spike smiled proudly. "Whenever I get some free time, or if Rarity needs some wood for the fire place I just go and pound on some trees."

David noticed that Spike's knuckles were raw and cut. To a normal human or pony hitting a tree day after day would destroy their hands or hooves. It didn't seem to bothering Spike though.

"You looking for Rarity?" Spike asked as walked toward the back of the boutique. "Yeah is she here?"

"She is. Let me get her, and get out of this stupid suit!" He groaned as he walked into the back room. David looked around the boutique. It had changed a lot since he had first walked in 16 years ago. The mannequins were still in place but they were covered with beautiful royal dresses and designs. The décor hadn't changed, but it now had expensive jewels and fabric hanging from the ceiling and other areas. (Rarity was never one to skimp on fashion. Be it expensive or cheap, if she likes it she buys.) David thought.

His thoughts were interrupted however by the door opening.

"Spike what is the problem! I have work to do and I…" Rarity stopped as she saw David.

"Oh David! I didn't see you. I guess you're here to pick up Twilight's fall dress, I spent a lot of time on it and I…"

Rarity's flurry of words stopped. "Wait… DAVID!!??" She shouted when she noticed it was truly David who was in front of her and not a royal delivery pony.

"Oh Dahling it's SO good to see you!" She said as she wrapped her hooves around David's armor.

"It's great to see you too Rarity. I just came by to say hello and too catch up a little." He said as he broke the hug.

"Well of course! I'm glad you stopped by. I'll make us some tea. Spike why don't you show David what I've been working on."

"Sure thing Rarity." Spike answered as Rarity walked into another room. Spike began showing off the new lines of clothing that Rarity had been perfecting. This continued until Rarity returned with 3 piping hot cups of tea. David thanked her and they all spent the rest of time sharing information and recounting old memories.

"Thanks again for the tea Rarity, but it's almost 2:00 and I need to go talk to AJ and Devin before 3:00." David said as he sat the cup down and walked toward the door.

"Of course David, come back and see us!" She said as he opened the door.

"You know it!" David responded as he shut the door behind him. (One hour till I got to get home, now comes the hard part.) He thought as he straightened his armor and walked toward Sweet Apple Acres. The walk didn't take long and he soon saw the barn come into view. He quickened his pace until he saw Big Mac pulling the plow in the field.

"HEY!! Big Mac!! Are AJ and Devin here??" He shouted to the massive red stallion pulling the plow. Mac looked up with a smile on his face and nodded.

"Eeyup" He answered as David kept walking toward the barn. As he got closer he noticed a young pale brown colt with a blue tail and light green hair swinging a wooden sword.

"Hey there!" He called out hoping to ask the colt who he was. The colt turned and his magenta eyes grew wide in fear. He picked up his sword and ran for the barn. "Hey wait... that was weird." David said as he finally reached the apple family home and knocked on the door. The door opened to reveal Devin wearing a cowboy hat.

Devin stared at David until a smile creased his face and he threw his arms around him. "Howdy David! Been a while since we've seen you here." He said walking out onto the porch.

"Same here Devin. Listen we need to talk about something." David said as they both sat down.

"About what?" Devin asked calmly. "I want to apologize for my son's behavior toward your son. I found out what happened between them and I came to make amends." David said sadly.

Devin adjusted his hat and let out a low sigh. "I appreciate you doing that David. My boy Kuni would never hurt another soul, much less you're daughter."

"I know that Devin. Is Kuni here? I'd like to say I'm sorry to him too."

"Yeah he's here. KUNI!!! COME HERE! SOMEPONY WANTS TO MEET YOU!!!" Devin shouted out toward the farm.

Not 5 seconds later the same brown colt that David had seen earlier came out of the barn and walked toward Devin. "Y-Yeah Dad?" He answered nervously. Devin put his hoof around the colt's shoulder.

"Kuni… THIS is David. He's the Guardian of Equestria I told you about. He's also Midnight and Sunlight's father." Devin said.

Kuni's eyes grew wide at the mention of the word "father".

"I'm really sorry about what happened to Sunlight sir. I was only trying to keep that bee from hurting her." Kuni said rapidly.

"I understand Kuni. I came by to thank you for doing that, and to apologize for Midnight's behavior." David said ruffling Kuni's green hair.

"T-That's okay… I know he was only trying to protect Sunlight." Kuni answered nervously.

"There's a difference between protecting and coddling Kuni. Midnight is VERY overprotective of his sister. He doesn't think she can do anything without him." David said sighing.

"But she can! She's smart, nice, and pretty…" Kuni said blushing. It was then that David realized why Kuni was so shy around him. Kuni had a crush on Sunlight! David smiled at the thought and rubbed Kuni's hair again.

"I know she is, and I know you really care about her. Please continue to do that okay?" David asked.

Kuni nodded. "Yes sir, I will." He then turned and ran back toward the barn.

"He's training with that wooden sword I made him. He's getting good at it." Devin said proudly. "I'm glad to see you're well Devin, but I need to get going."

"Yeah me too, AJ will have my head if I don't get back to work." Devin added.

David bid his friend farewell and began walking away from the barn. (Wait… why am I walking?) David thought as he stopped. "Home here I come!" He said as his teleportation spell whipped the air around him and zipped him back to the castle.

Chapter 7

Children of the Guardian

Chap 7

"Good job today Midnight you're improving rapidly."

Midnight stood up, his legs shaking from his weight. His whole body ached and he was covered in bruises from head to hoof. Even his tail was hurting.

"Yes… General Bio." He gasped as he looked at his trainer/tormenter.

Bio was a dark green stallion with deep purple eyes. His jagged black hair was only matched in sharpness by his razor sharp tail. Even as Midnight looked at him his tail constantly slithered like a snake back and forth. It's yellow tipped blade hovering in the air. Bio's cutie mark was a black skull and crossbones. This was appropriate given the fact that many soldiers called Bio the Devil Guard.

(Father always said that General Bio was a fierce fighter, I was foolish to not believe him.) Midnight thought as he finally steadied himself.

Bio had been teaching him how to use a sword and fight like a true warrior. Only recently however had they begun true sparring. It was with wooden swords of course but getting hit with one still hurt and he was feeling pain EVERYWHERE.

"However you still have a lot of training to do. Next week I expect you to be able to get at least ONE hit on me before our time is over." Bio said his deep gruff voice barely audible.

He then turned and left the sparring chamber escorted by two guards. Midnight knew that Bio was married to Princess Luna and he rarely left her side. He had agreed to train Midnight when he had grown old enough because David had saved his life.

Memories flooded back to Midnight about how he had thought that it would be great to study under Bio. As soon as the training started though he discovered why Bio was called the Devil Guard, he worked Midnight like a slave. Push-ups, pull-ups, sprints, and everything under the sun were heaved on him. After the first few sessions he had talked to his father about quitting and finding another teacher.

(I remember that whole talk…I ran in crying and covered in bruises. I leaped into Dad's hooves and I immediately felt safe. Even when Bio came in yelling at me for running from training, Dad talked him down.) Midnight blinked as he shook his head.

"Gotta focus… ow… but first… a hot shower." He mumbled as he exited the training area. He walked past a few guards who looked at him concerned but he waved his hoof and assured them that he was fine. As he reached his room he saw his personal guard Lance standing at his door.

"Your highness!" Lance gasped as he ran over to Midnight.

"I'm fine Lance. I just need… to rest." Midnight sighed as he felt his legs give way under his weight only to have Lance steady him with his strong body.

"Yes you do your highness. Come… let me help you to your room." He said as he opened the door with his hoof. Midnight briefly found the strength he needed and climbed onto his bed.

"Your highness your body is covered in bruises, why didn't you go to the doctors?" Lance said as he shut the door behind him with a gentle push.

"I don't know Lance. I guess I just wasn't thinking. Although… it's kinda hard to think when your whole head is screaming at you in pain." He sighed.

"Midnight…" Lance said. Midnight slowly sat up. Lance was the ONLY guard who had Midnight's permission to speak his name, and when he did it was usually serious. "Yes Lance, what is it?"

"I'm concerned about your health sir. These training sessions are getting more brutal every weak."

"I can handle them Lance."

"I know you can sir, but you still need to think about the effects on your body." The guard turned and removed his golden helmet. As he did his long black mane flowed down his neck resting at its base. He then turned and stared at Midnight. His icy blue eyes unflinching and unmoving. "I will speak to your father about removing you from General's Bio tutoring."

Midnight leaped off the bed with what little strength he had left, which resulted in him falling off the bed.

"NO! I can take it Lance."

"Your body says otherwise." The white stallion countered.

"I can do it. I WILL do it." Midnight growled.

"Why?" Lance asked his voice rising. "Why do you want to continue to put yourself in a position where you can get pounded into a pulp?"

"BECAUSE I WANT TO BE LIKE MY FATHER!!" Midnight screamed causing Lance to step backwards in shock.

"My father is the Guardian, the greatest hero Equestria has ever seen! I want to be like him in every way I can. My father can handle Bio… So can I." Midnight said as he struggled back onto the bed his body still in pain.

Lance turned and placed his helmet back on his head. "Very well your highness. Is there anything I can do for you before I go?" He asked walking toward the door, his spear and shield cutie mark reflected in Midnight's mirror.

"Yes Lance. Could you get a messenger to ask Brushie if she would like to visit?"

"Yes sir. Rest well your highness." He whispered as he left the room. As the wooden door shut quietly with a click, Midnight laid his head down against his pillow and closed his eyes. The pain in his body had diminished but it still caused him some minor discomfort. That discomfort however soon faded as the sounds of birds chirping, and the quiet calm of his room finally over took him as he fell asleep.

"Midnight… Midnight…" A voice whispered rousing him from his sleep. Though his eyes were still closed he could already make out who was waking him up. The soft feel of a felt scarf on his face and the gentle caressing of wings was all it took to figure out.

"Brushie… come on… I'm tired." He smiled as he opened his eyes to look into the beautiful light blue pools that he had come to know and love.

"Then why the hay did you invite me here if all you were gonna do is sleep??" She asked as she rolled over and propped herself up on one of his pillows.

"I wasn't trying to sleep; my body has a mind of its own." He commented as he wrapped his hooves around her.

Celestial Brush giggled, "Yeah… it's just sometimes that mind isn't where it needs to be." She joked as she tapped his forehead with her hoof.

"So I got to know. Who the hay did this to you?" She asked gesturing at his bruised body.

"General Bio." Midnight responded weakly.

Brushie smiled and stuck out her tongue. "Just him?? It looks like you got mauled by a Hydra!"

"Yeah well… it certainly feels like that." Midnight said sitting up.

"So I guess you want to hang out huh?"

"DUH! You invited me remember? Are you sure Bio didn't wreck your brain on accident?" She joked as she patted his chest.

"Yeah I'm sure." He responded as he hopped off the bed, with a minor jolt of pain in his legs.

"Well it's only 1:00. How bout some lunch?" He asked walking over to her. His question was answered by a large growl from Brushie's stomach. "I'll take that as a yes…" He chuckled as he led a blushing Brushie by the hoof out of his room.

Midnight struggled to keep Brushie under control as he walked with her through Canterlot. He knew she had been to Canterlot a few times, but never alone and especially not with him. They both soon arrived at a restaurant where they were lead to a table directly in front of a stone fountain. The fountain had stone figures of Princess Celestia, Luna, and now Twilight spitting water from their mouths into a stone basin. The waiter's soon arrived with their food. A salad for himself and soup for Brushie.

"Hey why don't we sit on the rim of the fountain instead? It would be a lot more comfortable then these chairs." Brushie said as she stood up and walked over to the fountain and sat down. Midnight did the same and they both soon finished their lunch.

"Hey Brushie… thanks for… you know… spending this time with me…" Midnight stuttered as his put his hoof onto hers.

"Midnight… you know you're adorable when you try to be romantic right?" She asked as she kissed him. Midnight's eyes flew open as their lips met, but they gently closed as they both wrapped their hooves around each other. And in that one, all of the pain he had been experiencing from his training, melted away in a wave of happiness. A wave he knew… that could only come from true love.

Chapter 8

Children of the Guardian Chap 8

by ~Sunjian54

Children of the Guardian

Chap 8

"No, no, try again." David said as he sat next to Sunlight's desk in her room. The afternoon sun shone down into the room causing David some slight annoyance since it was shining directly in his eyes.

"Ugh… I just don't get it dad." Sunlight said as she threw her pencil onto the desk and fluttered her wings in rage. She had asked her father for help with her history homework, but all he had been doing was telling her if she was wrong or not.

"I'm just not good at history like you and Midnight." She huffed as she shot the pencil away from the paper with her magic and up against the back of her desk. David shook his head at his daughters struggling. He had given himself the same excuse when he had been in high school. The only difference was that he struggled with Math and not History.

"Sunlight" He started as he ran his hoof down her white gloss white mane. "In school… I learned that there was NO such thing as being bad at a subject. Many students have subjects that they're not good at. I struggle at Math, your brother at Literature, and you at History. Do you know what that means?"

He asked smiling at her. She shook her head as she stared at David with her lavender eyes.

"Well it does NOT mean you can just give up." He said as he retrieved the pencil from the desk and placed it back in front of her.

"It means that you have to put more work into preparing for the subject. For example… back on Earth I used to spend about 4 hours a week on each subject but I kept doing poorly in Math. So I decided to spend at least 6 hours a week on my Math studies and my grades improved."

"Well that's great dad, but how does that help me?" Sunlight asked confused as she stared at her history homework.

"It helps you because this means that you should spend extra time studying history. You're not bad at the subject Sunlight. You just need more practice in it."

At this conclusion Sunlight looked up into his eyes. It had always amazed David at how much his wife and daughter looked alike. He had occasionally made the mistake of mixing up their names but ironically it never offended either of them. Sunlight liked the idea of being a mature Princess, and Twilight liked the idea of being a young mare again. To which he would tell her, "You're not even over 1000! You can't call yourself old!"

His thoughts snapped back to reality as he felt his daughter hugging him tightly. "You're still going to help me… right dad?" She asked.

"Of course I am. Heck you might learn a few things from me that your book won't teach you." He said laughing. Sunlight smiled and reshuffled her papers.

"Okay, True or False… during the Eclipse War the Guardian lead a force of 35,000 ponies to fight Nightmare Sol's Eclipse army. That's false isn't dad? You told me you lead an army of 11,000 ponies, griffins and dragons." David nodded.

"I did. We tried to gather more but finding volunteers for what many thought a suicide mission was hard. So yes the answer is false." He said closing his eyes. (11,000 against 30,000… dear God it could have been much worse.) He thought as images of the battle ran through his head. He saw himself slay his dark copy, cut down dozens of Eclipse troopers, and then slay Nightmare Sol and Radious, but what scared him most of all… was that he didn't feel fear or emotion from these memories.

(What's happened to me? Have I… become immune to the thought of death?) This was truly frightening; if he couldn't feel emotion then he was nothing more than a robot.

"DAD SNAP OUT OF IT!!!!" Sunlight shouted breaking his trance. "Sorry about that, just some old memories." He said putting on a fake smile.

"It's okay dad. Next question: Who was more beneficial in the battle of Canterlot Mountain? General Bio or Commander Devin? Umm… Dad?" Sunlight asked confused.

"Neither one of them was more important than the other. General Bio fought like a monster on the field of battle and he fought off Nightmare Sol's apprentice Trixie while I confronted Nightmare herself. Until he turned into Radious, but that's not important." David said smiling.

"As for Devin he…" he stopped as an idea popped into his head. "Hey… why ask me? When you could hear it from the stallion himself, he lives down on Sweet Apple Acres with your mom's friend Applejack." He said walking toward the door.

"Really dad?? Could you introduce me too him??" Sunlight asked bouncing up and down her chair like she had springs in her hooves. "Of course I can! Get your work and your backpack and meet me at the gate okay?"

"Okay!" She said as she gathered her things and tore past him full speed. David couldn't help but chuckle as he made his way down the stairs and headed toward the main gate, but a sudden explosion stopped him in his tracks. It wasn't a huge explosion but it made his legs shake and he nearly toppled over.

"The HAY was that???" A guard wondered out loud. "Must have been that mare Technia…again. I hear she's building something special." Another guard answered.

"Technia…" David mumbled as he turned and headed deeper into the castle. The lower part of the castle had been entirely dungeon, but with some reconstruction it had been made into a half dungeon, half "Mad inventor's lab" for an old friend. As David approached the large steel door to the inventor's room there was another loud *POOMF* followed by smoke that came out of the door cracks. Before he could open the door however it flew open and Technia came out coughing.

"Dumb…*Cough* experiment *Cough*." She gagged as she took deep breathes to clear her lungs.

"Hi Technia." David said greeting her calmly. "Oh hi David! What's up?" The dark grey mare asked as she wiped off her goggles with a red cloth. "Well first I'd like to know what that earlier explosion was."

"Oh that! That was my dinner, I overcooked it, it went up in flames, and triggered some mild chemicals." She said innocently.

"And the second one?"

"Dessert" She smiled sheepishly. David shook his head as she led him into her lab. It was filled with bottles and beakers filled with a rainbow of colors. Electricity sparked from machines and computers buzzed and hummed in a tune of mechanical symphony.

"I want to thank you again David. Since I was able to take apart one of the bullets from your gun I may be able to make gunpowder weapons really soon!" She said happily.

"No Technia I told you, no gunpowder weapons. I still can't believe you want to keep doing this." After the war Technia had taken on of David's bullets and taken it apart. She studied the gunpowder inside and had begun research into early gunpowder weapons. While David did agree that guns would benefit Equestrian military it would severely harm the worlds balance. Introducing a human weapon into pony hooves could only end badly. Before long he knew that other creatures would create the weapons and before long it would be too late to stop the storm of violence from coming. So Technia forged on without help, her first early designs were good but they never worked. Time and time again she would ask David for help but he would refuse.

"Technia I'm fine with you unlocking ideas for this stuff… but NO weapons okay?" David asked gently.

"Sure thing boss." She smiled as she tossed her grey and red mane out of her eyes. "So where you headed?" She asked as she began to draw out a new design on a blueprint.

"I'm on my way to see Devin. Didn't you say you had an invention for him?" He asked remembering Technia saying she had an idea for some farm equipment.

"Yes I do!!" She said as she jumped up from the table and ran over to a pile of parts and metal pieces. "Where is it… oh here it is!" she exclaimed as she pulled out a strange device only to have it fall apart in her hands. "Oh nooooooo!!!" She wailed as the device's pieces fell to the ground.

"I spent WEEKS building that nutrition sprinkler!"

"Nutrition Sprinkler?" David asked confused.

"Yeah… it was going to help out on Sweet Apple Acres. See you put this thing in the ground like so…" She began as she sat the broken machine on the table. "After you do that you press this button." She then clicked a button and the football like object peeled open from 4 sides revealing what looked to be a small cannon shaped tube. "These four peeled sides stick into the ground near a field of crops. You put plant food and water in here." She said pointing at the cannon shaped tube.

"And with a few little button presses, this thing fires water balls up into the air that rain down and water your crops for you. Plus, since Sweet Apple Acres has wells on it refilling the devices is a synch."

David was amazed. Technia had always been a master mechanic, but this machine was brilliant. People back on Earth would be foaming at the mouth for a device of that caliber.

"Technia you've outdone yourself again. I'll let Devin and Applejack know the basics about the machine and then I'll let you know how many they want okay?" He said winking at her. Technia stood at attention and flashed a quick salute as she lowered her goggles and got back to work. Leaving her to it, David began the climb out of the lower levels and back to the main part of the castle where he could see Sunlight talking with her best friend Saturated Flame. Even from a distance Saturated's long ponytail mane and white cap gave her away immediately.

"Mr. David sir!" She said as she came running up to him. "Um… if it's not too much trouble, could I possibly interview you for our school newspaper this weekend?" She asked nervously. David smiled.

"Of course you can. Although I'm not very good at interviews so you may have your hands full with me." He joked as she nodded and took off into the sunset back towards her house.

"Alright you all set Sunlight?" David asked looking at his daughter who had loaded up a saddlebag with paper and pencils. "Yes sir!" She said happily.

David nodded and waved a chariot over to pick them up, but just as they were about to board Midnight came flying in from the east at full speed.

"D-Dad… I… I wanted to tell you..." He panted trying to get the words out.

"What is it son? Breathe and speak calmly."

"I wanted to tell you… that I'm taking Brushie out on a date and will be home late tonight." He said finally getting the words out.

David wasn't sure about this idea however. He did like the fact that his son was taking his girl on a date, but he didn't like the idea of him being out all night. He had classes to get too tomorrow morning, and no girl was more important than the kingdom classes. "Fine, but be up in time for your morning classes understand?" he said sternly. Midnight nodded happily and took off toward his room to get ready. "Dad do you think you can trust Midnight to keep his promise?" Sunlight asked concerned.

David nodded quietly. "I trust your brother Sunlight. He has a good heart. It's his brain that I'm worried about. I wonder if it's really in the right place when he's thinking. It's either in his head…"

"Or stuck up his flank." Sunlight interrupted giggling. "Yeah that's the short version of it." David finished as their chariot took off toward Sweet Apple Acres.

Chapter 9

Children of the Guardian chap 9

by ~Sunjian54

Children of the Guardian

Chap 9

The ride to Sweet Apple Acres was quiet and uneventful. Sunlight however didn't mind as they zoomed over trees and the buildings of Ponyville. She had rarely seen any farther than Canterlot city when she was outside the castle. Not because her parents forbid her, but because there was never any time to explore or visit other parts of the Equestrian Alliance.

"Oh wait!" She said as she pulled her homework out of her bag and quickly erased one of her answers. She had forgotten that Equestria was not called Equestria anymore on her work. Her father had united all the lands around it into one mighty force. Equestria, Dragonia, and Griffia, all three lands had united into one mighty alliance. She quickly rewrote her answer and placed her work back into her bag, careful not to drop anything off of the chariot.

She once again looked out at the beautiful landscape has everything whizzed by. The green of the grassy plains soon gave way to row upon row of beautiful apple trees as the chariot began to descend toward a bright red farmhouse.

"Dad! Dad! We're here!" Sunlight said pulling on her dad's mane. However David didn't respond to the tugging. Sunlight then noticed that his eyes were closed and he was breathing very slowly.

(Is he sleeping? No… he snores when he sleeps. He must be deep in thought.) She thought as the chariot touched down on the ground.

Indeed… for David the trip from Canterlot to the farm had been quite short because of his thinking. He had been thinking of the upcoming Alliance meeting. It was when all 3 of the leaders of the Alliance lands meet to discuss how things were going respectfully. David was hoping to discuss a rising problem occurring south in the Zebra lands across the ocean.

(Come to think of it… it was Zecora who brought this information to me in the first place.) He thought as his mind flashed back to the fateful day. He had been sitting in the main hall next to Twilight as usual until he noticed Zecora step through the door.

"Miss Zecora of Everfree your majesty." The guard had bellowed.

"Zecora! It's so good to see you again." Twi said as she approached and hugged her aging friend. "Twilight my young pony how you've grown! To see your crowning moment, I missed your crowning moment, I wish I had known." Zecora said sadly.

"It's okay Zecora, David come here!"

David rose from his seat and approached.

"Greetings Zecora." He said as he shook her hoof. "Same to you strong Guardian. You have become quite the mighty stallion." The zebra said smiling.

"Yeah… only because Celestia and Luna saved me. So how can we help you?" Zecora's face then turned grave as she lowered her eyes.

"If it's all right with you… can I explain this to Twilight too?" She said quietly. David nodded and Zecora sighed.

"I am from lands south of the sea, and much trouble there is to be. A mighty Zebra stronger than I, has gathered an army to declare that all must die."

"So you've come to ask for the Alliance to do something about it?" David asked. Zecora nodded quietly.

"I'll do what I can." David said as the memory faded. "I'm gonna need the help." He whispered as he opened his eyes.

"Help with what Dad?" Sunlight asked. David shook his head and realized that they had landed. "Uh nothing Sunlight… just a memory, now come with me. I'll introduce you to Devin." He said as he stepped down off of the chariot and walked toward the barn. Sunlight looked around as they walked trying to take in everything she could see. She was amazed at how simple everything was, and that made her happy. She had learned from her mother that you didn't need everything to be happy. Seeing the barn and the fields that she was sure had to be plowed by the family that lived on the farm made her smile.

"Dad… what if Devin doesn't like me? I mean I'm not famous and strong like you." Sunlight asked. David laughed and hugged her.

"You're my daughter. You just be yourself and be on your best behavior. He'll love you I promise." He said as they walked up to the door of the house and knocked on the door. The sound of a door unlocking was soon followed by the door opening to reveal Applejack.

"Well I'll be! David!!" She shouted as she through her hooves over around David's neck.

"Yeah it's… great… to see you to AJ." He said struggling to get the words out since she was nearly choking him. "I reckon it's been ages since I've seen you!"

"It's only been a few months AJ."

"To the apple family that's AGES." AJ said as she ushered them in. The house itself was quaint and small. It had a small living room with a couch, chairs, and a rocking chair for granny smith.

"Well who's this?" AJ said smiling at Sunlight.

"Sunlight Flash Mrs. Applejack." Sunlight responded smiling.

"Ya'll look just Twilight you know that." She asked staring at Sunlight as she sighed. "I reckon I'm getting old David if ya'll have such a pretty child." David threw his arm around AJ's neck.

"That's quitter talk Applejack. You're still the strongest pony in the Alliance, next to Big Mac." He said smiling.

"That's true. I reckon ya'll are here to see Devin right?" She asked.

"Yeah, Sunlight has a question for him." David said sitting down.

"He's in the back." AJ said down next to David. "Sunlight could you get him while AJ and I catch up?" David asked looking at his daughter pleadingly. "Sure thing Dad." Sunlight said as she walked outside and onto the fields. The setting sun was settling in the distance as she began walking through the fields looking for Devin.

"Wait… I don't even know what Devin looks like." She suddenly realized. "Oh well… I'll find him." She said smiling as she kept walking into the apple tree forest. As she did however she suddenly heard a noise in the distance. It sounded like a hammer or an axe striking up against a tree. She began walking toward the sound, hypnotized by the steady rhythm of the sound as it reverberated through the fields. It wasn't long though until she found the sounds creator.

It was a young Earth pony colt, hitting a tree with what appeared to be a wooden sword. The colt was a light brown and had a bright green grass colored mane, and a dark blue tail. He continued to hit the tree over and over again from different directions with the sword in his mouth. Sunlight looked on while hiding behind a nearby tree. (Wow… he's so… cute.) She thought as the pony continued "fighting" the tree. Sunlight gulped and took a deep breathe.

(I'll just say hi. After all, he may know where Devin is.) She thought as she walked out from behind the tree with a "Hi!"

The colt turned his head and stared at Sunlight, his eyes wide in fear and shock. "Hey don't freak out. I'm Sunlight Flash. What's your name?" She asked gently. The colt spit his sword out of his mouth and offered a shaking hoof.

"K-Kuni… I'm Applejack and Devin's son." He said struggling to get the words out. Sunlight admired Kuni's courage. He was a bit childish because of his fear, but Sunlight found that attractive. He was brave and was capable of talking to her. Most colts wouldn't because they knew who her mother and father were. "Nice to meet you Kuni." She said as she looked him over.

"Hey… is that your sword you were practicing with?" She asked hoping to ease the tension that felt like a lead weight on her body. Kuni smiled and put the sword back onto his back.

"Yep, my dad and I made it. I want to be just like him someday." He said smiling at her.

"How come you want to be like your father?"

"Cause my father is the most amazing commander Equestria has ever seen."

"But he took orders from my dad in the war right?" Sunlight asked smiling until Kuni stood up and backed away.

"Your-your… Dad is the G-Guardian?" He asked stuttering.

"Well yeah. Why?" Sunlight asked trying to approach him, only to have Kuni back up again.

"I shouldn't be talking to you… I'm not worthy…" He said as he bowed down in front of her as low as he could. Sunlight's heart was aching in her chest. She hated losing potential friends because she was royalty. (Not this time… NOT AGAIN!!) She screamed in her head as she helped Kuni up.

"Please… don't mention my status. I don't like losing friends just because I'm a Princess. Can we please be friends Kuni?" She asked holding his hoof. Kuni's face was bright red and his heart was pounding. He had never had a girl hold his hand before.

"S-sure… we can be friends. If you don't mind being friends with a farm pony." He said smiling as big as he could.

"I don't mind at all. Do you mind being friends with a royal pony?" Sunlight asked smiling as well.

"No way." He answered. "Sunlight!! Time to go home!" David called from the house. "Well… looks like I have to leave Kuni." Sunlight said sadly. "Will I ever see you again?" Kuni asked hanging his head low. "Sure you will. I'll come visit when I can. Or maybe I could invite you to the castle." Sunlight said giving Kuni a quick hug as she turned and ran back toward the house.

"Bye Sunlight!!" Kuni called out as she vanished from view. (She was so pretty…and she actually liked me.) Kuni thought as he went back to hitting the trees with his sword, and as Sunlight joined back up with her father and boarded the chariot she couldn't keep her mind off of the young colt.

"Hey dad I met Devin's son Kuni." She said smiling. "I heard. But you didn't talk to Devin." David said smiling. Sunlight's eyes shot open, she had forgotten about asking Devin about his role in the war. She was just about to say something but David spoke up. "Don't worry I saw him and asked him some questions for you. Here are the questions I asked, and here are his answers." He said handing her a piece of paper. Sunlight was amazed. The paper had every question she wanted to ask Devin written on it and all of his answers. "Thanks dad… this gonna help me A LOT." She said sliding the paper into her bag. "I'm glad." He said as they landed back at the castle.

"Now go finish your homework and come down for dinner okay?"

"Yes sir." Sunlight answered as she trotted up the stairway to her room. David smiled as he walked through the main hall toward him and Twilight's room. On the way however he stopped and looked at a giant sword hanging on the wall. "You're lucky old friend… you don't have to put up with kids. Still… it would be nice to see you again. You paid the price for your job. Rest well Judge." He whispered as he walked past. The sword had belonged to a good friend of David's that he met recently. He called his friend the Judge because he could always see the evil deeds that ponies had done in their lives. Unfortunately he had died recently, but before he did he gave David his sword and told him to never forget their friendship. (I'll never forget our promise my friend. Never.) He thought as he entered into the throne room.

Chapter 10

Children of The Guardian Chap 10

by ~Sunjian54

Children of the Guardian

Chap 10

David's entrance into the throne room was marked by the loud creaking of the giant throne room doors. They were massive doors covered in gold and precious gemstones such as diamonds and rubies. However on closer inspection a large crack could be seen running down the middle of the entire doorway from right to left. Everypony in the castle knew that the crack had been caused by David slicing through the doors almost 17 years ago when he had first become the Guardian. He had been furious with Celestia for hiding a letter Twilight had written to him about how Celestia was separating the both of them to keep Twilight safe, and rather than open the door, he had sliced it in half with his sword. Even now the memories of what his anger was capable of haunted him, which was why he had made himself a promise to never let his anger control him again.

He brushed the memories aside as he walked toward the throne where Twilight was sitting. Her lavender hair draped over her royal Canterlot dress. The dress had been made by Rarity and was a one of a kind masterpiece. It was a bright white and dark blue gown that represented Twilight's control over the sun and the moon. It had been stitched with lavender thread and decorated with valuable amethyst gemstones which matched the pink streak in her hair, and no matter how many times David saw her wearing that dress, it still amazed him with how beautiful she looked every time.

"Ready for dinner Twi?" He asked as he approached her. "Ok hang on one second." She said as she stood up from her throne and stepped down the stairs. As she did however, she suddenly stopped and turned around so she could pull something out from underneath the throne.

"Twi what is that?" David asked trying to look around her.

"Nothing!" She said quickly hiding the item behind her wings that unfurled as she spoke.

"Come on… what is it?" He asked trying to sneak a peek around her wings. "It's nothing. Come on we need to get to the dinner table." She said as she quickly turned and began to trot away only to have something fall from behind her. She gasped and blushed as David picked it up and looked at it.

It was an old book. Really old judging from how the spine was shredded and the pages were ripped and torn apart. He turned it over and read the cover aloud to himself.

"How to run a Country by Princess Celestia… Twilight come on!" He said shaking his head. "I thought you promised me that you wouldn't think about how Celestia would do things now that you're on the throne." He said shaking the book at her. David knew that Celestia had been a marvelous leader, perhaps one of the greatest. However it annoyed him when Twilight tried to read books on how to be a better leader, when she herself was already a skilled a leader of her own talent.

"Twi why do you do this? You look to others ideals when you should be listening to your own heart!" He said walking up next to her. Twilight sighed and looked at the ground.

"I know David, but its hard being a Princess… not ONCE in my life did I ever imagine that I would be made Princess. I mean I always wanted to run the Canterlot Library!" She said as her wings shot outwards at her words. "But now that I'm here… I want to be the best leader possible, and I feel the best way to do that is to learn from the best like Celestia." She said smiling.

"Alright I'll give you that much." David said smiling back. "But you need to gain experience by doing things your own way. Doing that builds confidence and helps prepare you for other challenges." He said as they both began walking toward the banquet hall.

"I guess that's true… but experience is only useful if its gathered the right way, and to gather it the right way I have to learn from the best, and to learn from the best I have to read Celestia's books and." David put a hoof over Twilight's mouth stopping her rant. "You talk too much egghead. You know that right?" He smiled as he wrapped his hooves around her body, while she in turn wrapped both her wings and hooves around him.

"Yeah well… old habits die hard right?" She asked smiling at him. David nodded and walked into the banquet hall to see Sunlight at the table already and Midnight's seat absent.

"David where's Midnight?" Twilight asked as she took her seat. "He went on a date with Celestial Brush, I told him it would be okay as long as he was back and rested for class in the morning." He said as he began eating the salad off his plate. David had never been a big fan of salad as a human, but since he had become a stallion his taste buds had shifted a bit, and it was now one of his favorite meals. While the chefs usually brought out fancy and expensive dishes for his family, he had convinced them that simple was sometimes better. This made things easier for the chefs, and it meant the family could enjoy "normal" meals.

"Hey dad I just realized something." Sunlight said as she put another piece of lettuce into her mouth and continued to talk. "A young Princess will mind her manners." He said calmly. Sunlight realized her error and closed her mouth and continued to eat.

"Today's the anniversary of the Eclipse War dad. It ended 17 years ago." She said finishing. David's mind exploded like a bomb as memories raced back to light. His mind flooded with images of corpses and blood, of victorious armies and a slain dictator. The images were filling his sight, he could see nothing but bodies and hear nothing but screams, and they were getting louder!

"David? Sweetie are you alright?" Twilight's voice snapped him back to reality as the horrific images faded. "Y-Yeah… I'm fine…" He said quietly as a cold sweat began to trickle down his head. His eyes fell back to his dinner, and his stomach quickly formed into a knot. "If you'll both… excuse me, I've… lost my appetite." He said as he struggled back to his feet and walked toward he and Twilight's room. "Mom…? Was it something I said?" Sunlight asked confused. "No dear. Your father… just has a lot of thinking to do." She said hiding the truth from her daughter.

Up in his room David flipped over his desk and threw his armor and sword across the ground in a rage. "WHY!! WHY WON'T THESE MEMORIES LEAVE!!!???" He roared as sweat poured down his head and his teeth grinded in anger. Images of the war once again flashed in his mind, he could hear the sounds of his sword clashing with Nightmare Sol's mane, and he could smell the blood from her wings when he cut them both off. The smell of this made him rush to the balcony outside and vomit.

Sweat poured from his mane and all over his body as the memories continued their assault. Images of his resurrection when Celestia and Luna used their magic along with the mane 6 to revive him, and the image of his new body continued to surge into his eyes. "These… These are good memories… why do they haunt me?" He asked the empty room around him. "They haunt you because you question yourself David." A mighty voice answered from the room.

"Solaris…? Solaris where are you?" David asked confused. The mighty alicorn's spirit appeared in front of him with a concerned look on his face.

"Your memories are driving you insane David."

"You think I can't tell?? Why is this happening???"

"Your memories are returning for two reasons. One is very simple; the other is much more difficult to understand." The wise voice said. "The difficult reason is that you have questions that you have not answered. They are returning so that you can answer them."

"WHAT QUESTIONS COULD I POSSIBLY HAVE???" David roared.

"That's for you to discover my friend." David ran his hooves through his mane as he fell on the bed. "I… I don't know… I can't think of any questions. What's the other reason Solaris?" He asked rubbing his now pounding head.

"You're suffering from a disease called P.T.S.D." Twilight answered as she entered the door to the room with a large book. "Greetings Princess Sparkle."  Solaris said greeting her. "Greetings to you as well Lord Solaris. David I found out what's wrong with you." Twilight said as she plopped down on the bed and dropped the book near David's skull.

"After you left the room I went to the Library and looked up some medical illnesses. You're suffering from a disorder called Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It's where traumatic memories resurface and cause suffering for the person who lived them. I'm guessing this all happened when Sunlight mentioned the war right?" She said rubbing his mane.

His wife's touch eased his tension and David began to relax. "No… this has been happening for months, just not on this big a scale. I could hear and see everything… it was frightening." He said looking out toward the moon in the sky. "But… what was confusing was that the moment I was revived was there too. Why would that be there? I don't have questions about Celestia and Luna saving my life." He said.

Twilight lay next to him and laid her wings over him. "That's not true… you always ask me why they did it. Why they choose to give up their powers and their kingdom to save you." Twilight said gently.

"That bothers you David? Why?" Solaris asked cocking an eyebrow.

"It just does…" David said as he rose and stepped back out into the cold November air and looked up at the moon. "Why would the two most powerful beings on this planet, and the rulers of this kingdom, give up EVERYTHING they owned and had to spare me? I was just one human, I was the Guardian who had done his job. So what if I was dead. Does that matter? Who the heck would have cared if I stayed dead?" He said coldly as he turned around.

Twilight's eyes filled with tears as she looked at him. "I would've cared. You were my brother." She said as she hugged him.

"Twi… I understand that I meant something to you and every other pony, but that still doesn't answer my question." He said as he and Twi hugged each other close.

"Perhaps I can enlighten you David." Solaris said as he stretched his wings. "Princess Celestia brought you back for many reasons, but let's cover the most basic. The first reason was she knew that Twilight and her friends would be heartbroken without you."

"I understand that." David interrupted as he stroked Twi's mane with his hoof as she laid her head on his shoulder.  

"Yes I know, but there are other reasons. The second reason was that Celestia knew that the time of the sister reign was over. She realized that although she was immortal her spirit was aging. She realized this when even with her vast power she was unable to keep Nightmare Moon's spirit from stealing her body from her. Not to mention the face that neither she nor Luna could stop Nightmare once she had a body of her own. Only YOU could. Thus bringing you back ensured that Equestria would have a bright future, plus uniting the species into on large army may have earned you a few bonus points." Solaris said smiling.

"Okay Solaris, reasons accepted but there have to be more." David said stubbornly.

Solaris's smile faded and was replaced by a dark glare and frown. "There is. The final reason was that Celestia had a vision of the future after your death. If you had remained dead Twilight and Luna would have become increasingly depressed. Twilight would spend no time with her friends and never leave the tree house, while Luna locked herself away in her tower and would not speak to anypony. Because of this, the seal containing one of Equestria's greatest threats would be broken, and the demon that brought chaos on the land would have reawakened, and without Twilight the Elements of Harmony would be useless. So you see… you being alive prevented a huge disaster." Solaris finished.

David blinked and began thinking. At that moment everything began to make sense. Celestia and Luna knew the consequences about the choice they were making, but they did it for a better Equestria, and because they had loved him. David smiled at this revelation. (I may not be perfect. But at least I mean something to some ponies.) He thought as he hugged the now sleeping Twilight. "Well… it looks like my job is done." Solaris said as he began to vanish. "Thank you old friend." David said as the alicorn vanished.

"Is he gone now?" Twilight whispered. "Yeah he's gone now." David answered. Twilight yawned and crawled under the blanket while David did the same. "Hey you know… one question has bugged me a bit. How come when you met me, you when from know it all nerd, to a nerdy, soft hearted, lover girl? Even Dash said you were made of tougher stuff before I showed up." He said smiling.

Twilight giggled and kissed his lips. The sweet taste of cherries filling David's mouth as she did. "It was just a kind of magic I guess." She said yawning again. "But I..."  He started only to have Twilight cover his mouth with a hoof. "It's magic, I don't have to explain shit." She said smiling. "Fair enough" he replied.

Chapter 11

Children of the Guardian

Chap 11

The morning sun once again shone in David's face as he opened his eyes to see Twilight putting her crown on her head with her magic as she also combed her mane. "You're up? Go back to sleep, its dawn." She said as the crown came to rest on top of her head. David threw the blanket off of his body and stretched all his legs and back as he got out of the bed.  "Not tired Twilight. Seeing you just fills me with energy." He said as he came up from behind and wrapped his hooves around her causing her to sigh gently and rest her head against his body. "Every day I wake up David, I always know you'll get me through it." She said as she kissed him, her lips causing his whole body to warm up. "Same to you love." He said as he began kissing her muzzle.

David was never able to compare kissing Twilight to anything, and even as their tongues locked and wrestled in the kiss he still couldn't compare it to anything. The warmth that she brought to him every morning was indescribable. The warm feeling suddenly vanished however when Twilight broke the kiss. "I really wish we could do this forever… but I have to do everything by the book, and as a princess that means following a schedule." She said with a smile as she walked toward the exit from their room. "I'll see you at lunch okay? We have to talk to the royal advisors." She said as she shut the door and walked out. (The advisors) David thought to himself as he began cleaning his mane in the nearby shower.

(Bunch of old stallions who I kept around cause I thought they could help Twi run the kingdom. Their nothing but a bother now…) He thought as the warm water cascaded down his mane. The royal advisors were a group of wise stallions who had once served Celestia and Luna, now they served Twilight but David was very cautious of their actions. (They're always trying to do things their way without Twi knowing, I need to make it clear that THEY don't decide what's best for the kingdom at the meeting today.) He thought as he stepped out of the shower and began drying off.

As he placed his hoof on the door and eased it open, the cold, crisp, fall air came blowing through the open bedroom window causing his body to shiver slightly. "Getting colder…" He said as he allowed the warmth of his magic to flood his body and rush to his horn, closing the window with a quick push of telekinesis. "About time too… I'm getting sick of wearing my armor during the heat waves." He finished as he walked to his closet and opened it up with another quick flick of his horn. The wooden doors opened slowly revealing his armor and swords set up on two racks. He slowly reached forward and placed his hoof on the armor. The familiar rush of energy was followed by a flash of golden light, only to fade and reveal the armor now firmly on his body. He then removed his swords from the rack and attached them to his armor with the handles facing toward his facing forward so he could easily remove them and point his blade toward any threat. (Threat… Yeah right.) He chuckled to himself as he walked out of the bedroom and walked toward main hall following his usual routine.

The routine was shattered however as a large stallion guard came running up to him. The stallion wore the standard gold armor, but had a large spear attached to his back. The spear was an exact replica of the spear that made up his spear and shield cutie mark. He was bleach white and had a dark black mane which hung in front of his cold icy blue eyes. He was huge, almost twice Big Macintosh's size, but he had an aura of gentleness surrounding him. "My lord…" He said bowing before David.

"Lance…? What's wrong?" Lance was Midnight's personal bodyguard, and he ONLY came to David if it was of the upmost importance, and this time he had called him "Lord." Something he had NEVER done before.

"My lord, Prince Midnight is not in his room. I arrived on time to awaken him for his classes, but he is nowhere to be found." He said quickly. David gasped. "What do you mean he's gone?" He demanded quietly.

"It is as I say sir. The bed has not even been touched. Did he perhaps sleep somewhere else?" Lance asked concerned. David turned causing his white cape to flutter with the sudden movement.

"Lance go back to your duties. I will find my son." He said.

"But sir!"

"NOW Lance…do not try my patience." Lance slowly backed off and walked away, knowing full well not to anger the Guardian. David's anger was beginning to burn through his body. His blood boiled with fury, but the expression on his face was one of calm disapproval. "I have a good idea of where he is." He mumbled as he began walking toward the main entrance to the castle. "But he has to come home eventually, and when he does I'll be waiting for him." He slowly stepped into the shadow of the gates and let his magic begin its work. His entire body turned black and he began to seemingly melt into the ground. His whole body soon vanished from view as his shadow powers made him one with the shade of the gates and completely invisible to the world around him.

"My dad is gonna kill me!!!" Midnight panicked as he flew full speed back toward the castle with his wings flapping full speed.

"You're overreacting Middy." Celestial Brush said happily as she easily pulled ahead of him with her wings barely flapping. Midnight cringed at his pet name and struggled to move faster. Even though he was an alicorn most of his skills were in his magic abilities. His flight skills on the other hoof were that of a novice and even top speed was slow compared to experienced pegasi like Celestial Brush.

"Brushie can we please not use my nickname in public." He said embarrassed as his dark blue cheeks turned a bright red. Brushie stuck out her tongue and merely flew in front of him, blocking his view. Midnight struggled to fly to the side of her so he could see, but Brushie easily blocked him each time.

"Enjoying the view Middy?" She chirped happily as she turned over and flew on her back.

"I can't see anything with your big flank in the way!" He joked increasing his speed as they both approached the castle.

"You know if you weren't cute I would have pounded you for saying that right?" She said as they both landed. "But… you're too cute for me to stay mad at for long." She cooed happily as she nuzzled his fur.

"I'm a prince. Being cute comes with the package." Midnight said proudly as he began walking toward the castle gates. "Oh Middy… you're so cheesy sometimes." She said shaking her head.

The pair walked quietly past the gates and into the busy castle.

"See? No problem Middy. Just get to your room, get your things, and get to class. Your dad will never know."

"Yes he'll never know" David said sternly as he popped up behind them. He stared at his son and at Celestial Brush, his eyes burning. "And where have you been all night?" He asked sternly. Midnight gulped and tried to answer.

"We were out on our picnic together, and we kinda… fell asleep under the stars." He whispered avoiding his father's gaze.

"Midnight I gave you ONE rule. ONE RULE!" He shouted, his royal Canterlot voice shaking the castle around him.

"You were to be back in time for your early classes. You've missed 3 of them." He said sternly.

"Dad I..!"

"NO! There will be no discussion. To your room."

"But Dad!"

"NOW!!!!!" Midnight turned, lowered his head, and began walking toward his room mumbling something under his breath.

"And do not think you're getting away without punishment either Celestial Brush." David said looking at his son's girlfriend. He secretly blamed her for Midnight's failure to follow directions, but he knew that Midnight would never forgive him if he yelled at her.

"I'm sure Celestia wants to know where her daughter has been all night." He said as he began pacing in front of her. Celestial Brush's eyes shot open as she bit her lower lip.

"You're not… going to tell them are you?" She said barely above a whisper.

"No I'm not. You are." He said as he clapped his hooves and two guards came galloping in. "Get the royal chariot ready. Room for two passengers." He said calmly. The guards saluted and ran back outside.

"I hope you understand Celestial Brush…" David said as he led her outside into the morning sun. "I'm only trying to keep Midnight focused on what's important."

"No offense Mr. Guardian sir… but can you really say you know what's more important for Middy? I mean… I don't think you know him like I do." She said as she stepped on board the chariot which had just landed.

"Well then… perhaps you could enlighten me." He responded as the chariot took off and flew east with both of them onboard.

Chapter 12

Children of the Guardian

Chap 12

The chariot ride back to Celestial Brush's house was quiet almost the entire way as David stared out into the dark sky, his thoughts wandering and straining for a solution to his problem. Even if it had been an accident about Midnight missing his classes, accidents still had consequences sometimes. (I warned him to be back in time for his classes.) David thought as a small raindrop hit his muzzle.

His green horn glowed a soft gold and the chariot was soon covered in a gold shield just as the rain began pouring out of the dark clouds above them.

"Thanks…" Celestial Brush mumbled trying to be friendly. David turned and merely nodded at her. (You and I aren't friends Celestial Brush. Not by a long shot.) He thought as the chariot touched down next to a house near Lake Ponyville. The house was quiet and medium sized. It was a bright white and consisted of beautiful mahogany doors at the entrance from which two lanterns in the shape of the sun were hung over it. The lanterns emitted a soft glow as if to say; "Come in. You'll always be welcome" which made David feel happy.

He smiled as he stepped off the chariot looking at the area for the front door. "I'm guessing your mom had something to do with the front door designs?" He said chuckling. Celestial Brush smiled and nodded. "Yep. My Dad wanted something casual, but mom still hadn't let go of her royal blood so we went with fancy. So dad went out and bought the prettiest doors he could find, and got those lanterns crafted especially for my mom." She said happily.

(Well… I know where the money I gave him for the war went.) David said facehoofing. "Tell your dad to be careful or Celestia might become a princess in his own house! Then he'll be waiting on her like a servant."

"Who says he doesn't already?" Celestial Brush countered with a smile. David broke into laughter at these words. She was right though, when it came to treatment Primary Colors spared no expense. As images of Primary kissing Celestia's hooves ran through his mind David realized he had to focus on what was needed now.

"Well… thank you for taking me home Mr. David. I guess I better go tell my parents where I was all night." Celestial Brush said as she made her way to the front door. She had just about opened it when David spoke up.

"Oh no you don't. We're not done here." He said pointing at hoof at the ground, indicating she should stand in front of him. She cautiously approached and stood there looking up at his cold silver eyes. "Celestial Brush…" He started calmly. "Many things are important in life, and to Midnight one of those things is his studies. I mean after all… he WILL rule Equestria someday. However… it has appeared to me that he has forgotten how important those studies are.

Therefore…" He gulped, trying to get the words out. The pain he was about to cause his son making it difficult. "…I forbid you to see him for the time being." He said quietly. He then watched as Celestial Brush's eyes flashed open and for just a split second, he thought he saw a spark of fire.

"You can't…You have no right!" She said staring back at him.

"I'm his father. I have all the right I need, and I know what's best for my son." He said as he turned and walked back to the chariot.

"DO YOU???" She barked. David stopped in his tracks. Had she really just questioned him about knowing his own son? A small fire suddenly sprang up in his heart as he turned around to face her.

"Yes."

"No you don't!"

"And how would you know!? You're just a little girl!" David said gritting his teeth. His fire was roaring inside him now ready to explode out at this mare who was beginning to irritate him. He watched as Celestial Brush paced back in forth in front of him.

"You don't understand anything! You may be the Guardian but you're blind to the problems your own son faces! How often do you even talk to him?" She said stopping and glaring into his eyes. David's mind snapped to attention. He never did spend much time with Midnight. They talked occasionally at dinner or maybe sometimes afterwards, but otherwise they never talked. (I was always too busy…) He thought to himself.

"Well I…"

"EXACTLY!! NONE AT ALL!" She snapped at him her voice screaming. "He tells me all the time that if you would just listen to him and let him make his own decisions then he could make you proud, but all you do is dictate what he does and how! You've crushed his individuality!"

"That's a lie!!" David barked stomping his hoof. He knew that it was the Royal Advisors who directed Midnight's schedule, but he was not about to bring that up.

"Oh really?" She said pacing in front of him. "Has ever told you what he wants to do with his life once? Or what his dreams are?" Brushie knew that Midnight wanted to be Prince one day, but she wanted to hear what David said.

"He's going to be ruler." He responded.

"Yes… but do you know what he told me? He wants to be just… like…you, and I find that disgusting." She said harshly. David's fire roared to new levels as he stomped both his front hooves causing cracks to appear in the ground.

"HOW DARE YOU!!! YOU WILL MIND YOU TONE IN FRONT OF ME YOU INSIGNIFICANT KNAVE!!!" His Royal Canterlot voice shook everything around causing leaves to fall from the trees and the shutters on the house to slam back and forth.

"So now I'm a knave? What happened to the Guardian who didn't care about his position? What happened to the Guardian who didn't want to be a ruler, but a friend and saw himself equal to all of us normal ponies?" Brushie said angrily. For just a split second their eyes met in a cold stare, but as they did David felt his inner fire suddenly go out. She was right… he had been acting like such a fool, he thought he had been caring for Midnight when in the end he was just coddling him trying to keep him safe from the corruption that power always left on creatures who had it.

(How ironic… that I'm being corrupted by the very thing that I want to protect my son from.) He thought as he stared down at the cracked ground. (I'm becoming the very thing that I had slain those 17 years ago.) He shook his head and spoke, his voice choking from the tears that were forming.

"You're right Celestial Brush. I'm not the father I need to be, I'm just concerned for Midnight. Growing up as a prince is a big job and I don't want him to get overwhelmed and make the wrong decisions. I WANT to be there with him, but this damn Guardian title keeps me tied up. I just… UGH!!" He growled as he bucked his back hooves against a tree causing to be lifted out of its roots with a mighty roar and crash onto the ground.

"Hey… don't beat yourself up too much. I mean… it is wrong that you don't spend a lot of time with him." Brushie said trying to comfort him.

"Thanks that really helps." He responded sarcastically.

"But you're REALLY busy and I can understand that. I'm sorry for thinking you cared more about work than about Midnight. I should have known the Guardian's heart would never do that." She said as a small smile crossed her face. David nodded as she turned and walked toward her house.

"Tell Middy I said I'm sorry." Brushie said turning back to him.

"Tell him yourself." David said as he stepped back onto the chariot. "He's coming to get you at 5:00 tomorrow for a date."

Brushie's face went from pure shock to utter joy as she ran full speed and tackled him to the ground. "THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!" She shouted as she hugged him so tight he could feel his bones straining.

"No problem… just promise me you'll keep him in line, and out of trouble." He said straining against the mare's death grip. She then released him and saluted with a goofy grin on her face. "Yes sir!" She snapped as she turned and walked back to her house and went inside. David slowly got back on his feet, brushed himself off, and boarded the chariot. With a quick nod it was quickly airborne and flying back to the castle at full speed.

As they flew however two things buzzed in his mind. How do stop the Royal Advisors from running Midnight and Sunlight's lives, and to remember to make fun of Midnight's pet name. "Middy… I'm definitely gonna get some mileage out of this one."

Chapter 13

Children of the Guardian

Chap 13

As the midday sun began to rise over his head David found it very difficult to stay awake. His short argument with Celestial Brush had caused him to use up some of his inner energy quite unexpectedly and it had in turn drained his stamina quite rapidly. (I'm gonna have to be more careful with how I control my powers) he thought as a small yawn escaped his muzzle.

"Oh the hay with it, I'm just getting old." He said quietly so the pegasi guards pulling the chariot couldn't hear him. Although he was the Guardian and his new unicorn stallion form had given him new life and vigor, David knew that unlike Twilight he was not immortal. He had arrived in Equestria when he was 19 and now 17 more years had passed. In human years he realized he would be 36 years old! Add to the fact that he had faced combat and had grown up with two children and his age was probably over 40 in human years. He continued thinking about his age until the gentle tug of sleep could be avoided no longer. As thoughts of how long he would live passed through his mind David's eyes closed and he quickly drifted off to sleep.

The sleep however was not a pleasant one as David opened his eyes to find himself in an all too familiar place. It was a dark, dank room. It reeked of blood and death and the only feature that gave the room any notice was the large black door with alicorn statues around it. "The gates of Darkness… Nightmare must want to talk again." He said as he stepped toward the alter in front of the gates. As the dust around him swirled with dark magic his mind bombarded him with images from his fight against Nightmare's spirit in the very room he was standing in.

This out of body experience was not new to David. He would constantly check the gates when he was awake to insure that they were sealed shut when he was awake, and while nothing happened then whenever he fell asleep his dreams would usually pull him back to that same spot. "My body in one place… my mind in another." He said quietly as he placed a hoof on the alter to open the gates. With a mighty groan the gates slowly opened revealing a pitch black swirl of dark magic with an almost seductive feel. Every time he came David had to make sure that his magic was covering him and this time was no different.

His horn glowed softly and a bright golden cloak of energy covered his body causing any dark magic around him to quickly flee from his presence. Except for one strange magical entity which seemed to struggle to climb free of the portal in front of him. It was a dark blackish blue and had no shape at first but as it struggled free of the vortex they quickly took on a shape that he was all too familiar with. First came two armored front legs which crashed beside him. They were massive in size almost 30ft tall and were quickly followed by two rear hooves as the strange entity began to take on a body like shape. David watched as it twisted and contorted until it became the towering figure of Nightmare Moon standing defiantly and angrily over him with a burning red fire in her eyes.

"SO!" She bellowed, her natural voice made even stronger by her now massive size. "YOU'VE RETURNED TO SEE ME AGAIN GUARDIAN!" She said as she leaned down low enough for her muzzle to be right in front of David. "Only because you called me here you demon." He said staring into her burning emerald eyes. "I see you've made yourself comfortable in the dark world judging by your new size." He said calmly as she lifted her head and laughed causing the room to shake and David's ears to sting from the noise. "INDEED! IT DIDN'T TAKE LONG FOR ME TO REALIZE THAT I COULD ABSORB ANY DARK POWER I FELT LIKE! THIS NEW POWER GAVE ME WHATEVER I WANTED… BUT AS FOR OUR CURRENT CONVERSATION…" Her words were suddenly cut off by a bright light which blinded David for a few short moments. When the light faded Nightmare was gone only to be replaced by a human female. She was dressed in a dark blue gown which hung over her feet. Her bright emerald eyes were matched only by her dark blue and black flowing hair and lunar white skin. "I feel it best that we… meet on an even playing field."

The women cooed as she stepped toward David who was shaking his head. "How the hell did you..??!!" But before he could ask the words she tapped his forehead and sent a chilling sensation across his whole body which caused him to collapse in front of her. "Silence you fool." The women hissed as she helped him up with her magic. "Is that any way to thank the creature who just made your dream more enjoyable?" David staggered up regaining his balance only to notice something strange. He was walking on two legs!! He quickly looked down and saw that he had hands! Not only that but feet as well, human feet! "I've given you the body you had when we fought here… I also became human because I felt that we've… grown apart." She slowly reached out her hand and touched his face. The initial shock of his new body, combined with that fact that he knew it was a dream caused David to quickly knock her hand away.

"We were NEVER close to begin with Nightmare." He said coldly as he stepped back from her. "If you only called me here to humiliate me then get lost." Nightmare glared and quickly stepped behind him with a sudden human like grace. "That mouth of yours will get you killed one day Guardian, but I must admit… there is something I find attractive about it. She slowly wrapped her hands around David's body despite his struggling. "Let go!" He shouted trying to break her hold only to notice that his body felt numb from her touch. (Oh no…) He thought quietly as Nightmare's human form smiled at him. (Do I… find her attractive???) His thoughts screamed for him to let go, to run, to do SOMETHING to get away but his body wasn't listening. His arms slowly reached forward and his hands rested on her hips. "There now…was that so difficult David?" She cooed in his ear. "I know you're planning something…" David said defiantly but even his thoughts were beginning to betray him.

"Oh but what could I be planning? I've made myself human, lowered my guard, if anything I've only made myself weaker to you." She said quietly as she moved her hands up to his shoulders. "That's true… but what exactly do you want?" he asked his face burning bright red from her touch. "I only want one little thing Guardian… a kiss from you." David blinked, had he heard that right? "Wait… why and what's the catch?" He asked suspiciously. Nightmare turned and let go of him causing his body to only yearn for her touch even more. "I've been here for 17 years. I do not know love, or the feeling of a warm touch anymore. I only ask that you look into your heart and grant me this one request." She said quietly turning around. (Yes you fool… kiss me and let me take my revenge.) She thought quietly as her hand wrapped around the dark blood red dagger in her dress. (All I need is one kiss from him and I'll kill him right then and there, and with him out of the way I'll be free again. For I know that if you die in your dreams… you die in real life.) She thought as she glided back over to him.

"Just one kiss?" She begged as she placed both her hands on David's shoulders. "Well…" He said scratching his head. "Maybe one kiss… but what's in it for me?" Nightmare smiled. "I'll give you your body back. Your HUMAN body, just like the one you have right now. (Now I have him… he'll do ANYTHING for his body.) She thought. David struggled to think about it. He did want his body back but what would Twilight think? What would he gain from it? But… "Alright fine. ONE kiss." He sighed as he gave in and took her hand. Nightmare closed her eyes and slowly leaned in while taking the dagger in her free hand from the back of her dress. "Oh David… you're such a FOOL!!" She yelled as she drove the dagger forward only to have David grab the dagger with one hand and put a finger to her lips with the other. "I forgot one thing Nightmare." He said as he twisted her hand and took the dagger. "I don't kiss on the first date." With those words he drove the dagger into her body causing an explosion of dark magic which hurled him against the alter.

"YOU WRETCHED HUMAN!! I NEARLY HAD YOU, BUT YOU HAD TO RUIN EVERYTHING!!" Nightmare's voice roared from around him as the dark room began to light up with sunlight. "Did you honestly think that I would turn away from Twilight for my body? I promised myself that I would live with what I had Nightmare! You failed!"  He shouted defiantly and with that the world around him turned bright white. "Sir wake up we're here." A guard said shaking David's sleeping body. "Ugh… how long was I out?" "About half an hour sir." The guard responded as he helped David out of the chariot. "Am I still a stallion?" David asked as he stepped down carefully. "Uh… yes sir. Why wouldn't you be?" The guard asked confused. "Oh no reason… just a weird dream." David replied as he walked into the castle toward the royal advisors chambers.

Chapter 14

Children of the Guardian

Chap 14

A normal pony would have trembled at the thought of seeing the Royal Advisors. They were the ponies that made rules and created the ways of enforcing them. They were the voices in Princess Celestia's and Luna's ears. They shaped Equestria how they wanted it to be shaped. Yes any normal pony would have been terrified, but David was no mere pony.

He was a stallion and a human, though as he walked down the path towards the advisors quarters his heart began pounding in his chest. No pony in all of Equestrian history had ever opposed or even questioned the advisors, and he was going in to fire every single one of them. (The advisors were formed shortly after Luna's banishment.) David thought to himself as his hoofsteps echoed on the marble tile as he walked through the castle.

Even though the castle was full of activity David had learned early on how to shut out everything around him and only focus on his thoughts. So even at the height of the rush in the castle everything was as quiet as the middle of the night.

(They were a way of preventing Celestia from becoming a dictator with her new power. Now with Twilight on the throne and me by her side we don't need them anymore, and I won't have them controlling my children's lives behind my back.) He thought as he reached the hallway which lead to the advisor chambers.

The path to the chambers branched off from the main hall and was only a short walk farther to reach them. As he began walking that path however the ever present shadow of doubt crept into his mind. It was true that the advisors were not needed ever since Luna's return but they still held a lot of power. Power that was very much visible in the groups of ponies who hated having David so close to Twilight in the first place, for fear that he would become a king.

(It's so easy to see. If I get rid of the advisors then Twilight and her rule take backlash for my decision and spur more Anti-David parties. On the other hand if I do nothing then they get away with making rules and decisions without Twilight or I's consent.) He thought as he continued walking down the lonely path to the chambers.

(The lonely path of resistance, or in this case it might be rebellion. Either way I'm walking it.) He thought as his hoof reached up and began turning the door to the chambers.

"Ye even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for my God is with me." David prayed silently as he entered his own version of the Lion's Den.

As the door gently swung open with a creak his muzzle was immediately assaulted by a strong fragrance. It burned his eyes and made him wince in disgust but he then noticed that the smell was coming from burning incense rods that were in the middle of the chambers. Braving the smell and possible chance of throwing up he walked inside and shut the door behind him.

"Royal Advisors I must speak with you!" He shouted as loud as he good with his Royal Canterlot Voice which upon finishing he realized wasn't a good idea since he now had to take a deep breath of the foul fragrance in the air which caused him to cough. As he was finally able to catch a breath he noticed the advisors coming down the stairs to the main room of their chambers.

Each one of the fifteen of them wore a different color cloak that colored their entire body; the only visible part of them was their muzzles which David guessed added to their imposing appearance. The elder of the advisors in his dark red cloak stepped forward.

"Welcome Guardian! To what do we owe the pleasure of this unexpected visit?" He said kindly.

"Angelos it has been a while." David said smiling and shaking the pony's hoof.

David had given the head advisor the name Angelos because the stallion reminded him of a strong willed character from a video game he had played back home.

"Indeed it has Guardian. I am sorry if the dragon's blood fragrance offends you. It helps to sharpen one's mind when meditating or casting spells." Angelos said readjusting the leaning incense rods.

David had indeed heard of dragon blood incense. It was not actual blood but a dark red plant that grew in dragon territory. It was very valuable and was traded all over Equestria for many uses, one of them being incense.

"Angelos we need to talk." He said walking over and taking the aging advisor aside.

"Let me guess my friend. You've come to remove us from power correct?" Angelos said quietly.

David's eyes shot open.

"How did you…?"

"It's not important how I know. What is important is that you realize what you're doing. I understand that you want your children to have free lives. I want this as well." The wise advisor concluded sitting down on a nearby chair.

"Angelos… I'm sorry it has to come to this, but I can't have the advisors running my children's lives anymore. I have no choice but to remove the advisors from their positions... even you."

David's heart was ripping in half. Angelos was one of Midnight and Sunlight's favorite advisors. He may have been old but he was like a grandfather to them. He told them stories, played with them, and spent time with them when David or Twilight couldn't.

"Angelos I want to keep you here. The children love you and you always consulted with me before you took any action."

"But you are afraid that if I stay that the others will wonder why I was chosen, and this will affect you and the princess's regime." Angelos interrupted.

David nodded as the old stallion sighed, and then suddenly chuckled.

"You are truly what this kingdom needs David." he said happily.

"What do you…?"

"The days of the sister reign are over, and the time for a new era has arrived. You are not doing this merely for your children but to preserve and create a new regime for Equestrian history. I see this new regime as a new light to cast out the darkness that lingers from the past. I can assure you David that I hold no grudge against you, and neither should the other advisors. Our duty is not to question decisions but to influence them, and what you're doing now is the sign of a true leader." He concluded taking David's hoof.

"Remember this however… If you ever need me in any way, shape, or form. Come to me and I will offer you all the advice and assistance I can. I am loyal to Equestria and to you Guardian." Upon finishing this Angelos stood and bowed to the floor in front of David.

(Damn it… why do I have to get rid of the one good advisor who actually cares about the decisions he makes.) David thought as he and Angelos rejoined the advisors.

"Advisors… I have come to inform you that your services are no longer required." He said his voice struggling to form the words.

"This is not a removal of obstacles; rather it is a change in regime. I feel that the time for advisors is over, because the best advisor is experience. I will miss each of you." He concluded nodding to them.

Although the sounds of grumbling and complaining could easily be heard the advisors knew better than to question the Guardian. After all none of them knew what else he could do to them, and he had always treated them well. David watched as the advisors headed back up the steps to gather their things.

However as they did he caught Angelos's cloak. "Angelos gather your things and report to the throne room." He said quietly.

"Why?"

"I think I found a way to keep my kid's favorite old stallion in this castle without attracting too much attention. You may not be able to be an advisor, but I could always use a nice guardian for my children."

The red cloak fell off the stallion's head revealing an aging brown stallion with a gray mane. He had clear green eyes that sparkled with wisdom and a smile now crossed his face. "Of course Guardian."

Chapter 15

Children of the Guardian

Chapter 15

"YOU DID WHAT???" Twilight screamed.

"I fired all of the council except for Angelos. We don't need them anymore." David said calmly.

Twilight trotted around her throne full speed. "Oh no n-n-n-no no! This is bad…" She said picking her hooves and quickly clopping them on the ground. "Do you have ANY idea what you've done David?" She said grabbing and squeezing his muzzle with her hooves.

"Yesh… I do." He said mumbling due to his face getting crushed. It had only been 10 seconds since he had informed Twilight about his removing of the council, and Twilight didn't like it one bit. She continued to trot around as her mane became undone and her eyes kept dilating over and over.

"David this is very, very, very, VERY bad! Do you know what kind of backlash this could have on our positions?"

"Well I…"

"Everypony who hates you now has even more ammunition to use! They can go around saying: The Guardian kicked out the Royal Advisors! He's taking over!"

"Twilight…"

"Not to mention what this could do to ME! They'll think I let you do it, they'll think I'm turning into a dictator, but I'm not dictator no WAY am I dictator!" She continued to rant on and on about the damage that David had caused, all the while her face taking on more and more looks of stress.

"Twilight I did it for the kids!"

"You could have at least TOLD ME! Then maybe I could have set up some counter-measures to this, but now I have nothing! NOTHING!! Hehhehhehheh…"

David had never seen Twilight like this before. She had a wide grin on her face and was quietly rubbing her hooves together like she was planning something evil, not to mention her mane had split ends and hairs shooting off in every direction.

"Twilight let's just calm down okay?" He instructed getting close to her.

"IAMCALM!! I'm TOTTALY CALM YOU DON'T HAVE TO TELL ME ABOUT CALM; I'm THE DEFINTION OF CALM!!" She yelled grabbing his face and laughing hysterically.

David was horrified. Not only at how Twilight was acting, but at the fact that his one action was causing this much insanity in Twilight's body and mind. She didn't even seem like the same mare anymore. She seemed more like a person that had just been let out of a mental hospital ward. (Okay okay… don't panic. What do they say is always the best way to stop someone from going insane?) David thought as Twilight hovered onto her throne and began singing random songs.

"ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TAKE A CUP OF FLOWER ADD IT TOO THE MIX! WINTER WRAP UP WINTER WRAP UP!" The horrible song skipping record known as Twilight came to end with one quick slap upside the muzzle with David's hoof.

"SNAP OUT OF IT!" He screamed shaking her. "Listen to me! I know that I didn't tell you about firing the advisors and I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not letting you talk to me about it before I went through with it, and I'm sorry for driving you bat-shit crazy but I need you to stop and listen to me. Do you understand?" He said staring into her beautiful lavender eyes. The only response he received was a gentle nod.

"Listen…" he began letting go of her body which was now beginning to calm down. "The advisors were controlling our children's lives. I understand that we were both busy, and that we needed someone to help our kids through life, but that's our job. We need to find time in the day to spend with them. Not just every night at dinner, not just when they need our help, and not just when they're sick and need extra care. Our duty is to guide them up with our own hooves, watch them grow, correct them if they're wrong, and be role models for them. I don't know about you but I don't want our kids to grow up like us."

Twilight's eyes opened wide at the statement as if she was shocked but David continued.

"Our children are too good for that. One day yes, they will be the prince and princess of Equestria but until that day comes they need to enjoy a better life."

He said as he walked over and looked out the window to see Midnight and Sunlight playing with their friends.

"A life where they can play." He said as Sunlight jumped around with Saturated Flame, whose hat fell to the ground and ran after it when Sunlight carried it off with her magic.

"A life where they can find love." He added as Midnight and Celestial Brush talked and nuzzled one another in the rose garden.

"And a life where they can enjoy every moment of their youth." He whispered as he stepped away from the window and looked back at Twilight who had now regained her composure but was gently crying.

David walked over and wrapped his hooves around her in a hug. "Listen to me Twilight. No matter what challenges we face, no matter what problems may arise, and no matter the fear that creeps into our hearts, we will always overcome it okay?"

He said looking into her eyes. Nopony would ever be able to understand what Twilight was feeling at that exact moment. Her fears and dread had nearly crushed her heart into pieces but now as she felt hooves around her, and a friendly smile looking down at her she couldn't help but feel that fear and dread melt away as it was replaced with a warm rush of love and kindness. It was also at that moment that she saw something amazing. For a split second as she looked at David as he spoke, she saw her brother Shining Armor looking back at her.

"We will always overcome it okay squirt?" He said as he vanished only to be replaced with David's muzzle.

"Yes… we will always overcome." She said wrapping her hooves and wings around his body. David's hooves never let go of Twilight until she was finally calm again, and for the next hour the whole world seemed to stop as the two embraced one another. Their love forming an impenetrable shield to protect them from the stress of the outside world.

"David…" She whispered as she got back to her feet and placed her crown back on her head. "Thank you for showing me that I don't have to fear anything. I guess I still have a lot to learn huh?" She said smiling. David only smiled back as he sat next to her.

"About being a Princess… yes. About being a normal pony living life. You just learned the most important thing. You learned that the world should never be able to kick you down and not expect you to get back up." He said as he kissed her cheek.

Chapter 16

Children of the Guardian

Chap 16

"Let's go everypony this has to be perfect!" The castle was filled with the clopping of hooves and the whispers of ponies as everyone prepared frantically for the coming day. The sun hadn't even risen yet and everypony was already busy hanging streamers and decorating the castle.

For as everyone knew, this day was very special. No one knew that better than David of course, since he had nearly forgotten it due to the events of the past week. It was Sunlight's 15th birthday. As servants and royal guards alike ran in every direction David himself walked along inspecting with Midnight by his side.

"This day has to be perfect son… A little to the left Dusty!" He commanded as quietly as he could to a light brown pegasus with a feather duster cutie mark.

"I know father, but is this chaotic preparation really necessary?" Midnight asked as David placed a banner to a pillar with his magic.

"Yes it is. I told you already that I nearly forgot and that we have to do this fast to surprise your sister. It IS her 15th birthday after all."

Midnight knew that his father was right. After when his 15th birthday had come around, David had pulled out all the stops to make sure it turned out amazing. The ponies continued their fast moving and quiet work as streamers and balloons of white and yellow began appearing all over the ceiling and pillar's of the castle.

"Father what did you get Sunlight for her birthday?" Midnight asked as he assisted a group of unicorns in setting up a large table and covering it with a purple linen tablecloth. David only smiled at his son's question.

"I got your sister something very special." He said as he turned and walked back toward he and Twilight's room. As he approached his mind drifted to the present he had gotten his daughter. It was a beautiful white and gold dress created by Rarity herself. Rarity had spared no expense in making the dress and had picked only the finest materials for it. Linen from Canterlot, gems from Dragonia, thread and lace from Manehatten. The dress was something right out of a princess's dream is how Rarity described it and she hadn't been kidding.

The images of Rarity and spike displaying the dress for him faded as he opened the door and found Twilight standing on her balcony looking out at the horizon.

"You're up already? The sun doesn't rise for another 3 hours Twilight." He said standing next to her. He then saw that tears were flowing down her smiling muzzle and gently landing on the white marble balcony.

"Twilight… is something wrong?" She quickly wiped her eyes with her wings and turned to face David with a smile. "Nothing's wrong. In fact I couldn't be happier. Our children are growing up in a peaceful world. What more could a mother want?" She asked turning back to the horizon.

"Oh come on now… you mean you don't want some more books? Or some new chemistry instruments to work with, or new scrolls to study?" David said jokingly as Twilight smiled and then began to laugh.

"Ok. Maybe a mother could want more "personal" items." She said nuzzling David.

"We will always want more Twi, but I think the true sign of a good leader/mother is to realize what you have is enough." David said kissing her lips. Twilight kissed back in return and their lips soon fell into the same cycle they had always done when they were alone.

First the lips touched and interlocked, then the tongues would probe their respective mouths as the kiss became deeper. The one surefire thing the truly showed their love when doing this was their tails which wrapped around each other as they lay out on Twilight's bed. They sat their together hooves crossed continuing their make out session until Twilight's wings shot up. "Oh…" She muttered blushing. "Sorry about that David. I just get really excited when we kiss and well…" David placed a hoof over her lips. He didn't care if she was embarrassed. It only showed how much they loved each other.

The kissing stopped soon after however when Twilight rose and with a bright glow of her horn, caused the sun to rise and bringing morning to Equestria.

"Now we need to go and wake Sunlight up." She said turning toward the door. Both of them exited and proceeded to walk to their daughter's room, Twilight admiring all the work that had been done to the castle.

"Is your student Stardust attending the party today Twilight?" David asked as they neared Sunlight's door.

"No I told her to take the day off. She's been working and practicing too hard. That and I want the day free so I can spend time with my daughter." She said as they opened the door. The inside of Sunlight's room was dark and the morning sun was only just rising so not much light filtered inside. However it was easy to see Sunlight fast asleep in her sun colored bed, her old doll Smarty Pants II held tight against her body.

"I'll wake her up. You go and get everyone ready." Twilight whispered as she turned and began whispering in Sunlight's ear. David took off finding everyone in the great hall and ordering them to hide. Quick as a flash everyone was hiding and David got a chuckle seeing Angelos and Technia fighting over a hiding spot behind Sunlight's pile of presents. With a slight nod of his head David's horn glowed and all the lights went out shrouding the great hall in darkness.

The entire hall was quiet as Twilight and Sunlight entered, Sunlight bouncing up and down gleefully. "Wait mom… where is everyone, and why is it so dark?" She asked before jumping up when the lights came on and she was met with a large shout of "SURPRISE!" as ponies began pouring out from behind their hiding places and streamers and confetti rained from the ceiling. "Phew… nothing went wrong." David whispered right as Angelos and Technia came tumbling through the pile of presents causing it to collapse on top of them. "Well… almost." He said putting his hoof to his face and smiling.

Sunlight was swarmed by ponies all wishing her happy birthday and offering presents. As the party went on however David began to feel uneasy and decided to excuse himself from the celebration and went out to stand on the balcony alone until a familiar voice caught his attention.

"Thy daughter is celebrating her 15th year of birth. Is it not customary for one's father to be at said festivity?" The royal voice asked.

David turned to see the mare of the night Luna standing behind him.

"Luna!" he said happily as they both wrapped their hooves around each other. "It's good to see you! You've grown!" David said breaking the hug.

He wasn't kidding either. Luna had at least doubled in size since he had last seen her. She was beginning to look more like Celestia, tall, royal, and commanding. "Thou have not seen me in 17 years Guardian. It is only natural that one's size would increase in that time span." She said smiling.

"Is the medieval style of talking really necessary Luna?" David said rubbing her head.

"Of course not, but it makes me seem more mature than you." She responded jokingly. The two friends shared a laugh but David then turned and looked back out at the morning sun.

"Is something bothering you David? You seem… distressed." She asked coming up alongside him.

"Luna… I haven't… told anyone this yet… but… Nightmare tried to… seduce me in my dreams a few days ago." He said carefully shaping the words and then turning to see the calm face of Luna.

"That is not surprising David. She's trying to weaken you so you'll help her escape. She did the same to me for a very long time. She pokes and prods at our weaknesses, our desires, and our past, anything to get what she wants. That's how she got me…" Luna said sighing.

"What do you mean?" David asked wanting to know more but she held up a hoof. "Not now. Go to your daughter's party then return. I will answer all questions then." She said firmly. David nodded and returned to Sunlight's party just in time to see her open the gift from him.

"Oh daddy I love it!!" She screamed as she slammed into him with an aerial tackle. "It's so pretty. It's like it was made just for me!" "That's because it was silly." He said hugging her.

"Can I wear now? Please, please, please??" She asked her lavender eyes begging. "Of course you can." He said smiling, and with those four words she was off like a lightning bolt only to return a few minutes later in her new dress.

David then spent the time talking with old friends. He and Bio had some time to reminisce about how they were getting older but still had some fight in them. Technia showed David a new staff she had created to help her build new machines. It looked like a strange axe with a round saw blade on one end, a think rectangular block opposite the blade for hammering, and a screwdriver head on the bottom. "It's also good for killing ponies." She said with a very scary smile on her face. "Self-defense of course." She added as David backed away.

The only old friend that David didn't see was Primary Colors. Celestia and Celestial Brush were both there but Primary was nowhere to be found. "I suspected he wouldn't come." David said as he looked on over the party. He and Primary had recently gotten into an argument that nearly cost them their friendship. It was over now, but they weren't as close as usual. "I thought the war had changed him, but I guess it was our arguing that really did it." He said sadly.

He shook the face of Primary from his mind and went back to his daughter's party. All too soon however it was over and everypony was heading home. David spent the remainder of the morning and the afternoon with his children but returned to the balcony again to find Luna waiting on him. "Have you been here all this time Luna?" "No. I left when Bio did, but I came back because I knew you still had questions." She said as she looked up at the late afternoon sun. "Now… I can explain how Nightmare came to be."

Chapter 17

Children of the Guardian

Chap 17

"As you already know David, Nightmare took form shortly after the daylight savings began and the sun was up longer than usual." Luna began looking out at the now full moon.

"Celestia then banished Nightmare to the moon for the next 1000 years. However… that's not where things began." She said quietly turning to face him, her dark mane glittering in the moonlight.

"Have you ever noticed that when you use your magic, or when Twilight does the same, some of the excess magic used is burned off and vanishes?" She asked.

"Yeah I've noticed that. It feels like you have something left over, but then it disappears." David answered quietly not sure where Luna was going with this question.

"That is how Nightmare came to be David." She whispered turning toward the moon again. "It was small at first. My excess magic created her and she would be that little voice in my ear trying to turn me against my sister. The "little demon" on my shoulder I guess you could say. However…"

She stopped and turned back toward David. Only this time she was letting her magic flow out of her body and it formed what looked like a small filly made of dark blue magic standing next to Luna.

"Over time that "little" demon grew, and grew, and grew from my use of magic." As she said this the small filly did indeed grow and grow until it was a splitting image of Nightmare's silhouette and it was now hanging over Luna. "She was my only friend, and I was blind to the threat she posed." Luna said as the silhouette walked around the room, as if it had a mind of its own.

"Luna I don't understand though. Surely she wasn't anywhere near your power. How was she able to take over and cause so much damage?" David asked standing next to her. Luna sighed and ushered him out onto the balcony.

"It wasn't long before I noticed my "shadow" following me around. So I decided to limit how much magic I used on a daily basis in the hopes that I would weaken her. It didn't work…"

"Wait why not?"

"Even though at that time she was far weaker then I was, you need to remember that all of the excess magic that made her was anger derived. My fury and sadness at my sister was the main fuel that kept her around. So even without my constant supply of magic, she could always feed off of my anger or sadness to find magic there."

David scratched his head. "Wait… that makes no sense. Are you saying that alicorns emotions are linked to their magic supply?" He asked confused.

Luna giggled, her beautiful laughter filling the room and causing the silhouette to hiss angrily. "Yes that's exactly what I'm saying David. Haven't you ever noticed that when Twilight is excited or giddy that her magic output increases? Like for example… when you two made love for the first time in this room after your marriage?" She said concealing her laughter.

David's cheeks flushed a bright crimson and he started to open his mouth when she realized that it was a good example. "I'm sure there was some kind of magical release after that moment. Or maybe two or three…" Luna said now laughing hysterically as every part of David's face was now dark red.

"Can we please lay off the innuendos please?" He said starting to sweat from embarrassment.

"Of course we can. All I'm saying is that it's the exact same thing. The emotions of alicorns control how much magic goes into the spell. That's why Nightmare was able to become so powerful. Fear and anger are some of the strongest emotions, and they hold vast amounts of magic behind them, and my anger was burning all the time." She said sighing as she sat down on the bed.

"Now it's starting to make sense. She took advantage of where your power came from and what you wanted."

"That's right David. She promised the power to rule all of Equestria, told me that my sister didn't care for me, and that I was nothing but a waste of Celestia's time and effort to care for. She picked and prodded at everything sacred, everything private, all to get what she wanted. Which is exactly what she did too you." Luna finished tapping David's chest.

"She targeted my love for my parents, my secret desire to be back in my human body, and she even tried to seduce me by becoming a human female." David recounted as the Nightmare silhouette approached and began growling at him.

"David if you could get your human body back now, but have to give up everything to do it… would you?" Luna asked seriously.

"Never." David answered putting his hoof to the ground. "I may want my body back, but that doesn't mean I'll give up everything. This world is my home now. The human body has no purpose here, while the one I have now does." He said as he closed his eyes. "Sometimes what you want, and what you need are two different animals, and right now what I need is to be the Guardian everyone can look up too."

"That's very noble of you David. I wish I had been stronger the day everything went bad for me. It was right before the summer sun festival and I was furious at Tia for something she had done… I don't remember. That's when Nightmare put her plan into action. She asked me if I wanted to rid the world of Celestia forever and bring about a world where the night was more important than the sun and I said yes."

Luna stopped as tears fell upon her the bed. "She took control of my body. It felt like cold water was working its way over my body as the transformation took place. I closed my eyes for just a moment because I was starting to see only black, but when I reopened them I could see fine. Except now it was her voice talking to me, and I couldn't hear myself speak anymore. She had become real, and I… the voice in her ear. I had to watch as she tossed aside my sisters guards and argued with my sister. All the pain and rage I felt before was now being used but I felt awful. I was seeing what my anger was capable of, and what it could do." She sniffed and continued.

"I watched as my sister send her to the moon and there I suffered for 1000 years incased in the body of my anger personified. She continuously ranted about brining eternal night, and getting her revenge on Tia. I tried to argue saying that wasn't what I wanted… but it didn't matter anymore. She was in control now… Luna was gone… and Nightmare had arrived."

She finished her story and put her head onto the bed. "I can only warn you David. I can't prevent it like you can. If anger takes control of your body you won't be yourself anymore. You will be your own monster and if it turns out like me… you won't even exist."

David hugged her as she finished. He had never asked for Luna to spill her guts like that to him, but to see her come clean to him, with a story that probably few ponies even knew made him feel very uncomfortable.

"Luna I'm sorry for making you tell that story. I never meant for it to open fresh wounds." He said nuzzling her. Luna smiled as she got up.

"It is I who should be thanking you David. I have not told that story in a long time, and I'm glad you listened. If not for you… well I suppose I would have kept it bottled up inside me. Thank you." She concluded by kissing his cheek. "Now I must go. Farewell Guardian." And with a quick burst of magic she was gone, leaving David alone in the room.

The silhouette of Nightmare continued to walk around the room but stopped and then leaped at David when it noticed Luna was nowhere to be seen. Quick as a flash however a magic crafted hand appeared from David's horn and began squeezing the silhouette. "Anger and temptation will not control me." He said as his horn glowed fiercely and the silhouette exploded into smoke from the crushing vice of the hand.

Chapter 18

Children of the Guardian

Chap 18

"Thanks again for taking me to Sweet Apple Acres bro." Sunlight said as she climbed into the Royal Chariot with Midnight.

"No problem sis. It's right on the way to see Brushie so I figured I'd give you a lift." He said as he himself stepped into the chariot, nodding at the lead pegasus to take off.

"To be honest I couldn't stand seeing Mom and Dad making out anymore." He said sticking his tongue out disgusted.

"Oh come on Midnight that's not nice. You know that's just how Mom and Dad show their love for each other." Sunlight said making kissing faces and noises with her lips.

"Yeah but it's kinda gross when adults are doing it. It's okay when Brushie and I do it cause we're young and it's understandable."

"Oh Midnight sometimes I wonder how Brushie ever fell for you." Sunlight said laughing as they flew out of Canterlot airspace.

"Hey I take offense to that squirt!" He said jokingly as he rubbed his sister's head playfully. Sunlight only smiled and laughed at her brother's cheerful attitude. It was almost like every time he wasn't in the castle or wearing his royal robes he was completely different. He had to wear his robes almost all the time in the castle which meant he had to keep a princely form and demeanor, but Sunlight liked him a lot more when he would just toss of the robes and relax. It made him seem more normal, instead of royalty.

"So Midnight, you and Brushie going on a date when you get to her house?" She said smiling slyly at him. Midnight's cheeks flushed a bright red.

"N-No… we're just gonna hang out is all. Just spend time together." He said stammering as beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

"What is up with you? You love Brushie right?" Sunlight said getting in his face. She always liked messing with her brother but she did believe that he got embarrassed far too easily.

"Of course I do!" Midnight responded.

"Then why are you sweating whenever I talk about her?"

"Well I… I guess I just…"

"Midnight Eclipse are you embarrassed of yourself?" Sunlight said confused.

Midnight sighed and looked out toward the Swayback Mountains which began to pass into view.

"Yes I am. Sunlight you know I'm not perfect. I make more mistakes than I can count and although they're small I can't help but think of the worst effect they could have on the kingdom. That's why I always hide behind my prince personality. The tough, loyal, steadfast, disciplined prince, but it's all just an act. I'm afraid that if Brushie and I's relationship gets serious I'm gonna do something stupid and end up ruining everything between us."

Sunlight was shocked at what her brother just said. She had no idea he felt that way about himself and it answered a lot of questions about why he was always so different around guests or other ponies.

"Midnight why would you think like that? Brushie loves you for who you are and that's that. I think she would take you even if you weren't a prince."

She said hugging her older brother. She heard Midnight sigh and turn around to hug her back. The smell of his coat and the crisp air made Sunlight amazingly warm. It was her brother's hugs that always made her feel safe. She always thought it had something to do with his scent. He smelled of roses and flowers whenever she hugged him and at first she thought it was because he spent so much time practicing magic in the garden but she soon realized it was just him. The sound of his strong loud heart beating in her ears just made her happy that her brother was alive and around for her.

"Your Majesties. We will soon reach the farmland. Give us about 5 more minutes." The pegasi upfront said breaking their quiet moment of bonding. "Thank you sir." Midnight said breaking the hug. Sunlight moved closer and nuzzled her brother.

"Sooooooo how did you and Brushie meet?" She said smiling playfully. Midnight looked down at his sister and cocked an eyebrow.

"Why do you want to know that?"

"Cause I want to hear if it was romantic or not, and now that I'm 15 you have to treat me with more respect so…" Sunlight went to the other side of the chariot and tapped her hooves up and down making a clopping sound over and over. "Tell me, tell me, tell me tell me tell me!" Midnight smiled and shook his head.

"That was the most immature thing I've ever seen and you think it will get me to talk?" He said chuckling.

"Noooo but if you won't tell me, then I bet Brushie will, and I'm sure she has tons of secrets about it." Sunlight said evilly.

"Fine, fine I'll tell you." Midnight sighed.

"Of course it's no secret because you were there when it happened." He said looking up at the clouds as they passed over, reminiscing about the past.

"It was back when you were 12 and I took you to DJPon-3's concert."

"You mean you were forced to take me to the concert by Dad." Sunlight interrupted.

"Yes, yes let me finish. It was when I was forced to take you to the concert. While you were down on the dance floor with friends I was up on one of stage trying to stay out of sight and avoid the mobs. You know I don't like loud places and crowds." He said changing the subject.

"I thought you would have been at the bar." Sunlight laughed at her own joke.

"Ha Ha very funny but I was up on the stage the whole time. That is until some drunken stallion bumped into me and knocked me off the stage… and right onto Brushie." He concluded blushing.

"YOU FELL ON HER??" Sunlight roared laughing.

"Hey it was an accident! A-Anyway yeah I fell on her. When I opened my eyes she and I were staring at each other, but before she could say anything I ran, grabbed you, and we came home."

"So that's why you were in such a hurry to get out of there… but why didn't you stay and face the music?" Sunlight asked confused.

"How could I? Get yelled at by a mare and then have everypony know that Prince Midnight was at a concert? No thanks." Midnight said raising his head up proudly.

"Midnight you need to learn to lighten up. Just because we're royalty doesn't mean we can't have fun."

"But it would leave such a horrible image for the family." Midnight panicked as he went off on a tangent.

"I can see the headlines now: Prince Midnight found partying rather than focusing on the kingdom. Is this really the ruler that will take over one day? Nooooooooooooooo way. I'm NOT letting that happen! I'll die before-"

He was cut off by Sunlight slapping his muzzle with her hoof.

"Calm down. You know good and well that you're a good ruler and I will be too, and we'll both make sure to make the right decisions for the kingdom." She concluded nuzzling him. Midnight smiled. She was right and he knew it. Panicking about every little thing wouldn't help anypony and why should he panic? He had an awesome sister, and an awesome marefriend. His thoughts were interrupted as the chariot bounced on the ground and stopped in front of Sweet Apple Acres.

"Mistress Sunlight. We're here." The fliers announced as Sunlight stepped off.

"Alright I'll see you later bro. Don't forget to pick me up on your way home." She reminded Midnight as he hugged her goodbye.

"I won't. Have fun okay?"

"Oh I will. Bye!" She said running off toward the barn. As he watched his sister run towards the big red barn, he noticed a colt probably Sunlight's age run over to greet her. As the chariot lifted off Midnight saw that it was Kuni, and then was horrified to see Sunlight kiss him.

"She's dating… HIM?" He said to himself. "No… no no no… I can't allow that. I said I was sorry but I still won't allow a common farmer to take the heart of my sister. She's too good for him." He muttered as the chariot flew toward Celestial Brush's house. "I'll talk to Brushie… maybe she has some advice for me on what to do about Kuni."

Chapter 19

Children of the Guardian

Chap 19

The remaining ride to Brushie's house was uneventful for Midnight as he continued to let his mind wander. The sound of the pegasi pulling the chariot was the only thing he could hear, allowing his mind to openly dissect and consider the world around him. Part of his mind thought of the upcoming Grand Galloping Gala that was to be held in the castle. According to his mother it had been a while since the Gala had been held. (Mainly because Princess Celestia and Luna found it utterly boring.)

So it had been her idea to revive it with a more modern feel. "Think of it as a giant party where everyone is invited." His father had told him when he informed both he and his sister. "Everypony Dad?" Midnight had asked confused. "Everypony important." His father had replied smiling. He had then told them that they would be allowed to bring up to two ponies that were close to them. Sunlight immediately jumped at the chance and had invited Saturated Flame, whose hat fell off her head as she leaped into the air with joy. Midnight however only wanted to invite one mare: Celestial Brush, the thought of them dancing together in front of everypony made Midnight's entire body warm with joy as he pictured both he and Brushie dancing together. He had yet to invite her however, and it was one of the reasons he was going to see her, not only to spend time together but to present her with her ticket that would give her entry into the Gala.

He slowly reached into his dark blue saddlebag and removed a small white box wrapped in red and orange ribbon. Inside the box was not only her ticket (along with two for her mom and dad) but also a ring that Midnight had bought with his allowance. It was just a simple gold band, but it had significance because it would show that Brushie was his date. "I could have gone with a corsage, but Brushie is worth every expense." He said to himself as he placed the box back into his bag as the chariot began its decent. As the chariot made its landing on the soft grass Midnight thanked the pilots and told them to take a breather as he hopped off and walked toward the door of Brushie's house.

It was exactly as his father had described it, it was quiet and bright white. The mahogany doors had a relaxing glow to them coming from the sun shaped lanterns hanging over them. "Man… Dad wasn't kidding when he said they were letting Mrs. Celestia keep her princess blood intact." He whispered as he made his way to the door and rapped his hoof on it. The wait was short as he was soon greeted by Brushie's light blue eyes.

"Middy!!" She shouted as she wrapped her hooves around him.

"Hey Brushie…ow… too tight." Midnight managed to gasp as Brushie crushed him in her hug.

"Oops sorry." She apologized letting and allowing Midnight to breathe.

"So what's up?" She said shutting the door and stepping outside with Midnight.

"Well… I came to give you something." Midnight said working up the courage. "Oh? What's that?" Brushie said sitting on the steps leading to the door as Midnight sat next to her. For the next moment Midnight was lost in Brushie's eyes. Her bright red scarf and flowing sun colored mane distracting him from what he wanted to say.

"Helloooooooooo?? Middy? Are you in there?" Brushie said tapping his muzzle with her hoof.

"Honestly, sometimes you look like you're in a whole other world with that blank expression." She commented as he face blanked over, doing her best to imitate Midnight's face.

"I'm sorry Brushie… it's just your so beautiful." Midnight started.

"And that you've never seen anything like me, you see why I'm Celestia's daughter." She finished sticking out her tongue cutely.

"I've heard it all before Midnight, and you don't have to say it." She concluded by kissing his lips. Even though the kiss was short and sweet Midnight's entire body felt like it rubber. Everytime she kissed him, every time their lips touched it was like being struck by lightning. The joy and pleasure from her lips, combined with the smell of her fur, of lilacs and roses, just made Midnight's heart skip a beat.

"Hey what's in the box Middy?" Sunlight's voice and the warmth of her hoof on his own snapped Midnight back to attention.

"Oh it's what I wanted to give you…" Midnight said happily as he pulled the box from his saddlebag with his magic. The box hovered over to Brushie with a glowing silver aura as she took it.

"For me? Awww…." She said smiling as she opened the box with her teeth, being gentle enough to remove the ribbon. Midnight held his breath as she opened the box revealing the gold ticket inside.

"What's this…? This ticket is proof of your invitation to the Grand….AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" Midnight jumped as Brushie threw the box against the door and tackled him to the grass in front of the house.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She squealed happily, as she covered his muzzle in kisses. Having a mind of their own, Midnight's hooves wrapped around Brushie's body and pulled her into a deep kiss with him. Their tongues lashed at one another each one trying to gain the advantage and neither one willing to yield. The warmth from each other's bodies causing them their hearts to pound in their chests. The feeling continued until the kiss was broken by Midnight.

"Wow… been a while since you kissed me like that." He said panting.

"Well… you know… it's not often a girl gets an invitation to the Grand Galloping Gala." She said smiling as she pinned him to the ground with her hooves.

"And besides… I like making you squirm. You look cute when you do." She said laughing.

"I'll show you cute!" Midnight said as she flipped her over so he had her pinned to the grass. Both of them continued to roll around in the grass like young foals, laughing and playing together, the playing ended however when Brushie forced her lips onto Midnights in another passionate kiss. Once again both of their tongues began fighting one another but Brushie couldn't help but moan when Midnight's hoof ran down her body. Midnight knew that he had her now, it had always been difficult to get control during their make-out sessions but now he had Brushie right where he wanted her. His hooves continued to glide down her body causing her to moan and pant out of control.

"You… you dirty… stallion. How… did you know?" She panted as he continued to rub her body.

"Oh you know… you learn a lot about somepony when you're with them long enough." Midnight responded as both their tails began wrapping around one another. To the passing eye the two lovers would have just seemed to be kissing, but too Midnight and Brushie it was more than that. They shared a common ability to be able to connect through contact. Whenever their bodies touched they felt not only each other's love, but their feelings, thoughts, and everything in between. Today was special however as Brushie continued to bite at Midnight's tongue. Begging him to keep rubbing her well-toned body. Midnight obliged and his hoof soon drifted over her cutie mark causing her to gasp.

"No no… please not there my prince." She said smiling.

"Oh… here?" Midnight responded tracing her cutie mark with her hoof. Brushie continued to moan happily but it was soon Midnight's turn as she ran her own hoof down his cutie mark.

"Ahhh ahhh… okay, okay Brushie enough. We're going to far…" He said worriedly.

"Oh no we're not… we're just getting started!" She whispered as she continued to rub playfully. Their lips met again, the kissing continued along with the tongue wrestling. Moans came between both of them but Brushie suddenly stopped and fell off of Midnights body.

"Brushie what's wrong?" Midnight panted as he sat up. She turned toward him with a confused look on her face.

"When we were kissing… something about the way your body reacted. It's like… something else is on your mind. You weren't completely in the moment." She said thinking. Midnight wasn't surprised with Brushie's deduction. Like her father Primary Colors, Brushie was an artist and had an eye for detail. They both had made out like this before, and it was just like her to point out something she or Midnight didn't do right.

"Is there something else on your mind Middy?" She asked gently cuddling up to him.

"Yes… there is. It's about my sister."

"What about her?"

Midnight struggled to form the words. "Well… I think she may be falling for some farmer pony."

"So?"

"Well I mean… he just… he's so timid, so… common." He said struggling with his word choice. His thoughts were broken however when Brushie's hoof slapped his face as hard as she could.

"So what? He's not good enough for your Royal Blood is that it?" She said getting up and walking back toward her house.

"Maybe WE should break up them Midnight. Am I too common for you too?" She said glaring at him angrily.

"What no! You're perfect Brushie and you know it! You also know that I would change to a normal pony rather than be royal any day of the week, but… this pony was just so… timid. That's not the kind of stallion I want Sunlight to be with." He said trying to salvage some kind of defense for what he was saying.

Brushie only looked at the ground and sighed. "This isn't like you Midnight, this isn't the stallion I fell in love with. What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing! Listen to me Brushie, I'm trying to think of the future because Sunlight won't. What if she and that hick get married? Do you know what that would do to the royal image? Just think for a second."

"I am thinking!!" She yelled as she turned and started stomping toward him, her mane flowing faster because of her anger and now looking like a raging fire.

"You're nervous about the royal image? What about me? What happens if you and I get married? Won't I ruin the royal image? After all I'm a commoner."

"No you're not! You're the daughter of Princess Celestia!"

"OHHHHHH!! So is THAT why you love me? Because I'm the daughter of a Princess? Do you only love me because it would look good to marry me?" She huffed as she turned his nose up at him. "I love you because of what your heart is like. Not for what you have or for what you are. I love you, for you and I thought you loved me the same. I guess I was wrong…" She said turning away with tears in her eyes.

Every part of Midnight's body was telling him to stay calm, to talk this out. Every part of his body was telling him not to lose control of his anger, but at the crucial moment he wasn't able too.

Fury filled his voice as his magic forcibly turned Brushie around to hear his Canterlot voice. "I DO LOVE YOU FOR WHO YOU ARE, BUT I AM A PRINCE AND I HAVE TO THINK OF THE FUTURE OF MY KINGDOM! IF ANYTHING YOU SHOULD BE HAPPY THAT I EVEN LOVE YOU!! NOPONY KNOWS YOUR NAME! IF NOT FOR ME YOU WOULD DIE SAD AND ALONE!" He screamed causing her to slide backwards. Brushie's heart was broken in two. The stallion she thought she loved was never there and she now realized it with her own eyes.

"You horrible, horrible stallion! You're just like every other rulers son. Spoiled and rotten to the core!" She shouted as she ran back to the door of her house tears pouring down her face. "I never want to see you again Midnight Eclipse! NEVER!! And take your present with you!" She screamed as she threw the box with the tickets back into Midnight's face and slammed the door shut.

Midnight's heart cracked into pieces as the reality of what his actions had just cost him settled into place. "Dear Solaris… what have I done."  He whispered quietly.

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