Soldier of the Night is an Alternate Universe slice-of-life My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic fanfiction written by Skyfire Storm over a span of seven years from August 2014 to the present day. It follows the life of Stormfire, a wannabe Lunar Guard and the ponies he knows and loves, especially his marefriend and eventual wife Blue Night. Part of a joint alternate universe dubbed the Pegiverse, Soldier of the Night, or SOTN for short, was first released FIMFiction in August of 2014 to resounding critical acclaim and continues to be updated periodically. The story remains a work in progress to this day but is slated to be completed towards the end of 2021; rewrites are planned for many old chapters as well.
As a high-ranking and valued member of the Lunar Guard of Equestria, Stormfire's day-to-day life generally revolves around protecting the ponies he holds close to his heart, as well as the Night Princess herself from any possible threats. But just how far will he go to carry out his guard duties? And why does he want to protect them in the first place?
This is his story to tell, just like everypony else has one of their own.
This is his life.
This page is currently under construction. The fanfic can be read here
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Tropes associated with this Fanfic:
- Absurdly Cool City: In the fanfic and shared universe as a whole Cloudsdale is portrayed as a large, American-style metropolis in the clouds, and is home to almost two million ponies.
- The Alcoholic:
- High Wind is implied to have become one following the tragic death of his wife - despite the several thousand miles of distance between them at that point in time Equinox's encouragement and support helped him ditch the drink and become the father he should have been all along.
- Gust is shown to be drinking apple cider and beer habitually in Chapter 21 as a coping mechanism despite being twenty years old at the time.
- Alternate Universe: Soldier of the Night is set in an alternate Equestria that is modeled more closely on the real-world United States than it is in the show.
- Behind Every Great Man: Stormfire is convinced to follow his dreams and become a Lunar Guard through encouragement by his marefriend Blue Night and his mother, Equinox Moon.
- Break the Cutie: Blue Night goes through a ton of crap throughout the fanfic, from growing up mainly friendless in suburban Cloudsdale and losing her brother at sea to raising a foal by herself while her husband was out fighting and almost losing him to PTSD upon his return.
- The Bully: Gust, Hurricane and Thunder Clap, the first two being able to redeem themselves.
- Child Prodigy: Gust Wind on guitar, Blue on the piano and Singer Case on vocals.
- Coming of Age Story: a notable aspect of the story is its focus on Stormfire and his friends over the span of several years, as their life experiences shape them into well-rounded adults for better or for worse.
- Cool Big Bro: Gust becomes this to Stormfire after the latter is able to get his band a gig at his high school prom; he even offers to let him stay for as long as he needs at his and Destiny's apartment when Storm's relationship with High Wind breaks down completely.
- Dead Fic: Due to the author's mental health issues, lack of motivation and persistent writer's block among other things the story is notorious for the sheer amount of time taken between updates. Skyfire thought about pulling the plug on the fanfic on a number of occasions but couldn't bring himself to, and so every time a new chapter is uploaded the story is thrust back into limbo until the next one eventually comes along.
- Elegant Classical Musician: Blue is presented as a talented pianist who enjoys playing music for her own pleasure and that of her loved ones—Storm notes her style of playing to be very elegant and refined, and she has taken part in many recitals throughout her childhood and teenage years. Even though she can sing as well and has a voice that can bring down the house she generally doesn’t because of anxiety and stage fright.
- Fish out of Water: Having spent a good portion of his childhood in a foreign country Stormfire is suddenly thrust into this sort of position after returning to Equestria with his mother - he initially struggles to adjust but over time comes to see Cloudsdale as his one true home.
- Happily Married: Downplayed with Equinox Moon and High Wind. Although Storm's mother and stepfather are initially shown to have a loving marriage things take a sharp downward turn when High Wind signs Storm up for a transfer to Vanhoover without his knowledge or consent, unintentionally destroying his already-brittle relationship with his stepson.
- Irony: A story full of it, but such is life.
- Opposites Attract: On the surface Storm and Blue couldn’t be more different from each other—he’s a lonely but still outgoing and friendly Nice Guy trying to get through high school while struggling with his sub-par flight skills while she’s a withdrawn and sullen Broken Bird with musical talent that she sees as more of a curse than a blessing. Over time, however, they come to realize they’re more alike than they thought and help each other cope with their issues and get better.
- Took a Level in Badass: although generally cool, calm and easy-going Storm can be quite the badass whenever the situation calls for it. It’s what eventually gets him his cutie mark.
