//------------------------------// // C0mradery // Story: Zer0 H0ur // by Vorizmordu //------------------------------// Zero made his way back home, but upon noticing that it was still quite early in the day, he decided to instead go to the field outside his home to train. His routine was exactly the same as the day before, swordsmanship into hoof combat. He stopped a bit early this time, however, wanting to try something new. He stood straight up on his hind hooves, closed his eyes, and focused. His horn began to shimmer as he attempted to make use of the hours of study he had earlier. He continued his trance for several minutes, but he couldn't feel anything changing. His focus was finally broken once he heard the voice of a rainbow maned pegasus. "Hey Z-- What the hay!?", Rainbow Dash exclaimed. Zero shot her a quizzical look before he noticed she was looking behind him. He turned around only to come face to face with four exact replicas of himself. He couldn't help but have a smug grin on his lips. His studies seemed to have been worth it in the end. He risked poking one of the clones, surprised to see that it was actually solid. However, as he pressed harder, he broke through the clone's skin, causing it to shatter like glass and fade away. With a quick thought Zero caused the rest of the clones to erupt. He decided he would continue experimenting with his new trick later. But right now, he had to deal with a certain cyan mare. "That was awesome! Where'd you learn to do that?", she asked. "Reading", Zero answered, noticing the disgusted face she gave him. "You're an egghead too? And to think I thought you were cool.", she grinned at him. Zero only shrugged, "If that's how you feel/ Then you must not wish to learn/ The techniques I use." "Slow your roll there, Z. I never said that. I still expect you to teach me, which brings me to the reason I'm here. Teach me.", she commanded, pointing a hoof towards herself. Zero nodded, "Alright then. First things first, you must learn to stand on your hind hooves." He figured he would get her used to the stance and maybe teach her a basic move or two to begin. And so, he began to train his pupil. Zero was beginning to lose hope. Over two hours had passed and Dash was still unable to successfully remain on her back legs without stumbling over. He was, however, impressed by the mare's determination. She simply would not give up. Finally, after what was her 46th attempt by Zero's count, she managed to maintain her balance on her hind hooves without falling. Granted, all she was doing was standing, but it was a success none the less. Zero gave her an approving nod, which was a signal for her to allow herself to fall to the ground. He noticed that the sun was beginning to set and decided that they had made sufficient progress for the day. "Man, that was a lot tougher than I thought it would be.", she stated. Zero gave her a smile, "Now that you have a grasp on the stance, the rest should come easy to you. We shall continue with your daily training tommorow." She gave an excited grin, "I can't wait! Thanks for taking the time out to teach me, Z. You're pretty cool, for an egghead that is." Zero sighed. She wasn't going to stop calling him that for a long time, he reckoned. It was only one book! The pegasus continued, "By the way, what you did to that show off Trixie was pretty cool too." "I could have come up with a better insult.", he replied with a shrug. Dash shook her head, "I'm not talking about that, though that was pretty clever. I'm talking about how you somehow made her look good in front of that crowd. It's like you used some kind of crazy mind control magic, which wouldn't surprise me after seeing that trick of yours earlier." Zero stared at the setting sun. Apparently, his meeting with Trixie was a big deal around Ponyville. He managed to convince a whole crowd of ponies to like a mare they had previously despised. Dash continued, "I mean, was it your plan all along to do that? It seemed like you were just about ready to strangle her to death, then you just changed. After you apologized, it seemed you two became best friends right on the spot. And you didn't even stop there! You publicly asked for her permission, which was crazy. I'm the element of loyalty and even I wouldn't have done that.", she finished. Zero gave her a stern look. She clearly did not understand the sentiment behind his actions towards Trixie. He spoke up, hoping to teach his pupil in ways beyond combat. "It takes strength to harm/ And break down your enemies/ While watching them fall," He continued, linking two haikus together. "It takes even more/ To see past your foes errors/ And build them back up.," he concluded, in a sage like manner. Dash considered his words, for once not finding his poetry a bunch of mushy crap. She came to a conclusion. "You're one cool stallion, Z" "I know", he replied as the two watched the sun descend past the mountains in the distance. As darkness fell upon the land, the two ponies said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. Zero made his way back to his home, but was surprised to Trixie waiting for him. He acknowledged her with a nod and she began to talk. "I want to thank you for earlier. I didn't deserve it, but I'm grateful anyway", she said softly, eyes locked to the ground. "You didn't deserve the initial punishment. I had no right to say such terrible things about you", he began, "But everything afterwards was sincere. I just hope you'll consider me a friend as well." Trixie shook her head in confusion, "I don't get you. Nopony would be my friend for good reason, yet you seem so determined to be mine. I'm still the same pony as before." "You are mistaken/ You've changed much since our meeting/ You must accept this", he said, compassion lining his words. Trixie could only stare at Zero, for she was at an utter loss for words. Zero continued, "You had reminded me of another who shared your no longer present arrogance. He would slaughter countless men, women, and children just to further his goals. I feel guilty for ever comparing you to him. You have a beautiful personality deep down but you need to let it show. Zero was caught off guard as the mare threw her hooves around him, sobbing lightly. He gripped her back, knowing at this point there was no point in questioning her actions and to just go along with it. She held onto him for several minutes before finally pulling away, "Thank you.", she whispered. Zero watched her as she returned to wherever she was staying while in Ponyville. He finally stepped inside his home, removed his pack, and prepared for sleep. He was slightly irritated when he heard a knock on his door. Apparently, Twilight let it be known to everyone where his new home was. He would have to have a word with her about this. He opened the door and was surprised for the second time today as he saw that Rarity was waiting on the other side of the door. "Hello there darling! I hope I'm not interrupting anything important.", she said with a bat of her eyelashes. Only my sleep, he thought. He sighed lighty before giving her a warm smile, "Not at all." He stepped aside to allow the mare to enter. "What brings you here at this hour?", he asked immediately. "Well, I came to ask a favor of you.", she began, "Since you are eventually going to spend a day with each of my friends and I, I would like to to be next on your list." "Why?", he asked without having to think. There was something she wasn't telling him. Something he probably wasn't going to like. "What? Can't a lady spend quality time with one of her friends?", she countered. "Then you wouldn't mind waiting another day then?", he said with a grin, knowing he had effectively cornered her. Realizing she was caught, she fessed up, "Okay fine. There's this fashion show I've been invited to in Canterlot tommorow and I'm supposed to bring a date and-", she was cut off by Zero. "No", he simply said. "But you didn't even let me finish! I could have asked any other stallion, but I decided to ask you. That has to mean something, right?", she continued. "No", he repeated. He was not going to attend a fashion show. "It would be very generous of you if you went with me.", she stated, trying to manipulate the stubborn stallion. "No", he said yet again. "Oh please please please!", she said, bordering on begging. It was apparent Rarity was not going to leave until he said yes. He groaned, seeing no other way to remove the mare from his home besides forcibly evicting her. With great reluctance, he gave in. "Fine, I will attend/ But I make no guarantee/ I will stay for long.", he informed. Rarity beamed at him, "Oh thank you thank you!", she hugged him viciously, squeezing the air out of him. Mares sure did enjoy hugging him apparently. "It's going to be so much fun, I assure you!", she exclaimed confidently. "Make sure to be at my place first thing in the morning, understood?", her face becoming dead serious. The mare basically skipped with joy out the door after he nodded. What did he do to deserve this? "Well I did kill countless amounts of people", he thought to himself. But still, he believed this was a sinister punishment indeed, even if it was karma for all that he's done in the past. No way to turn back now, he decided to just let it go and get some well deserved rest. As he was about to shut his eyes, a voice rang in his head. "Hail Zero! It is thy princess, Luna! Ooh our voice sounds so echoey in here!, the voice shouted a bit too loud for Zero's taste. But he didn't mind, considering it wasn't Celestia. It was instead her sister, whom he held high regards for ever since she stood up for him before Celestia. "Is there something you need, Luna?", he asked out loud. We wish to speak with you in person in Canterlot!, the voice explained. "We? You know I'm not on very good terms with your sister.", he reminded. Oh we're...err I'm sorry. Old habit. I request an audience with thou, not my sister., she said in a much quieter tone. "What for?", he questioned. "A small matter has arisen that I need...taken care of. I believe your particular skill sets would be perfect in aiding me in my predicament." This caught Zero's attention. Obviously, she meant his skill in battle, which made him wonder what kind of problem the princess could have that would require violence. "Fine. I will be there tommorow.", he answered. "Huzzah!", Luna shouted,"We eagerly await your arrival!", and with that the princess withdrew from Zero's mind. Zero sat there, now wide awake. He was attempting to guess what the princess was going to ask of him. He was excited, for this moment reminded him of when a person would hire him for an assassination contract. Though he found it very unlikely that Luna was about to hire him for an assassination, he was still excited that there was going to be combat involved and hopefully a challenge as well. He smiled at the thought of it. He looked forward to tommorow, despite the fact he was going to have to suffer through Rarity's show first. "Maybe tommorow/ Will be more interesting/ Than I first assumed."