Yes, General Nightshade. That's a name fit for the General of Equestria's mightiest army. Dale sat, or rather floated in a sitting position, watching his minions of the night march forward on silent feet. It had unnerved him that they could walk this quietly at first, but he had gotten used to the lack of noise, and the benefits of not being heard. He also thoroughly enjoyed being able to float inches off of the ground instead of having to walk.
The dawn had broken several hours ago, and he set his troops to walking under the shade of the trees that were gathered around the path. He had been extremely lucky to get this far north without being spotted, especially when they had to skirt along the edge of Mannsville in the dead of night. But them again, his twelve night soldiers were completely silent in their movement, and garbed in black and dark blue, which made them quite difficult to spot or hear. The only downside was that the night soldiers were slightly weaker in the sunlight, which made tactics for attack strictly night time only. But that was no matter, since they were still able to hold their own against any petty thief or bandit, even in the daytime, and he had recently come across other means of attack...
A rustling in the bushes caused the night soldiers to stop and draw their weapons in a single uniform motion. Out of the bushes stepped a grimy, hairy man dressed in dented and unpolished steel plate, with only a knife at his side. Ah, speak of the devil. This ragged bandit was none other than Orrid, captain of the moon-brothers, a roving band of thieves that had sold their souls to the dark queen while she was imprisoned in order to become skin changing Wargs. With a wave of his hand, Dale signaled an at-ease and the troops lowered their weapons and mechanically stepped aside to allow the hairy man forward. He knelt and placed a fist over the ivory crescent moon on his left breast. "My lord of the night. My moon-brothers have agreed to aid you in our dark and beautiful queen's master plan."
Dale, arms folded, dropped gracefully to the ground and eyed the hairy man with satisfaction. "Excellent, moon-brother Orrid! Our queen is most pleased that she has gathered a following while she has been away."
The man stood and bowed to Dale, standing still before him. He stood a little taller than Dale, which was understandable, since he was only just shy of fourteen. But he had grown extensively since his meeting with the dark queen. The strangest thing had happened after he had been knighted. He had started to grow taller every day, reaching the height of a man three or four years older than he was in a span of about twenty four hours. His voice had deepened as well, and his muscles had hardened and swelled, much to his satisfaction. And the most interesting part was that his armor had not shrunk or grown uncomfortable, even as he grew. The armor was already light and comfortable, but it seemed that it also stretched to fit him as he grew.
He snapped back to reality and motioned for his troops to forward march. The addition to his army walked beside him at the rear of the company, making a considerable steel-clad racket compared to his silent troops. He tried to ignore the clanking and go over his plans for the future. Somehow, his mind had begun to fill with numerous battle strategies and military techniques that he had not known before. It was as if his dark queen was filling his mind with knowledge that could help him in his quest. She proved to be immeasurably helpful. This was reinforced as he felt the hand of his new arm clench in and out of a fist, feeling the smooth yet solid skin that covered his new arm. The other night, he had tested it's strength by grabbing a log of split oak wood, and had split it in half just by chopping downwards on it like an ax!
His head was filled with visions of himself rising atop a hill strewn with the corpses of his enemies. A giant castle of beautiful dark stone that gleamed in the moonlight, rising high above the clouds and piercing the night sky with gleaming ebony spires. He imagined sitting at the right hand of his beautiful queen of the night, watching over her kingdom, ready to strike at any opponent with a powerful death blow. He imagined a safe and beautiful place for his mother to rest...
Mother...
He imagined meeting his mother once more, her arms wide open to embrace her beloved son. He imagined the pride she would feel as she gazed upon her son, general of the greatest army in Equestria. He imagined her living peacefully forever under the merciful shelter of the dark queen, her every want and desire filled to the fullest. His spirits sank as his mind was weighed down with painful memories. He remembered once more that he was still a child, and for a moment, felt helpless and afraid.
Suddenly, a breeze brushed across his face and he shook away his feelings of sorrow. He had only hoped this new recruit didn't see him like that. He turned his gaze skyward and saw what looked like a swirling vortex heading fast for the ground at an angle. He squinted in puzzlement at the shape, straining to see what it was. He could see a few shapes in the center, but could not make out what they were. Then, he saw a spark of purple energy that stopped his heart beat momentarily and set him unexpectedly rigid. A mysterious surge of emotion swept swiftly through him, ranging from wonder, to hatred, to glee. He knew somehow that this was what his queen had been talking about when she said he would "know when he saw them." He didn't know how he knew, but he just KNEW those were the elements he was searching for.
Apparently, moon-brother Orrid had noticed it as well. "What, by gods, is that?"
Dale clenched his fist and felt the power of his new arm rush through him. "It's what we're looking for." He stared the moon-brother in the eyes, summoning as much authority as he could muster. "Gather your men and follow that cyclone. Whatever is inside of it is very valuable to our queen. When you have recovered it, bring it back to me as soon as possible."
"Aye, my lord of the night." The hairy man turned about-face and started to vibrate violently. In a flash, his hair exploded from his skin into a thick coat of fur, and his features warped into an unholy mixture of man and wolf. The Warg half ran, half loped into the bushes, bringing up faintly audible growls and howls from the surrounding area.
Dale smiled with confidence and resumed marching his silent troops. His smile faded as he thought for a moment. Wait, the queen said 'elements', so there must be more than one. If that's true, then the others are still about somewhere. Oh well, better not put all my eggs in one basket. "Alright troops, proceed as planned and be ready to receive the moon-brothers when they return." The night soldiers let out an ethereal and unison "aye" and resumed marching. Dale added under his breath, "Next stop, Manesburrow."
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