//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: First Sight // Story: The tale of an Exile // by KRissCHu573 //------------------------------// Two weeks after the beginning of Karn’s mission. Orbital station Hoketa 7-JI. Amaka was sitting in front the tea table in her room. She was shifting through multiple holographic pages. After a few minutes, she left them on the table and gave out a loud groan as she threw her arms up and behind her head. Suddenly Erina and the two gray guards ponies entered. The matriarch sighed, before addressing her secretary. “What news do you bring me this time?” “The Lost Vikings’ leader has been killed, and their main base of operations was destroyed. Also we have started receiving reports that both their forces, and those of other pirate groups who have harassed our ships are pulling out of Khalai space.” The blue mare stated. “Good. He did the job perfectly.” Amaka’s eyes slightly glimmered, as she spoke her next couple of lines. “So where exactly is our favorite dark templar? I’ve planned a great big thanks for him.” Erina looked down at the floor, her eyes filled with regret. The white mare took notice of that, her cheerful expression darkened, then she asked the most obvious question. “What happened?” The blue mare’s sorrow gaze met her superior’s, after which she replied. “I regret to inform you that…Karn’Aaziim has died in action.” Amaka sighed once again and lightly facehoofed. “M-ma’am?” Erina worriedly said, but stopped as the white mare raised her other hoof, motioning her secretary to be quiet. In a couple of moments she lowered her hooves and spoke. “Fifteen years, and then he draws the bottom line.” She groaned, after which she continued. “Get someone to write his family an apology letter from me, and a speech. “He died a hero...” “Despite being different, dark templar are still our Khalai brothers and sisters…”, one of those kind of speeches.” As she listed her requests, she made circular motions with one hoof. “Also, get me a list of the DO operatives in the Dylar system, and any relatives they have that live here too.” “As you wish.” The blue mare returned. Then she bowed and exited through the door, followed by the guards. But just as she went out, and the two were half way through, Amaka stopped them. “Wait.” All three turned around. “I want you two to stay here for a while.” The white mare said, pointing at the two stallions. With that, the trio split, and the door closed. But Erina didn’t go right away. She stood in one place, her back turned towards the door, for a couple of minutes, bearing a grim expression. Not long after, certain sounds began to emit from the room. Then the blue mare slammed her hoof in the wall, tears slowly starting to drip from her eyes. ‘Someday…you stuck up cold hearted bitch…someday you’ll get what’s coming to you.’ She thought. Her next thought, brought her hoof from the wall, over her heart. ________________________________________________________________________________ It was a dark storage room. The door slid open, and two ponies entered, one was a mare and the other was a stallion. “I’m not sure we should do this.” The mare said. “Come on Erina, we finally got some free time, and you want to waste with that?” The stallion asked. “I know Karn, but…what if someone walks in on us?” She returned with worry in her tone. “Who is going to bother? The patrols are done, maintenance hours are over, and there is no surveillance in the room. We are free to do as we please.” He stated. She put on a seductive smile as she said. “You always manage to talk me in.” “And that’s why you love me.” He returned with a devilish smirk. “And this, is why you love me.” She stated. Then she wrapped her hooves around his neck and engaged him in a passionate kiss, after which she pulled him down in the darkness. ________________________________________________________________________________ Erina was with Amaka in her room, receiving a lot of finished paperwork, when all of a sudden the door slid open, and a rather angry dark templar bolted inside. He held up a holographic sheet, before loudly asking. “What the buck is this?!” “By the Khala what do you mean?” The white mare enquired innocently. “Last night, the COMPLETED list of the families selected to be sent to the outer ring fields, got an update. Why is my sister’s and her family’s names on it?!” The stallion shouted. The matriarch shrugged, before replying. “I don’t know. Those names are selected at random.” “Like hell they are! Two days ago you got intel on me and Moon Sight being related, and then she ends up sent to the least defended parts of the system!” “I assure you, I had nothing to do with it.” She continued with the sweet and innocent act. “Buuut…I can remove their names from the list, if I could be persuaded somehow…” She gave him a seductive look. Erina was forced to witness her beloved utter the words, which would doom their relationship, without being able to do anything to prevent it. Karn sighed, before saying. “I wish…to be your shadow.” After which he bowed down. “Splendid!” Amaka cheerfully exclaimed as she clapped her hooves. Then she addressed her secretary. “Erina, be a dear and get this gentlecolt’s relatives off of the list. We need to talk over the duties in his job description.” A tear escaped the blue mare’s eye, before she hesitantly bowed her head in understanding and left the room. ________________________________________________________________________________ Erina sighed, letting the Khala calm her, after which she walked off to do her assignments. ________________________________________________________________________________ Karn found himself in a pitch black room, tied to a metal table. He remembered that he was shot in the shoulder, but for some reason he did not aknowledge the pain. There was a small lamp, making a circle of light around the table. Suddenly he heard a noise, after which he called out. "Who's there?! Where am I?!" A familiar pink maned white mare walked into the light. "Amaka? What's going on here?" He enquired with surprise in his tone. "Oh, not much." She started talking lightly. "You didn't come back in time, so your family took a trip to the outer ring fields. I was wrong, instead of crumbling down, the pirates got more zealous. And before you ask, Erina is probably downing mugs in a bar somewhere, and giving freebies to every stallion who passes her by." Her words stung him deep. The pain from the bullet wound returned, but it was hardly a comparison to that which the mare brought on him. His eyes shut tight, a few tears managing to squeeze through. Then she spoke again. "And now, you are stuck in here, with me, to remind you of all of your failures, for...ever." He couldn't take it anymore. His eyes shot open, and he forced himself up, tearing off the bindings, the thought of ripping off the head of the mare standing in front of him being his main drive. But just as he got off of the table he faceplanted on the floor. When he looked up Amaka was gone. He found himself in a basement filled with multiple farming tools and provisions. Next his attention was caught by a sharp pain in his shoulder. He noticed that it was bandaged, and that there was a bandage around his neck, which supported his arm. 'Where the buck am I?' He thought. He began scanning his surroundings. In the room there was a bed, and next to is was a wooden plank, with a bowl on it, and inside of it was a wooden spoon. Aside from the bandage he wasn't wearing anything, and his stuff was nowhere to be found in the room. Soon his gaze found a couple of stairs. He followed them and saw a staircase going up to a door. He got up on his hind legs, and using the wall as support, he slowly started making his way up. In about two minutes he reached the door, but when he was about to open it, when it slammed him, sending him down the stairs. “Oh my goodness!” A mare exclaimed, when Karn hit the wall. “I’m so, so sorry! Are you okay?!” She asked worriedly as she ran down to help him up. Then he opened his eyes, and saw who addressed him. It was a light purple earth pony mare, her mane was a darker purple with teal locks, and light orange eyes. The moment of awe he had passed when she was a step away from him. Then he surrounded himself in black smoke, and when it cleared he appeared next to the bed. Then he grabbed the first thing he could and pointed it at her as he loudly said. “STAY BACK! Where am I?! Who are you?!” Instead of the desired intimidating effect, the mare broke out a laugh. That’s when Karn noticed that his weapon of choice was the wooden spoon. “Calm down.” She began through a giggle. “You are at the Reneema de Steel Wing family residence basement.” The mare spread her arms in a two legged stance, showing off the place, and put on a large smile. The unicorn blinked a few times as he stared confusedly at her. “Heheh…” The mare quietly chuckled, before continuing. “As for your other question, I am Rain Drop Reneema de Steel Wing.” He continued to blankly stare in disbelief. “Soo…aren’t you going to at least ‘thank you’ to the mare who saved your life?” She asked. “This is your work?” Karn enquired as he pointed with the spoon at his bandaged arm. “Well…mine and my mom’s.” Rain began. “You had lost a lot of blood when we found you. Good thing you were close to the house, so we didn’t have to drag you for too long.” That did not do much, as he continued to just stare at her. She put her hooves behind her back, and put on the most innocent smile she could, before asking. “So, would you like to join me and my parents upstairs for dinner?” Karn still did not say a thing. “I’ll take the silence as a yes.” Rain said, after which she returned the spoon in the bowl, then took the stallions hoof and walked him up the stairs. ________________________________________________________________________________ On the table in the dining room sat Rain Drop, Karn and an old purple earth pony stallion, with light gray-white short mane and dark blue eyes. He was giving the dark templar a disturbingly mistrustful look, which made the said templar and the mare feel rather strange, as they both had put on comically awkward smiles. The unicorn slightly leaned towards the purple mare and quietly asked through his teeth, still keeping the smile on. “Does he always look like that?” She in turn slightly leaned closer to him as well, and also spoke through her teeth, keeping up the smile. “No, not usually. I’m not sure, but I think he likes you.” “You think?” He questioned, a tad bit louder. “So…you finally decided to wake up.” The purple stallion said. “Uh…yeah.” Karn began. “Sorry sir, but may I ask how long was I out?” “Nearly a week.” The old timer said lightly. The unicorn was stunned, barely holding his mouth from opening, then he sheepishly said. “Yeah, sorry to disturb you, but I have to catch a ride.” “What ride?” Rain Drop asked. “Well I came to Minehoff with a few friends, and they have been waiting for me for a while.” The templar replied. “Are these friends of your, by any chance a blue, yellow and purple unicorns?” The old stallion enquired. “Yes…” Karn said with surprise in his tone, then he asked a question of his own. “How do you know that?” “About a day after we found you, when I was at the star port market, I overheard two guys in mech armor saying something about their boss being dead, and their base getting blown up, and then one of them said that a dark templar got killed. Surprisingly, the three unicorns you described were also listening to the armors. After they heard the part about the dark templar, they got on their shuttle and hightailed out of orbit.” The purple stallion replied. Karn’s expression hardened in a scowl. He just sat there for a few moments, before slamming his healthy hoof on the table, leaving a small dent in the metal surface. The sudden outburst made the mare slightly jump in her seat. “What is it boy?” The old timer enquired. “That guy in the armor told the truth…I’m dead.” The templar replied. “But…you’re here? How can you be dead?!” Rain Drop exclaimed. “When a dark templar is reported dead, he officially becomes dead.” Karn said. “Why? Won’t they send a search party, to investigate if that’s true or something?” She persisted. “You are not very familiarized with Khalai society, are you?” He began with a deadpan. “Dark templar are not the most beloved through our people. It’s kind of the opposite actually. Any other Khalai wouldn’t mind if our entire cast was eliminated. So why bother saving us. Some who are even more fanatical scare their kids by telling them that a dark templar will come in the night and steal them for the Dark Order if they misbehave." "But why?" The mare continued. "I know that the rest of the Khalai send you to do the political talking for your people, and trust you with top secret missions. Why do they hate you?" "Because we know how and want to survive." He said. Rain Drop just gave him a questioning look, which demanded explanation. Karn sighed, before doing so. "Have you ever gone to high-school? You know how the "popular" and under average kids make fun of and bully the smart ones, right?" He received a nod, after which he continued. "Well that is pretty much the deal with the dark templar issue, only a lot more extreme. We don't want to blindly die for no reason, and in turn not do anything useful just in the name of honor, and we don't want to share our secrets with other ponies, so we disconnect from the Khala entirely. Because of that we are hated. Honestly, I think that if the supreme matriarch didn't protect our cast, the rest of the Khalai would have personally terminated us." The ponies on the table sat quiet for a while. In a minute the silence was broken when an earth pony mare with red fur, almost gray teal mane and orange eyes entered the room, carrying a metal pot. She left it on the table and said cheerfully. "I hope you're in the mood for tomato-carrot stew." She then brought four bowls and spoons, poured portions for everybody, and then started an introduction. "Hello, we haven't been properly introduced. I am Hay Seed Reneema de Steel Wing." She gestured at herself. "You have already met our daughter Rain Drop." She gestured at the purple mare. "And mister frowny-pants here is my husband Axon." She finished as she wrapped her hooves around her husband's arm, after which she asked. "And you are?" "I am Karn'Aaziim. Pleased to meet you and your family miss..." He began, but got lost in his words for a moment, before saying. "Forgive me, we only use first names in the Khala, I don't know with which of your surnames to address you." "Oh are you a polite one. You can just call me Hay Seed, it's not a problem." The mare returned. "Well boy, it's not a proper introduction for two stallions without shaking hooves." Axon said, before extending his right hoof. Karn did likewise. He felt that the old stallion was trying to tighten his grip, but with no effect, after which he stated. "Sir I would really appreciate it if you stop calling me 'boy'. There is a good possibility that I am older than you." "That so? And how old are you actually?" The purple stallion asked. "Dad!" "Axon!" The two mares exclaimed at the same time. "Don't be so impolite in front of our guest." Hay Seed stated. "61." Karn said, as if the mares' intervention never happened. "73." Axon returned with a smirk on his face. "Really?" The unicorn began. "You look very young for your age." He said with a light smile. "Are you saying that because you mean it,...or because you don't want the local militia to find out there is a dark templar in our house?" Axon asked. "Dad!" "Axon!" The two mares stepped in once again, but this time, they did not silence the stallion. "You do know that you folk have a bad reputation not only among your people." "If that's so, then why did you take me in, keep me alive and didn't alert the authorities?" Karn asked, a serious expression coloring his face. The purple stallion leaned in his seat, receiving disapproving looks from both mares, and then replied with a calm tone. "I like to think it's because me and my wife were raised properly, and we managed to do so with our daughter too." Then he chuckled. "I could be wrong though." That made the mares chuckle as well. Then Axon spoke again. "We're glad to help anyone we can, no matter the faction they are or were with." He gave the gray pony a reassuring smile. Karn sighed, lowered his gaze and stared in his stew, after which he spoke. "And I am thankful for that, but I think you have just wasted your resources." He looked up. "When I heal, I can't get to Khalai space, and even if I somehow manage, it wouldn't matter. My job would have been long since taken...and I am certain that won't be the only thing I would have lost." His gaze fell once again. Then he felt a light touch on his left shoulder. When he looked in that direction, he saw Rain Drop had placed her hoof on his shoulder, and then she said. "You could stay here with us, make a new start. It's no trouble at all, and I doubt that dad would mind another set of hooves to help around the farm." She gave him the most sincere smile possible. Karn then turned his head, to be met by the purple mare's parents' reassuring expressions. Not only did he come from another culture, but he was also part of those most scorned from that culture, yet these ponies took him in, patched up his wound and now, after he had found out his previous life was gone, they offered him a roof over his head and a chance to rebuild. The situation made him smile, as he barely held back a tear from coming out of his eye.