46 - We're Gonna Need a Montage
Long Road accompanied Soft Mane to her first class, walking alongside her.
"Where's Spike?" asked Soft. "I thought he'd be here."
Long Road softly nudged her with his snout, "He has classes of his own to worry about." He offered a little white lie, "He said you'd be fine and that he has the utmost confidence in you." He had said these things before, just not in specific reference to that day.
"Really?" she asked, starting to walk a little easier down the hallway. She took a deep breath before she asked, "Do you think I can get him?"
"Get him?" asked Long Road, one of his ears directed at her. They passed an open door where a pony was practicing a violin diligently in front of a smiling teacher. The mare was holding the bow in their fetlock and propping the instrument against herself.
Soft threw a hand up to let it flop back down, "Get him... Am I being selfish? It's nice he said he would be my shining knight, but I..." Unfamiliar emotions boiled in her and she struggled to convey them, "And he might leave anyway, with Twilight." A conflicted flush of emotions washed over her, "I'm... not jealous of her." A lie rang clearly in Long Road's hearing. "They were friends before I even got there."
"I'll tell you a little secret," said Long Road, bumping into her from the side. "Miss Sparkle makes my head swim. The way her eyes light up when there's a new book in sight, the eagerness and frankness she approaches people with. Even the lavender of her fur. The only time I confessed any of my feelings was when I was tricked."
Soft raised a brow, "Tricked?"
"In the maze," explained Long as they came up to the stairs and began descending them, "I told her everything. What did she say? 'That's nice.' She treated it like getting told her mane looks good that day and nothing more."
Soft winced softly and reached, petting along Neck's neck, "I thought I had it bad. Do you, uh, think they're... you know?"
He shook his head, "I do not. Miss Sparkle is just... distant to that. She doesn't know romance, and it frightens her a little. Spike knows what it is. He has the eyes of someone who has loved before, but he's still a young male, not even come into himself yet."
Soft hopped down the last few steps to land on wobbling hooves a moment before she rebalanced herself, "What do you think I should do?"
"You are also young," advised Long as he caught up with her, unwilling to skip steps. "Be honest, but not forceful. If you try to force it, he will run. Not out of rejection of you, but fear." His ears twitched softly, "Don't trap him."
Since they were sharing their pain, Soft offered her own advice, "Try telling Twilight now that we're not in that dungeon. Make it a letter, she likes those."
Long hesitated a moment before he resumed walking with Soft, "I may try that..." His words sounded false in his ears and he cringed internally at them. He was supposed to be fearless, so why did Miss Sparkle inspire so much of it?
They arrived at the right room number and Soft pushed the door open. Inside sat a mare in a strange folded position that looked more at home on a biped. Her hindlegs were folded over one another and she was sitting upright with her forehooves connected. Long gave a final nod of encouragement before pulling the door closed, leaving Soft with her tutor.
Though the mare's eyes were closed, her head was locked onto Soft, tracking her as she wandered the room but saying nothing. After allowing Soft to meander aimlessly, she spoke, "The leader felt it would do well to have you learn from another blind soul." She opened her eyes, revealing her purple eyes were just as milky as Soft's. "I am not blind, but I knew what she meant. I see more than others now. Welcome."
Soft went rigid when the tutor began to speak, "Uh, hi. I'm Soft Mane."
"I know of your name. Sit." The teacher directed with a hoof. "You are now a vessel for powers beyond you. Unlike a cleric, you are not bound to their dogma, instead you are filled with the essence of the other, and are expected to live life in that shadow. Your destiny has become intertwined with the gods and you are a mortal avatar for them, instead of a hired hoof."
Soft settled where told, imitating the stance of her teacher easily enough. "Lashtada took my brand and gave me hers," she pointed out.
"Hers? Are you certain?" asked the teacher, "Forgive the question, of course you are. You are as close to her as anypony could hope to be. How strange that she would select a half breed to be her avatar."
Soft frowned at that, "What's wrong with that?"
The teacher leaned forward slightly, "Your essence is muddled and impure. The spirit world prefers purity."
Soft clenched her teeth and did not reply to this, seething internally at the casual insult. "What do you want me to do?" she asked, a bit of her snappishness escaped into her voice.
"Nothing," said the teacher, "Today we do nothing. You must learn to allow your host to reach you. Sit, close your eyes, and empty yourself, until only this Lashtada remains."
And so they sat, sharing only few words after that point.
Pinkie looked longside at Spike, "You sure you wanna go back to school?"
Spike nodded firmly, "I've got to be a better fighter. That big golem just ripped us apart like we weren't there." He flexed his claws as he walked, "I wanted to protect Twilight, but I couldn't. Being a dragon is awesome and all, but..."
Pinkie patted him on the back with a hoof just to the side of his fins, "You don't have to explain it to me! I never did like school, but you're not me. Huh, that'd be weird if you were Me! A dragon Pinkie, rawr." She held out her hooves as if they were claws and swiped at the air.
Spike snickered softly at the display, "Sorry, you're just the best earth pony around."
She stuck out her tongue at him, "And don't you forget it. Say, do you think they even have party planners here?"
Spike paused in his walking beside an open door, fighting can be heard inside as a pegasi and a unicorn practiced hoof-to-hoof combat. "Uh, sure. I mean, they have parties. Someone has to plan them, right?"
Pinkie tapped her chin with a hoof, "I should go find one. Some out of this world tips for party throwing would be super fantastic!"
Spike resumed walking, giving a soft laugh as he went. "You'll go to class for parties, figures."
Pinkie gave him a soft push, "That's not class! And parties are serious business." She was pouting a little, but the expression quickly melted into her usual smile at life. "So where's your teacher hiding?"
"The guild master said he'd be waiting outside," said Spike as he pushed open the door leading to the city. The soft din of a metropolis full of ponies reached their ears as he stepped out into the sunlight. "You don't have to follow me the whole way if you don't want to," said Spike.
"Don't be silly, Spike," said Pinkie as she leaped past him with a shaking tail, "What are friends for, if not to root for you? Besides I'm planning a graduation party for you and Soft. Say, where's Twilight?"
Spike pointed back at the building he had just emerged from, "She's doing her own study and making some things. I think she really likes artificing." He paused a moment, considering, "I wonder if it will work on Equestria?"
Pinkie shrugged, "Why not? Equestria has magic, and glowy magic items, so why wouldn't Twilight be able to make them there? You remember the FlimFlam brothers? They had that great big machine! It ran on magic just fine." She emphasized her words with hooves flying through the air as she balanced on her hind-legs.
Spike stepped across the yard but paused, looking around a moment at the others training. He didn't know what his teacher looked like, and none of them were stepping towards him. "Uh..." A sudden punch to the side brought him to painful awareness as the griffon that seemed to have just appeared at his side drew his fist back.
"Now that I have your attention," said the griffon, "We may begin. That pain you are feeling is your kidneys crying in agony. Fighting is not always about how hard you can hit, but where you hit."
Spike was gripping his side where he had been punched. Though the pain was distracting, it was also focusing in a sense. He didn't want to be punched like that again, but he wanted to know how to attack like that.
"The first trick I will teach you is to know your enemy. When you know them, you can crush them," he explained as he circled around Spike. "I watched you when you came out here. You have a slight preference for the right claw, and your scales are soft around the belly. You appear to have been crushed in recent history. All of these give me clues as to where and how to strike at you." He was wearing armor, some sort of breastplate and helmet, along with shin guards. At his belt rested a warhammer on one side and a long sword at the other. "What can you see when you look at me?"
Pinkie had withdrawn to the side, watching but not interfering in the training. Spike looked over the griffon, scratching behind his head. "Uh, you're a griffon, a guy." He raised a claw to point, "You have two weapons, and decent armor?"
"That's a start," said the teacher, "I'm Swift Strike, and I live up to my name," he introduced himself, "You're a lucky warrior. Not many get to train at the talons of a griffon, so listen up, pay attention, and maybe you won't die, though I get the impression you might have already."
"Huh?" said Spike.
"When I said you were crushed before," asked Swift, "Did you feel dizzy and groggy afterwards? Does it still linger?"
Spike nodded quickly, "Yea. I thought I was just, you know, feeling bad about losing."
"You should," agreed Swift, "But, you're also suffering from a sickness that comes with brushing against death. Let's get that cleared away." He reached for Spike's hand and drew the dragon along, "Don't think this gets you out of training. I just want you in top shape before I start hurting you."
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I have alway enjoyed training sequences they sometimes are not as exciting as fight scenes but they set the foundation of a characters growth and are a way are a chance to build the character up not even more. Personally I feel that a character has an opportunity to grow evolve emotionally mentally and physically more in a training sequences than in a battle.
I love the most that Spike now has meet his mentor I was looking forward to that for ages. I am actually almost just as excited that you finally introduced a griffin on the name basics to the party. I'm sure that after their rigorous training Spike will view Swift Strike in a similar light that Twilight views Under Score. I am so looking forward to seeing Spikes training to get a the Slayer Class because I feel learning totally new skills, abilities, feats, and techniques will be a heck of a lot harder then his training under Fast Shadow to learn about abilities he already had but did not know how to use.
As for Soft Mane I'm looking forward to seeing her training too. It will kinda be like chapters 8 thru 12 except Soft Mane will replace Twilight, and Pinkie Long Road and Twilight will be there to occasionally check up on them. Really looking forward to this.
Again Thank You So Much.
Yay, more training. I share Pinkie's opinion when it comes to training: BORING!
5519848
5519861 There is no winning play on this. Someponies like a training scene, others do not. I will likely keep this session to one chapter and show what they learned in the actual adventure. Spike is eager to show off his focused strikes.
Glad the chapter brought smiles to some of ya!
Damn kidney shots. Hurt like crazy.
5520134 Pain can be a very good teacher sometimes.
Stupid negative levels.
They suck balls.
Oh good, these have been added after the fact. I was worried that I'd just missed them.
There's a counterargument sitting in front of you, biting her tongue. To say nothing of any oracles or shamans who happen to be half-elves, half-orcs, aasimars, tieflings...
Yeah, that statement seems more than a little suspect.
I quite like Spike's tutor, though. Slayer is one of the more intellectual combat classes, a good choice for Spike. And Swift Strike is quite amiable, an interesting blend of Sherlock Holmes and Conan the Cimmerian.
One noticeable typo:
They can see the student. No reason not to use gendered pronouns.
Looking forward to more in past or future.
5520617 Ponies are not immune to species related discrimination.
The typo has been sent back to training. We're sure it'll get its act together soon.
I am amused on a level that people comment on the training, for better or worse, but the conversations between characters got no touching on. Not interesting?
Thanks for the comments! Always a highlight of the day.
5520673
The character development is certainly interesting, but at the moment, it's discussion of what may happen. Given that we know what's coming up next, statements of future intent lose a bit of their punch. Only a bit, though.
I see you're taking it easy on Soft Mane. Did you relocate the party to a new city just so that Soft wouldn't have to get snot beat out of her by Fast Shadow? Speaking of Fast, I'd like to see more of her. She's one of your best OCs, in my opinion, and she could probably use a lesson in friendship or two. As I'm only halfway through the story, I have no idea where you went after this, but I thought I'd throw that out there anyway.
5607047 No harm bringing these things up. I really don't have much in the way of plans except extremely vague ideas I get as the story goes along. It made sense for them to set up shop in Viljatown at the time, so they did.
Pinkie is out to find a master? She shall be the first pony with mastery over schools of party from two Worlds! Prestige Class!
a warhammer on one side and a long sword
5990064 Fixed!
At first glance Soft’s trainer kinda sounds like an asshole but is there truth to that? I mean if there’s a legitimate difference between a pony and a human’s soul, and Divine Spells are keyed into souls, I could imagine being a crossbreed would make it sort of difficult. Like mixing green and red paint and having to use the result to paint realistic looking grass
9380396
In Everglow? The author of this fic is the closest “word of god” your going to get.
In a typical dungeon and dragons world? One soul is one soul. While they are not equal to each other (won’t stop some entities from the cliché life trades) the physical vessel is meaningless. Some exceptions apply*
So yes… she is being an ass.
*in some settings Mordrin (Mordain?), the god of dwarves, actually makes the souls for every dwarf. Not every dwarf returns looking like a dwarf; if the soul can make the trip.