//------------------------------// // 27. Decision // Story: Locksmith // by QuartzScale //------------------------------// They were all too silent as we walked out through the underbrush back into Ponyville proper. Out in the distance I saw the unicorn with the cerulean coat racing off into the distance. Probably not that important for now but something to keep in mind for later. I had more important things to handle at this point. The six mares behind me were still quiet and staring at me. I was still covered in wounds and dirt. While I could heal my wounds it was probably best that I save it for a demonstration in case they thought I couldn’t do magic. For some reason I also saw Twilight and Spike walking back to their Library house with some of her friends. I wondered if that bear roaring was something important. I ignored it and opened the door to my sparsely decorated home. I really needed to get more furniture. Maybe I could find some in different worlds. I opened the front door for the group and they all trotted in. I closed the door behind me and I waited until they all sat down on the couch. I managed to get a few candles set up strangely I found them as a gift from… Pinkie Pie. Right… ignoring that. “Ok… well I’m sure you have a load of questions about what happened so each of you decide the most important question you have for me and I’ll answer them… Probably as fully as I can.” They each took a moment amongst themselves to decide. Their mumbling continued while I looked over my wounds. Several bruises coated my side while there were several cuts in my wings and hooves. I did notice that Redheart was scrutinizing me intently. She was the first one to ask something. “How did you keep moving so much during the fight? Your wing was torn and then you healed… How did you do that?” Redheart cautiously asked. “I used magic.” “You used magic...But you’re not a unicorn…” I pulled her close to me and summoned my keyblade. I raised it above my head as the green flower appeared above my head. She examined me and noticed that all the wounds and bruises on my body had healed completely. Her jaw dropped and she had to sit down to calm herself. “Only problem is that it heals wounds but not fatigue. Next question?” I waited a bit while they stared at me. I didn’t exactly feel comfortable still. They were still trying to figure things out. Finally it was Octavia who broke the silence once again. “What is that thing you wield? It destroyed those monsters almost effortlessly…” “It’s called a keyblade. A weapon forged from either light or darkness given physical form. It is a powerful artifact and weapon made to fight against the monsters of the universe in a sense. It’s only lethal to those who do evil things. On regular beings it’s like being hit with a stick.” “This keyblade… It is a weapon of light or darkness… Is the one you wield one of light?” “No… Its one of darkness. I was the most resistant to it so this blade chose me in a sense.” “Chose you?” “Keyblades are sentient to different degrees. Those of light are like companions and are helpful to a certain degree. The ones of darkness are corrupting and require very strong wills to even wield without it whispering corrupting thoughts.” “Do you hear it a lot?” “No. I’ve learned to ignore it. For the most part the only times it gets to me is if I’m freaking out. I’ve been good so far but I’m keeping myself centered a lot of the time. Also as long as I don’t have it in hoof or wing I’m fine.” Octavia nodded and seemed to be lost in thought with all the information she had received. I answered everything I could answer that I knew right at that moment. Sunshower and Spitfire asked almost at the same time the exact same thing. “What were those monsters?” They looked at each other confused that it made me chuckle. I didn’t think that they wanted to laugh but I couldn’t help. “Sorry I found it cute. But to answer your question I’ll need something to explain it right.” I summoned the Lexicon and placed it on the ground turning the page over to the Heartless section. A three dimensional model of a shadow appeared causing a few to jump but they soon calmed down when it just stood in place looping it’s actions over and over again. “These… are the heartless. Physical manifestations of the darkness that every sentient being has within their hearts. I know it sounds a bit silly but this is what they are. Basically they are creatures of instinct constantly looking for the hearts of strong beings. When they find anyone with a strong heart they kill those beings and create new heartless to fight against anyone who wields a keyblade.” The shadow attacked a fake pony stealing their heart which appeared like a crystalline heart emblem. The shadow ate it and turned into a soldier. It moved around a bit before I shut the book. “They purposely hunt down strong beings with strong hearts to have stronger heartless with anyone who wields a keyblade being their target. Right now Equestria as a whole is actually really safe from heartless because it is lacking any true evil. At least any that is free right now. It’s probably one of the safest places in the universe right now with only three other worlds being this safe.” Spitfire nodded and seemed to lose herself in a contemplative meditation. Her ears were still active but Sunshower wasn’t done asking questions. “Are you being hunted?” “Not right now. For the past week I’ve not noticed any heartless in the area or on the planet as a whole. It’s why I made sure to give you each a day because I knew it was safe enough to take some time off.” They all blushed at that and hid their embarrassment. It was good to know that they still had some affection for me. I had been worried that this would immediately make them worried about me instead of worrying for me. Still… I was going to be talking a lot. That might also mean about me… shit… Fresh Coat asked the next question and it was a bit of a doozy. “What do you mean by universe…?” This caught their attention making all of them wide eyed and curious. Also a lot of nervousness in all of them which I wondered how to actually answer this question in a concise way. I couldn’t explain this easily. “Well… what if I told you that this wasn’t the only world with life on it? What if I said that this place is so grand and expansive that every star you see out there wasn’t only a creation of Luna but it’s only world?” None of them said anything. I knew though from the look in their eyes that there was some doubt still but it was tempered after what they saw this night. Fresh Coat was the most accepting of this explanation and while Vinyl, Octavia, and Sunshower seemed the most willing to believe both Spitfire and Redheart didn’t look too convinced. “Could you prove it?” Spitfire crossed her hooves not looking convinced at all. I wondered if I should do so but… there would be provisions before I took them with me. If I took them with me. “Yes. Though there are certain things that have to be discussed and that should probably take place later tomorrow… today. Probably by the next moon after you discuss this amongst yourselves.” She seemed satisfied by that answer and nodded for the moment. All of them had asked a question except for Vinyl… She was the quietest of them all hidden in thought by her DJ glasses. Then she finally slammed the arm of the couch and got my attention. “You know this is all good so far but I think you’re forgetting something very important. Something so important that I’m surprised that none of you asked it just yet. You have so much to explain Gray. You wanna know what was so important that you still haven’t answered just yet?” The girls looked surprised and seemingly incensed by Vinyl’s outburst but I don’t think they were for her viewpoint. They waited patiently while I was in a blinking fit. “What is it Vinyl?” “Simple. What was that song you sang? I’ve never heard it ever in my entire life. It was dark yet catchy and inspiring for some reason. Where did you hear it from?” That caused all of them to flinch from the sudden swerve into a barely important question in their eyes. Truthfully, it was one of the most important questions they could have asked throughout the entire night. I weighed my options and tried to figure out what to say. There wasn’t really much I could say that would make sense. “It’s called Radioactive. It’s from another world. A world I was born on a long time ago.” “What!?” “Yeah… I was born on a different world twenty six years ago. I’ve been trying to fit myself on this world for a while now thanks to a god that decided to pluck me from that doomed world.” They didn’t say anything… I was wondering whether or now this was going to go badly. For now I needed to answer as best I could. “What do you mean by doomed?” Well at least they were still listening… This was going to be a clusterfuck I knew it. “About two weeks ago from today my world fell into anarchy. They all decided the rule of law meant nothing because the world was going to end which meant it was everyone for themselves. Let’s just say that horrible things happened and no it was much worse than anything that could happen in Tartarus. It was done with full knowledge that their actions were their own and the atrocities they committed were their own decisions. The day it was to end this god decided to pull me away and send me somewhere else because I was one of the few who didn’t lose their mind. So… Here I am trying to make a new life for myself with the stipulation that I fight the darkness wherever it appears whenever it appears.” They didn’t actually answer at first and I didn’t know why. I hadn’t looked them in the eye because it was a far too heavy story I didn’t want to answer at all. When I finally looked them in the eye I saw all of them crying… Spitfire was trying not to folding her hooves and keeping a stern look on her face though the tears were still streaming. “Why didn’t you tell us what you’ve been through!?” Sunshower came close and glomped me though she didn’t exactly knock me over. I had felt stronger after beating the Nightmare once again. She was followed by the others with Spitfire joining in reluctantly but happily. “I… well I was worried about being found out. I wanted to just blend in and not get anyone involved at all. Besides you know new life and new chance at things. Might as well try even if… look it’s something I don’t want to talk about right now…” I’m pretty sure after they stopped hugging me I didn’t look them in the eye. I sucked it up and noticed that they all still looked sad. I coughed a bit making sure that they were still paying attention. “Anyways this is who I am and this is my job nowadays. Um… I have to contact one of my associates… You can stay and see if you like…” I wondered if this was a bad idea but they wanted proof and this was the easiest way to handle things without going too far. They all nodded and seemed a bit better in spirit but I was worried that this might be too much. I pulled out the moogle gem and placed it on the ground. As they were about to say something the gem started to shine and the holographic moogle appeared before them. “Welcome to the Moogle Synthesis Shop. How may I help you Gray?” “Hi Stiltzkin. I’m wondering if you could help me with something. I found this during my last fight and I was wondering if you could use it to make me something.” “Let’s see what I can… Who are these… ponies?” “Friends of mine. They were curious after seeing me fight off a small group of heartless. Anyways I found this and this item a while back and it seems to be the same make.” Stiltzkin looked over the nightmare shards and the nightmare core I found after fighting with the remnant of Nightmare Moon. He made a few calculations and seemed to look over his items. Then he gave me a stern look. “I know I can make this but the problem is that we need some orihalcum and five dark shards. I know you have the items but if we make this it would take me the rest of the day. Are you willing to wait?” “Yes. I have plenty of time. It sounds like there were other concerns on your mind though.” “Heh… Guess I am getting old. Most don’t notice my tells. Anyways my brother Montblanc wants to speak with you; he has some message for you and a job if you’re interested.” “Uh… sure I guess. Let’s hear from him then. Here’s the items for the synthesis.” “Thanks, kupo. Sorry force of habit. Anyways here’s Montblanc.” All the girls were still a bit shocked by the small bear creature with bat wings and a small pom pom on it’s head. It looked like a little adventurer with the green doo-rag on it’s head. I saw a few of them were even more curious about things now. “Something wrong?” “What the buck was that?” Vinyl cried out. “That was a moogle. It’s one of the denizens of those other planets I talked about. They are very skilled crafts moogles who made the jewelry I sold back in Canterlot.” “Wait they made those?” Sunshower gasped. “Yup. They’re my associates and the ones who helped make the items. I only found the materials.” Before they could ask anything more another moogle appeared in the holographic display. This particular one was much different in shape being slightly skinnier and wielding was looked to be a large minigun and pack on his back. Montblanc was decked out in a Gunner job class outfit. I really didn’t expect that at all. “Hello there… Montblanc.” “Ah there he is. It’s a pleasure Nebula Gray. As you already know I’m Montblanc, leader of this particular group of artisans within Clan Centurio. Now I don’t want to bore you with details but I do have some important things to discuss with you.” “Of course. What’s on your mind?” “Well, first on the agenda is that Yen Sid wishes to speak with you on some important matters. It’s not urgent but something long term which needs to be addressed alongside many other details.” “Ok. What’s the second thing you needed?” “Later on I may need a keyblade wielder to do me some favors and I was looking at you in particular since we did manage to get you a very rare moogle gem to speak with you like we are now.” “Right… I’ll agree to it since we are working together at the very least.” “Excellent. Don’t worry about your synthesis item you left. That will be free of charge for such a loyal customer.” “Of course then sounds like a fair deal.” “Right then. That’s all. In a few months I’ll have Mog contact you with more details about these jobs.” The holographic display blinked out and the girls seemed more confused and excited than before. This time I got bowled over by Vinyl. “Dude, you’ve got to take me with. This sounds so cool. I so want one of those keyblade thingies. Hook a mare up already.” I tried to speak but she was cuddling into me a lot which made Fresh Coat pick her up in her magic so I could stand back up. I did say that I wanted someone, or in this case somepony, to come with me. Still I needed to place the line in the sand for this particular endeavor. There was one thing about a keyblade wielder that would perhaps be bad for all of them. “I don’t mind but there is a warning to all this. The moment you have a keyblade your life goes to helping out the entire universe. The darkness will always try to get you because you have a strong heart. I’m prepared for that lifestyle and I’d rather you not go through it if you don’t have to. It’s a really big responsibility and can sometimes get really heavy. I did almost die already which I can tell you is one of my concerns right now especially if you decide that you want to join me.” Before Vinyl could jump into agreement Octavia shut her mouth with her hoof and dragged her back. “Gray, Do you mind if we discuss this first before Vinyl jumps into something like this.” “Yes please do so. Maybe convince her not to. It’s kind of high on the danger scale and while I would enjoy the company I’d rather you all have the chance to have a normal life and this is definitely more than anything that could be considered normal.” A few of them seemed determined to figure out somethings before they answered. I led them back to their homes getting a silent hug from each of them as they entered Octavia’s and Vinyl’s home. It was already starting to look as though the sun was rising at this point. From what I figured they all had the day off. I flapped off back for my home and locked up. I needed supplies for the trip especially if I go to another world.   (Third Person POV) They all fell asleep exhausted from the sudden turn in information. So many things came to light and the monsters they saw had an explanation now. When they woke up it was Vinyl who tried to rush out the door only to be picked up by Fresh Coat. Grumbling the entire way, She was placed on the couch between Octavia and Spitfire just to make sure she didn’t race off to get a keyblade. “Vinyl! We need to discuss this before we do this. Remember we’re trying to be a herd.” Octavia shouted out. “What’s there to think about? We do this we go with him and learn more about him and get closer. As far as I can see this just means that we actually have a good relationship and build it into something more permanent.” Vinyl argued right back. “That’s not the problem Vinyl and I’m sure that’s not what Octavia meant. She was talking about the keyblade business. Except for Spitfire, Redheart, and you none of us have had combat training in any sense of the word and from what we saw this won’t be a simple pastry war. These monsters want us dead.” Sunshower explained in a somber tone causing the girls to lower their ears. “He can get us a keyblade somehow but that means we will be attacked by those monsters. It seems like he wants to spare us from that lifestyle and wants us to be happy. Already that makes it a hard decision because he wants what is best for us. I still want to go though.” Fresh Coat muttered out the last parts. “This might make Wonderbolts stronger if I learn to fight like he does. So far he’s one of the toughest ponies I’ve met that could take me on in a fight. I’m not giving that up for a second.” Spitfire resolutely stated. “He’s been very nice to us even allowing us to see the magic he performed up close without worry. He could help me save other ponies and I still would like to see him romantically.” Redheart explained her own reason. “I’m just going to do it because it’s bucking cool and he’s cool by proxy. What’s not to like.” Vinyl stated with finality. “I want this herd to work out right. It’s been a long time since I’ve found a stallion that was so nice as Gray has been for a long time.” Sunshower gave her opinion which got a lot of nods from the other mares. “So we’re in agreement then that this is how this herd is going to be?” Octavia looked around the room and got nods from the others. She smiled as well. While she wanted to agree right away this was a group effort and someone needed to be picked as the Alpha mare… so why not the most level headed who keeps things moving. “Tavi, why you smiling?” “Oh nothing Vinyl. Let’s go ahead and get some supplies then. I’m sure this will be interesting once we head out.”   Gray’s POV) I went out to town while they were all asleep and trotted over to the market. It was seven in the morning and there were only a few ponies around. I made my way over to the orange pony I saw a few days back. I knew she was Applejack at this point but I needed to bring supplies this time in case they did lose to Vinyl’s enthusiasm and join in my adventures. At least Octavia was being wary and smart about this. This was not an easy life seeing as I almost died already. “Hello there stranger. Only seen you in Ponyville once or twice so far. Name’s Applejack and it’s mighty fine to finally meet you.” “Um… Hello there. Nebula Gray. I’m actually looking to buy a bushel of apples. It’s for something special.” “A special occasion, huh? What’s the occasion?” “Trip soon. I need the really good food and I’ve heard good things about things from Sweet Apple Acres.” “Well shoot… Trying to be a charmer only gets you so far. So a bushel of apples will be twenty bits and I’ll throw in an apple pie as well.” “Sounds good to me. Here you are.” I smiled a bit and took both the bushel on my back and the pie in a small bag carried by my teeth. I gave a nod and trotted away from her. I was worried that it would go on longer. She will not use her freaky lie detector powers on me if I could avoid it. I already have to deal with a group of mares finding out about me. Also I now had a thousand eighty bit left to my name. Not actually bad but I did need to eventually get more bits. There were so many things I needed to go over at this point. ‘On the one hand I no longer have to hide what I am from the girls anymore but they now know more about me than they should and I didn’t even tell them details… They hugged me even knowing that I was not entirely a pony… unless I wasn’t clear at all. Shit… I might have not been clear at all. Forget it for now… I’ve got to deal with the fact that now I’ll have to decide to give them keyblades or not. So long as Octavia can convince them not to then I should be fine. I’d rather not lose them… Also the training blades have to be activated to allow them to find their own keyblades. Hopefully the new synthesis item will help me out in the long run seeing that I’m making it from scratch. It took me finding that Nightmare Crystal after destroying that bitch just to make it. One nightmare shard, one nightmare crystal, five dark shards, and one orihalcum all used in the synthesis of a new darkness based keyblade.’ I managed to reach home without much problem. I had this feeling that all the girls were still sleeping after all the information they received. I looked around my home at this point and noted that there was a save point in the living room at this point. I quickly warped up to the ship and looked around for parameters for guests. Most save points were invisible to those not logged into a Gummi Ship. I added each of their names to the roster and quietly went back home. I finally, after many days sleeping upside down on a roof, laid in the new bed I bought so long ago and slept comfortably for the first time in weeks at this point. I finally found out a way to relax.     It took until nearly eight that night when I finally woke up. I trotted back downstairs more alert than I had been for a very long time. I had left the bushel of apples in the galley of the Gummi Ship. The tech of the ship would keep them fresh for a long time. It was when I reached the living room that I heard knocking at my door. It was at that moment I realized a folly of my plans. These mares must really like me because all of them had saddlebags on their back and seemed eager to go. I let them all into the living room where they stood transfixed by the glowing circle that was within. “I’m guessing you all agreed as a family in a sense to come with me…?” “Yup.” “Yes.” “Of course.” “Right on dude.” “Yessir.” “Sorry Gray but my hooves were tied in this matter. We all care about you and while this is certainly something so far out of the norm… each of us wants to make this work and this is the way we see as being the most beneficial to make our herd grow stronger.” “Ok then Octavia. I guess I should start with giving you all a way to get a keyblade. I still need to wait for my synthesis object before we head out.” I looked through my saddlebags and found the training keyblades from Yen Sid. Each of them were the same but with the same mystical properties of a keyblade. Each could still hold back the tide of heartless with no problem but it would take their strong hearts to forge one that was worthy to them. For now this was what needed to be done to give them a chance to fight alongside me. “So who wants to be first?” Octavia immediately stepped forward before anypony else could. I had a feeling that she was the most eager to get on my good side at this point which meant something was going on… I thought about it for a moment and realized I still hadn’t picked an Alpha just yet. This decision was going to suck in the long run at this point. I held the training keyblade in front of me and readied myself. "Just hold out your hoof, touch the handle and I’ll recite the oath for your keyblade ceremony.” “Ceremony? What does this ritual entail Gray?” “Just me linking with your heart to allow you the chance to get a keyblade.” She blushed at the mention of a heart and I’m sure she misinterpreted it as being romantic in a way… it might have been if I didn’t know what the ritual entailed thanks to Yen Sid’s teachings.   “In your hoof, take this key. So long as you have the makings, Then through this simple act of taking, It’s wielder you shall one day be. And you will find me, friend; No ocean will contain you then. No more borders around, or below, or above So long as you champion the ones you love.”   As the training keyblade disappeared Octavia appeared to have a glow in her eyes which disappeared just as quickly. She looked around confused. I waited until she asked her question before I answered. “Where is my keyblade Gray?” “Lift your hoof and think about your keyblade being in it.” She looked at me perplexed but did as I asked. She closed her eyes in concentration before a flash of light appeared and the training keyblade appeared in her hoof. She opened her eyes in a shock and squealed with glee. I didn’t say much but I did give her a hug so she knew I was happy for her. I felt an action would work better at that point. Vinyl was next and she jumped at the chance for one. I performed the ritual and she grabbed her keyblade with joy instead cuddling into me once she learned how to summon and unsummon the keyblade from her hoof. Sunshower went next and hers was just as easy though she did blush intensely once the ritual was complete. She also cuddled into me but from a glomp. At this point I had a bad feeling that brownie points were now in effect to become the Alpha. Redheart was the shyest of them when she got her keyblade. She did still receive a hug but it was very subdued. I supposed she was still used to this and I merely went along with it. At least she would be the calmest to get along with on other planets. Fresh Coat hummed a little song as she summoned her newly acquired training keyblade. She was so ecstatic that she jumped on my back and hugged me from that position nearly depriving me of air. She is really strong for a unicorn. Spitfire remained the most dignified when she received her keyblade almost treating me as if I was a superior. I had to pull her in for a hug because she was stubbornly keeping hold of her Wonderbolts training. She was glowering a bit until I whispered something into her ear so only she could hear. “We’re a herd… It’s ok to be intimate with me whenever you want you know.” I should really watch what I say to any of them but I couldn’t have her be stiff when we were fighting on other worlds otherwise it could go bad. She nodded dumbly as her whole face was red and trotted back to her spot. I made certain all of them could summon their training blades before we went off into the unknown. I didn’t want any problems in the long run. Once I was satisfied I led them to the glowing circle on the ground and had each of them stand on it one by one. When the first warped away the next pony would look nervous but trot willingly into the light. As soon as the last pony warped out I took one last look around the house and locked the doors. I stepped on the light and I was warped away from Equis. This time I had other with me. This path would not be so lonely anymore.