//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Violent Equestria // Story: Time in the Night // by The Real Darkness //------------------------------// I awoke and didn't move for a moment. When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a large room in what is most likely Canterlot. I slowly sat upon and looked about more, it was some kind of large, circular guest room. An oak dresser, a large closet, a bed fit for nobles, and more luxurious furnishings were around. I saw Luna sitting in a chair next to me, asleep. Celestia was standing next to her and some smaller alicorn, of a lavender theme and a magenta streak in her mane. "She needs to stop worrying so much about me," I whispered to the awake Celestia. "It is nice to see you are well, but you did push yourself during your last battle. You do have high praise, Equestria has already been told of your arrival with what you have done for us. You have my personal thanks for protecting some of my dearest friends and saving the two survivors of Apple Loosa," Celestia informed. "I've never had to use Chronoblade like that to win. I need more discipline, more training. Please see that Luna doesn't come looking for me," I stood out of bed and searched the room, finding my weapon laying on a trunk at the foot of the bed. I picked it up and unsheathed it, finding no blood on the blade and the markings to be glowing white softly at my touch. It's like the blade knew I was holding it. I sheathed it again at its visible response to stimulus. "Silent Time, as you wish to be called now, I know Luna can be overbearing, but this is Luna's first time defending Equestria on her own terms. She really wants this to go well. Before you go, at least let the ponies you saved thank you," Celestia nudged the smaller purple alicorn to me and it trotted quietly before nuzzling its head into my chest. "Thank you so much. Me, Applejack, none of us six have never seen real battle like that and you protected us. We owe you our lives. We all just froze up when we saw them actually trying to murder you," she expressed her gratitude. I patted her head. "Anytime, it's my job to protect others," I never fought or helped to hear the words of thanks, but it was a nice bonus to the job. I fought because it was the right thing to do. The doors of the room opened and a pony with a yellow coat and an orange mane entered, wearing a cowboy hat. Another behind him followed in with a brown coat and a black shaggy mane. "Sir, um, Silent Time, thank you for saving us, we owe you a lot," the yellow coated spoke up and made his way to me. "It's my job, I try to never fail the citizens," I patted his head. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask us," the other followed. "Please, you are not in my debt. I was just doing my given duty," I finished and turned to Celestia. I never did speak with those I saved often. "I will see you later, Celestia. I'm off to get better control over my respiration," I walked outside of the room and found stairs going spiraling down around the short tower. I breathed in before breathing out and starting to hurry down them. I pulled up my face mask and my hood over me. When I reached the bottom, I entered the castle again and sprinted right past some of the guards who then shouted at me about being careful. I jumped out through one of the many no glass windows I saw that showed the front gates of the castle. I quickly climbed the golden entryway that obviously wasn't suited to keep me out. I swung myself over and rolled when I hit the ground. "What is that?!" A mare screamed and pointed at me. "Miss, that is our new hero. Luna informed us to inform you if any of you have questions. You are not to bother him unless he talks to you first," one of the guards at the gate spoke for me. "The name is Silent Time," I spoke my one sentence and continued my sprint, climbing the window sills of a donut shop. I jumped onto the sturdy sign afterwards and heaved myself up, getting onto the roof. I continued my sprint, having a simple goal in mind. Reach the entrance to the city, which just so happened to be a train station across a river, an obvious security issue. I jumped from roof to roof, sometimes having to climb higher or go around taller structure in the way of my forgotten linear path. Ponies 'ooed' and 'awed' at me, some just ran away screaming for help. I began to hear the sounds of combat as I neared what seemed to be the central plaza. I looked in the distance and saw some guards fighting demons that flew, rather large, but they spat lava clumps down at them, melting the floor. There were two of them, both red, both furry, and both had a single eye placed in their stomach that was surrounded by circular horns for some sort of protection. I picked up my pace and slid into the plaza. "Guards, retreat. I can handle this," I informed and got ready to draw chronoblade, putting my energy into it again. "I don't know who you think you are, but me and my men aren't running!" A guard dressed in more armor than the others spoke up, a shield strapped to his left hoof as he fought on his hind legs with a spear in his other hand. "Fine," I released Chronoblade and slipped a spear from out of one of the four guards hands, throwing it at the other demon that was focused on the other two guards. The metal spear flew threw one of its wings and landed solidly. The demon collapsed to the ground, unable to fly and the other guards quickly vanquished it with multiple stabbings of their spears. "What did I just say?!" The captain screeched at me before he looked and dropped his jaw. "Silent Time, I told you I can handle this. It's more my job than yours," I charged Chronoblade quickly as I saw the lava come out of the other's mouth. I released it when it came close to hitting the armed guard fighting it poorly. I went over and stood on the shield of the guard that was bracing for the hot earth. I jump high and swirled the lava onto Chronoblade, directing it away with the slower physics and its higher viscosity. I continued my leap and snuck my blade in between it's horns. I landed on a rooftop with it and removed my blade from it, swinging the blood off before sheathing it and watching time return to normal. My head buzzed with a slight pain. "How did he move so fast?" the spearless one asked. I took off back towards the castle, the Princesses might want to hear about this. Ponies were definitely chatting about me now since I could pick up parts of the flying black creature or the monkey jumping. I arrived and raced back up the stairs of the same tower I had left. I chose to enter in the same odd way I left, though the window. I breathed out, trying to get a better control of my breath before I opened the door and found Celestia and Luna standing in the room together. The others had cleared out. "Daniel, just who I was looking for. I do hope my dear sister told you this is your room," she began and trotted to me. "I haven't had the time. He took off the moment he woke up," Celestia defended herself. "Well, I do now. Celestia, Luna, you need to post some more archers at your walls and around the city. Demons were seen fighting some guards with only spears. Spears are no good against wings," I stated, rewrapping my finger around Chronoblade's sheath. "Did you engage them?" Luna asked. "I had to, they could have faltered and died at any moment. Your guards are proud, but they need to be creative in their combat sometimes," I said. "I'm glad that you helped, but you need to have-," I cut off Luna. "Did you forget how much I slept? I barely slept in my world because of all the responsibilities I took on. I will live the way I see fit," I firmed backed my words in a stern voice, "I don't know how serious you ponies take threats but an entire town except two was wiped out not even twenty four hours ago and this is not how you react. You should be mobilizing your forces to contain the threat, not letting these demons grow!" I turned to walk away out of the room. "Daniel, there was a time Equestria used to be as violent as you can be," Luna began and I turned around to face her. "Luna! We're not like that anymore, don't suggest that!" Celestia trotted over. "But those statues, they are of pure heart and they know combat like that. We need them. Daniel, there are six heroes that went down in old tribes history. They were gifted artifacts like yours and we can't restore them, but we have sensed life from them. Go find them and bring them back. They can help us," Luna informed. "There. Now that's doing something!" I shouted, "tell me where I should start." "I suppose you really mean to do this. Daniel, we'll research them for you, but for now there is one that is on an island to the east. Be careful, the island has high heat and volcanic activity despite its size," Celestia said. "I will need a map," I said and Luna lit her horn, a small map appearing in front of me. "That should suffice," she said and I picked the map up, studying it for the island and major landmarks to know my direction. It was like reading a normal street map of the city, but without the blocks and roads. When I finished, I rolled it up and put it into my hoodie on the inside. "I depart now," I said and bounded down the stairs of the room and out of the window I used. I started to jog over the roofs of the buildings again and used it as my own personal highway to the walls of Canterlot. I saw the plains below the mountain and the forest that lead out far out, next to a small town of sorts. And further on there was a beach that had some, but not a lot of water between it and the island that appeared as a blotch. I was able to pick out houses that were specks in the distance on the beach. "Damn, that's a long way to go," I said aloud while I began to descend the wall, sliding down and gripping the stuck out stones with my fingers and feet to slow my descent and make sure I stayed to the wall. You can do it. Go, Daniel, this is your destiny My head felt light and I soon lost my balance a third of the way down the wall and I landed on my back hard. I had a wheezing fit trying to recover and get air back in my lungs. "What was that?" I asked aloud while I clambered to my feet and looked out at the plains again and then down at the zigzag walking path below me. I quickly began to jog down it, marks in the path giving signs of carriages going through. It was going to be quite a journey there.