//------------------------------// // REM+Applejack and the Ninja // Story: Aegis Shield's Scrap File // by Aegis Shield //------------------------------// Aegis Shield was a heavy sleeper, but very much like a sunning puppy when he did so. Sleeping on his back, occasionally one of his hooves would kick a little. With his wings spread out like he was expecting a lover, he would sometimes flap idly in his sleep and turn his head like a rudder. Sleep-flying was a past time he'd thankfully never taken up, but he did find himself atop his refrigerator once-- that had been a rough night for his back. The sleeping Lunar Stallion snuffle-snorted, turning and laying on his side. "Mmhhh-oh Princess, I luff youuuu..." he hugged one of his pillows, then without warning sank his teeth into it and tore it a little. Was he having a romantic dinner in his dreams? Who knew. His face did, however, turn a nice shade of pink as the dream continued into darker realms of romantic fantasy. Luna was such a beautiful, delicate thing, mhhh----hmhmhm! He drooled a little onto his shredded pillow. Aegis' dreams sometimes spawned interesting incarnations of Luna. Some of them were cruel and powerful, others delicate and demure. In one such story, the night time Princess was a delicate night flower with barely any voice and a tender body devoid of strength. He'd conjured a story from the Asian era in which ninja's had roamed the shadows of Equestria. Thennnn.... well, he'd realized he knew nothing about Asian culture and had stopped. I think I see the forgotten pages of that story there in one of his half-open drawers. Let's have a look, and see what he came up with, huhm? =-=-=-=-= A/N: One point of canon I must uproot it about Ponyville. According to canon Ponyville is maybe 100 years old at most. In this story, Ponyville is much, MUCH older than that. Nothing else is different, just the age of the town itself. Applejack and the Ninja Part 1: Tree-Pulling They called him Ninja Star, for none knew his name. His face and body was always covered with a skin-tight black suite, with a tie around the waste for a slender sword and pouch of other nasty goodies. The fur around his dark blue eyes was brown, but that was the only identity he had. Who even knew what his cutie mark was. He was pledged in shadow and dark to forever serve her Abyssal Black Majesty, Princess Luna. Silent. Deadly. Stealth perfection. It was hard to believe he was an earth pony, for such stealthy skills made many think he was a Pegasus. Or, surely a unicorn. How else would he have such borderline supernatural abilities? Sure, sleight of hoof could go a long way, but only so far. Even those at the Palace of the Royal Sisters were wary of him. That is where we join him now… Princess Luna sat, garbed in a beautiful black-flower kimono that was flecked with stars and swirls of navy-blue clouds. Eyes closed in meditation, her hooves shifted at the tiny ceramic cup she held. A pair of Lunar Stallions stood at either side of the door, at the far end of the room. The paper balcony door held the wind out, but little else. The night was deep, and the dark was soothing to her poor sensitive eyes. She was a delicate flower who wilted in the day, and as such had to be kept from the elements to maintain her spotless eternal beauty. Princess Luna’s cool, soothing gaze lifted her eyelids slowly at the slight tickle of wind on the back of her knee. “Who comes?” she asked in a soft whisper without turning her head. The two Lunar Stallions jerked back to reality, out of their daydreams, blinking at the open balcony door. Had somepony come in and not alerted them?! Panicking briefly, both of them rushed past Luna and onto the balcony. Ninja Star, who was pressed up against the balcony door, slipped past them when they dashed out onto the balcony and looked around for a rogue Pegasus. Surely only a winged pony could get up so high without the aid of loud teleporting magic? The black-clad pony slid into the Princess chamber and closed the rice paper door behind him. Both Lunar Stallions gave a start when they saw they’d been locked out, and came CRASHING back into the room with twin roars of fury. When they’d blasted through the delicate doors into the room beyond, they found Princess Luna splayed out over the table, her head buried in her ethereal mane and her tea splattered across the floor. OH FAUST SHE’D BEEN ASSASSINATED! Across from her sat, rather regally, a slender stallion with a scowl in his eyes. “Princess Luna!” one of the Lunar Stallions gave a feral whinny of fury and charged forth to take the ninja’s head off. Luna giggled whispily, raising herself back up into her seated position and the Lunar Stallion skidded to a halt, and almost careened over his own hooves. Just then the door burst open and four more guards rushed in, all of them wielding spears and long, slender swords. “Halt.” Luna never raised her voice, merely a hoof, to freeze them all in place. “Ninja Star comes by invitation, it is not thy fault such a pony can sneak past you.” She dismissed the hallway guards, and ordered the two room guards to start fixing the door they’d broken down. They would need new rice paper and rigging, but they could at least keep out the cruel evening breeze. The poor, delicate Princess of the Night got ill so, so easily these days. Ninja Star placed the weight of his belly on the table they sat at, putting his front hooves together and bowing low. He was reverent of his Princess, closing his eyes with a mask-muffled purr of adoration. He never spoke, as ninjas were silent things, but Luna knew the sound was a pleasant one. Luna shifted forward into a shallower bow, closing her eyes for a moment, then righting herself. She looked at the pony across from herself. He was a slender thing, lithe and built for stealth and flexibility. Not like any stallion, that’s for sure. Though she could see little of his actual body, she knew those eyes when she saw them. The silent pony straightened when Luna did, seating himself on the sitting pillow at the short table. “Thank you for coming, Ninja Star.” The Princess of the Night had a quiet, silken voice like a child’s. Her tender body had never known hardship, being a mare, and it made her soft-spoken and innocent-sounding. He knew she was far from it, but it was his business to know about looks being deceiving. “We trust thou art well, after coming home from thy mission?” she said in a low, sensual voice. There was no energy to the Princess, she was a quiet creature of divine grace and effortless power. A true goddess. Ninja Star nodded three times, reaching into his pouch to deliver his objective to her majesty. The folded cloth was stained with dried blood, saturated and crusty as he pressed it to the table and then slowly across to her. Luna’s horn lit as she undid the bundle. Inside was a griffin’s toe. It had a wickedly curved, eagle-like claw on the end and the entire thing was stained red. The Princess’ muzzle wrinkled lightly at the smell. “The owner is dead, yes?” she wanted to confirm. Ninja Star nodded three times once more. “Very good, Ninja Star. We art pleased.” She smiled serenely at him. “With Blackclaw Poisonfeather gone from the Continental Senate, the vacuum of power will quickly be filled by Equestria since it is land locked against us and the sea. One less warring state to worry about in our efforts.” She spoke casually of the great coup she’d just secretly enacted. The region they spoke of would be absorbed by the equine nation of Equestria within a few years, easily. With no leader they would look to the nearest source of power for dominion and protection. The Princess of the Night tried not to smile wickedly, and thankfully succeeded. She and her sister were benevolent leaders, but wars were still paid with blood. Sometimes for the greater good, quick and surgical sacrifices had to be made. If the madness of the warring state era was ever to come to an end, every state would have to be united under one banner. While her sister Princess Celestia tried diplomacy with the pegasi, earth pony, and unicorn tribes she was silently assassinating all of the other beast races’ leaders. It was not hard, with skilled ponies like Ninja Star at her command. “Thou has our favor.” Luna said, smiling in a pleased way as she wrapped up the bloody digit and pressed it into the breast of her kimono. “We thank thee for a job well done.” While she was securing the dirty evidence in the folds of her clothes, she shifted to the other side and drew out a small silken bag. She pushed it across the table to Ninja Star, who peeked inside. Ten platinum coins, as promised. That was ten thousand bits, enough to live on for months and months on end. At least a year, if he was frugal. Assassinating a griffon king was no small task, after all. The ninja gingerly took the bag and tied it, shoving it into the little pouch at his hip. He bowed again, grateful for her praise and coin. “We already have thy next mission ready, if thou wilt accept it.” She said in a whispery voice. Ninja Star cocked his head to show he was listening, eyes lidding into a serious expression. Luna bade her guards to leave them for privacy, and then lowered her voice to give the stealthy pony his next mission. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 1,002 Years Later (Post Royal Wedding) =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= “Keep on a’tuggin’, Big Mac!” Applejack coached her big brother, holding a thick rope steady to aid him. The lightning storm last night had struck one of the orchard’s four eldest trees, scorching the poor thing and killing it. “We’ve almost got it!” the orange mare had strapped herself in as well, a mare’s yoke around her shoulders and chest. Big Mac gritted his teeth, laboring hard to pull the massive dead tree down. Applebloom jittered on a nearby fence, watching her siblings pull their hardest. They’d let her climb the tree to attach the ropes, but they weren’t about to let the little filly help pull it down. She covered her muzzle a little with a hoof, for the stench of burnt apples and wood was strong. It must’ve been a heck of a lightning bolt, to strike down one of the Four Big Trees! The Four Big Trees had been around for ages, and had marked the compass corners of Sweet Apple Acres when it had originally been created. Sure, the farm was much bigger and more prosperous now, but it was sad to see the big thing go. Big Mac strained against the weight, drips of sweat going down his face and flank as they strained to pull the whole thing down. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Truth be told, Aegis Shield just couldn't figure out how to write a character that didn't talk, who didn't have a face, and would be fully characterized by body language. That and a complete lack of knowledge for the culture he'd be emulating, he didn't want to be disrespectful to the source material. Ninjas were a thing of folklore, and after a little bit or research, he found out that the real thing just wasn't very interesting compared to the Hollywood versions. Ah well. One more for the unfinished pile. "Zzz... Zzz..."