//------------------------------//
// Mukhtar is exiled 
// Story: Ramil Sable 
// by Kawat3ngusan 
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Mukhtar is exiled


In the present

Every now and then Twilight interrupted Somnambula to ask her questions,

-"It seems a little creepy to me that the gods asked you to kill someone"-
-"Not just anyone, just the bad guys who deserved to die"-
-"And have you ever killed someone?"-
-"If I have to tell the truth, I did it even if I did it later, the words of the gods are not discussed, and Ramil had said that she would have killed the enemies in my place, but when I got in the hooves that scepter, those claws and especially that spear, I didn't feel weak, I knew I could help others with those weapons, believe me when I took that spear I felt unbeatable, after all it was the spear of Anhur, and I loved that spear, without speaking about the scepter of the great god Ptah, he is one of the strongest in our religion and his creations are magnificent, he is as powerful as Ra or maybe more, and for his creation abilities he can be compared to the Greyk god Hephaestus" -
-"I can't believe you killed someone"-
-"Later, it's something that was necessary, but now we haven't reached that part yet, however with Ramil among the soldiers there were modifications, changes"-
-"What kind of changes?"-
-"She looked for new guards for the pharaoh, but she looked for females, and found them, and tested them by fighting them, and all three were very resistant"-
-"Did she find three that can fight?"-
-"Exactly, there was a celestial pegasus named Akilah, she was fast and strong with the khopesch, then she found an orange pony named Isra, she wasn't fast but she was strong, and then she even found a zebra willing to be a guard, she was from another tribe than Ramil's family, and she wanted so much to fight as she was also raised in a tribe of strong zebras, her name was Fadilah, and she was strong and tough, she wanted to increase her speed, unfortunately she didn't know potions, therefore Ramil proposes to help her to learn the various potions she knew"-
-"But then Ramil managed to deceive her mother?"-
-"Yes, I don't know how but Mimea didn't recognize her daughter, except when she looked into her eyes and realized it was Ramil, after all you can't fool your own mother, however there was a bad experience after Ramil became a guard, Now I'll tell you....."-

In the past

Ramil was training Akilah, Isra and Fadilah who were fighting with other guards,

-"Very well girls, you are doing well, I knew I would have chosen well when you introduced yourselves, you Akilah are very fast, while you Isra, even if you are not fast you are very strong and you are also very resistant, you have to take advantage of this strength to do do your best, and then there's Fadilah"-, the zebra stopped and looked at Ramil,
-"What should I do?"-
-"You are a zebra, so you must be strong and certainly fast, what do you remember about your village?"-
-"I grew up in a village in central Zebrafrica, and my job was to pick fruit from the trees, I was a little older when I came here, in my village we only spoke Zwahili and or Zulu, then we came here, I live in Harim for years now"-
-"When you came here did you convert to the Equigyptian religion?"-
-"Actually we didn't have a real religion, when we came here we had our first religion"-
-"Being a zebra so you will know other things, like potions"-
-"Unfortunately not, it was my mother who made the potions, I never tried to make them, and she didn't want to teach me, and we didn't use books to write down our formulas"-
-"So you don't know how to make potions?"-
-"No, sorry"-
-"No problem, my mother and I can teach you, you will make potions in no time, and since I can get hold of special ingredients I will teach you special potions"-
-"I would be happy to learn"-
-"And I'm happy to be able to have female guards in the team, I'm sure that with a little training you'll be perfect, we can show everyone that you're fantastic as a male guard, now the pharaoh will also have mares to protect him, and having an extra zebra will come in handy, also because you'll learn potions, while my brother isn't good at potions"-.

Ramil watched from afar the trainings that were going well, now she wasn't the only female to protect the pharaoh, and surely Mukthar wouldn't have accepted, but now he was no longer the captain of the guards.
Ramil went to her brother,

-"Habari kaka mkubwa (Hello big brother), are you proud of my work?"-
-"You're doing a great job sis, we even have females to fight with us"-
-"They're the only ones who showed up, or rather they're not the only ones, they're the only ones who agreed to fight with their own energies, the other mares gave up saying they wanted to stay with their families or do the houseworks, or to think about their children"-
-"You can't blame them, many mares are mothers or have a boyfriend and don't want to leave their beloved ones, the three of them have parents but no children yet"-
-"I checked, all three have a sister who got married, instead Fadilah, is betrothed to a male zebra, but she wants to be a guard because she has never fought in her life and wanted to use her energies to protect the pharaoh"-
-"Each of them wants to play her part, it's great that we have at least them, and I think you're doing a great job in training them, I'm sure they will be very good guards"-

-"Mukhtar came to know that we have females now in the team?"-
-"Yes, and he's not happy, he's very angry"-
-"I'm sorry for him, but he cheated, I don't think he deserved to win"-
-"He didn't deserve to win at all, you didn't break the rules and deserved to win more than me, you should have been the captain"-
-"Big brother, it's better if that place belonged to you, I don't know if I would have managed to do it well, so I preferred that you were"-
-"I don't know what I would do without you"-
-"You only say that because now I have the favor of the gods and their weapons"-
-"That's not true, I've always believed in you, you were strong before and you're strong now, and you're even faster than me"-
-"I'm sure you'll be as fast as me too"-
-"Anyway, would you like to keep me company on the night watch tonight too?"-
-"Okay, it's not a problem"-
-"We will sleep more in the morning"-
-"It's true, but mom created a special potion to stay awake, follow me and I'll show you"-.
They both went home and Mimea was writing some things, then Mimea saw her children enter,
-"Enyi wanangu, nini kinaendelea? (My children, what's going on?)"-, Ramil hugged her mother and then answered her,
-"Habari Mama! (Hi mom), I wanted to show Hamzah that potion you created"-, Mimea turned to her son,
-"Actually I didn't really create it, it was Ramil who found me the ingredients, with her speed she went to the desert where she found a village of nomadic zebras, and discovered some berries that the camels ate and were relaxed , so she brought me some"-
-"And did you make the potion with the berries?"-
-"Not really, practically you take the seeds and then put them to boil, the liquid becomes dark in color, and then you can drink it, if you have to do the night watch you should drink it before doing it, because it is very strong, it'll keep you awake for quite a while."

Mimea and Ramil could not have known that those seeds were coffee beans, they had discovered coffee without knowing it.
When evening came, Ramil and Hamzah drank the potion and began to prepare for the city's night patrol.
Hamzah turned to Ramil,

-"With the power that Bastet gave you, it will be easy to patrol"-
-"Are you talking about her eyes? I tried them once in the evening, it's like seeing during the day, they are very useful in the dark"-.

The two of them left their house, and started walking around the city, Ramil got ready,

-"Now that it's almost dark I can use them, Eyes of Bastet"-, Ramil's eyes turned bright yellow and she could see perfectly in the dark as if it were day, no detail could escape her, and so she could better help the brother.

Ramil was armed with a khopesch and a shield, and she tried to be careful in various corners of the city, Hamzah also had a khopesch and also a spear and made sure there were no thieves or dangers.
However Hamzah bumped into someone,

-"Oh excuse me, who are you? Oh"-, even if it was dark the flames of the torches allowed to see, so Hamzah discovered that the pony he had bumped into was Somnambula.

-"Somnambula? What are you doing around at this hour?"-
-"Sorry Hamzah, I just wanted to try these Eyes of Bastet, and I thought I'd show Ramil how I used them, they're perfect, I could go around at night without problems"-
-"But it's not safe if you go around at this hour, you have to be careful, there may be bandits, or worse wild animals"-
-"Oh come on, what kind of animals could I meet?"-
-"We are close to the Nile, you could meet crocodiles, hippos, lions, or even worse or werehyenas"-
-"Were hyenas? What are they?"-
-"They are creatures that we zebras know well, they are big hyenas, sometimes they look like normal hyenas, but then when you let your guard down they reveal their true appearance, they grow big and become bipeds"-
-"Oh please, as if these creatures really exist"-
-"When I was little, in my village my father killed one, and two years ago when I was in a village I met another, it was behind me and it scratched me but my sister Ramil killed it immediately, she has had more courage than me"-
-"Ramil never told me about this story"-
-"Because you didn't ever ask her, she knows creatures better than me since she reads more, also now that she has access to Thoth's library she can learn many things, so it's better if you go home, I'm sure Ramil would tell you the same, please Somnambula"-
-"Okay, I'm going home, don't say anything to Ramil"-
-"I won't tell her anything, but it's better if I take you home by myself, I don't want you to encounter dangers on the way"-
-"Thank you Hamzah"-, 
so the zebra accompanied Somnambula home, but before heading there Somnambula noticed Ramil who was standing near a house and was observing a well, but Somnambula looked up and saw a hooded guy on the roof who took in the hoof a dagger, he jumped, but Somnambula called Ramil,

-"RAMIL! BE CAREFUL, ABOVE YOU"-, 

Ramil immediately turned around and rolled on the ground dodging the pony who sank the dagger into the ground, but he tried to stab Ramil again, the pegasus then took Osiris'shield and defended herself, the pony hit her several times but the shield was divine therefore impenetrable, so Ramil hit the pony with the shield, he backed away then she hit him again with the shield, and he fell to the ground, he tried to take the dagger but with the khopesch she parried him and hit him with her hooves, the pony was down, and Ramil unmasked him, Hamzah and Somnambula approached, but none of the three ponies could believe what they saw, it was not just any pony but the unicorn Mukhtar.
Hamzah called him,

-"Mukhtar? What were you doing? What did you want to do to my sister?"-, the unicorn stood up indignantly,
-"And what do you think I was doing? I was trying to kill her"-, at that sentence the male zebra got angry,
-"Kill my sister? Are you maybe crazy?"-
-"How am I supposed to be? Because of her I lost my place as captain of the guards, now I'm a soldier guarding the royal treasury, and furthermore she allowed mares to be admitted to the guards, and that's a real shame"-
-"It was you who cheated in the challenge of Horus, and would you even be right? You even threw me into the mouth of a sandworm"-
-"You have to do everything to be the best, even sacrificing a soldier"-
-"ENOUGH THIS, for the powers that the pharaoh has given me I declare you under arrest, now I'll take you immediately before the pharaoh"-.

Hamzah took a rope and tied Mukhtar tightly, then took him to the pharaoh who had not yet gone to sleep and was delighted to hear the music played by some female ponies while some of them danced.
Pharaoh was surprised to see that little group, and asked what was going on, Hamzah explained everything, and Pharaoh was angry too.

-"By the Gods, what came into your mind, Mukhtar? Did you want to kill Ramil? You're lucky that her mother is sleeping now"-, the unicorn tried to justify himself in vain,
-"Pharaoh, I have always served you and your son, do you really want that stupid pegasus to defend you instead of me?"-
-"Horus spoke clearly, and then Ramil is the real winner, not only she found the sword of Isis, but she also saved the soldiers you put in trouble"-
-"I DO NOT CARE WHAT THE GODS HAVE SAID, especially that stupid Horus"-, 

all those present ones were amazed, the pharaoh was indignant,
-"How dare you blaspheme against the gods? Let his head be cut off"-, but Ramil didn't agree,
-"No, Pharaoh, it doesn't seem right to me, he just went crazy, he didn't want to accept losing, but he served you for years, I don't see the need to cut off his head"-
-"Ramil? Why are you defending him? He tried to kill you"-
-"It's true, but if we killed him, we'd be worse than him, I say at the most to imprison him, or put him to train recruits"-,
the pharaoh thought about it for a while, then formulated his answer,
-"By Orisis, you are right, indeed....then instead of cutting off his head, he will be the new trainer for the recruits"-,
but Mukhtar got angry, his dagger came alive and cut the ropes, then cast a spell of green smoke against the pharaoh and Hamzah, then he threw the dagger at Ramil, but Somnambula stopped it parrying herself with Anubis claws, then she jumped on Mukhtar and wounded him, then Ramil, struck him with a hoof blow.
Mukhtar was down.
He was bound again and then taken to the edge of the city, the pharaoh decided to condemn him,

-"Mukhtar, you were a good captain in your best days, but in the last years you became a real torment, and for attacking us I don't forgive you, I had offered you a chance, but now I've decided, and not even Ramil will save you, I condemn you to exile, you will no longer be able to set hoof here in Harim, and if you dare to return, you will be whipped and then killed, and then Osiris will take care of you"-, 
but Mukhtar was not scared or worried.
-"I won't come back, and if I come back I won't be alone, you've seen what I'm capable of, haven't you? And I don't need a magic dagger, you will bitterly regret making me your enemy, goodbye"-.

Mukhtar thus fled to the dark desert, and the pharaoh decided it was time to go back to the palace and sleep.
Somnambula saw Ramil standing behind her who looked down,

-"Ramil? What's wrong with you? Are you thinking about Mukhtar?"-
-"Actually yes, I tried to reason like you Somnambula, I didn't want to use violence, that's why I wanted to spare him"-
-"But he tried to kill you, maybe this wasn't the time to forgive him"-
-"But one thing worries me, did you notice his eyes? And that spell he cast?"-
-"What would you say?"-
-"When he tried to kill me he had a green flame in his eyes, and that spell too was a kind of green fire cloud, and I know I've seen that dagger before somewhere"-.

The next day, Somnambula went to Ramil's house, and she found her while she was reading some papyri,
-"Hello Ramil, what are you doing?"-
-"As soon as I woke up I looked for information on some papyri that Thoth gave me, and I found information on Mukhtar's dagger and magic"-
-"And what did you find out?"-
-"Not good news unfortunately, that dagger is made of an iron that comes from the realm of the gods, but it's a material that makes magic bad, and only Seth's followers can use it, and that green magic was Seth's Rage, a spell of offense created by chaos, a spell from Seth, and the green flames I saw in Mukhtar's eyes, that's a sign of one who has agreed to become a follower of Seth"-, Somnambula was incredulous,

-"You mean that Mukhtar was a follower of Seth and we never knew?"-
-"If Mukhtar has become very severe in recent years, in my opinion it is from that moment that he became his follower, and this means that he has contact with Seth, perhaps it was a mistake to let him go, perhaps he has already found refuge somewhere in a hidden temple of Seth, and if he is not the only one and said that he would return with allies, then it means only one thing"-, 

Somnambula had already understood, and she answered instead of her friend,
-"It means that Seth is preparing to return from his exile"-
-"Or maybe he is looking for allies, if he was yet ready to come back, then the gods would have already told us"-
-"Do you think it's dangerous to keep the dagger?"-
-"I don't think so, at least I thought so before, but I checked, there is no more magic inside this dagger"-
-"Are you sure? How can you tell?"-
-"I can sense magic, it's something my mother knows how to do and she passed this ability on to me and my brother, it seems that Seth's magic has disappeared"-
-"And how is that possible? Seth's magic should stay in the dagger until he decides it"-
-"I have read that there are various gods who can cleanse weapons of the evil magic of Seth, and those gods are Osiris, Isis, Nephthys, Anubis, Thoth and Ra"-
-"But none of them were here to purify the dagger"-
-"But yesterday you used Anubis claws to stop the dagger, this made Seth's magic vanish, because even if they no longer belong to Anubis those claws still have his magic, so by hitting him you purified it, maybe I could do it too with the other weapons"-
-"It's lucky then that we are messengers of the gods, but if Seth comes back what will we do? We can't fight against a god, he's evil, but still a god, let's not forget that for decades he helped Ra in his solar boat to fight the serpent Apophis"-
-"I....I really don't know what to think, I don't know what I would do if I found myself in front of Seth, but if the gods were to order me to kill him, then I think I would have no choice, I hope to have more magic and weapons, I don't know what to think, I don't know what to say, I just hope it's just my opinion, but if he really were to come back it would be a disaster for all of Equigypt"-, Somnambula consoled Ramil,
-"Listen Ramil, I won't be able to fight, but you will, if that day comes, then I will help you, I will be with you, I promise, I don't know what we will do but I'm sure we will invent something"-
-"Hey, thanks Somnambula, whatever happens, then we will face it together"-, at that moment Mimea arrived,
-"Do not talk about possible divine and evil conspiracies, think about having breakfast with a good honey cake"-, Ramil loved her mother's cakes, especially the ones with honey,
-"You're great mom, I'll take a slice right away"-
-"I still can't believe that crazy unicorn wanted to kill you, he deserved his exile, and if he's a follower of Seth, well I hope that sooner or later someone will kill him, Somnambula? why don't you have a slice of honey cake ?"-
-"Thank you Mrs. Mimea, whatever Mukhtar does Ramil and I will face him even if it means killing him"-.


To be continued….


My Little Pony by Lauren Faust & Hasbro