//------------------------------// // A champion // Story: Homecoming // by seeker9709 //------------------------------// Canterlot was not what you would call a quiet city. Ponies were always bustling around going about their business. The guards were always patrolling, looking for any sign of danger. And of course day court was in session. Day court was where anypony could come in to the castle and petition to Princess Celestia. Anypony from the poorest farmer, to the richest duke, could come and question a law or have an argument settled about ownership of land. It may sound boring to you. Sitting in a throne all day listening to other ponies problems, but Celestia actually enjoyed it. She always wanted to find a way to help ponies with their problems. It was just another day in her kingdom. The only problem was that bad news always seemed to come during court. A pegasus guard came running through the doors, a panicked look on his face. He ran to the throne and bowed respectfully to Celestia. “Is their a problem?” Celestia inquired. “A rare bird was spotted just north of Canterlot, apparently it hasn't been seen for years.” Celestia's raised an eyebrow. “What be the colors of it's feathers.” The guard gulped before responding “Black as night.” Celestia's eyes widened. “I see.” She turned to the ponies who had gathered to speak with her. “Attention everypony. I apologize, but something of urgency has come and day court is canceled. You, come with me.” She commanded to the guard. As they walked out of the room she pointed at another guard “You. Tell my sister to meet me in the green room.” Rare bird, black feather, and green room were all code words for an emergency. They were created by Celestia, Luna, and the royal guard to avoid a panic in case of emergency. Black feathers was for high alert criminals, who were considered extremely dangerous. Celestia and the guard ran towards the 'green room', which was the code name for the war room. Luna was already waiting for them when they arrived. “What is going on?” She questioned Celestia. “A rare bird was spotted just north of Canterlot” Luna scrowled “It's feathers?” “Black as night” Celestia replied grimly. Luna's jaw dropped and she covered her mouth with one hoof. “Are you sure? Can it really be her? After all these years, I thought she would be dead.” ''Commander Silver has briefed me on what has happened.” Celestia said while motioning to the who had alerted her. “The damage could only be done by her. Commander. Please explain to Luna what you told me.” The guard had grown pale, but nodded. “We were contacted by a local town a few hundred miles north. They had reported a cloaked mare coming into the local tavern and murdered several ponies inside. I took several pegasus with me and we checked it out. The bar was a mess. We counted 8 killed and over a dozen injured. Those who weren't dead were in shock.” He took a moment to catch his breath. “Those who were killed were... He stared into space. The moment to horrible to put to words. Celestia put a hoof on his shoulder “It's fine was their anything else?” He nodded. “There was one stallion, who was catatonic. He was shivering and wouldn't let anyone touch him. He was repeating the same name over and over again.” “Twilight Sparkle.” Celestia finished Sadness filled Luna's eyes. “What do we do Celestia?” Celestia looked down refusing to meet Luna's eyes. “The only thing we can Luna. We will most likely have to kill her. She can't be controlled. I don't want to have to kill anypony, but she might not even be in control. But the problem is who do we send to stop her. We can't just send regular guards. They would be killed. I would prefer someone who could capture, but kill if necessary.” Luna thought for a moment. “Follow me. I have an idea.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- They entered the barracks for the guards. The building was deceptively large. From the outside it looked to be a large mansion, but on the inside it went down another 3 levels underground. As they walked through the building guards bowed in respect. One guard who was wearing gold and purple armor walked up to the princesses. “Princess Celestia, Princess Luna. This is an unexpected pleasure. What brings you to the barracks?” Celestia met his eyes, a grim look clouding her features. “I'm sorry Captain Armor. News came from town north of Canterlot. She is alive and she is coming back.” The stallion removed his helmet. He was a bleached white unicorn stallion with a multi blue hued mane and tail. A look of pain and sorrow on his face. “T-Twily is a-alive? Luna spoke “Yes, but we are taking no chances. Apparently she was spotted at a tavern in the north lands. 8 were killed and many more injured. We came to get HER. I believe she is the best one for the mission.” A scowl crossed Shining's face. “Yes. That makes sense. Come see for your self though. Your timing couldn't have been better. She is in the dojo now. They walked down a set of stairs. “We had to move her to the largest dojo available. The others are still under repair from her last training battle.” Shining remarked. “She may be powerful, but she has little control. Here we are.” They had reached the bottom of the stairs, and walked through a door to a huge room. The room was at least 50 yards long, and 30 wide. It had 3 levels with balconies so the other guards could watch the fight. They were on the 3rd balcony looking down on multiple guards wearing full armor. There were 14 of them all gathered in a circle around a pegasus mare. She wore black armor with moon emblems on the helmet and chest piece. Her helmet had violet and maroon hair sticking out from the top, and she was sitting with her eyes closed. She had two long knives strapped to her sides. The other guards stood at least 10 yards from her, their weapons at the ready. They were a mix of earth ponies, peagasi, and unicorns. They stood in crouched stances waiting for the battle to begin. There was silence in the air for a few moments. No one moved. No one spoke. The silence lingered. … … … “BEGIN!” A guard shouted. A gong sounded, and the 14 attacked. They drew their weapons holding them with teeth, magic, and wings, and they charged. The mare waited. Not moving. The others grew close, and when they were just a few feet away her eyes snapped open. Her armored wings shot open and she held one knife in her mouth. The others brought their weapons down on her. Her wings snapped up, and their was silence again. From the spectators point of view it looked as if she had been skewered, but the attacking guards new what had happened. The mare spun in a circle throwing off the guards and she alighted. She waited until they had all stood and recovered their weapons before attacking. Her wings sprung to life and she began zipping around the room at an unnatural speed. Her body blurring, she flew past each guard striking with her knife or her wings. "Interesting. She even uses her body as a weapon.” Celestia noted Luna smirked. “That's why she is one of my top night guards and assassins. She has incredible speed and precision, and she can analyze the enemy quickly. She is perfect.” The mare flew directly at a unicorn holding a sword with his magic and a knife with his teeth. They clashed blades, and dueled for a moment. The mare clearly toying with him. They dueled for another moment before she swept his legs out from under him and bucked him into a wall. The battle continued on like this for a few more minutes. The mare flying around and landing small strikes on the others, before sending them flying one by one. Soon there were only 4 left. They grouped together hoping that they could fight her off together instead of being taken out one by one. She hovered in the air for a moment using her front hooves to pull two round objects out from underneath her armor. She threw one at their feet and released a huge puff of smoke. A smoke grenade. And threw another into the cloud. A small explosion and a flash of light came from the cloud, a flash bang. The remaining guards screamed from inside before the mare flew in. The sound of clashing blades and grunts could be heard from inside the cloud. Just a few moments later the mare walked out of the cloud. Her knives sheathed.  The cloud cleared and showed the remaining 4 guards battered and knocked out. The mare looked up to the crowd and saw the princesses watching her. She flew up to the balcony, and bowed before the royalty after removing her helmet. “Princess Luna. Princess Celestia. I wasn't aware you would be here.” “Rise Wing Commander Dash. We have a mission for you of utmost importance. The Mare lifted her head to reveal a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane. She flashed a toothy grin to the princesses. “Well then. Lets not waste any time.