NELL: The Start of Longball
RandomExpert781
Chapter 1: The Professional Traveler in Canterlot
Mid-morning; Thursday, April 22, Canterlot
Karcsi loved the smell of fresh air and tree sap in the morning. As a traveler of kindoms, it was something he was accustomed to, something he thought he was born to do - and he loved it. The land of Equestria offered the best natural scenery, and it was a place he loved to travel to. He knew he could fly, but the scenery on the ground was so much better.
The cream-coated, deep steel blue-maned pegasus a came from a distant kingdom, called Andrija. Andrija and Equestria were on friendly terms; actually, they were allies. So it's not like he was making this journey in any danger. In fact, he personally knew Princess Celestia from previous trips to Equestria - shocking, right? In fact, Canterlot was his first stopping point.
Celestia had sent him a letter telling the story of Princess Luna's return from the moon as Nightmare Moon and the Elements of Harmony, which he honestly felt was quite unnecessary. But when the Princess had finally gotten to the point that Luna was in a little need of friends, including ones from distant lands, Karcsi had wasted no time packing up for the journey, including bringing a few items from his hometown. It's was an excuse for a journey back to Equestria - besides, he always wanted to meet Princess Luna.
Walking through the streets of Canterlot, you would think that a rugged, traveling pony would be shunned by such high-class ponies of the city. In fact, sometimes it was even the opposite. Folk from around the city had gotten used to seeing him, and he was greeted warmly by all the ponies and businesses in the area. It was a nice feeling to know that he was considered part of a community that was tidy and high-class. Finally, after many greetings and stops, he made it to his destination.
The Royal Castle of the Princesses always stunned him with it's complexity and beauty every time he came here. Towers so high, doors and hallways so big - it was paradise even for royalty. And he was going in the magnificent building again in his lifetime.
It's amazing how life can be so forgiving and nice when it wants to be.
As always, there were two pegasi guards guarding the door to the castle (what else would they be doing?), staring straight ahead into the distance. As Karsci approached the doors, both guards outstrtched their wings in the blink of an eye, the wings clanging like metal to metal.
"Stop!" one proclaimed loudly.
"Who goes there?" the other asked loudly. Both eyes were suddenly averted to the traveler.
Karsci was able to keep staring straight ahead and keep a straight face. He had been through this situation with the guards on previous trips, and he had found it mildly amusing. Of course, chuckling did not help in a situation like this, so staying unemotional was necessary. He said only one word, calmly and slowly. "Karsci."
Immediately the wings folded back to their original spots. "Good day," the second guard proclaimed. "The Princess has been waiting for you."
"You should've recognized me," Karsci said flatly as he walked in, turning both guards' faces red in embarrassment. He he, he chuckled to himself. I should try that more often.
He walked his way into the open room, where Princess Celestia was patiently sitting on her throne. She could look pretty stern when she wanted to be, he thought warily. He did one of those awkward bows to the Princess. "Princess, sorry to keep you waiting," he apologized.
Celestia's stern look soon turned to one of happiness. "What took you so long?" she asked wisely, her voice smooth as silk. Of course, she already knew the answer; she just wanted to hear it straight from the source.
Karsci knew what she was up to, and cocked his head in confusion. "You don't know?" he asked, trying to face a look of shock, before bursting into laughter. "Everyone seems to like me here," he said. "I keep getting redirected towards other things. And I think I embarrassed two of your guards."
The Princess could only sigh and shake her head. "Sometimes I wonder what goes on in your brain . . . Ready to meet Luna?" Before her guest could even react, she called out to the hallway. "LUNA! Come here for a second!"
"Comin' 'Tia!" came the response. A few seconds later a dark blue Alicorn rushed in the room. "What do you nee-" She hesitated as she noticed Karsci sitting in front of her sister. She raised an eyebrow. "Who . . . ?"
"This," Celestia said, walking up to me and placing a hoof on my shoulder. "This is the traveler from Andrija I was telling you about." She pushed Karsci closer to her sister. "Karsci, I would like you to meet my sister, Princess Luna."
Luna gave a small grin. "Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, Luna."
Luna's grin turned to a frown, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Luna? What happened to the title 'Princess Luna?'"
A long bead of sweat appeared on Karsci's face. "Uh, well, *gulp*, you seem like the t-type of pony that d-doesn't like - uh, how should I put it - formality."
Luna's eyes narrowed into slits, glaring at him menacingly. Karsci looked nervous, sweating like crazy. Luna turned to her sister, her frown turning back into a smirk. "This colt's good," she complimented. Karsci breathed a sigh of relief, wiping his forehead and giving a small hoof-pump for another nailed response. Luna turned back to the relieved traveler. "So, Karsci, what do you want to do?"
Karsci gave a small shrug. "Whatever you want to do. It is your castle, anyways." He shifted nervously. "Though a room to put my stuff in would be nice."
"Lead him to a guest room, Luna," Celestia asked politely. "I think our guest might stay for the night."
Karsci's jaw dropped. In all his visits to the Castle, he had never been invited to stay for the night. "Really?" he asked in soft surprise. "I-I-I'm not sure . . ."
"Oh, c'mon," Luna persisted. "Please?" Luna looked into his eyes, pleading. Karsci couldn't say no to a baby face like that.
"Sure, why not?" He turned to Luna. "Lead the way!"
Luna squeaked in glee. "Follow me!" Luna ran off, Karsci closely behind.
Celestia heard giggles in the distant rooms of the castle. She could only shake her head. "Yep," she said aloud to herself. "They'll get along just fine."
4:25 PM, Thursday, April 22, Canterlot Royal Castle
Karsci finally had some time to relax. Not that he wanted relaxation - the last few hours spent with Luna had most certainly been some of the best hours of his life. He never knew he shared so many things with the Princess of the Moon - astronomy (obviously), painting, reading, hoofball (also known as soccer), and most surprisingly, pillow fights and pranks. After what had seemed like an eternity of fun, Luna had plopped on a couch, thoroughly exhausted, and had promptly fell asleep. Karsci, however, wasn't much of a napper, so he went back to his room, deciding to unpack.
Karsci approached his packs, kneeling down and lifting the leather that protected his precious items from the elements. He slowly and carefully pulled out the star treasure of his treasures: a longball, signed by famous Andrijan quarterback Yuudai Katsuo. The football itself was in a plastic box, protected from dust and dirt that could ruin it.
Yuudai Greenbolt Katsuo was a very weird colt. He had a particular way of signing things, almost graffiti-styled - how a colt could make such a stylized signature in a few seconds bewildered Karsci. Yet he held records like the most throws into a touchdown zone in a game (6), and the most runs into the touchdown zone in a game (4). Karsci had always wanted to play in the professional league. Longball was one of his favorite sports. Unfortunately for him, Andrija was the only kingdom that played the game, so every pony he met didn't know what it was. But that didn't stop him from thinking about it.
He had also brought along a rainbow-colored longball, (for somepony) an ordinary, official-sized Klash longball (Klash is a longball producer) with the customary brown, white stripes at the edge, and a hoof-like lace. He even brought along copies of a personally written Longball Rulebook in hopes that maybe, just maybe, he could teach somepony how to play. Usually it was only a thought - he had never tried to put that thought into action . . . .
An idea popped into his head. He grabbed his Klash longball and ran out the door, only to bump straight into Princess Celestia.
"Oh," she said, taken completely by surprise. "What are you doing?" She leaned into the doorway, trying to take a look inside. "Where's Luna?"
"Sleeping on the couch over there," Karsci replied plainly, jerking a head to a nearby room. "Princess, um, how should I say this . . . Where would the off-duty guards be?"
4:33 PM, Thursday, April 22, Canterlot Royal Castle Training Field
SGM. Red Sword was bored. Being off-duty from any sort of work along with at least another 40 guards, and there was no sort of fun thing to do. Of course, there were the things like cards and charades, but after working on the guard for four years, they weren't fun anymore.
The guards were in a training ground that was at least 120 yds long. It was a nice place for training, but none of the guards here were training right now. They wanted to do something fun.
Red Sword kept pondering the question of things they could do. He wanted something . . . new. Maybe some sort of running game with a ball, or something like that . . .
"Hello, guards!" a voice called out of nowhere. Red Sword looked around, suddenly alert. "Anyone out there?" the voice called out again. Suddenly, a cream-coated pony appeared, holding what looked like a brown ball in a hoof.
Red Sword recognized the stranger, and brightened his mood. "Karsci!" He called. "Over here!" Other guards now began noticing and recognizing the star traveler.
"It's Karsci!"
"Been a long time!"
"Where've you been?"
"Hello, everypony," Karsci said, surprised that he had gotten so much fame over the guards. He turned to Red Sword, a confused look on your face. "Aren't you doing anything? The Princess said this group was off-duty."
Red Sword gave a small sigh. "That doesn't mean were doing anything exciting, now, does it?" He looked around the area, searching for . . . something to do. "There's only cards and charades, and that get's boring after a while. If you know what I mean."
Karsci gave a small nod of complete understanding. He looked around, looking at each guard, before his eyes settled on one unicorn in particular. "Hey. Hey, Jidan!"
PFC Jidan looked up from his position at the back of the crowd of guards. A smile broke on his face when he realized that Karsci had known him. "Yeah?" he asked nervously.
Karsci pointed down the field. "Go long," he said simply. He motioned for the rest of the crowd of guards to get to the side, out of the way. Jidan broke off into a sprint, running down the field for at least 40 yards before stopping and turning around. Karsci held out the longball for Jidan and the other guards to see. "Catch this!" he called to Jidan. With that said, he stood on his back legs, holding the ball in his left hoof, and threw it.
Jidan realized that the ball was pretty far to the left than expected. He took off in a sprint towards the landing spot. He could almost hear the guards hold their breath in anticipation. The ball was dropping lower, lower . . . when at the last moment, when it seemed he wouldn't make it, he made one final leap, hooves outstretched. To everypony's fascination, the ball nicely plopped into his outstretched arms. He instinctively pulled the ball into his chest as he took a small tumble in the ground.
Jidan stood up, holding the ball high in his hoof. "I caught it!" he shouted proudly. The guards clapped and whistled at the feat.
"Good job!" Karsci complemented. He meant it; that was supposed to be a hard pass to catch. "Throw it back to me!"
Jidan started to get nervous and sweaty. What if I do it wrong, he thought to himself. Shaking his head and getting the thought out, he called back, "Wait a moment! Let me figure something out!" He proceeded to do fake throws, first with his left hoof, then with his right.
"What's he doing?" a guard whispered to Karsci.
"I'd bet he's figuring out if he's a lefty or a righty," Karsci explained. "Like, which hoof feels more comfortable throwing in."
"Ready!" came the call down the field. Jidan was holding the ball in a righty position. Without any further conversation, he leaned back, and threw it. Hard.
Karsci's eyes widened in surprise as the ball came down the field like a bullet, a little high. But he knew what to do. Without any hesitation, he took a few steps back, and went on his back legs. Jumping almost impossibly high, he caught the ball, did a backflip, and landed on 3 hooves, his front-right arm tucking the longball in close. "And that, my students," he concluded, turning to the audience pretending to be a teacher. "That is how you catch a longball."
The guards on the sidelines erupted into whoops and cheers. "That . . . was . . . AWESOME!" Red Sword breathed, after things had finally calmed down. "How did you do that? That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen a pony physically do. What is that thing, anyways?"
Karsci shrugged. "This thing? It's called a longball." He flipped the ball into the air while he was talking. "Back in my hometown, longball is the most popular sport there is. As for that flip I just did . . . Eh, it's something that came to me naturally." Suddenly stopping, he looked at the rest of the guards, a smirk growing on his face. "Anypony interested in learning how to play the real thing?" A resounding chorus of "YES!" came from the audience.
And he did just that. Within 30 minutes, Karsci had explained the basics of the game, including positions, the goal, penalties, and other stuff. Explaining the concepts of tackle football and the two-hoof variation, he broke the guards into teams and gave a few pointers to the quarterbacks, wide receivers, and running backs. Finally, one more thing remained: equipment. "Do you know where we can find things like jerseys and cones?" Karsci asked Red Sword.
"Sure!" he responded cheerily. "I know exactly where it is. Let me go get it." Red Sword promptly ran off. Probably in the direction of some sort of supply closet, Karsci thought to himself.
"Okay, everypony," he shouted, bringing all the off-duty guards into a huddle. "You know what to do. Let's get this game started!"
Afternoon, Thursday, April 22, Canterlot Royal Castle
Princess Celestia watched in fascination at the sport the off-duty guards were playing from the balcony of the Castle. She had never seen a sport so fast-paced, dirty, and . . . fun. She found it hard for herself to believe. A rough-and-tumble sport like that - fun? However, it seems as though the guards were enjoying themselves, and she wasn't going to interrupt it anytime soon.
"Hello, 'Tia," groaned a tired voice from the background. It was Luna, who had just woken up from her nap. "What'cha watchin'?"
Celestia glanced back to where her sister was standing. Her face turned from curiosity to amusement. "You look like you flew straight through a tornado," she commented, chuckling. It was true; both her mane and coat were a mess, hair everywhere.
Luna pouted. "It's not my fault!" she exclaimed defensively. "Besides, you look worse than me in the morning!"
"Touché," Celestia chuckled. She looked back into the distance, at the training field. "I was watching the guards play a new game they learned. Karsci decided to show them a game from his hometown."
Luna finally saw what Celestia was seeing, and brightened with new interest. "Oh, that? It's called longball. He told me about it, and how it was played. We were gonna play catch with one, but we got distracted."
"With what?"
"Pillow fight."
"Ah, I see." A pillow fight could keep Luna entertained for hours on end. It was the best activity - and most fitting, except for gambling - to do in the middle of the night while she waited for the time to rise the moon. "Luna," Celestia started to ask. "Do you want to go see the game?"
Luna's face brightened even more. "Just give me three minutes to get ready," she cried overexcited, before dashing in to the castle. Celestia only shook her head and sighed. Silly Luna. Still concerned about her looks.
The two princesses walked up to the training area, where the two teams of guards were setting up for another play. It seemed as though the Blue Jersey team, lead by Jidan, had the ball. The Red Jersey team was preparing for some sort of defense. There were a few guards on the sidelines, cheering for their respective team. Karsci was dressed in a black-and-white shirt, with a hat and whistle. Where he got those clothes bewildered the Princesses. But, who cares: It's a game!
"2nd and 7," Karsci shouted out. "78 yard line, Blue side."
"When a team has the ball," Luna explained to her bemused sister, "They have 4 so-called 'downs' or chances to get at least 20 yards. Every time they get a first down, it's more chances to get the ball all the way down to the end zone, usually about 200 yards away, which is called a touchdown. That's how you score points."
"HIKE!" Jidan yelled, bringing the attention of the two-pony crowd. The center quickly threw the ball back to Jidan, who quickly went on his hind legs and caught it. While the action around him was complete chaos, Jidan seemed to have all the time in the world to throw the ball, eyes darting left, right, left- before somepony caught his eye. He winded back, and the ball became airborne . . .
. . . But only for a short time as the bullet pass headed straight for Levesque, who was playing as a wide receiver. He turned and caught the ball, before tucking it in with his front-left hoof and doing an unusual three-hoof run. It didn't take long before a safety finally landed both hooves on the receiver, ending the play.
"First down, Blue! Nice job!" Karsci called out, a wide grin on his face. He had almost completely forgotten how fun the game was. "1st and 20, 91 yard line, Red side."
The game continued for another hour, with Luna occasionally explaining confusing concepts to Celestia. They cheered and booed with the good and bad plays. Finally, the game ended, with Red Sword and his Red Jersey team winning the game 26-18. Red Sword and Jidan met in the middle of the field, shook hooves, and left, returning back to their respective posts as guards. Before the two now-famed quarterbacks and the referee could get away, Princess Celestia came up to the threesome.
"Hello, Princess Celestia! Hi, Luna," Karsci greeted, giving a warm smile. His smile turned to a worried frown, however, when he noticed Celestia staring at them, mouth slightly open in amazement. "Princess? Is something wrong?"
The Princess of the Sun snapped out of her trance and shook her head lightly. "Wha? No, no, I'm fine," she assured, relaxing the guest. "Although, I was thoroughly surprised by your game . . . " She paused for dramatic effect. "I like it."
The faces of the three stallions turned from confusion to pure joy. "Seriously?" Red Sword asked.
"Sure!" Celestia replied, smiling even wider. "I loved watching the game, though I probably couldn't play -" She pointed to her horn. "- 'cause of this thing right here."
"I know you told me about the game," Luna chimed in. "It seems so much better in action."
"I'm sure other ponies in Equestria could play and love the game," Celestia ended.
Karsci realized this was his chance to ask for something he'd been waiting for a long time. "Uh, Princess?" He shifted nervously, looking down at his feet. "Do you think you make this game, you know . . . national? Like, in Equestria?"
The question caught everypony standing there off-guard. "Uh, well, I don't know . . ." Celestia stammered. There were so many questions in her mind. How would they all learn the game? What if the ponies don't like the game?
Luna stepped in. "We'll talk about it," she answered, saving Celestia from almost certain embarrassment.
Karsci nodded in agreement. "Fine by me," he said, walking away. Red Sword and Jidan followed. "Just tell me before I leave, OK?"
"We'll make sure to do that!" Luna called after him.
Luna and Celestia walked into the main hall of the castle. Celestia was criticizing Luna. ". . . How do we know if all the ponies will like the game? I know we like it, but that's two-"
Luna suddenly turned around and put a hoof on her sister's lips, shushing her. "Can you please just shut up for a moment? You can be so much of a chatterbox when you want to. Geez." She started running away towards the bedrooms. "Stay there, I'ma go get somethin'."
Celestia, meanwhile, was still trying to figure out how to react to Luna's reply. "Did she just call me . . . a chatterbox?" She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Either she has it coming for her, or I'm going crazy."
Luna appeared shortly, carrying a book with her magic. "This is a book Karsci wrote," Luna stated, putting the book in front of her.
Celestia raised an eyebrow. Apparently she didn't get it. "So?"
Luna placed the cover in her face. The Complete and Almost Painless Rules of Longball. Almost. "This is a rulebook," Luna explained, "Written by Karsci on the sport of longball. He taught me a little of the sport from this book. I'm pretty sure he could teach others doing the same."
Celestia started to get where her sister was going to. "Oh, so you want . . . "
Luna simply smiled. "Yes. Exactly."
Early Morning, Friday, April 23, Canterlot Royal Castle
When Karsci woke up the next morning, his whole body was completely sore. What did I do last night? Oh, right. 1 hour intense pillow fight. Complete with ammo, pillow forts, and teams. He had to hand it to Luna: When she wanted to organize a pillow fight, she did it right, and she did it good.
He could only think of a few things:
1. Hungry. So hungry.
2. Sore, I don't wanna get up.
3. I'm in the Canterlot Royal Castle!
4. Will longball go national? I hope it does.
5. I'm good friends with Luna!
6. Still hungry. Hunger overcomes soreness.
Karsci got up and decided to let his nose lead him to where ever that heavenly scent was coming from. Finally, he found the kitchen table, lined with exquisite breakfast: toast, omelete, pancakes, sausage, bacon, and at least 15 different types of cereal. Already sitting at the table were the two Princesses, along with Red Sword and Jidan. There faces showed that this was an unusual treat.
"Welcome, Karsci!" Luna spoke, smiling warmly. "Don't worry, we just got up a few minutes ago." At least the guards did, she thought. "Come on, sit next to me." She patted an empty seat next to her.
Karsci gladly took the seat. Silence took on the room for a few moments before he gave a quizzical look to everypony. "Sooo . . . Can we dig in?"
Celestia nodded. "Yes! Let the feasting begin!"
Luna leaned over to Karsci. "Can you believe her?" she giggled.
"She's listening to you," Karsci noted smugly, pointing behind her.
The two guards were trying not to laugh as Celestia peered over her sister's shoulder. "I see you, young one," she whispered evilly.
Luna gave a small yelp, jumping a full three feet in the air, before sprinting away. Everypony else at the table was laughing their head off. "Oh, she got you there!" Jidan laughed. Red Sword almost fell off the table, he was laughing so hard.
Luna walked back in, her face beet red. She stared at Celestia, eyes narrowed into slits. I'm watching you, she motioned before sitting down and starting to eat.
A few minutes of small chit-chat followed. Yet Karsci was still wondering why the two guards were here. Wait, he thought. Those were the two quarterbacks from the scrimmage yesterday. Could-
His thoughts were interrupted by Princess Celestia. "I'd like to make an announcement," she called. Everypony at the table hushed into silence. She looked at Karsci. "You remember your request to make longball a national sport in Equestria, right?" Karsci gave a small nod. "Well, I think I shall honor that request . . ."
A resounding "YES!" came from the traveler and two guards.
" . . . On one condition."
"Awwwww!"
Celestia smiled. She probably should've seen that coming. "That condition is, Karsci must travel all around Equestria teaching the ponies personally about the game. It's mostly to see if they can play the game, and if they like it."
Karsci's brows furrowed in disappointment. "What about something for me to leave for them to remind them how to play, so they can practice? Say, a rulebook, maybe?"
"Already on that," Luna interrupted. "We're in the process of copying that rulebook you made - you know that rulebook?" A small nod. "We're making copies of it to send to the Libraries in all the towns of Equestria. You'll know what to do when you get there."
"Also, I thought maybe these two-" Celestia points to the two guards at the table, "-would like to join you on your journey, since they've actually played the game."
The excitement was definitely showing on their faces. "Really!?" Jidan said disbelievingly.
Celestia game a small nod. "Certainly. Is that good with you, Karsci?"
"I LOVE IT!" Karsci shouted, giving a small hoof-pump. "Eat quick, so you can pack up and go!"
Breakfast finished, Karsci, Red Sword, and Jidan walked away from the kitchen, ready for the days ahead of them. "Wait, Karsci!" Luna shouted. He turned around to see the Princess running towards him. "These are all the towns. Try to visit all of them." With that, she walked away.
Curious, Karsci opened the scroll. The town names were in a jumbled mess, in no particular order. He took another scroll, and a pen, and soon the towns were in some sort of logical traveling order.
1. Ponyville
2. Cloudsdale
3. Las Pegasus
4. Phoenix
5. Fillydelphia
6. Seaddle
7. Appleoosa
8. Stalliongrad
9. Lunatia
10. Neigh Orleans
11. San Reinsisco
12. Hoofington
13. Manehattan
14. Detrot
15. Sunela
16. Canterlot
First thought: Damn, that's a lot of traveling.
Second thought: I didn't even know Equestria had that many cities!
Third thought: Sunela and Lunatia. So saw that coming.
As he looked over the list, he realized that he had put Ponyville first. Huh, Karsci thought, remembering. That's where the Elements of Harmony live; one of who is Celestia's protégé, another one is the only Pegasus to do the Sonic Rainboom.
This should be interesting.