//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: The School // Story: On Light Hooves I Tread 2: Homeward Bound // by AdamThePony //------------------------------// On Light Hooves I Tread 2: Homeward Bound A Fanfiction by Adam Nelon Chapter 3: The School Canterlot at night was a glorious a sight as they come in Equestria. The city that served as the capital of all ponykind was like a Victorian masterpiece, the streets dimly aglow by magically-lit streetlamps, the cobbled roads empty and barren, giving way into the silent serenity of Princess Luna's grand masterpiece. While Jade had fallen asleep during the ride, I was fully able to bear witness to the majesty of the sky, the constellations all in clear view before me. Back home, I would've killed to see this phenomena as clear as day. Here, It was like a wonderful painting worked by only the finest of artistic savants. This was Princess Luna's grand masterpiece, and I was gazing at it in all its naked splendor. "Thou art mystified by our work?" Luna asked, her eyes listing to me, which sent a chill up my little pony spine. "There is no need to fear. If anything, we are glad to see somepony who is appreciative of our work." "O-of course, Your Grace! It's nothing! It's just that..." I said, somewhat embarrassed by this direct altercation between myself and this royalty, "...I've not seen such unparalleled beauty like this where I come from..." "Because of the fact your world keeps itself almost constantly illuminated?" Luna asked, employing her Royal Canterlot Bluntness. "Yeah...rarely have I seen the sky so pure and bright...it's truly your magnum opus, my liege..." I murmured, pressing my hooves together. "We thank thee," Luna said, smiling as she approached me, as if to give me and embrace, but stopping short in her tracks as she turned her gaze forward. "Ah! We are arriving at the campus!" "Hm?" I hummed, turning my gaze to the same direction. What my eyes caught was a sight without equal. If the castle that surrounded the city of Canterlot served as Equestria's crown, then what I was observing was among its crown jewels. It was essentially a cobblestone Canterlot in miniature. This was Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. It was from this school that such gems of mares like Twilight Sparkle were educated and joined the alumni of the most famous magi in Equestria. Be it simple seamstresses or the most awesome of artisans, they all had one thing in common; They came from this one school. I was almost completely overtaken with wonder until Luna cleared her throat in a profound tone. "O-Oh, right!" I stammered, before tapping Jade to rouse him from his sleep. "Mm...wha?" He murmured, before shaking himself awake and stumbled to his hooves. "Where are we?" He asked, rubbing mucus from his eye. "Thou stand before one of the finest institutions of magic available in all of Equestria. Through these doors, the two of you will commune with like-minded peers to learn the art of magic as only this school can provide. From these doors have come such great magi as Star Swirl the Bearded, Night Shade the Cunning, and Storm Caller. Whatever thy talents may be, it is here that thou shalt discover, train, and perfect thy craft and become masters of thine own domain." Luna spoke, her eyes slightly aglow with magical energy. "Welcome, Adam and Jade, to Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns." "W-Wow..." Jade said, his green eyes aglitter with amazement. If I wasn't starstruck, he most certainly was. "Now, then," Luna said, as we disembarked. "At this moment, the day classes have long since concluded, and the night classes are at a point where, were thee to enter at this point, thou wouldst be intruding. So, we will escort you to the colt's dormitories. The headmaster has been informed of thy arrival, and a room hath been opened in advance. We have reason to believe thy schedules have also been delivered to these rooms. Classes shall start no sooner than 5 AM." "Five in the morning?!" Jade blurted. "That's way too early!" "Actually," Luna began in a curt manner, "It is most appropriate. As Adam could tell thee, the passage of time here is different. There are instead eight hours, in comparison to the twelve to which thou art accustomed." She then looked to the clock hanging just above us. "The further we delay thy rest with rhetoric, the worse thou shalt be come sunrise. we suggest that the two of you, as you might say, 'get a move on'." It was thus on that note that the three of us began to walk into the facilities, the two Pegasus guards flying off in their carriage as we disappeared into the large mass of stone and plaster. The stone was naturally cold to our touch, but it was none too serious to be considered any issue. I suppose the same could be said of Princess Luna's rather antiquated vernacular. As ancient as her tongue was, I was still, in a manner of speaking, fluent and competent in its nature. As we stepped across the halls, torches whooshed to life in glorious plumes as we passed them. And considering there was at least one pair for every two meters or so, that was going to be happening a lot. Each of the wooden doors beside us had a number, and we were somewhere in the three hundreds. Eventually, we stopped, and a small metal plate on the door read "337". "This is the room thou hath been assigned. We expect you be awake before five," Luna said pertinently, a firm face on her as she opened the door. "I pray that thy sleep be filled with glorious dreams and beautiful visages." I nodded, taking Jade alongside me was we walked inside. "Good Evening, Princess," I said, smiling as I yawned. "Likewise, Adam," Luna replied, a smile coming to her face. "Good Evening to thee, as well." And so, after taking her leave, I shut the door behind the two of us, tugging it a couple times to assure it was secure. Jade then spoke up after being mostly quiet during the trip, chirping, "So I guess you two know each other?" to which I nodded, chucking a simple: "Oh, yeah. We're really close." The room itself was not a terribly ornate structure. Two beds, a table between then, a lantern perched atop it. A tasteful bit of cobblestone flooring was about the whole room, with tasteful blue velour carpet draping some parts of it, complete with matching curtains. Part of me was hoping to look a direction and see a large stained-glass mural of my defeat of the large blue dragon that attacked Ponyville, but another part of me reminded the original of how silly a notion that would be. The beds, thankfully, were tastefully separated by the table between them. Both of them were twin-sized beds, decorated with azure pillows, sheets, and comforters lined with golden lace. Once again, nothing too ornate, but a nice touch for such a simple type of room. There was no television (which was a real shame, considering thirty percent of my leisure was television), but there did lie a large bookshelf, stuffed to capacity with tomes upon tomes of magic and mythical information. It seems when Princess Celestia built these dormitories, she intended them to be made to be used for study and rest more than anything. While I would mourn on the lack of digital entertainment, the printed word would make a good compensation for me. "Whoa..." Jade sighed, his head in a spiral as he looked about the room, "This is a pretty swanky place, huh?" "Yeah," I chuckled, smiling as I made for the bed. "It ain't the Royal Suite, but it's pretty nice for an on-campus dorm room." Which brings me to an interesting matter of discussion; Jade (as I will refer to him for the moment, as his human name, to me, sounds a mite silly to say aloud), when I knew him as a human, had already gone to college by the time I had originally visited Equestria, while I stuck to raising a child and taking online courses. I don't recall what degree he was intending on getting, but it wouldn't amount for much in a realm in which humanity is either extinct, or just plain incompatible with the status quo that currently exists. With that brief anecdote out of the way, the two of us resigned for the night, sliding prone beneath the covers of our beds, our bodies in opposing directions to the walls, which, while draped over by the azure curtains, showed in glorious luster the light of the waning gibbous moon that was in the sky, its light shining through dimly, as if it were a nightlight of Princess Luna's creation. Neither of us spoke much after that, aside from a short exchange of wishing each other a good rest. On that note, we both succumbed to our bodies' desire to rest and renew, letting our dreams wash through our subconscious... What I saw next was something I almost couldn't put to my comprehension. I was in a vague expanse of stony ground, blanketed by a dense fog. In the sky was a distorted, almost green moon. What the hay? As I looked down, I saw something that was even further befuddling. Approaching me was a black, almost ink-like mass. Its shape was that of a pony, most likely a unicorn, but its face was covered by a mask. Upon that mask was the numeral "XVI". The Number of the Tower Arcana. The number was upside down, and the unicorn was slowly approaching me. "Though you have yet to see it," said the pony shadow, its voice echoing through the void about me, "not all is well in this world. Very soon, you will be put to a most difficult trial. Your understanding of this world will alter drastically, and it is through your efforts that you must avert an influx of chaos...Your morals will be tested, dear Adam. It falls into your hooves now...best be careful..." "What are you talking about?!" I shouted into the fog. "What do you mean, I have to avert chaos?!" "There is no time to explain," Said the masked shadow. "The Answer will come to you when the time is right..." As the shadow said this, it began to fade into the mist, its blackness going with it. I pleaded for it to come back, but to no avail. It was gone, and the waking world beckoned... I woke up in a shocked daze. I had not emitted a scream, but rather a low and subdued gasp. Amber light filtered through the azure curtain as my roommate dazed away peacefully. That was the thing about Jade. Even as a pony, he wasn't exactly one to burn the moonlight oil. I remember once, he and I had an all-nighter after we went stag to the Prom. He fell asleep just an hour before I eventually succumbed. So, naturally, I let this sleeping pony lie for a little to check the time. What a bit of serendipity! I woke an hour early! The smaller of the two clock hooves was pointed to the four. On this note, I went to find my armor. Thankfully, I had the good sense to remove it last night before I retired to bed. Somepony (perhaps the janitor?) must have gotten the armor and tastefully arranged it onto a mannequin. One bit I did notice was a caparison added onto the set. A golden one, to be more accurate, trimmed with blue. I don't know exactly why one would be added to something that had yet to see either ceremonial or combative use, but it was a nice touch. At least it was below the armor, so it would protect other parts of me. And thus, one by one, I attached each piece of the armor, minus the champron, to my shape, thereby preparing myself in the event that something might damage me. I left the headgear on the mannequin for the sake of getting my hair into line. The tail was safely outside the armor as I went to the washroom to groom it into a proper mane and tail combo, getting it nice and orderly. Telekinesis made the feat of multitasking all the more easier, thus making the use of a brush, a water spray bottle, and a hairdryer all at once a child's feat in my eyes. Once I had attended to that, I woke Jade, putting on my champron, then adding the necklace, goggles, and stetson hat that Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack had bestowed upon me. "Mm...morning, Adam..." Jade moaned, yawning deep and low before hopping outside the comforter. "Sleep well?" I smiled, wriggling in my barding a bit. "Like a foal," I beamed, taking a few stationary trots to get my body back into the swing of wearing the barding. In a sense, I felt awfully naked without that barding, and in a sense, I felt nearly the same way in it. Considering I was in a world where ponies regularly were nude, I felt I was going to have to resolve that problem soon. However, my education came before my reconfiguration of my nudity taboo. Once Jade had worked towards arranging his mane and tail accordingly, we took up our schedules, and discovered a rather odd coincidence: Our schedules were the exact same! Part of me wondered why I and my friend would be in the same classes, but I suppose it was okay, either way. The schedule was like any other I'd been familiar with; seven periods, one for each class, a break for lunch, breakfast before 1st, all that jazz. "Wow..." sighed Jade, his eyes gleaming with stars. "We've got the same classes! Isn't that great? We can be study buddies!" "Yeah," I sighed back, in a mildly sarcastic manner as I folded the schedule into a four-fold sandwich, "Real great." With this, our two stomachs churned in hunger. "Do you-" We started at the same time, before we both quieted down, until Jade said, "You first." I nodded, asking, "Do you think we should get some breakfast, first?" Jade emitted a gasp. "Yes! We should!" So, with no further delay, the two of us bolted for the cafeteria, hoping to partake in some nice breakfast fare. The cafeteria was a fairly nice place for something situated inside of a castle. Stone floors were strewn with finely-woven tapestries depicting the Royal Sisters, the Defeat of Nightmare Moon, and the subsequent Defeat of Discord. Magically-fueled torches of blue flame cast a nice glow upon the room, as well as a chandelier above the room, and candles strewn across long dining tables, most packed with unicorns. Many of them were happily talking away, yet at the exact moment at which I entered the room, the whole room quieted to a stagnant pause. I had no earthly idea what could have caused my very entrance to quiet a room. Perhaps news of my exploits traveled fast? "Is that..." "No way...it can't be...!" Murmurs to this effect were spread all across the room as I and my lesser-known compatriot cantered through the line, ponies aside me parting, as if I were some kind of badass. "He looks just like him...but...wasn't he a Pegasus?" "Maybe that zebra...what was her na- Zecora! Maybe she used her black magic on him!" "No way! No kinda potion could do something like that..." Ignoring the fact that my unseen aura was sparking much attention from my unicorn colleagues, I approached the counter with a tray absentmindedly floating near me. Behind the counter was, to my surprise, a unicorn whose eyes reminded me of a past friend from this world. They were yellow, and the pony who was wearing them had a telling wall-eyed expression on her face. Before I could even introduce myself, the cross-eyed unicorn did it for me. "'Ey! You're that Adam kid, right?" She chirped oh so sweetly. "My mom told me all about you! But...weren't you a Pegasus?" "It's a long story," I said bluntly, then warming up with, "but your mother wouldn't happen to be Derpy Hooves, by any chance?" Suddenly, the unicorn's expression brightened up spectacularly. "How did you know?!" she squealed, shaking my hoof furiously. "My name's Sparkler! I'm Dinky's Big Sis! Nice to meet you!" Even after Sparkler ceased to shake my hoof, my foreleg kept undulating as if the hoofshake had not concluded. It took Jade's interference of my leg's inertia to slow it, stirring a chuckle from my green pony friend. "My name's Adam. Adam the Astute. What will we be having, dear Sparkler?" I asked the derp-eyed mare with a smile. "The Hooves Family Specialty! Muffins! It's Muffin Monday, after all!" "That sounds lovely!" Chirped Jade, drooling at the plethora of muffins arranged all in neat rows. "You should try one!" Sparkler implored. "We've got blueberry muffins, coffee muffins, chocolate chip muffins, oatmeal muffins..." And so the unicorn droned on, listing in excruciating detail all of the muffins in her large stock, before I cleared my throat rather loudly. "Oops! I guess I just started rambling, eh? So what'll it be?" "I'll have Double Chocolate," I said, to which Jade responded with "Blueberry, please." "Sure thing!" Sparkler said, floating our choices over to our respective trays with a smile. "Don't forget to pick up your milk and juice, too! Momma Derpy says they make you big and strong!" With this, the spawn of Derpy Hooves beamed a glorious grin as she waved her hoof. This inspired a smile in the both of us as well, as we collected our beverages. I took Grape Juice and Chocolate Milk, while Jade had Orange Juice and White Milk. Mainly because I was concerned that sitting in a more crowded area of the cafeteria may result in being mobbed by fans (or those direly curious ponies) of my exploits, Jade and I sat at the end of one of the less populated tables. Within moments, however, a familiar brilliant azure unicorn trotted up to the table. "Well, well," She said, smiling as she sat next to me. "Look who showed up here. If isn't Trixie's old friend!" "Ah, Trixie!" I said, giving her a short hug. "It's been-" "Five years," Trixie chuckled, smiling. "Trixie has kept track." I chuckled at that moment, smiling. "Trixie must exchange proper gratitude. Since you were kind enough to help her career to receive a decent boost, Trixie began earning a much better income, and with said income, the Great and Powerful Trixie finally acquired enough money to pay towards her tuition at this awe-inspiring academy of arcane excellence!" "So that's why you were traveling through Equestria with your shows?" "Precisely, my dear friend," She replied, patting my head as if he were a pet, taking note of my horn. "Trixie has noticed your change in form. Some form of spell made you like this?" "Actually, I have no clue, aside from a problem in the reentry to this world..." I chuckled, pushing my hooves together. "No matter," She said, tipping her star-clad hat and running a hoof through her mane. "Trixie hopes that we may meet again one of her classes. Trixie wishes to gauge your knowledge and your power." As she said these words, a flare shined through her greyish-indigo eyes. With this, I gulped. The pony who was once an infamous braggart now decided to become my personal rival, and as I began to eat my muffin, I felt more than excited for class. "Um, Adam?" Jade asked, tapping my shoulder with his hoof. "Just how many ponies do you know around here?" "Let's just say I get around," I chuckled. "When I came here last time, I made a lot of friends, I traveled a little, and I even went hoof-to-claw with a drago-" "OH SWEET CELESTIA, IT IS HIM!" was the next thing that erupted from the room's many patrons began to pool around me. Jade just barely evaded being stuck in the massive crowd of ponies that had formed in my prescience, as if my retelling of days long gone by was cause for great concern. For a good while, I was left at the mercy of at least one hundred unicorns who began to start an instant fan club. Jade, on the other hoof, bolted to an edge of the room. One by one, I had become a touchstone for several unicorns for what felt like an eternity until a tingling feeling overtook my form, giving me rapture from the crowd. "Alright, well, I think that's about as much of the pony handling as my friend is willing to take, so I think we'll be off to class now, so...SEE YA!" Jade said, carrying my telekinetically-suspended body out of the lunchroom and in the general direction of a nearby hallway. "So," Jade said, between breaths as he bolted off, carrying me in his aura of telekinesis, "Where's our first class?!" "If you would be so kind as to put me down, I'd be more than delighted to tell you!" For a moment, Jade screeched to a stop, releasing his grip upon me and allowing me to once again walk on my own four hooves. With this, I casually unfurled the note containing our class schedule from beneath my stetson hat, looking at the classroom assignments. It seemed that the first class was something called "Pre-Celestial Magic Philosophy". I gathered this was going to be a history class detailing magic before the era of Princess Celestia and Equestria. The room assignment was room 227. Thankfully, with the haste that Jade had made to getting the two us as far away from that spontaneous fan club as physically possible, the aforementioned room was in sight, and through sheer luck alone, we were the first two inside. "Ah, good morning, si-GOOD HEAVENS!" Shouted the proctoring pony, a monocle popping out from his eye socket. "You look positively haggard! What happened to you two?" "Let's just say..." Jade wheezed, smiling. "Traffic was nuts." "Given your sweat-marred hides," said the pony as he retrieved his monocle, "I am more than inclined to believe you..." With this, the unicorn began to circle me, as if in interest as to who I was. "You know...there's something strikingly familiar with you...I just can't put my hoof on what, though." "Maybe it's my armor?" I aksed "Perhaps...you're that traveler?" He asked, pointing with his hoof, which made me smile and and nod. With this, the teacher cracked a lovely smile and shook my hoof modestly. "Well, I am honored to have you and your friend in my class. I hope that you hold true to your title..." "Thank you, sir," I said, smiling as I slunk into my seat. In a moment, the proctor recalled the one error he forgot to correct. "Oh, but where are my manners! I am Musky Tome. I teach Pre-Celestial Arcane Philosophy. What this means is, I teach the history of magic before Celestia's reign. After all, there exists a whole other civilization before even Equestria. A race that to this day, exists beyond most ponies' knowledge..." For a moment, the pony paused, then chuckled. "Oh, but there I rambling again. I never bothered to let you two introduce yourselves!" "It's quite all right," I assured my proctor, smiling. "I"m Adam. Adam The Astute." "And I am Jade," said my friend in a similar tone. "Jade the...well, I don't know what I am..." "Good to meet you both," Murmured Musky Tome. "Now then...where was I? Ah, yes! There was a civilization which existed far before Equestria ever became a concept. Before ponies, there was one spectacular, stupendous race that, to this very day, still exists beyond the understanding of most ponies! Do you know what this race was, my dear Adam?" I was about to spout something, but my mind couldn't conjure a good thought, so I mulled over it a moment, and all I could come up with was, "I have no clue, Mr. Tome." "It was the Deer, my boy," Said the proctor, doing a hoof-pump. "They are quite wonderful creatures. Though few ponies in Equestria have seen one, they still live, and they still exist. These creatures are said to possess magic even greater than our own, and they are more attuned to nature than even we ponies are. I believe that in your world's mythology, they would be the equivalent to your...elves, I think it was?" My eyes grew wide. Had Princess Celestia asked her professors to study my race's mythology, as well?! "I see you're a bit surprised. Not to worry. The Princess made sure that all the professors here, including myself, became at least some degree familiar with your people. And I feel my comparison was quite fair to make. Many stories treat elven folk as the precursor to your people, no?" He replied, smiling. "Yes, but...I'm rather surprised the Princess had you learn of Humans..." Muttered I through widened eyes. "Yes, well in the five years you've been gone, we Equestrians took to learning of your people. While I will readily admit some parts of your race are...questionable, your species fascinates me..." chuckled Mr. Tome, then checking his hoof watch. "Well, with all this rambling, it's almost time for class! I'd be prepared to take notes at a moment's notice. We don't appreciate dilly-dallying at this school..." I smiled, nodding as I began to get some paper and prepare a pencil, the chiming of a bell signifying the beginning of the class. Within moments, a number of my magically-abled colleagues, some of whom may have been part of the fanclub that had spawned in the lunchroom not long before, filed into the room...including that one particular unicorn whom I had met before... "Well, well, well," hummed the strong-willed show mare as she strode to a desk at my side. "It would seem Trixie's soothsaying was indeed correct! This must have been the workings of fate!" "Yeah...who'd have thought, huh..." I chuckled, as she gave me a telling glance. It was that kind of glance that, while warm, it was also a look that said "I'm watching you. Give me your all". With this, Musky Tome used a pointer to call attention from his class to himself. "Alright, everypony! Welcome back to Pre-Celestial Arcane Philosophy! Now before we begin, I'm sure you all notice our two new classmates. Everypony, please give a warm welcome to Adam the Astute and his friend, Jade!" On that cue, I rose from my seat, took a short bow, Jade doing much the same. "Now, I'm sure most of you have some inkling on what Adam here accomplished in Equestria five years ago. He was one of the Princesses first attempts at bringing a creature from another world into our happy flock. As you can see, with some liberties, that magic has worked well. The only flaw that can be mentioned is that is yet to be perfected to keep a human turned pony as the same species consistently, hence what we have here with Adam being a Unicorn. However, he is here on recommendation by Ms. Twilight Sparkle, who as we all know, shares a very close history with our fair princess. I can only put to reason she did so because she was concerned for him. "After all, any Unicorn who has no understanding of his or her abilities would be left wondering what all they could do...they'd end up spending their time in endless pursuit of their talents. While many ponies find themselves these ways, magic is simply not so easily discovered. It must be trained and practiced and researched. It is a talent and skill that must be honed and perfected by not just one's own brilliant mind, but those of who is around them. That...is why we are here..." It was than then that Mr. Tome realized he had let his foible of ranting and raving get the better of him. "Whoops! There I go again!" He chuckled, the class following with him. "In any case, I'm sure you've all got a good number of questions to ask about our two new guests, but please, save them for after class. Now today, we'll be talking about one of the lesser known races outside Equestria. They are the Pronghorns. Now, most ponies now take to calling them antelopes, but Pronghorn is a much more correct term. Now, can anypony tell me what Pronghorns are most famous for?" A familiar mint-green unicorn rose her hoof. "Yes, Ms. Heartstrings?" "Aren't they the ones who go around relaying messages?" "Precisely, Lyra!" murmured the teacher as he scrawled notes onto the blackboard. "Now, what is really fascinating about this species is their mode of transportation. Through some bit of magic that is passed down through their species, they are capable of forming and even traveling via lightning! Through this magic, they are able to travel to places in mere minutes, when most would require days to get to them!" The class, including myself, write adamantly along to Mr. Tome's lecture on the wonders of the Pronghorns' Amazing ability to literally ride upon lightning, but what really grabbed their attention was this one set of words: "But," Mr. Tome said with a smile. "It is not a skill that is limited to just them...Equestria has had individuals who can do much the same..Pegasi are of special mention! I believe the one we know as Firefly was the most skilled in the feat!" "Firefly?" A random student asked. "Ah, one of the best flight teachers you could know. Pink coat, blue mane and tail. She is the mare responsible for teaching Rainbow Dash herself to fly...and Firefly was the best ever at craft...then one day, she went into a major hailstorm...and never came out..." The whole class gasped at that point. "Some say she's in the Summer Lands now...or The Dreaming..." "What....what do you mean?" I asked, a bit confused. "It's quite simple. The Summer Lands is our idea of what lies beyond death...an endless land of verdant fields ripe with food and friendship. A peaceful existence beyond death, where the dearly departed are graciously reunited. A peaceful new life...." Mr. Tome said with a smile. "As for The Dreaming...that is a bit harder to explain...basically...it's like...a place of infinity...it is from there, the Pronghorns believe, that this world began...where it will end....the realm where everything which is, was, and ever shall be...it is a land where all that exists is all kept safe and sound...I suppose you could call it that land where Existence began..." Though I could barely make sense of any of that conversation, I made a note that if I ever encountered one of these Pronghorns personally, I would inquire about The Dreaming. After that bit of poetry, Mr. Tome ranted on about the creatures beyond Equestria with reckless abandon as his students scribbled away. "Well, I suppose I've kept you all long enough, and I suppose that you all have questions to ask of fair Adam here, so I leave you these last few minutes to talk." Congratulations, Mr. Tome. With one single set of words, you have trapped me in conversational pitfall. With that, I was caught in a morass of ponies asking me questions non-stop, most of them around what it was like being a human, and how it affected my new life as a pony. It wasn't as choking as the escapade in the cafeteria, but it was certainly uncomfortable. Thankfully, the bell gave me salvation from the prying eyes of those ponies. The next class was hard to determine. It only had a single acronym to its existence: UHE. The room was 251, which facilitated the chore of having to gallop to get there. Thankfully, Jade was more than capable of keeping me safe from the still curious students of this school. It was around this point that I started to really really hate being in the spotlight of all of this. I ought to compare notes with the Princesses. After pushing Jade to his limit once again, we entered the room, a misty rose-colored unicorn with crimson mane and tail, bearing a cutie mark of a stitched cartoon heart was bearing a smile. "Oh! Hello there! I didn't see you come in! I guess you two are those newbies that I've been hearing about?" She chirped, positively beaming with joy. "Yes ma'am!" We said, in almost complete synchronicity. "Wonderful...I can guess by that armor that you're Adam?" she asked, pointing a hoof at me. "The one and only," I said with a smile. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet me. I'm Heartfelt Healing, but everypony just calls me 'Miss H' for short. Glad to meet you!" Said the pony, shaking hooves with me. "And who is your friend?" "I'm Jade, miss. I'm one of his best friends!" Jade said, shaking hooves with our new teacher as well. "Oh, so you used to be human, too?" Ms. H asked, to which Jade replied, "Yes, Ms. H!" "Well..." Ms. H said in a sing-song voice, her eyes shying away. "You didn't hear it from me, but I hear Lyra's got a bit of crush on you, Adam~. And it just so happens she's in this very class!" I blushed a deep magenta at my proctor's sudden mention of that Unicorn. As anypony with even a passing knowledge of Lyra knew, Lyra had a thing for humans. While not a fetish (to be honest, it was more an obsession from what I hear.), it was something that both fascinated and annoyed most passersby. And knowing that a human-gone-pony, let alone two, was right beneath her nose would surely excite her. I, on the other hoof, was a tad anxious as my colleagues filed in, Lyra being among the very first to arrive. As the two of us set our looks upon each other, the look upon that mint-green filly's face told me all that I needed to know of her feelings towards me. She had a look of interest, as if her eyes were able to see past my guise and see the true being beyond them. I wasn't sure whether to be flattered, or to be frightened. I was about to open my mouth, but she took the initiative. "So...you're that human, right?" She asked, smirking a bit. Silence filled my lungs until I finally was able to summon a meek excuse for a "Yes..." Lyra replied in no other way but a simple squeal of joy. It seemed she was overcome with glee at the thought of meeting a human live and in person. Good, no hungry mobs wanting to nab my pony flesh. Class this time was a much more simple affair. Ms. H was discussing a nasty condition in magically endowed folk known as "Horn Rot". "Now then," Ms. H began, drawing a slightly in-depth diagram of the inner workings of a unicorn's horn, the antlers of a deer, and those of pronghorn, detailing a system of points. "Every magic user, whether unicorn, pronghorn, dear, or any horned creature capable of casting magic, has a complex system of points through which magic flows across the body. The primary cause of horn rot is an overload of the magic circuit. This can be caused by a number of means, but the end is what is important. The most common causes are overexerting one's magic or using magic that is too advanced for their current level. Another common cause is an excess use of magic lubricant, which can lead to a dangerous short in the magic circuit!" The class (minus myself, anyway) held a collective gasp. "Now then," continued the teacher. "can anypony tell me the main cure for Horn Rot, and where it is found?" I rose my hoof then. I knew this question. I had read a story once that contained that very same flower, It was information I had attained long ago, but I retained it. "Yes, Adam?" The teacher asked, holding the pointer aloft as a level. "Aren't they found in the Archback Mountains?" Ms. H stood for a moment in awe. Most ponies, as I understood, rarely left the safe haven that was Equestria, but the few that did were only diplomats. So, I suppose to her, somepony that was legitimately aware of such rare plants found outside its very borders was something that put her in a state of amazement. A mind as bright as the rest, if not brighter, was in her midst, and she was more than surprised. "That's..." she stuttered, finding it hard to let through the response to a question she had hoped to be left rhetorical. However, after a moment, she cracked a wide grin and said quite curtly that I was most certainly- "...correct!" The class all expressed surprise at my answer, and the mint-green anthropology enthusiast was all but delighted to note that for a human-gone-pony, I still retained my former human knowledge. After the stagnant pause concluded, Ms. H returned to her lecture. "Now then, Beneviolets are most effective when they are picked freshly-bloomed. You can tell this by the bright pink color and sharp appearance of the petals. Once picked, it can be administered very quickly. Beneviolets..." At this point, I was beginning to tune out Ms. H's lecture, as most of this was knowledge that I had gained from sources I barely even recall at this point. However, something appeared on my desk as I attempted to stave off my own lethargy. I held it in my telekinesis, floating it below anypony else's visibility, and read it to myself: "Adam, Can you come see me during lunch? I'd like to talk. ~L.H." It didn't take a genius to understand who sent this note, so I turned to the Mint-Green messenger and gave a short nod. After about ten minutes more of Ms. H's mumbling, the bell rang, and I quit the room with Jade in tow, and not far behind, the harp-flanked unicorn. The next two classes were very simple ones. The first was a standard Arithmetic class, which I suppose goes by fairly quicker when you don't have to scribble things via holding a pencil in your teeth, and the Second was Psionics 101, which Jade showed particular expertise. I hadn't quite known Jade past his human self, but he always had an interest in utilizing his mind in most any situation. Needless to say, as a unicorn, Jade was of remarkable caliber with his version of that most basic spell that most of our ilk knew from birth. I suppose that, if he trained it, he'd have a skill that could well enough be weaponized, if he needed. The next period was one that I took best of all. In my days in high school, of those four years that I had attended, my Freshman and Senior years ended up with me taking the duty of being a library aid. While unlike on Earth, there were no computers, there were thousands more books in this library than there were in any of the ones I had visited in the past. Plus, who wouldn't enjoy a good spot of reading when you had such a spectacular view? There stood a large window in this library which, as I climbed the window, showed me an almost unrivaled overview of Canterlot! The sprawling, verdant hills, the alabaster and golden buildings, the glowing cobbled roads. It turned a gem of city into an absolute diamond! "I take it you are enjoying the view?" The sudden question posed by the unknown interloper sent through our spines a great chill. Jade was the first to react as he craned his neck around, looking toward the intruder, then tapping my shoulder...As I turned around, there she stood. "P-Princess Luna?! What brings you here?" I asked, flabbergasted. "Why else?" She asked, smiling. "This is the Royal Library." "It still seems a mite impromptu!" Princess Luna chuckled. "My apologies, dearest Adam. I just thought I would pay visitation..." "Something about your voice changed..." Jade noted, a mite confused. "My voice?" Luna asked, putting a hoof to her chin. After a moment of contemplation, the lunar mare realized what Jade meant. "Fair Jade, my voice itself has not changed. Rather, the manner in which I use it." "What do you mean?" Luna chuckled a second time. "Simply put," she said with a smirk, "in the time following Adam's departure, I have begun to be educated by my sister on the more...modern vernacular of my people, if only for the sake of providing my subjects with a more modest version of myself." "Then why did you speak so prim and proper last night as you brought us here?" I asked, joining in Luna's chuckling. "It is simple," the night princess replied. "That time was a more formal matter, and thus, a fairly appropriate time to use the formal tongue." With this, the princess saw fit to brighten. "In any case, how goes your day so far?" "It goes well, Your Majesty," I said, tipping my head in a bow. "Though I fear my reputation precedes me." "Considering what you were and what you accomplished, that is something of small wonder," Luna noted in a quite catty manner. "However, I share your sentiments. You wish for normality, yet you carry a name of a Hero...where I carry one of a specter..." She then turned her gaze to the shelves within the library. "Did you know that when I returned, I was to stay in Canterlot to recover?" "I was not aware," said I with a mixed expression. The princess of the night smiled for a moment and spoke in a calm demeanor. "In the time that I was recovering, I often came to this library to research. To read on all of the developments made in my absence...vehicles and technologies not unlike your own were being spawned each passing day...ponies spoke in simpler tongues, yet partook in ever more complex activities and hobbies. Music expanded beyond strings and brass...the world seemed so different to me...and oftentimes, far too busy for my taste...And here I stood, a filly who had a thousand years' time to recover, and many a sin to atone... "Thankfully, because I was weaker when I returned, my appearance was much more innocent. However, as I regained my powers over the night...over darkness...my form began to grow. In more manners than one, I began to grow a guise akin to that of my sister...and doubly akin to that of the specter I once was. As I matured, my voice followed suit. My speech was trapped from old vernacular and tradition, and my voice had the power to frighten even the most stalwart of ponies. And worst of it all, I was incontinent of it. "However, Nightmare Night changed this...Twilight Sparkle and her friends aided me in understanding the fears of the young ones cavorting the streets of that fair hamlet. I found that my taste for the macabre was not without an audience, and before long, I was a spirited part in the festivities. I began to better understand my little ponyfolk...and with that, I found relief. " "W...Wow..." Sighed Jade, attempting to hold back a tear at Luna's poetic retelling of her recovery. "I...I never knew it was that way, your Highne-" "Please," Luna interjected, being quite pertinent in doing so, "call me Luna. I care not for formalities." "Right," I said, blushing. With this, Luna gave a warm smile on her dark face. "Say," she asked in a kind manner, "seeing as you were kind enough to listen to my confiding, would you be interested in seeing something awe-inspiring?" I grew wide-eyed at the goddess' offering. "Right now?" I asked, surprised. "Indeed," Luna said with a smile. "I feel I must repay your patience. The two of you ought to be shown something spectacular...come hither, and I will show you." With no further convincing, the both of us came to the mare of the moon as she unfurled her wings, drawing them around us with a smile. "I'd like for you both to take a deep, calm breath...close your eyes, and open them only when I tell you to open them," She said in a calm voice, as her wingspan blotted out the light, bolstering the darkness in our shut eyes as we the ground beneath our hooves seemed to change, a light hum being the only sound to be emitted. Then, for an instant, blinding cold raced through our bodies, seeping up our legs and chilling us before a mysterious heat canceled the frigid air about us. "You may open your eyes now," said Luna, unwrapping her wings slowly, the individual feathers caressing each little hair on our hides. What I saw was a sight I almost couldn't understand. The sky was black as pitch, stars bejeweling the ebony tapestry as if it were clear nighttime. The ground beneath our feet was not carpet, cobblestone, or tile. It was instead grey, cracked stone. As I looked around, I saw craters dotting the surface of this new venue, and as my eyes scanned the horizon of this barren wasteland, I knew where I was. Jade and I were held in awe, so much that we were more concerned of the fact that we had no air to breathe! "Be still, friends! Calm yourselves and breathe as you would normally!" She pleaded in a manner befitting any life or death dilemma. With a deep gasp, I breathed..something. It wasn't exactly oxygen, but it was some form of safe, breathable air. It was strange. As I understood it, I was standing on the surface of the moon, Jade in the buff (or rather, Equine Casual), while I was clad in a war pony's barding, yet neither of us felt much ill. To us, it felt like a nice spring day...minus the fact that where we were was absolutely devoid of plant life. "How..." I began, still taking deep breaths of not-oxygen in surprise, "How is this even possible?" "I take it this is your first time being on the surface of the moon with one such as me, right?" Luna asked with a chuckle. I nodded with a look of surprise. "Really, it's quite simple," said the lunar horse, smiling. "As we left, I cast two simple enchantments; The first granted you air, even in this vacuum on the moon, while the second shielded you from the cold of the moon. It was a fail safe spell that I learned from my sister to keep me from dying during my incarceration on this desolate floating stone of mine. From this moment, you and your friend are welcome to take some time here with me should you have nothing to do, or should you desire some time with me. With this, the night princess ran a hoof through her hair, turning her mane and tail to simple, solid colors, taking a more grown version of her former form. For a moment, I took a look of curiosity, which Luna read quite easily. "Oh! I apologize...I prefer this look on some occasions. While I do enjoy seeing the constellations in my mane, I enjoy my original form most," Luna noted, smiling. After a moment, Luna joined us in a spot of stargazing. "You know, when I need time to gather myself after a hard day of work, I come here. None of the blinding lights...none of the deafening sounds...just me, the moon, and the stars above...I could count all the stars in the sky, gaze at all the pictures I'd made, making new ones to dazzle the stargazing ponies that dared turn an eye to the black tapestry that was my canvas. And these days, knowing that at least one pony is looking up is enough. It reminds me that I'm still beloved by somepony in Equestria, no matter where they are or whom they are...." As Luna spoke of her appreciation of her audience, I took a gaze at the miasma of stars in the sky, taking note of this majestic mare's magnum opus. Truly, with the only things around being the three of us, an infinitely-large tapestry of the cosmos, and the beautiful desolation of the wasteland that was the surface of the moon, it was a dark, quiet, and peaceful venue. As I stared at the ever-expansive field of stars, Luna dazzled us both by weaving intricate, new images into the sky. She was the painter of the stars, while we were but her mere companions. "If I may say something?" The moon mare asked, turning to us. "Thank you both for allowing me to share this moment with you. Long has it been since I have had the ability to shed my royal mask for a more normal, friendly guise. As enjoyable as it may be to have servants at your beck and call and to assume dominion over a kingdom, it doesn't atone for the skulduggery that is managing the tax code and working through a bureaucracy..." For a moment, she drew a sight before smiling. "Hence why I like coming here. It enables me to find release from all the tedium and monotony that is my royal duty and simply revel in childlike jubilation..." During her conversation, the rumbling of her two guests' stomachs cut her off. "Oh! My apologies! It seems that my rhetoric has made me forget that you two have a lunch period to attend. We really must be going." With this, our matron of the moon rose to her hooves, composing herself as she assumed the royal guise once more, the two of us coming toward her as she let a smile creep to her face, taking us both literally under her wing as we returned once more to library, the glorious desolation of lunar soil being exchanged for solid cobblestone, elaborate carpets. and a labyrinth of shelves. Given Luna's reaction to the clock, I assumed that we were quite late. The fact that she was frantically pushing us while setting into motion a spell only solidified this fact. "Oh, curse it all! I've kept you for quite a while! Make haste while you can! Here, allow me to get you there!" Before we could protest, Luna made short work of our predicament, sending us away to where she intended for us to go...which just so happened to be smack-dab in the middle of the cafeteria. A collective gasp filled the crowd, as the both of us became once again encircled by a herd of ponies. We were surrounded by all sides, and I in particular was now in total deadlock. With another crowd encroaching upon me, I began to contemplate what could have been had I just run away all those years ago. What would happen then? Would I have become completely shunned and ignored? Or would I have been given a markedly worse treatment? As my mind began to race through what may have been, I felt the sudden embrace of a mysterious stranger. Within moments, The two of us were parted from the pony procession, and as the ponies gazed upon that who was our savior, as if in an instant, they decided to leave me be. It was only when I looked to where they too were looking that I noticed who saved me; That mint-green mare known as Lyra. "You....I don't understand..." I blubbered, flustered. "What, did you think I was just gonna let them mob you?" The minty mare mused. "By the time you would've gotten out of there, you'd have gone hungry!" "I....well...thank you!" I chuckled, smiling. "Don't mention it," Said Lyra, chuckling back as she handed some trays to us. "Here. I saved you two the trouble of waiting in line. Why don't we go talk?" I smiled a moment as I looked to Jade and asked, "Any objections, my friend?", to which Jade simply shook his head with a smile as we sat down. Now I must point out that the typical pony posture for sitting is a prone stance, with all four legs tucked in. Lyra, on the other hoof, was quite different. Rather than sit prone on the cushion, she sat on her hind legs with her back hunched over. With her front legs, through some form of power known only to her (and, I assumed, other ponies), she held a drink in her hooves like a human. While she wasn't the first of her type to do this, it was certainly a feat even I found a tad odd. It was a perplexing thing to see something that had no such things as fingers manipulating objects with her hooves. Then again, this was a realm in which both Vancian and Inherent magic were as commonplace as the trees all about. "Hey, Lyra?" "Yeah?" "Can I ask you something?" "Fire away." I pressed my hooves together, a mite nervous to pop this question. "How exactly do you do that?" Lyra blew a lighthearted raspberry in my direction. "That's foal's play, my friend! I can do this!" With no other word in edgewise, the unicorn lifted herself off the ground and onto her rear hooves, beginning a walk on her two hooves like a proper human. However, as one might expect, she was much better at standing up than she was walking. Her flanks were shaking profusely, and her legs trembled as she stepped. I couldn't make up my mind on the matter. Was it amazing that Lyra was walking on her hind legs? Was it strange? Or was it hilarious? Any way it went, it was still an attention grabber. With that display over, Jade, Lyra, and I shared a conversation about humans. We were apparently of special interest to the unicorn due to us both being former humans, and thus, we could provide insight on how humans were to her. The length at which she listened to my ramblings on the facets of humankind was something that made me seriously wonder just how well Lyra was doing in her actual schoolwork. It also made me seriously consider becoming the equestrian equivalent of a cryptozoologist, or at the very least, an anthropologist. At the very least, I had pleased Lyra's lust for knowledge on my race. Following that debacle, lunch period passed into sixth period, which was a class involving literature. The teacher there was a tan colt with platinum blonde hair named Golden Pages. As this class revealed to me, ponyfolk like Clover the Clever and Star Swirl the Bearded were as much of authors as they were magi. Star Swirl, especially, was an illustrious author in his own right. As for Clover...well, she was the famous author of the one of the original versions of the story of Hearth's Warming. For the Equestrian equivalent of English class, all in all? Not bad. The next and final class was the one that I'm sure any egghead dreads. Phys Ed, better known as PE, or Gym. As we entered the gymnasium, a rather grizzled-looking unicorn stood, glaring daggers at his subordinates, then looking to us with a stare the likes of which Fluttershy herself may have been outmatched by. He was a gnarled colt, a silver five-o-clock shadow, greyed brunette mane, a horn full of notches, and an armor worn and torn with the scars that only the likes of a seasoned, battle-hardened veteran would have gotten. His eyes were an icy blue. The kind of bright, almost azure type of blue that when they glare at you, it strikes fear into your weary heart. "Well. Would'ja lookit that. Our two new slabs 'o fresh meat just trotted in!" He snarled derisively, turning his eyes to me. "And whaddaya know? One of 'im's got the 'ol gold and blue on!" Then, in an instant, he appeared in front of me, a hardened gaze upon me. "Name and rank, Solider! Pronto!" I recoiled back a step before responding in an expression of shock, "M-My name is Adam, sir! And I...well...don't have a rank..." The colt stared for a moment. "Don't have a rank..." He muttered, beginning to grind his teeth. "DON'T HAVE A RANK?! DO YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT YOU JUST "HAPPENED" UPON THAT ARMOR?! THAT SOMEPONY GAVE IT TO YOU?! I ASKED YOU FOR A RANK, SOLIDER! GIVE ME ONE RIGHT NOW!" "I am Adam the Astute, Knight in the Royal Guard of Equestria!" "Well, whoopty-darn-doo! So you got a name and a fancy title. Big whoop! I got a name, too! It's Drillbit! Gunnery Sargent Drillbit, to be exact! And you, little boy, are nothin' but a Shiny!" "A...shiny, sir?" For a moment, all stood quiet, before Drillbit put a hoof to his tattered armor. "Boy, I want you to take a good, hard look at what I'm wearin'. This is armor that has seen combat for forty straight years. This was armor that served as the shield to me, the sword of Equestria! Each puncture, scratch, stab, and stain serves as a mark of my experience serving in the Royal Guard. I've gotten blood on my hooves, greenhorn. I've lost comrades left and right throughout my whole tour of service," He said, snorting a plume of hot steam. "And then I look at your armor. How clean it is...how pretty it looks. How there's not a scratch on it, and I feel disgraced. Not because you're wearing it. Oh, no. It's because you're wearing it when you don't even have anything to your name but a fancy-schmancy title!" "This armor was a gift from Princess Celestia herself!" I shouted back defensively. "Boy, I don't give a flying feather if it was from Queen Faust herself! You ain't a soldier! You're just a pony in soldier's barding!" Drillbit barked back, putting a hoof tauntingly up to his chin. "But oh wait! You ain't a pony, either! You're just a human in pony hide! You might think you're a pony, and that everypony else is all fine and dandy with you being a human and all that, but you ain't gettin' my praise till I see you do something that's truly worth carin' about!" "I took down a dragon in Ponyville 5 years ago!" "Well, whoo-hoo! You took out a dragon! Anypony can do that! At least, anypony dumb enough to try! That was nothin'! Nothin' but a goddess-forsaken fluke!" He then approached me, his nose scrunched up against mine. "Now before you go smartin' off again, lemmie just lay down a few ground rules of this class..." He then cleared his throat as he began. "Rule number one," He started, stamping with his hoof. "You will speak only, and I mean only when I speak to you! Rule number two! You will do what I say, when I say it! Rule number three! No back-talk!" Jade, all the while, stood quaking in his nonexistent boots as this veteran worked me over verbally, holding a hoof to my chin. "Boy, when I'm through with you, Iron Will will even turn you down! You'll be a lean, mean, fighting machine!" Within moments, a large shadow stood over Drillbit's shoulders, its black eyes gleaming peacefully with the stars. It smiled to me, as I smiled back. "Boy, I'd wipe that dopey grin right offa' your face, if I were you." The Gunnery Sargent snarled, before a snort of hot air caressed his back. "And I think you had best turn around and remember your place, Gunnery Sargent Drillbit," grunted the figure from behind, shocking the Sargent out from his ego trip and causing him to turn about-face. Before me was a creature not of equine origin. Rather, a cervid. A deer, to be more precise. It possessed a reddish-brown coat, with white highlighting it, a lean, toned body, and a set of large antlers, set with many prongs on each side. Its eyes glowed a piercing blue as the constellation of the North Star briefly shimmered, only to be replaced by a few rings or light. "Need I remind you that you are only permitted to instruct in my absence?" Asked the deer, an eerily calm smile upon his face, which broke the Sargent's facade almost immediately as he backed away from me. "Besides," mused the deer with that same smile, "these are my new classmates. You have no need to shell-shock them on their first day this semester." "Y-yes, Asturl! I'm sorry for disturbing them!" With this, the deer now identified as Asturl scanned the Sargent carefully, before craning his neck in the direction of the entrance doors. "Be about it, Sargent. I have a class to teach now," he muttered quietly with a smile. At the discretion of what seemed to be his superior, Gunnery Sargent Drillbit fled the gymnasium, and the whole class grew quiet again. Within a moment, the blue lights that shined in the deer's eyes faded to black again, and his smile warmed considerably as he approached me, nuzzling my neck. I supposed this was a form of greeting. "Please forgive my subordinate's rudeness. He's just a tad...shell-shocked, as you would put it. You'll be pleased to know he is not the regular teacher for this class," He said, chuckling. "That would be me. I am Asturl Polaris of Shimmerwood. I will be your Arcane Physical Education Instructor." With this, I stated that which was clearly in my mind: "What brings a Deer to a school for Unicorns?" Asturl chuckled tenderly. "That is a question I get very often with new students, and the answer is quite simple," He said with a smile, "Deers, like your kin, can cast magic." And as quickly as it came, it went away in those simple words. "You know, you picked a wonderful day to enroll in my class, for we are going to be practicing horn fencing." "Horn fencing?" I parroted, curious. "Ah, that's right. You're the one my people call 'The Traveler'..." Asturl realized, chuckling. "The Traveler?" "Yes. It is a name our people use to refer to he who has traveled between our two worlds..." I smiled again. In five years time, the history behind me held true. Even those who were beyond Equestria knew who I was. While I still hated the drawbacks of my celebrity status, I liked being honored by so many creatures. While I could have gabbed on about that in my head for hours on end, I had more pressing matters to deal with. "In any case, allow me to explain what horn fencing is for a brief moment," Asturl purred, holding between the magic of his antlers a long, horn-shaped piece of wood. "It has been tradition in horned creatures, but especially you unicorns, to attach these devices to your horns for combat. They would extend your horn's reach, and usually gave it a blade. Some can even bolster your magic, if the need arises. However, we will not be using any real horn blades for this exercise. For this class, we will use wooden blades. This way, the only injury will be some possible bruises on your body," He explained in almost eerily cheery manner. "Since you're new, why don't you give it a try with of our more seasoned classmates...like-" "The Great and Powerful Trixie wishes to engage Adam in horn fencing!" Asturl raised his brow quizzically. "Are you sure? He's fairly new." "Exactly," said Trixie, her eyes flaring with determination. "Which is why Trixie wishes to assess his skills." Asturl murmured to himself, but nodded, smiling. "I'll allow it," He mused, smiling as he fitted our horns with the wooden sword substitutes. "Get up onto the platform to my right." I nodded, walking left and going onto a small platform, complete with white lines marking the boundaries of the tiny arena. "The both of you will stand behind the white lines until I give the signal." We both nodded, casting glances of competitive fervor between each other. We both dug our hooves into the ground, staring into each others eyes, sparks of arcane fire burning through them. Asturl, being our mentor, surveyed us with his visage and then nodded, raising a hoof. "Blades and Spells at the ready," He instructed, keeping the leg erect as he let out a giant plume of hot air from his nose. In one swift and sudden motion, shot his leg down, roaring a definitive, "BEGIN!" before leaping off the platform. Trixie wasted no time at all in taking initiative. In mere seconds after the deer's signal, he charged at me and swung her wooden ornament directly to my head. I barely was able to move as I endured a rather harsh blow to my breastplate. I don't think I need to remind anyone that while plate armor is pretty nice against actual blades, it can be a real pain to try and take blunt force. This is because wood and steel are fairly resonant materials, and thus, when stuck by blunt force, it can cause debilitating vibrations that make it nigh impossible to react for a good while. Thankfully, such sensations subsided, and I was able to attempt to return Trixie's strikes with a few of my own, and as our horns clashed against each other, I felt something. As our horns met each other, I felt energy coming off of it. Trixie was enhancing her strikes with magic! It wasn't a complicated spell (in fact, it was just basic telekinesis), but with it, Trixie had practically doubled, if not tripled, her striking power! Each swing I endured, I felt more of that arcane power rippling through her body into mine. I was backed to the edge of the platform at this point. One more strike, and I would be knocked clean off. Then, I felt the rays of the spring sun shine on me through the window. The rays of Celestia's prized sun heated my grey coat quickly, and suddenly, something clicked in my head. My mind began to recall what had occurred some time ago in the desert. How when I was fighting the scorpion, I had apparently burnt it to fine cinders. The means to which I had achieved it suddenly began to come clear again. I must have channeled the power of the sun through my horn! Of course! It all made sense now! As a unicorn, I now had the ability to collect and use solar power! While of course, I would not be able to match the power of Princess Celestia, I was, within reason, capable of using some of her power. So, taking a few steps forward, I began to collect solar power into my horn, before taking swings back at my azure adversary. And so, I was now able to properly compete against Trixie, the two of us sharing blows up and down the platform. For a good percentage of time which I estimated to be about hours, we battered each other with our horns, not letting a drop of relent escape each other. Truly, Trixie was testing me to the fullest extent an upstart like her was capable of, and I was happy to oblige her desires. It was truly the first decent confrontation I ever had as a pony. Unbeknownst to me, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna were looking at the duel between Trixie and I with interest. "Is something the matter, Sister?" Luna asked, peering through the mounted spyglass. "Well...it is not so much that something is the matter..but rather, there's something about our friend that is oddly familiar." Princess Celestia replied, noting the glowing in my horn blade. Luna took another look inside the spyglass. "I think I see what you're referring to...it is as if he is channeling the power of your sun into his body, then releasing it in each strike of his blade...does it remind you of...well...yourself?" Luna asked her sister, turning to face her. "In a manner of speaking, I suppose that it does," Princess Celestia said, giggling. "That friend of his is certainly no slouch, either. I've been hearing from some of the staff that he's got quite a grip on his telekinesis..." "Aye...I have heard the same," Luna noted, chuckling slightly. "I also heard from our flight patrols that they spotted an unusually large amount of ash out in the middle of the desert...would it be logical to assume-" "That Adam may have been behind it? Well, as the old saying goes: If the horseshoe fits," Celestia joked, nodding as she looked back to the duel in which I was entangled. "I think we ought to keep our eye on those two...they show promise..." "Aye," Luna said, nodding. "If I may inquire as to something?" "And what would that be?" "Well...seeing as Twilight is your protege....would it be acceptable if I were to take these two beneath my wings and train them?" Celestia chuckled a moment, then held a hoof to her snout to mull over the possibilities, before nodding. "I suppose there is no harm in that....after all, it has been long since you returned....you need to impart your knowledge into a bright young mind, and those two are as bright as I can gather. You have my blessing." Luna squealed like an ecstatic kitten and embraced her sister tenderly. "Thank you, dear Sister! You have little idea how much this means to me!" "It is my pleasure, Sister," purred Celestia sweetly as she nuzzled her sister's neck. "Now then...shall we view the conclusion of this duel?" "'Twould be a pleasure." "Give up, foal! You know it is futile! Only one of us will be left standing upon this platform!" "Yeah, I know. And it's gonna be me." At this point, Trixie and I were locked into an utter stalemate. Our horn blades were crossed over each other, and all the magic we could muster surged between us. It was down to this; The final moments that would decide victory. Success or failure was all but a matter of who was truly more powerful: The Traveling Human in Pony Hide that was me, or the Boastful Blue Braggart that was Trixie. Who would hold out longest? That was a question to which none of us knew or cared as to the answer. All that mattered was this sport of combat. Then, for a moment, I felt it. Trixie's energy was waning! My chance was at hoof! With this, I took a few steps back, then definitively charged Trixie with all my might, thrusting the edge of the wooden blade with as much force as I could let through my horn, sending the brilliant azure unicorn staggering off the platform, to which Asturl blew a shrill whistle. "Finally, the match has been decided. The victor, by ring out, is Adam!" Cheers filled the room as Jade was jumping for joy, and within moments, I was being given many congratulatory gestures as I stumbled off the platform. However, as I did this, I quickly realized just how exhausted I was without the adrenaline flowing in my bloodstream. With little else keeping me up, I collapsed in exhaustion, only to have Asturl slowly lift me back onto my hooves. "You have done well this day, Traveler. For one so new to the field of combative magics, you took to the task as a duckling takes to the waters of its pond. I see a prodigy in you, little pony. With practice, you could become an accomplished battle mage." Asturl mused, rubbing his neck against mine in approval. With that, I smiled, only to collapse again. "By Falalauria's Good Graces," Asturl chuckled heartily, "you gave more of your all than I had originally considered! Could somepony give aid to him and Trixie in getting them back to the dormitories?" "I'll handle my friend, Mr. Asturl." Jade said, smiling as he lifted me onto his back. "Thanks, Jade. I feel absolutely exhausted!" I panted, my tongue dangling out like that of a dog. "Hey, what are friends for?" My sleep was thankfully uninterrupted, but what surprised me was what was appearing in my dream. Before me again stretched the sprawling, desolate, pocked wasteland that was the surface of the moon. Instantly, I was able to make out the context of what was to occur, and just like that, Luna graced me with her presence. "Princess! To what do I owe the honor of your visit?" The princess smiled as she approach. "We bore audience to the duel you participated in against Trixie, and we are fairly amused. For one so young and so new to the wonders of magic, you have the makings of what could be a great prodigy. Your friend is certainly no slouch, either...the two of you show incredible prowess, and this intrigues me...so, I would like to personally invite you to take up the art of magic with my tutelage..." My eyes shot wide. The princess had just offered to teach us about magic...US. I could only imagine Jade was as surprised as was. "But Princess," I asked, confused, "why us?" "'Tis but a simple matter, really," Luna curtly chuckled. "You see, much like my elder has grown fond of Twilight Sparkle, I feel likewise with Jade, and especially with you. Therefore, it falls only to reason that I extend a hoof of knowledge to one who I regard fondly." With this, the lunar princess extended a hoof to me, smiling. "So...will you be willing to come beneath my wing and allow me to bring you under my tutelage?" For a moment, I stood quiet, honestly considering the mare's offer. In doing this, I thought, I could gain significant knowledge and power for myself. But, what would it be? Would it be a plethora of spells meant for the betterment of ponykind? Would they be spells that allow me to do the classic fireballs and lightning shtick that so many fantasy settings and tales of yore had? Or would they be mind-bending magics that would hamper my sanity? I honestly had no clue what to expect, so having no other course of action, I simply extended my hoof to Princess Luna, our two hooves touching as she slowly brought me into the comforting embrace of that which was the dark side of the moon. "Soon, you will learn a great many thinks about magic...but for now, I have but one thing to ask you," She said, as her eyes glowed to provide a contrast to the pitch black of the dark side of the lunar surface." I turned my head to meet her gaze and asked her what she wanted to ask me. Her eyes glowed even brighter then as she wrapped her wing around my form. "Awaken..." As if by magic, Jade and I simultaneously awoke in deep gasps. At the foots of our beds, there stood Princess Luna, clad in a tan cloak. "Rise, my friends," hummed the lesser of the two cosmic mares. "I beseech thee for your assistance." This morning was going to be interesting.