Chapter 2 – The Guardian Academy.
Soul sighed as he stretched the next day at five and quickly got ready for the start of his training. He ran over to the barracks and stood in line with the regular shifts. To the surprise of Soul, he noticed that the other shifts had no true face and just the royal crest along with red eyes. The only way to tell them apart was the colored bands at their wrist. He was basically the odd one out.
He then saw his new teacher walk up. It was the same captain he was tested against. The young shade sighed and stood at attention. He may have magic, but he was going to prove to his fellow recruits that he was not just some spoiled prince, but someone they can call a comrade. And the first thing he was going to do to prove so was become a guardian. The gathered shades listened in as their future commander started to talk.
“Okay you all have shown to have what it takes to be guardians, that much is clear, but now we need to train you to see if you are cut out for this line of work. The guardian rank is not to be taken lightly. It shows that you are responsible to protect our kingdom, our home and the way of life we have made for ourselves! Some of you may have talents that are unique and some may find that they just aren't able to properly defend. The teamwork that is needed to protect our home is important in its own right. For the next ten years you will be put through the hardest training program that we can think of. Harder than even that of the Transylmaneian military.” These words got a rise out of some of the shades who began to quake. It was no secret that Fang was hard on his kingdom’s military. He had once told Soul that only ten of his regular guards could take out a fully grown dragon. The shade had not believed him, until he saw some soldiers dragging a dead dragon into the passage that led to the storage area under Fang’s castle.
“You will learn to make your armor and weapons, these items will become your true form. For the rest of your lives. The armor we craft out of our shadows is truly a part of us, and we lose our original forms once we create it. To tell the truth, this is how shades like us have always evolved. We all started out as simple shifts and were then, eventually promoted, resulting in us receiving new forms and abilities. A shade is best able to learn things that are related to their rank and skills that they were born with.” By this point some of the shades were starting to get bored. Soul even saw that the one next to him kept drifting in and out of sleep.
“The strongest shades that we have are the twelve generals. Collectively known as the Shadow Guard of the Abyss. Each one is the head of a rank and a member of our king’s council. Each one has a unique ability, and it just happens that you are being taught by one right now. Each of the council have a title, mine just so happens to be the Hell Guard of the Dark War, because I was our king's bodyguard during the start of said war, and no matter what I faced, no matter what I had to endure, I never faltered or stayed down, even when injured. I struck fear into the hearts of all that I faced and… Wake up!” The shift that had been standing next to Soul threw his head up. The captain gave a small sigh. “They don’t make shades the way they used to…” He then turned back to the group. “I expect that you eighteen recruits will uphold our creed! To defend those in need, to face danger at every turn, to help those that can't help themselves, and to always be true to yourself! This is what we guardians live by and our first priority is to the kingdom! Now then let's have a roll call so you can all know each other’s names.” Said the captain with such a tone that he had the shades riveted in place.
Brave Shadow slowly looked at all of the shifts that stood before him. "You will not get your armor yet, for the next three months you will be learning how to smith and forge weaponry. You have to have your own sword, and then practice with it. You must be ready for what you might encounter. This is all the warning you will get. This training is going to be hard, and I am sure that most of you are going to make it, some won’t but most will. Today you are simply getting to know each other. When I call your name state the reason why you want to be a guardian of our home." Brave said as he walked down the line, this caused Soul to stand straighter. He had a feeling that he was going to need a lot of mental control soon. That or a large amount of tea. "Kage Claw."
A shift with a black band around his wrist spoke. "I want to join to protect those I care about sir!"
The captain nodded. "Shadow Fang."
"I wanted to make my late father proud by continuing the legacy sir!" The shift with a white band around his wrist saluted.
"Echo Nightshade." And so the list continued until he hit Soul's own name who, as he was the last to pass the entrance exam, was last on the list. "Tamashii Souto no Nexus" Brave Shadow called out, making the other shifts tense in shock.
They looked all looked in Soul's direction, and he took a deep breath. "The reason I wish to join is because I do not want to be the kind of king who commands, but does not participate. I want to protect the place I call home, and those I care for.
Even the ones I will fight alongside with, I wish to be a better shade than my farther, so that I can create my own legend with the use my own skills, and to not be known as someone who didn't earn their place in life. I want to uphold the example I was born to set! If I don't lead then who will follow? I want to make sure that this kingdom lasts for centuries, with the knowledge that peace will be a long time coming!" Soul stated this with such resolve and determination, that he was briefly replaced by his future self, with a glowing black and white sword with the Neighponese characters for Kagenohikari.
When the image faded he gave a salute that showed his determination to see his dream through to the end. The others watched in awe and shock. The only ones who were mad were the trio of Shadow Fang and his friends, Burst and Aero, who had red and green bands respectively. Just goes to show that even in this time period the drama of high school is evident. Soul just gained his rival in his journey to become a guardian, even if he didn’t know it yet. The teen prince just stared down his teacher for the moment wondering how he would fair in times to come. Oddly he had a brief flash in his mind of a light blue unicorn mare with a silver mane dressed in a hat and cloak, reminiscent of his unicorn mentor, with a cutie mark of a starry veil and a star tipped wand. Her purple eyes glinted in the sunlight. But when the vision cleared he didn't focus on what had just happened. He would think about it later.
The next week was full of him and his fellow recruits trying to become familiar with the crafting tools. For the second week of training they had to locate the materials they wanted their swords to be made of. Soul was, at the moment, looking in an old mine to, find a gem to use so he could channel his magic through his sword, if he needed. The best would be his birth stone, because the things that are connected to the day that a creature is born is said to make said creature stronger when held, which would be a sapphire. He was, sadly, having no luck in his gem hunt.
He was through two thirds of the mine and was now entering the core of the mine where all the tunnels connected. He blinked and rubbed his eye when he started to see transparent ponies. Unknown to him his eyes was glowing ghostly blue. Slowly he approached one of them, an earth pony. "Excuse me but what's going on? Why are all of you transparent?" Asked the confused shade.
"Y-you can see us?" The earth pony that Soul was talking to seemed to be shocked.
“Yeah… What does that have to do with my question?" Soul was starting to think he should have searched another mine.
"Sir… All of us are dead. We are the spirits of those who were forced to work in this mine seventeen years ago. We died of many things, abuse, heart attacks, dehydration, and starvation. We can't pass on until we have closure, until we know that the one who did this paid for their crimes." Said the earth pony’s earthbound spirit.
"What? That's terrible!… Wait a second… How am I able to see you then? You’re ghosts!" Soul asked wide eyed.
”I don't know kid but what are you doing in this mine? It’s dangerous here!" Asked the miner’s spirit.
"I’m looking for a sapphire, so I can focus my magic. I heard that if you use your birth stone as a focus then your magic has a better connection with whatever the gem is attached to." Said the young prince. He learned this from Spell Weaver, she said that the tomes the castors used had a small gem in the cover, the gem was the birthstone of the month they were created. The shade prince was going to use that information to get better as a guardian.
The teen looked at the miner as he gave a loud laugh, which he supposed that ghosts could mimic sounds very well as they don't need air to do so anymore. "Well kid you’re in luck, there are still some sapphires in the mine. Down that tunnel, but watch out, it's not normal, it's a spiritual focal point if you’re not careful then gem might steal your life force, and I know you’re a shade kid, but you’re not like the ones that kept us here in life, something about you seems different… You got this, like, calming aura around you.“ Said the spirit, nodding to the left most tunnel to indicate where the shade should look.
Soul nodded his thanks. "Thank you for the information, and the warning. I’m Tamashii Souto no Nexus, the son of Nox Void and his wife Crescent." Said the shade with a smile.
"The insane king of shadows? You’re his kid? What is concord doing?" Asked the miners’ ghost. Soul was startled, they didn't know?
‘Great!’ Soul thought with a sigh. ‘Looks like I’m going to get to practice being the bearer of bad news, guess it’s for the best, I’m gonna eventually have to do it as king.’ "You don't know? Concord accidentally absorbed my dad's insanity, became a spirit of chaos, and renamed himself Discord. My dad regrets the time of his insanity and I am sorry you had to find out like this. The most I can do now is offer my apology for what you have been through." Soul said with a sad tone.
The miner chuckled. "I don't mind Tamashii! Just hearing that there is at least one decent shade is enough to overpower my shock at what became of our leader. And thank you, you have helped us have the closure we needed.” The transparent stallion began to glow. “You have put our spirits to rest, as a thank you… I think I’ll unlock that unicorn DNA you have, just don't show your unicorn form to any other shade, not even your farther. Only those you trust may know of this ability you are about to be granted. And Tamashii, good luck, You’ll need it!" Said the miner as he tapped a hoof on Soul's chest where his heart was.
A brief glow covered Soul and he felt his body shift. He opened his eyes seeing he was now a dark blue unicorn with spiked cobalt mane and tail. He looked himself over and gasped. On his new form’s flank was a will o wisp. He had found his talent, at least his talent with pony DNA.
He went to look around, seeing all the ghosts had indeed passed on, and with that the stallion went to see the sapphire that he had come here for. The gem was about as large as an average sized stone with a ghostly blue aura. Soul took it in hoof, surprised how well he was controlling his new shape. The glow emanating from the gem spiked, and he felt an odd tingle before the aura settled, but the gem was now, somehow, large enough to fit in the diameter of his hoof. Putting it in the pocket of his pants the shade shifted back and was startled to find his mane had transferred to his true form. He now looked more humanoid with it.
Exiting the mine he headed back, while wondering how he was going to explain his new addition of hair to his folks. He just knew he was going to encounter more situations that were not going to be fun a lot of the time. The teen sighed, wondering what else he was going to go through. Then he spotted Shadow Fang and his two friends complaining about how he was 'upsetting' the status quo. Soul felt an odd tingle in the air as music started to sound out in the training ground. He went wide eyed. This was the first time something like this had happened to him. He felt his heart stir as if the song was forcing him to see it through to the end. 'This is odd it's as if this song is coming from the hearts of everyone here.' Thought Soul.
Shadow:
You can bet
There's nothin' but you and me
When I am in a zone and on a roll
But I've got a confession
And if I don't let it out I don't think I can stand it!
Shifts:
Everybody gather 'round
Shadow (spoken):
Well if tamashii is going to become a guardian I will just make sure he knows he is out of his league
Echo (spoken):
What?
Shadow (spoken):
He has been causing quite an uproar, I mean he is a prince not one of us, he should be learning how to be a king, not something like this! A guardian is supposed to protect the royal family and he is creating a contradiction with that! It just irks me.
Shifts:
Not another sound!
Shadow (spoken):
Someday I hope to make sure the prince knows his place!
Shifts:
No, no, no, nooooooooooo
No, no, no
Stick to the stuff you know
If you wanna be cool
Follow one simple rule
Don't mess with the flow, no no
Stick to the status quo
Witch:
Look at me
And what do you see
Intelligence beyond compare
But inside I am stirring
Something strange is occuring
It's a secret I need to share
Castors:
Open up, dig way down deep
Witch (spoken):
Music is what I live for sometimes I just want to let the flow of rythem guide me
Wizard (spoken):
Is that even a good idea?
Castors:
Not another peep!
Witch (spoken):
It's just music. Sometimes I think it's cooler than studying.
Castors:
No, no, no, noooooooooo
No, no, no
Stick to the stuff you know
It is better by far
To keep things as they are
Don't mess with the flow, no no
Stick to the status quo
Wing-blade:
Listen well
I'm ready to tell
About a need that I cannot deny
Dude, there's no explanation
For this awesome sensation
But I'm ready to let it fly
Wing-blades:
Speak your mind and you'll be heard
Wing-blade (spoken):
Alright, if Tamashii wants to be a guardian then I’m coming clean! I want to fight by his side!
Wing-blade 1 (spoken): awesome!
Wing-blade 2 (spoken) what is that it?
Wing-blade 3 (spoken): really!
Wing blade: Of course not! I support our prince he's got my respect for this!
Wing-blades:
Not another word
Wing-blade 2 (spoken):
Do you even have any armor for this?
Wing-blade (spoken):
Not yet but I hope so soon.
Wing-blades:
No, no, no, nooooooooooo
No, no, no
Stick to the stuff you know
If you wanna be cool
Follow one simple rule
Don't mess with the flow, no no
Stick to the status quoooooooo
Shifts, Castors, & Wing-blades:
No, no, no
Stick to the stuff you know
It is better by far
To keep things as they are
Don't mess with the flow, no no
Stick to the status quo
Hell-hound:
This is not what I want
This is not what I planned
And I just gotta say
I do not understand
Something is really
Cerberus:
Something's not right
Hell hound:
Really wrong
Hell-hound & Cerberus:
And we gotta get things
Back where they belong
We can do it
Wing-blade:
Gotta practice
Wing-blades:
Stick with what you know
Hell-hound & Cerberus:
We can do it
Witch:
Rock and roll!
Castors:
She has got to go
Hell-hound & Cerberus:
We can do it
Shadow:
Where is that little upstart!
Shifts:
Keep your voice down low
Shifts, Castors, & Wing-blades:
Not another peep
No, not another word
No, not another sound
No
Hell-Hound:
Everybody quiet!
Brave Shadow. (Spoken):
What is going on out here?
Kage (spoken):
Just a little bit of Shadow trying to get things lively around here sir...
Brave Shadow (spoken):
Is this because of prince Tamashii’s choice? Well I knew something like this might happen sooner or later. Speaking of which where is he?
Shifts and Castors:
Noooooooooooooo, no, no, no
Stick to the stuff you know
If you want to be cool
Follow one simple rule
Don't mess with the flow, oh no
Stick to the status quooooooooooooo
No, no, no
Stick to the stuff you know
It is better by far
To keep things as they are
Don't mess with the flow, no no
Stick to the status
Stick to the status
Stick to the status quo!
Soul blinked and found himself next to the witch and wing blade once the song ended. "What just happened? And where did all of you come from!? Because that was the weirdest thing I have experienced today! And it has been a really odd freakin’ day!“ Said soul wide eyed as everyone snapped their heads in his direction.
"Prince Tamashii you look a bit different. Is that hair?" Asked Brave Shadow.
"Like I said I had an odd day" Said Soul with a deadpan face.
"Huh right…" Said Brave Shadow.
"Did anyone notice that there was music playing without a source just now? I mean what possessed you all to sing like that!?" Asked Soul slowly freaking out.
"Ah I forgot about that little trait. Soul what you just experienced was what us ponies call a heart-song. Not many know what triggers it, but it has a special magic that makes ponies, and I guess shades, closer. All I know is that it activates near anypony." Said Starswirl as he walked up from where he sat reading his tome.
"Considering I have a third pony DNA it must have triggered around me..." Said Soul calming down. "Sir I’m calling it a day. I need to clear my head… This was a little overwhelming…" Said Soul heading back to his room, while scratching his head.
Brave Shadow turned to Shadow Fang. "Son. Your grounded. Don't think I heard what you said. Now go and give me ten laps around the barracks!" Said Brave before he went back to his office.
"Aw man!" groaned shadow. He sighed as he went to do his punishment.