//------------------------------// // Realization // Story: Rise of a Dragonslayer // by TheSoulBlades //------------------------------// I awoke from light shining into my eyes. The accursed sun must be shining through my window. With a groan I brought my hand over my eyes before squinting so I wasn't immediately blinded. Wait, was I in a tree? Realization struck home hard, I was dreaming when I saw that winged unicorn, and now I was awake. Meaning I couldn't have been dreaming the night’s events. I had actually become Ornstein in a world of Greek mythology… That small thought was a lot to take in on its own, but couple it with the fact I might never return, that I might never see anyone I knew before again… it was a very scary thought. I had begun hugging my legs to my chest as I sat in the branch, the side skirts of the armor hanging down the branch limply. No, there had to be a way back… right? Then came a thought, what if I like it here? No, that was foolish, I had friends back home, and here I’m dreadfully alone. Yet, I suppose I didn't know that for sure, not yet. All I’d seen was a manticore, there might be other things here. In fact, they could help me get back home! If I’m anything to go off of, this world had magic; someone must be able to help me. That encouraging thought having taken root, I dropped down from the branch, grabbing my ranseur from where it leaned against the tree. I would just have to find them, I just had to stay motivated and I’d be safe. I looked across what had been my campsite, ultimately finding nothing else I could both carry and make use of. The thought of taking the spare firewood struck me, but without my duffel bag I had no way to carry it. I set out, idly pondering how exactly I was going to approach whatever sentient creatures lived in this world. I had to make friends with something that could very well not exist. I just had to believe that I got here somehow, so it could only mean something else was here as well, I just had to find them. I didn't really know where I was going, but if I could get out of the forest I might be able to at least get an understanding of the land around me. I traveled in a single direction, east, only turning when required by something in the forest impeded my path. So long as I stuck to this single direction, I’d eventually end up outside the forest. When I came up with this plan, I severely underestimated how large this forest really was. It felt like I’d been walking for hours now, though I got the distinction that it was my impatience talking. Then I heard what sounded like a dog or a wolf growl from behind me, causing me to spin in place to find the source. “Who goes there?” I wasn't sure what I expected in answer, I had heard a growl after all, not a footstep. I didn't wait long for the reply however, as a wolf made purely out of wood jumped out at me. Shoving the shaft of my ranseur into the maw of the wolf, I was sent to the ground. Planting the blunt tip of the spear into the ground, I threw the wolf off to the side in time to discover its buddies had arrived as well. The moment the first wolf was off of me, the second dove at my legs. Displeased with the idea of having my legs mauled by a wooden wolf, I rolled back and away, quickly getting to my feet. There were three wolves in total now, not an overly worrying number, but something I didn't exactly like the prospect of having to deal with either way. They were circling me, waiting for an opening when I got an idea. Hope I have the abilities or Ornstein after Smough was defeated… I brought my lightning energy into myself then jumped into the air as the wolves dove for me, thinking they’d seen a moment weakness. When I slammed back down into the ground, I let my built up energy release in a circle around me, electrifying the three wolves and burning some of the timber they were made out of. Looking over the wooden wolves, I joked to myself that they really put the timber in timberwolves… that was horrible. I hadn't expected the fight to be over so quickly, but when you take into account that lightning burns, I suppose it makes sense. Now I've encountered two different creatures of this world. Neither of which were difficult to accommodate, though I could see how anyone without my abilities might have troubles. Perhaps they were an actual threat to the inhabitants of this world, but certainly not me. I resumed my trek through the forest; I simply had to make it out of here. It felt like it would be about lunch time when I finally saw something that didn't belong to the forest. Through the trees I saw a small hamlet, the first sign of life I’d seen all day. It was motivating, and caused me to grin underneath my helmet. What I saw in the village was most surprising however. It appeared that it was inhabited by equines, not unlike the one from my dream. They were of varying colors, but all of them looked on edge. Those that I saw wore armor, as if they were guards. It was clear to me that they were on the lookout for something that had recently left, and could be returning shortly. Was it one of those manticore creatures I had seen? I was too distant to know for sure, but it looked as if the equines were speaking amongst each other. They must be the intelligent species of this world… That was an odd thought, sentient equines for a dominant species. I heard it before I saw it, the sound of massive wings flapping. The creature’s shadow fell across me then rapidly descended upon the village. When I looked up, what I saw was a dragon. I blanched at the sight, the accursed thing was huge, and it was angry. The dragon was burning parts of the village while taunting the equines like some sort of schoolyard bully, only this bully played with death. “Watch as your attempts at defending your precious little flammable homes prove futile little ponies!” This was something I could not allow myself to simply sit by and watch. Stepping out from the trees, I charged lightning into my ranseur, positioning it above my head like a javelin. Lunging forwards, I ‘threw’ the lightning at the dragon, still holding onto the ranseur of course. It was somewhat off its mark, striking the dragon’s wing and causing it to crash down to the earth below. I had not expected to kill it, so missing my mark was only a minor problem as the dragon quickly recovered, standing up on its four massive legs. It towered above the village and I, it was amazing that equines had dared to challenge it. The dragon looked to me, fury in its eyes. “What is this? An actual challenge has come to play too? Then be my guest.” The beast took a breath; there was no doubt in my mind it intended to breathe out fire. My eyes went wide behind within the helmet, and I dove to the side in a roll, feeling the heat of the flames roll over me, but thankfully I landed outside of the actual flames. This was going to be most troublesome, but at least I knew a way to close the distance. Once more charging my ranseur with lightning, I prepared to kick off and launch myself in a charge towards the beast. It was too large to move away from the strike, and with an injured wing flight was futile. I felt the blade of my ranseur sink into the dragon’s thick scales, lightning discharging into the beast’s insides. To the dragon’s credit, it swung a talon at me rather than be stunned by the energy coursing through it. However I had anticipated such a reply, dragons were hardy creatures after all. I jumped high into the air, the talon passing underneath me. From there I spun the sharp blade of my ranseur so it faced downwards, dropping down to strike the beast’s leg as I charged my energy into the ranseur. The mighty dragon roared in anger before swinging its leg to the side, sending my ranseur and I flying into one of the buildings of the village. Smashing through the wall of the structure, I laid there for a time. The dragon apparently thought it had bested me began to boast, “Hah, so where’s your harmony now little ponies? I only see your last hope lying defeated in that house!” As it finished its boast, I began to groan as I pushed a piece of rubble off of myself. Note to self, stop getting thrown about like that, there’s far less painful ways to take a hit. Admittedly, it hurt far less than it should have, but I could feel beginning to trickle down my left arm where the armor hadn't entirely protected me, not to mention it felt as though my back had been used as a punching bag. Managing to rise from the rubble, I called out to the dragon, “Your boasting proves foolish, for I am still quite alive great dragon.” It turned to look at me just as I summoned more of my power to myself, launching a weak bolt of lightning at its face, hoping to strike one of its eyes. The bolt struck exactly as I had hoped, causing the dragon to give a mighty roar of anguish before collapsing unto its side, silent and unmoving. I had not expected that simple strike to fell such a creature, yet now it lay motionless, likely dead. Planting the blunt end of my ranseur into the ground, I leaned onto it for support. The battle had taken more out of me than I cared to admit. Some of the equines approached me while others tended to the flames. They appeared as though they were debating whether or not to run or thank me. They were shorter than me, generally standing between 5 and 6 feet tall at the highest point of their head, though that was merely a guess. They then did something I had not expected, they leveled weapons at me; perhaps they thought me a threat as well? These thoughts came slowly, my mind somewhat overwhelmed with the thought I had just slain a creature able to talk and think as would any sapient creature. “Drop your weapon and surrender thyself to us so that we might bring you before the Princesses of this land,” demanded a gruff voice, obviously the commander of these guards. Still using my ranseur for support I responded, “Why should I surrender myself to you when I just defended your meager township from that mighty dragon?” Unfazed by my statement, the guard pressed further, “Thou are an unknown in times of strife. We merely wish to bring thou to the Princesses so that they might decide what to have of you.” Surrounded as I was, and running the risk of offending the only peaceful sentient creature I had encountered so far, I straightened enough to let my ranseur fall forwards and out of my grasp. “As you say… Take me to these Princesses of yours; I can see your desire for security outweighs any other goal you may possess,” it was all I could do to listen and respond to these equines, my mind still sluggish as the realization of the fact I had just killed a sapient creature remained quite fresh. Did this make me a murderer? The guard nodded to me, seemingly satisfied as I felt a tug on my arms, something trying to pull them behind me. As I looked back to see the cause for this, I saw one of the guards clasping iron shackles to my hands, likely they normally used two sets of these, being quadra-pedal. “What is the meaning of this?” I asked in an empty tone, “I have already said I will willingly follow you.” “It is merely so that thou do not try to harm the Princesses during your visit. 'Tis as I stated before, this is a time of strife, and precautions must be made.” I gave off a weak nod, ultimately consenting to the chains. They had their reasons, and I numbly accepted them. Killing an unthinking and aggressive creature I could justify, but killing something that was sentient? It didn't matter if it was harassing these equines; it was still a thought that shook me to the core of my being. They led me through a path in the forest. I barely noticed the journey in truth, my mind only beginning to recover as the castle began to come into view. If I had been a murder, then so too was the dragon… but I didn't know that to be true, not for certain. If any of the guards had spoken, I had not noticed it. When we stepped through the gate of the castle, I was somewhat aware that those who didn’t wear armor, therefore likely being normal citizens, shied away from me after getting a look at my blood spattered armor. I had not noticed it myself until then, my mind having been more occupied with either thoughts of survival or how I had just ended the life of a sapient creature. I was lead through what was likely the castle’s courtyard. It gave off a feeling of subtle power while also appearing regal. I was slowly forcing my mind to focus on what could very well decide my fate in this world. The guards brought me before two massive doors, what I guessed to be the throne room was likely beyond. The guards stopped, someone entering into the room beyond before returning moments later, motioning for us to enter as he curtly stated, “The Princesses will see you now.” The doors were then opened, revealing a large throne room with banners depicting what were likely the symbols of these Princesses on either side. The right side held brightly colored symbols of the sun, whilst the left held darker depictions of the moon. At the far end were two thrones, where two more equines sat, both of them larger than any other I had seen so far. One had an alabaster coat with a long horn and wings at her sides. Her mane was akin to a rainbow, only it contained softer colors of teal, green, blue and pink. Finally, she wore a gold necklace and crown. The other stood to the left of the first, also bearing both wings and a horn. Her coat was darker, almost a deep blue with a mane like the night sky. She wore a necklace and crown that was deep blue, almost black. Based upon the banners, the white one was linked to the day, the other the night. They stood with their wings unfurled, likely trying to look powerful before me. It served to give the impression that displeasing them was a bad idea. The larger, alabaster… alicorn, or winged unicorn, from Greek mythos, spoke with a soft yet regal voice, “To what end to you bring this… creature before us Captain?” The gruff unicorn from earlier replied, “She bested a dragon Your Highness, as these are troubling times, I thought it best to bring her before you.” He bowed low as he finished speaking, both Princesses turning their attention to me. “Truly, are thou certain thou doth not exaggerate in thine account?” questioned the shorter, blue alicorn. The alabaster one raised a fore hoof, silencing the other. Based upon their titles, they were both female, but that simple action lead me to believe it was this one that was more powerful. “Let us hear this creature’s own account of its actions dear sister.” She spoke as if she already knew that I understood them, and could communicate in kind, while the blue one continued to look at me with an unreadable expression. Somehow, she seemed familiar to me. As it addressed me, I brought my bound hands to my helmet, pulling it off as I went to kneel before them. My long black hair fell back, now released from its confinement in the helmet. “I am Dragonslayer Revan Eckley Your Highnesses, and your captain speaks the truth. I kneel before you now at his… request.” It was clear it wasn’t really a request, my hands being bound in chains. “We see… what thou claim is fanciful at best, surely you had some form of assistance in this endeavor,” that was the lunar Princess. “I do not know what your guards accomplished before my arrival, all that I do know is they did not assist me after I arrived,” came my smooth reply as I was vaguely reminded of my earlier injury by a stab of pain shooting through my arm, causing me to wince and shift it to a position that would hopefully prove more comfortable. The lunar Princess nodded before her sister spoke, “Sister, this creature is injured and has shown itself to hold no ill towards our subjects. We hold that it be allowed to recuperate before we continue this.” This was another sign that it was the alabaster sister that held the greater amount of power as the lunar Princess merely nodded consent. Still kneeling, I looked up to the two Princesses, “Your Highnesses, I must insist that you stop referring to me as though I was but an animal brought before you.” The solar Princess looked at me skeptically, “Then what would thou prefer to be referred to as?” “I am but another sentient being in this world, refer to me as either the knight that I am, or as you would any of your subjects.” I bowed my head once more as I finished, knowing that this show of respect might just help my case, both now, and later on. “As you wish Knight Revan,” consented the solar Princess, “Guards, see to it our guest gets medical aid as needed for her injuries.” If I had to guess, the Princess was only guessing at my gender based upon my voice. Two of the guards nearest to me saluted as I began to stand back up, my helmet still held in my hands. “And guards? She is to be treated as a guest, not a prisoner,” commented the solar Princess. They seemed to understand what she meant as I saw the chains around my wrists glow the color one of their horns did before unclasping. Levitation, so that’s how they were able to do things. As I was lead through the halls of this castle, I thought back upon my growing list of impossible creatures I had encountered so far. Pegasi, unicorns, dragons, and alicorns were the newest additions, and something told me I wasn’t anywhere close to finished. Perhaps it was time I stopped trying to think by the standards I had grown accustomed to.