The tale of Aeros: Part 2.
‘Today I celebrate my 16th birthday. I have travelled all over Equestria since I left Manehattan two years ago. I have seen pretty much everything there is to see now and even visited the crash site of my parents. When I gazed upon the wreckage that still isn’t cleaned up I cried. I sat there for hours crying until my eyes hurt and were out of tears to spare, but it gave me a sense of closure. I feel like a new pony now and a new beginning lays ahead for me in the town I decided to settle down. Ponyville it’s called if I recall correctly.’
Aeros bought himself a small house at the edge of town. But with the money he had stored at the bank of Equestria he managed to live as he wanted. Once arrived at Ponyville he got warmly welcomed by every pony. But he barely had the urge of connecting or talking to any pony. He rather stayed in his home, or went to an open field practicing moves with his sword. Making every move he develops or knows perfect in execution. It didn’t take long for some other ponies to find out and soon Aeros found himself surrounded by curious ponies. Eager to learn what Aeros knew.
Next day Aeros went back to Manehattan. After being away for 2 years he was warmly welcomed by Kyle once he arrived at the swordfighter’s school. Aeros smiled as he found the school still flourished and ponies rich and poor were practicing next to each other. The clearly visible differences seemed to fade once they entered. Kyle dismissed his students for a while and walked up to Aeros. He didn’t say a word, but a small tear of joy emerged from his eye as he smiled. He then hugged Aeros. ‘Boy, did I miss you my friend.’ He sobbed. ‘I missed you too master,’ Aeros replied.
Aeros told his master everything he could tell him about his 2 year journey through all of Equestria. What he had witnessed, heard, felt, smelled and tasted. Hours later when the sun went down and darkness started to fall Aeros got to the point that ponies in Ponyville, where he decided to live from now on were interested in sword fighting. But he needed some swords for it. Kyle smiled broadly and soon Aeros found his saddlebags filled with wooden practice swords within no time. ‘don’t worry about my supplies. I can get more then I can carry in the guild within the blink of an eye. Good luck with teaching the ponies in Ponyville.’
‘Who would have thought that ponies in other towns were so enthusiastic about the way of the blade. I knew that Manehattan was famous for the swordfighters it delivered. But I also heard that other towns weren’t very interested. Now I can teach every pony about the way of the blade. I’m certain my dad, even though he didn’t like it a first now smiles down upon me with pride from wherever he might be.’
He slept in the bed he slept in for several months after the passing of his parents. It felt familiar and good to be back in Manehattan even though he started a new life in Ponyville. The next day he got up early and found Kyle already awake. ‘I must be going now, a new legacy awaits.’ Kyle smiled and then said: ‘I wish you the best of luck and I hope to hear from you soon.’ Aeros nodded and smiled, ad he headed back towards Ponyville with his saddlebags bulking with practice swords.
When he got back to Ponyville he got his sword and went back to the field where he trained and just started. He tried a new move which he thought of on his way back to Ponyville. When he executed the move at first it went clumsy, soon he found himself eating grass as he lost his balance. He persisted and soon he managed to execute the move flawlessly, almost as if he never did something else. Again some ponies curiously gathered on the field to see Aeros showing his moves. ‘I heard you would like to learn something?’ Aeros asked suddenly after doing several other moves. The ponies then nodded and smiled enthusiastic as Aeros pointed them to his saddlebags packed with practice swords.
‘these ponies seem so eager to learn. I hope I can teach them with the same grace as Kyle did. The student becomes the master he said more than often. I personally never believed him for he always managed to make me kiss the floor. Or before I knew it his sword was mere centimeters away from my neck. I never thought I would be capable of teaching other ponies the way of the blade. Now here I stand with about a dozen ponies eager to learn.’
‘We’ll start off easy. Don’t expect making moves like I did just a few minutes ago after today. These take years of practice to get to.’ Aeros then preforms a Basic move, one of the first he learned. Even with this simple move the ponies gazed upon him with awe. ‘now I want you to do the exact same move I just made, make sure you’ve got enough space so you don’t hurt any pony else.’ He then executes the maneuver several more times at different speeds to show every pony how to correctly execute it.
As weeks passed Aeros’ lessons grew swiftly in popularity. And he soon got overwhelmed with the amount of lessons he had to give. There was only 1 reason he kept on going on and that was a certain mare, about a year younger than him. He noticed her during the training, drowning in her eyes he sometimes just stared for several minutes without averting his eyes. Other students quickly noticed Aeros staring at the mare and giggled loudly each time they caught him. She however only blushed and smiled to Aeros.
‘what causes me to stare at her like that? Her beauty stuns me and she looks so graceful as well with and without her blade. The other students laugh as they catch me staring but I don’t care. When I see her smile and blush a little my heart makes a flutter. I don’t know what is happening to me, but somehow I like it.’
‘Okay every pony. We are going to practice dueling now, form couples and then stand opposed to each other,’ Aeros shouted to his students loud enough every pony could hear him clearly. Every pony matched up except for one mare who happened to be the mare Aeros likes so much. He walked up to her and said: ‘You’ll duel me then. Don’t worry I won’t hurt you.’ The other students laughed and whispered as Aeros and her had to pair up. ‘I’m sorry, but I have never asked you what your name is,’ he said. ‘My name is Nimeta Sunriser,’ She said while she took a battle stance against Aeros, showing no fear. ‘I see you have the guts to be a swords master, I’ll go easy on you,’ he smiled.
On Aeros’ sign the couples started their duel, including Nimeta and Aeros himself. The fighting style of Nimeta resembled much of Aeros’ style. Agile, graceful and using every feature of the terrain to her advantage. In combat Aeros needed to put in some effort in order to fend her swift and accurate strikes off. ‘So, besides your beauty you’ve got quite the moves,’ Aeros says. Once he realizes he confessed that he thinks she is beautiful he turns bright red. She only smiles but says nothing before adapting her battle stance to train some more.
The training ended and Aeros resided to the side of the field, accumulating all practice swords. Every pony handed in their wooden sword except for Nimeta, still practicing some of the moves she learned in today’s training. Aeros walked up to Nimeta in a way she couldn’t see him coming when he suddenly said: ‘To optimize that movement you better do it like this.’ He then grabbed his real sword and gracefully executed the complicated maneuver. Nimeta gazed upon his movements and his exquisite sword. She then tried to imitate his movements but initially failed. Aeros patiently waited for her to practice and did the maneuver a couple of times himself.
Several minutes of tumbling and struggling later Nimeta managed to full the movement off flawlessly. She then sat down next to Aeros who already sat down in the grass. ‘So… Do you really think I’m beautiful?’ She asked with a bit of a high pitch voice betraying alight nervousness. ‘Ehhm… I do actually,’ Aeros said since there was no point in denying. ‘Somehow you give me a certain feeling, a special feeling I thought I could never have.’ He said. Nimeta then looked up and smiled while she blushed a little. Without saying another word she hugged him and walked away.
‘Man, why didn’t she say anything. Anything would have been better than nothing. How can I answer the questions I have now? What did the hug mean? How does she think about me? How is it even possible that she can make me feel like this? Never I had to face such a problem. These are the times I miss my dad the most. Even though we had our differences he always handed me some good advice.
Next day Aeros went to the field a bit tired for he had a horrible night of sleep. Today he wouldn’t see the mare that makes his heart beat faster. A group of Foals awaited him for the training on what is now known as ‘The swords masters’ lawn.’ They frolicked around Aeros as he dragged his heavy saddle bags stocked with the practice swords along. ‘Easy there kids, we will start soon enough,’ he said with a smile.
He put the foals into a formation which left enough distance between each of them so they would not accidently hit each other while practicing. Then he noticed some pony entering the field. It wasn’t just any pony. It was Nimeta. His heartbeat accelerated as he gazed upon her and he fell completely silent for a moment. The little foals, naïve as they are even noticed the smitten Aeros gazing upon Nimeta.
‘Hi Aeros, I thought maybe I could help you with the training today and get some more practice once you finish up here?’ Nimeta suggested. Aeros smiled in relief and said: ‘I’d be honored if you would help me. You are very talented and way ahead in skill of any pony else here in Ponyville.’ Aeros said. He then addressed the foals: ‘today Nimeta will train you. She is a very talented and very kind pony. So be nice for her.’ The foals giggled a bit and Aeros sat down and watched as Nimeta took over his class.
‘wow. She is beautiful, she is graceful and a very talented sword fighter. She is even willing to relief me from these foals and train them. I trust her completely for she masters the basic techniques completely. I can’t believe ponies like her exist.’
After the training Nimeta sat down next to Aeros as the foals went home with their parents. Aeros looked into her eyes and blushed a bit. ‘You have no idea what a relief it was you taking over today. I didn’t have a free day in months,’ he said. Nimeta just smiled and laid down in the grass. Aeros soon followed her example and het boldly laid his hoof on hers. She blushed a bit but remained silent. Together they remained there laying down for an unknown amount of time, watching the sun set as time passed by. Once the sky turned bright orange and the clouds looked like blazing fires Aeros broke the silence: ‘This might be the best thing I’ve done since my arrival here in Ponyville.’ Nimeta got up and looked Aeros straight into his bright yellow eyes. She saw the sparkle in his eyes and smiled. ‘I would love to get to know you better. Tell me something about yourself Aeros Dawnstar.’ She said.
‘Oh my gosh. She wants to know my story. What do I tell her? Should I just tell her the true and entire story? It isn’t a pretty story I think. (…) what do I have to lose? It’s better to be honest then to tell het something that isn’t true. I hope she isn’t too shocked for what I will tell her.’
Aeros told her the entire story from when he was only 10 years old until his arrival in Ponyville. Nimeta sobbed a bit and a tear rolled over her cheek. ‘You are so young and yet so much has happened in your life. I’m so sorry for you Aeros,’ She sobbed. ‘If it wasn’t for the unfortunate events happening, the most fortunate of events wouldn’t have happened,’ he said in a comforting voice while he smiled towards Nimeta. Nimeta’s sad face changed into a smile and she then hugged Aeros without saying another word.
The sun now set completely and the moon rose. It became progressively darker at the field where they resided. ‘I think I should go home now,’ Nimeta said. Aeros just nodded and then stood up. ‘I hope to see you again soon,’ he said. Aeros then grabbed his saddlebags filled with the wooden practice swords and headed home. Upon arrival at his small home he sat down and grabbed a bottle of cider. His mind constantly drifted off towards Nimeta, the mare his heart now desires. The mare he wants to love.
Nimeta now trained the foal class on her own which gave Aeros one free day a week. At first he utilized the time to just hang around at his home and just slack off for one day. Until one day he decided to walk into the Everfree forests. He went deep into the forest far off any paths that ran through the forest as if they were veins. In the dense growth he gazed upon the dozens of different kinds of plants. Amazed by the beauty of nature he found a tranquil place. A place just for himself where he could come to rest and where he could escape the hassle of Ponyville. This was the only place he was capable of keeping a clear mind.
‘This one free day a week is a delight. Now I can finally get my head clear. It’s not that I don’t like thinking about Nimeta, but my head sometimes starts spinning with all the stuff I have to do. Still I have to train 6 other groups of ponies. But Nimeta stays my number one and nothing will change that. Maybe I should go check on her how she did with the foals today.’
Aeros trotted from the edge of the forest to the field and then watched from some distance how Nimeta handled the little foals. Kindness radiated from het to the foals and they frolicked happily around as she trained them. Playfully she thought them the basic techniques and patiently she waited for the foals to master them. Aeros walked closer so Nimeta could see him. Once she noticed him she smiled a bit but quickly focused on the foals again. Aeros then walked up to Nimeta and said: ‘hey kids, how would you like to see a duel between me and Nimeta.’
The foals cheered loudly and were eager to see the 2 ponies duel. Aeros got himself in his gear and wielded a practice sword and stood opposed of Nimeta. ‘Now, we show these foals how the big ponies duel,’ he said. Nimeta nodded determined and immediately took the initiative executing several complicated movements landing a strike on Aeros’ protective clothing. Aeros on his turn then lunged towards Nimeta and with ease he landed the tip of his blade on her chest. Laughing then walked up to each other and hugged before dismissing the class.
‘I must thank you that you took this class over from me. I went for a little walk through the forest this afternoon and it felt great,’ he said. Nimeta smiled: ‘it’s my pleasure. I love these foals. They are so playful.’ She then danced around Aeros in a bit of a taunting way. ‘I did manage to hit you.’ Aeros laughed and engaged in the dance too, circling around each other their eyes never lost each other for a second. They then got closer and kissed.
‘3 months ago on this exact day Nimeta and I first kissed. I don’t exactly know why or how but I say fireworks. We have been together now for the last months and growing ever closer. Sharing our passion in the way of the blade and teaching other. But I also feel drawn to the forest. I’ve been spending quite some time there lately exploring everything it has to offer. I found an open space with a small shack built in the middle. I’m busy fixing it and I think I’m going to use it as my personal spot to go to when everything is getting too much for me.’
Aeros found himself in the shack once again. The place he has been spending progressively more time since he discovered it. The shack now was fully repaired after days of hard work. Aeros abandoned some of his classes, simply not showing up at all leaving a lot of ponies disappointed. Nimeta took over some of his classes but couldn’t manage to teach all classes since her experience with the art of sword fighting was only limited after the five or six months of training.
Night fell and Aeros noticed he was still in the shack he had fixed in the middle of the Everfree forests. He laid down on a couch he dragged towards the shack through the dense forest and almost fell asleep. Even though there were no ponies or any other beings except for the normal woodland creatures Aeros heard a vague voice. He looked anxiously around in order to try to find the source, but the voice seemed to come from every direction. He couldn’t hear what it said but Aeros got a strange feeling from it. ‘Who is there,’ he shouted. He remained perfectly still and silent for several seconds awaiting an answer, but the voice just kept on going undisturbed as if it ignored Aeros’ shout.
The night took long and not much sleep was granted for Aeros. For the entire duration of the night it haunted him. Leaving him not a single second of rest. ‘What do you want from me, who are you, show yourself!,’ he shouted. But again there was no response from the constant whispers. Frightfully he stayed in the shack, wide await waiting for a ray of sun to rescue him from the haunting whispers.
‘What is going on? Please, some pony help me. What is this voice haunting me? it isn’t even responding to what I say. How can this even be possible? There isn’t any pony anywhere near this small house. Oh gosh. What if it is a ghost? The previous owner of this shack?’
At the first crack of dawn the sleep deprived Aeros ran through the dense forest back to Ponyville. Accompanied by sunrays beaming through the leaves made viable by the thin layer of mist left from the night and the singing of the birds Aeros calmed down a little once he arrived at his house. Out of breath he panted and opened to door to find Nimeta sitting on the couch awaiting his arrival. ‘where have you been? For days I was looking for you around town. I was worried sick something happened to you,’ she then paused for a few seconds and took a good look on Aeros. ‘As I was saying. Something bad did happen. Didn’t it?’ she carried on. ‘You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,’ he said and looked at Nimeta with a serious face. A single tear of desperation rolled over Nimeta’s cheek and she shouted: ‘why wouldn’t I believe you? I trust you my dear!’ Aeros sighed deeply and sat down on the couch next to Nimeta.
For the first time Aeros confessed he found himself overwhelmed by the immense popularity of the sword fighting classes he had to give. And that after half a year he needed some time off badly so he went into the forests to seek tranquility and rest. He explained the shack he found and fixed deep in the forest and the whispering voiced that haunted him the entire night. ‘I feel so stressed out my mind starts playing tricks on me, even when I’m at the most peaceful place I’ve ever been.’ He sobs. Nimeta looked at him with a forgiving look in her eyes. ‘Why didn’t you say something before, I could have helped you and relieved you of some of your classes. I am capable of teaching the beginners and the foals.’ She says. Aeros smiled for the kind offer Nimeta did. ‘I couldn’t ask you that. How would I repay you for it?’ he asked. ‘I don’t need a payment for it. I enjoy doing it and I learn a lot from it. You give every pony something beautiful and you don’t ask a single bit for it,’ she says. Aeros smiled sincere towards Nimeta and hugged her.
‘I think it was just my mind playing tricks on me. I spent 3 straight days in the forest with very little sleep. It was just an illusion. It must have been an illusion. I’m not losing my sanity? Am I? Fortunately Nimeta helps me with the classes and I got some more free time. I think I’ll go back to that small house in the forest. The tranquility I felt there was beyond anything I have felt before. How can it make me feel so good if it is a bad place?’
Nimeta walked to the field as she left from Aeros’ place after they spent the afternoon together. As soon as Nimeta was out of sight Aeros walked out and went straight to the house in the open field. Once he arrived he found the house in the same shape as he left it. He entered it but the voice he was hearing earlier was absent now. ‘Like I thought, just my mind playing tricks on me,’ he thought.
Aeros meditated in the middle of the room, enjoying the tweeting of the birds along with the rustling of the leaves from the surrounding trees dancing in the wind. For about an hour he sat there when the first feint sounds of whispering appeared again. He opened his eyes and looked around while his heartbeat and anxiety increased. He tried to concentrate to understand the incoherent whispers yet he was unsuccessful in his attempts. Long minutes crept by as Aeros sat there in complete silence without moving only accompanied by the whispering sounds. The birds had stopped singing once the whispers started and a shiver went down Aeros’ spine.
He still sat there in an attempt to hear what the whispers told and after a while he could hear the sentence: ‘five… drops… of… blood…’ which kept repeating every 10 seconds. Aeros shivered a bit for the grim image coming to his mind. ‘five drops of blood? What sense does that make? More importantly, should I listen to this entity?’ he thought in an attempt to figure out what it means. ‘five… drops… of… blood (…) each… time… you… enter… this… house.’ The whisper spoke and seconds later a loud screech was heard saying: ‘MY HOUSE!’ Now Aeros’ fear was complete. The earsplitting screech still resonating through the small room he stood up and went back to his house in Ponyville. Nimeta was waiting for him when he arrived home. He did not tell Nimeta what happened in the forest today.
‘That was one of the most scary thing I have experienced in my life. No sorry, let me rephrase that. It was the most scary thing I have experienced in my entire life. Yet even though this experience was frightening I still feel compelled to go back to that place. What in Equestria’s name is wrong with me? I sure hope Nimeta doesn’t find out about this. Or I’ll find myself at the pony psychiatrist sooner than a blink of an eye.
Today Aeros had to teach the most experienced group. The most talented of sword fighters in all of Ponyville. Nimeta was amongst them and stood proudly against her duel opponent with the sword she wielded risen high above her head. Once she engaged in the duel she resembled an almost exact copy of Aeros’ fighting style. Purely based on the agility one can achieve and the overwhelming speed to dazzle your opponents. Aeros enjoyed watching Nimeta fight and sat in the field observing her with a big smile on his face. Once she was done and her completely decimated opponent was struggling to get up she walked up to Aeros and laughed: ‘You trained me well, Master Aeros.’ Aeros couldn’t help but laughing then he heard her calling him master. ‘You are my prize student Nimeta Sunriser. You have great potential of becoming an even greater sword fighter then I am,’ he said.
‘What if Nimeta becomes a better sword fighter then me? I would be humiliated in from of every pony and worst of all, I fail to fulfill the promise I made to my father. To be the best sword fighter in all of Equestria. I just have to train more. Or should I go to the forest to that nice house in the middle of the open field. (…) Snap out of it man, that place is horrible! How can you even think of going there again. Sorry for that, I don’t know what is happening to me but I feel some changes and I don’t know if they are for the better.’
Nimeta left later that night to sleep at her own house and so she left Aeros alone in the house. He sat down in a comfortable chair and let his thoughts roam free. His thoughts soon went to the little house in the forest and soon enough he felt the urge to go back there even though the frightening whispers he is hearing all the time when he is there. As he remembered the whispers telling him of the 5 drops of blood he took a knife from a drawer and then made his way to the shack.
Upon arrival he found a small circle with strange symbols engraved in the front step of his door. ‘5… drops… of… blood…’ resonated through Aeros’ head as he stood in front of the door. He got the knife from the saddlebag and carefully made a small cut in his left hoof causing several droplets of blood to hit the strangely engraved circle on the ground. At the moment the droplets landed they vanished as if they simply dissolved into thin air. ‘yessss. That taste… so pure,’ the mysterious presence whispered. Aeros made a little jump when he heard the whisper again, but somehow got more comfortable with it as he now felt connected to the presence.
When Aeros entered the house he noticed a half transparent pony standing in the exact middle of the room. ‘Welcome to my sanctuary,’ it spoke with the whispering voice Aeros had heard in the past days. He looked puzzled towards the image. ‘Who are you,’ he asked. ‘I am the Guardian spirit of the forest, and many other forests too,’ the spirit spoke still in the eerie whispering tone. ‘The guardian spirit?’ Aeros asked surprised. ‘Yessss… I reign over these forests and every being that lives here,’