//------------------------------// // Chapter 6: First Night In // Story: BlackWarGreymon: Warrior of Harmony // by I-C-U-P //------------------------------// Twilight and BlackWarGreymon were both quiet for a while as they walked to the purple Alicorns’ castle, they were both deep in their thoughts. Ever since Twilight informed the Digimon about the rulers of Equestria, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, BlackWarGreymon felt a tad worried about if they meet for the first time. What if the princesses feared him? What if they like him? What would they think of him? What if they reject and banish him, or worse, try to fight him? All these questions and many more were coursing through his mind like speeding traffic on a motor way. All he could do was hope for the best when that day comes. Although Twilight had similar thoughts at first, now her mind was on a different subject. Especially how Spike’s going to react to the Digimon, she wouldn’t hear the end of it. But most of her thought patterns revolve around the one thing that BlackWarGreymon was not telling her, and that’s the events of how he arrived in Equestria in the first place. She really wanted to know, but from his previous reactions on the subject and how Fluttershy got very concerned meant that whatever happened to him, it was something that he wanted to forever forget. So she decided against bringing it up again. When they arrived at the castle, the pair noticed that the front door was large enough for BlackWarGreymon to pass through. Opening the doors, the two entered the main hall. The Digimon had a look of astonishment on his face. “Wow…this is one big hall.” “Yeah, but I think every room here is too big,” Twilight admitted, remembering the days when she used to live in the Golden Oak Library, before it was destroyed by a certain horned centaur. Then the pair heard a voice, echoing in the distance. “Hey Twilight, is that you I hear?” BlackWarGreymon looked surprised at hearing the new voice, but Twilight smiled, knowing full well who it was. “Yes Spike it’s me,” She called out. Then little footsteps were heard approaching them. As it got a little louder, BlackWarGreymon turned to Twilight. “Spike?” “Oh, he’s my assistant. A long while ago it was me who hatched him from an egg.” “Oh,” He said, before his eyes widened when he realised that to him, what Twilight said made no sense. “Wait, what do you mean by ‘hatched him’?” To prevent any more confusion, Twilight just went out with it. “Well you see, Spike’s a dragon.” “Oh, that explains it.” He said, knowing that dragons were reptiles, and they were all known to hatch from eggs. Not a moment too soon, Spike appeared around the corner. With a rather worried look on his face. “Oh Twilight, you ok? I’ve heard some strong rumbling in the Everfree. Are you and the others hurt? Did something bad happen? And if not, how was the clearing and…” His rambling of questions was cut off when the image of a tall scary looking stranger standing next to Twilight caught his vision. His eyes went wide with fear. “...what is that thing!?” BlackWarGreymon was starting to get annoyed at being called ‘thing’ all the time. “It’s ok Spike, he’s a friend. His name is BlackWarGreymon and he’s from another world,” Twilight explained, but since this didn’t help the young dragons’ nerves, he fainted from shock. The Digimon took the time to analyze the small dragon. He had purple scales with a single row of green spikes going from the top of his head, along his back and ending at the tail, with the tail possessing an arrow shaped tip. His height was roughly similar to the Cutie Mark Crusaders and from hearing his voice, he was no more than a few years old. Twilight looked at BlackWarGreymon with a nervous grin on her face. “Uhh, sorry about that. He’s never normally like this.” “It’s ok, Twilight. I’m used to it,” He admitted, knowing that his appearance alone can strike fear into many. Even Ultimate level Digimon were afraid or intimidated by him. Upon hearing that sentence alone made Twilight grow a sad expression on her face, for she understood what the Artificial Digimon meant. “It’s ok, soon nopony will fear you, and they will see you as a friend. I’m sure of it,” She said, her sentence somewhat lifted BlackWarGreymons’ spirit up a little. But it was enough. “Thank you, Twilight. You know, you’re the first to show this kind of hospitality to me. You’re a true friend.” The purple Alicorn blushed at hearing the Digimons’ words. He was right, she helped him gain understanding of her world, calmed down the citizens when she and her friends were showing him around Ponyville, introduced him to some of her other friends and even let him stay in her castle. Signs of one friend helping another. Signs of true friendship. “Thank you. Rarity was right, you are a sweet talker,” She said, clearly touched at BlackWarGreymons’ hind and honest words. Now knowing that he had fully gained Twilight’s trust, BlackWarGreymon asked her something he had on his mind for some time. “Twilight, I like to know more about this world and its history. Do you have some sort of archive of information about it?” Twilight’s face brightened at hearing this, part of her a bit surprised that he wants to know more. “Yes. I have a library full of books about everything you need to know. About our culture, our society, our history, you name it,” She said while clearly excited to take him to her favorite room in the castle. Using her magic, she lifted the unconscious Spike on her back and looked back at the Digimon. “Follow me,” She said before heading off with BlackWarGreymon following behind. After some time, they passed by many rooms and hallways. The throne room was the one that got BlackWarGreymon’s attention the most. He saw a large blue crystal round table with what looked like a map on it. He also noticed six thrones around the table and each one had its own symbol on the top. He realised that the symbols looked identical to the Mane Six’s cutiemarks. Later, they arrived at the library. The sheer number of books alone made the Digimon froze in place, never before he had seen so many books in one room. “Well, here we are,” Twilight said as she looked at BlackWarGreymon, seeing his expression made her chuckle with laughter. “You own all these books?” BlackWarGreymon asked, he originally thought that the library wouldn’t hold as many books as this. “Yeah, I’m really into books,” She admitted, hoping that the Digimon wouldn’t think of her as an ‘egghead’, a nickname Rainbow Dash gave her. “Into it? You’ve got enough books to fill fifteen Control Spires,” He said with the comparison of the books and the Control Spires in his head. “So, am I free to pick out a book?” He asked. “Sure. The ones about history is the fifth shelf on the right,” Twilight said before realizing something. “And, would it be ok if you took those off?” She asked while pointing her hoof at BlackWarGreymons’ gauntlets. The Digimon looked at his Dramon Destroyers and realised she had a point. Not only he would find it difficult to turn a page, but he could cause damage to Twilights’ books. He can’t have that, so it’s off with them. He then proceeded to raise both his arms with the claws pointing downwards. Before he could carry on, Twilight immediately stopped him. “WAIT!!” This made BlackWarGreymon pause as he looked at the Alicorn in confusion. “Can you take them off without impaling them to the floor?” She asked him in a rather serious tone. “Oh.” He then laid his wrists flat on the ground and slipped his arms out of his Dramon Destroyers. “Sorry, I never normally take them off,” He said as he walked past Twilight and towards his destination. As he walked away, Twilight figured out why he never takes his gauntlets off for a number of reasons. Firstly, he practically had to fight seemly all his life and had to be prepared for anything. Secondly, his armour looked incomplete without them. Finally, his gauntlets suited him well and it made him look cool, intimidating and badass all at the same time. Once he’s gone, Twilight went through a stack of books on her desk and picked out ‘Origins of Equestria’. She knew that BlackWarGreymon would be interested in this book since it tells the beginning. Afterwards, Spike began to wake up and when he rolled over, he fell off Twilight’s back. “Oh Spike, sorry I forgot you were still on my back,” She said with a cheeky smile to the weary dragon. Spike then rubbed his head to ease the bump on his head. “Oh Twilight, I had a most weird dream. You were by the front door, standing next to a scary black dragon,” Spike explained, thinking that what happened before was just a dream. Twilight however only gave him a look of amusement. “That’s not a dream, Spike. What you saw was real.” Spike only smiled at her, not taking what she said seriously. “Pfft, yeah right.” He would soon eat his own words, because he then heard loud footsteps approaching. He then turned his head to see the very thing that made him faint earlier. As BlackWarGreymon approached the pair, Twilight saw that he was holding some books in his hands. “I think these would be enough,” He said before noticing that Spike was now awake. The two just stared before the Digimon broke the silence. “So you’re Spike?” Spike flinched when BlackWarGreymon spoke to him, due to his normal voice sounding a little frightening to the young dragon. Despite this, Spike summoned enough courage to respond. “Uhh…yes?” BlackWarGreymon tried to talk back as nicely as possible. “Nice to meet you Spike. Twilight told me about you.” He then noticed Twilight walking away. “I’m just going to get more books for you,” She said before setting off, leaving BlackWarGreymon with Spike. The Digimon looked around and found a large table and a sofa big enough for him to sit down. As he went there to put the books down, Spike slowly approached him. “So…Twilight said that…you’re a dragon from another world?” He asked in a nervous tone, hoping that he didn't made the guest mad by disturbing him. BlackWarGreymon stopped what he was doing and turned his head to the side so one of his eyes was looking at Spike. “I’m not a dragon, I’m a Digimon. And yes, I am from another world,” He said while clearly seeing the fear on the little dragon’s face. He had to reassure him. “There’s no need to fear me, I will not harm you or your friends. For they are my friends too.” This seemed to have worked, Spike was calming down and walking closer to him. “I didn’t catch your name,” Spike said, remembering that earlier he didn’t hear what Twilight was saying. “I’m BlackWarGreymon.” “Whoa, cool name.” While this was going on, Twilight arrived with more books for BlackWarGreymon. Using her magic, she placed them on the table. “There. Is that all or do you want me to fetch some more?” She asked. BlackWarGreymon was surprised by the amount of books Twilight gave him. It would take him all day to read the lot alone, and she still has more. “I think this is enough,” He said, not wanting anymore books. It was at this moment that Twilight noticed that Spike was no longer afraid. “I see that you’re getting along well, Spike.” “Yeah, he’s actually a cool guy,” He said while turning his head to look at the Digimon. “Thanks for the complement,” BlackWarGreymon said as he sat down on the large sofa while holding a book. Twilight then looked out of her window and realised that it was night time, and started to yawn. “Well, I guess we should leave you to it. Me and Spike are heading off to bed.” She said while lifting Spike on her back, with the little dragon yawning as well. “Ok, see you in the morning,” BlackWarGreymon said as he watched Twilight and Spike leave the library. Once they got to their bedroom, Twilight woke Spike up from his little nap on her back. “Spike, wake up.” “Uhh, what is it Twilight?” “I need you to write a letter.” …………………………………………………………………………………………......................... Hours had passed. Twilight and Spike were fast asleep in their beds, and BlackWarGreymon was still reading in the library. Being a Mega level Digimon meant that he requires very little sleep, due to the unbelievable power dwelling within him. The last time he needed to sleep was after that whole battle over the last Destiny Stone. But right now he’s still wide awake as he would be in the day. In the course of the past few hours, he read ‘Origins of Equestria’, ‘Equestria’s Animals and Monsters A to Z’, ‘Pony Culture’, ‘Arts of Magic’ and the book he just finished, ‘History of the Crystal Empire’. “Huh, it seems Tirek isn’t the only evil being in this world,” BlackWarGreymon said to himself, now that he has read about the former ruler of the empire, King Sombra. Before he picked up the next book, ‘Reign of Discord’, he decided that he read enough history for one day, and would like to read something else. ‘I wonder if she has any fictional books.’ With that in mind, he got up from the sofa and headed off towards a maze of shelves and towers of books. After a minute or two, he found a single self that was labeled ‘Fiction’. But the state of the shelf and the books themselves were dustier than all the others he had seen. “Guess she doesn’t like fiction that much.” After examining the self’s contents, he then brought his attention to a book that has more dust than any other book on the shelf. “Seems she hadn’t read this one in a while.” After picking the book from its shelf, he wiped away the dust to discover that the book was a tan brown in colour and it had no title. All what’s on the cover was a large square with four smaller squares in the middle. Two of these squares had a strange pattern in them which were identical, while the other two had an identical pair of their own. The book itself also seemed a bit withered and torn near the edges, due to aging. ‘Hmm, this could possibly be Twilight’s very first book.’ Now that he’s chosen a book to read, he went back to the sofa, sat down, leaned back and put his feet on the table in a relaxed pose. Now that he was comfortable, he opened the book to its first pages. On one page was a small diamond symbol and on the other, was a picture drawing of an Alicorn princess, complete with her crown, her royal horse shoes and her regalia around her neck. BlackWarGreymon began to read the short text that was with the picture. “Once upon a time, there was a lovely princess.” He then turned the page to see a similar layout, but this time the picture of the Alicorn had a dark aura around her. “But she had an enchantment upon her of a fearful sort. Which could only be broken by love’s first kiss.” Again, same thing when he turned the page, but now had a picture of a red dragon lurking around a tower. “She was locked away in a castle, guarded by a terrible fire breathing dragon.” Again he turned the page, now with a picture of pony stallions in armour throwing spears at the dragon. “Many brave knights had attempted to free her from this dreadful prison. But none prevailed.” Same thing again when he turned the page to the next. “She waited in the dragon’s keep, in the highest room of the tallest tower, for her true love, and true love’s first kiss.” After reading the text, BlackWarGreymon just stopped. His vision and mind were fixed on the picture next to the text. The image showed the Alicorn princess, who had a golden glow around her meaning that she was cured from her enchantment, kissing her knight on the lips with their eyes shut. The picture also showed a love heart symbol surrounding the pair from the background. BlackWarGreymon was now lost in his thoughts. To him, this image symbolizes responsibility, devotion, and love…true love. The Artificial Digimon’s self-conscious was telling him that this could possibly be one of the few things he needs to be truly happy. To spend his life with someone special. Someone he would not only care greatly for, but to risk his own life to protect the life of someone he cares more than himself. However after a split second, his expression saddened. If it were even possible, who in the world would ever fall in love with the likes of him? Back in the Digital World, back in his past life, he was mean, ruthless, merciless and was once described heartless. He even once suggested that he would throw his heart away, and only to replace it with malice, hatred, fury, rage and constant battles. And the worst of it, he would not hesitate to lash it all out on the innocent, bringing them nothing but fear, pain, misery, harm, destruction or worse…death. He was a creature…no, a product built for war. Even though he was given a new life, a second chance to redeem himself, it didn’t mean that his past wouldn’t come back to haunt him. Without him saying anything, a single tear escaped his left eye. For the first time in his life, he felt alone. ………………………………………………………………………………………….......................... Canterlot Castle, few hours earlier. Princess Luna had just finished raising the moon and was now on her way back to the throne room. The news of Tirek’s escape was getting to her, to the point where she personally assembled her finest guards to tackle the situation, with Princess Celestia’s approval of course. When she arrived, Luna noticed that her big sister was no longer feeling uneasy. In fact, she looked calm as she got up from her throne and making her way towards Luna. “Sister, my guards have finally been assembled and are ready for your inspection,” Luna said on a solder like tone, but Celestia just smiled at her when she spoke back. “It’s ok Luna, there’s no need anymore.” As she walked past, Luna had a look of disbelief on her face. After trying and failing to puzzle together what was going on, she caught up with the white Alicorn and walked beside her. “Sister?” Seeing the confusion on Luna’s face, Celestia explained. “I just got news from the warden in Tartarus, he said that Tirek is back in his cell.” Luna had a look of relief on her face. “Thank goodness for that. But how was he defeated? Was it Princess Twilight’s doing?” Celestia’s expression fell from calm to worry and concern. “I’m afraid not. After interrogation, we found out that he was beaten in a fight against a creature…not of this world.” Hearing those last four words struck fear on the blue Alicorn’s face. After a moment of silence, she spoke up. “Sister, could this creature, be the cause of the disturbance we’ve felt earlier today?” “It seems like it, my dear sister.” Then out of nowhere, green flames appeared in front of the Royal Sisters and then transformed into a scroll with Twilight’s seal on it. “A letter from Twilight?” Luna asked. Celestia only nodded as he used her magic to pick up and opened the scroll. Then proceeded to read it. Dear Princess Celestia I need to inform you that today was probably the scariest day of my life. While my friends and I were having our picnic at the newly discovered Everfree Clearing, we were attacked by Tirek. We tried to fight back but he was too strong. He planned to take over Equestria by destroying us first, and it felt like it was going to happen. At one moment he was actually going to kill us. Celestia had a look of worry and pure utter shock on her face, but kept reading. But before he did, something truly bizarre happened. A being, a warrior showed up and stood up to Tirek. I thought it wasn’t even possible but, he defeated Tirek all on his own! He pretty much owned the entire fight. And in doing so, he saved our lives. Afterwards, we had a conversation with him and in the end, we became good friends. His name is BlackWarGreymon, and he’s a Digimon from a dimension called the Digital World. His appearance is that of a black dragon, but he wore armour that’s as black as Luna’s night. His eyes is a fierce yellow, the same as his hair. He also wears a helmet that has horns a bit like a demon. I know he may sound scary but he’s a really nice guy. Celestia couldn’t believe what she was reading, a creature that sounds dangerous was actually friendly. And that Twilight had already made contact with him. He’s currently staying with me in the castle in Ponyville, and I was wondering what we’re going to do to thank him for what he’s done today. From your fellow princess, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Luna couldn’t see the letter but from reading the expression on Celestia’s face, it must be about something big. “Sister?”