//------------------------------// // Xulan // Story: Seven Princesses of Light // by TundraStanza //------------------------------// In your grasp, take this blade And so long as you have the makings, Then through this simple act of taking, Its wielder you shall one day be made. Chapter 9: Xulan A castle in the middle of oblivion. There was no other way Princess Luna could describe what she was seeing right now. It was a large building with teal spikes in an irregular pattern all over it. There was a small, round stained-glass window near the top. In any direction away from the structure, there was nothing but empty space. A gray winding path led away from the entrance, but that wasn't exactly a landmark. Shedding her armor to the particles of light, the Princess of the Night trotted toward the wooden, double door. Opening the large door took less effort than she expected. She barely touched it with her magic and it opened right up for her. As she walked inside, Luna took notice of the white, marble appearance of the otherwise narrow hallway. The very blank appearance of the white walls and floor made the corridor seem very empty. Statuettes of bulbous flowers marked either side of the door Luna had just entered. At the opposite end of the hallway was a small staircase. The six steps led to another double door, but this one was relatively smaller than the entrance. Feeling a little curious, the night alicorn opened her wings and flew forward. She covered the distance between doors in a matter of seconds. Landing gently on the slightly elevated floor, she folded her wings. She then reached out her magic to open the door. What was she going to find behind it? Entering the next room revealed two marble-white cubes on either side of the doorway. Haphazard white lights were hung on the walls to provide sight. On the opposite end of the hallway was a taller staircase than the first hall's. But these were not the details on which Luna had her eyes focused. Her attention was caught by the lone figure right in the middle of the room. It appeared to be a pony-shaped being. Though, it was difficult to discern beyond that, since said pony was wearing a black cloak. The garment hid all but the pony's hooves. Luna couldn't even see their face. Slowly and cautiously, the princess trotted closer to the other occupant of the hallway. Her caution was well placed, as the cloaked figure acted in haste. A dark aura burned in front of the pony's face before it solidified as a weapon. The weapon, though black and empty, was uncannily familiar to the alicorn. "A Keyblade?" asked Luna with widened eyes. She didn't have time to wonder as the cloaked pony quickly galloped forward and swung the Keyblade in question. On instinct, the Princess of the Night summoned her own Keyblade. Just in time too, because the galloping figure swung theirs against hers. Who are you? thought Luna with her mouth occupied by the Keyblade she was wielding. Someone from the dark, replied thoughts that weren't her own. Blades clashed for a few swings before both wielders jumped back away from the fray. Is this... telepathy? asked Luna in her mind. Yes, affirmed the foreign thoughts. The cloaked pony charged in for another diagonal swing. The princess managed to parry the attack. She proceeded to fly over her opponent. What do you mean 'someone from the dark'? Luna directed her thoughts to her attacker. I have to make you a part of me, said the other mind, I must take your heart as my own. What? Princess Luna scrunched her eyebrows. This pony was insane. They wanted her heart? That was absurd. When the cloaked figure galloped toward her again, Luna charged in headstrong as well. Keyblades clashed and slashed at each other and they sang the song of conflicting intentions. A sudden, forceful blow sent the princess flying through the air. She quickly straightened herself out with a flap of her wings. The pony in the cloak jumped as if to perform an airborne chase. Another exchange of Keyblades clanging sent Luna back to the floor while her attacker remained near the ceiling. The darkness cannot have me, thought the night alicorn, I must master it. A split-second of blue light encased her body before disappearing instantly. A surge of righteous fury flowed from her heart to the tip of her blade. Another second passed as a volley of dark darts left her Keyblade and flew at the currently airborne pony. Whoever was under that garment grunted and yelped in pain as the darts passed through their being and to the ceiling above them. They collapsed to the ground below with another pained sound. The black Keyblade soon followed suit before disappearing in the aura that had summoned it. The Princess of the Night walked over, still clearly miffed at the being that would even think that she'd be all right with losing her heart. The damage from the battle had severed the hood of the pony's cloak. Luna could see that it... she was a sky blue mare with blue eyes and a gray mane. She didn't really look like the type to pick a fight. Then again, looks could deceive as well as kill. The cloaked mare sighed and smiled sadly before saying, "You make a good other." Her body began to fade into black and white particles. Within a few seconds, the mare was gone completely. With the enemy gone, Luna felt safe enough to allow her Keyblade to vanish into its light. --- After passing through another set of double doors, Princess Luna found herself outside of what appeared to be a brick mansion of old. Hadn't she been in a castle in the middle of nowhere? But now she was in a private section of a forest. This piece of land was gated off, but this was no problem for her to fly over. "'You make a good other'," she echoed the words of the pony she had clashed with, "What did she mean by that?" A distant rumbling interrupted her thoughts. She had to investigate. Using the trick she learned in Disney Town, she boarded her Keyblade glider and rushed to find the disturbance.