//------------------------------//
// Chapter 6 
// Story: Shadow of Death 
// by Blackdust 
//------------------------------//


Learning

Roseshield considered what Brightwill had taught him. If he didn't go with Ashtail, he would certainly be at a disadvantage to his foe. But if he did, then the rogue Shadow would get farther and farther away. "A double edged blade. But I will stay and learn. And then I want to see the library. I'll need more spells if I want to win this war."
This sudden and uncharacteristic change caused Brightwill to blink in shock and amazement. "Really? I thought you'd want to go out and kill the rogue as fast as possible?"
"I did and do. But I want the actual fight to be as quick and cause as little destruction as possible. So to do that, I need to study. I need to train. I need to get better," Roseshield said, determining that he wouldn't need to worry about the rogue for at least a week before he got anywhere with enough distance from his village to be able to slaughter the next town, city, or village again.
"Smart. But now, your training starts. Brightwill, I want you to tell him some spells under your breath while I try and tell him some of our better war stories, OK?" Ashtail said, starting to flap his wings impatiently.
"Very well," Brightwill said, still a little stunned by just how deeply her lesson had reached him, as well as how quickly he had mastered it. Most of the other students she had would have to wait weeks, if not months, to even start to become patient enough to even catch something.
"And then... we shall... teach him... adaptation... and... anticipation..." Bluemane said between breaths. Nopony even noticed that he had grew back to his regular size.
"Agreed. Now then. Lets get going," Ashtail said, then flew off.
"We better get going. When he took the patience test, it took him almost a century just to pass it." Brightwill said, walking away from a stunned Roseshield.
"...You guys really don't age, do you?" Roseshield finally asked when he recovered from the shock.
"Not like most... ponies would age..." Bluemane said, already sounding better.
"...So how old are you three?"
"I'm almost three centuries old. Brightwill is older than me by at least another 4. Ashtail is about the same age as me, give or take a decade."
"And the rogue?"
"We don't know. He's been a rogue since before I became a Spark. We fear he might be the oldest Shadow alive. Old enough to possess some form of magic that lets him cast without using unicorn, word, or hoof magic."
"What do you mean? How is that possible?"
"Weren't you supposed to go with them?" Bluemane countered, now that Brightwill and Ashtail were long gone.
"This is the test. The test of selection. It's the test you three use to select which one you'd rather listen to. Right?" Roseshield tossed back.
"Touche. And yes. The test of selection is the most important. Does this mean you'd-" Bluemane started before his eyes rolled up into his skull and he slumped over.
"Bluemane!" Roseshield shouted catching him.
"Gone... They're dead... He's here... Run..." Bluemane said while he could before fainting.
"No... They... How..." Roseshield said, starting to feel useless.
"I killed them," said a familiar voice, from the same direction that Brightwill and Ashtail went.
"You," Roseshield didn't even to see the rouge to know he was there. Even if he hadn't of spoken, Roseshield would've sensed him.
"Me," the rogue said, stepping around a corner that blended into the wallpaper, creating the illusion that the hallway ended at the turn.
"You'll die now, bastard," Roseshield said, feeling the fluttering not only in his chest, but in his head and, he guessed, his soul. Or where his soul would've been, had he not been dead.
"So you say," said the rogue, smiling.
"You will, here and now," Roseshield said, leaping at him.

To be continued...