//------------------------------// // Capsule Monsters // Story: Seven Princesses of Light // by TundraStanza //------------------------------// Those that deserve the power to rule worlds Can do so without it. But those who do not deserve the power, Even what they have shall be taken away. Chapter 10: Capsule Monsters The surrounding trees did not feel void of magic like those of the Everfree. But neither could Princess Celestia feel any familiar radiance from the forest that she now found herself in. In any case, it was a clear, sunny day on the path. Hardly a breeze was blowing. She couldn't have found a more peaceful place to land. She allowed her brass armor to fade from the physical realm and began to trot. Idly, she pulled out her way finder charm in her magic aura. Looking at it gave her a bit of sad peace. She was separated from her loved ones, but she knew they would be together soon. For now, she just had to follow the path her life had given her. She set the charm back into its place before resuming her forward gaze. It was kind of ironic that the princess then tripped over a large rock in the path. She had it in her power to observe almost all of her kingdom but she couldn't see the forest for the trees. In her case, she hadn't seen the road for the dirt. Righting herself in a standing position, she managed to shake off most of the dust that had attached to her coat. It was then that she heard a cracking noise behind her. As Celestia turned to find the source of the noise, she noticed that the rock she had tripped over was not exactly a rock. It resembled a sort of dome-shaped stone. The breaking noise was actually coming from a growing fracture that was spreading throughout the entire surface of the stone. As the fracture grew larger, white light seemed to pour out of the stone from the inside. The sun alicorn had to shield her eyes with a wing as the light became intensely bright. Before she knew it, the light had already faded and the princess could see again. She looked to where the stone had been and was promptly in awe at what had taken its place. It was a creature that had large wings like a Pegasus, but the rest of its body more resembled the human she had encountered in the Radiant Garden world. It had a long, orange mane and wore garments that could only be described as heavenly. The winged humanoid held Celestia in a solemn gaze. While she had never seen this creature before, she immediately felt a comforting sensation. She just knew that she could trust the being. "Hello," she quietly said, "My name is Celestia. Who might you be?" In a deep baritone voice, the humanoid replied, "I am called Honest, Master." "Master?" asked the princess holding up a hoof to her chest in surprise. Honest simply nodded to the question. The alicorn was about to correct him saying that she was no one's master. She was interrupted, however, by several shuffling noises from behind her. She turned around to see a group of shadows with yellow eyes that were prepared to strike. "Heartless!" cried the sun princess as she summoned forth her Keyblade. "Wait, Master," said Honest, "Allow me." Before Celestia knew what was happening, the winged man had flown in front of her and was facing the Heartless. He moved his left wing in front of himself. As he did this, several fast-paced feathers seemed to release themselves from his wing and struck the Shadows. The group of Heartless vanished in smoke. Princess Celestia let her Keyblade leave the physical realm and simply said, "Wow." "I am here to serve, Master," said Honest sincerely. "Thank you," nodded the princess in gratitude. She was happy to have the company in this new world. --- She was not, however, happy to have twenty other companies that threatened her and Honest. Although the newly found enemies had barely anything in common with each other, they all seemed to have a fondness with fire. Specifically, they took pleasure in throwing fire at Celestia and her companion. They did their best to dodge the flames as they approached. Honest launched some of his feathers in retort, but the fiery shadow beasts were just as tricky with their dodging. His timing couldn't have been worse as a clown threw one of its juggled fireballs right in his direction. He tried to lean out of the way, but the heat caught the upper tip of his left wing. He let out a discomforted yell. Before Celestia could react, her own left wing also burned in pain. She ground her teeth both from the burning sensation and the confusion. She was quite certain that the fiends hadn't struck her. A light went off in her mind and her eyes snapped open. Did Honest's pain transfer to me as well? In the blink of an eye, she conjured her Keyblade and flung it on a distraction 'Strike Raid'. It knocked a few of the enemies on the head, but there were still several conscious enough to contend with. "Get behind me, Honest!" she yelled a second before her weapon returned to her. Her companion obeyed, though with a limping wing. The princess held tightly to her blade and concentrated. A bluish-white aura surrounded its tip. Go! She was launched forth and ricocheted among the enemies. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. She returned to stand in front of Honest. The laughing enemies, however, were not in the same situation. On the contrary, giant blocks of transparent blue encased the once ferocious fire Heartless. None of them were prepared for Celestia's frozen 'Sonic Blade'. Celestia managed to give a muffled order around her held weapon, "Now, Honest!" The angel rose and waved his wings this way and that way. His feathery darts scattered across the battlefield, crashing against all of the ice blocks. The impact proved to be too much, shattering the enemies within along with the ice. Several valentine-shaped lights were lifted into the sky before vanishing. The Keyblade glowed in its vanishing light. Celestia took a deep breath before exhaling slowly. "Are you well, Master?" inquired Honest. Celestia kept her face steady. "I've had worse. How are you doing?" "I'll be fine," he insisted. Celestia half-smiled. "Well, try not to be the hero, okay?" "Is it wrong for a servant to be willing to give his life for his master?" Honest wondered. "As noble a goal as that is, the pain of losing an ally would be far greater than any shared physical strain." Honest closed his eyes and sighed. "Very well, Master. How about this? From now on, we shall stand an equal distance away from the dangers that we face so that one shan't have to shield the other." Celestia tapped her chin, as if thinking it over. "Tell you what. You can do that if you stop calling me 'Master' all the time." The angel smiled and nodded. "Fair enough, Princess." Celestia's raised an eyebrow, but her open, smiling mouth ruined her disbelieving look quite comically. You little stinker, she thought in amusement. --- Obtained! Honest "Charm" This card summons Honest to your aid for a short time. While around, he adds a little damage to your light-based attacks. ---