//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: The Wakening // Story: Eternal Knight // by Metroid Prime //------------------------------// Now my children, you are the first of many, this world is young and its future inhabitants will rely on you to protect them, it is your duty and I hope that you do it well. Brother, mother has told us that we shall be soon expecting more siblings soon Oh! Will they be like us? Not at all, she says their purpose is to maintain balance, ours is to protect and serve I have proven the legend real! Our kingdoms stand united! Hear this! A new Golden Age has begun. We shall spread throughout the realms, staking our marks on worlds beyond the breach! I have tried to c_ll for moth_r, but the gods of this wor_d have sealed the breach, she cannot c_me for me. I am too weak to m_ke the journ_y home. Sleep, I must sleep, my strength is spent and I must....sleep........sleep. Ponyville, Golden Oaks Library "And then the Olden Pony asked, ‘Who’s got my rusty horseshoe?" The room became deathly silent as Lighting Dust rubbed her fore hooves together in a villainous manner...before immediately snapping one of them in Coco Pommel direction. "YOU DO!" Coco screamed as she fell back in a dramatic fashion. The remaining ponies in the room(plus Spike), looked on as Coco got back up, her face now very red. Lighting dust let out a cackling laugh as she reveled in her victory of scaring someone. "That's not funny Dust!" Coco said "Yeah, you're right....it's hilarious!" Fiddlesticks rolled her eyes and was about to respond when she heard Sunset yawn. "No offence Lighting, but if your attempt was to scared all of us...or one of us with a story we have heard a million times, then you will have to do better" "Oh come one! That story will always scare ponies no matter how many times you've heard it" Lighting sounded offended as she finished her sentence, she was the one who had suggested they all had a sleepover at Sunset's place for the sole purpose of telling scary stories from Equestria's legends. "Well, sorry o break it to you Lighting" Spike said as he got everyone's attention. "But the only stories that scare Sunset are the one's that actually have any real life credit to them" "Oh? And just what kind of stories are that?" Sunset then cracked a thin smile. "Well, since you asked Lighting, allow me to spin you a tale, on that some of you may know" "Okay then, bring it!" "Very well" Sunset's horn lit up as the fire from the fireplace began to dance until it form an image, all ponies present stared as sunset manipulated the fire to help tell her story. "Thousands of years ago, long before even Queen Majesty reigned there was a monster who even Discord himself feared,  "The Black Knight", a walking suit of human armor that roamed the land, it carried no weapon, but wherever it went, death followed." The fire shifted to form an image of suit of armor standing over a pile of dead bodies, all the while, faint screams could be heard. "Now I know what some of you are thinking, 'how did it kill its victims if it carried no weapon?' well it may not have carried a weapon with it all the time, but that doesn't mean it could make uses of one. It killed ponies with almost anything it could grab, poles, forks, chairs, swords, spears, even a quill! A blinking quill!" With every word, the scene in the fire changed to match Sunset's story Coco had to cover her eyes every time it showed the Black Knight killing its victims with the various things Sunset mentioned....even the quill. Witnesses who lived to tell the tale described this walking monstrosity as a raging beast who could go berserk at any time, shadowed covered his body, hate seems to radiate of his body, and...the one time it took off its helmet....there was nothing but a flaming skull. Almost everyone was shaking at this point, but Lighting Dust apparently was not frightened. Apparently..... "W-well, it is just a story right? Everybody knows it's just one of those tall tales to make little kids behave." Sunset could only give Lighting a more evil smile. "Oh but get this, when asked my mom about the legitimacy of this story, she tried to avoid it at first...but then told me about how now less than 400 years ago, she sent a platoon of Immortal Knights plus a Bearer of Flame to deal with a monster that had been terrorizing a town up north. But only one day after she sent them, the bearer of flame came back mortally wounded. And despite her best efforts to save him, the bearer died in her hooves, muttering one thing over and over......Black Knight" Lighting was beginning to sweat, but was still not fully convinced "Oh yeah, and why should I believe that!?" "Hehe, because the name of that town, was Shire" At this everyone's eyes widened, in most history books one would find the story detailing the destruction of Shire and how the monster who destroyed it was never properly identified. "And while its appearances throughout history do not have any proper placement, a unpopular rumor went around that the only time the knight appears is if it feels that a certain pony must be struck down from its perch...be they evil or good." The fire dimmed as to signify how the story was coming to an end. "And so beware if you ever try to reach for the stars, cause the Black Knight may just show up at one day, and he will come for you!" Lighting Dust then felt something fall on her shoulder, and looked to see the gleam of metal a gauntlet. "GAAAHHHH!" The pegasus immediately shot up into the air and grasped the ceiling as best as she could. But when she looked down, all she saw a laughing Spike wearing a metal glove. Now it was Sunset's turn to break out in a laugh as an embarrassed Lighting Dust floated back down. "And THAT, is how you tell a scary story"  Lighting quickly beat down her embarrassment to crack a small smile. "Well, I gotta hand it to ya Sunset, you got me good" "She got all of us good," Pizzle said. "I wouldn't have believed that part about Shire unless she says she heard it from Princess Celestia herself, but then again, it was all just a story" But when Pizzle made eye contact with Sunset, she had a smirk that sent a message. "Oh Pizzele, as the Element of Truth, I expected you to get it" "Um...get what" "The story I told was indeed was all rumor and tall tale with little to no credit, but that part about Shire was completely true, my mother did indeed tell that was what bhappened" At this, Pizzle dropped a beat of sweat, because she now knew Sunset wasn't lying. "But then again, we may never know the true identity of the monster of Shire, and what that dying Bearer of Flame could have meant anything" After hearing that, the some of Sunset's friends nodded in agreement. "And even if such a monster did exist, mom could handle it no problem, after the lot of us have faced worse" Unknown Location, Underground *Low hum* "........" *Low hum* "........" *Low hum* "......." My children, if you hear this call, then the time has come for you all to come home. Much has changed since you left, but the world once again needs you protection. Your mother misses you, please come home. *Low hum* "..........." *Humming grows louder* ".............." *Humming turns into heart beats* "I...I....." *Heartbeats increase* "I am still here" *Heartbeats stabilize* "I still live?" The entity tried to move its limbs "I am stuck, but I live" In the span of half a second, all the memories of what had happened came flooding back to it. "Yes I remember. The breach. The Queen. The slumber" The entity then tried opening its eyes, only to be met with dirt and rock. "Ah yes, to escape from her, I had to hide here" The Entity forget just how deep it had hid itself, but knew that it was trapped all the same. But not helpless. It reached with its feelings to get a sense of what the world was today And was somewhat surprised as to what it had gathered. The Queen was long dead and now a Princess had taken her place, Equestria was now a peaceful kingdom. Celestia, as she was called, was also apparently the elder sister of another alicorn named Luna, who was....displaced at the moment. But despite that, this..Princess Celestia seemed like a good person and truly wished the best for her subjects. "An ideal leader, hopefully my plans don't cause her to much trouble" Despite this new Equestria being better than the one it formerly knew, it could not stay here. "I do not have the sufficient power to escape this prison, nor the energy needed to return home." The amount of energy need to escape and open a breach back to home was very significant. Reaching out again, it found several sources that all together would provide enough power to do all of those things, yet that didn't change the fact that it was still immobile. "Yet, there is someone who is very capable of gathering those things for me, except..." The Entity paused its thoughts, the servant who could complete these tasks for him, would obey it without question, but the methods in which it would do them was...questionable at best. It could wait for help to come, assuming mother would send help, but considering who his brothers and sisters where, the amount of trouble would most likely be more consequential than anything its servant could do. "The risks will be worth it...probably" The Entity then began using its limited abilities to construct a crude summoning seal, and gathered what little energy it had left in order start the process...... High Inquisitor Fervent dedicated his life to one thing and one thing only. The glory and continued rule of Princess Celestia, Goddess of Sun. To him, anyone who didn't agree with her regime or favored the Moon and its night, was either a heretic or just ignorant of what Princess Celestia's grace and goodness could give them. "And yet there are still ponies in this Kingdom that are capable of such opinions." The High Inquisitor was walking through Canterlot Castle, on his way to the throne room to discuss judgement that involved the fate of some remaining Nightmare Cultists. "Should have just put them down on the spot, the very fact that they opposed our Goddess is worthy of death alone!" Then the thought of the Nightmare Cultists also happen to remind him of a certain prisoner who was kept in the most guarded part of the castle dungeons. Nightmare Moon, or as Princess Celestia now calls her: Princess Luna, Goddess of the Moon and her younger sister. Fervents personal thoughts and feelings towards the younger alicorn were summarily the same ones he held towards her followers. Had it been not for Princess Celestia's strict and clear orders that no harm should befall "Princess Luna" lest they incur her wrath, Fervent would have vouched for her immediate execution for all the crimes her and her followers had committed against Equestria and her solar throne, sister to Princess Celestia or not her beloved Luna deserved to die the most. "And yet, she still thinks she can be saved" From what Princess Celestia had told him and him and Chief, she planned to reform Luna and reintegrate her into Equestria's ruling family as her equal, effectively making the "former" Nightmare Moon, the embodiment of all evil and darkness, the co-ruler of Equestria and his Princess as well. The very thought was inconceivable. And yet this was Princess Celestia's plan, and she had asked that day if their were any objections or grievances about this then they should speak now. But as much as Fervent opposed Princess Celestia's plan, his loyalty and that fact that he never openly questioned her orders, he kept him quiet. Coming down from his thoughts, Fervent realized he had arrived at the throne room doors. "And yet, if she pulled me aside, in private, to only ask me my personal opinion about the whole affair." The door opened and he walked in. "I'm not sure I would hold anything back" The Entity looked over the finished seal, satisfied with what it was. "Alright then, let's do this" Concentrating, the seal reacted to its summoner as it let out a low humming. "Hear me spirit! If you heed my call and your will becomes my sword, then by my command, take form and walk this world." The seal then began to glow blue as the summoning began to take effect. "My power creates your body and your sword becomes my fate, If you yield yourself to my will and reason, then answer me! Unknown to death, nor known to life, come forth......my servant!" The pattern then emitted a bright glow that filled the entire room, all the while one could feel mana being drawn towards its center. And when the light faded, a metal clad figure stood in its place. "I ask you." It began, the tone of his voice tipping between rage, and incomprehensive "Are you worthy to be my master?" Once the figure looked around the room however, it realized it was the only person in it, yet it still sensed the presence of another. "Where are you, I can tell you are nearby yet I cannot see you directly" Then a looming and borderline ominous voice responded. "I am here, or rather, I am everywhere" "....Your answer is ambiguous, yet that matters not to me." "I see" "Nevertheless as per any Master and Servant that is forged, some sense of identity must be established" "Agreed, I am what smaller beings might refer to as a divine child of a Deity, but more in the creation sense then the biological. You may refer to me as Master or Lord" "These titles are satisfactory, as for my identity I am-" "I know who you are" "........" "The greatest Knight of the table, the one who swore his loyalty to the wielder of the Sword of Promised Victory, and last but not least, the disgraced one who could not keep himself from loving the Queen. You are the Black Knight of Legend" ".....You are correct in your assessment, yet I cannot discern if that last part was blunt honesty, or edging towards insulting" "Does it matter?" "No, my sins I am well aware of and they are what give me my strength and berserk" "I would not have it any other way, I summoned you of all Servants because of your skills and your abilities. But now that we have gotten all that out of the way, lets us discuss what you shall be doing" The Black Knight looked up to the ceiling, as if he was eyeing his master. "What will you have me do?" Canterlot Throne Room Princess Celestia, Ruler of Equestria and Goddess of the Sun. Was not happy at the moment. Her day had not started out that way, but after her routinely check up on her imprisoned sister she was no longer in a happy mood. She would have thought that just like she had raised the Moon every single day, she would have gotten use to the sorrow and grief of doing this. But each visit with her sister, every "talk" they had with each other, it never ended on a good note. She tried almost everything to reconnect with her little sister, but each time Luna wanted nothing of it. Someday Luna would go off in an insane rant that Celestia credited towards Luna's unstable state of mind, other days she would never speak a word and just pretended to be asleep, and on worse (and thankfully rare) occasions, Luna found a way to get under her skin, which always ended with Celestia leaving the dungeon in tears. Today was unfortunately one of those days. "Oh Luna, why do you keep doing this to me" Looking around the throne room she could see Chief sitting in his throne, fumbling around with a Rubik's cube of all things. They were currently waiting for Fervent to arrive so that they may discuss the fate of the remaining Nightmare Cultists that were found in the Everfree by Sunset. The thought of the Cultists once again brought her thoughts to their leader.... "It has been months since she came back, since she was purged of the Nightmare Moon attire, and yet I still cannot recognize her" If this kept going on, then the possibility that Luna would spend the rest of Eternity in that cell became more apparent every single day. Because deep in her heart, it was either life imprisonment, or the other option that she prayed to the heavens above that she would never have to chose. "If I ever did that, I would never forgive myself...no, I would never live with myself cause if I did, I might just-" The doors opening were what brought Princess Celestia out of her daydream, just in time to see Fervent arrive. "I can think about that later, now it is the time for other matters.." Outside Donut Joe's Celestial Guard Bold Rush walked out of the Donut shop carrying a box of a baker's dozen heavily glazed chocolate. The Guard was on his break, and was using it in the most enjoyable way possible( at least to him). Setting the box down on an outside table, he carefully opened the lid and took out a still hot donut , it's chocolate cream gleaming in Celestia's sunlight. He carefully popped it in his mouth and slowly chewed it while savoring the flavor and letting his taste buds go into a state of euphoria. But before he could grab another one, he felt the wind in the local area start to swirl, and when he looked around he saw a small blue flame appear on the street which increased in size until it vanished. And in its place stood a humanoid figure that was cladded in full armor, but its distinct features were obscured by a black aura that surrounded the entire thing. The armored entity turned and gave Bold Rush a small stare, before breaking eye contact and started walking in the direction of Canterlot Castle. As Bold rush put another fat donut into his mouth, only one thought went through his mind. "Must be Monday" "I'm just gonna be blunt here and say we should just hang them all as an example, not only are they guilty for aiding the Nightmare, but now they have the charges of attempted murder of your daughter, Princess Sunset Shimmer." Chief let out a groan at the High Inquisitors predictable response. "Is the your answer to everything? Just death sentences? did it ever occurred to you that these ponies should be given a chance to atone for their sins, that they should be allowed to stop what they're doing?" Fervent gave Chief a cold glare. "They could have stopped a long time ago, I have no sympathy for those who oppose our Goddess!" "Some mares in the Priestess would disagree with that" Chief mumbled "What was that!?" "Gentlecolts!" Fervent and Chief froze at the sound of Celestia's voice. "If you two are done bickering, then can we please get back to the task at hand" The solar alicorn was not in the mood for this. Nevertheless, Fervent continued, "But seriously, these ponies are guilty of crimes against the crown, practices of dark magic, not to mention they are followers of Nightmare Moon, and they tried to blow Canterlot off of its foundation!" "They are still ponies" "Have you seen the faces beneath the Shadowbolts masks? They stopped being ponies a long time ago" As much as Celestia appreciated Fervents devotion to her, he still had ways to go in terms of forgiveness, especially towards those who offended her. "No one is beyond saving Fervent, never forget that, we must always find it in ourselves to forgive our brother and sister ponies." "Even heretics, even opposers to the crown?" "Even if that person is your worst enemy or blood sibling, you must always cling onto hope that they can be saved. Sensing the tone in his Princess's voice, Chief could already guess what was really going on. "You tried reaching out to her again didn't you?" Barely making eye contact, Celestia gave a slow nod. "Permission to speak freely?" "..Of course, speak your mind Chief" "Thank you your highness" The chaos leader took a deep breath. "A trait most of us Chaos Cultist have is that we are diverse in everything we do, we break the monotony and we look for other ways to enjoy life. but at the same time we ask the questions no one answers, or rather the questions everyone keeps avoiding" Celestia already knew where this was going, and she didn't like it. "While I have nothing against trying to reform Princess Luna, I just can't see the current world accepting her much less forgiving her. Like it or not the Equestria of today, its citizens are for the most part leaning favor the Sun and the Day as opposed to the Moon and the Night, a part that is somewhat contributed by you" "He's not wrong" Celestia thought to herself. "Even if you did somehow manage to bring Luna's sanity back, the people would never accept her as their Princess, much less your equal. Despite all your teachings about forgiveness and mercy, not everyone is of the same mind. Why would they forgive someone who betrayed the country and fought against their patron for her own selfish reasons. Just I can imagine their reactions: "By what tortured logic did our Goddess conclude that letting an unrepentant evil tyrant off the hook represented anything other than an insult to the memory of those she killed?" "Seriously, can somepony explain to me how the war can end with the instigator being allowed to go about her business as if nothing happened? The twisted rituals! The soul harvests! The cities raided! Apparently all of them were just missteps—painful but necessary—on Luna's path to self-discovery!" They would say by putting her on the throne you're excusing her past behavior. They would try to make you see just how wrong this is. Forgiveness? Rehabilitation? Reintegration? No. Not her. Not now. Not ever." The room became deathly silent before Chief began to finish his talk. "So the real question Princess Celestia is not how you will change Luna back into the pony you once knew, but how you expect your loyal subjects to change into a people who will accept her?" For the first time in a very long time, Princess Celestia did not have an immediate answer she could employ. "I....I.." THHOOOM! The castle shook with a low rumble as an explosion rang throughout the area. "What was that!?" Fervent exclaimed. As if on que, a guard immediately burst through the doors of the throne room. "Your highness! We are under attack" Immediately getting up from her throne, Celestia made eye contact with the guard, who looked like he had just seen a ghost. "By what?!" "......You need to see for yourself" The Knight stood in front of the entrance to the Castle courtyard, the sentries already having spotted him and asked him to identify himself. But he ignored them, as he was thinking to himself. "When a Servant is summoned into this world, they are brought up to speed on the current status quo, it allows us to understand the world we are in as to avoid confusion. But what the aether has told me(or from what I can understand), is that this land is ruled by a winged unicorn who claims to be a deity, I find that fact to be very ridiculous" The knight clenched his fists "Horses are meant to be ridden, not to rule" The sound of rustling could be heard on the other side of the gates. "Another sign of this is that the people of this Kingdom are unbalanced, they praise the Sun and the Day for is life and glory, but shun the Moon and the Night for its association with a dark tyrant" The gates opened, revealing a contingent of Blood Knights, Guards, and Bearers of Flame. All of their weapons trained on him. "And yet, there is something to admire about this Celestia, to enforce a rule for 1,000 years of peace and do it well no less, is something to be admired" The Black Knight summoned within its hand his sword, a blade called "Arondight". "I can't wait to burn it all down"