//------------------------------//
// Discovery (Rewrite) 
// Story: My Little Draenei: Shamanism is Magic 
// by scootalooftw 
//------------------------------//

Consciousness slowly returned to Manet, and with it, a haze of pain that seemed to block all other senses. With a groan, she attempted to sit up, but the searing pain coursing through her entire body caused her to cease her attempts and lay back down.

"If this is what being revived feels like, I apologize to everyone I ever let die, accidental or otherwise. It hurts!" She moaned. She slowly adjusted herself, trying to find a position that was less agonizing than her current one. 

Eventually she settled for laying on her side, her arms and legs stretched out in front of her. After taking a few minutes to allow the pain from her movements to subside, Manet decided to try and cast a heal on herself, to lessen the pain she was experiencing. As she attempted to tap into her magic, she noticed that it seemed… different. It was still there, but it didn’t feel as it should. The same could be said about her connection to the spirits. It was still there, but it felt… almost alien. Momentarily ignoring the change, she attempted to cast a Riptide on herself, and was rewarded with the pleasant feeling of healing waters drenching her body, slowly alleviating her aches and pains. 

After what seemed like hours, the haze slowly lifted, allowing her to get a sense of what kind of shape her body was in. As the haze lifted, she began to notice that her body felt different, too. Her hips felt misaligned, like they weren't meant for her to stand upright on, and her hands… Her hands felt like they weren't there at all! There was still a ghost of their presence, like a bit of her essence extended out past her body, but it didn't feel as if they were physically there.

Opening her eyes, the first thing she noticed was that she seemed to be lying in some type of crater. As her vision started to clear she noticed smoking tree branches, and other pieces of vegetation, scattered around the crater.

‘This doesn’t make sense,’ she thought, lifting her head to get a better view of her surroundings. ‘There was hardly anything that could grow in Icecrown, and what could grow there certainly wasn’t green.’


Sitting up further, she continued to scan the area, until her eyes fell upon her mace and shield, lying not too far from herself. Reaching for her equipment, she paused as she saw something that shocked her. Her hands were gone! In their place, she had a set of hooves. A quick glance at her legs showed they still ended in hooves as well, although they were no longer cloven as they should be. Further inspection of her body revealed that not only did her arms now end in hooves, but the joints in them seemed to be reversed as well. Not only that, but her body was longer as well, continuing up into a drastically lengthened neck and head. As she looked herself over, Manet couldn't help but find the similarities between her current form and one of the equine mounts that other races of the Alliance seemed to favor.

"So I seem to be some type of horse," she mumbled to herself. Finally managing to get to her hooves, she noticed something that interested her. "Well, what ever happened to change me appears to have effected my armor as well." 

Her armor, while aesthetically looked exactly the same, was now formed to fit her decidedly equine shape. Her leg guards, which previously took on the appearance of a full length armored skirt, now seemed to hug close to her body before reaching her hind legs, where it flared out into what could only be described as an armored dress, leaving ample room for her legs and tail to move around while still offering the protection she was accustomed to. Her tunic seemed to be one of the least changed pieces of armor, along wither her spaulders. Both sat on her body almost exactly as they had before, with just slight adjustments to size and positioning to compensate for her change in stature. Her headpiece had changed shape to match the shape of her new head, and the hood that previously tucked in to the tunic to protect her neck now extended all the way down her neck like a crinet, its pattern of woven fur, metal, and bone matching up nicely with the rest of her armor.

"Well, at least I'm familiar with the whole 'quadrupedal locomotion' thing, thanks to my Ghost Wolf spell," she said, stretching out her newly positioned limbs in an attempt to rid them of their slowly diminishing pain. With a shudder she paused. "That, and the week I spent as a sheep. Hell of a way to learn that the Arch Magi of the Kirin Tor don't have a sense of humor."

Walking over to where her armaments lie, she stopped and looked down at her forehoof. "I'm glad to see my gear is all full intact, but how will I be able to wield it?" Puzzling over her lack of hands, Manet's gaze slowly drifted from her hoof to her mace and back again. Still feeling the sensation of her hand being there, she held her hoof in front of her face, flexing the phantom limbs. Although there was no visual difference, she could still feel her 'hand' opening and closing. An idea forming in her head, she reached down and put her hoof on her mace, before closing her 'hand' around the handle and lifting up. She dropped the mace in surprise when, instead of staying in place as she had expected, the mace stuck to the bottom of her hoof. Picking up the mace again, she inspected where it met her hoof, hoping to find some clue as to how it was staying so firmly in place. Her weapon appeared to be sticking to the bottom of her hoof, as if it were magnetized, and she recognized the familiar sensation of the weapon in her grip.

Leaning back to balance on her hind legs, Manet reached down with her other hoof and grabbed her shield. After securing it to her foreleg, she attempted to enter a battle stance. After a bit of flailing around, and nearly falling over a few times, Manet found that she could use her tail to counterbalance herself, allowing her to get into a comfortable crouched stance. 

Taking a few practice swings with her mace, she chuckled to herself. "I wonder what Moriza would say if she saw me like this."

Manet's breathing hitched as she felt icy fear grip her heart. "Moriza! My allies! What happened to them!" Looking around, Manet frantically searched the crater for signs of her raid group. 

"Oh no, this isn't good. Where are they? What happened? Last I remember, we had engaged the Lich King." Manet sat on her haunches, eyes rapidly darting from side to side. "I remember exploding balls of ice..." Her eyes slowly widened as her memories came flooding back. "One of them was heading right for Moriza! I remember jumping in front of it, then falling. After that... Darkness..." 

"So how did I end up here," she paused to look at her transmogrified body. "Looking like this."

As she sat there, puzzling over what could have happened to cause this, she heard the sound of approaching voices. She stopped moving and attempted to listen to what they were saying, but as they got close enough for her to distinguish four voices, the voices stopped. As she was preparing to climb out of the hole to confront the approaching individuals, she heard the sound of wolves growling, followed by multiple women screaming in fear. Her body reacted without having to think about it, and before she knew it she was in between the wolves and the sources of the screaming she had heard.





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As they made their way down a familiar path through the Everfree forest, Twilight slowed her pace so that she could address her fellow Elements. “Alright girls, seeing as none of us are all that familiar with the forest, I was thinking we could stop off at Zecora’s hut and see if she could help us out.”

“That sounds like a great idea tah me, sugarcube.” Applejack spoke up. “Ah don’t know about the rest ah y’all, but Ah’d feel a whole lot safer if’n we had somepony who knew the forest with us.”

Getting nods of agreement from the rest of the girls, Twilight led the way to Zecora’s. A short walk later found them outside of Zecora’s hut, with Twilight knocking on the door.

“Why hello there, dear friends of mine. I was just preparing to visit and request help, if you have the time. Something has caused a great disturbance you see, here in the forest of Everfree.”

“That’s actually why we’re here, Zecora.” Twilight responded. “Some type of meteor seems to have crashed in the forest, and the Princess asked us to investigate it. Seeing as none of us are very familiar with the forest, we wanted to ask if you could act as a guide for us.”

“Well then, it is very good that you have come to me, for there are few better guides in the Everfree.” With a smile, Zecora strapped her staff across her back and stepped outside, closing the door. “Come, let us be on our way, so we can finish this venture, while it is still day.”

With the newest member of the group ready, they set off in the direction of the crash sight. After a long hour of walking through the thick underbrush, the finally found the first signs of the crash.

“Does anypony else feel that?” Twilight asked, slowing to a stop. “There’s the residual magic of a really strong spell absolutely saturating the area her.” Her horn started to glow, and after a few seconds of nothing happening, she gave it a few taps with her hoof before it started sputtering and sparking. “It’s completely overpowering my magic, I can’t even levitate anything.”

“I feel it too, Twi Twi.” Pinkie giggle-snorted. “It feels like I’m walking through a bowl of pudding! Oh, oh! Can it be cherry flavored? Or maybe chimichanga flavored! Or both! We can make it chimicherrychanga flavored pudding!”

Shoving a hoof in her mouth, Rainbow cut her off with a groan. “Ok, we get it Pinkie, you can feel it, too. But don’t you think we should try to be quiet, just in case whatever it is giving off all that magic is hostile?”

“Dash is right, we should keep the talking to a minimum from here on out. Zecora,” Twilight turned to address the zebra. “With the amount of raw magic in the air, I'm one hundred percent certain that whatever fell from the sky was no normal meteor. Are you familiar with this part of the Everfree?”

With a shake of her head, Zecora responded. “To this part of the forest, I dare not wander. Timberwolves hunt here, and if they catch you, you’re a goner. To continue this venture, are you sure? This much magic, to the wolves is a lure.”

“I’m sure Zecora, the Princess asked us to secure the crash sight, and she is sending guards to meet us. If they went by chariot, they should already be there. Either way, back up is on the way. We should be fine.”

Giving no response, but a silent nod, Zecora continued leading the way. They had barely traveled more than a few meters before the trees opened up, revealing a large crater in the middle of a clearing. As Twilight stepped forward to inspect the crater, a growling to her left stopped her in her tracks. Slowly turning, she came muzzle to snout with a timberwolf. With a scream, she jumped back towards Zecora and the other Elements, whom all took up defensive stances as a pack of over a dozen wolves spread out behind the alpha. Just when it seemed as though the alpha was about to pounce, a figure leapt out of the crater and positioned itself between the ponies and the wolves.

The figure itself was quite a sight, clad in a very strange looking set of armor, standing on it’s hind legs. The armor itself was of a unique design, made of what appeared to be links of metal and animal hides stitched together, all seemingly coated in a layer of frost. The chestpiece had sleeves that went halfway down the figures forelegs, revealing a small amount of bluish purple fur. On her forelegs where gauntlets made of the same combination of fur and metal, with a thicker bit of fur further up the leg, to protect from the cold this gear seemed to be made for. Over the figure's head was a hood, with a pair of goat-like horns and a large set of antlers fed through holes cut into the material. The lower half of the figure was covered in a  full length armored skirt, completely covering their rear legs, but leaving an almost serpentine tail poking out from under the skirt, seemingly used to help balance the figure on their hind legs.

Before anypony had time to distinguish whether the newcomer was friend or foe, two of the wolves leapt at it. The figure, whose back was facing the girls, raised a shield it wielded in its left hoof, before using it to knock the first wolf back. As the second wolf closed in, the figures mace, wielded in its right hoof, started glowing red, before it smashed the wolf in the head with it. The blow sent the wolf flying back towards the pack, while also igniting it. Before the first wolf could recover, the mysterious figure point its mace at it, as a red spark jumped off of it, igniting the second wolf as well.

All of this happened in the span of a few seconds, and while everypony was busy gaping at the spectacle that just took place before them, the figure glanced over it’s shoulder, revealing the figures face. Although the being's face was obscured by shadows, the ponies could see a set of glowing blue eyes, and a set of tusks jutting out from under the hood. As Twilight prepared to step forward and confront this strange creature, they spoke in a very distinctive feminine voice. “Greetings, friends, may I offer you assistance?”

“Wh- who are you?” 

“Now isn’t the time for introductions, just know that I am a friend.” Looking back towards the wolves, the apparent mare held her shield and mace to the sides. “Now, if two of you could hold these for just a minute?”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash stepped up and took the weapons from the mare, almost dropping them in surprise at how heavy they actually were. No sooner had she been relieved of the two, before she reached into the bags strapped to her side and pulled out a twin set of axes. Holding the axes in front of her, she entered a battle stance, one of the axes glowing red, while the other started glowing white. With a stomp of her hoof, four small pillars, about shoulder high, erupted from the ground, before the mysterious mare charged at the wolves. As she charged, the front left pillar took on a red glow, and to everypony's surprise started lobbing small fireballs at the wolves. The rear right pillar took on a blue glow, and once again to the amazement of the mares, started releasing a light mist through the air. As the mist made contact with the ponies, it began healing all the scratches and cuts they had obtained on their journey. The last two pillars, while not doing anything noticeable, gave off a yellow and white glow.

As the mysterious fighter reached the pack of wolves, she released a flurry of blows that, quite literally, unleashed a storm centered on her. Whenever she hit with the red axe, it ignited the wolves, and when she hit with the white axe, the storm would lash out, the violent winds tearing limbs from the wolves. After almost half of the pack had been reduced to kindling and ash, the alpha let loose a howl before retreating into the forest, the remainder of the wolves following.

No sooner had the wolves retreated then a horn sounded from above, followed shortly by multiple chariots filled with ponies clad in golden armor dropping out of the sky, surrounding the mystery mare. As more chariots landed in the clearing, one pony, who was clad  in purple and gold armor, jumped from his chariot as soon as it touched down, taking off at a gallop towards the group of mares.

“Twily!”

Recognition dawned on Twilight's face, before she ran to meet the armored pony. “Shiny!”

The two met in a hug, before the armored pony broke the hug and removed their helmet, revealing a white unicorn stallion with a two-toned blue mane. “We heard Timberwolves, is everypony ok? Who’s that armored pony?”

Twilight, realizing the guards now their saviour surrounded, weapons trained on her, started to panic. “Shiny, stop, don’t hurt her!”

“Her?” he questioned “Who is she, a friend of your?”

“Maybe, I don’t know… She said she was a friend.” Flinching at the skeptical look he gave her, Twilight continued. “Well she just jumped out of a crater to take protect us from a pack of timberwolves by herself! If she wanted to hurt us, don’t you think it would have been a lot easier to let the wolves do it for her?”

The skeptical look not leaving his face, Shining continued to question her. “What did she need to protect you for? As strong as your magic is, you could have easily held a few timberwolves off while you waited for us to get here.”

This time, it was Shining’s turn to flinch at the look her received. “Can you not feel the amount of raw magic in the air?” Twilight was almost irate at this point. “Have you not tried to cast any spells since you landed? Not even levitate anything?! There is so much raw mana in the air that I wouldn't even be able to levitate a feather, much less hold off a pack of hungry timberwolves! But let’s just ignore the inability to cast anything for a minute, shall we? Not only was there well over a dozen wolves, but there is also six other ponies with me, meaning that if I were to try and fight them at all, I would need to worry about protecting them."

“I could protect myself” Rainbow Dash grumbled, before a jab in the side and a scolding look from Applejack silenced her.

“And if I were to make a shield?” Twilight continued to rant. “It would need to be large enough to hold all of us, which would use more magic! A shield that large, with that many wolves clawing at it, who knows how long I could have kept it up! And of course we had no idea how long it would take for the guard to get here, so I would have been worrying about that, making concentrating on a shield that much harder!”

“Answer me this, for I need something clear.” Zecora whispered to the group, trying not to get pulled into Twilight’s rage. “Did she not say that the guard was already here?”

Overhearing Zecora, Twilight whirled around, advancing on her friends. “Well I lied! Zecora sounded like she wanted to turn back, but Princess Celestia was counting on us to get here, and I knew the guards were on their way! In fact, I wouldn’t have been surprised if they did beat us here! But then we got here, and the guards weren’t here, and the wolves were, and that one wolf got so close I could feel it’s breath on my face, and they were going to attack us, and I couldn’t even use my magic to protect us! We all almost died, and it’s my fault!” As Twilight ranted, she slowly shifted from furious to remorseful until she finally collapsed in a sobbing heap.

As her friends rushed in and pulled her into a hug, trying to comfort her, Shining Armor made to comfort her as well, before turning and consulting his guards. “Stand down men, I don’t think our friend over there will give us any problems.”

At his order, the guards lowered their weapons and dispersed, assisting the rest of their colleagues in securing the area. No longer feeling threatened, Manet stowed her weapons and trotted over to Shining. “Is she doing ok?”

Turning to face the approaching mare, Shining inspected her with a cautious eye, noticing for the first time that under the hood, this individual seemed to be wearing a skull of some sort on her head. As she approached, his guard training instantly picked up on the experience and combat prowess her movements, and way of carrying herself communicated to all who knew what to look for. Not fully trusting her, despite his sister’s insistence that she was friendly, Shining readied a shield spell as she approached.

“She’s fine, just a little stressed is all. She has her friends to help her though, so she’ll be alright.” Shining relaxed his stance a bit, and let his gratitude show through his normally stoic façade. “I can’t thank you enough for saving my baby sister. If you hadn’t stepped in when you did, it sounds like we may not have made it in time.” Putting his stoic face back on, Shining continued. “Gratitude aside, I hope you understand that you are still an individual seemingly dressed for war, in a zone that is currently being quarantined. As Captain of Her Majesty's Royal Guard, I’m going to have to ask you to remove your helmet and identify yourself.”

“Certainly, Captain.” 

Sitting on her haunches, Manet reached up and slowly removed her headpiece. As Shining watched her remove the helmet, he instantly noticed that the tusks and the antlers seemed to be part of it, although the horns were her own. He was surprised to see that, besides the horns, the  mare under the mask seemed to be very much a pony. Her coat was a light, bluish purple, and her eyes opened to reveal two glowing blue orbs. Had she not been in full armor, he could almost assume from her looks alone that she was some type of noble mare, too prim and proper to get her hooves dirty.

Noticing his surprised stare, Manet chuckled. “Let me guess, not what you expected?”

“Wha.. I..” Shining stammered a bit before regaining his composure. “I apologize, it’s just, when I heard you had single hoofedly held off a pack of timberwolves by yourself, I was expecting something a little more…”

“Rugged?” Manet finished, noticing the Captain struggling to find an appropriate word. “Think nothing of it. With a reputation like mine, you are definitely not the first to have that type of reaction.”

“Reputation like yours?” Shining asked cautiously, not liking the way that sounded.

“To answer your question, let me introduce myself.” With a flourish of her forehooves, Manet balanced on her hind hooves before offering Shining a polite bow. “My name is Manet of Exodar, Adventurer of the Alliance and Shaman, trained in the arts of restoration and enhancement. It is a pleasure, Captain.”

“Exodar? Alliance?” Shining questioned. “I’m not familiar with either of those, where exactly are they?”

“From what I’ve gathered since waking up in that crater, I’m willing to bet nowhere near here.”

“Wait, you were what fell from the sky? Well that definitely helps a bit. I have a few more questions for you, and I’m sure you have some of your own, but they are going to have to wait. I’ve spent enough time talking already, and we need to get this area locked down. Stay close, as soon as we have the area secured, I will be taking you to the castle. I’m sure the Princess will be interested in speaking with you.” 

Receiving a nod in response, Shining made his way over to his troops to relay new orders. Manet, not wanting to interrupt the girls hug session, decided to clean and inspect her weapons while she waited. Grabbing her shield and mace from where they were dropped, she set off to look for a place to sit, before noticing one of the guards messing with her totems. Seeing him poking her Searing Totem with a spear, she was quick to speak up. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

With a roll of his eyes, the guard scoffed before poking the totem again. The Searing Totem, in response, started glowing red before lobbing a fireball at the guard. With a very feminine scream, the guard dropped to the ground and started rolling around.

With a scoff and eye roll of her own, Manet waved a hoof at the downed guard, casting a Riptide on him before walking away. The healing waters instantly extinguished the flames and started healing his burns, causing the guard to sigh in relief. 

With a quiet chuckle, Manet took a seat against a tree, pulling out her cleaner and tools. 'I still don't know where I am, or exactly how I got here. Maybe I should ask one of these equines next time I get a chance.' She paused in her cleaning and grimaced. 'And perhaps I should ask what they are called. Referring to them as equines doesn't seem right.'

Looking over the first of her two axes, Manet nodded in approval before slipping it into her bag and beginning work on its twin. 'I also need to find out what happened to my allies. Being down a healer in a fight as rough as that... I hope they made it.' With a frown on her face, she started scrubbing harder, the sap left on her weapons being somewhat difficult to remove.

Finishing cleaning her second axe, she inspected it for damage before stowing it. Reaching for her mace next, Manet paused and stared at her extended forehoof. 'And these changes...' Manet raised the hoof to her face, fixing it with an intense glare. 'This feels wrong! This is not how I am supposed to be! The light of the Naaru is still in me, but for how long? Will they reject this new form of mine? And how did I come to be this way! These equines may know, but if I asked would they tell me?' Looking over the ponies spread across the clearing, she noted that they varied wildly in coat color, and that some had either wings or a horn, and that some had neither. 'They don't seem to focus too much on difference in appearance like some races do, but I am still an outsider. Would they even be willing to help me? If they offer it, can I trust them enough to take it? They may just be looking for leverage over me. Or they may be just like the blood elves...'

With a shake of her head to clear her thoughts, Manet grabbed her next piece of equipment and set to cleaning it with renewed vigor, intent on keeping her mind off her current situation.




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Manet had just finished cleaning her weapons when the sound of hoofsteps signaled the approach of multiple ponies. Looking up, she spotted the mares she had saved earlier approaching her. ”Ah, it is good to see you are feeling better, friend.”

Twilight pinned her ears back on her head as she flushed with embarrassment. “Ah, yes, I’m feeling much better, thank you.” Twilight paused, taking a deep breath to regain her composure. “My friends and I just wanted to thank you for saving us, as well as introduce ourselves, seeing as we didn’t have the opportunity before. My name is Twilight Sparkle, student of magic, and Ponyville’s librarian.” 

As she finished, she moved to the side as and orange pony stepped up. “The name’s Applejack,” She paused to offer a hoof, continuing once she had shaken hooves with Manet. “Mah family ‘n’ Ah own and operate Sweet Apple Acres, on o’ the largest and most productive apple farms in Equestria.”

“An apple farm you say?” Manet questioned. “And you are able to get by selling just apples? Most farms I have been to usually grow several kinds of crops.”

“Sure as sugar are!” Applejack replied, a hint of pride in her eyes. “Here in Equestria, apples are a staple food, and no one grows ‘em better than us Apples.”

Next a blue pegasus with a rainbow mane flew forward. “I’m Rainbow Dash, fastest flyer in Equestria and future Wonderbolt!” Rainbow landed, puffing her chest out in pride. “Oh, I’m also the current Weather Manager for Ponyville.” Spotting the look of confusion on Manet’s face, she dropped her bravado. “What?”

“What exactly does a Weather Manager do? And who are these ‘Wonderbolts’?”

“What do you mean, ‘who are the Wonderbolts?! They are only the best and most awesome flyers in all of Equestria! Or at least they will be, once I join them. And a Weather Manager does exactly what it sounds like, they manage the weather team in their assigned town. How else do you think it would get done?”

“You seem to forget that I am not from around here. Where I come from, the weather does as it pleases. Only the strongest magic users are able to effect the weather, and that’s just a localized event.”

A white unicorn, who seemed to have an air of sophistication around her, was the next to step forward. “My name is Rarity Belle, owner and fashion designer of Carousel Boutique,  and I must say, it is wonderful to meet you, and not just because you saved our lives! You have such a wonderful coat color, and I would just love to make something for you one day.” Stepping to the side, she revealed a yellow pegasus with a pink mane hiding behind her. “And this here is Fluttershy, she’s Ponyville’s resident animal expert. Say hello, darling.”

The yellow pegasus shrunk in on herself with a squeak when Manet tried to greet her, so she turned her attention instead to the white unicorn.

“A tailor, are you? While your offer is appreciated, I prefer mail armor. However, it is very nice to meet both of you.”

“Armor, darling, what are you talking about? I was simply suggesting a nice dress”

“My apologies, if it is a simple dress you would like to make me I would very much like that. My previous line of work didn’t leave many opportunities to dress up.”

Before Rarity had a chance to respond, a blur of pink and blue appeared between them.

“Hi! My name’s Pinkie Pie! Premiere pink party pony of the perfectly party-rific Ponyville! My favorite color is pink and my favorite flavor of cake is cake! Oh, and I work at Sugarcube Corner. What’s your favorite color? Do you like cake? What flavour?”

“Pheta vi acahachi.” Manet mumbled under her breath, taking a few steps back in alarm. Her eyes focused on the no longer obnoxiously close pink blur to reveal a pink pony with a mane seemingly made of cotton candy. “Please, for your own safety, do not do that again. I do not react well to surprises.”

“You don’t like surprises?!” Pinkie gasped. “How could anypony not like surprises?”

“As an adventurer, I spent all my time traveling, fighting forces that would threaten the Light.” Manet explained. “Usually, when I received surprises, they weren’t the good kind.”

“Aww, does that mean I can’t throw you a surprise party?” Pinkie pouted.

“You may throw me a party, I would just prefer it not be of the ‘surprise’ variety. And to answer your questions, my favorite color is green, and my favorite flavor of cake is chocolate.”

“Yay!” Pinkie cheered, before bouncing off, leaving the last member of the group to introduce herself.

“Greetings, strange friend, my name is Zecora. I am glad you survived whatever strange magics brought you before us. Were it not for you, our lives would be forfeit, though I think it is your connection to the spirits we have to thank for it.”

“So you know of the spirits as well?”

“Yes, for you see, I am a shaman and alchemist of the Zebrican ponies. I have met many in my travels claiming connection to the spirits, but most have been phonies. May I ask where you received your training, for your voice with the spirits is quite commanding.”

“I was trained under the guidance of the Broken Seer of our people, Farseer Nobundo. With his guidance I was able to form a connection with, and receive blessing from, both my people’s ancestral spirits, as well as the elemental spirits. Tell me, what is your favored element? My bond with water is strongest, aiding me in my abilities as a Restoration Shaman.”

“The bond you have with the spirits is quite rare here, I’m afraid. Most shamans of these lands can commune with the spirits, but not call for aid. My ability to commune is why I am here in the Everfree. The forest is filled with tortured souls, and it is my duty to set them free. Those wolves you fought earlier are amalgamations of magic, and spirits who died a most violent death. I must thank you for freeing them, for with their defeat, they thanked you with their final breath.”

“I could feel their suffering, and had to put an end to it.”

“Excuse me,” Twilight cut in, taking advantage of a lull in the conversation. “You said you trained under a ‘Broken Seer’, What exactly is that? Seer is the title normally given to a pony who can predict the future, or at least here it is, but what does the title Broken mean?”

“Broken isn’t a title,” Manet explained. “Broken is the name given to the Draenei who have lost their connection to the Light. You see, twenty-five thousand years ago, our people were set upon by the Burning Legion, torturing and killing any of our kind that refuse to become Eredar. Eradar is the original name of our race, however when the legion invaded, most of our people became infected with Fel energy and joined them. When all hope seemed lost, Prophet Velen’s prayers were answered, and the Naaru, K’ure appeared before him. With guidance from K’ure, Prophet Velen led the remainder of our people in fleeing our world. The Naaru, along with helping us flee our world, blessed our people with their Light.”

“With this blessing,” She continued. “Our people started calling themselves ‘Draenei’, which translates to ‘Exiled Ones’ in our tongue, and began searching the galaxy for a place to settle, until the day we could destroy the Burning Legion once and for all. Prophet Velen has been leading us this entire time, using his Gift of Sight to help us avoid the Legion.”

Twilight, having pulled multiple scrolls and a quill out of nopony knows where, had been hoofwriting everything Manet had been saying. “How did this seer become Broken? And what is fel energy?”

“Nobundo was formerly a Vindicator in one of our greatest cities, Shattrath. However, when the Burning Legion found it, they infected our Orc allies with their fel taint and turned them against us. Nobundo was one of the few heroes who survived the fall of the city, however the fel energy deformed him and cut him off from the Light. Being unable to call upon the light, Nobundo sought other ways of fighting the Legion and received training in the ways of the shaman. As for fel energy, it is the demonic energy given off by the demons of the Burning Legion, twisting and corrupting all it comes into contact with.”

"And this 'Burning Legion', you said it is an army of demons? Are you sure their demons? I wasn't aware any even existed outside of Tartarus."

"I can assure you that we are familiar enough with the beings that have hunted my people for twenty-five millennia to know that they are, in fact, demons." Manet responded in a curt tone. "I have answered a few of your questions, but I have some of my own I would like to ask as well."

"Oh, of course! And I'm sorry if I insulted you at all, it's just that everything I have ever read says that demons can't exist outside of their realm," Twilight apologized. "What was it you wanted to know?"

"What exactly are all of you? It seems rude to refer to you all as equines, but that is the closest species I can think of to your appearance."

"While we are a type of equine, as a whole our species refers to itself as 'ponies'. Breaking it up further in to sub-species, ponies with horns like myself are called unicorns, ponies with wings like Dash are called pegasai, and ponies with neither like Pinkie Pie are called earth ponies."

"And what of this nation? What is the name of the land I find myself in?"

"This forest is called the Everfree Forest, and it's located in the heart of Equestria, which is a nation ruled by the royal sisters Princesses Celestia and Luna."

As Manet prepared to ask another question, they were interrupted by the approach of Shining. “Sorry to interrupt, but the guard has finished securing the area. Twilight, I want you and the rest of your friends to get on the chariots. We’re taking on new friend here to see the Princess.”

Twilight pouted, before stashing her quill and now filled scrolls in the same mysterious place she got them from. “You heard him girls, looks like we’ve got a meeting with the Princess, let’s go. I’m sure she’s anxious to see what we found.”

Manet followed Twilight, and the rest of her friends, onto the chariots. They didn’t have to wait long before a few pegasus guards hooked themselves up and took off, the group heading straight for a castle perched precariously on the side of a mountain.




Translations


Pheta vi acahachi - Light give me strength