Doctor of the Lance

by Silver Page

Chapter 3 – I was a Nazi / Ich war ein Nazi

Chapter 3 – I was a Nazi / Ich war ein Nazi

(first person POV)

I never figured out how I got here, to Equestria. All I knew, and know, was what the events leading up to my trip were.

My name is Johan Faust the Thirteenth.

I was a Nazi.

Not ranked in the military, nor part of the SS Korps. I was in the party simply because it was bad for your health not to be part of it. I joined in 1937, as it was in full swing, and because I was a doctor, and relatively young, I performed some simple medical duties around Germany. I spent some time in Munich, where I was approached by members of the Thule Society.

I’d heard of them; Occultists, who had backed the formation of the Nazi party in its early days, then got shut down because of Hitler’s anti-masonic policies. At least, that was the official view. Apparently, the Thule Society had been revived, and was operating in secret on behalf of Hitler and the SS. Science and magic, fused to create super soldiers and unstoppable weapons. That was their goal. I accepted their invitation for two very important reasons.

One; I’d be allowed to live after learning of this secret. The Nazi’s did not tolerate non-compliance or spies, so by joining they wouldn't have to “remove” me. The second reason was more to do with my family, than anything else.

Johan Faust the Thirteenth. Thirteenth to bear the name of the Man who sold his Soul to the Devil. One of a long line, descended from that near mythical fool. Goethe was one of us. A distant relative, he rewrote the family’s shame as a play. People believed it to be a work of fiction. No more witch hunts or public stoning’s. No more Inquisitors breaking down the doors at midnight. We were free, for the first time in centuries.

I was the last of the direct line. Last of the pure blooded Fausts. And as such, I carried the family’s true secret and greatest treasure. A book, a tome, written on vellum and bound in a strange, rough, reptilian hide. The ink would not smudge, and the whole thing was fire proof and water proof. It never yellowed with age, and an aura of dread hung about it.

The Book of Horns, it was called. Faust the First obtained it from the demon now called Mephistopheles. In it were the secrets of magic. From Alchemy to Necromancy, all kinds of spells and arcane ritual were stored within. The language it was written in was a mix of runes and glyphs, and the olde German translations were squeezed in between the margins and where ever they’d fit.

The Book of Horns. The source of my family’s curse. With its secrets, we gained power. Transmuting lead to gold kept us floating in wealth. We cured diseases and earned the title of Doctor for our services. We went mad, eventually. We, like the ancestor who made the deal, began to desire to know all there was in the world. We began to commit atrocities. We funded genocides with our gold, to see what war was like. We vivisected our patients, because we wanted to see what they looked like on the inside. We went mad. We became hunted. We were the Fausts.

And the Thule Society wanted that knowledge. I agreed to help their experiments, partly to stay alive, and partly to satisfy my own, terrible thirst for knowledge. I worked with saints, and I worked with monsters. Of all of them, I hated Mengele the most. I honestly hope the Russians caught him and killed him.

I’ll never know, though. I was in Berlin, hastily gathering my research notes and equipment. The city was being bombed, and soon the Red Army would march into our streets, kill our soldiers, and despoil our women. I had to escape. I feared death.

An explosion tore my bunker to shreds. I think it might have killed me. As I faded, I saw my blood pour onto my notes and equipment. I saw my blood stain the Book of Horns. I saw it drink my blood, I saw it glow.

I vanished.

And then I reappeared, bloody and dying, in a land somewhere. It was dark foreboding woods I found myself in, not unlike the Black Forest of my homeland. I was thankfully near a fresh water river, and could crawl to it with ease. I would not dehydrate.

I remember little of my first few days. Pain filled my body, and my thoughts were assailed by visions of death, destruction, and a Black Goat with Seven Eyes gazing into the Abyss.

I awoke many days later, my body fully healed. I knew not how or why, then. Now, I do. It was the magic of the new land I found myself in. I had landed in the Everfree Forest, part of the continent spanning nation of Equestria, on the world of Erafore.

Thinking back, it was a miracle I was not eaten by some monster of that realm back them. One of my theories as to why a Manticore or Hydra did not eat me was I was too full of magic to safely consume. Even now, sixty plus years later, the magic has not left me. It is why I can use it, though I need a Unicorn’s horn to channel through as a proxy.
I had a new society to learn about. My first few encounters with the natives, the Equestrian Ponies, was not a good first impression. Crazed and half starved to death, I made a mess of the places I found. My desire to study these fascinating aliens usually ended with me stripping a few of them and writing my findings and observations. Then running like Hell to escape their gold wearing law enforcement.

Gold armor? Truly? Too soft to be much use, and too heavy for any activities, I quickly learned that it was not the wimpy Gold Guards to fear, but the Steel guard. Those who wore actual iron and steel were the threats. Far better equipped and trained, the pathetic excuses for soldiers that were the Royal Guard gave me no trouble, expect breathing as I laughed at their failures.
On the note of Royalty, I was disgusted to find they were ruled by aristocrats. There was no lost love for them back in Germany, and I myself had always found them to be horrible wastes of space. They’re led by a Princess of all things. What, the title of “Queen” or “Empress” not good enough for you? They say she raises the sun and moon every day. I call bull on that! The magic I’ve witnessed in this world is fascinating and powerful, true, but nothing could be that strong.

…Could it?

This is a new world for me to explore. Whole new creatures to dissect. New secrets to uncover. I can feel the Curse of the Faust’s upon me; the mad drive to learn. And I will not stop it. I will allow the madness to carry me.

For Science!

Johan Faust (3rd person POV)

Johan ripped out the page from his journal, and set it ablaze with a jolt of magic. His mind wandered these days. He’d find these expositions written in his notes every so often, the results of his deteriorating sanity. Though it was debatable he was sane at all to begin with.

Johan finished packing some notebooks, paper, tomes, and a set of spare clothes in a large carry-on bag. He was ready to head to Canterlot. In the morning. He had an early train ride, and he wanted all to be ready.

He could not help let a smile onto his face. Soon, he’d have Answers. And soon, he’d have more Questions. Truly, the Quest for Knowledge would never stop!

Author's Note:

FYI: This will be the style used for exposition and miscellaneous trivia that might not fit well with the main story.

Next stop, Canterlot!

Comments

[Sonik]

Another good chapter, my friend!

[Warlerker]

:D