Heart and Soul

by Kanashimi

Misunderstandings Lead to Hatred

Luna woke and drew her sword, cutting straight through her blankets. She hopped out of bed and scanned her surroundings.

It was just a nightmare.

She wiped her face with a wet towel, and walked out onto the balcony overlooking the garden. Though she preferred the darkness of the night, the day held a beauty all its own. Her and Celestia’s creations were breathtaking.

It was all so peaceful, except for the sounds of terrified animals running around.

Luna stared at a frantic fox and remembered how Celestia liked to go walk in the garden early in the mornings, alone, and immediately grabbed her sword and flew down into that very garden.

She had a gut feeling her sister was in danger.

“Celestia! Where are you?! Sister dearest!” She charged through the garden, not caring if she ruined this plant or that. Then she heard voices, one belonged to Celestia, the other to some man she did not know.

He sounded dangerous.

Luna let anger swell up within her and drive her to charge straight into the area the sound was located. The scene that greeted her was un expected to say the least.

A man wearing white eastern armor held a curved sword in his left hand, Celestia stood stock still, staring at him. But that wasn’t the weirdest part.

Celestia's eyes were half closed, her lips set in a deep frown. A few tears crawled down her cheeks, this was not like her older sister.

This made her even angrier and she charged the assassin with the intent to kill.

He sensed her intent and side stepped her heavy overhead slice, her sword cut through the air.

“You cruel fiend! We shall punish thee for drawing your weapon against our beloved sister!” Luna went back on the offensive before he could answer.

He dodged and blocked each attempted attack.

One of her random thrusts clipped his side. She took advantage of his momentary weakness and shot a spark of arcane energy into his chest.

This staggered him backwards for a second, giving her a momentary opening.

The Easterner let out a growl as Luna charged forward. He dropped his weight to regain his balance and interrupted her charge with his own. He slashed, cut and stabbed at a speed unfollowable by the average eye.

Luna’s sword caught a cut aimed toward her left side, and instead of resisting against her strength, he slid up on her sword and sliced toward her neck.

Luna ducked and slashed her sword at his legs. He jumped over it, and aimed a kick towards her head.

She rolled backwards and stood back up. This warrior was quite skilled, and a lefty at that, but she had barely even begun.

Before either of them could re engage, a large group of guards started surrounding the intruder. Shining Armor lead them, his sword and shield in hand.

“Lay down your weapons or die holding them!” He banged his sword against his shield.

The Easterner answered by charging Shining and smashing his face with a horizontal elbow. This was such an unexpected move, that it landed. And the captain of the guard fell to the ground.

Shining should have worn a helmet.

By the time the other guards were able to react, the Easterner had already escaped them, and Luna was hot on his tail.

“Stop you insolent bastard! Face me like a true warrior!” Luna’s wings brought her in front of the man.

He stopped short and lowered his weapon. “Then you will accept a one on one duel? If I win I go, If I lose you can do whatever you want with me.”

Luna, being a warrior at heart, shook her head. “I accept your offer. But do not expect to win.”

The man bowed in the traditional Eastern way, Luna returned it respectfully. The two raised their weapons and Luna constructed a magical barrier ten yards in diameter, so that no one could interrupt them.

He was the first to move.

His sword came up in a diagonal angle aimed for her vital organs.

Luna back stepped out of the way and blocked his next strike aimed at the same targets, coming from above instead.

She pushed his sword away from her body and attempted to behead him.

He narrowly avoided this by jumping out of reach of her weapon.

Luna scoffed. “You are incredibly skilled to be able to compete with me on this level. Who are you? Why do you hide behind that helmet and why were you trying to kill my sister?”

The warrior circled his opponent. “I am all that you soft Equestrians fear. And I have been betrayed!”

He slashed at her neck, slid off her sword and stabbed toward her heart.

Luna smacked his thrust aside and punched at his face.

He slipped past this and smashed his shoulder into her ribs. This attack made her slide backwards a few feet.

“You have not answered our question, who are you?!” Luna shook the earth with her voice, causing the Easterner to falter a moment.

“To you and your sister, I am no one!”

“Lies! Celestia would not have been crying if you were nothing to her!” Luna charged her sword with lightning and stabbed towards her enemy.

He parried this, only to receive a large shock through his system. Causing him to drop his sword and fall onto his back.

Luna raised her sword with the intent to incapacitate him.

But he did the most unexpected thing.

He rolled towards her, his roll turned into an attack. He pressed his shoulder against the inside of her knee, pulled on her ankle with his arm and pushed with his legs. All this happened in under a second and sent Luna falling to the ground.

Her opponent immediately mounted her and drew a short curved dagger, slicing towards her neck.

Luna caught his arm and bucked as hard as she could. He nearly fell off but was able to brace himself against the force of her buck.

Luna bucked again and managed to rollover on top of him and draw a dagger of her own. The two of them continued this ground war for a few minutes. Stopping each others slices and stabs while rolling around battling for dominance.

Both only received shallow wounds to the body.

Eventually the two of them had been forced to drop their daggers by the others attempted limb breaks or strikes. So they decided to separate and stand back up.

Luna felt a strong impact hit her hard in the stomach as soon as she was on her feet again.

The easterner had kneed her in the solar plexus and attempted to follow up with a downward elbow to the back of her head.

But Luna was far tougher than he knew. She straightened her back, blocked his elbow with both forearms, and headbutted him in the chin simultaneously.

He staggered backwards.

The two warriors stared at each other, trying to catch their breath.

“Tell me your name warrior, before I finish this!” Luna shouted.

He laughed. “Defeat me and I might think about it!”

Luna shot a lightning bolt towards him. He dodged this and drew his curved short sword.

Luna had forgotten about his second blade. She conjured a burst of fire to distract him and immediately attempted to retrieve her weapon with telekinesis.

He ran straight through the fire, as if it had no effect on him. The warrior cut at Luna’s limbs and interrupted her focus.

She felt suffocated by this short range, normally she fought at mid to long range. This man was obviously very comfortable close up.

Luna let her guard down for a split second and a slash cut into her ribs, blood flowed out of the wound as she quickly rolled to the side to escape his aggressive offensive.

But Luna refused to show signs of pain. During his tirade of strikes and cuts, he must have gotten a bit cocky.

He walked forward and raised his sword.

Thinking this was the end of the battle, he swung it down with purpose.

Luna interrupted his vertical slash with a solid arcane shield, pushed off the ground with her legs and smashed his throat with a bear claw strike.

He backed up and grabbed his neck.

Luna did not allow rest, if she didn't end it now she might have to take the fight to the next level.

She didn't want that.

Luna levitated her sword back into her hand and took the opening. Possibly the last one she would get, and pierced through his armor and into his flesh.

He fell to his knees still attempting to slash at her. Luna kicked him onto his back, he did not get back up.

_____________________________________________________

Luna approached her sisters room, and knocked on the door.

When Celestia opened the door, it was obvious to Luna she had been deep in thought. Her cheeks were absent of tears, yet her eyes told another story.

“I guess you are here for answers Luna?” Celestia looked away from her little sisters face.

Luna tilted her head to the side. “How does he know you Celestia? Tell me, why was he after your life?”

“Ah, so he still lives? Good. Quick come in, I do not trust anyone else’s ears.” Celestia opened the door wider, and invited Luna inside.

Luna jumped on the bed, prepared to listen to whatever her older sister had to say.

Celestia sat next to her. “ Luna, I’ve actually known him for quite awhile. He was young when I first met him, around twelve years old. He was involved in the recent war and was part of the country we were allied to. He was being trained by the greatest samurai of that country, whom I knew very well.”

Celestia stopped and took a deep breath. “Luna, he shouldn’t be alive. WhiteFire reported to me directly, he stated that every single person of that small country had been killed. Including their leader, the civilians, and the man who just tried to take my life.” She stopped and once again took a deep breath.

Her body started trembling. “I was so devastated, he was only eighteen when it happened. He had taken control of the military after his teacher died, leading armies at such a young age is unheard of.” Celestia shook her head.

“I thought him dead. For him to suddenly show up is shocking. But why would he be after my life? We were their allies.” A few tears escaped, despite her best efforts to refuse them.

Luna hugged her sister and stayed silent. Celestia quietly cried against Luna’s shoulder, like she used to when they were young.

___________________________________________________

Twilight sent a letter to Celestia, hoping her mentor would answer her plight so she wouldn’t go insane trying to find answers herself.

“So, an incomplete history book is what’s been keeping you up?” Spike raised an eyebrow and scratched his head.

Twilight sighed. “Yes Spike. I know it doesn’t sound crazy interesting to you, but this one makes me feel sick.” She got up from her desk, and walked over to the entrance to the library. It was about time to close up.

A knock on her door interrupted her original purpose.

She opened the door to find a very exhausted royal messenger, gasping for breath. “Are you alright?!” Twilight looked at Spike, who nodded his head and ran for a glass of water.

The messenger accepted it gratefully and chugged it all down. He took a few more breaths before addressing the two standing in front of him. “The princesses request all six of the elements presence. Be there by tomorrow afternoon.” With that, he bowed and marched off towards the town.

The two inhabitants of the library looked towards each other, confusion and concern etched into their faces.

“What could be so important to need all of us by tomorrow?” Twilight cupped her chin in her hand and squinted off into the distance.

“I’ll go gather the others, you keep thinking.” Spike ran out the door to find the other elements of harmony, they needed to know as soon as possible.

An hour or two later, Spike returned to the library and announced they had all agreed to meet at the library immediately.

A few minutes later, Twilight let Fluttershy in. They exchanged greetings and made some small talk while they waited for the others to show up.

Once all six of them had gathered and Spike had served them all drinks, they settled down and began the 'meeting'.

“This is quite sudden. Is something wrong at the castle?” Rarity crossed her legs.

“Thats the thing, I’m not sure. The only thing the messenger told me was to be at the castle by tomorrow afternoon. The weird thing is I just sent Celestia a letter,” Twilight took a sip of her tea. “About all the questions I had.” She resumed to tell them all about what happened that morning, and why she had a bad feeling about the future.

Her friends listened intently, shaking their heads once in a while.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “You seriously think a little unfinished story can mean that much?”

“Yes in fact I do. I wanted to let you all know, and to say you should expect the worst. I have a feeling this is going to get dangerous.”

Rainbow opened her mouth to make another sarcastic remark, but Fluttershy interrupted her. “I think we should all believe Twilight.”

“Fluttershy is right, be on your toes everyone. And don’t let appearances fool you.” Rarity elegantly rose from her chair, signaling to the others the meeting was over.

AppleJack also stood up and grabbed her hat. “We should all go git ready. We leave tomorrow, at sunrise.” She was the first to leave, after tipping her hat towards Twilight.

Rainbow Dash groaned and Pinkie squealed in delight. “Another adventure! I can’t wait to see what kind of fun we will have!” She burst into laughter as she hopped out the door, Rarity raised an eyebrow at the Pink maniac.

“Good evening Twilight, I'll see you tomorrow morning. Make sure you get some sleep, don’t stay up late tonight.” Rarity gave her friend a hug and stepped out the door.

Fluttershy however stayed behind, and didn’t get up from her seat. Twilight gave her a curious glance before shutting the door and sitting down next to her.

“ Did you want to talk to me about something Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy hid behind her hair. “I-I do. You see all my animal friends, even my strong bear friend, have been hanging around my cottage. They refuse to go back out into the forest. Some nights Angel and the other small animals will shake and cry unless I let them sleep with me. I had to move the chicken coup further away from the Everfree, so the chickens will stay calm.”

She came out from beneath her hair and looked Twilight in the eyes. “Something is terribly wrong. I believe you are right, something is going to happen, something very d-dangerous that will change the course of history.”

These final words sent a chill down Twilight’s spine. But she had to stay strong for her friends.

“Thank you Fluttershy. Now I don’t feel as crazy as I did before.” She smiled at Fluttershy, and received a bright smile back.

_________________________________________________

Luna and Celestia sat at the dinner table eating in silence. They commanded everyone to leave them alone tonight, they desired solitude.

Luna was growing restless, she wanted to go visit the would be assassin and question him. Get his name out of him, and remind him the loser must listen to the winners demands. That was the traditional way, and she had a feeling he would keep such a tradition.

“I am surprised he survived such a devastating wound and woke up so quickly.” Celestia placed her fork down onto the table and dabbed her face with a napkin.

“We are not. We were told he possessed multiple scars all over his body and face. Plus, we avoided his vital organs.” Luna quickly gulped down the rest of her mead.

Celestia nodded. “I agree that we should question him after we finish dinner, but I don’t think he will react well to my presence. He wouldn't listen to me when I tried talking to him before.” She frowned.

Luna stood up and turned away from the table. “ I will go to him alone. ” She walked off, determined to get some answers out of the intruder.

The Princess of The Moon walked through the dimly lit corridors of the dungeon, searching for the Easterners cell.

Luna stopped in front of it and crossed her arms. “The only reason I haven’t escaped yet is because of my promise, princess.” The assassin sat up on his cot, acting like he hadn't been stabbed a few hours ago.

Luna gave him a good once over. His hair was red, eyes yellow. His physique was in peak condition, and he wore many different scars. He was obviously human, with no Equestrian features to speak of. No tail, no horn, no wings.

Yet, he looked much too young to have taken part in the war. He looked to be in his twenties. If he was the boy Celestia spoke of, he should be at least forty eight by now.

Luna ignored these thoughts and looked into his eyes, they were much softer than they had been before. “Why were you after my sisters life and what is your name? Tell me now or forever live in dishonor.”

“Of course, you are the victor after all.” He bowed his head. “Your sister betrayed us, me and my people. We were promised assistance at the final battle against the War Machine that was swallowing the eastern world whole. The Canterlot Royal army arrived precisely when they said they would.” His fists tightened and his head raised.

His eyes burned with anger. “Then, they turned around and ran. Ran in fear of the size of our enemies army. They left us all to die. Left the civilians of our country to die! Imagine it Luna, imagine waking up only to realize they slaughtered the innocent you swore to protect.”

Luna’s eyes grew large, this was new to her. “How did you survive? Did you run?”

He shot out of his cot and gripped the bars of his cell so hard they bent. “I slaughtered the cowards! I burned them alive and killed their generals!” Luna noticed the bars were turning red underneath his hands.

‘Heat?’

“How did you do such a thing on your own when your whole army couldn’t manage? What is your name?” Luna did not avert her gaze from his.

He stepped away from the bars, and composed himself. “I do not remember how I did it. I woke up to a field of fire and death. Unfortunately, that was only a portion of their military force.” The easterner sat back down on his bed. “My name is Kagatsuchi. I do not possess a last name.”

Luna nodded her head. “Kagatsuchi, I believe there has been a big misunderstanding. My sister did not run. Celestia received a report from her high general, saying you were all dead when they got there.”

“ Is that so? Why didn’t she make sure of it herself? Why wasn’t she the one leading the army, to make sure they kept their promise? ” Kagatsuchi slammed his fist against the wall.

“While she sent her trusted High general to lead the charge, she was dealing with the enemies armies setting up camp in the Everfree. Celestia does not sit idle in times of war, especially when innocents are involved.” Luna crossed her arms.

Kagatsuchi stared at the ground. “You swear you are not telling me lies to protect your sister?”

“I swear on the moon and stars, we are only telling you the truth.” Luna placed a fist over her heart and bowed.

A few seconds of silence passed. “I believe you. You are not one to lie, I can tell that much. I am not one to lie either, me and my men were still alive when Canterlot’s force arrived.” The Easterner paced back and forth in his cell. “If what you say is true, then I have been gravely mistaken. The one I must kill, is that general you speak of.” Kagatsuchi’s pacing stopped, and he looked towards Luna.

“Yes, if what you say is true then High general WhiteFire has much to answer for. But first we need proof, and we can’t let you out of your cell until we know we can trust you.” Luna crossed her arms behind her back.

He clenched his fists tightly. “ You dare suggest I would lie?”

Luna swiped one of her arms out in front of her. “Do not be so quick to spill blood! We understand your desire for justice and revenge better than anyone else. We also understand if you are not careful you will turn into the very murderers you hate!”

Kagatsuchi’s knuckles turned white, and his body trembled. “I will never be like those bloodthirsty child killers!”

Luna stood tall, her gaze stern. “No matter how much you justify your actions, the product of those actions is what matters. Do not lower yourself to their level in order to gain instantaneous satisfaction.”

Kagatsuchi sat back down and looked away from Luna’s face. “Please, leave me be.”

She stood still for a moment, considering whether she should listen or not. Then shook her head. “I shall talk to Princess Celestia.” Luna turned and left the prison behind.

The faint sounds of a man releasing years of repressed sorrow and regret followed her the whole way.

Author's Note:

Please do not try grappling someone who wields a blade on the ground, It is a horrible idea.

A block is used to absorb damage, a parry is used to redirect the force of the attack and is made strong by movement. Someone who tries to defend without using movement is not too smart.

I know, this chapter is short for the amount of shit that happens, but the future chapters will be longer, more detailed, and answer more questions.

My updates will not be so frequent after the first three chapters, life and training get in the way you know.