Atonement for a Wayward Dragoon

by Belligerent Bindlestiff

Ambushed

Ambushed

Ten guardsponies hidden from view filed into the courtyard to confront Kain. By the looks of things they didn’t appear to want to simply take the dragoon in and place him in the dungeon. This Blue Blood probably had an inclination for asserting his power; he probably thought it easy to overwhelm someone, but Kain had other ideas in mind.

As soon as one of the guards charged with a lance on his side, Kain side-stepped the attack and rotated around the passing form; then the dragoon delivered a buck to the assailant which sent him tumbling. Two more guards joined the assault, charging from diagonal directions in front of Kain. The dragoon almost couldn’t believe how simple this battle was turning out to be; as soon as the two attackers were feet from reaching him, Kain jumped forward about five feet in the air before his attackers could correct their approach. He landed safely while the two guards crashed into each other.

Some of the unicorns that encircled Kain were preparing their magic for an attack; with some of the pike ponies out of the battle for the moment, the dragoon charged towards one of the spell casters, and as soon as he was in front of them he spun out his spear and knocked the unicorn out with it. Kain made his way in a circle, assaulting each mage to prevent any spellcasting. It was one of the many tricks he’d picked up from is foes. Whenever Rosa and Rydia were casting their most powerful spells, the enemy would deliberately attack them to ruin their concentration. With the meager melee fighters of this lot, Kain wasn’t too concerned with any spell casters.

The “Lieutenant” yelled out, “Get out there, the rest of you!” and ten more guards came into the courtyard. They were also a mix of fighters and battlemages. This time they concentrated their efforts on Kain in tandem. Some of the melee fighters had swords in their mouths and slowly encircled the dragoon while the ones with lances formed an outer perimeter.

If he didn’t get out of the center quick, Kain knew he was likely to be hit by whatever spell the mages were working on. Although he didn’t like charging forth, he took the offensive and went for the swordspony in front of him. His opponent craned his neck to the right for a swing; Kain used his spear to vault over the soldier and then land on his back. The dragoon delivered a buck with his back right leg to the back of the guard’s head, and went forward toward the next one. He intercepted the lance with his own weapon, swinging it from the right; Kain used his right foreleg to grab the opponents spear and swing the ‘caught off guard’ into the center with the rest of his friends.

The dragoon again concerned himself with the mages. The one directly in front of him dropped his spell when he noticed Kain’s proximity. Kain whacked him over the side of the head and moved to the next spell caster in the outer circle, but by that time, the soldiers had noticed what he was up to. Pike and swordsponies had placed themselves in front of the mages. The dragoon displayed a portion of his jumping prowess by leaping over the fighters and landing on each of the mages in three bounds.

By that time, though, some of the other armed combatants had come to and charged with their compatriots at Kain, who had just landed on and knocked out the last of the magic users. The soldiers layered over Kain, trying to inhibit all of his movement with a dogpile. Kain wasn’t having any of it.

Kain used all the force in his legs to break free and erupted from the pile into the sky. The soldiers on the ground were scattered about, those who weren’t in disarray from the jump were left with a look of shock as they witnessed a non-pegasus soar into the air.

As the dragoon ascended, he noted how much freer he was midair. He didn’t feel like an equine whilst airborne. Nearing the peak of the jump which was almost as high as the colossal walls of the inner palace, he looked upon his adversaries scrambling from his attack but also a mare with a coat with the same shade of color of his armor watching him from a balcony, showing more amusement than shock. Kain returned his focus on the battle and planned his descent; he was careful to angle his spear in a way as to not impale any of the soldiers. They may have been trying to harm Kain, but they shouldn’t have to suffer because they didn’t have the whole story.

He landed with a crash that dislodged some of the stone flooring to the courtyard, and a great deal of soldiers from where they were standing. However, those that were steadfast initiated their counter attack. The dragoon went back to work, parrying spear charges and disrupting the concentration and consciousness of the battlemages; all the while, Kain noted that Blue Blood had not partaken in the fight directly and instead was yelling at those under his command.

“Get him!” yelled the Lieutenant. “What’s wrong with you? He’s just one pony!” Five-thousand bits to the soldier who brings me his hide!”

With that last statement, the soldiers found new fervor to fight. Those that were still conscious stumbled to their feet, picked up their weapons, and readied their spells. Kain wondered to what length these men would fight and to what extent Blue Blood’s ambition was.

The dragoon didn’t want to have this fight go on any longer. He devised a plan. Kain once again sprang forth into the air, this time he had to swerve and dodge during the ascent as the battlemages resorted to smaller, quicker to cast spells that raced to the airborne earth pony. Kain fished out a yellow colored gem from his satchel and flung it towards the earth at the apex of the jump. On the way down, he saw the floor of the courtyard light up in a spectacular flash following with a tremendous blast of thunder.

The soldiers were electrocuted, down for the count, but otherwise ok as Kain had hoped. The dragoon landed without a crash this time and took note of his handiwork. As he surveyed the area, he saw Blue Blood let down a spherical shield of sorts.

The Lieutenant’s eyes were distraught and full of shock and then filled with rage. “How dare you, you insolent cur!?” Blue Blood blared out. The unicorn drew his sword and charged Kain.

The dragoon simply parried the attack with a sidestep, punched the sword out of his assailant’s mouth, grabbed him, and spun him against the wall. Kain angled his spear inches away from Blue Blood’s face, which had gone whiter than his natural coat.

The panic stricken prince shrieked out loud, “Aunt Celestia help!”

“I’ve killed better men than you, and they didn’t deserve it.” Kain said, threatening the so called leader.

Just moments later, Kain felt what was like a small tempest. He turned his head to see a white mare, one larger than any of the ponies he’d seen until now. Her elegance and ethereal mane suggested she was one of the princesses who wished to meet him.

“What is going on here? the mare said, demanding order. “What have you done?”

Kain let go of Blue Blood, who then frantically scurried away from the dragoon to his ‘rescuer’, “Oh thank you, thank you!” the prince stammered.

“I’m sorry for this incident, but I was left with little choice as I was attacked by your lieutenant and his soldiers.” Kain said.

“Don’t listen to a word from his mouth auntie! He just went mad and attacked my division!” Blue Blood replied.

“Kain, I can’t believe you’d do such a thing!” yellled a distraught Twilight Sparkle, who just entered the courtyard. “Oh Princess Celestia, I had no idea that he’d be do this sort of thing!”

“It would appear that this stallion is indeed dangerous.” Celestia said with regret.

“Do you mean you don’t know who Kain is?’ I thought he was one of your secret guard ponies Princess!” said Twilight.

“Of course she doesn’t.” said a voice from overhead. “This my Lunar Emissary.” The mare Kain saw during the fight descended to the pulverized courtyard. “We have seen this incident unfold from that balcony.” She pointed her hoof toward where she spectated. “And Lieutenant Blue Blood instigated the fight, this knight was merely defending himself.”

“A secret personal emissary Luna?” asked Celestia. “Sister, do tell me these thing before hoof.”

Luna gave her fellow princess a head tilt with an expectant look. “Yes sister, he is, and you have my apologies for keeping him a secret from you; but the truth of the matter remains that he has no malicious intent. He carries out special missions in my name, he fights to make the night safe for all and hopefully let ponies be more at ease at night.”

Kain, while certainly thankful for the help, wondered why this Princess Luna was so willing to defend him, but he let the situation play out.

Celestia turned and glared at Blue Blood. “I simply wanted to find out who this pony was Lieutenant, but I’m afraid I will need to reconsider your position as a soldier. Guards!” she called out. Pegasi in bright white armor flew into the courtyard, apprehended Blue Blood, and carried away those injured in the fight.

“Luna, I requested this knight’s presence because Twilight spoke so highly of him. I actually wanted to offer him a role in my guards, but it seems you already had the keen eye to make him your emissary. I am sorry for interrupting any sort of mission he might have been on.” Said Celestia.

“It is fine dear sister.” Luna said. “We were actually planning on calling him back soon enough to give him an update. Now, if you would excuse us, counsel is needed with this soldier.” She turned to Kain. “Please follow, Sir Highwind.”

////

The dragoon followed the princess down the corridors of the palace until they arrived at a secluded room. Kain broke the silence. “Why did you help me?” he asked. “And how do you know my name if you weren’t the one who originally requested my presence?”

“Kain,” Luna began. “We are the Princess of the Night and dreamscapes are our domain. A few nights ago the addition of another dreamer was felt, one with profound dreams; this garnered attention, and we investigated those dreams. At first there was confusion about what was seen in those dreams, some ponies have fantastic and elaborate dreams and nightmares, while others relieve some of their most prolific memories.”

“So, you’ve seen what I’ve wrought.” Kain said with regret.

“Not everything.” Luna responded. “Only a glimpse into thy subconscious. But from what we have gathered, thy is somepony who has indeed wronged others, yet presses forward onto the path of redemption. The fact that thou are haunted by these memories tells us there’s hope. We were actually devising a means to find you, but fate seems to have brought the both of us to meet already.”

“So what do I do now?” Kain asked.

“It is as we have said. Thou shall be our Lunar Emissary; thou shall carry out missions in our name to make Equestria a safer place.” Luna said.

“Very well your majesty, I will inform Twilight that I will be staying here in Canterlot.” Kain said while bowing.

“Actually,” Luna interrupted. “It’d be preferable if you were stationed in Ponyville. That way there’d be little risk of thine identity coming into question. There are more threats outside this city, and besides, we have a feeling a place like Ponyville might do some good for a pony such as thou.

“Ponyville?” Kain asked. “Forgive my inquiry, but that little hamlet doesn’t seem like the type of place where a soldier would need to be called upon regularly.”

“Oh one would be surprised how much transpires in that town. Believe our words, there will be times thou will be needed; and there’s much to be learned from the ponies that reside there.” Luna said. “Now, let us rejoin with Princess Twilight and my sister, they’ll need to know the status of my Lunar Emissary.”

////

Luna led Kain to the dining hall where Twilight and Celestia were having tea. “Oh you’re just in time sister, we were just preparing for lunch. After a morning like this one, I’m sure a meal must be quite appealing Sir Highwind. “Celestia said, turning to Kain.

“Thank you, your majesty.” Kain replied as he and Luna took their seats. “Princess Luna has just informed me that I will be returning to Ponyville.”

Twilight turned her head, and her face lit up at the news. “Oh that’s great to hear Kain! I was afraid that you were going to be sent somewhere else, especially without saying goodbye to everypony.”

“Sir Highwind will be stationed in Ponyville for some time to come Twilight. With a town that is both situated next to the most dangerous woods and home to a high profile pony of interest, we believe it’d be best to have a more security.” Luna said. “There may be times we will need to request Sir Highwind to conduct missions. Thou will not mind my use of Spike’s dragonfire services Twilight?”

“Oh, of course I wouldn’t mind!” Twilight replied. “But might I ask for one thing?”

“And what might that be?” Luna asked.

“Might I be allowed to write about Kain and his dragoon abilities? I’ve never seen or read a book about such knights, and I would love to learned more about them!” Twilight said.

“You may Twilight, but understand that whatever you may write may only be place in our restricted archives.” Luna said. At which point Kain to the Princess of the Night with an inquisitive look. “And only parts of the history of the dragoons which Kain feels are safe to share.”

“That seems fair. Thank you Luna.” Twilight said.

The meal Kain had the pleasure of sharing with the princesses truly was made for royalty. Grilled and sautéed flavors the dragoon thought which could only be applied to chicken, fish and steak were abundant in the main course. This truly was an amazing turn of events, but his mind still remembered that now his station as an emissary would be his reason to exist and do more good than the evil he had done in the past. He concluded that must be why he was brought here, for a fresh start; but where from this point?

The dragoon didn’t dwell on that last part too much as first he would have to prove himself in this world. That afternoon, at Twilight’s recommendation, the two of them departed for the train station. It was a very different picture from when they arrived in the morning; Kain was at ease and wearing the cloak Rarity had made for him; Twilight was silent, walking while writing on a scroll levitating off to her side.

////

Evening had come and once again the alicorn and the dragoon were sat down for tea and supper. “Kain, were any of those things you said about the dragoons true?” Twilight asked.

“We indeed have abilities that relate to dragons, that much I can tell you on that matter. And there are few of us serving Equestria.” Kain replied. “Perhaps you’ll see more exhibitions of a dragoon’s skillset, but hopefully not too soon and not on too many occasions.”

“I wonder what Spike will have to say about this?” Twilight said to herself.

“You did mention that you had a dragon for an assistant. How did you manage to convince a dragon to stay with and help you? In my experiences with dragons, they mostly keep to themselves and are usually to prideful to be subservient to another.” Kain said.

“Spike is a baby dragon and I’ve known him ever since he was hatched. I’ve raised him with Equestrian culture’ although he has had the urge to hoard from time to time, he’s very different from other dragons. I believe he prefers to live among ponies.” Twilight explained. “He’s actually more of a younger brother to me.”

“Very interesting Twilight, you’ve formed a bond with a dragon in a way I’ve never thought of.” Kain said in admiration.

“So Kain, what did the dragoons do during the millennium Princess Luna was banished?” Twilight asked.

Fortunately, Kain was prepared for this discrepancy. Just before he departed the palace in Canterlot, Luna pulled him aside once more. “There are certain things you must know knight. I have not always been a benign ruler; in the past, I allowed my own envy to get the better of me. I tried to usurp my sister as a transformed, convoluted form of myself. But I was banished to the moon for one thousand years. And still, upon my return I was still the bitter monster when I was first expelled. Twilight and her friends saved me from repeating my mistakes. You and I share much in common Sir Highwind, and that is why I’m trying to help you. When I first tried to come back to my normal life, so many ponies were skeptical of my change of heart. It has taken much convincing to earn their trust back, but none more than my own lunar guard who were in disarray for so long. They remained loyal to their station and ever hopeful that their princess would return to them, changed for the better. I hope that when asked, you say that the dragoons carried on from the shadows in my absence as the other guards did, making the night safer for everypony.”

“We continued on with our orders.” Kain said.

The dragoon adjourned himself from the meal after some time went to his quarters, wondering what may come of his future.

////

Kain’s subconscious recalled the moment he was lifted from his desire to kill Cecil and have Rosa to himself. He felt the rumbling of the meteor spell in the room and lost his balance not only from the tremors, but also from the feeling of regaining sensation in his body as if he was asleep the whole time; as if the whole thing was a nightmare. As the former agent of Golbez lay there, he saw his ‘master’ flee and soon his gaze fell upon Cecil, Cid, a monk all kneeling around the fallen form of an old sage who’d given his life to try and stop the tyrant.

For the first time in many moons, Kain’s eyes didn’t see red when he saw Cecil, he saw his friend since youth. The dragoon immediately seized the opportunity to redeem himself, leading the paladin to the room to save Rosa from a ghastly fate by guillotine. Kain was abruptly reminded of what he had done as he saw Cecil and Rosa embrace, the dragoon felt the darkness that contributed to his actions and admitted to the group. “Forgive me, but not all of my actions were Golbez’s doing.”

That was the point in which Kain felt he’d never forget what he had done, even after saving the group from the tornadic fiend, Barbaraccia’s attacks. The guilt would resurface every time he looked upon the paladin and the white mage, and so did a small but noticeable pang of darkness filled with envy, wrath, and avarice.

But then, the vortex of self-hating dissipated with Kain seeing the events of the past day unfolded. He wanted to forget all the grief he’d inflicted, and this new job, this purpose was to be the way Kain would relinquish his dark past. For the first time since the conflict with the crystals drew Kain into direct involvement, the dragoon slept soundly.

~Belligerent Bindlestiff

Author's Note:

Musical Accompaniment/Inspiration: “Battle 1-Arrange from FFIV” Dissidia 012 Duodecim FF, “Troian Beauty” FFIV DS OST, “Crystal Cave” Piano Opera Final Fantasy I/II/III

This is one of those chapters where the music actually came first and then the fight was written. Also, I'm attempting to amend Luna's speech patterns as of 11/22. PLEASE let me know if I'm messing things up.

Comments

[The laid back hunter]

The whole dream spying thing kinda turned me off but besides that great chapter

[darkstone57]

he looked upon his adversaries scrambling from his attack but also a mare with a coat with the same shade of color of his armor watching him from a balcony, showing more amusement than shock.

Hi Luna.