Regalia, Confrontation and Demonstration
I stepped outside my brother's home and drew in the cool morning air. The orange rays of the morning sun stuck my face, which stopped me briefly so I could enjoy its warmth.
And then the sound of snoring broke my trance.
I glanced at either side of the stairs, seeing two guards asleep, while the remaining two stood at attention. Upon seeing me exit the house, they prodded their sleeping partners, who stood up as if they had been bitten by parasprites. I forced myself not to laugh, and then looked straight, pretending to be oblivious to their presence.
Twilight walked behind me, her hoof up to block the sun from her eyes. She looked around seeing all of us standing there, stoic and unwavering, before a sudden realization smacked her in the face.
"Oh, I'm sorry everypony, I should have released you all to go home last night," she said, her face growing red with guilt and embarrassment. She trotted quickly down the stairs and turned to address them directly. "Thank you all for your diligence, please return to your post and notify the captain that I've given you the rest of the day off." Each guard bowed to her in unison—one stifling a yawn—then set off towards their destinations.
Twilight turned to look up at me, "I can't believe I let them stay out here all night, I just got too caught up in all the excitement. I'll make sure to send each one a little gift when I return to Ponyville."
I nodded to her, and then descended the stairs, walking past her. "It was a bit much for me to take in as well, Twilight, it's been a long time since I've spoken with my brother—not to mention finding I have a princess for a niece," I said while gesturing with a hoof for her to follow. "I still have my business to sort out today, before we depart on our journey. If you have your own matter of which to attend, I understand, otherwise, you're more than welcome to join me," I said, flashing her a smile.
"I should speak with Princess Celestia before we leave, but that won't take much extra time, since you're already going to the castle to speak with Princess Luna," she said. "Anyway, instead of Quesadillas for breakfast—she shivered—let's go to Fuzzy Beets, it's tasty and nutritious."
I nodded at her, I guess she doesn't like foreign style food, "That sounds just fine, Twilight," I said, stopping so she could lead the way.
We walked down the streets, past the park, and then turned back towards Restaurant Row. Only a few ponies walked the streets this early, many shopkeepers just now preparing to open their establishments. Canterlot always seemed more peaceful in the morning, or late at night, without all the high-class ponies walking around.
On our way to breakfast, I bounced some ideas off Twilight, and was happy to see how much she also enjoyed magical theory. We dove deep into scientific argument—with no hostility of course.
We left Fuzzy beets holding vegetable smoothies, and then steered our course towards the castle. I sipped on the carrot and beet concoction, all while contemplating our magical conversation.
"Hey Twilight, I'm sure you know the different schools of magic right?"
Twilight turned to me, and then smiled, "Of course, Azure, you mean Evocation, Alteration, and the others?"
"Yeah, I was sure you knew those, but what can you tell me about the differences in the way each pony type uses magic?"
Twilight stopped to think, putting her hoof to her chin, and then said,"I guess it hasn't come up in my studies, at least I don't think it did. Unicorn magic is defined as arcane magic, but I haven't studied much about the other types of magic, since I wouldn't have been to practically apply those theories.
I nodded, understanding her reasoning, and then replied, "Unicorn magic draws upon the energies inside them, and when cast, is generally defined as arcane magic." We started walking again as I continued, "Pegasus abilities, those of flight and cloud magic, are physical types of magic, which manifest during the individual's growth. And finally we have earth ponies, who are attuned to the magic around them, but have only the barest magic inside them."
Twilight gave me an inquisitive look and then said, "I know earth ponies excel at farming, or other physical tasks, but I've never seen one trying to actively control any magic around them, well besides you."
"Your pretty perceptive, Twilight, yes, earth ponies don't think about manipulating magic," I said. "Their will affects the magical energies in whatever they're working with—especially plants—and helps to align them with that earth pony's purposes. This all happens unconsciously, even after a pony knows that they have such an ability," I finished, then turned right onto Celestia Way.
"That seems to make sense, but does consciously trying to manipulate magic produce a greater change?" she asked me.
"Of course, Twilight, I'm sure you've cast a spell on accident before, so you can probably tell me. Was it stronger when you learned the spell properly, and then cast it on purpose?" I said giving her a knowing grin.
She stopped again, her eyes drifting upwards in thought, before she said, "For the most part yes, knowing the proper casting procedures does help bring the correct results. The power of a spell however, can be majorly affected by things like emotion or even outside forces. One time" —her cheeks reddened momentarily—"during my magical entrance examination, there was a magical explosion outside. It spooked me so bad, I overpowered the spell I was trying to cast, and then accidentally turned my parents into plants," she said, then looked away.
Despite my best effort, I burst out laughing at this. "Night Light, the potted plant!" I managed to say while rolling around like a foal. Twilight face-hoofed, and then gave me a sour look.
"Alright, alright, I'm sorry," I said, trying to regain control. "Okay, back on topic, if I intentionally work with the natural magic around us, I can manipulate it, to some extent. This can be applied in different ways, but is far less direct than any magic cast by a unicorn," I continued as we approached the base of the castle gates.
"Like when you disrupted my magic earlier?" she asked me, rubbing her horn gently.
"Correct, Princess, that's a good example of simple manipulation," I said. "I would like to give you a better idea of how the natural magic can be utilized, if you would care to participate."
Twilight hesitated, and then looked around for a moment before saying, "There's a good spot in the garden, where nopony can get in the way, we can use for that area for your demonstration."
I nodded to her, before proceeding to where she had indicated. "This will work just fine, now I'll explain the whole process first before I actually do anything, so you won't be surprised." Twilight stood ready, her eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"I need a moment to prepare myself, so I don't drain any unnecessary magic. When I say go, please try to teleport somewhere nearby. You can have the place picked out ahead of time, if you wish, just wait to cast until I'm ready," I finished, and then Twilight nodded, but remained silent.
I took a few deep breaths, and then closed my eyes. I cleared any current worries from my mind, and relaxed my muscles. I tuned out the sounds I could here, and then, slowly, began to perceive the magic around me. It floated everywhere, like dandelions caught in a slow drift. I could almost see the different colors that emanated from the earth and scattered trees. Ponies walking around also giving off different varieties of energy. After I could fully feel the magic around me, I opened myself to it. I lowered my barrier of magical interference that all living creatures have, to allow the natural energy flow into me. If I had to describe it, it would be like drinking a piping hot bowl of homemade soup, after walking in from the freezing cold.
After I felt practically glowing with all the energy I had taken in, I opened my eyes to look at Twilight. She was staring at me with wide eyes, but then readied herself after she noticed my posture change. "Go," I said, raising one hoof as I spoke. I could feel her magic vortex form, even before the magic had fully enveloped her horn. I struck the air in front of her, willing the magic in front of me to oscillate. The air vibrated in a cone, flowing towards her rapidly. Twilight bent her knees—ready to cast her spell—before the magical distortion hit her.
Twilight disappeared in a flash, and then I heard a yell.
"AAAAHHH," Twilight said in a panic, the sound coming from behind me.
I quickly turned around to see a purple princess piñata, dangling by a wing, which was caught in some tree branches.
"Well, you are full of surprises, Twilight, seeing as normal unicorns would have failed to even cast their spells," I said while trotting over to her. I turned, and then gave the tree a good buck. The branches shook hard, and after some frantic flapping, a flustered Twilight landed next to me.
"The majority of magicians don't manage to release their spells during that interference, but you managed to force the magic through anyway," I said, and then gave her an approving nod.
"I felt something was wrong while I was casting, so I just poured a lot more power into the spell. But the result was having my trajectory thrown off course, and then becoming a tree ornament," she said while rotating her wings.
"The distortions of magical interference can have a different effect on each magician, but it doesn't usually work out well for them. I was sure you'd be able to handle any backlash, and you have wings, in the event of you teleporting into the sky," I said honestly.
"We'll have to discuss the particulars later, if you're interested in giving me another lesson," Twilight said. I noticed just a touch of hopefulness in her voice.
"Of course, Princess Twilight. How could I deny anything to royalty?" I jested at her, and then gave her a reassuring smile.
When we had finally reached the main entrance into the royal castle, a pair of guards stepped forward to meet us.
"Greetings, Princess Twilight Sparkle, welcome back to the castle. Her Majesty is awaiting your return in the throne room," one guard said formally.
"Of course, thank you," said Twilight, before we continued to move inside—only to have the two guards level their spears at me, of course.
The other guard spoke up, loudly and in a official tone, "Azure has been barred from entering the castle at this time, Princess Twilight."
Twilight gaped at him, before looking to me questioningly. I swept my hoof through my mane and gave a small chuckle.
"I may have upset an important pony the last time I was here," I said, trying to make light of the situation.
Twilight gave me a flat look, and then said, "Well, just tell me what happened last time?"
I let out a sigh, and then looked away from everypony before saying, "I might have called Princess Celestia's head assistant a 'cranky old fool' in a room full of ponies. And then I stormed out of the castle without saying a word to anypony," I said, turning my head back to face Twilight.
"I will speak with the head assistant about this issue, and then maybe we can sort out this problem. In the mean time, I will take responsibility for him, so please let us pass," Twilight said, in her soft, yet still stern voice. The guards stepped aside at once, but I could still feel their gaze following me as we passed.
When we were out of earshot, I turned to Twilight and said, "Thank you, Twilight, I'd actually forgotten about what happened. It's been years since I've been back in Canterlot—seems some ponies really hold a grudge."
"I'll find out what happened from him and then come back to speak with you, since you're in a hurry to speak with Princess Luna. Um, what was his name again," Twilight asked as I had started to walk away.
I smirked at her, pausing for dramatic effect, and then said, "Iron Quill, Golden Quill's father."
---
I walked down the corridor, making my way towards the Tower of the Moon. A few ponies pass me, none paying me any mind, thankfully, it was still pretty quiet this early in the day. I trotted down familiar hallways, turning corners past rooms on my old route to the tower. I came to an ornate door, the carving of stars and a crescent moon into a dark smooth piece of elder wood. I removed my zebra mask from my saddlebags, and then pulled it over my head onto my muzzle, the grooves fitting snugly into place. I took a deep breath, and then reached out to open the door.
Standing at the end of the next corridor, was an identical door, which was protected by two of Princess Luna's night guardians. Their bat-like wings and dark fur, in addition to their wicked looking fangs, always emanated a certain fierceness. Both guards were watching me, still as statues, as I entered. Closing the door behind me, I walked forward slowly, showing them no hint of hostility. When I got about five pony lengths away, the guard on my right held out a hoof.
"Stop," she said, her voice reverberating throughout the room, "Princess Luna is not accepting visitors this late after moonset.
I spoke as I bowed my head to her, "Princess Luna is expecting me, please let me through."
"We were not informed of this, now please take your leave, and then return to speak with her tonight if you must," she said, giving no allowance for compromise.
I lifted my head, and then took a small step forward. "I challenge thee, by the Rite of Nocturnum, for entrance into the tower."
The pair of bat ponies stared at me, blinking, before the one who had spoken with me started to laugh. "Thou would dare to challenge the royal guards of the Princess of the Night. Thou must surely be either insane, or perhaps just overconfident," she said, eyeing me with confusion.
"I do indeed know the meaning of my words, so dost thy accept my challenge?"
The guard scoffed at me, but nodded in agreement, and then said, "Very well, I name the conditions of the fight, and then if thou dost prove victorious, we shall grant thee one boon a piece. But when thou fails,"—she grinned widely at me—"thou will be bringing us breakfast," she finished.
"Fine, please name thine conditions, and then we shall begin," I said, stepping backwards a few feet.
She looked at the stallion beside her, and then turned back to me to say, "We both shalt fight against thou, first to forfeit or be rendered unconscious, loses." They both looked at me, probably thinking I would walk away right then.
Of course, it couldn't just be a fair fight "I accept your terms, and I hope maybe, we can go for a drink later," I said, watching both of their mouths fall open in shock.
I bent my back legs, and then with one hoof, gestured for them to attack me. The female guard snorted, springing forward quickly, her wings giving her an easy height advantage. She struck down, her hooves aiming for my chest, before I retreated backwards in response. She landed on the carpet, and then gave me a cocky grin.
"Don't run away, little earth pony, we haven't even started yet."
Some of these ponies surely know how to get my blood boiling. I dashed forward, only to have her dodge to the side at the last second. I let myself fall forward, landing on my front hooves, and then tried to buck her in the stomach with my hind legs. I felt my hooves connected with soft fur, followed by the sound of something hard hitting stone. I turned to see her on the ground, with her leaning against the wall. She let out a small groan, and then started to get up.
All I saw was a glimmer of smoke, before an immense pain erupted from the side of my head. I tumbled sideways, my face scraping the carpet, which burned like all Tartarus. I stood up, swaying back and forth as the room seemed to shift under my feet, before I registered the shadow forms of bat-ponies that raced towards me. Reflexively, I sucked in a breath, and then gathered any magic that still remained from my demonstration with Twilight. The shadows danced and spiraled around each other, which I would have found beautiful, if I wasn't about to be pounded into a wall.
I struck forward with both hooves, and then felt twin magical vibrations project towards the shadows. Normally, this type of magic probably wouldn't make a pony do more than blink, but the effect it had on their magical essence was quite the opposite. The shadows were slowed as they entered the cone of magical interference, before being carried backwards at break-neck speed. They both transformed back into their material forms, just in time to strike the wall on the opposite side of the corridor. There was a resounding thump, followed by a pair of strained cries of pain.
I breathed hard for a moment, brushing my mane back out of my eyes, before walking slowly up to them. I watched as they painfully tried to stand, before I reached a hoof down to help the mare bat-pony guard to her hooves. She glared at me with contempt, before sighing and taking my helping hoof.
After I was sure there was no permanent injury, I started to ask to be let inside to see the princess. Then, we turned in unison, all hearing some pony pounding their way down the stairs. Both of the guards jumped forward to hide behind me, just before the large door banged open. Beyond it stood a very regal—and very terrifying—Princess of the Night.
"Ye shalt stop this noise at once!" Princess Luna bellowed, stomping a hoof on the ground. "We are trying to partake in some well-deserved slumber—but cannot. Wouldst ye like to explain this commotion?"
The guards both bowed their heads in shame to Princess Luna, before I spoke up, "Greetings Princess Luna, please do not punish your servants, for it was I who forced thy servants into combat." I lowered my head, kneeling in submission, and then removed my mask. I looked up at her, and then waited for her reaction.
Princess Luna's eyes widened in surprise, and then narrowed with annoyance. "Azure, it has been a long time, hasn't it?" Luna said in a serious voice. I nodded to her, and then waited for a moment. She held her gaze at me, her expression unchanging, before she snorted with laughter.
We both jumped forward, hugging each other, while giggling like school fillies.
"It's so good to see ye Luna, how hast thou been while I was away?" I asked her, my grin still holding strong. We separated from one another, the guards giving us odd looks, before we started towards her tower.
"Life's been complicated, to say the least, old friend. But come, we shalt speak more comfortably in my tower," She said walking forward.
"Just one moment please, Princess, I have two ponies that hold promise to me first," I said giving her a wide grin. The guards, who had retaken their positions next to the door frowned at me.
"You have gained access to the tower, as was our agreement," the mare said to me. I smiled back at her, expecting her to say that.
"The deal was, that if I was to be victorious, ye would grant me a single boon a piece. Now I shall collect, or dost ye plan on telling the Princess of the Night that ye broke the terms of a challenge, made on the Rite of Nocturnum?"
Princess Luna gave me a confused look, and then smiled broadly, before looking at the guard expectantly. The bat-mare gulped, exchanged a looked with her partner and then turned to me.
"What wouldst thou ask of us?" she said in an even tone.
I walked over to the stallion first, and then whispered into his ear. He seemed confused and then shrugged, turning his head to inspect his tail, before selecting a few strands,and then grabbed onto them with his teeth. After a wince and a muffled "ow," he looked back at me, a few dark brown wisps hanging from his teeth. I collected them, placing each one into my saddlebag, before walking to the other guard.
Again, I whispered my request into her ear, asking her to simply close her eyes. She looked puzzled for a moment, but then did as requested, seemingly glad I didn't ask for hair. I glanced at Luna, and flashed her a sly grin, before returning my focus to the bat-mare, and then promptly planted a light kiss on her cheek. She staggered backwards in surprise, her face turning beet red.
I smiled at her, bowing my head, and spoke, "I offer my thanks for a wonderful fight, and hope to meet thou again soon." The mare glared at me, until I looked away and walked towards the open door, where Luna stood giving us an amused smile. She turned as I approached, and then we began our journey up the stairs.
"Was that really necessary, Azure?" Luna asked me with a touch of curiosity.
I let out a small chuckle, and then said," When you've been away for years, and then come back, and then the only mares you see are family, your priorities can flip on you. Besides, I think bat wings are actually kind of cute," I said honestly.
Luna rolled her eyes at me as we ascended the stairs. After a few short minutes, we arrived at the top of the tower, the door to her chamber having been left open. We walked into the room, Princess Luna proceeding to her moon shaped bed, while I found a cushion on the floor for myself.
"So, Azure, art thou here to finally hold us to our promise, all those years ago?" Luna asked, smiling at me.
"Yes, my dearest Princess of the Night, I have come for the dream pearl," I said, touching my head to the floor.
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Twilight is female in this story, right? The cover art is a picture of a male Twilight so I just assumed...
7458955 Heh, sorry if that confused you. I left a note in the first chapter notes, which said the current picture is just a place holder.
7459078 Canterlot was his original destination, the fact that Twilight was pursuing him seemed like a problem to be sorted out later. And Azure cared little for subtly at this point, considering how aggressive he acted towards his pursuers.
Considering Azure left Canterlot before the birth of Twilight, how can he be acquaitance with Luna?
7459146 Ah, that is a good question, one that I can't answer without spoiling anything. I thank you for asking though, and you'll probably get your answer next chapter!
I assumed at first that she'd literally turned into a piñata. You can't take things like that for granted where magic is involved... although that line was hilarious.
...Should we know who Silver Quill or Iron Quill are? Are they related to Golden Quill from the last chapter?
I love how the guards refer to it 'this late after moonset'; really gives a feel for how they see things.
The fight scene left me a little confused... did the guards change into smoke? Or just send smoke towards him? I didn't know they could do that; a little warning might have been nice.
...Also, why do batponies have feathers on their wings?
Nitpicks aside, I'm glad to hear more about Azure's magic and I'm looking forward to learning more about his relationship with Luna. Keep it up!
7459354 *Facehoof* Thank you bud, that's what I get for writing in the wee hours of the morn. I fixed the issues you mentioned, giving myself grief about letting it happen in the first place. So yes, it was supposed to be Golden Quill, and I seemed to be remembering bat ponies from some fanfic, and not the cannon form. So I rewrote it to fit properly, and reworded the fight scene slightly. Bat-Pony magic really was never really explored in the show, so I like the idea of them having dark-type abilities.
7459436 Personally, I was wondering if you were one of the ones who subscribed to the "The Shadowbolts Rainbow Dash saw were real!" school of thought and were calling them batponies by accident, which would also have made sense.
By the by, were those schools of magic you mentioned based of Dungeons and Dragons?
7459450 Ah yes, I've been a DM for a while, and the way magic is defined in that universe just stuck with me. I love exploring different magical theories, whether it be in fan fiction or D&D.
7459467 Cool. My dad has some old Advanced Dungeons and Dragons guides that I read for fun sometimes, so I thought the words looked familiar.
7459467
I think the "earth ponies cannot do magic because they don't have horns" opinion holds the same weight as "humans cannot fly because they don't have wings".
It was quite a lot better than any you usually see around here. I typically reference this kind of stuff with German, which I speak natively, and which has two levels of politeness that are actually very nearly identical to the proper use of the grammar of the "thou" form of address. I have no complaints.
I am massively confused about how Azure even knows Luna at all, given that the story doesn't seem to be set that far after the events of the show. If he was away for a decade, he should, by all rights, have never had a chance to interact with her. I do hope that will be explained in the next chapter.
Ah, and I'm guessing that Iron Quill probably stopped Azure from getting his audience with Princess Celestia in the past, which makes for a greater enmity between Azure and that family. Of course, if Azure has been away from Canterlot for years, it's a little baffling that the guards would know who he was when stopping him from entering the castle.
Nice little fight with the batponies, and I'm sure the stallion batpony is going to tease his fellow guard forever about the kiss Azure gave her.
Okay, bulleting this time:
)
— Terrible Twilight for forgetting about her guards.
— Terrible Azure for bringing up quesadillas (even though he never would have known
— I love how long somepony can hold a grudge.
— Also love the fight scene with the nocti (as well as the aftermath).
— Azure and Luna as old friends is kind of cute before they get serious (not that it makes it any less cute).
— Your Modern English does need some work.
Onward!
Alright, I read another chapter. The guilt I felt for not reading was starting to pile up.
Boop, the fifth.
The first half makes for a better 2nd chapter in the same vein that last chapter might have made for a better first chapter. You introduce things, but not in a super action packed way that helps ease the reader into your system. However, the fact that he can see magic as you seem to describe it feels off in an indescribable way. I could say that it's because I don't know of Azure's training, but you've made his extensively self taught training clear.
Regardless, I personally feel like all the fight scenes are a bit much -- especially since it just enforces the idea that the world is literally out to get Azure. Like, the number of guards he has faced so far irks me to no end.
Did I ever mention that I love your descriptions?