Family Begins With You

by Jmaster49

Arc XXV Episode IX: Foul Play

The fighting would begin. Even when the three of them tried to attack Tatsu all at once, they couldn’t get too far. The second Keiji tried to bring out his sword, Tatsu would strike one of his nerve endings with a precise chop to disrupt his magic. Same went for Aria as well, who was unable to even think about using her air-based magic due to Tatsu constantly striking her where she least expected. A sweep here, a punch to the gut there…

And Flash wasn’t even able to reach for his weapon, let alone fire it. Tatsu would charge at him with a shoulder tackle, sending Flash into the nearest wall before he could blink. Even though he lacked magic, he was simply too skilled and strong for them to fight--even with the few hits they did manage to land as evidenced by the handful of bruises on his body.

Eventually, the three of them were collapsed on the ground as Tatsu scratched the back of his head.

“Jeez. I actually had to try for that one,” he muttered as he coughed up some blood, “But I think you all should just give up. It’s clear to me that all these so-called ‘gifts’--these blessings you were just given have made you all soft. I can’t use any of this magical crap yet I’m still kicking your asses.”

“I’m…not done…yet,” Keiji said in between heavy breaths, “Whether you have…magic or not…you’re still a piece of shit.”

Tatsu scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Tch. And I bet it’s just a total coincidence that all the people who have magic just so happen to be the ones who decide who can and can’t do what’s what.”

Flash quickly put two and two together. “Are you…implying that the girls are…policing everyone?”

“Ding-ding-ding, give this man a prize,” Tatsu continued, “Every single goddamn time something bad happens, they’re always the ones who get the final say on what the person should or shouldn’t do to redeem themselves. It’s kinda ridiculous if you asked me. Not to mention alienating to outsiders like us…”

Aria would refute his point. “What the…are you serious? Keiji and I aren’t even from here and you wanna talk about being an outsider?!”

“Don’t you get it? It’s a system designed to keep people pinned down,” he replied coldly, “Some of my family members have their own style of magic and wanna be able to practice it freely without being told what we can and can’t do. Some bitches that aren’t even in college yet who are younger than I am don’t have any right to tell my folks how to use their powers.”

By now, Keiji had managed to force himself to stand up. “Idiot…it’s different when you’re slaughtering people on their lands! You’re the reason why Applejack’s parents are dead.”

“Hey, I didn’t pull the trigger on that,” Tatsu replied with a wink, “I was just supplying a buyer with what they needed. Whatever they did with said product is beyond my control and doesn’t reflect who we are.” He then took a moment to pause as he pulled out a piece of hard candy to nibble upon. “I am utterly sick and tired of your holier-than-thou mentality. You guys preach about fwenshwip and tolwerwance,” he said in a mocking tone while cupping the sides of his face together before speaking normally, “Only to steamroll and force change onto those who don’t follow what you think is right. It’s nonsensical. It’s like a cult.”

“That’s not true!” Flash called out, “Sunset has never forced anybody to change if they didn’t want to.”

Tatsu folded his arms and shifted the piece of candy to the other side of his mouth. “Alright wise guy. Name me one time that she solved a problem that wasn’t due to the magic that you all brought into this world.”

“...”

Tatsu clapped his hands. “Oh-ho! Now we get it! See, the funny shit none of you realize is that we didn’t sign up to play a part in this sadistic ass play of yours. We were living our lives as normal and bam! Magic creatures started screwing up our family’s business. So we developed ways we can fight back on our own terms. Which includes the use of all the products and weapons we’ve happened to acquire over the years from places like Griffonstone. We did it to survive. Not to cause unnecessary bloodshed.”

Keiji started to think hard on what his enemy was telling them.

“...I get it now. You guys are dealing with the problems caused by the magic in your own way and don’t wanna be policed by the group of people who had a part in the problem.”

“Exactly! Thank you!” Tatsu shouted with a grin, “That’s all I wanted to get across. Now we can move on--”

“Hold it,” Aria butted in, “The one thing you don’t get is that we didn’t ask to come here. Hell, my sisters and I never wanted to come here in the first place. We were deported here by force a long ass time ago.”

“My situation went the same way,” Keiji added emphatically, “I was dropped off here against my will by the same asshole. Same goes for our professor as well.”

“...Really now?” Tatsu raised a brow, suspicious of this newfound info. “...And who exactly was the one that put you here in the first place? ‘Cuz if that’s the case, my gripes are with them. Not you..”

Keiji and Aria would speak together…

“His name is Starswirl The Bearded.”