Episode 8: Calming Spirits, as a Pony
The expedition to find the lost Omni Spellbook was going rather well, all things considered.
Team Relic and Princess Luna had made their way over the dangerous poison gas mountains, and were now between them and the marshlands they would need to cross. Currently, the all terrain camper truck had made its way down the mountain and was rolling along the ground that was beside a large forest.
In front of them was a town they hoped to properly rest and resupply at.
"I didn't think there'd be a town this close to such a dangerous mountain range," Luna told them as Flash drove the truck. "These ponies must be a pretty impressive group, if they can survive living between that and a marshland. Not to mention a forest that's likely full of monsters."
Flash nodded. "Hopefully, they're a friendly group. I could really use a good night's sleep after what we just went through." The others agreed as they got closer and closer to the town. But as they did, they noticed something just outside the settlement. A large group of ponies.
"Um," Trixie noticed these ponies didn't have smiles on their faces, "they don't look friendly." The amount of farming equipment and makeshift weapons made the others agree with her. Flash hit the brakes and the truck came to a stop, as the ponies charged forwards.
"Die monster!" One of the ponies cried as they threw a rock at the truck, which bounced off the window.
"We won't let you destroy our home!" Another pony yelled as they swung a burning torch at it.
"They think we're a monster?" Wallflower asked.
"The truck," Luna replied. "Flash, disengage it." Flash nodded and reached down to his belt, hitting the dispel button. The truck vanished in a flash of light, causing the ponies and their bags to fall to the ground. Well, Trixie and Wallflower fell. The others spread their wings.
"The monster turned into ponies!" Somepony cried, the other ponies all yelling at them about being illusions or the ones responsible. But Luna quickly activated her magic.
"SILENCE!" She cried, her voice echoing throughout the entire town. "WHY DO YOU ATTACK US, WHEN ALL WE'VE DONE IS COME HERE LOOKING FOR SHELTER AND FOOD!?" The ponies were all silent, as they seemed to realise Luna was an omni.
They dropped their weapons and fell to the ground, all of them bowing as Team Relic looked at Luna in surprise. "Luna, I don't think the super loud voice in necissery." Flash's words peaked Luna, who nodded and cleared her throat.
"Apologises. Royal Canterlot Voice is usually how we addressed our subjects a thousand years ago." She turned back to the ponies, "now why did you attack us?" The ponies all still looked terrified, Luna's imposing gaze clearly not helping.
As the ponies continued to quiver, Flash looked around the village and was surprised. The houses looked to be the same design and quality as the ones in his hometown, but some of them looked like they were being held up by spare wood and duct-tape. And others weren't even houses, being piles of rubble or having large holes in the roofs and walls. What had happened to this place?
Luckily, a teal coloured terran male moved over to them. He had short orange hair and was wearing simple farmers clothing. "We're really sorry about that. We're all a bit on edge. My name's Quick Wit."
"Hey," Flash flew down. He knew Luna was still new to talking to ponies. "I'm Flash Sentry. This is my team, Soarin, Trixie and Wallflower." They all waved, "and you've met Princess Luna." Luna nodded as the ponies continued to looked terrified. "Now, what's this about a monster?"
"Right," Quick nodded. "Over the last week, we've been attacked three times by a large monster." This surprised them, as he pointed towards the forest. "It comes out and rampages through the town, destroying anything that gets in its way. Then, it vanishes without a trace."
"I see," Luna hummed. "Monsters don't usually leave their places of origins, especially to attack settlements." She stroked her chin, "has anypony in town done anything that might have caused the monster to leave its home." They all shook their heads.
"Maybe somepony's sending it to attack the town?" Soarin suggested.
"But why?" Wallflower asked, "this town doesn't look like it would have anything worth sending a monster to attack it for."
"True," Luna nodded. "This clearly needs investigating." She turned to the ponies, "fear not citizens. My team and I will help defend your town. We will determine what this monster is and why it is attacking you. And make sure it never threatens you again!" The ponies all cheered at this, as Luna looked over the farm tools and rocks they had been arming themselves with. "If we wish to stop this creature, these ponies are gonna need better equipment."
Flash smirked as he tapped his belt, "leave that to me."
For the next few hours, Flash used his relic to make simple but strong weapons for the townsponies. Swords, shields, spears and anything else that would help them fight against whatever might appear out of the woods. Once that was done, Flash needed a rest after driving for so long and not getting a great sleep the previous night.
As he rested, the others helped the ponies rebuild some of the houses that were still damaged. With Luna's magic, the repairs didn't take long.
Flash ended up sleeping the entire day and night, waking up the morning afterwards to find the town looking in much better condition. The others looked just as tired as he had been the previous day, so Flash offered to take over watching the forest.
Flying up to the roof of a house facing the woods, he used his relic to make a pair of binoculars and began to wait. He kept an eye out for any sign of a monster, but nothing showed up. One hour passed with nothing happening, then another hour, a third and fourth after that.
Flash had always prided himself on his patience, but this was pushing it to the limit.
Luna and the rest of his team were all rested by this point, the lot of them heading over to where he was waiting. "See anything?" Trixie asked when they reached him, Flash not bothering to answer back since he had nothing to report. The forest was completely calm.
But that was soon to change, for in that moment he noticed movement from the top of the trees. They were being bent apart from one another in a line, like something was trying to force its way between them. Flash knew it had to be the creature. "Here it comes!" He dispelled the binoculars and slotted his bowgun into his belt, whilst Luna and Soarin took to the air as the grounded ponies prepared their weapons.
The flying adventurers narrowed their focus on the area that was being pushed around, as whatever was coming reached the final layer of trees. And then, it stepped out into the sunlight.
It was a giant wolf-like creature, which was a mixture of blue, black, red and yellow. Its chest and stomach were yellow, whilst the rest of its body looked blue that was covered in black or red. The red parts were on its front and back paws, whilst its front and back legs had black lines running along them along with its shoulders. Its head was blue with a trio of black lines going around its head and down its forehead to meet at the tip of its snout. Long black tendrils were sticking out of its head, which ended with red tips, whilst metal spikes were sticking out of its chest and front paws.
"Wow," Soarin whispered, "what the heck is that?"
"I'm not sure," Luna hummed. "I've never seen a monster like that." The wolf, which was twice the size of an elephant, let out a might howl before it started charging forward. "Attack!" The three shot forward and started shooting at the creature.
"Icicle Shot!" Flash launched ice arrows at it.
"Electro Shot!" Soarin fired a bolt of lightning.
"Blazing Shot!" Luna sent a fireball flying towards it. The three attacks slammed into the charging wolf, but each one simply bounced off its body and didn't even seem to leave a scratch. "What?"
"That thing's fur is tough!" Soarin cried, but pulled the cord on his bow back. "Aero Shot!" He launched a blast of wind towards the creature.
"Water Pressure!" Flash pulled the trigger and launched a blast of water, the two attacks slamming into the wolf. But again it did nothing and leapt into the air, its claws getting dangerously close to them as it tried to slash at them. "WOW!" They all flew up, as the wolf flew under them and landed. It then charged towards the town, as the ponies that lived their prepared to fight to protect their home.
"Hold on!" Trixie cried as she slammed her staff on the ground, "ILLUSION!" In the blink of an eye, a wall of illusion appeared between them and the monster. This illusion showed the area of the town, but the buildings and ponies were gone.
The wolf slid to a stop and growled as it stared at the illusion wall, Trixie hoping it would think its prey was gone. But her hopes were dashed when the wolf took a deep breath and his mouth began to glow. "What's it doing?" Wallflower asked.
The beast let out a howl and as it did, the light exploded out of its mouth in a beam that shot towards the wall. It flew right through it, dispelling the magic and flying towards the town. The laser struck one of the building and caused it to explode, shocking those that lived there. Then, the wolf turned its head and the laser cut through two more houses.
"Since when can monsters do things like that?" Flash asked as he fired several more shots, whilst Luna stared at it.
"It shouldn't be able to do something like that." She watched as the wolf took a deep breath, preparing to unleash another laser. "We have to stop it." An idea form in her head and she gasped. "Wallflower!" The terran looked up to her, "sinkhole." Wallflower's eyes went wide and she nodded, the terran rushing forward as Luna flew behind the wolf and dived.
The pair thrust their weapons into the ground, using all of their Land Magic to make the ground beneath the wolf collapse.
The beast fell into the hole, right as it was about to unleash its laser attack. As such, its head flew upwards and the laser shot into the sky out of danger.
"YES!" Soarin smirked, but the hole wasn't deep enough to completely hold the creature. Its head tendrils flew around and slammed into the ground on the edge of the hole, making it shake and terrifying everypony. Flash and Soarin launched several more attacks, but the beast's fur just reflected them.
"Come on!" Flash growled, "does anything stop this monster?" But as he said that, the creature's body began to give off orbs of light. "What's going on?"
"That's what happened the previous times," Quick told him. "Right before it vanished, its body would started giving off those lights." The wolf leapt up onto its back legs, using its front ones to pull it up. As it did, its mouth glowed before it launched another laser.
"Everypony move!" Flash yelled, as the ponies all fled from the approaching laser. The beam shot passed them and caused an explosion as it dug through the soil, hitting a few ponies and knocking them away. It then struck another house and ripped it apart, as the wolf's body completely dissolved into magical lights.
Danger gone, everypony sighed in relief. Flash looked around and whilst several ponies appeared to have some minor scrapes and a few burns, none of them were seriously injured
"What the heck was that?" Soarin asked, "I've never heard of a monster that fought like that."
Wallflower nodded. "You'd think something that strong would have gotten some attention before. Unless..." She suddenly looked terrified, "what if it's so strong nopony managed to survive an attack by one before. Leaving no survivors is a guaranteed way to make sure nopony talks about it."
"You really think that nopony managed to survive an encounter with it?" Trixie asked. "If that were true, how did a bunch of untrained ponies manage to survive multiple attacks from it with nothing more than mild injuries?" The townsponies weren't sure they wanted to know, but Luna stepped up to the hole she and Wallflower had made to take a closer look.
Flash moved over to her and saw how she held out her hands, as if feeling something. "You know what it was?"
"I have a theory," Luna stated. "And if I'm right, this creature isn't a monster." That statement got looks of shock from the rest of his team and the townsponies.
"How can it not be a monster?" Quick asked, "that thing has been attacking us nonstop. What else could it be, if not a monster?"
"An even more powerful type of creature," Luna stated. "One of incredible rarity and ability. An Esprit." Flash's eyes went wide, along with Trixie and Wallflower's. But Soarin frowned.
"A what?"
"You've never heard of an esprit?" Trixie asked, "it's like...adventurer basics."
"Sorry. Not everypony knows everything," Soarin pouted. "Would you just tell me what it is?"
"A spirit," Wallflower stated. "Powerful spirits that are bound to specially made amulets, which hold their ensense and bind them to the mortal world. They can only leave the amulet if they bind themselves to ponies or other creatures of equal magical ability. They use the magic to construct bodies that can hold their spirits and give them physical form."
"Yes," Luna nodded. "And in return, the esprits help the ones bounded to them. Either in battle or simply to help in everyday tasks."
"So...slaves?" Soarin asked, not liking the sound of that one bit.
"It's supposed to be a partnership," Flash told him. "I've heard stories of ponies like Starswirl the Bearded, who created the amulets so the esprits could survive. Legends say that they originally fell into this world through a portal and without the amulets, they would have faded from existence. They were then given to ponies Starswirl saw as worthy. They were meant to protect the esprit and let them experience the amazing joys of this world."
"They were indeed," Luna nodded. "Back when I was younger, my sister and I both had our own esprits. Celestia still has hers, but I'm afraid I lost mine when...certain situations occurred." Team Relic knew what see was talking about. "When I got back, one of the first things I learned was how badly esprits were being treated. They had gone from partners and friends to weapons that were being used by anypony that wanted to them for their power. That's why Celestia made it so only ponies deemed worthy by her or the magic council can bond with them."
"So you're saying a pony is sending that thing to attack us?" A magi asked, as Luna crossed her arms and thought for a moment.
"I don't think so," she turned back to the pit and let out her hand. "Esprit are meant to be just as smart as ponies, sometimes smarter depending on the esprit. But what attacked us was nothing more than a mindless beast. My sister told me about something similar happening in Canterlot a few years ago."
"Oh yeah," Trixie nodded. "I remember hearing about that. A dragon-like monster appeared and went stomping around the city, right?" Luna nodded.
"It was an esprit that was only following its base instincts, because its mind wasn't connected to the body that had been made. Apparently, somepony stole an esprit amulet and tried to awaken it. But the magical crystal they used caused it to create a body so large, the esprit couldn't control it."
"Wow," Soarin whistled, "how did Celestia stop it?"
"She didn't. Before she could act, a young magi stepped up to the esprit and used an incredible amount of magic to stop it. She was then able to bound with the esprit, freeing it from its out of control body and causing it to break apart."
"Wow," Trixie looked impressed, "a young magi did that. Impressive. So do you think the same thing is happening here?"
"Somepony's exposing an esprit amulet to high levels of magic?" Wallflower asked, "causing it to form a large magical form that it can't control?"
"Exactly. It's following its basic instincts. And for some reason, those instincts are making it attack these ponies. That either means somepony intentionally sending it this way, or it itself wants to hurt ponies for some reason. Either way, we need to find a way to stop it."
"How?" Flash asked.
"The esprit keeps coming from the forest, so the forest is where we need to look. You four prepare yourselves. It won't just be the esprit we'll find in those woods." The four nodded and quickly got to work. Each of them re-packing their bags in order to have everything they'd need to find the esprit.
As they did, Quick Wit and the rest of the townsponies got to work repairing the damage done by the esprit. Hopefully, this would be the last time they would need to do this.
Once they were all packed up, they headed towards the forest. Luckily, they didn't need to search very far. Thanks to the trial it had made, they had a path that should lead them straight to where the esprit had come from. They had their weapons at the ready, Flash using his Lightning Blade and Fire Shield, but there didn't seem to be any monsters that wanted to attack them. Yet.
"This is nothing like the last time we went into a monster filled forest," Trixie stated. "We should have been attacked by at least three different types of monsters already."
"Don't jinx us," Soarin stated. "I'd prefer to get through here without fighting any monsters if possible." The others nodded, knowing they would need all the strength they would need if the esprit reappeared and attacked them.
But in that moment, movement in the trees caught their attention and they spun towards the trees. Flash raised his shield, ready to let the flames loose, whilst Soarin notched his bow and the magic users prepared their staffs. Wallflower raised her gloves, though she couldn't exactly do anything from a distance.
Then, the one that caused the noise stepped out of the woods. It was a giant mantis monster, standing at around three meters in height. It was green in colour and its hands had giants metal scythes, its face having no eyes but they had a feeling it could still see somehow.
They prepared to attack as the monster approached, but then it stopped advancing as it looked down at the path. As if sensing danger, it moved backwards and disappeared into the trees again. "Well," Trixie frowned, "wasn't expecting that."
"It's like it was afraid," Wallflower stated.
"Afraid of what?" Flash asked.
Luna leaned down a placed her hand on the ground, Flash having a feeling she was using her terran magic to scan the ground. "This path is permeated with spiritual energy. The esprit's power must have been flowing out of it as it moved and stained the ground."
"And the monsters can sense it?" Flash asked, Luna nodding as she stood up. "Does that mean nothing's gonna attack us so long as we're on this path?"
"It would be foolish to make that assumption," Luna told them. "It's possible, but we should still be ready to fight in case something decides to attack." They nodded and continued up the path, all the while keeping their attention on the monsters that were likely to leap out and attack them at any moment. But they didn't.
Several times, they heard movement in the trees and could tell that monsters were preparing to attack. But before they did, they sensed the esprit's power and backed off. Even though they knew they shouldn't, the members of Team Relic all began to relax as they moved.
As they did, Trixie turned to Luna. "Princess, you said there were lots of different esprits out there? I know this one's a wolf-like esprit and there was that dragon esprit, but what other types are there." The others were also interested, wanting to know as much about these unusual creatures as they could.
"Explaining every esprit I've ever seen would take forever," she explained. "But I can tell you some of the more interesting ones out there."
"You said you had one?" Flash asked, as Luna frowned.
"Yes. She was a Slumberam, with the ability to travel into ponies dreams and take me into them. Occasionally in the old days, we would take trips into pony's dreams and see what they were dreaming about."
"Cool," Soarin smirked, "you ever go inside nightmares?"
"Dreamwalker didn't like to go into nightmares. Too scary."
"That's too bad," Soarin sighed. "If I had an ability to go into dreams, I'd hunt down every nightmare I can find and try and stop it."
"I don't think that'd be a real good idea," Wallflower told him. "Who knows what damage you could do if you messed up. You could end up having a serious effect on their psyche." The others realised she might be right, whilst Flash shrugged.
"True, but imagine all the good you could do if you knew what you were doing. A lot of the times, nightmares are caused by worries and problems ponies are dealing with in the real world. If they can't deal with them when they're awake, facing them in their dreams might do a lot of good for them." The others seemed to think the same thing, whilst Luna looked intrigued by Flash's suggestions. "But what about Celestia. You said she had one two, right?"
"Yes," Luna nodded, "Philomena. She's a phoenix esprit. She has the power to fly at incredible speeds and use fire attribute attacks, whilst also being able to transform her body into a blast of fire that allowed her to fly through gaps smaller then her. My sister formed such a strong bond with Philomena, she could even use the connection to see through her eyes. She used this to do aerial reconnaissance when she needed it."
"Cool," Trixie smirked, "I wonder if I'll ever get my own esprit."
"I'd sure love one," Soarin smirked. "Maybe something that can move super fast."
Luna looked back at them. "Remember, esprits aren't pets or tools. If you do get an esprit, you'll be responsible for taking care of it. You'll be meant to be their carers and friends. To show them the world that they might not get to enjoy otherwise." The four nodded, each of them knowing what a great honour being entrusted with one would be. If any of them did get to have one, they all promised they would treat it like family.
They five of them continued through the woods and with every meter, they found the trees being less and less damaged.
"Is it just me, or is the path getting smaller?" Trixie asked.
"The esprit must have been growing," Luna stated. "Its physical form likely formed smaller then what we saw, then grew larger as it absorbed more and more magic." As she said that, they turned a corner and found themselves coming face to face with a giant pile of wood and soil.
They looked to the side and found a large slope that led up to a higher section of the forest, Luna moving over to check it out.
"Landslide," she realised. "Must have been recent." As she said that, Flash noticed something sticking out of the slope. It was something pointed and glowing white, the avian flying over to it and brushing some more soil away to reveal what it was.
"A magical crystal." The others looked up and sure enough, a pure white crystal twice the size of Flash's head was half buried in the soil.
Luna could feel the magic radiating off of it. "Must have been buried under there for centuries until the landslide uncovered it." She thought for a moment, "I wonder..." Soarin took this moment to fly over the land pile and was surprised by what he saw.
"Guys, you're gonna wanna see this." Flash moved away from the crystal before he and Luna lifted the girls over the landslide, the four joining Soarin on top of the earth pile and being shocked to see a section of the forest that was in the shadow of small cliff. But it was what was sitting at the base of the cliff that caught their attention.
It was a skeleton. An avian skeleton by the look of the wing bones on its back. The skeleton was leaning against the rock of the cliff, looking like he had been there for a while based on the amount of plants of foliage that was growing in and around it. But it was what was around its neck that interested them the most.
It was a necklace. A piece of string was hanging around the neck and at the bottom of the string, a metal pendant of some kind. The pendant was in the exact same shape as the wolf's head, being a mixture of blue and black. It didn't have any eyes but in the centre of it, right in the forehead beneath the ears, a red gem was embedded into the metal.
"The amulet," Luna gasped before looking towards the magical crystal. "Of course. When the landslide happened, the gem was revealed and its magic started leaking out. The amulet then started absorbing the magic and used it to create a physical form."
"So nopony was making it attack the town?" Wallflower asked, Luna nodding. "Then why did it keep going there?"
"I don't know," Luna stated. "But what matters now if getting the amulet away from the crystal before it absorbs enough magic to form another body." They nodded and all leapt down, moving towards the amulet. But as they got closer, the gem in the amulet started glowing.
"What's it doing?" Flash asked, only for it to then unleash a bright light. It blinded them and forced the five back, as the light took shape. When they finally managed to open their eyes, they were met with the image of the wolf creature that glared at them. It was smaller then it had been before, being only half the size of an elephant. But it was still big and as it snarled, light appeared in its mouth.
"Move!" Luna cried, right as the wolf let out a whole and unleashed a laser from its mouth.
The flyers took to the air, as Wallflower pulled herself away with a vine and Trixie leaped away. "Super Freeze!" She launched the lightning at the monster, but it jumped back to avoid it whilst the metal spikes on the back of its front paws grew and morphed into claws.
It slashed at her, Trixie barely managing to avoid it as blasts of light, wind and fire were shot towards it. The three in the air frowned at the attacks, as they bounced off the beast without causing a scratch. "Just hold on," Flash stated as Wallflower threw a rock she had found at it. "This thing'll disappear eventually."
"I'm not so sure," Luna stated as the wolf launched another laser at them. She put up a shield, which blocked the laser but the impact pushed her back. "It disappeared before because it ran out of magic and had no way to recharge itself." She glanced back at the crystal still embedded in the ground, "but the area's full of magic it can use to rebuild itself."
"So what do we do?" Soarin asked, as the wolf swing its head tendrils around. He managed to avoid the tendril and fired several air arrows into it, the tendril flinching back but not being damaged at all.
"We have to beat it," Luna stated as she thrust her staff forward. Tendrils of shadows exploded off of it and flew towards the esprit, wrapping around its legs and neck. "If we damage the body enough, it'll be forced back into the amulet and we can move it."
Flash flew down and as the wolf struggled against the shadow chains, he slashed at it. It howled at the lightning being channeled into the cuts, but ever slash mark quickly began to close up. "Come on!" As he said that, the wolf's mouth glowed as it took a deep breath. "Look out!" He flew away as it howled, the laser exploding from its mouth and cutting down several trees.
Trixie launched several icicles and Wallflower swung her vines around to whip it, but the wolf's body either deflected the attacks or healed the wound up almost instantly. Wallflower sighed, "as long as its got magic it can heal itself."
"So what do we do?" Soarin asked as he fired a lightning arrow at its mouth.
Wallflower looked around and saw the crystal, an idea forming in her head. She swung over to the slope and grabbed the magical gemstone, using all her terran strength to pull at it. "If...we get this...far enough...away. It can't...heal!" Finally, the gem came flying out of the ground and she clutched it in her gauntlets.
But in that moment, the wolf turned to her and let out another howl. This one was louder and didn't come with the laser, but it was powerful enough to send out a gust of wind that struck Wallflower. She grunted as she fell back, the crystal flying into the air.
The wolf shot forward, a tendril grabbing the gem and pulling it into its mouth. "NO!" Luna cried, as it swallowed the magical gem down.
"Did it just do what I think it did?" Trixie gulped, as the magic radiating out of the gem began to flow through the creature. It let out a might howl as its body grew and veins bulged out of its skin. Its eyes began entirely red and as it roared, slopper flew out of its mouth.
"Oh...great," Flash sighed as the beast unleashed another roar. The laser exploded out of it and they all leapt to the side, avoid the beam as best they could. The only one who didn't was Wallflower, who was still recovering from being blown back.
As such, the laser struck the ground near her and exploded. She screamed as she was knocked flying through a tree and crashing to the ground. "WALLFLOWER!" He friends screamed, Soarin turning to glare at the monster.
"That's it!" He charged forward and fired at it, but the wolf jumped onto its back legs to avoid the lightning. It then swung its tendrils around and slammed him right in the chest. "AUGH!"
"Soarin!" Flash cried, as Soarin was sent rocketing backwards like Wallflower. The wolf's spikes then turned to claws that it started slashing the air with, Flash and Luna flying up as the trees around the beast were cut down. Trixie was forced to run around and avoid the falling trees, then raised her staff.
"Illusion!" She unleashed a blast of light that took shape and formed another wolf, exactly like the one they were fighting. It stared at the illusion for a moment before turning away from it, not even looking back as the fake tried to slash at it. "What?"
"It knows it's not real?" Luna asked, "how?" Trixie stopped running and used her illusion again, this time turning herself invisible. She then spun her staff around and extended the blade, intending to stab it into the beast's chest.
But the wolf's eyes fell on her despite her being invisible. "Trixie!" Flash yelled, "it knows you're there!" Sure enough, the wolf fired out a laser that struck the spot right in front of her.
She screamed in pain, as she was blasted backwards and into the air. She turned visible as she fell towards a broken tree, the jaggard wood pointed right up at her. But before she landed, Luna flew under her and caught the magi. "You okay?" She looked Trixie over and didn't see any serious injuries, but Trixie was clearly thrown for a loop.
The wolf fired another laser at them, but Flash flew in front and raised his shield.
The laser slammed into it and pushed him backwards, making him flinch as he fought against the force. As he did, he looked back at the half-conscious Trixie and then down at where Soarin and Wallflower were laying. They were now down to two and if they didn't do something, this thing would take them out and rampage through the town again.
As the laser stopped firing, Flash lowered his shield and stared at the wolf. Then, he looked behind it at the skeleton. And an idea formed in his head. "That's it."
"What's it!?" Luna asked, as the wolf prepared to fire the laser again.
"Keep Trixie safe!" Flash then shot away from them, shooting fireballs towards the wolf as he did. This caught the beast's attention and made it fire the laser at him, Flash spinning through the air to avoid it. And as soon as the laser finished firing, he shot straight towards the wolf.
"FLASH!" Luna cried as she put Trixie down on the ground, as the wolf's claws extended to slash at him. She swung her staff around and launched a crescent of dark light, which caught the wolf's attention and made it slash at it instead. This allowed Flash to get in close and fly passed its head, the esprit growling as Flash landed on its back and slid down its spine.
And before the beast could react, he leapt off it and flew towards the amulet.
The wolf spun around and attempted to swallow Flash, but his managed to get his fingers around the amulet. And sure enough, a brilliant flash of light exploded out of the relic that consumed Flash and the wolf entirely.
Flash blinked as he looked around, wondering where the heck he was.
He was in some kind of white void, with absolutely nothing around for him to see. He walked forward, but he might as well have been walking on the spot with how much the place stayed the same. "This is where the esprit lives?" He asked, feeling sorry for the creature. If he had to live in a place like this, he would be upset as well.
But then, he finally noticed something ahead of him. Some kind of blue lightning, which was sparking in a sphere a good distance from him.
He rushed forward, "are you the mind of the esprit we've been fighting?" The lightning remained silent. "Please, you have to stop attacking the ponies in the town."
"Why?" A voice finally spoke up, "why should I not give those ponies what they deserve."
"What are you talking about?" Flash asked, wondering why the esprit sounded so angry. He got his answer when the world around him pulsed with light and when it faded, Flash found he was in a town of some sorts. He then shifted to a back alley, a rather sketchy looking one like those he had seen blackmarket deal go down in movies.
And sure enough, he found two ponies hiding in the alleyway looking rather paranoid. "You got the bits?" The magi asked the avian, who pulled out a bag of coins. In return, the magi took out a familiar looking amulet. "Wasn't easy to get my hands on this. The magic council isn't big on no named ponies having them."
"Ha!" The avian snatched the amulet, "well this'll help me make a name for myself. So, how does it work?"
"To bond with it, you just have to give it a name."
The avian frowned, "sounds like a lot of work. And I'd have to remember it too? Whatever, what type of esprit is it called?"
"This species is known as a jakhowl. They're strong all round esprits, that mostly fight in close quarters and can wield life force known as aura to increase its strength and attack from range. They have other skills outside of battle like-"
"Not interested," the avian stated. "It can fight and that's all that matters. You said it was called a jakhowl?" The magi nodded, "I guess that'll do." He raised the amulet up, "your name is jakhowl. Now come out and serve me!" The amulet unleashed a bright light, which blinded Flash for a moment.
When he opened his eyes, he found he was now in a mountainous area.
A roar caught his attention and made him look around, where he saw an elephant sized rat several feet away. He also spotted the avian, who was sitting on a rock watching something moving around the creature. It was moving to fast for Flash to see, but it slashed and punched the rat with incredible force.
When the rat finally exploded, the blur flew over to the avian as he picked himself up. "Good, now return."
"But-" The blur tried to speak before morphing into a light that flew back into the amulet.
"Good," the avian smirked, "only three more to go before this job is done. Easiest bits I've ever made." He walked off and Flash realised he was using the esprit to do all the hard work and reaping the rewards. Talk about unfair.
Before Flash could do anything, the world around him changed again. When it came into focus, Flash realised he was back in the forest. The avian was right where Flash had found his skeleton and then, he heard a noise that made him look around to see several of the mantis monsters he had seen before fighting against the blue blur.
"Will you hurry up!" The avian cried, "this forest is creepy!" The esprit thrust a sphere of some kind into a mantis and caused it to explode, only for another mantis to slash at him.
"Augh!" He heard the voice he heard earlier cry out, as he was knocked backwards.
But Flash watched as he recovered in midair and managed to bounce off a tree trunk and shoot towards the mantis. In the blink of an eye, he flew passed it and slashed him with a glowing claw that had appeared from its paw. The beast roared in pain as it exploded, but the last two mantises slashed at the esprit before he could attack them back.
"GYAH!" He cried before his body exploded, the light that appeared out of him flying back to the avian.
"What are you doing?" The winged equestrian cried, as the light flew back into the amulet around his neck. "Come back out!" He cried, but he didn't. "I'm ordering you!" But the amulet had no reaction, whilst the mantis monsters stepped forward. "No." He took out a dagger, but it was clear he was no match for them. "I...I can't die here. I'm not supposed to die now. I'm supposed to get rich and die old." The mantises charged, "NOOOOO!"
Flash closed his eyes, not wanting to see this. Luckily, the world around him vanished and he was back in the void.
The lightning sphere was still in front of him, "ponies are mean. They only care about using others to make them money." Flash understood now, why this esprit was so angry.
"You're right," he nodded. "That pony was mean. He didn't see you as a partner. You were just a tool for him, to fight so he didn't have to." He slowly moved towards him, "but most ponies aren't like that. The ones you've been attacking are good ponies, who never did anything to hurt you. And now they're scared."
"I was scared," the esprit replied. "I was forced to fight again and again. That's all I was allowed to do. I wanted to see the world. I couldn't wait to meet a pony that could make me their partner. Let me out of the amulet so I could see what the world looked like. But the only time I was allowed out was to fight."
"I know," Flash nodded. "And I'm sorry. You shouldn't have had to do that. If the magic council had found you, they would have given you to an adventurer that would care about you. It was just bad luck you were given to a pony that didn't care about you." An idea formed in his head. I wasn't sure if it would work, but he had to try. "Come with me."
"What?"
"Come with me. Become my partner. I might not be a real adventurer yet, but I'm on an expedition right now. We'll be seeing a bunch of different things on this adventure. And if you bond with me, you can see them too. I promise, I'll let you see everything I can. And if you don't want to stay with me when the adventure ends, I'll give you to Princess Luna. She'll take you to the magic council and they'll find you a real partner. So what do you say?"
The lightning sphere was silent, Flash unsure if it was looking at him or not. But he could feel like something was penetrating his very soul, as if looking at his spirit. Then, the esprit spoke up. "I say yes." His voice suddenly appeared much happier. Like the formerly sad way he had talked was all an act he had stopped doing.
"Wow!" Flash pulled back, "you bounced back fast." The esprit laughed.
"I'm a jakhowl. We have abilities beyond just fighting. I can sense aura."
"Aura?"
"The lifeforce of all living things. I can see when an aura is good or bad. And when someone lies, their aura fluxuates. But your aura's really pure and you weren't lying. You really want to show me the world, don't you?"
"Of course," Flash smiled as he knelt down and held out a hand. "And I want to be your partner. If you'll have me." The lightning sphere then started to change. It took a different shape, appearing humanoid with big ears and paws.
"Yes," he reached out a paw, "but you'll need to give me a name. That's how the bond if formed."
"A name?" Flash tried to think. He didn't want to half-ass this name, since it would be something important for the esprit. Then, an idea formed in his head. "Well, you have a pretty bouncy personality. So I'll name you after the bounciest thing I can think of." He grasped the lightning hand, "I name you...Springer." With that, the void around them burst into light.
Back in the real world, Luna was blinded by the light as it filled the forest. It had only been a second since Flash grabbed the amulet, but to her it felt like hours.
The light was so bright, it caused Soarin, Wallflower and Trixie to all wake up. They groaned as they picked themselves up, whilst the light began to fade. And as it did, a pair of figures began to walk towards them. "Flash?" Luna called out, as the light faded completely and revealed who the two were.
Flash smirked as he walked forward, Luna noticing the amulet now around his neck. But it was the other figure that surprised her and the others.
It was a small wolf-like creature, who stood on two legs and went up to about Flash's waist. His body was mostly light blue, with black legs, black around his chest and a black mask covering his eyes and the top of his nose. Two white bumps were on the back of his hands and his tail wagged back and forth, whilst on the side of his head hug a pair of teardrop shaped dangles.
"Flash?" Trixie asked, as she and the others moved over to Luna. "What did you do?"
Flash smirked as he looked down at the wolf, then knelt down and placed a hand on his head. "Everypony, I'd like to introduce you to my new partner. Springer the Jakhowl."
Their eyes went wide as Luna asked, "you bonded to the esprit?" Flash looked sheepish and shrugged.
"It was the only way I could think of to get him to stop. He's sorry about what happened, but it wasn't his fault. He was angry because of what his last partner did to him." He explained everything he saw and they were shocked by this discovery, the lot of them feeling sorry for Springer. "So I promised I would let him join us as my partner. And when the adventure was over, he could leave if he wanted."
"I see," Luna crossed her arms.
"I know I'm not qualified to have him," Flash then bowed his head. "But would it be okay if the two of us stayed a team until the end of this expedition? Then you can take Springer to the magic council and find him a real partner." Springer mimicked him.
"Please."
Luna watched him for a moment, then smiled. "I don't think I'll need to take him. It's clear that you will take good care of him." They looked up at her in shock. "As the Princess of Equestria, I hereby grant you permission to remain bonded to this esprit. So long as Springer wishes to stay your partner, you can remain together as long as he sees fit."
The pair smiled at this before looking to one another, Springer leaping up so they can high-five.
The others took a closer look at Springer, "so this is the thing that attacked us?" Trixie asked, as Springer turned to them and suddenly gave them the best puppy dog eyes they had ever seen.
"I'm sorry." This statement combined with the look made both Trixie and Wallflower's hearts melt, his cuteness too much for even Luna to be mad at. Soarin looked him over, curious about something.
"So, this is what he's supposed to look like? After the monster we fought, I was kind of expecting him to look...I don't know. More badass."
Luna chuckled. "This form is the one Springer can use to conserve energy." She gestured to the Amulet, "most of his power is still locked inside the Amulet. The magic from Flash used to make his current form, is a tiny drop in a bathtub. But if he needs more power, Flash can use more magic to allow him to increase in size and strength."
Flash smirked, "let's give it a try." He took his amulet off and held it up, "ready Springer?" He nodded as Flash channelled magic into the amulet. Light then exploded out of the gem and as Springer leapt into the air, the light wrapped around him.
"Esprit...EVOLUTION!" He cried as the light formed a cocoon around him. After a few seconds, it exploded and Springer's new form was revealed.
He was now a smaller version of the creature he had been before, standing at just above Flash's shoulder though his long ears made him look almost as tall as Flash. The red parts of his body were gone, his front paws being black now whilst his back legs were entirely black. He also had a black ring around his waist between the yellow and blue parts, giving him the appearance of wearing a belt. The spikes on his paws weren't as angled, whilst the tendrils on his head were replaced by two pairs of teardrops he had had before.
Springer landed and the others were amazed by the sudden transformation, as he looked himself over. "Pretty cool, huh?"
"Heck yeah it is!" Flash smirked, only to see Springer frowning. "What's wrong?"
"Doesn't feel...right." The others raised an eyebrow, "I feel stronger. But I don't feel...the strongest. Like I'm supposed to be stronger, but I'm not."
"Ah," Luna nodded, "well this is as far as you can go for now. The strength of your current body is the strongest you and Flash can form at the moment. The longer you two remain bonded, the stronger the connection you'll form. And once your connection is stronger, it'll be able to support forming a stronger body for you to inhabit."
Flash turned to Springer. "So we've still got a ways to go before the pair of us are the best team we can be." Springer nodded, whilst Luna turned to leave.
"We should get going. Springer, you should stay in that form until we get back to town. Monsters might decide to attack now that you're no longer as powerful as you once were." Springer nodded and they were about to leave, but Springer gulped.
"Are the ponies in that town gonna be mad at me?" The others weren't sure, but had a feeling Springer was gonna need to do a lot of apologising before they could forgive him. However, it was at that moment Wallflower noticed something on the ground.
"Hey," she rushed over and picked something up, "look." She showed them the magical gem Springer had eaten earlier, "where did this come from?"
Luna smirked, "must have dropped to the ground after Springer's old form vanished." She took a closer look, "doesn't seem to be out of power." A thought appeared in her mind, "I think I might know how we can smooth things over with the ponies in town."
Returning to the town, the ponies were happy when they learned they would no longer be attacked.
Many of them were very unhappy to see Springer, believing he should be locked up for the damages and pain he caused. But Luna told them how it wasn't really his fault, how he was angry about the treatment he unjustly suffered. Springer gave them the same puppy-dog eyes he had given his new friends, asking for their forgiveness.
This coupled with the magical stone, which they could sell for a great price, convinced the ponies to put the water under the bridge.
And so, after resting up a bit more, Flash and his newly increased team were back in their truck. "Thank you," Quick Wit told them. "For everything you've done."
"No problem," Flash assured him.
"We were happy to help," Luna nodded. "And if your town ever has need of help, Canterlot and the rest of Equestria will be there to help you." They nodded as Flash started the truck, looking around at his teammates.
"Everypony ready?"
"Ready," the ponies all smiled.
"Ready," Springer said as he sat on Wallflower's lap. Flash smirked and hit the gas, the truck blasting off and heading down the dirt road towards the marshlands.
This adventure he was on was continuing to amaze him. He went from almost dying in a poisonous mountain range, to meeting and befriending a new partner. Flash could only wonder what might happen next and how it would affect the outcome of their adventure.
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Flash finally got his own Espirt in form of none other than Springer himself!
I felt bad for Springer since his previous owner treat him more of a tool than a friend… glad he found new owner in Flash who no doubt treat him way better than that asshole avian.
Here's highlights
Ha! I did find it funny when Trixie and Wallflower fell.
Indeed, Flash.
Karma, bitch! That's what you get for being a lazy bum, you asshole avian!
And that's the birth of bromance between Flash and Springer!
Spike?!!
twilight sparkle!!
11564264 What language is that in?
11564271
oops, I'm Brazilian man. I don't know how to read in English, so I use a Brazilian translator
11564290 Ah, makes sense.
Oh man, Springer is in this story too?! It feels like this story just keeps getting better and better!
I felt really bad for Springer, the way that selfish avian treated him. There are bad people in any world, but that doesn't mean everyone is bad. He doesn't need to worry about being used anymore, because he hit the jackpot meeting Flash.
I feel like something is being built up for Soarin. He seems to be lacking basic knowledge that everyone else knows. First he didn't know what a magical layline was, now it's Esprits. It almost seems like he didn't go to school, but I'm not sure how that could be the case if he made it into the academy. Questions for later.
so you basicly gave him a lucario