Ark 1: A Typical Monday...
'Well, it's official. That was the. Best. E3. Ever!'
I thought as I walked out into the cool night air, the convention now officially over. I was still wearing my Inquisitor costume, since, well, it was comfy. And pretty damn cool. I was dressed up just like the Inquisitor was in the trailer, with the signature spiked helm that had ornate details that would make many a RPG fan squeal. Like the dragon wings covering most of my face, and the dragon head ingrained on the front, before it trailed off down my head in a column of spikes. Then, there was the chestpiece, which had silver scale like designs in between joints, allowing free movement. The vest underneath was a golden orange, with a bright sash around my waist that was as yellow and golden as wheat when the sun hits it just right. The rest was just some pauldrons, boots and gauntlets, the boots being pointed and the gauntlets with talon like finger guards.
It was, in short, the best costume I'd ever had. Really had to give it to my friend Kevin, he could work metal like a dream. Heard he even tried to make a robot dragon. With a mind to match a humans. Yeah, didn't go well, but still, really good metal worker. He even made me this big sword to complete the look. Thing looked wicked with it's scalloped blade. Not sure if that's the right term for it, but hey, never said I was an English teacher.
Anyway, I was walking through the parking lot, looking for my car, but then I noticed a man in a very expensive looking business suit, one that looked like it was made of woven gold. He had matching golden locks as well, and his appearance just screamed, 'I'm rich!' He was walking my way, and originally I thought he was just looking for his own vehicle, up until I noted that his gaze was locked on me, and he had a big grin on his face, one that told me he had a proposition. So, to be polite, I stopped and asked, "Hello? Do you need something?"
His grin grew as he said, "Oh no, not really. I just noticed that amazing armor you're wearing, and thought that such a good costume deserves praise. And maybe even a gift." I raised an eyebrow, but he simply smiled and dug into his pocket, bringing out an item that made my eyes nearly pop out of their sockets. It was an ornate golden necklace, with a sizable medallion of the same metal with a masterfully cut emerald as the centerpiece.
"I-I couldn't possibly-" I began.
"Oh it's no trouble, think of it as a reward," he interrupted. I was dumbfounded. Here was a man who was simply giving away a most likely priceless necklace, all for the reason of rewarding a good costume. Yet I couldn't deny that I wanted it. So, with no small amount of disbelief, I took the necklace, and placed it around my neck. As soon as I did, I felt an intense pain in my hand, which quickly spread up my wrist, through my arm, and throughout the rest of my body. I cried out in agony, clutching my hand.
I tore off my gauntlet, and saw a horrifying sight. My hand was glowing and crackling with a sickly green energy, and it pulsed like an alien heartbeat, each pulse causing shooting, burning pain throughout my body. I fell to my knees, unable to stand from the pain. "Oh, don't fret now. Rejoice! This is a tremendous gift! With this mark, you can tear through the Rift itself! And you'll be surrounded by women!" The man said with that signature grin, and it was then that I finally noticed his eyes. They were a glowing, golden yellow, with silver irises. My vision was swimming, and I fought to stay awake, but the pain was too much, and I blacked out.
"TAKE COVER!" yelled an Equestrian commander. All ponies present dove for said cover as a flaming boulder impacted the ground near them. A resounding boom, not unlike thunder, echoed across the torn battlefield. The commander, a grizzled stallion, grey of coat and stalwart of soul, cut the throat of a thin, demonic figure with unnaturally long claws and appendages, which flopped over, gurgling it's own blood, before dispersing in a crackle of green energy. The commander glanced around the battlefield with his large brown eyes.
The battle was not going in the Equestrian's favor. The Minotaur Rampagers, covered in glowing red Arcana crystals, were utterly destroying them with the help of the demonic legions of Tartarus. A bull charged straight for the commander, who side stepped and slit open the unfortunate soul's side, his innards spilling out. The Arcana quickly covered the wound, however, and the bull charged again.
The commander glared at his opponent before brandishing the blade in his magical grip and quickly lopping the bull's head off. The commander then took a second glance around, seeing the broken expressions of his small platoon, and grit his teeth. He was just about to yell a command to retreat, when a Rift, much larger than the rest that were scattered around the battlefield, appeared, and spat out a tall, bipedal figure, one that was much different from the form of the Minotaurs. The figure was writhing on the ground, clutching it's hand, which was aglow with the same energy of the Rift's, before yelling in agony, causing the glow to flare and let out an explosion that decimated the ranks of the demons and Minotaurs.
It was with that instance that the Minotaurs retreated, their ranks now much less than the Equestrian's, while the demon's simply dispersed with the same green energy. The Equestrian's cheered, rejoicing in their victory, but the commander was suspicious and curious of the figure that had been spat out of such a large Rift.
My head hurt like hell, almost as if I had the world's worst hangover, but that was nothing compared to the agony that was my hand. Everything was pitch black, but I could hear voices, some of them feminine, others masculine. Slowly, I opened my eyes, and what greeted me was the canvas walls of a tent and the dim light of a candle. The voices stopped. I slowly sat up, only to hear the sound of metal and feel it's coldness against the skin of my neck. It was then that I noticed that I was surrounded. Not by murderers like I suspected, but technicolor ponies. All wearing golden armor and with horns, which, I noticed, were glowing the same color as the blades that were pressing against my neck.
'Ummm... What?'
I blinked. Once. Twice. Still there.
'Again. What?'
I heard the sound of hooves approaching, and looked to the entrance to the tent to see a miniature horse with gray fur, a blonde, crew cut mane, and large, brown eyes. It was wearing what looked like a more upgraded set of golden armor, with a blue star in the center of the chestpiece and red plumage on it's helmet. It seemed to glare at me, and that's when something I never expected happened.
"Tell me why we shouldn't kill you right now," it spoke in a masculine voice. It actually spoke. How is that possible!? I was too stunned to answer. The little horse seemed to not like my silence, and grabbed the hand that was sparking and crackling with energy. "Explain this," it, or rather, he, asked, if the voice was anything to go by.
"I...I can't," I croaked. My throat, I realized, was dry.
"What do you mean you can't?" he asked, tone dangerous.
"I don't know what it even is!" I protested. He seemed to scrutinize me for any shred of dishonesty, before sighing and placing a hoof to his forehead, rubbing it.
"What do you remember?" he asked after a few minutes.
"I remember leaving a convention, a weird man gave me this necklace, and then...nothing," I hung my head. What did that guy do to me? And waht about my friends, my family? The stallion sighed heavily, momentarily breaking me from my thoughts.
"Alright...I believe you," he said finally. "Wouldn't go over well with the troops anyway..." he muttered.
"Troops?" I asked, confused.
"It...would be better to show you," he said, before turning to one of the horses pointing their sword at me. "Release him," after that, they all sheathed their blades, and I was free to stand. "Follow me."
And so I did. And the sight that greeted me when I followed the stallion out of the tent was...devastating, to say the least. Wounded were being tended to, but it was clear that they had precious little time. They were everywhere, and it was easy to see that they didn't have enough medics. There was an even higher amount of bodies, all covered in canvas and primed for burial. My anger surged. Who could do this? This was wrong. Just wrong. I don't know why I was angry, I didn't even know any of them, but thinking about the families they must have, and how devastated they would be, it just made me so full of rage.
"Who did this?" I asked, trying my best to keep my anger in check.
"The Minotaurs, along with the demons of Tartarus. You're appearance won us the battle, but the war is far from over," the stallion explained.
"War?" I queried. The stallion nodded with a grim look on his face.
"Yes. We've been at war with a rogue group of Minotaurs and the demons of Tartarus for a number of weeks now. Needless to say, it's not looking good for us," the stalion informed me.
"Tell me everything," I implored. The stallion looked at me quizzically.
"Why? From what you've told me, you're just a civillian. You don't plan to get involved, do you?" he asked. I paused at this. It really wasn't any business of mine, but seeing all this death, all this sorrow, this despair, this hopelessness in all these...ponies, eyes... It filled me with so much rage. How could anyone justify this? It didn't seem right. No, it was just plain wrong, sickening, even.
I was torn. On the one hand, I wanted to go back home, on the other, I couldn't just leave these guys without help. It would haunt me for the rest of my life if I just turned a blind eye. With that thought, I made up my mind.
"Yes. Yes I do," I affirmed. The stallion seemed somewhat shocked, his eyes widening, before he cracked a smile.
"Well then, I can't very well say no to that, now can I?" the stallion said. "But first, you'll need some training. Can't have you going out there without any knowledge of fighting, after all." The stallion raised a hoof. "Name's Handsome Knight, Commander Handsome Knight."
I grasped his hoof and shook it. "Murphy Dryadson, at your service," I greeted.
"Welcome aboard, Mister Murphy," Handsome welcomed. And thus began my days in the land of Equestria.