when young soul was born he must help stop a war that should never have started with the help of crimson fang he will grow to be who he is meant to be. the shadow knight of nexus.
Summary: In the time before Discord, a lone soul will be born to end a war that should never have started, and will go down a path that his kind has never ventured before. Allied with the King of Monsters, Crimson Fang, Figlio di Sangue, he will grow to become who he was meant to be. A true prince of the shades and the Shadow Knight of Nexus. This is set before Dark Star the Crazed's King of Monsters fic.
Nox Void, King of Nexus. That was the title of the ancient dragon known for the ability to control the element of shadow, and at the moment, the shadow puppeteer was nervous. The king was a black dragon that had looked skeletal, he also had an extra pair of arms on his body located just beneath the first two, and his scales were shaped to jut outward in places, making is seem as if he was a living suit of armor. He had kind, crimson eyes and held knowledge of the world he ruled. Almost always strapped to his back was a massive Zweihänder. The shadow dragon paced through the hallway of his castle while one of his servants tended to his wife, who was in labor. Decades earlier the dragon had literally created his own kingdom.
He was one of the elemental dragons, a kind able to use elemental magic, and had delved into dark magic. His experiments eventually bore fruit in the form a Gollum which he called a shade. It was a blank mass of physical shadow with his family's crest as a face. The crest was two crescent moons bound together by a blood red chain with a padlock in the center of the cross section the chain made between the crescents which formed an X. He called his new creation a shift.
But over the first month of his rule over the new beings, he noticed that the creatures were dying, after many weeks of trying to figure out why, the answer came to him in the form of his own shadow. If nothing stood between a source of light and the ground, then a shadow could not exist. This led him to conclude that the shifts were being killed because of direct contact with sunlight. They would die after a max of six hours if they did not enter the shadows to heal.
Panicking about how to keep his subjects alive, the king delved even deeper into dark magic. The knowledge he gained slowly twisted his mind, but in the end he had finally discovered a solution. By taking a piece of his shadow and infusing it with the natural magic of the world, he was able to change two of the Gollum’s into homunculus like beings. This extended their lifespan in sunlight to a good three years, if they periodically got out of the sunlight and under cover.
Eventually the population started to mutate. The shades had created their own way of reproducing. They took small fragments of their own cores and shadow and merged them with another fragment. This created a form of new shades. Void was later shocked when he noticed that his own body started to mutate after a century as king.
His old body was an ordinary black dragon with calm blue eyes. But the use of dark magic had finally taken its toll on the king. He later found out what had happened to his body because of the black magic. He had become a shade just like his creations. By that point they had gotten his kingdom's capital up in a valley covered in shadows due to the tall mountains that prevented the sunlight from being shown in a direct spot. They had named the valley The Nexus of Shadows and thus came the name of the kingdom.
Eventually the shade king's black magic had upset the balance of the world to the point where it that it had started to get torn apart at the seams, and, as a result, had created a spirit named Concord to bring the world back into balance. This spirit decided it needed to create its own beings using light magic. He decided that the easiest way to do so was to infuse the natural creatures called ponies. After doing so it resulted in a mutation for two thirds of the ponies. One third grew wings while the second had horns sprout from their foreheads. It had also turned the entirety of the creatures into sentient beings. The ponies who had not been mutated in any physical way, earth ponies, became farmers because they had a strong connection to plants and nature. The ones who had sprouted horns, later called unicorns, were given the ability to use magic to a degree strong enough to create things, with an exchange of becoming tired afterword. The mutations of the third species, pegasi, had given them the power to fly and manipulate the weather.
Eventually war broke out. The king had managed to fight to a standstill against the spirit who, in a burst of magic, had somehow absorbed the shade king's insanity. The result turned the spirit into a mix and mesh creature called a Draconequus and resulted in the spirit’s name changing from Concord to Discord. The spirit that had once existed for the purpose of keeping the world in order, had now become a spirit of chaos.
With his new found sanity the king threw the spirit out of the kingdom and was soon surprised by a miracle that he had not thought possible. A Wingblade shade, a being similar to the Wyvern subspecies of his old race, the dragons, had given birth to a shade with one of Discord's creations, a unicorn pony named Shadow Spectrum. The result was a wing-blade shade that was half pony, a Kirin shade named Crescent. After two more centuries the king married the unique shade and, for the first time in forever, or at least as long as he could remember, was happy. He was broken from his thoughts by the opening of the door.
Out walked a shift in ornate, black, robes with a green trim that seemed to be female in figure. This was a Castor shade, more specifically a Witch, the female version of the species. When she was created she had been given the name Spell Weaver. “Your majesty, congratulations. It's a boy.” Said the witch in a respectful tone.
“Thank you Spell Weaver. Now I believe you should go and see that stallion of yours, Starswirl if I remember correctly.” Said King Nox. The witch bowed in respect and walked off. The king then entered the room and smiled at the sight of his wife, holding a bundle in a dark blue blanket. He approached and looked at the small bundle in her arms before he gave a small gasp. Instead of a wing blade like he expected in his wife's arms, he saw, what looked at first like a shift without the crest of the kingdom on it.
Then the little baby opened its eyes revealing, to his surprise, that they were blue instead of the normal red of the shade species. It even had a mouth, as evidenced when he yawned. “He's beautiful Crescent.” Said Nox, who was now holding his son.
“Yes my love, he is, just as we had hoped.” Said Queen Crescent.
“And, his eyes, they look like two little will-o-wisps, just seeing them seems to calm my soul.” Noted the king.
“That's why I named him Tamashii Souto no Nexus” Said Queen Crescent amused at her little pun on the fact that his eyes looked like the little lost souls that the living could only see at night.
“My little prince… The little one born of my soul… You will make an excellent King.” Nox smiled, thinking of the future his son would have.
“He will as long as we raise him right you mean. Remember honey, he was not born like normal shades, he was birthed, not created.” His wife said with a tiny giggle.
“Of course my queen… I wonder, will he get a... What did that old magician call them? Oh yes, a cutie mark?” Asked the king.
“Well he does have a third pony DNA alongside your dragon DNA and my shade DNA. So it might be possible. But… Do you remember what happened to that Sunny-dale place when they feared what the marks meant?” Said Crescent in a worried tone.
“We made sure that will never happen again.” Said Starswirl as he entered. The pony was just entering his eighties and had already grew quite an impressive beard. He was a grey unicorn that wore blue cloak and wizard’s hat that had six pointed star patterns on them. The articles of clothing had been gifts from his wife, spell weaver. The unicorn gave a relieved sigh when he saw that the prince had come out alright. He then turned his attention to the dragon turned shade. “My king as you know the ruler of the monster tribes had a son himself about 30 years ago and that the child looks as young as your newborn. By the look of things, the two will grow up at the same rate.” The unicorn smiled at the thought of the two princes growing up together. "Young Fang is just as energetic as his farther. It is a shame that the old king Sangue perished in the war.” Starswirl said as a small frown replaced the smile that had just been on his face.
“Yes… I am sorry about that Star but, as you well know, I was not in a sane state of mind at the time.” Said the shade king a remorseful tone.
“And there still is no sign of Discord… Oh how I fear what my former mentor could be up to now…” Said Starswirl with a sigh.
Just then Scarlet Queen of the Monster Tribes. entered with her son following close behind. The new born Tamashii looked at the black colt that had both a horn and the wings of a bat, curiously while Fang returned the stare. The two just kept that stare for a minute or two, just staring into each other’s eyes as if it would tell them what the other was thinking. Soon both of the young colts smiled and started to play.
Nox laughed. “He's as energetic as when I was born, according to my late mother. But this means he won't be able to sleep until he gets older, then again music always helped me with that problem so maybe we can use that as a solution.” Said King Nox with a smile. Then the group smiled as the two infants ran out of energy, yawned, and went to sleep. They knew that those few minutes were the start of a friendship, one that would last for eons. (End prologue.)
It had been thirteen years since young Tamashii was born, and the now teenaged shade was getting ready for training. Near him was the current King of Monsters and his childhood friend, Fang. The young shade was currently wearing a cotton shirt and black shorts. He buckled his worn leather boots with his hands and grabbed his training sword and shield. The sword was a wooden replica of a regular sword, a simple double edge that knights were known to use.
Tamashii was going to try and become a guardian shade, the ones that made up the majority of the Nexian Guard. The young friends walked over to where the parents of the two were going to watch Tamashii's entrance exam. "Good luck Soul you’re going to need it!" Said Fang as he walked over to join his mother.
Tamashii smirked in in response. "Thanks Fang! I just hope Discord doesn't think of attacking…" Said the young shade. Earlier that day the young teen heard reports that Discord had been sighted in the forest close to where the ponies, and the rest of Discord's creations, had settled down. The shade soon stood before the current captain of the guard. A guardian shade named Brave Shadow. Also watching were Tamashii's god parents, Starswirl and Spell Weaver. The teen gripped his wooden sword as the examiner gripped his training blade.
Fang stood at the sidelines. "Okay… Let the examination of Prince Tamashii Souto no Nexus begin!" shouted Fang. Scarlet smirked with pride. Her son was going to be a fine king. Now if only that time traveler would tell her when her son's soul-mate was going to be born. She was sure that his soul mate did not walk the earth at this moment in time.
The teenaged shade sighed as he charged, first he swung his blade over his head and towards the captain’s, only for it to be blocked when the captain moved his sword into the path of Soul’s blade. Or at least that is what the captain thought he had done. To the shock of the older shade his opponent was stronger than his lean frame suggested. But considering who his parents were the strength might not have been that farfetched. The captain would have grinned, if he had the face of a normal humanoid, which he, sadly, did not.
The match had been even so far and right now it was clear to the spectators that Soul had speed and strength on his side, while the captain had more experience and better technique. It was then that Soul displayed something the other shades had never seen outside of the castor ranks.
He manifested his shadow into spikes that gave his opponent the options of jump back, or get impaled. He smiled at the wide eyed looks his family gave. Spell Weaver had noticed that Tamashii could use pony magic and had secretly trained him about how to correctly use it. She had been doing so for three full years. And now it was time to stop holding back.
"Gather and unleash the potential of my soul, create for me the guise I was meant to wear and bear my origins for all to see. Unlock and release, my awakened soul" Soul’s voice rang clear through the air and his family and friends watched as his shadow started rippling as if it was naught but water. "Henge no Kage, Tamashii!” As the young shade’s voice rang out the eyes of all those gathered fell to his shadow. It rose and covered Soul, forming what would become his true form in the future. It took the shape of the lean, black, armor of the guardian class, trimmed in ghostly blue, with the helmet missing the mouth guard, and had a visor that showed his blue eyes.
He didn't have the plume that the regular knight helmets all bore, instead he had what seemed to be a crest that resembled an upside down triangle etched into the forehead. A lone horn rested above the crest showing his grandfather’s unicorn heritage. The spell he used was designed to temporally transform the caster into what they would become later in life. In the future Celestia would invent a more permanent version of the spell, but that is a tale for later. The newly, knight like teen charged and slashed at his opponent who was now going all out and holding nothing back.
The teen had impressed the captain and the older shade was now giving it a hundred percent, he wanted to see how far the prince's potential went. Over with the spectators Fang was confused, along with King Nox and Queen Crescent, while Fang's mother, Scarlet just giggled. "Shadow transformation of the soul? That's quite a spell, difficult, but not impossible." The vampony said with a fanged grin.
"Soul developed it himself, after he discovered his unicorn magic, it's designed to transform the user into what he or she would look like later in life and this is why Soul wants to be a guardian. He said that the spell takes into account the personality of the user, and creates a form based on the traits in the personality." Spell Weaver explained this as they watched the match.
Soul gave a quick powerful, sideways, strike, disarming his opponent, and catching the other sword to hold both at the captain's neck in a scissor position. "I win." Soul grinned as his spell wore off.
"Okay. I concede. You have potential Prince Tamashii, but be warned, the other trainees will not be as good willed around you as I." The captain would have given a smile if it had been physically possible. The teen nodded and handed back the training blade he took from the captain. "Be over at the barracks at six in the morning for training. When I am done you shall be the better than you are now. You have a lot to learn about being one of this kingdom's protectors, but that comes with experience, so train hard. I want to see how far that potential goes." The captain spoke with a calm, confident tone at this point.
Soul saluted and was handed a training uniform, which consisted of a black jacket and white pants, with the emblem of the guardian rank's royal guards etched in the cuffs. Soul bowed and walked back to his family and friend. Soul was given a hand/hoofshake and a slap on the back by Fang, while his family asked him what other magic he knew and told him what he should expect as a knight. The young prince just smiled at the encouragement he was given. The next few years would be the most taxing for young Soul, but with his friend helping him out, he was sure that he would be alright.
Soul sighed as he stretched the next day at five and quickly got ready for the start of his training. He ran over to the barracks and stood in line with the regular shifts. To the surprise of Soul, he noticed that the other shifts had no true face and just the royal crest along with red eyes. The only way to tell them apart was the colored bands at their wrist. He was basically the odd one out.
He then saw his new teacher walk up. It was the same captain he was tested against. The young shade sighed and stood at attention. He may have magic, but he was going to prove to his fellow recruits that he was not just some spoiled prince, but someone they can call a comrade. And the first thing he was going to do to prove so was become a guardian. The gathered shades listened in as their future commander started to talk.
“Okay you all have shown to have what it takes to be guardians, that much is clear, but now we need to train you to see if you are cut out for this line of work. The guardian rank is not to be taken lightly. It shows that you are responsible to protect our kingdom, our home and the way of life we have made for ourselves! Some of you may have talents that are unique and some may find that they just aren't able to properly defend. The teamwork that is needed to protect our home is important in its own right. For the next ten years you will be put through the hardest training program that we can think of. Harder than even that of the Transylmaneian military.” These words got a rise out of some of the shades who began to quake. It was no secret that Fang was hard on his kingdom’s military. He had once told Soul that only ten of his regular guards could take out a fully grown dragon. The shade had not believed him, until he saw some soldiers dragging a dead dragon into the passage that led to the storage area under Fang’s castle.
“You will learn to make your armor and weapons, these items will become your true form. For the rest of your lives. The armor we craft out of our shadows is truly a part of us, and we lose our original forms once we create it. To tell the truth, this is how shades like us have always evolved. We all started out as simple shifts and were then, eventually promoted, resulting in us receiving new forms and abilities. A shade is best able to learn things that are related to their rank and skills that they were born with.” By this point some of the shades were starting to get bored. Soul even saw that the one next to him kept drifting in and out of sleep.
“The strongest shades that we have are the twelve generals. Collectively known as the Shadow Guard of the Abyss. Each one is the head of a rank and a member of our king’s council. Each one has a unique ability, and it just happens that you are being taught by one right now. Each of the council have a title, mine just so happens to be the Hell Guard of the Dark War, because I was our king's bodyguard during the start of said war, and no matter what I faced, no matter what I had to endure, I never faltered or stayed down, even when injured. I struck fear into the hearts of all that I faced and… Wake up!” The shift that had been standing next to Soul threw his head up. The captain gave a small sigh. “They don’t make shades the way they used to…” He then turned back to the group. “I expect that you eighteen recruits will uphold our creed! To defend those in need, to face danger at every turn, to help those that can't help themselves, and to always be true to yourself! This is what we guardians live by and our first priority is to the kingdom! Now then let's have a roll call so you can all know each other’s names.” Said the captain with such a tone that he had the shades riveted in place.
Brave Shadow slowly looked at all of the shifts that stood before him. "You will not get your armor yet, for the next three months you will be learning how to smith and forge weaponry. You have to have your own sword, and then practice with it. You must be ready for what you might encounter. This is all the warning you will get. This training is going to be hard, and I am sure that most of you are going to make it, some won’t but most will. Today you are simply getting to know each other. When I call your name state the reason why you want to be a guardian of our home." Brave said as he walked down the line, this caused Soul to stand straighter. He had a feeling that he was going to need a lot of mental control soon. That or a large amount of tea. "Kage Claw."
A shift with a black band around his wrist spoke. "I want to join to protect those I care about sir!" The captain nodded. "Shadow Fang."
"I wanted to make my late father proud by continuing the legacy sir!" The shift with a white band around his wrist saluted. "Echo Nightshade." And so the list continued until he hit Soul's own name who, as he was the last to pass the entrance exam, was last on the list. "Tamashii Souto no Nexus" Brave Shadow called out, making the other shifts tense in shock. They looked all looked in Soul's direction, and he took a deep breath. "The reason I wish to join is because I do not want to be the kind of king who commands, but does not participate. I want to protect the place I call home, and those I care for. Even the ones I will fight alongside with, I wish to be a better shade than my farther, so that I can create my own legend with the use my own skills, and to not be known as someone who didn't earn their place in life. I want to uphold the example I was born to set! If I don't lead then who will follow? I want to make sure that this kingdom lasts for centuries, with the knowledge that peace will be a long time coming!" Soul stated this with such resolve and determination, that he was briefly replaced by his future self, with a glowing black and white sword with the Neighponese characters for Kagenohikari. When the image faded he gave a salute that showed his determination to see his dream through to the end. The others watched in awe and shock. The only ones who were mad were the trio of Shadow Fang and his friends, Burst and Aero, who had red and green bands respectively. Just goes to show that even in this time period the drama of high school is evident. Soul just gained his rival in his journey to become a guardian, even if he didn’t know it yet. The teen prince just stared down his teacher for the moment wondering how he would fair in times to come. Oddly he had a brief flash in his mind of a light blue unicorn mare with a silver mane dressed in a hat and cloak, reminiscent of his unicorn mentor, with a cutie mark of a starry veil and a star tipped wand. Her purple eyes glinted in the sunlight. But when the vision cleared he didn't focus on what had just happened. He would think about it later.
The next week was full of him and his fellow recruits trying to become familiar with the crafting tools. For the second week of training they had to locate the materials they wanted their swords to be made of. Soul was, at the moment, looking in an old mine to, find a gem to use so he could channel his magic through his sword, if he needed. The best would be his birth stone, because the things that are connected to the day that a creature is born is said to make said creature stronger when held, which would be a sapphire. He was, sadly, having no luck in his gem hunt.
He was through two thirds of the mine and was now entering the core of the mine where all the tunnels connected. He blinked and rubbed his eye when he started to see transparent ponies. Unknown to him his eyes was glowing ghostly blue. Slowly he approached one of them, an earth pony. "Excuse me but what's going on? Why are all of you transparent?" Asked the confused shade.
"Y-you can see us?" The earth pony that Soul was talking to seemed to be shocked.
“Yeah… What does that have to do with my question?" Soul was starting to think he should have searched another mine. "Sir… All of us are dead. We are the spirits of those who were forced to work in this mine seventeen years ago. We died of many things, abuse, heart attacks, dehydration, and starvation. We can't pass on until we have closure, until we know that the one who did this paid for their crimes." Said the earth pony’s earthbound spirit.
"What? That's terrible!… Wait a second… How am I able to see you then? You’re ghosts!" Soul asked wide eyed.
”I don't know kid but what are you doing in this mine? It’s dangerous here!" Asked the miner’s spirit.
"I’m looking for a sapphire, so I can focus my magic. I heard that if you use your birth stone as a focus then your magic has a better connection with whatever the gem is attached to." Said the young prince. He learned this from Spell Weaver, she said that the tomes the castors used had a small gem in the cover, the gem was the birthstone of the month they were created. The shade prince was going to use that information to get better as a guardian.
The teen looked at the miner as he gave a loud laugh, which he supposed that ghosts could mimic sounds very well as they don't need air to do so anymore. "Well kid you’re in luck, there are still some sapphires in the mine. Down that tunnel, but watch out, it's not normal, it's a spiritual focal point if you’re not careful then gem might steal your life force, and I know you’re a shade kid, but you’re not like the ones that kept us here in life, something about you seems different… You got this, like, calming aura around you.“ Said the spirit, nodding to the left most tunnel to indicate where the shade should look. Soul nodded his thanks. "Thank you for the information, and the warning. I’m Tamashii Souto no Nexus, the son of Nox Void and his wife Crescent." Said the shade with a smile.
"The insane king of shadows? You’re his kid? What is concord doing?" Asked the miners’ ghost. Soul was startled, they didn't know?
‘Great!’ Soul thought with a sigh. ‘Looks like I’m going to get to practice being the bearer of bad news, guess it’s for the best, I’m gonna eventually have to do it as king.’ "You don't know? Concord accidentally absorbed my dad's insanity, became a spirit of chaos, and renamed himself Discord. My dad regrets the time of his insanity and I am sorry you had to find out like this. The most I can do now is offer my apology for what you have been through." Soul said with a sad tone.
The miner chuckled. "I don't mind Tamashii! Just hearing that there is at least one decent shade is enough to overpower my shock at what became of our leader. And thank you, you have helped us have the closure we needed.” The transparent stallion began to glow. “You have put our spirits to rest, as a thank you… I think I’ll unlock that unicorn DNA you have, just don't show your unicorn form to any other shade, not even your farther. Only those you trust may know of this ability you are about to be granted. And Tamashii, good luck, You’ll need it!" Said the miner as he tapped a hoof on Soul's chest where his heart was.
A brief glow covered Soul and he felt his body shift. He opened his eyes seeing he was now a dark blue unicorn with spiked cobalt mane and tail. He looked himself over and gasped. On his new form’s flank was a will o wisp. He had found his talent, at least his talent with pony DNA.
He went to look around, seeing all the ghosts had indeed passed on, and with that the stallion went to see the sapphire that he had come here for. The gem was about as large as an average sized stone with a ghostly blue aura. Soul took it in hoof, surprised how well he was controlling his new shape. The glow emanating from the gem spiked, and he felt an odd tingle before the aura settled, but the gem was now, somehow, large enough to fit in the diameter of his hoof. Putting it in the pocket of his pants the shade shifted back and was startled to find his mane had transferred to his true form. He now looked more humanoid with it.
Exiting the mine he headed back, while wondering how he was going to explain his new addition of hair to his folks. He just knew he was going to encounter more situations that were not going to be fun a lot of the time. The teen sighed, wondering what else he was going to go through. Then he spotted Shadow Fang and his two friends complaining about how he was 'upsetting' the status quo. Soul felt an odd tingle in the air as music started to sound out in the training ground. He went wide eyed. This was the first time something like this had happened to him. He felt his heart stir as if the song was forcing him to see it through to the end. 'This is odd it's as if this song is coming from the hearts of everyone here.' Thought Soul.
Shadow: You can bet There's nothin' but you and me When I am in a zone and on a roll But I've got a confession And if I don't let it out I don't think I can stand it!
Shifts: Everybody gather 'round
Shadow (spoken): Well if tamashii is going to become a guardian I will just make sure he knows he is out of his league
Echo (spoken): What?
Shadow (spoken): He has been causing quite an uproar, I mean he is a prince not one of us, he should be learning how to be a king, not something like this! A guardian is supposed to protect the royal family and he is creating a contradiction with that! It just irks me.
Shifts: Not another sound!
Shadow (spoken): Someday I hope to make sure the prince knows his place!
Shifts: No, no, no, nooooooooooo No, no, no Stick to the stuff you know If you wanna be cool Follow one simple rule Don't mess with the flow, no no Stick to the status quo
Witch: Look at me And what do you see Intelligence beyond compare But inside I am stirring Something strange is occuring It's a secret I need to share
Castors: Open up, dig way down deep
Witch (spoken): Music is what I live for sometimes I just want to let the flow of rythem guide me
Wizard (spoken): Is that even a good idea? Castors: Not another peep!
Witch (spoken): It's just music. Sometimes I think it's cooler than studying.
Castors: No, no, no, noooooooooo No, no, no Stick to the stuff you know It is better by far To keep things as they are Don't mess with the flow, no no Stick to the status quo
Wing-blade: Listen well I'm ready to tell About a need that I cannot deny Dude, there's no explanation For this awesome sensation But I'm ready to let it fly
Wing-blades: Speak your mind and you'll be heard
Wing-blade (spoken): Alright, if Tamashii wants to be a guardian then I’m coming clean! I want to fight by his side!
Wing-blade 1 (spoken): awesome!
Wing-blade 2 (spoken) what is that it?
Wing-blade 3 (spoken): really!
Wing blade: Of course not! I support our prince he's got my respect for this!
Wing-blades: Not another word
Wing-blade 2 (spoken):
Do you even have any armor for this?
Wing-blade (spoken): Not yet but I hope so soon.
Wing-blades: No, no, no, nooooooooooo No, no, no Stick to the stuff you know If you wanna be cool Follow one simple rule Don't mess with the flow, no no Stick to the status quoooooooo
Shifts, Castors, & Wing-blades: No, no, no Stick to the stuff you know It is better by far To keep things as they are Don't mess with the flow, no no Stick to the status quo
Hell-hound: This is not what I want This is not what I planned And I just gotta say I do not understand Something is really
Cerberus: Something's not right
Hell hound: Really wrong
Hell-hound & Cerberus: And we gotta get things Back where they belong We can do it
Wing-blade: Gotta practice
Wing-blades: Stick with what you know
Hell-hound & Cerberus: We can do it
Witch: Rock and roll!
Castors: She has got to go
Hell-hound & Cerberus: We can do it
Shadow: Where is that little upstart!
Shifts: Keep your voice down low Shifts, Castors, & Wing-blades:
Not another peep No, not another word No, not another sound No
Hell-Hound: Everybody quiet!
Brave Shadow. (Spoken): What is going on out here?
Kage (spoken): Just a little bit of Shadow trying to get things lively around here sir...
Brave Shadow (spoken): Is this because of prince Tamashii’s choice? Well I knew something like this might happen sooner or later. Speaking of which where is he?
Shifts and Castors: Noooooooooooooo, no, no, no Stick to the stuff you know If you want to be cool Follow one simple rule Don't mess with the flow, oh no Stick to the status quooooooooooooo No, no, no Stick to the stuff you know It is better by far To keep things as they are Don't mess with the flow, no no Stick to the status Stick to the status Stick to the status quo!
Soul blinked and found himself next to the witch and wing blade once the song ended. "What just happened? And where did all of you come from!? Because that was the weirdest thing I have experienced today! And it has been a really odd freakin’ day!“ Said soul wide eyed as everyone snapped their heads in his direction.
"Prince Tamashii you look a bit different. Is that hair?" Asked Brave Shadow.
"Like I said I had an odd day" Said Soul with a deadpan face.
"Huh right…" Said Brave Shadow.
"Did anyone notice that there was music playing without a source just now? I mean what possessed you all to sing like that!?" Asked Soul slowly freaking out.
"Ah I forgot about that little trait. Soul what you just experienced was what us ponies call a heart-song. Not many know what triggers it, but it has a special magic that makes ponies, and I guess shades, closer. All I know is that it activates near anypony." Said Starswirl as he walked up from where he sat reading his tome.
"Considering I have a third pony DNA it must have triggered around me..." Said Soul calming down. "Sir I’m calling it a day. I need to clear my head… This was a little overwhelming…" Said Soul heading back to his room, while scratching his head. Brave Shadow turned to Shadow Fang. "Son. Your grounded. Don't think I heard what you said. Now go and give me ten laps around the barracks!" Said Brave before he went back to his office.
"Aw man!" groaned shadow. He sighed as he went to do his punishment.
The next few weeks passed and after Soul had some tea to relieve the headache he got from the day's events he pulled out the spirit sapphire, and some ore that he found that would work for the body of his first sword. The ore that he had found was a very rare metal, one that was almost impossible to find in Nexus. It was a type of metal that had formed before even his father had existed.
The ore was simply known as Nexium. The metallic rock was like the last name of Soul’s father. It was like a void that absorbed any form of light, except, interestingly enough, moon light. It seemed to glow in the silver beams of light that the moon gave off at night. Soul had found it by a stroke of both good and bad luck. The ore had actually been stuck under his apartment.
The recruits to the guardian rank get an apartment once they are accepted into the training program. He had been trying to repair the place, which was in dire need of some, when his weight had caused the floor to collapse underneath him. He found himself in a cave full of the ore. After using the most basic ability known to shade kind, the ability to travel through any shadow, to get back up, Soul decided that it would be in his best interest to study the metal.
So far it seemed the spirit sapphire reacted positively to the metal. That meant that the metal would be a good material to use for his sword and shield. The metal acted like the substance shades were made of, so the material was very rarely used to forge the weapons that shades used. According to his father the ore was what he used to create the original shades before he used magic to turn them into the homunculus like beings that they were now.
The shade prince stood from the desk in his room and grabbed both his tools and materials. With just a thought he sunk into his own shadow, and rose from his captain’s shadow. He nodded to the captain and walked over to the other recruits. He felt a slight shift as he passed a certain trio. He looked at them suspiciously while he stood at his workspace. "Okay recruits today is the day that you will forge your first weapons. You have spent a lot of time in the forge and learned how to smith. I have to say that for this part, I was glad to teach some of you more than others, but I will admit that you all have potential. Now get ready to create your weapons." Said Brave Shadow.
Shadow scoffed and glared at the shade prince. Soul felt something was off here. The other recruits seemed unusually focused. And something in their eyes was a bit off, as if something was about to happen that would change how the day was going to be for the whole kingdom. And for some reason Soul and the two shades that he had befriended after the heart song, were sure that this change was not for the better. Soul watched as Aero made a drill lance, it was a knight's lance that could spin like a drill, and something about that just seemed to make Soul uneasy.
One of the materials that Aero was using was very evil, and dangerous, by nature, solidified black magic. That was usually reserved for necromancy spells used in the Dark Chaos War. The others weapons were just as odd, as they all used some black magic component as a material. Soul sighed and decided to bring it up to his friends when they got out. After about two hours of waiting it was finally Soul's turn to make his weapons.
He checked his tools and materials, and let out a silent gasp. Someone had slipped a basilisk fang into his materials. Quickly placing it in his hammer space, Soul took out the Nexium and spirit sapphire, as well as his tools. Closely examining the tools Soul frowned. These were not his tools, they looked like cheap knock off versions. Soul just stood there for a moment before he went wide eyed with realization. Shadow and his gang were trying to sabotage him.
Whispering a spell he switched the fragile tools with his spare set, without anyone noticing. One thing that Fang taught him was to how spot and reverse an attempt at sabotage. The shade prince took a deep breath and concentrated on the ore. It started to ripple and Soul took his tools and started to shape it. He soon started to form a hilt, pulling the out sapphire with his levitation he set it into the hilt while he still working with his magic and tools.
The sapphire suddenly glowed, erecting a barrier which blocked Shadow's weapons, a pair of daggers forged with a fire dragon’s claw. Unknowing of this Soul continued to work, focusing only on his creation. Soon the sapphire pulsed inside of the basic sword. Soul watched as the pulse altered the blade, giving it a slight draconic look, and to his shock the blade retracted into the hilt, revealing the blade was lined with hinges and the hilt opened to store the folded blade. The handle pushed itself in, leaving the hilt looking like a dragon headed ornament with folded wings at the side.
Placing it in his jacket pocket, Soul sunk into his shadow, and lucky for him the barrier had hidden his completed work and himself until he had vanished completely. He had an urgent matter to bring up with his friends. He found them at their usual spot, a field near the capital where a lone tree stood with blooming Midnight Lotus on the branches.
With Fang were the witch and wing blade that Soul had met after the heart-song. Along with his friends were his godparents, Starswirl and Spell Weaver. "Oi! Fang something odd is going on!" Said the shade prince. This was the first time Fang had seen Soul since he entered the guardian academy. He had met the witch and wing blade when Starswirl brought them to meet Spell Weaver, so she could help teach them and help them become Soul's friends. The witch was named Muse, while the wing blade was named Edge. Muses ornate robes were a dark purple in color with rings of black on her hat and sleeves. The wing blade was a bit odd among the others of his kind. His wings were different shape than the rest of his kind. They were shaped like swords instead of imitating his wyvern like base. And like him they had different eye colors than the rest of the shades. They were red originally but after hanging out with Soul their eyes had changed color. Muse's eyes were now a light purple, while Edge’s own eyes were a sharp indigo.
Together with Soul they formed a trio that the other shades started to call the Prince’s Guard. The reason behind this name was that Muse's robes looked a bit like armor, as if she was a mage that wanted to be a knight. The trio and Fang were surprised that all four of the friends were hanging out at the same time. "What seems to be the trouble Prince Soul?" Asked Starswirl.
"Well for one the other recruits used components for black magic as weapon material, and I was nearly sabotaged in creating my own weapon. The material they used were items from during the Dark Chaos War. Not to mention that Shadow Fang and his goons slipped a Basilisk fang into my materials, and switched my tools with fragile cheaper versions. Thanks to my magic I was able to get my spare set. Good thing I hid the magic from the rest of the recruits... But that's not what is bugging me. What is bugging me is that the more carefree recruits was unusually focused on something. Has anything like that happened to the rest of the shades?" Asked Soul.
"Hmm now that you mention it, my brother Oracle has been acting more aggressive as of late. It was like he and the other castors were given a huge dose of arrogance." Said Muse.
"Same here, only the rest of my kind is acting more like their dragon counterparts. Greedy, full of rage, and unusually high pride. Now that you mention it I thought it seemed odd. I thought they were just trying to connect with the dragons a bit more though." Said edge in a deep baritone voice as he thought aloud.
"I didn't know this. I’ve been with my husband in his library all of this time. We came to escort Fang here to see how you were doing Soul." Said Spell Weaver in a shocked tone.
Soul frowned. "I better see what my dad has to say about this… I don't think that this is normal." Said the shade prince.
"My mother should be there as well, let's go and see if she can help look for the source of these changes…" Said Fang now feeling that something was wrong in this situation. The six teleported to the castle throne room, a gothic place that resembled the throne room of the future castle of two sisters where the three royals sat talking.
"Huh? What is wrong my son? Is something going on?" Asked the shades father.
"Something is off with the other shades." Said Soul as he then explained what he and his friends noticed.
"Well that explains the odd feel in the air. It was like the calm before the storm." Said Queen Scarlet. Oh right, Soul hadn't had time to see what she had looked like in the time he known her. She was a crimson vampony with a black mane that had white highlights. Her cutie mark was a black bat silhouetted against a white moon that had a red tint to it, just a little lighter shade than her fur. It was obvious Fang got his looks from his farther.
Oddly enough Soul can see the said male figure right next to her, even if it was very blurred. He still had yet to tell Fang of his new ability to see spirits. Fang was still focusing on trying to figure out how Soul gotten hair. The group was sure that whatever happened it was not going to be good.
"The group agreed to prepare just in case. "Son you’re creating your armor in a month, so make sure to make it fit your personality. Well we saw and know what it looks like thanks to your Kage no Henge Tamashii spell and have drawn it for you since you haven't seen the details. I just felt the armor was when you made the spell." Said Queen Crescent handing her son a scroll.
"Right good thing I found a Nexium ore deposit under my dorm, but only enough to fit me with what I need." Said Soul. The group then dispersed. And oddly Soul looked at his parents with worry. Whatever was going on, he was sure it would create a rift between them for good. He left and went back to his dorm and the rest left for home as well.
"Oi Soul! Remember your birthday is next week!" Said Fang before Soul shadow traveled.
"Thanks for the reminder!" Said Soul as he waved goodbye to his friend. 'Wow. I’m going to be fourteen soon huh? my training is going to be harder than ever.' Soul thought to himself as he laid on his bed.
Unbeknownst to him, Muse was thinking on her adoptive cousin, Soul. She saw him as a cousin as she knew he didn't think of her in a romantic light, but as if she was someone he could call family
Edge was acting like the sibling both like to hang around, as Oracle was starting to make Muse doubt herself. Edge himself was looking at the book of prophecy and found an interesting passage about future family members of the group.
He saw that a pegasus by the name of Firefly would have descendants known as Rainbow Dash and Spitfire, along with a Rapid Fire. What really stood out to him however was the name Trixie Lulamoon. She was going to be descended from Starswirl, well actually Starswirl's cousin, so it was not a direct relation. The wing blade took note that there was a Twilight Sparkle twice in one line. Making Edge think that there was going to be a mare, that was named going to be named after the original. He decided to take up genealogy as a hobby to investigate these names that were appearing in this book, knowing that these ponies might have a connection to his friends in the far future.
Unbeknownst to the group, was that in three months, a certain spirit would make his return, along with some new allies, and mark the return of the war.
The days of one era ends and a new one begins with the start of a journey into the next stage of life ---------
Chapter 4 promotion to guardian ------
It was the day that soul would never forget his birthday. The now 14 year old was heading to the castle where his friends, family and his friend’s families were going to gather for the celebration. He had met up with Fang on the way. "Hey there birthday boy! Listen, here's my gift early, I have a feeling we need to keep this secret. Something tells me that whatever happens, you will need it to survive." Said Fang.
Soul smiled seeing it was a black cloak. He pulled Fang to an alleyway and put it on over his uniform. Then he smirked and shifted to unicorn form. He chuckled at the bug eyed look Fang had on his face. "Well you did wanted to know how I grew a full head of hair." Said Soul with his uniform and cloak on in pony form. His now amber eyes glinting in amusement.
"Soul how did you do that? Not even the Nightmares and Mimics are able to get details so close to perfect!" Asked Fang snapping out of his shock.
"You know how my DNA is a bit unique right? Well a third of it is pony DNA. Turns out I have a talent as well my friend. Apparently I can see spirits that no one else can see. A spirit unlocked my unicorn DNA, I don’t know how, but he did, as a reward for helping a mine full of them pass on. It was the same one where I got the sapphire for my sword." Said Soul with a smirk.
"Wow… Wait… Why tell me about this?" Asked the black coated alicorn.
"Dude you’re basically my brother, the only things that are different about us are blood, and species! That, and I promised not to show this to any shade. And with what has been going on lately I think it's for the best. So keep it secret for now. You may be three decades older than me, but if there is anything that I’ve learned from you, it's to keep any advantage that you have in a dangerous situation, and this is one of them" Said Soul reverting to his true form and, to their surprise, the cloak vanished. "Huh. Guess if I wear anything in pony form and revert to my real form, the items get dragged to my hammer space and get pulled out automatically. Guess it's an instant disguise for me!" Said Soul giving the best explanation he could think of on what had just happened.
The two then continued their way to the castle. The two soon met up with Muse and Edge. Edge had just gotten his armor, which was a nice silver and engraved with the trio's symbol, a sword with a magic aura and dragon wing's on the sides. Soul was the front line fighter of the trio, with Edge as the aerial support and Muse was the medic and tactician, with a bonus of long range support.
In order Soul was the skill, Muse was the brains, and Edge was the brawn. Fang was the, unofficial, fourth member as a balanced fighter and mage. Other shades had seen how well they worked together and had gone to see how the other ranks worked together. So far, besides the three ranks that the group had already been, the shades were teaming up with a similar build, ones that worked well together.
An example of this would be how the Shifts, the Casters, and the Shinobi had teamed up with the Guardians. The shifts with their balanced skill set, like the ability to flatten themselves so that they would just look like a shadow on the ground, which allowed them to send messages unseen and their ability to change their limbs into any weapon or stretch their limbs to give them a longer reach. Soul once saw a shift stretch his arm back and punch a timberwolf from twenty feet way. The ability to imitate a shadow was the only skill that all shades had in common. The Casters could take it a step further by using their magic in order to create portals that allowed them to teleport. Shinobi used their speed and stealth to spy on other nations and report back quickly, that’s how Soul knew about the reports on Discord's movements. The Guardian’s used the shadows to store their weapons and shields when they were not using them. Soul however, was able to use all four versions of the ability. The down side was that the use of one ability would cancel out another if he was not careful. Sometimes he was able combine two of the versions, like the storage and the teleport to create a pocket dimension, hence Soul's hammer space. The Casters and Behemoths also worked quite well together, an ingenious magician, and a large monstrosity that was pure muscle.
Soul snapped out of his thoughts just in time for a loud, "Surprise!" Shouted the group that was waiting for him. "Okay guys, thanks." Laughed Soul.
"Happy birthday Soul, another year older, and another year wiser." Quoted Starswirl, handing Soul his and Spell Weaver's gift. It was a mage’s hat that was black with silver trim. On the band around the pointed end's base was a small metal symbol of the group. The hat reminded soul of his god father's own hat.
"Happy b-day Soul here's to another year!" Said Muse, handing Soul a scroll on light and dark magic, and how to balance the two. Soul thanked her as he put on his new hat.
"Well, my gift is over there Soul. I can't carry it due to my structure, so I asked Muse to help bring it over…" Said Edge, nodding to a sheath for Soul's collapsible sword. It was small, about the size of a dagger. With how the sword was made, it was best to use deception and make the opponent underestimate him. The teen nodded and put it on, then he placed the folded state of his weapon at the open end, making it look like it was sheathed. And, surprisingly, it stayed. A securing charm, or magnetism charm, he wasn't sure, was used to add to the illusion.
Soul also received from the adults about ten fiction and non-fiction books to read in his spare time. One of the books was a guide on how to recognize different kinds of demons, and how to avoid aggravating them. Soul knew that not all demons were nice and was going to be prepared if he ever had to face some of the more bloodthirsty ones.
The party went down and the group went to head home. Soul arrived via shadow portal and smiled at the manikin that held his recently completed armor and shield. Soul couldn't wait for his graduation from guardian boot camp. Over the past few months, and after Soul had added his hat to his pony form's guise he stood with the other recruits, and waited for them to make their armor. Soul just stood and watched as the armor of guardian shades was made. Like the captain, and the rest of the rank the armors were of more basic kinds, like plate armor from the medieval era.
Soul sighed when it was his turn. He turned to his shadow, which was what the others had used to form their armor. He concentrated and particles shot out and began to converge on Soul, forming a completed set of Nexium armor. He had placed the armor into his hammer space and just summoned it onto his body. He felt his form tingle as the armor became part his true form, and was glad that he kept his face as he rose the visor from over his eyes, and stood at attention, with his sheath and shield strapped to his sides.
"Congrats recruits! You have trained hard for the past seven months, and have now officially joined the guardian ranks. I’m proud of all of you, now go and see your families! Report to sector delta for advanced sword training, and learn all you can to defend our kingdom. For the pride and honor of Nexus!" Called Brave Shadow.
"For the pride and honor of Nexus" Resounded the ex-recruits.
Soul immediately went to his parents and showed his new form to his parents, to which they smiled in response. "My son, oh I am so proud of you. You have finally become a guardian shade." Said Crescent. Soul nodded as his mother handed him a silver scarf. "This… This was your grandfather's scarf my son, it was his lucky charm during life. No matter how many battles he was in he never suffered an injury other than a few cuts and losing a tooth. It was the one thing he treasured, as it came from my mother, and now, it is yours." Said Crescent, as Nox smiled in with 'liquid pride' running from his eyes.
Unknown to Soul that, in the future, Shining Armor would later find Nox's journal, and though the thing was mostly unreadable from the passage of time, that one term about that day's entry was what started the future captain of the guard's male pride, and dream to become a guard of Canterlot.
The royal shade family went home, and Soul knew that the next few years, were just the beginning.
Madness and sanity are two sides of the same coin but just how deep are they? Just how can a person be deemed sane or just how can a person be deemed insane? - thadius arkham founder of arkham asylum. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter Five. Resurgence of War.
It had been two months and three weeks since Soul became a guardian, and now the royal families, as well as Soul's friends were taking a walk in the Nexian royal garden that, much to the king and queen's embarrassment, their son had planted himself. He had a green thumb like no other. According to Queen Crescent, Soul gets it from his unicorn grandfather, who had been a simple farmer before he became a soldier during the Dark Chaos War, and they were glad that he was in touch with his genetics. Unknown to them Soul was actually taking tips from the ghost of his grandfather. Fang had suspected that he was getting help from some invisible entity, but as he has no experience with the spirit world he had no way of telling for sure. Privately, Fang had given Soul the nickname the Spirit Channeler. The Prince of Shadows had been reluctant to say that it fit him after he caught Fang calling him that. Unbeknownst to the group, today was a day that Starswirl and his wife had been dreading for years. The day the Dark Chaos War resumed.
- Everfree Forest -
Discord, thanks to his insane mind, had wandered this little forest of chaos for years since he had been thrown out of Nexus. In that time he learned to cast away his sanity. The old part of him that was still Concord was aghast at what he had become, but right now the spirit of chaos and disharmony was looking over a certain trio of powerful demons. One was a grey ram with red eyes, and a collar lined with bells. The second was a centaur that had a top half resembling a minotaur. The final one resembled a human, but with a wispy tail instead of legs, moderate grey skin, and soulless yellow eyes. Next to the centaur was a demon that most would come to know as Scorpan. The names of the first three demons were Grogar, Tirek, and Arabus respectively. Discord had known of them when he was Concord. He knew these three were not your average demons. They would answer to no one but themselves. Tirek had the power to steal magic, whilst the demon Grogar had the power to steal youth, but it was Arabus who had gotten his attention. The demon had just the ability Discord needed. He had the power to devour shadows and gain strength from them. Working with the abilities of the other two, he was sure that together the Kingdom of Nexus would be no more.
Unknown by Discord, he was being spied on by a certain time lord and his wife from the future. "Ditzy we might have a problem. Looks like we’ve got a delivery to make." said Doctor Whooves. Ditzy Do otherwise known as Derpy Hooves nodded as her cross eyed stare was on Discord and the four demons. They stepped into the T.A.R.D.I.S. and, with an unknown sound, vanished with the Doctor holding a glowing ruby, just like Soul's Spirit Sapphire.
-Nexus garden-
Soul shuddered, wondering why he had just felt the shadows scream in fear. Looking at the other shades he saw that he was the only one of his kind to feel it, but it looked like Fang had felt something as well. Then to the shock of everyone, Queens Scarlet and Crescent collapsed. "Mother!" said both Soul and Fang as they rushed to support their respective mothers.
"What’s going on?" asked the witch named Muse, who was in shock, knowing that the two queens were in perfect health.
"This aura… No… It can’t be" said Starswirl, as Spell Weaver gasped in realization.
"What is it?" asked the wing-blade named Edge.
"Discord, and he's not alone! How in the world did he get those four to team up!?" said Starswirl.
"Who did he get together?" asked Nox Void, the shade king.
"He got three demons that are extremely dangerous individually, but if they are working together, they will be a major threat to our entire world!" said Spell Weaver.
"Tirek, Grogar and Arabus right?" asked Soul, they were the names that the shadows and spirits were telling him, his eyes unfocused as the spirit sapphire in his sword's hilt glowed.
"Yes, those three, as well as Tirek’s brother Scorpan, have teamed up with Discord." said Starswirl.
"How right you are my old student…" said a voice that was teetering on the edge of insanity, the voice made Soul's core pulse in unease. Looking to the sky the group watched as five figures landed on the ground.
"Oh no, it’s him…" said Starswirl as he got in front of his wife, knowing what the three demons could do to her.
"When we heard of this little kingdom that was just full of magic, it was a deal we couldn't pass up, we knew we had to check it out…" said Tirek as his brother grinned uneasily. Soul frowned.
"So you’re Discord?" asked Soul as he laid his mother down next to Queen Scarlet.
"Oh my you must be the Prince of Shadows, young Tamashii Souto right? Ha, I got to say Nox, you insufferable black dragon, your kid sure has guts to speak to the Master of Chaos like that. Seeing a shade with such a noble soul that it makes me sick, I wonder what his despair would be like with yours 'king'." laughed Discord as he glared at his old foe, and with that snapped his fingers making the queens gasp in pain.
"Mother…" said Fang as he watched wide eyed, while Scarlet separated into twin magical vapors, one white the other dark blue. The vapors suddenly glowed before forming two fillies, one was white with a pink mane while the other was dark blue, like Soul but had a lighter shade of blue hair. Discord's chaos had killed Queen Scarlet and, in her last moments, split her magic to form two daughters, and Fang's younger sisters. Soul and his father watched as Queen Crescent started to disintegrate into particles of shadow. Discord had taken her ability to survive in sunlight.
"My son… Run and stay safe, for I fear what we feared has finally come, my husband I am sorry we never got the chance to give Soul a sibling to care for… Goodbye my family, for now I return to the shadows from whence I came…" said Crescent, with tears in her eyes, before she was just… Gone. Soul just looked at his father as his kind eyes suddenly transformed into those born of unending madness. It looked like that was the last straw for the king as it appeared the ex-dragon's mind was shattered and broken beyond repair, for good. Soul went wide eyed, realizing what was happening.
"Starswirl, Spell Weaver get us out of here! Father has completely lost his mind!" shouted Soul using his magic and shadow abilities to grab the fillies, and Fang, who was violently beating on the Draconequus known as Discord, while the two mages cast a transport spell that sent the group, excluding the dead queens and Nox, out of the kingdom. Just as they escaped Nox let loose a roar of rage and despair. The very earth shook and scattered the five who have set loose a demon far worse than even the King of Hell himself. Two of them, Grogar and Arabus, were sent far into the distance, while Tirek and his brother Scorpan were sent into a coma for a certain duo of princesses to face at a later date. As for Discord, he was sent all the way to where he would rule for many millennia. As for the kingdom, any shade still in it gave shouts of rage and madness as they lost their own minds from the sudden shift they felt in the magic of the kingdom. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ In the basement of a certain library, the group reappeared, with both the King of Monsters and the Prince of Shadows staring blankly at the wall, not sure how to think, while the two fillies that was born by Queen Scarlet's last act. Star swirl himself looked at the brothers in all but blood, they just looked so lost. Especially his godson. He had just watched his whole family get torn apart. The fillies just hugged the two, hoping that they could help heal the two's pain. It seemed as if the two recognized Soul as another sibling. Because, right now that was just what they were, siblings.
"Okay you two, I know that this is not the best time, but we need to name these little fillies and see about what we can do about what has happened. I’m afraid to say it, but the Dark Chaos War has reignited, and that means that we are all that stand between life and the world's destruction." said Starswirl.
"Right, of course, but, what can we do? I hate to admit it, but their power far outstrips mine, I would die if I got near them. One can take my youth, leaving me weak for Tirek to take my magic and Arabus can eat my remains as I vanish like mother…" said Soul with grief in his voice.
"Soul don't forget you still have us here, and we really should name these two fillies here…" said Muse. Fang nodded as he looked at his new little sisters.
"Celestia Ilios Sunflare shall be this one's name." said Fang, nodding at the white alicorn filly on his back, who smiled at the name.
"Guess this little one is Luna Selini Starlight." said Soul, looking at the smaller blue alicorn on his back, who nodded at his voice.
"Right now, we are all the family that we have left, and I swear that I will not to let them come to harm like our late mothers. Right now however we need to find a way to stop Nox." said Fang.
"Than might we tell you how you can do that?" said a voice from the back wall. Turning their heads the group saw Ditzy and The Doctor smile at them, with the T.A.R.D.I.S behind them. "We have a delivery and a message for you all." said The Doctor.
"Who are you?" asked Starswirl.
"Me? Why, I’m The Doctor." said the brown stallion.
"Doctor who?" asked Fang with a raised eyebrow.
"Just The Doctor." said The Doctor with an amused grin. Soul though felt a flash in his mind as he looked at the time lord.
"Nah, you look more like a 'Time Turner' to me… I think we met somewhere before…" said Soul.
"Ah, a seer, very minor ability, but good enough to tell one of my pseudo names from my time, I just might keep an eye on you young prince." said The Doctor.
"Before my husband forgets, I am Ditzy Do but I’m also called Derpy Hooves. Also let's get back on track here." said Derpy.
"Quite right honey, anyway I see you already have one of the components we need." said The Doctor nodding to Soul's sword. "You might have noticed that, that gem is not normal. Well that's because it is one of two jewels from a set called the Elements of Balance that is the Element of Good, or Light, whichever you prefer young prince, and the other Element of Balance, the Element of Evil, or Darkness, is right here and is for King Fang to wield. Using both you can seal away the Kingdom of Nexus until you have trained yourselves to face your fears." said The Doctor.
"What else we need? A seed to grow a tree that will act as the anchor for the seal?" asked Edge in disbelief as Fang was handed the glowing ruby.
"Actually yes, yes you do." said The Doctor.
"Well walked right into that one." said Edge. Muse just shook her head.
"Wait, what is going to happen to us after the shades are sealed away? I know there has to be a price for this…" said Spell Weaver.
"Yes, there is. Your memories of the Dark Chaos War, and these two,” he said pointing to Edge and Muse, “will be sealed into Soul's element just in case. When Fang’s soul mate finds her destiny you two will be freed to help out. But know this, the road ahead is long and hard. Starswirl, Spell Weaver you both must raise the two princesses after the seal is done. They won't be able to remember their relation to Fang nor will he remember his to them once the seal is created. Now we must be off, I heard that 19932 is a good year to be in. Come on honey, allons~y" said The Doctor as both time travelers vanished. Soul sighed and looked to his adoptive cousins and family in all but blood . "You heard the odd, and possibly insane, pony with a teleporting blue box. Looks like we got a plan, and Fang, don't worry, my godparents are good folks to raise them. They will make sure they will be alright." said Soul as he regained his determination.
"Right, and Soul we will be with you until the end. Just don't forget us" said Muse with a smile on her face.
"You’re the one we will follow into hell, you’re like family to us." nodded Edge.
"Thanks you two. Now we got work to do. Fang alert your kingdom of what's happened, Muse go with Spell Weaver, Starswirl and Edge to find a seed able to absorb magic while I look for the spell needed to seal our old home away and end this war." said Soul.
"This is why I should learn from you on how to be a better tactician Soul." said Fang. Everyone nodded as they went to do their jobs. It was going to be a long three years, but they were sure that they could do it.
Chapter 6: Seeds of the Future. It took them three years, but they finally to track down the seed they needed to find. The now seventeen year old shade glared at the wasteland that was once a forest. According to Starswirl the seed they were looking for was in the Crystal Empire. The crystal seed is a special seed that is produced by the crystal heart only once every fifteen millennia. And the seed was going to form any day now. The guardian shade, his team the Prince's Guard, and Fang were on their way to said empire, while avoiding an army of rouge shades, which ironically is what said army thought the group was a part of.
Soul griped his blade with his element set inside and Fang nodded to his brother in all but blood. The three year olds, Celestia and Luna, were with them, worried for their brothers and cousins. The team moved silently, trying to not alert any of the nearby shades. The world had quite literally gone to Hell when Nox went mad, and the group had managed to form a small resistance, consisting of ponies, griffons, minotaurs, and a changeling hive. Said resistance was more or less just holding off the shades, trying to prevent them from taking more land.
The group had spent the past three years training for this, and now it was time to retrieve the final item they needed to stop the war. Unfortunately the empire was under Nox's jurisdiction, so they had to sneak into the, currently, shade infested empire and get the seed. Well, only Fang and Soul were actually going into the empire, while Edge and Muse watched Celestia and Luna. They knew the risk they were taking in order to stop the war, and they would gladly pay the price. They had managed to get to the tundra where the empire was located, in fact, they could see said empire in the distance.
Soul pulled out six small orange and silver colored pills and passed two each to the other shades of the group. These were an invention of Starswirl's, eclipse capsules. They were made with solid light and dark magic, with the purpose of extending the limit of time that shades could survive in sunlight, they already had to take some halfway through the dessert and, to say the least, they worked. The shades each swallowed their capsules, and Soul hugged Luna close, wrapping her in his cloak. Luna seemed to have become Soul's favorite sister, as she spent more time with him than Fang, who spent more time with Celestia. "Big brother? How much longer do we have to wait until we get to this 'Crystal Empire'?" Asked Luna.
"Another day at the most, the downside of shadow travel is that I can't travel to a place that I never been to before. That, and lately magic has been slightly out of order because of Discord. We'll have to work fast in order to make the world a better place for you and Celestia. Thing is, even if we do manage it I'm not sure how long it will take to seal all the shades except me, Edge, Muse and Spell Weaver." Suddenly the shade gripped his cloak tighter as a cold wind hit the group. "Y'know, the more I think about how this can go wrong, the more determined to stop this I get. You and Celestia, along with Fang, are my only reason to live on, and I don't know how, but I'm sure that things will work out." The shade looked ahead and saw a ton of snow blowing in the wind ahead of them. "Hold on, we're about to enter a blizzard!" Said Soul, as he tightened his cloak around Luna and himself, and trudged forward through the snow.
Fang kept Celestia warm by covering her with his right wing as the group of six moved through the blizzard, no doubt set up by Caster Shades. The black alicorn turned his head and looked at his white coated sister. 'That's right Soul these two, and each other, are our reason to continue living on. They are all that's left of mother, and I vowed that I would not to let them come to harm...' Fang looked at Celestia and gave a small smile. Two months ago, he had noted with amusement that she and Luna, as well as Soul, seemed to be unaffected when he entered what Soul called his 'power mode', which caused his mane to flow in a non existent wind. Soon the group stopped in a cave to bunker down for the night. Soul pulled some fire wood out of his hammer space and Muse lit it with a fire spell.
"Big brother? Can you please tell me a story?" Asked Luna. Celestia glanced at Soul with a pleading look. Soul smiled and rolled his eyes.
"Okay, okay, just shut that look down and I will." He glanced to the side and looked at the female shade that was sitting against the wall of the cave. "Muse, I will get you back for teaching them that pout." Said Soul as he nudged the Witch. Fang chuckled, knowing that with how cute their sisters were, they could persuade Soul to do whatever they wanted. Soul cleared his throat and started his tale.
"Long ago, around seven hundred years back, there lived a darkness dragon by the name of Nox Void. He was one of the ten primordial dragons, those able to manipulate an element at will. And like all dragons he was full of greed. thrown from his tribe and region, he vowed to create his own nation to rule. He started his plan by mastering his element, darkness, like no other. His skill with shadows and darkness soon grew to legendary proportions, and during his training to master his skills he found a strange ore, created when the vast amount of shadow magic he used had saturated the ground.
"He named the ore Nexium, and from his knowledge of alchemy, he made a golem from it, creating the first shade. Soon, after building a whole kingdom of them, he had found that he had overused his element and it had warped him into the very thing he created, a shade. A century later he married a half pony shade named Crescent. The two lived for almost six centuries, as the rulers of Nexus, the Kingdom of Shadows. And around 18 years ago, they had a son that they named Tamashii Souto no Nexus, the Prince of Shadows.
"Their son was raised to always help those in need, and had a good friend in the King of Monsters who was born three decades before the Prince. But a few years before the Prince of Shadows was born, a war had erupted between Nox and a spirit of balance. This was during the time before Nox married Crescent, mind you. The war ended when the spirit somehow managed to absorb the insanity that had befallen Nox from the overuse his element. In the end, the spirit became twisted in both mind and form, now a being of chaos, he took on a new name, Discord.
"Nox, with his now repaired mind, threw Discord out of Nexus, and he was never heard from again, until three years ago. He had arrived before the Prince, now a guardian shade, the King of Monsters, the Prince's godparents and two loyal friends, along side Nox his wife, as well as the King of Monsters mother. But he wasn't alone. He had recruited four demons to help him get revenge on his old foe. He had taken the lives of queen crescent and queen scarlet but queen scarlet did one last act before her death. She split her magic into twin strands light and dark magic. Those split strands of magic eventually formed two alicorn fillies.
"The Prince of Shadows saw that the loss of his mother had broken the mind of his father, creating a demon even the rulers of Oblivion would fear. The Prince called to his godparents to get the group out of there, while he had rushed to save the fillies and their enraged brother, who was busy trying to rip Discord's head off, and they were taken to the home of the Prince's godparents. That day, the group vowed that they would give their lives to stop the resurrected war, and to put the world back into the way it was supposed to be." Said Soul and the two fillies awed at how deep the story was not knowing it was actual history and how the two were born.
"Big brother, that sounds a lot like what we're doing right now..." Said Luna after she reviewed the story twice in her mind. To say that Soul was surprised that one of the two had connected the dots would have been a lie, but he had expected that Celestia would be the one to do so, she was the more analytical of the two.
With a sigh, the shade explained. "That's because that is what's happening. All of that really happened. You're old enough to know that I'm not really related to you and Fang, but we're brothers in all but blood, and I'm glad you accepted me as family, since my own was torn apart right before my eyes. Now get some sleep, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow..." Said Soul, as he removed his cloak, and gave it to the fillies so they could use it as a blanket.
"No matter what happens, you'll always be our brother!" Said Celestia, giving Soul a hug before she and Luna went to sleep. Muse giggled when she saw that Luna had rested her head on Soul's armored leg, looking quite conferrable there.
The knight rolled his eyes. "Laugh it up, Muse. We all still need to figure out where Nox hid the crystal heart..." Said Soul.
"Right, sorry, but this, right here, is just way to cute. You're good with kids, Soul. That's a sign of a good ruler." Said Muse.
Fang looked at the wing-blade shade, Edge. "I want you and Muse to stay behind, that way we can keep Celestia and Luna safe, and have a easier time sneaking in."
"Agreed, oh and before I forget to mention it, I can sense a certain trio in the Empire, so you have to be careful." Said Edge. With that the for beings went to sleep.
The next day, before Fang and Soul trudged through the snow once more, they walked over to Celestia and Luna, and nodded to Muse and Edge. Soul bent down and gently hugged Luna. "Stay safe, and whatever you do, don't trust anything that can harm you, I don't want you two to get hurt." Said Soul.
"Okay big brother..." Whispered Luna, unaware that Soul placed a spell on her and Celestia, to let him know if they were in danger. What could he say, he had gotten attached to them. The two brothers in all but blood nodded and ran out of the cave and toward the Empire with Soul turning into his unicorn self, once out of sight of the kids and his adoptive sibling/cousins. He looked forward his amber eyes glinting with determination.
He and Fang kept their senses up, along with their guard, and quickly got to the castle. Soul could sense the crystal heart now, and nodded to Fang. "The throne room, that's where the heart's at. Let's be careful, we don't have much time." Said Soul. The two entered and made sure to avoid soul's ex-classmates. They overheard a pair saying that Nox was out back in Nexus to coordinate the war effort. Soul grit his teeth and nodded to Fang, signaling that it was time to continue.
The two soon located the throne room and Soul shifted back to his shade form. The two entered the room and, lo and behold, Shadow Fang, and his two cronies, Aero and Burst, were there, guarding the crystal heart. In a cage above them was what appeared to be some of the Empire's citizens, the crystal ponies, half of them however were fillies and colts. Soul narrowed his eyes. "Shadow Fang, I figured you would be here. It's been three years since you tried to sabotage me." Said Soul.
"Well, well, Prince Tamashii. Long time no see. I see your still hanging out with that King of Monsters pony..." Said Shadow in a tone that showed he had clearly lost his mind.
"Fang may be a vampony, but you're the monster here, Shadow. What did my dad do to have you enslave a whole kingdom?" Asked Soul, keeping his sword at the sheathe, ready to react as Fang pulled out his own sword, which had a faint glow surrounding it.
"Oh, he just asked me to do it, so I did." Shadow finished with a chuckle.
"Enough talk! You fall here!" Shouted Fang, the glow around his sword becoming brighter as it began to catch on fire.
"Yes, I will be handsomely rewarded for taking the head of the Traitor Prince! Oh, you didn't know your own father put a bounty on you Prince? No dead or alive, just dead! Face it, you no longer have a place in Nexus and when I'm through with you, you're gonna beg me to kill you!" Laughed Shadow raising his daggers, as Aero took out his drill-lance and Burst pulled out two crossbows.
Soul watched as shadow charged at him and, in a flash, he unsheathed his sword and slashed him across the waist, where his core was located. Shadow stumbled and muttered. "Guess I underestimated you, didn't I?" He began to disappear as he fell to his knees. "I return to the darkness from which I came..." He fell leaving his daggers and shield. Soul picked them up, and used the shield to block the arrows Burst shot at him. He noticed that Fang had taken flight to fight Aero, their weapons colliding with a clang sending shock waves through the room from the sheer force of the impacts.
"The fire of battle surges and calls out! I command thee to strike down my foes in burning agony! May ghostly flames sear thy soul and return you to darkness that ye came from!" Chanted Soul as his sword started to be wrapped in a ghostly fire. "Will-o-the-Wisp!" With the spell finished, Soul began slashing at the arrows with the ghostly fire. He jumped and channeled his magic through his blade, making it shine silver. "Lunar Crescent!" Roared Soul, slashing Burst from head to toe.
A blue line shown from where Soul made the cut as the shade fell backwards. "I return to the shadows from which I came..." Breathed Burst, leaving a cape and his crossbows behind. Soul put on the cape and turned, only to see that Fang was having trouble with Aero, who's drill-lance kept him from getting close.
Soul kicked up the crossbows and tossed them to Fang. "Fang, use these!" Said Soul. Fang caught them and flew back readying a spell.
"Heart, shine thy light and guide my attack. Pierce my opponent with the light of day, create a blaze so hot it rivals the sun! Phoenix Flare!" Casted Fang he shot twin arrows of light and fire that merged to form a phoenix that swerved around Aero's attacks and pierced the shade's armor.
"I return to the shadows from which I came." He said as he vanished.
Soul picked up the lance. "Let's get that seed and get out..." Said Soul grimly, knowing that he had to kill his own kind, since Discord killed his mother, and left his father as a shell of who he once was. He feared it wouldn't be the last time he would have to do so either. They went to the heart and it rippled, releasing a crystalline seed.
Soul looked at the cage and slashed the lock off. "Go, round up what ever you can and take back the empire! And no matter what happens, keep your hope alive!" Said Soul.
A grey colt approached. "Thank you sir, we will!" Said the colt. Soul noticed that the colt was a unicorn, his horn was curved upward and was a crimson red in color. As he had never seen a unicorn like him, he became interested in the colt.
"What's your name little one?" Asked Soul.
"Sombra Cuarzo, sir, and good luck with whatever it is you're going to do." Said the colt. Soul nodded and grabbed Fang before he traveled back to their friends.
Soul handed the lance to Muse and Fang gave Edge the crossbows, knowing he could use them with his talons. With that, the group teleported back to Golden Oaks. "It is done, we have the seed..." Said Soul
"Thank Faust that we're almost done." Said Starswirl.
"Yeah, and we now have everything we need in order to seal Nexus away." Said Soul.
"Big brother, no matter what happens, you'll always be family..." Said Luna.
Soul nodded. He was sad that he and Fang would lose their memories of the two fillies, but it had to be done. Even if it made Luna and Celestia forget them as well, they knew the bond they had would never be broken.
Unnoticed by everyone, except a mouse that was sitting in the corner of the room, a specter shade entered Luna, but didn't possess her.
The Shade Prince gathered the items needed to seal the kingdom. The seed, a basilisk fang, the shell of a phoenix's egg and a small pouch of ashes.
Fang pulled out a small mirror and it glowed a light burst from it and shot out a window, splitting into twelve strands and forming twelve demons. The group, now consisting of Fang, Edge, Muse and Soul, walked outside and saw that the Transylmaneian army stood there, waiting for the upcoming battle. "Everyone, this is it. This war is about to end, and we need you to keep the shades off our backs while me, Soul and the archdemons seal the shades away in Tenebris." Said Fang.
"We are outnumbered, but you all are much stronger than you know. We must make sure that the world survives, we can't let doubt destroy us, this is the final stand. Good luck to you all! Maggio Faust, il Creatore, ci guidi!" Roared Soul.
"Maggio Faust, il Creatore, ci guidi!" Bellowed the army. Soul, Muse, Edge, Fang, the Archdemons and the army marched forward to the wasteland that would become the Everfree Forest, over the hills, Nexus can be seen in the distance. In between them and the city, was a huge army of shades.
Soul looked to his side and saw a cat jump onto Fang's shoulder. The vampony nodded, signaling that it was time. "Let's go!" Roared Soul.
Starswirl and Spell Weaver, along with Celestia and Luna, watched from Golden Oaks Library as the battle for the world started.
