> Strike of Lightning
>  by microdrago
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> White Washed
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	A young man of around Twenty-Six years old was making his way through crowds of people. The slight scowl on his face was conflicting with the smiles of everyone around him. His name was Fletcher, but in this place, he was Zeno. He, along with thousands of others, had dressed up and went to a Convention. His sour mood was because his current get up, of Zeno from Zatch Bell, was incomplete. He had everything from the White shoes and cloak to painstakingly dying his hair White. He didn't have Two things, Purple eyes, and his Spell Book, simply because of one arrogant cosplayer. One of the very few 'Mamodo' cosplayers had seen his hand-crafted Book of Spells, and went to security. He told them that I stole his book before it could be finished, hence the white look. The security guy basically snatched away his book and gave the 'Zatch' wannabee the White book.. His anger spiked when he watched the blonde idiot slather his book in Red spray paint and smile at his friend dressed as Kiyo. He was overflowing with anger, but he knew he would be outnumbered if he made any sort of move to get it back. He didn't have friends like the 'Zatch' and 'Kiyo' idiots, he had come alone. 
Tucking his arms into his cloak so he wouldn't bump into anyone, he weaved through the crowd until he made it near an exit.
"No point in staying if my outfits not up to par.." He muttered to himself. He reached for the handle of the door, only to get thrown down as it burst open. A few cosplayers dressed as animals of some kind had slammed their way through the door, making Fletcher skid backwards. As he turned around to yell at the idiots, his face contorted into rage, he caught a glimpse of something that made him stop in his tracks. 
There. In a stall. Was another Book. A White one. It even had the same hourglass like symbol under the random glyphs that made up the Mamodo language. It was almost calling to him. He blinked his eyes closed when someone got in his line of sight to it. He rushed around immediately, only to see the same stall had had been almost cleaned up entirely in what seemed like a few seconds. How long had he been staring at the Book? 
Regardless, he found himself making sure the book never left his sight again, even as he ducked and swerved around other people. As soon as he entered the stall, he picked up the book, as it had been on front display under an empty podium. The podium being in front of a wall of Mask's and different accessories like hats and suck. Each reminding him of different Anime. But his attention quickly went back to the White Book in front of him. 
It's design was perfect, it was almost as if it was ripped right from the show. It almost didn't look real, Cartoonish even. 
"Amazing.." He muttered as he reached for the Book.
Another hand gently smacked his own away, before a voice broke his attention.
"Yes, quite. Your my Third Customer today.. Which is odd, seeing as I only ever get one per Convention." The man that spoke turned out to be wearing a Very Authentic looking Merchant outfit from the Resident Evil series. Specifically the Fourth one. He even had the same smile, as a shiver went down Fletcher's back as the sight brought back a few memories lost to gaming. "It must be my lucky day!" The Merchant guy sang out in his slightly gravely voice. Fletcher simply looked from the man to the book, his eyes squinted in slight concern for the man's odd behavior.
"The Spell Book is One of my more.. Odd pieces, so not many have looked at it. It has a strict 'No Touching' policy unless you buy it. I can open it for you, but it is very delicate." The man said, as he flipped open the book with practiced and quick hand movements. The pages flashing through Fletcher's vision, and his eyes widened, as he saw that it was indeed filled with the 'Mamodo' language. He instantly knew he needed that book, it was like the book itself was made for him.
"I'll take it." Fletcher said, as he reached out for the Book. It was gently snapped shut as the Merchant laughed lightly.
"The price is a simple Four Hundred." He replied instantly. An audible gulp was heard.
Fletcher had only brought Three Hundred with him to the Convention. His eyes widened, as his mind raced. 
The book was all he needed, he could feel it. Maybe he could bargain? His wallet was worth maybe Twenty. His shoes? No, the man looked as though he wouldn't take anything less than what he deemed fair..
Fletcher's face once again contorted in rage. If that prick hadn't stolen his book then he could have traded it for this better one. People suck, there's no 'ifs' or 'buts'. This kind of crap always happened to him, always the short stick in life-
"Don't have it?" The Merchant had asked, his smile still present, however it seemed a bit more forced than it was a bit ago. How long had he stood there trying to figure this out?
"..I've got Three Hundred." Fletcher tried, his voice low, as he tried to keep his calm. "My wallet is worth around Twenty.." He continued. "Do you take.. Shoes?" He asked quietly, and his voice full of defeat. Not hearing any response, he found the Merchant staring thoughtfully at the book in his hand. Fletcher slowly uncurled his hands from his cloak, he had unconsciously gripped it to the point that the fabric was tearing slightly.
"You now.. It's been a while since if seen someone come in here, and get attached to one of my items as bad as you. The fact that you would offer me your own shoes for a book makes me smile. Sure kid, I'll take the Three hundred and the Wallet. Keep the shoes. You'll need them." He said cryptically. Fletcher, eyes wide, reached behind his back and found his wallet In his back pocket. Giving the whole thing to the Merchant's open hand. He seemed to weigh it in his hand, before smirking.
"You shortchanged yourself, the wallet is worth Thirty." He laughed gently as he handed Fletcher the Book. Unable to say anything, he reached up and took the Book. Upon touching it, a small spark flicked across his hand, shocking him. He yelped in surprise, but he found himself unable to drop the book. A burning sensation began spreading down his arm, as he watched his arm change. Slowly, he watched his hand and fingertips lose quality, like they were being erased from a drawing. The diminishing quality stopped when his hand was a pasty White. The burning spread across his chest and then to his other extremities, however the burning solidified into what felt a Sun in his chest. The pain stayed in his chest, even as the other pain from his limbs stopped. The pain was too much, and he blacked out. His last sight was the Merchant frowning down at him before pulling a curtain in his shop.




----Location: Unknown----



Fletcher woke up, and his first thought was vocalized, with every ounce of his being.
"Fucking hell!" He sat up, as he gripped at his chest, the pain nothing but a phantom. He sat there breathing heavily, as he relaxed. His body feeling numb for whatever reason. It was when he opened his eyes did he begin to realize what was wrong.
Snow.
There was nothing but snow around him. Where the hell was he?! The numbness made a lot more sense now that he watched the snow falling. A rush of wind blew around him, whipping his hair around. Surprisingly enough, he didn't feel cold. A part of him wanted to crack a joke about being 'Cold hearted' but it was drowned out by the now raging winds. Beside him a fluttering noise gently grabbed his attention over the wind. As he looked in the direction of the noise, he was surprised. If it wasn't for the movement caused by the wind, he would have never seen the White Book that sat open in the snow as it pages flipped rapidly through itself. Reaching over, he grabbed the book, but paused as he looked at his hand. It was still the same pasty White from before, and was still missing almost all the definition it had before. In fact, it looked quite small as well when griping the Book. Tucking the book under his arm the best he could, he looked around in more detail.
All around were hills of snow, nothing but a White expanse and a Grey sky overhead. Taking a few steps forward, he found himself tripping. Landing in the knee high snow, he pulled himself up, and shook his head of snow.
"The fuck?!" He swore, as he got angry once more. His anger more towards the snow getting in his face rather than the fall itself. However, his eyes widened. Only now did he realize something else was wrong.
"The hell's with my voice? Why do I sound like a kid?" He asked himself, his anger disappearing with his curiosity. For a second his mind was clear as he asked that question, until the end, when he bit his tongue.
"Ah! Damnit, why are my teeth so fucking sharp?!" He called out, his rage resurfacing. His mind was racing with a Hundred different thoughts. From being confused to where he is, to what happened to him in between, he was getting more questions than answers. And all this stress at once made his anger at everything snap, if only a little. 
But it was enough.
"God Damnit!" He yelled out as loud as he could, pounding his fist into the snow. A small crackling noise stopped his tantrum before it could start. He looked to his hand as he plucked it from the snow, to find a small, almost invisible line of White Lightning snap from his wrist to his fingers. His mind slowly flushed out the useless thoughts and focused on what he knew.
He had bought a book from a strange man, and in touching the book he was changed. From what he could tell by what he had seen, he had been changed into a cartoon character of sorts. His skin was White, he was smaller than he was by a large margin, and his teeth were sharper. The only solid conclusion he could come up with was also the most unbelievable.
He'd transformed into Zeno? Lightning Emperor Zeno? From Zatch Bell? His favorite Anime character.. In any other circumstance, you'd suppose most people would jump for joy and freak out at the same time. But Fletcher- No. If he had truly turned into Zeno, then he would carry that name and make it his own.
Zeno, wasn't like the other people. He knew that freaking out would get you nowhere. The only thing you can do is keep a cool, collected head. He tucked the book as snug as he could to himself. He would have to find a way to protect his Book. It would be easy if there aren't any other Mamodo around, he could pass it off as just reading material from another country. That would explain why nobody would be able to read it. 
That is, assuming he found someone, or something. This snowy expanse was everywhere. Looking around, he found a hill, that he assumed was mostly snow or ice. Placing his Book down at his feet, and walking a few circles around it so he wouldn't lose it. He focused on the information that he had gathered before.
'Zeno' was one of the strongest Mamodo's to exist. His power came from the training he received from not getting Zatch's Bau. His training raised his Spell Power and his Physical prowess to levels you only saw from final bosses in games. In a way, that's what he was. 
Zeno raised his hand, and concentrated. He focused on the feeling of the Lightning he had seen earlier. He knew that the real 'Zeno' had a decent control of his Lightning powers without the use of his book. When his partner uses a spell the power of the actual spell is insane. 	Thinking on this, Zeno focused on the slight burning feeling that still resided in his chest. He felt it. The pure power behind that burning was ridiculous, but there was a problem. The burning got stronger the closer he got to the power. He caught a few residual waves of power as it petered off the main source, but it wasn't enough.
He needed to know what he was working with. He pushed, and dove his focus into the burning center. Feeling as though his entire body was being electrocuted while being covered in Third degree burns, he grabbed what he could and pulled back. As his focus flew away from the deathtrap, he saw a flash of White Lightning flash out and collide with the snowy hill in front of him. Instantly he collapsed to his knee's, both from exhaustion, and pain. Panting heavily with One eye closed, he watched as the steam faded away. A hole just big enough for him to crouch through was there. He grabbed his Book and crawled slowly into the new cave. Laying down using the Book as a pillow, he relaxed. Even though his body was wracked with pain, he found himself smiling. He lay there, focusing on the burning feeling. Trying to figure it out before he fell asleep an hour later.


----Several Hours Later----


Zeno sat in his cave, the cave flickering between utter darkness and bright light. He had his hand in front of him, and was gently pulling and flexing his Electrical Magic. He had made note that the burning sensation didn't lessen at all with all his testing. In fact, the longer he kept trying to use it, the worse it got. This must be the wall between him and his powers. The Books hold on his power. 
The burning didn't lessen, but if you feel the same pain enough you adjust. Start small, and work up.
*Crunch* 
The snow crunching outside his cave made him snuff out his Lightning by clenching his fist. A shadow walked by the cave entrance, and stopped in front of it. The head of a horse like creature suddenly popped into the mouth of the cave. Its fur a deep Brown, and its eyes far too big to be a normal horse. Its Green eyes met Zeno's.
*Zap*
With a swift motion of his hand, and an almost instinctual reaction, Zeno had blasted the thing with a small bolt of Lightning. He watched as it lay twitching on the ground, it's eyes a comical swirl. Zeno stood up and walked over to the creature. His curled into a frown as he looked it over. It almost looked like the Mamodo 'Ponygon' only Brown and bigger. The damn thing's head was almost as big as his Book. Was it a Mamodo? If it was, then his plans for keeping quiet are going to be harder if it knows he's there. He needed more information.
Grabbing the creatures cloak, he dragged it into his cave and propped it up against the wall farthest away from the cave entrance. He moved his Book to the front and sat on it like a chair, a hand under his chin as he waited. His frown deepened in frustration as the horse didn't wake up after a few minutes.
"Hey!" He called, his sharpened teeth gritting slightly. "If you don't wake up, I'll kill you." He said as calmly as possible. As if it heard him, the horse opened it's eyes. The vibrant Green slightly dulled out from grogginess. 
"H-huh?" A voice called out. From the horse. Zeno's frown fell just a bit further, Lightning pulsed in his free hand as it clenched, reacting to his anger. As the horse got up onto it's Four legs and shook it's head slightly. "Where.. Am-" Its eyes met Zeno's again, only this time they were filled with fear. The reflection of Zeno's own Purple eyes and sharp teeth could be seen in the horse's Green ones.
Zeno smirked slightly. 
'At least it knows fear.' Zeno thought to himself.
"What's your name?" Zeno asked, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. The horse looked around, and it's ears flattened out on it's head.
'Heh, it knows it can't escape.' Zeno chuckled darkly to himself.
"S-Stone Splitter" It stuttered out. It's voice low but definitely Male. Zeno simply blinked, and laughed lightly.
"What kind of name for a Mamodo is that?" Zeno asked, still laughing.
"M-Mamodo? What's that? I'm an Earth Pony." Stone's voice got a little louder as he started defending himself. "What are you?" He asked, starting to stand up.
"Me? I'm a Mamodo." Zeno raised a hand, and White Lightning coated his hand making the stallion freeze. "Sit." Zeno commanded. Almost instantly, Stone sat down, his eyes wide at the crackling electricity.
"H-how are you doing that?! What are you?!" Stone cried out in fear, his fur standing on end like a cats when they sense danger. 
"I told you, I'm a Mamodo." After waiting a few seconds for some kind of response, Zeno lowered his hand, the Lightning disappearing. "Then you don't know. Oh well, answer me this then. Do you know what a 'Human' is?" Zeno asked. Stone looked at him oddly before answering.
"No, is that a new species or something?" He asked.
"No no, never mind. One more question. What are you, and how do I find the nearest town?" Zeno asked, his Purple eyes unblinking. When Stone hesitated to answer, Zeno raised his hand as Lightning coated it once again. "I won't ask again." He spoke, his eyes narrowing and his smile fading.
"I-I'm an Earth Pony. One of the Three Pony races. The others are Unicorns and Pegasi." He paused for a second before continuing. "I was on my way to the Crystal Empire to the North, on orders from Princess Luna and Princess Celestia to check on the city. Prince Sombra haven't been answering the Princesses call for a meeting." Stone elaborated on his own. Zeno thought for a bit, his Lightning still crackling in his hand.
"And your King and Queen? I assume they are Unicorns?" Zeno asked, his curiosity peaking.
"Nope" Stone shook his head, "No Queen or Kings in Equestria, only the Princesses. And they are Alicorns, a magical joining of all Three races in one. The strength of an Earth Pony, the speed and wings of a Pegasus, and the Magic of a Unicorn," Stone explained. Zeno listened and took in all the information that the stallion in front of him was feeding him. He smiled a bit when Stone finished talking.
"Thank you, that information will go to a great cause." Zeno said, as he watched Stone take the gratitude with a smile. "And so will your cloak. Take it off." Stone's eyes widened at the demand. Reaching a shaky hoof up to the clasp, he unhooked his cloak. It fell to the ground in a heap, and with it a small bundle of safety rope.
"Great!" Zeno quickly grabbed the cloak and rope and began fiddling with his Book, his back turned. Stone slowly stood up, his eyes flashing with anger at the strange creature that stole from him. As he took a slow step forward, the snow crunched just a little under his hoof. Zeno stopped moving, and turned slightly to look at Stone.
"If you didn't move you would have lived for just a bit longer." Zeno's eyes were cold. He raised his hand. "But what's a minute anyway.."
*Zap* 
In a flash there was a scream.
Zeno left the cave, behind him the smoking remains of the pony had filled the cave with Black smoke. Zeno flipped up the hood of the Brown cloak and adjusted the makeshift backpack/book under it. The cloak billowed out much like his own White one, and the only thing you could see was his sharp toothed grin as he made his way North.



----A Day Later----



"I should have eaten that stupid horse.." Zeno muttered to himself as his stomach growled for what felt like the millionth time in less than an hour. He had been walking non-stop and was getting fed up with not seeing anything in the distance. His only source of entertainment was watching these weird Blueish wisps of wind fly around him. He watched as some came close to him, but most stayed away. Only one had touched him, but it had flashed away as a small spark shot from Zeno's hand. Since then they had been slowly increasing in number.
Suddenly they started swirling together. They piled together and made what looked like Ghost horses. They let out a howl that screeched over the howling winds of the blizzard. One burst from the circling collection and zoomed over to Zeno. On instinct Zeno raised a hand and swatted at the Apparition. HIs hand fazed right through it and he felt some of his stamina deplete. Zeno looked to his hand, then back to the flying Apparition. With a frown, his hand lit up with White Lightning.
"If you think your strong enough then come, and try your luck." Zeno spoke, his voice as cold. The Apparition flew at him again, only to get a small blast of electricity blasted at it. It was sent flying, the wisps of Blue starting to split off. It caught itself mid-air and began piecing itself back together. With a shrill howl, it rushed Zeno. Along with the rest of the Apparitions. One by one they flew by, attacking Zeno.
The first was dodged, as Zeno followed it and blasted it with a bolt of Lightning, It's power similar to the first. Quickly he turned around and jumped, aiming his hand down. Launching another bolt at the one below him, he found himself getting nicked by one on the arm. He flung his arm up and zapped that one as well, his frown deepening. Landing, he dove to the left, Three of them rushing by him. Each of them getting a blast of Lightning. He was hit by another one, this time on the leg. He turned to his right and went to launch another bold when he froze up. 
The burning, it was getting stronger. It was getting harder to focus on what was happening.
Another Three flew through his abdomen, causing him to stumble slightly.
'Stop fucking hitting me..'
The burning was still getting worse.
One went through his chest, as he stopped trying to move, and grit his teeth.
'Annoying flys!'
It felt like Lava was coming from his chest! His teeth were grit not in pain, but in anger.
Another one flew in front of him, and flew into his face. Zeno's face snapped up at the Apparitions that floated around him. His eyes glimmering in rage.
"Enough!" He called out, a blast of White Lightning burst from his hand, and pulsed around him. The Lightning vaporized the screaming banshees all at once. Zeno watched as the clouds overhead darkened due to the extreme amount of electricity in the air. He was panting, but it was more of a 'rage' induced breathlessness rather than a fatigue based one.
"So.. My Lightning power gets easier to use the angrier I get?" Zeno asked himself out loud.
"Indeed." A deep voice growled out from nowhere and echoed out over the snowy hills. Zeno's eyes traced landed on a small growing pool of Black liquid. From it a form started to take shape. After a few seconds, in front if him stood a Unicorn. A massive one at that. Judging by the lack of wings, and royal attire, Zeno could guess who it was.
"Greetings, Prince Sombra." Zeno, couldn't help his smirk. He had planned on meeting him at some point, the fact that Sombra had found him was just a plus.  Sombra was a dark gray unicorn with a black spiky mane and tail. Sombra's horn was curved, smooth, sharp at the tip and it gradients from dark Gray to Red. He had sharp teeth with two visible fangs unlike the other pony and Red irises, the White of his eyes appear Green and have a Purple mist emanating from them. He was wearing silver armor on his legs and neck, a crown with horn-like points on his head, and a red cape that covers his flank.
"It's King Sombra now." He growled out. He seemed to study Zeno for a bit, before continuing. "What are you, and what do you want? Answer quickly so that I may leave." He growled out again.
"My name is Stone Splitter. I'm an emissary of Princess Luna and Princess Celestia. May I seek shelter for a bit?" Zeno replied, trying his best to act meek. Sombra studied him, as if staring into his soul, before answering.
"A pony name for a non-pony.. You must have quite the story. Come we shall discuss this over dinner." He spoke in his growling tone, as Zeno had guessed, it must be his accent of something. In an instant a dark portal opened up behind Sombra and he backed up into it. Zeno followed shortly after, after blinking away the nonchalant magic use. Stepping through the portal, he found himself inside a castle. The walls were made of Crystal, even the floor was Crystal.
"I never thought it would actually be completely made of Crystal." Zeno muttered to himself.
"Sit." Sombra's voice called out from a short distance away. In front of him was a table that he was sat in front of. On the table was a buffet of different meats and Crystals. Zeno watched as Sombra grabbed one of the larger Crystals with a hoof, and gnawed a chunk off. He chewed and swallowed before talking.
"So, Stone Splitter was it?" He asked. Zeno knew what he wanted.
"O-oh! Right. About a year ago, I was found by Princess Celestia. I didn't have any memories of before my arrival, so she named me after the fact that I split a rock with my head on my way down a flight of stairs.." Zeno kept his voice meek. "I've always had these weird powers over Electricity, but Celestia forbids its use since it thrives on my anger.." Zeno reached out and took a leg of.. Chicken? He couldn't quite tell. Chomping down on it, he found himself wanting to jump onto the table and eat everything. But he needed to keep up his weak and meek persona.
"Ah, my dear Stone. Your talent is wasted! Your power could be very useful, let me train you to use your anger." Sombra said, his smirk showing through his attempt at a caring smile. Zeno dropped his, now just a bone, onto the plate and looked up. His hood still covering his face.
"You'd do that?!" He asked. He watched as Sombra walked over to him and put a hoof around his neck.
"Why of course! You eat up, and rest. We can start your training tomorrow." He lifted a small bowl of Crystals up with an aura of Black Magic and took it with him, as he started laughing to himself as he walked through the door.
Zeno waited for Sombra to leave before grabbing the plate with the Chicken on it, and leaned back. Putting his feet on the table as he took a bite, he smiled.
'Are all these ponies this gullible?' He chuckled lightly, as he thought about what he needed to do next. His attention was ripped from his thoughts as another pony came up to him. This one was Blue, yet had an almost Crystalline film over its fur. On closer inspection, Zeno was positive that the pony was indeed made of Crystal..
'And I bet they're called Crystal Ponies..' He thought dryly.
"Yes?" He asked, slipping back into his meek persona.
"I'm Crystal Shine, I was told by Lord Sombra to show you to the Guest room." The monotone voice of this pony responded. Its voice female, but lacking any Reason or Will behind it.
Zeno couldn't help but smile, both internally and externally, at the way this 'King Sombra' ran his Kingdom. 
"Of course, thank you!" Zeno nodded his head as he followed Crystal down a corridor and into a room. Without a word, she left him alone, closing the door behind her. Zeno looked around the room, and found it plain. The walls were the same Color as the rest of the Castle. There was only One window and it's only view was the Ponies below them hauling crystals from some mine. Each one looked worked to the bone and each had the saddest look on their faces. Turning away from the window, he noted a mirror on a desk. He walked over to it and flipped his hood off his head. In his reflection was almost everything he thought it would be. The hair a pure White, the pasty skin, and the lines connecting his eyes to well past his mouth. The only thing wrong where his eyes. Yes they were Purple..
But they lacked that burning intensity that 'Zeno' had. He assumed it was the anger that the boy felt for his brother. But 'Fletcher' had been a fairly aggressive and angry person as well.
Well, I guess it's hard to compare years of resentment from getting something taken from you.
Oh well, He was fine with everything as it was. 
Plopping his book on the side where it could be easily put back onto his shoulders, he laid down on the bed, to think.
His next step was to train his powers more, until he got used to using his Magic constantly. He'll never have full control without someone to read his book, But he didn't need others to make him stronger.. He wasn't Zatch.
Zeno's hand clenched at the thought, the sound of cloth tearing caught his attention. His eyes widened.
'Even when its me doing the thinking, this body still has so much anger subconsciously that it makes me angry as well.' He thought to himself as he relaxed once more, And continued his train of thought.
After gaining sufficient power, his next step was to kill off Sombra. The Crystal Empire is already a good starting point, he just needs to prepare a bit..
So much to do.. So much to do..
Zeno's light snoring was soon heard as he fell asleep. His sharp-toothed smirk showing even as he slept.
> Magical Mishap
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Zeno woke up to the sounds of something entering his room, being a light sleeper had a perks. He rolled off the bed, flipped his hood back onto his head and stood up, all in a second or Two. In the blink of an eye, he had raised his hand up and sparked a small amount of Lightning in his fingertips. His eyes widened when he saw who it was that was in his room.
King Sombra stood there, In his full armor, with a smirk on his face at the action Zeno had taken. Zeno, cursing his blunder, immediately pulled his arm down and bowed lightly.
"I-I'm sorry Lord Sombra Sir, I don't know what came over me!" He stuttered on purpose to keep up his meek persona.
Sombra simply chuckled.
"It's fine young Stone. You have fine instincts for somepony from Celestia's kingdom. But then again, your not a pony, are you?" Sombra asked, his eyes tracing Zeno's smaller frame through the cloak he wore. "Remove your hood." He told Zeno. Zeno flinched, and acted accordingly.
"I-I was told by Celestia to not take off my hood.. She says my eyes are Evil.." He trailed off. His explanation would provide reason for the way his eyes held such malice. A Silver coated hoof pushed through the opening in the hood and pushed it down, Zeno's eyes widened in surprise. Sombra's gaze was unflinching as he studied Zeno's face, his focus stayed on his Purple eyes for longer than even his sharp teeth.
"Yes.." Sombra said, his voice low. "Your eyes do hold a vicious quality to them. Such anger hidden in  them." He snarled slightly, as if realizing something. "I assume, that from your words earlier, not many ponies have seen your face?" A nod from Zeno was all it took for a smirk to form on Sombra's face. "I understand, but here, you will not find such ridicule. Your power will be seen as a gift and not a curse." He gently pat Zeno on the shoulder with his hoof as he turned around. "Come, we have much to do today." He made his way through the door. 	Zeno grabbed his book and contemplated taking it with him, but decided against it as he pushed it behind the mirror. His book hidden, he joined Sombra in his walk through the castle. They made there way through a few hallways until they made it to a big set of double doors. The doors were opened by a few of those Crystal Ponies. 
The doors led outside, and Zeno found himself confused. He knew it was snowing out, hell, he could see it in the distance all around them. Yet the town itself was devoid of snow.. 
'Must be Magic..' Zeno deadpanned to himself.
"Now Stone, I want you to hit me with as much Magic you can channel. Don't worry about hurting me, you won't." Sombra assured Zeno as his horn lit up slightly, a Black aura surrounding it.  Being sure to hesitate, Zeno raised his hand to conjure some Lightning. 
'Your right, I'd probably kill you if I blasted you with full power.' Zeno smirked internally. He would use this time to stretch his own knowledge of his Magic. He focused on the feeling in his chest, the burning that came from his Magic Limiter. Feeling around the edges, he gathered what was wafting off the edges, and gathered what Magic he could without hurting himself in the slightest. He watched as Lightning formed in his hand, more specifically his finger tips. The small ball of electricity was only the size of a tennis ball, the same as when he woke up. Knowing that the amount of power currently in use was pitiful, he pulled a bit more. Now feeling a small burning as his Magic siphoned through his arm and into his hand. The ball increased to about half a Basketball. He launched the blast of Lightning at Sombra, and watched as his attack bounced of a Black, transparent shield. Sombra held a hoof up to his chin, and mumbled something to himself.
"Okay, now I want you to focus on the looks other ponies give you. They hate you for being different. Even Celestia has told you so, why else would she make you wear the cloak? She's hiding you like one would hide an accident. She named you after an accident that may have caused you harm!" Sombra spoke in his gruff voice, trying to goad Zeno and make him lose his temper.
Zeno knew what Sombra was trying to do, yet had to stifle a chuckle when he thought about how all of his points were made up. He caught himself, and made it look as though he was gritting his teeth in anger. Reaching back in, he pulled more Magic out, almost three times as much as before and with it, Three times the burn, but it was still easy compared to the more powerful blast he used on the weird snow ghosts. He watched in amazed fascination as the ball of Lightning, made from Three times as much Magic, was only a few inches bigger, being the size of a small watermelon. He let it fly, and watched the Magic bounce off the barrier again. He followed it with his eyes as it zoomed of into the blizzard outside.
A thudding noise brought his attention back to Sombra, who was thumping his hoof on the ground in almost like an applause. 
"Excellent! Your power will only grow as you use it. Anger feeds Magic Power the best, and causes the fastest growth rate of the many types of Magical training. Now, I want you to try splitting your focus, and summon Lightning to both hands." He said as he returned to his position.
Zeno stood there, dumbfounded. Could he do that? He had never seen Zeno do that on the show or in the Manga.. It sounded possible, just hard. He focused on his extra Magic, so he wouldn't have to deal with the burning along with the split. He felt the Magic go into his arm, then to his fingers. Feeling the Magic in his hand, he put it down and brought up his other arm. The Magic moved instantly from One arm to another, as it coated his fingers in electricity. Doing the motion a few more times, he found that he could stop the lightning back at his chest. Stopping it, he brought up both arms at the same time, and focused on his magic, trying to get it to pick an arm. His idea worked, as it split itself. Instead of coating his hands, it simply spread along his arms. Progress was progress however, and he studied how it felt to have the Magic apart from each other. As he was doing so, he noticed something was.. Off, and decided to stretch his new found knowledge.
Looking up at the expectant look of Sombra, he pulsed more Magic into both arms. He watched as his already electrically soaked arms had a few bars of electricity pulse up and down his arms. His eyes widened when he noticed the speed of the electricity picking up with each passing moment, and he felt the Lightning in his arms bouncing off each other and gaining strength from the open air. After what felt like a minute, his arms were absolutely glowing with power, as the sound of Lightning zapping through the air was buzzing though the air. Much like a Tesla Coil. The Magic was getting to violent, and hard to control so he let it go. 
The Lightning shot from his arms in a condensed beam, that nailed Sombra's barrier, and bounced off the side towards a mountain in the distance. Sombra looked at his barrier as he fixed the crack running though it as he mumbled to himself. Zeno however was looking of into the distance, as the mountain he had hit had a small hole drilled right through it near the top.
He had made a Magic Rail Gun out of his arms.. Too bad the charge up time was so long.
"Amazing!" Zeno shouted. "That's not what I was going for, but that works too!" He tried to sound happy, which wasn't too had to do seeing as he was, for the first time in a long while.
"Quite amazing. Your grasp on your Magic is good, yet your control needs work. Focus on sending your Magic on a solid path, nothing more than that. Try again." And again Sombra pulled up his barrier.
Zeno glanced at the still smoking Mountain in the distance, then he brought his gaze back to his hands. He brought his Magic back to the forefront of his focus, and watched as Lightning slowly crawled up his arm. as he focused a bit more, he summoned a bit more from his core. Making sure to give it a sole direction in his mind, his eyes widened.  A few sparks jumping back across from arm to arm, but nothing like the first time. He waved his arms slightly, watching the electricity crackle wildly in his palms.
A sly grin formed on his face, as an idea came into his head. Pulling both his hands in front of him, he let them get close enough that the Lightning starting bouncing back and forth like with his arms. His eyes narrowed in concentration as he willed it to do what he wanted, sweat starting to pour from his forehead. He looked on as the Lightning coiled around itself as it bounced back and forth, forming a ball of buzzing White Electricity. The ball slowly got bigger, as he watched in morbid fascination as it grew to be about the size of half his own body. Thinking it to be satisfactory for what he planned, he tried launching the attack.
However, it didn't budge from his hands. Watching it get bigger, he tried flicking it with his fingers and wrist. None of which worked, as the ball of energy was now Two Thirds his size. In a last ditch effort, he pulled his hands up over his head, and threw them forward. The ball followed the motion and flew from his grasp as if it was an actual ball. As if the ball of White Lightning had a mind of its own, it pulsed out with more power than it looked like it had. As it made its way quickly towards Sombra, its Lightning shooting off into the ground, tearing it up as it went.
To give Sombra credit, he had balls. He didn't flinch as the ball of electricity honed in on him. Hell, all he did was raise an eyebrow. But that's to be expected as the ball was only a quarter of his size at most.
What wasn't expected, was the barrier in front of his shattering on contact with the ball. With a quick flash of Black Magic a spike of dark Purple Crystal came jutting out of the ground, piercing the ball of energy. The ball simply faded away, like it wasn't there to begin with. Sombra looked on curiously, wondering where it went. As he was expecting an explosion of some kind, when it didn't he was confused.
His curiosity was sated when he looked back at his new apprentice, as the young one was bowled over like he had been rammed in the stomach. Sombra's eyes glowed a slight Green glow as he went over everything he had learned about the boy. He couldn't help the smirk on his muzzle.
"Your Magic is strong and flexible. Yet you lack experience, and the stamina that you seem to think you have. Your out of breath because your Magic drains you the more you use it in longer bouts. By using those last Two spells that required your concentration and so much time, you wasted a lot of stamina." Sombra critiqued his apprentice. He turned to leave, before looking over his caped shoulder. "Rest for today, tomorrow we work on your conjuring speed." He said before disappearing into the ground by sinking into his shadow.
Zeno had stood there, taking in the criticism with as much attention as he could afford. His Magic had backfired on that last spell. By pumping too much into the spell too fast, it opened the floodgate. His entire body was on fire fight now as his Magic settled back down. It had began pouring itself into the spell with reckless abandon. If Zeno hadn't managed to cut off the attack before it exploded, then he wasn't sure if he'd have a place to sleep tonight. Looking around, his hand still on his chest he felt for his Magic. He was surprised to find that it was the same size as before.. How much Magic did he have? For him to waste so much of it and not see a dent in his reserves..
,	He idly wondered how he would get back to his room. It's not like he knew where he was, and he couldn't just Teleport-
Zeno's eyes widened before he all but threw the Brown cloak off him, holding onto it with One arm. His other hand grasped lightly as the clasp that held his White cloak on him.
"The Cloak.." His eyes narrowed. How could he have forgotten about it? It was One of the things that made 'Zeno' so strong. His White Cloak had magical properties, both being a great defense against spells, and having the ability to Teleport him and others. He had no idea how the thing works, but it was definitely something he would look into.
"Why are you dressed in so much White?" A voice called from behind him. He turned to look at whoever had snuck up on him, to see the same pony that led him to his room the evening before. She was giving him the same plain look, only her head was cocked to the side due to her question. He wanted to glare at her, but instead chose to smile and rub the back of his head as sheepishly as he could.
"Sorry, This is what I was wearing when I arrived in your world. I haven't had the chance to get new clothes yet." He tried his best to look ashamed, as he quickly tossed the Brown cloak over his body again, being sure to keep the hood over his head again. If there were Mamodo's in this world, he wanted to be sure that the Mamodo didn't know him. Finding Zatch and his crew would be very dangerous at his current level.
"I didn't mean to make you put the Brown one back on, I was just curious." Zeno's eyes widened slightly at her next words as she dropped to her knee's getting on eye level with him. "Please don't tell Lord Sombra! I don't want to go to the mines again!" Her words had actual feeling behind them this time. Zeno couldn't help but frown at her plea. He walked over to her and gently put a hand on her shoulder.
"Mines? Why would you get sent there?" He was genuinely curious about it. He watched as her head dropped down to the ground as she spoke.
"Everypony works in the mines, only a select few get taken out of the mines. I was made into a servant. One of Four keeping the castle clean and catering to Lord Sombra's every whim." Her eyes watered slightly as tears formed. "My father still works in the mines, even the foals work there." She explained. "They mine for crystals for King Sombra to eat, they're one of the few things he thinks are precious to him." At this, she looked up at Zeno, and her eyes stopped watering almost instantly. She couldn't see his eyes, but she could see his mouth. And his teeth were clenched and a snarl of anger. Even his arms were shaking slightly. She stood up slowly, and got a little closer. 
 'That.. Has to be the worst way to run an Empire I have ever heard of! What a waste of perfectly good manpower!'  Zeno thought in a rage. He would have to move his plans around and rush his training. He needed a way to gather more Magic to use without throwing off his concentration. He had a few ideas but they all required-
"Are you alright?" Crystal Shine had asked aloud, going against her instincts and approaching the small creature that was shaking with anger. He immediately stopped shaking and glanced a look up at her, before looking around. After making sure they were alone, he spoke to her.
"How long has Sombra been a 'King' to the Crystal Empire?" He asked her suddenly. Her face dropped in a frown. 
"Only a few months, why?" She asked, only to flinch at the almost cruel smirk that adorned his face.
"Good, he hasn't had his powers long, I can take him out, I just need time to train up my own Magic." He raised his head up a bit to see her fully, flashing his Purple eyes to her. The malicious glint in them assured her that he meant what he said. She looked around, as her eyes widened at his open admittance to treason.
"You plan to fight Lord Sombra?! Are you crazy?" She asked in a hushed voice, as she gently pushed him in the way of the castle. He stayed next to her, as she lead him towards his room.
"Of course, that was the plan anyway-" He stopped, both himself and his mouth, as he stood still.
In his own stupidity, he had forgotten that he was playing the weakling. The anger and excitement had broken him from his act. He glared at the pony in front of him. He quickly walked up to her, and grabbed her mane. Forcing her head down to his level, ignoring the yelp of pained surprise.
"You talk about this to anyone, and I promise you. By the time I'm through with you, you'll wish you had gotten sent back to the mines, you hear me?" He growled out at her as he waited for her response. With wide and fear filled eyes she nodded to the best of her ability.
"Y-yes! Of course. I won't tell anypony about you or your plans!" She cried out, tears flowing down her cheeks. He let her go, watching as she slowly stood back up to full height as she tried to recollect herself. He walked by her and opened the door to his room.
"In." He commanded. She followed his instructions to the letter, with no hesitation. 
"How may I help, Lord Stone?" She asked, back in her monotone voice. Zeno brought a hand up to his face and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"Three things. One: Since your in on my plans and I've already threatened you, call me by my real name. Zeno." Her head cocked to the side again as he talked, obviously confused. "Two: No more of that 'stone faced, monotone' shit. I'm not talking to a rock, so don't act like one. Three: I asked you in here for your help." He tried to smile, only for it to fall back into a frown. The Crystal mare in front of him hadn't made a move from 'stone faced' yet.
"If that is what you wish, then I will call you your name, Lord Zeno." Her voice still monotone, his eye twitched, as he tried once more.
"I mean it, I'm not going to talk to a rock." He tried. Her face didn't budge, she even had the gall to back up slightly and turn to the door.
"Shall I leave then, Lord Zeno?" It was almost like she was being defiant on purpose. Zeno raised his hand up and pointed at her. A bright spark of electricity jumped through the air and landed on her snout, getting a small yelp from her. Her eyes focused on his hand, as it glowed a dull White. Taking a glace at his eyes, she found herself back stepping on instinct. His sharp Purple eyes almost glowed from under his hood.
"Last chance, will you be talking normally, or will I be forced to do things the hard way. Your choice here." Zeno's voice had and edge to it that could almost be felt. Like it was trying to cut her just by her being on the other end of it. She turned back fully towards Zeno, giving him her full attention. 
"What did you need of me?" She asked in a quiet voice, almost like she had given up on something. Zeno's eyebrow quirked upwards in curiosity, before he let his best smile show on his face.
"Come over here." He told her, making his way to his bed, slipping his Brown cloak over his head. He watched as the crystal mare walked over to his bed, and began climbing onto it, her head still hung low. He instantly knew what was wrong with her, and his frown couldn't have formed faster.
"Hold on a second, that's not what I want.." He spoke, trying to keep his disgust hidden the best he could. She stopped hallway up the bed, and turned her head to look at him so quickly he heard a small crack. He shook his head and motioned her down, which she followed slowly, unsure of his intentions.
"If not that, then what do you need from me?" Her voice louder than before. He chuckled, as he closed his eyes.
Zeno knew that he needed more easy access to his Magic. The only way was to train his body to either adjust to the burning that came with his Magic, or make it so his body would create more excess for him to siphon off. He had an idea, but it would prove to be time consuming. 
He felt inside himself for that burning sun inside his chest that was his Magic, and felt the excess. Pushing it back into his center proved only slightly painful, so he continued. He pulled a small amount from his core and let the Magic zip to his hands. He felt the electricity crackling at his fingers, and frowned. He focused, and made his Magic flow in the direction he needed. He then repeated, until he got the feel of it, allowing him to use less concentration. Opening his eyes, he looked at his hands. They were still a ghostly White, yet he still felt his Magic coursing through his body. He turned to Crystal Shine and gave her a sharp toothed grin.
"Well? Can you see or feel anything different about me?" He asked, his Purple eyes shining with mirth. She looked him up and down with a wary eye. Spotting nothing wrong with him, she shook her head in the negative.
"No. But what, pray tell, would I be looking for?" She asked, her ears swiveling forward in curiosity. She watched as Zeno laughed to himself, his smaller frame almost shaking in mirth. He stopped laughing only to hold out a hand to her. His grin never left his face.
"Touch my hand." He said simply. She looked from his hand to his eyes, then proceeded forward. She gently tapped a hoof to his hand, only for nothing to happen. She placed her hoof to his hand more firmly, only feeling a warmth spreading slowly through her. It brought a small smile to her previously stoic face. She looked into his eyes once again, only to see his filled with confusion and awe. It was only when she felt him tug her down to his level did she figure out that he was feeling her leg.
"I had thought it was only your fur that shined like crystal. I had no idea that you actually had a coat of crystal.." He trailed off as he trailed his hands up her leg, finding her knee. "How does that even bend?" He asked softly, seemingly in a trance. His hands traced every crease her leg made as he gently made it bend. She was amazed at how soft his hands were. His grip was both tight yet gentle, as he held her in place. She couldn't help the small blush that made it's way onto her face, as she focused on his hands as the trailed even farther upwards. Soon he was tracing the small grooves that helped her move her upper leg, his fingers inching closer and closer to her chest. She gasped audibly as the warmth from his hands melted into her chest. Unable to stop the small smile appearing on her face from the strange sensations, she was startled when he seemed to freeze. He quickly withdrew his hands and pulled them into his White cloak. Her face, flushed Red from the now rapid beatings of her own heart, took on a sad look. Before she could ask him what was wrong, he turned around quickly. She only just barely saw a small tint of red on his own cheeks, before they vanished from her vision.
"That's all I needed, you can leave." He said suddenly, his voice wavered slightly. She reached forward with a hoof to grab his attention, only to stop herself short. She quickly made her way out of the room and closed the door behind her. She leaned on the door heavily as she held her hoof to her chest, trying to stop the fluttering.
"Stupid! The hell's wrong with me?!" Zeno's voice carried through the door causing her ears to swivel towards it. "Only here for Three days and I let my curiosity of all things get in the way of my plans?" He asked himself, the sound of electricity crackling was the only sound she heard for a few seconds. "...Well, now it's settled. What was once a 'Conquer And Divide' strategy is now a 'Conquer And Keep Them Safe' strategy." He muttered lowly. "I'm more than interested now, no reason to ruin what could be a good thing." He mused aloud. Crystal stepped back, her ears laying flat on her head as her face went Crimson. She started a slow walk back to the maids quarters, tripping over her own hooves.
Zeno was standing in front of his bed, his eyes closed. His focus on the Magic he was looping around his body, trying to keep it in a steady flow. His goal was to make his body do it all on his own, that way he would have a constant shield from danger. And by doing so, he had a quicker trigger to his Magic Core. Able to pull from the burning sun at a moments notice. His secondary goal, would only help if it actually worked. By keeping his Magic in a constant flow around his body, he was trying to make his Magic have more excess. Thus expanding the amount he could naturally expend without getting any self injury.
After what he assumed was about a half hour, he opened his eyes, a smirk on his face. His smirk turned into a full bodied laugh, as he felt his Magic doing what he wanted. A small Electrical Field around his body with non of his help. It was small, as his free Magic wasn't all that much at the moment, but either way, he had done what he wanted. He felt so good, that he barely noticed that he felt wierd.
But he did.
In the span of a second he had stopped laughing and cocked his head to the side. His Magic felt weird, like something new was going to happen. His eyes widened as he rushed to the window, and threw it open. And not a moment too soon as-



----With Crystal Shine----



Crystal looked around and sighed as she walked into the maids quarters. She made her way towards her room, but was stopped by the sudden appearance of her Three fellow maids. The One with a Honey Yellow coat was named Amber shard. The Two to her left, were sisters that were a deep Red and Green color, respectively called Ruby and Jade.
Amber trotted over to Crystal and looked concerned.
"So how is he? You look flushed.. Did he-?" She started.
"No!" Crystal interrupted Amber, knowing full well what she was going to ask. "He's not like that, he was nice. There's a lot we need to talk about, lets just say that Lord Zeno is on our side." She said with a serious face. The trio all looked at her in disbelief, until Ruby spoke out.
"But why did you look so flustered then if he didn't make a move on you?" He face turned sly, as she inched closer, past her sister. "Did something happen? I demand details!" Ruby demanded, even as her sister stepped up next to her with a smile on her own muzzle. Crystal sputtered out at the accusations. 
"I- No we- That's not-!" She stopped and slammed a hoof to the ground and stared at the trio with a small pout on her face. After regaining some composure she took a deep breath. "It was something strange." She started slowly. "It was like he had never seen a pony before, and having a Crystal Pony in front of him.. Well he we very curious at the end of our conversation. It started with him asking to touch my hoof, to try out something with his Magic. It went a little.. Off topic, as he found out that I didn't have fur. He wound up feeling up my whole leg and then some, all the while his Magic ran through his arm like warm water." Her face flushed again at the recollection of the feeling. Ruby smirked, as did her sister, at the way their friend was acting. Amber was more stone faced however.
"So you like him?" Amber asked, being right to the point. She watched as Crystal sputtered even more, and nodded to herself as she walked away towards the coffee table that sat in the middle of the room next to the fireplace. "Darn, and here I was thinking we could do something with this tonight." She said as she reached under the table. She pulled up a White book wrapped in rope, held in her teeth as she placed it down on the table. "I found it in his room when I was cleaning it today. I was going to see if you girls wanted to burn it or something." She said, her ears flattening out. "But now that you've got a thing for him and all that, well, I guess you can return it to him tomorrow." She finished, using a hoof to push the book across the table. She watched as Crystal and the sisters walked over and joined her at the table.
"That book looks pretty." Ruby said, eyes sparkling slightly.
"Yeah, I've never seen a White book like that, and the symbols on the cover.. What do you think they mean?" Jade looked on curiously. Crystal looked at the book with mixed look. She wanted to look at it, but she knew she should return it before Zeno freaks out about it being missing. Amber looked at the Three mares as they looked at the book with their own stares, as a smile spread out across her muzzle. She reached over and hooked a hoof through one of the rope straps.
"You girls want to look inside?" Her smile was quickly spread to Two of the other mares. Crystal was hesitant about it, but folded after she got a few looks from the other girls. She watched as Amber unhooked the ropes with practiced ease. and wondered if she had already done this.
"I can't read a word of this.." Jade mumbles aloud, catching Crystals attention as she looked down at the book.
"But the symbols look pretty, I could copy them and decorate rooms with them!" Ruby called out excitedly, even though she couldn't read it as well.
"Yeah, I thought so. I couldn't read it either." Amber started as she looked around at the girls. "Why do you think he has it then if he cant-" She stopped, staring at Crystal. She watched the mare's eyes scanning the page as if reading something. And when she reached over to flip the page and then back, the confusion on her face was more pronounced than the others. "You okay Crystal?" She asked. Crystal looked up quickly as if she had forgotten she was in the presence of her friends. Just as quickly as she looked up, she looked back down.
"I can read it, but I'm not sure what I'm reading.." She mumbled to herself. This caught the attention of the others.
"What's it say?" Ruby asked excitedly. Amber and Jade looked on as well, ready to listen. Crystal looked back and forth between pages, as she explained.
"It's a list of Spells? I can read about Eleven Spells." She said, running a hoof under one as she read. 
"The first spell: Zaker" The book immediately glowed a bright White and the sound an explosion outside made them all jump. Crystal grabbed the book and balanced it on her back as they all raced outside to see what happened. Upon exiting the castle doors they say Zeno standing there, hand smoking slightly as Lightning crackled around his fingertips. They looked over and saw a significant chunk of wall missing from the barrier wall surround the Crystal Empire. Snow was slowly seeping in, as the constant blizzard outside was forcing it inside. Zeno turned around, and his face was unreadable. His Purple eyes bore holes though them as he walked over. He snatched the book from Crystal's back and simply stared at her.
"Are you the one who read my book?" He asked simply. Getting a small nod from her, as her mind was flummoxed by the wall and the damage caused to it. They were reinforced by the Magic of the Crystal Heart. It would repair itself, but she still couldn't believe that there was a hole to begin with. She watched as he jumped up and tossed his book inside the window that he apparently jumped out of.
"What happened out here?" Came the throaty growl of Sombra, as he solidified from his shadow not a few moments later. The Four mares all jumped, but Zeno simply brought his hand to his head and chuckled as innocently as he could. 
"S- Sorry! I was practicing for a new method of drawing on my magic and.. It went haywire." He grumbled apologetically.
Sombra glared at the wall, as its crystals slowly formed the walls again, then focused his eyes on his apprentice.
"You shouldn't be practicing without my guidance, young one. Tomorrow we will go over what you learned to make your magic strong enough to take down that wall. Until then, I recommend sleep." He switched his glare back to the Four mares, and they each flinched back from his now lecherous gaze, and it almost set Zeno over the edge.
Sure, he would consider himself Evil. He wanted to rule an Empire and become a King. Not necessarily the Mamodo King, but a King nonetheless. But there were somethings that he did not like. In fact he hated some things about being Evil that he would forever strive to stop it from happening. The first and most important one? Rape. He hated the thought of people, or animals, forcing themselves onto others that have vocally, or generally, shown their lack of interest in the other.
Thinking quickly, Zeno spoke up.
"King Sombra, sir. I was going to ask you, if I could borrow these four for the night?" He asked, without a stutter. This made Sombra stop his staring, as he looked back to his apprentice. The Four mares also looked over at him, but in a confused and betrayed look. Well, everyone but Crystal. She had a smile on her muzzle.
"Can I ask you why?" Sombra asked, his scowl returning full circle.
"These Four had witnessed my Magic acting up and I was going to gather a bit of information from them about it." Zeno said, keeping a smile on his face the best he could. Sombra said nothing for a few seconds, before nodding his head, and simply fading back into his shadow. Zeno let out another sigh, but froze as he was hugged by Crystal.
"See girls? I told you he was on our side!" She giggles as her face flushed from the close contact that she was causing with Zeno. She watched as her friends all smiled slyly at her, and before she could understand why, she was interrupted by Zeno.
"Get. Off." HE said, his teeth gritting. Yet the unmistakable hint of red on his cheeks stuck out. He shook her off, and pulled his hands back into his cloak. "My room. We have a lot to talk about." He said. It was more focused on Crystal, but it still meant for them all to meet there. They watched as he just jumped back up into the air, landing on the window before disappearing into the room.
"What was that?!" Ruby asked as she looked at Crystal. "I've never seen you so grabby with a stallion before!" Her eyes sparkled.
"Yeah, I'm more focused on that than anything else going on as well." Jade said.
"I'm with them Crystal. But then again, I do want to learn more about Zeno." Amber added, her smirk adding to the others. Crystal started sputtering again. 
"N-no! Stop it! Your no-" She stopped herself, and calmed herself again. "Lets go, I'm sure he'll explain anything you want to hear." Crystal said, pushing her friends into the castle and hiding her flushed face behind them.
"But Crystal!" Amber whined.
"No!" 



> Pecking Order
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Zeno stood in his room, as he stared down the Four mares sitting before him. He frowned as his eyes wandered to Crystal.
"So, you can read this?" He asked simply, his book opened to his first spell. He couldn't read it, but if she could, he could stop her when he felt the Magic flow like before.
"Y-yes, it says 'The first spell: Zake-"
*Slam*
Zeno had reached over and slammed the book shut, stopping Crystal's concentration as she yelped.
"Right then, that's fine." He started, grabbing the book off the table. "Fascinating.." He muttered.
"Hey! What's your problem?!" Ruby called out in anger.
"Oh, sorry.." Zeno apologized, as he started down at the book. "I was never expecting to get a book owner so soon, if at all. I've got a lot to think about now." He grumbled. He turned back to the Four. "Mainly how to keep Sombra away from you Four from here on out. I hate Rapists. I'll admit that it drives me insane when I see the lecherous looks they give others. I'd rather see people die." He smirked as Ruby backed away quickly at the mention of death and Amber's eyes scanned his face quickly.
"You've killed before then?" She asked, keeping her stone face and monotone voice. She saw Crystal flinch slightly, as she finished talking.
"Yeah, I have." Zeno said, as he looked at Amber.  A small frown formed on his face as he seemed to think on his words. Glancing back at Crystal, he spoke. "You Four are maids of the castle. You know this place in and out. I need you to put that book in a spot that Sombra will not find easily, and at the same time, easy for you to grab in a rush." He made sure to look at each one of the girls as he spoke, his Purple eyes flitting between them. "We'll talk more tomorrow. You Four get the bed, I'll be fine right here." Zeno made his way over to the couch in the corner near the fireplace. Jumping up and sitting in a cross-legged position, he closed his eyes and sighed.
"And were just supposed to go to sleep? Just like that?" Jade asked, her face full of confusion. Zeno didn't even open his eyes, as he responded.
"That didn't stop the Red one from jumping on my bed the second I said to." He grumbled, seemingly concentrating hard on something. They turned to see Ruby huddled underneath a mass of blankets, only her head sticking out from them.
"What? These bed are way more comfortable than what we have in  the Maids rooms! You should try it!" Ruby smiled as she snuggled into the blankets. A sudden clap caught everyone's attention, as Crystal had slammed her hoof on the ground.
"Introductions!! We haven't had proper introductions yet! Then we can sleep." She looked over to Zeno, to see if he had anything to say. When he didn't move, she sent a sweet smile his way. "Please?" She asked again, dragging out he speech a bit to get his attention. When he finally cracked open an eye, he raised a hand and coughed into it.
"Fine, fine. Get rid of the smile already." He hopped off the couch and bowed slightly. "My name is Zeno. You are to keep that name to just between us." He said, standing back up. 
"My name is Amber." Amber called from over at a table, enjoying a freshly poured cup of tea.
"My name is Jade." Jade said, sitting next to Amber as she flipped through Nero's spell book.
"And mines Ruby!" Ruby's muffled voice called out from inside a small pile of blankets. 
Crystal smiled lightly at her friends as they continued with what they were doing. She walked over to Zeno and sat down on the couch as he climbed his way back up himself. Giving her a quick glance, he slid back down into his cross-legged position from before, his eyes closed once again. She gave a small sigh at his stubbornness.
"So, you'll be sleeping on the couch tonight?" She asked, even though it didn't feel like a question at this point.
"No." Was Zeno's short reply, before he opened his eyes again, staring at her. "I won't be sleeping tonight. I need to make some headway with my Magic after the mishap from earlier. Sombra will be expecting me to replicate the spell from earlier, but I can't let him know what I'm really capable of." Zeno explained. Crystal nodded, she very well could have ruined whatever plan he had.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked
"You can leave me alone." He said as his eyes flashed with a small amount of anger. Crystal's ears splayed back from his sudden outburst. As she got up, she couldn't help but see the frown twist onto his face. " It's not something you can help me with. My Magic is different from what your used to." Zeno continued, his voice.. Softer? Crystal looked back to see him close his eyes once more. " But thank you" Crystal let a small smile crawl back onto her face, as she turned and trotted back to her friends.
"Any luck with the book?" She asked Jade. The Green coated mare shook her head, her eyes never leaving the page.
"I cant make out any of it." She flipped another page, her eyes scanning for anything she could read. "This book could hold so many new things. You have to let me borrow it!" She jumped up suddenly, getting in Crystals face.
"Easy there Jade, your going information crazy again." Amber's voice called out from the bed, as she was untangling Ruby from underneath the blankets. Jade blinked, before settling into her chair again with a slight blush on her cheeks.
"Oops, sorry." She giggle bashfully.
"Don't worry sis! As long as you have fun, you should enjoy it!" Ruby said, as she plopped off the bed, rolling to her feet. They all seemed to giggle at her, as she almost bounced over to her sister to give her a hug. The group soon went to lay in the bed, each One picking a corner and getting comfy on the large bed. When they all tucked themselves in, they realized they had forgot something.
"Uh, girls, we forgot to put the candles out." Amber said
"Awwe, but we just got comfy!" Ruby grumbled.
"...I say we draw straws to see who gets up." Jade suggested from under her own covers. 
Suddenly the lights went out, and the girls looked to each other to see who did it. They couldn't see any of them gone, so they shrugged and laid their heads down. Crystal looked over to the candles and saw that they were smoking quite heavily. They also looked burnt, like they were seared quickly. She turned a bit more and glanced at Zeno, his fingers had small lingering sparks around them. She smiled.
"Thanks Zeno, goodnight." She said as she shimmied back under her covers. A small 'Tsk' was all the response she got.

A few hours pass, and Zeno found himself restless. The light snores of the ponies in his bed made him regret giving up his bed. He had gotten up to stretch his legs a while ago, and he found himself wandering the town. He could hear the groans of ponies through the walls of the building he passed. He noted the slightly lit up mine area, and went to investigate. The area was silent, aside from the occasional 'ting' from deep in the mines. He made his way inside the mine, passing mine cart after mine cart full of different crystals and gems. The same Ones he had seen Sombra eat the other day.
'He has them mining for his snacks?' Zeno thought to himself. He continued downwards though the mine shafts until he came across a heavily locked door. Jumping up and grabbing onto the bars that made a small window. He saw a small group of ponies chained to Purple crystals. They were slowly picking at a bare wall, devoid of the gems he had seen on the walls on his way in. The ponies themselves looked starved, some had caved in stomachs. Zeno knew that this was where Crystal was talking about when she talked about her family before.
Gritting his teeth in anger, he reached further up, placing a firm hand on the wall above the door. With One solid pull, the door came right off the hinges with a squeal of bending metal. Zeno was mentally thanking the Original Zeno's massive strength. The ponies inside had dropped their pickaxes from the noise, as they cowered in fear, probably waiting for some kind of beating. Zeno kept as straight of a face as he could, as he made his way to the bunched up dark crystals. He tugged on the chains, testing the crystals resistance. He looked over to one of the chained ponies, and walked over to it. It was a Light Blue coated stallion. Zeno picked up One of the dropped Pickaxes.
"Don't move." He said simply. He aimed, and swung, aiming for the chain link before the actual hooflet. In a flash of Iron on Iron, the chain flung away leaving the pony free to move. Zeno did the same to the other Seven ponies, before turning to them. "You need to hide. At least for a bit. You'll be back with your loved ones soon enough." Zeno said as he helped the weaker ones off the ground. "Do you have any good places to stay?"
"I know of One. It's on the edge of the town near the town smith." The Light Blue Stallion said, as he dragged his friends forward. Zeno made his way back to the Castle and gathered a few supplies. Putting together a homemade backpack out of a few extra sheets, he put some bread and other fruits in the bag along side some extra blankets. Making his way back to where he saw the group going, he all but threw the bag inside the door.  The group dug through the bag with vigor, digging into the food like they hadn't eaten in a while.
"It won't last." One pony said in the back, his coat a faded Grey. "Sombra will find out we went missing and look for us." Zeno couldn't help the frown on his face.
"No, It's Sombra that won't last long. This isn't how you run a kingdom. And I'm going to make sure he knows that." Zeno growled. He took a few deep breaths and looked back to the others. "You rest up, I'll send somebody soon." He walked out the door, letting it close behind him. He made his way back to the Castle. This time stopping in the courtyard, where he and Sombra trained his Magic. He had work to do, and a new reason to speed up his training. His Magic may hate him, but he needed to use it.. Forced or not.


As the sun shone through the hilltops surrounding the town, Zeno stood in the courtyard, his eyes focused on his hand. In the early morning light, you could faintly make out a shimmer on his hand, as his Magic jolted around his hand covering it in small bolts of lightning. The  Lightning focused into a  small ball above his hand, before circling his hand a few times. With a snap he let the ball dissipate along with his Magic.
Unfortunately, that was all he could accomplish in the time he had. He needed more time, but he didn't have any. He would either have to force his Magic, or just use his Physical abilities to out do Sombra. Either way, he still needed the best way to get a good hit on the larger pony. 
Ah, speak of the devil. In a rush of shadows, Sombra solidified before him.
"You are out early. Were you training without me again?" Sombra asked, looking at him like he was scolding a child. Zeno knew exactly what to do.
"I'm sorry Sombra sir, I just couldn't sleep after that accident last night!" Zeno acted a chipper as he could. Sombra gave a tired sigh, before he took a few steps back.
"I don't expect you to slack off because your tired. It will be a good lesson for you. Now, recreate what you did last night." Sombra demanded, as he raised up his Purple shield. Zeno nodded vigorously and raised up an arm. He closed his eyes to concentrate. In an instant he let the glow of his Magic cover his hand, soon enough the lightning began cracking and discharging as the glow increased.
'Here comes the burn!' Zeno thought, as he held his breath. He pushed a decent amount of his Magic though, the glow immediately brightened and shot from his hand. A rather large blast of unconcentrated lightning blasted forwards Sombra, who merely stood still and tanked the hit. Zeno collapsed forward, breathing heavily.
"I.. Couldn't get it.. the same" Zeno gasped, his head down. Sombra fixed the cracks in his shield quickly, before speaking.
"Your power has increased, but you looked to be in pain. Does your Magic hurt?" Sombra asked, a slight grin forming on his muzzle. Zeno looked up, honestly surprised he had seen his facial change during the blinding attack. He simply nodded his response. Sombra laughed happily. "That is good! Pain makes you angry, anger fuels powerful Magic! Use your anger!" Sombra said in a knowing voice. Was that something he could do? That sounded like a double edged sword.
Zeno nodded, and took his stance again. If it worked, then he could just make that a last ditch effort. It would be a good way to give somebody hell if they took out his book owner one day. He closed his eyes and raised up his hand once more and began charging his Magic-
"Graawr!!" 
A roar came from above. It caused Zeno to instantly snap open his eyes. That roar was familiar.
'It couldn't be..' He thought, bewildered and confused.
"Stay back young one, I will handle whatever beast that is." Sombra said as he launched himself into the air using a pillar of Purple crystal. Suddenly a large creature dipped in from the clouds, its body seemed Bipedal, its skin a dark Grey and its body covered in pieces of Golden armor. Altogether it was around Thirty or so Meters tall.
"This place is now my new napping zone! Everyone clear out or die!" The creature spoke. If the figure hadn't done it, then the voice set Zeno's mind in stone. He knew the creature, or rather, Mamodo that had shown up. 
'Demolt?! But, If he's here.. Great, now I need to watch out for that crazy Stone Gaze Mamodo!' Zeno grumbled to himself, as he watched Sombra confront the Mamodo.
"You will leave, or your life will end here, monster!" Sombra called out.
"You? Your just a bug!" Demolt said as he swung his armor covered fist down at Sombra. His fist smashed right through Sombra's crystal. Sombra seemed to puff into smoke as he began flying towards Demolt in a crazy zigzag motion. Demolt smirked as he clapped his hands together, causing the smoked out Sombra to disperse and reform farther away. The force of the clap had caused a few houses to cave in.
With a flap of his wings Demolt landed directly on the ground where Sombra had just landed. As Sombra seemed to reform, he looked up to see a flying backhand come towards him. Sombra raised up his Magic shield quickly, the hand hit the barrier and stopped, but not before causing a few cracks. The hand raised up and slammed down, shattering the barrier and sending Sombra careening into the building behind him. In less than a second, Sombra raised up from the ground on another crystal pillar. His horn lit up a deep Purple as Black and Purple beams shot from it in rapid succession. Each blast landed on various parts of Demolt's body, none of them doing any real damage. Sombra growled as the beams began intensifying, soon One or Two of them pierced through Demolt's armor, followed by quite a few more of them. Soon enough there was a veritable laser field that was slowly gaining in power. Demolt saw the anger and concentration on Sombra's face and with a quick swat of his tail, Demolt sent Sombra flying back towards Zeno.
Sombra stood up and grumbled, until something grabbed his attention. More specifically, it was Zeno's hand that had grabbed his horn.
"You should stay here. Let the Mamodo handle the fighting." With an evil glint in his eye, Zeno rammed Sombra's head into the ground. The Unicorn's head dug deeply into the stone below them, and his eyes rolled up into his head. Dropping the head, he turned back to Demolt and smirked.
"Demolt! Your not welcome here, give up and work for me, or go back to the Mamodo world!" Zeno called out, a confident grin on his face. His grin was matched by Demolt's own.
"Me? Give up to a small fry like you? I'll crush you into nothing!" Demolt yelled as he flapped his wings to maneuver into the air once again. Zeno rolled his shoulder, letting it crack loudly.
"Your funeral big guy." He sneered as he began running towards the flying Mamodo.
He jumped up, just as Demolt launched a fist in his direction. Landing on the forearm, he continued running along Demolt's arm up to his shoulder. Demolt tried to swat him like a bug, but Zeno leapt up from his position, towards Demolts head. Snapping out with a swift kick, Zeno watched as Demolt's head snapped to the side, his eyes wide. A small line of blood dribbled down to his chin. With a roar he flipped around and swiped his tail towards Zeno.
Zeno firmly planted his feet, and braced himself. Catching the tip of the tail in both hands, he was pushed sideways a fair bit, before he stopped himself. Switching his grip, with a grunt of effort, he flipped Demolt over himself. The large Mamodo flew into a mountain that lay nearby. Demolt sat up in a rage only to see Zeno just standing on his snout. His hands alight with White lightning, and his face had a sinister grin. With a pulse of Magic, Zeno shot a bolt of lightning into both eyes, blinding Demolt. Focusing a decent amount of Magic into his hand, he launched himself forward, around Demolt's head. Slamming his hand into the armor on the Mamodo's head/neck, he watched it shatter like glass. With a quick flurry of steps, he raised a still crackling hand up to Demolt's neck. The Magic pulsed into the flesh beneath it, and he heard the larger Mamodo roar in agony.
"Tsk, Tsk, what a frightful weak spot you have here. What do you say, give up? I could do this all day." Zeno gloated. Demolt shuddered at the feeling of helplessness.
"H-how?! How are you so strong? How did you know about my weak spot?" Demolt asked, his voice low, as he rubbed his eyes to regain sight in them.
"I know about a lot of Mamodo, yourself included." He walked around the Mamodo's neck and jumped back onto his snout. "You work for me now. Unless you want to die? Your choice. However, this is your last chance." Zeno smirked, as Demolt's glowing Red eyes focused on him, and felt the Mamodo shudder again.
"Yes.. I'll work for you." Demolt grumbled.
"Perfect! Now stay here while I handle the other problem I have right now." Zeno smiled as he jumped off Demolt's snout and landed back in the town. He made his way back to the courtyard. Sombra was standing there, waiting. An angry snarl on his muzzle.
"I guess proper introductions are needed. My name is Zeno, a Mamodo form the Mamodo world." Zeno bowed jokingly.
"You dare trick me? I am King Sombra! I rule over this Kingdom, and I will rule you as well.. Mamodo" Sombra growled. Zeno grinned at the Unicorn's tenacity before it was replaced with a frown.
"No, you don't rule over anything. A ruler does not cripple his Kingdom for his own satisfaction. You don't deserve what you have, hell, you probably killed the last King here to get it." Zeno started. "You know Sombra, I know a lot about your Magic now. You can turn into a shadow, you can summon dark crystals at will, and when you get angry, you can fire highly concentrated beams of Magic. Would you like to know what I learned from watching you try and fight Demolt?" He asked.
"What's that?" Sombra asked, as he pulled up his barrier again.
Sombra watched as Zeno stood there with a smirk on his face, his sharp teeth almost as menacing as his own fangs. Suddenly, in a wave of fabric, he was gone. As he turned his head to look for the boy, he felt something grab ahold if his horn once again. He looked over and saw Zeno standing on his neck, One foot on his neck as a place holder, while the other was hitched  around his cape. Zeno's hand was firmly wrapped around his curved horn.
"I know that you need this to do your Magic." Zeno giggled darkly as he squeezed tightly, Sombra let out a low groan. "Which is why-"
*Snap!*
"-It's mine now!" With a swift pull, Zeno snapped the Unicorn's horn clean off. The howls of the fallen King were riddled with pain and fright. A wave of shadows swept over his body, as Zeno jumped off. The shadows left almost as soon as they came, and in there place was a pony about the same size as Sombra. Instead of an Ashen Grey coat it was a fairly light Grey. The horn on his head had grown back already, but it was the shape of a normal horn and even the same color as his coat, instead of the deep Crimson One he held in his hand.
"Ugh.. Where?" Sombra asked. Even his voice was different. It was lighter, and not gravely. "I- I'm back?" He asked softly. "I'm back!" He called out as he jumped up quickly. He turned to Zeno and smiled. "Thank you! Thank you so much! I was trapped in there, my own mind. I could only watch as I became a monster, but you freed me! I'm in your debt." Sombra finished, bowing his head in respect.
"Huh, all that from this little thing huh? I'll be keeping this then.." Zeno mumbled to himself, as he put the glowing Red Horn into a pocket in his cloak.
"Zeno!" He heard Crystal's voice. He turned, only to be picked up and pushed against something both plush and hard. It took a second to realize that it was Crystal hugging him. He pushed her away, coughing into his fist, to hide the light dusting on his cheeks. Crystal smiled at the sight, as the rest of her friends came rushing through the now slowly forming mob of ponies. "Girls, Kings Sombra is done for, tell everypony the good news. We're free!" She screamed happily. The other girls looked at each other and ran off in different directions. All around her and Zeno the collecting ponies all began murmuring about freedom.
Zeno stood next to the fallen Sombra, and looked around at the masses.
"Everyone, tell as many as you can. We can elect a new leader after we recover. If your house was damaged in the fight earlier, just go to the palace. There's plenty of room." Zeno explained, watching as many ponies left in a hurry and with smiles on their faces.. Only a few stayed behind.
"Can we do anything to help?" One of them stepped forward as the others nodded at his question. Zeno nodded at their question.
"Yes, next to the smithy there is a house. I liberated a few ponies from the mine last night, Crystal go with them. I think your father is there. I'll take Sombra away into the Castle so we won't cause an uproar. I'm also going to see what we have to help fix up the town." Zeno stated. Crystal's eyes began to water as she turned and ran. Zeno looked down at Sombra, and pulled him up. He slowly made his way back into the castle. A glance at Demolt in the Mountainside confirmed that the large Mamodo was asleep. A twinkle appeared in his eye as he thought about the Larger Mamodo trying to fix his own destruction.

Later that day, Zeno was looking over a few building plans with Sombra. The Townsponies were incredibly energetic now that Sombra was no longer leading them. Less than Six hours and they were running around and helping each other build back up the homes that were destroyed. Demolt was helping, finding proper slabs of stone and gently placing them onto the building.
"The North sector fared the best, with only a few building even cracking. The West and East sectors are almost done being repaired already, however the South sector was almost entirely destroyed. It'll take a bit to rebuild that." Zeno stated to Sombra who was standing over different construction plans.
"Maybe we could remodel that sector, make it better, more housing for even the ponies that were on the streets before?" Sombra asked. Zeno glanced at him, a small smirk appeared on his face.
"It's going to take a while for me to get used to you not being a jerk, you know?" Zeno chuckled. "But yeah, that's sounds good. Go check our supplies." Zeno watched Sombra trot off into the Castle.
He suddenly felt something snake around his torso. It pulled him backwards a bit, before he felt something rubbing into the top of his head. He gave a small annoyed sigh.
"Thank you Zeno. From all of us." Crystal spoke as she turned him around in her hug. "You saved my father, you saved all of us." She leaned in and gave him a small peck on the cheek. "I like the way 'King Zeno' sounds" Crystal stated as she walked away with a wink. "I'm going to check on Everypony who's getting settled in the Castle." She called out as she left the room.
Zeno looked back to the map of the Crystal Empire. He let another tired sigh out.
He wasn't going to get any sleep for the next few days at this rate..
No pain no gain. It'll be worth it when he was announced 'King'
"Are you ready for the next building?" Sombra asked. The only answer he got was a sigh.
It was going to be a long night.