A Unicorn born with little to no magic meets the God of Space. Two beings from different dimensions come together and form a bond like no other.
Mystic Knight, a Unicorn born with a condition that grants him little magic wants to prove that even he can be a mage.
Aura Kaiser, a God of Space and leader of a team known as the Dimensional Guardians goes to the MLP Dimension to find out what it truly means to be a leader.
By fate, these two meet and form a bond that is like family and team up with the Mane 6 to protect the land of Equestria.
This is a prequel to the posts that I make on the Friendship Is Awesomes group with my OCs Mystic Knight and Aura Kaiser.
A vast empty void. To the mortal eye, it seems like that is all there is. But to the eyes of the Divine, it is so much more.
The Gods can see what is really beyond that void, an endless space filled with different dimensions and timelines, 'The Multiverse'.
So many different dimensions, each with their own Universe and timelines, and one God was tasked with keeping all of them safe. A lone Male Humanoid figure with pale skin with brown wavy hair that parted to the side, red eyes that had a hint of blue around the sclerae and a pair of glasses with a green frame. He wore a black fur coat that showed wear and tear from exposure to the elements, a set of blue jeans with rips showing his kneecaps and running shoes with black and green accents.
This was Aura Kaiser, and he had a lot on his mind at the moment. His job was to make sure that everything in the Multiverse was balanced and to say that his job was taking its toll on him was an understatement. Sure he had help from his team but even with all that, it was still a lot.
"Perhaps I should take it easy for a while." He said while scratching his head. "Now..." He snapped his fingers and a map of the multiverse appeared in front of him. "Where do I want to go?"
With each swipe from his hand he scrolled through different dimensions, each one he had to categorize himself and connect to various others with his leylines. This way it would be easier to move through dimensions without any risk of falling into the realm between dimensions.
His hand stopped at one particular dimension called 34-EM, a quiet dimension filled with magic and wonder, as well as the majority of the residents in said dimension being made up pastel ponies. Still, he had an interest in it and double tapped the dimension on his map. "Sounds like a good place to relax and take my mind off of things." Aura smirked then created a portal to his destination.
Yet in the back of his mind, he had a feeling that this trip for relaxation might be more interesting then he originally planned. But that was what made his job so fun, you can never know what could happen while exploring the neverending web that is the Multiverse.
Meanwhile in said dimension, there was a lone mansion that looked like a barracks that guards would stay in.
But this wasn't just any ordinary mansion. This was the home of the Knight family. A group that has served Princess Celestia for over a thousand years. Each generation has always been a member of the royal guard and with one of them being named the captain of said guard. They were the pinnacle of what a guard should be, strong, powerful, and sworn to their duty, they had been an inspiration to any aspiring guards for generations.
However, the current head of the family as well as the current captain of the royal guard was anything but that. That would be Gallant Knight, a golden pegasus stallion wearing golden armor. His eyes were as blue as the vast sea and he was far bigger then the average stallion and under his armor hid his cutie mark that showed a sword and shield combo. He was strict, cold, and heartless, especially to those of his family mostly his own sons, only caring about his family's reputation and status.
His eldest son Gladius Knight a pegasus stallion with silver armor with a light gray coat and wings that fade to black towards the wing tips, red eyes, a white straight mane and tail and a cutie mark of a set of curved daggers. He was an exceptional aerial fighter, one that was on the same level as a Wonderbolt. Heck if he wasn't forced to be a guard he would of been one by now, but Gallant thought that his skills would be better suited for the royal guard, weather Gladius liked it or not.
And as for his second son Mystic Knight, a small unicorn colt with a green coat, dark purple shaggy mane and tail, gold color eyes, and a wolf fang pendant around his neck, he was born with a condition known as Magic Deficiency Syndrome meaning that the amount of magic as well as the aptitude of it was near nonexistent. Gallant hated him the most, as he had zero magic and he was terrible with a blade. It made his blood boil that the esteemed Knight family had a member who was as pathetic and weak as Mystic.
And Mystic, he was put through so much during his time in the family. He father put him through such devastating training that would break him mentally and physically all against his will since Gallant was so determined to turn his worthless son into something worthy of the family's name.
Then one day...
Mystic was playing hide'n'seek with his elder brother Gladius within the halls of the mansion.
Mystic used his small size to hide inside the cupboards in the kitchen while peeking through the crack on the lid to make sure that he was clear.
"Mystic! Where are you!?" Gladius' voice rang out
Mystic giggled to himself and then fully closed the cupboard door. 'With this spot l he'll never be able to find me. This time I'll win for sure.'
His ears picked up the sound of the kitchen door opening and he immediately held his breath. From the sound of wings flapping, Mystic could assume that it was Gladius flying to try and find him.
Mystic's curiosity got the better if him and he slowly took a peak. It indeed was Gladius as he was checking underneath the table and the oven. "Guess he's not here. Maybe he's in the dinning room." Gladius shrugged and flew out of Mystic's view.
He started to giggle even more thinking that he totally had Gladius fooled. But the doors opened and Mystic was face to face with his brother. "Found you!" Gladius declared as he picked up Mystic with his wings, causing the brothers to laugh.
"Oh, how did you find me? I thought my hiding place was perfect." Mystic asked as his brother placed him down.
Gladius pulled out a detective's cap and smirked. "Elementary my dear brother! Judging from your size you would have to go somewhere that was just enough to fit you, while also being within your reach since you cannot fly like I can. Plus," Gladius pointed to the cups that were stacked on the counter next to the cupboard. "It was kinda obvious when there are 20 cups just lying around."
Mystic had stars in his eyes. "You are so cool."
Gladius blushed and scratched his mane. "It wasn't anything special really. I just put two and two together and came up with the answer. So," He kneeled down to Mystic's level and smiled. "What do you want to play next?"
"He will be playing sword practice now."
That cold voice sent shivers down Mystic's spine as he held on to Gladius. The two turned to see their father holding two wooden blades and having his famous stone-cold stare.
Gladius glared at his father and held Mystic close. "Father, Mystic already had his training for the day."
The older pegasus rolled his eyes and sighed. "Your brother did so poorly during his training today, so I'm going to hammer out each imperfection he has until he is worthy to be a Knight."
Gallant grabbed Mystic and leered at Gladius. "That reminds me. Aren't you suppose to be doing inspections at the west Canterlot outpost?"
Everytime. Everytime his father forces more and more unbearable training to Mystic even though everypony knows that he isn't a fighter. All Gladius wanted to do was spend time with his little brother but all his stuck up father cares about is making himself look good. But he couldn't go against his wishes as he is the head of the family, for now.
"Fine. I'll go do the stupid inspection." Gladius growled and put his armor on. Then he looked at Mystic and gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't little bro, I won't be gone long. Once I'm done Ill go get that new game and we can play it all you want. I promise." Gladius took to the air and flew of towards the west Canterlot outpost.
With him gone Gallant threw Mystic to the training area and then threw his practice sword to him.
"This time, don't curl up into a ball and cry. You are a Knight, act like one!" Gallant roared and swung his wooden sword at the young colt.
"Celestia that took way too long!"
Gladius sighed in relief as he flew back home. He had just gotten Mystic a new video game for the two of them to play and he was excited to see his brother's reaction. But his excitement turned to despair as he saw Mystic with a rope around his neck being pulled into a cart by some dragons.
Gladius' eyes went wide as he dropped everything he had and rushed in to save his brother. "MYSTIC!" He donned his wing blades and slashed the rope, landing in front of Mystic in a protective manner as he stared down the dragons with intent to make them hurt.
"You will not take nor hurt my little brother! Not while I'm his big brother!" Gladius declared as he flared his wings ready to fight.
"Stand down Gladius."
Gladius turned around to see his father with a bag of bits in his wing. "Father, what is going on here? Why aren't you doing anything to stop this?" He asked, fear showing in his voice.
Gallant trotted towards the dragons and gave a disappointed glance. "I've just sold Mystic. He has done nothing but failed me in every way. And the Knight family has no need for failures like him."
Gladius started to tremble in rage as his feathers started to ruffle and his body filled with rage. "You sold your own SON!? What is wrong with you!?"
Gladius rushed in to save Mystic till he felt something hit his neck as he started to lose consciousness. Yet as he laid there on the ground, he weakly tried to reach out to his brother before he succumbed to darkness. "Myst-tic."
Gallant scoffed and picked up his son. "Seems like I'll have to discipline you more." Gallant noted then threw the dragons a few bits. "Something to say that I'm sorry for my son's behavior."
The dragons grinned and finished putting Mystic in a cage on the cart then they all flew off to their base, all while Mystic screamed in despair.
Yet what they didn't know, was that they were being watched from the shadows, by Aura. He was just minding his own business when he heard screams and saw the whole thing.
"How could he do this to his own son? He's worst then the nobles back in the Sacred Realm." He glared hateful eyes at Gallant then zoomed off towards the direction of the dragons.
"Somehow I knew that this vacation wasn't going to be as peaceful as I wanted." Aura complained.
Out by the mountain side, the dragons flew over into a cave and landed in front of some very threatening looking dragons. They unloaded the cart and picked up the cage holding Mystic, who was terrified and curled up into a ball.
"So, this is the little twerp that Gallant sold us?" One of the dragons asked.
He eyed Mystic and flicked the cage causing Mystic to jump up and come in contact with the dragon's gaze. "He doesn't look like much. Are you sure that he's a member of the Knight's?"
One of the dragons who was pulling the cart stepped forward. "Without a doubt. Gallant showed us his papers and all the information checks out." The dragon opened the cage and yanked on the rope that was tied to the Unicorn colt's neck. "To think that even the pristine Knight family could have a dud like him." The dragon chuckled and tugged on the rope harder. "I'm going to enjoy watching him break."
Mystic was so filled with fear that he couldn't even speak, only imagining what horrible things that these dragons would do to him.
"Get walking runt! We don't take kindly to those who can't work!" The dragon pulling his rope shouted. His neck was starting to ache in pain as the dragon pulled harder and harder.
How could this have happened to him? Mystic tried his very best to show that he wasn't a weakling like his father kept on saying, but when push comes to shove he was right. He didn't have any magic in him to preform even a basic levitation spell, and he was terrible with a sword. What did he ever do to deserve this?
Out in the forest by the base, Aura Kaiser narrowed his eyes on it and summoned a blue sword. "I can't just waltz in there without tripping some kind of alarm. The best that I can do for now is wait til night fall and take them out one by one." The God said to himself then looked down. "I'm sorry kid, just try to endure it for a little bit. I'll save you, I promise."
The moon had just risen and many guards were fast asleep. Now was Aura's time to strike. He leaped off the tree he was perched on and vanished out of thin air.
Carefully landing on the mountain side he slowly moved in the shadows and took out two dragon guards and hid their unconscious bodies in the tall grass.
"Hope these dragons are as dumb as they look, or else I'll be in serious trouble." Aura mumbled to himself then went inside the cave.
With each dragon he came across he took the opportunity to ambush, knock out, and tie them up. The more he went through the place the more sick he felt. Ad he discovered that these Dragons were slavers. Guess even a color and peaceful dimension like this one still have their dark sides.
Dowb in the dungeons, Mystic was huddled up in the corner of his cage, all chained up and bleeding. His tear ducts were dried out with all the crying he had done all day. A loud rumble came and through the corner was a large dragon who opened the cell and yanked on the chain around Mystic's neck. "Get up kid! The boss wants to see you!"
Mystic tried to fight back but nothing he did even hurt the dragon as it then hit him across the muzzle, with Mystic now unconscious he dragged him upstairs.
A seconds later Aura peeked out from the corner and processed the information. If he could take out their leader then the lackeys will start to scatter, making them easy to pick off. "This could work. But man do I hate follow missions." Aura sucked it up and jumped onto the rafters on the ceiling and followed the dragon carrying Mystic.
After a moment of following the dragon stopped in front of a large door and threw Mystic in. Then as he turned around he was greeted by Aura who had a smirk on his face.
"How's it going?"
The dragon didn't have time to react as Aura knocked him out with a killer right hook to the jaw. Then after hiding the dragon in a closet, somehow, he mentally prepared himself and stretched his limbs.
"Time to get the old blood pumping." He pepped himself up and kicked the door down to see a large bulky dragon lifting Mystic up by his neck.
"And who the Hell are you?" The leader asked, clearly annoyed that he was interrupted from whatever monologue he was making to Mystic.
Aura unsheathed his blade and twirled it in his hands before pointing it at the dragon. "I'm the guy who's going to shut you all down!"
The dragon breathed fire at Aura but he smirked and waved his hand, making the stream of fire bend around him and fly right back at the dragon catching him by suprise.
"What the...!" The dragon was hit with his own fire causing him to lose his grip on Mystic and send him up into the air.
Aura slid over to the colt and caught him before he could fall and hurt himself even more. The God felt a disturbance and sighed. "You just had to make this harder on yourself didn't you?"
The dragon charged at Aura with eyes filled with fury and his claws out ready to shread this intruder into ribbons, but the God stepped to the side and dodged the attack, sending the dragon crashing through the wall and right out of the base as he fell into the water.
Or he would of fallen if Aura didn't grab him by the tail and pulled him up. "As much as a piece of crap you are, you still have to pay for your crimes."
The dragon roared and readied to spit out more fire. "LIKE HELL I WILL YOU HAIRLESS A...!"
A sword hilt bashed against the dragon's skull causing him to drop unconscious. With that put of the way Aura kneeled down and checked to see if the young colt was safe.
"Are you alright little one?" Aura asked the colt in his arms. Mystic opened his eyes and saw Aura and was scared at first till he comforted him. "You have nothing to be afraid of now. I'm not going to hurt you. As long as I'm here, no one will harm you ever again."
Those words were just what Mystic needed to hear as he buried his muzzle into his chest and let out all the pain and sorrow at once. Aura stroking his mane and embracing him tightly.
Every dragon that was in the mountain base were all tied up and handed to the authorities. They went inside the base and freed every slave that was in there.
It was strange to them, one minute they were enjoying a nice evening and next they received an anonymous message telling them of the situation and location, then when they arrived they found all the dragons and their leader unconscious with a note attached to said leader saying:
"These soft-scaled lizards had been operating a slave market.
If you look in the dungeons you will find all the captives.
I took out each dragon in the base so you should have no trouble.
-A
Above them in the trees, Aura was spying on them and chuckled to himself. "Man, nothing makes my day better then acting as divine justice towards those who are twisted."
Still in his hold, Mystic was now crying softly and clung on to Aura's jacket, which was now extremely soaked. Aura knew that he had to get this colt home, and he had a few words to say to the one who sold him in the first place.
But that would have to wait, as judging from the position of the moon it was about somewhere between 8PM and 9PM, and that would mean that the area would be infested with nocturnal predators real quickly. Normally Aura would have no problem with that, but since he had to watch over the little colt he had to think about his safety first.
So he leaped from tree to tree keeping himself out of sight until he could find some shelter and rest up for the night.
A few minutes later he had discovered a small cave and jumped down to inspect it. He brought his hand up then closed his eyes, his hand then glowed and a small ball of light zoomed through the cave system, checking for anything that would be considered hostile.
Aura opened his eyes and took a breath of relief. "Good, its inhabited. This should suffice til sunrise."
The Spacial God walked in and placed Mystic down. Then Aura took off his jacket and draped it over the young colt before he went to start a fire to keep them both warm.
The sound of tapping and grinding slowly woke Mystic up as he opened his eyes to see the figure that saved him doing something with what appears to be chalk.
Aura turned around and gave him a warm smile. "Oh, sorry if I woke you up." He resumed his focus on making... what was he doing actually?
Mystic slowly moved towards Aura and got a peek at what he was doing, and from what it looked like, he was making something that resembled a magic circle, but looked more complex as it had many foriegn symbols that were unknown to the young colt.
"Are you... trying to use magic to start a fire?" Mystic asked curiously.
Aura kept his main focus on the circle as he added the finishing touches. "Something like that. I guess you can say that it's magic, but it's a bit more complicated then that."
"What do you mean by...?"
Mystic didn't even hav time to finish his question, once Aura finished the circle he then slammed his hands down on it and the circle started to rotate and glow, then at the center, a bonfire materialized out of thin air. Mystic's eyes grew wide with wonder as he saw what was transpiring before him.
Here, a species unknown to him, was using magic. But at the same time it felt different compared to all the magic that Unicorns used, not that he would know since he didn't have any magic.
He wondered, could he might possibly be able to...
"That. Was. Awesome!"
Mystic went closer to the fire and felt it's warmth wash over him like a blanket. "I've never seen this type of magic before!"
Aura chuckled at the colt's excitement. "Well like I said, it's more complicated then that, what I used was called Alchemy."
Mystic tilted his head in confusion. "Alch-emy? Isn't that potion making?"
"That my small friend is just the tip of the iceberg." Aura stated then pulled out a book titled 'The fundamentals of Alchemy: From potions to constructs.'
"Alchemy is much more then making potions. But it is a combination of science and magic. Basically, it follows the laws of equilvilent exchange and powered using rituals or using the small traces of magic around us." He explained then picked up a stone on the ground. "Take this rock for instance, it may seem like an ordinary stone at the moment, but to an Alchemist, it can be anything, sort of."
Aura concentrated and the stone started to morph into different shapes as if it were putty. "You can mold it into any shape you like or even," The stone then turned into sand and started to spill off his hand. "Turn it into something of equal value. Probably not the best example since stone eventually turns into sand but I don't want to bore you."
But according to the wonderstruck expression on the young colt's face, he was anything but bored, in fact, he was intrigued.
"Anyway," Aura got up and stretched before heading out of the cave. "I'm going to forage for some food. I won't be gone long." He walked out of the cave but stopped at the exit and turned Mystic. "Oh, and I almost forgot, my name's Aura Kaiser. And you?"
'Aura Kaiser. So that's his name.' Even though he had just met him, something about Aura just gave him a sense of calm, one that tells him that everything will be okay.
"I'm Mystic Knight. It's nice to meet you too."
The two gave each other a small smile even as Aura went into the woods to forage for food. Mystic saw the Alchemy book next to him and immediately began reading it's contents. And immediately, he saw one part that peaked his interest. "As long as you use a magic circle you don't need magic?" Suddenly a spark of hope lit up in Mystic as he read more and more about the lost art of Alchemy.
An hour later, Aura had returned with a large bag. Normally, he would of hunted for something like a boar or caught some fish, but since Mystic was a pony that meant that he didn't eat meat, so Aura had to go search for things like fruit, nuts and mushrooms, as well as some firewood to keep the bonfire going.
He dropped the bag and stretched his back, which made a popping sound. "Sorry it took a while, it's a bit hard to forage during night time."
Aura then noticed that Mystic was fully focused on reading the book. He just smiled and let the colt be. 'The curiosity and innocence of youth. Still though...'
The God went over and tapped Mystic on his shoulder which gave the colt a fright.
"Enjoying the book kid?" Aura asked.
Mystic was in a panic and closed the book then handed it over to Aura. "I'm sorry Mr. Kaiser! I read your book without permission!" Mystic bowed apologetically and prepared for a scolding.
But it never came.
"What are you doing?"
Mystic opened his eyes and saw Aura with a confused look. "Kid. It's okay if you read my book, in fact, you can keep it. I have like, 4 more back where I'm from." Aura pulled out an apple and handed it over to Mystic. "I know it's not much, but it should suffice until morning."
Mystic blinked a few times. For once, somepony other then Gladius didn't scold him for doing something like this. He took the Apple and continued to read the book further and further.
Aura smiled and started to add more wood to the fire then he skewered some mushrooms and fruit on a stick and roasted them over the fire as if they were marshmallows.
"I saw what happened to you."
Mystic perked up and looked at Aura. "Pardon?"
"Your father, he sold you. I only got a glance of him and I could already tell that he's a real piece of work. Far worst then any noble I've met so far."
The colt looked down with a saddened face. "I guess he finally had enough of a defective colt like me."
"Defective? That's a bit harsh isn't it?" Even though Aura was focused on cooking, he was paying close attention to Mystic, clearly concerned about him.
"Well it's true." A few tears dripped from Mystic's eyes and splattered onto the pages of the book. "I'm a Unicorn with no magic, I'm smaller then the other colts my age, I'm terrible with a sword or spear, and to top it all off, I'm physically weak." His tears intensified as he broke down. "I'm not worthy of being a member of the Knight family! They are all strong, brave and inspiring! While I'm anything but that, I'm not good at anything!"
His nose then got a whiff of something fruity making him look up to see Aura holding a second skewer for the young colt. "And who told you that garbage, your deadbeat of a father?!"
He put the skewer in the colt's hooves and patted his head. Then he sat right next to him and took a bite of his dinner. "Here's what I've learned from my many years of traveling: The only person who can tell you what you want to do is yourself. And sure we may stumble when trying to find our true purpose, but no one is perfect, and no one should ever tell you what you should be."
Aura took another bite of his food and smirked. "Not to mention, it definitely doesn't seem right to let someone as arrogant and heartless like your father tell you what you can and can't be."
Aura's little speech did cheer Mystic up a bit, but not by a lot. "Like I said, I'm not good at anything. And I've tried, but I always just mess everything up." Mystic mumbled, twirling his dinner in his hooves.
Aura looked at the book and had an idea. "Well what about Alchemy, have you tried that?"
Mystic quickly turned his head and started to stutter. "W-W-Well I-I-I..."
He felt Aura's hand pat his head. "You can never know until you try."
Once Aura was finished with his food he threw the stick into the fire and sat in front of the entrance of the cave.
"Besides, I think you would make a great Alchemist." He smiled as he said that. "You'd better get some shut eye, we get up early tomorrow so that I can take you back home, and give your father a piece of my mind."
That last part that Aura said made his fist tightened. "I'll make sure that we are safe during the night, just have to place a barrier over the entrance so that nothing hostile sneaks up on us."
Mystic didn't hear that last part. All he heard before his mind went blank was that Aura thought that he could make a great Alchemist.
Him, out of all ponies, the most scared, weak and useless pony who doesn't have a sliver of magic in his body. But how could he...
That was when he realized just what Aura was talking about before. All his life he believed that he couldn't do anything just because his father said so, and that he never allowed him to try new things saying that it would be a waste of time. His father wanted him to be a member of the royal guard just like the rest of the family before him.
But what if he didn't want to be a guard? What if he wanted to follow his own path?
As all these thoughts filled the young colt's head, he slowly drifted into sleep with a light heart for once.
Aura went over to Mystic and placed his jacket over him to keep him warm. "Sweet dreams Mystic."
The next morning both Mystic and Aura were now following the path back to south Canterlot where the Knight's mansion was located. But getting there was easier said then done.
As the two keep getting blocked by many different obstacles. But Aura was able to get the two of them through each one thanks to his body structure.
And after a few hours of walking and awkward silence, Mystic finally decided to ask something that has been on his mind ever since he saw Aura.
"So Aura, I have a question for you."
Currently Aura was writing something down in a notebook but he still paid attention to Mystic and his surroundings. "Well then, ask away."
"I've never seen a species that resembled you before. What are you exactly?"
Aura took his time to think of a suitable answer for the colt. He couldn't tell him that he is a God but at the same time he didn't want to lie to him, so he just had to give him a little bit of information without revealing his title.
"I'm what you call a Human. A bipedal being that specializes in adapting to any environment. I'm not surprised that you don't know about us since there's only a handful of us." He explained as best as he could. 'Hopefully he bought that.'
"A Human?" It then clicked for Mystic. "I'd thought your species seemed familiar!"
'Wait, there's actually Humans here? Well that makes things easier.'
"But I'd thought that Humans usually live in more secluded areas of the world, like hidden grottos or isolated islands. Why are you out here?" Mystic continued to ask questions.
"I did say that I'm a traveler. I've learned that the best way to learn is to experience it yourself in the open world. There are so many things that you can't learn from books alone you see." Aura looked up at the sky and remembered all the adventures he had exploring the Multiverse.
"Is that how you learned Alchemy?"
Now this is where things get tricky. While he did learn how to preform Alchemy from a different dimension, he also learned it from his mentor a long time ago. He had to think about this carefully.
"Well something like that." He started. "I started Alchemy as more of a hobby, so I was basically self taught. As I developed my craft I experimented on many new things until I got it right. But I did learn about a few methods of Alchemy from my travels. But like I said in the cave, I don't want to bore you." Aura mentally sighed in relief that he got through that.
"I see. What about..."
"Hold that question there Mystic." Aura grabbed into Mystic's tail and prevented Mystic from accidentally walking off a very steep chasm.
Mystic looked down and gulped. "T-Thank you."
"No problem." Aura's gaze sharpened as he gripped his sword on his back.
"We're not alone here."
Mystic quickly hid behind the God's leg and looked around.
From the bushes a manticore jumped out and roared fiercely, the force of the roar was so strong that Mystic had to hold on th Aura's leg so that he didn't fly off.
But Aura was unamused by the beast. Instead he felt annoyed that the beast sent saliva all over his face and on his glasses. He was so unimpressed that he decided to ignore it and start cleaning his glasses.
"Classy. Very classy there." He remarked and put his glasses back on, his eyes giving off a glint. "Either you leave us alone, or I'll have to declaw you myself."
The manticore lifted it's claws ready to slice Aura up but the God just stood still and Mystic began to panic.
"Aura, I don't think you should antagonize it." The colt warned.
"Trust me." Aura looked down at Mystic with a small reassuring smile. "I can handle this."
The God's eyes connected to the manticore and the beast suddenly stopped. It's danger senses were ringing like crazy right now, as if every fiber of it's being was telling it that it was in danger.
"Leave, now." Aura's eyes glowed as he continued to stare down the feral beast.
The manticore's instincts took over and it fled while making whimpers of fear.
Aura sighed and calmed down. "At least that thing was smarter then those dragons. I did not want to fight so close to a cliff."
Mystic was dumbfounded. Aura had just scared off a manticore with his gaze alone. He could only name a few ponies who could do something like that.
"Now then..." Aura turned to the edge of the cliff and cracked his knuckles. "Let's make a pathway for us. No time to make a circle so I'll just have to do this the old fashioned way."
He then clapped his hands and slammed them onto the ground. The ground then started to shake and from the face of the cliff a beam of earth grew out and connected to the other side of said chasm.
"That ought to do it." Aura then stepped onto the newly created pathway without a care. "We'll be there soon. So let's not waste daylight!"
Mystic was in shock. So this was what Alchemy could really do. He was able to terraform the chasm and create a pathway without any problem.
Mystic suddenly stopped and had a determined look in his eyes. "Aura."
The God looked back, a bit confused to why the colt stopped. "Yeah, what's up?"
For the first time in his life, Mystic looked up with determination plastered on his face. "I decided what I want to be." He planted his hoof down and held his head up high.
"I want to be an Alchemist like you! I want to show everypony that even though I don't have magic, I can be one of the greatest mages on all of Equestria!" Mystic cried and gave Aura a smile.
"And it's all thanks to you. Thank you for showing me that I can choose my own path."
All Aura could do was smile himself. He walked towards Mystic, kneeled down and placed his hand on the colt's head. "And what if your father tries to tell you otherwise?" Aura asked, fully knowing the answer.
"Why should I care about what he thinks?! It's my life and I get to choose what I want to do with it!" He said proudly.
Aura nodded and stood back up. "Alright then." The two finished crossing the created bridge and saw the town of south Canterlot.
The two stopped at the entrance of the Knight family mansion, and Mystic was starting to shake in his hooves. It's easy to be brave in your head, but actually getting those words out is something completely different. If he actually said those things to his father then he would be...
"Take a deep breath Mystic." Aura advised.
Mystic jolted up and turned to Aura. "I get it that your scared, really I do. But there comes a time when you must stand your ground and muster up your courage. Bottling up these feelings will only end badly for you in the future."
But before Mystic could respond, the gates to the mansion opened up and the two could hear the sound of wings flapping getting closer and closer to them.
"MYSTIC!!!"
Gladius, Mystic's older brother flew as fast as he could and embraced his younger brother with his wings. "Thank Celestia your okay! I thought I'd never see you again!" He cried tears of joy, clinging onto Mystic tightly.
"Gladius." Mystic looked up and saw that Gladius was in terrible condition. His grey coat was all dirty and frazzled, his eyes bloodshot red with bags under them and his wings were a complete mess. Just what happened to him while he was gone?
"How did you escape? Did you have help?" Gladius starting to ask many questions but he didn't need an answer when he saw Aura right in front of him. immediately Gladius got all protective and stood in front of Mystic as he flared his wings and blades extended from the tips.
"And just what in Celestia's name are you supposed to be?"
Aura stood there calmly and just stared directly into Gladius' eyes. The grey pegasus shifted his hooves prepared to strike but he felt Mystic hold him back. "Don't hurt him, he was the one who saved me and bring me back here!" The young colt pleaded.
"He did?" Gladius asked in surprise.
This information slightly lowered his guard but he had to be certain about Aura.
The God stepped up and slowly walked up the the older pegesus and took a knee. "I can see that you are uncertain about me due to my appearance. But rest assure that I mean you no harm. I am but a humble traveler who saw somepony in need. And if you still don't believe me, then look into my eyes and see if I'm lying."
The two stared at each other for a moment while Gladius read Aura. And he didn't see any nefarious intent in his eyes. "You aren't lying." Gladius retracted his blades and folded his wings as he fully calmed down.
"I'm sorry about my behavior, its just..." He draped his wing over his little brother. "After what happened I was a bit on edge, and it didn't help that you look so much different then us."
"No worries, I'm used to it." Aura chuckled and pushed his stood back up. "So your Mystic's older brother then?" He held out his hand. "I'm Aura Kaiser, It's a pleasure to meet you."
Gladius returned the gesture and nodded. "Likewise, and my name is Gladius Knight. Thank you for bringing my little brother back here. Though I do have to ask; how did you save him exactly, wasn't he taken to a Dragon base?"
"He was. I just sneaked my way in while incapacitating any dragon in my way." Aura explained, which made Gladius' jaw drop.
"You single handedly took out a base of dragons by yourself?" He shockingly asked. He then remembered reading a report that his father read stating that a dragon base operating in the slave-trade business was taken down and when the guards authorities arrived they found every dragon knocked out and tied up with a note from someone names 'A'.
That was when it all clicked and he connected the dots. Mystic was sold to a pack of dragons as a slave, Aura saved him and the report. "You're 'A' aren't you? The one who took down that dragon base?"
Aura crossed his arms and smirked. "Guilty as charged. Though to be honest..." His glasses flashed and his voice grew dark. "I would of done much more if they forced me."
A chill ran down Gladius' spine when Aura said that. He actually did consider killing the dragons. "So why didn't you?"
Aura sighed and gave him a straight answer. "Because I believe that there are fates far worst then death. I prefer killing, but push me and I will.
Hearing this, Mystic looked at Aura with a confused look. "So does that mean that you killed before?"
"Only because I had to." He kneeled down to Mystic and put a hand on his head. "I wish I didn't have to, but unfortunately, that's just the way life works."
Gladius understood what he was saying; he too had to kill others before. And while he didn't like it, it was just something that had to be done. "I hear what your saying, and I think you made the right choice keeping them alive. They might have other bases around if they the guards can get them to talk."
Mystic then heard heavy hoofsteps and his fear grew and grew. His father, Gallant Knight had an unamused look on his face that hid large amounts of anger and fury.
"So... you came back."
His voice was cold yet had a hint of aggression as he looked at his younger son. Mystic's heart started to beat faster while his mind began to run rampant with fear.
Aura noticed this and patted the colt's back to comfort him. "Stay strong, you got this."
Mystic looked at his father and slowly took a few deep breaths. Then he hopped out of Gladius' embrace and walked over to Gallant.
Gladius was concerned for his brother he saw Aura's arm blocking him. "This is something that he needs to do. It's best if we let him or else he would regret it for the rest of his life."
The teen pegasus was still worried, but he knew that Aura was right about this. He couldn't fight Mystic's battles forever, now was the time for him to take this on himself. He just wished that it won't end badly.
Gallant snorted and glared at his youngest son. "Doesn't matter what I do you just keep coming back."
'Wait, keep coming back? So that means that this has happened before?' Aura thought as he felt his anger rise.
Gallant groaned and turned around. "Well since I'm stuck with you, I might as well continue to hammer you down until you are somewhat capable of becoming a guard." He scoffed and picked up a wooden sword.
"No."
Gallant stopped dead in his tracks and turned ti his son. "What did you say runt?"
Mystic started to muster up all the courage he could and look his abusive father in the eyes. "I said no. I am not going to take your abuse anymore."
Back at the gate, Gladius couldn't believe what he was hearing. Mystic was actually standing up for himself, against their father above all else.
Gallant went over to Mystic and towered over him. "It seems like you still don't know your place. You are a Knight and by tradition you will be a guard whether you like it or not."
"Well I don't want to be a guard! I want to be an Alchemist!" Mystic screamed at the top of his lungs. "All my life you've resented me. Treated me like trash and forced me into things that I hated." He stomped his hoof onto the ground and gave a determined look at his father as he let years of pain out.
"Well I've had enough of it! I will never be a guard like you want and I won't let you dictate my life anymore!" Mystic declared and started to take deep breaths from all that yelling.
Gallant on the other hand had a very enraged look on his face. "So you've finally grown a backbone." He scoffed and drew his sword.
The light reflected off it as he raised it over his head. "I won't tolerate such disobedience from a worthy shit like you."
Gallant swung his sword down and Mystic closed his eyes waiting for the strike to happen but instead he heard a clanging sound. He opened his eyes and saw Aura blocking Gallant's sword with his own.
"I knew you were a terrible father, but to actually attempt to kill your own son?" He pushed harder and disarmed Gallant then pointed his sword at his throat. "You really are lower then low."
Despite the situation he was in, Gallant scoffed and used his wing to slowly move the sword away. "As his father I can do whatever I want with him. Even more so since I am also the head of the Knight family, he has no choice!"
Aura hummed and got an idea. "Then how about a little wager?"
Gallant raised an eyebrow, a bit curious as well.
"A 1-on-1 duel between me and you. If I win then you step down from your role and let Mystic pursue his goal of being an Alchemist." Aura proposed with a confident smile.
Gallant laughed and grinned sadistically. "A duel against me? You must have a death wish." He picked up his blade and sheathed it. "And if I win, not only will I kill him, but you will become a my servant for the rest of your life human!"
"Don't do it Aura! He's..." Gladius tried to reach out to him but Aura smirked.
"Deal. When do we start?"
Both Gladius and Mystic were stunned by this. Aura had just challenged Gallant Knight, their father and captain of the royal guard, to a duel. Either he's really confident, or really crazy.
Gallant's eye glinted as he redrew his sword. "Right now you damn hairless ape."
Gallant ran at Aura with intent to kill but Aura slid underneath him and twirled his sword. He then thrusted it at Gallant but he was caught off guard when his blade bounced off his wings.
"What the..." Gallant unfolded his wings and flew towards Aura. But he quickly jumped onto a tree branch expecting Gallant to slam into to but he was suprised when he used his wings to slash the tree clean in two.
The tree started to shift and fall to the ground causing Aura to leave his position and land back down. "Just what kind wings are those? They're as hard as steel and sharp, are they even real?!"
Gallant flew up higher and grinned. "Oh they're real, and you haven't seen anything yet human."
He flared his wings causing Aura to put his sword up ready for any approach that Gallant tried but then...
"Get out of there Aura!"
Mystic cried out to him but it was all in vain as Gallant flapped his wings and a few feathers flew off of his wings and right towards Aura.
The God was caught off guard by that and narrowly avoided the feathers but a few of them grazed him, causing blood to leak from the cuts that they made. When Aura turned around he was that the feathers were embedded in the ground as if they were darts.
"Like them? This is a trait passed down between the pegasi in the Knight family." Gallant stated as he landed and flared his wings again, showing that they were reflecting light the same way as a sword. "Our wings and feathers can become as sharp as daggers capable of cutting through even the scales of dragons. This is why the Knight's have remained as the Royal Guard's elite for over 2,000 years! And my wings..."
He glared at Aura and fired more feathers at him. "Are the sharpest out of them all!"
Gladius and Mystic gasped as they saw the feathers closing in on their friend. But Aura rolled his eyes and slammed his hands on the ground, causing a wall of stone to rise up and block the feathers like a shield.
"What the... Since when could Humans do magic?!" Gallant demanded.
Now he was the one to be caught off guard as the wall lowered and revealed a smiling Aura.
"That is what's called Alchemy." Aura stated as he moved his arm in a under motion and a stone fist erupted from the ground and nailed Gallant from the side, causing him to crash through the stone fence.
Gladius' mouth was agape. Just who was this human?
"Nice one Aura! Show him the power of Alchemy!" Mystic jumped into the air as he cheered.
The rubble from the fence started to shake making Aura put his guard up and his sword close to his body as he waited. Gallant flew up from the rubble and snorted. "Lucky shot human. Now your dead."
Gallant dived toward Aura and spun around like a living buzzsaw, even more when Aura blocked the attack and sparks formed as his blade locked with Gallant's saw like attack. Aura dig his foot into the ground and forced Gallant off then he slammed a hand on the ground causing a pillar of earth to slam under Gallant and straight into the air. Then Aura constructed another pillar underneath himself to launch him towards Gallant.
The pegasus recollected himself and flew at Aura with full speed with his wings pointing outward. But Aura was prepared for that as he swung his sword as hard as he could on the base of the wings causing them to bend. Then he used the momentum of his swing to move above Gallant and deliver an axe kick right in the space between his wings and sending him crashing back down.
Dust blew over both Gladius and Mystic as they watched Aura land back in his feet and sheathed his sword. When the dust cleared it showed Gallant in a crater badly beaten with his wings all crooked, yet he still had energy to get back up and stand.
"You think you've won? I still have fight in me." He grabbed onto his wings and snapped them back to normal. "I am Gallant Knight! Captain of the royal guard and head of the Knight Family! And I refuse to lose to a fucking human!" Gallant roared and ran towards Aura.
"Just give it a rest already." Aura said as he clutched his fist and slammed it into Gallant's head hard.
The pegasus collapsed and twitched until he fell unconscious.
"And that takes care of that." Aura dusted his hands and picked Gallant up. "Is there a hospital nearby?"
Gladius blinked a few times. His father actually lost. Was this human a gift from Faust or something?
"Hello?"
The pegasus came back to and looked at Aura. "Oh right. We have a hospital a few blocks down. But I have to ask; why are you taking 'him'?"
Aura went to the two brothers and hurled their father onto his shoulder. "Because he still have to answer for his crimes. Once he's healed, he's going to the authorities and the law will take care of the rest."
He started to walk off towards the hospital with Mystic following him. "He'll just keep doing this you know."
Aura laughed and looked at the colt. "Then I guess that means that I'll be seeing you and your brother quite often. You good with that?"
Mystic's eyes sparkled and grew wide. He was going to stay? The colt started to smile as he walked closer to Aura.
It had been a few weeks since Aura and Gallant had their duel. Gallant was forced to step down as head of the Knight Family and give it to his niece Sagitta Knight. A gifted Unicorn who is skilled with magic and a bow.
Unfortunately Gallant was still the captain of the royal guard for some reason, but that was neither here nor there. But since the arrival of Aura Kaiser, the Knight brothers had finally been freed from the chains of their father and were free to do whatever they wanted.
Gladius signed up for a new guard unit that was just created. It was similar to the Wonderbolts, but more fit towards combat. As for Mystic, well...
"So let me get this straight; you want to become my appearance?"
Aura was relaxing on a hammock when Mystic came up to him and asked a rather bizarre question to Aura.
"Well there is nopony better then you. I mean, you are the only being who actually knows the real aspects of Alchemy. Plus..." Mystic drew circles on the ground with his hoof as he asked sheepishly. "I really wanted to spend more time with you."
Taking a deep breath, Aura put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. "I'll need to think about it. In the meantime why don't you go get something to eat. It is pass 1 after all." He handed the colt a small bag of Bits and closed his eyes.
"Okay." Mystic nodded and went off into town, leaving Aura with his thoughts. 'It does make sense that he would ask me that question. But am I really the right choice? Sure I'm the leader of the Dimensional Guardians and I'm doing okay, I think. Come to think of it; am I a good leader?'
These thoughts continued to haunt the God's head until he fell asleep.
Aura was standing in a dark corridor with barely little light. He kept on walking slowly and started to hear whispers.
'Did you hear what just happened?'
'I did. Apparently the leader of the Dimensional Guardians passed away and gave their role to his student. What were they thinking?!'
'That team won't last a week with him as their new leader. I mean, he can't even fully control his powers, and they expect us to trust in him?'
'Many of the Gods seem to be on his side, but we know better, once a failure, always a failure.'
These words never really got to Aura before, but for some reason they were now getting to him, and he didn't like it.
The ground started to crack beneath his feet as a red glow emitted and the scene changed to a city that was falling apart. His eyes grew wide as he tried to use his powers to save it but they just didn't work and eventually the city collapsed entirely.
"No~~~"
Aura fell to his knees and started to hear voices again.
'You let us die.'
'You broke your promise.'
'What do you have to say to yourself?'
Aura looked up with tears in his eyes. "I~I tried to save you, but I wasn't~"
'LIES!!!'
Aura jolted up from his sleep sweating bullets and breathing heavily. He looked around and saw that he was still in south Canterlot then slowly calmed down.
"Again with that dream. This is the 3rd time this week I've had it. Just what's going on with my head?"
The God got up from his hammock and went into town. The residents had gotten used to him since he saved them from Gallant's iron hoof and treated him like a hero, much to Aura's dismay.
He didn't like to be treated like this, he preferred to be treated as if he was an equal, the same way he treats others.
But that seemed to be a lot to ask for to them. Since everywhere he turned he was being thanked by ponies left and right. So much for clearing his head.
He found himself at a small cafe and sat down. The waiter came up to him and greeted him. "Hello good sir, what can I get for you?"
"If you have a cheesecake I'll take that. Oh, and some lemongrass tea please."
The waiter nodded and written down Aura order, then went inside the building. Aura decided to pass the time reading a book that he recently checked out at the local library. If he was going to stay here for a while, he might as well be used to their customs and traditions.
'What am I doing? I'm a God for the Creator's sake. I'm not supposed to be so attached to one dimension.'
Taking a deep sigh, Aura looked up and got lost in thought. 'Maybe I can just tell the others that I'm using this dimension as an outpost. Been needing to find a new one anyway. But knowing my team they would start to make themselves home here and cause trouble, again. What to do, what to do?'
"Um, sir?"
Aura snapped back into reality and turn to see the waiter with his order. "Your cheesecake and tea."
"Oh, um... thank you."
The waiter placed Aura's order on the table and bowed. "Let me know if you need anything else. And don't bother paying, take it as a thank you gift for driving Gallant out of here."
And there goes his mood. He should of known that he was going to get special treatment just for kicking a corrupted lord's ass. "Geez thanks." Aura grumbled as he took a bite of his cheesecake.
As the waiter left and Aura enjoyed his cake, he got a ringing in his ear which made him groan. "Can't have a day to myself can't I?"
He pressed two fingers to his ear and spoke. "This is Aura Kaiser. What can I do for ya?"
'WHERE ARE YOU!'
A voice screamed into Aura's ear causing him to fall off his seat. 'You haven't sent a report in days! Are you in trouble? Did you get captured? Do you need backup?'
Aura's hand slowly rose back up and gripped the table as he pulled himself up and seethed through his teeth. "Still a worry wort aren't you Luco?"
The worried voice over the intercom was Aura's right-hand/best friend/student Luco Oricalcum. A jackal like creature called a Pokémon from dimension PKMN-37. Loyal to a fault, but can be a bit overbearing at times, but there was no one Aura trusted the most to take care of the team incase of an emergency.
"I told you that I was going on vacation to relax after the fiasco last month. Remember?"
'Of course I remember! But you also said that you were going to take a week off, as in 7 days! It's been 10 days so far!'
Aura sighed and pinched the bridge between his eyes. "Dude, you really need to calm down. I've been thinking about placing an outpost here for a bit since it is in a perfect spot in this sector of the multiverse. I just need to get the okay from the council and place the thing here then I'll be back home in no time. Just don't come over here, I don't want anyone to know about my title."
'Understood Master! Luco over and out!'
With the call ending by a click, Aura sighed and sat back down, noticing that every pony in the cafe was watching him.
"It was just a simple call. No need to mind me." Aura stated and went back to eating.
With his stomach slightly filled up, he returned to the Knight's mansion and saw Mystic eagerly waiting for him.
"How long were you waiting for me?"
"Only about an hour." Mystic said with a smile. "So did you think it over? Can I be your apprentice?"
Mystic started to give Aura puppy dog eyes as he moved closer to him. But it didn't have any effect on the God.
"Kid, I am really flattered that you asked me to take you on, but I'm not sure if you are ready to learn the fundamentals of Alchemy." He started and saw Mystic's ears flop down as he slumped.
"However..." The colt perked back up with that one word. "If you are willing to dedicate yourself to learning then I might be able to take you up as my apprentice, but only if you swear that you will never use what I'm about to teach you for your own desires. Understand?"
Mystic rapidly nodded yes as his smile grew.
"Great. We start tomorrow morning. Just don't expect to learn some high-level technique at the start." Aura stated. "You will have to learn the basic building blocks before you can even attempt to use a spell."
"Yes sir!" Mystic happily responded then jumped for joy. While Aura smiled slightly and watched.
'guess I'm staying here a bit longer.'
That night Aura had to sneak out back so that no one could hear him. He had to make a quick call to his team and give them the rundown, but he had to do this where no one could heat him.
Now was not the time to reveal himself as a God, and as if anyone would believe a claim like that, that would end up as a one way trip to the nut house while being held down with a straitjacket. Or in this dimension's case, call the guards to lock him up in a dungeon for questioning. And while he could easily escape, doing that would only make things way worst, he had to learn that the hard way in one certain dimension.
What he didn't notice was that Mystic was watching him, waiting til he was out of sight. He wanted to make a simple transmutation spell but knew that Aura would never allow him just yet.
And once Aura was got of sight, Mystic rushed over to the makeshift lab that Aura created and closed the door.
"It's just one spell, after that I will wait til after I got all the basics down. I just want to know how it feels to actually [preform] magic." Mystic said quietly.
He placed the book down and turned the page to creating a circle. Then he grabbed a piece of chalk and traced the symbol out very carefully, not missing a single detail.
He then placed an old block of wood in the center of the circle and thought of what he wanted to happen in his head. He wanted to turn this thing into something metallic, something like iron or silver. Could he turn it into bits?
He shook his head and focused. 'None of that Mystic! You swore to Aura that you wouldn't use this for your own gain! Now... focus.'
He planted both of his hooves on the circle and thought out loud. 'Become metal. Become metal. Become metal.'
The circle started to glow and rotate as the block glowed too and started to change shape.
"It's working." Mystic was lost in thought as he felt magic flowed through his body from the circle. "So this is what magic feels like."
But he snapped back when he saw the circle spin faster and faster and drawing in random things like a vortex, and then he started to panic.
"This isn't supposed to happen." He pressed his hooves down harder and pictured it stopping in his head, but it still kept going. "Why isn't it stopping!?"
He then noticed that he couldn't remove his hooves from the circle. "I'm stuck! GLADIUS! AURA! HELP ME!"
He shut his eyes and cried. "Why did I do this? I should of waited til I was ready like Aura said." Mystic buried his face in his hooves and cried some more. "Now I'm going to die just because I wanted to feel what magic is like. I just wanted..." A tear fell from his eye and was drawn into the center.
"Was to show that even somepony like me can be something amazing."
The mass in the center of the circle glowed brighter and brighter that it's light enveloped everything in the room until it...
"And that is the whole story. I'm going to make an outpost here, and monitor the entire sector. So I'll be gone from the sacred realm more then usual." Aura finished his report.
"Hm. It seems promising." One of the Guardians said. "Was there any reason why you decided to place an outpost there?"
Aura sighed. "Simple Chrono, the dimension is close to the center of this sector so I can monitor the other dimensions from here and relay information much more effectiv..."
The God felt the ground shake vigorously then he heard a large explosion from behind him. When he turned he was what looked to be a massive tree rising rapidly and expanding.
"That looks like it coming from..." His eyes went wide as he realized. "Mystic!"
Aura quickly closed his call and bolted back to the Knight's mansion as fast as he could.
When he did get out of the forest he was tree roots growing and expanding. "That looks like the alchemic spell for rapid growth. How did..."
He was cut off when a root moved towards him but he drew his sword and sliced it apart. "I can figure this out later. Right now, Mystic needs me"
And so Aura resumes running, cutting down roots that blocked his path as he vigorously rushed in to save Mystic. But then...
"Is that you Aura?!"
The God looked up and saw Gladius in his armor flying down and landed right in front of him.
"Gladius, what happened?" Aura asked, grabbing Gladius and shaking him.
Once Gladius got out of Aura's grip, he'd shrugged his wings. "Beats me. One moment I was asleep in my room after work, then the next moment I found myself in an overgrown forest that was growing so fast that it would make the Everfree Forest blush." He responded, clearly as confused as Aura was.
"And Mystic? What about him?"
"Should be out too. I mean, he wasn't in his room so it should all be good." His face then instantly dropped. "But I did see him up later then usual, carrying an old block of wood and that book you gave him. You don't think he...?"
The two then heard Mystic scream and they immediately went to him.
At the mansion it was a disaster. Tree roots were growing out the wazoo with no sign of stopping, and the tree was getting bigger and bigger by the minute.
When the two of them stopped in front of it all they could think was 'you have got to be kidding me.'
A few guards were tangled up in the roots, struggling to get out. Both Galdius and Aura nodded at each other and cut them free.
"Thank you general and Sir Aura. If you two weren't here we'd be goners."
Gladius stood tall and looked at the guards. "What of the others, are they still inside?"
"Negative! They are keeping the roots from reaching the town. But for how long is another question."
Gladius looked back at the mansion where his brother was and back at the town, feeling conflicted on what to do. Until Aura placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I'll get your brother. Right now the town and your comrades need you." Aura reassured him.
Gladius putted on a serious face and turned to the town. "Lead me to them. We won't let a single root through."
The guards nodded and flew off with Gladius, but not before he turned to Aura. "Make sure that you get my brother out."
Aura gave a thumbs up and went inside the mansion.
The inside of the place was exactly like his Gladius said; it looked like an overgrown forest with thr roots sprouting trees of their own and a few plants growing as well.
Aura had no idea where to go as he looked through each root covered hallway. He took the first one to the left but it lead to a dead end. As he tried to get out he notices that the roots that he was cutting down were starting to grow back.
This was very bad. Just where could Mystic be? If only there was a trail that he could follow.
Aura eyes widened and he facepalmed. "Why didn't I think of that?"
He stabbed his blade at the nearest root and carved out an alchemic circle then pressed his palm against it, making it glow and creating a light that lead down a certain path.
"So it is that spell. Then as long as I follow the traces of magic in it, I should find the source of this madness, and Mystic as well."
Aura then followed the light trail til he stopped in front of a large tree trunk that was still growing. He heard muffling and created an entrance from the trunk and entered it before the hole closed up.
While it was too dark to see, Aura clapped his hands together and created a ball of light and saw Mystic covered in small roots with his hooves anchored to a alchemic circle.
He walked up to the colt and gave him a disappointed look. "Tried to use Alchemy while I was gone?"
Mystic looked down in shame. "Yeah."
"Thought that you could follow some instructions and automatically preform it?"
"Yeah."
"So, you've learnt your lesson?"
"Yeah. I learned that I shouldn't rush into things until I am 100% ready instead of trying to copy something from a book." Mystic answered and looked up at the God.
"I just wanted to know what if felt like to finally use magic." The colt closed his eyes and tears started to leak out. "I didn't mean for this to happen."
Aura gave Mystic a warm smile and kneeled down to him. "It's okay, we all make mistakes." He ruffled the colt's mane as he comforted him. "What's important is that you learned from them, and can use this as a experience for next time."
Aura got up and cracked his knuckles. "Now that I know what this is, this should be a piece of cake."
Aura then started to draw two circles on the main trunk, a large one, and a small one inside of the large circle. Then he drew the lines in them and placed the symbols on them.
And finally, he pressed his hands on it and the circle glowed. The tree then stopped growing and began to glow as it disintegrated into particles. Then those particles swirled into the smaller circle and merged together to create a large chunk of gold ore that was the size of Aura's head.
He then turned to the circle that Mystic made and shook his head. "No wonder your spell went haywire, you used different runes for it." Aura began to explain as he pointed to the five runes on the circle.
"Each rune is used in a pattern for different spells. You got the first two correct, but you got the two of them wrong and added a fifth one, turning it from a convert spell to an alternation spell, one that accelerates the growth process of plant-life."
Mystic was breathing heavily. "I-I see. Good... to... know"
He then started lose consciousness and collapsed into Aura's arms. The God couldn't help but smile as he watched the colt doze off into dreamland.
"Sleep well Mystic. Cause tomorrow is your first lesson."
The next morning all the guards were cleaning up the aftermath of the tree's destruction. Luckily none of it made it's way to town but it was close.
Aura used his Alchemy to fully repair the Knight's mansion, plus added a new room to teach Mystic. The two were inside it as Aura was explaining the basic fundamentals of Alchemy to the colt as he vigorously scribbled down some notes, getting every last detail that his mentor was saying.
It was 6 months since Aura took Mystic Knight as his apprentice, and the young colt has been making a ton of progress. He was like a sponge, absorbing every detail and information that Aura was teaching him, so much that now Mystic has a tendency to carry around a notebook with him just incase he learns something new.
Currently, Aura was quizzing Mystic on Alchemy compatibility and synergy. "Alright, now let's say that I am currently using 20 grams of Silicon dioxide and I want to make a potion of invisibility, what options are there that I can use?"
"Easy. There are 3 options, the first one is to use a combination of dust from a snow moth and the petals from a sunset orchid. The second one is to use a mixture of mushroom spores from the crystal cap, spider silk, and hydra scales. And the third option is to use mycelium root and a Roc feather. Each one should be about twice the weight of the Silicon dioxide for maximum efficiency." Mystic answered quickly.
"Very good, and what do you use if you want to use an invisibility spell with a circle?"
"Simple, the pollen from a Moon Blossom. Then combine it with the Silicon dioxide and a claw of a chimera, sprinkle a small bit of the mixture on the circle and once it activates those inside it will remain invisible for a total of 1 hour."
Aura nodded his head. "Correct. Follow up question; what is Silicon dioxide and why is it the main ingredient for invisibility?"
"Silicon dioxide is classified as quartz and it is used as invisibility since it's alchemic make up is more transparent, even at small amounts."
Aura clapped at the response. "Perfect!"
He went over to the colt and ruffled his head. "You've been making a lot of progress in these past few months. I'm impressed."
Mystic blushed and rubbed the back of his neck and blushed.
"I think your now ready for a hands on lesson." Aura stated as he erased the chalk board.
"Really!" Mystic jumped out of his desk and landed directly on it with stars in his eyes.
Aura rubbed the colt's head and scuffed his mane. "You bet. But you have to come up with it yourself. Shouldn't be too hard with that head of yours." He created a circle and activated it, turning the room they were in back into Aura's laboratory.
"I'll give you one week to come up with something of your own. It can be anything, a potion, transmutation, summoning, construction, it's all up to you."
Mystic put his hoof up to his chin and started to think of some ideas. "And I'll also have to create the circle as well?"
"Yep. But this time don't turn the mansion into a forest." Aura teased, causing Mystic to puff up his cheeks and pout.
"Geez, you mess up a circle one time and you never hear the end of it." Mystic grumbled as he walked away to start his independent project.
The moment that Mystic fully exited the room Aura took a sigh of relief. "Well that should buy me some time, time to go to work." He pressed a button underneath his table and a large screen appeared and a chair rose from the ground. Once Aura took a seat the screen turned on and 7 beings popped up on screen.
"Alright Guardians, here are your missions..."
Meanwhile within his room, Mystic was searching through his stack of notebooks to find some type of idea on what to do for his independent project, but so far none of them would really prove his worth. After the whole incident 6 months ago, he has been wanting to prove himself and erase that whole thing for good. He just needed to find the perfect assignment.
"Construct a castle? No that would take too long, and requires a lot of resources. A healing circle? That is was to easy and lazy, so that is off the table. Summon a..." He read the last line and instantly closed the notebook with a slam with a hard sweat. "Hard pass."
He threw the notebook into a pile and groaned as he collapsed onto his bed and then screamed into his pillow. "Why is it so hard to come up with something!?"
He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. "Maybe I'll sleep it off and start over with a fresh mind."
And thus, Mystic pulled up his covers and took a small nap to clear his mind.
The next day Mystic searching through his book on Alchemy while having lunch with his brother Gladius. The pegasus was flirting with some mares, and as a result getting a slap on the cheek each time.
"Man, why are all these mares so violent? Can't they tell when a stallion is joking?" He asked himself as he rubbed the sore spot on his cheek.
"Hmm. Maybe I can... no then I would have to do a double cross with some rare materials."
Mystic was in his own little world as he kept searching through the book, writing down and ideas that would work for a project. His brother sighed and took went over to him.
"Your really taking this seriously huh?" Gladius asked as he took a bite of his sunflower sandwich.
Mystic didn't look up from his book but responded none the less. "This is the first time Aura is letting me do a circle by myself." He paused for a moment and chuckled nervously. "Well, that and I really want to redeem myself after what happened 6 months ago. I just want this to really wow him... without it blowing up in my face again."
Gladius hummed and nodded. "Oh believe me little brother, I understand completely. But don't you think that your trying too hard?"
The colt lowered his book and glanced at his brother. "Pardon?"
"I mean, did Aura give you a particular assignment that had to be done in a certain way?"
"Well... um..." Mystic started to choke on his own words while Gladius leaned in with a teasing grin.
"Well? Did he or did he not?" Gladius asked again.
Letting out a sigh of defeat, Mystic finally gave his answer. "He said that it could be anything I want."
Suddenly Mystic felt his mane being ruffled. "There you go. Like always, your overthinking things." Gladius pointed out. "If he said that it can be anything, then just use the first thing that comes to your head. Any more and you might overload your brain kid."
Mystic groaned and pushed his brother's hoof off of his head. "It's not that simple Gladius." He explained.
He lifted up his notebook and showed it to Gladius. Each page was filled with elaborate equations and factions that started to make his head hurt.
"I have to come up with something without making it seem like I'm just copying it from a book. I want my real first time using a circle to be memorable. Something that can really prove just how far I've come as a budding Alchemist."
Gladius was taken back. His own little brother had gone a long way from that shy and scared colt. It was enough to bring a tear to his eye.
"I see." He wiped a tear from his eye. "Well then, maybe I have a suggestion for you. Have you ever heard of the metal called Oricalcum?"
This was something that sparked Mystic's curiosity as he stared at his older brother with wide eyes. "Of course I do! Its supposedly a rare metal that is magic by nature! Infact, it might be the only metal that is magic by nature! But it is so rare that many call it a myth, and that is also ontop that is also resembles brass so miners have a real hard time determining if it's even real or not!" Mystic rambled eagerly.
But once he stopped he gave his brother a weird look. "But what does that have to do with my project?"
Gladius smiled and wrote down something down in the notebook.
'Main two ingredients: Copper and Zinc.'
"From what the eggheads back at the castle said, most of the findings of Oricalcum has traces of those two metals. Maybe it's a clue on how they were made." Gladius noted.
Slowly, Mystic's head rose and he started to grin with an open mouth.
"YOUR THE BEST BIG BROTHER EVER!"
Mystic hugged Gladius and ran over to various stores, excited to start his project and ace it all the same.
Gladius chuckled and sat back down. "Just doing my job as the elder brother." He stated and leaned back to take a sip of his drink, but when a mare passed him he grinned and went after her.
"Excuse me beautiful, care to have a member of the royal guard escort yo..."*SMACK*
Gladius was sent flying into a stall as the mare huffed and flicked her tail at him.
"Ouch."
Back in Aura's laboratory.
"And I think that should do it for your assignments. Send me your reports once your done." Aura finished up and closed the screen, then he collapsed onto his chair and took in a breath of fresh air.
"Thank the Creator that's done. Is it really that hard for them to accept the jobs they're assigned?" He asked himself then got ready to do his own job. "Luckily this one isn't too long so I should be back before dinner. I hope."
The God snapped his fingers and went through the portal to start his mission.
But not long after, Mystic opened the door and peeked inside. "Um, Aura? You here?"
The colt opened the door and looked around for any sign of his mentor. "Seems like he's on another trip. Right!" He slapped both cheeks and put on a determined face. "Time to get what I need."
Mystic went over to the cases filled with different supplies and grabbed a copper ingot and a sack of zinc. He then walked out of the laboratory to his room, closed the door and locked it so that he can have full concentration.
"Okay, first things first is that I have to create is the circle for testing compatibility. Draw the circle and draw the runes needed for the circle."
The colt drew the circle and then the runes in it making sure that it was nice and even as one miss step could result in disaster.
"Next, I'll have to test each ingredient to make sure that they match. First is the Copper and Zinc." The colt placed the two ingredients down and immediately, the circle lit green and showed a writing that said 'MAGICLESS ORICALCUM'.
"Okay, now to test each ingredient to see what links up with these two." He looked up at all his items and gulped. "This may take a while."
For the next 3 days Mystic has been comparing compatibility with the two main ingredient. So far he was able to cut the list in half but since he needed 4 ingredients, he needed one more, so he had to compare each combination to and widdle down the list to 10 possible choices.
But since he didn't know what they made, he now had to produce test simulations to see their outcome. And to say that they were taking a toll on the colt was an understatement. His bags under his eyes had bags and there were notes scattered around him.
Yet at the end of the tunnel, all his work finally paid off. At the center of his circle was a small magically charged ingot of Oricalcum.
"I... I did it. I actually did it." He lifted the small ingot in his hooves and grinned. "Now to write down the ingredients and... then..."
Mystic swayed back and forth then collapsed on his table from sheer exhaustion. He gripped the ingot in his hooves, but what he didn't notice was that the circle on the table didn't say Oricalcum, it said something else entirely.
Something far more valuable and powerful.
The following days Mystic had to rest after all that, but when the day for him to present his project to Aura came, he was bouncing with glee like a school girl filly.
Aura stood outside next to a tree with a smile on his face. Truth be told, he too was excited for whatever Mystic had came up with, and from what he heard from Gladius, it was going to be something great.
Once Mystic ran up he stood tall as Aura walked up to him. "This is it Mystic." He encouraged the colt. "Your first real transmutation. Are you ready?"
Mystic nodded and gripped his bag. "Yes."
"Alright, your test starts NOW!" Aura announced with a swing on a gong.
Mystic hurried to the center of the area and went to grab his items but Aura stopped him.
"No no no, it wouldn't be a test if you had your items premade." He clapped his hands and a small circle appeared on his palm, drawing Mystic's bag over to him. "You'll get this back once the test is over. But for now I have a table of items and several tools to either grind, liquidate, or measure."
Aura put the bag over his shoulder and sat down. "I'm testing more then your ability to create a circle, I'm also testing you on all your knowledge. That and an Alchemist will need to make a circle on the fly to be successful."
This new rule didn't bother Mystic at all. He had all the information he needed in his head. So he ran up to the ingredients and grabbed what he needed.
However this was when he started to have trouble, many ingredients looked the same and didn't have any labels. No doubt this was a test to see if he memorized what each ingredient was.
Mystic carefully scanned the table and found the ingredients that he needed then he went over to the grinder to crush the non metal parts into a fine powder. All this while Aura took notes Mystic's performance.
The colt remembered that the weight amount of the copper and zinc equaled 210 ounces. And since he had 500 this time he needed to grind up that much from the other two ingredients.
He placed a scale under the grinder and carefully watched the number go up bit by bit. Mystic was keeping a very close eye on it while still using the grinder in a very slow motion until he hit his targeted weight.
"Good, now for the magic enhancer." The colt went back to the table and picked up a Moonblossom and some Sapphire moss then put it in a purifier. The magical essence of the plants seethed out like tea and slowly dripped into a small bottle. Then Mystic added a pinch of salt and the liquid started to glow like the moon.
With all the preparations done it was now time to create the circle. So Mystic grabbed some chalk and drew the circle he memorized on a slab of stone.
'That circle, it's the one for life alterations. Why would he use that one for merging. Could it be possible that he... Nonsense Kaiser, there's no way that he possibly found the equation for the holy grail in all of Alchemy.'
With the circle drawn, Mystic then poured the magic enhancing potion in the center and watched the circle glow a bright blue. "So far so good. Now for the transmutation."
Mystic placed the ingot of Copper and Zinc directly in the center, but when he went to the outer ring, he didn't notice that he accidentally dropped the small piece of Oricalcum in with the ingots.
Once he was at the Outer ring, Mystic took a deep breath and calmed his mind. If his mind was full of fear and doubt, then the circle wouldn't activate or worst, it would spiral out of control and take Mystic with him just like what happened back then.
But this time was different. This time Mystic knew what he was doing and he knew that he had what it takes.
So with a clear mind and no regrets, he plunged his hooves on the outer ring and activated the circle. The light of the circle glowed intensely and started to spin in place.
Aura looked at the metals at the center of the circle mix and swirl. He was impressed, normally it would take a budding Alchemist 5 to 8 years before they could make something as advance as Oricalcum, but from the looks of it it seems like Mystic was able to nail it down with such precision.
However, the circle then turned red and Aura's eyes began to widen. He's only seen this once, and he couldn't believe that he was seeing it again.
But to Mystic, once he opened his eyes, was in shock as he saw the results, and that was a mistake.
The air started to pull in and many other items from the table were pulled in as well, merging with the metal and threatened to create a large explosion.
"Not this time." The colt pushed his hooves harder and he was able to use the wind to push back the items before they could enter the ingots and soon they were enveloped into a bright light that blinded both Aura and Mystic. And Mystic suddenly felt a warm feeling on his flank.
"Ugh... what hit me?" Mystic groaned and slowly got up. The area where he placed his circle was singed and had light blue flames around it. When he looked at the center his hopes were shattered as what he saw wasn't Oricalcum, but what appeared to be a small red sphere that pulsed a red light.
The colt fell to his knees and felt crushed. "I messed something up. I couldn't create Oricalcum." He gritted his teeth and slammed his hooves into the dirt out of frustration.
"WHY CAN'T I DO ANYTHING RIGHT!?"
Behind him, Aura emerged from some rubble and gasped. He slowly made his way to the center of the circle and picked up the red pebble.
"Mystic... do you know what you've just created?"
The Unicorn colt in question sniffled and avoided eye contact. "A worthless pebble yeah?"
But Aura shook his head. "Far from it. This here is the most valuable thing that an Alchemist can create." He said as he held it up and let the light refract off of it.
"The Philosopher's Stone."
Mystic's eyes widened as he gasped in disbelief. "You mean... the Philosopher's Stone? The very same stone that is said to have the same matter as all of creation itself, and could theoretically produce unlimited amounts of power, an unlimited source of magic and science!?"
Aura's nod nearly made Mystic faint, but he saw Aura point to him. "Your flank..."
The colt turned to look at his flank and saw that he had a special Alchemy Circle with a red stone in the center.
It was his cutie mark.
"I got my Cutie Mark." This was all that Mystic could say before he collapsed and fell unconscious.
Aura recovered and slowly went over to his student and picked him up. "You are one of a kind Mystic. A real diamond in the rough." He proudly said and walked him back home.
It was a very eventful week. Mystic had received his cutie mark while accidentally creating the Philosopher's Stone, somehow word got out and the young colt was hounded by many scholars and Alchemist hoping to get some information out of him.
And as you'd expect, the poor colt was not handling it well, and neither was Aura. And the fact that many scientists who never seen a Human before want to take him to their lab and 'study' him didn't help at all.
The entirety of the Knight Mansion was surrounded by Mages, Researchers, and Scientists of all types, all of them here for Mystic Knight, the colt who was the first in 500 years to create the Philosopher's Stone, and Aura Kaiser, the Human who taught him.
It became so bad that the current head of the family Sagitta Knight had to step out and put her hoof down. "That is enough!" She shouted from the top of her lungs. "In case you all forgot, this is private property! No pony is allowed entry without the approval of a member of this family!"
Her horn flared and the ground started to shake. "Those two are busy right now and they need their privacy, now get out before I lose my temper!"
The crowd gulped and quickly scattered. They knew full well not to make Sagitta angry, or else bad things would happen to them.
Once they were gone Sagitta sighed and turned around. "Alright, the close is clear you two!"
A nearby bush started to rustle and the two alchemists jumped out of it.
"Thanks for the cover Sagitta." Mystic thanked, pulling out leaves and twigs from his mane.
Sagitta's fierce look faded and she now had a kind and friendly energy emit from her. "It's my pleasure little cousin." She went over to the colt and hugged him.
Aura had to bend back and lossen his stiff back until it made a satisfying popping noise. "Okay, note to self: don't hide in anymore bushes. Stick to trees from now on."
With a pop from his back Aura let out a satisfied sigh and faced Sagitta. "Like Mystic said, thanks for keeping those crazies from us. They've been getting more desperate lately."
"Yeah, no kidding. Just this morning we had to clear the skies since they were coming through the roof." Sagitta stated with a groan.
And she wasn't exaggerating. For a few weeks the mansion had been bombarded by paparazzi and it wasn't just tiring for Aura and Mystic, but for those who live and work in the mansion as well.
But at least the guards were getting some good use out of it, as it gave them an excuse to skip training in the morning so that they can keep watch for anyone else who tries to get in. Which was often.
"Well it could be worst, at least they haven't tried to get in from underground." Aura said trying to find some humor out of this. But from the look that Sagitta was giving him...
"They tried to come from underground didn't they?" He asked bluntly.
Sagitta released a tired sigh. "Yep. If this keeps up we will have to relocate, which would be a problem for this family as we dedicated out lives to the Princess."
Aura hummed as the gears started to turn in his head. "Princess." He turned to Mystic. "Isn't she also the founder of that school you've wanted to join?"
Mystic released a squeal and blushed. "Kinda. But they only accept those with high magic, and... you know."
Aura patted Mystic's back and reassured him. "But you are a great budding Alchemist. A form of magic that uses the natural mana surrounding us rather then one's limited supply of internal magic. Heck, if the Princess were here, I'm sure she would accept you without a second thought."
Suddenly the family dragon Pierce came up with a scroll that had the royal symbol on it. "Headmaster Sagitta, a letter from her highness."
"Thank you Pierce." She took the scroll and opened it, skimming through the contents but one part caught her attention.
"Sweet Celestia." She gasped in disbelief.
"What is it?" Aura asked. He took a peek at the scroll and read it's contents out loud.
To the Knight family: I have heard of the events that have transpired in the last few months and I am happy to let you know that I am coming to visit. This visit isn't an ordinary one, as I would like to speak with the human that you are housing. I will be at the Knight's mansion by 12PM tomorrow. -Princess Celestia
"Huh." That was all Aura could say as he backed up and saw the overwhelmed look that Mystic had on his face.
"Well ain't that convenient"
In the main room of the Knight's mansion... well it was complete chaos. And that was putting it lightly.
Cause as soon as word got out that Princess Celestia was coming over tomorrow, all the guards and Knights panicked and scattered.
"The Princess is coming!?"
"We need to make this place presentable!"
"It must be serious if she's coming here!"
The maids and guards all started to clean like crazy. Each one not missing a single mark and even going so far as to check under the floorboards.
"Are they always like this when some royal pony comes to visit?" Aura asked as he just watched the guards and maids go nuts.
Gladius chuckled as he had a bucket of popcorn and sitting down on a lawn chair. "Not usually, but only when Celestia comes over to visit. She is kinda a big deal to this family." He threw a piece of popcorn into the air and landed in his mouth. "I mean, we do dedicate our lives to her."
"I see." Aura said as he hummed. 'So the Knight family dedicate their whole lives for the Royal family, or is it just Celestia. Perhaps I should ask Sagitta once she gets back.'
Aura looked around and couldn't find any sign of a certain Unicorn colt anywhere. "Where's Mystic?
Gladius pointed down the hall. "He's in his room. He said something about finding something to impress Celestia."
"Let me guess, he trying to come up with something that will impress her so much that she would enroll him in her school?"
Gladius answered Aura's question with a nod. "That about sums it all up."
Aura took a deep breath and leaned against a nearby wall. "To be completely honest, I don't see the value of school that much. Heck when I was Mystic's age I hated going to school. I wanted to get out there and have adventures all day." He confessed.
Gladius chuckled. "Yeah, I know the feeling. I hated going to school too." He flapped up to the second floor and stared out the window. "But Mystic is different. He enjoys learning and wants to expand his horizons. And now that Father is gone and has gone to that task about dragons attacking, Mystic can now start doing what he's always wanted to do without that deadbeat breathing down his neck 24/7."
Aura jumped to the second floor and joined Gladius. "And I hope he never comes back. I've met my fair share of horrible beings in my line of work, but your father takes the cake by a landslide."
"Yeah, in fact I hope he becomes some dragon's lunch. With all the shit he's done, karma is bound to reach him." Gladius stated boldly.
Aura blinked a few time, not expecting someone like Gladius, a colorful pony to swear like that. Guess you learned something new every day.
Suddenly Aura felt a ringing in his ear. This was a sign that one of the Guardians was trying to call him. "Welp, I better get prepared for tomorrow." He stretched and acted like he was tired so that he could quickly answer the call. "If I'm going to meet a Princess for the first time, I'd better look my best."
Gladius seemed to bought it and nodded. "I'd don't blame ya. It'll be my first time actually speaking to her. Sure I've seen her every now and then but I've never really had the guts to actually go and talk to her."
And with that, the two went in opposite directions and when Gladius was out of hearing range, Aura quickly checked his surroundings and ran into his laboratory/room.
Pressing his finger over his ear, a visual screen that only he could see appeared in his vision. "This is Aura Kaiser. What's the situation?"
This time a feminine voice that was sort of tomboyish spoke. 'This is Cinder here! Seems like there is trouble in my quadrant and I require backup. Sending you my coordinates now!'
Information was being downloaded to Aura as he received the data. "Understood. Hang tight and I'll be there in 30 minutes tops. And Cinder..." His look was dead serious. "By any chance was this 'incident' caused by something you did, again?"
'How could you say that?! What would make you think that I would be the reason for...'
"Your lack for damage control and that you cause more collateral damage then an enraged bull in a China shop." Aura answered bluntly before Cinder could even respond. "But like I said, I'll be there shortly to clean your mess up. Then have a nice chat with you."
'Oh goodie. Another lecture from Aura. *SIGH* Cinder Ka'Blam signing out.'
The screen disappeared from Aura's vision as he took his finger off of his ear. He then grabbed his sword and threw his jacket on then created a portal to the coordinates that Cinder sent him.
"Showtime."
He stepped through the portal and immediately closed it.
The next morning Aura was still asleep, arms and legs spaced out and the God snoring softly. That mission took a lot out of him so he really needed his rest.
The door opened and Mystic snuck in. He placed both hooves on Aura's side and pushed him in an attempt to wake him up. "Aura, it's morning. And the Princess is coming in a few hours."
But try as he might, the young colt couldn't wake up the tired God as the only response he got was a snore from him.
Mystic puffed his cheeks and had an idea. "He might get mad about this. But I do need to work on my elemental alchemy spells."
He climbed to the foot of the bed and held out his front hoof. "Now how did he say it worked again? Just relax my mind, hold out my hoof, think of one of the four main elements and let the world's magic flow into me?"
And as if it heard him, a magic alchemy circle manifested in front of Mystic's hoof and the symbol for water formed in the center and created a stream of water that drenched Aura in cold water, resulting in the God jolting up at the sudden event.
"GAAAAHHHH! I'M AWAKE, I'M AWAKE! Wait a minute." Aura focused his vision to Mystic who had a sheepishly nervous look on his face.
"Um, good morning?"
The God let out an irritable sigh as he dried himself off and put his glasses on. "Well at least you're getting used to the basic fundamentals of elemental alchemy."
Aura walked to the bathroom and took a quick shower and then his normal morning routine. "And what about earth, fire and air? Have you learned how to summon them, or just water?"
Mystic gulped and jumped off the bed. "So far just water, but even then I don't know exactly how I did it."
"I see." That was all Aura could say as he walked out of the bathroom looking cleaned up. He then looked up at a clock and saw that the time was 9AM.
"Seems like we have some time before the Princess gets here." He looked down at the colt and scuffed his mane. "How 'bout you and I get some breakfast. We'll need our energy after all."
After the two had their breakfast they went to the lab for one quick lesson. But after that they were required to be at the front of the mansion with the rest of the family. Each maid, guard and resident of the mansion were lined up, waiting for the princess to arrive.
Not long later they spotted a carriage being pulled by two royal guards as it landed at the entrance. There Princess Celestia got out if it and immediately everypony from the mansion bowed down with Aura just confused at first til Sagitta had to use her magic to force him to a knee.
"Princess Celestia, welcome to our home!"
The princess chuckled and walked closer to the entrance. "It seems like you all are still as loyal and dedicated as always. But you really didn't have to go through so much trouble just for me."
Aura looked up and was shocked. Compared to the rest of the ponies, she towered over them and seemed to be only a few inches shorter then him, but what stood out most was the mane that seemed to move on it's own and the fact thay she had both a horn and wings. It was like she was looking at a Goddess.
'Damn. She looks like she could give Crystal or Venus a run for their money. She's definitely a princess alright.
Sagitta got back up and walked to Celestia. "Princess, it is an honor that you've come to grace us with your presence. I am Sagitta Aurora Knight, newly assigned head of House Knight."
Princess Celestia smiled. "It is an honor to meet you too Sagitta. I take it that your adjusting to your role of head leader well?" She asked out of curiosity.
"I will admit, there were some bumps in the road, but I got used to it after a while."
Suddenly they heard the sound of a stomach growling which made Celestia blush in embarrassment. "Apologies, I haven't had much to eat today. Can we take this inside while having lunch?" Her gaze turned to Aura and Mystic. "There is much I would like to discuss."
In the dining room, the chefs created a large spread of food that they worked their flanks off creating for when the Princess arrived. And judging from their tears of joy as Celestia happily ate, all their efforts paid off.
And it wasn't just Celestia who sat down to eat, Aura, Sagitta, Gladius and Mystic sat down by her request.
Aura stayed silent to himself and tried to avoid drawing attention to himself as much as possible. Luckily, Celestia was busy chatting with Sagitta so that wasn't a problem. But then she got news about the recent dragon attacks and had to leave to handle the situation. Celestia turned to Aura and smiled at him as if he was an old friend.
"And you must be the Human I've heard so much about."
Well there was no getting out of this now. It would look bad for Aura if he didn't respond, and he knows it, he just had to make sure that he doesn't blow his cover.
"Yes your Majesty." He bowed as he responded. "My name is Aura Kaiser. I'm a humble traveler as well as an Alchemist."
Celestia looked directly into Aura's eyes which caused the God to become a bit nervous. Sweat started to roll off him as it seemed like she was scanning him or something.
"An Alchemist you say?" She asked, returning to her seat. "I'd thought I felt a familiar magic here. Am I correct in assuming that you used the more advanced and lost version of Alchemy?"
'Lost version? So my hypothesis was right, this form of Alchemy did make it's way here long ago. No wonder the activation time was so fast.'
Aura cleared his throat and answered. "Yes your Majesty. I used what you call the lost art, but where I'm from, we call it 'True Alchemy'. Utilizing both Science and Magic to create spells that use external magic from everywhere rather then internal magic." Suddenly it was like all of Aura's worries were gone as he found that Celestia was actually quite easy to talk to. "I'm guessing that you've seen it heard of it before?"
She nodded in response. "I have actually. My mentor Starswirl the Bearded utilized it himself. However his time came and he was never truly able to finish recording his research so it became a lost art of magic. Which is why I came here actually."
Celestia got up and handed Aura a pamphlet for Celestia's school for gifted unicorns. "You see, I've also heard that you taught a certain magicless colt how to use Alchemy. So, after consideration, I want you to teach Alchemy in my school."
Aura, Mystic and Gladius all spit take as they heard this news. Princess Celestia want a Human to teach at her School?!
"W-What!? You want me to teach?" Aura coughed as he tried to recover from the shock.
Celestia just smiled. "Yes. I've been looking for somepony who knew the original was of Alchemy for a long time, but all they knew was the potion aspect of it." She beamed at him as she continued. "You see, I want to bring all the lost forms of magic back and, again, you taught a certain colt it and from what I've heard he's become quite the budding Alchemist."
From the other side of the table, Mystic smiled at Celestia's praise. She heard of his skills? It was almost enough to make him faint. Quickly getting out of his chair, Mystic ran over to Aura and nudged at his leg.
"You have to accept! This is a once in a lifetime opportunity! You get to bring back real Alchemy and teach it to young ponies!"
Aura hummed and thought about it. On one hand this would give him more information about this dimension and he could also have more resources to properly teach Mystic. But that was where the other hand came in, this would mean that he might have to leave Mystic and Gladius.
After a while he came up with decision...
"I'll take the job."
Mystic cheered and jumped happily.
"But on one condition: You have to enroll my student Mystic Knight in your school and pit him in my class."
Mystic.exe stopped working. He couldn't believe what he was hearing, Aura was asking Princess Celestia to enroll him? There was no way that she would accept a magicless Unicorn into her...
"You got yourself a deal." Celestia answered, agreeing to Aura's terms.
"What!!!" Both Gladius and Mystic shouted in shock.
Celestia kneeled down to Mystic and smiled. "Young Mystic Knight. You did something that nopony has done in hundreds of years." She used her magic and levitated the Philosopher's Stone that Mystic created out of his satchel.
"You created the Philosopher's Stone. Even the greatest Alchemists in history struggled to create one and nearly all of them fail to achieve it. But you," She placed her hoof on Mystic's chest.
"You created it at such a young age. It is clear that you have a nack for it too, seeing that you got your Cutie Mark from it."
Mystic looked at his Cutie mark and couldn't help but smile.
"And I want you to know that it doesn't matter if you don't have any magic. Your thirst for knowledge lead you to become more skilled then many skilled mages today. And I know that you can reach even higher heights by attending my school."
Mystic's eyes leaked a few tears when he heard that. He wiped his eyes dry and stood tall and proud. "Thank you Princess Celestia."
He then turned to his teacher. "And thank you Aura."
With that done Celestia remembered one more detail. "Also Sir Kaiser, you are going to need to make yourself look like a pony so that you don't cause a ruckus. There are many scientists in Canterlot wh would like nothing more then to... examine you."
Aura shuttered as he recalled this all the times he went out and got stalked by scientists. "That would be helpful. And I think I got just the Alchemy spell to do it. I just haven't used it yet since it is a one time thing to grant me a second form." He sat down and slowed his breathing.
"Just give me a moment so that I can focus and create it."
Aura's body glowed and started to change shape. His arms turned into forehooves and his form changed into a more quadruped form. A horn grew from his forehead and wings sprouted from his back and as the light died down, he had turn to a pony that had a fair amount of bulk, a silver coat and a sapphire mane that had a hint of green at the ends of the hair. His eyes stayed the same, but he had a cutie-mark with a sword and shield that had a portal behind it.
"Is this a good enough disguise for ya?"
Princess Celestia felt her cheeks heat while Mystic and Gladius dropped their jaws.
"I-I think it is a tad bit much Sir Kaiser." Celestia was able to mutter out.
The God turned to the mirror and inspected himself. "Are you sure? Cause if I'm going to be a teacher, shouldn't I at least look the part?" He checked the mane and hummed. "Though I will say that the way the mane waves is a bit much."
"That's not the issue Aura." Gladius stated and pointed. "The issue is the type of pony you took."
"Really?" He faced his wings and flared them. "I don't get it, I mean, what's wrong with having both wings and a horn?"
Celestia shook her blush off and regained her composure. "Well you see, you had taken the form of an Alicorn."
Aura raised an eyebrow. "O-kay. And what does that have to do with anything? There are other Alicorns here right?"
"Eh, sort of... they're, rare in a way."
"Oh, really?" His curiosity rose. "How rare? Like, 10%, 1%, or they are a mutation?"
"No. Its more like there are just... a dozen give or take. And they are more over on the level of Gods due to their high magic."
Aura didn't couldn't even say anything except for one thing. "Huh?"
"Oh sweet Celestia, she saying that Alicorns might as well be Gods themselves! How obvious do we need to make it for you to get it through your thick skull!" Gladius shouted in front of the God's face.
It took Aura a minute to process this information but once it finally clicked. "Oh."
'Crap crap crap crap crap crap! Did I just blow my cover!? I should of known that Alicorns were the equivalent of Gods in this Dimension! I just wanted to look cool! Forget trying to blend in, I'm going to stand out more then a cactus in a desert"
He quickly turned around and slapped his cheeks with both hooves to snap out of it and calm down. 'Wait, maybe they didn't figure it out. I can probably bullshit by way through this."
He turned back around and faced the three. "Whoops. Sorry, we humans didn't really know about that. I'd just thought that Alicorns were as common as any regular pony." He nervously chuckled and slumped down. "So much for blending in."
Mystic and Gladius looked at each other with a nervous face while Celestia came up to him.
"I guess I should of expected this, your constant usage of Equestria's natural magic must of merged with your body and as a result made you match that of an Alicorn."
Aura's head jerked up as he looked at the princess in confusion. She handed him what appears to be a dress shirt and blue dress vest that goes over it.
"I was going to give this to you anyway but it should conceal your wings." She levitated the clothes over to Aura. "But just to be safe, I recommend wrapping something over them just incase."
Aura looked at the clothes and nodded. "Thank you princess." He then took a knee and kneeled down. "I look forward to teaching your students about the wonderful world of Alchemy."
He then turned to Mystic and smiled. "And I'm sure Mystic is looking forward to joining your school as well."
"Well it would be a waste not to." Celestia chuckled and have off a radiant smile. "Magic or not, he has done something that took even me years to create. Such talent must be properly raised in the best environment for it to grow."
Mystic blushed and avoided eye contact with them. Seeing this, Gladius got his brother and placed him on his back. "Welp it's getting late and I'm sure these two are going to have a busy day tomorrow. Best if they get some sleep now."
Gladius took a quick bow then took to the air. "Thank you again your majesty."
Once Gladius and Mystic took off, Aura went to leave as well but...
"One minute please. I would like to discuss something with you Aura Kaiser, 'The God of Space'."
Aura stopped in his tracks and turned around to see Celestia with a grin on her face.
"You knew?" He asked, quite shocked that his cover was discovered so quickly.
"I've sensed your presence in Equestria for months now. You Gods have a very unique power signature." She lit her horn and Aura started to glow a golden light. "Gods emit a rare energy that shines with a divine light. And the fact that I've read about you, I knew your name was familiar."
Aura took a deep breath and closed the door so that no one else could hear them. "There's books about me?"
"Oh dozens!" She answered happily. "They were my favorite books reading while I was just a filly, even my personal student has taken quite a liking to them."
Her happy expression dropped and she turned more serious. "Which leads me to why I need to speak to you."
Aura was quiet and went over to a chair to sit down. "And I'm guessing that it also has something to do with why you agreed to have Mystic join your school?"
Celestia nodded and sat down across from him. "Yes. You see, she hasn't been very social for a filly her age. As smart as she is, she pushes back those who try to get close to her." She looked up and stared into Aura's eyes. "I am going to put her into your class and hopefully, she could become friends with your student young Mystic Knight." Her smile started to return. "I can tell just by looking at him that he and my student share many things in common."
"So short version is that you want me to find a way for Mystic and your protege to become friends?" Aura asked bluntly. Truth is, this was a weird request. Mystic is extremely shy and has never met a foal his age, how in the multiverse was he going to get him to become friends with a filly that he's never met?
Celestia nodded. "Yes. If she continues to work alone as she is, then she would never achieve her potential. Having somepony to work with or to confide to can do wonders."
Aura sighed and crossed his hooves. Something like this wouldn't be impossible and it would help Mystic come out of his shell too.
"Alright, I'll do it." He said without hesitation. "If I may ask, what is the name if your student?"
Celestia smiled and showed him an image of a young purple unicorn filly that was Mystic's age.
Aura stood in front of the mirror in his pony form, checking to make sure that his wings were hidden well enough.
"I can't believe I did something so stupid. I should of just made myself a Unicorn but no, I just had to make myself look cool and chose an Alicorn form. Real smart there Kaiser."
The God tucked in his undershirt and put his glasses on, making sure that he looked presentable for his first day as a professor. He then heard a knock on his door. "It's open!"
The door slowly opened and Mystic came in looking like a nervous wreck. Poor colt was shaking like a leaf and had beads of sweat rolling down his face. "I-I-I-It's ti-time to g-g-go."
Aura straightened his jacket and patted it down. "First day jitters?"
Mystic answered with a nod. "I've never been to a school before. What if I say the wrong thing or make a complete fool of myself in front of everypony?"
"I hardly think that's going to happen little buddy." Aura kneeled down to Mystic's level and patted his head. "I'm sure that you'll do great once you get there."
Despite his words of encouragement, Mystic still felt like everything was going to go horribly wrong today.
"Nothing huh?" Aura sighed, he then took a comb and brushed his mane until it looked presentable. "Look, I know that the first day of... well anything can be scary. But that is just anxiety and fear controlling your brain, and that is perfectly normal. But trying to make today perfect will only end in disaster, what you need to do is just be yourself and make the most of today."
Now Aura put the finishing touches by adding a single spritz of cologne on his neck and patted it down. With his preparations done he levitated his new saddlebag on his back and tightened the strap.
"Now I recommend you get all your things. We only got half an hour before the train arrives."
Mystic calmly took a deep breath and relaxed his nerves. "Okay. And..." He looked down and smiled slightly. "It's reassuring that you are coming with me. At least I'll have somepony to talk to when I'm feeling overwhelmed or scared."
Aura smiled back and patted the younger colt's back. "Anytime."
One long train ride later the pair stepped out of the train, luggage in tow and looked up at the city in awe. This was Aura's first time in the city and he couldn't help but notice one thing.
"There are a lot of Unicorns here. Is there a reason Mystic?"
The young colt seemed to dissapear from Aura's side. "Mystic?"
"Behind you."
Mystic peaked out from behind Aura's hind leg with a scared look on his face. "I've always hated this part of Canterlot. It's full of rich nobles and snobs who only care about their status. And look down on anypony with judging eyes."
All that information alone was more then enough to paint a picture for the God. No wonder why Mystic was scared, he might as well be surrounded by different versions of his father. It comes to show that every place has some kind of darkness. And If there was one thing that he hated most, it was beings who were so full if themselves that they think that they're perfect.
Heck, if he saw just one doing that to anyone, he would march over and give them a dose of reality. But as much as he would love nothing more than to punch a stuck-up noble in their stupid face, he rather not get into trouble the on his first day as a professor.
"Alright then." He patted Mystic's head to comfort him. "Just stay close and if any noble does try to start trouble, I'll handle it. That okay?"
Mystic nodded and went back to hiding behind Aura. Who took out a map and muttered to himself as he tried to find just where the school was located.
"Excuse me sir?"
Hearing the voice, Aura turned towards it and saw a pair of Royal Guards. "Are you two Aura Kaiser and Mystic Knight?"
"That is us." Aura answered as he folded his map and placed it back into his bag. "Is there a problem?"
The guards shook their heads. "No. We were asked by the Princess to escort you two to her majesty's school. If you'll follow us and please stay close."
Aura and Mystic looked at each other and shrugged. "Well, I guess we don't have to worry about being late." Aura pointed out as he and Mystic followed the guards.
Which didn't take long as the two found themselves in front of a large and regal building with many young Unicorns coming in.
"Wow. That is one fancy looking school." Aura stated.
The two guards took hold of Aura and Mystic's luggage. "We will take these to your living quarters."
"Thanks." Aura took out his wallet and gave the guards some bits. "Something to treat yourselves with. Take care."
With the guards gone the two walked inside the building and saw that it was much larger then what it looked outside. Mystic started to see so many Unicorns and gulped as his anxiety grew.
"Mystic." Aura softly spoke. "I'm going to need to see the headmaster to solidify my position as professor." He kneeled down to the colt's level. "Students aren't allowed where I'm going, so you should make your way to the classroom."
Hearing that instantly made Mystic grow pale. "What!? By myself, alone!?"
"I know I know, and trust me, I don't want to do this either. But you know that I can't be your shield. You have to be brave." Aura comforted the colt and handed him his school bag. "You remember the room number?"
Mystic took the bag and nodded. "Yeah. Room 302. Should be close by."
"Good." Aura patted Mystic's head and went the other direction. "You got this."
Now Aura was out of Mystic's sight. It was just him... alone... in a place he's never been to... and surrounded by many unknown ponies.
His mind instantly rang alarms telling him to run straight to Aura but he took a deep breath and calmed down. 'You got this Mystic. Just go down the hall and locate the classroom.'
He took a small step forward as he made his way to his destination. 'Just don't pay attention to the others and focus on your goal. Treat this as a normal day back home. You can do this. Right?"
Though with the way he was walking he was drawing a bit of attention to himself as the number of eyes grew. Each one feeling like they were piercing Mystic's skin.
'And now they're all staring at you.' He quickly fixed himself and was walking normally. 'Remember what Aura said; don't let fear and anxiety take over. Just do what you normally do and everything will be okay.'
He turned and saw a door with the number '302' on it and quickly went through it and took the seat that was given to him. He started to rapidly breath heavily as he felt his heart beat so hard that it might just burst out of his chest at any moment.
"*HUFF HUFF HUFF* I did it." He leaned into his chair and took a sigh of relief. "That wasn't so hard."
He looked around and saw that there was hardly anypony here at the moment. There were a few, but they were mostly the ones who prefer to get here early just incase.
But 5 minutes later more and more Unicorns came in until each seat was taken. And right as the bell rang, Aura came in.
"Good morning class." He said as he walked in and analyzed his surroundings. It seems like most of the students were the same age as Mystic. "I am your new Alchemy Professor Aura Kaiser. Now before we start class..." Aura placed his bag on his desk and sat down. "Who here can tell me the first thing about Alchemy?"
Even though Mystic wanted to answer, his nerves got the better of him as he didn't want to be the center of attention. That and he's heard of several scenarios where many kids would pick on the smartest student or what is called "the Teacher's pet".
Aura started to look around and wait for somepony to respond. "Anypony at all?"
"That would be the law of Equivalent Exchange. In order to obtain anything, something of equal value must be given."
The source of that voice came from the young filly next to Mystic. She had a lavender coat with a dark purple mane and tail that had a single magenta stripe running down them. Her eyes were a deep shade of violet and her cutie mark was a purple star with smaller stars surrounding it.
"Very good. You're..." Aura looked at the sheet given to him. "Ah, so you're Twilight Sparkle." He placed the sheet down and looked at her. "The Princess has told me about you. If I recall, she said that you're her protege, or her prized Student as she says."
Aura gave her a joking smile. "Now don't expect me to give you some kind of special treatment just because your studying under the Princess."
"Of course professor Kaiser." Twilight bowed her head.
Aura hummed as he analyzed the filly. 'So this is Celestia's pupil. At first she looks like any normal filly but after looking at her soul I can sense powerful magic coming from her. But if what Celestia said is true, she would never be able to realize her true potential if she stays by herself. Luckily that is where my little protege comes in.'
He then looked at the rest of the class. "And that goes for the rest of you! I personally don't care how skilled you are or what your status is, I will treat you all equally and fairly!"
He then lifted up a textbook and opened it. "Now take out your textbook and open it to chapter one. In order to learn Alchemy, we will have to start with its history."
One history lesson and visual example later, Aura got ready to start teaching about the science of Alchemy when...
"Um, excuse me Professor?" One of the students raised their hooves up. "Isn't Alchemy supposed to be potion making?"
Aura chuckled and took out some chalk. "Well that is one part of it." He started to write down on the chalkboard. "You see the reason why Celestia chose me to be your professor was because I know the 'True' way of Alchemy, or what is now called 'Lost Alchemy'."
Intrested, Twilight wrote down in her notebook and paid close attention to the lesson.
"As you know, there are two types of magic: Internal and External. Now normally when one were to use magic, they would have to use their own internal pool of magic within them." He pointed to a drawing of a Unicorn with a glowing core that connected to the horn. "This is why you can feel tired or overloaded when using magic to much and too fast.
Aura then pointed to the next drawing, which was a flower, boulder and leaf, each one had small stars around them. "Now I'm sure you've seen examples of external magic before, such as in crystals, but in truth, magic exist everywhere, even the very aur we breath. And Alchemists..." He clapped his hooves and placed them on the desk, making it sprout branches and grow leaves. "Can be able to use those traces of magic."
Aura reverted the desk back to normal. "Now while this version is far more limited then the traditional way, it does have some unique traits such as using alchemic spells. Spells like barrier creation, elemental spells, healing, conjure tools and many more. But it take a lot of time and training to master that form. But more on that subject later."
Aura looked up and noticed the time. "Well look at that, we're almost out of time." He levitated some assignments and handed them out. "There is a reason why each desk fits two. Whoever is next to you will be your partner for the rest of your time in this class. As an Alchemist is not just a mage, but a researcher as well."
Aura returned to his desk and turned to the class. "Your assignment this week is to create a circle that would work with the items listed on the sheet that I gave each of you. Use your textbook and work together to finish it." He then took a bow. "And thank you for letting me be your teacher. I'm looking forward to the rest of the year!"
With that the bell rang and the students went out to either their next class or to work on their assignment. Mystic walked up to Aura with the sheet.
"I'm guessing that I have to do the assignment too?" He asked. It wasn't that he didn't want to do it, but after looking over it, it all just seems too easy for him as he has done this before.
"Yes Mystic, you too. Many Alchemist work in pairs. So far you've mastered solo Alchemy, now you must learn to work with others." Aura replied and saw that Twilight Sparkle was next to him.
"Professor Kaiser. If it's alright with you, can you tell me more about 'Lost Alchemy'?" She pulled out her book and quill with starry eyes. "I really want to know more about it!"
Aura chuckled. "Wish I could, but my next class is going to start soon." He then scooted Mystic closer to her, causing the colt to stiffen up. "Why don't you ask Mystic? He was my first student and memorized everything I taught him piece by piece."
Twilight was a bit unsure about that idea but went with it anyway. "Okay then. Come on Mystic, I want to get a headstart on our assignment." She then grabbed Mystic's hoof and dragged him out of the room, with poor Mystic looking terrified.
Aura just sighed and leaned back into his chair. "I just hope that she can learn to cooperate with Mystic. Or that Mystic can have the courage to work with others outside his comfort zone."
Out in the courtyard both Mystic and Twilight were working on their assignment. Or at least, they are trying to.
"Aren't you going to chip in and help or are you just going to sit there and stare at nothing?" Twilight asked. "Cause if you are, then I can do this assignment myself."
She was starting to get a bit irritated. This was supposed to be a group assignment but her partner hasn't said a single word, or at least one that she could understand.
While Mystic felt a bit intimidated by Twilight. Who knew that a filly like her could also be terrifying. And it wasn't that Mystic didn't try to speak, it's just everytime he tries he gets cut off by Twilight groaning in frustration.
"This doesn't make sense! I made the circle that labels the items on the sheet, but it just doesn't activate! What is this?!"
Her shouting made Mystic jump and shiver with fear. Maybe he should just give up, it was clear that Twilight wanted to do this on her own, but since this was assignment was supposed to be done as a team, he had to contribute somehow.
"Um... Twilight."
She let out an annoyed sigh. "Now you decided to talk?" She turned to face Mystic. "So are you ready to help with this assignment now?"
"Y-Yes. And first thing..." He pointed to the inner circle. "You're using the wrong alignments. You've aligned the circle for 3 items. But we have four, and because of that, we will have to place the points in between each rune."
Mystic then redid the inner circle and added the four runes then created a line for each point between the runes. Once he was finished the circle started to give out a faint blue glow, signifying that it was complete.
Twilight looked at the circle, then to Mystic then back to the circle. "How did you know about that?"
Mystic tapped his hoof on his head. "I memorized many of the Alchemy books that Aura, I mean Professor Kaiser gave me."
"That's right, he said that he taught you before Princess Celestia asked him to teach. Wait minute." It was then that Twilight got uncomfortably close to Mystic with starry eyes. "You said that he lent you books right? Can I see them?"
Feeling uncomfortable, Mystic backed up, cleared his throat and hid his blush. "Well they are all in my home back at South Canterlot. And... i..."
Twilight then stared at him with puppy dog eyes, her lips quivering as her pupils dilated.
'Huh. So this is what it's like to be on the receiving end of this trick.'
Mystic eventually gave in and slumped down. "Alright you win. I'll take you to my home so that we can get them."
Twilight squealed and much to Mystic's surprise, hugged him. "Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!"
"Um, Twilight." Her grip startened to tightend around Mystic's neck. "You're... blocking my... air way."
Twilight opened her eyes and quickly released herself from him and saw Mystic taking deep breaths as he held his neck. Her cheeks red with embarrassment and her head lowered. "Sorry about that."
Once Mystic was done refilling his lungs with air he shook it off and gave her a friendly smile. "It's alright. You were excited, I get it." He grabbed his bag and checked the time. "I think I can get my brother to retrieve the books for us. He is about to take his break anyway. And knowing him he was going to head back home because he forgot something, again."
When the school day was over Aura was in his new office planning for the tomorrow's lesson. He had received some praise from the students on how engaging and exciting his class was, even some of the other teachers agreed. So this time he wanted to do an outdoors activity to show off some examples of terraforming, as long as he gets permission from Celestia that is.
Suddenly he heard a knock on the door but continued his work. "It's open!"
The door slowly opened and Celestia walked right in. Realizing who came in, he placed his quill down and gave her his full attention.
"Princess Celestia." He cleared his throat and straightened his jacket. "I didn't expect you to visit. Is something the matter?"
"Oh no, not at all." Celestia giggled as she closed the door behind her. "I just came to ask how your first day as professor was. From what I've heard so far, you've seen to intrigue the students."
"Oh. Well that us true. All I did was try to make it interesting for them. Find something that catches their attention and go on from their."
"On the contrary, I believe it is more due to your nature rather then your methods. You give off this feeling that makes you easy to approach."
Aura blushed and scratchy his mane. "Well my team always say that I'm usually the first they go to if they need to talk." His smile soon fell as he let out a sad sigh. One that Celestia noticed.
"Is something troubling you Aura?"
Aura shook it off and tried to put on a fake smile. "It's nothing. You shouldn't worry about me."
"Aura." Celestia gave him a stern stare. "I know a troubled soul when I see one." She walked over to him and sat down. "Tell me what's on your mind. Who knows, maybe talking about it will help."
Aura sighed and sat down next to her, reverting to his normal human form and placed his hands together. "It's just, I sometimes wonder if I'm even a good leader for my team." He looked at his hands as they glowed a purple energy. "I've made many mistakes with these powers. Mistakes that I wish I could go back to and fix. Even more than that, I feel like I can never amount to the previous leader." The glow on his hands stopped as he clenched them. "I just don't want to let them down."
Celestia hummed then draped a wing over Aura to comfort him. "I know how you feel. The weight of a leader is indeed a heavy one."
Aura curled up and hugged his knees. "You too huh?"
"Well, it was originally me and my sister, until..."
Aura notice that Celestia was about to cry, so he gently patted her back to soothe her. "Hey. You don't have to finish that if it's too painful."
She quickly pulled herself back together and took a deep breath. "Thank you." She wiped her tears away. "Anyway, after that I found myself becoming more overwhelmed. Not only did I have to keep my duties, but I also had to do my sister's. And I won't lie when I say that I made many errors during those 1000 years. But everytime I had to remain strong for my little ponies."
She looked out the window and saw a couple of young foals with their parents. "They look up to me, I give them hope. And if I breakdown in front of them..."
"Then all that hope would be lost and replaced with despair." Aura finished.
The two stayed quiet for a moment.
"You know, it's nice to finally get this off my chest." Aura said. "The only other being I told this to was my second in command, who just so happens to be my student long before I became leader."
Celestia smiled. "Well I am glad to be one of the few."
Aura got up and stretched, loosening his stiff joints. "Well I appreciate you coming to see me. I have to get my lesson plan for tomorrow all planned out, and you don't mind me giving the students an outdoor explanation do you?"
"Not at all. In fact, I think it would be enlightening for them."
"Awesome." Aura grabbed his bag and changed back to his Pony form. "Well night."
"Good night Aura."
An hour after Aura left the building he and Mystic were being lead by a pair of Royal guards to their new living quarters. And from Celestia's request, the two would get a quarters in the castle so that she and Aura could record all knowledge of true Alchemy so that the rest of Equestria can learn.
When the royal guards stopped. "This here will be your living quarters." One of the royal guards opened the door and revealed a spacious chamber built with a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom with two beds and a grand balcony with an amazing view.
"Thank you two very much." Aura bowed and gave the guards a couple bits for their services.
The two entered their new home and placed their luggage by the couch. "This place is big. It was nice of Celestia to let us use this guestroom." Mystic said.
Aura closed the door behind him and locked it before changing back to his human form and letting out a tired sigh. "Well don't forget, the only reason why the Princess gave this to us was so that it be easier to trade information on my Alchemy. Not to mention to keep my real form a secret." Aura walked over to the balcony and looked down at the nobles. "Doubt the high and mighty nobles would like the idea of a human living amongst them."
"Knowing them you might be right." Mystic yawned and rubbed his eyes.
"Feeling tired?" Aura asked as he checked what was in the fridge and pulled out a bottle of spring water.
"Little bit." Mystic admitted. "Twilight had me study with her for our project. And let me tell you, she is more of a bookworm then me, and that's saying something."
Aura chuckled, prompted himself on the couch and put his feet up. "So she's an even bigger egg head then you. Seems like you two would make great friends."
Suddenly Mystic let out a sad sigh and slumped next to him. "But what if she finds out that I don't have any magic powers. All she talks about is how she wants to improve her magic and I could tell that she worked her hardest to get into this school, and if she found out that a magicless colt like me got in so easily..."
Aura lightly tapped the colt's forehead. "Kid, I can smell the smoke from the gears in your head. You are clearly overthinking this."
He emptied the bottle and used his Alchemy to turn the bottle into a sapling. "You can use Alchemy just fine, so that does not make you 'magicless'. If anything, it would make her more interested in you. As long as you are the one who tells her, cause if she finds out on her own then you will be in trouble."
Mystic thought about if for a moment and nodded. "I see. But when would be a good time to tell her?"
"Try a few weeks to build up more trust between the two of you. Then when you are comfortable, tell her your condition. And if she accepts you for who you are, then it's clear that she sees you as a friend."
"And if she doesn't?"
Aura thought long and hard about that and gave Mystic a straight answer. "Then it's clear that she doesn't deserve to be your friend." He said bluntly. "A real friend accepts those around them regardless of their faults. But as long as you show her who you are, you should be okay."
Mystic smiled and pulled out one of the books that Twilight let him borrow. "I see. Thank you for the advice Aura." He let out another yawn. "Well I'm tired. I'm going to hit the hay now so that I can get up early tomorrow for classes. Good night." Mystic walked towards the bedroom and closed the door.
"Yeah, good night."
Aura sighed softly and stared at his hand, making it glow as he looked at it with remorse. "I really need to follow my own advice. Maybe then I wouldn't of..."
He gripped his hand and stopped the glow. "No. That is all behind me now. I swore that I wouldn't let all that get to me anymore. I've changed since those days."
But dispite all that, his head started to get filled with past memories. Memories that he regretted deeply and wished that he could forget.
He let our a growl of frustration and went to the balcony. "Maybe a walk around the castle can clear my mind."
So he jumped off the balcony and landed in the garden, turning into his Pony form and began his walk.
And it turned out to be a good idea. The garden was quite beautiful with the array of flowers and fauna, it was as if a piece of heaven made it's way to the land of the living.
Letting out a content sigh he fell back and landed in the grass, looking up at the stars he felt as if he was the only one in this piece of heaven and started to drift off into sleep.
Aura felt a warm feeling on his face as he tried to get some shut eye. He could swore that he hears a small voice speak his name but his brain craved sleep so he didn't care all that much.
"Mr. Kaiser!"
He turned to his side and let the gentle breeze brush his coat, comforting him even more.
"Mr. Kaiser!"
To Aura, all his troubles melted away. No worries, no pain, just the gentle embrace of nature soothing his soul.
"MR. KAISER!!!"
Aura's eyes shot open as he jolted up and breathed heavily. "What's going on! Are we under attack?!"
He analyzed his surroundings and found that all was peaceful, but beside him was his student Twilight Sparkle with a confused look and a book in her hooves.
"Mr Kaiser. Why are you sleeping in the garden?"
Aura checked and he was indeed still in the garden, he must of dozed off last night during his walk.
He chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "Well I guess I fell asleep while star gazing. But enough about me." He got himself back up and dusted the grass off of him. "What are you doing here so early my dear?"
"Oh, I was just going to do some reading in the nice weather. Your books are very engaging."
"My books?"
Aura checked the book in the filly's hooves and saw that it was indeed one of his books. His guess was that Mystic lent her that book.
"I see. Well to be honest it was just something I threw in together so that Mystic could learn on his own." He yawned and stretched as he shook the drowsiness out of him. "On a unrelated note, what do you think of Mystic so far?"
"Well," Twilight thought about it for a moment so that she could come up with a reasonable answer. "He's a bit different then the rest of the students. I mean, he's quiet, shy and very insecure about himself compair to the other colts, but there is just something about him that makes it easy to talk to him. Normally I don't feel comfortable around anypony else besides my family and the Princess. But for some reason I feel like I can, confide with Mystic about anything, even though we've only met just yesterday. I just don't know how to explain it."
Aura smiled and patted the little filly's head. "Best to not over think things. Doing so will only hurt you." He took a deep breath and smelled the fresh air. "Well I don't want to bore you any longer then I already have. I have a class to prepare and I hope your excited about it."
Twilight smiled brightly. "I'm looking forward to your class Professor. I never knew that there was another form of Alchemy before, so learning something new is always exciting."
That answer made Aura's smile grow bigger. "As a teacher, that makes me happier then anything else in the world. I'll see you in class Twilight. And if you ever have any questions about my books, my doors are always open."
"Thank you Mr. Kaiser."
With that Aura went back inside and Twilight sat down and continued her book on Alchemy.
It had been 2 weeks since Aura and Mystic came to Celestia's school for gifted Unicorns. And things have been going great so far.
Aura has been enjoying his role as a teacher. It gave him a sense of satisfaction and pride that he was able to revitalize Alchemy into these young minds.
And Mystic has been doing great as well. Sure he was still very shy around new ponies, but he felt like he was learning so much since coming to this school. That and his friendship with a certain lilac pony has also been growing. The two were basically two peas in a pod, very serious about their studies and always going above and beyond when it came to their projects.
But Mystic still hasn't told her about his condition. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but it was that the time wasn't right. Each time he tried Twilight told him to focus on the assignment at hoof or he chickened out and said that it was nothing. Especially since Twilight told him just how hard she worked just to be accepted.
Currently, Mystic was banging his head with a book after another failed attempt to tell Twilight the truth about his condition. He had the perfect opportunity to do so when she asked why she never saw him use magic at all, but he was interrupted by his brother swooping in for a visit.
The three spent the entire day just having fun and by the end of it he forgot to explain everything to her.
"You had the perfect chance to tell her Mystic and you blew it." He scolded himself as he hit his head against the book repeatedly. "Now of she finds out on her own she's going to hate me and want nothing to do with me!"
Aura had just walked into the room and saw Mystic beat himself up. "I've heard people say that they should hit the books but I don't think that this is what they mean by that."
His voice made Mystic stop hitting himself and turn to him. "Aura. They let you go early?"
The God threw his bag to the chair and then turned himself back to his human form. "Yeah. Celestia and I finished yet another Chapter in the revised Alchemy book that Starswirl failed to finish. Plus I still have to come up with some lessons for next week." He gave Mystic a smile and rubbed his head. "Not that it would be a challenge for you little buddy."
But the touching moment faded when Aura looked at the young colt with a serious face. "Now, why don't you tell me why you were assaulting yourself with a book. And be honest."
Mystic sighed and sat down next to him. "I've been trying to tell Twilight about my lack of magic for two weeks now. And each time I either chicken out or something interrupts us. I'm at my whits end here."
"I see." Aura hummed and leaned back. 'Not that I'm in any condition to give advice about this since I'm keeping my identity hidden from him.'
"Tell you what." He got up and adjusted his glasses back up. "Why don't you come with me tomorrow for my private lessons with Twilight."
Mystic tilted his head. "Twilight takes private lessons with you?"
"I think you underestimate just how serious that filly is with her studies." Aura laughed. "It seems that she take private lessons with every teacher she has. Not that I'd blame her since she's Celestia's protege, something like that can definitely put a lot of pressure on anyone."
Mystic nodded. "Yeah, she told me that she wants to live up to the expectations that Celestia gave her. But back to the topic on hoof, how would coming to your private lesson help me tell Twilight the truth?"
"Simple." Aura walked up to the kitchen and prepared some lunch for the two of them. "I will make sure that you tell her about your lack of magic by making sure that nothing interrupts you, and by stopping you from whimping out."
Mystic thought about it for a moment and admitted that it was a good idea. He always felt braver when Aura is by his side. "Okay, I'll do it."
"Awesome." He threw Mystic a sandwich. "Now eat up, can't learn if you're on an empty stomach."
He went to make himself one but looked at the fridge and saw that it was all stuff that was inedible to him.
"Ah shit." Aura cursed.
"Out of meat again Aura?" Mystic asked as he took a bite from his sunflower sandwich.
"Seems like it." Aura turned into his pony form and wrote down a list. "But this does give me an excuse to go grocery shopping. You need anything when I'm out?"
Mystic shook his head. "I'm good, but thanks for asking."
"Right." Aura wrapped his wings and hid them in his jacket. "I shouldn't be gone long. Think you can hold down the fort till I get back?"
Mystic swallowed the rest of his lunch then gave Aura a salute. "You can count on me sir."
Aura just chuckled and grabbed his wallet. "That's great to know. I'll be back before you even know it.
Meanwhile, Twilight was taking a stroll through the castle gardens with a lot on her mind. For some reason her mind has been on Mystic as of lately.
'He had been acting more nervous then usual. Something was clearly up with him, but what?'
Suddenly she heard the sound of voices coming from the east and went to check it out. There she saw one of the most hated ponies in Equestria, Gallant Knight the current Captain of the Royal Guard.
From what her brother has told her, Gallant Knight is a ruthless and coldhearted pony who doesn't care for anypony. But his loyalty to the Princess is true and shown with his exceptional skills. But lately he has been more heated then normal, especially after he lost his position as the head of the Knight family to his niece Sagitta.
"So, my pathetic son is now a student of her majesty's school?" Gallant growled through his teeth as he asked.
His voice gave Twilight the chills. It was as if his own voice could spew venom and drive fear into the hearts of many.
"Yes Captain. And so far, he had been doing great. He takes his studies seriously and I would say that he's on par with the Princess's personal student."
"You're saying that Mystic is keeping up with Shining Armor's sister?" Gallant asked in disbelief.
'Wait, Mystic? Gallant is Mystic's father?' This shocked Twilight but then again it did seem obvious since Mystic's family name is 'Knight'. 'I guess that completely slipped my mind. But poor Mystic. To have a father like that, I can't even think to imagine just what kind of pain he went through. It's no wonder he's so insecure.'
"And another thing sir. Aura Kaiser has also been added as a teacher."
"What?!" Gallant's voice echoed through the garden. "That nobody who humiliated me is teaching?!" Gallant's teeth started to grind as he remembered the defeat he suffered at the hands of Aura. "So that means that mutant who taught my failure of a son is here?"
"Affirmative sir."
Gallant's wings gave off a metallic shine as his temper rose. "Take me to him."
The guard nodded and lead Gallant to where Aura and Mystic was staying.
Twilight hid behind a tree and started to breath rapidly. "He's coming after Mystic and Professor Kaiser." Her knees were still shaking, but she still had enough courage to do something. "I need to warn them."
With her goal in mind, Twilight ran as fast as she could.
In the heart of Canterlot, Aura had just came out with several bags tied to his saddle. "Well that was easier then I expected. Didn't think that a store run by herbivore would have meat. Then again they must get other species now and then. Eh, I'm not complaining, I got what I needed." Aura shrugged and started to make his way home, when he felt something small run into him and fall over.
"~Ooooowww~"
The God looked down and saw that the pony that ran into him was none other then his student Twilight Sparkle.
"Hey, are you okay Twilight?" He asked as he held out a hoof to the young filly.
Twilight slowly opened her eyes to see a hoof in front of her. She took it and felt somepony pick her back up and once her vision returned she was that the hoof belonged to Aura.
"Professor Kaiser!" She grabbed his hoof and panicked. "Mystic! Father! Trouble!"
"Hey hey hey now, easy there." Aura kneeled down and calmed her down. "You look exhausted. Did something happen?"
Once Twilight regained her breath she steadied her mind and started over. "You and Mystic are in trouble! Mystic's father Gallant Knight is looking for you two, and from the sound of his voice, he isn't happy."
"Gallant huh?" Just that name alone made Aura's blood boil. So he came back from his post early. And here he was hoping that sorry excuse for a pegasus became some dragon's lunch. "Where did you see him?"
Twilight pointed to the castle. "In the gardens where I like to spend my time reading." She started to tug on Aura's forearm again. "Where do you and Mystic live? We might be able to reach him before he..."
As Twilight was talking, Aura's head went bland as he imagined Gallant torturing his own son. "He's probably already there." He lifted Twilight onto his back and went into an alleyway where he wouldn't be seen. "Promise to keep this a secret?"
Before she could even ask why Aura removed his jacket and undid the bandages on his back, revealing his now flared wings.
And shocking Twilight in the process. "Y-Y-You're an Alic..."
Aura had to quickly cover her mouth before she could finish that sentence. "I'll explain on the way. For now hold on tight."
Twilight shook off the shock and nodded, gripping onto Aura's mane as he crouched down and jumped, then in a sonic boom, flew as fast as he could to the castle.
Back in Aura and Mystic's home, the colt was reading one of his Alchemy books on a hammock. It was nice for him to have the house to himself, means more peace and quiet. All that was missing was drink by his side and it would be perfect.
And thinking exactly that, he placed a book mark in the book then jumped off the hammock to go to the fridge and pull out a soda can that he opened with his horn.
"At least this thing is good for more then to just cast magic." He went to go back to the hammock but stopped when he heard the door open.
"Oh, you're back already?" Mystic said thinking that it was Aura who opened the door. "I'm guessing that they had everything that you were looking for. On that topic, what are you going to make for... dinner."
When Mystic turned around he saw his father with a scowl on his face. "Hello Mystic. It's been a while."
Fear overwhelmed Mystic as he dropped his drink and scurried to hide.
Back with Aura and Twilight, the two had just arrived at the castle and since Aura wasn't used to flying with wings he had to land and run the rest of the way there.
"I guess I should explain it all to you." Aura started as he dashed through the hallway. "When I met Mystic I found him being sold by Gallant to a couple of Dragons to be used as a slave."
"That's awful. Why would he do that?" Twilight gasped, she felt even more sorry for Mystic now.
"Give me a moment. As I was saying, I followed the dragons and discovered their hideout where I gave them a good thrashing then freed Mystic and the other slaves they held prisoner." Aura made a sharp turn towards the stairs and continued his sprint. "I promised to take Mystic home and when we arrived there I met his father and he told me his reason." His teeth clenched and his eyes glowed as he remembered just what he said. "And the reason was to just wanted to get rid of him. So after that I fought Gallant and gave him a dose of humility."
"Wait, you fought Gallant Knight, the Captain of the Royal Guard, the being who was said to of bested an army of Griffons single handedly, and won?"
"The very same one. And man did it felt good to pound his face into the dirt. I mean Mystic is his own son! Yet he still treated him like crap!"
"But Mystic is a Knight, and as I recall the Knights are one of the most powerful families to ever serve the Princess since her rule. Why would he want to get rid of him?"
He knew that it would be wrong to say it, but at this point it didn't matter, she had to know. "It's because Mystic was born without magic."
Twilight's eyes grew wide and she didn't say a word when she heard that. Mystic doesn't have any magic, suddenly it all made sense to her. All this time he was trying to tell her that.
"I know how hard you worked to get in that school and before you get mad and say that you don't want to be Mystic's partner anymore..."
"I don't care about all that."
Tears formed in Twilight's eyes and she gripped Aura's mane tighter. "I don't care if he doesn't have magic. I've seen him work, I've seen him study. Despite his condition, he still works himself to the bone. If anything, he works harder then me, and his work paid off."
Her words made Aura smile. "That's great to know." He stopped in front of the door to his and Mystic's residence. "You can tell him that after I pound Gallant into mush."
He placed Twilight down and changed back to his normal human form, again, suprising Twilight. But now wasn't the time to ask questions, now was the time for action.
Aura grabbed the handle and opened the door and found the place a wreck. Metal feathers were scattered around the place and there were slash marks on the walls and floor.
"MYSTIC!" Aura and Twilight ran in and went into the other room where they found Gallant holding Mystic up by the throat, covered in cuts and bruises and his green coat stained with blood.
Twilight gasped and covered her mouth at the sight of her friend in such a state, while Aura was seething through the teeth and gripped the handle of his sword and pointed it at Gallant.
"GET YOUR HOOVES OFF OF HIM!!!"
Gallant turned and glared at Aura. "About time you came. I was starting to get bored with my magicless son."
Mystic slowly opened his eyes and tried to reach out to his mentor. "A-Aura."
"I'd thought I told you to keep quiet you pathetic runt!" Gallant slammed his hoof into Mystic's stomach causing the colt to cough and desperately gasping for air.
Aura roared and lunged at Gallant who blocked him with his metal wings. "The moment you came you destroyed everything I built up. I lost my title, my respect, and you brainwashed my sons with your fancy words."
Gallant swatted Aura away and flared his wings as they turned into metal. "Mystic is my property and I will do as I see fit! Since he has no magic he is better off dead then to bring shame upon the Knight family name..."
"Cut the crap you fucking Jackass!" Aura yelled as his anger grew.
This guy had just drawn the line. Screw his morals, screw his code, now all that Aura wanted to do was to make Gallant suffer.
"Mystic is not your property! He is a living being! Not your personal object, your not fit to be a father, captain or anything!" Aura's eyes started to glow and cracks started to form around the space around them.
"Is this supposed to be some of your 'Alchemy' spells. Well I've prepared for that and..."
Gallant was then punched straight in the jaw before he could finish, making him drop Mystic but he fell into a portal and landed into Aura's arms.
Gallant held his snout and look to see blood on his hoof, his own blood. "How dare you. I will have your head!"
Gallant rushed at Aura only for him to wave his arm and create a portal in front of Gallant then one into the living room floor where Gallant crashed face first into it.
The look on Aura's face was one of pure rage. He wasn't holding back now and he definitely didn't care about his secret being blown. He was going to make Gallant wish he never laid a hoof on Mystic.
Gallant got back up and snarled at Aura. "Is this another one of your... mmfff." Gallant couldn't even speak since Aura grabbed him by the mouth and then clenched his fist.
"This is what I'm really capable of you swine." His voice was both calm yet aggressive at the same time. He then hurled his fist at Gallant causing him to crash into the wall. "I am far more then just an Alchemist. I am so much bigger then anything you will ever be."
"Bigger than me?" Gallant started to laugh and fire some metal feathers at Aura only for him to catch them in his hand. "I am Gallant Knight! Captain of the Royal Guard! Member of the pristine Knight family! And I won't have some magic monkey make a fool out of me!"
Gallant growled and flew at Aura again only for Aura to sidestep, grab him by his wing and slam him into the ground. "You have just angered a being who can end you with just a thought. Yet you still talk as if you are better."
Aura pressed his foot down on one of Gallant's wings and pressed down on it. "You use intimidation as a tactic to hide your own weakness. And you've used it so much that you think that you are invincible."
He pressed harder and a snap was heard but Gallant didn't scream, just winced. "You've let all that get to your head. Made you a tyrant to your guards and family, but mostly Mystic. Just what has he ever done to you that made you resent him so?"
Gallant hissed and grabbed Aura's leg. "You want to know so badly?" He turned to Mystic with malice. "That colt is the reason for my wife's death. When he was born she lost her life, and he turned out to be nothing but a disappoint."
"So you hate him because of." If Aura's anger wasn't at it's peak, it certainly was now. So he kicked Gallant so hard that he crashed through the window and into the river.
Gallant tried to get up but Aura appeared instantly and picked Gallant up by the throat. "Your wife gave her life to bring Mystic into this world. She would of wanted him to live!"
He then threw Gallant to the ground as hard as he could then stabbed the ground next to his face. "If I ever see you again I won't hesitate to hunt you down to end your life. And make no mistake, it doesn't matter where you are or where you hide." He got real close to Gallant's face. "I will find you, and I will end you."
He stepped back and sheathed his blade. "Now get out of my sight."
Gallant snarled and stood up, his legs wobbling but his gaze filled with hate. "And you think the Princess would allow her Captain leave like that?"
"As a matter of fact, yes."
Gallant turned around to see Celestia behind him with an angry face. "Gallant Knight. You have abused your position and hurt many around you. You are no longer Captain of the Royal Guard."
Aura went up and Gallant's shocked face. "As I said, get out of my sight."
The former Captain hissed and hobbled his way to who knows where. And from the balcony, Mystic and Twilight had their mouths agape at what they saw. Aura turned to them and sighed. "I'll explain everything tomorrow, I swear."
The next day Aura decided to hold his private lesson right by the cliffside since it was the most secluded. So that meant that no one would overhear or walk in on the bombshell that he was about to drop.
"Okay Aura. You said you wanted to get something off of your chest?" Mystic asked as he sat down.
Twilight gulped at how close Aura was to the edge of the cliff. "Well whatever it is, I'd feel a lot better if you didn't stand so close the the edge."
Aura was silent and took a deep breath. "Tell me, do you believe in other Universes?" He turned to the edge of the cliff and watched the sun go down.
Both Mystic and Twilight looked at each other. "I mean, I won't lie when I say that there is a possibility of multiple universes. The cosmos is endless after all." Mystic said first.
"I don't mean the cosmos Mystic." Aura said bluntly. "What I'm asking is bigger then that. When I said universes, I mean different dimensions."
Mystic put his hoof to his chin and thought about it for a bit. "I mean, the idea that any thought could be an actual universe doesn't sound farfetched when you think about it. But why do you ask?"
"Because," Aura's body started to glow as he opened a portal, revealing the infinite realm that holds the Multiverse. "This area is but one of many, each star is actually it's own separate dimension filled with it's own universes and timelines. And it is my duty to keep them safe."
Mystic's eyes widened as he saw the realm that Aura opened up. "W-what are you saying?"
"Isn't it obvious." Aura then reached into the portal and pulled out a dimension that was drifting away. He cupped it in his hands as if it was a fragile object then placed it back where it belonged. "Mystic, Twilight. I am a God."
Mystic's eyes were as big as saucers at this revelation, but Twilight Sparkle on the other hand.
"Oh, I already knew that." Twilight said bluntly.
"Huh?" The God had his jaw dropped by how calm Twilight was being. While Mystic was still taking it all in, the two of them turned to her.
"Wait, you knew Twilight?" Mystic asked. "How?"
Twilight pulled out a book titled 'Dimensions and those who defend them.' "This book talks about the multiverse and the being who defends its balance. The God of Space Aura Kaiser." She opened the book to a page that had an illustration of Aura creating a leyline to another dimension. "I instantly figured it out when we first met."
Mystic turned to Aura who had his head down. "Aura, is this true?"
The God sighed and faced Mystic. "It's true little buddy." He got up and walked to the edge of the cliff, then stepped off it but instead of falling it looked liked he was walking on air.
"I'm sorry for keeping this a secret from you for months kid." He turned to the two foals, looking majestic with the setting sun behind him. "I am Aura Kaiser, The God of Space, architect of the multiverse."
He returned to the colt and kneeled to his level. "I wanted to tell you for so long, but due to rules I am not allowed to do so."
Mystic's eyes were hidden and he had a blank look on his face. "That, that is... AWESOME!!!" His eyes sparkled like stars. "So you really are a God?!"
Aura was taken back but he smiled all the same. "Yes. And one with a huge responsibility."
"Do you have any stories of your adventures?"
Aura sat down and nodded. "Of course. Would you like to hear them?"
3 months have passed since Aura told Mystic and Twilight about his true identity, and things haven't changed between them. Well, except that Twilight asked to learn more about Alchemy from Aura the same way he taught Mystic.
Which wasn't much a problem since she was already a part of his class so she picked it up very easily. No doubt to her natural talent in all things magic.
As for certain events that occured over the last 3 months; well Gallant wasn't a problem anymore. Seems like his old dragon buyers had a few things to say about Mystic escaping and they took it all out on him, nothing was left but a scorched mark, or so they say, but with the evidence provided and the fact that Gallant hasn't returned, it was safe to say that he did bit the dust. So to say that everyone was grateful that he was gone was an understatement, but this did leave the Royal Guard without a captain. Fortunately the Vice Captain Silver Lining, a friend to the Knights and mentor to Gladius, took the responsibility until the Captain's Test a few years from now.
But that's enough catching up. Back to the story!
Currently, Aura was in a middle of a lecture about something new, how to create Elemental Alchemy.
"Now when it comes to Elemental Alchemy there are 3 key things that you must know before casting one: the symbol of said element, a basic understanding of what the element is made of, and the ability to control the output of the spell." Aura lifted his chalk with his magic and wrote down on the chalkboard. "We will start with primary elements."
Aura wrote down four sets of triangles. Two upside down and two right side up, then he added a different shape inside each triangle: an arrow, a diamond, a four pointed star, and a pair of curved lines. "The two upright triangles represent a lighter density with the one with the arrow being 'Wind' and the one with the star being 'Fire'. While the upside down ones represent those with a heavier density, with the diamond being 'Earth' and the waves being 'Water'. Any questions?"
A single hoof appeared in the room. "But we saw you use ice and lightning before. What about those?"
"Ah, that is the result of merging two elements into one." He wrote a hexagon on the board with four electric symbols in the center. "By combining Wind and Fire, you get Lightning; but we won't get to those until way later in the semester as they are quite advanced, best to first get used to the basic four."
He placed the chalk down and opened his book. "We'll first start with Wind, which is normally caused by..."
Without warning Aura started to feel a stinging pain in his head, causing him to wince and nearly lose his balance.
"Are you okay Professor?"
Aura slowed his breathing and felt the migraine fade away. "I'm... fine." He walked back to his chair and sat down. "Just a little dizzy spell is all. Anyways," He quickly changed the subject and turned the pages to a particular chapter. "Your weekly assessment is to practice one of the four elements as well as use it's symbol in a circle; which we will learn how to do now."
As Aura was explaining that, Mystic and Twilight looked at each other, concerned for their teacher.
After class was over and all the students left to go to their next class, Aura leaned into his chair and started to get lost in thought.
'That was the third time this week that I had a dizzy spell. Normally these things are the result of a disturbance in the fabric of space, but if that were the case I've would of gotten an alert; not to mention Luco and the others would of informed me if there was a new distortion in a dimension. What if...' He quickly shook all those thoughts out of his head. 'Get those thoughts out of your head Kaiser! Everything is fine. The Multiverse is safe, and your worring over nothing.'
Yet try and try as he might, he just couldn't get this uneasy feeling that something was extremely off. Heck, it started to frustrate him so much that he groaned and ruffle his mane in a fit. "This is going to make me lose my mind!"
He banged his head on the table and stayed in that same position. "I'm just over thinking it." He sighed and looked out the window and gazed at the sky. "I'll just ask Luco to run a quick sweep when I get back. That should calm my nerves... hopefully."
Once he got up he went over to the lounge to clear his head before his next class starts.
Meanwhile Mystic and Twilight were in their next class, but from their faces they seemed to be thinking about other things.
"You saw the way his eyes flashed for a moment right?" Twilight asked concernly.
"Hard not to." Mystic answered. "I've known him for nearly a quarter of a year and I've never seen him like this."
"So it's safe to say that you don't know what's wrong with him either." Twilight sighed, bringing her hoof to her chin. "Maybe its something to do with him being a God."
Mystic shrugged. "Who knows? But I have noticed one thing."
This immediately caught Twilight's attention and she moved her head closer to Mystic's. "Well, what is it?"
"Well, recently he's been having a harder time sleeping. Something about having the same nightmare over and over and he doesn't know what it means." Mystic explained, recalling the nights he saw Aura all drenched in sweat and a mixture of fear and anger plastered on his face.
Twilight hummed as she tried to come up with an answer with all the information she had received. "Suffering from constant nightmares, sudden dizzy spells, yet he still has energy and shows no signs of sleep deprivation." The gears started to turn in her head as she desperately tried to find something within all this information. But to no avail.
"There you go overthinking again." Mystic chuckled and patted Twilight's back. "Best to find more clues and come up with a more accurate answer later."
As much as it pained her, he had a point. "You're right." She reluctantly sighed. "If we just assume with what little information we have we'll never figure out what's wrong."
"Exactly. Luckily for me that I live with him so in case he does have trouble sleeping, I'll be there to see what other clues I could find then we can deduct the problem." Mystic explained.
Though to be honest, even he wasn't sure if he'll find anything that could help. Not only cause Aura has a tendency to sleep in high places, but also because he always keeps his door locked right as he is about to go to sleep. Normally something like that would be simple, if he were a normal Unicorn.
"Well, try to discover something tonight cause I'm starting to get a bad feeling about it." Twilight admitted.
"You and me both." Mystic said.
The bell rung and it was now the end of class for the day. Mystic and Aura returned to their rooms in the castle while Twilight went over to the library.
Aura morphed back into his human form and threw himself face first onto the couch. It seems like all his lack of energy was now reaching him.
"Sorry Mystic, but we'll have to cancel today's private lesson. I hate to do it but I..."
"Its okay Aura." Mystic poured Aura a cup of tea and placed it next to him. "Take all the time you need to recover."
He sat down next to Aura and figited. "Soooooo if you don't mind me asking; what happened this morning in class? You never faint like that."
Mystic could only hear his mentor's faint sigh as he turned onto his back. "Honestly, I have no idea either. Maybe I just got up too fast and felt a blood rush or something."
All Mystic could do was nod. The room became quiet and awkward for a solid minute.
"How's that new book on Alchemy that you and Princess Celestia are working on?" Mystic asked, trying to break the silence.
That gave Aura the second wind that he needed. "Great actually. In fact, we've actually got so much that we've decided to split them into two volumes." He snapped his fingers and a portal opened up, reaching his hand in and pulled out the notes that he and Celestia written down. "Once we get it finalized, we're going to get them published and handed out to every library in Equestria. Isn't that great?"
Seeing Aura smile made Mystic feel a lot better. "That is great. Your work will be known across Equestria."
Aura chuckled sheepishly and returned the notes through the portal. "Well it was originally Starswirl who came up with this form of Alchemy here. I'm just finishing his research."
He leaned back into the couch and stared at the ceiling. "I've been meaning to ask you: are you adjusted to school life now?"
Mystic nodded and grinned. "A little bit. Things have been easier with somepony like Twilight. I guess it's because we have much in common."
"Oh?" Aura sat back up and gave Mystic a teasing grin. "Is that so? Are you saying that she's your type?"
Upon seeing his grin Mystic's face went red. "Aura! That's not what I mean and you know it!" He responded with a flustered expression.
"I'm just messing with you." Aura laughed. "I do know what you're saying. She's as much as a bookworm as you, and not to mention that you're both sponges when it comes to learning."
Aura reluctantly got off the couch and made his way to the bathroom. "I'm going to go take a quick shower. Once I'm done it's all yours."
"Got it."
Mystic watched as Aura grabbed a spare set of clothes and went into the bathroom. Once the sound of running water reached Mystic's ears he quickly went into Aura's room.
Once he was at the door he began to feel nervous. Should he really be doing this? Invading his mentor's own private chambers. This was very very very wrong.
But... on the other hoof this is to help him. So maybe its okay... probably... sort of...? No, but whatever helps him get through this.
He grabbed the knob and turned it ever so slowly, opening the door and walked in. Aura's room was different then his own, since he was much taller he needed certain things to match his size; as if Mystic didn't feel small before, now he literally feels small now.
But there was things that he hadn't seen before. Such as some weird devices that Aura usually had on him, like that glowing slab or that bizarre brick that he talks into. There were some technological items as well, and while technology isn't too uncommon to be seen, it was a luxury that only certain individuals have since they are hard to understand and therefore, make.
His family, was one of those individuals and even he had trouble trying to understand them.
But now wasn't the time to be thinking about that. He had a mission and he was determined to get it done. He searched the room for a good location to place a new alchemic spell that he had just learned and eventually found a spot right on the dresser which happens to be next to Aura's hammock.
Not wanting to waste anymore time, Mystic drew a small alchemic circle and pressed his hoof on it to activate it. The circle glowed purple and seemingly vanished. Mystic then left the room and created a new circle on a sheet of paper and activated it as well; the circle swirled and the inner parts showed the part if Aura's room right where Mystic left the previous circle. As he turned the paper the view changed as well giving him a 360°degree view of the spot.
And it was right on time as Aura had just exited the shower feeling refreshed and energized again. "By the Creator, I really needed that." He sighed in bliss as he walked out in his lounge where and dried his hair. "Shower's all yours little buddy. I think I'm going to lie down in my chambers for a bit." He stretched and entered his room, locking the door in the process.
Mystic gulped and quickly checked the paper and turned it to see that it was working. Aura was in view as he had just hopped onto his hammock and let it sway from side to side.
Judging from the slight sounds coming from the paper, it was evident that the spell worked. Now all Mystic had to do was wait.
*11:30 PM*
The two had called it a night and went for some nice needed shut eye. Once Mystic entered his room he quickly grabbed the paper and activated it, seeing the inside of Aura's room. "I'm sorry Aura, but I need to know what's happening to you."
He watched the paper for hours, paying close attention for any sign of disturbance but it was starting to get difficult as he felt his own eyes grow heavy with drowsiness threatening to take him.
"This isn't going exactly as I thought it would." He yawned and slowly blinked his eyes.
But just as he felt like he was about to pass out, Aura started to mumble and turn. Mystic caught his second wind and pressed the paper to his face. "Finally."
Aura began to toss and turn in discomfort as he gripped the hammock. "No... It can't be... I shouldn't of..." Sweat started to form on his forehead as he muttered more.
To Mystic, it was clear that Aura was having a nightmare again, just like he told Twilight, but what he really needed to know was what the nightmare was.
His attention returned to Aura as he started to form tears in his eyes and his face showed signs that he was in pain. "I'm sorry... I failed you... I failed you all..."
"Failed? Did something happen to him before we met?" Mystic wondered as he tried to connect the pieces together when he saw a slight glow from the corner of his eye. When he checked he saw Aura begin to glow a light purple as he squirmed in pain.
"Aura!" Mystic bolted out his room and ran towards his mentor's. He tried to open it but remembered that it was locked, but this was an emergency so he had to take drastic measures. "I hate to do this but I got no choice." Mystic concentrated and held out his hoof, a alchemic magic circle appearing and with a thought, a blast of natural magic burst the door down.
With nothing in his way, Mystic ran over to his mentor and shook his side. "Wake up Aura! You're having a nightmare!"
Aura's eyes shot open and he jolted up, breathing heavily and drenched in sweat. He looked down at his hands and slowly turned to the small Unicorn colt that was at the edge of his hammock.
"Mystic?" He suddenly turned to the dresser and hummed. "So you placed the surveillance circle on my dresser."
Mystic gulped and sheepishly scratched his mane. "Well, me and Twilight were worried about you after classes and..." He sighed and looked directly into Aura's eyes. "Aura... what was that nightmare really about?"
Aura sighed and planted his hand on his forehead. "So that was what this was about?" He stood up and turned on the lights. "Fine, I'll tell you. In the morning."
He crouched down to Mystic's level. "Its way past midnight and I'd rather tell you after a night's rest. So off to bed kid, and get some sleep!"
Mystic nodded and exited the door. Aura clapped his hands and placed them on the remains of the door and repaired it. "Though, I do have to thank you for releasing me from that nightmare... whatever it was about." He laid back on his hammock and closed his eyes. "Hope it's not a premonition or something."
The next morning the two stayed quiet as they were having breakfast. Mystic looked like he really wanted to say something, but he just couldn't think of the correct words. Aura on the other hand knew that he could keep it a secret forever. But so soon? Well if Mystic knew about Aura bring a God then he might as well tell him the rest. But first...
"So, you used the surveillance circle to spy on me, then you blasted my door down while you were doing said spying."
Mystic gulped and shrunk down as he expected Aura to scold him, but...
"Not bad kid." Aura gave him a wide smile and patted his mane.
Mystic's jaw dropped as he tried to process this. "Y-You aren't mad?"
"Mad?" Aura chuckled as he took a bite out of his toast. "Why would I? You learned that surveillance circle like, two weeks ago and now you crafted a perfect one last night. Not to mention that you've clearly got the hang of converting natural Magic into your own to use attack alchemy. If anything, I'm proud."
Mystic began to blush. "Gee, that's a... wow." He looked at Aura with gleaming eyes. "You really think I've improved that much?"
"Well, yeah! It took me over a year to get used to attack alchemy properly and you basically mastered it in 4 months. You're a real prodigy you know that?"
This kind of praise was something that Mystic wasn't used to. Normally with his father it was always some kind of scolding for not being better or taking too long. And even when Aura first trained him and started complimenting him, he still wasn't used to it.
"But I think we should get to the chase now." Aura spoke in a serious tone. "You want to know what those nightmares I've been having were about yeah?"
Mystic nodded and leaned in closer to Aura, waiting with baited breath for just what he was about to say.
Aura leaned into his chair and shrugged. "To be honest I don't have a clue myself."
Mystic lost his footing and face planted onto the table at that response.
"Wait, you've been having these nightmares for weeks and you don't even know what they mean!?" He asked in disbelief.
"Yep." Aura took a sip of his coffee as he answered. "But it is linked to one thing; my role as a leader."
Mystic tilted his head. "As a... leader? You mean of a town or something?"
"No not like that, more of a team." He planted his cup down and crossed his arms. "You see, while I am the God of Space the Miltiverse is always expanding, so much so that it is too much for even me to keep track of. And there is the occasion where some big shot wanting power tries something funny that'll disrupt the fabric of reality so a particular team was crafted to keep the balance; The Dimensional Guardians."
"The Dimensional... Guardians?" Mystic was still trying to wrap his head around this. What did this have to do with the nightmares?
"Yep. My lovable team of misfits. They may drive me crazy but I can always count on them. But back to topic, I'm not the original leader, more like the 2nd."
Mystic blinked. "2nd? Then who was the first?
Aura placed his hands on the table and sighed. "That would be my mentor. And he was basically the very definition of what a leader should be."
Now it all started to make sense to Mystic. Those nightmares, the screaming that it was all his fault in his sleep. They were all his insecurities about living up to his mentor's lineage.
"Sometimes I wonder why he made me the leader. I mean, I've messed up more times then I can count, still do. It doesn't even help that the other Gods back in the Sacred Realm just glare at me." Aura chuckled as he recalled the judging stares that they gave him. "Not that I blame them of course. After all I am very much different from them."
This was a side to Aura that Mystic would of never believed. He always thought Aura was so cool and confident, having no problems and no fear. But despite him being a God, he was much more Mortal then he thought.
"Even now I still wonder if I'm doing a good job. More threats seem to be rising by the day and whenever it seems like me and my team take them down, something else just comes to take its place." He downed the rest of his coffee and slammed the cup to the table then fully leaned back to the chair. "And now these dreams of me failing are driving me crazy. Maybe I should just pass the title to someone else and..."
"Don't you dare!"
Mystic screamed as he slammed his hooves to the table. Aura looked at the small colt's eyes to see that he was mad yet concerned. "You aren't a failure! You are brave and kind and just so... amazing!"
Aura tried to say something but Mystic kept cutting him off. "Before you came into my life I was completely miserable. Forced to be a soldier and always called worthless, so much that my own father sold me to be a slave. It was like despair was going to swallow me whole." Mystic stared into Aura's eyes as he continued. "But then you came in and gave me hope. You saved me and defeated my father, taught me that even I had talent, and now I'm in the most pristine school in Equestria! Me, a magicless colt who can't even light his horn! Do you know how much you gave me?! If it wasn't for you I wouldn't be here! So let me tell you that you aren't a failure! Those Gods that say otherwise don't know a thing about you! And that is a fact!"
Mystic began to breath heavily once he finished his speech. His voice was all sore from yelling and his eyes felt puffy.
Aura was taken back by his words. To think that someone his age would he the one to give him something like that. Either the little colt he found had just grown up, or he was speaking from his own experience. Regardless, Aura went over to Mystic and patted the colt's back and gave him a smile. "Thanks Mystic. I really needed that."
A ringing hit Aura's ear as he answered it. "Talk to me."
Aura's eyes slowly went wide as he was briefed. "This is some kind of joke, right? Are you absolutely sure?"
Mystic backed up. He never saw Aura this scared before, just what was it that he heard.
"I want you to round up the others and intercept where they are coming from. If anymore enter then it could mean the end. I'll be there soon. And by some chance it does lead to... you know... then evacuate as much as you can. Let's hope it doesn't come to that. Aura out." With that Aura hung up and snapped his fingers, creating a portal. But before he left he turned to Mystic and kneeled to him.
"Something came up and I have to go. This might be the most dangerous mission I'll ever have and there might be a chance that I won't come back."
Mystic gasped and felt his legs get weak. "You might... not come back?"
"Don't worry." Aura patted Mystic's head and smiled. "Thanks to you I finally feel unchained from my insecurities. Who would of thought that a child would help me see it. I promise that I'll come back and when I do, I'll tell you all there is to know about my team and even more about Alchemy."
Tears started to form around Mystic's eyes. "You promise?"
Aura nodded and in that moment Mystic lunged at Aura and hugged him tightly, to which he responded by returning the hug and patting the colt's mane.
Once the two separated Aura summoned his sword and walked through the portal, not knowing if this'll be his last fight, but he was damn sure that he would be victorious. And with a single step he fully entered and the portal closed.
"Come home soon Aura." Mystic said softly. He then went to Celestia to tell her Aura's situation, then to Twilight and the rest of his family. They too were his family.
However what Aura didn't know was that this mission would change his life forever.
It had been several days since the incident and Aura had to leave for that 'emergency', and things hadn't been the same since he left.
Many of the students just weren't as engaged with the substitute teacher taking care of Aura's class, as usually Aura makes it like a show, keeping the student's attention and eager to learn. And it was safe to say that they missed that.
The dorm where both he and Mystic stayed in seemed quiet and barren. Mystic kept the place clean for when his mentor does return, but he has been getting some negative thoughts as of late.
He was actually starting to wonder if maybe something went wrong and he's in trouble, or worst: he was done with him and abandoned him.
Feeling down, he took out one of Aura's books and began to browse through the pages. When he found a page that seemed interesting, he would write down some notes to try later.
A knock at the door startled him and brought him back to reality.
When he opened the door he saw Twilight with a half smile. "Hey Mystic. How are you doing?"
Suddenly the two were interrupted by a loud bang outside. "What was that?!" Twilight cried out in surprise.
Both her and Mystic went over to the window to see a trail of smoke lead out of town. Mystic inspected the smoke and noticed something off; it was more saturated then normal. Something didn't feel right.
"I have a bad feeling about this." Mystic bolted out of the dorm as fast as he could.
"Where are you going?! Mystic!" Twilight called out to him then ran after him.
By the time both of them got there the sun started to set, there they saw the damage done by whatever fell from the sky. Many trees were blasted from the ground and there were some scorched marks on the ground. Then they found the impact crater and peaked into it, and what they saw made their hearts drop.
It was Aura, beaten, bruised, and severely bleeding.
"AURA!!!" Both Mystic and Twilight cried as they ran over to him.
"Are you okay?! Its me, Mystic!" He tried to wake his mentor but there wasn't a response. When he stopped shaking him he looked at his hooves to see that they were covered in Aura's blood.
Mystic still couldn't believe his eyes, Aura, one of the most powerful beings that he knew, the very same being that saved his life and gave it meaning, was in a state like this.
He snapped back to reality and tried to get him on his back. "Twi, help me carry him." Mystic grunted as he struggled to pick him up.
Still shaken, Twilight nodded and used her magic to gently lift Aura onto both her and Mystic's back. But due to Aura's weight, the hike back up to Canterlot was easier said then done.
She then grabbed his arm but felt his weight lean in onto her. "Hey Mystic, think you can grab Aura's left arm?" But all she heard was silence. "Mystic?"
When she turned to the colt all she could see was his eyes, which were now as big as saucers and he looked like he was trying to hold back the urge to scream.
"H-H-His arm..." His voice was too shaky from dread and despair, hoping that this is all just a nightmare. But it wasn't. This was real. "It's gone."
He couldn't look away from it. His entire left arm was gone, replaced by a bloodied stump that went up to his shoulder, which was torn and ripped.
"Oh." Twilight regretted asking now. But she was now even more concerned for Mystic now. "What about you, are you okay?"
Despite feeling like his whole world was crashing down around him, he took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll be fine. Really."
Twilight knew that he was lying. Mystic looks up to Aura the same she looks up to Princess Celestia. Heck if it was her in this state... "What could of done this to him?" Twilight asked.
"I don't know." Mystic answered. "But if they were able to do this much damage to Aura, I don't think I want to find out."
Just as the two were about to run out of stamina they heard the sound of flapping. When they looked up they saw a group of pegasus guards lead by Gladius, who's face was a mix between worry and anger.
"Just what are you two doing out here at this time!? You know that you can't be this far without..." He immediately shut up and gasped at Aura's injured body on their backs. "Is that... I think I get it now."
Gladius took Aura's body and prompted him onto his back. "I'll take him to the hospital." He turned to his subordinates. "Please make sure that these two make it home safely."
The Pegasi saluted and Gladius took to the skies as fast as he could, not wanting to lose a dear friend. Below, Mystic and Twilight both couldn't stop worrying for Aura as he left their field of vision.
"Alright little ones, we need to return before it really gets dark." One of the Guards said.
Nodding, Mystic and Twilight got on the backs of the pegasi and returned home, wondering just what happened that could lead to Aura being in the state that he is now.
