> Life of a Sullen Warrior > by King Of The Below > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 0: New Adventure, survival of the fittest! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 0: New Adventure, survival of the fittest! Theme song] This tale unfolds in the distant lands of Japan, nestled within a dense forest nestled among the majestic, verdant mountains. Here, we encounter the abode of Azuka Aikawa, a spirited young woman increasingly vexed by recent events. Despite her diligent efforts, toiling long hours tending to the farm—tending to plants, sowing seeds, fetching water from a nearby well—she finds herself perturbed. Today, however, her frustration is not merely annoying; it gnaws at her consciousness, for she has been unable to devote any time to her personal training. The fluttering birds and gentle breeze of the wind did help her demeanor calm down until something peaked her interest, her praying sight. Azuka was far from an ordinary human, although she remained uncertain about her true nature. Her parents had already been informed of her origins. Discovered late one morning amidst the wreckage of an ancient, dilapidated home belonging to a long-forgotten priest, this infant was taken in by the mature couple. For them, unable to conceive due to unfortunate birth-related complications, her arrival was nothing short of a divine blessing. Despite her initially rowdy and somewhat rough demeanor, the young girl thrived in the semi-strict, labor-intensive environment of her upbringing. She found joy in lending a hand and wholeheartedly loving her new parents, pouring her energy and affection into their care. She wasn't the brightest girl, but she certainly wasn't a fool. Her mother diligently taught her Japanese, both speaking and writing, and instilled in her the art of proper conversation. Despite her intelligence, she struggled with social interactions, feeling uneasy around others. Nevertheless, she masked her discomfort with small acts of kindness and a tender heart. Though her tail posed little issue, she had never experienced a full transformation under the influence of a full moon. A past incident with her father served as a close call, leading her parents to forbid her from venturing out at night. The child harbored a deep fear of the moon, despite her mother's attempts to reassure her. Consequently, she remained cautious, always avoiding direct gazes at the moon. Much of her formative years were dedicated to toiling alongside her father, gradually assuming more responsibility on the farm as her parents aged. Their transition to overseeing the business side allowed her to devote herself fully to the farm's operations. Her diligent efforts were often rewarded with tokens of appreciation, such as gifts or special treats, and occasionally with the freedom to explore the nearby woods once her chores were complete. However, one fateful day, she awoke to find her parents absent. Initially, she waited patiently, hoping for their return. But as time wore on, the grim reality set in: they were gone. In her young mind, she found solace in the belief that they had been called to serve a higher purpose by a higher power. In gratitude for their upbringing and sacrifices, she dutifully maintained their home and worked tirelessly on the farm, offering prayers to a cherished photograph of her family each week without fail. Years passed, and she matured into a capable young woman, now twenty years old and the de facto leader of the farm. Surpassing the expectations of many, she astonished herself with her efficiency and effectiveness in managing the farm's affairs, a testament to her unwavering dedication and resilience. Hurriedly setting aside her farm tools, Azuka lowered herself to her knees and bowed before the altar, adorned with a pristine, bright purple cloth. At its center rested a portrait of an elderly couple cradling a younger Azuka in their arms. With closed eyes, she murmured her prayer, "Mother, Father, I deeply apologize for failing to make time today. May my labor on our farm continue to honor and bring you joy, wherever you may be. I pray for your well-being." With hands clasped in solemn reverence, she opened her eyes, gently wiping away a tear before returning to her duties amidst the expansive plantation. The plantation for a lack of a better term was massive, sprawling with beautifully kept rice dotting the entire land surrounded in a wooden face laced with metal wiring to keep the animals out from every angle. Humming a small tune she noticed the time on her clock and with wide-eyes grabbed as much of the harvest as she could hoisting them up into the air and burst-dashing into the air above, The plants barely hanging on as she rushed as quick as she could. Azuka was a modest figure, standing at around 5 feet 8 inches and weighing approximately 170 pounds. Her attire consisted of a simple yet elegant ensemble: a soft light green gi tank top paired with a supportive bra underneath, all concealed beneath a deeper shade of blue undershirt. Her pants matched the hue of her undershirt, extending down to her snug-fitting light boots, which were slightly sharpened for practicality and a perfect fit. A green tarp-like cloth adorned her belt, bearing the etching for 平. Her arms, lightly muscled, were exposed, and a brown tail was tucked neatly around her waist. Upon reaching the farmer's market, Azuka found herself fortunate to secure a spot alongside Mr. Cheng, a kind-hearted elder who often lent her a helping hand in times of need. He would occasionally share his earnings, especially since rice, her primary crop, wasn't always in high demand. Thankfully, she managed to sell almost her entire stock, ensuring a profitable day's end with only 10% of her produce left unsold. The day progressed smoothly, but little did Azuka know the turmoil awaiting her upon her return home. A grim scene awaited her eyes: her once thriving plants lay trampled and decimated, courtesy of a herd of cattle that had breached the fence and ravaged her fields. Shock and dismay threatened to overwhelm her, but a fleeting aura of pure white surrounded her momentarily, snapping her back to reality. With a determined resolve, she shook herself out of her stupor, calming her racing heart and focusing her mind. Yes, she could overcome this setback. She could fix this. As Azuka got to work, she sensed the lingering presence of the cattle, but her immediate concern was the water situation. The priority was to repair and prepare the soil for planting. Quietly, she devoted most of the remaining day to addressing this issue. Azuka was not one to engage in idle chatter or even verbalize her thoughts; it simply didn't feel right to her. Despite her deep affection for her home, she detested the eerie silence that pervaded the land. As night approached, she eagerly anticipated her most cherished hour: training. Despite being as strong as she was, she wasn't a fool to use her tail in battle nor really in public. Her town was very superstitious and they had found Amaya and Akira harboring a demon? they would be potentially killed for this. So it was her own control of her reflexes she had to hone to never let her tail be free'd from her waist even if it meant she would be exposed due to her origin. She had her own personal gi specifically made to hide it under a belt that would house her tail instead of a real belt. For all of her life she had become accustomed to training and fighting, it was in her blood. Her family had her study under both her grandfather a well known local fighter and a fighting dojo not far from their little village. Over time she had become more and more profound with her movements and instead of using the principles to simply fight and use it off the mat she wanted to end the fight and not let it drag out. Azuka's unique style of Jujutsu focuses on efficiency and compassion, aiming to swiftly incapacitate opponents without causing unnecessary harm. Inspired by her reverence for nature and her empathetic nature, Azuka incorporates fluid movements and precise techniques to subdue adversaries with minimal force. Her approach emphasizes redirection of energy and strategic positioning, allowing her to neutralize threats while maintaining control and minimizing potential injury. Azuka's style prioritizes empathy and respect for her opponents, seeking to end conflicts swiftly and peacefully. Through disciplined training and a deep understanding of human anatomy, she adeptly utilizes joint locks, pressure points, and immobilization techniques to subdue adversaries with precision and finesse. This compassionate yet effective approach reflects Azuka's commitment to harmony and her desire to resolve conflicts without unnecessary suffering. She commenced her routine with gentle stretches and precise control, steadfastly avoiding even a fleeting glance at the moon, lest it unleash the beast within her. Despite the lingering stress from earlier, she remained resolute, knowing better than to succumb to temptation, at least most of the time. Transitioning into peaceful meditation, she settled into a cross-legged position atop a nearby rock, positioned not far from the soothing cascade of a waterfall. With deliberate focus, she allowed her mind to drift, seeking to quiet her spirit. Her grandfather's teachings echoed in her thoughts; he had always emphasized that tranquility was the hallmark of a skilled worker. For a time, she maintained this serene state, but as she rose to her feet, attempting to strike a solitary leaf, she faltered at the final moment, her thoughts returning to the farm. The attempt felt sloppy and uncoordinated—a failure. Determined to regain her focus, she shifted her attention to a nearby tree, aiming to strike its center. With a swift motion, her first strike arced like lightning, colliding with the tree's lower half—another miss. Though she was skilled in jujutsu, she yearned for a genuine challenge, something to push her beyond this current impasse. Focusing her concentration, Azuka summoned a soft glow into her hands, her brow furrowing in concentration as the ethereal energy coalesced into a shimmering ball. With a flick of her wrist, she sent it soaring into the air, akin to a frisbee, as it attempted to track her own unique signature. This exercise had been the focus of her training for weeks now, and she was determined to master it. As the energy ball streaked back towards her, she deftly maneuvered, narrowly evading its trajectory, though not without a slight singe grazing her skin, eliciting a wince. "Stay rooted to the rock, never forget," she reminded herself, adhering to the fundamental rule of her practice. A second surge of energy surged towards her, this time from behind, but Azuka, utilizing her tail for balance, adeptly sidestepped the attack. The next strike emerged from below, tunneling into the ground, prompting her to leap into the air and maintain a still stance, suppressing her instincts and refraining from relying on her energy senses, in an effort to sharpen her natural awareness. Eventually, the energy dissipated into nothingness, but Azuka found solace in the incremental progress she had made. Recollections of past frustrations flooded her mind—times when her lack of control had resulted in self-inflicted injuries, leaving her on the verge of despair. Yet, tonight, she could reflect with a sense of pride on how far she had come. Meanwhile, the night unfolded with an unsettling atmosphere, an inexplicable tension hanging in the air. The familiar scents of the trees seemed altered, contributing to a palpable sense of unease as darkness descended. The usual symphony of nocturnal sounds was conspicuously absent, replaced by an eerie silence that seemed to pervade the surroundings. Even the hoot of an owl, a sound she had grown accustomed to, was notably absent. It was as if the very essence of nature held its breath, casting a shadow over the tranquility of the night. As Azuka's senses remained on high alert, she couldn't shake the feeling that something profound was stirring in the depths of the forest. *** The trees weren't the only anomaly in this unsettling environment; a presence to her left felt distinctly unfamiliar, its Ki radiating unlike anything she had encountered before. But what unnerved her even more was the sensation of the moon at her back, its glow seeming brighter and warmer than usual. Steeling her mind against such deceptive thoughts, she focused on maintaining control. Summoning a brief ball of light into her hand once more, she used its illumination to survey the surroundings. The landscape was unfamiliar, dense jungles teeming with vines and towering trees—nothing like her home. Had she been transported? Surely, she would have sensed some Ki activity if such a feat were possible. As the pressure of an approaching presence grew, her tranquil state shattered. A massive, jaw-like appendage, lined with wooden teeth, lunged towards her arm. Reacting swiftly, she sidestepped the attack, delivering a powerful blow infused with her own Ki to send the creature recoiling into the underbrush. Waste no time, she sprang into action, harnessing her Ki to propel herself from the trees into the air, fleeing the area with urgency. Glancing below, she realized the enormity of the forest and the scale of the creatures within. Where had she ended up? The question hung heavy in her mind as she soared through the unfamiliar landscape, searching for answers. As she landed on the soft grass, confusion lingered in her gaze. It was clear: if she wanted any chance of returning home, she needed to create shelter. Relying on her instincts and farming know-how, she swiftly constructed a makeshift hut from twigs, moss, leaves, and fallen wood, reinforcing it for stability. Nestling into the rudimentary bed, she gazed up at the blank green expanse that now served as her temporary refuge. Despite her efforts, a sense of guilt gnawed at her; not only was she lost, but her family's farm awaited her return. The worry weighed heavily on her chest, her breaths quickening until she forced herself to calm down. What would her grandfather think of her succumbing to fear so easily? Attempting to find solace in sleep proved futile, hours slipping away with only fitful rest. Dreams of her family and their concern mirrored her waking fears, leaving her drained upon waking. Though she resolved to face the day with renewed determination, her anxiety lingered, a shadow over her resolve. Setting to work, she tested the available resources, cautiously sampling the water before her. Though not unpleasant, the lingering concern over food persisted. Hunting was not her forte, and the thought of foraging for potentially poisonous berries filled her with trepidation. Opting for a safer approach, she turned to fishing, finding solace in the simplicity of the task amidst the unfamiliar surroundings. The gentle breeze and serene landscape provided a stark contrast to her inner turmoil, offering a moment of respite in an otherwise uncertain world. As the day unfolded, she focused on survival, finding a semblance of routine amidst the wilderness. Yet, her gaze often turned skyward, a silent plea for guidance in navigating this unfamiliar realm. Drifting above the forest canopy, a halo of white energy enveloped her, casting a ethereal glow over the dense foliage below. The endless expanse of trees stretched before her, punctuated by occasional patches of jungle. It struck her as odd that such a naturalistic world seemed devoid of human presence. Surely, settlements would cluster around sources of water? The absence of civilization only added to her sense of isolation. Returning to the ground, she resumed her quiet vigil near the humble shelter, acutely aware of the dangers lurking in the surrounding wilderness. Though determined to persevere, she treaded cautiously, ever mindful of the formidable wildlife that roamed the land. End of Chapter 0 > Book 1: Chapter 1: The beginning to a new Adventure! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1: The beginning of a new Adventure! Book 1 Theme It has been several days since the start of this incredible journey, and Sazuka finds herself not only trapped but strangely drawn to this place. Despite her yearning to go back home, every new discovery in this forest ignites her warrior spirit with the thrill of upcoming battles. What really captivates her are the various forms of life she encounters, like the manticores, one of which she came across in a unique pair. Although she initially wanted to keep her distance, fate had other ideas as they saw her as a threat to their territory, causing the male to charge towards her. The male manticore unleashed its deadly snake tail, spewing a toxic venom towards Sazuka. With lightning speed, she dodged the attack using her ki energy. Seizing the moment, the creature lunged towards her chest, its movements too quick for even her sharp senses to follow. Reacting instantly, she infused her leg with ki energy, disappearing from view. Suddenly, she descended from above, striking the beast's head with all her might, aiming to knock it out in one blow. But before she could celebrate her victory, the creature's jaws clamped down on her leg, causing excruciating pain. Despite the agony, she absorbed the blow and allowed herself to be thrown backward, crashing onto the ground, momentarily dazed by the sheer force of the attack. The impact reverberated in her ears as blood trickled into her hand, blurring her vision as the monstrous creature loomed closer. With a mixture of agony and resolve, something within her shifted, transforming her serene demeanor into the ferocity of a beast. A dark, swirling aura enveloped her once pristine white energy, causing her hair to spike and her tail to lash freely. As the energy surged, the beast growled in defiance, recognizing the formidable opponent before him. Despite his intelligence, the male understood that retreating in the face of such a challenger was not an option. Her teeth clenched, the blood burnt away in the fury of an Oozaru's rage! The woman snarled and vanished from sight, reappearing at the beast's side and slamming a fist right into its gut, nearly tearing a hole through its flesh. The monster, barely able to hold itself together, was thrown several feet away, digging deep into the dirt as a tree slammed into its body from the impact, tearing it down effortlessly. The beast whimpered in pain as its three heads snarled to each other, speaking a language she could not understand. Vaguely, in this moment, her clarity returned, only for rage to overflow as the beast attempted to flee. With a growl, she released a burst of pure energy from her mouth in a stunning display. The mate in turn leaped to the aid of its own mate and while the beast raged in front of her the two mates spoke in tongues she could only vaguely make out "stop this" "not worth the fight" she could barely hear them and the pounding of her own heart and the roars of the beast within shouted for battle and to destroy those in her way. She panted with effort as she turned and dashed away as quick as she could, jumping from tree to tree trying to burn out the power as the tears brimmed in her eyes, her pupils slowly returning to the vibrant brown color they once beheld. As she entered her little hut she broke down, the pressure of this power, the failure she allowed on her own just because of a skirmish like this? how could she. For some time all she could was blankly look to the starry skies above as the afternoon turned to evening, her mind frought with more troubles than she ever hoped, what were those? what did they say? why did they attack? most of all, how could she allow that beast out again. The beast that had killed mother and father that night. All of that filling her mind with nothing but the guilt and shame she had tried to hide for a long time. Her mind was flooded with adrenaline as she felt the shiver run down her spine, the very same shiver that had haunted her since the night that claimed her mother and father years ago. It was the same shiver that overcame her every time she gazed upon the ethereal glow of the moon. The beating in her chest thumped back and forth as she forced herself to sleep, the pain of the moons glow on her back as the moon shined brilliantly above. She couldn't let this get her down yet nothing seemed right. The beast in the back of her mind clawed for freedom as sleep overtook her mind. Soon all she could see was black, then it. A massive beast covered head to toe in dark brown fur with a muzzle of the ape filled with teeth as it snarled at her **"Here I thought the mighty had fallen yet you continue to surprise me girl, why do you hold back from those beasts? if I hadn't stepped in you would've been killed and with no medicine around nor aid who knows what could have happened."** She tried to pay the beast no mind but knew better than to not respond "Then what? let you kill other innocents like you did mother and father? let them-" The beast snarled as it roared with a fierce bright glow of pure black and red shinning in its aura. "Those fools who pampered us? those who used us as some surrogate for their folly? They deserved no less than destruction for the humiliation we faced under them, our "parents" were nothing but a duo of failed farmers and a former martial artist grandfather who had minimal value, if anything I saved you from becoming what you are not, you're no hero, no goodie weakling, you're a warrior, a soldier and nothing more." She snarled as she charged forth and let loose a beam of pure energy at the beast, it merely swatted the blast away and slammed her into the ground below with her not even able to hold its massive fist back. "You're a weakling convinced of nothing but that you are a human, you're a bred soldier, a warrior fit for battle to stand atop all others and slay those in your path, not be a farmer, nor a pitiful excuse of a warrior who can't even kill a few beasts in her path!" She snarled with pure venom back at the monster, using her own power she lifted up pushing the fist off as a blazing aura of pure white shined around her frame "I am my mother's child, I am the daughter my father loved with all his pride and heart, I'm a cherished granddaughter who did her best to live up to the farmer they raised and do the best I can to honor their deaths, even if I may never forgive myself I can never...ever forgive you for their murders." The beast snarled once more in her direction, its aura of pure rage flooding her mind. Pain shot through her head as the beast glowered down at her. "You are weak, girl," it growled. "We may share this body, but don't think for a moment you have tamed me. You have done nothing! You are just as pathetic as you were then, even as you gain strength. So do I. You are nothing more than a facsimile of myself and our power." The words echoed in her mind, a chilling reminder of the darkness that lurked within. In a sudden, powerful surge, a dark and fiery aura enveloped her as a primal force awakened within her. Her eyes turned a haunting milky white as the beast inside her emerged, lunging forward with a ferocious intent. Despite her best efforts, the creature's grin remained unyielding as it effortlessly slammed her to the ground, its grip tightening around her in a merciless hold. The echoes of her anguished cries reverberated throughout the mindscape, a chilling testament to the raw power that had been unleashed. She growled fiercly and with a burst of pure aura, broke free before landing one blow on the creature this time directly at its eye and though she knew it cowardly the blow would hurt, the ape howled in pain as the beast simply chuckled clutching its eye "Here now you use my power and expect me to not be prepared? you're just a pathetic child with power you cannot control. You're foolish just like your miserable mistake of an upbringing, or those pampered fools you called our parents." The beast taunted with gusto while the eye was closed it cared not for her blows. From the shadows a third being took form, this time she looked....strange. A woman of untold beauty yet the ape snarled in her direction "What manner of freak are you woman? Another beast like the rest?" The ape snarled as she touched down, looking confused as she spoke towards not the beast but the young woman. "Young one may I ask who you are? It has been some time since I've seen such a new dream, lost to the moon I am not but to you I must be. You choose not to look upon thy moon, what is it that scares you so? do you hate my moon?" The woman was adorned in jewels with her attire more fitting for an actress than a regal royal. Upon her head laid a brilliant golden crown with onyx gems encrusted into it, her mane a flowing cascading color bright akin to a galaxy with her eyes a cat-like hue of blue with one slit for an eyeball, the woman looked upon Sazuka and while the young woman herself didn't know how to respond considering she had never seen such a beauty before she could only shake her head and try to speak. "I apologize ma'am I am new to this land, I am Sazuka, I understand if this is confusing but this is....myself and my inner beast. We share a mind even if he and I despise one another. Once more I apologize if I was intruding but I'm merely a traveler." The blushing young woman barely got the words out herself feeling rather embarrassed to be in her own mind and being invaded like this. The older woman looked curiously before nodding and looking to the Oozaru for a moment before her eyes fell on Sazuka once more "I see this troubles you young one, I apologize if I have intruded myself and allow me to welcome you to the land of Equestria, we may only meet this once but you are an interesting one miss Sazuka I do hope that your dreams are better now to aid you, begone beast." The ape snarled as it was thrust into the void screaming and glowing with energy as its fur changed tint to a semi-golden color slightly in pure rage for the brief moment it remained visible, a noticeable shiver running down Sazukas spine. She sighed in relief and turned to the woman only to be met with the thin air as if she were never there. "How strange, well at least I can just rest for a while..." She let her mind calm and let her spirit rest as the darkness overtook her thoughts and senses as sleep soon took over. *** As the sun shined above the land so did the gentle chirping of birds and the gentle running rivers amongst the forest. In the deep of the forest stood a woman hauling a massive fish back to her camp having finished off a good morning of fishing she had her own massive haul, the massive fish was plopped onto the ground, above it a ki-blade in hand as the flesh was sliced into neat diced bits. Over a gentle fire the fish was strung by some loose vines and sticks just barely able to hold it up as the fish slowly cooked she could begin her own exercise, if she was going to be here for a while it might be best to try and learn to sense the life around. For the past few days, it has been troubling. The day before, she had nearly been ripped to shreds, forcing her to rely solely on her sense of sight. Never before had she felt such a strange sensation of being unable to sense ki. The energy it radiated seemed similar, yet distinctly different. Whatever it was, it bore traces of ki, albeit faintly detectable, albeit very fuzzy. Her first experiment involved fish and birds. She attempted to close her eyes and project her natural sense of energy outward, akin to a radar. However, all she received was a jolt and the faintest detection of the energy radiating from them. With that failure she tried several times on various other animals such as those strange wooden-wolves, she masked her own presence as best as she could and remained out of sight from them trying to best sense them although that didn't work to well although she was able to once more feel out that strange energy. The best test in her head was to try and sense out this new energy but it was to foreign even fuzzy on her mind, it felt like taking a taste of lime and cherry, just gross. Though not the most challenging of tests, she began to train herself once more, opting for a different approach than merely gathering food and evading predators. She carefully avoided drawing too much attention from the animals, wary of repeating the mishaps of yesterday or her childhood escapades back home in the woods. Her exercise was straightforward: allow them to catch a scent or glimpse of her, then rely solely on basic evasion tactics rather than tapping into her ki. In theory, it sounded effective, but in reality, it nearly led to injury, leaving her with a few bites on her legs as a reminder of the risks involved. For better or for worse, she understood the importance of seeking out civilization, if it indeed existed. It was preferable to facing the prospect of perishing alone in the wilderness. Summoning the necessary resolve, she embarked on her journey out of the forest. Unbeknownst to her, the Everfree Forest was unforgiving. Although she initially considered taking flight, she deemed it wiser to conserve her energy by walking, at least to a certain extent. Thus, she commenced her trek into the depths of the woods, prepared for the challenges that lay ahead. For quite a bit the forest itself seemed to bend and wrap around the world she had come to somewhat enjoy, it was peaceful and despite all the things that had transpired in the past few days to some degree, she felt bad she wasn't itching to run back home the first day. It felt wrong to even enjoy the time she had been given in such a beautiful land. Why wouldn't she want to go home? that thought would stick in her mind, in an attempt to get something akin to relief, her aura burst open as she soared into the air and soared directly north, the forest seemed to get smaller and smaller until landing near the edges of what looked like a small town of sorts. It looked like home, houses dotting the entire area, massive plantation up north for what looked like apples from up here though he couldn't be sure of what it was fully. Touching down softly near the forest's edge, she stumbled upon a quaint cabin. Though not one to pry, she understood the importance of respecting others' property. Quietly, she skirted around the cabin, feeling a bit uneasy about encountering new individuals. However, she recognized the folly of being overly suspicious and opted to don a green cloak, which partially concealed her face and body. Unfortunately, during the battle, the belt containing her tail had snapped, and the fabric had been torn in places, resembling a cat's scratch marks on a couch. The cloak itself had been made days prior upon her 3rd day, mainly to evade predators at night when hungry but now was as good as a time as any. Walking into town she wasn't so much shocked as utterly star-struck at the people er ponies. They had varying colors, wings, distinct butt marks and though she didn't know it herself she stuck out like a sore thumb especially with her brown tail moving about in the wind under her cloak. She made her way around kind of just going in any direction that she could see, a bit hard with the cloak but she knew better than to reveal herself now especially if they were hostile. Though unintended she came face to face with a bright and pink creature, the being stared her down and although she could make out some words her instincts kicked in! With a brief use of ki she dashed in what look like a blur around the pony and before the pony could get her once more she was out of sight, Leaving pinkie more excited and a bit confused how somepony could be that fast? *** We turn to the tale of a young Pegasus-unicorn hybrid, known as Mi Amore Cadenza, or simply Cadence. Born into a lineage of royalty with roots tracing back to the long-forgotten Crystal Empire, her family had long departed from that fallen realm. Recently, Cadence had taken pleasure in caring for her cousin, Twilight. Despite Twilight's independent nature, both their families and Cadence's parents remained concerned for the young unicorn. Consequently, Cadence was tasked with helping to guide her cousin, especially in managing her peculiarities and insatiable love for books. Recognizing the importance of this responsibility, Twilight was sent to Ponyville by the ruling Queens Celestia and Luna. Their intention was for Twilight to immerse herself in the community, learning firsthand the values of friendship and love that were integral to their teachings especially Celestia who on some level considered Twilight like a daughter. Today was no different and so with some effort she pushed the door open to her cousins room, filled on each side with stacks of books on various magical teachings from basic spells to even some higher level spells Cadence herself never thought of trying. "Come on, Twily, you know it's best to rise and shine if you want to learn about making friends... Twilight?" Cadence scanned the room, struggling to locate her cousin amidst the towering stack of books. With a gentle glow of magic, she shifted the pile, revealing the slumbering unicorn underneath. Chuckling softly to herself, Cadence lightly tapped Twilight's nose with a few pages, eliciting a startled yelp as the young prodigy awoke. Despite her grogginess, Twilight's dragon assistant, Spike, was already wide awake, ready to assist and support his pseudo-mother through the day. Spike had been discovered years earlier by a young Twilight, and the two had grown up together like siblings in the Sparkle household, where he was warmly accepted despite being an abandoned dragon. They were inseparable, their bond unbreakable. As the dragon glanced over at his sister, he rolled his bright eyes playfully, eliciting a mock glare from her in return. The two shared a light smile as the Unicorn rose up from her floor "Oh come on Cadence what can I really learn? I just don't see what I could learn from other, I have my books and teacher back in canterlot what else could I realistically need?" The unicorn felt a bit odd being thrown into this rinky-dink town. She didn't hate it, it certainly wasn't great but for all the work she had achieved in Canterlot she would've at least expected to be in a more promising town. The unicorn looked to her cousin for a moment before a slash of light shined into her senses "What in the world...what was that...Cadence did you feel that?" The pegasus-unicorn hybrid herself wasn't quite sure what to make of it. The energy she sensed wasn't typical magic by any means. If she were to hazard a guess, it might be as potent as Twilight's—there weren't many individuals she knew who could surpass someone with such a talent for magic. However, this energy felt distinctly peculiar, unlike anything she had encountered before. She noticed the look in Twilight's eyes and simply shook her head, placing a hoof on her shoulder. "Hey, relax. I'm sure it was nothing. Let's just focus on breakfast for now. We can deal with whoever that strange magic signature belonged to later, okay?" Although the unicorn glanced at her cousin, prepared to say something, she wisely refrained from questioning Twilight's eerie, sadistic smile. Instead, she bit her tongue and huffed, her cousin giggling at the younger unicorn's curiosity. Little did she know how mistaken she would be. A blur of pure pink burst through the door, rushing past Spike, who simply waved at the bouncing pink mare. She bounded right up to the cousins, smiling widely, before leaning in close to Twilight's face. "Heytwilightimsogladyoureawakeisawsomethingreallyfreakytodaythatssocoolhuh?" The bouncy mare shouted, her words barely intelligible, before the Pegacorn gently nudged her back with one hoof. Twilight chuckled softly. "Hey there, Miss Pie. I understand your excitement, but could you please remember to knock next time? Also, what exactly do you mean by 'weird'? I haven't seen anything out of the ordinary, as far as I know." The pink mare obliged by rummaging through her mane before pulling out a ruler, a drawing board, and a spare pencil. With a burst of pure energy, she conjured up a puff of smoke and swiftly sketched what could only be described as a centaur—a figure with an athletic build, two legs, a tail, and towering height, draped in a leafy green cloak. Twilight appeared utterly bewildered. She struggled to find the right words to articulate her thoughts on the strange events unfolding before her, or the peculiar drawing in front of her. While she had heard tales of centaurs in old myths, she had always considered them to be nothing more than legends. After all, she was familiar with creatures like buffalo, dragons, yaks, and many others, but centaurs seemed to belong to a realm of fantasy she had never seriously entertained. *** Sazuka wasn't in the best of moods. Not only did that pony freak her out a bit, but she also felt rude for not really interacting with her. However, she couldn't change it now. Heading back into the Everfree Forest, she quickly made her way back to her little hut, having taken some spare apples from the farm in the town. Sure, she stole them, but she couldn't survive on fish forever. The little trick was making sure she wasn't followed, although she had more than enough ki to fly right back to the hut. But before she could finish the thought, a twig snapped. On her feet, she aimed a fully charged Ki ball at the person's face, only to find a smaller horse. With bright orange fur and two small, possibly defective wings, the girl didn't seem too fazed by the blast. Instead, she looked excited? "ここに来た理由を尋ねてもいいですか、子供さん？" or "May I ask why you're here kid?" in english, the filly looked a bit confused at the words but spoke up "Oh um....my name's Scootalo, or Scoots. May I ask who you are?" The little filly looked only in amazement as the energy sizzled out and vanished as the woman sighed, from the small filly's eyes this looked possibly even stronger than rainbowdash! She'd never seen anyone use magic in their hooves like that...or whatever those were called. From the moment the woman lowered her hand the thought raced in her head that she'd been caught before the filly spoke up "I'm sorry for following you it was just really cool seeing you move like that...I've never seen anyone move like that before even Rainbowdash and she's the fastest I've ever seen, its just....how did you do that?" "Miss, I don't want to crush your dreams, but learning Ki isn't as simple as riding a bike or even learning to ride a scooter. It takes years of discipline and practice to achieve mastery. However, if you wish, I can briefly demonstrate my full strength. But please understand, it won't be as glamorous as you might imagine." The woman, though not heartless, didn't want to give the poor kid any false hope of mastering something as complex as Ki. It had taken her until she was at least 14 to gain control over it, and who knows how long it might take someone her age. Though to her surprise the little filly seemed even more determined hearing that "Well I don't care! I just wanna see this for myself....if anything it may be able to help me fly." Despite feeling downtrodden by the comment, the little filly remained determined. Her wings, though a sore reminder of her struggle, were a symbol of her resilience. Despite being a pegasus, she knew she couldn't fly too well. But she was determined to defy that limitation. The woman nodded although she held firm in her own belief she released a massive implosion of energy coursing with blue electricity her energy rising higher and higher until like a flame it shined brightly in the sunlight as her clothes moved and shifted under the intense pressure, the filly although flung back a few feet looked on in astonishment, this wasn't just magic but whatever this was, in her mind it may be stronger than even the queens! Sazuka then just as quickly calmed her aura down with a bit of panting on top of that, she hadn't exerted herself like that in a long time if ever really. The look on the filly's face reminded her of herself, when she was younger she didn't think too bad of the power that brimmed within her body but even then she could recall her foolishness as the energy vanished she was a bit shocked to see the filly's starry gaze and rush right up to her leg, startling her a bit. "Wow miss! Um...sorry my name's Scootalo...what about you?" The woman although a bit weirded out smiled softly and responded "Sazuka, a human." The filly looked confused but nodded as she stepped back, feeling a bit embarrassed at how close she had bumped into the pony, or rather, the human's leg. "Well its nice to meet you miss Scootalo, although I'm a bit surprised you had followed me all the way here, I haven't found many who can even keep up with me, I do hope that next time we meet under less akward circumstances." The human chuckled a bit with the filly looking herself rather embarrassed at the words but nodded. "Yea I have a scooter and with my wings its hard to fly for long so I used it to push me along, although I got lucky my scooter here didn't break on the way. May I ask how you got that kind of magic? I've never heard of Ki, it sounds cool if you ask me." The filly smiled, bright although to Sazuka that was a bit odd, she had quite the drive to follow a stranger out here all alone. Looking to the scooter in question, although it was covered in scrapes it was well done and looked sturdy. In her mind the words played out "Well, I'm not sure what magic is, never really heard of it although back home I only knew magic as just as superstition nothing more than parlor tricks really although I suppose Ki could be a type of magic? Ki is life energy, all beings carry life energy although, if magic is the source here then I could wager that might be why I....." Then it hit her like a lightning bolt, that must be the energy she can't feel but if its similar to life-energy why can't she sense it? must be some sort of error on her part, in her mind that made most sense. Her internal thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the filly gently tapping her shoulder with her wing, fluttering like a bee. "I don't mean to bother you, but as you can see, my wings are... well, I've always wanted to fly like every other pegasus, but my wings have always been too small to sustain flight. Maybe you could help me out? Maybe this Ki stuff could help me?" The filly's desperation was palpable, tugging at her heartstrings. She couldn't bring herself to crush the kid's dreams, even though she didn't think of herself as the right teacher. But perhaps, just maybe, it could be beneficial. She hesitated briefly before nodding at the filly, her eyes lighting up with excitement at the sight of the young student. However, she raised a finger to emphasize the importance of setting some ground rules. "If you are going to be my student, there are a few guidelines that must be followed," she began. "First and foremost, discretion is key. I do not want you to disclose our training to anyone, and it is imperative that you do not allow yourself to be followed." "While I appreciate your eagerness to showcase your progress, it is essential to remember that not everyone will be as accepting or trusting as you may hope. Additionally, I must stress the importance of using your Ki responsibly. It is not a tool for showmanship, especially in public settings. Reserve its use for our training sessions only." "Lastly, it is crucial to understand that mastering Ki will require time and dedication. It is not a mere parlor trick or form of magic; it is a powerful force that must be wielded with caution. Losing control could have devastating consequences for both yourself and those you care about." "Finally, I urge you to approach your training with the utmost care and respect for the power you hold. Together, we can unlock your full potential, but it will require patience and diligence on your part." The filly nodded, although a bit confused herself. "Why can't I show it off, much less talk about you? You seem nice enough. I'm sure everyone would give you a chance if you were just a bit more open, right?" She may have been smart for her age, but in her mind their would be no real reason to hide someone so cool away. She smiled and shook her head at the kid "No, I agree there, Usually that would be the case but I'm brand new to this world and I have no knowings of how your kind are much less if the rest of them are kind enough to not attack me on sight, I can't be foolish to blindly trust fate to those choices. It may be tempting but I want you to promise me to not reveal your ki or myself, if you can do that I'll gladly take you on as a student." The filly nodded and with one grin she promised, that was all she needed to hear. Nodding the woman then looked over the filly before nodding "First off we're going to need to sharpen not only your body but your mind. You may not realize it but your mind and body are best in sync when you've trained them well. Utilizing them in all terms of battle and Ki especially will allow you to gain much more, your first exercise will be to carry these logs I've cut down recently from my camp to the top of the hill ahead. You need to pressure your body just right to get it under control." Although the filly herself looking upon the hill decided it was just stupid to think she could do anything like that...in her head then the though arose of those before she met sweetie and bloom, those who would make fun of her wings and call her a ditz, freak, weakling, all those thoughts nearly bringing a tear to her eye. The filly nodded and tried her best at first, putting them onto her back as instructed, the hard part was over. She did try her scooter but found that unlike what she expected she was much more weighed down and exerting herself a lot harder than normal. She wasn't even half way up the path before sweat dripped down her brow. Her teacher not far above watched with mirth in her eyes as the girl struggled, finding it interesting she hadn't given up by now. When she was old enough that was the hardest test she'd ever had from her grandfather. The filly huffed and felt the energy brim in her wings but trusted herself more. Hauling it was hard but the logs weighed her down further and further as her energy depleted then in her mind, she thought back to those days once more, finding the strength to make it atop that hill. The trek took time but just as she sat upon that hill she could find herself quickly losing strength as the logs fell down onto the ground she panted with exhaustion, her body having been exhausted, roughly spending an 1 hour and 30 minutes at least from Sazukas guess. She smiled at the filly and nodded "Good job kid, honestly I'm surprised. When I was starting out I couldn't do that until days passed nearly took me a month of trial and error but you pushed through and made it, count this as a good first day." The filly although tired looked confused up at her teacher. "First day? that's all? I'm not complaining mind you but I was expecting a bit more than just hauling logs, all I feel is tired more than anything." The fillys determination was something that Sazuka hadn't expect but she would have need to learn in time, hopefully she is a good teacher. Sazuka chuckled at the words and turned to face her "Well of course, you didn't expect this to be some sort of montage right? You need to strengthen both your body and mind, you've certainly pushed yourself but pushing yourself in one day doesn't mean we end, next we'll be focusing on some meditation and finding a balance. Your minds a bit worn out so lets go eat some lunch then we'll continue." The filly nodded and felt two hands lift her up and into them, the small filly couldn't help but just go limp in the woman's arms as they soared to her camp, once down the two sat down to have a good meal this was only some apples and fish although the pony looked a bit grossed out at the fish she didn't wish to annoy her teacher and tried some, to her astonishment it wasn't half bad. The woman chuckled at her eyes lighting up with joy as the two soon finished their meals not long after and entered a cut up path leading to a river with rocks covered in moss dotting the area. "You said meditation right? isn't that something people who practice faiths or who don't like material posessions do?" "Oh no, not all the time. Meditation in this case is more nuanced than that really, I find it relaxing to let your mind calm and not waver. If you want to learn then you'll have to excuse my odd methods scoots, We'll be meditating to be as calm and gentle as the river here, it flows and doesn't stop, for you to begin using ki your mind must not waver in your goal. I did mention earlier Ki is a dangerous tool, that remains true here, if I for example let loose and hurt others then my Ki would be all broken up and messy, lacking control and restraint." The woman sat gracefully on a rock, allowing a butterfly to land beside her. She crossed her legs, and the student followed suit. "In the practice of meditation, it is not simply a matter of believing that you are calm and collected; one must also learn to control the impulses that may arise. Just like a defensive animal, your Ki energy can unexpectedly lash out and harm those in your vicinity. I encourage you to close your eyes, take slow, deep breaths, and allow the gentle breeze to pass around you. It is important to calm not only your mind, but also your body, in order to discover the inner peace you seek." The woman herself closed her eyes, keeping her arms relaxed at her sides as her breathing gradually slowed. Scootaloo herself wasn't sure if she could ever do something like that, but she tried. As she let her mind wander back to those times, she couldn't help but feel the weight of the insults and brazen bullying from her peers. They would mock her, even going as far as trying to pluck her feathers from her wings, deeming her unworthy of being a flier. Her teachers in her hometown had also discouraged her, telling her that flying may not be the best option for her. Moving to Ponyville, away from her tormentors and even her own parents, was a frightening step. But she pushed through her fear and found solace in the friendship of Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. They didn't judge her for her wings, as they too were without their cutie marks. Together, they supported each other without a hint of arrogance, never giving up on their quest to find their true purpose. As Scootaloo sat upon the rock, her wings no longer flexing and the breeze gently caressing her body, she felt a sense of peace wash over her. The sounds of the birds were drowned out by the beating hearts of her friends, their unity calming her troubled mind. In that moment, she knew that she was exactly where she was wanted and cared for. For a while her teacher watched, keeping watch of the kids aura and despite this magic thing still being so new she did have a tiny bit of Ki from her body although very faint and only appearing for a second. This kid had potential that much was clear, she hadn't even figured out how to manifest her aura till she was nearly out of high school. Though Sazuka still wished and yearned for her home she couldn't help but see herself in this kid, brimming with joy and eager to face the challenges of the world. After a while she tapped her student's shoulder as the filly let out a yelp and leaped forward crashing right into the river below, her teacher chuckling at this as the filly shook herelf of the wetness she nodded at her "Good job kiddo, you managed to calm your mind, although don't think we've even truly begun. This is only day one and now...it looks to be evening I'd not want you out here after dark kiddo its best you head home but for today, I'll guide you out. I don't want you getting lost or in trouble." She snickered, the filly herself a bit embarrassed at that but nodding. Picking up her scooter she quickly had the kid flown back in a moments notice with the sun lowly dimming she was lucky to be out without her cloak. Giving the kid a wave as she smiled and got on her scooter "Thanks Sazuka! really, thank you, I can't wait for the next session, everyone's gonna be so blown away when I'm done." The filly muttered the last part to herself as she rode off into town. Sazuka herself chuckled at the kid's words as she burst into the air and flew back to her camp, taking the logs from the training day and cutting them up laying them into the fresh fire pit, using her ki to heat up the wood and cause a burst of fire under the newly found night sky, despite the pain and her tail twitching she knew it best to eat to get her mind off of it. All things considered, being a teacher didn't sound half bad although next time she'll need to make sure this kid doesn't get into these woods again on her own. After enjoying a delicious meal of fish and the last of the apples, she lay beneath the chilly night sky, a smile playing on her lips. Despite missing home, she found joy in teaching and connecting with others. The child she was helping seemed happy, and that brought her immense satisfaction. As drowsiness crept in, her worries melted away, and she drifted off to sleep by the warm, crackling fire. Her eyes fluttered shut, and she welcomed the peaceful embrace of slumber. Book 1: Chapter 1, End. > Book 1 Chapter 2: Training pains, go beyond your Limit! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Book 1 Chapter 2: Training pains, go beyond your Limit! Book 1 Theme Chapter Recap Theme Previously, on "Sullen Warrior," a bond of friendship and a shared desire for strength formed between our unlikely heroes. Witnessing Scootaloo embark on her journey to discover her inner strength, we find that only six days have passed since then. Yet, the intensity of her training has steadily increased. Initially, she faced the challenge of hauling logs repeatedly. Upon mastering this task, her next trial involved carrying the logs while swiftly navigating the rocky terrain, pushing her to enhance both her speed and agility, refining her movements with each step. Her teacher didn't let up the training, having realized some of this filly's dormant strength she thought it best to push her along a bit with each training session, she'd have her do various stretches and light help to better prep her body and mind before hand. Although the filly herself didn't know why she'd been ramping up the training in these past few days, what was most difficult was trying to make excuses for her own absences with her friends or with her current living situation. The filly knew better than to bother the rest of the town or her friends with this, promise and all but it never the less felt weird to keep lying about why she'd been seen near the everfree forest by the two fillies. Although it wasn't enough for her to unbeknownst to her teacher, reveal her own little tricks. The fillies were a bit confused when Scootaloo had brought them to their usual clubhouse, Applebloom was the first to speak up "I know you've been a bit tardy lately, not sure my'self why that would happen but I'm sure you have a good reason right scoots?" The filly next to her nodded, this was sweetie belle, sister of a popular fashion genius at least in her sister's eyes, her outfits had been quite the show-stopper when Twilight had met those six ponies, had it really been months since then? Queen Luna restored and now a thriving land to boot. Sweetie belle was a bit older at least mentally than her friends though that wasn't much the bright white and magenta maned filly looked to Scoots a bit confused, she had been the first to notice and when Applebloom had been made aware she was just as concerned "Yea, I really hope you do. I don't wanna sound like a downer but you've even been skipping or being late to our clubhouse meetings a lot, Rainbowdash has even said she hasn't seen as you much in these past few days." The orange filly grappled with a sense of shame, acknowledging her lack of foresight in such matters. Yet, abandoning her teacher seemed unreasonable. Despite her reservations, she couldn't simply leave her mentor behind, especially knowing she had made a commitment. Though it wasn't a formal Pinkie promise, the weight of her word pressed upon her conscience. The thought of leaving her mentor stranded, alone, left an unsettling feeling in her gut, stirring a conflict within her that she couldn't easily shake. "Well.....I gave a promise to not say anything but I've been doing some extra work with someone new, let me say that they aren't weird or some sort of boy! Just some nice person, I got lost in the everfree when they came into town one time, I ended up shortly after getting lost and they helped me out, they show me something really cool and I mean almost as cool as Rainbowdash or getting our cutie marks! I did a bit of pleading and they have been teaching me for a while but before we continue, I want you girls to promise me, no Pinkie swear not to tell anyone! Please?" The orange filly looked a bit saddened at this, she knew it better than to go back on a promise but right now this was her best option. Applebloom looked to Sweetie who in turn looked at their friend, the red-maned filly then smiled nodding before the two hugged their friend who in return did the same, with a little giggle from the three it continued "Of course Scoots! You think we wouldn't honor that? you're our friend and a cutie mark crusader at heart, of course we'd be ok with this promise, I just hope your teacher or whatever she is, is treating you well alright?" To which the filly nodded, from Sweetie belle she only smiled "Of course! I have no problem with it really, like Ap's said here I hope she's not being a jerk to you just let us know and we'll cover for you at school alright?" With that the three fillies recited those famous words, Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. With that their promise was sealed even as a certain pink mare had sneezed upon hearing such words. The three fillies then began to discuss what they should do to earn their cutie marks, although a bit apprehensive at it, Scootalo might have had an idea. "Girls, I've been learning for only a few days now but I've made some ort of breakthrough here I'mma show you just don't freak out ok?" The two nodded although confused, much like a certain martial artist attempt the orange filly sat criss cross and slowly let her breath's calm, her heart slowing as her body and mind slowed to a crawl. Though just as impressive what was next shocked them, the light little blue hues of energy faintly outlining her body although for only a few moments as the sweat dripped from her brow as she released and panted slightly. The two fillies eyes went wide with shock although Sweetie belle squealed at this "How did you learn THAT? in just a few days to!? What even is that much less how did you figure out magic? I know all ponies have some magic but I've never seen you manifest magic before!" The orange filly smiled widely, felt good to have their support. "Well, I can't really tell you that alright? Let's just say I've been working hard lately and with this stuff its called Ki, apparently its an inner energy we all have all ponies maybe even the queens themselves! I'm not sure how my teacher learned it when I've never heard of something like it but ultimately I just find it fun and besides...." In her head she knew, it could help her soar just like rainbow dash. Applebloom nodded at it "Sounds like something Applejack could have learned, I know ma and pa have been out of town for the week to better get the farm's affairs in order but I would think maybe Rarity could know about it sweetie belle?" The white fillie shook her head although just as confused as the other "No I don't think so, I would think Rarity would be be more knowlegable but what strikes me as odd, this doesn't really sound like magic. I'm not the best at it myself but this just sounds weird, but cool!" Scootalo hadn't really thought of that, maybe if she asked it could be possible but she wasn't sure it'd be mighty suspicious as is that she's been going into the forest alone with Fluttershy out she was almost caught but all three of them vanishing till dark? that'd just be weird. "Really? I'm just a bit surprised you guys think its cool, my teacher's a very nice person but I wasn't really supposed to say this at all....well better out that in I gues." The three from then on kept this sacred vow in their heart, maybe it was a small promise but to keep it as secret as they could would be useful for their future. Growth doesn't stop even with your friends. *** Everfree Forest theme In the depths of the forest lie a woman who patiently awaited that strike, her eyes closed and her mind focused. The zing of the blast soared as she moved to the right, it struck to the left hitting her back and singing her outfit, sloppy. The second strike came from above as she narrowly moved out of the way. In these past few days she had been trying to better understand her own Ki and trying to improve but she wasn't getting much stronger or better if at all. Even with her home she saw little improvement but here? it was like night and day. She wasn't really improving no matter how much she pushed herself physically or mentally even battling that bastard in her mind did little to improve her power. Even as her aura singed with a black Ki as her hair spiked and the little control she had over this wrathful state swayed back and forth, her mind focused on the task she forced her arm to work for her, not the beast, as a pure wave of ki shot into the depths of the land tearing a tree apart as her strained body tried to move. The intense pressure on her mind faded as the sweat fell from her head, terrible. This wasn't nearly enough! What could she do... Sazuka's theme/training theme Her energy soared as her body was collected in a bright white aura dancing with sparks of electricity as the energy shot up she condensed her aura into a hand, then into a ball of Ki as she lowered the ball down then fired it, this time the energy was capable of bouncing on the tree's around her, standing still she focused on trying to evade the blast, pouring more energy into maintaning this Wrathful state. The energy sparked to life in her body as her hair stood up, it was hard enough keeping this manifested but controlling it was like trying to oppose the ocean. Her energy rose higher and higher at a peak of 10x her original state. Her body filled with this pure malice and rage as the ball flew faster and faster with each evasion, the wiz of the hot ki fading just as quickly as it arrived. Not good enough! She needed a battle, her mind shouted, she needed something to truly push herself or she'd never get better at this. For a while she focused this time trying to let the anger out through her movements, channel the rage into a powerful response while keeping her wits. She knew it best to find an opponent but that was hard enough, many things simply wished to kill her, she needed a real opponent. Someone willing to take a blow or two and willing to keep pushing her as a rival. Her mind fell apart, the energy slack, whisked away in a burst of pure determination as the energy faded into its normal white color. The energy flowing around her body as she sighed in relief. For some time she thought on her methods, was it truly ok to be training a kid? She felt weird even thinking that, in her mind this kid didn't deserve the hardships that came with manifesting ki, what if she had shown it to her friends? her family? what kinds of questions would they ask to a kid who could glow with a power never before seen. What more was the thoughts of home, would she ever get back much less escape? She knew it better than to dash the dream of a child if she ever did leave but did she truly wish to go home? Sure she loved her family farm and the land around her but she never really had friends, those that were friends were neighbors and the local market. The brimming guilt, not even having found a way much less attempted to do so made her feel nothing but shame. Grandfather would call her a child for not thinking clearly. With the brimming tears quickly fading as she shook her head, she shot into the air and then back down with her breath calm as she vanished in a blur into the forest, gathering what she could from what she could feel usually grabbing the little plants that she could cook up into something mildly edible such as little berries that with enough testing she had found to be somewhat edible. The warrior blitzed past even the smallest of animals brushing past them as the land felt the pressure, landing back at her camp she set down her collection of various berries setting them into a leaf-covered primitive bowl. The prickling of the cold breeze sending a light shiver down her spine. Something caught her eye, that little push of the leave and brush was enough for her to call out "Who's there?" With no response she tried to feel out any presence even something simple like an animal but no such luck. The energy she could feel was very weird, like a constantly shifting presence like multiple beings but she couldn't get it down fully. From the shadows stumbled simply a bunny, it gave her an odd glare though and bounced its way up to her, the thing tried to get her attention by kicking quite hard for something so delicate that she simply took a bit confused but shrugged it off. For the past few days, something had been gnawing at her, leaving her feeling unsettled by the presence of the filly and the other ponies around her. It was more than just a feeling of unease; there was a strange energy emanating from them that she couldn't quite put her hoof on. Despite seeing them as harmless, there was an air of mystery surrounding them that she couldn't ignore. What was the source of this odd energy? If magic was the answer, why couldn't she sense their life signature? But what really struck a chord with her was something Scootaloo had mentioned the day before. Why hadn't she ventured into town to meet other ponies? What was holding her back from forming connections and making friends? Sure, Scootaloo was great company, but would a group of outsiders, essentially aliens to her, accept her as one of their own without hesitation? These questions weighed heavily on her mind, stirring up a sense of longing and curiosity that she couldn't shake. As she pondered these thoughts, a sense of fear rose in her heart. They could possibly accept her, but there was no guarantee of such a fate. She felt it better to stick to the path she has put herself on, if she were to meddle with this new world's people she could damage things or make them worse even more so than she could possibly imagine. She wasn't a science enthusiast back in school, but tampering with things you had no business in was never a good idea, regardless of the place or time. As rain trickled down she puffed her cheeks, well better time than any to get back into training, its all she really could do considering her lack of growth. As rain trickled down her face the pressure of this grew more and more, she had fashioned her own weighted gi and all not that long ago but this would be trickier, she'd need a heavier material but she had no means of acquiring as such. Best to try out that technique then, while not the most practical it may be her best physical method. Her aura gently glowed around her body as from her own shadow arose a shadow, a clone of herself. The clone although nigh-perfect had no eyes or mouth, it was a hard technique just to go get down much less accomplish but it seems part of the training she's been working on must've made some effort. Relaxing her racing heart, filled with exhilaration, she grinned as she adopted a stance reminiscent of her grandfather's martial arts style. With one arm lightly clenched at her chest, fist bundled, and legs evenly spread, she positioned her other arm slightly ahead at a slight angle. Just as thunder roared, they sprang into motion, the force of their clash shattering the neighboring tree into pieces. Her first strike, aimed at the gut, met resistance as her opponent deftly blocked it, retaliating with a solid blow to her chest that sent her reeling several feet back, her resolve anchored by a surge of pure aura. Seizing the advantage, she surged forward, propelling herself off the ground as her opponent's blow narrowly missed her side. Swiftly, she delivered a powerful kick deep into their gut, following up with an overhead strike aimed at their skull, intending to slam them into the ground and secure victory. As their auras clashed, crackling with bursts of pure energy, the recovering clone's hands met hers in a gripping struggle. Suddenly, the clone drove its head into hers, blood trickling from her nose, before thrusting her back with a compressed ki-ball against her side. To cap it off, it launched a blade-like strike aimed at her gut. Struggling to contain her churning stomach after the fierce blow, she wiped away the blood trickling onto her hand with a smirk, her aura pulsating with wisps of light white orbs. Despite her inner turmoil, she exuded a sense of calm as she prepared to face her unyielding opponent once more. With both combatants assuming their stances, the clash of fists resumed, becoming a relentless exchange. Despite the exhilaration coursing through her veins, she remained focused, her heart pounding with determination. Her opponent, unyielding and unemotional, matched her move for move. Even as she delivered a fatal strike, snapping its neck with an audible crack, the clone showed no signs of relenting. In response, her own clone attempted a similar maneuver, the sound of bones cracking echoing through the air. Perhaps it was reckless to imbue them with such lethality, but she needed the challenge, the impetus to push herself further and grow stronger. For several hours energy crackled and shocked the ground, blood spilled and her own tired and exhausted body working overtime even as the clone finally faded so did her remaining strength, although not badly damaged she knew it better than to worry about that right now. Maybe this wasn't so bad, if she could just refine it, make it deadlier, harsher, whatever it needed for her to gain that strength. *** In the farthest corners of a certain purple unicorn's library, whispers of a peculiar centaur had begun to circulate, albeit without any solid foundation, at least in the realm of logic. Intrigued by the description she had been given, she noted that others she had queried had similarly reported sightings of this enigmatic creature. But what could possibly account for such a phenomenon? The day had been draped in a cloak of rain, prompting her to speculate that something unusual might have been afoot. Yet, as days passed with no resolution in sight, the puzzle only grew more confounding. What exactly was going on? If indeed it were a centaur, what motivations could drive it to conceal itself so thoroughly, even going to the lengths of avoiding contact? The situation took an even stranger turn when she learned of the theft of a significant quantity of apples from the local Apple farm. While theft was not uncommon, the specificity of targeting just apples was perplexing. However, the true peculiarity lay in the alleged appearance of the perpetrator. According to the youngest member of the Apple family, Applebloom, the culprit was described as a large, bipedal creature adorned with leafy-green coverings—a description that matched reports from others, including Pinkie. Yet, this alone failed to satisfy her curiosity. If this were indeed a centaur, why would it resort to theft? Hunger seemed the most plausible explanation, but even then, why carry out such acts in broad daylight without attempting to conceal its presence thereafter? The situation appeared far too haphazard, too disjointed, to simply attribute to ordinary criminal behavior. Nevertheless, it was the only lead she had at present, and thus, she resolved to delve deeper into the mystery. Her cousin watched with a light chuckle startling the young Unicorn "You know twilight for someone who prides themselves on being stuck in books I haven't seen you this dedicated in a while, not since Celestia's school for gifted ponies, why the interest in something like some random thief? I'm sure the local police will have no issue. The pegacorn smiled at her cousin, levitating some lunch just some soup with some light tea. The unicorn sighed and using her magic consumed some of said, cringing at her cousins horrible cooking but eating it none the less. "I know but what's most odd is that this filly has been seen near the everfree forest, only one occasion so far but since then I haven't been able to get a chance to talk to her, makes me wonder myself if that-" "What that a filly's helping some bigger thief steal apples? Twilight, if anything I'm sure the kid just got scared and doesn't want to talk about the monsters in the forest, I know I wouldn't." The unicorn rolled her eyes "No Cadence, what weirds me out is that ponies all around town saw this thing but we haven't, nor spike or even this filly likely. Why steal apples? its only been a few days and I can't help but shake the suspicion something's just out of reach, but you're not wrong on one thing, this filly likely has nothing to do with this. Just is an odd puzzle, personally I'd like to study whatever this thing is." The pegacorn chuckled but nodded "That we can both agree on, but we both know it won't do you any good to stay up all evening worrying about some grand mystery of the apple thief. Besides, why don't you talk to those ponies you took the gala I set you up with? They are nice ponies and they all seemed to be friendly around you, you know possibly they could be friends?" The Unicorn shook her head again, feeling slightly annoyed "Yes Cadence I'm sure the talks of fashion and apples will benefit someone but I really don't see why I need to befriend them? Sure they went to the gala with me but we didn't really talk and even when we did I just felt it weird. Too loud if you ask me, especially that rainbow dash character." The pegacorn sighed herself mentally, oh how her cousin could be sometimes. In time she was sure she'd learn of friends but she was a bit interested in this creature herself, seemed friendly enough, but couldn't worry too much about that it was only apples after all. *** As the evening transitioned seamlessly into night, Scootaloo found herself gazing at the stars, her spirits somewhat subdued. She couldn't shake the feeling of concern for her teacher, despite their relatively short acquaintance. It struck her as odd that her teacher rarely frequented the town. Although she had gratefully accepted Scootaloo's assistance with food just two days prior, the infrequency of her visits left an unsettling impression. She was undeniably kind, whether in her equine or human form. Confusion swirled within Scootaloo as she grappled with the weight of this secret. Despite her youthful exuberance, she was acutely aware of her limitations; she could never match the swiftness of most pegasi, particularly not Rainbow Dash. The introduction of Ki teachings had caught her off guard. How was she supposed to comprehend such esoteric knowledge? Yet, the inability to witness her teacher's happiness firsthand left a bitter taste in her mouth. All she desired was to see her mentor content and fulfilled. Perhaps it was unrealistic for a child to shoulder the burden of another's emotions, but in her youthful idealism, Scootaloo clung to hope. Rising from her contemplation, she mounted her scooter and made her way towards the orphanage, a small beacon of familiarity in the midst of uncertainty. *** As night descended, Sazuka felt the weight of exhaustion settle upon her, ushering in the embrace of slumber. She could sense its approach, the gentle tendrils of sleep reaching out to envelop her consciousness. Yet, even in the tranquility of rest, the beast within her stirred, its presence a constant reminder of the rigorous training days and the current burdens weighing heavily upon her. As darkness descended upon her mind, the beast roared, a primal echo of her inner turmoil. But amidst the chaos of her thoughts, a glimmer of hope emerged—a shimmering figure materializing in the darkness, her student. For her sake, for the sake of the child who had become her first friend, Sazuka refused to succumb to despair or fear. She couldn't afford to, not when her student deserved guidance and support. As swiftly as she had drifted into slumber, Sazuka was jolted awake, the rush of air against her face as she burst into flight. Soaring high above the forest, she observed the town below, a mosaic of twinkling lights and fading candle flames—a breathtaking spectacle. The land below sparkled with a beauty that stirred something within her, reminiscent of the splendor of her own farm, though incomparable in its own right. Yet, amidst the enchanting vista, Canterlot shone like a beacon in the distance, its brilliance undimmed by the cloak of night. Despite her reservations, Sazuka couldn't resist the pull of curiosity, her energy crackling behind her as she descended slowly, cautiously, just beneath the billowing clouds. The brimming energy behind her masking her own senses of the cyan pegasus on her own night flight, Rainbow was never one for being too relaxed and tonight was no different although the presence of something in the air confused her, it was bipedal and had some weird clothes much like that Rarity would make for them. Wandering over with a flap of her wings the boastful pegaus called out "Hey there! Lovely night, can I ask what you are?" The creature clearly heard her, she couldn't see its face to well but this was odd, the moment it heard her the thing flew, really fast. Though a bit confused the mare wouldn't pass up the opportunity to meet something like this. The mare's own wings glowed a vibrant magic as her own flaps increased with a light streak behind her as the two beings raced in the sky, from below the canterlot ponies got at least a decent lightshow full of color bursting in the air. The pegasus narrowed her eyes pushing her make-shift goggle down onto her eyes as her own speed blitzed nearly catching the creature...almost....there! From Sazuka's eyes the hearing of someone catching her wasn't good, it was bad enough she risked teaching that kid now this? All of this was getting to be too much, if she was found out she wasn't entirely sure herself who this pony was, she did have the vague feeling of energy although that could be just that magic. The rainbow streak in her head might've been this Rainbowdash that Scoots would mention but she wasn't going to worry about that. She had to get away, and fast. Although that seemed simple this girl was fast, very fast. In all honesty, this pony was probably faster than her even in her wrathful form, without proper control she'd be in a mess and even now it would be best to flee. Her energy wasn't as high as she wished and she was just going for a stroll! She had to think, and fast. The leftover energy she had would be enough to make a smoke screen but she'd be knocked out if she did that....the best she could do was try and evade hopefully lose track of her. With a burst of her aura she picked up speed the moment she could feel the singe of that magic and the slightest of touches from that pegasus, her aura burst and acted like a booster propelling her as fast as her lowering energy could carry her, she may not have the proper reserves for something like this but this was her best option. The two raced neck and neck, barely out of view the pegasus could see what looked like a minotaur although they had a tail? Were they some sort of pony/centaur hybrid? Why were they fleeing, they were clearly both on a night stroll why the hurry? Her own wings burned with exhaustion although she's been through much worse, she's gotta do this! The two zipped around the clouds, their own energy flowing rapidly and shinning above the clouds, not far a duo of Alicorns looked to the light show, Celestia smiling with mirth at this display "Seems the one you sensed not that long ago Luna has come, although I was surprised to learn they are not from our world, much less their own. Although, I shouldn't be surprised since you had an encounter dear sister" The monarch snickered at her sister, the sister in turn rolling her eyes. "Sister, you know as well as I do dreams don't escape me even of something from the stars. Although, I will say I'm a bit shocked to admit since then their dreams have become inaccessible to my touch, as if they are rejecting the moon and its glow, though considering the circumstances I do hope if we ever meet, they do not reject my moon another time." The mare looked a bit annoyed, her nearly perfect beauty shinning as a sneer formed on her face. Here sat the mare of the sun and light, Celestia a rather tall mare around 12ft tall, Clad in a bright golden warriors armor the centerpiece on her chest plate a golden gem formed into the shape of a sun, bright golden armor covered the edges of her wings and filled most of her form. Her eyes a radiant mix of gold and magenta with a cat-like look to her eyes, Celestia's mane was a shimmering radiant color of pure orange almost a gold color. Although from afar the mare looked rather scary with her blackened eyes with sun-like orb for eyes. Next to her was her Sister, The mistress of the moon and all that it surveys, dreams, tides, even gravity bent to her will. The Alicorn although younger than her sister was just as stunning. The mare sat at an imposing height on par with her sister although her horn was shorter. The mare had a pure body, a dark color almost purple color with black highlights all around her tail and even on her flank around her cutie mark, Her eyes like her sister are cat-like with a silver armor covering most of her body eve on her wings. The two sister were a paragon of beauty most mares not dare dream of becoming. Back in the sky above, the two wooshed and rushed as the energy fluttered and began to fade from the aura she burst forth, her energy was falling and fast. She needed to get away and soon, if anything she could call forth more energy in reserves but she needed her strength..... As the two raced on, the sky became increasingly blurry, and eventually the pegasus gave up, although she still wanted to race the being again, as the sky began to become increasingly blurry. Feeling this kind of thrill again would be amazing. While her body was weak, Sabika could feel herself becoming weaker by the second as she gradually lowered herself toward the ground, feeling her energy slowly fading until she finally took the time to see the woman standing before her. In a brief flash of energy, the power of the Oozaru blazed through her as she crashed into the ground harshly but safely. The energy flowed free from her body as she relaxed, her hair fluttered back and forth due to the exhaustion the ape somewhat gaining a small semblance of control over her own Ki. As her eyes fluttered back and forth, her mind falling between consciousness and passing out she could vaguely see a shape maybe orange or yellow? although the thing that came to her mind elicted one word from her...."Mother...father....I'm so sorry....." The being before her looked upon the fallen warrior with concern as the pegasai smiled softly, words that Sazuka couldn't be heard as the world finally went dark. Book 1: Chapter 2, End. > Book 1: Chapter 3 Part 1: Friend or foe? Beast or pony? > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Book 1 Chapter 3: Bonds Forged, Truths exposed Arc 1: The values of Friends Last time on our story we witnessed a fierce race between some of the fastest beings in the world racing to avoid or catch the other, although weakened Sazuka managed to avoid a fatal blow and simply crashed into the ground. With Scootaloo a bit confused as to where her teacher would be this day she wasn't going to question it, simply going to School as she did most days. Now the newest chapter of our adventure, begins now! Don't stop, don't stop, we're in luck now! Don't stop, there's so much to be found! We can find paradise, All we have to do is go, go free your soul! Sazuka is seen flying high above with both Fluttershy and Scootaloo alongside ainbowdash, their auras exploding as they dash further along and higher above in the heavens. Mysteries abound, made of a deep energy (energy)! Foes all around, but I will go fearless and free! I'll give you strength, you give me love, that's how we'll live! (mamoru yo)! My courage won't fade, if you're with me, my enemies can never win! We will fight for love and glory, We will live to tell the story, There is nothing we can't live through, Nothing ever dies, we will rise again! From the darkness rises a black energy, Sazuka battling some oddly shaped dragon-like foe with their fists clashing as behind we see Twilight unleashing a torrent of magic at the Changelings, Applejack bucking a few high into the air with rainbow crashing them into the ground below. Don't stop, don't stop, we're in luck now! Don't stop, keep your spirit proud! And ride upon the wind, All we have to do is go! Don't stop, don't stop, we're in luck now! Don't stop, there's so much to be found! We can find paradise, All we have to do is go, go free your soul, Sazukas hair is lighten with a tinge of a odd golden color with her aura burst open and her eyes gone, before her is a strange bipedal being as the black magic swathed before them the two clashed and the energy erupted all around them. DRAGON SOUL! From the sky comes down Sazuka in her base form giving Scoots a hug with a peace sign as the mane six, the princess's, the students and many others all pose for a photo with a click sounding as the energy explodes around Sazuka into a golden color for a brief moment. *** Last time on Sullen warrior, we saw our hero ty to evade capture at the hands of a pegasus with the training of Scootaloo halted for the time being Our hero must rest although, unknown to them a friendly couple had noticed the fallen creature and aided them to the hospital. Now, the adventure continues! The darkness around her filled with her a sense of relief, on one hand if she was dead least she would see her parents once more but this wasn't the reality she deserved, far from it. With her eyes fluttering open she noticed a white blur, upon her eyes focusing came the bright colors shimmering from the light outside, wincing at the light she shook her head and sat up noticing some bandages around her hand, arm and even on her leg, from the bandages she could assume she was hurt but what had the idea of helping her out. In the room she could see bright white almost a searing color into her eyes with a light beeping in the background, she could only vaguely hear it as she tried to get up feeling her side singe with a shot of pain as she clutched it feeling her heart thump in her chest. The pressure she felt build in her chest could only be pushed out with harsh exhales, trying to push aside her own weakness before a ringing in her ears sounded. In her blurry vision a white mare shined brightly, mouthing words she could barely hear herself and while tying to stand up two more arrived quickly putting the weakened warrior back onto the bed. "Where....am I?" The woman could only mutter out, her vision all a messy blur as one of the ponies spoke something, writing it down before the nurse it seemed like mouthed something else before her ringing faded. Her hands rubbing her eyes attempting to clear the blur, her eyes teared up as she blinked it away before asking "Who...are you?" The mare only nodded at the question before speaking. "I'm simply a nurse, Nurse Redheart ma'am. I apologize for the momentary ringing you've been resting for around 2 days now, we weren't sure how to help you so we did our best with pain reducing medicine and patching up cuts and wounds on your body. You're quite lucky the lady, you have several bones that looked to be cracked or even damaged in some areas although in such a short amount of time your body had miraculously repaired these damaged areas and then seemed to reinforce them." The nurse herself rather excited at the prospect of a healing patient, must come with the job Sazuka supposed. Her mother spoke high of those in the medical care industry. "I do apologize for any issues I may have caused but I would like to be allowed to leave if its alright, my body can't sit still for very long, I must return to my home." The nurse chuckled shaking her head "I am sorry but no, we aren't sure you're fully healed much less in working order. Your body may have healed well but we don't know if this is temporary but we can-" Her mind felt just as fuzzy as the words faded as she fell back to her slumber, her mind overcome with the drugs filtered into her system. In her head all she could see was the black void of her sins, her hands covered in the blood of the innocents before her, Screams from the bowels of hell roaring at her with fury. The energy flowed around her wildly as a blackened aura shined and exploded around her body, her muscles growing larger and her shirt becoming more strained, her hair sticking up with her eyes glowing a golden-brown color. The ape had been unleashed as the heat covered her, she tried to reign it in, her own aura shinning through as her hair flowed back and forth with energy, her fist pounding into the ground below as a red aura collides within the set, flashing bright colors as her eyes narrowed with her mind trying to force the power under control. "This power is mine and mine alone, I will not let you slaughter another family...I swear it!" She grit her teeth, the words laced with venom as the energy flowed around her body as her aura relaxed soon becoming a pure red as her eyes remained...focused. The Oozaru raged from within damming this child from the pits, the beasts fur stood up as it snarled in her direction. The beast charged, first releasing a beam from its maw aimed at the girl as she vanished just narrowly avoiding it, the blast exploding a brilliant display of primal rage and color. "You claim my power as yours? what a pathetic display, removing your emotions in favor of pure instinct, can you even understand what I'm telling you child?" It snarled at her as the beast felt the singe of a blow on its hand, grinning from ear to ear it chomped down on the girls hand, the blood spilling as quickly as the bite hit, the girl feeling the intensity and the instincts rise from within, kicking the Oozaru's eye with enough force to shatter her own. The beast screeched in agony as it charged in once more, though tearing the girls fist, this was all in the mind of a broken girl after all. One who would submit and become the soldier she was destined to be! The two beasts clashed, one filled with pure instinct the other a raging beast with no control. The roaring beast glowered down at her as her body shook, the power bestowed to her rejected by her will, in a snap the energy fluttered to a sputtering zero. The beast snarled as it prepared a blast from its maw, tearing through its throat as the energy grew larger and larger while its jaw cracked from the pressure releasing a massive blast, the energy singed the area as it roared past her, her tail shaking in the brimming excitement building in her heart. The energy crackled around her body as she clenched her fists tightly. This instinct building in her, she never liked fighting others, not even those who deserved it. This was no different, even as she couldn't fight the urge to continue, she couldn't help but hate herself. The beast snarled as the blast made contact in a puff of smoke the monster roared, beating its chest as the energy flowed around it. From the smolder rose her once more in this state of pure instinct. The roaring beast smoldered with a fire that formed into a blazing aura, a state of pure fighting bloodlust, the desire to battle, the desire to break them, break herself eve if it meant she could battle. The beast snarled and prepared a second blast, only that blazing heat shined with her movements as the first contact was her fist on the leg snapping it, the monster howled in agony willing itself to continue as the second blow came, a pressurized tap on the arm, below the elbow just enough for it to be useless, although temporary. It could feel the blazing heat behind the next blow to the gut leaving it lurching and heaving saliva onto the ground awaiting her final blow, to its joy the woman hesitated her own will overriding this state. "You claim to be stronger, wish that it were so simple to just get a power-up and overcome your troubles child, but you will never understand such gifts fitting for one who calls themselves a human." Outside her own mind, the doctors noted her own vitals dropping then rising in rapid succession, this normally wasn't a sight to behold. This....thing, whatever it was looked like it was pain. Her body was healed at least in the doctor's mind, Doctor Hooves to be exact, a kind fellow who often was associated with his love of ponies and their science. The kind doctor wasn't one to discount that this thing, if it was an alien then their biology might not be responding well to the pain suppressant medicine. She had been given enough to keep a griffon drugged up for a month and her body still rejected the medicine, like a wild beast in a cage. The room was on watch, two security guards on stand by given the special case of this patient and 2 rotating nurses, Nurse Redheart and Nurse Shy, hopefully this person's condition would improve but as it looked, the sweat and the intense heat from her body, that odd color surrounding her body and the pain rejection it appeared as if by all medical reasons that her body was too alien to be treated at least by normal standards. *** Far from the hospital was a confused and somewhat worried Scootaloo, she hadn't seen her teacher in a few days now and that got her worried. Sure they haven't known each other for long but to vanish just like that after a pinkie promise? it felt wrong. Though she could just be busy, still she worried for her teacher even if they weren't too close. The young filly's thoughts were broken by her teacher calling her name, the filly looked to her bright teacher who smiled although she could see the annoyance in such a smile "Scootaloo, though the clouds are lovely today I would ask that you please pay attention alright? you may day-dream at lunch." The teacher sighed but tuned back to the lesson although the filly did pay attention it remained in the back of her head about her teacher. As the time passed soon came time for lunch and heading out the filly found herself at the table with her friends still trying to think of what her teacher could be or more apparent where she was. Her thoughts were broken by the earth pony lightly patting her back "Oh sorry Applebloom just not feeling great I guess...Sorry if I'm not as hyper-active as normal." "Oh that teacher? Ahm sure she's fine scoots, probably just sick is all!" The filly felt it weird for scoots to be this worried about someone she had only recently met but if this thing was truly the only one of its kind, on some level she could see why scoots worried for them. "yea scoots besides, the way you manifested that uh Ki stuff, I'm sure your teachers ok!" Sweetie belle herself didn't know if they could truly keep it a secret but between these three they knew better than to break a promise. *** Back in the hospital the power raged from within, a snap and the nurse's rushed to the room as the woman's body shimmered in a bright aura as her eyes shot open a flaming heat steaming from her body as the energy coursed into her hand, the woman shakily got her legs up as she tried to shakily adjust her own weight trying even to stand up with the nurses shouting at her to get back in bed, her own hearing nothing more than a fuzzy haze. The energy burning like the sun in her heart, thumping back and forth as she could feel her own body ripple with energy. The very essence of her body shinning, she had to get out, she felt too constricted! With the guards quickly aiming to get her on the bed although barely able to wrestle the woman onto the bed the issue was clear. Though her fiery energy calmed down, Doctor whooves who himself was pre-occupied and later finding the guards out of breath and the two nurses although dazed not hurt, he didn't feel it right this person remained in their care. They had no real idea how to treat them and even if they could, He wasn't willing to risk it and so although against standard protocol had a letter sent to the canterlot courts who he hoped would reach the queen's and they could offer aid. Sazuka could barely feel her own Ki much less the energy brimming off of her hand, her hand convulsed as the growth began. The slow ripples of the clothing as she mashed a fist into the stand shattering it upon impact, her eyes flashing a blood red as a snarl escaped her jaw. Her energy reigned itself as the aura glowed brightly to the nurse and doctor's shock as her hair fluttered up and down it what appeared to be a light show to observers. The blazing aura shinning from her body terrified all but one, Nurse fluttershy despite the doctor's protests and yells she quietly went to the woman's aid and put a hoof to her body and softly spoke "I um....Don't meant to intrude ma'am but I hope you know, you're going to be ok. You will make it." The gentle voice, the soft touch and that calming voice although quiet in the raging ape's mind it felt soothing, akin to home, mother and father. Her mind slowly winding down as her vitals soon taken after had been noted as having risen over previously low levels although nurse Fluttershy for the time being would be the main nurse for this patient although Whooves felt a bit silly having asked for the queen's aid, although it couldn't hurt to try. Nurse shy in question herself squeemish, she wasn't sure why she did that but she couldn't help but want to help such a poor thing, it looked to be battling more than just medicine, probably from helping animals near the everfree. She has noticed some animals talking about some strange fire popping up in the woods. From the left side of the bed the nurse felt her patient's odd hoof softly clench the bed, with a pant of effort the thing sat up and though she was unsure how to approach this thing, she knew right now she needed to be there. it looked lonely. She wasn't sure if the patient could speak but gently spoke to her "I hope I'm not being too forward when I ask this but are you ok?" The patient looked to her own garb, noticing the lack of an outfit and from the shadow were two bright eyes almost a pure yellow color, like an animals. "I......I just wanted to ask where my outfit was....Its rather important....." The meek response wasn't unexpected especially after an attack like the hours before but this was was most unexpected, a meek outside who seemed more gentle and more scared than anything. "I'm terribly sorry, but it seems there was a mix-up with that particular area. A friend of mine, Miss Rarity, graciously offered to assist. She's quite renowned in the fashion world. I'm confident everything will be ok....If it's not too much trouble, could I ask about what you are? "I guess....it reminds me of my mother and father, they've been....away for a time and I haven't seen home in quite a while now. it's one of the few things that ties me to that home....I apologize for the request but is there any chance I can get food soon? I'm not the most familiar with medicine, not even from my little home but I'm quite hungry..." The mare gave a small smile and nodded, exiting and though not the most appealing when she returned she had a tray consisting of milk, crackers, orange juice, and a small piece of bread. The mare was rather shocked to see this person or female, as they were keenly aware of that when undressing her how she woofed down the food and smiled lightly. From Sazuka's view she wasn't the most happy with this, she would've liked some rice and a big pound of meat but if anything they were ponies so meat probably wasn't the most widely eaten meal even by the most noble. Although still weak she did have some nice sleep even after her struggle, maybe that was the pain medication talking but it felt relaxing like the wilderness. Her tail waved in the wind as it coiled around her waist, the mare next to her smiling, it felt at peace even for this short while though the prospect of leaving still remained on her mind. She had been practicing for these two weeks she's been to this world by now but she couldn't feel their energy much less Scootaloos something just needed to click right? What could be the missing piece be, she tried to hone her own sense pressing her ki into her senses and trying to amplify them for a short duration but no such luck. She did feel stronger but there wasn't the time to worry on that, if anything she needed to figure out how to sense these people, even if it was magic the ability to perceive them was key. Though she was sure she looked weird to be just thinking to herself like this, but it couldn't be helped. Her rampant Ki was also a issue, no matter her training so far she didn't seem to aid in controlling this rage if there was a more docile method of improving this she was more than happy but currently that option seemed useless. If she had the proper output of Ki and the proper enviornment it was possible but she wasn't sure if it would work. Keeping her hands still and her heartbeat slowing as the vitals dropped the nurse alerted the doctor to the problem who rushed in although to their surprise she seemed fine. In Sazuka's mind she was trying to channel that energy, it was risky but if she could just learn how to focus it, wield it more like a tool than a weapon. To Doc whooves, he wasn't sure how to act instead just asking they monitor and alert him if anything negative occurs. Asking that Nurse fluttershy remain here for the time being, apologizing even for her being put onto another shift. The mare only gave a small smile and shook her head "Sir you know when you hired me, I don't mind helping others especially one who's in the situation she's in, if anything I'm just glad to be here." The stallion chuckled at those words and nodded before levitating his board and paper onto his hoove "Now I must preface this nurse, you understand that as a newly discovered creature it is our job to help them, not to exploit nor to make them feel uncomfortable even to the queens...I just hope that we both agree on this." The stallion's normally kind face vanished in a moment, a stern and cold doctor taking his place. Although the nurse remained steadfast only giggling at the idea. "I know doctor, I took that oath and many others when I began this job, I won't let our patient down much less you." The mare smiled to which the stallion did in return. For the next few hours the nurse remained near the patient, close to ensure their vitals were stable while the patient laid in their bed, quiet yet fine all the same and to the mare that's what mattered right now. For all seemed right in this world at the moment, in the shadows brewed an ancient power long cast aside by the royal queens which once was thought erased. Until now. *** Deep in the forest a brimming light shined into the air as a power of both pure flame and one of pure black sparkled into the earth below. Formed of a shadow and the very sun she once ruled laid a Alicorn filly. Although weak the filly could barely sustain this form, it was much to weak and could not handle her full strength. The creature felt a surge of pure energy as its aura exploded for a brief moment before lapsing, nearby was a small camp although the filly could barely sustain her own body she required sustanence and this would do, even if she needed to steal. The filly was of an average stature and beholden to her mish-mash of features was a cloudy-fiery mane with a galaxy-like pattern filling her very mane. The rest of the body was almost invisible although it was covered in a broken and regal ancient armor befitting one of ruling status, the strength needed to lift such things was virtually never heard of. The filly could barely hear the words of her mind pushing her forward, revenge, power, reclaiming, thy birthright. These words formed into her mind although had little meaning as the filly crashed into the bed of the camp and took the residence as her own, in time she would regain her might, she must. Book 1: Chapter 3 Part 1: End > Book 1: Chapter 3 Part 2: Hardship or budding friendship? > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Book 1: Chapter 3 Part 2: Hardship or budding friendship? Sazuka could feel her limbs creak with every stretch, despite the morning's shinning sun she knew better than to let her body get weaker. Keeping her legs and arms loosened was one of the first lessons her grandfather taught her. The nurse entered the room quickly sizing up her standing patient and hurried her back into bed with a tiny glare. "Miss Sazuka, though I am your nurse I am only going to repeat myself one time, please, by the queen please remain in bed, this is the fourth time I've caught you out of bed. I won't repeat myself again Ok?" Although not apparent to the human she stood tall at those words, it was like her mother all over again! She nodded at the terrifying glare from this mare, how one mare could possess such a power was something she'd never understand. Although brief it had been a quick 2 day further recovery, although not surprised doctor whooves upon a secondary x-ray had found that strangely her body began to quickly reinforce parts of her body, pieces of muscle and bone reinforced like a soldier with a healing spell. That was virtually impossible by most mages even the queens allegedly, but this creature healed at an explosive pace in just the short week she'd been here. Though the doctor was rather concerned for her mentally, sure she was just another patient in a long list but this was something alien to them entirely, she showed signs of paranoia and depression, often going quiet or being found crying by the nurse. He couldn't in good conscious recommend that she remain, after all no patient would be given treatment unless they wished. Through all his life, he never had imagined that someone like this would come along. Her bone structure, the power she displayed all showed signs of something alien yet calming. In his mind, maybe it was the stress of the job but even he couldn't help but feel at ease knowing at least one patient recovered physically. Though he was rather curious of this supposed glare, miss Fluttershy had been an animal doctor before being hired to the job personally by the queens for the kindness she showed even to the smallest of ponies. Though he wasn't sure if she would make a good nurse, he was proven wrong when even the most downtrodden and hopeless patients, some who were terminal and had only so long smiled, wept, laughed all because of nurse Fluttershy. In his heart, he was glad to have her along and for this patient? He was sure she'd be no different. He still wished to aid her mentally but she showed no real signs of trusting them, often ignoring food to what he imagined as meditation or was found last night fighting what looked to be ghosts to the point several guards had to restrain her back to bed, only for her 10 minutes later to fall asleep, not speaking even to himself or the nurse. In retrospect, he shouldn't have asked for the queens advice or aid on this, he was sure he could handle it alongside nurse fluttershy on the matter but the prospect of an alien was all too foreign in his mind. *** Deep in the Everfree Forest was the broken remains of an old castle, the first castle of the two sisters, no matter where they tread this forest was still home in its early days. For one filly it was a reminder of a grander time, one that all she wished could return. This filly was unnamed but her form resembled two sides of the same coin, the burning sun and the emotionless moon a shadowy flaming mass of metal and magic. Barely sustainable but just there, long enough to remain in her physical form. With The past of pony kind, there relayed two sisters one who became the moon and the other the sun, both loved each other dearly so much so they refused every sutor in favor remaining pure and kind to the ponies they ruled over. The realm they ruled in their eyes deserved nothing but the best of their efforts even if it meant they were lonely. This love between sisters began as all things with time, to fade, soon this love turned to a middling annyoance and then to resentment the other blaming the other for their issues. They once had a teacher, a bright unicorn by the name of Starswirl he helped them into their roles and even aided in their genuine efforts to improve and become the best rulers the could be. Such was the reality of ruling a massive realm I suppose. This divide became greater and greater over time, to the degree one nearly turned on the other out of jealously and hatred, this could not be allowed to pass. In a desperate attempt to avoid this fate their teacher with his last strength alongside his allies imprisoned their darkness, each sister as pure as the could be in his eyes. A deal had to be made, such was that never again the two sisters vowed to banish all darkness from this great world of theirs, even if meant staining their souls with the blood of darkness. What they didn't know, even to their horror was the state of teacher and his friends. Imprisoned in a dimension of pure darkness for so long, In order to seal such a powerful magic away the proper method required would take their pure souls, untainted by dark magic or alicorn lifespans. The two sister's wept for what the considered a second father even as their parents had long since left this realm, never did the believe he would be the hardest loss in life. From this darkness, taking form was no simple task. At one time it assumed the form of a hybrid of sorts, golden encrusted armor lighten by pure shadows, it deemed it time to strike this world free of their purity, return it to its former glory by any means necessary. This promise even led her sisters to find her again, afraid of their choice and wishing it not on anyone but themselves, even as the queen's most promising student and five mares restored the elements of harmony. Tools long lost to the sands of time, thought to be a myth even by them for their use against a chaos god. Even as the colors swirled and the energy flared and "purified" the darkness what was left was nothing but a filly, although no one knew of her much less this state. This child purified into it weakest state, loss of magic and the ability to reform into a proper adult it cursed them deeming them unfit to the heavens even as she wept at this tragedy. All she wanted was to be one, restore them to the balance that they once had, unify sisters in an eternal bond befitting the gods. For a time, all she could register was the feelings of hunger, the rumblings of her stomach and her need to become whole once again. The hunger wasn't an issue, using some illusion magic she was able to scrounge up the means to keep herself together but as her magic dwindled she couldn't help but second guess her intentions, would restoring them really help her? Would becoming one unify their bond or simply drive them apart again? This power, this magic was all she had yet she couldn't shake the feeling of an impending event, whatever it was it would change things that much she was sure of. Until one day she sensed them, another broken soul. They carried the power of a beast in a barely controllable state, like herself, they were of kin in this manner. She wished to aid them even at the cost of herself, her goal was all that mattered but saving another could be useful. The princess of the Eclipse's haphazard attempt to survive was nigh for naught until she found that camp, she had run low and while she wished to regain her full power the hatred and will is what drove her forward. All for the good of their bond. As she inspected the camp she was fortunate to find sustenance and a nice bed, considering the dirt she was used to. As the page turned on this chapter so did her strength, she felt it grow, little by little as she consumed what was around even applying the method of stealing from the beasts to satiate her hunger. The very spell used to seal her had long ince faded, though she loved her teacher as they did she couldn't help but resent the old fool. Attempting such magic was unheard and to seal them away was unheard of even by their power. Soon hunger turned to power but this feeling, this other soul wished for home and so did she. They were of kin in that regard and she prayed for their safe journey even if she knew her sisters to be watching such a pony, not one feather fell without their knowing their council and parliament made it their mission to dutifully server their rulers. She could feel her sisters but could they feel her? what would they say after she had been spared from the elements? These questions boggled her mind although she would rather rest and regain her strength than waste precious thoughts. *** The Sun shined down brightly upon the Apple Farm, bright and early the apple family quick go to work, Bright-mac and his wife Pear butter, two bright ponies upon the small town and while their in-laws often distaste for the other for a lack of a better word, they loved one another deeply and with their three children they did their best on their little farm. The farm ponies despite their age knew better than to waste a wink of sunlight, from the brightest dawn shined their three children, Applejack, Big mac and the latest addition from a few years ago, Applebloom. The three ponies worked hard on the farm never giving in even in the face of those horrid brothers who attempted to steal their buisness, even as a family they remained strong. From the crack of dawn there was plenty of work to be done but what confused them was Applebloom looking rather in thought, not that they didn't expect that she just worked hard and was rarely out of pace with her siblings. Applejack softly poked her sister's side for the filly to jump back and give a little eep, turning to her sister and sheepishly smiling "Oh hey Sis, what's up?" Her sister's eyebrow raised at her smaller sister "Ya know Applebloom, you've been working hard lately but you been spacing out, you doing alright?" "O-oh Yea! sorry just been thinking a lot lately about some things is all...." "Wanna tell me what it is? you do know you can come to be about anything." "Oh no its ok! its just something about scootaloo, she's been worried about someone she knows is all!" The older mare once more looked confused, she was sure that filly was ok but who could she be worried about that much to affect applebloom? rather strange but her sister's words is what drew her annoyance, it wasn't just worry there was something these fillies were talking about. She would never make her tell her but if this was important she hoped that she would come to her about it. Big-Mac soflty nudged his sister who smiled in return, soon the three went back to work with their ma and Pa peacefully watching from the porch although Bright-mac had noticed this in Applebloom he wasn't going to pressure the child himself, never big on talking about emotions least not with others. His wife only nuzzled him and giggled at his deep thought "Hun I'm sure she's fine its probably just one of their little crusades alright? I doubt its anything that important to be worrying over, she's a growing kid after all." *** Back in Ponyville it was of notice now to the great Fashionista that her sister was beginning to confuse her, first she was going more out to her little crusades with her friends and she didn't see scootaloo as often, not that she wasn't worried for the dear but her sister knew something. She had to, it began to concern her little by little. Turning to the bright filly she noticed much like Applebloom she seemed in thought more than usual, sure the kid was usually trying to think of new crusades like martial arts or even bowling to get into but they often failed but she admired her little sister's determination sometimes wishing she had some of that when designing new outfits. Giving the filly a light tap on the shoulder she chuckled "Now sweetie I appreciate thinking of new ideas for dresses's but we musn't falter after all, we've got some big orders to fill out alright? I would be more interested if you told me what you are in such deep thought over hm? maybe that cute dragon you had your eye on perhaps?" The fillies face instantly went red and heated with a steaming heat in her face as she quickly shook her head "No no no! I've just been thinking about Scootaloo really, I always wondered where she lives, she never tells us and I respect her choice but I'd like to see her family sometime, might be fun you know?" As much as the mare loved gossip she couldn't help but wonder the same thing herself, wondering if the filly even had family to speak of, she rarely ever talked about home and never seemed to mention anyone, she didn't want to assume home life might not be faint for the heart but the worry was still there even if this was her sister's friend. Turning back to the canvass that was her studio, she looked to her sister and smiled to which the filly smiled in return. The dress before was just one of many designs she had prepared, the queens were holding another gala quite soon and she wanted to invite those mares again and possibly even the girls along. It would be a fun night for them all to get away from the city even if that ruffian Rainbow dash would be the subject of many headache, that girl couldn't even sit still for a doctor! *** As the moon falls, the sun rise and on this day the sun wished a word with her sister. She was very much interested in this other worlder, her sister had failed to enter her dreams and even she knew her sister was no stallions fool in this manner. Heading down the hall she looked upon the glass, upon it laid the rememberences of her teacher, his allies and their wish to seal that darkness away. Upon entering her sister's room she noted her form, messy mane and having left her armor on it stand, with a small snicker she tread upon her and poked her shoulder, for her siter to jump with a eep most unroyl giving her a small glare in return. "Why dear sister I didn't think you were still a filly, must be my age, oh my poor sister still a baby even our ten thousand years later~" The bright mare smiled at her sister to which she got a light shove in return. "Sister while we doubt the accuracy of Thy statement I wish to implore something, this other worlder, do you believe they are safe? who knows what they harbor if they cannot be seen even in dreams. What troubles is me the contents of such a dream, blood and fire a conflicted soul harboring both hatred and light. Much like us....." "Well Sister if their dreams are anything to go off of, I think they could be probably scared. Another being from a world not our own being thrown into the chaos that is Eques and on their own? I would say in such a position, without you I would be afraid but do not fret. I'm sure twilight will handle the situation if such an issue arises." "I fear sometimes you put too much faith in our student, yes she is talented and a gifted mage but could she be up to the task of handling someone of another world? Should we not intervene in this, I would hope so, I have my doubts that she truly understands friendship and its lessons dear sister." Her sister nodded, with a smile as she laid upon the bed next to her sister. "While I agree to some extent, I wish that not all matters be settled by us and us alone, we may be rulers but we are not gods, though the power of the sun and moon bend to us at a whim we cannot forget they are this world's life, even the other worlder is of such respect as this. I do hope I am correct in my decision not to find them the first time they arrived to this world but I would hope my student can learn, she must." The smaller Alicorn nodded and sighed at this, nothing like this had ever befell her perview, a creature of another world refusing dreams and refusing her? nothing had ever done so and while she trusted her sister she couldn't help but wonder if this creature was a hostile, that ape, the ferocity and might it displayed while miniscule to herself or her sister even Cadence, it didn't bode well if such a power was unleashed. "Now on the topic of today, you've tried getting into their dreams right? how has that been going for you? I would guess its a bit exciting going into the dreams of something unknown." "As of yet not really, using much of my dream magic is used just to see the mind of the pony and view their dreams that much you know but their mind is like a maze, trying to unlock such a place has become an annoyance for me, more so that if your assumption is to be believed then why does their dream not open to the mistress of dreams? I have not since been able to view it although I've gotten small flashes, a roaring beast, a golden aura and the power of a mortal all on display, she's powerful, with the right training she could be a good knight for this kingdom sister." "Oh come now luna, I doubt myself that such a being is this powerful, if anything it might be a worthy trip to see them in person no? The summons from a doctor whooves tell us little of them but by the crown they have requested aid in this manner." Glowing brightly was a piece of paper with a cursive dialect not unlike some nobles and officials/members, the doctor was a good one, even by most professions he was at home treating others. "That could be a fun trip Tia but what of your student and those who brought the elements out of hiding? should they be alerted of this matter? You said so yourself that they deserve to handle the affairs of friendship but if this creature poses any risk it would be best to have them ready." The mare getting a weird look from her sister, sure it was logical to think this way but they couldn't do the same with every intruder to their land. If they did then the dragons would not be as charming nor as kind as they can be with stocks of gold. The bright mare nodded "While that is true sister as another kind has entered our world not native to this realm, we have a duty to at least find them if possible and seek them out. It is best to establish grounds for some level of co-operation, you know this better than I, you're the better diplomat after all~" Her sister only rolled her eyes at the comment. "By better diplomat you mean playing a word game and trying my best not to be annoyed by the gifts, flowers, admissions of love and so on by gently telling them no, then yes sister." The mare gave a snort of laughter at this and smiled hugging her sister to which the sun mare returned in full. *** From the hospital we see a bright and restless human, balancing and attempting to a push-up while hand-standing trying to remain as balanced as she could, from the door opening the women paid it no mind hearing the clatter of a fresh plate of food and liquids, keeping her mind as focused as she could with the gentle mare sighing at this. She shook her head as the woman stood up and cracked her limbs before sitting in the bed and quickly devouring the food. "I have to ask you if that's ok but why do you insist on pushing yourself physically? you can't fully recover if you waste your energy doing all this exercise miss Sazuka..." The shy mare gave a tiny glare and though the human gave a sheepish smile she swallowed the load of food before responding. "Well that's easy miss fluttershy, I have to keep up my training even if their is no immediate threat its always best to stay in shape to always be prepared and that means even when its my last day here." The mare cocked and eyebrow at the words before smiling "If you don't mind me asking, why put yourself through more training like this? it can't be good to do nothing but one thing all day or all the time you have in a day, when I go home I take time to help the animals but I try my best I suppose...." "I guess its a manner of work ethics here, I choose to keep pushing and you choose another path, I respect that. I just feel better doing something than sitting around doing nothing at all, never really questioned why I love the thrill of pushing myself to my limit but I do." From the doorway a soft glow eminated as the door opened to Doctor whooves, bright smile and all as he did a quick check of the patients body, hearing, heart rate, general things. The stallion noted the human's odd healing and with the mentions of this training, he supposed she was some sort of thrill seeker no one would willingly break their body just for more power even if they had some ultimate goal. "While I'm no expert I would hope next time you don't end up worse than when you were found in, your outfit has been ready for some time, I sent my thanks to your friend miss Fluttershy, nice pony that mare. If nothing else changes you appear find you'll be released by the end of the work day today, just to be sure of any possible lingering pain." The human nodded and not long after the time came, wishing the staff well she was sure to keep a low profile using her speed in brief bursts to head out through the back and directly to the woods. When arriving she couldn't help but feel a bit happy at the scent of the woods, felt like home if anything. *** Not long after the two queens made a quick visit not alerting their student, the bright doctor Whooves couldn't help but feel silly for asking for their aid but informed them of the patients departure, he reccomended they could wait for another possible visit but the mares looked rather annoyed, not at him but at the patients vanishing. The queen of dreams shook her head before turning to the sky above, the two mares taking their leave as the mare in the moon looked above "Sister, do you mind if I search for them? I know it to be odd but if this other worlder is to be found then I think it best the mistress of night do so right?" The older mare look to her sister with a bit of surprise "While I'm not opposed are you sure you wish to go alone? I'm no expert in alien cultures but wouldn't it be more prudent if we both go? I do not wish harm to come to you sister." The mare's bright eyes shinning with concern. "Sister I apologize for any issue but I must see to it, if we are to make contact then it is best one of the rulers make a first attempt at communication, besides you forget we are not frail rulers, I'm sure I will be ok this I promise." She smiled gently, nuzzling her sister lovingly who did so in return. The two mares smiled as the sun began to dim, her elder sister's bright horn glowing as it lowered further down and into the night, the mare gave a nod once more as she vanished into the night searching for such a beast. In the Everfree despite her former castle being here the land respect the two sisters and no creature dared oppose the gods of the sun and moon. With a glow of her horn the darkness gave way to light with a bright passage dug fresh in fact from something stepping on it. This must be a sign! The darkness brimming from her shadow-like visage shinning into the world below as she trekked further and further into the depths. From the darkness a small campfire light gently in the silent night, shinning before her as her senses kicked into gear, smiling gleefully the mare burst forth with incredible speed towards the camp. *** The bright fire was one of the few things that kept her warm besides the little hut she had made for herself, she felt like a bum if anything but it wasn't all bad. Meeting some friendly nurse and doctor, meeting Scootaloo to which she hoped the kid wasn't terribly worried she could just say that she had been out gathering supplies although when she made her way back to her camp she found it disturbed. The little hut had been slept in and some of her caught fish was gone, half of the load in fact! whatever came by was very hungry although something didn't feel right, felt too neat if anything but she wasn't going to spend all night worrying about some animal eating some of her food. Then a gust of wind, that wasn't natural something was closing in and quick, though she wasn't ready for a fight if need be she would defend herself. The shimmering light of her aura gently flowed as energy flew into her hand, before crushing it and trying to hone it. She could vaguely see it, it was there, that sense of energy but something was just wrong here. Using what tiny bits of energy she could she weaved past a glow of energy, the bright light singing past her as the dark mares large wings created a shadow of pure black over the fire even as the cat-like eyes peered into her soul she remained steadfast. Battle theme "Not Sure if you can understand me....thing. I wish not to battle but if you come any close you leave me no choice but to battle, please walk away, I am but a hermit looking for a way home." The creature didn't seem to know her words but could hear them, the creature gave no response. Even as its own energy flared and charged forth she could only narrowly avoid the blast as it came smacking it away with heavy effort, that felt like the oozaru but even greater! what was this thing!? The beast soared into the air before attempting with its horn to try and cut her off from escape, the notably high raise energy couple with this intense pressure, it could make her knees buckle if she wasn't trying her best right now, she had more than enough to hold it off but that didn't mean she could knock it out. Her best hope was to try and do any amount of damage she could, the alicorn soared above as its energy raised, unknowingly triggering the battle instincts of the saiyan woman as the blast smashed into her, trying to force it into the air the woman barely kicked the blast up into the air where it harmlessly exploded. From the right a single strike swept her off her feet followed by a light strike down near her head, this thing had the same idea huh. She could block the first hit but the second smashed into her arm creating a shockwave, she could feel every inch of her scream out to get away but her own instincts kicking in, her energy flowed as a white aura shined around her, then around the Alicorn. She hadn't perfect it but if this Ki bind was anything she could freeze her for a moment! "Hey hey! I don't want to fight you, I just wanna be left alone can't you understand me!?" To her shock the thing chuckled "Of course warrior, I know this but seeing you use such power that my sister and I thought to just be tall tales intrigues me, you and I will battle. If you can manage that long that is, your body betrays your thoughts you know, you shake with excitement even as your control fade." Shit, she wasn't wrong but what else could she do here? this thing was clearly just toying with her, on cue the mare simply flapped her wings and broke free of the bind as the ki shattered like glass, another strike this time a horn full of energy right at the chest with her just barely able to hold it as she was slammed against a tree with intense force. She had to think but this was getting too dangerous! If she was going to test her she might be dead when this over! If only....She grunted with effort as the blast singed to a halt her hands burning slightly with the singe of heat fresh on them. "You look excited yet you do not fight back warrior, am I wrong to assume you are just a hermit? maybe this is all a game for you, maybe you're truly hiding your power for fear. I must commend you, this has been fun but if this is all you can offer me then you will be the one to lose this game my friend." As a light drop of sweat fell down the human's face she couldn't help but feel excited, her blood pumping and her heart racing, this was a real fight! If this was going to be a test then she'd put all her effort in, she wouldn't dishonor her opponent like this. The aura burst from her body as her energy soared, crackling with electricity, the first strike was immediate this time aimed at the mare's side with one kick smashing right on target although to her surprise the mare barely moved or even showed an ounce of pain. Her eyes widened, for a brief moment her hair shot up with her energy rising and manigingly to slightly push the mare out of the way with the power deflate a second later. The second blow was a fist to the chest, just like before despite the energy pushed in and out the mare barely showed a thing, what was this thing made of?! no doubt she was just playing with her now but, she couldn't run away. not now. The higher her energy climbed the more she wore herself down, the forest became a crackling of magic and Ki while the warrior ziped, using her terrain to attempt a sneaky strike only to be swung down to the ground, she couldn't feel much energy from this thing, the pressure grew and so did her own instincts kicking in with her energy sparkling. "You're strange other worlder, you hold the power within and release it but your mind betrays you, you're trying to avoid me yet your strikes lack any real technique or power behind them. This is disapointing, if this is what you offer other worlder then I suppose this was a failed test." The mare sighed, shaking her head with the pressure vanishing. Though to her surprise and excitement the warrior's energy only grew, shooting up for a brief moment "No....I'm not done just yet, I've got enough in the tank to go for long but this....I want to escape but my body...won't let me. I'm too excited by this thrill, pushing myself against a wall this much? I wouldn't give this up for the world!" "I fear you misunderstand, you have no chance of winning. Even at your level you wouldn't even win against our student and you choose to continue? Warriors like yourself are one in a million, you push yourself so hard yet you can't attain victory. You choose defeat and learn with haste, truly an interesting challenge, I will take you on warrior, if you lose then I would ask that you answer my questions. In return if I lose, then you will be rid of me." The mare smiled at the woman's nod as she wiped the light blood dripping, her magic flaring s the woman's aura rose to the occasion. The two would battle to the ends of this world if they could, their energies rising rapidly as Luna smashed her hoof into the woman's stomach getting her to cough some spit only to get a blow in return to her face somewhat cracking a tiny piece of her armor, comendable if pointless. Crashing into the earth, Sazuka takes a step back quickly tearing off the weighted bands trying to improve her speed even f just a smidge, the two went blow for blow although Sazuka knew better than to assume she could win. The blow from before felt like hell, the second was the encasing of magic as she was thrown about like a toy, attempting to use it to her advantage she force a large portion of energy into her hand and as the sphere faded for the third blow, she released the blast burning hotter than the beats in her chest a move she called the Burning Attack, the sphere held intense heat fused with pure Ki to burn the opponent though as the blast exploded and brimmed with heat she could see the mare simply walk free from it with her only chuckling and dusting herself off. "Is this all you are capable of? such gusto yet no result." She couldn't get why but this mare took enjoyment in this game, she narrowly avoided a blast of pure magic that fizzled upon contact "Oh my, if you hadn't been quicker that would've knocked you out, most soldiers can't even handle one blow but you show promise young one, what an interesting battle this is." Sazka's heart beat skyrocketed, her blood pumping as the beast was let loose, forming a black aura around her she forced herself under control using only a tiny bit of this power, her hair spiking as her eyes turned a brilliant mix of golds and brown. The energy swirled and amassed to the mare's amusement, her own energy sizzling with brimming magic just waiting to be unleashed, sazuka knew it was risky but she needed that power! The energy soared as her eyes shined with brimming light, the visage of the Oozaru shinning behind her like a shadow. The mare charged and slammed her hoof forward punching right into the woman's side and dealing a nasty blow, the human barely able to stand even in this state. Her energy seared with heat as her body steamed with pure energy so hot it felt like fire. "What an odd power, forcing the control and infusing your pure instincts into this state. I'm sure you could control it in time but this manner is poor, unruly!" Her hoof once more slammed forward as the aura vanished from Sazuka her body barely able to handle even moving. "Y-yet...I still stand....I'm barely able to raise my ki anymore, she's strong...stronger than anything I've ever seen before. I can't feel her energy....when I met those ponies I could feel them but her? this is just insane its like I'm fighting the moon itself!" Those words echoed through the forest with the mare chuckling, wizzing past her as Sazuka powered one final trick. Pushing herself once again into that state and under control the energy rocketed higher with her own output exceeding what she could previously pull off.. "Wrathful I think I'll call it....my last ace in the hole...." The energy bled into her hand as a ball of pure light shined as a firey ring shone around it "One more...that's all I need....if I'm out cold then I'm toast but I'm not giving in....just one more.....one last try!" The blast shined brightly as the ball expanded into a fiery implosion of energy, this time aimed right at the mare. The fiery ki scorched the earth below as the energy plume exploded into a pillar of light. As the energy faded from her body she could feel her own sleep drawing near...little by little even as she was gently laid on the ground with the mare smiling from above. "Well met warrior, hopefully one day you can provide me some fun but this time you have proven your worth. When you wake I expect some answers but for the time being young one, you may rest..." Those gentle words sounded just like a dream really, couldn't help but feel the drowziness overtake her even as her body ached for more battle. Book 1: Chapter 3 part 2: End! > Book 1: Chapter 4: Meeting the Strongest Under the Heavens. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Book 1: Chapter 4: Meeting the Strongest Under the Heavens. The fleeting energy soared around her body as the mare took a look to the woman, she was female that was obvious but how could such a warrior exist? The strength she had was impressive but not very notable but what most intruiged her was that aura. Such untamed might could be dangerous in the wrong hands. Though she could just be paranoid in her mind that was most clear, she had been ruffled ever since this other worlder had avoided the mistress of dreams call it pride, anger, whatever it was, it annoyed her to no end she couldn't view their dreams. Even if they did not wish it so, it was her duty as the ward of the moon and dreams to do so. From the stirring mass below was the woman, something of interest was the fact that even with her magic her mind was still so closed off, why did such a mortal possess a mind like this? their mind was unlike any other even more so than they cold be seen. What was of most importance was the fact they could not see their dreams reduced to sit by and let their mind stray from the mistress of dreams. Then much like any other the being stirred from their slumber. "Thou is quite the enjoyer of sleep, how does one do such a task despite being a warrior?" The being before her only smiled sheepishly at the comment before nodding "Oh yes, I apologize ma'am but I just enjoy sleep sometimes, although since I'm under our promise to answer question I suppose you wonder what I am much less why I'm here, to answer that I'm a human from the planet earth, although I've always had a tail my mother told me its because of their prayer to the heavens gifting them the reincarnation of an ancient god. I never really believed it but I respect my mother to believe in such a prayer." The woman looked down, smiling at the words coming from her mouth even as Sazuka felt a well of emotions ram through her throat for just a moment before swallowing it back down. Through this measure of words alone the mare nodded before Looking a bit concerned at the mention of a Mother "How does one worry for their home and mother like you? You're not from our world that much is obvious but what intrigues me most is your style of battle, you put so much into your control that your power and capabilities suffer, why?" The human-born warrior gave a nod and sighed. "In my own eyes I suppose it is correct but I wish not to disclose why I focus so much on control, I apologize if that's the case. But if I may ask, why can't I sense you? much less any pony but you in paticular are weird, its as if I'm facing a mountain and I'm an ant...its a pressure I can't really shake I'm afraid." The human warrior's own tail moved slightly with her own hairs standing on their ends, although the mare in the moon couldn't grasp such a thing she supposed that mortals did have oddities about them. "In this manner, this 'sense' you refer to, I suspect its akin to detecting magical signatures but rest assured nor magic nor this 'sense' can detect a being like myself or my sister. To go further, you're trying to detect an ageless being, one far beyond your scope think of it as trying to swim in a pot of honey, struggle as you might you're stuck. No matter one's strength or experience, sensing higher beings is not something you can obtain, however, sensing magical energy is something I would imagine any lifeform could do with enough time. You will learn it in due time I'm sure." To emphasize her point the bright mare flared her aura for a moment, all sazuka could feel was an intense crushing pressure unlike anything she'd ever felt even him.....it was simply unbelievable, if she ever wanted to get stronger, finding a way to overcome this issue was key. "You're....right. This pressure I feel, you're not even close to where I am, I'd be a fool to fight you much less anyone else....that much is apparent but I can't give into that despair right?" The Human warrior's aura lightly flowed around her as she shot up her own ki for a brief moment. "I'm sure of one thing though, you make even...him. Feel like nothing, how'd you get so strong?" The mare smiled at the comment before letting out a small laugh "Thy will is of commendable effort but thou shouldn't worry, reaching the power of an ageless mare like myself is nigh-impossible. I do not want to dismiss such an effort but you shouldn't seek an unreachable goal." The mare although kind was clearly a bit on the arrogant side, at least to Sazuka. "Wouldn't that be the same as giving up?" "What do you mean?" "If I never try to reach such a goal then I'll have never known the thrill and the excitement and accomplishment that one can achieve, I may never reach such a height like your power or magic but it can't hurt to try right?" "I suppose that's a question of your will warrior, I've seen many perish, many who believed themsleves higher than the gods, in absolute power and no belief, only to fall at the moment of truth. You wish for strength but what confounds me is your resolve, you choose not to reveal it yet wish for more. You're truly an enigma warrior, I am both amused and find this the most enjoyable visit to a creature in a very very long time." The warrior to the mare of the moon was one of interest, such potential hidden by such a gentle approach this being didn't want to hurt a fly much less others. What interested her most was that raging beast, the one she saw in her dreams. The beast seemed a complete opposite yet familiar to this person. How silly, she hadn't even asked her name. "I apologize but what is your name warrior?" "Just Sazuka is fine, my family gave me the name after some tree's or something, they found it very beautiful to be gifted with a kid I suppose, guess one with a tail wasn't in their wish thought heh." The woman smiled at those words, a gentle warmth filling the air as her own energy seemed to respond to this gentle darkness. "How interesting....my name is Princess Luna or Mistress of dreams although my subject prefer to call me Lunar. I am the mistress of the moon, its warden and guide within my domain all dreams are simply flashes but yours, yours in particular elude me, how so warrior?" The mare felt a bit out of place, she was never good about emotions, sure dreams came easy and so did the day to day job of the crown but dealing with one's emotions were never a key subject. "I'm not sure to be honest, I've never really had good dreams, my mother always believed dreams were a gateway but never in my short life have I heard of a mistress of dreams, that just confirms it for me....I'm not truly in my own world much less in one that could help me...." The woman clenched her fist with her fists tightly at her side, not wishing to display her frustration despite the twitch of her eye. "Warrior I do apologize but you might be correct, I've never heard of other worlds, they were regulated to tales and myths even by my teacher, he only found dimensions outside of our own never entire worlds or universes. This seems.....odd. Though that may in of itself explain the matter of your dreams....my magic isn't viable with someone not of our world." The mare knew better but gently rest one hoof on the woman's hand er hoove? she wasn't sure although she was relieved to see the warrior did calm, for a moment she could feel an intense pressure build but that was probably just her imagination. The mare felt a sigh of relief and nodded "I believe my questions have been answered although I will answer one of your own, warrior I am afraid I am incapable of helping one return to their own world but if I may, I will see what I can dig up if possible I will aid you as best as I can in this endeavor, on my honor this I promise." The mare gave a gentle smile to which the warrior returned, although Sazuka couldn't help but keep the smile up, it felt nice to have an ally. The mare turned to the air and with a light gust of her wings, the mare lifted off of the ground with Sazuka looking on in a bit of astonishment. It was a beautiful sight for sure, a bright mare with glistening wings and a bright armor that reflected just right off of the sunlight, truly a sight for the ages. As the mare vanished into the sky above, she couldn't help but look back and notice an orange filly rushing up to the woman, knowing it best she would have intervened if not for her own curiosity, she would place some small trust in the warrior. *** Deep in the forest once more and now on the ground the bright filly charged forth, looking for her teacher, it had been a few days and despite all her instincts telling her otherwise she couldn't help but worry for her teacher, friend, new worlder it didn't matter. Though the filly was shocked to find her teacher looking down at her with a smirk, the filly recovered quickly before sighing in relief. "Teacher...I know its only been a few days but...please let me know before you go off and vanish like that! I got worried for pete's sake. Where did you even go to for the past few days?" the filly's bright eyes looking up to her teacher with a look of determination yet a hint of worry all the same. The human smiled down at the filly as she chuckled. "Sorry kiddo, I was recovering from a nasty wound when I was training a few days ago, I apologize for worrying you but its nearly evening, shouldn't you be heading home soon?" To this the filly looked a bit shyly at the ground although nodded. Though the filly wasn't fully comfortable admitting some things, she'd at least tell something to erase the tension "Well y-yeah! But I wanna keep getting stronger teacher although....who was that flying mare I saw? did you meet one of the queens!?" Upon this, the filly looked shocked to her teacher who merely shrugged. The woman nodded and chuckled once more at the filly's reaction "Yea kiddo, she seemed nice although I'm sure I'm just one of the massess me meeting her isn't really that big of an occasion is it?" The human saw little in the ways of royalty but the words from the mare mattered more than some look or armor. "What do you mean teacher?! that's a big honor! not only are you one of the strongest I've ever met, my teacher and buddies with royalty....by the queen just how much cooler can you get?!" The filly excitedly looked to her teacher who only gave a smile in return. *** "Kiddo, I'm sure I'm no where near the strongest, things haven't changed but If you wanna get stronger by all means, show me the fruits of those tasks I gave you, I wanna see just how far you've grown in these past few days without my guidance." Before long, the young warrior had given her student tasks, not too far off we could've seen the young filly fufilling said tasks, carrying a whole 12 bottles of milk without the use of her wings or her own Ki, trying to improve her body physically, though this was rather odd from the perspective of Scootaloo's friends who questioned the use of carrying milk like this although the filly was allowed to carry them across the entire apple orchard despite Applejack's insistence it wasn't really necessary for whoever told her this task. The mare had gotten a bit more suspicious but she was never one to push the subject further, figured it was just filly's playing pranks or something. Often the young filly was noted for her strange determination, her friends had noted of it and supported her through thick and thin, while the older mares in paticular Rarity and Applejack had their suspicions on the matter. So much so they decided to even get some of the old gang back together, Fluttershy although a nurse was very simple to ask who did admit while she had seen the filly doing more activities than usual she had noted her strangely one time going near the forest or at least she thought so. Rarity was never one for gossiping when it meant harm to others but in this case, they knew little and then twilight's own information in the mix made things more strange. A bipedal creature that wandered the lands of Equestria and only made one visit to town? She was surprised to learn that pink mare Pinkie pie hadn't gone crazy over it. Twilight hearing of this had some theories but none held up in her eyes, some secret threat to overthrow the queens by an ancient evil? some sort of extinction event coming? flying pigs? it all just confused them more than anything. The two mares thought it best to leave it be, even if this supposed creature was the reason for those three acting up it would be best in their eyes to let it pass, it might be only momentary. Though to two fillies being Applebloom and Sweetiebelle, the two couldn't help but worry for their friend. With this we turn to the speedster of the skies, Rainbowdash. Though not too badly tired from the previous little skurmish with that unknown creature what confused her was Scootaloo being less and less there or more than often not there at all. It's only been a few days but it just didn't feel right, she cared for the kid even if it was out of place for her. The first time or the second was fine it was just weird if anything, usually she would be ok with it, the kid was extremely active but she had heard rumor of Scoots going near the everfree forest. That in her mind was enough of a reason to try and find her. For a time, all she could register was the feelings of hunger, the rumblings of her stomach and her need to become whole once again. The hunger wasn't an issue, using some illusion magic she was able to scrounge up the means to keep herself together but as her magic dwindled she couldn't help but second guess her intentions, would restoring them really help her? Would becoming one unify their bond or simply drive them apart again? With a burst of speed in the air the wings on her back shot up and down as she zoomed over the land below quickly into the areaa of the everfree forest, what was weird was the sense that something was off. It just felt weird, the forest was never a fun place much less a safe one for her early days but this just felt odd. It felt alive, pulsating even. Her eyes scanned the area till she saw a tuff of orange, zooming over she noticed that it was Scootaloo with something standing near by it was bipedal but it seemed calm, shaggy hair and weird clothes. Could it be? She wasn't one for a quiet approach and if this thing was going to harm Scoots then that was all the reason she needed to take them down. Quickly picking up the pace she aimed herself near the filly and slaammed into the earth although not harmed she bared her face and narrowed her eyes "Scoots! you ok!? I want you to get away and quick alright!" The mare shouted to the filly. The filly looked confused but stood up "Rainbow I'm ok this is my-" "Scoots I said now!" The mare pushed the filly to the side and narrowed her eyes at the silent beast before her. "Before I pummel you for getting near her, what were your intentions huh? take her in and then gobble her up like some dragon? kill her and leave her body for me to find?" The thing turned to face her and sighed, shaking its head as it spoke. "No, I'm afraid you've got this wrong friend. I'm merely a hermit who lives in these woods, I am her teacher and master. I would ask that you kindly refrain from this violent course of action, you do not want this battle nor do I." The words dripped with a chilling feeling in the mare's heart but she knew better than to back down, she had no reason to trust it. The mare scoffed at the words and shook her head "No way ape, I'm not letting this kid around some dangerous beast like yourself, if you want I can prove the hard way but I'm willing to make some deal here. You go and never be around her and we both win got it?" The mare's own limited magic flared, although Sazuka couldn't sense it she could feel the presence it was something that became more and more apparent with her senses as time passed. The woman looked to the mare and simply shook her head "As the master and teacher of my student it is my duty to see her safely out of these woods every day, I will not abandon her because of your words." The mare once more snorted then with a burst of speed aimed her hoof this time across the creature' face. The blow connected creating a shockwave of pure speed, Sazuka had never felt such speed even that mare from before if she was only toying this was unreal! Her body smashed into the tree behind her as she regained her composure and sighed, releasing a small fraction of her ki, if she was right this would be enough. The mare took the second of hesitation to strike this time aiming for the arm, the woman had her eyes closed with the filly looking fearfully at both her idol and teacher. Though unrefined, the human warrior took the blow this time catching her hoof and using her weight throwing her back onto the ground. Sazuka noted the mare's speed, she was fast and strong. Not good. She had plenty in reserves but she wasn't willing to put Scoots in danger much less hurt this mare. She had to think of something but with this mare's blows she didn't have tons of time to think, the best she could think of was a barrier to encase her maybe the bind would work but that was still not fully capable. Damn it. Her aura shined as the brief shine of light formed around her hands, with her first strike she hit the mare's head, then with a quick movement of her hands encased her in pure ki then with a grin the barrier formed this time a bubble of pure ki around her. Rainbowdash hadn't seen such move, she knew she was good for sure having trained for quite a long time but this? this wasn't magic that was for sure. The mare smashed her hoove against the barrier forming a small crack. The mare snickered at this as she rammed her hoove, to the surprise of the human smashing open the barrier this time flying in at an angel using her speed to ram the creature into the ground in the hopes it would be knocked out, this had to work. Sazuka took the blow in stride being slammed into the earth hurt like hell especially with this level of power but this couldn't be it, there was more to this and as much as she wished to deny it she wished to feel this thrill of battle. Her own aura flaring up with a tinge of black ki rising from the flame-like aura, the mare narrowing her eyes and trying once more only for her hoove to skid the outfit cutting part of it up, this time taking a blow to the back aimed at temporarily disabling her ability to fly. The mare instead even as the blow connected felt a sense of danger and quickly evaded the blow, turning right head as the air wooshed in her mane. Her heart felt that race and that was weird, she'd never been able to do something like that before. Not even her run in with that mare a few months ago did something like this. This just felt weird. all around. Noticing below she saw Scootaloo pant before yelling "You two enough! Rainbowdash I'm ok! this is my teacher, she's been nothing but nice to me, please I'm asking you to listen to me!" Although unsure if it was wise to do so, she lowered herself before asking "Ok scootaloo, you've got my attention kid now explain what the heck this.....thing is much less why you're in the everfree forest!?" "well...she's a human. Her name is Sazuka and I swear she's nice, she saved me when I followed her into the forest, I saw her leave town not long ago and she seemed lonely I knew it was dumb to do so but I didn't wanna just abandon some poor creature all alone in these woods. I followed and nearly got hurt but she saved me, she's been teaching me for a few days now, I wanted to be stronger...maybe fly with you one day in the wonderbolts...." The mare looked a bit shocked at this but knew better to question the filly, if anything there was nothing but a sense of longing in her words. "Alright alright......But why are you all the way out here alone with this human? You don't know them much less if they are dangerous I mean Zecora's ok but we don't really know that much about the forest!" "I promise you, no harm would ever come to this filly under my watch. I am no savage, Though I'm not a fan I have heard much of how much this filly idolizes you. If she's willing to give you the benefit of the doubt then I am as well, a teacher must also learn from their student after all." The woman smiled down at the filly to which she nodded and looked to rainbowdash. ".....FINE! I guess its ok but I'm coming along with you from now on! I don't trust them, they may seem nice but I've go little if any reason to just trust some hairless ape. If you do can handle that then I have no issue teaching...whatever it is...Speaking of which what are you actually teaching her?" "I am teaching her the basics of manifesting one's Ki and aura, Ki is the energy I use, I'm unfamiliar with magic and have no reason to doubt that I might be the only living thing that can even use ki. I wish to impart my knowledge onto her, she's a nice kid with potential I've not seen in many not even myself, at the rate she's growing she may become stronger than myself after all." "Ki? life energy....I've never really heard of that, we have magic. I can fly and even control clouds with my magic but never have I heard of manifesting aura or using energy to battle people....not going to lie it does sound fun. There any chance I could learn of it in time?" The mare looked to the human, Sazuka couldn't help but be memorized for a moment before getting herself free. The mare was stunning, bright and brave, battle ready, tough yet caring. not many find that in others. "Oh uh sure...I suppose any lifeform could learn to generate and control Ki it just take time and effort, if you're willing of course miss Rainbowdash. Although, I might be stretched a bit thin having to teach the basics to two students at once, forgive me but I might be a bit delayed on the training." Sazuka felt silly, she had been staring at the bright rainbow mare and just felt a twinge of something heat her heart. Silly girl, silly thoughts. Calming herself down she looked to the mare once more who nodded. "Sure then, I'll be here but if you can't teach me all that ki stuff what can you do physically? I've seen some strong ponies but you take the cake when it comes to that, you seemed like some sort of ninja!" The mare herself grinning at the words. The human in returned chuckled "I merely use my own martial arts, it is my own style from well over a decade of my training. I spent a long time refinning and learning every ounce of it I could from my....grandfather." The human felt a tear well in her eye, her heart ached for home but she couldn't be sad at a time like this, never was good to reveal yourself like this. The mare seemed none the wiser as she turned to the sky "Well, I guess I will remain here for a while then. You may keep teaching her but if I see one little thing, even an inkling you're gonna hurt her. I will make sure it hurts, got it?" The mare did her best, narrowing her eyes to the human who in returned simply nodded. The two had reached a slight level of understanding, maybe given time they could become friends, but that thought seemed silly to Sazuka. *** As the training continued so did the learning for young scootaloo and soon things turned to evening which eventually vanished into night. Although ready to escort her home she did wonder how this human held its ground in these woods especially on its own. She wasn't really that concerned but it couldn't hurt to ask. "Hey human er...Sazuka, how do you do out here all alone? Scoots mentioned earlier you don't always train her so what's there to do out here all alone?" The human hadn't really thought of it this way, she was only trying to survive. "I suppose train and grow, I gather food from the river and defend myself when necessary but overall I spend most of my time training, if anything it keeps me busy." The mare raised an eyebrow at that, rather confused. "Train? for what? nothing really scary I can think of that would hurt you, you seem well enough on your own why not try for something else? I'm not saying living with others or anything just anything less....ya know. Sorry not good with this mushy talk." The mare sheepishly rubbed the back of her head to which the human chuckled. "Oh, well I train to become stronger, if I am to go home one day then I must be strong enough to make it. I've got no idea on how to go home but I do wish to go home one day, if its possible. I do miss my home, my farm, my life....." The human stopped herself, feeling the heavyness in her heart before just shaking her head, calm down. The mare nodded and as she picked up the filly she turned back "Ya know, I'm not an egghead but if you want to ever hang out, I'm willing. You seem nice enough, besides I gotta keep this filly under watch ya know?" The mare's wing opened with the human turned from her as the mare took off into the air the human could only look to the ground and begin to cry. The human only could tremble and shake, as her hand clenched tight as the tear raced down her face. For the first time in a long while, she let the works loose, letting it go. She just wanted to go home but not only was she being a teacher she was now becoming less and less worried for home, it sickened her. She wanted her farm, her frame of her mother and father, their blankets and cooking. As her emotions turned from sadness to rage the energy filled her aura as a black ki soared brightly around her, her eye turning a dark gold with a tinge of brown as her muscle and body flexed, she let loose a beam of pure light from her mouth tearing down 10 trees in that direction. The bright moon above seemed to feel this sadness, the energy failing as it calmed around her. From the darkness a small filly raced into the area with a bright aura of magic with a raging hydra chasing her. The human felt the presence of two new beings, although the much more faint presence was falling and fast. Rushing into the danger she grabbed the filly flying as quick as her body could take her, the filly now in a camp far from the beast she looked up to see what would be a hairless ape. The filly's eyes watered as she sniffled, the filly from the humans eyes looked just strange. Large mane and although she couldn't have been much older than Scootaloo at least from her eyes the mare had a bright mane, filled with a galaxy-spiral of colors. Dotting her body was black blobs of what looked like ink that dotted her legs and around her flank. The mare's bright armor was old and very rusted, covered in scratches and what looked like burn marks, the mare's energy felt faint as she laid the filly on her make-shift bed the filly spoke up. "Who are thou? why do you shelter a strange, do you not know the mare of legend...." The filly's weak voice sounded although she could hear her just fine. "I don't know many mares much less of legend miss so no, I'm merely a traveler from another world, May I ask what happened to you? that beast had multiple heads, you're lucky I felt you out here when you were left all alone, your energy was faint." The mare sat up, her limbs wincing at the touch of the rugged bed as she answered "No....I was just trying to find food, trying to survive and then a beast In my youth I could beat...took me down with one swipe, nearly led to me bleeding out even but I was thankful to have the strength to leave but....I thank you stranger. I am....Moon Breaker, but thou shall call me the lady of the eclipse." The human was a bit confused but nodded "if it's all the same to you, I'd like to just call you Nisshoku. You probably have never heard of that but its my native tongue for eclipse, I feel it works, is that ok with you?" turning to the fire pit the woman used just a small burst of ki to light the wood and keep it aflame. Bringing a makeshift cup to the mare she had prepared some water, fresh and warm the mare took it and coughed at first before swallowing. "I suppose thou is correct, you may call me as such. If I may traveler, why do you have such an aura? I've never felt a magic like this, its too strange, are thou just a changling?" The mare's eyes narrowed at the human who looked confused, changling was a new one she'd heard the term back home but guess a magical world full of ponies might have shapeshifters kinda made sense. This feeling the mare sensed was truly not magic, as she suspected but this creature was much too kind for its own good, if she were to regain her power and take her revenge on those accursed elements and her former sisters then this would be the key. She'd recover and regain her full power in no time, that much she was sure of. What she felt was even strange, no malice. not an ounce not even with that raised eyebrow just curiosity from a simple beast? the best method would be to regain her strength but what could she do in this manner? It might be best to remain here but could she be found out? that much was an option.... As her thoughts were interrupted by a soft clang of a glass bowl placed near her with fish freshly fried, noting the smell was rather enticing she turned to the human who simply shrugged. "Thought you could use some food to recover, you are pretty badly beaten up, I'm no medic but your energy's quite low if that's this magic I've heard so much about, that reminds me, need to actually start training again, if you want you can use the bed, I hope its to your liking." The human stood up and turned to the woods as the mare consumed the fish from her bowl with gusto she couldn't help but feel a bit indebted to this creature, it gave her all the means of healing, maybe in the new land she would create their would be a place for this new ally. Though she couldn't help but be a bit curious, standing up with some level of renewed strength she turned to the human and followed who noticed and looked back "You want to watch me train or something? You honestly should be in bed miss." "No no, I'm quite alright, besides, I would be a terrible guest not to see this through to the end after all. If you wish to train then the least I can do is offer some aid, you mention being unable to sense magic and thought I'm no magician I'm sure with two minds we can find a method for you." The mare could feel her strength slowly return, this was the least she could give to this human to help them, sensing magic would be childs play right? *** As the moon arose in the skies above, the mare of dreams had a bit of a pestering thought. Heading to her sister she saw the mare going over various doccuments likely from various nobles petitioning to be allowed back into the courts, thank the gods they abolished this ages ago. The mare of the sun smiled and motioned for her sister to join her on her bed, turning to the mare with a bright smile "So it seems my dear little sister met this other worlder, how was it? find them interesting? find them to be your suitor hmmmm?~" The mare chuckled with a grin as the smaller mare rolled her eyes. "No Sister but we must confirm they are indeed peaceful but how true this is, remains to be seen. Though they are a capable warrior I assure you, more durable than most, they possess a magic I thought to be regulated to those without magic, energy dear sister." "I see......If they are peaceful then I do hope that things remain gentle and calm, we've worked too hard to let this age be consumed in more chaos though I do wonder if our former friend had something to do with this. Bring an other worlder to interact with our kind and be amongst us, brings one to question things I imagine."[/color] The mare looked to the sky with her sister. "That much is obvious sister, I do not wish to keep our hopes up too high but I fear that this isn't the result of him. This may have been a complete accident but even I'm unsure, what worries me more is the reaction of our people to someone with abilities and looks far outside the norm even for us Ageless beings." Luna's bright eyes glistened with a hint of worry and fear, the magic flowing from her body only tempered with a patter of her sister's wings on her head. "Sister you worry too much, I hold dear that our people will greet them with open arms if anything, I know that you worry for them and our people but please have faith dear sister that things will turn out ok. We must if we are to be the face of our nation and prepare them for when we do depart after all." The mare's words ringed true in the mare of the moon who sighed and nodded. "Though I doubt the validity of such a claim dear sister, I can't help but worry you play with this other worlder too much. You let them roam despite no safeguards near the town of our student and her friends. Though I mentioned them being a decent warrior what confuse me is their less than relaxed position. Their body reeks of an energy akin to dark magic, they keep it under a latch and lock yet for the briefest of moments they can unleash it, like a caged animal." The mare herself looking down at the words, not long ago to them they once fell to darkness nearly dooming themselves to conflict. The taller alicorn raised an eyebrow at that, her sister was the more.....brutish of the two but to sense such malice was notable. "You say they radiate a hidden darkness? I suppose all beings have this but what intruiges you this much to note that? We both know many unicorns try to balance their inner darkness with the light. Its simple for them so why not them dear sister?" "That's what is so confusing, it isn't so much the darkness but how they manifest it. Unlike unicorns they never release it as a spell, they release in some sort of shift, their hair stands up their eyes become more like a beasts and their energy soars higher. What worries me is the lack of control, their body burned with heat, they attempted at least to my understanding. The raw power wasn't as impressive as was the damage they forced upon themselves, their body writhed and their energy lacked control trying to force their instincts under control. This is an issue sister." The mare looked to her sister, her eyes brimming with worry and fear. "I see......if this is the case then we will act when it is necessary. If they cannot control this power, this darkness within their heart then they must be dealt with, I am not suggesting we kill them but....." The mare sighed, feeling the weight press down on her body once more. The smaller mare hugged her sister tightly before nuzzling her "It is not like him dear sister our friend may have succumbed to darkness and hatred but we did what was necessary, he is sealed and that is what must remain. I don't want to seal this innocent lifeform but I know you're not willing to finish this, I will find a way if their is a chance." The taller mare smiled once more, nuzzling her sister back before giving a sigh of relief "I do apologize, I do not want to bring up old wounds but I just...." The mare sniffed, this time a tear trickling down her chin. Luna only nodded and hugged her sister holding her tight as the older mare let loose tiny drips of tears before letting go gently, smiling once more seeming more relaxed. The two looked to the moon brimming over the surface of their world as the mare in the moon gently smiled to her sister "While I'm not as much of a sap as you are dear sister, I can say without a doubt we must give them a chance. This may be a truly innocent creature trapped, what's worse, they wish to go home. I don't believe we could ever send them home. This troubles me." She gave a little smirk to her sister, who in return smiled and shook her head. The mare of the sun only chuckled "I see that sister but what I believe we should look forward to, is the lessons they may teach our people. Our student is young and powerful, most likely as gifted as any unicorn I've ever seen. I can only hope our student learns from this new life and those she powered the elements with, they all could learn much from another worlder." The bright mare only looked up to the sky and laid upon her bed, her sister only nodding. The mare in the moon exited her room soon after not before wishing her sister well and leaving to her nightly duties. *** From the bright night we turn to the late night, at its zenith we see young Sazuka pushing herself once more. Forming from a brimmng ki a second self, this time with a filly watching with a keen interest. The two took their stance before vanishing. The blow echoed through the are as two fists smashed into the other. "Quite the show mortal, but you lack skill. My sister would consider this no less than a savage pushing your body is not your only method yet you choose so, why do you choose such a barbaric display?" The mare glowered from her spot, the human only grit her teeth as she evaded a singing kick to the head, slamming her own leg into the shadow's gut before the thing landed a blow on her face in return. The clone silently in return aimed for a blow to the head, barely affected by the blow with the human guarding as the fist smashed into her arm so did the ground shatter around them. The mare cocked and eyebrow at the words before a sly smirk shined on her maw "Such lack of skill and grace, you fight as a beast when you should fight as a warrior, you hope that the next blow will end your opponent before more comes to those you care for or yourself am I right? That is faulty. If you wish to end the battle then end it. Now." The human felt an annoyance stir within her as her aura flared, throwing her weight down she aimed for a push of force this time her elbow into the clone's jaw which was successful, aiming for a dash of blows this time at the midsection and near the waist, aiming to cut it down. The clone felt no pain even as the blows connected, in return slamming its fist against her face getting her to clench her eyes shut and take the blow, pushing with one kick to the face off of the clone before wiping her nose of the blood. The human's silent facade shifted to one of annoyance once again as she release the ki necessary to puff the clone into nothingness. "If that is the case then what is so wrong with my style? I don't like blood, I never have, I don't want to kill my opponent if I can help it, there's no honor in bloodshed and certainly no reason to murder another life form with lifeforce." The mare shook her head and glowered slightly at the human "Such a faulty idea, there is no honor in survival that much we share. I am willing to end my foe without a inch of hesitation but you are not. Why do you seek to save them? what benefit does your enemy give you by simply accepting their desperation to survive?" The mare cocked an eyebrow rather confused, the human felt a bit shook by her words but only breathed out softly. "I don't mean to be rude but your ideas are faulty, ineffective. I used to believe that letting them survive would give me a greater thrill later, allow them to get stronger but no. This is a silly idea even for a warrior. I don't want to mindlessly murder those who do not deserve it. All life is precious even the life of your foes, even the worst of the worst deserve a chance." The human looked back, a soft glare at the mare who scoffed at the proposal. "We believe in survival but you believe in pacifism, such rubbish but I suppose you are entitled to those beliefs. Just don't expect your enemy to share your sentiment. Not even for a second." The mare only shook her head before turning back to the woman and nodding. "Though you show great restraint you must release your own power if you wish to grow, one cannot grow by simply throwing their mind and body like a savage. If you wish to grow I can offer my own methods, do be warned mortal. Most do not survive." The mare looked seriously to her new ally, the human who only grinned at the idea. "If it means I can become stronger and get myself home one day, I will sacrifice it all even my soul to get that little bit of strength. I've seen true strength, a wall I cannot hope to climb. I want to see this through to the end so go on, give me your best shot." The human cracked her back and knuckles, spitting onto the ground some loose blood to which the mare groaned at. *** In the quiet town of Ponyville sat a purple mare, having been seeing the signs for some time now she had wondered much of her encounter with the mare of the eclipse, why did she vanish and simply not be sealed away like the darkness they held so long ago? Did the elements fail her and her new friends? or was it simply a ploy? Her wonder wasn't so much about the eclipse but the mare, despite all her instincts telling her it was best to send her back she couldn't help but feel bad for the mare. It really believed it was just locked away for being too different, were they right for doing what they did...... The mare couldn't help but question it, she was one of the brightest, at least in her mind and that perception never clouded her mind at least in terms of her loyalty to the crown. Was it truly right for them to just banish something that would cause an endless era of suffering for countless lifeforms? Maybe it was the stress of Cadence's insistence on these "friendship lessons" among this mystery of now multiple sightings of some sort of flying hairless ape. From what she could gather from the tale of rainbow dash and the odd behavior of that filly scootaloo now, this ape was clearly quite afraid. But for what reason? if the idea they stole apples was to be believed without a single person knowing then how come they are scared? I mean sure they would need to pay for the crime but it was just apples why be so afraid? The most interesting part was the mention from rainbow dash and pinkie pie, she had never known to be outdone by the pinky party mare and often considered her more chaotic than magical with her love of smiles and the parties she knew would never not happen but this creature vanishes before the mare even gets to say hi? that's just weird. Then rainbow dash remarking they glowed bright white and zoomed much faster than most pegasus although they were pretty close according to the mare, from the races she looked at via records rainbow dash wasn't a slouch she could be the captain of the wonderbolts given the right opportunity. This mystery just became more of a mess than a real one, now these accounts and even the accounts of something recovering or left at the hospital by that nice couple bon bon and Lyra. This was one she would crack but even through her books and research so far she found no records of beings like the description, weird clothes, spiky jet black hair, a tail out of their backside and bipedal. It was more of an alien than a equestrian life form. But that was silly. *** The bright forest below teemed with life, in the midst of this silence an explosion sounded deep in the woods, to most life they strayed from the one they called a beast, a bipedal savage and an intruder not even the king of the woods dared bother this beast. The training, if you can call it that, throwing the human below into the ground with wounds covering her entire body as the mare only sighed shaking her head "Not even a few blows of your doppleganger and you're already down, you want strength do you not? then get up, face this challenge like a warrior, not a savage." The mare glared down at the human who only shook her head and sprung to her feet. The mare had given her clear instructions on this training, hyper-active method, using all your strength in battle and then recovering, forcing the body beyond its limits even to the brink of one's life. This is how warriors often in her era wished to grow so why was this human such a dunce at the method? She never struck the thing down, she never finished it off and required a quick healing spell to avoid further damage. "How much must I repeat this? I'm a weakened mare, I cannot heal you every time you refuse to kill off a false form!" The mare only groaned in annoyance, despite her slow recovery these magical dips and spells were tiring even her own exhausted might. The human only rolled its eyes and this time sat down next to the glowing fire besides them and took a drink of her soup. The Mare sat down, taking her own meal in accordance. She could feel her strength slowly returning but it would be much too long before she could enact her own vision. If this human was to be her ally, then she would need strength. She would only do what was needed, even if it meant teaching the ape how to properly grow ones body. "you keep saying that I need to just kill it but why? This is not for my life, I'm seeking strength for my own reasons you know that by now. Why slaughter them and become the savage you keep calling me Oh and by the way, really becomes grating hearing myself demeaned." The human only gave a small glare, despite the mares intentions she looked down for a moment before replying. "I see, then I apologize but you hold me at odds with this session, you wished for more strength but demand that you not kill your foe? it is only a doppleganger and nothing more, why the sympathy for one that is your enemy, it does not feel or think it battles as you do." The mare looked to the human with confusion, a bit of irritation and a tinge of guilt. "I just don't want that, not for me, not for those I care about and certainly not to my honor as a warrior. I took a vow to never kill, I will never break that even if it means I must, evil does not bring justice to the world not a single act of justice is based on murder not one." The human's curt response got the mare to go a bit silent, harshness like that was rare and to some extent the mare found it admirable, this would be a good subject in the future. To the mare this wasn't a mere one sided justice disagreement, she needed to make her sisters pay and she would do so. Even if she must force this mortal's hand in the matter she would do nothing but make it so. There was no better justice in her mind than to make them pay but this mortal confused her. More than once and it never settled in her, why hold onto such a belief when this mortal was not of this world? who would judge her? certainly not her sisters, they were much too weak to handle her much less mortal affairs of this world or the next. As the moon shined above them, not long after the human laid on her side on the ground while the mare drifted into her slumber the human could only shake and shiver in the cold but none the less take it in. This was for the best, she must never forget her honor, it was the only thing of her family she had left. That could never be taken no matter the cost even if it she would die. Into the night the human soon fell asleep not even a moment of rest as he arose from the blackened heart within, her shinning resolve serving to enragen the oozaru inside. As sweat fell from her face her nightmare began. In the bleakness of the dream land sat a glowering ape and a small human, the oozaru stood tall before howling with rage "You not only take on some weak filly with no potential but ally yourself with a beast? How the might have fallen, the human who couldn't save her family, the human stranded without those accursed seals pestering our potential. Pathetic." The beast snarled her way as it moved, the stench of its pure evil radiating in a brimming red ki around the body. The human only shook her head and glared daggers back at the ape "No, I took in a poor kid with no one else to turn to who wanted to learn, I would think the big bad warrior would want a greater challenge in the future? why not this filly? scared to see where she could go in the future?" The woman only snickered, the oozaru raging as it snarled back and smashed its fist into her, landing her under its hand. "Fat chance girl, Nothing will restrain me and certainly if you believe this student can surpass us then by all means prove it. Prove me wrong that this thing you call a friend and ally can do better than us. You waste our power teaching some star-struck filly and ally yourself with beasts, nothing but a failed excuse of a warrior. Maybe I should take over and prove who we are-" At those words a brimming ki exploded from beneath him as the woman struck back piercing with a solid fist into its eye as the beast growled in agony clutching the bleeding eye. "That will never happen, you and I both know I hold the reigns for a reason. You're just my darkness, my beast and I will hold you for my life, as long as it takes even if the world burned us." As if on cue, the woman glowed with a burning heat as her eyes narrowed, the symbol on her gi burning with energy in a glowing crimson pattern on her back. This state of pure instinct, she would've liked to call it some sort of unleashed form but it was merely a response and nothing more. Just as it appeared the heat vanished with her feeling the immediate strain on her clenched tight arm. "Tch, you're nothing but a bastard you know that right? you can't hold a candle to the real us, the real one burried under the surface that you fear. You don't want me out, fine. I won't bother fighting a child who cannot understand the situation as it is, you will regret what has transpired and when you don't need me most, I will break free. I will consume what little of your mind is left and take my rightful place in this world, that's a promise." The beast glowered down at her as the darkness faded from the area so did her mind, slowly drifting into slumber. This wouldn't be the first attack of the night and she would be read. On the outside world the woman glowed with energy enough the mare could no longer ignore it, she wondered much of what went on in this beast and maybe their dreams would be of aid. With a touch and light glow of magic she attempted to brute force her way in, although to her surprise and rage the spell didn't work. "Damn them, why doesn't this work? I suppose if my sister tried this then she had little success as well. Maybe I best ignore this for now...not worth the sleep, I must regain my power." The mare turned back to her small hut, not before using what little magic she could and conjured a blanket for the mortal one fashioned in the same style as the one she laid with. The night remained young and despite Sazuka's efforts, she got little sleep only the bright moon shinning as the energy seeped into her soul. The pull of the beast grew stronger and stronger but she could never falter, she must. The more she pulled herself back into slumber the longer the moon shined upon her tail and the more energy the beast had but she knew this, she would only have to hold out for the sun and then pray that she could get some rest after. Even as the moon turned, falling deeper into the skies and the sun rose the woman couldn't help but let a gasp of air exit her maw. She hadn't got a lick of sleep and she knew better than to falter, she had no choice but to keep going, this wasn't the first sleepless nigh and it certainly wouldn't be the last. As the sun rose she heard the call of her mare ally, a shrill little cry of annoyance. "Must you slumber and waste the sun, I know it best to recover but if you wish for strength then we must continue I can only guide you when you are awake after all." The mare sighed, not knowing of the human's own problems. Even as the human wished it so, she knew it best to push past this, for now. Standing up the human only smiled, giving a nod as she cracked her neck. "Well then, what's the lesson today? another beating or are we going to do anything else?" The human was resilient she had to give her that, her wounds could only be healed by so much magic even with her minimal supply but this was rather astounding given the battle wounds still were there although only minor bruises, astonishing healing. The mare shook this off and only nodded "You have mentioned in our training you train your mind but to truly tap into your well of potential simple meditation will not cut it, for today we will begin something I have only shown to my.....family. A battle of minds if you will." The mare sat on her haunches and focused as her eyes fell down the human could feel this pressure building, this intensity was something she had only felt in that luna woman...were they related somehow? The human copied, closing her eyes and began to amass her ki, with the mare giving a curt swat of her hoove "No no, focus your mind fool, focus on the very essence of your power, focus deep and dig. There you will find this method." The feeling pressed into her senses but something was there, like a tiny flame she soon forced it to her will and formed an avatar of entirely ki from the mind. Meeting her there in this space was the mare, amassed in an energy she could only dream of having the mare rushed forward the human barely able to dodge the blow in time as the singing heat burned part of her form. The mare nodded "Good good, though weak you have obtained the proper way. We will battle in our minds, only one who's heart remains true and does not falter will sustain it. Never forget this, now continue." Before the human could fully take it in, she was struck this time from the side into her chest as her bones felt the crackling, the blow in turn smashed against the mare's jaw throwing her off only with minimal movement could she amass the needed strike, this time with a quick kick at the side tossing the mare a few feet back. Training would need to continue, she had to get stronger! She would do so by any means, even if it meant she needed time to recover. She would grow and push herself beyond her limit, for her home. Book 1: Chapter 4 End!