Chapter 3

The Promised Beginning

BGM

Morning followed after the events of the day prior. Toya had made his decision. No matter how far-fetched it seemed, he had to be of help somehow. With that in mind, he mustered up what courage he had and proceeded to the throne room. There waiting for him was the princess of the sun and the dragoness he conversed with the other day.

"Barb? What are you doing here?" He asked. Barb shrugged and stared at him.

"I'm just as clueless as you are." She replied, looking back to Celestia. "So why am I here, mom?" Toya blinked.

"Wait. Mom? SHE'S your mother?!" he asked. Barb and Celestia both nodded.

"Yes. She is my daughter. Though we look nothing alike, it was I who raised her egg before Dusk hatched it and it was I who raised her before allowing her to live with Dusk in Ponyville." The princess explained.

Sounded pretty legit.

"As for the reason she is here, she will be accompanying you on your journey." Celestia said. "The two of you will be working together in order to fend off the scourge that will soon plague our land." Barb and Toya looked at each other. Barb seemed to smile, while Toya bore a look of concern on his face.

"Princess, are you sure that's a wise idea?" He asked. Celestia looked down at him and raised a brow.

"What do you mean?" She replied.

"I appreciate the idea of me having some company during this...quest of mine. But I don't think it's all that smart to be sending a girl out to brave such dangers." The moment those words left Toya's lips, a vessel popped in Barb's head and she balled her claws into fists. "She could get hurt or even worse."

"Hey!" Barb yelled, shutting the human up. "I don't know where you get off talking down about me like that, but I can assure you one thing. I can take good care of myself. I don't need some human boy to protect me." Toya had no idea what to say. He wasn't trying to offend her, but he didn't want any harm to come to her either. He only cared about her like he would any other friend he had. Well, what little friends he had.

"Toya." Toya turned his head to Celestia as she called out his name. "I can understand your concern. You care about Barb and do not want any harm to come to her. I feel the same way. You are right to worry as harm can come to either or both of you." She said, causing Barb to frown. "However, Barb is right. She is capable of taking care of herself. Dragons are considerably powerful, to the point of being resistant to magic. Their strength far surpasses that of a pony, and I'm fairly certain the strength of a dragon surpasses a human, too."

Celestia was right about that. While Toya had never seen a dragon in person before, until recently, he had done plenty of research to know that dragons were practically the powerhouses of the world. Brute strength, superior flight capabilities, flames that could melt the earth below them. They were almost like gods in their own right. And Barb? Most likely when she grew up, she would be just like them. But...something about her was different. The dragons Toya read about were almost like monsters. Feared, but respected worldwide. Barb? She wasn't a monster. She was kind, gentle and compassionate. She might've had a bit of an attitude like any normal dragon, true. But she was no monster. And there's no way she'd ever become one.

"Ha! Told you." Barb quipped, sticking her forked tongue out at Toya. Toya wanted to say something ignorant or maybe even hit her. However, he actually respected her. Back where he was from, most girls wouldn't even bother to stick up for themselves when a boy thought them to be weak and helpless and that they couldn't take care of themselves. Not by actually saying they were, but implying it the same way he did about Barb. That they could get hurt or even killed doing something they believed they had no business doing.

Barb wasn't like that. And she sure as hell wasn't going to let herself be like any normal girl...err, mare. To him, she was alright.

This was going to be an interesting journey.

"However," Celestia said, earning Barb's attention. "Barb, there is nothing wrong with accepting the aid of another, And yes, that includes allowing yourself to be protected. In times of struggle, we can only fend for ourselves for so long. Even you get tired every now and again, don't you?"

"Yes." Barb replied, scratching her head.

"And Toya has his limitations as well, I'm sure. This journey is not for a single individual. It is not all about you or him defeating the enemy. It is about both of you, working together. Exploiting each others strengths and covering each others weaknesses. Working as a team to defend this land. Your home. Our home. Do you understand?"

"Yes mom/Yes princess." They both replied. Celestia smiled warmly and rose up from her throne.

"Toya?" The alicorn princess called out again.

"Yes, Celestia?" He replied.

"I can tell that you are not well equipped for the journey ahead. Go back to your room. There, you will find a few things that may aid you. Consider it a gift." She said with a giggle. Toya nodded his head and proceeded to his room as instructed, leaving the dragoness and the princess alone in the throne room.

"What about me, mom?" She asked.

"I've nothing to give you except a single gift. A gift which I plan to give to the both of you." Celestia replied. Barb nodded and smiled and embraced her mother in one more hug.

"I'm gonna miss you." She said. Celestia couldn't help but smile. Dusk had done so well in looking after her precious child, her only child, for her. She had grown up so much. She couldn't be anymore proud.

"I'm going to miss you too, Barb." Celestia replied, placing a motherly hoof around her. They broke apart, smiling at one another as they heard footsteps approaching. Celestia bore a warm smile on her face as she looked to her paladin, while Barb's jaw dropped.

"Whoa!" was all the dragoness could muster to say.

"Judging by your response, I guess i don't need to ask how i look." Toya said. He was wearing a cloth shirt, leather gloves, belt and pants. Adorning his body were shoulder pads made of iron. They seemed to cover most of his shoulder, as well as partial of his arms. Instead of boots, he was wearing iron leggins that went from his feet up to his knees. Despite the metal his armor was made from, it felt light to him. His shirt bore a marking in the center, which was similar to that of a Templar's mark from his world. In addition to this, a sheathe for a sword was strapped to his back. Truly, his appearance was that of a true paladin.

"How do you feel wearing that armor, Toya?" Asked the alicorn.

"It feels...good. Great, even." He said, jumping in place. "It's not too light, but not too heavy either. There isn't much, but I can tell it's durable." He replied.

"Good. Then I can hand you the final piece to complete your set." She said. She turned her head to her throne and her horn began to glow. From behind the seat, an object resonated with the same color of her aura and levitated from behind its resting place and to her.

"Whoa..." Toya said. "W-what is this?"

"This is the Eclipse Sword. Tis a powerful blade that both my sister and I created from both our power. And with it, we vanquished the very evil the two of you are about to face. We believed that we rid ourselves of such a powerful foe. That we rid this land of his scourge so many years past, sheathing the sword in hopes that we would no longer need it.. But it looks like I was wrong."

"Mom..." Barb said, frowning at the disheartened princess.

"This is Equestria's darkest hour. And in this time, our Herald of Order would appear to us and bring peace back to our land. That is what my sister and I predicted. And it came true. You, Toya, are our Herald of Order. And it is you who will bring harmony back to our land. Take this sword and may it bring you victory on your quest." Without any further explanation, Toya took the sword in his hands.

It was light, the blade glowing with a luminescent light. He held it high above his head, much like Link from The Legend of Zelda when he raised the Master Sword. The power inside the blade felt so raw. So pure. And so natural. Like it was meant for him to wield.

"Thank you...princess Celestia. Thank you for bestowing such an honor upon me." Toya said. He really didn't know what else to say. For something so important to be entrusted to him...nothing like this EVER happened back on Earth.

"You are very welcome. And now, before I send you both out on your journey...I have one final gift to bestow to the both of you, A blessing, if you will." Celestia told them. Toya sheathed the blade and stepped forward and got onto one knee. He'd seen things like this before and read about them too. If a ruler gives you a blessing, you must show your respect down upon knee. Barb was aware of this as well and knelt down beside Toya. The princess of the sun stared at the both of them, maintaining her regal posture before her horn began to glow. Looking to her daughter, she lowered her head and place her horn on Barb's shoulders.

"Barb, you have demonstrated great courage in your past endeavors. Your reliability and knowledge surpasses my expectations. I can sense that you will learn much more as you go along and unlock a potential that you did not know you had, much like Starswirl the Bearded before I. He taught me much about magic that I did not know growing up. And now, i pass some of his knowledge to you. Please accept this gift of wizardly might." With those final words, Celestia's horn glowed brighter before dimming as she raised her head and looked down at Barb.

Barb's body was surging with power, as shown by the tiny sparks outside her body. She never felt anything like this before. Looking at one of her claws, she opened it and formed a fireball inside of it.

"Whoa!" She cried in shock. She waved her arm a bit before the flame dissipated. She wasn't capable of using magic before now. That's when she recalled. The gift of 'wizardly might' Celestia spoke of. Celestia had given her some magical prowess. That in mind, a smile grew across her face and she bowed to the princess. "Thank you for this blessing." She said with great gratitude.

All that was left now was Toya. The solar princess turned her head to him and lowered it down to his. Her horn touched each shoulder as it began to glow. Toya stayed still and only spoke once.

"I am ready, princess."

"Right. Toya, you have shown great compassion and kindness during your short time here. I can see in your heart that you are a very generous boy. Caring, selfless and selfish at times but you mean well. Weak in body, but strong in heart and smart in mind. You seek nothing but to live your life as best you can, getting aid from those you love and giving aid to them as well. Never in my years have I met someone who wished to protect everything and everyone he holds dear. Please accept this gift of 'mending light'." With that, her horn followed the same process it did with Barb before she removed herself from his shoulder.

Toya felt incredible. Like a soft light was enveloping his body...his very soul. He smiled at Barb, who smiled back at him before they turned to the princess and bowed in respect.

"Your journey begins to the north, taking you to the Crystal Empire. The train system is down due to reported murders in the area. We dare not risk bringing anypony suspicious to our home."

"So we're going on foot then?" Barb asked, Celestia nodding in reply. "Alright. Count me in."

"You can count on us, princess." Toya said.

"Thank you, Toya. And thank you, Barb. The fate of Equestria...rests with you. Good luck." With a final bow from both of them, Toya and Barb left the castle. As Celestia had said, the train system was currently out of commission. So there was no other choice left but to go on foot to the Crystal Empire. The trip would take long, but they weren't going to let that stop them. The very fate of Equestria was at stake.

Celestia stared out of her window, watching the two adventurers leave her city and soon, they were out of her sight. All she could do was utter a prayer for them.

Good luck, you two. Faust, watch over these brave souls...

...Watch over us all...

Chapter 3-End

Author's Note

Now, I'm sure some of you are confused as to the blessings Celestia gave to Toya and Barb. So i'll sum it up for you like this.

Gift of Wizardly Might: Celestia was speaking of powerful magic, which mostly pertains to attack. As such, Celestia gave Barb the gift of black magic, such as Fire, Fira, Firaga and so on. Which, combined with Barb's great physical prowess, would make her the Dark Knight of the group.

Gift of Mending Light: This pretty much speaks for itself. To mend is to fix or heal. Thus, Toya was granted white magic which is fitting as he is supposed to be our Paladin. As such, he will learn and use spells like cure, protect, shell and so on.

Hope that cleared everything up for you all. Stick around for the next chapter. See ya~