The Legend of Steele Breaker: Book One-The Twisted Queen

Chapters

Ch. 1: Soups and Swords
Ch. 2: Dale In Flames
Ch. 3: Camp Nocturna
Ch. 4: Storytime With the Princesses
Ch. 5: Every Journey...
Ch. 6: Battle Royale
Ch. 7: The Contebernium

Ch. 1: Soups and Swords

Chapter 1

In which we meet the hero of our tale.

Nestled in the foothills of Canterlot Mountain, there lay a small village by the name of Dale. Dale was not an important village, nor was it famous for any one thing or another. In fact, as pony settlements went, it was highly unremarkable. Nonetheless, it is where our story begins. On the outskirts of Dale, near a stream, sat a solitary home and forge. This was the home of Dale's resident blacksmith, an old earth pony stallion by the name of Iron Gauntlet. Iron Gauntlet was, as most earth ponies are, very hard working. The blacksmith was quite a gruff stallion, both in appearance, and manner. His tough and scarred hide was a very unassuming dull gray, which was complimented by a coal-black mane. He liked it this way. It drew very little attention to him, and he was content to be the background. His nephew however, was quite the opposite.

The small home's other resident, a young unicorn stallion by the name Steele Breaker, couldn't be more unlike his uncle. A clean, near reflective silver coat with a jet black mane, Steele longed for adventure, and a chance to see the world outside of Dale. Unfortunately, his uncle had need of his aide with the forge. So, that's what Steele did. His uncle would craft tools and other things for the town, and Steele would sell them in the village's small market. They turned a decent profit, and it kept food on the table and fire in the hearth. Occasionally, Gauntlet would get an order in from one of the nearby settlements, and would go deliver it himself, often being gone for several days. On these occasions, Steele would go out into the yard with a sword left to him by his parents, and practice on a dummy he had put together from whatever he could find. Currently, it possessed a broken iron chest piece for a body, a wooden bucket for a head, and rotted wooden tool handles made up the frame.

Steele was currently beating this dummy senseless, as Gauntlet was off making a delivery to the newest settlement of Manehattan. He had no idea if he was any good or not, as he had nothing to compare his skill to, but the very same sword he held in his magic also adorned his flank, so he couldn't be that bad. He did however, need to work on his awareness. As he stood practicing, Steel's one and only friend trotted up to him. A red unicorn mare by the name of Ember Blaze. Her mane was black, as much from natural color as the constant singing it received from her pyromancing, and streaked with a deep, smoke gray. She was quite the gifted fire mage, and her skill would only improve as time went on. Currently however, she was in need of a good conversation.

"Hey Steele, how have you been?" Ember waited for a response from her friend, but none came. "Steele?" Silence. In the zone it seemed... oh well, best leave him be and come back later right? Hardly. Ember was not so forgiving. "HEY STEELE!!"

"Gah!" Steele lost his concentration mid up-swing, sending his sword flying up into the air. A moment later it fell back down, burying itself in the ground a few hooves away almost up to the cross-guard. "Sheesh Ember, you could get somepony hurt doing that!" He trotted over to his hilted sword, and grabbed the opal-encrusted hilt in his magic. He wrenched it free from the soft earth, and cleaned the blade of mud. Ember was chuckling all the while.

"Well," she began, still fighting giggles. "I wouldn't do it if it didn't work so well all the time. Seriously, you need to loosen up. You're always so tense, acting like we could be attacked any moment or something." She moved back a bit and sat down as Steele started back up with his sword.

"We could, hyah! You never know Ember. Hah! I mean, we're right on the frontier! That's why, hyah! That's why I train all the time! If you can call it that anyways." He stabbed his steel blade through the chest plate, leaving it there as he turned to go and sit with Ember.

"Seriously Steele? Equestria has been at peace for close to one-hundred years now. It will likely stay that way for one-hundred more. Take it easy."

"Take it easy? Is that what you call what you do all day?" He motioned to her singed mane, to drive the point home about her constant research into fire magic.

"Oh please, you know that what I do is completely different! It's no easy task getting into Starswirl's school. I have to have every basic and intermediate spell in my field down, as well as create a new one. I'd like to see YOU do that mister hack-n-slash!" She poked him playfully in the shoulder, smirking.

"Well," Steele retorted. "I'm not exactly super skilled in magic transformation, just in control. Hence the sword on my flank. Not sure why you have a fireball though, you're pretty terrible with those spells of yours." Ember gawked at him in mock offense, holding a hoof crossed over her chest.

"How dare you! I'll have you know I'm the best fire mage in all the town of Dale!"

"That's because you're the only fire mage in Dale silly." Ember harrumphed at this, only to begin laughing after a few moments. Such was their friendship.

"Yeah yeah, say what you like Steele, but who do they have light the pyre for Hearth's Warming every year? Eh?" Steele began laughing along with his friend, always happy to have her company. He kept telling himself that one of these days he'd bring her some flowers or something. Whatever ponies considered acceptable courtship rituals. He could never find the time though, and by time he meant courage. He thought about saying something then and there. Just looking at her as she stared off over the fields, a light wind blowing her mane about. Little singed bits actually broke off every now and then, and he gave a soft chuckle at this. His favorite part though were her eyes. Bright, pure orange irises that danced in the afternoon light, like they were made of the very flame she was so proficient with. She was beautiful.

"You know Steele," she spoke, breaking his concentration. "If you're so in love with your swordplay, why not join the guard? You'd probably do very well for yourself. And they could use a stallion like you." Steele hummed in agreement.

"I've considered it many times," he said. "But I always tell myself that my uncle needs me more. I honestly don't know what he'd do without me." He chuckled a bit at the thought: his uncle never really being able to do anything for himself. He was great with a hammer and anvil, a stove however, not so much. Back when Steele first started living with his uncle, around five, his aunt was still alive as well. He only ever knew her as 'Aunt Holly', but sweet Celestia could that mare cook. She taught him quite a bit as he grew up, but she passed a few years ago, so now it was up to him to keep his uncle from starving to death. Among other things. His gaze shifted downward. So many of his family gone... it was only him and Gauntlet now. His parents had passed many years ago, or so he'd been told.

When he started living with Gauntlet and Aunt Holly, it was because his father and mother had to leave the country for a few months, and couldn't bring him along. His father, a diplomat by the name of Silver Tongue, had to travel to the Gryphon Clans to work out some trade deals. His mother, Opal Heart, was a respected noble in the Canterlot Elite. Her voice held a lot of weight in the clans, something to do with her saving a gryphon hatchling, who happened to be the son of a Clan's head. He knew that they had made it. His mother had written several letters to him, nearly one every other day. Telling him what the gryphons were like, the places, the things they had. She told him about the grand Holds the gryphons had constructed, huge cities surrounded by massive stone walls. Each one flying a different flag. That was Silver's mission you see, to unite the Clans as one, strengthening not only the gryphons themselves, but their diplomatic ties with Equestria as well. It would have been quite the game changer in politics if Steele understood correctly. But, one day, the letters stopped. A week later, they had heard about a great Civil War that had broken out among the Clans. Each clan battling to gain supremacy over the others. As far as Steele knew, those wars still raged. He never heard from his parents again.

"Yeah, I suppose you do have a point there. I mean, you're Uncle is a great blacksmith, but Sisters forbid he has to provide his own meals. I've had his cooking before. Couldn't get the taste out for a whole week!" Steele and Ember both erupted into laughter again, remembering old times. They did this for hours, nearly every other day. Just sitting and talking about nothing. It was a great way to wind down their days, both constantly busy in one way or another. Eventually, Celestia's Sun began to fall behind the tree line of the Everfree Forest. To the North, one could just make out Luna's moon peeking from behind Canterlot Mountain. There was rumor that The Sisters were planning to build a new palace upon the face of Equestria's most magnificent landmark, but it was only hearsay. Ember decided she had best get home before night was fully upon them. Though it may be the seat of the Royal Castle, The Everfree was dangerous at night, and travelers were wise not to traverse it alone.

"Well Ember, I suppose it's goodbye and goodnight for today. Same time tomorrow?" Ember looked at Steele from where she stood, and nodded.

"Of course, see you tomorrow Steele. Now, I better hurry before the night life kicks off. Goodnight." She trotted away, her horn lighting up in order to provide her with some light as she walked the path back to town. It wasn't far, only a few hundred pony-lengths to the town proper, but ti was always best not to linger in Everfree. Steele sat and watched as she left, her light disappearing into the dense foliage of the forest. He stared out to the north, watching Luna's Moon slowly rise up as the orange sky began to fade to deep purple. He always liked to watch the moon rise. It felt relaxing for some reason, as if all of his worries were being lifted from him.

Steele stood, and turned to head inside his uncle's home. Wresting his sword from the target dummy, he began slowly marching back to the safety of the hearth. As he walked however, he heard a rustling in a nearby bush. He turned his head, lighting his horn so he could see better. Sword at the ready, he crept toward the noise. Rustling again, slight left. He focused his light, making it brighter, and shining it exactly on the bush the noise was coming from. He took another tentative step forward, swallowing hard. There could be anything in that bush, a Timber wolf? Cockatrice? Perhaps some form of large snake? He really hated snakes. He sent his sword out, and prodded the shrub. In doing so, he coaxed the bush's occupant out of hiding. Out hopped a small brown rabbit, nose twitching and ears raised.

Dang it Steele... way to over react. Mentally face-hoofing himself for getting worked up over a rabbit, Steele finished his trek to the small home. As the door shut, a green flash erupted from that small, unassuming rabbit. It was engulfed in green flame, revealing the form of a creature most sinister. It's wings buzzed, and it flew off into the night.

__________

Steele floated his sword of to a weapon rack hanging on a nearby wall, and gazed around the small wooden home that housed him and his uncle. Just beyond the front door was their living and dining area. In it sat an old, round wooden table, with four chairs snug up against it at regular intervals. To the left was the kitchen, and the rest of the home beyond that. A wash basin sat on the right wall of the kitchen, with a stone fireplace on the left. Several cabinets lined the walls, along with hooks holding various pots, pans, and food sacks. Steele pulled down one of the larger pots, filled it with water, and set it in the fireplace, lighting a match as he did so. Tossing the lit match into the logs sitting in the hearth, he began to pull several vegetables out of their sacks, placing them on a counter. Steele began chopping away as the water began to boil in the pot, adding a bit of cooking oil and some seasoning, he moved the chopped vegetables into the pot, and began to stir. Soup was a staple of his and Gauntlet's diet, mostly because it was all Gauntlet ever wanted to eat. He said it reminded him of his mother.

After a while, the soup was nearly ready, so Steele pulled two bowls from one of the cabinets. Testing his creation and deeming it ready, Steele filled one bowl, then the other, and moved the pot off of the fire. He knew Gauntlet could be home at any moment, and he'd want to eat almost immediately. In fact, Steele could hear the creaking of wagon wheels coming from the north. He went to the door and saw Gauntlet down the road, hauling an empty cart behind him. He rushed out to assist his uncle with putting their wagon away.

"Ah, Steele, give your old uncle a hoof with this here cart, would ya boy?" Gauntlet's gruff voice called out as Steele cantered over. Using is magic to pull the cart off of his uncle and onto himself, Steele fell in stride next to the old stallion.

"Good evening uncle. How was your trip?" His uncle merely snorted in response. "Wow... that bad huh? What happened?"

"Those settler ponies... I swear to Celestia, you'd have thought they were trying to rob me! I arrive at their 'humble' little village, tired from a long journey, cart loaded with tools and weapons for them, and they try to haggle me down from our pre-agreed upon price! Said my work was shoddy and the tools were dull and not worth the trouble. Pah! They wouldn't know good craftponyship if it reared up and bit 'em on the flank! Took me nearly an hour to get a fair deal. We finally decided to go fifteen bits per item and a free night at the town inn. Cheap bastards the lot of 'em." Steele cocked an eyebrow, surprised at the price.

"Only fifteen? Didn't they promise nearly thirty? I'm surprised you went for that uncle, you're usually more adamant. Not losing your edge are you?" His uncle gave him a sideways glare, and Steele bit back a bit of laughter.

"Not on your life boy. Normally I would have been, but I was tired, and once I saw the prices at that inn, it would have been nearly a clean swap either way. Still, we made some good coin, 450 bits is a decent haul. Minus 50 or so for travel expenses." Gauntlet sniffed the air as they neared the forge and shed. "You make supper already?"

"That I did uncle. Soup, the usual stuff." Steele lifted the cart off his back, and set the harness gently on the ground. His uncle placed a couple boards behind the wheels to keep it from rolling back down the hill. They both turned and headed for the house, with Steele closing the shed doors behind them.

"Atta boy Steele, you know just how to get me unwound at the end of a long journey. Just like your Aunt did, Sisters rest her soul." Steele and Gauntlet sat at the dining room table and ate their meal, Gauntlet going into a bit more detail about his trip to Manehatten. Apparently the settlement was doing rather well for itself, with the population steadily growing. In fact, as Gauntlet was on his way out of the area he came across a fellow blacksmith who was moving to the new town. While it meant there wasn't much chance of more work out there, it was a good sign for the ponies out there. They would likely thrive, especially the way Gauntlet described the area. Lots of fertile land, the coast practically on their doorstep. While it would be rough their first few years as it always went with frontier towns, Steele expected it'd grow to be one of Equestria's largest cities if it was allowed to by her neighbors.

After they had finished their meal, Gauntlet bid Steele a good night, then turned in. The old stallion rounded the corner into his room, shutting the door behind him. Steele let out a slow sigh, placing the two bowls into the wash basin. He looked over at the now empty pot, deciding to deal with it tomorrow before he went to the market in the morning. It was going to be another long day tomorrow, as it always was when Gauntlet was in town. He wasn't complaining by any means, but the monotony got boring. Still, it was a decent and honest living, and it was nice to talk to ponies in the market.

Steele moved down the hall past his uncle's room to his own. Much like everything else, it wasn't very special. A small bed on the left wall, a dresser on the right, and a single window on the back wall, facing south into the forest. On his dresser, there sat two things: a painting of him and his parents, and a necklace his mother had given him before they left. It was a silver chain with a single opal at the bottom, it was oval in shape, and only a half inch wide. He floated the necklace over, gazing at it in his magic. Slipping it over his head, the small jewel fit rather snugly against his breast fitting just between his two collar bones. He lay on his bed, reaching out with his magic again, he grabbed the painting and floated it in front of his face. He stared up at his younger self, sitting calmly in-between his parents. The artist had done a good job, capturing quite well the likeness of the three ponies. Steele actually remembered that day, having to sit still for nearly an hour while the artist painted them. As soon as the mare had finished, he made a beeline for the nearest colt's room. He chuckled, nearly having wet himself on the way over. He would give anything to go back to those days. Everything was so much happier then. Sighing, Steele set the portrait aside and fell into a dreamless sleep.

__________

Steele awoke slowly, his room still dark. Strange, he thought, I don't usually wake up until sunrise. After he gained full control of his functions though, he knew why his body had woke him up. Smoke. Maybe Gauntlet had woken up early and tried to cook himself something? Steele laughed aloud at that thought. Standing, he walked out of his room and called down the hall.

"Uncle? Not trying to cook again are you?" Steele heard sarcastic laughter coming from his uncle's room.

"Very funny boy. No, I'm not trying to cook, the damn town's on fire. So, if you're done cracking jokes, we need to get over there and do what we can to help." Instantly Steele's expression changed. He hurried down the hall, rounding the corner into the kitchen just as his uncle came out of his room. Steele looked back at the old stallion, and quirked an eyebrow at what he was wearing.

"Er... Gauntlet? What's with the get-up?" His uncle looked at him through the eye slats in a helmet. It was a simple thing, made from his uncle's namesake. The stallion also wore a breastplate, and greaves on his front hooves. They looked weighted, as if they were designed just as much for attack as they were for defense.

"Saw something flying around the town from my window. Lot's of green flame. The town isn't just on fire, it's under attack. Grab your sword boy. We're in for a fight." Steele gulped. He figured he was good with his sword, but he'd never used it in any real fights. Time to see what he was made of he guessed. He grabbed his sword and ran out the front door and to the right, Iron Gauntlet right behind him. Whatever happened, this was going to be a long day.

Author's Note

Ta-da! Chapter 1 of books one of that series I've been on about for who knows how long. really looking forward to this one. Going for that epic style like Echo the Diamond Dog and stories similar. Please, let me know what you think of this in the comments, and by hitting that like or dislike button. Don't be shy, you won't hurt my feelings. Just try and keep it constructive yeah?

Anyways, you should probably expect one of these to go up every couple weeks or so. At least initially. I've already got most of the first half of this book planned out. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next chapter!

-Duvagr007

Ch. 2: Dale In Flames

Chapter 2

In which we meet our foe.

Princess Luna sat upon her throne, idly twirling her crown around in her magic. Night court had been rather slow, as it always seemed to be these past few months. She looked around the Royal Throne Room, taking in the grandeur of it all. Large, marble columns rose up along either side of a long hall, with a roof that stretched up higher than the forest that surrounded them. The great glass ceiling gave a perfect view into her night sky. A small smile spread across her muzzle as she looked at one of her favorite constellations. Tracing it out in her mind's eye, a great bear began to take shape. She closed her eyes, and imagined herself up there among the stars, playing with her constellations. A small sigh escaped her mouth, and her eyes opened again.

She turned her gaze downward to her two most loyal guards, Noctis and Stella. Noctis was a rather large thestral stallion, certainly much larger than his comrades. His deep indigo coat contrasted starkly with his white mane, and his broad, powerful shoulders filled out his polished steel armor nicely. Stella was much the opposite, though she shared his darker coat, it was closer to purple. Her blue mane gave a nice compliment, and her small frame (even by thestral standards) meant her armor actually had to be custom made. Both of them stood straight and unblinking, spears at the ready and eyes forward, ready to defend their princess with their lives. At the other end of the long throne room sat two more guards, though Luna could not remember their names. They stood on either side of a massive wooden door, the main entrance into the throne room. The door itself was inlaid with an intertwining dance of silver and gold, diamond and ruby, a precious metal and stone to represent each herself and her sister.

Luna sighed again, for the umpteenth time that night. She placed her crown back upon her head, and pulled a stack of books out from behind her throne. Looking at her collection, she selected one she had not yet read, and opened it up to the first page. It seemed to be some form of romance novel, as only a few pages in there were already very cheesy lines and gooey dialogue. Disgusting. She read on with gusto, eager to see what sort of calamities might befall this 'Stricken Heart' stallion. Her desires would be denied however, as just as it seemed things were taking a turn for the worse, the doors burst open. In came one of her night guards, galloping at full speed towards her throne. He had a panicked look in his eyes, and he nearly collapsed when he reached the base of the dais. He quite gracefully turned his collapse into a kneeling bow.

"My Princess! There's been an attack!" Luna's eyes widened a bit at this. It seemed something interesting had finally happened during Night Court, though it wasn't quite what she had hoped for.

"Catch your breath, and rise. Tell Us, what have you seen?" Luna stood, and walked gracefully down the steps of the dais, her regalia clinking softly against the marble surface. The stallion did as he was commanded and stood, though he did not meet her eye. Luna rolled hers, and knelt her front hooves to be at eye level with the guard. His eyes flitted away.

"It's the town of Dale your highness, it's under attack. We could not make out much detail from our post, but there was smoke, and the glow of flame illuminating the area. It... it was green, Princess. An unnatural, evil green. We could make out the forms of some kinds of creatures flitting about the sky. They moved like insects, darting this way and that at random. Fast too." Luna stood at this, unsure of what this could mean. She had heard of no such creature in her four-hundred years of rule. A new race from the East perhaps? Nopony had yet to explore past the mountain ranges on the far borders of the Gryphon Tribes. It was of little consequence where these creatures were from however, as they were attacking her ponies. Something they would soon regret.

"Stella, Noctis, with Us. You, guard, what is your name?"

"Decanus Chroma Dusk your highness." Dusk threw a hoof across his chest in salute.

"Thank you for bringing this to Our attention Decanus. Report to your Centurion, and have him ready his cohort. We must mobilize rapidly. Dismissed, now go!"

"Yes Princess!" And with one more salute, Chroma Dusk ran off to the barracks to alert his superior on the situation. Luna began walking towards the main hall door, Stella and Noctis in tow.

"My sister must be alerted to the situation.... Stella, you are the faster flyer. Go to her chambers, rouse her from her slumber. She may wish to bring her own forces into this." The Thestral mare spread her leathery wings, and with nothing but a nod, shot into the sky. A sky shaking boom could be heard a moment later as she shattered the sound barrier. A few moments later, a deep, bellowing horn sounded through the night. A signal to alert the soldiers on patrol to immediately report the their Centurions in the barracks.

"Your highness, should Princess Celestia not wish to get her tin soldiers involved, do you think a single cohort will be enough?" Noctis looked at his princess with concern on his face.

"Truthfully my friend, We have no idea. However, we do not wish to throw everything at nothing, nor would it be wise to go full force against a potentially highly skilled opponent. We wish to gauge this new enemy's strength so as to better confront it in the future. All of the night watch are from the tenth cohort, so we shall see how they fare against this enemy." Noctis nodded slowly in understanding. He and Luna now stood outside, staring out into the forest where a soft green glow could just be seen through the gaps in the trees. Behind him, he could hear the marching of near 500 ponies of the Tenth Nocturnal Cohort. At it's lead was the Pilus Prior known as Silver Spear. Noctis turned his head to look at them, their steel armor shining brightly in the moonlight. Silver Spear halted his stallions, then approached Luna.

"Your Highness," he said, saluting. "The Tenth Cohort has assembled as you requested. We are ready to march and defend Dale at your word." The Pilus's eyes met Noctis's, and both of the stallions nodded in acknowledgement of one another.

"You have it. Keep those citizens safe Pilus." Silver Spear bowed his head slightly, then turned to face his cohort.

"Stallions! You've been informed of our duty tonight by your Centurions! Move out at their discretion! Go!" A resounding 'Hoo-ah!' came from the cohort, and they trudged off in the direction of Dale. Hopefully they would arrive in time.

__________

Steele and Gauntlet were running down the path into town at full speed, which for Gauntlet was rather slow. He wasn't far behind however, his old age and armor being balanced out with surging adrenaline. Trees whizzed past them as they jumped over roots and overgrowth. They could hear ponies screaming down the road, and the heat of the flames was reaching them even now. As they grew closer to the edge of the trees, they even began to see ponies running in the other direction. Most were simply screaming their heads off, but some got a few words of warning in as they ran from the blaze.

"Run for your lives!"

"They're monsters! Monsters!!"

"They killed my husband!"

Steele nearly turned tail and joined them, but he knew he had to do what he could to help. Fighting back his fear, he carried on through the trees. He and Gauntlet came skidding to a halt as they finally made it to the edge of town. What Steele saw nearly made him lose whatever remained within his stomach. The bodies of ponies littered the streets, stallions, mares, and foals alike. Some looked as though they had merely been beaten or stabbed, but a few unfortunate souls suffered far worse. Decapitation and disembowelment were among the more gruesome deaths. The smell of death and blood hit Steele's nose like a charging minotaur. He looked around, trying to find any of the creatures that had done this, when a scream to the right drew his and Gauntlet's attention.

There was an older mare being chased by some sort of... bug pony. It was about the same size as a full grown stallion, but very slender. It was solid black save for a bit of dark blue on its back. It had large fangs inside its maw, and legs that didn't look like they'd support much weight with all the holes they possessed. It was buzzing closely behind the mare using wings that seemed far to small for this thing to be able to fly. Steele brought up his sword, and mentally prepared himself to rush in and save this mare, but Gauntlet held a hoof across his chest.

"No! I'll get this one, you go and save that marefriend of yours!" Gauntlet gave his nephew no time to respond as he charged in and tackled the creature out of the air. Steele went to protest, as Ember was not his marefriend, but decided now was not the best time. He merely did as his uncle suggested, and took off into the burning town.

Steele looked around at all of the chaos as he ran, dodging over dead ponies as he did so. Nearly the entire town was bathed in green flame, though it did not seem to be consuming any of the buildings. It simply spread around, giving off an eerie green light. As he ran, two of the creatures from before slammed into the ground in front of him. Their alien mouths open wide, a loud hiss emanating from both of them. Now that they weren't moving so fast, Steele could get a better look at them. On top of the bug like appearance, they also possessed horns, which likely meant they were capable of some kind of magic. Instead of eyes, they had large, soulless lenses of a light blue color. Despite not having any sort of pupils to speak of, Steele could tell they were staring right at him. He brought his sword up, and got himself ready for his very first real fight.

The creature on the left lunged at him, and he rolled to the right, swinging his sword out as he did so. He felt it connect with something, so he followed through, and pained scream came from the creature as Steele came up to his feet from the roll. He looked, and saw that he had left a rather large gash down the thing's side, green ooze pouring from the wound. Smirking, Steele got ready to finish it off when something heavy and hard impacted his side. Like a fool, he had forgotten about the other one. The force of the impact knocked Steele onto his back and caused him to drop his sword, the bug quickly jumping on top of him, trying to finish the job. Wrestling with it hoof to... well, hoof for lack of a better word, he searched the ground with his magic, trying to find his dropped weapon. The bug atop him kept trying to get inside his guard, snarling all the while, saliva spewing onto Steele's face. Finally finding his blade, a new problem in a long list came up: the other one was holding it in its mouth. Steele began to tug, but it's grip was too strong. The one on top of him landed a blow on Steele's head, breaking his concentration.

This gave the other enough time to jump into the air and plunge the blade straight towards Steele. Steele wasn't sure what took hold of him in that moment, but his body reacted to the situation all on its own. He rolled his belly towards the creature with his sword, bringing the other with him, and kicked out with his back legs, sending the bug on top careening into the other, impaling itself on his blade. This caused the one with the sword to drop it, the force of the impact shattering its fangs. Steele rolled to his hooves, and grabbed his weapon off the ground with his magic. He slowly walked over to the two bugs, the first one trying to push its dead comrade off of itself. It looked at the stallion and hissed, a promise to kill him once it was free. Steele didn't give it the chance, plunging his sword into its skull. He pulled the blade from the bug, and looked down at what he had done. This time he did lose his dinner from the night prior. After the adrenaline wore off, the thought of killing was very unsettling, even if it was a life or death battle. Wiping his mouth and giving the bodies one final sideways glance, he took off back on the hunt for his friend.

Steele hung a right, and then a left onto the street Ember lived on. She likely wasn't at home, but he figured it was as good a place as any to start. Her house came into view, and Steele was glad to see that it had not yet been consumed by flames. As he grew closer however, something happened he did not expect. A large explosion shook the home, proper red flame vomiting into the night sky above. What remained of the structure collapsed in on itself, now burning brightly. Steele quickened his pace, praying to the Sisters that his friend was still alive. Sliding on the loose dirt as he made a sharp turn, Steele then lunged into the burning building. He placed his sword in front of him, using the pommel to know away burning debris in his path.

"Ember," he called out, hoping against hope that he'd get a response. "Hello!? Ember! Ember are you here?!" No luck. He lowered his sword, looking about the collapsed and burning home, praying that he might spot something through the smoke and ash. He coughed a bit, and was about to head out out when he heard a faint noise over the roar of the flames.

"Steele?" His head snapped to the origin of the sound, and he pushed through flame and debris as he walked to where it had came from.

"Ember? Ember is that you!?"

"Steele?" There, he saw her! She was pinned under a fallen support, her hind leg having gotten caught under its weight as it fell. Otherwise she looked fine, a few scratches and scrapes here and there, but alive. He set his sword down, and knelt beside his friend.

"Oh Luna... Ember, are you okay?" She looked up at him, one eye stuck shut from some blood caking her coat, and gave him a weak smile.

"I'm- *cough* I'm fine. Just a couple scratches. They'll heal. Now, get this beam off of me, would ya?" Steele chuckled a bit at his friend's resilience, and stepped back. Grabbing the offending wood in his magic, he began to heave with all of his mental fortitude. Not one much for powerful magic, he was only able to lift it slightly, but it was enough for Ember to pull her leg free. Steele dropped the beam, allowing it to hit the ground with a solid thud. He rushed to Ember's side as she began to stand, but collapsed back down again when she tried to stand on the leg that had been pinned down.

"Whoa, easy now Ember. That leg of your is probably sprained, if not broken. Here, lean into me, and we'll get out of this building." She looked at him, and nodded. Standing more slowly this time, she pressed her weight into him, shakily standing on three hooves. After a moment of her getting her balance, they began to slowly move out of the burning building, Steele doing his best to steer them away from the flames and keep Ember on her hooves. After what seemed like an eternity, they finally made it out into the street, Ember almost instantly falling to the ground once they were safe.

"Oh wow... I thought I was going to die in there. Steele, if you hadn't come along I-" He shushed her with a hoof to her mouth, and lay on the ground beside her.

"Don't think about that now. The important thing is you're safe, and I'm here to make sure it stays that way. Now then, let's rest here a bit, and then work out what to do next, okay?" She looked at him, the fear slowly fading from her eyes. Nodding slightly, she rested her head on his shoulder, sobbing softly. He placed a hoof around her, doing his best to comfort her. Another part of the house fell behind them, sending embers into the sky. Steele looked around, trying to keep an eye out for any more of those creatures. He heard something off to the south, his ears perking and pointing in that direction. He turned his head to try and see where the sound was coming from, and he nearly started crying as well. Though these would be tears of joy, rather than fear and pain. It was the Lunar Legion! They had come to defend the town it seemed, and several of them were moving in he and Ember's direction.

"Hey," Steele called out, waving his free hoof to get their attention. Ember picked her head up to see what was going on, and her mood brightened almost instantly. "Over here!" One of the stallions pulled ahead of the others, quickly closing the gap between them and the two friends collapsed on the ground.

"Hail citizen. We are soldiers of the Tenth Nocturnal Cohort, First Century. My name is Decanus Chroma Dusk. Are you injured?" The Decanus reached out a hoof to Steele, one which he gladly accepted, and pulled him up.

"Oh Sisters are we glad to see you stallions. My name's Steele, and I'm fine, but my friend Ember has hurt her leg. She can't walk. Is there something you can do to help her?" Dusk looked at Ember, and then to the leg Steele had pointed out. Kneeling, he looked the leg over, feeling it out with his hooves. As he moved down, Ember gave a slight wince when the Decanus touched a particularly tender spot.

"Ma'am, Ember was it?" She nodded, and Chroma continued. "I'm going to get a better feel for what's wrong with your leg, but it will hurt. If it's dire, it will need to be treated immediately with what we can provide here. Or, should you wish to wait for the doctors to arrive, they can give a proper diagnosis with far less pain, but it may not be in time to save your leg if it's bad enough. What do you want to do?" He looked at Ember, a very serious expression on his face. She bit her bottom lip in thought, deciding on what to do. Steele knelt beside her, and touched her shoulder.

"Hey, you'll be okay Ember. Here, squeeze my hoof, it'll help with the pain." He offered his hoof, and she took it in hers. Looking back at the Decanus, she nodded.

"Alright, do it," she said. Her breath hitched in her chest as she braced for the pain to come. The soldier slowly grabbed the tender spot, and pressed in, feeling out the leg bones inside. Ember winced hard, and grit her teeth in pain. She gave Steele's hoof a death grip, causing the stallion to wince slightly as well. After a moment, Dusk looked back at them, a sullen look on his face.

"Well," he began. "I've got some good news for you, and some bad news. The bad news is that your leg is broken, but the good news is that it's a clean break. I can set it back right and splint it, but it's going to hurt like Tartarus. If I don't do this now, you may never walk properly again." Ember nodded quickly, simply wanting this whole thing to be over with. Dusk nodded in return. "Alright, on the count of three. Brace yourself. One!" He snapped the leg back into place, and Ember cried out into the night. She nearly crushed Steele's hoof with how tightly she was gripping it, causing the stallion to exclaim out in surprise.

Steele looked at the soldier, a mix of confusion and anger on his face. "I thought you said on the count of three!?" Chroma Dusk barely even glanced at Steele, simply preferring to ignore him and splint Ember's leg instead. Once the Decanus had finished, he looked over at Steele, his face completely expressionless.

"It hurts less if it's sudden," was all the explanation he offered before rising to his hooves. "Alright you two, best stick with us." Dusk looked behind him, the other stallions that he was with finally catching up. There was only four of them in total, something Steele thought was rather odd.

"Hey, isn't there usually eight of you in a group? Where's the other four?" One of the other stallions spoke up, answering Steele's question.

"We ran into some of those things earlier... the rest of the Contubernium didn't make it. Those bugs are ruthless." The Decanus looked at his soldier, eyes narrow.

"Best keep your mouth shut soldier, lest you say something that ought not be said." The one who had spoken up recoiled slightly, and nodded in acknowledgement of the order. "Now then, let's get a move on. The Second Century was meant to be setting up a forward command center in the southern part of town. Streak," the stallion from earlier looked up, a knowing look of resignation on his face. "Take point, get us back to the camp. Ma'am, can you stand?" Ember tried to rise, slowly putting weight on her rear leg. After a moment, she winced and brought it back up, shaking her head. Steele moved in, standing beside her again like before. She once again settled her weight against him, and Steele gave the Decanus a nod. Returning the gesture, the soldier known as Streak began to lead them southward, heading in the direction of the Cohort's camp.

As they walked, Steele did his best to keep his head on a swivel, constantly on the lookout for more of the Bug Ponies. Looking down a street, he noticed a group of them surrounding something. Stopping, he called out to the soldiers walking with them.

"Hey, Decanus, I see some more of those things down the road here. They're- oh no!" Steele was finally able to see what they were surrounding, and he recognized the form instantly. It was his uncle! There was at least four of the Bugs, maybe five, and they were about to charge in. "Ember, I'm gonna put you down, my uncle is over there. I have to go help him!" Ember slowly lay down, and Steele brought up his sword, ready to rush in to help his uncle.

"Oh no you don't citizen. I can't just allow you to go charging headfirst into that kind of fight! Your life is in my hooves now, and I won't have you losing it!" The Decanus was now standing between Steele and his uncle, blocking his path. "Streak, Shade, Crescent, get in there." The other three stallions nodded and took off to assist Steele's uncle in the fight.

"Get out of my way! I'm not just going to stand here and watch!" Steele charged the Decanus, trying to muscle past him, but the soldier moved to intercept, stopping Steele in his tracks. Grunting, Steele attempted to push Dusk away from him, but it was no use. He struggled on however, trying his best to get past the Decanus and into the fray.

"Steele!" Ember's voice gave him pause, and he slackened his efforts to push past Dusk. He looked back, and saw his friend close to tears. "Please, don't go into that. I don't want to lose you." Steele looked back to his uncle, now fighting side by side with the other soldiers. it seemed pretty even, the bugs were down one, but one of the soldiers seemed badly hurt.

"I.... okay. But Dusk, you have to go in there. Make sure my uncle makes it out alive." The Decanus nodded, and turned to rush in with his soldiers. As he ran however,several more changelings came seemingly out of nowhere, killing two of the soldiers. Now, only Gauntlet and the one known as Streak were left standing. Gauntlet went into what Steele could only describe as a frenzy. His body moved like lightning, jumping from bug to bug. Each time he landed, he brought a heavy hoof down on a bug's head, crushing it beneath his weighted leg armor. Streak was doing his best to keep alive, but the onslaught of bugs was too much, and he too fell.

"No!" The Decanus quickened his pace, trying to close the distance faster, but he came skidding to a halt when something huge came out from behind one of the buildings. It was another bug, but it was so much different from the others. For starters, it was probably three times the size of a normal stallion. Its body was much thicker and more solid looking than the other bugs, and it had no holes in its legs. its mouth seemed to be locked open, a blue glow emanating from withing. It had no horn that Steele could see, and its eyes were tiny pricks of blue light. The beast let out some sort of low rumbling noise, causing Gauntlet to hit the ground, clutching his ears in pain. It approached Steele's uncle, slowly, deliberately, letting out it's growl all the while. It stood just before the old blacksmith, and brought a colossal hoof into the air.

"Oh Celestia... please, no. Uncle!" Steele watched in horror as the monster brought its massive hoof down, crushing Iron Gauntlet into nothing but paste. Steel would have vomited then and there, but his stomach was already empty. The Decanus turned back to face Steele and Ember, and began moving quickly in their direction.

"Run!" Steele didn't need to be told twice, and helped Ember to her hooves. She began hobbling alongside him as quickly as she could, which wasn't nearly fast enough. Steele looked back, and the bugs were all heading in their direction. The larger one was moving much slower than the rest, but it was still gaining. At this rate, it would only take a minute before they were dead. The Decanus rounded a corner, and when Steele turned to follow, the Cohort's camp came into view. It was still a ways off, so Dusk charged ahead, shouting at his comrades to come to their aide. The two guards at the camp's entrance shouted behind them into the camp, and ran out to meet them in the road. Steele looked back behind himself and Ember. The bugs were nearly upon them.

After a moment, nearly thirty stallions came out of the camp. They charged past Steele and Ember, who were now almost to the walls, and began to fend off the attacking bugs. Dusk came and helped Steele get Ember the rest of the way inside the camp before he went back out to help his comrades in the fight. An older stallion began walking towards the two friends, a warm smile on his face. He was a green color, and wore a cloak and pointed hat, both decorated with stars. The brim of the hat had bells around it, which jingled as he walked. The strangest thing though was that he possessed a long beard that came down from his chin. Ember looked about ready to explode.

"Greetings citizens, my name is Starswirl The Bearded, welcome to the base camp of the Tenth Nocturna Cohort." Steele could have sworn he heard a small 'squee' come from Ember.

Author's Note

Alright! Chapter número dos. Bad things happened, and a lot of ponies died, but hey, it's Starswirl! As always, let me know if i missed any spelling or grammar errors, and I'll go in and fix them. Also, I'm a bit shaky on how i feel about the pacing of this chapter, but maybe it's just me. Again, let me know in the comments of what you guys think about that as well. I'll do my level best to keep this pace of updates as well, some may come sooner, some later. It all really depends on how work goes. Anyways, take care folks!

-Duvagr007

Ch. 3: Camp Nocturna

Chapter 3

In which a battle is waged.

Steele looked around at the building that currently sheltered Starswirl, Ember, and himself. It had been completely emptied of heavy furnishings, only decorations left upon the walls. A few windows dotted the outer walls, granting a view into the street and the camp. Though, to call the garrison of Legion soldiers a 'camp' wouldn't have been quite accurate. All they had really done was build makeshift walls out of furniture across several streets and occupy the homes within. Still, it worked, and it was the only safe area in Dale. In talking with Starswirl, they had learned that the Nocturnal Legion had arrived several hours ago, clearing and then occupying this area of town. Luna herself had ordered the march, and Celestia had simply opted to send him along as a sort of adviser the the Pilus Prior. Steele wasn't too well versed on military rank within the Legion, but he deduced that the Pilus was at the very least in command of the Cohort. Starswirl was all to happy to clear everything up for him.

"- Prior is a rank given to a pony in command of a Cohort within the Legion, of which there are ten. They are ranked from first to tenth, with each successive Pilus dropping in rank from the former. The First cohort at the head, the tenth at the rear. The Pilus Prior in charge of the First Cohort is given the special rank of Primus Pilus. Under each of these, you have their five Centurions, who command 100 soldiers each. They are ranked from 'top to bottom' in the same way that..." and so he droned, on and on about the ranks of the Legion. Steele was interested for sure, but Starswirl wasn't very animated. He spoke as though reading straight from a scroll. Steele looked over at Ember, who was fast asleep on a bed roll that had been set out on the floor, likely for one of the soldiers. As he stared at her, Starswirl still rambling on in the background, the gravity of the situation finally began to set in.

His uncle, and countless other ponies, were dead. It seemed he and Ember were the only two left alive, and if it hadn't been for Chroma Dusk, they wouldn't have made it either. The creatures that did this... that monstrosity that crushed his uncle... it was like something out of a nightmare. The more he thought about it, the more pained images of screaming ponies flashed into his mind, blood and flame clouding his thoughts. He began panting, his breathing becoming labored and his heart rate trying to beat free of his chest. Eyes wide, his mind had gone into shock. All he could see were their faces. Blood and panicked faces with empty eyes. Hundreds of lives ended. A whole town, families, mares, foals. Like ghosts they haunted him. Screaming. Endless screaming, though their cries had ceased long ago.

"Steele!" His head snapped up, breathing still labored, but returning to normal. Starswirl was looking at him, hoof on his shoulder, and concern plastered across his face. "Here, drink this. It'll help you to take your mind off of things." The old wizard passed Steele a small cup of amber colored liquid in his magic. Steele took it and drank, almost instantly feeling better as a warmth spread through his body. It tasted like apple, but with something else mixed in. It took a moment, but Steele finally realized it was cider. He could tell it wasn't anything hard, at least not very, but it did the trick.

"I... thank you. I just couldn't stop seeing their faces. So many dead ponies..." Starswirl nodded in understanding, and took the now empty cup from Steele, setting it aside.

"I understand, believe me. As all stallions, I served my time with the Legion, so I am no stranger to death. Their faces will stay with you, for as long as you live. They will fade with time, but never completely. There were times when I asked Luna to block my dreams for a few nights, so I could simply rest. Tell me, you are eighteen are you not?" Steele nodded, and the wizard gave a slight smile. "Then you will find out soon enough what I speak of." The young stallion simply nodded again, knowing full well what Starswirl meant. Every Stallion, once they reach eighteen, would be drafted into the Legion to serve for 25 years, guarding Equestria and fighting her foes.

In truth, it was baffling that he had not yet received a letter from the Legion Drafting Station in the area. This being the one in the capitol, they were not known to take their time with things, and he had turned eighteen nearly three months ago now. Still, that wasn't very important right now, so Steele pushed it to the back of his mind.

"So, what now?" Starswirl didn't respond immediately, instead choosing to walk over the one of the windows looking out into the street. Nocturnal Legionaires were hustling about, shoring up defenses, changing posts, moving more pilum to the walls, and several other tasks that needed doing to 'hold down the fort', as it were. It seemed they were trying to take advantage of the lull in attacks that had been going on since early morning. It seemed the bugs didn't much care to attack during the daylight hours. Though, they would likely return soon, as night was nearly upon them. After a moment, the Wizard turned and faced Steele.

"We will have to stay here until most of the enemy has been cleared out. They can't spare us an escort to the castle, and I don't want to risk teleportation with your friend's condition. Once the Pilus deems it safe enough, he'll send a few soldiers to guide us to safety. Until then, we need only wait out of the way." Steele nodded in understanding. He didn't much care for sitting out and doing nothing, but it would likely be best to leave the fighting to the trained soldiers. "By the way," the Wizard spoke up again. "Can I ask you a question? You needn't answer should you not wish to, but I'm curious."

"I... yeah. I suppose so, ask away." Starswirl moved to speak, but was interrupted as a roar and a huge crash was heard from the south. Steele jumped up and rushed to the window, looking down the street to the intersection. A cloud of dust was covering the road, and dark forms were passing swiftly through it. In the distance, he heard a soldier shouting.

"The northern wall has been breached! Retreat! Retreat!" Several stallions came running down the road to the breach in an effort to stem the tide of bugs pouring through. Most only lasted a few moments. Suddenly, the door burst open and Decanus Chroma Dusk ran into the house.

"We need to get all three of you out of here right away. Follow me." Starswirl nodded, and Steele woke Ember from her slumber.

"Huh? Steele, what's happening?" Another roar came from the street, much closer now, and Ember's eyes went wide. Several stallions flew past the window, something having flung them through the air. Only one got back up. Dusk ran through the home to a back door, shouldering it open and peering out into the street. Deeming it clear, he motioned for them to follow.

"Come on you three, there's not much time. I refuse to lose one more civilian in this fight. Starswirl, I know it's been a while, but-"

"Worry not Decanus, I may be old but I'm more than capable of handling a few bugs. Don't trouble yourself with me." Dusk simply nodded, and the four ponies filed out into the street. There were soldiers running about like mad, some rushing to the front to fight the bugs, others fleeing into the nearby forest. A couple soldiers saw them, and moved in to assist the Decanus in escorting the trio to safety. A nearby house exploded into debris, wood flying about and embedding itself into whatever it could. Steele looked on in horror as one of the large bugs moved out into the street they stood on, turning it's gaze to them. It took one step in their direction, but before it could go further, a blinding streak came from the sky, smashing into the top of the behemoth. It reared up and roared in pain, and when it came back down Steele could see what had impacted it. A thestral mare, rather small, but armored in the gear of the Nocturnal Legion. In her grasp, and buried in the monster's back, was a long spear. The haft was inlaid with some sort of glowing silver metal in a spiral fashion, from the bast all the way up to the head itself, which seemed to be made of the same material.

"Go! Get out of here! I'll hold it off as long as I can!" The mare wrenched the spear from the bug's back, and jumped into the air, lining up another shot. The Decanus simply turned and did as the mare said, trying to leave as fast as he could. Not that he was afraid, but he had to protect Ember and Steele. The four ponies ducked in-between the two buildings on the other side of the street, and pressed on for the southern wall.

Ember, for her part, was holding up rather well. Be it from exhaustion or resolve, she wasn't panicked in the slightest, and simply limped alongside Steele, pressing her weight into him whenever she needed. Her leg really didn't bother her much now, as Starswirl had done what he could with magic to heal and ease the pain. It still throbbed, but she could at least put some weight on it. Steele was in much the opposite position, while physically he was fine, he was internally panicking. Concern about Ember's life and his own was causing him to jump at every little noise, of which there were plenty, as they crept through the shadows.

Sounds of fighting could be heard as they moved towards the safety of the forest, buildings crumbling and glass shattering. The shouts of stallions as they fought the onslaught of insects. Screams of pain and death could be heard from both sides of the fray, but it was difficult to tell merely through sound which side was winning. Starswirl was mumbling something to himself, and if one listened closely they would hear that he was counting down.

"Three hundred and fourty-two," they kept walking, edging ever closer to the edge of town. A few more minutes and they should be safe.

"Three hundred and seven," the sounds of fighting were beginning o sound farther away now, still they pressed on.

"Two hundred and eighty-five," a huge roar and an explosion was heard in the distance, Starswirl visibly winced.

"One hundred and seventeen," almost there now. Steele could see trees through the gaps in the homes.

"Seventy-one," finally they had reached safety, or the forest at least. To call Everfree forest 'safe' was a bit of a stretch, but it was currently better than the alternative. Steele looked back at the town, half of it still bathed in green flame that consumed nothing. The group head one of the behemoths roar out into the night, and suddenly all the flames detonated for lack of a better word. All the homes that had been covered by the ethereal fire suddenly evaporated within the explosion. Half of Dale was gone in an instant, and the half that remained had been burning from the fire spread by Ember's home.

"Twenty-five. That is all that remain. The fighting has stopped." The Decanus turned around and looked at Starswirl, fear on his face.

"Four hundred, reduced to so few soldiers? Are you sure?" Starswirl said nothing, and simply lowered his head.

"Wait, Starswirl how could you know that?" Steele asked, confused. Before the magician could answer however, a stallion came running out of the woods towards them. He was a thestral as well, like the mare from earlier. Dusk stood straight, and saluted the newcomer, hoof across his chest in respect.

"Sir, Starswirl reports that the enemy is defeated, but only a hoof-full of our soldiers remain. We should-"

"Silence yourself Decanus, I heard him, and I know what must be done. You two, what are your names?" The stallion turned his gaze upon Steele and Ember as Dusk shrunk away at his words. It would seem this thestral was somepony rather important, and his Praetorian robe only affirmed this theory.

"My name is Steele Breaker, and this is my friend Ember Blaze, we are... or I suppose we were residents of Dale. Now, we've nowhere to call home, and are only alive thanks the Starswirl and Dusk here." The stallion eyed Steele, his face giving nothing away. Several moments passed, and not a word was spoken. Finally, the stallion snorted softly, and introduced himself.

"I am Noctis, first in command of the Nocturnal Legion, and personal Preatorian to Her Majesty Princess Luna. You may call me Noctis, for now." He looked past the group into what remained of Dale, and a pang of sorrow flashed across his features for the briefest of moments. Then, something caught his eye. "Well then, it would seem that search and rescue shall not be necessary. Here comes Stella now, with twenty-four soldiers in tow." Steele turned to look, and sure enough there they were, twenty-four nocturnal Legionaries accompanied by the mare with the spear from earlier. While the run-of-the-mill soldiers looked tired and beaten up, Stella hadn't even acquired a scuff on her polished armor.

"Wow... she's pretty awesome. Wish I could fight like her, all I can do is sling fireballs." Steele rolled his eyes at Ember's comment. Conjuring fire from thin air was far more devastating a weapon than hoof-to-hoof combat could ever be. Though not to discredit Stella's ability. Finally, the group of twenty-five made it to the five ponies standing at the forest's edge.

"Well, nice reception party you've thrown here Noctis. Is everypony gathered here just for me?" Starswirl chuckled a bit, and Noctis snorted again.

"Hardly Stella, we were actually just about to come in looking for all of you, but it would seem you've found your way out on your own. Now then, if everypony is ready, we should make for the castle. Luna and Celestia will want to debrief us, and meet these two. They were the only two to survive the attack." Steele hung his head, once again his thoughts drifted to the dead. It would be some time before he could get past all of this.

"Hey," Stella spoke up as they set off, making her way to Dusk's side. "You're a Decanus right? Why weren't you down there in the fight with your stallions huh? Did you run or somethin'?" Dusk shrunk slightly under Stella's harsh glare, stuttering as he tried to formulate a response.

"Not quite, er... Stella was it? You see, the young Decanus here was protecting these two civilians and myself as we got away from the fighting. If not for him, it's possible all three of us would have died." Starswirl spoke up, coming to Dusk's rescue in an attempt to spare him ridicule. What he had said wasn't really true, as if anything had attacked them, he could have dealt with it without any trouble. Still, the Decanus had only done what he felt necessary to save civilians.

"Huh... is that so? Well then, good work Decanus. What's your name?"

"Chroma Dusk ma'am," he paused his stride momentarily to snap off a quick salute, and Stella laughed aloud.

"Oh please, there's no need for all of that Dusk, there's no stuck-up officer out here. Well, 'cept Noctis, but he let's me do as I please. Ain't that right Nocty!" Noctis remained silent, and continued to walk through the woods. "See, he doesn't care! C'mon, just call me Stella."

"Uh... sure thing... Stella." She slapped him jovially on the back.

"There ya go! Now then, the civies!" She trotted up in-between Steele and Ember, looking at one then the other. "So you two, what's your story? You married or somethin'?" Steele nearly fell over, and Ember blushed hard enough you could see it through her coat. Regaining his composure, and balance, Steele looked over to Stella.

"N-No, we're uh... we're just friends. My name is Steele."

"And I'm Ember. We've known each other for a long time, lived in Dale my whole life, and he moved in when he was... what, six?" Steele nodded, and Stella practically beamed.

"Aww, you two! That's so adorable, though let me tell ya somethin' missy," she leaned in and whispered so only Ember could hear. "you better move in on this guy quick, or I'm liable to do it myself yeah?" She winked, and pulled her head away from Ember's. Once again, the mare was blushing bright enough to make the sun jealous.

"Alright back there, cut the chatter, we're here." Sure enough, a large clearing in the trees was just ahead, and in it sat the most magnificent structure Steele could remember ever seeing. A massive palace, constructed from a gray stone, stood higher than the trees surrounding it, a massive wooden door gave access to an inner courtyard area, where several other buildings sat. As they entered through, Steele took note of the surroundings. A low, long structure sat against the east and west walls, both likely barracks of some kind. An armory and forge could be heard behind the huge marble building taking up the center. This was likely the palace proper, and home to both Princesses. Another massive wooden door, this time inlaid with gold and silver, as well as blue and red gems, opened slowly to reveal the very ponies they had come to speak with.

"Alright, Legionaries go back to your barracks. Decanus Chroma Dusk, stay with us. Princesses, we have news from Dale." Noctis stepped forward and knelt before the two sisters, both standing regally and clad in beautiful regalia. Steele decided it would be best to follow in Noctis's example, and knelt as well. Soon, all the other ponies in the group save Starswirl were doing the same. He simply walked into the castle, nodding to Celestia as he passed her. She smiled and gave a nod of her own in return, and then turned her attention to the ponies before her.

"Arise Our subjects, and come and tell me and my sister of what has happened. We are eager to hear your tale."

Author's Note

Whew! Sorry this one took so long everybody, as stated in my blog post I hit several distractions and a rather difficult bout of writer's block all at once. But, here it is at last, not quite as pretty as I would have liked it, but i can come back in and polish it out a bit later. Didn't want you all to have to wait any longer, and I'm satisfied with it's current state. As always, feel free to offer suggestions on anything, and please point out spelling/grammar mistakes so that I can go in and fix them. Take care all.

-Duvagr007

Ch. 4: Storytime With the Princesses

Chapter 4

In which a discovery is made.

The Royal Sisters walked slowly and gracefully through the halls of their castle, accompanied by a small procession of ponies. Directly behind the Sisters was Starswirl the Bearded, who was then followed by Stella and Noctis. Behind the thestral Praetorians was Decanus Chroma Dusk, with Steele and Ember taking up the rear, mostly because they were moving slowly as they gazed around them at the grand palace they found themselves in. The ceiling stretched up above them, being supported by thick columns the size of trees. Steele had no idea what material was used to make everything, but it was like staring at the night sky. A deep black made up the primary color, but it was swirled and specked with several different colors. Blues and oranges clashing with one another, like some kind of explosion. It was mesmerizing. The foot and head of each column was also decorated with a flared golden end, each decorated to look like the rising sun and setting moon. The floor was just as beautiful as the columns and walls that sprang up from it, a bright white marble down the center that slowly faded to black as it reached the walls on either side.

Steele looked to Ember, who seemed just as awestruck as he was at the castle's decor. Her eyes were wide, and her mouth hung slightly open, head craned up to gaze at the columns. Sadly, they seemed to reach their destination, so the jaw-dropping hallway would have to be admired some more later. Celestia moved to a door on the right wall, and stepped inside. As the other ponies in their troop entered one by one, Steele took a last look at the hallway, and followed his friends. The room they were now in seemed to be a study of sorts. There was a large table in the middle of the room, with a few large bookshelves up against the left and back walls. Another door was on the right wall, with some paintings hanging for decoration. One was of the sun and moon encircled with a wavy line dividing them. The other was of a spiral of stars, a large glowing orb of some kind in the center. The young stallion had no idea what that one was, as he had never seen it before in his life.

"Have a seat ponies, I shall return momentarily." Celestia left the room through the door on the right wall as everypony took a seat at the table. The only two that remained standing were Stella and Noctis, who opted to stand aflank Luna instead. Luna herself was seated at one end of the table, Steele on her left and Dusk on her right. Ember was to Steele's left, with Starswirl opposite her. There was one more chair at the other end of the table from Luna that sat empty.

"Uh... hey Starswirl?" Steele, curiosity getting the better of him, broke the silence. Rather awkwardly, all eyes in the room turned to him. Starswirl quirked an eyebrow, awaiting Steele's words. "What's that painting of? I've never seen anything like it before." He held a hoof out, and pointed at the spiral of stars. Starswirl turned his head and chuckled a bit.

"I think I'll let our Princess Luna explain that. It is her painting after all." All eye's were now on the princess of the night. Steele couldn't help but be awed, not only at Princess Luna herself, but at her ability to paint. She cleared her throat, and spoke up.

"That, young stallion, is the night sky. Only, viewed from the outside. Allow me a moment to clarify: when you look up at my sky and see stars, you are looking at them from somewhere inside of this spiral structure. I have dubbed it, with Starswirl's aide, a 'galaxy'. It's a massive group of stars swirling around... something. We aren't sure yet. It's beautiful though, isn't it?" Steele nodded, not really feeling confident enough to speak directly to Princess Luna. He had always found her sky beautiful though, he had just never known it was quite so... vast.

Celestia came back in after a moment, trailed by a servant carrying a tray in her magic. It was silver, with a porcelain tea set sitting atop in. The servant set the tray down, then bowed and backed out of the room. Celestia sat in the unoccupied chair, and used her magic to disperse hot tea to all the ponies in the room. Even Stella and Noctis took a cup, sitting down on the floor as they quietly sipped their tea.

"Now then," Celestia began. "Let's discuss what happened in Dale. We are well aware that it was attacked, and subsequently destroyed, but We do not know by what, nor for what reason. Decanus Chroma Dusk?" When she spoke his name, the stallion snapped straight, face stoic and eyes focused. Though if one looked closely, they would see a single bead of sweat roll down his brow.

"Yes your majesty?" Not even a hint of a stutter.

"You were the first one there of present company, save Ember and Steele, correct? If you would, recount the battle for Us." Dusk nodded, and began to tell the story from his perspective. Starting with the Legion's arrival in Dale, to the setup of their camp. It seemed that his Contebernium had been slacking a bit, and as a punishment had been sent to scout out the area. That's when they ran into the first group of the bugs. They had been out for roughly ten minutes or so, when a group of about ten of the creatures came at them seemingly from nowhere. One of the eight ponies was killed instantly, and two more fell after the skirmish had been on for a bit. After an intense fight, they managed to kill most of the enemy, the few remaining fleeing back into the buildings. Though they lost one more stallion before their victory was achieved. After that, they ran into Steele and Ember, and the rest is history. Celestia's brow furrowed a bit when Dusk told her about their escape through the alley, but she waited for Dusk to finish before saying anything.

"And then we met Noctis at the edge of the forest. After waiting a bit, Stella arrived with the surviving stallions, and we came here. Nothing else to report your majesty." Celestia heaved a great sigh, then turned her gaze to Starswirl.

"You are certain about the remaining stallions Starswirl? If there is even a small chance there are some left alive, We would like to see about saving them." Starswirl simply nodded, causing another sigh to escape the princess's lips.

"Stella," Luna spoke up, turning to address the mare in question. "Tell Us what happened after you killed that larger one for the others to escape. We wish to know more of the battle itself." Stella nodded, and began to recount events from her point of view.

"Certainly your highness. After I killed that larger bug, I flew towards the main breach in the gate. It... wasn't a pretty sight. There were dozens of bodies littered about the place, most of them Legion soldiers. The fighting was still rather heavy though, the stallions still alive holding off the onslaught of bugs as best they could. I dove into the fray, providing what aide I could. Eventually though, all of the other soldiers around me had fallen, so I had no choice but to fall back. Another one of those larger beasts crashed in through the western wall, and the process repeated. Some brave fool thought it would be a good idea to try and collapse a building onto the road to slow them down, hence the explosion the Decanus mentioned. It... didn't go as planned, the blast itself killed everypony nearby, and the shrapnel claimed many more. I barely manged to avoid serious injury myself. Still, it claimed many of the insects as well, so the sacrifice was not in vain. Once it seemed like they were going to lose, the final behemoth did... something, and caused all of the green flame to detonate suddenly. This claimed the remaining death toll, and as far as I know, there are no more bugs in the area. After that, I linked up with Noctis, and we returned here." She took another sip of her tea as her words sunk into the room. Luna looked lost in thought, her sister mirroring her expression for a moment before looking to Steele and Ember.

"And you two... besides the aide provided by the Decanus, how did you manage to survive such an attack? You must be either very skilled, or very lucky." Steele gulped, shrinking under Celestia's gaze. He knew he needed to answer her, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. Luckily, he would have a bit more time to prepare himself, as Ember spoke up first.

"Well your highness, while I'm not sure what Steele did up until he saved me, I can tell you my side of everything." Celestia simply nodded, waiting for her to continue. "I was at home sleeping, when I was woken up by my mother. I could hear ponies screaming outside, and my mom said that Dale was under attack. We tried to run out the back, but one of those... things was waiting at the door. It lunged at us, my mom jumping in front of me. It... k-ki-.... I'm sorry. I can't say it." Ember brought a hoof to her mouth, gaze low and eyes welling up with tears. Celestia put a comforting hoof on the young mare's shoulder, her gaze soft and encouraging.

"It is fine, you needn't say it aloud, please continue." Ember nodded, and took a breath to compose herself.

"After my mom... saved me, the bug backed me into a corner. It jumped again, and I panic-cast a column of fire. The bug was incinerated instantly, along with most of the house. A beam fell on my leg and pinned me down as the rest of the house began to burn around me. A few minutes later, Steele found me and pulled me out. After that we were found by the Decanus, and you know what happened after that."

"I see. We're happy that you are safe, and panic or not, casting such a powerful spell is impressive for a mare your age. We imagine Starswirl will wish to speak with you after we have concluded our business here." The old stallion nodded, a smirk on his muzzle. "Now then, young Steele, if you would tell us what happened up to where you rescue your friend?" Steele nodded, breathing a bit heavy. He cleared his throat, and told the ponies at the table what had led him to Ember's home. Waking up in his home, running past ponies as they fled the town, and the fight with the group of bugs. Noctis quirked an eyebrow at Steele's recounting of the fight between him and the two creatures, slightly impressed at such skill being displayed by an amateur. Once Steele had finished his tale, the room grew silent for several minutes as the two princesses thought on everpony's tales. Finally, Luna broke the silence.

"Sister, We can not reach a decision on this matter now. I wish to speak with you in private to address some of my concerns. Additionally, these six need rest and perhaps a meal. Decanus, take these two to the dining hall. They may help themselves to whatever they like. We shall have the guest suite prepared for them, as there are no dignitaries scheduled for arrival for several moons. Stella, Noctis, the two of you are dismissed for the day. You may leave." The two thestrals bowed and left the room without a word. Dusk did the same, Steele and Ember in tow.

"Well then," Starswirl stood, stretching a bit. "If I'm excused, I'll be on my way. I've some diagrams to draw up, and several observations on these 'bugs' I wish to record. Your majesties." He bowed, and made for the exit. Celestia called out to him however, stopping him before he could leave.

"Starswirl, a moment." The old stallion turned, an eyebrow raised. "We wish for you to keep this quiet for the time being. The details at least. No doubt the masses will know something of the attack, but try to keep everything vague for now. We would like to know what We are dealing with before addressing Our subjects." Starswirl nodded, and left the room.

__________

Steele, Ember, and Dusk all sat at a large table in the dining hall. Each had a meal of some degree in front of them, and they were all wordlessly inhaling the food into their mouths. Steele took a moment to gaze up at the high ceiling above him. Unlike the halls, the room didn't have a glass roof, but a flat black ceiling, decorated to look like the night sky again. Though, the black was more of a gray now that he looked closely. Still, the stars twinkled brightly, and gave a nice ambiance to their very early morning meal. Celestia would be raising the sun soon, and Steele hadn't slept in over twenty-four hours. He finished his meal quickly, stretching his hooves up with a yawn. He looked at Ember, who was almost halfway done with her own food, then at Dusk, who had just finished his food as well. The Decanus looked back, and met his gaze.

"Need something?" The sudden break in the silence caused Steele's mind to stop working properly for a second.

"Huh? Oh... uh... no, not really. Sorry." Steele sheepishly rubbed the back of his head with a hoof, giving an awkward smile.

"Hmph. You really shouldn't stare. Anyways, I've been meaning to ask you: Where'd you get that sword?" He pointed a hoof at the blade slung across Steele's back, and Steele turned his head to peer at it through the corner of his eye.

"It's an heirloom of sorts," he said bringing his gaze back to meet Dusk's. "I'm not sure where it originally came from, but my uncle gave it to me when I turned twelve. He said my parents wanted me to have it. It's all I have left of them. Well, this and... Oh no! My mother's necklace! I left it back at home! I've gotta go and get it!" Steele stood, and began heading for the door. Ember simply watched him leave, content to eat her food. Dusk however, ran and blocked his path.

"Whoa there, you aren't going anywhere. I'm sure it's important, but the area is unsafe, and you haven't slept in over a day. I heard what you said back there about fighting those bugs, so I know you're good with a blade, but sleep deprivation has gotten many a Legionaire killed. Get some rest first, and we can all go and look for it later." Steele went to argue, but decided that Dusk was right. He could barely stand he was so tired. Behind him, Ember stood, having finished her own meal.

"Don't worry Steele, I'm sure it's still there. C'mon, I want to see this illustrious 'guest suite'."

"I... yeah. I'm sure you're right." He sighed, and Dusk gave a quick nod, satisfied with the resolution.

"Alright then you two, follow me."

Once again they were being led through the grand halls of the castle, but something was different now. The once deep black that covered the walls was now a light gray, and the swirling blues and oranges were no longer visible. Only the occasional pricks of stars were left, and as they walked it seemed their number only grew fewer. Steele looked through the skylight ceiling, and found that the sky matched what he was seeing in the walls. It took longer than it should have, but Steele finally realized that the walls and columns were changing in order to match the sky. It must have taken hundreds of unicorns to put that kind of enchantment on such a huge structure. Although, it was possible the princesses themselves had done it. The edges of the floor were a deep crimson now, slowly fading into orange as the sun finally rose over the horizon. It was weird, watching the sunrise from inside, though no less beautiful. A few more minutes went by, and the Decanus finally stopped at a large set of wooden doors.

"This is our guest suite. It's normally for foreign dignitaries, but as Princess Luna said, we are not expecting any for some time. You are free to use it as you please, but try to refrain from destroying the place. Now then, I have several things I need to do before I can get some rest of my own, so I'll leave you to it. I'll come back later today with Starswirl and we can go and fetch your mother's amulet. I'll see you then." Steele nodded and thanked him, Dusk returning the gesture before trotting off to take care of whatever he needed to do. Steele looked over at Ember, who gave him a nod. He stepped forward and pushed open the large door, stepping aside and holding it for Ember to enter first. Following her in and closing the door behind them, Steele took in the room like he took in everything else he'd seen in the castle: awestruck.

The first thing his eyes were drawn to was a massive window on the far wall, deep red curtains framing it on either side. Though it let in a fair amount of natural light, there was a good sized chandelier hanging from the ceiling, it's light seemingly magic based. The walls themselves were a dark wood, possibly spruce, which complimented the red in the curtains, and the large rug that occupied most of the floor space. It was certainly Saddle Arabian, with the same red making up the primary color, and several shades of brown swirling around giving it a very refined look. Dressers and bookshelves lined most of the walls, with a beautiful vanity being a particular eye-catcher. A door sat on one end of the room, with a bathroom just beyond. Finally though, was the bed. Though 'small comfy boat' seemed more appropriate given it's size. It took up half of one of the walls, posts reaching up to nearly the ceiling. One could easily fit ten ponies comfortably on its surface. if this was the guest room, Steele could only begin to guess at what the princesses rooms looked like.

"Wow," Ember spoke up, just as struck with the room as Steele. "This place is huge!" She ran and jumped up onto the bed, settling in at the headboard. "And his is the most comfortable bed I've ever been in. I'm gonna fall asleep right here." She rolled over and looked at Steele, a small smile on her face. He smiled in return, and joined her on top of the bed. He made sure to leave some space between them however, as he didn't want to make the situation awkward. He settled into the covers, then turned his gaze towards Ember. He smiled, a small chuckle leaving him as he stared at her unconscious body. She had fallen asleep almost instantly, and right where she said she would. He shook his head and, using his magic to unhook the curtains, lay back to fall into his own deep sleep.

__________

"I understand you position on this Luna, but we can't just launch a full scale war on an enemy we know nothing about. We don't even know where they are from! For all We know, they could be from space." Celestia sat in her chambers upon her rather plain wooden bed as Luna paced about the floor. They had been discussing the situation for some time, and had made little to no progress towards a decision.

"I'm am well aware that we don't know where they are from, but you cannot say We know nothing about them. We know that they are insect-like in both appearance and behavior. We also know that those larger ones have the ability to incapacitate foes with a roar. Their magic is formidable, and it is possible there is more to it than what We have already encountered. We may know very little, but We do not know nothing. it is possible more insight will be gained from Starswirl's recorded observations. However, I refuse to stand around and wait for them to attack us again. Have We heard anything about creatures like these from any of the other nations?" Luna stopped her pacing, turning to her sister with a quirked eyebrow.

"We have not, no. None of our neighbors to the West have mentioned anything about these... things. And the Crystal Empire has been silent for some time now. Which reminds me, I'd like for you to go and check on Sombra, make sure he's doing well. I know you two are close." Luna blushed, the crimson showing even through her dark coat. Celestia only chuckled at her little sister's expense.

"Well," began Luna, after composing herself. "What about the Gryphon Clans? I know they've been at war for some time, but Lana always tried to keep Us in the loop." Celestia thought for a moment, her memory coming up empty. She shook her head, and Luna grunted in frustration. "Gah! There has to be something, anything that can at least tell us where to start looking!" Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and a frantic sounding Starswirl called in from the other side.

"Princess Celestia! I believe I may have found something! You really should see this!" He knocked again, a bit more firmly this time. "Ohh... I hope she's in at the moment. Perhaps the garden?"

"I am here my dear friend, you may enter." The door swung open almost before she had finished her sentence, and in rushed the old wizard, a piece of parchment floating behind him.

"I- Oh. Princess Luna, I was unaware you were in here as well. This is good, now I don't have to track you down. Come, come." He trotted to Celestia's bedside, setting the parchment down so they could all read it. There was a great deal of scribbling, and a very crude drawing of what the sisters could only assume was one of the bug ponies. Further down, there was a rubbing of what appeared to be the same creature, an unreadable text surrounding it.

"Starswirl, just what exactly are We looking at." The old pony turned to Luna, and pointed at the two drawings. His, and the one from the rubbing.

"This is the creature we encountered in Dale," he tapped his sketch. "An this," now the rubbing "is from a very old tablet I've had sitting in my room for some time trying to decipher. I believe the creatures are one and the same. While i don't have the full tablet translated yet, I've got the gist of what it's referring to. It speaks of an ancient evil that lurks in the badlands far to the East of the sea. it make some reference to gryphons, but i believe it's merely using them as a reference point." Celestia looked slightly puzzled, voicing her confusion as she smoothed out the bottom corner of the parchment.

"So these creatures come from beyond the gryphon homeland? We didn't think there was anything out there."

"That is correct, and until now we had no reason to. However, the tablet also makes mention of a 'savior' of sorts. I may have the exact wording wrong, but it speaks of a pony who will defeat the evil." Now it was Luna's turn to be confused.

"Wait, are you telling Us that these things were part of some prophecy? Why did We not know of this?"

"Well, part of the problem is that it is not an Equestrian prophecy. I compared these texts with all of our old writings, and nothing comes close. Not even Ancient Crystalian. No, this prophecy was made by a very old clan of gryphons. It was the harsh angles of the leters that initially caused me to look into it. Sadly, there aren't many ancient gryphon texts, and the few that do exist are almost all lost. With the war on I lost all the gryphon assistance I had several years ago, and so the decoding has been very slow going. There's only one other key factor of this prophecy that I've been able to decipher." He closed his eyes, and prepared himself for how the sisters would react. Likely not as drastically as he when he first realized, but he could never be very sure with them.

"Well," urged Luna. "do not keep Us waiting forever old stallion. You won't make it that long." Starswirl cracked an eye, and shot Luna a sour gaze. She had a playful smile on her lips, and even Celestia was chuckling a bit.

"Hmph, do not forget that I am not that much younger than you are Luna. So if I am old, then what does that make you?"

"Aged. Like wine."

"Hah! Well, if you are wine then I am milk. Though none of this is important right now." They all turned their gaze back to the parchment sitting on Celestia's bed. "Now, as i was saying: The only other bit I've managed to decipher is some detail regarding the stallion who will defeat this evil for us. It's all very poetic, but I'll paraphrase. He'll have a silver coat, and eyes like the northern sky. So, not just blue, but a very light and vibrant blue. It also makes reference to the 'jewel of jewels' though I know not what this could mean. Perhaps one of you might have some insight?" He looked to Celestia first, who shrugged, and then over to Luna.

"I believe I may know what jewel, or gem would be more accurate, it is referring to. It's something Sombra said once: 'Of all gems, Opal is my favorite, because it can be as all the others, and yet still itself'. He was of course speaking to the fact that an opal can be any color. Though the most commonly thought of is the milk-colored white opals. If this is what the text means, then I believe i know who our savior is." Starswirl's expression grew dim, as he had his suspicions based on the physical appearance alone. But if the prophecy was refering to an opal, then there could be little doubt. It was his mother after all. Celestia's head shot up, it finally having clicked in her head as well.

"Steele."

Author's Note

Alright! I actually really like the way this one turned out, even if it did get a tad awkward there in the middle. Anyways, back in the hyper-descriptive saddle, and the most overused trope of all time rears it's ugly head. Yeah yeah, I know, but I couldn't really think of another way to do it that seemed to fit in with the characters and their outlooks on everything. But hey, it's just there to get the ball rolling, and I'll try to avoid being too cliche in the future. As always, tell me what i'm doing right, and what I'm doing wrong. be seeing ya!

-Duvagr007

Ch. 5: Every Journey...

Chapter 5

...Begins with a single step

Starswirl was walking through the halls of Castle Everfree, the walls and pillars now a lovely shade of blue, spotted with clouds to reflect the wonderful weather outside. He paid it no mind though, as he was both used to the enchanted hallway, and lost in deep thought. After he and the Princesses had discovered that Steele was the savior that prophecy had been talking about, there was much to be considered. They had gone back and forth for hours trying to decide what the best course of action was. Do they tell him, and run the potential risk of him knowing who he really is causing him to do something foolish? Do they train him up for a few months, or potentially years, so he is ready to face the daunting challenge that lie before him? Or do they simply let fate take the reigns, and guide Steele along the proper path? Starswirl was very much for the first option, as it only seemed fair to let Steele know. But neither Luna nor Celestia thought it was a good idea, at least for now. And while Celestia was content to let fate run its course, Luna was very keen to have Steele trained properly as a soldier.

That was something for Steele himself to decide however, hence Starswirl's trek through the halls. He was currently on his way to the guest suite where Steele and Ember were currently staying. The plan was to mention it to Steele that the Princesses were 'impressed with the resolve he displayed in Dale', and that they were both interested in having him as a high ranking soldier in their respective forces. Of course, this was just a ploy of sorts to train him so he could be ready, though Celestia made it very clear that he was not to be forced into this. If he wanted to do it, then that was fine, and it was on him, but he was under no obligation to join either Legion. At least, that was the plan. As Starswirl turned the corner into the hall the guest suite was in, he saw Decanus Chroma Dusk standing outside the suite's door, speaking to whoever had answered it. Starswirl picked up his pace a bit, curious as to what could bring Dusk to their room. He saw the soldier nod, then the door closed and Dusk stood waiting.

"Decanus," Starswirl called out, grabbing Dusk's attention. "If I may, what brings you here at this time of day? Shouldn't you be resting?"

"Hm, believe me when I say I'd love to be in bed right now. However, Steele left some valuable trinket or something at his home. I told him we'd go and get it when he had rested." There was a pause as Dusk mulled something over in his head. "Actually, I'm glad you're here Starswirl. We could benefit from your being there, if you aren't too busy that is." He looked at the wizard, his expression one that told Starswirl they were going regardless. The old stallion sighed, figuring it'd be better if he were there to supervise at least. He didn't much feel up to trying to talk them out of it.

"Very well then, I suppose there's no harm in it as long as we are both there. Short of another full scale invasion, we should be able to handle anything we may encounter." 'Besides', thought Starswirl. 'I checked for any life in the area as we left, and found nothing. What's the worst that could happen?'

After waiting for a few more minutes, Steele finally emerged with Ember in tow. The young stallion looked ready to get moving, eyes bright and determination upon his face. His friend however looked as though she was still half asleep, letting out a yawn to accentuate her appearance. No words were spoken, Dusk simply nodded and they all fell in behind him. They walked through the castle in complete silence, though the occasional yawn would come from Ember at the back of the group.

They were at the entrance before they really knew it. Dusk opened the massive wooden door, and the ponies all filed out. Closing it behind them, Dusk turned and moved to get back into the lead position, only to be stopped by a very smug looking Stella.

"And just where do you think you're going, eh?" A rather bored looking Noctis stood a ways behind her, scratching is leg with an armored hoof.

"Well," began Starswirl. "Our young Steele has left a rather valuable memento at his home in Dale. We were going out to retrieve it." Stella sat, and thought for a moment.

"Nah."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I can't let you go. S'too dangerous." Her muzzle broke into a sly grin, and a gleam shone in her eye. "Although... should you be escorted by two Lunar Praetorians, I guess I could deem it safe enough. Whaddya think Nocty!?" The stallion sighed, and stood. Slowly walking over to them.

"I told you not to call me that, off duty or not. But yes, I suppose we should come along for safety reasons. Though, I think you just want something to do."

"Pshh, nooo," she said, dismissively waving a hoof in the stallion's direction. "I just want to make sure our friends stay safe is all. And I'm really busy. Going out of my way to do this you know."

"Mmhmm." Steele looked between the two, amused at their relationship. It reminded him a bit of he and Ember, the banter between the two. Though, he and Ember's banter wasn't nearly so one-sided. He stepped up and spoke.

"Do you wanna come along, Stella?" She turned to him, her eyes lit up like stars.

"Do I ever!" And thus joined Stella, and a rather reluctant Noctis, to their party. And off they went, six ponies against the Everfree on their way to Steele's home to get a necklace. It wouldn't even be very dangerous walking through the forest, as it was quite tame during daylight hours. No monsters or dangerous creatures, just birds chirping and the occasional Timberwolf running through alongside them. So they merely walked and talked, asking questions about one another, getting to know who each member of the group was.

"So Stella, how does somepony of your... er... hm. How to put it?" Ember was walking alongside the mare, eyes downcast in thought.

"You want to know how a mare became Luna's left hoof bodyguard, yeah?" Ember blushed, and nodded. "Heh, no worries about offending. I'm used to the question by now. Anyways, when I was a filly, my mum and dad were traders that went about the country, small time stuff, but I got to see loads of different places. It was pretty wonderful. When I was about seven, or maybe eight, our caravan got attacked by bandits. The guards with us managed to run them off, but my parents didn't make it. One of the stallions, an Ex-Lunar Praetorian, took me in. Growing up with him, he of course taught me all sorts of swordplay and soldiering type skills. When I turned eighteen, I cut my mane short and pretended to be a stallion so I could serve. It wasn't easy, I almost got caught several times. But eventually, I worked my way into the Praetorians, which is where somepony finally discovered me. One of the bigger stallions... fella went berserk, sayin' how I was a disgrace and mares were inferior blah blah. All I did was defend myself, but I wound up hurting him pretty badly." Ember laughed a bit, picturing a tiny Stella beating up on some massive armored stallion.

"Sounds like a rough time. Who was the stallion? That you beat up I mean?"

"That'd be me," called Noctis from the front of the group. Ember had to bite her tongue.

"Yeah and don't you forget it neither!" She turned back to Ember, continuing her story. "Anyways, once Luna found out her best soldier lost in a fight to me, she immediately appointed me to her personal guard. I thought she would kick me out of the guard at best, or execute me at worst, but apparently she values skill more than laws regarding matters like that. To this day, I'm the first, and only, female Legionaire. And a Praetorian no less." She held her head high with pride, another smug grin on her muzzle.

"Hmm, well Stella, I'm sure your parents would have been very proud of you. I barely know you and I feel a sense of pride just hearing the story." The mare's head lowered a bit, her expression growing more somber.

"Yeah... I'm sure they would have been. Hey, Nocty! Your turn, c'mon!" The older stallion sighed, more at having to tell a story than the nickname.

"Pass." A groan came from Stella, who picked up her pace to match with Noctis.

"C'mon Nocty, play nice. The kiddos want to hear about your grand adventure!"

"Not all that grand. Don't care. Pass."

"Ugh! Fiiine! I'll tell 'em then."

"Please don't."

"Don't be such a stick in the mud Nocty. You really need to lighten... up.... Dear Celestia." They had finally broken through the other side of the forest, the ruins of Dale were now in full view. Though, if one didn't know better, they would simply think it the place of a massive forest fire. The only thing the ponies could see was charred earth and ash. Not a single beam was left standing upright, giving no hint that there was once a settlement here. The exploding bug-magic had even scattered bits of wood around to where even the once distinguished paths were covered, barely able to be seen through the thick layer of soot. Ember fell onto her rump, mouth gaping open at the sight of her home reduced to nothingness. Steele placed a leg around her in an effort to comfort the mare, but there was little support he could really offer, as he too was in complete awe. Starswirl took a few steps forward, an acorn floating behind him. His magic glowed a bright green around the nut, and he began to speak in some unknown dialect.

"Tellus vitae spiritus magne custodia semen germinet memoriale ut hac tragoedia. Ut floreat dirigetur qui da perfugium peterent." A massive ring of light shot out from the acorn, spreading through the air. Starswirl hurled the acorn into the sky with his magic, then slammed it back down into the earth, dead center of the ruined town. The impact site glowed for a moment, then returned to normal.

"That was certainly something Starswirl. What did you do?" The old stallion simply turned to Dusk and smiled, before trudging off into the ash. He looked back at Steele, a cheerful look on his face.

"Come young Steele, lead us to your home so that we may recover your heirloom." The gray stallion nodded, and trotted out in front of Starswirl, the rest of the group following behind them.

__________

Many miles away, far to the East of the Gryphon lands, stood a massive formation of gray rock. One could refer to it as a palace or castle, as it stood tall with many spires and a low wall surrounding it. It sat in the middle of a barren wasteland, not a single patch of green as far as the eye could see, but life flourished within. Though, flourish was perhaps a bit of a stretch. The occupants of this spire were slowly withering away. Dying one by one. It had not been this way for long, but it was progressively getting worse. The ruler, a tall, lithe creature with chitin blacker than the night and bright green eyes, had been working tirelessly to find her subjects, and children, a source of food. They were once proud beings, beautiful and benevolent, but those days were long gone. With the rise of their new queen, they had become greedy. Like locusts they had devoured the lands to the east. It was once home to a race of winged, bipedal creatures, but they had been consumed, and the world would never know of their existence.

Now, the queen looked westward, to the world of ponies. She was currently lounging in her throne room, servants around her pampering and catering to her whim. She stared through a massive hole in the exterior wall that served as a window, out across the vast wastes to the mountain range in the distance. Her children had brought back reports of another winged race, though these were war mongering beasts, and there was no love to be found among them. So they had pressed further, and came upon the most love filled bunch of creatures they had ever found. The others, the 'harpies' as they had called themselves, had no love as pure as what the ponies could offer. She stood, and walked gracefully to the edge of her throne room, now standing at the hole. She tapped her front right hoof on the stone thrice, and one of her larger children came to her side. This one bore a bone helm, and wore one of the harpies talons around his neck as a trophy. He was her general and consort, and the favorite of her children.

"Praxas..." Her voice was almost melodic, but it had a sinister undertone.

"What is your command my Queen?" She brought her head down to his level, muzzle close to his neck. She sniffed along his jawline, before finally snaking her tongue into his mouth. She pulled away after a moment, and his expression remained indifferent. She moved to his ear, and began to whisper to him.

"I've read the reports from the scouting party we sent to that hovel. These ponies are weak and soft, and their numbers are few. We shall crush them as we have done to so many others in the past. Send in the Kosti Jedu. Their armies shall crumble, and their world shall burn." She stood to her full height again, and her general began to move out of the room to follow her commands. She called out to him over her shoulder before he could make it out of the room however. "Oh and Praxas... I shall require your services tonight." She smirked at him, and he simply continued out without another word. Her gaze returned to the outside world, staring once again at the mountains in the distance. All she could see was already hers, and soon everything else would be as well. It brought her joy to know that the world would bow before her for the low cost of repeat genocide.

Author's Note

Should anybody want to know what Starswirl said: 'Oh great spirits of Earth and Life, watch over this seed so that it may grow as a memorial to the tragedy of this place. May it flourish and prosper, and grant shelter to those who would seek it.'

Translated to Latin via Google, so probs a bit sketchy. Bonus points to anybody who's figured out the significance of the acorn already. If you wanna shoot your guess to me via PM feel free to do so. Prize is an OC somewhere in the story. Maybe. Nothing crazy... don't need any neon zebras or anything like that. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed, and sorry this one took so long. Anime is a hell of a drug.

-Duvagr007

Ch. 6: Battle Royale

Chapter 6

In which our heroes get jumped.

Dusk sat on a small hill that rose up in a clearing in the Everfree Forest. Behind him, at the top of this hill, stood Steele's house. The young stallion was currently inside his home, retrieving an heirloom he received from his parents, along with a few other things that he wanted to keep. Dusk didn't really care however, as he was far more interested in the training dummy that stood before him. The frame, and the armor it supported, was covered in nicks and dings from where Steele had been practicing on it. Judging from the look of some of the hits, Steele had been doing this for several years. Several of the dents in the armor had varying degrees of rust around the edges, telling that they had been made some time ago. The rotted hits in the wood were much older though, telling Dusk that the armor had either been changed out at least once, or had only been added recently altogether. The Decanus studied the older hits, and compared them to the more recent, fresher strike marks. Some seemed only a few days old, and they were much more precise and powerful than their predecessors. Dusk smirked, 'Not bad. He's certainly got potential.'

"Heya there Dusky, whatcha doin'?" He turned to see Stella trotting over to him from the house. Steele and Starswirl were in the background, walking to the forge and discussing something. Ember and Noctis were sitting in front of the home, the mare showing off a bit of her fire magic.

"Taking a look at this dummy here. Looks like Steele had been using it as target practice. Judging from the difference between the old and new marks, he's made quite a bit of progress from when this was first set up. No idea how long ago that was though." Stella came and sat beside him, giving the dummy a once-over with her own eyes. She leaned in a bit, studying a small group of marks a bit more closely.

"Hey Dusk, is it just me or do these look a bit different? Like the weapon was smaller?" Dusk leaned in as well, and sure enough the nicks in question were quite clearly made by a different blade. Probably not even a full sword judging from how shallow they were.

"No, you're right. These are definitely not marks from Steele's sword. New as well. I wonder what-"

"Get down!" Dusk suddenly found himself being tackled to the ground by Noctis. A small metal object went flying just overhead, taking a couple of loose hairs from the Praetorian's mane as they fell before embedding itself in the hillside behind them. Stella jumped off to the side, and tapped her hoof to a small jewel in her breastplate. From that jewel she pulled the same spear that she had used in the fight against the bugs a few days prior, though its glow was currently absent. Dusk and Noctis stood, readying their own weapons. Dusk simply pulled his sword from its scabbard on his back, but Noctis tapped the jewel in his own breastplate, drawing a massive flail from within. Several bugs revealed themselves, slinking out of the bushes and trees they were hiding in. As Steele and Starswirl joined them, Dusk noticed that these creatures were far different from the ones they had fought yesterday.

There was fourteen of them in total, and each one was armed to the teeth. Several weapons could be seen with each of them, and while most just had varying sizes and shapes of knives, a few bore larger weapons such as clubs and warhammers. They wore masks of bone, the skulls of some large horned creature, and they all had several talons around their necks. One of them stood out from the others, as it also bore a crown of bright blue feathers on its head, and boasted several more talons on its necklace than the others. This one stepped forward, and much to the surprise of the ponies, began to speak.

"Good day to you, ponies of Equestria," it began in a polite, but raspy voice. "We are Kosti Jedu, an elite fighting unit from the Changeling hive. We have come to claim your lands, burn your homes, and slaughter you all to the last larvae. It is nothing personal, I assure you, but Our mother is greedy, and We like to keep her satisfied. If you could be so kind as to die, We would much appreciate it!" The creature, now known to the ponies as a 'Changeling' lunged, fangs bared and knives drawn. His compatriots followed after, and the two sides clashed in a flurry of steel and magic.

Starswirl threw up a magic barrier, protecting himself and the ponies immediately flanking him, these being Dusk and Steele, from an immediate hit from six of the changelings. Three others had lunged at Noctis, including the leader, and another two at Stella. The remaining three took to the sky, zipping through their front line and heading straight for Ember in the back. The crimson mare yelped in surprise, and hurled a massive fireball at the group of bug soaring for her, causing two to disperse, but catching the middle one. It hit the ground hard, skidding to a halt as bits of charred carapace broke off. It moved to stand, but its entire front right leg broke off from the weight, and it collapsed back on the ground as life slowly drained out along with its internal juices. The two that had dodged circled around, coming in at Ember from the sides. She conjured a wall of flame around herself, and then a larger one to trap the bugs inside of, leaving her attackers to circle, and wait for her to run out of magic.

As all of this was going on, the rest of the ponies were dealing with their own groups of the creatures. Stella was moving as though she was performing some kind of dance, gracefully dodging and counterattacking at the two bugs trying to get inside her guard. She was certainly coming off better in the exchange, as the changelings had already sustained several gashes across their bodies, but none were deep enough to be critical. Noctis was doing much better, as he had already completely crushed the head of one of his adversaries, and caved in the barrel of another, leaving only the leader as a real threat. The one with the crushed body had backed off a ways to nurse his wounds, pouring green magic over itself to try and repair its chitin. Steele and Dusk were working together, standing back to back and fending off four of the things, as Starswirl was busy firing of a flurry of arcane bolts at the final two.

The fight was stalemate for some time, neither side able to gain a decisive advantage as the afternoon sun slowly lowered itself below the treeline. Steele and dusk were both growing exhausted, though they had scored several hits on their assailants. Ember was beginning to run out of magic, and though Starswirl had landed a couple of hits with his own arcane torrent, the bugs still pressed after him. After several minutes of fighting, the clearing grew dark, and the two thestrals smirked to themselves. Stellas spear began to glow as before, and the spikes on Noctis's flail began to do so as well. Suddenly they were both much faster and stronger, Stella quickly dispatching one of her opponents, and leaving a huge gash in the shell of the other. Noctis finally managed to land a blow, though their leader had dodged with the swing in order to mitigate the impact somewhat. One of the creatures surrounding Dusk and Steele lost focus at the sudden surge of strength from the two thestrals, and was put down by a decisive thrust from Steele's sword going through it's gaping maw. Now faced with only three, the two stallions began to go on the offensive. They critically wounded another, causing it to back away and begin to heal like its comrade.

The two fighting Starswirl were beginning to run out of stamina and patience, growing sloppy in their evasive maneuvers. One caught an arcane bolt right between the eyes, exploding the bone helm on its head, and momentarily blinding it. This caused it to jump into it's compatriot, sending the both of them slamming onto the ground. Starswirl, seeing his opportunity, fired a much more deliberate and powerful arcane bolt at the two that detonated on impact in spectacular fashion, the purple of the arcane explosion being joined by a bright green mist. Stella batted her remaining opponent to the ground with the butt of her spear as Starswirl's magic missile flew through the air, and stabbed it's prone body through the skull before it could rise. Her own foes dealt with, she charged the two changelings that were currently healing themselves.

Ember, for her part, had been doing a wonderful job keeping the two after her trapped and unable to assist their compatriots. Her magic was faltering however, and the outer ring of flame fell, letting the two escape onto the battlefield. One immediately joined the two that were fighting Dusk and Steele. Catching the Decanus by surprise, the creature buried a knife in Dusk's rib cage, and he fell to the Earth with a pained shout.

"Dusk!" Steele swung out with his blade at the newcomer to their isolated fray, but his sword found only air as the creature jumped back. In his desperate retaliation, Steele had opened himself up to an attack from the other two, and a large red gash formed along his right flank. He too cried out in pain, and stumbled back a bit as his leg threatened to collapse from under him. The three changelings slowly circled their prey, licking their razor teeth in anticipation of the kill.

Now no longer in any immediate danger, Ember dropped the ring of flame around herself, and took stock of the situation. Stella was currently fighting two wounded changelings over by the treeline across the path, and Noctis was locked in an intense battle with the leader of the bugs trading blow after blow. Though Noctis had been granted with additional speed with the setting of the sun, he was still rather sluggish, and the bug was far more wary than it had been previous. It continually dodge the laborious swings of the flail, but never had an opening it could take advantage of. Starswirl was currently fighting a changeling using his staff, as he no longer had sufficient magic to cast any offensive spells. The blessing he had cast on the seed from earlier in the evening had nearly drained him, and he was suffering for it. Ember decided it best to assist the wizard first, as hoof to hoof combat likely wasn't a specialty of his. She began to gallop in his direction, preparing a fireball as she did so.

"Hang on Starswirl, I'm coming!" The old Stallion glanced at her as he deflected a jab from the changeling.

"No! I'll be fine! Help," he jumped back to avoid a swipe from the bug, and slammed the heavy end of his staff into its face. "Hah! Help Steele!" Ember skidded to a halt, and searched for her friend among the chaos. After a moment, she spotted him. Her breath hitched in her chest at what she saw. Dusk was laying on the ground, blood pooling around him. Steele off to the side, surrounded and bleeding in several locations. She immediately directed the fireball she had been building in their direction. The massive flame roared through the air, and impacted among the combatants. One of the changelings was completely engulfed by fire, and instantly turned into nothing more than a charred and hollow husk. The others were blasted into the air, and landed a ways apart from one another with heavy thuds. She rushed over to Steele and helped him to his hooves.

"Steele, are you alright? Oh my goodness you're losing so much blood what am I saying of course you aren't alright." The stallion glanced at his friend and smirked.

"I'm- gah!" He winced as he went to move, almost collapsing to the ground again. "Fine... I'm totally fine. Just gotta- ngh." He clutched at his side with a hoof, wincing again. "Nope, that's definitely broken."

"Oh Celestia, this is bad." Ember looked over, and the two changelings were standing and collecting themselves. One looked in their direction and hissed. She moved in front of her wounded friend and lit her horn with magic as the creatures advanced towards them. She threw a small fireball in their direction, but it soared harmlessly over their heads. Ember tried to muster another spell, but her magic had been drained. She could barely even keep her horn alight, much less sling fire from it. She turned and grabbed Steele's sword in her mouth in a desperate attempt to fend off the bugs bearing down on them, but it was a hollow gesture. The mare had never swung a sword in her life, and it seemed she would never really get the chance to. The two changelings lunged at the ponies, and Ember turned away to brace for the inevitable.

After a few moments, Ember realized that the impact she was bracing for wasn't coming. She slowly opened her eyes and was met with a smirking Stella. The crimson mare looked off to the treeline and saw a glowing spear impaled through the two bugs, forming a rather gruesome looking shish kebab. Stella leaned in and took the sword from a frightened Ember's mouth, and then gingerly set it on the ground. The fire mage was now shaking uncontrollably as her body began to naturally burn away the accumulated adrenaline. Stella moved into her, calming the mare as best she could.

"Shh, it's alright hun. Take it easy. Why don't we get Steele and Dusk back in one piece yeah? Give you something to work on, ease your nerves. It'll help, trust me." Ember simply nodded, then quickly turned to her friend, assessing his wounds. As she labored over Steele, Stella turned and moved over to Dusk. He had lost quite a lot of blood, but he was still breathing which in Stella's eye's meant he could be saved. Step one was to stop the bleeding. She ran over to her spear, wrenching it from the corpses of the two changelings, and briefly burying it in the dirt to clean it. Quickly trotting back to Dusk, she began to pour energy into her weapon. As she did so, the head glowed ever brighter, heating steadily as it did so, until finally it was as hot as it's white glow suggested.

"Sorry Dusky, but this is gonna hurt." She pressed the flat of the spearhead against Dusk's wound, immediately singeing his fur, and searing the wound closed. Cauterization wasn't exactly pleasant, as the groan of pain from Dusk attested, but it was effective. It was also her last resort, but since she had no bandages, or anything to use as one, she also had no choice.

As they were tending to their wounded compatriots, Starswirl finally managed to land a good hit on the bug he was fighting, the heavy end of his staff connecting with a solid knock on its head, the changeling collapsing to the ground in a heap. Realizing now that, despite their condition, he was still outnumbered, the leader began to back off.

"Hmm, very formidable," it began, still slowly backing off. "Yes, it seems you were slightly underestimated. A mistake we shall not make again. I thank you for this... enlightening experience. Fare thee well." It pulled a throwing knife from its leg, and threw it into the one that Starswirl had managed to knock out. Then, it lit its horn and conjured a bright flash, momentarily blinding the group. When they could see again, the leader was gone. Noctis snorted, and dropped his flail to the ground.

"Well, that certainly was an unpleasant experience." Noctis looked around and took stock of everypony's status. Besides Dusk, they all seemed more or less in one piece, though Steele seemed a bit roughed up. The large stallion trotted over to his downed subordinate, and inspected the wound on his side. He brought his head in close so he could see a bit better, and gave a tentative sniff. Burnt flesh. He looked to Stella, and she nodded in conformation as she dispelled her spear. Noctis, satisfied with his compatriot's actions, stepped back and sat down to rest himself.

Steele slowly rose to his hooves, making sure to keep his weight off of his left side as much as possible. Ember did what she could to support him, which mostly was just her acting as a safeguard o keep her friend from falling to the right. They slowly moved to the Legionaires, and were soon joined by Starswirl. For a time, the slightly labored breathing of Dusk was the only sound shared among the group, before finally Steele spoke up.

"We should do something." He paused and winced slightly. Speaking was difficult on account of his ribs. "I don't know what. We have to stop them. Whatever... ngh... whatever that takes. I'll go by myself if I have to." Noctis turned to him, admiring his bravery, but disappointed somewhat by his foolishness.

"While I can certainly agree something must be done, we are by no means equipped to face an entire army. You certainly aren't fit to do it on your own. You can barely walk, and Dusk has a stab wound in his side. We will return to the castle so that we may bring a large force, provisions, and the blessings of our princesses. This will also allow you and Dusk here some time to recover." Starswirl looked to Noctis, a sly look on his face.

"Why, Noctis, that almost sounds like you are letting Steele come along, despite his being technically a civilian. Growing soft are we?" Noctis snorted at the old stallion, shooting him a glare.

"Hardly. The boy is of age, so once he is healed he will join the Lunar Legion. I shall put in a recommendation for him myself, and we should be able to get you in at rank Decanus. I'll see to it you're put under Dusk as well, provided he lives. Which, speaking of, we should get him back. His wound is closed, but he will still require the magic of our doctors. You as well Steele. Need you back up in top form in two weeks."

"Wait, two weeks?!" He yelped in pain at his own outburst, momentarily forgetting about his broken ribs. "And what do you mean 'under' Dusk? Isn't he a Decanus too?" Noctis smirked.

"Not anymore he isn't."

__________

Steele was currently laying in the bed of the Royal Castle's guest suite, staring at the ceiling and wondering just what the next few years of his life held for him. It had been a week since the attack at his old home, and much to his surprise he was almost completely healed. Every now and again, especially when he ran or talked for long periods, his ribs would still twinge a bit, but they were completely mended together now. It seemed he grossly underestimated the healing capabilities of modern-day healers. He remember back when he was eleven he had broken a leg, and had been out of commission for nearly two months. Of course, it's also possible that it was because they didn't really have the money to afford a skilled unicorn doctor. A pegasus mare had set the break, and he was simply put in a cast.

Dusk was also making a rather speedy recovery, and was out and about tending to some lighter duties. True to his word, Noctis had promoted the unicorn as soon as he woke up, and gotten Steele into the Lunar legion under him as a subordinate. Dusk's new rank of Thesserarius now had him as third in command of a Lunar Century, specifically the one that Noctis himself had taken command of. This was to be the cohort that went out and faced the new threat of the changelings. While a bit un-traditional, Luna had permitted her Praetorians to take charge of a cohort directly. This being the recently reformed Tenth, it was the very same that had come to Dale's aide on the night of the first attack. Though it now contained almost exclusively fresh new recruits. Only the officers had any prior service experience save Steele.

Stella had been placed as the second in command under Noctis, much to her chagrin. Though they technically held the same rank, Noctis was the acting Centurion of the first cohort, while Stella was of the second, giving the stallion seniority on official decisions. The other four were also thestrals, though they had been pulled from similar positions as Dusk's. It was a logistical nightmare, but Luna had managed to get it worked out in only two days.

There was a knock at the door, and Steele rose from his bed to answer it. He opened the oak barrier to reveal a rather cheery Ember, and a tired looking Noctis behind her. Quick to remember his new post, Steele gave a sharp salute to his new superior officer.

"At ease Decanus Breaker." He then smiled slightly. "You learn quick. You'll do well for yourself in the Legion I think. May we enter?"

"Thank you sir, and of course." Steele stepped aside, and the two visitors entered the room. They all moved over to a set of pillows on the floor and took seats. "So, what brings you by?"

"Orders, and a spot of good news, should you take it as such. First and foremost, we've been ordered to move out as soon as we are able by Luna herself. She wishes to deal with this new threat swiftly and decisively, so we will begin our march in two days. If you want details, speak to Thesserarius Dusk, as is his new post. Now, the news I bring is that Starswirl will be joining us, acting as he did a week prior in Dale. A wise counsel, powerful warrior, and liaison to the princesses. Quick decesions are to be left at my discretion, but anything major is to be reported to Luna before any action is taken. This goes doubly for yourself. Before you do anything, you bring it to me. Only do what I say, and when I say it. Nothing more, nothing less." He paused expectantly.

"Understood sir." He shot a quick glance at his friend, who was practically bouncing on her cushion. "Um, you okay there Ember? You seem a bit excited."

"This is because-" Noctis began, but was cut off by the mare in question.

"I get to come with!" She nearly exploded when she said it, which is quite literal given her affinity for fire magic. Steele simply looked to Noctis in confusion.

"Starswirl has made her a personal assistant of sorts, stating that she was 'A mare of exceptional potential for greatness". As such, he has opted to bring her along so that she may learn from him. This is against my better judgement, but the wizard does as he pleases so I really can do nothing to stop him." Noctis glanced at the window, and saw that the sun was beginning its decent. "If you'll excuse me, I must leave. I have other matters to attend to. See Dusk about you armor and any questions you might have. You can typically find him in the barracks, so check there first if you want to find him. I bid you goodnight." With that Noctis rose to his hooves and saw himself out of the room. Ember stood as well, and trotted over to the bed they had been sharing.

"So, you'll be coming along with us huh?" Steel opted to gaze out of the window as they talked, preferring to stay where he was as Ember climbed into the bed.

"Yeah, though to be honest I'm really scared. Not so much of the changelings, but of making a good impression with Starswirl. I mean, this stallion is my idol Steele. What if I disappoint him?" The silver stallion chuckled a bit at his friend. "What?"

"Ember, I think you've already made a rather good impression on him. I mean, why else would he have said what he did, and why bring you along with us? It's quite obvious he's impressed. Just keep being yourself, and it'll all work out. Besides, you're the best fire mage I know." She rolled her eyes, though he couldn't see it.

"Again, I'm the only fire mage you know." He smiled, and breathed a small sigh.

"Yeah." He continued staring out the window in silence for some time, until the sun touched the tops of the trees and he began to grow hungry. He stood, and looked to see Ember fast asleep on the massive bed. He smiled, and began to head for the kitchens to find something to sate his hunger. In a mere two days, his entire life was going to flipped upside down, again, and he was a bit nervous. Especially since he was in charge of nine other ponies besides himself courtesy of his rank as Decanus. It was all rather daunting, but he would give it his all. He had to. For himself, his friends, and his uncle. For his parents. For all of Equestria. He had to give everything he had in order to protect his home.

He would not fail.

Author's Note

Woo! Chapter six! And exactly one month out too. By no means the longest it's taken me to get a chapter out, and I think I'm getting a decent pace with all of this. They seem to be flowing steadily, and the quality is more or less keeping where I want it. So, I feel like I'm doing a good job here, and that's always great for morale. I'll keep 'em coming, so don't none of you worry any. As always, point out any of my screw ups along the path, and please leave a comment voicing you opinion etc. I'm thick skinned, so I can take the verbal abuse. Take care, and see you next time!

-Duvagr007

Ch. 7: The Contebernium

Chapter 7

In which the cohort gets a nasty surprise.

Steele and his Contebernium were currently moving through the Everfree forest underbrush, out on patrol. The newly reformed tenth Lunar cohort was camped at the base of Canterlot Mountain after their first day of marching. Steele was assured that they would normally be much further along by now, but the new centurions were very uneasy in their roles, and almost ninety-percent of the cohort itself was fresh from training. The other ten percent were soldiers from other cohorts that had distinguished themselves, and what was left from the attack on Dale. The end result was a complete mess of newbloods and stallions without a shred of leadership experience, Steele included. The only ones in the entire cohort that knew what they were doing were Noctis and Stella. Unfortunately, a lot of their time was spent making sure their fellow centurions didn't screw everything up, so the entire cohort's discipline suffered.

Steele for his part was doing the best he could to manage the eight stallions that were put in his charge. Four earth ponies, two pegasi, and two unicorns. The 'standard issue' contebernium. It helped keep the group balanced in a fight, with the earth ponies doing the hooves on combat while the pegasi and unicorns supported from above and behind. It was a tried and true system that let any combination of individual ponies always work together effectively, so long as the racial numbers stayed the same. The cohort's centurions were selected in the same way, but with only two earth ponies. The ranks weren't determined by race, but in a fight it allowed for the same level of cooperation. It was a wonderful system, and every time Steele watched conteberniums sparring with one another, it showed.

The silver unicorn was pulled from his thoughts as one of his stallions tapped on his shoulder, and then pointed to a timberwolf about sixty feet away. It hadn't noticed them yet, but it likely wouldn't take long before it did. It would be best if they took it out before that happened so it couldn't signal their presence to the rest of its pack. Steele looked back at his pegasi, and signaled them to fly above the canopy. Grabbing the attention of one of his unicorns, a light blue stallion by the name of Cerulean Shield if he remembered correctly, Steele pointed at his own ears. After a moment of looking confused, Shield nodded and his horn flared up, casting a soundproof barrier around the area.

"Alright, just focus on keeping that up while the rest of us take this thing down." Shield grunted his understanding, face screwed up in concentration. "Brick, Mortar, you two move around to either side and keep it from running." Two massive stallions, one a deep crimson and the other a flat gray, and both with jet black manes, nodded and began to flank the Timberwolf. A whistle came from above from one of the pegasi, a signal that they couldn't spot any other threats in the immediate area. Smirking, Steele waved his hoof for the three remaining stallions to follow him, and drew his sword as they closed in on the Timberwolf.

Suddenly, the beast's head snapped up, eyes immediately locking on the four ponies moving straight towards it. It lowered itself, chops pulled back in a viscous snarl. The two earth ponies behind Steele, Pranceton Garvey and Oak Heart, drew their own swords and stepped up alongside their Decanus. The unicorn, Swift Spell stayed behind the wall they had formed, and readied himself to cast a defensive barrier should they need it. Just as the wolf was about to pounce upon them, Brick and Mortar appeared from the shadows and swung their swords down upon the creature's back. Letting out a howl of pain, the wolf snapped at Mortar while simultaneously spinning to knock down Brick. Steele and the other two earth ponies charged at the wolf, swords raised and poised to strike. The beast had grabbed Mortar by the forehoof, and flung the massive stallion over the heads of his comrades. He landed with a heavy thud and a cry of pain, and did not stand back up. Swift Spell immediately rushed to Mortar's side, doing whatever he could to bandage the stallion.

Brick was flung off of the beast's haunches as his remaining comrades finally made contact with it, beginning to dance in and out, striking when they could. As this was going on, the pegasi flew in from above, their own swords drawn and ready. The first, a jet black stallion with a deep blue mane by the name of Thunder Head, buried his weapon up to the hilt in the timberwolf's lower back. The other, a brilliant white with an electric yellow mane named Brilliant Spark, swung downward in an arc. His sword landed squarely in the side of the beast's neck, spraying sap across the group. Taking their chance, Steele and the remaining two stallions with him, all plunged their blades into the wolf's head, dropping it to the ground for good. Brick came over and planted a solid buck into the side of it's barrel for good measure, then cantered over to check on Mortar.

"I think that went rather well." Pranceton, a dark brown stallion with a black mane, wrenched his sword from the head of their kill.

"Not as well as it could have gone," Steele turned to look at Mortar lying in the dirt, Swift and Brick hovering over him. "Swift, how is he?"

"Not in the best shape sir, but I think he'll make it."

"Of course he will," said Oak Heart as he walked past the trio to where Shield was resting himself. "Mortar is a tough stallion, it'll take more than some mangy mutt to bring him down for good, eh Brick?"

"Hmph, you ought to show just a bit more concern. The wolf could have had a disease for all we know. He could lose his leg if we aren't quick enough." Brick hoisted Mortar off of the ground, taking some of his weight so he could stand.

"Come now," spoke Mortar through a very obvious grimace. "You worry too much brother, I'll be fine." Brick simply huffed, and the two began to shuffle back in the direction of the camp. Steele trotted past them to where Shield and Oak were sitting, waving a hoof for Thunder and Spark to follow him. Swift was walking over in their direction, but keeping pace with Brick and Mortar so he could assist if needed.

"We need to get Mortar back to the camp a bit faster than this... Shield, how are you holding up?" Steele put a hoof on the unicorn's shoulder while he panted heavily.

"I'll... I'll be fine sir. Just give me a couple minutes." The unicorn waved a hoof dismissively at his commander, who gave a nod.

"Thunder, Spark, which one of you is the fastest?" Spark immediately jumped up, wings already flapping.

"That'd be me sir." Thunder rolled his eyes, but did not protest.

"Right, fly on ahead to the camp, tell them to send out another patrol and be ready to receive a wounded stallion. Once you're done go ahead and have a bit of free time." Spark gave a sharp salute and bolted off in the direction of the camp to deliver his message. Steele turned his gaze to Thunder next, causing the stallion to sit up a bit straighter. "Thunder, I want you up top and out front on our way back. Keep an eye out for anything dangerous and steer us clear of it."

"Aye sir, ready to move."

"I'm good now too sir," Shield stood up, though he was still breathing heavily. Steele looked on for a moment, then nodded when he was satisfied that Shield really was alright. Brick, Mortar, and Swift had finally made it over to them, but Mortar was looking worse by the minute.

"Alright stallions, we need to move fast. Mortar, you probably won't like this very much, but it may just save your life. Now hold still."

"Sir what are you-" he was cut short as Steele gave a grunt and picked up the massive earth pony with his magic. "Sweet Celestia this feels weird!" He was squirming around, trying to keep himself oriented.

"Mortar," Steele breathed out, straining under the stallion's weight and movements. "I said to hold still."

"Right, sorry." The gray stallion did his best to keep from moving too much, but his body didn't seem to want to let him. Still, it was much better than before, so Steele had little trouble keeping a solid grip.

"Alright stallions, let's move out. Oak, Brick, and Pranceston, I want you three up front. Swift, Shield, you two keep behind and to either side of me. Thunder, lead the way." The pegasus nodded, and took to the sky, guiding his comrades out of the forest.

__________

Ember was currently a mix of emotions. On one hoof, she couldn't be more excited about being tutored personally by the great Starswirl the Bearded. However, marching with a cohort of Legionaires wasn't exactly how she had expected to be spending her time. Not to mention she hadn't talked to Steele since they left, and Starswirl was always... distracted. Still, all things considered it could be worse. She wasn't sure how, but Ember was nothing if not optimistic.

"Um, Starswirl sir, is there anything you need me to do for you?" The old stallion was currently pouring over a bunch of old scrolls inside the officers' tent while Ember sat nearby and watched. The tent was quite sizable, with plenty of room for all of the centurions plus several other ponies. At present however, Starswirl and Ember were the only occupants. The old stallion either didn't hear Ember, or chose to ignore her as he simply continued to mutter and grumble to himself. The crimson mare sighed, and walked out of the tent into a massive common area. Plenty of stallions were about the place, running drills, sparring with one another, or going about various tasks that needed to be done. Ember made sure to keep to the edge, doing her best to keep out of everypony's way as she worked her way towards the mountain side of the camp.

She had spent her entire life living in the shadow of Canterlot Mountain, but she had never been this close before. Looking up at its majestic peaks, she began to reminisce about the last few days. It seemed like it was only yesterday that everything in her life was perfect. She had a nice home, a loving family, and a wonderful friend, but now all of it was gone. In the blink of an eye her entire life was torn out from under her. Sure she still had Steele, but they had barely talked at all since the attack. He may have still been alive, but every day she felt him drifting further away, losing himself in the legion.

She shook her head violently, trying to rid herself of the thought of losing Steele too. "No, c'mon Ember. He's your best friend." Slapping her cheeks a few times, she looked back up at the peak of the mountain. A light smile adorned her face as she tryed to remain positive. "He'll always be there for me. He promised." She turned her gaze to the east. Past the camp were the northern areas of the Everfree Forest, with the Celestial Sea just beyond that. With proper equipment, one would just be able to make out the far shore of the sea, and the border to the gryphon lands. If you managed to make it across their territory and up the eastern mountains, you would be met with sprawling desert. From what Starswirl had managed to determine so far, that is where these 'changelings' could be found.

Information on them was practically nonexistent however, and what little was there often turned out to be little more than myths and legends. It seemed this wasn't the first time ponies and changelings had met one another, but the bugs were always so careful to keep themselves hidden, nothing major had ever occurred. Ember wasn't looking forward to anything to come,the gryphons, the desert, these mysterious monsters that burn homes and slaughter ponies. She sat on a hill overlooking the camp, a light breeze blowing on what little mane she had. Whatever happened, she knew she would be okay as long as Steele was with her.

Suddenly, a green flash caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. Snapping her head around, she peered towards the northern end of the camp trying to discern what had caused the light. She saw another flash, and then another. Suddenly, a tent caught fire. Shouting could be heard, along with more flashes. The camp was under attack!

__________

Steele and his contebernium were nearly back to the camp. Mortar was still breathing, but he had passed out some time ago, and the makeshift bandage they had made for him was completely bled through. The group had stayed mostly silent during their walk, everypony listening for signs of trouble. Two sharp whistles came from Thunder up ahead, signaling they had finally made it back to the perimeter of the camp. Once inside, Steele ordered his stallions to go to their tents and get some rest before he himself rushed Mortar to the medical tent. Brick had opted to follow his commander and brother rather than go rest, and Steele saw no reason to stop him.

"Do you really think he'll be alright sir?" Brick cast a worried glance at his brother.

"At this point Brick I'm really not sure. His breathing is shallow, so it's possible he's lost too much blood." The silver unicorn looked at Mortar floating in his magic, the stallion's already gray coat becoming dangerously pale and dull. "Hopefully the medical ponies can do something for him."

"I just don't know what I would do if I lost him... he's all I have." Brick cast his gaze down as they turned into the medical tent, several ponies immediately rushing over to assist Steele. They placed Mortar onto a stretcher and carried him over to an empty space on the ground, immediately getting to work replacing the bandages and whatever else needed doing. Steele and Brick sat a ways off, doing their best to keep out of the way of the medics so they could work. "Have you ever lost anypony close to you sir?" Steele looked at Brick. The stallion's eyes were locked on his brother, unblinking. As if he were afraid that if he should blink, his brother would disappear forever.

"I have, yeah." It was brief, but Steele saw Brick's eyes flit his way. He decided to take that as a sign to continue. "My parents, when I was a foal. And my uncle, very recently. His loss was harder... I barely knew my parents, but my uncle pretty much raised me. When Dale was attacked, one of the bugs got him. Crushed his skull like it was nothing." Steele shuddered at the memory, the events of that night coming back to him more vividly than he would have liked. "Part of me wishes I had died during the attack too, so I wouldn't have to live with that image in my head for the rest of my life." Brick took his eyes from his brother and looked at Steele, his brow furrowed.

"Wait, you were in Dale when those things attacked?" Steele nodded, and Brick's confusion turned to surprise. "Sweet Celestia... no wonder they made you a Decanus. Anypony who could survive that nightmare is either really lucky, or really good with a blade. There were two survivors weren't there? Did you know the other one?" Again, Steele nodded.

"I do actually, Ember, she's a very good friend of mine. That's probably the only reason she made it out alive too. I went looking for her, and had to pull her from her collapsed home." He heaved a sigh, and looked over to Mortar. "That's when Dusk found us, and escorted us back to the legion occupation in town. They were going to try to hold out for as many survivors as possible, but the bugs attacked that night and drove us out." The medical ponies had finished dealing with Mortar, and one of them was heading in their direction. Steele looked back to Brick. "I'm sure you know the story from there."

"Yeah," Brick turned to the medic trotting up to them. "How is he?"

"It's a bit too early to call it, but it looks pretty good. He lost a lot of blood, so he'll be out for a few days, but there shouldn't be any-" He was cut off as an explosion sounded to the north. Steele turned his head in the direction of the noise, trying to figure out what was going on. He could just barely make out shouting.

"To arms stallions! To arms! The camp is under attack!" Steele and Brick instantly jumped up, charging out of the tent and readying their swords. Green bolts of magic were flying everywhere, and changelings could be seen fighting their fellow legionaires. The two charged into the fray, taking out as many of the bugs as they could. The fight was total chaos. None of the legionaires were working together, and they were dropping like flies. Steele blocked an attack from a changeling that had jumped at him from the left, but he was tackled to the ground from behind when one of them jumped on top of his back. He rolled to the right and they both wound up on their backs, flailing to stand upright before their adversary. Unfortunately for Steele, his opponent was not alone. The first bug that the unicorn had been fighting took it's opportunity and lunged at Steele, fangs bared and ready to rip into the stallion. Steele frantically searched around with his magic, trying to find anything to put between himself and the changeling inches away from his throat, but he came up empty.

As it turned out, Steele wasn't alone either. As the changeling's fangs began to graze his neck, a spear impacted it in the side of the head and tore out the other side, carrying the changeling with it. A second spear impaled the bug that had tackled Steele to the ground, ending it's life after a lengthy period of writhing in agony. The young stallion looked to where the spears had come from and saw Thunder and Spark hovering slightly, several more spears slung across both of their backs. They closed in, landing next to their commanding officer as he picked himself up off of the ground.

"I'm glad you two showed up when you did, thanks." Steele grabbed his sword off of the ground and ran off to rejoin the fight, the two pagasi in tow. "Where's everypony else?"

"No idea sir, it was only luck that me and Spark found one another." Spark barked a short laugh.

"Luck indeed, I saved your life Thunder!" The dark stallion rolled his eyes, refusing to grace Spark with a response.

"None of them were in the tent with me when the attack started, so I can only assume they're in the fight as well. We shouldn't worry too much about it, trying to find them wouldn't really-" Thunder was interrupted by a shot from their right.

"Steele!" They all stopped and looked to see Ember running at them, about five changelings giving chase.

"Oh no, Ember!" Steele raised his sword and charged to meet his friend and defend her from the bugs. "Thunder, Spark, spears!" The two stallions took to the air and aimed their weapons at the group of changelings. Steele and Ember passed one another, with the former leaping into the air at the foremost changeling as a spear claimed one on the right. Ember pivoted and charged a spell to begin helping her friend fight the bugs off. The changeling Steele had leapt at ducked under the stallions swing in order to keep charging at Ember, but only managed to catch a fireball with his face. Steele landed hard, but managed to swing out with his sword at a changeling to his left, another spear from the rear claiming one that had jumped at him from the right. Steele thrust forward at the one he had swung at, catching it in the chest with a shallow wound. While not fatal, the bug flinched and let it's guard down, being finished off with a downward swing from Steele's sword. Another fireball claimed the final changeling, ending the brief skirmish.

"Alright! We're getting pretty good at this, eh Thunder?" The white stallion nudged his comrade, a goofy smirk on his face. Thunder simply rolled his eyes, and glided down to Steele and Ember.

"Steele! I'm so glad I found you. What in Celestia's name is going on? How did these things find us?" Steele buried his sword in the ground, cleaning it off. He sat down for a moment to catch his breath, and met his friend's gaze.

"I have no idea Ember. I didn't even think there were any more of these things on our side of the sea." Thunder and Spark had finally made it over to the two friends and began to collect the spears they could still use. "Thunder, Spark, meet my friend Ember. Ember, Thunder and Spark, two of the stallions under my command." Thunder gave nothing more than a grunt and a curt nod before going back to collecting spears.

"Hey there, nice to meet you. I'm Spark, and you're gorgeous," Spark said, giving a wave and the biggest smile he could muster. This smile was quickly replaced with a pained expression as the shaft of a spear snapped across the top of his head. He shot Thunder a dirty look which went completely ignored.

"Ember, where's Starswirl at?" Steele pulled his sword from the earth and rose back to his hooves. His friend shook her head, face sinking.

"I don't know. I wasn't in the camp when the attack started. I went and checked the officers tent, but he wasn't there." Spark and Thunder went and stood on either side of Steele, finished with their spear collecting. Thunder looked to his commander, brow furrowed.

"Sir, perhaps it would be a good idea to find the Centurions? They would be able to properly coordinate a defense, and it is likely Sir Starswirl is with them." Steele gave a sideways look to Thunder, a smirk on his face.

"Good idea, maybe you should be leading the contebernuim instead of me." Thunder shook his head.

"Not charismatic enough. Plus I hate the idea of being responsible for another ponies life."

"Right, well we should move out. Er... Spark, fly up and see if you can spot the centurions." Spark nodded once and shot into the sky, head snapping around. After a moment, he pointed to the north and shouted down at the group.

"I found them! We've got a problem though!" He folded his wings in and dropped, flaring them out again just before he hit the ground." There's not many of our soldiers left, and they're completely surrounded. It looked like a two to one fight from up there. We need to do something fast."

"Right, let's get a move on then. Ember, head back to the medical tent and-" The red mare stomped her hoof in the dirt.

"Absolutely not! I'm coming with you!" Steele narrowed his eyes, stepping closer to his friend.

"No, you're going to the medical tent. I'm not going to let you charge headfirst into a fight and run the risk of losing you." Ember closed the distance between them and lowered her voice.

"And what about me losing you? If you don't want me in harm's way, then how do you think you being in harm's way makes me feel?" She jabbed him in the chest. Steele's gaze softened as he stared into his friend's eyes.

"I..." he let out a sigh. "Fine, but stay behind me." He turned to the two pegasi behind him. "Alright, I need you two to cover Ember. Don't let any of those things get anywhere near her."

"Yes sir," they barked out in unison. Steele directed his gaze to Spark.

"Spark, lead the way. We've got an encirclement to break."

Author's Note

Holy smokes is this super late. I feel a bit justified however, as we moved countries, and I had to rewrite this like four times. But here it is, and on Christmas no less. So, consider it a Christmas present, and tell me what you think. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got ham to eat.