The Silverfox Chronicles

"Alright children, please turn to page one hundred and seventy four in your books." Said Infinity, levitating his pointer and tapping it on the desk.

Turning around to face his board, Infinity heard the tell-tale sounds of pages flipping to know his students were obeying his orders.

Infinity was a school teacher, instructing foals in all the required subjects. Although a full grown adult, he lived alone with no mate, which his students teased him endlessly about. One possible reason was because he had an odd fixation on math, it was even represented on his cutie mark. Another reason could be that Infinity was a bit anti-social, preferring the company of only his students and books.

A sudden and violent knock on the schoolhouse's door brought him to alert. Who could it be at this hour, Infinity thought. Parents didn't start coming until five ten minutes before dismissal.

Probably some over-protective parent, he thought bitterly, opening the door.

To Infinity's surprise, it wasn't. Three armed ponies ran into the room, barking orders and yelling. The biggest one, a pegasus, ran at the children, screaming about piling all of their money on a desk.

Adrenaline pulsed through the unicorn as he turned back to his board. He levitated a marker and started writing.

"You see," he lectured, "You must first subtract the thirty six before the multiply the seven. Does anyone know why?"

This took his room's attackers by surprise. An awkward silence filled the room, the burglar apparently shocked that the teacher continued to do his job.

"You," murmured Infinity gazing at the leader, glasses resting at the bridge of his snout. "Do you know? Come to the board and show me."

"Math is stupid." Muttered the pegasus.

Infinity raised his eyebrow in faux interest.

His students let out a little oh. You didn't insult Infinity's life meaning.

"Stupid?" Infinity hissed. "I think not. You use arithmetic everywhere, even in your meager lives. Now get over here and do this problem."

The pegasus looked flustered, and with some poking by his friends, he trotted to Infinity. He nervously took the marker in his mouth and started to write.

About halfway through, Infinity clicked his tongue. "No,no,no." He said, levitating the marker out of the pegasus's reach. "You must subtract first."

"Ifyou are going to interrupt my class, you might as well listen!" Infinity suddenly shouted, slamming his hoof into the intruder's head, knocking him out.

A stray clap sounded.

Infinity smiled internally. Dusty had always liked him.

The unicorn coldly glared at the others and hissed. "If you don't get out of my classroom, I will make sure you lick this room clean."

This frightened the intruders. They grabbed their buddy and rushed out the door, slamming it behind him.

Infinity sighed with relief, leaning against his desk and straightening his tie. The town had been crazy ever since the New Pony Movement had came along, with random break-ins and such.

"That was so cool!" Exclaimed one of his students, a mare. "You should sign up to be a noble!"

Infinity's face went hot, and he turned back to his board. "Of course not. I couldn't be a royal. I'm not skilled enough." He tapped the board with his pointer. "If everyone is alright, let's continue with the lesson. I hope you were listening when those goons were in here, correct?"

He heard a mixture of answers, positive and negative.

"Alright," he sighed, re-writing the problem back on the board. "Listen up, everyone. First you must subtract..."

~

"Goodbye everyone! Remember to do page one hundred and seventy six for homework!" Infinity called as his students ran out the door.

The unicorn trotted about the room, cleaning and straightening. Those burglars were not easy on his room.

Deciding the room's cleanliness was up to his standards, Infinity packed his things and started for his home. He wasn't greeted by many familiar faces, just the shopkeepers he regularly visited.

Relived he had made it home without any further interruptions, Infinity quickly entered his home.

His home was a simple one-bedroom house, with a small kitchen and study.

Fixing himself a cup of coffee, Infinity sat back in the large chair in his study.

Sighing the relief, he took a large sip, smiling slightly as the hot drink traveled down his throat.

"Mr. Infinity! I have a letter!" A voice called at his door.

Heaving himself up, Infinity stumbled to the door, opening it with magic.

A gray pegasus stood at the door, a letter firmly placed in her mouth.

"From the palace itself, sir!" She chirped happily.

Infinity took the letter with his magic, shaking it to remove any possible saliva. The unicorn tossed the mail carrier a bit, then shutting the door.

Why would the castle send me a letter, he thought as he sat down and gently cut the seal with his horn.

The letter was written on crisp parchment, but it wasn't what Infinity expected Embane's writing to be. He quickly scanned it over, then his jaw dropped.

The Prince was asking him to take the take to become a noble!

With another read-over, Infinity found that some of his students had personally told the Prince that he had what it takes.

Infinity shakily read the bottom of the page. Embane had put that he wanted to see him today!

Infinity let out a little shout, running to comb out his mane. He cleaned his glasses, and then put on his best tie- a black one with little crescent moons.

It was always best to be prepared for situations like this.

The unicorn swallowed the rest of his coffee and galloped out the door, completely defeating the purpose of combing his mane.

Panting with exhaustion, Infinity found himself at the doors of the castle. Biting his lip, he took a deep breath in anticipation. Be courteous, he reminded himself.

Entering the palace, Infinity couldn't help but be enthralled. It was beautiful, with magnificent pillars and high ceilings.

Infinity practically ran into a stocky earth pony, sending him on his rump and glasses falling to the ground.

The earth pony gazed at him in dull surprise. "Watch it." He growled.

The stallion was a darker shade of orange, with a brown mane that hung in his yellow eyes.

Infinity grabbed his glasses and whatever was left of his pride and stood up. "Ah, excuse me. I am pretty nervous, the Prince has summoned me to take the noble test."

The stallion frowned at him. "Oh. So you're the other pony." He looked him over. "I was expecting someone larger."

Infinity gritted his teeth, he wasn't exactly the most muscular unicorn out there, but he couldn't help it. At least he had his hight.

"I'll have you know that I am a accomplish scholar and teacher." He snarled back.

The earth pony laughed. "Wow, you read books. So much talent." He stamped down his leg with a odd metallic creak.

Infinity's eyes shot to the earth pony's leg. Starting under his shoulder blade, it was completely made of metal.

The earth pony caught his stare. "Stop looking at it." He snarled.

Infinity ripped his gaze away, looking flustered. "Ah-I'm sorry...!"

"I don't need your pity, unicorn. I was born like that. My sister made the prosthetic for me."

"Fine." Infinity said. "I was trying to be nice, but you aren't even thankful for the least bit of kindness!"

The stallion reared back, slamming down his hooves centimeters in front of Infinity.

"Boys, play nice." A voice dripping with sarcasm brought Infinity to attention.

Both stallions looked up to see Embane, strutting to them, flanked by guards.

"Gah- sir!" Infinity managed to stutter, falling into a clumsy bow.

The stallion beside him bow easily, still glaring at him.

Embane was frowning, staring at them like a disappointed parent. "I see you respond well with others." Infinity wasn't sure which one of them he was talking to.

"Stand up." Embane said simply. They did. "Infinity, Hatchet, you two are both in the running to become nobles. Can you tell me your talents?"

The earth pony, Hatchet, spoke first.

"I am a master weapons maker." He nodded to the silver-blades hatchet that was strapped to his waist. "I made this."

"I....." Infinity mumbled. Thinking quickly, he finished. "I teach. Very well."

Embane raised his eyebrow. "Teaching is your talent?"

"No, my talent is.." He whispered in a small voice. "Math."

Hatchet laughed out loud. "He's more miserable than I thought!"

Infinity sighed. "What is this test we have to do?"

Embane levitated a piece of paper from a nearby table. He pulled out a quill and began to write. "First," he stated. "You must go to the very end of the forest outside of the town. Next, you must track down the lair of the Cockatrice. This shouldn't be hard, as the beast has a very distinct smell. Once you find it, I need both of you to retrieve a feather from it. You don't have to kill it, just each of you has to have a feather to become a noble. Sound simple enough?"

Hatchet nodded. "Can do, sir."

Infinity wasn't as sure. "...Sure."

Embane spread his wings, smiling at both of the stallions. "I hope you get to liking each other better, you are going to be doing this together.

Infinity's mouth hung open.

"What?! No!" Hatchet cried.

"No sabotage." The alicorn strutted back up a flight of stairs, leaving the two stallions alone.

Hatchet gave Infinity a steely glare. Infinity frowned back.

"We should get going." The unicorn muttered.

~

"We should be getting close..." Infinity murmured, studying the map that a mare from the palace had given him.

The duo was deep in the forest now, searching for the cockatrice's lair.

It was a very plain forest, just trees and rare animal here and there. Hatchet seemed to be interested by the scenery, Infinity assumed this be an earth pony thing. He found it rather bland.

"So...you can do magic?" Hatchet's gruff voice said beside him.

Infinity was startled, Hatchet hasn't tried to make a causal conversation for the whole trip.

"Yes... But I'm not that good at it. I can only levitate one thing at a time." It was true. While most unicorns had tried to further advance their magic ability, Infinity had been contempt and instead pursued other types of education.

"My sister, Wysteria, is a unicorn. She's pretty good at magic. She fashioned a pair of wings for herself." He laughed to himself. "I always call her a Princess."

"What does your sister do?" Infinity asked, glad for Hatchet's surprisingly good mood.

"She's a blacksmith like me. After our mother died we took over the family business." Hatchet said, his face serious.

"I work at a school." Infinity said, feeling insignificant.

"I've done more psychical labor than you have ever in your entire life." Hatchet scoffed.

"Hey." Infinity snarled, stopping in his tracks. "You think I have it easy, but have you ever tried to control a class of thirty something foals by yourself?! What about when a foal gets sick? Who do you think has to clean it up? What about when one clearly has issues at home? Who gets to stay up at night and think about their safe being?? Who gets to stay up until three in the morning making lesson plans? I DO! Even after all that, I would die for those foals!"

Hatchet looked surprised, staring at Infinity. "I...didn't know...."

Panting after his rant, the unicorn looked him straight in the eyes. "We should keep moving."

Hatchet nodded, the duo continued moving.

Walking for about twenty minutes, Infinity stopped suddenly. Hatchet stopped beside him, looking confused.

"What is it?" He asked.

"The smell. I can smell the cockatrice."

Hatchet sniffed the air, cringing. "Ew, the rotten eggs smell?"

"I would assume. The cockatrice is part chicken."

Coming to a large cave, the duo paused.

"This has to be the lair. The smell is strongest here." Hatchet observed.

Infinity nodded, nervously taking a step into the cavern. Behind him, Hatchet drew his weapon.

A snarl mixed with a hiss sounded before them. It echoed around the cave, making it unable to track.

Infinity gasped, stepping back. Hatchet shoved past him, propelling him forward. "No turning back now," he said gruffly.

Infinity mumbled something that could have been a "yes", but still a equal chance of "crap".

The unicorn heard a slither of scales across rock, stopping him dead in his tracks. Infinity saw a snake tail disappear behind a rock.

"It's near. Remember, don't look it in the eyes." Hatchet growled beside him.

It was more then near. A scratching and a hiss alerted the two stallions of the impending danger. They just managed to leap out of the way before a grotesque creature lunged at the space they were just at.

Infinity spied the cockatrice from behind the rock he was hiding at. It was ugly, to say the least. With the upper body of a chicken and the lower part of a snake, the cockatrice was a horrifying sight. The piercing red eyes didn't decrease the scary, either.

From across the cavern, Hatchet motioned at the creature, mock swinging his weapon at a nearby stalactite.

Infinity understood. The earth pony planned on crushing the cockatrice with the rock.

"Hey, uh, chicken!" Infinity screamed, getting the monster's attention. The unicorn shut his eyes when the cockatrice turned his head, averting its deadly gaze.

He stumbled out of his safe place, screaming insults and obscenities. Infinity didn't want to know what his students would think of him at this moment.

The cockatrice stayed in one place, confused.

Infinity could hear the clinking of the rock as Hatchet dug into it, trying to slice it in half. He prayed the earth pony could sever it before the cockatrice snapped out of its confusion.

A sudden crack answered his prayers. He heard the cry of the monster and a awful crunch as the rock fell.

"You can open your eyes now." Hatchet said, striding beside him.

Infinity opened, and saw the beast trapped under a thick chunk of rock. It was still alive, he could hear and see it squirming around.

"Better get a scale now." Infinity said, moving towards the snake part of the cockatrice, far away from the deadly eyes.

Infinity and Hatchet both pulled a scale, jumping in surprise when they realized how sharp it was.

"Gah!" Hatchet cried, throwing the scale out of his mouth. His lips slightly bled.

Infinity found the unicorn solution. Throwing it in the air, small amounts of blood traveling with it, he caught it with magic. Despite its sharpness, it was lightweight and small.

"Lucky." Hatchet growled.

"Let's get back to the castle." Infinity said, not wishing to start another fight.

The two left the cave, following a small path that led beside a river. It was a pretty long drop, leading into the pulsing water below.

Suddenly, Hatchet looked at Infinity in alarm.

"Do you smell that?" He asked.

Rotten eggs.

Hearing a slight sound behind him, Infinity leaped in the other direction, shouting in shock when the cockatrice, bruised and slightly bloody, tackled Hatchet, wrapping its snake-like body around him.

"I thought we trapped you!" Infinity screamed.

The cockatrice didn't notice that the unicorn had spoken.

Hatchet was desperately trying to reach his weapon, but to no avail. The cockatrice had made sure it had covered the hatchet with its snaky coils.

Hatchet let out a choked scream as the creature slowly dragged him, nearing the edge of the bank.

Infinity's mind was racing. What could he attack the cockatrice with? He wasn't that strong, he couldn't pry the beast's body apart with his bare hoofs.

The scale, he thought.

Biting his tongue, Infinity thought about giving up his ticket to noble-hood. Did he really want to sacrifice that for some stallion he had just met?

But I can't let him die, his mind argued, his ears twitching at Hatchet crazed cries.

Clenching his eyes shut, part not wanting to get petrified and part not wanting to see himself throw away the scale, Infinity throw the sharp scale.

Allowing himself a peek, he saw the scale imbed itself into the cockatrice's neck, the creature throwing its head back it agony. It released Hatchet, stumbling back toward the bank. The creature fell back, seconds later Infinity heard the tell-tale splash and knew that the beast was dead now.

Suddenly, everything that had just happened crashed onto Infinity. He fell on his haunches, in shock. Infinity could believe that he had just fought and killed a magical creature. He couldn't believe that he had just tossed away his scale for Hatchet's life.

"Infinity? Are you ok?" Hatchet was beside him, waving his hoof in front of Infinity's temporarily blank eyes.

The unicorn shook his head, motioning to the scale in Hatchet's mouth.

"Oh... That's how you killed the cockatrice." He whispered. He placed an arm around him. "I'll try my best to defend you."

~

"Congratulations, Hatchet. You have become the royal weapons maker. I look forward to my guards using your weapons in the future." Embane observed Infinity, who had been silent the entire trip home. "I'm sorry, Infinity. You have failed the test. You can travel back to your house now."

Infinity mutely nodded, dangerously on the verge of tears. He turned and started to walk to the door.

"Wait! Sir!" Hatchet cried. Infinity looked up in surprise. "Infinity had a scale! He did! But the cockatrice attacked us again..and he killed it with the scale. Please, just make an exception! He deserves it!"

Embane raised his eyebrow. "Infinity, is this correct?"

"Yes sir."

To his surprise, Embane patted him on the head.

"If that's the case, congratulations, Infinity. You are in charge of the education of Equestria." Embane said gently.

Infinity smiled brightly, bowing at Embane's hoofs. "Thank you! Thank you!"

The Prince shuffled uncomfortableness. "It's ok, it really is. You can go home and get your stuff, both of you. You are going to be living here now. I will find you a room."

Infinity and Hatchet nodded, excited.

~

"Alright everyone!" Infinity called to his classroom. "Put your homework on my desk!"

As his students came to his desk and deposited papers with various amounts of writing on it, Dusty and a unicorn foal tapped him on it shoulder.

"Yes?" He asked, whist checking the other student's work.

Dusty was smiling brightly. "Mr. Infinity, did you see what I said to the Prince?"

"I really appreciate it, Dusty."