The path of a hero

With a lowered shoulder, Razor slammed himself into one of the thugs, sending the earth pony rolling away as the Pegasus landed onto the ground to assess the situation.  To his dismay, the stallion only spotted five guards attempting to subdue the assailants; their numbers possibly quadruple the pathetic security.  Judging by the commotion inside the post office, there was no doubt that more of the bandits found their way in, which meant that there were plenty more of them than what he could see.

In almost an instant, the vigilante pony began to be flanked from all sides, feeling the sudden barrage of hooves instantly alerted him that these ponies are not in the mood to attempt negotiations.  That was fine by him; he preferred the more physical method of diplomacy anyways.  With well-trained grace and almost instinctive, Razor’s hooves parried two thug’s attacks and pushed them to the side, tumbling between the unprepared ponies to escape their fellow thug’s attacks.

Attempting to create a gap between him and his opponents, the Pegasus continued to flip away from the group, rolling forward to slam his hind legs into a bandit’s head, his face pushed into the dirt as his body went limp.  Continuing with the momentum of his attack, the stallion flipped again, using his wings to lift him off the ground.  His hind legs hit another unwary Pegasus bandit, forcing his head down and the flipping Pegasus to continue his flip until he landed behind a surprised unicorn.

Razor’s momentum assault on the invading bandits continued until the nearest group of thugs was disbanded, most of them knocked unconscious.  His momentary cease of his attack granted the bandits the moment they wanted, and they took it with haste.  With a powerful toss, several ponies threw weighted rope towards the stallion’s limbs, wrapping his legs together and causing him to fall.  All the colt could do was yell out in shock as the hemp rope tightened around his legs and prevented his movement.

Almost instantly afterwards, a white rag was pushed into the stallion’s snout, an unfamiliar scent rushing through his nose as he attempted to fight off his assailants.  Suddenly, his head began to spin as he felt his body begin to grow limp.  His eyes fluttered as worry swept over his body.  “What should we do with him?”  The holder of the rag asked before Razor slipped out of consciousness.  He could only hear one word before he left reality.  “Hostage.”

***

“Focus Razor.”  Swift Action told his son, the harsh sunlight reflecting off of his crimson coat.  The young foal gasped for air as he weakly retook the stance his father taught him, focusing his young eyes on the training dummy the guards had made for the count’s child.  The Pegasus closed his eyes, reaching into himself as he attempted to perform his father’s request.  “Mind, body and spirit must act as one.”  Young Razor’s legs quivered under the weight of his body as he tried his hardest to focus all three together.  However, the young colt simply flopped onto the ground, his cream coat dingy and soiled with sweat and dirt, his body heaved from exhaustion.

Count Action chuckled with amusement as he trotted up to his son, ruffling the tired foal’s sky blue mane, assuring the young Razor.  “How come I can’t do it, daddy?”  Razor whined as he huffed, dust flowing up in the air and dancing away from the troubled colt.  Swift didn’t answer quickly; instead he simply lifted the young pony up onto his back and began the walk to the mansion.  The child waited patiently for most of the journey to the back door, but when he spotted his father reach for the handle, Razor tapped Action’s head lightly as he said curiously “Dad?”

“Razor, do you know why we are blessed with such a beautiful home?”  Swift Action suddenly asked, pulling hoof back from the door.  The young foal wagged his tail with joy as he said “Because our ancestor, Wind Blade, helped Princess Celestia and Luna fight against the bad colts.  He did such a good job the princesses gave him enough bits to buy our home.”  The stallion couldn’t help but chuckle at his son’s brief explanation.  “You are correct, my son.  Wind Blade was known for more than just an important soldier of the Equestrian army, however.”  He craned his neck to lightly bite the scruff of Razor’s neck and slowly lowered him as he walked up to the dummy, explaining.

“You see, during our ancestor’s campaign, he met a group of wondering ponies who had an incredible gift.  They knew how to concentrate all their being into everything they did, in everything they saw.  Nothing was unachievable for these great individuals.  Wind Blade spoke to these ponies and after a long and hard negotiation, they agreed to teach him their secrete.”  The young colt followed behind his father, hanging onto every word that flowed out of the stallion’s mouth as he suddenly stopped in front of the training dummy.  Razor quickly fumbled back, watching his father as he waited to see what he meant.

“They taught him to use not only his body to strike.”  Count Swift started, slowly falling into his stance.  “But to use his mind and will as well.  They told him of a power that flowed through all living things; this power is unstoppable but should never be miss used.”  Suddenly, in a swift movement, Razor’s father spun his rear legs around and shattered the wooden dummy’s, a hiss of air escaping his lips as he fell back into his stance.  “This power they taught him was Ki.”

***

The damp surroundings sent a shiver up Razor’s spine as he slowly regained conciseness.  An unimaginable tinge stung the back of his head, feeling the room spin around his weakened figure.  He clenched his eyes shut in pain as he waited for the nausea and dizziness to pass by, hoping it was only a side-effect of the concoction that knocked him out.  Luckily, the pain slowly faded away, the sickness in the bottom of his stomach leaving him along with the unpleasant feeling.

Slowly, the Pegasus opened his eyes as he attempted to adjust to the light in the room, or lack thereof.  The surrounding was dark and dingy, stone surrounded him as metal bars kept him from leaving his room; a cell.  With weak legs, Razor attempted to move towards the door before feeling something tighten around his hind leg, the sudden pull caused him to lose his balance and slam his chin against the cold stone floor.

The stallion grunted in pain as he slowly rolled over onto his back, the cold rock somewhat relieving to his body.  When he regained more of his mental awareness, Razor slowly lifted his upper body up and glanced down to his hind legs, spotting a rusted manacle.  He pulled against the chain lightly a few times, testing its strength and noting of any weaknesses in it.  Fate was with him it seemed, seeing as the restraint was in incredibly poor condition.  If he was a larger pony, he could easily snap out of the rusted chains, but he did have a small advantage on his side.

“Come here you.”  Razor mumbled weakly to the key hole as he bent his body to get a better look at it.  He squinted his eyes, attempting to focus his sight.  But between the swimming feeling and the poor lighting, he knew he would have to wait for a more opportune time.  Coming to that conclusion, he simply let his body flop onto the stone ground once again, staring up at the mossy ceiling as he let his mind wonder.

Where was he, why did those bandits attack the post office, why was he taken hostage?  A barrage of questions assaulted the stallion’s mind as he slowly began to gather his thoughts correctly.  At the exact moment Razor decided he had rested long enough, the dim lights suddenly brightened and a siren sounded, shouting echoed weakly from outside his cell.  An attack on his captures, this was the perfect time to escape.

With a quick crunch, Razor glanced at the hole and spotted the gears and mechanics within.  He smiled lightly to himself as he closed his eyes and furrowed his brow, reaching into the lock mentally and attempted to push the latches in their correct order.  With a quiet click, the stallion’s manacle released his hind leg.  Freedom was his once again, and he hoped it would remain that way.

He moved towards the cell door, the shouting growing only louder as he looked through the key hold of the cell, attempting to see the tumblers.  However, his patience grew thin as he simply abandoned his attempted at stealth and mentally shattered the lock, the cell gate sliding freely.  With a soft smile, Razor pushed the gate open and glanced around the outside of his cell, judging the best exit.  One thing was clear to him, however.  It was time to escape.