Of Knights and Mermaids

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 4
Chapter 3

Chapter 1

The cool mist of the ocean grazed upon my covered face, mixing with the sweat that had accumulated on it. I was out for another walk, the usual one on Sundays, at the beach. Today was particularly warm and fresh, and the ocean was empty of all visitors but me, save for the little white crabs and jellyfish bodies. The jetties that extended like fingers out into the blue waters were my destination, I intended to go to the furthest one and relax in the sun, finally able to lay my sword down and relinquish the decorated helmet from my face.

My heavy hoofbeats disturbed the sand, bringing up a multitude of sleeping animals in the sand. It was wet and brown, warmed by the blaring sun of Summer, and squished easily under the leather of my boots. Water would occasionally spill out from my hoofsteps, and would sink back into the depression I left. It was a nice feeling, the coolness of it just barely seeping through to my hooves. It was a feeling I’d longed for all week, considering the tension of the work week I’ve had.

The jetties in sight, I picked up my pace and climbed up onto the first rock that marked the start of this natural pier. The ocean’s waves splashed and crawled up the beach to surround said rock, and splashed up just enough to hit me in the face. I took my helmet off using my magic, and let my mane flow out. A few crimson locks smacked me in the face as I did so, but I was fine with this, as long as I was able to finally relax.

I hopped onto the next rock, and the next, until I had a straight walk until the edge. Water splashed and sloshed violently against the walls of the rocks, hitting me in the process. I heard loud splashed of what I assumed were dolphins in the distance, but I was focused on safely getting to the tranquil edge.

Once I had made it, safely, I sat down, sticking my sword into the rock and placing my helmet gingerly on top of it, letting it swivel around until it came to a standstill. Then, I shifted my gaze onto the horizon, as a bright orange sun began to sink below the waters. The dolphins continued to play in the distance, laughing loudly and enjoying themselves. I sighed and laid on my back, breathing in the fresh ocean breeze. God, how I loved weekends.

I let my eyes fall, and my consciousness fade, and soon I was napping on the ocean rocks. I had dreams of swimming in the water, playing with the fish and dolphins, and enjoying myself, and just generally slept well. It wasn’t until midnight that I awoke to the sound of still waters and a light splashing out on the horizon. Low tide must have hit.

I sprang to my hooves, and yanked my sword from the stone, and put my helmet back on. I jumped off of the jetties, and back into the sand, and began my venture back home. The splashing and laughing was still going on, and I pondered to myself how these dolphins had such energy.

At home, I stripped off my armor and put it on its mannequin, letting the sweat of my body drip off me and evaporate. I went into my bathroom, stepped into the shower and put it on cold, relaxing as the icey flow smacked against my fur. It felt wonderful, I felt like the water was making me legitimately steam, and I felt all the muscles in my body ease up and relax.

It was only every so often I got to shower, but when I could it was a blessing. After a good half hour or so, I got out, and dried off, spending an extraordinary amount of time on my long mane. Once I felt adequately dry I hobbled out to my living room and splayed out on the decorative couch, and threw a match onto the fireplace. It was my favorite time of the day, night was. I yearned for it so much each time I awoke that sometimes I would plainly meditate until night came, skipping meals and drinks and anything that could slow my day down.

I just laid lazily on the couch for what must have been an hour, looking around my house. A large pillar made of a log was erected behind my couch, guarding the dining room, which was centerpieced by another log, this one much shorter and fatter. Surrounding it were three small chairs, made of pine that I had crafted with my father years ago. My whole house had a log cabin theme, and to fit even better, it was in the middle of the forest, secluded from normal ponies.

If you couldn’t tell by now, I’m a knight. Or at least, a knight for hire. I go around and swear to protect someone for a price, usually a pretty hefty one. The last job I had was for a changeling hive, but, I ran into some trouble with an adjacent king, who nearly ripped my legs off. Only his queen saved me there, bless her soul. At that point I decided the job was getting too dangerous for me, so I quit. I left and never looked back, and became a wandering vagrant knight. I get a job here and there, which keeps the bills paid and the fridge stocked, but any extra things like technology or heat are lost on me. It’s okay though. I’m old, I don’t need much to keep me happy.

Alright, I’m fourty-seven, not an old man. I do want those things but, with the track I’m going on, I can’t buy extra toys for myself, so I eat less and use excess blankets in the winter and ice in the summer, so I can buy one or two new things. It’s a struggle but, I enjoy it. It gives my life an extra thrill.

Soon I found myself lost in thoughts, and my eyes fell ever slowly, until they encapsulated my eyes, and sent me into a deep sleep. I had enjoyed the short night I had, and just hoped the next one would be just as satisfying and relaxing.

I woke up, slowly but surely, feeling the crust over my eyelids break off and fall. My stomach growled loudly, which prompted me to leave my comfy couch, and head to the fridge.

Empty. I looked at the white shelves of the thing dejectedly, grumbling and slamming the door shut. “Looks like I have to head to the market,” I said to myself aloud. I donned my armor again, which in itself was a process of which I hated doing every morning, but had an end result that I loved. Much like going to the shopping center. After I put on my helmet and strung my mane through the hole in the back, I sighed and left the house.

It was a very hot day, felt like it was in the high nineties, it singed the fur on my back, but aside from that it felt pretty nice. I’ve gotten used to being burned by my armor. If it got too much to bear, I’d sit in the shade of a bus stop for a couple minutes, and then keep going, until I reached my destination.

The market was filled to the brim with ponies today. It made sense, today was a Sunday and the day was perfect for beach-goers, who frolicked in the sands adjacent to the shopping area. Most of them wore their swimwear, or had overly bad sunburns or sunhats, a parasol here or there. It was a pretty decorated day, with me being the center of it all. Ponies all over stared at me as I cantered from stand to stand, picking up fruits and assorted foods and placing them into my basket. They couldn’t see my smug grin under the helmet, but I’m sure some of them knew I was full of myself.

Normally I don’t like being near people, but there’s the occasional day where I’m perfectly fine with it. Especially on days when children or foals come by and look up to me with big grins, some calling me a hero or thanking me for my service. I don’t really have the heart to tell them I’m not a real royal guard, so I smile and pat them on the head. I guess you could say I have a soft spot for children.

“Eek! S-scuse me, pardon me!” Cried a mare from a few feet away. I could see a wave of ponies being moved as she shoved through the crowd. “P-please move, I, I need out!” She sounded to be about half my age, and was obviously panicked. Following her voice and the crowd’s movements, I tailed her.

She cornered herself in an alleyway, and I found her, looking up at me pleadingly, with intense fear contorted on her face. Her gaze returned to the ground, and her breathing got a bit heavier. I followed her look and saw it.

A tiny white sandcrab, clicking its claws at her. I picked it up in my magic and she shrieked and hid her face in the wall. I levitated it over to the side, and gave it a shove, moving over to comfort the girl. “It’s gone now, luv, you’re safe.” I said to her. “You have a fear of those little guys?”

“M-mmhm..” She weakly replied. She turned to face me and gave me a hug. “Th-thank you. What’s your name?”

“Damascus Rose. Might I ask yours?”

“Sea Foam.” She broke the hug, and as I got up, she got up on her hooves as well.

Sea Foam was a very curious pony. She was talkative, asked a lot of questions although I was a complete stranger to her. She was also strange, she was hyper and oh-too innocent. I thought it was a farce put on to hide some inner deep dark secret, but I slipped in a few penis jokes of which flew directly over her head by a mile. Apparently she knows what it is, but doesn’t understand. She’s got the mind of a child almost, she even collects seashells as she’s told me.

“I go to the beach, and I get sand dollars and pretty shells and pearls and all kinds of things!” She excitedly explained to me, showing off her small pack full of shells. “I make necklaces out of them and sell them! It’s how I got my butt mark!”

“How cute. Very pretty too.” I commented, fully invested. I usually pay full attention to someone when they talk about what they love the most. She was no exception. I could see a twinkle in her eyes when she pulled out a sparkling blue shell, and I smiled at her.

We walked along the road, a thunder clap resounding in the sky. I hadn’t even noticed the sun blotted out. I looked to Foam, to see if she was alright, and a look of intense fear rose on her face. “Afraid of thunder?” I asked, to which she ran as quickly as she could away from me, and ducked behind an alley, gone.

“Strange girl.. It’s only sound.”

Ignoring the strange incident, I decided it be best to move back home, as metal covering my entire body in a lightning storm was not the smartest idea. The cooled wind of the storm was nice though, after the intense mug and heat of earlier. Still, the idea of being cooked alive by electricity made me quicken my pace for my cabin.

The forest entrance was dark, from the lack of sunlight, covered by a thick canopy of pine and maple leaves, and tall redwood trees. Flowers stood in full bloom at the edges, marking the entrance to a faerie’s domain almost. I, personally, do not believe in faeries, but others do, and commonly call this forest the Spritely Wood. Due to some unsavory rumors about faeries in this area, not many visit, and so not many bother me. It’s a win-win situation.

I trotted through quickly, following the road, taking in the smells of the impending rainstorm, and sighed. It was an eventful day, I thought. I bought groceries, met a sweet girl who followed me around for an hour, and got caught in the woods during a storm. Not usually something that happens to me at all. Well, except the groceries.

I had thought to make myself a dinner tonight, with some of the stuff I bought, since being out so long had left my stomach aching. I also thought to take a stomach pill, to calm it down. Maybe both would work best.

My cabin stood in front of me, lanterns flickering their blue light to illuminate the patio. A large wooden door with a circular oculus blocked my way into the house. I opened it gingerly, letting myself in, and shivering as the coldness of the air conditioner froze the water and sweat on my back. “Ah, love that feeling.”

My routine of night began again, I stripped, got on the couch after putting my groceries in their respective storage, and thought on the day. Thought about seeing that girl again, someday. Thought about perhaps going out again tomorrow to see her. Surely she’d recognize my armor. Why would I want to though, I thought, I hate people generally. I then just surmised on her quirkiness, her attitude, the fact that she was the most fun I’ve had all month. I resolved to talk to her if I saw her again.

I then thought about my stomach again, and rose to my hooves. Going into the kitchen, holding my belly, I pulled out lettuces and various other vegetables to make a quick salad, and ate it as quick as my body would let. Once it settled, my craving quenched, I went to the last room of the house, my bedroom, and laid in the soft downy comforter. First time in a long time I’d fall asleep at night on this.

A loud thunder slap woke me up late at night, causing my heart to jump straight out of my chest. My breaths became short, my hoof moving up to clutch my now pained ribs as my heart pounded to escape. Eventually, after I finally calmed down, I climbed on my windowsill, moving a shutter up to investigate the condition outside.

Puddles of water, no, oceans formed outside where there were cliffs or small dips in the land, and rain came down in torrents, beating against the glass like a firehose were pointed at it. Thunder yet again smacked loudly, followed by the second wave boom, that echoed throughout my home. I was a little creeped out, because I felt like something were wrong about this storm, but I forced myself up anyway, going to my fireplace to start it up and warm up and relax.

Wind howled at me from outside, the weather acting as a pack of wolves at my door, gnawing at the wood to get in and attack. I wasn’t afraid but uneasy. Storms like this have ruined homes before, and I would rather my dream house not be ruined by something as silly as a little rain.

I noticed though, how the digital clock on the mantle, was completely shut off. My fridge’s hum had quieted. The storm had blown out my power. I dearly hoped that my produce wouldn’t spoil in this condition, because I was out of ice and had no other method of keeping it safe and sound.

Oh well, I thought, I’d just have to buy more. It’d just mean one paycheck less from getting a newer TV for my room. The one I had now was still flat and mounted on my wall, but it was a few years old, and had a purple spot on the lower corner that bothered me.

The thunder became more violent, raging every minute or so, screaming at me from outside. I paid no mind, nature was doing its work, and I was minding my own business and letting it go its merry way, what good would it be to be scared? If something bad happened, it happened, and I’d have to adapt. With every roar of thunder I felt a sense of challenge, smirking at my unseen enemy in the sky.

Eventually, out of being so relaxed from the fire, and still being tired, I got up and went to bed, getting back under the covers and letting the sounds of nature lull me into a deep sleep. I didn’t mind the loud noise any more, it grew on me.

I fell asleep, with an image of that girl in my mind. I couldn’t place why, but she seemed special.

Chapter 2

The ocean’s sounds were all that greeted me when I got to the beach this time. Mondays were people’s busy days, so it was just an empty morning on the beach, which left me time to go to the pier and relax for a while. I thought that maybe I should consider a few job options too, since I was running kind of short on money.

However, as I got to the boardwalk, I noticed someone standing at my usual spot at the edge of the pier, leaning over. I thought she might be peering into the waters, but then I considered maybe she was depressed. I walked ever closer just to be sure, so I could catch her if she went in. I may not be on duty, but I have a personal duty that I like to keep in check.

Once I got a few feet away, the mare leapt into the air and flipped, looking at me and giving a quick wink before she splashed into the cool ocean blue. It was her, from before.

I had subconsciously reached out for her, but was too late in my reflex, so in a panic I started yanking off my armor, setting it carefully on the boards, and once fully nude I jumped into the water to look for her. The saline water stung my eyes badly, but I forced them open, looking for any slight darkness in the lit up water. Nothing. My eyes burned now, as they darted around the foggy murk, desperately trying to find her, but to no avail. I searched for what felt like a good ten minutes, but came up empty.

“F-fucking, damn.. I lost her..” I said, letting water flood into my mouth, reminding me that I needed to surface before I too met a watery grave. I broke out of the water, gasping and sputtering, cursing myself. I punched the pillars that held up the boardwalk, feeling a splinter jut into my exposed skin, breaking it.

I sighed. My legs carried me back to shore as I looked back to where she fell. I was, shocked. She just dove in out of nowhere and never came back up. And, I was too slow to stop her from it. I knew she seemed too innocent, I knew she was hiding someth--

“Hey! I remember you! Why you so glum?”

Oh. I was wrong. “I, thought you drowned in there, I.. I looked for like, ever!” My tone was a bit snappy, and surprisingly filled with worry. “N-not that I cared, just, doing my duty.”

“Oh, hmhm, silly. I can swim you know. When does a pony smile and wink when they’re about to drown?” She had a good point. “Thanks for the concern though, Dami.”

She leaned up and kissed me on the cheek, which resulted in a huge blush covering my face. I hadn’t even minded her calling me that nickname I was so taken aback. “U-uh, anytime, Foam.”

Shaking off my fur, and quickly using my bent horn to bring back my armor, I looked up and noticed her smiling at me. “Sorry about yesterday,” she said, “I uh, hate thunderstorms. Heh.”

“It’s alright, dear. Just could have said something.” I responded, patting her head. Her voice was still cheery sounding, just as yesterday. Again I wondered how she could be so kindly to a complete stranger, a much older one at that.

“Well, anyway, what were you doing here?”

“Meditating.” I replied to her, smiling sheepishly. It’s quite out of the ordinary to meditate, according to most ponies I meet around when I do.

“Ooh, like a monk? Do you do chants when you do it? Or yoga, do you do yoga?” Immediately I found myself being interrogated by her, unceasingly, but to my own surprise I wasn’t annoyed, but amused. She gave me a sense of personal wisdom, as I told her about the world, I felt like I was teaching her new things.

Each question she asked I answered honestly, and smiled in earnest. After a few rounds of questions, she seemed satisfied. “I like you, Dami, you’re interesting. Not many ponies that go around in armor, or meditate, or anything like that.”

“Hm, thank you. I think you’re rather intriguing myself, you have that quirky attitude, and your shell business is kind of cute. Charming, really.” The compliment gave her a short twinkle in her eye, and she thanked me in kind.

“Can I walk with you? I don’t have anything to do today and I could use someone to talk to while I sort these shells.” She asked, a hopeful look in her expression.

“Of course,” I said, which widened her smile. I walked towards home with her close in tow, talking with her as we went. She seemed happy to be there with me, the crotchety old man, and that was enough for me to take a small liking to her.

Eventually, after she talked my ear off and I replied to a question here or there, we got to the entrance to the woods, and she marvelled at the pretty flowers. “I like what you’ve done with the place!” She said, though I couldn’t tell if she was joking.

“Thank you, m’lady, just brought this forest in last week.” I joked back, just in case. Though something told me she thought I owned the woods. Either way, I brought her deeper into it and we got to the cabin, where she squee’d and rushed inside.

Once I got in, she was already at my dining table, shells splayed across the surface in a neat fashion. “Now you can see what I got!” She looked at me with the innocence of a child, beaming widely as she pointed at a big conch shell. I grinned back, and sat at the opposite end, just marvelling with her and watching her in her craft.

One particular shell she had, a sparkly blue oyster’s shell, held her interest for a while. She used a small tool she kept in her back to poke a hole near the top, and strung some kelp through it, then began using smaller shells and pearls, putting them to the sides of the oyster shell, making a necklace that kept it as the main event.

I had to say she had a very good talent for this sort of thing, the necklace looked very professional, and what was better was the authenticity of it. It used genuine shells and the yarn was from the sea itself as well, not that plastic wire and fake crap they use at those boardwalk stores. She could start a legitimate business with these, if she wanted to, but she seemed content in selling them at the market, individually.

I told her that it was unwise to be such a small girl in the middle of a big market, but she said she does it all the time. I considered just tagging along, to keep her safe. On that subject with her, she told me that she has really weird luck with things, for instance; once at the boardwalk she was walking down, a board or two fell under her feet, but there was a boardwalk explorer underneath, that looked up in surprise, keeping the boards up.

She told other stories about her weird luck, each one making me wonder moreso than the last, “How the hell is this lass still alive?” I told her that I was tagging along from now on, that I’d be her hired knight for a while to see this for myself. I set the bar for her way low, just a bit an hour, because while I did offer, I still do need money.

She agreed, and we settled on leaving in the morning.

“Are you going home?” I asked her, and then her ears lowered to her head, and she frowned.

“N-no, I can’t.. The storm yesterday kinda, heh..”

It clicked for me, and I sighed. “I’m sorry that happened to you. If you need to stay here, I’ll let you, just don’t ruin anything please. And don’t touch my armor if I’m not around, that was expensive. And it’s mine.” I frowned at her jokingly, and she perked up.

“Oh, thank you, thank you!” She exclaimed, running up and giving me a hug. “I’ll be careful, promise!” She gave me her necklace that she finished as her thanks, and went back to her seat to continue making them.

A few hours passed, and I headed to the bedroom to sleep, since her constant questions and chatter did drain me after a while. I’m not much of a talker, so when I’m forced to reply to a million things at once, I get tired easy, so getting some sleep was a godsend at this point. Then, she got up herself and followed me, to sleep herself.

“Uh, you sure you want to sleep with me? Isn’t that kinda, uh, scandalous?” I asked.

She looked puzzled. “Scandalous? Whaddya mean?”

“Uh.. I’m a man.” “Yes?” “With a penis.” “Mmhmmm?” “There’s usually a bad connotation in a girl sleeping with a man.”

“.. I don’t get it.” She replied. I sighed at this, and just gave her my permission. I flopped onto one side of the bed, and her the other. We didn’t cuddle, for obvious reasons, but she seemed to find the whole thing innocent. Was weird, most young girls don’t spring to sleep with some twice-their-age stranger.

I didn’t care though, she was alright. Tiring, and energetic, pretty much the opposite of me, but I liked her enough. And she needed a place to stay while her house was destroyed, and I wasn’t about to kick her out. So for now, I’ll let her be happy in whatever way she wants.

It isn’t like I didn’t want her there, anyway.

We left early in the morning, her bag of shells and necklaces in tow, and started at the furthest end of the boardwalk, waiting for the tourists and beachgoers to arrive. I sat on my haunches, armor clanking as it hit the wooden planks, and stuck my sword between a small crevice.

“What does your cutie mark mean?” She asked out of nowhere. She pointed at the thorned bloodred rose on my armor, engraved by the very pegasus that made my armor. I shuddered as soon as I uttered pegasus.
“It means that I’m dangerous, but have a soft, fragile side. It also means I’m a gardener, I like roses.”

“Oh, that sounds pretty, can I see your garden?”

“Of course, once it’s in season, dear.” I told her calmly, rather happy that she held an interest in my talent.

After a time, some people came in, and my little lady sprang up to meet them. “Hello!”

She worked her entrepreneur's magic, and sold off some necklaces, getting five bits each one that she gave off. It took a while, but she managed to wrack up about fifty bits from her business, and I raised my brow. “Impressive. How often do you do this?”

I sat down on a nearby bench, and she did the same, and we discussed her job, and subsequently, mine. She asked, “You’re a knight-for-hire, right? Who hires you, and do you get around a lot?”

Smiling, I replied, “Usually the well-to-do types, rich ponies with paranoia issues, the smaller, weaker ponies that need help, sometimes a changeling hive if I’m unlucky. I get paid two hundred bits an hour, typically, for those. Protection doesn’t come cheap, at all.”

“Ooh. But, why are you doing it so cheap for me, then?”

I stopped. I opened my mouth to answer, but shut it again. I knew I wanted to protect her myself, but I never really knew why I did it so cheap. “Uh, because you made a good first impression?”

She seemed satisfied with that answer. I leaned my head back to rest on the back of the chair, and closed my eyes for a moment. That was, until some old hag soccermom decided she had to intrude on my nap.

This prude went up to Sea Foam, giving me the nastiest look she could muster, and whispered rather loudly, “You know, honey, there are younger fish in the sea.” I got a little bit pissed, but I’d gotten that before, so I didn’t quite care as much. And it wasn’t like we were dating anyway.

However, she replied back, “Whaddya m- Oh, like baby sharks? Or dolphins? Baby dolphins are so cute, they make those cute little squeak noises and play with bubbles..” Foam went on for a while about as many baby fish as she could think up, until the mare got tired of it and stormed off, flicking at me with her tail. I never understood the contempt ponies gave me, I’m not even that old. Fourty seven isn’t considered senile cougar as far as I’m concerned.

But it was what it was, and at least Sea was innocent enough not to care. I thought it was very charming and cute how innocent she was, me almost never seeing that in anyone. Maybe that’s why I’ve been having such a soft spot for her, she reminds me a little bit of a daughter or sister, something along those lines. She was special, to me, because she wasn’t like other women, and she wasn’t after anything I didn’t want to give. She seemed like she’d care no matter what, and wouldn’t have any ulterior motives, aside from maybe making me happy.

I didn’t really know, not at this point, but I kind of wished for that, and hoped that she didn’t disappoint in the future. Until then though, I voted on keeping her happy and being a friend. Not that I could really stop now anyway, she still needed a place to stay.

I laid my head back again, listening to her talk about anything that was on her mind, falling asleep to her sweet, perky voice. After a time, she just laid her head on my stomach, and kept talking, not minding that I was sleeping and not answering, she appeared to be content in just letting me listen. I liked that.

The sun beat down on my armor, heating me up inside, but again, wearing this every day has the perk of being used to extreme temperatures. I definitely felt like a cooked goose though, and wanted to go for a swim. “Hey, Foam, you want to head into the water with me?”

Her face turned slightly pale, and she lost her smile. “Um..”

“Well? Just a quick little swim, I need to wash off the sweat and stuff.”

“N-no, I think I’m okay, eheh.”

“Why not? It’d just be a quick dip, c’mon, I wanna see how well you swim. I only know from how fast you got ashore a few days ago.”

She stammered, “Uh, buh, nuh uh, I’m good. I, I’m not very good. I hate swimming actually.”

“But.. You jumped straight into the water before. You, your job is literally going into water to get seashells. You told me this this morning.” I wondered what was up, she jumped into the water without a care, even winking and smiling, and her job -does- consist of swimming all over. Now all of a sudden she can’t do it near me? What’s this all about?

“Err.. I’m waterlogged. Yeeeeah, when you were napping, I went swimming again, and I went into really deep water to surf. With my body. And boy, I can’t even stay upright, I’m so dizzy and waterlogged!” She feigned falling over, adding dramatics to her act.

Giving up on trying to pry, seeing as I didn’t really care all that badly, I let it slide and just patted her head. “Fine. We don’t have to swim. But here, pull that lever right there.” I pointed to her left. She pulled it, slowly, and a rush of water came from above me.

“Thank you. Hey, I wasn’t about to let the heat get to me, swim or no.” I let the shower run for a while, letting it run off my armor, and felt a cold release from the extreme oven temperatures that once encapsulated me.

She looked at me, with an expression of relief and interest. “Who made this armor anyway?”

I recalled the day I went into Canterlot, looking for another job for one of the rich unicorn folks. The town center was bustling, every pony having something to do in some part of the city. I was bare of armor back then, with only a scabbard and boots to cover myself. That was another reason I was there. I needed some armor.

My hair back then had gone down to my chest, it was straight and messy, washed but covered in sweat and oils. I tied it in a ponytail to keep it somewhat kempt, but it always flowed with the wind, which never agreed with me, blowing it into my eyes no matter what I tried.

Most of the ponies that saw me thought I was, what they called, a “weeaboo”. I didn’t understand at the time, but apparently ponies think that having long, greasy hair and carrying a greatsword is cause for being someone who enjoys pleasuring themselves to cartoons of various genres. I didn’t understand it, but I knew it was insulting. And what was worse, other ponies agreed with them, giving me looks of disgust every so often. I stopped caring after the tenth one.

Eventually, I came across a little blacksmith’s shop, called Spears in Mint. I went in, and was greeted by a grey pegasus with black and blue hair, down to his chin, which was tufted with fur at the edge. His striking purple eyes met with my yellow ones, and I held back a grimace. Pegasi.

Now I wasn’t racist, to an extent. I just had a small dislike for pegasi, because whenever problems arose, it seemed that a pegasus was either to blame or was there to make it worse.

I shoved it back though, he seemed nice enough, and if I was going to commission him for anything less than my arms and legs, then I’d need to make a good impression. “Afternoon, sir. Do you do armor here?”

He looked me up and down, taking a longer look at my hair, and nodded. “Yeah, I do. Need somethin’ done?”

Nodding back, I told him what I needed. “Full plate, preferably done in damascus steel, I’ll pay any amount you wish, as long as you make it look good and mercenary-like.”

“Good and mercenary-like, huh? Hm.. Well. Damascus steel will cost you, but, how’d you feel about eight thousand bits? Chainmail and underwears would be an extra thousand.”

“Deal.” I proudly exclaimed, and gave him a large pouch, filled with silver and copper bits, all coming to be worth around the amount I had to pay. “This oughta make your life, huh, pegasus?” Damn.

“Excuse me? I have a name. I’m Spearmint, thank you very much, and don’t use my race as a deadname in my own store.” I may have pissed him off, I should have kept my mouth shut.

“A-apologies, I’m, a recovering racist. I’m very sorry, I was raised to believe pegasi were under me, and I’m, trying to get out of that mindset.” Hey, honesty was the best policy.

He chuckled at me, after a long pause. “Alright, I’ll let this one go. Only condition is, I’ll take however long with this art as I want, and you’ll just have to be patient. Check in again in a few weeks.” I left feeling satisfied, hoping the artist of my future uniform would make the most spectacular piece he could with what I gave him.

Having it now, I can say that he definitely did.

Chapter 4

I woke up on my couch, in the living room. A slight pitter patter could be heard on the windows, as water droplets tapped it gingerly. Sea Foam stood next to me, concern etched into her soft face. “Dami, you awake?”

“Am now..” I mumbled, sitting upright and coughing as I did so. The blood rushed from my head and made me feel dizzy, also resulting in a throb behind my eye. “What, what happened..? All I remember seeing was water, and, shiny turquoise scales.. Then you..?”

I saw a tinge of panic in her eyes, which set in very quickly for her. “H-hah, scales? Must have been a fish that came in.” Another excuse. Why would she need one though if she weren’t related to it? This raised my suspicion again, but this time, I wouldn’t let on. I had a plan.

“Must have been. Is, is the storm over?” I asked, trying to balance on my hooves.

“Yeah, you got hit bad by the water, had to go in and save ya” she said this, poking my chest.

It took me a moment, but I remembered some words she said. “Hey, what did you mean when you said that you could breathe underwater, earlier?” Shock and fear ran up her face again, and she stumbled and stammered.

“U-uh, nothing, I just meant that I could hold my breath for a while. I was scared so, I, said it wrong?” Another excuse. Alright, I thought, I’ll have to do this the hard way. I got up, and went over to my front door. I locked it. “H-hey, what’re you doing that for?” She asked, clearly frightened by the connotation of locking a door.

“You know how after a storm people love to loot homes, thinking nobody’s in them? I wanna keep you safe. Sorry.” I told her, and walked over to my kitchen. “Want a drink?”

She seemed suspicious, but she didn’t seem to pry. “Sure, what do you have?”

“Water.” I said, with a slight undertone of mischief. However she didn’t panic at me saying it, she just took out a straw and some napkins. I smiled genuinely at this, because it was actually kind of cute. It seemed she had a backup plan for everything to avoid getting caught with whatever ailed her. But not for long.

I poured two very tall glasses of water, filled them with ice to keep the condensation going, and handed her one while I sipped from the other. Loudly. “Thanks for saving me from the water though, Sea. I appreciate it.” I got my lips nice and wet, and leaned in to kiss her cheek. She almost didn’t catch what I meant to do, but at the last second she got distracted by a thunder crash outside. Damn.

“O-of course, Dami, I wasn’t gonna let you drown on me.” I appreciated her helping me for sure, even if she was hiding things from me. I was frustrated at that, but, I felt a slight affection for her, and no matter how small, I couldn’t let the frustration get to me. However..

I sipped loudly, and took a step towards her, and faked a stumble. “Oh nooo!” I fake yelled, and tumbled into her, spilling a full glass of water all over her. “Oh my, I’m so sorry, lemme go find a towel!” I ran over to my bathroom, with her struggling to break my grasp on her hoof, yelling to please let her out.

It was about seven seconds, before she suddenly went dead heavy. It stopped me in my tracks, for the most part, and I looked back at her. What I saw, shook me up at first. Her legs had morphed together, shimmering as they turned into what appeared to be a very large fish’s tail. So, this was what she had to hide from me.

I stuttered, staring, unable to react. She looked up at me for a moment, saying nothing. I gazed back, into those eyes, just as she broke down and started to cry, sobbing loudly into her crossed forelegs, her hair now hiding her face. The tail that had replaced her legs was now curled around her, keeping her in a nice ball. “I, I’m sorry. I just wanted to know what the problem was. Never would have thought you’d be.. Whatever this is.” I said this quietly, not really able to form words.

No response came from her, just more light sobs and hiccups. I reached my hoof out to her, but she gasped and held herself tighter, saying no under her breath. “S-sea Foam, I’m not going to hurt you.. I-I mean this is.. Wow. But, I accept you for you..”

She just kept shaking, not replying to me. I threw a towel on her so she could dry off. After a time, her magic faded and her legs came back. As I’d expected, immediately after she was normal again she tried to sprint off, barely giving me enough time to grab her hoof to keep her here. Struggling still, I pulled her towards me, squeezing her in a tight hug. “Shh, shh.. I’m not going to hurt you, Foamy..”

Burying her face in my chest fluff, she sobbed a bit harder. “Y-you, you’ll tell ponies my s-secreeeet..” was all I could make out. It was muffled, and interjected with stutters and hiccups. I smiled and softened up my expression, running a hoof through her mane.

“No I won’t, sweetheart. I would never. I know that would destroy you and your trust for me. I promise, from the bottom of my heart, to never let anyone else know about your secret. Ever.” A small giggle came from under my fluff, and she looked up at me like a puppy, wiping her eyes.

“R-really..? You’ll protect me..?” “It’s what I was hired to do,” I replied, “And now is my sworn duty for you, I will never leave your side.”

That seemed to cheer her up a bit, and she hugged me. “P-please don’t let anyone know.. Wh-what if they cut me up or study me, you know..?” I pet her again, slowly down the length of the hairs, and whispered my next words.

“Promise you. Nothing bad will ever happen to you.”

She snuggled deeply into me again, and sighed. “Thank you.” I resolved to deal with this revelation tomorrow, for right now, she needed me more than I needed answers. And that was okay.

Cuddling with her for a while, a thought ran in my head, and I thought to ask her. “So, uhm.. If you can’t walk in water, how’d you get me to the couch?”

“Oh, uh, I.. Uhm.. Wow, uh. I guess I kind of, inchwormed it? Like, held you by a hoof and kept hopping my own butt forward and pulled you.” She poked my soft stomach, and giggled. “You’re heavy you know. Guess all that muscle just adds on a few hundred pounds?” Her smile glowed through her still shaken attitude, and she nuzzled me.

“Well, again, thank you.” She said it was no problem, and we sat in front of the porch window for a while. I stared out as lightning darted through the greylit sky, thunder coming in for an encore not a second later. It was startling every time, but beautiful. She clung to me further with every strike that passed by, and we stayed like this for hours, just talking about life, our aspirations, old dreams, our pasts, and watching the day go by.

“Sea Foam?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really glad I took this job.” I smiled brightly at her, and kissed her cheek.

“I’m glad I hired you!” She giggled, kissing my cheek in return and snuggling me closely. “So Dami, what made you start out as a knight?” She asked this question earnestly, watching me intently as I thought about what began my career. I thought of either the meeting with the changeling employer, but that’s the beginning of the career, not what made me want to start. I thought..

“You know, most likely it was once in high school, where a young pony had been having troubles with some pretty nasty mares. They would constantly harrass this poor girl, they were pegasi as typical, and they would not let up. So I stood up for her, I wore a heavy jacket at the time, and I threatened them within an inch of their life that if they did not cease messing with her, they’d meet the edge of my blade. At first they laughed, then, using my magic I pulled a statue’s spear down in front of them. The lass thanked me kindly, and paid me some bits in return, and I decided to stay with her for a while. Keep protecting her. After a while, we had solved her issue and she had a protector, someone to look up to and who would look out for her. It was a solid two-year deal, me and her. She was great, and I think I may have started to have feelings for her at the time. Funny thing is, she looked a lot like you back then, slightly off color blues, but she had a ponytail and star hairpins. Maybe that’s why… Ah, nothing.” I went off into a spiel, seeing her listen very closely, and smile. At the very end, she perked her ears up.

“Maybe that’s why what?” She asked, squishing my face in what seemed to be anticipation.

“Nothing, nothing,” I gave, “Maybe that’s why I just thought you were someone I met before, when I first met you.” May also be why I’m starting to love you. Maybe that’s why I gave you a discount.

“Aw, how sweet. So after you helped this mare, you went out and helped other mares? Or stallions even?” My smile grew just a smidge, and I breathed in sharply.

“Yeah, I’d say that’s what sparked it. Afterwards ponies heard how good I was at keeping nasties at bay. So they started hiring me, getting me more and more money with each go, getting me a set of armor after a year of saving. I did a lot of guard jobs, bouncer work, protection, babysitting.. The sorts.” I used a foreleg to pull her closer. “You’re the first job I’ve done voluntarily in a while. Also the smallest headache.” I said the second part with a sweet, joking tone, and she caught on. Her smile was striking, every time I saw it, I couldn’t help but flush at least some.

“What about your job, Foam?” I asked her. “What started you up?”

“Hmm..” She paused for a while too, and finally spoke up. “Well, I don’t remember if I told you, but I used to live on a houseboat with my family. My mom and dad loved the sea, so before I was born they bought the boat, and lived out as vagrants on the ocean for as long as I can remember. We would always dive into the waters, play with fish, swim through kelp, all that kind of stuff. Well as a little girl, I loved shells and pearls, so I started collecting them. Then one morning, I got my hoof caught in kelp, and it wouldn’t stretch or pull or break until I uprooted it. So taking it with me, I had an idea.. If the seaweed didn’t break with full force, then maybe it’d be a good string substitute. Then I had another idea.. Necklaces! I made my first one with daddy, since he had drills to open up clams and stuff, and to fix the boat. It was this pretty one made of the regular white shells and pearls.”

I didn’t respond much, but I grinned at her, and looked her in the eye. “Cute, and now that small spark as a little girl sent you to a future of promise. Didja ever think you’d be here now?”

“I did, kind of. I had -hoped- I’d be here now, with my craft, on a beach. Never, ever thought I’d be bunking with a knight in a forest though, hmhm.”

The moonlight that had recently shown its silver glow had illuminated her now, softly lighting her features. Her eyes were low, showing she had been tired, and her laugh lines ever so slightly creased, accenting the tiniest smile I could muster. A red flush came over her cheeks, and she looked away briefly. “What?”

“You’re pretty, you know that?” I blurted out, unexpectedly. I didn’t hide my mouth though, or widen my eyes in surprise. I let it happen, because I knew by now she’d enjoy the compliment.

“Oh, thank you, Dami! You’re a handsome pony yourself, you know?” Nodding, I booped her nose tenderly. A yawn escaped from my mouth, causing her to let one out as well, and I picked her up. She didn’t seem to mind though, as I brought her to my bed, and laid her down. The noise she made was adorable, a mixture of pleasure and happiness. A squeal if I’ve ever heard one.

I made a gruff, but pleased noise in return, and pulled her close with the blankets in my hooves, encompassing her in a blanket hug. She made little ‘ooh’ noises, and nuzzled her face deep into my fluff, rubbing in as much warmth as she could. I guess mermaids liked warmth and softness. Or maybe she’s just never felt it, due to that blocking innocence?

Too tired to think on life again, I simply cuddled her, and let sleep take me with her. I hoped dearly to dream with her, and have little adventures in our sleepy heads.. It was what me and my aunt used to do when I was a kid. She told me, no matter where she was, or where I was, no matter how far apart we were, to always think about her as I fell asleep, and she’d answer my call. I’d hoped to introduce Foam to her.

I fell, down into the realm of sleep.

I stirred awake in the late hours of the night, hearing a dreadful sound. It was not unlike the howling of a cat, however not from outside in the forest where the animals’ call was natural and expected. No, this sound came from the innerworkings of my closet door, half cracked open and beckoning my eyes to peer in. I resisted, paranoia of the unknown seeping in, and turned to face directly into Foam’s chest. However, she wasn’t there, nor was the fleeting warmth that should have remained from a pony having slept there not but an hour or two ago. There was no trace of her scent, no indentation, no evidence of her stay.

But not only was she missing, the whole abode felt off. Something was amiss, the house seemed unsettled, by either something physical or metaphysical, the latter coming into my head as a fleeting thought. Metaphysical? I’d not even understood fully what that word meant but, I assumed it was something otherworldly. Spiritual maybe?

I used my horn’s abilities to close the closet, for fear of upsetting whatever resided within. The plan had failed, since the being now emanated a low growl, that deepened ever-so as it continued.

A shiver ran down my spine, and I sat up, coming face to face with her. But, at the same time, it wasn’t her.. Not the same her. Darkness was apparent, so much so that not even the moonlight could touch her. She was shrouded in shadow, just staring deeply into me. I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could do so, a piercing shriek shot through her gullet and into my ears, shocking me awake.

Another nightmare, this one realer than the last. And more intense.

Sea Foam poked my chest softly, during that greylight of the early morning, and called my name sleepily. I was tired, I didn’t want to get up, but I instead mumbled to her and turned towards her. “Mm..?”

“I, had a nightmare..” She said, snuggling deep into me and squeeing with all her might.

“You.. Did? Strange.” There was a silence from her, and I looked into her eyes, expectant of clarification. “I did too. Of you.” The dream, frightened me deeply, and made me.. Think of loss, for some reason. I moved to snuggle her deeply, and keep her close. “Don’t, don’t leave me, please..” I begged, calmly.

She hugged me back, and cried her own soft tears, that I felt roll onto my shoulder. “I-I won’t, Dami.” She replied, shaking at the final vowel. Whatever her dream was, I imagine it was just as bad, if not worse. I didn’t know what was going on, I used to have lots of good, happy dreams, and all of a sudden they’re nightmares. Maybe I’ve been reading too many horror stories.

Neither of us really wanted to get up and do anything, not today, so we snuggled in bed for a while. I soothed her from her nightmare, and she did the same, and eventually we fell back asleep. No dreams this time, not enough time to allow for one, and we woke up at around noon together. She rushed to get her shells and necklaces ready, put on her satchel, and rushed with me out the door to the beach. Time for another day of guarding her, even moreso now.

Today was cloudy, or just overcast. The sun shone through a tiny crack in the clouds, and reflected off the ocean, making it look like glitter on a blue landscape. The beach wasn’t as active as usual. Less ponies in the market, less ponies in stalls, and next to no lifeguards around. Multiple yellow tapes were put around the boardwalk, behind them, holes that revealed the white sands below.

“That, storm really wrecked this place, didn’t it?” I thought aloud, scoping out the beach. I told her that we should probably just leave, due to there being nobody around, and the clouds were looking blacker down the way.

“What do we do today, then?” She asked, and I merely suggested a walk in the main town, for lunch. She didn’t catch on to my ulterior date motive, which I was glad of. “Oh, that sounds like fun!” She replied, smiling and nodding her head.

Taking her by my side, I walked towards the city with her, planning on taking her to this nice Italian place where you can eat outside, and there are umbrellas above the tables to keep her dry. Then, I suggested a donut shop slash coffee shop on the way home for a dessert type thing, hoping she enjoyed sweets as much as I did.

The city immediately assaulted my nostrils with the scent of cooking meats for the gryphons, the Chinese food stores all around’s smells, and other anonymous scents. Honestly I loved the city, despite the sewage vents all over blasting me with hot smelly gases, but I could get over that. On my little tour with Foam, I was happy, and from what I saw, so was she, taking in the sights of the huge towers and skyscrapers prominent in the place. She particularly liked the Grand Equine building in the center, that rose taller than any building anywhere else.

It was nice. After a walk around town we ended up at the restaurant, and took a seat at any of the tables. The owner, who ran the mom-and-pop joint, was a heavily Italian unicorn who was very cheerful and complimented the lady I’d brought with me. It went over her head, but she thanked him anyway.

“So, how can I-a help you today, ah?” He opened up, and placed two menus in front of us.

“I’ll just have a water, and she’ll have?”

“Oh, I’ll have this milkshake thing!” She seemed excited about it, so I let her get it, despite it being a dessert item. The owner smiled and wrote it down, and went back into the kitchen, rather giddily. I knew him for a while, as I was partially a regular here, and we got along very well. He loved to look at my armor and loved cooking up any food ideas I came up with, he even bought some spices from me that I grew in the garden. We had a pretty good friendship, despite us not seeing each other too often.

“Wait, waiter! Can, can I have some extra napkins?” She suddenly blurted at the unicorn, to which he agreed and brought some extras with our drinks.

“Got enough napkins there?” I joked at her, as she sipped from the metal cup. She nudged my leg with hers, and I realized what she was getting at. “Oh right, eheh..”

“Any food you’d-a like today, madame?” The owner suddenly piped in, gesturing at the menus. “The special today is-a spicy eggplant catonata!” I never heard of it before, but Sea Foam seemed to be willing to try anything, and piped up to try it. I just ordered my usual tomato pesto noodles, and he happily obliged, leaving us alone again.

“Sorry, I keep forgetting about the whole water thing. So, how do you get around morning dew? Or fog? There’s water in the air almost constantly.”

“I just tend to stay inside and hide on days where it’s that humid, honestly. If I’m gonna change I’d at least like it to be at home where I’m safe, you know?” I nodded, smiling, and chugging my water. It’d been a long day and the heat was starting to get to me again, as it was a midsummer afternoon.

He brought the food swiftly, he was always known for his speedy cooking, and set it down for each of us. Digging in, I chatted and laughed with Foam, enjoying her company. I never thought I’d have a mermaid girlfriend, if that’s what she considered us, but I was happy I did. I don’t even know why, honestly, normally I disliked ponies, I really did. I usually scared them but, she seemed to be okay with me. Barely turned an eye to my armor or threats, which was a nice change.

We’d finished the food, both of us apparently being starving, and thanked the owner. He smiled and bid us a good day, and we left, Foam taking her milkshake with her. She made a happy face every sip she took, and I wondered what was in it that made her love it so much.

The city took us again, keeping us enthralled for a while in the multiple stores and food stands. Gryphons loved taking up residence in parks with their churros and their steak kebabs. And while I was an herbivore, it’s honestly a really delicious smell, despite my instincts telling me to avoid it. Cows were people too once, I think. Very stupid people, that is.

We came across a sushi stand, run by a gryphon from Nipon, and the smell made me retch internally. However, Foam seemed to enjoy the smell, even took two of the free samples of whatever they had. She took them into her mouth, while me and the other ponies around gave her strange looks, and her expression went from struggle to pure bliss. The gryphon in charge got giddy in response to this impromptu advertisement, saying that even ponies loved the taste of his sushi. Some changelings in the crowd took the plunge and bought a few sushi rolls, and left, presumably to eat the meat and vomit all over the place if their stomachs couldn’t take it. I didn’t know much about changelings, so I assumed they were herbivores much like us.

I shooed Sea Foam out with me quickly, hoping not too many ponies suspected anything of her. I wondered why she would almost blow her cover like that, but I guessed she just assumed they’d think she was eating to try it out.

“You should be more careful,” I started, but she waved me off.

“It’s okay, he sells vegan sushi too, nobody’ll suspect anything. Who thinks mermaid when a pony tries meat anyway? Plenty of ponies try meat at that place every day, I bet!” She had a point, so I let it slide. Her being the mermaid in question, I didn’t doubt her at all, considering she knew way more about being subtle than I did.

“Hmhm.. Okay.” I took her in my arm and led her to the way home, which led us to passing the coffee shop. I bought myself a small coffee, and she bought her own little treats, cutely giggling as she strapped the bag to her satchel. We made quick work of this place, not dillydallying at all; rain was on its way towards us. Black clouds formed in the sky behind the building line. We were practically out of the city by now, the coffee shop-cum-bakery being on the edge of it.

Loud thunder crashed behind us on the way home, and while it was three in the afternoon still, the clouds made it as dark as nighttime. Foam was sprinting towards the forest, with me barely keeping up in my clanky armor.

Lightning smacked the earth behind me, almost singeing my tail. I looked up, trying to find a single pegasus responsible, but none seemed to be present. What in the everloving hell was going on with this weather? Storms like this were a once a month type thing, never so close together. Most of the storms came from the west, near the Everfree.. Is something going on with nature there?

Lost in thought, I slammed my face into the door of my cottage, apparently Sea Foam had gotten in already and closed the door behind her. I quickly grabbed the doorknob with my magic and got my way in, just barely missing a torrent of hail and rain. Something was extremely wrong about this, but I couldn’t place it at all. Just, something about it felt off, but I had to ignore it. Sea Foam needed my help.

I found her in my room, under the covers, shivering. “Hey, sweet pea, you okay?” I called to her, her response just being more low moans and groans. I went behind her in the bed and held her close, rubbing her fluffy chest to try and calm her down. “You’re safe you know, the storm’s outside.”

“I-I know, but.. I saw something in the clouds.. I-It.. I..” She couldn’t place any words to it, so instead of pressing, I just offered to take a bath with her. She worried about the water, for a moment, hesitating, but I reminded her I already knew about the mermaidness. “N-no, I mean.. Electricity..?”

“Aw, don’t worry, it can’t get into the tub from here. We’re inside, lightning doesn’t travel that far.” I took her up in my magic, bringing her alongside me, to the bathroom. I ran some warm water, and put her inside softly, leaving some room for her tail to grow in. She sighed happily as the water enveloped her, and she splashed around a bit. I got in with her after a while, though she covered herself a little bit out of embarrassment. I mentioned that it was perfectly innocent, that she was also always naked.

I slipped inside, after slipping off all my armor, and let the water take me as well, squeezing myself under her tail, and kicking my hooves up near her head. She batted me softly with her tail, and I flicked her with mine. We relaxed in the bath, cleaning ourselves and letting the heat reduce the tension we felt from the day. At one point, I ran my hoof along her tail, which tickled her greatly, but wasn’t something she objected to. She truly was the most pure and innocent lady I’ve ever met in my life.

The scales were smooth, but at the same time hard enough to be almost like carapace. They had a shiny turquoise hue to them, shimmering beautifully in the bathroom’s yellowed candlelight. The power had shut off at some point, as I heard the air conditioner’s engines slow to a halt out of nowhere, but it hadn’t interrupted the bath session, because of the candles already in there.

I leaned up, and cupped her face in my hooves. “You know, Sea, you’re really, truly a great pony. The best I’ve ever met. I want to thank you.” I pulled her face close to mine so our noses touched, and I kissed her tenderly, and pulled back swiftly. She seemed to blush, but I couldn’t tell. I saw a smile form there, I thought, and I myself was happy.

The bath was nice, and long. We spent an hour or so in there, her splashing around and being in her element. I almost felt bad having to take her out of the bath, listening to her pouty noises and sad groans, but my legs were pruning up. So after I’d dried her off and gotten her back to normal, I took her to the bed and simply laid with her, letting her take in the warmth of my fur. She nuzzled in deeply, and kept very close. I couldn’t tell if she was trying to make a move or if it was just innocent cuddles, but knowing her I went for the latter. I didn’t mind anyway, just being with her was nice.

After a time, sleep took me and her, and I hoped I’d see her in my dreams. Just.. Less scary this time.

I felt like I said I love you in my sleep, as those were the last words I heard as I finally lost consciousness.

Chapter 3

“I like your stuff, it’s pretty. A little bit rusty though, do you ever clean it off?” She asked, jumpstarting me out of my reminiscing. Her hoof trailed around my helmet, feeling the strange grooves and waves formed in the steel. “What is damascus anyway?”

“It’s how the steel is forged. The pegasus wouldn’t tell me how he did it though, he told me that it’s a bit of a secret thing.” I flushed, running an armored hoof across my chestplate. “Serves really well against swords though, and hooves trying to beat my face in.”

“Wow,” she mumbled, staring intently at my armor and smiling. “I want armor like yours.”

“Hm, I dunno b-but I can, I can..” I inhaled deeply, and sneezed violently, letting forth water droplets from my hair that smacked Foam in the face, causing her to grimace and give me an intensely shocked and scared face. She darted to the side, and jumped off the pier. “I thought you said you couldn’t swim!” I called after her, but she was already gone. Damn, this girl is weird. But I couldn’t help but see something sweet in her.

I waited for a while, taking in the sights of the beach. Another storm was rolling in, lightning striking the horizon.

One.. Two.. Three.. Crack. The storm was close, very close, and she hadn’t come back yet. Worry started to wash over me, as I watched every other beachgoer leave the area, scampering around with their umbrellas and towels, among other things. Lightning continually struck, and a small pitter patter of rain could be heard on my armor. Clink, clank, tap.

Lightning struck a nearby building, resulting in ear-splittingly loud thunder that shook me off the bench I was sitting on. Sprinting for dear life, I decided I’d head home, and just hope that Sea Foam would be okay. I assumed that if she’d made it this far alone, she could make it another day without me.

The forest was abustle with birds and animals this evening, multiple squirrels and the likes skittering up the trees to find refuge in a hole in them. Water trickled down from the canopy leaves, onto my head, clinking with each droplet that attacked me. The storm chased me to my house, and threatened to shock me to death, so I quickened my pace to the interior, and was surprised to see Sea Foam standing directly in front of my door.

“Hello.” She said quietly. “I, came here early, to surprise you?”

At this point, I wasn’t going to argue her excuses, whatever she had going on, I wasn’t going to be a part of it. It was her deal, not mine. “Sure. You could have at least told me where you were going though. You had me worried sick for a while there.” I went over to give her a hug, but she backed away as I moved forward. I tried again, and she did the same.

She didn’t say a word, just backed away from me. “What’s the matter?” I asked.

“Nothing, just, what if the lightning shocks me?”

I sighed, taking off my helmet and tossing it to the side. “It won’t, we’re inside.”

“Er, I’m allergic to steel, I can’t hug it.” She was starting to spout off excuses again. And only when I was wet, again.

“You were touching it earlier, stop making things up just to avoid me. If you didn’t want to hug me or be near me, you could have just said so.” My voice was a little harsh, but still sounded calm enough to be heard as a disappointed father, rather than an angered knight.

“It’s not that, I just, don’t wanna rust up the meta-” I interrupted her. “Stop it. Just, stop. At least tell me how you got here before me, when I never saw you at the beach?”

She was silent for a while, looking at the ground in thought. “Uh, you must not have been looking hard enough, I passed right by you.”

I furrowed my brow at her, and saw her expression change to latent fear, not much, but just a tinge. “You didn’t, I know you didn’t. Because you would have caught my attention.”

“Er, y-you, you looked distracted and I didn’t want to bother you?” I exhaled deeply, crimping the bridge of my nose. I didn’t bother to reply, I just stared at her until she sat on the couch and tried to look away.

I walked up behind her and tried to calm myself down, but she shouted and jumped up, avoiding me very clearly. “... Fine.” I said, with an accidental undertone of hatred and frustration. I took off my armor, and set it up in its usual spot, going to my room and laying on the bed. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but fine, if you suddenly f.. hate me, then I won’t bother you.”

“I-I don’t hate you!” She exclaimed, trotting to the threshold of my door and looking at me with worry.

“Oh yeah? Then the hell is with you right now then?”

“N-nothing, your armor just scares me, it’s sharp, I’m afraid of hurting myself on it.” She went up to give me a hug, and I placed a hoof softly on her chest and stopped her.

“I thought earlier it was because you didn’t want it to rust, or you didn’t want to get shocked? No, I’m pretty sure you just don’t want me touching you. Could have said so earlier, but -fine-. We’ll do this childish bull if that’s really what you want.”

She made a hurt little noise at my comment, and I angrily looked at her face. I didn’t understand her, one moment she’s fine and dandy, then she won’t go near me, now she’s looking for hugs again? I knew it wasn’t the armor, she had hugged me earlier today while I was in it. I just assumed it was something I had done or said before. But her avoiding my questions and not saying a single clear word to me was very irritating, and I was close to snapping.

“N-no, please, I’m sorry, I just.. I can’t tell you why.. I, I mean, it’s just not you, okay?”

“Then what.” I stated coldly, staring intently at her, getting off of my bed and walking towards her. “What. Is. It.” She didn’t reply, and I growled lowly, hurt and incredibly frustrated that nothing I said was getting answered. So I simply huffed at her and walked past.

“Maybe next time you’ll think to actually respond to me when I ask a fucking question.” Damn. It had been a while since I swore so intensely. It was rare that a damn or hell passed my lips, let alone the others.

She gasped, and I noticed a tear starting to roll down her cheek. Looking back on it, I felt horrible for making her react that way, but I was too angry to care in the moment. I slammed the door behind me, and laid back down on the couch, broiling in the heat of my own anger until sleep slowly caressed its way down my body, and shut my eyelids for me.

Anger, frustration, hatred. I’d felt these commonly in my heyday as a knight-for-hire. The changelings, using me as their pawn, their pony meat shield. I had been a front for multiple of their battles against their enemies, slaying multiple, maybe half a hive’s worth of changelings, innocent or no. I couldn’t tell who I hated more, my employers, or the ones I was sent to kill. Both were just as vicious as the other, attacking me with the same vile vitriol one would expect from a rabid raccoon.

In my dream, I’d seen myself on one of those battlefields. Twenty years ago, when I first began, my first weapon being a hoofaxe I made in my garage, clad in a cloak and barely armored with leather. My horn was straighter, and my face was unscarred. An employer of mine, a proponent of the southern hives, ordered me to strike the eastern hives. I’d heard nothing but good things of them, but I couldn’t go back down on my word, thousands of bits were at stake, as well as my honor.

I’d gone to Manehattan, hiding my face and carrying my axe underneath my jacket. Poison throwing knives were under my boots, and while I hated using those things, the orders were to not make myself known to anyone. I proceeded to the location I was meant to kill a changeling leader at. Rumors had it this leader was an Anax, a near-legendary breed of changeling, but I wasn’t sure if it was true. I brushed it off as some folklore meant to raise the king to a higher level than most others, that old propaganda trick.

I’d gotten into his false lair, a building with large smokestacks surrounding it, billowing steam from their maws. The front doors were gargantuan metal plates, engraved with fancy calligraphy. It read, “Manehattan Power, IV Gen.” I pushed the gates open, letting myself in.

Empty.

It was devoid of life. It seemed like a trap, but I persevered, running towards the ‘Employee’s Only’ door that my employer told me to go through to find their main hive. I smashed through it, and ran into him.

“What do you think you’re doing here?” His voice was rough, angry, and instilled a deep seated fear into me of which had only been achieved by the promise of death thereafter. “This is my property, and you have no right to be on it.”

The employer told me the leader was all black, had a long black mane, and a nuclear radioactivity symbol as his mark. What he didn’t tell me, was that he was a foot taller than me, and looked to be much better built than I.

This large gentleman tapped my chest, which pushed me onto my back, into the middle of the large foyer of the power plant. The tile was cold, and unforgiving on my then-young back. “I know what you’re here to do. But your employer has made a grave mistake. I know who he is, where he is, and what exactly he plans to do should you fail in your task. I will find him and kill him where he stands, and I will go through you first if I have to.”

I was speechless, staring up at the large earth pony glaring down at me. His bright purple eyes shot through mine, inflicting an unnatural fear into my very soul. Slowly a green flame worked its way up on the tip of his horn, and engulfed him head to hoof, revealing his pale white carapace, and hundred talon-like appendages on his jawline. Runes etched into his skin glowed purple, running along his jaw and down his neck, to his jewel-set breastplate. The jewels shimmered brightly, the same hue that his now fully-purple eyes glowered.

“Make your choice here, Damascus.” He said to me, his voice seemingly echoed by thousands of others, accentuating the great darkness that already associated with it. “I’ll let you live, should you kill your employer for me. He is a blight to changelingkind, seeking only to cause chaos and panic in a peaceful race. Destroy him, and I’ll make it tenfold worth your while. Deny me, and I shall have to destroy you along with his hive.”

I pondered how he knew my name, but a loud, sleek noise of metal shearing through porcelain shot through my ears. A long, white sword stuck out merely an inch from my crotch, threatening to rear up at me. Stammering, I agreed to his terms, croaking as I gasped for air. Panic set in, and I found myself pleading for my life, down on my knees begging this deity-like changeling to spare my life. I felt foolish, he’d already promised me life, there was no point in this groveling. After a time, he set a hoof to my shoulder, and an instant calm washed over me, and I could sense a faint smile in him.

“Do what I’ve asked, then return to me. You’ll get your reward, and your honor.” Those were his last words to me, as I got up and exited the building. His words echoed in my mind, and I knew my true mission. Retain my honor, and fight for the good, not for the evil. Protect those in need, and not fight -for- anyone.

I confronted my employer. “Have you done it?” He asked me, with a coy smile. He sat back in his chair, sipping a drink of his, patiently awaiting my answer. There were no guards in here, and I closed the door behind me.

“Not yet.” Was my reply.

Slowly, ever slowly, I moved towards him, unsheathing my axe from my cloak, twirling it in the air. His smile faded, and fear set in him, I saw it in his eyes. They darted from my axe, to me, and a nervous smile returned to fill in for his last one. He couldn’t find a reply, and even if he had, it was too late. My axe gutted deeply into his throat, cutting through to the bone of his spine. His only response was a gag and gurgle, as I forced the rest to cut the bone. The head was mine, to be a trophy meant for my original target, to prove my loyalty.

They say betrayal is dishonorable, evil, and makes one unworthy of trust or any happiness. But if this betrayal is of one who is evil, then, doesn’t that make it inherently good? I surmised this as I stuffed the bug’s head into my pack, kicking the body over onto the floor.

No, I’m good. He had it coming, for a long time. Only a truly despicable, evil being would try to cause chaos and distress in a peaceful society. I’d done the world a service.

As I left the hive, I heard the clamor of hoofbeats and wingflaps, and the final alarm horn being sounded. The horn’s droning became more real, and shriller, until it finally woke me up.

A siren was going off in the distance, blaring into my eardrums through the forest and my house. I looked out the window, seeing that the sky was pitch black. I had thought it was nighttime, but upon a quick check of my clock, it was only twelve in the afternoon.

I sprang off the couch, and went to my bedroom, opening up and seeing Sea Foam on my bed, curled up and breathing slowly. I went over to her, touching her lightly. “Hey, wake up, we have to get out of here to the cellar.”

“Mm..” She moaned lowly, stretching, “Dami..? Are you still mad..?” She asked me, sleepily looking at me with concern.

I paused for a moment, then replied softly. “No, of course not. But please, come with me, the alarm means bad news.” I hoisted her up onto my back, which she sleepily growled at, and walked through my front door. The rain and hail had already started, and winds were picking up, shoving the trees against their will.

I ran with her on my back, a poncho to cover the lady, to a large inclined door leading to my cellar, which was completely surrounded by heavy stone and had only a small window to see out of. I had decorated it nicely however, and there was a couch, among other things inside, so that in an emergency I would at least have some comfort. I slammed the doors behind me, Foam in tow, and laid her nicely on the sofa, taking the portion not held by her for myself.

I hoped dearly that the tornado would miss us entirely, but just to be sure we’d still be safe, I ran up to the doors and held them shut with a metal pipe I kept next to them. I returned to Sea Foam and apologized to her, for lashing out in frustration at her. She smiled sleepily, and gave me a tired hug.

“It’s okay, I forgive you.” I decided not to pry on her issue at all, because I knew by now I wasn’t gonna get any answers out of it. I’d just have to find out her secret myself. I still couldn’t piece together what it was, but I knew it had to do with water. She didn’t like getting wet. At least, not near me..

Maybe she was a witch? Wait, no, the ocean would have killed her then.

“Dami? What’s, going on outside anyway?” She had just fully woken up from her sleep, due to a strike of lightning just outside the window. It caused me to jump, and caused her to leap. She asked her question from under the sofa, looking up at me from the darkness of its underbelly.

“Tornado, sounds like. Maybe a hurricane. It’s weird, this area’s usually too hilly for this kinda stuff..” I peered up at the window, but could only see water rushing down from above, not letting me have insight to the world outside. “Either way, we can’t leave now. Too wet.”

She seemed to appreciate my concern about her wetness fear, and gradually climbed out from the couch when I reassured her that she was safe. Hugging me and burying her face into my chest, she shook. “I-I hope it’s over soon, I don’t like storms..”

My hoof felt cold, and soggy all of a sudden. I picked it up, and stepped again, hearing the slosh of water as I did so. Sea Foam yelped, and jumped back, but this time I didn’t question it. What I was more worried about was why water was on my nice rug.

Creaking metal could be heard, drawing my attention to the cellar door. Water spilled in from the cracks and crevices, bending it at the seams, taking the rusty pipe with it. Fear set in, realizing that I only had the option to pray the water didn’t burst in and take us with it. “Oh dear lord, what do we do, Foam?!” I yelled, but she was on top of the table, heavily breathing, trying to calm herself down.

I leapt up with her, and tried petting her to soothe her. “Foam, what’s the matter?” I asked, but as soon as the words left my lips, a loud crack echoed through the stone cellar, and murky water flooded in, rising up to the edge of the table. Foam jumped up again, standing on the sofa, just slightly higher than the table.

The water chased her though, and while I was okay with being a little wet, she was very un-okay with this. So much so that she didn’t even want to risk me pulling her out of there on my back to escape through the cellar door. It wasn’t safe anyway, I heard howling winds raging outside, forming huge waves of water that crashed against my house, and spilled moreso into my cellar. The water climbed up, and so did Foam.

“Sea Foam, we need to get out of here, now! We’ll run out of air if we stay too long!”

“I-I’m not so worried about that, I can breathe just fine!” She said, puzzling me extremely. I didn’t have time to wonder though, as water smacked me on the back of my head, pushing me under. I was a terrible swimmer, even worse when I couldn’t see where bottom was because of the murky blackness. I gurgled and sputtered, trying to swim my way up, but it seemed like the water kept going, and the initial shock caused me to suck water deep into my lungs. I began to black out, but just before I did, I saw a brilliantly shining hue of sea green in the water. It looked like a fish had washed into my home. Funny, Sea was standing right above it. She pulled me out, just as I lost consciousness.