Chapters "Dark Sting!"
"Coming, Shi Fu!"
With a quick flap of my wings, I floated down beside my old teacher, Healing Dose. His beard swung lightly in the wind as his hooves gently grasped a small bottle of ointment and brought it down beside me. He scowled and dipped his front hoof into the jar, scooping a dollop of the salve and placing it over the gash on my body that I thought I hid well enough. I winced at the burning feeling.
"You should know better than to hide these wounds from me." Healing Dose grumbled as he caught my eye. "It can get infected easily, especially if the wound is from another creature. With your kind of ambition-"
"I know it's a risky job, but I like it." I replied, adverting my gaze and instead concentrated on my home. A large hollow space in a tree, right at the very edge of the White tail woods. A picture of me and my Shi Fu was placed on top of a small table, and more pictures of both his family and mine around the house on walls. A cupboard made out of an acorn held all of Shi Fu's raw herbs to create medicines and salves that do wonders. Two open cotton pods were placed side by side in a corner, and we used them as beds. Above my bed hung my sword, which was actually a piece of scrap metal that I managed to shape into a katana-like blade.
Another jolt of pain made me wince. "You are a foolish and stupid boy." Shi Fu scolded. "You should know better than to go out and fight a dragon. Then, you cannot even move the big creature to your client! What's the point? You should have gotten the client to wait nearby, but you rush in there with no plan in mind."
"Remember," He patted my wound and placed his hoof onto my shoulder. I stared into his eyes, old with age and filled with hidden pain. "You are a breezie. No matter what you do, it can't change that fact."
I shrugged the hoof off my shoulder. "Well, breezies can be strong, too! With the right enchantments and exercises, we can overcome things."
He just shook his head and fluttered over to his bed. I could have sworn he muttered 'hormonal teenage boys', but I could just be imagining it.
I flew over to by bed and unhooked the sword from my wall, placing it beside me. I slipped on my white coat and strapped the sword to my side, securing everything with a hard tug. I tied a black bandanna over my bright green mane and hovered next to the door.
"There's another client," I said as I looked back. "This one's from ponyville."
"That is a long journey." Shi Fu yelled from the back kitchen, where he has floated to while I went to grab my sword. "Go on, and be back in latest 2 months!"
"Bye!" I hollered in reply.
Catching a Northen Breeze, I followed the wind and headed in the direction of Ponyville. Soon, I came across a train, and opportunity presented itself to me. I grinned and dashed as fast as I could towards the speeding vehicle, and managed to tumble in through one of the open windows.
"Ow!" I lightly shrieked as my head bounced against the hard wall. I could already feel a bruise forming beneath my bandanna. I groaned and rubbed my head, but was thankful that I rolled under a cushion, hiding me from anypony's view. I bit down on my tongue to prevent myself from crying out, but stayed silent and made myself comfortable for the long journey.
"THIS STOP PONYVILLE! ALL WHO WISH TO GO TO PONYVILLE PLEASE GET OFF AT THIS STOP!" A loud voice hollered.
I quickly flew up high into the air, landing on one pony's saddlebag as she headed for the door. I cling to the brown cotton as she walked out of the train door. Almost immediately I was met with a blast of fresh air. I sighed deeply and leaped into the air, hiding on the roof while the other ponies bustled and moved beneath me. I looked at the small, neat scribble on my hoof.
"Hm, so my client is apparently an important pony..." I muse. "I'll see you soon... Sweetie Drops."
"Cream coloured coat, pink and blue mane. Cream coloured coat, pink and blue mane." I chanted to myself as I flew high enough to avoid the crowd, not wanting to attract unwanted attention. "Where is that- ah!"
I swooped down below just in time to see the door closed by said mare. I frowned, but flew around to the window. I tapped on it and she turned. I tapped again and her teal eyes landed on my tiny, hovering form. She opened the window.
"Ms. Sweetie Drops-"
"Not here." She whispered, though a smile was still on her face. I took the chance to fly in and she shut the window. I landed on a nearby table and she sat herself next to it. "Dark Sting?"
"Yes, Ma'am, at your service." I said. She looked around, and deeming it safe to talk, she looked at me with a light glare.
"Listen, Dark Sting. I'm Bon Bon in public. Sweetie Drop doesn't exist." She whispered. I nodded.
"Okay then, Bon Bon. What would you need me to do?" I asked.
She placed a photo on her desk. It was a blue mare, a unicorn, with a purple cape and a hat. No doubt a performer with a large ego, by how she was spreading her hooves in the air. "Now that I'm back in the game, I need you to neutralise this pony and bring her to Celestia. She should be in Canterlot."
My eyes bulged. "CELESTIA? A-As in, the Princess herself?"
Sweetie- No, Bon Bon nodded once. "Yes. She should be under the disguise of Sunny Skies, though she should also be accompanied by this pony." She slid another photo next to the Target. My eyebrows arched.
"Uh, Pony Joe?" I asked, but decided not to question it. Bon Bon looked at me with calculative eyes.
"Well? Can you get the job done? The money will be sent to your account under Healing Dose." She asked, and placed a bag of bits next to me that easily towered over me. I smirked and stuck a hoof out, shaking hers.
"You've got yourself a deal."
My journey to Canterlot was the most unpleasant one. I had to sneak into the train while it was waiting for passengers, and then I hid under the cushion of the conductor, considering this is an overnight journey. I decided to just steal a few crumbs of food while the conductor was sleeping or something.
I managed to get a bite of some hay fries, and slept in an uncomfortable position that craned my neck the wrong way. I woke up to a painful ache on the left side of my neck. Most unpleasant.
"THIS STOP CANTERLOT! ALL WHO WISH TO GO TO CANTERLOT, PLEASE GET OFF AT THIS STOP!" The conductor yelled, startling me out of my half-dazed state. Once again, I clung onto an unsuspecting mare's saddlebag and smuggled myself out. I was especially careful to not get in any pony's way.
"Look on, and be amazed... At the GREAT and POWERFUL, TRIXIE! "
Well, that certainly grabbed my attention.
I flew over to the noise, knowing that the call will attract ponies. If this show mare is good enough, she might just attract the Target.
I hovered past the unicorns and earth ponies, careful to avoid any pegasi lurking around. I scanned the crowds below for any blue mares with a light mane, but none seemed to fit the description. A shower of fireworks made my eyes dart to the front, focusing on the show mare.
Oh.
OH!
The show mare is the Target.
With all of that attention on her, it's obvious that it wouldn't be easy to pull off. I'll have to wait until the show's over and when she goes backstage, or when she's alone. That means stayin there and watching her horrible show for at least a few more hours, while simultaneously dodging the view of ponies and the hooves of pegasi.
Well, great.
The show mare went back into her little wagon after being deserted by the audience. The reason? She oh so foolishly proclaimed that she was as powerful- no, more powerful that Celestia herself! Hm, now I can see why she is to be hunted...
"Hn... Stupid audience... Trixie doesn't deserve this kind of treatment..." She grumbled as she pulled her wagon into a small, isolated alley. I smirked. This was my chance, after all. However, I had to get her closer to the castle if I need to successfully transfer the Target to the Client. After all, Bon Bon did offer a pretty hefty amount of bits to be spent.
"Trixie?" I asked. Her head turned.
"Who's there?"
"I'm here." I waved my hoof and her eyes landed on me.
"What in Equestria are you?" She asked in disgust. I kept my poker face on. "Trixie means, you look like a shrunken pony infused with an insect! Yuck! Trixie hates insects!"
"For your information, I am a breezie." I said emotionlessly with my half lidded eyes, frustration beginning to boil. "And I heard you say how powerful you are."
She immediately smiled and her eyes twinkled slyly. "Oh, yes. Trixie is the most powerful mare in Equestria, wouldn't you say?" She boasted. "After all, Trixie is the best pony around!"
"Well, I'll believe it when I see it!" I mocked. "I'll believe it if you can teleport near the castle walls from this spot. I dare you to!"
"Er..." Her actions became shifty as a drop of sweat rolled down the side of her face. "Eh, well, you see, Trixie has better things to do than to follow your silly request! I have defeated a Ursa Major before, and shall be off to save Equestria-"
"Don't tell me you're scared of a little competition!" I taunted. She paused.
"No, Trixie is never one to turn a competition down!" She snapped.
"Then what are you scared of?" I asked.
She rolled her eyes. "Fine, but Trixie will prove you wrong, then you'll have to believe me!" She growled as her horn glowed.
In a poof of white smoke, her wagon, cape and hat disappeared. I arched an eyebrow. "Really?" I asked.
She glared at me. "Hey, at least Trixie sent something there!"
"Let's just hope nopony's hurt." I grumbled under my breath. "I need to follow you just incase you teleport somewhere else, so take me with you on the next round."
I placed my hoof on her shoulder as once again, her light purple aura fired up. In another cloud of white smoke, her mane and tail was gone. I stared at her in horror as she shrieked. "AHH! TRIXIE'S FABULOUS HAIR!"
"Teleport there, it should correct the mistake." I dully said. She didn't hesitate to try one more time, and this time I felt the familiar tugging sensation on my belly before I appeared in a pop! on the street, next to the wagon. Somehow, Trixie had her mane and tail attached to her, and her cape and hat draped over her.
"See? Trixie has everything under control!" She boasted vainly, seemingly forgetting that she had failed twice.
"You failed twice." I pointed out.
She spluttered. "W-Well, you're just jealous of Trixie's magical abilities." She huffed.
Thankfully, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Joe trotting towards us, along with a white pegasus that I can only assume to be 'Sunny Skies', Princess Celestia in disguise. I looked over to them and glanced around, noting that there were not many ponies around.
I waved a hoof at them and Celestia arrived. "Dark Sting?" She asked.
I bowed in mid air. "Your Highness." I said.
She smiled, a gold arch shooting up and splitting into two, an invisible dome falling around us. All sounds from the street were immediately blocked off, not even the sound of wind passed through. I know this spell; it's performed by highly capable unicorns, makes anyone in the bubble invisible to the outside world, and I've only seen it three times. Well, considering Celestia is the one who casted it, it should stay strong and hold for a long time. Her form glowed golden, the light blinding her form. Before my eyes, she shifted and grew into the form of an alicorn.
Trixie began to sweat bullets, her legs shaking. Pony Joe smirked and gave Celestia a small nod.
"I assume you're Dark Sting?" She asked. I nodded, still in a bow. "You may rise, my little breezie."
I looked up. "Your Highness, this is the pony, alive and well. I should be expecting my payment soon in my account."
"Yes, very well. You've done good." She says, before her eyes averted to the trembling unicorn. "And your punishment awaits."
I raised my hoof and waited patiently for Celestia to pay attention to me. "Uh, if you don't mind," I began, earning an amused smile from Celestia. "Can you please say why she's being punished? What crimes did she commit?"
Celestia frowned. "She placed my student and my little ponies in danger, twice , and attempted to use an ancient artefact for her own personal gain after I specifically kept it out of the way. And also, she did say that she was more powerful than me. We'll see about that."
"Oh, okay then." I said, before I bowed. "I shall travel back now, your highness."
"You're welcome." Celestia smiled. "And also, I'll save you the trouble."
Her horn glowed golden and I felt the tug at my navel, and in a flash of gold, I appeared on the train headed straight for the Whitetail woods.
A dash of red sped by, catching the attention of the Target. The Targets head whipped to its side, looking for the source of red.
"HAAA YA!"
Dark Sting shouted in victory as his small black sword came into contact with the dragon's scale, but it quickly became a shriek of terror when it merely bounced harmlessly off the dragon's impenetrable hide. He bit his tongue as the dragon's large purple eyes stared at him. The crimson coloured Breezie stared back, green eyes clashing against purple, and his ears splayed back. His antennae sagged as they stayed in silence for a whole two seconds. Slowly, Dark Sting raised his hoof.
"Ah, crudcakes."
The dragon roared in anger and took a swipe at the small Breezie, missing him by a mere centimetre. The gust of wind that came with it threw Dark Sting off his course, sending him tumbling as he shrieked in panic. Righting himself quickly, He adjusted his course mid air and took a swing at the dragon with his midnight black sword. The point of the sword skimmed off the hard surface, but pinned itself between two green scales.
Hanging on for dear life, his tiny hooves wrapped around the grey handle of the katana-like blade as the dragon arched his back and roared, swinging around in a wide arc and roaring again.
"Dang it, I forgot dragon scales are magic resistant!" He cursed to himself before an idea popped into his head. The dragon stopped, and in that moment of peace, he rammed the blade higher with a powerful push of his insect wings.
The sharp metal went fully under its scale, and sliced into the layer of skin under his hard armour. The dragon froze in his movements, and with a great whomp! , it fell onto the dirt, the snout hitting the dirt and sending a cloud of dust flying everywhere.
Dark Sting landed next to the dragon, panting for breath. Once again, he silently thanked his 'associate' for enchanting his sword with a paralysis spell, instantly making any opponent's body act limp and lifeless. The subject will only be able to move his or her eyes while the spell carries on for another 6 hours.
Well, He thought as he stared at the limb body of the dragon. ... How do I move this body?
He stared at the dragon longer before his tiny hoof came into contact with his face. "Oh, crud cake dang it."
My name is Dark Sting. And this is the story of how I traveled all across Equestria to fight for fame. And this...
Is my story.
(Ow, OW! Okay, okay!)
Well, more of my hilarious, comedy filled, fail induced story with no small amount of laughs.
(There, you happy, Shi Fu? Ow, OW! Okay, I'm sorry! Ow, stop that!)
