Soul In the Sword

Chapter Eight: Breakfast and Starting the Tour

I groaned softly at the pain that shot through me as I woke up. Opening my eyes, I slowly sat up as I tried to ignore the pain. A sweet smell was in the air, reminding me of pancakes.

Geez, I'm in really bad shape, huh?

Succeeding in my attempts to sit my body upright, I let my legs fall to the floor and I stood. Yawning, I looked around the room and spotted the doorway that likely led to the kitchen. Every step towards the door reminded me of just how close I came to dying yesterday.

Never again...

Entering the door, I could confirm that this was the kitchen. What I wasn't expecting was the small purple reptile that was standing on a stool and was flipping something in a pan that was on the stove with a spatula. After a few moments of me staring at the small creature in confusion, it seemed to notice that someone else was in the room and turned to me, jumping in surprise when its eyes fell on me.

"Oh geez!"

A sharp sizzle was heard from the pan before the reptile quickly turned back to the stove, grabbed the spatula, turned the pancake over and revealed the slightly burned side.

"Dang it, that one was turning out so well too! Oh well..."

It turned the burner off with a small stubby claw and placed the burnt pancake on a plate that had several more pancakes sitting on it.

"Nothing I can do now, I guess."

It turned back to me, and gave a wide smile, showing of its sharp teeth.

A bite from this guy would probably hurt a fair bit...

"So I guess you're Liam. Twilight left me a note explaining a few things, but she wasn't very specific. All she said was that you're a human, and that your name is Liam. She must have been really tired to leave out details."

He, I assumed it was a he judging by the voice, put his short arm to his chest and puffed it out, trying to look bigger.

"My name is Spike, number one assistant to Twilight Sparkle! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

I stood in the doorway a moment longer before shaking my head softly and trying to get my thoughts together.

"It's...nice to meet you, Spike. You're right, my name is Liam. Though..."

I gave a quick glance over his body, making note of his reptilian features.

"I don't mean to sound rude, but...what are you?"

Spike looked at me with a confused face for a moment before laughing. Noticing my sour look, he stopped laughing and coughed into a claw.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh, but I've never met anypony that didn't know what a dragon was before."

My eyes widened at his words.

"A dragon? Seriously?"

Spike looked confused, glancing at me before walking over to the counter and picking up the plate of pancakes.

"Yeah, I'm a dragon. Why do you sound so surprised to hear that?"

I watched as he went to a table that was in the corner of the room, seemingly doubling as a dining room as well as a kitchen. Placing the plate of pancakes down, he started walking towards the cupboards.

"I just...I've never seen a dragon before. I didn't think they were real."

Looking back at me, Spike just looked even more confused as he pulled plates and cups out of the cupboard, and opened the drawer underneath to grab forks and knives.

"Dude, where have you been living? Dragons are everywhere. They aren't exactly rare, you know."

Walking back to the table, Spike placed the three plates and glasses he had grabbed on the table and arranged the cutlery for each person that would be eating. I sat down at the table, and Spike did the same as I sighed and rested my elbow on it.

"Somewhere very far away..."

Spike seemed excited about something, and smiled happily.

"How far? Griffonstone? The Frozen North? Or..."

His eyes brightened and he smiled even wider as he leaned on the table, using his two arms to support him.

"Are you from across the sea!?"

A yawn drew both of our attentions to the doorway, where a half asleep Twilight Sparkle was slowly walking towards the table. Her eyes were half closed, and she had a bad case of bedhead.

"Why are you yelling, Spike? It's too early for this much noise..."

Twilight seemed really out of it. She didn't even glance in my direction as she sat down across the table from me, and lit her horn in a purple glow. A moment later, a pot of coffee floated over to her and she poured it into the glass that Spike had carried over for her. Neither Spike or I said a word, too concerned about the practically catatonic pony sitting with us as she just sipped her coffee without adding any sugar or milk to it.

I didn't take her for someone that drinks their coffee black. You really can't judge from appearances, I guess.

"You uh...you alright, Twilight?"

Twilight glanced over to Spike, her expression unchanging.

"No, Spike. I'm really not."

Spike chuckled nervously and averted his eyes from Twilight before stabbing a pancake with a fork and placing it on his plate. Twilight turned to the stack of pancakes and levitated two onto her plate before drizzling syrup on the small stack, leaving three pancakes left for whoever wanted them.

"Well, at least today won't be boring. You're showing Liam around Ponyville today, right?"

Twilight sighed heavily and took a bite of her pancakes, before taking a large gulp of her coffee, and swallowing both. Glancing to me before looking to Spike, she spoke.

"That's part of the problem. I don't know how the town will react, and I don't want to have to deal with an entire town panicking. Hopefully this doesn't end poorly..."

Looking back to me, Twilight saw that my plate was empty before levitating the three remaining pancakes onto my plate.

"You need to eat to recover properly, Liam. It will help you generate more mana too, so don't feel like you can't eat more than us. I remember the first time I had magic exhaustion, it took days of eating more than my parents to recover completely."

I stared down at the stack of pancakes before picking up the fork and knife that had been placed there for me, and looked back at Twilight.

"You're sure? I don't want to ask for more than I should."

Twilight smiled softly at me and took another gulp of her coffee before levitating the coffee pot over her glass and refilling it.

"It's fine, Liam. I might still have some doubts about you, but like Princess Celestia said, you're her guest. I'll do whatever I can to help you get better."

Spike glanced over to Twilight with a confused expression for a moment before shrugging and returning to his pancake, cutting a large piece off and fitting almost a quarter of a pancake into his mouth.

"Well...thank you. Taking last night into consideration, I honestly wasn't expecting this."

Spike looked even more confused now, glancing between Twilight and myself as he took another bite of his pancakes.

Little dude has the right idea.

I cut into the stack of pancakes, surprised at how soft they were as I easily cut through all three pancakes with little effort. I took the small jar of syrup and poured some over the stack before dipping the pieces on the fork into the syrup and taking a bite. My eyes shot wide open as the taste registered in my brain.

"These are..."

Looking concerned, Spike looked at the stack on my plate.

"What's wrong? Do they taste bad? I knew I shouldn't have used that older flour! I'm sor-"

"These are delicious!"

Spike and Twilight looked confused at my reaction.

"Uh, Liam? They're just pancakes. You haven't had them before?"

I eagerly cut off another piece of the syrup soaked pancakes and took a happy bite, relishing in the sweetness of the syrup and fluffiness of the pancakes. I made sure to swallow before replying. I didn't want to talk with my mouth full, after all.

"I've had pancakes before, ate them for years growing up. There are just so much better! What did you do to make them taste this good?"

Rubbing the back of his head, Spike looked to the side and laughed.

"They really aren't anything special. I just made them like I always do."

I chuckled at Spike's nonchalant attitude about it and cut off another piece of pancake, moaning in bliss from what had to be the world's best pancakes.

"Well whatever you're doing, keep doing it! You could make a career out of this!"

Spike blushed softly and scratched the back of his head as he chuckled nervously.

"Thanks, Liam."

Glancing over at Twilight revealed that she was more awake than she was before, her eyes no longer half closed.

"You feeling better with some coffee in you, Twilight?"

Twilight took another large gulp of her coffee before setting the cup down and looking over to me with a small smile.

"Much. Well now that I'm awake, let's go over the plan for today. We have a few things to get done today, so we will need to get ready for your tour later."

My face must have shown my confusion, because Twilight laughed quietly and took another gulp of her coffee.

"What, did you think that you would be spending all day in the library? Not a chance, mister."

My confusion only grew.

"Didn't Celestia say that I needed to rest? Wouldn't going on a tour of a whole town hinder my recovery?"

Turning to take another bite of her pancakes, Twilight swallowed before turning back to me.

"Your wounds seem to have healed, and since you're walking without help, I assume you feel better today. If that's the case, then some minor exercise won't hinder your mana recovery."

She took another gulp of her coffee.

"If anything, being around more ponies will help, since we expel small amounts of excess mana that we don't use. You'll be able to absorb some of the ambient mana, though you will still need to wait a few more days before using any more magic. You don't want to risk damaging your magic pathways. That could lead to you being completely unable to cast any magic."

I gulped in slight fear at the thought of losing the only thing that could help me survive. I just got this power, I didn't want to do anything to jeopardize it.

"A-alright. You're right, I do feel a lot better. I was sore when I woke up, but that's dulled down to a small pain."

I looked over to Spike and gave him a smirk.

"Must have been the amazing breakfast."

Spike just laughed and waved a claw in the air.

"I get it, my pancakes are good. No need to keep going on about them."

Twilight and I chuckled as I took the last bite of my pancakes. Yup, still delicious.

"Oh, I almost forgot!"

I looked over to Twilight, who quickly finished the last bite of her own pancakes, and drank the rest of her coffee. She gave a happy sigh and focused her attention back on me.

"Liam, I didn't get to ask you all the questions I wanted to last night. Would you mind if I asked a few more this morning?"

Smiling, I nodded my head and reached down to my glass before I remembered that I never put anything in it.

"Sure thing. I'll get some water before that though."

I grabbed the glass and started to stand before a purple glow surrounded the glass. I looked over to Twilight and saw that she was smiling, and her horn was lit in the same color surrounding the glass.

"Allow me."

I let go of the glass and sat back down as it floated over to the sink before the purple glow turned the tap, water quickly filling the glass. The tap was turned off when the glass was almost full, and it was levitated onto the table in front of me. I gave a small smile as I looked down at the glass.

"Magic sure is versatile, huh?"

Picking up the glass and drinking a mouthful of water, I looked over at Twilight's bemused expression before setting the glass back down.

"Alright, shoot."

Twilight quirked an eyebrow and gave me a look of confusion.

"Huh? Shoot what?"

I chuckled and took a gulp from the glass of water.

"Nevermind, it's just an expression. I mean go ahead and ask your questions."

The purple unicorn's horn glowed for a moment before a bright flash of light burst from in front of her. After blinking the spots out of my eyes, I could see that Twilight had somehow teleported a quill and a scroll, levitating them in front of her as she seemed to be reading over the contents. Twilight seemed to have noticed the mildly confused look on my face, and her facial expression became more neutral.

"I wanted to make sure that I had all my questions written down, since I didn't get to ask more than one or two last night. Where exactly are you from?"

Makes sense, I guess. She did say she had a few questions, but things got heated last night.

"I'm from a country called Canada. More specifically, I live just outside the city of Ottawa, which is the capital of the country."

Twilight wrote something about halfway down the scroll, maintaining eye contact with me the whole time. I must admit, I was impressed that she could write without looking at what she was writing.

"Alright, what is it like there?"

I chuckled for a moment and crossed my arms, trying to summarize as best as I could.

"Well, for a country's capital, there surprisingly little to do. It is mostly a politically centered city, with a large portion of the city working for the government directly. Parliament Hill is the seat of the government, where the Prime Minister and our other members of government spend most of their time."

Twilight once again wrote something down and glanced down to the scroll before looking back to me.

"Judging from the term you used, I can assume the Prime Minister is elected?"

"Yeah, though we have elections every four years. Prime Ministers tend to change often, since the public's political opinion changes regularly depending on the political climate and what the previous Prime Minister did."

The sound of scratching filled the room as Twilight once again wrote something down. Twilight glanced over to a clock that was hanging above the kitchen doorway, before turning back to me.

How did I not notice that there before?

"Well, we have enough time for one more question for now. What kind of technology do humans have?"

I chuckled at the question. No way does anything here even come close to Earth.

"Wha-what's so funny?"

Twilight looked almost angry, with a slight pout and narrowed eyes.

"Ahhhhaha...oh nothing, just..."

I took a moment to think about how I wanted to phrase this.

"Well...from the little I've seen, we are significantly further ahead in terms of technology. We didn't have magic, so we had to make do with what we could make. Do you know what a computer is, Twilight?"

"Yes. Equestria has one at Canterlot University."

I quirked an eyebrow.

Well that changes a few things. Maybe they aren't so undeveloped after a-

"It's pretty big too. Takes up an entire room the size of this library."

Nevermind.

"How much RAM does it have?"

Twilight's face lit up at my question, and seemed to space out while answering.

"Oh, it's just amazing! It has 16 kilobytes of ram and a hard drive that can hold almost a full megabyte of saved data! It's a marvel of engineering!"

I tried. I really did. Ultimately, I failed to stop the laugh that tore itself out of my throat, wheezing and heaving at how absolutely ridiculous this was.

"Hey! It's cutting edge technology! What the hay is so funny!?"

Trying to stop my laughter wasn't going too well, but I managed to control it just enough to respond.

"Sorry, It's just...that's so outdated by our world's standards!"

Laughing again, I didn't notice Twilight's confused and mildly angry face. I definitely heard her angry response though.

"Well then how good are your world's computers if ours is so 'outdated?"

My laughter finally started dying down, and I could talk relatively normally at this point.

"My personal computer at home had 16 gigabytes of RAM, and 2 terabytes for storage."

I started laughing harder at Twilight's dropped jaw as I told her just how much more advanced our computers are.

"Wha...but that's...that's not possible! A computer that powerful would be as large as Canterlot Castle! There's no way that you could have a computer like that in your home!"

Finally managing to control my laughter, I took a deep breath and then exhaled. Calmer now, I felt more confident in responding.

"Nope, its about as tall as a two row bookshelf and about as long as my forearm. Computers on our world have become incredibly compact and powerful. In fact, I have...had a mobile computer that was the size of my palm and could be used for just about anything. You could use it as a calculator, a map, a music player, and just about anything else that you could program it to do. It takes pictures too."

Spike stood up and placed his claws on the table, and his face showed pure childish wonder. Twilight and I both looked to him in surprise at the sudden movement.

"Do you have laser guns!?"

I chuckled at his excitement, and reached across the table and pat him on the head.

"No, unfortunately. We can make powerful lasers, but nothing portable enough to be considered a laser gun."

Spike looked a little disappointed, but still had a large smile and started muttering about laser cannons. Twilight looked back to me and seemed to have just now realized exactly what I had said.

"Wait, so...your species made computers the size of my hoof that are more powerful than Equestria's best computer, and it can take pictures? How did you manage something like that?"

"I wouldn't know, honestly. The knowledge I have about computers is from a few friends and some research on the subject. I was never too serious about it, though I know a few people who built their own computers."

Frowning, Twilight looked down and muttered something, seemingly disappointed in my lack of knowledge on the subject. I chuckled and patted her on the head, causing her to give me a small glare, though I could see a ghost of a smile on her face. Returning my arm to my side and looking down reminded me just how torn up my clothes were. Hopefully Twilight wouldn't mind if we stopped at Rarity's house to have them fixed. She did offer to, after all.

"So, Twilight?"

"Yeah, Liam?"

I looked up and back to Twilight, hoping that she would grant my request.

"Would you mind if we stopped at Rarity's first? I really need to get these clothes fixed."

Confusion overtook her face. She opened her mouth to reply before stopping, seemingly just realizing something.

"I don't mind, but...why do you wear clothes all the time? Wouldn't it be easier to just not wear anything?"

Oh. Oh boy. I'm really going to have to explain this...

"Well, uh...humans don't have the same protections from the elements that you have. We don't have much hair, and our feet are pretty soft, so we wear clothes and shoes to help protect us. There's another reason too, but..."

Twilight levitated her scroll and quill over with an excited look on her face, apparently happy to be learning something new. After a moment, she stopped and looked back at me with that familiar look of confusion.

"Wait, another reason? What would that be?"

I felt my face heating up a bit at the realization that I pretty much had to answer this question. Twilight wasn't likely to let me keep this a secret, considering her seemingly insatiable thirst for knowledge. I made my bed, and now I had to lay in it.

"Well...we also wear clothes to...keep certain parts of ourselves hidden. Parts that aren't exactly...meant to be showing unless you're...with a partner."

"A partner? Like a friend or..."

I looked away and awkwardly rubbed my arm.

"Like a lover..."

Twilight's eyes snapped wide open and she looked away with a slight blush on her face, having understood what I meant.

"Oh...uh..."

She coughed into the crook of her foreleg and quickly wrote something down on the scroll before teleporting both away in another flash of light.

"Well, uh...i can certainly see how that could be a problem. Considering how tall you are compared to most ponies, it's...probably best that you...yeah..."

I chuckled awkwardly and looked away, the burning in my cheeks dimming down.

"Well...should we get started on the tour, Twilight?"

She looked back to me, revealing that she was still blushing slightly.

Looks like she really isn't experienced on this subject. I should probably avoid talking about anything of that nature with her in the future...

"Uh...yeah, let's get going..."

The three of us walked towards the doorway to the kitchen when Twilight seemed to suddenly remember something.

"Oh! Liam, could you wait in the library? I want to talk to Spike about something before we go."

That confused me a bit, since I couldn't think of what Twilight might have wanted to talk to Spike about that I couldn't hear. I was a guest here though, and I didn't want to give these ponies any reason to dislike me, so I ignored what I wanted to say and just nodded before walking into the library and sitting on the sofa that I had slept on, completely ignorant to the conversation that was taking place in the kitchen.

I watched as Liam left the kitchen and walked into the library before sitting down on the sofa he had slept on the previous night. Sighing, I motioned to Spike to follow me further into the kitchen, not wanting to be overheard.

"What's going on, Twilight? Is something wrong with Liam?"

My eyes widened in surprise, and looked down at the young dragon.

"How did you-"

Spike interrupted me with an annoyed expression and folded his arms.

"It's obvious, Twilight. You bring a creature home that I've never even heard of before, and want to talk with me away from him. I also saw Princess Celestia last night when I woke up to get some water, so I know it's a pretty big deal. Spill it."

Sighing, I smiled softly at Spike.

He really is growing up fast. It's hard to remember that he isn't much younger than I am sometimes.

"Well...Liam is..."

It was hard to straighten out my thoughts, but after a moment, I coughed to clear my throat before trying again.

"Liam isn't from this planet, Spike."

Spike's arms unfolded and a look of amazement took over his earlier annoyed expression.

"He's an alien!?"

I moved forward quickly, putting a hoof over his mouth.

"Shhh! Spike, I don't want Liam to hear this, so please don't yell."

Spike nodded his head slowly, his eyes still wide. I slowly removed my hoof from his mouth and backed up a step.

"Yes, he's not from Equis. Something brought him here, but..."

"What is it?"

I looked down and avoided eye contact, feeling guilty about what I was going to say.

"He's...dangerous. His magic is very strong, but he has little control of it. I also don't entirely know if we can trust him, so..."

Looking back at Spike revealed a frown and a sad expression on his face.

"He's...dangerous? But...I thought I had made a new friend..."

Spike looked like he was about to cry. I hugged him softly, and tried to clarify.

"He's not a bad human Spike, he's just...completely alien. We know almost nothing about his race, or what he would do if he felt threatened. He's in a whole new world with races he's never seen before, and worst of all...he's all alone. Spike, I'd like it if you were his friend. I think that's just what he needs, in fact. I just wanted you to be careful. You're my number one assistant, after all."

Rubbing his eyes for a moment, Spike looked up to me with a hopeful smile on his face.

"Yeah, I am. You scared me there for a minute, Twilight. I thought you were saying that Liam would try to hurt us."

"I didn't mean to scare you. I'm sorry, Spike."

He hugged me, and smiled.

"It's alright. I'll be as careful as I can, but I don't think Liam is going to try and hurt anypony."

I laughed, and hugged Spike tighter for a moment before letting him go and turning to the doorway.

"I think you're right, Spike. Now, let's get going! We can't waste too much time today."

Walking towards the entrance to the library, I couldn't help but feel a bit more at ease about this entire situation.

Maybe...maybe I can trust Liam...

Hearing hoofsteps from the entrance to the kitchen, I looked over to see Twilight and Spike entering the library. Both had smiles on their face as they approached me and the sofa. Smiling back, I gave a lazy wave of my hand.

"Everything okay? I thought I heard some yelling."

Twilight nodded her head and gestured to Spike with a hoof.

"Yup! I was just explaining a few things to Spike before we got going."

I looked away and down to Dawnbreaker, realizing I had left it behind for breakfast. I hope Sunlight isn't too upset about it. I had realized what had likely happened during that conversation.

Twilight must have been warning Spike about me. Now he probably doesn't want to be around me, since Twilight thinks I'm dangerous...

Something had placed itself against my leg, and I looked over to see Spike resting his claw on my leg with a smile on his face.

"Don't feel bad, Liam! Today is your first day in Ponyville, after all! I'm sure you'll make loads of friends!"

Smiling back and the young dragon, I couldn't help feeling grateful that even with everything that happened, at least someone besides Celestia was accepting me.

"Thanks Spike...well, let's go. First stop is Rarity's, right?"

Spike's face lit up at the mention of the white mare and he gave a goofy smile as he looked down to the ground.

"We're seeing Rarity today? I can't wait to see her!"

Is he...

Chuckling, I picked up Dawnbreaker, stood up, and reversed my grip on the sword, having the point facing behind me. It would look less intimidating than holding it as if I was expecting a fight. Walking towards the door, and hearing the hoofsteps of Twilight following behind me,

"Well...here goes nothing..."

I reached for the doorknob, turned it, and pushed. The door opened with little effort, and it swung outwards. It was bright outside, the sun shining down on the world from above, causing me to blink a few times to adjust to the difference in light. I walked over the threshold, making room for Twilight and Spike to exit the library, and they stepped out behind me.

Wow...

It was beautiful. The picturesque scenery was reminiscent of a medieval village, with thatched roofs and wooden walls. Ponies of all kinds and colors walked through the streets, though were weren't many out at this time of day. I stood there for a few moments, just appreciating the town and its beauty. It seemed so peaceful, with children walking with their parents, laughing as they went about their day. That peace was shattered when a mint green pony noticed me, her jaw dropping in disbelief. I looked over as Twilight sighed and shook her head softly, seemingly exasperated.

"Oh no..."

"What's wrong?"

She looked back to the unknown pony before softly pushing me with her head on my back, being careful to avoid jabbing me with her horn. I could only walk forward and look back in confusion at her behavior. Something about this pony made Twilight prefer to leave.

"Twilight, what is-"

"IT'S YOU!"

My head shot to the mint green mare, who was running towards me with a large smile on her face. She seemed excited to see me, but I know I've never seen her before. She leaped at me, arms spread and latched onto my chest, hugging me and nuzzling my chest with misted over eyes.

What the...

"Lyra! What are you doing!? Let him go!" Twilight shouted at the now named pony. She only hugged me tighter in response.

"I knew it! You are real! Everypony told me I imagined it, but you are real! I never got to thank you before!"

Not knowing what to do, I tried to hold up the unicorn mare as best as I could to take some of her weight off of my back, making sure to keep Dawnbreaker pointed away from her.

"What the heck are you talking about? Not that I mind hugs, but I've never seen you before in my life!"

She looked up at me, her smile slowly disappearing as realizations set in. In it's place was a face that showed sadness and disappointment.

"It wasn't...you?"

I gave an apologetic smile and crouched down so she could let herself down. After a moment, she let go and stepped down, wiping her eyes with a hoof and looking down to the ground in sadness.

"Like I said, I've never seen you before in my life. I just got here last night, and I've never been to Equestria before, so..."

Her head slowly rose up, and her face turned into what I imagine could be described as contemplative. A moment later, she looked back at me with a hopeful smile.

"Then maybe you know him? He looks very similar to you, he said his was Andraxus."

Andraxus? That's not a normal human name...

"No, I've never met this person before. My name is Liam, it's nice to meet you, Lyra."

Lyra's face turned to one of confusion.

"How did you know my na-"

She slapped a hoof to her head, making a surprisingly loud sound.

"Duh, Twilight yelled it when I...hugged the wrong creature..."

Still kneeling, I ruffled her mane a bit and laughed. Smiling softly at her to convey that I wasn't upset.

These ponies are absolutely adorable. I swear I'm going to die of cuteness overload.

"I don't mind, the hug was nice. Would you mind explaining why you thought I was this Andraxus?"

She rubbed the back of her head with a hoof, smiling in embarrassment and looking away to the side.

"Still...I shouldn't have assumed. Well, to explain why...it was a few years ago. I had wandered into the Everfree Forest in search of something that could help my room mate Bon Bon with her flu. I went too deep into the woods and lost my way, when a manticore attacked me. I ran further into the woods trying to get away, when I tripped on a tree root and fell to the ground. I yelled for help and closed my eyes, thinking I was about to die when I saw a bright flash through my eyelids. When I opened them, there was a creature that looked just like you standing in front of me, his claws crackling with lightning, and the manticore was dead."

Lyra shivered at the memory. It seemed like this event still scared her quite a bit.

"I thought he was going to kill me next, so I closed my eyes and waited. He pat me on the head, told me that I was safe now, and that his name was Andraxus. After dressing my injured leg, he told me to stay safe and teleported me to the entrance of the Everfree Forest. I ran home as fast as I could, and told Bonny what happened. She didn't believe me, saying that I must have imagined the whole thing and knocked myself out when I fell. I've been trying to find out anything I could about him or his species since. I...I wanted to thank him for what he did."

It was a fantastic tale for sure, but if I somehow got to Equestria, I suppose it makes sense that another human might have wound up here at some point. Strange how no one has heard of humans before if that's the case though.

Hmm...I feel like there's more to this than it seems...

"So this Andraxus...he looked like me?"

"Yeah, he looked really similar. He had the same kind of face, the same dark brown mane, he walked on two legs, and he had the same kind of claws that you do. You look so much like him that I thought it had to have been him."

I put a hand to my chin in thought. Humans are pretty distinctive in appearance, so if I remind her of Andraxus this much, then he must have been a human too. That makes me wonder how he got here, what he's done, and why Celestia didn't recognize me as a human if one has been here before. Clearly Andraxus wasn't a bad person if he saved Lyra, but...

"Well...thank you for the explanation. It certainly sounds like he is also human, but..."

Lyra's eyes widened and she smiled happily.

"Human? That's what his species is called?"

I nodded to her.

"Yup. I am a human, and if he looks that much like me, I assume he is as well. No reason to assume he isn't for now."

Standing to my full height, I looked back to Twilight who had been strangely quiet during all this. She seemed to be deep in thought, no doubt wondering along the same lines that I was.

"Twilight, could we continue on our way? I still need to get to Rarity's place to get these rags fixed."

Twilight didn't respond, still thinking.

"Twilight?"

Still no response. I tapped her on the forehead, snapping her out of her near trance.

"Huh?"

She looked up at me, and shook her head for a moment. Looking back towards Lyra for a moment before looking back to me, she smiled and gestured forward with a hoof.

"Yes, let's get going. There's a lot for you to see, and we only have so much time."

Lyra, jumped in front of me with and hopped in place, clearly excited about something.

"Can I come with you? You're only the second human I've met, and I'd love to learn more about you!"

I looked to Twilight, hoping that my tour guide wouldn't mind an extra passenger.

"Well...I don't see why not."

"Thanks Twilight! I promise not to get in the way!"

I chuckled at Lyra's enthusiasm, still amazed at how cute these ponies were.

Calling another mare cute? Should I be worried, Liam?

I rolled my eyes and chuckled, earning a confused look from Lyra.

Well hello there, Sunlight. Sleep well?

Very. I'm glad that you're feeling better, though you're recovering faster than I thought you would. At this rate, you should be ready for practice tomorrow.

That's good to hear. I'm just itching to learn more about magic. Oh...I think we should limit conversation while out in public. I think I'm starting to worry Lyra.

Sunlight giggled, and I couldn't help smiling. Her laugh was just too cute.

Agreed. No reason to make them think the only human in town has lost his mind. Have fun, Liam.

I could feel her waving at me as she retreated back into...my mind? I'm not sure exactly where she stays when she isn't talking to me, but I knew she had taken her leave.

"Sorry about that, girls. Now then, shall we?" I asked, gesturing for Twilight to lead the way, since I had no idea where Rarity lived.

Twilight nodded her head and began to walk down a street, Lyra and I following closely behind. Lyra seemed confused as to why I had gone silent, and decided to voice her question.

"What was that about? You seemed pretty out of it for a moment there."

I looked down to Lyra and continued walking, deciding it couldn't hurt to inform her of the basics of the situation.

"Well, you see the sword I'm holding?"

"Yeah, but...I didn't want to say anything about it. I assumed you must have your reasons for carrying a weapon, but what does that have to do with this?"

It took me a moment to respond, since I was trying to explain this in a way that didn't sound as dark as it really was.

"Well, there's a soul trapped in it. She's a kind spirit, wanting to help me improve my skills and help me where she can. We can hear each other's thoughts, though we can limit what the other hears. It's...definitely not a happy story, but I think she's happy right now."

Lyra stumbled at my explanation, thankfully catching herself before she fell, and looked at me with her jaw dropped and a scared look on her face.

"Necromancy?"

"I...I think so...but this happened a long time ago. I'm not familiar enough with magic to explain how it works, but I can tell you that she doesn't want to leave."

Lyra seemed satisfied with that answer and was a little more at ease from my explanation. We walked in silence for a while, with Twilight pointing out a few buildings along the way. The town hall, the post office, the local forge. Ponies kept staring at me as we walked. Some seemed scared, some seemed curious, and some just didn't care. None approached us though, and I didn't mind the stares too much and just ignored them as we continued on our way. The only memorable part of the trip to Rarity's house is when we passed through the market and walked past a stall selling apples. Applejack was sitting behind the stall with a smile on her face which quickly disappeared when she noticed me. I gave a hesitant wave and a nervous smile, and she responded by glaring at me and snorting. I looked away and frowned in thought at the hostile reaction.

"Yeah, this won't end soon..." I muttered to myself, though neither Lyra nor Twilight seemed to notice and we continued on our way.

Arriving at Rarity's, I couldn't help but gawk at the extravagant looking building, designed to look like a carousel. Seemed a little dark, considering the origin of carousels on Earth. Twilight looked back at me with a smile and gestured to the building with a hoof.

"Welcome to Carousel Boutique! This is where Rarity lives and works, making clothes for anypony who needs her services as Ponyville's resident seamstress!"

"Well it's...certainly fancy."

Twilight laughed as she stepped towards the door and knocked on it with a hoof.

"I imagine that was her intent, yes."

"Come in, darlings! I'll be with you in a moment!"

I could barely hear the voice through the door, though it was clearly Rarity. Spike had a dopey smile on his face and I could swear hearts appeared in his eyes when we heard her.

"Rarity..."

Well if I wasn't sure before, I am now. Little dude is crushing on Rarity.

Twilight opened the door with her magic, and we all stepped inside the storefront. There were mannequins shaped like ponies scattered around the store in a visually appealing fashion, clearly positioned with the intention of grabbing any potential customer's attention. Dresses, suits, and some casual looking clothes were worn by the mannequins, showing the seamstress' skill in creating different types of clothing for different occasions. A couple small benches were set near the entrance, obviously meant for customers to rest while they waited. Rolls of fabric of all types and colors were stacked neatly on a shelf near what looked like a workbench of some kind. A medium sized platform that was elevated from the rest of the floor stood in the back near a flight of stairs leading to the second floor, bringing the feel of the building together. The entire store just screamed high class. I whistled appreciatively at the assortment and skill that went into Rarity's work and design skills.

I'm definitely impressed. This girl has some serious talent!

I sat on one of the benches, and Lyra took a seat next to me. Twilight stood nearby, and Spike just stood next to her with that same goofy grin.

"So how long do you think she will be?"

"Not long, I imagine. She doesn't tend to keep ponies waiting if she can help it."

I smiled. Rarity seemed to know her business. High class store, beautiful clothes, and punctuality. Nothing said 'professional' quite like that. Hoofsteps coming from the stairs quickly captured the entire room's attention as Rarity gracefully descended the stairs, seeming to effortlessly make her way down the steps. She smiled when she saw who was waiting for her.

"Hello Liam, Twilight, and...Lyra?"

Lyra waved a hoof at Rarity in greeting, and gave a large smile.

"Hey Rarity! I ran into Twilight and Liam and figured I could tag along!"

Rarity gave a small shrug and smiled down to Spike.

"And hello to you as well, Spike."

Spike's dopey smile somehow grew wider and he waved a claw.

"H-hi Rarity."

He really has it bad for her, huh?

"Well, I can make a guess as to why you're here, Liam. You want to get your clothes fixed as soon as possible, yes?"

I nodded, not surprised she guessed correctly. It wasn't that hard to figure out, since my clothes remained in their torn and damaged state. My t-shirt had several large cuts, and a few holes from where the timberwolves had bitten me. My pants fared little better, similar damage dotted across the fabric.

"Yeah. Since you offered, I figured this should be our first stop of the day. I don't exactly feel...comfortable walking around like this."

"I would assume not! Nopony should be walking around in clothing that is barely better than rags! Now, undress and I will fix these as quickly as I can. It shouldn't take more than fifteen minutes."

My eyes widened in surprise. She could fix them that quickly? Putting her quick work aside though...

"Um...do you have a changing room? I don't feel comfortable undressing in front of others..."

"Why ever not, darling?"

Twilight coughed loudly with a slight blush on her face. She motioned Rarity over, and Rarity moved closer towards her with a confused expression. Twilight whispered something in her ear, which made Rarity develop a slight blush of her own before she looked over to me.

"Oh, um...yes, you will need a changing room then, won't you? We do have a couple that we use for customers who prefer their privacy, so feel free to step behind the curtain."

She walked over to a curtain that had seemed to go nowhere, but Rarity moving it aside revealed a small room that was perfect for even someone my size to comfortably change in. I walked over to the room, and looked down to Rarity.

"Thank you. I know clothing seems to be....optional for ponies, but I'm grateful that you understand why I wouldn't feel comfortable."

Rarity was refusing to meet my gaze, still blushing lightly as she motioned for me to enter.

"Think nothing of it, darling. Customer comfort is something I pride myself on."

And she still maintains a professional attitude about it. Yup, she's definitely cut out for this.

"Still, thank you."

I entered the room and closed the curtain behind me. Sighing, I placed Dawnbreaker against the wall and lifted my shirt above my head before removing my shoes, tossing the shoes to the side and holding onto the shirt before removing my pants as well. I gulped in slight nervousness. Here I was in a fantasy land populated by tiny horses that go around completely naked, and now I'm getting changed in one of their clothing stores with several mares I've just met right outside. I could hear a quite conversation going on behind the door. I slid the clothes under the curtain and sat on the cold floor.

"Rarity! The clothes are right outside the curtain!"

"Oh! Thank you, darling! Feel free to come out if you wish!"

I saw a blue glow surround the clothes just past the curtain and they floated away. I sighed and looked down at myself. I wasn't out of shape by any means, but I wasn't exactly impressive either. Standing at six feet tall, I was barely 160 pounds and didn't have too much muscle mass. Clad in just my boxers, I decided that waiting here was preferable.

"I think I'll stay here, but thank you!"

"Suit yourself, darling!"

I heard more than one set of hoofsteps, one leading away, and another approaching the curtain. Obviously Rarity was taking off to fix my clothes, but was is Twilight or Lyra that was approaching the changing room?

"Liam?"

Twilight it is then.

"Yeah, Twilight?"

"Well, i just realized...that I spent so much time asking about your world that I didn't actually ask anything about you."

I blinked a couple times.

Come to think of it...she's right. She only asked me about my world, nothing about me as a person.

"Huh...yeah, that's true. Got anything in particular that you want to know?"

I heard what sounded like shuffling, and Twilight seemed to take a moment to think about what she wanted to ask.

"Hm...well, what do you like to do? What kind of hobbies do you have?"

"Well, I spent most of my time working, but in my spare time I liked to practice playing music."

"Oh! What instruments can you play?"

I scratched the back of my head nervously. Even if I was behind the curtain, this conversation did little to alleviate the embarrassment of being practically naked while talking to someone else.

"Well, I was classically trained in a few instruments, and learned a few others. I can play the violin, the cello, the piano, the guitar, drums, bass guitar, and a few lesser known ones like the ocarina and taiko drums. I also learned to DJ from my older brother, Kyle."

An excited gasp came from behind the curtain.

"That many instruments!? I so have ponies to introduce you to then! Vinyl and Tavi would love to learn some human music!"

When did Lyra come over here? I never heard her approach, but I assumed I was too invested in the conversation to really pay attention. This curtain also seemed to muffle a fair bit of noise, it was so thick.

"I'm looking forward to meeting some fellow musicians then! So what do you two like to do?"

Twilight huffed from the interruption, but seemed happy to answer my question.

"I spend most of my time with my friends, reading, or practicing magic. It's my special talent, after all!"

"And I like to play the lyre! That's my special talent! Spending time with Bonny is also fun! Remind me introduce you two, I'm sure you'll love the candy she makes!"

Candy? Well I definitely wouldn't mind trying candy from another world. I wonder what kind of flavors they have...

"Sounds good! I can't wait to try it! So, Twilight?"

"Yeah?"

I took a moment to figure out how to phrase my question.

"Uh...if magic is your special talent, is there a chance that we could figure out exactly how I got here?"

Twilight sighed, and I could hear that shuffling again.

"Liam, I...I don't want to say it's impossible, but...I doubt it. That spell was deteriorated beyond scanning by the time we got there. By now, all traces of it would be gone."

Looking down and trying not to let dread take over, I glared at the ground in frustration before looking back up at the curtain.

"Well...then I'll just have to learn enough about magic to do it myself then. I imagine spells like teleportation exist, and they would likely work either on line of sight or if you've been to the location you're trying to teleport to, right?"

"That's true, but...how would you know that? From what you said, you had no magic until yesterday and unless Sunlight told you, you would have no way of knowing that."

I chuckled, realizing that I was going to have to explain the concept of fantasy in a fantasy world.

"Well, while humans might not...most humans might not have magic, we have a lot of stories about the idea of it. We have an immense amount of literature and entertainment with the concept of magic, and we have spent hundreds of years theorizing how it could work. Honestly, it was a lucky guess."

Twilight hummed in thought, likely thinking something over.

"If you had enough magic then...I suppose it would be possible to teleport that far, but it would take more magic than even Princess Celestia has to teleport to another world, and we don't know how far your planet is from here."

"Wait, what?"

Oh yeah, Lyra wasn't aware of that bit of information. I guess she thought something like Spike did, that I was just from very far away.

"Sorry Lyra, I forgot to tell you. So yeah, I'm...kind of an alien?"

"Well...that's a little weirder than what I thought the story was, but I had already considered Andraxus being an alien, since nopony knew what the hay he was."

I sighed in relief. At least she wasn't making a big deal of it.

"Well, my being an alien aside...it's possible then?"

"In theory. Liam, I don't want to crush your hopes, but...the chances are extremely slim. Unless you could somehow gather several times as much mana as Princess Celestia possesses, you could either miscast the spell or just die of magical burnout when you arrive on your planet. assuming even that much is enough to reach it."

So...it's not going to happen then...

Sighing, I stood up and started to pace, agitated at the lack of solutions to this problem.

So even if I succeeded, I would just die. Not an option. No point killing myself just to get back to my world, so...

I stopped pacing as the realization set in.

I'm truly stuck here...

I wasn't alone, and I knew that, but it didn't stop the small amount of fear to creep in at realizing just how hopeless the whole idea was. It also made me fear just what exactly might have sent me here. If even Celestia couldn't do it, then what the hell did?

"Liam? Are you alright?"

Twilight's voice snapped me out of my musing, her voice sounding concerned.

"I...I will be. It's just...I'm on a whole new planet where nothing is familiar. I'll..."

I choked down a sob, unable to keep the emotion out of my voice.

"I'll...never see my family again...never see Kyle again...never see any of my friends again..."

"Liam..."

My whole body shook in anger and grief, gritting my teeth so hard they hurt.

It's just...not fair. Why me? Why did this happen to me!?

I could hear hoofsteps, though it was far enough that it couldn't have been Twilight or Lyra leaving, which meant...

"Liam! Your clothes are-"

Rarity stopped mid sentence, and I could guess why. Twilight and Lyra probably didn't look happy, and I'm sure she picked up on that. I wiped my eyes with my hand and made a decision then and there.

Whoever did this to me is going to pay. I swear on my life that they will regret it!

"Rarity?"

Calling her name seemed to get her attention, her hoofsteps getting closer before the bottom of the curtain lifted, sliding my clothes along the floor.

"Give them a try, Liam. I tried to keep them as close to the original, but I'm afraid your old clothes were too damaged to salvage. I made you a new set as close to them as I could."

Her voice was restrained and subdued, like she wasn't quite sure if this was a good time. I knew my clothes were damaged pretty badly, but...she just made a new set? There's no way I could repay her for this just yet. I had no money, and I doubt I could help her with her work.

"Thank you, Rarity. Just give me a minute and I'll be right out."

"Take your time, we will be here when you're done."

I heard several sets of hooves walking away. Seemed like they were all giving me some space, which I appreciated. Picking up and unfolding the clothes showed they were almost exactly like my old ones. Black pants, simple fabric, no special designs on them. The brown shirt was slightly bigger than my old one, but I was impressed by how close they were to the originals. Rarity indeed knew her work. I quickly put them on, wanting to get dressed as soon as I could. It was already a little cold, and sitting on the floor didn't help. They fit just like the old set, but like I initially thought, the shirt was ever so slightly bigger than the old one. It wasn't an issue though. Grabbing Dawnbreaker, opening the curtain and stepping out, I could see the three mares and Spike talking to each other near the bench I was sitting on before. The conversation quickly died down when they saw I had exited the changing room, and Rarity walked up to me with a gentle smile on her face.

"How do they fit?"

I leaned down and gave her a soft hug.

"Perfectly. Thank you, Rarity. This means a lot to me."

She returned the hug after a moment, just as gently as I was hugging her.

"Think nothing of it. I couldn't just leave you like that."

Laughing softly, I let go of the hug and stood up.

"I mean it. I'm going to find a way to pay you back for this one day."

"Liam, I'm not going to accept payment for helping somepony in need. Consider it a gift."

"...alright, Rarity. Thanks again."

Yeah, no. I'm finding a way to pay her back for this. No way in hell am I letting such a huge favor go unpaid.

Turning to Twilight, I noticed that her head was down with a sad look on her face, with Lyra looking slightly awkwardly between the two of us. Smiling softly, I walked over and pat Twilight on the head, causing her to look up at me in surprise. I gently ruffled her mane, earning me an annoyed look that quickly turned into a small smile.

"You ready to go?"

"Yeah. You?"

My smile grew a bit.

"Yeah. I'm ready to learn more about the world I'm going to be living in from now on."

"Oh thank Celestia! You two were so depressing, I didn't know what to do!"

I laughed at Lyra's remark.

"Never change, Lyra."

Walking past her, I ruffled her mane too and stuck my tongue out at her. I could hear all but Rarity following behind me, and I felt a little better about this whole situation.

I'm not going to give up on going home just yet, but...no reason not to enjoy this world while I'm here.

"Have a good day, everypony!"

I waved back at Rarity, and placed my hand on the doorknob.

"You too, Rarity!"

Alright. Let's do this. Nothing stopping me but myself.

I opened the door and stepped outside, ready to see what the rest of the day had in store for me.

Author's Note

Geez, its been more than a month since I've updated. Feels like a lot longer, haha. I've been busy for the last month and things have been pretty hectic lately. It is my hope that I can update more frequently in the future. I decided to spend a bit more time on this chapter as an apology to you all for taking so long.

As usual, feel free to point out any typos, errors, or inconsistencies, and I hope you all enjoyed the first somewhat peaceful day for Liam in Equestria!

One last thing i'd like to say. If you enjoy Soul in the Sword, please leave a thumbs up. You aren't obligated to, but I've noticed that a great deal of you have favorited the story, but haven't left a thumbs up or left a comment. There isn't anything wrong with that, but new readers can judge a story based on the like to dislike ratio, and thumbing up stories you enjoy is supporting the authors that you like. It helps new readers find stories, and shows that many people enjoy the work. God knows that the people who dislike the stories are ready to thumbs down them with little hesitation. To those that have already left a thumbs up, thank you so much for encouraging and supporting me as an author!