A New Beginning & A Royal Audience
Axton's Universe, Equestria; a year after Axton's Victory and Ascension
Another day in the workings of the universe, another day on Equestria; Celestia's sun shone down upon the surprisingly tranquil-for-once Ponyville, its rays glimmering in the dew of the morning and blessing the awake inhabitants of the small time town turned Friendship Capital with warmth and the gentle feeling of security that only a deity driven object could give. In the Coglink Residence, a young Axton Coglink was awakened by said rays of the sunlight having danced onto his eyelids, which caused him to groan and lumber from his bed with the attitude every child would have from being awakened from a relaxing and rather pleasant dream. With this, he went and got showered; this was always just as effectively pleasing as breakfast due to the fact that they no longer had to pay bills (saving Equestria has its perks after all). As the young pony got out of the shower, having just dried his feet (water always got stuck in his coat on them, it was really annoying him), the smell of food wafted toward him through the humidity of steam and smell of shower soap. As such, today's specialty smelled like a royally good fry up of hay fries, complete with salad, fruit and cereal. Noticing this, he scrunched his nose up; he wasn't particularly accustomed, even after a year, to his heightened Alicorn senses and abilities (not that they were particularly trained, but a growing colt will always develop, as will most his age).
After having dressed in the norm of fashion for his age (blue jeans, black shirt and the style of also having black socks and headphones around his neck leading into said jeans), he also equipped his tool belt and put his belongings in his pockets. At this point, he ran downstairs, with a stomach hungry for food as his driving force; and at a rare occasion, found all his family in the kitchen-come-dining room that was opposite the stairwell facing him. Now, this would be a common occasion were it not for the fact that his brother, Eagle Eyes was incredibly lazy; three years older than the now 10 year old Axton, his brother was prone to sleeping throughout the entirety of the morning and into the afternoon if not awoken up sternly by his mother, Bright Mane or even more sternly by his father Axel Wrench. Considering this was a family breakfast, Axton approached calmly, noted his seat and sat down across from his still groggy looking brother.
"Morning mum, dad." He grinned, then turned his head in an almost bored fashion to his brother, "Morning, Lazybones." and returned to the matters of his plate, which was subsequently filled with hay fries, salad and a banana (gotta keep that 'nutrition' up after all.)
"Morning, Ax" His mother greeted him as she looked and read her daily tabloid mail; his father, unfortunately kept himself quite to his reading of the financial paper whilst alternating between that and a few work and legal documents. A lukewarm cup of tea levitated to his left, the document and paper on the table having taken up the spot of the coaster. Eagle Eyes didn't reply to Axton instead having occupied himself with the scoffing of foodstuffs on his plate; this was naturally one of his favorite activities along with gaming, sleeping and hanging out around town.
As Axton ate, he enjoyed the normality of having breakfast at home, with his family; this was always a gentle and harsh reminder that through every day, he had to work alongside Twilight in studying magic, who was also an alicorn. Unlike her, his powers developed every day at a more alarming rate to the point he could rival any known Unicorn beside the Princess of Friendship herself; this included his own father, Axel Wrench, who was immensely proud and told him near every time the young colt used his magical powers in practice or function. His Pegasus mother, Bright Mane taught him flying, which the young colt also grasped within a month or so of practice; by three months, he could fly half as fast as Rainbow Dash. A good scenario from the average outlook, but a harsh reminder nonetheless that he was different amongst the rest of Ponyville.
With breakfast over, the family started the following chores which involved but not necessarily in this order; Washing and Drying the plates, Cleaning the rooms, Making the Beds, Polishing (literally most things in the house, which was incredibly tedious even WITH magic) and other various dusting and organizing for the day. For one, Axton and Eagle Eyes did not have to go to school, as it was the summer holiday and school was currently closed; the latter lumbered off to bed with a tired groan and a small wave to his mother and father and a disgruntled nod to his brother. The pegasus seemed to emulate Rainbow Dash in the sense that he cared very much about his sleep and food; this was noted quite often by Axton, who often watched the pegasus alongside Scootaloo.
As the family was halfway through its chores, a loud banging knock sounded at the door, with a command up "Open up in the name of the Lunar Guard!"; this caused quite a panic throughout the family, minus the father of the family, Axel Wrench who answered the door with a stony face and calm expression. Two Lunar guards, Thestral in blood and appearance, stood at the door to the Coglink residence with equally stony and stern expressions; one stood more forward than its comrade, with a held out palm as if to calm Axel.
"Calm before we speak; we mean no harm to you or your family. Princess Luna requests the presence of one Axton Coglink in the Royal Lunar wing of Canterlot Castle. This is mandatory and denial to do so will result in consequence." The main guard proclaimed with a voice of calm authority. To which Axel Wrench nodded and look to his son, who had shadowed his father, stood a few feet behind him; the young alicorn, nervous, walked along with the two armored guards to a magically charged chariot, led by what seemed to be shadowed horse forms. The chariot was all black and dark indigo/blue in color, reflecting the very night that its deity belonged to.
With this, the young colt traveled in said carriage, to the bustling city of Canterlot and its Royal Castle; his nervous heart pounding, his excitement building.
The City of Canterlot, 3 hours post leaving Ponyville...
The carriage pulled to a stop in the Canterlot Stables, with the shadow beasts which pulled said transportation having disappeared; a young Axton stepped out, nervousness and excitement built within his small bipedal form. The low light painted him in a gentle yet dull bronze coloration true to his name and magical heritage as the two guards beside him were a color umber and dark like their namesake/title. With this, the two flanking guards took the lead and began their escort of the young colt throughout the streets of the bustling city; the city in itself dazzled Axton as he stepped out into it.
Having been raised in Ponyville and Oatsralia (both in equally rustic locations), Axton marveled at the surround urban environment. Rooftops and parapets gleamed in the coming sunlight which hung high above the city of Canterlot with the varying shades of purple and yellow that were signature in connotation to the diarchy. Equally, the marble of the city's buildings glared in one's vision in the daylight almost casually and brazenly, taking in the sunlight that was filling nearly every nook and cranny; with this, Axton had to squint slightly, not used to the higher light levels despite the general populace being fine with it. The two thestrals at his side showed no bother to the sunlight, but seemed slightly disgruntled at having to walk along in the daylight (not their natural domain, you understand.)
As Axton walked through the streets (for the guards were not particularly hounding in any way, just ushering in their action), there was a general murmur that rose up around him from those present or walking by; of unease mixed with wonderment. Often, he'd catch the odd phrase or sentence from all those around him, with both positive and negative comments being aimed directly at his appearance.
"That's the new Alicorn? Geez, I expected something better."
" I wouldn't underestimate him; that much magical power has got to be worth something, yknow?"
"I wonder how he awoke; at such a young age, too!"
"Looks like a pretty.... GUARDED situation!" *thwack*, the punmaker got smacked on the back of the head.
With this being said, the guards were kept busy as the general announcement went up loudly "Move along! Any interruption to the crown's affairs will be considered an offence! Nothing to see here, ponies!"; this statement scattered most present, with many wanting to suddenly get along with their daily lives. The sunlit day showed no difference, the daylight still shining down on the city quite brazenly; the weather had picked up a little, becoming warmer.
Within the space of an hour, Axton had reached the edge of the Canterlot Castle Gates, which was flanked by two sets of Celestial Guardsmen; said Guardsmen stood atop their respective guard sentry posts, looking out upon both the city and the perimeter which they guarded. Naturally, this intimidated Axton, as in comparison to him (a 3ft colt) the gates stood at a whopping 10 feet tall; they were made of wrought gold-steel alloy, resulting in a dull but glimmering sheen to the bars and plate of the gate itself. Furthermore, with a little a bit of insight into looking rather contemplatively at the gate (natural 20 roll on perception check, hold your applause), he noticed that it also had a powerful magical enchantment which was most likely cast by some form of court wizard or serving mage.
"State your business!" By now, one of the guards had noticed them, peering over the top of the castle sentry post to the left; he spoke with an authoritative tone and wore the rank of sergeant. Like all the Celestial guards, his armor was made out of a tough and magically enchanted gold battle alloy which glimmered in the occasional bit of sunlight that peered under the roof of his post; after all, being a Solar/Celestial Guard meant representing one's royal counterpart or departments thereof.
"Lunar Guard Business; the new Alicorn kid needs to be brought to Princess Luna immediately; mission code Foxtrot Delta." One of the Luna guards stated in a half board tone. "Seriously, Larken Shield, you hold everyone up like this. Grow a stallionhood and stop being so stubborn".
"Really, Scythe? We'll talk about this later." The sergeant, now wounded in both pride and manlihood, complained with the tone of a whiny foal being scolded by its mother; at this point, it was more of a matter of keeping a straight face for Axton, who had to avoid bursting into laughter.
Soon enough, after a good fifteen minutes of casual banter between the Solar and Lunar guards, Axton was escorted through the gates, into the castle and into the Lunar wing. The Lunar wing was..... a testament, if anything else to both the return of Luna's reign and the very reflection of her inner character; unlike the Solar Wing, its Lunar counterpart was full of paintings of starry nights upon forlorn but hopeful hilltops, statues and busts of great minds and warriors alike and visages of Luna scattered here and there (this was likely due to the Lunar diarch being more modest than her sister, who was all too happy to have a life size statue of her atop what looked like a giant cake slice, as if conquering the dessert as one would a beast.) The wallpaper itself was equally nocturnal in nature, being black and indigo, designs travelling along the walls in swirling snakes of depicted mist.
Having been left at the door with a quiet word to the working staff, telling them to keep an eye on the colt, Axton had been left to walk onward towards the Lunar Audience Chamber; for convenience of both staff and new guards, signs had been placed around to guide ponies around the castle. In turn to this, Axton followed along the corridors left and right, getting a good feel for the place and making a mental map (as best as he could) along the way; which led him to the Audience Chamber's doors, looming over him like giant metallic guardians, with two large L's behind a crescent moon symbol marked the doors, showing that this was indeed his location.
Tentatively, he knocked on the door, more nervous now than excited at the prospect of literally meeting the co-leader of his entire home country. His knocked echoed on the ominous right door, to which a sonorous but almost gentle voice replied;
"Enter, Axton of House Coglink. Your presence is accepted in my Audience Chamber". Now, this was a voice that he was expecting; powerful, but controlled, as though the phrase given was one practiced every day up to this point with a social strategy years old beyond his existence.
Quite nervous still, he pushed the... oddly light metal door open into the Audience Chamber; in truth, it was impressive as it sounded. The walls were armed with various weapons used over the ages, with famous generals depicted in masterful portrait on a landscaped background; in the center of it all sat Luna upon a shadow iron throne, which curled up behind her in the depiction of a night time shadow. Standing before one of the diarchs themselves, he stepped forward and bent his knee shakily.
"A-Axton Coglink, your majesty. At your service." His voice cracked a little as he kneeled before her, his Oatsralian twang quite clear in his voice echoing around the room. Oddly enough, Luna was very much alone which proved to be another contrast with her sister who preferred the presence of guards as a security and necessity.
"Arise... my little pony." Luna said with an attempt at a winning smile; it turned out to be an easygoing half grin due to her amusement at the colt. "I call you not here to lay punishment or any negative impact upon your life; it is in fact, quite the opposite. You need not fear me, little one."
At this Axton arose, looking directly at Luna with a minor form of reverence in his eyes, but also with the expression of someone who was relieved of a great burden. With a calmer voice he announced "In which case, what was it you required your majesty?" with a sense of vague understanding to Luna herself; she was not one to require bowing, kneeling or anything of the sort. If one was worthy to gain audience with her, they were to be treated as an equal within reason of natural rank.
"As you are well aware, you defeated a great evil that would have come to plague this land if not for your intervening; in doing so, you called upon yourself a power so ancient it was deep and dormant within your bloodline, something long forgotten by the sands of time and magic themselves." She paused before continuing, making sure to get across she knew exactly what Axton had done, and make it appear as praise "But yet, I am very much so aware that it is nowhere near enough; such power and the Alicorn body you have at your command is untrained, untamed and rather weak in comparison to mine, my sister's or even that of Twilight Sparkle. I of course mean no offense by this statement, little one, but in turn wish to offer you that training which could and would fashion you into one of the finest Alicorns on this plane of existence, save myself and my sister; I'm sure you understand that a lot of power can only be gained by living for longer than most. I want to ask... if you would like to become my student, and I your mentor."
At this point, Axton was just able to string together a quick sentence, despite his usual wit and tact that he had grown used to using amongst conversations. What he was able to get out was "I..... could you give me some time to come up with an answer to that? And if I should agree on such a mag..." He struggled for the word "magnanimous offer?"
Luna, impressed with the vocabulary of the young colt, smiled broadly, finally able to relax "Of course, young one; take all the time you need either in here or around the Lunar Wing. I... "She hesitated, then shrugged "The kitchen staff will be sure to offer you food if you tell them who you are and your reasons for being here if you're hungry. Should you wish to rest, feel free to use the Guest Quarters down the hall."
With this, Axton nodded briskly, leaving the room with another short bow and rushed off toward the kitchen; despite eating not three hours before, his stomach had already begun rumbling with a vengeance. After that, he'd sleep on his decision on whether to take up Luna's offer. With all this whizzing around his head, the young colt had quite the future set out for him.
Acceptance and Revelations
Having slept soundly in the room which he was designated by the castle staff (specifically by a mare named Well Rest), Axton awoke to the sounds of hustle and bustle in the castle, as though the very walls were alive with the murmuring buzz of daily activity. Servants and maids outside the rooms rushed around the room delivering specific orders, dishes of in-room breakfasts bountiful enough to feed a small regiment of soldiers (for such services were indeed provided under the hospitality of the two Diarchs) and various items of clothing for the dignitaries from various countries to wear. At this point, Axton's brain just about clocked that he had slept in the clothes he had brought with him to the capital city..... meaning that he had no spare clothes to wear. Horseapples.
Whilst considering on a scale of one to banished-to-the moon he was in terms of being absolutely out of options for attire, there was a knock on the door; seeing no other option but to answer it, Axton hesitantly walked toward said entrance to open it. As he did so, the luxury of this room was once again visited upon in Axton's mind, as the plush velveteen carpet brushed his feet and the smell of scented vanilla candles permeated the room; he quickly reminded himself to thank the Lunar Princess upon seeing her again, noting also to ask for a spare pair of clothes when possible. At this point, whatever deity of fortune decided to smile down upon him as the servant waiting at the door smiled gently at the young colt, delivering unto him a set of oddly uniform clothes along with some toiletry items and a plate of well done breakfast pancakes. The latter had Axton salivating as they were covered in a slowly trickling golden river of syrup, the pancakes pleasantly thick in proportion to the rest of plate, each one lounging lazily atop one another with a decadence that only the most royal of breakfasts could provide.
Hastily thanking the servant with a quick nod of the head and sentiment, he quickly dug into the breakfast; he nearly did a double take as each forkful entered his mouth; each heavenly bite seemed to melt on his taste buds, with the syrup being just sweet enough not to be sickly, tinged with vanilla and lemon shavings put into the mix. The process of savoring each and every mouthful took approximately half an hour, after which he asked for both the recipe and seconds, finishing the second helping in minutes before going off to sanitize with the provided toiletries; after having dried from the shower, he noticed a small footnote on the collar of the clothing given, unable to fully inspect it in its packaged and folded state.
The note read 'Axton,
should you choose to accept the offer of becoming my student in the various studies I have offered, we would like to bestow unto thee a 'uniform' of sorts in which you can be identified by the castle staff, delegates and so forth. Said uniform is magically enhanced to be flexible to your form as both the Royal Tailoring Department and I were quite unaware as to your clothing sizes. I hope highly that you accept, as you have so much potential within your recent Alicorn transformation. I look forward to your decision with an eager mind.
Best Regards,
Princess Luna, Diarch of the Moon.'
At this, Axton was thrown much into contemplation; on one hand, he would naturally jump at the chance to study under an astute mentor let alone the Princess of the Night herself! Yet.... he found himself reluctant, as he was still going out with Applebloom, was still quite young and quite obviously had only partook in basic education up to this point, with the rest of his life ahead of him. Was he willing to throw all that away just to go study his alicorn form more? Questions for later, he supposed. Putting on his old clothes, he carried his uniform to a meeting point designated on the back of the note; naturally, this was the olde-world night themed Audience Room.
Ponderously walking along the corridors again, this time with a little more difficulty due to having to constantly dodge in and out of roaming servants/maids, Axton ended up at the Audience Room doors once again. Oddly enough, the two Lunar Guards who escorted him to the gates were there, stoic and alert as usual; this general expression was the norm with the Lunar Guard, whom of which had to remain constantly vigilant due to the constant attempted break-ins of burglars, assassins and other various ner'-do-wells who seem to have the illusion that the night is somewhat safer for such operations.
Giving a nervous nod to the set of guards, Axton headed into said Audience Room; once again, he was enveloped by the scene of the nightly chamber with its paintings and portraits and was nonetheless amazed once more. Sitting on a pseudo-throne (it was really just a large chair; the real Lunar Throne was in the Throne Room) was the Princess of the Night herself, who gave an almost relieved smile at the appearance at Axton. This look that she gave, however, was combined with a small flicker of concern at noticing the young colt's reluctance to wear the outfit she had tailored for him.
"Greetings, Axton; it warms my heart that you decided to speak to me before deciding. The last time I requested such a thing of a pony.... uh, that's a story for another time." She chuckled nervously, seeming a bit put off at lowering her chances at recruiting the young colt "Anyway, have you considered our proposal?"
With a hesitant expression that contained thought well beyond his age group, Axton replied "I'm.... not so sure about this, your highness." Noticing Luna's almost instantaneous dismay, he hastily added "It's not that I don't want to study under you, your majesty. It's more due to the fact that I'm worried that I won't be able to do a lot of things I care about. Like see family, friends.... other people too, who I'm sure you're aware of; I can't risk losing out on my education either, as I'll most definitely need it in the future."
Luna, for the most part, seemed quite impressed at the thought Axton put into this, but was saddened both by the more-than-mature for his age worldliness and this response. However, she rallied herself and countered with "I... would not seek to take you away entirely from your current life. As I'm very sure, you are aware of one Princess Twilight Sparkle?"
A small nod was given from Axton, at which point Luna continued along with "As you know, she studied under my sister, Celestia. Now, as with her I have full intention to allow you your physical freedom should you choose to accept; I would not be so uncouth as to not do so, after all. That means you'd be able to visit anyone you'd wish to at the behest of delaying your studies for a short while, which is of no large worry to me should it guarantee your satisfaction."
Delighted to hear this, Axton sighed in relief, wiping mock sweat from his brow "And here I thought I was gonna be cooped up somewhere for most my life; no offence, Princess, but you hear a LOT of horror stories like that." He shuddered in afterthought, remembering the stories around the Apple and Coglink campfires.
A small chuckle elicited from the diarch as she relaxed a little, visibly relieved; internally, she was panicking, wondering if she'd fail to live up the standards expected of her by the general public and of course by her sister (which was a big enough shadow to escape from as it was).
"Very well, young Axton; with your consent, please go and dress into thine uniform and meet us at the royal chariot stables. If you need to find the way, please seek the guidance of my Lunar Guard; they will be more than happy to help thee." Luna proclaimed, slipping out of the usual Equestrian tongue for a brief moment; this was most likely due to her excitement and was often a bad habit of hers, most notably noticed by Celestia.
With this, the Lunar Diarch stood and promptly cantered from the room in a fit of un-princessly joy and childlike giddiness, away from the Audience room and beyond; safe to say, Axton himself was left quite perplexed at the sudden change in Luna's demeanor and stance, but chose to accept it anyhow (being in the same village as Pinkie Pie makes one quite accustomed to randomness). In turn, he then left the room to go and complete the needed tasks in hand set by Luna.
Approximately one hour later, at the Royal Canterlot Chariot Stables...
Leading the way, two heavy set Lunar Guards (likely heavy defense Lunar Guardstallions if the halberds they carried were anything to go by) opened to the swinging doors into the stables; like every other part of the castle, this place was bustling with staff running about, albeit with a role change from maid or butler to stable hand and carriage handler. One of the things that fascinated Axton the most about the stables was that it was split entirely into two departments, Solar and Lunar; a strange choice, but one that clearly set up a dual decor of bright yellows and dark blues intermingling with one another.
Making his way over to the designated carriage, third one along on the right, Axton was quite shocked; standing in front of him was something equine but not quite natural in nature. Before him stood what looked like a quadruped stallion, plated all in a dark blue metal, with eyes a blazing and commanding white; the plates of the stallion horse shimmered a dark indigo in the low light of the stables, glinting almost menacingly at him.
"Don't worry about Shadow; he's just as loyal as any of the other fine steeds in this stables, if not more so." Princess Luna spoke up, standing beside the carriage; not expecting her presence, Axton immediately jumped and flinched, bowing in reaction.
"S-sorry, Princess! I didn't notice you there!" Axton exclaimed, bowing so low that he was nearly bent double over in a forward position. This only made Luna giggle slightly, shaking her head.
"Although it may seem strange, you may refer to me as Luna; unlike my sister, I've never been one for maintaining titles between my students, which was a wont circumstance between her and Twilight." She smiled gently down at the young stallion, raising him up again with a delicate hand "Besides, you're an alicorn which, by the Royal Equestrian Standards, technically makes you a Prince."
Axton, slightly stunned by the situation, could only nod as Luna smiled again and carried on with "Please step into the carriage, Axton; we have a castle to visit."
Still rather dazed, Axton followed Luna into the carriage gently, making sure to make at least an attempt at some form of student-teacher formality between the two. The only fact that he couldn't completely process at the time is that he was technically a Prince; how was he going to explain this to Apple Bloom and his family? Would the new status drive a wedge between them? These worries bit away at Axton quietly as he sat in the carriage, much to the notice of the adjacent Princess. The chariot flew into the day's sky a small while later, a shadow on a bright horizon.
