The Tale Of A Lost Wolf

by Solaris Night

Rating: teen
Tags: Anthro, Main 6, Princess Luna, Gore, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Comedy, Romance, Spike, Profanity, Adventure, Violence, Princess Celestia, Death, Human
Length: 252550

While preforming a new spell, Twilight accidentally summons a being, unlike anypony has ever seen, to Equestria. Can she and the rest of the girls befriend him and teach him the values of friendship?

It was a beatuiful day outside. Birds were singing, flowers were blooming, it was a perfect day to try out some new spells that the Ponyville librarian came up with. However the spell goes awry and causes a chain of events to take hold on their world.

Meanwhile on a planet far far away, a group of freedom fighters are trying to escape from their pursuers after a failed attempt at sabotage. One by one they are being captured until only one reamins standing, but even he eventually runs into a dead end. With no means of escape he prepares to fight until a blinding light envelops him and transports him to Equestria.

In a new and unfamiliar world, with no means of return, he must adapt to his environment. But how can someone of a violent nature like himself integrate into this new alien society? And will he ever learn the meaning of friendship?

Cover art done by the amazing xXAngeLuciferXx.

(Proof read by EMBER SPIRIT SHIELD from Chapter 12 onward)

Note: First of all, this will be my first long story, so any and all constructive critisim is welcomed.
Second, while the tag says human it is not technically a Human in Equestria.
Third, this takes place before Canterlot Wedding and will span across multiple seasons. Also I will may change a few things in future seasons.
Fourthly, I may add a gore tag, but only maybe, not 100% certain, and sex tag only for humor and suggestions (no clop though, sorry to all the cloppers).
Finally, this story will greatly revolve around Dragon Ball, but it's NOT a Dragon Ball crossover. By that I mean, Ki blasts exist, heavy paralels between Saiyans and the protagonist (protagonist is NOT a Saiyan though, just a lot like them) and, surprise, transformations.
Hope you enjoy :pinkiesmile:.

Published 2016-11-02 23:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2018-08-12 08:23:01 UTC

Chapter 2: Hospital Interrogation; An Alien In An Alien World

Author's Note

I know I said another chapter won't be coming out soon due to the test I have. Well who needs education, I can flip good burgers. But seriously, I just took a day off to 'relax' a little more. I won't say anything this time about when the next chapter is coming out.
Anyway hope you enjoy reading this chapter as well. Leave any comments about what I should improve or if there are any spelling mistakes.
Until next time.

Chapter 2: Hospital Interrogation; An Alien In An Alien World

The townsponies watched as the Mane 6 and the strange being were making their way through Ponyville. Most of them were badly injured, but the worst were probably Rainbow Dash, who was being carried by Twilights magic, and the furless pony creature. They whispered amongst themselves, trying to figure out what happened to their friends. All they knew for certain was that the mares were fighting a monster that entered Ponyville and caused a ruckus. Although none of them was there to see it happen they could only speculate what happened by seeing the state the Mane 6 were in and from an explosion they heard, coming from the battlefield.

Nopony or the alien either heard what they were saying about them or they simply didn't care. Ever since they left for the hospital they haven't spoken a single word to each other, besides an occasional 'How are you holding up?' and 'Will you be fine?'. That doesn't mean they didn't try to talk with Trider, but every time they asked him or said something to him, he kept deathly silent. They couldn't tell if he was just so exhausted or he was still too angry with all of them. Eventually they stopped trying and just focused on getting to their destination.

Soon the Ponyville Hospital was in their sight. They picked up their pace for just a tiny bit, so they could relieve their pain. As they walked through the front door, the mare at the counter noticed them and gasped at the state they were in. Immediatelly she called for a few doctors and nurses so they could help their patients. Applejack and Rarity were sitted down on the chairs in the waiting area, while Rainbow Dash was put on a gurney and taken to one of the medical rooms.

A nurse that was inspecting Applejacks wrist and stomach asked. "What in the name of Celestia happened to you girls?"

The cow-mare pointed her thumb at the alien, who was still standing in the middle of the hallway. "We got into a bit of a brawl with that fella over there, but don'cha worry one bit, we settled it and he won't hurt anypony." Her face then changed to that of worry. "Speaking of which, he himself took quite a beating, so he might be in more serious condition than us."

A doctor gave a look at the man and asked. "You sure? He doesn't seem to be in that much pain?"

"Ah know, maybe he is just a lot tougher than anypony or maybe he is just putting on a facade, but what I know is that we kicked him hard enough to make him crash through a wall."

At that all attention was directed towards the alien. Finally a doctor decided to approach him. "Ummm, excuse me sir. Are you feeling okay?"

Trider gave no reply as he continued to stand there, with his head lowered, almost like a statue. It made everypony nervous, so the doctor tried asking him again. And again there was no reply. The stallion then tried a bit more daring approach. He put his hand on his forehead and lifted it up so he could look directly in his eyes. However his eyes were closed and that made the stallion even more confused. In that moment he did something that would make his name be written in stone for every future generation to see.

He slapped him.

Everypony gasped and then held their breath, waiting to see what the alien will do to the doctor. But nothing happened, not even a twitch came from him, as he just continued to stand there.

"I don't belive it, he's actually unconscious." The doctor said in awe.

At that everypony released their breath and relaxed, seeing that the man was unconscious. Soon it clicked in Twilights head at what the stallion was implying. "Wait you mean to say he fainted and he is still standing up even after losing all of his motor control?"

"That is exactly what I'm implying, miss Sparkle."

They continued to stare at Trider, until Applejack decided to break the silence. "What in Tartarus is this guy?"

Alcohol.

That was the first thing Trider smelled, but it wasn't the kind you would drink. No, it was the kind used by doctors.

"So I'm in a hospital, huh. Guess I really pushed myself past the limit this time." he mused.

Then he could hear sounds of muffled footsteps. "No, they don't sound like footsteps, they click too much." He could also hear sounds of birds coming from his right and voices belonging to people, as well as laughter of children. "They must've of left the window open."

Next he decided to finally open his eyes. It was difficult, because as soon as he opened them they began to burn from the searing light that assaulted him. Eventually though he was able to fully open them and he took in his surroundings. He was lying in a bed covered by thin sheets and an IV tube connected to his arm. The room itself wasn't anything impressive. It had tiled floor with blue walls and a green ceiling. There was another bed beside his, but it was currently unoccupied. On his right was a nightstand with a lamp, jug of water and a glass. Suddenly he realised just how thirsty he actually was and quickly reached for the jug. He immediatelly learned that was a mistake, as pain surged throughout his entire body, especially his left side.

Only now did he notice he wasn't in his clothes and only wore a hospital gown and a pair of boxer. He also had bandages covering every part of his body and his right leg was put in a cast. "Okay, I really went overboard this time. Still not as bad as the foodtruck incident though." He shivered at the memories of that particular mission.

The thirst slowly turned into a burning sensation, so he again reached for his salvation, this time however slowly and crarefully. He grabbed the handle of the jug and lifted it up and brought it towards himself and just like that began to chug from the jug itself, spilling some of it onto the sheets and his bandages.

As he was 'drinking' the door to his room opened up and in walked a nurse. She was looking at the clipboard she was carrying and it wasn't until she heard a large gulp she lifted her gaze. They stared at each others eyes, none moving. Trider slowly lowered the jug onto his lap, wiped his mouth and gave her a toothy grin. "Helloooo nurse."

Instead of saying anything she just slowly began to back off towards the door and closed it when she was out. "Oooookay, rude much?"

He didn't dwell on the scene too much as he quickly finished the rest of the jug. When he was done he put it back on the nightstand and began to mull over his thoughts.

"That female looked a lot like the ones I saw in my dreams. Though I guess I wasn't dreaming and it actually happened. And if they were real then that means I really am on another planet." he thought. "But if that is the case, then how did I get here? What happened to the men who were chasing me? More importantly though, is there a way I can go back?"

More and more thoughts began to flood his mind, until the door opened and in walked a stallion wearing a doctors coat, followed by the nurse that was in here not just a moment ago.

"Good afternoon sir. I see you're finally awake, we were kind of worried you will never get up." the stallion said. "How are you feeling anyway?"

Trider just gave him an annoyed look, before he replied. "Who the fuck are you?"

The doctor staggered a bit at profanity, not expecting it, but he quickly recovered. "Ah, yes excuse me, where are my manners. My name is doctor Remedy and this here is nurse Red Heart, I belive you already met her?"

The man still looked at the two with skeptical eyes, but didn't want to be too rude to the people who possibly elped him. "I did and the name's Trider. Trider Lykosgrothia."

The nurse and doctor exchanged a confused look, before the stallion spoke up. "That is an interesting name, kinda weird though."

"Oh I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you over the fucks I don't give about what you think. What did you say about my name mister Remedy?" he said growling, baring his fangs.

The doctor backed away, sweating. "N-Nothing. Nothing at all."

"Thought so." he said in satisfaction. "Spineless coward."

The doctor wasn't all that tall, maybe around Triders height. He had a pale green coat with brown hair and tail. On his nose he had a pair of thick rimmed glasses, that made him look older than he probably was. He wore a white coat over his ochre shirt, which extended to the knees of his dark brown pants.

The nurse wore the sterotypical nurses uniform, the kind you would find in cartoons, TV-shows or more adult material. The blouse as well as the short skirt were snow white, just like her fur. Trider bet that from a distance it looked like she wasn't wearing anything. Her mane on the other hand was a nice pink color, which went really well with her nurse appearance, and was done in a bun, so it didn't get in the was when she was working. She looked very attractive, even to the grumpy Kanisar.

He was brought out of his ogling, when Remedy cleared his throat. "I know miss Red Heart is a very beautiful mare, but right now we need to check on how well you are recovering." The nurse handed him over a clipboard she was carrying and he then continued. "I'm going to ask you some questions and I want you to answer them for me. Understood Mr. Ly.... uh?"

"Just Trider is fine and yes I get it."

Satisfied he began to go over the questions one by one. "All right then Trider, first up. Do you fell any pain at the moment?"

"Only when I move, otherwise I'm peachy."

The stallion nodded and went onto the next one. "Are you currently experiencing any headaches or throbbing in you head?"

"No." he grumbled. Before the doctor could continue, Trider decided to cut him off. "Doc do we really have to do this? Can't you just leave me rest or something?"

Remedy quickly replied. "Not a chance. You had several broken ribs and a punctured lung when you came in. And don't get me started on all the cuts, bruises, as well as broken leg. The worst however was the damage your head received, we were certain you had a concussion. It's a miracle you're alive, even more that you woke up after just four days. So yes this very necessary."

Unable to argue with the expert, he grumbled and gave in to the torturous questioning that followed.

After fifteen minutes they were finally finished with all the questions and the Kanisar sighed in relief.

The stallion looked through all the questions once again, to make sure they didn't miss anything. "Alright, it seems you' re recovering rather nicely, you should be out in just a few days."

That got Trider confused. "Few days? By the way you were telling me how damaged I was, I should be here for a few more weeks."

"Well yes, if you were another pony you would have to stay here for another week or more, but by looking at how fast your body is healing itself, with just a few more healing spells you will be out in four days tops." the doctor explained.

"Spells? Am I in some sort of voodoo hospital or something?" he thought.

Before he could sound his thoughts the stallion cut him off. "Since we are done with your health, I would like to ask you to tell us a bit about yourself and your kind, also we would like to collect some samples for testing."

Trider narrowed his eyes and glared at the doctor. Remedy got nervous and began sweating. "No." was all Trider said.

The doctor looked at him confused. "No? but we need to know more about you so we can give a proper treatment and-"

He was cut off, as Triders glare hardened. "I said no." he said in a growl. "I am thankful for you treating my injuries and all, but I will not talk about me or my kind to any of you. As far as I'm concerned you could only play nice so you could learn more about my kind and our weaknesses." The stallion was even more confused, but he didn't want to say anything as he feared that he might upset him and he would become violent.

"I understand. I guess we are done then, have a good day." He quitely walked out of the room and closed the door behind him.

As soon as he left Trider relaxed his muscles and sank into the bed, tiredness washing over him. He noticed that the nurse was still here, so he looked at her and asked. "Why are you still here?"

The question caught the mare off-guard and she scrambled for a bit before she regained her composure. "Oh, I just wanted to tell you that you will have some guests come by tomorrow."

Trider tilted his head in confusion. "Guests? Who in hell would come to visit me?"

Red Heart fiddled with her arms for a bit before she answered. "It's the mares you fought when you came to town as well as a few more important guests."

His eye twitched at the mention of the girls. "Those guys? Why in the hell would they want to talk to me?" he thought. While he was lost in his thoughts Red Heart decided to leave. "Maybe they want a rematch? Heh, if they want one I'll give it to them." he smiled at the thought of settling it once and for all. However his train of thought was derailed when he remembered something else the nurse said. "Important guests? Wonder who they will be? Eh, probably just some law enforcement, who would like to stuff me in jail. I would certainly like to see them try."

He continued to ponder about what tomorrow will be like, but tiredness quickly became too much to bear and he fell asleep.

Next day

The sound of knocking awoke the sleeping Kanisar, but he refused to acknowledge that he was waking up and ignored the noise. However the knocking continued until a voice spoke up. "Mr. Trider your guests have arrived."

"Guests what gue...? Oh, right." he thought as he slowly opened up his eyes and rose to a sitting position. "Tell them to fuck off, cuz I'm not in the mood to see their faces."

There was a pause, before Red Heart replied. "They insist on coming in and they don't care if you are willing or not."

Trider put a hand to his face as he grumbled. "Fine." he sighed. "But tell them to at least put some bags over their heads, cuz I was serious about the face thing."

The doors suddenly opened up and in came a fuming Rarity. "Excuse me? Is that any way to speak to lady, you barbarian?"

"Wouldn't know cuz I haven't seen one yet." Trider replied with a grin.

Rarity could only gape at what he said, before rage washed over her. "Why you little piece of -"

Applejack decided to intervene, before this escalated too far. She got behind the mare and grabbed her by the arms and began to pull her away from the man. "Wow, easy there Rares ya just got out of the hospital and he is still in it. Don't try to pick a fight with him even if he is bedridden."

Rarity only huffed, before she clamed down and went back to her friends. Trider saw that there were all the girls he fought yesterday, plus three additional.

One of them was a short mare with long pink hair which curved at the end, her tail done in similar fashion. He couldn't exactly see her face as she was hiding behind her mane as he was looking at her. "I can practically smell cowardice on her." he thought. Next he noticed the butter yellow wings on her back that were the same color as her fur. She wore a large green sweater with floral pattern on it and a knee long sky blue skirt.

The other two however were extremely different from the others. For one they had both a horn and wings, and were taller than anyone in the room, even himself. Another thing he noticed was that they were waring different jewelry as well as crowns, which made him belive they were either royalty or high-class nobles, and he didn't like neither of the two.

The shorther one had dark blue coat, with matching wings. Her hair and tail reminded him of the night sky, black and full of sparkles which reminded him of the stars. It was weird however that it moved on its own like it was caught in an eternal breeze, even though they were indoors. She wore a few shades lighter blue two piece dress, which exposed her arms and stomach, while on her head rested a black crown and on her chest was a black necklace with a white moon insignia embedded in it.

The second mare was a complete opposite of the shorter one. She was at least a head taller than the dark one standing at about 6'7 feet. Her coat was white, even whiter than Raritys or Red Hearts, it was like at the surface of the sun, it was practically radiating. Her mane and tail were a mix of of light blue, pink, darker blue and green and just like the other on hers too was flowing in non-existent breeze. She wore a pure white dress, which unlike with Red Heart you could discern between the clothes and fur, with long loose sleeves. Around her neck was a large golden necklace with a purple gem in the middle and the crown had the same design.

As he looked at them they too were analyzing him. Trider could sense how strong they were and it shouldn't impress him, they were stronger than the other mares, but still nothing compared to him. Even so he felt his hair stand on edge, despite what he sensed he somehow knew they were much more powerful than they seemed. Just like the mares who he should have been able to beat singlehandedly caused him enough damage that he fainted and that confused him. He also didn't like the looks they were giving him, while they both seemed to have a calm expression he could see that the blue one was glaring daggers at him, while the white one looked like she was judging him.

His staring match with the mares was interrupted by Twilight clearing her throat. "Hey there, I'm glad to see you are feeling better today."

He didn't say anything as he only stared at her.

Clearing her throat again Twilight continued. "Last time we got off on the wrong hoof, so why don't we start over. First of all I want tosay how sorry I am for what happened and ask for your forgiveness. My name is Twilight Sparkle and these here are my friends."

The orange mare as if on cue stepped forward and took off her stetson. "Mah name's Applejack and I would like to thank you fer savin mah sis from the manticore and the collapsing building, as well as apologise fer attackin ya without even hearin ya out." She lowered her head and continued. "It's just that, when ah saw ya holding mah sister like that I thought ya were tryin to-"

Trider raised his hand to stop the mare. "I get it, ok. You were worried and I understand."

Next up was the cyan pegasus. "I'm Rainbow Dash, the best flier in Equestria and the future Wonder-" She was cut off as Twilight coughed. "I mean, the name's Rainbow Dash and I'm..." She struggled to say the next few words. "Look, I'm sorry for attacking you, kay?"

"Sure." he shrugged.

Rainbow wanted to say something about his response, but suddenly a mass of pink jumped next to the patient and gave a bear hug, while burying his head in her valley of tits.

"HithereI'mPinkiePieandI'msuperdupersorryforblastingyouwithmypartycannon,soIhopewecanstillbegoodfriends.OhwhatamIsayingofcoursewewillbefriends,whodoesn'tlikebeingfriendswitheverypony.Imeantheauthorwouldn'tbesodumbastomakeyouhateme,becauseeveryponylovesmeand..." she said in one single breath. She failed to notice he was starting to turn blue until Twilight warned her about it.

"Pinkie you're choking him." she shouted.

The pink mare looked down at the man and let go of him giving an awakward laugh. "Heh, sorry about that." She slowly descended beneath the bed until she was standing next to her friends again.

Gasping for air he gave Pinkie a glare before speaking. "Okay first up, learn about personal space, second, do that again and I'll break your arms, finally, does anyone have any fucking clue what she said?"

The mares glared at him from the threat he threw at their friend. "She asked if you could forgive her for blasting you with her cannon and asked if you would want to be her friend."

He closed his eyes as he rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. "Not unless she learnes to give someone their space, but otherwise maybe."

Satisfied with the answer the mare leaped into the air lifting her arms and shouting. "Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!"

Shaking his head at the pink mare he thought. "She will be nuisance." He then looked back at the group. "So who's next?"

"I belive that would be me." said Rarity. "Although I would rather not after what you said to me not just a moment ago, I will be the better pony and admit my mistake." She looked at him with an icy glare and venomusly spit at him. "I am sorry for assaulting you and calling you such mean things." "Even though you deserved it." she added under her breath so nopony could hear, but it didn't slip past the man.

"Whatever." was his only reply.

Rarity huffed and raised her head upwards and away from him. Twilight decided to step in and pushed Fluttershy forward. "C'mon don't be afraid he won't hurt you."

"That depends." he thought.

The shy mare fidgeted with her hands and was picking at the ground with one of her hoofs, trying to figure out what to say. "Umm, hi my name is Fluttershy." she said or rather whispered.

Trider however was still able to hear her well enough. "Yep, definetly don't like her." he thought. He gave a small smile and replied. "A pleasure."

All that remained were the two giantesses. "I'm guessing you two are the 'important guests' Red Heart told me about?" he speculated.

The white one gave him a warm smile, before she replied. "You are correct in assuming so. I am Princess Celestia and this is my sister."

The dark one continued to glare at him, as she introduced herself. "My name is Princess Luna and you are well to remember that."

Trider was about to rebut, but Twilight was quicker. "Well now that we have introduced ourselves, we would like to know your name, if you don't mind."

Annoyed, at the mare cutting him off like that, he sighed. "The name's Trider Lykosgrothia. Yes I am well aware my name sounds weird and you can just call me Trider, I also prefer it." He took a breath as he continued. "And let me make one thing clear, despite accepting your apologies I still haven't forgiven any of you, beside Twilight and Fluttershy."

The girls were flabergasted and Rainbow decided to speak for all of them. "What? Why? We said we were sorry. So why can't you forgive us? And I can understand you're not angry at Fluttershy, since she wasn't there, but why do you forgive Twilight when she fought you as well?"

Trider waited for her to finish, before he answered her. "For multiple reasons. One, while you did say you are sorry, some of you didn't mean that. Two it'll take a lot more than just a sorry to make me forgive you for what you did. Third, I am just stubborn like that and if you don't like it, deal with it." He waited to see if she would reply to what he said, but she stayed quiet, so he continued. "As for why I forgave Twilight is because unlike the rest of you she didn't insult me and she didn't really fight me. All she did was restrain me for a bit and that was all. I can hardly call that fighting, maybe a struggle, but nothing more."

The mares were left speechless and wanted to say something to that, but were halted by Celestia. "You can resolve this dispute at another time. Right now we have some questions to ask our paitent here."

Trider just glared at her as she said that. "No way. I already told the doctor that I will not be telling anyone about me or my-"

"We know what you said, as doctor Remedy told us about your little argument." she said. "You say that we will use the information to learn about your kind and your weaknesses, fearing we might try and attack your people, am I correct?" He nodded and Celestia continued. "You do not have to fear of something like that happening, we do not seek conquest or war, we simply want to learn more about you so we can understand you better."

The Kanisar just gave her 'are you kidding me' look, before he replied. "You actually expect me to just belive what you say. I know I'm not the brightest, but I'm also not an idiot. So let me say it once again so you can understand it more clearly." He lifted himself off the headrest he was leaning on and spoke. "No. Fucking. Way."

The Mane 6 gasped at the profanity he used when speaking to the princess, but Celestia did nothing, just sighed. Then it was Lunas turn to speak up. "Then let me put it in a way you'll understand better." Her voice while elegant, carried such an icy tone Trider could swear he saw his breath for a moment. "You are currently in our kingdom where me and my sister rule, where we have the power. Although you weren't the perpetrator of the fight that happened five days ago, you are still responsible for major damages that happened while you were going at it. Not to mention hurting our subjects and even planning on killing one of them. Just for that we could send you to the Canterlot Dungeons for so long you will be an old man when you get out. And if you resist do know that me and my sister will not hold back to protect our subjects." Her voice suddenly went from icy cold to neutral as she continued. "But we are willing to overlook that, if you agree to comply to our whishes and do as we say."

Triders eyes were the size of pinpricks after she finished her monologue. Even though the mare is supposedly weaker than him, he still felt that what she said wasn't a threat or warning, but a statement. He shook his head as he collected his thoughts and began to think over about what she said.

Once done he asked the princesses. "Before I answer I would like to know just one thing." The sisters nodded and let him continue. "How good are your spaceships and your space technology?"

The room went quiet as everypony stared at the man like he just grew a second head. The same thought running through their minds.

"What is a spaceship?" the asked simultaneously.

That wasn't the answer he expected to hear. "Wait you honestly don't know what a spaceship is?"

"Not a clue partner." answered Applejack.

After hearing that he felt relief, but also worry. "So that means they can't get to my planet and attack it, but I also can't get back to it, if they don't have them." he thought.

"Alright I guess I can answer some of your questions, but I will only answer those I feel comfortable answering and I also want to ask you some questions. Are you okay with that?" he asked the group.

Celestia smiled and nodded. "Of course, we won't force you to answer something you think is too presonal."

Satisfied he leaned on the headrest again. "Alright then, lets get started then shall we?"

At that Twilight levitated a quill and a parchment out of her backpack to document everything, about this new species. "Ooooh, I'm so excited. A brand new species that nopony has ever heard of or seen before." Her excitement unnerved the Kanisar, but he chose to ignore it.

When she was ready Twilight began the interrogation. "For starters why don't you tells us exactly what you are and where you originate from?"

"Well my kind is called Kanisar and like me the rest of my kind have wolf like features, although some have more than others, like they have more hair, their fangs are larger, some even have small snouts, but those are rare cases." he replied. "As for where I'm from I come from Inu and was born in the capital city called Lupias."

As she was writing everything down she stopped and looked from her notes. "Inu? Lupias? I've never heard of any of these places." She turned to her friends and the princesses. "Have you?" They all shook their heads.

Trider scoffed at that. "And for a good reason. Inu isn't a land or a kingdom." He leaned forward and gave a smug smile. "Inu is my home planet."

You could hear a pin fall as everypony was staring at the man with open mouths and shock plastered across their faces. "A-a-a d-different planet? You mean to say you're an alien?" asked Twilight. He nodded and that is when Rainbow started to laugh.

"Pfffwahahahahaha, yeah right. Nice one, you almost got me there." she continued to laugh, but when she saw the stare trider was giving her she stopped. "Oh my Goddess you're not joking."

Twilight wasn't convinced either. "Are you sure you're from another planet. I mean maybe you're just from a very secluded island or land nopony has discovered yet and your people haven't gone past your borders to discover new lands. Right?"

He could only deadpan at what she said. "Yeah I'm certain. Besides the obvious, that my race populates nearly every corner of the planet, ever since I came here I've seen plants and animals that my planet doesn't have. How's that for proof?"

Twilight however didn't want to give up just yet. "That doesn't mean you're from another planet. Different plants and animals don't grow on every part of the world, some are more adapted to live in cold environments like-"

"We have two moons."

That statement stopped the mare in her tracks as words simply died in her mouth after hearing that. "Okay, maybe you are an alien."

Suddenly Pinkie started to bounce around, cheering. "This is amazing. Not only are we making friends with a brand new pony, but an alien new pony." Suddenly she stopped and gasped. "You know what this means?" she asked no one in particular. "It means that I will have to change your Welcome to Ponyville party to Welcome to Equis and more specifically Ponyville party. I should start preparing right now. Uhhhh, but I really wanna stay here and listen to your stories. Oh, duh. I can just read it later when I have free time. Silly me." She then began to ramble off about what will she need for the party as well as who she should invite.

"Pssst Applejack." he beckoned the orange mare to get closer and he whispered in her ear. "What is she going on about?"

The mare chuckled as she answered him. "Well ya see Pinkie here, is Ponyville official party planner. She plans all the parties the townsponies ask of her. But when a new pony comes to Ponyville, she always throws them a party so they can get to know the townsponies better and get a better view of what it's like in Ponyville."

"Speaking of which." The pink mare suddenly popped up between the two startling them. "What kind of cake do you want to have for your party? Strawberry? Vanilla? Chocolate? Everypony loves chocolate."

"What's a cake?" the Kanisar foolishly asked.

At that moment for the first time Trider experienced what true terror is. The mare pulled him so close to her their faces were touching and she had a look, a look the man has never seen in anyone. She spoke in a tone so serious it felt like he was in a life or death situation. "You mean to tell me, you never, had cake in your entire life? Ever?" each time she emphasized a word her eyes would pop out, scaring the man even more.

"N-no?" he said trying to act brave and failing.

She immediatelly let go and was gone, before anypony could even process what happened.

"What in the name of all that is holy was that?" he said after he got his bearings.

"Nothing good I belive. This is Pinkie we're talking about so who knows what she might do." said Rainbow Dash.

"We should just go back to the questioning, before anything else happens." said Rarity.

Everyone nodded and thus they continued. This time however Trider had a question. "Just correct me if I'm wrong, but I belive you call yourself ponies, while this planets name is Eques and we're in a place called Ponyville."

Twilight nodded. "Precisely. The kingdom Princess Celestia and Princess Luna rule over is called Equestria, while there are other nations we should just skip them for now." She explained. "Now what I want to know next is how did you get here and are there any others who came with you?"

Trider pondered for a moment. "I'm not exactly certain how it happened, but one moment I was standing on a rooftop talking with an acquaintance of mine, when a light enveloped me and suddenly I was falling to the ground. When I landed I was in some sort of desert. Afterwards I tried to find my way to the nearest settlement and wandered off into this forest. There I was travelling for about two weeks before I found your sister and you pretty much know how the rest goes. As for if anybody else came here with me, I belive I came here alone, unless they got teleported somewhere else."

When he finished telling about his arrival Twilight looked at him with a fearful expression. "You said you landed here over two weeks ago, right?" He nodded. "Sweet Celestia."

"What's wrong Twilight?" asked Fluttershy in concern.

"Do you remember that spell I was trying out half a month ago." she asked and everypony nodded. "I think it may be the reason why Trider ended up in Equestria in the first place."

When she said that everypony realized she might be right, with the exception of the Kanisar who just looked at her. "Are you saying you brought me here?" She nodded. "How?"

Twilight took a pause to try and come up with the best way how to explain his presence here and her connection to it. "Well you see, over two weeks ago I was practicing some spells and when we were finishing off, I wanted to try a new spell that I came up with. It combined three different spells which would in the end allow me to observe events throughout space and time." Trider only nodded at everything she said, understanding only bits and pieces of what she was saying. "However the spell went awry and ended almost killing me and my assisstant, as well as destroying major part of the location where Iwas practising. I think that when the spell went haywire, it reached through space and time and someho dragged you from your world into ours." she finished off.

Trider just sat there trying to process everything that was told to him. "So you used some magic shit and accidentally brought me here?"

She nodded. "Yes." She closed her eyes and was expecting she would feel his righteous fury, but it didn't come. In fact when she opened her eyes he was smiling.

"That's great." If she wasn't confused she was certainly now. Why would he think this was great? He was taken from his own world, from his friends and family. How could he be so happy?

"What do you mean by 'great'?" she asked concerned.

"Well if you brought me here then that means you can also send me back, right?" he said in a happy tone.

Immediatelly Twilight felt even sadder. She almost didn't want to tell him, but it was better she told him the truth than to lie.

"Trider listen to me." He gave her all of his attention. "I can't send you back."

His smile wavered at the news and his expression changed to that of anger. "What do you mean you can't send me back? You brought me here so you can also send me back can't you?"

Before Twilight could reply, Celestia decided it would be better if she explained the situation to him. "Trider please calm down and listen to me. It's not Twilights fault you are currently here, she couldn't have known this would happen." he seemed to calm down a bit so she continued. "The reason why we can't send you back is because this spell is very difficult to preform perfectly and even if we could there are still too many variables to consider."

"Go on." he said.

She nodded. "She pulled you through space and time. Even if we knew where your planet was, we couldn't be certain you would land on it, thousands of hooves in the air or even in the planet itself. We can't be that precise. And even if by some chance we did succeed in safley teleporting you back, we still wouldn't be able to put in the right time. Who knows how far from the future or past Twilight pulled you from, so we would only be guessing at what time you dissappeared. So do you now understand why it is impossible to send you back?"

Trider gave a deep breath and nodded. Happy he didn't become angry Celestia smiled. All of sudden he swung his arm at the wall behind him, punching a hole in it and startling everypony. "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?" he shouted. "YOU MEAN TO TELL ME I'M STUCK ON THIS MOTHERFUCKING PLANET FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE, WHILE EVERYONE I KNOW IS EITHER DEAD OR HASN'T BEEN BORN YET?" Everypony just looked at him with pity, they couldn't even imagine what it feelt like to lose everyone and everything you ever knew and loved. "Dammit." he said just above whisper. "DAMMIT, DAMMIT DAMMIT, DAMMIT, DAMMIT." he yelled repeatedly and continuing to punch the wall, until he punched through it. Breathing heavily he finally began to settle down, his fist bleeding.

After he calmed down Celestia used her magic to fix the wall and heal the wound he caused himself. When he felt tingling on his wrist he looked at it seeing it glow in a golden aura. He then looked at Celestia and saw the same aura around her horn.

"What are you doing?" he asked her.

She gave him a warm smile and answered him. "Just healing your wound and fixing the mess you made."

"I know that, but I mean how are you doing it?"

She gave him a confused look. "I'm using my magic, can't you use it as well?"

It was his turn to be confused. "No I can't. What gave you the idea I could?"

She shifted her gaze to her student. "Twilight told me you used some sort of magic when you were fighting, as well when you saved Apple Bloom and two other mares."

It dawned onto Trider what she meant. "Oh that. That's not magic it's Ki."

"Ki?" asked everypony in the room simultaneously.

"Let me guess, you have no idea what that is?" They all nodded. "Well how do you guys use your magic?"

"It depends on what pony race you are." Twilight began to explain. "Earth ponies, like Applejack and Pinkie, use magic which helps them to grow and harvest different kinds of food and materials, while also possesing more physical strength than other races." She then pointed at Rainbow and Fluttershy. "Pegasi on the other hand can use magic that helps them fly and control the weather, as well as the ability to walk on clouds." Trider wanted to comment on that statement, but decided to ignore, because magic. "Next up are the unicorns, like myself and Rarity, and we can use ethereal magic, to move objects, teleport and pretty much anything we can be capable of." She demonstrated by levitating the jug that was on the nightstand. When she set it back down she continued. "And lastly are alicorns, the only ones being Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, since they posses trait of every other race they can also use all of their magic."

"i'm gonna guess this, but you guys use some form of energy inside yourself to manipulate objects around yourself and you call that magic. Am I right?" he asked.

"Actually that is exactly how we use magic." Twilight said impressed.

Trider smirked. "I'm too good." he thought. "Well manipulating is Ki similar to how you use magic, except we don't use this energy inside ourselves to manipulate our environment, but we use it in it pure raw form." He demonstrated by creating small energy ball in his hand. "This one of the basic forms of Ki manipulations. Once we create this energy we can reshape it to better suit our purpose." He made the ball dissappear and he continued. "Ki is directly connected to our bodies, it's almost like our lifeforce. And just like our bodies we can improve our Ki pool and ability to use through intense training and by keeping our bodies in shape."

"What about that thing yoa used when ya fought us, ya know that weird black smoke thing?" asked Applejack.

"That's right. I also wanted to ask you about that. What was that? It looked exactly like if you were using dark magic?"

Trider thought about what they were talking about when it came to him. "Oh you mean my Feral Unleashing? Everyone of my kind can use that."

"Feral Unleashing. What is that exactly and why do you call it that?" asked Princess Luna.

"Well you see my kind is closely related to wolfs and because of that we also have some of their instincts. Usually we can control them, but we can still get angry very quickly, if you haven't noticed already. However if we let those instincts loose, we unlock our more primal side, gaining incredible strength and speed, consequently greater Ki. But in turn we become highly aggressive and we partially loose control over ourselfs. By that I mean we loose our inhibitions and we no longer care if we kill our enemy."

After his explanation they all looked at him scared and worried. "So you can use your Feral Unleashing by getting angry? Isn't that kind of dangerous?" asked the concerned princess of the night.

He shook his head, before he explained further. "No, only children have that problem. For us adults it's easy to control when we use our Feral Unleashing, though there are cases when we still use it when we get extremely angry, but that is very rare. Usually we can use whenever we want it." A dark aura then enveloped him and his body transformed just like it did in the fight with the girls. The Mane 6 backed off, expecting him to attack, while Fluttershy hid behind the other bed in the room. Princess Luna however got into a battle stance and got ready to fight and Celestia only watched with curiosity. Trider laughed at their reaction. "Chill out guys, like I said I have complete control over myself even if I am like this." He then turned back to normal and everypony relaxed.

"Now I see why you call it Feral Unleashing, when you use that you look like a wild beast than a sapient creature." said Luna.

"Exactly."

The clock struck 7 o'clock and the sisters looked at each other. "We will have to leave soon dear sister." said the night princess.

"You are correct Luna, but there is still something we must talk about with our new friend." Celestia looked at Trider and spoke. "Since it is now clear you are here to stay I have to ask what do you intend to do?"

The Kanisar lowered his gaze and numerous thoughts began to flood his mind. "Can I even adapt to this world? And if I do, what will I do then? All I knew till now was how I can fight? Maybe I can join the military? Nah, that would mean I'd have to obey commands of some jackass. Maybe Icould find a job?" These and many more thoughts ran through his head until he sighed. "Frankly, I have no idea what I will do."

"Well until you do, I have a proposition for you." Celestia had his attention so she continued. "I will allow you to stay here in Equestria, give you food and shelter, until you can stand on your own two hooves. What do you say?"

Trider began to ponder what the princess offered him. "What's the catch?" he said looking her in the eyes. "There is no fucking way you would give me such an offer without a but."

Celestia giggled at how he phrased it. "You are correct. While I understand that you being here is out of your control, you are still an unknown factor. You proved to be quite violent as well as dangerous. So while you will be living here I want you to behave yourself and follow our laws." Trider could agree to that, but what she said next threw him for a loop. "And I also want you to make some friends, during your stay here."

He looked at her like she just said he had told him to shave his head and gave her a deadpanned look. "Seriously." She just smiled and nodded. "Fine I guess I can do that much."

"Excellent. Now for where you'll be staying." Saying that she looked at Twilight. "I think it would only be fair, that the one who brought you here would also be the one to house you, until you get your own place."

Twilight looked between her teacher and her soon to be guest. "It would be my pleasure."

"Watch what you say, Sparkle. Each one of my roommates would disagree with that statement." He laughed and the others soon joined in. Then they heard a loud rumbling. They looked at Trider and he scratched his head. "Heh, guess it's dinner time."

"It is rather late, everypony should go back home. I belive you all have things you have to do." said Princess Celestia.

They all nodded and Rainbow even yawned. The doors then opened up and in walked nurse Red Heart with a trolley and a plate of food on it. "Hope you're hungry." she said.

"Like a wolf. No pun intended." he replied.

She put the plate on the extendable table on the bed and Trider just stared at it.

"Is something wrong?" asked the nurse seeing his displeasure.

"Yeah," he replied. "Where's the meat?"

Everypony in the room turned pale and looked at the Kanisar with shock and fear.

"What?" he asked confused. "All I want is some meat, is that really so much to ask for?"

Chapter 3: A Party To Remember; Who Wants Cake?

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 4: The Morning After; The Alien Is Trying To Take Our Jobs

It was another beautiful morning in the small town of Ponyville. Everypony was happy and smiling. Well, almost everypony.

"Aughhhhhh. Would someone turn off the fucking Sun?" wailed Trider as he covered his face with a pillow. He was having the worst headache and the sunlight that shone through the window made it even worse. Eventually though he got out of the bed and slowly made his way to the bedroom door. When he opened the door, it squeaked and it made the man drop on his knees. "Ahhhh." he shouted but quickly stopped as it made his headache worse and it made it ring in his ears. "I feel like crap." he whispered. "Da fuck happened last night? I can't remember anything, since Pinkie gave me some of her cake." He stood up and went to the mirror in his room to look at himself. What he saw made him cringe. He had bags under his bloodshot eyes and he was pale enough to give Rarity a run for her money. His hair was so messy he actually considered combing it for the first time in his life, but what was worse, his beautiful tail was almost as bad.

"I better get a good explanation of what happened to me or I swear to whatever deity that chose to watch over me, that I will shank someone."

Once done looking himself over, he headed downstairs and into the kitchen. Weirdly enough he couldn't smell anything until he was in the kitchen itself. Like always Spike was there preparing his morning meal. He made as little noise as he could so that he didn't stimulate his headache. When he pulled out a chair to take a seat Spike finally noticed him and turned away from th stove to greet him.

"Hey there Trider, didn't see-" he was was cut off as the Kanisar put a finger to his mouth and shushed him. He masaged his head before he replied in a whisper.

"Spike buddy, can you please keep it down, I am having the worst fucking headache. It feels like a bunch of rhinos got together to practice step dancing inside my head."

Spike looked at the man with pity. "Well you certainly look the part. It's like you went eight rounds with a manticore and then three more with Rarity." Trider nodded and put his head on the table. "Want me to make you some toast and eggs?" asked the drake.

"Please and thank you."

In that moment twilight walked into the room, yawning and stretching her arms. "Good morning everypony." she said in a happy tone. Unfortunately it was also very loud. Trider grabbed his ears and began to make crying noises.

"Please make it stop." he whimpered.

Twilight looked at him, already realizing what was wrong. "Do you have a headache trider?" she asked him. The Kanisar nodded and Twilight got a small grin. "Do you want me to use a spell to make the pain go away?"

Trider focused his attention at the mare. He looked at her like a small puppy would at their master when they didn't give them attention. "Please." the way he said it and how he looked, when he said it, made the mares heart skip a beat. She blushed and casted her spell. A lavender aura surrounded Triders head and immediatelly the headache was gone, but he still felt tired like hell.

A sigh of relief left his mouth and he gave the mare a big smile. "Twilight, you are the best friend someone could have." He stepped over to her and hugged her. "I could just kiss you right now." If Twilight wasn't blushing before, she certainly was now.

She cleared her throat and gently nudged him. "Ummm, I am all for hugs and such, but this is kind of awkward." Trider let go of her just enough so he could look her in the eyes.

"Why? Am I that bad of a hugger?" he tilted his head one of his ears folding in the process.

"I-It's not that." She tried to compose herself and continued. "It's just that you're not wearing anything right now."

Trider let go of the mare so he could look at himself and true to her words he was lacking any clothes besides his boxer. He raised a brow at Twilight. "So?" he asked. "Is there a rule I should be wearing clothes when I show affection to someone, for helping me?"

The unicorn wanted to tell him why it would be considered kind of wrong, until she realized who she was talking to. This man had almost no sense of shame. One time he forgot to take a towel with him to the bathroom and he ended up walking butt naked to the library room just to ask her if there were any spare ones. Luckily they were alone at the time, but it didn't help the mare, as the vision of him in the nude etched itself into her mind.

She sighed as they both sat back down into their chairs. "I'm just glad you don't walk around town without any clothes.""

The statement made Trider glare at the mare. "What is that supposed to mean?"

She gave him an 'are you kidding me' look as she spoke. "You walk around the library almost bare naked everyday and you ask me why I think you would do something like that in public."

"Ok, just because I like to feel comfortable in my home doesn't mean I'll go out into Ponyville and flash myself at the passerbys." The mare gave him a skeptical look doubting what he said. "Besides aren't you glad you are the only one who gets to enjoy a private show." A giant smirk spread across his face, when Twilight began to blush again. "C'mon you know you like it."

A book, Twilight was carrying with her, suddenly hit him in the face and he fell out of his chair. She huffed and focused on the plate in front of her, that Spike brought to the table. "That wasn't a no." Trider said from the floor.

"Can't we talk about something else?" she asked as the man got back in his chair.

Trider pick up his fork, reday to dig in. "Actually do you know what happened last night, cuz all I can remember is eating Pinkies cake then nothing."

Twilight swallowed her bite and locked eyes with him. "You really can't remember anything?" she asked. Trider took a bite out of his toast and shook his head. Twilight looked at her glass of water and took a sip. "You got drunk last night, got out of control and wrecked the party."

Trider stared at her, with full mouth. "Noh whay!" He downed the food with some water. "I can't get drunk. The amount I drank last night wasn't even close to what I usually consumed when we had a party back home."

Twilight put the fork down as she placed her head on her hands. "It wasn't the drinks that got you drunk, but the cake Pinkie gave you." Trider looked away from his plate and looked at the mare in shock. He wanted to say something, but she stopped him. "And before you get all angry, let me explain something. It wasn't Pinkies fault. None of us knew you would react like that to the cake, or to be more specific the chocolate." Once she was certain he calmed down she continued. "When you ate a small piece of the cake, you suddenly started to experience great pain, you also began to breath heavily and cough uncontrollaby. Soon you collapsed and fainted, afterwards however you got up and were downright drunk. Then you picked a fight with a stallion and began to blast at the poor guy."

Trider wanted to bury his head into the ground. "So I guess what I felt this morning was the hangover?" The mare nodded in conformation. "So that what it felt like." he rubbed his forehead and sighed. "I'm not touching any chocolate ever again, I don't think I can survive another hangover like that."

"You shouldn't avoid it just becasue it makes you drunk." Twilight said. He looked at her waiting for an explanation. "The amount you ate last night was small and it almost killed you. If you were to ingest an even bigger amount you would've probably died."

Trider gulped and went back to eating his food. "Well at least nothing else happened."

Twilight smiled awkwardly before she spoke. "Well, while everypony was escaping from the party me and the girls tried to get to you and stop you, but were swept away by the mass. Except for Applejack though." Trider paid her half mind since he guessed they successfully stopped him somehow. "And when she grabbed to stop you, you kissed her."

Triders eyes nearly jumped out of his sockets and he choked on his food. After he cleard his windpipes, he looked at the mare incredulously, hoping he heard wrong. "You're kidding right, there is no way I would've done something like that, even if I was drunk." He looked at her trying to catch any sign she was lying, but was met with a stoic expression. "Aw shit." was all he could say.

Spike laughed at his misfortune and began singing. "Trider and Applejack sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-" He was stopped when Trider slammed his head into his plate, his breakfast all over his face.

Twilight looked at the man with concern as he began to pull at his hair. "Trider are you ok, do you want to talk over this?"

He shook his head and went back to finishing his meal. "No, no. No need for that. I'm fine, it will all blow over eventually." He put another piece of toast in his mouth and swallowed quickly. "Can we change the topic please?" he pleaded, hoping the mare wouldn't dig further into this.

Twilight gave him one more look, before she sighed and spoke. "Well there is one more thing we have to talk about, while we are both here."

"And that is?" he questioned.

Twilight pulled out a local newspaper and opened it up on the job section. "About your job."

Trider just stared at the paper and sighed. "Aw double shit."

Meanwhile at Sweet Apple Acres

Applejack laid in her bed shifting beneath the covers. By now she would be working on the farm, helping Big Mac with applebucking, but she decided to sleep in this morning so she could go to the party last night and still get enough sleep for todays work. But sleep evaded her all night, the memories of what happened with Trider running through her mind. She blushed when she remembered when he kissed her.

"Why didn't ah push him away?" she thought. "Why didn't it feel unpleasant?"

"I always liked cow-girls." That sentence ran through her mind and somehow making her happy.

She shook her head frustrated and got out of bed. "Buck this." she said as she head onto the fields so she could clear her head.

It has been several days since the party and despite what happened most of the ponies in the town forgave Trider for what he did at the party, even the stallion he assaulted accepted his apology. Since then he has been going from place to place trying to get employed. It wasn't going so well.

"I'm back." he shouted wehen he entered the library. Twilight was lying on the couch, reading one of her many books. She looked at him and sighed.

"Let me guess you didn't get it, right." she said in a deadpanned voice.

Trider smiled sheepishly and answered the mare. "Yeah."

"This is the sixth job you applied for and didn't get." She rubbed her temples and took a deep breath. "I don't get it how you can be so bad at all these jobs."

He scowled. "C'mon I'm not that bad."

Twilight closed her book and stood up, slowly waking towards him. "Oh yeah? How about that time when you 'accidentally' spilled hot tea over a customer, just because he tried to ask you to retake his order, after you brought him a wrong one?" she said. "Or when you tried to work as a cashier and punched the manager when he yelled at you for sleeping on the job, which you actually did?" At that point Trider wanted to say something to defend himself, but Twilight continued. "And don't even get me started on your attempt as a postcolt. How do you set a garden fountain on fire?"

"That was just like the foodtruck incident." he thought. "Magic?" The mare just shook her head at his attempt at being humorous. "Look all those jobs weren't made to suit how I do things. I like to fight, I am great at lifting heavy things and I like to stay in motion, otherwise I just fall asleep." He took a deep breath and looked at Twilight. "Isn't there any job that fits those descriptions?"

Twilight thought and came up with an idea. "There is actually." she said. Trider looked at her, hoping it would be something he could handle. "You could her Applejack and her siblings at Sweet Apple Acres, they could always use a hand when it comes to apple harvesting and other farm work."

The Kanisars pupils shrunk at the thought of working the cow-mare. "Nope, no way in hell."

Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes. "C'mon Trider don't be such a foal. You have been avoiding Applejack and the farm, like they were some sort of plague. Can't you just go to her and try to sort things out."

Trider thought back over the past few days. Like Twilight said, he has been avoiding Applejack at every moment he could. And if they would just so happen to walk by each other, they would look the other way and not even say a word to each other. it kind of got on his mind now that he thought about it. He always liked to exchange a word with the mare and listen to some of her stories.

He sighed as he looked at Twilight. "Fine, guess i can try working there."

Twilight smiled and went back to the couch so she could continue her book. "Excelent, I have already told Applejack that you'll be coming tomorrow morning."

Trider gave her an annoyed look. "You planned for this, haven't you?"

The mare grinned, before replying. "Maaaaybe." Trider decided to take a shower after his long day and began to scale the stairs, until Twilight shouted at him. "Oh and you better go to bed early, cause you'llhave to be at Sweet Apple Acres as soon as the sun rises."

Trider took a deep breath. "GODDAMN PIECE OF FUCKING SHIT."

Next morning

Trider was making his way towards the farm, as the sun slowly ascended over the horizon. He didn't want to do this, but he knew he had to. Soon he spotted the sign over the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres. He stopped under it and took a deep breath.

"Okay Trider you can do this." he thought. "Just go in there do the task they give you and also try to talk to Applejack about what happened at the party." With his mind made up he strode up to the barn and the nearby house.

As he got close he spotted, somepony moving around the barn. When he got close he saw it was a stallion Applejack always spoke about. Her big brother Big Mac. And the name suited him. He was nearly as tall Luna and he had so many muscles it made trider look skinny, compared to him. He had a bright red coat with an orange mane and tail. His warderobe was very simple, consisting only of a white T.shirt and a pair of blue jeans.

The Kanisar walked up to the stallion and greeted him. "Hey there, you must be Big Mac. Your sis told me a lot about you. My name is Trider, it's good to meet ya." He presented his hand to shake with the giant. Big Mac looked at him, then gripped his hand in a monstorus grip, but to Trider it felt like a normal one.

"Hiya, it's nice to meet ya too. Mah sis told me a lot about ya too." he said eyes narrowed and a small scowl present.

Trider gave an awkward smile. "Heh heh, hopefully only good things." He cleared his throat and let go of the stallions hand. "Do you know where I can find her. I was supposed to meet with her so we could arrange for me to work here."

Big Mac pointed towards the house. "Ya'll find her in there."

Trider nodded and began to walk towards the house. "Thanks man."

When he reached he knocked on the door. "Comin." he heard a young voice call out. The door was opened by the filly he saved from the Everfree Forest, Apple Bloom he believed was her name. She looked up at their guest and he smiled at her.

"Hey there twerp, is your sis here, I was told to meet her about my job here." he said in a calm voice.

Apple Bloom looked inside the house and shouted. "Sis yer coltfriend arrived." They could hear shuffling and rapid hoofsteps heading towards the door. "She'll be here soon."

Suddenly out of one of the rooms practically ran the flustered mare, stepping to her sister and giving her a stern glare. "I told ya he ain't mah coltfriend, we're jus friends." Her gaze then shifted to the man at the door. "O-Oh h-heya there T-Trider." she stuttered. She cleared her throat, before speaking up again. "Yer here early."

"Y-yeah." he replied and scratched the back of his head.

There was an awkward silence as they just stood there, not saying anything. Apple Bloom then decided to butt in. "Don't ya two have work ta do?"

That got them out of their stupor and they started to go through the door. "Yeah we got a lotta things ta do. If ya would follow me now Trider?"

"S-sure." he stuttered his reply. Apple Bloom just watched the two and shook her head.

The two went over to the barn and collocted multiple baskets and put them into the cart. They headed towards the southern part of the apple orchard and once they arrived they went to work. At first Applejack showed Trider what exactly he had to do and the man immediatelly liked it. All he had to do was punch or kick the trees, to make the apples fal out of them and collect them into the baskets. Once a basket was full, he had to load them into the cart and when the cart was full he had to return to the barn, unload the apples and then head back to the orchard to repeat the process. It was simple, it involved activity and he could punch and kick all he wanted.

However once the tutorial was over, silence fell over the two yet again. They worked like that for several hours, until Trider couldn't take it anymore.

"Applejack listen," he said, gaining the mares attention. "About what happened at the party, I just want to..." he trailed off. The Kanisar took a deep breath and continued. "I just want to say that I'm sorry for what I did and I hope you are not mad at me."

The mare looked him in the eyes, then she spoke up. "Ah ain't mad at ya sugarcube, I'm just... Confused ah guess. Ah wasn't expecting ya to do what ya did." She paused as she collected her thoughts.

Trider decided to speak up. "Look how about we just forget any of that ever happened and just continue to be good friends."

Applejack looked at him confused. "Since when have ya considered me a friend?" she asked the man.

The Kanisar rubbed his neck as he answered. "Since now I guess. If you forgive me for the kiss I'll forgive you for putting me in a hospital." He offered her his hand. "What do you say?"

She looked at him a smile spreading across her face. "Ya got yerself a deal partner." She spit in her hand and shook Triders. When they retracted their hands she had another thing to ask him. "So when are ya gonna forgive the other two?"

Trider shrugged. "When they prove they can be forgiven and not before that."

The mare laughed and they went back to work, conversing and exchanging stories about what happened since the party, late into the day.

Author's Note

A short one this time. But just because it's short doesn't mean it sucks.
That's not what she said.
Goddamit Pinkie, you just had to do it didn't you?
Yup.
Anyway as always leave a comment on what you thought, if there are any mistakes, if I should change something or if you have any questions.
See you later.

Chapter 5: Dragons Quest; Wolfs Decision

"WAILING NOVA SPHERE!" followed by a loud explosion was all that could be heard from somewhere in the middle of the Sweet Apple Acres apple orchard. Trider stood in front of a pile of rubble that once was a big boulder. "So three is still my limit." he thought as he wiped the sweat from his head. "Though I don't have much time to train myself, with all the work I have and all the time I spend with the girls and Spike."

He sat down and leaned on a nearby tree, so he could take a rest from all the training he has been doing. Ever since his body completely healed, he has tried to focus on getting his body into the proper shape, before he was hospitalized. At first he only ran around town and did some exercise near the Everfree, but since he started working for Applejack she allowed him to use this part of the orchard to practise his Ki manipulation. At first he tried to refuse, as he thought he would destroy the trees during his training and he didn't want to hurt one of the major incomes the Apple family had. But she reassured him that this part hasn't been used in years due to the apples not growing any crops on them, so he could let loose all he wanted.

He tried to get some shut-eye, but a loud roar interrupted his attempt. He jumped on his feet, expecting some wild animal to attack. But there was no sign of anything approaching him. He heard another roar, this time more clearly. Following his ears he directed his gaze towards the horizon. There he saw some sort of a weird cloud, which seemed to be alive. He looked at it for a few more moments, before he realized what it was.

"The dragon migration." he exclaimed, turning around and running out of the orchard as fast as he could. "Twilight will have a fit, if I come to the meeting point even a second too late. That mare, sometimes I just want to take one of her schedules and shove it up her ass." He paused as he ran past the trees. "Although she would probably like that, I mean she already has a stick in there."

Later

Trider was quickly making his way twoards the trench th girls dug out, while the dragons flew overhead. Every once in a while, a dragon would smack into another and they would in turn breathe fire to retaliate. The attack would however miss and instead hit nearby scenery. As he looked at the swarm, he was impressed at how big they were. "Wonder if Spike will grow to be that big?" he thought. "Cuz if he does I'll definetly ride into battle."

When he was just a few feet away, he saw the drake leaving the trench, sulking, while the girls watched him leave. When he got close enough he spoke to the young lad. "Hey there Spike everything ok?" The dragon only glanced at him before continuing to walk away. Trider decided that if he didn't want to talk about it he wouldn't pry. "Nice apron by the way." he commented.

Spike screamed in frustration and flailed his arms. "Augh, not you too."

The Kanisar looked at him with confusion, before directing his gaze at the mares. He approached them and descended into the safe haven. He looked around and saw all of the girls wearing camouflage, with the exception of Fluttershy, who wasn't present, and Rarity, who completely missed the definition of stealth wear, instead opting to be the main target for the fire breathing beasts above them.

He approached Twilight and crouched down next to her. "Fluttershy got scared, didn't she." The mare nodded. "Figures." Trider didn't hang out with the meek mare, that often, everytime he did though it ended with her running away. The Kanisar didn't hate Fluttershy, but he also didn't like her. It was in his nature to despise cowardice, on his planet there existed an unspoken rule that only the strong survive. So it was inevitable for him to ignore the pegasus mare, but her kind nature somehow rubbed on him, so he tolerated her.

"Can someone tell me what was up with Spike?" Trider asked the group. "He looked like Rarity does when she sees me everytime we meet."

"Nothing we just told him that he is not like the other dragons." said Rainbow Dash. "He got angry all of a sudden and walked away."

Trider narrowed his eyes as he got skeptical. "What did you tell him exactly?"

Rarity decided to explain the man what happened. "When Spike came here, with refreshments he commented on how ferocious his kind can be and we told him that he is nothing like them and that he is such a sweetheart."

Applejack decided to add to her statement. "We might've also made fun of how he acts like us ponies and not like a dragon."

Trider looked at them in disbelief and facepalmed. "You guys are a bunch of fucking idiots." They glared at him waiting for an explanation. "When you said that to him it was like telling a cat it's not a cat because it acts like a dog. Spike now thinks he is not a dragon, because he doesn't act like one."

Realization dawned onto the girls and they wanted to get Spike so they could apologize, but Trider stopped them. "Talking to him won't help now, the damage is done." He paused as he scratched his head. "Best thing to do right now is to let him figure it out by himself." The mares wanted to argue, but found his statement to be true. So they setled back down into the trench and continued to watch the migration.

Next morning

Trider woke up, well rested for once in a long time. He didn't have to work on the farm today so he could sleep a little longer. When he looked at the clock he realised it was already 9 o'clock. "Is Twilight sick or something?" he thought as he got up and dressed. When he was heading downstairs he heard the mare and Spike conversing with one another. When he reached the bottom stair, he took in the sight that was before him.

All around books were lying in piles on the floor and in the middle a tired Twilight and Spike were reading some of them at that moment.

"nothing in this one either." said the mare as she put the book she was reading onto a pile.

Trider cleared his throat to get the duos attention. "What in hell are you two doing?" he asked once they looked at him.

Twilight got up and streched herself. "We are looking for any books about dragons, because Spike wants to learn about them." She then looked around the room and sighed. "But we haven't managed to find anything." The mare picked up a random book and began to look through it. "It seems ponies don't know much about dragons as they are extremely rare and very dangerous to approach, even more to study them."

At those words tears began to well in the drake eyes and he sniffled. The mare approached him with a tissue. "Oh Spike, don't worry I'm sure-"

She was cut off as Spike gently pushed her away and walked around the room. "It's okay Twilight I'm gonna discover who I am if it's the last thing I do." As soon as he said that the doors to the library slammed open, startling the young dragon.

"Good morning darling." greeted Rarity as she walked into the room. "I was wondering if you and Spike would like to join me for breakfast?" Her eyes then met with Triders and she huffed. "You are not invited however." she said pointing at the man.

The Kanisar scoffed, before he replied. "Like you can stop me."

The two glared at each other, until Twilight decided to step in. "We would love to Rarity, in fact I am quite famished."

"Well count me out." All eyes were on the drake as he said that. "I have to get an early start."

The others looked between each other, before Rarity asked. "An early start for what exactly?"

Spike nodded. "Yes. I'm going on a quest of self discovery, to learn what it means to be a dragon." he said in determination. "And the only way I can do that is by joining the dragon migration."

"WHAT?" the mares shouted at Spikes proclamation, while Trider looked at him with intrigue. Rarity stepped over to the drake as he went over to a wardrobe pulling out a backpack and some spare clothes. "Spike, sweetie whatever are you talking about, you can't go with those dragons. They are big, mean and ferocious."

Spike looked at her as he went into the kitchen to grab some snacks for the trip. "And that is exactly why I have to go. To learn what it means to be a dragon."

Rarity wanted to argue further, but was cut off by Trider. "Just let him go Rarity, it's for the better."

The mare gave the man such a glare it gave Fluttershys stare a run for its money. "What are you saying? Do you want for Spike to get hurt, while he is with those dragons?" She slowly made her way to him as she spoke. "Don't you care for one of your best friends?"

It was Triders turn to glare at the mare. "Listen here bitch, I don't want Spike getting hurt as much as you do. But this is something he has to do. You made him doubt about who he is and if this journey helps him to discover that then let him." He got so close to her face their noses nearly touched. "Once he sees what dragons are like and how they live, then he will make his decision and we have no right to stop him."

They glared at each other, until Rarity looked over to Twilight and begged her. "Twilight please tell him not to go. It's too dangerous for somepony like him to go on such a dangerous trip."

Twilight looked between the fashionista and Spike. She levitated a couple of water bottles out of the kitchen and handed them over to Spike. He looked at her and smiled. "Really?"

Twilight closed her eyes as she hugged her assistant. "I couldn't help you find the answers to the questions you are looking for and if this journey, no a quest, helps you find out who you are, then who are we to stop you." She said looking at Rarity.

The white mare rubbed her arm and sighed in defeat. "I guess you're right Twilight." Trider just looked at her and gave her the 'are you serious' look while she wasn't watching.

Twilight turned to Spike again. "Well I guess this is goodbye. We can't wait to hear all about how your quest went when you get back."

Spike smiled as he began to head towards the door. "Thanks everypony and I know that I will get the answers to my questions." When he said that he began to walk off, filled with determination.

The mares stood in front of the door watching as their dragon friend strode off towards his destiny.

"Goodbye Spikey Wikey." Rarity shouted as Spike headed towards the edge of Ponyville.

When he was out of ear reach she looked towards Twilight and whispered. "We are following him right?"

"Absolutely." the mare replied.

Trider just looked at the two and sighed. "You guys are hopeless."

A few days later

Spike arrived at the edge of a giant crater and gazes upon all the dragons that reside there. He starts to doubt about doing this, until he spots a group of younger, yet still older than him dragons. "Teen dragons. They are more up to my speed." he said as he descended down the slope.

Unbeknownst to him another figure appears at the edge where he stood not a moment ago. "Are you sure the dragons won't see through our diguse Rarity." asked Twilight.

"Don't worry darling, they would have to be clairvoyant to see through this masterpiece." Happy with the answer the two mares decide to join the drake at the bottom.

Spike slowly approached the group of dragons and began to notice they were brawling with one another. As he got closer the teens failed to notice him. Clearing his throat, he got their attention and spoke. "Hi there my name is Spike." The dragons looked at him confused, before one of them spoke up.

"You sure you're name is Spike and not shrimp." The dragons began to laugh at Spike. True despite them being only teenagers they still stood about a head and a half taller than him.

Spike began to loose his confidence as the group continued to insult him. The mares who were watching the scene play out wanted to go forth and help him, but decided against it. Suddenly one of the dragons pushed the others away so he could get to Spike. "C'mon guys give him a break. If we don't stop he might fly away." He got behind Spike and turned him around so the others could see his back. "That is if he had wings to begin with." The dragons began to laugh again.

Spike almost began to cry, when a figure stepped forward. "Real tough picking on the small guy. You guys are sooo scary." the figure said in a mocking tone. All of a sudden all attention was focused on the newcomer and what they saw made the dragons confused, while Spike and the two mares only gaped in shock.

"And who in Tartarus do you think you are?" asked the dragon who was teasing Spike about his wings.

The figure stepped forward to reveal the Kanisar, grinning at the dragon. "Just a friend of Spikes."

The dragons got ready to fight this stranger, while Spike loked at his friend fear in his voice. "Trider what are you doing here? If you don't get out soon these guys will kill you."

The dragon glared at the man and spoke. "Yeah, what he said. But I am curious of what are you and how you got here? Would you mind telling us before we burn you where you stand."

Trider smiled and shrugged. "I just walked in here, it was quite easy actually. No one even glanced at me. As for who am I and why I'm here." He pointed a thumb at his chest and continued. "My name's Trider, I'm a Kanisar and I came here to see if you guys are everything you are they say about you. And I won't take no for an answer, I didn't come all the way from Ponyville just to be told to fuck off."

The teenage dragon looked into his eyes and glared. "You said you're from Ponyville and judging by that Spike is as well, right?" Trider nodded. "A pony town. So you are friends with the namby pamby ponies." He laughed and his friends joined. "I bet you guys are just as soft as those losers are."

Trider walked up to the dragon and gave him a deathly glare. "I might be friends with the ponies, but I can assure you, I am far more fiercer than any pony or even a dragon out there."

Something in the way he spoke and how he looked at him made the dragon shiver. "Then lets see how tough you are wolf-boy." He turned around and looked around. He spotted a giant boulder the size of a small house. He pointed at it and grinned. "If you can destroy that rock in just one attack I'll consider you an honorary dragon."

The Kanisar looked at his target and smirked. "You're lizard breath." He started to approach the boulder, when Spike grabbed at his shoulder.

"Dude, I don't know why you are doing this, but there is no way you can do what he just told you to do." Spike said in a worried tone.

Trider just looked at him and gave him a small smile. "Spike buddy, you don't know the half of what I can do." Saying that he continued towards the rock until he was only several feet away. Once he thought he was close enough he raised his right hand and closed his eyes. He focused his Ki into the centre of his hand until a small orb, no bigger than his palm, appeared. It was swirling in blue color and every so often would ripple. The dragons and the mares watched in awe as the orb formed, seeing how beautiful and powerful it looked. Then Trider focused even more energy into it making it grow even more. When it was double the size of his fist, the Kanisar swung his arm forward, launching the orb at the boulder.

"WAILING NOVA SPHERE!" he screamed as the orb left his hand. As it was flying it made the sound, firecrackers made when they flew into the sky. When it connected, a blinding light enveloped nearby area and then a loud explosion sounded off.

Once everyones ears stopped ringing and their eyes readjusted to the light. Their jaws dropped at what they saw or rather what they didn't. Where once stood the rock now there was only a crater. Trider turned around to the crowd and bowed. The dragons immediatelly started to cheer and holler. The dragon from before approached the man and grabbed him by the shoulders.

"That was the most awesome thing I've ever seen. You completely obliterated that rock." he said in a loud tone.

Trider shoved his claws off of him and grinned at the drake. "Does that mean I'm one of you guys now?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

The dragon laughed as he put an arm across his shoulders and led him to the others. "You better believe it, you are one of us now." As they continued to walk the drake offered his hand to Trider. "The names Garble by the way, you said your name was Trider, right?" He nodded and gave his companion a look over.

Garble had red scales covering his body, while his underbelly was light yellow color. Orange spikes extended all the way from the top of his head to the tip of his tail. He wore a simple grey T-shirt and brown shorts.

Once they reached all the other, the dragons picked up the Kanisar and began to chant his name. Trider laughed along with the rest. "I really like these guys." he thought.

"All right Trider way to go." The sound of Spikes cheers made the dragons stop their celebration, as they put Trider on the ground and looked at the young drake.

Garble got close to him and scoffed. "Don't think you are part of us, just cause he is your friend doesn't mean we don't have trials specifically for you."

Spike gulped and looked at his friend with pleading eyes. The man just shrugged. "Sorry Spike, but that is something you have to do by yourself."

The drake looked downtrodden as Garble led him away to begin his tests. "You heard him, he ain't gonna help you out of this, shrimp."

As they were leaving the others followed and eventually only trider and the disguiesed mares remained alone. They approached the man and Twilight gave him an earful. "How could you do something like that to him? He trusted you to help him out?"

"That's right, you abandoned the poor Spikey wikey to those mean dragons." Rarity piped in.

"You guys pamper him too much, sometimes he has to stand on his own damn two feet and do what he thinks is right." he paused as he took a deep breath. "If we always help him out he won't ever be able to do things on his own and he will rely on us to save him out of his mess."

Twilight sighed and looked at the man. "Maybe you're right, but can't you show him at least some love or are you that cold hearted?"

"I am giving him love." He paused as he gave her a soft look. "It's called tough love."

The mares just rolled their eyes at his statement and they began to follow their dragon friend. "Why are you even here if you don't care what happens to Spike anyway?"

"Didn't you hear me when I spoke with Garble?" He asked the mare and she shook her head. "I'm here cuz, just like Spike, I'm curious what dragons usually act like. And I've gotta say, I ain't dissapointed."

"How can you get along with these brutes? They are uncivilized, only think with their fists..." Rarity paused. "You know what never mind."

"Ouch, that almost hurt." Trider said in sarcasm. He then proceeded to scratch his head as he continued. "I guess these dragons act a lot like my people did back home, so it feels kind of natural to be around these guys."

The mares looked at him and decided to remain quiet, as to not stimulate any more of his memories of his home.

"This is the best party I ever had." said Spike as he laid down into the pile of gems. He has successfull completed one of his trials and was now accepted by the other dragons. They celebrated this momentous occasion by gorging themselves on gems.

"Yeah, maybe by pony standards, but this wasn't anything amazing." Garble said as he threw a gem in his mouth. Suddenly an idea crossed his mind. He got up and turned to the other dragons. "I know, we should have a dragon raid. I think I saw a phoenix nest not too far away from here."

He didn't get much of a response as most of the dragons were, lying down too full to participate in the activity. However two other dragons, a large brown one with blue horns and a skinny purple one with blonde spikes that somehow went over his eyes, jumped to the occasion and joined Garble. The red dragon then looked at Spike and Trider and asked them as well. "You guys wanna come too?"

Trider lifted his head from the ground, where he was lying, and looked at the small group. "Nah, I just wanna rest here for a bit more. That blast I used back then took too much out of me." he said, lowering his head back down.

"Guess that means you're coming with us Spike." He looked at the young drake and began to flap his wings.

Spike looked around himself and tried to come up with an excuse. "I would love to guys, but I uh..." he trailed off. "But I can't fly so I guess you'll be going without me."

Garble rolled his eyes as he ordered the larger dragon to pick up Spike and carry him to their destination. As they were leaving Twilight and Rarity tried to follow, but realised they wouldn't be able to catch to them very soon. Twilight casted her gaze at the resting man. "Aren't you going to follow them?" she asked.

Trider didn't even put in the effort to raise his head like he did with Garble and replied. "Nope."

"Let's just leave him Twilight, he certainly won't help us." Rarity said to the mare. Twilight sighed, before they once again began to chase down the dragons.

As they were leaving Trider opened one of his eyes and looked at the running mares. He sighed as he lifted himself off the ground and dusted himself off. "Better go check they don't get themselves killed." he thought as he walked behind the two.

The dragons were hiding in bush, near a tree where the phoenixes made their nest. "Alright we need someone to distract the parents, while the rest of us snatch the eggs." said Garble. Everyone then looked at Spike as he began to sweat.

They pushed him out of the bush into the open. Spike didn't know what to do so he tried to talk to the birds, but it had no effect. Annoyed at his attempts, Garble tossed Spike a stone. "Use this idiot."

Spike looked at the stone and quickly caught onto what the red dragon wanted him to do. "Birdbrain look at me." he shouted before he tossed the stone. it hit one of the bird on the head and they got enraged. They flew out of their nests, set themselves on fire and began to chase the drake. Spike ran as fast as his legs could carry him, screaming for help.

While the parents chased Spike theother dragons, left their hideout and flew up to the nest. When they reached it they were dissappointed at what they saw. Most of the eggs were already hatched.

"What do we do now?" asked one of the other dragons.

Garble grinned maliciously and answered. "We take the hatchlings then." The other two shared his grin and they reached to grab the newborns.

The babies however began to fly around avoiding their captors. Eventually the dragons chased the hatchlings all over the woods. At the time Spike was still being chased by the parents, until the phoenixes heard the cries of their children. Quickly turning around they headed back to protect their newborns. Spike stopped to catch his breath decided to head back to the others as well.

The dragons were still chasing the little birds when the parents showed up and quickly began to guide them away from the attackers. They however didn't want to give up so easily. They gave chase and were slowly catching up to the flock. Then one of the parents turned around and unleashed a powerful light that blinded the dragons and they crashed into a tree.

Meanwhile Spike got back to the spot where the nest used to be. As he looked around he spotted an egg with a fire pattern across it. "Well hello there little guy." he cooed.

Just then Garble and the other two came back as well angry their prey got away. "Damn those stupid birds. This whole raid was for nothing." Garble rumbled. When he saw what Spike had in his claws, his expression lightened up. "All right Spike you managed to get one of the eggs. Way to go dude."

Spike rubbed the back of his head with his free claw and blushed. "Aww geez. Thanks Garble."

Suddenly the red dragons expression turned malicious. "Now smash it."

The young drake had to do a double take at what he said. "E-Excuse, me what?" he stammered.

"You heard me smash the egg."

They started to chant for Spike to do what Garble told him to do. The drake began to sweat as he didn't know what to do. Slowly he began to raise his hand over his head, ready to throw the egg to the ground.

"No." he said as he quickly lowered his arm and hugged the egg.

The dragons looked at him confused. "What did you say?" asked Garble in disbelief.

Spike straightened his back and raised his voice, hoping to scare them somewhat. "I said I'mnot gonna do it."

Garble glared at the young drake making him backpeddal. "No one say no to me." The dragons began to approach Spike as he continued to back away. Suddenly the drakes back collided with a solid mass. He turned around and gazed up on the dragon that stood behind him. Expecting the dragon to attack him he closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable. But it never came.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw twilight and Rarity standing where the dragon once stood. He looked at them in disbelief. "You guys followed me?" he asked.

"We're sorry Spike, but we didn't want you to get hurt, sowe decided to help you out." Spike looked at the two and shook his head.

"it's okay, I'm glad you came along." he said.

Garble decided he had enough of this touching reunion and interjected. "Are these your pony friends, Spike?"

"Yes." Spike said in confidence and took a step forward. "And if you don't stand down, we will show you what us ponies can do."

"He's right." said Twilight, agreeing with her drake friend.

"I usually don't like to get my hooves dirty, but if you so much lay a claw on one of his precious scales, I'll show you what Tartarus looks like." Rairty said as she got into a battle stance, Twilight following.

"Oh yeah and what exactly are you going to do?" asked Garble not afraid of their threats.

Spike looked at him with determination. "Run away!" he shouted as said determination vanished. The mares looked at each other and ran after the drake. The other dragons were confused at first, but they quickly recovered and flew after them.

Twilight, Spike and Rarity were making their way through the forest, trying to get away from their pursuers. But the dragons were quickly gaining ground. Twilight tried to use a spell to teleport them away. Her horn began to glow and the purple aura enveloped them. But it didn't work as it took too much concetration to teleport them all.

As they continued to run, Spike failed to notice a stray root growing out of the ground and he tripped over it. He landed with a hard thud and the mares stopped.

"Spike." they shouted, but were too late as the dragons got too close.

"Take this you sorry excuse for a dragon." said Garble as he and his friends took in a deep breath, then released a large column of fire.

The fire quickly approached the young drake and he didn't have the time to dodge. Suddenly Rarity ran up to him and put herself between the dragon and the flame. She hugged him, hoping she would be able to protect one of her dearest friends as much as she could.

The fire descended upon the two, but the burning and heat never came. Rarity let go of Spike so they could see what had happened to the flame. They gasped when they saw Trider, standing in front of them, badly burnt and smoking. The Kanisar lowered his arms he used to protect his face from the fire and smiled at the mare and dragon.

"You guys would be toast without me." he gave a small laughter at his own joke.

His attention was quickly focused on the dragons as Garble spoke up. "The hell are you doing Trider? Why are you protecting these ponies? I thought you felt more at home with us than these guys?"

Trider sighed as he got into a battle stance. "You guys might act more like my people than the ponies and sure that makes me feel like I'm sort of still home." He paused as he took in a deep breath. "But even despite that I made my new home in Ponyville, with all of the ponies." A smile spread across his face as he continued. "And these guys right here are my friends." He glanced over his shoulder to look at Rarity and winked at her. "All of them."

Rarity felt a tear run down her cheek as she heard him say that. "Maybe he isn't such a barbarian after all." she thought.

Trider seeing the mare shed a tear, turned his head back forward. "And let me tell you one thing about me." A dark aura began to envelop him, as his body and hair slightly grew, his fangs elongatedd and his eyes turned red. "I always protect my friends."

The blood in the dragons's body grew cold at the sight of the Kanisar, who now looked like a possessed beast. But their dragon instincts overran their instincts to flee. They lunged at the man hoping to overpower him. Trider however dodged all three at the same time and now stood a few feet away from them. The dragons could barely see him move when he came up to the brown dragon.

The Kanisar concentrated his Ki throughout his entire right arm and delivered a powerful punch to his gut. "PISTON CANNON TRISTRIKE." he shouted as he sent the dragon flying. While flying through the air, the dragon was all of a sudden hit by an invisible attack and he fell onto the floor, creating a small dent in the dirt. When he bounced up from the ground, he was once again hit by the invisible punch and was buried into the ground. When Trider confirmed he was out for the count he turned to the other two and grinned.

"One down two to go." he said cracking his knuckles.

The purple dragon decided he would take him on. He ran to the man and slashing at his chest. Although Trider thought he successfully dodged him, he failed to notice the dragon extending his claws mid swipe. The Kanisar put a hand to where he was scratched and looked at his bloodied palm. The dragon smirked as he licked the blood off his claws.

"So you wanna fight me using claws, eh?" he asked rethorically. "Then let me show you mine!"

Ki surged through both of his hands and formed around his forearms. Soon his arms were enveloped in bright red aura, which took on a shape of three sets of claws on each hand.

"Lets which ones are sharper, your butter knives or my Wolf Spirit Claws."

The dragon didnt even have time to reply as Trider charged at him. The Kanisar swung his arms downwards, with the intention to slice the dragon in two. The drake however was just fast enough to take a step back and raised his own claws to block the assault. Triders Wolf Spirit Claws however, sliced through his with ease and creating six scratch marks along the lizards body. The dragon cried out in pain, but was quickly silenced when the man roundhouse kicked him in the gut. The drake was sent flying through the air, until he hit a nearby tree and he fell to the floor unmoving.

With two opponents down Trider turned towards Garble, who was ready to blow him away with a massive fireball he was conjuring in his maw.

"You will pay for what you did." he said, somehow without moving his mouth.

Trider quickly channeled the last of his Ki into the palm of his hand. The Sphere was quickly formed, but Garble already unleashed his attack. As it was almost halfway to the Kanisar, he released the sphere aiming it directly at the fireball.

"WAILING NOVA SPHERE!"

When the Sphere and fireball connected, the flame was quickly extinguished by the orb. Triders attack didn't stop however, as it continued to fly towards the red dragon. Garble still tired by unleashing so much fire, wasn't able to dodge it and took the full force of it. With a cry he was consumed by a flash of light and an explosion.

Trider released his Feral Unleashing, no longer having any energy to maintain it. When the dust settled he saw, Garble down and out cold. He was missing a few teeth, his scales were burned and he had a massive wound on his chest. Satisfied with the result he turned towards his friends and walked over to them.

Twilight, Rarity and Spike also walked up to him to meet him halfway. When they were close enough they hugged the man. Deciding not to be a dick for once, he also embraced them. After a minute they let go of each other.

"That was amazing what you just did!" Spike exclaimed jumping up and down.

"I know, I know I was there remember?" Trider chuckled.

"Trider." Rarity called out to him. "Back then you said that we were all your friends. Did you mean me as well?" she asked in hope.

"Did the wink really not convey my message?" He asked incredulously. "You are more dense than me."

The mare huffed at his statement, a look of confusion soon showing on her face. "But why? Why have you all of a sudden decided you want me for a friend? I thought we hated each other."

Trider looked at her with a serious look. "Don't get me wrong I still don't like you." The mare looked saddened by his statement. "But I can try to get along with you I guess." he sighed softening his features. A smile spread across Raritys face, satisfied with that Trider continued. "The reason why I have forgiven you is because you tried to protect Spike, willing to sacrifice yourself in the process and I can respect that."

After answering the mare he turned to Spike. "Speaking of protecting you, why couldn't you protect them instead?" The drake lowered his head and tried to say something, but couldn't come up with anything.

"Trider, don't be so hard on him, he couldn't do anything to stop those dragons, even with our help he would have had trouble." Twilight tried to argue with him.

"That is exactly why I have come to a decision." He gave Spike a stern gaze before continuing. "From this day forward, I'm going to train you to be a warrior."

The girls and the drakes jaws dropped at what he said. Before they could say anything, he spoke again. "Ever since I first met you I knew you had what it took to become a great fighter, though you lacked the training and confidence, but from what I saw today I'm certain you can become great." He crouched so he looked the dragon in the eyes. "What do you say Spike? Want me to make you strong enough to protect your friends for once?"

Spike still couldn't believe what he was hearing. Trider was offering to train him how to fight so he could one day protect somepony and not be the one in need of protecting. He gulped and answered.

"I would love to." A grin grew across his face at the thought of finally becoming a knight in shining armour he always dreamed of becoming.

Trider stood back up and took a deep breath. "Good to hear." He patted the drake on the head. "We begin tomorrow and don't expect me to go easy on you." Spike nodded eagerly. "Alright now if you'll excuse me I have a nap to take." Saying that he collapsed, darkness enveloping him.

When he woke up he could feel he was being carried by someone. Looking to his right he saw Twilight, using her magic to help her drag his body across the clearing they were traversing. He caught wiff of her shampoo and took a deep breath. "Lavender, how ironic." he thought.

The mare noticed that Trider woke up and looked at him. "Are you ok? You just collpased all of a sudden." she asked worried.

Trider tried to walk by himself, but his legs failed him. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just drained. That fight took a lot oout of me. So much so I can't even move." he said.

The mare gave a small chuckle, before she spoke. "You always take things too far, you know." They continued to follow, Spike and Rarity, who were in front of them, in silence. Eventually Twilight decided to break the quiet. "You know I also realised something else."

He glanced at her curious. "And that would be?" he asked.

"That despite what you told us your reason was for coming here, you were actually worried about Spike and us am I right?" she smirked.

Trider looked in the other direction and huffed. "I'm neither confirming, nor denying that fact."

The unicorn smiled at his stubbornness. She leaned her head towards his and she gave a small kiss on his cheek. Trider turned his head to look at the mare who was blushing.

"What was that for?" he asked.

"Just a way of saying thank you I guess." the mare said sheepishly.

Trider just shrugged and focused his gaze on the couple in front of them. "Aren't you angry that I just made Spike my apprentice?" he wondered.

She shook her head and replied. "Not really. You were right, we have been pampering him way too much. I think this is a good idea." She paused as she shifted some of Triders weight. "It is also good he spends more time with a male figure, all this time he always spent his free time with just us girls."

Trider couldn't help, but smirk. "Don't worry I'll make sure he ends up exactly like me."

Twilight gently nudged him as they both began to laugh.

Author's Note

This chapter was a pain in the ass. I hate writing by the episode, but it had to be done. For those of you who might wonder why I didn't include Rainbow, because I just couldn't involve her without removing the need for Trider to forgive Rarity.
On another note I would like to thank
Nightshade1228 for coming up with Wailing Nova Blast and Wolf Spirit Claw
Prankstered for creating Piston Cannon
and a special thank you to GrimmWolfDragon for giving me the idea for Spike becoming Triders pupil. Without him this chapter probably wouldn't exist.

Chapter 6: Training Wolf; Working Apple

Spike was out of breath and his legs felt like they were on fire. He and Trider woke up early, just so they could get some training done, before the Kanisar had to go to work at Sweet Apple Acres. Surprisingly the sleep addicted man was rather chipper, even though he prefers to sleep in.

Trider wanted to motivate Spike so he would keep up with him. "Pick up the pace Spike or I'll have you clean the pig stables, when we go to Applejacks."

At that Spike sped up and caught up with his mentor. Unlike him Trider barely broke a sweat. Spike could only imagine that Trider did this kind of training everyday for years. He wanted to ask him something, but had no breath to form a sentence. What came out of his mouth were only wheezing sounds.

"Six more miles." responded Trider. He smirked at Spikes look of disbelief at his answer. "And you'll suck it up or I might reconsider training you."

Spike managed to groan through his rapid breathing and followed the Kanisar to the best of his abilities.

"That. Was. Torture." the drake said with each gasp of air he took. He was lying on the grass, in a meadow near Sweet Apple Acres. "I feel like my legs will fall apart, if I just as much move them."

Trider walked up to him and looked down at him. "We've only just begun. Once you're done resting we'll do 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 100 squats."

If looks could kill, Spike would be slaughtering the Kanisar, while on fire. "What?" he shouted. "You can't be serious. Where in Tartarus did you came up with this training regime?"

The man scratched his cheek and shrugged. "Heard it from some bald dude, he said he's been doing this kind of thing for years and has greatly increased his physical strengh. So much so, he was able to take on a guy three times his size and knock him out cold with just one punch." Spike looked at him with skepticism. "So I decided to try it myself and I've got to say it actually works great."

Spike sighed and decided not ot argue with him anymore. "Alright, but once we're done with that and once you're done at Applejacks, you'll teach me some fighting moves, right?" he asked with hope in his voice.

Trider shook his head as he gave the dragon his answer. "Nope."

Spike stared at him, trying to see, if he was making some kind of sick joke. "You're kidding, right?" The Kanisar shook his head again and it got the drake angry. "Why not? I thought you'll teach me how to defend myself and others. Did Twilight tell you not to?"

Trider sighed as he sat down next to his friend and looked him in the eyes. "No, she actually supports my decision. And you misunderstood me a little. I'm not gonna teach you how to fight, because you're not ready yet." Spike gave him a confused look, so the Kanisar decided to continue. "Before we get to the good stuff, we must first make you physically capable of throwing and taking a punch. So after you get strong enough we'll begin with the real training. Understood?"

Spike mulled over what he said, before he slowly got up and nodded. "Yeah, I get it. So lets do this." He pumped an arm into the air with renewed vigor.

Trider chuckled and stood up as well. "Good to hear you got your energy back, cause once we're done here, you'll come help me with my work at Sweet Apple Acres." As quickly as it came, so quickly Spikes enthusiasm left the drake. He looked at the man hoping he heard him wrong. "That's right you're coming with me and helping me. And before you whine why, it's to increase your strength even faster. The labour at the Apples is taxing and is sure to help you with your training."

Crying out the drake collapsed to the ground once again, suddenly feeling drained of all energy he started to moan in despair. Seeing him like that made Trider chuckle. What he said about the work being part of his training, was only half-true. Another reason being that, when they came back yesterday, Applejack gave him an earful for skipping out on his duty to go adventuring. As punishment, he had to do double the work, at the same payment for the next week. He couldn't argue with the mare and accepted what was coming to him, but not before he decided to drag Spike into this as well. It was sort of his fault he had to leave town.

"Hey AJ!" Trider called out to the mare as he walked up to the barn.

"Howdy Trider!" she greeted back. "Yer here earlier than usual, how-" She couldn't finish her sentence as she saw Spike slumped over the Kanisars shoulder, seemingly unconscious. "What happened to him?" she asked.

The man glanced at his dragon friend. "Oh he is just a little tired from our training." He answered with a toothy smile. "But even despite that he voulenteered to help us out on the farm, just so he could get stronger, more quickly."

At that Spike groaned and the mare just gave a deadpanned look at the man. "Yer only usin him to make yer work easier, ammirite?"

Trider sighed as he put Spike on the ground and leaned him against the wall of the barn. "Nothing escapes you. It's like you're fucking psychic or somthing."

Applejack crossed her arms as she smirked. "Nah, yer just bad at lyin, like yer bad at stayin out of trouble."

"Ouch, you're not holding bad today." he said sarcastically.

They both laughed, until they heard Spike stir. He slowly got up on his wobbly legs while supporting himself on the wall. "Ah you're up already. Good, that means you still have enough energy to help us with the work." Trider remarked.

"Do I really have to?" the drake whined. "I can barely stand, how am I even supposed to work like this?"

Applejack gave him a symphatetic look as she spoke to him. "Don't ya worry a bit Spike. Ya can go help Big Mac with fixing the fence on the eastern part of the orchard. All ya'll have to do is hand him over the tools and such, so ya'll still have some time to rest."

Spike wanted to hug the mare, but his arms and legs didn't want to listen to him. "Thanks AJ you're a lifesaver."

At that moment Big Mac walked up to them dragging behind a cart with wood and tools. "Speakin of which..." said the mare as she walked up to her big brother. "Heya Big Mac, ya headin to the eastern orchard?"

"Eeyup." was his signature reply.

Applejack nodded as she pointed a finger at the drake. "Listen Mac, ya don't mind if ya take Spike with ya to help ya out. Trider wants him to do some work as training." She looked at Spike and saw how he struggled to move towards them. She got closer to her brother and whispered in his ear. "But make sure ya don't go too hard on him, he looks like he just went to Tartarus and back, and is ready to collapse at the slightest burden."

"Eeyup." was all the stallion said as he went over to Spike, lifted him into the air with zero effort and put him in the cart. Mac then began to pull the wagon to where they were headed.

"Thanks Big Mac and sorry for making you drag me there like this." Spike said to the red stallion as he rubbed his head.

"No problem Spike." Before they were too far away from the other two Big Mac turned to them and spoke up. "AJ make sure ya don't overwork yerself again."

Soon they were out of Triders and Applejacks sight and the two faced each other. "What did he mean by that AJ?" he asked.

Applejack sighed as she turned around and headed into the barn, Trider following. "Nothin, he's just worryin too much." she sighed.

"If you say so." He shrugged. "So? What are we doing today?" asked the man.

The mare went over to the cart filled with baskets and lifted up the handle to pull it. "What we always do Trider, buck apples." she said with a smile.

The Kanisar facepalmed at the obvious answer. "Of course, what else would an Apple do besides harvesting apples?" He looked at the mare and grinned. "Maybe we should plant a pear tree to liven up this monotone orchard don't you think?"

The mare glared at him with such intensity, he could swear she wanted to burn a hole through him, just with the glare alone. "Don't even think bout it." she said in the most serious tone, he ever heard her say.

"Jeez, can't you take a joke?" he asked, raising his arms in defense. Without answering the mare turned around and began to pull the cart. Trider wiped a drop of sweat from his forehead and followed the mare. "These mares sure can get scary when they want to." he thought.

Sometime later

Trider delivered a strong kick to the trunk of the tree. As soon as he hit it the tree shook and the apples fell out of it, directly into the baskets below. He bent down to pick up the ones that didn't fall in and then he took the baskets to the cart. They've been doing this for the whole day, not even taking a short break after they ate lunch and it was begining to wearing him down. He looked over to the mare and saw she was still going at it with full power. He was impressed she was able to work so hard, day in and day out. That was one of the many things he liked about her. But when he got closer he saw she was pouring sweat and her face was showing tints of red. Getting even closer he could hear how rapidly she was breathing and she wobbled everytime she tried to buck a tree.

Worried about her well being he approached her. "Applejack you all right, you don't look too good?" he asked with worry.

The mare turned to face him and swayed back and forth as she spoke to him. "Ah'm fine sugarcube, just a little drowsy that's all. Now we better get back to work, if we wanna finish this by the end of the day." She went up to the next tree and lined herself up to kick it. But as she raised her leg, she lost her balance and fell forward. Before she could connect with the ground, Trider caught her in his arms.

Up close Applejack looked even worse. Her mane was in a mess and her eyes were bloodshot. Putting his hand on her forehead, he felt for her temperature. "Applejack you're litterally burning up, it seems you caught some sort of fever." he said as he looked her in the eyes. "We should get you back home so you can get some rest."

Applejack tried to push him away from her. "No need for that partner." she said. "Ah'll be fine just a quick rest and ah'll be good to go."

Trider however didn't budge instead he looked at the mare with a stern gaze and said in a commanding voice. "Listen here, you thick headed idiot. You're not well and no matter what you say will convince me otherwise. I'll take you back home so you can get some proper rest and I'll finish the job here by myself. Got it?"

Before she could argue with him he lifted her up in his arms and began to head towards the house. Applejack tried to force him to put her down, but as she was held in his arms, she suddenly lost all of her will to struggle. The way she was carried reminded her of the fairy tales her granny told her about, in where the princesses were carried away by their princes, to live happily ever after. She sighed as she felt his embrace. She put her head on his chest and heard his heart beating in a calm rhythm. Her thoughts went back to when the two kissed and she blushed, making her coat even redder than it was before.

Trider picked up his pace as he saw her flushing face. "Applejack," he spoke up, earning the mares attention. "Is something bothering you?"

The mare looked around frantically as she stammered. "N-no, nothings wrong. W-why w-would you ask that?"

The man chuckled. "You're even worse at lying than I am." he said. "I won't force you to tell me, if you don't want to talk about it, but I will say this." He looked at her sternly. "If you have problems you can talk to me or you other friends. Don't try to hide it with working yourself to exhaustion as it will only make us worried, okay?"

The mare looked at the ground and smiled sheepishly. "Is it that obvious?" she asked.

"To others maybe not," he said. "But I've been in the same situation like you multiple times, where I wanted to forget my problems by training continuously, rather than talk about them." He paused for a little, before continuing. "One time I trained so hard I collapsed from exhaustion, like you, and had to be taken to a hospital due to fatigue and dehydration."

The mare chuckled at his story. He always told her about all the misadventures he had back on his homeworld adn every one of them made her laugh, some of which reminded her of herself. Then her expression fell, as she thought if she should talk to him like he said she should. "Trider," she whispered to gain his attention. "What do you think of me?"

The Kanisar looked at her confused. "That's what's bothering you?" he asked incredulously. She nodded her head, averting her gaze at the stupid question she asked. Trider sighed as he gave her his answer. "Why?"

She looked around trying to come up with a good reason. "It's just that, all mah life the others told me ah wasn't like the other mares. Ah was rough, liked to get dirty and all that stuff that girls usually don't like to do." she paused as she looked at him, his gaze telling her to continue. "It's come to the point where even stallions started to treat me like one of the guys, rather than a mare and ah can't balme them." She sighed as she continued. "Ah don't wanna change myself just so the stallions will start to notice me as a mare, but at the same time ah'm worried ah won't find somepony who will like me for who ah am?"

Trider closed his eyes as he mulled over all of what she told him. "Well, they're not wrong. You do act more like a stallion than a mare." At those words Applejacks ears fell, despair written on her face. the man however didn't notice and he continued. "But nothing's wrong with that, if you ask me." The mare looked at him, interested at what he had to say. "Sure you're stonger and tougher than any normal stallion, but that is just one of the things I like about you." She blushed at his statement. "Maybe that is just cause I'm a Kanisar though."

She looked at him confused. "What do ya mean?" she asked.

"As I already told you and everyone else, but I come from a warrior race, we know how to fight as soon as we learn to walk. And cause of that fighting is in our blood." he explained. "With that fighting instinct also comes the need to seek out a strong partner. So my kind always strives to find not only the most beautiful, but also the strongest and bravest partner we can find." He gave her a small smile as he continued. "If you were on my planet, you'd be flooded by all the males and probably even females who would be interested in forming a relationship with you, even if you are a pony."

At that the mares blush returned and she fidgeted in his grip. "Ya really think so?" she asked in hope.

"Well, duh. I mean you're beautiful, strong, tough, though you can be a bit stubborn at a time. Like now for instance." Trider assured the mare.

The mare couldn't hear him finish his sentence as she blushed at what he told her about herself. "He thinks ah'm beautiful?" she thought.

Before she could say anything, they arrived at the house where Big Mac and granny Smith were already waiting. As the two approached Mac sighed. "Didn't ah tell ya not to overwork yerself?"

Trider put the mare down, Applejack reluctantly letting go of him. "Yeah, yeah. Just let me go to my bed already." She walked to the two, although still a bit wobbly.

Trider strechted his arms as he turned around. "Well I'll be going back to finish the job. You guys make sure she gets her rest."

Granny and Big Mac nodded, satisfied the man walked off, back to where he came from. When Applejack came to the two, they both looked at her with smirks on their faces. "Wut?" the mare asked.

"Oh nothin, sugarcube. Just wanted to tell ya yer coat is turning more red than yer brother here." the elder mare chuckled.

"Eeyup." confirmed the stallion.

Applejack deadpanned as she walked past the two. "That's cause of the exhaustion and the sun. If you'll excuse me ah have a rest to take."

Granny Smith giggled as she looked at her granddaughter. "And don't even think bout overworkin yerself again, just so you would be carried by yer coltfriend like that again."

"HE AIN'T MAH COLTFRIEND!" yelled the mare from upstairs, as the elder mare and stallion laughed their hearts out.

Author's Note

Hey there readers!
You're probably going 'Wow he hasn't posted another chapter in three days, how could he let us down?' and to that I have to say... Nothing really.
I took a weekend off so I could focus on school for a little and also to recover from all the work I put on myself to write a new chapter every next day (says after writing a chapter about overworking oneself). The only one to blame for that is me alone. This break allowed me to come up with some ideas for future chapters, which is nice.
So a shipping chapter this time, I already have champagne ready all I need is a crew to help the ship sail.
And as always, comment about if you liked it and if there are any errors.

Chapter 7: Float Like A Fluttershy

The Demon God looked down on the fallen ponies smirking, amused at how they struggled to defeat him, even though he was invincible. "Is this all you can show for yourself? You are all so pathetic." He extended his arms to his sides and started to charge his final attack. "Prepare to taste my dumpness."

The ponies all looked up to their executioner, all hope lost. "No, it can't end like this." whispered Twilight. "It can't end like this." She closed her eyes and raised her head, tears welling in her eyes. "SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP US!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

"No one can save you now." laughed the Demon God. "Say your prayers weaklings." He thrusted his arms forward, unleashing the powerful energy he was building up. "LAST BLAST!"

A golden yellow beam shot from his hand, heading directly for the ponies beneath him. As it got closer everypony closed their eyes, awaiting the inevitable. All of a sudden a figure jumped in front of the blast, redirecting it away from the ruined town and all of the ponies. The ponies and the Demon God looked in shock at what happened. The figure landed in front of the mass.

"You guys are really pathetic, can't even take down one Demon God." Trider said turning to the ponies. As they saw their savior everypony began to cheer, happy their hero has come to save them.

As they cheered Twilight made her way through the crowd towards the Kanisar. Once they got close enough to each other, she looked him in the eyes and smiled. "I knew you'd show up."

Trider grinned, showing his teeth. "Well yeah, I wouldn't leave a beautiful mare like yourself, in hands of some wannabe god."

The mare happy to hear that stood on the tip of her hooves and planted a kiss on the mans cheek. "Go get him tiger."

"Ya betcha."

He started to walk up to the Demon God, who was slowly clapping. "Well, well, well. It seems this world actually has someone who should be able entertain me. Tell me what is your name?"

Trider pointed his thumb at his chest as he proclaimed. "My name is Trider and I am the one who will beat your tacky ass."

The Demon God crossed his arms and chuckled. "We will see about that."

A white aura began to envelop the Kanisar, his power increasing tremendously with it. He lowered his stance, ready to take on his opponent. With all of his might he leaped into the air, towards the Demon God.

"HERE I COME!" he yelled.

"PREPARE TO GET DUMPED!" shouted the Demon God back.

They both thrusted their fists at each other, the clash of two titans was about to begin...

Trider woke up to the sound of ponies cheering, ending his dream abruptly. "The fucking hell?" Grumpily he got up out of his bed, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. He looked at his clock and saw it was around 10 o'clock. "What in the name of whoever, are Twilight and Spike doing down there?" Angrily he walked out of his room and down the stairs.

When he got close enough he heard and smelled numerous different ponies, some of which he recognized, some he didn't. As they came into his view, he saw the whole library was packed with pegasus ponies, while Rainbow Dash was doing some sort of presentation.

"All right ponies, we are going to break that record and impress the Wonderbolts with our amazingly awesome wing power. So what do you say?" she shouted the rainbow pegasus, trying to hype the crowd.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" yelled Trider, gaining the attention of everypony in the room. "Do you know what time it is? I don't know how early you guys get up, but I have to train Spike in the morning and then go help Applejack, while most of you will still be snoozing off." He took a deep breath and continued. "Do I make myself clear?"

Everypony just stared at him unmoving, while the mares were just blushing like crazy and their wings fully extended. Annoyed by no one responding, Trider slammed a fist onto the stairway rail.

"The fuck you all looking at?"

Spike made his way out of the crowd, to try and adress his friend. "Ummm dude you're only in your boxers."

The man raised an eyebrow at what the drake said and looked down upon his form. And true to his words, Trider was only wearing his undergarment. "So?" he asked. "If they want to look they can look, I don't really..."

"GO BACK TO YOUR ROOM TRIDER, RIGHT NOW." shouted Twilight. She too was red in the face, though the man wasn't sure if it was because she was angry or embarrassed. Begrudgingly he started heading back up.

"I will, when you guys promise to be quiet."

At that Rainbow flew into his face, her blush already gone. "Why should we listen to you? This is Twilights house and if she says it's okay to be loud, then you have no right to go against her." The two glared at each other, trying to make the other back off. "Besides, this is an important meeting, where we have to..."

"I don't give a fuck what you guys do here, all I want is for you to shut the fuck up!" Trider cut her off.

Rainbow practically fuming, was ready to jump the man and teach him a lesson, the Kanisar thinking the same thing. The two were suddenly enveloped by a lavender aura and they could no longer move. They looked at each other, then casted their gaze onto the librarian, whos horn was glowing.

Twilight closed her eyes and sighed. "Why does this always have to happen?" she thought. Whenever those two would get close to one another they would start to argue over the simplest of things and in most cases it almost escalated to full out fight. Luckily she or the other girls would stop them before things really got out of hand. She separated the two, using her magic, and glared at them both. "Both of you stop acting like a bunch of foals or I swear to Celestia, I will chain you both to a wall until you cool off."

The two looked between eachother and Twilight.

"Ok, I'm sorry Twi." said Rainbow Dash.

"Fine." replied Trider.

Satisfied she let go of them both and crossed her arms. "Rainbow you can still have your meeting here, but I would also like if you keep the volume on the down low." She then looked at the Kanisar, as she continued. "And will you please, go back to your room already. I promise we won't disturb your sleep again."

Trider headed up the stairs and before he was out of sight, he turned around and spoke up. "But if you wake me again, I swear I'll come down here, without my boxer and show you what happens when you make me waste my sleep."

With that he left the crowd and headed back to sleep.

Next day

Spike and Trider were resting beneath one of the trees, after they finished their run. Spike was drinking out of his water bottle, while Trider looked at him. "You've really improved Spike." he said. "Usually you'd be lying on the ground gasping for air, like someone tried to choke you."

Spike finished his drink and sighed. "Yeah, I know. Just look at these babies." he said flexing his arms, a little of his muscle showing. Trider chuckled at the drakes showing off. "Can't believe I've got so far in just a week, can't wait until I'm ready for the real training to begin. Speaking of which, when will you start to teach me how to fight?"

Trider closed his eyes as he thought about it. "Soon, we still need to get some more muscle on to you, but at the rate you're going, maybe next week." he assured.

"Sweet." replied the drake. He then looked at the Kanisar with a worried look. "How come we started so late? Usually we get up before Celestia raises the sun, don't you have to help Applejack on her farm?"

Trider sighed as he put his hands behind his head and replied. "Nope. She came to me this morning while you were still sleeping and said she doesn't need my help on the farm today, so I decided we could take a little more time to sleep"

Spike nodded, also happy at the turn of events. Suddenly Trider picked a faint sound of rustling leaves from a nearby bush. His ears pointed in the general direction of the sound, he started to sniff the air to identify their stalker.

He recognized the scent and he shouted out to the pony. "Why don't you come out Fluttershy? If you have something to talk to me or Spike about, it would be better if we could look into eachothers eyes."

Spike and Trider simultaneously looked at the bushes, after a loud yelp was heard coming from it. The butter yellow mare slowly made her way out of her hiding spot and headed towards the duo. She stopped when she was about five feet away from the Kanisar. Trider waited for her to speak up, but the mare remained silent fidgeting on the spot.

"If you have something to say, say it already or leave us alone and stop wasting our time." he said agressively, startling the mare.

The mare fiddled with her thumbs, until she lifted her head to look at the man, but quickly lowered it when she saw the glare he was giving her. "I-I um, I just.." she stamered, as she tried to form a sentence. "H-how did you know it was me?"

"The nose knows." Trider replied as he tapped his nose with a finger. "Will you get to the point already, before I decide to leave?"

"Oh right." Fluttershy whispered. "I-I need your help."

The man raised an eyebrow at what she said, thinking he might have heard her wrong. "You need my help?" he asked to confirm, that was what she said. The mare nodded. "With what exactly?"

Fluttershy hid her face behind her mane and pressed her index fingers together. "I want you to train me." she said, just above a whisper, but loud enough for the Kanisar and drake to hear her.

Spike nearly choked on his water, when he heard the mares request. After clearing his lungs he looked at her with shock. "You want Trider to train you?" he said as he looked between the two. "Trider?"

The mare hid even further into her mane and nodded.

Before Spike had a chance to tell her why that was a bad idea, Trider cut him off. "And why exactly do you need this training?"

Fluttershy then explained the whole situation, with the water gathering for the weather factory, Rainbow Dashes wanting to break some stupid record, her not being able to fly due to some childhood trauma she experienced, when other fillies bullied her for not being a good flyer and how she wants to help her friend achieve her dream of breaking said record.

"So will you help me?" she pleaded.

Trider scratched his head in thought. He had to process everything she told him and once he was done he gave her his answer. "I would love to Fluttershy, but I don't think it will help much."

Both Fluttershy and Spike looked at him in confusion. "Why not?" asked the mare.

"Because, no matter how much you train it won't matter, if you don't have confidence in yourself." he explained. "You can have the strongest wings on the planet, but if you don't believe that you can be great, you never will be." The mare lowered her head, but quickly raised it again.

"If it helps me become a better flier then I know it will also raise my confidence." Fluttershy said with determination.

Trider got back up on his legs and sighed. "Alright then, but let me warn you in advance." He gave her a serious glare. "I won't go easy on you, I will push you to your limits and then even further. You still have a chance to back off." He paused as he gave her another look over. "What is your answer?"

The pegasus took a deep breath to calm herself, before she gave her response. "Please train me Trider."

"Very well." he said as he started to walk off towards town. "We will begin tomorrow at 7 o'clock, don't be late. Oh and Spike you still have to finish your exercises."

Spike as well got up and gave the man a questioning look. "Where are you going?" he asked.

Without stopping Trider continued on his way. "I have to go home to pick up a book on how to train pegasus wings, since I know jack-shit about that."

When he was far enough from the two he smirked to himself. "That mare actually has some guts, maybe she isn't as bad as I made her up to be." His smirk, however quickly turned to a frown. "Still though, I wonder if her getting better at flying will actually help in her confidence boost or will it backfire? Only time will tell."

Trider walked into the library expecting to find Twilight reading a book somewhere, but she was nowhere to be found. He looked through the kitchen, the living room, her small study, her and Spikes bedroom and even his own. Still no trace of the mare.

"Hmmm, the only place I haven't looked is..." he said to himself. "The bathroom."

Without haste he walked up to the door, grabbed the knob and opened it. "Yo Twi I need help with something." he said as he entered.

Twilight stood in the middle of the room reaching for a towel as she just got out of the shower. Her figure was completely exposed for the world to behold. She continued to stand there unmoving and staring at the man with shock, until Trider, tired of waiting for her response walked further in, closing in on the naked mare. "Like I said I need your help with-" he was suddenly cut off as a box of washing powder hit him straight in the head.

"Ouch what was that for?" he said in pain.

The mares attack continued however, she threw everything that wasn't bolted down at the Kanisar with her magic. "GET OUT YOU PERVERT!" she screamed with a completely red face. Eventually she forced him out the door and she locked it.

Trider rubbed his head, as bumps began to form from all the objects he was hit with. "The fuck is wrong with that mare?" Eventually the door to the bathroom opened and out walked a pissed off unicorn.

Before she had a chance to scold him, Trider was already up in her face. "What the holy fuck was that? Why did you assault me, when all I wanted was some of your goddamn help?" he said in a raised voice.

The mare didn't know if he was serious or being sarcastic, but she lived with him long enough to know it was probably the former than the latter. "You walked in when I was walking out of the shower, that is what why." she said rage building up. "Didn't anyone teach you to knock or ask if someone is occupying the bathroom?"

The Kanisar crossed his arms as he continued to glare at her. Eventually he sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Okay, let's just forget that happenedand get back to the topic." He walked down the stairs and signaled the mare to follow. "I need some books to help me with training."

The mare was on his heels as the two arrived to the library room. "Well we've got tons of books on that topic. Do you want something specific?" She began to look over the books, as Trider went to a shelf and pulled out a random book.

"Yes actually. I need one on how to train pegasus wings, if there is one." he replied as he skimmed through the book in his hands.

Twilight stopped her search to look at him in confusion. "Pegasus wings? Why in Tartarus would you need a book on how to train wings when neither you or Spike have them." Her face slowly twisted into that of shock as a thought came to her head. "Don't tell me Spike grew wings?" she shrieked, making the Kanisar wince.

"Augh, don't do that." he said as he rubbed his ears. "No, he didn't grow wings and neither have I. It's for Fluttershy actually, she wants me to train her for the upcoming tornado season."

The unicorn mare stared at him with wide eyes. She blinked once, then twice and on her third blink she finally spoke. "She wants you to train her for the tornado season?" she asked in disbelief. Trider nodded, before flipping through the pages once again. "Why would she do that? Why you of all ponies?"

He shrugged as he continued what he was doing. "Don't know why, but I said I'll help." he paused as he closed the book and put it back in the right place. "Though I don't think it will help much."

Twilight slowly returned back to searching for the book, he asked her to find. "Why do you think so?" she asked curious.

Trider sighed as he sat down onto one of the chairs in the room. "From what I could understand of her story, she was bullied when she was younger and that caused deep wounds for her, because of that she really believed she couldn't fly as well as the other pegasi and she gave up." He leaned back in the chair and put his feet onto a coffee table. "And now that the tornado season came, she is in a conundrum. She still has the fear of being humiliated for her bad flying, but on the other hand she wants to help Rainbow achieve her dream of breaking that record. That's why she wants to train herself, so she can prove to other ponies she is a great flier and Help her friend in the process."

Twilight moved onto the next shelf and searched through it all the while listening to Trider. "I understand that, but you still didn't tell me why you training her won't help in the end?" she asked as she pulled out a book.

"Was getting to that." he replied, annoyed. "She has zero self confidence when it comes to such things and because of that she will never get as good as she wants to be. She can train all she wants, but unless she starts to believe in herself, she will never lift herself off the ground. Metaphorically speaking."

Twilight took a pause so she could process what he told her and she nodded. "I see. Guess you're right. Even so, can't you do something to help her with her confidence?"

The Kanisar raised an eyebrow at her question and scoweld. "I ain't the right guy for that sort of thing. I usually belittle the guys I train, though I won't do such a thing with Fluttershy, so don't worry, and besides she would better take to heart motivational speeches, if they came from her friends, than a scary looking alien, don't ya think so?"

Finally finding the book she was looking for, she turned around and headed for the man. "This guide should help you to better understand pegasus anatomy, as well as how to properly train their wings." She handed the book over and Trider gladly accepted it.

"Thanks Twi. I'm sure it will." He stood up and began to head for the door. "I'm gonna go find a peaceful place to read this, so expect me to come back for dinner."

"Alright, I will."

The Kanisar put his hand onto the door knob, but before leaving he turned around to adress the mare once more, with a massive grin on his face. "Oh and Twi." he called out to her to get her attention. "You shouldn't feel so embarrassed with being seen naked. You have quite a gorgeous body."

Twilights face suddenly turned red and she wanted to give Trider a piece of her mind, but before she could the man ran out the door, laughing. She stomped her hoof onto the wooden floor and huffed. "W-whatever." She looked down at her body, as she twirled one of locks around her finger.

"You're impossible." she thought as a dreamy smile grew on her face.

The next day

"C'mon Fluts just ten more wing ups and we can move onto your flying laps." Trider said in a commanding tone. The mare couldn't say anything as she did one more wing-up. She felt like her wings would give in at any minute, but she, as Trider would say, sucked it up and pushed onwards. Trider knew she wasn't the athletic type and was extremely meek, so he tried his best not to shout at her and insult her, like he did with the recruits back home, and instead cheer her on. It felt weird to him.

"You want to prove to everyone you're a great flyer don't you?" he asked, earning a nod from Fluttershy. "You want to help fullfill your friends dream, right?" Again she nodded and did another wing-up. "So stop acting like you don't and do your goddamn exercise already." He internally winced at what and how he said it. He knew he would slip eventually, despite trying his best not to. But the mare either didn't hear him or didn't care what he said as she finished all of her wing-ups. Trider smiled and picked up a water bottle, which he offered to the sweating mare. "Great job Fluts. Take a five minute break and we can conti-"

He was cut off when a rainbow blur descended from the sky, landing in front of the two, raising a cloud of dust. When it cleared the two saw an angered Rainbow. She dusted herself off, as she walked over to the two.

"The fuck do you want?" asked Trider the approaching mare.

She glared daggers at him as she closed the distance between the two. Soon they were butting heads with each other and Rainbow finally spoke up. "I heard from Twilight that you're training Fluttershy to help her with her flying and I'm here to stop you."

The Kanisar and the butter yellow mare gave her a confused look as he backed off, just enough so that their bodies weren't touching. "You want me to stop training her?" he asked trying to confirm he heard her right.

"That's right wolf-colt."

After getting his conformation he crossed his arms and gave her a deadpanned look. "So you don't want Fluttershy to become a better flyer, just cause you don't like me? And you call yourself her friend." Fluttershy looked at Rainbow with a hurt expression.

The mares eyes widened and she shook her head. "No, no. I didn't mean it like that. I want Fluttershy to get better as well, but I don't want you to train her."

"And why is that?"

Rainbow gritted her teeth as she glared at Trider. "I heard from Spike what kind of training you put him through. You make him do exercises until he collapses from exhaustion, while you insult him like there is no tomorrow."

It was the mans turn to glare at the mare as he once again closed the distance between the two. "Just so you know, I gave both Spike and Fluttershy a warning that I would be rough with them, but even so I'm taking it easy on her, because I might be dull, but I'm not stupid."

The pegasus rolled her eyes, before she spoke up. "And you expect me to believe that? When you came to Ponyville, you beat up me and my friends, even trying to kill one of us." Her eyes were burning with rage as she continued to shout at the man. "And then you expected us to apologize to you, even though you didn't deserve it, but refused to forgive us when we did."

Suddenly something in Trider snapped and he gave the mare the coldest glare he had. "Listen here you self-centered piece of shit, you guys were the ones to attack me first, I was just defending myself. You too almost killed me as well, so don't go and try to make me the bad guy here." The mare felt intimidated, but she didn't falter and stood her ground. "As for not forgiving you, I already forgave everyone else. Applejack for kissing her, Pinkie for throwing that party, Rarity for defending a friend of mine. You're the only one who I haven't forgiven."

"And why is that?"

"Because you haven't done anything that would deserve my forgiveness." A smirk suddenly appeared on his face, confusing the mares. "But there is a way for you to earn it."

"Which is?" asked Rainbow skeptically.

"If you beat me in a fight."

At that statement, Fluttershy finally decided to intervene. "N-now Trider there is no need to-"

He raised a hand to stop her and he looked at her. "Just stop Fluts, we all knew it was inevitable." He then casted his gaze onto the other mare. "Three days from tornado season, you and me." Rainbow wanted to say something, but Trider beat her to it. "Let me just explain a few things beforehand." She went quiet as she allowed him to continue. "While I want to beat the living shit out of you, I don't want to kill you, so I won't be using any of my Ki techniques or my Feral Unleashing, but in exchange you are not allowed to fly."

Rainbow mulled over what his conditions were. "And what do you get if you win?" she asked after thinking it over.

"You win, I forgive you and will never again go against anything you say." A smirk suddenly grew on his face, making the mare shiver. "But if I win, you will never go against my words as well as letting Rarity make you a dress and a hairdo that you will have to wear for a week."

Rainbow bit her lip as she heard what was at stake, but eventually a smirk of her own crossed her face.

"Deal." she said as they shook hands. "But I'm still not leaving without Fluttershy."

They glared at each other once again, neither wanting to back down. Fearing another arguement would rise Fluttershy forced herself between the two. "Stop it you two right now." she nearly shouted, catching bot of them by surprise. She then turned to Rainbow as she adressed her. "Rainbow I can confirm he has been doing his best not to be rough on me so you can rest at ease, plus I want him to train me. So if you would kindly let us return to what we were doing?"

Rainbow looked between the two and she sighed. "Fine. If you feel like that, then I can't stop you." Her eyes hardened as she gave the Kanisar one more glare. "But if he hurts you in any way, don't hesitate to come to me. I'll kick his ass all the way to the Griffon Kingdom."

Fluttershy nodded and the two hugged, before Rainbow flew off to do what she was doing before. The pink maned pegasus then turned to Trider and gave him a worried look. "Are you sure about this. The fight I mean?"

He looked at her as he sighed and scratched his head. "Yes I am Fluts and don't try to change my mind or Rainbows. This will probably be for the best." He put a hand onto her shoulder as he looked her in the eyes. "Also don't tell the other girls about this, they would probably try and stop us."

She nodded and the two returned back to their training.

Author's Note

I HATE WRITING EPISODE CHAPTERS.
I nearly wanted to scrap this entire thing, but then I didn't know how I would implement the fight between the two, so I decided to strive through. I wanted to do some more things in this chapter, but decided not to in the end (to end my misery sooner).
Also I want you (who want), to head to my blogs, as I am holding a contest with neat prizes. (Nothing materialistic, in case some of you get funny ideas)
And as always, comment on if you liked this chapter and if there are any mistakes.
Until next time.

Chapter 8: Sting Like A Dash

"I can't believe you're actually doing this." Twilight nearly yelled, as Trider was putting on his combat boots. "Out of all the stupid things you've done, this is by far the stupidest."

"Clearly you don't know me that well." he smirked as he tied the knot to one of his boots.

The mare rubbed her temples as she sighed. "Apperantly not, cause who in their right mind would demand a fight, just to prove who is right?"

The Kanisar just sat in his chair as he strechted his back. "Every one of my kind. When a conflict arises, we solve it by pitting the two who oppose each other and let them duke it out between each other, rather then dragging everyone else with them." He looked her in the eyes, hoping she got the message.

A little before the tornado season, somehow three certain fillies caught wind of the bet, he and Rainbow made, and put it into their school newspaper. Everyone in town soon knew about it and coincidentally all of their friends. They have been trying to convince them to call it off, but they were too determined to even consider their words.

"Are you sure there isn't a way I can change your mind?" Twilight asked in hope.

Trider stood up from his chair and went over to the mare. He clasped her hands into his own and looked her in the eyes. "Sorry Twi, but this is something I have to do." He saw that tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. "Why are you so worried? It's not like this is a deathmatch or something?"

"I don't want to see my friends fight between each other." She paused as she wiped a tear from her eye, then she continued. "I don't want to see either one of you getting hurt." She placed her head onto his chest as she sniffled.

Trider didn't know what to do. He thought she didn't want him to fight because he might end up greatly injuring one of her closest friends. However when she said she didn't want to see him hurt as well, a warm feeling spread through his body and a smile appeard on his face. His body then moved on instinct, as he wrapped the mare into a hug with one hand and he placed the other on top of her head and began to gently rub it. "Thanks Twi, that's one of the kindest things anyone has ever said to me."

They held each other in the embrace for a little while, until Trider let go of the mare and started to head for the door. "You coming?" he asked the stunned mare.

It took Twilight a moment to break out of her trance, a blush appearing on her face, as sheturned toward the man and folllowed him. "Y-yeah, coming."

They walked out of the library and headed towards Sweet Apple Acres where the match will take place. While they walked Twilight continously looked over to her roommate. Her thoughts went back to the moment in the library, that happened just a few minutes ago, as a warm sensation made presence in her chest. "He felt so warm." she thought. "I wish he would do that more often."

When they arrived the rest of their friends were already waiting as well as the Apple family and a few other townfolk. When they got close enough everypony looked in their direction and Applejack made her way through them. The two stopped when the cow-mare stood in front of the them. The earth pony looked into Triders eyes as she spoke up. "Guess yer doin this then?"

"Eeeyup."

She closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. "Try not to hurt each other too much, ya hear." she said as she placed her hand onto his shoulder.

"No promises." he said as he grabbed her hand and gave her one last nod, before he headed towards Rainbow Dash.

He approached the rainbow mare, until he was about thirty feet away. "Hope you're ready to eat my fist wolf-colt." she threatened.

Trider just cracked his knuckles and grinned. "I ain't no pony you rainbow cunt and you won't be so cocky once I shove my foot up your ass."

The two glared at each other, ready to tear the other apart. While they were throwing insults, Spike and Twilight approached the two. The mares horn glowed and a magical barrier enveloped a large area around the two fighters. Satisfied she nodded to her assistant, as he got close to the wall and took in a deep breath. "Mares and gentlecolt." he bellowed. "Today we will witness a fight between our local daredevil Rainbow Dash." Upon calling her name the crowd cheered out, some even whistling. "And the newest addition to Ponyville, from a whole other planet Trider." Unlike Rainbow, he didn't recieve that much cheering, in fact some even booed him.

"Speciests." he thought.

After the cheering died out the drake raised his voice once again as he continued. "As per previous arrangement Rainbow Dash is forbbiden from flying, while Trider can't use his Ki and his trasnformations. This fight will end when either one of the fighters gives up or is no longer able to fight, otherwise all is fair." He took a pause as he looked at the two. "Are you guys ready?"

They both raised their arms and got into their fighting stances. "Ready!" they said in sync.

Spike raised his arm as he looked between the two with worry. He pushed those thoughts out of his head as he concentrated at his task at hand. He then quickly swung his arms downwards. "Begin!"

Rainbow immediatelly charged at Trider, hoping she would land the first hit. The man however saw this coming, as he sidestepped to dodge her attack. He then tried to punish the mare for her rash assault, by kicking her directly in the gut. The pegasus brought her arms to her stomach and blocked the kick, which sent her to the ground. Quickly she got up and jumped away, just as Trider brought his fist down onto where she was just a moment ago.

The two distanced themselves from each other, as they both got ready for another clash.

"Damn he's strong." Rainbow thought as pain flared up in her arms. "Can't take too many of those, otherwise I might be in real trouble."

At the same time Trider looked at his arms and then at the mare. "Guess her boasting about being the fastest, wasn't just her being cocky. I have to slow her down somehow, if I want to land a good hit."

Meanwhile the crowd watched in awe at the clash that happened. They started to talk amongst themselves, trying to figure out who the winner will be.

"I can't believe they are actually doing this." said Rarity as she watched her friends go at it. "Although I want Rainbow to win, I just can't imagine her beating him, when he easily defeated all of us by himself."

"I hear ya Rares, this match is as good as over." Applejack agreed.

"Not necessarily." Spike decided to voice his own thoughts.

"Whatever do you mean Spike? You don't know how strong Trider is, you weren't there when we fought him."

"No I wasn't, but remember I am currently training under him and I've seen what he can do." The mares realized he probably knew more about how strong Trider is than anypony else, so they let him continue. "The reason he beat you all was because he used his Feral Unleashing, which increases his strengh and speed tremendously, but for this fight he chose not to use it, as well as his Ki techniques. In exchange however he made Rainbow promise to not use her wings to fly, as she would have a huge advantage if she did." He crossed his arms as he looked at his two friends in the ring. "Trider is still stronger than her, but Rainbow is faster, so this fight won't be decided so quickly."

The mares stared at him in awe at the analysis he just made, abou the fight. "Wow Spike. You really have changed a bit since you started training haven't you?" Twilight praised her drake friend.

He blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "Awww geez Twilight I haven't rea-"

He was cut off as a giant mass of pink jumped from behind the group, startling everypony nearby. Pinkie was wearing a cheerleader outfit, with rainbow pompoms and was jumping around cheering. "Rainbow, Rainbow she our mare if she can't do it no one can." Suddenly she dropped the pom poms and pulled a giant foam finger out of her mane which read '#1 wolf'. "Go Trider, go, go. Go Trider, go, go." She continued to exchange the finger with pompoms and vice versa, while chanting once for the pegasus, then for the Kanisar.

Her friends looked at her confused, trying to figure out what she was doing. "Pinkie darling, what in the name of sweet Celestia are you doing?" asked Rarity.

Pinkie stopped her cheering to adress her friend. "Cheering, duh." she said as it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I'm trying to cheer my friends on, so they can do their best."

"We see that, but why are ya cheerin fer both of 'em?"

A saddened expression crossed the pink mares face as her mane slightly deflated. "Because they're both my friends and I don't want to see either one of them sad or hurt, so I'm cheering for both of them."

The girls looked at each other, as what their friend sank in. They then joined Pinkie in cheering for both of their friends, making Trider and Rainbow look at them with bemused expressions.

"They are a bunch of idiots ain't they?" he asked the mare, earning a chuckle from her.

"Yeah, but they are my idiots." Her expression then hardened and she tensed her body. "And I won't let anyone hurt them."

"Neither will I."

The two locked their eyes, as they once again lunged at each other their fists connecting. Rainbow then dropped to the ground and did a swipe kick to knock him to the ground. Trider however simply jumped over her leg and got ready to retaliate. The mare suddenly planted her hands onto the ground and bucked her legs at the mans stomach. With no way to dodge, the Kanisar took the full blow. The pegasus smirked at her successfull attack, but it quickly vanished as Trider grabbed her legs and threw her into the barrier. Her back connected with the wall with a loud thud and she fell onto the ground. She groaned as she got up, but didn't have the chance to fully stand as the Kanisar was already by her. She could only watch as a fist connected with her face and she was sent flying through the air. Despite the blow Rainbow managed to correct herself midair and land on her hooves.

Trider smirked as he saw her prepare for another assault. "You're quite good." He then charged her, his arm extended. "But not good enough."

Rainbow could only block the barrage of fists that connected with her. She was slowly being pushed backwards towards the wall and she knew that once he pins her, he will win. Her arms were slowly starting to give in due to the amount of powerful attacks she had to defend herself against. When the man reared his arm to deliver another punch, the mare quickly spun around and deflected his arm with one of her wings. A sharp pain went through Triders forearm and he saw droplets of blood flying through the air. Distracted by the turn of events, he didn't notice Rainbow finishing her spin to deliver a powerful kick directly into his chest. As air left his lungs, he was flung to the ground, a couple of feet away from the pegasus.

He slowly picked himself up, but instead of worrying about his chest he looked at his arm. A long gash was present and blood flowed out of it. He looked towards the mare and saw her wing tips were coated in small amount of his blood. "So it's true what I read. Pegasi can make their feathers as sharp as knives if they concentrate their magic into them."

Ranibow was gasping for air, as she and Trider were slowly starting to get exhausted. "Don't you dare say that I'm cheating or anything, cause you only said that I can't use my wings to fly. You didn't say anything about using them to fight you."

"Fair enough." Saying that Trider began to think over how he will bring the mare down. "Those wings are my first priority, I have to take them out. But that will be difficult as seeing she can use them as well as she can use her arms. Plus their reach is greater than mine is." He mulled over everything before he came to a conclusion. "Alright, might as well do it."

With a loud scream he dashed at the mare, but she was expecting him. When he got close she sprouted her wings and slashed at the man. He doged her initial attack, but was still hit by the second, leaving a small cut in his thigh. Not giving up he charged her again, this time however when Rainbow brought her wings onto him he successfully dodged them both and grabbed her wings by the part where there were no feathers, only muscles. Having her in his clutches he smiled thinking he had the upper hand, but he forgot Rainbow could still use her arms to attack him. She delivered blow after blow to his stomach and face, leaving him badly bruised, until he let go. When he did she kicked him in the jaw sending him flying backwards. He landed on his back, with a loud thud. Slowly he raised his upper torso and massaged his bruised jaw. Then he spit and a tooth flew out of his mouth, along with a small amount of blood.

"Now I'm angry." he said as he stood up and wiped the blood away.

Without warning he jumped at Rainbow, deciding he should try aerial assault. The mare leaped out of his attack and turned towards him. Trider quickly closed the distance between the two and Rainbow thrusted her wings forward, expecting to slah the Kanisar some more. The man however quickly dove to the ground and he slipped between the mares legs getting behind her. The pegasus realized too late what his intentions were, as he was already rearing his arms to strike her in the back and she had no time to avoid it. Thinking quickly she brought her wings back and tried to make him back off by slashing at him. Trider however didn't stop, instead he blocked both of her wings with one of his hands and with the other he struck her directly between her wings. However he didn't stop at just one punch as he deliverd one after the other. Eventually Rainbow managed to get away from him her back now hurting like hell.

"Is that all you've got dog meat? Even Granny Smith could punch harder than you." she taunted the man, whose hand was now dangling at his side, bleeding badly. "You won't be able to fight for much longer, not with that arm, so it's time to finish this." She tried to lift her wings for her assault, but they didn't respond. She tried again and again, but her wings just didn't listen to her. "What did you do to my wings?" she screamed at him.

Trider smirked as he took off his shirt and wrapped it around his injured arm to stop the bleeding. "I simply disabled your wings. You see in this book that I read about pegasi anatomy, it clearly said that there is a way to disable pegasus wings by striking a specific point between the wings. Once you hit it the wings will no longer respond to the pegasus commands and be only dead weight to them." Once he was done wrapping it up he grinned at the mare. "Though I could of done something about them sooner and save myself the trouble of bandaging my arm."

Rainbow looked at him confused, as she didn't know what he was talking about. "What do you mean sooner?"

"Remember that time I grabbed your wings by the base." She nodded and when she did, trider picked up a small stone from the ground and held it in his hand. He then began to squeeze it until it cracked and turned to small pile of rubble. "I could of easily crushed your wings at that moment."

The pegasus gulped at the thought of him actually doing so. "Then why didn't you?" she asked in curiosity. "You could of easily won if you did that as I would've been writhing in agony."

Trider closed his eyes as he sighed. "Because you probably would never be able to fly ever again." The statement shocked the mare as she let him to continue. "I read that the bones in the wings are tough, but should they be broken it would take considerable time to heal, but should the muscles be crushed as well, then there would be no other option than to cut them off." Rainbow looked at her wings as the thought of never being able to fly crossed her mind. Trider took a step forward as he spoke. "You are wary of me because of what happened when we first met and from what I told you about my kind," he stopped as he rubbed his head. "but let me tell you this. I would never hurt anyone out of pure pleasure, only if you make me really angry or if you hurt those that are close to me. And despite everything that happened between us, I would never do something like take a part of you away, just to teach you a lesson. You might not be my friend, but you're my friends friend"

The words sank into Rainbows mind as she realized he wasn't so bad as she made him up to be. She looked at the ground, as she rubbed one of her arms. "You're right. I'm sorry for how I was treating you and I'm sorry for hurting you when we first met."

The Kanisar smiled at the sincerity of her apology. "You're forgiven RD." His eyes narrowed as he lowered his stance. "Now stop moping and lets finish this."

The mare as well as all of the ponies looked at him confused. "Why? Didn't we just make up? I thought we only fought so we could get things straightened out?"

"We did, however once a Kanisar starts a fight he finishes it." A grin grew on his face. "Or do you really want to try out that dress Rarity made for you?"

Remembering their bet Rainbow got ready to continue the fight. "Bring it on big guy."

The two clashed once more, but this time it didn't feel like a fight to the death, but instead like a match between two friends.

After an hour the two fighters were being treated at the Ponyville hospital, the match ending in a draw. They were staying in the same room and their friends already left to go back to what they had to do. Trider and Rainbow looked at each other as a grin grew on both of their faces.

"I still can't believe it ended in a draw." The mare said to her companion and he just nodded. "Next time though, I will kick your ass all the way back to your planet."

"As much as I would appreciate that, it's not gonna happen." he rebutted. "Though I will be waiting for when we can have a reamtch."

"Good." said the mare. She then looked at him a little worried. "Abou the bet, since it was a draw-"

"Nope, you still have to go to Raritys and before you say why, I have already held up to my end of the bet as I forgave you, so now it's your turn."

The pegasus mare sighed as she facepalmed. "Ah fuck me in the ass."

"Would love to, but I am currently bedridden."

She gave him a deadpanned look as he began to laugh. She soon followed and the room was filled with the laughter of what others would consider as two good friends.

"You're a prick."

"And you're a cunt."

Author's Note

And that makes everyone. This chapter was fun to write, compared to the last one.
We are slowly approaching the Canterlot Wedding and the inevitable fight between the queen and our 'hero'. Just a couple more chapters and the first arc will be finished.
Like always comment on how you liked it and if there are any mistakes that I made.
Until next time.

Chapter 9: Dogs That Bark And Wolf That Bites

Spike was running between the apple trees, trying to avoid the incoming projectile. As soon as he made a sharp turn at the next tree, the ground where he stood just a second ago exploded and threw him to the ground. But he didn't have time to lay around, because he knew that his assailant wouldn't give up so easily. Quickly he got up and jumped out of the way of another blast that headed straight for him. Once he was back on his feet he raised his arms, prepared for yet another attack. He waited and looked around, he flinched at even the slightest movement and sound, expecting it to be his opponent. Suddenly he heard rustling of leaves to his side. He immediatelly turned around, just in time to see a figure jump out of the tree top. His body acting on instinct, he raised his arms to block. A sudden pain flared through his forearms and the force of the impact sent him flying to the ground once more. Ignoring the burning sensation in his arms he tried to get up, but a foot forced him down.

"That's as far as you go." The figure grinned, showing off its fangs. "It's about time we finished this."

Spike coughed as relief washed over his face. "Thank Celestia, I thought I'd die out there. Can't you go a little bit easy one me next time Trider?"

The Kanisar chuckeled as he removed his foot from the drakes chest and helped him get up. "Not a chance. If I go easy on you you'll never get strong enough to actually land a blow on me."

"I guess." Spike said reluctantly. "Still do you really need to use Ki techniques when we spar? Can't we just have old fashioned fist to fist brawl?"

"I use my techniques to better myself as well. Despite the years of training I had I'm still not even close to my mentor." He turned his head to the three approaching fillies and smirked. "Besides I wanted to give the audience a little show."

Spike looked where Trider was looking and saw the Crusaders. They ran up to the two and began to jump around the duo.

"That was amazing you two. You were like boom, pow, kabooom." the Scootaloo nearly screamed, while throwing punches and kicks left and right.

Apple Bloom was next to fan-girl. "Yea it was almost like that fight ya'll had with Rainbow Dash."

"You guys were great." Sweetie Belle finished with a high squeaky voice. Trider rubbed his ears. Sometimes when the filly spoke he felt like his ears would burst from the high pitch she could produce.

Spike looked at the group confused. "Wait, you saw us fight? How long have you been here?"

"They got here a little after we started our sparring session." Trider explained. "The fact that you didn't even notice them tells me that you focus too much on the fight."

Confusion growing, Spike looked at his friend. "What do you mean? Isn't focusing on your opponent a fundamental when you fight?"

The Kanisar sighed as he scratched his head. "It is, but it also isn't." He walked over to a tree and leaned against it. "In a duel keeping your focus on your opponent is good, because it's usually one on one, but if you're in a real fight don't expect things to be so fair. You'll probably end up going against multiple enemies and if you focus just on the guy in front of you, you won't see the one who is behind you."

Realization dawned on Spikes face, as Triders statement made sense. "I see. Guess I still have much to learn."

"All in due time my friend, but right now," he turned his attention to the Crusaders again. "Why're you guys here?"

Scootalo walked over to Spike and draped an arm around his shoulders. "We came to get Spike so he can help us."

The man looked at the group raising his eyebrow. "Help you with what exactly?"

"Getting our cutie marks." they said in unison.

The Kanisar looked at his drake friend waiting for an explanation. "Oh yeah, forgot to mention that me and the CMC have plans." Spike awkwardly chuckled. "We are going to a quarry to get them a cutie mark in geology or the like."

"Wanna join us?" asked Apple Bloom.

"No thanks, I still have the scar from the first time I helped you get your cutie marks." Trider said in a grim tone.

Scootaloo shrugged. "Your loss dude." She grabbed Spike by the hand and began to drag him away. "C'mon lets get going already."

Spike nearly tripped from being pulled so hard. He looked back at his mentor and waved his free arm. "I guess I'll see you later then."

"Take care." was the only response the man gave before they dissappeared from his sight.

He began to walk back towards the farm, when his stomach rumbled. "Huh, is it so late already?" he pondered. He began to slowly change his direction away from the farm and started to head towards the Everfree. "Maybe I'll catch myself a cockatrice today. Despite being part chicken they actually taste like beef." he thought as he began to salivate.

A while later

The sounds of digging resonated throughout the nearby area and the head of the young dragon popped out of a deep hole. He lifted one of his arms showing his pony friends a small rock in his claws. "Alright, can you tell me what rock is this?"

The Crusaders looked at the object from every possible angle, trying to figure out the answer to his question. Eventually they gave up and plopped onto the ground. "I don't know. A quartz maybe?" said exasperated Scootaloo.

Spike deadpanned and climbed out of the hole. "No it's limestone. Did you guys even read any books on geology before you decided to try getting your cutie marks in it?"

The three fillies looked at each other and gave each other sheepish grins. "Sure we did." said Apple Bloom obviously lying.

The drake crossed his arms and gave them an annoyed look. "Really? Then tell me the three main types of rocks."

The Crusaders exchanged looks, hoping that at least one of them knew the answer, but after seeing that none of them had any idea the sighed. "Alright we don't know a single thing about rocks." said Sweetie Belle in a defeated tone. "We thought we just had to do some digging and we would get our cutie marks just like that." She snapped her fingers as she said that.

Spike dragged his hand across his face as he groaned. "Great, an hour of work for nothing." As he looked at his friends he saw their expressions fell and were feeling bad for dragging him out here. "Well at least we had some fun." he said in a cheerful tone, hoping he woould lift the Crusaders mood and it did. He also wasn't lying when he said that, he honsetly had a good time as he dug holes and questioned the fillies about what type they were. They made jokes and talked about all sorts of things as they tried to get their cutie marks. He looked at the sky and saw that the sun was slowly travelling towards the horizon. "Alright, we should start heading back, we don't want the others to start worrying about us. Go get your things and lets head back."

The others nodded and went to grab their bags that they left on a nearby rock. As they went to get their things, Spike began to look around the quarry an uneasy feeling settling in his gut. "Something's not right." He had a feeling they were being watched for the past half an hour, but thought it was just some animals, now however it felt like they were in danger. Suddenly he heard Sweetie Belle scream and he turned around to see what was wrong.

The unicorn filly was struggling to get her hoof free from the grip of a hand that was sticking out of the ground. He tried to get to them, but he fell to the ground. He looked at his foot and saw that the similar pair of hands were holding his feet as well. He inhaled and released a small fireball that burned the hands of his captor and made him release his legs. As he got up the ground around him and the Crusaders started to shake, and very soon they were surrounded by a group of bipedal dog-like creatures. "Diamond Dogs." Spike said with a venomous tone. "What do you guys want? We don't have any gems for you, so just beat it."

A tall grey dog with a red vest stepped forward and smiled, showing off his fangs. "We not want gems." he said. "We want ponies." As if on cue the other dogs grabbed the fillies and restrained their movements.

"LET THEM GO!" Spike shouted, making some of the nearby dogs cringe and back away a bit.

The grey dog stepped forward and gave the drake a challenging look. "No. Ponies make good slaves, so we hear, especially small ones." This made Spikes blood boil, he just wanted to tackle him and punch his sharp canines right out of his maw, but he calmed down knowing he must come up with a strategy first.

"What about me?" he asked, hoping to buy just a little bit of time to think things through. "What will you do with me?"

"Dragon too dangerous to keep. We beat you up and leave you here."

"Like I'm gonna let that happen." Spike said as he cracked his neck. Without warning he jump at the one of the dogs to his left and delivered punch directly to his snout. The dog yipped and fell backwards. Immediatelly taking advantage of the confusion, Spike spun around and shot fire from his mouth. All the dogs backed away from the scorching fire and it left plenty of room to move around. He tried to make his way to the Crusaders, but was blocked by one of the dogs. The mutt threw his fist at the drake, but Spike blocked it with his arms. As his opponent readied for another attack, the dragon used his tail to trip the dog. When he hit the ground Spike jumped onto his gut, eliciting a pained groan, and propeled himself towards his friends. Suddenly he was grabbed by his tail and pulled backwards, by one of the bigger dogs. His body hit the ground with a loud thud and pain seared through him. Before he had time to acknowledge the pain however, the dog swung a massive club at him. As quickly as he could, Spike rolled away from the weapon and its wielder and getting up ready for another wave of attackers.

The dogs however stood still and then the red vested dog spoke up. "What wrong dragon, tired?" he laughed the others following his example. "If you give up now, we go easy on you."

Spike wiped a sweat drop from his brow and chuckled. "Like hell I will. I'll take on all of you."

Saying that his fists suddenly erupted in flames and he got ready to continue his fight. The dogs shouted out what sounded like a battle cry and charged the young drake. Spike however just extended his middle and index finger on each hand and pointed them at the approaching enemies.

"Taste my Blaze Guns." he shouted and fired away.

The blasts connected with only a few dogs, while the rest were able to dodge them. When they got too close, Spike curled his hands back into fists and wailed on them. They tried to get at least one hit in, but the drake was too nimble and he easily dodged their attacks, however he was slowly being pushed backwards.

"SPIKE WATCH OUT!!!" one of the Crusaders screamed, but it was too late. From out of the ground behind Spike, jumped one of the dogs, who wielded an old and slightly rusty sword. Spike tried to evade the attack, but he was too slow. The dog slashed across his back and left a long bloody mark. The pain flared throughout his body, but it wasn't over yet. The rest saw the opening and let loose on the helpless teenager. Punches and kicks connected with his body and when they finally stopped, Spike laid on the floor bruised and bleeding.

The dogs circled him and laughed at his broken form. "You all talk and no bite. You pathetic." They taunted and insulted him, but Spike could barely hear anything, his hearing impeded by his pain. His vision was hazy, but it slowly started to focus. His eyes fell onto his friends who were, by his guess, screaming for him and struggling against their captors. Anger slowly started to build inside him, he pushed himself onto his feet. The dogs stopped their taunting and looked at him with scared expressions.

"I said" Spike spoke in a ragged voice. "LET THEM GO!!!"

His body suddenly started to release steam and his scales turned a shade redder and his spikes now had vein like dark green pattern. His pupils dialted into slits and he unleashed a powerful roar. The dogs quickly acted and jumped at him, hoping to overpower him. Spikes body was immediatelly engulfed in flames and he released said flames in a powerful shockwave. All the dogs that attacked him were sent flying by the blast and Spike took off towards the Crusaders and the Diamond Dogs that were holding them. As he was approaching them his body suddenly started to hurt all over and he knew he couldn't keep this up for much longer.

"If I can't save them all, at least I can save one."

With one of his fists engulfed in fire Spike delivered a powerful blow to the dog that was holding Apple Bloom. The punch landed directly onto the dogs snout and sent him flying into a nearby tree. The impact was so powerful it broke the tree in half and left the dog motionless on the ground. Apple Bloom looked at her dragon friend with awe and shock, but before she had time to react Spike grabbed her by the wrist.

"Go get help." was all he said to her. Bloom, confused by his statement, wanted to know what he meant by that, but before she had time to ask Spike swung his arm and sent the earth filly flying through the air. She could only scream as she soared through the sky towards the edge of the Everfree Forest.

Spikes body then returned to normal and he was desperately gasping for air, he was completely exhausted. The sound of approaching dogs made him turn around and he wasn't happy at what he saw. A bunch of pissed off Diamond Dogs who just lost one of their potential slaves.

"You pay for that." the dog threatened.

Spike just grinned and raised his arms, ready to resume his fight. "Make me."

Zecoras hut

Zecora was going through her numerous vials and bottles trying to find what she was looking for. "I'm telling you, it's not that bad of a wound. A little spit and wiping and you wouldn't even notice." Her guests statement didn't deter the shaman from her search.

"So you may say my dear friend, but my treatment I shall still lend." As she said that she reached for a vial filled with an orange liquid. Once she had it in her hands she turned towards Trider. "Now give me your hand, so I may your pain end." Begrudgingly he extended his arm and showed the mare his bloody palm. Zecora opened the vial and put some of the liquid onto a small piece of cloth and began to wipe the wound. The Kanisar felt a stinging sensation, but he barely reacted, having received much worse pain in his lifetime. "Now to cover up the damage, let me put on some bandages." From a nearby table she took a roll of bandages and bandaged his hand. Trider looked at the expertly treated wound and ive a few squeezes with his hand to see how much mobility it still had.

"Thanks a lot Zecora, you're a real life saver." he said, the last bit dripping with sarcasm. She only rolled her eyes and went into the next room to put away the roll. When she left Trider looked around the zebras home. It wasn't that big and all around the place hung tribal masks and nearly every shelf was filled to the brim with either potions, ingredients to make them or books on herbology. Over the fire, where the mare usully cooks her potions in a large cauldron, hung a large piece of meat that the Kanisar was cooking.

Trider and Zecora met not too long after he arrived to Ponyville, while he was in the Everfree, hunting for food. As he was chasing a weird bird, that he later found out were called harpies, he stumbled upon the mare who was surrounded by Timberwolves. Zecora however wasn't helpless as many may have thought. She succesfully fought off nearly every one of the wooden wolves, but she was slowly being overwhelmed. That was when Trider jumped in and helped her finish off the beasts, afterwards they had a small talk and when she found out he didn't mean her any danger, she invited him to her hut to treat herself and him as well. Ever since then whenever Trider went to the Everfree to hunt he would stop by Zecoras so she could heal any wounds he got during his hunt and chat a little. Over time she even let him bring his catches so he could cook them at her home, instead of in the middle of the forest where other predators might catch wiff of his bounty.

"Thanks again for always taking care of me and letting me eat here." he said to her when she came back into the room. "How come you're so accepting of an alien like me and my need to feed on meat?"

Zecora picked up a cup of tea that she brewed when Trider visited her and sat opposite of him. "As I told you, my travels have taken me all across the land, throught cities, towns and even wastelands. As my journey progressed, by many creatures and cultures I was impressed. From peaceful of ponies to the weird yak ceremonies. You're preference of meat isn't some unique feat."

Impressed by her wisdom Trider could only look at her with amazment. Suddenly the door to the hut slammed open and through them ran bruised and slightly bloody Apple Bloom. Both of the adults got up from their chairs and ran to the filly.

"Bloom what happened to you?" asked shocked Kanisar.

The filly gasped for air, clearly exhausted from running all the way to them. "Spike. Rock quarry. Dogs. Fight..." she said in between every breath, until Trider stopped her.

"Easy there kid, take a deep breath and explain everything slowly."

Taking his advice she took a few deep breaths before she talked. "Spike, Sweetie and Scootaloo are in danger. While we were digging at the rock quarry we were attacked by a bunch of Diamond Dogs. Spike tried to fight them off, but he got beaten. Right before he went down he rescued me and told me to get some help. Since Zecoras hut was the closest I came here." Tears started to stream down her cheeks and she started to sob. "Please you have to help them. If not they will really hurt Spike and make Sweetie and Scootaloo into slaves."

A grim look spread across Triders face as he took in what she told them. He headed for the door. "Zecora, you take Bloom to Ponyville and get the others. I'll go to the quarry and try to buy some time, since I have no idea how strong these Diamond Dogs are."

"But how will you get there? You have no idea where it is?" Apple Bloom questioned.

Trider tapped his nose with a finger and smiled. "I'll just follow your scent, like the first time we met." Saying that he ran out the door and followed the scent. "Hang in there Spike. I'll be there soon." With that thought he accelerated hoping to get there before anything bad could happen to one of his friends.

It took him just a few minutes to reach his destination and the sight before him made his stomach churn. The two Crusaders were tied up, gagged and were crying, but seemed mostly unharmed. What made him sick however was the sight of Spike. The drake was being held up by one of the so called Diamond Dogs, they looked like dogs only they were walking on two legs, had massive forearms, wore articles of clothing and were uglier than a normal dog, while the others watched another one beat the hell out of the drake. He wasn't sure if his dragon friend was even conscious or not, but he saw that his clothes were ripped, he had countless bruises and had several open wounds, probably made by the packs weapons. Slowly he made his way to the group, as they were still unaware of his presence.

When he was just a few feet away from the group they took notice of the newcomer and they stopped what they were doing. "Who you?" asked on of the dogs. "You look like pony, but not pony." he sniffed the air. "You smell like dog. You friend?"

"I'm his friend." Trider said as he pointed a finger at Spike, who was still held up by the Diamond Dog.

"Really?" said the dog and snapped his fingers. Suddenly two of the dogs grab him by the arms and hold him tight. "Then we make you pay like him. We beat you up good."

"Shut up." the Kanisar said in a tone devoid of any emotion. "I'm gonna kill you all."

The dogs began to laugh at his statement. "And how you do that? We many you alone. You lose."

"Spirit claw." As he said that his arms were enveloped in a red aura that took shape of three massive claws. The aura burned the two dogs arms and before they had time to react Trider spun around slashing across ones chest, while eviscerating the others gut. Blood gushed out of the bodies of the two and fell to the ground lifeless. The other dogs looked at their fallen brothers and their executioner with shock and terror. Once again Trider faced the group now covered in blood. He looked at his enemies as he assessed the situation. There were eight dogs still left, some of them had weapons and armour, while others had nothing.

"We kill you. We avenge." The dogs howled and got ready to attack.

Trider didn't move an inch, standing his ground. "You can bark and howl all you want, but if you are unable to follow your threats you should just back off. You are nothing more than whiny mutts, while I'm a vicious wolf."

Having heard enough out of him the dogs charged the Kanisar, with intent to kill. "We win fight. We kill fake Diamond Dog."

"And that is why you don't stand a chance. You think this is a fight, while in reality..." he said as his eyes turned red. "This is a massacre."

In a blink of the eye Trider met halfway with one of the dogs, now enveloped in a dark aura. He grabbed him by his face and slammed him into the ground and dragged him across it. One of the dogs tried to catch him by surprise, but failed as the Kanisar hit him with the body of his comrade, acompanied by a loud snap. As the dog hit the ground Trider looked at the one still in his hand. The back of the dogs head was completely soaked in blood and fragments of skull could be seen, his face was disformed thanks to Triders vice grip and his neck was visibly broken. The Kanisar dropped the body to the ground and he focused on the rest. The ground beneath him began to rumble and before he could react a dog jumped out of the earth and smacked him directly in the jaw. Trider staggered backwards, slightly dizzy from the hit.

"That's a nasty trick you lot know." he grumbled as he masaged his jaw. All of a sudden another dog jumped out of the ground behind him and put him in a hold.

"Get him Rex." the dog said to another dog who came running at them with a sword.

"Got it Brutus." said Rex.

When Rex reached the two, he lifted his sword for a guaranteed strike. "Roar Cannon." Trider said as he opened his mouth and a yellow beam shot out of it. The blast hit Rex directly in the face and it blew his head to smithereens. The sight shocked Brutus to the core so much that he slightly released his hold on the Kanisar and he took advantage of it. Grabbing his forearms Trider leaped behind Brutus pulling his arms along with him. When he landed behind him he put a foot onto his back and began to slowly apply more and more force. The dog began to cry and howl at the pain, begging Trider to stop, but he didn't hear him. Soon his joints gave in and his arms dislocated from the shoulders. Trider however continued with the pulling until the dogs skin and muscle began to tear. With one more powerful pull the man ripped the dogs arms from his torso and Brutus fell forward to the ground and seizing all movement.

One of the dogs realized that they were no match for Trider and decided to retreat. Digging a hole he tried to get away. However Trider grabbed him by the tail before he could completely vanish underground. Pulling him out he swung him overhead and slammed him into the ground. He repeated this until the only thing that remained was a bloddy pile of what was once a Diamond Dog. All of sudden a large shadow descended over Trider and he quickly jumped out of the way of a club striking the ground. He looked up at the dog who was easily a head bigger than him.

"Me squash you like bug." he bellowed as he swung his club again. The Kanisar once again dodged his assault and jumped over his head. While mid-air he grabbed the dogs ears and pulled him down onto his back. The brute tried to get up, but trider was looming over him. He raised his fist and slammed it into his chest.

"Piston Cannon Tri-Spear." he said as his hand connected with the dogs chest. The blow made the air escape out of the brutes lungs, but he wasn't so badly hurt. The Kanisar turned around and began to walk to his next victim. The dog wandered why he left him live, when all of a sudden a sharp pain flared through his whole body. A large dent suddenly appeared on his chest, his rib were immediatelly broken and his heart and lungs were crushed. With the last of his breath he looked towards his brothers and the creature that killed him and the others, last thought going through his mind. "We doomed."

Trider made his way to another dog in stride. When he reached him the dog could only cower, his legs shaking. He looked up at the man his watering from pure terror. "I surrender." he yelled as he bowed his head in hope he would spare him. Trider however didn't even blink as he enveloped his hand in the Spirit CLaw and plunged it straight through the dogs chest. The dog grabbed his arm trying to remove it from inside him, but slowly his strengh and life faded from his body and his body went limp.

"Mercy is not an option for you scum." was all the Kanisar said as he let the body drop to the ground. He turned his attention to the nearby dog and saw that one of them was missing. "Where is the other one?" he asked, but the dog was too terrified to answer. Trider heard sounds of footsteps distancing themselves from them. As he looked to the right he saw the other dog trying to flee and save his life. "No worry, I found him." He extended an arm towards the runaway focusing his Ki to his palm. A ball of rippling blue color formed. "Wailing Nova Sphere!" he said as he unleashed the orb towards the fleeing dog. He didn't have a chance to get out of the way of the ball when it reached him. With a loud cry he was enveloped in an explosion and his body was disintegrated. The only thing remaining was a small smoking crater.

"Eight down, one left." Saying that he faced back to the dog, grabbed him by the throat and lifted him into the air. "Any last words?" The dog tried to form a sentence, but Trider slowly applied more and more pressure. "Guess not." He lifted his other arm and charged a Ki blast to finish off his last opponent. "Rot in hell."

"TRIDER STOP!" The Kanisar stopped charging and directed his gaze towards the source of the shout. Several feet away he saw the Mane 6 and each of them had a look of shock and terror plastered on their face. The worst were probably Fluttershy who looked like she would faint any minute and Pinkie whose mane was now flat and was crying a river.

"Please stop Trider, this isn't you." Twilight said as she took a step closer. The Kanisar looked between her and the dog in his arm. Inhaling, the dark aura dissipated and his eyes returned to normal. He brought the dog closer to his face and whispered in his ear.

"If I ever see, hear or even smell any of you near Ponyville ever again, I will find you and I will finish what I started here." He dropped him to the ground and gave him an icy glare. "Now scram." The dog began to dig into the ground without hesitation and was soon far away from the quarry. Trider looked at his friends and saw that they were still staring at him and the scene that was before them. Without uttering a single word he turned around and made his way out of the quarry.

"Trider wait!" Rainbow shouted to the Kanisar and wanted to follow him, but was stopped by the lavender mare.

"Don't." she said. "We should free Sweetie and Scootaloo first and get Spike to the hospital. I think it's better that we leave him alone for now, besides the princesses would probably want to talk to him about this incident as well." The others nodded and went to help the teenagers.

It was in the middle of the night, when Trider made his way through the streets of Ponyville. "Wonder what's for dinner." he thought. "Probably a hell lot of dissapoinment and fear. Can't really blame them. What they saw today, they have probably never seen in their life." He reached the library and grabbed the doorknob. "Here goes nothing."

When he opened the door the whole room went quiet and all eyes were immediatelly on him. "It's like I'm on trial or something." He looked around the room and noticed there were two ponies too much in it. "And the princesses are the judges, figures."

"How's Spike doing?" he asked before anyone could say anything.

"The doctors said he should make a full recovery in a few weeks." answered Twilight.

"Good to hear. What about-?"

"Stop trying to avoid the subject Trider." Celestia said in a commanding tone.

"Fine, I just wanted to know how the kids were doing after the whole debacle." Trider said.

"You call what you did a debacle? Do you even care that you took lives of nine Diamond Dogs?" asked Luna in an angry tone.

"Not really, they deserved it." The answer took everypony by surprise. How could anypony take a life and be so nonchalant, while trying to justify their actions?

Luna, now furious slammed her hands onto the table that she was sitting at, nearly breaking it. "You inscolent little welp. How can you just claim that they deserved their lives being taken? What have they done to earn such punishment?"

Trider crossed his arms as he sighed. "They hurt Spike one of my friends, nearly killing him in the process. Isn't that a good enough reason?"

This time it was Celestias turn to speak up. "Yes they should be punished for what they tried to do, but death isn't one of them. They nearly killed Spike, emphasis on nearly, while you killed them without mercy." She glared at him and her gaze hardened. "It is not in your right to take a life. When I first met you I believed you weren't a bad person, that you were actually kin despite your rough behaviour. Even your interactions with other ponies made believe that."

"Guess you're not such a good judge of character as you thought you were." Everypony in the room looked at him in shock, at what he said to Celestia. "I thought I told you already this, but on my planet I was part of special forces and there was only one rule. Kill or be killed." He locked gaze with the solar diarch, neither of them backing down. "Another thing you should know about me is that I would do anything for a friend. Even kill."

Celestia continued to glare at the Kanisar as she processed what he said. "I see. Rarely anpony would ever go to such lengths for a friend and I can admire that. But what you did is still unacceptable and furthermore you broke your promise to me that you wouldn't harm a living soul while you are in our kingdom."

"I said I wouldn't harm anypony and as far as I'm concerned those mutts weren't ponies." Trider rebuted. This made the princess even more upset. "Also I saved lives of three kids."

"That you did and I thank you for risking your life to protect them. For that reason I won't throw you into the Canterlot Dungeons, as well as that your friends begged me and my sister not to do so. But don't think you're off the hook so easily. Me and my sister have some important business to attend to back in Canterlot, so we will have to take our leave. But we shall send you a summon when we come up with a fitting punishment." Saying that the two sisters stood up and went to the librarys door. "Until then I want you to stay out of trouble unless you really want to spend your time in jail."

"Loud and clear your highness." Trider said in a snarky tone.

With a roll of her eyes Celestia teleported her sister and herself back to Canterlot, leaving Trider alone with the Mane 6.

"Trider..." Twilight and the girls wanted to talk to him about today, but he cut her and the others off.

"It's best if we don't Twi. Besides I'm completely drained." When he said that he went to the stairs and began to ascend them. "I'm way too tired to talk about this shit and I got enough scolding from the princesses already, so maybe tomorrow?" The mares looked at each other nad they each slowly nodded. Satisfied Trider continued to climb the stairs. "Good night." With that said he left the mares in the room, each one worried about the new side that Trider showed them.

Author's Note

And merry Christmas to y'all.
I'm back after a long grueling time. My laptop is back to it's functionality, but schoolwork is still breathing down my neck.
I didn't intend to make this chapter so brutal, but as I began to write my mind went all out. And thanks to that this story now has a gore tag. But anyway hope you guys enjoyed the newest chapter and like always comment on how much you liked it, if you did anyways, and if there are any mistakes I should go around fixing.
Also big thanks to Bigguy for inspiring Roar Cannon.
Until next time.

Chapter 10: Canterlot Wedding Part 1: Calm Before the Storm; Prepare For The Wedding

The sun shone high up in the sky as the girls were enjoying a peaceful picnic. They chatted among themselves, while Trider was taking a nap under one of the trees. Applejack looked at him as she raised her glass, ready to take a sip.

"Ya sure ya don't want anythin ta eat Trider? Usually you'd be gobblin up food like a pig." She paused as she realised the implication of her statement. "Eh, no offence."

Trider didn't even crack an eye open as he grumbled. "If it ain't meat, I ain't interested."

The girls looked at each other with worried expressions. It has been a couple of days since the Diamond Dog incident and the mares and the Kanisar settled that matter between themselves. However Trider was no longer allowed to venture into the Everfree or anywhere else that was too far away from Ponyville, by himself until Celestia decided on his punishment. That made Trider so angry he wanted to walk into Canterlot and punch Celestia in the face, but he accepted the condition non the less, mostly because his friends begged him. But as he and the girls waited for the Princesses reply Trider grew more and more annoyed, mostly due to the lack of meat.

"Just leave him be darling. If he wants to be a sourpuss, just because he doesn't get what he wants, let him. We don't want his childness to ruin this gorgeous day." said the fashionista.

"That coming from the mare who faints when a drop of juice falls onto her dress." Trider said loud enough for everyone to hear. The rest of the Mane 6 laughed at that, while Rarity could only huffed. A pleasant atmosphere descended upon the group once again, as everyone returned to their picnic and Trider began to lightly snore.

The all of a sudden they heard someone calling out to Twilight. As they looked in the direction of where the voice was coming from, they saw Spike running up to them. When he reached them he was huffing like mad, trying to fill his lungs with air.

"Spike what are you doing here? You should be resting!" Twilight exclaimed as she approached her assistant. When Spike was brought to the hospital after his run in with the Dogs, the doctors found out he had multiple open wounds, bruises and even broken bones. He was treated with some of the best healing spells known to ponykind, but despite that he still had to rest, before his body was fully healed.

"Urgent. Message. From. Princess. Celestia." he said in between each breath, getting the attention from everyone, especially Trider.

He huffed as he stood up and streched. "About damn time. I was begining to think her punishment was that I would no longer be allowed to eat meat."

No one paid attention to his remark as Twilight opened the scroll, that Spike gave her, and began to read its content. "Dear Twilight, I'm sure you're as excited as i am about the upcoming wedding in Canterlot." She paused as she looked at the scroll and then the girls in confusion. "Wedding?" Disregarding what she read till now, she continued. "I will be presiding the ceremony, but would very much like you and your friends to help with the preparations for this wonderful occasion. Fluttershy, I would like you and your songbird choir to provide the music."

"Oh my goodness, what an honor."

"Pinkie Pie, I can think of no one more qualified than you to host the reception." the librarian continued.

"Hip, hip, hooray!" Pinkie cheered as she did a few cartwheels across the blanket.

"Applejack, you will be in charge of the catering for the reception."

"Well color me pleased as punch!" the cow mare said at that.

"Rainbow Dash–" The prismatic mare yawned, clearly not interested in the wedding. "...I would very much appreciate it if you could perform a Sonic Rainboom as the bride and groom complete their "I do"'s."

At the news Rainbow jumped into the air and pumpred her fist. "Yes!"

"Rarity, you will be responsible for designing the dresses for the bride and her bridesmaids."

Her jaw agap the mare could barely comprehend what she was just told. "Princess Celestia wants me to– asjcndslh ...wedding dress? For a Canterlot wedding... I, ah, ooh, oooh!" She collapsed onto the ground, while Fluttershy tried to catch her, but failed.

"Told ya!" Trider snarked.

Not paying any attention to him she proceeded to read the letter until the end. "And as for you, Twilight, you will be playing the most important role of all: Making sure that everything goes as planned. Also, make sure you bring Trider along with you, as I plan to bestow his punishment when the wedding ends." Trider groaned when he heard that. "See you all very soon. Yours, Princess Celestia." She flipped the scroll over, trying to find if she had missed anything. "But... I don't understand. Who's getting married? "

Spike, realising his mistake, smiled sheepishly and gave her another scroll. "Heh, maybe I should have given you this first."

Twilight took the scroll and unfurled it. "Princess Celestia cordially invites you to the wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and..." She stopped reading and gasped loudly. "My brother?!"

Everyone looked at her in shock and confusion. "You have a brother Twilight?" asked perplexed Rainbow Dash. Twilight nodded affirming what she said.

"Oh so that was the guy I saw in her pictures. Thoguht it was her boyfriend or something." Trider said with a hint of relief.

"So it's yer brother who's gettin married. That's great news." Applejack spoke up.

Twilight gave her a glare before she spoke up. "Yeah, great news. That I just got from a wedding invitation! Not from my brother, but from a piece of paper! Thanks a lot, Shining Armor. I mean, really, he couldn't tell me personally?" She continued her triage by levitating a sandwich and making it 'talk' like a person, while she herself put on a more masculine voice, trying to imitate her brother. "Hey, Twilight, just thought you should know I'm making a really big decision that changes everything. Oh, never mind, you'll hear about it when you get the invitation." She dropped the sandwich and her glare hardened even more. "Princess Mi Amore Cadenza? Who in the fuck is that?!" She finished with a snort.

Everyone looked at her in awe, due to her little outburst, except for Trider who was trying real hard to repress his laughter. Fluttershy walked up to the angered mare and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Um, Twilight? Are you okay?"

Twilight sighed as her shoulders slumped. "Sorry, it's just that Shining Armor and I have always been so close. He's my B.B.B.F.F!" Everyone looked at her confused not knowing what she meant by that.

"Best Brother Because of Familial Fondling?" Trider asked, earning glares and scowls from everyone, especially Twilight. "What? Like any of you have any fucking idea what it stands for. And just so you know, that one was the most timid one I could think of."

Disregarding his dirty remark Twilight explained. "It means Big Brother Best Friend Forever, FYI."

The girls ooohed, while Trider only scoffed. "Still think mine was better." he mumbled.

"Before I came here and learned the importance of friendship, Shining Armor was the only pony I ever really accepted as a friend." She then continued to tell the group about all the times she and her brother spent together, about all the adventures and misadventures they shared. "I just thought he would remain my Big Brother Best Friend Forever, well forever." she finished.

Applejack then placed her hand onto Twilights shoulder. "Well as one of yer P.F.F.'s..."

"Not even gonna try on that one."

"As I was sayin, as one of yer P.F.F.'s or Pony Friends Forever, I wanna tell ya that I think yer brother sounds like a real good guy." The rest of the grils nodded, agreeing with her statement.

Twilight smiled as she spoke. "He is pretty special. I mean, they don't let just anypony be Captain of the Royal Guard."

Raritys eyes widened and a smile, which could rival Pinkies, spread across her face and she screeched. "So you're telling me, we are not only helping out with the wedding of not only a princess, but a Captain of the Royal Guard?"

"I guess we are." Twilight said in hesitation. Without warning the fashionista fainted once more and the other girls, plus Spike began to talk amongst themselves about the upcoming event. Trider on the other hand wanted nothing to do with it and just went back to his tree and continued his interrupted nap.

The sound of the train echoed across nearby mountains as it was reaching its destination, Canterlot. The girls, CMC and Spike inside their compartment were all discussing how each of them will enjoy the wedding. While they were chatting away, Trider was leaning on the wall of the wagon trying to tune them out. "Trider." Rarity called out to the man gaining his attention. "I sincerely hope you have brought the hurrendous tuxedo I made for you."

The Kanisar huffed and directed his attention back to the window and the outside view. "I ain't going to the wedding." At that everyone looked at him like he grew a second head.

"Why in Tartarus not?" exclaimed the fashionista.

"Cause it ain't my thing." He immediatelly sensed that they wanted to argue, so he stopped them before they could. "The only reason I'm going with you is because Celestia called for me. She never said I had to participate in the event or its preparations."

"Awww, please come it'll be fun I promise." Pinkie said and gave him a puppy eye look. But Trider stood his ground against her assault, so she decided to raise the power. She grabbed the CMC and whispered her plan to them. Once they were ready they all turned to him and said in unison. "Pweety pwease." Triders right eye twitched at the combined forces of the pink mares and fillies puppy eyes and pouted lower lip. Such an attack would make any normal opponent bow in defeat, too bad he wasn't a normal opponent.

"I said no and thats final." Their ears folded to their heads in defeat. "And you seriously wanted to use that technique on me. My people are part wolf, therefore part dog and we basically invented that move." Saying that he widened his eyes and made such puppy eyes that it made even Rainbow say 'awww'. "So buzz off and leave me alone." Utterly defeated Pinkie and the CMC went back to their seats and wallowed.

"Really darling what is wrong with attending an event where a mare and a stallion exchange vows to spend the rest of their lives together. it is a very important event and it is very romantic." Rarity then looked at Twilight and continued. "Also brother of one of your close friends is the one to get married, didn't you say you would do anything for your friends?"

"Would you dress tacky if I asked you?" Trider asked. The mare almost wanted to slap for even suggesting such a thing and Trider smirked. "Exactly. I don't mind doing something for a friend, but she already has you to help out, so why would she need me?" Rarity sank into her seat, clearly having no arguement against that. "And as for wedding being an important event, on my planet only a rare few actually go through it. Most of us see it as redundant."

"You don't have weddings?" Twilight asked, only for Trider to nod. "Then what exactly do you do when you've found your special somepony?"

"I prefer the term soulmate, since it ties into our tradition that all the Kanisar do, even the ones that get married." He lifted his arm and created a small ball of Ki. "I already told you all about how my kind can manipulate Ki to fight." Everyone nodded. "Well Ki is different from person to person in many ways. Either in color, texture and so forth. Because of that it is believed Ki is directly connected to ones soul. So when two Kanisars fall in love, they create a Soul Ring."

"Soul Ring? What is that?" Fluttershy asked in the name of everyone present.

"Basically its pure Ki put inside a special bracelet that doesn't let it escape. So once it's trapped inside it remains there until the bracelet is broken. That's why it is also called Eternia by some Kanisars, because it stays forever." He smiled as he saw the faces of awe on everyones face. "And like I said before, since Ki and soul are believed to be closely connected, when one gives their Ki to another it's almost like..."

"Giving your literal soul to them." Rarity finished for him and she began to get teary eyed. "That is so beautiful. I guess even savages like Kanisars can have some beautiful things about them."

"We're here, we're here!" The atmosphere was ruined by Pinkie screaming and pointing further ahead of the train. Look and behold there in the distance you could see the border of the city. The train passed through a magical barrier that was erected over the city. Everyone got a tingling sensation when they passed through, but noone said a thing. When the train stopped at the station the group saw a large number of guards patrolling.

"What's with all the guards?" Rainbow asked confused at such tight security.

"I'm sure they're just taking the necessary precautions. Royal weddings do bring out the strangest ponies." As soon as Rarity said that Pinkie sneezed and a stream of streamers left her nostrils and Trider broke off the handle to the wagons door.

"That was an accident." Trider shouted, trying to defend himself.

"Anyway, let's get going we've got work to do." the white mare said.

"And ya've got a big brother to congratulate." Applejack said as she turned to look at Twilight.

Twilight narrowed her eyes and made her way through the guards. "Yeah. Congratulate. Then give him a piece of my mind." she said the last part through her teeth. The girls and Spike looked at her in worry, while Trider could only smirk.

Twilight was making her way through the city in a fast pace. the others went to do their own tasks and to also sight-see, while Trider followed her, because he had a meeting with the Princess. Soon they reached the castle, which was crawling with even more guards than the station. As they were approaching the castle walls, they could see a stallion clad in purple armor giving out orders to the rest of the guard who wore gold armor. "I'm guessing that's him." Trider thought as Twilight marched closer.

"I've got something to say to you mister." she shouted to the stallion. Hearing the shout the guards raised their spears, ready to battle, but they lowered them when the purple clad stallion removed his helmet, letting his mane to fall down and calling out to his little sister.

"Twily!" He descended down the stairs so he could hug his baby sister. "Ah, I've missed you kid. How was the train ride? I-"

Before he could finish or even embrace her, she backed off. "How dare you not tell me in person that you were getting married! I'm your sister, for Celestia's sake!" she said, while glaring at him. She averted her not wanting to look him in the eyes.

"It's not my fault!" he said, trying to defend himself. "Princess Celestia has requested a major increase in security. Didn't you see all the guards at the train station?"

"Yeah! there's a big wedding coming up. Maybe you heard about it?" she said as she walked away from Shining.

Shining followed her and he now stood in front of her. "This has nothing to do with the wedding. A threat has been made against Canterlot." Twilight looked him in the eyes trying ot see if what he said was the truth. "We don't know who's responsible for it, but Princess Celestia asked that I help provide additional protection. This, you need to see." He took a few steps back and focused his magic into his horn. A blast of energy ascended towards the top of the dome and connected with it. Once it was done Shining gasped and grabbed his head.

"Nice light show." Trider finally decided to speak, catching the siblings attention.

"Who or what are you?" Shining said narrowing his gaze towards the Kanisar who he only now noticed.

"Trider Lykosgrothia, but you can just call me Trider. As for what I am, I'm a Kanisar from planet Inu, nice to meet ya." he said as he gave him a small salute.

Shinings wondering gaze turned to a glare as he heard who he is. "Ah, so you're the alien Princess Celestia and Princess Luna told us about." The stallion gave him a look over, trying to asses him. "The Princesses said you were strong and dangerous, but from what I'm seeing you don't look that tough."

The sentence struck a nerve with the Kanisar and he raised one of his hands now engulfed in a red aura. "Wanna see how tough I really am pretty boy or are you too scared you'll dirty your beautiful coat?"

The two now had a full blown staring match, neither one backing off. Shining placed a hand onto his sword, that rested at his side, while Trider lowered his stance, ready to charge. Before any one of them could do anything, Twilight jumped between the two and stopped them.

"That's enough you two!" she shouted. She looked at Trider and he could see pure rage behind her eyes. "What do you think you're doing trying to pick a fight with my brother, who, mind I remind you, is the Captain of the Royal Guard, while we are inside the castle surrounded by countless soliders? Do you want to get killed." Trider looked away, unable to keep eye contact with the enraged mare, and released his Ki. Shining chuckled at the scolding the Kanisar received, but Twilight wasn't done yet. " And you, why are getting riled by him? You are the Captain, try to act like it." Shining folded his ears, he was always powerless when his sister berated him. The other guards looked at the event playing out, some laughing at their captains misfortune. Twilight then turned around to them and gave such a cold glare it would make Windigos shiver. "Get back to work. There's nothing to see here." They gulped and silently returned back to what they were doing before. Some of her anger now gone she turned to the two. "Now you two apologize to each other."

Shining grumbled as he walked up to Trider extending his arm. "My apologies."

Trider took his hand and squeezed as hard as he could. "Ditto." The two continued to hold hands, each one giving it their all, trying to break each others hand. Twilight sighed and finally decided to split the two.

"Alright that's enough." She turned to her brother. "We should get going. Trider has to meet up with Princess Celestia so they can have a meeting." Shining nodded and the group began to head to the throne room.

After a short while Twilight decided to continue where she and Shining left off. "So you're using your special force field to defend Canterlot against an unknown threat?" Shining nodded. "Okay, okay, I get it. You've got a really important job to do. But still... how could you not tell me about something as big as your wedding? Am I not that important to you any more?" she said in a broken tone.

They stopped on a small bridge that connected two small towers and Shining looked at his sister. "Hey. You're my little sister. Of course you're important to me." He tried to assure her. Then a small smirk grew on his face as he continued. "But I'd understand if you didn't want to be my best mare now."

Twilight looked at him in surprise as she pointed a finger at herself. "You want me to be your best mare?"

"Well... yeah."

"Smooth man. Very smooth." Trider said in a mock tone. Shining looked at him in disdain.

"You're also more than welcome to come. Any friend of Twilights is welcome." he said trying to put on a nice act.

"Oh I would gladly come just to ruin your mood, but my dislike for weddings outweights my pleasure to see you miserable." the Kanisar spoke.

A smile spread across his face at the news. "Good to hear that." He then turned to his sister to hear her reply. "So Twily, will you accept my offer."

"I'd be honored!" she said in proud tone, but then it got angry again. "But I'm still pretty ticked you're marrying somepony I don't even know! When did you even meet this "Princess Mi Amore Cadenza"?"

Shining looked at her confused. "Twily, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza is Cadance, your old foalsitter."

Gears in twilights head turned as she heard what her brother had told her. "Cadance? As in the Cadance?" She shook her head in disbelief. "As in the greatest foalsitter in all the history of foalsitters?!"

Shining chuckled at her mood shift. "You tell me. She was your foalsitter."

"So actually know this Princess Mi Amor- Ugh, that's a mouthfull, I'll just call her Cady. So what is Cady like?" Trider asked, wanting to know more about this pony that made Twilight forget all about the weddin fiasco.

"Ohmygoshohmygosh! Cadance is only the most amazing pony ever! She's beautiful, she's caring, she's kind..." She rattled off the top of her head, while having flashbacks of all the good times she spent with her.

"So she's like all the rest." Trider said in sarcasm. "Bet she has a nasty side to her, like she's into the occult."

Twilight paid him no mind as she continued to praise her old foalsitter. "How many unicorns can just spread love wherever they go? I only know of one! And you're marrying her!" she said as she turned to Shining. Then she began to jump around him and sing like a small filly. "You're marrying Cadance! You're marrying Cadance!" She began to jump towards one of the towers until she suddenly stopped in front of a pony.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything important." she said in slight sarcasm when Twilight stopped her frantic singing and jumping.

"Cadance!" Twilight called out to the pink alicorn. "Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake! Clap you hands and do a little shake!" While she sang that she did a small dance, that made Trider fall to the floor, holding his sides and laughing.

"Too much, too much."

No one paying him any mind Cadence looked to the purple mare and gave her a confused look. "What are you doing?" she asked.

Twilight turned around so she was again facing her friend. "Cadance, it's me! Twilight!"

"Uh-huh." the alicorn said in an uniterested voice as she walked past her and headed for Shining Armor. Twilight had a look of disappointment on her face as Cadance and her brother hugged. The princess's eyes then fell onto Trider as curiosity began to well in her. "Excuse me, but who might you be? Are you-" she looked at Twilight. "Twilight was it?" Without even waiting for affirmation she turned her attention back to the Kanisar. "Are you Twilights pet or something like that?"

Trider picked himself off the ground, now clearly pissed off. He looked her in the eyes as rage began to well inside of him. "Listen here missy. Call me that again and I promise that right after the wedding, there will be a funeral."

Shining stepped between the two, trying to protect his special somepony. "Try it mutt." Trider, not in the mood to be scolded by Twilight again backed off. As the tention slowly diminished Shining turned to his sister. "I've gotta get back to my station, but Cadance will be checking in with all of you to see how things are going. I think I speak for both of us when I say we couldn't be more excited to have you here." he said. "Right, dear?"

"Absoulutely." the alicorn said in a slightly dark tone.

"Well, we'll let you get to it." was the last thing Shining said as the couple walked off, leaving Twilight and Trider alone.

Twilight looked where the two left with worry. "Cadance acted strange. She didn't even remember me."

Trider walked up to her as he gritted his teeth. "I think you're better off like that. I don't like her."

"You don't like almost anypony you meet."

"True." His expression then darkened. "But she is different. She has a sour smell to her and my nose never mislead me." With that said, then began to head to the throne room once again, trying to forget the encounter with the bride.

After a while the two finally made it to the throne room, where Celestia was already waiting for them. The throne room was enormous, with white marble floors, purpleish walls and pillars. On the side walls there were many stained glass windows, each depicting a different motive. A long red carpet led all the way to the back where stood two thrones. One was giant and made of gold, while the other was slightly smaller and mostly black. On each side of the throne hung a tapestry. The room was also filled with numerous guards, some of them clad in golden armor, while other in dark purple and all of them were carrying a spear.

Celestia was in the middle of conversing with one of her secretaries, when she saw the two approach her. She dismissed the mare and focused her attention on her student and her friend. "Twilight it so good to see you." She then looked at Trider and her tone hardened. "Trider."

"Celestia."

Just then Celestia released a loud yawn and she blushed. "Princess are you ok? It's afternoon so how come you're tired? Are you feeling ill?" asked Twilight in worry.

"No it's nothing." she assured her pupil. "It's just that soon after I left Ponyville, we received a distress call from one of the nearby towns. Apparently a dragon decided to terrorize them in order to get their food and gold."

"That's terrible." the purple mare said in a sad tone.

"It is. But fortunately I was able to defeat the dragon, but it was a long and hard fought battle. I'm still recovering from using so much energy to defeat him, but I'll be fine once I get some proper rest." She then turned her attention on the Kanisar. "How are you doing Trider?"

Trider crossed his arms over his chest and scowled. "Would've been better if I didn't have to wait so long for you to finally get your ass moving." All the ponies in the room looked at him in shock, hearing him speak that way to their princess.

"Trider watch your language, you're speaking to-"

"I know who I'm speaking to Twi, but I don't give shit about it. I tried to be nice before, but now I'm done being nice to her, just cause she's royalty. If she wants me to be respectful to her, then she needs to prove she can be respected." He gave Celestia a hard look as he continued. "But I'll give her this, she has enough of my respect for me not to outright insult her."

Twilight wanted to chew the Kanisar out, but was stopped by her mentor. "It's alright Twilight, I can understand why he acts like that." She looked at him again as she continued her conversation. "Rest assured that once the wedding is over, we'll have a much needed talk. But until then, what do you plan to do?"

"Not going to the wedding for one." Celestia wasn't surprised at that, since she speculated he was the kind that hated that kind of thing. "I thought maybe I would check this city out, since I didn't have the time to do so before, because a certain mare had a bone to pick with her brother." Twilights chheks turned a shade redder, as he said that. "But you will probably forbid from doing that, cause I might hurt one of your precious subjects, am I right?"

Celestia smiled which confused the Kanisar. "Quite the contrary. I actually want you to see what this city has to offer, plus you might meet some new ponies to befirend." Trider scoffed at that, but it didn't stop Celstia from finishing. "However, you will be accompanied by at least two guards at all times, so we can make sure no unwanted incidents happen while you explore."

"Great, babysitters. Just what I needed." Trider said in sarcasm. Celestia then pointed to two of the guards and they approached. Both of them were clearly female, due to how the armor was shaped, but one had golden armor while the other had a purple one.

"I would like you to meet Private Dynamism and Sergeant Rose Blade." Celestia said as the two mares got closer. Trider couldn't tell the difference between the two and the rest of the guard as the armor hid most of their features.

"A pleasure working with you, sir." said the one in golden armor.

Trider looked at the two, clearly something bothering him. "Is something wrong, sir?" asked the mare in pruple armor.

"Eh, not really. It's just that I alone will attract quite a lot of attention and having two armored mares following me might make things even worse."

Celestia mulled over what he said and then nodded. "Agreed." She then stood up and looked at the two guards. "Private Dynamism, Sergeant Rose, before you embark into the city you will first dress into your civil clothing adn tkae with you only one weapon, just in case."

The two struck a firm pose and saluted to their ruler. "Yes, mam!" they said in unison. "Follow us." then said the mare in the golden armor. Trider followed the two to their barracks, but before he left he turned to Twilight. "Good luck on the wedding preparations." And then he left.

Trider stood in front of the barracks, waiting for his escort to return. "I'm finished." he heard a voice say and when he turned his head to look to the owner of said voice, his eyes nearly fell out.

In front of him stood one of most gorgeous mares he had ever seen. Her crimson red mane, that reached to her mid-back was a deep crimson red color, as was her tail. Her coat was of pure white color, that it could rival Raritys, and her horn of same color. Unlike her coat however, her eyes were dark brown color, almost black. She had a slender figure with about D-cup breasts, her waist was thin which emphasized her hips and she had long slim legs. At the moment she wore a dark green blouse and a sky blue skirt that went to her knees. On her hip also layed a sword which was attached to her black belt.

The Kanisar tried to say something, but was still speechless. He didn't expect a female guard to look so beautiful, so he was caught off guard. The mare giggled at his reaction and she walked to him, while seductively swaying her hips. "Like what you see sir?" she said as she closed the distance between the two. Trider, recovering from the initial shock, looked her in the eyes and he saw a playful mirth behind them.

"Can't complain." he answered in a stoic tone. The mare satisfied with his answer chuckled as she stepped to his side. Only now that she was so close could Trider see she was in fact a bit taller than him and it somewhat annoyed him. "So where is the other one?" he asked.

"She should be out soon." the mare answered. And true to her word the other mare ran out of the barracks, skidding to halt in front of the two.

"Sorry to make you wait, sir." she said in between breaths. Trider once again looked at the mare in shock, but it was a different kind of shock then from the first mare.

This 'mare' wasn't even a pony. While her basic body structure was similar to that of a pony, there were a few key differences. Her tail wasn't like a ponys, but it was more like that of a lizard, her wings weren't feathery, but had skin like texture, like a bat and her hooves weren't hooves, but looked like dragons feet. On a few parts of her body and face he could see traces of scales and spikes. She had a childish figure, with small breasts, not so prominent hips and short height. Although she looked like a child, there was an air of maturity surrouding her, which didn't let anyone ever mistake her for a teenager or worse, a child. Her coat was black, while her scales, spikes, short mane and tail were ash grey. Amongst all of her unique attributes the one that stood out the most were her silver eyes. Unlike ponys, her eyes were that of a predator than prey. She wore a red jacket over her small white shirt that covered only her breasts and she had blue skinny jeans on her legs, while on her arms rested two large braces.

"What in hell are you supposed to be?" Trider asked bluntly.

Taken aback by his sudden question the mare, fixed her composure. "For your information, sir, I am a half-breed between a dragon and a pony." she said in a proud voice.

"Wow, whoever had the balls to stick his dick in a dragon has my respect." the Kanisar said in awe.

"Actually my mother is a pony and my father is a dragon." She gave him a look over, before she spoke up. "So you're the wolf alien the Princess told us about. She said you were dangerous, but you don't look like it."

Trider chuckled at her observation. "That's cause you caught me in a somewhat-of-a-good-mood." he said as he rubbed her head.

She swatted his hand away and scowled. "Please refrain from doing that, sir. I hate it when ponies do that."

A grin appeared on Triders face. "Dully noted." He then turned around and began to head to find the castle exit. "Oh yeah, what were your names again?"

The white mare chuckled at his forgetfulness. "Have you already forgot what our names were, sir? It has barely been twenty minutes."

The Kanisar scratched his head as he replied. "Yeah, I just remember names better when I can connect them to a face y'know. Besides back then you wore your armors so I have no idea who is who."

"Well then let me introduce myself." the white mare said as she put a hand over chest and she gave a slight bow. "My name is Sergeant Rose Blade, of the Solar Guard, Unicorn Divison."

"And I'm Private Dynamism, of the Night Guard, Pegasus Division." the dragon-pony said in a proud tone, while pointing a thumb at her chest.

"Uh-huh, so Rose and Dyna. Nice to meet you. I'm Trider." he said nonchalantly.

"Dyna?" the mare asked confused. "Why did you call me Dyna?"

"Because your name is a mouthful, now lets get going already, before the Princess decides to lower the sun early." With that said the trio headed for the city, eager to see what it had to offer.

3 hours later

The group was walking down a busy street, heading to their next destination. All around them ponies were looking at the strange creature none of them had ever seen. They whispered amongs themselves about what he was, was he dangerous and many other things. Trider however paid them no mind, he was already used to the ponies being cautious and mean to him. All of sudden his stomach growled and it was so loud nearby ponies backed away in fear they might be his next meal.

"How far away is this place, I'm gonna die of hunger before we get there." he whined to the mares.

"Just a little further, sir." replied Dynamism.

For three hours they had been walking all across the city, visiting all the monuments and well-known locations. Everywhere they stopped the mares would tell him some intersting things about the place or sight and they would continue. To Trider none of it was all that impressive, that was until they arrived to the city park. This park however, unlike most parks he had ever seen, was located at the edge of the city, so you had a clear view across the land. Trider spent nearly an hour there taking in the the magnificent view it had to offer to him. It sort of reminded him of his home planet The serenity was broken however, when Trider felt a pain in his stomach due to the lack of food. When he told the mares of his troubles, Dynamism voted to go to a restaurant she often went to.

Soon they were in front of a small building with sign that read 'Papa Bronze'. They entered and immediatelly Triders nostrils were assaulted by delicious aromas, some of which he never smelled before. They took their seats in an empty booth and began to look through menus. "So, why did you choose this place Dynamism?" Trider asked.

"Because it's one of the few establishments that serve dishes that aren't only meant for ponies, but for those of more carnal diets as well, sir." she explained.

Not sure what she meant Trider wanted to know what she meant by that, but then his eyes fell onto a certain section of the menu. "They serve meat here?" he asked in utter disbelief.

"Yeah, since I'm part dragon, it's necessary for me to ingest some of it every once in a while and I also know your preference for it, sir."

Trider groaned as he rubbed his forehead. "Okay that's enough." he said and gained confused looks from the mares.

"What's wrong, sir?" asked Rose.

"You can stop with the whole respectfullness and sir bullshit." he explained. "I know you two are on duty and what not, but I really hate it when you adress me like that, so can you just pretend this isn't a mission and just act like you're hanging out with your friends."

The two mares looked at each other and then shrugged. "It's fine with me and honestly, it was getting on my nerves as well." said Dynamism.

"Certainly." agreed Rose. "It's much more relaxing when we can talk like equals."

Just then a waiter arrived to their table, a notepad and pen in his hand. "Have the mares and... uhm... sir chosen their dish?"

"I'll have some sausages with the side of fries and some apple juice." ordered Dynamism.

"I'll just have a simple green salad with lemon dressing and a glass of water." said Rose.

"And you sir?"

Trider was almost drulling, seeing all of the meat dishes, but then he saw the price. "Awww, come on I can't even pay for one of these." he said in a broken tone.

"It's ok, the Princess said that any expenses will be covered by her, so order anything you want." Rose said in a reassuring voice.

Triders eyes sparkled in joy. "Ok, maybe she isn't so bad after all." He then set his menu down and looked the waiter directly in the eye. "I want every meat dish you have."

The waiter was taken aback by his request and asked again to see if he misheard him. "I'm sorry sir, but did you say every-"

Trider stood up so he was now looking him straight in the eyes and said in a serious voice. "Every. Single. One. Of. Them." The waiter looked like he would faint any minute, wrote down the orders and headed to the kitchen. When The Kanisar sat back down, Dynamism went face to face with him.

"Are you crazy? Do you know how much food you just ordered? And how much that will cost?" she asked, anger in her voice.

"No. I do. And I don't care since Celestia is the one to pay for it." Trider answered nonchalantly.

"You're taking advantage of her kindness. Don't you feel any shame?"

"One, she made me go days without any meat, so it's only fair. Two, it would be rude of me not to go all out with her offer. And three, it's not like I told everyone in the building to order what they want, because the Princess was paying for it." Trider said in a bored voice.

"Like it would make a difference if you did, looking at how much you ordered." Dynamism was almost fuming at that point. Then Rose put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.

"It's ok Private. Something like this wouldn't even make a dent in the royal treasury, also I would like to see him reap what he sowed." the mare said, with a hint of amusement.

"I'm sorry, we couldn't help, but overhear you saying something about aunty paying for your meals." a voice said to the group. All of them turned to the source of the voice. The voice belonged to one of the two stallions who now stood next to their table.

"Y-y-your majestys!" Dynamism nearly shouted as she stood from her stool and saluted to the stallions.

"At ease solider." said the one with the blonde mane.

"Blueblood, Charming what brings you two here?" asked Rose nonchalantly. Dynamism looked at the mare with wide eyes, seeing her act so casually towards her superiors.

"Just here for a drink nothing else. Do you mind if we sit with you?" asked Charming.

"Of course, take a seat." replied the mare offering them the free chairs. The stallions sat down and Dynamism followed suit.

"Who're these guys?" Trider asked, curious about the new-comers.

"Oh, forgive me. Trider these are Prince Charming Heart and Prince Blueblood. Princes this is Trider." Rose introduced them.

"So you're the one aounty talked so much about, it's an honor to finally meet you in person." said Charming while offering his hand.

Trider took his arm and shook it. "Geez, is there anyone she hasn't told about me?" Blueblood offered his hand as well and the Kanisar shook it as well.

Dynamism was fidgeting in her seat, clearly nervous due to the presence of the princes. Charming noticed her nervousness and put a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, we won't hurt you." it helped a little, but she was still frightened by their presence. "Just because we are your superiors doesn't mean you are in any sort of trouble. You two are here because you're helping Trider here, aren't you?" The mare nodded slightly. "Good, so you can relax and enjoy your meal."

"Dyna." Rose called out to the mare. "Don't worry how you act in front of them, they would actually prefer if you were more open to them."

"As long as it is not in public that is. We do have an image to uphold." added Blueblood.

"So Rose, how do you know the princes, because the way you act towards them isn't that of a solider and their superior, but that of friends." asked Trider, wanting to know about their connection.

"Good observation Trider." she said in happy tone. "Me and Blueblood studied under the same swordmaster, while I got to know Charming when I hung out with Blueblood."

Trider satisfied with the answer then turned to the princes. "So you two are princes. Does that mean you two are Celestias and Lunas equals?"

"No, no. The title of a prince is just a title. It only means we are the highest of the nobles, though Blueblood does hold a rank of general." Charming answered Kanisars question.

"Uhm I'm sorry, but I have a question Blueblood, sir." After getting conformation from the stallion to continue, she asked. "Don't take this the wrong way, you don't even have to answer." Sweat started to drip down her forehead, as she became more and more nervous. Eventually she gathered her courage. "But the way you act now is nothing like I heard ponies talk about. They say you're pompus, narcissistic and many other things. Are they lying to sully your name, sir?"

Blueblood sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Yes and no." The answer confused the mare, but before he could explain Rose jumped in.

"Dyna, most of those things you heard came from the mares that dumped Blueblood once they found out 'what he's relly like'." she said the last part while making quotation marks with her fingers. "You see, because Blueblood is a prince, many mares see him as a gateway to a life of luxury if they get hitched with him. So most of the time mares don't really love him, but his money. That's why when a mare seems interested in him he puts an act to drive them away."

"Why doesn't he just reject them. Isn't that easier?" Dynamism asked, clearly still confused at why make things so complicated.

"I tried that, but it only makes them more determined to get me, rather than giving up. In fact one mare once tried to make me marry her by claiming I was the father of her child, which we later found out was a lie." Blueblood said in a dark tone, clearly not happy at the particular memory.

"I see." the mare said sheepishly. She then looked over to Charming. "How come you don't have the same problems?"

"Because he's antisocial." Rose once again butted in before the stallion could reply. "The only time you see him out of his room is when he nneds to get a new book at the library, when he needs to eat or when there are designer clothes on sale."

"I can't argue with that." Charming said as he and the rest laughed. Then the waiter came back to the booth with their orders. "Here are your orders. For you sir, the rest will come later." Only when Blueblood coughed did the waiter notice the two new additions to the booth. "M-m-my liege, what can I serve you on this fine day?"

"I'll have some cider and my brother will have..." He looked to Charming. "Scotch?" He nodded and waiter wrote down their orders and immediatelly left. While that was going down Trider was already wolfing down his order and they all looked at how fast he ate.

"What is this meat? It tastes like chicken, but it has something more to it." he said in glee.

Dynamism looked at him confused. "Wait when you hunted your food, did you ever salt it or put any spice on it?"

"Nope." He looked at the dish in front of him and a smile crossed his features. "But I will from now on, if it'll taste this good." With that said he finished off the rest of the meal in seconds and waited for more.

"So Trider, was it hard getting used to our ways and culture?" Rose said trying to learn more from the alien.

"Eh, not so much. A lot of things are the same, but some are totally different." he answered.

It was Bluebloods turn to ask. "Like what exactly?"

"Well for one the interactions between ponies. On my planet my people aren't so touchy-feely like you guys are. Also there is the thing with herds. When I heard that about 70% of the pony population was female and that because of that herds were more or less mandatory, it shocked me to say the least." he explained.

"Why?" asked Charming for everyone present.

"On my planet poligamy is looked down upon, but despite that I don't care if a man has one, two or five mates."

"So would you be willing to form a herd, if you found someone you loved?" Rose said while leaning over the table.

"Not gonna happen." he said bluntly.

"Why not? You just said you don't mind herds." asked the mare.

"it's not the problem of herds, it's the problem of finding someone special to form it with."

The group looked at him flabergasted at his statement. "What do you mean by that? You've been in Ponyville for a month, surrounded by some of the most beautiful mares Equestria has ever seen, heck you're even living with one of them and you're telling me you don't have a crush on one of them?"

"Yep." was his only response.

"Bullshit." Rose shouted. "There has to be a reason why you don't have a special somepony." She paused as her face turned to one of shock. "Don't tell me you're gay."

At that statement Blueblood and Charming backed away from Trider a bit. The Kanisar gritted his teeth at the mares nosying. "No I'm not gay. I just don't like anypony, that's it."

"Is it because we're not of your kind?" Blueblood threw in.

"No and would you drop it already, I don't have to tell you shit about my love life. So if you don't have anything better to ask just shut the fuck up." Everyone remained quiet after his little outburst, Blueblood and Rose having their hands on their swords. It was only then Trider realised he relesed some of his feral side and he calmed down. "Let's just eat, ok?" he said in a defeated tone. Nobody objected and they returned to their meals.

It was already getting dark when the trio made their way back to the castle. The streets were now mostly empty, which suited Trider since he longer had to bear the looks he received. "Just a little more Rose." he said to his companion who was leaning on his shoulder.

"Hurray. *hic*" the mare said in semi-loud tone. She had quite a bit to drink, she wasn't downright drunk, but she was dizzy enough to not be able to walk on her own. Soon the group stumbled upon the Mane 6 minus Twilight and Spike.

"Hey guys." Trider called out to them to catch their attention. The girls turned around and waved to him. When he reached them the girls looked at the two mars that were accompanying him.

"Hello Trider. Who are your friends?" Rarity asked in curiosity.

"This are Rose and Dyna. They are guards who were watching over me while I explored the city." Trider explained. "Rose had one too many drinks and is now a vegetable, while I'm her wheelchair."

"He-*hic* Hello" Rose said in weak voice.

"Hiya." greeted Dynamism.

"Wow, are you a dragon?" The voice came from the young drake who was now face to face with the mare.

"Well I'm half dragon and half pony." she said, while a blush crossed her face.

"That is awesome. So does that mean one of your parents ws pony while the other was a dragon?" he asked excited.

"Y-yeah."

"Sweet." Spike said as he jumped away, while saying something to himself, leaving the mare confused and with a major blush.

Trying to ignore the drakes enthusiasm, Trider looked to the girls and saw one of them was missing. "Where's Twilight?" he asked.

"She stormed off a while ago, after proclaiming that Cadence was a bad bride and she didn't deserve her brother." Rainbow explained. "But if you ask me she is just being possesive."

"Don't be so sure. When I met her, she said I was Twilights pet." The girls looked at one another, clearly not expecting a princess to say something like that. "Plus I didn't like her smell. She smelled like spoiled milk and my when someone smells unpleasantly they usually are unpleasant."

"Wait a second sugarcube." Applejack intervened. "Yer sayin ya don't like her just cause she doesn't smell nice. Ah'm sorry but that is a poor arguement. Also maybe ya misheard her when she said that ya were Twilights pet."

Trider pondered what the cow-mare said. "Maybe, but I still don't like her. My nose was never wrong when it came to people." At that moment Fluttershy yawned, clearly tired from her long day.

"Maybe we should head back to the castle, it is getting rather late." Rarity said and other nodded in agreement. As they began to head back, Trider stopped and looked across the sky. Dynamism looked at him.

"Is something wrong?"

Trider began to walk and when he reached the mare he spoke. "It's nothing, just smelled something sour."

Author's Note

Canterlot Wedding is finally here. With a record word count.
For this chapter I tried to create a title that was similar to how Dragon Ball does it's titles. Tell me how I did. Also we get not only one, not two, but three new characters.
Charming and Rose were created by yours truly, while Dynamism was created thanks to GrimmDarkWolf. Hope she is just as you imagined it.
Hope you enjoy this chapter as you did the rest.
Until next time.

Chapter 11: Canterlot Wedding Part 2: Canterlot Invaded; Warrior Beast Vs. Changeling Queen

Trider rolled over in his sleep, as his body was trying to manually find a pleasant sleeping position. However his rolling was stopped by a large mass that was lying next to him. His mind still half asleep, he placed one of his arms over the mass and squeezed it closer to his body. "Hmm, warm." he mumbled, as he gripped the newfound warmth even tighter.

"Well you're a gutsy one, aren't you?" said a voice, that sounded like it was right next to him. Slowly opening one of his eyes to see where the voice came from, he got an eyeful of red and white. But what really struck out were a pair of dark brown eyes that were looking directly looking into his own. "Good morning wolfie."

"Holy shit!!!" Adrenalin suddenly shot through the Kanisars system, as he jumped out of his bed and landed face first onto the ground. Quickly scrambling he got back onto his feet and faced the bed, ready to fight the unwanted occupant. However once he realised who it was that gave him such an unwanted awakening, he lowered his guard and looked at the mare on his bed in bewilderment and annoyance. "Rose? What the fuck, dude? Why did you do that?"

The mare giggled as she scooted to the edge of the bed and got up on her hooves. "I just wanted to thank you for carrying me back to the barracks, after I cut loose last night." A smirk then spread across her face as she continued. "Also you looked so adorable when you slept that I just wanted to cuddle you myself, but then you took the charge."

Trider could only sigh, he couldn't be mad at her, she meant no harm to him and it was his own fault for getting so startled. He looked out the window and saw that the sun has just risen over the horizon. He then looked at a clock that hung on the wall and it showed eight o'clock. "What's up with you ponies and getting up early. Don't you guys ever sleep in?"

"When you're in the military, you have no such privilige. Even if you're of the highest of ranks." She walked across the room and stood in front of a mirror. "Besides we have a lot of things to do today or have you forgotten about the plans we made yesterday?" she asked the Kanisar as he straightened her clothes, trying to get rid of the wrinkles.

"Oh yeah, we're supposed to meet up with Blueblood and Charming so you can show me some of the more 'priviliged' parts of the city." he said as he remembered their plans for today. "So, where's the pipsqueak?"

"You mean Dynamism?" Rose asked to which Trider nodded. "She is getting ready in the barracks and should be finished very soon. She said she'll wait for us at the castle entrance."

"Good." He looked at her and the clothes she was wearing. Unlike yesterday, today she wore a pair of jeans and a plain grey shirt with a turtle neck. The shirt had a symbol of a sword overgrown with a small rose bush, located in the bottom right corner of the dress. "Even when you dress so plainly you look outstanding. I would look like a lazy slob if I tried that."

"Thank you. It's all thanks to my mother. She taught me how to bring elegance and beauty to anything I wear." She looke at Trider and scanned his body, as her eyes went lower and lower, until they fell onto his crotch area. "Even if you do have a bad fashion sense, I certainly hope you're not planning on going out like that." She said as she lidded her eyes and smiled.

Trider didn't even have to look at himself to know what she meant. He always liked to sleep in his underware and this time was no exception. He continued to stand there, almost naked, in the room as he crossed his arms and gave the mare a grin. "Why not? I'm sure the ponies would enjoy the show I could give them."

"Wouldn't be much of show by the looks of it."

The Kanisar could actually feel his pride shatter at that statement. "Damn you don't hold back do you?" he said as he headed towards a chair where he left his clothes from yesterday.

"You have no idea." she said as she headed for the door, with a little sway in her hips. "You coming or what?"

"Yeah, yeah miss Burn." He started to walk to the door while he was still putting his sleeveless hoodie on. "Where'll we be going first?"

Rose put a finger to her chin a she thought about their options. "Probably we'll go to a diner, since I presume you would only complain if we didn't put any food inside of you before we start our tour."

"You know me so well." The two laughed and chatted as they were making their way down the castles corridors. Soon they ran into the Mane 6 and Spike. "Hey guys, where are you going?"

"We're going to the wedding rehearsal. Princess Cadances previous bridesmaids were apperantly just there to take advantage to get close to royalty or some other bullshit, so we took over their role. Isn't that cool?" said the rainbow maned mare as she hovered next to her friends.

"So where are ya two headed today?" asked Applejack.

"We're going to meet up with Blueblood and Charming so they can show me around the city a bit more." Trider explained.

"Blueblood?" Rarity suddenly excaimed. "Why would that good for nothing, self-centered, idiotic excuse for a gentlecolt want to show you the city, when he can't eve treat a lady like he should?" Her face was red from her anger towards the stallion and Trider could swear he saw steam escaping from her.

"Wow Rarity, what did he do earn your wrath?" Trider said, completely caught off guard by her outburst.

Rarity raised her nose as she humphed. "I would rather not talk about that night. It is too painful to speak of."

Trider looked at rest of the girls, knowing they won't have such a hard time telling him what happened. "It happened durin the Grand Gallopin Gala, we already told you what happened when we attended it, and she wanted tah meet the prince." Applejack began to explain as Rarity tried to stop her, but was held back by Rainbow. "When she did meet him, he acted like a complete douche and made Rarity do all of these unlady-like things. At the end of the night however he used her as a livin shield to block a cake that flew towards them. The cake splatered all over Rarity and she went berserk."

Rarity covered her face, as shame descended upon her in a form of a blush. Trider however was rolling on the floor, laughing so loud he could be heard across in the nearby parts of the castle. "Oh god, th-thats priceless." he said as he tried to catch his breath. "He just made my good guy list."

Rarity wanted to smack the Kanisar over the head, but stopped when she remembered something that he said earlier. "Wait, who's Charming?"

"He's Bluebloods brother." Raritys eyes twinkled when she heard that, but before she could say anything, Trider cut her off. "Don't even try, he's an even bigger douche than Blueblood. Heck, even I can't stand the guy." he lied. The mares expression deflated, as she mumbled something to herself as she headed to the ceremony area. The others said their goodbyes and followed the mare and once they were all gone, Rose and Trider started to head to the entrance once again.

A few hours later

The group was making it's way down the street, passing by numerous shops and restaurants. "So, what did you think about the show Trider?" asked Dynamism, as she floated around. "Wasn't it amazing?" They have just come from the Canterlot Aerial Stadium, where a Wonderbolt show has just ended.

"Hell yeah, all those moves they did. I didn't think it was possible to do them. Man I wish I could fly myself." Trider said in excitement, as he began to daydream about soaring over the vast skies, above the clouds. "I can see now why Dash wants to be part of them."

"She has a long way to go before she is actually part of them though." Charming interjected. "The Wonderbolts aren't just a show act, they're the most elite group of the Solar Guard Pegasus Division, meaning only the best of the best can get in."

"Although just from Captain Spitfire told me I think she has a lot of potential, though her attitude would need some adjustments." argued Blueblood.

Even though he only knew them for a day, the two stallions really grew on Trider. Despite them being brothers, the two were like night and day. Blueblood was a fairly tall unicorn stallion, with a bulky build, hidden beneath his signature white tuxedo. His mane is a golden blonde color and slicked back, while his eyes are light blue.

Charming Heart on the other hand was shorter than his brother, although he was the older of the two and had a skinny appearence. He usually wore a long brown coat over his dress shirt and black pants. He sometimes also carried a book with him that he read even while walking. It surprised Trider he never once ran into someone or something. Like his brother, he too was a unicorn, but his coat was dark blue, although lighter than Luna's, while his mane was light grey, almost white and it cascaded over one of his dark green eyes.

"Well I hope she gets in, cause I've never seen a better flier than her." he scratched his head as he stopped. "Although I've never met that many pegasi to begin with." The group exchanged a chuckle as they got ready to head to their next destination. They were however stopped when someone called out to them.

"Rose? Is that you honey?" The group turned towards the source of the voice and saw a stallion and a mare standing a few feet away from them. "Oh, it is you." said the mare as she closed the distance and hugged the crimson maned mare.

"Mom, dad it's so good to see you two." Rose said with glee as she hugged her mother back.

"Indeed, you should drop by home more often. Your mother keeps nagging how lonely it is without you." said the stallion as he himself got closer and embraced his daughter.

"Good afternoon Miss De Lis, Mr. Fancy." greeted the princes. Fancy Pants stopped hugging his daughter to look at the two stallions.

"Blueblood, Charming. It's good to see you two. How have you been?"

"Never better Mr. Fancy." replied Charming.

"Ahem." the group stopped greeting each other to look at the Kanisar and the dragon-pony hybrid, who were standing on the sides. "Mind introducing us, so we don't feel so left out?" Trider said with a slightly annoyed tone.

"Oh right, excuse me." Rose apologized. "Mom, dad this are Private Dynamism." she said as she pointed to the mare.

Dynamism fidgeted as she looked at the pair. "Miss De Lis it's an honor to meet you, I am a huge fan."

"The pleasure is all mine and please call me Fleur, no friend of my daughters will call me with honorifics."

"And this is Trider. He's an alien from another planet and it's my mission to look over him while he's here in Canterlot." Rose introduced the Kanisar.

"Sup."

"Greetings Mr. Trider, it is a pleasure to talk with someone who traveled across stars, just to visit our humble planet." Fancy Pants said as he extended his arm to shake it with him.

Trider took his hand and gave it a powerful squeeze. "Don't misuderstand, I was brought here against my will and am stuck until further notice."

A sad look spread across the couples faces at what he told them. "I am so sorry to hear that. You must be really homesick." said Fleur.

"A little, yeah."

"Well, enough about that. What were you kids doing before we interrupted you?" asked Fancy, trying to change the topic.

"We were about to go and get something to eat." answered Charming. "Would you like to join us?"

"We would love to." Fleur said in a happy tone. With that said, the group began to walk towards a nearby restaurant. Once they arrived and ordered their food they began to chat. Trider learned that Fancy was the CEO of a large business, responsible to supply all of the Equestrias household with magical crystal that powered up most of the machines located in them. He was in fact one of the richest nobles in Canterlot, right behind Blueblood and Charming. Fleur however was once in the royal guard, but later left it so she could become one of the best and most famous models in Equestria. Trider now knew where Rose got her looks and fashion sense from. The conversation continued late in the afternoon and it didn't seem it would stop any time soon.

Suddenly Triders jumped out of his chair, his instincts telling him danger was near. "Trider what's wrong? Why did you-?" But Rose didn't have time to finish her sentence as the Kanisar ran out the door into the open. The others were confused at his strange behaviour and decided to follow him to see if something was wrong. When they got out they saw Trider standing in the middle of the road, turning his head in every direction, while sniffing the air. His actions were attracting the nearby bystanders, who were wondering what he was and what he was doing. Dynamism approached the Kanisar and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Trider what's gotten into you? You're acting strange." she said, concern clear in her voice.

"Get ready." he said as he looked at his friends. "It's coming."

"What's coming?"

She never received her answer as the dome shield over the city shattered and an object fell into the city in a burst of green flame. When it landed onto the ground it left behind a small crater and once the smoke disappeared, they could see what crash landed. There before them stood a creature unlike any of them had ever seen. It had a body of a pony, except with no mane, it had both bug like wings and a jagged horn. It's black coat reminded them more of a bugs chitin than a fur coat the ponies have. Through it's arms and legs it had numerous holes. But what really made the ponies and Kanisar shiver were the soulless blue eyes. The creature looked at them and hissed, revealing it's sharp fangs. Without hesitation Trider closed the distance between him and the creature and punched directly in the face. It flew for a few feet before it landed on it's back, knocked out.

Trider looked at it one more time to make sure it was down for good, then he looked at the shocked ponies. "Ok, what in the name of all that is holy, is this thing?"

The ponies didn't answer, as they were still trying to comprehend what they just saw. "It... it's-" Charming stuttered, trying to form a sentence. "I've never read anything about any creature that looked like that before." His eyes sparkled at the thought of encoutering a new specimen. "We should study it so we can better know what it is. I just wish there were more of them so we could study them better."

"Be careful what you wish for." Trider said as he pointed to the sky. The rest followed his finger and their eyes shrunk at what they saw. Hunderds upon hundreds of green projectiles headed towards Canterlot, each landing in a different part of the city.

"This is an invasion." Dynamism said in awe and terror, at what she saw. Just then another one of the creatures fell right next to her and she instinctively kicked it, but not hard enough to make it stay down. It slowly got up and tried to attack, but was unable to as Rose shot a blast at it. The ponies who were in the streets began to scream and flee, creating mass chaos all around.

"We need to get the civilians to safety, that is our most important task at the moment." Blueblood commanded. A creature tried to jump him thinking he was distracted, but the stallion raised a force field and deflected his assailant. He looked around himself, trying to spot a good place where the residents could seek shelter. In the end he found that the restaurant they were in before was probably their best bet, as it was located between two buildings therefore had only one way from where the creatures could attack. "Citizens." he bellowed, using his magic to amplify his voice. "Please evacuate to the SeaShell Delight. Me and a couple of the royal guards will make sure to rptect you from the invading threat." The ponies heeded his call and immediatelly went to the restaurant and away from danger that quickly grew in numbers. Soon the only ones left in the street was Triders group.

"Good job Blueblood." commended Fancy. The prince looked athim with a stern gaze, clearly unhappy.

"When I said civilians, that ment you and your wife as well." Fancy looked hurt at the way he said it, but he understood they would just be in the way. Silently he grabbed his wife by the hand and went into the restaurant. Happy that everyone was safe he turned back to the creatures. While he was busy in evacuating the ponies, the creatures grew in numbers and had them encircled.

"Hey Blue." Trider called out to the prince, gaining his attention. "Do I have your permission, seeing as you're prince and all, to end these motherfuckers lifes if necessary."

Blueblood smiled as a ring that rested on his middle finger began to glow. The glow grew in intensity, until a sword rested in the stallions hands. "These 'things' dared to attack my home and threaten it's ponies. By all means, make teach them a lesson."

A huge smile spread across the Kanisars face, as he got ready to fight. "Sweet." He used his Ki to form Wolf Spirit Claws and got ready to fight. The mares followed his lead. Rose drew her sword and got into a battle stance, while Dynamisms braces glowed in golden aura. Soon instead of braces, she had gauntlets covering her arms, all the way to her elbows. Each gauntlet also had a set of three blades protruding from the palms, making it look like she had metal claws, that could cleave any enemy in half.

"Wait, where's Charming?" asked Dynamism, as she looked around. The others too noticed that they were one short.

"He probably went back to his room to protect his collection." speculated Blueblood. He saw that Trider and Dynamism looked disgruntled at their fleeing comrade. "Don't blame him, despite his vast knowledge of spells, he is no fighter and he might just get in our way." The mare and Kanisar were still unhappy, but they shook their head, signaling they understood.

"Alright then you guys ready?" asked Trider. Each one nodded slightly and got ready. "Then let's get'em!"

In unison each one charged in their direction. Rose took the ones on the left, Blueblood attacked the right, Trider went in the middle, while Dynamism took to the skies, as she was the only one who could fly. Immediatelly the creatures began to fall under each of their assault. Blueblood and Rose gracefully glided across the battlefield, almost like they were dancing, while Dynamism and Triders way of fighting was less refined.

Blueblood was thrusting his blade into any creature that dared to get close and was succesful in doing so. Sensing someone approaching him from behind he swung his sword ready to behead whoever it was. Right before his blade struck however, he stopped his attack. "Rose? Sweet Celestia, don't approach me from behind like that, I nearly chopped your head off."

The mare looked at him apologetically as she spoke. "Sorry. Guess I should be more aware of my surroudings." Blueblood nodded and repeled another attacker. But while his back was turned, he didn't see Rose raising her blade, ready to slash at the stallion. She was stopped however when a ball of energy connected with her face. An explosion sounded off as her limp body fell to the ground. Blueblood, hearing the bang, turned around and saw the mare lying on the floor, limp nad her face badly burned. He looked at the Kanisar in rage.

"What in the name of Celestia are you doing, attacking your comrade?" he shouted, ready to gut him.

"Look again Blue." Trider called out over the changelings that assaulted him. Blueblood looked at the body, but where was once Rose now laid one of those cratures. Confused he looked at Trider, expecting an explanation. "This things can morph into anyone they see. They're shapeshifters." he said. As if on cue all the surrouding creatures changed into one of their friends, amking the battlefield much more colorful. "Rose you stay as far on the left as you can, while Blue you stay on the right. Dyna keep in the air, while I'll keep pushing in the middle. This way we won't get mixed in with the fakes and accidentally end up killing each other." The others heeded his words and kept to their respected sides.

Each one attacked the invaders in a relentless assault, making them drop like flies. However for each one they took down, three more took their place and they were slowly being pushed back or got surrounded. Blueblood was soon pinned against a wall of a nearby building, while numerous creatures surrounded him. "You insects are pathetically weak. The only thing you've got going for yourself are your numbers." The creatures slowly closed in, being cautious as they knew the stallion was still very dangerous even if cornered. Blueblood sighed as he channeled his magic through his body. "I guess I'll actually have to make some effort if I want to protect the city and the ponies who live in it." As soon as he said that, the things jumped him expecting to overpower him. However the prince dissapeared from their sights, the only thing remaining was a trail of blue energy. Blueblood reappeared in front of another group of creatures, that followed closely behind the one that attacked the prince. He resheathed his sword and the creatures looked on in horror as their brethren were suddenly cut into pieces by an invisible force. Green blood spilled everywhere as Blueblood looked at the group unimpressed. "Sakura Sword Style. Whispering Breeze." he said just under a whisper. He drew his sword once again and faced the remaining attackers. "Who wants to taste my blade next?"

On the other side Rose was struggling with the mass of creatures as well. She chopped a head of one of them and got ready for the next one, but was tackled to the floor. She looked at the one who was pressing her into the floor and saw herself. "Do I really have that much makeup on?" she asked her doppleganger. The clones eyes glowed green and it hissed at Rose. The mare however kicked it off herself and got right back up. The creatures were slowly tightening the circle around her as the mare saw she had no room to escape. "You think you have the advantage, just because you have me surrounded." she smirked. She pointed her sword in front of her, while placing her other hand over the guard. "That just means I can attack in all directions at once." The blade of her sword began to glow red and the creatures halted their advancement, not sure what the mare was doing. "Scatter." she said in a whisper. The blade suddenly broke off into five pieces and each piece was now floating around her. The pieces then each took a form of a sword and Rose pointed them in different direction towards the creatures. "Sakura Sword Style. Blossoming Ring." She looked around herself and smiled. "You're finished." The blades flew out and began to slash at each of the creatures, while Rose calmly stood in the middle, not moving a single inch. The creatures had no chance of getting close to her, because as soon as they got close they would get intercepted by a blade. While she massacred the creatures, she looked into the sky and saw her fellow guard trying to outmanuver her opponents.

Although Dynamism was capable of flight, she didn't posses the same agility as pegasi. Her huge dragon wings are better suited for endurance, than complicated in flight manuvers. But despite that she gave it her all as she flew from enemy to enemy while all the while avoiding their attacks. One of them was chasing behind her and blasted green balls of energy at her. It has been doing that for the past couple of minutes and it was slowly getting on her nerves. She tried everything to shake it off or to counterattack, but it was for naught. "Goddammit, can't you just buzz off already." she exclaimed as she slashed on of the creatures she flew past into pieces. One of the blasts flew right by her right ear and singed some of it. Dynamism hissed in pain as she decided for a gutsy move. With all of her might she extended her wings and suddenly halted herself, while straining her appendages in the process. A few more shots flew past her, as she formed a fire in her mouth. Then without warning she unleashed a massive fireball that connected with her pursuer and incinirated it as well as few of those that were close enough to get caught in the blast. The mare however didn't have time to gloat in her victory, as even more blasts flew by her. "Ok, that's it." she said, her nerves finally snapping. She began to spin around, her speed drastically increasing. Then she began to breathe fire, as it flew in every direction. From the bottom it looked like the sky itself was engulfed in the burning inferno, that burned away all of the flying atackers. The fire eventually ceased and the mare stopped her spinning. "Ugh, never doing that again." she said as her face turned a shade greener and she was ready to throw up.

"Good job, twerp." Trider called out from the ground as he beat the creatures down, one by one like they were on an assembly line. To him this was no problem, even despite the numbers. He was actually enjoying it, having relieved his pent up anger and stress on the helpless bug ponies. The creatures tried everything to take the alien down, but everytime they tried it seemed like he only grew stronger. Trider bashed one of the creatures heads into the ground and then looked at the remaining. "You guys picked the wrong guy to mess with." he said with a sadistic glee. The bug ponies saw they were no match for him and began to slowly back off. But Trider gave them no chance to retreat. He jumped directly into the middle of them and punched away.

All of sudden a blast came out of nowhere and blasted the creature, that the Kanisar was about to demolish, away. "Alright which motherfucker had the guts to take my kill?" he asked. His eyes then fell onto a group of ponies, clad in golden armor as they were making their way to them. The creatures saw them too and began to retreat, sensing this was a lost battle. Once all the bug ponies were out of the area did the group have room to breathe. But they immediatelly raised their guard when the guards approached them.

"Halt." commanded Blueblood making all of them stop in their tracks. "Identify yourselves."

One of the guards stepped forward, a mare and saluted. "Sergeant Comet Trail of the Earth Pony Thrid Divison with backup, general sir." she said a serious tone. Blueblood looked at her skeptically,keeping his sword raised.

"How do we know you or some of your guards are not one of those things we just fought." he asked, ready to attack if necessary. The mare looked at him, then at the guards, unable to confirm her claim.

"Well, I guess... Maybe-" She was cut of when Trider charged at one of the guards and plunged his hand straight through his chest. Everyone looked at him horror at what he did, but before anone could say anything the guard changed back to it's bug pony form and fell to the ground lifeless.

"That's all of them." he said as he wiped his hand in his hoodie, which was soaked in green blood. "Rarity will skin me for this."

"How did you know that one was one of them?" Rose asked once she collected herself.

"All of them have this distinct sour smell to them." Trider said as he tapped his nose. "Kinda like... Sour milk." It then clicked in his head, he knew exactly where he should head next. "I need to get to the ceremony hall." he said as he looked at the castle.

"Why?" asked Dynamism, clearly confused at what he was talking about.

"Princess Bitch had the same scent on her, meaning she is one of them, if not their leader." A smile spread across his face as he thought about the pssobility she might give him a real challenge. "And I'm going there."

Blueblood stepped to him and placed a hand over his shoulder. "It's a long way from here, it will take an hour to get there and that is not accounting all the creatures you'll meet on the way." He then looked at the other ponies as a plan began to formulate in his head. "Dynamism you'll fly Trider to the ceremony hall, while some of the pegasus guard will protect your flank. Once you're done you'll come back here to help Rose and the rest of the guard to defend the civilians inside the restaurant."

"And what will you do?" asked the dragon-pony.

"I'll go around the city to see if there are any squads or civilians that require my assistance."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Trider said as he cracked his knuckles. "Let's do this then."

"It's funny, really. Twilight here was suspicious of my behavior all along." Chrysalis said as she lifted Twilight's head with her hand. "Too bad the rest of you were too caught up in your wedding planning to realize those suspicions were correct!" she gloated to the group of ponies that have been captured by her.

When the queen was finally revealed for who she really was, Celestia tried to defeat her by herself, but she was still exhausted by her fight with the dragon so Chrysalis was able to overpower her. Seeing no other option the girls went to go fetch the elements, while Spike tried to hold off the queen by himself, for as long as his damaged body would allow him. When the girls reached the room where the elements were stored it, the changelings already swarmed the city and castle as well. Outnumbered the Mane 6 had no other option, but to surrender. When they were brought back to the ceremony hall, the shapeshifter encased their limbs in a sticky green fluid, preventing them from moving. Cadance and Spike were given the same treatment, although Spike was also badly beaten up, while Celestia was trapped inside a green cocoon that hung from the ceiling. Shining Armor while unrestrained, was still under Chrysalis's mind control and couldn't do anything.

"Sorry, Twi. We should've listened to ya." Applejack aplogised to her friend in everyones name.

"It's not your fault." the mare said as she tried to reassure the cow-mare. Her gaze then hardened as she glared at the changeling queen. "She fooled everypony."

"Hmm, I did, didn't I?" Chrysalis continued to revel in her glory. She walked to a window as she gazed upon the city and the destruction her subjects were causing. "How long have I waited for this moment. The day when I would finally-"

All of a sudden the window on the opposite wall shatered as Trider rolled across the floor and stopped in the middle of the room. "Did anyone call for an exterminator, cause I see you have a bug problem." he said as he stood up.

Everyones eyes lit up, at the sight of their friend who came to their aid. "Trider!!!" they called out, happy to see him. The Kanisar looked around the room to look at the situation. Once he got the gist of it he turned to the queen and whistled.

"Damn, you're even uglier than old man Flainhart from back home. And he made an onion cry."

Chrysalis looked at him unamused. "Well, well if it isn't Twilights loyal pet, crawling to it's masters aid, like a dog would." she taunted. "You came here to surrender in person?"

"Exact opposite actually." Trider said as he stretched his arms. "I'm here to kick your ass."

The changeling queen began to laugh. "You honestly think you can defeat me?" She pointed a finger at Celestia as her smile grew. "I defeated Celestia, a pony powerful enough to move the sun itself. And you claim that you, a lowly mutt, can defeat me?" She received her answer in a form of fist to her face, as skidded across the floor.

"Won't know till I try it."

Chrysalis wiped her thumb across her lower lip and saw traces of blood on it. "You'll pay for that you worm."

"What is it now? Dog or worm, make up your mind woman." he taunted. Having enough of his wise-cracks she prepared a spell to blast him away. Trider anticipating it prepared to dodge and then counter attack. As she unleashed her spell Trider jumped out of it's way and immediatelly charged at her. He reared his arm and got ready to deliver a blow to her gut. Chrysalis however intercepted his fist and stopping it in it's tracks. Trider looked her in the eyes as he realised he fucked up. "Uh oh." was all he said before the mare threw him across the room. His back hit the wall so hard that a part of it collapsed onto him. The queen clapped her hands as she looked at the rubble that Trider was burried under.

"A valiant attempt, but it is clear who has the advantage." The Kanisar pushed the rubble off of him and slowly got up. He spit some of his blood onto the floor as he popped his shoulder back into it's place. "Why don't you just surrender? I might spare you if you do."

Trider smiled, his teeth now covered in blood. "Surrender? Sorry, but my kind don't know the meaning of that word." he got ready to fight Chrysalis once again. "We only know to try, till you die. Plus now that I know you're strong I don't have to hold back so much." With that said the Kanisar enveloped himself in a dark aura, as his hair grew longer and his eyes turned red. "I'll show you what a Kanisar is capable of, you shapeshifting-bug-bitch."

He attacked the queen again. Chrysalis was surprised at his suddenly increased speed and strenght, as she blocked his attack with her shield. Not leaving her any chance to breathe, Trider continued his assault, this time with Spirit Claws. He slashed at her shield in hopes it would soon crack, but it remained sturdy. Chrysalis forced her shield forward, pushing the Kanisar off of her. She saw a chance and fired another spell at him. The blast hit, but it didn't have the same effect it had before. Trider stood his ground as he shook off the daze the blast caused. "This is impossible. How are you so powerful all of a sudden?" she shouted exasperated.

"Heh, this is nothing. Let me show you what I can really do." as he said that he began to gather his Ki into his palm as a small ball began to form. "Take this! Wailing Nova Sphere!" he screamed as he shot the ball at the mare. The queen raised her shield once again, preapred to stop the blast. When the ball and the shield connected a bright flash, accompanied by a loud explosion, formed in the room, blinding and deafening everyone in it. Once the flash subsided, Trider looked at where the queen once stood. His eyes nearly fell out of his sockets. There stood Chrysalis, inside a crater, surrounded by singe marks unharmed.

Lowering her arms she breathed and then cackled. "If that is all you have to show, then I have nothing to fear. You are still weaker then me it seems." Trider stood there in shock, unable to believe she was able to survive his most powerful technique unharmed. "Yes, I can feel your despair emanate from you. You finally know there is no hope for you. Soon you'll-" Her monologing was stopped whe she heard the Kanisar laugh. "Poor dog, the thought of imminent demise made him go insane it seems." she said in faux sympathy.

"As if." Trider said as he looked at the mare. "It's just that, ever since I came to this planet not a single one of the guys I fought ever gave me the thrill I'm experiencing now." A smile spread across his face as determiantion settled into his eyes. "Thanks to you I can finally enjoy a real battle." He clenched his hands into fists as he lowered his stance. "And because of that I can finally try out a new move I've been working on." He closed his eyes as he began to concentrate. He felt his Ki flow through his body. The dark aura around him slowly bean to diminish in size, while still present. Suddenly his entire body pulsed, as energy surged through it. With each pulse his body created, his muscles grew in size. it continued to do so for some time, until the dark aura was nothing but a thin veil across his form and his muscles were nearly twice in size. Everyone in the room looked at the Kanisar in awe.

Finally opening his eyes Trider flexed his muscles. "Like what you see?" he asked no one in particular.

"Dude what did you do?" asked Rainbow, as she stared at his rippling muscles.

"Nothing much, I just used my Ki I gain from unlocking Feral Unleashing, to increase my strengh and speed." he explained while flexing his biceps. "Although it comes at a price. While in this form I can't use any of my other techniques, but that shouldn't be a problem." He looked at Chrysalis and grinned. "Ready for a beatdown bitch?"

She didn't respond as she fired a blast the Kanisar. The spell barely left a mark on the Kanisar and the queen looked at him in terror. "My turn." Trider said as he jumped at her. The mare barely had time to raise her shield, when his fist came flying at her. The impact was so powerful it shattered her arrier and sent her flying inot a wall. Seeing her form now lodged in the wall, Trider smiled as he cracked his neck. "Ready to give up?" he asked in mock voice.

Chrysalis dislodged herself from the hole she created and fell onto the ground. "Never, never, never." she said, increasing her voice with every word she said. "I'll never loose to a mutt like you." she screamed at the top of her lungs. Channeling her magic through her body she repaired the damage the Kanisar caused her. "You're not the only one who can channel their energy to power-up." she said in a cackle.
Green veins began to form on her body as her eyes turned white. She immediatelly closed the distance between the two and unleashed a flurry of punches on the Kanisar. Trider blocked most of her attacks, but some managed to slip through. Having enough he began to retaliate, adrenalin surging through him, as he began to enjoy the battle more and more.

"That's it. This is what I've been looking for." he thought, as he relished every hit dealt or received. Unbeknownst to him, the aura surrouding him was slowly turning from ptich black to grey and then to white, while his eyes turned bright blue.

While the battle was going on, Twilight used her magic to remove the goo from her body and she silently crawled to Cadance. Once she reached her she freed her as well and pointed to Shining armor. "Quick, go to him while you still have a chance." she told her. Heeding her words Cadance walked over to the stallion of her dreams. Once she got close however she saw he was still under Chrysalis's influence. Seeing that her eyes watered as tears flowed down her cheeks. She embraced the stallion, hoping she would get a reaction out of him. Her horn began to glow and an ethereal heart popped out of it. It flew to Shinings head and popped on contact with it. His eyes turned back to their blue color and shook his head.

"Wha– where... huh? Is...is the wedding over?" he asked confused, not knowing what was going on. He then heard a loud crack and saw Trider having his head repeatedly slammed into the ground by the changeling queen. "What's going on?"

"No time for that now Shiny!" Twilight said as she approached the couple. "Your spell! Preform your spell!"

The stallion tried to focus his magic into his horn, but he was barely able to lit the tip of it. "No! My power is useless now. I don't have the strength to repel them."

Cadance hugged him again as she spoke. "My love will give you strength." Shining hugged her back and began to channel his magic again. This time however Cadance channeled hers as well and when their horns touched their bodies were surrounded by pink aura. the power continued to grown until they began to float in mid-air. The commotion caused the two combatants to stop their fighting and look at the spectacle. The couples bodies were suddenly engulfed in a bright flash. A wave of enrgy bursted from them and blasted the changeling queen and all of her hive out of Canterlot.

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!" Chrysalis screamed as she was launched through the air into the parts unknown.

The rest of the girls, Spike and Celestia were freed by the blast as well and Twilight went to her mentors side. She helped her get up as the princess spoke. "Don't worry about me. I'm just glad nopony was seriously injured."

"Yeah, and it's all thanks to Trider."

All eyes fell onto the Kanisar, who was now back to normal. He looked at the group and grinned. "That. Was. The. Best. Wedding. Ever." he said as he pumped his arms into the air. "Let's do it again!" Everyone looked at him, not amused by his statement. "What?" he asked in confusion.

The fireworks were going off and the music was blaring, while Trider stood to the side lines eating his muffin. The real wedding went off without a hitch and while Trider didn't attend it, he was more than happy to participate in the celebration that followed it. As he was enjoying his treat, he sensed a presence approaching him. "What do you want?" he asked.

"I merely wish to speak with you." Celestia said as she stood next to the Kanisar. "I want to thank you for saving me, my subjects and potentially all of Equestria from the changeling threat."

"You're welcome." Trider said as he took another bite out of his muffin. "If that's all you wanted to say you can just leave you know? No point in both of suffering one another."

Celestia giggled at his remark. "Blunt as always I see." She looked at him and her gaze became more official. "I am also here to talk to you about your punishment."

Trider gave her an 'are you kidding me' look and groaned. "Seriously? You're still on about that. Didn't you just say I saved everyone? Doesn't that count as an instant pardon for my past transgressions?"

The princess shook her head as she sighed. "Unfortunately no. You are still a wildcard Trider and I can't leave you unchecked like that." A smile then grew on her face as she continued. "But I am willing to lessen it however."

"Lessen how exactly?"

"You'll see." she said as she walked off with a mischevious grin.

"Stupid Celestia with her cryptic bullshit talking." He looked at his half eaten muffin and shrugged. "Eh, how bad could it be?" he said to himself as he ate his treat in a single bite.

Somewhere far away

Chrysalis tried to stand up, but her injuries wouldn't let her. Her subjects surrounded her trying to help her. "Those stupid ponies and that insolent mutt. I swear I'll have my revenge." she said through her teeth as she slammed a fist into the ground, creating a small hole.

"Maybe I can help you with that?"

Chrysalis turned to where the voice originated from and saw two figures standing several feet away. Without thinking she ordered her soliders to attack the newcomers. A white aura surrounded the attacking changelings and they suddenly exploded. Chrysalis utterly flabbergasted, just laid there awaiting her imminent demise. "Just end it already." she said in despair.

"Maybe you didn't hear me Changleing Queen. I came here to offer you a chance at revenge." said one of the figures as it stepped closer. Chrysalis looked at the two figures who were now close enough to see how they looked like.

One of them, the one who spoke to her, was completely covered in his cloak, unable to make out anything. The other one however wasn't even a pony, in fact it was anything she had ever seen and she had seen nearly every creature on the planet. It's skin was sickly green and it was so skinny you could see it's bones. It had large pointy ears and it's eyes were small and black, like two marbles. On it's back were a pair of bat like wings. It only reached to the cloaked persons waist, but it was kneeling and slouching, so if it stood up it was clearly taller than her or the other guy.

"So what will it be?" asked the cloaked figure.

"Why would you want my help? What do you get out of this?"

"For my plans to succed I need powerful allies. And you fit the bill." the figure extended his arm. "Do you accept?" Chrysalis hesitated, but she evetually took his hand and he helped her to get up. "Rafel take her to our hideout and make sure she gets treated properly." he commanded to the strange creature.

"Yes master." it said in a raspy voice. It waved it hand and a portal opened up leading ot parts unknown. "Follow me." Rafel said to the mare.

"Before I leave, answer me this. Who are you and what are your plans exactly?" she asked the cloaked figure.

"Just call me Mastermind. And as for my plans..." He turned around as he began to walk off. "I want every creature on this planet to bow before me." he said, his voice laced with unsettling mirth, that made the queen shiver.

Author's Note

And so the first arc ends and a new one begins.
What kind of punishment awaits our hero? Who is this mysterious figure? What are his plans exactly? Will the author ever make a chapter without an author's note?
Probably not.
I hope you guys have enjoyed the story so far, if you have then expect more chapters in the future.
Now for more business oriented stuff. I have been planning to write this story for years, but never had the means to do so. I got my laptop just this year. But despite that I never actually thought about the story in depth. I have the general idea how the story will progress and how it will end, but I don't know how the story should go until hten. So I'm asking all those of you out there who are willing to help me with writing my story by contributing to filling out the gaps between each major event or giving ideas for filler chapters. Be warned though, the story will be spoiled for you if you decide to participate. With that said I hope some of you are willing to help out.
On another note I just wanted to show you how Rafel looks like, since I think I didn't give a good enough descritpion. (Click here to see the freak.)
Until next time.
EDIT: I'm currently looking for a proof reader. If any of you are willing PM me.

Chapter 12: After Battle; Past That Haunts

"GET BEHIND ME!" the voice yelled before a series of loud bangs echoed through the alley. The child watched in shock and horror, as the body of the older male fell to the floor, bloddy and lifeless. Tears began to well in the corners of his eyes, as time seemed to slow down. He reached for his cheek, where he felt a stinging sensation and when he brought his hand back in front of him, he saw he was bleeding. Before he could react the other person, a female, grabbed him and began to run while carrying the child. A dark aura enveloped her body and her speed increased. As they were running through numerous alleyways gun shots followed them.

The woman staggered as pain seared through her back and blood began seep from her mouth. However she ignored her wounds and just continued to run as far away from those people as possible, but her injuries were beginning to slow her down. With the last of her remaining strength she leaped onto a nearby building, out of sight of their pursuers.

"Don't let them get away!" commanded one of the guards below.

The woman turned to the child and smiled. "Sweetie listen to me." she said to the kid to get his attention. "You have to get as far away from here as possible."

"What about you?" he asked tears streaming down his cheeks.

The woman gave a weak smile, but it was broken when she began to cough and blood stained her dress. "Sorry sweetie, but mommy won't be able to come along." she said with barely any strength left.

The kid grabbed her hand and squeezed it, not wanting to let go. "No! I won't leave you! We'll get out of here safe and meet up with dad. I'm sure he is just pretending so he could lose those bad men." he said as his face was now completely engulfed with tears.

The woman put her other hand over the child's and squeezed as well. "I'm sorry sweetie." she said as she began to cry as well. "I'm sorry me and daddy won't be able to see you grow up into a handsome young man. Just know that we will be watching you from the Great Beyond." The last of her strength was leaving her and she knew her time came. "You have to run and survive sweetie. You are the future of our kind." Closing her eyes, she smiled softly and leaned in to kiss her child on the forehead. "No matter what, we'll always love you." With those final words, her body became limp and her breathing ceased.

The kid stood there frozen. His tears have turned into waterfalls and his body began to shiver. "Why?" he asked no one. "WHY?" His surroundings slowly began to shift. All the buildings and even the one he stood on were engulfed by darkness and even all the stars in the sky began to disappear, until all that was left was the kid and his deceased mother. Suddenly screams and cries of anguish filled the void, as more and more figures began to appear. He looked around and saw that each one was being attacked by men in armor and were mercilessly executed. Blood began to stain the nonexistent floor as more and more were killed.

"Why?" He began to shakle in fear. "Why did they do that?" His fear slowly turned to anger. "What have we done to them?" His anger rising until it was pure rage. "They'll pay!" A dark aura enveloped the kid's body as he clenched his hands into fists. "None will be forgiven!" The aura began to shift, gaining a form of a wolf as it loomed over the boy. "Kill!" The kids eyes were bloddy red, as his form began to shift becoming more of a beast than man.

"I'LL KILL THEM ALL!!!" he screamed with a voice that could only belong to a demon, as the aura howled.

"Wake up!"

The kid looked around trying to see who spoke to him. "Who's there?"

"Wake up!!" the voice repeated.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" the boy screamed as he grabbed his head.

"WAKE UP TRIDER!!!"

With a jerk Trider rose up from his bed, sweat pouring down his forehead. He wiped the sweat away with his hand and looked at it. "A dream?" he thought. His hand then subconsciously reached for his cheek and rubbed the scar. "It felt so real though."

Groggily he got out of his bed and put his clothes on. He went downstairs and towards the kitchen. Once he entered he was greeted with a sight he didn't expect. Twilight stood in front of the stove, with a frilly pink apron. It seemed like she was trying to cook, but was failing at it.

"Morning Twi." he said startling her.

"Trider!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing up so early? I thought you'd be sleeping until noon."

"Eh, couldn't really sleep" he lied. "Spike still with Rarity in Canterlot?"

"Yep, so you'll have the pleasure to enjoy a meal made by yours truly." she said as she tried to flip the pancake, but it ended stuck to the ceiling. Both of them looked at it and a grin began to stretch across Trider's face. "Not a single word." she said emphasizing every word.

"I can see why Spike is the cook. Your cooking is almost as bad as your dancing." The remark earned him a pancake to the face. Twilight smirked, satisfied with her accuracy. Trider slowly raised his hand and peeled off the pancake. He looked at it, then sniffed it and finally he ate it in a single bite.

"What are you doing? That one was the one that got stuck to the ceiling." Twilight said surprised at his action. The Kanisar didn't reply as his face turned slightly pale. He reached for a glass and pour some water into it. Gulping it quickly, he set the glass down and took a deep breath.

"Could use less salt. And less burning." he said in mock tone. Twilight's ears drooped after hearing him say that.

"I see." she said softly. "Well we can still go out to a diner to have breakfast I guess." she said as she levitated a plate full of pancakes. But before she could dispose of them Trider grabbed the meal and gave her a solemn look.

"You made all of these for me?" he asked, to which Twilight nodded. He took another look at the pancakes before he walked over to the table, sat down and began to eat them, cringing with every bite he took.

"Trider, stop that. You don't have to force yourself." she said as she tried to get food away from him, but he stood his ground.

"I'm not forcing myself Twi." he said as he gave her a happy smile. "Back in the days on my planet there were times when we had to go days without food, so we ate anything that was edible and we didn't complain. Compared to that this is like a gourmet dish." he said as he took another bite. "Plus, you went through all that trouble to make them for my sake. It would be incredibly rude of me to just diss your efforts like that." Swallowing he stood up and walked over to the mare. He raised his hand and placed it on her head. "I'll like whatever you make, if you put effort into it, cause I'll know you did it for me."

Twilight looked at her friend in admiration. Her cheeks began to turn red, as her chest began to throb. She couldn't explain it, but it was a pleasant feeling. "Thanks." she whispered as she smiled to herself.

"You're welcome." Trider replied as he sat back down returning to his dish. He grabbed a bottle of syrup and poured half of it's content onto the pancakes. "But seriously, use less salt next time."

"Oh, hahaha. I'd like to see you try." she challenged him.

A look of horror suddenly fell over the Kanisars face as he became even paler. "Trust me, besides meat I can't cook for shit." he said to her. "I learned that the hard way." he thought. "Since the food truck incident I was forbbiden to stand behind a stove. Oh, all those poor orphans."

"And then I jumped through the window and when I landed I said 'Did someone call an exterminator, cause it seems you have a bug problem?'" Trider said to the three awestruck fillies. He had told them about the battle of Canterlot for what seemed like a hundredth time, but each time he told them they only became more excited.

"That's so awesome. I can't belive you actually fought a horde of changelings and then even their queen and won." Scootaloo hollered as she jumped in the air flapping her small wings. "You're almost as cool as Rainbow Dash."

"Excuse me, almost?" Trider asked with a raised brow.

The girls and the Kanisar laughed and just as he was about to continue his story they were interrupted by Applejack. "Here ya are sugarcube, ah've been lookin for ya."

"Hey AJ I've just been telling the girls about my heroic battle with the changelings."

"Again? Haven't ya girls heard it plenty of times?" she asked as she got closer.

"No way, it's too cool of a story to hear just once or twice." Scootaloo rebuted.

The mare giggled. "Well ya'll have to hear the rest of it next time. Right now me Trider have work tah do." The fillies whined in disappointment when she told them that.

"Don't worry girls, maybe I'll finish it when we go together on a crusade." Trider said with a smile. The CMC's expressions quickly changed to that of glee as they heugged the Kanisar to the ground.

"Thankyou,thankyou,thankyou." they rapidly said in unison, before they got off of him and ran towards their clubhouse. Trider watched, from the ground, as their figures disappeared over the horizon.

"Ya sure are great with kids." Applejack said as she stood over the downed man. "Ya'd make a great parent."

"Yeah, maybe I would." Trider said in a melancholic tone, but the mare didn't catch it. Instead she offered him her hand and she pulled him up. However she lifted him up so fast that their bodies clashed and they stood face to face, just inches from each other. They looked into each others eyes and the mare's face began to burn. Beofre she could do anything Trider stepped away. "Thanks AJ." he said.

"Y-yer welcome." the mare stammered, a massive blush on her face.

"We better get going, otherwise we won't finish today." Trider said as he began to head towards the farm. "You coming?"

Applejack shook her head as she followed him. "Ah'm a comin."

The sun has began to set as the duo bucked the last of the apple trees. During that time Trider discarded his sleeveless shirt and was working topless, exposing his well toned body. And that wasn't helping the mare to focus on her own work.

"Gosh darn it. Why did he have to take his shirt off? Not that ah'm complainin." she thought to herself. She stole a look at his rippling muscles as he picked up buckets full of apples. Heat rose in her face as her cheeks turned a deep shade of red. "Ah wonder how much he must've trained to get this ripped?" A thought ran through her head as she imagined him embracing her with his half nude body, so she could feel his body heat and hear his pulse. As her imagination ran wild her face became even hotter, as did another part of her body. She shook her head so she would stop daydreaming about the Kanisar. "Why am ah feelin this way?"

She didn't have an answer for that. Ever since he kissed her she has been feeling like this. Every time they would work together she would watch as he would strain his body and would fantasize about ridiculous scenarios. And anytime he would compliment her or help her even with the most minuscule tasks her heart would begin to beat out of control.

"Applejack? You ok there?" She was brought out of her thoughts when her friend called out to her.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Ah'm fine just daydreamin a little bit. No need to worry." she blurted out. Trider just nodded as he went to buck another tree. The mare continued to stand there fidgeting in her spot. She wanted to talk to him about anything, she was getting kind of annoyed by the silent atmosphere.

"So, uh, do ya plan tah do any of yer trainin today?" she asked.

Trider round-house kicked a tree so much that all the fruit instantly fell into their respective buckets. "I'm not really in the mood today. Had kind of a bad dream and tomorrow I have to help Pinkie with a few deliveries, escort Flutters through the Everfree to Zecora's and finally help Dash practice her newest technique."

Applejack looked at him with a smile. Although Trider was generally kind of a jerk, he could be really nice when he wanted to be. On top of that he was extremly reliable, he would always keep a promise that he made, no matter what. He was also honest, so much so he would say anything that was on his mind, even if it would end up with him in the hospital. However there were things he lied about and it made the mare worried about him, as it always centered on a a single topic.

"That bad dream, was it about yer home?" she asked bluntly.

Trider stopped what he was doing and looked at the mare with a cold glare. "What do you mean?"

The mare didn't falter under his gaze. On contrary her will only stregthened. "Trider ah'm the Element of Honesty. Ah can tell when someone is being dishonest. And ever since you arrived, every time you would talk about yer home planet yer lyin. Ah can see that ya have some bad memories about it and yer tryin to hide them, but it's painful to see you hurt like that." She walked closer to the Kanisar as she looked him in the eyes. "Ah know it's not my place to pry, but know that if you ever feel like talkin bout it, ah'll be here to listen to ya." She embraced him as she squeezed herself close to his chest. "Ya don't have to carry yer burdens by yerself, ya have friends that will gladly help ya out. Remember that."

Trider stood there stunned. He has been hanging out with Applejack so many times, that he knew she wouldn't do this kind of thing, unless she really cared for him. Smiling he embraced the mare as well, eliciting a yelp out of her. "Thanks AJ, I'll remember that."

Although the heat in her cheeks returned, the mare didn't want to let go as she soaked in his scent. "Ah wish this could last forever." she thought.

It was already late in the evening as Trider made his way back home. The thought of Applejack and what she said to him, lingered in his mind as he smiled. "She really is a great friend." As he got closer to his home, he noticed something strange. He sniffed the air around the library and noticed three new yet familiar scents. "Is Twi having guests over?"

Slowly he opened the door and peeked inside the abode. What he saw made his eyes widen. There in the middle of the room beside Twilight sat three mares that Trider knew very well.

"Look who finally decided to show up!" excalimed Dynamism.

"Welcome back Trider." greeted Rose.

"Tis a pleasure." finally said Princess Luna.

With a dumfounded look Trider stood in the doorway as he waved his hand. "Heeeey. What are you guys doing here?" he asked uncertain.

Rose stood up from her seat as she presented Trider with a letter. "This will explain everything."

The Kanisar took the letter and opened it, reading it's content.

Dear Trider!

The time has come for me to finally bestow upon you your rightful punishment. I took into account that you saved not only my life, but also lives of my ponies. So I decided that while you won't be locked up or be forced to do community work, you however shall be looked over by a couple of Royal Guards, so we can avoid any future repeats of the Diamond Dog incident.

Sincerely

Princess Celestia

When he was done reading he looked at the two guard mares with an unamused glare. "So you're my babysitters again?"

"Correct." Dynamism replied with a commanding tone. "From now on we shall follow you everwhere you go, look over every action you take. We will be like your shadow."

"So you'll even follow me to the bathroom?"

Trider's remark made the mare stagger as she tried to compose herself. "O-of course not. Don't be ridiculous."

"If you want, I wouldn't mind." Rose said, gaining surprised looks from everyone.

Before anyone could reply to her outrageous claim, Trider pointed a finger at the lunar princess. "Ok I know why you two are here. But what about her?"

Luna stood from her seat and walked over to the Kanisar. "I have merely escorted the two here." She paused as she looked at the man deciding, if she should tell him the rest of what was on her mind. Eventually she steeled her nerves and spoke. "But I also wish to speak with you." She looked at te other mares and then back to Trider. "In private, if you would."

Trider shrugged. "Sure I don't mind." Nodding the alicorn's horn began to glow as both their bodies were enveloped in magic energy. "Be right back Twi." Trider said before he was teleported.

As his senses returned to him, the Kanisar looked around the room he was in. "What is this place?" he asked the mare.

"These are my private chambers. No one will interrupt us while we are in here." Luna explained as she sat on her bed.

A grin stretched across Trider's face. "Woah Luna, I can understand you like to move things quickly, but we could at least have a date first."

Unamused at his attempt of being witty, the lunar princess rolled her eyes. "Please refrain from making such crude jokes. We are here to have a serious conversation."

The Kanisar raised his hands in defense as he backed away from princess. "Okay, okay geez. Some people can't take a joke." His expression turning serious he looked at hte mare. "Are you still mad about the Diamond Dogs, if so you can tell that to your-"

"No that is not what I'm here to talk about." Luna cut him off. "I'm here to talk to you about your home. Your original home that is."

"Didn't I already told you everything about my planet. What more do you guys want?"

"What I want is for you to tell me the truth , Sir Lykosgrothia." the mare said with a serious expression. "About the torment you and your people had to suffer."

Suddenly Trider's eyes turned cold and his voice became equally chilly. "How do you know that?"

"As the ruler of the night, it is also my duty to protect my subjects from the terrors of the night, more specifically nightmares." the lunar princess explained.

"So what you're telling me is that you've been coming to my dreams and saw everything that transpired in them." he said gritting his teeth.

"Indeed."

"How much did you see?"

"Enough to get an idea of what has happened to you." Luna said undeterred.

Trider took a deep breath as he glared at the mare. "Did you tell anyone about it?"

"No. Not even my sister."

"Good." Trider said. Suddenly he charged at the mare quickly closing the distance. He grabbed the hem of her top and looked her in the eyes. "Now listen closely princess. You have no right to meddle in someone else's dreams and agendas. Usually I would beat you to a pulp because of what you did, but since I'm feeling nice today I'll let you off with a warning. Do that again and I will make you pay."

Luna didn't even blink, as she grabbed his hand and made him relese her. "You would be wise not to do that again, lest you wish to end like Chrysalis." The two continued to glare at each other, until Luna closed her eyes and sighed. "But I understand. I shall no longer intrude into your dreams nor will I talk about your past with others." She looked at the Kanisar once again, this time with sad eyes. "But let me give you a warning. If you continue to harbor these feelings you will eventually be consumed by your hatred." She looked at her hands as bad memories flooded her mind. "Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hatred. And hatred leads to suffering." She said in a solemn tone.

"You talk like you've experienced that first-hand." Trider said no longer angry at the mare.

"I have. And I do not wish for anyone else to experience that." Her horn began to glow as she readied the spell to send Trider back to the library. "Heed my words Lykosgrothia. If you don't let go of your hatred you'll be consumed by it and you'll end up hurting those that are closest to you."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Luna nodded and transported Trider back home. When he returned Twilight walked up to him. "What did Luna want to talk to you about?" she asked.

Trider gave a sad smile and rubbed her head. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he chuckled as he ascended the stairs. "There are some things that adults have to talk about. Things that aren't meant for kids."

Twilight's face turned red as she fumed. "What right do YOU have to call someone else a kid?"

Once in bed Trider thought back to what Applejack and Luna talked to him about. "I appreciate the thought girls." he thought. "But I deal with my troubles alone." With that he fell asleep.

Author's Note

Finally a new chapter. I' m sorry for not making a new one in so long. I had schoolwork (like always) and also fell sick. I hope you all enjoyed the new chapter that was proof read by EMBER SPIRIT SHIELD. Thanks a lot.
With this we begin a new arc and that means a new theme song.

Also I've decided on Dynamism's theme and I couldn't think of any better than this one.

Unfortunately I can't figure out any good songs for Rose, so if you have any good ideas, you can share them.
As always tell me if you enjoyed the latest chapter.
Until next time.

Chapter 13: Matchmaker; Love at First Fight

Sunlight poured through the windows as they made their way across the Kanisars room. Eventually they found their way to his bed and shone onto his sleeping features. Trider rolled over trying to shield himself from the assaulting rays. Once safe he sighed contently and resumed his sleep.

"Are you gonna sleep through the entire morning?" said a soft voice. Trider grunted as he cracked open one of his eyes. He saw that over his sleeping form stood Rose who was smiling to herself.

"Deja vu." he mumbled as he threw the blanket over his head. "Go away." was all he said before snores began to fill the room.

"Oh my. What am I going to do?" she said in mock tone as she put a hand on her cheek. A menacing grin stretched across her face as her horn began to glow. In a flash of light a mass of water appeared above the bed. "You sure you don't want to reconsider?" she asked.

"Fuck off!"

"Suit yourself." Without warning she dropped the water onto the Kanisar who jumped out of bed screaming. Soaking wet he stood in the middle of the room, glaring at the mare. Rose could only giggle as she saw him, water dripping from his form.

"You wanna play it like that, huh?" he growled. "Fine, I won't show mercy." The mare looked at him slightly scared, the tone of his voice sounding threatening. Before she could react however Trider walked up to her and began to shake the water of like a dog would.

"Stop that! Stop! Please!" Rose begged as she was assaulted by drops of water. When Trider was finished he looked at her with a smug grin.

"Now we're even." The mare gave him a deadpanned look as they stared at each other. Eventually they smiled and their smiles grew to laughter. Once their laughter subsided Rose's horn glowed again and they, as well as the bed were dry once again.

"Handy." Trider said as he scanned his body to see it was bone dry. "But why did you have to wake me in such a way?" he asked her.

"Two reasons." she said as she raised two fingers. "One Miss Twilight said you are often very difficult to awaken, so I resorted to the technique our drill instructors used when we were unwilling to get up early. And two, I was told that you had lots of important things to do today and didn't want you to miss out on them."

Trider groaned as he remembered all of the things he promised to do. He walked to a stool that was in the bedroom and picked up his clothes. "Well we better get started. We've got lot of shit to do."

Rose watched him as he put on his clothes and raised a brow. "A mare could get used to this." she said as Trider put on his undershirt.

"Next time I'll charge you ten bits to watch the show."

"Only? Now that's a deal I can get behind."

The two laughed again. Once the Kanisar was done changing they went downstairs and instead of going for the kitchen Rose headed straight for the door. "Aren't we gonna have breakfast?" Trider asked confused.

Rose opened the door and motioned for him to follow her. "We are. Only we'll be eating it at a diner, Miss Twilight and Dyna are already waiting for us there." The man shrugged as he followed behind her, towards his would be meal.

"Alright, here I come!" Rainbow exclaimed as she hovered a several feet above the ground. Trider nodded, telling her he understood. With affirmation she began descend towards him, building up speed. While she was flying downward she began to spin around, like a corkscrew. The Kanisar got ready to block the incoming attack by raising his arms. The attack however didn't connect. Right as she was near him and tried to spin around to deliver a spin kick, she lost control and crashed into the ground. Groaning she tried to pick herself up from the small crater she had created, rubbing her head.

"You ok there Dash?" Trider asked offering a hand to help her up. The mare gladly took it as she got back onto her hooves.

"I'm fine." she said as she dusted herself off. "I just wish I could do the damn kick already. We've done it like a gazilion times."

The Kanisar chuckled as he put his hand to his forehead. "Maybe you could do it, if you didn't try to spin like a madman."

She glared at him and pouted. "No way dude, this move has to look as awesome as possible, if I'm gonna be using it."

Sighing Trider put a hand onto the mares shoulder and looked her in the eyes. "Dash." he said in a serious tone. "You're an idiot." The mare glared at him and tried to rebute, but he cut her off before she could. "Moves don't have to be be flashy, they just have to get the job done. So why do you wanna do unnecesary maneuvers to make more difficult."

"Like I said, cause I want to look awesome when I do them. Do I need any other reasons." she then looked at him and scoffed. "And who are you telling that flashy moves are ridiculous? You do that all the time."

"Yeah, but when I do them I don't intentionally make them flashy to make myself look awesome. It happens naturallly." Dash gave him a deadpanned look at his statement and crossed her arms. "Alright, I don't want to waste any more of my time so what about we compromise. Try to do the kick without the spin and once you master that you can add whatever whistle or bell you want to it. Is that ok?"

The mare thought over his suggestion and once she was done she shook her head. "Yeah I can do that."

"Great. Then get your ass back into the air and try again." he commanded. The pegasus gave him a mock salute and flew up into the sky so they could continue.

Meanwhile not too far away, under the shade of a tree, Rose sat on a small rock and watched as Trider and Rainbow Dash went at each other yet again. As she watched the spectacle, she heard the flapping of wings and without looking at who it was she greeted the new arrival. "Took you long enough private."

Dynamism huffed as she sat down on the ground beside her superior. "Sorry for that. It took slightly longer than I anticipated to get Miss Fluttershy back to her cottage. I swear that mare is scared of her own shadow." Her gaze fell onto the scene that was playing out not too far away from their spot. "What are they doing?"

"Trider is helping Miss Dash with practice." Rose explained. "You already read that Miss Dash and Trider fought not too long ago to settle a grudge between each other, right?" Dynamism nodded and the unicorn continued. "Well, the match ended in a draw, so they decided they would take some time to train and then fight again."

The dragon-pony scratched her head in confusion. "Then why is Trider helping her? Wouldn't it be better if he didn't?" she asked.

"That would be most logical thing to do." Rose said as she looked at the duo again. "But Trider isn't like that. He hails from a warrior race and seeks the thrill of combat above anything else. By helping Miss Dash with her training he is making her stronger and therefore making the future battle more exciting for himself."

Dynamism stared at her for a moment, then looked at the Kanisar and then back to the mare. "I don't get him."

"Not many do."

They continued to watch their training until the sun began to set. "Alright that's all for today." said Trider as Rainbow landed on the ground. "You've made some real good progress, can't wait until we duke it out once again." He and the mare fist-bumped and smiled at each other.

"Same here Trider."

"So you two are finally finished?" asked Rose as she and Dynamism approached them.

"Thank Luna, I thought you guys would be here all night." whined Dynamism.

"Well, excuse me for trying to spend some quality time with a friend of mine." he said with sarcasm, while rolling his eyes. "At least we're done for today, so we can just go home and relax."

"Not yet." said Rose earning a confused look from everybody. "While Dyna was escorting Miss Fluttershy and you were exchanging blows with Miss Dash, Miss Twilight came by and told me to tell you that we will be heading towards the train station once you were done."

"Why?" asked Trider.

"Apperantly Sir Spike is arriving home today and we will meet him there." explained Dynamism.

Triders expression lightened at the thought of the drake finally coming home, from his Canterlot visit. "Well what are we waiting for. let's move it." He turned to Rainbow and gave her a smile. "Well see ya." he said as he began to walk towards the station. "Make sure you practice what I told you today." he added.

"Yeah, see ya." she said her goodbye and flew into the sky. Smiling the Kanisar picked up his pace and the two guard mares followed him.

"It seems you have quite a good relationship with Miss Dash, despite the rough starts I read about." Rose commented as they walked.

"Eh, depends on who you ask. Some will say we're two best buds, while others say we would rip each others throats out, if left unchecked." he said, earning a chuckle from both mares.

They continued to discuss different subjects as they made their way to their destination. Soon they arrived at the station and they waited for the train Spike and Rarity will be arriving with. Half an hour later the locomotive stopped in front of the station and all the passangers exited. The trio looked over the crowd trying to spot their friends and they didn't have to look for long. Out of the mass of ponies a giant tower of suitcases and shopping bags could be seen, signaling them there is where they were. They walked over to the two and could see that while Rarity carried only two small bags, Spike had to lug the enormous tower by himself. The young drake was sweating bullets and his legs seemed like they would give out at any second.

"I see you're still driving Spike to the ground with your slavery, huh Rarity?" Trider exclaimed as they got close to the duo. Rarity looked over to him adn scowled.

"For your information Trider, Spike voulenteered to carry my luggage by himself." the mare said with a raised nose.

"Yeah, after you seducted him into it." he thought, but he soon went over to the poor dragon. "Here let me give you a hand." he offered and took half of the pile, releiving some of the burden off of Spike.

"Thanks. I don't think I would've made it all the way back to the boutique by myself." he said in gratitude.

"It's a pleasure to meet you once again Miss Rarity, Sir Spike." When the mare and the dragon heard their names being mentioned, they turned their heads towards the two new faces, only now noticing them.

"Who are these guys?" asked Spike with a raised brow.

"Oh yeah, kinda forgot about them. Spike, Rares these are Rose and Dyna, Royal Guards that Celestia sent to keep an eye on me, as my punishment." Trider explained as he walked over to the guard mares.

"We've met before actually. On the night before the wedding, I was slumped over Trider here after I took one drink too much." Rose bowed her head. "I am Sergeant Rose Blade and this is my companion Private Dynamism."

"Hey." was all Dynamism said.

Spike walked closer to the dragon-mare and looked her over. "Oh yeah I remember you. You're that awesome half-dragon pony aren't you?" he said earning a blush from the mare. No one noticed it though, with the exception of Rose, who only smiled.

"Well it is an honor to meet with such beautiful and noble mares like yourselves." Rarity said as she too bowed her head. "If you ever need any help or new dresses don't be afraid to come and ask. I mean after all," she said as she glared at the Kanisar. "You are in charge of looking after him. He can't help, but get himself into trouble and when he does it usually ends up in something blowing up and his clothes getting torn."

"And yet you still make me new ones everytime." Trider teased.

"Only because it goes against my code of everypony deserving to have something nice to wear." she humphed. "I swear if I wasn't the Element of Generosity you would be walking around naked. Not that it would probably bother you."

"Love you too." the Kanisar rebuted, earning a snicker from everyone, but Rarity.

"You guys sure have a serious love-hate realtionship, don't you?" asked Dynamism, as her fit passed.

"We sure do. We love to hate each other." Trider said as he gave Rarity a half-lidded look. "Don't we honey?"

As an answer he received both of the mares bags, that she was carrying, on top of his pile of luggage and she scoffed. "Don't call me honey, you brute." she then sighed and flicked her hair over her ear. "At least we agree on one thing. The 'love to hate' thing that is."

While all of them were laughing, Rose walked over to the fashionista and spoke to her. "You are exactly like my parents said you'd be."

Rarity looked at her with a puzzled expression. "Really? And who would your parents be exactly?"

"Fancy Pants and Fleur de Lis."

Raritys eyes widened as she gasped loudly. Suddenly she grabbed Roses hands into her own and stared into her eyes. "You're daughter of the Fancy Pants and Felur de Lis?" she asked, with barely contained excitement.

"Indeed." affirmed Rose, caught off guard by the mares sudden excitement.

"Oh I can tell we'll be the best of friends already." the fashionista said as she dragged the guard mare by her arms. "We have so much to talk about. How is Fancy doing? How about your mother? How do you get your hair to be so silky smooth?..."

Rose was assaulted by a plethora of questions, as she looked at the rest of the group with pleading eyes. But it was in vein as she was caught in Raritys iron grip and none dared to mess with the tailor when she was like that, not even Trider.

"I pity her." said the Kanisar.

"Amen." agreed the other two.

It was getting late in the evenin and the guard mares and Trider were making their way back to the library. Spike left before them saying he was too tired from whole day of shoppin or something like that, so the other three had to entertain Rarity for a couple more hours.

"I can't belive that mare can talk for so long. I contemplated on knocking myself out to stop the torture." whined Dynamism.

"I bet you would've been able to go through it, if Spike was there to keep you company." Rose said with a massive grin. The statement made the dragon-mare lose her footing and she nearly fell, but she kept her balance. She looked at her friend with a bright red face.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about." she said as she turned her head away and pouted. Rose giggled at her reaction, which earned a questioning look from the Kanisar.

"What you two talking bout?" he asked nonchalantly. Rose turned to him and smiled.

"It appears our little Dyna has a crush on a certain purple dragon." she explained, while Dynamisms face threatened to burst into flames.

"Is that so?" Trider said, while throwing the young mare a bemused look. "As his master you have my blessings to court him. Now you just have to get a permission from Twi and you're set."

Dynamism wanted to bury herself into the ground, from their teasing. "There is a problem, however." said Rose, earning the attention of them both. "Spike is still a juvenile. So if she tried to hook up with him, she could be sent to jail. Not to even mention Spike might not like to date an older woman."

The reality of her words sstruck the dragon-mare to the core and her expression became depressed. "I wouldn't be so sure. For you see our little drake has a crush on a certain pain-in-the-ass white unicorn dress-maker, so I don't think he would mind hitching up with an older woman. On contrary he might like it." He then raised a finger before he continued. "Plus Spike is already 17 and the legal age here is 18, right? So just wait one year before you decide to screw with him and you're safe."

The two mares looked at him in astonishment. "You make a good point. It might just work out." Rose said as she looked at the other mare. "You can even start building a relationship, as we speak. As long as you don't have sex with him."

Dynamism couldn't decide if she should be happy or shocked at what her friends were talking about. "Are you guys seriously making plans for my future before me? That's kinda fucked up, y'know."

The two however didn't pay her any mind as a plan began to formulate between the two. "Tomorrow, you and Spike will probably go on your one of your training sessions, right?"

"Yep."

She nodded and continued to hatch their plan. "So while you two train or even before, you come up with an excuse so Spike can be alone with Dyna and from then on their relationship blossoms."

Trider rubbed his chin in thought and nodded. "That sounds like a good plan."

"Excuse me? Do you guys even realize I'm still here?" Dynamism cut in between the two, clearly flustered.

"We do and I hope you were listening to our little plan, so you know what you have to do." Rose said as she turned the mare towards herself and placed her hands onto her shoulders.

"You can't be serious!" the dragon-mare exclaimed, while becoming more and more frustrated.

"But I am." Rose answered with a smile, which unnerved Dynamism. "It's fool-proof. This way you can get closer to Spike and become a future couple."

"However there is one problem." said Trider earning the attention from both mares. "If Spike goes off to flirt with Dyna, then who will I be training with? Don't get me wrong, I also want them to get together, but I also want to spar with someone, since I haven't been able in a while."

Rose walked up to him and spoke. "I could do it." Trider looked at her skeptically, but before he could argue she pressed a finger to his lips. "Although I'm better proficient in sword fighting, I'm no pushover when it comes to hand to hand combat." With that said she walked ahead away, while tracing a finger across his jaw line. She gave him a sultry look, before she added. "Let's just hope you can handle me."

With a sway in her hip she walked away, leaving behind a flabergasted Dynamism and slightly stunned Trider. "That woman." he thought as he smiled and followed her. "She's trying real hard to rile me up."

A fist connected with Triders palm, as he blocked Spikes attack. Following it up, the young drake spun around trying to hit the Kanisar with the back of his foot. The man however predicted it and blocked that as well, leaving Spike in a very bad position where one of his arms and legs were locked in place. But that didn't stop him as he used his tail to push Trider away and quickly counter-attacked. With a flurry of punches he began to push the Kanisar back. Without warning Trider grabbed both of his arms and stopped his assault. Before Spike could react he delivered strong headbutt, making the dragon stagger backwards. Before he could fall however the Kanisar grabbed him by the hand.

"Ok, I think that's enough for now. Take five." he ordered. Spike didn't even had to be told so and he sat down on the ground, sweating and breathing heavily.

"I'm either out of shape or you're being rougher." the drake said as he laid his body on the grass.

"Both." Trider replied with a bemused smirk. He walked over to his shirt that he and Spike also discarded and wiped the sweat from his forehead. It's true that Spike became slightly sloppy, because they hadn't trained in a while, but he had to admit the drake was making a remarkable progress.

Gone was his slightly chubby body that was replaced with a well toned form, that made mares drool over. His fighting also improved drastically. His reflexes and techniques were becoming better with every spar they had and he even started to implement his unique body features, like his tail and fire breathing. Though they limited the latter due to Raritys whining over his burnt clothes. "I've found myself one heck of a student." he thought as a smiled stretched across his face. "You were right Commander. Seeing your student progress is one of the best feelings a master can experience."

His gaze then fell onto the two mares that were watching them. Rose stood there calm and with a stioc expression, while Dynamism fidgeted with her fingers and was blushing furiously. Probably due to seeing Spike without his shirt. He then caught a glance of Rose indicated towards the other mare with her head. Trider understood the signal as he turned to his pupil.

"Get up Spike. I have a special training planned for you today." he said to the drake, who rose from the ground with a groan.

"Please tell me it's not like that time with the bull." he whined, the images of that particular training flashing through his mind.

"Nope. It's something much worse." he said, making Spike look at him in fear. "Today you'll be sparring with Dyna." he said as he pointed a finger the mare.

Spike tilted his head as he looked at her, then switched his gaze back to the Kanisar. "Why?"

Trider sighed as he rubbed his neck. "It occured to me during my training with Dash that you might come across opponents that will be capable of flight. So I asked Dyna if she could help you with your training and show you how to defend and attack against a flying enemy."

"And what will you be doing in the mean time?"

"I'll train with Rose while you'll be busy with flirt-I mean, training with Dyna." Trider said, while smiling sheepishly.

Spike gave him a skeptical look, before he shrugged. "Fine with me." He ran towards the two mares and came to halt in front of them. "Hey Dyna, Trider told me what's up. So, you ready?" The mare simply nodded, as her eyes took in his bare chest. "Ok then. Let's go." He grabbed her by the hand and dragged her off. Rose merely chuckled as she watched the two go off.

"Have fun you two!" she exclaimed before they were out of hearing range. Turning towards the Kanisar her smile grew as she started to walk towards him.

Trider cracked his knuckles as she got close. "Hope you weren't all talk yesterday, cause I'm expecting to at least sweat a little bit."

Rose discarded her jacket, which left her with a tight fitting T-shirt and sweat pants. "Trust me, by the end of this sweating will be the last of your worries." she said as she winked at him. Taking that as their cue they both got into their battle stances.

Trider decided to make the first move as he closed the distance and tried to land a blow to her stomach. Rose however deflected the punch downward and then swiftly kicked him in the side of the face. The Kanisar wiped his mouth, traces of blood evident. "Atta girl." he mumbled as he got back into a stance. This time deciding to be more careful, he began to circle her, as she did the same.

With a mighty roar he charged her again. As he got close tried to kick her in the head, but she ducked his kick and sweep kicked at his exposed leg, making him lose his balance. Trider however did a full back-flip and landed on his feet and using them he jumped at the crouching mare, tackling her to the ground.

As he laid over her, pinning her arms under his, he looked her in the eyes and grinned. "What's wrong sweetie? Didn't you say you'd make me sweat?" he taunted her. Rose responded with a swift lunge of her knee. Trider felt his entire body erupt in intense pain as he rolled away from her. The mare jumped back to standing position and faced him. The man tried to get up, fighting the pain that emanated from his groin. With shaky legs he got up and looked at her.

Before he could react the mare grabbed him by one of the arms and tossed him over her shoulders. Landing with a loud thud, pain seared through his back and before he knew it, it was him that was now pinned under the mare. She closed the distance between their faces, until they were inches apart. Her mane cascaded on both sides of his heads, blocking them from the outside world.

"You kicked me in the dick." he said with a pitch higher voice. "Why?"

"All is fair in love and war, sweetie."

Trider took a second to collect himself and get his voice to it's normal tone. "So which one is this?"

The mare shrugged as she got even closer. "Who knows?" she whispered as their lips closed the distance.

"What are you two doing?" Trider and Rose looked towards the source of the voice and saw that Dynamism and Spike had returned. Shaking his head the Kanisar pushed the mare off of him and quickly got up. The mare simply looked at him with a questioning and hurt expression, but he didn't notice.

"N-nothing." he said as he cleared his throat. He then looked at the two and raised a brow. "More importantly what are you two doing here? Didn't I tell you to train with Dyna?"

"We were about to, when Rainbow came and told us we had to go to Canterlot. She also told us to get you two." Spike explained.

Rose and Trider looked at each other, before looking at the dragon again. "What for?" he asked.

Spike scratched his head and shrugged. "Not sure. All she said it was about some important test."

Trider groaned as he facepalmed. "Great there is a test now." he sighed as he picked up his shirt and began to head back to town. "I hope I get to smash something."

Author's Note

Last chapter before his arrival. Like always hope you enjoy it and see you next time. But remember...

He's watching.

Chapter 14: The Crystal Empire Part 1: Wolf of Crystal Street; Tyrant King vs Trider

"So let me get this straight." Trider said as he made himself comfortable in his seat. "We are heading to a long lost empire, that an evil tyrant once ruled over and when he was defeated he made it disappear for a thousand years. And Celestia decided that for your test, you'll have to protect it with the help of your friends, Cadance and your brother."

"That's exactly what I said." Twilight affirmed what the Kanisar just said.

"I'm not even mad, that's amazing." he said in nonchalant tone. "Celestia is pretty smart, choosing to let me come along as well. I'll make sure that all who dare to even scratch the surface of the empire will be properly punished." With a menacing grin he cracked his knuckles, messaging his intention.

"Actually Trider, Celestia said that I have to make sure you won't do such a thing." the mare said making the Kanisar look at her in confusion.

"Come again?"

She cleared her throat. "She said that under any circumstances are you to engage any hostile targets, without the approval of either me, my brother, Cadance or Rose. Those were her exact words."

"Then why the fuck am I even going?" he asked in a raised voice, while flailing his arms around.

A smirk streched across Twilights face, which unnerved Trider. "Because she, as well as I, want you to see other parts of Equestria and meet other ponies to befriend."

The Kanisar groaned as he slumped in his seat. "Great. This another one of your friendship lessons. Why must you torture me so? Do you find joy in seeing me suffer?"

"This is for all the times you've walked into the bathroom, while I was still in there." she said in a half playful, half annoyed tone. Suddenly her expression became serious as she looked at her friend. "But seriously Trider, I want you to promise me that you'll stay out of trouble. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I'll try." he replied in as serious voice. "And thank you for being concerned about my well being."

"That's what friends do."

A pleasant atmosphere descended over the two as they looked into each others eyes. It was ruined however, when a certain rainbow maned mare decided to intervene. "Jeez, why don't you two just kiss already?"

The statement broke their daze and Twilight turned her head away from Trider, a blush clearly evident on her face. The Kanisar on the other hand looked at the pegasus mare and grinned. "Maybe after you won't get your ass kicked by me."

That made Rainbow glare at him and he did the same. They continued their staring contest, until Pinkies voice broke their concentration.

"We're here! We're here!" she said as she jumped around the caboose. The others looked outside and saw in the distance a small train station. It was barely visible due to the intense snowfall.

A few minutes later they all left their cart one by one, each wearing an extra article of clothing to protect them from the frigid cold. The last one to step off the train was Trider, who only wore a thick vest on top of his usual attire. Dynamism looked at him with concern.

"You sure you'll be alright with just that Trider? It's not exactly appropriate for the current weather? You can catch a cold like that."

Trider however just crossed his arms and huffed. "Don't be ridiculous it's not that cold." he said with determination, but it was betrayed when his body began to shiver. "Something like this is nothing. As a warrior, if I let such a trivial thing stop me then I have no right to be one."

Dynamism blinked a few times, unable to comprehend what she just heard. "What?" was all she could say.

"Don't pay him any mind darling. He just doesn't want to wear an article of clothing that includes sleeves." Rarity said as she corrected her scarf that was messed up by the wind. "Honestly, it's easier to get a dragon to give away some of his gold than make Trider wear something with sleeves."

The dragon-mare looked between the fashionista and the Kanisar. "So he would rather have his entire body frozen than wear sleeves?" she asked. The rest of the group nodded and she looked at him with pitiful look. "When I first met you I thought you were the cool and brave type. Now I see you're just an idiot."

"You have no idea." agreed Rarity.

Trider scoffed and turned away from the two. "Well excuse me for having my priorities set differently than you. And like I said something like this." he said as he showed towards the storm with his arm. "Won't even affect me." As if the world heard his statement as a challenge a large pile of snow broke off from the stations roof and fell directly onto the Kanisar, covering him in the cold substance.

The group began to laugh at his misfortune as he shook off the snow. "Well you're right about one thing." Dynamism said in between laugh. "You won't catch a cold, cause I heard that idiots can't catch it." This made them laugh even harder as Trider began to remove the snow from him.

"I wonder if it's possible to find a body under all this snow?" he thought as he continued with the removal. As the laughter died down Twilight and Applejack walked up to him.

"Here let me help." the unicorn mare said as her horn glowed. Just like that all of the snow disappeared and his clothes were once again dry.

"And take this sugarcube." the farm mare said as she handed him her scarf. "It isn't much, but ah hope it'll help."

Trider took her gift and wrapped it around his neck, already feeling slightly warmer. He then hugged both mares, eliciting a squeak from both of them. "Thank you. You guys are great friends." He then gave the rest of the group an angry glare. "Unlike some."

The others smiled sheepishly and apologized, while Rose just looked at the Kanisar and the two mares he held in his embrace, with intrigue. Eventually they broke the hug and looked around.

"So... Anyone have any idea where this 'Crystal Empire' is?" Trider asked.

"Captain Shining Armor was supposed to meet up with us and guide us towards it." Rose stated as she looked into the distance. "And that must be him, if I'm not mistaken."

The others looked into the direction where she was looking and they too saw a shadow of a figure. "Twilight?" it called out over the howling wind.

"Shining?" the mare called back. Soon the figure got close enough and they could see it was the stallion they were expecting. Twilight broke off from the rest so she could meet her brother halfway. When they were close enough they hugged each other.

"It's good to see you again Twily."

"Same here." They broke off and Shining looked over the small group. His gaze eventually fell onto the Kanisar and his mood turned sour.

"Why is he here?" he asked as he pointed towards him.

"Glad to see you too." Trider said, his tone laced with sarcasm. "As for why I'm here, let's just say Celestia thought it would be good if I were here if things began to go bad."

Shining nodded. "I'm kind of glad she did."

The others looked at him in disbelief. "You are?" they asked simultaneously. They knew Shining and Trider didn't particulary like each other, but they tried to at least not kill each other, so hearing him say that was a real shocker.

"Yeah." he replied and began to head towards where he came from. "We'd better get moving. There are things out here we really don't want to run into after dark."

"What kind of things?" Fluttershy asked in a frightened voice.

"Let's just say, the Empire isn't the only thing that has returned." he said in a serious and grim tone. Heeding his warning they began to follow closely behind him towards the Crystal Empire. As they made their way Trider approached Shining.

"What kind of thing?" he asked, curious.

"Something keeps trying to break into the Empire. We belive it's the unicorn king that cursed the Empire thousand years ago." Shining replied.

"Really?" A wide smile streched acroos Triders face. "That's good to hear."

"Trider!" The Kanisar was scolded by Twilight. "Don't you remember you promised you'll stay out of trouble?" He just huffed as he crossed his arms and pouted. Satisfied Twilight approached her brother and faced him. "Princess Celestia said I was being sent here to find a way to protect the Empire! If King Sombra can't get in, then it must already be protected."

Before her brother could reply a ghastly howl resonated across the frozen plain. They stopped in their tracks and looked around to see where the howl came from. "Th-That's one of the things, isn't it?" Fluttershy stuttered as panic began to grow inside of her, as well as the rest of the ponies.

"We have to get to the Crystal Empire!" Shining commmanded. "Now!"

Just as he said that a massive pillar of shadow rose above them, like a giant tidal wave. A pair of eyes formed within the dark mist, sickly green in color, with red irises and purple smoke escaping from the corners. Everyone began to run and the shadow followed.

"Go, go!"

They ran with all their might and were quickly approaching the barrier of the Empire. However the shadow was closing in even faster and Shining decided he would buy some time for the rest. Stopping and turning around he faced the shadow and fired a blast at it. But it was unfazed as it reformed and attacked the stallion. Shining ready to block, charged his horn and got ready. But the assault was too much and he was quickly overpowered. His horn began to go numb and he could no longer charge any magic into it.. Knowing he didn't stand a chance he got ready to face his demise.

All of a sudden a loud explosion sounded off and the shadow wailed in pain. It backed away from the stallion and looked around to see what happened. His eyes widened when he saw Trider fire numerous blasts at the shadow, making it slowly retreat. Once it was far away enough, the Kanisar jumped toward the stallion and picked him up and hoisting him over his shoulder. By that time the shadow recovered and was once again in pursuit. Putting all of his strength into his legs Trider ran towards the barrier and right before it could grab them they jumped through the barrier.

Breathing rapidly Trider sat down on the ground dropping Shining off with a loud thud and a yelp. "That's twice now that you owe me." he said in ragged tone.

Shining paid him no mind however, as Twilight approached her brother and grabbed his hand. "Oh no! Shining your horn!" Looking up at his appendage he saw that it was covered in black crystals. He tried to channel magic through it, but it was futile. He shook his head.

"Should've worn protection man." Trider said as he stood up. The siblings glared at him and his poor attempt at being humorous. They walked off towards their friend leaving the Kanisar behind. "Tough crowd." he said as he scratched his head. He as well joined the rest of the group and looked at the Empire.

"Sparkleriffic!" exclaimed Pinkie and she wasn't wrong. Everywhere you looked crystals upon crystals, each as bright as the other.

"Should've brought my shades." Trider said as they began to head towards the tallest bulding in the center of the city.

Eventually they reached the castle and admired the spectacular sight. Some more than the others. Rarity was gushing over every single thing they came across as they walked through the city and it was starting to get on Triders nerves.

"If you like this place so much why don't you move here. That way you'll get out of my hair and I out of yours. It's a win-win." he said annoyed.

"You say that now, but you'll evetually run out of clothes, what with all the 'adventures' you have daily and when that happens you would be crawling to me so I could fix them." she rebuted, leaving him silent.

They made their way to the throne room where an exhausted Cadance waited for them. "Cadance!" Twilight exclaimed, earning the attention of her sister-in-law. When the princess saw ger she got up from the throne she was sitting in and approached the lavender mare.

When they got close they did their little dance, which gained a small laugh from Trider. "Are you two gonna do that every time you meet?" Cadance looked at him and smiled.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Trider, we never had a chance to properly introduce ouselves." she said in a soft voice, while extending her hand.

"Yeah, well, last time we had to fight queen bug and her minions. We were both kind of occupied." She nodded, but suddenly her magic began to flicker as the barrier outside did the same. She grabbed her head and sighed.

"Are you ok?" asked Twilight.

Shining stepped next to his wife and put an arm over her shoulders. "Cadance has been able to use her magic to spread love and light. That seems to be what is protecting it. But she hasn't slept, barely eats. I want to help her, but my protection spell has been countered by King Sombra." he explained.

Cadance took a deep breath and put a hand onto the stallions chest. "It's alright Shining Armor, I'm fine. " she tried to assure him, but he knew she was just acting tough.

"She's not fine. She can't go on like this forever, and if her magic were to fade..." he trailed off as he looked at his siter with worry. "Well, you saw what's out there waiting for that to happen."

"That's why we're here." Twilight assured her brother.

"Why we're all here." added Applejack while the rest hummed in agreement.

Happy to see them all willing to help Shining nodded. "Well, with Cadance putting all her strength into keeping her spell going, and me trying to keep an eye on signs of trouble in the arctic, we haven't been able to gather much information from the Crystal Ponies."

Raritys eyes widened. "Crystal Ponies?! Hahaha, there are Crystal Ponies?!" she began to fangirl, while the others looked at her confused.

Trider on the other hand was more verbal with his annoyance. "Rarity I swear to every deity that exists that if you don't calm your tits, I'll do it for you." The statement did it's job and made the mare shut up, while the others looked at him, some slightly disgusted at his claim.

"Anyway." Shining decided to continue. "We believe one of them knows how we can protect the Empire without having to use Cadance's magic."

Gears in Twilights head began to turn, until an idea popped into her head. "A research paper!" she exclaimed.

"Huh?"

Twilight began to pace back and forth while she spoke in an excited tone. "That must be part of my test – to gather information from the Crystal Ponies and deliver it to you!" She shoved a finger into her brothers chest as she backed off. "This is gonna be great! I love research papers!"

"Yeah, who doesn't?" Rainbow said sarcastically, while she nudged Pinkie. Pinkie being Pinkie however, thought she was serious with her question.

"Oh-oh-oh! Lemme guess! Is it Spike? Nono, Fluttershy!" she said as she dragged each one of them in front of her. "Trider?" she asked as she dragged him. The Kanisar just shrugged.

"You wouldn't be wrong."

"Don't worry, big brother. I am really good at this sort of thing." Twilight assured Shining as she and her friends left off to get answers.

"Look, all I'm asking is if you know anything about what happened when Sombra took over?" Trider asked the pony in frustration.

"I already told I know nothing." the pony said in panic as he slowly backed away from the Kanisar. "Just leave me alone!" With that said the stallion ran off leaving an even more frustrated Kanisar behind.

"WILL EVERYONE STOP FUCKING RUNNING AWAY FROM ME WHEN I TRY TO TALK TO THEM!" he shouted, scaring off any nearby citizens. He heard someone giggle behind him and when he turned he saw Rose standiing there, along with Dynamism. "What do you guys want?"

"It seems you're having trouble talking to ponies. Want some help?" Rose offered.

Trider huffed and crossed his arms. "Don't give me that sass. You guys haven't found out anything about this either."

"Yeah, but we at least spoke to them, unlike yourself." Dynamism rebuted with a grin.

"I hate you." he grumbled.

Rose put a hand over her chin as she thought. "Maybe the reason, beside being an alien, is that you apperance gives off the wrong kind of vibe. Maybe you should approach them with a smile." she suggested.

"Fine. I'll try it your way." Trider said in a defeated tone. He looked around and spotted a mare in front of one of the houses. He approached her and put on a smile. "Excuse me miss?"

The mare stared at him in shock, before her eyes rolled into her head and she lost conscience and collapsed. Both Rose and Dynamism face palmed at his attempt and groaned. Trider meanwhile lifted the poor mare and placed her under a small shade of a tree. He then calmly walked back to the two. "Not a word!" he groweled and walked away.

The mares followed behind him and each kept quiet. "It's about time we meet up with others. Maybe they had better luck in getting answers."

The Kanisar simply nodded and walked off towards the castle. Soon the others came into view and Pinkie waved towards them. "They're here! They're here!" she exclaimed, earning others attention.

"What took you guys so long?" asked Rainbow when they arrived.

"We had some trouble with getting answers from the locals. We apologize if you had to wait." Rose apologized for her and her friends.

"Ya weren't the only ones who had that kind of trouble." Applejack assured them. "These crystal ponies seem to have some kinda collective amnesia or somethin. Only thing ah was able to get out of 'em was somethin about a library."

Twilights expression suddenly brightened and she gasped. "A library? Well, why didn't you say so?!" she said as she grabbed Applejacks face.

"Uh... thought I just did." Applejack said as the lavender mare let her go.

"Well you can count me out of this. I came here to kick ass, not read, so if you'll excuse me I'll just be sitting in the castle trying to relax while an impeding doom looms over us and you guys read books. Ciao." Trider said as he began to walk off. But his movements were halted by a lavender aura that lifted him off the ground.

"Quit your complaining. It wouldn't hurt to read every once in a while." Twilight said as she walked towards the library with Trider in tow.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

The group arrived in front of the librarys entrance and when they entered they saw countless shelves, filled with countless books. Twilight set Trider back to the ground and he just pouted while huffing. "I just... I don't even know what to... There are no words." she said as she admired the sight.

"I can think of a few." Trider said under his breath.

"Ahem." The sound of someone clearing their throat caught the attention of the group. "May I help you?" asked an eldery mare, with golden rimmed glasses.

"Yes." affirmed Twilight. "We're looking for a book."

"We have plenty of those." the librarian replied as she waved her hand in arc.

"No shit! Who would've thought that a library would have books?" Trider exclaimed. The group looked at him with angry scowls.

Applejack cleared her throat. "Don't mind him. He's just grumpy he was dragged here." she assured the elder mare. "We're lookin' for a history book. Somethin' that might tell us how the Empire might've protected itself from danger back in the day."

"Yes. Of course. History, history..." The librarian thought over. Her face brightened up, seeming to remember where that was. "Ah, yes."

The group looked at her expecting an answer. When a couple of seconds of silence passed Twilight spoke up. "Which is where, exactly?"

"I... I can't seem to remember. I'm not sure I actually work here." she stated.

A loud crash could be heard and when the group looked behind them they saw Trider standing next to a wall. It had a small hole where Trider punched it. "Don't mind me. Just venting some of my frustration." he said through his teeth.

Twilight turned back towards her friends and spoke with them. "We'll just take a look around. I'm sure we can find it on our own." The others nodded as they headed deeper into the library.

"Let me know if you find anything." the elder mare said before she too left.

"I like her." Pinkie said as she hopped along with her friends.

"Speak for yourself." Trider grumbled.

It's been over an hour since they started to search for any possible clue about how to protect the Empire from Sombra and they still got nothing. Trider stood up from the ground and dropped the book he was looking over. He stretched his limbs and moaned. "This is fucking pointless."

He looked around and saw eah of the mares did their best to find what they were looking for, whatever that may be. When he looked at Twilight he saw she looked over her own books like they were on conveyor belt, which they kind of were as she levitated them in her magic.

"Uh, anyone else startin' to think this is a lost cause?" Applejack asked.

"You've only began to realize that now?" Trider said exasperated.

"No, no, no, no, no..." twilight continued her search until a certain book came in front of her. "Yes!" she exclaimed earning everyones attention. "History of the Crystal Empire." She levitated the book as she opened it. "I just hope it has the answers we need." she said as she began to skim through it.

Couple of hours later

After finding the book, the group learned about a certain tradition that the crystal ponies had, called the Crystal Faire. Every year the citizens of the Crystal Empire would hold this event to 'renew the spirit of love and unity in the empire so they could protect it from harm'. And once they got permission from the royal couple they started to work on the faire. It was grueling work, but it sure beat sitting around reading a book, at least to Trider.

The faire started a little while ago and results were already clear. Crystal ponies began to enjoy the festivities and their coats and manes began to gain back their old colors. Every member of the group was also occupied with their own tasks. Pinkie was the playing the part of a jester, Fluttershy was looking over the mini zoo they built, Rarity and Rose were making hats out of straw, Applejack and Ranibow were guiding ponies across the faire and Twilight was managing all of it. Trider was left with providing food to the ponies, but so far he had no costumers, which didn't bother him at all.

"Ah peace and quiet. Now this is life." he said as he leaned back into his chair and relaxed. A shadow fell over his face and when he opened his eyes he saw Dynamism standing over him.

"You sure are taking this all in stride." she commented. The Kanisar simply shrugged and returned to his nap. It was however interrupted when the barrier began to flicker. They heard a sinister howl, identical to the one they heard when they were attacked by Sombra. Shadows could be seen surrouding the Empire, but just as quick as the barrier disappeared it once again formed. Trider and Dynamism looked at each other in confusion.

"What was that?" the mare asked in slight panic.

"Don't know, but it spells trouble." the Kanisar answered. Suddenly they saw a multicolored projectile approach them at high speed and right before it crashed into them it stopped. Rainbow hovered in front of them panic clearly plastered on her face.

"We've got trouble guys!" she said in worry.

"What's wrong?" they both asked the pegasus mare.

"Remember that Crystal Heart thing we read about in the book?" The nodded and Rainbow continued. "Well, apperantely that thing was for real. When ponies fill it with their hopes and joy it projects it's magic and protects the Empire from danger. But Sombra hid it somehwere when he took over."

"So you want us to find it?" Trider said in concerned tone, with a hint of excitement.

"No! Twilight wants us to continue entertaining ponies, so that we don't lose all that hope and joy, while she searches for the Heart." Rainbow said.

Trider groaned as he sat back down into his chair. Dynamism however nodded. "We understand. Go tell the others this news."

With a nod Rainbow shot off towards the others and left Trider and Dynamism to look after the stall. "Well things have just gone into shitter." she said. "We don't have a mean to stop Sombra, while Cadance is becoming more exhausted by the minute. If things go on like this, the king will take over the Empire before we can stop him."

"Not unless we stop him before he even reaches the city." Trider said as he stood up.

"What do you mean?"

Trider smiled as he cracked his knuckles. "I'm sick and tired of waiting. I want action. So I'm gonny go out there and beat the shit out of him."

Flabbergasted Dynamism looked at the Kanisar and what he was intending to do. "You can't. It took combined powers of bot Princess Luna and Princess Celestia to take him down. You can't expect to beat him by yourself."

"We won't know until we try." he said as he started to head towards the Empires border. Dynamism however ran in front of him and blocked his path.

"I am a Royal Guard Trider and my mission is to keep you safe and make sure that you don't get into trouble." Her wristbands glowed and they formed into her signature gauntlets. "I'll stop you with force if I have to."

Trider looked at her, seeing she was dead serious and chuckled. "You really think you'd beat me?" he taunted her. "You'd barely make a good workout."

Sweat began to pur from the mares forehead as she knew she wasn't a match for him, if he wanted to get serious, but she had a trump card in her sleeve. "What about your promise to Twilight? You said you'd stay out of trouble and not fight Sombra. And what about your promise to Celestia? You said you wouldn't hurt anypony. If you fight me you'll break both of those promises."

Trider looked at her as his form slumped and he walked over to her. He placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "You're a great friend Dyna. Not many would dare to stand up to their own friends to stop them from doing something stupid." The mare put away her gauntlets and smiled as well, figuring she had won. "But you made one mistake."

Suddenly pain seared through her stomach and air left her lungs, Trider struck her with his knee. Dynamisms conscience began to fade as darkness enveloped her vision. "I never promised Twilight I would stay out of trouble, I merely said I'd tried." she heard him say as she struggled to say on her feet. "As for Celestias promise. I didn't really hurt you that much it would leave permanent damage, so I figure she wouldn't be that mad." He smiled as he removed his knee from her stomach and let her to fall to the ground. "But I am glad to have a friend like you, so I hope you won't be too mad when you wake up." With that said he began to walk off, as the mares limp form hit the ground with a thud. With the last of her power she looked at her friend as a tear cascaded down her cheek.

Trider stood in front of the barrier, readying himself for the oncoming battle. He took a deep breath and stepped through, inot the frigid cold. Wind blew past his ears as his surroudings were trapped inside of the dark mist.

"SOMBRA! COME OUT AND FIGHT ME!" he screamed into nothingness. At first it seemed there was nobod there, but soon the shadows began to surround the Kanisar. Out of them then stepped a single pony, who Trider presumed was Sombra.

The king was taller than Trider by at least half a head. His coat was dark grey, while his long, messy mane was pitch black. He wore a suit of armor that was accentuated by a short red cloak. What really stood out on the unicorn was his red tipped horn and his bright green eyes, with red irises and purple mist escaping from the corners of them.

"Who dares to call me out?" he spoke with a deep booming voice. He looked around and soon his eyes fell onto Trider. He looked him over and raised a brow. "What in Tartarus are you?"

The Kanisar smiled as he pointed a thumb at himself. "The name's Trider and I'm a Kanisar. But that doesn't matter. All you have to know is that I'm the one who's gonna kick your ass." he proclaimed.

"Really?" Sombra said with a bemused smirk. "You can try."

"That's all I needed to know."

With a roar Trider closed the distance between the two and began to deliver a flurry of punches. Sombra easily avoided all of his attacks and blocked a few of them. Seeing that the current method didn't work, Trider decided to start kicking him as well. But like before the unicorn king had no trouble with keeping up with him.

"Is that really all you've got?" Sombra asked in a bored tone. "I was expecting a fight not a dance. You disappoint me." As he said that he grabbed both of Triders arms and kicked him directly in the gut. Trider was sent skidding across the snow until he stopped at the foot of the barrier. Slowly picking himself up he grabbed his stomach and and groaned.

"Heh, excuse me your majesty, it's just that up until now I've always had such weak opponents that I thought I wouldn't need to go all out. But I now see that if I want to beat you, I'll have to get serious." Dark aura began to envelop the Kanisars body as he entered his Feral Unleashing. As he did Sombra looked at him with intrugue.

"I see, so you're able to use dark magic as well." he said.

"Sorry to burst your bubble king, but this isn't magic. I can't use magic. Instead my people are capable of using Ki, which is similar to magic, but not the same." he explained to Sombra. "As for what I'm doing right now, this is something only my people can do. To put it simply, I've currently accessed my full power with this transformation, so you could say you've already lost."

"And what makes you so sure you'd be able to beat me?" questioned Sombra.

Trider smirked as he wiped his nails on his chest. "In this form I was able to stand toe to... Hoof, with Chrysalis who defeated Celestia. So I'm quite certain about my victory."

"Well then lets not postpone this any longer." Sombra said as he raised his arms.

"Now you're talking my language."

In a blink of an eye Trider closed the distance between them and surprised the king. With a powerful punch he sent him flying across the snow and before he could hit the ground he ran in front of him and delivered a powerful blow that slammed Sombra into the ground. Trider watched as Sombras body turned to smoke and he rematerialzed a few feet away from him. The unicorn rubbed his jaw and smirked.

"You weren't kidding when you said you were more powerful in this form." he said. "But it will take a lot more than that to beat me."

"Then how about this then?" Trider said as he leaned forward. "Roar Cannon!" A blast of Ki escaped his mouth and hit Sombra directly in his shoulder. The dark king howled in pain as he grabbed where the blast hit him. Taking advantage of him being distracted, the Kanisar jumped him. "Piston Cannon Tetraspear!" he screamed as his fist connected with the armored chest of his opponent. The strike knocked the wind out of the unicorns lungs and slammed him into the snow again.

Sombra again turned to smoke and was now once again standing facing the Kanisar. He again gripped his shoulder and looked at the small traces of blood. His scowl turned to a smile as murmured to himself. "Intriguing." he then looked at Trider as he remembered something. "You were the one who blasted me when I tried to stop you from entering the Crystal Empire."

"Yup." Sombra began to chuckle, but it soon grew to thunderous laughter. Trider looked at him, thinking he might have lost it. Eventually his laughter began to die down and the Kanisar spoke up. "What's so funny?"

With the last of his laughter disappearing the unicorn looked at him. "It's just been so long since I've fought such a worthy opponent." He paused as he thought something over. "Would you be willing to tell me your full name? I just wish to know who it is I am fighting."

The Kanisar smirked. "Trider Lykosgrothia. And you better remember it when you reach the Great Beyond."

"I'm sure I will." the king said in a menacing tone.

Without saying another word they both closed the distance and clashed in the middle. They exchanged blows, but it was soon clear Trider was getting the worst of it. After another clash Trider jumped backwards and unleashed a barrage of Ki blasts. Sombra however blocked them all with a small barrier and once he stopped firing he decided get close to the Kanisar once again. Trider however again jumped away from his attack and began to charge his Ki into his palm.

"Wailing Nova Sphere!" he shouted as he lunged the orb at the unicorn. When it connected a massive explosion enveloped Sombra and a cloud of dust made him disappear from the Kanisars vision. But Trider knew that wasn't enough to kill him, so while he was still inside the cloud he ran behind the king and prepared another Sphere. Once he was behind him he unleashed the orb and another explosion rocked the ground.

Trider panted, exhaustion falling over his form. "That should do it." he said in between breaths. He began to walk away, but he caught the sound of someone clapping. With terror he turned around and his widened when he saw King Sombra standing in front of him, unharmed. The unicorn continued with his slow clapping as he approached the Kanisar, a sinister smile spread across his face.

"That was a valiant effort, it really was." he said as he got closer to him. "But if that was really all you had then I'm afraid you lose."

Trider gritted his teeth as he called upon all of his remaining strength. His body began to pulsate, as his muscles grew and his aura diminished. Soon he was as tall as Sombra and he glared at him. "This time you're dead."

He charged Sombra with speed that would make Dash jealous and connected his fist directly with the kings face. But he didn't falter after just that, instead he wailed on him, each hit more powerful than the last. Soon he was pummeling the king into a small he created and he still didn't seem to stop. Fueled by anger his attacks became more and more ferocious until there was no energy left in him to fight with. With a ragged breath he stopped his assault and ploped onto the snow.

He looked into the crater, expecting to see the mangled body of the unicorn, but what he saw made him terrified, or better yet the lack of what he saw. The crater was empty, no sign of the king ever being there. His blood froze when he heard the laughter of the unicorn king echo across the plain. Slowly he turned his head and his eyes widened when he saw King Sombra stand over him, again with not even a scratch on him.

"How?" Trider asked in a weak voice.

"Simple. I am a being of shadows, no amount of physical attacks could ever harm me. Magic is also utterly useless one me as I'm a master of magic. However..." His expression turned sour as he looked at his shoulder. "It seems your Ki is capable of causing me actual harm. But I figured I could just block them with a barrier and I was right. While they can harm me, they were still very weak compared to my magic."

Dread befell Trider as he realised, he never stood a chance. Sombra saw his hope diminish and he chuckled at his grief. "And even if you'd been able to hurt me with physical attacks, you'd never been able to get close enough to me to actually land a hit." He flicked his wrist as several tendrils formed out of the black smoke. "Let me show you."

With a snap of his fingers the tendrils attacked Trider, each delivering a powerful blow, that the Kanisar couldn't block, as he was too exhausted to do anything. The assault was relentless and soon Triders body was covered with scratches, bruises and even some of his bones were broken.

With another snap the tendrils stopped and hovered over the limp body of the Kanisar. Sombra then flicked his wrist again and each tendril pierced Trider through different part of his body. Slowly they lifted him up until he was face to face with the king.

"You truly are a great warrior, I'll give you that Trider Lykosgrothia." he said as he looked him in the eyes. "You'll be a valueable pawn to me."

Trider looked at him with confusion. "What... do you mean?" he said in weak and ragged voice.

Sombra smiled as his horn glowed. "I want you to enter Crystal Empire and wreak havoc and also to eliminate that pesky princess that has erected this barrier." Trider wanted to rebute, but he had no energy to do so. "I'm sure you would be saying that you would never let yourself become my pawn. And I can assure you that with a mind like yours it would be difficult to completely control you, without proper preparation that is. But we dont't have time for that."

He walked to the Kanisars side and he followed him with his eyes. "But during our battle I tapped a little bit into your mind and there I found something interesting." he grinned as his hand began to glow the same color as his horn. "Painful memories, fear and especially anger. With proper guidance it is easy to control someone who let themselves be consumed by rage. At least well enough to make them kill."

Trider didn't know what he was talking about, but he knew it wasn't anything nice. He tried to get out of tendrils grip, but it was futile. Sombra chuckled at his attempt. "Still have enough strength to resist. Good." He placed his hand onto the Kanisars head and began to bend and shift his mind with his dark magic. "But you'll be useless to me with your body like that." He also began to heal Triders body and restoring his energy.

He continued to do that for a couple of minutes until he was satisfied. He dropped the man onto the ground and crouched down. "One last thing before I let you loose." he placed a finger onto Triders forehead and a mark appeared. "This curse will let you continue to fight even when your body has been pushed beyond its limit. With that you'll teach those foolish ponies what happens when they try to oppose their rightful ruler."

Trider began to slowly picked himself up and began to slowly walk towards the Empire. "You know what you have to do, right?" asked the dark king.

"Kill." Trider said above a whisper. "Kill." he repeated this time louder. "KILL ALL HUMANS!!!" he screamed as he ran through the barrier, his eyes now red with purple smoke escaping from them.

Author's Note

Uh-oh it seems Trider bit off more than he could chew. What will happen in the next chapter you wonder? Well you'll have to wait until then.:trollestia:
I apologize if you had to wait for the new chapter, I had mid-terms and my old laptop kicked the bucket. R.I.P. old friend.
Also, recently a fan wrote to me asking if it's possible for me to add his OC into my story. And the answer is yes, if you want me to add your OC into the story you can PM me and I will see what I can do. A few disclaimers though. The character must not be human, as I planned for this story to only really have Trider as the humanish character in it. It's not 100% guarantee your OC will make into the story and even if it did it would probably have a small role, unless I see it fit to have a bigger one.
Like always, I'll see you in the next chapter. Ciao.

Chapter 16: Memories of Darkness; Moons Consolation

Darkness.

Silence.

Everywhere Trider faced that was all that was present. He tried to call out to someone, anyone, but while his lips moved no sound came out. He tried desperately to fill the void that surrounded him, but it was futile.

*Plop*

His ears perked up as he tried to locate the sound. He looked around, but darkness still enveloped him.

*Plop* *plop*

It was close.

*Plop*

It was coming from... Below?

He looked down and his eyes widened at what he saw. His hands were covered in blood and drops of blood fell onto the nonexistent floor, creating a loud echo as they hit the ground. Averting his eyes from his hands, he raised his head. As he looked up he noticed that the darkness was gone and instead of it buildings now surrounded him. The scene however looked eerily familiar.

"The Crystal Empire?" he said in a whispering tone.

Although it looked exactly like the city he was in not a while ago, it was different. The vibrant blue sky was replaced with a crimson red one and there was not a living soul to be seen.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" he called out, but received no response.

Suddenly he heard a faint sound of someone crying. He looked around and saw a small child huddled up against a wall of a building. He slowly approached, trying not to scare it.

"Hey there little one. Are you lost?" he said in a soft tone, as he extended his arm. The child gave him no response as it continue to cry. "Are you lost? I can help you find your folks, if you'll let me."

He placed a hand onto the childs shoulder and slowly turned it around. As soon as he could see their face, Triders eyes widened in horror and he jumped away. The filly's head was deformed, clearly crushed with great force, and her eyes were completely lifeless. Furthermore, he could clearly see traces of tears, that mixed in with filly's blood and her face was contorted in pure fear.

The sight made Trider sick as he turned away, unable to look at the disfigured child any longer. "Who would do such a thing?" he said as he tried to hold down his lunch.

Suddenly the air was filled screams and sounds of hooves. As he looked around he saw numerous ponies run away from a monsterous form that was attacking them. Trider observed the monster and noticed it was slightly larger than him, it had long black fur covering it and instead of a face it had a white mask, that bore a wide toothy smile. Its glowing, soulless red eyes stared at the stallion who was trying to crawl away from the monstrosity.

It raised its hand and in one swift motion pierced it right through the ponys chest. The action brought Trider out of his staring and he ran towards it. When he got close enough he pounced into the air and delivered a double kick. The strike toppled the monster over adn the Kanisar walked over it.

"You'll pay for what you did to these folk. Right here, right now." he said, as he started to punch the monsters mask, slowly cracking it. All the while he did that, the monster remained still, not moving an inch or show any sign of pain. When he thought he had killed it, Trider reached down and grabbed the mask. "Now lets see what your ugly mug looks like."

With a single yank the mask came off and what Trider saw made his blood run cold. The one who was hiding under the mask was himself, but the face it was making was one the Kanisar only saw psychopaths make. In confusion he dropped the mask that shattered into pieces, as it hit the floor. "What the fu-?" Before he could finish his question, the sound of a mare screaming drew his attention away from his monstrous self.

"By gods, he killed him!" she shouted as she pointed a finger at Trider. The other ponies looked at him in terror and they as well began to scream. He didn't know why they were reacting like that, after he saved them. But once he looked back at the monster he understood why. Where there once was the monster, was now the lifeless body of a stallion. His face was bashed in and it was now completely unrecognizable.

Trider quickly got up and backed away from the body. "No. I-I didn't do this." he tried to defend himself, but the ponies began to run away from him, in fear for their lives. "I killed a monster, not this stallion. Please listen to me."

"Who would listen to a murderer?"

The voice was distant, yet at the same time it sounded like it came from right beside him. Trider looked around trying to find out where it came from. "Who's there?" he shouted. "What do you mean?"

"You killed them!" Turning around, he came face to face with a large wolf. Its fur seemed like it was made out of black fire and its bloody red eyes stared directly into Triders green ones.

"What in hell?" Trider whispered as he reached out his hand trying to grab the wolf. However it simply phased through it and he grabbed thin air. Confused he tried again and again, but with no results. Eventually the beast walked forward and passed right through the Kanisar, leaving him with a bitter chill. He shivered at the experience and a turned around, following the wolfs movement.

Once he fully turned around his eyes widened at what he saw. On the ground laid the bodies of his friends. He ran towards them, charging past the wolf. When he got close he fell to his knees and picked up the limp form of Dynamism. "Dyna wake up!" he said as he gently shook her, but he got no response. He tried again this time shaking her harder and still the mare didn't react. "Please wake up!" he said in a pleading tone. Still not getting a response he brought her limp body closer to him, as he embraced his friend.

"Who did this?" he said, rage lacing his voice as he began to shake in anger.

"I already told you." spoke the wolf as he approached him. "We killed them!"

"Stop fucking with me!" he shouted back at it. "I would never do such a thing. I would never hurt my friends!"

"And yet you did and you know it. You just can't accept the truth." it responded in a calm tone.

Trider put Dynamism down and he stood up, walking towards the wolf. As he approached him, orbs of light began to pass by him. He looked at one of them and in it he saw how he was looking at his friends, before he stomped the head of the mare that was at his feet. He averted his gaze away from the orb and looked into another one. In this one he smashed Rose into a wall of a building and left here there as he faced Rainbow, Dynamism and Applejack.

He didn't dare to look into the other orbs, fearing he would see something he would regret. He clutched his head as he fell onto his knees. He shook his head as he tried to forget the images, but it was for naught. Raising his head he looked at the wolf and spoke in a shaky voice.

"Who are you?"

The beast grinned as its form began to shift. Once it was done Trider came face to face with himself yet again, only this one was covered in a dark aura.

"I am you." the dark Trider answered. "Or more precisely the feral you." He raised his hand as he smiled, showing off his sharp jagged teeth. "I am your rage incarnate. Your fear manifested. I am your true self."

The real Trider began to slowly back away. "No. You can't be me. I am not like this." he tried to deny. "I am not a monster."

"Maybe not on the surface, but on the inside this is who you are." cackled dark Trider.

"I would never hurt my friends."

"And yet you did. And all it took was a little shove." rebuted dark Trider, as he smiled sadistically. Suddenly a large pillar of smoke rose from the ground and slowly took form of a unicorn pony clad in armor. The real Trider watched in shock as he recognized the dark king. His fists balled up and he charged Sombra.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!!!" he screamed as he grabbed the kings arms and began to pull them apart. Soon his bones began to crack and Trider smiled victoriously.

"Why did you do this Trider?" asked Sombra, but the voice didn't belong to him. "Why did you hurt us?" Trider recognized the voice and soon the dark kings form began to change. His body beacme more feminine, his coat became bright orange, his mane turned blonde and his eyes looked at him with an emerald green gaze. Trider stared at the mare in his grasp, as he realised who it was. "I thought we were friends." she said sobbing, tears escaping from her eyes.

He tried to let go of her, but his arms wouldn't listen to his commands. He looked back at her. "We are!" he said with a strained voice.

"Then why did you kill us?" Hearing her say that made Trider finally let go of her, but when she hit the ground her body turned into a pile of bones. Terrified the Kanisar backed off, but he hit something as he did so. Turning around he came face to face with a tall cloaked figure.

"Wake up!" the figure said, before a bright flash of light enveloped his vision.

Trider gasped, opening his eyes and ending his nightmare. Cold sweat ran down his face and as he tried to wipe it, he noticed his hand was wrapped in bandages. Getting a closer look he saw that his entire body was covered in them. He had no clothes on, all save for a simple hospital gown. He then had a look around and he recognised the room immediatelly. It was the same room he woke up after he arrived in Ponyville for the first time.

"Deja vu." he murmured as he tried to lift his upper body. Pain shot through him, but he still managed to get up. Halfway he noticed a form shifting beside him. Casting his gaze in the forms direction, his eyes fell onto the sleeping face of Twilight. He stopped what he was doing and simply watched the slumbering mare.

She was sitting in a chair, while her upper body rested on what little free space his bed offered. A small blanket was making sure she wasn't cold while the moonlight illuminated her face. She looked like a princess from kids fairy tales and Trider thought so too. He continued to stare at her, soaking in her beauty. A grin crept onto his face, when he saw she was drooling.

"Oh man I wish I had a camera." he thought as he extended his bandaged arm to fix a strand of hair that fell out of place as the mare was shifting in her sleep. As his hand got closer a flash of memory appeared in his vision. In it he was strangling Twilight and she was looking at him with teary eyes.

Blinking and shaking his head, Trider grabbed his arm with his other hand and slowly pulled it back to himself. He stared at Twilight and then at his hand, laternating between the two. Gritting his teeth he slowly got out of bed, being careful he wouldn't wake her up. Fighting through the pain he slowly made his way to the door, but remembered they were probably patrolled by nurses, so he went towards the window. Looking through it he saw they were on ground floor and he sighed in relief.

"Lucky." he thought as he grabbed the handle. When he opened the window a slight breeze crept in and reminded him he was still only covered by the gown. He looked around the room trying to find something to put over himself. His gaze stopped on folded clothes that lay over another chair. Picking them up, he looked them over and immediatelly realised who brought them. The little R told him that it was the fashionista, that had brought these clothes for him.

Trider smiled at the thoughtfullness, but it immediatelly turned into a frown. The memories ran through his mind as he began to figure out what had happened after his confrontation with Sombra. He took off the gown and put on his pants, but left the sleeveless shirt on the chair. With slow steps he again approached the window and this time he jumped through it.

The cold night breeze blew past his face and he took a moment to revel in it. Once it passed he began to walk with no particular direction in mind as he just let his legs carry him away.

"DAMN IT!" The sound of explosion disturbed the quiet of the night. "DAMN IT! DAMN IT! DAMN IT!" Trider yelled with every strike as he punched a giant hole in the boulder. Eventually he stopped as he breathed heavily. The bandages on his hands were now soaked in blood, but Trider paid it no mind as he ignored the pain. "Fucking damn it." he muttered as he pressed his fore head against the cold stone.

"What has that rock done to you to earn such wrath?" a voice asked. Trider slowly turned his head to look at the one who was addressing him. There, basking in the moons rays, stood the Princess of the night as she gave the Kanisar a gentle smile.

"Evenin' Luna. What brings you here on this fine night?" he asked as he fully turned around so he could look the mare in the eyes. She cast her gaze at the large orb in the sky.

"It is, isn't it." she said. "Thank you for the lovely compliment." Trider looked at her confused, until he remembered that Luna was the one who ruled over the night.

"I just say what's on my mind most of the time. That usually ends up with me either locked up or beaten up. Seeing as I'm neither at the moment I'd say this is my lucky day." he joked which earned a giggle from Luna.

Her expression softened after she was done giggling as her gaze went to his blood stained hands. "You should not be so reckless." she said as she grabbed his hands. Her horn began to glow and Trider could feel his wounds healing. "You have just got out of the hospital, without telling nopony mind you, and you're already trying to put yourself back in." she scolded him.

Trider smiled sheepishly. "Yeah sorry 'bout that. I've just..." he paused. "Had to vent some frustration out." Luna looked at him with pity as she continued to apply the healing spell to the rest of his body as some of his other wounds got opened. "How long was I out?"

"About two weeks now." answered the mare. The Kanisars eyes widened at the information.

"Two weeks? Was I really that badly hurt?" he asked flabergasted.

"Almost every bone in your body has been either broken or shattered, you had internal bleeding, your lungs and some other organs were punctured, in fact while you were in the hospital your heart stopped four times and the doctors did everything in their power to revive you." Luna recounted all the injuries his body had sustained. "They even said that you might not ever wake from your coma and even if you did, you would never be able to preform any strenuous activities, even walking would be agony for you." She gave him a look over and smirked. "But seeing how you're still standing even after your stress relief I would say you have nothing to fear. You are very resiliant."

"Yeah, we Kanisars are very tough. We can deal a lot of punishment and receive even more." he chuckled as a memory came to his mind. "There was this one guy back on Inu actually, that had a gaping hole through his chest. Continued to fight for another five minutes before biting the dust and he took a few more with him."

Luna finished her treatment and she looked at him in astonishment. "Your kind truly are born warriors." she said in awe. Letting go of his arms she glared at him. "Now sit down and rest. I don't want you to reopen your wounds yet again."

"Sure." Saying that he sat down on the ground and the princess decided to join him. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes, before it got too awkward for Trider. "So when am I going to be locked up?" he asked, ending the silence.

"It was not your fault Trider. Sombra took advantage of you and used you to spread fear among the crystal ponies." the princess answered him.

"Even if that is so, it is no excuse for everything that I did, for everyone that I've..." he trailed off as memories made him wince. "A-are they alright?" he stuttered. "Are Twilight, Applejack and the others alright?"

"They are. Do not worry. They have already fully recovered and are waiting for you to do the same."

Triders eyes shifted from side to side as he contemplated. "Why would they do that?"

"Because they are your friends and they are worried about you."

With gritted teeth, the Kanisar glared at the mare. "How can they still call me a friend after everything I've put them through. If I was them I'd just-"

"But they are not you are they?" Luna interjected, cutting his sentence short. "Believe me when I say this, your friends do not blame you for what happened in the Crystal Empire and even if that was somehow your fault they would forgive you." She paused as she averted her eyes. "They forgave me after all."

Confused, Trider looked at her. "What do you mean?" he asked.

The mare contemplated if she should tell him or not, but eventually she sighed and looked at him. "Do you remember when I took you to my chambers to have a talk? And how I told you that if you don't talk to others about your past it would come back to haunt you?"

"If this your way of saying 'I told you so'-"

"It is not." Luna said angrily. "Anyway as I was saying, I also told you that I knew from first hand what kind of consequences it could bring. Do you remember?" Trider nodded in conformation, so the mare continued. "A thousand years ago me and my sister ruled over Equestria, like we are now, with her commanding the Sun, while I controled the Moon. Everything was perfect, our subejcts were happy, there were no wars and nothing threatened our land." Lunas face turned grim as she continued her tale.

"However while the ponies admired my sisters Sun and her day, they slept during our beautiful night and I came to believe that they shunned it and with it me. With time I began to fear that my subjects would forget about me, thinking I was not needed. Eventually that fear then turned to anger towards all of the ponies and instead of confronting my sister about it, I just kept quiet thinking it would all solve itself. How wrong I was." she said solemnly. "As more time passed my anger towards the ponies grew and with it arrived hatred. I didn't hate the ponies, mind you, I directed my hatred at somepony who did not deserve it. My own sister."

Tears began to well in her eyes. Seeing that Trider grabbed her shoulder and nodded, telling her to take her time. After a few seconds Luna composed herself. "I thought that she was deliberately trying to make me inferior, but I still didn't talk to her about and because I did not take action..." Her horn began to glow and an etheral image formed in front of the two. It was a picture of a mare that looked just like Luna, execpt her coat was pitch black, she had cat like eyes and her mane was more smoke like than the night princesses mane.

"Who is this?" Trider wondered, as he waved his hand through the image, making it flicker.

"She is me. To be exact, my hatred incarnate." Luna explained as she cut off her magic, getting fed up with the Kanisars attempt to touch the image. "One day I could not contain my anger and hatred any longer and as result Nightmare Moon came to be."

"Okay I know you don't like that 'you', but let me just say..." Trider said with a raised hand. "That is an awesome name."

The mare gave him a cold glare, but decided to just ignore his comment. "When Nightmare Moon took over me, I confronted our sister and we fought her." She took a deep breath before she continued. "As Nightmare we thought that the only way we could amke ponies love us and our night, was to cast Equestria into an eternal night."

Trider listened to her, hanging by the edge of his seat. "So what happened next?"

"Celestia won, thankfully. She used the Elements of Harmony to seal Nightmare into the Moon for a thousand years." Luna began to shiver and Trider pulled her closer, putting her head onto his chest. "Just like you Trider, I too remember everything after Nightmare took over. And that includes the time spent on the Moon. Alone." The Kanisar felt his chest getting damp and he realised that the princess was crying. Quiet sobs filled the night as the two embraced each other.

"All that time. All of those years. I spent every single one of them regretting what I did. I deserved all that suffering." She slowly pushed herself away from his chest as she wiped her eyes. "After a thousand years I returned to Equis, but Nightmare Moon was still in control and she still wanted to put all of Equestria into eternal darkness. But luckily Twilight and her friends stopped Nightmare with the Elements and they finally freed me from my torment."

"And?" Trider begged on.

"And I thought that my sister and other ponies could never forgive me for what I did as Nightmare Moon. But they did. They didn't hate me and my sister welcomed me back with open arms. She even gave me back my old position as a princess of the night." She paused, as a smile crept across her face. "So I am fairly certain that you too will be forgiven."

"Thanks Luna. That really helped a lot." Trider said sincerely. His expression turned grim again as a thought crossed his mind. "But what if something like this happens again?"

"Then you should count on your friends to help you when you need it. But they can not do anything if you are not more honest with them."

Trider realised what she meant and he thought it over. Eventually he sighed as he looked at the mare. "You're right. Maybe it's time I told them all about myself." Luna nodded, satisfied with his answer.

"I am glad you want to talk with them. I shall be off to get my sister, as well as your friends and tell them to meet in Ponyville Library." she said as she stood up. "Do you want me to teleport you there?" she asked the Kanisar.

"Nah, I wanna stay here for a bit and think how I would tell them." Trider said as he laid his head down and looked into the night sky.

Nodding, Luna took a few steps away and began to charge her horn. "Very well. I shall see you soon then."

"Wait!" Trider called out stopping the mare. "Before you go there is one more thing I want to talk to you about." The mare turned towards him and listened intently. Seeing he got her attention, he asked his question. "I'm glad you're so wiling to help. However I can't help but wonder, why? Why would you of all ponies want to console me? The first time we met you wanted to lock me away and after that I threatened you. Why change your mind like that?"

Luna smiled as she put away her wings. "True, I was rather suspicious of you when you arrived. You were an alien with unknown powers and intentions. I had every right to be skeptical you could live among us in peace." Trider gave her a mock glare. "And while my sister allowed you to interact with our subjects, while under surveilence of only the Elements, I on the other hand decided to take more... Active approach."

"Active how?" he asked with uncertainty.

"I had some of my personal guards spy on you." What was a playful glare, turned into a full blown scowl. "Do not give me that look. I had justified reasons to do what I did." she huffed, before she continued. "Where was I again? Ah, yes. My guards watched over you twenty-four-seven and they reported everything that you did. To my surprise you never showed any sort of malice or destructive tendency that you displayed on your arrival to Ponyville, on the contrary you tried to restrain yourself as to not hurt anypony. You made sure your promise to my sister was kept."

"It was then that I began to doubt my suspicions about you." she said as she crossed her arms. "So i decided I should personally learn more about you, so I began to enter your dreams and see for myself what your world was like. And what I saw was... Disturbing." She took a deep breath and continued. "Needless to say I slowly began to understand more about you and your culture, and what made the Kanisar you are today. However I still kept my guards around, just in case."

"But it was not until you saved Twilight, Rarity and Spike from the young dragons that I realised that you truly meant no harm to us and that you would gladly give your life, if it meant protecting those close to you." Smiling she approached Trider. "Due to your actions that day and those that followed I decided you could be trusted enough not to be constantly spied on." Her smile turned to scowl and she glared at him. "However your encounter with the Diamond Dogs almost made me decide otherwise."

Trider smiled sheepishly and averted his gaze. "Anyway. I continued to observe your dreams in hopes to learn more about you. I wanted to know exactly why you were so angry at those humans. The answer came on that day when I called you to my chambers. When I saw that dream." Triders face turned grim, he knew exactly which one she was refering to. "When I saw that I realised you were so much like myself. You were hurt when you were but a child and you carried your anger with you all your life until it transformed into pure hatred. It was then that I decided that I would help you, so you would not repeat my past mistake. But it seems I had failed."

Trider slowly raised his upper body and looked mare in the eyes. "You didn't fail. I was just to stubborn to accept your help." With a grunt he stood up and faced the mare. "You tried to help me, even though you had no reason to. And even now you're consoling me. And you have my thanks Luna. I mean Princess Luna." he corrected himself.

The mare giggled. "Why so formal all of a sudden?"

"Because you've earned my respect Princess and with that you also earned the right that I address you with your proper title."

"I see." she said in affirmation. "But I rather prefer you just call me Luna. It makes our relationship more friendly, right?" Her eyes widened as a stray thought crossed her mind. "We are friends right?"

Trider extended his fist and presented it to the mare. "After today, the bestest." Unsure what the gesture was Luna smiled coyly. Seeing her predicament the Kanisar chuckled. "It's called a fist-bump. It's sort of a handshake friends do with each other." He grabbed her right hand with his left as he guided her. "When someone wants to fist-bump with you, you just have to hit their fist with your own, like this." he said as he struck her hand against his own.

The mare looked at it with intrigue and smiled. "I shall remember this 'fist-bump'. Thank you for teaching it to me." Turning around she began to charge her horn again, as she prepared a teleportation spell. "Do you have any more questions you would like answered or can I take my leave."

"Go ahead." With his conformation she teleported herself back to the Canterlot, leaving behind her new alien friend. Sighing Trider fell down onto the ground and gazed at the sky. "Now then." he thought. "Where the fuck am I exactly?"

Author's Note

I know, I know I said I'd do a chapter about Triders past. That will be in the next one I Pinkie Promise.
Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.
The pact has been made.:pinkiecrazy:
I suddenly felt a chill. Anyway hope you enjoy this chapter nonetheless.
Until next time.

Chapter 17: Through the Eyes of the Beast

The Sun has just risen over the horizon, basking the land in its light. The ponies slowly began to wake ready for another day. But while they lazily tried to escape the confines of their beds, a lone Kanisar was making his way through the town of Ponyville. After wandering for nearly an hour, Trider finally found his way back and was slowly walking towards his home.

During his walk he recounted the encounter with the Night Princess and what she told him. Despite all that she said to relieve his worries, he was still doubtful. Multiple scenarios ran through his mind, none of them ending well. Shaking his head he put them all to the back of his mind.

"C'mon Trider, pull yourself together." he mentally berated himself. "They are your friends. They will forgive you... Hopefully." he gulped, as he continued his trek. With some of his courage renewed, he sped up his step and soon he stood in front of the librarys door.

He reached out his hand to grab the knob, but stopped halfway. He began to doubt himself yet again, but like before he ignored his thoughts and took a deep breath. Grabbing the knob, he slowly twisted it and opened the door.

The sound of opening doors drew the attention of everyone in the room, as they casted their gaze towards it. In the doorway stood heavily bandaged Trider, who wished he hadn't opened them. No one knew what to do or say to the Kanisar. Twilight however stood up and marched up to him, her eyes filled with rage.

Before anyone could stop her, she raised her hand and she slapped him across the face. Everyone looked at her in shock. "You idiot!" the mare hissed as she slapped him across his other cheek. "You self-centered idiot!" Her expression slowly changed from angry to saddened, as tears began to well in her eyes. "Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!" she repeated over and over again as she struck his chest with her fist, each consecutive hit having less power than the previous one.

While all this was happening the Kanisar just stood still and took the mares assault. Soon she stopped her attack and began to cry into his chest. "You are an idiot." she sobbed, while Trider rubbed her head.

"I know." he said as he tried to calm the crying mare. Eventually she stopped and she locked eyes with him.

"Do you have any idea how much you had us worried? We thought you were going to die."

Trider just smiled. "It'll take more than that to make me kick the bucket." he replied.

"Are you sure you're fine?" asked concerned Fluttershy. "The doctors said that-"

"That I won't be able to walk again? Well they never had to deal with my kind. We are very stubborn when we want to be."

"Even so it was very stupid of you to just walk out of the hospital, right after you woke up." said Rose as she glared at him.

The Kanisar smiled sheepishly and scratched his head. "Yeah, sorry 'bout that. I had to clear my head for a bit." Saying that Twilight broke away from his embrace and the two went to the others. As they approached Celestia decided to speak up.

"Luna said that you wanted to talk to us about something important." she spoke with a commanding tone.

Trider nodded. "Yup. After all that's happened, it's only fair I do so." Taking a look around he saw that all of his friends were present, but one. "Where's Dyna?" he asked.

Everyone looked at each other with concern. "She... She didn't want to participate in this." answered Applejack.

"What? Why not?" he asked, confused.

"We're not sure. Ever since we defeated Sombra she has been avoiding everypony. And when Luna came to tell us that you were fine and that you wanted to talk to us, she just ran away and hid herself in the basement." explained Twilight.

With a grunt Trider stood up and began to walk towrds the basement doors. "Where are you goin' sugarcube?" asked Applejack.

"I'm gonna go talk to her. I don't wanna talk about myself if she isn't present. She has to hear about this." he said with determination. "It's the least I can do." he finished the last part under his breath.

Slowly he opened the door and began to descend the stairs. As he went deeper he heard quiet sobs. When he reached the bottom he saw the two beds the guardmares used and saw that one of them had a huge lump on it. His footsteps echoed across the room as he approached the bed of his dragon-pony friend.

"Go away! Leave me alone!" Dynamism said in between hiccups.

"Is that any way to greet someone when they get out of the hospital, after they got their asses handed to them?" Trider rebuted with a smile.

At the sound of his voice the form on the bed rose up and the covers fell off, revealing the mare. When her eyes fell onto the Kanisar, she began to cry even more. Quickly jumping out of bed she ran over to him and nearly tackled him to the ground. With immense strength she hugged her friend, which elicited a small yelp from him. She bawled into his chest as she held the embrace.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." she repeated.

"Jeez, if this continues I'll sooner drown than succumb to my injuries." he thought as he hugged the mare back. "There, there. It's Ok."

"No it's not!" she shouted back at him. "You almost died!"

"Emphasis on almost."

The mare glared at him through her teary eyes. "Don't joke about something like that. If you had died I could never forgive myself."

Sensing she had a lot on her mind, Trider began to lead her back to her bed and the two sat onto it. "What do you mean by that?"

"It was my fault you got possesed by Sombra and it was because of me that you got hurt so badly."

Raising his eyebrow, Trider looked at her confused. "Ok, what? You lost me there, squirt."

"It's because I wasn't strong enough, you got through me and fought Sombra and then got controlled and then... and then..." she trailed off, as tears returned. Trider just looked at her for a couple of seconds, before he started to chuckle.

"You can't be serious, right?" he asked. Her glare was all the answer he needed to his question. "Oh, you are." Getting serious he looked her in the eyes and spoke.

"Is that why you've been avoiding everyone? Because you thought you were the one to blame for what happened?" he asked, concerned. Dynamism just nodded as she pressed her legs to her chest. With a sigh Trider put his hand onto her shoulder and rubbed it. "Listen to me Dynamism the only one to blame for all of what happened in the Empire, is me. I'm the one who betrayed our friendship and I'm the one who was so stubborn to not heed your advice, so stop blaming yourself for something you didn't do."

The mare wiped away some of her tears and took a deep breath. "Even so, I shouldn't have been so hesitant to stop you. If I had been more determined and stronger I could've saved you and not fail like I did with..." she trailed, which gained Kanisars attention.

"What do you mean?" he inquired. Dynamisms expression changed from sad to hurt and Trider knew he was touching a sensitive subject. "If you don't want to-"

"Do you know what it's like, being a half-breed?" she cut him off. "Especially a dragon half-breed? Everywhere I go, ponies either stare at me or talk behind my back. And since dragons are known for their cruel nature I get even more judgement from other ponies. Because of this I don't have many friends." Her eyes were filled with mixtures of anger, sadness and pain. "My father hailed from a dragon clan where they belived dragons were the master race. And because he had a child with a pony they gave him two options. Either kill the mother and his child or he was to be executed."

She gave a small smile as she fidgeted with her fingers. "Although I've never met him, I'm extremely proud of my father."

"That's what parents do, they sacrifice themselves so their children can have a bright future." Trider agreed.

"Me and my mother lived in a small village, where she was born. But despite being one of them, the villagers didn't like the fact she had a child with a dragon. Although they pretended they were fine with it, they still ostracized us." Her expression turned grim as she continued. "One day mother caught an incurable disease and passed away just a few days after. When she died the villagers kicked me out, saying I was nothing more than a nuisance."

Trider was gritting his teeth at that point, thinking up all possible way how he would make those assholes pay. Seeing that Dynamism placed a hand onto the back of his palm and rubbed it with her thumb. "It's Ok Trider. I have completely forgotten about them, so I don't care anymore." He clamed down a bit, but he was still fuming. "I was fifteen at the time when I was exiled and I traveled across Equestria in search of a new home. But no matter where I went, ponies were afraid of me and my dragon lineage, so they didn't dare approach me. And I was fine with it."

"Then I arrived to Canterlot. And that is where I met her." she said with a light smile. "She was a pegasus mare by the name of Calm Heart. She was only a couple of years older than me, yet seemed like an adult. I met her when she approached me in a nearby park. I can still remember what she first said."

"Oh my goddess!" a shrill voice reached Dynamisms ears, as she looked towards the source of the unpleasant shriek. Her eyes soon fell onto a rose colored mare with a yellow mane. "I can't belive it. You are a dragon. Or well at least half dragon. Hey can you breath fire? Can you fly with those huge wings of yours? Are your claws really sharp as diamonds? Oh, oh is it true-?"

She was cut off when Dynamism placed a finger onto her lips to silence her. "Ok, first of all, who in bucking blazes are you?"

The pegasus mares eyes widened. "Oh my... How rude of me. My name is Calm Heart. I'm so sorry for just bombarding you with all these questions, I just got so excited when I saw you I couldn't help myself." she said as she smiled sheepishly.

"Dynamism." the dragon-mare introduced herself. "Aren't you afraid of me?"

Calm looked at her like she grew a second head. "Afraid? Why in the name of sweet Celestia would I be afraid of someone as awesome looking as you? I mean you don't see everyday a dragon-pony walking through the streets. Your dad must've had quite the balls to bone a motherfucking dragon."

Dynamism blushed both from her praise as well as her vulgarity. "It was actually my mother that was the pony."

"Even more epic." Calm said with even more excitement.

"After that we continued to talk with one another about many different things." said the mare, as a wide grin rested on her face. "For the first time I had a friend and I realised how lonely I've truly been."

"She sounds like she meant the world to you."

"She did and more. We shared many interests. We both liked spicy foods, liked the same groups, cheered for same teams and more. It was because of her that I even became a guard." she counted with an excited tone. "She was like a sister I never had."

"But something happened, right?" Trider asked.

The mare nodded solemnly as she began to remember. "It was about a year after I became part of the Royal Guards. Calm Heart and I were on the same squad. We were on a mission to discover about weapon trafficking on a small island and gather necessary information. But we were soon discovered. As we fled most of our squad members were either captured or killed until it was just me and Calm."

Tears returned to her eyes as she recounted what happened on that day. "We had made it to a protal room through which the weapon dealers were trafficking them. We decided to escape through one of them."

"This one seems like a good one!" Dynamism said as she pointed towards one of them. While she went over to it, so she could activate it, Calm Heart barricaded the door so thier pursuers couldn't follow.

"Than get it started already, this door won't hold forever!" Sounds of angry yells resonated throught the doors, as they slowly began to give in.

"Almost have it... And done!" Dynamism shouted in victorious tone. The portal hummed to life and the pathway was soon opened. "C'mon let's go!" she said to te other mare as she made her way to the portal.

Calm Heart however didn't budge and just stood in the middle of the room, a solemn look on her face. "I can't." she said.

Dynamism looked at her confused. "What do you mean?! Get over here before they bust the door open!" she begged as she stepped closer.

"Dyna... If we both leave they will just follow us through and capture us on the other side." she explained to the youger mare. "One of us has to stay behind to destroy the portal, so the goons can't follow the other."

Slowly realising what she meant, Dynamisms eyes began to fill with determination. "I'm not leaving without you!" she proclaimed. "I'd rather die than let you sacrifice yourself!"

Calm Heart smiled as she stepped towards her friend and hugged her. "You are the best little sister a mare could ask for." she said as tears began to fall down her cheeks. "I love you."

As soon as she said that she pushed the dragon-mare through the portal. Dynamism didn't have time to utter a single word before she landed in a swamp. Quickly getting up she ran towards the portal. "Calm!!!" she shouted with her arm outreached, but it was too late. The portal closed in front of her and she fell into the swampy water.

"Calm why?" she said as she got on all four. "Whyyyyyyyyyy?"

Trider looked at his friend with grief. He knew too well what it was like to lose someone close to you, especially when they sacrificed themselves for you. "What heppened afterwards?" he asked.

"I went back to my old life of solitude. I never made any friends beside Calm. Although I did socialize with other guards, I couldn't consider them my friends." She looked at the Kanisar as a smile stretched across her face. "But then you came along. You were like me, an outsider living in a world of prejudice. You were and outcast by society, yet you didn't care about who or what you were."

"When I was assigned to be your babysitter, I was sort of happy, because I thought that maybe I could befriend you and I did." Trider smiled as well and even blushed a little. "But as I got to know you better I realised you were so much like Calm Heart. Brave, adventurous, vulgar..."

"If you continue to butter me up so much, I might just slip off this bed."

Dynamism giggled at his remark. "When you went to fight Sombra and when you were sent to the hospital I thought I had lost you, and I couldn't bare to see losing someone else, because I couldn't do jack-shit."

"Hey, hey. I told you it wasn't your fault. I'm just an insensitive jerk who can't think about anything else but himself." Trider consoled Dynamism. "And I'm sure Calm Heart or anyone else blames you for what happened to her. In fact I think you're making her sad by thinking it's your fault in any way." He turned the mares head so he could look her in her eyes. "You can't do everything Dyna. Sometimes things happen that are out of our control and we can't do anything to fix them."

The mare broke down in crying, but this time they weren't tears of sadness. "You're right." she said in between sobs. She continued to cry her heart out, but eventually she stopped. "We better join the others, I'm sure they must be worried."

"True that." Trider agreed. The two stood up from the bed and walked over to the stairs. As they slowly climbed up, Dynamism looked at the Kanisar.

"Hey Trider?"

"Hm?"

"Is it Ok, if..." she trailed off as she gathered her nerves. "If I call you my big brother?"

Her request surprised Trider, but he just smiled and nodded. "Sure, but only if I can call you sis."

"Deal."

Reaching the top of the staircase they opened the door and entered the room. The others looked at the two and smiled.

"Took you long enough." Rainbow sniped.

"Sorry 'bout that. We just had a lot to talk about." Trider apologized, as Dynamism took a seat next to Rose.

"I'm sure you did." said Celestia.

"So what exactly did you want to talk to us about Trider? All that Princess Luna said was that it was urgent and important." asked Rarity.

"Yeah, we'll get to that in a sec, but there is something I must do first." He went down on his knees and then placed his head onto the floor with his arms beside his head. The group looked at him in confusion. "I AM TRULY SORRY!!!" Trider shouted, catching everyone off guard.

Twilight raised her hands and waved them. "Trider, you don't have to apologise. What happened wasn't-"

"It doesn't matter if what happened was my fault or not. What I did was inexcusable and it's only right that the least I can do is bow my head and apologise." he said, with his head still on the ground. "I don't mind if you forgive me or not. But I can't call myself a friend if don't even apologise for the actions that I made, voluntarily or not."

The mares and Spike looked at him with respect. Not once ever since they met him, has he ever degraded himself so much, as to bow his head to them.

"Your apology is accepted." said Celestia. "And I think I speak for all of us." The others nodded and Trider couldn't help, but smile.

"Thank you." was all he could say.

"However I am still displeased that you went against what we told you and got ponies hurt. But we can leave that for after you tell us what you have to say."

"I understand." Trider said with a nod. "Now then, let's get started." The mares and drake attention was solely on the Kanisar as they waited for what he had to tell them. "The thing I had to talk to you about was me and my planet."

"Why? You already told us so much about it already." Spike asked.

"I did, but most of them were lies." When he said that some of the mares gasped, while others gave him a disapproving look.

"But why?" asked Pinkie who looked like someone had punched her in the gut.

"Because I thought you had no reason to know about it and also because of what was happening when I left it." he exlplained.

"What do you mean?" asked Twilight.

"My planet, when I left, was at war." Everyones eyes widened at what he said.

"How horrible." said Fluttershy, aghast.

"It was." Trider said with a sigh. He looked towards Luna as a thought came to him. "Hey Luna?" he called out to her.

"Yes?"

"Is there any way for them to see the images of my past, like you did with my dreams?"

"There is." she confirmed his statement. "Why do you ask?"

"I think it would be better if I didn't just tell them, but also showed them. I'm not that great at telling stories." he explained.

"Very well." the mare said as she stepped towards him. "If you would lie down, please." she begged him and he obliged. As he laid on the floor, Lunas horn began to glow.

"So, what exactly are going to do?" he asked, a bit concerned.

"I will put you to sleep and once that is done, me and the rest shall enter your mind and experience your past first-hand." she explained. "It will be like you are dreaming, only you'll have full control of what you dream and we will also be present, but beside that it will not be any different."

Satisfied with her explanation, Trider nodded and closed his eyes. "This will be a breeze then, sleeping is the third best thing I'm good at." he boasted.

"What are the first two?" asked Dynamism.

"Fighting and eating." he said with a shit eating grin. The others either groaned or facepalmed at his remark, while Luna finished her spell.

A dark blue mist fell over Triders face and he began to feel drowsy. Soon all that filled the quiet library was the sound of the Kanisars snoring. Facing the rest, Luna extended her hand, offering it to Twilight.

"Grab hold of my hand and others grab each others." Doing as she said, everyone made a long chain as they grabbed each other. "Make sure you don't let go." she warned before her horn began to glow. They were all enveloped by her magic and were sucked into Triders head.

Once they got their bearings, they looked around and saw nothing. Just darkness.

"It' so... Spacious." remarked Dynamism.

"Not a big surprise there." sniped Rarity.

"ECHO!" screamed Pinkie as she listened for the inevitable repeat.

"Echo!"

"Echo!"

"Hehehehehehe!" The sound of menacing laughter suddenly filled the void and made everyone jump in surprise.

"Pinkie?" called out Applejack. "Please tell me that was you?"

"Nope."

The laughter grew louder and suddenly a figure appeared before them. The mans face was covered by a dusty old fedora, he wore a red and green striped sweater, old trousers, but what made the ponies wary of him was the glove that had a knife on each of his fingers.

"W-who is that?" asked shivering Fluttershy.

"I don't know, but if he doesn't stop doing... whatever he's doing I'm gonna sock him in the face." Rainbow said as she cracked her knuckles.

The man however continued to approach. Once he was close enough the mares could see that he had no face whatsoever. "You sure about that?" he said.

"What in the name of Celestia are you?" asked flabergasted Twilight.

"Nevermind what he is, those clothes are what is most horrifying on him!" exclaimed the fashionista.

"You dare to insult my clothes?" spoke the man, now with a horribly scarred face. "You will be the first to go bitch."

The mare gulped as she stepped closer to Celestia. While the others got ready to brawl with the apparition, Luna stepped forward and faced the man.

"That is quite enough Trider, I think you've had your fun." As soon as she said that the mans appearance began to change and took on the form of their alien friend.

"Party pooper." the Kanisar said in mock anger.

"Dude what the fuck?" exclaimed Spike. "You scared us shitless."

"That was payback for taking your sweet time getting here. What the fuck were you doing for two hours?"

Everypony looked at each other in confusion. "Trider, it's been less than twenty seconds since you were put to sleep. How could two hours pass?"

"Allow me to explain." Luna interjected. "Time in the dream world passes differently than in the real world, a couple of seconds out there can last a little under an hour here."

"Ah is that so." Trider said as he looked at everyone sheepishly. "Sorry 'bout that, my bad." The mares however glared at him and it made him feel uncomfortable.

"Let's just continue on." suggested Celestia. "We are here for a reason after all."

"Most certainly." agreed Luna. "Now Trider, in order for you to control your dreams you have to visualize-"

"Ya mean like this?" he said as he snapped his fingers. Suddenly the blackness was shattered and the group was floating through space. Everyone looked around in awe, while Trider just smiled smugly.

The princess of the night looked at him with shock. "How did you-?"

"Do you have any idea how bored I was in those two hours I waited? If I had another one I might've solved world hunger."

"This is fun. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" shrieked Pinkie as she soared through space.

"This is unbelievable." spoke Twilight in awe. "I didn't know you had such vast knowledge of space and how it looks like. Heck, I've never even seen you read a book about space."

"Maybe not in Equestria." Trider said with a smile as he spun around.

The others turned as well and their eyes fell onto the planet that was in front of them. Its lavish green lands and sparkly blue oceans left them wordless. But what really caught their attention were the two moons that circled around the planet.

Applejack mustered up some words as she spoke to the Kanisar. "Trider is this...?"

"Yup. Welcome to Inu."

"It's so beautiful." said Fluttershy in admiration.

"It is. Or was. Until they came."

"Who came?" asked Dynamism. As if on cue a large vessel flew over their head. The mares watched in awe and were stunned by its sheer size. Soon several more cruised by each as big as the other.

"What are these things?" wondered Twiight.

"Spaceships. Large vehicles capable of transporting large amounts of cargo and passengers across space." explained Trider. Everyone turned their attention away from the spacecrafts and focused on the Kanisar. "This is where it all started. Fourty years before I was born, humans arrived to Inu after their planet became inhabitable. At first my people were wary of them, but eventually we allowed them to come to our planet and integrate with our society."

"And what do these humans look like?" asked Rose.

The image of space began to blur and it was replaced by a sub-urban neighbourhood. All around them kids and adults were going about their business. The group looked around and pretty soon they began to notice some of them were different from the rest.

"Those Kanisars are missing their tails and ears." observed Spike.

"Those aren't Kanisars, they're humans." explained Trider. "Their resemblance to our race was a major factor in letting them stay on our planet. But while we were similar, we were also very different."

"Like how?"

"Besides the ears and tail, they were a race that didn't seek thrill in combat. They were physically weaker than us and also couldn't control Ki. But what they lacked in strength, they made up with their intellect. Their technology outclassed ours by centuries." He continued as he leisurly began to walk, the others following him. "They gladly shared their inventions with us and made our lives better."

"They don't sound so bad to me, in fact they seem awesome." commented Rainbow.

"Yeah, we thought so too. Then came Crimson Night." In a flash the scenery changed once again. They were now standing in front of a movie theater.

"What are we doin' here?" asked Applejack.

Trider didn't answer as he just stared at the entrance to the theater. The others looked at it as well and waited. Soon the doors opened and a mass of people exited it. But all of them were faceless and dull grey, with the exception of a couple and their child.

"Did you enjoy the movie son?" asked the father.

"Sure did." replied the child.

"Well I'm glad, cause I sure didn't. I don't get it why there must be so much needless explosions." complained the woman. "Seriously how can a soup can blow up like that?"

"It's fiction Zuriel, it's meant to be unrealistic."

"I know Vesdore, but I can draw the line only so far."

"Hey let's go to Gobble Land, I'm starving." suggested the kid.

"Sure thing bud. We're hungry as well."

Every member of the family was a Kanisar. The father was tall, easily as tall as Luna. He had black hair, which were turning white at the sides. Even while wearing the grey suit the group could tell he was bulky. His face was also adorned with a properly trimmed beard.

The woman on the other hand was almost an exact opposite. Her long orange hair were a stark contrast to her husband and son and she barely reached Vesdores shoulder. Her supermodel like figure was hidden behind a bright blue dress.

The child was holding onto his parents hands and had a wide smile on his face. His messy black messy hair stopped just short of his eyes. he wore a simple dress shirt and shorts.

"Who are these people?" asked Twilight.

"Can't you tell?" asked Trider.

"Oh my goddess!" gasped Rarity. "Is that you Trider?"

"Bingo."

The group continued to look between the two and soon saw all the similarities. "Sweet Celestia, you're right." agreed Rainbow. "Dude, you looked like a wimp."

"I think he looks adorable." said Fluttershy. Pinkie on the other hand ran towards the child and jumped at him, to give him a hug. But instead she just passed through.

"Ah poopie."

"Why exactly are you showing us this?" wondered Celestia.

Trider didn't answer as he continued to stare at his past self and his parents. Concerned Twilight approached him and put a hand onto his shoulder. The gesture brought Trider out of his daydreaming.

"Are you alright?" she asked, concerned.

"Y-yeah." he said with a quick nod. "Just... enjoying the memory while I can."

"What do you mean?" the mare questioned.

"You'll see." he said ominously. The scenery switched again, this time they stood in an empty alleyway, with the family walking in front of them. The others watched in quiet, waiting for what would happen next. All of a sudden a group of armed men jumped into the alley. they raised their guns at the family.

"Freeze!" shouted one of the men. The family stopped in their tracks.

"What is the meaning of this?" yelled Vesdore.

"You are hereby under arrest, by the decree of His royal majesty." said one of the men, clearly in charge.

"What? Is this some kind of joke?" asked Vesdore, clearly confused.

The soliders didn't answer, instead they aimed their guns at them and the Lykosgrothias took a step backwards. Vesdore stood in front of the two, shielding them.

"Please put your guns down. There must've been some sort of misunderstanding." he begged. The soliders exchanged a quick look between each other, before they began to chuckle.

"There is no misunderstanding, you mutt." the leader spat. "The king has commanded all troops to arrest every Kanisar, not just you."

Vesdores and Zuriels eyes widened at his implication. "But why? What have we done to earn such punishment?"

"We have no obligation to explain anything to you. Now let me give you a little warning. We have orders to capture as many of you dogs as we can, but should you resist, we have permission to kill." the human said maliciously. "So what will it be?"

Vesdore looked at his wife, who was hugging her child. He had a clear picture of what was to happen to them should they surrender. Without a second thought he went into his Feral Unleashing, his body now enveloped in a dark aura.

"GET BEHIND ME!" he yelled and charged at the humans. The guns went off and the noise made the mares cover their ears. Their eyes widened as they saw how Vesdores body fell to the floor a small puddle of blood forming beneath him. They continued to watch as the soliders gave chase to Zuriel and Trider.

A deadly silence fell over the group as they processed what they just saw. All eyes fell onto their Kanisar friend who just stared at the body of his deceased father, eyes deviod of any emotion.

"Trider..." Twilight said as she approached him.

"This is just the beginning." he said as he turned around. "There's more that happened on that day."

Before anyone had time to question him, the environment shifted again. Now they were standing on top of a rooftop. They looked around to see where they were exactly. What tthey saw however made them pause. Leaning on the wall of the structure was Zuriel and kneeling next to her was young Trider. They immediatelly knew something wasn't right as they saw womans bloody clothes and Triders teary face. They were too far to hear what they were saying, but they had a very good idea of what was being said. They watched as Zuriels eyes closed and her hand fell next to her.

Some of the mares tried to hold back their own tears as they saw heard their friend cry out in anguish over the loss of his mother, while others openly cried with the child.

"How?" asked Rainbow, wiping away any traces of her tears. "How could they do such a thing?"

"Because humans are like that. They consider themselves above all other creatures and try to stnad above everyone else." Trider explained as he tried to hide his pained face. "We call this day Crimson Night because on that night most of Kanisar population was either killed or enslaved."

The mares looked at him with looks of disbelief, but saw he was serious. "But you said that you Kanisars were stronger than humans. How could you have lost?" asked Dynamism.

"I already told you that humans, while physically weak, had highly advanced technology. They used weapons we Kanisars have never encountered before, genetically enhanced super soliders and robots. Add in the element of surprise and..." he trailed off, leaving the mares to figure the rest out themselves. Taking a deep breath Trider began to change the scenerey.

"There is one more thing I have to show you that happened on that day, but I won't show what happened to other Kanisars." he said as he formed the next segment of his memories. "It's better that way."

The group was now standing in an alleyway where they saw young Trider facing off against a group of soliders. They watched as he unleashed his Feral form and attacked.

"When I saw what was happening to other Kanisars my rage took over and I went into my Feral Unleashing for the very first time." he narrated as the fight continued in the background. "I wanted nothing more, but to kill all of them. However I was still just a child."

As he said that one of the men knocked young Trider into a wall and delivered a powerfull kick into his gut. The mares watched in pain and anticipation of what was going to happen next. Suddenly a shadow jumped from a roof above and knocked out every guard out with its sword. When it was done it approached the child and offered him its hand.

"Who's that?" wondered Pinkie.

"That is Richard Shepherd. He is the leader of the resistance, a group with the goal of freeing every Kanisar and bringing the human king to justice." Trider explained as they watched the man and boy walk off into the distance.

"Did you see how he handled those guys? It was awesome!" Rainbow fangirled, while others agreed with her.

"I thought so too. He defeated all of those soliders with ease and it inspired me to become just as skilled a fighter as he was." Trider said as the group was once again engulfed in darkness.

"What happened to you afterwards?" questioned Spike.

"Shepherd took me in and made me part of the resistance." explained the Kanisar, as multitudes of frames of memory flew past the group. "He watched over me, made sure I had all the necessary things a kid needed. Food, shelter, he even taught me how to fight, outside of Ki manipulation that is." As he said that, numerous memories began to float around depicting Triders time spent with Shepherd.

"You didn't tell us you can use a sword." Rose stated as she pointed at one of the memories, in which Trider was sword sparring with Richard.

The Kanisar chuckled. "Well I'm no sword master like you. I can swing it properly, but that's about it."

"You look very happy in all of these memories." Celestia pointed out. "Didn't you say you hated humans? How come you are enjoying spending time with one?"

"Becasue Richard took care of me ever since he saved me. With each day I grew closer to him, up until the point where I began to see him as my second father." Trider reminiscenced. "He was kind to everyone, but it seemed he was especially focused on me. At that point I was avoiding humans as much as I could and Shepherd wasn't happy with that. He kept telling me to forgive his kind, saying that not all of them were as malicious as the ones who killed and enslaved my kind."

He looked at Luna and smiled lightly. "He must've seen my anger and tried to prevent it from escalating, like how you tried to do the same."

"Did you heed his words?" wondered Luna.

"Surprisingly I have. I tried to get closer to the humans, but it was difficult." he said, as memories continued to pass them by. "It took a few years, but I slowly began to open up to the humans, who were fighting with the resistance."

"Wait if you forgave the humans, then how come you were trying so hard to kill us when you saw us as them?" Rainbow asked what was on everyones mind.

Triders eyes darkened and everyone realised that they were about to get their answer. "That's because of what happened on one of my missions."

As he said that the darkness dispersed and the memories faded away, making room for the environment to change. They now stood in front of a large mansion, which was illuminated by a few spotlights. Several guards patrolled the vicinity and there was a huge wall surrounding the place.

"What is this place?" asked Dynamism as the mares gawked at the size of the building.

"This was the residence of one of the most influental human families. Our mission was to infiltrate it and rescue any Kanisar that was held within the mansion." As if on cue several figures began to approach the walls from different directions.

"Oh oh. This like one of those action movies that Fluttershy enjoys." Pinkie chimed in. Everyone in the group looked at the butter yellow mare with looks of disbelief. The mare tried to make herself as small as possible, in hopes to completely disappear.

"Anyway." Trider continued. "I had a solo task of checking out an outhouse near the mansion and see what was kept in it." He closed his eyes and grimaced. "I wish I hadn't though."

Without anyone noticing they now stood in front of the said shed and watched as a single person approached from the shadows. Trider wore a black helmet, which covered its face, a black leather jacket and black pants. The Kanisar reached inside one of his pockets and pulled out a small gadget. After a few seconds of fumbling with it he placed it inside the keyhole and the doors opened.

Raising his hand to his helmet and pressed a button. "Trider to Alpha team. I'm in." He waited for a moment, receiving conformation from the other side. Once they answered he went in.

The group followed after him, through a long hallway. The only illumination came from the moon that shone through the windows. After what felt like hours they finally reached the end and what they saw made them terrified and sick.

In the small room there were numerous cages in which rested the Kanisars or what was left of them. Their bodies were bloody, bruised and mangled. Some were barely breathing, while others were lying dead in puddles of their own blood and excrement.

At the sight many mares wanted to do what the young Trider was doing, throwing up. After gaining his composure the black dressed Kanisar stepped deeper into the room and looked around. "Alpha team, I've found some of them. But they... They're..." he couldn't finish the sentence as he threw up again.

After completely emptying his stomachh he began to walk and look around trying to see how many were still alive. As he walked around his eyes fell onto a female in one of the cages and he ran to it.

"Sersy? Sersy is that you?" he shouted as he arrived to the cage. The girl was chained to the wall of her cage and she like others was bloody all over. Her once brown hair was now a dirty mess, her eyes were blank and bloodshot.

"Who is that? Do you know her?" asked Twilight as they watched as young Trider pulled the cages doors off.

"She was my cousin." Trider replied. The others looked at him with shock. He never mentioned he had any other family beside his parents.

Their shock was broken when they heard Trider cry out. They looked at the cage and saw that he was holding Sersy close to his chest crying. Suddenly the cries began to grow louder and louder and the room began to shake. With a thunderous bang it shattered and they were once again in darkness.

"What happened?" asked Rose as they tried to comprehend what they had just saw.

"I went berserk." Trider answered gaining everyones attention. "When Sersy died in my arms I lost control over myself and went on a rampage, like in the Crystal Empire. When I woke up I was lying in bed of our infirmary. They told me that I killed most of the guards and fellow resistance fighters in my onslaught."

"I didn't remember much from that night, but when we interrogated the survivors from the mansion, I immediatelly remembered why I went out of control." He took a deep breath, before he continued. "Apparently the family was a bunch of sick bastards. They tormented Kanisar in that room, to the point where they were completely broken. Many of them commited suicide. And those were lucky ones."

Everyone couldn't believe what he was telling them. To think that anyone would find joy in torturing others, it was incomprehensible. "My cousin was put through a lot and just when I had found her, the last remaining member of family, I was too late. On that day I no longer cared what happened to humans, even those that were in the resistance I wanted to kill. I couldn't forgive them."

His voice began to crack as he tried to hold back his sorrow. Suddenly he was hugged by all of his friends and he enjoyed the feeling. "Thank you." he said.

"Is there anything else you wanted to show us?" asked Luna, once the group hug ended.

"No. That's all there is ." replied Trider.

"Very well. Then it is time we return back." She began to charge her magic as she and the rest were transported out of the dream world.

Groggily opening his eyes, Trider saw that he was still lying on the library floor. Lifting his body up he came face to face with the mares. They all looked at him with sympathy, while Applejack helped him get up.

"Hope you guys now understand what my life was like, before I came to Equestria." he said as he gave them a small smile.

"We do." said Twilight as she looked at her friends. "And we are all sorry for all the things you had to endure."

"It's ok Twi, I'm more or less over them." He looked the mare in the eyes and saw nothing but sympathy. "I also have to thank you."

"What for?" she asked, confused.

"On the day you brought me here, you saved my life. I was facing a whole squad of soliders and would have surely died. So, thank you." He said sincerely as he hugged her. The mare was stunned from his show of affection, but she immediatelly melted in his embrace. When he was done hugging her, Trider turned to Celestia. "We still have things to talk about. Don't we?"

"Indeed we do." She said as she extended her wings. "Trider Lykosgrothia. After showing me your past I have decided on how you will repay for what you did."

"For starters, Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor have demanded that you publicly apologise to the citizens of the Empire."

Trider nodded as he listened to her demands. "Can do. But can I just make one small alteration." The princess nodded, telling him she was listening. "Beside apologising publicly, I also want to apologise to the families of the deceased, personally."

Everyone looked at him with shock not expecting such a request from him. "And why would you want to do that?"

"Because I know how they feel. They deserve this. It's the least I can do after what happened." Trider explained.

Celestia gave a small smile. "Very well. I shall make it so." However the smile quickly disappeared as she became serious yet again. "While you are not held accountable for your actions in the Crystal Empire, there is still the matter of going against my orders and your promise." Trider gulped as he felt her gaze bore into his ver being. He felt he would collapse from the sheer pressure the mare was exuding. "I pondered for many days as to how to make sure, that something like that might not repeat again. I came to a conclusion that you lack discipline and there is only one way, that I know of, for you to learn it."

"Trider I want you to enroll in the Royal Guard Academy and become part of our Royal Guards."

You could hear a pin drop, it was so quiet after her proclamation. "Is that all?" asked Trider. The princess nodded and the Kanisar scoffed. "You've got yourself a deal then."

Celestia smiled and retrackted her wings. "I am happy to hear you agree with my demand. You will be enrolled as soon as your body is fully healed."

"You sure about this Trider? The Academy isn't a piece of cake." said Dynamism, with slight concern.

"Eh, the resistance was more or less a looser form of military training. How bad can it be?" he said nonchalantly. "Although I want to know how long this training will take."

"It usually takes about three months, before you become a private." Rose answered.

"Only? Heck this really will be a piece of cake. Speaking of which..." he looked towards Pinkie, a smirk plastered on his face. "I could really use a part right now, after all this gloomy stuff we went through."

The mares face brightened as she began to jump in place. "You got it fam." And in a blink of an eye she was gone. The others looked between each other as they began to laugh.

"We better get goin'. That mare is probably already finished preparin'." said Applejack. The others agreed and they began to head to Sugarcube Corner.

"Then we shall take our leave. We have royal duties to attend to after all." said Celestia as she prepared to teleport to Canterlot. "Coming Luna?"

Before the mare of the night could reply, Trider grabbed her wrist and stopping her. "She'll come after you. I have something that I need to talk to her in private."

The others nodded as they left the room, leaving Luna and Trider alone. The mare looked at the Kanisar as she wondered what he wanted.

"Hey, uh, Luna?"

"Yes." she urged him to continue.

"First I want to thank you for everything you did for me up to this point. And also thank you for waking me from my nightmare today." he said as he rubbed his forearm.

The mare gave him a gentle smile, before she replied. "You are quite welcome."

Trider gave her a smile as well, but then took a deep breath. "And I also want you to..." he trailed off. "What I want to say is..." He gritted his teeth in frustration as he tried to say what he wanted to say. "Ah goddamit all to hell." He looked Luna in the eye and gathered his courage. "Luna could you please look over my dreams again?"

"Come again?" the mare said, completely confused at Triders action.

"What I mean is... I'll probably have many more nightmares like the ones I had tonight and I'm not sure I can deal with them." he explained as he fidgeted with his fingers. "So I want you to forget what I told you in your room and watch over my dreams yet again."

The mare blinked a few times before she began to giggle. Her gentle laughter made Trider blush, he really didn't enjoy showing others his weakness. After she was done laughing, Luna closed her eyes and nodded. "I'll be more than happy to do so."

Relieved Trider smiled. "Thanks."

The mare then casted her gaze towards the door. "You shouldn't keep your friends waiting."

"You can come as well, after all it was thanks to you this party is even happening." offered Trider, but Luna just shook her head.

"No, it is fine. I too have duties I have to attend to." she excused herself and began to charge her horn.

"I'll see you tonight then I guess."

She didn't answer, just smiled. In a flash she was gone and Trider shrugged, before he too went ot th Sugarcube Corner, to join his friends.

Author's Note

Sorry for the longer wait this time.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Also please check out my blog as I have an important announcment to make.
Until next time.

Chapter 18: A Wolf in Gentlemans Clothing

"Are you three sure this won't be like one of your regural escapades? Cause Twilight'll have my hide if get back with as much as a scratch." Trider asked the CMC as they were making their way down a road.

The three fillies sighed. "Like we said Trider, we're not going to the Everfree. We're going to Froggy Bottom Bog. There are no monsters there." explained Scootaloo.

"Ok. But why are you going there?" the Kanisar continued to question the fillies.

"Cuz' I heard mah sister say that you can find some of the best truffles in all of Equestria here." Apple Bloom said with great glee. "If we can gather enough of them we might get our Cutie Marks in gathering them or at least cooking them."

"And you need me for that why exactly?"

"You promised us you'd go with us on one of our crusades. Don't you remember?" said Sweetie Belle as she gave him a slightly gloomy look.

Trider pondered and pondered, as he tried to remember if he had really said that. "Ah whatever. I had nothing better to do anyway." he sighed as he stopped for a bit to alleviate the pain in his shoulder.

"I thought you'd be all for this and yet you're whining like a scared little colt." Scootaloo taunted, knowing it would aggravate the Kanisar. And it did.

Trider grabbed the pegasus by the back of her shirt and lifted her to eye level. "All right you little twerp, for one I'm still recovering from my adventures in Crystal Empire and two, you guys have this tendency to turn an even miniscule task into something bothersome. So sorry for trying to be careful for once." he spoke to her with a fiery gaze.

The fillies giggled at his outburst and his expression soon softened and he joined them as well. He put Scootaloo down and they continued their march.

Despite being treated in the hospital and not experiencing that much pain, Trider still had days before he was completely healed. When he was told to take it easy, until his injuries recovered, he wondered why can't they simply magic it away, like they always did. Apparently it's not as simple as that. From what he could understand, the doctors and Twilight told him, the healing magic uses ones internal magic to heal themselves,beside the one that is conjured by the unicorn. But since Trider has so little of it, almost none, they can't heal him as it would take too much of unicorn magic to do so. Even when Luna healed his fists she used up a lot of magic, just to stop the bleeding. So now he'll have to recover the old fashioned way.

A thought then popped into his head and he looked at the fillies. "You said these truffles can be cooked." he wondered and the CMC nodded. "So that means you can eat'em, right?" They looked at each other with knowing smirks and nodded again. "Well what are waiting for, let's go get'em!" the Kanisar shouted and picked up his pace.

"Have ya found any yet?" Apple Bloom called out to her friends.

"No!" answered Scootaloo.

"Nope!" replied Sweetie Belle.

"The only thing I found was a reason to leave." Trider said in annoyance. They've spent a good hour looking through the bog for the illusive truffles. "Are you sure Applejack said we can find them here?"

"Yeah, ah can clearly remember she said they grew here." Apple Bloom confirmed. The CMC and Kanisar joined up and sighed in defeat.

"Maybe they don't grow at this time of the year." said Sweetie nailing the final nail.

"Alright pack up, I think we're done here." Trider said and beckoned the fillies to follow him back to town. "It'll be lunch time soon and I don't want Twilight to give me an earfull, if I get back late." He saw how downtrodden the fillies were, so he gave them a big smile. "Hey maybe you'll get your marks next time. Ya never know." he encouraged them.

The CMC returned the smile and joined him in their trek back. "At least nothing bad happened this time." Trider thought as he walked behind the trio. And as if Murphy himself was listening the ground shook slightly and followed by a loud roar.

The Kanisar and CMC looked between each other with widened eyes. "That wouldn't happen to be your stomach, right?" Scootaloo asked, with false hope.

"Not this time." Trider answered seriously. The ground began to shake even more and another roar could be heard. All of a sudden a large column of water rose from the ground. When all water dropped down it reveald a creature unlike any tider had ever seen, not even in the Everfree.

It was huge. At first glance it looked like a multiheaded dragon, without wings and only one pair of limbs to walk with. Its body was covered with brown scales and on the side of each of its head were a pair of red spikes. Their green eyes were scanning its surroundings and soo n they fell onto the group.

"What in the fucking name of all that is holy is that thing?" Trider asked, clearly not expecting this turn of events.

"I-I-I-It's a hydra." answered Apple Bloom, while she was standing frozen.

Suddenly one of the heads shot forward and tried to grab one of them with its jaw. Trider however grabbed the trio and jumped out of the way, just in the nick of time. But as soon as he landed another head tried to make them its meal. With quick thinking the Kanisar threw the CMC into the air and he punched the head with all his might.

The head was steered away and Trider took advantage of the opening. He grabbed the filles as the ywere still falling and ran towards some of the trees. Once he made sure they were hidden enough he looked at the fillies and then at his hand. He grabbed it and squeezed it tight.

"Are you alright trider?" Sweetie said in concern, as she saw his pained expression.

"I'll be fine, just stings a little." he lied.

"Then you can get us out there and kick that monsters butt right?" Scootaloo exclaimed as she shadow boxed.

"Not this time kiddo." Trider said.

The fillies looked at him with horror, not believing what he had just said. "Why not?" the pegasus asked.

"In my current state I'd probably just end up more hurt or worse." he answered with a grim tone. "Even that punch now barely fazed it."

"Then how are we suppossed tah get back with that thing tryin' tah eat us?" Apple Bloom wondered. Trider looked at his friends and saw they were scared, Sweetie Belle was eve shedding some tears. Closing his eyes he began to think of a way to get them out of here, while making sure he wouldn't end up dead.

"Guess I have no other option." he said as he stood up. The fillies looked at him with hope. "I'll get its attention and lure it away from here while you guys run back to Ponyville."

"What about you?" asked Sweetie with tears in her eyes. "We can't just leave you here, with that monster."

Trider just smiled as he made his way out of their hiding spot. "Don't worry. It'll take more than some freak of nature to take me down." With that said he made a run for it.

The hydra noticed and gave chase after him. Meanwhile the CMC ran inthe opposite direction. However oone of the heads noticed and alerted the others. Losing interest in the Kanisar they instead decided to have the fillies for lunch.

Triders eyes widened when he saw they weren't chasing him anymore. "Oh no you don't!" Charging his Ki, he shot a large ball of energy at the monster stopping it in its tracks. The heads all turned their attention towards the Kanisar and glared at him. "Come and get it ya big dumb dragon wannabe." Trider taunted. Almost as if it understood what he had said the heads roared and returned to chasing him.

"Oh shit!" Trider exclaimed as he realised he was their target yet again. Quickly turning around he began to run. The hydra, though large, was surprisingly fast. The distance Trider had before was quickly disappearing. "Shit, shit, shit!" Trider cursed as he tried to outrun the massive creature.

When it was close enough it launched one of its heads at the Kanisar and he dodged it by jumping into the air. While he was mid-air another head tried to catch him in its mouth. Trider however twisted his body, just enough for its teeth to graze his clothes.

As he slid past the head he grabbed it by its spikes and hoisted himsef on top of it. The head tried to shake him off, but Trider was grabbing on for his dear life. In his peripheral vision he saw another head quickly approaching him. Quickly jumping he dodged the attack and made the head bite the other head. It cried out in pain, as did the rest and the glared at the Kanisar.

"That's what ya get ya dumbass!" Trider mocked. He failed to notice though, that the hydra swung its body around and whipped its tail at him. With a tremendous force, he was launched into the air. As he soared upwards the heads gathered under him in expectation of an easy meal.

Trider however, thought otherwise. "Eat this!" he shouted as he began to charge his Ki. "I hope this works." he silently prayed.

Right before he could fall into one of their maws he unleashed the energy he was gathering up. "WAILING NOVA SPHERE!!!" he screamed. The orb exploded and engulfed Trider and hydras heads in blinding light. An explosion sounded off, followed by painful screams from the monster.

Trider on the other hand was sent flying through the sky at incredible speed. "Please let it be a soft landing." he mumbled as he expected the inevitable crash landing.

Soon he fell through numerous branches until his body hit the ground with a loud crash. Groaning he picked himself up and looked around. He could recognise the scenery around him and he knew he was on the edge of Everfree Forest. Looking down he noticed he fell into a small patch of blue flowers and completely ruined most of them.

"Still better then getting eaten alive." he said with a heartened tone. He stood up and dusted himself off. "Now I should head back. I'm sure Twilight has a thing or two she would like to say to me." he groaned and begrudgingly headed back to town.

The room was filled with light snores, as the lavender mare slept soundly under her sheets. The clock on her drawer struck 7 and even before it could begin its ringing, Twilight used her magic to stop it. Raising herself up she stretched herself and yawned.

With a small smile she looked at the clock. "Another day for studying." she announced to herself and got out of bed. Her horn glowed and her bed was made and her clothes changed. She walked to her dresser and levitated a brush out of one of the drawers.

Ash she brushed her amne and tail she hummed a little tune. She was in a good mood today, since she knew she was about to spend it reading some of the new books she got and what was even better was that she would be doing it with Trider.

When he arrived home yesterday she wanted to literally smack some sense into him. He got hurt, again, because he was being reckless. But she couldn't put all the blame on him. He didn't know that a hydra resided in the bog and he did save Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo from the monster. Still she was mad and she made it clear to him.

For punishment she decided that he should strengthen his mind and not just his body, as she put it, and he reluctantly agreed to it. Once her mane was done she walked out of her room.

As soon as she stepped out she was assaulte with a heavenly aroma. "Spike must already have made breakfast." she thought to herself as she made her way to the Kanisars room. She didn't want to admit it to anyone, but she loved to wake him up. The sight of his peaceful sleeping face made her mornings even better. She didn't know why she loved it, she just knew she did.

When Trider was in coma she could see his sleeping face everyday, but it was different. She saw he was in pain and she couldn't bear to watch it, as it made her hurt as well. But now she once again could see his slumbering, peaceful face once more.

When she arrived to his room, she knocked lightly and whispered. "Trider, wake up. It's morning already." She knew he couldn't hear her with that kind of a wake up call, it usually took a cannon to even get him to stir. She knew she wouldn't get a response, so she grabbed the knob and opened the door.

She slowly walked into his room, expecting to see him still lying in bed. But to her surprise he wasn't there. Instead of a sleeping Kanisar she saw a neatly made bed. Baffled she walked out of the bedroom and made her way downstairs. She usually also checked the basement, where Dynamism and Rose were staying, just to make sure they wouldn't sleep in, which had not yet happened, but she didn't do it today, as they were both recalled back to Canterlot when Trider woke up.

"Spike, have you seen Trider? He's not in his room and-" her inquiry was cut short when she walked into the kitchen. The sight before her made her halt and do a double take.

Usually, when Trider woke up this early, it was Spike who was making the meal and Trider sat at the table, waiting for said meal. This time however it was the exact opposite. Trider stood at the stove making breakfast and Spike sat at the table watching silently.

"Ah good morning Miss Sparkle. It is a lovely day today would you not say? Almost as lovely as yourself." Genereally Twilight would be flustered at his remark, but she was too shocked to respond. Not only was he up early and making breakfast, his overall appearance had changed. His normally messy hair was combed and slicked backwards, giving him a refined look. His usual attire of a sleeveless hoodie, worn out cargo pants and combat boots was replaced with a white dress shirt, black dress pants and polished black shoes.

"Spike." she called out to her assistant.

"Yeah?" he responded.

"What is going on?" she asked him.

"I have no idea." he replied.

Trider turned around and put two plates of eggs and hay bacon, down on the table. "Please enjoy." Trider said with a smile. Dumbfounded twilight sat down and put a piece of egg into her mouth. Her eyes widened at the delectable taste and Spike was no better. She remembered that he once told her that he was evn worse at cooking than she was. She looked at the Kanisar with a questioning gaze.

"Trider are you feeling fine?" she inquired.

Trider just smiled at her and nodded. "I am feeling quite excellent, thank you for asking." he responded. "Is the food to your liking?"

Both Spike and Twilight nodded. "Excellent. I am happy you enjoy it." Trider said with glee.

"Aren't you going to eat as well?" asked Spike when he swallowed his bite.

"I have already eaten, so you don't have to worry about me Spike." he reassured him. He then switched his attention to Twilight. "Miss Sparkle, I know we had made previous plans as to spend the rest of the day reading in each others company, but I would very much like to ask you if we could reschedule it?"

"Why?" she questioned.

"Well when I woke up this morning and tried to change my clothes, I had made a startling discovery that my warderobe manly consists of hoodies and cargo pants." he shivered when he mentioned them. "Luckily I have somehow found this attire I am wearing right now and I wish I had more. So I am planning on giving Miss Rarity a visit and see if she could spruce up some more. Maybe even a blazer or a tie."

Twilight and Spike stared at him with wide eyes, not believeing what they're hearing. Eventually the mare shook her head and smiled. "Sure you can take the rest of the day off if you want, I'll just go through some of the books by myself and we can read the rest of them together."

Triders face brimmed with happines and he bowed his head. "Thank you very much Miss Sparkle. This is quite splendid. I shall take my leave immediatelly." As soon as he said that he was out the door leaving the mare and dragon alone.

"We're gonna follow him right?"

"Oh yeah."

For the past three hours Spike and Twilight had been following the Kanisar around town. At first he stopped by Raritys, but she wasn't home as she had and errand to run, so Trider decided to walk around Ponyville until she returned.

At the moment Trider was sitting on a bench in the park and was listening to a mint green mare playing her lyre. His two stalkers were hiding in a nearby bush. Spike was watching him through binoculars, although he was only a few feet away, while Twilight was writing down everything he had done.

"10.27 A.M. The subject seems to be sitting down and relaxing while listening to a mare play on her string instrument." Twilight whispered as she wrote down her log. "What's he doing now Spike?"

"Same thing he was doing just a second ago." Spike said, a bit aggravated. Nodding the mare wrote down her next entry.

"What are ya two doin'?" someone suddenly asked. Startled the two turned around and saw it was only Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Rarity.

"Don't scare us like that!" Spike exclaimed as he picked up his binoculars, that he dropped.

"Sorry 'bout that." Applejack apologized. "But seriously what're ya two doin' here?"

"We are watching Trider." Twilight said as she pointed to the Kanisar. The mares looked at him and the back to the mare with massive smirks.

"Wow, I know you have the hots for him Twi, but spying on him? I didn't take you for that kind of mare." Rainbow teased, as Applejack tried to hold back her laughter.

The lavender mares face flushed red. "It's not like that!" she shouted, but immediatelly put a hand over her mouth. She looked at where Trider was sitting and saw he didn't notice them. "It's not like that!" she repeated in a hushed tone. "He has been acting weird all day. We are just worried something must've happened to him yesterday, when he went to Froggy Bottom Bog."

"Weird how?" inquired Rarity with a raised brow.

"Well for starters he got up before me or Twilight, he's wearing a shirt that has sleeves on it, he made breakfast for us..." Spike counted.

"And while he was around town he had not even once stopped by any vendors. Somepony even bumped into him and Trider was the one who apologized." twilight continued where Spike left off.

Applejack, Rainbow and Rarity looked at each other with worried glances. "That doesn't sound like him at all." the cowmare said as she scratched her head.

"Oh please. I bet he is only pretending to get out of your punishement Twilight." She stepped from behind the bush and began to head towards the Kanisar. "Just watch, I'll make him drop his act." The others watched as the fashionista made her way to Trider.

"Excuse me?" she called out, gaining the mans attention.

Turning his head, the Kanisar looked at the mare and smiled. "Miss Rarity just the mare I have been looking for." he exclaimed.

"You have?" she asked, slightly confused as to why he would be looking for her.

"Yes!" he confirmed. "I am in dire need of a proper attire. The clothes that I own currently are just too..." He paused as he looked for the right expression for them. "Crude."

"I see. So what do you want me to do? Add some flare to them or-"

"Heavens no!" Trider said, shocked. "I want you to make me a completely new assemble. One that will put some more class into my life."

Rarity was at a loss for words. She never in her life expected for Trider to make such a demand, and in such a polite way nonetheless. Usually he would make a vulgar comment and then rudely ask for some new clothes, but this...

"I'll be happy to help you. You have no idea how long I have waited for you say those words." she stated ecstatic.

"Splendid!" Trider exclaimed, equally happy. "You are a life saver Miss Rarity." He grabbed her hand and planted a small kiss on it. Rarity laughed nervously, as she blushed and fanned herself to cool off.

Meanwhile the others were watching the whole spectacle from their hiding spot. The mares were flabbergasted at the Kanisars response, while Spike was clenching his fists and grinding his teeth.

"Ah don't believe it." Applejack exhaled. "What in tarnation happened to the fella?"

"I don't know, but he better have a good reason." Spike said, small flames shooting out of his nostrils.

"Maybe the hydra knocked some screws loose?" Dash speculated. "Anyway there is one sure way to tell if he is really alright and just pretending or if something wrong."

"And that is?" asked Twilight.

"Follow me." The pegasus mare walked up to the man, followed by her friends.

Seeing them approach, Trider raised his arm and waved to them. "Miss Dash, Miss Jack, Miss Sparkle and Mr. Spike, what are you doing here?"

Rainbow quickly closed the distance and shoved a finger into his chest. "Don't you Miss me buster. I know you're just playing so how about you drop the act or I will make you." she threatened as she pushed him backwards.

Stumbling for a bit, Trider regained his balance and looked at the mare with a hurt expression. "I do not know what you are talking about Miss Dash. I am not playing anyone for a fool and I would rather prefer we settle whatever dispute you have with me with words rather than violence."

Nobody moved an inch. They all just stared at the Kanisar and mulled over what he had said. Suddenly Rainbow grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"Alright who are you? Who sent you? Are you a changeling? What is my favorite color? What kind of underware does Twilight wear?" she began to ask as she shook him back and forth.

"Dash stop that!" Rarity said as she enveloped her in her magic and pushed her away from Trider. "You are going to make his shirt wrinkly."

"She does have a point though. How do we know this really is Trider and not just some impostor." Applejack wondered. The group looked at him with suspicion.

"Please. That statement is ridiculous." the Kanisar defended himself, but to no avail. "I am me."

"Prove it then." Spike challenged. "If you really are Trider, then you should be able to tell us who was the man that saved you when you were a kid."

The others looked at him expectantly and waited for his answer. He sighed as he looked at them in disappointment. "It was Sir Richard Shepherd."

The mares sighed in relief, but Rainbow just made the 'I'm watching you' gesture. "So ah guess it really is him. But that still begs the question, what happened to him?" contemplated Applejack.

"Maybe Rainbow was right and something happened when the hydra attacked them." Twilight claimed. She looked at the Kanisar and asked him. "Did something unusual happen when you were fighting it?"

Trider put a hand to his chin as he began to think. "Nothing that I can remember. But honestly Miss Sparkle, I am telling you I am fine. there is nothing wrong with me." he implored her.

"I agree with him Twilight. Is it really that bad that he behaves more composed now? Isn't this change for the better?" Rarity inquired. Her question earned her glares, especially from Spike, but it was for some reason directed at Trider. "I was joking. Really, who would want to have a kind gentleman over a brutish, inconsiderate, barbaric-"

Her rant was stopped when Twilight cleared her throat. The fashionista gave her a sheepish smile. "Let's just get going shall we."

"Where exactly do we go anyway?" wondered Applejack.

"We go back to the last place Trider was still acting like himself." Twilight proclaimed.

"Ya mean?"

"Yes." she affirmed. "The Froggy Bottom Bog."

"Do we really need to walk through here? Have you any idea how long it would take to get all this muck out of my dress?" Rarity whined as she carefully made her way with her friends.

"We never said you had to follow us ya'know?" Rainbow said with agitated tone.

"If you have trouble with the dirt fair Miss Rarity, then would you be fine if I carried you?" offered Trider with a bow.

Immediatelly Spike jumped in between the two and glared at Trider. "If anyone is carrying Rarity its me!" the drake threatened.

"It is quite alright boys." the fashionista waved them off while jumping on a small rock. "It's just a little mud, I've been through worse."

"How much farther until we reach the spot Trider?" asked Twilight.

"We are here actually." the Kanisar said and the group stopped. "This is where we began to look for truffles and where we met up once we were done."

The mares spread out and began to look around to see if there was anything that might be the cause for Trider change of behaviour. After a while they stopped and regrouped.

"Anypony find anything?" asked the lavender mare. All of them shook their heads. "So that means it must've happened during or after the hydra attacked." She looked at Trider as she spoke. "Is this also where you were attacked by hydra?"

"Correct Miss Sparkle." he confirmed with a nod. "When the beast sprouted from the ground we took shelter under those trees over there." he said as he pointed toward the group of trees.

Heading toward where he pointed they soon reached their destination and as before began to search. Again they came out empty.

"This is getting us nowhere!" complained Rainbow as she hovered in the air.

"Not true. We now know where the incident didn't happen. And as the great detective Brandybuck Cuckooclock once said 'Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.'" Twilight quoted. "We just need to continue our search and we will get our answer."

The group looked at their Kanisar friend who began think. "Well once the fillies began to run away I made the monster chase me." he began to explain. "At one point I had to run through their heads and when I landed I was swooped up by their tail and left to be devoured mid-air." Twilight and Applejack exchanged worried glances as they listened to his tale. "But in the last moment I used Wailing Nova Sphere to blast myself away from the beast." he raised his hand as he tracked and invisible object through the sky. "I was sent soaring through the sky, until I crashed in the Everfree over there." he finished.

"Rainbow, can you fly over there and see if there is anything strange?" Twilight asked her rainbw maned friend.

"Already on it." Dash saluted as she jetted away. Not even twenty seconds passed, when she returned with a small smirk.

"Did you find anythin'?" asked Applejack.

"Oh yeah. I know exactly what happened to our wolf friend." Rainbow said as she pulled out a small handkerchief. When she opened it up everyone looked at with wide eyes.

Rarity pointed a finger at it. "Is that...?"

"Yup. Poison Joke." concluded Twilight.

"Poison Joke? What is that?" Trider wondered as he eyeballed the blue flower.

"It's an annoyin' little flower that once you touch it, plays a joke on ya." Applejack explained as Rainbow discarded the plant. "We had the pleasure of runnin' into it a long time ago."

"And what did it do to you?" the Kanisar wondered further.

"It made me small, Twilight got a floppy horn, Rainbows wings became inverted, Rarity began to rock the rastafarian look, Pinkies tongue became swoll and Fluttershy voice became so deep it made mah brother seem like a little girl." Applejack told him.

"That is terrible." Trider gasped. "But wait, each one of you only changed physically. How come I have not changed like you and instead my personality shifted?"

The mares and Spike looked between each other in search of an answer. In the end they couldn't come up with one so they could only shrug. "We have no idea. But we do know how to cure it. We should have the old Trider back before lunch." Twilight said with conviction.

"Whoope-de-doo." cheered Rarity with absolutely no enthusiasm.

They were interrupted when the ground shook and a loud roar reverberated through the area.

"What was that?" asked Spike as he began to look around.

"Oh crabcakes." was all Trider said, before the heads of the hydra rose from the ground. Five heads looked around and they locked on to the group. With hungry looks they looked at their prey, as they licked their lips.

"RUN!!!" shouted twilight as they began to run away. The hydra followed them, each head snapping at its own target. Everyone was trying their best to avoid the monsters strikes, with varying succes.

Rainbow flew around one of the head, making it dizzy with her speedy maneuvers and hit-and-run tactics.

Meanwhile Twilight casted a magical shiled to defend herself from her head and she occasionally fired a few bolts at it.

Rarity wasn't doing so well as the others, her dress made her slower than the rest. She fell, when she tripped over a small rock, but luckily Spike was there to pick her up and carry her away from the hydra. The head however didn't let up as it continued to chase the couple, so Spike spit fire at it.

Applejack, like the cowmare she was, lassoed one of the heads and pulled it down with all of her might. The head struggled against it and they were at a stalemate, neither one of them moving an inch.

Unlike the rest, Trider just ran away from the beast, barely dodging its attacks. he hid behind a boulder as a head came down to bite him, instead it bit directly into the rock. Breathing rapidly Trider looked up from the rock and saw that the head lost interest in him and was instead charging the pegasus mare.

"Rainbow watch out!!!" he screamed, but it was too late. Attacking from behind the head struck the mare down to the ground. But before she could collide with it, she was enveloped in purple aura and levitated inside Twilights shield.

"You ok?" the lavender mare asked.

She made a few experimantal flaps and winced. "I think its sprained. I can't fly back ou there." she clarified.

"That wouldn't be possible anyway." Twilight replied, as three of the heads simultaneously attacked the barrier, creating a small crack in it.

Meanwhile Spike was still struggling with his own head. He tried to run behind the monster, hoping he was out of reach back there. But he was surprised when another appendage struck him. The hydra swung its tail, sending the drake and Rarity flying through the air. The two landed separated from each other. Spike tried to reach out to the mare, but was crushed under the monsters foot. Crying out in pain as the air left his lungs.

Rarity cried out for her friend, but saw that she couldn't help him, so with teary eyes she ran to where Trider was. When she reached him she saw he was just sitting behind the boulder, watching what was happening.

"What are you doing?! Shouldn't you be out there helping them?!" she screamed at him. Trider gave her a worried look as he looked her in the eyes.

"I cannot. I am not a fighter. I am a gentleman. And gentlemen do not fight." he protested. Rarity slapped him as she glared at him.

"You listen to me you self-centerd prick. Those are your friends out there that are in trouble. Are you really going to let them die just because you're trying to be gentlecolt?" she lectured him. "You may be a gentlecolt now, but isn't a gentlecolts duty to also protect the damsel in distress?"

Triders eyes widened as he realsied she was right. "Yes, you have a ponint Miss Rarity. It is a gentlemans duty to protect the ladies." with renewed vigor he jumped out from behind the boulder and walked up to the monster.

"Hey you scalebound monstrosity!" he called out to the hydra, earning its attention. "You are one of the most foul beasts I have ever laid my eyes upon. I demand that you release my friends and go on your merry way or else." The monster, as well as everyone else looked at him in confusion. Eventually the hydra began to produce a sound that was akin to laughter. "So be it then." Trider said when he got his reply. He folded his shirts sleeves to his elbows and raised the in front of himself. "Have at thee." he shouted as he did a couple of shadow punches.

Hydra however swung its tail and smashed Trider against a tree. With a pained groan he fell into the mud and remained lying there. The hydra returned to smashing the barrier. Slowly more and more cracks appeared on the dome and Twilight began to sweat profusely. Rarity reamined hidden behind the boulder as she thought of what she should do next. Meanwhile Applejack was still playing tug-of-war with one of the heads.

Trider tried to get up, but the pain was too immense. He looked towards his friends and saw that they were being beaten. "No." he groaned. "Don't!" he begged.

Applejacks arms were begining to grow tired and she knew she wouldn't be able to last much longer. "Gosh darn it, how strong is this fella?" Suddenly she lost her footing and the head took advantage of it. With one sharp yank it pulled the mare from the ground and into the air.

Applejack watched as the sky and clouds came into her vision. She knew what was coming and she knew there was no pony who could help her. The mares and Trider watched as she slowly fell towards the monsters jaws.

"Applejack!!!" they all called out to her.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE!!!" The yell drew everyones attention to the Kanisar, who was standing up. His hair was standing up straight and his eyes glew blue. Suddenly his form was engulfed in what seemed like bloody red fire. He dropped down into a kneeling position, the kind the runners used at the start of their race. "FINISH BREAKER!!!"

In a sudden burst the Kanisar charged forward, reaching speeds that would make Rainbow jealous. The hydra didn't have time to react as Trider plunged into its chest. He continued to charge forward, creating a hole in the beasts stomach. Then without warning the monsters body gave in and the Kanisar ran straight through it, killing it immediatelly.

The mares watched in awe as the monster fell, freeing Spike from it claws. Seeing they were fine, Twilight dropped the barrier and collapsed due to exhaustion. Rainbow caught her before she fell into the mud. As she caught her, she realised Applejack was still falling. Shifting her gaze into the sky.

Applejack felt as air rushed past her and she knew it would be anytime soon that she would either be eaten alive or splattered across the ground. Her fall stopped, but she felt no pain, quite opposite. She felt a warmth, like somepony was holding her and the feeling wasn't strange to her. She slowly opened her eyes and locked gaze with Triders.

"You ok AJ?" he asked.

The cowmare nodded as she hugged him. As she was hugging him her eyes drifted downward and she realised something. They were still in mid-air. "Trider yer... Yer flyin'!" she exclaimed.

The Kanisar joined her gaze and smiled. "Guess I am."

They slowly began to descend and soon touched ground. Everyone else joined up with him. "Trider, AJ you guys ok?" Spike asked as he ran up to them.

"We're fine. Thanks for asking." Trider replied.

"Dude you were flying! I didn't know you could do that." Rainbow gushed.

"Neither did I." he shrugged. "You learn something new everday."

"I am glad everypony is fine, but I really think we should head back before something else decides to attack us." Rarity jumped in.

"What are you so afraid to get your dress dirty?" Trider teased.

"I'll have you know this dress is made out of some of the finest materials, thank you very much." she huffed as she turned her head away from him.

"So from your kitchen rags then?"

"Augh."

Trider began to laugh at her dismay adn Twilight looked at him curiously. "Trider are you acting like yourself?" she asked.

"Yeah, why you ask?" he replied. The rest looked at him with confusion.

"Trider do you want to practice with me tomorrow?" Dash inquired.

"Would love to, but Miss Stick-up-her-butt here would probably be against it." he said as he pointed at Twilight with his head.

"He's back."

"But how? I thought you had to bathe in the herbs Zecora gave us to get rid of the Poison Joke effects." Spike wondered.

"You know what I don't care right now. All I want is to get back home, wash up and have a nice lunch." Twilight proclaimed as she began to walk off. "We can figure it out tomorrow."

"Amen to that sister." Trider agreed with her as he bega to follow.

He was stopped when Rarity cleared her throat. "I know it must be pleasant to be carried like that Applejack, but don't you think Trider should rest his body after what he did?" the fashionista said with a grin.

Realising she was still clinging to him while he was carrying her, Applejack let go and began to follow after Twilight with a massive blush. "Ya ain't tellin' nopony 'bout this." she threatened.

"Wouldn't dream of it darling." Rarity replied with a smirk.

Spike began to walk as well, but stopped when he saw trider wasn't moving. "Hey, are you coming?" he called out to him.

Shaking his head Trider adressed the drake. "Y-yeah coming." he said as he followed after him. While he walked he looked at his hand and clenched and unclenched it a few times. "Damn that is one fine ass!" he thought as he made his way home with his friends.

Author's Note

If any of you are wondering why I haven't published a chapter in quite a while, it's because I have been focusing on another story I'm currently writing, as well as I just didn't have the drive to write chapter for this story. But now we back on track.
It will be another few chapters before Trider joins the army, these will all be more or less slice of life, with a few adventureous elements thrown in.
Another thing to all of those that replied to my latest blog, I would also kindly ask you if you could add a theme song that you think suits your character.
That is all for now.
Until next time.

Chapter 19: A Zebras Lesson

The sound of wind and the leaves it swayed surrounded Zecora as she made her way through the forest. She had just finished picking up a herb from the Whitetail Woods and was returning back to her abode. Despite the lesser risk of encountering a monster from the Everfree, while she walked the trail that led to her hut, she still twisted her ears in every direction and gripped her staff with a steel grip. You could never be absolutely safe in the forest and she knew that.

A twig snapped and it alerted the zebra. Halting her progress she stood still as she continued to listen for any signs of a stalker. A few seconds passed and all was peaceful so she decided to ignore it. But before she could take another step the sound of rustling leaves from a nearby bush drew her attention. Quickly she grabbed a vial that hung from her simple belt. Rearing back she threw it at the bush and heard it break, followed by a cry of anguish and a puff of smoke lifting from it.

Not wasting even a single moment she took a deep breath, jumped into the bush and pinned the monster down. After a short struggle the monster stopped resisting, the potion taking effect. After a few seconds the smoke cleared and to the Zecoras surprise it wasn't a monster that was held under her staff, but rather a certain alien.

"Trider?" she asked baffled.

"Hey Z, nice weather we're having." Trider replied coffing slightly. "The hell was in that. I can't move a damn inch and my eyes feel like it went twenty rounds with the sun and lost."

True to his words his eyes were teary and bloodshot, he could barely squint with them. The mare reached into her puch and retrieved another small vial and poured some of its content onto the Kanisars forehead. "Forgive me, I thought you were a beast that wanted to have me for its meal." she apologised to him.

Trider flexed his fingers, to test if he could move now and to his pleasure they obeyed his command. "It's fine Z, you can never be too careful in here." He rubbed his eyes to elevate some of his pain. "How come my eyes are still in hell, though?"

"I don't have the necessary herbs to treat them with me right now. I can take you back to my hut and treat you there."

"Thanks." he said. "If you wouldn't mind, could you get off me, cause this situation is getting kind of hard to stand."

The mare gave him a confused look, before she realised what he'd meant. When she tackled him, she ended up on top of him, straddling his waist. She got up and offered Trider her hand. Taking it he stood up as well.

"What are you doing here, I thought you were still healing?" she asked him to which he replied.

"Can we talk, once my eyes don't burn anymore?"

Nodding she took his arm and put it over her shoulders and carried him towards her home.

Zecora stood over her cauldron as she mixed the ingridients she had gathered, while Trider rested in her couch. He had a damp cloth over his eyes, which was healing him.

Done stirring the content, the zebra turned to her guest. "Now if you wouldn't mind telling me, what you were doing wandering through the Everfree?" she questioned him.

Sighing Trider responded. "I was just walking and I got lost in thought, before you know it I'm in the Everfree, being tackled by an amazon zebra."

"Those must have been some heavy thoughts." she mused. "What has been troubling you?"

The Kanisar pondered if he should tell her or not. "It's the whole incident in the Crystal Empire."

"You still worry about that? I thought you talked it over with your friends?"

"We did and I know I should be so hard on myself and I'm not. It's something else." he confessed.

"And that would be?" she asked him, beckoning him to continue.

"I already told you how my Feral Unleashing works right?" The mare nodded so Trider decided to continue. "Well I also told you that we Kanisars learn how to control ourselves while we are in that form and we don't lash out." Again she nodded. "That is not true."

Raising a brow Zecora looked at him. "Mind explaining?"

"You see, wolfs are by nature vicious and savage animals and we Kanisars carry that part deep inside ourselves. By tapping into that part we get access to our Feral forms." He began to explain and Zecora listened intently. "We first unlock it as children when we are put into a very emotional setting. Usually its triggered by anger, but there have been cases with grief and fear as well. And when that happens we release all of it all at once, losing control over our actions. We act on instinct and that makes us very dangerous. But as we grow up we learn how to only release portions of it and we can willfully control ourselves."

"I see." Zecora said as she added another ingridient into the cauldron. "So you're telling me that your control over the Feral form is not perfect?"

"Yeah." he said as he nodded. "There have been cases where Kanisars became completely uncontrolable due to a stressfull situation." He closed his eyes and sighed. "It happened twice to me. Once back on Inu and the other in the Crystal Empire." He opened his eyes and looked the mare into her eyes. "I'm afraid it will happen again and I'll end up hurting someone close to me. And that is why I've decided to never use the Feral Unleashing ever again."

"That is quite a statement. Can you hold on to it though?" she questioned.

"You think I can't do it?"

"You used your Feral form to combat most of the enemies you have faced up until now. Even against Twilights friends." she told him and his ears folded onto his head. "Up until now you heavily relied on it to defeat most of your opponents and I'm sure you'll probably use it again, when there will be no other choice. And lets not mention the fact that you have anger issues and you'd probably unknowingly use it."

Trider gritted his teeth as he realised zecora was right. All the fights, all the victories were all thanks to his Feral Unleashing. Without it he was weak.

"So you mean to tell me that I only have two options." he growled. "Either lose control or be others punching bag?" He smashed his fist into the wall, making small cracks in it. "How the fuck is that fair?"

Suddenly Zecora picked up her staff and smacked Trider upside his head. The Kanisar rubbed the sore spot as he looked at the mare questioningly.

"You are too simple minded. Has you reliance on your form made you so blind?" she asked. Trider wanted to reply, but she stopped him before he could. "Your form isn't the source of your strength, it's your determination to not lose."

She walked over to her warderobe, opened it and retrieved a small vial. She then proceeded to dump its contents into the cauldron as she continued. "It is true that your form gave you a boost in power, but in the end it was a boost and nothing more. You have grown stronger since you came here, right?"

"Yeah." he replied with a nod.

"And did you become stronger thanks to your Feral form." This time he shook his head in denial. Zecora smiled as she focused back onto her cauldron. "Do you see what I'm trying to tell you?"

Triders eyes widened in realization. "Of course. If I can't use my Feral Unleashing to become stronger, then I'll just train to be as strong." The mare nodded and grinned, happy he had figured out what she was trying to tell him. But Triders glee didn't last long and she noticed.

"What is the matter?" she asked concerned.

"There is still the problem with my, how did you say it? Ah. Anger issues." he said with a snap of his fingers. "It's easy for me to train, but to control my anger, when I've never held it back in my life is near impossible."

They both went quiet, Trider wallowed in his despair, while Zecora thought. Eventually something came to her.

"If you can't control your anger, then I shall teach you how." she said, gaining the Kanisars attention.

Trider just looked at her confused. "Huh?"

The two were now standing in front of a waterfall. "What are we doing here again?" Trider asked as he stared at the falling water.

"I told you that I'll help you control your anger." Zecora said as she began to take off her garments.

"Yeah, but how are we gonna- Woah!" Trider exclaimed as he turned around and saw now completely naked Zecora. "What are-?"

"Strip!" she commanded, as she slowly walked towards the stream.

The Kanisar just stared at her bare back, and ass, as he opened and closed his mouth. "OK, I think you're jumping the gun here Z. I only see you as a friend and-"

"Don't misinterpret my words and actions Trider. This is solely for the purpose of your training. Now take off your clothes." she repeated as she walked into the water.

The Kanisar simply shrugged as he began to take off his clothes. "Don't mind me then." When he stripped he followed the zebra into the water. They began to swim towards the base of the waterfall and Trider saw there was a rock sitting at the bottom, a small part of it jutting out of the surface of the water. he and Zecora climbed on top of it.

"Sit!" she said as she sat down. Following her instructions he sat as well.

"Now what?" he asked, curious as to where this was leading to.

"Now we meditate." she said.

"And how do we do that?"

"Close your eyes and ignore your surroundings. Deplete your mind of any unnecessary thought or emotion." she explained.

"OK." he replied and closed his eyes. He tried to do what she had told him, but no matter how hard he tried his mind was filled with thoughts, mostly around Zecora and her nude form.

They sat like that for a few minutes, before Trider moaned. "How long will this take?"

"Until you clear your mind and let go of your emotions." was all Zecora said.

He groaned and tried to clear his mind again, but to no avail. "Why the fuck am I doing this? How is this going to help me when I get angry?"

"Meditation is a practice where an individual trains the mind or induces a mode of consciousness, either to realize some benefit or for the mind to simply acknowledge its content without becoming identified with that content, or as an end in itself." Zecora said.

"Wut?"

"What I'm saying is that when you master meditation, Trider, you'll be able to let go of your emotions at the moments notice. You'll be able to remain calm even in the toughest situations." she explained without moving an inch.

Trider sighed as he looked at the mare. "When you said you'll train me, I thought we'd do some exercises to elevate my anger, not sit around."

"If you do not like my method of training, then you are free to leave."

The Kanisar looked at her skeptically as he pondered. After a few seconds he sat back down. "I'll stay."

"I am glad to hear that." Zecora said with a smile.

"Just one question though." Zecora ears perked, signaling she was listening. "Why are we naked?"

"Two reasons." the mare said. "One is to make you more in touch with the environment. I find it easier to meditate in this state."

"And the other?"

"To give you a bit of challenge. I want to see if you can focus while having a beautiful mare sitting in front of you, while naked." she said with a massive smirk.

"You're such a tease." They both chuckled and began to meditate again. They sat in quiet for hours, as the only sound that surrounded them was the cascading water.

Author's Note

Short chapter this time, but I stil hope you enjoyed it.
As a condolence I'll give you a small hint for the next chapter, its title:
The Beauty and the Beat.
Lets see how many guess correctly, what the next one will talk about.
Until next time.

Chapter 20: The Beauty and the Beat

"Will you stop scratching yourself already?" Twilight complained in an annoyed tone. She and Trider were making their way through town, passing by other ponies, who were greeting them.

"I told you already, I can't." the Kanisar retorted as he continued to ferociously scratch his head. "These fleas are fucking killing me."

"Can you at least not scratch yourself while I'm around? I don't want you to infect me as well." she sighed and took a step away from him.

"Sorry." he apologized and stopped. "It's all that bitch's fault. I swear if I ever meet her again, I'm gonna rip off her head and shit down her throat." Trider grumbled as he tried to resist the temptation of scratching.

"That's a bit excessive Trider." Twilight grimaced at the thought. "And I already told you it wasn't entirely Trixies fault. She was influenced by the amulet."

"Was that before or after she changed me into a dog, drove you out of town and enslaved it's citizens?" he argued, as sweat began to cascade down his face.

The mare gave him a deadpanned look before rolling her eyes. "Oh c'mon, it couldn't have been that bad."

Trider stopped in his tracks, making Twilight stop as well. "Beside being turned another species? Hmmm, let me think." he said as he put a hand to his chin. "Oh yeah, how about not being able to communicate with others, having to rely on Fluttershy to speak for me, having been continuousy pet by the town children and Pinkie, having been laughed at by both Rarity and Dash, getting the fleas..." he continued as he raised a finger for every point he made. "And don't even make me start on Winona. I can't even go to AJ's without her trying to jump me."

"I'm sure she is just happy to see you." Twilight tried to argue.

"Yeah, I'm sure she is. But I doubt she only expects bellyrubs from me." Trider said sarcastically, as he shivered at the thought. Right at that moment he felt a sharp pain in his tail, that made him yelp out. "OH NO!" he screamed out, gaining the attention of everypony nearby. "They're in my tail now!" He began to scratch and bite his tail, trying to rid himself of the unwanted pests.

Twilight sighed as she approached the Kanisar and gave him a slip of paper. "Here." she said as she handed him the paper. "Your appointment at the spa is in 15 minutes. Why don't you head over there now and see if they'll accept you early."

Quickly grabbing the paper, Trider booked it towards the spa. While he was making a run for it, Twilight continued her shopping, finally having some peace. Suddenly a thought occured to her.

"Does he even know where the spa is?"

***

"WHERE THE FUCK IS IT???" Trider yelled out as he ran across all of the town. It's been ten minutes since he left Twilight and he still couldn't find the spa. "WHERE IS IT?"

His hair was a complete mess, even more than usual, and so was his tail. His pupils were the size of pinpricks and were shifting from side to side, desperately trying to locate the building. Ponies steered clear of him, fearing he might lash out at any moment. As he continued to run through the streets, he suddenly crashed into someone.

"Owww." he cried out as he picked himself up. "Watch where you're going!"

"Excuse me? I belive you're the one who should be apologising." the person he crashed into argued. Trider noticed they were talking in a strange accent and when he lifted his head he saw who it was.

It was a grey coated earth mare with black, well groomed mane and tail. She wore a grey dress shirt and knee-length skirt. Under her shirt she had a white bouse and she had a pink bow tied around her neck. She was glaring daggers at him, with her purple eyes.

"Why?" Trider asked confused, as he continued to scratch his head.

The mare gave him a nasty look. "Why? Because it was you who crashed into me." she retorted.

Gears turned in Kanisars head as he tried to recall if that was true, since he didn't remember the last few minutes. Eventually he gave up and sighed. "Fine, I guess. I'm sorry if I knocked you down and all that crap." He offered her his hand and the mare took it.

When he lifted her up she looked at him in disdain. "Apology accepted, despite it being half-assed." Now that she was eye level, she noticed he wasn't a pony and gave him a look over. "Pardon me, but what are you exactly?" she asked in curiosity.

"Ah, the good old who I am question. Never get tired of hearing it." he said mockingly. "I am a Kanisar from planet Inu, I've crashed landed here, when Twilight, the librarian of this town, accidentally teleported me here against my will and I've been stuck here ever since with no hope of ever seeing my home or friends ever again. But it's not so bad I guess, I made a few friends, have been in more fights than I have fingers on my hands, nearly died just as many times, have nearly led to the destruction of an empire. Oh and I've got flees." he quickly answered, making Pinkie proud. The mare just stared at him her mouth opening and closing like a fish.

After a while she gained her bearings and smiled. "Oh really?" she said in a reserved tone. "It sounds like you led a really tough life."

"You have no idea." Trider thought.

The mare then began to inspect him again, as she seemed to be thinking over something. "I can't put my finger on it, but somehow I think I've seen or heard about you before." she said as she tried to remember.

"Tavi!" Both the mare and Trider turned towards where the voice was coming from.

"Over here!" the mare called back and saw two other mares approaching them.

"I've found Vinly. She was window shopping at the music shop. Who are you talking to?" one of the mares asked. When Trider looked over the mares shoulder his eyes widened at who it was.

"Rose?"

"Trider?"

The two looked at each other for a little while before Rose hugged the Kanisar. "Oh it's so good to see you again." she said as she embraced her friend.

"Likewise." said Trider as he returned the hug. The sound of someone clearing their throat drew their attention. They looked at the grey mare who was wearing a smug smirk.

"Oh don't mind me." she excused herself. Letting go of each other, Rose stepped towards the mare and draped her arm over her shoulder.

"You're just jealous Tavi, since you can't find a stallion that suits your exquisite tastes." she joked, making the gray mare glare at her.

"Are these friends of yours?" Trider asked as he watched the two mares go at each other.

"A little bit more than that actually." Rose said as she let go of the mare. "These are my sisters."

Trider gave her a bewildered look. "You never told you had sisters." he exclaimed.

The Rose and the grey mare giggled, while the other one simply bobbed her head. "You never asked." she retorted.

Trider shrugged. "Fair enough." he said. "But still, who would have thought that Fancy Pants had three beautiful daughters like you."

"Ehhh, actually, we're not blood related." The statement confused the Kanisar, so Rose decided to explain. "We all grew up in the same orphanage and we bonded with each other while we were there. So we're sisters only in name."

"Wait, so you're all orphans?" Trider asked, wanting to confirm he heard right. Rose and the mare nodded. "We could actually make a club. You, your sisters, me and Dyna. We could call ourselves the Renegades."

"As tempting as that sounds, I'll have to decline your offer." the gray mare refused.

"Anyway. Let me introduce you guys." Rose interjected. "Trider, this is my elder sister Octavia Philharmonia. Tavi this is Trider Lykosgrothia, y'know the alien I told you about."

"Sup'." Trider said nonchalantly while offering his hand.

"A pleasure." Octavia greeted back and shook his hand. "I knew you seemed familiar and now I know why. Rose told me so much about you and the troubles you've caused."

"To be fair, I'm only solely responsible for about two thirds of them. The others are freak accidents." Trider defended himself.

"Sure." Octavia replied with a roll of her eyes. They then turned their attention to the other mare who was still bobbing her head to the sound of the music that was coming out of her headphones.

Unlike Rose and Octavia, who had a more sophisticated look, this mare looked like she is heading to a wild party. Her messy blue and electric blue mane stood out against her white coat. She wore a pair of purple shades that covered her eyes, a white short sleeved jacket, a short white skirt, purple leggings and purple fingerless gloves.

When the mare realised all eyes were on her she stopped her bobbing and removed her headphones, giving the group her undivided attention.

"And this is my other elder sister, Vinyl Scratch or as other ponies know her as DJ-PON3. Vinyl this is Trider, you know, the dog I had to watch over."

Vinyl smiled and nodded. Then she raised her hands and did some gestures with them. Trider just looked at her confused.

"Is she trying to be a mime? Cuz if she is, then she's failing at it." Trider remarked, earning a scowl from the mare.

"No, no. She's using sign language to communicate. You see, she was born mute and can't talk." Rose explained. "I'm guessing you don't know it right?"

"Nope." the Kanisar affirmed. "But I'm proficient in feet language." he said and did a small jig, ending it with jazz hands. The mares face palmed at his joke. Vinyl then lit her horn and pulled a small apparatus out of her pocket. She disconnected her headphones from the device and it too was then enveloped in magic.

"Hello. It's a pleasure. To meet you." the greeting came out of the device, sounding like someone took clips of different songs and pasted them together.

"Wicked." was Triders only reply. "So what exactly are you doing here? Are you on some kind of mission or...?" he asked Rose.

She shook her head. "No, nothing of the sorts. You see, my sisters have been thinking of moving away from Canterlot, but didn't know where exactly. So I suggested Ponyville. I'm here to show them around and see if it fits them." the mare explained.

"Ahhh, I see. Well let me tell you it's a great place and I certainly hope you decide to live here." he then leaned closer as he whispered. "But don't listen to anything other ponies tell you about me. It's all lies."

Just at that moment Trider was reminded of the urgent matter he had to tend to. "Aughh, not fucking again." he wallowed as he began to scratch himself.

The mares looked at him in concern and Rose approached him. "Trider what's wrong?" she asked.

"THE FLEAS ARE EATING ME ALIVE!!!" he screamed.

"I'm sorry, what?" Rose said in utter confusion.

"I've been infected by fleas, when I was turned into a dog." Trider explained. "GET THEM THE FUCK OFF ME!"

"I thought you were joking when you said you had fleas." Octavia said as she took a step backwards.

"Does it fucking look like I was joking?" he exclaimed. "I need to get to the spa. It's the only way."

"Then lets go. It just so happens we also were heading there as well." Rose said as she approached her sisters and they began to walk off. "Just follow us." she said to the Kanisar and he did as he was told.

***

Octavia and Vinyl were relaxing in the small pool, as the hot herbal water was washing away any stress they had. "Isn't this nice Vinyl?" Vinyl made a few gestures, but didn't raise her head from the edge of the pool. "I agree. It is heavenly here." Their peaceful bath was interrupted when they heard someone running towards them.

"CANNONBALL!" the person screamed. Before the mares had time to react they were swallowed by the torrent of water. Once the water settled the grey mare glared at the culprit.

"Trider! Why in the name of Celestia did you do that?" Octavia almost screamed at him.

"The better question is, why not?" he retorted. Vinyl nodded as she signed her remark.

"Don't you side with him Vinyl. What he did was childish and dangerous." the mare fumed. Vinyl simply gave Trider a thumb up and grinned. Octavia face-palmed and sighed.

"Ahh, but I gotta say, this feels nice." Trider said as he sank deeper into the water. Octavia looked at him and smiled.

"True, me and Vinyl were just... talking... about..." she trailed off as she stared at Trider. Her face then flushed red and she covered her eyes. "T-Trider?"

"Hmmm?" he responded.

"Where are your swimming trunks?" she asked as she took a small peek through her fingers.

When both genders were using the pool, the spa gave out a set of swimwear to their customers so they could cover themselves up. Both Octavia and Vinyl were wearing their bland white two piece swimsuit. Trider on the other hand...

"I left them in the changing room. Why do you ask?" he answered.

Vinyl then looked at Trider as well and gave a loud whistle, while waggling her eyebrows. "Don't encourage him Vinyl!" Octavia scolded. "Didn't they tell you, you had to wear them when entering the bath with those of the other sex?"

"Actually what they said was that if I wanted to. They never said it was mandatory." Trider argued back.

"Even so, you shouldn't just-"

"OK, let me stop you right there." he interjected. "This is a bath, so isn't it normal to enter it naked?" Octavia wanted to retort, but he didn't let her. "And if you don't like what you see, you can just look away, you pervert."

"Wha-? Did you just call me a pervert?" Trider nodded and Vinyl made a gesture that made Octavia even angrier. "Not you too Vinyl!" Giving up she sank into the water, hoping she could calm down. "I hope Rose gets here soon." she mumbled.

"You called?" They all looked towards, where the voice came from. Rose was slowly making her way towards the bath. "It seems you guys are enjoying it quite a lot." she said in glee.

"I wish." Octavia grunted, while Vinyl and Trider nodded.

Trider then looked at Rose questioningly. "Where did you get that swimsuit Rose?" he asked.

The mare raised her eyebrow, before she realised what he meant. Unlike with Octavia and Vinyl, her swimsuit was black and a one piece, completely covering her body. "I bought it in Canterlot a while back. Do you like it?" she asked.

"It's nice, but why exactly are you wearing it here? Don't the staff give you one of their own?" The question although innocent made Rose stop, as a sad expression fell over her face.

"It's just that I haven't wore it in a while and I wanted to see, if it still fits me." she explained, while Octavia and Vinyl looked at her with worry. Trider however didn't catch their grim expressions and simply shrugged. Sighing in relief Rose joined them in the bath.

After a while Octavia looked at the scarlet maned mare. "Please. Can you tell him to put his trunks on?" she pleaded.

"I'm sorry, but even i can't convince him." she apologised, as her eyes fell over Triders form, stopping at one spot in particular. "Besides you can just look away. No one's forcing you to look at his junk."

"She can't help it. She's a pervert." Vinyl signed, making Octavia glare at her and making Rose laugh.

"My Octavia, I didn't think you were that kind of mare." she said, as everyone beside Octavia bursted out in laughter.

"Celestia, spare me from my misery." Octavia sighed as she sank up to her nostrils in water.

***

When they were done with their bath, they then continued on with different kind of massages, sauna and even mudbaths, during which they got to know each other. Trider learned that both Octavia and Vinyl were in the music business, Octavia being part of a well renowned orchestra and Vinyl being a famous DJ. He also learned that Octavia may or may not have been adopted into a criminal family. He didn't dare to snoop any further, since he knew that he could get into real trouble and that wouldn't sit well with Twilight. Vinyl on the other hand was never adopted and was living by herself up until now.

Right now Trider was standing outside the spa with the two mares, waiting for Rose. He tapped his foot against the cobble ground as he became more and more impatient.

"Where the hell is she?" he asked in annoyance.

"Be patient Trider. A girl has to make sure she looks wonderful when she goes around." Octavia defended her sister.

Trider however didn't buy it. "I'm gonna get her." he said as he charged back inside.

"Trider wait!" Octavia called out, as she tried to stop him, but wasn't fast enough. The Kanisar stomped his way through the building until he reached the changing rooms. He looked for the one Rose was in and without knocing entered.

"Rose, what the hell is taking you so long?" he exclaimed when he stepped in. His advance was halted when he saw her swimsuit cligning just to her waist, leaving her top completely exposed. They both stood there frozen, until Trider began to back off. "I'll just let you change." he said as he reached for the door knob. "I'll be waiting outside." He stepped out and leaned onto the door.

He stood in the halway waiting for his friend to change out of her swimsuit. Soon he heard her knocking on the door, so he stepped away from them. He expected her to get out of the room, but instead he heard her tell him to get inside. He grabbed the knob and twisted it, opening the door. When he stepped inside he was met with a cold galre from the mare.

"Look I'm sorry I just barged-"

"Did you see it?" she stopped his apology with her question.

Trider closed his eyes and nodded. "I did." He knew exactly what she was reffering to. The large scar that covered most of her right side and back. There was no fur there whatsoever, just pink flesh. "How did you get it?" he asked.

She sighed as she sat down on the bench in the room. "On one of my missions." she said, as she started to explain exactly what happened. "We were chasing down a group of rouge dragons and when we caught them they put up a hell of a fight. During our battle, one of my teammates was knocked down by one of them and was about to be burnt to a crisp. But thankfully I came just in time and saved her. However not without consequences." She removed part of her turtle neck to show a small bit of the scar on her neck. "It took two months of treatment and physiotherapy, until I was once again ready to return to the Guards." she continued.

"And why are you trying so hard to hide it?" Trider asked.

Rose gave him a venomous glare, that made him take a step back. "Why? Can't you tell why? Because it's disgusting that's why!" she exclamied, picking up in volume as she continued. "Even my coltfriend at the time couldn't stand it, saying it was to horrific to look at, as did every stallion and mare I tried to date ever since. Even my dream of being a model, once I got out of the Guard, was destroyed."

Tears began to fall down her face as her facade began to crumble. "Even when I went outside and was wearing something that didn't hide my scar, ponies would stare at me and talk behind my back." She dropped down to the floor as she was out right crying her eyes out. "I hate it. I hate it." She lifted her head to look Trider in the eyes. "Sometimes I wish I hadn't saved that rookie, just so I could have a normal life."

Trider didn't know what to do. The once confident and upbeat mare he knew, was now crying on the floor in front of him, completely broken. Without thinking he kneeled down to her and hugged her.

"Shhhh, it's OK." he said to calm her down.

"It's not OK." she exclaimed, trying to push him away. "Don't try to console me. I know you're digusted by it too."

"And if I told you I wasn't?" The statement made Rose stop her struggling, as she listened to him intently. "Sure it's not pretty, but that doesn't make you any less beautiful." He relesed her from his hug, to look her in her teary eyes.

"In fact it makes you even more beautiful. I don't think I ever told this to anyone, but Applejack, but I don't much care what you look like. All I really care about is who you are as a person. And that scar is the proof of what a great person you are." he said.

Rose looked at him in disbelief. She just couldn't believe what he was telling her, so she tried to see any sign of deceit, but found none. "You really mean that?" she asked in a shaky voice.

"May Celestia smite me where I stand, if I am in any way lying." he said.

Tears began to flow down the mares face, once more. "So if we'd be dating, hypothetically, you wouldn't be ashamed or grossed out by my apperance?"

"Kind of an odd scenario." he said as he raised a brow at it. "But I wouldn't, in fact I'd be proud if I called someone like you a friend."

Unable to cope with her flurry of emotions, Rose hugged Trider and burried her head into her chest and cried. "Thank you." she said with a muffled voice. "Thank you. I really needed to hear that."

The two continued to hug each other, while unbeknownst to them, that two very nosy mares were listening to their conversation just outside the room.

***

"Come visit soon." Trider said as he saw the mares off at the train station. "And I hope you two decide to move to Ponyville. We can then have another spa day, like today."

The two mares nodded and smiled. "It would be a pleasure, although I would prefer if you'd wear something over yourself next time. At least a towel." Octavia said, while Vinyl made 'pervert' gesture. At that moment the train whistle sounded off, signaling the train departure. The mares stepped into wagon and made their way to an empty compartment.

As soon as they settled in, the train began to move. They moved to the window and saw the Kanisar waving. They all waved back and once they were too far away to see each other, they sat down on their seats.

"So..." Octavia said as she eyed her little sister. "He seems to be the one you were looking for."

Roses eyes widened. "You two heard what we were saying?" Both mares nodded, making the scarlet maned mare blush. "You guys are awful. Didn't daddy tell you not to snoop around?"

"Who cares?" Octavia said as she waved her hand. "All that matters is that he is the one. And just so you know, we both are completely supporting you."

Rose looked at her sisters with joy and hugged them both. "Thank you guys."

Author's Note

I again apologise for the long wait. Once again I was piled with school work, while also writing a new story.
But you guys forgive me. Right?
I dunno.
Goddammit Pinkie, stop breaking the 4th wall.
Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as well.
Until next time.

Chapter 21: Forgiveness

Trider laid on the grass patch in the middle of nowhere and observed the starry sky above him. He watched as the two moons drifted across the sky, illuminating the surrouding scenery. He heard the sounds of hoofsteps, but didn't turn around, since he knew exactly who it was.

"How is the dream?" Luna asked as she sat down next to him.

"It's tranquil and soothing. Reminds me of the times before the war broke out." Trider replied, without averting his eyes from the stars. "But it also fills me with sorrow, since I'll never be able to see my planet again... Or learn what happened to my people."

Luna gave him a pittied look, regreting creating such a dream. "Trider I am truly sorry, if I knew it would make you feel this way I would have..."

"Shhhhhhh." Trider stopped her by putting a finger on her lips. "Don't worry Lu, I'm not angry or sad, I'm happy actually." he soothed her. "This is the only way I'll ever see my planet and the people I left behind. And that is no reason to be unhappy, right?"

The moon princess smiled and nodded. They then returned to watching the sky and the many stars that littered it. Eventually Luna decided to speak up.

"Is something bothering you Trider?" she asked.

The Kanisar gave her a wondering look. "Beside the PTSD? The only thing I can think of are the fleas I had not too long ago. Those things need to be put out of our misery." he answered, his voice oozing with sarcasm.

Luna rolled her eyes and lightly smacked his chest. "Do you always have to joke?" she said while giggling. However her expression became serious again. "But I am serious. Has something been troubling your mind recently?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Lately your nightmares have become more intense than before. You are no longer haunted by just the ponies you... hurt, but also by some unclear individuals." she explained. "Do you have any idea why that might be?" she inquired.

Trider pretended to be in deep thought, but in reality he knew exactly why he would feel anxious. He got into a sitting position and casted his gaze into the distance. "I do." he stated, gaining Lunas full attention.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It probably has something to do with the public apology I'm supposed to deliver in the Crystal Empire." When he said that Luna immediatelly realised what has been bothering him.

"You're afraid aren't you?" she stated. "Afraid of facing the ponies you hurt and their families."

"OK, afraid is a bit of a stretch, it's more like... unnerving." Trider said with a annoyed tone. His expression turned gloomy as he lowered his head. "I don't know what I can say to them. I mean, how can you say sorry to someone after you've taken the life of someone close to them. There is none."

Luna placed a hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eyes. "I know it is hard, believe me, but the best way to do it is to just say you're sorry. It is then up to them if they are willing to forgive you or not." she soothed him. "But what you have to remember is that your apology has to be sincere, otherwise there is no point in actually doing it." Trider nodded and Luna smiled. "When is this event supposed to take place anyway?" she asked.

"Today." Trider replied quickly. The mare merely stared at him.

"What?"

"In fact I'm riding the train there right now."

Luna simply placed a hand on her forehead and sighed. "Truly, only you would be able to sleep right before such an important event."

The Kanisar simply shrugged. "Everyone's got their way of dealing with stress. Mine is sleeping."

"Well I think you've had enough of it." Luna said as she and the dreamscape began to deteriorate. "Until next time Trider."

"See ya later."

***

Trider slowly opened his eyes and saw the familiar sight of his carts ceiling. Lifting himself upward he sat into the seat and looked around. His eyes stopped on the lavender mare that was reading a book.

"What'ya readin there Twi?" he asked innocently.

Twilight stopped her reading to look at the Kanisar. "Oh Trider you're awake." she said as she placed the book into her lap. "Nothing major, just a little novel that Rarity let me borrow."

"Uh-huh." Trider nodded, a mischevious smirk stretching across his face. "But I am impressed that you're able to read it upside-down with such ease. I'm barely able to read it rightside-up."

The mares eyes widened and she looked down onto her book and true to his words, the book was facing the wrong way. "I-I can explain this." she stammered, trying to come up with an excuse.

"You were watching me sleep, weren't you?" Trider asked, already knowing the answer to his question.

Twilights eyes shifted from side to side, trying to find a good distraction, but unfortunatelly for her, there were none. Sighing she buried her head into her hands as she blushed. "Yeah." she admitted.

Chuckling lightly, Trider reached over and patted her head. "It's OK Twi, I ain't mad."

The mare gave him a light smile, as she leaned into his hand, sighing happily. Once Trider was done petting her, she slightly whimpered, disappointed that it had already ended.

"But I do have to ask, why were you watching me?" he inquired.

"You looked like you were having a nightmare, but then you seemed to settle down, however I couldn't help but be worried, I guess." Twilight explained. There was another reason why she did it, but she could never tell him, that she enjoyed watching his peaceful, slumbering face.

While Twilight was lost in her thoughts, Trider looked around the cart, noticing that others weren't present. "Where did the others go?" he asked.

Shaking out of her thoughts the mare looked at him. "Oh well, they went to the foodcart to get something to eat." As soon as she uttered that sentence Triders stomach began to growl. The two excahnged a silent look, before the Kanisar stood up.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, I could go for a sandwich or a dozen." he said.

Twilight simply rolled her eyes, before she too stood up and the two of them went after their friends into the foodcart. As they were making their way, the mare looked at Trider with concern. Eventually she decided to speak up.

"Trider, are you feeling alright?" she asked meekly.

"I'm fine Twi." Trider sighed. "I've already had a talk with Lu about this and she helped me calm down a bit." She seemed to be content with his answer and said nothing as they entered the next cart.

***

"Hold still darling, otherwise I won't be able to cover it up." Rarity complained as she levitated a brush and applied some make up onto Triders face.

"Yeah, yeah." was his only response as he settled down and allowed the fashionista to continue with her work undisturbed.

"I still can't believe that you let that guy wail on you like that." Dash said as she and others watched Rarity cover up Triders black eye and bruises on his face.

"I told you already it's fine, this is the least I deserve." Trider said with a monotone voice.

When they arrived into the city, they immediatelly headed for the castle to meet up with Cadance and Shining Armor. When their meet and greet was over they began their trek across the Empire to visit every family of the ones Trider had killed in his rampage and personally apologise. The Kanisar thought that the ponies would be unforgiving, but contrary to belief a lot of them were understanding. They forgave him and even consoled him, telling him it wasn't his fault.

But not everyone was so understanding however. Some of them kicked him out of their homes, others simply shut their doors on him and one of them even spitted in his face. But that was still mild to what Trider was expecting. Even the encounter with the father of a colt he had murdered, ended up with him in the shape he was currently in, and nothing worse, despite thinking he deserved much worse.

"Even so, you could've at least let us help you." Applejack said and others nodded.

"No, it's better this way." Trider disagreed.

"All done." then said Rarity and handed the Kanisar a mirror. "It was a pain, but I think I outdid myself, if I say so myself." she boasted.

Giving a quick look Trider saw she did an outstanding job. "Thanks Rarity." he said. "So, when is the public apology supposed to take place?"

"Right now." Their attention was averted towards the rooms door and beneath the door frame stood Shining Armor. "If you're done that is?"

"All good." Trider confirmed. "Let's go guys." They all stood up and one by one they each left the room. Trider was the last to leave, but was stopped by Shining. "Something the matter?" he asked the stallion.

"I just want to have a quick word with you." he said. "I'll be frank, I don't like you."

"Join the club."

"And honestly I think you're too dangerous to be kept around without being under constant surveilance. Not to mention you're rude and an overall loose cannon." Shining continued to rattle off.

"Ugh, can you just get to the point?" Trider moaned.

"Anyway, what I want to say is that despite the many flaws you have, I have to commend you for going through this. Not many would be able to do what you're doing. And I can respect that. I can also see that you're fairly close to my sister, her friends and the princesses, so I was thinking." He then extended his arm. "What do you say if we try to get along from now on?"

Trider looked at his curiously and then he smiled. "No way." He said and walked past the stallion, leaving him behind.

"What?" Shining asked confused. "What do you mean 'no way'?"

Trider stopped and twisted his head so he was looking at the stallion. "If we try to get along then that would mean we'd have to pretned we're best buddies, and quite frankly, I'd hate that." He once again began to walk away. "Besides, I have this mentality that people get closer to each other if they're honest with one another, instead of acting like there is nothing wrong." Shining was left speechless. He didn't expect him to say something like that. Smiling to himself he followed the Kanisar.

***

Trider and the group were stnading on the castles balcony that overlooked the city. Ponies began to gather beneath the building, since they were told that there would be a public announcment.

"You sure you can do this Trider? I know I wouldn't be able to." asked Fluttershy as she peeked over the ledge, before quickly retreating.

"I'm sure." he said as he took a couple of deep breaths.

"Ready when you are." said Cadance as she held the microphone. Trider simply nodded and the princess of love approached the ledge.

"Crystal ponies." she spoke into the microphone, her booming voice gaining everyones attention. "As you may remember, several weeks ago King Sombra has been defeated, thanks to the effort of Spike the Brave and his friends." As soon as she said his name the audience began to clap, making the drake blush. "However." Cadance continued. "Before the Crystal Empire was freed, King Sombra tried to stop our attempts at finding the Crystal Heart and he did so by corrupting a close friend of ours." The ponies began to murmur as they weren't sure where this was going. "When he did this vile act, he sent our friend on a rampage through the city, against his will, which ended in several lost lives." When she said that the crowd went silent. "Today this friend is here to apologise to everypony for the act he had been forced to do, by his own wish." Cadance walked towards Trider and handed him the mic. "They're all yours."

Gingerly he approached the railing and looked down at the ponies gathered. A lump formed in his throat and he could barely breathe. He looked back and saw all of his friends giving him thumbs up and other encouraging gestures. Taking a deep breath he raised the microphone and spoke.

"H-hi. You probably don't know me and are even wondering what the hell I am. So it's only polite to first introduce myself. My name is Trider Lykosgrothia and I'm a Kanisar from planet Inu." At his statement the crowd began to buzz even louder. "Yes I know it sounds ridiculous, but we're not here so you could argue if what I'm saying is true or not. No, we're here because I have something to say." He took a quick pause to gather his nerves before he continued. "I've been told by all of my friends, acquaintaces, that it wasn't my fault for what I did. But I don't see it that way.

"Those lives were taken by my hands and no matter how much I wash them, the blood wil remain there. I've been having nightmares about the event, every single night and if it wasn't for Luna I'd probably have gone insane. And that is the reason why I'm standing here today, speaking to you. To calm my mind, but not just becasue of that. No. You see, I know what it's like to lose someone close to you. I lost my parents when I was young and so I know how many of you feel, and I know that you have the right to hear what I'm about to tell you."

He took another pause and then continued. "I am truly sorry. Because of me some of you have suffered a great tragedy, that no matter how hard I try, can ever be undone. I'm not asking for your forgiveness, I'm just happy that you got to hear me out. Thank you."

Everything was quiet, nobody made a sound and it was slowly beginning to make Trider feel anxious. He knew this was coming, he was prepared for this, but at the same time, he wasn't. Just then the sound of clapping could be heard and was soon followed by even more clapping. Very soon the whole crowd was clapping and cheering for the Kanisar. His friends surrounded him and made him the center of their group hug.

"That was an excelent apology." Twilight said as she embraced him.

"Imagine if I had prepared myself for it though." he joked as he sank into the hug. The weight was lifted off his shoulders and he felt at ease. These ponies were something else entirely. He was beginning to feel glad he was dragged here. If anypony took a closer look at him, they'd see tears welling in the corner of his eyes, but Trider would undoubtedly deny it.

Author's Note

Nobody expects the fanfiction inquisition.
I bet many of you thought there wouldn't be another chapter for a while. Well joke's on you.
Anyway I have some good news and maybe some bad news.
Good news: only one more chapter before we return to the story. (up until now would've been considered filler if it was anime)
Possible bad news: SCHOOL!!! I have a lot of stuff to do in the next week and I can't say when the next chapter will be out. Why is this a 'possible' bad news? Weeeeeeeeell, maybe I'll find some time to write it, maybe not. Who knows?
So until next time dear readers.

Chapter 22: Back in Action, It's Time for Farewells

Trider stood in the middle of the orchard, his eyes closed and ears perked. The sounds of rustling leaves and insects was all he could hear.

Then he heard something else or rather someone. He quickly sidestepped narrowly avoiding Rainbow Dash, who came at him with great speed. Her hooves dug into the ground as she skidded across the ground and stopped. But Trider didn't have time to observe her, as another attack was coming at him. This time from Spike.

The drake tried to punch the Kanisar, while his back was turned, but he ducked under it. Spike however didn't falter, using his tail to strike the man across his chest. Trider felt air leaving his lungs as the tail connected, however he didn't let that stop him from counter-attacking. Grabbing Spikes tail he quickly stood up and twisted his body. The drake was lifted off his feet and sent hurtling towards Rainbow. The mare saw her friend flying at her, so she dodged him and instantly went for Trider again.

The Kanisar however decided to fly up and take their fight to the skies. The mare followed him and the two engaged in mid-air combat. They exchanged blow for blow, neither relenting. As they continued their fight, Trider failed to notice a fireball flying at him. An explosion nearly knocked him out of the sky, but he quickly corrected himself. He cast his gaze down towards the ground and saw Spike, whose hand was englfed in flames.

Not letting up his assault the drake fired shot after shot of fireballs at Trider. The Kanisar however skillfully dodged every single one of them. But he didn't forget about his other opponent. Just as he evaded another fireball, he saw Rainbow flying at him. He smacked a fireball with the back of his hand away from himself and focused on the mare, who was now up in his face. They once again engaged and it was clear Trider had a lot of trouble with her, because he also had to dodge Spikes attacks. Slowly he was pushed back by the mare and drake and he had to think fast.

And his chance came when one of the fireballs went stray from its course and was heading for Rainbow instead. She managed to dodge it, but that left her open for Triders attack. "Piston Cannon, Distrike." The mare was sent flying backwards by his punch and while she was still soaring backwards another invisible punch connected with her, this time sending her upwards.

With Rainbow taken care of he redirected his focus onto the dragon below. When his gaze fell onto Spike he saw he was preparing another attack, this one however was different.

"Chains of Tartarus!" Spike yelled and swung his fire engulfed arms in an arc. As he did so numerous fireballs were shot from them, creating some sort of fire chain. As the chain was approaching Trider, he focused his Ki into his hands. When the fireballs were mere feet away from him he unleashed a barrage of Ki blasts and cleared some of the fire, just enough for it to pass him. When the attacks connected it resulted in large quantities of smoke.

A gush of wind cleared the smoke and revealed Trider floating in the air unscathed. "Nice try." he called out to Spike with a smile.

"Who said I was trying?" he retorted with a grin. The Kaniasr realised too late that he was only distracting him. He didn't even have a chance to turn around when a hoof connected with his back.

"You're mine!" Rainbow shouted. The kick sent Trider flying forward, but before he had time to correct himself, the mare was already in front of him. Again she delivered another kick and sent him hurtling in the opposite direction. She repeated this, not giving the Kanisar any room to react, as she continued to beat on him. Then when she kicked him upwards, she flew above him and drop kicked him into the ground below.

Trider crashed and created a small crater in the ground. He groaned as he picked himself up. He heard the sound of wing flaps and when he looked up he saw the smirking mare. "Did you like that?" she asked, a massive grin plastered on her face. "I call it the Sky Beat Combo. Made it up myself." she bragged and Trider only rolled his eyes.

"You sure you have time to boast while I'm still able to fight?" The mares eyes widened when she realsied he was right, but didn't have time to answer as Trider quickly jumped at her.

"Piston Cannon, Impact." he simply said as he struck Rainbows gut with the palms of both of his hands. The force of the strike was so great that Rainbow was sent flying so far that the Kanisar couldn't see her anymore. Dusting himself he faced Spike and smiled. "Guess that leaves just you and me."

The drake looked back with determination. "Today I'll be the one who wins Trider." he said steeling his nerves. "I'm not going to hold back."

"I'm not expecting you to do so." Trider retorted.

Spike took a deep breath and relaxed his muscles. Soon his skin turned reddish and steam began to escape his body. The Kanisar looked at him with intrigue. "So, you finally got the hang of it, did you?"

"Not really, it's still hard to keep this up, but I can last five minutes now at least." Spike answered with a chuckle.

"Good. Come at me then." Trider taunted.

Spike unleashed a loud roar and closed the distance between the two in the blink of an eye. The drake unleashed a barrage of attacks, each one fiercer than the one before. Trider however fought back with the same vigor. As they exchanged blows, Trider failed to notice a rainbow blur flying high into the sky, but Spike did notice. When he determined it was the right moment he blew smoke out of his mouth obscuring their surrouding area.

Trider coughed while trying to determine where the dragon was. "You planning on hiding forever?" he shouted inot the smoke.

Suddenly he was grabbed from behind and put into a hold. He tried to struggle and get out of the hold, but Spike proved to have mastered the move. "Is this all you have? I will break out of this, you know that right? Even before you have a chance to actually hurt me?" he mocked Spike as he continued to slowly slip out of his grasp.

"That's why I won't be the one to deal the finishing blow." the drake retorted with a smile. It was only then that Trider noticed Rainbow flying at them with her top speed. When she got close enough, that Spike knew the attack would definitely connect, he released the Kanisar and dropped to the ground, to avoid being hit as well. Trider could only watch as Rainbow twisted her body around at the last moment and delivered a powerful spinkick into his chest.

The force of the strike sent Trider soaring across the ground until he crashed into a large boulder and was left embedded into it. He remained there unmoving and Rainbow and Spike began to think that they might have overdone it.

"Trider you okay there dude?" Rainbow called out, but received no answer. They began to sweat and hurried to their friend. But a loud cry stopped them in their tracks. Trider pushed himself out of the hole he was stuck in and jumped down onto the ground. He was badly bruised, but it didn't seem he was any worse for wear.

He breathed heavily and kept his head down. The mare and drake slowly approached him. "Trider?" Spike called out the Kanisars name.

Trider however just unleashed a powerful scream. As he was screaming he seemed to unleash some sort of pressure that created small gusts of wind around him. "It's not over. It can't be over." he said as a dark aura began to envelop him. "I need to be stronger." he continued to mumble as his eyes turned bloody red.

Spike and Rainbow watched him in fright, knowing he was losing it. But before Trider could fully succumb to his instincts, he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths. The dark aura disappeared and when he opened his eyes they were back to their bright green color. The mare and drake sighed in relief. "You scared us for a second there Trider." Spike said as they both stepped up to the Kanisar.

"Sorry 'bout that." he apologised. "I think this all for today."

"Ya sure, cause I can still go up for a round or two." Rainbow said as she shadow boxed.

"I'm sure." Trider said with a chuckle. "The only reason why I wanted to spar with you two was to see if I'm back to my old form, and I can gladly say, that it seems I am." He then gave the other two a small smile. "And it seems you two weren't slacking off while I was recovering."

"Yeah, when you were in coma I tried to train by myself, but it wasn't doing any good, so I asked Rainbow if she wanted to help and she agreed." Spike explained.

"I can see that it helped both of you and not just in becoming stronger, but also your teamwork. You guys fought like a well oiled machine." he praised them, making Spike blush, while Rainbow soaked it in like she was a sponge.

"Of course we are. I mean, Spike still has some things to work out, but he still has room to improve improve." she boasted, while Spike gave her a glare.

"You're not any better. Who in their right mind would brag in front of their opponent when they were still able to fight." Spike quipped back. The two began to bicker, while trider just watched. Suddenly a sharp pain coursed through his left arm, making him hiss. Rainbow and Spike stopped arguing to look at their friend.

"You alright there big guy?" Rainbow asked worried.

"Yeah, I'll live. Thanks for asking." Trider answered as he rubbed the sore spot. "I'm sure Twilight can patch it."

"Right after she scolds you for being reckless, right?" Spike said with a grin.

"Of course." Trider sighed. "And she'll give me even more of an earfull, cause I got so beat up a day before I leave."

"Oh yeah, you two are leaving for the Wonderbolt and Royal Guard Academy tomorrow aren't you?" Spike realised.

"Yup. Starting tomorrow, me and Tri here are gonna bust our asses off." Rainbow affirmed Spikes question.

"Who am I supposed to train with then?" the drake asked in a gloomy tone. Both Trider and Rainbow placed a hand on each of his shoulders.

"Don't worry buddy, we won't be gone for long. We'll be back before you know it." Rainbow reassured him.

"Yeah, besides you can always ask Dynamism to help you out." Trider suggested with a wiggle of his eyebrows. Spike didn't catch what he was implying. "I just regret that I'll miss your birthday. But rest assured I'll make it up to you somehow."

"You better." Spike said with a small smile. They all laughed as they made their way home. But as they were walking, Trider split off from the other two.

"Where're you going?" Rainbow asked.

"AJ asked me to visit her when we were done, so I'm going to her." Trider explained as he walked towards the farm. Spike and Rainbow exchanged knowing glances and they quietly walked to their respective homes.

***

Applejack was standing on a small ladder as she was reaching for the bell that hung inside of their barn. "C'mon ya stupid thang, will ya come off already." she groaned as she stepped on the tips of hoofs.

"Watcha doin'?" a voice asked from behind the mare, which startled her. She lost her balance and she fell down. She expected the landing to be rough, but it was like she fell onto a soft pillow. Opening her eyes to see what she fell onto she saw the face of the Kanisar.

"Trider?" she asked bewildered.

"Hiya AJ." he greeted her. "Man, you sure know how to fall for guys don't ya?" he joked.

AJ didn't laugh or even chuckle at his joke, instead she gave him a glare. "Why in tarnation did ya scare me like that? I could've hurt myself ya know?" she scolded him.

Trider gave a nervous chuckle. "Eh, eh. Sorry 'bout that. I just wanted to surprise you, didn't mean to make you fall."

The mare sighed. "It's fine, just don't do somethin' like that again, OK?"

"Deal." he answered. Right at that moment they heard the doors of the barn open and in walked Big Mac. He took a few steps in before his eyes fell onto the two inside. He stopped in his tracks and gave them a curious look. It was at that moment Applejack realised the position the two were in. As she was lying on top of him, it seemed like they were in a lovers embrace.

She quickly got up and looked at her brother. "Big Mac, this isn't what yer-"

However she didn't get to finish as the stallion was already out the door, not before saying "Pardon me." before he left. The mare stood there frozen, with her mouth wide open and her cheeks blushing bright red.

"Well that was awkward." Trider said as he stood up.

"Ya have no idea." AJ mumbled as she sunk her head into her hands, trying to hide herself from the world. "What are ya doin' here anyway?" she asked the Kanisar.

"You called me here, remember? You said you have something to give me." She removed her hands when she recalled she did say that to him.

"Oh yeah. Follow me, I have it in my room." she said as they left the barn and headed into the house. Soon they reached the mares room and they both stepped in. Her room wasn't anything special, with the exeception of its rustic look, but Trider thought it suited her perfectly.

"Wait there." she told him and he did as he was told. Applejack opened her closet and rummaged through it. Eventually she found what she was looking for. She stepped towards the Kanisar. "Here, I want you to have this." she said as she offered him a piece of cloth.

"What is this?" he asked as he took the cloth and give it a look over.

"It's a scarf that my pa used to wear." she explained. "He always used to wear them."

"Like you and your stetson?" Trider inquired and she nodded. He carefully unfolded the red square piece of fabric, noting the intricate design sewed onto it. "Why are you giving it to me?" he asked. He knew her parents died when she was but a child, like himself, and that she cherished everything about them.

"Cause my pa always said that these were special. That they protected the one who wore it." she said as she rubbed her arm. "Since yer joinin' the Guard I thought ya'd need it."

Trider gave her a warm look. She was worried about him. He was happy to know he had such a great friend. "Thanks." he said as he hugged her. The mare melted in his embrace.

"I wish this would last forever." she thought. "Better get the most out of it, since I won't be able to do this for a while."

***

"Ow, ow, ow. Can you be more gentle?" Trider whined as Twilight bandaged his arm.

"Oh I'm sorry, how is this?" she asked as she violently tightened the bandage, making the Kanisar yelp.

"I said I was sorry." he cried out. "Please spare me!"

Twilight sighed as she continued to cover his wounds, this time gently. "You really are hopeless. As soon as your body is healed you go looking for trouble. You're going to worry me to death."

"There are worse ways to go y'know?" The mare gave him a slap on the back of his head.

"I'm serious. Do you know how much I went through when we came back from the Crystal Empire? How many nights I spent thinking I might lose you?" she sniffled and returned back to her task at hand. "Do you know how much I care for you?"

"No, I don't." he answered honestly. "But I do know I'm just seeing the tip of the iceberg at the moment. And I am eternally grateful for everything you've done up till now. And I'm sorry for always causing you trouble."

The mare smiled and finished bandaging him. She then noticed the piece of cloth that was tied to his arm. "What's that?" she asked and pointed at the scarf.

"Oh this? It's just something Applejack gave me for good luck, since I'm leaving tomorrow." he explained.

Twilights ears drooped as she remembered she won't be seeing him for a few months. "I see. That's very thoughtful of her." Trider noticed that something was wrong so he faced her.

"Something the matter Twi?" he asked, concerned.

"No, nothing's wrong." she lied and tried to leave. But she stopped as something compelled her to tell him the truth. "Actually, I'm not fine." She turned to face him and he could see tears well in her eyes. "I don't want you to leave." she stated. "I'm afraid that if I let you leave you're going to end up really hurt, or worse. And I don't want to experience that again."

Tears began to run down her cheeks and Trider approached her. He put a hand onto her cheek and wiped away a tear with his thumb. "Twi, I promise you that I'll come back in one piece, without even a bruise." he assured her. "Besides it's the other guys in the army you should be worried about."

She gave a light chuckle and she smiled. "I'll keep you to that promise, you hear?" She then hugged him and he hugged her back. They embraced each other for what felt ike hours, but was just a few minutes. "I'm still giong to miss you though. It's going to be so quiet here without you around."

"And you're unhappy with that because...?" he asked her with a smirk.

"Because despite your many flaws, you're still a wonderful company." she answered him. They smiled at each other and broke their embrace.

"I'm hitting the hay, gotta get up early tomorrow after all." Trider said as he headed towards his room, leaving Twilight alone in the livingroom.

"Good night." she said, before he disappeared from her sight. She went into the kitchen to fix herself a small snack before bed. As she was making her snack her thoughts centered around the Kanisar. She was happy for him, since she knew this would be a great experience for him and he was exhilarated about it. And it was for only a few months. Yet, why did her heart ache when she thought about him leaving her?

Author's Note

If anyone is wondering what Sky Beat Combo looks like just check

. (from 0:13 to 0:18 and 0:24 to 0:28, just less OP)
And with this the filler is over and we're back on track. Next chapter we get to see your lovely OCs. But like I mentioned in my blog, not all of them will have the same screen time like the rest and I've already chosen those who will participate in the story.
So until next time.

Chapter 23: You're in the Army Now

"And don't forget to write!" Pinkie said as she gave Trider a massive bear hug.

"I. Won't." the Kanisar barely replied as the mare squeezed the air out of his lungs. "Pinkie. Air."

She let go of him and gave a small chuckle. "Eh-heh. Sorry." she apologized. "Oh, before I forget. here I baked these for you!" She said as she gave him a packet of homemade cookies. Trider looked at them with hungry eyes, as a single strand of drool ran down his chin.

"These look delicious Pinks. Thanks!" The mare gleamed, before she was pushed out of the way as Rarity stepped up to Trider.

"As much as I would like to say I won't miss you, I'd be lying." she gave him a light smile as she levitated a small package to him and he grabbed it. "These are some of the experimental clothes that I made. Although they're not up to my tastes, I made them specifically to be very durable, since we all know how much you like to ruin my clothes." she said with a half scowl and half smile.

"Wow Rarity." Trider said astonished. "There is actually a very kind woman behind all that bitchiness." he joked, but the mare didn't take it as such.

"Why, of all things! I go out of my way to give you a thoughtful gift and you just-" she was silenced when Trider put a finger onto her mouth.

"Kidding!" he explained. "I'm sorry for calling you a bitch. It was a reflex, honestly." the Kanisar said, which seemed to calm Rarity down a bit, but she was still scowling. "But in all honesty Rares, thank you. I couldn't ask for such a great friend."

"Apology accepted." she said as they hugged. When she was certain none of her friends could hear, she whispered into Triders ear. "I hope the drill instructors make you cry."

"How do you know it won't be the other way around?" he retorted.

Rarity scoffed as she let go of him. "A mare can dream, right?"

It was Fluttershys turn next. She approached Trider, this time however she didn't hesitate or hid her face behind her mane. "Here. I made you these." she said as she offered the Kanisar a small package. Trider took and and shook it a bit, trying to figure out what it was. "They're energy supplements." the mare explained. "It's something I usually give to my critters when they feel exhausted. I'm sure you'll need them at some point."

Trider looked at the gift and smiled, before he put them in his pants pocket. "Thanks Shy. I too am certain they'll come in handy." He waited to see if the mare would hug him as well, but she seemed hesitant. "C'mon I won't bite ya." he encouraged her. She took his offer and hugged him, but it was quick. "Alright who's next?" he asked.

Spike walked up to his mentor and he too handed him a gift. "Here, I hope you'll like them." he said as he handed over a small box. Trider opened it and in it was a pair of combat fingerless gloves.

"Dude. These are awesome!" he exclaimed as he quickly put them on. He threw a swing at one of the stations pillars and the impact shook it as well as whole roof. "Thanks buddy."

"You're welcome." Spike said as he soaked in his praise. They then exchanged a fist bump and Spike let the rest say their goodbye. The only ones remaining were Applejack and Twilight, since Rainbow Dash already left for the Wonderbolt Academy.

The cow-mare gingerly approached her friend. Her eyes fell onto his left arm where the scarf she gave him last night was tied. She gave him a smile. "I see ye're wearin' mah pa's scarf." she stated. "Although ah'm pretty sure yer supposed towear it round yer neck."

"You sayin' I'm stupid?" Trider said in a hurt tone."AJ I'm shocked!"

The mare however wasn't buying his act as she lightly punceh him in his shoulder. "Har, har, har. Yer so funny." she said as she gave him a light smile. "Come back soon." she said as she hugged him. They remained like that for a few minutes, until Rarity cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you two, but Triders train will be here soon and Twilight still has to say her goodbyes." The orange mare blushed as she let go of the Kanisar and joined her friends, who were all giving her a knowing smile.

Trider however seemed oblivious and he turned his attention towards Twilight. She slowly made her way to him and she looked him in his bright green eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't bring you any farewell gift." she apologised.

"Don't worry bout it Twi. I'm just glad you came to see me off." Trider assured her with a smile. They then hugged and the lavender mare melted into him. She didn't want to let go, fearing she might not see him again, but the sound of the train made her eventually let go.

"Guess my train is here." Trider said as he looked at the big vehicle. "I'll see you guys-" he stopped when Twilight rose to her hooftips and pressed her lips onto his cheeks. Everyone stood still as they looked at the mares bold move. When she was done with the kiss she turned around and went back to the group, but not before saying: "Be safe."

Looking after the mare, Trider pressed his hand where she had kissed him. "I will." he mumbled before lifting his bag and all of his friends gifts and boarded the train. He quickly found an empty compartment and sat into the seats. The train whistle sounded off, signaling trains departure. He looked out the window and saw his friends waving at him. He waved them back just as the train began to move. As they were making their way down the tracks, he saw how Pinkie ran after the train seeming to shout something, but he couldn't hear her.

Eventually he left her way behind and he laid onto the bench, hoping to catch some z's before he arrived at the academy. But as soon as he closed his eyes, his ears were bombarded by a loud shout.

"DON'T FORGET TO WRITE!!!"

His ears rang as he tried to gather his bearings. He knew for certain the shout came from Pinkie, but he had no idea how he could've heard it, unless the mare somehow got her hands onto the worlds biggest megaphone. When his hearing returned to him he chuckled.

"Goddammit Pinkie!" he said before laying back down and drifting off.

***

"Welcome to the Royal Guard Academy!" the receptionist greeted, when Trider walked into the building.

"Uhm, hi?" the Kanisar greeted back.

"What is your business here?" the mare continued to ask, as Trider approached the desk.

"I'm actually a recruit." he explained, as he set his bag down and leaned onto the desk.

"Really?" the mare said surprised. "Can you tell me your name then?"

"Trider Lykosgrothia." he answered.

The mare tried to go through her documents, but she eventually stopped. "I'm sorry, but how do you spell that?" she asked and gave him an apologetic look.

The Kanisar sighed and spelled out his name. "T-R-I-D-E-R L-Y-K-O-S-G-R-O-T-H-I-A." Soon the mare pulled out a file and opened it.

"Trider, ah yes, I have you right here." She skimmed over the info that was on the file, before she looked back at him. "I see, so you're here as probation, correct?"

"Yes." he responded and scratched his head.

"Well it seems everythings in order." the mare finished and put away his file. "I'll have somepony show you around, before we take you to a doctor to check you up and afterwards you'll be given your uniform."

"Sounds like a plan."

***

"Here you go." said a solider as trider was handed his uniform. He and his guide were already done with their tour and doctor visit, so all they had to do now was get his uniform.

"Thanks man." Trider replied as he took the clothes. "So is there a place where I can change or should I do it right here." The solider simply towards a closed door and Trider headed in. After a few minutes he stepped out, now clad in his dirty green uniform. There was one problem however.

"Trider, what happened to your sleeves?" asked his guide.

"I tore them off." the Kanisar said simply.

"Why?"

"Cause I don't like sleeves." was his only response and it made the guide as well as the solider who gave him the uniform facepalm.

"Really?" the guide said and Trider only shrugged. "You can't just destroy your uniform like that. You'll get in a lot of trouble if any of the higher ups catch wind of you doing that."

"Well, I don't care what they say, I'm not wearing sleeves. Period." Trider stood his ground.

"Fine." the guide said as he took another uniform and gave it to the Kanisar. "How about a comproise? You roll the sleeves up and we solve both of our problems. You get your sleeveless shirt and you don't even have to destroy it."

Trider took the new uniform and looked at it and then to the guide, switching his gaze between the two. Eventually he stopped and smiled. "You're a goddamn genius. Why didn't I think of that?" he said, before going back into the room to change himself again.

"Celestia help me." the guide mumbled. He had to wait a bit more this time and when Trider came back out he saw that he heeded his word. Instead of the sleeves being removed they were now rolled up.

"Is that better?" the guard asked when he exited the room.

"Yeah." the Kanisar replied. "Though it's a bit itchy." he complained as he scratched himself.

The guide merely rolled his eyes before he turned around and began to walk away. "Follow me. The others are waiting for you."

"Waiting?" Trider asked confused. "What do you mean by waiting for me?"

"You are the last of your group to arrive and we can't start your training unless everypony who signed up is present." the guide explained.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" the Kanisar exclaimed and booked it towards the training grounds.

***

"We're here!" Trider said when he and his guide arrived at the training grounds. The Kanisar had a look around and saw numerous future and current guard doing different tasks. Some were training, while others did labor work.

His guide however walked past him and headed straight for a group that wa standing at attention, while a bright red stallion paced in front of them.

"Sir!" the guide stopped in front of the stallion and saluted. "I've brought the last recruit, sir!"

The stallion returned his salut. "Good job solider. Now return to your post." he commanded as he relieved the solider.

"Sir, yes sir!" he shouted and quickly ran off to who knows where. Once he was gone the stallion turned his head towards Trider and gave him a cold glare. "Come here newbie!" he nearly screamed.

The Kanisar slowly walked over towards the stallion and stepped in the line like the others. The stallion walked over to him and looked him in the eyes.

"What took you so long?" he asked with a growl. "We have been waiting for you for over an hour. What's your excuse recruit?"

"A tree blocked the railway. That good enough?" Trider retorted. The stallion scowled, not liking his attitude.

"Your name's Trider, right?" he asked as he turned around.

"You betcha."

"I've heard a lot about you from the princess. She said you had a lot of promise, but were uncontrolable. Well, I'm here to fix that." He spun around on his heels and glared at the Kanisar. "I will make you wish you'd never been born, ya hear?"

"Loud and clear." Trider replied nonchalantly.

"Good." Now done with the Kanisar, the stallion turned around and faced the others. "Listen up you sissies. I am your drill sergeant Blaze Fury, but you will refer to me as sir, from here on out. Anypony who fails to follow this will have to do fifty push ups. Am I clear?"

"Sir, yes sir!" the group said in unison.

Blaze nodded his head and began to pace. "You are here because you deem yourself worthy to be part of the Royal Guard. Well let me tell you something. You're not!" he shouted the last part. "From here on out you will experience Tartarus. Every day for the next few months you'll be put through vigorous training, that'll make you wish you stayed home at your mommy."

Some of the recruits began to sweat and one even looked like he would faint any minute. "I'll break you, then stick you back together, jsut so I can break you again! And by the end of it all I'm sure not even one of you will stay here. Most of you will run away, with your tails between your legs, like scared little puppies. Or better, you'll die. At least then you'll save yourself from your shame."

"This guy isn't holding back." Trider thought as he continued to listen to Blaze. His words eventually became undiscerned mumble, as he stopped paying attention to him, only responding when the stallion asked a question, to which he answered with the rest of the group.

"So if you think you can handle this, then let me-" Blaze was cut off when a dark green hand grabbed his shoulder.

"I think that's quite enough Blaze. They look like they're about to piss themselves." Blaze looked at the recruits and true to the other stallions words quite a lot of them were visibly trembling.

"Good. At least we now know who we can just send home packing." the red stallion said. "Alright newbies, let me introduce you your other drill instructor. Introduce yourself jackass."

An older earth pony stallion stepped forward and was now in plain vew for everyone to see. He had a dark green coat and eyes, and his mane and tail were completely black. Just like the recruits, he too wore a dirty green uniform.

"Thanks crackass. Let me introduce myself. My name is Green Fortune, but my friends call me Greenie. However, the higher ups want me to be a bit more professional, so I'll need you to call adress me as sir." Green Fortune explained with a soft tone. "But if you have any problems or just want to have a little talk I'll always be available. And then and only then can you call me by my name, okay?" Everyone nodded, happy that he was gentle unlike a certain drill instructor from Tartarus.

"He asked you a question, so answer him!" Blaze yelled and the recruits responded with 'Sir, yes sir!'. He then casted his gaze towards Green. "You're going to make them go soft if you continue to act like that." he critized.

"Everypony has their own way of doing things. This is mine. And if you have a problem, talk to the higher ups." Green countered. they then went into a heated arguement, while the recruits stood there unmoving.

"What are you newbies looking at?" Blaze shouted.

"They're waiting for orders, like a good solider would." Green retorted. "Alright everypony I want you all to run 10 laps around the facility. Those who fail in doing so will have to do 100 push ups and will have to clean up the lounge area." Most of the recruits stared at the stallion wide eyed and mouths agape.

"B-but sir-" one of the recruits wanted to complain, but was stopped when Blaze glared him in the eyes.

"Are you objecting your superiors orders, newbie?" he growled and stared down the stallion.

"N-no s-sir." he replied meekly.

Green then decided to speak up. "While I disagree with my partners mathods of doing things, he was right about one thing. You're here to train to become soliders and the only way to do so is if you go through Tartarus and back." He then gave an innocent smile, while his eyes were exuding malicious aura. "While I might act kind, I'll have you train so hard that your limbs will fall off. And I won't hear any complaints."

The recruits looked at Green with newfound fear and they couldn't move. "What in the name of sweet Celestia are you waiting for? Get a move on, unless you want to do double the laps?" Blaze yelled, making the recruits break out of their fear and run off.

***

The barrack was filled with the sounds of ponies chatting. After their tortureous work out they finally had some time for themselves and could rest and relax.

"I swear, that drill sergeant was sent from the depths of Tartarus just to make our lives miserable." one of the recruits complained.

"I hear ya brother. I don't think I can do this everday." another agreed.

"You guys are such wussies, that was barely a work out." Trider said. Nearly everyone looked at him and gave him cold glares.

"Seriously dude? You're gonna side with them?" asked a mare, astonished.

"I'm not siding with anyone. I'm just saying that I was expecting more from this training." Trider explained, but his explanation wasn't so well received.

"Look guys, we've got ourselves an overachiever. What, you wanna get on sarges good side, you boot licker?" a stallion taunted.

"I'm sorry could you repeat that? I didn't hear over all the whining you were making." the Kanisar taunted back. The stallion stood up from his bed and charged at him, while Trider did the same. They were stopped jowever, when an emerald green aura enveloped them both.

"Will you stop acting like little foals?" the mare, who was holding them back, said. "I swear, all of you guys are the same. Always trying to see whos dick is bigger."

Trider had observed this unicorn mare, as well as a few others, ever since he arrived. She was slightly taller than him, with a dark orange coat. Her messy frost blue and white mane, was done in a braid. Her emerald eyes glared at the two stallions and they could tell she was pissed.

She created more distance between the two, before she let them go. She then glared at the stallion. "You have no right to complain. You signed up for this and I don't know what you were expecting when you did. So if you have a problem with it you can just leave whenever, so stop complaining." she scolded him. Trider chuckled and grinned at the stallion, thinking it was his victory. But the mare then switched her glare to him. "And you. Just because you have it easy doesn't mean everypony is the same. Show some tact." She then turned around and walked to her bed. Right before she left she turned around and gave Trider another glare. "And you better not voice your thoughts to any of the drill instructors." Everyone watched the mare as she laid in her bed and opened a small book.

"Damn." said the stallion.

"I know right?" agreed Trider.

"Wow, you guys just got owned!" a pegasus stallion shouted, earning Triders glare.

This one was another recruit Trider had his eyes on. You could immediatelly tell he was working out, by the athletic body he had. His midnight blue coat and black mane made him nearly invisible in the dark, while his torquise eyes stood out in said darkness. A small scar also ran across his right eye.

"Do you wanna start something wiseass?" Trider asked.

"Nah, I'm just teasin ya bro. All in good fun." the stallion replied. Trider didn't believe him and wanted to voice his disbelief, but was stopped when another voice spoke up.

"Could you guys tone it down a bit, I'm trying to read here." The Kanisar looked to where the voice was coming from.

His eyes fell onto an olive coated unicorn with a short grey mane. His brown eyes were hidden behind his black thin rimmed glasses. He didn't really stood out from others to Trider at first, but while they were running he saw that he had scars over his hands, but what caught his attention most was that while they were running he seemed to have moved unnaturally fast.

"Seriously dude? You're reading another book? This is like the third one you've read since we came to the barracks." the previous stallion exclaimed.

"And? I just like to read and learn, unlike certain muscle heads." the colt retorted. He somehow reminded Trider of a certain unicorn amre he knew.

"Well it seems you guys have made yourselves quite comfortable." someone suddenly said. Everyone turned their heads toward the entrance and saw Green Fortune standing beneath the door frame. "I'm glad you already made yourselves at home. Now as for why I'm here. Tomorrow you'll be doing a certain training, lets call it. So I want you all to get a good nights sleep. We'll come to wake you at dawn."

Everyone mumbled their responses and laid in their beds. The lights went out adn soon everyone was snoozing off.

***

"WAKE UP MAGGOTS!!!"

With a jump start everyone fell out of their beds and were groggily trying to stand on their hooves or feet in Triders case. Blaze looked at each recruit and shook his head. "Is this really how you guys are in the morning? It's disgraceful." He then walked across the room and turned around. "I want this room to be in tip-top shape in the next five minutes. If you fail to do so, everypony has to do 50 push ups."

The morning was eventful to say the least. When they were done with their cleaning the recruits headed for the mess hall to get their morning meal. Trider watched the food that was presented and his mouth watered.

"I don't care what this looks like, I could eat a cow." he said while drool fell from his chin.

"Yeah me too."

Trider shifted his gaze away from the food to look at the one who spoke. He wasn't exactly sure what 'he' was. He mostly looked like a pony, but had some characteristics of a dog. Mainly his head, right arm and torso looked dog like, while his hooves and left arm were pony. He also had two tails, both of which resembled dogs, rather than pony's. Long black dreads fell over his shoulders and he had a dirt brown coat. Another oddity were his eyes, where his irises were white, blending in with his cornea, only leaving his black pupils to show.

"Um, uh, hi?" Trider said, getting the dogs attention. When he looked at the Kanisar his ears folded and he directed his gaze away. Trider waited to see if he would respond, but it never came. "Well, uhm, you wanna sit together?" he offered, but again received no answer. "Oookay then." he said before grabbing his food and sittng behind an empty table.

He hastily dug into his food, savoring every bite he took. As he was eating he felt another presence approach the table and sit next to him. He lifted his head to see who it was.

There sat an earth pony with pink mane tied in a pony tail and ash blue coat. His eyes blue eyes were staring directly at Trider making him feel nervous.

"What the hell does this guy want?" he thought. Unlike with the rest, Trider only began to observe this guy because he was watching him. He felt his gaze all the while they ran and when they were resting in the barracks. The Kanisar couldn't tell what he wanted, but for some reason it made him feel unnerved.

"I'm sorry can I help you?" he asked the stallion.

"Why, yes you can." he responded and scooted closer to Trider. "How about you and me go out and have some fun together?" the stallion implied with a wiggle of his brows.

"Is he for real?" Trider thought as he stared at the stallion. "Dude, what?"

"Oh, where are ym manners? My name is Whip Lash. A pleasure to meet you, uhm?"

"Trider." the Kanisar replied, before he shook his head. "No, wait. I didn't want your fucking name. What I want to know is why you're coming onto me?"

"Trider, what an unique name." the stallion admired. "Just as unique as you." He could see that the Kanisar was beginning to lose his patience, so he decided to answer him. "Well you see, ever since I laid my eyes on you I couldn't take them off. I've never seen anything like you before and that thought made me shiver with ecstasy. To have such an exotic being in front of me I just can't help myself."

"I'm flattered, not really, but I'm straight dude. So go look for someone else you want to stick your cock in." Trider said as he stood up.

He was stopped when Whip grabbed his arm. "So are noodles until you get them wet. Or in your case, hard." he replied with a seductive grin.

Trider gave him a cold glare and he bared his fangs. "One warning. Let go of me or you'll be eating your teeth." he threatened. Their display began to draw a crowd as everyone wanted to see what was going on.

"Your lips say no, but your eyes say-" He didn't get to finish his sentence, as Trider delivered a powerful punch directly into his muzzle. Whip flew through the air for a bit before he hit the ground with a hard thud.

"And don't get up you creep!" the Kanisar as he turned around.

Whip remained laying on the floor. He reached a hand up to massage his nose. When he retrieved it, it was covered in blood, telling him that he had a nose bleed. He clenched his hand into a fist and began to slowly lift himself up. The crowd began to whisper and Trider looked back to see the stallion standing with shaky legs and head lowered, but he could tell he was bleeding.

"Hope you learned your lesson creep." Trider said as he put down his plate adn crossed his arms. "If you kneel down before me and beg for my forgiveness I might just consider it."

The stallion began to shake even more. "That..." he said weakly. "That was wonderful!!!" Everyone looked at him in disbelief, all having the same thought.

"What?"

Whip began to hug himself as he seemed like he was filled with ecstasy. "That punch was wonderful. I could feel your passion and love behind it. It made me feel so good." he continued as he hugged himself even tighter. "I want to feel more of you." He grabbed the hem of his shirt and ripped it apart, revealing his well toned chest and stomach. "Give me your love."

He jumped at the Kanisar with arms extended. Trider however delivered a roundhouse kick and sent the stallion thorugh the air once more. This time however Whip quickly got up and began to revel in his pain filled ecstasy. "Yes just like that." he moaned. "You can do so much more to me if you want."

"THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?" Trider shouted. "GET AWAY FROM ME!!!" He began to run off, but Whip was close on his tail.

"Playing hard to get, huh? I can get into that and so much more. Now embrace me mi amour." Whip said as he removed his pants as well, leaving him in only underwear and torn shirt.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Author's Note

OC presented in the order they were shown in the story.
Blaze Fury - my creation (no theme song)
Green Fortune - created by Rainbow skies ( theme song Falling In Reverse - Gangsters Paradise)
Frost Fire (the mare) - created by TheWolfSpartanBrony (theme song Starset - Point of No return)
Nightshade (pegasus stallion) - created by Nightshade1228 (theme song Thousand Foot Crutch - Courtesy Call)
Critical Second (book reading nerd) - created by Prankstered (no theme song)
Ace Quickpaw (dog pony hybrid) - created by KollionsTheReader (theme song Troll Metal - Ouch Time)
Whip Lash - my creation (theme song Tata Young - Sexy, Naughty, Bitchy Me)

Chapter 24: Test Your Might Part 1: Painful Passion of Cold Steel

"So what are your expectations for these recruits?" asked Blaze, as he and Green Fortune made their way to the mess hall.

The green stallion pondered for a bit, before he replied. "Not exactly certain, I mean we haven't even seen what they're capable of. Ask me once we evaluate them."

"Alright." the red stallion replied. "As for me, I think these guys might be a cut above the rest, if we train them right."

Green raised a brow as he looked at his friend curiosly. "Really? That is so unlike you. Usually you'd berate them even if they weren't present."

"Maybe you're rubbing off on me Greenie." Blaze snarked. "But while they have promise, they are also undisciplined. That is why they're here, so we can mold them into proper soliders." They reached the doors to the mess hall and stopped in front of them.

"Oh please, they can't be that bad." Green retorted as he opened the door. When they entered the room they were hit with what can only be described as chaos.

The mess hall was a mess, tables and stools were overturned, food spilled everywhere and the walls either had holes or singe marks on them. The recruits meanwhile made a large circle, in the middle of which the alien and a semi-nude stallion were standing. At first glance it seemed that they were in some sort of brawl, but their dialoge made them think otherwise.

"WILL YOU LEAVE ME ALONE YOU FREAK?!" the alien shouted as he dodged the stallions jump.

"And let go of such an unique experience? Not in a million years." the stallion replied as he chased after the alien.

The two drill instructors stood still, taking in the scene that was unfolding in front of them. "Not so bad, eh?" Blaze remarked and gave Green an 'I told you so' look.

"I guess they do need some guidance." the green stallion sighed. "Shall we stop them, before this escalates any further?"

"Why don't you do it? I want to see how 'your way' works on them." Blaze said and pulled out a cigar.

Begrudgingly Green approached the crowd and tried to break in between them, but he wasn't succesful. He tried to call out, but his voice drowned in the cheers and yells from the recruits.

"Having trouble there Greenie?" Blaze asked with a grin.

"Not at all. It's just the matter of approach, that's all." Green countered. He took a few steps back and got into a running position. His hooves were suddenly covered in green sparks and he moved.

No one in the mess hall, beside Blaze, knew what exactly happened. All of a sudden everyone was seated down in the chairs that were put back up, with exception of Whip and Trider, who now laid on the floor with their hands and feet/hooves bound behind their backs.

"What the fuck?" Trider exclaimed, saying what was on everyones mind. Only now did they notice their instructors standing under the door frame, both wearing masseive grins.

"Good, it seems we got your attention." Green said. "Now, might somepony please tell us what happened here?"

"This guy happened." Trider shouted and pointed with his head towards Whip. "This guy was coming onto me, even though I told him I wasn't interested, and when he wouldn't take no for an answer I beat the living shit out of him. But he kept coming back up, sputtering some weird shit, about conveying love through punching and kicking him."

The instructors casted their gaze from the Kanisar towards Whip and everyone else. "Is that true?" he asked. The others nodded. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Green approached Whip and kneeled down to his level. "Whip Lash, am I correct?"

"Yes sir." Whip answered.

"Look I know everypony has their own way of expressing themselves, but what you did is overdoing it." he began. "There is a line you know? And you crossed it."

"So you're saying I should just stop being who I am?" Whip countered.

"No, no. I'm not saying that at all." Green shook his head. "What I'm trying to say is that it's fine to pursue your desires, but if you cause others harm while doing it, then I'm not fine with it."

Whip pondered over his words and realised he was right. "So what should I do then?" he asked for advice from the older stallion.

"For starters, when they say to leave them alone, do so and try again later." Green suggested with a smile. "If you try to force it all at once they'll come to hate you, but with eventual steps you'll form a lasting relationship. Now I'm not saying it will be a romantic one, but it's better than being hated, am I right?"

"Yes you are right." Whip said and stood up, somehow getting out of his bonds. He grabbed the green stallions hands and looked him in the eyes. "Thank you very much Sir Fortune, now I'm even more determined to claim Triders heart." Saying that he vigorously walked out of the mess hall, still in his bikini briefs.

"There that should keep him off of you for a while." Green said as he released the Kanisar.

Trider however immediatelly stood up and grabbed the hem of the stallions shirt. "Don't fucking screw with me you asshole! You just made it a thousand times worse. Now he won't leave me alone even more."

"True, but at least now he won't be so pushy, right?" Green replied with a shrug. "Besides consider this your punishment for wrecking the mess hall."

"Fucking twat." Trider mumbled and released the stallion. As soon as he did that Green swiped his legs and made the Kanisar drop to the floor. Trider looked at him with a mixture of anger and confusion.

"And that was for insulting your superior. Now do a hundred push ups and then the rest of you can clean up this mess." The other recruits moaned at their unjust punishment and some even cursed the Kanisars and Whips names. "And do it before 9."

"Why 9?" asked one of the recruits.

"You'll see soon enough." Green answered cryptically. Begrudgingly everyone began to clean after the mess Trider and Whip made, while the instructors watched them in amusement.

"I've got to be honest, your way doesn't seem so bad after all." Blaze said with a huge grin. "Though I still prefer my approach."

"To each their own." Green agreed.

***

The cleaning went faster then anyone expected and by 8.20 the recruits and their instructors were walking towards a large domed building. While they were walking Trider approached Green and addressed him.

"Sir Fortune, can I talk to you?" he asked.

"You may." the stallion replied while continuing to walk towards the building.

"What happened in the mess hall, when all of a sudden everyone was sitting in their chairs, while me and Whip tied up, that was your doing, right?"

Green gave him a slightly surprised look, but quickly hid it. "What would make you say that?" he asked innocently.

"Don't bullshit me." Green gave him a hard glare. "S-sir." They walked through the door of the building and were now walking along a long hallway. "In that split second when that happened I caught a glimpse of a green blur that moved faster than the eye could see, and when it was over you were standing above me and Whip."

This time Green couldn't contain his surprise. "You were able to spot me?" he asked astonished. Trider nodded and that made the stallion chuckle. "Not many can keep up with me, once I get serious. You truly have a great talent. How did you manage to do so anyway?"

"I train with this mare named Rainbow Dash and don't tell her I said this, but she is mad fast. Faster than anyone I've ever seen." Trider elaborated to the stallion.

Green closed his eyes, as he mulled over something. "Rainbow Dash?" he murmured. Suddenly a light bulb went off in his head. "Ah yes, I've heard of her from Captain Spitfire. She had high praise for the mare. I even heard she was able to preform a Sonic Rainboom."

"Yeah, though I've never seen it, I heard a lot about it and she seems like the only one who could pull it off." the Kanisar agreed. "Right now she's in the Wonderbolt Academy, trying to become a Wonderbolt recruit herself."

"That's good to hear." Green said with a smile. "We can always use somepony as talented as her."

They continued to walk in silence, but something else was gnawing on Triders mind. "Pardon sir, may ask another question?"

"Go ahead."

"How come you're so fast? I thought pegasi were supposed to be the fast ones and earth ponies the strong ones." he asked.

"That is a common misconception." Green began. "You see, we earth ponies can channel our magic through our bodies better than any other pony race can. Thus we can harden our bones, make ourselves stronger adn even faster. The reason why pegasi are believed to be faster is because tin the air they can fly faster than even me. But once they're grounded they're as fast as anypony else."

"That makes sense." Trider mulled over what the stallion had told him. "I did hear that she and Applejack, an earth pony, were tied in a race before."

"Well there is your answer." Green said with a smile.

"What are we doing here anyway?" Trider asked.

"We're here to test you recruits." Green elaborated.

"Test? what sort of te-" he didn't get to finish, as they all stepped out of the dark hallway and into the light. Once their eyes adjusted the sight before them took their breaths away.

Below them a large field of dirt was streching farther then the building led to believe. The ground was surrounded by high walls, that extended into sitting areas for the watchers. Right now they stood in one of those observation areas.

"What is this?" asked the midnight blue coated pegasus stallion.

"Welcome to the Arena boys." Blaze spoke up with a smirk. Everyones attention was now on him. "This here place is used to hold special events such as tournaments for one. But for today we will be using it as a battleground, to see what you got to show for yourself."

The recruits began to whisper between each other, while Trider could only smile, knowing full well what was about to follow. "That's right." Green decided to take over. "Today you'll each be facing against another recruit so we can see what kind of abilities you have."

This made some of the recruits nervous, thinking they'd have to fight each other. Sensing thier discomfort Green raised his hand. "Don't worry, this isn't the kind of test you get in schools, where if you fail you get a bad grade. No, this is simply to see what you're capable of. There are no winners here."

At that they took a calm breath, their dread disappearing. "Now let me go over the rules." green continued as he pulled out a notepad. "This will be a 1 on 1 battle between two randomly chosen recruits. The combatants are allowed to use any weapon or armor they deem fit, and any kind of magic. Though dark magic, black magic and the sorts is strictly prohibited." Looking over his notepad, he saw that they were still sollowing him, so he decided to continue. "The match is over when one of the combatants is unable to fight anymore, is knocked out or surrenders. Any futher aggression after the defeat will be met with severe reprecautions."

A unicorn with thin rimmed glasses raised his hand. "You said we'll be using any weapon we want. What if by accident one of us gravely wounds another? Do you have any means to prevent that?"

"I'm glad you asked, since I almost skimmed over it." Green said with an awkward laugh. "You have nothing to worry about. The arena is covered in a powerful veil that prevents any lethal attacks to damage the body. It puts the injureds body in sort of coma stasis and paralyzes them. Once that happens we dispense our best medical team and treat them immediatelly." he explained. "And don't worry. Out of thousands of fights that happened here, only one ended with a loss of life."

That last statement made some of the recruits gulp. Seeing as how he had nothing more to tell them he looked at his notepad and ran his finger over it. "Alright, the first ones to battle are... Frost Fire and Whip Lash."

At the mention of their names the two stepped forward. Frost Fire was the orange coated unicorn mare from last night and everyone already knew who Whip was. Although he was disappointed he didn't go first, Trider was still glad he could see what this mare had to offer.

"You two ready?" asked Green the two.

"Yes sir!" they replied in unison.

"Very well, then step on those platforms and they should teleport you down. You can start your duel once you have been given the all clear. Got it."

"Yes sir!" they again replied.

"Good. Now show us what you two are made of." Green said. Without a word the two walked to their respective platform and were immediatelly teleported on the opposite sides of the arena.

"I would prefer if it was a stallion who'd be fighting me, I guess I'll make due with you." Whip spoke up as the two prepared for the fight.

Frost gave him a cold glare as she summoned her weapon, a katana. "Are you saying you'd rather fight a stallion, since I'm just a mare." she said in a cold tone and raised her weapon. "I'll show you exactly what a mare can do."

"No, no, no. You misunderstand cheri. As you may have already figured out, I am very fond of those of the same sex as me." he said and threw a wink at the Kanisar, which made him shiver. "I'm not saying you're weak or defenceless. I'm just saying I'd rather receive the love blows from a handsome stallion than a mare." At that exact moment every male in the observation area sighed in relief, glad it wasn't them who was facing him.

Whip then snapped his fingers and one of the earrings in his ears glowed and transformed into a black whip. He gave a few test swings, each elicting a loud pop. Satisfied he lowered his arm and the whip with it. "But like I stated before cheri, I am a stallion of many virtues, and I'll gladly accept your love as well." Frost scoffed and got into a battle stance.

"You ready?" Blaze shouted from up above. The mare nodded, while Whip gave a thumbs up. "Begin!"

As soon as the command was uttered Frost charged at the stallion, closing the distance between the two in couple of seconds. Whip however didn't even flicnh as he grabbed his whip by its hadle and thong and blocked the mares downward slash. Not giving up the mare withdrew her sword and tried for another attack, this time at his gut.

The stallion however spun around and dodged her attack. Frost tried to stab him again, but this time Whip fought back. When her blade clashed with his whip again, he twisted it around the sword trappin it in its grasp. The mare tried to pull it back, but the stallion was stronger. Before she could retaliate, he delivered a strong kick into her gut, making her let go of the sword and drop to the ground.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Whip shook his head. "I was honsetly expecting more." he taunted and grabbed the katana with his other hand. "You are now without your weapon. Want to surrender this one cheri?"

The mare gave him no answer as her horn glowed. All of a sudden a large qiang appeared in her hands. Quickly thrusting it forward she caught the stallion off guard, so he had little time to retaliate. The spear missed him, but it still hit enough to leave a large gash in the side of his torso. Quickly jumping away to gain some distance, he grabbed his side and saw the blood that was puring out of it.

He looked at the mare who stood back up and was now carrying her new weapon. "You had another?" he asked in disbelief.

"I have many more." she said and her weapon glowed, changing into a longsword. "I currently hold over one hundred pieces of weaponry in my arsenal and I can summon them to me at any time I want."

After hearing that Whip began to chuckle and he got back into his fighting stance. "Well I'll be damned. You are full of surprises cheri." A sharp pain ran thorugh his side and stumbled for a bit.

The mare smirked at him. "What's wrong? Aren't you supposed to be a masochist?"

"Oh, I am. It's just that since you're a mare I can't feel the same kind of ecstasy, I get when a brutish male does what he pleases to me." The thought made him shiver slightly. "But I still feel your love and compassion behind your attacks, and as a stallion it is my job to return those feelings."

With a quick jerk of his wrist he swung his whip in an arc. A strand of light traveled across the whip and when it reached its end, it separated from the weapon. "Energy Line." Whip exclaimed, as he shot the energy directly at the mare.

Frost tried to blocke it with her sword, but the impact was so strong she was sent flying. While still in mid-air, Whip wrapped his whip over one of her arms and tossed her in an arc over himself directly into the ground.

Expecting to see the mare kiss the ground he smiled. But that smile faltered when he saw a shield cover the mare. Instead of hitting the floor, Frost simply bounced off it and landed on her feet. "How do you like my Blade Wall?" she asked as she slowly walked towards the stallion.

Whip said nothing, as he struck her shield with his whip. He repeated the action over and over until the shield broke. Smiling at his succes, he swung the whip around, trying not to give the mare any breathing room. However instead of an angry scowly the mare too smiled. Whip realised too late that he was set up.

The shards of the shield didn't fall onto the ground or disappeared, instead they floated in mid-air. Frost then lifted her left arm and pointed her index finger at the stallion who was still in mid-attack. "Blade Wall Barrage." she said and the pieces shot towards the stallion at incredible speed. He didn't have time to block or dodge, so he took it in full. The pieces cut across his entire body, leaving numerous cuts behind.

Once the barrage had ended he fell onto his knees, his body now completely covered in blood. Frost smirked. "i guess this is my victory."

But she had no time to celebrate, as all of a sudden a vine like tendril broke out of the ground and wrapped itself around her waist. Before she could comprehend what was happening, the tendril glowed golden and she was struck with a jolt of lightning. She screamed in pain and once the surge stopped she too fell to her knees.

"What is this?" she asked. Her gaze fell onto the stallion who was still kneeling in his place, the whip still alying on the ground when he had dropped it. But then her eyes fell onto his other hand and saw another handle in it. "Y-you had another one?" she said weakly.

"Of course cheri. You're not the only one who has more than one weapon." he said with a grin. He then tightened the grip on the handle and spikes began to run across the thong of the whip. Frosts eyes widened when she realised what he intended to do with her. With all of her might she swung her sword and struck the whip, creating a wide enough space for her to escape, before she became swiss cheese.

Paniting she looked toward her opponent, who was now standing as well. "You truly are a masochist, if you still want to continue this." she spat and got into a fighting stance.

"Then you're calling yourself one as well, you know?" Whip retorted. Without any further word Frost charged at him, while conjuring up a shield along her longsword. Whip on the other hand swung both of his whips at her, hoping to stop her attack.

Frost however successfully parried every one of his attacks and was quickly closing the distance. She knew that once she was close enough she would have the advantage, since he was more of a long ranged fighter, while she was better at close quarters combat.

It seemed Whip realised that as well and he did his best to keep her away. Eventually Frosts advancement was halted as Whip proved to be a master with his weapon. So Frost decided on a different approach.

As she parried another attack she jumped into the air and disspelled her sword and shield, instead she summoned a large bow and a quiver. Quickly loading arrow after arrow, she sent a hail of deadly amunition at the stallion who had small trouble keeping up wth the small projectiles. When she was certain he was too preoccupied with the current assault, she reached for a special arrow and fired it.

As it was flying it exploded in mid-air and out of one arrow hundreds more flew. Realising he was in trouble, Whip twirled his whips so fast that he was able to block every arrow. But Frost wasn't finished. When she landed she summoned her Blade Wall and broke it off, once again sending the shards at the stallion.

Whip this time however was prepared for it. He began to spin the two whips around himself, creating an impenetrable wall. "Twirling Barricade." he said as he gracefully defended against Frosts attack. When all the shards hit the blockade he dropped it and looked at his enemy. But she was nowhere in sight. He realised too late that she took the advantage of him not being able to see her while he was using Twirling Barricade.

Suddenly a sharp pain raced across his back. Frost now standing behind him slashed her sword and created a large gash from his shoulders to his waist. Whip cried out in pain and he tried to turn around to fight back, but Frost didn't want any of that. Quickly she changed her weapon to an iron staff and began to wail on the stallion. Each hit struck Whip with tremendous force. Eventually though Frost stopped her assault and let the stallion bleeding on the floor.

"And stay down." she growled and began to walk away. After a few steps she heard the sound of something dragging across the ground. When she looked back she saw that Whip was slowly picking himself up. "You don't give up do you?" she slowly walked back to him and raised her staff over him. "I said, stay down!" She swung the staff downwards, determined to finish this fight.

She didn't know what happened next, except she was flying through the air. When she landed on the ground she quickly picked herself up and looked at the stallion with confusion. He stood there silent, her iron staff in his grip. "What?" she muttered as she continued to look at the stallion in both confusion and fear. She knew something wasn't right.

Then without warning Whip grabbed the staff with both of his hands and snapped in half, like it was a twig. Frost looked at him with wide eyes the feeling of fear growing stronger.

"Wonderful." Whip muttered inder his breath. "That was simply wonderful! The way you beat me to a pulp. I could tell you weren't holding back. I felt your love and passion in every swing you made. If you weren't a mare, I'd ask you out on a date." His statement made the mare even more confused. "Merci beaucoup cheri, for making this a memorable fight."

"Wha-? How?" Frost stammered unable to comprehend what was happening. "What happened to you? How are you so strong all of a sudden?"

"Oh pardon me cheri, let me explain." he said as he wiped some blood from his mouth. "You see I have a unique magic that allows me to convert my pain into strength. So to put it simply, the more you hurt me-"

"The stronger you get." Frost finished for him, realising how fucked she was.

"Exactly." Whip said with a small applaud. "And while I'd enjoy in being loved by you more, I'm afraid my lust for victory is greater than my lust for pain." He said and summoned back his whips. "Au revoir cheri."

She expected him to swing his whips at him, but instead they coiled around his fists, creating makeshift boxing gloves. She tried to summon a weapon to fight back, but Whip was too fast with his increased strength. He delivered blow after blow at the mare. Eventually he stopped and the mare didn't have any strength to even stand. Her eyes closed as she fell onto the ground.

"This match is over!" Blaze yelled out. Everyone cheered and applauded as Whip bowed like an actor would. His eyes then caught Trider looking at him with and he blew a kiss towards him.

The Kanisar turned around no longer wanting to look at his stalker. "Although he's a creep, he is quite strong." he thought. He then looked over other recruits, a smile growing on his face. "I wonder who'll be my opponent?"

Author's Note

Forgot to mention this last time, but in the last chapter we have started a new arc, so that means a new theme song is needed. And I chose Papa Roach - Warriors.
A little thing I want to mention. At first I wanted to write one longer chapter, which included all the fights I wanted to do, but decided I'd rather give you one fight and then have you crawling to me for more. Muahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
Honestly though, I have a really packed week, so I don't know when I'll find time to write another chapter, so I decided to make a multi parter.
Bonus: Excpect a little surprise from me in the future.

Chapter 26: Test Your Might Part 3: Fight Fire With Fists

The sound of metal clashing filled the arena as everyone watched the match beneath unfold. Well, almost everyone. Trider sat in one of the seats, his head dangling backwards and snoring his time away.

"WAKE UP!!!" His dreams were suddenly interrupted, when something solid hit him in his face. The strike was strong enough to drop him out of the seat and onto the ground.

"WHO THE FUCK DARES?!" he yelled, as he got up and looked around to see the culprit. It didn't take long for his eyes to fall on Blaze, who was giving him a scowl and a smirk at the same time.

"I dare." he stated firmly. "And I want to know, who gave you permission to sleep?" he asked sternly.

"What I can't even grab a quick nap while I'm waiting here, bored out of my mind?" the Kanisar retorted. "You think I'm scared of you geezer, like the others are. Well let me tell you something, I-" He was cut off when Blaze tried to punch him again. Trider however saw it coming and grabbed his fist, as it still flew at him. "Nice try geezer, but you'll have to do bet-"

He didn't have time to finish his sentence as Blaze's hand detached from his arm and grabbed Trider by his throat. The Kanisar's eyes widened, releasing stallion's arm to pry the severed hand from his neck. That gave Blaze an opportunity and he took it. Swinging his other arm he delivered a powerful punch directly on Trider's jaw. The Kanisar fell to the ground and the hand released him, returning to it's owner.

"I won't lie, I admire your courage. Not many had ever had the guts to blatantly question my orders and even less insulted me." He then turned his head and gave Trider a glare that gave him goosebumps. "But remember this, while you're here I'm in charge and what I say goes. I won't have any disobedience from my soliders. So if you think of doing something stupid, like what you did now, than expect severe repercussions."

The Kanisar just stared at the stallion, as he walked away. "What the fuck happened?" he said with a hoarse voice, while rubbing his throat.

"You called him a geezer. That's what happened." Green said as he approached Trider, offering him a hand. He begrudgingly accepted the stallion's help and stood back up.

"Really? That's all it takes to set him off? Man his anger issues are even worse than mine."

Green chuckled at his remark. "Yes, he's known for having a short temper. Although usually he can keep it under wraps, but when it comes to his age... Well you've seen how he becomes."

Trider gave him a confused look and scratched his head. "Why would he be so sensitive about his age? I mean he doesn't look that old, 40 tops. And what the hell did he do with his arm?"

"I'll be glad to answer you." Green said with a smile. "You see Blaze is actually over 80 years old."

Trider's eyes nearly jumped out of his sockets. "SAY WHAT?" he shouted. "T-there is no way he's that old."

Green chuckled at his reaction. "It's true. And I can explain how and answer your other question." He then looked at the red stallion and saw he was occupied with watching the match below. "That isn't actually Blaze."

Trider blinked a few times. "I'm sorry, what?"

"That in fact is just a puppet the real Blaze is controlling." he said as he pointed towards the stallion in question. "Blaze, even among us ponies has a very unique talent. Despite being a pegasus, he has the ability to manipulate puppets with his magic from very far away."

"So wait, that over there is only a puppet?" Trider asked, to which Green nodded. "But it looks so real?"

"Yes, that puppet is unique since it not only has realistic feauters, but Blaze can even see and hear through it. This way he can interact wit others, even when he is in a completely isolated place." the stallion elaborated. "But despite it's lifelike appearance it's still a puppet that Blaze can control to do even the most of absurd things. Like detaching it's limbs to strike it's opponent."

"That's kind of amazing." Trider said in awe. "There are so many different and unique abilities out there, it makes me kind of excited."

"I'm glad to hear you say that." Green said with a smile and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Trider called out, stopping the stallion. "Just one more question."

"Ask away."

"If Blaze really is so old, as you say he is, then why is he still here in the military? Isn't he kind of too old to serve his country?" the Kanisar wondered.

"An excellent question." Green said and turned towards him. "Blaze is a pony of combat, his entire family has dedicated their lives to protect Equestria. When he was told he was too old to still be in the Guard he simply said that he'd rather die than leave it. So they made a compromise and allowed him to train future recruit. But he's still to old to even walk around, so he uses his puppet to go around and help others."

Trider had a newfound respect for the red stallion, he could see that if he tried they could get along well. "If it's like that, then I guess I can tolerate him and listen to what he says." he said, with a bit of reluctancy.

Green simply smiled and headed towards Blaze. "I'm glad you feel that way."

"Wow, I can't believe you got your ass whooped by a grandpa." someone suddenly said. Trider turned his head and he saw a midngiht blue stallion standing a few feet away from him.

"You want something?" Trider simply replied, giving the stallion a small scowl.

"No, no. I'm just saying that I'm surprised, that's all." the stallion said, shaking his head. "I mean from what I heard about you, I sort of expected for you to rip him into pieces."

"You heard about me?" Trider inquiered.

"Yeah, I mean everypony here has heard about you." the stallion continued. "You were the one who helped in protecting Canterlot from changeling invasion and you're also the one who helped King Sombra take back the Crysatl Empire, am I right?"

"Right and wrong. I was brainwashed by Sombra into doing his bidding. I didn't for anyone to get hurt. I still have nightmares of that day." Trider said in a dark tone.

"Oh, sorry dude. I didn't mean to insult you, honestly." the stallion apologised sincerly. "I just heard all these things and-"

"Assumed they were right?" Trider finished for him. "Look I get it, I'm not mad or anything, but I'd appreciate if we never talked about it, ever."

"Understood." the stallion replied. "Then I guess even the talks about you being strong were fabricated."

"Excuse you?"

"I mean you were just beaten by an old geezer. Do you really expect me to believe that you'd be able to go against the Queen of changelings, when even Celestia couldn't?" the stallion elaborated.

"OK, one he got me by surprise. Two, if I were serious I would've kicked his ass before he could even blink. And three, I did fight Chrysalis and beat her." Trider counted, while gritting his teeth.

"If you say so." the stallion shrugged nonchalantly.

"You don't believe me do you?"

"I mean, if I had to believe something from what I saw and what I heard, I'd rather go with the former."

"Then why don't I show you?" Trider said, his eyes filled with malice.

"I'd rather not. We'd get in trouble if we did so, and frankly I'd rather not get the same beating you got from Blaze." the stallion refused.

"OK that's it, put'em up ya asswipe." Trider growled and raised his arms.

"Trider!" someone suddenly called out to him. He turned around and saw Green approaching them.

"What?" he replied bluntly.

"You're up next."

A wide smile spread across his face and he completely forgot about his arguement with the stallion, he had before. "Fuck yes!" he cheered and pumped his arm into the air. "Who's my opponent?"

"Nightshade, the stallion you were having a friendly chat with right now." Green replied.

Trider slowly turned his head to look at the stallion in question, his smile changing into a toothy grin, his fangs clearly on display. Nightshade just stared at the Kanisar.

"Well shit." was his only reply.

***

"Well, well, it seems lady luck has smiled upon me." Trider said. The two were now each standing in the arena, facing each other.

"More like Miss Fortune, wouldn't you say?" Nightshade replied.

"I don't give a fuck, cuz now I can finally show how terrifying I can be."

"Don't think that I'll go down so easy. Despite how I act I am more than capable of standing my ground." the stallion shot back.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." the Kanisar replied confidently.

Nightshade closed his eyes, as his two bracelets began to shine and they materialized themselves into two scimitars. "Draw your weapon!" he exclaimed, pointing one of his blades into the Kanisars direction.

"Yeah, yeah. Just give me second." he replied nonchalantly. He fumbled around his pants pockets, as he tried to retrieve something from them. Eventually he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a pair of combat gloves, that Spike gave him, and put them on.

"Wait, is that all you're going to use to fight me?" Nightshade wondered.

"Yeah, I don't need anything else, do I?" Trider rebuted, as he tightened one of his gloves.

"It seems you're overestimating yourself."

"Yeah I get that a lot."

"Are you ready?" Green asked from atop of the arena.

"Ready!" they both replied, as they got into their battle stances.

"Then begin!"

The two combatants charged at each other, clashing mid-way. Nightshade swung his swords at the Kanisar and he deflected the blows, with the metallic parts of his gloves. They continued to exchange blows, none of them relenting.

As the onslaught continued, it slowly became clear that Trider was beginning to overpower the pegasus. As he parried another blow, the Kanisar took a chance and decided to sweep kick the stallion. The attack landed and Nightshade lost his balance.

But as he was falling he unfurled his wings and hovered above the ground. "Seems you've forgotten that I'm a peg-" he didn't get to finish his statement, as Trider slammed his hands into the ground and followed up his sweep kick with a powerful buck, directly into the pegasus chest.

The blow knocked Nightshade out of the air and away from the Kanisar. Quickly getting up the stallion got ready for Trider's follow up. As soon as he got into a stance the Kanisar was already up in his face. Nightshade began to once again block Trider's barrage of punches and kicks, as he was pushed back.

"Damn, he wasn't lying after all. He is strong." he thought as dodged another punch. "But in combat speed and strength aren't the only things that count."

Parrying another attack Nightshade brought his wings forward and tried to slice Trider. The Kanisar however barely dodged the attack and tried to counter-attack, but didn't get the chance to do so. Nightshade swung one of his scimitars and landed a clean hit onto the Kanisar.

Pain shot through Trider's left arm and he quickly backed away. Once he was far enough he looked at his arm and saw there was a deep cut in it.

"Not bad. You've got some skill, I'll give ya that." he complimented the stallion.

"Thanks. I try." he replied.

"Those wings and blades are trouble." Trider thought as he tore a part of his uniform and bandaged his wound. "Maybe I should get a little serious."

He crossed his hands in front of him and channeled his Ki into them. "Spirit Claw!" he said and suddenly his arms were covered with a bright red aura and claws appeared.

Nightshade looked at him in slight surprise. "You can use ethereal magic?" he asked out loud.

"Nah, this is called Ki. It's kind of like magic, but not at the same time." Trider explained.

"That makes no sense."

"It doesn't have to, all you have to know is that it spells bad news for you." With that said, trider once again assaulted Nightshade, this time with even more vigor.

Even with his wings, Nightshade had difficult time keeping up with the Kanisar. The two were locked in fierce combat, each blow stronger than the last. Eventually though Trider got the upper hand and he saw an opportunity, when the pegasus accidentally misstepped. Creating a small ball of Ki he delivered it directly into his stomach and with a loud bang the stallion was sent flying.

Nightshade's landing was anything but graceful, as he skidded across the ground. When he stopped he laid on the ground, a large hole now in his jacket where Trider struck him. Slowly he began to stand up, using his wings and scimitars to lift himself up.

"Still got some fight left in you?" Trider wondered, as he watched the stallion's attempt at getting up. "Good, cuz I'm far from satisfied."

Nightshade said nothing. He lifted his head and looked at the Kanisar. "I guess I was the one who overstimated themselves." he said in a weak voice, as he wiped away the blood from his mouth. "But now it's time for me to get serious." Saying that he slammed the blades of his scimitars into the ground and began to unbutton his jacket.

"Wow dude, chill. I already have a creep on my shoulders. I don't need another." Trider said as he took a step back.

Nightshade gave him a confused look, before he realised what he was implying. "Oh no, no, no. I'm simply taking off my jacket so it doesn't get destroyed even more."

"And how exactly would it get destroyed even more?" Trider wondered.

"Let me show you." With that said, Nightshade threw away his jacket, exposing his bare chest and a small amulet, in the shape of a dragon's head, he had around his neck. He grabbed the necklace with his hand and closed his eyes. "All who face me shall fear my ire, for now you face the beast of fire."

All of a sudden he was engulfed in flames and everyone, including Trider, watched in shock. "What the fuck is that bastard doing?" he asked himself. Soon the flames died out and what everyone saw, made their eyes widen.

Nightshade, once of average height and slim build, was now almost a head taller then he was before and his body was rippling with huge muscles. But that was only a fraction of how his boy changed. His once midnight blue coat was replaced with snow white scales on some parts of his body and his once feathery wings were now a leathery looking, although there were traces of feather shaped like forms on it, but they looked like jagged rocks. His eyes now resembled those of a lizard and on top of his head rested a coulpe of white horns. His tail also underwent a change, as it was now lizardlike, it's point covered in hair.

Looking at the Kanisar, Nightshade gave him a toothy smile, showing off his new sharp teeth. "Sorry to keep you waiting." he said and picked up his scimitars. "Shall we continue."

"Dude, that was awesome. I didn't know you ponies could do this." Trider exclaimed ecstatically.

Nightshade looked at him with slight confusion. "You're not afraid? Usually when I transform, other ponies get scared or at the very least are surprised."

"Oh I was surprised when you transformed, but your look isn't something new." Trider explained. "I mean I live with a dragon and I had a previous encounter with dragons, not to mention one of my friends is a dragon-pony, so..."

"You seem to live a hectic life." Nightshade said.

"Eh, it's what keeps me going through the day." Trider shrugged. "So are gonna stand here and twiddle or are we gonna get down to business?"

Heeding his words, the two once again got into their stances. Then Trider charged at the stallion, rearing his arm back for a punch. Before it could connect however, Nightshade countered with his own punch. The two clashed and the impact sent shock through the Kanisar's arm.

"He's stronger then before, faster too." Trider thought, as he retrieved his arm and decided to continue his attack. The two were once again locked in fierce battle. This time however Nightshade seemed to have the upper hand. He successfully landed a few blows onto the Kanisar drawing blood.

"What's wrong Trider? Can't keep up?" the stallion taunted. Trider only smirked at his remark. As Nightshade swung his sword for yet another attack, Trider grabbed the blade and gripped it hard. The stallion looked at him in terror. "What are you-?" Immediately Trider pulled the scimitar out of his hand and clenched his other fist.

A barrage of punches struck Nightshade with insane speed and strength. Soon he was brought to the ground while Trider simply looked at him. Slowly picking himself up Nightshade looked at the Kanisar, seeing him grin.

"You were holding back all this time?" he asked.

"Maaaaybe." Trider replied coyly, averting his eyes. "I mean it wouldn't have been much of a fight if I went all out at the start, right? I also wouldn't have seen your transformation."

Nightshade just looked at him incredulously. Soon he began to chuckle and got up. "You are one strange fellow." he said.

"Yeah I get that a lot." Trider replied.

Without warning Nightshade unfurled, his now massive, wings and flew at the Kanisar. Trider expected another clash, so he got ready. But Nightshade at the last moment flew into the sky and over the Kanisar. Trider looked at him confused, only to realise that he wasn't his target. Stopping a few feet away from his opponent, Nightshade picked up his scimitar and faced Trider once again.

"Now then..." he said before taking a deep breath and blasting fire onto his two scimitars. The swords blades were engulfed in fire and he gave a few test swings. "Shall we continue?"

"I don't want to sound hypocritical, but isn't that a bit of an overkill?" Trider said as he watched Nightshade's display.

"Maybe." was the stallion's simple reply. He then charged at the Kanisar. Trider summoned his Spirit Claws to counter his now burning weapons in hopes he could defend himself from the fire. And it proved successful as he didn't feel that much heat when he struck the stallions swords. They were in a deadlock, neither one giving the other a chance at retaliation.

"Piston Cannon Trispear!" Trider said and smashed his fist into the flat parts of the swords, which Nightshade used to defend himself. The impact was strong enough to send the stallion skidding across the ground, before stopping a few feet away.

Nightshade couldn't feel his arms after the strike. "Damn, I didn't expect him to be even stronger than me. If this was a test of strength, he would have me beaten by a landslide." He then grinned as an idea popped into his head.

He took a deep breath and blew a cloud of smoke out of his mouth. Soon the smoke covered all of the arena, not letting anyone outside or inside to see what was happening on the battlefield.

"What are you trying to do? Give me lung cancer or something?" Trider shouted into the smoke. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain go across his back and he immediately jumped away. Reaching back he felt something damp on his back and when he brought his hand back he saw it was covered in blood. "Bloody hell." he mumbled.

All of a sudden he saw the tip of a blade cutting through the smoke and he immediatelly dodged the attack. He didn't stop however as he continued to run around, in hopes of avoiding any further assault.

"You're probably wondering how I'm able to see you through all of this smoke?" Nightshade spoke up.

"Not really." Trider replied.

Either not hearing the Kanisar or choosing to ignore him, the stallion began to explain. "Did you know that some snakes have the ability to see heat instead of the regular way other animals see? Well it just so happens that dragons have that ability as well and therefore me too." Trider saw the smoke in front of him shift a bit and he narrowly dodged another swing of the stallions scimitars. "So it doesn't matter where you are or how thick this smoke is, I'll know exactly where you are."

Nightshade continued to follow Trider's heat signature, preparing for another attack. Then he saw that the Kanisar had stopped moving. "What is he planning?" he wondered as he gripped both of his swords. "I should be careful just in case." he decided. Slowly he made his way around until he was behind the Kanisar.

With a flap of his wings he propelled himself towards Trider, raising his blades high into the air. As he approached him he brought his swords down, expecting to slice through his opponent. Trider however sidestepped his attack and delivered a kick into his guts.

Nightshade was knocked a few feet away from where Trider stood. He quickly got up and massaged his stomach. "How did he know?" he wondered.

"What's wrong Nighty? Don't tell me that kick actually took you down for good?" Trider taunted. The stallion looked over to where the Kanisar was and saw he didn't leave his spot.

"Was it just dumb luck that he knew where I was?" he continued to think. He decided to test out if it truly was only luck that helped him evade his attack. He fired a fireball from his mouth in Trider's direction. Right before it connected the Kanisar swatted it away.

That confirmed that he somehow could see where he was, despite the thick smoke. With his advantage destroyed he began to plan another course of attack. But he didn't have time, as he saw that a ball of heat began to form in Kanisar's hands.

"Wailing Nova Sphere!" Trider shouted and shot the ball of Ki at the stallion. Nightshade quickly jumped out of the way of the projectile, however when it exploded the shockwave knocked him to the ground. As soon as he got up he looked back to Trider, but he disappeared.

"Where did-?" he was cut off when something grabbed his tail and threw him into the ground. "Agh!" he shouted when he hit the ground. Soon he felt something drop on top of him and from the shape of the figure, he realised it was Trider. Quickly raising his arms he blocked the oncoming barrage of punches.

Nightshade couldn't fight back as he was pinned to the ground, so all he could do was block. Blow after blow his arms began to grow tired and he knew he had to get the Kanisar off him quickly. Taking a deep breath, he shot a massive fireball at Trider. He heard a loud yelp and knew it hit him. He got into a kneeling position and panted heavily.

"How?" he asked.

"Simple. I just used my other senses to 'see' where you are." Trider replied back through the smoke. "I used my keen sense of smell to tell where you were, while my ears told me what you were doing at the moment and so I was able to fight back."

"Even so, you had to have previous training for you to able to fight in these conditions." Nightshade argued.

Suddenly he was grabbed by his shoulders and when he looked up he saw Trider looking down on him. "Do you really think you're the first one to use this trick on me?" Trider said, before lifting the stallion and throwing him into the air. As Nightshade was still in mid-air, Trider focused his Ki. "Roar Cannon!" he shouted, before shooting a beam of energy from his mouth.

The blast blew the stallion acrosss the arena, before he slammed into the opposite wall. Clutching at where the blast hit him, he saw that the spot was singed. When he looked back to where he flew from, he saw the Kanisar quickly approaching him.

Spreading his wings he took to the skies and he was soon out of the smoke. He looked down on the arena and glared. "Let's see if you can dodge my Great Fireball Barrage!" he exclaimed. He began to shoot fireball after fireball down towards the arena, hitting different parts of it. He continued to shoot the fireballs until the smoke was gone from all the explosions the fireballs created.

The stallion panted heavily, looking to see if he had hit his target. To his surprise even after the smoke had cleared he saw no signs of the Kanisar.

"Where did he go?" he exclaimed and began to frantically look around the arena. Then out of nowhere someone tapped him on the shoulder. Quickly turning around he came face to face with Trider.

"Hey there." Trider greeted with a small wave. Nightshade looked at him incredulously. Before he could reply, Trider punched him directly in the face and sent him hurtling directly into the ground.

Nightshade reamined lying in the small crater he created and looked as Trider slowly descended towards him. When he touched the ground he slowly walked towards his fallen opponent and looked at him.

"You can fly?" the stallion asked weakly.

"Yeah." Trider replied.

"But you don't have wings."

"Bah, wings are so last season."

Nightshade couldn't believe it. He was fighting someone who had the strength of an earth pony, controlled magic like an unicorn and could fly like a pegasus. "Talk about unfair." he thought. It was like going up against an alicorn.

"Heh." he chuckled and got back on his hooves. "I like a challenge."

"That's the spirit." Trider said with a smile. "Whenever you're ready matchstick."

Nightshade smiled back. Suddenly his entire body was engulfed in flame and he took to the sky and began to fly around the arena. Soon a ring of fire formed around the two. The heat it produced made the Kanisar sweat and he had trouble brething due to intense heat.

"What's wrong wolf breath, can't stand the heat?" Nightshade taunted and charged towards the Kanisar, his body still on fire. Trider blocked his first attack, but he soon realised that was a mistake. His arms were immediately burned by the flames and he jumped away. Trider decided to use a less direct approach. He began to fire his Ki blasts, but the stallion either easily dodged them or deflected them with his swords.

"Talk about jumping from the frying pan and into the fire situation." Trider thought to himself. He then tried to use his Spirit Claw to attack the stallion, but as soon as he got closer he could feel the unbearable heat beating down on him. "Dammit can't get close and if I don't finish up soon I'll end up well done."

He began to think what he should do, but the heat made it impossible to think straight. Seeing the Kanisar struggle Nightshade charged again. Trider saw him coming, but due to the rising temperatures his movements began to slow down. Just narrowly avoiding his sword, trider tried to strike back, but the stallion quickly dodged.

"You should just give up, I can tell you won't last for much longer." he said and got ready for another attack. Trider knew he was right, so he ahd to finish this fight up asap.

With a shout Nightshade leaped towards the Kanisar. He expected him to dodge again and he would take advantage of it to take him down for good. But what Trider did next left him speechless. Instead of dodging or blocking, the Kanisar ran right into the stallion and his swords plunged right through his chest.

With wide eyes nightshade stared at Trider unable to comprehend why he would do that. All of a sudden Trider lifted his left arm and grabbed Nightshade's wrist, burning it in the process.

"Got you." Trider said triumphantly. Only when he said that, did the stallion noticed the large sphere of energy, Trider held in his other hand. "Wailing Nova Sphere!"

With no way of dodging or blocking Nightshade took the full force of the blast. The balst was so powerful it made the stallion fly across the arena and slam into the wall, creating a small hole in it.

The flames around the arena begant to die out and it was clear that Nightshade was knocked out cold. Trider grabbed the two scimitars and dropped them to the ground. He raised his burned hand into the sky and smiled.

"Victory for Trider." He thought to himself.

***

That night

Trider was walking along the shore of the sea, along with the princess of the night. "So? How was your first day?" she asked, curious to know what shenanigans the Kanisar got himself into.

"Eh, it had it's ups and downs. But it was pleasant nonetheless." he answered, earning a smile from Luna.

"Glad to hear that." They spent the next few minutes in quiet, before Luna once again spoke up. "If I am correct you were supposed to have your skills tested in combat today, am I right?"

"You are. And before you ask, I totally wiped the floor with the guy." the Kanisar boasted.

"Yes I can see that from the two holes in your chest and the third degree burns on your arm." Luna retorted.

"Even so, I won and that is all that matters." he shot back. "But I do wish they were stronger."

"Pardon? What do you mean stronger? Are these recruits not capable warriors. At least that's what the report said." Luna asked confused.

"Oh no, no, no. Don't get me wrong, they're all very skilled and posses great powers and abilities. I was talking more on the lines of actual raw strength." Trider explained.

"I see. So you're saying none of them are physically strong?"

"Well at least if you compare them to me."

"So what? You said it yourself that they have great skill, and is that not enough?" Luna wondered.

"It is, but at the same time it's not." Luna gave him a look that told him to explain what he meant. "You see ever since I was little I swore to myself that I'd become the strongest there is, and after my encounter with Sombra that will only grew. And while it's a good thing to become stronger through skill, that simply isn't enough for me. I have to get physically stronger as well."

"You make sense Trider. So why not simply train like others do, with weights and such?" Luna continued her inquiry.

"I thought about that, but it's not the same. I have to have someone as strong, if not stronger than me, to train with so I can see how big of a gap is between us and then strive to surpass them." he explained.

Luna began to mull over what he had told her. "I think I can arrange something for you."

Trider looked her in the eyes and grabbed her hands. "Really?" He looked at her with big eyes, which seemed cute to the night princess.

"Yes. I am a princess after all and it will not be so hard to make so you get the training partner you want." she assured him with a smile.

Suddenly Trider grabbed her and pulled her into a hug. "You're the best princess ever." he said joyfully. Luna blushed as she didn't know how to react to his sudden outburst.

"Thank you for the compliment." she said as she pulled away from the embrace. "I should go now so I can make all the necessary arrangements."

"You do that. I can't wait." Trider said gleefully, acting like a little kid in a candy store.

"Farewell for now, expect your new training partner to arrive in a few days."

"I will. See ya Lulu." he replied and fist bumping the mare. As soon as she left the dream had ended.

***

Three days later

"Line up maggots, we are expecting a very important guest today." Blaze shouted, making all of the recruits look at each other in confusion.

"A special guest?"

"Who do you think it is?"

"Why would they want to see us?"

These and many more questions ran through their minds, but Trider simply smirked since he had a good idea of who it might be.

"ATTEN-TION!" Blaze commanded and everyone stopped their chatter and stood straight. Soon out of a nearby walked the princess of the night herself. Everyone looked at the alicorn mare in awe, as they didn't expect for one of their rulers to visit.

"Good day to my loyal subjects." Luna greeted.

"Greetings your highness!" the recruits greeted and saluted back. Luna nodded her head, letting them know they could stop their salute.

"Now, the reason for her highnesses visit today is because somepony wasn't happy with our training and wanted to have a bit more of a challenge." Blaze said as he began to pace in front of the recruits, glaring at Trider when he emphasized somepony.

"Guilty as charged sir." Trider spoke up, making the others look at him incredulously.

"I wasn't praising you sonny." Blaze said, but Trider paid him no mind as he looked towards the princess.

"Took you long enough Luna. Was the paperwork that gruesome?" Their looks of disbelief turned into shock and terror, as they heard he adressed one of their rulers in such a manner.

Blaze smacked the Kanisar on the head pushed his head down. "Trider know your place. You're speaking to Princess Luna, not one of your best buddies." He then looked towards the mare and gave her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry your highness, he is as dense as a rock, I'll make sure he receives hi proper punishment."

"Not necessary General Blaze Fury." she said. "It is the kind of reply I was expecting from him and I have no quarrel with the way he speaks to me."

"Understood." Blaze said and released Trider. "You're off the hook, for now." he threatened in a whisper.

"Up yours too." Trider shot back, making the stallion growl. He then shifted his gaze towards Luna. "Can I step forward?"

"You may." she assured him. Once they were standing face to face, Trider asked the question he ahd on his mind ever since she arrived.

"So, did you bring them?"

"I did." she replied.

"Great, where are they?" he asked and began to look around.

"You're looking at them." she said once Trider looked back at her.

At first he didn't get who she was refering to, but it eventually dawned on him.

"No way. You've gotta be kidding me?" he said in disbelief.

"I am not." Luna stated firmly. "Trider Lykosgrothia, from this day forth I, Princess Luna, shall be your training partner."

Author's Note

Ever get that feeling you should've done something beforehand, but decided not to, thinking you can do it later, but it then comes back to bite you in the ass?
That's how I feel about my finals.
I will be having a hectic week or two, so I will be taking a short break from my story. Although if I find some spare time I may write some more, but no promises.
Until next time.

Chapter 27: Test Your Might Part 4: The Final Unleashing

"Trider Lykosgrothia, from this day forth I, Princess Luna, shall be your training partner."

Silence fell over everyone, as they stared at the Kanisar and the alicorn.

"WHAT???" they all shouted in silmultaneously. Blaze also wanted to voice his thoughts, but he kept his composure.

"You can't be serious Luna?" Trider spoke up, shaking his head. "Why in hell would you volunteer yourself to train with me?"

Luna raised a brown and slightly tilted her head. "You said you wanted to have somepony strong to help you. So here I am." she explained.

Trider gave her a confused look, before he started to laugh. "Good one Luna, good one." he said in between laughs. "You got me good there."

The mare gave him a deadpanned look, as she waited for him to settle down. "And pray tell, why do you think I am joking?" she asked, once the Kanisar calmed down enough for her to state her question.

"For two reasons." he replied and raised a finger. "One, you're a princess, why would you have any combat experiences." He then raised another finger, as he continued. "Two, I defeated Chrysalis, who in turn beat the crap out of your sister. No offense." he added at the end.

Luna sighed, before she addressed Trider again. "I do not know where you got the idea of either me or my sister not possesing any previous fighting experiences. There are many tales of the times me and Celestia engaged in combat with other."

Trider gave her a sheepish look and scratched his neck. "Eh, have I mentioned I never looked into any history books, at all."

Luna gave him a deadpanned look, before she rolled her eyes. "Why am I not surprised?" she mumbled. "Just to give an idea of the threats me and my sister had to face in the past, let me tell you this. We had waged war on the Crystal Empire and the now dead Sombra."

That statement made the Kanisar look at her with wide eyes. "OK. Maybe you do know a thing or two about how to fight, but that still doesn't mean you're stronger than me." he stood his ground.

"How many times do we have to tell you that the reason my sister lost was because she was exhausted from her fight with a dragon?" the lunar princess asked, her voice showing she was slowly becoming annoyed.

But Trider continued to be stubborn. "And I still think it couldn't have been that bad. I mean, how tough can one dragon be?"

Luna massaged the bridge of her nose, before she sighed. "It is like talking to a brick wall." She then looked the Kanisar in the eyes. "Fine. It seems that talking will not resolve our arguement. So how about I show you?"

"You have something in mind?" Trider wondered.

"I do indeed." Luna replied with a smirk. "How about you and me have a match and see who is truly right?"

Trider cracked his knuckles and grinned. "Fine by me."

Nodding Luna looked towards Blaze and spoke to him. "General, if you could be so kind and prepare the arena for mine and Trider's match."

"Of course your highness." the stallion replied. "How soon do you want it ready?"

Luna looked towards Trider. "How does half an hour sound?"

"Sounds perfect." Trider answered with a thumbs up.

"Half an hour then." she said with a nod. She then began to walk away, towards on of the nearby buildings. "I hope you bring your... How did they say it again? Ah yes, I hope you bring your A game."

"Count on it." the Kanisar said and waved off the mare.

Suddenly someone grabbed him by his shoulders and when he looked back he saw Nightshade. "Dude, that was probably one of the most badass things I've ever seen. I mean, no one in their right mind would ever talk one of the princesses like that."

"Thanks." Trider replied with a shit-eating grin.

The stallion released his shoulder and walked off. "It was nice knowing you." he said when he was a couple of feet away from the Kanisar.

"Wait, what was that?" Trider asked the retreating stallion, but never got his answer,a s he and the other recruits left.. "What was that about?" As he kept wondering what Nightshade meant he failed to notice Blaze approaching him.

"Trider!" he exclaimed, gaining the Kanisar's attention.

"What do you want?" he asked, aggravated.

Blaze extended his arm, waiting for Trider to do the same. After some mulling the Kanisar took his hand and shook it. "Break a leg." the red stallion said.

Trider looked at him surprised, not expecting this kind of support from him. "Well, thanks I guess. But I won't really need-"

"And your arms, your other leg and your ribs and your head." Blaze cut him off, as he gave him a cold and mirthful glare.

Letting go of his hand, the stallion walked off so he could prepare the arena for what was about to happen. Meanwhile Trider just stood frozen on the spot.

"Jackass!" he mumbled, before heading off as well.

***

Trider was standing in the arena, doing some stretches, as he waited for his opponent.

"Pardon me for being late." someone said suddenly, drawing his attention. He saw the alicorn princess descend from the air and landing gracefully, several feet away from him.

"No need to apologise Luna, I'm just glad you actually came." he assured her. "But if you didn't I would be really mad at you." he then added with a pout.

"We would not want that now would we." she replied with a giggle.

Trdier smiled at her response, but that smile quickly turned into a scowl. "While I can't wait for us to start." He then pointed a thumb behind him. "What are all of these people doing here?"

Luna lifted her gaze and looked towards the stands and true to his words, nearly every seat was occupied by a Guard. They cheered, chatted, laughed and many other things. The princess then looked back towards Trider and smiled.

"It appears that the word spreads fast. It is not everday that their ruler fights and alien." she replied.

"I guess." Trider responded, while scratching his head. "But are you OK with this? I mean, won't your subjects be heartbroken when they see their beloved princess biting the dust?"

Luna giggled and gave the Kanisar a challenging look. "I am certain. For I doubt you will land a single hit on me."

"Oh, you're on Lulu." Trider said and gave a toothy smile.

"Then let us begin."

Without warning Trider charged at the alicorn, closing the distance in a second. As soon as he was within range he began wailing on mare. Luna however dodged every attack he prepared for her, while keeping her eyes closed. Trider began to grow frustrated at her cocky attitude, so he decided to spice things up.

"Spirit Claw!" His arms were suddenly engulfed in Ki and he began to attack with even more vigor. But to Luna it seemed like nothing had changed.

"Have you started already?" she asked in the middle of the Kanisar's barrage.

Trider halted his assault and gritted his teeth, dispersing his Claws. "Will you stop dodging and fight me for real?!" he exclaimed.

"Very well." the mare said and stopped her movement. Trider seeing she stopped, grinned and began to attack again. This time Luna didn't dodge his attacks, instead she lifted her right arm and extended her index finger. When Trider's attacks came, she blocked every single one of them with her raised finger and nothing else.

This action made the Kanisar even angrier, but he took a deep breath and cleared his mind, not wanting to succumb to his anger. Seeing that direct approach wasn't paying off, he jumped and flew into the air. Luna didn't follow, instead she kept her eyes on him, to see what he would do next.

Once he was high enough, Trider stopped and looked down on his opponent. "Let's see how you handle this!" he shouted and grinned. he began to fire shot after shot of Ki energy at the mare below, not even bothering to aim.

Luna just watched his display and sighed. "How much more will I have to push him until he decideds to get serious?" she wondered, as she moved out of the way of the blasts that were threatening to hit her.

Dust began to gather in the air, from the explosions the blasts were generating. Soon it was impossible to see thorugh it and the mare scowled.

"Enough!" she exclaimed and wave her hand, the dust immediatelly dispersing. When she was able to see again she looked towards where the Kanisar was again.

"HEY LUNA!" Trider shouted. "CATCH THIS!" He fired his Nova Sphere at the mare, but Luna didn't even blink. Instead she raised her hand and flicked the orb away.

Trider watched with wide eyes as he watched his attack bounce away from the mare and explode. "H-how?" he stuttered.

"Trider!" Luna yelled, gaining the Kanisar's attention. When he looked down towards her, he saw she had her wings full open. "I shall be attacking you now, so be prepared."

"Luna I know you probably know this, but you don't tell your enemy what your next move is. That just gives them the chance to counter-attack." he scoffed.

"Then why are you complaining? I am just trying to give you a fair shot." the mare retorted.

"Fine!" Trider sighed and raised his arms. "Then come at me."

He waited to see how the mare will approach him and when she began to flap her wings, his muscles tensed. All of a sudden the mare disappeared from the ground and reappeared behind behind Trider.

"Here I am." she whispered into his ear. Trider quickly turned around to face her, but instead of her blue-green eyes he only saw the back of her hand, as she hit him directly in the face.

The blow so strong that it sent the Kanisar fly into the ground below, where he dug a small crater with his impact. As he laid in his ditch he began to mull over of what had actually happen.

"Did she teleport?" was his first thought, but he quickly objected the idea. "No, I didn't see her charge her horn, so does that mean she is just that fast?" As he began to think more and more, he quickly came to a realisation, that Luna did in fact move faster than he was able to see. "She's even faster than Green." he thought as he slowly picked himself up.

Once he got out of the hole, he saw that Luna was on the ground as well and she was looking at him. "How was the fall?" she asked, taunting the Kanisar.

"How?" Trider mumbled with gritted teeth. "How are you so strong?" he shouted.

The princess of the night shrugged, before replying. "Push-ups, sit-ups and plenty of juice I suppose."

All of a sudden trider slammed his fist into the ground, creating a cracks in it. "STOP SCREWING WITH ME!" he screamed. He got up and glared at the mare, his eyes filled with rage. "You think I don't know what you're doing?" he asked, while pointing a finger at her. "You're trying to get me angry, but what I want to know is why?"

Luna closed her eyes and sighed. "You got me." she admitted. "I amtrying to make you furious and the reason for that is..." She stopped as she thought about how she should put it. "Is because I want to see your full strength."

"My full strength?" he asked confused. "I've been going all out this whole time. What are talking about?"

"No you have not." Luna rejected his statement. "There is still something only you can do to make yourself stronger."

His eyes widened in realisation and shock. "No!" he said, shaking his head. "No, no and no. I'm never doing using that move ever again. I swore to myself. And no matter how angry you make me I'll never ever unleash it."

"Trider." Luna called out. "I know you hold many painful memories because of that form, but I want you to use it again."

"Why?" the Kanisar wondered.

"While this match is about me showing to you how powerful I truly am, there is another reason behind it." she said and looked at Trider with pity. "I demanded this fight also for the purpose to see how strong you are and how much we can increase your strength. And I can better understand how strong you can become, if I experience you Feral Unleashing first hand." She then gave Trider a heartfelt smile. "But if you do not want to do it, I understand and I will not push this matter any further."

Trider didn't reply as he thought over what the mare had told him. "Luna." he said softly. "Do you know the reason why I gave up on the Feral Unleashing?" he asked.

"It is because it brings bad memories and you are afraid that something like what happened inthe Empire might happen again."

"Yeah." Trider replied with a nod. "However there is another reason, a reason that I never told anyone." Luna nodded her head, telling Trider she was listening to waht he ahd to say. "A few days after I got out of the hospital I tried to use my Feral form, but when I did I could somehow sense Sombra, still somewhere deep within me." When he said that, Luna gasped. "Ah, but it might just be my imagination." he said to calm the mare down. "Yet, when I did use it that day I could barely control it. Usually it's no problem to me, even when I'm angry, though at that time even when I was calm I felt the same way as when I was in the Crystal Empire."

Luna's eyes were filled with sorrow and she wanted to embrace her friend. "Trider, I-I did not know." She then took a deep breath and composed herself. "Maybe it is for the best if we finish this up. I will go tell General blaze to-"

She was stopped however when Trider put a hand onto her shoulder and gave her a determined look. "No, we'll finish this the proper way. Until one of us can't fight anymore."

The mare looked at him with awe. "Trider." she whispered.

"After all that is how we Kanisars do things. Until the very end." he said with puffed chest and a smile. "I'll do it Luna. But there is one thing I want you to promise me."

"Anything."

"If I get completely out of control, I want you to promise me, that you'll stop me. By any means necessary."

"I promise." she assured him and he smiled.

"Thank you." he said and let go of her shoulder. "Now take a few steps away. Things are about to get intense."

Minding his words, the alicorn princess walked until she was several feet away and she waited for Trider.

"Here goes nothing. This is the last Feral Unleashing!" he stated proudly. Closing his eyes, he focused and tried to draw out that familiar feeling he always felt when he went into his Feral form. It took a few seconds, but eventually the dark aura began to encircle him. As he dug deeper and deeper into his feral side the more the aura grew in intensity, until it completely covered him and appeared like a dark flame.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" Trider screamed and unleashed all of his hidden power. The aura flared and shot into the air, reaching about 10 feet into the air. As he continued to power up the ground around him, began to give way to his aura and the air began to ripple. In all of his times Trider had ever used the Feral Unleashing, never had he ever brought out this much power.

Eventually he stopped his screaming, the aura growing smaller, but it still enveloped his body. The crowd in the stands looked on in awe as they watched the display the Kanisar put forth.

"What in the name of sweet Celestia?" Blaze mumbled.

"How are you holding up?" Luna asked Trider.

"Not well. Losing it." Trider replied with strained voice. Suddenly he growled and charged at the princess, closing the distance in an instant.

Luna raised her arms and blocked the Kanisar's attack, one after the another. "Trider, you are in control, don't let your instincts overtake you." she begged him, but her pleads fell on deaf ears.

After another blocked attack, Trider jumped away from Luna, landing on all four a few feet away and opened his mouth. A ball of energy began to form and he shot it at the mare. Luna raised a shield to block it, but more soon followed. Under the barrage of heavy fire, the lunar princess began to formulate a plan of attack.

Once she came up with it she dropped her shield and teleported behind Trider. The Kanisar, acting on his pure instincts, quickly spun around and tried to roundhouse her, but she caught his foot with her arm. He however didn't let up and tried to blast the mare again, but she instantly put her hands onto the sides of his head and charged her horn.

Both of their eyes began to glow white and she spoke. "Trider, I know you are in there. Please cease this and come back to your senses." Slowly the Kanisar's rapid began to slow down and his form began to relax. Happy with the outcome, Luna removed her hands and both of their eyes returned to normal.

"Wha-? What happened?" Trider asked as he rubbed his head.

"You lost it. But I managed to help you gain back control with my magic." she explained.

Trider looked at her with slight shock, but he soon smiled. "Thanks." he said.

"You are welcome."

Trider then looked at himself and saw that he was still envolped by the dark aura. "Guess I can control it now." he said and clenched his fist a few times.

"For now yes. But it is only a matter of time, before you lose it again." Luna stated with a frown.

"Then we better finish quickly." Trider proposed and extended his fist. Luna looked at his hand and smiled.

"Indeed." she answered and fist-bumped her friend.

As if on cue, Trider withdrew his arm and swung it at Luna. She however blocked it with the palm of her hand and the two began to fight again. The crowd began to cheer even louder, though most were for the princess, while only a single voice was rooting for the Kanisar.

Unaware of the audience the two were locked in fierce combat, but despite the power-up it was still clear that Luna was the superior among the two. But that didn't discourage Trider, instead it only made him more excited.

"This is exactly what I wanted." he said mid-fight. "Someone who I can aspire to beat."

"So I presume you finally acknowledge my strength." Luna retorted.

Trider didn't answer, instead he only smiled. After another powerful blow, the two jumped away from each other, each landing a few feet away from the other. "Not just yet Lulu. I still haven't gone full out."

As he said that the dark aura began to diminish, but was still present as a thin veil over him, and his muscles expanded. Once the transforamtion was done the crowd gasped, while a "Oh my!" resonated among the collective gasp.

Luna meanwhile didn't react like the others did, instead she just grinned. "So you're trying to overpower me in raw strength?"

"Hey, it worked before." Trider quipped.

Luna just shrugged and beckoned him to come at her with her hand. Trider took her taunt and attacked. When they clashed the impact generated a small shockwave and then they began to run all over the arena. Some of the Guards had a hard time following them, but they could still feel the pressure of the fight.

Like before Trider was the one attacking, while Luna was on the defensive. After a while however, the princess decided to finally attack. She grabbed the Kanisar's fist and that left his chest wide open. She slammed her palm onto his chest and sent him flying through the air.

Unlike before however, Trider landed on his feet when he hit the ground and he skidded across it until he stopped in front of the wall. he was panting heavily and sweat was pouring down his face.

"I think we are done here." Luna said loud enough so the Kanisar could hear her.

Trider however smiled and shrank back down, his aura once again rising. "What did I tell you?" he shouted back and lowered his stance. "This isn't over until one of us bites the dust."

He began to charge all of his Ki throughout his body and soon his body was also enveloped by a red aura that clashed with his dark aura.

"Let's see if you can handle my most powerful attack!" he exclaimed and got into a crouch 4 point start. "FINISH BREAKER!"

In the blink of an eye he closed the distance between himself and the mare and delivered his attack. The impact was so powerful it created a crater beneath the two, while the shockwave it generated, could also be felt by the audience. Luna was using bot of her hands to halt Trider's attack, but she didn't budge a single bit from her spot. The Kanisar continued his assault, until Luna pushed back, stopping his attack and pushing him away.

Trider huffed, trying to catch his breath. "Dammit." he murmured. "That move took a lot out of me. I'm all out of juice."

"Do you concede now?" Luna asked as she slowly approached him.

Trider however cackled. "Until. One of us. Bites. The dust." he retorted, emphasizing each sentence. He once again charged at the mare, but his vision was becoming hazy and his body felt heavy.

Luna watched as he approached her, slower then before, his aura flickering. "Might as well play along." she thought to herself ad got ready to dodge the attack.

Now only a few feet away, Trider's legs began to give, making him stumble. "No!" he screamed inside his head. "Not until I land a single hit!" He gritted his teeth and pushed his body to the utmost limit.

When he was only a couple of feet away from Luna his aura once again flickered, but for a split second it turned pure white. His movements became lightning fast , surprising the mare. In just the nick of time she moved her head out of the way of the Kanisar's fist, while looking into his now neon-blue eyes.

The sudden burst of power surprised her so much that she instinctively teleported away. But as soon as she did so, Trider's body fell to the ground, the aura disappearing completely. She was still cautios, but after a couple of seconds of him not moving she noted that he was unable to fight.

She began to slowly walk towards him and while she did so, she felt something running down her cheek. Wiping at the spot with her thumb, she saw that it was blood. She then quickly realised that his last attac, grazed her a bit, just enough to draw blood. Smiling to herself she reached her friend and looked down on him.

"When you said 'when one of us bites the dust' I did not think you were serious." she said mirthfuly.

"Shut up." Trider mumbled, his face still in the ground.

"Come on. We better get you to infirmary." the mare said and lifted the Kanisar's body with her magic.

"Put me back down and let me wallow in my shame." he said dramatically.

"I do not think General Blaze would be happy with that idea."

"Tell Whip to screw him."

Luna giggled at his response and the two left the arena, while the crowd cheered loudly, for both of them.

***

Trider was resting in the infirmary, when the doors to the room were suddenly opened and in walked Blaze and Green.

"Hello Trider!" Green greeted merrily, while Blaze didn't say anything.

"Great, just the ponies I wanted to see." the Kanisar replied sarcastically.

"Don't give me the sass boy." Blaze growled. "You're lucky Princess Luna went easy on you, otherwise you'd be eating your meals through a straw."

"That would still be better than to listen to you complain." Trider retorted.

Blaze didn't respond back, but instead resorted to an angry glare.

"Now, now. Let's be civil about this." Green said and jumped in between the two. "Blaze you have recruits to let your anger out on, so cut Trider some slack." He then turned his head towards Trider. "And you must remember that you are speaking to your superiors. So if you don't want to end with cleaning duty I suggest you keep your mouth shut."

The two jsut scoffed and looked away from each other. "Stubborn like mules." Green sighed.

"Why are you here anyway?" Trider asked.

"Ah yes." Green said as he remember their reason for their visit. "First I'd like to congratulate you for an excelent performance."

"Thank, I guess."

"And secondly. We're here to give you the list of teams." he said as he handed the Kanisar a sheet of paper. "The others have already been informed, but since you're currently bedridden, we've decided to tell you in person."

Trider didn't even glance at the paper, instead he gave the stallions a scowl. "Teams? What teams?" he asked confused.

"The teams we've created throught analysing your abilities." Blaze began to explain. "If you make it into the Guard you'll have to work alongside others and in order to make it easier for you to do so, we team you up with other recruits in the Academy, to teach you proper teamwork."

"Eh, I'd rather not." Trider complained. "i'm more of a lone wolf type of person."

"Well too bad. It's either the team or you get kicked out. And I'm certain that Princess Celestia wouldn't be very happy if that happened." Blaze threatened.

The two glared at each other, but eventually Trider gave up and sighed. "Fine. I guess I'll try." He then looked at the paper. "I wonder who the other members are?"

He scanned over the list of the teams and thier memebers, until he spotted his name.

Team #10

Members:

Trider Lykosgrothia

Frost Fire

Ace Quickpaw

When he saw the last name his eyes widened and his body shivered.

Whip Lash

Trider continued to stare at the paper, hoping he was reading it wrong. But he soon realised that it was for real.

Chapter 28: A Wolfpack of Idiots

Sounds of explosions and screams emerged from the arena and anyone who was close enough would’ve thought that they had some sort of demolition derby going on inside. But because of the little display from a few days ago, they knew they had nothing to worry about.

Meanwhile inside the building, Trider vigorously dodged a barrage of magical blasts that were locked onto him and followed his every movement. As they approached him, he quickly jumped into the air and flew out of harms way. A couple of blasts detonated upon impact with the ground, while the rest continued their merciless assault.

The Kanisar expertly manuevered through the air and once he was near the roof he bounded off of it, making several of the blasts leave a hole in it.

“Careful you nincompoop!” Blaze shouted, as he watched Trider’s training.

But the Kanisar paid him no mind, as he approached the ground and at the last minute he corrected his trajectory, so he was now flying parallel with it. The sound of a couple more explosions reached his ears and he smiled.

“Is this the best you’ve Lulu?” he mocked his mentor. The princess however didn’t react, prefering to keep her focus on the spheres that closing in on Trider.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your training your highness, but Trider needs to meet up with his teammates, so we can put them through team exercises.” Green exclaimed as he walked in.

“Very well.” Luna answered and dispersed the orbs.

“Partypooper.” Trider yelled as he flew over to the Princess.

“That may be so, but rules are rules Trider, so tidy up and come to the Training Room 3.” the stallion explained before he left, Blaze following close behind.

Once he was close enough Trider landed and Luna offered him a towel. He thanked her and began to wipe off the accumulated sweat.

“So, your team.” Luna began. “You have not talked about them at all since we started training. Who are the members of it and what do you think of them?”

Done with the wiping, Trider gave Luna back the towel and she made it disappear. “You sure have knack to ask the heavy questions don’t cha?” he said, as he gave her a bemused look.

“Is it not proper manners for a master to know more about their students or for friends to better understand each other? Only in this way can their bond strengthen.” the mare replied with a serious tone.

“Woah, I was just kidding there Lulu.” Trider quickly responded, waving his arms. “I guess they’re OK.”

“OK?” Luna inquired with a curious voice. “Care to tell me more?” she asked and the two began to head out.

“Well first up we have the Frost Fire, or as I like to call her Ice Queen, since she barely reacts to anything any of us does. If we screw something up she scolds us, but not in the same manner Twilight does. She just tells us ‘You did bad.’ and walks away. And if we by any chance do something right, she doesn’t utter a single word. It’s like she doesn’t give a fuck about anybody.”

“That sounds a lot like somepony I know.” Luna spoke up and gave Trider a mischevious grin.

“Har, har, har.” he laughed dryly. “Anyway, next up is Ace. He’s a pony diamond dog hybrid and honestly I don’t know what to tell you about him. He’s usually quiet and rarely speaks up. Don’t misunderstand though, he isn’t antisocial or anything, he has quite a few friends among other recruits, it’s just that he seems to prefer not to talk to others if he doesn’t have to. One thing I do know about him is that you don’t mess with his food or you’ll get the short end of his weapon.”

“And lastly is the bane of my existence. Whip Lash.” he said his name with a shiver.

“Ah yes, I do remember you talking about him a few times before.” Luna said, as she tried to recall more about the stallion. “Is he not the one that is trying to court you, despite your heterosexual orientation?”

“Yep, that’s him.” the Kanisar confirmed with a deadpanned tone. “That guy is getting on my nerves. Every morning he waits for me in front of my room, he sits beside me during every meal and when I tell him to back off he just pushes forward and I can’t beat him to a pulp since that would just make him go out of control. It’s driving me nuts!!! It’s like he is the perfect counter to myself.” he exclaimed, while grabbing his head.

Luna gave him a pitiful look. “I am sorry for your misfortune Trider.” she tried to console him. “But nonetheless they sound like a pleasant bunch, I am certain you will get along fine.”

“You know what, I too am certain we’ll kick ass.” he fist bumped the mare as they each began to head in different direction. “Thanks for the confidence boost Luna.”

“You are quite welcome Trider.”

***

“How in the name of sweet Celestia did this happen?” Blaze said as he rubed his eyes.

In the room everything was in disarray. Numerous pieces of furniture were either thrown into every corner or were blown up. In the middle of the room stood a training dummy, it’s head blown off.

“It beats me, but I’ve never seen a hostage situation turn out like this.” Green agreed, while writing down something in his notebook.

Just like the room, the memebers of Trider’s team were in no better condition. Ace was hanging from the ceiling, his entire body wrapped in Whip’s whip. Frost was nailed to the wall with arrows that somehow missed her body, but hit only her uniform. Trider wasn’t faring any better, his lower body sticking out of the room’s wall, while his upper half was on the other side of said wall. Whip however stood in the middle of the room, completely naked, his entire coat covered in soot, a part of his mane still on fire, as he looked around confused.

“Get them out of there and tell them to come to the conference room.” Blaze growled, as he stood out of his chair. Just as he grabbed the door knob he turned back to Green. “And bring Whip a pair of new pants.” he added and left the room.

“Understood.” Green replied.

About ten minutes later, Trider, Frost, Ace and Whip were all standing before Blaze’s desk. “Can any one of you tell me why I called you here?” the stallion asked from behind his desk.

“To congratulate us?” Trider asked with a nervous smile. He was suddenly hit on the back of his head. “What the-?” he shouted and turned around, only to see a wooden arm floating in mid-air.

“I’m beginning to grow tired of your attempts of being funny wolf.” Blaze threatened, as he narrowed his eyes into a glare. “But luckily for you, this time you’re not the only one at fault.”

“I’m not?” the Kanisar asked surprised.

“No.” the stallion confirmed. “In fact all of you are here for the same reason. And that reason is because you’re not working as a team.” Everyone looked at each other, before returning their gaze back to Blaze. “In all my years of training, not once have I ever seen such a bunch of incompetent morons like yourselves.”

As soon as he finished his sentence, the group began to argue over each other, trying to push the blame onto one another. Blaze’s right eye began to twitch and all of a sudden he burst. “SHUT UP ALL OF YOU!!!” he yelled, making the bickering stop. “This is exactly what I’m talking about. You guys are the worst team in the histor of Equestrian military.”

He then proceeded to pull out a sheet of papers and began to go through it. “Every other team has successfully completed every obstacle course with flying colors. But you on the other hand, haven’t finished not even one, furthermore in your recent exercise you killed the hostage, while getting yourselves into unbelieveable positions in the span of ten seconds.”

At that point Trider and the rest began to falter under Blaze’s barrage of insults and didn’t know how to respond. “But what really gets on my nerves even more than your failures, is the fact that you haven’t even decided on the team leader or a team name.”

“Permission to speak sir?” Trider asked.

“Granted.” the stallion sighed.

“I’ve been telling these guys that I should be the team leader all of this time, but they refuse to oblige.”

“With a good reason.” Frost suddenly spoke up. “You’re a reckless hothead, who thinks with his fists rather than his brains.”

“Still better than someone who doesn’t even put in a little effort to what they do, unless they’re ordered to do so or is a life-or-death situation.” Trider rebuted.

“At least I won’t get everyone killed.” Frost shot back.

“Yeah, because we would probably sitting down on our arses doing jackshit.”

“Quiet both of you!” Blaze suddenly interjected. The two stopped their arguement and listened to what the stallion had to say. “You both make compelling arguements, but you bot failed to notice that it’s a team of four not a team of two.” He then turned his gaze toward Ace and gave him a questioning look. “What do you have to say about this Ace?”

The dog-pony looked around nervously, not knowing what to say. “With all due respect sir, I don’t think I’m cut out for the job.” he replied.

“I understand. I won’t force you, but I suggest you reconsider, seeing as these two are probably the least suitable candidates for the role.” Frost and Trider shot him a dirty glare, at his remark, but he didn’t notice it, as his attention was now on Whip. “And you? Think you’re up to the challenge?”

“Nah.” the stallion answered, with a wave of his hand. “It seems too much work for me. Beside I strongly believe that Trider is the better chioce out of all of us.”

“Thank you.” Trider said.

“Oh please, he only said that so he could get his dick in your ass.” Frost immediatelly argued. Whip’s cheeks became slightly tainted with red and Trider shot him a cold glare. But Kanisar’s attention was soon directed back to the mare and they began to bicker once more.

“THAT’S ENOUGH!!!” Blaze finally snapped. “ALL OF YOU GET OUT OF MY OFFICE, BEFORE I DECIDE TO KICK YOU OUT OF IT!!!”

The group immediatelly vacated the room, leaving the red stallion slouched in his chair. “I’m getting too old for this shit.” he grumbled and opened his drawer, pulling out a glass and a bottle of whiskey. Suddenly a series of knocks came from the door and he glared at it. “Leave, I’m not in the mood.” he exclaimed, hoping they would heed his words.

“Now, now. Is that any way to speak to your fellow instructor.” the green stallion said as he entered the room.

“Sorry Greenie. I’m just really stressed out at the moment.” Blaze apologised as he took a sip of the alcoholic drink.

“Does it have anything to do with ‘that team’?” Green asked, as Blaze offered him a glass, but he refused.

“Yeah, I’m beginning to think they’re a lost cause.” the red stallion said as he put his glass down. “Despite their individual skills, they each lack teamwork. Trider is a loose cannon, that prefers to work alone, Frost is the type that prefers to exude the least amount of energy as possible, Ace is too timid to be in charge and don’t even get me started on Whip.” He sighed and took another large gulp of whiskey. “If this continues I’ll have no other choice, but to do the necessary.”

“You don’t mean...?” Green asked with wide eyes.

“Yup.” Blaze replied with a stoic expression. “That is what I mean.”

***

“Trider.” A distant voice called out. “Trider.” This time it was louder and closer and it seemed eerily familiar. “Trider!” Suddenly something slapped the Kanisar across the face and he was immediatelly awake.

“Wha? Where? Who?” Trider mumbled, as his senses went into overdrive.

“Glad to see you awake.” Frost said with a deadpanned expression. The Kanisar returned the glare, as he stood up.

“You better have a good goddamn reason to wake me up like that.” he growled and continued their staring contest.

“Take a look around yourself you idiot.” Only when she said that did Trider notice they were no longer in their beds in the barracks, but instead inside a large hole. The hole was wide and very deep, about a hundred feet approximately and it appeared to have no exit whatsoever, the only illumination was provided by the faint glow of a few bright green crystals. In the middle of the hole was also some kind of contraption.

“What the hell?” he muttered to himself. “Where are we?”

“That’s what we’ve been trying to find out while you were snoozing off.”

“We?”

“Heyo.” The greeting caught Trider’s attention and once he turned his head he saw both Ace and Whip as well.

“So the gang’s all here.” he said as he approached his other two friends. “Does any of you know what happened to us?”

“Like I said, we’ve been trying to figure that out, but we had no luck whatsoever.” Frost sighed.

“Why don’t you guys just use your magic to get out? It can’t be that hard right?” Trider wondered.

“We tried, but these things are preventing us from doing so.” Whip said and tapped a silver choker on his neck.

“And why does a tacky piece of jewelry stop oyu exactly?” Trider asked. “If you tell me your magic comes from your fashion sense, then I know a certain mare that might be an all powerful god if that’s the case.”

“It’s anti-mag.” Ace finally spoke up. “It’s a type of metal that prevents the flow of magic through our body. You have one as well.”

Only when he pointed that out, did Trider notice something clinging to his neck. “Seriously?” he chuckled. “Whoever did this, didn’t do their homework. I don’t d magic.” Saying that he charged his Ki and began to fly. “I’ll bust us out of here and then you can praise me as your-” He didn’t get to finish his sentence, as some mysterious force pulled him back to the ground, hitting the floor with great impact.

“Trider!” Whip yelped. “Are you alright?”

“What the fuck?” Trider exclaimed and quickly stood up. He tried to fly again, but like before, as soon as he left the ground he was brought down again. “What is going on?”

“Guys.” Ace called out, gaining their attention. “I think I found something.” They all approached him and when they were close enough they saw he had a piece of paper in his hands.

“What does it say?” asked Frost and the dog-pony began to read.

Greetings Ace, Frost, Trider and Whip

You might be wondering where and what you are doing here? I’ll gladly answer.

You have been brought here, because of your lack of teamwork. Here you’ll do your best to escape together, through the power of teamwork. If not you’ll be facing severe punishment.

Now for where here is.

This hole was created a long time ago during the Gryphon-Pony war and is the place where the ponies took shelter to hide from the gryphons when they invaded this part of the land. It’s walls are dug straight into pure granite, so don’t even think about digging your way out of here Ace. The only escape is on the top, but is currently closed.

Now you’re probably asking how to open it? It’s simple actually.

You see the lever in the middle of the hole? That there opens a hidden compartment somewhere in the room and behind it is a switch. When that switch is flipped it will open up the hole and you’ll be able to escape.

Simple, right?

“Pfft, screw this Imma just blow the thing up.” Trider said and charged a Ki blast.

“Trider wait!” Frost exclaimed. He however didn’t listen and was just about to launch it, when a jolt of elecrticity surged through him. He lost his concentration and the blast disappeared.

“The fuck?” he shouted. Suddenly Frost smacked on the head and glared at him.

“Are you retarded or something? Did you even think about what would happen if that thing collapsed on top of us? Did you?” she scolded the Kanisar.

“No I didn’t.” he grumbled. “But who cares about that. Something shocked me when I tried to use my Ki.”

“Guys, there’s more to the letter.” Ace called out again.

Now for the rules.

You are no allowed to use magic or your weapons, the anti-mag necklaces will make sure of that. As for Trider, since anti-mag won’t work on him, we’ve instead put on him an enchanted one. This prevents him from using his Ki, by sending electrical surges through him whenever he uses it. (Disclaimer: the more times you use your Ki, the stronger the shock becomes.) And to prevent him from flying, we’ve put on an enchantment, that whenever he is not in contact with the ground for more than 3 seconds will pull straight back down.

“You could’ve told me that before.” the Kanisar growled.

Your necklaces will lose their power once they’re exposed to sunlight, which will pour through the gap above you, once you open it. When that happens you should have no trouble escaping from here.

But be warned, you only have 24 hours to escape, as of now. If by then you are unsuccessful, you will face a severe punishment.

The punishment? Death. You see this hole can only be opened up from the inside and it has an intricate system, that closes it for the next decade, if not open in a given time.

Have fun.

The letter then burst into flames and it reformed into an hourglass. The group stared at the it with varying emotions.

“What?”

“The?”

“Fuck?

“Is this?” they said.

“This has to be some kind of joke. I mean they would never kill us right?” Ace asked in disbelief.

“The better question is who did all of this?” Whip wondered.

“I’ll tell you who.” Trider spoke up. “It’s that bastard geezer Blaze. He was so mad at us that he decided to take matters into his own hands and play with us.”

“Whatever.” Frost said and laid down onto the ground. “I’ll just wait here until they come to pick us up.”

At her statement the others looked at her with confusion. “What do you mean?” one of them asked.

“It’s like Ace said, there is no way they would kill us. So instead of worrying, we should just relax.” she said and closed her eyes.

“Even so, we should at least try.” Ace begged, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. He then looked at the Kanisar. “Can you please persuade her?”

“Sorry man, but there is no reasoning with her.” he stated. He then went over to the lever and grabbed it. “Just have to crank it, right?” he said and began to push. The lever however fought back. “Damn this thing is putting up a fight.” he said as all he had into it.

Soon it began to move and once it was pushed to it’s limit they heard a clanking noise. Their gaze turned towards the sound and saw part of the wall near the top open up.

“There, part one is done. All we have to do now is get up there and bam. We’re free.” he said as he released the lever. However as soon as he did that the wall closed back up. Trider stared at the wall. “Well damn.”

“Now what?” asked Whip.

“Now you two push the lever and I’ll climb up there.” Trider said and headed towards the wall. Whip and Ace nodded in agreement and they both grasped the lever. They then pushed it with all of their might, but it didn’t even budge.

“What’s the matter?” Trider called out from the other side.

“We can’t move it!” Ace shouted. The two then released the lever and headed over to the Kanisar.

“Now what?” Whip asked.

“Nothing. You guys just sit back and let me get us out of here.” Trider proclaimed.

“How exactly are going to do that?” Ace asked.

“Simple.” he grinned and pointed at the wall. “I already know where the hole is, all I have to do is climb up there and bust it open with my fists.”

Whip and Ace looked at each other skeptically. “Are you sure that’s going to work?” one of them asked unsure.

“Trust me. I know what I’m doing.” He then placed his hand onto the smooth wall and dug his fingers directly into the stone. Gripping the wall tightly, he slowly began to ascend. Ace, Whip and even Frost watched the slow climb.

“Well, we might as well sit back and watch I guess.” Whip said and sat next to Frost and watched Trider with a dreamy smile.

Ace was still unsure about the whole situation, but eventually he sighed and joined up with the other two.

***

Several hours later

Trider fell to the ground and hit the floor pretty hard. Grumbling he stood back up and went for his 14th attempt. So far he had barely reached the halfway point and exhaustion began to catch up to him.

“Stop it already Trider!” Ace begged the Kanisar. “Why don’t you take a break and we can figure this out together.”

“No way, I almost have this fucker figured out.” Trider protested and began to climb again. His inital ascend was faster everytime and soon he was about 10 feet off the ground. However his began to turn blury and his arms and legs began to shiver.

He closed his eyes and tried to focus his strength into his limbs, but it was for naught and he again plummeted to the ground. This time however he reamined lying, as he had no strength to even move.

“That resting idea sounds good, right now.” he said. Ace and Whip approached him, hoisting him up and carrying him over to where they sat before.

“How’s the climb?” Frost asked with a grin.

“Fuck you.” was Trider’s only reply, as he didn’t want to argue with the mare at the moment.

“Trider you’re bleeding.” Whip exclaimed. The Kanisar looked at his fingers and saw that they were cut all over and bloody. “Here, let me take care of it.” the stallion said and began to rip up his shirt, making a maeshift bandage for his friend.

Trider thanked him and Whip smiled. Silence then fell over the group as none of them had any idea what they should talk about.

“Maybe we should come up with a plan to escape from here.” Ace suggested.

“I told you already, I’ll get us out of here as soon as I rest up.” Trider argued.

“Ha, by the time you even reach it, we’ll probably already be rescued from here.” Frost shot back

“I don’t want to hear anything from you bitch. All of this time you just sat on your ass and did nothing.” Trider growled and glared at her.

“Neither did they.” Frost countered and pointed to Ace and Whip.

“That’s because I told them to leave it to me. At least they tried to help, unlike someone.”

“Oh what would be the difference if I helped or not, since you’d just push me aside as well?”

“Don’t give me that shit. You always try to get out of any unnecessary work with your excuses. Did you even think about the fact that you might be wrong?”

“Wrong? There is no way in Tartarus that they would kill us like this.”

“Even so, what if this is another test and if we don’t complete it we get thrown out of the Guards?”

“And your point is?”

“Whip can you back me up here?”

“Sure ask your boyfriend to watch your back, while he stretches your asshole wide open.”

“Actually I agree with Frost in some regard.” Whip said, earning a glare from Trider.

“Seriously? How can you agree with her?”

“I didn’t say I agreed with her, I said I agreed with her in some regards, as I agree with some of your concerns.”

“That’s bullshit.”

From that point on their arguement grew in intensity and volume. So much so that Ace decided to intervene. “Guys, can I say some-?”

“SHUT IT!!!” Trider, Frost and Whip all yelled at the same time, before returning to their squabble.

Ace’s eye began to twitch and he decided, enough was enough. “WILL ALL OF YOU SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTHS!?” At that moment everyone stopped their dispute and stared at the dog-pony with wide eyes. “I’VE HAD IT WITH YOUR FUCKING PETTY COMPLAINTS AND NOW YOU’RE ALL GOING TO BE QUIET WHILE I SET A FEW THINGS STRAIGHT!”

“Trider!” he turned to the Kanisar. “You’re a selfish, uncooperative, loosecannon jerk. You always try to do things by yourself, despite knowing you can’t. It won’t kill you to work with others from time to time.”

He then turned his gaze towards Frost next. “I don’t know why you think everything will be solved by itself, but let me tell you one thing. it won’t work out, cause while you’ll sit around doing nothing, the others will improve themselves and they’ll become better, while you’ll be stuck in place. And I frankly don’t want to see that happen.”

“And you.” he pointed a finger at Whip. “Are just plain weird.”

The group was silent, everyone still in shock from Ace’s outburst.

“Wow.” Trider finally spoke up. “You’ve finally grown a backbone, huh?”

Ace’s ears drooped and he blushed. “S-sorry I didn’t mean to.”

“Don’t be sorry.” Frost said, stood up and looked at Ace with an apologetic smile. “Everything you said was true. And I’m sorry if I’ve been a burden on you.”

“And I’m sorry for not relying on you guys more.” Trider followed up.

“And I’m sor... Wait why am I apologizing? You just insulted me.” Whip said with a scowl.

“Hey, he was just speaking the truth.” Trider jabbed.

“Touche.” The group then began to laugh and after a few seconds their laughter died down.

“I can’t believe you can actually laugh.” Trider said and gave Frost a playful smirk.

“Only when it’s something funny, unlike what you try to make yourself out to be.” Frost quickly shot back.

“Ouch.”

“So what should we do now?” asked Ace. “I mean, we kind of made up, but I still feel we’re not exactly a team.”

The group realised that he was right and began to ponder how to proceed further. Suddenly Whip snapped his fingers, as an idea came to his head.

“How about we tell each other more about us. That way we get to know each other better.” he suggested. The rest mulled over his idea and in the end they agreed it was a good notion.

***

“So then the guy comes up to me and says ‘ Baby I’m like a firefighter I find them hot and leave them wet. ‘” Frost told her story and the others busted out laughing.

“Did he honestly say something like that?” Trider asked, tears falling down his face.

“Yeah. But what made it worse was that he thought the line had actually worked and I wanted some fuck. So I just looked at him and said ‘That line was just like your dick, dirty and unsatisfying.’” The guys roared in laughter. “The face he made when I said that was simply priceless.”

“So then he left you alone?” Ace wondered how the story ended.

“If only. He tried to overpower me for saying that to him, but I just pulled out a knife and sliced his dick off.” At that statement the guys each winced, grabbed their crotches and gave Frost wary stares. “Don’t worry guys, I actually tolerate you, so you don’t have to be afraid of a little poor me.” Frost chuckled and replied in an innocent tone. The others gave her nervous laughs, before letting go of their junks.

“Trider.” Ace called ou the Kanisar. “There’s something I’ve been wondering.”

“What?”

“Why do you hate sleeves?” the dog-pony asked. “And don’t try to sell me the ‘it’s not my style’ bullcrap, cause from what I’ve seen you actually seem to be afraid of them.”

At that remark Frost and Whip turned to Trider with curious looks on their faces. The Kanisar just sighed and his face turned grim.

“It’s a bit of a long story, but I’ll try to shorten it.” he said and scratched his head. “My planet is currently in the middle of a civil war between my race and another race that came from another planet. When this war began many Kanisars were either enslaved or killed. The same happened to my parents.”

The others gave him surprised looks, before they turned into sad ones. “Oh, uhm, I’m sorry I didn’t... If you don’t want to...” Ace tried to apologize, but Trider waved him off.

“It’s OK. I’ve much or less come to terms with it.” he calmed his friend. “Anyway, me and my parents just finished watching a movie, when we were approached by a group of soldiers. My father risked his life to allow me and mom to escape. But they quickly found us.”

“My mom shielded me from the soldiers and once we lost them she finally let go of me.” His voice got caught in his throat and he coughed to clear it. “And when she did I saw how badly wounded she was. She had no chance to survive and she died. When that happened I couldn’t believe it, but I did what my mother wanted me to do. I ran and didn’t turn around.”

“Once I had stopped did the reality of what happened hit me like a truck and I began to cry. Once the tears ran dry I noticed that my shirt’s sleeves were tainted with her blood. Unable to look at it, I tore them off. And ever since then anytime I wear any sort of sleeve I see her blood on them and it terrifies me.”

The group intently listened to his story and once he was done, most of them tried to hold back their tears, while Whip was outright wailing.

“You poor thing.” the pink maned stallion said and hugged Trider.

“Let go of me!” he protested and pushed the clingy stallion away from him.

“I didn’t know you went through such ordeal.” Ace said, his voice filled with pity. “If it makes you fell any better my parents were also killed when I was a kid.”

Trider looked at him incredulously. “Really?” he asked.

Ace nodded his head. “Yeah.” he began his tale. “You might not believe this, but I was once part of a travelling circus. My mother was a professional manticore tamer, while my father was a daredevil.”

“One day, after a successful show we headed towards the next town, but we were ambushed by a group of Gryphons. The older memebers of the circus tried to fight them off, but they were better equipped and eventually all of the members were killed. I managed to escape along with a younger filly, a daughter of the circus’s magician. I still have the slash marks from that day.” he said and turned around, dropping his shirt and showing his back riddled with scars. “We were the only survivors.” he finished in a heartbroken voice.

“What happened to the filly?” Frost asked.

“Don’t know. But I am certain she is running her own magic show.” Ace replied hesitantly.

Again Whip was crying his eyes out and he hugged the dog-pony as well. “How tragic!” he bellowed.

“Thanks for your concern Whip, but I’m fine.” he assured the stallion, making him eventually let go of him.

“Talk about coincidence.” Frost mused, as Ace put his clothes back on.

“Don’t tell me...” Trider said with a deadpanned expression.

“Yep, I’m an orphan as well.” she confirmed Trider’s unfinished question.

“Wanna talk about it?” Ace asked, unsure how she might react.

Frost pondered for a while, but eventually she sighed and closed her eyes. “Eh, what the heck.” she said and made herself more comfortable on the ground. “Like with you I too lost my parents when I was little. Me and my family were living happily in a small cabin in the White Tail Woods. Then one day my father returned home badly wounded. He was attacked by a bunch of bandits and they were on their way to plunder our home.”

“My parents hid me, my twin brother and my little sister inside the basement, just when the bandits busted inside. they tried to fight them off, but were eventually overpowered. My father was killed instantly, while my mother was raped before she was put out of her misery.”

At that the rest grimaced at the horrible experience she had to witness. “Bandits almost found us out, but a magical letter from my uncle scared them off. Afterwards we left our hiding spot and we were picked up by our uncle who took us in.” Frost’s face then switched from mournful, to angry as she glared holes in the ground. “After that day I trained myself everyday, so I could find the bastards who took my family away from me and make them pay.”

“Did you ever find them?” Ace asked curiously.

“I did.” the mare answered immediatelly, a sadistic smirk stretching across her face. “And when I did I killed every single one of them. Slaughtered them until you could no longer tell who or what they were.”

Other’s faces quickly turned from saddened, to a more fearful expression. “Remind me not to piss her off.” Trider said to the other two and they nodded in agreement.

“So what happened after you took your revenge.” Whip asked, wanting to hear more.

“Well afterward I was attacked by a few bug-ponies, which I now know are called changelings, and fought them off. I wandered for a bit after that and eventually I somehow ended up at the door-step of a Royal Guard outpost. They took me in, asked me what I was doing in the Badlands and after I told them the same story I told you, they wanted to lock me up for ponyslaughter. However thanks to one of the Guards I was offered a deal. Either face jail time or become part of the Royal Guard. And now I’m here.” she finished her story and everyone looked at her with admiration.

“You can be pretty badass when you want to be, ya know.” Trider complimented.

“Thank you.” she replied with a curt nod.

“But it’s funny actually, how all of us are orphans, I mean.” Ace cut in.

“Yeah, almost like we are written in some cliche story or something.” Trider chuckled, the others laughing as well. “What about you Whip? What is your tragic backstory?”

“Oh, I don’t have one.” Whip replied. “Both of my parents are still alive and all six of my sisters are fine as well.”

The others looked at him with wide eyes. “You have six sisters?” they asked simutaneously.

“Yeah. Four older and two younger.” he answered, slightly confused at their reaction.

“Isn’t it, like, overwhelming to have that many girls in your household.”

“Not really. I had a lot of fun when I was little and I still do.” Whip retorted merrily. “Although there were times when I couldn’t quite tolerate them. Like when I was forced to play dress-up or all of those tea parties.”

At that moment both Trider and Ace placed their hands onto his shoulders and gave him potiful looks. “You have suffered the most out of all of us.” they said.

“OK?” the stallion replied with confusion.

“Uhh guys hate to break up the tender moment, but we don’t have much time left.” Frost spoke up and showed them the hourglass. Most of the sand inside it was already at the bottom, only a small amount of it still in the upper half.

The guys looked at each other and nodded. “Alright then, I guess you’re with us then?” the Kanisar asked the mare.

“Fo’ sure.”

“Good.” They all stood up and they circled the lever. “Anyone have any idea how we’re supposed to do this?”

“I might have one.” Ace spoke up and the rest listened to him intently.

***

“Why can’t someone else do it, like Frost?” Trider whined.

“Because you’re the only one strong enough to cause some damage, now stop complaining and suck it up.” Frost argued back and pushed the Kanisar toward Whip.

“I know, but you’ve seen how he gets when a guy beats him up.” he continued his protest.

“Don’t worry Tri, for the sake of our escape I promise on my life that I’ll hold myself back.” Whip said, raising his right arm like he was making an official pledge.

“I dunno.” Trider continued to be skeptical. “Is me beating him up, really necessary?”

“Yes.” Ace answered. “Out of all of us you’re the only one strong enough to move the lever, however Whip can increase his strength thanks to his ability to convert damage into power. Therefore he shall be the one to pull and hold the lever, while us three try to reach the room.”

Trider wanted to argue more, anything to prevent him from interacting with Whip, but he ahd nothing on his side, so he only sighed and raised his arms. “Please try not to make this strange.”

“I’ll try.” the stallion assured him. Begrudgingly Trider lifted his arm and punched him in the gut. Whip moaned in bliss as his body twisted in pleasure.

Trider usually felt relief when he beat someone up, but in Whip’s case he could only think that he should wash his hands once all of this was over.

“You said you won’t amke this weird.” he exclaimed, glaring at the blushing stallion.

“S-sorry, that one escaped me.” the stallion apologized and braced himself for further beating. “My body is ready Trider.”

“God if you exist, kill me right now.” Trider thought and punched him again, this time so hard air escpaed from the stallion’s lungs. While Whip’s body shook, his face expressed pure pleasure.

“That’s not good enough Tri. Give me more.” Whip said and spread his arms.

“SCREW THIS SHIT!” the Kanisar yelled, closing his eyes and wailing on the stallion. After he was done he looked at Whip and saw how badly he was bruised. “Whip, buddy. You OK?” he asked tentatively.

“I feel spectacular.” Whip shouted grinning, a tooth missing. “I could feel your love with every strike. It made me feel warm inside.” he continued as he began to hug himself.

Trider however was now sitting next to a wall, hugging his knees and mumbling to himself. Frost and Ace looked between each other before the dog-pony headed toward the Kanisar, while Frost went to Whip.

“Hey Trider. You feeling OK?” he asked the downtrodden Kanisar.

“Do you ever feel like you’re the scum of the world Ace?” Trider asked him with emotionless eyes. “I’m feeling a lot worse right now.”

Ace didn’t know what to say. Suddenly Frost walked over to the two and slapped Trider. “That’s quite enough you crybaby, we’ve got a job to do. Whip’s already waiting for us.”

The Kanisar shook his head, bringing himself back to reality. “You’re right. I’ll sulk later in my bed, after a large meal.”

Happy to see he wasn’t traumatised by the experience, the three headed to the wall under the room.

“You guys ready?” Ace asked and they all nodded. “Alright then. Whenever you’re ready Trider.”

The Kanisar positioned himself so his back was touching the wall. He then crouched down and clasped his hands together. “Ready!” Hearing his conformation, Ace took a few steps back, before he ran full speed at Trider. Once he got close enough he jumped and landed on the Kanisars clamped hands. As soon as he felt Ace land on his palms, Trider used all of his strength to throw the dog-pony high into the air.

Ace flew with high speed, but somewhere around three quarters of the way he stopped. Before he could begin falling he dug his right arm into the wall, his Diamond Dog physique allowing it to easily grasp it. He held on with all of his might and Trider knew he had to hurry.

“Pull the lever Whip.” he shouted to his friend. Heeding his words, the stallion pulled the lever with all of his might, until it stopped and the room was opened. “Your turn Frost.”

The mare ran at the Kanisar as well and just like Ace, she too landed on Trider’s hands, and was propelled towards the dog-pony. When she reached him they grabbed each others hand and then Ace hurled her the rest of the way up, letting himself fall to the ground. Before he could hit it however, Trider caught him.

“Did she make it?” he asked the Kanisar. Trider looked up and saw the mare’s tail disappear into the room.

“She did.” he replied and put Ace down. Right at that moment they heard a loud click, followed by the sound of gears shifting and turning. A loud grumble drew their attention and they watched as the ceiling of the hole began to move out of the way, letting sun’s rays shine in.

They all grouped up once Frost retrned and Whip let go of the lever. “You guys ready to leave.” Trider asked and the others hummed in agreement. “Then all aboard the Whoopass Airlines. Next destination, Blaze’s funeral.”

***

In his office, Blaze was reading a newspaper, when all of a sudden his doors were busted down and in walked four angry figures.

“What in the name of Celestia?” he exclaimed, as he nearly fell out of his chair. “What do you think you’re doing?” he asked and looked who had the balls to barge in like that.

“That’s our line.” Trider growled. “I don’t care if you’re a General, a prince or even Celestia herself. What you did is inexcusible.”

“What are you going on about?” Blaze asked in confusion.

“Don’t play dumb with us Blaze, sir.” Frost stepped up next. “You’re the one who put us in that goddessdamn hole, last night, with the purpose of teaching us how to work together.”

“Which worked excelently.” Ace chimed in.

“What?” Blaze didn’t know how to feel. Should he be mad, surprised or what. “What are you sputtering on about?”

At that moment they heard a knock and when they looked towards the door they saw Green standing beneath the door frame smiling. “I’m sorry, am I interrupting something?” he asked.

“Nah, you’re just about to witness how we beat the living crap out of this geezer here.” Trider said, cracking his knuckles and the others nodding in agreement.

“And why would you do so?” Green continued his interrogation.

“Because he locked us inside a hole that was created during the Gryphon-Pony war.” Whip explained.

“Wait you were locked inside the Abyss?” Blaze exclaimed, his eyes wide in surprise.

“If that’s how you wanna call, then yes.” Trider replied.

“Alright, I see what you guys have been through, but I’m telling you I didn’t do this.” he continued to claim his innocence. “I would never use such an outdated method of training, not to mention how dangerous it is.”

“If it wasn’t you the who was it?” Ace asked.

“That would be my doing.” All heads turned towards Green, who still continued to smile.

“YOU?!” everyone in the room shouted.

“Yes, me.” the stallion replied proudly.

“Green I know you like to bend the rules and use unorthodox means, but this one is by far the craziest. They could’ve died.” Blaze berated the stallion.

“Wait, we really would’ve died?” Ace yelled and looked at the two incredulously.

“No, no. I made necessary reprecautions that something like that wouldn’t happen.” the green stallion assured him.

“Even so, why did you go through all that trouble when I had the perfect way to fix the problem.” Blaze stated.

“What was your idea?” Whip inquired.

“I would’ve simply switched you with members of other teams.” he explained.

“While that does seem much simpler, you wouldn’t be sure they would get along with others.” Green elaborated. “Plus, do you have any idea how much paperwork I would have to do if that were to happen.”

“So you put us through all that, just so you wouldn’t have to do your job?” Ace asked dumbfounded.

“That’s part of the reason, yes.”

They continued to stare at him, mesmerized at the reason.

“Imma kill ‘im.” Trider stated and charged his Ki.

“Now, now. Before you do something reckless, you have to admit that, despite all the danger, my method did it’s job right?” Green said, sweat starting to form on his forehead.

The group looked at each other and the Kanisar stopped his attack. “We guess.”

Green sighed, glad to be out of danger. Then they heard Blaze clear his throat and they turned towards him. “If that is the case, have you already decided on your teamleader and name then?” he asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Well, we’re still working on the name, but we do know who the perfect leader is.” Trider said. He then looked at his teammates and they all nodded their heads. “It’s unanimous. We all think Ace would be the perfect team leader.”

Blaze looked at the blushing dog-pony. “Are you sure about this?” he asked him, to confirm their statement.

“Yes sir. I’ll be honored to lead this team.” he said proudly.

“Very well.” the stallion said with a smile. But that smile quickly turned into a scowl and he glared at them. “NOW LEAVE MY OFFICE AND GO RUN 40 LAPS AROUND THE PREMISE IMMEDIATELLY!”

They all groaned. “But why?” Trider asked.

“Forget about my door?” the red stallion replied. The group smiled sheepishly, before running out of the room.

***

“So you think they’ve improved?” Green asked, as the two watched Trider’s team go through the obstacle course, to reach their target.

“They’re still rusty and could improve.” Blaze criticized and wrote down in his notebook. “But at least I won’t have to switch them.”

“All thanks to my method.” Green boasted.

“About that.” Blaze said with a malicious smirk. “Don’t think you’re off the hook, just because it worked. Me and Luna have decided that for your punishment you’ll have to rewrite and file every report sent to us until these guys graduate.”

Green’s heart sak and he seemed like he would cry any moment. “You truly are a monster Blaze.” he moaned.

“You reap what you sow.” the red stallion chuckled. He then looked back at the group and asked Green. “Do these guys have a name yet?”

“They do.” Green repleid and handed over a small slip of paper. Blaze looked at it and grinned.

“It suits them.” he stated.

THE EXTRAORDINARIES

Author's Note

Raise your hands if you thought Blaze was the culprit. ✋
Anyway with this the team is assembled and ready for action.
To those who let me borrow your OCs I hope they are how you imagined them to be.
As for Green. As I was writing this chapter I couldn’t help but think he’s that anime character that always smiles and has his eyes closed.

Chapter 29: Lab of Horrors; Ascend the White Wolf

It's been a little over two months since Trider enrolled into the Royal Guard and right now, he and his teammates were stationed in a small town near Trottingham. The group was currently playing poker and doing nothing productive.

"I raise twelve bits." Frost said and dropped a stack of coins onto the pile. The others looked at her with narrowed eyes, trying to see if she was bluffing. But it was hard to tell with the mare, since she normally wore a blank expression.

Sighing Ace dropped his cards. "I fold." he said.

Trider and Whip looked at each other, before Whip called Frost's bet. The Kanisar mulled over what he should do, but eventually he decided to go for it.

"Call." he said and dropped his own coins. Afterwards they all dropped their cards and the stallions groaned in frustration.

"Fucking full house?!" Trider exclaimed and slammed his fist into the table. "How the heck do you keep winning?"

Frost smirked and pulled over her loot. "You guys just have bad poker faces." she said nonchalantly.

"Bullshit. I was part of a rebellion. Lying was practically a necessity." he argued, as he dealt the cards.

"That may be true, but there is difference between lying to save your own hide and gambling sugar." Frost teased with a smirk. "And out of all of us I had the most experience in it."

"How so?" Ace asked and picked up his cards.

"I was once part of a thief's guild." she said and put on her poker face. The others shot her a look of disbelief. "There is so much more you don't know about me." she said and threw a couple of bits onto the table. "Needless to say, if you couldn't read ponies you could either get robbed or even killed."

"Call." Whip said and put his wager on. "Well, before we delve into any morbid topic, like usual, where do you guys plan on being stationed once we complete our training?" he asked, hoping to change the subject.

"I'm thinking Dodge City." Ace said and raised his bet. "The place seems nice."

"Badlands probably." Frost declared with disinterest. "There are many bandits lurking around those parts and quite frankly I'd like to see them all either dead or behind bars. Preferably the former."

"I've never been to Vanhoover before." Whip added, as he folded. "Plus one of my sisters lives there with her husband."

They then looked at their alien friend who was in the dilemma of either calling or folding. "And you Tri?" Frost asked, as she shot him a bemused grin.

Trider didn't even look up from his cards, as he responded. "Doesn't matter, since once I'm done with this I'll go back to my carefree life." he proclaimed.

The others looked between each other, exchanging worried glances. "Trider." Ace spoke up. "You do know that you have to decide where you want to be stationed?"

As soon as he said that, Trider looked away from his cards and gave him a confused gaze. "Wait, you mean to tell me that I have no means to decline that?"

His friends nodded. "You have an obligation to serve in the Guards for at least ten years, before you can retire from it. During which you have to be stationed in an established base." Whip explained.

Trider's eyes shifted all over the place, as he tried to comprehend what he was told. The others braced themselves for the inevitable outburst, but instead of an angry rant, they heard him chuckling. They looked at the Kanisar confused, as his chuckle turned into a full blown laughter.

"You OK there buddy?" Frost asked, slightly concerned.

"Fucking hell." Trider exclaimed. "Guess I'll have to suffer for the next decade I guess." he said and looked back at his cards. "If that's the case then I guess I'll go to Ponyville. At least I can take my frustrations out on my friends." he said in a playful tone.

"That might not be possible." Ace said, as he avoided the glare the Kanisar shot him.

"What do you mean?" he asked, narrowing his eyes to stare holes through the dog-pony.

Ace continued to avoid his eyes, hoping one of the other two would help him out, but they gave him a look that said 'You dug your own grave'. Eventually he sighed and gazed back at Trider.

"Trider." he began, speaking in a calm manner. "Ponyville isn't registered as any kind of outpost. So you can't be stationed there."

The Kanisar didn't react at first, choosing to slowly think over what he had been told. "WHAT?" he suddenly shouted and jumped out of his chair, slamming his hands onto the table, creating cracks in it.

"Calm down Trider or we'll have Whip tie you up. Again." Frost said.

Although Trider has trained himself to not succumb to his anger, he still had the tendency to have outbursts from time to time, but they were usually quickly resolved. Taking a few deep breaths he calmed himself and sat back down.

"Sorry." he apologized. "I just can't fucking believe it."

"We can understand. Having to leave your friends is tough." Ace said and placed his hand onto his shoulder. "Maybe you can ask Princess Luna to arrange something?"

"I'd rather not. She has already done so much for me and I don't want to abuse her kidness for my selfish needs." the Kanisar sighed, as he ran his hand thorugh his hair.

Silence fell over the group, until Ace looked at the clock on the wall. "Hey guys," he said, getting everyone's attention. "It's almost time for our shift."

Nodding, everyone stood up and left the room. "About time, I thought I was going to rot inside here." Trider said and popped the joints in his back.

"I agree, as much as I like to laze around, even I can't do nothing forever." Frost agreed. They soon reached their rooms and went inside to change. When they were done they all stepped outside, clad in their golden uniforms.

"So who goes with whom today?" Whip asked.

"Today it's Trider and Ace patrolling the riverside, while you and me look over the market district." Frost answered.

"Alright then, see ya in a few hours." Trider greeted and the group split, each pair heading in their own direction.

***

"You sure you don't want to talk about it." Ace asked, as he and Trider were walking along the path.

"For the fifteenth time, I'm fine." the Kanisar graned, tired of his friend asking the same question over and over again. "I'll be fine. I'm just not sure how the girls and Spike will handle the news."

"I'm sure they'll be heartbroken, if you're as close as you say you are." Ace said.

Trider gave him a deadpanned look. "Not helping."

"Sorry." the dog-pony apologised, folding his ears.

The two countinued their walk in silence every so often confirming with one another they were heading in the right direction. This was only their first week here, so they still needed help from a map to find their way around. Just yesterday Trider got lost and had somehow found himself in Trottingham.

As they were walking along the shore they spotted a bunch of foals. Most of them were older, around twelve or so, and in the middle of the group was a younger kid. As soon as they spotted them they realised what was happening. The younger one was being bullied by the others.

"What's wrong Mellow Tone?" one of the kids teased, as he and the rest tossed something between each other.

"Give it back!!!" the small colt exclaimed, as he tried to retrieve what they took from him.

"I'm sorry I couldn't hear you over all the crying." another kid teased. The rest laughed at the reamark. When another foal was about to catch the item Mellow tackled them to the ground.

They both grunted and began to struggle with one another, rolling around the ground. But eventually the younger colt was overpowered and they all ganged up on him.

"You think you're tough, huh?!" the colt who was tackled to the floor shouted, as he kicked Mellow. "Becasue of you my favorite shirt is now ruined." He lifted his hand to reveal a small pendant hanging from it. "I'm sure this piece of junk could bring some bits."

Mellow laid on the floor, clutching his sides and crying. "Please... don't..." he begged, but the others didn't hear him.

Suddenly a shadow fell over the group and when they looked up they saw two guards looking down at them. "What do you want?" the colt asked, clearly annoyed by their presence.

"I am sorry to disturb you citizen, but we couldn't help but notice that this little guy here was in trouble, so we decided to see what was going on." Trider said, a huge smile on his face.

The kids looked at one another, nodding they picked Mellow up and the colt with the pendant grabbed and pulled him closer. "There's no need to worry officer, he just fell down. You're going to be alright, right?" the colt said, jabbing Mellow in the ribs with his elbow, harder than necessary.

"Y-yeah." the young colt said in a weak and scared voice.

"That's strange." Ace suddenly spoke up. "You said that he fell, yet these injuries seem too severe to be just from a simple fall."

The kids slowly became nervous, but the colt, who still held Mellow and was clearly their leader, smirked. "Don't worry about him. We're just going to get him to a hospital. You two seem to be too busy to deal witha bunch of foals anyway."

Ace and Trider glanced at each other, before they both sighed. "Kid." the Kanisar spoke. "We were going to let you go off easy, if you'd just admitted that you beat this kid up, while stealing. But now I'm afraid (not really) that we'll have to teach you kids a lesson."

At that point nearly all of them began to sweat, but the lead kid stood his ground, a victorious smirk on his face. "I wouldn't do that, if I were you." he said, his voice oozing with confidence.

"And why is that?" Ace wondered.

"Becasue my dad is the mayor of this town and if you even lay a finger on me, he'll have you fired from the Guards and send your butts to-" that was as far as he got, before Trider grabbed his arm. Slowly he began to apply more and more pressure, until the colt yelped in pain. He released Mellow from his grasp and dropped the pendant.

Trider released the colt and picked up the necklace, while Ace pulled the little colt closer to himself and began to apply first aid. The lead kid massaged his sore forearm and glared at Trider.

"My father will hear about this, you freak and when he does-" He stopped mid-sentence, when Trider gave him such a cold glare, it sent shivers down the colt's spine. With slow steps the Kanisar approached the kid, until he was looming over him.

"I really hate kids like you." he said and grabbed the hem of the colt's shirt, lifting him to eye level. "All talk and thinking the world will bow to them, just because their parents are influental. Well let me tell you something kid."

"Right here and right now your parents aren't around to help your sorry little ass and I doubt your friends here would give another crap about helping you." He continued to glare at the colt, seeing him shiver. "You are nothing more, but a shitstain, that I would just love to smear all over the ground."

The colt struggled against his grip, but no matter how much he kicked or even bit, the Kanisar's grip continued to be steel strong. "Y-you think you're tough, w-when you're picking on a little kid." the colt taunted.

Trider however chuckled. "Really? This coming from a shitstain who didn't even have the balls to take on another kid by himself." His chuckle quickly died and his eyes turned cold again.

"You'll lose your job and you'll even be sent to jail." the colt continued to counter.

"You just don't know when to shut up and let the grown ups talk, do you?" Trider shook his head. "Let me tell you a little something about myself shitstain."

"When I was your age I had to watch how my parents were killed in front of my eyes, was put through hellish training to join a rebellion against oppressors, was thrown into your happy little world, against my will, had to fight Chrysalis, had my body and mind broken by King Sombra, and after all that I had to join the army as a punishment for slaughtering ponies while I was fighting said unicorn king. If you think even for a second that the thought of having to quit the Guard or being thrown into jail scares me, you have another thing coming."

The colt was practically shaking, sweat running down his forehead and Trider thought he was going to piss himself at any moment. He decided to finish his scolding, but not before driving the point in.

"If I ever see you doing shit like this again, I swear, me berating your ears off will be the least of your worries."

The colt gulped, before nodding his head. "Good." Trider said and released the colt. "Now scram!" The group all ran with all of their might, trying to get away from the deranged alien.

"You could've handled that so much better." Ace said in a deadpanned tone, behind the Kanisar.

"Maybe. But that would mean I'd have to be tactful and you know I don't even know the meaning of the word." Trider shot back, a massive grin on his face.

"You'll be in so much trouble once we get back, you know that." his friend sighed.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there." the Kanisar replied. He then looked at the small colt, whose wounds have been more or less treated already. He fumbled through the pockets of his uniform, before taking out the pendant.

It was small, round and made of silver, while in the middle sat a small jewel. He reached out and presented it to the colt. "I believe this belongs to you."

The colt's eyes widened, before grabbing it from Trider's hands. "Thank you." he mumbled under his breath, tears running down his cheeks.

"You're welcome." Trider said, a cocky grin on his face. "Why is it so important to you that you'd have to fight for it?" he asked.

Mellow looked between the Kanisar and the trinket, before replying. "It was given to me by a friend and I promised to them that I'll look over it."

"Neat." was all Trider said.

As Ace continued to treat his other wounds, the Kanisar looked at him with a raised brow. "Those kids always bully you?" Mellow nodded his head and avoided eye contact. "Why?"

The colt said something under his breath, so Trider didn't quite hear him. "I'm sorry what was that?"

"I said, it's because I'm an orphan and because I don't have my cutie mark yet." Ace and Trider exchanged glances, before they both looked back at the colt.

"Assholes." Trider mumbled under his breath. "You shouldn't let them do this. You have to fight back."

"Or tell an adult about it." Ace suggested.

"Or that. But in my opinion you should kick their asses." the Kanisar agreed with a roll of his eyes. "By the way, what's your name little guy?"

The colt slowly stood up from his sitting position. His bright orange coat shimmering in the sun, while his short white mane was mostly hidden beneath a cap.

"I'm Mellow Tone." he answered quickly, but warily.

"Nice to meet you Mellow. I'm Ace Quickpaw, a Royal Guard recruit." the dog-pony greeted.

"And I'm Trider, also a recruit." he followed suit.

"Now if you could tell us where you live, we'd be more than happy to escort you there." Ace offered.

Mellow thought it over and eventually he nodded his head. "The orphanage is a few blocks away from the market place. I can show you the way."

"Then let's get going already." Trider exclaimed and pumping his arm into the air.

"By the way mister, what are you and where did you come from?" the colt asked, while tugging onto his arm.

"Well little Mellow it all started on a Tuesday..."

Trider and Ace managed to bring the kid back to the orphanage, just like they said they would. The caretakers took Mellow off of their hands, but before they could leave the young colt asked them if they would visit him. Of course the two agreed to visit him whenever they would be free.

Around 5 o'clock they both returned to the base, where they were both then called to the Sergeants office.

"What in the bucking Tartarus were you two thinking?" their commanding officer yelled. "You threatened and beat up a kid? Not only that, but he was also the mayor's kid. Do you two know in how much trouble you are?"

Both of them barely reacted, since they were used to this kind of scolding from Blaze, who was much worse than the stallion in front of them. "If I may sir." Trider spoke up. "The shitstain had it coming."

"Shitstain? You mean the kid?" the stallion asked with a raised brow. Trider nodded and the Sergeants coat seemed to turn a shade redder. "Did he now? And what exactly did he do?"

"He and his friends were picking on another kid." The stallion waited to see, if there was more to it, but when Trider didn't follow up he glared at the Kanisar.

"That's it?" he shouted. "The reason you did that was because the kid was a bully?"

"Also because I didn't like the brat." Trider added. At that point the stallion seemed like he wanted to strangle the Kanisar, so Ace decided to intervene.

"Sir, about the incident. Trider only lifted the boy into the air by his shirt, he never once hit him. And as for the kid, I have to agree with him. The colt was using his father's reputation to do what he wanted and I'm sure this isn't the first time he did so." he defended his friend. "Although the actions he took were extreme, but-"

"That's quite enough." the stallion stopped him, rubbing the bridge of his muzzle with his fingers. "I can see you two meant no actual harm and I can concur with both of you that the kid is a... What did you call him again?"

"Shitstain?"

"That." the stallion snapped his fingers. "He has caused quite some trouble for me and my guards, but even so, what you did was still too much." He stood from his chair and walked over to his window. "The mayor is breathing down my neck, demanding some sort of compensation."

"Sir?" Trider jumped in. "I'll take full responsibility for the incident. Ace did nothing to the shitstain."

The stallion smiled. "Despite your many flaws, there are just as many good points to you Trider. But I'm afraid Ace is just as guilty as you are." His smile disappeared, replaced by a frown. "He could've stopped you, but didn't. You two are a team and when one of you gets dragged down others do as well. I hope you remember that."

"So, is that it? We're done here?" Ace asked, grief in his voice. The Kanisar looked at him with a guilty look, opening his mouth to apologise, but was cut off, by the Sergeant.

"Luckily no." he said with a semi-mirthy tone. "I managed to convince the mayor, that I'll give the two of you a proper punishment." At that the two looked at each other, their scowls turning upside down.

"However!" the stallion continued, before they could begin cheering. "He still expects the two of you to apologise to both him and his son in person."

"Bullshit!" Trider exclaimed, raising his arms. "I won't apologise to that brat, even if it's the last thing I do. I did nothing wrong."

"Trider!" Segeant called out with a stern voice. "I know you feel like you're being treated unjust, but just for this once I want you to swallow your pride and do what has to be done. If not for yourself, then at least do it for your friend."

Trider looked between the stallion and Ace, mulling over what he was told. Eventually he closed his eyes and released a loud sigh. "Fine!" he mumbled, crossing his arms.

At that Sergeant and Ace both smiled. "Great. I shall contact the mayor, to set up a date for when you'll give your apologies." he said, sitting back into his chair. He grabbed a quill and began to scribble out a message.

"Can we leave sir?" Ace asked for permission.

"You may." he said, not lifting his gaze. The two turned around to leave, but before they stepped out the door, the Sergeant called out to them. "And please stay out of trouble, I don't want to save your asses again. Not since I am already overrun with the missing pony cases."

Trider smirked and gave the stallion a thumb up. Afterwards they left.

***

One week later

Trider and Ace were making their way down the streets towards their goal, chatting with each other.

"Man I can't believe how dirty the toilets were today." Trider complained.

"Yep, that's what you get after a Taco Tuesday." Ace agreed, nodding his head. "But it wasn't so bad."

"Speak for yourself. You don't have my nose." Trider rebuted.

For the past week, the two friends had to clean the facility's tiolets as their punishment. It was grueling work, but to Trider it was still better than the apology part. He wanted to rip his own guts out, when he had to utter those three words.

But despite the bad, there were a few positive things that came from that day. One is the fact that the kid was terrified of him and whenever the two would run into each other, the colt would freeze in place.

The second, however was much better. Everyday, after they finished their jobs, the two would head down to the orphanage and play around with Mellow and their friends.

At first other kids were wary of the Kanisar, since he wasn't exactly friendly looking. But eventually he warmed up to them and when that happened, they just wouldn't leave him alone. He was always asked to either play or help other foals, and he was more than happy to do so.

But out of all of them, Mellow was the one that Trider liked the most. He and the little colt had a special connection and Trider saw bits of himself in the foal. He was always ready to help the little guy out and every so often he would give him tips on how to defend himself from bullies.

Ace as well was popular with the kids. He was always asked to show them a few tricks with his magic and weapons. Whip and Frost joined them a couple of times, but were mostly watching what Trider and Ace were doing with the kids.

Needless to say, they always looked forward to spending time with the kids.

"I still can't believe that you are that great with kids." Ace said, somewhat amazed. "Since that day I thought you hated them."

"I do. Only the bratty ones though." Trider answered back with a grin. They soon made it to the orphanage and Ace knocked on the door. When they opened they were greeted by a smiling face of one of the caretakers.

"Oh, hello." she said in a merry voice. "Glad to see you could make it back again."

"It's a pleasure, Honey Dew." Ace greeted back. "We're sorry we couldn't make it yesterday. Are the foals waiting for us?"

"Oh don't be sorry. You two are Royal Guards, so it's to be expected that you two would be busy." she said and led them to the back. "As for the foals, they've been impatient all day, hoping you'd come today."

"Good. In that case, we'll just have to tire them out." Trider added with a smirk. Soon they made to the back of the house, where a small playground was located. As soon as they stepped outside, they were assaulted by the foals. Each one pulled on their clothes or was shouting at them to do what they wanted.

"Alright, alright!" Ace shouted over the screaming. "Today we have a day off, so we have more than enough time to play with everyone."

As the dog-pony tried to sort through the chaos, Trider looked over the crowd, trying to locate a certain colt. After a while he still couldn't see him, so he told the kids he'd be back soon and he headed towards Honey Dew.

"Hey Honey." he called the mare, getting her attention. "Where's Mellow?" he asked.

"Oh my. I'm so sorry I forgot to mention. He was adopted yesterday." she said, placing a hand over her mouth.

"Really?" Trider exclaimed with raised brows. "I'm so happy for him. I'm sure he'll be happy with his new family." he said with a forced smile. The mare however caught that and smiled to herself.

"Just because he was adopted, doesn't mean he can't come over here. In fact many foals you see here have already been adopted, but come over to play with others." she then left, returning after a few seconds with a note. "Here. This is the address of the parents that took him in." she said handing him the paper. "Go get him and bring him here to play."

Trider gingerly accepted the note. "Thanks." he said with a smile. "I won't be long. Can you tell Ace and the kids where I went?"

"I'll be more than happy to." she answered. Satisfied Trider took to the skies and left in search of his little friend.

After half an hour of flying he finally arrived at the address. "This seems to be the place." he thought to himself. He took out the note to double check if he was in te right place. Once he confirmed he was right, he walked up to the door, before he knocked.

A few seconds passed before the door was opened by an elderly mare. "Yes?" she asked.

"Hello Ms. my name is Trider, I'm part of the Royal Guard recruits, so no need to be alarmed by my appearance." he said first. His first encounters always started with the ponies scared of his appearance and ended with either them fainting or him getting chased away.

"Ah yes I remember you. You're that kind gentlepony who helped me with my groceries." she said with a smile.

Relieved, Trider didn't waste any time in telling the mare why he was here. "I'm here to pick up Mellow Tone, to take him to the orphanage, so he can play with his friends."

The mare raised her brow and looked at him with a cocked head. "Who's Mellow Note?" she asked.

It was Trider's turn to be confused. "Y'know Mellow Tone. Small colt, ten years old, orange coat and white mane and tail." he began describing the foal. "You or your children adopted him, right?"

"I'm sorry sonny, but I live here alone and I'm in no condition to look after a foal." she answered back with a frown. "Maybe they gave you wrong information at the orphanage."

The Kanisar furrowed his brows, as his eyes darted left and right, trying to comprehend what was going on. "I-I see." he answered and turned around. "Well, goodbye then."

"A good day to you too." With that Trider once again took to the skies, as he headed back to the orphanage.

As he was flying, he kept thinking over what the mare had told him. "This doesn't seem right." he thought. "Honey is one of the most meticulous ponies I know, beside Twilight that is, she would never make this kind of mistake." Dread slowly began to settle into his mind and he sped up. "I hope she was wrong."

In matter of minutes he touched down onto the playground and the foals quickly ran towards him. But he paid them no mind, as he ignored them and headed straight for Honey. When she saw the look on his face she approached him, worry growing on her face.

"Trider? What's wrong? Where's Mellow?" she bombarded him with questions. "Did something happen?"

"Honey!" he said grabbing the mare's shoulders. "The address you gave me. Was it correct?"

"Y-yes it was. Why do you-?"

She was cut off, as Trider continued his interrogation. "The ones who picked him up, can you describe them?"

"It was a stallion. He had a light green coat and his blonde mane was slowly becoming grey at the base." she began to describe the stallion. "He seemed to be some sort of doctor. He also wore a pair of glasses."

After she was done with her description she looked at the Kanisar. She saw how his face changed from worry to fear and then to anger. He released her shoulders and slammed his fist into a wall.

"GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!!!" he screamed, drawing attention to himself.

"What's wrong Trider?" Ace asked, as he stepped closer.

"Ace, we need to get back to the base and get the other two." the Kanisar said, as he began to leave.

"What? Why?" his friend asked.

"Because Mellow was kidnapped!" When he uttered that sentence, everyone looked at him with horror and shock.

"Ki-Foalnapped? You sure?"

"Completely. Honey descirebed the stallion who adopted him, but when I arrived to the house I was greeted by an elderly mare." Trider quickly answered back.

"So? Maybe somepony else lived with her and she was unaware of-" Ace argued, but was cut off when Trider glared at him.

"She said she lived alone. Not only that, I didn't even detect the presence of Mellow with my nose." At that Ace realised that Trider might be right.

"We better leave then!" he said and followed his friend. "But do we even know where we should go?" he asked.

Trider switched his gaze to Honey. "Hey, can you bring me something Mellow had or wore?" The mare nodded and quickly left. "You don't have to worry about finding him. Once I find his scent there is no place in the world where he can be hid."

Once Honey brought back a sock Trider took it and took a whiff. With a growl he and Ace ran out the building, in search of their missing friend.

***

The group stood in front of a cave entrance, several miles from the town. They looked down into the black abyss, as they prepared their armors and weapons.

"You sure this is it?" Frost asked skeptically.

"My nose has never been wrong before. And it sure as hell isn't now." Trider answered sternly.

"Alright team. Before we head in, we have to make a few things clear." Ace commanded, others listening intently to him. "We don't know who or what or how many of the kidnappers are there, so proceed with caution and most importantly, don't get separated. Got it?"

They nodded and proceeded to follow Ace into the tunnel. They each gripped their weapons tightly and observed their surroudings, which was illuminated by the small glowing crystals on their armors.

"Tell me again why we didn't call for backup?" Whip asked, his eyes and ears shifting in multiple directions.

"Because there was no one to call." Frost hissed back at the stallion. "Everypony is busy with something else and if we called for the guys in Trottingham, we'd have to wait hours for them to even respond."

"It doesn't matter really. They would just slow us down." Trider added. The rest silently agreed with him. Slowly they made their way through the cave, until they stumbled upon a dead end.

"Well, now what?" Whip asked, watching over the cave, in case of a surprise attack.

"Trider, you sure this is the way?" Frost asked the Kanisar.

"No doubt about it. He's behind this wall." Trider said and slid his palm over the solid rock.

"There must be switch somewhere." Ace guessed and began to look around. "Everypony help me-"

"Piston Cannon Dispear!" Trider shouted and punched the wall. With a loud explosion the wall crumbled, leaving a massive hole in it. Everyone looked at the Kanisar with less then pleasant glares.

He however didn't notice the dirty looks they were giving him, instead he jumped through the hole and ran down another tunnel. "C'mon!" he shouted.

"Trider wait!" Ace shouted back, but Trider either didn't hear him or he ignored him.

"Dammit, why doesn't he listen?" Frost grumbled.

"I don't blame him. If someone close to me was taken as well, I would go through Tartarus to bring them back." Whip replied sagely. "Wouldn't you?"

The mare and Ace looked at each other, seeing that their friend was right. "Ugh, that guy is going to be the end of me one day, I swear." Frost said under her breath, before they followed their wolf friend.

There was quite a distance between them and Trider, and no matter how hard they ran they couldn't catch up to the Kanisar.

"Wait up asshole!" Frost shouted, but Trider didn't even glance back at her as he continued to run along the path.

Eventually they began to close in on an intersection, one way leading to the left and the other to the right. Trider sniffed the air and he immediatelly turned right.

"Guess we're going right." Whip said and they too began to head towards the right pathway. But as soon as Trider went through the moouth of the tunnel, a large metal door fell from the ceiling and prevented them from following the Kanisar.

They skidded to a halt, right in front of the door. "Well, this is just great!" Frost exclaimed. "Now what?" she asked.

"Simple." Ace said and raised his Naginata, electricity running through it. "We do what trider did before." With a mighty swing he smashed the blade of his weapon against the metal, a loud bang echoing through the cave.

Smoke rose from the impact point and once it subsided their eyes widened. The door was intact, no visible sign that anything even hit it.

"What the fuck?" Frost said and continued to stare at the large piece of metal.

Whip approached the door to look at it closer. After a brief examination he turned back to their friends and shook his head. "It's no use. This door is made with antimag." he explained.

"Antimag?" Ace repeated. "You mean to tell us that our magic is useless against it?"

"Not exactly." Whip shook his head again. "Antimag metal is very hard to melt and mold, that's why only small collars are made entirely of it. This door has fragments of the ore in it, making it highly resistant to magic, but not immune. Look." he said and pointed at a spot on the door.

The other two leaned in closer and saw a small slash mark across it, a small area around it was also melted. "As you can see the intense heat created by the lightning magic melted some of the metal."

"So we just have to hit more then. Sounds easy." Frost said and summoned a battleaxe.

"Not easy. It would even take Trider quite a while to breach thorugh it."

"Then why don't we have Ace dig us a way through." the mare said and looked at her friend expectantly.

"Why does everypony think I can dig through rock like other Diamond Dogs?" Ace exclaimed. "I'm only half Dog. I can't dig through solid rock like it's water. I even have trouble with normal dirt."

"Then that leaves us with only one option." Whip concluded and walked over to the other passage. "And seeing as how those doors fell just as Trider went through it, we can speculate the foalnappers know we're here, so expect them to retaliate." The other two nodded, as they followed closely behind the stallion.

They carefully made their way through the tunnel, watching out for any signs of attack. Suddenly Ace stepped on something and a small click was heard.

"Get back!" Frost shouted and jumped backwards, dragging both stallions along with her. Without warning several thin steel beams shot from the ceiling and sank into the ground. The group stared at it with wide eyes, comprehending how lucky they were.

"Holy. Shit." Ace gasped.

"These guys mean business." Frost muttered under her breath. They all stood up and dusted the dirt off of themselves. "Alright from now on, watch your front, back, left, right, up and down."

"Sure, just let me summon my eye magic that allows me to see in every direction at the same time." Whip said sarcastically and used his fingers to stretch his eyelids, making his eyes appear large.

Frost gave him a nasty look, but said nothing, instead focusing on the now seemingly clear path ahead. From that point on they proceeded with even more caution, successfully avoiding any further trap.

After several minutes they finally made it out of the tunnel and into a brightly lit room. The room itself was rather large, containing many different scientific machines, making it look like a lab you see in horror movies.

"What is this place?" Frost said above a whisper, as she took in her surroudings.

"I don't know, but it's giving me the creeps." Ace said, warily walking through the room.

"It looks like some sort of lab." Whip guessed. "What kind I'm not sure."

"Guys." Frost called out. "Please tell this isn't what I think it is."

When they approached her they saw she was standing next to an operating table, which was covered in red stains. Whip dragged his hand across the stain and rubbed it between his fingers.

"This is blood." he said.

"OK. I don't know what we got ourselves into, but I say we head back, get Trider, get the hell out and come back with proper reinforcement." Ace said and the other two nodded in agreement.

"Now we can't have that." a disembodied voice cackled, before the doors thorugh which they came through closed. They rushed towards their exit, hoping to bust through it, but weren't successful.

"Let me guess, antimag." Frost said in an annoyed tone.

"Correct my dear." the voice answered. "You and your friends are now trapped here."

"Who are you and what did you do to the foal you took?" Ace barked at the air. They looked around and eventually saw the intercome through which the voice was projected.

"Foal? You'll have to be more specific."

At first they didn't know what he meant by that, until it dawned on them. "You foalnapped more than one?" Frost gasped. "Where are they? What did you do with them?" she screamed.

"My, my. So many questions. I would love to tell you all about myself and what I'm doing here, but what would be the point, since you're all about to die." The voice began to laugh.

The group looked at each other with nervous gazes. Eventually the voice stopped his laughter. "But I will gladly tell you that I am a stallion with a vision. A vision that was trampled by narrow minded imbeciles, who then casted me out." he explained. "I've been doing my work here in secret for the past few months and have made quite a progress. And you're about to see the fruits of my labour."

Suddenly they heard something fall behind them and when they turned around, their eyes widened in terror. Before them stood two creatures the likes of which they had never seen before.

The first one was a large beast, that easily towered any one of them. It had a dark red coat, that had bald patches all over it. It's large arms looked like they were covered with small sharp rocks. It's lower half looked like spider's body. The creature had no neck, instead it's body and head seemed to be one and the same. It's face was absolutley horrid. It had three pairs of eyes, each one different in size from the other and weren't placed on it's face in any paricular order.

The other creature however looked like something out of a ghost story. Since it was so thin you could see it's every bone and it had no legs, instead it's black and white body ended in a tail. It's spine curved in an unnatural arc, making it look like it could snap at any moment. It's arms were long and ended in long sharp claws, that looked more like knives. It's head was turned upside down and it's open maw showed it's jagged teeth.

Despite both monsters looking different, they had one similarity. Their white, emotionless eyes.

"What in the name of sweet fucking Celestia are those?" Frost said under her breath.

"Those my dear, are some of my more successful experiments. I call them Brutus and Sickfreak. You can guess which is which." the voice answered. "And don't worry, your friend is currently dealing with the rest of them. Hope you have a painless death." The intercome crackled and the transmission ended.

Without warning the two monsters lunged at the group, Sickfreak tackling Whip to the ground, while Brutus focused on the other two.

Whip struggled against the creature on top of him, as it's long arms pinned his own to the ground. Sickfreak's head reared back and it then lunged at his throat. The stallion managed to dodge the attack, by twisting his head and he retalated by kicking the monster off of him. Sickfreak landed a few feet away from him, but it quickly scurried back up and once again jumped at Whip.

"Fast little bastard, aren't you?" the stallion grumbled, as he rolled out of the oncoming attack. He then quickly swung his whip at it and catching it's tail in it.

"What you gonna do now, huh?" he taunted. Sickfreak however unleashed an unholy scream, nearly deafening everyone in the room. It then jumped onto the ceiling and began to drag Whip around. He tried to fight back, but the monster was much stronger than him.

"Let's kick it up a notch." he grunted and activated one of the gems on the handle. The crystal glowed bright yellow and suddenly electricity coursed through the whip.

Sickfreak shrilled from pain and it fell to the floor unmoving. Whip moved closer to it and smirked. All of a sudden the monster lunged upward and slashed the stallion across the chest with it's sharp claws.

"Agh!" Whip yelled as blood ran down his chest. He jumped away from Sickfreak, but it was still too fast for him. It grabbed Whip by his shoulders, digging it's claws into his back, while biting his left shoulder.

Again Whip cried out in pain. He struggled against the monster, trying to get it off of him. Eventually he managed to hit Sickfreak on top of it's head with the hilt of his whip, making it let go of him.

Grabbing the place where it bit him he cringed at the pain. The creature squirmed on the ground, still reeling back from the impact at it's head. That gave Whip enough time to summon his other whip, before Sickfreak stood back up onto it's arms.

The two stared at each other, none of them making a single movement. "Disgusting." Whip said, making the monster flinch. "Usually when I'm hurt by someone else I can feel love, passion, ecstasy, but with you I only feel sorrow, anger and fear. And quite frankly, I don't like it." His eyes turned cold and he scowled. "Creatures like you have no place on this world and I'll make sure it remains so."

The creature snarled and jumped at the stallion, but he didn't move. Instead he swung his whip and hit the creature in mid-air. The weapon connected and Sickfreak was flung into a wall. Before it even had the chance to get back up, the whip wrapped around it's tail and Whip began to toss the creature all around the room.

Eventually he let up and the creature laid on the floor, green ooze covering it's body. "Vat is vrong?" Whip asked as he stepped closer to the beast. Sickfreak suddenly jumped at the stallion, but only hit air. It looked around confused, trying to see where he went.

"Ofer here." Twisting it's body around the creature's eyes fell onto the stallion, but before it could react the whip wrapped around it's entire body, rendering it immobile. The gems on whip's handle began to glow and suddenly small spikes formed on the thong. The creature cried in pain, as the spikes pierced it's skin and even more green slime escaped from it.

"That iz it. Scream for me." Whip said, a sadistic smirk on his face. Tugging at his weapon, the whip tightened around the monster's body, making it shriek even more. "Such pleasant cries. It bringz a zmile to my faze. But I'm afraid I'll hafe to put you out of your misery."

"Any last vords?" he asked, but the creature just shrieked at him. "Fine zen. Auf wieder sehen." he said, before the whip he was holding burst into flames, engulfing Sickfreak in fire. The creature cried in pain for quite a while, but eventually it ceased it's cries, it's charred reamins falling on the floor. While the creature burned, Whip watched it, with a sadistic smile.

"Und das is das." he said and retracted his whip.

While Whip was dealing with Sickfreak, both Ace and Frost had their hands full with Brutus. They tried everything, from electrocuting it, to freezing, slicing, smashing, but nothing seemed to work, the creature seeming nigh invulnerable.

"What the hell does it take to bring this fucker down?" Frost asked in between breaths.

"We lack necessary strength to pierce it's thick body. If Trider was here, he could maybe be able to do something." Ace assumed, while dodging another swing from monster's giant fist.

"I guess we're lucky it's so slow, otherwise we'd already be dead." Frost said. "We can't beat it and we can't run. What the Tartarus are we supposed to do here?"

While they were debating, they failed to notice that Brutus had picked up a piece of the floor and tossed it at them. Before the two could react, the piece of rubble was caught by Whip and he tossed it aside.

"Need some assisstance?" he asked, now standing beside the two.

"Much appreciated." Ace thanked and turned his attention back to the monster.

"Any ideas, on how we're supposed to kill something that is unkillable?" Frost wondered, as she ducked another attack.

At that point Brutus was beginning to show signs of aggravation. He suddenly began to swing his arms like a madman, not caring what or who he hit. As he continued his rampage, one of his attacks hit a certain part of what seemed to be wall. Aloud metal clank was heard over the monster's havoc and the group saw that it had knocked down a hidden door.

"Quick, through there!" Ace shouted and pointed towards their exit. One by one they weaved through Brutus's attacks and ran down a corridor. The creature saw them leaving and chased after them.

"Alright, we're out, but what do we do about big and ugly over there." Frost asked as they ran along the corridor.

None of them could think of an efficient way to stop the juggernaut. That is until Ace saw something up ahead. "Guys, when I say jump, jump!" he shouted, the other two nodding.

They continued to run for a couple of seconds, before Ace shouted the command. With a mighty leap they all soared through the air until the landed on the floor again. But unlike the other two, Ace rolled over adn turned around, cocking his bow with an arrow in it.

He released the arrow and it hit a small button on the floor. A loud click sounded off and before they knew it the ceiling above the monster, who was chasing them, dropped on top of it. Brutus managed to grab the massive wieght, but despite his monstrous strength he was soon squashed. Blood spurted from beneath the dropped ceiling, some of it falling onto the group.

They stared at where the monster once was, waiting to see if it had truly been killed. After a few minutes they sighed in relief.

"Well that's one way of doing it." Whip chuckled as he and the other two got up.

"So now what?" Frost asked.

"Well seeing as our only way out is currently blocked, I say we continue and meet this mad scientist." Ace concluded and the other two agreed.

***

"This place is like from one of those books Dash reads." Trider said in an annoyed tone. He reached back and extinguished a small flame that formed on his singed tail. His armor and clothes were heavily damaged, but he himself was relatively fine.

It took quite some time, before he realised that his teammates were nowhere to be found. He wanted to go search for them, but he decided against it in the end. He knew they were tough and they could take care of themselves.

"But seriously, this place feel like a house of horrors with all of these things." he grumbled, as he dislodged a large tooth from one of his shoulder pads.

Not long after he entered the tunnel he was assaulted by every trap you could think of and some time later, the monsters joined in as well. They managed to slow down his progress, but he easily disposed of them all.

He raised his head and took a sniff of the air. His face contorted in disgust, as foul stench reached his nose. "Goddamn, did I enter a sewer or something?" he thought, as he continued his advancement.

Beside burning his nostrils, the stink also made it impossible to track the foals scent and it made the Kanisar even more aggravated. Since there was no other way to go, he followed the tunnel, until it opened into a large room.

It was circular in shape, with about a hundred feet in diameter and about three stories high. A set of staircases, cut into stone ran from one level to another. Along the walls of the room were cells with metal bars.

Trider looked around the room, whistling. "Yep, definitely a horror house." he said out loud and headed towards the closest cell. As he walked, he noticed movement inside of one. Squinting his eyes he saw another abomination. "At least these ones are locked up." he mumbled to himself and proceeded to one pf the empty cells.

Peeking inside he saw bones and a puddle of something. He wasn't sure what exactly it was, but it was certainly disturbing and smelly.

"Whoever runs this place should probably hire a maid." he said and stuck his hand inside the cell, dipping his tips into the goo. As he closely inspected the stuff, a creature slowly approached him along the wall from above. When it was only sevearal feet above it's target it jumped off and lunged at the Kanisar.

Trider however twisted his body and delivered a kick to the creatures side. With a loud yelp the monster flew through the air, hitting the floor a few feet away from the Kanisar.

"You guys just don't learn do you?" he said, as he stood up and turned towards the creature. The beast got on it's feet as well and the two stared at each other.

The monster walked on four leg, the front legs twice as long as it's rear ones. It's skin was orange in color and it had white hair around it's neck and chest, almost like a mane, as well as all the way down it's back to the tip of it's lizard like tail. On it's head it had two long horns behind it's long fox like ears. Trider also saw something glistening, but he paid no mind to it.

The two continued to have their staring contest, until the monster roared and attacked the Kanisar. Trider dodged to the left and reared his arm back, hoping to counter it's assault. But the creature whipped it's tail at him and he blocked the attack with his armguard, just in the nick of time. With the attack blocked, Trider took the opportunity and blasted the creature away with a blast.

As it skidded across the floor, he redirected his gaze to the armguard and saw the metal was starting to melt. Quickly taking it off he saw that in just a couple of seconds the piece of armor disappeared.

"Alright, maybe this guy will be a wee bit tougher than I thought." he judged, before turning back to the monster. It was back on it's feet and it glared at the Kanisar with it's blank eyes. This time however it was Trider that was the first to move.

He quickly closed the distance between the two and thrusted his leg at monsters face. But it avoided the attack by jumping into the air. Once it was airborn it swung it's tail sporadically, sending drops of purple liquid all over the place.

Trider skillfully dodged the droplets, as the places where the liquid landed was eaten away by the acid. But as he was evading the corosive liquid, he failed to notice the creature falling back down, right on top of him.

With thud it pinned Trider under it's weight and roared right into his face. "Man your breath stinks!" he exclaimed and turned his head away from the creatures maw, as it snapped forward, in hoping to bite his head off.

"Roar Cannon!" he shouted and a beam of Ki blasted from his mouth. The blast hit the monster straight in it's face and it staggered backwards, releasing the pinned Kanisar.

As it continued to rub it face with it's front legs. Trider took the opportunity and summoned his Spirit Claws. He quickly got behind the creature and slashed at it's tail. It roared in pain as it's limb was severed from it's body and it directed it's attention back onto him.

"Piston Cannon Tetrastrike!" He hit the creature straight in it's side and sent it flying towards the far wall. While still mid-flight it was struck three more times by an invisible force until it hit the wall.

"And stay down!" Tirder grumbled under his breath. He started to head towards the exit, when he heard something run towards him. Quickly spinning around, he grabbed by the creatures horns and the two were now struggling against each other, both trying to overpower the other.

"You should have listened to me!" he said with a slight smirk. The creature roared at him and psuhed even harder. Slowly Trider was pushed back, but he wasn't going to let the monster beat him.

He released one of it's horns and charged Ki into his palm. "Wailing Nova Sphere!" He thrusted his arm forward hitting the monster in the face at point blank range. A loud explosion sounded off and the creature was once again sent flying into a nearby wall.

It's face was now mangled and bloody as it slowly slid down to the floor. Trider looked at it with disdain, one of it's hon still in his hands.

"Motherfucker." he grumbled and looked at the horn. "At least I got a souvenir out of it." He smirked and admired his trophy. Suddenly his eyes widened as his eyes fell onto something that was hanging from the horn. It was a small a small silver necklace, that trider immediatelly recognised.

With a shaky hand he took the pendant off and held it in his palm. With a terrified gaze he looked toward the monster and began to recognize some of it's details. With shaky steps he approached the downed monster, until he was face to face with it.

"Mellow?" he asked with a shaky voice. The creature slowly twisted it's head towards the Kanisar, looking right into his eyes. For a few seconds it didn't react, but then it's mouth began to move and it uttered something.

"Tr... Er." it muttered. For a second it's blank eyes gained back it's colors and a single tear escaped from it. But just as quickly as it's eyes regained their color, it disapperad. It's body became limp and it fell onto the ground, remaining there motionless.

Trider stared at the body, squeezing the pendant in his hands. He slowly stood up and gritted his teeth. He looked around the room and saw that their fight caught the attention of other monsters in the cells. He saw that nearly every cell had one. His eyes burned with rage and his body shook, right before he unleashed an agonizing scream.

***

The room Ace, Frost and Whip walked in was as big as a small house and engulfed in darkness. Along the walls laid numerous small machines and blinking lights illuminated the darkness. To them it seemed like they just walked into sci-fi novel. Slowly they made their way inside, the gems on their armor providing the necessary light.

Suddenly they heard a loud clank and the lights in the room ignited. The group squinted their eyes at the sudden change of brightness.

"Welcome. I'm glad you could make it." the voice greeted fromt the intercom. "I have to say I'm impressed you managaed to make your way all the way to here."

"Cut the crap!" Ace shouted. "What the hell are you doing here? What have you done with those you kidnapped?"

"As curious as ever." the voice chuckled. "Well since you managed to fight off my creations, I guess I can enlighten you a little bit."

A whirring sound resonated across the room and when the group looked up they saw some shutters slowly removing themselves from one of the walls. Once they were completely gone they saw an older unicorn stallion with a light green coat and grey mane standing behind a glass window. His eyes were light blue and he also wore a labcoat over a checkered red shirt, light brown pants and a pair of glasses.

"Allow me to properly introduce myself." he said, giving a curt bow. "My name is Doctor Gene Slice. One of the greatest scientist that ever lived."

"Mad and has a massive ego. Great." Frost said with a roll of her eyes.

"I might have an ego, but mad I am not. I prefer the term overzealous." Gene said, as he began to pace around his room. "Do you remember the Changeling invasion that happened a few months ago?"

"Who doesn't? It was all over the news." Whip replied sarcastically.

"True, true." the doctor nodded. "Well, once the invasion was over, we managed to get our hands onto some of the bodies of the changelings in order to learn more about them. But while my colleagues were focused onto learning what they were, I was more enthralled in what they could do."

"As you may have known, Changelings posses the ability to take on any form they wish and I saw the great potential that could bring." Gene continued, now completely concentrated on his story. "Think about it, the endless possibility that could bring. Ponies having the ability to breath fire like dragons, posses the strength of a minotaur or even become alicorns themselves."

"After I realised that I began my research. At first I used mice and rats to conduct my experiments on. For days, weeks I focused on it, until I finally managed to successfully give a rat the ability to metamorph into any living creature on the planet." the stallion said with great vigor and joy. But that happiness quickly turned sour. "But after my successful experiment I went to the Princess to ask for more funds, as well as a few test voulenteers. And do you know what she said?"

Before anyone had the time to answer, Gene slammed his fist onto a table inside the room. "She said that that was madness. She didn't want to sacrifice anypony for the greater good, for the purpose of advancing science!" he roared, as his face contorted in anger. "When I saw there was no persuading her, I left and continued my research in secret. But eventually I was found out and I fled to here. One of my secret labs."

"When I arrived, I imediatelly started on my research again. Money wasn't an issue, since I sold some of my inventions on the black market, but the real problem was test subjects. Do you know how many ponies want to volunteer to participate in experiments of a doctor whose reputation was runied by a Princess?"

"None!" he again roared. His body was now trembling from anger and after a couple of minutes he relaxed himself. "So I thought to myself, if ponies won't come to me, I'll bring them here myself."

The words echoed through Ace's head, until his eyes widened. "You're the one responsible for all of those disappearances around Trottingham."

"Correct." Gene chuckled. "You wouldn't believe how easy it is to take somepony away, without anypony else noticing."

It was Whip's turn to shout at the stallion. "But if you needed subjects, why did you foalnap foals?"

"Simple. You see when I actually started to experiment on ponies, it always ended in the same way. They died within hours of alteration. And it drove me mad. I couldn't for the love of Celestia figure out why it didn't work." he exclaimed, as he put his hands onto his head. "That is until one day. As I made more and more experiments and began to see a pattern. I noticed that the younger the subject was the longer their body lasts, before it decomposes. And it was then that I realised."

"Realised what?" Frost asked, not wanting to hear the answer.

"That the reason why they all broke apart so fast was becasue they already their Cutie Marks." Gene answered grandly. "You see, when a pony earns their Cutie Mark their internal magic locks onto it's qualities, ensuring that the pony will have an easy time with their Mark. But Changelings internal magic doesn't do that, instead it remains unspecified, allowing them to copy the magic of other creatures and giving them the same abilities as the creatures they transform into have."

Ace, Whip and Frost listened intently to what the doctor told them, their eyes widening at what he was telling them. "Where are they?" the mare hissed through her teeth. "Where are the foals?"

"You've already seen some of them." Gene answered with a malevolent grin.

At first they didn't know what he was talking about, until they realised. "T-those monsters. T-they were-"

"Yes." he replied, with a clap. "Those creatures you fought and killed were some of the foals I experimented on." The answer made the groups stomachs twist and they couldn't grasp the truth.

"B-but you said your experiments were successful, so why are they like this?" Ace asked, pointing a finger at the stallion behind the glass.

"Tsk, tsk." Gene tsked as he shook his head. "You did not listen. I never said I was successful with altering the foals. I said that I managed not to kill them."

"That's why I felt those emotions when I fought that creature." Whip thought and tightened his fist.

"My research still needs some more work, before it is truly complete. And in order to achieve that goal I'll have to dispose of all of you." he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small box. "It was nice to have somepony come by, who is not screaming or crying for once."

He pressed the button on the box and loud clancking noises echoed thorugh the room. A part of the side wall began to turn, revealing a small compartment. Inside the small compartment stood three suits of armor, that would be better siuted for minotaurs than ponies. Their large hulking bodies towered over the ponies, it's brown and silver colored plating allowed the group to see their own reflection in it. But what made them wary of the armors were the red glowing eyes.

They stared at the armors to see is they would do something. After several seconds of remaining inactive they looked between each other. "What... What are these things?" Whip asked, as he glanced between the doctor and the armors.

"I call them Sentinels. I created them myself." boasted Gene.

"How? I thought you were a biologist or a genetic engineer." Whip asked.

"Seriously?" the stallion asked, as he deadpanned. "You do know a pony can have more than one degree? I myself have one in genetic engineering and magineering."

"So what poor sap did you put inside those?" Ace asked, clenching his weapon.

"Nopony, they are fully automated."

"So it's empty, huh." Frost said, as a smirk appeared on her face. "Then that means I don't have to hold back."

She summoned a crossbow and aimed at one of the Sentinels. Pouring some of her magic into the arrow, she shot it at the giant, making it explode on impact. But instead of a victorious grin, her eyes widened in shock as her target was barely fazed by the attack.

"How?" she said under her breath.

"Antimag enhanced metal darling. I think you've already seen it in action before, right?" the doctor said with a shiteating grin. "Sentinels, attack!" At his order the three behemoth began to move, each one of their moves eliciting loud clanks.

"Spread out!" Ace shouted. Heeding his words the group scattered, each pony dealing with their own enemy. The Sentines weren't very fast, but what they lacked in speed, more than made up with their strength.

Ace quickly distanced himself from his friend. Once he was sure he was far away he turned and faced his enemy. With slow steps the Sentinel approached and Ace readied his bow.

"Let's see if we can stop you for good." he said and poured his magic into the arrow. Once he released the string, the projectile flew at the giant with tremendous speed. The Sentinel didn't even bothered to dodge and let the arrow hit him. But once it connected the arrow bursted and encased it in ice.

Ace dropped his bow and looked at the Sentinel with a wary look. All of a sudden the ice began to crack and the Sentinel was once again free. The dog-pony sighed, as he switched to his Naginata seeing as his arrows won't do that much damage.

Quickly closing the distance he lunged at the giant, thrusting his weapon at it's chest. The spear connected, but he didn't manage to pierce it, instead making a small dent in it. The Sentinel swung one of it's arms at Ace, but he managed to dodge it.

Not wasting any time, he channeled his magic through his entire body and his weapon. "Godspeed Thrust!" he shouted and began to thrust his Naginata at the robot with speeds that made his weapon nearly invisible.

With the sound akin to machinegun fire, Ace dealt blow after blow to the Sentinel. After a few seconds he stopped and looked at how much he hurt it. But to his surprise, the armor only had several dents, but none of them pierced the robot.

All of a sudden the Sentinel moved and swung it's arm at Ace. Caught off guard the dog-pony could only block the oncoming attack. The blow sent him flying across the room and he smashed into a wall. Slowly falling to the ground, he managed to stay on his hooves. A sharp pain flared across his left arm and he saw it was dislocated.

Grunting he picked his weapon back up and looked over to the Sentinel who was slowly closing the distance.

"No other choice then." he thought as he channeled his magic. "It might do more harm than good, but I have no other choice."

He used his magic to jump high into the air, reaching the roof of the room. Once he touched it he quickly turned around and leaped from the ceiling. He held his Naginata close to his body, the tip pointed downward, directly at the Sentinel.

"Thunder Jet Bolt!" he screamed, as the air began to swirl around him and he as well as his weapon were encased in lightning. In a split second he slammed to the ground, hitting the Sentinel as well, and created a loud explosion and a bright flash.

Once the flash subsided, Ace stood up, covered in bruises and blood, using his spear to support his weight. He looked around to see where the Sentinel was, but he only saw one of it's arms. He smiled and lifted his arm in triumph.

Suddenly a shadow covered him and when he looked up he saw the soulless red eyes of the robot.

"Shit." he hissed, before the Sentinel struck him.

***

While Ace and Frost were fighting their own battles, Whip had his hands full with his own opponent. He weaved around the Sentinels fist as it slammed into the ground.

He cracked his whip and wrapped it around a stalactite, using it to jump over the robot. Once on the other side he summoned another whip.

"Charming Snare!" he shouted as both weapons split at their ends and wrapped themsleves around the Sentinel completely. Whip then created spikes along his weapons, but they had no effect on the tough armor. Seeing as he was doing nothing he decided to crush the robot, by constircting his whips.

Slowly but surely the metal began to creak, as the whips tightened. The stallion didn't let up, until he was certain that it was completely crushed by his attack.

The Sentinel however fought back and eventually it managed to free one of it's arms. Grabbing the thong it swung the stallion through the air and slamming him into the ground. The impact blew the air out of Whip's lungs and he lost concentration, accidentally releasing his opponent.

Taking advantage of the opportunity the Sentinel, still holding the whip, swung it's arm, bringing the stallion closer to it. Once it was close enough it struck him with a powerful blow right into the ground below.

Whip laid motionless on the floor, as the giant lifted it's foot and brought it down onto the stallion. In the last moment he grabbed it's foot and held it in place. The two struggled against one another, but eventually with a scream Whip pushed the Sentinel off of him, making it stagger backwards.

"Although you bring no emotions to the fight machine, I still enjoyed every bruise and broken bone you gave me." he said, as his whips began to coil around his arms. "But you stand in my way, so I have no other choice but to take you down. Au revior, Géant du métal."

With lightning speed he charged at the Sentinel and began to strike at it's body with ferocious force. Each strike was stronger and faster than the last and Whip forgot all about his surroudings, even ignoring the loud explosion and a flash, as he focused solely on bringing down the metal giant.

After several seconds he stopped his attack and looked at the now badly beaten body of the Sentinel. But to his horror, the giant was still standing, almost unfazed by his assault.

It raised it's arm and swung it at the stallion. Too badly damaged to even move, Whip took full brunt of the attack.

***

The Sentinel slammed it's metal fist right where Frost stood before, creating a hole in the ground. The mare backflipped out of the giant's range, switching her crossbow with a battleaxe.

"I regret ever playing with toy robots when I was a filly." she muttered under her breath, as she leapt into the air. Swinging her weapon, she brought it down onto the Sentinels head, creating a loud bang when it connected. The vibrations casued by the collision nearly made Frost drop her axe, but she managed to hold onto it.

Once she delivered her attack she jumped away again, eyeing the damage she caused. The Sentinel was still standing and was again approaching her. She saw a small indent and a scratch on it's head, but beside that, nothing else.

"Alright, change of plan." she thought and brought out a spear. "If slice and dice won't work, then I'll just have to penetrate it."

Twirling her weapon in her hands, she waited until the robot was close enough, before she thrusted it forward. Suddenly the spear began to extend, hitting the Sentinel, which was still a few feet away from her, directly in the chest. The force of impact propelled the giant back for a couple of feet, before it stopped.

Frost saw she managed to create a small hole in the armor and she smiled. She began to push even more, hoping to completely pierce it. The Sentinel had other ideas however. It grabbed her weapon and began to fight against her push with his own. Soon the mare was overpowered and the giant swung the spear high above it's head, taking Frost along with it.

In an arc she was slammed into the ground, where she released the hold on her weapon. With shaky legs she got up and was blinded by a bright flash. She had no time to pay attention to it, as the Sentinel slowly began to approach her. She gasped for air, as she began to think over her next strategy. Suddenly she saw her two friends lying on the ground, the other two damaged Sentinels slowly approaching them.

The robot who was going up against Frost seemed to be fazed by the sudden increase in brightness and had to readjust it's optics. Once it could see again it searched for the mare, but the only thing it saw was a giant hammer flying directly at it. It had no way of dodging the weapon, as it struck it into the head and toppled it over.

Wasting no time Frost jumped to where her friends were, summoning a longsword in the process. Just in the nick of time she landed in the middle of the two, as the Sentinels brought down their arms.

"Stalwart Blockade!" she shouted and slammed the blade of her sword into the ground. Suddenly an emerlad green dome formed over the group and protected them from the attack. As soon as the giants hit the dome they recoiled, as they were struck back with their own force. But that didn't stop them as they once again began to assault the shield.

Inside the dome Frost looked at her friends, who had been bady wounded. "Guys, how you doing?" she asked with ragged breath.

"Could be better." Ace moaned and lifted his upper body. "And you?"

Her answer was interrupted when another fist slammed the barrier, making the mare gasp. After a few moments she colleced herself, closing her eyes. "Physically, great. Magically, not that good. This dome drains a lot out of me and it doesn't help that those things are striking at it unrelentlessly."

"So this is it? This is how we die?" Whip asked, melancholy in his voice.

"No!" Ace exclaimed, as he began to think over their possible plans of escape. "There must be way."

"There is." Frost said, making the two stallions look at her with hope. "I have enough magic to perform one more attack. But the problem is that it takes a long time to cast it, as well as that I can't exactly aim it."

"So what should we do?" Ace asked, as he and Whip were kneeling beisde their tired friend.

"I'll drop my barrier and then you two will try to stop, distract or at least slow them down long enough for me to complete the spell." she said, sweat beginning to pur down her face. "And right before I cast it, I want the two of you to get as close to me as possible, as that will be the only safe spot you two will have."

The two stallions looked at each other and nodded. "We'll do our best." Whip assured, giving her a thumbs up. Right then the third Sentinel approached and joined it's two counterparts in breaking the barrier.

"Ready?" Frost asked, as the giants all raised their arms, determined to break the dome with one massive blow. "Go!"

On cue the shield dropped and the two stallions charged at the Sentinels, while Frost created as much distance as she could and began to channel her magic.

Whip and Ace stood in the middle of the three giants, standing back to back. The attacks came at them and they dodged them to the best of their abilites.

The dog-pony took a deep breath and charged his magic. "Windigo Howl!" he screamed, as ice and snow escaped from his mouth, freezing all of the Sentinels.

For a few seconds the giants didn't move, until they broke free of the ice and advanced on the stalion. But once again they were stopped when tendrils wrapped around their feet. Whip smirked, his weapons dug in the ground. With all of his might he pulled and tripped the giants. The two friends joined up together again, ready to take on the Sentinels yet again.

"Guys it's ready!" Frost shouted. Ace and Whip quickly turned around and ran to the mare, leaving behind the three giants. Suddenly the ceiling began to sparkle as swords, axes, spears and many other weapons began to form. Once the two were close enough Frost's eyes glowed emerald green and she swung her arm downwards.

"Razor Storm!" she yelled, as all of the weapons were hurled down towards the ground. The group watched as numerous blades rained down upon the room, shredding the Sentinels into pieces. The storm lasted for several seconds, before all the weapons were gone.

With a strained breath Frost gasped, as she collapsed to the floor. Both Whip and Ace caught her and smiled at her. She returned the smile, before they all glared towards Gene.

"Hey doc." she said, lifting her shaking arm and giving the middle finger. "We win."

Gene watched in bemusement, before he began to slowly clap. "Well done." he praised them, as a large smirk adorned his face. "You actually managed to defeat my Sentinels. Great job." He then pressed another button and another part of the wall began to move, showing yet another one of guradians. "But I wonder if you can defeat another."

The group watched in horror, as the giant stepped out of the hole and began to slowly approach them. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me? He had another?" Whip said in a deseperate tone.

"I've always been told to keep an ace up your sleeve. And that is waht I did." he casted his gaze towards his creation and snapped his fingers. "Crush them."

The Sentinel was now standing over the group. Slowly lifting it's arm, the group closed their eyes. They were too exhausted and hurt to be able to avoid the attack. They waited for their inevitable demise.

Suddenly a large explosion tore apart one of the walls. Everyone looked towards the source of the loud bang, with the exception of the Sentinel, who brought it's fist down onto the group. Out of the cloud of smoke jumped a shadow and right before the giant's attack could connect, it was struck with enough force to send it flying backwards.

It crashed into the ground with a loud boom, it's metal body scraping along the floor. Everyone watched the behemoth slowly picking itself up, before they looked towards the figure that was responsible for attacking it.

Trider cracked his knuckles, as he glared at the machine, before he looked behind himself. "You guys alright?" he asked, concern in his eyes.

The group sighed in unison, relaxing themselves when they saw their friend. "About time you showed up." Frost grunted, as she was put onto the floor by the two stallions. "What took you so long?"

"Frankly? I got lost." he replied scratching his head. Everyone glared at him, before they sighed in defeat.

"That's our Trider." Ace said with an awkward smile.

"You managed to defeat all of those monsters? I have to say alien, you impress me." Gene said from behind the glass. "I'll have so much fun when I dissect-"

"Can it fucker!" Trider growled, pointing a finger at the stallion. "I'll make you pay for what you did to Mellow and my friends!"

"So you know?" Whip asked, his voice full of saddness.

"Yeah." Trider said with a nod. "I get the gist of it." He then again glared at Gene. "Just confirm he's behind it all."

"He is." Ace said. "He foalnapped and experimented on ponies in secret. Plus he built those giant mechanical beasts." he explained and pointed toward the Sentinel, which was now standing again. "Be careful, those things are strong and are resistant to magic."

"I see." Trider said as he clenched his fists. "Too bad for them I'm stronger and don't have magic."

The Sentinel and the Kanisar slowly approached one antoher and when they were only a couple of feet from each other, they glared at one another. The giant raised it's arm and brought it down. Trider however didn't even flinch, when he caught the fist. Undettered it raised it's other arm and did the same as before. And like before Trider caught the other arm as well. The two were now in a power struggle, each trying to take down the other.

"Is this all you have?" the Kanisar asked in disappointment. He quickly applied more pressure to his hands and crushed the Sentinels fists. The giant recoiled back and Trider thrusted his arm at it's chest.

"Piston Cannon Pentaspear!" the fist connected, but it didn't seem to do anything. Bringing his arm back Trider watched, as the giant raised it's damaged arms above it's head. All of a sudden a tremendous invisible force struck it where Trider had hit it, creating a large hole right through it's entire body.

It's red eyes dimmed and it began to slowly sway back and forth, before it fell onto it's back. Everyone watched in awe, shocked at how quickly he beat the behemoth.

"Impossible!" Gene shouted from his room, staring down at his destroyed creation.

Trider however glared at the stallion, his eye burning with rage. "You're next." he growled, as he pointed a finger at him.

Gene watched in fear, as Trider began to walk towards his position. "You really think it'll be that easy?" he said and pressed a button. Suddenly the whole room began to shake and debris began to fall from the ceiling.

Not wasting any time, Trider ran over to his friends and stood above them, shielding them from the rubble. The room eventually collapsed and buried everyone in it.

A couple of minutes have passed since the destruction of the room they were in and one of the piles of rocks began to shift. Rising from the debris, Trider and his friends made it out relatively unscathed.

"Everyone good?" Trider asked. He received grunts and moans in return and he nodded. "All right then. Now where is that fucker?"

"Looking for me?" a loud booming voice answered. They turned toward the source of the voice and their hearts stopped for a second.

Looming above them was another Sentinel, this one however was humongous. While the others were about a couple of feet taller than all of them, this one stood at about hundred feet. Another difference was the head, as it didn't have the soulless red eyes, but instead it had a small compartment, within which Doctor Gene stood.

"Seriously? How many of these things do you have?" Frost screamed exasperated.

The doctor however ignored her and instead focused onto the Kanisar. "You might have been able to destroy my Sentinels, but there is no way in Tartarus you're taking down my Mega Sentinel." he stated.

"We'll just see about that." Trider said and flew into the air, heading straight for the machine. "Piston Cannon Pentaspear!" he shouted and punched the robot's chest. To everyone's surprise it had no effect whatsoever.

"Ha, my Mega Sentinel is so much more powerful than those puny Sentinels. An attack like that won't even scratch it." he boasted. "I've spent a lot of my time perfecting my creation, so it could withstand even the most powerful of ponies. It's impervious against magical and physical attacks. There is no way you can win."

"How about Ki then?" Trider countered and focused his energy into his palm. Soon a sphere of blue energy formed in his hand and when it was large enough he shot it at the Sentinel. When the blast connected it created a huge explosion, engulfing the giant in a cloud of smoke.

Everyone waited to see how much damage the attack made. Once the cloud dispersed they saw that there was now a dent in the robot's chest armor, but nothing more.

"Pathetic." Gene taunted, as he suppressed a chuckle. "I already told you that my creation is invincible. And not only that..." Suddenly with great speed the giant thrusted it's hand and hit Trider. The force of the impact sent him flying for several hundred feet, until he crashed into the ground, creating a line in the ground. He only stopped when he hit a large boulder, crushing it upon impact.

Ace, Whip and Frost watched in terror, when they saw even Trider was unable to stand up to the behemoth. "But beacuse it is directly connected to me, it's speed is also greatly increased." Gene finished, smirking at the devastation his attack created. The Sentinel then turned towards the others and the doctor smiled. "Now, I think it's about time I finish you off, once and for all."

The robot's hand reached down toward the group, threatening to crush them. But it stopped when a blast of energy struck it's side. Gene turned the behemoth to look at who it was that disturbed him. When he saw it was Trider, who stood in the same place he crashed, his eyes widened for a moment, before he smiled.

"So the rumors about your incredible tenacity and durability weren't rumors at all." he chuckled. "But we both know the outcome, so why not just give up already."

Trider didn't react as he simply glared at the doctor. He spat some blood out of his mouth before he snarled. "I would rather die than admit defeat." he stated. "Besides this fight is far from over."

"Oh and what are you going to do? Your friends are useless, you have no other backup and we've already proven you're no match for my creation. So tell me, what do you think you can do?"

This time it was Trider's turn to grin. "You have no idea what I'm capable of. In fact not even I knew." Trider began to explain. "It wasn't until I joined the Guard and began my training with Luna that I achieved something that I thought was almost impossible."

He took a step forward and slammed his foot into the ground. "I attained the next level of my strength. And right here and now I'll show the true might of a Kanisar."

He gritted his teeth and tightened his fists. Suddenly his body was slowly being encased in a white aura. The ground beneath his feet began to give way, creating a crater where he stood. The air rippled as he produced more and more energy, sparks of white lightning running over his body.

Then, once he reached his peak, he unleashed a powerful yell, his body engulfed by a bright flash. Once it subsided everyone stared at him in awe. His once messy black hair was now snow white and standing up straight, His tail as well was completely white. But what was most captivating were his now neon blue eyes, that seemed to stare right into your soul. With slow steps the transformed Kanisar approached the Sentinel, the white aura flaring over his body, giving him the appearance of being engulfed in white fire.

"Intriguing." Gene mumbled and watched Trider calmly stride forward. "I was not aware you could do something like this. The more I watch the more I become interested in you." He made the Sentinel raise one of it's arms up. "You just might be more interesting than my current project. I'll enjoy learning all about you."

The giant thrusted it's arm toward the Kanisar, shaking the ground when it hit it. Trider flew out of the large cloud of smoke the impact created and flew along the arm until he reached it's chest. Rearing his arm he delivered a powerful punch that made the Sentinel stagger backwards.

For a brief moment Gene was surprised by the increase in strength, but he was certain he'll be the one to prevail. Reagaining it's balance the large machine raised both of it's arms above it's head and swung them down at the Kanisar.

This time however Trider didn't react as he took the full force of the impact. He crashed directly into the rock ground, creating a large crater upon impact. The doctor looked down in triumph, but his smile soon disappeared when he saw the Kanisar standing in the crater, seemingly unscathed.

"You had your chance, now it's my turn." Trider said and jetted out of the hole and towards the Sentinel. The behemoth swung it's right arm down at the Kanisar, but he didn't change his route, still locked on the center of the machine's body.

"Piston Cannon." he said calmly, rearing his right arm back. "Dekaassault." His arm suddenly began to glow with energy and he drove straight into the metal fist of his opponent. For a split second the two forces struggled against one another. All of a sudden the giant's arm exploded, pieces of metal raining all over the place.

Gene stared in disbelief as the limb was destroyed up to it's shoulder. His astonishment continued when he saw trider now covered not only in white flames, but wisps of red as well.

"Finish Breaker." With a burst of speed Trider hit the Sentinels chest. The metal bent under the immense pressure, until it gave in and the Kanisar pirced through it's entire body. The force of the impact was so powerful that the giant lost it's balance and it fell onto it's back.

"Impossible, impossible, impossible." Gene muttered under his breath, as he tried to operate his invention.

Trider however still wasn't done. He extended his arm and began to channel his Ki into his hand. Slowly a large sphere, the size of a soccerball, of red and blue energy formed in his palm.

"With this you're done." he stated and lifted his arm high into the air. "Howling Nova Sphere!" he shouted and thrusted the orb at the Sentinel. The attack hit the giant and upon contact it exploded. The blast engulfed it's entire body and only when the smoke cleared could you see the destruction it created.

The Sentinel's body was completely annihilated, with the exception of it's limbs and head. Trider slowly descended towards the head and when he was close enough he smashed the glass window open. He grabbed the coat of the doctor and pulled him out.

He glared at him with his blue eyes, making the stallion sweat. "P-please have mercy." he begged, shivering in his grasp, swet flowing down his face.

"Mercy?" Trider said astounded. "Mercy?! You want mercy after everything you've done?" he shouted, making Gene even more terrified. "Did you give mercy to all of those you killed or to my friends? Did you?"

Although his tone was filled with rage, his eyes reamined calm, serene even. "If it was up to me I would end your miserable life right here and now." he growled, a ball of Ki forming in his hand, that was aimed straight at the stallions head.

Gene whimpered and closed his eyes, tears falling down his cheeks. Trider continued to glare at the stallion, but eventually he closed his eyes and sighed. "But luckily for you I'm no longer like that. I no longer deliver my own justice just becasue I feel it's justified." he said and dropped the doctor to the ground. "I don't want to break that promise I made to Celestia and to my friends. Not again. So I'll let the system deal with you."

While Trider was berating him, Gene was already running away. He shook his head and disappeared, reappearing right in front of the stallion. The doctor's eyes widened when he suddenly stood in front of him. Trider raised his hand and flicked him on the forehead. The strike knocked the stallion off his hooves and into unconscience.

Taking a deep breath, the white aura around him disappeared and he walked over to his friends. They were all now standing up and supporting each other.

"What. The fuck. Was that?" Frost asked, when the Kanisar approached them.

"What do ya mean?" Trider asked coyly.

"Don't 'what do ya mean?' me, I'm talking about you suddenly being able to change your hair on a whim and becoming strong enough to knock a building sized robot down." the mare hissed at him.

"Oh that?" Trider grinned, as he scratched his head. "That's just a little something I learned while I was training with Luna."

"How long have you been capable of doing it?" Ace asked.

"A little under a month." he answered.

The group mulled over what he had told them, until Whip spoke up. "So what is it exactly?"

Trider put a hand to his chin as he thought over how he should explain it to them. "Basically," he began. "It's kind of like my Feral Unleashing, only that it's more powerful and I access to it differently. At first it is like when I wanted to use my Feral Unleashing, but before I can completely succumb to my anger I suppress it while still drawing out the power. So in the end, even when I'm transformed I feel almost no anger."

Ace, Whip and Frost looked at him in amazement. "So in order to obtain it you have to discard your anger?"

"Exactly. Though once I did I lost my ability to use my Feral Unleashing completely. Now even if I tried I can't transform into it, though I doubt I'll ever need it again, now that I have this transformation."

"Well that is wonderful news." Whip smiled. "Do you have a name for it already?"

Trider smiled sheepishly. "Well I've been thinking and I decided to just call it Super Kanisar."

"Super Kanisar? Really?" Frost said with a skeptical look.

"Hey I'm a Kanisar and when I'm all white like I'm also super." Trider argued, crossing his arms.

"Keep telling yourself that." Frost countered. The group laughed at her quip and soon afterwards they headed back to their base.

***

When they came back they handed the doctor over to the Guards and before they were escorted to the hospital, they told their commanding officer about other creatures still being trapped there. They wanted them to rescue them and possibly find a way to reverse what Gene did to them.

Right now they were talking among themselves, about what had happened today.

"So you killed him?" Ace asked, his ears folded.

"Yeah. If I knew it was him, I would've knocked him out and not..." Trider trailed off, as he remembered the last moments he spent with Mellow.

"You didn't know Trider, you did what you had. If I was in your place I would do the same." Frost tried to soothe him.

"I know and I don't blame myself, I just wish I could change the outcome." the Kanisar sighed, as he leaned his head against the headrest of his bed. "I'm just glad I was able to give him a proper burial."

"So that's why you were so late." Frost said with a small chuckle. "I'm really sorry for what you had to go through."

"It's fine." Trider shook his head. "I'm kind of used to it."

"Look on the bright side." Whip chipped in. "At least those other ponies who were transformed might have a chance to return to their normal lives."

The group smiled, realising he was right and that there was some good to come out of all of this. All of a sudden the doors to their room were slammed open and their Sergeant walked in.

"Heya Sarge." Whip greeted with a wide smile. "So how is the retrieval going?"

The stallion didn't answer, insted his head drooped and he kept his eyes closed. Everyone became worried at his response, but before they could inquire he lifted his head and looked at them.

"The site has been cleared." he said in a hard tone. The group looked between each other confused.

"Isn't that great news?" Ace asked.

"It would be, if we were the ones to clear it." At that statement everyone's eyes widened. "By the time our team arrived at the scene everything was already gone. The creatures were all slaughtered and any sign of the Sentinels disappeared."

"Who could do that?" Frost asked out loud.

***

Couple of hours earlier

The group laughed among themselves, not noticing two figures watching them from afar.

"Now that's a show." the stallion whistled, as he watched the group leave the scarred battlefield through his binoculars.

"We're not here to watch a bunch of foals goof around. We've got a job to do." the mare by his side said disgruntled.

"Yeah, yeah." the stallion replied as he put away his gadget. "Shall we then." he said, standing up and running toward the scene, but not before slapping the mare's butt.

She yelped and shot a venomous glare at the stallion, but he was too far ahead to see it. Sighing she followed him, her cloak dragging across the ground.

The stallion had a dark brown coat with orange mane and tail. He wore a long dark blue coat, over his red shirt and black jeans. A stetson rested on his shaggy mane and it obscured his golden yellow eyes.

The mare on the other hand was completely covered in her cloak, only her yellow muzzle and the tip of her horn could be seen.

Soon they reached the place where the battle took place not a while ago. The stallion approached the remains of the Sentinel and whistled.

"I still can't figure out how could one pony alone do something like this." he wondered.

The mare didn't say anything, as her horn glowed with a light blue aura. "It's not here." she said.

"Hmm." the stallion hummed as he looked at his surroudings. "Maybe it's somewhere else? I mean this place was supposed to be huge."

"Maybe." she answered, before she channeled her magic and levitated some of the debris. Revealing a hidden corridor.

"Atta girl." he said, slapping her ass again. This time however she grabbed him by the throat with her magic and brought him closer.

"Do that again and I will snap your neck." she threatened.

"Right... back... at ya." the stallion wheezed out, aiming a crossbow at her chest. They continued to glare at one another, before she released him.

"Let's stop fooloing around and let's get going." she commanded, as she took charge.

The stallion rubbed his neck, before he smirked at the mare. "Ohh, I'd so tap that." he mused, before he followed his partner.

For nearly half an hour the two made their way through the cave system, stopping in between, so they could check if the thing they're looking for was there. Unfortunately for them they were unsuccessful in finding it. Eventually they made it to a room that had cells in it.

"What the Tartarus is this place?" the stallion said, as he stepped deeper into it. As he lloked around, his eyes fell onto a small pile of dirt in a corner. When he approached it he saw that beside it laid a small stone slab and that something was written on it.

Here lies
Mellow Tone
A friend

He took off his hat and closed his eyes. "May whoever you are rest in piece." When he opened his eyes again he saw something glinting in the dim light. Picking it up from under the slab, he saw it was a small silver pendant. "Nice, free loot." he grinned and pocketed the necklace.

Unbeknownst to the stallion, something was watching him from one of the darker corners of the room. It waited until the right opportunity and then it leaped out. The stallion was too late to notice it and the creature slashed one of his arms off.

The stallion cried out in pain and jumped away from the monster. He glared at it and winced. "The fuck?" he said aloud eyeing the beast before him. "Who in their right minds invited Discord's ugly cousin?" he said before he took out a crossbow and shot it at the monster.

The arrow embedded itself deep into the creature's body, but it didn't kill it. With a ferocious roar the beast charged at the stallion, but he only grinned, before he turned around and plugged his ear with his hand. All of a sudden the arrow glowed in bright red color, before it detonated, blasting it's top half right off.

Turning around, the stallion looked at his work and cackled. "Serves ya right ya cunt." he exclaimed and kicked the cadaver.

"Are you done?" the mare asked, as she approached him.

"Yeah." he grunted and picked up his arm. "I could've really used a hand there ya know?" he said with a shiteating grin, as he pointed his severed arm at her.

The mare sighed, before she looked around, her eyes filled with sadness. "These things, they are crying, begging for their torment to end."

The stallion looked at her then at the cells, before shrugging. "I don't hear anything." he said as he picked inside his ear with his severed arm. "If she wasn't loony I'd totaly bang her."

Suddenly the air became cold, cold enough for them to see their own breaths. The mare levitated into the air, as magic rippled through the air. Black smoke began to escape from beneath her cloak, as her eyes turned red and purple smoke escaping from their sides.

The smoke slowly began to pile up and it suddenly solidified itself, forming black tentacles. With snap of her fingers each tendril shot itself into a cell, eliciting a cry of pain from them. When she was done she called back the smoke and it disappeared inside her cloak again.

"That was so hardcore, I don't even care if she's loco in the coco, so screw it." he grinned to himself. "Or better yet, screw her."

When the mare touched ground, he approached her. "Well done, high five." he said lifting the detached arm. The mare didn't react, so he blew a raspberry. "You're no fun, ya know that?" he said. It was then that he noticed the necklace that was now hanging outside of her cloak. "Nice jewelry, pretty metal." he said pointing at he red tipped black horn.

The mare quickly grasped it, before she tucked it in her cloak again. "We should go. It appears we came here for nothing." she said and turned to leave.

"As you say boss." he said swinging his detached arm and hitting her buttocks. Suddenly his head was wrapped with her magic and was slowly being turned around.

"Now love, let me ju-" he didn't get to finish, as his neck snapped and she tore his head off, spurting blood all over the room.

"I did warn you." she said coldly. She almost walked out through the door, when a sharp pain shot thorugh her shoulder. Quickly turning around she saw the stallion standing in the middle of the room, with a scowly on his face.

"I warned you as well." he said, aiming his two crossbows at the mare. His body was completely fine, even his arm was now reattached. The two continued to glare at each other, before the mare sighed.

"Let's just get back. We can settle our dispute there." she hissed, pulling out the arrow with her magic. The stallion shrugged, before he recalled his weapons and followed the mare back out.

Once they were standing in the sunlight again, the mare unfurled a scroll, chanting something unintelligible.

"Wait, wait." she was stopped when the stallion jumped in front of her.

"What?" she nearly shouted.

"If we come back empty handed the big stallion won't be so satisfied with our little outgoing." he said. "So what if we bring him back something he might enjoy."

"And that would be?" she inquired, curious to see what he was getting at.

Smirking he looked over her shoulder and she followed his gaze until it landed on the remains of the Sentinel. She smirked as well and gave him a bemused look.

"Every once in a while, even you have some good ideas." she said as she stepped closer to the remains, beginning to chant again. "Mastermind will surely be pleased."

"Soo, my room tonight?" he said and slapped her ass. Quickly his body was encased with her magic and she bent his back backwards, snapping it in two.

"Maybe." she smirked, before both of them as well as the part disappeared.

Author's Note

Me: Oh boy I haven't posted a chapter in 17 days, however will I ever make it up to my readers.
Also me: Write a thousand words for every day you were absent.
Me: That seems like a dra-
Also me: *slaps me* Do it or else.

Anyway this chapter was a pain to write, I'll say that much. Also Trider finally transformed. HURRAY.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I hated writing it.

P.s. : The stallion at the end has an australian accent, but I don't know how to write it as such or any slang they use, so bare with it please.

Chapter 30: Welcome Home

The train clanked along the tracks, while the ponies inside the wagons were going about their business. In one compartment, a family were enjoying their trip.

The father was reading a newspaper, while the mother was sleeping along with her baby. Their colt in the meantime was playing with his action figures.

"Take that Maneiac." he exclamies and smacks the villain with the figure of Masked Matter-Horn. "Nooo, you have bested me again Power Ponies, curse you." he says in dramatic tone, as the figure falls to the floor.

He then proceeds to pick up the rest of the figures and holds them all in his arms. "Once again the day is saved, thanks to the Power Ponies!" he shouts, to which his father reacts with a shush. The colt looks at him sheepishly. "Sorry." he apologises and sits back into his chair.

He continues to play in silence, when he hears a tapping noise coming from the window. "Dad, dad there's a bald pony flying along side the train!" he exclamis and goes to stand by the window.

"Uh-huh, sure there is." the stallion replies, not taking his eyes from the paper.

"There really is, look." the colt continues, with even more enthusiasm this time.

Sighing, the stallion puts the newspaper down and looks towards the window. "Alright, where is this... bald... pony." he trails off, as his eyes widen. There, right beside their window, flew what his son descibed as a bald pony, but he knew that whatever it was, it certainly wasn't pony.

The flying alien looked at the stallion and gave a small wave. Not sure how to respond, the stallion decided to wave back. The stranger smiled at his reaction, before he proceeded to make some strange gestures. After a few seconds he realised, that he wanted him to lower the window.

Gingerly he unlatched the window and the stranger began to speak. "Hey there. Hope I'm not interrupting you." it said in a calm tone.

"N-no." the stallion replied, while his son looked at the flyer with sparkling eyes. "Is there something you need?" he asked, this time a bit more calmly.

"Yeah. I'm sort of lost and I was hoping someone could help me find my way around." the alien replied with a sheepish smile.

"Where are you headed?" the stallion asked.

"Ponyville."

"Ponyville?" he said with a confused look. He began to ponder over where that could be, before it clicked. "Oh, you mean the place where the newest Princess resides? That Ponyville?"

"Uh sure." the alien said unsurely.

"Well if that's the case, just follow the train tracks and you should get to where you are headed." he said, leaning out the window and pointing along the tracks.

"Thanks." the alien said and zoomed off ahead of the speeding train. The stallion looked after it, it's form slowly becoming a small dot in the scenery. He closed the window and sat into his seat. "The boys at work will never believe me." he mumbled.

Trider was dashing through the sky, not paying attention to the beautiful landscape that passed him and he had a god reason. For the last three months he was stuck in the Royal Guard Academy where he had to go through all of their training and now he was finally free.

Although a nuisance at first, Trider quickly came to like the academy, their instructors and most of all his teammates. When it was time for them to head their seperate ways, it was hard even for him. But none had it worse than Whip, who had to be bound down in order for Trider to even leave.

"I'll miss those idiots." he thought to himself. As he continued his flight his thought went from his Guard friends to the friends he had in Ponyville.

He couldn't wait to taste Pinkie's great pastries again, after such a long time or have Fluttershy prepare another batch of her specail shampoo which made his tail smooth and sparkly. He also missed his petty squabbles with Rarity, he didn't know why though. He also looked forward to having a pleasant chat with Applejack, while dinning with her family and the leisure time he would spend with Twilight in their home. She would either read a book, research something or ask Trider questions on his planet and his race. And while she was doing that, he would just lay on the couch relaxing and watching the mare go about her day.

But out of all the things the one he looked forward to the most were Rainbow Dash and Spike. He couldn't wait to see how much they progressed over the past months.

As he continued to think about all the great things he'd do with his friends. However his thoughts betrayed him when he remembered what Ace told him a month ago.

'Ponyville isn't registered as any kind of outpost. So you can't be stationed there.'

He thought echoed in his mind and it made him aggraveated. "Fucking dammit!" he shouted and accelerated. He knew it was inevitable. In a week he would have to leave his friends again and there was nothing he could do about it. The worst part was, how he would tell them.

"They'll be heartbroken." he mumbled. In reality he knew that they wouldn't be the only ones, but he had to keep his pride intact.

After about an hour of flying, Trider saw the familiar scenery of the Sweet Apple Acres. He quickly changed his course and headed for the Apple family's house. He landed on the porch and walked up to the door.

He knocked a couple of times before it was opened by Big Mac. "Hey there big guy, is AJ home?" he asked and tried to peek over him.

The stallion looked at him in confusion. "Ya haven't met up with 'em?" he asked.

"No, I just came. How could I've seen them?" he argued, now confused as well.

"Well mah sis said she and her friends will wait fer ya at the train station. She left 'bout half an hour ago. How didn't you see them." he continued to ask.

"Cause I flew here. Why in hell would they-" he stopped when he suddenly remembered something. "Aw shit. I was supposed to come with the train and meet them at the station, but it slipped my mind." he grabbed his head in frustration.

Immediatelly he jumped off the prch and took to the skies. "Tell Granny and Bloom I said hi." he shouted, before he bolted towards the town.

In just a couple of minutes he arrived at the station, but because he was still too fast he didn't have time to slow down and he crashed into the ground. Groaning, he laid in the small crater he created.

"Oh my goodness, are you alright?" a concerned voice said. Lifting his head, Trider looked toward where the voice was coming from, his vision slightly blurry from the impact.

"You should be asking the ground that, cause I'm pretty sure it ended up worse for wear." he grunted, massaging his head. Suddenly he heard a group of people gasp, right before he was tackled by a mass of pink.

"Trider you're back." a high-pitched voice shouted, before lifting him off the ground and giving him a bear hug. "You're back, you're back, you're back." the mare continued, jumping up and down, along with the Kanisar.

"I'm happy to see you too Pinks." he replied, chuckling at her antics. "But could you let me go? I'm sure the others would like to have their share of the Trider."

Giggling, Pinkie released him from her iron grasp and took a step back. "It's good to see your sense of humor is the same as ever." Rarity spoke up, as she approached him.

"Rares." the Kanisar said and smacked her across her back, nearly making her fall. "And it's good to see your sassiness is still present."

They glared at each other for a moment, before they both laughed and shook their hands. Their reunion was interrupted when Rainbow along with Fluttershy stepped up.

"I see they didn't go easy on you wolf-boy." the prismatic mare said, as she gave him a look over.

"Oh please, if it wasn't for Luna, these bad boys would all fat by now." he retorted and flexed his biceps. "You're not looking bad yourself."

The mare gave him a cocky smile, as she flapped her wings. "You better believe it. As of now I'm an official Wonderbolt recruit." she bragged, floating in the air.

Trider then turned his attention to the yellow mare, who was giving him a soft smile. "How 'bout you Flutes? How are your animals doing?" he asked.

The mare's smile widened. "Oh, I'm doing wonderfully and so are my critters." she said beaming.

"Good, good." the Kanisar said, before he leaned in and whispered into her ear. "Hey, uh, you still have some of that shampoo? My tail has been through hell while I was in training."

The mare nodded, promising him she would bring it to him the next day. Satisfied, Trider turned to Applejack and they looked into each others eyes.

"Where in tarnation have ya been? When the train arrived and ya weren't on it we began to grow worried." she chided him.

"Heh, would you believe me if I told you I forgot about it and I flew all the way here?" he said sheepishly.

The mare gave him a deadpanned look, before she smiled. "That is so like ya." she said, before hugging him. He was taken back by her sudden embrace, but he decided not to pay it any mind. Soon she let go of him, a small blush present on her cheeks.

"Don't forget to come by and say hi to mah family. I'm sure Granny will be so happy she'll make your favourite apple pie." she said with a wink.

At the thought Trider began to drool. "Actually I already met up with Mac when I arrived. It was thanks to him that I remembered that I had to come here." he said.

"I'll be sure to thank 'im when I get back home." the mare said as she stepped back.

At that point it was Twilight's turn to greet him. When she stepped forth, a smile came to Trider's face. She approached him and fidgeted in place, not sure what to say.

"Hey, welcome back." she said gingerly.

"Hey." he greeted back. They stood still for a few minutes. Trider watched as the mare twiddled her thumbs, avoiding his gaze. Eventually he rolled his eyes and opened his arms.

"C'mon, we both know you want to do it." he said and beckoned her. She didn't hesitate for a moment, as she immediatelly embraced him in a hug.

"I've missed you." she mumbled into his chest. Quickly she realised what she had said and looked up to the Kanisar. "I-I mean we've missed you." she corrected herself, blushing like crazy.

Trider dismissed her fumble and chuckled at her antics. "You're so adorkable." he said and pulled her closer to himself. Their hug was broken, whe something hit Trider in the face.

"Ow, what the fuck?" he said, releasing Twilight and rubbing his nose.

"Sorry. I'm still getting used to these things." she apologised. It was only then that he noticed the pair of massive wings sticking out from her back.

"OK, either I'm high or Twilight has grown wings. Can somebody tell me which one is it?"

"The latter." Applejack said as she stepped next to the lavender mare. "Trider meet the newest Princess of Equestria."

For a few moments the Kanisar mulled over what she just said, before a smile stretched across his face. "Twilight, a princess?" he asked with a look of disbelief.

"I told you already that you don't have to call me that Applejack." Twilight said, as she gave the cow-mare a small glare. She then looked towards Trider and saw he was looking at her with intrigue. "Yo-you're not angry with my transformation, are you?" she asked, slightly scared.

"Why in hell would I ever be angry at you for growing wings Twi?" he said angrily. "You know me better than that. For all I care you could turn into a gryphon and I still wouldn't give a damn."

"Then why were you so quiet when Applejack told you the news?" she asked.

"I was just thinking how the hell do you suddenly sprout wings and what I should call you from now on."

"You don't have to adress me any differently from before. Twi or Twilight is just fine."

"Oh no. You royalty now and it's only appropriate I show my respects as such." he said. "How does Twi the Princess of Uptight sound to you?" he asked, a shit-eating grin on his face.

Everyone looked at him with mixed reactions. Twilight and Rarity looked disappointed, while Pinkie and Rainbow laughed at his joke. Applejack shook her head and Fluttershy cracked a small smile.

"Seriously?" the lavender mare said with a deadpanned look. "I don't even know what I was expecting."

"You don't like it?" Trider asked with a toothy smile. "How about Twilight the proud Princess of Equestria and ruler of encyclopedias, the ever watchful corrector of wrong facts?"

At that point he could no longer help it and he began to laugh as well. He, Pinkie and Rainbow laughed for a couple of minutes, before they settled down.

"You done?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah. I'm done." Trider said, wiping away the tears. "But in all seriousness, I'm happy for you Twi. You deserve it."

Her glare broke and she smiled as well. "Thank you. It means a lot."

"By the way, where's Spike?" he asked, as he looked around.

"We sent him to fetch a few beverages, while we were waiting for you." Rarity explained.

"Hey guys I'm back." someone suddenly shouted.

"Speak of the devil." the fashionista said.

"Spike, my man, how've you..." Trider trailed off when he saw his little friend. Little however could no longer be associated with the drake.

Where there was once the small and skinny teenage drake, now stood a giant lizard man, him now being almost as tall as Celestia. His once skinny arms and body, were now riddled with muscles upon muscles and his usually rounded spikes now looked sharp enough to cut wood with them. Another difference were now also the large leathery wings on his back.

Trider continued to stare at the drake, unable to comprehend that this was his pupil. "Guys?" he said, turning his head towards the group. "Who the fuck is this?" he asked.

"It's me Trider, Spike." the giant drake said in a deeper voice, than to what the Kanisar was used to. Trider blinked a few times, before he shouted.

"What in the name of holy monkey balls happened to you? Did you shug a gallon of steroids or something?" Spike winced at his outburst, rubbing his ears.

"Funny story actually." he said, before he began to explain. "You see on the day of my birthday we found out about dragon's greed and how it makes them grow. When a dragon becomes greedy, their bodies grow the more stuff they gather. That happened to me and I grew to the size of a house."

"No shit." Trider said flabergasted.

"Yup. Anyway I managed to supress my greed and I became small again. Well smaller, as you can see." he said, showing off his bulky body.

"And the wings were an added bonus?" he asked, to which Spike nodded. "Well then, I guess there is only one thing left to do." He smacked his hand into his palm and grinned. "I have to see how much you've been training, while I was away."

"Do you really have to fight as soon as you come back?" Twilight jumped in. "We've got a party planned for you and it wouldn't be good courtesy for you to show up dirty and sweaty."

Both Trider and Spike gave her a puppy look as their lips quivered. "Pwetty pwease." they begged.

Twilight's defenses quickly crumpled and she sighed. "Fine, but afterwards you both have to wash up and change clothes, OK?" she chided.

The two friends smiled and high-fived, Trider having to jump up to reach Spike's hand. After their high-five, Trider looked at the drake with a disgruntled look. He soon switched his gaze to Rainbow. "You wanna join in?" he asked.

"Would love to, but not today. I've just come back from an intense work out and I probably wouldn't put up much of a fight anyway." she excused herself.

Trider shrugged and looked back at Spike. "The usual place?"

"Sure." With that said they both took to the sky and headed toward the Sweet Apple Acres.

"Should we follow?" Rarity asked unsure.

"Do you even have to ask?" Rainbow retorted, before she too flew after the two, while the rest were teleported by Twilight.

***

Trider stood in the open field, stretching his limbs, while Spike did the same. The mares in the meantime were sitting on a small bench that Twilight conjured up.

"Oooh I can't wait." Pinkie said, pulling a bag of popcorn out of her mane.

"I know, I bet this is going to be awesome." Dash agreed, putting a hand inside Pinkie's mane and pulling out a soda.

"While I would rather do something more productive than watch two stallions fight between each other, I'll make an acception this time." she said fanning herself with her hand, as she watched the drake do a couple of squats.

"Sure." Applejack said, rolling her eyes.

Eventually the two finished their warm up and were now in their fighting stances. "All done?" Trider asked, as he tightened his fists.

"Ready when you are." Spike answered back, widening his stnace.

They stared at each other for a couple more seconds, before they charged at each other. They clashed in the middle of the field, locking their hands in a power struggle.

"So you haven't been slacking off." Trider said and pressed forward.

"Of course not. It would put a bad light onto you as a master." Spike retorted and put more strength into his arms.

The two continued to stare at each other, with their arms locked until Spike took a deep breath. Trider immediatelly knew what followed, so he released his grip and dropped to the ground. The fire from the drake's maw heated up the air and missed the Kanisar by only an inch.

Not wasting any time, Trider kicked his legs from his lying position directly into Spike's gutt, hurtling him into the air. Once airborn, the dragon extended his wings, making himself float in the air. Glaring down onto his mentor, he englufed his hands in flames, before he shot small fireballs from the tip of his fingers.

"Blaze Guns." he shouted, firing the high-speed flames at the Kanisar. Trider dodged the oncoming assault and jumped into the air, flying straight at the drake.

"Spirit Claws." he said and summoned his claws, which he used to block all the oncoming flames. Soon he closed the distance between them and they began to exchange blows.

Meanwhile on the ground the mares had a hard time following the battle, as they could only see glimpses of the two as they soared from one point on the sky to another.

"Can somepony tell what in tarnation is goin' on?" Applejack said exasperated, as her eyes darted all over the place.

"Basically Spike and Trider are being awesome." Rainbow said as she managed to follow them.

"Yeah, they are both kicking and punching each other." Pinkie added.

"Honestly do they have to go all out like this, what if they end up hurting each other." Rarity said, a hint of worry in her voice.

"That's impossible Rarity." Twilight said, her eyes glowing white. "Trider is a born warrior and he would feel ashamed if he didn't go all out against an opponent he deemed worthy. And the same goes for Spike. He looks up to Trider and he doesn't want to disappoint him, so he is giving it his all."

The mare realised she was right and she sighed. "I guess." she muttered. She then looked back at Twilight, raising a brow. "Pardon me darling, but would you mind telling me why your eyes are glowing?"

"Becasue I'm using a spell to help me track their movement, otherwise I would be in the dark like you, AJ and Fluttershy." she explained and focused back onto the battle.

Trider and Spike continued their mid-air brawl, until they stopped, both of them panting. "Not bad Spike, you've certainly improved a lot." he praised.

"Heh, coming from you, that is probably the highest honor I have ever received and I'm a hero of an Empire mind you." Spike quipped, as they both chuckled.

"I can still rememeber when we first started, you couldn't even dliver a proper punch and now you're standing toe to toe with me."

"Yeah, I too remember all of that gureling training you put me through." Spike smiled. "And today I'm gonna repay all of it." His eyes flashed with determination, before his body started to produce steam. His scales became a shade redder and his spines gained a dark green vein pattern.

"Wild Fire form." the drake said and focused his gaze on the Kanisar.

Trider however just smiled. "Atta boy. Show me waht you got." he said, before charging at Spike again. This time Spike stood still, up until the point when Trider was right next to him. When he saw the Kanisar pull back his arm, he raised his own and intercepted the punch.

Before Trider had time to retaliate Spike began to throw punches and kicks at him, and he had no other choice, but to block them to the best of his abilities. It was clear that the drake had the upper hand and he wasn't going to let his opportunity go to waste.

With every hit Trider was pushed back more and more, until he decided to counterattack. When Spike went in for a kick, Trider quickly dropped below the drake and immediatelly flew back up, right behind him. He grabbed the dragon's tail and he pulled at it spinning him around. The two continued to spin around, picking up in speed, until Trider released the drake.

Hurtling through the air, it took Spike a few seconds before he wasn't dizzy anymore. But by the time he was back to his senses it was already too late.

"Piston Cannon Tetrastrike." Trider shouted and planted his fist into Spike's stomach. The blow sent the drake flying, until the point where he was hit again and again and again. The last blow made him crash into the ground, raising dust upon impact.

Trider panted as he looked down where Spike landed. "I didn't kill him did I?" he thought and descended onto the ground. Once he landed however he saw the drake standing, no visible wounds on him whatsoever.

"Nice hit." Spike said, as he cracked his neck. "Now it's my turn." He swung his arms in an arc in front of ihmself, creating dozens of fireballs that formed a line. "Chains of Tartarus!" he yelled, before firing the fireballs at the Kanisar.

Trider quickly summoned hi Spirit Claws and blocked the attack, but it didn't matter as his hands were burned anyway. Hissing in pain he gripped his fist with his other hand and cradled it. "Not only did he become stronger physically, but his flame has gotten hotter as well." he praised the drake in his mind.

Spike saw they weren't finished yet so he formed another chain that he shot at the Kanisar. This time however Trider jumped high into the air, over the chain and was now falling towards Spike, a sphere of energy in his palm.

"Wailing Nova Sphere!" he shouted and launched the orb at Spike. The drake however didn't budge, instead he crossed his arms and began to increase his temperature.

"Conflagration..." he yelled, as his body was engulfed in fire. Everyone watched in awe as the flames began to expand. "Wave!" he finished and shot his arms outwards. The flames suddenly exploded, creating a blastwave of heat and fire. The flames immediatelly dispersed the Nova Sphere and Trider could only watch when the heat reached him, the blast knocking him from the air.

As soon as he fell to the ground, he quickly got back up, but he was too late. Spike was already by his side, when he plunged his firey fist right into his guts. The strike blew Trider off his feet and he crashed into a tree, splitting it in two, the upper part falling on top of him.

Everyone watched in silence, unable to comprehend what had just happened. "Did, did Spike just win?" Applejack asked flabbergasted. The rest didn't answer, as they were still in shock.

Spike however quickly broke out of his stupor and he smiled. "I did it." he mumbled, before he outright shouted. "I did it. I won. I beat Trider." He jumped around like a little kid, as he basked in the glory.

The mares too eventually broke out of their shock and began to stand up. "C'mon girls, we have to congratulate Spike on his victory." Rarity sai, as she stood up.

"And see if Trider's still breathing." Rainbow added, as she followed the fashionista. But they were quickly stopped, when the top of the tree was lifted off the ground, held up by a badly beaten Kanisar.

"Not so fast everyone." he said, tossing the tree away. They all looked towards him in awe, while Spike got back into a fighting stance. Trider took a few steps forward, before he looked at the drake and smiled. "Well done Spike. You finally did it." he said.

Spike looked at him warily, before he lowered his arms. "Thanks." he said. "So what happens now?"

"Now, you've graduated. You are no longer my disciple, instead you're your own master." Trider said, giving him a thumbs up. "Well done buddy."

"Wooo, way to go Spike." Pinkie cheered, the other mares following suit.

Spike was at a loss for words, so all he could do was stare at Trider, tears welling in his eyes. "I-I don't know what to say. I-"

He was cut off when the Kanisar raised his hand. "However, I still have a title to uphold Spike and I've been dying to show you guys how much I've improved over these past few months." he said with a grin.

"Wait, you mean-"

"Yup, this fight isn't over yet." he said, as he began to gather his Ki. The ground around him began to shake and small pebbles began to float in mid-air. The air became heavy, as a white aura began to form around the Kanisar. In a sudden burst of energy his hair and tail turned white and stood up straight and his eyes became neon blue.

Everyone watched with open mouths as he finished his transformation. "Spike, everyone I would like to introduce you to my Super Kanisar form." Trider said, a large toothy smile on his face.

"What in tarnation?" Applejack gasped, what was on everyone's minds.

"Now then Spike." Trider addressed the drake, pulling him out of his stupor. "Shall we?"

Spike shook his head, before he charged at the Kanisar. He swung his arms, which were now on fire, but before they could even connect, Trider disappeared from his vision. Stopping in his tracks, the dragon looked around, trying to spot the Kanisar.

"Looking for me?" Trider said from behind him. He quickly spun around trying to deliver a round-house kick, but before he could even turn full 180 degrees, the Kanisar punched him in the chest.

"Piston Cannon Tetraassault." The blow blew all air out of the Spike's lungs, before he fell to his knees. Before his face could be acquainted with the ground, Trider stopped him with his arm and held him up. "Aww, he's all tuckered out." he cooed, before pulling him up, placing an arm across his shoulders.

"Spike!" he suddenly heard Twilight shout and when he turned around he saw her and the rest of the group run towards them.

"He's fine Twi, just passed out. I went easy on him, so don't worry about him." he reassured her. Sighing in relief she then looked at him, her eyes filled with worry.

"Trider, what is this?" she asked and waved her hand up and down, indicating his transformation.

"Oh, this? It's just something I learned from my countless bouts with Lulu."

"This. Is. So. Awesome." Rainbow said in a high-pitched voice. "How did you do this? Does it feel weird? Can you turn back?"

"Woah, woah. Easy there Dashie, we'll have all the time to talk once we're at the party." Trider said, trying to calm the enthusiastic mare. "Right Pinks?"

"You're right and we better not waste even a single second more." the mare said, pulling a rope out of nowehere, tying it around everyone, before she tied it to herself. "Let's go!" she yelled and began to pull everyone towards town at high speed.

Author's Note

Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter and the story so far.
Trider is now back in Ponyville, but with that I have stumbled onto a bit of a problem. You see, while I have a somewhat of a clear picture of how the story will progress, I don't know how to build up to the next big part, since there are a few things that still need to be established. That's why I'm asking you guys. I hope you can give me some ideas for the next few chapters. If you do have any, then you can PM me, but try not to tell in the comments, since you'd be spoiling it for others. The stories can be adventureous, slices of life or even random (as long as it's not too random) and can include all characters established in the show and those that have been made up for this story.
That's all, thank you for reading.

Chapter 31: A Little Bit of Chaos in Your Life

Groggily Trider opened his eyes the light burning his eyes. He hissed in pain as his eyes tried to adjust to the brightness, while at the same time supressing the slight headache that rocked his head.

"What the hell happened?" he mumbled and slowly stood up. Only when he was standing did he notice the bizare environment he was in. The sky was black with wisps of purple running across it. He was currently located on a small island that floated in the void. There were other similar patches of land all around and they were all connected by some form of bridge, rope and even a snake.

Trider continued to observe the scenery, completely confused. Only when a meowing pig with wings on his butt flew by, did he say something.

"What the fuck?" he murmured astonished. "Where and how did I end up here?" He sat back down on the ground and began to remember what had happened yesterday.

"I came back to Ponyville, I had a fight with Spike, then Pinkie dragged us off to her party, at the party we, well partied and I was having a drink with Rainbow." he recalled, but that didn't help him in figuring out what actually happened to him or why he had this headache and feeling of grogginess.

"Headache? Grogginess?" he thought, clearly remembering that he had experienced this before, only worse. And then it clicked, as he remembered the last detail.

"Oh yeah I asked Pinkie to give me a small piece of a chocolate muffin, so I could get smashed." he said aloud. "But I can't remember anything after that. Not what I did or how I ended up in this senseless place."

"Oh but what fun is there in making sense?"

Trider jumped at the voice, quickly raising his hands and got ready to fight. "Who's there? Show yourself!" he shouted at nothingness.

"You called?" the voice suddenly spoke up from behind him. Startled the Kanisar leaped away and looked at the one who was talking with him.

"OK I know I'm repeating myself, but what the fuck?" The creature that stood before him was almost twice his height. It's entire body was comprised out of parts of different animals. It's yellow eyes with red irises looked over him, like it was inspecting him.

They continued to stare at one another, until the creature smirked. "Well I am waiting." it said, tapping one of it's feet on the ground.

"Waiting for what?" Trider asked confused.

"For you to greet me, duh." it said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh, um sorry, my name is Tri-" Before he could finish he caught himself and glared at the creature. "Wait just a fucking second, why am I introducing myself to you?"

"Because you're the one visiting my wonderful domain, little pup." the creature replied, it's voice laced with mirth.

"You call this mess wonderful? It looks like something a kindergardener drew for arts and crafts, puked over it and then somebody decided to actually create it." Trider said bluntly. "And seeing that you're calling it your domain it seems fitting."

The creature looked at him with an unamused look, before it shook it's head. "It appears Fluttershy wasn't overexaggerating when she said you have a foul mouth."

"Wait, how do you know Flutes? But before you answer that, who and what the fuck are you?" Trider demanded, pointing a finger at the creature.

"Oh fine." the creature sighed, before giving a slight bow. "My name is Discord, spirit of chaos and disharmony." As soon as he introduced himself a bunch of fireworks went off, revealing a neon sign that said 'Discord' and below it was the portrait of him. "Well what do you think? I was hoping I could flare up my introduction a bit, by adding a little flare." the portait spoke.

Trider was at a loss for words. "So your name's Discord?" he asked, to which the chaos being nodded. "Neat, my name's Trider." he said and offered him his hand.

Discord raised one of his eyebrows, before sighing and shaking the Kanisar's hand. "You ruined the mood completely, y'know." he grumbled, before releasing his grip.

"Like I care." Trider rebuted. "So where is this place exactly and how did I get here?"

"Glad you asked." Discord responded and snapped his fingers, creating a table and a couple of chairs. He sat down in one of them and prompted Trider to do the same. Gingerly the Kanisar sat down and Discord summoned up a pot and a couple of tea cups.

"You're currently in my own personal pocket dimension, over which I have absolute control over. As for how you got here, I just found you lying in the middle of nowhere and decided to bring you here." he explained and waited for the tea pot to pour itself into his cup. "Tea?" he offered, the pot hovering slightly over Trider's cup.

"Yeah, sure." Trider shrugged and watched as the liquid ran into the cup. He took a sip and immediatelly spat out the concoction. "The hell is this shit?!" he exclaimed and wiped his mouth of the horrid brew.

"Well of course it's going to taste nasty if you drink it wrong." Discord said and took a sip as well. However instead of drinking the tea he instead drank the cup and once it was all gone he threw the tea behind him and it exploded with a loud honk.

Trider looked at his cup again and pondered if he should try to do what Discord did, but in the end he decided against it. "You still haven't told me why you brought me here." he said, shooting a glare at the spirit of chaos. "And I'm pretty sure it wasn't an act of good will, you don't strike me as that type of character."

Discord grinned before he flashed out of exsitence and popping back behind the Kanisar. "You'd be correct. The reason I brought you here is because of all the work you've been doing for the past few months."

"Work?"

"Yes. Ever since you arrived in our world you've had a great impact on both the land and it's residents. And frankly, you've caught my eye." His grin grew even wider, to the point where it seemed like it would rip his face in half. "In a thousand years since my stone imprisonment, never have I met someone who could spread chaos like you have."

"Stone imprisonment? Chaos?" Trider repeated to himself, until he remembered something. "Wait! You're the guy that the girls told me about. The one who almost plunged the world into chaos. Twice."

"Oh you do know me." Discord cooed. "Thank goodness, I thought I'd have to tell you my story and as much as I like to talk about myself, I'd rather spend those few precious moments doing something productive." He disappeared in a flash and reappeared wearing a business suit. "After all, chaos doesn't happen by itself."

Once the draconequus looked at the Kanisar he saw how he was holding an orb of energy in his hands and was aiming straight at him. "Don't move a muscle freak!" Trider threatened, keeping his gaze on him.

"Seriously?" Discord asked with a deadpanned expression. "You're even more hostile than the mares."

"For a reason. I've heard enough about you from Twilight and the rest, especially Luna." Trider responded, still glaring at him. "I don't know how you escaped, but I'll make sure you're put down for good."

Discord sighed and shook his head. "You really are as impulsive as they say you are." he said in a grumbling tone. "Alright allow me to explain a few things. One, I didn't escape, rather I was set free by Celestia, Twilight and the rest of the cast."

"Yeah right, why in hell would they do that, Celestia especially?" Trider stated his doubt.

"Simple, they thought I could use my magic for good instead of spreading chaos with it." Discord replied nonchalantly and crossed his arms. "So they set me free and I'm currently being reformed."

"Uh-huh. Highly doubt it. There is no way that someone like you would just sit down and do what he was told."

"Well, at first I did try to trick them, but in the end thanks to Fluttershy's efforts I saw the error of my ways and am now on the side of good." Discord replied, a halo now floating above his head.

Trider took a second to ponder what he was told, but in the end he didn't believe him. "Yeah, no. You'll have to do better than that buster."

"Alright." Discord shrugged and took a small step forward. "Then let me tell you another reason why what you're doing is a bad idea."

"Enlighten me." Trider challenged. Suddenly an arm came from behind him and with the tips of it's thumb and index finger, it extinguished the orb. Trider quickly turned around and his eyes met with Discord's.

"What?" he mumbled and looked back to where Discord stood before and saw he was still standing there. He looked back and forth to confirm there were two of him.

"Reason two. You are right now faced with someone whose power exceeds even those of the royal princess's. You could say I'm nigh omnipotent." Discord said with a smirk.

Trider didn't know how to reply, he had heard from the girls and Luna about Discord and all of them told him that the only reason he was ever defeated was thanks to the Elements of Harmony. Luna also told him that she challenged Discord to a duel in the past and she had no chance at victory whatsoever.

Discord saw he had finally calmed down and he smiled. "Good. I'm glad you're finally ready to listen." he said, sitting in mid-air, using his tail as support. "And now we come to reason number three and also the reason as to why you're here." Trider remained quiet, so Discord decided to proceed. "I want to be friends with you."

An eerie sience fell over the two. "Say what?" Trider asked.

"I said I want us to be friends." Discord repeated.

"No, no I heard you loud and clear. I'm asking why in the hell would you want to be friends with me?" he questioned.

"For one, because both Celestia and Fluttershy want me to make more friends." he said in way that it seemed like he wanted to throw up. "Also because I think, I won't have a dull moment with you aaand..." he dragged on. "You and I are so much alike." he finished with a dark grin.

"Like hell we are. You wanted to plunge the world into chaos and your entire being screams of villain." Trider argued.

"Hmmm, you've got a point." Discord said, scratching his goatee. "But while I may have brought chaos onto Equestria, I have never taken a single life, unlike you." he said and shot Trider a victorious smirk. "And I'm being honest here. Not once has anyone lost their lives due to my actions. So if we compare ourselves which one of us is the bigger villain?"

"Shut it!" Trider said.

"Oh what's wrong, can't handle the truth?" Discord asked in a mocking tone. "You preach about justice and yet you fail to notice your own sins. Isn't that hypocritical?"

"I said shut it!" Trider exclaimed louder this time.

"And you even have the gall to justify your actions by claiming that it's only fair. Y'know eye for an eye." Discord continued his rant, while Trider could only listen to him. "And so what if you lost your parents? If you ask me you're just being a huge-"

"SHUT UP!!!" Trider screamed, as he transformed. Without hesitation he blasted Discord with a Ki blast. As the debris fell into the abyss, the Kanisar panted, glaring at where the draconequus once stood.

"Well that was a surprise." the spirit said from behind Trider, but he didn't even flinch at his response. "I heard it from Luna, but seeing it in person is a whole different experience. Thank godess for near omnipotency." He continued to watch Trider as his breathing began to calm and his hair returned back to it's black color. "Better now?"

"Yeah." the Kanisar sighed and sat onto the floor. "Why did you do that?"

"Because I thought it'd be fun and because I wanted to prove my point." Discord replied, as he sat down next to him. "Like I said, you and I have much in common. We're both the types that don't like to play by the rules, we both like to cause chaos, advertently or inadvertetly, we both like to do what we want and we are both now in shackles that Celestia put on us."

"I guess you have a point." Trider said as he stared into the distance. "But that doesn't excuse you for what you said earlier."

"Ugh, fine." Discord said and stood up. "I'm... Sorry." he said in a forced tone. "There, is that better?"

"It's a start." Trider smirked. Discord waited for a bit, until he coughed, gaining his attention. "What?"

"Well, won't you apologise?" the draconequus asked.

"Only if you beg me." Discord shot him a nasty glare, but his scowl soon turned into a grin.

"I can see we'll get along just fine." he said and snapped his fongers. Suddenly a camera appeared and Discord pulled Trider in closer. "Say anarchy." A bright flash blinded the Kanisar and after a few seconds of rubbing his eyes he could see a framed picture of him and the spirit floating in front of him. "Oh my it seems you had your eyes closed." Discord pointed out. "It's perfect."

"That's dandy and all, but I'd really like to get back. I'm sure Twilight is flipping the town over, trying to find me." Trider said, thinking about the scolding he was going to receive from the mare.

"Leaving so soon?" Discord asked in a fake sad voice. "But I thought we'd spend some leisure time together."

"And what exactly will we be doing?"

"How about we pay Celestia a visit and cover her entire castle with toilette paper." Discord suggested, holding a roll in his hands.

"You serious?" Trider asked with a deadpanned expression, which made Discord put on a genuine hurt face. "TP-ing her castle is amateur. I was thinking more along the lines of making her castle be like jelly, Y'know bouncy and squishy."

A giant grin strechted across Discord's face, as he placed an arm across Trider's shoulder. "I like the way you think." he said before he snapped his fingers and the two disappeared in a flash.

On that day Celestia created a new law that prohibited Trider and Discord to hang out together, without supervision from a third party.

Author's Note

Hey, sorry for the long wait. I was caught up in the summer laziness and just didn't have the will to write. But to atone for that, here is the new chapter, as well as the surprise that I promised you guys way back in Test Your Might Part 1. I'm sure you can figure out what I'm refering to.
Until next time.

Chapter 32: Meanwhile...

"You are lucky Celestia is so forgiving, otherwise your butt would be freezing it's buns off in the Canterlot dungeons." For about an hour now, Trider was forced to sit down and listen to Twilight and her scolding. The mare paced back and forth, much to the Kanisar's chagrin. "I mean, where in Tartarus did an idea like that come from? And how did you even end up together with Discord of all ponies?" Before he could reply she raised her hand and shook her head. "Don't even answer that. I can imagine what happened."

"If I can-"

"No!" she stopped him and glared at him. "What did I say? You can only speak when I say so. Got it?" she exclaimed. Trider slowly nodded his head and let her continue. "Do you know how worried I was? You disappear all of a sudden and as we look for you I get a letter from Celestia, telling me that you turned the castle into jell-o, transformed guard's armor into clown costumes and made it so that everytime somepony took a step it made a fart noise."

A grin stretched across the Kanisar's face as Twilight counted off all of his pranks, which the furious mare noticed. "Don't make that 'I'm so proud of myself' face when I'm scolding you. You should feel ashamed." Her voice rose in volume with each word and it made Trider wince. After a few minutes of deep breathing, the mare calmed down and she crossed her arms across her chest. "Now then do you have anything to say for yourself?" she asked, keeping her angry glare on the Kanisar.

"You're cute when you're angry." The response made Twilight blush and she didn't know how to react.

"Wha... Why... You..." A sigh escaped her lips and she rubbed the bridge of her muzzle. "How am I supposed to react to that?" she mumbled, before looking back at Trider, who was looking at her with his dark eyes. She dropped her head and sighed again. "Fine. I'll let it slide this time."

"Thanks Twi." Trider said and stood up, flashing her a toothy smile. The action made her heart skip a beat and she blushed even harder.

"How do you always manage to get yourself out of trouble like this?" she said, her glare now gone.

"It's cause you love me." Trider said jokingly.

"You have no idea." she said under her breath, so Trider couldn't hear.

"You said something?" Trider asked, looking at her curiously.

"No, no." the mare shook her head. "However, I want you to promise me that you won't cause any more problems to other ponies."

Trider raised his hand, before he swore. "It's a scouts promise." he said with determination. Happy with his response, Twilight decided to let him go.

All of a sudden a bright flash illuminated the inside of the library and Discord stood in the middle of the room, standing in between the two, facing trider.

"Oh good, I see you're done with your punishment as well." he said, shooting the Kanisar a sinister smirk. "That means we can proceed with Operation Gesundheit. However I was thinking we could switch the goats with pigs, since they won't freeze when spooked. What do you think?"

When he looked at Trider he could only see fear in his eyes and only when he turned his head did he realise why. Twilight was looking at the two with a smile. However that smile hid a storm, which threatened to consume the two.

"Hello there Princess, I didn't realise you were still here." Discord said, sweat starting to fall down his face.

"Trider mind explaining to me what you were planning on doing?" she asked with a calm expression.

"Eh-heh. Would it help if I said I was never in the scouts?" he responded and smiled. He soon realised that was the wrong answer. Without any warning Twilight's mane and tail caught fire and her coat became white.

"TRIDER LYKOSGROTHIA WHEN I'M FINISHED WITH YOU, YOU'LL KNOW THE TRUE MEANING OF PUNISHMENT!!!" she shouted, her voice shattering all the glass in the house and nearby homes. On that day Trider learned how terrifying the mare could really be.

"In the mean time, while Twilight is busy ripping Trider a new one,"

"GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE!!!"

"HELP!!!"

"Let us shift our focus to something a bit more relevant." Discord said to no one. He then turned around and shouted. "Run Trider, run!"

***

Meanwhile

The lights shone from the camp, in which the guards who looked over the Badlands were stationed. Everyone was in a cheerful mood, after a completed mission.

"And right as the bastard was about to draw his dagger, Gilded drops from the sky and nails him in the ground." a mare said and the others, who were listening to her story, all bursted out in laughter. Most of the guards were either drinking or chatting with one another or were listening about the recent successful apprehension of a band of bandits.

That is with the exception of a lone mare. Frost was sitting beside a barrack and was currently doing some work on her armor. As she concentrated on her attire, she failed to notice a stallion approaching her.

"Hey there." he greeted, making the mare look away from her work. "What's a beauty like you doing here all by herself?" he asked and sat down next to her.

"None of your business." the mare responded icily.

"Oh come on, I just wanted to chat. Is that so wrong?" he said with a hurt expression. Frost sighed and said nothing, instead she focused back on her armor. The stallion looked at it as well and he then whistled. "Are you enhancing your armor with runes?" he asked.

"Yes. Runes are sort of my speciality." she said without averting her gaze.

The stallion looked at the armor for a few more moments, before looking back at her. A perplexed expression fell onto his face and he began to think about something.

"Say I don't think I've ever seen you round here. Are you one of the new recruits?"

"Yes, the name's Frost Fire."

"Nice to meet you Frost, I'm Corporal Crusher." he introduced himself. "So Frost, can you tell me why you're not enjoying the party with the others?"

"Cause I'm not the type to celebrate for such pathetic reasons." she stated bluntly. "Besides I doubt I'd be welcomed. I'm not exactly popular with other guards."

"How come?"

"Let's just say that I sort of pissed off a bunch of ponies when I reported them for sneaking into a nearby town." she said.

"Wait, that was you?" he asked, not believing her. She responded by nodding and Crusher shook his head. "Goddessdamn, you weren't kidding when you said that you weren't popular." he laughed. The stallion then scooted closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder and began to massage it. The action made Frost flinch and she gave him an angry glare.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

The stallion continued his ministrations as he answered her. "I'm just comforting you. It must be tough to have everypony look down on you. So what do you say you and me go somewhere and have fun of our own?"

His hands began to slowly drift downwards and before they could reach her midriff, she pushed him away. "No." she said sternly. "I don't need your 'comforting', as you call it. So either leave me alone and go fuck yourself or I will shove my fist so far up your ass that everypony will think you're an ugly puppet."

She quickly stood up and was about to leave, but Crusher grabbed her hand and stopped her in her tracks. "I see I'll have to take on a different approach then." he said as he stood up as well and he looked down at the mare. "As a senior officer I order you to come with me and help me relieve some pent up stress or else."

"You think that just because of your rank I'll do what you say? You're either very brave or very stupid." she said and began to struggle against his grip. Crusher however much stronger than her and he squeezed her even harder, making her yelp in pain.

"You think you have any other choice? If you resist me I can have you court marshalled, for assaulting your superior."

"You think they'll believe you? That I attacked you without provocation?" she countered.

A sinister grin stretched across the stallion's face and it made Frost feel nervous. "Then let me ask you, who do you think they'll be more likely to believe? A Corporal who devoted his life in protecting Equestria or a rebellious rookie, who joined the Guard to escape her sentence?"

Frost realised he had her cornered and didn't know what to do. Her ears drooped and she stopped her struggles. "Fine. You win." she said and came closer to the stallion.

"Good choice." he grabbed one of her breasts and began to squeeze it. "Nice. I knew you'd be a great choice." he said to himself. Frost didn't say anything, she simply lowered her hand and began to massage his groin. "Oooh, you're getting frisky. I like it." he said and leaned in to kiss her. But she stopped him and gave him a playful look.

"Can I tell you something before we continue?" she asked, an innocent smile on her face.

"Sure."

"You might think you're bigger and stronger than me and while that might be true, you, just like every other stallion have a very big weakness." she said, before her expression turned threatening. All of a sudden she clutched her hand and squeezed his stallionhood. Crusher screamed in pain and that was about all he could do. Frost continued to grip his groin, as she watched him writhe in pain.

"L-l-let go of my balls." he squeaked out, trying to struggle, but every time he made any movement the mare simply squeezed harder. "I-I-I'll have you put in jail for this." he tried threatening her, but she simply smiled.

"You think I give a damn about it?" she said, earning a look of disbelief from the stallion. "You think you're the first one to try and have their way with me this way? I'm not anypony's whore, so heed my warning." She leaned in closer to his ear and whispered. "Go fuck yourself or I'll make sure you won't fuck anyone ever again."

Saying that she released his dick and began to walk away. Crusher however wasn't about to let her humiliate him like that. "You bitch!!!" he shouted and lunged at her.

Frost however summoned her katana and quickly swung around. The stallion didn't have time to react, as she dodged his attack and swung her blade. A bone chilling scream echoed through the night, as he fell to the ground, clutching his bloody nether region.

Frost put away her sword and calmly walked away. "I told you so." was all she said, before she disappeared inside the barrack.

The next day she was imprisoned for assaulting an officer and was currently lying inside a cell, along with bandits they captured yesterday. However they dared not approach her, as they knew what had happened to the Major and they didn't want to end the same way.

Frost laid in her bed as she waited for the guards to pick her up, so she could be court marshalled. She heard the sound of a door opening and she lifted herself up.

"Is it time already?" she asked, not even batting an eye at the mare who approached.

"Frost Fire?" the mare asked.

"Yup. Let's just get this over with, before these guys decide to piss themselves." she said and pointed toward the bandits.

The mare looked at the scared expressions of the stallions, before she looked back at the mare. "So, is it true that you attacked Corporal Crusher and cut off his... Ehm, treasures?"

"Yup." she replied nonchalantly.

"For whatever reason?"

"What do you care? It's not like you'd believe me anyway. I'm just a criminal who avoided jail by becoming wannabe guard." Frost scoffed and glared at the mare.

"While that is true, I have reason to believe that you're also not somepony who'd act without reason."

"And how in Tartarus would you know that?" Frost asked.

"Let's just say that a friend of my boss spoke highly of you and told her a lot about your character."

"Who's this friend you speak of?" she asked, now curious.

"How about you meet him in person?"

"Wait, do you mean I'm-?"

"Yep." the mare answered. "Even as we speak a thorough investigation is being conducted and we have reason to believe that you acted in self defense. As for my visit, I'm here to ask you, on the behalf of the crown, to transfer to a new outpost. What do you say?"

A smile grew on Frost's face and she nodded vigorously. "Fuck yeah! Anything but rotting in here with these gutless wimps."

The mare nodded and she took out a key and unlocked the cell, letting Frost out. She beckoned her to follow her and the two left the jail.

"Excuse me, but who are you exactly and where am I being transfered to." the mare asked.

"Forgive me for not introducing myself." the mare said. She quickly turned around, her long bright red hair swinging along with her. "I am the new Captain of the Solar Guard Unicorn Division Rose Blade." she said with a small bow. "And trust me, I think you'll like the place where you're going."

***

Meanwhile in another place

"Hey rookie the toilet is blocked again." a stallion shouted across the room. "Go in there and clean it up asap."

"Yes sir!" Ace slauted and dashed toward the toilets. As soon as he entered, his sensitive nose was assaulted by horrid stench and he almost threw up. "What did they eat?" he asked. He grabbed the plunger and went to work.

Ace always had a bright outlook on life and that applied to his arrival to Dodge City, where he thought he would be able to hang out with other guards, like he did with his friends in the Academy. But then reality hit him. Since he was still a recruit, he was forced to do menial chores for others and was picked on a lot, thanks to his Diamond Dog blood.

And even outside of the barracks the situation was more or less the same. Every time he had patrol he'd be insulted by some civilians or was asked to help do some ridiculous task, like finding a lost cat.

But despite the hardships, he didn't give up. He pressed forward, in hopes he'd be able to prove himself to be on par with everyone else. And once that would happen he would finally be able to walk the streets like a normal pony.

"Hey Ace you in here?" someone suddenly called out. The dog-pony was brought out of his thoughts and he stuck his head out the door.

"Do you need me sir?" he asked.

"Ah good. Hey I need you to take my patrol shift today. I have to meet up with a hot chick and get it going on, if you know what I mean." he said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"But I promised Ms. Haystack I'd help with cleaning her store today." Ace argued. "And besides I already covered your shift yesterday. Can't you cut me some slack."

The stallion's expression hardened and he glared at Ace. "I don't think you've heard me rookie. I said, you will cover my shift today, understood?" he leaned in closer, their faces only inches apart. Ace gulped and gingerly nodded his head. The stallion stepped back and smiled. "See was that so hard? And besides, if you do a quick patrol I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to help that old hag."

"But what if somepony needs my help? What if there is an emergency. Or what if-?"

"Not my problem dude. See ya." the stallion said and left. Ace looked after him, before he slowly turned around and returned back to his task.

Several hours later he was running down the streets, making his way to Ms. Haystack's store. "C'mon I can make it. I can make it." he cheered himself. Soon the establishment was in his sights and he sped up. He charged through the door, ringing the bell above. "I'm sorry I'm late. I had official Royal Guard business to attend and-" He was stopped when the mare stepped in front of him and glared at him.

"You're late." she said sternly, glaring daggers at him.

"I'm sorry Ms. Haystack, I had to do patrols and as soon as I finished them I came running here-"

"Excuses, excuses." she said, disregarding his attempt of apologizing. "I remember you told me yesterday that you had all the time to help me. And yet you never showed up, so I had to do all of it myself."

"Ms. if you'd just let me expla-"

"Shut it ya stinkin' mutt." she cut him off. "I knew from the start that I shouldn't have trusted ya. Full fledged or halflings, all Diamond Dogs are the same. Worthless, conniving pieces of crap." Ace couldn't believe what he was hearing. He bowed his head and tried to apologize.

"Get out of my store and I better not see yer ugly muzzle ever again." she said and walked into the storage, leaving the broken dog-pony alone.

Ace stood frozen for a few more moments, before he left and began to walk aimlessly. He didn't know how much had passed, before he stopped in an alley and he slumped against a wall. His unfocused gaze stared at the opposite wall and he began to think.

"Damn it." he said and slammed his fist into the wall. He repeated the action several times, before he stopped. Tears began to well in his eyes and he quickly wiped them away. "Why am I even doing this?" he wondered. "Who am I trying to prove myself to?"

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a loud crash. He lifted his head and saw that a wheel of an elderly stallion's wagon broke off. "My cabbages!" he shouted and began to pick up the vegetables.

Ace continued to observe the stallion, while a conflict was raging inside of him.

"I should help."

"But why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

"Maybe, but in the end he'll just disregard your actions and insult you like everyone else. Hell I'm sure he'll outright reject you on the spot."

Ace began to slowly turn around and walk away, leaving the stallion to his dismay. But after a few steps he stopped and looked back.

"But who cares?" he thought and quickly turned around. "Who cares what they think? Who cares if they're not grateful? I swore that I'd never leave anypony in need and I almost forgot about that."

As he got closer to the wagon, he slowed down until he was standing behind the stallion. "Excuse me sir?" he said, tapping his shoulder. The stallion turned around and looked at him. "Do you need any help?" he asked.

"Yes, thank you very much young man." he said. Ace smiled and quickly got to work. In just a few minutes the wheel was fixed and the merchant drove off, but not before giving the dog-pony a cabbage for free. Ace looked at the vegetable in his hands and he smiled.

"It feels nice doesn't it? When somepony acknowledges your efforts."

Ace turned around and came face to face with a mare. However this mare wasn't anything like any other mare he had ever seen before. While her body looked like that of a pony, some parts resembled that of a dragon.

"Who are you?" he asked the newcomer.

"The name's Dynamism, but you can call me Dyna. All of my friends do." she answered and gave him a smile.

"Pardon my rudeness, but what are you?"

"I'm a hybrid like you. Only that instead of a Diamond Dog one of my parents was a dragon." Dynamism explained.

"Wow, really?" Ace asked flabergasted and she nodded.

"Yup. And I have to say, you really live up to what I've been told about you."

"What do you mean?" he asked tentatively.

"I mean that you're a kind hearted soul that would help anypony who's in trouble, no matter what." she said and turned around. "I know how it feels when you're discriminted just for being different. Even though you had no say in it." She turned her head and Ace saw a sad smile plastered on her face. "But unlike you I've turned my back on those who needed my help many a times. It's really impressive you're willing to face all of these strifes with a determined step."

Her praise made Ace feel warm inside and he showed that with a massive smile. "Thanks." he said. His smile however soon switched to a confused expression. "Do you need my help with something? I mean you know so much about me, so there must be a reason as to why you sought me out."

"Exactly." she said as she twirled around, again facing him. "What would you say, if I you were given a chance to leave this place and go somewhere, where ponies will accept you, no matter who or what you are?"

Ace looked at her with disbelief, but he immediatelly began to smile. He vigorously nodded his head. "I'd be all up for it." he said with glee.

"Good. Then go pack your bags. You'll be leaving as soon as we handle all of the paperwork." she said and began to flap her leathery wings.

"Wait!" Ace called out and stopped her. "Does that mean you're in the Guard as well?"

"Yup. You're talking to Corporal Dynamism of the Night Guard Pegasus Division." she said, puffing out her chest while doing so. "Now then I better leave, before it gets dark. See ya newbie." she saluted and flew off.

Ace continued to look after her, until she disappeared from the horizon. Still smiling he quickly made his way back to the barracks.

***

Meanwhile somwhere different from before, but also not the same as the first time

"Alright boys, well done." a stallion said as he and his three accomplices took off their masks adn emptied their bags. The sound of falling bits filled the room and they all joyful watched the pile grow ever bigger. "Today we can consider ourselves rich."

At that the others cheered and they started to split the loot. Suddenly a series of knocks came from the outside. They stopped their counting and listened. The knocking repeated and was followed by a voice of a stallion.

"This is the Whip Lash of the Royal Guard, you are all under arrest." the stallion on the other side of the door said. The group immediatelly ran to different parts of the room and one of them approached the window to look thorugh it.

"What do you see?" the leader asked.

"Dudes, this guy's all alone. We can just beat him up." he said and took out a bat.

"Don't take him lightly boys. He's still a Guard and those sons of bitches are tough." the leader said. "Also I can't help but feel nervous. It's something about his name. I'm sure I've heard of it before."

"Can you tell us what he's carrying?" another stallion asked.

The stallion at the window looked again and responded. "He has a whip with him, otherwise it's the standard uniform."

"Whip as a weapon? Whip Lash?" the leader mumbled to himself as he tried to remember.

"Who cares? I'll just bash him over the head when he enters." the window stallion said as he repositioned himself behind the door and unlocked it.

Whip heard the clicking sound and grabbed the handle. "Alright I'm coming in." he announced. He gingerly took a step inside and before he knew it something him in the back of the head. He collapsed onto the floor, while the stallion smiled.

"See? What did I tell ya. Easy peasy." he boasted, while others cheered him on.

But the leader was still trying to figure out why he felt so uneasy, until it clicked. "Oh Celestia help us. It's him!" he shouted as he grabbed a crossbow and aimed it at the motionless body.

"What's got you so riled up?" one of the stallions asked.

"It's him. The Maso Devil Guard!" he shouted and stared at the body with fear.

"Maso Devil what? The fuck are you talking about?"

"You haven't heard? Apparently a few days ago a new recruit arrive to town and he became notorious. Every criminal fears him."

"Why?"

"Because before he arrests them he apperantly has 'fun' with them. I've heard it's something worse than Tartarus itself."

"C'mon, you can't be serious can you?"

"Actually he is quite correct." Everyone immediatelly looked down toward the guard and saw he was looking at them with a seductive smile. "I just can't help it."

"The fuck?!" the stallion with the bat exclaimed and swung his bat down again. It hit Whip right in the head and blood came out of his nose.

Whip however smiled even wider. "Marvelous!" he shouted, before jumping up. "That hit, it was so, so magnifique ."

"What's wrong with him?"

"Who cares? Just take him down already!" Suddenly all of the stallions attacked him, but Whip flicked his wrist and created a barrier that cut off the room from the hallway the two were currently in.

"You'll have to wait your turn boys. I can only express all of my love to you one by one." he said, before turning to the stallion with the bat.

"Step back ya freak or else!" he threatened. Whip however outstretched his arms, leaving himself exposed.

"Then give your all. Show me your burning passion." The stallion took no time and he swung his bat with all of his might. When the weapon connected he could hear Whip's bones snapping and he smiled to himself. But that smile quickly turned to dread when he saw the seductive smile Whip was giving him.

"Just like that. Give me all of your love mi amore." The stallion was terrified. No matter what he did, it had no effect on this freak. His instincts then kicked in and he ran for the door.

Just as he was about to reach it, he felt something wrap around his legs and he fell. Looking toward his hooves, he saw that another whip was wrapped around them. Sweat began to pour down his face, as he watched the masochist approach him with slow steps.

"No, no. Stay away! STAY AWAY!!!" he screamed, but Whip didn't stop. Instead he took off his armor and his shirt, leaving his bare chest exposed.

"You've given me all of your love, now it's time for me to return back my feelings." he said and made the whip wrap around the stallion's entire body, lifting him up. "Pucker up bad boy." he said and traced his finger along the stallion's jaw.

The stallion could only scream and try to twist his head, as Whip's lips approached his. The others watched in horror, as the two made contact and the screams were stopped. For nearly ten seconds the two's lip remained locked until, Whip stepped back and blushed.

"I'll never get used to doing that while being watched. Although for some reason it amkes me even more excited." The whip around the stallions body loosened and he fell limply onto the floor. Although he was still alive, his eyes were devoid of any life.

Whip then retracted the other whip, giving him entrance to the room. "Now then, which one of you naughty, naughty boys is next?" he said, eyeing them like a predator would his prey. The stallions watched in horror as he approached them with slow steps, while his belt somehow undid itself and the pants fell onto the floor, leaving him only in his underwear.

The stallions all huddled up, hugging each other like foals. "Celestia forgive us." one of them said, before they screamed in pure terror.

At the moment Whip was sitting in a chair opposite of the sergeant's. The mare took a deep breath, before she spoke. "Whip, this is the fifth time this week that I had to call you in here." she said calmly. "And every time it was for the same reason."

"I know." he responded with a saddened tone. "And I am sorry."

"I know you are. I know you're giving it your all and in fact you're one of the best recruits I've ever had." She then took another deep breath, before she continued. "But your methods are, how should I put it, a bit extreme."

Whip tried to argue, but she stopped him. "I get it. I was told about your condition, but I can't have you traumatise the criminals. And let's not even mention your hospital bills."

"What is so wrong with me doing it to criminals? It's not like they don't deserve it."

"That's because they probably don't." she rebuted. "But the problem is that it's not only limited to criminals. I've got complaints from numerous guards about your 'approaches', as well as from our mailcolt, some of the citizens and even my secretary."

"Can you blame me? Have you seen his ass? It's to die for." Whip said as he fawned at the thought.

"It sure is." the mare agreed with an equally dreamy expression. But she immediatelly disregarded those thoughts and focused back on the matter at hand. "As I was saying, I can no longer allow this sort of behaviour around here. So I'm asking, is there any way to stop or at least lessen it in some way? I read that you were quite docile while in the Academy."

"That's probably because there was someone who I had, and still have, a crush on, who also gave a daily dose of a beat down. And I guess that kept me in check, since he was quite strong, stronger than anypony I know." Whip explained.

"I see." the mare said, before she sighed. "Well I don't think anypony here would be willing to do something like that to you, seeing as to how you react. So I'm afraid I have no other option."

"Are, are you firing me?" Whip asked with a fearful expression.

"What? No! I'm just going to transfer you. I've just received a request from Princess Luna herself to transfer you to a newly created outpost." she explained as she took out a file.

"And where exactly is this outpost?" Whip asked, now curious.

"Some small town called Ponyville." she answered. "You interested? Please say you are."

Whip pondered for a bit, before he recalled something a certain someone said a long time ago. "Oh, I'll be ecstatic to go there. I'm sure I'll have a lot of fun there."

Author's Note

Hope this ones brings some giggles to you. Also I have an important question for you. For some time I've had people telling me that my Prologue wasn't all that good, since Trider wasn't all that likeable. So here is my question.
Should I rewrite the Prologue: From one world to another?
Click the question to get to the poll where you can cast your vote.
Voting will last until next week, after that it will end.
And until next time.

Chapter 33: Reunion

"And that's when we learned that it was actually Green who was responsible for our little predicament. And while I know he had good intentions in mind, I just wanna beat him to a pulp." Trider said, as he performed a roundhouse kick. His foot connected with the tree and it shook intensly. All of the apples immediatelly fell to the buckets that were placed beneath and the Kanisar looked at his work with a proud smile.

"Ah'd be surprised if ya weren't. It sounds like that this Green guy was causin' ya all forms of trouble." Applejack agreed as she too kicked a tree. Just like with Trider, the apples fell into the buckets below and once it stopped she picked two of them and carried them towards the wagon.

"You don't know thehalf of it. I never could figure that guy out. He's like a riddle wrapped inside an enigma." He too placed some of the buckets inside the wagon, before he went to fetch the rest. "But if I had to describe him in one sentence, I'd say he's the type that likes to mess with people."

"Kinda like ya?" the mare quipped and smirked. Trider gave her a sour look, before he sighed.

"But in all honesty, he's a solid guy and quite reliable. I'd always go to him if there was any trouble." Trider finished. The two then worked in silence, not speaking a word to one another.

Every once in a while, Applejack would let her eyes wonder towards the Kanisar, but she would soon focus back on her work. She hasn't seen him in three months and she almost forgot how nice it was when it was just the two of them, working alone and talking like so.

She looked back at him again and she began to remember all the things that happened since he arrived. How their first meeting went, how they began to spend their time together, all the fights they had been through, Trider's defeat in the Crystal Empire and his recovery, the time when he finally completely opened up himself to them. As she continued to reminiscence, she began to realize how much Trider had changed since his arrival.

When she first met him she thought he was just this alien that lived on violence and didn't care about anyone but himself. But as time went on she slowly came to a realization that there was more to him than that.

Sure he was violent, but that was mostly because of the environment he grew up in, but he was also kind when he wanted to be. And as long as it wasn't anything personal, he was honest to the bone. He didn't care if his words were hurtful or inappropriate, he always spoke his mind. But she really admired about him was the will to protect those that he held dear. He was willing to lay his life on the line, if it meant that those he loved would be safe.

And although lots of things changed with Trider, there were still things that remained the same. Like his hatred for sleeves. Even now as the summer slowly turned into autumn and the air began to get colder, he refused to wear anything with sleeves. It was something she always found amusing and she didn't mind his obssesion, since she could watch his felxing muscles even at this time of year.

As she continued to think about the Kanisar, her mind began to remember things that made her heart beat faster and her cheeks turn red. When he carried her back home when she exhausted herself, the time when he saved her from the hydra, the sound of his heartbeat every time they would hug. The kiss.

The more she thought about him the more her fantasy ran wild. Just as her imagination started to get juicy she was brought out of her daydreaming.

"Hey AJ?" Trider called out. The mare shook her head and looked towards him and saw he was now standing right in front of her with a worried expression.

"Hua? Um, y-yeah?" she mumbled, gathering her thoughts so she could recall if he said anything.

"Are you feeling alright? I've been calling you for a while now." he asked and scanned her face with his gaze. "You haven't been overworking yourself again, have you?"

"No! Ah'm feelin' fine. Thanks fer askin'." she assured him and was about to walk away, but was stopped when he grabbed her hand.

"Yeah, no. Your face is all red and you're sweating a lot, I think you're not being honest with me AJ." he said.

"And ah'm tellin' ya ah'm fine." she argued and tried to break away from his grip.

"I'll be the judge of that." Trider reburted. With a small yank he pulled her closer. The two were now standing right next to each other and it made Applejack blush even harder.

"W-what are ya-?" She didn't get to finish as Trider brought his head closer and touched her forehead with his own. Applejack's eyes widened as their faces were now only inches away from one another. She could feel his breath on her lips and cheeks, and it somehow made her feel relaxed.

"It doesn't seem you have a fever." he said and pulled away. Applejack continued to stare at him, while she felt relief and slight aggravation. "Still, I think it would be best if we finish for today, what do you say?"

It took a couple of seconds for Applejack to react. "A-ah think so too." she stuttered and grabbed the handle of a bucket. "Let's go." They loaded up the remainder of the apples and then they left. Along the way they chatted some more, but the mare couldn't help but feel that something was wrong.

"Trider?" she called out his name, stopping him in the middle of his sentence. He looked at her to see what she wanted. "Is something the matter?"

Trider cocked his head. "No, why do you ask?"

"Cause ya've been actin' strange ever since ya came back." Applejack said. "Lately you've been spendin' a lot of time with us."

"What? You don't enjoy my company?" Trider said in a dramatic tone. "Applejack I cannot believe what my ears are hearing. How could you hurt me so?"

"No, no that's not what ah meant, ah was just sayin'-" she stopped when she saw how hard Trider was trying to supress his laughter. "Oh, ha, ha. Ya've got me." she said in disdain. "But in all seriousness, it's really nice that ya're willin' to hang out with us, but usually ya only spend a part of the day not the entire day."

"And not only that, but ya normally skedaddle as soon as we start doin' something that's not in yer interest." she pointed out. "But yesterday ya helped Rarity shop for the whole day and ya didn't complain. Well much at least. And the day before that ya went to Fluttershy's just to have tea time with her."

"Man, was I really acting so out of character?" Trider asked, as he scratched his head.

"Yer darn tootin'." Applejack exclaimed with a stomp of her leg. "And I know that ya wouldn't act like that unless ya had a good enough reason. Usually it would be for some sort of joke or prank, but even the way yer actin' is strange, so I'm certain ya have somethin' on your mind." She gave him a soft look and Trider couldn't help but sink into her emerald eyes. "Won't ya tell me what's wrong?"

Trider was at a loss for words. He knew that Applejack was someone who could tell if a person was lying or not, but he didn't expect her to be so observant. He pondered if he should tell her, but in the end he chose not to.

"Sorry AJ, but it's really nothing. I'm just a little tired from helping everyone." he lied. Applejack could tell immediatelly that wasn't being honest, but knowing him she knew that no matter how much she prodded she wouldn't get him to open up.

"Fine." she sighed and hung her head in defeat. "But do know that ah'll always be here to listen to ya if somethin' troubles ya."

Trider smiled at her offer and nodded his head. "I know. And that is one of the many reasons why you're my friend AJ." As soon as their conversation finished they arrived at the barn and soon afterwards they parted ways. The mare looked after his disappearing form, unable to shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

"Have you ever thought about growing something else beside apples. I mean doesn't it get boooring growing the same thing every year?" Applejack immediatelly turned around when she heard someone speak and her expression quickly turned sour when she saw who it was.

"What do ya want Discord?" she asked with a venomous tone.

"My, my. Such a cold reception." the draconequus mused as he took a bite out of an apple. "You know on second thought, maybe you should stick to apples. These things are bombs." As soon as he said that he tossed the half eaten apple outside and it exploded.

"Ah'll ask again, what do ya want Discord?" the mare repeated herself.

"Ugh fine." Discord sighed and leaned in closer to Applejack. "I was just in the neighbourhood when I saw you and Trider hanging out. At first I thought I would join you, but then I chose not to seeing as how lovey-dovey you two were being."

"We weren't bein' lovey-dovey. It was just two friends spendin' quality time together."

Discord raised a brow and shot her a skeptical look. "Suuure. And I'm Celestia's maid." he said and began to float. "It is kinda ironic though, you are the Element of Honesty, yet you keep lying to yourself."

"Excuse me?" Applejack said and shot him a dirty glare.

"Nothing, nothing." he said, lifting his arms in defense. "But seriously anypony who would see the two of you would think you're a couple. I certainly got that impression."

Applejack began to think about what Discord said, but she couldn't help but still worry about Trider's recent behaviour. She looked at Discord, thinking it might be a far fetch. "Discord?" she called his name, to which he simply turned his head, telling her he was paying attention. "Do ya know what's goin' on with Trider, why he's been actin' so strange fer these past few days?"

Discord grinned, showing off his teeth and his one loose fang. "Oh my, what is this? Applejack are you asking me for help?"

The mare glared at him, but eventually she sighed. "Yes." she grumbled under her breath. At her answer Discord took out a camera and hugged the mare.

"Oh this one has to go into the scrapbook." he said, before pushing the button. The sudden flash temporarily blinded Applejack and once she could see again she saw Discord putting the picture into a large book.

"I think I shall label this as 'The day when Applejack asked me, Discord, for help.'" he said and scribbled in the tome. Once he was done he teleported it back to where it was before and then he focused back on the mare. "As for your question, if I had to bet I think it probably had to do something with his transfer."

"Transfer?"

"Oh, didn't you know?" he said in a surprised tone. "Once somepony becomes a Guard they are obligated to serve for at least ten years in one of designated outposts."

"Is that it? That doesn't sound so bad." the mare said in slight relief.

"You do realise that Ponyville isn't registered as an outpost, right?" Discord said as he slithered behind the mare, placing his head on one of her shoulders. "And the only one that is closest is in Canterlot."

Applejack was stunned and her eyes were open wide. "W-what?" she stuttered. "So that means he's gonna leave us?"

"Indeed. For ten years." Discord affirmed. Applejack's legs began to shake and she was close to collapsing.

"B-but still he can come visit us whenever he's free, right?" she said in hope.

"Yes, for about a month in one year." the draconequus said as he looked through some documents. "But if we happen to go to war you'll probably not see him at all."

"One month?!" she exclaimed. "Th-that can't..." she trailed off as she sat down on the floor.

"We both know what Trider is like. He prefers to carry the weigth on his own shoulders, so that others don't have to be burdened by it." Discord said, as he sat down next to the mare. "He might have thought that if he didn't say anything he and you wouldn't be as hurt, if he told you about it."

Applejack, still stricken with the news, mulled over his words. "That's just plain stupid. So he just wanted to be quiet and only say goodbye in the end. That is if he wanted to say farewell."

"Didn't I say it, that's just how Trider is. If you'd look stupid in a dictionary you'd find the picture of Celestia, but if you looked the word idiot you'd find his wolf mug." Discord said. "I don't think he meant anything bad, it's just how he copes with hard situations."

"I guess you're right." Applejack agreed.

"Now only one question remains. What are you going to do?"

Applejack thought hard and eventually only one thing came to her mind. "We're gonna give a farewell he deserves." she said and got up. "Thank you Discord."

A sudden flash blinded her again and when her eyes readjusted she saw that the draconequues was once again placing a photo inside his scrapbook. "And this one will be titled 'Applejack thanks me for a job well done'. Two in one day, if I get another one I'll get a bingo." he said to no one in particular.

Applejack just shook her head and left. She was determined and she knew what had to be done. But why did her chest hurt so much. The more she thought about it the more the pain intensified. Then out of nowhere the conversation she had with Discord sprang into her mind.

"I guess I really do love him, huh?" she thought.

Meanwhile in the barn, Discord watched as the mare quickly left the premise and he smiled wickedly. "I can't wait to see how all of this plays out. Especially when they come." He then snapped his fingers and was gone in a flash of light.

***

Later that day, Trider was making his way through the town and towards the library. "Seriously Twi? Who in their right minds would need this much quills and parchments?" he grumbled under his breath. In his right hand he carried the bag that contained the materials the lavender mare had asked him to buy, while in his other was a box filled with doughnuts, that he picked up at Sugarcube Corner.

Soon he arrived at the door of his home and he grasped the handle. He entered immediatelly and as soon as he stepped through he was bombarded with confetti and streamers. Numerous ponies jumped out of their hiding spaces and yelled.

"SURPRISE!!!"

Trider's reaction however wasn't what they'd expected. The Kanisar dropped the box and bag and shot a blast of Ki at the opposite wall, narrowly missing a stallion's head. Both sides looked at each other in surprise and for a few moments neither said or did anything.

"Are you trying to get yourselves killed?!" Trider exclaimed, as he tried to steady his heartbeat. The ponies too calmed down at his outburst and the six mare plus Spike stepped forward.

"Heh, sorry about that." Pinkie apologized. "I thought you'd like being surprised."

"I'm not mad or anything, just try to think next time you want to surprise a person who has the power to obliterate people." Trider reassured her. Once he was completely calm he looked around and saw that a lot of ponies from the town were here and that the room was neatly decorated. "What's the occasion anyway?" he asked.

"Duh, it's your farewell party." the pink mare answered.

At first he tried to figure out what they were talking about until it dawned on him. "How did you find out?" he asked flabergasted.

"Discord told me and ah told the girls." Applejack explained. "And when they found out we decided to throw ya this party, since we probably won't see ya for a very long time."

Trider was at a loss for words. He kept looking at his friends and the party they prepared for him. "You didn't have to do this." he said keeping his head low. "All of this. Why would you do this?"

"Because you're our friend." this time Twilight spoke. "We care very much for you and we know that you didn't want us to worry, so that's why you kept quiet. But did you think that that would be better. To just up and leave without telling us? No it wouldn't have been. It would just be worse."

Trider didn't know how to respond. He lept staring at the girls, until a smile stretched across his face. "Yeah, guess you're right." he admitted. "Sorry for keeping it to myself and I'm sorry for being such a dumb idiot." The mares and Spike looked at him with sympathy. "Now how about we stop all this moping and get this party rocking, like we're supposed to?"

At that everyone cheered and the music started playing and very soon everyone was completely engrossed in the celebration. The party continued late in the night and everyone was having a good time.

"Trider?" The Kanisar stopped drinking his cider to address the one who called him. When he looked over his shoulder he saw it was Applejack. "Can I have a talk with you?" she asked, before she looked at the ponies around them. "In private?"

"Sure thing." he replied and got out of his seat. "Don't be waiting too long guys, I'll be right back." he said to others, before he left and followed the mare.

The two left the main room and headed upstairs. Once Applejack was sure they were alone she looked back at Trider.

"So, what did you want to talk about AJ?" he asked.

She gave him a sheepish look, as she took a deep breath. "It's alright. Yer alone and nopony is 'round. You can do this, just as you practised." she cheered herself. But all the confidence she had built up immediatelly shattered when she looked at him. She tried to utter a sentence, but it was for naught. "C'mon just tell him how you feel."

"Aj? Are OK?" he asked in concern. His worried expression lifted some of the anxiety from her shoulders and she took another deep breath.

"Here goes nothin'." she thought, before speaking. "Listen, yer probably gonna leave anytime soon aren't 'cha? And we ain't gonna see each other for a very long time. So I wanted to tell you something before you left." She paused to take a deep breath, before she continued. "Trider, when ah first met ya, ah didn't like ya, but ah was willin' to give ya a chance. And over time, the more we spent time together, the more ah came to see ya as a friend. But recently there has been this fellin' that ah've had. At first ah didn't know what it was and ah simply disregarded it. But after a lot of talkin' ah've some to a realisation of what it was."

The two looked into in each others eyes and she could see how confusion slowly encased his face, while Trider saw a look of determination and want from her. "AJ, what are you-?"

He was cut off when she pressed a finger to his lips. "Can you be quiet for now, please?" she pleaded and he nodded. She removed her finger and once again took another deep breath, gathreing her courage to say the next few words.

"Trider ah-"

She was interrupted when a powerful flash of light exploded from downstairs, which was followed by the music stopping abruptly and everyone gasping. Afterwards everything was silent with the exception of a few ponies talking to one another.

"What the fuck is going on down there?" Trider wondered and walked over to the stairs. "Sorry AJ, can we finish our talk later?"

"Uh, yeah sure." she replied in a slight daze. The two quickly made their way downstairs and the sight before them surprised them.

In the middle of the room stood three figures, all of which the two were familiar with.

"Celly, Lulu?" Trider said and jumped over the railing, down onto the floor. When they heard their names called the two sisters turned to the Kanisar, as did the third member of the party. "Rose?"

"hey, long time no see Trider." the mare said and gave him a happy smile.

"What are you guys doing here?" he asked.

"We are here to talk about your future as a Royal Guard, Trider." Celestia said in a graceful tone. "However we were not expecting so many ponies to be present."

"I apologize Princess, we threw a party for Trider and we were not expecting you to come." Twilight apologized with a nod.

"No need to apologize Twilight." Celestia assured, lifting her head with her hand. "But I will have to ask everypony, with the exception of Twilight, her friends, Spike and Trider to leave, please."

Without a word everyone left the library and the party was officially over. When the last pony left, everyone huddled closer together so that they could converse better.

"Much better." the elder sister sighed. "Now then onto business. But before that." she said and looked at Trider. "Celly? Lulu? Since when have you started calling us like that?"

"Dunno." he shrugged. "It just sort of came and I stuck with it. And I don't care what you say, I'm calling you that from now on."

"Very well. Although I don't dislike it. In fact I think that it's perfect." she replied and giggled lightly. Then her expression became serious again. "Now then, before we veer of the subject, let's talk about your duty as a Royal Guard."

"I know, I know." Trider sighed and scratched his head. "I guess it really is time then."

"Trider." Twilight said and when he turned he saw all of his friends and the tears that welled in his eyes. "I just wanted to say, we're going to miss you."

"Me too." They then hugged each other and the others joined in as well.

"Pardon us, but is something wrong with Trider?" Luna asked, interrupting their embrace.

"No, we're just saying goodbye." Spike explained.

The two sisters and Rose looked at each other in confusion. "We can see that, but why?"

"Well, he has to transfer to an outpost doesn't he? And the nearest outpost is in Canterlot, right?" Rainbow asked.

Instead of answering their questions, the two princesses now had even more. "That would be correct, but that is not the case in this matter." Celestia said. Her statement threw the others into confusion as well. "Did you not receive my letter?"

"What letter?" Twilight asked. All of a sudden Discord appeared in front of them in a flash of light. He held a cup of what they presumed was tea.

"Oh hello." he greeted, before taking a sip. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Yes in fact." Twilight scorned him.

"Good." he said and summoned a recliner. "Don't mind me, just continue what you were doing." The other looked at him in annoyance and the spirit of chaos reveled in it. "Oh yeah, before it slips my mind." he said and pulled out an envelop. "It seems the mailmare got the mail mixed up and she delivered one of yours to my place." he said and handed it over to her. "Oh and I took the courtesy to look into it, like any good samaritan would."

"Well at least we know what happened to the letter." the lavender mare grumbled and yanked the letter from Discord's grasp. "What did you write to me about anyway?"

"Since we're already here, I presume it would be better if I just told you." Celestia said and levitated the envelop toward her. "As you're probably already aware Twilight has recently become a princess." she said to which everyone nodded. "Due to her new position me and my sister have had to make a choice. Either have Twilight come back to Canterlot, where she would be safe from any danger."

"Or create a brand new outpost here in Ponyville. One which will serve under Princess Twilight Sparkle's command." Luna finished.

The group couldn't believe what they were hearing. "Wait does that mean...?"

"Yes. Trider can reamin here if he signs up for the job." Rose confirmed their hopes. In unison they all yelled out and went into a group hug.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes." Twilight chanted rapidly, making small jumps in place. Eventually Trider broke free from the hug and went over to Celestia.

"Celly, you're not so bad after all." he said and grinned.

Celestia returned his smile, before she spoke. "You have Luna to thank for that. Although she wanted you to come to Canterlot, she was much more determined for you to stay with your friends."

"Lulu." Trider said and faced the other sister. "I could just kiss you."

Luna blushed furiously. "D-do not dare. E-even if you're a close friend I do not want you to do such an act." she yelled, stammering in between words.

"Jezz, chillax, it's just an expression." Trider replied, rubbing his ears.

"O-oh. Yes I was aware of that." the lunar princess said, her blush even redder than before.

"This is great." Trider said joyfully. "But why are you here?" he asked, looking at Rose.

"That is what we came here to talk about. Ponyville has already been signed up as an outpost, but in order for an outpost to operate it requires a minimum of five guards, one of which needs to be of Captain rank or higher." Celestia explained.

"Wait, so does that mean that-?"

"Correct." Rose said and gave a mock salute. "I am Rose Blade Captain of the Unicorn Division of the Solar Guard."

Everyone stared at her in awe and she almost basked in the attention she was getting. "Wow." Trider uttered. "That' awesome, great job Rose."

"Thank you." she thanked with a bow. "And I'm not the only one that has advanced. Dynamism also became a Corporal."

"Really?" Trider said in astonishment. "Man you guys sure have improved in these past few months. How is the twerp doing anyway?"

"You can ask her yourself once she comes."

"Wait, she's coming here?" Trider asked.

"Of course. We need at least five members remember. You, me and Dynamism make three and she is fetching the other guys as we speak." Rose explained.

"Great. So the gang's back together. Plus a few new guys." Trider said in a merry tone.

"They are not as new as you think they are." Luna chipped in.

"What do you mean?" Trider asked, confused.

"Me and my sister have decided that it would be best if you worked with somepony you had worked with before, so we decided to call in all of the members of your team while you were in the academy." Luna told him.

"Really?" Trider said even more excited than before. "Wait, everyone?" His mood suddenly turned grim and he looked at Luna. "What do you mean by exactly everyone?"

"As in everypony who were part of the team, you and the other three members." Luna explained.

"You mean that lunatic will also be coming here?" Trider yelled, sweat starting to pour his face.

"I-indeed."

"Why? Tell me why Luna? What did I ever do to you?" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her back and forth.

"I told Celestia about him and she said it would be better if the whole team was here, as well as stating it would benefit you to better your current relationship with him." the lunar princess elaborated. Trider immediatelly released her and glared at Celestia.

"You!" he said, pointing a finger at her. "I take back every good thing I said about you."

"I hope that will teach you how your actions impact those around you and yourself." she said with a smile that seemd innocent to the rest, but Trider saw the true wickedness behind it.

"You damn bitch!" he thought and tightened his fists.

"What are you guys talking about?" Rainbow asked the question which was on everyone's mind.

"No time to explain." Trider said in a frightened tone. He ran over to Twilight and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Twi, I want you to teleport me as far away from here as you possibly can."

"Wha- why?" she asked, her confusion growing with each second.

"Don't ask quewstions woman, just do it before he-" He was interrupted when the doors to the library opened and in walked Dynamism.

"Hi everypony, sorry I'm late I got kind of lost on my way here." she apologized and walked in. Right behind her was Ace, who looked around in slight fright.

"Dynamism." everyone said and went in to greet their friend. The mare was assaulted with greetings and congratulations with her promotion.

"Dyna it's great to see you again."

"Spike, it's good to see you as we-we-" she trailed off as her eyes went over the drake's body. Her eyes were open and drool ran down her chin as she took in the dragon's new body.

"Dyna, are you alright?" Spike asked, waving a hand in front of her. The mare didn't respond, instead she grabbed his arms and ran her hands across his muscles.

"So big." she whispered. Suddenly she became aware that everyone was looking at her. She released Spike's arm and blushed. "Eh-heh, sorry about that. Just surprised how much you've changed." she lied, but Trider and Rose knew better. "How did you become like this?"

"Long story, I'll tell all about it later." Spike said.

"Excuse me." Ace said and nudged Rarity. When the mare turned around she shrieked in fright and levitated a few pillows at him.

"Get away, get away, get away." she said rapidly. As Ace was being bombarded with soft ammunition, Trider grabbed Rarity and stopped her.

"Rares chill, you're gonna hurt the guy." he said to her, trying to calm her down.

"B-but he's a Diamond Dog." she said with a shaky voice.

"Half Diamond Dog. Take a better look." The fashionista reluctantly turned around and saw that Trider was speaking the truth. "This is Ace Quickpaw. He was the team leader back at the academy."

"H-hi." Ace greeted with a small wave of his hand.

"Oh I am so very sorry." Rarity began to apologize. "I didn't know you were Trider's friend. If I'd known I wouldn't have-"

"It's fine. No harm done." Ace assured her. "But I've never seen such a reaction. Did something happen in the past or...?"

"A couple of incidents. In one she was foalnapped by the D-Dogs and the other her sister was almost enslaved by them." Pinkie explained.

Ace's ears fell and he looked at her apologetically. "I'm so sorry. I didn't-"

"No, no." Rarity stopped him. "It's not your fault and you're so much more civilzed than those ruffians." she said and smiled.

"Hey." Applejack raised her voice so she could be heard. "Weren't there supposed to be three of ya? Where are the other two?"

"They decided to check out some of the nearby pubs. They should be coming soon." Dynamism said and looked at the clock on the wall.

"Great, that means I still ahve time." Trider said and quickly grabbed Twilight again. "Do it now before it's too-"

"Trider my love I have arrived."

"Too late." Suddenly the front door was blown open and in ran pink haired stallion. Everyone looked at him in surprise, with the exception of Trider who could only stare in terror.

Once Whip's eyes landed on the Kanisar, a smile stretched all across his face, threatening to tear it in two. "There you are." he said and leapt at him. "I have retu-"

Out of instinct Trider quickly turned around and kicked the stallion into a wall, embedding him deep into it. Everyone stared at him in shock.

"Trider, what did you do?" Twilight said in horror.

"AJ give me your rope so I can tie this fucker." Trider said hurriedly and extended his arm.

"Wha? Why? Trider what's gotten into ya?"

"Give me the damn rope, before-"

"Triiider." Whip called out from the wall. Everyone's attention shifted to the stallion and they saw he was now standing in the room, his clothes torn i some places and blood seeping down his face. "Ever since I was told I would be coming here I've been waiting for our reunion. I've only imagined what it would be like." He took slow steps and with each his entire body shook. "But this, This is even better than I could've dreamed of." Suddenly he ripped his shirt off and lunged at Trider again. "Come and hold me mi amore."

This time Trider dodged his assault and began to ran away from him. "Fuck off you maso freak!" he yelled.

"Your cold shoulder makes me even more excited. Oh Trider you know exactly how to treat a stallion."

"Fuck youuu!"

The two continued to chase one another around the house, while others watched in shock, confusion and amusement. "The Tartarus is going on?" Dynamism asked what was on everyone's mind.

"Just the usual." a new voice said. Everyone turned around and saw Frost standing in the doorway, looking at the scene with an unamused expression.

"This is usual? How is this as usual?" Twilight said as she returned her attention back to the two men.

"Well you see, Whip is kind of... Special." he paused to think of how to describe the stallion.

"Special how?" Applejack asked with reluctance.

"He's gay and a major masochist." Frost chipped in. "And he has had his eyes on Trider since day one. And you probably already know how Trider's like and the two together is an explosive combination."

The group stared at the mare flabergasted. "Seriously?" Rainbow asked.

"Uh-huh. Though it's usually much more tame than this."

The two were still in a chase and were now knocking over various objects. "All right I've had enough." Twilight said and encased the two in her magic and levitated them over to her.

"Oh thank you Twi." Trider said in absolute relief, while Whip stared daggers at her.

"Excuse me we were in the middle of something." Whip said with disdain.

"That's enough from both of you." she said and released trider while still keeping Whip suspended. "Excuse me Mr.?"

"Whip Lash."

"Whip Lash, but I'll have to ask you to refrain from assaulting Trider from now on." she said, to which Whip scoffed.

"And you are?" At his question the mare extended her wings and took on a more royal tone. "I'm Twilight Sparkle. Princess Twilight Sparkle."

Whip didn't react to her introduction, but he did acknowledge her title. "So you're the one we're going to be working for. I see." He then realxed his body and Twilight decided to let him down, much to Trider's chargrin. "My apologies your majesty, I shall do as you order." He then leaned in closer to her and whispered in her ear. "But don't think you can take my Trider away from me."

With that he walked away, but he stopped when he noticed Spike. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?" he said as he approached the drake. But his advancement was stopped when Twilight stepped in front of him.

"And here is my warning to you." she said and stared daggers at him. "Spike is my little brother. Touch one scale on his body and I will make sure that that masochism of yours will be removed for good."

The two continued to stare at one another, until Whip sighed. "Fine, I can agree to that. At least I still have my Trider." he said with a dreamy smile.

Twilight watched him as he approached Frost and Ace and once she was sure he was away enough she sighed. "I don't like that guy." she muttered.

"Now then I think this will be enough for today." Celestia stated. "Tomorrow you already start your work, but until a proper station is built you won't have to do any official work, so you can just watch the perimeter for now."

"Yes ma'am." they saluted.

The two sisters stepped together, but before they teleported Celestia remembered something. "Oh yes, it almost slipped my mind. Since no barracks have yet been built and none of the guards have a booked a place to sleep, can I ask of you to accomodate until further notice."

"Oh sure, we'll be more than happy. Right girls?" Twilight said and looked at her friends. They all nodded in agreement.

"Then I call dibs on the library." Whip called out.

"Oh hell no!" Trider said immediatelly. "If he's coming here I'm moving out. Pronto."

"No need to worry Trider. Since me and Dynamism have stayed here before, we'll continue to do so." Rose said and gripped Trider's shoulder. "So you don't have to worry while you sleep." she said and winked. Trider gave her a thankful smile, while Whip looked like he wanted to strangle her.

"Ah can take two more with me." Applejack said. "I'm sure granny and Big Mac will be more than happy to welcome some of you."

"Who's Big Mac?" Whip asked with interest.

"He's mah big brother." Applejack said with unsure tone.

Whip pondered for a moment before he smiled. "I guess I can let this one slide." he said and shot Rose a dirty glare. "I'll be glad to be your guest Miss Jack."

"Poor Mac. Well better him than me." Trider thought.

"Don't worry. I'll come as well and make sure he's kept on a short leash." Frost said and gave Applejack a comforting smile.

"Thanks." the cow-mare thanked.

"That leaves Ace." Trider said. "Who wants to take him in."

"Oh, oh, oh. Me, me, me." Pinkie said, as she jumped up and down, waving her hands. "I can totally convince Ms. and Mr. Cake to let him live there."

"It's settled then." Twilight said and sighed. "Rose and Dynamism will live together with me like before. Whip and Frost go to Applejack's and Ace will stay with Pinkie."

"Yay roomie." Pinkie said and hugged the dog-pony, suffocating him in her rack.

"I guess that's that." Celestia said with a nod. "We'll be taking our leave then. I expect all of you to give it your all. Farewell." she said and the two sisters teleported back to Canterlot.

"Well I guess we should head home as well." Rainbow yawned. "See you guys tomorrow." With that said she left the room and others followed soon.

But before Applejack could leave Trider called after her. "Hey AJ." she stopped and looked at him. "What did you want to tell me before?"

Applejack was caught off guard and she didn't know how to respond. "Don't worry." she said and smiled. "It was nothin' important." With that said she left and for some reason she felt uneasy.

Author's Note

You thought that Applejack was going to confess.

But it was me Celestia.
(sorry for no actual JoJo Celestia, I'm kinda disappointed that that picture doesn't exist)

Like always tI hope you enjoyed the story. And until next time.

P.S.
Anyone who can spot the tiny TFS/DBZ reference in the story gets a cookie.

Interlude: I Will Get Stronger!!!

Author's Note

*Puts on sunglasses and black leather jacket*
*Takes a tape out of his pocket and puts it in the player*
*Press play*
*Slowly walks*
GUESS WHO'S BACK!!!
I know many of you anxiously awaited for me to continue my story. And I'm happy to tell you that I'm done with my school and ready to entertain you all.
A small note though. This chapter is just a little something to get my writing groove back.
Love you all and until next time.

Interlude: I Will Get Stronger!!!

*Disclaimer: This chapter takes place after Wolfpack of Idiots and before Lab of Horrors; Ascend the White Wolf*

"It is a wonderful day today." Luna said as she gazed into the sky above. "Don't you agree?"

The guard stumbled when he was addressed by the Princess. "Y-yes your H-Highness." he stuttered. "The weather team said that the wheater will continue as such for the whole week.

"Really? How nice of them." Right at that moment something flew at her and she leaned her body back to dodge. "Tell me, when does the lunch hour start?" she said nonchalantly, after the object flew past her.

"A-at 13.00." the guard responded, shaken by the ordeal that was happening in front of him.

"Ah, wonderful. I am getting a little peckish." she said with a smile. Suddenly a shadow loomed over her and when she looked up she saw Trider flying above her.

"Dodge this!" he shouted and fired a barrage of Ki blasts at the mare. Luna however didn't even blink, as she elegantly skipped across the arena, successfully evading the attack. Once the rain of blasts stopped she casted her gaze towards the sky again, only to see it was devoid of her alien buddy.

"You're mine!" she heard him say from behind and in the corner of her eyes she saw how he was approaching her with a sphere in his hand. "Wailing Nova Sphere!"

In a split second before before the attack connected, Luna quickly turned around and grabbed Trider's wrist. With a powerful yank, she pushed the sphere away from her and sent it flying into a wall, which was blown away upon impact. Trider however didn't let up. He quickly charged Ki into his other hand, encompassing it.

"Spirit Claw!" He swung his arm at her midsection, but she just stopped it with her other hand. The two were now in a clash of strength, but no matter how much Trider pushed, Luna didn't budge an inch.

"Ready to give up?" she teased and watched his struggle.

"Not yet." he growled. "Roar Cannon!" he shouted, as energy charged in his open maw. Right before he could shoot however, Luna pushed him away making him miss.

"You know, it would be a lot better if you did not shout your attacks like that." she said with a smirk.

"Maybe, but I never asked for your opinion." Trider countered.

"Fair point." she shrugged. "How about you call it quits?" she asked, as she watched how out of breath Trider was.

"Not a chance!" he grumbled and charged at her. He punched and kicked with all of his might, but the Princess easily dodged his assault. As his attack continued she began to notice that he was becoming slower and his strikes got sloppy. She sighed, before she defelected his punch and she brought her palm onto his stomach. She sent a pulse of magic through her arm and shot it directly into him. The blast sent Trider flying across the ground and he skidded to a halt.

The mare turned around and she began to walk away. "Let us finish for today and head for the mess hall. It will be lunch time soon." she said.

Trider however didn't listen to her. With shaky arms he pushed himself up and stumbled toward her. "No." he whispered in a tired tone. "We can't end it yet." He suddenly unleashed a powerful scream and ran towards her yet again.

This time however, before he could even reach her, she disappeared from his sight and before he could even comprehend what had happened, he was being pushed into the ground, his right arm held behind his back.

"Stop this foalish behaviour at once!" Luna shouted as she pinned him down. Trider winced at her tone. He knew better than anyone that Luna rarely got angry, but when she did it was best to listen to what she had to say. He stopped his struggle which told her he was listening to her.

"Good." she said and released his arm. "We shall now leave and fill our stomachs. And afterwards I want you to come to my quarters, as we have something I want to talk to you about." When she finished she got up and left.

Trider picked himself up again and dusted off. "What did I do?" he wondered and walked towards the exit. "And why did I think she was hot when she pinned me down?"

***

Luna was doing some paperwork when she heard a faint whirring noise, that grew louder. She took off her glasses and put away the papers, before there was a flash of light and the Kanisar teleported into the room.

"Y'know, if people knew about this, they'd get the wrong idea, which would lead to me probably being punished wither via death or worse." he said, as he approached her.

"What could be worse than death?" Luna asked.

"Castration." Trider quickly answered.

The mare shivered at the thought. "You can rest assured. I told my sister about this as well as some of my guards, so you have nothing to worry about." she assured him. "And besides, Celestia told that that punishment has been abolished over 800 years ago."

Trider shot her a semi worried look. "Wait, you guys actually cut off men's dicks long time ago?"

"Trider." Luna interjected. "I did not call you here so we could discuss morally questionable punishments of the past."

"Right, sorry." Trider apologised as he sat down next to the Princess. "So what did you want to talk about?"

Luna nodded and corssed her arms. "What was with you today?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I am talking about how you tried to push yourself way beyond your limits." she explained and shot him and angry look. "Mind telling me why you did that?"

Trider's eyes closed and he sighed loudly. "I'm sorry Lulu." he apologized. "I'm just feeling frustrated."

"Why is that?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"Because," he said and stood up. "I've been training under you for a month now and I have barely improved."

"Ah, I see." she said with a nod. "You do not see any progress in your skills and that fact makes you angry at yourself, right?"

"Bingo." he sighed. "I don't know what to do Lulu. To me it seems that the gap between us is only increasing, instead of decreasing."

"That is not true." she argued. "Your combat skills have improved a lot and your ability to strategise have been honed greatly. You certainly are becoming better."

"But I'm not getting stronger." he said in a loud tone. "It's true that those things are important, but what good are they when you don't have the strength to put them to good use?" He began to pace around the room as he continued. "I want to be able to defeat my foes without having to rely on my Feral Unleashing. That is the goal that I set for myself. But even now I'm not even close the level that I had with it."

Luna listened to his angry rant, before she decided to stop him. She stood up and placed a hand onto his shoulder. Trider looked at her and she gave him a sympathetic look. "I understand. But can you tell me, why do you want to become stronger? So you will never have to taste the shame of defeat? So that none will ever oppose you?"

"No!" Trider shouted. "It's so that I never lose anyone again." His gaze became sad and he turned away from the mare. "On that night when I lost my parents, I swore that I would never lose anyone I hold dear to me ever again. And in order to do that I had to become stronger."

"So you want strength to protect those close to you?" Luna repeated. Trider nodded and that made the Princess smile. "I see." she said in a gentle tone. "Then you should use that determination when we train. I am sure that if you think about your friends and how much you want to protect them, eventually you will attain your true strength."

Trider turned around and smiled. "Thanks Lulu. You really are a great teacher."

"You are correct. And as your teacher I want you to stop being so hardheaded and know when enough is enough. Am I clear."

"Crystal." he responded with a sheepish smile. The two fist bumped, before Trider teleported back to the Academy.

***

The strike knocked the ari out of Trider's lungs, but he managed to stay on his feet as he skidded across the ground. "If anything your endurance surely improved by a great margin." Luna said as she watched the Kanisar prepare for anotehr attack.

Trider panted heavily and sweat dripped down his forehead. "If you say so." he said in a ragged breath. He took a large breath of air and then released it.

With a single leap he jumped over the mare and attacked her from behind. The Princess however followed his movement and quickly countered him. The two were locked in combat and it was obvious that the battle was in Luna's favour.

Trider was slowly being pushed back and once the mare saw an opening she exploited it. She kicked her leg up, kicking him in the jaw and sending him to the ground. The Kanisar remained lying on the ground, panting.

"This is it for today." Luna said and began to walk away.

"Wait." Trider beckoned, slowly getting up. "Once more."

"Trider, what did we say about you pushing yourself too far?" she scolded.

"Just one more and then I promise we'll stop." he pleaded. Luna glared at him, but eventually she gave up.

"Fine." she said and beckoned him with her hand. "Whenever you're ready."

Trider got into a stance and began to ponder. "Maybe I should try a feint from behind and then an aerial assault? No, she'll see it coming. How about a Ki blast attack into a full on assault? No, I already tried that." The more he thought about it the more frustrated he became.

"Agh, this isn't working!" he mentally screamed. Then he remembered what Luna had told him. He began to think about everyone that was waiting for him in Ponyville. He began to remember all the times they were in danger and he had to help them, as well as the times he was powerless or had to rely on his Feral Unleashing.

"I need strength." he thought as his aura began to build up around him. It slowly started to turn dark, but he noticed it. "No!" he shook his head and the aura reverted back. "Not that kind of strength. I want something else, something that will be..."

"Better." He once again began to build his Ki and each time it began to turn dark he stopped it.

Meanwhile Luna observed him and noticed he had a hard time with controlling it. "Maybe we should stop." she thought as she took a step forward. Suddenly she felt a surge of energy and when she looked back at him, she saw his aura flare up.

"I want to become stronger."

Static of energy surged across his body as his aura became more and more intense.

"I have to become stronger!"

His hair began to stand on their ends and began to alternate between black and white, while his eyes started to trun blue.

"I WILL BECOME STRONGER!!!"

With a mighty shout his Ki exploded in a powerful shockwave, which blinded the Princess. Once her eyes readjusted she looked at the Kanisar and she couldn't believe what she saw.

Trider stood in a small crater that was created by the explosion of energy, his hair now pure white and standing up. A bright white aura was flaring around him, like a fire. But what really struck the mare were his now bright blue eyes that were staring directly at her.

Before she had time to react Trider dug his feet into the ground and he lunged at her. Still shocked from what happened, Luna didn't have any time to react and he punched her in the gut. The force of the hit sent her flying thorugh the air.

Before she had time to comprehend what had happened Trider was already above her. "Piston Cannon Trispear."
he shouted and delivered a blow to the back. The strike plunged the mare into the ground, but she quickly got up and was ready for his attacks.

Now flying above her, Trider shot blast after blast of Ki at the mare. Luna noticed that this time she had a harder time avoiding the attack than before. When the barrage subsided she noticed he was flying straight at her. The two clashed and exchanged blow after blow.

"He is much faster, as well as stronger." Luna thought, as she blocked one of his kicks. "What in Tartarus is this power?"

The two continued their battle, until they both punched each other in the jaw. They both stumbled backwards, before jumping away from each other. They both stared at each other, before Trider smirked.

He charged energy into the palm of his hand and in it slowly began to form a ball of Ki. However it continued to grow, until it was the size of a beachball. Luna stared at in awe at the size of it and the potential power it contained.

"Howling Nova Sphere!" Trider yelled, before firing it at the mare. Luna however didn't dodge it, instead she chose to test it's might head on. She extended her arms and prepared herself.

When the orb hit her she stopped it. However she had a hard time struggling against it's power, as it slowly began to push her backwards. Luna put forth more strength and in on mighty shove she sent it flying into the air. Once it was several hundred it exploded painting the sky in blue, purple and red colors.

They both stared at it for a few seconds, before they looked at each other. Luna saw that Trider could barely breathe, his eyes were droopy and sweat poured down his body. He then smiled and spoke.

"I did it." he uttered, before his aura disappeared, his appearance turned to normal and he then collapsed. Luna smiled as well, before she turned around and spoke to the guard that was watching them.

"Could you take him to the infirmary?" she asked. The question brought him out of his stupor and he saluted.

"Y-yes mam." he said, before running toward him. He stopped after a few steps to look at the Princess. "What about you?" he asked in concern.

"Do not worry. Despite what you have seen, I am perfectly fine." she assured him. Satisfied with her respons, the guard went over to Trider and began to drag him to the doctor.

Luna smiled as she watched him leave. Once she was certain that none was around she lifted her shirt to expose her stomach. A small bruise began to form and she winced when she pressed her hand on it.

"Well done Trider." she mused to herself. "I told you you could do it."

Chapter 34: Everday Flirt

Smoke rose over the horizon, as screams echoed through the streets. Trider looked around himself, trying to grasp what was going on.

"What? What's going on?" he asked himself and looked around, trying to recognize where he was. He spotted several collapsed buildings around him and more, which were still standing, but were also damaged, surrouding him. Immediatelly he recognized the type of architecture and knew he was in Canterlot.

Wasting no time, he flew into the sky and began to scan the city. A huge part of it was badly damaged and no matter how hard he looked, he didn't spot anyone.

"Is anyone out here?" he yelled, but received no answer. Then he felt a cold chill run down his spine and somehow he knew where he had to go. Truning left he approached a large square and landed in it. He looked around himself warily, until he spotted several shadowy figures.

"Who are you? Did you do this?" he asked, anger lacing his voice. The shadows didn't reply, they didn't even react. Trider took a step forward, but instead of the hard ground, his feet hit something soft. He looked down and saw a lifeless body lying beneath him.

"Wha-?" his voice got stuck in his throat, as his body involuntarily bent down and grasped it. The body was engulfed in a white mist, obscuring all of it's features. As his face got closer to the body's the mist began to dissipate and Trider felt something run down his cheeks. Paying it no mind, he continued to draw closer to it. Only a few inches separated the two and Trider could begin to recognize some of the body's features.

***

"Wake up sleepy head." a sweet, yet stern voice called out to the sleeping Kanisar. Groggily Trider opened his eyes and blinked several times to adjust to the room's lighting. Once he was used to it he looked towards the edge of his bed and saw the face of a familiar friend.

"Hey Rose." he said still half asleep. "What are you doing here?"

The mare chuckled, as she rose up. "Have you already forgotten about what happened yesterday?" she asked, as she looked down on him, still smiling.

Trider tried to think what she was talking about, but his still sleeping brain made the task much harder than it should have been.

"I have no fucking idea." he gave up and lifted his upper torso. "Mind enlightening me?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "Me, Dynamism, a few other guard friends of yours, protect Ponyville, Royal Guard business. Does that ring a bell?"

It took Trider another couple of seconds, before it clicked. "Oh yeah." he said, finally getting it. He rubbed his eyes and then yawned, as he stretched his torso. His spine and arms released several pops and once he was done he jumped out of his bed. "Shall we get going then?"

"After breakfast." Rose answered him, as her eyes began to travel south. "Still like going commando while you're sleeping?" she mused, as she tried to hide her slightly red cheeks.

"You know it." he said, walking over to his wardrobe. "But I wasn't able to do so while I was at the Academy."

"How so?" Trider shot her a 'are you serious look' and she immediatelly realized what he was talking about. "Oh yeah. Was it that bad?"

"The dude tried to make me take off my boxer as well, while we were in a room filled with guys." Trider sighed and put on his pants. "Then in the middle of the night he tried to sneak into my bed. Needless to say, he received a one was punch card to the wall on the opposite side of the room." He was now sticking his head through his shirt. "But as you may have guessed it, that didn't go so well."

At that point Rose could barely contain her laughter and Trider shot her an unamused glare. "Sorry, sorry." she apologized. "So how did you resolve that problem then?"

"The solution was simple actually, we just tied him up and down to the bed."

"And that worked?" she asked surprised, to which he nodded. "How did that work? I kinda thought he would just break through them, like one of those characters in comics."

"So did we, but apparently it worked." Trider said hastily and tied his boots.

Rose raised an eyebrow, knowing he was telling her everything. "What are you hiding?"

"Nothing. I told you ever-" he stopped when he saw, she wasn't buying it. He knew well that she wouldn't budge so he told her. "In order for it to work I had to be the one to tie him. And let's just say that for him it didn't exactly feel like he was being restrained out of malice and let's also just say that I now know a few more ways how to tie up a person."

He expected her to laugh, but instead he saw her eyes sparkle and she began to walk to the door without saying anything. "I'm sure you'll find some use out of that in the future." she said as she passed him, swaying her hips. Trider looked after her with wide eyes. For some reason he felt a bit frightened, but at the same time excited.

"Goddammit." he cursed under his breath, as he put on his armour.

***

"Attention!" Rose shouted, to which everyone responded by forming a line and saluting.

"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" everyone responded in unison, before standing at attention.

Rose scrunched her eyes and glared at her unit. She paced back and forth, clearly inspecting them. None of them reacted, they only stood still as they were trained to do.

"This won't do." Rose said in a disappointed tone. Everyone quickly exchanged worried glances without moving their heads. "You guys look like you're waiting to be executed. Loosen up a little."

Their worried glances quickly changed to confused looks. "Excuse me ma'am, but you called us to attention and we just did as we were taught." Ace said, trying to understand what she meant.

"Indeed and I'm proud you did so, but while I am your commanding officer and we are here to do our jobs, I'd very much like it if we acted a bit more familiarly. Not like we are in the military, but more like we're co-workers at an office." Rose said.

The others first looked at each other, before they all dropped their stands and relaxed.

"You." Frost said, pointing a finger at Rose. "I like you already."

"The feeling is mutual." Rose responded with a smile.

"Of course you like her, she's one of the best girls I've ever had the pleasure of meeting." Trider chipped in, dropping down into a sitting position.

"Any more flattery Trider and I might just give you a reward." Rose said with a small grin. Everyone looked between the two with bemused expressions, while Whip glared daggers at the mare. "Now before we get down to business, I'd like to ask how was your night and how were your accommodations."

"Our night was pretty uneventful, considering." Frost said, shooting Whip a glance. "But I do have to say those Apples sure know how to make one feel welcome. And their cooking. Oh my goddess."

"I know right." Trider said, nodding his head in understanding.

"What about Big Mac? Did he and Whip get along or...?" Dynamism asked, slightly concerned.

"Oh there was no problem at all. Sure at first it was kind of awkward, but after a while he and the rest of the family warmed up to him." Frost explained. "And before you ask, we made sure Whip was properly secured. Mac sure knows how to tie them knots."

"He knows how to treat a stallion right." Whip said in a dreamy voice.

While others laughed, Dynamism looked at them with utter confusion. Rose then crouched down to Trider and whispered in his ear.

"Maybe you can get him to teach you a trick or two." she whispered in his ear. Trider shot her a surprised look, before she stood up and winked at him.

When she was standing again her gaze drifted towards Ace and she noticed he was kind of droppy and he had bags under his eyes. "You feeling alright there Ace?" she asked concerned.

"Wuh, huh? Uh, yeah, yeah." he responded, before yawning loudly.

"What's wrong dude? Did you and Pinkie party all night or something?" Trider asked with a huge smirk.

"No. No, I told her I was tired from travel and she understood so we went to bed almost as soon as we arrived to the Corner." he answered groggily.

"Then how come you're so tired?" Frost asked, slightly annoyed.

Ace didn't answe, instead he looked at Trider. "Did you by any chance know that Pinkie sleeps in nude?" he asked. The question caught him a bit off guard, but he shook his head nonetheless. "Well now you do."

"Seriously?" the Kanisar exclaimed to which Ace nodded. "You are one lucky son of a- Nevermind."

"So what?" Frost asked with a slightly angry tone. "Are you a pubescent teenager or something? Just cause you slept in the same room as a naked mare, doesn't mean you should feel flustered about it."

"I wish it was only the room we were sleeping in together." Ace said in a frustrated voice. His remark made the others stare at him incredulously.

"No. Way." Dynamism said what was on everyone's mind.

Trider stood up and brought Ace into a head lock. "Ace, dude I didn't know you had that side of you. You are such a stu- Ok, again nevermind."

"It's not what you guys think." Ace said as he got out of the Kanisar's hold. "I didn't have a say in it whatsoever."

"Ok, so it's Pinkie that's-"

"NO!" Ace shouted making everyone shut up. "What happened was that she only had one bed and didn't want me to sleep on the floor, so she dragged me in her bed and then immediatelly fell asleep." Frost wanted to say something, but he raised his finger. "And before you even say it, I did try to sneak out in the middle of the night, but she holding like a teddy bear and that mare's grip is stronger than anything I ever encountered. And I broke out of a minotaurs body lock. A freaking minotaur!" His breathing got ragged after his rant and everyone just stared at him in silence. "So in short, nothing happened and there was nothing that I could've done."

"Very well." Rose said and placed a hand onto his shoulder. "We'll leave it at that." She then walked in front of everyone and got serious. "Alright enough chit-chat, it's time to get down to business." she said and everyone listened to her intently. "Because it's a first day for some of you here I won't make you do anything diffuclt. For now."

"As your first assignment, all you have to do is patrol the town. That's all." she said. Everyone nodded their heads in understandment. "For this we'll divide into groups of two, each group having a flier to patrol the skies."

"Excuse me, but uhhh, we only have two fliers, Trder and Dynamism." Ace said, pointing out the flaw.

"True, that's why I asked somepony to help us." Rose said.

Right at that moment a rainbow blur soared across the sky and landed in front of the group. "Sup." Rainbow said, flipping her hair.

"Rainbow Dash was kind enough to offer herself to helping us." Rose said and waved at the mare.

"That's right. You guys only get the best Ponyville has to offer." Rainbow bragged.

"Excuse me again." Ace spoke up again. "I am glad that we get your help Miss Dash, but it's against the rules to involve civilians in Guard duty."

"For your information I am a certified Wonderbolt recruit." the mare said with a proud tone.

"And to answer your further question, I am aware at the fact that we're at odd numbers. I was planning to make one a group of three, but I think it would be better if you take a day off to rest yourself Ace." Rose said, shooting him a soothing gaze. "I'm sure everypony is fine with it."

Everyone sounded their agreement and Ace sighed. "Very well. If that's what you think is best. If you'll excuse me." he said and began to walk back to The Sugarcube Corner.

"I kind of feel bad for him." Dynamism said emphatically.

"Don't worry I plan to give him double the work tomorrow." Rose said in a cheerful tone.

"I'm sure he'll love it." Trider butted in.

"Good." she nodded. "Now then, time to group up."

Whip immediatelly grabbed Kanisar's arm and pulled him closer. "I'm with Trider." he said, shooting the man a lustful gaze. Trider responded by socking him in the jaw, making him stumble back a bit. "I think that's a yes." the stallion said, as a dreamy smile stretched across his lips.

"Sorry to burst your bubble Whip, but you're with Rainbow Dash." Rose said. Whip's head quickly whipped to her.

"And why should I listen to you?" he challenged her.

"Because I'm the captain and I have the highest authority here, right behind Princess Twilight. And you don't have to go if you don't want. But do know that if you refuse, the local spa requires some assisstance with cleaning their establishment, which includes the dirty towels as well as their sewage." the mare rebutted with a smile, that hid the 'try me bitch' message behind it.

Whip snorted in frustration, clearly getting her message. Happy with his response she then turned to Frost and Dynamism. "You two are also together."

"Looking forward to working with you." Dynamism said eagerly, extending her arm.

"Likewise." Frost responded, shaking her partner's hand.

"And that leaves me and Trider."

"Of course." Whip said under his breath, but it was still loud enough for Rose to hear and she shot him a cold glare, which made him shut up.

"I have to make sure to keep you with me at all times." Trider said with slight adoration.

"Aww, is the big bad wolf afraid of a wittle gay stallion?" Rose mocked, which made Trider shoot a glare at her.

"Shut up."

"So can we go now or should we wait that you're done flirting?" Frost expressed her exasperation.

"We're not-"

"Very well." Rose cut off Trider. "Dash and Dynamism already know what part of Ponyville you have to cover. Dismissed." At her command everyone went their separate ways.

***

"I'm telling you, you can't do it." Trider said, as he watched Rose.

"Says you." she rebuted and concentrated harder. She then thrusted her hand forward and yelled. "Crimson Grenade!"

A few seconds passed, but nothing happened. "Told you." Trider said with a shit eating grin. "The only thing you managed to do was make yourself look silly."

"Quiet." was her only response.

The two have already finished their patrol and were currently standing in the Sweet Apple Acres, where Trider usually trained.

"I did everything you normally do. I did the mean look, I lowered my stance and I yelled my attack. What else am I supposed to do?" she sighed.

"I'm not sure if you're mocking me or..." he said unsure. "Anyway there's a whole lot more to Ki control than shouting and whatever you thought. In fact it took me several years just to grasp the basics and I am far from mastering it."

"I guess it's impossible after all." the amre sighed and lowered her head. "And I was so looking forward to flying without wings or magic."

"Yeah it's pretty rad."

"Are you rubbing it in my face?" Rose asked, shooting him a mock glare.

"Maaaybe." A splash of water suddenly hit his face and he saw that Rose was blowing him a raspberry. "Oh is that how you wanna play?" he playfully threatened.

Suddenly he jumped at her and grabbed her from behind. Rose was surprised by his speed and had no time to react. She struggled against his grasp, but it was obvious that he was stronger.

"At least be careful where you put those hands." she teased.

"Seriously? Do you always have to flirt?" Trider said with a deadpanned expression. "And don't even try to say 'Is that your sword or are you just happy to see me?' shtick."

"Well are you?"

"Goddammit. Walked into that one." he sighed.

"You sure did." she replied with smirk. "Seriously though, it's getting rather awkward being like this, not to mention if anypony saw us." Trider realized she was right and let go of her. "I do have to say, you've certainly gotten stronger."

"Yeah, I'm on a whole different level now." Trider said and pumped his arm.

"Not until you bleach your hair."

Trider looked at her slightly surprised. "Luna?" Rose nodded to his question. "Wanna see?"

"Thought you'd never ask."

"Might wanna take a couple of steps back though." he warned. Rose walked backwards and once he was satisfied with the distance the Kanisar began to focus his Ki.

The air around him began to ripple and after a few seconds of struggling a white aura burst out and his hair turned white. Rose looked at him with astonishment.

"What do you think?" he asked, looking at her with his bright blue eyes.

"Eh, I'd prefer if you were blonde. The eyes though, stunning." she commented.

"Psh, everyone's a critic." Trider scoffed and turned to normal.

Rose walked up to him and spoke. "With that form I'm sure you'll be able to beat monster that lurks out there."

"Maybe." he answered with slight doubt.

"Is there a problem with it?" she inquired.

"A few things. First of all it consumes a lot of energy. I can only maintain it for about half an hour for now and the transformation itself takes a lot out of me." he explained. "Also, while I am a whole lot stronger than I ever was with Feral Unleashing, I'm still nowhere close to the power of an alicorn."

"Don't worry. I'm sure that someday you'll become the strongest there is. You just have to not give up." she consoled him.

"Like as you gave up on your Ki manipulation?" he teased her.

"I never said I was a role model." she said. She pulled a watch out of her armour and looked at it. "We should head back."

"Sure." he answered. Just as she was beginning to walk away, Trider stopped her. "Hey." he said and grabbed her arm.

"What is it?"

"Want a lift?" he asked.

At first she wasn't sure what he meant, but it quickly dawned on her. "I'd love to."

Trider placed his arm across her back and grabbed her by her waist. He pulled her closer and held her tight. He then slowly lifted himself and the mare into the air and the two soared toward the town.

Author's Note

I am so sorry for such a long wait for a new chapter. It was because of different reasons. First I wasn't motivated to write, second I was sick and also had to go to a doctor for a medical checkup (nothing major), third I had to help at home almost everday, so I was always tired at the end of the day.
But from now on I'll try to write more.
Until next time.

Chapter 35: Any better way to spend a day off than protecting a prince?

The sound of rushing wind filled Trider's ears as he flew across the sky. He maneuvered through the clouds that were in his way until he reached clear skies. He took a deep breath as he took in the scenery below him.

"This is the life." he sighed and turned on his back. He and the rest of the platoon were given a day off so they all decided to spend it in their own way. Rose went with Rarity to Canterlot to shop, Dynamism went swinmming with Spike and the CMC, Frost and Ace patrolling the town in case any trouble arise and Whip... No one had any clue what he was doing.

Trider wanted to spend his entire day sleeping, but sleep eluded him, so he decided to go for a fly. "Bored, bored, I am so bored." he sang, while putting his arms behind his head. "Goddammit I wish something exciting would happen."

Suddenly his ears picked up sounds of screams and loud rattling. When he cast his gaze downwards he saw a group of ponies chasing after a runaway cart. Trider pondered for a seconds, before he shrugged and bolted down towards the wagon. In just a couple of seconds he landed in front of it and he extended his arms to stop the speeding carriage. When it hit him, he barely moved and inch and he managed to stop it completely.

Once he was sure it wouldn't move again, Trider released it and walked in front of it. He saw the ponies who were approaching him and immediatelly recognized the gold armour of the Royal Guard.

"Hey guys." he said and raised his arm. "I think you lost something." The guards however didn't respond in kind, instead they drew their swords and pointed them at him.

"Freeze." one of them shouted. "State your name and business."

"Oh well I'm You, first Fuck and my business is none of yours." Trider snided.

"A wiseass eh?" the guard scoffed. "We know how to handle your kind." The guards all raised their weapon, while Trider lowered his stance.

"What is going on?" a voice suddenly shouted. The lead guard turned around, bur Trider didn't avert his eyes from the others to look at the newcomer.

"Your majesty." the guard greeted with a salute. "We've successfully stopped the wagon and we are currently dealing with some wannabe rouge."

"You piece of shit!" Trider thought as he shot a cold glare at the guard.

For a couple of seconds everything was silent until the newcomer spoke again. "Trider?" he said in a surprised tone. This made Trider look away from the guards and he saw a very familiar face.

"Charming?" he said equally surprised.

The prince and Trider stared at each other for a couple of seconds, before the stallion stepped forward, through the guards to greet his friend. "It has been such a long time. How are doing?" he asked, as the two shook hands.

"I've been doing well, thanks for asking. And you?"

"Sire?" Their conversation was interrupted when the lead guard stepped forward and spoke to the prince. "Do you know this... thing?"

"Indeed I do Lieutenant." Charming said and turned to the stallion. "This 'thing' is a very good friend of mine, who not only saved my life, but also lives of many more in the Canterlot Changeling invasion." He paused for a second to look back at Trider. "And if I am not mistaken he's now also a fellow guard."

Without a word Trider put his hand into one of his pockets and pulled out a gold badge. "Suck it." he said and showed it off to the Lieutenant. The stallion was at a loss for words.

"My apologies." he said and made a curt bow. "We thought you were a thief or a bandit, who was after our cargo."

"Don't sweat it." Trider shrugged. "But I would very much appreciate it, if you didn't lie about who stopped the wagon."

"So you were the one who stopped our runaway cargo." Charming said and gave him a thankful nod. "You do not know how grateful I am that it's in one piece."

"You're welcome. But I why did it go out of control anyway?" Trider wondered out loud.

"Good question, anypony got any idea?" the prince asked everyone, to which they shook their heads.

"Sir I might have an idea." a pegasus guard said as he descended from the roof. He extended his hand and in it rested a large crystal that had a large crack in it. "It seems the crystal broke and since we're on a slope gravity just did it's work."

Charming took the crystal in his hand and sighed loudly. "Great."

"What's that?" Trider asked, examining the mineral.

"This," the prince said lifting his hand to eye level. "Is a crystal that allows carriages to move independently, without the need to either pull or push it. And as you can see it's broken."

"Why don't you just replace it?"

"We don't have a spare one with us." the stallion then looked at his guards. "Do you think maybe-?"

"No can do your highness." the Lieutenant quickly responded. "It would take at least three of us to pull it and that would mean less ponies to watch for any attackers."

"Oh what do we do now? It'll take at least three hours for a new crystal to be delivered from Canterlot." the prince wallowed at his misfortune.

Trider looked at the stallion and then to the wagon. "I could pull it." he offered.

Charming and the guards looked at him with both hope and doubt. "You would really do that?"

"Sure, it ain't a problem for me."

"Yeah right, like you could pull the whole wagon by yourself." one of the guards laughed.

Trider shot him a glare, but he didn't say anything. Instead he walked over to the wagon, grabbed it's handle and began to pull without any effort. The guards and prince watched astonished as he slowly but surely moved past them.

"Suck it." Trider said, walking forward.

***

An hour later

"And the wreckage just disappeared like that?" Charming said astonished at the tale Trider was telling him.

"Yeah, just gone without a clue. I don't know how anyone could make a hundred foot robot disappear like that." The were catching up one the time they hadn't seen each other and they were quite enjoying it. While Trider was still pulling the wagon, Charming was riding in a smaller carriage in front of him, but close enough so they could hear each other.

"And? Did anything else exciting happen?" the prince asked eagerly.

"Not really. We just finished our training and we went our separate ways. But we were soon reunited, because a new outpost was created in Ponyville."

"Ah yes, I remember auntie talking about it at one point." the stallion mulled. "Who is the leader of your platoon then? I'm sure my aunt didn't send just anypony to such an important job."

"You'd be right." Trider smiled. "You know them both, in fact one of them is a childhood friend."

Charming's eyes flicked when he said that. "You mean Rose?" he asked, to which Trider nodded. "I see. How is she doing anyway?"

"Fine. She's a great commander, but strict as well." he chuckled as he recalled the past few days. "Why do you ask?"

Charming became flustered at the sudden question. "Oh, um, no reason."

Trider however wasn't convinced. "I call bullshit."

The prince knew he couldn't hide the truth for long. "Fine." he sighed. "Me and Rose used to date."

"You serious?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes. Me and Rose were a couple several years ago. I fell in love with her the very first day I met her and once I had enough courage I asked her out and she said yes."

"Awww, that's kinda sweet." Trider cooed mockingly. "So what happened? Why did you break up?"

"It just didn't work out I guess. We both agreed it would be best if we just remain friends." he sighed, a melancholic aura falling over him.

"But you're still not over her, are you?"

"Is it that obvious?" the prince chuckled. "No I am not. There are still some lingering feelings for her deep in my heart. But I am happy nonetheless, just to see her happy." Suddenly he put on a serious look as he stared Trider into his eyes. "Promise me that you'll protect her no matter what."

The Kanisar was caught a bit off guard, but he smiled triumphantly. "You betcha. I would never forgive myself if any of my friends got hurt." he said giving him a thumbs up.

Satisfied with his response, Charming's expresssion relaxed. "I knew I could count on you." he said. But after a while his expression changed to that of curiosity and intrigue. "But I have to wonder, is she really just your friend."

"Are you trying to say that we're not?" Trider rebuted, slightly defensively.

"No, no. Far from it." the prince quickly responsed, shaking his hands. "I just wanted to know if you and her more than 'just friends'." he emphasized the last part with quotation marks.

"No way man. Me and her? Yeah right."

"Is that so? Because I wasn't getting that kind of impression from Rose." Charming said, earning Trider's full attention. "Ever since she came back from Ponyville, she's been constantly talking about you. Almost all the time while we were together. Frankly it made me kind of jealous."

"Ok, so maybe she flirts with me from time to time, but that doesn't mean she's in love with me." the Kanisar argued back.

"I can't tell if you're being serious or if you're really that dull." the prince said unsurely. "It doesn't matter in the end. I know she has feelings for you and I'm 70% certain you have for her." Trider wanted to contradict him, but Charming shushed him before he could speak. "Save your arguements. I know you're kind of thickheaded so I'll just stick to my belief and you to yours." Trider begrudgingly nodded and the stallion smiled victoriously. "I'm sure that in time you'll realize what you two have and when the time comes you'll make her happy."

"I doubt that." Trider whispered.

"Did you say something?" the prince said, hearing him mumble.

"I asked what you're carrying back there that is so important?" he quickly responded with a lie.

"Ah, I was wondering when you were going to ask. The simple answer is that we're currently transporting some ancient artifacts to the state of the art laboratories to study them." Charming explained with pride.

"I see. So are any of them dangerous or valueable, seeing as there is an escort accompanying it. Not to say the prince himself."

"No, not really." the stallion shook his head. "We scanned these artifacts back in Canterlot and most of them possess little to no magic, and those who do, their magic is harmless. As for their value, we're not so sure since they haven't been properly analysed." Charming explained as he thought over what was in their cargo. "As for why I and these guards are here. I'm here because I will be leading the research and these guards are only here to protect me rather than the artifacts."

Trider quickly looked around before returning his gaze back to the stallion. "Only six? That isn't much of a security don't you think?"

"You might think so. But since I don't really hold that much power, unlike my brother, as well as the fact that I'm not that well known in Canterlot, helps in that regard that I don't need that much protection, since who would want to kidnap or harm me?"

"Good point." Trider shrugged.

"Bogey at twelve o'clock!" Everyone stopped when they heard one of the pegasus guards shout. Trider released the wagon and walked in front to see what they saw.

Up ahead in the middle of the road laid a single stallion. His face was covered by a slouch hat and he wore a brown dirty coat over his red shirt and black jeans. One of the guards stepped forward and yelled.

"Sir please identify yourself." The stallion however didn't respond. "I said, identify yourself." Again she got no response. "Fine have it your way." she said and shot a ball of magic at the stallion.

Right before it hit him however, the stallion jumped up onto his hooves and dodged the incoming projectile. "Jeez can't a guy take a nap peace." he said as he corrected his hat. He turned around to look at who it was and smiled. "Well it took you guys long enough."

"Excuse me?" the mare said confused.

"You are pardoned. But seriously guys, if you are given a schedule, you should stick to it. Isn't that what they taught you in that fancy academy of yours."

"You knew we were coming here?" the Lieutenant said. Suddenly everyone got ready to fight as they drew their weapons.

"Woah, woah. Easy there." the stallion said as he took a few steps back. "I think we've started on the wrong hoof here. So let me start over." He reached his hand up and took off his hat, showing his dark brown coat and bright orange short cut mane. "My name's Bullseye and I believe you've got something that I want."

"So I was right, you are a bandit." the Lieutenant said and stepped forward. "Where are the rest of your pals? I know for certain that your kind travels in packs."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I prefer to work alone." Bullseye said and put his hat back on. "And would prefer if you called me a hired bow rather than a bandit. I've got some class unlike those guys. And besides I'd like to solve this without any violence. So waht do you say you just let me take what I want and we then all go merrily our own way, without anyone getting hurt."

There was a brief silence, before the guards began to laugh. Bullseye watched in silence as he waited for the laughter to die down. Eventually they all calmed and the Lieutenant became serious. "Bliss." he said turning to the mare beside him. "Lock him up."

Bullseye's shoulders slumped and he sighed. "Very well then." he said, before he with lightning fast reflexes pulled out a crossbow and shot a bolt at the stallion. The projectile hit him directly in his throat where it stuck.

"Lieutenant!!!" Bliss screamed as she grabbed him, before he could fall.

"Bad move missy." Bullseye grinned and clicked his tounge. The bolt suddenly began to glow red and before she could realize what was happening it exploded. Her faceless and Lieutenant's headless bodies fell on the ground, splatering blood all over the road.

Everyone watched in terror as two of their comrades were mercilessly killed in front of their eyes. They then heard the sound of laughter and when they looked back at the stallion they saw him kneeling over, grabbing his stomach.

"Hahahaha. Oh man I didn't think I could myself back so long. I thought I was going to piss myself trying to keep myself from laughing." He picked himself up and saw the terror stricken faces of the ponies. "Oh come on, did you really think I was going to this peaceful bullshit I was spouting? You guys are so gullible. From the start I was going to kill each and everyone of you."

His monolouge was suddenly interrupted when a pegasus guard descended towards him. "You'll pay for that bitch!" she shouted. Bullseye lifted his crossbow and shot at the mare, but she quickly avoided it andgot ready to deliver her punishment.

Right before her hoof hit the stallion he rolled out of her attack and stood back up a few feet away. "Annoying little birdy aren't you?" he scoffed. He reached into his coat and pulled out a small gem. "Guess it's time to call in the cavalry." He threw it to the ground shattering it. When it broke the gem released a cloud of smoke that obscured the mare's vision.

Suddenly out of the cloud flew a hand and the guard barely moved out of way, before it grabbed her. She flew back to the rest of the group and waited to see what he did. A gust of wind blew away the smoke revealing several beings standing beside Bullseye.

The cavalry consisted of a huge white minotaur, a couple of gryphons and two unicorns. "Ta-da." Bullseye said doing the jazz hands in the process.

"I thought you said you worked alone." Trider shouted at him.

"I do, but every once in a while even the pros need some assisstance." He then looked at his posse and grinned. "Well what are waiting boys, go get'em."

With a loud roar the group charged the caravan and the guards got ready for the clash. "Protect the prince at all cost." one of the guards shouted. With their own battle cry they met their foes halfway.

The gryphons engaged in combat with the pegasi, while the two unicorn mages dealt with the other tow guards who were getting support from Charming. Trider on the other hand charged through the lines and went straight for Bullseye.

"Always go for the boss." he mused to himself. Right as he was about to deliver a punch to the stallions face he was tackled by the minotaur and the two of them crashed into a tree.

"Thank you Brute Horn." Bullseye said and walked casually to the wagon.

"Ugh, anyone got the number of that asshole?" Trider mumbled as he staggered to his feet.

"Pathetic." the minotaur said as he loomed over Trider.

"Excuse you?"

"I said pathetic." Brute repeated with his thick accent. "I was expecting a little bit of resistance, but this is a bad joke at best."

"I'll show you who's a joke." the Kanisar said as he charged him. He stopped right before the mighty bull and unleashed a barrage of punches at his stomach. Brute however didn't budge, he didn't even put in the effort to block his attacks.

After a while trider backed off and nursed his right hand in his left one. "Damn those abs are like steel." he thought, before getting into a battle stance again.

"Try all you want little wolf." Brute challenged crossing his arms. "But it will all be futile."

Trider didn't respond, instead he charged him again delivering another bombardment of punches and kicks, but no matter how much strength he put into it, it seemed to have no effect.

"Hiyah." he shouted and delivered a powerful kick straight into the side of the minotaur's head. Just like before he didn't even flinch, this time however he lifted his arm and grabbed Trider by his ankle.

"Enough of this foolishness." he said and slammed the Kanisar right into the ground. Trider cried out as pain seared through his entire body. But before he had time counter attack, Brute grabbed him by his head and lifted him up. He then proceeded to run through the forest smashing the Kanisar throught every tree that came in their way.

After about thirteenth tree Brute released him from his grasp. "Bah, you were barely a workout." he spat and began to walk away. He didn't get far when he felt something strike him in the back. Turning around he saw the Kanisar standing, his arm directed straight at him.

"That all you got?" Trider breathed out. He wiped some blood off his face before facing Brute again. "I know a certain farm mare who bucks harder than you."

Brute sighed as he turned around. "I didn't use my full power on purpose. I thought you'd be wise enough to just back off. But I guess I was wrong." He then tensed his body as his form grew slightly and his muscles expanded. His fur also got a certain sheen to it that made it look like it was made of metal. "Be glad little wolf, for you will now witness the ancient art that has been passed down throughout the generations of my people. With this we minotaurs become unstoppable, our strength and endurance are on a whole different level than the ponies." He then outstretched his arms, exposing his body. "Go ahead and do your worst, this will be last act of mercy I shall give you."

"We'll see about that." Trider grumbled. He quickly closed the distance between the two and reared his arm back. "Piston Cannon Pentaspear!" The fist connected, but it didn't do anything. Brute wanted to say something, when all of a sudden he felt a strong pressure come from his stomach. Before he knew it he was sent flying.

In an instant Trider jumped after him and kicked back to the ground. The impact created a small hole in the ground and lifted up some smoke. Brute slowly got back onto his hooves only for Trider to once again be on him. "Spirit Claw!" His arms were engulfed in energy which formed three claws on each of his arms. He slashed at the minotaur and Brute lifted his hand as to protect his face.

Taking the chance Trider jumped back and focused his Ki into his palm. "Wailing Nova Sphere!" He shot the ball of energy at the minotaur. Brute braced for impact and stormed through the explosion it created. Once the dust subsided he looked around to spot his foe.

Whn he saw him he noticed he was encased in what looked like red fire. "Finish Breaker!" With a shout the Kanisar charged at the minotaur. The two clashed and put their strength against each other. Brute pushed back against Trider's attack and the two were for a moment at a stalemate.

"Impressive." Brute commented. "But not good enough." With a roar he pushed with all of his might and threw Trider across the ground. The Kanisar tumbled for a second before he stopped. The aura around him disappeared and he was panting heavily.

"You're one tough son of a bitch." he said through his ragged breathing.

"I could say the same." Brute said as he slowly closed the distance between them. "But the end was inevitable." Once he was close enough he kicked Trider in the ribs making him crash into a tree. "After all you are facing one of the greatest warriors the minotaur kingdom ever produced. In all my life I have only been defeated once. By a great pony warrior, whose strength rivaled even our kings. But unfortunately for you he is not here."

Trider laid his back on the wood and looked at the minotaur. His mouth began to stretch into a smile, before it turned into a full blown laughter. Brute looked at him with confusion. "What is so funny?" he asked.

"Oh nothing." Trider said through his laughter. "It's just that I finally found someone strong."

"Indeed you have." Brute said as he loomed over Trider. "And you'll have the pleasure of being killed by that someone." He lifted his leg and brought it down towards the Kanisar.

Before it could connect, Trider lifted his arm and stopped the oncoming hoof. "You misunderstood me. I'm happy because I can finally use my full strength and not be disappointed in the end."

"It is too late for that." Brute siad and put more force into his leg. But the two were at a deadlock and the minotaur couldn't understand why.

"I don't think so." the Kanisar said ashe pushed the leg away so he could look into Brute's eyes. "I think the time is just right." Brute's eyes widened when he saw Trider's eyes turn bright blue. Suddenly a burst of energy knocked him away from the Kanisar and onto the ground. When he stood up he was now facing what he thought was a new opponent.

"So, ready for round two?" Trider asked as he cracked his knuckles.

Brute said nothing as he lowered his head and charged at the Kanisar in hopes of imaping him. But Trider sidestepped his charge and dropped his elbow onto his back. The attack brought down the minotaur, but he quickly got back up again.

"That actually hurt." the bull said and turned back to his foe. "Maybe you truly are a great warrior."

"No maybe, I am."

"Heh." Brute chuckled. "You even speak as one. This will make a fine battle after all." The two didn't exchange another word instead they let their fists do the talking for them.

The two clashed and their blows were so powerful they created shockwaves. The sounds of their battle echoed through the forest, making anyone nearby think it was an Ursa Major that was stomping through it.

Trider swiped his leg at Brute's to make him fall over, but he only managed to take down one. Taking his chance the minotaur grabbed the Kanisar's head and headbutted him with full force. Trider staggered back as his head was spinning from the impact. Taking advantage of that, Brute grabbed his waist and suplexed him into the ground.

Panting he moved away from the Kanisar and waited to see if would get up again. And just like that Trider picked himself up and got ready to fight. Brute raised both of his hands and then slammed them into the ground creating a small quake that made Trider lose his balance.

Quickly the minotaur charged at the downed wolf, but Trider was faster. He rolled out his way and instantly got back on his feet. Because he was facing away from him, Brute didn't see Trider jump at him his arm raised high.

"Piston Cannon Octaassault!" Bringing his fist down he struck Brute's head and the impact made the minotaur stagger back. Brute stood in daze for a second before he shook his head. He spit blood and a couple of teeth onto the ground before wiping his mouth. He gave the Kanisar a smile, showing off his now imperfect teeth.

"Excellent!" he bellowed. "This is the way warriors should fight! With all of their might. Showing off their power." He then slammed a fist onto his chest. "My name is Brute Horn. What is yours child?"

"Trider. Trider Lykosgrothia."

"Trider Lykosgrothia." he repeated and then smiled. "I shall remember it for the rest of my life and afterlife."

"You're talking like you're expecting to die."

"Is it not so?" Brute inquired. "We are warriors born to fight and die in battle. It would be a great shame to me and you if either of us gave each other mercy."

"I take it you won't back down until I kill you I take it." Trider asked a bit somberly.

"Indeed." Brute nodded.

Trider sighed and shook his head. "I swore that I'd never take a life just because I think is right."

"I see." Brute sighed. "Then I beg of you. If the battle turns in your favor will please do what I ask of you? I'd rather be dead than live the rest of my life with the shame."

Trider wanted to say no, but deep inside he knew how the minotaur felt. "Fine." he consceded. "I'll do it."

"You have my gratitude Trider." He then raised his hands and slammed them together. "Now let's finish this."

Trider nodded and the two were once again locked in combat. The Kanisar waved across the battlefield, using his superior speed to outamanuver his opponent. Despite his lack of speed, Brute was still able to just keep up with his nimble foe.

As soon as Trider saw his chance he took it. He came from Brute's righ side and punched him in ribs, making the minotaur stagger. But he soon recovered and swung his arm with all of his might. Trider barely had the time to block and once it hit him it felt like he was being trampled by a dragon. The force of the strike made him skid a feet away from Brute and once he stopped he hissed in pain as he grabbed his arm.

He knew that it was broken, but he paid it no mind, instead he focused back on the fight. "Spirit Claw!" His entire arm was covered in his Ki and he jumped at the minotaur.

Brute tried to grab him in mid air, but Trider quickly weaved his way through and slashed across his chest. Brute cried out in pain as blood gushed out of his three long wounds. He grabbed his chest which left him wide open.

"Piston Cannon Dekaassault!" He didn't even see the attack, as it sent him flying across the forest. When he stopped he had trouble breathing and he knew several of his ribs were broken. Clutching his chest he pulled himself up by a branch. He looked towards where he came from and noticed that Trider was engulfed in a reddish white fire and he recognized what attack he was making.

"This is it then." he mumbled to himself. "Time to see which one of us is mightier." He took a deep breath and tightened all of his muscles. "Ultimate Move," Suddenly his left arm grew five times in size, nearly bigger than his own body. "God's Groundshatterer."

"Finish Breaker." With lightning speed Trider launched himself at the minotaur and Brute reared back his arm. When the two clashed, the resulting explosion destroyed the ground beneath them and obliterated every tree in their vicinity.

Brute slowly opened his eyes and winced when felt pain sear through him. He couldn't move, his body felt heavy. He twisted his head to see what had happened. All he could see was the sky and the earth around him. His gaze then drifted towards his arm, but it wasn't there.

"Figures." he thought as he began to search for Trider to see in what kind of shape he was in. He couldn't find him anywhere around him, so lifted his gaze towards the sky. He smiled when he saw the Kanisar float above him, his clothes completely destroyed and blood seeping through multiple wounds on him. His body shrank and his fur lost it's sheen. "I guess you are the mightier warrior Trider Lykosgrothia."

Trider lokked below him and saw that Brute was still moving. He took a deep breath before he raised his good arm. "Howling Nova Sphere." he said and formed a an orb of energy in the palm of his hand. He took one last look at his foe. "If there is an afterlife brute, let us meet there and battle again." With his final thought he dropped the sphere and flew back to the caravan. He didn't look back as a loud explosion echoed, signaling his victory.

In a couple of minutes he reached the caravan and saw that they were all still fighting. One of the pegasi was down and he wasn't sure if he was still alive, while the other one struggled with the two gryphons. With a quick glance he saw that one of the unicorn mages was lying in a puddle of blood while the other one was putting up a fight with his opponent. Only when he slightly shifted his gaze did he notice the burning remains of another guard.

"Where's Charming?" he wondered and he quickly got his answer. He saw a large cerulean dome over the wagon with the artifacts and Bullseye shotting his bolts at it. "He seems fine, gotta deal with the others first."

With a burst of speed he charged at one of the gryphons knocking him out of the sky with a single punch. Surprised by his sudden arrival the other gryphon failed to notice the pegasus mare lunging at him. The two fell to the ground where they struggled for a bit until she drew a hidden dagger and she plunged it into his eye. The gryphon screamed and got off of her, allowing her to draw her sword and plunging it straight through his chest.

She heavily exhausted, but she quickly stood up and headed for the other downed gryphon. Before he had a chance to resist she struck his head with the hilt of her blade, rendering him unconscious. She gave Trider a thumbs up, so he decided to go towards the mage next.

Just as he arrived the guard was struck with a lightning bolt and he fell to the ground. Wasting no time he charged at the unicorn, but saw him coming and shot another salvo of lightning. Trider however managed to dodge all of them. Seeing how he missed all of his blasts, the mage raised a shield in hopes of stopping him. Trider struck the dome with all his might, but it only made it ripple.

"Ha, nice try." the unicorn mocked. Trider responded by rearing his arm.

"Pentaassault." he mumbled and struck the shield again. This time it broke immediatelly, leaving the mage shocked. Without a pause Trider planted his fist into his gut making him fall over.

"And then there was one." he said and walked over to the wagon. Bullseye was still trying to pierce the dome, but to no avail. "You better surrender."

He stopped when he heard that and turned around. "Well, well if it isn't the wolf lad. Haven't seen you since Trottingham."

"Trottingham?"

"Yeah, don't you remember? You destroy that giant pile of metal all badass like."

"You were there?"

"For sure." the stallion scoffed. "Oh thanks by the way. That pile of junk made the boss stallion super happy."

"Wait! You are the ones who took it?" Trider exclaimed.

"Yeah." Bullseye nodded. He then looked over Trider and smirked. "I guess the fight with the horn head wasn't all that pleasant. Where is the big goon anyway?"

"Dead." The statement made the stallion pause for a second. "Just like half of your little group."

Bullseye looked behind the Kanisar and saw that he was telling the truth. "I see." His expression then turned to one of concern. "Which ones are still alive?" he asked.

"Why do you care?" Trider asked skeptically.

"C'mon man some of those guys are close friends. I'd like to know if any of them survived."

Trider hesitated for a second before he nodded his head towards the two survivors. "That gryphon by the mare and the unicorn who isn't covered in his insides."

"Thank you very much." Bullseye said with a curt bow. He then lifted his crossbow and aimed. At first Trider thought he was going to shoot him, but to his surprise the two bolts flew past him and instead hit the two living bandits.

In a split second Trider grabbed the stallion by his coat and lifted him into the air. "Why did you do that? I thought they were your friends?"

"Friends?" he laughed. "In my profession there are no friends, only those who are useful and liabilities. And they were the latter."

"You're one sick fuck." Trider growled and punched the stallion in the face. "I'm sure you have a special place reserved in hell."

"I take it you're talking about Tartarus." he said as he wiped his mouth. "Why don't we see it for ourselves." All of sudden he jumped up and grabbed Trider by his chest. "Hold tight this will be one hell of a ride." he cackled and clicked his tounge. Suddenly they were both engulfed in a bright red glow, which was followed by an immense explosion.

"You alright Trider?" Charming asked as he stepped closer to the explosion site.

"I'll live." he responded. "All thanks to you." The dust cloud was blown away by the wind and reveald badly battered Kanisar, who encased in curelean aura. "I thought your brother said you didn't know this type of magic."

"I don't know any offensive magic, only defensive. I am a pacifist after all." the prince explained and stopped his flow of magic. "It's too bad I couldn't save him as well. We could've learned who sent him and for what."

"I doubt he would speak."

"True." the stalion said and offered Trider his shoulder. "C'mon lets get you patched up and then we will continue."

"Whatever you say your majesty." Trider mockingly saluted and the two dragged themselves towards their group.

***

Later that day

Charming walked into his room and put his coat onto the hanger. He went to the bathroom to wash his face when he heard the knock on the door.

"Room service."

He shut off the water and wiped his face before he went to open the door. "I'm sorry I didn't order anything." he said.

The mare that stood in front of him had a stunning figure befitting of a model. Her ash grey coat accentuated her even darker grey mane that was tied in a ponytail. She wore a maid uniform, not the skimpy kind, and she pulled a trolley behind her.

"Oh really?" she said in a cute voice, while looking at him with her rose tinted eyes. "This is room 801, right?"

Charming was surprised. "That's right. But I really didn't order anything. I'm sure there was a mix up."

"Are you sure?" the maid's tone suddenly became sweeter, lustful even as she leaned forward into his chest. "Oh who even cares? I'm sure we can make the best out of this. After all," she trailed off as she slowly pushed herself and Charming further into the room, closing the door nehind them. "How could I possibly pass up such a handsome stallion in his prime so easily."

Her hands began to caress the prince's body and he was also starting to sweat. "I-I don't think we should do this." he stammered.

"Why?" the mare said in a heartbroken tone. "Am I that hideous?"

"No, no. You're gorgeous. It's just that-"

He was cut off when she placed a finger on his lips shutting him up. "Then there is no problem." she whispered in his ear. Charming tried to struggle, but for some reason he was unable to. She began to kiss on his cheek and she slowly traveled down towards his neck.

At that point the prince succumbed to his desire and let her do as she wanted. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his neck, as if he was stabbed by somthing. He tried to cry out, but he was unable to. A burning sensation spread across his neck into his body and he slowly couldn't feel any part of it.

He was released from the maid's grasp and he stumbled across the room. He tried to speak up, but no words left his mouth. He slowly began to slip into darkness and the last thing he saw was the maid being engulfed in green flames.

Chapter 36: A Walk Through The Darkness

Sharp pain shot through Charming's head, which woke him up. Slowly he opened his eyes and he was met with darkness which was only slightly illuminated by a few lanterns. He tried to move, but he was unable to do so. Turning his head he saw he chained to a sturdy chair. Immediatelly he remembered what happened last night and he began to struggle.

Seeing it futile he tried to use his magic. He focused the energy into his horn, but he felt that something blocked it. Again and again he tried, but all of his attempts were in vain.

"Hehehehe." His ears suddenly perked when he heard the distant giggling.

"Hello?" he called out into the darkness. "Is somepony there?" He continued to listen for any kind of noise. His breathing was fast and shallow and his eyes darted from one corner of the room he was in to the other. Because he was restarined he had a limited field of vision and he had to rely on his other senses instead.

All of a sudden something grabbed his shoulder and he screamed. Quickly turning his head his eyes fell onto the familiar face of the maid mare he met at the hotel. This tmie however she looked way worse. Her clothes and mane were dirty and she had several bruises on her body. Her clearly out of breath and her eyes were bloodshot.

"Y-you're..." Charming trailed off as he continued to look over the mare.

"Your highness?" the mare said in astonishment. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same." the prince answered, as he narrowed his eyes. "All I know is that I was knocked out and then dragged out of my hotel room to this place. And the last thing I remember was your face." he said the last part with a cold tone.

The mare's eyes widened and she began to vigorously shake her head. "No, no, no. That was not me." she quickly said. "I've been trapped here for a week now."

"By who?" asked Charming.

The mare hesitated to answer, before she leaned closer to his ear and whispered. "Changelings."

It was prince's turn to be wide eyed. "Changelings?" he repeated, to which the mare nodded. "We need to get out of here fast. Can you undo the chains or at least see what is constricting my magic?"

The mare quickly began to pull on the chains, but it was futile. "They're too strong." she gasped. She then stood up and looked at the stallion's horn. "It seems there is some sort of ring around your horn. Do I take it off?"

"Tell me exactly what it looks like." Charming instructed.

The maid took a closer look at the ring before turning back to the prince. "It rather large and black with a red gem in the middle."

"Military grade? How the hell did changelings get their..." he mumbled.

"Should I remove it?" the maid mare asked tentatively.

"No, don't bother. These are the rings that the Royal Guards use. They are specifically made so they can't be removed by anypony else than the one who put it on." Charming explained and began to formulate another plan.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a loud bang, followed by a set of hoofsteps. The prince perked his ears to listen where they came from. As he continued to listen he noted that they were slowly approaching their cell.

"Quick, hide!" he ordered the mare, but she didn't move. Instead her eyes were locked onto the doors that were hidden in the darkness. "Didn't you hear me? I said hide your-!"

He didn't get to finish his warning when the sound of a key being inserted in the keyhole echoed throught the room. With a slow twist the key turned and the door opened. A small amount of light made it's way from the hall, just enough to obscure the two figures. Slowly they advanced into the room and Charming noted that one of them was in a wheelchair, being pushed by the other.

"Oi, what the Tartarus do you think you're doing?" one of the figures said loudly.

"Run!" the prince shouted and began to struggle. "Run or they will get you!"

His struggling was halted when he saw the mare slowly standing up and walking toward the two newcomers. "Aww, nothing much. Just thought I'd have a little fun with him, that's all." she cooed. Charming watched in shock and terror as the mare slowly walked towards the two figures. Around midway she was engulfed in green fire and once she emerged her appearance changed.

"Chrysalis." the prince gasped.

"That's Queen Chrysalis." she corrected him. The two figures began to approach as well and once they were close enough Charming could distinguish them more.

The figure in the wheelchair was slouched and covered in a robe that hid it's face and body, the other one on the other hand...

"You!" the prince exclaimed as he stared at the stallion in disbelief. "You should be dead!"

"Heh, I always hear so much about this Lady Death." Bullseye chuckled. "But she seems to evade me. I guess I really have bad luck with mares."

"Sure. It's just bad luck." Chrysalis rolled her eyes. "It has nothing to do with the fact that you're absolutely horrid when it comes to mares."

"Oh yeah?" he shot her a challenging look. "You didn't seem to complain when you were brought here by the Big M. Thanks to me you too were ignored by Misstress Death."

"I didn't have much choice did I?" she argued back. "I wouldn't have you be food for my hiv even if you were the last stallion on Equis! And stop calling darling by your stupid nicknames. It is disrespectful to him."

"I'll call him however I see fit." he countered and flipped her the bird. They were now so close their snouts touched and they glared at each other with pure hatred.

"Enough!" a ragged voice spoke. The two immediatelly backed off from each other and switched their gazes to the stallion in the chair.

"Yes darling." Chrysalis said with a slight bow.

"Whatever you say boss."

Satisfied with their response the stallion slightly lifted his head so he could look at the prince. "Take me closer to him." Chrysalis quickly took the handles of the wheelchair and pushed him to the captive stallion.

As they got closer Charming could see more and more of the stallion's face and what he saw almost made him throw up. His face and possibly his body looked like it was stricked with a deadly plague. Whatever was left of his mane was either gray or white and his fur as well was no longer the bright blue color it once was and instead it was dull. His entire face looked like it would peel off at any given moment and his eyes were almost completely milky white.

Once they were close enough the stallion lifted his shaking hand and stopped the queen. He looked Charming straight in his eyes and gave him a toothless smile. "Prince Charming Hearts." he said in his ragged voice. "I hope you are satisfied with your accomodations?"

"Who are you? Where am I? Why did you-" his questioning was halted when the stallion pressed a bony finger onto his lips.

"Shhh, shhh. I'm sure you have many questions and if you'll give me some quiet I'll be more than happy to explain everything." The prince looked at him tentaively, but he let him continue nonetheless. "Excellent."

"I guess I should start by introducing myself. It is only appropriate." He placed a hand onto his chest, before he spoke. "I am known by many names, but the one that you and everypony shall soon know is Mastermind." He lifted his hand into the air. "And we are currently located somewhere not even the princesses can get to."

"Why would you bring me here?" Instead of getting an answer he was slapped by the Changeling Queen.

"Didn't he tell you to hold your tounge worm?" she scowled.

"Easy there Chrysalis, we don't want to damage him now do we?" Mastermind scolded the mare.

"Of course, forgive me darling." the mare apologised.

"But she is right though." the stallion said as he looked back to the prince. "Just be quiet and I'll tell you everything you want to know." Charming simply glared at him. "Good, now where were we? Ah yes. The reason why you're here."

"I believe you've already met my associate Bullseye." he pointed towards the stallion that stood near the entrance. "I sent him to retrieve something of value for me and you, oh so, stubbornly refused to give it to him. Because of that the relic is now stored in one of Equestria's most secured vaults." the stallion stated and shook his head. "Before it would've been easy to just simply snag the relic, but now it would be much more difficult. Not impossible, just difficult. And the theft would most certainly gain te attention of both princesses. And that is something I most certainly do not want. And that brings us to you. With your help we will obtain our goal with ease."

"I would never help the likes of you." Charming spat. "And what in the name of Celestia would you want so badly from the cargo that we transported? All of it was either useless or without value."

Mastermind began to wheeze, before he laughed out loud. "You really have no idea what was in your possession do you?" He stopped his laughter and looked at the prince with a serious look. "What I want is something called the Eye of Inferno."

Charming began tried to remember exactly which relic he was talking about. "That one?" he asked in disbelief. "But that thing is absolutley worthless. It has no magical properties or anything. It's just a rock with gibbersih written on it."

"Oh you foolish boy." Mastermind said, placing his hand onto the prince's cheek and giving him a couple of light slaps. "That thing will allow me to obtain power from Tartarus itself. Allowing me to conquer all of Equestria. Nay, the whole Equis." He removed his hand and watched Charming's face contort in fright. He chuckled at his distress. "As for you not wanting to help. You don't have a choice. Soon, with your help we'll bring down all of those who stood in my way."

With a wave of his hand Chrysalis again grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and the two slowly walked over to the exit. Before they left they stopped by Bullseye. "Please prepare him for the ceremony, would you?" Mastermind asked him.

"With absolute pleasure!" the stallion replied, before he closed the door and sealed himself inside with the prince.

"Where to next darling?" Chrysalis asked with a cutesy voice as the two traversed a long hallway.

"First we go see how our little dark mage is doing, then. Afterward I'd like to visit our two subjects to see how they're doing." Mastermind answered in a weak tone.

"As you wish darling." It took them a couple of minutes until they reached another room. The metal doors opened and they entered. In the middle of the room sat the robed mare, her eyes were closed and she seemed to be meditating.

"How are you doing?" the stallion asked. All of a sudden shadow tentacles shot from inside the robe and lunged themselves at the two. Chrysalis immediatelly stepped in front and created a magical shield. The limbs crashed into and ceased their movement.

"Be careful you wench!" the queen hissed. "You almost harmed your master!"

The mare slowly opened her eyes and she stared at the two. One of her eyes was the regular aqua green color, while the other completely green with red irises. The horn around her neck shone in dark purple and green light, humming in a soft tone, almost like it was whispering.

"It's alright Chrysalis." Mastermind calmed the changeling mare. "I'm sure she didn't mean to." His horn glowed in a weak light and he moved the wheelchair closer to the robed mare. "Did you my little mage?"

The mare continued to stare at the stallion as he continued to approach her. After a couple of seconds she blinked and both of her eyes were back to normal. "M-master?" she mumbled. Her face immediatelly turend to one of regret. "I-I am so sorry master, I didn't mean to-"

Her apology was stopped when the stallion placed one of his hands on her shoulders. "It is alright young one. I know you didn't." He turned his gaze towards the walls of the room, observing the numerous inscriptions on them. Most of them were utter gibberish while others resembled equations and poems. If anyone saw the room they'd think it came straight from an asylum.

"How are you feeling? Are the voices still bothering you?" he consoled her, while rubbing her shoulder.

"Yes." she answered and stood up. "But thanks to your guidance I've been able to tune them out and I now have much better control over my magic."

"Good, good. I'm happy to hear that." the stallion said gladly. Their tender moment was interrupted when a hole in space opened up and inside walked Rafel, several Changelings and an armored figure.

"Master." Rafel said in a hissy tone. "The drake has returned." he said with a bow of his head.

"With good news I suppose." Mastermind said in a slightly disdained tone. He looked at the armored dragon with a judgemental glare.

"Cool it boss, I got what you sent me to get." the drake said and pulled out a stone the size of a hand, with weird inscriptions on them. "Plus a little something for the weirdo." He snapped his fingers and the couple of changelings dropped rather large bags onto the floor. One of them opened up and out fell a bloody arm.

"Excellent work." Mastermind praised him. "It looks like you'll have plenty of guinea pigs my little mage. I hope you'll soon get the hang of other 'properties' of your magic."

The mare however didn't pay him much attention, as she walked up to the dragon purple smoke cascading from her eyes. "What did you call me you overgrown lizard?" she asked with a venomous tone.

"Oh I'm sorry I didn't know you were deaf as well. I said you're a weirdo. I mean you keep hearing voices that aren't there and every night you add a new picture to your creepy little gallery." the drake snorted.

Both of them got ready to go at it, but were stopped when Mastermind raised his hand. "That's enough!" he shouted, making both of them stop. "Both of you are acting like children. We are all on the same side here with the same goal."

"Speak for yourself. All I want is the treasures you promised me and payback. I don't care about your stupid conquest at all." the drake rebuted.

"And you shall get them. But be patient." He waved his hand and Chrysalis once again began to push him. "You leave her alone, she needs to practice with the loot you brought, and you put the Eye of Inferno with the others."

"Whatever." the dragon scoffed and walked out. The queen and stallion followed him suit, onwards to their next destination. As they walked Mastermind lifted his hand and they stopped.

"What is it darling?" Chrysalis asked. "This is not where the two-"

"Since we're already here, let's see how the research on the metal golems is going." Mastermind explained. The mare nodded and the two entered another room. This one was filled to the brim with highly advanced research equipment, the kind you'd see in cartoons and sci-fi movies. They went over to one of the scientists that were scattered across the room.

"Good day." Mastermind greeted. The stallion yelped and jumped away from the two. He quickly dropped to the floor and began to shake.

"G-g-good d-day to y-you too s-sir." he stuttered.

"That's master to you." Chrysalis hissed and placed her hoof onto his back pushing him into the ground. "How many times do I have to tell you that."

"You seem rather violent today Chrissy. Is it that time of the month?" the stallion pondered.

"Oh no. It's just that I don't like it when maggots like these don't show you the proper respect you desreve, that is all." She then glared back at the scientist beneath her and scoweled. "They should be thankful that we're keeping them alive."

"That's only because they have some use to us. If they didn't then..." he trailed off as he began to chuckle. Soon he stopped his musing and looked at the stallion too. "Tell me, how is your reverse engineering of the golems going?"

The stallion remained on the floor, too afraid to even lift his head. "I-I'm sorry si-, I mean master, but whoever built these was a true genius. By the rate we are going with we would be finished in about a decade." He cahnced a glance at his captor and saw he was glaring at him. "I-I am truly sorry!"

Mastermind began to massage one of his temples. "I see." he sighed. "Then I guess we have no choice." He waved his hand and the mare backed away from the scientist and pushed her master out the room.

"Why didn't you kill him for his incompetence?" she asked curiously.

"Like I said, we need his kind. They are critical to our plans and we are too far into it to start killing them all for petty things like these." the stallion explained.

"If you say so, then it must be correct." the queen mused. "Now what? Those golems were supposed to play a major part in your scheme?"

"Don't worry. I already know what must be done." They turned a corner and began to approach a rather more regal door. "If our guys can't do it, then it's better to seek out the master. That way even the product isn't half assed."

Chrysalis leaned forward and planted a kiss onto his cheek. "Did I ever say how much I love that cunning mind of yours?"

"Every day." he chuckled. As the two approached the door, the two chageling guards opened them up for them. The room was large and most of it was coverd in plans and schematics. In one corner there was a bed while the rest had work benches and different wardrobes filled with runes and potions. But at the back stood two tall vats and they approached the one on the left.

"Ahhh, I see it's going very nicely." Mastermind mused as he observed a dark mist like glob swim in the middle of the vat. "Do you know how much and energy I put into resurrecting her? All of those bits and pieces that were left of her in that castle, to transform them int what you see before you'"

"It really is wonderful." Chrysalis said and put a hand on the vat. All of a sudden the glob lunged itself towards her hand, but it was stopped by the glass. The mare quickly retracted her hand and warily watched it. "She seems to be rather hostile."

"And that's exactly how I want it to be. Now for the other one." he said and the two turned towards the other vat. "It seems his recovery is at it's end."

"I still don't see what use you would have from him." Chrysalis said tentatively. "From what I can tell he seems more like a burden."

"Are you saying that just because he resembels that wolf guy that defeated you when you attacked Canterlot?" he asked with a grin.

"Partially." she scoffed. "He doesn't seem that strong. Where did you even find him?"

"In Badlands several months ago. The poor lad was on the verge of death if I didn't help him."

"Why did you help him anyway?" she contineud to ask.

"He caught my attention. He was something I never saw before, and if he is anything like this wolf you keep telling me about he might be valueable asset." he explained, his eyes reflecting the light from the vat.

"Still, how do you know he'll even side with us? He could be a goody two shoes, like him."

"I doubt that." he scoffed. "I had his mind be read. We didn't learn much, but from what we got I know he'll help us." A grin stretched across his face. "He is a soldier through and through. He is skilled in what he does and he will do anything if the price is right."

"A mercenary in short." Chrysalis stated bluntly. "So now the question is, what do you have to offer him?"

"Beside the fact that saved his life? Plenty." He turned away from Chrysalis and used his magic to push himself towards one of his benches. "Trust me Chrysalis. He is going to be a very valueable asset to our plans. Now leave and prepare everything for the ceremony."

"As you wish darling." She turned around and walked out of the room. Mastermind looked over the items that were in front of him and smiled.

"A 'very' valueable asset indeed." he said and lifted up a helmet. "Phantom." He pressed a button and the helmet lighted up, displaying a skull on it's surface.

Author's Note

Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, casue I sure did.
On a more important note. This story is nearing a very important milestone, as you can tell, and I had this idea about how I should progress. Basically I was thinking of splitting the whole story into three parts. This one would be part 1. The second part would be like the 3D2Y from One Piece, for those who don't know what that is, it basically means that the story will revolve around the main character and others and how they prepare for future fights. The third part would pick up almost immediatelly after second part and will contain the true end of the story as a whole.
To sum it up, I want you guys to vote whether you'd prefer:
1. The story to be split into three parts.
2. Split into two parts, the training part being separate from the current story.
3. Keep all three parts in same story.
You an vote in the comments below or go to this site to vote. LINK
You have until the milestone chapter(s) is/are published.
Until next time.

Chapter 37: Souleater

All was quiet in the peaceful town of Ponyville. Most of the residents were still sleeping their weekend mornings away. With the exception of one tree house.

"Spike!" Twilight shouted to her faithful assistant who was trying to catch a little more shut eye. "Do you know where we put the bandages?"

"I dunno." the half asleep drake responded. "Did you check the bathroom?"

"Of course." the mare smacked her head. Her horn glowed in purple aura and from upstairs floated down a roll of bandages. "Thanks Spike." She frantically placed it inside a large backpack, before she stood up and looked around. "Alright, next is... Ah yes, sunscreen. You can't possibly leave without it." While she was running around the house gathering her things, Rose and Trider simply watched her.

"Don't you think she's overreacting a bit?" Rose asked as she took a sip from her cup. "I mean we're only leaving for a couple of days and she looks like she's preparing for a month long trip."

"That's just how she's like." Trider answered. "But I do agree that she's going overboard with everything."

"Then why don't you tell her that?"

"I'm going to. In a few minutes, it's so much fun watching her."

Rose smiled and finished her coffee. "Oh good, I thought I was the only one who found it amusing." Both of them chuckled and returned to watching their friend.

"What's with all the ruckus?" another voice wondered. Trider and Rose turned their heads and spotted Dynamism. He hair was messed up since she just woke up.

"Morning Dyna." Trider greeted with a wave of his hand. The mare waved back, before she casted her gaze towards the ensuing chaos Twilight was creating.

"What's she doing?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"She's preparing my stuff for the trip." Trider explained redirecting his gaze back to the librarian.

"Isn't she...?"

"Yup she is." he said with a nod. He then grunted as he stood up and walked over to Twilight. "I guess I should stop her before she decideds to actually come with us." He took a couple of steps closer to the mare, while she was still running around collecting various objects. He extended his hand and placed it on her shoulder, stopping her in her tracks.

"Woah Twi." he exclaimed, making her turn her head towards him. "Don't you think you're overdoing it?" She looked at him with a sharp glare and Trider immediately knew she didn't like what he said.

"Overdoing it?" she repeated, dropping all of the objects that were floating in the air. "OVERDOING IT?!" she screamed this time, making Trider flinch. "Every time you decide to leave Ponyville, to either just go for a stroll or go on one of your hunting trips, you almost always come back completely beaten up and covered in blood. Heck just last month you came back so badly injured that we had to get you to the hospital. And don't even get me started on all of the other times."

As Twilight's rant continued her wings flared open to their full size, giving her appearance of being larger, and she slowly began to push the Kanisar back while pointing a finger directly into his face.

"Did you know that the staff at said hospital have come up with a emergency situation just for you? They call it 'the Trider Protocol'." Her glare lessened as she went into one of her studious modes. "And I'll admit that thanks to it the response time for your emergencies have lessened by a lot, it still makes me embarrassed knowing that out of all the ponies you're the one who spends the most time in the hospital. Even more than Rainbow Dash and she is a certified daremare."

Her glare quickly returned and Trider, as well as the other two mares, could only watch her onslaught. "So if you think that I'm overdoing it, just remember that I have a solid reason to be worried about you. Every time you say that you're leaving I fear that that will be the last time I'll see you." She stopped her breating and her breathing was ragged.

Trider looked at her with bewilderment. He saw a few stray tears fall down her cheeks, so he lifted his hand and wiped them away. "I'm sorry." he said in a whisper. "I didn't know you cared about me so much. I still forget that there are actually people here that care for me." His gaze softened and he pulled Twilight into a small hug. "I understand how you feel Twilight, but fighting is in my nature and I can't just discard it that easily, just like I can't turn a blind eye when somebody is need of help." He broke up their embrace and he put on a mirthful smile. "That's something that you taught me. Are you saying that the wise Twilight Sparkle is wrong?" he asked, before he gasped. "That is blasphemy."

"Is part of your nature to also destroy the mood you create between two ponies?" she said and laughed at her friend. After a couple of seconds her laugh died down and her face became slightly melancholic again. "I know that it's difficult for you to just walk away when there is somepony who wishes to fight you and I accept that. But at least try to think about yourself as well. Don't just go and throw your life away."

Trider smiled and placed a hand onto her head. "I'll try." he assured her. He rubbed her head and Twilight revel in the sensation. Her enjoyment was broken when she noticed how the other two mares looked at her with bemused expressions. She hesitantly pulled away and cleared her throat. "Anyway, I am adamant that you take everything that I prepared for you." she decisively stated, with a blush on her face.

Trider was hesitant, as he rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah about that. I'll take it, but..." He reached inside the bag and pulled out a small bottle. "Do I really need some of these items? I mean what the hell am I even going to do with sunscreen in the middle of autumn?"

Twilight looked at the bottle and chuckled. "Okay, maybe I did go overboard just a tad bit." Suddenly her horn glowed and all the items inside flew out and hovered in the air. "Just give me a minute to sort through it all and then you may leave."

Trider went back to his previous sitting position next to Rose and went back to watching his friend prepare for his departure.

***

"Mangez-vous des poneys?" the little colt asked as he and another younger filly jumped around the annoyed Kanisar. "Ou préférez-vous les griffons?"

"Like I said the last thousand times." Trider spoke through his forced smile. "I do not speak baguette!!!" His expression made both of the foals back away slightly. But their fear was soon overturned by their laughter.

"Tu as un drôle de visage." the filly laughed. Both of the children then tried to copy how Trider looked and went back to their parents who were riding the large carriage. While they were busy showing off to them, Rose walked up to the Kanisar and smiled.

"You certainly know how to deal with children." she spoke, while Trider corrected his rather large backpack. "If only you had the same amount of patience and tolerance towards others."

"The others aren't young kids who have no idea how the world works." he shot back. "If an adult were to act the same way towards me as those children did, they would receive a large portion of knuckle sandwiches."

For couple of minutes they walked in silence, before Rose leaned in closer to Trider. "I really am thankful that you agreed to come with me."

Trider glanced at her and scoffed. "Don't mention it. I couldn't just let you take on this task all by yourself. Although I'm curious why you decided to take me and not anyone else?"

"Let's just say I have my reasons." she said with a playful smile. Trider just shook his head and they focused back onto the road in front of them. After a while Rose broke off from Trider and went over to the carriage.

"Combien de temps avons-nous jusqu'à ce que nous atteignons la ville?" the older mare on the wagon asked.

"Pas longtemps." Rose quickly responded. "Nous devons juste passer la forêt devant nous et nous l'atteindrons." The two older ponies were satisfied with the answer so Rose decided to head back up front.

"Where did you learn to speak that language?" Trider asked once she joined up with him.

"My parents both wanted me to learn other languages than just plain old Equestrian, so I decided to pick on a few more."

Trider looked at her and cockde an eyebrow. "A few? How many do you know?"

"8 in total."

He whistled at her response. "Damn girl. Hot and smart. The holy combo."

"Merci beaucoup vous n'êtes pas trop mal vous-même."

"I got none of that, but I am certain you were praising me, so thank you." They chuckled at their exchange. For the next fifteen minutes they had idle chat with one another and every once in a while they'd be interrupted by one of the foals who wanted to ask Trider something. Eventually they reached the forest that was enveloped in a thick fog.

Trider looked over to Rose and gave her a skeptical look. "You sure this is the right way. Cause I feel like we just entered a horror movie and we're clearly not the killers here. Well psychopathic killers at least."

"Is the big bad wolf afraid of a little moisture in the air and a dense population of trees?" Rose mockingly said, which made Trider's nerves twitch.

"Not afraid, just cautious."

"Whatever floats your boat." Rose snipped and walked in front of him.

"Le loup est un lâche." one of the foals shouted from the carriage.

Trider grumbled as he began to follow Rose into the woods. "Where is a black guy when you need him?"

***

Half an hour passed since they entered the forest and they were all on edge. "I'm telling you we're lost." Trider sighed in exasperation.

Rose didn't turn her gaze from the map that was in her hand. "And I'm telling you we're not. I know where we're going." she argued back.

"I can't believe it. You see this? This is the reason why the belief that women are bad at navigating actually exists."

"Oh this coming from you. You couldn't find your way in a shop with a single aisle." she countered back. Their arguing began to escalate and they stopped, as did the carriage.

"Qu'est-ce qu'ils se disputent à propos de?" asked the stallion.

"Oh, c'est juste une querelle d'amoureux." the mare answered as they continued to watch the two go at each other. Their arguing was stopped when a blodd chilling shriek sounded off.

"What was that?" Trider asked, his hands raised, ready to fight.

"I don't know." Rose answered, her sword also drawn. "But we should hurry." She turned to the carriage and quickly spoke. "Dépêchez-vous. Nous devons partir immédiatement." The stallion nodded his head and made the wagon travel faster.

They didn't travel even a dozen feet when the ground suddenly shook. They turned their heads towards where the shaking originated and their eyes widened at what they saw.

Not even a hundred feet away from them stood a large beast. It was huge, easily as big as a small house and it's entire body was covered in black needle like fur, with the exception of it's face, which was covered by bone like substance, which reminded them of a skull. It's large and long front legs bent at an unusual angle further adding to it's alien and horrific appearance. Two long tails swished behind it, looking like two snakes.

"What. The fuck. Is that?" Trider whispered as he slowly leaned closer to Rose.

Everyone watched as the creatures violet eyes continued to stare at them unmoving. "I don't know." she whispered back.

All of sudden the creature lifted it's head, opened it mouth, revealing a set of long and sharp teeth, and unleashing another terrifying scream. "COURIR!!!" the mare shouted and they all booked it as fast as they could.

The monster reacted to their fleeing by beginning to chase after them. "Oh it's just a foggy forest Trider, what's the worst that could happen here?" Trider mockingly imitated Rose as they continued to flee.

"Oh shut it and run." she snipped back. Even though they ran at their top speed the creature, due to it's large size, was quickly gaining up on them. Trider and Rose immediately realized they had no chance of outrunning it.

"Take the carriage as far away from here as you can." the Kanisar said to the mare.

"Trider no!" Rose quickly argued. "You are not fighting that thing. We are not sure what it is and what it can do. Besides you promised Twilight that you won't jump into danger."

"And I won't. I'll just make it chase after me, while you make your escape." Trider explained. "Once we're far enough I'll shake it off and I'll reunite with by following your scent."

Rose tried to argue, but she knwe that what he said was the most logical solution they had, since he was the only one who had the means of escaping the creature.

"All right. Just make sure you make it back in one piece." Trider nodded and he broke off from the group.

"Hey fucker!" he shouted and shot a Ki blast at it, gaining it's full attention. "Bet ya can't catch me!" The creature roared and turned towards the Kanisar, determined to catch him.

"Good luck." Rose thought, as she turned her focus on getting away. The rest of the group continued to run, until they stumbled onto what appeared to be a wall.

"Halt who goes there!" a voice shouted. The group stopped just close enough that they could make out the dim lights of torches and shadows of ponies.

"My name is Rose Blade, Captain of the Royal Guards and I am escorting some merchants who asked for my assistance in guiding them to Kobenhooven." she answered. The ponies conversed between each other for a little while, before they stepped out of the fog and showed themselves to them.

"Our apologies Captain." the two guards saluted. "We didn't mean to be so coarse ma'am. We were just careful."

"Does that have anything to do with the monster we met in the forest?" she asked bluntly as she and the carriage passed through the door in the wall.

The guards's eyes widened. "You encountered it?" one of them asked in disbelief.

"We did." she sighed. "If you don't mind, could sompony escort me to the commanding officer of this town so I can have an in depth conversation about the situation?"

"Most certainly." One of the guards walked in front of her and she quietly followed him.

"Oh yeah, before I forget." she stopped and turned around. "There was another guard with us, but we got separated when we decided he should lead the monster away from us. So I would like to ask you to lead him to us once he arrives."

"'If' he arrives." the guard said, which earned him a wrathful glare from the mare. The guard fumbled as he tried to compose himself. "S-so what does he look like?" he stuttered. "Y'know so I can immediately send him your way once he comes."

"You won't miss him." Rose said and turned around. "He is a furless wolf like pony with an extremely bad attitude. I'm certain you'll know it."

The guards face turned to one of confusion as he processed what the mare told him. Meanwhile Rose and the other guard made their way into the town. They were greeted by the sight of empty streets. They soon reached their destination and they entered the building. They climbed several staircases until they reached the door to the Captain's office.

"Wait here." the guard said and knocked on the door. He entered and Rose in the mean time waited to be called in. After a couple of seconds the doors opened again and the guard walked out. "The Captain will see you now." he said and walked off, back to his post.

Rose composed herself, before she entered the room. She was greeted with the stench of cigarette smoke. "Welcome Rose, it's so good to see you again." Rose turned her gaze to the magenta mare that sat in the chair. Her short purple mane was tied in a bun on top of her head, while parts of it ran down her head.

"Likewise Jubilee." Rose greeted back. "You still like to endulge yourself with that awful habit of yours I see."

"Every mare has her weakness." Jubilee shrugged as she extinguished her cigarette in the ashtray. "Anyway what brings you to our little Kobenhooven?" she asked.

"I was just escorting a couple of merchants here." Rose explained. "All was going smoothly, until we encountered 'it'."

Jubilee stared at her with a disdained look. She then reached inside of her coat and pulled out a pack. She picked out one of the cigarettes and lighted it with a lighter. She took in a deep breath and then she exhaled.

"I see." she sighed and took another puff. "I just hope you made it out unscathed."

"We did thanks to Trider. If he didn't lead the monster away I'm not sure we'd be here talking right now."

Jubilee's ears perked at the sound of the Kanisar's name. "Trider?" she repeated, slightly surprised. "As in Trider, the guy who the princesses were in an uproar for a while? The one who saved Canterlot during Changeling invasion and the one who almost destroyed Crystal Empire?"

"The same."

Jubilee's mouth twisted into a cocky grin and she shot Rose a bemused look. "Oh my Rose I knew you had hots for him, but you really are desperate if you decided to bring him along. Just you and him. Who knows what might happen?"

Rose's cheeks turned red, but she managed to keep her composure. "I do not know what you speak of." she said in a defending tone. "Besides I didn't come here to talk about my private life."

"I know, I know. I just like to gossip." the mare chuckled, before her expression turned serious. "You said that you two divided and he was leading the monster away. Right?" Rose nodded. "Are you sure he'll be alright?"

Rose smiled and her expression remained calm. "I have seen Trider undergo ordeals that would kill anypony else. One monster is nothing major for him."

"If half the things I heard about him is true, then I'm sure he's fine as well." Finished with her cigar, she placed it into the ashtray and began to reach inside the coat to grab another. "However I also have doubts. If it were any other creature then I'd be certain of his safety. But..." she trailed off, leaving Rose worried.

"But what?" she asked, wanting to know what she knew.

"Well you see-" Jubilee was ready to light her cigarette when they were interrupted by a guard walking inside.

"Captain Jubilee." he said timidly. The mare sighed loudly and placed the lighter and cigar onto her desk.

"What did I say about entering without knocking?" she said in a cold tone, which made the guard gulp.

"I-I'm s-sorry, but-" he was interrupted when somebody grabbed him by the shoulder from behind.

"Out of the way small fry." the person said and forced his way inside. Rose immediately knew who the voice belonged to and she rose from her chair to greet him.

"Trider, you made it ba-" she didn't get to finish her sentence as the sight before her made her lose all of her words.

She was expecting to see her short slim friend, but what she saw was far from it. In front of her stood a person who looked exactly like Trider, but at the same time was very different. His hair was now so long it fell over his shoulder and it's tips were slightly grey, he also sported a beard of same color. He was now also a lot taller. Before the two of them were at almost the same height, but now he stood well over her. And his once skinny arms and body were now well toned and clearly showed his impeccable strength.

"Heya Rose." he said with a wave, as he entered the room. "I've been looking all over for ya." Rose couldn't respond, as her jaw was wide open and her eyes just stared at her friend. "Rose?" Trider asked and snapped his fingers in front of her.

The mare snapped out of her daze and she blinked a few times. "Trider?" she asked astonished.

"The one and the same." he said proudly.

"What happened to you?"

"Don't know?" he shrugged. "I was trying to lead the monster away from you guys and I was successful in doing so, but after a while it managed to catch up to me and we had a little clash, but got out scott-free."

"Scott-free my-" Rose didn't finish her sentence instead she took a deep breath to calm herself. "Did you even look at yourself before you got here?"

"I did and I'm telling you that the creature barely even scratched me." he countered. "I don't know what the fuck's going on."

While the two of them squabbled, Jubilee lit her cigarette and began to ponder. "I see." she mumbled. "I think I know what happened to you."

Her statement stopped their bickering and they turned their attention towards her. "You do?" they asked simultaneously.

"I do. But if you want to know it, then stop arguing like an old married couple and sit your asses down." she barked, while shotting a glare at both of them. The two quietly sat down and casted their gaze at the mare, signaling her she had their full attention.

"Good." she said, taking another puff. "This monster appeared near Kobenhooven about a week ago and just in that time it has attacked nearly anypony that either came into or left the town. Because of that the ponies are too terrified to even leave their homes."

"Didn't you send anyone in to take care of it?" Trider asked.

"I did." Jubilee sighed. "You have three guesses how that went." Rose and Trider exchanged worried glances, as they could assume what happened. "After that failed, I wanted to contact the main branch of the Royal Guards in Canterlot, but decided against it."

"Why?" Rose questioned.

"We knew nothing about it and sending more could either bare success or failure, and I don't like to gamble with lives." the mare explained. She took out her cigar and held it between her fingers, staring at it absentmindedly. "So instead I decided to observe it before we acted. If we could learn even the tiniest detail about it, we could use it in our favor."

"Found out anything?"

"I did." she replied with vigor. She placed the cigarette back into her mouth and she clased her hands. "From what we observed we have come to a conclusion that this monster is actually a demon."

Rose jumped out of her chair and she slammed her hands onto the desk. "A demon?!" she exclaimed, looking at Jubilee with wide eyes.

Trider wasn't sure why she reacted the way she did, so he decided to ask. "What's a demon?"

Rose calmed down slightly, as she looked at her friend and she sat down. "A demon." she started with a scared voice. "Is a being from Tartarus. They are creatures that we have no idea about, since nopony is dumb enough to go into Tartarus to study them. But despite lack of knowledge, there is one thing that we ponies are absolutely certain about." She stopped to take a short breath, before she continued. "At any point in time that a demon shows up, it is followed by a great calamity."

"What are we standing around then for?" Trider said and stood from his chair. "I'm sure that if we can stop it right now we can prevent it from sending Equestria into chaos."

"Didn't you hear what I said?" Rose immediately responded. "I said they are creatures that we know nothing about. And just look what it did to you."

"It made me more badass. Is that really that bad?"

"Yes! No! Maybe? Arghhh." Rose became frustrated and she started to bite her nails.

"Actually I think I know what it can do." Jubilee interjected. The other two looked at her, expecting her to explain. "Trider is not the only one who managed to escape the demon's grasp."

"What happened to them?"

"They became old." she stated bluntly. "I even witnessed it first hand when one of our scouts was captured by it and he aged drastically right in front of my eyes, until he turned to ash. At frist I thought it was capable of draining magic from other beings, but now I know it is not so."

"Why do you think so?" Rose asked.

"Because of him." Jubilee said and pointed a finger at Trider.

"Me?" Trider questioned, pointing a finger at himself as well.

The mare nodded her head sagely. "Yes. I have read files on you alien and one thing that caught my eye is that you posses no magic." As soon as she said that the other two realized what she getting at. "That's right. If Trider, who has no magic, suffered the same fate as those other ponies then it can't be draining out magic."

"So if it's not magic," Rose wondered, placing a finger onto the tip of her chin. "Then what is it taking from ponies to make them age rapidly?"

"It's simple." Jubilee stated, a cocky grin now on her face. "What we have here my dear is a Souleater. I think the name's pretty self explanatory."

Rose and Trider nodded their heads, telling the mare that knew what she was saying. "So what do we do now?"

"I say we find it and beat it to a pulp." Trider said, expressing his intent by slamming his fist into his hand. "I don't wanna be stuck as an old man forever."

"Old man?" Rose scoffed. "Please Trider, you're barely over thirty by my estimate."

Trider gave her and unamused look, before he lifted his shirt exposing his well toned stomach. "You see this." he said and pointed toward a large black weirdly shaped mark that covered most of his stomach.

"I do. And?" Rose wondered, with slightly red cheeks.

"This here is what my kind calls Ancient's mark." he stated, with slight pride. Rose said nothing, but instead she rolled her hand, telling him to just get on with it. "And we only obtain this mark once we are fifty years old."

"Fifty?!" both of the mares shouted. They looked at him to see if he was joking with them, but saw no sign of it.

"How in the name of sweet Celestia can you be fifty?" Rose asked astonished. "You haven't changed that much from how you looked before."

"We Kanisar are a warrior race and so in order to fight for as long as we can, our bodies evolved in such a way that our bodies don't age the same way you ponies or other races do. We maintain our youthfullness almost to the point until we die." he explained. Both of them were shocked from his revelation and it took them several seconds, before they spoke up.

"You mind if I snag him away." Jubilee whispered into Rose's ears. "I mean just look at him." she purred.

Rose shot her a short glare, before she turned back to Trider. "Even so Trider, how can we take down something we can't even touch?"

"Simple." he said with a smile. "We just avoid touching it."

***

"This is stupid." Jubilee said as she, a few other guards, Rose and Trider hid behind a large rock formation, as they waited for the demon to show up.

"Actually, this might one of Trider's more brilliant plans." Rose defended her friend.

"Really? How is blast the monster to smithereens a better plan?" she seethed.

"Well, he would usually suggest to punch and kick it until it can no longer move." Jubilee stared at Rose, then she switched to Trider. After just a glance she sighed and she planted her palm onto her face.

"Great." she grumbled, before turning to her soldiers. "Alright listen up. When we encounter the monster I want all of you to give it your best and should things start to go south, I want you to beat it. No ifs, buts or whats. Just run. Unserstood?"

"Yes ma'am." they all saluted in unison.

"Keep it down." Trider hissed as he dropped down. "It's here." Rose and Jubilee both peeked from behind the stone and saw that the demon was in fact there, just several feet away from them.

"Alright." Jubilee said and went back behind the rock. "On the count of three you all jump out and wail at it."

"And what are going to do?" Trider asked.

"Well since I'm not a unicorn and I specialise in covert operations, where weapons like bows and such are not really all that useful, I think I'm going to just sit this one out." Jubilee explained. Trider accepted her explanation and got into position, like the rest of the guards.

"One." the mare started her countdown. "Two." Trider and the other ponies tensed, ready to jump and show the demon what hell is really like. "Three!" Like springs they all jumped out of their cover their released their blasts.

The barrage of projectiles hit the demon directly and it's pained wails echoed through the forest. Everyone relaxed seeing as their attack was a success.

"What are you idiots doing?" Jubilee suddenly shouted. "Don't stop until you've either ran out or have 100% confirmed the fucker's dead!"

Her warning came a little too late however. Out of the cloud the creature leaped towards them with tremendous speed. Seeing it approaching they prepared another round for the demon. This time however it managed to evade all of their attacks and it quickly began to close the distance between them.

"It's too fast." one of the guards shouted.

"Retreat!" Jubilee screamed, but it was too late. The demon reached them and snagged one of the guards. Everyone else watched as the mare's body began to age until she became wrinkly.

"Let her go!" one of the guards roared and blasted it. The demon released her, but she turned to ash before she could even reach the ground. Seeing this they all lost their will to fight and they started to run.

Trider however glared at the demon, his eyes filled with anger. "That's it!" he said and transformed. The demon paused for a minute, before it turned towards the Kanisar, watching him intently. "Let's see how you handle this!" He charged his hand with Ki, until a large sphere of energy formed. "Howling Nova Sphere!" He blasted his attack at the demon, while it just stood still.

Trider watched in triumph as the orb connected with the creature, but instead of a big explosion the sphere was absorbed into the demon. Flabergasted he didn't know what had happened and could only stare. The demon however took it's chance and lunged itself at the Kanisar.

Trider broke out of his stupor just in time to avoid the creature, trying to grab him. But while he dodged the grab, he was still hit by it's massive arm and was knocked out of the sky. He hit the ground hard and before he had time to recover, the demon landed on top of him and picked him up.

He could feel his energy being sucked out of him and he knew that if he didn't act soon he'd be a pile of ashes very soon. He tried to break out of it's grasp, but it proved to be a challenge even for him. Suddenly the demon cried out in pain as five bright red swords stuck themselves into it's arm. It released Trider and he quickly flew out of it's reach.

"You alright?" Rose asked as he landed next to the mare.

"I'll be fine, but that fucker managed to suck a couple more years out of me." he sighed. He looked behind himself to see if the demon was coming after him, but he saw that he was preoccupied by the other guards who were drawing it's attention by hitting it and running away.

"What happened out there?" Jubilee asked, as she appeared out of nowhere.

"I don't know." Trider said. "I don't know why my attack didn't work."

Rose looked between the Kanisar and the demon, as she thought over something that she remembered. "Trider." she spoke, getting his attention. "Didn't you say that Ki was made out of one's strength, vigor, bravery and such and it manifests itself in the form of energy?" He nodded to her explanation and she snapped her fingers as she figured out what had happened. "So wouldn't that mean that your Ki attacks are made out of your soul? And since that demon feeds on souls..."

"It means I can't do jack shit to it." he groaned at the realization. "Well just great, I'm as useless as Jubilee." He received a firm smack to the back of his head from the mare for his remark and he smiled sheepishly. "Heh, no offense."

"What now?" Jubilee asked in an anguished tone. "We just lost, what I believe is our heavy hitter, and none of our magic attacks seem to do any real damage to it."

"I may have something that might work." Rose spoke up. "The problem is that it will take some time to prepare it and there is also the problem of the demon dodging it."

Trider silently stood up and began to walk towards the demon. "Don't worry I'll take care of that." he announced.

"And what exactly do you plan on doing?" Jubilee wondered. "You can't touch it without having your soul taken and your Ki blasts are less than useless." she berated him.

The Kanisar said nothing, instead he jumped into the air and he soared towards the demon. The two mares watched him leave and Jubilee turned toward Rose. "Is he insane?"

"No. If there is one thing I can say for absolute certain when it comes to Trider, is that he always comes through when you need him the most." she said and focused her magic. Her sword broke into five pieces and they started to circle her.

"As the flow of crimson river, my strikes are calm and fierce. All those who dare to challenge me, I shall pierce." she began to chant and the swords started to spin even faster.

Meanwhile Trider tackled the demon away from one of the guards and he delivered several powerful strikes. Once he was finished he jumped away to create some distance. The demon shook it's head from the impact and roared at the Kanisar. Trider smirked and pointed a thumb at himself. "It's just you and me ugly." The demon shrieked and lunged at him.

"My sword is sharp and my hand is steady, so with determination I am ready."

As Rose continued to chant the incantation, Trider continued to occupy the demon to the best of his abilities. He used the run and hit tactic the guards were using before, but it only seemed to make the creature angrier. Suddenly it opened it maw and shot a large beam at the Kanisar.

"Woah shit." he shouted, just barely avoiding it. The demon took the chance and tried to grab him, but Trider managed to dodge it again. He glanced toward Rose and saw that the swords formed a small fiery red torando around the mare and he could sense she was close.

"Time to wrap it up." he said with determination and clenched his fists. With a roar he jumped at the demon and with two powerful blows he made it lose it's balance, by striking it's two huge arms. The demon hit the ground hard and was already getting up, but Trider quickly reacted and grabbed it around it's neck, pinning down on the ground.

His body began to change and wrinkles began to form on his face. "Anytime Rose!" he shouted to the mare.

"To bring down all the evils of this world. So blades heed my word and do as you're told!" The blades stopped spinning around the mare and were now positioned in a front of her, with their handles to Rose and with blades pointed toward the demon and Trider, forming a circle.

"Sakura Sword Style: Divine Crimson Flash!!!" she screamed and the blades burst with power. Inside the circle of swords formed a large mass of magic and as soon as it was released it blasted a large crimson beam at the creature.

Trider and the demon watched as the blast approached them at lightning speed and at the last possible second, the Kanisar jumped away, leaving the demon to it's fate. It shrieked as the blast tore it apart into oblivion. It took a couple of seconds for the blast to completely disappear and what it left in it's wake was a long and wide crater that seemed to stretch for miles.

Rose dropped to the ground panting, so Jubilee walked over to her and helped her up. "Girl, remind me why you didn't become a Captain as soon as ouy entered the Academy?" she asked in a mirthful tone.

Rose chuckled at her question. "As soon as you remind me why you still haven't found yourself a special somepony?"

"Low blow." They laughed at their exchange and began to head towards where Trider was. When they got close they saw him lying on the ground, his body now looking like an old man. They began to worry they were too late, but slowly and surely his body began to turn youthful. In just a few seconds he was back to his normal self, and Rose sighed in relief.

"Awww." Jubilee moaned and Rose looked at her with a confused look. "He was so hot before, now he just looks like a teenager with an attitude problem."

Rose snickered at her comparison. "True. But I still think he's hot." she responded and smiled.

Author's Note

2 left.

Chapter 38: Chasing a Ghost

"Achoooo!"

The sneeze slightly scared the guard mare that was walking along side Trider and she gave him a slightly annoyed look. "Bless you." she said.

"Thanks." he replied wiping his nose with his hand. Their exchange was brief and they immediatelly returned back to their duty of patrolling the hallways of the giant palace.

Today Trider had the pleasure of guarding the Canterlot castle while both princesses were away on some royal business. Thankfully it was only for today.

"Hey where is the bathroom?" he asked his partner.

"You're currently on duty, so act like it!!!" she berated him before picking up the pace.

"It must hurt having that stick in your ass all the time!" he shot back, before following her.

Unbeknownst to them and the rest of the ponies in the castle, a large figure observed from atop a roof of one of nearby buildings. He brought down his binoculars, revealing his ashen green eyes that seemed to be devoid of any emotion. He reached inside one of the pockets of his grey armour and pulled out a small pink crystal.

"Phantom to Mastermind, I'm in position." he mumbled into it. The crystal glowed in sequence to the voice from the other side.

"Good." the stallion on the other side of the communication said. "Proceed as planned and remember, do not raise suspicion." With that said the crystal stopped glowing.

Phantom harrumphed and crushed the crystal in his hand. He slowly stood up and put away the binoculars. "Employers don't change no matter the world, huh?" He lifted his balck helmet and raised it to eye level.

He could see the reflection of his scarred and older than he actually was face. His graying hair was pulled back into a long ponytail that reached the middle of his back. He wore a bandana on his forehead that hid a large wound that was only slightly visible, from the beneath the cloth.

"Show time." he thought and put the helmet on his head. Once it was in place he flipped a small switch on the side of it. Lights illuminated his visor, creating the image of a skull.

He pushed a few buttons on his wrist, before turning his gaze back to the palace. He watched as pegasus guards flew across the sky, watching out for any intruders. Phantom reached down and pulled out a shingle. He threw it at one part of the wall where it exploded on impact. The sound drew the attention of every guard and as they went to see what happened, Phantom aimed his fist at the tall wall.

A small metal arrow shot from the bracelets on his wrists, dragging along a thin metal wire. The arrow flew until it hit the wall and it embedded itself into the stone. Phantom tugged a couple of times to see it it was solid and seeing it was, he took a small step back before he swung across.

He smashed into the wall, but he barely flinched from the impact. He quickly began to climb up, by smashing small holes into the wall so he could get a grip. On the way he picked up the arrow and in just a few seconds he was over the wall. Once he reached the top he without hesitation jumped down onto the ground which was several feet below.

He grunted when he hit it, but he immediately recovered. He quickly hid in a bush and began to observe his surroudings. He saw several guards patrolling the vicinity and a couple more in the sky. He rached for his bracelet again and pressed another button. His armor began to change colors until he completely blended in with the environment.

He slowly stepped out of the bush and ran over to a tree that was nearby. Although he was camoflauged, it didn't mean he was invisible. If he stood still not even the most skilled soldier would be able to spot him, but when he moved the suit warped the the light around him, giving the appearance of a disturbed water surface. Slowly but surely he made his way over to the entrance to the palace and once he was within reach he sneaked in through the window.

Once inside he pulled out a sheet of paper and looked at it. "This way." he mumbled and headed down one of many hallways. He managed to avoid all of the guards and castle personnel. He was about to round another corner when he saw another two guards approaching. He pushed his body against the wall and remained as still as he could.

"I told you it was the second door on the right!" the female guard shouted. "I didn't think it was possible to get lost in a castle, where nearly every door and hallway is properly marked, but you proved me wrong."

"Well so-rry, I can't help it if everything looks the fucking same." replied the other guard, this one clearly male.

Phantom prepared himself in case he had to get violent. After a couple of seconds the two guards came around the corner and passed by him. One of them was a unicorn mare with blonde mane and light green coat. But what caught Phantom's attention however was the other guard.

He wasn't a pony, instead he looked a lot like a human, with the exception of having wolf ears on top of his head and a tail. Phantom observed him closely, as he remembered that Mastermind told him about the alien.

"So that's him huh?" he wondered. All of a sudden Trider stopped and began to turn his head. His ears twitched and Phantom began to sweat under his armor.

"What's the matter with you?" the mare asked the Kanisar aggravated. Trider didn't respond, instead he took a deep snif and turned his head to where Phantom was standing. The two, unbeknownst to Trider, locked eyes and the man began to slowly reach to one of the handles on his belt.

Trider stared at the spot where Phantom stood for a couple more seconds, before he turned around and began to walk again. "Nothing, it must've been my imagination." The two strolled down the hallway, slowly distancing themselves from the invisible man.

Once they were far enough Phantom released the breath he was holding. "Close."he mumbled, before walking around the corner and down another hallway. He wandered the palace for a several more minutes, before he found himself in front of a heavily guarded steel doors.

"Seven huh." he said above a whisper. He reached inside one of his pouches and took out three small metal balls. He threw them from behind the corner and they tinked across the marble floor.

The guards looked at the marble like things, before they stopped. One of them stepped forward to inspect what they were before they opened up and released a cloud of smoke. They coughed violently as the smoke filled the hallway and Phantom immediately jumped into action.

He took out the two handles and with a click two medium long blades jumped out of them. He soon reached one of the guards and with one swift swing he slashed through her armor, killing her instantly. Not wasting any time he lunged at another guard piercing him through the heart.

The guards realized what was happening and the pegasi extended their wings and blew the smoke away. Now exposed Phantom stared at the guards that stood in front of him and they glared back.

"Surrender or we will-" The guard didn't get to finish his sentence, as Phantom instantly closed the distance between them and crossed his blades. With a single movement he pulled his swords like scissors and decapitated the stallion.

The guards waatched in horror as the head of their comrade hit the floor, before the body followed suit. Phantom slowly turned towards them, unfazed by what he did. "Next?"

Suddenly all of the guards jumped him hoping to take advantage of numbers. Phantom expertly avoided their attacks while trying to land a few blows himself. One of the guards swung his sword at him and he blocked with his own. In the corner of his eye he saw that one of the pegasi was trying to dive bomb him, so he quickly dropped his blade, making the guard stumble, kicking him away and then jumping out of the mare's way. But while she flew by him, he drew his other blade and cut through one of her wings.

She fell to the floor and screamed in agony. "Prim!" another guard shouted, before tackling the intruder. Phantom struggled against him both of them trying to overpower the other. While they were struggling with each other another guard tried to sneak behind the man in hopes of surprising him.

Phantom, however, spotted him and mustered up more of his strength. He increased his grip, pulling the guard toward him and then throwing him at the other one. The two clashed and fell to the floor. Phantom raised his sword and swung it down.

Before it could reach it's target however, a blast of magic hit his sword and he dropped it. Looking toward the source he saw a unicorn guard pointing his glowing hand at him.

"Put your hands up and get on your knees!" he shouted. Phantom continued to look at him, before he began to slowly raise his hands and he put them behind his head. "That's right,nice and easy." the guard continued to prompt him, but he failed to realize that the man was fumbling with one of his bracelets behind his head. "Now get down on your knees!"

Phantom however quickly brought his hands back forward and the guard shot his blast. The attack grazed the man's shoulder, but he still managed to aim his hand and press a button on his glove. An arrow shot from his wrist and it hit the stallion directly in the throat. The guard grabbed his throat and began to gurgle, choking on his blood.

Phantom heard someone approaching him from behind and he quickly turned, blocking another guard's attack. With one swift motion he wrapped the wire around his arm, before jumping behind him, pulling his arm along and binding him. He then pulled on the wire and pulled the arrow out from the stallion throat, spletteing the blood across the walls.

He then procceded to wrap the rest of the wire around the throat of the guard he ahd in his grasp. He began to pull more and more, slowly choking him.

He was suddenly interrupted, when another guard swung his dagger at him. He successfully dodged his assault and placed the wires so he had one hand free. He kicked one of his swords into his hand and he impaled the guard onto the wall.

He tried to focus on the guard in his grasp, but he heard a faint thwip. He quickly turned around, just in time to use the stallions body as a shield for the arrow that was about to hit him. He watched as his body began to disintigrate in front of him, leaving staring at the mare, whose wing he cut before. She held a longbow in her arms, an arrow already in it.

"This is for my friends you bitch." she cried out and released the arrow. Phantom however didn't dodge it, instead he caught it out of the air. The mare stared at the man, her eyes wide from fear. He took a step forward and began to slowly approach her. She tried to run, but the only way to escape was behind Phantom.

She moved back as much as she could until she hit the metal door she was guarding. "Stay away!" she cried, as she watched the skullfaced man approach her. He soon reached her and he looked into her teary eyes.

"Nothing personal kid." he said softy. The mare stared at his helmet helplessly, when she suddenly fel a sharp pain in her stomach. She looked down and saw blood where the blade from his wrist protruded. She gazed back at his face and tried to speak, but she had no energy left and as darkness enveloped her vision, she fell to the floor.

Phantom stepped away from her corpsea dn he picked up his weapons. When he was done he approached the door and inspected it. "Now then, how did he say to open it again?" he muttered to himself, as he tried to open it.

Suddenly all of his instincts went off and just in the nick of time he avoided a fist that slammed into the door, creating a dent in it. Reacting quickly he spun his body around and tried to deliver a kick to his assailant's gut. But he was stopped when his leg was grabbed before it could connect.

"Heh, I knew I smelled something rotten back then." Trider spoke and glared at Phantom. "I just wish I'd realize it sooned." The armored man reached for one of his blades and slashed at the Kanisar's face.

Trider quickly released his leg as to avoid the sword that swished inches away from his face. Phantom took advantage of that and kicked him away from himself. Trider quickly picked himself up and the two were now facing off against each other.

"Who are you and why are you here?" the Kanisar asked.

"My name's Phantom and that's all you're getting out of me." the man responded.

"We'll see about that."

Trider dug his feet into the ground as he propelled himself at the man at blinding speed. Phantom however sidestepped his charge and swung his blade down, intent to cut his head off. Trider however focused his Ki into the palm of his hands and used them to propel himself in the opposite direction.

The blade struck the ground and created a large slash mark in it. Before he had a chance to draw it back Trider balsted him with another Ki attack and the impact made Phantom release his grasp on his blade. He slightly stumbled from the force of the blast, but he quickly regained his senses.

He pulled out his other blade, prepared for another clash. Suddenly sounds of hoofsteps echoed thorughout the castle and Trider smiled victoriously.

"The cavalry's here." He turned towards Phantom and spoke in a condescending tone. "As I see it you have two options. One is that you surrender and we take you in peacefully or two, I beat the shit out of you, leaving you alive just enough for others to drag everything out of you."

Phantom looked between the Kanisar and the hallway from which the hoofsteps started to grow louder. "i prefer option three." he said and pulled out another small ball. He threw it at Trider, but before it even reached him it detonated and created a blinding light.

Trider cried out in pain at the sudden brightness, while Phantom ran past him and down the hallways. In the distance he saw the other guards approaching and they all looked angry.

"Freeze!" one of them shouted, but he didn't listen. Instead he continued to run towards them.

"Activate Flash Mode." he spoke. His helmet gave off a small beep, before he felt a burning sensation go through his body down to his legs. Sparks of electricity enveloped his legs, as he sped up. In an instant he ran past the guards and disappeared behind a corner. The guards stared at where the intruder was one second and was nowhere to be seen now.

"Split up. He couldn't have gone far." All of the guards began to search the castle, trying to find the elusive infiltrator.

Meanwhile Phantom tried his best to stay out of the Royal Guard's grasp. He used nearly every trick he knew, just to reamin hidden. He was currently resting in one of the closets, catching his breath. He pulled out a small opal and eyed it.

"Can't use it here I guess." he grumbled, putting it away. "I'll have to get outside." He slowly opened the door and peeked outside. He saw no signs of ponies or the alien, so he walked outside in his camo. "Better to just book it." he thought and headed over to a window. He looked outside and saw it was about a couple hundred feet to the ground and that the skies outside were littered with pegasi.

As he pondered his plan he failed to notice someone approaching him at high speed. "Found you!" the figure shouted and punched Phantom. He skidded across the floor until he came to a halt nearly fifty feet away. He rubbed the spot where he was hit, as he slowly stood up.

"You really don't know when to give up." he growled and shot Trider a venomous glare.

"It's one of my charming qualities." the Kanisar grinned and cracked the vertebrates in his neck. "Now then you what will it be? Option A or option B?"

"Let's go with B." Phantom replied drawing his blade and also pulling out a large hunting knife from his boot. "That way I'll at least have the pleasure of killing you."

"Many tried." Trider said, summoning his Spirit Claws. "None succeded."

"Then I'll be the first." With that said the two charged at each other, clashing with tremendous force. Phantom swung his sword and knife around, while Trider blocked them with his claws. Neither one of them gained or lost any ground on the other, their strength and speed were on par.

"You're pretty good." Trider praised, as he dodged a lunge. "You're quite skilled in CQC. Do you have a military background?"

"You could say that." Phantom replied. The two continued to exchange blows, until Trider decided for a gutsy move. As Phantom swnung his sword, Trider caught it in his hand, gripping and not letting go of it. Phantom tried to pry his blade back, but the Kanisar wasn't about to let go, despite the large gash that was now on his palm.

Phantom tried to stab his opponent with his knife, but he wasn't able to, because the Kanisar kept out of his reach. Trider then smiled and placed more pressure onto the blade, until it snapped in half.

"Sorry for breaking your toy. I'm sure we can find you some other- Woah." He managed to jump back, just in time to avoid another blade that flew past him. He looked at Phantom and saw that a long blade protruded out of his wrist. "You're just full of surprises."

"And you're just annoying." Phantom grunted as he put away his knife. "If you continue to stand in my way, I'll just have to get serious." He placed a hand onto his helmet and spoke. "Activate Killer Mode."

Suddenly his body was encased in sparks of electricity, as patterns appeared all over his body, giving the impression there was some sort of ciructry beneath his skin. Trider prepared himself, but even then he wasn't ready for Phantom's drastic increase in strength.

The man jumped at the Kanisar, before he could even react, and delivered a powerful kick. Trider was sent flying into a wall where he then collapped onto the ground. "This is where you die." he threatened, as the blade in his other wrist jumped out.

Trider picked himself up, but he was too slow to dodge Phantom's first attack. The blades ripped through his armor and left two large wounds on his chest. Trider cried out in pain and Phantom charged at him again. This time however Trider managed to avoid his attack, but not his follow up.

The kick hit him in the head and he busted thorugh a wall. While he was picking himself up, Phantom slowly walked up to him. "You can't win."

"Funny." Trider chuckled as he dusted off the debris. "That's exactly what everyone who ever tired to kill me said, right before I kicked their asses." Phantom decided to finish it once and for all and ran at the Kanisar with tremendous speed. But before he could reach him, he was blown away by a sudden burst of energy that came from Trider.

When he looked back at him, Phantom saw that he now had White hair and his eyes were a calm neon blue. The two stared each other down, before they clashed once more.

While Trider's strikes were stronger, Phantom's were faster and far more precise. Their fight was so ferocious that they never stayed in the same place for long, as they bursted through walls of the castle. Eventually they reacehd the other side of the palace and Trider seemed to have the higher ground.

As he was being pushed back, Phantom accidentally miss a step and Trider immediatelly took advantage of that. Closing in he ducked beneath the man and then delivered a powerful uppercut. The strike was powerful enough to knock off Phantom's helmet and send him flying through a window.

As he fell Phantom reacted quickly. he shot the arrow into the side of the castle exterior and managed to slow his descent. He still hit the ground hard and he remained lying on the ground, as he fought through the pain.

He heard a loud thud and when he looked up he saw Trider standing a few feet away. "Still alive?" he said then whistled. "Impressive." He then lifted his hand and showed Phantom the helmet that he knocked off before. "Lookie a souvenir." he said eyeing it with admiration.

Phantom gritted his teeth and pushed himself up. "Give that back." he growled loudly. Trider smirked, but when he saw Phantom's face his smile disappeared.

"You." he said in astonishment. "You're a human."

"No shit."

Trider's eyes flashed in anger for a second, but he managed to remain calm. "What are you doing here? Are you trying to take over this planet as well?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Phantom asked in confusion.

"Don't play dumb!" Trider shouted, his teeth gritted. "You know what your kind did to my people and my planet."

"Ah I see." Phantom sighed. "Listen here kid. I am the only human here as far as I know. And I was dragged here through some spell or some shit."

"And? Do you think that means anything to me?"

"It should. As I was told that spell reached through space and time." he explained. "Where and when I'm from, the furthest my people have went is our moon."

"I don't believe you." Trider grunted. "We're taking you in and you will tell us everything you know." he said, emphasizing his statement by waving his hand through the air showing of the oncoming guards.

"You don't have to." Phantom sighed, as he fumbled with a few metal balls in his hands. "We are enemies after all." The orbs fell to the ground and released smoke.

"That won't work!" Trider shouted and began to charge in. But he was stopped when a loud bang echoed across the courtyard. The Kanisar felt a sharp pain sear through his shoulder. He dropped the helmet and grabbed his bleeding shoulder. Out of the cloud shot a small metallic disk with a metal wire on it and it attached itself onto the helmet and dragged inside the smoke.

"Clear the smoke!" one of the guards shouted and the pegasi guard flapped their wings. Once it was gone they saw Phantom putting on his helmet and placing his gun onto his belt.

"Until next time alien." he saluted Trider before smashing a small crystal and disappeared in a flash.

"He has a teleportation gem. Find him, the range on those is short, so he couldn't have gone far." While the rest of the guards ran all over the place, Trider stood still gripping his wounded shoulder.

"Dammit." he mumbled. "DAMMIT!!!" He smahed his fist into the ground, creating a small quake.

Meanwhile Phantom ran into one of the alleways outside the castle walls and pulled out an opal. It glowed softly and he spoke into it. "Rafel bring me back!" Suddenly behind his back opened up a portal and the green head of the imp looked through it.

"Come, come!" he said in his raspy voice, waving his hand to follow him quickly. Phantom said nothing, he just jumped thorugh the portal before it closed.

"You bring the item?" he asked the man.

"No. I ran into some trouble."

Rafel looked at him with horror. "Oh no, no, no. If you not have it, you make Master angry." he said frantically.

"I'll handle it." Phantom shook him off, before disappearing deeper into the lair. After several minutes he arrived at the main room, where he and the rest of the group met up to discuss strategy. He opened the door and walked inside. He saw that at the moment only Mastermind and Chrysalis were present, plus another pony who was tied up and gagged.

"Welcome back Rydell." Phantom immediately shot him a venomous glare and the stallion laughed. "I'm sorry. I mean Phantom." he corrected himself. "Did you bring what I asked you to fetch?"

"No." Rydell answered firmly, showing no fear. Mastermind didn't react to his answer, but Chrysalis seemed to be both pleased and displeased by it.

"I see." the stallion finally spoke. "Mind telling me why?"

"It was that alien you told me about. He found me out and meddled with my business."

"So let me get this straight. Not only did you not bring me the amulet, you were also caught and now the Royal Guard know that somepony wants something from the treasury?"

"Yes." he answered calmly.

Mastermind took in a deep breath and everyone expected him to lash out. But instead he just shook his head and smiled. "Oh well, at least all of this wasn't in vein."

"What do you mean?" Phantom asked curiously.

"You weren't the only one I sent to retrieve something." he turned to Chrysalis and gave her a warm smile. "And she succeeded."

"What did she get?"

"Him." Mastermind said and pointed toward the tied up pony. "And I'll have to give you some credit. Thanks to your screwup she had an easier time getting him out."

The Changeling Queen and Phantom exchanged glares, before he spoke up. "And who is he?"

"No, no. That's enough questions. You will both leave me, so I can speak to our friend here. In private." Chrysalis stood up and bowed to him, before she left the room. Phantom lingered for a few minutes, before he too turned aruond and left.

Once they were gone Mastermind turned to the stallion that was tied up. "Well then doctor, why don't we have a chat." he said and removed the gag. The stallion coughed a few times, before he spoke up.

"Who are you? Why am I here? What do you want with me?" he asked rapidly.

"Easy there doctor. I won't hurt you. I just want to talk business with you." said in a calm tone.

"What business?" the stallion asked him warily.

"There is a war coming my dear doctor and I want you to help me in it." he began explaining in a smooth yet energetic voice. "Recently my collagues have obtained a few of your creations, after you were imprisoned. And I have to say I am rather impressed by your intellect. So I have to ask you." He leaned in closer. "Will you help me bring down the rulers of Equestria?"

The stallion tried to see if he was playing him for a fool, but when he saw the determination in his eyes, he immediatelly knew he was for real. "Gladly." he answered. "Those princesses have caused me so much grief, that I'll gladly help you, if it means having my revenge."

"Excelent." Mastermind said snapping his finger. The rope disappeared and the stallion stretcehd his body. "You start immediatelly."

"You should know that I'm primarily a biologist and a genetic engineer. Those other creations of ine were more of a side project."

"As long as it helps us in conquering Equestria, I'll gladly accept anything you give me." A dark and sinister smile suddenly appeared on his face and it made the other stallion sweat. "In fact I am glad to hear your choice in profession, for I have a rather big project on my mind." He snapped his fingers again and a large folder appeared. He handed it to the stallion and he skimmed thorough it.

"This." he gasped. "This is insane, but yet ingenious."

"Can you do it?" Mastermind asked, clearly expecting a positive answer.

"Yes. But I will need a lot of materials and funds. And time. Especially time." the stallion answered after a long thought.

"And you shall have it." he said and faced the stallion. He took his hand and the two shook. "I'm glad to have you onboard Dr. Gene Slice."

Author's Note

1 left.

Phantom is an OC created by DarknessShallPrevail, his theme song is Down With The Sickness by Disturbed.

Chapter 39: The Heart's True Wish

"Now this is what I call relaxing." Dynamism sighed, as she sank into the warm water.

"It is isn't it, especially after a massage." the fashionista cooed as she joined the dragon-mare.

"I haven't felt this relaxed since, well since ever." Applejack added. The rest of the girls unianimously agreed to what she said. The Mane 6, Rose, Dynamism and Frost decided to do a girls day out, spending the whole day in the spa. However their group wasn't 'all girls'.

"You said it Applejack, dear." Whip moaned, as he stretched his body. "Not only am I relaxed, but my nails have never looked shinier." he emphasized his statement by extending his arm and gazing at it with admiration.

"I don't want to sound sexist, but it's really weird to hear a stallion say that." Rainbow said and plopped into the bath.

"Dashie dear, it is not weird for a pony, regardless of their race or gender to care about their hygene." Whip declared. "It's just that some ponies like being clean and proper more than others. Just like you or Applejack and Rarity."

"Or Trider." Dynamism added. "Speaking of which, I haven't seen him all day. Where is he?"

"He was called into Canterlot to guard the palace, since most of the troops are escorting the Princesses into the Gryphon Kingdom." Rose explained.

"While we're on the subject." Rarity jumped in and gave the mare a mischevious smirk. "Lately you and Trider have been spending a lot of time together haven't you? Anything you want to tell us?"

At her remark everyone looked at Rose with curiosity, while two of them had more worried looks. The red maned unicorn felt a bit unnerved by the sudden attention.

"Oh it's nothing, we are just spending some quality time with a friend, nothing more." she argued, but that didn't seem to convince the fashionista.

"Mhmmmm." Rarity responded, all the while keeping her smirk. "And all of that flirting you do with him is just something a normal friend would do?"

"Well I..." she trailed off, as she couldn't come up with a good excuse.

"Oh I knew it. You really do have a liking for him." Rarity cooed.

"Oh my, since when?" Fluttershy asked.

Rose sighed and slumped her form, accepting she could no longer get out of this. "Well, I guess since the first time I met him. He was so open and unlike anypony I met before. He didn't care if I was a noble or if I was a guard, he saw me as me." she began to recall all of the times the two of them spent together. "But if you ask me when I started to have romantic feelings for him, I would say it was when I went to the spa with him and my sisters."

"Really? Trider went to the spa?" Dynamism wondered. "I would say that is unlike him, but he always seems to surprise us. Anyway, what happened that made you see him more than just a friend?"

"Well, we just finished our bath so we went to get changed to our regular clothes and he became impatient waiting so he decided to see what took me so long."

At that moment Twilight rubbed the base of her nose and groaned. "Let me guess, he saw something he shouldn't?"

"He did actually." Rose answered semi-surprised. "How did you-?"

"Let's just say that he has a knack for jumping in on ponies when they lack any article of clothing."

The rest of the mares remained silent as they processed what was told to them. "So wait he-?" Rainbow asked pointing to Twilight. "And he-?" She turned to Rose. Both of the mares slowly nodded and Dash burst into a laugh. "Oh, oh my goddess. I can't believe it."

"Huh, I didn't think he was such a pervert." Frost said, her tone monotonous. "I wonder how many times he peeked at me?" she emphasized her comment, by cracking her knuckles.

"He's not a pervert." Twilight interjected. "He just has very bad luck. He never meant to do those things, it just happened."

"I wouldn't say he has bad luck, it's more, like he has the best luck out of any stallion." Rainbow spoke, calming down from her laughing fit.

Rarity didn't want to continue this talk so she tried to return to the conversation she had with Rose before. "So you're saying that you fell for him after he saw you... Ahem, at your most vulnerable?" she repeated. "That's not really what I was expecting."

Rose giggled, which earned a confused look from the fashionista. "No, no. I didn't fall for him because he saw me naked. The reason why is because of how he reacted after he saw me." She saw that everyone was slightly baffled by what she said. "I don't really want to dive in too deep into the matter, but all I'll say is that I have a really hideous scar on my body that makes me very self-conscious. And unlike every other stallion, he didn't care that I had it and because of that I just..." she trailed off and when she looked up she saw everyone was looking at her with sympathy.

"Oh darling." Rarity said as she and the rest of the girls, plus Whip, embraced her in a group hug. "I'm certain I speak for everypony when I say, that we do not care for how you look either, because you're beautiful scar or no scar."

Rose was lost for words, she tried to thank them, but no matter how hard she tried no words escaped her mouth. Instead tears ran down her cheeks. They remained in that position for some time, before they broke apart.

"Feeling better?" Fluttershy asked.

"A lot." she responded, wiping away her tears. "I fell so great in fact that I think I want to chat a bit more." A mischevious grin formed on her face. "Since I already expressed my feelings for our alien friend, why don't we let the others do so as well?"

Her comment made most of them confused, while Applejack and Twilight blushed and sweated. Just as one of them was about to speak, Whip jumped up, revealing his unclothed form.

"If I must." he sighed. "Although I thought my feeling for Trider were blatantly obvious, I will confirm my feelings to the world with pride." He took in a deep breath as he preapred himself. "I-"

A hammer suddenly hit the top of his head and he collapsed. Frost looked at him aggravated. "She wasn't talking about you you dunce." she exclaimed. Everyone looked at her with slight fright from her sudden outburst. "She was talking about Twilight and Applejack."

In an instant everyone's attention was directed at the two mares, while those two looked at Frost astounded. "Was it that obvious?" Twilight asked sheepishly.

"Let me put this way, every time you two oogled him or blushed because of him, I wanted to put the three of you in a room and say 'Just fuck already!'" The two mares looked at each other and blushed furiously. "See? Just like that! It makes me so annoyed."

"Applejack, Twilight." Rarity suddenly called them out. "While I am happy that you two have found somepony special for you, I have to ask. Why? What do you two see in him that made you fall in love?"

Everyone watched them intently, awaiting their answers. Twilight and Applejack however were feeling flustered and they tried to gather courage to speak.

"I don't know for Applejack." the alicorn said. "But for me it's that he is somepony who I can rely on, somepony who will always be there when I need him. Sure he might be hardheaded and violent, but that is what makes him, him. He won't back off when faced with impossible odds and he is willing to fight the whole world if it means to protect those he cares for, even if it might kill him."

Inspired by her words, the cow mare also braved on as she delivered her feelings. "As for the reason why ah love him is basically the same as Rose's and Twilight's. He doesn't care for how others ponies look or where they hail from. He judges you by your character rather than appearance. He is also extremely dependable and fun to be around, since ya never know what might happen next. But what ah like most 'bout him is his honesty. He always speaks his mind and doesn't care if it gets him into trouble, since he'll always resolve it. And just like with Twi and Rose I too don't care 'bout his flaws, since his good points outweight his bad."

The girls looked at them with astonishment. "Wow. You guys really have it bad for him." Rainbow said.

"And that is unacceptable." a voice spoke. Everyone looked around to see where the voice came from, when all of a sudden the water rippled and out from it jumped Whip. "I now see your feelings for him are genuine and so I shall accept you as worthy candidates for being part of our herd." he proclaimed with a ridiculous pose. "But do note that I shall be the one to steal his heart first and I will be the one who shall cherish the most."

"Give it a rest already!" Frost shouted, swinging her hammer again. This time however Whip managed to dodge it. "Get it through your thick head that that will only happen if you somehow make Trider succumb to some sort of love potion."

"Note to self, destroy the book with the love poison recipe." Twilight thought.

"Hmph." Whip harrumphed, shooting the mare a smug grin. "You are a fool Frost, if you think that my feelings won't reach him. True love always finds a way." His smug grin changed to a condescending one. "Maybe that is the reason why you can't get yourself a stallion. I kind of pity-" A spear shot past his face, leaving a thin wound on his cheek. "You." he finished, slowly lifting his head to look at the mare.

Frost was now standing, a battleaxe in her left hand, while a katana was in her right one. She was surrounded with a murderous aura, which was further accetuated by her bloodcurdling smile. "Run." she said in a sinsiter tone, before she lunged at the stallion.

Whip immediatelly jumped out of the bath, running as fast as he could, while Frost gave chase. As they ran across the spa, many heads turned after the naked duo.

"Well." Rarity was the first one to speak after the scene that played in front of them. "That was something." She then turned to Applejack, Twilight and Rose. "So what will you do?"

The three mares looked at her with confusion. "What do you mean?" Twilight asked.

"She's talking about how you will confess your feelings to Trider." Pinkie jumped in, knocking away the fashionista. "I mean isn't that obvious? That's what you should be doing."

"Well I've been dropping him hints for quite a while now."

"And I've been preparing a plan on how to progress things between us at a reasonable pace."

"And ah've been invitin' him over more often, trying to tempt him with mah homemade food."

Rarity stared at them with an astonished look as she tried to figure out if they were serious. "Girls." she sighed. "While those things might work with other stallions, Trider isn't like them."

"Yeah." Rainbow joined in. "Stallions by nature are very bad at picking up hints that a mare has an interest in him and that goes double for Trider."

"So what should we do?"

"Just tell him." Pinkie said like it was the most obvious thing. "I mean when I want to invite ponies to my parties I don't beat around the bush. I sent them an invitation and done."

The three mares felt unsure about what they were told. "Ya make it sound so easy."

Fluttershy placed a hand onto Applejack's shoulder and rubbed it caringly. "We know, but wouldn't it be better if you just let it out, rather than keeping it inside, while it eats away at your mind?"

"But." Twilight spoke up. "What if he doesn't feel the same way?"

"Yes there is that possibility." Rarity said. She then placed her hand onto the lavender mare's cheek, lifting her head so they were looking each other in the eye. "And yes you might get hurt, but you're hurting yourself even more by not embracing your feelings. And even if he rejects you, we'll be here when you'll need us and we'll help you back onto your hooves."

"Yeah!" Rainbow shouted pumping her fist into the air. "And if he does reject you, I'll just beat some sense into him."

"We all will." Pinkie joined in, pulling Fluttershy with her.

"Indeed." Rarity nodded. "I mean he would have to be an absolute bastard, if he gave up on such wonderful mares like yourselves."

***

"Achoooo!" Trider sneezed, wiping his nose with his forearm. "Do I have a cold or something?" he wondered as he turned around another corner. "She said the toilet was around here." he mumbled and looked around himself, trying to find the place he was looking for. "Aaaaand I'm lost." he sighed, before turning around. "Now then, how do I get back?"

***

Several days passed since the break in at Canterlot and the everything seemed like it was back to normal. But for one Kanisar it was anything but that. At the moment he was stacking up a bunch of baskets and he didn't really pay attention to what he was doing. Due to his lack of focus the pile collapsed.

Trider stared at the baskets with pure hatred, before he exploded. "GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!!!" he shouted and began to kick the baskets around.

Meanwhile the Apple family watched him from the porch of their house. "Is he still upset about what happened in Canterlot?" Applebloom asked her older sister.

"Eyup." Applejack answered.

"Shouldn't we do somethin' to help him?"

"Nope." Big Mac answered this time.

"Why?"

"Because he can be stubborn as a mule." Granny Smith said from her rocking chair. "If we tried to help him, he'd just say he was fine and then walk away. Unless it was somepony very close to him." When she said that everyone looked at Applejack, shooting her knowing smirks.

"What?" the cow mare asked, when she noticed the attention she was getting.

"Speakin' of which, when exactly are ya goin' to tell him how ya feel?" Applebloom nudged her sister.

Applejack sighed. She, Twilight and Rose have made the decision to tell him as soon as he got back, but unfortunately when he did, he was completely devastated. Once he told them what had happened they understood why he was feeling like that and because of that none of them had the chance to talk to him.

"Hopefully soon sugarcube." she mumbled, before walking over to Trider. She crouched down and picked up a few of the baskets that laid all over the ground. "Hey there." she said, giving him a warm smile.

"Hey." he replied half-heartedly. The two continued to pick up and stack the baskets in silence. Once they were finished, Applejack turned to Trider.

"Hey would ya mind if ya help me with one more thing?" she asked tentatively.

"Sure." he answered quickly. After several minutes, when they prepared everything they needed, they set off. It didn't take them long before they reached their destination.

"All right, take this and cover the tree." she said, handing over a large blanket. Trider took it and gave it a questioning look.

"You ponies really weird me out sometimes." he said, before levitating upwards, until he reached the top of the barren tree. In one fell swoop he draped the cloth over the branches. Once he was done he landed and looked over the covered tree. "Tell me who in their right minds would give blankets to a tree, so that they don't get cold?"

"Apples would." Applejack answered, walking over to another tree. "Ah guess you could call it a tradition. We've been doin' it for generations now."

"So everyone in your family is weird?" he asked, which earned him a light punch to the shoulder. Applejack continued to give him a hard look, before she began to chuckle and he followed suit. After a short while they calmed down and the mare sighed.

"Feelin' better?" she asked.

"Yeah, much better." he replied.

"Well enough to talk about it?"

Trider shot her a sharp look, but he said nothing, just sighed. "So that is what you were trying to do." he said taking a blanket. "Like told you already I' m fine."

"Horseapples." Applejack exclaimed, as she watched him over the tree. "We both know that ya're not, so just stop pretendin' and talk to me." She glared at him as he reached the ground and she made it clear she wasn't going to back down. "Why are ya so upset over what happened in Canterlot? Ah thought you were no over your grudge with them."

"I am." he sighed, giving up on trying to argue with the headstrong mare.

"Then why-?"

"Because I let him escape!" he yelled, making her jump back from surprise. "I've seen what human can do and what they'll do to make it happen. When I saw him in Canterlot I couldn't help, but remember what I've been through and I knew I would never allow them to do the same to Equestria. But then I let him go, without knowing anything. Not what he wanted, if there were more of them and- and..." he trailed off as he looked at Applejack and she saw trace of fear in them. "I don't want to lose my home and family again."

He was breathing heavily as he finished his rant. Applejack looked at him with wonder. She never realized that he cared for them so much. She took a deep breath and embraced him. Trider soon returned her gesture, as he pulled her closer to himself.

"You don't have to worry." she consoled him. "That will never happen."

They separated and looked each other in the eyes. "Thank you." he said and smiled. She returned the gesture. She was about to let go of him, but something inside her prevented her from doing so. She continued to look in his eyes and her face inched closer.

"AJ what are-?" he tried to ask, before she kissed him. They remained like that for a few seconds before they separated. Trider looked at her incredulously, while she blushed. "W-why did you...?" he stuttered, trying to comprehend what was going on.

"Trider." she said softly. "Ah've been meanin' to tell ya this for a while now and only now did ah mustered enough courage to say it." She gave him a determined look, her mind set. "Ah love ya Trider. Ah have for a long time now."

He was shocked by her revelation and couldn't say anything. "Applejack I..." he trailed off.

"And it's not just me Trider. Rose and Twilight feel the same way." she continued, letting out all of her feelings. "Just tell me if ya love us as well? Or at least me?"

Trider was still in daze from the sudden confession, but he eventually shook it off. He placed a hand onto one of her cheeks and looked her in the eyes. "Applejack I..." he started, but he couldn't muster anything more. He took a deep breath, before he continued. "I'm sorry, but I don't feel the same. For any of you."

Applejack stared at him unable to comprehend what he just said. "A-ah'm sorry, what did you say?"

"I said that I don't feel the same way AJ." he repeated.

"Why?" she asked, her voice shaky. "Why? Is it because ah'm not beautiful? Or cause ah'm not one of your kind?" Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she started to cry.

"C'mon AJ, you know I don't give a fuck about how one looks."

"A-ah see." she sniffed and wiped her nose in the sleeve of her jacket. "Ah'm sorry." she blurted out, before she ran off.

"AJ!" he called after her, but she didn't stop. He watcehd after her, as she disappeared behind the horizon. "Shit." he cursed under his breath, before he began to walk in the opposite direction.

***

"He said what?!" Frost shouted.

"Applejack darling, are you sure that's what he said?" Rarity asked her friend, tryin to console her.

"Ah wouldn't be here if he didn't."

After her confession Applejack ran aimlessly, until she stumbled upon Rarity and Whip, who were doing some shopping. Afterward they went to find Twilight and Rose, and were also joined by Frost. Right now they were in Carousel Boutique and the cow mare told everyone what had happened.

"I can't believe this." Twilight said, tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes. "I can't believe that it actually happened."

"We knew there was a chance." Rose added, leaning back in her chair. "And we were prepared for it."

"But it still hurts." the librarian sobbed.

"I know."

"Oh, darlings." Rarity said and tried to embrace all of them. "At least you now know how he feels. And who knows, maybe some day you'll find somepony better than him."

"Ah doubt that."

While they were consoling each other, Frost was biting her nails and she looked completely frustrated. "Bullshit!" she said and stood up.

"Frost where are you going?" Rose asked.

"To give that good for nothing mutt a piece of my mind." she growled.

"It's alright." Applejack spoke up. "We can't force him to love us back."

"No need." Frost thought to herself. "Still, it's more for myself. I just wanna punch him, that's all." she lied and began to walk away.

"Wait." she was stopped by Whip. "I'll go too."

"Dude, are seriously trying to exploit Trider's rejection, to further your own imginary relationship?"

"First of all it's not imaginariy and second, I won't. I'll be there just to make sure things don't go out of hands. Nothing more." he argued.

Frost gave him a doubful look, before she turned around. "I can't really stop you, can I?"

"Nope." he answered, as the two left. It took them quite a while before they found Trider lying on a huge boulder in the middle of an open field.

"Hey fucker!" Frost shouted, waking him from his daydream.

"What do you want?" he asked unenthused. She reached up, grabbed his tail and pulled him down. Trider yelped from the sharp tug and the sudden impact with the ground.

"Why the fuck did you do that for?!" he shouted and stood up.

"You know very well why." Frost growled at him, shooting him a furious glare. "What you did to AJ and the others is downright something a complete douche would do."

"What do you want me to do?" Trider rebuted, their faces now pressing against each other. "I told her how I felt and nothing more. Or did you want me to lie to them?"

Frost's furious glare turned to one of astonishment. "Wow. You really are a bastard." she said. "How can you say that with such a straight face?"

"What are you-?" Suddenly Frost slapped him across the face and he was taken aback.

"What you told her was the lie wasn't it? And what you just said was a lie is actually the truth, right?"

"What?" he asked, confused by her statement.

"What I'm saying is that, when you told Applejack that you don't love her or the other two is a complete and utter lie." she exclaimed, her anger back in full force.

"I didn't-"

"No." she silenced him. "You have no right to say anything." Trider remained quiet as he let her continue her rant. "You may be able to fool others, but not me. I've seen thorugh the farces of even the most conniving ponies and they are masters at that. You are like an open book to me, compared to them." She backed off, to make little bit of space between them. "So why? Why did you lie?"

"You wanna know why?" Trider asked, clearly frustrated by the confrontation. "Do you think I wasn't happy when she said she felt the same way I did? Do you think I'm just some heartless brute, who's only goal in life is to eat and fight?" he blurted out. "No! I wanted to tell her." He trailed off as his anger suddenly disappeared. "But I couldn't."

"How so?" Frost asked, trying to find out what he was hiding.

"You don't let up, do you?" he chuckled, before taking a deep breath. "They are perfect. All of them. And that is the reason why I can't tell them the truth." he said and leaned onto the boulder. "You might think that I don't know that I have flaws, but I'm the one who knows all of them. I'm impulsive, violent, selfish good for nothing. All I've ever done in life is hurt people. Do you really think they'll be happy with someone like me?"

"Every day I told myself that and why I can't tell them that I love them. Because I knew they'd be happier if they didn't get involved with me. And isn't that what love is. Trying to make the one you love happier, even if it means you have to pay the price for it?" He took a deep breath and sighed. "They are all amazing. They'll achieve great things in their lives and what can I give them? Nothing. Not even a family."

"What do you mean?" Frost asked, confused by the last thing he said.

"You didn't know?" he said with a raised brow. She shook her head and he chuckled. Slowly he stood up so he could be on eye level with the mare. "When I arrived in Ponyville I was hospitalized and afterwards they analyzed every part of my body, even those I didn't even know existed. And do you know what they found out?" he asked, not expecting an answer. "They told me that my genes were incompatible with any being on this planet."

"Wait, you mean...?"

"Yeah." he nodded melancholically. "I am the first and the last Kanisar that ever came to Equis." He let that sink in, before he continued. "I know how much women want to have kids of their own, hell I want kids of my own, but I can't even give them that, so how can I tell them I love them, if I have a lot to receive, but nothing to give. I may be many things, but I won't be a burden to them."

Frost was at a loss for words. She knew Trider very well, but she never expected him to be so protective of others. She tried to argue his statement, but nothing came out. While she was struggling, Whip zipped past her and grabbed trider by the collar of his shirt. Before anyone could do anything he leaned his head back and smashed it into Trider face.

The Kanisar cried out in pain, as he fell to the ground. He grabbed his nose and felt that blood was running out of it. "Dude, now you too?" he exclamied as he tried to wipe the blood away.

"Sorry, just tried to knock some sense into you, after I saw how stupid you actually were." he said.

"Excuse you?"

"You heard me." he spoke and glared down on him. "You are a bonified idiot. The king of dull. The lord-"

"Can you just get to the point?"

"Sure." he stopped his insults and reutrned to the topic. "As I was saying, what you just said is complete idiocy. You denied your and other's feelings to make everyone happy?" he asked incredulously. "Do you know what you actually did? You hurt everyone. You hurt yourself by supressing your own desires and you hurt the girls by lying to their faces. You know what I think? I think you are just afraid. Afraid that you'll be rejected by them."

"And all that talk about how you're not worthy of them? Bullshit as well. No relationship is perfect, there will always be trouble. But overcoming them is what makes a bond between two ponies stronger." He kneeled down and looked Trider in the eyes. "Just several day ago I witnessed their how much they love you. And frankly I was touched. I knew that they loved you and everything you say is wrong with you. If they say they want to be with you, they mean it and they won't let anything change that."

Trider looked at the stallion in surprise and awe. "Why would you tell me that? I thought you wanted me for yourself."

"I do. But I can't just turn a blind eye when somepony is hurt due to unspoken love. Even I'm not that desperate."

The Kanisar smiled and then laughed. "Who said and made you a Cupid?" he jokingly asked, as Whip helped him get up. "But what about me being impotent?"

"Like I said no relationship is perfect and you'll get through it, if you are just sincere and talk it out." the stallion assured him. "Now then I believe you have someponies to apologize to."

"Yeah." Trider nodded. "But I'll do it in my own way. Do you know where I can find a smith or a jewelry maker?"

"I already like what you're saying. There is one in Ponyville, opposite of Sofas and Quills." he said.

"Thanks." Trider said, before he took off across the sky.

Frost approached Whip and gave him a warm smile. "Didn't think out of all the ponies, you'd be the one to tell him to go." she spoke. "What made you change your mind?"

Whip sighed as a gentle smile adorned his face. "I was there when those three said that they loved him. And I knew immediately that it was true love. I love him, but even that is nowhere close to how much they care for him. So how can I stand in the way of love." he said. "Besides, I know that one day my feelings will reach him as well and no matter what his response is, I'll take it in stride."

Frost said nothing, only closing her eyes and nodding to his wise statement.

***

"What exactly are we doin' here?" Applejack asked, as she, Twilight and Rose sat in the chairs.

"I don't know exactly, Rarity just told me to get here for something important." Rose said. "She did look enthusiastic about something though. Like she just got an order from the Princesses themselves."

"Funny." Twilight jumped in. "The same was with Pinkie, only she couldn't stop giggling like a madmare."

"Now that ya mention it Rainbow did look quite excited." Applejack remembered her encounter with teh pegasus mare.

"And for a good reason." They all looked towards the doors that opened and in walked Trider. He looked extremely nervous and sweat ran down his face. "Hey." he said with a wave of his hand.

They all greeted back, clearly confused by what was happening. "Do you want something?" Twilight asked.

"Yes." he said before he dropped on his knees. "I'm sorry."

His apology caught them all off guard. "What are you apologising for?"

"For being a complete and utter selfish idiot." he said, raising his head. "Yesterday I did something that I shouldn't have and am now regretting it." He turned his head to look at Applejack. "I'm sorry for what I told you. I shouldn't have done that."

"Trider, did Frost force you to say this?" the cow mare asked.

"No. But she and Whip made me see the truth." He took a deep breath, as he steeled his nerves. "And the truth is that I love you. All of you."

Everyone was frozen in silence from confession. "T-Trider, a-are you serious?" Twilight asked in disbelief.

"Yes."

"But why did you lie then?" Rose wondered.

"Because I was a coward. I thought that if I said yes you'd eventually abandon me, because I didn't deserve such wonderful mares in my life." he spoke truthfully. "And to prove it to you that I'm serious, I got you these." he said and handed them over three small boxes. "I would've done this yesterday, but it took some time for the smith to make these."

The mares opened the boxes and inside them were three bracelets, each one with different emblem that represented their cutie mark. But what made them even more wonderful was the blue water like shifing energy inside them, that made them look alive.

"Trider are these...?" Twilight trailed off as she gazed at the bracelets.

"Yeah. They're Eternias." he said with a nod and a smile.

"What are Eternias?" Rose asked as she inspected her piece.

"In short, ya could say he's proposin' to us." Applejack answered.

"Quite straightforawrd. I like it." Rose stated and put her bracelet on.

"So will you still accept me, even with all my flaws?" Trider asked gingerly. The mares looked at each other, before they jumped at him and hugged him.

"Of course we will." They said in unison.

"Good, cause I've never been in a relationship before and have no idea what I'm supposed to do after this." Trider said as he smiled cheerfully.

"Im sure we'll figure it out with time." Twilight said and kissed him.

"Hey no fair, leave some for me." Rose said, grabbing Trider's jaw, turning it her way and kissing him as well. After a couple of seconds she stopped and looked at Applejack. "Want some action as well?" she asked.

"Maybe." the cow mare blushed and kissed Trider as well.

"If this is a dream, please don't ever let me awaken." Trider thought as he and the mares let themselves go with their desires.

Author's Note

Alright guys, this is the last chapter before the finale. And I've decided to release the whole finale, which spans over multiple chapter, on the same date. So it will be a while before it comes out, but I ask you to bear with it. And the results from the poll, if I should split my story, are in and most of you wanted it to be in three part and that I will do. So after this story is finished, I'll start a new one, which will continue from where this one will leave off.
That is all, until next time

Chapter 40: Canterlot War Part 1: Shadows Strike

Author's Note

Yeah, yeah I know what I said, but now I got a job and I don't have that much time for writing and so I'll release each chapter individually, otherwise you wouldn't get new chapters in several months. Maybe.
Anyway hope you enjoyed.

Chapter 40: Canterlot War Part 1: Shadows Strike

Rain fell down onto the ground, turning the cobble road into a puddle mine field. Ponies ran all over the place, despite the foul weather, trying to go about their business. The same went for Trider and Rose who leisurly strolled through the streets.

"Where exactly are we going?" Trider asked, stepping over a small puddle in his way.

"Didn't I tell you?" Rose asked curiously, tightening her grip on the Kanisar's hand.

"No. As soon as we arrived at the castle, you grabbed me and began to drag me through Canterlot." Trider explained.

Rose blushed slightly at her own mistake. "Sorry." she apologized. The two turned a corner and were now walking through a little less grandiose part of the city. "The reason why I dragged you out in such a hurry is because I wanted you to meet my papa as soon as possible."

Trider shot her a confused look, before he spoke. "Your dad? Didn't I meet him already? And your mom? Y'know during the Changeling invasion?"

Rose chuckled lightly. "Yes you've met my foster parents. But who I'm about to introduce you to is someone I consider my real family." She paused for a second, seeing as Trider didn't understand what she meant. "You know I was in an orphanage before my parents adopted me, right?"

"Right."

"After my real prarents abandoned me my papa took care of me and my sisters." A heartfelt smile adorned her face and her whole face brightened. "He is a great pony. No one can equal him. He took such great care of us, that we slowly began to recognize him as our parent. And even after we were adopted we still feel the same way. All of us orphans, not just me."

"He sounds like a great guy. Can't wait to meet him." Trider smiled as well, her story putting a spring in his step.

"You won't have to wait long." she said, before they stopped in front of a large colorfully painted building. The place looked as if kids had painted the exterior and it was probably so. As he continued to observe it, Trider noticed a sign that said 'Storm Haven Orphanage'. "C'mon lets go." Rose prompted him by tugging his arm. Trider chuckledat her antic as they approached.

As they approached they heard child laughter and screaming. It reminded Trider of the time he spent in Trottingham and the kids he played with there. He was brought out of his memories when Rose called his name. "Now then Trider, before you meet him, there is one thing I have to tell you." she said in a worried tone.

"What?" he asked slightly unsure where this was going.

"Papa can appear scary and he is not very fond of other guys. Not since I was last dumped." she said with a nervous chuckle. "But don't worry, I'm sure he'll like you."

Trider face-palmed and sighed. "Rose. Next time warn somebody and not just charge in without thinking." he said, his voice showing hints of annoyance.

"Sorry." she apologized. Before anyone of them could say another word the doors opened.

In front of them stood a pony who was taller than any pony Trider had seen before, even taller than Celestia. His tight fitting T-shirt revealed the well toned body that was hidden benath it, conveying the message he was not someone you'd want to mess with. What made him different from other ponies was also his light brown fur, that was much longer than other pony's, giving him a fluffy appearance. His black, which showed hints of grey, mane was so long that if it wasn't tied up in multiple braids, it would most definetly cover his entire face. But one thing that drew Trider's attention was his mighty beard and moustache, which were also braided.

As he continued to stare at the stallion, the giant stared back. He then shifted his gaze towards Rose and when they landed on her, his cold glare turned to a warm and cheerful one.

"Rosey!" he shouted, his booming voice almost shaknig the ground beneath him.

"Papa!" Rose shouted back and the two hugged each other. The stallion picked her up and the two spun around, their laughters mixing in with the rain.

Eventually they stopped and the giant looked at the mare in his arms. "You finally came." he spoke in a very thick accent. "Oh I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too." she replied. "Can you put me down now. There is somepony I want you to meet." The stallion placed her back on the ground and Rose walked over to Trider. She locked her arms with his and planted a small kiss on his cheek. "This is my coltfriend Trider. He's an alien from another planet." she said, before looking at the Kanisar. "Trider this is my papa Storm Shield."

"Nice to meet ya." he said and extended his arm. Storm looked at him for a few seconds, silently judging him, before he took his arm and shook it. Trider felt how he tightened his grip, like he wanted to crush his hand, but he wasn't going to let up. He too squeezed his hand harder and the two were locked in a silent match.

"Alright break it up." Rose jumped in between the two, having had enough. "Why don't we go inside and get warm?"

"Yes, come in." Storm said and moving out of the way, so they could enter. They walked through the house and along the way greeted by many children. Each one stopped them so they could say hi to Rose. Eventually they made their way to the dinning room, where a meal was waiting for them.

"Take a seat." Storm offered, which they kindly accepted. "I hope you're hungry. I've preapred my homeland's specialty, just for you." he said. Rose laughed nervously as she silently watched her covered plate.

"Thank you, you shouldn't have." he chuckled said gingerly revealed her meal. Trider and Storm did the same and they were greeted by a horrible looking food that smelled almost as bad.

"Don't hesitate. Dig right in." Storm said, slamming his hand across Trider's back, almost knocking him out of the chair. Trider watched his supper, but not before having a look around.

"Won't the children eat as well?" he asked.

"They've already eaten. I wanted to have some time alone with you two, so we can talk about more private stuff." the stallion explained, as he took a large chunk of his meal and placed it in his mouth.

Trider slowly switched his gaze to his food, observing it skeptically, before looking at Rose. She looked like she was going to puke just from smelling it. Reluctantly Trider placed his fork into his food and took out a sizeable part. Slowly he brought it closer to his mouth, before putting it in. Storm and Rose curiously watched him to see what his impression was.

"This is good." the Kanisar said, before taking another bite and then another and another, until it was all gone.

Rose and Storm looked at him with bewildred expressions. "Well would you look at that." the stallion chuckled. "I told there were other ponies out there who enjoyed my domača pokuha." he said, giving Rose a victorious smirk.

"Trider is an alien, so it doesn't count." she countered. The two went into an arguement and Trider just watched as he helped himself to Rose's share. Eventually they stopped and they noticed that Trider watched them, a huge grin on his face and three empty plates in front of him.

"Hungry fella aren't ya?" Stormshield chuckled.

"You don't know the half of it." the Kanisar replied, letting out a loud belch. "Mind if I borrow the recipe?" he asked the stallion.

"Certainly." he laughed. He walked over to a cabinet and took out a piece of papaer and a pencil. He sat back down and began to write. "Trider." he said in the middle of his writing. The Kanisar turned his head to listen to what he had to say. "I've heard a little bit about you from Octy and Vinny, and they told me you're a Royal Guard like my Rosey. Tell me who was your drill instructor?"

"Green Fortune and Blaze Fury." he replied. Storm suddenly stopped his writing and gave Trider a surprised look.

"Blaze?" he asked a smile stretching across his face. "That old coot is still teaching there?" Trider nodded and Storm let out a booming laugh. "He must've been a pain to deal with, am I right?"

"A little bit." Trider shrugged. "But he was nowhere close to Greenie. The bastard threw us in a hole."

"The Trust Hole? They still do that?" the stallion was slightly surprised by what he heard. "You are really fortunate to make it out of there, me and my group nearly became it's victims."

After saying that he returned back to writing, but was interrupted when Trider spoke up. "How do you know Blaze?"

He once again halted his task as he reminiscenced his past. "Me and old Blaze were teammates." he said a warm smile on his face. "But we were more than just teammates, we were friends and rivals. Every time we got the chance we tried to outdo one another. And because of that our other friends called us the Fire and Ice Duo."

"So you were in the guards as well?" Trider wondered.

"Yeah, but I am retired now." he said, before returning to the piece of paper in front of him. For a couple of minutes the room was quiet, as only the sound of scribbling could be heard. "There ya go." Storm said and handed the recipe over to Trider. He thanked him and put away the paper. "So what exactly brings you two to Canterlot?" he asked, eyeing them both. "It certainly can't be just to drop by, I mean you both must be busy with guard stuff, right?"

"I'm sure you already know why." Rose said.

Storm nodded, as a wide smile stretched across his face. "Ah yeah, that boy Charming is getting married." he said in a merry tone. "They grow up so fast. I can still remember when the two of you would spend all afternoon reading books about heroes and adventurers." His smile then disappeared, as it swtiched with a more serious expression. "I just hope it won't be repeat of what happened last time."

"Don't worry." Rose assured him by placing her hand on top of his. "That's why they called us. Or ratehr Trider."

Storm looked at the Kanisar, expecting an explanation. Trider grinned and tapped his nose. "I can smell if someone's a changeling and I've already met the bride. She's clean." he said triumphantly.

"I see." Storm sighed, relaxing his form. "Since we're already on the subject of romance, how long have you two been a thing?" he asked, putting emphasis on the last part.

"Well Trider proposed to me and the other girls several months ago-"

"Proposed?" Storm suddenly shouted so loudly his voice could be heard far into the city. "You two are getting married?"

"Eh, no." Trider replied. The stallion was confused by his answer, so he looked to his daughter for an explanation.

"Trider is not really fond of marriage." she explained.

"Why?"

"For one they're boring as hell." Trider spoke up. "I didn't attend Shining's wedding and I also wouldn't attend this one, but I don't really have a say in the matter this time, since I was also invited." he said, trying to avoid Rose's glare.

"And tell me boy, how do you plan to prove your love to my daughter, without holding a ceremony?" Storm asked, his eyes tightening into a cold glare.

"Don't worry papa." Rose jumped in quickly. She lifted up her arm and showed him her bracelet. "He gave me this. It's called and Eternia or Soul Ring, and on his planet this is the greast display of love anypony can show." she reassured her father, trying to difuse the situation.

"Yeah. And I have hers as well." Trider said, showing the three bracelets on his left arm, each one glowing in a different color and having a different symbol on them. "Besides we've already fucked, so what more do you need?"

At that moment the room went quiet. Rose stared into the distance, her cheeks bright red and her mind trying to comprehend what he just said. Storm's expression on the other hand was very hard to read.

"Oh my goddess." Rose groaned. She shifted her gaze towards the stallion. "Don't mind him, he sometimes blurts out things before he even thinks." she said, desperatly trying to calm her father down.

Storm however began to laugh, his voice almost shaknig the windows of the room. Rose and Trider stared at him with varying expression, but they were both confused in certain manner.

"I can see why she fell for you boy." he said once he stopped laughing. "You're strong, trustworthy and most importantly, honset." He stood up and walked over to him and patted his back, almost knocking him out of the chair. "You have my respect and my support."

"Does that mean?" Rose asked in a beaming tone.

"Yes." Storm nodded. "I am alright with him being your special somepony." Rose jumped out of her seat and lunged herself at Trider, showering him with hugs and kisses. "However." Rose stopped so she and Trider could look at him. "I am not happy that there will be no wedding. So I came up with a compromise." He walked in between the two, a smug smile on his face. "You two will be wed right here and now, by yours truly."

The two didn't know how to respond to his state ment. "Can you even do that?" Trider asked skeptically.

"Of course, I was a General after all. I think I'm one of the most qualified ponies to do this." he said proudly.

"What do you say Trider?" Rose asked, her expression showing how much she wanted for him to say yes.

"Do I really have to? I mean once AJ and Twi find out, they'll want ot have one too." He was met with harsh glare from Storm and a saddenedface of Rose. He sighed as he caved in. "Ah who the hell cares. Just keep it short will ya?"

"Can do." Trider and Rose stood up and they both walked over to Storm, each standing on the other side of the huge stallion, their hand intertwined. The stallion cleared his throat before he started.

"Trider, do you take Rose for your lawful wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do."

"Rose, do you take Trider for your lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do."

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." Without hesitation Trider kissed Rose and the two melted in each other embrace, while Storm cried his eyes out.

"You know, I think I prefer this kind of wedding over the one Charming is going to have." Rose said dreamfully.

"Told ya." Trider smirked, as he planted another kiss on her lips. Once they were done with their display of affection, they all sat back down and chatted late into the night.

***

Bright rays of sun showered the city of Canterlot in it's warm embrace, a perfect day for a wedding many would say. A long line of ponies stretched from the castle entrance, all of them wanting to be present in the room when the Prince and his bride would exchange their vows.

Trider and the rest of the group were already seated in their seats and were waiting for the rest of the guests to arrive. They were all seated close to each other and Trider was struggling with his tie.

"Damn. Stupid. Mother-" he grunted as he tried and tried to tie it properly. Eventually he stopped his struggles and looked at Twilight with a sheepish smile. "A little help please." he asked.

The mare's horn glew and the tie was enveloped in a purple aura. Soon it was properly tied, but as a final touch Twilight tightened it a little bit too much, choking the Kanisar. "There!" she huffed, turning her head away with a pout.

Trider loosened the tie and sighed. "You still angry about what happened yesterday?" he asked, but received no answer, only a glare. He turned his head away and looked at Rose. He shot her a nasty glare and she mouthed 'sorry'.

"Don't mind her Trider. She just has a slight case of jealousy." Rarity assured him. "But I can understand why she's upset. I mean you did go and got married to only Rose, behind her and Applejack's back."

"I told you already." he sighed. "I had no idea that would happen and there was nothing I could've done." he tried to defend himself, but to no avail. He put his hand onto his forehead and dragged it down his face, before taking a deep breath. "How about this? Once all this is over I'll have a small wedding with both Twilight and Applejack as well. Does that sound fair?"

Twilight pondered his offer and eventually she smiled. "Fine." she said, releiving the Kanisar. "However I want my whole family included. Cadance as well."

Trider growled, but he knew he couldn't refuse. "Don't worry bout' mine sugarcube." Applejack said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Ah'll convince Granny to keep it small. Somehow."

"Oh I can't wait to throw you a wedding party." Pinkie screeched ecsatically.

"Pinkie." Trider stopped her, placing a finger on her mouth. "No party. You know I hate weddings." The mare's expression and mane deflated. "However I don't mind if it's an afterparty though." Instantly her expression turned cheery again and she pulled out a notebook and began to scribble down things she would need.

The group then conversed on various things until the doors to the hall opened up and in walked the bride. The music played, as she approached the altar, behind which stood Luna. Charming was standing on her left side, along with Blueblood who was his best man and Celestia watched from the sidelines.

Once she reached the altar the music stopped and Charming lifted her veil, revealing her lime green coat and ocean blue mane. They both smiled and faced Luna.

The princess looked at both of them before she began to speak. "Dearly beloved. We are gathered here today to unite Prince Charming Hearts and Ocean Blossom in holy matrimony. They will now exchange their vows."

The two faced each other. "Ocean Blossom." Charming started. "From the day that I met you I knew that we would have a bright and wonderful relationship in our future. Without you I wouldn't be where I am now and for that I am grateful. You are somepony I respect and I hope we can continue towards our dreams."

Most of the audience was swept away by the wedding, with the exception of Rose, who felt that something was wrong. And as if feeling her discomfort Trider fidgeted in his seat, while Frost began to shift her eyes all over the room.

"Ocean Blossom, if you would?" Luna prompted.

"Of course." the mare quickly nodded, before looking back at her groom. "My sweetheart. When you found me I was on the rock bottom, but you helped me out and for the first time in forever I truly fell in love." she started, but her voice carried and eerie tone that began to unnerve everyone in the room. "The first thing you told when we met was that you'd give me the one thing I wished at the time and I still want." Suddenly the floor beneath them glowed and a magical rune circle formed around the two and Luna.

Everyone was caught off guard by the sudden development and their surprise quickly turned to horror as they saw how Ocean Blossom was enveloped in green flames, right before revealing her true form. "Revenge!" The Changeling Queen proclaimed as the circle began to glow brighter and brighter.

"Holy shit! That Changeling bitch is still alive!" a random pony in the audience shouted, to which everyone reacted with hysteria.

"Stop them!" a guard shouted. In a single moment everyone reacted. Trider jumped out of his seat and charged Chrysalis with lightning speed, while Frost and Rose jumped towards the prince. Celestia too acted by pushing her sister out of the circle. Trider clashed with the Changeling Queen and they both crashed through the wall and fell outside the castle. But while the two of them were falling, Charming, Celestia, as well Frost and Rose, who just barely made it inside the circle, were enveloped in a bright flash before they disappeared.

The ponies stared at the empty place in front of them before they began to panic. Meanwhile the Mane 6, Spike, Ace, Dynamism and Whip made their way over to Luna, who was dazingly staring at the place where her sister stood just a moment before.

"What in the name of Celestia happened? Where did they go?" Rainbow yelled over the screaming of the crowd.

"I'm pretty certain that was a mass teleportation spell they performed." Twilight pondered as she tried to grasp the situation.

Luna immediatelly broke out of her stupor and she regained her composition. "All of you." she said looking at everyone in front of her. "You have to retrieve the Elements immediatelly."

"Why? We managed to kick their flanks last time without them just fine." Rainbow stated and the others nodded in agreement.

"While that may be true." Luna said, drawing a deep breath. "I have an eerie feeling that this time it is something far more sinister. It is like they say 'Better have it and not need it, than not have it and need it.'"

"Alright Princess, we're on it." Twilight said and all of them began to head out. Luna then turned to Ace, Whip, Dynamism and Spike.

"You four make sure that they are safe." she said in a commanding tone. "I am certain that our enemy is not foolish this time around and they will send somepony after to stop them."

"As you command." Ace saluted.

"Didn't have to tell me twice." Spike confidently proclaimed.

"And what about you your highness?" Whip asked curiously.

"Seeing as how Trider is engaged with Chrysalis, I will go after Celestia and our nephew. I can sense they are not far." she said, spreading her wings wide. "Now go."

Without another word they all went their way, determined to protect the city with all of their strength.

***

Celestia slowly opened her eyes, as they adjusted to the change in brightness. Once they were fully opened she looked around herself. She recognized some of the buildings around her and she determined she was still in Canterlot. As she continued to scan her surroudings, her eyes eventually reached someone she knew.

"Charming!" she called out to her nephew. Hearing her call out to him, he looked her way, as a relieved expression fell upon his face.

"Auntie!" he called back. The two ran towards each other and embraced in a hug.

"I'm so glad you're fine." the princess said. "I don't know what Chrysalis's plan is by teleporting us here, but you can rest easy that I'll protect you."

"Good grief." Celestia freezed, as a cold shiver ran down her spine. "That naïve character of yours is really annoying."

"What are you-?" her question was stopped when a shocking sensation ran over her body. Her body tensed before she collapsed to the ground. She looked up and saw Charming standing over her, but now there was another pony beside him now.

"Wha-?"

"I'm sure you have many questions Celestia. And I'll gladly anwer them all. But before that..." he stopped and looked at the robed mare. "I'm certain that we'll have some uninvited guests very soon. Why don't you be a dear and make sure that my talk with the Princess is uninterrupted."

"Yes master." the she said removing the hood of her cloak, revealing long red and yellow, flame like mane. Celestia's eyes widened when she recognized the her.

"Sunset Shimmer?" she gasped. She continue to stare at her previous student, as she noticed her now green and red eyes, with purple smoke escaping from them. "What happened to you? Why are you here?" she then looked at Charming with a dumbfounded expression. "What is going on?"

"As I said, all will be explained." he chuckled. "Now then Sunny, hop to it."

Sunset silently bowed and before she left she looked at Celestia, shooting her both a venomous and a triumphiant glare. She encompassed herself in her magic and levitated herself up. Soon afterwards a black dome erected itself over the prince and princess.

"Now then, I'm certain the first you want to ask me is who I am, as well as what I did to your dear nephew and what is it that I want, right?" he asked, to which Celestia only responded with a glare. "Fine, be like that." he scoffed, before he made a curt bow. "I am known by a lot of names, but my companions refer to me as Mastermind."

"Never heard of you." Celestia said.

"Of course you didn't, because I didn't intend it. But believe it or not, we have met before." he kneeled down so he was looking Celestia directly in the face. "Salutations my sunray Princess."

As soon as he said those words Celestia's eyes widened in both surprise and terror. "Comet Trail?" she said, just slightly above a whisper. The prince grinned sinisterly, before he stood back up.

"I'm glad you remember me even after 700 years." he chuckled.

"How? How are still alive?"

"I'll tell you, it wasn't easy. Especially after what you did to me." Comet spoke coldly, his expression turning dark. "At that time I was angry at you for not killing me, but now I'm actually happy, since I can exact my revenge and fulfill my dreams."

"How are you still alive?"

"How you ask?" he asked coyly. "Well after you exiled me, you tried to hunt down all of my followers, but you were unsuccessfull. Those few who managed to escape followed me and tried to help me. For thirty years we searched for a way to reverse what you did to me, but to no avail." A dark smirk stretched across his face. "That is until we stumbled upon some ancient ruins and upon one of them we found a spell that turned my predicament around." He lifted his shirt to reveal his torso which was covered in runic marks. "Sublapsa referri corpus. A spell to transfer one's spirit inside another body."

"No." the princess breathed out as she realized what that meant.

"Yes. Your precious little nephew is no more. He vanished months ago. But don't worry I'm taking good care of his body." he cackled, unaware of a stray tear running down Celestia's cheek.

She started to struggle against her magical restraints, but every time she tried, it just got heavier and tighter. "Why?" she sobbed out. "Why are you doing this?"

"Didn't I tell you? To finish what I started 700 years ago."

"You failed back then, so what makes you think you'll be successful this time?" she countered.

"True, back then I was foolish. But now I have at my side powerful allies, with whom I'll conquer all of Equestria. Nay, Equis." he claimed, his eyes full of ambition.

"Why would anypony follow the likes of you?"

Comet shot her a condescending look. "Because they have similar goals like me. Take your ex-student for example. After you dumped her, she went out in search of power and I just happened to stumble upon her. After I told her she would get her revenge as well as power, she was immediatelly aboard."

"That may be so, but even with your allies you have no chance of defeating all of us." Celestia argued triumphantly. "My ponies will stand up to you and they will take you down. They've done so with much greater threats than yourself."

Instead of the reaction she was expecting, Comet began to laugh like a madman. After a while he stopped and spoke. "Do you know why we came here to Canterlot? For two things. One is an artefact that is kept in the castle's highly guarded vault. Since we weren't able to retrieve it before we decided to do it now. But the second thing is the main reason why we attacked." His horn beagn to glow and a large cilinder appeared in his hand. It's content was mostly green liquid, but flowing inside the liquid was a black mass that seemed fluid, yet solid at the same time.

"You know what this is Celestia?" Comet asked sarcastically. Before she could even open her mouth he answered. "This right here is your downfall. I present to you Nightmare Moon."

"What?!" Celestia shouted.

"I know it's hard to believe, but it's true." Comet affirmed, grasping the container with both hands. "After her return and defeat I gathered waht was left of her and tried to bring her back to life. I was semi-successful. Right now she is just a cumulation of magic with no body. But once it comes in contact with a suitable host it will take over, infusing them with Nightmare's darkness." He then casted his gaze upwards, toward the dome seemingly looking at something behind it. "And she has been fighting our dear Sunset for all the while we were talking."

Celestia's ears drooped. "Luna." she breathed out. "You can't do that to her. Not again."

"Oh but I will." he exclaimed. "I will turn her back to Nightmare Moon and have her destroy you. Your own sisterr will be your demise."

"Not if we have anything to say about it." someone suddenly shouted. Two figures jumped out of the shadows of the buildings and charged at the stallion. He managed to erect a shield just in time to stop a sabre and a battleaxe from slicing him apart.

"You finally decided to show yourselves." Comet said disdainly. Rose and Frost struggled against his barrier, in hopes they would manage to shatter it. Comet however pushed them away by pouring more magic into his shield.

"So you knew we were here?" Rose asked as she and Frost reentered their stances.

"Of course. You are talking to somepony who has centuries of experience on his side." he replied in a monotone voice.

"Experience or not, you're up against the two of us." Frost taunted.

"I wouldn't be if Chrysalis wasn't jumped by that mutt." he growled. "But if there is one thing I've learned in all these years is that if plans don't go the way you want, you have to improvise, adapt and overcome."

"You'll pay for what you've done to Charming, you bastard." Rose stated in a cold tone.

"Then come at me." Without another word the two unicorns attacked the stallion their fight began. Comet struggled against both of them, seeing as their coordination was near perfect. However he managed to either avoid or block nearly every attack they threw at him.

"Just keep going at him." Rose shouted and Frost nodded. Comet however didn't seem to be impressed.

"This is foolish." he said as he blocked another attack from the mares. "Charming, while not combat trained, had vast amounts of magic. If he were to train he could've easily outmatch any opponent. However with my knowledge that is no longer a problem."

His horn glew even brighter and by his side appeared several etheral armoured ponies. He commanded them and they attacked Frost and Rose. They had no toher choice, but to abandon their current target and swtich to the knights. While they were successful in fighting them off, they just kept coming back.

"There's just no end to them." Frost grunted. "We should just end this in one go."

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Rose asked.

"Oh yeah." Forst grinned. She dispelled her weapon and clasped her hands, as magic began to surge around her. Meanwhile Rose split her sword in five pieces, as she proceeded to fight all the knight at the same time. Comet watched them struggle, confident about his victory.

"Anytime soon?" Rose asked in a ragged breath.

"Just a few more seconds." Frost replied as she concentrated on her spell. Rose groaned, but she returned her attention back to the knights. After a few more seconds of charging her magic Frost opened her eyes and shouted to her friend. "Now!!!"

Rose immediately jumped towards her and the knights followed her. "Razor Storm!" But before they could reach them the sky was covered in hundreds of weapons and they all shot down, destroying the knights and all nearby surroudings. After a couple of seconds it stopped and Comet looked at the destruction from behind his shield.

"Impressive magic. But alas it was-" he didn't have time to finish his sentence as he spotted Rose and the spell she was preparing.

"As the flow of crimson river, my strikes are calm and fierce. All those who dare to challenge me, I shall pierce. My sword is sharp and my hand is steady, so with determination I am ready. To bring down all the evils of this world. So blades heed my word and do as you're told!" she chanted quickly as her swords spun in front of her. "Sakura Sword Style: Divine Crimson Flash!!!"

She released her blast directly at Comet and he had little to no time to protect himself. It hit him head on, but just in the nick of time he managed to raise his shield again. He struggled against the immense power and he could see how his shield was cracking before him. But very soon the blast diminished and once it was over he dropped his shield and looked at the two exhausted mares.

"Valiant effort. But you'd have to be better than that." he mocked them as he basked in his victory.

Rose and Frost didn't look defeated however, instead they were smiling. "We'll I would've done better, but I needed one of my swords for something else." Rose said.

"Something else? And what that would be?" His answer came when he heard something behind him. But before he even had the chance to glance, a bright red object passed by him and stopped by Rose's side. Thenext thing he knew he felt sharp pain flare through his arm and when he looked he saw his hand was severd by the sword. Coincidentally he was also holding the cilinder in that arm and he couldn't do anything but watch as it shattered against the floor.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" he screamed to the top of his lungs, as the liquid spilled across the ground.

"Our aim was never you." Rose proclaimed triumphantly.

"Yeah, we just wanted to destroy that little pet project of yours." Frost taunted as well, shooting him the middle finger. "Sucks to be you."

Comet said nothing as he stared at his creation. All of a sudden he snapped his head towards the two mares, his eyes burning with rage. Without a word he raised his hand as it and his horn began to glow. Frost and Rose had no time to react as their bodies suddenly became heavier and they collapes to the ground.

They struggled to stand up, but it was to no avail as the pressure just continued to increase. "I'll crush both of you for messing with me." Comet growled as he slowly walked over to teh two. "I'll take my time in ensuring that you suffer before you meet your maker."

The two mares could barely breathe at this point and their vision began to grow cloudy, as their counscience slipped away. Comet watched them with a sadistic glee. Suddenly a loud cry interrupted him and he stopped the spell. The two mares gasped for air and they looked up to see what had happened. They saw that Comet was watching something and they casted their gazes towards where he was looking.

What they saw nearly made their eyes jump out. In place where Celestia was before there was a mass of blacka nd golden energy that swirled around, like a chaotic storm. It continued to grow in intensity and power until it was too much and it exploded.

The three of them shielded their eyes from the blinding light and once they could see again they looked back to where the phenomenon happened. They couldn't believe what they saw standing in front of them.

"C-Celestia?" Rose asked completely frightened.

"No." the flaming mare said. "I am Daybreaker."

Chapter 41: Canterlot War Part 2: The Battlefield Roars!

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 42.5: Secrets Kept Hidden

The walls of the olden temple crumbled under a simple gust of wind, the pieces of rubble that fell from them created echoes through the entire construct. In ancient times this sanctuary would have been one of the gratest marvels the world had ever seen, but time took it's toll on the place. The once beautifully etched walls, which depicted legends, prophecies and many other stories, were worn out and covered in moss. Small streams of light found their way through the numerous cracks in the ceiling, providing the only means of illumination.

Suddenly a bright flash and a loud pop disturbed the silence inside the temple's giant chamber, scattering the critters that ran around before.

"Can't see a darn thing in this place." Discord complained, as he strained his eyes to see what was in front of him. He snapped his fingers and suddenly a cake with several candles appeared in front of him, providing him the light he sought. "Much better." he said in satisfaction. Before he moved forward he took a small bite out of the sweet and nodded in contempt.

Wordlessly he walked across the stone floor and towards a giant set of stairs. When he reached it another version of himself, wearing a bellboy uniform, greeted him.

"Good evening sir. Mind if I inquire to where you are headed?" the bellboy asked while tipping his hat.

"The top if you'd be so kind." Discord answered.

"Very well sir." Once he stepped next to his double, the bellboy pulled a lever that appeared out of nowhere and pulled it. The ground beneath their feet shook for a second, before it tore off the remaning floor and began to ascend. For a couple of minutes the platform continued to rise until it reached the top.

Once at their destination Discord stepped off and turned to the bellboy. "Here, keep the change." he said offering him a piece of the cake.

"Quite gracious of you sir." the bellboy said and put the cake into one of his pockets, smothering it. Discord turned around and began to walk towards an altar, while the bellboy pulled the lever once again and the platform disconnected from the stairs and quickly flew off into nowhere.

Silently Discord approached the altar and when he reached it he took a good look at it. The shrine like the rest of the place was broken in numerous places and covered in moss. But amidst all the decay there was a gaping hole of irregular shape carved into the stone slab. Discord traced the hole with his hand and a grimaced look fell over his face.

"Gone." he mumbled quietly. He stroked his goatee, as the gears in his head ran in overload. "Not good."

Without another word he swallowed the whole cake and snapped his fingers, disappearing in a bright flash.

***

"You'll never get away with this Ahuizotl!" Daring shouted as she hung upside down from a rope. Her sweat fell into the pool of lava below her, vaporizing before it even reached it.

"Au contraire, dear Daring." Ahuizotl responded. "This time there is no way you'll escape and stop me from getting the Neptune Jewel." he boasted.

"We'll see about that." The mare began to struggle against her restraints, slowly starting to swing from side to side.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." the demon said pointing with his tail upwards. Daring looked up and saw that the rope was grinding against a jagged edge of a rock. "Now then, if you tell me how to get the Jewel, I might help you." he grinned, showing his sharp fangs. "Or don't, I'll find it one way or another, you'd just make the search ea-"

His sentence was cut short when a bright flash and pop interrupted him. Both Daring and Ahuizotl looked towards the source of the disturbance and spotted the draconequus staring at one of the walls with great interest.

He was mumbling something to himself, unaware of the presence of the other two.

"Discord!!!" Ahuizotl shouted, drawing the draconequus's attention to himself. "What are you doing here?"

Discord quickly glanced at him, but his gaze quickly went over to the mare who was still hanging from the rope. In a flash he appeared next to her.

"Daring Doo!" he said in excitement. "I can't believe you're here."

"Uh, yeah. Hi." she greeted him, weirded out by the situation.

"I know you must get this all the time, but would you mind, if you signed one of my books?"

"Sure?" the mare answered hesitantly. Giddiy he snapped his fingers and a book and a pen appeared in his hands.

"Here." he said stuffing the pen in her mouth and presenting her the open book. Daring gave him a mixed look of confusion, annoyance and anger. Discord continued to look at her, not sure what she was so furious about, until it dawned on him. "Oh right." he said slapping his fore head. "You guys don't have hooves in this realm." he snapped his fingers and one of the mare's hands was free and holding the pen.

She rolled her eyes, before she signed the book. Discord held the novel in front of him admiring the signature. Before he had a chance to thank her, he was interrupted by the annoyed demon below.

"Excuse me!" Ahuizotl cried out. "What are you doing here? We were kind of in the middle of something."

Discord quickly looked around the ruins and only at that moment realize what was happening. "Oh I'm sorry." he apologized. "I was just looking for a relic and got a bit sidetracked."

Ahuizotl's gaze hardened into a glare as he took a cautious step back. "You are after the Neptune Jewel as well?!" he exclaimed in horror.

"The what now?"

"The Neptune Jewel!" Ahuizotl shouted even louder. "An ancient and powerful jewel that the ancient Mareyians crafted with which they could control the waters of Equis."

Discord mulled over what he had told him, until it came to him. "Oh you mean that old thing." he said upon realization. "Yeah that thing is not real."

"WHAT?!!!!" both Daring and Ahuizotl shouted at the same time.

"Yeah, it was just a make believe that the ponies made up to ward off their opponents." He then outstretched his hand and an image popped up on his palm. "What I'm looking for is this here. Have either of you seen it?"

The two carefully observed the image which looked like an ordinary piece of rock with some inscriptions on it.

"Nope."

"Never seen it."

Discord grumbled as he made the hologram disappear. "I see." His face, now serious, slightly unnerved the mare and the demon, but very soon it disappeared and Discord was back to his old self. "Well I don't want to keep you two so I'll take my leave." He paused for a second and pulled a camera out of nowhere. "Right before I take a picture."

His arm stretched and grabbed Ahuizotl and brought him to his side. He held the camera high in front of him and prepared to take the photo. "Say cheese." he said to the other two.

For a brief second the amre and the demon were blinded by the sudden flash and once they could see again, they saw Discord was already holding the developed photo.

"Oh I can't wait to show this to others." He then snapped his fingers and a small blue bird appeared in front of him. He handed it the photo. "Make sure all of my friends see this."

The bird looked at the photo, before glancing back to Discord. "So I need to show this to Fluttershy." it spoke in a deep masculine voice. Discord eagerly nodded and the bird tucked away the photo. "Understood." it said, before saluting and flying off.

"I should get going too, there are other things I should be doing." He waved his hand before disappearing.

Daring and Ahuizotl stared at the empty air where Discord was before. "What happened?" the demon asked, his mind completly confused.

"Don't know." Daring answered. "But one thing I know is that our trip here was for nothing."

"I wouldn't say for nothing." he said with grin. "At least I'll get to see my arch nemesis perish before my eyes."

"I wouldn't be so sure." the mare said waving at him with her free hand. Ahuizotl quickly realized what she meant and before he knew it she broke out of the ropes, flying straight at him.

"Ah horseapples." was all he said, before getting kicked in the face.

***

"This is not good." the chaos spirit mumbled to himself as he floated through the forest. "If this goes on we're all in trouble." He paid no attention to his surroudings until he stopped in front of a giant cave. He looked at the massive hole in the mountain and took a deep breath. "I can't believe I'm back here again. But it is the right thing, the necessary thing to do."

Determined he walked into the cavern and was soon engulfed by darkness. For several minutes he wandered thorught the cave system, until he stumbled into a large cave which was illuminated by numerous bright blue rocks which laid upon the walls and ceiling. The light was just bright enough to navigate, but couldn't show much detail.

Discord crarefully took a step inside and was halted when a thundering voice shook the cave.

"WHO GOES THERE?!"

"It is I Discord, spirit of chaos and mischief." he introduced himself, throwing in a deep bow as well.

For a few seconds there was silence and then loud rumbling began and it seemed as if the cave itself was shifting around. Once it stopped a large golden eye, larger than even the draconequus , opened up and stared directly at him.

"You dare return here spirit?" the creature spoke, this time in a less deafening tone. The voice carried with itself the signs that whoever it was that was speaking was old and tired. "I thought I made it clear the last time that do not want to speak with you again."

"I know, I know." Discord quickly responded. "But it is urgent that I speak to you."

The creature sensed the distress in his voice and it took a long and deep breath. "Who am I speaking to? Discord the spirit or Raijat a friend?" he asked, the question surprising the draconequues. "Depending on your answer I might listen to you."

"I haven't been called that in over five thousand years." Discord chuckled as he pulled out of his coat a pendant and placed it onto the ground. "For this one time I will be who I once was."

The creature slowly blinked and appeared to make a small nod. "It is good to see you again Raijat."

"You too Ageny." Discord responded.

"What is so urgent that you had to come see me?" Ageny asked.

"It seems somepony is collecting the pieces of the key." The answer shocked Ageny, his eyes widening in terror.

"How many?"

"Not sure. I know that beside mine, one has recently been put into the Canterlot treasury where it should be fairly safe. Others are gone and the rest have disappeared over the ages." The two fell into a deadly silence, as Discord allowed his friend to process what he told him. "This is not like in the past Ageny. This fellow could actually do it."

Ageny remained silent as he was in a deep thought. "And you came to me to ask for my help, correct?" Discord nodded in affirmation. "I am sorry to disappoint you old friend, but I am no longer as energetic as I was in the past. Even getting out of this cave would be difficult."

The draconequues sighed in disappointment, but a smile quickly stretched across his face. "I figured as such." he said. "But you can still help out."

"And how can I do that?"

"You will train your successor." Discord quickly replied.

Ageny's eyes tightened into an angry glare. "No!"

"Oh come on. Are you really telling me that you're going to leave this world without passing on the legacy?"

"Yes." Ageny blurted out.

"Don't tell me you are still hung up on the fact that 'None are worthy' shtick are you?"

"It is not a shtick." Ageny angrily shouted. "In all these years that I have lived none have proven themselves worthy to take on my teachings. What makes you think I'll change my mind?"

"Because this one is different." was Discord's reply. Ageny began to settle down as he continued to listen to his friend. "You don't have to take him on if you don't want to, but you also can't just dismiss him like that. I say you give him a shot, he might surprise you. And it's not like you have a choice, if they manage to get all the pieces the whole world will be in danger."

Ageny said nothing, instead he pondered over the draconequues's words in silence. "Very well. I shall see if he truly is as great as you say he is."

Discord smiled triumphantly and began to dance around. "Good to hear that." he said cheerfully. After a couple of minutes he stopped his jig and got serious. "Although you might not need to do that."

"What do you mean?" Ageny asked inquisitively.

"I made a promise on that day that I'll protect this world from the corruption left behind. That's why I also carry one of the pieces around." he said nodding his head to the pendant on the floor. "All this time I've only been watching, but now is time for action."

"You'll go after them." Discord nodded to Agney's remark and the giant sighed. "Are you sure that is wise?"

"They are too dangerous to be left alone anymore, they have to be stopped." the draconequues said with determination. "Besides they would come after me at one point or another?"

"So you'll deliver the piece to them? Isn't that even more foolish?"

"I'll leave it in capable hands." Discord said shooting his friend a smirk. "I know a guy who won't succumb to the corruption."

Ageny said nothing, instead he looked at him with saddened eyes. "If you do that you won't be as powerful." he pointed out. "And don't you think they probably have a way of bringing you down even when you're at your most powerful. Otherwise they wouldn't be so ambitious on getting the key."

"You sound like you care." Discord said, leaning down and picking up the pendant. "I've already made up my mind and you know how stubborn I am." He turned around and began to walk away. "Besides I don't plan on dying."

"Yet you also don't expect to return either, do you?"

Discord stopped in his tracks and turned halfway towards Ageny. "Hope the kids meets your expectations." As soon as he said that he disappeared, leaving Ageny behind.

The giant closed his eye and began to turn away from where Discord came.

"Farewell, old friend."

Author's Note

This story takes place shortly before the Canterlot War arc.
What were Discord and Ageny talking about?
What dark secrets is he hiding from his friends?
Found out this and more in the next and final chapter of The Tale Of A Lost Wolf.

Chapter 43: A New Dawn

Two weeks have passed since the battle of Canterlot took place and the ponies were busy with repairing their majestic city to it's previous glory. Sounds of construction filled the air as buildings were either built or demolished.

Among all the ruckus Blueblood walked in stride towards his destination, sparing a moment to greet other ponies he met on his way. A smile adorned his face, but everyone who knew him better, could see that the smile was forced and fake, hiding a crushed expression beneath it.

Turning a corner he now stood in front of a slightly damaged building, a sign with a couple of missing letters stood in front of it. Despite the now almost incomprehensible wording, Blueblood knew very well what it said before and what this place was.

He walked up to the door and gave a hard knock. For a few seconds there was no reply and right as he was about to knock again the door opened. A foal, about ten of age, opened the door and looked up at him.

Blueblood kneeled down so he was about eye level with him, shooting him a small smile. "Hey there little one." he greeted the child. The foal slightly hid behind the door and looked at the prince with a hint of fear. Blueblood however was undettered by his reaction and continued to speak to him. "Is Storm Shield here?" The foal quickly nodded. "Can you get him for me? I have some business to discuss with him."

The foal quickly turned around and ran inside. After a couple of seconds he could be heard screaming. "Papa, papa! There is a rich pony here to see you."

Blueblood waited for another five seconds before the large frame of the caretaker appeared before him. When his eyes fell onto the prince a large smile stretched across his face.

"Blueblood!" he shouted with his booming voice. He quickly approached him and was about to give him a hug, but was stopped when Blueblood raised his hand. "What's the matter boy, we haven't seen each other in such a long time and you don't even want to give me a hug?"

"Not today I'm afraid." he said, his smile gone instead replaced with a stoic expression. "I'm here on official matter. And I want to talk to you about it in... Private." he said as he looked behind the stallion, spotting numerous kids sticking their heads out to see what was going on.

Like with Blueblood, Storm Shield's smile vanished and was replaced with grimace. "Yeah, let's go up to my office." He turned around and beckoned the prince to follow him. Blueblood quietly followed him down the hall and then up the stairs.

They passed the first floor and Blueblood noticed that just like the exterior the interior was almost as badly damaged. "I see this place wasn't spared either." he commented as they ascended to the second floor. "Why don't you file a request to the palace for help in reparing the damage?"

Storm looked over his shoulder to glance at Blueblood. "It's fine. This place has seen worse. And besides everypony is busy fixing their own homes and homes of other. We can manage here by ourselves." he replied, before looking back in front of him.

Blueblood huffed. "You always were stubborn old man." he said, to which the older stallion laughed.

They quickly reached the third floor and after passing several doors they arrived in front of a door which had a sign saying 'Bos Ofice'. The sign itself was made of cardboard and had the letters and numerous accessories glued on it.

"Come in and take a seat." Storm said and walked to the chair behind his table. Blueblood glanced over the small office which could barely hold a small group of ponies.

The walls were decorated with a green and darker shade of the same color, striped wallpaper. On the right side of the office stood a large bookcase inside which countless documents rested. On the other side of the room dozens of pictures hung on the wall, each showing a different kid with Storm by their side. The only source of light in the room, beside the lamp on the table, was the large window behind the seated Storm.

"Now." the older stallion exhaled. "Why did you come?"

Blueblood didn't say a word as he sat down in one of the three chairs and reached inside the small bag that hung from his belt. Out of it he pulled a long object, which couldn't physically fit inside the pouch, which was wrapped in cloth. He handed it over to Storm who grasped it and pulled it over to himself.

Carefully he unwrapped the object and once it was half exposed his eyes widened and he gave Blueblood a surprised look. "Is this?"

"Yes." the prince replied. "That's Rose's sword."

Storm redirected his gaze back to the blade in his hands, looking over it's snow white handle and sheath. He then slowly pulled it out of it's protective casing and about halfway stopped. He stared at his reflection on the blade's smooth and clean surface, as a bright red glint shone from the sword's sharp edge. He resheathed the weapon before looking back at the prince.

"Why did you bring it here?" he asked in a broken tone.

"As one of her guardians you have the right to it, since she's... No longer with us." he said,the last part barely audible.

"What about Fancypants and Fleur?"

Blueblood shook his head. "They accepted her uniform, but said that it would be better if we gave the sword to you, so you could have something to remember her by."

Storm paused for a second, as he glanced between the sword and the prince. "I am grateful." he said in a thankful tone. "But I cannot accept." He handed the sword back to the stallion, who gingerly took it.

Blueblood looked at him in slight shock and confusion. "How so?"

"I already have mementos to remember her by and with or without the sword, she will continue to live inside my heart and the hearts of others that she affected. Rose was a proud mare, who stood for everything that is right, which she showed through her words and action." A melancholic smile spread across his face as tears began to run down his cheeks. "That blade holds her will and dreams. And what good would it be in the hands of an old retired stallion like myself. No, it deserves somepony who is willing to continue her legacy by wielding her sword high into the sky."

Blueblood speechlessly stared at Storm. After a couple of seconds he finally reacted, as he began to laugh. The older stallion looked at him in concern. When he stopped Blueblood looked at him with admiration. "It's funny." he began. "I first went to Trider to give him the sword and he said the exact same thing as you did."

"Is that so?" Storm chuckled.

Blueblood nodded, before looking at the weapon in his hands. "So what am I to do with it now, since nopony wants it?"

The two pondered in silence, before Storm clapped his hands. "Why don't you take it?"

The prince was baffled by his proposal. "W-why me?"

Storm smiled, as he leaned forward. "Because you and Rose were like siblings. You knew her better than almost anypony. You both trained under the same master and you both held the same ideals. I can't imagine anypony more worthy to carry on her legacy."

Blueblood was taken aback, but was still unsure about this. "Besides." Storm continued. "I'm sure she would've wanted it."

That statement solidified the prince's resolve. He tightened his grasp onto the sword. "I swear on my honor and life, that I will not let you down." he said, determination seeping from him, like it was a thick smoke.

"Good." Storm said with a nod. For a second they remained quiet and then the older stallion spoke again. "You mentioned Trider before. How... How is he holding up?"

Blueblood's hands slumped as did his gaze. "Not well, unfortunately." he spoke somberly. "Rose's death struck him particulary hard. Princess Twilight told me that he has barely spoken to anypony and has isolated himself after the funeral."

Storm nodded understandingly. "I see. He did strike me as the type who would do that." He rubbed the bridge of his nose and exhaled loudly. "Rose told me a bit about him and his past. I just hope he doesn't revert to his old ways."

"Same here." the prince agreed. "But I can understand him. I too wish to avenge her death." His gaze lingered on the blade in his hands for a moment, before he looked Storm in the eyes. "I will avenge her."

The large stallion released a light chuckle as he met Blueblood's stare. "It seems you and I think quite alike." His smile quickly disappeared, replaced by a serious scowl. "But we have to remember that despite everything that has happened, we must not cast the blame onto those who do not deserve it." Blueblood understood what he meant when he said that and he silently nodded. "How is she by the way?"

"Weak and riddled with guilt, but she is recovering." the prince answered. A worried expression snuck onto his face. "She's going to Ponyville today to meet up with Trider."

If Storm was drinking he would have spat it out when he heard Blueblood say that. "Is she serious?" he asked, completely flabergasted.

"She is on her way as we speak." the prince responded. A deadly silence fell over the office as Storm continued to stare at the stallion.

"Dear goddess." he breathed out. "I sure hope she knows what she's doing."

"She said it was something she had to do. Besides I don't think even Trider is dumb enough to harm a princess who is beloved by all of her subjects."

"You have a point there." Storm said.

The two continued to chat for a few more minutes, before Blueblood said his goodbyes and left.

***

Meanwhile a golden carriage was soaring through the sky, flying in a straight line towards the small town. Inside the vehicle the two sisters sat in silence as they both had worried and scared expressions on their faces.

"You certain about dear sister?" Luna asked, her tone clearly showing signs of distress.

Celestia lifted her head to look at her beloved sister. "Absolutely Luna." she said weakly, her voice just barely audible enough to hear. "It is the right thing to do and whatever happens I'll accept it."

In the past couple of weeks Celestia was put under great care, to heal her wounds, and she was finally relieved three days ago. Immediately after her release, she made a public statement to her subjects, expressing her sorrow and grief. The ponies forgave her, but no matter how much she was told that it wasn't her fault, she couldn't feel at ease.

She also made the effort to personally apologize to those she hurt the most. Luna, Twilight and her friends, as well as Fleur and Fancy immediately accepted her apology and reassured her. Frost was a bit hesitant at first, but she too soon came to terms with what happened and forgave her. The only one that was left was Trider and it was a meeting that she dreaded the most.

She invited him to the castle along with the others, but her refused. She remembered Twilight telling her that he was still in pain and that he said that if she had something to tell him, she should come to him.

"Are you worried?" Luna asked, snapping her sister out of her stupor. Celestia looked at her and gave a small smile.

"I am."

Luna reached over and grasped her hand. "You will be fine." she reassured her. "I know from experience that what happened wasn't your fault and that in time everypony will forget about what happened."

"Can you say the same for Trider?" she asked with doubt. "You know what he is like."

This time it was Luna who smiled. "I do, but you do not." Celestia gave her a perplexed look and the night princess immediately replied. "Trider has changed since he arrived here. True he is still somewhat violent, but that pales in how he used to be. I am certain that he, like the rest, will forgive you."

Like a rock, her worries rolled away from her heart, and the day princess sighed in relief. "Thank you dear sister. That's just what I needed to hear."

"I will always be here for you, just how you used to be there for me." The two embraced in a hug, which only stopped when their carriage landed. "It seems we are here."

"Indeed." Celestia answered.

A royal guard opened the door and Luna stood behind her sister, grabbing the handles of her wheelchair and began to push her out. Once they were outside the sunlight revealed Celestias disheveled apperance.

Her mane was now short and in single pink hue, while also losing its flowing nature. She also shrunk in size and her coat became more ashen in appearance.

The two slowly approached the Sweet Apple Acres farmhouse where Twilight and her friends were already waiting for them. "Princess Celestia!" Twilight cried out in joy, as she ran towards her ex-mentor. The sun princess extended her arms and the two mares hugged each other. "It is so great to see you."

"Likewise." Celestia answered. She looked towards the rest and smiled even wider. "It's great to see all of you as well."

The girls and Spike returned her smile, but it was soon replaced with worried expressions. Applejack stepepd forward and spoke. "Are ya sure 'bout this Princess? Ah mean it's very noble of y'all to do this, but Trider hasn't been in exactly great mood ever since the attack."

"Yeah, he keeps coming over to the farm to 'train'." Spike piped in, emphasizing the last part with quotation marks. "He never leaves, not unless he has to rest or sleep. Heck we have to bring food over to him to make sure he eats."

"And every time I fly by the only things I hear are screams and explosions." Rainbow added.

"What we're trying to say Princess Celestia, is that maybe you should give him a few more days to cool off." Twilight summarized.

Celestia closed her eyes and sighed. "No." she stated firmly. "I have kept him waiting enough, if I delay this any further, I fear that it will only worsen the situation." She glanced back at her sister, her eyes brimming with determination. "Let us go sister."

"Very well." she said and nodded. The two began to slowly move towards where Trider was, while the others watched them leave.

"At least let us come as well." Twilight shouted, before flying after them, the other following suit.

It took them a few minutes, before they reached the part of the farm where Trider usually trained. However now it appeared more like a war zone rather than part of the orchard.

"What happened here?" Luna asked amazed.

"I told ya he wasn't feelin' well." Applejack said. They walked for a few more feet, before they found their alien friend.

He stood in the middle of a large crater, his snow white hair indicating that he was in his Super form. The energy around him burned like a flame and it grew and shrunk in different intervals. The others watched him in awe and they didn't dare approach him.

With another burst the Ki erputed and Trider screamed at the top of his lungs. After several seconds he stopped, the energy and his screams seizing. The turned back to normal, as he fell to one knee and began to breathe rapidly, trying to catch his breath.

The group decided this was the right time to get closer and they slowly descended into the crater. Once they were within a few feet they stopped and Twilight stepped forward.

"Trider?" she addresed him.

"Yeah?" he asked without turning around, his voice stoic.

"Celestia is here to see you." she said gingerly, fiddling with her fingers. "Can you listen to what she has to say?"

Trider replied by waving his hand, signaling for the princess to step forward. Twilight backed away, to give room to the princess and waited with her friends to see what would happen.

"Hello Trider." Celestia greeted, mustering up her strength to be as loud as possible. "First let me thank you for hearing me out, as well as protecting my city and my subjects."

Trider said nothing, as he slowly stood up, still facing away from her. Celestia took a deep breath, before she continued. "I know that no matter what I say, it won't bring back Rose or those that perished in the attack. And that no matter what do or say you'll probably hate me for the rest of your life." Tears began to flow down her face, as her voice cracked. "But even so, I came here for one reason only. And that..." She placed her hands on her wheelchairs armrests and shakily stood up.

The others tried to stop her, but she stopped them from doing so. She continued to use her arms to support herself, as she lowered her head as far as she could. "Is to say I am sorry." she said her voice broken. "I'll accept any punishment, anything that you can think of, if it helps calm your distraught heart."

Everyone watched the princess in shock and awe, as they were surprised by her heartfelt apology. Trider still said nothing and showed no reaction whatsoever. Then he began to slowly turn around, his eyes hidden beneath his hair. He lifted one of his hands and placed it onto her shoulder.

Everyone watched in terror, as they waited for what would happen next. Celestia closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable.

"First of all..." he said before he pushed the princess back into her wheelchair. "Sit down you hag, otherwise you'll collapse before I've had a chance to say anything to you."

The terrified expressions turned to those of genuine surprise, as they didn't expect him to do that. Celestia was the most shocked out of all of them.

"Wha-?"

"Shut up and let me talk." he said, placing a finger on her lips. "Daybreaker took Rose away from me and for that I'll never forgive her."

Celestias expression sank and she felt her guilt rising. Trider looked at her with pitied eyes, before he sighed. "What are you feeling down for? I said I'd never forgive Daybreaker, but fortunately for all of us, she is no more."

His statement caught the sun princess, as well as the rest off guard and their eyes told they demanded an explanation. "Celly, what happened to you wasn't your fault. You were caught in something that you couldn't control and I can see you regret what happened." He took a moment to let what he said sink in, before he continued. "Besides it would be very hypocritical of me, if I didn't forgive you."

"What do you mean?" she asked curiously.

Trider smiled at her and pointed his thumb at himself. "Don't you remember what I did in the Crystal Empire? After what I did you still forgave me, even though you had no reason to."

Celestia was left speechless. For a long time she believed that she knew Trider, who he was and what he was like. She was certain that no matter what happened he would never forgive her. She was glad she was wrong.

"However." Trider said out loud. "I also remember that you also gave a few conditions afterwards, one of them being becoming a Royal Guard."

A shiteating grin stretched across his face as he looked at Celestia with a sinister grin. The princess almost dreaded to ask, but she did anyway. "What are your terms?" she sighed.

"One." he said lifting a finger. "Stop feeling sorry for yourself. We all already forgave you, so the only one left who hasn't is yourself. And frankly, you look pathetic like that."

"That." she started as she was once again at a loss for words. "Is very kind of you. I shall take what you said to heart."

"You better." he affirmed with a nod. "Otherwise if I start boasting to others that I defeated you, they would feel sorry for you rather than admire me."

The princess began to laugh unconrtolably, as she should have expected him to say something along those lines. "I needed that, really."

"Good. Now for the second condition." he said lifting up two fingers. "Don't ever let yourself become Daybreaker again. That goes without saying. Unless you want your ass to be kicked by me once more."

"Don't worry. I will never allow that evil to rise again." she said with determination.

Trider nodded silently. "Very well. And that leaves us with the final condition." He lifted his clenched fist and shot Celestia a grin. "Once you're fully healed and at full power, you'll fight me."

"SAY WHAT?!" everyone shouted in unison, Twilight looking like she would burst into flames.

Celestia and Luna however laughed at his proposal. "I see." the sun princess said. "It seems that you have gotten cocky, just because you beat me once."

"And I'll beat you again." he stated with pride. "As soon as I figure out how I became like that during our fight."

"Is that what you were doing out here? Trying to discover how to tap into that power?"

"Yeah." he nodded. "Not much progress I fear."

"Take your time. I too need it." she said and shot him a smile.

"So you accept my conditons then?"

"Yes." she nodded.

"Great." he said and extended his fist. "Then all is forgiven." Celestia to extended her arm and bumped her fist with his own.

"I believe we are done here sister."Celestia said to her sister, who stepped closer and began to push her back to the farm. "We'd love to stay, but we have other matters to attend to, back in Canterlot. Farewell."

With their goodbyes said, the two sisters began to walk back to the farm. "You were right Luna, he did change."

"Told you so."

"Indeed you have." she said with a smile. "I believe that the future holds many more hardships and with his help we will get through them all."

"Is that admiration in your tone that I hear sister?" Luna asked teasingly.

Celestia scoffed at her. "Maybe. He did deserve to be praised at least." Luna was happy that her sister was back in her old spirits once again, but deep inside she felt that something much worse waited for them in the future.

Chapter 44: After Chaos, Comes the Light; Triders Resolve

The midday sun shined upon the land of Equestria and many ponies took pleasure in basking in its radiant glory. Trider on the other hand continued his relentless training, in order to achieve even greater power.

He picked up and tossed a large boulder high into the air, before chasing after it. Once he reached it he unleashed a barrage of attacks, until nearly half of it was reduced to rubble. He then let the stone fall to the ground and as soon as it smashed into it, he unleashed a powerful Ki blast at it, disintegrating it.

Panting heavily he observed the crater he had created, before he released his Super form and landed on the ground. He walked over to tree, where on one of its branches laid a towel, which he picked up and used to wipe off his sweat.

"I see you've been busy lately."

Immediately Trider turned around and shot a blast at the one who snuck up behind him. He realized too late what he had done and could only watch as Discords hands tried to grab at the air, where his head used to be. Before Trider could even move to help him or say his sorry, one of the draconequus' hands reached into the severed neck and pulled out Discords intact head.

"That was uncalled for." the spirit grumbled as he extinguished a small flame on one of his horns. "You could have really hurt someone with that. Dare I even say, kill."

"Oh I'm sorry. Maybe next time you don't sneak up on me while I'm training and my body is on a high dosage of adrenalin." Trider rebuted.

"Sheesh. Somebody can't take a joke." Discord said defensively.

The Kanisar procceded to pick up the towel he dropped and wiped of the remaining sweat. "What are you doing here anyway? We haven't heard from you in a month and now you show up all of a sudden?"

"I was busy." Discord reply quickly.

"Busy?" he looked at the spirit with doubtful eyes. "Busy enough to not help us when Canterlot was attacked?"

Discord knew what the Kanisar was suggesting and he didn't appreciate it. "OK, I'm only gonna tell you this one time. What I was doing was so much more important than the attack. I know you fell anger and grief, but don't even think about trying to pin some of the blame on me."

Trider continued to glare at the draconequus, before asking. "Even more important than Fluttershy?"

The question struck Discord hard. Everyone knew that out of all the people, Discord would only ever do anything for her. "Yes. Even more important than her." he said grimly.

Trider continued to watch him, but eventually he ceased his staring and sighed. "I see." he placed the towel back on the branch and sat down in the shadow. "So again, what are you doing here? You know we are not allowed to socialise without a babysitter?"

"Oh is the big bad wolf scared of little ponies?" Discord teased with a large grin.

"Of course you can say that, it won't be your hide that'll be screwed if you mess around with me." Trider answered, before shuddering. "You have no idea how scary my wives can get when they're angry."

"Oh I have an idea." Discord said and floated over to where Trider was. "Especially that Rose girl. She-" Immediately he stopped his sentence as he remembered to whom he was talking to.

Triders face turned grim as he fought back the tears that were building up. Discord didn't know what to do in this situation, since he was still new to friendship. He eventually reached his arm over and placed it on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry." was all he said, but nontheless it helped. "While I wasn't there, I did hear from Fluttershy about what happened."

"Thanks."

The two remained silent for a few seconds, as the atmosphere grew more awkward. Eventually Discord cleared his throat and asked. "How are the others doing, by the way?"

"Spike, Dynamism and Ace made a full recovery, although Dyna lost her right eye." he said depressed. "Whip and Rose on the other hand... The doctors said that Whip will recover in time, but that he probably won't ever be able to fight again. And Rose lost her magic."

Discord realized that it was hard for the Kanisar to talk about that, so he decided to change the subject. "You wanted to know why I came here, right?" Trider nodded in response. "Good. Just give me a bit."

Discord stood up, grabbed his protruding tooth and yanked it out with a single pull. "Here." he said offering it to the Kanisar.

"Uhhh, no." Trider quickly denied him.

"Oh don't be a baby." the spirit grumbled, before he snapped his fingers and the tooth changed into a large crystalline rock. "Is this better?"

Tirder gingerly grabbed the rock and inspected it. "What is this and why are you giving it to me?"

"Let's just say it's something extremely important and I need you to take care of it while I have... Some business to take care of." he explained, saying the last part in a dark tone.

"Do you really think I'm the right person to watch over this?" he asked, still looking at the rock.

"Actually you'd be one of the last people I'd give this to." Discord quickly quipped. Trider shot him an annoyed glare and the draconequus grinned. "But you are also the only one I can give this to. I'm afraid it would be too dangerous for anyone else to have it."

"OK, seriously what is this?" Trider asked, this time with concern.

"All in due time my friend." Discord replied, before he started to walk away. He stopped midway and looked back at the Kanisar. "I can trust you to protect it with your life?"

For the first time since he has known Discord, Trider felt that the spirit of chaos was serious and afraid. "I will." he said with resolve.

Discord smiled before he snapped his finger and a green door appeared in front of him. "See you later then." he said and walked through it.

***

Discord floated through the void as countless small lights passed by him. He stopped by a few and inspected them, before shaking his and floating off again.

"Where yould you be?" he pondered to himself as he continued to search. He has been at this for several hours now and he still made no progress. "Where are you hiding?" Suddenly he felt a sharp sting in the back of his neck and he immediately flew over to one of the lights. "Here you are." He reached out and grabbed the light and he was suddenly standing inside a large cavern.

He snapped his fingers and a flashlight appeared in his hand. He shone it around, trying to find an exit. What he found however was a pair of flashing blue eyes. Before he had time to investigate what it was, a changeling jumped at him and he moved out of the way.

"You gave quite a fright there little one." Discord said and continued to shine his flashlight at the insect. "What are you doing here? Are you lost?"

The changleing said nothing as he just hissed at the spirit. Suddenly the draconequus heard something scurrying around the cave and several more hisses. He snapped his fingers and the flashlight turned into a flare gun. He aimed it at the ceiling and fired.

The red light illuminated the entirety of the cavern and he could see that he was surrounded by hundreds of changelings. "Ruh-roh." he said, before the light from the flare went out.

The changelings shrieked in unison and attacked. Sounds of struggle and fighting echoed throughout the cave and once it stopped it was quiet for several seconds.

A loud snap then sounded off and the entire cave was illuminated. Discord stood on top of a pile of changelings, while wearing a blonde wig, a blueheadband and orange and blue jacket and trousers.

"You guys never stood a chance. Believe it." he said with a thumbs up and a victorious grin. His gloating was interrupted when he heard someone clap slowly. He looked around and saw several figures emerge from an entrance on the isde of the cave.

"Impressive. You truly are a spirit of chaos." the stallion said as he was pushed forward on his wheelchair. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Comet Trail I suppose?" Discord said, as his clothes disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"The one and only." the stallion grinned. "It's an honor to be known by the master of chaos himself." he made a curt bow with his head, before rising it again. "Have you met my accomplices?"

The rest of the group stepped forward and Discord just glared at the. "So you're the ones responsible for what happened to Tia?"

"Indeed we are." Comet braged. "But you're not here for that are you?" he said and reached inside his shirt. He pulled out a black and silver necklace in the shape of an alicorn, with a large red gem in the middle of it. "You came for this."

Discords eyes widened and he gritted his teeth. "Tartarus Fragment."

"Correct. We got this one from the Canterlot Royal Treasury." he said and admired the necklace in his hand. "We were supposed to get it before the invasion, but we had to improvise."

"And I can assume you got the others as well?"

Comet laughed at what Discord said. "Sharp aren't you, for someone so old." he said and snapped his fingers. Bullseye stepped forward and brought a suitcase with him. He opened it and revealed several other pieces.

Fear fell onto the draconequus face as he bared witness to what was before him. He raised his hand to snap his fingers, but before he could do that a large cage fell from the ceiling trapping him inside. Discord quickly recovered and shot Comet a bemused smirk.

"A cage? Seriously?" he chuckled and snapped his fingers. However nothing happened.

"Try all you want Discord, but you won't succeed. This cage was made by our dearest Dr. Gene. It is composed out of antimag and is suppressing your magic." he said in a victorious tone. "You can struggle all you want, but you won't escape from there."

Discord grabbed the bars and glared at the stallion. "Do you even know what you're doing? Do you know what those stones are?"

Comet threw him a bemused smirk. "The Key of Tartarus." Discord was shocked by what the stallion said. "A relic created since ancient times, that was broken apart so nopony could use it. It is said that with the Key you can open the Gates of Tartarus and unleash the damned army within."

"If you know that, then why-"

"Because that is what I want." Comet interrupted him. "With this army at my disposal I'll be able to finally rid this world of all strife. Nopony will ever feel grief and will be happy. With me as their ruler." He sighed and once again looked at the amulet. "It's just too bad I'll have to part with this relic here. I've really gotten attached to it. Even though it is slowly corrupting my mind."

"I see." Discord said contemplatingly. "You really have no idea, what you'll really be unleashing. And it seems that no matter what I tell you, you won't listen to me."

"Indeed." Comet said and looked at Phantom. "Get the relic from him, so we can finally finish this."

Phantom nodded and walked over to Discord. He lifted a purple stone and held it in front of the draconequus. Several seconds passed and nothing happened.

"What is taking you so long?" Comet said, slightly agitated. "The cage won't hold him forever, not as long as he has the relic with him."

"It's not reacting." Phantom answered, still holding the stone.

"What do you mean not reacting?" the stallion asked, now clearly annoyed. "That gem is supposed to drag the relic from him by any means possible." Suddenly he realized. "You don't have it!"

"Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner." Discord teased as Phantom walked back to the others.

"But where would you put it?" Comet began to think vigorously. "You couldn't have just placed it somewhere, that would be too reckless. But you also couldn't have entrusted it somepony, since the corruption would destroy anyone who has mag-" A grin slowly began to stretch across his face. "The otherworlder. That wolf thing. He has it."

"Tsk, you're one smart cookie." Discord cided himself.

"You are really cunning Discord. You almost had me fooled." Comet said as he gave the spirit a small clap. "But you are very foolish. Without that relic you're almost powerless, not to mention that you can't live without it. I bet you're already with one hoof in the grave already."

"Too smart for your own good." Discord laughed.

Comet quickly turned his chair around and began to leave. "We head for Ponyville immeditely. We will get that relic by any means necessary."

"What do we do with him?" Phantom asked, pointing to Discord.

"Leave him. He's useless to us now and he'll die by himself eventually. No need to put any effort into it." Comet repleid.

Discord began to chuckle, which slowly rose into a full blown laughter. "You called me a fool and yet you're as foolish as I am." Suddenly magic surged through his body and it clashed against the bars of the cage. "While wihtout the relic I am only a fraction as powerful as I was before, I am far from powerless."

He continued to pour magic into the cage until it could no longer take it and it exploded. Discord flew out of the smoke that was generated by the explosion and was now face to face with the villains.

"It's 6 on 1 Discord, what do you hope to accomplish." Comet said. His eyes then shifted to the draconequus side and his smile grew larger. "Especially in your state."

Discord looked to hisl right side and saw that his arm was no more, it appeared as though it simply vanished rather than being cut or torn away. "If my arms are cut away, I'll just kick you. If my legs are torn apart, I'll just bite. And so on, until there is nothing left of me."

"Comendable." Comet praised. "Get him."

The group charged at him at the same time, but Discord snapped his fingers and he disappeared and reappeared beside Bullseye. The stallion aimed his gun at the draconequus' face, but he wasn't fast enough as Discord teleported again.

"You're slow old man." Bullseye taunted.

"You sure." Discord taunted back, the briefcase in his hand.

"What are you doing? Get it back from him!!!" Comet shouted.

"Don't worry boss. It's not like he can escape from here with the amount of magic he has." Bullseye said in laid back tone.

"True." Discord smiled. "But I can still do this." Suddenly magic began to swirl around the cavern and gather around Discord.

"Stop him!" Everyone tried to get close, but were pushed back by the waves of magic. And just as sudden as it appeareed the magic also dispersed. Everyone looked at the spirit and the empty case in his hand.

"You should keep your trap shut next time." Phantom chided Bullseye.

"What did you do?" Comet screamed at Discord. "WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

"I thought that since I can't destroy them I would just send them far away. Somewhere where noteven I can get to." Discord explained. His body began to fall apart like dust and his eyes could no longer focus. "But even with that it is only a temporary solution. And it appeares that I can no longer continue my mission."

He looked over to Comet and smiled. "Don't worry they'll come back in time. I'm sure you're already aware of that."

"Hmph, I've waited 700 years for my chance. So what is one more to me."

"True. You have managed to live that long thanks to that accursed spell." Weakly Discord lifted his remaining arm snapped his fingers. He suddenly appeared in front of Comet.

The stallion had no chance to react, as Discord reached with his hand inside him and Comet screamed in agony. After several seconds Discord removed his hand and smiled. Now only his neck and head remaining.

"Wha-?"

"Now I've sealed that spell away, so you can only use just one. More. Time." Comet stared at him with shock and rage. "I know that spell well and I know that the bodies you take over don't last very long. Enjoy the rest of your short life." He stuck out his tounge at the stallion. "Oh, just a food for thought. Are you sure you're the one in control?" With those last words he disappeared from this world.

"DAAAAAAAAMN YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!"

***

"Where am I?" Trider asked himself, as he walked through the darkness that surrounded him.

"If I had to take a guess, I would say it is your subconscious."

The Kanisar quickly turned to the source of the voice and spotted a familiar being. "Discord? What are-?"

"Sorry I don't have much time to talk, so just sit down and listen to me." Trider was wary, but he did what was asked of him. Discord cleared his throat before he began. "Trider, what I'm about to tell you is very important and all true, so don't think that I'm pranking you in any way."

"O.K?" Trider said unsurely.

"First of all, I am dead." Trider almost immediately jumped up, but was stopped by the draconequus. "I said sit down and listen. I'll answer all of your questions that you have with what I'm about to tell you."

Trider nodded and sat back down. "I gues it would be best if I start at the beginnig, so you can understand what is currently happening."

The scenery around them changed and the two were now in the middle of a large grassy field. "It all started over 10000 years ago, here on Equus. Back then numerous creatures and not just ponies roamed the lands." Trider looked around and saw beings he could never imagine. "And it was also home to beings who held tremendous power. Nowadays these beings would be refered to as gods."

"The land was prosperous and peaceful, everything was perfect. It was a perfect world. However, nothing lasts forever." The field suddenly changed to a battlefield where soldiers and warriors fought each other, spilling blood all over the ground and the sky was riddled with waves of magic. "The gods fell into a dispute and a war broke out. This war lasted for millenia and it destroyed the land completely."

The sounds of battle and screams stopped and only deathly silence remained. "Eventually the gods killed each other, until there was no one left. But while the fighting stopped, the consequences from it remained." The land began to twist and turn into itself, as horrid creatures began to walk across the land. Trider wanted to throw up from the sight of them.

"And this is the censored version." Discord commented, before he continued. "The magic of this world was corrupted and twisted beyond imagination and it seemed this world would remain in ruin forever."

"However a hope reamined. Three children of the gods survived, a brother and sister and one another." Three shadowy figures rose from the ground and they looked around the land with terror and shock. "And when they saw the world that was left they joined together to rebuild this world."

"It took them centuries and millenia to gather all the creatures and corrupted magic, and once they were done they used the magic to create a realm into which they sent the creatures and sealed it away." The scene played out before Trider and he listened intently to what Discord was telling him. "The realm was closed off and the brother of the two siblings voulenteered to watch over it so that nothing ever escapes it."

"And the other two?"

"The girl became responsible for day and night, since the magic made it impossible for the universe to do it itself. And the boy wandered around the land helping in its restoration." Trider saw the three young gods going about their tasks and watched as the land slowly regained it prosperity. "Peace returned to our world once more and everything was well. The brother was keeping guard of the realm, the boy continued to help anyone who needed it and the sister contineud to command the Sun and the Moon. She even fell in love and had children." he stopped and took a deep sigh. "However like I said before, nothing lasts forever."

"About 5000 years ago tragedy befell our world once again. The brother, despite his pure heart, was corrupted by the realm in which the monster reside and he took control over them. He then invaded the world with his army and threatened to bring it back into the dark era." As the scene played out, Trider saw Discord look at it with a sorrowful expression.

"The sister and the boy responded to his act and tried to persuade him, to bring back their friend. But it was all for naught. They were being overwhelmed by the army of monsters in their desperation they did the only thing they could." The two figures of the sister and the boy clashed with the distorted image of the brother and the sister used all of her might to defeat her brother, while the boy used his power to seal the realm once again.

"The sister sacrificed her life to seal her brother and his army inside the realm, while the boy used all of his gody power to close the gates and create a key with which to open it." The figure watched the massive doors with grief as he held something in his hands.

"He then proceeded to destroy the key and scatter the pieces across the land, in hopes that it would never again be opened. But because the key was connected to the realm it carried its corruptive magic with it, giving the user unimaginable power, but also corruption." The boy was now seen carrying two bundles to a house where he left them and walked away. "The boy made a promise to the sister that he would look after her two daughters, but since he was also in possesion of the most powerful fragment, he knew that he couldn't. So he left them with someone more capable than himself."

"And in time, the boy slowly succumbed to the fragment, his mind and body twisting in the chaos it brought until he could no longer remember anything about himself, except his mission." Trider watched as the figure slowly transformed, until it turned into a familiar shape.

"You?" he asked in disbelief, as he looked at Discord.

"Yes. I am the boy in the story. Back then my name was Raijat the god of nature."

"Why didn't you ever tell us? To Celly or Lulu?"

"Didn't I say that I lost all of my memories? I only remembered this after I gave you the fragment." Discord rebuted.

"Gave me the fragment? What fra-?" Suddenly realization dawned on him. "Your tooth?! Why the hell would you give me something like that?"

"Because, the fragment corrupts an individual thorugh their magic, but you don't have any, that's why." the spirit explained.

Trider looked at him unsurely as he pondered what he was told. "So you want me to protect it? From who?"

"The people who attacked Canterlot." he sighed and looked the Kanisar straight in the eyes, seeing rage build in them. "It would appear they wanted the fragment that was stored in the castle. And they got it."

"Then I'll find them and kill them." Trider growled and slammed his fist into his palm.

"No." said Discord. "This is not your fight. What I want you to do is take the fragment and with its and Twilights help go back to your world. Isn't that what you want?"

"My world?"

"Yes. You can go back home and help your people." Discord tried to persuade him.

"No." Trider immediately responded. "This is my home now. And I sure as hell won't let it fall to ruin."

Discord smiled at his immediate answer. "Very well. But I would still like for you to go back."

"Why?"

"Listen, this fragment will corrupt anyone who wields it or is close to it. If you reamin here your firends are bound to fall to its effects. This is why I'm usually not around much." he explained to the Kanisar. "Also if you go, the bad guys won't be able to go after you, so the fragment will be extra safe."

"So you want me to run?" Trider said angrily, gnashing his teeth.

"No, I have seen these guys and they are stronger than you are right now. What I want you to do is to take it with you and discover your new power on your planet and then come back."

"How do I come back, if there is no magic on my planet?" Trider wondered. "Do I bring Twilight with me or what?"

"No, no. The fragment will return to our world after a year and if you're holding it at the time it will take you along as well."

"So I go, get stronger, come back and kick ass? Is that what you're saying?" Trider summarized.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." Discord chuckled to himself. "And don't worry about other fragments. I took care so that noone will be able to get them for another year."

"I see." the Kanisar slowly nodded his head.

Suddenly Discord felt something tugging at him and he smiled. "It seems my time is coming. I'm afraid I'll have to cut our chat now."

"Is there anything you want me to tell the others?"

"Tell them that it was fun messing around with them. And to Fluttershy that I'm sorry that I won't make it to our tea time."

"What about Celly and Lulu?"

Discord reamined quiet for a bit as he pondered if he should say anything at all. Finally he sighed and smiled. "Tell them that I'm sorry I was such a terrible godfather."

Discords body began to glow and he slowly faded away. "Give'em hell in my stead champ." the spirit said and waved goodbye.

"You know it." Trider smiled as he watched his friend leave.

"Ah finally free from my mortal form." Discord sighed as he began to float through the vast bright void. "I hope they have something fun on the other side."

"I can assure you they do, but I don't think it will be to your liking."

Discord quickly turned around and saw a woman, the sight of which made tears fall down his face. "Maybe I can still have fun, if you're there with me. Themis." The woman giggled, which made Discords entire being shiver. "I'm sorry I didn't keep my promise to you."

"Don't worry." she said as she stepped closer to him. "I know you tried and you did your best. And thanks to that my daughters are living happily. I couldn't be happier." She then stretched out her arm. "Come Raijat, you've done enough. You can finally be free and rest."

Discord took her arm and saw it turn into something he had lost five thousand years ago. "I'm home." he said with a smile, as the two stepped into the light together.

***

"You sure about this Trider?" Twilight asked.

The Kanisar picked up his backpack and placed it on his back. "Yeah. I told Discord I'd do it and I don't want to disappoint him after what he had done for us."

Soon after Trider woke up he met up with everyone and told them what Discord told him. Everyone was shocked and saddened by what they were told, especially the princesses. And he told that he would go back home they were all against it, but he stayed adamant.

"Ya're gonna come back, right?" Applejack asked, her eyes red from crying.

"Absolutely." he said and kissed her. The two melted in each others embrace and only stopped when an annoyed Twilight cleared her throat.

Applejack smiled and stepped away from the Kanisar. "He's all yours."

Twilight thankfully nodded and kissed Trider as well. "I know I keep repeating myself, but be careful."

"And I'll always answer you 'I will'." After that he said goodbye to his other friends, who could come. Ace told him that Whip and Frost wish himgood luck as well. He stopped by Spike and leaned closer to him. "You better not slack off, ya hear." he threatened.

"No way." Spike said and the two shook hands. He then stopped by Celestia and Luna.

"Farewell. Hope you can help your people." Luna said and gave Trider a quick hug.

"Thanks Lulu. I promise that when I'm back it will already be resolved." he assured her.

Celestia used all of her strength to stand up so she could give Trider a hug as well. "Don't worry. We will make sure that the villains are found and punished, as well that we try to locate the fragments before them."

"Leave some of them for will ya." he said and winked.

With goodbyes said he walked to the spot where Twilight performed the spell which brought him here. He placed the fragment onto the ground and stepepd back.

"Ready?" Twilight asked.

"I could use a leak, but I think I can hold it." he replied with a grin.

Twilight shook her head and began to channel her magic. The fragment began to glow and crackle with power as it levitated into the air.

"Discord was telling the truth, I can feel the corruption flow into me." she said as she struggled with the spell.

"Should we stop?" Trider asked with worry.

"No, I can do this." the mare said and pushed on. The air around them began to swirl as the magic in the fragment intensified. After a few seconds a portal formed and Twilight stopped channeling her magic.

"This is it then." Trider said as he picked up the fragment and walked towards the portal. He stopped in front of it and looked back to his friends. They all smiled and waved at him, so he returned the gesture. "See you in a year." he shouted and turned back to the portal. He took a deep breath and walked thorugh the it. "Old home, new adventure." he said to himself as the portal closed behind him.

Author's Note

And with this the story is finished. It will continue in the next part: The Fable of a lost Wolf.
I hope you enjoyed the ride till now and I hope you got da feels in this chapter (I'll be honset, I got teary eyed myself as I wrote this).
Until next time.

Continuation of the Story

Hi. As per request of many, I am putting this chapter up to tell you that the next installment of the story is now up.
Click this link https://www.fimfiction.net/story/410792/the-fable-of-a-lost-wolf or type The Fable of a Lost Wolf in the search box.
Hope you enjoy it.

Prologue: Escape From One World To Another; The Wolf Has Descended

"C'mon Spike pick up the pace, we have no time to loose!"

"Ugh, coming."

Twilight and Spike were making their way out of the town and were heading towards the edge of Everfree Forest. The mare was carrying a backpack full of books and various magical items, while her dragon assistant was draging his own, filled with numerous parchments, ink canisters and quills, along the ground.

"Why in the name of Celestia did we have to wake up so early anyway?" the young drake moaned.

"I already told you yesterday, that I wanted to practice some new spells, as well as a few I already know, just to brush up my skills." Twilght explained. "The reason why we got up so early is, because the number of spells I want to practice is enormous and if we hurry we might be able to also get a decent lunch, before we head back to the library."

Spike just gave her a deadpanned look. "Okay, I get that, but what I don't get is why you can't preform them at the library, or hell in the town, like you used to?"

The mare glanced over her shoulder at her companion. "Because some of these spells are rather high level and dangerous if preformed poorly. I don't want to accidentally set the library abalze or hurt anypony."

The dragon nodded and continued to follow her step-sister in silence.

Several hours later

Twilight was resting on a nearby tree as she was catching her breath. Around her was such devastation that one of her friends would have fainted at the mess she made, while a certain spirit of chaos would give her a medal for a job well done. In numerous places the grass was either burned, frozen or there wasn't any left. Some trees were were uprooted, twisted, different color and much more. Spike could only watch in awe at what the mare was able to accomplish in only a few hours.

"You weren't kidding when you said this might be dangerous, if somepony were to accidentally stumble here while you were going at it ..." He shivered at the mere thought of something like this happening.

Twilight couldn't reply as she was still breathing heavily from her recent trasfiguration spell, which she used to turn a rock into a glass of water. She only nodded laid her head back aginst the tree.

"Maybe we should finish this Twi, I don't think you can do any more. Besides we went through more than half of the spells on your list and we found countless ways on how to improve most of them." Said the drake while holding up several parchments filled to the brim with notes and formulas.

Twilght, after finally catching her breath, began to rise to her hooves. "Yeah, I guess you're right." she said. "But before we leave, there is just one more spell I want to try."

Spike gave her a glare and wanted to protest, but decided against it, seeing as she will do it no matter if he said anything or not.

"Fine, but just this one and then we're finished for today."

Twilight thanked and gave him a hug. The teenager blushed as she pressed her chest against his head and quickly tore away from the hug.

"Anyway," he coughed. "what is this spell you want to practice?"

"Oh it's just something I came up with." she gloated. "By using the knowledge of space formulas we use in teleportation spells and combining it with the formulas of the time spell I learnt while we were in Canterlot and adding it to a truesight spell, I should be able to create a window with which I should be able to see anywhere and anywhen I wish."

Spike couldn't say anything as he was still processing what she told him. After getting out of his stupor, he shook his head and fear fell onto his features. "Woah, woah, woah Twilight let me get this straight. You want to use a brand new spell, which you created not a while ago, by using three different spells, one of which made you create a time loop, and without knowing what might happen if it goes wrong?" he asked flabergasted.

The mare gave him a sheepish look and nodded.

"Are you fucking crazy?" yelled the drake.

"Watch your language young man, and no I am not crazy, just curious." she rebuted.

"Well what if your curiosity gets somepony hurt or worse the whole town?"

Twilight gave him a victorious smile. "Not likely. You see, when we arrived here I placed numerous wards around here, so they will contain anything dangerous. And as for the spell going awry, I conducted countless test and small scale experiments and they all showed that nothing could go wrong."

Spike wanted to argue further, but in the end hang his head in defeat. "If this does go wrong, don't come to me when Celestia comes to chew your flank off for doing something so dangerous."

"I won't and what did I say about watching your mouth?"

The drake grumbled and began to distance himself from the unicorn mare. While he was walking Twilight began to concentrate her magic in her horn for the spell. As her horn began to glow brighter, the air around began to grow colder and even the light from the Sun began to dim. When her magic reached its peak she began to lift off the ground and when she opened her eyes they were glowing with pure power. Soon she began to mold her magic, adding different elements and formulas that she memorized.

Even from far away Spike could feel the power Twilight was giving off and he continued to watch in amazment, the sense of danger completley vanishing. After a few minutes, a bright light began to form in front of the mare and began to stretch into four corners. Soon a window formed, but it was blank.

"Alright the frame is done, now to fill it in." Twilight said under her breath.

As she continued to progress her spell, exhaustion begining to crawl across her entire body, but despite that she pushed forward. Soon colors began to form in the frame, followed by shapes and quickly a clear picture could be seen.

When the mare laid her eyes on her work she smiled.

"I've done it." she whispered.

"I've done it Spike. Come and see." Twilight called out to her assistant.

Spike, after hearing her calls began to slowly walk towards his friend. After a few steps however the window began to ripple and soon began to twist wildly.

The mare and dragon looked at it with shock, subconsciously backing off.

"T-this... This shouldn't be happening." Twilight muttered.

"What's happening Twi?" screamed panicked Spike.

She looked between her and the window, as it also began to grow bigger. The unicorn tried to stop, fix or even cancel the spell, but it was no use. The spell was already way out of control.

She turned around and began to flee. "Get out of here!" she yelled to her friend. Spike heeded her words and began to run as fast as his feet could carry him. Soon they passed the wards that protected the place.

The spell in the meantime grew to the size of a small house and began to violently pulsate. Before anypony could even blink, the window shattered and imploded, sucking in nearby objects. Afterwards it created a flash powerful enough to be seen from Canterlot.

When things settled, Twilight and Spike looked at the destruction the spell created. The area that the wards covered was gone, only a crater remained. They continued to look at it until they heard screams heading their way. When they turned around they saw their friends as well as half of Ponyville heading their way.

The first to reach them was Rainbow Dash.

"Hey, guys what in Tartarus was that fl... Holy shit, what happened here?" she yelled when she saw the crater. Quickly the rest of the rally arrived at the scene asking questions to the duo responsible for the mess.

"W-well y-you see we-" the unicorn stammered until Spike bumped her with his elbow. "I mean I was trying out a new spell, that I made and it, well, you see how it went." She began to fidget and hung her head. "I am so sorry for the trouble I caused you."

Everypony looked between the duo and the crater, obviously stunned at the destruction. After a while of staring, the rest of Twilights friends surrounded the two and began to console them.

"It's alright darling, we are just glad both of you are fine." said the fashionista.

"That's right, I can't even think what we would do if something terrible happened if you were caught in that explosion." stressed Fluttershy.

The rest just nodded, as did the rest of Ponyville citizens. Twilght looked at all of them and gave a teary smile.

"Thank you."

Applejack decided, however it would still be beneficial to scold the unicorn. "However, it'd be mighty fine if y'all wouldn't go and do somethin so stupid again sugarcube. Next time ya might not be so lucky."

Twilight just nodded and sank into the embrace once again. The everypony looked heard a loud belch and turned thier gaze towards the young dragon.

He held a letter in his hand and was reading it.

"What does it say Spike?"

"It's from Princess Celestia and she, uhmmmm, saw the flash and is wondering what happened, she is worried if another evil force decided to attack Ponyville."

Twilights eyes turned to pinpricks and her blood turned cold. "I'm so fucked."

"Told you so." Spike said, then a grin streched across his face. "And watch your tounge young lady there are foals present, you know."

He began to chuckle, but soon stopped when he saw the glare the mare gave him.

Meanwhile in a galaxy far far away

A small group of masked people was running through alleyways trying to get away from their pursuers.

"Freeze or we will shoot." yelled one of the chasing guards.

The group responded by firing at them with their own pistols. They managed to hit one of them in the shoulder, while the rest simply bounced off the guards armor.

"Pffft, they say that right after they shoot down two of our own. They are so thoughtful." said one of the men with dark brown hair.

"Fucking hell, these pea shooters aren't doing anything to them." Said a short woman with a raspy voice and blonde hair. "Why the hell did the HQ gave us these damn pistols against those guys." She continued as she shot two more shots at the purusers.

"Well, for one there were only supposed to be low class guard with minimal armor." Replied another man, this one towering over the rest. "And also this was supposed to be a stealth mission, so big guns were out of the question."

"Yeah, go in, set the bombs, get out and watch the fireworks." Agreed the brown haired man. "But thanks to someones temper this turned into a race to survive." He said while he glared at the last member of their group. This one unlike the rest wore a helmet which covered his entire head.

They continued to run, until they turned around a corner and began climbing a ladder that was there. As soon as the last one got to the top the guards came around the corner. They realised they lost sight of their targets and the one in charge told the rest to spread out and search for them. Meanwhile the group was sneaking across the roofs until they stopped at a nearby watertower. There they stopped to rest for a little.

"Seems like we got away from them, for now at least." The tall one said.

"Yeah, thank god I know these streets like the back of my hand." Breathed out the girl.

The brown haired man however was only staring daggers at the helmet man. The helmet man didn't even turn to look at him and got the other guy angry. The tall one saw this and got in between the two.

"Johnny stop, this isn't the time to start a fight and also you know you can't take him head on."

Johnny turned his gaze at him. "I know, but that doesn't mean I can't give him a piece of my mind." he looked at the helmet man again and continued. "It's because of him that we lost Jenny and Eugene, and that this mission was a total failure."

The helmet man finally turned his head to look at him, but still said nothing.

"Yeah I'm talking to you fang-face. All of this is your fault, if you hadn't jumped at that guard just, because he was 'an easy target' we wouldn't be in this mess."

The girl decided to intervene before the things escalated too much. "Guys please can't we settle this when we get back to the base."

"No Celly it can't." Said Johnny. "I knew this would happen. After all we are in the presence of The Heartless Wolf."

At the mention of the nickname everyone flinched and the helmet man stood up. "What did you call me?" he asked.

"Johnny stop this." Whispered the tall guy.

"Zack don't interfere, if no one else has the guts to tell him, what has to be said, then I will." He said. "We all know what you are like, you say all about how all Kanisars should be freed from the humans clutch. We think so too, but you don't care about how many humans have to die to achieve this."

"Why should I?" asked the helmet man. "All of this is happening because of your kind, you are the reason my people suffer so it's only natural that you should die for what you did."

They stared at him in shock.

"You're right."

Their gaze shifted to Zack as he continued. "Humans are to blame for what happened to your planet and your people.

However, that doesn't mean you can just go around and do reckless things that you know will get them into trouble or worse killed. You should at least respect those who try and fix the mistakes the rest did. As you act now you are no better than the humans who brought your kind this suffering."

Before anyone could react a punch connected to the humans jaw and he fell to the floor.

"Trider, you son of a bitch what was that for?" yelled Johnny as he turned to the helmet man and got into a stance.

"Don't you dare compare me to the human trash like that. Because of you we lost everything. Our homes, our families, friends. Our freedom. You sacrificing yourselves is only reasonable." Trider said in a murderous tone. "And if you have a problem with how I act, I will show you how heartless I can really be."

"Why you-" is all Johnny could say before a bullet went through his head. As soon as his lifeless body fell to the floor the rest dropped to the floor as well to shield themselves from the gunfire.

Celly could only barely hold back her tears as she looked at the cold eyes of her dead friend.

"Goddammit they found us." yelled Zack.

"What do we do now?" asked Trider.

As Zack looked at his teammates he made up his mind.

"I'll be a decoy while you two run."

"No, we can't loose you too. Please there has to be another way." she pleaded.

Zack only got into a crouching position. "When I leave, wait five seconds then make a run for it."

Trider nodded, while Celly could only let her tears flow at the thought of loosing another one of her friends. Then without warning, Zack stood up and began to run and shoot at the guards.

"There they are, after them!" yelled one of them and they gave chase.

Meanwhile the two made a run for it in the opposite direction.

"Which way should we go?" asked Trider.

Wiping away her tears Celly pointed forward. "Up ahead are the are the train tracks, if we make it we can get on one of them and escape."

Trider nodded and picked up his pace leaving the girl behind. Soon they saw the station ahead of them and began to run even faster. Then a shot echoed and Celly screamed. Trider stopped and looked back seeing the guards on their backs once again.

"Guess Zack failed to distract them. Should've figured." he thought.

He then looked at Celly who was grabbing her bleeding shoulder, but was still running. Without second thought Trider also began to run again. The guards were still about hundred feet behind them so their aim wasn't so good, with exception of that one lucky shot that got the girl. They continued their way across the roofs, however on one of her jumps Celly slipped and fell short of the rooftop, but she managed to grab onto the ledge.

"Help. Trider, please help." she called out to her teammate.

Trider stopped and turned his head around. He wasn't that far away from the girl and the guards were still a long way from them. Celly looked at him with hope in her eyes, but that hope vanished when he turned his head back forwards and began to run.

With the last of her strength leaving her, she let go of the ledge and fell to the bottom of the six-story building.

Trider was almost at the last building separating him from the train tracks, he just hoped there was a train stationed right now. And luck was aparently on his side. Right now there was a freight train preparing for departure. Just as he was about to reach the edge he stopped.

There on the edge was another group guards waiting for him and in front was the man Trider only heard rumors of. The man who hunts down the stray Kanisars and enslaved or killed, the man who is said to have no soul or compassion for others, the man simply known as Deadlock.

As they stared at each other the chasing guards caught up and were preparing to take the Kanisar down. However Deadlock stopped them before they could act and smirked at the wolf boy.

"Well, well what do we have here? A stray mutt, who left his pack behind." he said with chill in his voice, devoid of any emotion. "I have only heard tales from those who I captured, about a Kanisar who hates humans so much that he will gladly leave them to deaths hands, than to help them even if it means succeding in a mission.

I belive the name they used was The Heartless Wolf, though to me and my men you are better known as Mad Fang." At the mention of the name the guards began to murmur between each other.

"That's Mad Fang, the one who singlehandedly killed a squad of high class guards."

"This runt? No way, he probably had help to defeat those men."

"I heard the reason he got that name was because, if you get him angry he can't be stopped. Not even by the other Kanisars."

"That's quite enough lads." Shouted Deadlock. "Yes, this is that same mutt you heard so much about, but you don't need to worry." He paused to look around himself.

"Because no matter how strong he is, he is still just a lowly dog and he can't take all of us at once. So prepare yourself Mad Fang cause you're about to be taken down."

The guards once again got into their shooting position and took aim of their target.

Trider just looked around himself, seeing there was no hope of getting out of this one. He smiled under his helmet.

"Well, if I'm going down," he said while lowering his stance. "then I'm taking as many of you with me as I can."

Suddenly a black aura began to encircle him as he pounced forward. The guards instinctivly pulled their triggers. As the bullets were leaving their barrles a flash of light enveloped the Kanisars.

"What the-" was all Trider could say before he vanished.

Somewhere over a dessert

In the clear sky somewhere near Dodge City there was a flash of light, then a portal opened up and out of it only a single object fell. As the object was falling towards the ground, anypony who was nearby could hear a strange sound as it was falling.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-"

And it stopped as it hit the ground.

When Trider regained his conscience, he noticed he was lying in quite a deep hole in the ground. He tried to get up, but pain flared all over his body.

"Bloody hell, that hurts like a bitch."

He pushed through the pain and finally got up. As he was standing he looked around himself to see what happened and where he landed. The place was desolate, no animals or plants as far as the eye could see, only rocks and sand.

"Well wherever I am, at least I got away from those dumbasses. Though I would've loved to land at least a few blows, before I was literally thrown into this place. What happened anyway?"

Again he looked around himself to get a better bearing on the situation.

"Ah, who cares how I got here, all I need to know is where I am and how to get back to the HQ." he said to no one.

"Though I've never seen such a place anywhere nearby the capital." he thought. "Meh, just choose a direction and stick to it and you should get somewhere."

With those final thoughts he headed in the direction he was facing, towards oncoming adventures, not noticing smoke in the distance behind him or the railway tracks that were just a few yards to his left.

Author's Note

Greetings there fellow reader!
Hope you enjoyed this little story I started. If you have any questions I will be glad to answer them to the best of my abilities.
That is all for now. See you soon.
Your everwatchful protector
Solaris Night

Chapter 1: First Fight, First Impressions; A Visitor From Another Planet

2 weeks since Triders arrival

It was a quiet night, quiet enough that the only thing you could hear was only the sound of the wind and the leaves it rustled. In between those trees a sole rabbit was making its way to small clearing. As it was coming closer to the end of the treeline it stopped and stood up. It began to sniff the air and turned its head in every direction, to make sure no predators were nearby. Once it was certain that it was by itself the rabbit proceeded to the clearing, but still close enough to the edge in case it was attacked.

As it was eating the plants that it found on the clearings floor, a pair of eyes were staring at it from the top of trees on the opposite side of the clearing. Suddenly a twig snapped and the rabbit rose in alarm. It again began to look everywhere, prepared to flee at the slightest sound. Then it heard a swooshing sound coming from its side, but before it could react a small stone hit it in the head with massive force and rabbit fell fell to the ground bleeding.

As it hit the ground a shadow jumped out of trees and landed in the middle of the clearing.

"Strike." Trider said smiling, while he made his way to his prey. He picked it up by the ears and his smile grew even wider. "You'll make a decent dinner my friend."

He turned around and began to head to the small camp he made in a nearby cave. As he walked he began to think about all the things that happened since he fell from the sky.

"Damn, after wanderning in that stupid desert for three days, I finally make it out, only to get enveloped by this fucking forest." He began to glance around himself, to inspect the trees and to make sure he wasn't being stalked by other predators.

"If I didn't know any better I would say I've been walking in circles, but I've been heading north for all this time. I'm sure of it"

He decided to stop at a nearby tree and he gave it a good look. Once he spotted the moss he nodded to himslef. "Yeah, I've been heading north all this time and yet I'm still not out." he spoke. "How big can a forest be? I mean seriously, nearly two weeks and still no sign of ending." he grumbled.

He began to walk again as another thought came to him. "Now that I think about it, I've never seen half of the creatures I encountered in this forest." He chuckled. "Okay I'm no animal expert, but I'm certain that neither chicken-snakes, nor wood-wolves exist on Inu."

"But like I said I'm no Inus animal expert, so they maybe exist in some of the more tropical regions." He jumped over a tall root. "However I'm absolutely positive that there shouldn't have been only one moon in the sky for so long." He cast his gaze towards the sky as he spoke. "Having only one moon isn't unusual, it happens, but not for two fucking weeks. So either one of our moons suddenly vanished or..."

The next few minutes he spent in silence and away from his thoughts, until he reached his camp. He went inside the small cave, dropped off his food and began to set wood for his campfire. He ignited the wood by using one of his Ki blasts, he concentrated energy to the palm of his hand. It immediatelly began to glow and when he released it a small ball of energy hit the wood and it ignited.

As fire began to build up, Trider cut up and skinned the rabbit using his claws. Once he was done he put the pieces of meat on a few sticks and put those over the fire.

After he ate, he went outside to a small stream that ran near the cave. As he sated his thirst he gazed into the surface of the stream, seeing his reflection.

He had jet black hair, which he hadn't combed ever since he was a child. Like his hair, his thick eyebrows, which he adored, were also jet black and were sitting above his bright green eyes. His then looked at the small scar he had on his right cheek. He remembered the time when he got it, that time before he became part of the resistance, before his people lost everything, before he...

He shook his head as he tried to not think about that. He cupped some water and splashed it onto his face, using some of it to wet his hair and wolf ears. As he stood up he could see his entire frame in the reflection.

He stood at around 5'9, kinda small for his kind and he always got teased for it by his peers. But what he lacked in height he made up in strenght. He had muscles to spare and he happily showed them off whenever he could. Another thing he was extremley proud of was his black tail. He considered it the softest of all the Kanisar, because he constantly brushed and washed it. Now however it looked rugged and it annoyed Trider to no end. Before he headed back, he took a sniff at himself and his clothes. He only washed himself three times since his arrival and the last time was four days ago. He tried to clean his clothes as well, but after multiple attempts he decided it was impossible.

He wore the same garments he had since he came to this place, minus the helmet and the jacket which he got rid of back in the desert. He only wore a dark blue tight fitting T-shirt, which sleeves he ripped of when he got it, dark brown cargo pants and black combat boots.

After he finished sniffing himself, he thought he smelled well enough not to make anyone gag. With that done he finally laid down in the cave, he rested his head onto a pile of leaves and began doze off.

Next day

Apple Bloom was making her way down the road, heading to Zecora, to pick up a plant from her which she needed for her school project. She asked the Zebra if she could pick it up for her since the flower could only be found in the deepest parts of the Everfree Forest. She agreed to help the young filly, telling her to come by the next day to pick it up from her. She wanted to pick the flower by herself, but her sister was strongly against it, saying that even going to Zecoras might be dangerous. And Apple Bloom couldn't argue. This was the most dangerous forest in Equestria they were talking about. As she was walking along she saw something that caught her attention.

A little off the path she saw another plant she needed for her project. Deciding to pick it now before she forgot about it, she headed towards it. As she got close, she saw it was stuck between two rocks at the edge of a steep slope. The filly dropped her backpack and began to move the two rocks. She slowly progressed, but at last she got the rocks out of the way. She reached for the flower, but then she heard something cracking.

She looked at her hooves and before she could blink, she was tumbling down the slope. When she reached the bottom, pain flared across her body. Slowly she got up and looked over herself. She had cuts and bruises all over her body, her clothes were also torn and dirty.

"Gosh darn it. Why did the ground have to give up like that?" she moaned, clutching her bruised knee.

Suddenly she heard movement in a nearby brush, her breath halting and her ears perking up. Her eyes turned to pinpricks when she saw a stallion sized manticore come out of its hiding spot.

The manticore stared at the scared filly with a hungry look. Before it even stepped forward, Apple Bloom was already running in the opposite direction, the beast following soon after.

The filly ran as fast as her hooves could carry her, jumping over numerous roots and scraping against the trees, screaming. She tried to throw the manticore of her track by going through as dense the bushes and trees she could manage, but the predator didn't even slow down.

Apple Bloom tried to find a spot where she could hide or escape, but nothing came up. Just then the path ended, all that was in front of her was a massive rock wall. She quickly turned her head to see how far away her pursuer was, seeing it slowed down as the beast too realised she had nowhere to run.

The filly tried to climb the wall, but the rocks just crumbled away as she grabbed them. The manticore was only a few feet away now and the filly realising she was doomed, collapsed to the floor, prepared to become the beasts food.

The manticore punced towards its helpless prey, claws and fangs splayed, focused on killing it fast. Before it could reach the filly however, a shadow descended from the top of the wall. It struck the manticore on the top of its head, halting its jump and pumelling it into the ground.

Dazed and confused, the beast focused its attention on the assailant. There stood ponyshaped figure, with no fur, bloody red eyes and an ominous dark aura surrouding it. It tried to attack the strange being, but as it stepped forward it stopped, cold running through its veins. This furless pony radiated weird and powerful energy, but what really got to the manticore was the killing intent that this creature directed towards it.

All of its instincts and muscles, yelled to run away. It began to backpedal and slowly turn around, prepared to run for its life.

"Too slow."

That was all Trider said before he leaped at the retreating manticore, faster than anyone could blink. He struck the beast with his right fist sending the giant creature reeling. Before it could fall onto its side he delivered another punch, this time with his other hand. Manticore fell to the ground after the second strike and was trying to get up, but was too dazed from the attack only managing to support itself with its front paws.

Trider smiled at the struggling beast, showing his sharp fangs. He walked over to it and grabbed it by its tail.

"Time to put you out of your misery."

With that he tugged at the manticores tail, with monstrous power and sending it flying towards one of the trees. When the body collided with the trunk, all that could be heard was a sickening crunch and the beast fell for good.

Seeing the beast seized its movements, the Kanisar turned toward the staring filly. The aura that surrounded him dissipated and his eyes turned to normal. He began to walk towards Apple Bloom raising his arm and he spoke in a chipper tone.

"Hey there, little one. Now I'm gonna have you do me a favor and-"

Before he could finish the filly fainted, the adrenalin seizing to course through her body.

"-not scream." He gave her a deadpanned look. "Well, better than screaming I guess. But how am I supposed to get out of here with my only guide out cold?"

An idea then came to his head. He leaned toward the strange horse-person and took a sniff. He then stood up and began to sniff the surouding area as well. When he caught her scent he started following it.

After a few steps he stopped and turned around to look at the sleeping filly again. He began to scratch his head as his conscience gnawed at him.

"AH, FINE." he yelled before going over to the kid and picking her up and putting her under his arm.

"But only because you are kinda cute and you sort of helped me get out of this hellhole." With that he started to walk towards, what he hoped was an exit. As he began to walk he gave the child under his arm another look-over.

He was certain that it was female, based on her physique and her voice when he heard her scream. He couldn't exactly determine what she was, but he decided that she was him in terms of body shape, except she was more horse like, had fur covering her and she had hooves instead of feet. She had red hair tied with a large pink bow and a tail of same color, while her fur was pale yellow. On her was a simple white T-shirt and a pair of jeans.

"You're a weird one" he thought. "But who am I to talk, I'm probably just as strange to you as you are to me. I just hope you're also peaceful. I wouldn't wanna hurt anyone."

"At leas not unintentionally." He smirked.

Ponyville

The marketplace was crowded with ponies who went to and fro from stall to stall. The children were playing, while the grown ups were either relaxing, buying groceries or going around their job. One of those ponies was also the stetson wearing mare Applejack. At the moment she was setting up her own stall so she could sell another batch of apples from her familys farm.

"Hello Applejack, darling. It's another beautiful day, wouldn't you say."

The mare turned and came eye to eye with one of her friends. "Ya bet yer hat it is. The weather team sure outdid themselves this time."

"Oh yes, it is simply divine, no sane pony would want to stay indoors." She made a little pause and then she continued. "Well nopony besides Twilight, that is."

Applejack gave a chuckle and said. "Yer darn right, that girl really needs to go out more. Maybe we should make a picnic or somethin and just hang out, just the six of us. Oh and of course Spike as well."

"I agree." Responded the unicorn mare. "However we should do it after the dragon migration, you know how much twilight looked formward to observing the dragons and how they behave more up close."

"Yeah I know." She put her hand to her chin as she thought of when it would be the best time to do so. "How about we make it on-"

She was iterrupted as a pink mare with a blonde mane ran up to them gasping for air. "Applejack, Rarity thank Celestia I found you."

"Lily, what in tarnation is wrong?"

"A-a-a m-mo-monster!" Lily yelled in the mares face.

"Now hold on there fer a minute Lily, are yer sure it's a monster and not one of Fluttershys critters, like what happened last week?"

"Or the week before that?" Piped in Rarity.

Lily gave them a glare before her fear settled in again. "No it's not, I'm not the only one that saw it. Bon Bon was there as well and when we saw it approach town we both ran to get some help. Well I did while Bon Bon ran to Celestia knows where." Before she could trail off she shook her head and continued. "But that isn't important, Applejack it has Apple Bloom."

"SAY WHAT?"

Immediatelly Applejack ran in the direction Lily told them she saw the creature, while Rarity followed as fast as her heels would allow. In less then a minute Applejack came close to the towns edge, where nopony was present, all probably hiding from the monster. When she turned a corner her eyes almost fell out at the sight that was before her.

About a hundred feet away was a creature the likes of which the mare has never seen. It looked a lot like a pony, except it had no fur and it's ears and tail resembled that of a dog or a wolf, than that of a pony. But what made Applejack most terrified of it was what it had in its hands. There hanging by her T-shirt was her little sister thrashing and screaming at the monster who held her captive. Her fear and anger boiled inside of her, clouding her judgement, all that was important was saving her sister. She reached inside her vests pocket and pulled out a single apple, which she was saving for snack.

Perspective change: Trider and Apple Bloom

"Halp! Somepony please halp me!"

"Will you quit screaming for fucks sake. You already made everyone run and hide for no good reason. I'm not gonna hurt you." He told her. "Though I'm seriously reconsidering that, if you don't stop hitting me."

It didn't last a single second since he came into the settlement, before the filly woke up and began to cause a ruckus, that made everyone run and hide while shouting 'Monster', 'It's gonna eat us' or his favorite 'The end is nigh, all hope is lost', some pink coated, green maned female screamed that, before she fainted and someone else had to drag her away.

He returned his attention back to the problem in hand. He grabbed her arms wih his other hand and brought her closer to his face so they were looking into each others eyes. "Now listen here you little runt, if you don't calm down in the next second, I'm gonna take that bow off yours and shove it-"

He couldn't finish as a red projectile hit him straight in the head making him fall on the ground, while dropping the filly. Apple Bloom looked at him, with worry he might be acting or something, until she heard a familiar voice.

"Apple Bloom over here, quickly."

She looked towards where the voice came from and saw her big sister waving at her to some to her. She quickly got up and ran towards Applejack. When she about halfway there, Trider got back on his feet, massaging the spot where the apple hit him. He looked at the fleeing filly and then his eyes fell onto the one responsible for his less than graceful fall.

Just like the kid, she too looked like a Kanisar except with horse features. Unlike the runt however she had an orange coat and blonde hair and tail, which were both tied in a ponytail, of all things. She wore a stetson hat, the kind all cowboys in human movies wore, she also had a checkered shirt, with sleeves rolled up to her elbows, on and over it she wore a brown vest. Like the filly she too had a pair of jeans on her.

Once he looked over his assailant he gave her a glare and shouted towards her. "Was that really necessary?"

The mare returned his glare as she was hugging her sister. "Yer darn tootin and there's plenty more where that came from!"

"Good that will make this all the more enjoyable." Trider replied with a dark grin.

Just then Rarity arrived as well, completely out of breath. "Ah, Applejack finally caught up to you and I see Apple Bloom is safe and sound" She said while catching her breath."But really darling, did you really have to run so fast, I'm sure Lily only exaggerated when she said-" She trailed off when her eyes caught sight of the Kanisar.

"Sweet Celestia what is that abomination." She shrieked.

"Hey, I have feelings you know." Trider replied.

"I wasn't talking about you, I was talking about those drapes you are wearing. They are simply repulsive." The mare gagged when she said that.

"That. Bitch." Trider never really cared much about what he wore, as long as it wasn't too girly, but somehow this mare made him feel as insulted, when she talked about his wears, as when he thought that she directly insulted him.

This female had a snow white coat and it accentuated her deep violet hair and tail, which were done in some sort of swirl. Unlike all the other horse people he saw until now she also had a horn protruding out of her head. He could also see this mare really cared about her looks as she wore tons of make-up and perfume which he could smell all the way from there. She had a light blue dress on, which went all the way to her knees and on her head sat a giant hat adorned with feathers.

"Look here I wanna do this without resulting to violence, so if-"

"Yeah right, you come to our town terrorize the ponies and assault my sis and then want to talk it out?" interjected Applejack.

"Hey now I didn't attack anyone since-"

It was Raritys turn to stop his explanation. "Sweet Celestia he hurt Apple Bloom?"

Applejack nodded and Rarity just gasped. "That barbarian."

"Ok if you could just let me finish-"

"He said if I didn't keep quiet he would do something to me." When Apple Bloom said this the two mares just locked eyes with Kanisar.

He tried to explain himself again. "Ok, yeah I did say that, but-"

"I think we heard enough." Said the cow-mare reaching behind her back to get something. "Rares, get Apple Bloom somewhere safe, while I deal with the pest."

"Very well, make sure to teach that badly dressed ruffian a good lesson."

Trider had just about enough of insults and getting cut off. "Argh, if you would just let me finish what I-" Suddenly he felt something fall down his form. When he looked at his legs he saw a rope around his ankles and before he could say another word, the stetson mare pulled with all her might and tripped the man, making his back collide with the dirt.

Slowly she began to approach the downed foe, but before she could reach him he cut the rope using his claws. As he got up he began to dust himself off. His eyes filled with malevolance as he gazed upon the mare.

"That's it. I tried to be nice." He growled. "But now at least I get to have a good brawl."

Applejack prepared to try and tie him once again, but he quickly closed the distance between the two. Instinctively she raised arms to defend herself, just in time to block a punch from the attacker. Pain seared through her forearms as she skidded a few inches backwards. As she lowered her arms she caught sight of the Kanisar smirking.

"You're tough I'll give you that. Not many can take one of my punches and still stand."

The mare however didn't want to hear anything he had to say, she only knew that he was dangerous and she had to beat him and drag him out of town,before he could hurt anypony. With her resolve she charged at him raising her right arm to hopefully hit him. Trider saw her coming and dodged her and immediatelly brought his elbow down onto her back. The stirke made her stagger a bit, but it didn't deter her from her target. Before the man could land another blow, the mare grabbed him around the waist and lifted him off the ground. As he reached his highest point, Applejack bent her back backwards and brought the man head first into the ground behind her. When she let go his body collapsed onto the ground and she stood up and turned around so she was facing him again. She was sure he had to be out for the count.

Adjusting her stetson she began to head back to her friend and sister.

"Applejack watch out!" But it was too late. As she turned around a powerful punch connected with her stomach that sucked all air out of her lungs. Trider however wasn't finished. Before she fell on her knees he grabbed her by the head and delivered his knee straight to her face. He then let the mare fall face first into the dirt he laied in not too long ago.

"You talk big, but in the end you're just a show-off." He walked around her for a bit before squatting down and grabbing her by the mane and lifted her head so he could see her eyes. "Next time don't mess with me if you know-"

Again he was cut, this time however a rock hit him straight in the forehead and he stumbled backwards, away from Applejack.

"Applejack are you alright?" the concerned Rarity asked her downed friend. Her horn was glowing and several small rocks levitated around her, ready to be hurled at their target. Applejack tried to get up, but she was still dazed from Triders last attack.

"Ah'll live." she muttered. "Where's Apple Bloom?"

"She is safe. I hid her in one of the houses, so you don't hav to worry about her."

Reassured Applejack got to her knees and wiped her face with her forearm. There were traces of blood present and she knew she was very badly hurt. Just then they heard Trider growl and saw him walking towards the two with pure rage in his eyes.

"That fucking hurt you bitch." he yelled at them. "I thought you would just go and hide like a coward you are, but I guess even a prissy whore like yourself has some backbone to show." He rubbed his forehead where the stone hit him and cringed at the bump. "You dare interfere with my fight, just for that I will-"

Another stone flew at him, but this time he caught it in his hand and crushed it into dust. Rarity gulped at what he did to the rock, thinking what he might do to her. "WOULD YOU LET ME FINISH AT LEAST ONE FUCKING SENTENCE YOU PIECES OF SHIT OR I SWEAR I'LL TEAR YOU FROM LIMB TO LIMB AND THEN-" This time he stopped himself, took a deep breath and shook his head. "You know what, I'm done talking. let me just show you what happens when you anger me."

When he said that he charged at the unicorn mare. Rarity tried to stop his advancment by throwing all the rocks she had at him, but he succesfully dodged them all. Applejack tried to get up and help her friend, but her legs still weren't listening to her. She knew that if he hit Rarity with same force as he did her, Rarity might not get up again. She reached out her hand and yelled.

"RARITY."

Images flashed before Raritys eyes, as the man pounced on her, ready to deliver a devastating blow. However right before he could connect, a rainbow blur came out of nowhere and sent Trider flying. Rarity fell on her knees, as she gazed at her cyan savior.

"Sup, heard you guys were dealing with some monster and decided to crash the party."

"OOOOH I LOVE PARTIES."

Then out of nowhere came the pink madness herself, Pinkie Pie, bouncing up and down and looking in all directions.

"Not that kind of party Pinks, what I meant was..." She trailed off as she saw that her friend already brought out her infamous party cannon. "You know what forget it. More importantly how are you guys doing?"

Rarity picked herself off the ground and began to dust her dress off. "Just dreadful darling. We were having such a beautiful day, great job on that by the way, when that thing came to town and began to scare the ponies and he almost hurt Apple Bloom as well."

"A bully, eh? We'll teach him a lesson or two right Pinkie?" She said, as she looked at her pink friend.

"Yeah, we'll show that meanie what for." Saying that she shoved her extra streamers into the party cannon and then she locked and loaded it.

"Hold up just a minute you two." Applejack approached the group. Her nose and mouth were bleeding and she had a nasty bruise on her cheek. "That feller is quite tough, I managed to suplex him straight into the ground and he just got up like nothing happened."

Rarity decided to throw her few bits in as well. "Indeed, I also threw a rock at him and it didn't even daze him. In fact it just made him angrier. Then I threw another rock and he just caught and crushed it into dust."

"Oooookay so maybe it won't be so easy, but now there are four of us against one of him. So lets do this shit." She pumped her arm into the air, the rest following soon. Their cheering was however interrupted by a loud scream. They cast their gaze towards the source of the scream, thinking someony got hurt, but their eyes landed on something far worse. There in the middle of the street stood Trider, breathing heavily and litterally fuming.

"I'VE HAD IT WITH THESE MOTHERFUCKING INTERRUPTIONS, BY THESE COCKSUCKING HORSE PEOPLE." He stared at the two new additions and just growled.

One of them was a short female, with unkempt hair and tail, with color of the whole rainbow. Her coat on the other hand was a cyan blue. She sported a dark blue jacket, over a black tank top and her legs were covered by tight black sweatpants. He could also spot a pair of cyan wings on her back.

The other was pink. That was all Trider could see. Pink coat, with darker pink hair and tail. However what really grabbed his attention were the giant jugs on her chest. They were as big as his head. "Damn girl, you packin." he thought. She wore a light blue T-shirt which barely contained those giant breasts and bright yellow pants. It didn't help that she kept on bouncing making those humongous knockers jump as well. (Did I mention she has big tits?) Another discerning feature about the girl was her smell, she smelled of sugar and honey. It made the Kanisars teeth hurt.

"Hey watch your language, just cause we're rated Teen doesn't mean you can just curse at every single moment." Everyone just stared at the pink mare in confusion.

Brushing off her friends remark, the cyan flier pointed her finger at Trider. "Anyway, we're taking your ass down big guy, one way or another, so make this easy for you and just give up. I mean you are clearly outnumbered."

The man only laughed. They looked at him even more confused than they did with Pinkie. "What's so funny partner?" asked Applejack.

Trider began to settle down and wiped a small tear from his eye. "You think, that just because you have more guys you have a chance of winning." He gave another chuckle then continued. "Bring an entire army, cause if everyone is as strong as you are, then I don't have nothing to fear."

Rainbow glared at him and responded with her own threat. "We'll make you eat those words."

"Then what are you waiting for?"

Saying that Trider lunged towards the group. The mares split up each going in their own direction while Dash too to the sky. The Kanisar went for the one he thought was currently most vulnerable, but at the same time most dangerous, Applejack. The mare prepared to defend herself, by lowering her stance and extending her arms to intercept him. Trider however dropped to the ground and slid under the mare, quickly standing up on the other side, lifting his arm to strike in the back of the head. He had to stop however when a stone flew past his face. Due to the distraction, Applejack was able to face her attacker, deliveringher own blow. The attack managed to graze the man and he jumped away, to distance himself from the mare. While in midair however, he was sitting duck for Pinkie and her cannon.

"Say cheese." She smiled and pressed the trigger.

All Trider was able to see was tons upon tons of conffeti and streamers, before he plummeted to the ground, covered in a colorful party mess. As he was getting rid of all the junk, he failed to notice the rainbow maned flier who descended onto him. She grabbed him by the shoulders and quickly hoisted him into the air.

"Let go of me!" he yelled.

"As you wish." She smirked and dropped him.

Trider saw the ground quickly approaching and braced himself for impact. He hit the ground with tremendous force, but despite that he stood up yet again and prepared for another round.

Dash landed beside Applejack, huffing. "This guy doesn't know when to give up."

"Ya said it sugarcube, but at least now we have'im on the ropes." She looked towards Pinkie shouting to her. "Pinkie, go get Twilight in case we need help to beat this guy or to at least contain him somehow. We can handle him by ourselves, but leave the party cannon just in case."

The pink mare vigirously nodded. "Okie dokie lokie." And with that she left in a puff of Pinkie shaped pink smoke.

Turning their attention back to the man they saw he once again charged at them.

"Here we go again." The two mares split up again, Rainbow taking to the sky.

Applejack expecting for the Kanisar to attack her again raised her arms to defend. However Trider immediatelly stopped and crouched, then he launched himself into the sky towards the ascending Rainbow.

"Watch out Dash."

Rainbow quickly redirected her flight path, but Trider still managed to scratch her leg with his claws. The pegasus yelped in pain and it caused her to lose some altitude. Suddenly a brage of stones came towards the airborn man. As soon as she saw an opportunity, Rarity launched all of her rocks at her opponent. This time however Trider saw the attack coming. He blocked majority of the rocks, but he managed to snatch some of them. He retaliated, by throwing the caught rocks at the three mares. Applejack and Rarity easily avoided them, the rocks lodging themselves into the dirt, while some broke through the support beam of one of the houses Rarity was nearby. Rainbow wasn't so lucky. She succesfully dodged on of the stones heading towards her wings, but that left her wide open for the other rock which hit hit her directly into the collar bone.

The pain was so unbearable, she lost control of herself and began falling to the ground. Right before her face was introduced to the dirt, Applejack caught her and gently laid her on the street. Rainbow hissed in pain as she reached for the spot where she was hit, a large bruise begining to form.

"That son of a bitch." she cursed.

Rarity ran over to the two, clearly exhausted from using so much magic. "We better finish this quickly, before anypony else gets hurt."

"We would, but the feller is tougher than an iron nut. We need ta hit him with everythin we got at tha same time."

Rainbow slowly lifted herself minding the injury. "Yeah, well right now I can't land a very good hit with a busted collarbone."

Applejack began to think and quickly came up with an idea. "Then if you can't use your arms, use your hooves."

"Sounds like you have a plan." smirked the pegasus.

"Maybe, but we will have to time ourselves extremly precisely. Now listen up." She began to whisper the plan to the other two.

Meanwhile Trider simply watched, amused at how they were trying to come up with a way to take him down. "That's right struggle, it makes this so much more fun." he thought.

When they were done planing the mares stood up and began to go into their positions. Rarity then looked at Trider and spoke. "I guess you can be a gentlecolt as well, letting us prepare and such."

The man just chuckled. "Me? A gentleman? Nah. I just like to see my opponents struggle while I beat them to a pulp."

The unicorn winced. "Actually, you know what, I retract my previous statement." Saying that she began to levitate another bunch of stones.

"Like I care."

As soon as their conversation was over Rarity lunged the rocks at Trider. He began to dodge and block them like they were nothing. As he avoided her assault, he noticed that her attack was becoming less intense.

"Running out of fuel bitch?"

"Maybe." She said as she launched couple more rocks. "But it doesn't matter as they weren't supposed to hit you anyway. They were just supposed to distract you."

After hearing that, Trider frantically looked around himself for possible sneak attack. However the only thing that came into view was the pink mares cannon. He realised a second too late he was set up. Using her magic, Rarity triggered the cannon and it exploded. It had just enough ammo to send the man flying through the air, towards Applejack who charged forward. When they close enough to each other, Applejack turned around and crouched. She planted her legs into the dirt and bucked the Kanisar with all the might her legs possessed.

"Have a taste of Sweet Apple Acre applebuckin, ya vermin."

Trider was launched upwards into the air. Before he could realise what happened, a cyan hoof connected with his side with incredible speed.

"And here is Rainbow Dash Sonic Kick."

All Trider could see was a nearby house, before he crashed through the wall and was buried under the rubble of the wall. As the dust settled the mares stopped to catch their breath and got ready in case he was still conscious. Couple of minutes passed and there were still no movements from the pile. Finally they were able to relax and rest for a bit.

"That was a lot tougher than I expected." said Rainbow.

"I agree, I can't wait until I get home and clean myself and my dress, I mean look at me I look like a mess."

"Don't ya fret too much Rares, we just have to wait for Pinkie and Twi, so she can contain this guy and then we can have our well deserved-"

Applejack was cut off as the pile began to shift. They looked at it in terror and couldn't belive their eyes as the Kanisar pushed of the rubble and stood up yet again.

"No. Freaking. Way."

"What in tarnation is this fella made of?"

"How could anypony still walk after so much?"

Trider limped out of the now damaged house, smiling and showing off his fangs. Despite the calm demeanor he showed, it was clear he was in a lot of pain. His face was covered in blood, he had several bruises and gashes on his body, and he was clutching at his side where Rainbow kicked him. His clothes as well suffered from the onslaught. His T-shirt was ripped in half, now showing his well developed muscles and his pants were missing its left sleeve.

He continued on his march, until he was just several feet away from them, then he stopped. He began to cough violently, blood spurting each time he coughed. Wiping away the blood that was now around his mouth, he directed his gaze at the terrified mares.

"You look like you've just seen a ghost. Is it really that surprising that I'm still standing?" He licked the blood that was on his hand and smirked. "But honestly, that was a good try, I'm actually impressed you managed to damage me so badly. Guess I shouldn't have underestimated you so much." He lowered both of his arms to his sides and bent his knees so he was semi-crouching. "But now I'm done playing around, from this point on I will fight seriously."

Suddenly the air around them began to grow cold and the mares shivered at what they were feeling. The man who just a minute ago didn't seem like such a great threat, began to emit dark energy which made them back off. All of a sudden his body began to change, his muscles became slightly larger, his hair also grew a bit, the fangs and claws became a lot more noticable and his eye color changed to blood red. but all that was nothing compared to the now dark aura that now surrounded Trider. The way he looked he was more like a beast than a man.

"Let's do this."

The mares didn't even have time to retaliate as he immediatelly closed the distance between them. When he was close enough he swinged his right arm at the unicorn mare and slashed through her dress and left nasty claw marks on her stomach. He wanted to continue, but Applejack rushed into him and pushed him away from her friend. Trider however wasn't impressed, he immediatelly halted the orange mares advancment and he locked arms with her and they each began to struggle to overpower the other. Applejack used all of her earth pony magic to try and subdue the man, but it was futile as it seemed they were at a deadlock. "Is that all you have? Pathetic." said the Kanisar.

"Hold him right there AJ!" shouted Rainbow as she skydived towards her friend and her opponent.

Seeing this Trider increased his grip on the mares hand and quickly yanked it in the opposite direction. There was a sickening snap as the man broke the mares hand. She let go of him and before she could express her pain, a bolt of energy was shot into her stomach, which pushed her away. After dealing with the cow-mare, Trider immediatelly ducked as to avoid the pegasus's attack. As she was flying over him, he quickly reached up and grabbed one of her hooves. He pulled her backwards with all he had and slammed her directly into the ground. Before she could do anything else, he landed a strong kick into her gut. Rainbow tried to fight the darkness taht began to envelop her, but ultimately she lost and fell unconscious. Satisfied Trider turned to the two remaining mares, when he a rock hit him in the head. This time however he didn't even flinch, which unsettled Rarity as she saw her attack was useless. She began to launch rock after rock at him, but not even a single one did anything to the man. He lifted one of his arms and it began to glow in light blue color.

"He can use magic as well." she thought, before trider unleashed his Ki blast at the mare. Far too weak from the wound and using too much magic, Rarity was unable to dodge the attack. Right before it hit her however, a purple dome covered her and absorbed the blast. Confused she looked around and then spotted Pinkie and Twilight not too far away from here.

"Are you ok Rarity? You're not too hurt are you?" she spoke in a concerned tone. Rarity released the breath she was unknowingly holding and replied.

"I'm fine Twilight, just a little roughed up. It's Applejack and Rainbow we should worry about."

At that twilight and Pinkie looked at their other two friends. They gasped at what they saw. Applejack was leaning on a nearby wall, cradling her hand which was bent at unusual angle and her stomach was singed. Rainbow was the worst however. She wasn't moving whatsoever and she was bleeding badly, probably having internal bleeding as well.

"Great. More people who want to fight." sighed the man, garnering the attention of the mares.

When they looked at him they saw that he as well was severly hurt, but didn't show it. He looked like a feral beast from Tartarus, with the fangs, eyes and the dark aura around him. It made the two mares gulp. "This what you were fighting with?" she asked, while Rarity could only nod.

Trider looked at the newcomer and wasn't impressed. "This is who they sent the pink female to get. You've got to be kidding me." he thought. The mare had a deep dark purple hair, with two streaks of pink and violet mixed in, the same went for her tail. Her coat was a lavneder color and on her head was a horn, just like the one the white mare has. She wast wearing a white blouse and over it was a lavender vest, she also had a pair of black jeans on as well.

"I'm putting a stop to this, before you hurt anypony else." Twilight said as she pointed an arm at the man.

He only chuckled before he replied. "And pray tell how are gonna do-" He stopped as a lavender aura enveloped him and seized his movement. He struggled against it, but it just restriced him more.

"Don't even think about it. this spell is strong enough to hold down several of manticores. There is no way you could-" She halted her speech as Trider began to fight against her spell with all of his strenght. Twilight began to focus more and more, to try and keep him contained. With a loud roar and a burst of adrenalin, he broke through the mares spell and the lashback from it being broken made Twilight fall on her knees clutching her head.

"T-that's impossible. How could you break it so easily?" she questioned as he began to approach her.

"You have no idea how strong I am compared to you, now if you know what's good for you, you will stay down while I finish what I came here to do."

As he began to head off Applejack came behind him and grabbed him under his arms and put him in a grab lock.

"Twi blast him while ah can still hold him!" she yelled.

Twilight tried to argue. "But Applejack i might-"

"No buts Twi just do it, ah'll be fine." the mare tried to reassure her friend.

"Like I'll let that happen." When he said that he propelled himself over the mare and landed behind her. Caught by surprise Applejack lost her grip on Trider and was suddenly being choked by him. "You've been a pain in my ass for too long, Ishould just put you out of your misery." He raised his hand and began to channel a Ki blast to finish off the mare.

"Let go of my sis you big meanie."

Everyones gaze fell onto the filly who was standing in the room of the house whose wall was brought down by the fight. Behind her stood two mares one mint green with white hair, while the other was cream colored with dark blue and pink toned mane. Trider shifted his gaze between the filly, the mares he fought and Applejack. Sighing he disabled his blast and released the mare who fell i+on the ground.

"What the hell am I doing going into fights with stupid horse people." he said under his breath. "Maybe Shepherd was right, maybe I do get easily angered."

While he was consuling with his thoughts, Twilight levitated Applejack towards her and used some of her magic to relive the pain on her throat. The cow-mare began to cough violently and she looked at Trider. "Why did he let go of me? Didn't he want to finish me off?" she thought. "Could it be he doesn't want to fight anymore? Now that ah think bout it, he did say he just wanted to talk in the beginning?"

She was brought out of her thoughts by Twilight. "Applejack are you ok?"

"Ah'll be fine Twi. Listen, ah know this might sound crazy, but I think we should fighting him and try to talk."

Twilight looked at her like she just grew a secnd head, before she voiced her thoughts. "You're right you do sound crazy. Applejack he hurt our friends and threatened your sister. How can you possibly think he would just stop to try and talk?"

"Look I know what ya mean, but maybe we should just try and see what happens. I have a feeling he-"

She got cut off when sounds of rumbling and creaking reached her ears. She looked towards the source and saw it was coming from the ceiling of the room Apple Bloom and the two mares were.

"Everypony get outta there, the ceiling is bout to collapse." she screamed.

The group looked upwards and saw she was right. However before they could move the ceiling collapsed and burying them all beneath the rubble.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Applejack cried out, when she saw they were too late.

As the dust began to settle, she expected to see the corpse of her beloved sister. But what she saw made her stare in shock and amazment. trider stood over the filly and the mares holding up a large chunk of debris. The mares and filly were huddled together shaking in fear.

"Will you guys get the fuck out of here already, I can't hold this up forever." said Trider in a strained voice. The group looked up at him and quickly did as he told them to. When they were far enough, the Kanisar focused the last bits of his strengh into his hands and unleashed a blast so powerful it incinirated the debris he was holding up as well as some of the room and the upper floor. Breathing heavily he fell onto one knee, his dark aura and beastial features dissipating.

Everypony began to gather around the man looking at him with amazment and caution.

Apple Bloom was the first to speak. "You saved me. Thanks."

"You're welcome. Again." Trider replied.

She gave him a confused look. "What do ya mean again?"

He chuckled as he gave her 'are you shitting me' look. "Don't you remember when you were in that forest and were chased by some giant lion abomination?"

"You mean a manticore?" asked the librarian.

"Yeah, lets go with that." He focused on the filly again. "I heard you screaming as I was walking through the forest, when I came to you were cornered by it and it was just about to pounce on you when I intervened." He tried to stand up, but his side flared up and he fell back down. "I beat the living hell out of it and when I tried to ask you how to get out of the forest you fainted and I had to carry you all the way back here."

"But wait, if you were lost, then how did you find your way to the town?" asked confused Rarity.

He gave a small smile and replied. "I just followed her scent. I have a very good nose." He tapped the nose with his index finger.

"But when you came here you were threatening mah sister, weren't ya?"

Trider cringed, before speaking. "Ok, yeah, I did. She was causing unnecessary ruckus, making everyone run and hide. I guess I got annoyed and just said the first thing that came to my mind." He gave and awkward smile to the mare. "Let me just tell you that I would never hurt your sister. At least not without a VERY good reason."

Applejack just looked at him skeptically before she sighed. "Ah guess yer tellin the truth. I'm sorry for attacking you without a good reason."

"I guess we all are." Twilight spoke for everypony. They all nodded.

Satisfied for the moment, Trider wanted to say something before a new wave of pain washed over him. Grunting in pain, he just now realised how badly he had been wounded.

Giving concerned look Twilight spoke up. "We should get all of you to the hospital, before we continue with our talks." Using her magic she lifted the limp form of Rainbow Dash and began to levitate her towards their destiantion.

Gritting his teeth Trider tried to get up before an orange hand presented itself to him. "Need a hand partner?"

He smacked the hand away and forced himself standing. "Don't get me wrong, I'm still angry at each and every one of you. A simple 'I'm sorry' won't cut it for me." He began to limp behind the lavender mare. "I can take care of myself, you just show me where i have to go. Understood?"

Huffing, Applejack made her way to her sister who supported her, while Pinkie helped Rarity, all the way to the hospital.

Author's Note

HOLY SHIT I HAVE NEVER WRITTEN ANYTHING SO LONG BEFORE.
On another note, I apologize to anyone who waited for the next chapter to come, for so long. I had a lot of stuff to do. I started to write on last Thursday, on Friday I had a field trip for school, I took a day off for Saturday, on Sunday I took a couple of hours to continue and finished on Monday morning. So yeah I've been busy.
Again constructive critisim is welcomed. I f there are any errors of spelling mistakes I'll be happy if you pointed them out.
That is all for now, until next time.

Oh almost forgot, next chapter might come even later than this one due to a Geology test I have on Monday, so I'll have to study. Don't worry though I have the best mentor to help me with it.

Chapter 15: The Crystal Empire Part 2: Unstoppable Rampage; Reach the Crystal Heart!

"Dynamism." The voice reached the mares ears, but it sounded distant and distorted. "Dynamism!" This time it was louder and clearer, as her eyes began to stir. "Dynamism!!!" She recognized the voice, but she couldn't place, her mind completely fuzzy. "Wake up Dynamism!"

Slowly her eyes began to open, as sunlight assaulted her eyes. She grimaced as her eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness. It took a couple of seconds before she was able to see properly and once her vision was fully restored she saw Rose and Rainbow Dash leaning over her. "What happend?" she asked as she rubbed her head, a small lump forming on the side of it.

"You tell us." retorted the pegasus. "I was going around telling everyone about the Crystal Heart and once I was finished I guided Rose here so she could help you with your stalls. But when we arrived we found you lying on the floor, out cold, and Trider nowhere to be seen."

At the mention of the Kanisars name Dynamisms eyes widened, as the memories of what transpired when Dash left, flooded her mind. "Trider, he..." the dragon-mare said with a quickened breath, as she looked around. "Sweet Celestia! He went outside to fight King Sombra!"

The other two mares eyes bulged at what their friend told them. "WHAT?" Rainbow yelled as she began to hover in mid-air. "He went to fight an evil king by himself?"

Rose, while also shocked, kept most of her composure as she looked at Dynamism. "You were supposed to make sure he would stay out of trouble. How could you let this happen?" The half-ponys ears dropped as she looked at her superior.

"I tried to stop him, but he..." she trailed off, contemplating if she should tell them about Trider did to her.

"He what?" questioned Rose, her gaze cold serious. "Don't you dare withhold information, private. Tell me what happened. That is an order!"

Dynamism thought over, if she should tell them or not, but in the end she caved in. "I tried to stop him, even threatening to use brute force. I thought he would back down , so I dropped my guard. But when I did..." she choked as she recollected what he did to her, tears begining to well in her eyes. "H-he knocked me out."

Rose and Rainbow looked at their friend as she struggled to hold back her tears. They each kept quiet as they processed what she told them. They both knew Trider. They knew he was impulsive and sometimes careless, but never before had he actually hurt a close friend just to satisfy his urge to fight.

Rose helped Dynamism get up while she looked at Dash. "Rainbow." she said with a emotionless voice. "Go find Trider and bring him back here. If he tries to resist, tell him that I will personally demand from Celestia that he be placed in Canterlot dungeons, and if that doesn't work, then you have my permission to use any means necessary, to bring him back." The pegasus mare nodded, but before she could take off, Rose stopped her. "But be careful, you'll also have to worry about Sombra, as well."

"Got it." With a salute, the rainbow maned mare flapped her wings and got ready to soar towards the barrier. However before she even got five feet from the ground, sounds of screams reached their ears.

"What's going on?" asked Dynamism ass they all looked towards where the screams were coming from.

Roses ears flicked as the screams grew louder. "I have a bad feeling about this." she said in a grim tone. Suddenly ponies began to run out of nearby alleys, each one clearly teriffied of something. Rose stopped one of them. "What is going on?" she asked the stallion who was breathing rapidly.

"A monster!" he exclaimed, as his eyes darted between the mare and the direction he just came from. "A monster is rampaging through the city!"

Just as he said that, a beam of energy shot right through the chest of one of the citizens, who was running for his life, leaving a large charred hole in him. The mares stared in shock at what they just witnessed, while the stallion again began to run away. Their shock didn't last long and each got ready to face this 'monster', with Dynamism forming her gauntlets, Rose drwning her sword and Rainbow getting in a fighting stance. The guard mares both looked at pegasus seeing her getting ready to fight as well.

"You should get out of here, Miss Dash. We will handle this ourselves." Rose instructed the mare, but she just huffed.

"No way." she exclaimed. "I've faced off against Nightmare Moon and Discord. I think I can handle this." The other didn't want to argue with her at the moment , so they dropped the subject.

The last of the ponies have fled the scene, leaving behind the trio and an eerie silence. They were vigilant, ready to face anything that might come out of the alleyways. What they saw however broke their concentration. In the shadows they saw a familiar figure of the Kanisar and Rainbow called out to him.

"Trider! You came back." she shouted as she landed. She took a few steps forward, wanting to give him a stern talking to. "What were you thinking? Knocking out Dynamism and..." Her advancement was halted by both guard mares as sweat began to pour from their foreheads. "Hey, what's the deal?" she asked, not liking being stopped.

"Something is terribly wrong!" was all Rose said as her grip on her sword hardened. Rainbow wanted to ask her what she meant, but words got stuck in her throat, as Trider emerged from the shadows.

His clothes were completely torn, his shirt barely clinging to his torso. He was covered in blood, while his arms were completely red from it. He held his head low, obstructing his face from their view. But what really shocked the mares was what he held in his right hand. Dragging by the hem of her shirt, the Kanisar held a limp body of a mare, who showed no sign of movement.

"Trider? W-what a-a-are you...?" Dash stammered as she looked at her friend in horror.

"Huh? You know me?" he said in a non-chalant tone as he dropped the mare. "How do you know me?"

"What do you mean, how do I know you? We are friends aren't we?"

The Kanisar began to chuckle, as it slowly grew into a full blown laughter. "Me? Friends with a human?" His laughter immediatelly died and his voice turned ice cold. "You dare to say something like that to me?"

The mares looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about? I'm not... What did you call me again? A human, yeah, I'm not a human! It's me Rainbow Dash." the mare tried to reason with him, but it seemed he wasn't paying any attention to her.

"That is the stupidest name I've ever heard." he said with a smile. "I've never met anyone by that name before."

Stunned she looked at him, unable to comprehend what happened to Trider, to make him forget about her. Before she could respond, they heard the sound of running hooves. As they looked toward the source of the sound they saw the rest of the girls approaching. Once they were close enough Rose looked at them and asked. "What are you doing here?"

"We heard there was a monster rampagin in the city, so we came here to give yah a hand." explained Applejack. She then looked around and saw the pony that was struck down by a blast and Trider who stood next to a mare. "By the looks of it, yah got it covered."

"Don't be so sure." said Dynamism, confusing the mares. Their confusion was broken when they heard the Kanisar laugh.

"This is too good." he said in between breaths. "Not only do some of you actually want to fight me, but now there are others running into the fray, just to get slaughtered." His laughter stopped and he grinned. "You're either very brave or very stupid."

"What is he going on about?" asked Rarity.

"We're not sure. All that we know is that Trider went to fight Sombra and when he returned he was like this." Rose explained. "He doesn't seem to remember us, he keeps talking about these creatures called humans, thinking we're them, and we have reason to believe he is the monster the ponies were talking about."

The mares looked at her in shock, Pinkie however smiled. "Oh don't be silly. I'm sure Trider is just pretending." she said as she looked at the Kanisar. "Isn't that right Tri?" He didn't answer her as he looked at the mare at his feet. She began to move slightly, catching everyones attention. "See? She is fine, he must have saved her from the real monster." The others were skeptical, but thought she might be right.

"You think that I'm just playing around?" the Kanisar said as he looked between the mare and Pinkie. "Let me show you how serious I am." Saying that he raised his foot, and before anyone could say anything he brought it down on the mares head. With a loud crunch, her skull was shattered, blood and remnants of brain matter scattered over the ground.

The mares couldn't believe what they just witnessed. They looked at Trider with terror, incapable of comprehending what he just did. Fluttershys face was completely pale and she seemed like she would faint any second. Rarity on the other hand wasn't holding up much better, as she puked the contents of her stomach onto the ground. Pinkies smile faltered, as tears began to cascade down her cheeks and her mane now completely straight. The others were able to keep most of their composure, but were none the less shocked.

"Trider..." Applejack said as tears welled in her eyes. "Why? Why would you do omething like that?"

"Because she deserved it." was his simple reply.

They looked at him with even more shock. "Because she deserved it? What in the name of Celestia did she or anypony else for that matter ever do to you?"

"What did she do?" Trider said, his tone laced with anger. "What did she do?" he repeated, louder. "You dare to fucking ask what she and the rest of you did?" he shouted, now clearly enraged. "You humans are so self-centered. You dare to ask what you did to deserve my wrath, when you know full well what you did to my race? To my family!" He began to shake, as dark aura began form around his body. "Unforgivable. None of you will leave here alive."

He raised his head and for the first time showing his face. What the group saw made their blood run cold. His eyes were bloody red, as purple smoke flowed out of them. But what really terrified them was the look he was giving. It wasn't the look they knew Trider had, when he was angry or when he fought. No, his eyes were now completely devoid of any emotion beside rage and bloodlust. He was like a wild animal.

"I see." Rose said as she realised what had happened. "He's being controlled."

The others looked at her in surprise. "Are you sure?" asked Dynamism.

"Positive. Ever since he arrived I could sense some form of dark magic on him, but wasn't certain what it was." she looked Trider directly in the eyes. "That purple smoke in his eyes is the proof of that."

"So Trider is doing this against his will?" Fluttershy piped up. "Thank goodness." She sighed in relief.

"Unfortunately not." The mares looked at Rose in confusion. "Sombra isn't completely controlling him. He's using Triders memories and anger as a guide to do his bidding."

"What are you saying?" asked perplexed Rarity.

"Basically, Trider is still himself, the only difference is that he sees us as somepony from his memory, somepony he feels great anger towards. So much anger, that he wouldn't hesitate to kill them on the spot."

The statement stunned the mares and they couldn't believe what they heard. "So you mean, he won't hesitate to kill us? Even if we are his friends?" asked Pinkie, her coat now darker than it usually is.

"As he is right now, he probably wouldn't even blink." Rose said in a somber tone.

"Enough talk!" Trider suddenly shouted catching everyones attention. "You've had your last talk, now it's time for all of you to die!" Without warning Trider blasted several Ki blasts at the group making them scatter in different directions.

"We need to warn Cadance and Shining Armor!" said Rose as she got back into her fighting stance, while the others picked themselves up. "Pinkie, Fluttershy and Rarity you head back to the castle and make sure to tell everypony to remain indoors. Applejack, Rainbow you two will assist me and Dynamism."

"Got it!" everyone said unanimously as they separated.

Trider however wasn't happy with that plan. "You think you can run away?" he said. In a flash he disappeared and reappeared in front of the retreating mares. Before they could react he struck Rarity and Pinkie away from Flutttershy, while she stood there stunned. Before she could even react he grabbed her by her throat and lifted her off the ground. The mare thrashed, trying to escape his iron grip, but it was futile, her weak form unable to compete against him.

"C'mon, scream. That is if you can." Trider said with a sadistic glee as he squeezed harder and harder. Fluttershy began to choke, as her oxygen was slowly being cut off. She soon lost her strength to fight back and she slowly slipped into darkness. "If you won't scream then I'll enjoy hearing the sound of your neck snapping."

"LET GO OF HER!" With a yell Rainbow tackled the Kanisar to the ground, which also made him release Fluttershy in the process. Coughing the mare was picked up by Pinkie and Rarity, as they carried her off towards the castle.

Seeing that Trider kicked Rainbow off of himself and glared at the group. "Oh no, you don't!" he growled as he shot a blast of Ki towards the mares. Before it could reach them however, Rose ran in front of the ball of energy and blocked it with her sword. The blast was redirected towards a nearby building and it left a huge hole in the wall. The guard mare looked behind her and yelled towards the mares.

"Run as fast as you can, we'll hold him off."

The statement made the Kanisar laugh as he approached her. "You think you can take me on? You'll be lucky if you even land a single blow onto me." he proclaimed in a boastful tone. Applejack, Rainbow and Dynamism joined up with Rose as they planned their next move.

"So, how exactly do we deal with him?" asked Rainbow as she rubbed the sore spot she got when Trider pushed her off of him.

"For starters we'll need to distract him." Rose said as she looked at Dynamism. "Can you do it?"

"You can count on me." the mare assured as she flew towards the Kanisar, firing fireballs at him and making sure to stay out of his reach.

Satisfied the guard mare looked at Applejack and Rainbow Dash. "Alright, there are two ways to release someone from mind control." she said as she lifted a finger. "One is to defeat the one who is doing the dirty work, meaning Sombra."

The mares gulped at the thought of possibly facing off against him. "And the other?" asked the pegasus.

"Using magic to release the mind of the victim from their grasp." Hearing that their faces brightened.

"Alright, so all we have to do is buy enough time to do your magic thing and we win. Easy peasy."

"Incorrect." Rose shutdown Dash. "In order for the spell to take effect I would need to be in physical contact with him."

"So we just restarin im." Applejack interjected. "It'll be just like one of mah rodeos."

"Wrong again. I don't know any spells that would be helpful in freeing Triders mind." Rose once again rebuted. "But maybe Cadance or Shining Armor know any."

"But Cadance is really tired right now and Twilights brothers magic has been cut off by Sombra." Rainbow argued. Realising she was right, Rose began to think over anypony ele that would be up to the job.

"Then the only one who is left is Twilight." she concluded. "But we'll worry about that later. Right now we need to help Dynamism and stop Trider. And here is how we'll do it." She began to whisper her plan to the mares.

Meanwhile Dynamism continued to fly over Trider and bombarding him with fireballs. She didn't put tht much power into them as she feared she would hurt him too much. The Kanisar however didn't feel the same way as each blast he fired at her was filled with killing intent.

"Will you stop flying you coward?" he shouted, completely aggravated. "You are just delaying the inevitable."

Dynamism dodged yet another blast as she returned fire. She knew he was right as all this dodging was taking a toll on her. "Guys mind giving me a hand here?" she said as she looked at her friends. Almost as hearing her call, Rainbow flew into the sky and switched places with her. As the dragon-mare descended onto the ground she was met halfway with Rose. She got close enough and told Dynamism the plan and she just nodded in affirmation.

Rose got into her position while Dynamism joined up with Applejack. Once they were all where they should be she waved toward Rainbow, signaling her that they're ready. Giving a thumbs up she flew off into the distance, leaving the battlefield.

"Where the fuck are you running off to?" Trider screamed towards her. His attention was averted towards the sound of a sword being drawn and he looked towards Rose.

The mare raised her sword in front of her as she glared at him. "Nevermind her, I am your opponent now."

With a grin Trider created his Spirit Claws and addressed the mare. "Finally someone who has some guts." Without a further word he charged the mare as his Ki clashed with her blade. They struggled to overpower eachother, but before it was decided the mare pushed herself off of him and lunged forward with her blade. Trider sidestepped her attack and swung his leg at her. The mare just barely avoided it, but was unable to dodge or block when the Kanisar fired a bolt of Ki directly in her stomach.

The blast knocked her backwards and she landed on the ground. There was a hole in her shirt where the blast hit her and her fur was singed, but otherwise it wasn't that bad. Quickly she got up and avoided a downward strike from Trider. Before he could recover, Rose swung her sword and slashed over his legs. He howled in pain as blood ran down his legs. The cuts weren't that deep, but it did cause enough pain to slow down the Kanisar. Disregarding the pain he once again focused onto the mare, ready to attack her.

However while his attention was on the mare in front of him, he failed to notice Dynamism who jumped over him and brought her gauntleted hands directly down onto his shoulders. With a loud snap, his collar bone was broken by her attack and he cried out in pain again. But he didn't go down so fast. Before the mare could react he turned around and opened his mouth. "Roar Cannon." A blast of pure Ki shot out of his mouth and hit Dynamism directly. The mare cried out in agony as she was sent flying into a nearby building, crashing right through the wall.

Trider, barely keeping himself standing slumped from the pain. But he didn't have time to rest as he looked at Rose whose sword now glowed in bright red color. "Sakura Sword Style. Slicing Typhoon." With a swing of her sword a tornado suddenly engulfed Trider, that lifted him off the ground and he was ascending several small cuts started to appear all over his body. Once he was high enough the tornado subsided.

Right at that moment another force hit him directly in his chest. All he was able to see was a multicolored blur, before he was sent flying towards the ground. But before he could hit said ground Applejack swung the street lamp, that Dynamism cut from the ground, with all of her earth pony strength and hit Triders side with tremendous force. A loud crack resonated across the city as the Kanisar flew through a building and landed on the other side.

The mares huffed as they regrouped. "Don't ya think we may have overdid it a little bit?" Applejack asked in concern for Triders well being.

"No way. Trider won't be brought down that easily when he goes all out. Don't you remember when we first met him. We collapsed a house on top of him and he was still able to walk all the way to the hospital before he fainted." Rainbow retorted.

"At least we took care of him. Now we just need to restrain him and take him to Twilight, who I hope already found the Heart." Rose said with a ragged breath.

"I'm fine by the way." said Dynamism who stumbled out of the house she crashed into.

"Sorry." they all said with sheepish smiles. Their idle talk was interrupted however, when they heard sounds of footsteps approaching. They looked in terror as they saw Trider walk through the hole of a building.

The sight of him was sickening. All over his body were numerous cuts that he was bleeding from, bruises began to form as well and his right arm was bent at an unnatural angle. He smiled showing them his teeth and they saw he was missing one.

"Nice try, but you take me down so easily." As he said that the mark on his forehead began to glow and his arms and body began to twitch. With loud snaps and cracks his arms and shoulders were snapped back into their places and his bleeding has ceased. The mares watched in horror seeing the scene unfold before their eyes.

Rose however soon realised what had happened. "By Celestias beard, he's been cursed." she gasped.

The other mares looked at her in shock. "Cursed? What do ya mean, cursed?" asked Applejack.

"Sombra placed a curse upon him, that makes Triders body be capable of functioning even when it is pushed beyond its limits." the guard mare explained.

"Wait, so he is insanely strong and can heal himself?" Rainbow said in a terrified voice. "How are we supposed to beat someone like that?"

Rose shook her head as they started to backtrack away from the Kanisar. "It doesn't heal him, the curse forcefully snaps bones back into their place and stops the blood flow around the wounds that are bleeding."

"So all that damage we did to him is still there, it's just that the curse is dulling the pain and making his body keep going despite already being dmaged beyond being able to move?" questioned Dynamism.

"Exactly." Rose said with a grim tone.

"I don't know what you're talking about, but I must repay you for the beating you just gave me." Trider said as he slowly advanced onto them.

"What do we do now?" asked Applejack.

"We run!" said Rose as she turned around and dashed off. But before she could get far Trider was already beside her. With one mighty swing of his arm he sent the mare flying into a nearby wall. Her impact was so strong she was embedded into it. Her head slumped as she lost conscience. The other mares watched in fear as they saw how quickly he defeated Rose.

He turned towards the others and smiled sadistically. "Who's next?" Step by step he approached them, while the mares stood in place, frozen from fear. Just as he got a few feet away from them a sharp pain seared through his back. The mares looked at him with shock and confusion, not sure what had happened to him. But as he fell forward due to the pain and the blow he received, they saw a large red glowing blade sticking out of his back. Their eyes then fell onto the guard mare who was barely standing and the four other blades that circled arounf her.

"Sakura Sword Style. Blossoming Ring." With a flick of her hand she sent out the remaining blades which embedded themselves into Triders feet and hands. With a painful roar the Kanisar was pinned to the ground. "And stay there." The other mares looked at her with admiration and happines seeing they had succeded.

But their celebration didn't last. "You think this is enough to hold me?" Trider exclaimed. His body began to pulsate and grow in size. With a loud roar he ripped his hands and feet right through the blades and quickly stood up. Before she could realise what had happened Rose was slammed right back into the wall and was held there by Trider. She coughed up some blood as the last of conscience began to fade. Tirder reached behind with his arm and pulled out the blade that was stuck in his back and brought it in front of himself. "Here I think this is yours." he said as he raised it, ready to impale the mare.

Suddenly a large fireball hit him directly in the back, burning away the last remains of his shirt. Turning around he saw Dynamism standing defiantly a few feet away. "Get away from her!" she shouted as she fired another fireball. She no longer held back, she knew that if she did they would all end up dead.

Trider dodged her fire and quickly began to close the distance. "Now or never!" she thought as she inhaled as much air as she could. Once her lungs were filled to the brim she unleashed everything she had. The fire completely engulfed Trider and yet she continued to blow. Suddenly a hand reached out of the flames and grabbed her by her mouth. With enormous force her maw was shut and all the remaining flame burned the inside of her mouth and throat.

Her eyes widened as she saw the glint in the Kanisars eyes. His entire body was fine with the exception of his right arm that was holding her. "Nice firework." he said with a chuckle. "Now it's my turn." With that said he began to squeeze his arm, slowly crushing her skull. She tried to scream, but she was unable as he was still covering her mouth. Cracks began to be heard as the bone matter began to give way to Triders grip. The pain finally took toll on Dynamism as she fainted.

Trider continued to apply pressure until he caught movement in the corner of his eye. In just the nick of time he dodged Rainbow who tried to kick him. In the process he dropped the dragon-mare, which earned a sigh of relief from the mare. She circled around and flew higher into the air, out of his reach. "How do I beat him? Everything I do is futile, as he'll just continue to go until he dies." she pondered. "No matter, all I have to do is keep him distracted long enough for AJ to take Dyna and Rose and run..." Her thoughts were cut short when something grabbed her hoof. With a powerful yank she was sent careening to the ground. With a loud thud she hit the ground. Before she could figure out what had happened Trider fell onto her, driving his knee directly into her gut. All air escaped her lungs, as she barely held onto her conscience.

Trider leaned over her and smirked. "In case you didn't know I'm much stronger in this form, so you should have flown higher if you didn't want me to catch you." Rainbow didn't pay attention to his boasting as she flapped her wings into him and cut him across his face. With a yelp Trider got off of her and she took the chance to escape. But all she could do was roll onto her stomach and crawl a couple of feet, before the Kanisar returned and slammed his foot into her back.

"These things are annoying." he said as he grabbed her wings and began to pull. Rainbow cried out in pain and she realised what he was planning on doing. She used her magic to turn her feathers sharp and cut his hands, but he didn't even flinch and continued to pull.

His actions were stopped however when Applejack swung the lamppost directly into his face and made him stagger backwards. Rainbow looked at her saviour. "AJ, what are you doing? Get away from here." she whimpered out.

"And leave ya here? Ya may be the Element of Loyalty, but that don't mean ya're the only one who is a loyal friend. I ain't leavin your side." Applejack argued as she raised the lamp again. "Now shut up and let me take care of im."

Again she swung her lamp and hit Trider in his side, making him back off even more. "Snap out of it Trider. Don't let Sombra take advantage of you like that." she yelled as she swung again.

This time however the Kanisar stopped her attack with one hand and grabbed hold of the lamp. Applejack tried to pry it from his grip, but he was to strong for her. With a single yank he pulled the lamp out of her grasp and threw it to the sideways. "I don't know what you're talking about, but nobody controls me."

"Then stop lettin Sombra play ya. Remember who we are." she said as she swung her fist at him. Once again he stopped her attack with a single hand. Before she could pull her hand back he quickly grasped it and squeezed. The mare yelled in agony as her bones began to break under the pressure. She tried to pry his hand open by slamming it with her other fist, but he just grabbed it and broke her other ahnd as well.

As he was holding her in his grasp he began to slowly pull her arms apart, with the intention to rip them from her body. The mare writhed trying to escape, but it was futile. As one of her shoulders dislocated she hissed in pain and looked at Trider, tears in her eyes. "Please Trider, remember who we are, who you are." she begged.

Trider just looked at her with an unamused look as he continued to pull. Suddenly something in his mind screamed and he stopped. He looked at the mare in his arms and the screams grew louder by the second. Flashes of memory ran through his mind, as the human woman he held in his arms slowly began to shift into that of more equine stature. Her skin slowly turned to an orange coat and her emerald green eyes dug deep into his soul. "A-applejack?" he stammered. The mare looked at him with hope.

"Yes Trider. It's me. Remember." she begged him onward. Suddenly the mark on his forehead glowed and he dropped the mare as he grabbed his head.

"Go. Kill them. Kill the humans in the castle." the voice in his head heeded. Triders vision shifted again and he once again saw the human girl, where he once saw Applejack.

He snorted as he started to head towards the castle. "I'll deal with you later. I have bigger fish to fry than you." was all he said as he left the mare lying on the ground. She tried to reach out to him, but her arms were numb, so all she could do was cry and call out to the Kanisar.

"Trider. Please remember." she cried towards her friend.

Meanwhile on the outside of the barrier, Sombra awaited for it to fall, while watching his pawn through the mark that he placed onto him. "Amazing. He was able to resist my brainwashing. His mind is stronger than I gave him credit." he thought as he watched Triders rampage towars the castle. "That mare nearly broke my spell. He must really care for her." he mused to himself. "If he succeeds in his mission, maybe I'll give her to him as a gift. I'm sure he'll be very thankful."

"The last of the ponies have been cleared from the plaza." said Rarity as she approached the royal couple. "All we have to worry about now, is that the others were capable of taking down Trider."

As soon as their group arrived to the castle, Rarity began to evacuate everypony, while Pinkie carried unconscious Futtershy into the castle. Right now the animal lover was resting in one of the castles bedrooms.

"Of course they took him down." Shining stated. "I know Rose and how great of a solider she is. She won't be beaten that easily."

"She may be experienced, but she will probably try hold back, as to not injure Trider too much." the fashionista said, as she took a seat in one of the chairs in the room. "Trider on the other hand however..."

Shining balled his hands into fists while gritting his teeth. "I knew he would cause trouble. He is a threat to everypony." the stallion said as he paced around the room.

Pinkie who said nothing until this point jumped up and faced Twilights brother. "Don't speak of him like that. The only reason he's like that is because Sombra messed with his brain." she defended her friend.

Shining sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I admire your faith in him Pinkie, but from what you told me Triders mind has only been altered slightly. All of what he is doing is something he is capable of doing himself, with Sombras magic or not." The party mares ears drooped, when he told her that and she tried to argue, but couldn't come up with anything. "This is further proved by that time when he attacked and killed those Diamond Dogs in cold blood. He is a born killer, give him a good enough reason and he won't hesitate to take a life."

The mares looked at each other as they realised that what Shining said was true. Cadance looked over the two with a tired expression and then attempted to glare at her husband. "I think that's enough Shining. They have been through a lot. We can talk about this after the whole fiasco is settled." Everypony nodded in agreement as they calmed down.

"Still, I can't imagine what happened to Trider to make him so angry at these humans." Pinkie said earning nods from the others.

An eerie silence fell over them as they contemplated what was happening to their friends right now. The silence was cut short however, when they heard faint sounds of screams from the outside. They all got on their hooves, except for Cadance who was too tired. Their ears perked, they tried to figure out what was happening. Without warning the nearby wall exploded and rubble showered the group. Once the dust settled they looked at the gaping hole and who stood in it. Their eyes were open widely, threatening to pop out. There stood the Kanisar, but he looked like he just went through hell and back. His body was littered with bruises, cuts and blood stained every inch of his form.

"Here's Trider!" he said in a menacing tone. Too shocked to react, the ponies could only watch as he slowly stepped into the room and faced them.

"What in the name of sweet Celestia...?" Rarity gasped as she took in his sickening state of his body.

"He's cursed." stated Shining Armor as he drew his sword. "Right now the only thing that is keeping him standing and moving is the curse that has been placed on him."

Trider smiled, showing off his bloodied fangs, as he approached them. "I've been looking everywhere for you king Lucas." he sid with unnerving glee. Shining got into a stance, ready to fight the alien with everything he got. Before he could clash with him however, numerous rocks bombarded the Kanisar, making him stagger.

Rarity smirked as she levitated the rocks all around herself. "This brings back memories, doesn't it Trider." She hurled several more projectiles with her magic each hitting their target. But it didn't seem to phase him in the slightest.

"Annoying pest." Trider muttered under his breath. Suddenly he disappeared from the mares sight and before she knew it, she was hurled across the room. She slammed into the opposite wall with tremendous force and fainteed from the impact. "Stay out of my way." He then started to walk towards Shining and Cadance again.

He stopped however when Pinkie stepped in front of him, her arms outstretched. "Tri please stop this. You're hurting your friends. You would never do that. You're not like this." her voice grew in volume with every sentence as tears ran down her cheeks.

Trider grabbed her by her mane and raised her head so she was looking in his eyes. All the mare could see in them was anger, but as she continued to look she also saw pain and sadness. The Kanisar brought her face closer, until it was only a few inches in between the two. "None of you are my friends. Especially not you. I could never be friends with someone as annoying as you."

Pinkie stared in his eyes, trying to see if he was lying, but found no proof of that being the case. "No." she said in a whisper. She knew Triders mind wasn't right and all that came out of his mouth wasn't what real Trider would say, but it hurt nonetheless. Her eyes were now overflown with tears and she couldn't stop crying.

Trider looked annoyed with her, so he just dropped her on the ground as he walked past her. "Pathetic." was all he said to the mare as he continued towards the couple.

Seeing he was the only one left, who could fight Trider, Shining raised his sword and charged the Kanisar. "Die you monster!" he shouted as he swung his sword downwards. Trider however blocked it with one of his arms. The blade dug deep into the Kanisars flesh, hitting the bone. Before the stallion could withdraw his weapon, Trider gripped the blade, cutting his hand, and snapped it with a single squeeze. With a terrified expression he watched as the alien pulled out the piece of the blade that was stuck in his arm.

Shining realised he was outmatched. He had no magic and no weapon, so all he could do was make Trider follow after him, away from Cadance. "Keep up if you can you beast!" he shouted as he tossed the remnant of his weapon in Triders face. With a quick step he ran towards the other side of the room. He turned his back to see, if he was following him, but to his terror he was advancing onto his wife instead. "Crap! He was after Cadance all this time!" he thought as he stopped and quickly turned around. He put all of his strength into his legs, in hopes he would reach them before it was too late. "GET AWAY FROM HER!!!" he shouted as he reached out to grab the Kanisar.

Trider however turned halfway and fired a blast of Ki directly into the stallion. The blast knocked the Captain onto the floor, leaving him writhing in pain. "Stay out of this." he said as he faced Cadance once again. A wicked smile grew on his face as he now stood just a few feet away from the mare. "After all this time, I'll finally make you pay for what you did to my people king Lucas."

Cadance looked up at his executioner, knowing there was no way for her to fight or reach out to him. She lowered her head as she waited for the inevitable.

At the same time king Sombra stood outside of the barrier, waiting for when it would finally drop. "Yes that's it. Finish her, so I can finally reclaim what is rightfully mine." he cackled as he watched the scene unfold. Suddenly an alarm of sorts went of inside his head and he quickly realised what it was. "They opened the door?" he said with slight panic. "How did they find it?" He switched his vision back to the Kanisar as he channeled his spell. "I can't allow them to get a hold of the Heart!"

"Forget about her!" Sombra commanded inside the Kanisars head. "Go after the one who is looking ofr the Crystal Heart!" As soon as he said that Triders vision shifted and in front of him no longer stood the man he wanted to kill, but a simple human woman.

"What the...? Where did he...?" he questioned as he looked around confused. A slight pain crossed through his mind as he suddenly knew where exactly the one he was looking for was. "A decoy, huh? You're a fucking coward Lucas, but I will find you and I will kill you, if it's the last thing I do." saying that he broke through one of the walls in the room and began to head towards the throne room.

Cadance looked at where the Kanisar left, completely confused. But she shook off her confusion as she got up and slowly made her way towards her husband. Once she reached him, she sat down and placed his head onto her lap. Shining looked at her in relief. "You okay Cadance?" he asked.

The princess smiled as she stroked his mane. "I'm the one who should be asking that question." They both lightly laughed.

"What about the alien? What happened to him?" the stallion questioned.

"Just as he was about to strike me he started to look around confused and said something about a decoy, before he left through that wall over there." she said as she tilted her head towards the said wall.

Shinings face contorted as something didn't add up. "But why did Sombra make him leave? You are the one who is holding up the shield. Unless there is an even bigger threat to him. But who would..." he trailed off as he realised who the king was after. "Twilight." he gasped. He began to slowly get up, but the burns from the blast were too much and he fell onto the ground again.

Cadance hugged him as she tried to prevent him from overexerting himself. "It's alright Shining. I'm sure she can handle Trider. She is the Element of Mafic after all. Besides in our current state we wouldn't be of much help, don't you think so?"

The stallion tried to argue, but he knew she was right so he just embraced her back. "I hope you're right." Just as he said that, Cadance began to grunt in pain as her horn began to flicker and the barrier flickered along with it. Shining sat up and it was now him that was embracing his wife. "Hurry up Twily."

"Whoooooahahaha!" Twilight shouted as she and Spike were sliding up the stairs. "I actually studied gravity spells, thinking it might be on my test! Turns out I was prepared for this! Wooo-hooo!" she exclaimed happily while Spike hang onto her like his life depended on it. Soon they saw light and when they exited the stairway Twilight canceled her spell and the two fell onto the floor. As they looked around the room their eyes fell onto the single object that was present. A lare heart made out of crystals was floating mid-air over a small decorated circle.

The two looked at each other and Spike beckoned her to get the Crystal Heart. As she slowly approached it they heard loud footsteps coming from the stairway and looked at them confused. "Who in Tartarus...?" Spike mumbled as he approached the stairs.

Suddenly a figure jumped out and landed a few feet away from the drake. The two looked at the figure and recognized the familiar form of their Kanisar friend. "Trider? What are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to help the others with...?" Spikes question was cut short when he saw in what state he was.

"Trider!" Twilight exclaimed as she ran towards him. "What in the name of Celestia happened to you? Who did this to you? Was it...?" She didn't get her anwer as Trider simply jumped at her and tried to smash her into the ground. Luckily Spike was fast enough and tackled her out of his attack.

"What the fuck Trider? Why did you attack Twilight like that?" the drake shouted at the man, but Trider simply smiled.

"No more running away Lucas. Right here and now I will make you pay for everything that you and the rest of humans did to me and my kind." he said as he cracked his knuckles. Twilight looked at him in shock, but then she noticed the smokey eyes and the curse mark on his forehead.

"He doesn't remember us. Thinks we are someone else. Has the same eyes as Sombra. The curse mark on his forehead." the mare thought over all the facts until it clicked in her mind. "Sweet Celestia." she gasped. "Spike be careful Trider is being controlled by king Sombra."

The dragon looked at her shocked. "Controlled? By Sombra? How?" he questioned as he looked back at the Kanisar. And just in time as he charged directly at him and slammed his fist directly into Spikes blocking arms. The strike was powerful enough to send the drake flying over the edge of the tower.

"Spike!!!" Twilight screamed, fearing he fell down.

"I'm fine." the drake called back. "I've managed to grab hold of a ledge."

Before she could reply she saw Trider coming at her so she raised a shield. The Kanisar hit the barrier with tremendous force, that made the mare stagger backwards. He continued his assault, pushing her further and further back.

"I need to get the Crystal Heart." Twilight thought as she blocked a few more strikes. As Trider got ready to deliver another blow, the mare dropped the shield and blasted him with a powerful magical blast. The blast surprised the Kanisar and he fell backwards from the force. Seeing her chance she ran toward the Heart, but Trider quickly got up and followed her.

"Oh no you don't!" he shouted as he quickly closed the distance. Twlight was able to almost reach the artifact, but once she stepped into the circle, it began to pulsate with dark energy.

Sombra felt the disturbance and channeled a spell. The circled glew completely dark as the mare realised what was going to happen. She jumped toward the Heart and knocked it away, just in time before dark crystals trapped it along with her and Trider.

"Nowhere to run now Lucas!" the Kanisar proclaimed as he lunged at her. She sidestepped his attack and tried to teleport outside her cage. She succeeded and was now standing outside. But she immediatelly felt something pulling her back in and before she knew it she was standing in front of Trider once again. "Glad you're back." he said with a smile as he wailed on her with punches and kicks. Luckily Twilight managed to raise her shield before any of them could connect.

She looked out through a small gap between the crystals and saw that Spike managed to get back up. "Where is the Crystal Heart?" she asked as Trider continued his assault.

Spike looked around and spotted it. he picked it up nad presneted it to her. "Right here! I have it." he told her. Twilight didn't have time to acknowledge him as she put all of her might in keeping her shield strong. Spike saw she was in trouble and approached the crystals. "Don't worry Twi. I'll get you out of there."

His advancement was halted wehn Twilight spoke up. "No! There is no time for that. Sombra is already attacking the Empire and there is not enough time for you to break these crystals. Plus if you do, you'll free Trider as well." she paused as another barage of strikes hit her barrier. "You have to get the Heart to my brother and sister, before it's too late."

"But-"

"Now Spike!"

"But what about-"

"Gooooooooooooooo!" she screamed and Spike nodded. He ran towards the edge of the tower as he saw the stairs were now blocked off by dark crystals. He jumped onto the outer edge of the tower and backed away from the ever growing crystals.

Cadance and Shining watched from their balcony as more and more of the Crystal Empire fell under king Sombras magic. The princess struggled to keep the barrier erected, but the last of her strength left her as her horn ceased glowing and with it the barrier fell.

Sombra smiled. "Finally." he said in a deep voice as he began his advancment into the Empire. He rose high over the buildings and looked down onto the terrified ponies. "Ahhhhh. My crystal slaves." he mused as he went deeper and deeper into the city.

Meanwhile Twilight was still struggling against Triders assault and he didn't seem to ease up. "Trider, listen to me. You have to fight him. You can't let Sombra win."

The Kanisar however just gave her an annoyed glare. "Will all of you stop saying I'm being controlled. Who is this Sombra anyway?" he said exasperated as he put even more force into his attacks. Twilights shield began to crack and soon it shattered completely leaving her completely defenseless.

Trider smiled sadistically as he grabbed her by her throat and lifted her into the air. "Time to pay for your crimes king Lucas." His grip hardened as he cut off the mares oxygen. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she was being strangled. Darkness began to fall over her conscience. With the last of her strength she grabbed him by his wrist and looked him in the eyes.

"Please..." she said in ragged breath. "Stop this."

Almost as if not hearing her he gripped even harder, making her yelp in pain. "Soon it'll be over." A sharp pain ran through his head as he grabbed it with his free hand. He shoke his head as the pain became grew in intensity. He looked at the girl in his hands and saw that there was something familiar about her, but he couldn't place it. Slowly her form began to shift, as her skin began to grow purple fur and a horn began to form on her fore head.

"T-twilight?" he said in a weak voice. Suddenly his head felt like it would explode. He released the mare fro his grasp and let her fall to the ground. Coughing Twilight looked at her friend and saw he was in immense pain.

"He's fighting Sombras control." she thought as she slowly got up. "Now is my chance." Quickly she closed the distance and put each of her hands on the side of his head and her horn onto his forehead where the mark was. She channeled her magic and her eyes grew bright.

Trider blinked a few times as his vision corrected itself. He looked around and saw he was inside some sort of sall crystal cage of sorts. He felt someone was pressing into him and whe he looked at who it was he saw Twilight gasping for air. "Twilight? What are you...? Where are...?" he questioned her confused. "What happened?"

The mare looked at him in relief as she hugged him and cried into his chest. "You're back. You're really back." she sobbed, as her tears mixed with his blood. Before he could ask any more questions she looked him in the eyes. "We need to get out of here. The barrier has fallen and Sombra is attacking the Empire." At the mention of the kings name, flashes of memories ran through Triders mind, but he shook them off.

"Say no more." He stood up and walked up to the crystals. He took a deep breath as his body returned to normal. He channeled Ki into his palm and formed a multicolored orb. "Wailing Nova Sphere!" he shouted as he struck the crystals with it and completely disintigrated them. Once that was done he and Twilight walked out of their prison and saw Spike standing on one of the smaller towers, trying to keep his balance. He saw them and smiled.

"Guys I have the Crystal Heart." he shouted earning the attention of everyone below, including Sombra. The king glared at the drake as he accelerated towards the castle. Suddenly Spike lost his footing and fell down towards the ascending king.

"Spike!" both Trider and Twilight screamed. Without another thought Trider ran towards the edge of the tower and with all his might jumped down towards Spike. As he was falling he was catching up to Spike, but then he saw Sombra approaching from below as well. Balling up his fist he channeled all of his ki through his body and soon it seemed like his entire form was engulfed in bloody red fire.

As Sombra got close to the heart his shadow form dissipated and he transformed into his physical form. But that didn't deter him from getting the Heart. Just as he was about to reach it and Spike, Trider grabbed drakes tail and tossed him back into the air. Sombras eyes widened as he was now face to face with an enraged Kanisar.

"SOMBRA!!!" he screamed as he plunged his fist directly into the kings face. The impact was so powerful that it also shattered the crystal that Sombra was riding. In less then a second the king crashed into the ground coughing up blood. As Trider got ready to be acquainted with the floor himself, he saw how Spike was caught by Princess Cadance in mid-air. With a loud crash he hit the ground and created a small crater in it, but suprisingly nothing hurt.

With a smile he watched as Sombra got up and he stared in fear as the Crystal Heart fell into its proper place. The crystal ponies then began to fill it with hope and love and soon the artifact glowed brightly. A shockwave blasted through the entire Empire that turned every crystal pony into a Crystal pony. Sombra on the other hand cried out in agony as cracks appeared all over his body. Suddenly he exploded and where once stood the tyrant king was now nothing more but a singe mark to remember him by.

Trider laughed at his victory. "Take that you shadow fucker." he said. Unbeknownst to him the mark on his forehead faded away and his body was assaulted with all of the pain his injuries produced. It was so unbearable that he fainted, but he still wore a smile nonetheless.

Couple of days later

A lone figure stood in the frigid cold as it looked towards the bright city in the distance. "I guess king Sombra really is gone." he said in a grim tone. "He would've been a valueable ally."

His attention was drawn from the city as he looked at another figure that was approaching him. "Master! Master!" the sickly green creature called out to it.

"What is it Rafel?" the figure asked in annoyance. "I am in a sour mood, so if you don't have anything good to tell me then..." he said as his horn began to glow.

Rafel gulped as he presented both of his hands and showed his master what was in them. "I found this master." Mastermind looked at what he brought himand his eyes glinted at what he saw.

"Good job Rafel, you're not as worthless as I thought you were." he praised his servant as he picked up remanant of the shadow kings horn. "She would probably make goo use of this." With that said he turned around and walked into the blizzard. "We are leaving Rafel."

"Yes master." the creature said as it used its claws to rip open a portal in mid-air. Before Mastermind stepped through he looked at the Empire once again before a wicked smile formed on his face.

"Enjoy your happiness while you can, because soon all the world will cower before me." he said in a dark tone as he stepped through the portal, Rafel following after.

Author's Note

NEWEST LONGEST CHAPTER! WOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO!!!
Now that Sombra has been defeated, what awaits our little wolf in the future? Will his friends ever forgive him? What is Mastermind planning?
The only way you can find out is if you continue to follow Trider adventures.
Next chapter we take a step back from all the action and we learn a bit more about our favorite/least favorite Kanisar.
Until next time.

Chapter 25: Test Your Might Part 2: In a Dog Fight, Every Second Counts

"Alright that's it!" Blaze shouted. The two combatants stopped their fight and a medical team ran out to tend to their wound. "Next pair, prepare yourselves."

Since Whip's and Frost's fight, not single one of the recruits displayed any formidable power, at least Trider thought so. He was bored and sleep threatened to consume him.

"What a bore." he said mid yawn. "Hey Green, when will it be my turn?"

"Not any time soon, if you continue with your attitude." the stallion said, without lifting his gaze from the notepad.

"Pfft, killjoy." Trider scoffed. Suddenly he was smacked upside his head. He looked around to see who was the one that had the balls to hit him, but no one was anywhere near him. Slowly he then turned his head to the green stallion who stood around several feet away from him. "Did you-?"

"Yes I did." he replied. "Don't think I didn't hear you." Trider sat down into one of the seats and began to curse the stallion, in his head this time. Green smirked at the Kanisar, but then looked back at the list in his hands. "Next up are... Critical Second."

At the mention of his name the grey maned unicorn stallion closed the book he was reading, stood up and fixed his glasses. "Guess I'm up next."

"Step next to the platform rookie." Blaze ordered and pointed towards the object. Without a word he followed the stallions instructions.

Green nodded and looked back at the list. "And his opponent is Ace Quickpaw." There was no response. Everyone looked around to see where Ace was. "Ace Quickpaw?" Green asked again, this time louder, thinking he didn't hear him. Still no response.

"Where is he?" Blaze exclaimed. "Where did that recruit go?" His coat began to turn even redder then it usually was. "Does any of you newbies know where he went?" he asked the other recruits.

"No sir!" they answered.

Blaze began to grit his teeth. "Did he abandon his post? The balls he must have!" he fumed. "If he's not here in the next three seconds I'll kick him out of the Academy."

Green sighed, as he raised his pen, ready to cross out the recruits name. "Last call for Ace Quickpaw!" he shouted.

"WAIT!!!" suddenly someone shouted. Everyones gaze turned toward the hallway where the came from and out of it came Ace running. When he reached his group he was panting like mad. "I'm here, I'm here."

Blaze walked up to the pony-dog hybrid and grabbed him by the hem of his shirt. "Where in fucking Tartarus were you?" the red stallion spat at him.

"Sir!" Ace said as he saluted his instructor. "I just went out to grab a snack, sir!"

You could practically see steam escaping Blaze's ears. "You went to get a snack?" he repeated slowly. Ace nodded slowly. "WHO AND WHY IN THE NAME OF SWEET CELESTIA ALLOWED YOU TO GET SNACKS?" he yelled at the hybrid, while shaking him back and forth.

"I was hungry sir." Ace whimpered. "And it was instructor green Fortune that allowed me to go, sir."

Immediatelly Blaze's rage was directed towards the green coated. "Green." the red stallion said, while grinding his teeth.

"Oh yeah, now I remember one of the recruits asked me if he could go out to grab a bite." Green said, as he remembered the event. "My bad." he apologised with a smile.

Taking a deep breath, Blaze released Ace. "Get your ass over to the platform. Now!" Heeding his orders, the pony-hybrid ran over to Critical and stood next to the teleporter. Blaze then walked over to him and looked him directly into the eyes. "You are excused this time, rookie. But remember this will be my first and final warning. If you pull anything like this again, I'll have you scrub all of the toilets on the premises. Understood?" Ace nodded. Satisfied with his answer, Blaze turned around to the rest of the recruits.

"And this goes for all of you. From now on, if you have a request or the like you have to ask both me and Green, not just one of us." he commanded, as he paced back and forth. "And also, from now on, you are only allowed to eat when it's time to eat. That means no more snacks, outside breakfast, lunch or dinner."

At that everyone began to complain, but none more than Trider and Ace, who looked like they had their guts torn out. "Quiet!" Blaze shouted and everyone settled down. "That's what I decided and it's final, so I don't want to hear any complaining. Am I understood?"

"Yes sir." everyone answered begrudgingly.

"Alright then." Blaze said, before he turned to Critical and Ace. "You two may proceed."

Listening to his orders both of the stallions stepped onto the platforms and were teleported to the arena below. "Don't think I'll show you any mercy, just because we train together." Critical stated.

"We'll see who begs for mercy, when I'm done with you." Ace countered. A badge on his shirt began to glow and it formed into a Nagano. He spun it around for a bit, before smashing it into the ground. "Come at me." he taunted. Critical on the other hand did nothing, he just stood still observing his opponent, with his arms crossed.

"Both fighters ready?" Green shouted. The two simply nodded and that was enough for the green stallion. "Begin!"

Ace charged at Critical, jumping when he was in range and swinging the Nagano downward. Critical however channeled his magic into his horn and shot a weird looking bubble at the pony-hybrid. "Ritardando!" he said as he shot it. Mid-way the bubble connected with Ace and it popped upon contact.

Suddenly Ace's descent and swing began to slow down, until it was almost at a crawl. Everyone looked at the display in awe, as Critical walked away from the impact point. "What the fuck? What did he do to him?" Trider asked.

"Now that is surprising. You rarely see a unicorn with the ability to manipulate time." Green said as he observed the fight's progression.

"Time manipulation?" Trider asked in shock. "You can't be serious! How can one fight against someone who can control freaking time?"

"Not control, manipulate. There is a difference." Blaze spoke up as he joined the two. "Didn't you see the bubble he shot at Ace, while he was still falling on him?" Trider nodded, so the red stallion continued. "If he truly could control time, he could just freeze it and end it all, but as you saw he has limits to how he can use his time magic."

"So, there is a way to beat him?" Trider asked.

"There is, but it takes a lot of brain power to figure it out." Green concluded and they all turned their attention back to the fight.

Ace was still falling and Critical was now standing behind him. "3, 2, 1. Play." he said, as Ace's speed suddenly picked up and he slammed his weapon into the ground. He looked at the place where Critical stood and confusion was clear on his face.

"Something wrong?" Second asked, making Ace quickly spin around. "What were trying to hit over there?"

"So you're a time weaver. This should be interesting." the hybrid said and twirled his nagano.

"Oh you were able to see me move? This really will be interesting." Critical agreed.

Again Ace charged the unicorn, this time choosing to remain on the ground. He zig-zagged to avoid any further magical bubbles. Critical however remained still not even bothering to use his magic. Soon Ace was close enough to the stallion, that he could swing his blade and hit him.

But Critical was waiting for that. "Riterdando!" He shot another bubble at Ace, when he got close enough, ensuring he couldn't dodge it. Ace however anticipated it. His hands glowed and suddenly he was propelled into the air and over the stallion. Critical could only stare as he realised what had happened. As soon as Ace landed behind his opponent, he swung his nagano around ensuring a clean hit. But while he soared over Critical, he failed to notice that the stallion had created another bubble.

"Accelerando!" Critical shouted and popped the bubble in his hand. Suddenly his movements became faster and he narrowly avoided his opponents blade. Jumping away he landed a few feet away from Ace. He cast his gaze down at his shirt and noticed that it was torn and small traces of blood could also be visible.

Ace however didn't let up his assault, as he charged the stallion yet again. "So he can also accelerate objects. This might be troublesome, if I don't take him down soon." he thought as he swung the nagano.

Critical reacted quickly and channeled magic through his horn. In a flash of light, two large daggers appeared in each of his hands and that allowed him to block Ace's attack. Not relenting, the pony hybrid continued his assault, while Critical blocked every one of them. Slowly he was being pushed back.

"That's it. If I continue like this I should be able-" He stopped his thoughts, when he caught something in the corner of his eyes. In the last second he jumped out of the way of a small dagger that flew directly towards him. Once he distanced himself, he looked around to see where the blade had come from.

He got his answer when several small balls began to form behind Critical, forming a small arc. Out of each of those spheres, slowly a blade appeared and Critical smirked. "You didn't honestly think that time magic was all I could do?" he taunted.

"I would of prefered it." Ace replied, wiping away a small drop of blood from his cheek.

"Then that's your problem not mine." Suddenly the blades shot out of the holes, each one heading directly for the pony-dog. Ace spun his nagano, blocking every blade that came at him. But because he was occupied with the daggers, he failed to notice that Critical used his magic to speed himself up and was now standing to Ace's side.

"Ritardando!" He shot a time bubble at the hybrid. Ace noticed too late, knowing he had no chance of dodging it. The bubble hit and Ace's movements were slowed down to a crawl. Critical began to walk towards him, all the while spinning one of his large daggers in his hand. "And just like that, I win." he proclaimed and raised his dagger over his head, ready to strike the pony-dog.

Suddenly his balance was thrown off, when something hit him in the head. He spun around and was about to fall down, when he saw a hoof heading directly for his stomach. When it hit, it knocked all air out of the stallions lungs and he was sent flying. When his body hit the ground, he rolled over a few times before stopping.

"W-what the...?" he wondered, as he couldn't figure out what had happened. He then looked over to Ace and saw he was moving towards him, at normal speed. "No, that's impossible. He should still be slowed. How is he-?" It suddenly occured to him and he smiled. "Augmentation magic. He used his magic to speed himself up, therefore canceling my time bubble." He stood up and glared at the pony hybrid, while spitting out blood. "This mutt has more up his sleeve than I gave him credit for."

He summoned his spheres and shot dagger after dagger at Ace. The pony-dog nimbly dodged and blocked the blades, closing in on Critical. The unicorn huffed and raised his large daggers. With a shout he for the first time charged Ace. The two clashed and began to exchange blows.

"What's up with him?" Ace wondered as he parried another attack. Critical use the chance of the parry and accelerated himself behind the pony-dog. Ace however used his own magic to accelerate himself as well and blocked his oncoming attack. "Up until now he played it safe, so why would he-?"

His thoughts were interrupted, when his back erupted in pain. "AGH!" he cried out, dropping his guard. Critical saw the chance and took it. He slashed a dagger across Ace's chest, drawing blood, and the proceeded to kick him away.

Ace fought against his pain and quickly got back up. "What the hell hit me?" He turned his head around and his eyes widened when he saw two daggers sticking out of his back. "When did he-?"

"You seem confused." Critical said suddenly. "You do know that I can accelerate and decelerate inanimate obejcts as well." Only when he said that did Ace realise what had happened.

Before he charged him, he shot another two daggers at him, but used his magic to decelerate them. So while he was fighting him he was keeping him occupied so he wouldn't have noticed the two daggers floating in mid-air. And when the magic wore off, he switched places with him, ensuring the daggers would hit him instead.

"Clever girl." Ace muttered, while reaching back and pulling the two blades out. "He's both strong and smart, a dangerous combination." he thought. "But unfortunatelly for him, so am I." He tightened his grip around his weapon and got into his battle stance.

"You still want to continue?" Critical huffed. "Fine by me, just don't come crying to me when I kick your ass."

Ace didn't reply, only glared at the stallion. The two stared at each other, both waiting for the other to make a move. Tired of waiting Critical shot another round at the pony hybrid, this time however accelerating all of the blades. Ace once again began to dodge and block the oncoming projectiles, but it was evident that he had much harder time this time around, due to his wounds and the faster blades.

Critical didn't let up his assault as more and more daggers flew at the defending pony-dog. Slowly, but surely Ace was begining to falter under the attack. Deciding to put an end to it, he swung his nagano around himself in a circle. As he did so wind began to blow around him and soon a small tornado engulfed his form. All of the daggers were blown away by the wind and once no more projectiles were coming at him Ace shut off his magic and with it the tornado receeded.

As soon as the wind let up another salvo of daggers flew at him, this time from multiple directions. Ace however anticipated that. He slammed the blade of his nagano into the ground, digging it solidly in. He then jumped on upwards and spinning around while doing so, giving the chance to see where Critical was. He landed on the tip of his weapon.

Everyone watched in awe as he landed and another badge on his shirt began to glow. In a flash of light a bow appeared in Ace's hands and a quiver on his back. Quickly grabbing an arrow, he loaded it in the bow, pulled the string and shot it towards the unicorn stallion.

"Accelerando!" Critical shouted and sped himself up, succesfully dodging the arrow. He looked at where the projectile struck the ground, then he casted his gaze towards Ace and smirked. "You'll have to do better than that!" he mocked.

"Who said I was shooting at you?" the pony-dog rebuted. Suddenly Critical felt cold enveloping his hooves and when he looked down he saw ice forming around him.

"A frost arrow?!" he thought, as he realised he was in a pickle.

"While your time magic allows you to move faster, that won't be of much help if you can't actually move." Ace said as he readied another arrow. "And I also know you're low on magic, so you can't retaliate anymore." He pulled back the string and aimed the arrow at the stallion. "All this time you boasted you'd win, but in the end..."

He didn't finish as he charged his magic through the arrow. The tip of this arrow was weirdly shaped, as it didn't have a sharp tip, but insted it looked like it had a cilinder with holes on it. Only when Ace charged his magic through it did Critical realise what kind of arrow it was. Air began to gather around the cilinder and created a small orb of compressed air.

"Wind Bomb!" Ace said and released the string. Critical could only watch as the arrow flew towards him. When it connected it created a large explosion and raised the dust around the stallion.

With a sigh Ace dropped down from his nagano and began to walk away. Suddenly a dagger flew past his head and missed him by an inch. He quickly turned around and saw Critical standing a few feet away from him.

His hooves were no longer encased in ice, probably due to the explosion and he was panting and sweating profusely. Ace raised his bow and loaded another arrow. "Stay down. I don't want to hurt you any more than I have to." he shouted at the stallion.

Critical however began to laugh, making Ace feel unnerved. Once his laughter died off he casted his gaze towards the pony-dog and grinned. "Do you really think it's over?" he asked while outstretching his arms. "While it's true I don't have much magic left, I do have enough for one final attack." His horn began to glow and Ace pulled the string even further back.

"Don't do it!" he threatened.

"It's already too late, you're already in my trap." Ace shifted his gaze around himself and it was only then that he noticed some of the daggers were sticking from the ground and were glowing.

He tried to release the arrow, but he never had the chance to. "Time Zone: Fermata!" Suddenly a line shot from all of the daggers and they connected between each other, creating a small dome over Ace.

Everyone watched as the dome erected and saw that Ace wasn't moving whatsoever. "Heh, you're the first one in a while that made me use my Time Zone." Critical thought as he catched his breath. "I can only slow down or speed up time with my time bubbles, but if I create my Time Zone then I can even freeze or reverse time within the area the Zone occupies. Although only for a short while, depending on how magic I have." He summoned his spheres and created a time bubble. "Speaking of which, can't waste any more time."

He began running around the Zone shooting the daggers at it from different directions. As soon as the blades entered the dome they stopped and were suspended in mid-air. Once he was satisfied, Critical stopped and smirked as he watched Ace standing still, unaware of the impending doomthat was about to befall him.

"3, 2, 1. Play" he said and snapped his fingers. The Zone disappeared and time within it began to flow again. Ace didn't even have time to blink as he saw several daggers pop out of thin air and heading towards him. Without any time to react, the daggers dug themselves into his form, shooting pain all over his body.

He shouted in pain as blood gushed out of his body. The pain made him lose his balance and he began to fall towards the ground. His arms went limp and he relesed the string of his bow, shooting his arrow high into the air. With a loud thud he struck the ground.

He was breathing heavily, as darkness began to envelop his vision. In the corner of his eyes he saw someone approaching him and when he looked upwards he saw Critical looking down at him.

"Like I said, I win." he stated while cleaning his glasses. "Don't worry, I made sure none of my daggers hit any of your vital spots, though you should still seek medical attention asap."

Ace's vision was hazy, but he could tell Critical was looking at him with worry. A smirk began to form on his face, which then escalated to a chuckle and then full blown laughter. Critical looked at him with worry and confusion.

"Why are you laughing. Is the blood loss making you delusional?"

"I'm laughing because you think it's over." Ace stated. "I'm not the only one who fell into a trap."

As if on cue the arrow that Ace shot before he went down, descended from the sky and when it was about ten feet above the two it exploded and water gushed out of it. It drenched both of them and Critical looked at the pony-dog with disdain.

"Seriously? What you want to catch a death cold or something?" he asked sarcastically.

"Nah, that would take too long. I prefer a more shocking solution." His hand was suddenly enveloped in electricity and he slammed it inot the ground. The electricity traveled through the water all the way to Critical's body. Before he knew it his body was spasming out of control and he could feel his skin burn. Once Ace stopped channeling the electricity, the stallion stopped his spasms.

His consciousness left him and he fell onto the ground, next to Ace, his fur severly singed. The dog-pony cracked a smile before he too fainted.

The recruits jaws were wide open at the display they just saw. Green and Blaze meanwhile just looked at each other and raised their brows.

"Well you don't see that everyday." Green said as he wrote down a memento in his notepad.

"Yeah." Blaze agreed. "The last time we had a draw was when Shining challenged you to a fight."

Green nodded. "Yeah those are good memories."

Author's Note

Another fight done.
Prankstered I would like to apologise to you for slightly changing Critical's weapons, without discussing it with you. I hope you're not mad. :fluttercry:
Nothing else to say, so until next time.

Chapter 42: Canterlot War Part 3: Cry of Rage! Ascend Beyond The Limits!!

"I am Daybreaker."

Everyone stood silent as they watched the mare who looked like Celestia, but was also vastly different from her. While they were cowering before her, Daybreaker took her time to look over herself.

"Interesting." she said, making a light spin. "It would seem the Nightmare Moon fragment could be used on anypony."

"Princess?" Rose spoke up. Daybreaker looked at her, seeing her eyes full of terror. "Princess, a-are you fine?"

"I am more than fine, my little pony." she said, laughing lightly. "I feel wonderful, much more than I've ever felt in the past thousand years. No longer being restrained by the morals and beliefs of my foolish counterpart, Celestia. For the first I truly feel alive."

Her statement made Rose and Frost shiver, they knew very well that things just went from bad to worse. Comet Trail on the other hand, looked like he just received the best gift in the world. He began to laugh manically gathering other's attention.

"This is even better than I imagined." he said in between laughter. "At first I wanted Luna to destroy you and everything you hold dear, but now I'll have you destroy it yourself." He continued to laugh, but his amusement was overtaken by another, louder and more menacing, laugh.

"You have become far more foolish over these past seven hundred years, Comet." Daybreaker cackled. "What makes you believe that I will do whatever you wish?"

"A little something I put onto the fragment while it was restoring itself." the stallion grinned and snapped his fingers. All of a sudden glowing marks appeared all over Daybreaker's body and her movements were stopped. "With this you'll ahve no choice but to do my bidding. And as my first decree, I command you to dispose of those two." he said and pointed toward Rose and Frost.

Daybreaker however remained still. "Like I said." she spoke softly. "A fool." The marks on her body shattered and Comet's eyes shrunk when he saw that happen and he stumbled away from the mare.

"H-how?" he stuttered.

"That kind of thing may have worked on the other me, but I am so much more than Celestia. It would seem ponies and other creatures of Equestria have forgotten how powerful I truly am." A ball of magic formed in her hand and she observed it gleefully. "Maybe it's time they are reminded."

She tossed the orb at Comet, almost like she was passing a ball over to a child. The stallion immediatelly conjured a small barrier and as soon as it made contact it pushed him back.

"Such power!" he thought, as he continued to be pushed backwards. "Can't block! I'll have to redirect it!" he mustered his strength and with all of his might he altered it's trajectory. The ball continued to fly until it reached the barrier. As soon as it touched it, the dome shattered and the pieces rained over them.

Everyone watched in shock and fear, while Daybreaker smiled. "Quite beautiful." she said joyfully, before returning her attention back to Comet. "Your skills have certainly improved over these past centuries." she commended, as she formed another orb. "But I doubt even you can stop another, especially with how much magic you've already used."

Comets's eyes widened and his pupils shrank as he watched her attack again. He knew she was right, so all he could possibly do was dodge it. Right as it was about to strike him, he jumped out of the way, using his magic to speed himself up. The orb flew past him and he grinned at his small victory.

Daybreaker however, smiled, before she extended her arm. The orb stopped it's flight and floated in place. She then extended her index finger and waved it around. The orb followed her movements and it's changed it's course, heading straight for Comet once again.

Comet's grin turned into a scowl, as he teleported out of it's way just in the nick of time. He now stood behind Daybreaker and he charged his own attack.

"Starfall!" he shouted as the ground beneath Daybreaker and sky above her began to glow. Suddenly a burst of magic shot from both sides shot forth engulfing the mare in blinding light. Comet breathed heavily as he watched the place where she stood, seeing nothing but smoke and a large crater. He put his arm down and sighed in relief.

"Gotcha." He quickly turned his head, but it was too late. His side was hit with tremendous force and all air left his lungs, as he flew across the ground, eventually hitting a nearby building. The debris fell on top of him, but he managed not to get crushed, by creating a barrier. He pushed off the rocks and looked at his impending doom.

Daybreaker stood several feet from him her hand extended, overflowing with magic. "It's about time I finished this little game." she said cackling. She released her magic from her palm and shot a small beam straight at Comet.

Already low on magic and severely hurt, Comet could only watch as his demise approached. All of a sudden a figure descended from the sky and blocked the blast with magic. Daybreaker's eyes narrowed in annoyance and anger as she stared at her former pupil.

"Sunset." she spat out. "How nice of you to join us. I was planning on finishing you off after I took care of this sorry excuse of a stallion, but now I'll have the pleasure of killing two birds with one stone."

Sunset paid her no mind as she turned her head to Comet. "Master are you alright?" she asked with worry.

Comet slowly picked himself up, with the help of the mare. "I'll live. I have to." he said, shooting a glare at Daybreaker. "But this has gone too far out of control. We need to leave now, while we still have a chance."

Sunset nodded in affirmation and began to channel her magic. While she was doing that, Daybreaker watched the two mirthfully. "Planning on running away cowards?" she taunted. "Do you think I'll allow for that to happen?"

"I know you won't. But all we need is just a single opportunity." Comet shot back, the two now locked in an intense staring match.

Just as she was about to make her move, a sudden shout drew Daybreaker's attention away from the duo. "Celestia!!!" Looking up she saw her sister, Luna, approach them.

Immediately she realised that she took her eyes off of her real targets she turned her head back to Comet, only to see him and Sunset disappear in a flash. Right before they teleported Comet shot her a smug smile and Daybreaker gritted her teeth in rage. She continued to stare at the spot where they were before, unaware that Luna approached her from behind.

"Sister." the night princess gasped as she looked at her sister. "What happened to you? What is going on? Who was that? Where are Frost and Rose?"

Her questions went unanswered, as Daybreaker slowly turned around. "You let them get away." she said quietly.

Luna looked at her confused. "Wha-?" Suddenly Daybreaker lifted her leg and kicked her in her stomach. The impact sent her flying through the air, but before she could hit the ground or any other obstacle, she was enveloped in green and red aura.

"Are you alright Princess?" Rose asked, as she and Frost pur her down gently.

"I am fine." Luna grunted as her hooves touched the ground. "But was is going on? What has happened to my sister?"

"In short, that guy from before is someone Celestia faced while you were banished to the moon and he took over Charming's body in order to exact his revenge. His plan was to make you join his side, by exposing you to a resurrected fragment of Nightmare Moon, but it instead took over Celestia, turning her into Daybreaker." Frost quickly explained the situation.

For a few moment Luna remained silent, but eventually she sighed and turned towards where Daybreaker stood. "I see." she said coldly, slowly beginning to walk towards her.

"Princess what do you plan on doing?" Rose asked, her voice laced with worry.

"I shall confront this 'Daybreaker'." she said, her tone clearly displaying her determination. She approached Daybreaker, while she too closed the distance between them. Once they were close enough they stopped and stared at each other.

"So Luna, what are you going to do?" Daybreaker asked, eyeing her sister.

"Sister." Luna began, taking a deep breath before she continued. "Please stop this. I know better than anypony what it is like to have your mind and body twisted by the darkness that is Nightmare Moon." she said. "This is not you. You have to fight it, I know you can do it." Tears began to form around her eyes and she gave Daybreaker a sorrowful look. "Please. Do not do the same mistake I did."

Daybreaker said nothing, instead she slowly lifted her hands and she gently cupped Luna's face. "Oh sister." she said softly. Luna looked at her sister with hope, but it was quickly crushed when she saw the malice in the day princess's eyes. "How naive can you get?"

Immediately Luna tried to move away from the fire mare, but she was too late. Magic coursed through Daybreaker's arms, down to her hands and shocked Luna.

A malicious smile formed on Daybreaker's face as she watched her sister writhe in agony. "Did you really think that would work?" she cackled. "I don't give a damn about your sob story. We get it you are sad cause you hurt ponies long ago. Get over it." Luna continued to scream in pain, while Daybreaker reveled in it. "Thanks to this I've finally seen that, because I was afraid to go all out against my foes, Equestria's been in so much danger lately. But no more. From this day forward everyone will see the true might of the Princess of Equestria and they will know to fear me."

Luna could barely keep up with her boasting, as she tried to fight through the pain. Suddenly the pain stopped and she felt Daybreaker remove her hands from her face. She collapsed to the ground, but she quickly recovered her senses. She looked up and saw two figures standing above, both of them carrying a weapon in their hands.

"Frost, Rose. What are you-?"

Her question was cut short as she felt being lifted up by magic. "Princess." Rose spoke sternly. "I know how you feel about this whole situation, but this is no longer Celestia you knew. Right now the only thing that can help her are not heartfelt words, but the Elements."

"So until they get here we will have to stand our ground." Frost added, chaning her battleaxe for a halberd. "Can we count on you? Cause we have no chance by ourselves."

Luna closed her eyes and breathed in deepley. Magic began to course through her body and her clothes began to glow. Soon the glowing stopped and her previous regal clothes transformed into a black full body armor, while in her hands she held a purple sword and a round white shield.

"You are right. This is time for action." She looked at both of them, giving them an appreciative smile. "Let us stop my sister, before she causes any more grief." The two mares beside her nodded and they all preapred for the battle that awaited them.

Daybreaker meanwhile watched and listened to them, smiling to herself. "So you finally decided to get serious? Then I should do the same." Like with Luna her magic coursed through her body and she stood in a golden armor, wielding a long golden spear. "Come! Let's see who will be victorious."

"You two." Luna spoke shushledly. Frost and Rose turned to her listening intently. "Do not try to face her by yourselves. Let me handle her, while you two attack from a distance or try to take advantage of any openings she might present and then retreat."

"Got it." they both said simultaneously. Without another word both Luna and Daybreaker charged at each other, clashing with a lound boom.

Luna swung her sword downwards, but Daybreaker blocked it with her spear. The clash lasted for less than a second, before they both began to soar across the battlefield, the only times they could be seen was when they exchanged blows.

Meanwhile Frost and Rose waited and watched, for any chance they might get for a good attack. But it was difficult as they could just barely keep up with the princesses ridiculous speed. Their chance came up when Luna crashed into the ground, creating a small creater upon impact, and Daybreaker shot from the sky towards her. Right before she could reach her, Frost thrusted her halberd forward the pole of the weapon extending with lightning speed. In the last moment Daybreaker went from a nosedive into an upright position, as she gracefully landed on the pole, without even bending it. She glanced at the guardmare, shooting her a condescending smirk, but she immediatelly realised that Rose was missing.

"Sakura Sword Style." Rose chanted, standing just a few feet away from Daybreaker.

"Yeah right." the flaming mare scoffed as she prepared to lunge at her. But Frost saw her intent and she retracted her weapon, making Daybreaker lose her balance.

"Slicing Typhoon." Rose finished, swinging her blade and the princess was suddenly caught in a violent tornado. The force of the wind lifted her up, as countless cuts tried to damage her body, but her aura alone protected her from the damdage. Once she reached tornado's apex the magic stopped and she levitated mid-air, her senses still jumbled from being tossed around in the winds. Because of that she failed to notice Frost jumping up and lifting a giant club directly at her. With all of her might she swung her weapon and struck Daybreaker down, sending her through a wall of a nearby building.

"Think that did it?" Frost asked optimistically.

The building's debris was blown away, as Daybreaker walked out, with not even a dent in her armor or a scratch on her body. "That answers your question?" Rose sarcastically retorted.

"You two are like annoying flies." Daybreaker said and her horn began to glow. She swung her spear in an arc above herself and about a dozen bright orbs appeared. "So I'll just have to get rid of you." She thrusted her spear forward and the orbs all shot towards the two mares.

Frost jumped towards Rose and created a powerful barrier, by thrusting her sword into the ground, in hopes it would be enough to protect them.

But before they could even reach them, Luna jumped in front of them and swung her sword, making all of the orbs explode. Without any further word she again blitzed her sister and their fight continued. Frost dropped her shield and she faced Rose.

"You really think we can win this way? Cause that was way too close for my taste." she complained.

Rose nodded in agreement, as she watched the two alicorons go at each other. "I agree." she said. "It's clear that neither of us can deal a finishing blow. Only Luna has enough magic and types of spells that can to that."

"So we just let her defeat Daybreaker by herself?"

"No." Rose quickly retorted. "We know that we can't fight straight on, so instead we'll assist Luna by attacking her from afar and hope we can at least distract her enough for Luna to take the decisive blow."

Frost liked her plan and she immediatelly summoned a long bow into her arms. "I wish Ace was here. He is much better than me at archery." she said, readying an arrow.

While she was preparing, Rose cast her spell and her sword glowed red as it split into five parts, as they floated around her. "We'll make due." she encouraged her friend. They exchanged one last glance before they looked back toward the fight.

Luna and Daybreaker continued to exchange blows high above the city, neither one showing any signs of stopping any time soon. Luna swung her sword and shot a blade of magical energy at Daybreaker and she blocked it with her spear. The night princess tried to push onwards with her attack by firing several bolts of magic at her sister, but the flaming mare expertly defended herself, by spinning her weapon in front of her, successfully blocking all the shots.

"What's wrong sister? Don't tell me this is all you have." Daybreaker taunted. Suddenly she disappeared in a flash of light and Luna immediatelly stopped her attack and focused on sensing where she would appear. She felt a pressure rise behind her and she quickly swung her sword at the location where she knew Daybreaker would appear.

As soon as she turned around she saw Daybreaker and she was certain her strike would hit. But her hope for turning the tables was quickly bashed when she saw her sinister smile, right before she once again disappeared in a flash. The next thing Luna knew she tried to hit air. She sensed her sister materialize behind her again, but this time she couldn't do anything, except brace for the inevitable attack.

Daybreaker raised her spear to deal a devastating blow, but she saw something in her peripheral vision that made her jump away. Several blots of red magic and arrows zoomed past her and Luna took the given chance to regain her standing. Both she and Daybreaker looked downwards and saw Rose and Frost, both prepared to help Luna at any given time.

"It would seem I have the advantage here sister." Luna stated, pointing her sword at the flaming mare.

Daybreaker scoffed, before she replied. "Those annyoing pests?" she spat. "Do you really think they will be able to do anything? They are just a nuisance, nothing more."

"On a battlefield even the smallest distraction can dictate the victor." Luna argued.

"True." Daybreaker agreed with her. "But even with an entire army, you wouldn't stand a chance."

"It seems you have forgotten that I too am an alicorn like yourself." the night princess countered. "And last time I remember we were evenly matched."

"Indeed. In terms of raw power we are equal. But there is also the fact of experience." Daybreaker smiled. "But that too is rather miniscule between us, seeing as you were locked on the moon and I was just spending my day sitting on the throne listening to noble's whining. But there are two reasons why I'll be victorious in the end."

"And what are they?" Luna asked, with slight curiosity.

"One," Daybreaker raised a finger. "While we both do have the same amount of power, you however are holding back, trying to refrain from harming me or the city. I don't have such a problem." She cackled, sending chills down Luna's back. "But don't worry. I won't kill you, you are my sister after all. But you don't need your limbs or your horn to live now do you?"

The truth, that the one who stood in front of her was no longer the sister she once knew and loved, once again dawned on Luna and a single tear escaped her eyes. "And the second reason?"

This time Daybreaker didn't answer, instead she used her magic to create a bright light that engulfed most of the sky, blinding Luna and the two mares on the ground. Luna focused on trying to sense where Daybreaker was, expecting her to attack. But she was farther away then she was before. After a couple more seconds her vision returned and she immediatelly looked towards her sister's location.

"Second reason." Daybreaker said triumphantly holding her spear up above her head. Luna's pupils shrunk when she saw the massive ball of golden energy standing on the tip of Daybreaker's weapon. "Your concern for others."

At first Luna didn't know what she meant, but when Daybreaker launched the giant orb past her and towards the ground, she realized what she was talking about. Without a second thought she shot past the sphere and jumped in front of it.

"If this thing hits the ground, both Rose and Frost, nay, most of Canterlot will be destroyed." she thought as she began to focus her magic. "I call upon thee the darkness of the universe, to descend onto my foes to swallow and destroy them. Born of light, now here to bring forth the end to the stars." she chanted, as a large pitch black darkness began to concentrate in front of her and slowly shaped itself into a ball. "Ereignishorizont!" With the chant finished the spell began to suck everything in it's surrouding into itself.

Rose and Frost could feel the pulling force even from where they were standing and they watched as part of buildings and the debris began to float into the spell, disappearing from existance. Daybreaker's attack too was slowly swallowed, but it wasn't fast enough. Soon the two spells clashed and the resulting explosion leveled a couple of the buildings. Frost switched to a longsword and dug it deep into the ground, holding herself in place with all of her might. Rose wasn't so lucky however and she was swept away by the blast wave.

Once the explosion subsided, Frost looked up to see what had happened to the princesses. No matter how hard she looked she couldn't find any traces of them. A loud pained scream averted attention from the skies to the ground. The sight before her shocked her. Daybreaker was standing over Luna, whose body was badly wounded and her armor was mostly destroyed. The flame mare was pressing her hoof onto her sister's back, while the wounded princess was ensnared by several golden rings.

"Didn't I tell you that I'll be the winner?" she mocked her sister as she put more pressure onto her back. "You are just like how I was before. So benevolent that it makes me sick." She bent down and grabbed Luna's mane, lifting her up to eye level. "You don't have to worry though. Like I said I won't kill you. But I can't say the same for others. Anypony who'll be stupid enough to defy me, will meet a harsh end." She glanced towards Frost, her gaze lingering on her long enough for Luna to understand what she was planning.

"No!" she shouted. "Please Celestia, please don't do this." she begged her, but the only answer she received was a punch to her gut.

"I thought I told you, Celestia is no more. Only Daybreaker remains." She dropped her sister back onto the ground and began to advance towards Frost.

"R-run." Luna said weakly as she tried to get herself up. "RUN!!!"

Frost didn't have to be told twice. She quickly turned around and tried to escape, but she was stopped by Daybreaker who was now standing in front of her. "Hello there." Without thinking Frost jumped back to distance herself from the mare. "You have nowhere to run my little pony, all you can do now is beg for my forgiveness and I might just spare your life."

Frost's body was shaking and she couldn't move, her body frozen from Daybreaker's sheer presence. She didn't know what to do as she frantically looked around to see if anyone would come to her aid. Seeing that she was alone she faced the flaming mare again and she closed her eyes. She took a long and deep breath before she reopened her eyes.

"Don't look down on me." she growled, her shaking completely stopped. Her eyes were filled with determination and she summoned two katanas. "The only time I'll bow down to the likes of you is when you'll be kissing my ass!"

With a powerful shout she jumped at Daybreaker unleashing everything she had at her. But no matter how hard she tried, Daybreaker easily dogdged and avoided every one of her attacks.

"You have spirit." Daybreaker praised, before she grabbed the blades of her swords. "But that alone won't save you." She snapped the blades in half with little to no force.

Frost immediately released her weapons and summoned a warhammer. She assaulted Daybreaker again, with even more vigor. And again the flaming princess effortlessly danced around her, playing with her. Eventually however she had enough and she smashed the hammer with a single swing of her arm.

Before Frost had the time to summon another weapon, Daybreaker grabbed her by her throat and lifted her off the ground. "I see that you are fully prepared to die." she said to the mare who was struggling in her hand. She pondered for a little while, before a wicked smile stretched across her face. "You have piqued my interest. I think I'll let you live." Frost gave her a confused gaze, unsure what she was plotting. "Killing you right here and now will leave a bad taste in my mouth. So instead I'll let you live and have you become my personal slave." Her smile widened as she slightly released her grip on Frost's neck and she placed her other hand onto her horn. "But first we have to make sure you'll have no way to retaliate."

Her horn began to glow and it was soon surrounded by a black smoky aura, as her eyes turned green and purple smoke began to escape from her them. Luna watched in horror at what was happening before her eyes. "Sister don't tell me you are going to use that spell?!"

Meanwhile at one of the nearby buildings, two figures watched the unfolding battle. "Master what is Cele- Daybreaker doing?" Sunset asked as she appleid magic to Comet's severed arm.

"That my dear pupil." Comet said somberly. "Is the spell she used 700 years ago to take away my magic." Sunset looked at him with slight shock. But instead of a scowl she was expecting she saw how he was smiling. "Soon you'll have a taste of your medicine Princess." He then looked away from the battle and looked at Sunset. "Did you relay the message to everyone else?"

"Yes master." the mare replied.

"Good. Let's observe for a little longer, then we retreat." They said no further word as they returned their attention back onto the fight below them.

Frost's struggles stopped as soon as Daybreaker began to cast the spell. her body was limp, her mouth wide opened in a silent scream and her eyes were pure white. Black cracks began to spread through her body, from her neck and they showed no sign of stopping. Daybreaker in the meanwhile just smiled sadistically.

"You know on second thought." she said increasing the amount of magic. "Maybe I will kill you, by destroying all of your magic." She cackled as she continued her spell.

Suddenly she was hit in the back by a large red magic beam. She screamed in pain and she released Frost, letting her drop onto the ground. Daybreaker's back covered in black soot and smoke rose from it. She turned around to see who was responsible. Her eyes landed on Rose who was standing outside of a hol in a building. Four red blades slowly stopped spinning in front of her and she shot her a smirk.

"You! Dare!" Daybreaker shouted, her teeth gritted in anger.

"Struck a nerve did I?" she taunted, the baldes now floating beside her. "I'm surprised that did something, despite it only being 4/5 of my full power."

"4/5?" Daybreaker repeated. Before she had the chance to realize, she was tackled by Luna and she just barely dodged her sword that left a small gash on her face. Continuing her momentum, the night princess struck her sister's torso with her shield.

"Schwerkraftschub!" Her shield glowed and Daybreaker was sent skidding across the ground. Luna turned to Rose and shouted. "Get Frost and run away from here!"

"Got it!" Rose nodded and ran to Frost. She picked her up and began to carry her away.

"Wha-? What happened?" Frost asked, waking up from her daze.

"We're getting out of here that's what." Rose quickly explained. "How are you feeling?"

"Cold. Empty. I can't really explain." Frost tried to explain to the best of her abilities. "But I can still fight. We have to help Luna."

"No can do. You almost got killed back there and this is way out of our league." Rose tried to convince her friend, but to no avail.

"No way. I'm not about to run away with my tail between my legs." she said, breaking free from Rose. She extended her arm and focused her magic. But nothing happend. "M-my-"

"Frost what's the matter?" Rose asked concerned.

"M-my m-magic." she stuttered out her response. "My magic is gone!"

Rose didn't know how to respond to that, but it's not like she had the time to think about what to say. "All the more reason to get the fuck away from here." she shouted, grasping Frost's hand. "Let's go."

As the two continued to flee, Luna was once again in a heated battle with Daybreaker, this time however the mare was burning with rage, literally. "I've had enough of this!" she screamed, her voice as loud as thunder. "I don't care if you're my sister, all of you will die for opposing me." She unleashed her magic in a large explosion, pushing Luna away several feet.

The explosion dazed the night princess and Daybreaker decided to finish her. "Oh bringer of life, smite those that lurk in darkness. With your divine destruction cleanse this world of it's impurity." she chanted as she concentrated her magic in her hands. "Lux Exitium."

A wave of golden flames shot out from her hands towards Luna, who just at the last second formed a drak blue shield around her. The flames engulfed her and pushed against her shield with tremendous force. Luna fought against the attack with everything she had, but despite her struggle the shield broke and she screamed in agony. Soon the flames subsided and Daybreaker proudly looked upon the burned remains of the buildings that were before her.

Her eyes then fell onto Luna who was lying motionlessly on the floor, her entire body burned. "Still alive, huh?" Wouldn't expect anything less from my sister." she said. Luna weakly moaned, telling her she was still conscious. "Now for the other two." She turned around looking for the other two mares and soon she spotted them how they tried to run away. "I don't think so." she said, lifting her spear which she engulfed in the golden flames. "Two birds, one spear." she cackled.

As they were fleeing the scene Frost glanced back and saw Daybreaker readying to throw her spear at them. "Rose!" she shouted. The mare turned around, just in time to see Daybreaker throwing the spear. She released Frost and unseathed her sword, holding it in front of her, by the handle and it's blade. "Sakura Sword Style: Blossom Fort!" A thick wall of magic formed in front of her and she prepared for the impact.

Frost closed her eyes and raised her arms, trying to protect herself from the impact as well. She heard the shattering of glass and nothing else after that. She slowly opened her eyes, only to regret doing so.

She saw Rose's back and a blood covered golden spear that jutted out from it. Rose was still standing with her sword in her arms, almost as if nothing happened. The red wall began to fade away and the mare slowly looked down, just to see the spear embedded in her chest. A trace of blood escaped her mouth and she dropped to her knees, dropping her weapon. She raised her shaking hands and placed them onto the the pole. Before she could even grab it, it was pulled out of her by an invisible force and blood spattered all over the ground. Her body collapsed and Frost screamed.

"ROOOOOSE!!!"

She laid motionless on the ground, her body unwilling to listen to her commands. She felt the cold creeping all over her and her vision slowly became foggy. Frost crawled over to her and placed her head onto her lap.

"Stay with me Rose! Don't you dare die!" she said frantically, tears flowing down her face. Rose tried to speak, but she couldn't no matter how hard she tried.

"Well at least I got one of you." Daybreaker said as she loomed over the two mares. "Don't worry, you'll soon join her in the afterlife." She raised her spear and was about to bring it down onto Frost.

Suddenly something fell from the sky and struck Daybreaker, sending her flying away from the two mares. Once she stopped she growled. "Who now?" the flaming mare said in annoyance. She and Frost looked at the newcomer, both surprised.

"Trider!" Frost said in hope. The Kanisar said nothing as he turned to Frost and fell onto his knees. He grasped Rose and brought her closer to himself.

"Rose!" he shouted. The mare strained her eyes to see who was talking to her. When she saw the familiar outlines of her beloved husband she smiled.

"Trider." she said weakly.

"Don't speak, I'll get you to a hospital. So don't talk and save your energy." he said in desperate hope. He tried to lift her, but was stopped when she placed a hand onto his cheek. Trider grasped it with his own and he could feel how cold it was.

"I... Love you." she said, before she closed her eyes. Her hand went limp and it fell out of Trider's and onto the ground. Both Frost and Trider looked at her with shock, not believing that she was gone.

Frost couldn't hold back her tears and she began to sob uncontrolably. Trider on the other hand slowly placed Rose's body back onto the ground and said in a low tone. "Look after her." Frost lifted her gaze at Trider and saw something she never expected out of the Kanisar. He was crying.

Without another word he stood up and faced Daybreaker, who was watching them with a smile. "She finally bit the dust I see. Good riddance." she said in a taunting tone. Trider didn't react instead he kept his head low. "Awww, what's wrong little pup? I was expecting you to go crazy after witnessing your beloved dying. Or were you like that when your parents died as well?"

"Shut up."

"I'm sorry what was that? I couldn't hear over your pathetic-"

"I SAID SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!!!" A burst of energy exploded from his body and his hair turned snow white. Daybreaker was taken aback by the sudden outburst, but she quickly recollected herself.

"Oh you want to go at me?" she jabbed. "That's fine by me. I've been wanting to put you in your place ever since I've met-" She stopped her taunting when she saw his enraged look and his eyes, the iris now encircled by a red line. She has seen him angry before, but this time for some reason it made her shiver.

Trider clenched his fists so tightly that his arms were shaking and he gritted his teeth so hard it would seem like he was trying to break them by force. "You'll pay for what you did!" he said, his voice gravly and cold. The air began to feel tense and the stones around the area began to float off the ground. Trider's white aura started to grow in size and intensity and showed no sign of stopping. A loud bang drew Daybreaker's attention to the sky as she saw numerous dark clouds approach Canterlot.

She returned her gaze back to Trider and saw that the aura grew even more, so much so that it started creating a crater under his feet. She didn't know what to do, she tried to move but was so captivated by the sight before her that couldn't do anything. At this point even the ground began to shake, almost like a small earthquake hit Canterlot and the skies were completely dark from the thunder clouds, which were now releasing lightning all over the city, but especially around the Kanisar.

Then all of sudden Trider unleashed a loud, almost primal, cry that nearly deafened Frost and Daybreaker. He continued to scream, his voice growing louder by the second and he showed no sign of stopping. His hair and tail seemed like were caught in a violent wind and appeared to grow longer.

Suddenly the aura exploded in a blinding light and both mare shielded their eyes from it. Once it subsided they both looked towards where Trider stood and were greeted by an unexpected sight.

The Kanisar's transformation made him appear even more like a beast than before. His hair was now so long it reached the middle of his back, he also had a couple of sideburns adorning his face, The fur on his arms, which usually reach only to his elbows, was now extended all the way to his shoulder. His chest was also covered in the white fur, hiding his muscles. And even his tail grew in volume, now resembling that of a fox.

He slowly opened his closed eyes to reveal they were still neon blue, but this time the edge of iris was highlighted with red, making them appear like something out of this world.

"Another transformation?" Daybreaker said condescendingly, shrugging it off like it was nothing. "You really are full of surprises. What do you call this one? Super mongrel seems fit-" She didn't even get the chance to finish her sentence, as Trider seemingly teleported before her and delivered a powerful strike to her gut. She was thrown off her hooves and sent flying through numerous buildings, all the way to the other side of the city.

Frost, Luna, who was able to at least watch what was happening, and the two villains all stared at what they had just witnessed with mouths wide open. "Frost!" Trider said without even looking at the mare. "Get Luna and take her to safety!" He didn't even wait for a response, before he jumped off the ground and flew to where he punched Daybreaker.

"M-master, did you see what happened?" Sunset asked, still in shock.

"I have." he replied with astonishment. "It would seem that I'll have to wary of that alien as well in the future. That is if he lives."

Sunset watched Comet's facial expression, seeing small hints of fear, but mostly intrigue. She's never seen him like that and it unnerved her. "M-maybe we should retreat as well?"

Comet slowly went to stand up and Sunset helped him. "Indeed. I'm sure Chrysalis was successful with her task." He took a dark purple crystal out of his jacket and spoke into it. "Rafel come and get us."

For a couple of seconds nothing happened, but then the air before them rippled and the space tore apart. The green head of the hideous creature popped through the portal and it smiled. "Master." it said somewhat enthusiastically. "You come back, yes?"

"Yes." he said monotonously."Have the others returned as well?"

"Yes. But not dragon. He insist to stay."

Comet sighed and rubbed the temple of his nose. "Then drag him here. We can't have him get side-tracked by his petty revenge. Not before my plans are finished."

Rafel bowed as the two of them entered the portal. "As you wish master." The gate closed and they were gone.

***

On the other side of the city Daybreaker picked herself up from the remains of the destroyed building she crashed into. When she stood up she felt a sharp pain in her stomach and she hissed. "That damned mutt." she said, applying a little healing magic to her wounded area. "I'll have his head on my wall."

She was caught up in her sulking that she didn't immediately noticed the changelings that were now surrouding her. "Surrender pony!" one of them shouted.

Daybreaker said nothing, instead she lifted her gaze to the sky, spotting a distant object that was quickly approcahing them. Seeing she was not responding the changelings decided to attack. Before they could even get close however, Daybreaker waved her hand and all of them were engulfed in golden flames. Nothing remained of them but ashes.

"Literal insetcs." she growled. She raised her arm and resummoned her spear to her side, waiting for her opponent to arrive.

Trider landed a few feet away from her, creating a large crater when he landed. "That hurt you mutt." she said, her tone devoid of any emotion. "I hope you are prepared for a slow and agonizing death."

"I said shut up. I don't have anything to talk to you about." he responded.

"Really? Usually you like to talk all big during a fight, to show off your power."

"Not this time." he shook his head. "I don't wanna waste any of my energy by talking to you. I'll use every drop of my being on beating the crap of you!"

"I see." Daybreaker chuckled and raised her spear. "Then let's not waste any more time."

They both stood still, staring into each other's eyes. Then without any warning they both charged at each other. Their clash was so powerful the ground beneath them shattered into million pieces. They both then followed up with their attacks, their battlefield expanding as they zoomed from one place to another.

"Piston Cannon Eicosiassault!" Trider thrusted his fist at Daybreaker, but she redirected his punch with her own hand and countered, by kicking him higher into the air. He quickly recovered and managed to dodge the spear just at the last moment. He locked his eyes with Daybreaker as she fired a barrage of golden magic shots at him.

Trider countered by firing his own Ki blasts at hers. The two were locked in the firing match for a bit before Daybreaker stopped and teleported behind the Kanisar. Her spear flew into her hand and she swung it at him.

Trider quickly turned around blocked the spear with his arms, the two now struggling to overpower each other. Daybreaker smiled wickedly and she pushed with all of her might, sending both of them to the ground. They crashed into the streets, raising a large cloud of smoke.

Still pushing, Daybreaker seemingly tried to make Trider part of the road, and he couldn't move. "Face it Trider! I am more powerful than you in every possible way!" she claimed her smile turning more and more scary.

"Roar Cannon!" A beam shot out of his mouth and she had to back off, so she didn't get blasted. Trider took the chance and knocked her spear out of her hands. He then pressed the assault and began to deliver blow after blow at her.

The princess however retaliated, successfully blocking and dodging all of his attacks. "I told you didn't I? I am the most powerful being in Equstria. There is no one that can even measure up to me." she bragged. Trider's response was to unleash a loud cry as he continued his attacks.

Daybreaker scoffed as she deiced she had enough. She went to grab his arm and then counter, but she missed as the fist seemed to accelerate all of a sudden. The attack hit her and broke her tempo, allowing Trider to unleash a barrage of punches and kicks onto her.

The mare was slowly being pushed back, but she did manage to recover her defenses, however it didn't help much. "Are- Are his attacks getting faster? And stronger?" she thought, as she took hit after hit from the Kanisar.

Trider decided to finish her, so reared his arm, ready to deliver a devastating blow. "Piston Cannon Eicosiassault!" The mare's eyes widened, realizing she had no way to avoid his attack. Instead she quickly summoned her spear and used it's pole to block his attack.

The impact created a deafening explosion that shattered the windows of nearby houses. Daybreaker felt immense pressure wash over her, as she felt herself fly through the air. She managed to recover herself and stop before she hit any obstacle.

Lifting her eyes she looked at where the Kanisar was, but she didn't see him. Suddenly she felt a powerful heat rise behind her and when she turned her head she saw Trider, crouching and preparing a Ki blast. With a shout he released the energy shooting it directly at her back, sending her high into the air.

The princess managed to separate herself from the blast and she was now high above the city. She quickly corrected herself and looked down, seeing Trider already flying right at her.

"I've had enough!" she screamed, her mane erupting in an even fiercer flames. "I'll just take you and this whole city with you if I have to!" She raised her spear and began to channel her magic, quickly creating a large golden sphere.

Seeing what she was doing, Trider too focused his Ki and created a large blue, red and purple orb, which was as big as half of his body. "Thundering Nova Sphere!" he shouted and shot it in mare's direction.

"Solis Malum!" Daybreaker unleashed her attack as well. The two blasts collided in the middle of the sky, resulting in a massive explosion, twice the size of Canterlot, that blew away all of the thunder clouds and shook the earth so hard it could be felt miles away.

Out of the blinding light, that was also the result of the explosion, two figures hurled towards the ground. They both crashed with a loud boom and remained lying in their craters for a couple of seconds. However once they caught their breath they both quickly stood up and were once again facing each other.

Daybreaker's armor was ruined in numerous places and she had several cuts and bruises all over her body. Trider didn't fare any better, he too had quite a lot of wounds and his shirt was completely destroyed.

They were heavily breathing and sweat ran down their faces. "Why won't you die?" the mare screamed. "I've had enough of you and your vain attempts to beat me." Her magic began to surge, as a golden aura covered her body. "I'll finish this right here and now!" Her magic began to take form, creating a giant knight like shape over herself. "Stella Laniatum Excubiarum. This is my most powerful defensive magic. And now for my most powerful offensive spell."

She outstretched her arms, while still holding her spear in them. "Oh bringer of life, smite those that lurk in darkness. With your divine destruction cleanse this world of it's impurity. Lux Exitium." Golden flames shot out of her hands and quickly engulfed all of the surrouding area.

Daybreaker watched and laughed as everything before her burned. But then she noticed something. Among her golden flames there were some that were red and blue, and they were approaching her. She quickly realized what that was and she incresed her power, but that didn't even slow down the Kanisar.

He soon reached the large barrier the princess erected and he hit it full force. He screamed as he pushed against the magic, shattering it after struggling against it for a bit. "Destructive!" His body covered in blue and red flames passed through the hole he created and Daybreaker's eyes widened in shock, as she used her spear to hopefully block his attack. "Finish!" His fist struck the golden pole and immediately broke it in two. "Breaker!" The attack connected and upon impact it completely destroyed the remains of Daybreaker's armor.

The knight barrier shattered completely and both, Trider and Daybreaker, rocketed across the city through all of the buildings and even the castle and it's defensive walls, until they crashed into the mountain itself. The resulting force created a giant crater into the rock.

Daybreaker was embedded into the wall, passed out. Trider on the other hand laid on the ground, about a hundred feet away from her. He returned back to his base form and was gasping for air.

Several minutes passed before he heard voices in the distance calling out to him. Slowly he stood up and turned his head a little to see the Mane 6 running towards him.

"Trider!" they shouted, Twilight and Applejack jumping at him, giving him a strong hug.

"Hey girls." he greeted back as he embraced the two mares in his arms. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to use the Elements on Princess Celestia." Twilight explained.

"Celly? But she isn't here." he asked confused as to waht she was talking about.

The mares looked at each other, exchaning worried glances. "Sugarcube." Applejack spoke, placing a hand onto his shoulder. "That there is the Princess." she said pointed toward Daybreaker.

"Wha-?"

"Luna told us what happened." Twilight quickly jumped in. "We know. About Rose." At the mention of her name everyone went silent and all of them were fighting back their tears. "You have to know this wasn't her fault."

"How?" he asked simply.

"From what Luna and Frost quickly told us, it seems she was possesed by the same thing that turned Luna into Nightmare Moon a thousand years ago." she clarified. Trider said nothing instead he dropped his head and began to slowly walk away.

"I see." he mumbled. "You should purify her while she's still down. Oh, where are Luna and Frost anyway?"

"They're near the place where the battle took place." Applejack answered and Trider nodded. As he was walking away he noticed a bright and colorful flash behind him, but didn't bother to look back. Instead he took to skies. As he flew over Canterlot, he saw the destruction that was left. He gritted his teeth and landed at some he saw was abandoned.

He walked over to one of the houses that were still standing and just stared at it. Tears began to fall down his face and he didn't even bother to hold them back. All of a sudden he screamed at the top of his lungs and punched the building, bringing it down.

"I swear, you'll pay for this!" he growled.

Author's Note

Picture made by the awesome xXAngeLuciferXx.
Mind though that despite being a human in the picture, in the story she is anthro.