Getting Started

(present day)

As Princess Celestia walked down the hall her thoughts ran over the sparring match she just witnessed. The Human’s capabilities were about what she was expecting. His strength and speed were beyond what most of her Guards are capable of, should he decide to follow the others his exit could be quite disastrous. Not to the same extent as the others, simply because there was five of them but bad enough to cause a drop in morale.

If other nations caught wind of the fact that there was another human, that Equestria had failed to deal with, they will begin to question her ability to govern the lands of Equestria.

She needed to know more about him. She needed to know what else he could do. Not just combat but also what all that ‘equipment’ of his does. He had quite a few gems covered in runic script. Hopefully her Quartermaster has made some sort of breakthrough with all of those things by now.

After several minutes walking through the Castle she comes to the doors for the Armory.

The giant double doors are solid burnt oak with riveted iron bands, the bands are about a third from the top and bottom and charred black. The doors stand at an imposing ten feet in height and are about a foot thick.

From the other side one could hear the sounds of hammers beating metal into shape. There were shouts for materials, hollers for more heat and apprentices being yelled at for bucking something up.

Celestia used her magic to open the doors. The moment they opened the whole room went quiet. It was not often that the Princess of the Day came down to this particular area. It was actually viewed by a lot of newer members to be something inappropriate.

The Princess should not be somewhere so dirty, she is their ruler and should not demean herself by entering. Surely she had staff that could come down here for her. Maybe she needs something special made for one of the guards. Maybe it’s for her sister. Many thoughts ran through the minds of those in the room. Only one of the ponies in there knew why she was there.

Celestia spotted the stallion bent over a table near the back. He was a once bright green unicorn with an amber colored mane. Now his coat is much darker due to the layers of soot and ash that has made its home in his coat. His once long mane is now cropped close so that it doesn’t get burned by the forge. His body covered in pock marks and scars gained through years spent mastering his craft.

“Copper Wright, how goes your work?” Princess Celestia asks her motherly tone and compassion for her little ponies showing through.

Copper places what looks to be a ruby on the table before turning and answering her. “To be honest ma’am, it doesn’t. I have spent this whole time and all I have really learned is that some of these gems have been charged and some haven’t.” He picks up the ruby he was just holding and shows her. “Like this one here, it has a noticeable amount of fire magic trapped within meaning he must have left it near a campfire all night. In order to trap this much magic he must have spent around eight hours tending a fire.” He place’s it back on the table and picks up an opal. “This one was left somewhere with extremely low temperatures, so I can only assume he uses it for freezing things, but that is obviously not the only thing he uses it for.”

“Why do you think that?” Princess Celestia asks confused as to what else one could use an ice gem for.

“To begin with there are WAY more then he would need to keep something cold. Second he has no way of containing food that would need to be kept cold. I have checked, double checked and even had others in here check it all twice, themselves, just to make sure. Whatever he uses these gems for it’s not for food. Without knowledge of runic script all I can give you is my best guess. Unless he is willing to show us that is.”

~~~~~~

Wiping sweat from my brow I manage to stop the flashback before it gets anymore uncomfortable.

“Fuck those damn assholes.” I say, unknowingly rubbing one of the scars on my chest.

“Art th… Are you okay? You seem to be upset.”

Turning I see Princess Luna standing behind me just outside the ring. “Yeah I’m cool. Just a memory I would rather not remember.”

“Ah, I have a few of those myself.” She says.

After a few moments of silence and her kicking at the dirt a little bit which was just fucking adorable because she would look up at me once in a while like she wanted to ask something.

Is there like some sort of law that makes these ponies so damn adorable. I swear I spend half my time around them wondering if I’m gonna get diabetes.

Chuckling softly I ask “Is there something you would like to know Princess? I promise I won’t bite…unless you want me to, that is.” I flash a toothy grin and wiggle my eyebrows, which seems to get her to loosen up, thank God.

She giggles behind her hand. “Careful Walker, We may just take thee up on the offer.” She gives me a flirtatious smile and a wink. “My actual query was to the equipment you claimed to own during dinner. I am most curious as to what you are capable of doing with it. While your fight with that stallion was most entertaining, I feel as though you were holding back and being held back.”

“Right you are on both accounts. I was holding myself back on two levels, well I did kind of slip up at one point, first I was holding back on my technical skill with a blade. That’s where I slipped up at, I started to actually fight him. The second is these babies.” I hold up my left arm showing her my ‘Resistors’. “You weren’t in the dining hall when I explained them but simply put, mostly so readers don’t have to reread it, they cause the body to experience a higher level of resistance to movement equal to the body weight times the level of resistance on the band.”

“The readers? Who are these readers you speak of?” Luna asks, completely bewildered by my little comment.

“Oops! Sorry, Mira is always telling me not to mention that kind of thing because others may think I’m crazy. Not that I really care if they do, without a little insanity life is boring.” I barely explain. The look on her face tells me she is just going to let it go for now and get back on track.

“Anyway, would you be willing to demonstrate what you are capable of with your equipment.” She asks politely. God damn why can’t her sister be this nice. Shit if she was I would probably wouldn’t have almost killed him.

“If I had said equipment I would gladly show you but your…’sister’…took everything from me.” I say sister as if it were a curse word.

The bitch pisses me the hell off. I mean seriously I get that the other humans did shit but I ain’t done a God damn thing to her or her fucking ponies.

“I see. Well I believe I know where they are and as for my sister…please try to give her some leniency. When the other humans left they killed the stallion she loved. From what I have been told by the Guard he was a friend to the humans, when they decided to leave he went to try and talk them down. They sent his severed head back.” Luna explains.

Well fuck. That certainly changes some shit. Not much but certainly explains her attitude problem towards me. Hell if a pony killed someone I loved and sent me their head, I would most likely kill as many as I could.

“I’ll try to be more civil but if she’s a bitch I can’t guarantee that I won’t snap at her right back.” I honestly admit.

“While I do not appreciate your choice in phrasing, I do appreciate your candor. Thank you for being willing to make the attempt. Now let us not drag flank, I wish to see your skillz bitch.” Princess Luna says in a very un-princess like fashion.

I stare at her for what feels like forever before crashing to the ground in laughter. ”Best Princess Ever!!”

We both smile and make our way down to the Armory.

~~~~~~

The doors to the Armory fly open, causing everypony present to halt what they were doing.

In walks an odd looking pony. Certainly it is deformed. First off its muzzle is way to flat. Second it has absolutely no coat what so ever. Lastly its ears are on the side of its head, affixed to the skull.

The words out of this things mouth make no sense to those present.

“LEEEEEEROOOOOYYYYY JEEEEENNNNKIIINNNSSSS!!!!!”

“What does that even mean?”

The creature picks itself up and dusts itself off. “That is the name of the Patron Saint of Suicide Missions. Though not needed to be invoked here, I felt he was best invoked to be weird, confuse and annoy others. Though the only ones I would annoy…” I look around the room a concerning grin spreading across my face. “BLAME THE AUTHOR! HE’S TRYING TO BE HIP! Sorry about that just trying to give credit where credit is due. Also Princess please tell them to gimme muh shyte or I’ll break mah foot off in their arse.”I explain, before deciding to be even weirder.

Luna giggles and shakes her head. “Thank goodness you were there Foe Hammer. I doubt I could have handled him without your knowledge.”

Foe Hammer bows with a smile. “To be honest your Majesty I was warned to some degree on the ride from Ponyville, the rest I discovered for myself just conversing with him.” Foe Hammer looks over at me giving the stink-eye to some stallion in the corner.

Upon approaching Walker they hear an argument building.

“Look I don’t care who told you what. Princess Luna wants me to demonstrate what I can do with this stuff. Now hand it over.” I say while leaning into his face.

“And as I said without hearing that directly from her Princess Celesetia said you are not to have any of this back.” He responds and pushing his forehead into mine, hard.

We both glare at one another and start growling.

Princess Luna interrupts with. “As amusing as it would be to see the two of you fight I would appreciate it if you would just return his equipment. He has offered to provide a demonstration.”

“By your order m’Lady.” The stallion turns to the table but I get there first.

I gently sweep my hand over everything that has been laid out. “Hello everyone. I hope he treated you all well.” I carefully and lovingly replace everything.

I start with my throwing knife belt. Most find it weird that I only carry five. But I’m really not good with precise spatial awareness. Is someone is exactly seven feet away or are they ten feet? Do I need a half spin or a full spin? Fuck that, I just use throwing stars. Also they serve a different purpose.

Those go on next. Well sort of. It’s more like I slide them into the pockets covering my body. There are a total twenty-one throwing stars in my little arsenal. They all have four points and are made from steel. Each star has one of three different gem chips. Every chip is surrounded by runes. These babies are one of my earlier creations.

Next come bandoliers for the gems themselves. Five rubies, opals and diamonds, they are all covered in runic script. The script dictates the unique effect that comes into play once the magic is released. So far all I have really only toyed with some basics. Though the basics can be real fun.

After is my rune craft kit. Both of them actually. I carry two incase a tool in one breaks or they get confiscated when I’m ‘foalnapped’. Heh

Lastly on goes my cloak. To be honest I have felt a bit naked without it. I have to remember to get her a ‘thank you’ gift next time I see her. The cloak is a deep, rich light consuming black. It doesn’t shine or glimmer or any such nonsense. It is meant to make one harder to detect, not to stand out.

“God damn it feels good to be back together, even if only for a little while.” I sigh knowing I’m going to have to hand it all back in.

“I will not take your property from you. You have shown yourself to be trust worthy enough.” Princess Luna states looking a little confused and slightly hurt.

“I thank you for that but after what you have told me I should wait till your…” a sigh escapes me “Princess Celestia would appreciate it if I waited till she was more comfortable with the idea of me being armed.” I say trying to think of that fa…. Damn it I can’t insult her after hearing that shit. Fuck my life.

“You do raise a good point. If we are to get you in my sisters…’good graces’… than we must abide her will for now. Know this though, if she does not return these things to you in a timely manner I shall. I will not be rude to one who does not deserve such.” Princess Luna declares with an add stomp of her hoof for finality.

“Well now that I got my crap back how about that fireworks show?’ I ask, a childish like glee filling my voice.

~~~~~~

“FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!!”

KAA-BOOOOM!!!

“Holy Buck!”

“Bucking Tartarus!”

“When you said fireworks show I was expecting something more.”

All present turn and look at Foe Hammer. She just looks back and shrugs. “What?”

“Never change Hammer, never change.” I smile. She is definitely one worth hanging out with more.

“You did that with just a ruby?” Princess Luna asks trying to get us back on track.

“Yeah, but I had to spend roughly eight hours a day next to a fire to get that level of combustion. If I had used channeled magic instead of natural it would have been about half that size. Channeling does cut down on time spent in prep but you lose out on potency.” I explain as I hold up the butt of my knife. “Do you see the symbol back here?” I point to a rune that in my opinion looks like a monkey fucking a coconut. “This here is the detonator. First I” I pull out an opal “cut the gem like so” I run the blade across a circle of runes that flash brightly “then I throw or stick it to something.” I toss the opal down range then hit the detonator.

The results are quite chilling…

Fuck that’s cliché. Oh well.

A ten foot area around were the gem hit is covered in a layer of ice. If they can’t think of things to use that for while fighting than these ponies are dumb.

“At least that one is much quieter.” Luna huffs slightly. I think the sudden loud burst spooked her, probably because she’s part horse. Is that racist? Or would that be species-ist? Species-ism? Fuck it whatever, don’t care enough.

“True this makes it more effective during covert-ops.” I reply.

I hold up the diamond next. “These little buggers are not to be set off anywhere near buildings.” I place the gem back in the holster. “It releases a concussive wave strong enough to knock most interior walls. Well depends on the size of the room and the building materials but every room I have let one off in has survived the encounter. Also these gems serve a secondary purpose.”

“What would that be?” Copper asks with a growl. He didn’t like that I was making them ask me what else it could do instead of just showing them.

“I’m glad you asked.” I say with a grin. I’m going to love fucking with this guy. I pull off a ruby and slap it into the blade of my dagger. “Need a light?” The whole blade ignites. An intense flame rises off of it, sheathing the blade in about an inch of flame. “Each gem coats the blade in a different element. Ice lengthens the blade and freezes the wounds it makes. Wind also lengthens it but also increases its cutting power.” I run my thumb across the four holes on the back side of the blade than swing it down range.

A huge gout of flame flies towards where the dummies once stood. It impacts the wall leaving scorch marks. “Oh yeah. Each one can also do that.” I rub the back of my head. “I honestly kind of forgot about that. I only started this stuff about two years ago and I haven’t really shown off with it.”

Foe Hammer giggles and Luna sighs at my forgetfulness.

“What about those knives and those other pieces of metal?” Copper Wright demands, he is getting really irritated by my antics.

“The stars have three separate settings, haven’t thought of a fourth yet. The first is auto-ignition. The second effect is a contact explosion and the last is a timed explosion. The throwing knives are used to set up area of effect stuff. These throwing stars only reach about a foot in any direction. As you saw the gems do about five feet in any direction. Well depends on the material it is trying to effect. With my throwing knives and a bit of prep time I can cover up to about fifty feet. Well more if I do it in a line but that isn’t really the same. Well they can be used to make a wall if needed. But again that all requires a bit of time to set up. I can’t just throw them into a wall and expect results. I mean I could burn a section of wooden wall to weaken it but it just wouldn’t really have the same power as if I had set it up before hand.” I pull out one of the throwing knives. “If I remove a couple of the runes I could theoretically freeze an area semi-permanently that the knives are stuck into. I would have to compensate for ambient magic, also I would have to overcome the targets innate nature to resist such changes brought on by magic. Also how do I compensate for the massive draw… connect it to the ambient magic that way it draws from the atmosphere indefinitely and isn’t worn down by aetheric bleed. I could effectively create a never ending supply of that element. Chip of how ever much ice you need and it would just ‘heal’ its self. You could have a fire pit to heat your whole house, hell even a castle and never have to worry about fuel ever again. I mean it wouldn’t-“

“WALKER!!!” Luna makes use of her Royal Voice. “Please desist with the rambling it is most tiring.”

“Oops. Sorry about that. I tend to get a little caught up when I get an idea for something.” I say. God that was stupid. Oh well can’t fix stupid. “That’s everything I can do though.”

“Thank you. I appreciate you showing us.” Luna smiles glad that I am no longer rambling.

I hand all of my stuff back to Copper Wright. He is not happy I handed it all back to him out here. Fuck him, he’s a dick.

“I will return these to the Armory. When you have the time I would appreciate if you would show me how to use these runes.” He asks.

“No.”

He blinks at my sudden dismissal of him. Then he get that irritated look back on his face. “Why not?”

“Because I promised someone else that I would teach them, and also you’re a dick.” I ain’t going to lie just to make his ass happy.

“Buck. You.” He turns and walks away.

“Don’t be too rough with the gems! They can explode if they are roughed up to much!” I holler after him. “What a pleasant guy. Wonder if he’ll be my friend?”

“Are you related to Discord?” Princess Luna asks.

“Discord? Oh you mean the incarnation of chaos. No we are of no relation.” I say over my shoulder still watching Copper Panty-Twist walk off with my gear.

“I kind of wish you were. T’would certainly explain much.” Luna gripes quietly while Hammer nods in agreement.