The Tale of Knightmasters

In the small port town of Roswell, a cool breeze from the ocean covered the town. The people were extremely busy, rushing every which way. In the midst of this chaos, a small group of salesmen was found chatting among themselves.

"What's with all the attention today? Someone catch something good?"

"You haven't heard? Apparently, the Knight masters exam is starting soon and a examine boat is coming to this port on the way to the Equestria."

"No way! I guess that means that a lot of people will be coming here to take the exam! Think I can convince a few of them to buy some fish?" One of the merchants joked with a hearty laugh.

As the shopkeepers continued to gossip suddenly they didn't notice a boy running towards them. He was young maybe around the age of 12 wearing very loose fitting armor and shaggy pants, however, the one characteristic that stuck out the most was his crimson red hair and eyes.

One of the shopkeepers noticed the boy and saw that he was running towards the port.

"HEY KID WHERE YOU GOING!"

Suddenly the boy stopped and turned to the salesmen and flashed a goofy grin.

"Where else? I'm heading to where the knight master exam is being held!" The boy said in an upbeat tone as he continued running towards the port.

The men looked at each other in shock as they watched the child run towards the port. Thoughts running through their heads of why a boy like that would be going there.

"No way that kid's gonna try something."

"Yeah, he would have to be crazy to try that!"

They laughed at the thought as they once again started talking about recent events not noticing that another man was hiding in the shadows watching the child closely.

"Well then.....Good luck to you Zeno. You're going to need it."

Portside

"I can't believe it! I finally made it!" Zeno shouted as he stared at the ships docked at the port.

The portside was littered with ships, mostly fishing boats, and people which he assumed to be participants in the exam this year. He had heard that hundreds of applicants appear every year but this was ridiculous. Young people around the same age as him, middle aged people, OLD PEOPLE!

"Wow when grandpa said that a lot of people try out for this exam he wasn't kidding! Alright, I had better go turn in my pass." Zeno thought to himself as he made sure he had his recognition pass.

This pass was what every applicant needs to even begin the exam. Not only that but to get a pass means you would either have to be well respected in some field of study or being written a pass by another knight master. They are extremely rare and very valuable some even sell their passes in exchange for a ton of Gil, the currency of Equis.

As Zeno ran past some of the other applicants he quickly gained the attention of the crowd. Suddenly a man stepped in front of him before he could react and bumped into him.

"WATCH WERE YOUR GOING YOU BRAT!" A large man said as he glared at Zeno.

He was easily 7 feet tall and was larger than a fully grown grizzly bear. He wore heavy set armor but it couldn't cover his huge stomach, other than that he wore an eyepatch covering his left eye which bore a large scar and his hair braided into a ponytail.

"O-Oh! Sorry about that! Guess I got too excited." Zeno said with a chuckle as he walked past him.

Zeno once again started running only taking a second to glance back at the man, noticing a particularly large grin on his face. After that, He made his way to the front of the group and found a man taking passes.

"Next, please! Next, please! Next pleas-?" The man said repeating himself every time he tore a pass only to stop when he suddenly realized who was giving him a pass.

Zeno smiled at him with his usual goofy grin, however, the man just stared at him with a doubtful expression.

"Um, kid? You do realize this is the ship for those wanting to participate in the knight masters exam, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well this exam is brutal and there is no guarantee that everyone will survive. Your just a kid so why do you have a pass?" He asked as Zeno glared at him.

Before he could explain suddenly the pass he was holding was yanked from his hand from the large man from before.

"YOU LITTLE PICKPOCKET! YOU THINK YOU CAN STEAL MY PASS!" He shouted as Zeno glared at the man.

"That's my pass you jerk! Give that back!"

"This is the Knight Masters exam brat! I've taken this exam 8 times and trust me a kid like you will get slaughtered in the first test!" The man sneered as he waved the pass in front of him.

Zeno snarled as he continued to glare at the man. Once again before he could do anything someone else appeared from behind him. He was at least in his early 20's, he was skinny and had bright blue hair. Finally, he was wearing a dark blue coat which covered his armor.

"Hey, pal why don't you give back his pass. I know he didn't steal it from you." The man said as the crowd gasped.

"*Tsk* Do you know who you're talking to!? I am the boar master Tork! I've taken this exam at least 8 times and made it to the finals at least 3 times!" The now named Tork shouted at the top of his lungs as he pulled out a large metal battle ax off his back.

The man smiled as he looked at his opponent with a cocky expression.

"Really? Nice to meet you then, my names Shido! This is my first time taking the exam and it will also be my last too." Shido explained as the crowd grew deadly silent before erupting into a fit of laughter.

"This idiot thinks he'll pass the exam on his first try!"

"What a fool!"

"He looks like he couldn't survive a stiff breeze!"

The crowd continued to burst into a laughing fit while making insults, however, Shido didn't falter in fact he smiled even bigger. Suddenly the crowd stopped laughing as a voice shouted at them louder than anything they had ever heard before.

"DON'T YOU DARE MAKE FUN OF HIS DREAMS YOU JACKASSES!!!!"

Shido turned around with a shocked expression as he saw Zeno glaring daggers at the crowd, now completely silent.

"Haha~! I needed that! Now then......How do you plan on taking this pass from me you little worm?" Tork said with a sneer as he looked at the pair with a belittling stare.

Shido laughed as he turned to Zeno and gave him a gentle nod. It had been a long time since he felt such honesty from one person. This young man was definitely someone to help.

"Don't worry kid....I can handle a guy like this." He said as he moved his coat to show he was carrying three swords.

"HA! What do you plan to do then worm!" Tork shouted as he lifted his mighty ax into the air.

Instantly Shido gripped one of his swords and vanished in the blink of an eye. Faster than anyone could track he reappeared in front of Tork and thrust his blade still in its sheath into his stomach. Instantly there was a large shockwave as the blade made contact and in an instant, Tork was sent flying.

The crowd was speechless as the monstrous man in front of them was knocked unconscious by a single attack from a single swordsman. Shido walked up to him and pulled the pass from his hand and walked back to Zeno.

"I believe this is yours?" He offered as Zeno gladly took it.

"THAT WAS AWSOME! MAN YOUR STRONG!" Zeno exclaimed as Shido rubbed the back of his head.

The crowd watched as the two handed over their passes to a now shocked pass keeper as they boarded the ship. Meanwhile, on the ship, a few of the participants watched the event with mixtures of either shock or just annoyance much like the woman on the far end of the ship's stern.

"Bunch of idiots."

"By the way what's your name? You already have mine, so..." Shido asked with a smile.

"The names Zeno! Nice to meet you!" Zeno said offering his hand which Shido gladly took.

They might not have realized it right then but this encounter would change their destiny's completely! This was the beginning of an adventure that would shape history! This was his tale....

THE TALE OF THE STRONGEST KNIGHT MASTER!