An Equestrian tale!

The new day dawned, and Artcraft woke up to a loud bashing on his room cell door.

"Hey, kid! Commander Starboom wants to see you right now. Hurry up and don't be late!" Said Riff as he waited by the cell door to escort Artcraft to the living room.

"You are aware of why I have summoned you Artcraft, aren't you?" Asked Starboom as he was guzzling down a large mug of his favored wine, some of its drops leaving his maw as he drank.

"N-Not entirely master, was there something you wanted to tell me? Also, I've been meaning to ask you this for a while now, but why did you have to kill my parents, why did they have to die?" Asked Artcraft as he looked to Starboom for a hopeful answer.

"It's not exactly easy for me to explain this to you Artcraft, but I had to kill them, it was ordered by my superiors. The princesses of our fair land of Equestria, even though I was banished to forever wander the desolate terrain of the Badlands, never to return to Equestria, I have settled here on the edge of Equestria in hiding from them!" Said Starboom as he took another gulp of his wine.

"So could this be why you have summoned me here master?" Asked Artcraft as he looked at his mentor quizzically.

"As a matter of fact, yes it is my pupil. I feel it's about time you knew the truth about the land that which you reside. You see, my twelve soldiers and I didn't exactly see eye to eye with the princess's standards of rulership. We believe that they've exercised too much power and can make or break any decision, regardless of the individual. We aimed to rebut their rule, I'm sure you can see just how well that ended for us. By their order, we're supposed to weed out the frail, the feeble. to separate the chaff from the wheat, to find prime cut youth and train them to become cold, ruthless soldiers!" Explained Starboom.

"T-That's horrible, why would they make such an awful order?" Asked Artcraft.

"Because Artcraft, they have an insatiable desire for control and carnage that they're willing to do this, much to mine and my pack's dismay. I saw untapped potential in you particularly, you have the eyes of a natural, born leader, to be my successor to complete this coup, to secure a brighter future for us all!" Stated Starboom as he now finished his wine.

"You think that I can change the will and power of the actual princess master? I-I don't know, it just seems like an exercise in futility to me." Said Artcraft.

"Never doubt yourself Artcraft, you know what you're being trained for, you know what needs to be done!" Said Starboom.

"Understood master! So is it time for me to show you the fruits of my studying then?" Asked Artcraft as he looked on at Starboom's still ever-stone-cold face.

"Alright then, now's a good time to begin! Artcraft! Show me what you've learned!" Commanded Starboom!

"Y-Yes master I will!" Said Artcraft as he began to channel his magic through his body again! He could feel it, this was for real. The magic felt loose, yet tense at the same time as if it was ready for its first command. Artcraft wasted no more time and began to cast his first spell. His body began to glow green and then he vanished.

Reappearing right next to Starboom, he was panting at the amount of magic he had to use to perform the spell. He looked up to his mentor for his approval, only to be backhanded by him.

"Ahh... Oow." Said Artcraft while lying sprawled over the ground, holding his left cheek as his body landed with a thud.

"That's not good enough Artcraft! I'll admit you're making excellent progress in such a short time. However, the princesses are very powerful magic wielders. They'd eat you up for dinner in your current state!" Stated Starboom.

"Now get up and try again, we'll take this outside to avoid any damage to the house!" Said Starboom.

"Y-Yes master at once! Mark my words, master, I'll make you proud of me! I will avenge my parents!" Stated Artcraft!

"That's the attitude I want to hear Artcraft! Now come with me!" Commanded Starboom.

The two walked out to the backyard, Starboom stood at the center of the yard, while Artcraft was facing him. His horn lit up a faint lavender as he concentrated his magic, waiting for Artcraft's next move. Artcraft followed suit and focused his magic again, his reserves weren't very high due to that teleportation spell from earlier, but he still tried to go for it anyway!

'Hmph; this little one does have the potential to be my new weapon indeed. He's a diamond in the rough for sure. Revenge is as good as mine Celestia! One day, you'll fall, and my reign shall begin.' Thought Starboom to himself with a sinister chuckle as he looked on at Artcraft's now green-glowing body. And saw that even though he was straining beyond what his body could take, he still charged his horn to ready up a blast towards Starboom.

"You think that'll be enough to impress me Artcraft? You're still wet behind the ears! But hit me with everything you've got!" Goaded Starboom.

"AARGGHH! HAA!" Yelled Artcraft as he released his first beam of magic blast from his body, and came straight at him. Just as it was about to touch him, he swatted it away into the sky with one hit. the spell flew away at an arc before it exploded, taking half of a tree with it!

"There... I did it master!" Said Artcraft panting before he collapsed on the ground and fell asleep. Starboom approached Artcraft's sleeping form and slightly cracked a small smile, knowing that he was already making progress for his new world takeover. It won't be long now, perhaps a few extra years, knowing full well the battle that would ensue with Celestia, it would be all worth it in the end when he's sitting on her throne, his feet up against her burnt corpse, and her crown over his head!