Celestia visibly flinched at his comment but stood her ground, her rage filled eyes almost glowing a bright orange as the air around her rippled with heat. In a voice that shook the foundations of the room they stood in she shouted.

“YOUR INSUFFERABLE BANTER IS MEANINGLESS AND LIKE BEFORE TO TARTARUS YOU SHALL B-”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!!”

His anger-induced shout rang in their ears and Celestia's jaw audibly snapped shut. The sheer volume of his outburst slammed into them like a persistent, concentrated headache and almost floored the more sensitive of the group.

Celestia trembled, frozen in place and the rest of her group fared no better, each wobbling in place trying to fight the haze of disorientation and discomfort. Mostly to no avail.

Nonetheless, the creature before them could not be bothered by the arrogance of senile monarchs nor the pain of her subjects. Only his state mattered, the rest of the world could taste steel for all he cared.

He lightly observed that, with the flash of her horn, the purple Pegacorn was the first to recover, and with several recasting of whatever spell she fished from memory, so did the others. Even the mighty Sun Wolf, who simply couldn't seem to function past agression and instinct.

He raised his forearm and wiped the sweat off his brow, keeping his grip on Caliburn’s sword handle as he rested his hammer onto the anvil and turned to face them.

Twilight almost drooled.

It was like a scene right out of Playmare- Mare’s Choice, Fantasy Edition. His chest plate, as it turned out, ended just below his pectorals, allowing her a succulent view of all eight of his glistening abdominal muscles and every small bump and ridge that surrounded them. His biceps like ripe, round apples and he positively rippled with visible muscle in every gentle movement.

The scientist within her was fascinated by how expertly cut his body was. It was almost as if someone had sculpted it out of stone, making a perfect balance of where muscle and just the slightest amount of fat would be placed to fill out any deep crevices, a godly phisique if there ever was one. His legs were hidden by similar red-armored leggings however just by their width she could tell his lower body was no exception to his seemingly perfect form.

Twilight noted that the flames surrounding his neck appeared to emanate from a red gem embedded in his red chest plate, right at his Adam’s apple. Fascinating, she would have to ask him about it later, if there would be a later.

Honestly, she was on the verge of panicking. This individual had made her mentor, the immortal alicorn with more than a millennia’s worth of experience, lose her composure.

A changeling invasion hadn't made her lose her composure. Discord hadn't made her lose her composure. Tirek hadn't made her lose her composure.

But this, thing, did, and quite thoroughly at that.

She wasn’t sure whether to be shocked, scared or curious. Currently a mix of all three.

The other girls were faring no better.

Pinkie Pie was simply staring at him, Rainbow Dash had placed herself into a fighting stance the moment Celestia fist spoke her feet spread, right foot in front the left with both hands cocked in a high-block like a mock-boxer. Applejack was slightly more composed, standing silently with her right hand resting on her lasso just in case.

Fluttershy was hiding behind Luna, Rarity was on her fainting bed and Luna simply stared at the boy while cautiously eyeing her sister, the misplaced ruler not really knowing what to make of the situation. Before anyone attempted something rash the male spoke, his tone almost flat as he snapped his fingers three times to get their attention.

“Now then, would we all just calm down and engage in civil discourse like good folk,”

He tightened his grip on the silvery, wind-swirling sword and shifted his body to the side slightly,

“Or are some tourists going to be arrested for the assault of an official citizen of Ornithia?”

He let that statement hang and waited. After a few minutes, the air around Celestia cooled and she breathed out, her composure partially recovered itself, however the rage in her eyes was of no less magnitude.

“Very well, first question, why are you not in Tartarus, Orca-”

He interrupted her.

“Kraken,”

Celestia cocked an eyebrow and asked quizzically,

“What?”

His face tensed for a moment, a scrunched up expression displaying scantly restrianed resentment and given a moment he relaxed, a familiar look of passivity shrouding his features. He replied in the same monotone voice,

“My name is and always was Kraken, Joseph Kraken, and for your information,”

He passed and stole a glance at Twilight, his eyes obvious in their focus. Her wings, and horn. He took a step forward as he spoke, red rises tracing the curves and ridges of her body as he did so,

“I see no reason why I should answer that question, much less from one who treats an entire realm as her own dumping ground,”

"I beg your parden?”

Celestia's muzzle scrunched and she gazed at him as if he had grown a third head. Her expression, dumbfounded, as she attempted to grasp the nonsense spilling out of his mouth.

“There’s a whole kingdom down there. Tartarus is just one spec of dead land and if you couldn't tell, I'm currently not in it.”

He finished as he strode towards a nervous Twilight. The taller girl somehow shrinking before the intensity of his gaze.

“Another Pegahorn. That makes three doesn’t it?”

He stood in front of her, his blank stare only heightening her anxiety as he simply did nothing. The reactions were mixed. Pinkie Pie was back to bouncing up and down, Rainbow Dash had somehow tensed even more than she already was, Fluttershy was still hiding but stole a glance at the situation.

Luckily, Applejack was the same as before, hand resting on her lasso but otherwise calm. Rarity was just regaining consciousness and Luna was, though a bit disturbed, less aggressive than her sister.

Celestia, on the other hand, was silently fuming.

She would admit that in the past her decisions were less than stellar after her sister’s banishment. Her actions during that time resembling that of a senile old woman rather than a long-lived immortal, however, even then she only resorted to banishment in the most extreme of circumstances.

Honestly, she could scarcely remember the reason for his banishment. What she did remember, and what she felt regardless, was a nerve-crippling fear of the young man. The moment she saw him her mind went into panic mode. The first words he spoke enraged her beyond reason and his very presence seemed to drive her positively mad.

He was here and, if his blatant non-compliance was any indication, held quite a grudge against her. Both were problems in their own right, but his disrespect fanned the flames of her rage far more than she had ever intended it to reach.

This was terrifying.

In her life, Celestia had seen many things. She had seen Heroes rise against Tyrants, only to become that which they fought against, she saw nations rise from the ashes of broken races, and perhaps most of all she saw Monsters the likes to which she was a mere candle compared to their massive, inky-black flame.

Nevertheless, she fought, she fought and she won. Celestia Solaris was an individual feared among the dark and she herself had no fear other than for that of those she treasured.

Yet.

This man, this CHILD forced fear into her with his very presence, his demeanor gave her no consolation and, for some reason, the moment he picked up that accursed sword the distinct, sour odor of copper permeated the air around her. She could feel something desperately trying to force itself to the forefront of her mind but just as it appeared to be in reach the blasted memory eluded her.

Her chest grew heavy with each passing breath; the more she stared at him the heavier the oppressive pressure in her chest grew until she forcefully tore her head away. The annoying agony and anxiety slowly regressed as she stared at Kelaino, the Avian’s scarlet eyes boring into the mares as she sat on a nearby workbench. She appeared to be waiting for something.

Wait a minute.

She didn’t come in with them.

Argenti on the other hand was seated on a chair next to the workbench, occupying himself with a rubix cube.

Luna was, for lack of a better term, stumped. Her sister, to whom she regarded in the highest order, had, in the span of mere moments, lost her composure, subsequently calmed and judging by her current demeanor, she was not faring well emotion wise.

Celestia stood dangerously close to the boy, however her gaze was completely averted from him. He, on the other hand, was busy silently evaluating each and every one of his guests for the day.

Luckily the room’s tension had all but dissipated by now, with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy whispering to each other while Applejack stood with her hand on her hips, murky emerald pools reflecting the calm observationalism he displayed towards her.

Joseph smirked and rested his Caliburn on the cold anvil. He turned to them, exhaling a deep breath, and his emotionless expression replaced with a confident, open smile. He chuckled a bit and dusted off his shoulders and asked, his tone a great deal more hearty and friendly than their initial encounter.

“Now then, would you lovely ladies mind going on a tour of our facilities?”

Author's Note

Well then. Not sure where this went. Hell, I might even end up rewriting this chapter in the future.

Warning in advance, I'll be spending some more time on Wolf-cubs in the next few weeks.

And remember,

The label of 'Monster' is always based on perspective.

Edit 30/10/20: Quickly fixed the suspense, some spelling errors and pargraphing.