The Devil within the Clover

by The saiyan brony

Rating: mature
Tags: Suicide / Self Harm, Horror, Profanity, Violence, Princess Celestia, Sex, Anthro, Main 6, Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Death, Alternate Universe, Human, Narcotics, Princess Luna, Thriller, Original Character
Length: 18533

A tale as old as time. A boy wakes up in a far away land, surrounded by the screams of pain and terror, with no memory of who he is or where he came from. And all he has is a book, some friends, and a devil within.

A man who was robbed of his memory was wrongfully accused for a crime he did not commit. To add insult to injury, he has no recollection of who he is, or where he came from.

Feared by the citizens of Equestria, the man was sent to the lowest, darkest cell in the dungeon without food or water. He spent days in miserable solitude, alone and miserable.

That is, until two little fillies would come into his life and change it, for better and for worse.

Warning: The following contains extremely violent scenes, dark tones, and themes that may not be suited for those faint of heart.

This story will only have a small amount of reference to the Black Clover anime, and among one other. The main character's abilities and powers are similar to Asta's with some additional Elements.

Additional tags

Drama, Tragedy, Adventure

More maybe added as the story progresses.

Published 2020-11-06 09:40:00 UTC
Last updated 2021-06-03 11:09:10 UTC

Chapter 1

Author's Note

So this is my first real attempt at a dark theme story. I have a slight depression that sometimes makes me scared. angry or sad. But instead of letting that hurt me I decided to use those feeling to make this story. I hope you guys like it.

Specials thanks to my editor Codex92 for helping me with it.

Incase you didn't read the long discerption this story will have some very dark themes to it, so be warned.

I'm hoping this story can reach over 100 likes so I know weather or not to continue it.

Chapter 1

The leaves of a clover are said to each contain one thing.

In the first three dwell integrity, hope, and love.

The fourth leaf gives over to good luck.

And in the fifth, there lives the devil.

The smell of smoke and burning flesh, the screams of pain of those in suffering. These were the first memories I had when I awoke, and they were the only ones I had at all. My body was in agonizing pain, and I could feel my blood trickling onto the hot ground. I felt so exhausted and delirious as I tried to stand. My vision would fade in and out as I saw dark silhouettes running and screaming against the crackling fires that set the world around me ablaze. I looked all around me, staggering as even the smallest movement was too much for my damaged body to handle. Then, that’s when I saw them. Standing before me were six individuals, each varying in size and shape, but due to my blood loss, I couldn’t very well make them out, or any of my surroundings for that matter. The largest of the six stepped forward, towering over me with a shovel in hand. He stared down at me with a look of what I could only guess to be pity as he raised his shovel over his head before bringing it down. Then, everything went dark again.

When I woke up again, everything was still pitch black, only this time, I wasn’t as dizzy as I was before. Because of this, my senses were a bit sharper, allowing me to be more aware of my surroundings, such as the chains attached to my body. I was sitting up against a cold wall that was rough against my back. I tried to move my hands back to rub away the soreness, only for them to be pulled back as the chains had reached their limit. I could barely pull my arms a few inches away from the wall as they hung above my head. The chains on my legs were even shorter, with barely enough slack for me to adjust them even an inch.

The sound of a door opening quickly caught my attention, and the once darkened room was lit enough for me to catch a glimpse of where I was being held prisoner. The room was fairly large with the floor made of cobblestone, and there were no windows or anything that would allow light to enter. The only means of producing light were the torches that were sticking out of the walls, however, they were not lit. The door closed with a loud slam, sending me back into pitch black darkness, but that was for only a moment as the torches I mentioned earlier began to light up, filling the room in an orange glow.

The sudden brightness of the fire caused me to close my eyes after being in the dark for so long, and only after I blinked my eyes repeatedly did they adjust to the light. Once my vision had regained focus once again, I saw that I was in a cell with steel bars and a door. On the other side of my metal prison were four creatures. They stood on two legs with bright colorful fur, three of which were clad in golden armor with a sun emblem on the chest piece. The lighting within the room made it hard for me to tell, but I believe they had equine-like features to them: they had slight muzzles, large, expressive eyes, and ears atop their heads. The three armored ponies, who stood in front of my cell, glared at me with looks of rage and disgust.

They unlocked the door to my cell and made their way inside, surrounding me with one on either side of me while the third stood directly in front of me. Without warning, the pony-like creature who stood in front of me cocked his arm back and thrust his fist into my abdomen, making me cough up a bit of bile. The force of the impact was incredibly painful, leaving me gasping and wheezing as I crouched as far forward as my chains would allow me. I had barely recovered from the first blow before a second was sent to the side of my face by the same creature’s fist.

This senseless beating continued as the armored ponies went on to interrogate me with questions. All of which were questions like: “Who am I?” “What am I?” “Why did I attack the village the other night?” To which I answered honestly that I had no idea. I didn’t know my name or who I am. By their questions, it made it clear that we were not the same creatures. They shouted, calling me a liar, and proceeded to beat me repeatedly, asking the same questions over and over again. I kept telling them the same thing and was continually beaten till I was nearing the point of passing out. I was about to black out when the fourth pony called out for the armored ones to stop. They did so immediately and stepped aside as he moved closer to me. My left eye had swollen shut and blood was trickling out of my mouth as I willed myself to try and look at the pony who walked toward me. Unlike the other three, this one didn’t wear any armor. He wore a blue robe with yellow stars and a crescent moon with bells. His fur was a dull grey and he had a large, swirly beard. Another noticeable feature he had was that he had a long spiral horn sticking from his forehead.

The horn began to glow a pale white and I felt as though my chin was being gripped as I was gently forced to look up at the newcomer. He stared into my good eye, his eyes a light teal, humming for a moment before letting go. “You are the same creature we had fought before, and yet, at the same time, you are not.” Soon, the same pale white glow enveloped my body. “You are now under the power of a truth telling spell. You won’t be able to lie while trapped within it. So, we will ask again. Who are you? What are you? And why did you attack the village last night?”

I didn’t feel any different as I was encased by the glowing light, and before I knew it, my mouth began to speak on its own accord. “I don’t know.”

That answer didn’t sit right with one of the armored ponies as he approached me to punch me again, only for the elder in the blue robe to stop him by holding his arm out. This made the armored stallion stand down as the elder pony looked back to me with a sad look in his eyes. “You are telling the truth, but at the same time, many had witnessed the atrocities that had transpired the night prior. I’m afraid until you are still seen as guilty, you will be kept here until you are proven innocent. Such as the decree enforced by Faust herself.” He stood back up and made his way to the door along with the other ponies. But before he left the room, he looked back at me with a look of sympathy before leaving the room, closing the door behind, the torches being snuffed out and leaving me in darkness once again.

And so, for a time I had no way to measure, I was kept prisoner in my cell within darkness. I had no idea how much time had passed since I last spoke with the stallion with the swirly beard. My only means of trying to measure time was when my stomach would growl in starvation. On the very rare occasion, the three armored ponies from before would enter the room. It was only at this time when I would ever get to see some semblance of light that was cast by their torches. The armored guards were tasked with keeping me fed and watered, but they didn’t care for this one bit. They would barely bring me any food or water, and when they did, they would always place them out of my reach and would laugh at my expense as I struggled against my chains to try and get them. And after they have their good amount of amusement, they would take them away and leave me alone once more in darkness.

For who knows how long, they would continue to torment me this way, laughing at my struggling and beating me when they felt that I deserved it, which was any time they were burdened with seeing my face. This went on until one day, one of the guards commented on how rude I was for not eating any of the gruel they slaved so hard to bring me, and that I wasn’t deserving of their time and effort. I was told that such kindness would no longer be wasted on me and that they would no longer come to feed me. That I would be lucky enough if they decided to come down and beat me, saying that they were being generous by letting me be in their presence. And so, for the last time, they took the food and water and left, leaving me alone in darkness.

Time went on, though I had no way of knowing just how much had passed. I was so hungry that my stomach didn’t have the energy to so much as growl anymore. My tongue and lips were so dry, they were almost like they were made out of stone. I had long since lost my sanity as I stared into the inky black void that was my cell and could no longer muster the strength to even scream out in sorrow. I could feel my body begin to atrophy as the days go by, leaving me weaker and weaker. My body would shiver when the room became so cold at times that I could see my own breath. Soon, I barely had the strength to hold my head up, or even open my eyes anymore.

For so long, I craved the sweet embrace of death so that my suffering could finally be at an end. I desperately awaited the day that I would leave this mortal existence, finally be set free, and find blissful peace. But this was not meant to be as time and time again, I was forced to suffer this ongoing torture. If I still had the capability to do so, I would cry and wail out my sorrows and beg to whatever god was listening to end my suffering and to let me find peace. But even as I am now, it would never happen. I was left to rot, not knowing when my suffering would end. I remember the only words that had passed through my dry, crusty lips.

“P-please…let m-my life end.”

And no sooner did those words escape my throat did I see a light. With what little strength I had, I willed my head to slowly look up. The door to the chamber was open, and in the doorway was a glowing light. Despite the pain in my eyes from seeing light after being trapped in darkness for so long, I dared not to blink or look away in the fear that the light would vanish. The light was so bright that I had believed that I had finally died, and this feeling was only reinforced when I saw a figure within the light. Said figure looked as though it had wings; an angel no doubt, here to take me away from this world and into the afterlife.

But my sliver of hope began to fade as the light began to get dimmer with each passing second, and the figure suddenly vanished. I tried to muster more strength from my body to try and raise my hand out toward the light, hoping to stop it from leaving me. Just as my hand was a few inches off the ground, the light had disappeared as the door abruptly shut, leaving me in darkness once more.

As the light faded, so too did any hope I had left within my body. With little hope left, my hand fell to the ground, but due to how thin it was, it barely made a noise as it hit the cobblestone. The only sound that was made was the rattling of my chains. I desperately wanted to cry and scream, but I was so dehydrated that it wasn’t even possible. I rested my head against the cold stone wall and stared up to the heavens above, pleading in my mind for something to happen. Anything to happen.

My prayers didn’t go unanswered as the door creaked open once more, and there was a light once more, only this time, it wasn’t nearly as bright as it was before. When I tilted my head to try and face the light, I was able to see who the mysterious angel I saw but moments ago belonged to. It was a pony. But this one was unlike the others I had seen before. The first thing I noticed was that it was much smaller than those I’ve seen before. And if I were to make a guess based on the little dress it wore, it was female. And finally, unlike the ponies I saw before who either had wings, a horn, or none at all, this one had both a horn and wings. Her mane and tail were a light pink and her fur was as white as freshly fallen snow.

As she stared at me while peeking from behind the door, I noticed that the light was actually coming from her horn. Even from this distance, I could feel its gentle warmth. Soon, she started to open the door a little bit more, all while keeping her eyes fixated on me. I just sat there watching as she took tentative steps deeper into the room. She looked back to the door and gently nudged her head, and though I couldn’t hear her from where I was sitting, it looked like she was talking to someone. No sooner when her lips stopped moving, a second head slowly peeked out from behind the door. I only caught a small glimpse of a teal-colored eye before it suddenly hid back behind the door. The pink-haired pony smiled and held out her hand while saying something to whoever was behind the door. After a few more moments, a purplish-blue hand slowly reached out and gently grasped the pink-haired pony’s hand.

Slowly but surely, the rest of the body that the hand belonged to walked from behind the door, revealing a slightly smaller pony, perhaps younger than the pink-haired one. She had the same body as the older one, in which she possessed wings and a horn. But unlike the older child, her fur was a purplish blue, and her mane was a light blue color. Her head came just below the pony with the white fur, making my deduction about her being younger much more likely.

The two little ponies had just barely moved away from the door as they carefully made their way closer to my cell. They would nervously look around as they moved closer and closer, the faintest sound making them jump, such as a droplet of water hitting the floor. On occasion, they would move away and back toward the door before trying to approach my cell again. I could just watch in silence as these two tried their best to get closer, which made me wonder why they were here to begin with.

After what seemed like forever, the two stood in front of my cell, the littlest one peeking from behind the oldest pony. The two just stood there, staring at me, and all I could do was stare back. My mouth and throat were still as dry as a desert, so I couldn’t say a word. But the silence was soon broken as the oldest took a small breath of air. “H-Hello?” Her voice was sweet and gentle, sounding like a little angel compared to the darkened Hell I was trapped in. She, along with the other little pony, stared at me, obviously waiting for a response back. But when they received no such reaction, she gripped the bars and leaned her head forward more. “Hello?” She called out before quickly pulling her head back.

I tried to reciprocate her greeting by breathing in some air to speak, but the feeling of it against my dry throat made me let out a dry coughing sound, which had startled the little ponies into backing away. I coughed in pain for a few moments since I haven’t spoken in such a long time before now. “A-Are you alright?” Looking back up, I saw that the oldest had already moved back to the front of my cell, only this time, her horn glowed brighter, then she let out a sharp gasp. With the increased brightness of her light, she was able to see me in my fully weakened state. “You poor thing. You’re nothing but skin and bones. And all your fur has fallen off.” While I tried to soothe my aching throat, I heard a light chiming sound and looked up to see where the sound was coming from. When I looked forward, I saw a glass cup filled with water that was engulfed by a golden glow. “Here, drink this.”

It took every last ounce of willpower that I had in my body to snatch the glass of water in the fear I may scare the two little ponies away. Slowly and as calmly as I could, I tried to lift my hands up to reach the floating glass of water. However, my body has faded so much that the cuffs around my wrist were too heavy for me to lift, making it impossible to reach the glass. So close, yet so far out of my reach once more. If I could shed tears, I would have done so by now as I lowered my head in despair. As I slowly began to weep, I felt something cold and wet press against my lips. When I opened my eyes, I was surprised to see the water from the cup floating in midair, surrounded by the same golden light from before. Looking up, I could see the little pony child smiling at me. “This should make it a little easier for you.” Her words were so soft and pure that it felt like they were washing away the despair that plagued my heart.

Slowly, I opened my mouth and felt the water slipping into my mouth. The cold liquid flooded my mouth, quickly rehydrating my once barren mouth. Never would I have ever imagined that water would taste so wonderful in my life. I carefully titled my head back to swallow the cool liquid and shivered in delight as I could feel it sliding my throat and make its way into my belly. Once I had finished my first gulp of water, she used her strange light to bring another cup of water for me to drink, repeating the process until my mouth was no longer a dry, barren wasteland. I was able to let out a sigh of pure relief without it being too painful to cough.

I was about to try and say my thanks when my stomach let out a loud growl, causing the light blue-haired pony to shriek a bit. My cheeks flushed red as the older child giggled a bit. “Hang on a second.” With a magic pop, a small loaf of bread was hovering in front of me. “I hope this will do for now.” I was left completely speechless and could not fully express my gratitude. I mustered up the last of my strength to force my right hand to raise itself off the ground. It was hard, but with enough willpower, I was able to raise my hand to gently take the loaf of bread in my boney hands. It felt warm in my hands and smelled divine, like it had been freshly baked. I moved the bread with some excitement to my mouth and bit into it. The soft warmth of the bread filled my mouth, and I began to chew it thoroughly. And for the first time in who knows how long, my eyes began to shed tears, not of sadness or pain, but of joy. The taste was so wonderful that I cast aside etiquette and began to wolf down the bread.

After I had eaten the delicious loaf of softness, I let out a sigh of relief, then turned to look at the pony child who had shown me so much kindness. “Do you feel better?” She asked with a warm smile on her face. I wanted to try and express my thanks with a simple thank you, but for some odd reason, no words escaped my lips, only a scratchy groan. “Can you not speak?” I raised my hand to my throat, trying to rub it to see if it was due to the fact that I haven’t spoken since my talk with the bearded stallion. I shook my head solemnly. The ears on both fillies drooped a bit as they had saddened looks on them. “I’m so sorry.”

I felt guilty for making those who had shown me such kindness feel sad. I tried to think of a way to show them that I wasn’t offended, but had a difficult time thinking of some way. I snapped my fingers, which caught both their attention. They looked at me curiously as I weakly raised my hand to point a finger to my face. I curled my lips into a gentle smile while tapping on said smile. For a moment, they tilted their heads to the side in slight confusion before the littlest one clapped her hands together. “Tia, I think it’s trying to say it’s happy.”

When the filly with the pink mane, who I learned was named Tia, looked at me, I gave her a small nod. “You are?” I gave another nod. She moved a hand over her chest and let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, good. For a moment, I felt terrible. Well, let me introduce ourselves. My name Celestia, but my sister Lulu likes to call me Tia.”

Feeling braver, the little filly stepped from behind Celestia and gave me a little bow and a little wave. “I’m Luna, but big sis likes to call me Lulu.” Luna looked at me with a nervous look. “D-Do you have a name? I know you can’t speak at the moment, but perhaps we could guess it?”

The idea wasn’t a bad one, however, there was a slight flaw in that plan. I couldn’t remember my name, or anything about myself for that matter. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t scrounge up any form of a name for myself, or any names that I might have known. With nothing coming to mind, I shook my head in response.

Both fillies’ ears drooped a bit as they looked to the ground, a bit disheartened by my gesture. However, this did not last long as Celestia looked back to me with a hopeful look in her eyes. “Well, if you can’t remember your old name, then maybe we can give you a new one.” This got Luna to raise her head as well as she looked to her sister slightly surprised before looking back at me.

I wasn’t really opposed to the idea, considering that I was in no position to object, but I was still left wondering why they would go through all this trouble for me. Why were they here? How did they know I was here? And just who are these little ponies anyway? But without my voice at the moment, I wasn’t going to be able to ask these questions any time soon. So, with no other options available, I nodded my head to agree to her offer. Celestia clapped her hands with joy while bouncing up and down. “Great! Then how does Nova sound?”

Nova? The name was simple and seemed easy enough to remember. I was about to nod my head at the name when Luna gently tugged on her sister's arm. “No fair, Tia!” She whined with a bit of a pout. “How come you get to name him on your own? We should have chosen a name for him together.” In all honesty, I felt as though I was like the family pet. A bit bothersome, but it’s not like I have any better options.

Celestia rolled her eyes a bit. “Come on, Lulu, it’s not that big of a deal. I just picked out one so that he wouldn’t be nameless is all.” Despite her efforts to reason with her sister, little Luna was still pouting, her cheeks puffed out in an adorable manner. Seeing that she wasn’t going to win this argument, Celestia sighed. “Okay, how about this? I give him the first part of his name, and you can give him the last part, which is the most important part. Does that sound fair?”

Luna had stopped her pouting as she hummed in thought about the offer. “Hmmm…I suppose this is okay.” She moved to grip the bars of my cell and looked over to me. “Is that alright with you?” I saw no reason to object since these two have been nothing but kind to me despite the fact we had just barely met. So, I gave her a smile and a nod, which made her smile back. “Okay. Let me think.” She hummed to herself while she tried to think, her little tongue poking out as she did, which was incredibly adorable. “I got it!” She shouted with excitement. “If the first part of your name is going to be Nova, then the last will be Star.”

‘Nova Star?’ The name seemed easy to remember and does have a nice ring to it as well. Liking the name, I gave the two a nod with a smile, which makes the two fillies jump and up down with glee.

And thus, the beginning of a beautiful friendship was born.

For the next two weeks, I was visited by the two little fillies. I could now actually measure time since they would tell me about their day, and they would visit me twice a day with food and water. They would tell me everything as I listened and ate my food and water. Each day, my strength would come back to me little by little. It wasn’t until the second week when I had finally regained my voice. When I did, I would ask them a series of questions. The first of which was how they found me. They told me that, one night, while they were making their way to the castle’s kitchen to sneak in a few midnight treats, they overheard three guards talking about a creature. One guard had made a comment about how I was still alive after going so long without food. While a second guard said that, at the lowest part of the castle’s dungeon, where no light could ever enter, I was bound to have gone insane.

Both fillies would go on about how they were disappointed in the guards for committing such cruelty. I, on the other hand, wasn’t surprised and kept the part about how they would beat me during the time they were around, mostly because I didn’t want these two to try anything they may regret. With my first question out of the way, I went on to my second, which I asked why they came to me in the first place.

That question had unintentionally brought up a bad memory. The night the girls came to visit me was the night before they had lost their mother, Queen Faust. The queen was taken by a powerful curse that had no known cure. The girls were beside their mother’s side up to the final moments of her life. And in those last moments, she told the girls about me, and how she regretted never coming to see me about whether or not I was truly guilty of the crime I was committed for. After that, the queen departed peacefully from this world in her sleep, leaving her daughters as the new rulers.

I had no idea that the queen who had sentenced me to this style of dark solitude felt guilty for it. The girls would shed a few tears when they think back on the memory of their loss. After that, they would go on to ask me questions about myself and what I was. Unfortunately, I couldn’t answer their questions due to my lack of memory of who I am. They apologized for my loss, to which I waved it off, telling them there was no point in dwelling on something I can’t remember.

Once we had gotten our more important questions out of the way, they would go on to tell me about themselves and the world we are in. Those days were the most fun I had since my awakening.

The darkness I was trapped in became much more bearable when I had something to look forward to. The girls made sure that they would bring enough food to help me put more meat on my bones and keep me hydrated. They would tell me fun stories about how they would play pranks on each other or the castle staff. I would listen in when they talked about the magic lessons they had with their teachers. Celestia was taught by the bearded stallion I had met before. His name was Star Swirl the Bearded. Luna was taught by a unicorn king known by the name of Sombra. They both adored their teachers, and would even go on to have a little argument about who was the better mentor.

When the girls would visit me, they would try to convince me to plead my innocence so that I may finally be set free from this dungeon. I tried to explain to them that without any way to prove my innocence, I wouldn’t get a fair trial since I was a different species, and it would be my word against theirs. But they would still persist in me doing so, saying it wasn’t right that I should pay for a crime I wasn’t guilty for. Part of me wanted to agree, but another half kept saying that I was guilty and should suffer for it.

Whenever the girls would have to leave, I couldn’t help but feel sad. I would miss their company, but mostly because, whenever they would visit, Celestia would have to take the light with her. Though the darkness had become less terrifying when they came, it still made me scared to be alone in it. That is, until one night.

One night, as the girls were leaving, Luna stayed behind to talk to me. She asked if I was scared of the dark. I didn’t want to openly admit it, but despite my pride, I told her I was afraid. She gave me a warm smile before using her magic to summon up an object. It looked like a miniature lamp with shapes cut into the lampshade. With a flick of a switch, the light turned on and the lampshade began to rotate. Soon, images of stars and crescent moons danced around the room, illuminating the darkness. I was left in awe as Luna talked about the origins of this lamp.

“Back when I was younger and mama was still around, I used to be scared of the dark. I would climb into bed with Tia so I wouldn’t feel alone or scared. Then mama gave me this special night light so I wouldn’t be scared to be alone anymore” She gave me a gentle and warm smile as she used her magic to set the lamp down next to me. “I’m not scared of the dark anymore, so I think it would be better if you kept it so you won’t be afraid while me and Tia are gone.” With that, she waved goodbye for the night and left to catch up with her sister.

I was so moved by her gift that I wished that I could repay both her and Celestia’s kindness back. Little did I know that day would come sooner than I would have thought.

The days turned into weeks, and the weeks into months. With each day that passed, I was slowly beginning to gain back my weight thanks to the means Celestia and Luna would bring me. And at one point, they undid the shackles that bound my arms and legs so I could move around in my cell for some exercise. They brought me fresh clean clothes and a large wooden barrel for me to bathe in, when they weren’t around, that is. For some odd reason, my hair never grew an inch, nor did I ever grow any facial hair. But that meant I had little to worry about, so I didn’t care much.

Celestia and Luna would try and make my time spent in my cell more bearable by bringing me things, like fresh hay to pile up on the floor to make a bed, pillows, and blanket to make falling asleep easier. Even a water trough so I could clean my face and wash my cell when there aren’t around.

Of course, I didn’t just lounge about and let myself get fat. Whenever the girls aren’t around, I spend my free time doing simple exercises, like pushups, sit ups, and crunches. I have been working tirelessly to keep my body in peak condition, for I had made a promise to myself to never fall back into despair.

Today felt like any other. I knew Celestia and Luna would arrive for their nightly visit anytime. Little did I know that this would be the day where things would change for me.

I was doing my daily workout routine. “97…98…..99……1-100!” I had collapsed on the ground, sweating bullets and panting like a dog. I had finally achieved my first goal of doing one hundred push ups without taking a breather or letting my knees touch the ground. “F-Finally did it.” I grunted with a sense of pride as I carefully rolled myself over onto my back, staring up at the ceiling. As I laid on the ground, I heard the sound of the door clicking open and turned to see my guests arriving. “Good evening, you two.”

I sat up and folded my legs as the girls came in and took a seat in front of my cell like they usually do. “Good evening, Nova. How are you doing tonight?” Luna asked with a smile.

Returning her smile, I slide my hand through the bars to pet her head, making her giggle. “I’m doing just fine, Luna, just like you two asked me earlier today.” Luna had a tendency to be overly worried about me since she would ask me how I was doing despite seeing me earlier in the day.

“Ahem.” I turned to look over to Celestia, who had her arms folded across her chest while she was pouting. “Aren’t you forgetting somepony?” She asked while pointing to her head. I chuckled and rolled my eyes as I reached out with my free hand to gently rub her head too. “Better.” She giggled as she smiled and hummed in satisfaction. Two would always get jealous of the other if I ever showed one more attention than the other, but I knew it was all in good fun.

Things were going smoothly until we heard the sound of voices approaching. I quickly glanced over at the door and saw a light emanating at the crack of the door. Celestia and Luna froze for a moment before I nudged them. “Quickly you two, go hide over there.” I pointed to a large pile of old hay that was in the corner of the room. It was enough for them to hide in until whoever was coming had left. “And whatever you do, stay quiet and don’t come out until it’s safe.” The girls nodded their heads and quickly ran for cover just as the door clicked open.

I quickly hid the night light and the other stuff the girls brought me under the hay I was using for a bed, then moved myself up against the wall. Soon, the door swung open, and the last three ponies I thought I would ever see stepped in. “Well, well, look who’s still kicking.” It was the three stallion guards from before, only something was off about them. They weren’t wearing their armor like they normally would. “I’m actually surprised you haven’t croaked yet. I thought after going without food and water, you’d die within a week.” The one speaking was a unicorn stallion with light brown fur and blonde mane.

He was accompanied by two others, an earth pony with green fur and red mane, and a pegasus with white fur and dark grey mane. The earth pony guard stared at me for a few moments before pointing over at me. “Hey, he’s not wearing his shackles anymore.” I mentally cursed myself for forgetting something as crucial as that.

The pegasus stallion scoffed and turned his head away. “Who gives a rats ass? Were not guards anymore, remember? If the ugly beast gets loose and tears up everypony here, it won’t be our problem.” I was a bit surprised by that little information. What did he mean they didn’t care? And what was that about not being guards anymore?

The former unicorn guard stepped to the front of my cell, staring at me with a wicked smile. “Well, it looks like this will be the very last time we see each other, you little freak. We got fired for doing some shady stuff on the side, and were told to grab our shit and leave the castle.” He unlocked the door with a set of keys, swung the door open, and walked in along with the other two. “But we couldn’t leave without saying one last goodbye to our favorite punching bag, now could we?” His smile quickly turned into a glare as he snapped his fingers. “Hold him up, boys.” Before I could react, both the earth pony and pegasus stallion grabbed me by the arm, pulled me onto my feet, and pressed me against the wall. They had my arms pinned as the unicorn stallion quickly swung his fist into my gut, making me heave. “Sweet Faust, I forgot how good that felt.” He threw another punch into my abdomen, making me hack up some bile.

The senseless beating went on for a few moments as the three took turns beating me into a pulp, and all the while, I would check to make sure the girls were out of sight. They were peeking through the hay, and I could see the tears streaming down their cheeks as they watched me spit up blood when the earth pony stallion thrust his fist into my gut. I would carefully shake my head, making sure they wouldn’t try anything. “What the hell are you looking at?” The unicorn stallion questioned as he switched places with the earth pony, grabbing my face to make me look at him.

I needed to keep their attention focused on me, so I steeled my nerves and grinned up at the stallion. “Me? I’m looking at three ugly pigs.”

No sooner did those words slip from my mouth was I met with a backhanded slap across the face. “You think you’re funny, huh?” The unicorn stallion reached back into his pockets and pulled out a dagger. “We’ll just see how long that sense of humor will last after we are done with you.” He quickly slashed his blade across my chest. The pain was immeasurable as it felt like my skin was on fire as the blade cut through my flesh, making me wail out in pain. “You like that, huh? Here, I’ll give you another one!” He slashed his blade across my right shoulder, making me scream louder as I could feel my blood start to trickle down my body.

He would continue to slash his blade across my body, each time missing a vital point by an inch. Soon, a puddle of my own blood began to build up at our feet. The unicorn stallion grabbed me by my hair, forcing my head up as he moved his blade to press up against my throat as he stared me in the eyes. “I think I’ve had my fun. And since I’m in such a good mood, I’ll end your suffering.”

As I felt the blade slowly begin to move, both Celestia and Luna ran out from the hay. “STOP!!!” They screamed as they caught the ex-guards off guard, making them drop my body. The two pushed the unicorn stallion away from me as they moved in front of me. “Leave him alone!” Luna screamed, both siblings with tears in their eyes.

Celestia glared at the three stallions, who moved to the other side of the cell. “How dare you hurt Nova like that?!” She stomped her hooves and advanced on the three stallions, making them back away till they were up against the bars.“We will have you three locked away for the rest of your lives once we get done with you! You neglected him and beat him for fun! Being kicked out of the guard is far too light a punishment for you three!!”

Both the pegasus and earth pony stallion looked genuinely worried. The same couldn’t be said for the unicorn stallion, who had a wicked smile on his face, a look that sent a chill down my spine. He took a confident step forward while maintaining the same wicked smile on his face. He slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring with a gemstone on it, then lunged toward Celestia. Before she could move away, he grabbed her and slipped the ring on her horn. “Here, hold her.” He tossed her to the pegasus stallion, who grabbed her by her shoulder, as the unicorn stallion reached out for Luna. I tried to act fast and lunged forward to bite into his leg. “Gahhh! You little rat!!’ He pulled his leg out of my jaws and used the same leg to kick my body across the floor. He grabbed Luna by her mane and put the same ring on her own horn. “There we go. Now we are all set.”

“What the fuck are you doing?” The earth pony asked. “These are the princesses!”

The unicorn smiled as he walked forward, still holding Luna by her mane, making tears of pain come out of her eyes. “Exactly. These little brats are our tickets to the good life.” When Luna tried to break free, the stallion pulled on her mane harder, making her scream out. “As far as everypony knows, these two runts are in their rooms sleeping. These brats barely know any spells, and with these magic inhibitor rings, they can’t cast any magic. And best of all, if we take his body with us, they will pin the blame on him.” He looked back to me with a mischievous glare, and soon, the other two began to have the same look. “We’ll sell them to those merchants in Saddle Arabia. They will pay good money for these two.”

“What will they do to them?” The earth pony guard asked, tightening his grip on Celestia as she tried to get away.

“Who gives a fuck? They might keep them as sex slaves or mount their heads on a wall.” The leader shrugged his shoulders. His eyes perked up as he glared at Luna. “You know, if they do end up as sex slaves, we might as well try and break them in.” He slid a finger down Luna’s cheek, making her fur grow pale as she began to weep.

My blood had reached a boiling point as I pushed myself on to my feet and charged the unicorn. “Don’t touch her, you bastard!!”

As I was about to throw a punch, when his horn glowed, and my body was sent flying up against the walls. The shackles that were attached to the wall latched onto my limbs and clicked shut. “You just stay there and enjoy the show, freak.” He shoved Luna to the ground and got on top of her, gripping the bottom of her dress and tore it off, revealing her undergarments.

‘Kill him.’

Luna began to cry in fear as she tried to push the stallion off her while the other two watched. Celestia was screaming for them to leave her sister alone. I pulled on my chains, roaring out in rage, trying to break the chains that bound me to the wall.

‘Kill them.’

Luna called out my name as the unicorn stallion started to pull down his pants. Her hand held out for me to try and grab it.

‘Kill them all!!!!’

“RRRRRRAAAAGGGHHHHHH!!!!” All I could see was red as I forced my body forward, the chains binding me to the wall snapping. The unicorn turned his head and saw me now within an inch of him, his eyes shrinking to pin pricks as I pulled my fist back and threw it into his face. The force of impact from my fist colliding with his face sent his body flying into the metal bars, making a huge dent in the bars as his body fell to the ground. I slowly turned my attention to the two remaining stallions, who began to quiver in fear. I took one step and found myself glaring the Earth pony stallion in the eyes. Before he could move, I wrapped my hand around his throat and squeezed as I began to lift his body into the air, causing him to drop Celestia, who ran to her sister to comfort her. I turned my attention back to the stallion, who was flailing around trying to pull my hand away from his throat. I only tightened my grip before throwing his body to the other end of the room, his body crashing into the metal bars and knocking him unconscious.

When I turned my attention to the last stallion, he was crawling on the ground, trying to escape my cell. I slowly walked up to him, hearing his whimpering as I moved in closer. “Please, Faust, p-please s-save me!”

I grabbed him by his mane, forced him onto his hooves, and tossed him up against the wall that had my broken shackles. “You dare utter her name after what you were about to do to her daughters?!” I gripped him by his face and held him up by it.

“Please show mercy!!!” He begged.

“Sorry, all out of mercy.” I glanced down at his wings as they flapped erratically in fear. I gave him a devilish grin as I let go of his face, causing him to fall to his feet. Before he could run away, I gripped him by the frame of his wings and began to squeeze hard, causing him to bellow in pain. “Make a wish.” With a twist of my wrist, I heard his wings make a snapping sound that echoed through the room.

When I released my grip on his body, he fell to the ground, screaming in agony while clutching the stumps where his wings were. “Aaaaaaaaahhhhh! My wings! I can’t move my wings!!”

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the unicorn stallion crawling on the ground, mere inches away from the door. I saw his dagger on the ground and leaned down to pick it up, then slowly made my way toward him. He was weeping like an infant as he weakly reached his hand for the doorknob. Before he could grip it, I slammed my foot on top of his, crushing his hand and shutting the door. He screamed in agony as I grinded my foot on his hand before kicking him onto his back. I sat on his chest as I held up his own blade to his throat, getting him to freeze in place. He was about to open his mouth, but I quickly moved the blade into his mouth, making sure the blade's edge was pressing against his tongue. “Shhh. The time for you to talk is over.” He stared up at me in horror as I applied more pressure onto his tongue, making the tip of the blade barely pierce his appendage. “Did you really think you could get away from me, or your sin?” He tried to speak, but I just pushed the dagger in deeper, making blood trickle from his tongue. “I said your time to speak is over. Try to say something again, and I'll cut out your tongue.” I sat there, thinking about what I was going to do to him.

‘His horn.’

“There’s an idea.” Pulling the blade out of his mouth, I gripped his horn with my free hand. His eyes shrunk to pin pricks as he tried to reach up to stop the hand with the blade as I pulled it back. He opened his mouth to speak, only to spit up blood. With one quick swipe, I ran the blade through his horn, cutting it off and making the once unicorn stallion scream out in agony as he moved his hands to try and feel his missing horn. I held his horn in my palm and stared at it, unsatisfied. “This just isn’t enough.”

‘His other horn.’

My lips curled once more as I looked back and smiled. I got off his body and raised my hand, holding the severed horn up. “Now that is more like it.” I quickly stabbed the pointed end of the horn into the stallion’s crotch, making sure to run it through his member and balls. He let out a high pitch and pain filled scream. “Now you are not a unicorn or even a stallion anymore.” Writhing in pain, he moved his hands to grip his skewered groin, which started to bleed all over the floor. “Aww, your first period as a mare.” I coed evilly. I grabbed him, as well as the other two stallions, then tossed them in a corner of the cell after knocking the pegasus and unicorn stallions unconscious.

Soon, my vision returned to normal, and the rage within my body had disappeared, leaving me feeling exhausted that I couldn’t stand any longer, falling to my knees and gasping for breath. As I tried to take in as much air as I possibly could, I looked over to the girls to see them huddled together, shaking. The look of fear in their eyes told me everything; they were afraid of me now. I wanted to tell them that everything was going to be okay, but just as I was about to reach out to comfort them, the door to the room slammed open. Before I knew it, a wave of pain and electricity surged through my body, making it impossible for me to move. “Restrain him!” One voice called out, and I felt some weight added onto my back, forcing me to lay on the ground while a pair of hands gripped my wrists and forced them behind my back.

“Sir, I’ve found the princesses here!!” Another stallion called out as he kneeled over the princesses, who still had tears streaming down their cheeks. The stallion’s face contorted in a frown as he saw the condition Luna was in. “And Princess Luna’s dress has been torn near the bottom.”

All the guards turned their sights on me, getting ready to aim their swords and spears at me before Celestia pushed the guard who overlooked her and Luna away. She quickly ran in front of me and turned to face the guards while holding her arms out. “Stop!! He wasn’t the one who did this! He was protecting us from them!” She pointed over at the three former guards, all of which were unconscious. “They were the ones to tried to rape me and Luna, but Nova broke free of his chains to rescue us from them.”

The guards looked to one another in shock and started to talk among themselves. The pony guard who was currently on top of me loosened his grip on my wrist to make sure I was still pinned enough not to try anything. A guard who wore armor that had both black and gold armor stepped into view to look over the three unconscious stallions. “Lieutenant.” He called out, the stallion who was curtly on my back looking up at him. “These three. Aren’t they the ones we had dismissed from our ranks earlier this evening?”

The lieutenant looked down at me, making eye contact with me before letting his grip go and stepping off me to walk by the commanding guard to inspect the three ponies. I remained on the floor, mostly due to whatever spell was cast on me, but more so to show I wouldn’t try anything. The lieutenant kneeled over to inspect the three-former guards before looking to the lead guard. “Yes, sir, they are the ones. But I thought they would have left the castle by now.”

The pony guard clad in black and gold armor turned to face me as I stayed sprawled on the ground. I was able to see that he had black fur and a red mane. He was a unicorn with a scar over his left eye, which had gone completely pale white. He walked over to me, causing the guards in his way to step aside. He easily towered over my body as I laid on the ground. Slowly, he crouched down and stared at me with his one good eye for what felt like minutes. After a while, he snorted and stood back up, his horn glowing, and the spell that had kept me immobilized disappeared. “Escort the princesses back to their rooms, and have those three locked up in a cell.” He said while pointing to the ex-guards. He glanced back down at me and pointed with his finger. “Get his wounds treated and move him to a different cell while you’re at it. I need to report to Star Swirl.”

As the guard commander left, two other guards slowly guided Celestia and Luna, both of which glanced over their shoulders to look at me before leaving the room. As I watched them leave the room, another guard came walking up to me, carrying a leather bag with a red cross on it. He kneeled down and started to open the pack, pulling out an assortment of items that he set on the ground. “I’ll need you to remove your shirt and lay down. You seemed to have lost a lot of blood.” Not wanting to argue, I did as he requested and removed my shirt, setting it down on the ground for me to lay on. He moved in closer with a damp rag in his hands. “This is going to sting a little, but we need to clean out your wounds if I’m going to sew them shut.” I nodded my head and closed my eyes, preparing for it. I winced when I felt a painful stinging sensation as he pressed the damp rag against my shin. “Sorry, but I did say it was gonna sting.”

For the next couple of minutes, he cleaned out my wounds, then pulled out a thread and needle and slowly began to sow my wounds shut. After that was taken care of, two other guards moved to either side of me and gently lifted me off the ground, holding me up by my armpits. “Set him in a cell with a bed, and have somepony fetch him some food and water.” The lieutenant ordered, then I was gently carried off to my new cell.

When I was brought to my new cell, I was laid down on my new bed. It wasn’t anything luxurious, but it was far more comfortable than laying on a pile of hay or against a stone wall. Shortly after I was set on my new bed, a mare dressed in a white robe came into my cell to bandage up my wounds so the thread wouldn’t get undone or dirty. She brought along with her some soup, bread, and water, and helped feed me. After that, the guards left me alone, but were kind enough to leave a lit torch by the door so I wasn’t completely in darkness. As I laid there on my new bed, with a full stomach and the sound of the fire flickering on the torch, my eyes had begun to slowly drift closed and I slipped into blissful sleep.

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed since I was moved into my new cell, but I had guessed it had been a long time. Now I am fully awake, and I could see the torch had gone out, but the darkness wasn’t nearly as frightening as it was before. I let out a small yawn and tried to stretch my limbs, but winced as my wounds sent a shockwave of pain through my body. Just then, I heard the sound of a metal click and the door creaking open, letting in a gentle light. When I looked to see who it was, I saw the guard in the black and gold armor standing in the doorway. “Good, you’re awake.” He said in a deep tone as he stepped into the room. “Your presence has been requested. Can you stand and walk?” Despite his voice being deep and gruff, I could tell he was asking in a calm, caring tone. Most of the cuts I took from before were mostly located along my upper body, so my legs were left intact. Carefully, I slid one leg off the edge of the bed, planted it on the ground, and turned my body around so I could do the same with my other leg. Using my legs to pull me off the bed, I forced myself to stand up, wincing only a little bit from my stitched cuts straining from my movements. I then walked over to the large, armored stallion and held out my wrist for him to cuff them. He glanced down at my gesture and slowly shook his head. “That won’t be needed.” He turned and gestured with his hand for me to follow.

We spent the next three minutes climbing up a stone spiral staircase. Thankfully, all the exercises I had been doing these last few weeks had been paying off for my stamina, but I kinda felt bad thinking how Celestia and Luna had to go up and down these stairs twice just to see me. Once we had reached the top of the stairs, I had to shield my eyes as, for the first time since waking up in this world, I see the light of day. Celestia’s light was a great substitute, but nothing compares to the real deal. Despite the pain my body was in, I didn’t hesitate to stretch out my arms to feel the sun’s light on my body. I just stood there, basking in the light and smelling the clean fresh air before slowly opening my eyes and letting them adjust. When they did, I saw we were standing in the middle of a courtyard next to a stone castle. I was left in awe as I stared up at the massive structure and looked around my new surroundings. There was a large stone wall that I imagined circled the whole castle to protect it. “Are you coming or not?” I was snapped out of my daze when the armored stallion called out for me, and quickly ran to catch up with him.

We walked into the large castle and made our way down a long corridor. The walls were polished white and the floor was covered in a red carpet. Along the way, we passed a few more guards and mares in maid uniforms. After another minute of walking and climbing another flight of stairs, we reached a room with a large set of double doors with a blue swirl with yellow stars among it. The stallion raised his hand to knock on the doors. “Yes, who is it?” A voice spoke from the other end of the door.

“It’s me, Star Swirl. I’ve brought him with me like you asked.” He replied.

“Ah, Captain Midnight Thunder. Yes, please send him in.” The door on the right glowed with a pale white aura and slowly creaked open.

“Welp, you heard him.” The stallion, or I should say Captain Midnight, nudged me forward to go into the room. He turned on his hooves and made his way down the hall. “I’ll be seeing you around, rookie.” He called out as he kept on walking.

‘Rookie? Why would he call me such a thing?’

Not wanting to keep the pony waiting, I stepped into the room and heard the door shut behind me. The room I walked into was incredibly large. At the far end of the wall were two stained glass windows, one in the shape of a star and the other shaped like a crescent moon. Along the walls were bookshelves filled to the brim with books, some of which were hovering around in the air. In the center of the room was a massive desk that had a few stacks of books on it. What I found rather unsettling was the skull of what I guessed to be a pony with a couple of wax candles on top of it, and judging by how much of the skull was covered in wax, I’d say it gets used quite often. There were two chairs on the side of the table I was on and one large chair on the other side, and the pony who I hadn’t seen in such a long time was currently sitting in it. If I had to guess, this was the one known as Star Swirl the Bearded.

He was currently flipping through a large book that obscured his view of me. I wasn’t sure if I should say anything or just stand there waiting. “You may have a seat if you like.” He said while still reading through his book. Seeing as he knew I was here and gave me permission to do so, I carefully took a seat in one of the chairs. As I eased myself into it, a teacup on a little plate levitated in front of me, along with a tea pot that had some steam coming out. “Tea?”

I took that as my que to grab the teacup. “Oh, yes please.” As I held the teacup in my hands, the teapot poured an amber colored liquid into it, smelling similar to apples. Then two cups of sugar and a little spoon went into my cup, and the little spoon stirred the tea before disappearing. “T-Thank you.” Taking a sip of my drink, I found it tasted rather good. Like the smell, it tasted of apples and cinnamon.

I sat there enjoying my tea as I waited for my host to finish with his book. It took a considerable amount of time, but then again, it wasn’t like I had anywhere to be. While I was enjoying my tea, a small tray of cookies floated in front of me. I took only two and slowly nibbled on them as I drank my tea. Soon, he placed the book down, and I took that as my que to do the same with my tea. He leaned back into his chair with his eyes still closed while he clasped his hands together. “So…you go by Nova Star now?” He asked while keeping his eyes shut.

“Yes, sir.”

He remained silent for a good while before opening his eyes and leaning over to rest his elbows on the table. He had a pensive look as he stared at me and would occasionally tap his index finger. As I sat there patiently, I saw his horn glow, and from one of the shelves, a black book wrapped in chains floated down onto the table. “Do you recognize this book, by any chance?” He used his magic to move the book closer to me.

It seemed like any ordinary book, though upon further inspection, I noticed that it was almost burnt and charred. There wasn’t any text or title written on the cover or on the spine. All I saw was a weird clover that had five leaves. “As I mentioned before, I don’t remember anything about myself, nor anything that could belong to me.” I looked down at the book, which seemed to give off an ominous feeling. “I especially don’t remember this book.”

The stallion - or I guess now that I know his name - Star Swirl, hummed to himself while gently tapping his finger on the table. He would glance at the book and then to me for a while, repeating this until he decided to speak once more. “Do you know why that group of guards came rushing into your cell all of a sudden yesterday?” The thought never really crossed my mind, so I shook my head. He sighed and lifted the book in his magic before continuing. “This book was found next to your body the night you were captured by me and my comrades. While I was preparing my next course of magic studies with King Sombra for the princesses, that book in front of you started to glow and violently shake. When that happened, we had assumed it was because you were trying to escape. But when Midnight came back to me to report what had transpired, both myself and Sombra were surprised by your actions.” His horn glowed brighter as the chains around the book were undone and disappeared. He then levitated it over to me. “I opened the book and found it almost completely blank, with only one page having anything written inside. However, it was in a language that I have never seen before in my life, and I’ve spent many years learning many different languages.”

The longer I stared at the book, the more I felt that it did seem familiar in some ways. As I reached my hand to pick it up, the book began to emit a red aura and slowly started to float toward my hand, some of the red aura evaporating and turning black. I felt somewhat afraid of this menacing display and pulled my hand away, only for the book to quickly follow. I stood up to try and move away from the possessed book, accidently knocking the chair I was sitting in over, but much like before, it followed. Eventually, I found myself pressed against the door as the book hovered before me. I stood there, staring at the book as it hovered in front of me. I looked to Star Swirl, who gestured for me to try and open it. I wasn’t sure if the idea was a good one, given that no one knows what would happen if I opened it. But standing around and just staring at it wasn’t going to get me anywhere either.

I slowly reached my hand out to grab it, but as my finger was about to touch the charred cover, the book suddenly opened and began to flip through pages rapidly. Though they were moving incredibly fast, I could see that Star Swirl was correct in that they were blank. Soon, the speed in which the pages flipped began to slow down until it stopped on a single page. The letters written on the page were like none I have ever seen, but given my case of amnesia, that may be the main reason. Yet, the longer I stared at the words, the more they became recognizable until two words slipped from my mouth. “Demon Slayer?”

No sooner did I utter those words, the book began to glow bright, and from the page itself, something slowly came out. A long metal hilt was sticking out of the book. As if by instinct, my hand slowly moved toward it, gripped it firmly, and started to pull. For what felt like a good minute, I was pulling out a large black greatsword. I gripped the hilt with both hands to pull the blade out from the book, leaving me completely baffled how such a blade could fit into a book. With one more heave, I was able to pull the sword from the book and gasped as I rested the blade on the ground. The blade of the sword was nearly as long as my whole body and weighed almost a ton.

“Incredible.” Star Swirl had gotten out of his chair to come around to inspect the sword. “I have never seen magic that could store a blade of this size inside before.” His horn glowed, and I could see the same glow around the sword, but it quickly vanished, leaving the bearded pony in shock. He lit his horn once more to encase the sword in his magic, only to yield the same results as before. “This is impossible.” He glanced over to me as though I could offer him an answer, but all I could do was shrug my shoulders since I had nothing to add to the situation. He stared for a while longer before speaking again. “I would like to test a hypothesis. If I’m correct, it may aid you in how this day will end.”

“Given the fact that I’m your prisoner, I don’t have much of a choice but to comply.” I answered truthfully, and if what he said is true, then I may yet live to see another day.

With my consent, my body was covered in his magic. I hadn’t noticed it before from the last time, but his magic felt warm and almost tickled a bit. After a while, the magic faded away, and he looked almost bewildered as he looked at me from head to toe. Using his magic, he picked up the seat I had knocked over and gestured for me to have a seat. I wasn’t sure if I was gonna be able to lug the sword with me back to the table, so I leaned up against the wall and took my seat. Star Swirl sat in his seat silently for a good while. He seemed troubled, and at the same time, puzzled. “I will be honest with you; the residents of the kingdom already know of your existence and they either fear you or despise you.” He added bluntly, which surprised me a bit. “The night you were captured a year ago, a horrible creature attacked one of our farming villages. There were barely any survivors that night, and those that did survive were in total hysteria, speaking about a horned monster with wings as black as ink attacking their homes. By the time my colleagues and I had arrived at the village, half of it was burnt down with ponies fleeing for their lives. That was about the time we found you and matched your description to some of the eyewitness’s reports. Though at the time, you were weak and looked as though you went through Tartarus and back.” He sighed before leaning into his chair. “When we had captured you, we found that book with you, and I bound it with my own magic.” He paused briefly before continuing. “The day after we captured you, I visited you to see if you were truly the monster they had seen, and I used my magic to force the truth out of you. When you answered my questions, I said you were telling the truth, yet at the same time, you were also lying.” I was about to try and defend myself when he held out his hand for me to be silent. “I’m afraid nothing you say now will change the outcome of this day.”

He took a few more moments to collect his thoughts. “As it is now, you are still viewed as guilty since the real culprit is most likely still at large, but I highly doubt it will make its presence known anytime soon. For now, we must focus on the present.” With his magic, he summoned a smoking pipe and lit it with a match before taking a few puffs of it and blowing out some smoke from his lips. “After what transpired last night, the ponies in the castle have become more afraid of your existence. Because of this, King Sombra believes you should be sent to the gallows and executed.”

My body had gone ridged and my blood went cold from what he had just said. I could feel my body slowly begin to shake with fear. Star Swirl no doubt noticed my change in demeanor and continued. “However, he isn’t the king of this castle. The current rulers, though young at the moment, are the princesses. Both Sombra and I were appointed as the princesses’ guardians and teachers by the orders of this kingdom’s former ruler, Queen Faust.” His lips drooped as he frowned and looked out the window for a moment. “And from what the princesses told me, both about you and the incident that transpired the other night, you are their friend, and sought to protect them.” I slowly nodded my head, which managed to get him to crack a smile. “Good. Because of this, you have one other choice besides death.”

He rested his elbows on the desk and propped himself on his hands. I eagerly awaited my second option, though if I had to guess, it would be to go back to the dungeon to live out the rest of my days in isolated solitude. Should that be the case, it would be difficult to decide on which choice to pick. A quick and painful death, or a long and tedious wait for death.

“You pledge your life to this kingdom and become the princesses’ personal bodyguard.”

To say I was shocked would be a grave understatement. “I’m sorry, but I think you may have lost me there. How did we go from me being sent to the gallows because I am considered a threat to being offered a position that put me in keeping the princesses safe?” I asked. “Wouldn’t you want me to stay as far away from them as possible?”

“Well, you’re not wrong, but after conducting my test, I feel as though I can trust you to offer the second option.” He held out three fingers before he continued. “The three reasons you are offered such a position are as follows.” He held up one finger. “First, after using my magic to analyze your very being, I found that you have no magic power whatsoever.”

“Is that a bad thing?” I asked, feeling a bit nervous.

“Yes and no.” He answered before he went on. “I’m assuming that the princesses have told you a good deal about Equestria?”

I shrugged my shoulders a bit. “More or less. I understand the basics, such as the three tribes, and some of the different creatures that are said to live in this world.”

Star Swirl hummed for a moment. “If that’s all they taught you, then maybe I should schedule them for another history less.” He summoned a quill and parchment and wrote something before sending it away. “As I was saying, everything in Equestria has some semblance of magic. From the creatures who walk, fly, and swim, to the very soil itself. Yet, for some odd reason, you possess none whatsoever. This makes you both an oddity, and somewhat harmless.”

I wasn’t sure if I should thank him or keep my mouth shut. I knew there was more to this since there were still two other reasons to go through. He held up a second finger before pointing it to the sword that I had left propped against the wall. “Second would be that sword you somehow managed to summon from a book. And with a language that I couldn’t read, but you could.” I glanced over at the large black greatsword and stared at it for a moment. “That sword has the power to nullify and destroy magic; an anti-magic weapon, if you will. Such a weapon could make the wielder of it impossible to defeat, and I wager that even alicorn magic is no match for its power.”

That last bit only left me with more questions than answers. “If that’s the case, why would you want me to have that anywhere near the princesses? Surely you aren’t naive to dismiss the danger that it could put them in.” I knew that if I pointed something like this out, it could lower my chances of keeping my life, but at this moment, all I really cared about was Celestia and Luna’s own safety. “What if I decided that I had enough taking orders and decided to turn against them? Or worse, if I were to be manipulated by someone else into attacking them? How do you know that nothing like that could happen?”

He stayed silent for a moment before giving me a gentle smile as he held up a third finger. “Because of that.” I was perplexed by what he meant and stared at him confusingly. “Your concern for their safety proved to me what they said about you being their friend is true.” He sat up from his seat and made his way toward the window to gaze outside. “When their mother died, some of the nobles from other lands sought to take advantage of their young naive age to procure land and riches. They disguised their greedy ambitions by pretending to be their friends so that they would lower their guard. However, thanks to both myself and Sombra, we have managed to keep such unwanted company away.” I made my way over to see what it was he was staring at. As I glanced out the window, I could see Celestia and Luna walking around a garden with over six armored guards nearby, keeping a vigilant watch on them. “Because of this, they can’t seem to let their guard down to make any kind of friends. Even other foals are an issue as some of them have been sent by the same nobles. Some would send their children to try and convince them to invest in their parent’s businesses, or even other kingdoms.” He sighed and pinched the bridge of her muzzle. “They had all but given up on trying to make friends with anypony.”

He turned to me with a warm smile and lightly placed his hand on my shoulder. “That was until they met you. After I had received Midnight’s report, they came barging into my studies to beg and plead with me for your safety. They tell me how they found you as nothing but skin and bones, and how you freed yourself from your chains to come to their aid.” He moved back to his desk and motioned for me to take my seat. “Despite what they had nearly gone through, the likes of which would scar any filly into never speaking again, they were more concerned with your wellbeing. And do you know what they told me?” I could only shrug my shoulders. “They made a bet with me saying that you would do the very same thing for them.” He couldn’t help but crack a smile. “Guess I’ll have to make sure the cooks give them double desserts.” He let out a light chuckle, which was contagious as I found myself doing the same thing.

After a moment, we had managed to compose ourselves before we went on. “Now, this doesn’t mean you will be accepted right away, or even at all by the other members of the kingdom. And I have a few plans that will keep you from harming the princesses. Should you choose to accept the position, I shall cast a spell that even your anti-magic sword could not dispel. You will also be training under the watch of Midnight Thunder, a request he made himself.” Now it made sense why he called me rookie. “So, the choice is yours: death or eternal servitude.”

I didn’t really hesitate as I stood up and gave him my answer. “I would be honored to serve the princesses, as both their bodyguard and as their friend.”

Star Swirl smiled before standing up as well. “Very good. Now, for the spell.” His horn glowed brighter than I have seen so far as a chain made of translucent magic with a miniature dagger at the end hovered in the air. “This dagger will be thrust into your heart. Do not worry, it will not kill.” I couldn’t help but be skeptical, but nodded my head for him to continue. “With this dagger, I shall set a rule upon your very soul, and unless you stab your own heart with the anti-magic sword, it shall remain in your heart for as long as you live. Are you ready?” I was hesitant at first and braced myself before nodding my head.

With a flick of his wrist, the blade was sent flying toward me until it pierced my chest, and I could feel the blade strike my heart. It was painful at first, but that only lasted for a few moments as all I could feel was a cold, almost hollow feeling in my chest. “Now for the rule I shall set upon you.” He cleared his throat. “With this magic dagger in your heart, you will never harm a princess who is true to Equestria, and come to the aid of any who calls upon you and your blade. Do you accept?”

I nodded without hesitation and watched as he pulled the chains out, leaving the dagger inside me. I checked my chest for any kind of stab wound, but found nothing. “The spell has been set. Welcome to the service of the royal family, Nova Star.” He held out his hand to me, and I gladly took it and gave it a good shake.

And thus, my adventure would soon begin.

Art galley

The book when normal

The book when in use

Demon Slayer sword

Chapter 2

After I made my promise to Starswirl, he escorted me from his private studies to the garden to meet with the princesses. Along the way, I received the same looks I got coming in from the castle staff and guards. This was something that I would no doubt have to get used to if I’m going to be staying here in the castle as the princesses’ new personal bodyguard. It didn’t bother me much considering I’d rather deal with the cold glares and look of fear over death, or worse, be sent back to that dark cell. The very idea sent a shiver down my very spine. Along the way, Starswirl would tell me about the different rooms and facilities the castle had within it, such as a kitchen, barracks for the soldiers, the training grounds, and so on. He also told me that the castle dwells within a forest they now call the Everfree Forest. I asked why they would build a castle in such a place since it would probably be harder to spot enemy attacks in a dense forest rather than in an open plain.

According to Starswirl, the reason they choose this location is because the forest itself is a natural defense. The forest that the castle is built within is resistant to the ponies’ magic. Back when I was still in the dungeon and Celestia and Luna would visit me and tell me about their culture, they mentioned how certain types of ponies could manipulate the environment to their will. The Pegasi could alter the weather to suit their needs, making natural disasters a rare occurrence. Earth ponies were the shepherds of the land, being able to grow and harvest crops faster. I have no memories from wherever it was I came from. A part of me found this hard to accept, but I shrugged it off since it wasn’t worth fretting about.

But back to the forest. This forest, for some reason, was immune to such things, and was self-sufficient. The plants grew without help, the weather did as it pleased, and there were a vast majority of dangerous creatures living in it. Because of this, enemy kingdoms dare not to attack or invade the capital unless they suffer the loss of their own. Of course, this location is a double-edged sword since some of these problems can happen to the castle residents, but they have been here long enough to build up a proper defense and deal with whatever the forest has to offer.

We're now approaching the garden where the princesses wait. When we turned the corner, I could see Luna and Celestia pacing around in circles, both looking worried and nervous. I was about to call out to them when Starswirl stopped me and gestured for me to stay still. “I suggest you wait a moment. I’d like your reveal to be a surprise.” Before I could ask what he had meant, his horn glowed, and I was enveloped in his magic. A moment later, my body slowly disappeared right before my eyes, however, I could still feel it, coming to the realization that I had become translucent. “A spell I have been working on for a while. I’m glad to see that your body isn’t anti-magic proof. Now follow me and stay quiet, lest you ruin the surprise.” He gave me a playful wink and I nodded my head, though I wasn’t sure if he could see it, so I whispered yes to him.

He then started to walk toward the girls, and I followed right behind him. I made sure to take a step when he did to mask the sound of my own footsteps. In a moment, I could hear the sound of a pair of hoofsteps coming closer, and knew who they belonged to. “Starswirl! Please tell us that they didn’t do it.” I heard Celestia’s voice ask. I carefully leaned to one side and saw that both Celestia and Luna were standing in front of Starswirl.

Now that I was getting a closer look at the two, I noticed something I couldn’t from Starswirl’s studies: they had bags under their eyes and looked a bit red, like they had been crying for a while. “Please tell us that they aren’t putting him to death. Nova is a kindhearted being.” Luna begged.

Starswirl slowly stroked his beard, humming in thought. “You say he is kindhearted, even after what you two bore witness to yesterday?” Both Celestia and Luna flinched and began to fidget in place. Seeing this, Starswirl pressed further. “You two can’t tell me that you weren’t afraid when you saw what he had done to those three with the brutality he displayed.”

I felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. Not for the three stallions that I had brutally beaten, for I would have done that all over again for what they were trying to do. No, the guilt I felt was allowing both Luna and Celestia to see all that. Such brutality shouldn’t have been seen by those so young. I would not blame them if they were absolutely terrified of me now. “We would be lying if we said we weren’t scared.” I knew it. I felt like I had no right to be in their presence, even if they couldn’t see me as I slowly began to try and walk away. “But it’s not Nova that we were scared of!” I stopped dead in my tracks when Celestia spoke those words. I turned back to continue listening in on the conversation. “We were scared of what he had to go through because of us.”

I could see Luna huddling next to her sister’s side as some tears streamed down her cheek. “Nova told us to stay hidden no matter what, but we couldn’t stand by when we saw he was going to be killed right in front of us.” Luna wept harder as she hugged her sister, who hugged her back.

Celestia had tears in her eyes as well as the memories of yesterday must have flooded back to her. “I felt so helpless when I couldn’t stop those horrible monsters from trying to do that to Luna. I tried so hard to try and save her that I didn’t care what happened to me so long as she was safe.” She cupped her hand over her mouth as she began to sob. I wanted nothing more than to go over to them and try and comfort the two crying ponies, but Starswirl moved his hand out to stop me from doing so, no doubt to continue hiding my presence.

After a few minutes of crying, the girls slowly started to calm down and wipe their faces of their tears. “We were both scared when Nova attacked those former guards, but it wasn’t because of him that we were scared. We were scared because he had to go through all that because of us.” Celestia sniffled as she tried to speak again. “What scared us most is what Nova had to become in order to save us. Since we’ve met him all those months ago, he has been so calm and gentle with us. He spoke to us in a soft tone, making sure we were never afraid of him. He smiled and laughed with us as we spent time together. Had the events of yesterday never came to be, I’m sure he would continue to be as such.” The ears on her and Luna’s heads drooped a bit as they held each other closer. “He had to do what was needed to save me and Luna, to break through his cell just so we could be spared such a horrid fate.” She and Luna looked to each other and nodded before looking up to Starswirl. “Please tell me that he wasn’t punished for saving us. Please tell us that Nova is going to be okay.”

I felt so moved that my heart had nearly skipped a beat. Even after what they saw the other day, they still consider me their friend and hold me in such high regards. I felt blessed to have them as friends, and even felt unworthy of such kindness. It took all of my willpower not to run over to them and to hug them just so they wouldn’t have to worry about me, but I knew better than that. I had to wait for Starswirl’s signal. He took a moment to think on their request when he was actually building suspense for my reveal. “Hmm. He was given two choices.” Both fillies moved in to hear what he had to say. “Lord Sombra believed that he should be put to death given his violent nature, lest he becomes a threat to our kind.” I could see the looks of horror on Luna and Celestia’s faces as they heard the first option. Luna looked like she was gonna try and say something before Starswirl held up his hand to keep her from talking, despite wanting to voice her concern. “However, he decided on the second option.”

Both girls looked to each other nervously before Celestia looked back with Luna clinging to her. “Which was?”

Starswirl smiled for a moment before raising his cloak so that it was blocking my view. Before I knew it, my body was slowly reappearing until I was no longer invisible. I knew what he was planning and stood still as he lowered his cloak. It was then that I saw the expression on both Celestia and Luna’s faces as they saw me with a look of shock and surprise. I stood there awkwardly, trying to think of something to say to them, some way to express my thanks for what they said and how honored I was to have them as friends. But before I could, I was tackled to the ground by the two fillies and was hugged nearly to death. I could hear them sobbing as they held onto my sides while burying their faces into my chest. All I could do was hold them close to me and tried my best to comfort them, letting them know that everything was going to be okay.

After the girls got their hugging out of their system, Starswirl went on to explain the deal that we had made, including the spell placed on my heart. The two did protest to the idea, saying that I would never hurt them, but both Starswirl and I expressed how it’s more of a failsafe should someone try to manipulate me. Though reluctant, they couldn’t do much and accept the condition of my stay amongst the ponies. With all that settled and taken care of, I was given a grand tour of the castle by the two eager princesses. They were giddy every step we took as they told me about everything they knew about the castle, such as where their favorite hiding places were whenever they played, or the secret passages that reside within the castle. There were quite a few of them they pointed out to in some of the halls. However, during our little tour, I couldn’t help but notice how some of the guards we passed shot me a look of hate and disgust. The looks were unlike what the castle staff would give me.

Starswirl stated that this will be happening for a while until I could prove myself. Some of the guards in the castle knew about what I had done to the former guards the other day, and despite my reasons, they still don’t care for my presence. They were even more angry when they learned that I would be the personal guard to the princesses and would be participating in their training sessions.

Soon, I was shown to the room that I would be staying in. The room was located in the middle of the hallway with either princesses’ room on either side, so if I am ever needed, I can be quick to their aid. “And these will be your quarters.” Starswirl opened the door, allowing me into the room I would be calling home. As I stepped inside, I took notice of the interior. The room was spacious, but was spartan. In the corner of the room, there was a twin-size bed with a chest at the end of the bed, a wooden desk on the adjacent corner, and a window opposite from the door. I took the time to admire my room. To some, it may not seem much, but compared to my cell in the dungeon, it was a huge improvement.

When I heard someone clearing their throat, I turned to see the stallion known as Midnight Thunder standing in the doorway. I could see Starswirl escorting the princesses along as to leave me and the towering stallion alone. Once the sound of hoofsteps no longer echoed through the halls, the stallion gestured to follow him as he began to walk in the opposite direction that the princesses had gone. I followed the imposing stallion after closing the door to my room and ran up to walk by his side. We walked down the halls of the castle for a few moments, not knowing where he was leading me, but I made sure to hold my tongue since it was clear that I wasn’t all that welcomed here by most of the ponies. I wasn’t sure if the stallion beside me was one of those ponies as well, though I’ve yet to know. “The stallions who tried to have their way with the princesses are going to be hung at dawn tomorrow.” He spoke up, his voice low and deep. I turned to look up at him, somewhat surprised. Why would he tell me this? “However, given that they were supposed to be the ones to take care of you while you were in the dungeon and neglected the orders of our now departed queen, I will allow you to choose their punishment.” He looked down to me with a stoic stare, waiting for my response. “If you have a better suggestion, then I would hear it.”

As we stood there in that empty stone hallway, I was left to wonder what I should say. Was he expecting me to show mercy to them and object to their deaths? No, he was giving me a chance at revenge at the bastards and to allow my rage to do the talking. However, when I looked to myself for the rage that had been built within my heart, it was not because of what they had done to me for who knows how long, but what they were going to do to the first ponies who showed me any kind of kindness. “Killing them now is too good for them. Death is an instant release. Do we really want to let them off as easily as that?” I looked at the stallion with my mind made up. “They deserve to suffer for what they were going to do to the princesses. No, they should suffer the hell I went through until they beg for the sweet release of death itself. Only then will we allow them such luxury.”

Midnight Thunder stared at me for a moment as he took my answer into consideration, his one eye staring into my own as if to see if my resolve was true. We stood there for what felt like ages until he allowed the faintest smile to cross his face before continuing our walk. “I’m glad to see your resolve is strong. I half expected you to grant them mercy in order to show us that you aren’t a threat. Had you done so, I would have been more suspicious of you.”

“How could you be so sure I was lying if I had suggested that we spared their lives?” I asked curiously.

He chuckled a bit while keeping his attention on the hallway we were walking down. “If somepony had undergone the pain and suffering you went through and hadn’t wanted revenge, I’d say they were insane or a liar.” So he was testing me, and it appeared that I had passed for the time being. “We will use your punishment and see how they like it. Now for the other reason I came to get you.” We soon reached a large set of double doors, and using his muscular arms, pushed the door wide open with ease. It was impressive how easily he opened the doors that were three times larger than my own body, which he stood at around five-eleven. Not only that, but the doors were ten inches thick. This display of strength was no doubt a means to intimidate me, and yet I could tell that it wasn’t even a fraction of his true power.

The door led to a large training yard, where I could see ponies in armor going about their business. Some were running laps while some were sparing with each other either hand-to-hand or with weapons. Some were also flying through the air while maneuvering through metal hoops, and others were off to the side firing bolts of magic at wooden targets. I was left in awe as I stood and watched the ponies train, and part of me wanted to join in, like a child wishing to join the other kids in playing a game.

I felt a slap on my back, which had knocked me out of my daze and I looked back to the stallion I was standing next to. “Don’t worry, you’ll be joining them soon enough. But first, I want you to take a look out there and tell me what you notice about the guards in comparison to myself.”

“You mean besides the fact that you’re a mountain on legs?” He shot me a glare, showing he wasn’t in the mood for playing around. I gulped nervously and looked out to the yard to examine the ponies that were about. The first thing I noticed was that some of the guards were wearing golden yellow armor with a sun emblem on their chest. I had seen many of these already, so I didn’t spend much time examining them. Next, I spotted a few guards who were wearing armor that were shades of light purple and dark blue with a blue slitted eye and crescent moons on the chest plate. Something that also caught my attention was that these ponies looked slightly different, where the Pegasi in the gold armor had feathers, those in the darker armor had bat wings, their ears looked like bat ears too, and their eyes were slitted. Once I got a good look at the two sets of armor, I turned to look at Midnight Thunder’s armor. As mentioned before, it was both black and red, but now that I was inspecting it, I noticed on each of his shoulder pieces had a symbol of the sun and a crescent moon. “Your armor?”

He nodded his head before pointing out the ponies in the golden armor. “Those ponies there are members of the solar guard and watch over the kingdom during the day.” He then turned to point to the bat-like ponies in the dark blue and light purple armor. “They are part of the night guard and watch the kingdom during the night. Most of them are thestrals, or more commonly called bat ponies.”

“If they are supposed to watch the night, shouldn’t they be training during the night and sleeping during the day?” I asked, making the deduction that they were nocturnal.

He nodded his head. “Yes, but sometimes, there are some who wish to train more, so they join the solar guards during their training time. We have spells that can recover their stamina if needed so they aren’t tired during their watch.” He then pointed to his own armor. “The armor that I wear is for the elite guard, ponies who aid both sides. And as the name entails, we are the best of the three groups. Though our numbers are fewer than just one of the other guard squads, I am their captain, as well as the previous personal guard to the princesses.”

That part caught me off guard. He was the previous personal guard to the princesses? That brought up a few questions. Did he lose his position because of me? Did he get promoted to join the elite guard? “Am I the reason that you’re no longer their current personal bodyguard?”

He folded his arms across his chest as he thought to himself. “Hmm...yes and no. You see, despite my current physique, I’m getting up there in the years. I have been watching over those girls for the better part of twenty years. So I’ve been looking for somepony to take my place, but no pony came to mind. That is, until you came along.”

I wasn’t sure if I should feel bad or honored that I was going to be taking such a position, but then something he said caught my attention. “I’m sorry, but did you say you’ve been watching over the princesses for over twenty years?” He nodded his head. ‘I can’t tell if he’s being serious, and that’s very concerning.’ I was thrown for a loop and felt a million more questions begin to bounce around in my head now. “B-but h-how? They don’t look like they are a day over nine, let alone two decades. Hell, I’m twenty-five right now.”

“Ah, so I take it you don’t know. You see, alicorns age differently than most of us. They are said to have lifespans that can go beyond the thousands.” My jaw went slack as the idea that any creature having that long of a lifespan boggled the mind. “Of course, they won’t reach full maturity until another ten years from now, when a very sacred and special ceremony will take place. With it, they will grow into full alicorns, be able to take over the throne, and rule Equestria like their mother before them.”

He lowered his head while placing a hand over his chest. It was clear that their queen meant a great deal to these ponies. I remember Starswirl mentioning her during our first encounter, but that was so long ago, I can’t remember what he said. He raised his head and looked back at me. “Now then, since you will be their new personal guard, I need to make sure you are strong enough to take my place.” He whistled to a pair of stallions and they came rushing over carrying some leather armor and some swords. But something was off: one of the swords was wooden while the other was made of metal. The two stallions stopped in front of Midnight, and he took the wooden sword. With a nudge from his head, they brought me the armor and the metal sword. I looked at him with a perplexed look. “We’re going to be doing some light sparing. I want to see how skilled you are with a blade. Put the gear on and get ready to fight me.”

The gear consisted of a vest, shin guards, and helmet, all of which were made out of leather. “If this is a training exercise, then shouldn’t I get the wooden sword? What if I accidentally cut you?”

The two guards started to snicker, but were quickly silenced when Midnight glared at them. “I need to gauge not only your skill, but your strength as well. Starswirl said you had a hard time wielding a greatsword, so I want to see how you handle something smaller. Besides, I’m using the wooden sword so I don’t end up cutting you up. If you can manage to get a scratch on me, then we can progress with your training.” He had this confident smile that sent a slight chill down my spine.

I had started putting on the armor as instructed while picking up the sword. Compared to the Demon Slayer sword, this one was dwarfed in size, but it still had some weight to it. After I fastened it to my side, I was led to the middle of the training yard where I saw a circle pattern engraved into the stone floor. The circle was around ten feet wide and was smack dab in the middle of the yard for all to see. Midnight Thunder gestured for me to draw my sword out as he held out his wooden sword. Gripping the handle, I slowly pulled it out of its scabbard and took note of the blade itself. It was a Roman double-edged short sword. It wasn’t nearly as heavy as the Demon Slayer sword, but the moment I took a glimpse of the blade, the reality sunk in and made the blade that much heavier and made my hand tremble. “Are you ready?” Midnight’s voice snapped me out of my daze as I looked up at him. “Come at me whenever you’re ready. Don’t hold back and attack like you’re intending to kill me.”

‘Is he serious? What if I kill him by accident?’ I shook my head, trying to calm myself down. I reminded myself that he was the one wearing metal armor here, and he was a skilled veteran. With my breathing under control, I moved my other hand to grip the handle and prepared myself to go on the attack. I shot him a look of determination and he nodded his head, signaling that he was ready. With no reason to wait, I quickly charged forward with my sword held back, ready to make a slash at my opponent. As I got closer, I noticed he lowered his sword and closed his eyes. Was he seriously not going to guard against my attack? Before I knew it, I was right in front of him and prepared to swing my sword down on him, only for Midnight Thunder to take a step to the side and stick out one of his hooves. I had lost my balance when my sword hit nothing but air and I was tripped by his hoof. Soon, I found myself falling over and caught a glimpse of him rotating his body around until his wooden sword smacked me in the face hard, leaving a mark before I had fully landed on the ground with a thud.

Soon, a roar of laughter rang out through the whole training yard as every guard clutched their sides. When I sat up to face my opponent, I was met with a wooden sword held within an inch of my face. “And just like that, you are dead.” He poked my forehead with the sword before moving it away. “You clearly have no formal training with a sword, meaning I’m going to have my work cut out for me if I’m going to mold you into a guard worthy of protecting the princesses.” He moved his arm to grab under my armpit, lifting me up with ease as he set me down on my feet. “Better get ready, rookie, because I’m gonna put you through Tartarus these next couple of days.” I could only gulp nervously as I started to wonder if I will live long enough under his training.

Roman sword for training.

Chapter 3

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