Key of The Guardian

(First Person-Nova)

It still hurt. I'm not accustomed to the gravity, but I can tell it's ever so slightly better than it was yesterday. Maybe my ability responds to trauma and adapts my body accordingly in an accelerated manner instead of gradual adaptation over several generation. Damn, I'm flexing those biology memories pretty hard for an internal thought. Then again, it's not like this isn't new.

"Good morning, Nova." I strained my body to an upright position to see Krystal standing in the doorway of my barracks room. She wasn't too thrilled about waking me up, but saw it as a necessary evil. I asked her if she could before entering the barracks. It was a little insurance incase I didn't wake up when I was supposed to.

"Good morning, Krystal and thanks again for helping me. I really appreciate it." I responded as I slowly lowered my feet off the enormous bed and on to the ground. I could just fall off like I usually did at home, to man potential injuries. It wasn't my best moment, but I'm still on house arrest until I can properly move around without much help.

"Don't worry about it, but you should read the news. Due to your appearance, the Guardian Trials have been postponed for the foreseeable future. Aurora had to pull a few strings to make sure you can stand a fighting chance." I nodded and made a mental note to thank her when I get the chance. I couldn't imagine what it was like to have to deal with someone who could barely function without your help... actually I could. My mom often helped with special needs children when I was in middle school... off topic, but the point is that I feel bad that I have to burden her for so much.

That's when I noticed a distinct issue; clothes. The fact that I could withstand such harsh temperatures yesterday is an anomaly. Who knows. Maybe they'll keep the bare minimum until I can handle the extra weight. I'll continue with what I have now or until told otherwise. In that case, I'll do whatever training I need to do indoors until I have the proper clothing and can move without the crushing weight.

I think I'm overthinking this. They're larger than me by a sizable margin so it could be a challenge to make clothes for someone who's so small. No, then their children won't have clothes either. It could be that they can't pinpoint my age. That's not counting the time and capital needed to make them. That includes the labor to make or gather the materials, finding someone who would want to help an outsider, and the general time it would take to complete them.

Damn it, I said I wasn't going to overthinking this. They could have simply not bothered. Get out your head, it only leads to bad. Pulling myself into a downwards spiral could make things worse for me and I'd be declared unfit for the trials and executed. They're society may not have anyplace for mentally unwell people. People barely brought attention to it on Earth so why would a society that seems to be less developed.

"You've been silent for several minutes. What's on your mind?" I froze for a second before catching up to her. Apparently, we had been walking the entire time. This wasn't something new and a habit I developed after being diagnosed with depression. Now I use it to think while on the move, but my spacial awareness still needs a little work.

"I'm just... Concerned. I could die soon for something beyond my control. It's hard not to think about and focusing on anything leads to my possible death. I can barely walk without pushing myself beyond what I thought imaginable. My mind is forcing me to see the only option as cutting my losses and get somewhere safe, but there isn't anywhere that I know that fits what I need."

"I'm nineteen, I still have my whole life ahead of me, but it's being threatened simply because I'm different. I'll admit, I'm scared. Everything could end so easily if I'm not good enough. I'm scared that... That no matter what I do, I'll fail. Damn it, no matter how you look at the situation, I'm cornered."

Krystal remained silent as she listened to my venting. Maybe I'm just complaining, but I still don't know how much time I have to prepare. Everything's just been confusing since I woke up the first time. More concepts, old societies, and even fucking sci-fi; my mind just can't get a break.

"You thought about this a lot, haven't you? I won't say that you're going to be fine, you clearly don't stand a chance now, but maybe in the near future. That special ability is having you adapt quicker to the gravity of this world. The first leg of your journey is to to just walk and let your magic do it's thing." The two stopped before Krystal looked at me once more, her face showing a bit of concern. "You're thinking too far ahead, slow down and take it piece by piece. From what I can tell, you're smart so use that brain of yours to the fullest extent."

"Yeah, that's what I'm told. Normally, I do a bit of both, but this is different..." I couldn't see Krystal's face, but I guarantee that she could see mine. "I'm terrified." I didn't know what to do now. Fresh out of basic and I'm still trying to adjust to making my own decisions again.

I was essentially an infant entering the world for the first time. I guess I pretty much am. Waking up for the second time in a strange new world. It's still a little much to process right now.

How did I get here in the first place? What happened? How is everyone doing after I appeared here? Are they looking for me? So many questions and so few answers. No point wishing for them, they won't be granted.

(Third Person)

Krystal looked at the terrified human. Despite the smile on his face, his eyes showed nothing but terror. She didn't know what he was thinking about, but she couldn't help but agree with his unwilling thoughts.

He was put in an unwinnable situation with almost all odds stacked against him. With so little time to train and learn. It could he said that he's on death's door.

However, he was still giving an attempt. It was something that she could admire. Despite his fear he still pressed forward. There was something she had to know something.

"Hey, Nova..." Krystal began. He had stopped in his tracks and looked at her. He still looked scared, but his eyes seemed as if he was ready for anything. "Why are you still pressing forward? You said it yourself; you'll fail."

"Because..." He paused. He looked down and back up. His smile was wider, as if to reassure her. "I don't know. Maybe it's just not in my nature to roll over and die, or maybe because quitting would be like spitting in the face of my Drill Sergeants. After all, the third line of the Warrior's Ethos is 'I will never quit'."

An Ethos? Krystal had never thought that he had words to live by. And if it's a Warrior's Ethos, did that me he was a soldier of some kind. He seemed for weak when she met him properly for the first time, but hearing him talk made her realize that there was a lot more to him than they thought. It only made the saying of never judge a book by its cover more real for her.

"That sounds stupid when you say it out loud." She commented as the human just chuckled. Even she had to admit that her words were poorly chosen, but he seemed to brush it off. "But I wish I could think like that. No reason to keep walking forward."

"You shouldn't put yourself down. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, but it's not like we can't change." The human yawned, his drowsiness still affecting him more than he thought.

"Inspirational quotes aside, I'm guessing you know what we're doing today?" Krystal walked past the man. He wasn't entirely sure. Having just woken up, his mind was still pretty foggy. It was one of the only reasons he seemed to not be affected by his anxiety when he talked to his video game wifu. He didn't care if someone made fun of him for it.

"Not a clue. Kinda doing as I go." Krystal sighed as she somewhat expected him to say that. With so much thrown at him at once, he didn't know what was happening.

"Apparently, they call it a Choosing Ceremony. A weapon will find it's place at your side." Both knew she was just repeating what she heard. It didn't change the fact that he didn't have a choice wether he was or wasn't going to do it.

"Got it, pulling shit out of my ass." He wasn't able to stop that one from coming out. He just knew that his sas was going to get the best of him at one point. Either way, Krystal laughed it off.

Despite the initial look of horror he had, he couldn't shake the smile that grew on his face. It was followed by a few lite chuckles before he burst out laughing. He joined Krystal's laughing fit as let the small moment of levity over take them. With all the stress of the day before, the far of the early morning, and finally the pressure of the ceremony; Nova was glad that he could talk to someone while Krystal was just happy to know that she was still able to talk to him.

The laughter soon began to die down. Krystal was the first to recover as she whipped a tear from her eye as Nova bent over to help stifle it. He has begun to use Krystal as a way to keep himself from falling. He ended it with a few deep breaths as he began to recover. She then looked up and breathed in deeper; still using Krystal as a crutch to stand.

She took the time to breath as he did. Laughing as hard as they did would take the Air out of his lungs. It was a small moment of levity that he desperately needed.

"Anyway, how has that Carbuncle?" Krystal asked, confusing him.

"Carbuncle? You mean the summons from Final Fantasy?" He responded.

Krystal didn't understand what he was saying until she realized something. Based on Nova's response, he never knew the Carbuncle. This made her wonder what made the creature form an attachment to the human.

"... I'll introduce you to her later." Krystal said with a little worry. "Let's wait until after the Choosing Ceremony."

"What exactly is the Choosing Ceremony?" Nova asked.

"It's an event where a weapon chooses a wielder." Nova looked at Krystal, his expression showed that he was still a little confused. "The weapon is based on viewing into branching timelines for all weapon types and determining the best possible future for the wielder. Whichever weapon type will give you the best future will float to you. It may not be immediately clear how good your future is, but it'll make sense later. For all we know, the weapon you get may only allow you to put up a good fight." Krystal looked at Nova with a raised finger. "Just so you know, you may not be able to pass even if you get your weapon. Not even High Priestess Aurora will know if it'll save you. All you can do is train as hard as you want." She stopped and crossed her arms before sighing. She looked at him with a worried look. "I've only seen it once and this explanation is based off of old records I read or what I was told my the High Priestess Council."

"That helps, Krystal. I appreciate you explaining this." Nova smiled at her which she returned. However, no matter what they showed, it was clear that both of their smiles were uneasy.

"Either way, we should be getting to the Ceremony Site soon." Krystal and Nova continued to walk to the location.

(First Person - Nova)

I stared at a huge crowd circling around a weapon rack. Several weapons lied on the wooden construction ranging from daggers to staves to revolvers.

"Wow, I didn't expect there to be guns." I said as I reached out to them. Many off the citizens here began to mutter as I played with one of the revolvers. I say played, but it was more of disassembling and reassembling. I learned how to do it when I was still really obsessed with firearms and took apart the weapons we had. "Looks like it's chambered in .357 Magnum."

"You know this stuff." A male voice said, causing me to look at them. The fox that spoke was a massive guy that seemed to stand a full foot and a half over the males I've seen. He was holding a massive metal axe that looked more ceremonial than practical, but with magic I doubt that's an issue.

"Yeah, I used to be a gun nut, but it's not what I'm used to." I checked the sights and preformed a functions check. "I may not look like it, but I am a trained soldier... Well, I trained with rifles and not pistols."

"I guess that doesn't help much since you're on a planet that has a stronger gravity than what you're used too." Krystal said as she walked up too us.

"Why are you talking like an NPC?" She recoiled after my statement.

"I'm trying to explain to the Raynard about your situation and you call me an NPC!" The male fox laughed as Krystal blushed in embarrassment.

"You have quite the mouth on you kid! And quite the Vixen as well. I pray for your prosperous relationship!" He said before walking away from us. "Call me David, I hope to see you in the finals!"

"Yeah, I hope so too!" I yelled back with a wave. "Mostly because I don't want to die." That last part was whispered, but with how sensitive their hearing might be, I'm pretty sure he heard it.

Krystal definitely heard what I had to say. She looked visibly sadder than she was before. I guess I opened up the can of sad with that comment. Not much I can do now so I might as well go with everything and do what I can.

"I see you already had a look at the weapons. Found any favorites?" A female voice said, making both the human and vixen to look at the voice.

"None yet, High Priestess. I'm just familiar with this one." I said while putting the revolver back. "Besides, it's better not to get my hopes up."

"I can see that you know how to prevent the feeling of disappointment, but it's it a good thing to get excited about something even if it doesn't come to be?" Aurora asked.

"Where I'm from, that could happen and then it could be cancelled. I remember waiting for a few years for a movie to come out only for it to be cancelled because one reviver said it was offensive. It eventually got released and even the offensive scene made it into a special feature." I moved away from the weapon rack. My Dark Magic is doing good since I'm mostly okay walking around now. "Twitter tore into that guy hard."

"I don't know what a Twitter is, but it can't be good if they ripped someone apart." I looked at her questioningly before it clicked in my mind.

"He means that others sent several angry messages to them because of the reason for the delay. It's more akin to harassment." Krystal explained, unintentional doing me a favor. "Social media isn't too common here so he might use vocabulary and slang you aren't familiar with like how I was before I became more mindful."

"I see. Thank you, Krystal." Aurora said with a patient smile. "I hope the Ceremony falls in your favor."

"You understood how this works right?" Krystal looked at me as I walked to a location a decent distance away from the weapon rack. I didn't know how the Ceremony worked, but I'd be damned to get cut by a floating weapon.

"Nope." I answered simply.

"You told me you appreciated my explanation!" Krystal glared at me while I was relaxed.

"I said I appreciated it, not that I understood." Krystal grabbed my shoulders and shook me violently.

"You're an asshole!"

I could feel my brain hit every corner of my skull as Krystal shook me. I was definitely going to need headache medicine after this. I'd like to not start today with a bad headache.

"If you'll excuse me, Krystal." Aurora said over her friend's yelling. "But we must continue the Ceremony." Krystal stopped shaking me after realizing that someone was talking to her.

"What?" Krystal questioned absentmindedly before realizing that all eyes were on her. "Oh my gosh." Her squeaking voice after realizing what she did sounded incredibly cute to me. Not to mention that her ears flopped down and her tail was pulled in front of her face to hide her embarrassment. It was adorable.

"Alright let's begin." Aurora summoned a pure white staff. It looked like it was made of two poles coiling around one another before separating towards the end. The ends curved around an orb of pure light before reconnecting at pointed tips. "Goddess of Creation; Cuncta, Goddess of Destruction; Ruina; hear my call and grant this young warrior with his destined weapon!"

As if on que, the weapon rack began to shake mildly as the weapons vibrated. Many fell off as if they weren't we're the correct ones. I looked over at Krystal as she looked at me. She shrugged showing that she didn't know what was happening. Maybe others were far more clear with what they were supposed to have.

"Yes, we praise thee, our beloved goddesses for your thoughtful consideration! Thou judgement shall not be questioned for we trust in it!" I looked at Aurora as she seemed to be going full zealot here, but I had to remind myself that I'm literally looking at god's will right now... Or is it goddess's will?

"I'm suddenly feeling unsure about this." I said, a slight but of fear entering my voice. I took more steps back as more weapons began to fly off the rack; some just fell off while others flew in random directions.

The weapon rack began to rumble more violently as more weapons flew off it. It was almost as if it was getting frustrated. This seemed so surreal even in this world of magic.

Eventually, the weapon rack stopped shaking entirely as the final weapon fell. No one said anything as the long Ceremony finally came to an end, but not in my favor. Not a single weapon was chosen for me. Not even the firearms.

It should go without saying... I was distraught.

"What... This doesn't make sense." Aurora said in disbelief. I'm guessing this is a first for her; someone not getting a weapon.

"Quite the show the Goddesses gave us." A familiar voice said as my arms were restrained by arcane binds. "However, you cannot continue with the deal, so our hands are tied." I looked towards the voice to see who it was; the head of the Parliament.

"Damn it, Aurora, What should we do?!" Krystal yelled, her voice holding concern as a fox approached me; sword in hand.

"I don't know." Aurora responded. It was faint, but I could still hear it.

But what can we do? Even if I do get a weapon, I still have less experience and training. It was still a longshot.

"Talk about cruel." I said. "Pulled away from my home, nearly froze to death, and still getting executed because I'm not from here." I chuckled before I looked Aurora dead in the eyes. "Aurora, don't take this personally. You've been trying to help me from the beginning, but... THIS PLACE SUCKS!!!"

"Vulgar creature!" The head said as the fox with the sword raised his sword.

As the sword came down, something broke the executioners blade. A loud boom echoes as the snow on the ground cover the object and I in a snowy vail.

"What is the cause of this rebellion?!" The head yelled.

'I said we'd speak again.' A familiar female voice said as the binds disappeared from my wrist. 'Take up your sword, for it will guide you to victory.'

As the snow started to settle, a large great sword taller than me had pierced the ground meer inches from me. It was almost pure white and gold with chains covering the guard. The gold formed various crosses going up the blade while the white portions acting as the background to the gold. The blade itself was a bright silver as gold acted as a second coat on the guard. In the center of the guard was a blue gem with a silver circle around it with silver X over it. The handle was pure white with the pommel having a second blue gem in a gold diamond.

Without time to waste, I gripped the sword. And it completely changed in color and design. It was incredible to see as black tendrils snaked down my arms and infused itself into the sword. Maybe my ability corrupts objects. If it corrupted people, then Aurora would be different; same thing for Krystal.

The blade stayed the same color as the previous color scheme, but the white portions turned black and most of the gold turned red. The design of the gold on the blade formed to look like three red tridents connecting to each other down the middle. The closer the newly red designs got to the guard, the smaller thy became. It looked like a fourth was going to form, but it seemed as if the material ran out. The red designs and black back ground seemed as if it was creating an abstract depiction of fire.

The white on the guard and handle turned black as well with the gold remaining untouched. The white turned black as expected with the blue gem turning red. The same color scheme affected the handle and the gem at the end. The chains around it linked to the bottom and at the end formed a black crown with three points.

I lifted the sword with ease, the black tendrils of energy linking my arms to the great sword. As the slow began to settle, I saw the silhouette a single fox with a sword in hand preparing to charge. As it cleared I could see it was the head of the Parliament.

'Can you feel that. The absence of your anxiety. Without their words clouding your ears, you're able to focus more.' I slung the sword to my side, getting ready to swing. 'In time you'll learn to focus only on yourself and your opponent. For now, use the silence to block against your greatest weakness. Now...

STRIKE!'

With a powerful step, the ground cracked underneath my foot. The following bound sent me speeding towards the fox faster than I could comprehend. Out of instinct, my feet dug into the ground and I swung my sword.

The look of shock on his face at my sudden appearance made my day. He raised his sword to block, only for his blade to break immediately upon contact with mine.

'Twist your wrist!' The female voice yelled.

With the only conscious effort I made since grabbing this sword, I twisted my wrist; hitting the fox with the flat of the sword. Following through with the swing, he was sent off the ground and into the awed crowd where he was caught by a mage.

'From here on out, you will have to act alone. My Champion of Dark, get stronger and improved your skills. You acted on instinct and your reflexes are superb, but it won't be enough for you to win.' The tendrils disappeared and the weapon got several times heavier as did the gravity. 'Even if you fail to become The Guardian, continue fighting. This world needs you even if it doesn't know yet.'

'Farewell.'

My body collapsed to the ground. I was exhausted from the use of the burst of strength. Despite that, I managed to land on my knees and not fall face first.

"That bastard!" The head said as he struggled to get back up. "You'll pay for that!"

"N-no. You just counted me out and instead of revising the contract like a professional; you skip straight to me not fulfilling my end." I struggled to my feet while using my new sword to prop myself up. "I'm guessing you brought everyone out here to watch me fail like that'll make me loose my confidence." I smiled. "Guess this backfired on you. Because I had to deal with this for most my life! Tell me I can't, IT'LL MAKE THE SATISFACTION OF PROVING YOU WRONG FEEL EVEN BETTER!!!"

(Third Person - Canterlot)

"Cheryl, are you alright?" Celestia asked as she walked towards her friend. "You've been worried all day an now you're fine."

"It was just a feeling, Celestia. But I do understand why you'd be concerned." Cheryl responded before smiling at her friend. "You'll be happy to hear that I didn't feel worried anymore. If anything, I feel pride."

"Odd." Celestia placed a finger to her chin. "Almost every mage could feel an overwhelming surge of Dark Magic not too long ago."

"Are you saying that I might be connected to the recent surge?" Celestia nodded with an apologetic look. "I can assure you that I did not cause it."

"I'm not saying you caused it, just that you might be connected." Celestia gave her human friend a small smile. "The cause could be a family member or a close friend."

"A-are you saying..." Cheryl looked up at the alicorn in disbelief.

"Yes, the culprit behind the surge may be someone you knew." Cheryl felt tears welling in her eyes as her face broke into a smile.

"Thank God. Please... Please let it be one of my babies." Celestia felt her ears twitch. She didn't have the heart to tell her friend that they might have to fight them if they become hostile.

"Rest up for today. I'll see if we can hurry the preparations so we got leave as soon as possible." Cheryl nodded before Celestia looked to a guard. "Would you please make sure that Mrs.Cheryl makes it to her room please?"

The guard saluted, assuring that Cheryl would make it to her room. The guard de-summoned her weapon and let the human use her as support.

"Let's go, miss." The guard said softly. She had seen the entire event and understood that Cheryl needed some time to calm down. So the guard couldn't talk how she was trained to; loud and clear.

"Thank you." Cheryl responded with a low tone. After hearing that the surge could've been done by someone she knew, she held hope that she could live a slightly normal life. She couldn't wait until the time came to venture towards the surge. "Could you tell me your name?"

"Winged Spear." The guard didn't say much as she helped the unwell human.

"May I call you Spear for short?" The mare glanced at the woman before giving a small smile.

"Of course, miss."

With Celestia, she didn't have the same hope as her human friend. Ger expression was far more serious as she walked to the throne room.

"Mother, Father; we need to talk!" Celestia announced loudly.

"If it's about that surge, sister; don't worry, I already told them." A dark blue alicorn said as stood before the king and queen.

"Yes, we're aware of the concerning surge. Even Luna was pulled from her sleep." The king said before standing. "We'll mobilize out forces immediately-!"

"The cause of the surge is connected to Cheryl." Celestia interrupted. This caused the king to pause before he sat back down.

"And that complicates the matters. Depending on who this cause is, then humans may not longer be endangered." The queen commented as she put a finger to her chin in thought. "Celestia, do you have an idea who it might be?"

"I don't have many guesses, but she has told me that she had five children, two of which she isn't related to and one belonging to another husband she had." The fact their human friend was a mother and a wife surprised most of them. "That about as much as I know. Since she felt satisfaction, we can infer that it could be one of them."

"Very true, if it were her parents, she would have felt worry. If it was lust, then it was a lover." Luna said as she looked up to her parents as if to confirm her statement.

"You've been paying attention in Star Swirl's teachings." The king praised, not wanting Luna to go unnoticed for her knowledge. "This gives us more options. We may be capable of reasoning with this Catalyst of the Dark."

"Celestia, continue watching over that area and scan for anything specific. If we can narrow down the location, then we can save several days of our travels." The queen ordered.

"What of our transport?" Celestia asked.

"I guess I have more information than you for once sister." Luna boasted, earning an amused smirk from the older sister. "Our transport is secured. Sombra was able to aquire everything we need. We're just waiting for the accommodations for Mrs.Cheryl."

"Thank you Luna." Luna beamed at her sister before Celestia bowed to her mother an father. "I will take my leave. I will do as you ordered and thank you for hearing me out."

"Don't worry, Celestia. We'd never shut our daughters out." The queen said as Celestia left to complete her task with Luna following her. Luna was going back to sleep to prepare for the night. She needed to adjust her sleep schedule if she wanted to take on the responsibility of raising the moon.