Cobalt the Human Monk's Origin Story
I used to be just your average gallop-of-the-mill earth pony stallion. My name is Cobalt. I once lived in a small rural town called Ponyville in the land of Equestria. I was born and raised there by my mother and father, along with my younger brother. My coat was blue, my eyes green, my straight mane (often pulled back into a short ponytail) was black, and my tail had a blue stripe. They were naturally both striped, but I dyed my mane solid black once on a bet and rather liked it that way. My cutie mark was a pink and purple rainbow with the words “My Little Pony” written underneath.
Though I could never figure out exactly what my cutie mark was supposed to be, my talents were creative writing and imagination. I drew quite a bit, though I never really was great at it. Like all earth ponies, I had above-average strength and the ability to grow thriving crops, though I seldom used either of these unless I was helping out a friend. I also possessed wisdom and capacity for thought, though I shared a sense of randomness with my best friend Pinkie Pie, meaning I oftentimes had difficulty relating to others. I guess you could say that I wasn't a very social pony. However, I did have some friends, and I would protect them if the need arose.
My difficulty relating to others had other implications as well. I had no empathy, though I was often kind just because it was my nature. But my thought processes didn't usually factor morals, rather, they considered logic and the law. Once, during a psychology course, the professor mentioned a group of ponies who were forced to cannibalism due to starvation. She said that the choice to only eat those who had already perished was more humane, and I pointed out that the humane choice would have been to kill those on the verge of death to end their suffering sooner. Their choice to eat the dead was actually not humane at all, merely “more ethical.” I often had trouble dictating what other ponies would find acceptably and did not feel shame nor regret, leading me to do ridiculous things that most would cause most ponies extreme embarrassment. My friends either liked or at least were tolerant of these traits, but those who did not know me were usually unnerved or put off.
I had a few friends in Ponyville: Pinkie Pie, Derpy Hooves, Spike, Twilight Sparkle, Zecora, and the Apple family. Pinkie Pie was my best friend because she was so much like me. We both were earth ponies, we both were incredibly random, we both had hyperactive streaks, and we both liked to make others smile (though she usually had more success than me). But most of all, we understood each other. Nopony else could truly understand our minds. They would say, “She's just being Pinkie Pie,” or “That's Cobalt for you!” But we saw the order in the chaos as clear as the sky in ten seconds flat.
But my life in Ponyville suddenly was taken from me one fateful day. I was trotting home from the library, where I had returned the book I had just finished, Myriad of Monsters: A Guide to Equestria's Dangerous Beasts. Just as my house came into view, there was a massive, blinding flash of light. A deafening crack filled my ears, and I fell to the ground, blacking out.
When I woke up, I was lying face-down on a stone floor in a dark, cold room. I tried to stand up, but I quickly realized that my hooves were gone! I sat back and looked at where they had been. What I saw weren't mine: two fleshy, naked, brown forelegs, with what appeared to be five smaller legs on the end of each. I flexed them, and to my surprise, they bent! I looked down at my hind-legs, which were the same naked brown. However, they looked much different than my forelegs: flat, longer, and with shorter legs at the end. I quickly looked around for something to reflect my face. I found a small, dirty puddle on the cold tile and looked at it. What stared back at me was a flat, brown face, more like a Diamond Dog's than a pony's. Where my muzzle had been was now a small knob with nostrils. My ears moved to the sides of my head and were round now. My eyes had shrunken, but were still their characteristic green. I opened my mouth and saw strange teeth, especially the pointy ones near the front. My mane was still black, and was the only thing I could see that hadn't changed.
I tried to stand up again, but it was awkward trying to get around on all four legs. Since I looked a little like a Diamond Dog, I figured that I should try to walk like one. I was shocked by how easy it was to balance on only my hind-legs. I was relieved to notice that my cutie mark was still on my flanks. My tail, however, had disappeared. My purple and pink rainbow was the only thing that remained of my equinity.
I heard the patter of steps on tile. I watched as a door was opened, a robed figure with pointed ears stepping through the light and walking down the steps. He smiled in a sinister way. “Ah, you're awake,” he said. “Good. My servants need to be awake to do my bidding.”
“Who are you? And why have you brought me here?” I managed to ask.
“Who am I? WHO AM I!!??” the aged creature shouted. “I am the mighty summoner Changrastico the Merciless, the most powerful magician in the land for over a century! And I have brought you here to serve my every whim. Since I have no use for colorful horses, I have used a transfiguration spell to change your form to a more useful one.” He gestured at my cutie mark. “I wasn't able to get ride of that eyesore, though.”
“Thank Celestia for that,” I thought. That “eyesore” was the one thing of my former self that I had left.
“And don't even think of escape,” the summoner continued. “I have put in place many measures to prevent it, the least of which is a Dimensional Anchor spell. You have nowhere to go. You will stay here and obey my commands, and I will treat you fairly. But try to run, and you will be punished so harshly that you will beg me for death.”
I was overwhelmed by the news that I would never be able to return to my home. I collapsed to the floor, almost to the point of crying. Changrastico threw some cloth at me. “Now, for your first task, you shall cover yourself. No servant of mine shall be seen walking around naked.”
I worked for the summoner, obeying his commands and carrying out his orders. He mostly just had me moving his things around (he felt physical labor was below him), but on occasion he had me actively participate in his rituals, usually as a host body for some kind of spirit or demon. I think he used other people for the spells, too, but I never saw any of them leave the castle. He had several other servants who would leave the castle and come back with struggling burlap sacks that cried out for help. I tried to ask them about it, but they didn't respond, carrying out their duties with neither words nor emotion. I don't think they were alive at all, because I saw Changrastico cast a spell on a dead man once. The dead man got up and began to clean the room. He carried out the summoner's orders from then on. I was the only intelligent servant in the castle.
I thought I would be doing these menial tasks for the rest of my life, but after nearly a year's worth of slavery, three strange men showed up at the door. Two were short and bearded, one with a long nose, and one was bigger and much more heavier-muscled than me, with a brutish face. They brandished heavy axes and shields, called themselves “paladins”. They insisted on seeing Changrastico, and when I took them to him, the huge one shouted, “Changrastico the Merciless, you will pay for your crimes against nature and all things living!” and attacked him.
I'm not sure how the battle went, because as soon as it started I ran out the door. I sprinted from the castle and just kept going. I wanted to get as far away from that place as possible.
After an hour of running, with no sign of the evil summoner, I sat down to rest. I was finally free. But Changrastico's words were true: I had nowhere to go. But then I saw a hooded figure approaching me. At first I almost jumped, fearing that it was the evil magician coming back to punish me for escaping. I knew from that moment I would probably never be able to trust magic users. But the robed man spoke to me in a gentle, reserved voice, “Have you lost your way, brother?”
I was unable to comprehend this. Had my sibling somehow managed to... find me? I simply nodded and asked, “Who are you?”
My hopes of returning to Equestria were dashed when he said, “I am Father Grigori. I am the head of the Jangran Monastery.”
A bit deflated, I muttered, “Cobalt.”
“Brother Cobalt,” the hooded man continued, “If you are hungry and lonely, we are never ones to turn away a stranger in need. Come, join us, let us make you feel at home.”
I was shocked by this random act of generosity. From the little I had seen of this dimension, acts of unprovoked kindness were incredibly rare. I was a bit suspicious, but I followed him anyway. I told him about my slavery, but glazed over the details of my origins. He expressed his satisfaction at the end. “Sounds like someone finally had the nerve to put down that horrible summoner. His evil knew no bounds.” Though I knew that Changrastico actually had a strict, albeit twisted, moral code, I just shrugged.
Eventually the two of us reached a walled village. The gate was guarded by two women in robes wielding long staffs. We walked through the tall double doors and into a small community. The men and women we passed by all looked like me, though with different colors of skin. They greeted Father Grigori. A tall man with muscles like tree trunks shook his hand. “Welcome back Father,” he boomed. He gestured toward me, “And who is this you have brought with you?”
“This is Brother Cobalt. He has just escaped a life of servitude, and needs somewhere to fit in.”
“Well, we're not ones to turn away a stranger in need..” muttered the huge man, echoing the Father's words. He turned to face me. “Brother Cobalt, I am Brother Nameerf Nodrog. If you truly wish to join us and study the martial arts, you must pass the test you prove yourself worthy. Are you prepared?”
Without hesitation, I responded, “My body is ready.”
I was quickly knocked to the floor by Nameerf's powerful sucker-punch. I lay there on the ground, my chest aching. “What the hay was that for?”
“Lesson one!” he shouted. “Always be on the guard. An attack can come from anywhere at any time!” He reached out his hand to me, as if offering to help me up. Thinking he was moving to attack me again, I rolled away and jumped up to my feet.
Misinterpreting my motives, the huge man gave a laugh. “Well then, you seem to have passed the test! You learned from your mistake! That shows wisdom! You are now officially a Jangran monk-in-training!”
I was a little confused as to why wisdom would be important for a martial artist. Brother Nameerf and I discussed this over dinner. Over the next few years, he trained me in the ways of fighting, both with bare hands and with traditional monk's weapons such as a quarterstaff, a nunchaku, and sling. It was difficult, and it directly contrasted my peaceful pony nature, but I apparently had a knack for it. My immense strength aided me a little, but I still found I could often be bested by those who were smaller, but more experienced. But I worked hard at it and gave it my all.
On the day my training was complete, the entire community gathered to congratulate me. “Cobalt,” said Father Grigori. “It has only been five short years since I found you homeless and wandering in a field and took you in. But in that time, you have proven yourself and become one of the most skilled monks in all of Jangran. Now you have only one last task before you can be called a master.”
I nodded. I knew what was coming, but I had the wisdom to let the Father finish.
“You must leave the monastery, go out into the world, and make a name for yourself. You must remember all you have learned, and use your expertise to accomplish great deeds. Whether you choose to win a tournament, save a princess, slay a dragon, or anything else is up to you. But you must not return to the Jangran Monastery until you have done something worthy of a true master.”
They gave me a traditional monk's outfit, a step up from my trainee robes. They also gave me a small amount of gold, a quarterstaff, a sling. Then they bid me farewell. As the doors closed behind me, I smiled to myself. I was in for the adventure of a lifetime.
