Crimson Tears and Shattered Soulsby Edanite PhoenixChaptersPrologue I : The Last StandPrologue II : AwakeningChapter I : The CalmPrologue I : The Last StandThe night was cold and unwelcoming, rain and high winds swept the land, the trees bent to their will. The violent dark storm overhead seemed to swirl over a tall ancient tower resting atop a mountain. On the top of the tower two darkened figures circled one another ominously. A flash of lightning revealed them, they stood tall on two feet, clad in metal armor. The first wore full silver plating covering all but the head, long wet brown hair flailed in the wind, a fur-less face with cold piercing blue eyes shining with each flash of lightning. In its arms it held a beautiful blue sword of crystal, no longer then a broad sword. The second figure bore dark, heavy armor that even the lightning failed to fully illuminate. Its head was covered by a dark helm, only a glowing crimson eye radiated through. In each hand it bore a grotesque weapon of flesh and steel in the form of sabers, these weapons had eyes of there own that blinked and stared at the circling other. Slowly the figures slowed to a stop, tension build between them more fierce then the storm overhead, the dangerous and powerful winds failed to move them as the rain failed to avert there dead lock stares. A flash of lightning faded taking with it the two figures. Another flash of lightning was accompanied by the sound of metal striking with great force, the two had charged and began a relentless assault on each other. The impact of the blades knocked the rain aside, the wind itself screamed as the swords sliced through before the clash of metal more violent and terrifying then any lightning strike. All the while the two stared unblinking into each others eyes as they danced the dance of malice and death. The assaults lasted but a moment. Suddenly the silver clad creature lunged forward, its body slammed and pushed the other back. As the dark figure recovered it looked up to see the silver figure had lifted its crystal blade high in the air before it brought it down strong and fast, the dark figure brought itself up and swung one of its blades in an attempted to counter the attack. The sound of tearing metal filled the night, neither figure moved, the storm itself quietened as if in anticipation of the next act. The blade in the dark figures hand shattered in a spray of blood and metal. With a scream it charged the silver figure with a desperate swing of its remaining sword. The silver figure dodged it with ease before it brought a metal grieve up. It connected with the dark figures chest causing it to stagger back, the sound of rending metal froze it in place. Looking down it saw the crystal blade extending from its chest. The dark figure impaled the sword of flesh into the ground leaning on it for support. In its last breaths it lifted itself and stepped backwards before falling on to its back with a load thump and the sound of metal scraping stone. The storm, now as silent as a mouse watched as the silver clad creature walked to the dark figure and retrieved it sword. Turning on its heels it stared at the grotesque blade. The silver figure swung its blade high above its head, the sword itself shone brilliantly as it drew power, the storm picked up more fiercely then ever as if in excitement. It brought the crystal sword down striking the sword of flesh, for a moment time seem to stop as the two swords connected. Slowly time speed up as both shattered, the released power from both blades radiated across the land before it faded away. The silver clad figure stood over the shattered remains of the three swords and the lifeless corpse. Looking up it saw the storm had disappeared and a beautiful full moon with a blanket of stars covering the sky. The silver figure staggered as the tower shifted, it looked up to the moon, its mouth curved into a small smile. The mountain cracked and split in an attempted to swallow the tower it held. The tower twisted and turned as it collapsed into the open mouth of the mountain. When the night finally fell silent it was as if nothing had occurred. The tower forever lost and with it the two greatest weapons, relics and monsters. -{----- In the heart of the mountain a small red glow shone faintly in the darkness, soon another joined then another, until the cavern was illuminated. In the center an eye snapped open and slowly the glowing red lights began to move. Uncounted years later the eye opened again only this time it was mounted on the guard of a small sword of flesh and steel. Slowly it closed its eye, drifting to a long sleep waiting for the day it would write the next chapter in its story. Prologue II : AwakeningSoul Edge stood quietly impaled in the hardened earth of the dark ruins, it slowly opened its eye, looking around it saw that everything was the same, black. 'Three million six hundred and forty thousand' it thought to itself, 'Three million six hundred and forty thousand days since I healed.' Soul Edge was now weaker then when it was first created, all the souls it had collected were gone, exercised by the accursed crystal sword, Soul Calibur and only had enough power left to tell if it was light or dark outside the mountain. Using this the sword counted the days, a habit it took up after its second defeat, a battle forever lost to history. As time slowly moved forward Soul Edge found itself wondering if it would ever see day light again and what it would do if it was free. As always it told itself that history always repeats itself, it will be free and it will continue a glorious slaughter across the lands, though now these thoughts bore less weight then they once did over three million days ago. Eventually it started to close its eye to drift back into a deep sleep, 'All I can do now, is count the days.' --{----- The sun shined down upon a tall, scarred mountain surrounded by an ancient and lush forest. At the base of the mountain stood a ruined village hidden by the trees for untold generations. The ruins were focused mostly to the mountain thinning out as it got further away. Many pony like creatures wandered these ruins working endlessly to their goal. An aged stallion no more then five feet tall with a powerful muscular build, a dark chestnut coat with short grey mane and tail. His body bore many battle scars and the image of wind wrapping around a stone stood proudly on his flank. He continued to wander the ruins keeping a sharp, cold brown eye on the workers and foreign soldiers, a mixture of ponies. There are three types of ponies in the world. He himself was a Unicorn, this is known due to a horn mounted firmly on his head, they are creatures gifted in magic and use it in there daily life's. The second breed are known as Pegasus or Pegasi, these creatures don't have a horn and lack the magical ability but bare a pair of powerful wings given them the ability to fly and interact with clouds as if they were solid. Finally there were those who were born without these gifts, Earth Ponies, the aged stallion bore great respect for these type of ponies for even though they did not have the gift of flight or magic, they made for fierce, proud and formidable opponents. He heard a trotting noise behind him moving closer, turning to see who was running up behind him, unafraid or worried for the trot was too light to be anything other they a foal. "Hi Dad!" came a young cheery voice. The aged Stallion smiled at the young Unicorn filly standing before him, she was no more then two and a half feet tall wearing a blueish black coat with a light golden mane and tail of medium length, her bright green eyes stared lovingly up to him. "Hello Nor." said the stallion. "Are you having fun?" "Yes, I'm playing hide and seek." she replied. "Have you seen Crescent?" The stallion smiled, "Are you seeking him?" He asked. The little filly only looked away. He put on a stern face to hide a smile and suppress a laugh. "The point of hide and seek is to find the hidden on your own." he said, "It would be unfair if I told you where he is." "So you do know where he is." She said looking up to lock eyes. The stallion flinched, she had managed to trick him into given her that much information. She stepped forward. "Where is he?" she asked gently but her eyes were demanding. "I don't know." said the stallion as he slowly backed away. "You know it's not nice to lie." she said factually. He was losing ground fast, he knew how relentless she can get but he was determined to stand strong. "If you don't tell me the truth I wont bake your favorite." His determination broke, lowering his head in defeat. Her cooking was second to none and her apple crumble was his favorite treat. "He went up to the excavation site." he indicated to the base of the mountain. "You had better make me a dam good apple crumble." he said. "Of course I will." she replied cheerfully. Stepping forward she hugged him, "Thanks Daddy." She then turned on her heels and ran straight for the excavation site. Smiling the stallion continued his task. (>'.')>--{------- Nor ran as fast as she could in order to find Crescent. When it came to hiding Nor was unmatched but Crescent was smart, he knew the best places to hide just by knowing the seekers personality and he knew hers well. She herself thought he would not go to the excavation site due to the soldiers, they seem to hate Crescent though thankfully that isn't the case with the workers. As she came up to the site she stopped and called up to a nearby cloud; "Is Crescent ahead?" The cloud seemed to shift and a blue head emerged out of the bottom, lime green eyes looked down to her. The head wore a silver helm covering the mane. "Crescent?" came a soft voice, "Let me check." The cloud dispersed and the Pegasus landed gently in front of her. The Pegasus was a four foot Mare barely out of her teens, her coat was light blue up close. Her tail was long, silver and flowed elegantly behind her, a picture of a silver music note on her flank. The most unusual and beautiful thing about her was her silver feathers on her large wings. She proceeded to enter the site. "Thank you Melody!" Melody simply waved a hoof back at her. Nor waited patiently while staring at her own blank flank, 'I wonder when I'll get mine.' she wondered. Looking up she saw Melody return. "He's ahead helping out." she said gently. "Thank you again Melody." "Anything to help." she replied, "Give my regards to Sleipnir." Nor paused at the mention of her fathers name. "I'm making apple crumble for us tonight, would you like to come over for some?" she quickly asked. "Alright." came the soft reply. She watched as Melody took to the sky. "And give Crescent a nice hug for both of us." she added with a wink before shooting upwards. Nor sat silently, a slight blush formed on her face. Moments later she shook herself and continued into the site. The site itself was where the majority of the ancient village sat, collapsed houses scattered here and there, some ruins half swallowed by the earth. She stopped to admire the beauty of the scene. Many ponies were working hard up closer to the mountain. Pegasi were flying supplies around the site while Unicorns and Earth Ponies were busy moving rocks and carefully tending to relics found in the excavations. Nor looked around carefully and smiled as she saw a small Unicorn help move supplies. Quickly moving across the site she ran straight up to the young Unicorn. The Unicorn, a young Colt was two and a half feet tall, same as her, though young his physique was slender and well built. He had a chestnut brown coat and dark brown, almost black mane and tail. The mane was short but thick and unkept though his tail was the same length as hers. He also bore no cutie mark. The truly stunning thing about him was his ivory horn mounted on his head. "Found you." she said joyfully. "It took you long enough, I've been here for most of the day." he said curtly. "Doesn't matter, I still found you." she countered. Crescent lifted the supplies he had onto a nearby table. "And I suppose you had no help?" "Nope." lied Nor. Crescent locked eyes with hers. She stared back afraid to blink or turn away, his eyes a captivating grayish blue. The stare lasted but a moment but felt like years for the young filly. "I suppose Melody stopped by for the fun of it?" Nor froze, she knew she was caught, Melody never stepped into the site because of how the soldiers acted around her. Lowering her head in defeat she began to apologize but Crescent cut her off. "It doesn't matter I suppose, you did find me in the end." Looking up she saw that his face was as set as always but his eyes told otherwise, 'He is worried he upset me.' she thought a small smile creeping across her face. "Anyway, we should go, the soldiers are getting restless around me." said Crescent with a hint of worry in his voice. Looking around she noticed the nearby soldiers eying them dangerously. "Why would they care so much about a Filly and Colt." she said annoyed. "You know why." Crescent replied walking away from the site. Nor followed, she knew why but she didn't like it. Crescent was a Taint, a pony whose main appendage is a different color from their coat, for Pegasi it was their feathers, for Unicorns it was their horn and for Earth Ponies it was their hooves though there are times when Earth Ponies are born with hooves colored the same as their manes, these ponies are not considered Taints. Like Crescent, Melody is a Taint. 'But they are so kind and gentle, why would anypony hate them just for being a Taint?' She thought sadly. "It's because of the old legends." said Crescent seemingly reading Nor's mind. "I know." she replied. She thought about the old legend, about how Ponies appeared with different colored appendages. They always became masters at whatever they specialized in but one day, led by a golden horned Unicorn they rose up and attempted to usurp the throne. Warriors grouped together and formed a brotherhood under the name of a sacred but lost Order called the Edanite's. These brave warriors drove back the army and ultimately saved the kingdom. They say the Order still stands and protect the kingdom in secrecy and the rare few born with unusual coloring were branded with the name Taint and are feared and hated even now. They had walked most of the way back to camp, all was silent as everybody was back at the excavation site. "You know Dad doesn't hate you right? He wont do anything to hurt you." "I know." replied Crescent. "I trust Sleipnir with my life." "Even though?" she stopped herself. "I'm sorry." she whispered. Crescent paused for a moment, Nor began to shack, afraid and upset that she may have hurt him, Crescent never liked talking about his family. He slowly turned and embraced her. "I don't hate you or him." he said gently, "And nothing will change that." Nor returned the embrace, she felt warm and safe in his gently yet strong hooves, slowly her shaking stopped. A long time had passed before they finally broke away from each other and continued down the path to the nearby camp. A smiling blue Pegasus watched them from the clouds. "I'm amazed at how strong you are." Melody said to no one. Lifting herself from the cloud she smiled thoughtfully. 'I too trust Sleipnir, he gave up everything to protect you both, he even saved my life.' With a beat of her wings she lift herself into the air and silently glided after the two young ponies. <('o')> An odd noise woke Soul Edge from its sleep. 'What is that?' It thought. It patiently sat in the dark listening. Suddenly it grew excited as it recognized the noise. It was the sound of digging, something powerful slamming into rock, 'Someone or something is trying to get in!' it thought with great anticipation. <(-.-)> Sleipnir stopped at the excavation site entrance. He Looked up to see that Melody had disappeared. 'Guess that means they aren't here.' he thought. He remembered back to when they first arrived at the camp to act as guard as per their contract, he noticed how the other soldiers stared at both Melody and Crescent. Melody noticed as well and promised to keep an eye on the young ones while he focused on his work. 'If Melody isn't here then that means that Crescent and Nor are elsewhere.' He hated bringing the young ones with him but since he was a traveling Mercenary without a home and had plenty of enemy's who would happily use them against him, he had no choice. The good thing is that Melody travels with them and has always been willing to watch them while he worked. He fully trusted in Melody and her skills in combat having fought her himself a few years back. He had taken her in and thought her to control and focus her mind but never once tried to teach her psychically as her techniques and style were completely the opposite of his. His thoughts wandered to her style, it completely opposed even the Pegasi hit and run fighting style. Unlike the Pegasus style which involved staying out of reach before quickly swooping in for a single hit then taking to the sky again. She prefer close quarter combat, her moves were fluent and graceful but also lethal. His thoughts were interrupted by a commotion coming from the site. With a shake of his head he brought himself back to reality, he jogged further in to see excited ponies run wildly around the ruins. Stopping a nearby mare Earth Pony, he asked; "What's going on?" "We found a large hollow pocket at the base of the mountain!" she replied, to say she was excited would be an understatement. "We're rushing to get through the mountain wall to it!" "Take me there." he said politely. The mare nodded and ran ahead of him. It didn't take long to reach the location. A large wall of ponies blocked their way but he pushed through them with the mare close behind. When he finally made it to the front he was amazed to see the magnitude of the ponies effort to get to the pocket. Earth Ponies slammed and bucked the hard rock till it gave way while Unicorns levitated the boulders and rocks away to help the Earth Ponies dig faster without wasting time. As they worked the Pegasi were busy constructing the supports to stop the developing cave from collapsing on the miners. Sleipnir could only watch in awe, while normally the different breeds hated and distrust each other, the level of cooperation between them in this work site was amazing, but what he was witnessing was something else. He had only seen cooperation like this once, in a Kingdom called Equestria. /('-')\ Soul Edge vibrated with delight, the sound of digging and shattering rocks echoed violently across the cavern walls. Suddenly the sound of collapsing rock filled the cavern. Closing its eye against the sudden blinding light. It fell still, basking in the glow of the sun, the first touch of light in over four million five hundred thousand days. It then heard voices, a language he didn't recognize. Opening its eye it was surprised to see not humans but the silhouette of many odd creatures. A voice rose above them all and the silhouettes receded from the newly formed cave, then one large silhouette walked in. It drew close to Soul Edge until finally it could make out what it was seeing. In shock it saw a horse, 'No.' It corrected itself, a pony. A large, aged pony no more then five feet tall loomed over it, the pony had a dark chestnut coat with a short grey mane and tail. The body was large, muscular and refined and covered in scars showing its many military experiences. Soul Edge stared into the pony's eyes, suddenly it was shocked, behind those dark brown eyes he recognized something it only saw in humans. The pony before Soul Edge was sentient. The pony shouted something behind it before leaving. More commotion and shouting could be heard but Soul Edge didn't care. It was busy taking in its new discovery and enjoying the light as the sun slowly descended behind the forest. (>'.')> <('.'<) Sleipnir stepped out of the cave shouting to the nearby soldiers; "Barricade the entrance, no pony allowed in or out, that includes the guards! If anypony does go in there do not touch the creature inside, not even with magic!" he bellowed. The soldiers did as commanded. Three soldiers placed themselves in front of the cave entrance standing firm and at attention. The rest began to disperse the crowd in an attempt to clear the area. The mare that guided Sleipnir earlier approached him. "What is wrong?" she asked not hiding her annoyance. "There is an unknown and possibly lethal creature in the cave," he replied factually, "it is incapable of moving but I don't want to risk anyponys lives, once we figure out how to remove it you can do as you please." The mare stood silently for a moment, the story was odd but she couldn't help but believe the stallion. His voice bore wisdom, strength and kindness. "I'll spread word around." she said before leaving. Sleipnir left the Excavation site slowly, if what he saw was what he thought it was, then things could get violent and soon. With a shake of his head he thought, 'I can't think about it right now, I'll go back to camp, rest with my family and eat apple crumble, then drift to sleep. In the morning I will start working on a plan.' Sleipnir continued in silence towards the camp. (>'.')('.'<) Soul Edge sat in the silence of the dark night, it was awake, now it must revive. Chapter I : The CalmThe night was pleasantly cool as Sleipnir followed the path through the forest to the camp site. He felt exhausted after the days event and simply wished to rest. The path soon opened and he found himself in a large clearing filled with tents. He looked around to see soldiers asleep or gathered around fires talking to one another, not a single worker or archeologist in sight. This did not surprise him as the archeologists and workers had moved their belongings into the ruins. He continued to walk past the tents and out of the clearing. He wandered a small bit further into the forest until he saw the faint glow of light through the trees, the smell of something sweet filled the air. Taking a few more steps he found himself in a much smaller clearing. Three tents were placed in a semi-circle around a small fire, a pie in a stone dish sat suspended by two metal stands over the glowing flames. Sleipnir paused as he sensed the heavy yet familiar atmosphere. Nor, Crescent and Melody were all present and deep in thought. Melody was dancing gracefully, her eyes closed. Her long silver mane and tail flailed and rippled behind her as she listened to the music of the night. The gently breeze carried the sounds of rustling leaves and singing insects which blended into a slow symphony. Her movements flowed into one another softly, hoof after hoof, wing after wing. Her feathers added to the music as they seemed to quietly sing with the passing breeze. Every few steps of the dance her movements would suddenly became fast and hard bearing much weight before gently it fell back into harmony with the night. Her thoughts were elsewhere though. The conversation between Nor and Crescent had caused her to think of her past and the decisions that changed her life. Sleipnir looked from Melody's dancing to see Crescent standing on the opposite side of the campsite. He smiled as he watched the youth. To most it would look as if he was day dreaming but he knew better. Crescent stood perfectly still. He was practicing a spell Sleipnir created and taught to him. The spell allowed a pony to manipulate and intensify the users muscles through mana stimulation, in short, a muscle enhancement spell. His body tensed and began to bulk before relaxing again. He repeated the spell in short intervals to help develop his body and increase his ability to perform the complicated flow of mana. For a moment Crescent pondered the dangers of the spell. 'Over indulgence can give better results though it could lead to severe internal injuries as the muscles and tendons can tear.' Crescent nodded in satisfaction to his short answer for a self asked question. He grimaced as the thoughts he tried to suppress floated back to the surface and pressed against his mind. With a sigh he began to question himself again to try and take his mind off the unwanted memories. Sleipnir looked back to the fire. Nor lay on the ground unmoving as she watched the flames. He walked to her and placed a hoof on her shoulder. She looked up at him with teary eyes. He didn't have to ask what happened, he knew what everyone was thinking, he also knew that this only happens when she talks to Crescent about his family. He smiled at her as he lay down beside her. Pressing herself into his side she sighed. They lay for awhile before Crescent lay next to Nor with a light thump. At first they remained still but soon Nor shifted herself towards Crescent. She pressed her head against his, he returned the gesture. Slowly the two ponies drifted to sleep. Sleipnir smiled as he watched the two. Lifting his head slightly he saw Melody lay next to Crescent, she extended her wing and covered the two children in a warm feathery embrace. Opening an eye she looked at Sleipnir and whispered, "Good night." "Night." he replied lightly. He looked up to see the moon smiling down to them. 'This is my family' he thought, 'I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe.' ... Sleipnir woke to the sound of voices. He opened his eyes and flinched at the sun. Lifting himself with his forelegs he sat up. Blinking his eyes as they adjusted to the light he heard a clatter. He looked down to see a slice of pie in a metal dish at his hooves. "Morning." he groaned. "Morning." replied a soft voice. Turning his head he saw Melody was sitting beside him, a metal dish with a half eating slice of pie on the ground in front of her. "It was nice of you to come down and rest with us." said Sleipnir. "I was asked to come, I was also promised apple crumble." replied Melody. "I see," he chuckled, "we do have a tent set up for you, it would be nice if you spent more nights with us again." "I would, but this job has me nervous." Sleipnir nodded. He didn't like the looks from most of the guards, especially the ones aimed at Melody and Crescent. The strange creature sitting in the cave didn't help either. He looked ahead of him to see Crescent and Nor facing each other talking intensively. Books and pages scattered around them. He smiled. "At least they're keeping up their study's "Of course. Crescent loves history and Nor seems to just absorb knowledge." For a few moments they watched the two children as they talked and questioned one another. "Do you think they'll ever fall in love?" The sudden question confused Sleipnir. "What?" "With our lives as they are, do you think they'll ever be happy, safe?" He pondered the question for a moment before he said; "I don't know. But I intend for them to live long enough to find out." Melody remained silent. "When they are able to stand for themselves I will leave them to live their own lives." "But would it not make sense to stay by their sides and protect them?" "Everypony is after me. If I leave them then they will have a chance to live free lives without fear of being killed every night." "They are also after the children." "Only because they're after me." A moment of silence passed before she asked; "And if they try and use them against you?" "They won't." his voice was confident. "By then Crescent will be a more capable warrior then I." Melody reluctantly agreed. Crescent had learned and mastered the muscle enhancement spell and had a well developed body with plenty of combat skill behind him. He just lacked the size to put it to good use. "Fine." she sighed. "And what about you?" he asked. "Sorry?" "When the time comes to part ways, what will you do?" A moment passed before she answered. "I'll return home." "Back to your village?" "Yes, I'll speak to my family, I will ask for their forgiveness and their names." "Still can't remember?" "No, for three years I've struggled but I do not remember." Another moment of silence passed before Sleipnir asked; "Will you tell me their names when you do?" "Would you prefer to come with me?" "I would, but the villagers wouldn't be happy to see me." "Maybe, but you will be with me and a long time has passed since then." Sleipnir closed his eyes, 'It's about time I faced my mistakes.' He looked towards Melody, "OK." She locked eyes with him, for a moment he saw joy well up in her expression. With a sigh he felt the tension he hadn't noticed build disappear. Finally he said; "How can you forgive me so easily?" She knew what he meant. Closing her eyes she said, "It doesn't matter what you did then, your a different pony now." "Even so." "Even so you took me in after I tried to kill you, you thought me how to improve my fighting style, you even looked after me when I fell sick. You've been like a father too me and I love you as though you were." she said fondly. Sleipnir didn't know how to reply. He knew she forgave him, but he never even thought she could look to him so highly. He turned to watch the two young ponies who were now packing away their books and notes. "Crescent, Nor." They turned their heads to him. "Come here, I'm going to quiz you on last weeks studies." The two quickly moved quickly to sit only a foot away from him. Melody left out a small giggle. "OK. First. What is the history taught to us about Equestria and the true history hidden in order to keep rule?" Nor was quick to speak up, "We are taught to believe that the Windigo's that nearly destroyed the kingdoms had moved to Equestria and destroyed the land." Crescent continued, "The truth is that after the three kingdoms destroyed the Windigo's they formed a united kingdom. But many ponies didn't agree and wished for the three kingdoms to remain untouched, so they returned to the original lands and remade the treaty but only after thirty five years of war." Sleipnir felt proud of how much they learned. "And why is it that after almost two thousand years the only ponies who knows this are the royal family's and the high ranked members of the ancient Mercenary Order that marshals the lands?" Crescent answered, "The reason is that if the civilians found out they may try to leave, this will cut into the food production and military personnel, ultimately tipping the balance of the three kingdoms. The reason why no pony try to see if there is anything left is due to the fact that you will have to travel through miles of badlands followed by the dangerous Everfree Forest." Sleipnir smiled. They had learned a lot but he had to be certain the knowledge was fresh, in case something happened. "The names of the three kingdoms and the areas they rule?" "They renamed the lands after they returned," replied Nor, "Unicorns took control of the mountains and dub the land Unicornia. The Pegasi took to the sky and named their land Pegasopolis and finally, the Earth ponies took the open lands and named it Earth." He nodded at the reply, it was important that they knew where they were and what to prepare for. "You did good, very good." he beamed. The two ponies pushed their chests out and held their heads high at the compliment, this caused Melody to giggle again. "Your free for the day." Nor leaped with excitement. "Crescent, there is something I need to speak to you about before you go." Sleipnir walked back to his tent and began to rummage through his saddle bags. The colt walked to the tent, he held an even expression. Melody turned to Nor. "Shall we go for a fly?" "A what?" squeaked the filly. With a light giggle she charged the filly. Nor turned and ran as fast as she could. Melody laughed lightly as she chased the filly knowing full well that she was afraid of heights. Crescent watched as Melody caught Nor. She picked the filly up between her forehooves and with a single beat of her wings she shot into the air as Nor screamed all the way. He hid a smile as he turned to look at the three tents. Sleipnir was searching his belongings in the left tent mumbling something under his breath. Turning to the right tent he saw Melody's saddlebags. He found it curious that she would spend her nights sleeping on a cloud above the small campsite instead. He wasn't ignorant though, he knew very well that most of the guards on the excavation site hated Taints and she was cautious in case someone decided to take matters into their own hands. Shacking his head he pushed the rising thoughts away. 'Not everypony is evil, these ponies are just misguided. That's all.' Turning back to the center tent he saw his and Nor's saddle bags. For four years he had traveled with the two ponies, one year longer then Melody. He was forever grateful to Nor, in his darkest moments she comforted him throughout the night and every night after. He jump as something struck the ground next to him with a loud thump. He looked down to see two books piled beside him. "I trust you know what books these are?" asked Sleipnir. Crescent recognized the top book. It was an ancient text that held the true history of the three kingdoms. Pushing it aside he looked at the book under it. His eyes widened as he saw the cover. It was Sleipnir's personal book. None of the three ponies knew what was in it as he refused to speak of it, they respected his privacy and never brought it up. "Crescent, I want you to listen carefully." The colt leaned forward, his full attention on his mentor. "Things may be more dangerous then we originally though. We would leave now except I have a personal mission to perform before things get out of hand." The colt silently nodded. "You remember the plan in case we have to fight for our lives?" asked the stallion. "Yes, I'm to go with Nor to the nearest town east from here." he said evenly, "There we wait for three days, if neither you or Melody arrive we must continue east and attempt to cross the Badlands into Equestria." "You understand the dangers?" "The Badlands bare almost no life. For most it is suicidal even with the proper gear but Melody's survival training will give us a small boost in our chances of success." Sleipnir agreed with the comment about Melody's training. If he had known what she knew maybe he would have avoided the four days of sickness that followed after he reached the Everfree forest when he tried to cross to Equestria over a decade back. "Good." muttered Sleipnir. "Sir?" "Yes?" asked the stallion. "What of the books?" Sleipnir locked eyes with the colt. "If things go bad and you have to make your way east, I want you to take these books with you." he said, a level of demand in his voice, "If I don't arrive at the village then consider the books yours." Crescent remained silent. His mentor had put a great deal of trust into him when he devised the plan so just him and Nor were to escape together. Now his mentor was entrusting him with the secret history of the three kingdoms and the unknown book he kept secret even from Nor, Melody and himself. "So be it." replied the colt with an even voice. For a moment Sleipnir continued to lock eyes with him. After a short while he finally said; "Good. Now run along, I think Nor may need some comforting." He chuckled as Crescent bolted up and ran from the campsite towards the mountain. A worried expression planted across his face. "He's too easy to crack." ..... Melody was very worried. She had landed just outside the excavation site about five minutes earlier and left Nor down. Since then Nor had curled into a ball and would not moved from her spot. What more is the filly refuse to respond to the her. "Please answer." she asked, her voice full of worry. She nuzzled the filly and whined. Nor still didn't respond. Melody heard the sound of galloping in the distance. A devious thought entered her mind as she whispered into the filly's ear; "Your shining knight is coming to save you." She smiled as Nor's ears slowly started to burn. Suddenly Crescent came into view, he ran straight to them. Skidding to a halt he looked from Melody to Nor who was now curled even tighter. He walked to her and gently nuzzled her ear before whispering; "It's alright now." Nor's ear twitched as he spoke, something Melody didn't miss. Slowly the filly unwrapped herself. She suddenly threw her hooves around his neck. Startled at first he quickly relaxed and gently returned the embrace. For a long while the two remained silent and still. Nor bore such an immense fear of height that only Crescent was able to break her from her traumatized state afterwards, at one point Sleipnir could too but her dependency for him had gradually dissipated as she became more attached to the colt. Another small smile crossed Melody's face. "Aww, such a cute scene." cooed the mare, "But it must be embarrassing with so many ponies watching." Both children looked around them to see a number of ponies smile and whisper to one another as they passed. The two sat up in a flash, their faces were more crimson then Melody thought possible. Suppressing a fit of giggles she waved a hoof before shooting into the air and vanishing from sight, leaving two traumatized little ponies behind. "I'm convinced under her kindness is an unspeakable evil." muttered the filly. The colt could only nod in agreement. Eventually the two rose from where they sat and began to wander into the excavation site. Keeping their heads low, neither looked at the other. Melody was giggling fits from the clouds high above the two young ponies. "There so cute!" she squealed to no one. Eventually she calmed down. After regaining her breath her mood shifted. "Right." she said flatly, "It's time I found out what is going on." She Lifted herself up and walked to the edge of the cloud. Her once shy, smiling expression was replaced with one of loathing and distrust as she stared down upon the ponies who worked the site. 'I will see that anypony who so much as consider harming those I love, will suffer greatly before I kill them.' She scanned the area with her highly trained eyesight. For the rest of the day she watched and took in all she could. ....... With a slam Sleipnir closed the ancient text that he kept secret even from his makeshift family. A sense of fear crept through him. He knew what the creature in the cave was and wished he didn't. 'I need more information.' he thought. If what he thought was true, then he had to do everything in his power to destroy the creature before it was too late. The only problem was there is no normal means to destroy the thing, which meant he had to move it. "Why is it never easy?" he muttered to himself. Suddenly he snapped to attention, sweat quickly formed on his brow. "If that thing is here, then they won't be far behind."
Prologue I : The Last StandThe night was cold and unwelcoming, rain and high winds swept the land, the trees bent to their will. The violent dark storm overhead seemed to swirl over a tall ancient tower resting atop a mountain. On the top of the tower two darkened figures circled one another ominously. A flash of lightning revealed them, they stood tall on two feet, clad in metal armor. The first wore full silver plating covering all but the head, long wet brown hair flailed in the wind, a fur-less face with cold piercing blue eyes shining with each flash of lightning. In its arms it held a beautiful blue sword of crystal, no longer then a broad sword. The second figure bore dark, heavy armor that even the lightning failed to fully illuminate. Its head was covered by a dark helm, only a glowing crimson eye radiated through. In each hand it bore a grotesque weapon of flesh and steel in the form of sabers, these weapons had eyes of there own that blinked and stared at the circling other. Slowly the figures slowed to a stop, tension build between them more fierce then the storm overhead, the dangerous and powerful winds failed to move them as the rain failed to avert there dead lock stares. A flash of lightning faded taking with it the two figures. Another flash of lightning was accompanied by the sound of metal striking with great force, the two had charged and began a relentless assault on each other. The impact of the blades knocked the rain aside, the wind itself screamed as the swords sliced through before the clash of metal more violent and terrifying then any lightning strike. All the while the two stared unblinking into each others eyes as they danced the dance of malice and death. The assaults lasted but a moment. Suddenly the silver clad creature lunged forward, its body slammed and pushed the other back. As the dark figure recovered it looked up to see the silver figure had lifted its crystal blade high in the air before it brought it down strong and fast, the dark figure brought itself up and swung one of its blades in an attempted to counter the attack. The sound of tearing metal filled the night, neither figure moved, the storm itself quietened as if in anticipation of the next act. The blade in the dark figures hand shattered in a spray of blood and metal. With a scream it charged the silver figure with a desperate swing of its remaining sword. The silver figure dodged it with ease before it brought a metal grieve up. It connected with the dark figures chest causing it to stagger back, the sound of rending metal froze it in place. Looking down it saw the crystal blade extending from its chest. The dark figure impaled the sword of flesh into the ground leaning on it for support. In its last breaths it lifted itself and stepped backwards before falling on to its back with a load thump and the sound of metal scraping stone. The storm, now as silent as a mouse watched as the silver clad creature walked to the dark figure and retrieved it sword. Turning on its heels it stared at the grotesque blade. The silver figure swung its blade high above its head, the sword itself shone brilliantly as it drew power, the storm picked up more fiercely then ever as if in excitement. It brought the crystal sword down striking the sword of flesh, for a moment time seem to stop as the two swords connected. Slowly time speed up as both shattered, the released power from both blades radiated across the land before it faded away. The silver clad figure stood over the shattered remains of the three swords and the lifeless corpse. Looking up it saw the storm had disappeared and a beautiful full moon with a blanket of stars covering the sky. The silver figure staggered as the tower shifted, it looked up to the moon, its mouth curved into a small smile. The mountain cracked and split in an attempted to swallow the tower it held. The tower twisted and turned as it collapsed into the open mouth of the mountain. When the night finally fell silent it was as if nothing had occurred. The tower forever lost and with it the two greatest weapons, relics and monsters. -{----- In the heart of the mountain a small red glow shone faintly in the darkness, soon another joined then another, until the cavern was illuminated. In the center an eye snapped open and slowly the glowing red lights began to move. Uncounted years later the eye opened again only this time it was mounted on the guard of a small sword of flesh and steel. Slowly it closed its eye, drifting to a long sleep waiting for the day it would write the next chapter in its story.
Prologue II : AwakeningSoul Edge stood quietly impaled in the hardened earth of the dark ruins, it slowly opened its eye, looking around it saw that everything was the same, black. 'Three million six hundred and forty thousand' it thought to itself, 'Three million six hundred and forty thousand days since I healed.' Soul Edge was now weaker then when it was first created, all the souls it had collected were gone, exercised by the accursed crystal sword, Soul Calibur and only had enough power left to tell if it was light or dark outside the mountain. Using this the sword counted the days, a habit it took up after its second defeat, a battle forever lost to history. As time slowly moved forward Soul Edge found itself wondering if it would ever see day light again and what it would do if it was free. As always it told itself that history always repeats itself, it will be free and it will continue a glorious slaughter across the lands, though now these thoughts bore less weight then they once did over three million days ago. Eventually it started to close its eye to drift back into a deep sleep, 'All I can do now, is count the days.' --{----- The sun shined down upon a tall, scarred mountain surrounded by an ancient and lush forest. At the base of the mountain stood a ruined village hidden by the trees for untold generations. The ruins were focused mostly to the mountain thinning out as it got further away. Many pony like creatures wandered these ruins working endlessly to their goal. An aged stallion no more then five feet tall with a powerful muscular build, a dark chestnut coat with short grey mane and tail. His body bore many battle scars and the image of wind wrapping around a stone stood proudly on his flank. He continued to wander the ruins keeping a sharp, cold brown eye on the workers and foreign soldiers, a mixture of ponies. There are three types of ponies in the world. He himself was a Unicorn, this is known due to a horn mounted firmly on his head, they are creatures gifted in magic and use it in there daily life's. The second breed are known as Pegasus or Pegasi, these creatures don't have a horn and lack the magical ability but bare a pair of powerful wings given them the ability to fly and interact with clouds as if they were solid. Finally there were those who were born without these gifts, Earth Ponies, the aged stallion bore great respect for these type of ponies for even though they did not have the gift of flight or magic, they made for fierce, proud and formidable opponents. He heard a trotting noise behind him moving closer, turning to see who was running up behind him, unafraid or worried for the trot was too light to be anything other they a foal. "Hi Dad!" came a young cheery voice. The aged Stallion smiled at the young Unicorn filly standing before him, she was no more then two and a half feet tall wearing a blueish black coat with a light golden mane and tail of medium length, her bright green eyes stared lovingly up to him. "Hello Nor." said the stallion. "Are you having fun?" "Yes, I'm playing hide and seek." she replied. "Have you seen Crescent?" The stallion smiled, "Are you seeking him?" He asked. The little filly only looked away. He put on a stern face to hide a smile and suppress a laugh. "The point of hide and seek is to find the hidden on your own." he said, "It would be unfair if I told you where he is." "So you do know where he is." She said looking up to lock eyes. The stallion flinched, she had managed to trick him into given her that much information. She stepped forward. "Where is he?" she asked gently but her eyes were demanding. "I don't know." said the stallion as he slowly backed away. "You know it's not nice to lie." she said factually. He was losing ground fast, he knew how relentless she can get but he was determined to stand strong. "If you don't tell me the truth I wont bake your favorite." His determination broke, lowering his head in defeat. Her cooking was second to none and her apple crumble was his favorite treat. "He went up to the excavation site." he indicated to the base of the mountain. "You had better make me a dam good apple crumble." he said. "Of course I will." she replied cheerfully. Stepping forward she hugged him, "Thanks Daddy." She then turned on her heels and ran straight for the excavation site. Smiling the stallion continued his task. (>'.')>--{------- Nor ran as fast as she could in order to find Crescent. When it came to hiding Nor was unmatched but Crescent was smart, he knew the best places to hide just by knowing the seekers personality and he knew hers well. She herself thought he would not go to the excavation site due to the soldiers, they seem to hate Crescent though thankfully that isn't the case with the workers. As she came up to the site she stopped and called up to a nearby cloud; "Is Crescent ahead?" The cloud seemed to shift and a blue head emerged out of the bottom, lime green eyes looked down to her. The head wore a silver helm covering the mane. "Crescent?" came a soft voice, "Let me check." The cloud dispersed and the Pegasus landed gently in front of her. The Pegasus was a four foot Mare barely out of her teens, her coat was light blue up close. Her tail was long, silver and flowed elegantly behind her, a picture of a silver music note on her flank. The most unusual and beautiful thing about her was her silver feathers on her large wings. She proceeded to enter the site. "Thank you Melody!" Melody simply waved a hoof back at her. Nor waited patiently while staring at her own blank flank, 'I wonder when I'll get mine.' she wondered. Looking up she saw Melody return. "He's ahead helping out." she said gently. "Thank you again Melody." "Anything to help." she replied, "Give my regards to Sleipnir." Nor paused at the mention of her fathers name. "I'm making apple crumble for us tonight, would you like to come over for some?" she quickly asked. "Alright." came the soft reply. She watched as Melody took to the sky. "And give Crescent a nice hug for both of us." she added with a wink before shooting upwards. Nor sat silently, a slight blush formed on her face. Moments later she shook herself and continued into the site. The site itself was where the majority of the ancient village sat, collapsed houses scattered here and there, some ruins half swallowed by the earth. She stopped to admire the beauty of the scene. Many ponies were working hard up closer to the mountain. Pegasi were flying supplies around the site while Unicorns and Earth Ponies were busy moving rocks and carefully tending to relics found in the excavations. Nor looked around carefully and smiled as she saw a small Unicorn help move supplies. Quickly moving across the site she ran straight up to the young Unicorn. The Unicorn, a young Colt was two and a half feet tall, same as her, though young his physique was slender and well built. He had a chestnut brown coat and dark brown, almost black mane and tail. The mane was short but thick and unkept though his tail was the same length as hers. He also bore no cutie mark. The truly stunning thing about him was his ivory horn mounted on his head. "Found you." she said joyfully. "It took you long enough, I've been here for most of the day." he said curtly. "Doesn't matter, I still found you." she countered. Crescent lifted the supplies he had onto a nearby table. "And I suppose you had no help?" "Nope." lied Nor. Crescent locked eyes with hers. She stared back afraid to blink or turn away, his eyes a captivating grayish blue. The stare lasted but a moment but felt like years for the young filly. "I suppose Melody stopped by for the fun of it?" Nor froze, she knew she was caught, Melody never stepped into the site because of how the soldiers acted around her. Lowering her head in defeat she began to apologize but Crescent cut her off. "It doesn't matter I suppose, you did find me in the end." Looking up she saw that his face was as set as always but his eyes told otherwise, 'He is worried he upset me.' she thought a small smile creeping across her face. "Anyway, we should go, the soldiers are getting restless around me." said Crescent with a hint of worry in his voice. Looking around she noticed the nearby soldiers eying them dangerously. "Why would they care so much about a Filly and Colt." she said annoyed. "You know why." Crescent replied walking away from the site. Nor followed, she knew why but she didn't like it. Crescent was a Taint, a pony whose main appendage is a different color from their coat, for Pegasi it was their feathers, for Unicorns it was their horn and for Earth Ponies it was their hooves though there are times when Earth Ponies are born with hooves colored the same as their manes, these ponies are not considered Taints. Like Crescent, Melody is a Taint. 'But they are so kind and gentle, why would anypony hate them just for being a Taint?' She thought sadly. "It's because of the old legends." said Crescent seemingly reading Nor's mind. "I know." she replied. She thought about the old legend, about how Ponies appeared with different colored appendages. They always became masters at whatever they specialized in but one day, led by a golden horned Unicorn they rose up and attempted to usurp the throne. Warriors grouped together and formed a brotherhood under the name of a sacred but lost Order called the Edanite's. These brave warriors drove back the army and ultimately saved the kingdom. They say the Order still stands and protect the kingdom in secrecy and the rare few born with unusual coloring were branded with the name Taint and are feared and hated even now. They had walked most of the way back to camp, all was silent as everybody was back at the excavation site. "You know Dad doesn't hate you right? He wont do anything to hurt you." "I know." replied Crescent. "I trust Sleipnir with my life." "Even though?" she stopped herself. "I'm sorry." she whispered. Crescent paused for a moment, Nor began to shack, afraid and upset that she may have hurt him, Crescent never liked talking about his family. He slowly turned and embraced her. "I don't hate you or him." he said gently, "And nothing will change that." Nor returned the embrace, she felt warm and safe in his gently yet strong hooves, slowly her shaking stopped. A long time had passed before they finally broke away from each other and continued down the path to the nearby camp. A smiling blue Pegasus watched them from the clouds. "I'm amazed at how strong you are." Melody said to no one. Lifting herself from the cloud she smiled thoughtfully. 'I too trust Sleipnir, he gave up everything to protect you both, he even saved my life.' With a beat of her wings she lift herself into the air and silently glided after the two young ponies. <('o')> An odd noise woke Soul Edge from its sleep. 'What is that?' It thought. It patiently sat in the dark listening. Suddenly it grew excited as it recognized the noise. It was the sound of digging, something powerful slamming into rock, 'Someone or something is trying to get in!' it thought with great anticipation. <(-.-)> Sleipnir stopped at the excavation site entrance. He Looked up to see that Melody had disappeared. 'Guess that means they aren't here.' he thought. He remembered back to when they first arrived at the camp to act as guard as per their contract, he noticed how the other soldiers stared at both Melody and Crescent. Melody noticed as well and promised to keep an eye on the young ones while he focused on his work. 'If Melody isn't here then that means that Crescent and Nor are elsewhere.' He hated bringing the young ones with him but since he was a traveling Mercenary without a home and had plenty of enemy's who would happily use them against him, he had no choice. The good thing is that Melody travels with them and has always been willing to watch them while he worked. He fully trusted in Melody and her skills in combat having fought her himself a few years back. He had taken her in and thought her to control and focus her mind but never once tried to teach her psychically as her techniques and style were completely the opposite of his. His thoughts wandered to her style, it completely opposed even the Pegasi hit and run fighting style. Unlike the Pegasus style which involved staying out of reach before quickly swooping in for a single hit then taking to the sky again. She prefer close quarter combat, her moves were fluent and graceful but also lethal. His thoughts were interrupted by a commotion coming from the site. With a shake of his head he brought himself back to reality, he jogged further in to see excited ponies run wildly around the ruins. Stopping a nearby mare Earth Pony, he asked; "What's going on?" "We found a large hollow pocket at the base of the mountain!" she replied, to say she was excited would be an understatement. "We're rushing to get through the mountain wall to it!" "Take me there." he said politely. The mare nodded and ran ahead of him. It didn't take long to reach the location. A large wall of ponies blocked their way but he pushed through them with the mare close behind. When he finally made it to the front he was amazed to see the magnitude of the ponies effort to get to the pocket. Earth Ponies slammed and bucked the hard rock till it gave way while Unicorns levitated the boulders and rocks away to help the Earth Ponies dig faster without wasting time. As they worked the Pegasi were busy constructing the supports to stop the developing cave from collapsing on the miners. Sleipnir could only watch in awe, while normally the different breeds hated and distrust each other, the level of cooperation between them in this work site was amazing, but what he was witnessing was something else. He had only seen cooperation like this once, in a Kingdom called Equestria. /('-')\ Soul Edge vibrated with delight, the sound of digging and shattering rocks echoed violently across the cavern walls. Suddenly the sound of collapsing rock filled the cavern. Closing its eye against the sudden blinding light. It fell still, basking in the glow of the sun, the first touch of light in over four million five hundred thousand days. It then heard voices, a language he didn't recognize. Opening its eye it was surprised to see not humans but the silhouette of many odd creatures. A voice rose above them all and the silhouettes receded from the newly formed cave, then one large silhouette walked in. It drew close to Soul Edge until finally it could make out what it was seeing. In shock it saw a horse, 'No.' It corrected itself, a pony. A large, aged pony no more then five feet tall loomed over it, the pony had a dark chestnut coat with a short grey mane and tail. The body was large, muscular and refined and covered in scars showing its many military experiences. Soul Edge stared into the pony's eyes, suddenly it was shocked, behind those dark brown eyes he recognized something it only saw in humans. The pony before Soul Edge was sentient. The pony shouted something behind it before leaving. More commotion and shouting could be heard but Soul Edge didn't care. It was busy taking in its new discovery and enjoying the light as the sun slowly descended behind the forest. (>'.')> <('.'<) Sleipnir stepped out of the cave shouting to the nearby soldiers; "Barricade the entrance, no pony allowed in or out, that includes the guards! If anypony does go in there do not touch the creature inside, not even with magic!" he bellowed. The soldiers did as commanded. Three soldiers placed themselves in front of the cave entrance standing firm and at attention. The rest began to disperse the crowd in an attempt to clear the area. The mare that guided Sleipnir earlier approached him. "What is wrong?" she asked not hiding her annoyance. "There is an unknown and possibly lethal creature in the cave," he replied factually, "it is incapable of moving but I don't want to risk anyponys lives, once we figure out how to remove it you can do as you please." The mare stood silently for a moment, the story was odd but she couldn't help but believe the stallion. His voice bore wisdom, strength and kindness. "I'll spread word around." she said before leaving. Sleipnir left the Excavation site slowly, if what he saw was what he thought it was, then things could get violent and soon. With a shake of his head he thought, 'I can't think about it right now, I'll go back to camp, rest with my family and eat apple crumble, then drift to sleep. In the morning I will start working on a plan.' Sleipnir continued in silence towards the camp. (>'.')('.'<) Soul Edge sat in the silence of the dark night, it was awake, now it must revive.
Chapter I : The CalmThe night was pleasantly cool as Sleipnir followed the path through the forest to the camp site. He felt exhausted after the days event and simply wished to rest. The path soon opened and he found himself in a large clearing filled with tents. He looked around to see soldiers asleep or gathered around fires talking to one another, not a single worker or archeologist in sight. This did not surprise him as the archeologists and workers had moved their belongings into the ruins. He continued to walk past the tents and out of the clearing. He wandered a small bit further into the forest until he saw the faint glow of light through the trees, the smell of something sweet filled the air. Taking a few more steps he found himself in a much smaller clearing. Three tents were placed in a semi-circle around a small fire, a pie in a stone dish sat suspended by two metal stands over the glowing flames. Sleipnir paused as he sensed the heavy yet familiar atmosphere. Nor, Crescent and Melody were all present and deep in thought. Melody was dancing gracefully, her eyes closed. Her long silver mane and tail flailed and rippled behind her as she listened to the music of the night. The gently breeze carried the sounds of rustling leaves and singing insects which blended into a slow symphony. Her movements flowed into one another softly, hoof after hoof, wing after wing. Her feathers added to the music as they seemed to quietly sing with the passing breeze. Every few steps of the dance her movements would suddenly became fast and hard bearing much weight before gently it fell back into harmony with the night. Her thoughts were elsewhere though. The conversation between Nor and Crescent had caused her to think of her past and the decisions that changed her life. Sleipnir looked from Melody's dancing to see Crescent standing on the opposite side of the campsite. He smiled as he watched the youth. To most it would look as if he was day dreaming but he knew better. Crescent stood perfectly still. He was practicing a spell Sleipnir created and taught to him. The spell allowed a pony to manipulate and intensify the users muscles through mana stimulation, in short, a muscle enhancement spell. His body tensed and began to bulk before relaxing again. He repeated the spell in short intervals to help develop his body and increase his ability to perform the complicated flow of mana. For a moment Crescent pondered the dangers of the spell. 'Over indulgence can give better results though it could lead to severe internal injuries as the muscles and tendons can tear.' Crescent nodded in satisfaction to his short answer for a self asked question. He grimaced as the thoughts he tried to suppress floated back to the surface and pressed against his mind. With a sigh he began to question himself again to try and take his mind off the unwanted memories. Sleipnir looked back to the fire. Nor lay on the ground unmoving as she watched the flames. He walked to her and placed a hoof on her shoulder. She looked up at him with teary eyes. He didn't have to ask what happened, he knew what everyone was thinking, he also knew that this only happens when she talks to Crescent about his family. He smiled at her as he lay down beside her. Pressing herself into his side she sighed. They lay for awhile before Crescent lay next to Nor with a light thump. At first they remained still but soon Nor shifted herself towards Crescent. She pressed her head against his, he returned the gesture. Slowly the two ponies drifted to sleep. Sleipnir smiled as he watched the two. Lifting his head slightly he saw Melody lay next to Crescent, she extended her wing and covered the two children in a warm feathery embrace. Opening an eye she looked at Sleipnir and whispered, "Good night." "Night." he replied lightly. He looked up to see the moon smiling down to them. 'This is my family' he thought, 'I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe.' ... Sleipnir woke to the sound of voices. He opened his eyes and flinched at the sun. Lifting himself with his forelegs he sat up. Blinking his eyes as they adjusted to the light he heard a clatter. He looked down to see a slice of pie in a metal dish at his hooves. "Morning." he groaned. "Morning." replied a soft voice. Turning his head he saw Melody was sitting beside him, a metal dish with a half eating slice of pie on the ground in front of her. "It was nice of you to come down and rest with us." said Sleipnir. "I was asked to come, I was also promised apple crumble." replied Melody. "I see," he chuckled, "we do have a tent set up for you, it would be nice if you spent more nights with us again." "I would, but this job has me nervous." Sleipnir nodded. He didn't like the looks from most of the guards, especially the ones aimed at Melody and Crescent. The strange creature sitting in the cave didn't help either. He looked ahead of him to see Crescent and Nor facing each other talking intensively. Books and pages scattered around them. He smiled. "At least they're keeping up their study's "Of course. Crescent loves history and Nor seems to just absorb knowledge." For a few moments they watched the two children as they talked and questioned one another. "Do you think they'll ever fall in love?" The sudden question confused Sleipnir. "What?" "With our lives as they are, do you think they'll ever be happy, safe?" He pondered the question for a moment before he said; "I don't know. But I intend for them to live long enough to find out." Melody remained silent. "When they are able to stand for themselves I will leave them to live their own lives." "But would it not make sense to stay by their sides and protect them?" "Everypony is after me. If I leave them then they will have a chance to live free lives without fear of being killed every night." "They are also after the children." "Only because they're after me." A moment of silence passed before she asked; "And if they try and use them against you?" "They won't." his voice was confident. "By then Crescent will be a more capable warrior then I." Melody reluctantly agreed. Crescent had learned and mastered the muscle enhancement spell and had a well developed body with plenty of combat skill behind him. He just lacked the size to put it to good use. "Fine." she sighed. "And what about you?" he asked. "Sorry?" "When the time comes to part ways, what will you do?" A moment passed before she answered. "I'll return home." "Back to your village?" "Yes, I'll speak to my family, I will ask for their forgiveness and their names." "Still can't remember?" "No, for three years I've struggled but I do not remember." Another moment of silence passed before Sleipnir asked; "Will you tell me their names when you do?" "Would you prefer to come with me?" "I would, but the villagers wouldn't be happy to see me." "Maybe, but you will be with me and a long time has passed since then." Sleipnir closed his eyes, 'It's about time I faced my mistakes.' He looked towards Melody, "OK." She locked eyes with him, for a moment he saw joy well up in her expression. With a sigh he felt the tension he hadn't noticed build disappear. Finally he said; "How can you forgive me so easily?" She knew what he meant. Closing her eyes she said, "It doesn't matter what you did then, your a different pony now." "Even so." "Even so you took me in after I tried to kill you, you thought me how to improve my fighting style, you even looked after me when I fell sick. You've been like a father too me and I love you as though you were." she said fondly. Sleipnir didn't know how to reply. He knew she forgave him, but he never even thought she could look to him so highly. He turned to watch the two young ponies who were now packing away their books and notes. "Crescent, Nor." They turned their heads to him. "Come here, I'm going to quiz you on last weeks studies." The two quickly moved quickly to sit only a foot away from him. Melody left out a small giggle. "OK. First. What is the history taught to us about Equestria and the true history hidden in order to keep rule?" Nor was quick to speak up, "We are taught to believe that the Windigo's that nearly destroyed the kingdoms had moved to Equestria and destroyed the land." Crescent continued, "The truth is that after the three kingdoms destroyed the Windigo's they formed a united kingdom. But many ponies didn't agree and wished for the three kingdoms to remain untouched, so they returned to the original lands and remade the treaty but only after thirty five years of war." Sleipnir felt proud of how much they learned. "And why is it that after almost two thousand years the only ponies who knows this are the royal family's and the high ranked members of the ancient Mercenary Order that marshals the lands?" Crescent answered, "The reason is that if the civilians found out they may try to leave, this will cut into the food production and military personnel, ultimately tipping the balance of the three kingdoms. The reason why no pony try to see if there is anything left is due to the fact that you will have to travel through miles of badlands followed by the dangerous Everfree Forest." Sleipnir smiled. They had learned a lot but he had to be certain the knowledge was fresh, in case something happened. "The names of the three kingdoms and the areas they rule?" "They renamed the lands after they returned," replied Nor, "Unicorns took control of the mountains and dub the land Unicornia. The Pegasi took to the sky and named their land Pegasopolis and finally, the Earth ponies took the open lands and named it Earth." He nodded at the reply, it was important that they knew where they were and what to prepare for. "You did good, very good." he beamed. The two ponies pushed their chests out and held their heads high at the compliment, this caused Melody to giggle again. "Your free for the day." Nor leaped with excitement. "Crescent, there is something I need to speak to you about before you go." Sleipnir walked back to his tent and began to rummage through his saddle bags. The colt walked to the tent, he held an even expression. Melody turned to Nor. "Shall we go for a fly?" "A what?" squeaked the filly. With a light giggle she charged the filly. Nor turned and ran as fast as she could. Melody laughed lightly as she chased the filly knowing full well that she was afraid of heights. Crescent watched as Melody caught Nor. She picked the filly up between her forehooves and with a single beat of her wings she shot into the air as Nor screamed all the way. He hid a smile as he turned to look at the three tents. Sleipnir was searching his belongings in the left tent mumbling something under his breath. Turning to the right tent he saw Melody's saddlebags. He found it curious that she would spend her nights sleeping on a cloud above the small campsite instead. He wasn't ignorant though, he knew very well that most of the guards on the excavation site hated Taints and she was cautious in case someone decided to take matters into their own hands. Shacking his head he pushed the rising thoughts away. 'Not everypony is evil, these ponies are just misguided. That's all.' Turning back to the center tent he saw his and Nor's saddle bags. For four years he had traveled with the two ponies, one year longer then Melody. He was forever grateful to Nor, in his darkest moments she comforted him throughout the night and every night after. He jump as something struck the ground next to him with a loud thump. He looked down to see two books piled beside him. "I trust you know what books these are?" asked Sleipnir. Crescent recognized the top book. It was an ancient text that held the true history of the three kingdoms. Pushing it aside he looked at the book under it. His eyes widened as he saw the cover. It was Sleipnir's personal book. None of the three ponies knew what was in it as he refused to speak of it, they respected his privacy and never brought it up. "Crescent, I want you to listen carefully." The colt leaned forward, his full attention on his mentor. "Things may be more dangerous then we originally though. We would leave now except I have a personal mission to perform before things get out of hand." The colt silently nodded. "You remember the plan in case we have to fight for our lives?" asked the stallion. "Yes, I'm to go with Nor to the nearest town east from here." he said evenly, "There we wait for three days, if neither you or Melody arrive we must continue east and attempt to cross the Badlands into Equestria." "You understand the dangers?" "The Badlands bare almost no life. For most it is suicidal even with the proper gear but Melody's survival training will give us a small boost in our chances of success." Sleipnir agreed with the comment about Melody's training. If he had known what she knew maybe he would have avoided the four days of sickness that followed after he reached the Everfree forest when he tried to cross to Equestria over a decade back. "Good." muttered Sleipnir. "Sir?" "Yes?" asked the stallion. "What of the books?" Sleipnir locked eyes with the colt. "If things go bad and you have to make your way east, I want you to take these books with you." he said, a level of demand in his voice, "If I don't arrive at the village then consider the books yours." Crescent remained silent. His mentor had put a great deal of trust into him when he devised the plan so just him and Nor were to escape together. Now his mentor was entrusting him with the secret history of the three kingdoms and the unknown book he kept secret even from Nor, Melody and himself. "So be it." replied the colt with an even voice. For a moment Sleipnir continued to lock eyes with him. After a short while he finally said; "Good. Now run along, I think Nor may need some comforting." He chuckled as Crescent bolted up and ran from the campsite towards the mountain. A worried expression planted across his face. "He's too easy to crack." ..... Melody was very worried. She had landed just outside the excavation site about five minutes earlier and left Nor down. Since then Nor had curled into a ball and would not moved from her spot. What more is the filly refuse to respond to the her. "Please answer." she asked, her voice full of worry. She nuzzled the filly and whined. Nor still didn't respond. Melody heard the sound of galloping in the distance. A devious thought entered her mind as she whispered into the filly's ear; "Your shining knight is coming to save you." She smiled as Nor's ears slowly started to burn. Suddenly Crescent came into view, he ran straight to them. Skidding to a halt he looked from Melody to Nor who was now curled even tighter. He walked to her and gently nuzzled her ear before whispering; "It's alright now." Nor's ear twitched as he spoke, something Melody didn't miss. Slowly the filly unwrapped herself. She suddenly threw her hooves around his neck. Startled at first he quickly relaxed and gently returned the embrace. For a long while the two remained silent and still. Nor bore such an immense fear of height that only Crescent was able to break her from her traumatized state afterwards, at one point Sleipnir could too but her dependency for him had gradually dissipated as she became more attached to the colt. Another small smile crossed Melody's face. "Aww, such a cute scene." cooed the mare, "But it must be embarrassing with so many ponies watching." Both children looked around them to see a number of ponies smile and whisper to one another as they passed. The two sat up in a flash, their faces were more crimson then Melody thought possible. Suppressing a fit of giggles she waved a hoof before shooting into the air and vanishing from sight, leaving two traumatized little ponies behind. "I'm convinced under her kindness is an unspeakable evil." muttered the filly. The colt could only nod in agreement. Eventually the two rose from where they sat and began to wander into the excavation site. Keeping their heads low, neither looked at the other. Melody was giggling fits from the clouds high above the two young ponies. "There so cute!" she squealed to no one. Eventually she calmed down. After regaining her breath her mood shifted. "Right." she said flatly, "It's time I found out what is going on." She Lifted herself up and walked to the edge of the cloud. Her once shy, smiling expression was replaced with one of loathing and distrust as she stared down upon the ponies who worked the site. 'I will see that anypony who so much as consider harming those I love, will suffer greatly before I kill them.' She scanned the area with her highly trained eyesight. For the rest of the day she watched and took in all she could. ....... With a slam Sleipnir closed the ancient text that he kept secret even from his makeshift family. A sense of fear crept through him. He knew what the creature in the cave was and wished he didn't. 'I need more information.' he thought. If what he thought was true, then he had to do everything in his power to destroy the creature before it was too late. The only problem was there is no normal means to destroy the thing, which meant he had to move it. "Why is it never easy?" he muttered to himself. Suddenly he snapped to attention, sweat quickly formed on his brow. "If that thing is here, then they won't be far behind."
