My mood did not improve as I continued down the hallway. The palace servants must have sensed my current state because they seemed to keep their distance. However, while they had avoided me in the past, many of them were pressing themselves against the walls as I passed by. Any other time I may have attempted to discover what was going on, but the recent embarrassing events really irritated me. So I just resumed my tromp with an even greater scowl.

In times like these, which were many in number, I resorted to holing myself up in my alchemy lab. It was admittedly not the most mature way of dealing with one’s problems, but it felt good to do so. It was always a place of quiet solitude from the rest of the world. I just wish that it did not have to be relocated to a room attached to the Reaper Knight arena. It was partially so that I was on hoof to aid injuries caused by arena practices. The other part was so I did not blow up anything important. They just never seemed to get over that one incident involving an unstable spell that caused my previous lab to disappear from existence. I still never knew what happened to it.

Either way my mood picked up when I saw the entrance to the Reaper Knight arena. I opened the large double doors and to my luck it was empty. After thinking for a few seconds I determined that I still had time before that sparring match I had setup. I let out a sigh of relief at the idea of much needed alone time. So without further delay I made my way to my lab doors.

However, as I reached them I heard somepony clear their throat behind me. I clenched my teeth and let out a quiet snarl. ‘What is it now?!’ I growled in my mind. Solitude was so close and now yet another delay had made itself present. I scraped my left forehoof down the wall by my lab doors before turning around.

There standing several meters away was Black Hammer. He was a gray one-eyed earth pony who was the maker of my current armor. As I looked at him he tilted his head to the side and chuckled. The big smile on his face was apparent that he was amused by my horrid mood. After looking me over a few times, he shook his head and slowly walked closer.

“I came here hopin’ for some feedback on that beauty of a suit yer wearin’, Sir Breaksalot. However, ye look more like an ill-tempered hedgehog than the lad I be searchin’ fer,” Black Hammer stated while stopping a meter from me.

I tilted my head to the left and stated “What in the world are you talking about?”

He just snorted, shook his head, and then leaned closer to me. He then pulled what appeared to be a punctured peach off of me.

At that point I realized my armor was covered in spikes. It seemed they were jutting out of my armor plates. Well at least that explains why the servants were keeping a larger than normal distance from me. I let out a small chuckle before I closed my eyes and did a few breathing exercises. After a moment I had calmed myself enough to focus my thoughts.

When I opened my eyes my armor was back to normal. Black Hammer just rolled his eyes, but then the smile on his face shifted to a sorrowful look. He sighed and examined the ruined peach in his right forehoof. He took a deep breath before saying, “Ya know. It has been many a moon since I was turned. Peaches were me favorite food when I was a wee lad. They…just dun’t taste like they used ta.” He signed again and let the peach side out of his forehoof onto the ground.

It was a strange sight to see him like this. Black Hammer was much older than me by a long shot. How old, was hard to say. What I do know was that time was not that kind to him, but he endured. Perhaps it was the reason I often looked up to him in times of hardship. He was always able to keep his head when others were losing theirs. In other words, it was rare to see him in this state. While I wanted to question him further I knew better than to inquire about his past. He got extremely irritated when ponies asked him too many personal questions.

So in an attempt to lighten the mood and end the awkward silence I cleared my throat and stated “Well, you required my feedback?”

He snapped out of his trance and shook his head. He then said “Ah yes,” with his usual smile returning.

I proceeded to describe what I have been doing with the armor. However, to be honest there was not much to tell. I never had gotten the chance to test it properly. It did at least prevent me from getting burnt to a crisp and stabbed a few times. So I suppose that was a plus. There was just one fact that I truly needed to state to him. The bizarre slithering feeling I got when it covered me. It was rather unnerving for some reason.

He took the news in silence until I mentioned the last point. He laughed a few times and said “Yeah, I never got that awful feel of the armor ironed out yet. Truth be told, it creeps me out.”

“And yet you gave it to me to test…” I said in a monotone voice.

He snickered and said, “Well yeah, why wouldn’t I? I figure if anypony could figure that problem out it’d be the infamous Sir Breaksalot. Besides call it payback for that one potion ye gave me a few years ago.”

“Hey, you had stated you required a potion to stay awake for some smithing project of your’s. I told you to only take two small slips and yet you decided to drain the whole vial. It was not my fault you could not sleep for a fortnight,” I said with a grin and raised eyebrow.

“I dun’t do things in small measures, lad. I figured it couldn't be that bad. Regardless, I have some other business to take care of. Have fun impalin’ fruit ya walkin’ spikeball,” he said while turning around and began to walk away.

I cleared my throat and said “Black Hammer, for what it is worth. I have not eaten solid food in years.”

He just said back over his shoulder while walking away, “Me either lad…me either.”

After I saw him walk out the arena I turned around, I undid the seal and opened the doors to my alchemy lab. The talk with Black Hammer did little to ease my nerves. I frowned as old memories started dredging up in my mind. It truly had been a long time since I had eaten solid food. I just had never thought about it until now.

With a sigh I closed the doors and leaned my back against them. I was hoping for some quiet solitude, but now it just seemed so hollow. Nostalgia crept into my thoughts as I began remembering the days when I was still a mortal. I closed my eyes as I remembered some of the fonder memories. I had spent much of my colthood tending my adopted father’s fields and working the forge. It did not take long before my tired and weary mind shifted to darkness and sleep took me.

After an unknown amount of time I awoke with a start. Somepony was banging on the doors of my alchemy lab. After my vision adjusted I realized I was lying flat on the floor while drooling all over the ground. My stiff body protested as I slowly got up. It appeared that hard stone slab floors did indeed make for a poor bed. I walked over and got a cloth off of my alchemy table. I then wiped my mouth with the cloth as the banging on the doors came again.

As I listened closely I heard some voices on the other side. “Are you sure he’s in there Cloud Streak?” one of the voices inquired.

“Oh he’s in there alright. Especially with the mood he was in before. Besides I heard somepony yelp shortly after I started knocking. I just find it funny we all had to be here at dusk, by his order I might add, and here he is late,” a voice replied and I assumed it was Cloud Streak’s.

I stood there puzzled for a second. ‘Late? Late for…oh yes…that,’ I stated in my mind remembering the sparring match. After a bit of effort I faced the door and undid the seal. It spun a few times before it clicked and the doors slowly opened. A moment before I walked out I grabbed one of the last stored life orbs I still possessed. I would soon need it or I was going to be powerless in my match. It was unnerving that I needed to use it. They really were for emergencies only, but I had little choice.

I heard Shadow Dancer’s voice as I walked into the arena, “Well it’s bout time you came out. We were wonderin’ if ya fell asleep in there,”

“Yes…asleep…” I mumbled under my breath. I then looked around and it appeared everypony was present. I cleared my throat and said “Well now that we are all here, we shall began. As I have mentioned earlier, there is no possible way for me to watch over Twilight and all her friends alone. So I will each assign one of my lieutenants to guard one of the other elements while I continue guarding Twilight.”

Twilight looked at her friends before she spoke in a confused tone, “Umm well that part makes sense. But why are we in the arena again?”

“It is quite simple really. Each of the pairs will be sparring against each other. You both need to know each other’s strengths and weakness. This will aid you in the future when you may need to rely on this important information,” I said with a toothy grin.

I saw Twilight and her friends visibly pale at my statements. I then saw my lieutenants had already started their stretches and it only seemed to add to the elements’ obvious nervousness. After a few moments Applejack spoke up, “Well that’s all fine and dandy I suppose if ya’ll think that’s necessary. But if ya hadn’t noticed, it’s pretty dark in here. Now that may not be a problem fer ya night folk, but we need light or this is gonna be a bunch of one sided fights.”

I tapped my left fang with my left forehoof a few times. She did have a valid point. While I was able to see perfectly fine, they were probably borderline blind. So without another thought I spoke loudly out a few commanding words and the torches surround the inside of the arena lit up. The enchanted torches soon shifted their blue glow to brilliant orange flames. This act seemed to appease Applejack and the others some.

After waiting a few moments I began to speak again. “In true sport I want my lieutenants to keep their suppression fields active when sparring with the other elements. I do not want anypony to be too outmatched. However, me and Twilight will keeps ours turned off as we should be on par against each other. Lastly, Twilight and the other elements please choose a sparring weapon to fight with,” I said and then pointed at a weapon rack by one of the arena walls.

While the elements were busying themselves I told a servant to bring some food and refreshments. Right before they left I added to also bring some bandages. The servant snickered a little and rolled their eyes before leaving. I did not blame them for their amusement. Even with the extra light and certain restrictions to aid the elements, there was good chance this was still going to be a bunch of one sided fights anyway. We were battle hardened soldiers with supernatural powers and they were just mortals other than Twilight. However, to their credit they were famous for their heroism and the elements they represented. So I supposed it could balance the scale. Either way it would be interesting.

After everypony got settled with their weapons selections, I went to examine them. Applejack picked some wooden hoof coverings. They were close range, but quick. Rainbow Dash got persuaded by Cloud Streak to try the wing blades like she uses. Pinkie Pie selected a large mallet. Rarity decided on a rapier while mumbling something about a classy weapon. Fluttershy picked a shepherd’s staff and Twilight chose a wooden katana. Twilight’s response at my curious inquiry was that this type of weapon was used by a character in an exciting story she read. I shook my head and mentally said, ‘That figures.’

My lieutenants selected practice versions of their usual weapons and awaited my orders. I looked everypony over and began to speak. “After long thought I have made my decisions of the pairing,” I stated as I mulled my thoughts over for a moment. Truth be told my accidental nap did not leave me much time to sort these pairing out. However, I was in luck as the selections seemed to come easily for me in my furious thinking.

I cleared my throat and spoke up. “Me and Twilight will start out the matches. It will then be followed by Fluttershy versus Gray Mane. Then Applejack versus Shadow Dancer. Then Rarity versus Night Star. Then Rainbow Dash versus Cloud Steak. Then finally Pinkie Pie versus Tactics,” I said in a stern voice.

I then began to add, “These matches are yield or knockout-” before I was interrupted by Twilight.

She gulped and nervously said, “K-knockout? You can’t be serious.”

I raised an eyebrow and replied “That is usually how these sparring matches run. If you are afraid you could always yield.”

Rainbow Dash burst out in response, “I ain’t afraid of nothing! Come on Twilight let’s kick their plots!”

Twilight and her friends all cheered at the amusing notion of defeating us. Perhaps I was just being disingenuous, but I did not know what chance they really stood. I grinned and snickered to myself. I then stretched before I started my final preparations.

After I finished my stretches I attempted to look around for my tome. I had little doubt in my mind that Twilight had brought it with her. It amused me on how attached she became to it. In turn I smiled and quickly located what I searching for.

Twilight was holding it under her right wing as I suspected. I pursed my lips and thought about how interesting this was going to get. As one would imagine the odds getting my tome back easily was less than peacefully separating a dragon from their horde. However, I need to review some of my spells before the match. So in thus I had little choice but to make an attempt.

I walked over to Twilight and stated, "Twilight, may I please have my tome for a moment?"

She looked at me with slight panic and grabbed my tome with both of her forelegs and sat down. "But...but I haven't finished reading it yet," she said with a pout.

"I understand, but I am in need of it. May I please have it?" I said in a calm tone.

"You need it right now?" she replied as she grasped the tome harder.

"Yes...I need it now," I said with a small grin.

"O...okay...here you...go" she said with a small whimper while holding my tome in front of her.

I tried to use my magic to pick it up, but it was not budging. I soon noticed that Twilight's horn was glowing and her magical influence was wrapped around it. I sigh and said with a raise eyebrow "Twilight, please give me my tome."

"I'm trying to," she replied with another whimper.

Well it appeared I was going to get no where with this approach. As the harder I tugged the harder she held firm. So in times like these you had to use other methods. I quickly looked to my left and feint surprise. "By the moon! Why is somepony burning that book!?" I said to add to the deception.

Her head snapped to the direction I was facing. "What?! WHERE?!" she yelped in surprise and anger.

In that small window of opportunity I yanked my tome away from her influence. After realizing what I had done, she just gave me a pouting look. I chuckled and said "Do not worry. After our match you can continue reading it."

Her mood immediately brightened up, but she began to look antsy. I just proceeded to shake my head in response as I opened my tome.

After flipping through a few pages I soon began to pour through my spells and located three that would aid me. I just hoped Twilight did not read into them too deeply. Otherwise, I was going to be in for some problems. Either way I finished memorizing them and closed the tome. I then placed it on the sidelines near the chairs and refreshments the servants had setup for us.

Me and Twilight then entered the center of the arena while the others waited on the sidelines. In proper manner I bowed my head and stated, "Best of luck to you and may we have a good match." She however just bowed in turn while she kept repeatedly glancing at my tome. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I had really hoped she was not going to throw the match in order to continue reading. We desperately needed to practice our skills and see what each other can do.

So without another word I summoned my scythe. I then slashed the stored life force orb and proceeded to absorb its power. The feeling was invigorating. I had felt like I could take on the world and win. I took a deep breath and flexed my muscles while taking in this delightful feeling. A smile slowly crept up my face while I covered my scythe's blade with a wooden covering to sheath the sharp edge. With all this new energy to tap into, I just hoped Twilight could keep up.

Next Chapter: Chapter 19: Sparring Practice: Part 2 Estimated time remaining: 9 Hours, 9 Minutes