Chapter 15 – The Coming Storm

Ever since his takeover of the Royal Castle of Canterlot and the capture of the Elements of Harmony, Arrogon the Destroyer initiated his global invasion force for many days to come. Thanks to his all-powerful amulet, the dark overlord easily created a massive energy barrier of dark blue, translucent magic around the doom-impeding kingdom of Canterlot. Because of the impenetrable force field, the citizens of Canterlot are trapped and confined in their own city while also severing their connections to the outside world.

Without any further distractions, Arrogon used his limitless powers to create an army of Shadow Minions, silhouetted demons that are artificially constructed by the Equestrian tyrant’s Dragonian Magic. The shelled bodies of these animated creatures are made up of dark blue, lively energy, and their most notable features are their soulless, glowing, red eyes. With Arrogon’s twisted imagination, his Shadow Minions are divided into five distinguished units.

Gremlins: mischievous, little imps that take joy out of creating destruction. Despite their short stature, these flat-headed troublemakers with their large, pointy ears, slitted eyes, and wide, toothy grins can be quite furious when they swarm in numbers as they can rip and wreck through whatever they can get their sharp, feral claws on. Plus, these demonic tykes can also serve as suitable scouts and spies.

Djinns: twisted versions of genies that will devotedly fulfill their dark master’s wishes. Despite serving as the army’s spellcasters, these intimidating magicians with two big, demonic horns and a long, wispy tail are no push-overs since their arms are as bulky as a gorilla’s. Of course, their main means to demolish their enemies are through their fire-based magic. Their dark, fiery spells include fireballs, fire breathing, fire barriers, and blazing weapons. Other than combative magicians, Djinns can also take up the roles of overseers, especially when they unleash their fiery whips upon the poor, unfortunate captives.

Furies: the main flyers of the shadowy army. The body of this vicious bird is filled with nothing but extremely sharp characteristics including their bladed fan wings, razor-sharp beak, hook-like talons, and three lengthy, curved tailfeathers. Besides their razor-sharp appendages, Furies can also breathe out fire, but their firepower isn’t as poweful as the Djinns'. But just like the Gremlins, the Furies can be quite a force to be wreck with when these swift raptors swarm in greater numbers.

Golems: towering behemoths who serve as the heavy infantry. Despite how slow they may be due to their stubby hoofed legs, these cube-faced giants are incredibly strong and have a very extensive reach thanks to their long, hulking, bludgeoning arms. Plus, with their long, massive arms, the Golems can also double as makeshift catapults.

Wraiths: the elite shadows who personify Death themselves. Ponies who see the Wraiths may mistake them as the grim reapers due to their ragged, robe-like appearance. They even have hood-like heads where the front pieces cover some of their cyclopean eyes, making these executioners appear more terrifying that way. But what is just as nightmarish as their looks are their two forelimbs that are shaped like large, deadly sickles. While they may not be as tough as the Djinns or Golems, their incredible, ghostly speed and swift slash attacks make them the most dangerous Shadow Minions as they are perfectly tasked as the army’s sentinels.

Now, after two long weeks, Arrogon has created hundreds of thousands of his ever-devoted Shadow Minions. High on top of very tall overlook, the deeply pleased, godlike king looks down from his balcony as he examines the latest batch of thousands of varied Minions. With all them gathered together in an organized formation, they stand ready in the vast courtyard right before their dark master.

“My faithful Minions!” he proclaims to the mindless mass down below. “Tonight, you will all initiate the first phase of my invasion force! Your mission: to overtake the nearby towns of Canterlot! Once we have secured our vantage points, we shall spread out like wildfire and take control of larger cities! Until finally… all of Equestria will be mine! And if anyone stands in your way of my worldwide conquest, well… you all know what to do. Now go, my Minions! Go forth and bring glory to my new empire!”

With a mighty wave of his hoof, the selected Minions disperse quickly as they exit the cursed kingdom and its force field. For those who can’t fly, the Gremlins and Golems shift their bodies into flat, circular shadows and swiftly travel across the ground to reach their targeted locations at a further pace. For the ponies that are either house-arrested, imprisoned or enslaved, they shudder in fear on the Shadow Minions’ departure as they hear the nightmarish creatures’ screeching howls pass by them. Resting his armored fore hooves on the balcony’s fence, Arrogon observes his departed minion with sinister anticipation over the conquest of Equestria.

Yes! Arrogon glees deviously as he gazes at the landscape with ambitious, fiery eyes. Everything is going just as I have anticipated! My power is absolute! My Shadow Minions are expanding significantly! And my special project is progressing quite well recently! With no one left to challenge me, I will finally get the respect I have long deserved and achieve my rightful place as god of this world!

Suddenly, a tiny yet familiar sensation sends a shiver across his spine. Instantly, he directs his attention to follow where that sensation is coming from. Soon enough, Arrogon pinpoints the well-known energy’s location as he fixes his flaming eyes on a huge forest in the far-off background. It was a tiny sensation Arrogon just felt eariler, but the fact that the energy’s source came from countless miles away would mean that its owner is unbelievably powerful.

I felt something… a presence I haven’t felt since…

After musing on any possibilities of the unknown energy-user, Arrogon’s eyes widen and then frown intensely once he came up with one, possible answer of someone he knows all too well.

HINDEL. I nearly forgot about him! Beforehand, I planned to absorb his soul into my amulet, but with Discord being the exception, there was no need for that. But right now, I can feel his aura growing expediently from such a faraway distance! No doubt he is already aware of my return at this point. So what’s he up to right now? Hmm… whatever he is scheming, I can’t overlook this any further! As long as he is out there, he can still pose as a threat to everything I have worked on!

Set on his next course of action, Arrogon quickly conjures up a pair of great wings from his back. Just like his mane, eyes, and tail, his newly fabricated wings are also made up of blazing, blue fire. Once the wings are completed, he stretches his enormous wingspan before he redirects his predatory eyes toward his next destination.

“I think it is time we have ourselves a little family reunion. Wouldn’t you agree, Hindel?”

With an almighty flap of his hellish wings, Arrogon immediately takes off of his perch and soars across the gloomy, eternal night to finish what was started 500 years ago.

“So, are you ready, Ford Mustang?” Hindel asks his student.

“Ready!” Ford responds eagerly.

In the middle of the enormous, draconic valley, Ford and Hindel are getting ready for their next training session. This time, the Pegasus not only has his wings restrained by the golden dragon’s magical band, but he also has his eyes tightly closed, for this exercise is designed to make him use his energy field perception continuously as well as test on all that he has learned in the past few weeks.

Without another word, Hindel fires a simple fire missile right at the grounded Pegasus, but grinning pony simply bats the incoming projectile with a hoof like it was a ball of paper. Next, Hindel spews more missiles at the confident stallion. During the missile barrage, Ford dodges a majority of them with rolls and jumps while countering some of them with either a smack of his fore hoof or with his own fire missile.

Noticing on how Ford has been able to evade one missile at a time, Hindel plans his next tactic as he greatly arches his head up while his unhinged jaws glow brightly. After that quick charge-up, Hindel unleashes dozens of blazing missiles at once high in the air before they rain down and home in on Ford. Quickly, the temporarily blind Pegasus breathes out accurate beams of golden fire, which rapidly destroy the volley of missiles.

Impressed by Ford’s progress so far, Hindel decides to end this training exercise with one final spell: a massive fireball. The large, scorching projectile roars out of the dragon’s mouth and is aimed directly at the Pegasus. Without breaking a sweat, the stallion swiftly steps aside as he dodges the enlarged fireball.

“Heh, too easy.” Ford mutters to himself a cocky grin.

But then, the fiery comet makes a U-turn and charges back at Ford from behind! Distracted by his cockiness, Ford barely dodges the charging comet again, but this time, his left wing is slightly injured by the blazing ball of fire! Ignoring the small burnt to his left side, Ford stays alert as he cautiously detects the large, homing missile that keeps coming back at him. He tries to counterattack the incoming fireball with his own fire breathing attacks, but surprisingly, the self-guided comet just absorbs the pony’s fire.

Facing the fireball head-on, Ford decides to quickly focus his magic into his fore hoof, and he swats the fireball right back at Hindel! Surprised by Ford’s counterattack, Hindel quickly destroy his returning fireball with his own fire breath. Within the explosion of smoke and fire, Ford Mustang dives right through it and prepares to strike back with a fore hoof ready. Completely off-guard by Ford’s sudden charge, Hindel freezes in place as he prepares to receive the first hit from the pony. But just as Ford makes direct contact with Hindel…

BOOP!

…he lightly taps the puzzled dragon on the forehead as he casually stands on the reptilian snout.

“Gotcha!” Ford triumphs with a chuckling smile.

With a simple back flip, the proud Pegasus makes a graceful landing before he finally opens his turquoise eyes. Next, his strong wings stretch within his confined band of golden energy, and he breaks the magical restraint with ease.

Impressed by Ford’s ever-growing strength, Hindel says with grin, “Well played, Mustang.”

After breaking that restraining band, Ford examines his left wing to see just how badly burned it is. The damage isn’t that bad consider that a few of his outside feathers are a bit charred, but the minor injure didn’t stop the Pegasus from quietly wincing to himself; something that Hindel catches on quickly due to his very sharp hearing.

“Did something happen?” Hindel asks with concern.

“Oh, it’s nothing, Hindel.” Ford reassures modestly. “My wing just got a bit scorched, that’s all.”

“You want me to take care of that for you?”

Ford thinks about that, but then he responds with a modest smile, “No thanks. I’ve got this.”

Closing his eyes once again, Ford concentrates on his left, expanded wing as he breathes in and out gently. The extended wing starts to radiate a soft glow of golden energy. The magical, harmless flames begins to “burn away” the charred colors of his burnt bristles before they regenerate into newer, stronger feathers. After the miraculous aura disappears, Ford smiles in satisfaction over the handiwork of his newly refurbished wing.

After feeling the last bit of warmth disappearing from Ford’s healing spell, Hindel is stunned by the display of his student’s Draconian Magic before he breaks into a smile and says to Ford, “Impressive. You’ve already grasped on your regenerative abilities in such a short period of time. You’ve not only gotten stronger since yesterday, but you’re mastering your emotions quite well.”

“That reminds me…” Ford asks his master. “I know that you’ve been saying that I should master my own emotions in order to push my powers beyond their limits. But, if that’s true, then… wouldn’t anger be the best emotion to increase my own potential?”

Hindel can tell that Ford was a little hesitant but also curious when he asked that question. Understandably, the dragon responses, “It’s true. Anger can bring forth a lot of your potential, and it can give you a tremendous boost of power when it comes to boosting your own Draconian Magic, but there’s a price to pay from that. If you let your anger get the best of you, then you will greatly lose focus in your breathing and control. Doing so will also quickly diminish your own energy capacity.”

“So… I shouldn’t use anger whenever I fight someone?” Ford asks with uncertainty. “I don’t know if I can do that for myself, especially when I have face Arrogon again.”

“Well, I’m not saying that anger is always a bad thing.” Hindel reassures his bewildered student. “All I’m asking is that you be mindful when you unleash your fury against Arrogon, so that you can preserve your strength and concentration. And besides, there are more positive emotions to consider, including the most powerful emotion of all, love!”

“Really… even love can be channeled into power?”

“Yes, it can. Remember all those who’ve cared about you… the ones who’ve helped you become what you are today. Let their everlasting love for you add more fuel to the fire of your soul. If you can master that emotion’s unfathomable power, you can achieve anything!”

Awestricken by Hindel’s words, Ford smiles warmly to himself as he looks down at his chest while placing a hoof over his heart. Somehow, reflecting those special moments he once shared with Rainbow Dash has caused his golden aura to grow gradually as it radiates a deeply warm feeling inside.

“Well… that’s enough of that!” Hindel insists with a wave of his claw. “Why don’t you go ahead and get something to eat first?”

Happily, the blue Pegasus takes off and dives right into the Everfree Forest to find his latest lunch there. After Ford has left the valley, Hindel couldn’t help but beam over Ford’s achievements for the past two weeks of his intense training. Soon… very soon they will be ready to confront Arrogon head-on before the cruel tyrant’s age of darkness can take a permanent effect on Equestria.

As he turns around to feast on some of his jewels, something unexpectedly flashes before Hindel’s white eyes! Through sight beyond sight, the startled dragon sees a familiar, dark figure flying across the nightly sky. Along with its shadowy body, blue flames take the form of his mane, eyes, tail, and wings. Recognizing those highlighting features, Hindel nearly shivers at the mental sight of his former apprentice and now his greatest enemy of all: Arrogon the Destroyer!

What the--? Arrogon has left the castle… and he’s flying at an incredible speed! Hindel thinks alarmingly to himself as he continues to see this shocking vision before him. But why? Why leave the castle so abruptly? There’s nothing ahead in that direction except the Everfree For--! …OH NO. There’s no way he would know about our location! I’ve been making sure to hide my energy for so long! How else would Arrogon be able to find us--?

Suddenly, Hindel sharply turns his head around before he faces the Everfree Forest where his apprentice is in right now. It was Ford’s… the dragon realizes the startling revelation to himself. Arrogon has been sensing Ford’s growing energy signature instead. But… does that mean Arrogon is aware that Ford is still alive? …No, I don’t think so. Mustang’s aura is similar to mine, so Arrogon could have just mistaken that power signature for my own. In any case, we don’t have much time. He will be here soon, and I can’t let him find out of Mustang’s return just yet. There’s only one thing left to teach Ford before he finally completes his training; something that even I haven’t passed on to my students long ago, not even… Morning Star. But still… is Ford ready for what’s to come though?

As the elder dragon ponders on this, he can hear Ford making his eventual return from the Everfree Forest. Upon reflecting on all the days they have spent together as well as sensing the ever-growing, warm energy residing within the young, noble Pegasus, Hindel breaks into a confident smile as he is certain on what to do next for his promising apprentice.

Yes… I know that he is.

Once Ford makes his landing, he greets the dragon with a welcoming smile, "Alright, I'm back! Did you get anything to eat yet?”

“Y-yes, I did.” Hindel hesitantly lies to his student before refocusing on what’s important right now. “Mustang… there’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it, Hindel?”

After taking a deep breath, the dragon says to Ford, “I think it’s time, Mustang.”

“Time for what exactly?” the stallion perplexes with a cocked eyebrow.

With an all-knowing grin, Hindel answers simply, “For your final lesson, of course!”

Author's Notes:

I don't know if this is kind of cheating on my part, but I wanted to try my best to upload a new chapter for each week. Basically, the final chapters of the "Training Arc" were originally going to be concluded with two chapters. But considering on how much there was in the first part to the conclusion of Ford Mustang's training compared to the second part, I figure it might be appropriate to break that first part into two chapters. So in short, two chapters for the conclusion of this plot have now become three chapters. Get it? Next Chapter: "Trial by Fire."

Also, this chapter allowed me to introduced Arrogon's army of darkness, the Shadow Minions! Originally, there were only going to be three variations: Gremlins, Furies, and Golems. But overtime, I figure that three units are a bit too few to showcase the menacing threat of Arrogon's forces, so I began to think on adding two more units: Djinns and Wraiths. I'm especially proud of the two additions because the Djinns can serve as Arrogon's spellcasters while the Wraiths are pretty much badass, scary mofos, which can serve as the personal bodyguards of Arrogon.