Solaris was up bright and early, feeling really giddy after yesterday's crazy day in the empire's city with Trill. Today was the first day they will officially start being a couple, even if he had to hide his romantic feelings for the changeling princess in front of his family. He trotted along the halls, heading to his marefriend's room to maybe sneak her a little "breakfast" before going to the dining hall. He stood before one of many the guest rooms Trill was given, knocking on her door to wake her.

"Trill, it's morning! Time to get up!" He waited for a response, but none came. Solaris knocked again, but she didn't answer. "Trill?" He opened the door, but as he looked inside, there was no sign of the changeling inside, especially not the bed. "Is she already up?"

Solaris searched around the room, even the bathroom if she decided to surprise him, but she was nowhere to be seen. Before he decided to ask anypony if they saw her, he noticed there was a note left behind on the bed. His eyes widened in shock and anger as he read it to himself.

If you want to see your changeling friend alive, I suggest you meet me in the cave located a mile south-east of the castle. If you decide to not arrive by 10 AM, then she will die.

-Zero

Quickly looking at the clock inside of the room, it was 9:30 in the morning, only a half hour remaining until it was too late. With no time to warn his aunts and uncle, Solaris flew out of the room through the open window and began heading south-east. Flying as fast as he could, he passed the protective barrier, searching below the snowy fields to find any caves nearby. Just as Zero had described, about a mile away from the castle, there was a cavern hidden behind a hill, unable to be seen from the empire's location.

He hovered down to the entrance, rushing inside, the cavern lit up by hundreds of crystals jutted from the walls and ceiling. Solaris ran as quick as he could, galloping through the long passage as more crystals began appearing the deeper he went. He finally managed to reach the end of the cave, a massive room with crystals littering the expansive area, ranging from small shards to massive pillars, especially the precariously looking stalactites above.

Solaris looked around, spotting Trill, unconscious and bound, on the other side of the room. "Trill!" He ran for her, no sign of Zero anywhere. "Don't worry, I'll get you-"

In an instant, a spear made entirely out of crystal shot out between Solaris and Trill, nearly skewering the alicorn by mere inches. Completely caught off guard, Solaris was quickly hit by a black armored hoof, appearing out of thin air, punching the teen hard, sending him flying back to the entrance of the room. He recovered from the unexpected attack, staring down the armored mercenary.

"You didn't think you would rescue her that easily, did you?" Zero said, picking up the crystal spear with his concealed magical aura. "At least you showed up on time. That's one good thing at least."

"Who are you!?" Solaris questioned, standing on his hind legs as he set his forehooves on fire. "What do you want with me, and why did you have to take Trill as a hostage!?"

"You know exactly what it is, Solaris." Zero looked up at the many crystals inside of the cavern, though it was hard to tell what he was thinking with his visor concealing his face. "I was a little surprised you actually did make it out of the temple back in Saddle Arabia. You managed to find the secret exit before it finally collapsed."

"Y-You knew about that?" Solaris asked, baffled that the mercenary knew about the entrance to the treasure room outside of the temple. "You knew we made it out alive?"

"You're lucky I didn't tell my 'boss', otherwise he would have flipped," Zero said, only confusing the alicorn more.

"What are you talking about!?" Solaris's flaming hooves flared in his anger. "Aren't you supposed to try and kill me!? Isn't that what you're supposed to do for Lucifer!? Do his dirty work for him while he sits on a throne!?"

"I may follow orders from him, but that doesn't mean I worship him like a loyal dog to its master." Zero subconsciously traced the ground with the pointed end of his spear. "You might say I have a vendetta against that bastard, but because he pays me handsomely, I'd rather not bite the hand that feeds me. Get what I mean?"

"...I don't understand..." Solaris began to wonder who Zero was, unsure if the stallion was supposed to be an enemy or an unknown ally. "...How did you get past the barrier? Nopony evil could get in the Crystal Empire...right?"

"Only those with dark magic can't enter the empire," Zero explained. "The only reason why no soldiers are placed inside the empire is because Lucifer wants to liberate it by himself, and he's much too stubborn to send incompetent troops. The crystals in the empire have a lot of value, and with rampaging teens and young adults doing whatever they wish-"

"They'll destroy the kingdom..." Solaris answered.

"Bingo." Zero walked to one of the nearby crystal stalagmites, rubbing his hoof on the glowing blue mineral. "Besides, I'm considered a native of the empire, for nearly twenty years. I'd rather not have my home destroyed when he already ruined my actual hometown."

"Then why bring me here?" Solaris asked. "Why work for Lucifer when you're against him?"

"...I'll answer your questions, Solaris...but not right now." Putting pressure on the stalagmite, and using his magic, Zero managed to create another crystal spear similar to the first one, showing off the incredible feat of magic. "It's wonderful to know how adaptable a unicorn can be when living around crystals. Sombra must have had a field day when he completely lost his mind.

"But enough talk about tyrants," Zero said, aiming both spears at Solaris. "Are you ready for your third test?"

"Huh!?" Solaris exclaimed. "T-Test!?"

"That's right. Your third trial." Zero moved one of the spears, hovering it over Trill's head. "Your mother had informed me that you would show up in the empire one day, so she bestowed upon me a very serious task that I couldn't disobey. You will have to face me in order to earn your next piece of armor you will need."

"B-But...I-I don't get it!" Solaris couldn't find the words to even ask the mercenary, all of this thrust upon him far too quickly. "Just who are you, and how do you know my mom!?"

"All your answers will be given to you, if you can beat me in combat." Zero slammed the one spear he created down to the ground, making Solaris flinch as it was thrust mere inches away from Trill's face. "Just from the expression on your face, you seem to care about this insect."

"Leave Trill out of this!" Solaris slammed his hooves together, causing sparks of green embers to burst out around him.

"...So, you do like her that much." Zero readied his weapon, standing on his own hind legs as he held his crystal spear in his forehooves. "Let's just see how much you care about her, even if it means fighting for both your lives."

"Why don't I just show you right now!?" Solaris shouted, moving his forelegs behind him, shooting off a compressed burst of fire and sending him flying at Zero at blinding speed.

As the alicorn threw his hoof in the mercenary's face, he quickly avoided the punch. "Careless," he said, smacking the teen in the back of the head with the blunt side of his weapon. Solaris hit the ground, only to be flung up high into the air, Zero thrusting his spear into the ground and shooting out a pillar of solid crystal underneath the alicorn. He righted himself from the air, dive bombing toward his opponent. Before Solaris could hit the ground, Zero avoided his flaming hooves and jabbed the blunt end up into the teen's stomach, knocking the wind out of him and flinging him across the ground. "Letting your anger fuel your fury will keep leading you to your downfall."

Solaris coughed as he struggled to breath, growling as he was being lectured by somepony who was supposed to be his enemy. His flames were erratic as he grew frustrated, getting back on his hooves and began shooting fireballs at Zero. While avoiding each recklessly aimed shot, the mercenary covered Trill with a crystal shield, the teen too focused on attacking him while being mindful of his unconscious and bound marefriend in the battlefield with them.

"Stop running from me!" Solaris continued his barrage of green fireballs as Zero dodged them, spun his spear around rapidly to absorb the oxygen creating the flames, or teleporting to another part of the room.

Before he could fire his hundredth fireball, Zero teleported in front of him, blocking his hoof with his own. He twisted Solaris's foreleg, making the teen wince as he could feel his leg try to contort in a way it shouldn't by the mercenary's strength. He tried to punch Zero with his other foreleg, only to have it parried down to the ground as crystals trapped his hoof to the ground. The stallion twisted the teen's leg harder, dropping the alicorn to the ground as he failed to pull away from the mysterious unicorn's grip.

"I never run," Zero said. "You lack the ability to control your emotions, which is why you're fighting blindly. In the midst of combat, you have to have a clear mind, and stay calm no matter what happens. I had trained in Equestria's royal guard when the princesses were still alive, and the first lesson we were taught was to never let our emotions control us." He slammed his free hoof down hard on Solaris's head, smacking his face into the hard ground. "Those include anger and distraught. Grow too furious, you'll behave like a wild animal. Grow upset, then you'll end up dead before you could even figure out what it is that's going to kill you."

"B-Buck you," Solaris uttered.

He was soon struck by a pillar of crystal slamming into his jaw from underneath him, the crystal around his encased hoof broken off. Zero grabbed the alicorn by the throat, slamming him back down to the ground on his back. As he was about to stomp down on him, Solaris blocked it, breathing out a blast of fire at his opponent, but Zero leapt away before he was burnt.

"If you really wished to protect the changeling, then why did you not take into account that she was in your line of fire?" Solaris got back up on his hooves, looking over at where Trill used to be. He could see her through the crystal shielding, scorch marks on the minerals, keeping her safe. This only confused the teenager, not knowing why Zero was protecting her while they fought. "Your blind fury had shrouded your mind to saving her, putting her in danger from yourself."

Solaris's heart sank at the realization. If it weren't for Zero's crystal magic, he could have actually hurt Trill, or killed her. He was so focused on trying to save her, he got too angry and his blind rage could have done a lot more harm than good. He didn't want to lose her, not after everything that had happened to him.

The alicorn took a few breaths, calming himself and clearing his mind, the flames around his hooves flickering calmly as well. Now that he was focused, he waited for the right moment to strike, paying attention to Zero's body as he slowly approached him, crystal spears forming out of the ground around him. The stallion flung the spears at him, only to be smashed to pieces as Solaris punched through them, his gauntlets stronger than the crafted crystal weapons.

Deciding to try his newly acquired pendant in combat, Solaris summoned a cotton candy cloud, only instead of using it for snacking, he willed it to fly in on Zero, catching the stallion in its sticky sweetness. Catching him completely off guard, the alicorn flew straight toward him, making the cloud disappear as he got closer. Stunned from the surprise attack, Zero wasn't quick enough to block a swift jab to the chest, then a hard hook across his face, sending the mercenary to the ground.

He wasn't able to teleport away as Solaris grabbed the stallion, flipping him around and repeatedly punched him. After the sixth blow, Zero blocked him and kicked the teen off of him, getting back up on his hooves while Solaris recovered from the hard buck to the chest.

"This just got interesting," Zero said, almost sounding excited through the distorted voice. "Let me see what you got. Don't hold back on me."

"Like I'm going to back down when my marefriend's held hostage?" Solaris quelled the flames around his forehooves, deciding to continue the fight without his firepower.

Both stallions rushed toward each other, each throwing punches and kicks while avoiding or blocking their opponent's strikes. Solaris began to defend more, seeing Zero seems to have more experience with hoof to hoof combat. He managed to counter a swift punch, but his foreleg was grabbed by the older stallion's grip, twisting him around to a behind the back arm lock. The teen quickly elbowed Zero in the chest with his free foreleg, breaking out of the hold and flipping the stallion over his shoulder, only to flip back up on his legs and charge at the alicorn once again.

Their forehooves slammed into each other's, both stallions pushing against their opponent in a struggle, staring each other down. They were equal in strength, but Solaris didn't have as much endurance as Zero does. The mercenary chuckled, amused at the little fist fight they had.

"You're pretty good at CQC, kid," Zero praised. "The worst thing about fighting with your hooves only is that it leaves you vulnerable to a ranged opponent, even with that fire of yours."

"Then it's a good thing I can adapt to my surroundings," Solaris said. He managed to make Zero stagger, pulling him toward him, quickly spinning around and sweeping his leg underneath the mercenary and tripping him. With his back turned to the downed stallion, he flipped backwards, slamming a back leg down hard into Zero's stomach, making him grunt and gasp in pain as he bounced off the ground. "Good thing I'm also a quick learner!"

Quickly getting back up, Solaris combined the use of his telekinesis and hoof-to-hoof combat, sending hard blows into Zero's body, pulling him back toward him if he got too far like he was a yo-yo tied to an invisible string. Zero could barely react, struggling to breath while getting smacked around by the young stallion, even unable to teleport away as he was occasionally punched hard in the head to focus on the teleportation spell. After a never-ending beatdown, Solaris gave Zero one last hard punch in the mercenary's chest, sending the stallion flying across the room, slamming hard into the cavern wall.

Solaris watched as Zero slid to the ground and slumped over, having beaten the experienced soldier. Keeping an eye on the stallion, he hovered over to Trill, tearing away the crystal shield around her.

"Trill?" Solaris gently shook the mare, watching her stir and her eyes fluttering open. When she looked up to him, she grew confused at her surroundings, noticing her limbs were tied up and her magic rendered useless. "Hang on. I'll get you out of these."

He untied the mare's legs and pulled off the inhibitor ring from her horn as she ripped off the tape covering her mouth. "AH! Why do they have to make this stuff sticky!?"

"At least it's better than that disgusting web loogie you love shooting at me," Solaris said.

"It's a self defense mechanism of us changelings," Trill said, insulted. "Enough making fun of me. Where's the punk who-" Trill finally noticed the semi-unconscious mercenary far across the other side of the massive room of the cavern. "That's the guy who kidnapped me! I'm gonna tear him a new one!"

Trill tried to stomp her way over to the stallion, but Solaris grabbed ahold of her tail with his magic, dragging the mare back to him. "He managed to kidnap you, and knock you unconscious, and you want to fight with him?"

"Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't handle myself," Trill said, receiving a look from her coltfriend. "...What?"

"Just stay behind me." They both approached Zero, Solaris growing cautious, not knowing what he would do. "Ok, I beat you, so that means I passed my test, right?"

"Test!?" Trill exclaimed. "He works for Lucifer!...Right?"

"He's some kind of double agent, and he knew my mom," Solaris explained. "So, tell me. Who are you?"

Zero chuckled, groaning in pain as he sat up. "I...didn't expect you to be that agile...You must have trained hard."

"Don't stall!" Solaris shouted, lighting his hooves on fire. "Tell me who you are and why you were the one who had to give me my test!"

"...Alright. Relax. Give me a moment to catch my breath." Solaris calmed down a little, though his hooves still glowed brightly from his green flames. "I guess I'm getting too old to keep up with you." Zero moved his forehooves to his helmet, slowly taking it off and shocking both Solaris and Trill, the alicorn's flames dying out. The stallion shook his revealed white face, his blue mane flowing freely from the confines of the concealing headpiece. The mercenary was Shining Armor, grinning at his nephew with a look of exhaustion. "Congratulations, nephew. You passed your third test."