As the human slashed one more time at the tree trunk he breathed heavily, pulling his sword out from the wood. Nathaniel had been practicing for a few hours with the new sword given to him by princess Luna. The black blade seemed to cut through most things he had tried it out against and so far it was going pretty good considering he had no prior training.

"You swing it around like a kid! Focused strikes and swift movements!" A voice yelled and he flinched, the drill sergeant given to him and the new recruits having a very powerful voice.

He was not a trained fighter, meaning that if he was to hold the job of bodyguard (or guardian as it was more commonly referred to) he needed to build skill. So Luna had signed him up to be trained along with the new guard recruits, meaning he had to be around angry and annoyed young ponies all day, which really was making him more and more frustrated.

It was not often that Nathaniel lost control, but when someone had for the fifteenth time asked if they could find a pet like him anywhere he had yelled at them with an even louder voice than the drill sergeant. No one was gonna assume he was some kind of pet. Sure he was a servant now, but he'd be damned if they would take his dignity with his freedom.

A problem with his training however was that he had to move his weapon differently to the ponies, meaning the drill sergeant had to tend to him personally, which was just embarrassing and annoying. Normally he found small victories in getting a stance right only for her to shut him down with some criticism. However he understood why she was being so judgmental and harsh, as he was the one that was protecting the princess of the night.

Another thing he had learnt in his time among Luna and the castle staff was the fact the she and Celestia rose both the sun and the moon. At first the young man had laughed at how absurd that idea was, until he remembered he could use magic and was talking with sentient ponies each day. It also helped when Luna showed him the very act of bringing forth the night. The constellations formed under her will, it had been magical to watch.

The more time Nathaniel spent in Equestria the more his mind started to let go of concepts he had grown accustomed to on earth. The sun and the moon was controlled by two ponies with crowns on their heads, the weather was controlled by the pegasi, things grew faster thanks to earth ponies and unicorns could bend time and space with enough power. Even if he got a headache when he thought about a few concepts the ponies introduced him to.

Enchantments were one thing that was bothering him, the process confusing the human. The rune or mark was craved into the object of choice with the spell linked to it recited during the process. Yet how does it then gain magical strength? Does it form after the power and personality of the wielder? Can anyone, even a unicorn weak in magic, make enchanted objects that are as efficient as if Luna made one?

The answer to his question had been simple, "I'm getting you a teacher". So he was now going to be trained in magic as well? Nathaniel was not going to complain but it felt like Luna was putting more trust in him than he deserved. Hell, if someone promised him that they had a way to remove the spell he would follow them no questions asked. Yet she put faith in him, which made thoughts like backstabbing her filled with guilt.

Now who was gonna teach him? It was most likely not Celestia or Luna as both were busy with ruling over the country (even if Luna mostly just handled combat related stuff). It was probably not the drill sergeant as she already had a lot of work on her hooves. So out of all ponies in the castle who was gonna teach him magic?

The humans answer came with form of a observatory outside the castle, the tower like building hidden among the tall trees for anyone not knowing where to look. If he hadn't known about the place being inhabited then the young man would have assumed it was abandoned, the observatory masonry covered with cracks and spiderweb.

"So my new teacher lives out here? Why doesn't he just live in the castle like the rest of you?" Nathaniel questioned the Lunar Monarch leading him to the place.

"He can be a bit, different" Luna said with a small smile as they walked through a pair of black wines with blue thorns on them, the things grabbing for the alicorn.

"These things are such a pest, why did he even make these things?" The mare mumbled to herself and forced them away with a fire spell, making the wines slithered back into the Everfree.

Once the two of them stood outside the door into the tall building Nathaniel couldn't help but feel nervous for some reason, the feeling the tower gave him making the human shudder. Why was this even a problem for him? In the woods he had faced of against the devil hare, timber wolves, wolves and a hydra (sure he had ran away screaming but still!) and this was making him nervous?

Luna knocked on the door and soon shuffling could he heard from the other side. The princess looked at the door with a rised brow as they heard a few locks being undone and a mumbled curse. The metal door groaned as it swung open and a old stallion looked out, his long beard almost hitting the floor while the blue wizard hat on his head clanked from the bells on it.

"Yes? What is it Luna? Do you need a potion or tonic?" The mage's gruff voice said and eyed Nathaniel in surprise.

The human was wearing his full Everfree outfit, the black coat of wolf fur shielding him from the winter cold outside. Which made it even weirder that those wines were alive. It was at least minus twenty degrees outside and even with clothes made from thick animal fur was he feeling the cold.

"Is this the creature you captured?" The stallion asked and opened the metal door fully, reviling his full body dressed in a blue cape that also had star patterns on it with a few bells for good measure.

"Yes old friend, but Nathaniel is no longer a prisoner, but a guardian" The princess said with a small smile and Star swirl eyed the human suspiciously.

'Whatever you say Luna' Nathaniel thought and looked into the eyes of the unicorn, he looked like a very calculating pony.

"And that is why he has a servant spell placed upon him?" The mage asked and Luna gave a sheepish smile.

"Celestia wants to take no risks with Nathaniel, as he know magic" The mare said and the unicorn walked past her and stood in front of the human.

"So you want me to teach him the basics do you?" The stallion asked Luna who nodded, the unicorn stroking his beard.

"I don't know, he doesn't seem like muc.." Star Swirl started just for Nathaniel to raise his hand and close his eyes.

"Knowledge" The young man said and looked at the two ponies with a small smirk.

"So he can read us. Well this just got more promising" The mage said and looked back at Luna.

"Can you teach him then?" The alicorn asked and the unicorn nodded.

"I will teach him, but don't expect it to be easy" The bearded pony said, directing the last part at Nathaniel.

"I never thought any of this would be easy" The new guardian said and Luna nodded at them both with a smile.

"Then I can return to my duties, have fun Guardian Sol" The princess said and unfolded her wings, heading towards the castle.

For some reason it felt like that last part was spelling out his doom, he had no idea why however. As the human turned to his new magic teacher he could feel his hand enveloped in a magical aurora, the pony looking at the rune on his hand with a raised brow.

"The old rune for protection? Tell me, why is this part of your body?" the stallion asked him and he just shrugged.

"It burned its way onto my hand" The servant answered and the unicorn hummed before heading into the observatory.

Nathaniel followed him inside and saw how big the place really was. There was a spiral staircase in the middle of the building that lead up to the other floors, a small living area in a corner with a small kitchen and bed, the second floor entirely dedicated to what looked like potions and cauldrons, the third floor was seemingly filled with strange weapons and the fourth floor was the home for the grand telescope. But the thing that made the tower stand out the most was the books.

Wherever one looked there was a bookshelf, big and small, filled to the brim with thick books. On every floor there was at least three big bookshelves and even then there was staples of books on tables, on top of the bookshelves or used to prop up a chair or two. It was easy to say that this mage was a bookworm to say the least. That or a scholar

"Normally I don't take students. The royal heirs were different as Faust asked me to do so and my protege Clover was trained because of her skill with magical theory. You will become the first creature in a long time to get lessons from me" Star Swirl said and sat down by the table.

Most of those names didn't mean much to Nathaniel, but the mention of Faust made him look at the unicorn with more caution. If he had trained Celestia and Luna (and that brother he didn't dare asking about) then he must know his stuff. To piss of this pony would most likely not end well for him, so respect and fortitude would be the way to go.

"Well I appreciate that you will teach me magic, even if the circumstances around why you're teaching me it aren't ideal" He said and the stallion nodded, looking thoughtful.

"Tell me, what has the princess told you" The old wizard asked, and Nathaniel went through some of the information dumped on him.

"Magical energy is all around us, if one has enough power and focus hard enough it's possible to feel it in the air. But even with that we have our own mana pool that grows stronger the more we use magic, and then there were something about enchantments I didn't really get" The young man said and the other male nodded.

"So you know a few facts. Good, this will be easier if you understand what you're doing" The old mage said and stood up, walking over to a book and picking it up with his white aurora.

"What can you do with your magic boy? I saw how you read me and the princess, yet that is nothing if one has enough patience" Star Swirl said and put the book on the table, the thing becoming enveloped in a green aurora and flouting to Nathaniel's hand.

"I can make things flout if I concentrate hard enough, but I've discovered that trying to make more objects than one flout takes it toll on my body, it's even worse if said objects weigh a lot" The human muttered, remembering the nose bleed he got from levitating Blaze and Osiris.

"That hints on you being new to using magic, similarly to a foal" The old stallion simply said and motioned for Nathaniel to continue.

Being compared to a child didn't sit well with him, but when it came down to it he was a child in this land. The human knew next to nothing about magic and he had only used it in the woods to either have more powerful arrows or levitate frogs. Yet the fact that he had figured that out on his own was a minor accomplishment.

"I could summon a shield, yet the act drained me very quickly and it always cracked from the first second an enemy hit it. I could light my arrows on fire for extra force when they hit, making fending off monsters a bit easier. I could even discharge all my energy in one great blast of magic at a foe" He told the mage calmly who poured them both some tea.

"Interesting, you learnt this on your own as well, impressive Guardian Sol" The unicorn mused and pointed to the book in the human's magical grasp.

"That tome holds information you will need in your studies, better keep it in good condition as well. If I find one of my tomes destroyed because of you guess who's getting me a new one" The bearded pony said and the young man rolled his eyes, looking over the book.

The tome was bound by a hard stone cover, symbols carved into the back and front that glowed every so often due to the magic surrounding it. The first pages mostly went through what magic was, which all basically said "Magic is mana, mana is spiritual energy and therefor is mana linked to the soul" or something like that. After the introduction the pages started to talk about spells and the theory behind using them.

"I'll be careful with it" Nathaniel said with a small smile as the pages about levitation intrigued him.

"You enjoy magic, don't you boy? I can see it in your eyes, each time your mark glows you smile" The stallion said and the human nodded.

"I find it liberating, immense power used with a flick of the wrist. As I've been bound to serve you magic feels like way to escape that fact, even if it for just a second" He sighed and looked at the mark on his hand, the rune glowing a powerful green.

"Many find magic as a way to escape what their bodies cannot do, yet this mind set is not a healthy one. To loose oneself in fantasy will never end well for anyone" The unicorn informed him before standing up, sipping from his tea.

The stallion walked over to a blackboard and started to draw images of balls of energy. The things he drew seemed to gain a life of their own and started to glow and hum, like he had somehow infused magic into them. The two balls he drew were very different. One of them were lively and green, glowing and sparking with energy while the other was a deep red and stood completely still.

The unicorn then drew a smiling pony above the green orb and a frowning one over the red orb. The entire thing was meant to represent something, that thing most likely being emotions. From the clear contrast of the two ponies and balls there was just one assumption to make.

"One is happiness and one is anger?" The human asked and Star Swirl nodded.

"Yes, that is correct. Magic is highly affected by the emotions from the caster or in the air. Hatred and anger can quickly lead to your magic taking on the same attributes and therefor corrupting things around them with the same feeling. Yet one can harness those emotions and magic for good by accepting them and understand why one feel like that" The stallion answered and a quill along with some paper was levitated to the young man.

So he wanted Nathaniel to take notes, good idea actually. The human wrote down what the mage had said so far and drew a few bad illustrations to have visual representation. So he was back in school then, why did this world hate him so much? Wasn't it bad enough that he was forced into servitude? Then again, he was gonna learn about magic, so it might not be that bad.

"So what you are saying is that if one keeps a clear head they shouldn't have any problems with magic?" He asked and the wizard pony nodded after thinking for a little while.

"Yes, by fueling one's magic with positive emotions and keeping oneself calm it is much easier to handle the mystical energy we call mana" Star Swirl confirmed before drawing a sword next to an ordinary hammer, both of those drawings gaining colour and animation as well.

"If you would tell me which object is more powerful which one would you pick?" The wizard asked the human.

"I feel like you want me to pick the sword, so I'll humor you. I choose the blade" Nathaniel said and sipped on his tea.

The older stallion gave him a small smirk and lit his horn once again, the animated drawings starting to glow brighter. Many symbols appeared over the hammer while a single mark appeared on the sword. The runes that had appeared were clearly to show enchantments and what they could do.

"The sword is a more common weapon yes, but as you can see it only has one enchantment. The mark is the rune for fire and heat, allowing the sword to survive great fires as well as manipulate them to an extent. The hammer on the other hoof isn't what is normally used as a weapon, but with all the enchantments placed upon it this thing could destroy armor with a simple swing" The bearded pony said and the young man wrote it down.

"The power of an object is not only measured in what it can cut through, if it has the right magic behind its power then it could beat a sword. That is the power of magic, enchantments and potions. One can never know an objects true power based solely upon appearances" Nathaniel's new teacher said and the human smirked.

'don't judge a book by its cover' He thought for himself before the stallion continued.

"But what baffles me about you Guardian Sol, is the rune you have burnt into your body. To cast an enchantment one need to be a skilled mage to begin with, and that is with inanimate objects! To bind a rune to something's very essence you need the power of an alicorn if not something more. So tell me, are you sure that you have no idea where it came from?" Nathaniel was asked by the unicorn.

"I'm afraid I have no idea why it burned its way onto my hand. But I think I would be stuck home without it, a little funny though, as I trained the chains of riches to the chains of servitude" He mumbled and the pony in the room eyed him with a rised brow.

"Nothing, nothing. Ignore what I said old stallion" The human said and his new teacher shrugged before turning back to the blackboard.

"To make an enchantment one must fill a rune with magic to activate it while carving the rune into the object of choice. The rune will then be charged and will need recharges of magical energy once the original spark has disappeared. The only exception are soul-bound weapons but we won't go over those in a long time" Star Swirl said and Nathaniel nodded.

"Now, with that question of yours answered I can go in depth on what you're actually doing when you levitate something" The unicorn said and erased what was on the blackboard before drawing a glowing horn.

"When a creature can channel their magic, may it be through a horn or a snap of their talons, they are using the mana within them and redirecting it at something around them. The thing levitation really does is to cut of gravity for the object you're "holding" and then make it followed the path your magical aurora chooses for it" The stallion said as the blackboard soon showed the image of a glowing horn and flying quill.

"So I simply use an invisible hand to move objects around" Nathaniel concluded and the older stallion scoffed at him.

"Hardly, one must see or feel the object one wants to move. You cannot grab something from behind you unless you know it's there. Yes one could make a point that creatures with hands also need to feel or see something to grab it, but if something accidentally lands in your hand behind your back then you can still catch it. With magic this is not so, even if you feel it for a brief moment during meditation, as you need to react quickly and therefor concentrate quickly. Concentration gets easier and easier with time for some, but with others it's hard to concentrate on things if they don't have the object in their line of sight" The unicorn said and took a deep breath after his little rant.

The human wrote it all down, adding some of his own thoughts and speculations to his notes. One paper was simply filled with ideas like: "Levitate something that is frozen in time" or "See what happens if you levitate Celestia's crown, possible banishment?".

"I think you have a lot to read up on and think about from what little information I've given you today Guardian Sol. You can find your way back to the castle grounds I'm sure, I must prepare for having a new pupil and make a few things you will need during some of my lessons" Star Swirl said and Nathaniel got up, putting the notes under his wolf coat.

"Thank you for this first lesson, but tell me, does Celestia want you to keep an eye on me as well?" The human asked and the old mage shook his head with a chuckle.

"She cannot order me to do anything like that, I only heed the orders that might be beneficial for Equestria. I see you protecting Luna with the right skill set as beneficial for the nation" The wizard said as Nathaniel headed to the door.

He thanked Star Swirl one more time before opening the door and heading out in the cold winter-land, pulling the cost around him even more than the earlier morning. From what he could tell he had been with the mage for at least two hours, if not more. So heading back to his warm bed and possibly reading something sounded nice to the young man.

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When Nathaniel opened the door to his room (which now had a rose and a dagger crest added below his own rune) he found some chaos. The bat pony mare was desperately trying to get Blaze and Osiris to not rip each other apart. The table was overturned and what had once been a bowl of soup was now a brown liquid mixed with porcelain pieces. His bed-sheets were over Blaze's head for some reason and the sword Luna had given him was being swung wildly by the angry earth pony scout.

"So, can you tell me why you are trying to kill each other again?" He asked the three and all of their gazes were turned to the human now.

"You need to control your beast! It tried to bite of my face to get some damn soup!" Osiris yelled, dropping the sword while his black mane being nipped at by the wolf cub.

The sand coloured stallion had his yellow eyes fixated at the wolf with hatred as he tried to not stand on his injured leg. The dagger cuitemark on his flank also was something that made the human a bit worried, if this guy was trained (or rather his special talent, knowledge obtained from moon-horse herself) with knives and was good at stealth he didn't want him stalking Blaze anytime soon for that attack in the woods.

Nathaniel's trusty companion glared at Osiris and growled threateningly as the wolf circled back and forth between the human's bed and the sanguine mare (the more formal name for them apparently). Blaze hadn't met the pony with the best of circumstances and it was already making the young hunter weary of the other male in the group.

In the middle of this sat Rose, her pink eyes looking back and forth between the two like she hoped they would just shake hands and move on with their lives. This was not gonna happen as both the stallion and wolf hated each others guts. One for helping out with his owners abduction and the other because of pain and injury to his leg.

There was a way to settle the flames of war, or at least for a little while. All Nathaniel had to do was to put down a few ground rules about his room. Like not tearing apart said room because of stuff that really didn't matter anymore. The young man had been captured and put to work, growling at someone wasn't gonna bring back the camp. Being angry at a creature for protecting its borders were dumb, as one who knew wolves knew to not enter their lair haphazardly.

At the end of the day there was one thing to admit, the wolf and the pony hated each other. But Nathaniel was not going to let them destroy his room because of that. So it was time to bring out the hard truth, the one thing that he could say that would at least confuse them all.

"This my room, so here is how it'll work. Blaze, stay away from the pony. Guardian Osiris, stay away from the wolf. Follow these simple rules and our living space might survive for a week" He deadpanned and the wolf whined in disappointment before backing away from the stallion.

"Why should I listen to you? You are not a commanding officer nor my equal" The earth pony huffed only for the human to grab his collar and pull him up so they were face to face.

"I've built up quite a lot of stress, anger, annoyance and fear during these last few days. Unless you want me to take it out on you I suggest you follow my simple rule, sir" Nathaniel hissed out and his eyes glowed a menacing green to prove his point.

Rose looked on and her wings twitched nervously as she looked on, the two males giving each other the same amount of intense glare. The sanguine mare was about to say something before Osiris sighed and nodded, hanging his head in defeat. Glad that the room was saved for the time being the young man dropped the stallion and picked up his sword from the ground.

"And don't touch my stuff, any of you" He said and put the blade back into its sheet laying on his bed.

"So.. Should we have a better introduction now? You know, start over and all that?" The bat-pony asked and Nathaniel shrugged.

"My name is Nathaniel Sol, I'm seventeen years old and currently stuck in this fucking castle with you. That's all you need to know" The human said coldly and the mare flinched.

"Well, my name is Rose Thorn. I am a guardian appointed lieutenant of the Equestrian army with expertise in long range weapons as well as knives" She said and held out her hoof for Nathaniel, who took it with a sigh a few seconds later.

"Seventeen? So you're a kid? You do fit the MO, angry, disrespects authority and seek freedom. Funny how they got a creature not allowed to drink to protect the princess of the night" Osiris said with a smirk and was given a glare by the human.

"I'm young, but give me a chance and I'll kick your ass" He said and walked up to the stallion only for the mare to separate them.

"Both of you, stop! Osiris, please just introduce yourself so we can start building some sort of trust! We have the mission to protect Luna for pete's sake!" Rose yelled and the stallion grumbled before sighing.

"My name is Osiris, first scout of the Equestrian army, that is all you need to know" The sand coated pony told the young man before holding out his hoof, Nathaniel taking it with a huff.

"The wolf is called Blaze, treat him with respect and he'll stop growling" The human said before the a guard appeared by the open door (it was a stallion, miracles do happen).

"Princess Luna has requested Guardian Sol, Thorn and Osiris to meet her in the throne room. Failure to be there in ten minutes will be met with harsh punishment" The guard said and glared at them before trotting back towards his partner who was standing by the hallway corner.

The young man didn't quite know what to make of the order, why were they being summoned? The thing that made this stand out however was the fact that ALL of them were summoned (except Blaze, but he followed on default), something that spoke about a matter of grave importance.

The two ponies in the room wasted no time and hurried out the door, Nathaniel standing there and thinking for a moment before shrugging, he didn't have a choice. The human followed them and the wolf followed him, the four of them walking down the maze of hallways before reaching the throne room, Nathaniel wondering what they were doing there.

When they arrived the doors were opened by the two guards guarding it, showing them the big room. Luna was the only monarch in the room, the princess of the sun nowhere to be seen, which didn't really hurt the human's feelings. Nathaniel did not feel like speaking to her only a few days since the spell had been cast.

Once the lunar mare noticed them she beckoned them inside, the four walking in only for the doors to close behind them. As they all looked upon the room they noticed a grand table had been pulled into the room, a map laying on it. From what one could see it was a world map with different nations borders drawn upon it.

"I'm glad you all came with such haste, I need to give you this information now when I still have the chance" Luna said and got of her throne, walking towards them.

The two ponies saluted and looked surprised at the princess addressing them without noble speech, yet they seemed to enjoy the change if the smiles on their muzzles was anything to go by. Nathaniel just looked on, not showing any sign of respect yet neither not being disrespectful, he just stood there and listened to what the princess had to say, wondering if they could return to the messy room soon to clean it up.

"I must partake on a diplomatic journey to the other nations to speak about our borders and the new kingdoms being formed across the world. These talks will require my presence as already sated, which means we cannot just send an ambassador to speak for our behalf" The alicorn said and the human realized where this was going.

"Because of this you must follow with me on this journey, as your first assignment" Luna finished and the two ponies gave a nod to her while Nathaniel thought about it.

So far he had only seen the Everfree and the castle out of all things in Equestria, so the news of having to get used to a whole new landscape before he even knew the current country he took residence in was grim. Then again, he could be sitting in a cell, so things could be worse.

"This means that your new teacher will follow with us to continue your magic studies while we're abroad, your weapon training will be have to be put on pause however" Luna told the human who nodded, knowing he had to follow along.

"I will give you until tomorrow to have your things ready. The ship to the Gryphon capital takes three days, so bring something to fight boredom" The princess said with a small smile before waving her hoof, showing them that they were dismissed.

As they left the throne room Nathaniel could only feel like something was wrong, like this first mission was a bad idea. He had barely no training and was still adjusting to the whole "being a servant" thing. If this went wrong he wasn't sure about what he could do to prevent a catastrophe from taking place. Then again, this was just some diplomatic talks, what could really go wrong? Sure some king might feel insulted but from what he had seen so far lied there more dangers in the Everfree than in the court, or at least he hoped so.

~Second Lieutenant Fury's POV~

As I looked upon the crystal empire I could only grin, the crystal buildings and light the city produced making it stand out among the frozen north. So far I was using my days off fairly well, having reached my detestation without problems and in two days, saving me a lot of time.

The carriage I had been using to get here was marked with marks and symbols from several nations and cultures, making me gag. I was tired of seeing our borders open after everything that happened, the princess was not smart enough to understand why we needed to close ourselves off to the world. We needed military strength, but if she would not listen to reason after what Discord did it was up to me to defend the kingdom.

But to defend the kingdom I would need power and a great source to match. My son's empire was a good start, the crystal heart he carved filled with enough magic to spread positive emotions across the land. Sure it was still possible for it to be destroyed but what did that matter. It was a source of magical energy, one we could harness.

When I jumped off the carriage and walked past the guards I grinned at the salute they gave me. So far not many knew of me loosing my high rank, this would be easier than I first thought. My son had always been easy to manipulate, making this empire was the first time he had gone against my orders, and even then he still allowed full access to the city. He was a fool, just like Celestia.

I reached the castle in the middle of the city without much problem, walking past the crystal heart with a small smirk. If everything went according to plan then soon Equestria wouldn't need the royal sisters anymore, and with them gone that creature would suffer more than just a tiny spark.

My son met me in his personal library, the books mostly talking about magic. In here one could find weird notes on chaos magic, find a light magic spell to clean one's mind, find a dark magic artifact hidden away in a secret compartment or discover new ways to manipulate the mana in the air.

Many of these books had I given to him, my son gladly accepting more books to his collection. He had taken after me and become a very impressive battle mage, even earning the honorary title of "Knight Enchanter" by the dark kingdom in the mysterious south. He was a better combat mage than most, yet he still had a lot to learn when it came to trust.
'
"Father! Well isn't this a happy surprise! I thought you were to busy to come visit, you said something about a creature in your last letter?" Crystal Sword asked me and I only put on a fake smile.

My son's red mane and white coat made me thing of Celestia before she reached her full magical potential. The red came from my part of the family while the white coat came from his mother. His purple eyes and the blue haze that flowed from the side of his eyes really stood out from the rest of his body, yet so did the black curved horn on top of his head.

With his cutiemark being that of a crystal crown surrounded by a circle of books it was quite easy to see what his destiny was meant to be. My son was what the princess would call "a good dark mage", with him magic fueled by emotions that only gave him half the power he could achieve if he gave into anger. As I said, he was a fool.

"Well you see that is why I'm here. I'm afraid this creature has somehow influenced the princesses, so I am requesting the old tome on dark spells to study for a way to break them free from the vile monsters control" I told the younger unicorn who eyed me with a uncertainty.

"Are you certain father? If what you say is true then we need to send combat mages there now and defeat this beast" Crystal said to me with a confident stance.

"I wish it was so easy my son, but we need to act with caution. This monsters controls things over in Equestria now, meaning we need to be patient. So far it's posing as princess Luna's bodyguard and will most likely follow her around on diplomatic missions. It will try to take other nations as well if we don't act son" I said and the crystal king nodded slowly, making me grin.

"Without evidence this hard to believe father. I'm not sure if you might be over-exaggerating or not father. I'm making a gamble by borrowing you this book" He told me and I could only smile.

"Don't you trust your father?" I asked simply and my son's worried expression was replaced with a smile.

"I do, so borrow the book. Find a way to break the sisters mind-control, you can even use my study room if you wish. I'll make sure that you are not disturbed" He said and I followed him out the library to a golden door down the long crystal hall.

King Crystal Sword opened the door for me and I walked inside, putting the book down on a table. With this I would keep Equestria safe and make this pathetic excuse of an empire rejoin the glorious nation of ponies. This power was not to be wasted on a stallion that didn't even know the true power he could wield.

"Thank you Crystal. If you wouldn't mind, could I be left alone? I'd like to start right away" I told my son who nodded and left the room with a smile, closing the door behind him.

With him gone I opened up the book and started to eagerly read though the tome, with each page turned my knowledge about the dark art increasing. Soon I had gathered the dark energy in my horn, but instead of doing it like my foolish son and only passively use dark emotions I used every ounce of hatred I held for that creature and let it flow through me.

With this power I would be able to defend Equestria, I would stand as its champion. Mares would pine for me, even the princesses would raise their rumps on command for my might. Nothing would stand in my way as I destroyed all threats to my empire.

A normal dark mage is meant let the magic become a part of them, to let it flow through them and make a bond with the magic. I took that energy and forced it out of my horn, dark black crystals starting to spread across the table and floor. Slowly I began to laugh and that laughter soon became a cackle.

Purple whisps slowly started to tear their way out of the side from my eyes and my horn painfully started to twist and bend as I let he dark magic flow through me. I never stopped laughing even as my cutiemark changed from a ball of fire to a black crystal, I never stopped laughing as tears of blood flowed down my cheeks as I let the corruption (the one thing all dark mages feared) take over my body, I never stopped laughing as my mane turned black and my coat grey and I never stopped laughing even when my horn turned blood red and black lightning shoot out all across the room.

Author's Notes:

Thank you so much for reading chapter six