The sun began its slow descent to let the night come and the moon to take its place in the sky. Stars blinked in one by one on the dark canvas of the universe, the moon rose from below the horizon. Its pale, soft light gently enveloped the lands with the sunlight fading away. Right on time, Andromalius awoke feeling refreshed and ready to study magic. He silently remarked on the time of awakening, wondering how he managed to sleep the precisely right amount of hours. He chuckled to himself, remembering how he joked with his friends about having an ability to sleep the set amount of hours. He never thought he'd be able to do what videogame characters could, but there he was.

With his mood light and relaxed, he sprung out of his bed and stretched himself. Pouring himself a glass of water, he downed it in one go and proceeded to exit his room and was met by a guard right outside.

"Her Nightly Majesty is waiting for you," he told the hell stallion, "Please, follow me."

Andromalius nodded and went with the guard. He expected him to travel to Princess Luna's chambers but they took a different turn, which led to the floor below. After descending a flight of stairs, they walked through a plain hallway. It was decorated much less than the upper halls of the castle, and yet there were more guards. Surprisingly, some of them didn't have their helmets or even any piece of armor on or weapons ready. Curious glances followed the hell stallion as he was led to the end of the hall. Exchanging the nods with the guards stationed at the last door, the escort turned to Andromalius and gestured for him to enter.

With a touch of hesitation, he pushed the door, allowing it to swing open silently and reveal a large circular hall. It was, for the most part, empty, and some training equipment lay near the walls in organized fashion: gambesons and other pieces of padded armor hung on hooks, training weapons made of wood in the weapon racks, along with other equipment Andromalius couldn't readily identify. The other side of the hall was separated from the equipment by a clear panel of what looked like regular glass. Behind it, there were training dummies, targets for archers, and plenty of pillows and matts. On one of the matts, Princess Luna was sitting, waiting for the hell stallion. She greeted him with a smile and gestured to the side where a small door stood.

Once Andromalius entered the second half of the hall and closed the door, the alicorn stood up.

"Good evening, Andromalius," she said in a serene voice, "Didst thou sleep well?"

"I did, thank you," he replied, feeling weird that he didn't have to address her as royalty. Immediately, he noticed an interesting thing – she wasn't wearing her regalia. Neither her crown nor the chest piece were present. Her light-blue mane was tied behind the back of her head, too.

"I'm glad to hear it," Luna nodded, and then her expression turned more serious, "So, I believe we are ready to begin."

"I'd imagine we would start at a library, to be honest," Andromalius noted, "To study theory."

"I believe in a more practical approach," she replied, "Theory is important, 'tis true, but what is theory without practice? And besides... thou didst not read about how to walk before thou learnedst to do it, didst thou?"

"But... magic is harder than walking, right?" he asked carefully.

"It is indeed, but so is running and flying. However, there is one thing that unites them all – they are all natural," Luna explained, "A pony learnth to walk. A pegasus learnth to fly. A unicorn learnth to use magic. There is a certain difficulty to each, of course – that is the reason we're not equally strong or fast or skillful in any single thing. No matter how natural something is, it taketh time to develop. As a foal, thou stumbledst, fellst, but thou gotst back up and persisted until thou knewest how to do it well."

Luna paused, lit her horn, and let the bluish light fill the room. Then she grabbed some items and let them float in the air with her magic. She made them spin and dance in a variety of ways, for figures and shapes, even spell words. The light on her horn become more intensive, then less, then it blinked.

"Light and telekinesis are the most natural things for any unicorn," she continued, her voice just as calm as before, no struggle evident on her face, "So, any unicorn can do it, including thyself. Do it now."

Andromalius nodded and lit his horn, a reddish glow surrounding him, then appearing on different objects as he lifted them up. He could feel their weight, temperature, and texture, and yet it felt very easy to hold them in place. No muscle fatigue, no random twitching. The items simply floated in the air as he commanded them through his magic.

"Very well," Luna nodded and returned her things to their places, and Andromalius followed her actions, "What thou hast just done is the basic form of magic, the Natural Magic. Most of the times, unicorns use it without any active thought, just like breathing or walking."

The hell stallion nodded, his face bright with curiosity and interest. It was akin to the sensation he felt when he had just begun studying software, but here, the sensation was at least doubled. His burning passion for learning returned sevenfold, and he was ready to listen to anything Luna had to say about magic, and he was willing to go through years of learning to achieve the heights of magic. He had never expected to be so interested in something before, but now his childhood dream of magic was coming to life.

In many computer games, there was magic. An assortment of spells, reserves of mana, and many things that could be achieved with its right usage was astounding. In Heroes of Might & Magic 5, he often did his best to develop the magical abilities of his heroes, for magic was extremely useful on the virtual field of battle. The Light Magic buffed and healed his troops, and its usage could lead him to victory even when greatly outnumbered. The Dark Magic too could help him win the battle if he used it well for its intended purpose – weakening his enemies over a period of time. The Destructive Magic's purpose was obvious in its very title – destroying the enemies with direct spell damage. And then there was the Summoning Magic which could use the forces of nature as well as conjure additional troops. Truly, magic had many uses, and now it was within Andromalius' grasp.

"Now I shall teach thee a very important and interesting thing," Luna continued, "'Tis a spell almost as old as magic itself, it goeth beyond the written history."

Her horn lit up, deep electric buzz appeared in the air, and then a loud clap. Luna disappeared in a flash of light to immediately reappear behind Andromalius.

"This is called teleportation," she explained, making the hell stallion turn around to face her, "Some say it is Natural Magic, but we do not yet know any living creature that can naturally teleport and which hath no other means of movement. True, it can become natural to teleport, but thou hast to learn it first."

Andromalius' eyes widened. He had witnessed teleportation once already not so long ago, but to learn it was another matter entirely. From fantasy stories to science fiction, teleportation could be seen almost anywhere. Scientists of Earth have been working on it for a long time, too. And now, it was something that could be learned. If he were a few years younger, the hell stallion would be jumping with excitement, a bright grin on his face. However, he was in the presence of royalty now and couldn't afford to look like a child.

"We don't know how teleportation was invented – it was probably an accident," the princess continued on with a small theoretical lesson, "Someone wished to appear in another place, and they did it via magic. We can't verify it, and it's extremely difficult to test due to the fact that everyone knoweth teleportation is possible. In any case, it is done simply. Thou needest to think of a place thou wantest to appear at. However, thou needest to know the place or see it."

"Sounds simple," Andromalius nodded, his excitement evident on his face despite his rather calm tone.

"That it doth, but there is a difficult part," Luna raised her hoof to emphasize her point, "To make teleportation possible, thou needeth to imagine it. Thou needeth to imagine appearing at the place thou wanteth. Thou must not imagine running, flying, or walking through a physical portal to reach thy destination. Then thou must pour thy magic, thy energy into thy horn. Once it is done, thou must envelop thyself in magic, imagining thyself becoming an infinitely small dot."

"Now that sounds like a long process."

"At first, it is. Thou needeth to clear thy mind so that thy thoughts don't interfere and cause problems. Teleportation must be precise or else it won't happen. On the positive side, it meaneth thou shalt never get stuck in a solid wall or any items."

"But what about, um... Dust particles, drops of water?" Andromalius asked, "After all, if I'm thinking right, we still need to displace something. Including air, too."

"I don't have the concrete answer, but there are possible explanations to this," Luna replied, slightly furrowing her brows in thought, "One of the theories behind teleportation I am aware of is that it might be us becoming an infinitely small object that then rapidly expands upon successful teleportation. There is emptiness between things, after all, and we can replace it with ourselves. 'Tis like displacing water in the bathtub, more or less. That might be why we feel wind after teleportation at both its points. However, we don't exactly know what teleportation truly is."

"Teleportation in my world is just fiction as far as I'm aware," the hell stallion said, "Portals, too. We can only travel using planes that go... I don't know, two thousand kilometers per hour?"

"What are 'planes'?" the alicorn asked with interest.

"Well, a plane is... uh... Imagine a large bird made of steel that is controlled by someone inside of it," Andromalius tried to explain, "But it doesn't flap its wings, it uses engines. Wings and the tail are fixed, and only small parts of them can turn to let the plane turn."

"Engines like those on trains, yes?"

"Much more powerful, and they work differently," he replied, "Sorry, I don't know much about them, so I can't really explain that well."

"I'll talk to my sister about it, maybe we shall make use of it. This idea of air travel soundeth fascinating," Luna cleared her throat and then returned to the main topic, "In any case, let's continue with our magic lesson. I don't expect thee to be able to teleport right away, but 'tis worth a try. I shall guide thee, and thou shalt do as I say, alright?"

"Teleportation sounds a bit scary, but I still want to try it, yeah," Andromalius nodded, shifting his weight from his right hooves to left and back again. On one side, he couldn't wait to begin; but on the other, he was unsure, even nervous. Even bike rides could end in accidents, so what would happen if a teleportation goes wrong?

"Very well, then the first thing thou hast to do is to concentrate, focus," Luna told him, "Look at the place within this hall thou wantest to teleport to. Now, thou needest to imagine thyself appearing there. Not walking, not running, simply appearing."

With a nod, Andromalius furrowed his brows and concentrated. There it was, a spot on the floor he wanted to teleport to, right behind Luna. The spot was clear of obstructions, and it was even slightly discolored compared to the rest of the floor. He deeply inhaled and imagined appearing there, one of his hooves covering the spot. One moment, he wasn't there – the next, he would be.

"Pour the magic into thine horn and envelop thyself," Luna said, her voice seemingly muffled.

Andromalius felt the energy that coursed through his body. A great potential for spells of all sorts, it was lying in wait for him to use it however he saw fit. It was his mana reserve – harmless in itself but could be used in a variety of different ways. A passing thought reminded him that there could be battle magic, which he would like to learn even if he never had to use it.

"Clear thy mind, all thou wantest and needest is to teleport. Anything else is irrelevant," the alicorn reminded him.

The hell stallion released the magic. It enveloped him in a tight but comfortable cocoon and then lightly squeezed him. His heart missed a beat when he felt himself falling; with a loud gasp, he lost the grip on his magic. It exploded around him, knocking the air out of his lungs and forcing him off his hooves. With a loud thud, he landed on his side, shaking the floor.

"Andromalius!" Luna rushed to him, "Art thou alright?"

"...Y-yeah," Andromalius blinked slowly as the senses came back to him and his ears stopped ringing. Slowly, he stood back up and shook his head, "I... I felt myself falling, and it just... didn't work."

"Ah, this is a very common thing that unicorns feel when teleporting," the princess nodded in understanding, "But otherwise, what else didst thou feel?"

"Magic was around me and I could... feel it. As if I could touch it, I guess."

"This is supposed to happen, so I think the only thing thou needest to deal with is the feeling of falling," Luna nodded, her body lost tension as an invisible wave of relief washed over her, "Thou needest training and getting used to the feeling. I would say that everything is going rather well for thee. Dost thou feel tired now?"

"...No, not really," he replied after a small pause, "I'm all fine. Should I try again?"

"No harm in it, so go ahead, Andromalius," the alicorn nodded and stepped back, giving him the space he needed.

Andromalius went through the same motions. Concentration, pouring magic into his horn, and then release. Unfortunately, it ended just like the last time – he let his magic loose and fell on the floor. Releasing a huff of disappointment, he got back up on his hooves.

"Thou needest not rush it," Luna told him, "If thou feelst frustrated, thou shouldst wait for the next day. Negative emotions will only fail thee."

"Alright," he nodded and then let out a sigh, "Then what will we do now?"

"Question is, what dost thou want to study?" the alicorn asked him, "I am certain thou mightst be interested in something particular. In this case, I shall do my best to teach thee what thou askest of me."

"Well, I... I don't really know," Andromalius admitted, "There's just so many things I could learn from you, and my mind is jumping all over the place right now."

"Is that so?" Luna raised a brow, "My, it seemeth thou shalt be an excellent student. However, I sense there is something thou wantest in particular. Name it, and I shall teach thee."

The hell stallion went deep in thought, furrowing his brows slightly and tapping his chin with one of his hooves. Luna proposed to teach him anything, he thought, so he could ask anything. But what type of magic did he want to learn about the most?

His mind went to his gaming sessions. There was rarely anything more satisfying than seeing magic rack up damage and completely decimate his enemy. The fire, the ice, anything was satisfying to use when it made his opponents weaker in a spectacular fashion. One would say he had an affinity for magical destruction, but now he wasn't certain if he could ask to learn it. After all, in the games, everything wasn't real – his enemies, the spells, everything was just lines of code made for the entertainment of players. It was a safe way for many to experience what they otherwise wouldn't be able to, and it was the biggest allure of the videogames for a long time.

But then he remembered destruction. When he was frustrated, nothing relaxed him more than beating a punching bag. Each hit resonated inside him with something immensely satisfying and primal, something that he couldn't quite describe if he tried to. Each punch, each kick, everything that he unleashed on inanimate objects felt good, especially if it resulted in them breaking. He had gotten into real fights during his lifetime, and although he didn't revel in violence, he couldn't deny that it felt good to punch someone who had been bad-mouthing him or threatened him.

"I want to learn battle magic," Andromalius blurted out at once despite his train of thought not coming to a stop just yet. After realizing what he had just said, he added, "I, I think it would be good to know it because, um... well, I'd like to be able to defend myself better."

"...I see that thou hast more things in mind than just self-defense," Luna noted after a few moments of silence, "However, I doubt thou shalt use such knowledge for evil deeds..." she looked him in the eyes, "But then, morality is in the eyes of the beholder."

"Um, I... I do like to destroy things," he admitted, deciding that hiding the truth would be futile and counterproductive, "But I wouldn't hurt anyone unless they try to hurt me."

"Thou art placing me at a difficult position, Andromalius," the princess said, her voice serious, "It would be right to honor thy request, for thou hast done a deed that needeth a reward, and I promised to teach thee magic. But on the other side... I shall be honest with thee – thy request is suspicious at best."

"I understand," the hell stallion nodded, "I, um, suppose I can settle for something else."

"But then there is another thing," Luna added, "I can see thou wantest to learn battle magic, and none shall be able to stop thee from aquiring the knowledge thou desirest unless thou art locked up forever..." she looked at him again, "I don't want to do such a thing," she let out a heavy sigh, "Well... I suppose 'twill be safer for thee to learn under my guidance. This way, I can make certain thou shan't hurt thyself or others on accident. But if I do teach thee, thou hast to vow to use this power with great care and responsibility. Thou must swear an oath."

"I..." Andromalius began before Luna cut him off.

"Do not take such a thing lightly," she warned him, "If thou failst, the consequences shall be severe. Thou shalt be put on trial and judged. If thou art found guilty, thou shalt have thy magic restricted for a time. But if the consequences of thy failure are too great... Thou shalt lose thine horn."

An uneasy silence fell on the hall as Andromalius gulped. His thirst for knowledge of magic didn't diminish at all, but he couldn't take the learning lightly anymore. Knowing the consequences for the misuse of such magic, he indeed had to think twice about it. This world was not a game that he could simply restart if something went wrong. His actions had consequences on other living, thinking, sentient beings.

"I suppose thou shouldst take thy time to think over it once more," Luna suggested, "There is no rush for either of us, and I would rather have thou realize what thy decision can bring."

"Does... anyone else use or even know battle magic?" Andromalius asked carefully.

"Warlocks of Royal Guard still do, as far as I'm aware," the alicorn replied with some uncertainty, "They are trained for years, and this is why I can't take thy desire lightly. If thou goest down that path, thou shalt need to learn well and have the discipline to wield such magic. The only reason I do not refuse thee here and now is because I see thy potential, Andromalius," she stepped closer to him while looking him in the eyes, "With or without my guidance, thou shalt learn what thou desirest. The majority of ponies do not have that capability, and yet thou dost."

"If I'm so dangerous..." the hell stallion began, trying to be cautious, "Wouldn't it make more sense to restrict my magic?"

"I'm... surprised that thou art asking such a question, but nevertheless, I don't believe that doing so would be the right decision," she replied honestly, "Yes, I could order to place a restrictor on thee. I am well in my right to believe that thou art dangerous. However... Thou hast shown that thou hast the capability to do good. Despite thine appearance, despite the power I sense within thee, I believe that thou canst and shalt do good. The way thou actedst on that night when..." her voice cracked ever so slightly. She cleared her throat before continuing, "When I was attacked... Thou hast shown something that convinced me thou shan't do evil."

"I just did what I could..."

"Thou art missing an important detail, Andromalius," Luna raised her hoof and gestured at him, "Thou art physically and magically strong. However, instead of resolving the situation with brutal violence thy strength would suggest, thou incapacitatedst the attackers and rushedst the wounded guard to the hospital. And most importantly... thou didst so without thinking. In this short moment, thou hast chosen life over death."

Struck by her words, the hell stallion didn't know what to respond with. He knew Luna was right – he very well could kill the attackers instead of simply incapacitating them. He could tear them limb from limb, break all their bones, and yet he didn't. He hadn't asked the question of whether he was or wasn't a good person, but now that he was thinking about it...

"So, the decision lieth on thee now," the princess said, interrupting his thoughts, "I shall give thee the time to think it over. But for now, I have one request..."

"What is it?" Andromalius asked semi-absent-mindedly, for his thoughts were jumping from the battle magic to what Luna had just told him.

"I shall dine soon. Wouldst thou like to accompany me to the dining hall?" she proposed.

"Y-yeah, that sounds good," he nodded after a slight delay, "I will accompany you."

"Very well, I'm glad thou agreedst," Luna made a small smile, "Come with me now, I shall show thee the way."