Celestial Mother Chapter 2: Fire, Ice and Feathers, a Dragon Ball Z + My Little Pony Crossover fanfic

Chapter 2: Fire, Ice and Feathers

[Locations: Cantalot Castle]

[Time: 2 Weeks After Kakarot's Arrival]

Raising a foal was a new experience for the Sun Princess, especially when that foal is a baby from another planet.

For the first few days, Kakarot's behavior was spectacular. He listened, was easy to feed; having no allargies or being a picky eater, and he didn't need any potty training, only needing ti be teached where he needs to go, all which Celestia was thankful for. What she wasn't thankful for was the sudden temper tantrums Kakarot would have.

Whenever he got angry, hungry, or didn't get his way, he would have fits that were beyond any Celestia had seen from any foal she met. He would kick, bite, flail his arms around, not caring who he hit. And the screaming, his screaming was the worst part. With their highly sensitive ears, it was hard to handle the yells and cries that came out of Kakarot's mouth. But Celestia quickly learned a spell on the fly that would trap Kakarot in a small, soundproof bubble as a form of timeout. She only let him out when he calmed down.

Thankfully, she wasn't dealing with this alone. Having the help of Lieutenant Silver Thorns, Caramel Sweetcake and many of her other guards. Even Mint Candy would help with medical problems and she seemed to be the only pony Kakarot would never have a tantrum around, to Celestia's annoyance and jealousy.

After weeks of this, Celestia felt so exhausted. Taking care of Kakarot and managing her responsibilities as princess, she barely had any energy to do anything else at the end of the day.

Walking into her chambers with a now sleeping Kakarot in her arms, she sighed in relief just from seeing her bed, its warmth and comfort drawing her near it. But first, she needed to take care of Kakarot first, who was holding onto Celestia tightly, sound asleep.

Placing Kakarot in his little bed next to her own, she saw how innocent Kakarot looked and Celestia knew that everything she was doing was right and was the thing she was missing since her sister's banishment. Somepony she can take care of.

With Kakarot now in his own bed, Celestia made her way to hers. The closer she got, the stronger the comfort from last night became, until she finally fell into bed, allowing the softness to consume her whole being and feeling the stress of the day peel away.

Celestia turned her head, which was pressed against her pillow, to stare at Kakarot. She saw the adorable face of him sleeping, which made her smile, happy that she could be there for him after his parents saved him. Celestia was becoming more and closer to the boy, to the point she saw him as her own son, and she would die for him no matter what. Kakarot was her son, and she would take care of him far into his adult years.

When the day came to introduce Kakarot to the ponies of Equestria, there would be those who would reject him as their new prince, let alone as her son, but she will make sure he lives a life he wants and strives for a world he can call home.

Celestial shook off the thought for now, leaving the decision for her future self that had raised her Kakarot for many years and was more prepared for the decision. For now, she will be taking a long-needed rest because she needs to attend the exams of her school of gifted unicorns that will be testing new hopeful unicorns to see if they have the potential to join.

[In The Morning]

Celestia felt her body wake up, not from the light of the sun, but by her own body's circadian rhythm, waking up at 5:50 am to then raise the sun at 6:00 am sharp. It may not be enough sleep to get her through the day, but she will still push through because she had no choice other than missing the exams. Why couldn't she have scheduled the exams later in the day?

Getting out of bed, Celestia realized she had slept in her clothes from yesterday, which she sighed at. Stretching out her muscles first, she walked to her balcony, quietly observing her sleeping son as she walked passed. Letting out a quick yawn, Celestia looked upon the moon, and after cringing at the sight of her sister's mark on the celestial body, she went straight to lowering the moon and raising the sun to signal a new day in Equestria.

Once the celestial bodies were correctly oriented to start the new day, Celestia went back inside and began preparing for the exams, getting into fresh and new clothing, brushing her hair, and putting fresh makeup on. Making sure to be as presentable to her little ponies.

It was then when Kakarot woke up, seeing Celestia and reaching his hands out for his morning hugs and kisses. Celestia noticed Kakarot was finally awake and was asking for her attention. She happily walked over and picked him up, giving him the morning hugs and kisses she gave him every morning.

"Mama, mama!" Kakarot said with joy, making Celestia's heart fill with so much sugar she could feel a heart attack coming.

Kakarot was quite young, but that didn't stop him from learning about the world around him, like associating Celestia as his mother, Silver as his uncle, Caramel as a sister/aunt, and Captain Snow as his grandpa. And of course, Mint as the one pony he cannot have any tantrums with. She had all those scary needles.

Celestia loved it when Kakarot called her mama, which was a recent development, and she made sure Kakarot knew that she loves it when he calls her mama.

"Aw, you're so adorable, you know that? Who's mama's little boy? You are! You are my adorable little monkey!" Celestia spoke in a baby voice, her words making Kakarot laugh, which made Celestia laugh too.

Celestia also twirled and danced with Kakarot, just like they did in the crater. She decided to do this as a way to remind herself of where Kakarot came from, and it became a morning ritual for both of them.

"Now why don't we get something to eat, you must be hungry after all the trouble you gave me yesterday," Celestia asked her son, and Kakarot quickly yelled in excitement.

"Food, food!" Kakarot cheered, grabbing onto Celestia's muzzle.

Celestia laughed, placing Kakarot onto her shoulders, which was Kakarot's favourite place to ride whenever she took him flying.

"Fly, fly!" Kakarot yelled, pointing a finger forwards, wanting his mother to fly him around.

"I would love to, sweetie, but let's eat something first. Mama's a little too tired to be flying you around." Celestia said, which made Kakarot upset, which turned into a tantrum, slapping Celestia on her head and kicking his legs.

"Continue with this little spat of yours and it's the time-out bubble for you." Celestia warned her son, which made Kakarot stop his yelling, but it didn't stop him from pouting, his cheeks puffed out.

Celestia knew she had to make sure Kakarot didn't get too spoiled, or he would become arrogant and snobbish like his cousin, Blue Blood. She still needed to introduce the two, but she preferred to keep extending their meeting because she knew fully well her nephew wouldn't like Kakarot at all.

[Location: The Great Hall]

Celestia was not new to making her own meals, as she made breakfast for her and her sister all the time. But when she banished her sister, she stopped, not having the energy to make any meals again. However, with Kakarot around, she began to enjoy cooking and baking again, regaining the feeling she used to have when she fed her little sister.

Kakarot was surrounded by dozens of plates of pancakes; each 12 stacks tall, and dirty plates. The entire cooking staff and Celestia were watching the baby Saiyan eat through a week's worth of goods in minutes.

("I should try to teach him some manners, but he is still young, so I'll allow it for now.") Celestia thought, as she ate a piece of her own pancakes, which weren't as tall or as numerous as Kakarot's.

"When you said the kid could out eat a dragon, I thought you were exaggerating." Silver said, walking up to the two with an amused smile, watching the large amount of food falling into Kakarot's bottomless stomach.

"Good morning, Lieutenant. How has your morning been treating you?" Celestia kindly greeted Silver, happy to see him before she had to leave.

"As well as any morning can be, your highness. May I ask how your morning has been?" Silver asked, and Celestia just had to point at Kakarot for him to understand.

"I actually have somewhere to go in a few hours. Which means I need somepony to look after Kakarot. Do you mind keeping a watch over him while I'm gone?" Celestia asked, and Silver accepted, saying he would love to look after the prince.

"Thank you so much, Lieutenant. I'll make sure you are compensated for your troubles." Celestia thanked Silver, standing up from her seat to leave.

"No need, princess. I am happy to look after him without pay." Silver refused, ruffling Kakarot's head while he was still eating his pancakes.

Celestia said she was happy Silver was so kind, and if he wanted to look after Kakarot without any payment, she would respect his wishes.

"I must go now. I'll certainly miss a few students if I don't hurry. I don't want to worry little foals into believing I have abandoned them." Celestia said, walking up to her son and kissing him on his forehead.

Celestia told Kakarot that she will be gone for a few hours, but he'll be taken care of by uncle Silver. So she made him promise not to get into too much trouble and to behave himself while she was gone.

"Yes mama!" Kakarot answered, spitting out chewed bits of pancake.

"Swallow before you speak, dear. Ponies won't be able to understand you with food in your mouth." Celestia corrected her son, who gave her a blank stare, then swallowed all the food in his mouth; somehow not choking.

"That kid had quite the throat on him? I wonder if he can eat steel?" Silver questioned, but a quick glare from Celestia shut the Pegasus up, nervously sweating.

"Uh, hehe, maybe not." Silver chuckled, taking the glare off of him, which made him sigh in relief when she looked away.

With her goodbyes settled, Celestia left the two males alone. Using her magic, she conjured up a cream coloured fur coat before she left, saying she will be back before sunset. She also had two Majors; a rank just below Captain and many ranks above Lieutenant, accompanied her, acting as her body guards.

When Celestia finally left, Silver looked to Kakarot and asked what he wanted to do first, but all was there was empty plates and no Kakarot.

"OOOOOHHHH NNNOOOOOOOOO!!!"

"Dammit! I look away for one second and he's already missing! Kakarot, where are you!" Silver panicked, frantically looking around the room to find the child, but he couldn't find the boy.

"This isn't good. If I can't find him before Celestia gets back, there might not be anything left of me when she finds out I lost her son. KAKAROT!!!" Silver panicked even more, imagining Celestia wiping him off from the face of this world.

Unable to find Kakarot in the room, he left, hoping to find him somewhere else. Unbeknownst to the silver-haired Pegasus, Kakarot was still in the room and was under the table, grabbing a pancake he accidentally dropped.

When Kakarot saw Silver wasn't around, he decided to walk around the castle, seeing what he could do to pass the time.

After some time of walking, he came across Caramel's workshop, or how he calls her, Calame. (You pronounce the E). She was working on his space pod, seemingly working with its electronics. Kakarot didn't know why, but the idea of messing with her came to his mind, so when his eyes met two coloured flasks he sprang into action.

Entering the room quietly, he sneaked his way towards the flasks, but the floor creaked under his step, which made Caramel turn around. However, when she didn't see anypony behind her, she continued her work.

Kakarot had his mouth covered, huddling behind a desk that had the two-coloured flasks. When the coast was clear, he hopped onto the desk, making sure not to make any noise, and inspected the flasks.

They were very colourful and very pretty, one blue and one mint. What to do with them? He didn't know, but he wondered what colour they would make if he combined them. Taking one of the flasks, he poured it into the other flask. While he was pouring in the liquid, Caramel heard the noise and turned to see Kakarot, but he was covering the chemicals with his body.

"Hey, Kakarot. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with your mothe... holy moly! Kakarot, no!" Caramel yelled in horror, seeing what Kakarot was doing.

She launched herself towards him to stop the boy from combining the chemicals, but before she grabbed him, he jumped out of the way, letting her crash into the chemicals, while Kakarot ran out of the workshop. When he ran out, a massive explosion erupted from inside, so strong it knocked the door off its hinges.

Silver and the whole castle heard the explosion, which caused a large amount of them to investigate. Kakarot stayed hidden behind a group of boxes, watching the guards of the castle run to Calame's aid.

"Caramel! Are you okay?!" Silver yelled, pushing past the group of guards on his way in, seeing the unconscious body of his sister in a pose eerily familiar to a well-known desert bandit.

"Sis? Sis! Dammit sis, wake up! I know you can survived tougher explosions! Wake up!" Silver began to shake his sister's unconscious body, making everypony around him to sweat drop.

"Is this really how siblings treat each other?" One guard asked.

"Apparently. I'm an only foal, so I wouldn't know." Another spoke, unable to step in with how ridiculous his superior was being.

After minutes of shaking, Caramel finally regained consciousness, seeing her brother thanking Celestia she was okay. Caramel asked what was going on, seeing a couple dozen guards surrounding them.

"Your workshop exploded, miss. Do you remember what happened?" A guard explained and asked, making Caramel think, putting a finger on the chin.

"Oh, I remember. I was working on the ship's electronics, then I heard some bubbling. So I turned to see Kakarot on one of my work desks. I saw he was combining two mystery chemicals together and it was bubbling. I believe that was what caused the explosion." Caramel described the events that happened before the explosion, and Silver asked if Kakarot was still here.

"No. He ran off before the explosion went off. I tried to grab him, but he jumped out of the way before I could." Caramel said, and she felt Silver's grip on her loosen.

"Dammit! Search the palace! Celestia is going to have my behind if her son isn't found! Go, now!" Silver cursed to himself, then he ordered the guards around him to search the palace, before Celestia returned and roasts his body on a stake.

The guards saluted, rushing out of the room and spreading out. They followed the same orders to any guard they came across, making sure Kakarot was found as fast as possible.

Because of this, Kakarot had to evade, hide, and outsmart every couple of guards he ran into, which would attract more guards to his location, making him use more of his head to evade. He jumped along walls, hung behind boxes and furniture, and even hung from light fixtures. He even fought a few, and because of his smaller body, he was able to duck under their legs, poke their eyes, and turn their weapons and magic on each other, giving him a window of escape.

Kakarot soon came across the medical ward where he saw Mint Candy working at her computer. Making sure he wasn't followed, he entered the room and gained the nurse's attention.

"O...oh, hello Kakarot, how are you this morning?" Mint asked, and Kakarot gave her a happy smile, which was all she needed to see.

"Good to see. Why are you here? Where's the princess?" Mint asked, and Kakarot just gave her a cheeky grin.

"Mama went away and I play hide and seek with Silvor." Kakarot said, which made Mint smile.

"I see. Well, don't worry, if Silver comes in here, you can hide under my desk." Mint said, which is when a knock on the door of the medical ward stopped their little conversation.

"Nurse Candy! Are you in there?!" Silver banged on the door, which made Mint scooch Kakarot under her desk, hiding him with her chair.

After hiding Kakarot thoroughly, she opened the door to let in a panicked Silver, with Caramel in two.

"H...hello Lie...eutensnt S...Silver. W...what's...s wr...rong?" Mint said, already knowing what Silver was going to ask.

"It's Kakarot! He ran off and we can't find him! Do you know he is?" Silver asked, and Mint shook her head, saying she hasn't seen the boy today.

From behind Mint's chair, Kakarot was trying to hold back his giggling, trying to not expose his location. Unfortunately, he couldn't hold it back hard enough, and Silver was able to hear him and pulled the chair out.

"There you are, you little troublemaker! Come here!" Silver had found Kakarot and tried to grab him, but wasn't expecting the 3-year-old child to bite down on his finger.

"OW, FUCK!" Silver yelled in pain, falling backwards onto his behind and blowing his finger from the pain.

"Hahahah! Catch me, catch me!" Kakarot laughed, running circles around Silver, his arms spread open.

"Kakarot! Come here! Your mother will have my head if I lose you!" Silver pleaded with Kakarot, running behind the child.

After Silver had run out of the room to catch Kakarot, Caramel popped her head through the door, accidentally scaring Mint.

"Hello Minty. How are you?" Caramel asked, unaware she scared the poor nurse.

"U...u...uh, I'm f...fine, m...miss S...sweeth...heart." Mint replied, still not used to Caramel's eccentricities.

"Call me Caramel! I told you, you can call me by my name. There's no reason to be so formal." Caramel told Mint, her head still hanging out the doorway.

"Caramel, come on!" Silver grabbed his sister's overall, pulling her away and making her chase Kakarot with him.

Mint just blinked, wondering if she needed to do some mental analysis on the two, but for now, she'll continue with her work. She just hopes Kakarot doesn't get into too much trouble.

Kakarot ran through the halls, which were completely empty. Kakarot didn't pay any mind to this; because he is 3, as he admired the design of the halls. He didn't know where he was going, but when he heard the sound of metal clashing, he instantly knew where he was.

Spotting a stack of boxes, (why is there so many boxes?) he hopped onto each one to reach the high windows to look outside. What he saw was the only thing in this castle besides his own mother that made his eyes sparkle. Cantalot's Royal Training Ground.

To Kakarot, this place was a wonderland, watching the hundreds of guards train, spar, and workout. He didn't know why, but this is what he felt he was born for. To train, to fight, to become stronger.

"Net gun, fire!" Kakarot heard somepony yell, turning his head to see a net flying towards him.

Leaping to the side, he tried to avoid it, which was successful. But the net was only a distraction for Silver to catch him when Kakarot jumped out of the way.

"Ha-ha, got you now!" Silver yelled in triumph, not seeing a single way Kakarot can get out of this.

But he forgot one variable. He forgot to close his arms around the boy, and Kakarot ended up head-butting Silver, knocking him down to the ground. Kakarot didn't get out scot-free, as his head, just like Silver's, ached in pain.

Both were rubbing their furry heads to ease the pain. Caramel was just watching the two, holding her overly sized net gun that looked too similar to an AT4 rocket launcher.

The first to recover from their impact was Silver, who used this opportunity to grab Kakarot, finally ending their cat and mouse chase.

"Seriously, kid, you are quite the handful, aren't you? Was this all a game to you?" Silver said in exhaustion, finally happy to know his life wouldn't be in the line.

"Hide en seek! Hide en seek!" Kakarot cheered, clapping his hands.

"This was all hide and seek to you? Well I'd say it was more like tag, but let's say it was both. But don't run off like that. If I don't know where you are, who is going to protect you?" Silver told Kakarot, which made the bot tilt his head in confusion.

"Protec? Why?" Kakarot asked, not understanding.

"To keep you safe. You're still young, and you don't know how to take care of yourself. That's why you have us, to teach you." Caramel explained, but Kakarot didn't seem to understand.

"But why? I strong! I can protect me." Kakarot said, trying to puff out his biceps.

"Hah! Sorry, short stack, but you're as tough as a chicken without its head." Silver said, finding Kakarot's words funny.

Kakarot pouted, now trying to struggle out of Silver's grasp. Silver just laughed again, finding Kakarot's futile effort amusing. While still holding the struggling Kakarot, he paid attention to the noises coming from the Royal Training Grounds, and it gave him an idea to help calm the Saiyan child down.

"Hey, Kakarot. I got an offer you might like." Silver's words stopped Kakarot's mini tantrum, making him stop to listen to Silver.

"If you behave and stop flailing like a fish, I'll show you around the training ground, have you watch the castle guards train and spar." Silver gave Kakarot his offer and he immediately saw Kakarot's eyes widen in excitement.

"Yes, yes, yes! Show me, show me!" Kakarot happily pleaded, trying to pressure Silver by pulling on Silver's chest plate.

"Ah, ah. I'm not going to unless you promise me to be on your best behavior. You may think the training ground is fun, but it's not. For us guards, it is alright, but for you, it is dangerous." Silver began, his face becoming serious and stern, freezing Kakarot a little with how sudden and scary Silver's face was to him.

"There are many things that can harm you, like many sharp objects such as swords, axes, spears, and arrows, and a dozen different magic spells. You have to promise me that you stay near me when you enter, because if you don't, both our lives would be put at risk." Silver finished, which confused Kakarot, who asked him why his life would be in danger.

"Because if your mother learns I risked your life because you were curious or I was neglectful, she won't be happy." Silver explained, and it seems his answer satisfied Kakarot.

"Okay. I stay with Uncle Silla, and no go near pointy things or glowy magic." Kakarot agreed to Silver's promise, and Silver put his pinkie finger out, saying they must lock fingers to officialize their agreement.

"Why? Is magic?" Kakarot asked, and Silver said it was, explaining that a pinkie promise is a very powerful type of magic, and breaking said promise would give bad luck.

"Okay. I pinkie promiss to stay with Uncle Silla." Kakarot locked his little pinkie around Silver's

"Alright, with that done, let me show you the training ground. Remember, stay close." Silver gently dropped Kakarot to the ground and held his hand, ready to show Kakarot the training ground.

Kakarot couldn't hold back his excitement. His body was shaking like he had a ton of sugar, while he was also skipping in place and having the biggest grin on his face.

"He's so excited. He reminds me of you when you brought home your first... OW!" Caramel found Kakarot's little quirks amusing, then she tried to make a joke at Silver's expense, but he quickly whacked her over the head before she could finish her sentence.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Caramel pouted, holding her sore head.

Kakarot had to cover his eyes at first, but when his eyes got used to the light, he saw the one place he believed was heaven. He saw so many things at once, and he couldn't stop looking at one, his head bobbing from one sight to another. He saw dozens upon dozens of guardsmen, all of various races, fur colours, and mane styles. Some were sparring with each other, working on hand-to-hand combat, while others were training with weapons or magic. Another section was for various strength, endurance, and agility training, with earth ponies using the majority of weights, while unicorns used smaller weights to practise their magic. Another area was the track, where mainly pegasi were running and flying, accompanied by earth ponies and unicorns, but the track was taken up mainly by pegasi. Lastly was the target field, where unicorns were practising their magic and spells.

"Captain Snow. Sorry to interrupt. Her highness is out for one of her royal duties, and she left me in charge of Kakarot's well-being while she was away. And I want to show Kakarot the training ground to pass the time." Silver gave his respect to his Captain and answered his Captain's questions.

"I see. Make sure the princess's son is always with you. I don't want to face the wrath when she learns her own son got injured." Snow said, with Silver nodded, saying he understood.

"Well, well, well, look who we have here." An arrogant voice spoke out of the blue, a voice Silver and Caramel recognized very well.

"Good morning Magma. What do you want?" Silver groaned, rolling his eyes at the arrival of his fellow Lieutenant.

"Hey, why so cold? Aren't you happy to see your best friend?" Magma asked, placing his arm on Silver's shoulder.

Magma was a unicorn Lieutenant, second in command under Silver, who is a first Lieutenant. He has crimson red fur with a duel coloured mane and tail consisting of fire orange and hot red, styled in a very aggressive mohawk that tapers off at the front. His armour was just like all the others, but was made for his unicorn body, being more durable than Pegasi armour, but more brittle compared to earth pony armour, but had the extra benefit of being fitted with extra magic resistance. It was also more flexible than earth pony armour, but not as flexible as Pegasi armour, as Unicorns were mostly used as support and medical aid. His helmet, being held under his free arm, had a hole to allow his horn to fit through.

Silver looked at the Magma's elbow on his shoulder, turning his head a little more to allow his good eye to see, and his sight fell on Magma.

"Mind taking your arm off of me." Silver kindly said, and Magma gladly did.

"Yeesh, who shat in your rations this morning? You seemed more riled up than normal." Magma said, but Silver's face silently frowned.

"Watch your mouth. The princess's son is here and I can't have him hear such language at a young age." Silver said, when Magma looked down to see the princess's newly adopted son.

"You said the f-bomb earlier when he bit your finger." Caramel said, as Silver just blushed in embarrassment, annoyed his sister ratted him out.

"Hah! Priceless! How can you chew me out when you can't follow your own rules?! Hey Caramel, how loud did he scream it? Was it an f-bomb with a hard f?" Magma asked Caramel, and she nodded, describing how Kakarot bit Silver's finger and heard the loudest f-bomb she ever heard from her brother.

"That's enough. Lieutenant, go back to training, before I make you clean the palace's toilets. Again." Snow ordered, which made Magma put his helmet back on and head to the shooting range he came from, before he apologised to Snow and waved Kakarot goodbye.

With Magma gone, Snow asked Silver how he had been handling Kakarot since the princess left. Silver was silent, his brain trying to say he had no problems, but his rational side was telling him not to lie to his Captain and role model.

"You lost him, didn't you?" Snow asked with a raised eyebrow.

"What?! No, of course not. I'm not irresponsible enough to lose the princess's child. What would make you say that?" Silver tried to lie through his teeth, but his overly wide smile made it obvious he was lying.

"Dammit, Lieutenant. Please tell me the princess's son didn't get into any trouble?" Snow asked, a little annoyed that one of the best guards under his command was so incompetent.

"*sigh* Thankfully not. He just ran through the castle halls, believing he was playing hide and seek." Silver sighed, letting Snow sigh in relief himself.

"He blew up my workshop." Caramel simply stated, making Silver turn to her direction, yelling to her to stop ratting him out so casually.

"Why leave such an important detail, Lieutenant. Is it that you forgot, or did you intentionally leave it out so that I wouldn't find out?" Snow asked, and Silver could feel the murderous aura that was coming off his Captain.

While Snow was about to chew out Silver, Caramel and Kakarot were in the background, solving a Rubik's cube. Caramel gave Kakarot the toy to play with, but he just bit into it.

"I'd say you were lucky finding the princess's son before she returned. But not lucky enough to escape the consequences of losing track of him." Snow said, making Silver go stiff as a board when he saw the small evil grin growing on his Captain's face.

Even though earth ponies are known to be more physically strong than the other races, Snow was no slouch when it came to other aspects, such as speed and agility. So when Silver was still processing his Captain's words and grinning smile, he felt something hard and fast hit the back of his head, knocking him down to the ground. Silver tried to get up, combat mode now activated, but something pressed hard on his back, keeping him on the ground.

"You are going to listen to every command I will give you and follow them to the letter. Any complaining will make your punishment even harder, so unless you're a closeted masochist, you better keep that mouth shut. You understand, Lieutenant?" Snow, in a blink of an eye, was able to appear behind Silver and knock him down, pressing one of his hooves deep into his back, keeping him from standing up.

"Yes Captain! I understand Captain!" Silver shouted, trying to not show the pain he was in.

Captain Snow is known to be the strongest Captain in the Royal Guard. And not just the strongest but also the fastest, even compared to his fellow Pegasi Captains. He was also one of the youngest Captains ever promoted, gaining the rank of Captain at the age of 23, and has been a Captain of the Royal Guard for nearly 15 years.

"I said do you understand me?!" Snow shouted, making Silver shout again, even louder.

"Good, now begin with push-up! You stop when I say you stop, understood?!" Snow ordered and Silver followed his Captain's orders.

Kakarot was no longer watching Caramel solve her Rubik's cube, but instead watched his Grandpa Snoh chew out and beat up his Uncle Silla. He didn't know why. Did Uncle Silla do something? Did he do something bad like have a tantrum? That was usually why he was punished, but Uncle Silla was made to do push-ups and not be put into a bubble, so he must have done something different.

"Whoa, why is Captain so mad at Silver?" Magma popped in again, watching Silver do push-ups with small grin.

"Brother lost Kakarot while looking after him, and the Captain is punishing him for losing him." Caramel explained, not looking away from her Rubix cube.

"Seriously? Didn't know you were such a screw up." Magma joked, which got a audible snarl from Silver.

"Lieutenant. Go back to your training. Or do you want me to put you through the same punishment as your first in command?" Snow warned, which Magma held his hand up.

"Yeah, yeah Cap. I understand. I just wanted to take the little dude for a hot minute. I want to show him how cool I am." Magma said, picking Kakarot up and bringing the boy with him.

"I swear to Celestia herself! If he gets hurt because you couldn't help yourself, I'll skin you alive and wear your fur as my new coat!" Silver snapped, knowing how reckless Magma can be with his magic.

"Calm down, Silver. I look after my little cousin all the time. The prince will be safe with me, I promise." Magma gave an okay sign to Silver, still holding Kakarot.

"Captain! Tell him to let Kakarot go. I don't trust him!" Silver tried to plead for his Captain's help, but Snow ignored him.

"Why not? He is your second in command. If you can't trust him, you cannot trust yourself. If Lieutenant Magma becomes dangerous for the young prince, then I'll step in. But show some trust in your fellow guardsman." Snow gave his reasons for not stepping in, and Silver couldn't bite back because he was still talking to his Captain, and because he was right.

He needs to trust Magma, and if he can't trust the pony he works with, how can he trust anypony else. So, with gritted teeth and continuing his push-ups, he watched Magma show off his magic to Kakarot.

"Alright little man, watch this. Allow the great and powerful Magma show you the potential of magic!" Magma boasted about the power of his magic, placing the prince on the ground to give him a front row seat to his brilliance.

Lighting his horn with magic, it sparked into an orange aura. It then began to move down his body, dancing across his arm and ending at his left hand, where the magic surrounded the entire appendage. Kakarot was amazed, watching the magic like a moth to any light source. With the magic fully formed in his hand, he positioned his fingers correctly and snapped them, forcing the magic to spark and turn to fire. The act caused the ponies around him and Kakarot to look and stare, watching the Lieutenant charge up one of his famous magic attacks.

Like a baseball pitcher, he spun his body in place, lifting his right leg up and throwing his left arm back. Lifting his leg also made him arch his back, his armor made to accommodate the extra flexibility he needed. With the movement of his lit hand, the flame followed, leaving a trail of fire that got extinguished as it was no longer attached to his hand.

Holding his pose for a full 5 seconds, making sure to take in all the stares of everypony around him and the starry eyes of Kakarot, he let his body release like a spring, his body moving at super sonic speeds, and throwing the magic fire at the mounted target 100 meters away. With his throw, he yelled out the name of his signature move, his voice echoing across the whole training ground.

"Rage Of The Phoenix!" With the name of his signature attack declared, the flame in his hand glowed brighter, as it took a more solid shape, but the glow it emitted made it hard to see what shape it actually took.

When Magma sprang his arm forward, the bright flame left his hand like a rocket to space. It sped across the court, all the way to its intended target. The speed it obtained caused dirt to pull away and form a trench that grew the further the flame traveled.

Finally, after seconds of traveling, the flame hit the mounted target at the end of the court, and just as expected by everypony who heard rumours of Magma's signature attack, when it made contact, it created an explosion. An explosion that formed a massive ball of fire that swallowed both the intended target and its neighbouring targets three lanes across. The explosion also produced a massive gust of wind that made everypony, even Snow himself, brace themselves from the force, but he only did so because he needed to protect Caramel, who wasn't paying attention.

Silver's mind right now was to protect Kakarot from the gust of wind at all costs. So his body moved before the blast hit to give him time to reach the boy, but he was surprised that Magma blocked the boy with his body, shielding Kakarot completely from the shockwave, which left Silver to protect himself.

After everything had calmed down and everyone was able to stand on their hind legs, everypony began to cheer, fully entertained by the display of power Magma showed off. Kakarot cheered along, while Silver felt rage boil inside him.

"Magma, you idiot! Why in Equestria would you do something like that?! You could have gotten Kakarot seriously hurt?!" Silver began to yell at his partner, Magma only rolling his eyes.

"That's enough, Lieutenant! I can agree that your second in command put too much power into his attack. But he still made sure the prince was safe. It was him who protected Kakarot from the explosion." Snow quickly stopped an argument from starting, shoving Silver away from Magma.

"He put Kakarot in danger! I don't care if he protected him; he put him in that situation in the first place!" Silver tried to argue as he stopped closer to his partner.

"I am supposed to keep him safe! If it weren't for Captain stepping in, I would have stopped this whole thing from happening!" Silver continued to argue, which made Snow sigh in exasperation.

Kakarot wasn't really paying attention, keeping his attention on the destroyed targets across the field. The main target was completely incinerated, only a very small part of the pole that held the target was poking out of the ground, charred. He thought what Magma did was amazing. Watching the flames dance around the Unicorn's arm felt like watching the guards train and spar. Seeing the power of the attack made something inside him want to mimic what he saw. To be strong, to feel proud.

First, he needed to create fire like Magma, but the lack of a horn made it harder for him to create one. But he won't let the lack of a horn stop him. Looking at his hands, he stared at them closely, hoping to figure out a way to create a fireball of his own. But no matter how hard he thought, his 3-year-old brain couldn't think of a way to create his own fireball. But then, when he looked harder, he seemed to feel something. Something under his skin, somewhere in his hands. It was small, very small, but he could feel it move around his hands and up his arms. Maybe he can use this to help him. He just needs to bring it out. So, with determination, he put both his hands out, hoping to push the power out.

Without him noticing, ponies around him were watching and discussing what the prince was doing.

"Um, what is Kakarot doing?" Caramel asked, popping her head out from behind Snow.

"No idea. From what I know, he's never done anything like this." Silver said, his rage at Magma completely gone and replaced with confusion.

"Hmm, it looks like he is copying me. He was so amazed by my great power that he wanted to replicate me, as he should." Magma proposed, forming poses that could be called flamboyant.

"Really? If you ask me, you are the last pony I want to copy from." Silver said, with the most monotone voice he could muster.

As the adults were talking, only Caramel saw the small spark of light that came from Kakarot's palms. When she did see it and took a double take; just in case she was seeing what she was seeing, she told everypony to look and watch Kakarot as they all turned to see the small flicker of light that was trying to form in Kakarot's hands.

As the sparks began to shape into a small ball, no bigger than a marble, Kakarot was unable to hold it together. With as much force as a 3-year-old can muster, he shot the small ball out of his hands, expecting it to shoot across the yards like Magma's attack did. Just like Kakarot, everypony else was expecting the same thing, but it instead floated a few inches, fell to the ground, and landed on a pebble, disappearing. Kakarot and everyone else looked to see if the ball of light did anything to the pebble, but nothing happened. Until the pebble cracked and split in two.

Kakarot slumped to the ground, feeling sad that he couldn't make a ball of fire like Magma. What he didn't realise was that he completely shook the understanding of everypony around him.

"K...Kakarot? Did, did you just use magic?" Silver asked, taking a step forwards.

"But that shouldn't be possible. I scanned him dozens of times to detect if there was any magic inside. Spells, machines. Dangerous artefacts I stole from the armoury." Caramel said, listing off the ways she tried to find magic inside the boy.

"YOU WHAT?!!!" Both Silver and Snow yelled in disbelief, but Caramel ignored them.

"I'm guessing what Kakarot just did wasn't magic, but a different type of magic. Something so different, we could never know how it truly works." Caramel theorised, making Snow think about what she said.

"If your theory is true, and the prince does have a separate, potentially powerful power, I think it is best we make sure he doesn't accidentally cause an accident with it." Snow suggested, making Silver raise an eyebrow.

"Wait? You aren't suggesting what I think you are?" Silver asked, and his Captain gave his Lieutenants a wide grin, a smile he only gave when his barbaric side was let loose or when he had an over the top idea.

"You two will be responsible for Kakarot's training. I'll also join in to make sure none of you screw it up." Snow said, nopony correcting him on using a swear word around Kakarot.

"Magma, you'll be in charge of training Kakarot's special power. I will focus on strength and endurance training, while Silver will supervise the prince's weapons and martial arts training." Snow told both Lieutenants their jobs, and both saluted their Captain, saying they wouldn't fail him or Kakarot.

"Do not worry sir, we will not let you down! We'll make sure Kakarot's training will make him somepony proud to be an Equestrian!" Magma shouted, Snow nodding his head in approval.

"Good to hear. Now, back to training. And back to your punishment, First Lieutenant! Drop down and start doing wing-ups!" Snow roared, his voice alone moving Silver to the ground.

"YES SIR!!!" Both Magma and Silver shouted, Magma running to continue training his magic on an unbroken target while Silver was now pushing his body up and down with his wings.

After that, nothing spectacular happened. Which meant Kakarot spent the whole day with Grandpa Snow and Auntie Calame. When Celestia came back, Kakarot immediately jumped into her arms once he saw her. Celestia was happy to see her son as well, who asked how his day was. Kakarot began to explain the day's events in toddler speech, which confused Celestia because she only got a third of what he said.

Silver explained at the end of the rambling that Kakarot seemed to have some sort of power, but because it wasn't magic, Snow wanted to help train Kakarot to both wield this power and control it. Celestia was shocked, but felt happy her son could fit in with her people, even if a little.

Silver asked how her day was, and Celestia said it was wonderful. She mentioned that she had accepted a couple of new students but had her eye on one special student, a mare named Twilight Sparkle. Celestia was so impressed with the girl that she made the unicorn her new apprentice.

"Do I have a sister now?" Kakarot asked and everypony's stood in silent, not expecting those words from Kakarot.

Celestia didn't know how to answer this question. Truthfully, she didn't. But she didn't want to make him upset by saying she wasn't. Trying to think of a quick response, Celestia resorted to a middle ground response.

"Well, unlike you sweetie, I didn't adopt Twilight, because she already have parents, who care for her like I care for you." Celestia said, but she saw her son's face fall.

"So I don't get a sister?" Kakarot asked, tears forming but haven't yet released, and Celestia had to say something quickly.

"Well, I mean, technically no, she isn't. But just because I didn't adopt her, doesn't mean it should stop you from seeing her as your sister." Celestia said, stopping Kakarot's potential tantrum, but it was obvious he was still clueless.

Thankfully for Celestia, Silver stepped in to help explain her words to Kakarot. Being a parent was hard.

"It's just like how you call me uncle sometimes. I share no relation to your mother. But you still call me uncle. If you get close enough with her, you could see her as your sister. Like how I see Caramel as my sister." Silver explained, and his words seemed to get through to Kakarot, who smiled and asked when he could see Twilight.

"When she moves into the palace, sweetie. But that won't be for a few weeks. She still needs to pack and say goodbye to her friends." Celestia said, and Kakarot wasn't fazed, saying okay and talked about how excited he is to meet her, wondering if she is strong, because she was chosen by his mum.

For Celestia, it was a good day. She was able to appoint a new apprentice, she learned her son could use magic, and her son seemed to have had a fun day with everyone else. This was just the start of parenting, and Celestia couldn't wait for the many years ahead.

[Chapter End]