Not Another Good Guy

The first thing I noticed upon entering the room was the new prisoners. Five ponies were chained in a row on the opposite side of the room from the Elements of Harmony, covered in enough shadow so that I could not see defining characteristics but could easily see their race. Two normal ponies, two pegasi, and a unicorn all suffered the crystal coverings on their hooves, wings, and horn. It didn't take a genius to deduce that they were not here willingly.

The next thing I noticed was that Lyra was waiting for me over by the new ponies. Beside her floated the dark crystal I had seen in her office.

What is that doing here? I wondered as Lyra beckoned me over to her. "Welcome, Master. Here-"

She was cut off by an explosion of sound from where Twilight and her friends were. Chains rattled in a frenzy of concussive blasts that repeatedly assaulted my eardrums. It took only a moment to identify the source of the horrific noise.

The pink demon.

"What is she doing?" I yelled at Twilight. I had to shout it multiple times over the rattling produced from the insane shaking before she could hear me.

"It's... doozy!" was all I could make out. Finally, Lyra cast a spell that turned the cacophony into a quiet buzzing.

"What did you say?" I asked.

"She does that whenever something really big is about to happen," said Twilight.

I frowned in confusion. "But she's asleep!"

"Pinkie sense. Don't question it," she replied, her tone laced with near-lethal levels of snark.

"How dare you speak to your master that way!" shouted Lyra. Right before my eyes, she underwent a stunning transformation. The shadows seemed to bend and flow like liquid around her. Her eyes glowed a demonic red and green and her horn gave off a sickening purple-green aura. Before I could react, she fired a bolt of magic that hit Twilight square in the jaw.

"Stop!" I yelled as she charged up her horn again.

"As you command, Master," she said, instantly changing back to her normal appearance as if nothing had happened. Don't piss her off, I thought to myself before turning to Twilight. Thankfully, she was fine. The magic seemed to stun and disorient her more than it did actual harm. There were a few singed hairs, but that was the worst of the damage. She caught me staring at her and glared, so I turned my back on her and gestured for Lyra to continue.

"Here are the new initiates. These guards were taken by surprise while camping for the night on the road from the Crystal Empire to Canterlot."

Walking closer, I could see them clearly. They had their heads bowed and shoulders slumped in defeat. Their eyes were downcast, and the closest one in the group was silently crying. All of them had given up. All, that is, except one.

The last one in the line of ponies, the only unicorn, gazed directly ahead. His eyes did not waver from some unseen spot directly ahead of him. He sat up straight and proud, despite the obvious inevitability of his predicament. Even without any way of knowing who they were, I had no doubts that this was their leader.

"I sent for your presence here, Master, because I assumed that you would wish to see how we came to see your greatness."

"Uh... yeah." I mentally slapped myself, but Lyra failed to notice my lack of enthusiasm.

"Then we shall begin. You," she said, pointing a hoof at the first pony in the row, "what is your name?"

"B-b-brook. My n-name is Brook," she said, more tears falling from her eyes.

"Look me in my eyes, slave," when Brook did not comply, Lyra harshly slammed a hoof into her muzzle and forced Brook to meet her gaze.

"Now..." Lyra said, levitating the dark crystal from her office over Brook's face. "Serve me, Brook."

"What?"

"Serve me."

"No!"

"Serve me."

My blood turned to ice and I fought to stop myself from running out of the dungeon. Lyra's eyes had turned to the demonic red and green I had seen before while her shadow seemed to grow darker, despite there hardly being enough light to cast a shadow at all. Even though Lyra was no longer forcing their eyes to lock, Brook seemed unable to break her gaze from the dark depths of the unicorn's glare.

"I'll... Never..."

"Serve me."

Lyra's voice was now more akin to a hissing, and I could see tints of green flecking the whites of Brook's eyes.

"Serve me."

This time, Brook did not respond. She merely swayed on her hooves and stared forward.

"Good slave," said Lyra, tapping the dark crystal to Brook's forehead. The mare swayed a moment longer before collapsing to the floor with a blissful smile on her face. The shadows seemed to darken around her, similarly to the shadows that flowed around Lyra as if they had a mind of their own. Three of the remaining guards sharply flinched as she hit the floor, while the unicorn at the end of the row did not even blink.

"What is your name, slave?" Lyra said to the next pony, his wings twitching in fear.

"I... I'll never tell you!" he said, his voice quaking.

"Serve me."

"...No...I won't..."

"Serve me."

"Silver Spear."

"Good slave," As before, the crystal hit his head and he hit the floor with a dull thud.

I looked over at Twilight to see how she was handling all of this. Like me, she was unable to look away from the horrors unfolding before our eyes. It seemed like she had been crying, but it was hard to tell in the darkness.

"What is your name, slave?" Lyra said again. This time, the pony met her gaze with rage instead of fear.

"It's Justice," he said, voice smoldering with hatred, "and I would rather die than serve you or your cult! Go to Tartarus!"

Lyra smiled and froze him with her magic. "You will serve me no matter what," she said, slowly running her hoof down his face, "but you don't have to be alive to do so." She leaned in closer to his frightened face until they were almost touching muzzles. "I think your blood will make a beautiful crystal."

His eyes widened and he frantically struggled at the spell binding him, but to no avail. His eyes met mine and he silently screamed for me to save him. I knew right then that I would never be able to live with myself if I let him die. At the same time, I knew that it would be impossible to free him. I had to compromise.

"No," I said, barely managing to keep my voice from quavering. "We have enough crystals already. He can serve us better in life."

The hope that had briefly shone in Justice's eyes was quenched in that moment. The other guard fidgeted for the first time since I had seen him. I couldn't blame him, the hopelessness in the air was almost palpable.

Lyra frowned, but did not question my decision. "Yes, Master."

The rage in Justice's eyes felt like it was cutting me to the bone. Whether or not he would have preferred to die was irrelevant; I would not allow him to. This way there was still a small chance for me to save him later. If he was drained to build a crystal, then there would be nothing left to save.

I tried to block out the noise as Lyra resumed her hissing demands, but the sound still chilled my blood. Justice was remarkably resilient, but inevitably was forced to submit to the strange magics at work. He went without a word, simply passing out as the shadows darkened and claimed him.

I'm sorry. I silently thought as he lost the mental battle. I wish there were another way to save you.

The last prisoner in the row began twitching quite a bit more as Lyra turned to face the next prisoner, a pristine white pegasus. She, like Justice, met Lyra's harsh gaze. Her eyes, however, will not filled with the indignant rage in Justice's. Her eyes were as cold and cunning as a wolf's.

"My name is Glacia," she said. "I have no desire to fight this. I will join you and serve willingly." The last prisoner shot her a glare and muttered something under his breath before shifting around a bit more.

Lyra smiled with approval. "Good. We need more members with initiative like yours." The dark crystal tapped Glacia lightly on the head as Lyra spoke. "Join us in the darkness and accept this gift."

The shadows bent towards her for a moment. The small amount of light in the room dimmed into almost nonexistence. I felt as if a small part of me was being pulled in as well. Suddenly, the shadows flowed into Glacia's body and were absorbed. She looked very much the same with the exception of her eyes. Like Lyra's, they glowed a sickly green and red.

"Welcome," Lyra said as she broke Glacia's chains with her magic. "Go and find another member to show you around your new home."

"As you command," she said. She paused for a moment to bow to me before doing as Lyra said. Once she was gone, we turned to face the last prisoner. He had stopped moving around, but I didn't think anything of it at the time.

"Wait a minute..." Lyra said, peering at him in the darkness. "I know you." The unicorn turned his head to look her in the eye.

"Yes. We met briefly a little under four years ago, but I think you are more familiar with my wife."

Twilight gasped sharply and a look of recognition passed over Lyra's face. "Of course. It's nice to see you again. It'll be even nicer if you submit willingly."

"No!" shouted Twilight.

"My thoughts exactly," he said with a glare.

Lyra shrugged. "Very well then. Now," she said bringing the dark crystal closer to the unicorn. "serve-"

A loud crack and a flash of light exploded from the mysterious prisoner's horn, despite the crystals covering it. I was tossed backwards, landing with a sharp pain in my eyes and ears. Wasting no time, I pushed myself up and looked back to the prisoner.

Make that the ex-prisoner. Lyra was trapped by a small pink bubble that surrounded her and prevented her numerous spells from leaving the bubble. The unicorn was just freeing the last of his hooves from the chains holding him as I got up. Ignoring me, he walked up to Lyra and tapped on her bubble.

"It's love magic. Your hate power doesn't stand a chance against it." He turned to face me with grim determination on his face. "I learned how to counter dark magic a long time ago, monster. You don't stand a chance."

"Run!" shouted Twilight. I got the strangest feeling that she wasn't talking to me.

"Who the hell are you?" I asked.

"I'm the Captain of the Crystal Guard. I'm the Prince of the Crystal Empire."

"Drama queen," I muttered.

"Most importantly, I'm the brother of Twilight Sparkle."

"Oh." That would explain Twilight's sudden panic. I don't suppose he would be open to simply talking this one out?

"I am Shining Armor, and I am going to put you down." I'll take that as a "no".

With that, he charged at me.

Right from the beginning, I knew that my chances of defeating him were nonexistent. I had only the basic memories of combat, whereas this guy obviously had years of experience against opponents far stronger than me. The only thing that was saving me was my agility, and even that didn't work forever.

When he charged me again, I leaped out of his way just like I had every other time. This time, however, I heard the sound I had come to associate with magic. I slammed into a wall of pink, unable to get out of his way. The strange barrier seemed to drain me of my energy and willpower. It was akin to a burning sensation on the inside of my body, not unlike the effects of my strange regenerative powers.

The wall dissipated and I dropped to the floor, dazed and unable to move. My ribs cracked as he leaped on top of me and began slamming his hoof into my chest.

"This is for my sister!" he shouted as he pummeled me.

After a moment, I found myself able to move again. With all the force I could muster, I pulled my legs together and sprung them out into his stomach. He was only knocked back a few feet but it was enough time for me to get up and start moving again.

"That was a cheap shot. I would expect nothing less from the kind of coward who uses dark magic!" he yelled as he approached me again. Instead of charging at me, he instead slowly circled around me. I moved as well, keeping him directly in front of me. In a sudden burst of motion, he sprung forward with an uppercut. I managed to avoid it, but his other hoof swung around and caught me in the leg as I was moving. I quickly hobbled backwards to avoid a sweep at my legs and we circled each other again.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Twilight struggling with her chains. Whatever they had put her in must have been much stronger than what they put Shining Armor in, because she couldn't work her way free from it. No amount of wiggling, pulling, or stomping on the chain was doing anything for her.

Shining Armor quickly took advantage of my distraction. He surged forward and struck me in the side of the head with a brutal hook, sending me skidding across the floor of the dungeon. I came to a stop a few feet away, coughing and spitting out blood. At this point, all hope seemed lost. I simply had no way of beating him. I was beginning to regret taking off the Element of Darkness. I could have really used some power, even if it wasn't from a great source.

He said something to me, but I couldn't understand him. My ears were ringing and felt like they had been stuffed with fuzz. A moment later, I saw another flash of pink. I briefly felt myself hurtling through the air before I was reunited with the floor. Blinking my eyes clear, I realized that I was next to Lyra's bubble and that Shining Armor was no longer paying attention to me. He was trying to help Twilight get rid of the magic blocker on her horn, but seemed to be having some trouble.

I noticed Lyra a moment later, frantically waving and pointing at something next to my head. I managed to groggily roll over to look at where she was pointing, and I saw it. The dark crystal that she had been using to brainwash the prisoners was still laying forgotten on the floor. Focusing on it, I could feel the dark power radiating from it. It felt eerily similar to the power that came from the Element of Darkness.

I eagerly reached out to grab it, but hesitated at the last moment. Is this really the right decision? I swore not to use dark power again, but do I really have a choice? I glanced over at Twilight and Shining Armor as they continued to struggle with the crystal magic inhibitor. If I do the "right thing" and refuse the use of dark power, then Twilight and Shining Armor will probably get themselves killed trying to escape. Not to mention the fact that I will die, as I seem to be bleeding out.

I glance back over at the dark crystal laying nearby. Such a small rock for so much power. If I use its power to put a stop to their escape, then I will have complete control of the situation again. I can take Shining Armor prisoner until I find some way to set all them free and break the spell over this cult. That way I can keep them all safe.

I looked back and forth between the two, pondering my decision. Do the ends justify the means? After another moment of thought, I steeled my will and dragged myself over to the dark crystal. It doesn't matter. I refuse to die here, and I refuse to let Twilight and her brother ruin any chance I have of fixing this. With that, I grabbed the crystal.

Immediately, arcs of black lightning ran up and down my body. They scorched my flesh and left agonizing burns that made me scream in pain. As much as it hurt, it felt good. It felt really good. Every bit of agony made me feel a bit more powerful. That burning strength building inside made all the pain go away. I felt only power now.

Dark electricity still raced across my form as I forced myself upright. Twilight and Shining Armor stared in horror as my flesh sizzled and popped, making itself whole again. I wiped a bit of blood from my mouth and smiled.

"I'm back."

We exploded into motion at the same moment. Black sparks danced across the floor towards Shining Armor. At the same time, he launched a wall of force at me. He erected a shield to defend himself and I sidestepped his magic with a speed I didn't know I was capable of.

We traded shots at a range until we realized that it was pointless as neither of us could land a hit on the other. It was with some relief that we wordlessly agreed to come closer, as I was out of the dark electricity that had appeared earlier. Apparently that was mostly for show, as it did seem to terrify Twilight and make Shining Armor's movements more cautious. I wasn't too worried about the loss of the lightning though, as I was still a force to be reckoned with even without it.

The crystal I held quickly made up for the loss of the lightning as we entered close combat. Shadows flowed around my hands like a large glove molded into the shape of my fist. Shining Armor brought his own magical prowess forth, conjuring a magical shield that floated in the air before him. Every one of my assaults was met with a counter or block from him, and all of his met the same from me. Time after time we traded blows with no change.

Seeing that neither of us could currently defeat the other, Shining Armor got clever and changed the rules. He leaped backwards and cast an odd spell that left a glowing pink light covering him. Fueled by the power running through me, I failed to see the danger in attacking him again.

My fist collided with the pink aura and I collapsed as my world became pain. It was as if every fiber of my being was being ripped out through the hand that touched the shield. Shining Armor looked down on me coldly as I writhed in suffering on the ground.

"That is a love magic shield, a trick I picked up from my wife," he said, his tone as harsh as his glare. "It is almost lethal to creatures of darkness and cuts through hate magic effortlessly. I'm impressed you've gotten this far, but love always wins in the end." With that, he put a bubble of that love magic around me, much like the one Lyra was in.

Something about his words threw me into blind rage. As he turned and walked back over to Twilight, every ounce of my mind was screaming for revenge. My flesh yearned to make him suffer. My soul was filled with the desire to see him burn. All of that was summed up with one thought.

"I hate you."

I subconsciously tightened my grip on the dark crystal in my hand. With a herculean effort, I began to push against the magical barrier. I could see nothing but pink. I could feel nothing but agony. I could barely force myself to keep pushing, but I did.

I took a step forward.

My foot dragged through heavy resistance from the burning wall. I wasn't able to take a full step, but I still managed to slowly move.

Another step.

My emotions were accelerating like an out of control train. My vision narrowed as my heart beat faster and faster, breaths coming shorter and shorter.

Another step.

Suddenly, I burst through the bubble. Pieces of magic shield flew across the room for a few seconds before dissipating into nothingness. Both Twilight and Shining Armor were in stunned silence as I recovered and turned to face them again.

"I hate you."

Shining Armor charged at me, a pink spear materializing out of the air next to him. He never even had a chance to run me through with it. I heeded my blind rage and set about casting the only magic I knew about so far. I pulled a match out of my shoe and focused all of the hatred into that small point. The raging inferno inside me finally had an outlet, and it all came rushing forth like a dam bursting.

Just as Shining Armor was upon me, I let go of the magic. An explosion of fire sucked the air out of my lungs and obscured my vision before the explosion formed into a solid ball of fire about as large as my chest. It simply hovered in front of me, waiting to respond to my will.

Shining Armor lay dazed on the ground a few feet away. I tackled him and grabbed his head, slamming his horn into the ground to stop his love magic before putting him in a headlock. I wanted him alive and conscious for this.

I snapped my fingers, and the ball of fire rolled over to rest directly behind Shining Armor. He yelled something and tried to struggle, but I couldn't hear. All I knew was the hatred in my veins and the pounding of my heart in my head. I snapped my fingers and the fire touched his back hooves.

He began struggling again, but would not scream for me. I smacked his horn and intensified the heat. Still, he would not give me the pleasure of seeing him break. Not a single tear was shed, nor did a single whimper of fear escape his mouth. It was infuriating! My break in concentration caused me to lose control of the fire, and the blaze licked up the fur along his legs and back.

"No! Please! Sto- AAH!"

Finally! I could hear his screams perfectly clearly. It was music to my ears. Each agonized groan, every shriek of suffering, and every shaking sob was exactly what I had been waiting to hear. Oh, how he struggled. He shook violently as he suffered by my hand, and I loved every second of it.

I blinked. Something was in my eye, preventing me from witnessing the beautiful suffering before me. Wiping my hand across my eye, I noticed something peculiar.

I was crying.

The fire sputtered out as I numbly dropped the dark crystal and the hatred flowed out of me. What had I just done? I was vaguely aware of Twilight screaming something behind me, but I was too stunned to listen to her words.

They were right. All of them. I really am nothing more than a monster inside.

I released my hold on Shining Armor and backed up. He didn't even seem to notice with how much pain he was in. His screams continued to echo throughout the dungeon. I slammed my hands over my ears in desperation to keep it out, but to no avail.

I don't know how long he suffered. It could have been seconds or it could have been hours. I only noticed that something had changed when it was Twilight screaming at me instead of her brother.

"You monster! You killed him! You k-killed..." I couldn't hear anything else as she broke down into a mess of despairing sobs. Scarcely able to believe myself, I walked back over to Shining Armor. He wasn't moving.

Before panic could fully set in, I realized that he was still breathing. It was shallow and weak, often coming in sharp bursts, but it was still there. He was upon Death's doorstep, but I could bring him back. I could still save him.

But how?

I couldn't be too obvious about my next move. Lyra was still watching me through the bubble, but she didn't seem to be able to hear me. If Lyra realized that I wasn't here to take over Equestria, then she could turn the entire cult against me. I could try getting her to heal him with magic, but that would first require me to break the magic bubble around her. I wasn't sure I had it in me to do that twice.

Twilight could probably help me the most here, but I wasn't willing to try that option. I would first have to remove the magic blocking crystals, and that would be very obvious to Lyra. Even if I decided to risk Lyra's wrath, Twilight might not be in the right state of mind to be using magic at all. Even worse, she might just blast me to pieces once I free her. All of this was assuming that I could figure out how to get the crystals off her horn in the first place.

No, whatever I did to save Shining Armor would have to be on me alone. I wondered for a moment about my own regenerative abilities, but realized after a moment that it probably wasn't extendable to others. Lyra seemed to be able to regenerate as well, as I remembered her wounds healing after she bled herself to create a crystal. Maybe regeneration is limited to users of hate magic?

A terrible thought crossed my mind. It was just crazy enough to work, but Twilight would never forgive me and would likely refuse to ever work with me to escape this place. It was a fate far worse than death if I couldn't reverse it later.

I grabbed the dark crystal and rested it on Shining Armor's forehead, focusing on pushing all of the power into him. It felt like an infinite time that I sat there straining to channel the magic to him. For a painful amount of time, nothing happened. Just as I was about to give up, something changed. The shadows around us began to condense on him and flow into him, just as I had seen with the prisoner who joined the cult willingly. Miraculously, his charred body began to slowly knit itself back together out of the shadows. When his healing was fully underway, I cut the flow of magic and stepped back to admire my work.

Rather than simply restoring him, the dark power seemed to have improved him. His already obvious muscles stood out even more than before, giving him a menacing appearance even as he lay in a coma on the floor. His pure white coat, which previously had seemed to complete his "good guy" look, now managed to make him appear malicious. His eyes now had the same green that-

He blinked.

I managed to stop myself from jumping away, but I still flinched at the unexpected movement. After a moment, he blinked again and slowly pushed himself to his hooves. Twilight gasped out loud, but otherwise seemed unable to vocalize her thoughts. I was having a similar reaction.

After a moment he turned to me, his eyes filled with a fiery rage. I immediately prepared to fight him again, so I did not expect what came next.

"I live to serve you, Master," Shining Armor said, bowing to me. "I see the truth now. You are far greater than any of us, and it is you who should rule this world."

"What have you done?!" shouted Twilight, who had been reduced to hysterical sobbing on the floor. "You couldn't just let him die, you had to make him a monster just like-" A cloudy grey aura covered her face and a muzzle appeared, cutting her off.

"Well," said Lyra, now freed from the magical bubble, "that could have gone better." She walked over to Shining Armor and looked over him approvingly for a moment. "You appear to have benefited greatly from our master's magic. Your blood seems to accept the darkness faster than most of the others. You will be very useful in the coming days."

"I am glad to be able to serve," he said.

Twilight could only weep for her lost brother.

The hours following the escapade in the dungeon seemed to pass by in a blur, probably due to the shock I was in. I couldn't afford to show it, but I was on the verge of a panic attack. I had just burned alive the brother of the pony I was trying to save, adding insult to injury when I brainwashed him.

"Master?" said Lyra, bringing me out of my plummeting thoughts.

"Sorry, what?"

"I assigned a few guards to keep an eye on the dungeon to prevent something like this from happening again. Also, I've assigned Shining Armor to be your personal guard. I thought you might enjoy that, seeing as he is the first to be converted by your own powers."

As odd as it was, it did feel good to keep Shining Armor close. I tried to convince myself it was a side effect of the magic that bound him to my will, but it was hard to be certain of the truth. Either way, it would be easier to keep an eye on him if he followed me around. I owed Twilight that much after everything I'd done.

"Of course. Give him a day to rest first and make sure a healer looks at his legs. I kinda set them on fire."

"I'll see to it right away, Master. I'm glad you managed to keep him in one piece long enough to show him the truth. We need more fighters like him if we are to take over the surface world. With the way he threw himself at you, I was certain that you would utterly destroy him."

My heart skipped a beat and my head spun when she spoke those words. "What did you say?" I asked, suddenly intensely focused on her words.

She blinked in surprise. "Uh, I said that we need more fighters and that I'm glad you kept him alive."

"No, what exactly did you say? The last part."

"Oh. I said that it was impressive how he threw himself at you and I was certain you wouldn't let him live." she said.

Threw himself at me... Why does that sound so familiar? Suddenly, I remembered the words spoken to me in my dream.

"I've been watching this cult a bit more intently, and it would seem that you arrived at a perfect time. The leverage you need to get Twilight to help you will almost literally be thrown at you."

"No way," I said, rubbing my temples in frustration.

"What is it, Master?" said Lyra, frowning with concern.

"Nothing," I lied. "I'm getting cleaned up and then I'm going back to sleep. Don't wake me unless it is important." I've got somebody I need to talk to for a while...

Twilight didn't know what to do anymore. Her entire life had been torn apart in less than a week due to a monster with dark magic and his brainwashed cult. Now her brother was one of them. She almost wished him to be dead rather than a mindless slave to darkness. This and many other thoughts went through her mind as she sat alone in the darkness. The only way she could see anything in the room was by the light of the twinkling stars in Luna's mane. She stared at it for a while, distracting herself from the hopelessness of her situation. If only she had the same level of magic that could make her mane flow like that, then she could-

Twilight gasped out loud, scarcely able to believe her eyes. She blinked and shook her head, but the sight before her remained unchanged. Luna's magic was returning, and she would inevitably awaken. Judging by the look of Celestia's mane, the solar princess was not far behind.

She smiled for the first time in what felt like forever, then began a spontaneous plotting session. There were plans to be made, and by Celestia she was the pony to make them!