Soren The Alicorn Part 4: The Rift

by KingNyroc15

Rating: teen
Tags: Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Adventure, Alternate Universe
Length: 54437

Can a hero bring more harm than good?

After leaving the funeral, Soren and the TARDIS are forced through a dimensional rift. He decides to investigate the cause, but how much will he actually learn from this quest?

Published 2014-04-25 04:40:02 UTC
Last updated 2014-08-02 23:49:03 UTC

A Town Called...

Author's Note

Song used in this chapter: "Hey" copyrighted by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

A Town Called...

Sanctum. The town made of what can be referred to as peace. It isn't a typical paradise like the other areas of Equestria, but it is home to many ponies, both settlers and travelers alike. Watering holes, casinos, and other means of entertainment can be found in this western-styled town. Quite often, one can find poor travelers sitting or laying around town. Some will even perform to earn some bits to get by.

A mare with a light grey coat, black mane and tail, and an orange stripe running through her mane loved to walk around town to help these travelers. Her name was Robin, and this has been her job for four years. Her goal was to save the life of one traveler some day. Robin likes to believe that she has already accomplished this goal, but there is no definite proof. It didn't matter, though; she loves to help them anyway. The sun was about to set as the light grey mare was just finishing her charitable run through Sanctum. Even though it was a relatively small town, sometimes it took a few hours to cover all the streets.

Robin walked away from a lone unicorn traveler after she was thanked. She turned a corner and noticed a group of ponies gathered around a shopping stand that she could barely see. As she walked closer to it, Robin heard the anger in the crowds' voices. Before she could proceed, Robin heard a new noise come from behind her. She heard a guitar being played. 'That's a first. What traveler brought a guitar?' she thought, amazed. Guitars are rarely seen in Sanctum. No pony knows how to play them, or any string instrument for that matter.

The lovely guitar sounds were on the same street as she was. Robin quickly saw the cloaked pony sitting against a building, using his hooves to play the instrument. 'He plays like he has done this millions of times...' Robin continued to walk closer, and she soon realized that the notes being played sounded sad. Not only that, the pony began singing.

Won't somepony come along
And teach me how to keep it alive?
To survive.

Come along and show me something
That I never knew in your eyes.
Take away the tournicate.

I used to be so full of my confidence,
I used to know just what I wanted and just where to go.
More than ever I could use a coincidence,
But now I walk alone and talk about it when I know.

Hey, oh yeah, how long?
I guess I ought to walk away,
Hey, oh yeah, so long...
What you gonna do today?

'He sounds so sad...like he's lost,' Robin thought as she stood near him and continued to listen to his song. 'His guitar skills are impressive.'

I don't wanna have to, but I will,
If that's what I'm supposed to do.
We don't wanna set up for the kill,
But that's what I'm about to do.

Let it on, I'll cut you over when you're screaming into my soul.
Hard to own.
Anyway, I wanna let you know that everything is on hold.
What you gonna do to me?

You used to be so warm and affectionate.
All the little things I used to hear my fairy say,
But now you're quick to get into your regret.
I'll take the fall and now you got to give it all away.

Hey, oh yeah, how long?
I guess I ought to walk away,
Hey, oh yeah, so long...
What you gonna do today?

I don't wanna have to, but I will,
If that's what I'm supposed to do.
We don't wanna set up for the kill,
But that's what I'm about to do.

Breaking was heard down the street from Robin. She turned towards the commotion and saw three ponies, who each had two saddlebags attached to their sides, running from the shopping stand that was hidden from her view earlier.

"Thieves!" shouted a random stallion. "Somepony stop them!" Robin wanted to comply, but she was no fighter. She heard the notes from the traveler's guitar increase in volume, so she looked at him. He was now standing up while using his magic to continue playing his song.

Hey, what would you say if I stayed?
Stayed for a while if I may.
Say it again and I'll come around,
But not for the last time.

Hey, what would you say if I changed?
I'll change everything but my name.
Play it again and I'll come around,
But not for the last time.

The traveler started walking towards the approaching thieves as he played a guitar solo that fit the song very well. What interested Robin was that as the traveler played, he created two clones of himself that also had guitars. In unison, all three of them played their guitars and sang. At the same time, the sound emanating from them intensified.

You used to be so warm and affectionate
I used to know just what I wanted and just where to go.
And now you're quick to get into your regret;
And now I walk alone and talk about it when I know.

Hey, oh yeah, how long?
I guess you gotta walk away;
Hey, oh yeah, so long...
What you gonna do today?

Hey, oh yeah, how long?
I guess you gotta get away;
Hey, oh yeah, so long...
What you gonna do today?

While he repeated the last portion of his song, the traveler and his clones created a strong sound wave with their guitars. It became so powerful that the three colts couldn't run against it and were flung onto their backs. A few ponies from the crowd caught up to the thieves and captured them. Awestruck, Robin could only stare at the traveler after he easily stopped three ponies by himself. Not knowing what else to do, she tapped on the traveler's shoulder. He turned around to face her, but she couldn't see under his cloak.

"Who are you?" Robin asked the stallion. He placed his guitar down and removed his hood. She gasped as she looked upon a white pony with a black mane. "Y-Y-You're..."

"Soren Melody, at your service."

"It all makes sense..."

"How I stopped those juveniles? I guess it does. Not many unicorns can perform feats of magic like that, especially the cloning spell. Twilight is just learning how to do it."

"You're the Elemental Guardian..."

"Are you alright, Miss...?"

"Robin. My name is Robin."

"Nice to meet you, R—"

"Excuse me," another voice interrupted. Soren and Robin looked at the older mare addressing them. "You're the traveler that stopped those kids, weren't you?"

"Yes...?"

"And aren't you the...?"

"Yes, I'm the Elemental Guardian. Please don't make a big—"

"EVERYONE! IT'S THE GUARDIAN SOREN!" Soren flinched; he really didn't want this right now.

"Quick, follow me," whispered Robin to Soren.

Before the random mare could turn around to face them again, Soren and Robin were already plenty of yards away from her. Stunned with confusion, the mare stood there as ponies ran by her, wanting to meet the famous Guardian and alicorn. Quickly gathering herself, she followed suit.

"pant pant pant I think we lost them," Robin commented, trying to catch her breath. Her and Soren had to run for ten minutes before finally losing the fans. They were now hiding in an alleyway in between a few stone buildings, the only light being created by the crescent moon. "I didn't think you were that famous. I only recognized you from your victory at the Battle of the Nyrs."

"Don't...mention that day again. Got that?" Soren turned his back to her and walked a few steps forward before stopping. He wanted a little space.

"I'm...I'm sorry. May I ask why?"

"Never." Robin sat down, ears back, and hung her head. Soren looked back at the sad mare; he sighed. He walked over to her and sat beside her. "I'm sorry I snapped," he apologized, draping his leg around her in a half-hug. "It's just that...I've been through a lot...more than anypony knows. Things...hurt me, and I can never forget them. I had to leave my home just to discover what it means to be a hero."

"How long have you been on your journey?"

"Couple of days. I don't even know where I am."

"You're in Sanctum."

"Sanctum? How far is that from Canterlot? By the way, what year is it?" Robin gave him a strange look.

"Canterlot? I've never heard of that place. As for the year, it's 1005." Soren's eyes widened, and he broke the half-hug.

"So Canterlot...isn't a city?"

"I don't know, is it? Is something wrong?" Soren just sat there, thinking about that rift that sucked in him and the TARDIS.

"Well that's not good."

"What isn't?"

"It's complicated."

"I'm smart."

"Very complic—"

"Shh!" Robin interrupted as she shoved a hoof into Soren's mouth. Soren scowled but quickly noticed that Robin was looking out of the alley. She was looking at a filly who was passing by. The filly was a crystal pony! She had a light red coat and a dark red, curly mane and tail.

"Who's...?"

"SHH!" The two ponies stood there and watched as the filly looked around. Upon seeing no one, she ran in a certain direction, out of sight of Soren and Robin. Soren removed Robin's hoof and both to the ground.

"Can you let me talk?" he asked irritatedly. "Who was that?"

"That was Ruby. Come on."

"But...I need to...what about...Ughh." Soren gave up and decided to follow Robin.

The Rusty Nail

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

A Cursed Mare

'She lives in this dump?'

Once morning came, Soren ate breakfast with Robin and Ruby then decided to head out to the mother's house. Robin directed Soren outside of town to a wooden shack at the edge of a thick forest. The sky appeared bleak near the forest even though the midday sun was shining. Soren stood a considerable distance away from the shack as he looked at it. It didn't seem reliably sturdy, nor did it look like it was comprised of more than one big room.

'I would assume the entire town, or at least most of them, drove this mare away if she is living in this dump,' Soren thought to himself. Taking a deep breath, he slowly walked towards the wooden 'house.' Stepping up towards the front door, he reached out a hoof to knock, however the door was flung open before contact was made. Soren stiffened and took a step back. He peered into the darkness of the shack for awhile before moving. He edged his way inside and let his eyes adjust before glancing around.

He was almost correct in his assumption that the house was only one room. It actually had two that he could see: one giant living room and a small bedroom. There was an oven and a ruined sink in the corner of the living room by the bedroom entrance. To his right, Soren saw a television, which had static on the screen, and a ruined couch that could fit two ponies on it. A lamp was situated in the corner near the TV and couch. In the middle of the room was a tattered, swamp green rug with a table on top of it. Only two chairs were positioned at the table, along with the only source of light in the house besides the light from outside: an interesting candle.

Soren stepped up to the candle, which burned with a blue flame. He found it curious how this little flame interested him so much. He stared into the heart of the fire and focused on it. It flickered at his gaze and began swaying. The flame jumped up a few feet and landed back on the candlestick. Soren backed up, and the flame increased in size. By the time it almost reached the ceiling, the fire flowed onto the floor, opposite the table from Soren's position. Soren was about ready to run out of the door when he saw something else. The fire shifted into another object; it began to take physical form.

Soren has seen enough tricks to know where this is going. He wasn't surprised to see a pony materialize from the fire. 'Cliché much?' he thought as he rolled his eyes. The pony, or more accurately the mare, stood up and looked at Soren. Her piercing eyes seeming to look into his soul. The unicorn mare had deep blue eyes, a beige coat, tan mane and tail, and no cutie mark! 'Blank flank, huh? That's curious.'

"Yes it is. Now will you please stop staring at my 'blank flank,'" the mare commented.

"Sorry abou—Wait a second!" Soren yelled. "You read my mind!"

"Problem? As I recall, you're the alicorn with special powers here."

"Magic by using a horn is considering having special powers? That's a first. My friend can perform better feats of magic than me. I'm just lucky."

"Magic isn't about luck...It's about imagination, commitment, and devotion. You don't necessarily need training, you just need the right mind set."

"I've already read books preaching the same thing."

"Yes, Soren, I figured as much."

'Great, she knows my name. Wait...crap.'

"Indeed I do know your name. Or do you prefer 'alicorn?'"

"Soren is fine," he replied irritably. "I take it you know why I'm here."

"To investigate my magic."

"If by 'your magic' you mean 'your curse,' then yes. I want to know why everypony thinks you are cursed."

"You don't believe them?"

"Should I?"

"Possibly. A curse to one pony can be a gift in the eyes of another."

'You're already lying...' Soren thought. He continued speaking aloud.

"...and I can prove it. Someone told me that one day you suddenly became different."

"May I ask who this pony was?"

"You already know." The mare giggled with slight wickedness.

"You are correct. Am I not the first pony you have met who has knowledge like mine?"

"No you aren't, and the other has great knowledge as well. Let's see how much knowledge you actually have. How much do you know about why I'm here?"

"I know you were sent by that traitor, Robin, to try to 'fix me.'"

"Not necessarily. I just want to—"

"...see what makes me tick. I know. That jealous fool will do anything to make sure Ruby and I stay apart."

"Jealous? Robin doesn't seem like the jealous type."

"Oh but she is. She was always jealous that I had a child and she didn't. When I fell ill, she was right there to snatch sweet Ruby from me."

"And you expect me to believe that?"

"Have you conversed with my child yet?"

"Yes, and she is very eager to meet you, which leads me to wonder if she has ever seen you since the accident."

"Am I not worthy enough to see my own offspring?"

"Now that is the reason I am here."

"How does it feel, Guardian? To know that you can be manipulated like a puppet to do the string master's bidding?"

"As long as the right thing is done, I can be played like a piano and I wouldn't care."

"Such confidence. Where was that when Nyra died?"

"...Look me in the eyes and say that," Soren threatened while putting his hooves on the table. Both ponies leaned closer to each other. The mare grinned.

"Where was—? *gasp*" The mare stared into Soren's deep green eyes and saw something shocking. Within those eyes, she saw the very mare she was talking about.

We both know you shouldn't anger him. the bat pony in Soren's conscience said to the mare.

"Now then..." Soren continued. "Anything else you want to insult me with?"

"I never meant to insult, merely to learn."

"Let's stop beating around the bush and cut to the chase. How did you become cursed and what were the side effects?"

"But you don't even know my name, and you're asking such a personal question."

"Enlighten me then. What is your name?"

"Nightingale."

"I was going to think to myself again but there's no point. It now makes a little more sense how Robin is your sister; you both having bird names. She mentioned something that peaked my interest: how could Ruby's power be used for evil? It is another thing that is cliché and you know it."

"Only unicorns could even hope to manipulate her powers. As you know, her magic has not been tampered with, at least not by ponies other than me."

"That's another thing: how exactly did this magical surge of yours happen?"

"So Robin told you the whole story, eh? You listen to me, alicorn—"

"No, you listen to me, Nightingale. I'm sick of ponies referring to me as simple 'alicorn' when they easily know my name. Either call me Soren or you might get on my bad side."

"Do you think that scares me? Hmm, alicorn~?" Soren gritted his teeth. "You will never be able to scare me like you have with everypony else. They call me cursed. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Cuz I'm insane. At least that's what they all think. What does it truly mean to be insane or sane? Just because one places a label on you, like hero or insane, does not make it true. Don't you agree?" Soren remained silent. "So now you decide to be quiet? Typical. Once faced with knowledge beyond your schemas, you find yourself unable to respond."

"You're quite insightful for a secluded mare who is considered insane. What was your line of work?" Nightingale gives a perturbed look to Soren.

"Really? You decide to ask that of all questions? Seriously?" Soren was taken aback. He was going to respond but was interrupted. "Just...get out. You're no longer worthy of my time."

"I'm not going to leave that easily."

"You might want to rethink that. Look up." Soren obliged and saw something shocking. Eyes widening, Soren looked at the couch and TV on the ceiling. He also saw the oven and sink up there as well.

"W-Wha...?" Soren stuttered.

"Goodbye," replied Nightingale with a grin.

Soren suddenly fell upward (or rather downward) towards the floor. He landed with a hard thud and heard the mare's wicked laughter overhead. Sitting up and rubbing his head, Soren looked up at the table attached to the ceiling. Nightingale was gone. The front door creaked open; he knew what she was trying to say. After taking one last look around the rundown house, Soren walked through the front door. He noticed something on the ground right in front of the doorway. It was a rock with a piece of paper attached to it.

See you next time, Soren.

-Nightingale

"Why do I always get the crazys?"

Playing Psychiatrist

Playing Psychiatrist

After his interesting conversation with Nightingale, Soren trotted back to Robin's home. He needed to press the grey mare for more information, but he didn't know where to start. He really wanted to know how average unicorns were supposed to use Ruby's uncontrolled magic for evil purposes. Soren slowed to a walk when he neared the house, which he realized this morning was curiously positioned on the opposite side of town. 'How many precautions is this mare taking to keep Ruby away from her mom?'

"...just trust him." Soren's ears perked at the familiar voice.

"But Auntieeee!" a filly whined.

"Ruby, we just need to wait for Soren to come back. You can trust his decision on whether or not you can see your mom."

"I'm not a very trustworthy pony," Soren interjected as he walked through the front door. He saw Ruby sitting on the couch while Robin spoke with her.

"Uncle!" Ruby exclaimed before running over to him, jumping up, and hanging onto his neck in a hug. "How was Mommy? Can I go see her? Huh? Can I, can I, can I?"

"Calm down, Ruby. Your mother is fine. She's quite the character. How about we go somewhere in town so you can play? Then I'll tell you about it afterward." Ruby tilted her head at Soren. 'I should have come up with a better reason to talk to Robin alone.'

"Okey dokey! I can show you my favorite park in town!"

"Lead the way." Soren looked at Robin, who was confused about what just happened.

Ruby took the lead as she led the two ponies to a playground near the center of Sanctum. The area had thin grass with slides and merry-go-rounds on top of it. A few benches were scattered along the perimeter of the playground; Soren and Robin occupied one of them as they watched Ruby run towards other kids playing. There were quite a few fillies and colts playing, some of which brought their very own balls and toys to share with the others. Soren was quick to notice that most of the children were not scared of Ruby as she attempted to join them.

"She's so innocent," Soren commented. Robin nodded in agreement.

"I want to help her have a normal life, but..." Robin started.

"From what I have seen so far, she mostly does. Her mother...I can't tell if she is particularly dangerous yet. She has strong magic, yes, but she doesn't necessarily appear to be a threat."

"What happened over there? Did she hurt you?"

"Not at all. We just conversed, and at the end, she put us on the ceiling. The fall wasn't pretty for me, but it didn't hurt."

"You couldn't use your wings to save you?"

"Did I ever tell you why I have been refusing to use my wings?"

"No. What pegasus, or alicorn, would refuse to fly?"

"I do it because...I hate being an alicorn."

"Why?"

"Maybe one day I'll tell you but back to business. You said certain ponies in this town can use Ruby's magic for evil. How?"

"Nightingale shouldn't be trusted. She has been trying to secretly take Ruby from me. It is true that her magic will be used negatively, but it's only my sister that wants that to happen. She has hired ponies to find Ruby and take her. Luckily, no one has found our house yet since it's located in an alley." Robin stopped, and Soren continued to stare at her. Feeling uncomfortable, she spoke up. "Stop staring at me!"

"Sorry, it's just...I have a big favor to ask of you."

"What is it?"

"Can I...live you two for awhile?" Robin's eyes widened. "I need to continue investigating Nightingale, and as you know, I'm a traveler so I have no home."

"I uhh..."

"Uncle! Auntie!" Ruby exclaimed, interrupting the conversation. "Some of the fillies and colts recognized Soren! I didn't know he was that popular."

"Neither did I," Soren muttered.

"Are you done playing, Ruby?" Robin asked. Ruby nodded excitedly. "Let's go back home then." Robin stood up, while Soren continued to lay on the bench. "Soren..." He looked up at her. "...you're welcome to stay with us if you need to." Soren smiled, touched that this mare, whom he had just met, had offered her home to him.

Five Days Later

Over the few days that Soren has lived with Robin and Ruby, he has grown very fond and attached to them. Even though he was is for business, Soren felt happy, as if he is on vacation. Most of the days were spent with Robin and Ruby, but he also had to continue to see Nightingale at night. Soren has met her three more times, each experience granting new knowledge to him.

Soren has learned that Nightingale was indeed randomly cursed; fine one day, the next...not so much. Not even the mother can accurately explain the effects to her physical and mental capabilities. This 'illness' seems impossible to cure, but Nightingale herself assures Soren that there has to be something. At first, he thought Nightingale was genuinely trying to better herself, but Soren soon realized that she was simply saying what he wanted to hear.

If the conversations lasted longer than half an hour, Soren would begin to see her insanity. She obsesses over seeing Ruby, which is understandable considering it's her only child, but the measures she is willing to take slightly frighten Soren. Nightingale claimed that nothing will get in her way, no pony will stop her, and he will not convince her otherwise. The next night, after Nightingale warned him of her determination, Soren voiced all of his findings to Robin.

"I told you she is dangerous!" she exclaimed softly. The two were in Robin's room. The door was closed so they hopefully wouldn't wake up Ruby. "You have to stop her!"

"And what would you expect me to do? Kill her?!" Soren retaliated. The stress of the situation was getting to both of them. "The more I talk to her the more determined she becomes. I fear the next time I see her...I really don't want to think about what would happen."

"You have to keep talking to her. Keep her at bay. Please. I-I-I just don't know what to do! I feel so helpless on the matter." Soren put a hoof on her shoulder.

"Calm down. I'll be able to deal with anything she throws at us...hopefully. It's always best to accept every possibility, even if failure is involved. Tomorrow I have to see her again. There's still more she isn't telling me."

"Don't go tomorrow. Go now. One of these days Ruby is going to run from me and follow you there. Faust knows how that will turn out." Who is Faust? Soren wondered to himself. He shrugged off the thought and agreed with Robin.

"Fine. I'll head over there now. Hopefully Nightingale isn't asleep."

"Be careful." Soren nodded once again before exiting the bedroom.

"Goodnight," he said before he walked past the doorway. He gently closed the door and proceeded to leave the house. Grabbing his cloak, Soren closed the front door then pulled the hood over his head. Although he was stealthily walking through Sanctum, Soren didn't hear the small noise of a window opening and closing. He also didn't hear the soft sounds of hooves running on dirt.

"So what do you think caused your curse?" Soren asked Nightingale as they once again sat facing each other at her table.

"I've already told you, I don't know."

"I'm not asking if you know, I'm asking if you have any guesses."

"Are you honestly making me play a guessing game?"

"Why not? I can tell you want to find the cause just as bad as I do. What do you think it was? An evil spirit? Poison gone wrong?"

"Now who is the cliché pony?"

"Oh I know! Is it Uncle?" The new voice caused Nightingale to arch an eyebrow and Soren's heart to drop. 'No...' "What does cliché mean anyway?"

"R-Ruby...?" Soren breathed.

"Dearest Ruby!" Nightingale exclaimed. "We finally get to see each other. You have grown so much!"

"Hi, Momma!" Ruby ran over to her mother's side of the table and jump-hugged her. It would normally be a touching moment, if the mare holding the filly wasn't on the brink of burning the town to get to her child in the first place. "I would have been here sooner but Auntie and Uncle wanted me to wait." I'm dead... Soren gulped.

"So...Soren...you purposefully...kept my child...away from me?" Nightingale asked darkly.

"It-It's not like that," he weakly defended.

"Oh! 'It's not like that?'" The now angry unicorn mare flung the table towards the wall, leaving nothing to stand in her way of Soren. "Tell me what it is then!!!"

"Ruby, I need you to go see your Auntie," Soren ordered as calmly as possible.

"No! You just want to take me away from Momma again! I'm not leaving her ever again!"

"That's right, my darling," Nightingale added while leaning down to almost eye-level with Ruby. "You're not leaving my side ever~ again~." She touched her horn to Ruby's forehead, and Soren immediately rushed at the mare, only to have her levitate Soren without even glancing at him. As he hovered vertically, Soren watched as Ruby became hypnotized.

"No! Let her go!"

"It's too late, Soren!" the mother exclaimed while flinging Soren's cloak off. "You betrayed me! And to think, I was actually beginning to like you. This...is what you deserve!!!"

Nightingale's dark blue aura intensified around Soren's wings, making them stick out horizontally. He quickly felt massive force on them and knew what was about to happen. A simultaneous snap from both wings ushered a yell and tears of pain from Soren. He was then released and flopped to the floor, unable to move from the excruciating pain. Nightingale, with a hypnotized Ruby blindly following her, walked up to Soren, who felt like he would pass out from the pain.

"This is a warning for you and that traitor," she whispered intensely. "Get in my way again and it'll be much more than your wings that get broken." Soren watched Ruby and her mother leave the rundown house, then everything faded away.

A Life Story

...on...

...ay with me...

...soren...

...Soren?

"Soren! Can you hear me?" Robin exclaimed with worry.

"Uggh..." Soren responded before he noticed he was laying on his stomach.

"Ok...ok...you're not dead. No need to panic. You're wings are just...C'mon Robin, stay calm! Umm, umm..."

"R...Robin..."

"Wha? Soren! Are you hanging in there? How are feeling? How many of me can you see? What year—"

"Robin!" The panicking mare froze. "What time...is it?"

"Almost noon. When I didn't see you in the morning, I immediately knew something happened," she began explaining rapidly. "It didn't help that Ruby was gone as well, so I just knew Nightingale was behind all this, or least your disappearance..."

"Robin..."

"Ruby must have snuck out of the house last night and followed you, and my sister must have taken her somewhere..."

"Robin!"

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just—"

"Panicking A LOT, just calm down!" Soren sat up as Robin shrunk to the ground and buried her face in her hooves to calm herself down. Remembering what transpired the night before, Soren looked at his wings. They were amateurly bandage with cloth, which was reddened from blood. His wings didn't feel any better, but the pain was bearable.

"Thank you for patching up my wings. I take it you did that to stop the bleeding?" Robin simply nodded. "C'mon...sit up," he said softly. She did as she was told and sat up, wiping away her tears afterward. Soren brought her in for a hug.

"We'll find Ruby, ok? I don't want anything to happen to her either. They couldn't have gotten far. I want you to promise me something."

"O-Ok."

"I want you to promise to remain calm and strong. No matter what happens, and no matter what I go through, I will bring Ruby back to you. The promise I made when I decided to help is still valid."

"Thank you...Soren." Their hug broke.

"How about I check myself into the hospital for the day while you look for any leads on Ruby's whereabouts?" Robin wiped away more tears and smiled at him.

"Sounds like a plan."

The Next Day

Soren woke up in the guest room of Robin's home feeling much better than yesterday. Sanctum's doctors bandaged Soren's wings more efficiently and even used a spell to dim the pain for a few days. Of course they mentioned that it would be months before he could use his wings, but Soren already knew of a way to speed up the time. Yesterday, Robin explored the entirety of Sanctum to look for any clues and to listen in on any recent gossip. By the end of the day, she heard something startling. She couldn't tell Soren right away, for he couldn't focus as much due to the spell the doctor used on him. That night, she picked him up from the hospital and brought him back to her house.

The next morning Soren and Robin had breakfast per usual, but it was very quiet without Ruby being present. The two barely spoke, knowing that nothing could be said to cheer one another up. After breakfast, Robin told Soren what she heard yesterday.

"How are your wings?" she asked to start the conversation.

"Better than yesterday. The feeling of them breaking though..." Soren shuddered. "I'll be fine for now. Any luck on finding information? I'm sorry I couldn't help."

"It's alright. I did discover something. A group of ponies near one of the watering holes were talking about something that had to do with Nightingale. They said The Rusty Nail, that bad watering hole you went to, was being taken over by a 'crazy mare.'"

"And you're absolutely sure it's Nightingale?"

"It has to be. She's the only pony I know of in this town that is called crazy."

"That information is helpful, but how exactly do we respond to this?"

They thought for hours without any sort of effective plan. The first thing that came to their minds were blurted out, hoping it would lead to an idea. No such luck happened. The best, and worst, plan that they came up with was Soren charging in there and confronting Nightingale, except...the result would possibly be the death of one of them considering the mother's rage towards Soren. Soren never agreed that it should be ruled out; he would prefer it to be a Plan B.

"Robin..." Soren started sadly.

"Don't...please don't," she replied, knowing what he was going to say.

"It seems like the only way."

"I don't want to lose my sister simply to get Ruby away from her!"

"It might be either her or Ruby!" Robin was silent. She wanted to weep again but knew she had cried enough. Besides, she made a promise to Soren.

"Robin..." Soren started again. "We have been spending all day trying to think of a plan. Nightingale will not stop at simply taking over The Rusty Nail. She wants revenge on the town and on us. Tomorrow...this will end, one way or another. It has to end."

"How? How can you easily make decisions like this? To just...commit to killing a pony?! Have you gotten used to it?" Soren sighed sadly.

"You never get used to making lethal decisions. You just...deal with them. The greater good surpasses the consequences...even if I can't deal with them sometimes." There was a decent pause before Robin blurted something out.

"Tell me about your life." Soren looked at Robin while holding his saddened expression. "Please...I want to know what you've been through. I've seen those shattered eyes of yours in my sister, but she was never willing to share."

"That's because she couldn't. She barely remembers anything besides her family. I suppose we have time left in the day." Soren looked at the small, table clock in the living room. It showed four o'clock. With his magic, Soren grabbed two glasses of water, one for him and one for Robin, from the kitchen and placed them on the table. He began his tale.

"It started when I woke up in a town called Ponyville..."

Soren told Robin everything. From his experiences...

"...then I basically became the embodiment of fire as I looked at Coyote Colt's terrified face..."

...to the ponies he met...

"...I strangely fought a dark version of myself twice. I still don't know how that worked exactly..."

...and the losses he was faced with.

"...then the stalactite stabbed her...right through her side. She died in my arms...she was happy, surprisingly. She said I was the only pony that believed in her..."

He told Robin of his enemies...

"...the other Time Lord, the Master, was a pain in the flank. Nearly killed us twice..."

...even when the enemy was himself.

"...I wanted to kill him so bad, but Twilight stopped me. The Master was lucky...I could've ended the torment..."

Finally, Soren told her about his greatest victory.

"She was strangely easy to defeat. Nightmare Moon, the all powerful alicorn, was no match for me and the items my friends gave me. Not even a resurrected Nyra on her side was enough..."

It was well into the night when Soren finished the summarization of his life story up until this point. Robin rubbed her temples afterwards.

"Wow, just...wow" was all she said.

"It's a lot, I know," Soren replied.

"No, it's not that..."

"Then what is it?" Robin paused.

"...You're amazing, Soren!"

"What?"

"All of the things you did, all of the ponies you saved! It's amazing!"

"I disagree," Soren commented bluntly.

"Huh? Aren't you proud of your accomplishments?"

"Proud? You think I'm proud of all the torment I put ponies through? You think I'm proud of bringing evil wherever I go? You think I'm proud of nearly killing everyone I hold dear?!"

Robin flinched. She looked down as she listened to Soren's heavy breathing. She soon heard it become choppy. Looking up, Robin saw Soren looking down ad weeping.

"I-I never wanted to hurt anypony. I just...I just wanted to live a normal life. But I just had to become the Elemental Guardian...I just had to become the Doctor. Why? Why me? Why. Me?!"

"Soren!" Robin yelled at him. He looked up, slightly irritated. He was surprised when Robin hugged him. "You can't blame yourself for doing the right thing. We can't know if all of those events would have happened if you were there or not. The way I see it...It was lucky that you were there to save everypony. So stop sulking and start discovering who you really are, if you haven't discovered the obvious answer."

"Which is?"

"Haha. The answer is that you are Soren." Soren smiled then scoffed jokingly.

"Heh, that's a load of crap." Robin giggled.

"Shut up." She looked at the clock; almost eleven. "If you truly are going to do something tomorrow, we need to get our rest."

"Definitely, but you were the one who wanted my life story."

"I never said I didn't enjoy it."

Soren and Robin left the living room and entered their respective bedrooms. Tomorrow was going to be a mystery to them.

Bird Brawl

Author's Note

Song Used:
"When I'm Gone" copyrighted by Eminem

Bird Brawl

Uncle?

Ruby!

I just wanted to give you something.

What is it?

...

Is that all?

I hope you like it...

Ruby, wait!

...

"Ruby!" Soren exclaimed as he sat up in his bed. He began panting heavily. A knocking at the door was soon heard. "Come in, Robin."

"I heard you yell Ruby's name. Was it a bad dream?"

"Yeah. She was giving me something." Soren's breathing slowed to normal.

"What was it?"

"Inspiration." Robin gave a confused look. "This may seem like a random question but do you know if Rusty's is still receiving customers?"

"Can we discuss this over breakfast?" Soren nodded. Robin walked out of the room and Soren followed. After breakfast was made, the two sat at the table and continued the conversation.

"It's hard to say if that bar still receives customers. All I heard was that Nightingale was taking it over for some reason. Nopony really said if ponies would stop going there. It can be either possibility honestly."

"We need to figure it out. I need ponies to be there."

"Why? Did you plan to sing for them before helping Ruby? Haha." Robin's laughter slowly died down as she continued to look at Soren's even expression. "You're joking..."

"After last night, you should know how powerful my singing can be."

"Soren, you can't honestly expect singing to help Ruby and stop my sister!"

"We just need to figure out if ponies are still going there regularly."

"I guess we should ask around town. Soren...are you positive what you're going to do will work? I doubt we will get another chance."

"I'm never sure about anything. You can't create a perfect plan."

"What about your plan against that mare, Nightmare Moon?"

"That wasn't perfect; I just made it work. I didn't expect Nyra to be there. As a result, I assumed, only assumed, that Rainbow had followed her."

"Alright. You know I trust you."

"Let's get to work after we finish eating. I'm already creating the plan in my mind as we speak."

After they finished their breakfast, Soren and Robin used the next two hours to ask as many ponies as possible if Rusty's is still in business. Most said yes, the rest said no. Soren was beginning to feel a lot more confident in his plan, but he still sensed the possibility of failure, or even an interruption, during his plan. As they walked back to her house, Robin confronted Soren about this once again.

"Are you positive–?"

"Yes."

"But what if–?"

"I'm confident."

"Nightingale will surely–"

"I'll be fine."

"I won't let you get yourself killed!" Robin stepped in front of Soren, causing him to stop walking. "You...You almost died last time, at least I thought you did until you woke up. I'm sure my sister threatened to do something worse next time. I don't want you to die, Soren."

He sighed. "Robin...I know you don't want to see anyone get hurt..."

"Of course!"

"It hurts, doesn't it? Seeing others get hurt to end conflict. This is why I don't like being me. Ponies around me get hurt; physically, mentally, or both. This time...I'll be the one getting hurt."

"Soren..."

"Let's just get to your house so we can relax til later today." Soren walked around Robin and continued towards her house. She looked at her injured friend and hung her head, knowing she couldn't change his mind.

Hours Later

During the night, The Rusty Nail was a lively and loud place, and the new 'manager' didn't seem change that at all. Two ponies stopped a few yards from the entrance to listen to the music and loud voices inside. The white stallion looked at the grey mare next to him. Creating eye contact with each other, the two nodded before stepping inside. With cloaks covering them, the two ponies didn't draw attention to themselves. Rusty's was notorious for housing shady ponies and the like.

The two cloaked ponies made their way towards the big, center table in the watering hole. As they approached the table, they noticed that almost every pony sitting there was drunk. The five drunks and two sober (or barely tipsy) ponies noticed the new arrivals.

"Wanta join in r club?" asked one drunk.

"Don't listen ta him," said one of the sober stallions. "Drunk bastard can't tell his flank from a bottle o' hard cider. Tha both of ya new in town?"

"You can say that," Soren replied.

"Seen any good stuff out there? I heard there's a crazy killa out there. Not a single pony has escaped. Only bodies were found. Sum say it be a damned crystal pony out there." Robin took slight offense to that due to Ruby being a crystal filly.

"I've seen a few things that have messed me up."

"Do tell, do tell." Soren jumped onto the table, two of the drunks falling over in surprise. His horn lit up as the ponies at the surrounding tables looked at him.

"I've seen enough to make your skin crawl, to make your eyes cry, and to make your minds snap," Soren explained in his magnified voice. The rest of the bar became silent and glanced over, irritated.

Yeah...
It's my life...
In my own words I guess...

Have you ever loved someone so much, you'd give a wing for?
Not the expression, no, literally give a wing for?
When they know they're your heart
And you know you were their armor
And you will destroy anyone who would try to harm her
But what happens when karma, turns right around and bites you?
And everything you stand for, turns on you to spite you?
What happens when you become the main source of her pain?
"Uncle look what I made", I gotta go catch a train
"Uncle, where's Mommy? I can't find Mommy where is she?"
I don't know go play Ruby, baby, your Uncle's busy
Uncle's making this song, this song ain't gonna write itself
I'll give you one underdog then you gotta soar by yourself
Then turn right around in that song and show her you love her
And put hooves on her mother, who's the spitting image of her
That's The Doctor, yeah baby,
The Doctor's crazy
Doctor made me, but tonight Doctor's rocka-by-baby...

And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back

And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back...

I keep having this dream, I'm pushing' Ruby on the swing
She keeps screaming, she don't want me to sing
"You're making Mommy cry, why? Why is Mommy crying?"
Baby, Uncle ain't leaving no more, "Soren you're lying
You always say that, you always say this is the last time
But you ain't leaving no more, Uncle you're mine"
She's piling boxes in front of the door trying to block it
"Uncle please, Uncle don't leave, Soren - no stop it!"
Goes in her pouch, pulls out a tiny necklace locket
It's got a picture, "this'll keep you safe Uncle, take it withcha'"
I look up, it's just me standing in the mirror
These buckin' walls must be talking, cuz damn I can hear 'em
They're saying "You've got one more chance to do right - and it's tonight
Now go out there and show 'em that you love her before it's too late"
And just as I go to walk out of my bedroom door
It turns to a stage, they're gone, and this spotlight is on
And I'm singing...

And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back

And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back...

Sixty thousand ponies, all jumping out their seat
The curtain closes, they're throwing roses at my hooves
I take a bow and thank you all for coming out
They're screaming so loud, I take one last look at the crowd
I glance down, I don't believe what I'm seeing
"Uncle it's me, help Mommy, her legs are bleeding,"
But Ruby we're in Rusty's, how did you get to Rusty's?
"I followed you, Uncle, you told me that you weren't leavin'
"You lied to me, cad, and now you made Mommy sad
And I bought you this coin, it says 'Number One Colt'
That's all I wanted, I just want to give you this coin
I get the point - fine, me and Mommy are going"
"But Ruby wait,"
"It's too late Uncle, you made the choice
Now go out there and show 'em that you love 'em more than us
That's what they want, they want you Soren, they keep screamin' your name
It's no wonder you can't go to sleep, just use another spell
Yeah, I bet you will. You sing about it, yeah, word, k-keep it real"
I hear applause, all this time I couldn't see
How could it be, that the curtain is closing on me
I turn around, remember a spell that I know, set it
Put it to my head and scream "die Doctor" and cast it
The sky darkens, my life flashes, the train that I was supposed to be on crashes and burns to ashes
That's when I wake up, alarm clock's ringin', there's birds singin'
It's spring and Ruby's outside swinging, I walk right up to her and kiss her
Tell her I miss her, Ruby just smiles and winks at her Momma's sister
Almost as if to say..

And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back

And when I'm gone, just carry on, don't mourn
Rejoice every time you hear the sound of my voice
Just know that I'm looking down on you smiling
And I didn't feel a thing, So baby don't feel no pain
Just smile back...

Soren hung his head since the song made him sad even though he was the one singing it. The entire bar was silent, except for a few sniffles that were heard.

"U-Uncle?" Soren's head shot up as he looked around the table he was on. Sure enough, Ruby was standing next to the cloaked Robin, who must have wanted to remain disguised. "You-You care that much about me?"

"Me AND Auntie do. Where's your mother?"

"Right. Here." Soren turned around to look towards the wall with the bar. There was a door near it, which Soren assumed led to the manager's office or something. "Ruby...get over here," Nightingale ordered.

"No!" Soren interjected. "She's staying with the ponies that love her the most."

"More than a mother who hasn't seen her in three years?"

"We care for her more than you do. Your curse caused you to be blind as well as insane."

"Insolent little colt! Time to follow through with my promise!"

Nightingale, horn lit, lunged at Soren with otherworldly speed. Soren illuminated his horn as well so he could retaliate. Just before either unicorns could cast a spell, Nightingale was forcibly stopped in midair via telekinesis. Both Soren and Nightingale were shocked; they turned towards Ruby. She was purposefully using her magic!

"Ruby? You can control your magic?" Soren asked.

"I can? I just...didn't want you to get hurt again," Ruby replied.

"Again? You mean you—?"

"Uh huh. I saw what Mommy did to you. It wasn't very nice, but I couldn't do anything."

"It's alright—" poof "Hold that thought."

Soren saw that Nightingale had teleported away. He, along with a few other ponies, looked everywhere around the building, but there was no sign of her. He was surprised that the ponies surrounding him, Robin, and Ruby were so quiet. Half were probably drunk; the other half were probably enjoying the show they were getting.

"Soren!" Robin called with worry. Soren snapped his head in the direction of the manager's room and saw Nightingale throw Robin into the room and close the door.

"...they always have to cross the line..." Soren muttered before sprinting at the crazy mother. Nightingale turned around, horn still lit, then casted a spell to freeze Soren with telekinesis. She lifted him up like before, and Ruby gasped with fright.

"No, Momma! Not again!"

"It won't be like last time, darling," the mother assured evilly. "This time he won't survive."

"Are...you sure?" Soren struggled to say as he fought the aura holding him.

"Hmm?" Nightingale's eyes soon widened when she saw Soren's head being tilted down by Ruby's red aura.

When his horn was aligned with Nightingale, Soren fired a combustive beam of magic at her. She couldn't react fast enough since she was focused on holding Soren. The explosion sent her flying through the closed door, which shattered, and crashing into the room. A scream from Robin was heard throughout Rusty's. Soren felt his heart drop. 'Did I just...?'

"Ruby, stay here!" Soren ordered. "NONE OF YOU BETTER TOUCH HER EITHER!" Soren ran into the manager's office.

The room was in shambles, the desk to the left was broken (probably from Robin being thrown at it), and there was a pony-sized dent in the opposing wall from the door. Soren saw Robin crying against the left wall, yet he couldn't see Nightingale.

"Where's...?" Soren began but couldn't finish. Robin was already pointing to the floor under the dent in the wall. He walked over to the space and gasped. "Wha...How? HOW?!" Soren felt like he was going to be sick as he looked at what remained of Nightingale. Nothing but bones left...

"I couldn't have done this..." Soren tried to assure himself, now panicking. "There's no way..." Robin calmed down slightly and walked over to him.

"You didn't. I saw her body fly into the wall. Once she was lying there, purple fire enveloped her. It was horrific. It was—"

"Necromancy..." Soren interrupted with sudden realization. "She was never alive."

The Next Day

The town was in shock about the news that had spread around. Since the story changes with each additional pony that explains it, a few different things supposedly happened. The Elemental Guardian chased the crazy mare away, the Guardian burnt the mare to a crisp, or the mare was a zombie. The last one is the most accurate. Soren and two unicorns who were knowledgable in magic determined that it was indeed necromancy that "held Nightingale together." The unicorns claimed that someone pony must have revived her and reformed her. The only thing that was undetermined, even by Robin, was when Nightingale initially died.

After the investigation of the body was over, the sun was rising, so Soren, Ruby, and Robin went back home to get some rest. Once all three took their naps, they had lunch together as if nothing happened, but many things happened last night, both good and bad. The worst: Nightingale was being controlled by necromancy; the best: Ruby was back to normal and learned that she can control her magic. The little filly projected this excitement all throughout lunch as she couldn't stop smiling.

"Uncle, do you think I can be as good as you at magic?" Ruby asked the alicorn.

"Heh, hopefully no offensive spells will be present as you learn."

"What spells will be where?" she asked tilted her head. The motion made Soren smile and chuckle.

"Hopefully no bad spells will be there."

"Ooooh! Auntie, can Uncle stay here forever?" Robin rolled her eyes with a smile.

"I don't know about forever, but..." the grey mare looked at Soren and saw him hanging his head, which caused her to pause.

"Hey, Uncle, what's wrong? Turn that frown upside-down! ...Uncle, you ok?" Ruby stood next to him and shook him leg. Soren wiped his face and breathed through his nose strongly as he looked back up to prevent himself from seeming so sad.

"I'm fine...I'm fine," he said softly.

"Whatever it is, Soren, you can tell me and Ruby."

"I...I...I can't stay. Not even for another night."

"Why, Uncle?! We want you to stay!"

"Is there any reason why, Soren?"

"Of course," he replied. "Although I loved spending time with the both of you, I have to leave. It may sound like I don't care about you two, but...I stayed because I had a job to do. I made two great friends in the process, but I still need to leave. I have other business to take care of."

"No!" Ruby shouted while stomping the ground with her little hoof. "I don't want you to go!"

"Ruby..."

"Please stay!"

"I'll see you again someday, little Ruby. When I'm gone, you need to promise me something."

"Why should I?" she pouted.

"Cuz Auntie already did." Ruby looked at Robin, who nodded in confirmation while starting to tear up. "I want you to practice your magic so you can be big and strong like your Uncle, and kind and smart like your Auntie and Momma. Can you do that for me?" Ruby continued to pout, but she quickly gave up and nodded.

"I'll try."

"I know you can do it." He walked over to Robin. Before Soren could say anything, Robin gave him a strong hug.

"I can never thank you enough," Robin whispered.

"I don't need praising. A happy-ever-after is good enough for me, even if it may not happen to me."

"Don't say that. What about Rainbow Dash?"

"...I need to go. Take good care of Ruby. You're all that she has now." Soren broke the hug and grabbed his cloak. Opening the door, he stopped in the frame to wave to Robin and Ruby, who waved back. After Soren closed the front door, Robin hung her head to cry; she was sad but also happy.

CREEAAK!

"Sorry it took me so long to get back, but I'm sure you can wait longer than I can live. I'm also sorry to bother you about this as soon as I got back, but can you make another guitar for me? I misplaced my other one due to some circumstances that will take some time to explain."

Item, "guitar," is being processed.

Soren loved that the TARDIS chose some form of communication to talk to him with. The calm, feminine voice made things a lot easier.

"Thank you. Now down to very important business. We need to investigate this rift that brought us here. Things definitely run differently here. Have you discovered anything?"

Please choose a topic of research.

"It'll probably be easier to ask questions instead. Search for Canterlot."

...

Nonexistent.

Soren began to worry.

"How about Princesses Celestia, Luna, and Cadence?"

Unknown.

"How many alicorns are in this country?"

...

3

"So that means two of them have to be somewhere, right? Where is the nearest fluctuation of magic?"

...

Cannot scan for...'magic.'

Please input sample.

Soren rolled his eyes and put his horn right in front of a sample slot that opened. He then sent nebulous aura out of his horn into the slot.

Scanning...

Scanning...

Analysis complete.

Substance: Alicorn 'magic'

Elemental Properties: unknown

Viscosity: Nebulous

Scanning nearby areas for...'magic'

The TARDIS kickstarted to begin traveling. Soren smiled. 'Gotta love her.'

A Trapped Songbird

Author's Note

Songs used:
"Diamonds" copyrighted by Rihanna.
"Falling Slowly" copyrighted by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova.

A Trapped Songbird

The watering hole was dead silent. Soren began to worry; he wasn't sure if these ponies wanted to rat him out or not. He wanted to teleport away or confront these mules, but before Soren could even consider a decision, a window shattered inside the building.

"There he goes!" the leader of the three big ponies exclaimed. "Get him!" The three ran out of the entrance and began chasing whoever just jumped through the window. Soren collapsed into a sitting position. He didn't realize he was holding his breath.

"You alright, friend?" asked one of the four ponies that helped with Soren's song.

"I'm your friend? You tell me this now?! I thought someone was going to rat me out," Soren exclaimed.

"I can't speak for everypony, but we sure weren't going to do that. You dodged a bullet there, son. What kind of singer thinks comin' here is a good idea anyway?"

"I didn't know ponies like those three even existed. Who were they?"

"They were part of the Gang. Their group ain't got a name. They been hasslin' this town for at least a year."

"And unicorns can't even stop them?"

"If a unicorn tries to mess with them, that gang will just attack the loved ones closest to that pony."

"This sounds like it can easily be stopped."

"Don't try nothing, except...Can you do me a favor since I helped you?"

"That's a good way to change the topic suddenly."

"Sorry, but this is more important. That mare that just left...she's an old friend o' mine. Her name's Sunny Star, and that gang has a bone to pick with her."

"You want me to check on her or something?" The stallion nodded. "Why me? I just met you!"

"Cuz she won't listen to folk like me. I bet she'll listen to a fellow artist. Plus, them ponies won't think twice about you walking around town. They shouldn't follow you."

"Shouldn't."

"Just do this for me, ya git." Soren sighed heavily. At least this gives him a chance to look around town for anything out of the ordinary.

"You can't expect me to gain her trust that easily. I need more than a common hobby."

"You're a singer. There's a particular song she likes, and I think if you sing it to her, she'll trust you."

"I hope you're right. I hate getting on mares' bad sides."

"You and every stallion on this planet. How fast can you memorize lyrics?"

"Fast enough."

"Good. Let me tell you what to sing and where to go."

The song Soren learned was actually well-known around this version of Trottingham. To his surprise, it has been passed down through certain families. What made Soren nervous was the fact that it's technically a love song. I can't believe I have to sing a love song to mare I don't even know! Celestia help me. The stallion also told Soren where Sunny usually hides while the Gang is looking for her. He said there's a small forest outside of town and that there's a waterfall somewhere in the middle of it. The colt himself has never been there, but he knows about it. Soren totally found that to be reassuring.

Soren had to use the sound of the waterfall to help locate the area. The forest was indeed fairly small, which probably helped him find the waterfall. It was maybe a few acres bigger than Ponyville. Landing in the brush that surrounded the open area at the base of the fall, Soren could hear a female voice. Assuming it was coming from the clearing, Soren poked his head out of cover. With the open area now in view, he could see a mare standing on a smooth, rocky platform at the base of the fall. The platform was a peninsula in a shallow, circular pond area.

Soren then looked at the mare herself. Sunny Star was a brilliant red crystal earth pony with an orange mane. Not only was Soren surprised to see another crystal pony, he was shocked to not see a cutie mark! Is this a recurring thing or am I just receiving major coincidences?

Soren's thoughts cut short when he hears a melodious voice vibrate through the air.

Shine bright like a diamond
Shine bright like a diamond

Find light in the beautiful sea
I choose to be happy
You and I, you and I
We’re like diamonds in the sky

You’re a shooting star I see
A vision of ecstasy
If you hold me, I’m alive
We’re like diamonds in the sky

I hope that we’d become one right away
Oh, right away
At first sight I felt the energy of sun rays
I saw the life inside your eyes

So shine bright, tonight, you and I
We’re beautiful like diamonds in the sky
Eye to eye, so alive
We’re beautiful like diamonds in the sky

Soren was beyond impressed by Sunny's voice. He couldn't remember the last time he heard someone sing that beautifully.

Hooves rise to the universe
As we moonshine and molly
Feel the warmth, we’ll never die
We’re like diamonds in the sky

You’re a shooting star I see
A vision of ecstasy
If you hold me, I’m alive
We’re like diamonds in the sky

At first sight I felt the energy of sun rays
I saw the life inside your eyes

So shine bright, tonight you and I
We’re beautiful like diamonds in the sky
Eye to eye, so alive
We’re beautiful like diamonds in the sky

Shine bright like a diamond
Shine bright like a diamond
Shine bright like a diamond

Sunny stopped singing; all that was heard was the pounding of the waterfall against the water below. Soren quickly realized that she sang a lot louder than the waterfall.

"You're quite the powerful singer aren't you?" Soren commented aloud as he stepped out of the brush.

"Wha?!" Sunny jumped. Seeing who it was, she kept her cool as she walked towards him. "What's it to you?"

"Nothing. Just keep those emotions with you." The two ponies met on the dirt ground surrounding the shallow pond.

"Why are you here?"

"To check on you. To make sure those thugs didn't find you."

"So you ran into them," she stated.

"Why do they hate artists? That's like hating life!"

"Somewhat recently in this town, artists were considered weak and worthless. They are constantly being sent away by that 'gang.' Once the artists leave, they are forced to fend for themselves. The only reason I'm still here is because of my ex."

"Can I meet the brave fellow?"

"I don't think you want to. He's the leader of that gang. I dated him before he became a son of a mule. Now I have to defend myself from them almost every day."

"Well I can help you defend yourself, and I would love to get rid of those colts in the process."

"Why should I even trust you? I don't even know why I'm telling all of my life problems to a pony I just met."

"Your words signify anger, but your eyes betray a different emotion." Sunny was taken aback. "Just give me a chance."

Soren clears his throat and begins singing. Of course, Sunny immediately recognizes the song and joins in on certain parts.

I don't know you
But I want you
All the more for that

Words fall through me
And always fool me
And I can't react

And games that never amount
To more than they're meant
Will play themselves out

Take this sinking boat and point it home
We've still got time
Raise your hopeful voice you have a choice
You'll make it now

Falling slowly, eyes that know me
And I can't go back
Moods that take me and erase me
And I'm painted black

You have suffered enough
And warred with yourself
It's time that you won

Take this sinking boat and point it home
We've still got time
Raise your hopeful voice you have a choice
You've made it now
Falling slowly sing your melody
I'll sing it loud

After the song eded, Soren and Sunny made eye contact with each other. She then lunged forward, wrapped her fore-legs around Soren's neck, and kissed him. He pushed her off.

"Never. Do that. Again," Soren said evenly. Sunny simply giggled.

"So what's a fine stallion like yourself doing in this dump?"

"I'm looking for Princess Celestia and Princess Luna."

"Who?"

Soren takes a very big inhale and exhale to calm himself.

"Please tell me that you're joking. Is there even a Celestia or Luna in this country?"

"Not that I know of. I highly doubt anyone else in this town would know anything either. I also doubt anyone would forget if there are princesses living in the country."

"Luna-dammit!"

"Woah, calm down, umm...What's your name?"

"Soren. Soren Melody. Just give me a moment. The past few weeks have been very straining on me." He sits down. Sunny sits next to him and brings him in for a half-hug. "Just let me calm down, please." She stops her hug.

Minutes passed before another word was uttered.

"If it's any consolation, I'm willing to accept your help," Sunny commented suddenly.

"If you are positive that you can trust your life in my hooves."

"Haha, this isn't that serious."

"If only that were true," he muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing. How can I help?"

"You c'n begin by sendin' Sunny over here, little colt," a new voice answered. Soren and Sunny turn towards the voice. A big pony, who Sunny commented was the gang leader, and two other colts were standing at the edge of the forest.

"Did you just call me little?" Soren asked irritatedly.

"Whatcha gonna do about it?" the leader stepped forward, chest puffed out to try and intimidate Soren. Soren, in return, got up close to stare him in the face.

"I'm going to give you a warning. Take heed because I'm not in the best of moods right now—" Soren was suddenly punched and landed on his back. The three stallions laughed at Soren, but they were soon quiet when they heard laughter coming from the pony on the ground. Laughing almost crazily, Soren picked himself up.

"Are you laughing about being knocked down?" the leader jokes.

"Yes...yes I am, but not for the reason you think. I'm laughing because you chose to act without thinking. I'm laughing because now I'm afraid I have to teach you a lesson."

"HAHAHA! You...teach us a lesson?" The three ponies laughed once again.

"He's not going to teach you a lesson...I am," Sunny warned. The stallions stopped laughing and looked at her with amused expressions.

"Oh really?" the leader replied mockingly. "My little Star is gonna hurt us?"

"Yes...really." Sunny's voice changed. Embers started swirling around her and her body became a bright, burning red. The embers soon turned into streams of fire and they enveloped Sunny. Seconds passed before Sunny Star transformed before everyone. Her coat changed into orange fire and her mane and tail changed into red fire. Her eyes were also red, as was the inside of her mouth.

"What the..." the leader began. Sunny sent streams of fire from her mane towards the colts. Although Sunny wasn't aiming for them, her attack was still stopped by a wall of water. Steam exploded from the wall, and the colts ran away. Sunny turned around and saw Soren, horn aglow with green aura as he glared sternly at the mare.

"Sunny...I don't know how this is possible right now...but what I do know is that no one deserves a fate like that. I've seen death...I lived it. It's not pretty, nor is it something you will be able to live with. Now tell me...how the hay are you made of fire?!" Soren voiced changed from serious to astounded as he asked the question.

Sunny changed back to normal then immediately laid on the ground. "Sorry...it's really exhausting to do."

"Sunny...you're not a unicorn..."

"I know, I know, it's weird. I just saw you stand up to them then you got hit and I felt guilty and I wanted to do something—"

"Sunny! It's alright. Just tell me why you can do that."

"The truth is...I don't know. I only found out about it two years ago. It only happens when I'm angry. It's hard to control when I'm in that form. Sometimes I'm scared to transform."

"Understandable. Hmm..."

"What?" Sunny stood up.

"This country...Equestria, is it?"

"Umm, yes?"

"Well it's not the Equestria I'm from, and I don't like that. Too many things are happening here, and I want to get to the bottom of it. That rift...it must have sent me to an alternate dimension or something."

"Whoa whoa whoa...other Equestria? A rift? Alternate dimensions?! What in Faust's name are you talking about?"

"There we go again with the Faust cursing. Is that the equivalent of Celestia or Luna in this Equestria? I guess it is. Anyway, you need not worry about those particular details. It has now become a goal of mine to piece together everything."

"Well we should get started then."

"We?"

"Can I go with you? I literally have nothing here. As of now, I'll probably be considered a freak, although I don't think the townsfolk will believe that an earth pony mare turned herself into a walking inferno."

"Can I call you Blazing Sun when that happens? You were as hot and as bright as one."

"Aww, you called me hot~." Sunny smiled intimately at him.

"Let's get one thing straight: I already have a mare that I hold near and dear. I had to leave her and as a result, I don't deserve her. At no point will I replace her. Understood?"

"You say that now~" Soren growled at her. "Umm...*whimpers*"

"I'm very shattered right now. Please don't pressure me. I may say or do something I will regret."

"Shattered?"

"It's a long story."

"You know, I don't think your 'shattered.' I think you're lonely. I'm not trying to be flirtatious right now. Can I join you so you can have company?"

"Maybe. It's going to be dangerous."

"As you can see, I can handle myself."

"You might die."

"I don't have anything."

"What about your life here? Your friends? Family?"

"They aren't really my friends. They just look out for me. As for family...I don't know where they are, if they're even alive."

"You're about as lost as me."

"So can I come?"

"Why not? You're right; I shouldn't be alone anymore. But I do have to warn you of one thing: I'm not a safe pony to be around. You'll go through things you can't even imagine. Also...I have no mercy."

"Obviously you do or else you wouldn't have saved that guy."

"I just saved him from you. As for me...I wouldn't hesitate to kill him."

"Then why save him from—" Sunny watched as Soren began walking away. She wasn't deterred by his vocalization of being around him, but she did find it rude that he didn't let her finish.

Friends or Enemies?

In The TARDIS

"Got it?" Soren asked.

"Soo...it's a time machine?" Sunny also asked. Soren nodded.

"And a spaceship. That's the basics of it in any case. She's very helpful. We got tossed into this world about a week ago."

"She? This world?"

"Yes, the TARDIS is a she. There was a rift that transported us to a different version of Equestria. I need to figure out why this happened, what created the rift, and how to close it."

"Sounds like an adventure." Soren froze and looked down sadly.

"...yeah," he commented softly.

"Is something wrong?"

"Nope!" he shouted quickly as he threw a lever down. The TARDIS groaned and started to move. Soren locked onto another source of strange magic. If Sunny was the first source, who or what will I find next, Soren thought as the TARDIS flew closer and closer to the next destination.

Within the minute, the room started to shake before the TARDIS landed with a thud. Sunny nearly fell down from loss of balance, causing Soren to hold back laughter. He opened the door and stepped outside; there was a train station in the distance. Confused, Soren mutters "Why?"

"Why is there a train station or why did your ship almost give me a concussion?" Sunny said irritatedly as she stepped through the doors.

"Be right back. Wait here." Soren ran back inside and walked back out minutes later. "I'm going to need this just in case."

"What is it?"

"It's a sonic screwdriver. It'll come in handy."

"What does it do?"

"I don't know exactly. Let's go!" He galloped for the train station that was about half a mile away. Sunny sprinted after Soren then began galloping as well after she caught up with him. This colt sure is adventurous, she thought with a smile.

The summer breeze flowed through the plains grass, allowing them to sway like a peaceful metronome. The sun shined on a train heading for its next stop. Plenty of ponies on this train were relaxed, sleeping, or sightseeing out of the cabin windows. The train ride took a mere half hour to reach its destination. Everypony stepped off of the train, grabbed their luggage out of the rear car, and walked along the dirt road heading into the small town in the distance.

Soren and Sunny were one of the last ponies to exit the train. All the while, Soren was very curious to see which town they had arrived at. Even though they saw many ponies with them inside, Sunny and Soren saw barely anypony around now. Assuming they all left for the town, Soren walked with Sunny down the road.

When they were halfway to town, the two saw a pony walking in the opposite direction. They didn't think anything of it...until the pony tripped Soren. Sighing in irritation, he picked himself up, dusted himself, and was about to give the rude pony a piece of his mind. As he turned around, however, Soren was struck silent by the pony he was looking.

"Rainbow?" he gasped. The pegasus mare was indeed Rainbow Dash. Her cyan coat and rainbow mane were unmistakable, but Soren knew it couldn't be his Rainbow Dash.

This Rainbow had a peculiar grin that neither Soren nor Sunny could place an emotion on. Soren stood there like a statue while Sunny scanned Rainbow Dash. Rainbow continued to grin as she walked up to Soren and stood in front of him.

"Hello~ there," she said. She brought a hoof to Soren's cheek.

Unfortunately, the next instant didn't occur how Soren thought it would. He expected something sweet but ended up with a buck to the face. Rainbow jumped into the air and kicked Soren. Seeing her friend tumble away, Sunny growled and charged at Rainbow. The pegasus was way too fast for the earth pony, so instead of dealing with Sunny, she went over to Soren, who was once again recovering.

Soren saw Rainbow lunging at him, so he pushed off of the ground, dodging the attack. She sharply turned to target him again. Soren jumped backed before Rainbow landed on the ground. She then rushed at him, hooves flying through the air. Soren tried to dodge as many punches and kicks as possible but was hit now and again.

"Soren!" Sunny shouted from a few yards away. "Fight back!"

"No! I refuse to hurt her!"

"But she'll kill you!"

"Will I?" Rainbow asked. She tackled Soren, bringing him to the ground.

She raised a hoof inches from his face. Soren's eyes couldn't help but follow the hoof as it circled in weird patterns in the air. He soon felt his eyelid getting heavier, but he couldn't stop following the hoof. Sunny sprinted towards them to stop Rainbow, but Rainbow quickly adjusted Soren to put him in a position to snap his neck.

"You better stay back," she warned Sunny. "You wouldn't want your precious Soren to die, would you?" Sunny stopped in her tracks.

"Just let him go."

"Of course I will. Did you actually think I was going to kill him? This was just a warning. We know you two. They told us about you."

"Who told you about us?"

"That's none of your business." Rainbow began brushing Soren's mane. "You two better stay away from the town if you want to live. Wouldn't want all of us to come after you and the townsfolk." Rainbow turned Soren's head so it faced her. She glanced at Sunny as she said "And because he likes me..." Rainbow gave Soren a quick kiss before letting him flop to the ground. She saw Sunny's jealous expression then rocketed back towards the distant town.

Sunny ran over to check on Soren, who was nearly unconscious from that weird trick Rainbow Dash did. She sat by him with a worried look.

"Is she gone?" Soren asked normally. Sunny found this odd. He sat up and looked around. "Good. The trick of hers lasted only for a few seconds. If I was alone, this would have been much worse. Thanks for distracting her."

"Don't mention it? How long were you faking?"

"When she started brushing my mane. It wouldn't have been smart to try and fight her. We need to see what's going on. She's part of a powerful group. And that group is being controlled by a more powerful group."

"How can you assume all of that?"

"Because my Rainbow Dash doesn't rely on tricks to get the job done."

After a few more minutes of walking, Soren and Sunny finally arrived in front of the small town. There was a sign at the entrance.

Welcome to Appaloosa

Home of the Crystal Caverns

Soren tilted his head in thought. I wonder if my Equestria's Appaloosa has a cavern underneath it, and they just haven't found it yet. He and Sunny continued into town. This Appaloosa was just as big as the other version but with sturdier buildings. As he and Sunny spent the next hour exploring the town, Soren was surprised to not see a single watering hole. Every town he has been to so far has had one. He saw a church, a bank, small two-story hotels, and no parks.

"Why is this Equestria so depressing?" Soren commented aloud. "Every town is small and looks like a ghost town half the time."

"Well I'm sorry if my country sucks," Sunny retorted. "It's not like life here is completely miserable."

"So you disagree with me?"

"I never said that." Soren laughs. "I find it strange that we haven't seen anypony. Surely a place with a crystal cavern can't be unpopular."

"Do you want to know a secret?" Soren asked.

"What?"

"The reason we haven't seen anyone is because they are probably hiding in their homes from the pony following us." Sunny turned around and immediately felt a hoof push up against her mouth. A unicorn mare that was following them was silencing her.

"Shh," she said right before she teleported Sunny away from Soren. Hearing the noise, the unfazed Soren simply sighed. It's times like these that I really hate the crap I put up with. Soren heard the noise once again but further away. He turned his head left and saw the unicorn with Sunny far away from Soren. The unicorn then teleported away from Sunny and appeared in front of Soren.

"Let me guess," Soren started as he looked forward and only saw the mare's deep purple neck, "you're Twilight?" The mare was taller than him; her chest almost at his eye level. He looked up and indeed saw the mare he was expecting.

Although it didn't look exactly like her, this unicorn was definitely this world's Twilight Sparkle. Instead of a lavender coat, her coat was a dark purple. Instead of her mane being sapphire blue with violet and rose streaks, it was dark magenta with black and red streaks. Finally, the color of her eyes were a light violet.

As he quickly scanned this tall Twilight Sparkle, Soren noticed one more thing...the wings on her back.

Mirrored Insight

Author's Note

Song used:
"Never Had It" copyrighted by Flobots.

Mirrored Insight

"That's one alicorn found," Soren commented worriedly. Twilight Sparkle kept an even expression as she illuminated her horn. Soren felt his body go numb. The spell didn't cause this, fear did.

"You should have listened to Rainbow Dash," Twilight said before casting a spell.

This time, Soren felt as though something snapped within his head. He screamed in agony and fell to the ground, grabbing his head to somehow stop the pain. Twilight looked at Sunny, who was horrified at this point, and teleported away for good. Literally smacking herself to get a grip, Sunny sprinted over to Soren.

"I know you said this adventure would be dangerous but this is ridiculous," she commented when she reached him. "Why are they only attacking you?"

"Cuz I'm a bucking alicorn, why else?!" he yelled in response. Sunny flinched a few steps back. Soren shook his head and stood up. "Of all ponies, she had to be an alicorn!"

"Calm down, Soren. Let's just leave."

"Why?! So they can get away with torturing me?! I won't let them attack me just so I can flee!" Soren started pacing back and forth. "They have to have a base of operations or something."

"Soren?"

"I wonder if they are hiding in the Crystal Caverns."

"Soren."

"Be quiet. I need to think. Where is the cavern?" Sunny sighs, walks up to Soren, and slaps his across the face.

"Will you just listen to me?!"

"Hit me again...I dare you."

"If you continue to ramble without listening, I just might." Sunny scowled at Soren, who looked angry in return. As the two stared at each other, a few ponies began exiting the surrounding buildings. Sunny looked around as Soren still stared at her.

"Excuse me," a random mare from nearby said to Sunny. "Did the alicorn hurt your friend?"

"No, I'm fine," Soren answered.

"You don't seem fine," Sunny retorted. "He was fine before...I think her name was Twilight. Before Twilight attacked him. Now he's acting like somepony pissed in his soup." She shouted purposefully towards the end so Soren would clearly hear.

"Give it a blow, Sparky." Sunny was utterly stunned; she wanted to hit him again so bad.

"We've seen something like this before," the mare continued. "You should go see the town's shaman, Bastian."

"If it'll help Soren, sure. Where can I find him?"

The mare led Sunny and an irritated Soren up to the entrance of the church they saw earlier. As they entered the building, they could see a stage with a large red curtain towards the back; it also had a pipe organ on its center. Practically every wall, floor, and ceiling was made of tan wood. The mare led them towards the back of the building where there was a door with a staircase leading down.

The three ponies walked downstairs into an underground cavern illuminated with crystals of various sizes and colors. She explained that some of the ponies from town live underground, especially those who follow Bastian. During the walk deeper into the cave, the mare described Bastian the zebra as the town herbalist and doctor. Even though there aren't too many varieties of plants around Appaloosa, this didn't stop Bastian from growing a few flowers and trees underground. Every plant seemed foreign to Soren, except for the infamous Poison Joke smartly contained in glass.

The three ponies entered a medium sized room that connected to the main cavern. They immediately saw Bastian, who was tending to a plant he seemed to be growing. Against most of the room's circular wall were plants and various items, most of which were covered.

"Excuse me, Bastian," the mare began. "I'm so sorry to bother you, but we have a bit of a problem."

"Alicorn?" he asked in his slightly deep voice.

"Actually there are two." Bastian froze.

"...Did the other unicorn become one?"

"Oh, no no no, the other alicorn is friendly and is right here." He turned around. Bastian walked up to Soren, who still looked angry. Both ponies tilted their heads this way and that as they investigated each other.

"You're not like the Evil Ones, are you?"

"Me? Like those evil mares? HA! I wouldn't be caught dead helping them."

"I see..." Bastian grabbed Soren head, causing Soren to growl and fight back. Bastian poked his hoof on a certain part of Soren's head, causing him to relax immensely.

"Wow," Sunny said. "Wish I knew how to do that."

"I only use it on those who are restless...or those who have had their minds snapped like this one."

"Come again?"

"Did the evil alicorn use a spell on him?"

"I saw her horn glowing, so I think so."

"Then she snapped his mind. She caused his essence to become bitter and sarcastic." The other mare in the room stepped forward.

"We were hoping you could fix him quickly."

"One would think only magic can counteract magic, but they would be wrong. I do know of one way, but it requires the special talent of the pony whose mind has been damaged. Tell me, red mare—"

"Sunny. My name is Sunny Star, and his name is Soren." Bastian nodded in understanding.

"Apologies. Tell me, Sunny, do you know Soren's special talent? I would hope a couple knows such information about each other."

"We're not a couple. The colt can sing, and so can I." He arched an eyebrow then chuckled.

"I shall not press further then. Follow me." Bastian led Soren with a hoof as Sunny followed behind. He let Soren go then he grabbed a particular item from against the wall. Adjusting the item so it faced the three of them, Bastian took off the cover to reveal a brilliantly clear, oval mirror with a gold frame.

"Thank you for bringing them," he nodded to their escort. "I will handle things from here." She nodded and left. Bastian situated Soren in front of the mirror, Sunny to the left of Soren, and himself on the right. "We will be using a technique called Mirrored Insight. It can only be used with an enchanted mirror. This is because the magic inside it projects to the pony looking at the mirror their true self. Soren will need to use his special talent and show it to the mirror. He will sing into it and never look away, while we look and sing at him."

"This sounds stupid, but you're the shaman," Sunny commented. Bastian looked at Sunny and nodded for her to start.

"Sing from the heart and so will he," Bastian said. Sunny thought for a few seconds, took a deep breath, then began.

(Sunny):
I see you sit and swallow pain
For all of those who will not speak
You raise your voice, you fill the stage
Your eyes are wide
You know the weakness that you've felt
Is not just yours, so many more, you're not alone
The songs you sing are not your own
You lift the room with something real

(Bastian):
You never had it
Keep on wantin’ somethin’ more
You never had it
Keep on wantin’ somethin’ more

(Soren):
You never had it
So you hesitate to try and find it
You listen carefully for whispers
Of what lurks behind it
You play the corners, never get too close
To where it might be waitin’ for you
Never had it
Keep on wantin’ somethin' more

As Soren said the last word of his part, he stomped the ground. Without anyone noticing, cracks began to form on the outside of the mirror.

(Sunny Star):
Keep wantin’ more
You never had it
Keep wantin’ more
You never had it

(Bastian):
Keep hidin’ the hope
And then the pain is not yours
No one's holdin’ the rope
You gotta pull it on your own
All the songs have been sung
And all the doors have been closed
Keep on wantin’ more

(Soren):
Keep on wantin’
You keep on wantin’
Keep on wantin’
You keep on wantin’

(Bastian):
And I watch you wander through these halls
You slouch, you shrug, you shrink away
And I call you, stop, you blink, you pause
You wonder, who?
You think the day will never end
And when it does you wait until the building's dark
The doors are locked
You're on the bus
You looked inside but did not touch

You never had it
Keep on wantin’ somethin’ more
You never had it
Keep on wantin’ somethin’ more

(Soren):
You never had it
But you know how to provide it
So you stand up and call for it
Nervous, describin’ what you go through
You don’t wanna get caught up in all the
Things they say to try to provoke you
Don’t need anyone to tell you
Keep on wantin’ somethin’ more!

The song ends abruptly due to the sound of shattering glass. Soren was singing forcefully enough to let his emotions get the better of him. His emotion-driven magic sparking from his horn accidentally created cracks flowing through the mirror, meeting in the center. Soren found himself unable to stop staring at the broken mirror. Bastian stepped up to Soren and put a hoof on his shoulder.

"You are not pleased with yourself," he said. "Deep down, dare I say, you hate yourself. You regret your decisions, your choices."

"I have always done that, ever since I can remember," Soren replied. "I don't hate my choices, I simply hate the things I put up with. I hate causing harm and not being able to choose an alternative." Soren looked at Sunny. She lunged forward and hugged him without him returning the gesture.

"You're feeling better," she smiled. Soren gently pushed her away. She simply locked eyes with him.

"Now...things get serious," Soren said with newfound determination.

"Sir Bastian!" a pony shouted while he sprinted into the room. "Someone requires your presence in town!"

"Who?"

"Some stallion requires an audience with you. He said it has to do with the Evil Ones." Bastian stiffened.

"Soren, Sunny, I want you with me. The evil mares don't attack anyone unless they prove a threat. With your magic and stalwartness, you might be able to help us." Soren and Sunny nod as Bastian led them to the surface with a gallop.

Signing the Contract

Bastian led Soren, Sunny, and the stallion messenger out of the cavern underneath the church. The zebra stopped before walking through the closed double doors of the wooden building. He turned to the messenger.

"What is the name of this stallion?" he asked.

"He didn't say; he said it was unimportant," replied the stallion. Bastian sighed.

"You know how I feel about anonymous ponies. But...if he has information that can help us with the Evil Ones, so be it." Bastian turned around and pushed open one of the church's doors. The low sunset shined right into Soren and Sunny's eyes, blinding them both for a few seconds.

"I take it you're the stallion asking for my presence," Bastian said. There was no response. He spoke to the mysterious pony again. "Are you two alright?" Soren rubbed his eyes to fix his temporary blindness. Adjusting to the two figures in front of him, Soren's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. The two ponies were mirroring Soren's reaction.

"No way..." Soren gasped.

"Well hello, Soren! Fancy meeting you here." Soren continued to stare in disbelief as he once again, under some celestial power, found the Doctor. The part that was most surprising was that Derpy Hooves was with him.

"Is this a normal thing, Doctor?" Soren asked finally. "Never mind. It has to be. How...?"

"How are we here?" the Doctor finished. "Well the TARDIS was dragged into some sort of spatial rift."

"We were looking for an adventure anyway, so we decided to let it happen," Derpy added happily.

"Yeeeaaah, probably wasn't the best decision. We could have easily become stuck in this dimension. That begs another question: Soren, how are you here?"

"Do you know who I truly am? Like...truly truly?"

"What do you mean?"

"Since you're with Ditzy, I know that you just left the version of me that was about to confront your conscience in his dreams. Your 'conscience' being Cain." The Doctor walked up to Soren.

"You have my old eyes," he said with sadness. "I'm so sorry you have to carry my burden, Soren. Before Ditzy and I left, I knew that you were me; that I will become you. You're my future version."

"Wait wait wait," Sunny interrupted. "Soren, you...are him? How the hay are you two the same pony?!"

"We will have to explain it at another time, Miss..." said the Doctor.

"My name is Sunny Star."

"Nice to meet you. Miss Star, are you traveling with Soren?" She nodded. "Then it's safe to say you two also got dragged into this universe by the rift."

"Actually," Soren started. "I got pulled through; Sunny is from this universe."

"So is this your first adventure together?"

"Yes, and it is the same for you and Ditzy I presume."

The Doctor nodded. "Very well." He turned towards Bastian, finally coming back to the issue at hoof. "Mr. Bastian, it has come to my attention that you have a big problem pertaining to six rather powerful mares."

"That would be correct," the zebra replied. "They have held us under their iron hooves for Faust-knows-how-long."

"There they go again with this Faust pony," Soren and the Doctor mutter to themselves simultaneously.

"Have you tried stopping them before?" the Time Lord asked. "If so, how?"

"A few brave, foolish ponies tried to kill those mares, obviously to no avail. The alicorn used her magic to enhance each of the other five."

"One is an alicorn? They have powerful magic on their side." Bastian nodded.

"We stopped hoping that we would one day defeat them. The Evil Ones never kill ponies unless they resist in some way. They also make sure to remind us that we are their slaves."

"Uhh, Doctor?" Ditzy called worriedly. Sunny looked at the grey pegasus and followed where her eyes were looking.

"Soren, have you encountered these mares yet?" the Doctor asked.

"Actually, yes. Twice as a matter of fact. Both resulted in beatings both physical and psychological. There's one thing you should know before confronting them."

"Soren," Sunny called.

"Yes?"

"I know they are just clouds, but don't they look sinister?" Soren looked to the sky and watched as storm clouds began covering the sky around town.

The five ponies, including the messenger, and single zebra stared at the clouds with varying expressions. Lightning struck the ground near them, causing Ditzy, Soren, and the Doctor to jump a bit from fright. Thunder rumbled from above, and screaming in the distance could be heard. The six of them looked towards the origin of the panic and saw ponies running into their houses or nearby buildings. Walking calmly through the town, six ponies made a B-line towards the six ponies in front of the church.

"Is that...?" the Doctor started in disbelief. Soren gulped then nodded slowly.

The ponies that Soren missed the most were about to become his biggest nightmare. He saw alicorn Twilight Sparkle and evil Rainbow Dash, followed by a flat-maned and darker Pinkie Pie and sinister versions of Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy. He was about to be confronted by evil versions of his closest friends. The 'Evil Ones' stopped walking at speaking distance from the other six ponies.

"Greetings, fair Doctor," Twilight said with authority. "We see you have taken an interest in our affairs."

"This...is...rather interesting!" was all he could say.

"Doctor!" Soren and Derpy shouted.

"Well it is! Although I don't care for the whole tyrannical personality, I have to say that seeing alternate versions of Twilight and her friends is an interesting twist!"

"Interesting as it may be," Twilight spoke again, "I'm afraid I have to ask you and your sight-seeing companions to leave this town."

"And why would we do that?"

"What do you want from this town?!" Soren added on suddenly.

"We have already achieved what we wanted from this sorrowful town: control," Twilight explained. "We know that when a Doctor shows up, things turn sour."

"Are you implying that I automatically want to stop you?"

"Don't you?" The Doctor didn't answer. "I thought as much. I'm sure Soren is no different." Soren stepped forward.

"If these ponies are telling the truth about you all, then I will gladly try to stop you."

"Soren, wait—" the brown stallion began.

"Haha, you think you can stop us?" Rainbow laughed.

"You all are nothing compared to the antagonists I have stopped before."

"If you are so confident, how about we make a deal then?" Rarity joined. "If you can survive the ordeals that we will put you through, maybe we will consider leaving the ponies alone. We already achieved what we came here to do. Plus, even if you refuse to take on the trials, we will torture you all anyway."

"Then what have I got to lose?"

"Soren, don't be an idiot!" the Time Lord shouted. "You won't survive what they will put you through!"

"Do you want to know how many times I have heard that I won't survive something? More than the number of lives you have been through." The Doctor sighed and shook his head.

Deep down, he knew this pony has been put through a lot, is being put through a lot, and will be put through a lot. He can handle anything the world throws at him...to an extent. His body may be able to handle it, but his mind hasn't up to this point.

"If you're sure you can do this..."

"I have to." Soren looked at the Evil Ones. "I accept your terms! When will we begin?"

"Not today," Twilight replied. "The night approaches. It won't be as fun if you are tired during these." She grinned then began laughing maniacally . Lightning flashed multiple times, allowing the six mares to teleport away.

"Why does every villain know how to make an entrance and an exit?" Soren joked.

"Shut up, Soren," Sunny retorted. "Are you crazy?! Taking on all of those mares? Who do you think you are?!"

"I'm Soren. I'm the Elemental Guardian. I used to be the Doctor, but I still have his courage and determination. I'm the one who fought Nightmare Moon and a discorded spirit. I almost killed myself multiple times just to save my friends. I'm the one who cried when my enemy died in front of my eyes, and I will never forgive myself for her death. I don't care if I kill myself saving the ponies I care about. My life isn't worth it anymore! That's who I think I am!"

"Soren..."

"I'm doing this. I have to do some kind of good for all the crap I put ponies through. That's what my whole life is. Lies, problems, and solutions." Soren paused then looked at the Doctor. "Speaking of lies, I need to you to do something for me."

"How can I help?"

"When you get back to our Equestria, my past self is going to ask you about the truth of who he is. You cannot tell me who I truly am. When I ask, tell me to go fight the Elementals in the Spirit World. While I, along with another pony, fight those spirits, you need to go help me defeat them."

"Why must I do all of this?"

"Fixed points in time and paradoxes. That's all you need to know." The Doctor understood completely. He then looked at the zebra who has been silent the entire time.

"Bastian, you haven't said a word about any of this. Are you fine with what is about to happen?"

"Yes. I have seen the inner strength of this alicorn firsthoof. He has the determination and calm mind to push past the barriers that those mares will build in front of him."

"And if his mind snaps? Let's be honest, those mares want to break his will then his body."

"His mind has already become fractured once upon arriving in this town. I believe he won't let that happen so easily next time. Soren, I do not think I have to consult with the town to say that we believe in you. We believe you have a chance to stop them. Continue to take your risks; that is what brought you here." Soren smiled at the trusting zebra.

The First Ordeals

Soren was prepared to deal with Twilight and her friends the very next day. Unfortunately, due to their 'knowledge' that they received, the evil mares knew what to expect from the white alicorn. After he accepted their terms, Soren was visited in his dreams later that night.

He found himself in Ponyville. Many ponies were walking, trotting, and jogging around town, busily attending to their chores or agendas. The clear sky allowed the sun to bring forth a beautiful day. Soren walked through town and headed for Twilight's library. The giant tree wasn't very far from his location; just a minute or two of trotting.

He began running once the library came into view. However, when Soren was yards away from the tree, it suddenly burst into flames. Soren was definitely surprised and horrified, but he quickly remembered that he was dreaming. I haven't had a nightmare for awhile, he thought as he watched the fires grow and consume the library.

"Soren!" The voice came from inside. The alicorn looked closer into the flames and saw Twilight, pinned by a fallen wooden beam and covered in mostly ash and a few burns. "Help!" Soren tried using magic, but something felt wrong. He felt his head...his horn was gone, as were his wings. He ran towards the fire out of instinct to help his burning friend. The flames instantly grew, blocking Twilight from Soren's view.

He backed up in horror as the flames devoured Twilight and the library. Soren turned around and ran. It's just a dream, it's just a dream, he repeated to himself. Then why did it hurt?

"It's much more than that, darling." Soren stopped and looked ahead. Rarity was standing in the middle of town, alone. Everypony was now gone. The sky turned cloudy, and it wasn't from the smoke from the fire.

"You're not Rarity," Soren said. "You're doing this, aren't you?"

"Smart colt. Yes I am. And this is only the beginning."

"I've heard all the lines before. Just tell me what you're trying to accomplish." Rarity grinned widely; it made Soren shiver.

Within seconds, his ears picked up something. Turning his head in many directions to locate the sound, Soren heard screams of terror. Turning around, he saw Applejack and Fluttershy in the distance, screaming and running from what looked like a dark shadow. Soren didn't know why there was a shadow, but as they all got closer, he was able to see something else. Yellow eyes. Soul Stealers...

Once again, Soren sprinted towards his endangered friends. The two mares were doing their best to outrun the swift shadows. Soren was about to meet them but was suddenly jerked to the left and slammed against the wall of a house; he knew Rarity was the cause. Looking back at AJ and Fluttershy, he saw the shadows barely grab each of their hind-legs, causing both of them to fall to the ground.

"No!" he yelled. Soren tried standing up but found himself pinned by magic. He could only watch as the shadows flooded over the two mares.

Once they were fully enveloped, the mares sunk into the ground with the shadows then they all disappeared. Soren felt the magic lift from him, so he stood up and faced Rarity. "What are you trying to do?" he asked evenly.

"I am showing how your actions will ultimately cause the deaths of your friends."

"Is that all?" Soren chuckled. "I already knew that could happen after the Battle of the Nyrs. If you think seeing this will affect me at all, you're wasting your time."

"We'll see about that," she smiles. Igniting her horn, Rarity spawns a tied cluster of six dynamite.

"What are you going to do with that?" Soren asked. Rarity looked to her right. Soren followed her eyes and saw Rainbow Dash sleeping on a cloud above a house. "Don't you dare..."

Soren took one step forward, and Rarity lit the fuse. She waited a few seconds as she locked eyes with Soren. She then threw the dynamite, and Soren reacted by sprinting at her. He jumped into the air and was ready to tackle her, but Rarity disappeared, leaving a clear path to the ground. Instead of feeling dirt, however, Soren felt wood.

Opening his eyes, Soren looked at the wooden bedroom floor that he was laying on top of. To his right was the bed he fell out of. Sighing, Soren firmly placed his hooves on the ground and started to push himself up, only to feel a hoof stomp on his back to push him back down.

"Whoa there, partner. Where do you think yer goin'?" Twisting his head, Soren looked at Applejack as she held one hoof on his back, keeping him on the ground. Quickly reaching into a saddlebag, AJ pulled out a necklace and draped it around Soren's neck. "Time fer part 2."

"What are you going to—Arrrggghhh!" Soren felt intense magic surge through his entire body. He could painfully feel the necklace altering him. His coat was disappearing and his skin was becoming dark grey and rough. He felt something growing out of his back and felt his horn transforming.

With a final flash of light, Soren felt the pain stop. Applejack walked to the bedroom window and stopped to look at him. "That's an interestin' look for ya. Let's see if yer 'loyal' friends can figure out its really you. Oh, and Twilight said ur welcome for the fixed wings." With that, AJ jumped out of the second story window.

Soren quickly looked for a mirror, which was situated on top of the dresser next to his bed. Looking in said mirror, Soren gasped at what he became. He was now a changeling. The only difference was that instead of having a green carapace on his back like a normal changeling, Soren had a white one. His eyes were also green instead of blue, but that wasn't a major difference.

Changeling Soren heard many running hoofsteps coming from down the hall. This is NOT going to be fun. He made his way to the window as a means of escape if necessary. Within seconds, the door burst open and Soren could see the Doctor, Derpy, Sunny, and Bastian.

"Soren, are you alright?" the Doctor asked quickly. "We heard you screaming." The Time Lord saw the changeling in the room and immediately pulled out his sonic screwdriver.

"What is that?" Sunny asked, pointing at the creature.

"It's called a changeling," the Doctor replied. "And it better lead us to Soren, or we'll have to do this the hard way." Soren gulped. To avoid combat with his friends, Soren copied AJ and jumped out of the window.

Unfortunately, even though Soren was used to flying, he wasn't used to changeling wings. They were a lot lighter and so was he. Instead of using one great flap to take off like he was used to, Soren swung his wings once and found that his wings weren't strong enough to lift him that way. He soon slammed onto the dirt.

"Sounds like he landed," Sunny commented from inside the room.

Poking his head out of the window, the Doctor looked at the changeling as it picked itself up. Following suit, the stallion leaped over the windowsill and landed next to the changeling, who jumped from being frightened.

"I'm only going to ask this once: Where is my friend?"

"Hsssss," Soren voiced. He immediately put a hoof to his mouth. That's not what I wanted to say. "Hssssssssss," he tried again.

"Hmm." The Time Lord relaxed a little. He studied the changeling as if pondering what to ask it. "Can you understand me?" It nodded. "Do you know where Soren is?" Once again it nodded. "Alright, yes or no questions it is. Are you hostile?" The changeling shook its head. "Then why were you in Soren's room?"

"Hsss."

"Oh right right, keep it simple. Oi, you three! Come down here quickly!" Within the minute, Sunny, Derpy, and Bastian meet the Doctor and the changeling outside.

"Is he safe?" Derpy asked. The Doctor nodded.

"You know," Sunny started, "this guy is pretty cool." The crystal mare walked up to the creature and extended her hoof. "My name is Sunny Star. Can you say your name, if you even have one, in Equestrian?"

Soren concentrated really hard. Maybe he could pronounce his name somewhat. "Hsssssssen."

"That didn't sound like a name to me."

"Hsssssssssssoen."

"What is he doing, Doctor?" Derpy asked. The stallion remained quiet.

"Sssssssooossssn." The changeling gave up. His creature tongue can only make 's' and vowel sounds apparently.

"He was trying to say something. Ooo, idea! You wouldn't happen to know how to write would you?"

As embarrassing as it, Soren didn't know how to write. Like most unicorns, he wrote with magic. Soren also didn't think his changeling magic would help. Testing this theory, he illuminated his horn to try to pick up some rocks nearby, but he simply transformed into the Doctor.

"That's not funny," the brown pony commented grumpily. "Fascinating but not funny."

Soren quickly had an idea. What if he could transform into himself. Attempting it, Soren simply transformed into Derpy.

"Hey!" she said. "Go back to being the Doctor." The changeling decided to return to normal.

"Now we know you can't write," the Doctor said. "Bastian, do you want to ask him something?" The Doctor and Bastian began to have a small discussion. Meanwhile, Derpy joined Sunny, who was investigating the changeling.

"I like changelings," the pegasus mare commented. "The ones in our universe are mean, but he seems nice."

"Have you and the Doctor met any other changelings in this world?"

"No, he's our first one." She looked at the changeling. "Have you been in town for very long? I hope the other ponies aren't scared of you." As Derpy, the changeling, the Doctor, and Bastian were delved into their conversations, Sunny sat down and began to think. Something is weird here. It might just be my magic making me sensitive to things again. Derpy says changeling from her world are mean; her and the Doctor have yet to see another changeling here and neither have I; and this changeling was surprisingly trusting of us. Something is missing. I wish I could ask why he was in Soren's room after...we heard him screaming...

"Soren!" she exclaimed suddenly.

"I beg your pardon, Sunny," the Doctor said as he and Bastian walked over to the mares.

"Have you discovered where Soren has gone?" the zebra asked.

"He's right here!" she replied. To everyone's surprise, a small light appeared on the changeling's chest. When the light dissipated. a necklace could be seen in its place. Soren looked at it and yanked it off. The pain from before quickly returned, causing Soren to scream in his normal voice and fall backward onto the ground. Everyone gasped as Soren returned to his normal form.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked. Soren looked at him without moving.

"First two trials...done..."

Insanity

Author's Note

Song used:
"Sweating Bullets" copyrighted by Megadeath.

Insanity

The five ponies entered the lobby of the building next to where everything happened. This was the hotel that Soren, the Doctor, and their companions were staying in. Soren, with a slight limp, walked behind them. In the center of the lobby, the five of them sat in a circle.

"What happened to you" Sunny asked Soren.

"Let's see...I had a dream thanks to Rarity in which I saw Twilight, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow die in front of me. Then I woke up by falling onto the floor, only to be kept there by evil Applejack who put that enchanted necklace on me. That's when I painfully became a changeling. Then Sunny somehow figured out that I was me then I painfully reverted back to normal. Anything else?"

"The Evil Ones said they would each put you through trials to break you," Bastian said. "You survived two, but I can assure you that those were the easiest."

"I don't doubt it. There's no turning back though."

"You're a tougher colt than I first thought," Sunny commented. "What's next?"

"Uhh, I don't know. I'd rather get this over with, but so far all of them have come to me. I probably couldn't find them even if I wanted to."

"You should take this opportunity to rest," the Doctor intervened. "These mares aren't messing around, Soren. They want to destroy you then they will most likely target us."

"They're just scared that two Time Lords are in town. They obviously know we can stop them. Why else would they want to break us?"

"Soren," Bastian started, "did you forget that you are not their first victim?" Soren's confidence fell. "There have been countless others before you. All vanished or were killed by one trial each. However, they didn't have the help that you do now. You beat two of them; there are four more."

"I'm not looking forward to fighting Twilight."

"Well Twilight is looking forward to fighting you." Everyone but Soren looked at the front double doors. He remained facing away.

"I know that voice." He turned around and saw a slightly grayer version of Fluttershy. "Hello, Fluttershy—"

"Be quiet." Soren flinched back a bit.

"Woah. Not the nicest pony in the—"

"I said be QUIET!" The other ponies flinched away now. "You know why I'm here. Are you going to be a nice pet, or am I going to have to drag you with a leash?"

Geez. My Fluttershy won't believe I met this version of her.

"Well?" The five of them just realized that Fluttershy now had a leash.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. It's a good thing I didn't have to come find you all." Fluttershy silenced Soren by putting the leash on him. Now this is just cruel.

No pony explores the outskirts of Appaloosa; you just don't, not with the Evil Ones around. It's scary enough walking through town alone when no one is around. That's when they choose you; the next to be played with. Appaloosa is surrounded by a great plain that takes twenty minutes just to run across. On the north side of the field are acres of trees. Within these trees hides a small cave that everypony knows to avoid, less you have a death wish.

Fluttershy led her 'pet,' Soren, into the cave; she said this is where the next trial was. The mouth of the cave can be clearly seen by just walking past it. Inside was a small area that was a few yards in diameter. Fluttershy led Soren to the center and sat him down. She took the leash off, backed up a few steps, then simply looked at him.

"Are you ready?"

"Why not?"

"Then close your eyes."

"No." Fluttershy growled at him. "How do I know you aren't simply going to kill me when I do?"

"Because you would have been dead before you walked into town." She walked up to him.

"So Rainbow was instructed not to—Oof!" Fluttershy knocked Soren unconscious.

It's dark.

I can't see anything.

Are my eyes even open?

Am I...Am I even awake?

All Soren saw was black. He couldn't tell if he was looking up, down, left, or right. He saw himself just fine; everything else...not at all. Even a basic illumination wasn't working.

"Fluttershy?" he called. Soren really wanted something to happen; it would be better than sitting in the boring darkness. "Is anyone here?!"

"That's the question I always ask."

"What is it with ponies randomly showing up?" Soren turned around for the umpteenth time.

He was very surprised by what he saw. Soren was standing face to face with...him. However, he had tattered black hair, an insane smile and look in his eyes, and was blood-stained around most of his coat. Soren couldn't help but look at his doppelgänger's cutie mark; blood covered the entire thing.

"So...I have to deal with myself?" Soren asked.

"Every day of my life!" his clone said. Just the voice alone made Soren feel like something bad was about to happen.

"Are you insane perchance?"

"What was your first clue? Of course I am! I'm you! The only difference is...I'm going to mop up my mistakes." The dark tone that he developed made Soren take a few steps back. Taking out a bloody blade with a huge smile, the clone walked towards Soren.

Have fun with Neros. He's your future self, Fluttershy's voice said from nowhere.

"That's a weird name to pronounce."

"Shut up and let's begin!" Neros illuminated his horn. A neon green circle appeared on the blackness near them. Three skeletal ponies slowly rose out of the ground, each holding instruments. There was a guitar, drum, and bass.

"I see my talent never goes away," Sane-Soren commented. The skeletons soon began playing their instruments in a rock-like fashion.

Hello me, meet the real me
And my misfits way of life
A dark black past is my
Most valued possession

Hindsight is always 20-20

Neros stops creeping up to Soren and turns his back on him.

But looking back it's still a bit fuzzy

He then turns his head 180 degrees without moving his body.

Speak of mutually assured destruction?
Nice story, tell it to pony's digest

Soren runs away, hoping to escape his insane counterpart.

Feeling paranoid
True enemy or false friend?
Anxiety's attacking me and
My air is getting thin

Soren feels his throat close on him. As a result, he halts to try to breathe.

I'm in trouble for the things
I haven't got to yet
I'm chomping at the bit and my
hooves are getting wet
Sweating bullets!

Neros teleports in front of Soren and grabs Soren's head.

Hello me, it's me again
You can subdue, but never tame me

Neros headbutts Soren. Soren falls to the ground, groaning and holding his head.

It gives me a migraine headache
Thinking down to your level

Soren gets up and starts backing away from Neros.

Yeah, just keep on thinking it's my fault
And stay an inch or two outta kicking distance

Neros hovers with his wings as he attempts to kick Soren.

Ponykind has got to know
Their limitations

Soren decided to bolt away again and Neros continues to throw obstacles at him.

Feeling claustrophobic
Like the walls are closing in
Blood stains on my hooves
And I don't know where I've been

Soren becomes surrounded with four giants walls. Two walls rush towards him. He curls on the ground, but the walls disappear before impact. He gets up and runs.

I'm in trouble for the things
I haven't got to yet
I'm sharpening the ax and my
Hooves are getting wet, sweating bullets

A giant axe is swung in front of Soren's path, penetrating the ground in front of him. The next minute is spent by Soren running, Neros teleporting in front him and swinging the blade every time, and the skeletal guitarist playing a solo. After the solo finished, Neros teleported in front of Soren yet again and advanced on him.

Well, me, it's nice talking to myself
A credit to dementia
Some day you too will know my pain
And smile it's black tooth grin

He smiled, showing Soren his disgusting, blackened teeth.

If the war inside my head
Won't take a day off I'll be dead

Neros blows up into particles. He quickly appears in front of Soren. Neros now has ice claws that look like talons attached to his hooves.

My icy hooves claw your back
Here I come again

He teleports behind Soren and claws his back, leaving three red lines on Soren's white coat. Soren continues run.

Feeling paranoid
True enemy or false friend?
Anxiety's attacking me
And my air is getting thin

Feeling claustrophobic
Like the walls are closing in
Blood stains on my hooves and
I don't know where I've been

Soren couldn't get far, for four walls once again enclosed him. He looked up and saw Neros flying above the walls and him. The insane pony used magic to ignite the top of each wall in green flames, which slowly traveled down the walls.

Once you committed me
Now you've acquitted me
Claiming validity
For your stupidity

The flames were close to Soren now. He could feel the intense hear coming from them.

I'm chomping at the bit
I'm sharpening the ax
Oh, here I come again, whoa
Sweating bullets!

Just as Soren felt the fire touch his hooves, he woke up with a scream. Sweating, he stared at the wooden ceiling as he calmed down. Where was he? Looking around the room, he found himself in his hotel room surrounded by Sunny, Derpy, and the Doc.

Hurt The One You Love

"Soren!" Sunny hugged the alicorn tightly. "You looked like you were having an awful dream. You wouldn't stop squirming and mumbling."

"I'm fine," he replied softly. He needed to calm down.

"You don't look fine," the Doctor retorted. He pointed to Soren's back. Investigating, Soren saw three red scratch marks on his back. "I'd say that was much more than a bad dream." The brown stallion couldn't help but notice that Sunny has yet to let go of Soren. "Soren...did something happen to your Rainbow Dash? Is that why you left in the TARDIS?"

"What? No, nothing happened to her; she's fine. Why do you ask?" The stallion looked at Sunny. "Whoa, no no no no, it's not what you think. We're just friends. Honest." Soren broke Sunny's hug so he could get off of the bed.

"We may as well try if everypony keeps thinking that," Sunny teased.

"Thin ice, Sunny..."

"Sorry. You can't stop a flirter from flirting."

"Noted. Anyway, I know that I accepted their terms, but do those mares really have to do the trials so close together? It's been like...8 hours. Give or take."

"Ironically enough, they do not want to give you a chance to rest," Bastian said.

"Even when they said they would let me sleep before starting, they invaded my dreams. Well I'm halfway done..." Soren's stomach growled. "What time is it?"

"A few hours past noon."

"Let's get something to eat while I have a break." The other four ponies nodded in agreement. They were so worried about Soren that they also haven't eaten all day. The ponies left the hotel, and Bastian led them to one of the restaurants in Appaloosa to eat and finally relax.

One Hour Later

"Bastian," Soren started, "can you tell me about the geography of this Equestria?" Soren walked next to the zebra as they, along with Sunny, Derpy, and the Doc, walked towards the church. "It seems as though vegetation is more common here than in our world."

"You would be correct. Plant life covers most of the land, not including bodies of water which make up a much smaller percentage. It is because of this that varies species of plants and animals exist."

"I have yet to see a single animal actually. Is there a reason for that?"

"I only have a theory. As I am sure you are aware, strange things have been occurring lately. Those mares are not the only phenomena happening."

"I experienced necromancy for the first time days ago. Someone resurrected a dead mother to kidnap her orphaned child."

"That's disgusting," Derpy commented. The ponies stepped into the church and took a seat near one another. The Doctor looked at Bastian.

"I want to believe that the necromancy and whoever gave your 'Evil Ones' their 'knowledge' is connected in someway. Obviously you have seen phenomena before, otherwise you all would have been more surprised of a time traveler meeting his future self."

"I noticed that too," Soren added. "When I showed Sunny the TARDIS, she was surprisingly relaxed and stoic about everything."

"Maybe it's because I can turn into fire," the crystal mare interjected. "Things that are abnormal aren't exactly rare for me."

"Maybe."

The conversation shifted into a dead silence for minutes as the Doctor and Soren became lost in thought. The mares and Bastian took this time to relax themselves. As they all predicted, the time for action eventually came once again.

"Hey, Soren~!" a voice shouted from outside. "It's time to come out and play!" The alicorn walked over to one of the windows and looked outside. Rainbow Dash was standing out there, staring at the church. "If you don't fight me outside of town by sunset, my friends and I will have to harm every pony in town." Seeing Soren in the window, the rainbow mare turned around and shot into the sky. Soren also turned away and looked at his friends.

"They're playing hard ball now. They really want me to cooperate."

"Do you want us to help?" the Doctor asked.

"Even though I'm supposed to do this on my own, yes. I think we can all assume they will cheat in someway. Why not beat them at their own game?"

"How can we help?"

"You can't, but Sunny can."

"Me?" The crystal mare was surprised.

"Of course. It'll be simple. Before I leave for the fight, I'll camouflage you so you can blend in with the environment. If I need you, I'll say a certain phrase. That's when you strike." Soren walked up to Sunny and put a hoof on her shoulder. "I'll need you to lose your mercy for today.

"If I have to," she replied. "What's the phrase?" Soren looked at her. She will lose her mercy; I can guarantee it. He then began whispering in her ear.

The orange sky set the mood on the grassy plain as Soren walked into talking distance from Rainbow Dash. The two ponies stared at each other for a short time as a light breeze flowed through them.

"Quite a romantic date you brought me on, Rainbow," Soren teased.

"Heh, you wish it only that. Are you ready?"

"We both know the answer to that." The mare grinned at him. Digging into the ground with her hooves, Rainbow prepared herself. Both ponies opened their wings and crouched slightly.

"You girls are going to regret healing my wings."

"You're going to regret interfering."

She launched forward at speeds faster than Soren's Rainbow Dash could fly. She punched Soren in the chest, sending him soaring yards away. After tumbling, Soren recovered and slid across the ground. Creating a steady stance, he launched off of the ground as well and flew towards his opponent. Still grinning confidently, Rainbow accepted his challenge and flew towards him.

Before they could come close to each other, Soren illuminated his horn and sent a concussive blast towards Rainbow. The blast impacted, forcing the pegasus backward and to the ground. After crashing, Rainbow held her now-bleeding left ear. The ringing in both ears wouldn't be enough to stop her. I wasn't expecting him to fight back so willingly, she thought.

"How does it feel to make the pony you love bleed?" she asked Soren, who had just landed on the ground a good distance from her. He didn't say anything; he simply stared evenly at her while keeping his horn lit. On the inside, he was feeling every bit of pain he was dishing out.

Rainbow stood up then took flight once again. From high up, she flapped her wings hard in Soren's direction. He didn't know what she was doing, but soon he felt it.

Boom

Boom

BOOM

BOOM

He felt the pulses hit his head with a consistent pound. The pulses increased in strength every few thuds. Holding both hooves to his head, Soren barely hovered over the ground as he began to fly backwards to escape the pulsing. He couldn't get far, however, for he bumped into something. Looking behind him with a sliver of his eye open, Soren saw Twilight standing there. Lighting her horn, Twilight grabbed Soren body an extended his hooves outward in an X shape. The pulsing stopped as Rainbow landed in front of the imprisoned Soren.

"You're welcome," she said. "I stopped the pain for you."

"Now what? You're going to finish me?"

"Of course. Any last words? Or is that too 'cliché' for you"

"I have something to say." Rainbow leaned in with her uninjured ear to humor him. "You have beautiful eyes."

She quickly pulled her head away and showed an expression of irritation. Rainbow attempted to punch Soren one last time but was stopped by a jumping kick to her face. Twilight's eyes widened as she saw Sunny Star take Rainbow's place. Feeling the aura around him lighten, Soren took this opportunity to ignite his horn and teleport him and Sunny away from Twilight.

Rainbow dusted herself off and walked over to Twilight, who was now a little annoyed about the new presence. Soren and Sunny now stared at Rainbow and Twilight; the four ponies readied themselves for a round of combat. Closing her eyes, alicorn Twilight decided to start the fight by trying to snap Soren mind like yesterday. Soren felt the invasion of his mind and closed his eyes as well in order to concentrate.

"No!" he shouted. "Not this time!" Twilight could see inside Soren's mind; his thoughts, fears, memories, and conscience. Upon seeing said conscience, Twilight was immediately blinding by a bright yellow light. She saw the light coming from the eyes of a silhouette. This figure was a pony with a slightly short mane and bat wings.

"You evildoers never learn, do you?" the bat mare said. "This colt is protected." The yellow light flashed again and Twilight was cast out of Soren's mind. Both Soren and Twilight stumbled a bit after her spell failed.

"Are you ok, Soren?" Sunny asked, putting a hoof on him to steady him.

"Yeah, let's just finish this."

"Come on then, Soren!" Rainbow yelled. "Let's go!"

"Yes, it's time to end this little conflict," Twilight added. "And to think, the mighty Elemental Guardian chose this simple mare with a temper to help protect his life." Something sparked in Soren's mind; he smiled.

"There's one thing you don't know about Sunny Star, Twilight," he began. "You six only know information about me and the friends I have already made. But you know nothing about Sunny, and that is what will help me right now. She isn't just some random mare that joined me." Flames ignited out of thin air next to Soren, who didn't flinch from it. Twilight and Rainbow watched the flames as they died down to reveal a mare made of pure fire. "She's practically a sun."

"Burn with me," Sunny said as she sent a horizontal pillar of fire at Rainbow and Twilight.

A Stallion's Dream?

The pillar of flame almost made contact with the two mares, but Twilight teleported them away just in time. The two reappeared behind Soren and Sunny, then Twilight teleported Soren and Rainbow away. Stalwart, Twilight stared down at the enraged Sunny Star or, as Soren calls her in this form, Blazing Sun.

"Do you honestly think this form is any more impress—Ahh!" As Twilight wasted time to insult her, Sunny blasted the alicorn with fire. Recovering, Twilight now looked irritated. "I'm going to enjoy breaking you."

Meanwhile, Rainbow and Soren appeared a fair distance away from Twilight and Sunny. Soren, who was also irritated at this point, looked at Rainbow.

"It doesn't have to be this way, Rainbow Dash," he said. "Fighting shouldn't be the answer."

"Are you giving up? I thought you were so confident."

"I never said that. I'm making sure we don't hurt you girls. I can't imagine my own friends getting hurt. Imagine actually being the one who hurts them. Even though you all want to kill me, I still want to treat you how I would treat my friends. I don't want to hurt you girls."

"Such a sap." Rainbow rocketed forward and tackled Soren to the ground. He saw Rainbow lift a hoof and charge it with electricity. How much magic did Twilight give them?! Soren wondered. She hit him in the chest, electrocuting both of them. Rainbow was sent off of Soren, and Soren almost felt his heart stop. Unable to move immediately, Soren called out to Rainbow.

"Why? Why did you...do that? You just...hurt yourself."

"Cuz you're an idiot." Soren's eyes widened; his Rainbow Dash says the same thing quite a lot. Rainbow recovered quickly; she walked over to Soren and stood above him. She didn't say anything. She simply walked away.

Soren finally found the strength to stand normally. He watched Rainbow walk over to the battle between Twilight and Sunny. Sunny was sending a pillar of fire at Twilight while the alicorn was sending a beam of magic at her.

"Twilight!" Rainbow yelled. "We're done here!"

"What are you talking about?" Twilight strained. "Did you win?"

"No." Soren found that extremely odd. Not only because she almost killed him but because Rainbow gave up.

"Rainbow—" Soren started.

"Shut your mouth! Let's get out of here Twilight before you get burned." Sighing, the alicorn teleported away, allowing the pillar of fire to continue on its course. She reappeared in front of Rainbow.

"You're going to have to explain how you lost."

"I'll be glad to," Rainbow smiled. "This isn't over yet in any case." The two teleported away, leaving a flaming Sunny and a shaken Soren on the field.

Blazing Sun walked over to Soren, who decided to sit down and rest. He couldn't find the strength to stand after witnessing the lie that Rainbow told Twilight. Why would she do that? There's no way she would forfeit for no reason. He stopped his train of thought after seeing Sunny in front of him. She hasn't reverted back to normal yet; this worried him.

"Sunny? Can you change back?"

"They left."

"I know, so please change back." No response. "Sunny, this isn't good. You need to become a crystal pony again." Still no answer. Just an intense stare. Soren chose to do, in the words of Rainbow, another idiotic thing. It worked with Rainbow, so it has to work with Sunny.

He sat both of them down and grabbed Sunny's hooves. They burned him and he yelled in pain, but he had to hold on. Using his magic, he constantly covered his hooves in ice so they wouldn't burn as easily, but he still felt pain.

"Sunny," he strained, "I need you to listen to me. Change back. I know you can do it." No response. She isn't in control anymore. I know she wants to come back.

Staring into those burning eyes, Soren was worried about what to do. He felt that she could maim him at any second. I pray you don't remember this. This worked for Rainbow. Taking a deep breath in and out, Soren committed to his plan. He quickly leaned forward and kissed Sunny. The temperature began decreasing. Knowing she is calming down, Soren pulled away.

"That was very awkward," he commented to himself. "Somehow it always relaxes ponies into reverting back from a different state." He watched as Sunny's fire body changed back into a normal crystal coat. Pretty soon, his friend was back with him. Hanging her head from exhaustion, Sunny eventually fell forward but was caught by Soren.

"Are you ok?" he asked. She nodded. "I know you're exhausted." He turned around; he didn't know why. Soren saw the forest near them and had an idea. "Do you want some berries to eat until we get back to Appaloosa?" She shrugged. "Alright, just lay here. I'll be back." After laying Sunny down, Soren trotted to the edge of the forest. He looked back at his exhausted friend, faced the forest, and sprinted inside.

About thirty minutes later, Soren was levitating a collection of berries in a make-shift wooden basket he had to create. The forest was relatively easy to navigate; he thanked the goddesses that he hasn't seen a forest equivalent to the Everfree. It didn't take him long approach the edge and see the field through the brush. I hope Sunny is doing better. Stepping out of the forest, Soren couldn't see Sunny where he left her.

"I think I came out of the wrong place," he muttered. "I guess I'll just follow the edge."

"Where's the rush~?"

"Wha—Ah!" Before Soren could face whoever was talking to him, he received a knife to his rear leg. Sitting down and holding the wound, Soren finally saw who spoke to him. It was the evil version of Pinkie Pie. Of all of the six mares, this Pinkie looked the most different to Soren. Her mane was long and flat, her eyes spelled death, and her smile...Soren couldn't look at it for too long.

"You're coming with me. Think of that any way you want." Pinkie used the handle of the knife to bash Soren on his forehead.

Oww...

Why am I always the one to be abused by mares?

I blame the fact that I'm the Doctor. He always gets slapped.

...but this is ridiculous.

"A knife. Really?!" he groaned out loud.

"Complain all you want," Pinkie replied. "It won't make the bleeding stop." Soren tried to turn his body to face her but was unable to. He was on his back, laying on a steel table in some small cave; his four legs, his head, and his stomach were all strapped down. Using his peripheral vision, Soren was barely able to see Pinkie sharpening a bloody blade that he assumed was the one she used to stab him.

"Pinkie..."

"Let me stop you right there. It's Pinkamena. Also, be quiet. You'll be making enough noise once we start."

"What are you going to do? Torture me? Can you villains be any more predictable?" Soren became nervous after seeing Pinkamena's devilish grin.

"You wish I was only torturing you. No, you will receive something special. Not many ponies have been through this since it needs to be a special kind of day for me to be in the mood." Pinkamena tosses the knife away and walks up to Soren. The two maintain eye contact from a short distance away. "Don't bother using magic. The enchanted straps will negate anything you try."

"Give me your best shot. I'll survive whatever—" Widening his eyes and trying to flail his limbs, Soren tried to fight the onslaught of Pinkamena's kiss. Unfortunately, he had to wait for her to stop. After she did, she smiled at him. Soren, however, was mortified.

"Luna-dammit, why can't I only receive that kind of affection from Rainbow Dash?! I don't need you coming onto me!"

"Forget your Rainbow Dash. You're in my play place now."

"Let me go!"

"Why can't you just cooperate?"

"I have a marefriend!"

"Sigh, if you're going to be difficult, I might have to use force."

"I'm pretty sure you just did!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, not a very trusting pony, are you?" Pinkamena jumped onto the table and sat on Soren's stomach. I don't need to see that, he thought while being forced to look at a certain something. "Since I'm nice, let's get this over with."

"Why are you doing this?" Please let this work. "Surely all of you have had some admirers."

"Really?" she asked in an irritated tone. "You honestly believe stallions will seek us? The very mares who have killed countless ponies?"

"I would, if I wasn't already taken."

"You're just talking out of your flank."

"I can prove it."

"How?"

"Let's get to know each other. You know what I have done, but you don't know who I am. The same goes for me; I don't know who you are. I'm sure no pony has taken the time to get to know some of you."

"That's because we are evil."

"Sure you girls have sinned, but deep down I think some of you regret it."

"Then why would we continue to sin?"

"Because there is a pony, or ponies, stronger than all of you. They're the ones who gave you your knowledge, and they're the ones who can kill you if you step out of line. Can't you see that they are using you? You may get what you want, but how can all of you be certain that those ponies won't remove you from the picture when they see fit?"

"You son of a..." Pinkamena jumped to the floor, grabbed the knife, and walked back over to where Soren's head was.

She stared evenly at Soren, who looked nervous once again. Standing on her hind legs, Pinkamena raised the knife and brought it down on Soren. He shut his eyes before impact but felt nothing after the blade struck. He heard a ting and opened his eyes. He saw Pinkamena cutting off every strap on him, each sounding with a ting every time. Once he was free, Soren jumped off of the table and looked at the mare. She looked back with irritation.

"You're a manipulative stallion, you know that?" she said. She then slapped him and kissed him. "And I like that."

"Can you stop that, please?! It was awkward enough with Sunny. Now I just feel violated...and abused."

"If you would have let me finish, I would have let you finish." She nudged him twice.

"Of all the ponies that would use sexual innuendos, it had to be Pinkie Pie...or Pinkamena in this case."

"Now then," she started, "let's get to know each other." She patted the steel table for Soren to sit. He obliged and sat next to her. This is going to be a long day.

Author's Note

I have to publish somewhat fast until the next arc of this Part. I'm having a friend of mine help due to the fact that his OC will be in it, and I will need to get his personality right.

The Final Test

Author's Note

Song used:
"Not Ready To Die" copyrighted by Avenged Sevenfold.

The Final Test

Unfortunately for Soren, it was indeed going to be a long day, but not simply for the reason of hearing the summary of Pinkamena's life story. The entire time he heard her tale, Soren found Pinkamena to be charming but brash. She was pretty nice once you gain her trust, but Soren was told by her what happens when she doesn't like a pony. At this point in his life, Soren has lost count of how many times he was on Death's doorstep. Sometimes it was entertaining to him to humor the thought of all of the pain ending at any of those times. He quickly shook away the thought, though, for it's not healthy to think that way.

Walking away from Pinkamena's cave, Soren yawned. It was only the afternoon and he was already tired. He knew it was going to be a long day; he knew that he would have to face Twilight Sparkle. Surely she has lost her patience and will just try to end this conflict. He witnessed her losing patience when she fought Sunny. Soren stopped walking.

Sunny...

He couldn't imagine what she was going through. The mare loved him; that much was obvious. She sang a song about him, for Celestia-sake! She was so scared for him, yet she chooses to remain strong. I don't give her the credit she deserves. That needs to change. She's already done a lot for me. Readying his magic, Soren teleported away to Appaloosa.

"Not good, not good, not good, not good!" The Doctor was pacing feverishly inside of the church. Bastian, Derpy, and Sunny felt his pain; they were all worried about Soren. He was captured by a murderer! Bastian told them of Pinkamena's near-infinite death count. The Doctor was more worried of the news they received a few hours earlier. Twilight Sparkle appeared in town and issued a death threat to all of Appaloosa. "The entire town. The. Entire. Town!"

"Doctor, calm down," Derpy said. "We should just evacuate every—"

"We can't. She wouldn't allow it. Plus, everyone would be vulnerable." He sat down and began tapping his hooves to his head. "Come on, think think think. There has to be something."

"Aren't you guys forgetting about Soren?" Sunny asked. The crystal mare was found by the Doctor as she was resting in the grass. The two waited for Soren to return, but he never did. After an hour of waiting, the two returned to the church, only to be told by Bastian where Soren is more than likely to be.

"He may be dead by now," Bastian replied bluntly.

"I doubt it."

"Sunny, it doesn't matter if he is or not," the Doctor said. "Right now, we have a bigger situation on our hooves." The sound of the church doors opening silenced the conversation.

"Did it ever occur to you all that Twilight is simply threatening the town because this is the last trial?" Soren asked as he walked up to everypony. He saw Sunny fighting the urge to run up to him again. He responded by trotting up to and hugging her. "How are you holding up?"

"Better now," Sunny replied. She smiled and closed her eyes as she enjoyed the hug.

"Awwww," Derpy sounded.

"Derpy!" the Doctor whispered.

"What? They're cute!" she whispered in return. The Doctor walked up to the alicorn.

"Soren, since you're back, I'm sure you can help us with this crisis. In the meantime...I think now would be a good time for you to answer for a few things." Soren saw the slightly irritated look on the Doctor's face. Not a good sign.

"Ok..." he said nervously.

"Why did you leave Rainbow and your friends?" Soren had to really think about the answer. He didn't want to betray the future, but he also didn't want to lie. Actually...the Doctor wouldn't be alive for that event.

"I was putting her and the girls through so much. I endanger them all the time, and I couldn't live with that. After I defeated Nightmare Moon when she resurrected herself somehow, I left with the TARDIS. I guess you can say I needed to find myself."

"I'm going to ignore the fact that Nightmare Moon returned and ask are you going through a life crisis?"

"It's more along the lines that I hate my life. I didn't want to be around anypony in fear of getting them hurt or worse...until I met Sunny. She helped me realize that no matter how fast or how far I run, I will always need company to keep my straight. I'm like you, Doctor; I don't trust myself without someone to keep me level-headed."

"At your point in time, how long has it been since you arrived in Ponyville?"

"I'm going to guess seven months."

"Seven months?!" Sunny and Derpy shouted in disbelief.

"I have only been doing these adventures for around seven months. Too much has happened to me and my friends during that time. They deserve better than me."

"Soren, no they don't," Sunny interjected. "You keep saying that, but it is precisely what you do that makes them deserve such an amazing friend. You protect them; not only that, you protect your country. You're a hero."

"What kind of hero can't even save himself?!" There was dead silence after his outburst. Calming down, Soren jumped on top of one of the benches and spoke to his friends. "We need to gather everypony in the church or underneath it in the caverns. It's all or nothing now, people! Let's go!" Everyone took a few seconds before finally nodding, then the five of them sprinted out of the front doors and scattered throughout Appaloosa.

Every pony they ran into was instructed to take shelter in the church. Since the entire town heard Twilight's threat, no one questioned Soren and his friends. Within the hour, dark clouds appeared and created a giant ring around Appaloosa; then the clouds slowly began covering the town.

Five more minutes passed and Soren knew they had run out of time. He hoped they had managed to gather everypony. If not, hopefully the rest went into the Crystal Caverns. Soren, Sunny, the Doctor, Derpy, and Bastian reacquainted in front of the church and watched as the clouds fully enveloped the town.

"She is here," Bastian commented. "What will you do, Soren?"

"That depends on what she throws at us. What is known for attacking entire towns?"

"Scared animal herds?" Derpy suggested.

"Daleks, Cybermen, the list goes on," the Doctor added. Soren shook his head.

"It's not from your universe, Doctor. It does need to be sentient or easy to manipulate. It will have to be as numerous as a horde." Soren sat down to think. "Many in number, big enough to take on a pony or two, easy to manipulate..."

Uggghhhhh

Soren rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry, Doctor, if you know what Twilight is going to use, by all means, please tell us," he said sarcastically.

"That...wasn't...me." Soren's ears perked as he heard the same noise again but with more than one voice making it. The five of them saw something limp around the corner of a building. It looked like an injured pony.

"What is that?" Sunny wondered. "Doesn't sound healthy. As a matter of fact, it sounds like it's dying."

"It's already dead," the Doctor said gravely. "EVERYONE INSIDE, NOW!!!" The group ran inside to join the numerous ponies crowding the church. The Doctor, with his friends right behind him, ran to the nearest window to look at the pony outside. There were now more of them.

"Doctor," Soren started, "that can't be what I think it is. I've already seen enough of that weeks ago!"

"I'm afraid so."

"What's out there?" Sunny asked. "You said it was already dead, so why worry?"

"It is already dead. Ms. Sparkle is sending a horde of zombies to destroy all of us."

"Zombies? The undead, huh? How many could she possibly have?" Both the Doctor and Soren face-hoofed.

"She had to say it," the Time Lord said.

"I doubt she knows," Soren said.

"Know what?" Sunny asked. The Doctor chose to explain.

"One dead pony doesn't necessarily make only one zombie."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"May I interject?" Bastian tried to say but no one heard him.

"It means that a horde can be create from a few ponies with enough resources, or in this case alicorn magic."

"Soren," Bastian said, getting the white alicorn to look. "Outside." Everyone walked up to the window again and all of their expressions changed to horror. Outside were hundreds, if not thousands, of zombie ponies waiting to charge at the church. Flying above the horde was Twilight.

"You should have given up when you had the chance, Soren!" she yelled. "I don't know how Rainbow lost to you, but I won't make the same mistake. Now you will all see just how much power I wield!"

Twilight's horn sparked with dark purple electricity, and it surged through her body. Bringing her wings towards her, Twilight enveloped herself in her own aura. A bright purple light illuminated the sky as the alicorn transformed. Twilight expanded her wings and the light exploded from her.

The Doctor and Soren were impressed by Twilight's new form while sharing everyone else's reaction of worry. Twilight's coat was now an extremely dark, almost black, purple; her eyes were magenta and the whites of her eyes were a lighter variety of magenta; she had a black and white stripe through her mane and instead of purple, her mane looked like a portion of space made of reds, pinks, and purples; and she wore red armor on her hooves and chest, and had her Element of Disharmony on her head.

"I feel sorry for you, Soren," Bastian commented honestly. "What are you going to do?" Soren slowly walked towards the stage of the church as Twilight continued to speak.

"Soren, your time has come. Everyone's time has come thanks to you. Minions! Attack!" The horde began walking towards the target building.

"Everyone!" Soren shouted as he still made his way to the stage. "We need you to grab whatever weapons you can and fight for your lives. You must spill blood on this day if we want to survive. Protect this building, protect your town, protect your loved ones." Soren finally made it onstage. He stood in front of the organ that was there as well.

The horde came closer as everypony followed Soren's advice and rushed outside once they found a weapon. The zombies were only charging from one side of the church, making defense more manageable. The Doctor, Bastian, Derpy, and Sunny met Soren onstage as he sat in front of the organ.

He used his magic to activate the sonic screwdriver hidden in his mane. Within seconds, the TARDIS appeared next to the organ. Soren ran inside and came back out with his electric guitar. Now that he had everything he needed, Soren used his magic to play the organ. After a few notes on the organ, he switched to playing his guitar with his hooves.

Gone, cast away in time
Evil yours, now evil mine
So I robbed you blind
The voices in my head suggest a less than peaceful side

The endless possibilities
Controlling all our lives

You can't break me
Crush the fears of yesterday
You can't save me
Barriers of trust will fade.

I've stood in the dark
Been waiting all this time
While we damn the dead I'm trying to survive
I'm not ready to die

Damned, watch the masses fall
Burn it down, control 'em all
*Help me* Make me crawl
To daddy's little girl to read the writings on the wall

We'll cast into the nothingness
Their final curtain call

You can't break me
Crush the fears of yesterday
You can't save me,
Barriers of trust will fade.

I've stood in the dark
Been waiting all this time
While we damn the dead I'm trying to survive,
I'm not ready to die

At this point while the battle rages on outside and as thunder strikes, Soren plays a guitar solo and sends a bit of his energy, via magic, to the ponies outside to give them more endurance.

Through the madness we find
Loyalty is no match for power
Say goodbye to your life,
Left to rot in your darkest hour
Prayers won't help you now
As long as you're mine!

Soren stopped singing and playing the guitar. Instead he played a certain pattern of notes on the organ and changed the pitch with his magic. As he played, Soren heard a gasp from Derpy.

"Doctor, look!" Soren noticed that the Doctor is staring at him.

"What? It set the mood," Soren said, thinking it was about his song. The Doctor shook his head.

"Look in a mirror." Soren spawns in a mirror and looks at his reflection. He sees that his eyes changed from green and are almost yellow, and his coat changed into a light grey.

"I don't care," Soren said, knowing full well what it meant. "We have a battle to win. Bastian, how do we get to the bell tower? I want a view of the battle."

"This way," the zebra answered then began leading them. The Doctor and Derpy exchanged nervous glances, and Sunny had no idea why they were worried.

The Horde

The bell tower of the church wasn't much for height, but it gave Soren a better view of outside. The storm clouds created an almost nighttime appearance, the zombies (very large in numbers) slowly pushed towards the church while the townsfolk defended themselves as best they could, all while Twilight flew overhead with her triumphant expression. New ponies had joined her though; Rainbow, Pinkamena, Fluttershy, AJ, and Rarity stood on the rooftops on either side of Twilight.

"Pinkamena looks brighter," Soren commented out loud unintentionally.

"What?" Sunny said. "The pink mare? Isn't she the murderer?"

"She's not so bad." Soren put a hoof in his mouth. His four friends looked at him like he was insane.

"Come again?" the Doctor asked.

"NEVERMIND. Now, the zombies have to be controlled by some means. Let's see if this even works." Soren grabbed his sonic screwdriver, activated it, and pointed it everywhere around the horde. The buzzing increased in intensity when he pointed it around the six mares. Soren noticed that the buzzing remained constant, no matter who he pointed at.

"All six of them have to be controlling the zombies telepathically!" the Doctor realized.

"That means we can cancel that connection! But how?"

"Doctor, can you use the sonic?" Derpy asked. He shook his head.

"I couldn't hope to match Twilight's prowess. We will have to weaken the link first. Maybe if they aren't as determined the link would weaken. If only those mares could see that what they are doing is wrong!" Soren's eyes widened. He could get Pinkamena to stop and possibly Rainbow. He needs to show them that they can become better ponies.

If only they could see what my friends have done, what I have seen them do. A memory spell might work. Twilight...remind me to go to more magic lessons when I get back. His Twilight tried to teach him a memory spell, but it was only in case you forgot something minor, like what you had to do today or when you had to meet someone. It was never meant to show entire events like Soren wanted it to do, but then again...the spell was meant for regular unicorns.

Teleporting from the bell tower, Soren stood with the Appaloosans fighting the horde. He stood in front of the church doors and concentrated. He had to remember times when his friends did amazing things for the greater good. Not only that, he had to project those memories to the six evil mares. Technically, five evil mares.

Soren knew that he couldn't directly send the memories to Twilight and her friends. Knowing this was the only other way, Soren sent the memories into random zombies inside the horde. Since Twilight and the girls were telepathically connected to the beasts, they can hear, see, and think everything the zombies do. Naturally, all of the zombies would be sensing the same things, so the link wouldn't bombard the mares' minds. However, since certain zombies were having peculiar thoughts, the mares focused on what was happening.

All six of them were suddenly flooded with images of themselves, but it wasn't them. Those mares were different versions of them. Twilight carrying away an Ursa Major, Rainbow Dash fighting the Elementals, Applejack helping the Appaloosa from Soren's universe, Pinkie Pie comforting her many friends, Fluttershy defending her friends from a dragon, and Rarity feeling guilty for turning her back on Soren.

All six mares opened their now pure white eyes and stared into the sky. Each of them shot out a beam of light that was sent into the zombie horde. The lights hit a zombie then ricocheted off of into another one then another one until every zombie was hit. Simultaneous, the six mares and every zombie fell forward onto the ground; Twilight crash landed since she was flying. The zombies began to dissipate, leaving only a tenth of the amount that was there a few seconds ago. Those must have been the bodies they resurrected, Soren thought.

"We...weren't the ones...that revived them," a voice said with heavy breathing at Soren. He saw Twilight limping herself towards him. Why was she weakened from that and how did she read my thoughts? "These powers. Obviously...they are not...ours. They gave them...to us."

"Who gave you powers?"

"If...you're looking for...magic..." Twilight sat in front of Soren; she still looked menacing in his opinion. "...you'll find them eventually."

"You're all finished, aren't you? I defeated you."

"Yes...you technically did. My spell is...broken. My friends are...no longer willing to...continue. I can hear their...thoughts."

"And mine apparently. But why are you weak?"

"Because that spell...did more than...you think. You didn't just...stop the link. You changed our..." she stopped her sentence. Twilight grabbed her crown, she looked into the six-pointed star, and looked at Soren. She then swung the tip of the star at Soren neck. "See for yourself!" Twilight then passed out.

Blood flowed from Soren's neck as he held it with both hooves. He was laying on the ground, evening his breathing, as his friends and other ponies gathered around him. Bastian pushed everyone out of the way and sat beside Soren. Holding Soren's head, Bastian removed Soren's hooves from his neck, took out a leaf, and placed it on the wound. Soren felt himself losing consciousness. The last thing he remembered was Bastian sprinkling some kind of dust on top of the leaf. That stings...

Later that day, Soren finally came to.

"Did I finally die?" he commented softly.

"I wouldn't be saying things like that, Soren," the Doctor said. "It's not healthy."

"When has my mind ever been healthy?"

"How are you feeling?" Sunny asked. Soren looked around the room he was in. His friends, except Bastian, were with him, and the four of them were still in the church.

"I'm fine but weak. Probably from blood loss. Also, does this town not have a stupid hospital?!"

"I told Bastian it was best that you be left here," the Doctor answered. "Since you have woken up in a hospital so much, I figured doing that again wouldn't be very fun."

"But I was trying to make a world record. I may as well at this point. Too bad I lost track a few months ago. Is the town safe? What happened to Twilight and her friends?" Soren propped his head up slightly to look at the Doctor.

"After the ponies reburied the corpses, which wasn't a pleasant sight let me tell you, we came back and saw that they had vanished. They probably ran off."

"Or~ we probably didn't want the town to kill us." Soren recognized the voice of Rainbow Dash. He slammed the back of his head down onto the pillow. Sudden appearance yet again. Only five of the mares were present; Twilight was not.

"Why are you all here?!" Sunny demanded. "Haven't you done enough damage to this town?"

"Yes we have," Rarity said, "which is why we have come here to tell Soren something." Pinkamena jumped onto the bench further down from the side Soren was laying on.

"Pinkamena, don't you dare," he warned. "We already talked about this." Soren's friends were the only ones confused about that statement. The darkish-pink mare got off the bench but suddenly jumped onto Soren and hugged him.

"You did it! You actually helped all of us."

"What?"

"Tell him girls."

"We...we realized," Fluttershy started, "that we actually had a choice of what to do with our lives." Applejack stepped forward.

"We thought that since those guys gave us powers to be used for evil, we had to be evil all the time."

"But in truth," Rarity added, "we could have stopped at any point. Pinkamena was trying to convince us of that after she let you go. Now we see that she was right. Those five weren't going to come back here anytime soon. We should have stopped a long time ago."

"Dear Princess Celestia," Soren said in his best Twilight impression. "Today I learned that you should trust your friends..."

"I do not sound like that!" Twilight shouted from the entrance of the church. She teleported inside just in time to hear something that sounded like her voice. "I don't know who Celestia is, but you had my voice all wrong." Twilight was back to her normal alicorn state that Soren and Sunny saw when they first arrived in town.

"You're funny when you're angry," Soren laughed. Seeing Twilight's irritated glare, Soren dimmed his laughter down into a snicker.

"How are you feeling, you crazy alicorn?" she said while she smiled.

"No complaints. I feel perfectly fine now. Hey, Doctor, where's Bastian?"

"He said he had to deal with a town issue, so he left. He should be back soon. Unfortunately, Derpy and I will not be staying that long. We just wanted to say goodbye before we left."

"Leaving already? We barely had tine to chat! I haven't seen you in forever."

"Why is that?" Soren gave him a look that said everything. "Timey wimey stuff, got it. Speaking of that, I actually want to do one thing for you before we leave. Care you step inside the TARDIS?" Soren stood up and saw the Doctor's TARDIS onstage. He shrugged, told everyone to wait here, and walked into the TARDIS with the Doctor.

Soren had no idea where the Doctor had just taken him. He was looking at a grassy plain with a sunny sky in the background. It was quite windy; perfect weather for pegasi.

"Why are we here?" he asked.

"Just watch that tree over there," the Doctor replied softly and with a smile. Soren saw a big tree that was casting a somewhat dark shadow under it. He saw a figure laying underneath the tree. It was a middle-aged mare with a rainbow mane, and she was with two fillies.

"That's..." Soren gasped. The Doctor simply nodded. Soren saw a colt and a middle-aged stallion come into view and near the tree. He could hear their voices from the TARDIS.

"Did he enjoy the wind?" Rainbow Dash asked the stallion. Soren saw that it was an older version of himself.

"Of course he did. He's just like you; loves when the wind picks up," older-Soren replied.

"So I guess the girls are like you?" she joked.

"Why not? I can see them being leaders. With their determination and focus, they can do whatever they want."

As Soren watched this normal scene, he felt himself crying. Him...and Rainbow...still together after all those years. The Doctor motioned that it was time to go. Once inside the TARDIS, the Time Lord's smile turned even as he looked at Soren.

"I'm sorry, Soren, but you cannot know how your future will play out." He wasn't expecting Soren's reply.

"I'm perfectly fine with that. Just knowing...just feeling that...is more than enough for me. I needed this, Doctor. Thank you."

"You're welcome." The Doctor grabbed Soren's head and slammed his own head again, knocking Soren to the ground in a daze. Soren gets up as the TARDIS lands in Appaloosa.

"Doctor, why am I crying? And why do I feel happy?"

"I wish I could tell you, but I would have to headbutt you again. Haha."

"I'll take your word for it. Did you take me somewhere outside of Sunny's universe?" He nodded. "You and Derpy were never stuck here were you?"

"No. We just wanted an adventure. Meeting you here was a very nice surprise. You do realize you can leave whenever you want as well."

"I don't want to, not yet. I have to figure out what or who created that rift that brought us here."

"Are you going to close the rift?"

"I'm not sure. I...A part of me doesn't want to, but I know that increases the chances for something to come through to our universe."

"I think things have already gotten through."

"Like?"

"It doesn't matter. Let's see our friends outside." Opening the TARDIS doors, the Doctor and Soren were surprised to see town police waiting for them. Twilight, her friends, Sunny, and Derpy had their flanks against a wall as the townsfolk refused to let them pass.

"Soren Melody, you are under arrest!" the sheriff said.

"If I had a drink, I would spit it right now. What?! On what grounds?!"

"You are to blame for: the chaos by the Evil Ones, creating havoc in town, and second-hoof murder of townsfolk that chose to follow your orders without anypony putting you in charge. Do you deny these charges?"

"I guess I can't."

"Then you are hereby placed under arrest. You will receive a trial tomorrow to determine your punishment."

"He saved your bucking town, you mule!" Sunny shouted. Soren almost chuckled at that random outburst. The sheriff led Soren out of the church and towards the police station. Is there anything I haven't been through? I'm getting arrested, for Luna's sake!

Illegal Hero

The Appaloosa Court House was filled with as many ponies that could be seating inside. The medium sized court room was like any other. An elevated stand for the judge, a lower stand for his stenographer, an equally high stand for anypony called up there, separate seating for the Jury and audience, two areas for the defense and prosecutor, and guards protecting every entrance. The crowd had mixed feelings of wanting justice and realizing this case was unnecessary, but most of the audience leaned towards the former.

His Honor took his seat as he looked at the two ponies who stood before him. To his right was the sheriff, who was the prosecutor, and to his left was Soren, who decided to defend himself. For this case, Soren realized that no pony could defend him better than himself. The Doctor, Sunny, Derpy, and Bastian sat in the front row behind Soren. They were unsure how this trial would end.

"Order in the court!" the judge said as he banged his gavel on the wood. "Let us begin. The prosecution may give his opening statement."

"Thank you, your Honor," the sheriff started. "This pony, Soren Melody, has brought the wrath of the Evil Ones on our heads just because he felt confident enough to take them on. This brought death and destruction into Appaloosa. That is all." The judge nodded.

"The defense may now give his opening statement." Soren nodded.

"Thank you, your Honor. The only thing I can say is that the Evil Ones are no longer evil. I have defeated them and changed their mentality to good. I understand the fact that I am being arrested for my unauthorized authority that ultimately led to deaths of your townsfolk, and I feel awful about that but it had to be done. That is all."

"Are you are saying you are guilty?"

"Of some things, yes, but they cannot deny the fact that I practically saved this town. You lost a lot fewer lives due to my actions than if I left this town to the Evil Ones." The judge nodded and paused for a minute. Finally, he asked:

"Soren Melody, do you know the charges being placed against you?"

"Yes, your honor."

"Do you accept the charges of almost destroying this town?" Soren looked around the courtroom and made eye contact with the dozens of ponies in the room, including his friends.

"May I plead my case to the court?"

"What say you, Jury?" the judge asked, looking at the ten ponies that made up the jury. They silently conversed before one looked at the judge and gave the Jury's answer.

"We will allow the defendant to plead his case on the grounds that if he is still found guilty, his punishment shall be more severe." Soren's friends became more nervous, while he himself didn't flinch.

"What say you, Soren Melody?"

"Let me start from the beginning of my little adventure in your country. Keep in mind, although some of you already know, that I am a time traveler. You heard me right, a time traveler; that's how I arrived here. It all started when I left my own funeral..."

Soren gave a quick summary of his adventures in their Equestria. He explained: how the worlds are a little different, the necromancy, the rift, the Doctor, how he became the Doctor, and why he chose to stop Twilight and her friends.

"As you can see," Soren concluded, "I am used to being put into conflicts. It's practically my job at this point. The Doctor and I help everypony we can. Lives will be lost at some point, but that's life. It isn't fair, I know, but it is better than losing an entire town. I'm sure they would agree. Please, I only wanted to save this town, and I have. I rest my case."

"Thank you for the very...informative backstory, Mr. Melody. Or do you prefer Doctor?"

"My new name is fine, thank you for asking."

"Does the prosecution have anything left to add?" Everypony looked at him as they waited for a response.

"N-No, your Honor." The sheriff gave up and sat down.

"Very well. Jury, you may now deliberate Soren Melody's fate in the back room. We await your response. Everyone return to the courtroom in thirty minutes." The judge banged the gavel to signal recess. After thirty minutes passed, everyone was already seated and waited for the Jury.

"Jury, have you come to an agreement?"

"We have, your Honor. We find the defendant, Soren Melody...not guilty." The audience began cheering, the Doctor and Derpy jumped for joy, and Sunny and Bastian smiled and each clapped their hooves. The cheering was silenced by the sound of the judge's gavel.

"Order! Order! The Jury has not finished yet!" Everyone was now confused. "Continue."

"We find Soren Melody not guilty with the exception that he must leave Appaloosa forever to avoid further destruction." Mumbling could be heard throughout the crowd. Soren smiled.

"I accept your terms," he agreed happily. "I will leave Appaloosa today."

"Very well. Soren Melody, I hereby banish you from Appaloosa. It is strange to punish someone who was found innocent, but your case in quite unique. You are guilty for nearly destroying our town, but you are innocent because you saved it. May Faust watch over you on your journeys." The judge banged the gavel twice and dismissed the court. Everypony exited the building then watched as Soren walked out on his hind legs, smiling and stretching.

"Ahh, that went better than expected," he commented as he landed on all fours.

"Soren!" He turned to see his four friends trotting up to him. The Doctor was the one who called his name. "Congratulations! You were technically found innocent."

"But he is banished," Bastian added.

"Good," Soren retorted. "The judge and sheriff were right; I could have destroyed the town due to angering Twilight and her friends. Luckily, I'm an idiot."

"How is that a good thing?"

"Because he can get away with stupid things!" someone else shouted. The five ponies turned towards the parting crowd that was making way for the no-longer-Evil One. The six mares were looking brighter in color than Soren last remembered. Twilight was with them this time.

"Twilight!" Soren said excitedly. "How are you feeling?"

"Like the town still hates us. Look, I appreciate what you did but—"

"Say no more. Of course, everyone will still fear you girls. It was only yesterday that you sent a zombie horde upon them. If you give them time, if you choose to remain here, they will know that all of you have definitely changed." Twilight nodded with a smile, and Rainbow walked up to Soren.

"We heard you got banished. Is that the worse you got?" Soren shrugged and smiled. "Before you go, I need to thank you on behalf of all of us." She stepped closer. "Since we know you, we know what you have been through, what you have left..." Rainbow sat down, as did Soren, and took his hoof in hers. "...who you have left. And I just want to thank you the way you need to be thanked, especially since I look like your Rainbow." She leaned in to kiss Soren, but he stopped her.

He looked down, almost ready to cry. With her hoof, Rainbow tilted his head up and kissed him anyway. Knowing who it was, Soren began tearing up and kissed back while hugging her tightly. After a few seconds passed, Soren and Rainbow broke the kiss and continued to look at each other. Sunny stepped forward.

"Soren...you should just leave." Soren and Rainbow stood up and looked at her. "Leave this world. Go back home with the Doctor and Derpy. Go back to your friends and Rainbow Dash. There's nothing for you here except agony."

"That's not true," Soren replied as he stood in front of her. "I have you. Plus, this rift wasn't an accident. Something powerful created it. This 'something' gave Twilight alicorn magic, opened a dimensional rift, and is a threat to your world and possibly mine."

"Are you going to close the rift when you defeat that pony?" Soren hadn't thought about that. If he does, he'll have to leave Sunny behind. Or will he?

"We'll see what has to be done. Doctor, I think it's time we all leave."

"Right. Derpy, ready to go? Derpy?" The stallion looked at his companion to see half of her face buried in her hooves as she cried. "Touching moment?" She nodded. He chuckled. "Come on."

"Well Sunny?" Soren started. She looked at him. "Ready to find the pony who can create dimensional rifts?"

"Well when you put it like that. Are you sure you want to keep putting yourself through all of this?" Soren put a hoof on her shoulder as they looked into each other's eyes.

"I'm sure. Oh wait, before we go...Twilight, are you sure you can't tell me anything else about the pony who gave you your knowledge and powers?"

"There's more than one pony, first of all, but the leader of that group is the pony with all of that magic. He's an alicorn as well. Unfortunately, Celestia and Luna do not exist as ponies in this world." Soren was surprised. She must have known I was looking for alicorns, specifically the princesses, when I was surprised that I found one alicorn when I saw her.

"Let me guess, they are literally the sun and moon?" She nodded. "Makes sense. Who are these ponies?"

"You'll find them soon enough. Do not underestimate them."

"I never do that to my enemies. That's when they get the upper-hoof. Thank you for that information, but now we must be going."

"Thank you for helping us," Twilight bowed. Pinkamena now walked up to Soren.

"I know you have a marefriend and all, but how about one last—"

"Pinkamena, no," Soren said. "Down girl. Find someone else." She looked at the stallions of the few ponies that were watching the scene the entire time. The stallions avoided eye contact, but some of them blushed at Pinkamena's sultry eyes.

"Anyway," Soren continued as they began walking away, "I hope I get to see you all at some point in the future."

"The feeling is mutual," Rarity shouted at the departing ponies as they walked towards the church. "If you leave the rift open, you can!" Soren's joy went away after that comment. What was he going to do with that rift?

Home Sweet Home

Ponyville

Soren's Universe

"Why is this in our history book?" Rainbow Dash asked Twilight as they continued to read the book they received a few days ago. "None of this happened in our universe!"

"Maybe this isn't a book from our world. I think Soren is just showing us that he is fine."

"I don't think nearly getting killed by alternate versions of ourselves is considered 'doing fine.'"

"When doesn't he almost get killed?"

"Fair enough." Rainbow looked at the book. "The next section looks interesting." She traced her hoof along the words as she read it. "'Home Sweet Home.'"

Alternate

Universe

"Are you sure you want to find them?" Sunny asked Soren as they flew through the Time Vortex.

"Yes."

"But what if—"

"I know."

"You're going to get—"

"I know."

"Please just—"

"Sunny." Soren didn't yell her name, but she still stopped talking. "Listen, I have done this kind of thing for months. I know what's going to happen to me. I also know that you have to be that strong mare that sang a song for me a few days back. I'm sorry to say that you're crush on me is making you too worried for my safety. I'll be fine. I've been through worse than this world has thrown at me." The TARDIS landed with a thud. "We're here. Are you ready?" Sunny grinned at him.

"You bet your flank I am." Soren smiled, and the duo stepped out of the TARDIS doors.

"As I stepped out of the TARDIS doors, I was surprised by a welcoming sight. Ponyville," Twilight read from the history book. "I was stricken in awe as I knew the final confrontation in my journey was in the same location as my first. My first being against Nyra."

"He's still not over that, huh?" Rainbow asked.

"I don't think he ever will be. Are you?"

"...No."

"It's almost exactly like my Ponyville," Soren commented as the two explored the town.

Almost everything was here, except for some of the buildings his friends lived in, like the library, Carousel Boutique, and Fluttershy's cottage. Sweet Apple Acres and Sugarcube Corner were still present since the town practically thrived off of them, among other stores and important buildings. For once, the atmosphere was bright and sunny. No longer was there dread and somberness.

"Home sweet home," Soren added.

"So the Ponyville you're from is like this?"

"Save a few buildings and my friends. I wonder if my sister is here."

"You have a sister? What does she look like?"

"Light grey coat, dark grey mane, and her cutie mark is a pink treble clef. Knowing this world, I would be surprised to find her here. She's probably in Canterlot."

"Soren...there isn't a Canterlot, remember?"

"*sigh* Right right. Let's just figure out where this magical anomaly is and get this over with." Soren pulled out his sonic screwdriver and began scanning the area. So far, nothing out of ordinary was found. "If I was a pony with incredible magical abilities, I definitely wouldn't be smack dab in the middle of town. Wait here."

Putting the sonic in his mouth, Soren took flight and positioned himself high above town. Some of the townsfolk saw the alicorn fly up then recognized him. Sunny noticed a few ponies walking up to the spot she was at. What are they doing? she thought. Within the minute, Soren flew back down, saw the crowd, and landed next to Sunny.

"I'm actually surprised this hasn't happened sooner. This can't be right..."

"What are you talking about? Why is there a crowd gathered around us?"

"They are fans of mine. Grab my hoof." Shrugging, Sunny gladly did as she was told and held Soren's hoof. Igniting his horn, Soren teleported them to the edge of town. They were in the fields between Ponyville and the Everfree Forest.

"For a world that knows me, I find it odd how this is only the second time out of four towns that a crowd gathered around me."

"Ponies know you? How?"

"I don't know. I met a mare when I first arrived in this world. Her name was Robin, and she told me that my actions were well-known. I was famous."

"But you're from a different universe! That can't be right."

"Exactly. And that's because they don't actually know who I am."

"Now you lost me."

"It may seem like a crazy theory, but I think someone has to be altering their minds."

"What?"

"Think about it. I'm from a different universe. So far, we haven't seen or heard of an alternate version of me. Plus, there is a zero percent chance that he (or she) is exactly the same as me. Not even my friends are the same. We also know that there is a pony in this general area that can create dimensional rifts and give unicorns alicorn powers."

"Even if that pony is altering minds, what would be the point?"

"That's what I can't figure out. A crowd isn't dangerous, merely a distraction. Even then, it's only a minute or two of a distraction. I'm pretty sure this alicorn knows we are here and coming for him or her." Soren pulled out the sonic to once again scan the area.

"My head is starting to hurt."

"Time travel will do that to you. It should pass soon. Aha!"

"Did you find magic?"

"Yes. It's leading into the Everfree. Kind of obviously when I think about it. Let's go!" The two sprinted towards the forest, oblivious to the grey pony that was watching them from a rooftop.

"This is the worst forest I have been in," Sunny complained. "It's very dark and stuffy."

"It definitely has a stranger atmosphere than my Everfree Forest. My only guess is that the magical trail will lead us to the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters."

"Is that Celestia and Luna?" Soren nodded. "I look forward to seeing what their physical forms were."

"Since we're in this world, there probably won't be any pictures of them. Heck, the castle could be entirely different from the other version."

"Owww..." Soren turned towards Sunny and saw her sitting on the ground.

"Is your head hurting that badly?"
She nodded. "Let me see what I can do. My Twilight has been teaching me some basic spells when she can. Hopefully I can help." Soren held Sunny head with both hooves and used his magic to see if anything was wrong. No abnormalities could be found. "I wonder why your head is—Oof."

Soren was knocked to the ground. Opening his eyes, he saw that Sunny was gone. Turning around, he could see a pony levitating Sunny as it ran away with her. Soren immediately gave chase and sprinted after it. Every time he would teleport in front of the pony, it would teleport past or jump over him. Soren decided to give chase on hoof. Why doesn't the pony teleport away for good? It's probably leading me...to here?

Soren's thought trailed off as the pony entered a clearing, Soren following right behind it. He sent a magic bolt at the pony's legs to hopefully trip it. However, another pony teleported in front of the spell, blocked it, then sent a concussive blast at Soren, who noticed it was a crystal pony. He was knocked backwards and landed on his back. He tried to get up as quickly as he could, but he discovered that he was paralyzed.

"Sunny," he groaned as he watched disappear into the brush. Soren strained and was barely able to turn onto his stomach. He attempted to push himself up to no avail. Listening, he no longer heard the running pony or the pony who paralyzed him. Now he was alone and probably lost. He simple lay there for a good minute before hearing something.

"Quite the predicament, is it not?" a male voice said to Soren. He was barely able to lift his head slightly to look at the pony standing before him. He had a light grey coat, a long black mane with a white stripe, and red eyes. This made Soren feel uneasy. Just wait till I can move, you son of a mule...

Shayden

"As I tried to regain my strength, I thought of ending this accomplice," Twilight read, "but little did I know that this pony was definitely not what I had originally expected."

"Who are you?" Soren asked as he readied himself, just now regaining strength.

"Calm yourself. We are two stallions with a common enemy. Should we not work together?"

"Work together? You helped them take Sunny!"

"Of whom are you speaking? The Red mare-friend of yours?"

"Yes. You better tell me where they are going, or I'll treat you as another obstacle in my way."

"Hmm, in your current state? Alicorn or not, you would not pose much of a threat. Even at full strength, you alone might not best me, let alone them."

"Are kidding me?! Do you have any idea what I have fought and defeated? I've defeated the Queen of the changelings, the Elementals themselves, the Mare in the Moon, and basically everything that stood in my way from protecting those I care about. You...you're a bug compared to them."

"So you say. As of now I believe that to be purely an opinion instead of fact. And I know of your excursions; most ponies here do."

"I'm finding that harder to believe. If ponies know me, then I would like to meet me. I'm not from here, yet apparently I have had adventures here already." Shayden sighed.

"Meeting a famous alicorn is quite low on my current list of priorities. The five that took your Sunny are up there, and right now we are wasting time with useless and idle chat. Now would you rather I leave you here or do you want my help?"

"Hmm...how do I know you won't stab me in the back? I wouldn't be surprised given my streak with my adventures. And by up there, you mean the Castle of the Royal Sisters?" Soren looks at the above the trees in the distance. "So you're after them? I hope you aren't expecting to head straight there."

"Given your previous claim of power, betrayal would not bode well for me. I am unwilling to attempt it. And if you deny my help then yes, that is my next destination. Also, it is not the castle of the sisters; it is called the Castle of Faust."

"Right...that Faust character," Soren says as he twirls his hoof in a circular fashion. "If these ponies are as smart as I think they are, then they would want us to show up immediately. I think they can wait another night; it's getting late anyway." Soren sits down and realizes there is a small lake in the clearing they are in. He stares at it then the sky. "We should set up camp. I would appreciate your help tomorrow."

Shayden gives a small growl of frustration. "Fine, but I will not wait too long. I shall NOT let them escape me again!"

Soren pulls out the sonic screwdriver from his mane. "You've been hunting them for awhile now, haven't you?"

"For almost an entire year. Only recently have I found their trail. Heh, I wonder if they even remember me..."

"I take it your previous fights didn't go well." Soren activates the screwdriver, creating a consistent beeping.

"I have yet to fight them. This is the closest I have ever come to catching them." Shayden looks at the screwdriver in curiosity, but doesn't say more. A light groaning sound fills the air. The TARDIS soon lands in front of Soren and Shayden.

"There we go! If you haven't come into contact with them, how would they know you? Give me one second." Soren goes into the TARDIS but leaves the doors open. Shayden looks at the TARDIS, showing no signs of surprise.

"You could say they do not know me, but we have met. Only for two seconds, one year ago. But after what they did, I can only assume that they knew it would affect me." Soren walks out with two rolled up sleeping bags on his back.

"Two seconds, one year ago, and whatever they did affected you? Tonight is going to be interesting, that's for sure. Let's gather some wood for a fire, then we can talk some more."

The two found broken branches on the forest's edge and brought them to their campsite. Soren ignited the bundle as the sun completely set. After finishing their task, Soren and Shayden looked at each other from across the fire.

"So those ponies did something to you, and it was so scarring that you still remember the few seconds of their existence. What happened?"

"What makes you think I want to tell you?"

"Because this is the whole reason you're out here. The Everfree Forest is no joke, however I don't think this version of it is nearly as dangerous as mine. Anyway, you hunted these ponies down nonstop for a year, only to finally catch up to them and have me distract you. You are probably irritated at this point. I'm just curious as to why you are hunting them, but I already have a few guesses."

"There is a reason, and I am not very willing to divulge it to you. You are correct in the assumption that I find you quite irritating. Plus, I have only just met you."

"I've been told that I am very trustworthy. So what was it? Did they pillage your town? Did you witness them hurting a random pony? Did they kill someone close to you?" Shayden winces at hearing the last question. He closes his eyes and says nothing.

Soren's voice becomes softer. "I'm so sorry. If you don't want to talk about it, I won't make you. I've lost a few close ponies myself. I just wanted to see how determined you are, and I can see you are very."

"...Determination doesn't even begin to describe it."

"Oh?" Soren arches an eyebrow.

"I shall put it this way. What has one created when they hurt somepony and give them nothing left to lose?"

"A pony that kills for his revenge. We might not be as different as you think; we have some similarities. We have both been broken to the point where we have nothing to lose and nothing will stand in our way to see justice. The only difference is I recovered from that. I can't say I will approve of you killing them though since I don't know your relationship to the pony who died."

"I cared about her... She was my everything..." His voice lowers. "And you are wrong. I will not kill them." He looks Soren in the eyes and smiles. "That would be too leniant of me." Soren sees the look in his eyes. Insanity? A feeling I'm all too familiar with.

"So was she your love?"

"No. She had adopted me. If you are to understand, I will need to start from the beginning."

"Take as long as you need." Shayden got into a comfortable position and took a deep breath.

"I was born to a quaint little farm with your average loving parents and a single brother. At the impressionable age of seven a large tornado tore through the area, decimating our farm and most of the property. We were left with no place to call home, and my parents decided we were to move to the nearest village.

"Like many of the established towns you have no doubt seen, it was a small gathering of hovels that had managed to establish a school. My parents wanted me to have at least an inkling of a proper education, so I of course attended said school.

"Being of a more... divergent... appearance, I was an immediate and obvious target for the collective persecution of the other fillies and colts of the school.

"As a young colt, I looked much like my mother. Pure white coat with matching mane and tail of a pink color, much the same as the dawn of a new day. Thus, my birth given name was Dawn. Coupled with the family name of Shine, I was in possession of a name and appearance that my schoolmates believed better suited for a filly. And so I suffered for it.

"It began as simple snickering and pointing, but quickly grew to verbal abuse... and eventually to physical attacks. My parents began to notice bruises and one day traveled to the school with me. (*lets out a long sigh, head lowered*) And so hell ensued. While they were in conversation with the teacher, a group of five colts and fillies approached me and began a furious bout of physical abuse. Being a young unicorn, I made the mistake of thinking I could force them back with a simple concussive blast spell... But my emotions overrode my better judgement, over-charging my intended spell... and causing a large scale detonation."

Shayden closes his eyes for a moment as if composing himself

"T-the school contained no survivors... m-my parents included. I woke a few hours later, saw what I had done... the soot silhouettes of my parents... and ran. I did not stop running, but I had direction at first. I had tried running home but it was out of the question. My brother no doubt perished as well due to my folly. So I ran onwards, not stopping until I was unable to retain wakefulness.

"When I awoke next it had been a whole day. I was in a forest and I wept, not knowing what to do nor where to go. I did not move that day and hoped beyond hope that I would not be discovered due to fear of the consequences of the destruction I had wreaked. The next day, I began to look for nourishment of any kind. Water was obtained from puddles on a ground, in which I saw that I did not appear the same. My coat was now a deep gray, probably a side affect of the over charged spell.

"My scavenging lasted for a week, finding foods that appeared edible and sleeping under trees or within caves. Some of the edibles I found were in fact inedible poisons that wracked my body and deteriorated my health. Eventually, I was starved and weak, knowing death was fast approaching. I had wondered quite far, into another forest. I fell over under a tree and broke a leg. After all I had been through... I finally gave up the struggle for life. I then lost consciousness for what I had hoped was the last time.

"I was left with dreams, mostly grim reminders of the previous week. In between dreams I would temporarily regain consciousness and find myself in a basket. Looking up I could see what appeared to be my mother, holding the handle of the basket in her mouth. Upon waking up days later, I was in a new shelter made of dirt walls and a roof made of sticks and dried mud covered with leaves. This mare was not my mother. I now saw she had a lavender mane and matching eyes. Her coat was off white, almost tan. She told me of how she discovered me by chance and that she brought me to her home to help me. At one point, she believed me to be too far gone. But eventually I had supposedly regained wakefulness long enough to consume some food. Afterwards, she confided that I had been in a fever for a week, of which I had no memory.

"Next, she expressed wishes of returning me to my family, a statement that reduced me to tears, which would cause me to stop conversing with her. (*He slightly smiles*) Oh but she was a determined mare and wanted to pierce the veil I was covering myself in. It began with an exchange of names, her's being Lilly. For fear of being recognized, I then created a new identity for myself. From that point on, I called myself Shayden. She believed me, and so I became used to the new name, my old one beginning to sound more foreign and alien as years would pass.

"At first, I refused to use my magic, fearing further death and destruction would ensue. I would help her around her home tending her gardens which supplied her crops. She noticed that I seemed to have an aversion to my own abilities and tried to ask, but I would always refuse to speak of it.

"As previously stated, she was determined. And as such, she began to piece together small details of the past of the mysterious colt that had entered her life. Eventually, she confronted me, after years of living with her. Against my own judgement, I had begun to care for her...which terrified me. All others I had ever cared for have all ended up deceased because of me. Due to my caring of her, I told her everything.

"I expected a response of fear, anger, or hate; to be driven away from her because of a newfound resentment. Luckily, I was wrong. My tale had brought her to tears, and she embraced me. From there, my life became better. We expanded the garden and built an actual house, she talked me into returning to magic, and she raised me to what I am today.

"Eventually, I began to experiment with my arcane capabilities, and smoke as well. My favorite activity was changing their colors for my own amusement. That is also the cause of my mane color, since in practice I had condensed a ball of smoke I had turned jet black into a ball which exploded in my face, dying my mane black.

"Years later, my left fore hoof became the unfortunate victim of another experiment. (*looks down to his prosthesis that Soren hadn't noticed before and smiles, lost in his memories*) I was greatly interested in the malleability of clouds and if I could shape my own body much the same as one. This dangerous trick is evaporation and worked well on inanimate objects like rocks and sticks. I soon thought I was ready to test it on myself, the result was the permanent evaporation of my hoof, and the addition of my prosthesis.

"To alleviate Lilly's fears, since that occurrence nearly caused me to bleed out and die, I ended my tests with that form of nebulous manipulation. We soon just remembered the event as a mistake not to be repeated and to be laughed at. I was not at all affected by the loss of a limb. I was alive and that was all I cared about.

"That thought brought me to a realization: Lilly had me caring for my own life again. She had effectively raised me and healed my mental scars. I was finally happy again.... (*His voice lowers and gains a more sinister/angered tone*) This would not last much longer..."

Shayden took another deep sigh, followed by a sniff. Soren assumed he was close to tears.

"After a trip for supplies to the nearest town, they entered our lives. The lowest life forms I ever had the misfortune to encounter! (*His face had contorted into a half pained, half angered expression*) I-I took a solitary walk and upon returning to the cottage... t-there was... (*closes eyes*) The house was ablaze. Laughter could be heard in the distance, but I ignored it at first. A scream informed me that Lilly was inside, so I ran in and dragged her out."

Shayden now had tears rolling down his face. He continued with disbelief in his voice.

"I-I-I thought it was sweat... from the fire... It was b-blood! It was her blood! THEY HAD TORTURED HER! (*He breathes deep to recompose himself*) I was covered in it... I think. She was miraculously still alive. I held her, hoping she could somehow survive. B-but deep down we both knew there was no way in Faust's cruel world she would.

"As she bled to death in my grasp," Twilight read aloud to her and Rainbow, "she spoke to me. She asked something of me... Her words were 'please, be happy... for me'. Initially I was confused... but I decided to follow her wish. I would be happy. I would achieve this by bringing the murderers to justice."

"Poor guy..." Rainbow muttered with sadness.

"I had decided that they shall pay," Shayden continued. "Most assuredly they will face judgement. Strict, harsh... (*smiles*) "slow... agonizing... (*breathes deeply*) ...torturous...judgement. Why do they need judgement, you ask? Don't make me laugh! Those mules should not go one bloody day without punishment for what they did! Lilly, she... (*Sighs*)

"Those damned... ponies, if you could even call them that, deserve what I will bring unto them. (*His volume constantly increases*) An ever-lasting, chaotic storm that will make Discord himself FALL TO HIS KNEES AND BEG ME FOR MERCY. It is very...very hard indeed to put into words how I feel, what I will do, and what I will never allow myself to do. (*smiles a slightly insane smile*) Do you want to know what I will not do? I WILL not let the bastards escape, I WILL not let them live, I WILL NOT be stopped by you, I WILL avenge Lilly, and I WILL strip the flesh from their bones to make a cloak of their hides that Pinkamena would KILL for! I WILL NOT be the only one to suffer!!!"

Shayden closes his eyes, teeth clenched.

"Every time...Every time I think of those p... No, they do not deserve anything more than a pronoun. They will be crushed under my wooden hoof, mangled by my magic, stabbed by my horn, and choked by smoke. Maybe THEN...will I begin the torture. AND MAYBE THEN...I'll consider killing the buckers... Sending them STRAIGHT TO HELL..."

His tears were falling from his face onto ground.

"Maybe... Just maybe I will be at peace. Just maybe... (*He collapses onto his stomach and begins talking between sobs*) the damned buckers must know... they must know my pain! The HELL I have been through..."

Soren was speechless. Wiping his own tears away, he thinks 'They ruined this colt's life. They will not get away.

Gem Ponies

Author's Note

Songs used:
"Sunday Morning" copyrighted by Maroon 5.
"Boulevard of Broken Dreams" copyrighted by Green Day.

Gem Ponies

"Where...where am I?" Sunny groaned as she sat up. Her head was still pounding; her body shook. And why is it so cold? She looked around the room she awoke in.

There was one wooden door that led out of the room and one window to look outside. Looking out said window, Sunny that saw she was a few floors up and saw a misty canyon next to whatever building she was in. A few candle lit the interior, yet Sunny saw a chandelier with burnt out candles on it. She found herself laying on a bed with a small nightstand next to it and a note laying atop it. Sitting herself up, Sunny picked up the note and read it.

Hello Miss,

We regret to inform you that you have been selected by Master Diamond to join us as we unify our minds into one. Your magic prowess/ability will be an excellent addition to our group! We hope you find your stay to be comfy and relaxing. If you need anything, please ask for assistance. One of our members will gladly help.

"Not signed by anyone? Weird. And it's so formal too. Unify our minds?! But I like my mind." Her volume increased. "Hey! Where are you cowards?!"

"Miss, don't be so loud!" a crystal unicorn mare said as she poked her through the the cracked door. "There's no use being aggressive. It'll only agitate them." Sunny charged at the mare, who simply levitated Sunny off of the ground and plopped her back onto the bed. "Please." The mare stepped into the room and closed the door behind her.

Sunny investigated the crystal mare. She was light red with a dark red mane that flowed down
to her chest; also, she had no cutie mark. She didn't look that much older than her or Soren. This wasn't the pony that foulnapped her.

"Who are you all?" Sunny asked. "What's the point of unifying our minds?"

"Oh, that... That's something to find out soon. It's not so bad; we've done it before. You don't lose your mind in the process."

"Then what? Why is it so important that I have to be involved?"

"Well, Diamond can see all. He sees the ponies that have strong magical potential. He sees you and the stallion you are traveling with. The shattered hero and the burning mare."

"He's coming to save me. The lot of you better make sure you're not in the way."

"I know...but they don't believe me." The mare didn't say more than that; she simply turned away and left the room. Magical aura then surrounded the door after it shut. Sunny knew it was enchanted to stay closed. It wouldn't be a good idea to break free anyway. Who knows how strong those ponies are?

Back at the lake, Shayden's eyes slowly opened. It was morning; he could tell from the blinding sun shining down on him. However, he didn't feel rested. I am up earlier than I would like, he thought. He began to move but heard a light noise coming from the lake. Remaining still but glancing over, Shayden saw Soren standing on his hind legs, pressing his hooves on something. He heard piano keys being played. A keyboard? He didn't have that before. Shayden remained silent as Soren started singing.

Sunday morning rain is falling
Steal some covers share some skin
Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable
You twist to fit the mold that I am in

But things just get so crazy living life gets hard to do
And I would gladly hit the clouds, get up and go if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
That someday it would lead me back to you

Shayden guessed that he was singing about someone he really cared about.

That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Flying slow on Sunday morning
And I never want to leave

Figures trace your every outline
Paint a picture with my hooves
Back and forth we sway like branches in a storm
Change the weather still together when it ends

That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Flying slow on Sunday morning
And I never want to leave

But things just get so crazy even life gets hard to do
Sunday morning rain is falling and I'm calling out to you
Singing someday it'll bring me back to you
Find a way to bring myself back home to you

And you may not know
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Flying slow on Sunday morning
And I never want to leave.

Soren played the last note and stood normally next to the propped keyboard. He heard Shayden walking up to him, so he turned to look at the unicorn.

"That was...beautiful," Shayden commented. "I haven't heard singing so wonderful since Lilly sang me lullabies."

"Do want to give it a try?" Soren asked. Shayden was a little stunned.

"What? No, I couldn't possibly... I can't even sing."

"You don't have to." He walked up to Shayden and put a hoof on his chest. "Every pony has a song within them...even you. I can show you what I mean. Do you trust me?"

"I guess?"

"Good. Now close your eyes and feel anything." Shayden did as instructed as Soren's horn lit up. "What are you feeling? What do you want to project into a song? When you have that feeling, tell me with your thoughts, not your words." Soren closed his eyes, waiting to feel the connection.

Once he felt a spark, he opened his eyes and walked to the keyboard. Folding the prop and levitating both that and the instrument, Soren trotted into the TARDIS. Within the minute, he returned with his electric guitar levitating next to him. Standing on his hind legs again, Soren faced Shayden and the lake. The song began as the first chord was played.

I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know where it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
When the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone up there will find me
'til then I walk alone

Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, aaah-ah
Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah

I'm walking down the line
That divides me somewhere in my mind
On the border line
Of the edge and where I walk alone

Read between the lines
What's bucked up and everything's alright
Check my vital signs
No, I'm still alive and I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone up there will find me
'til then I walk alone

Shayden was impressed. "You are a singer, a musician, and you can sing a song based on what ponies are feeling?" Soren nodded. "Listening to that song...it is hard to imagine that I lasted this long staying sane."

"You fought to stay sane. You chose to fight on."

"But what's the point of waking up if you find yourself in the dark?"

"To escape the nightmares that your mind will feed you."

"Nightmares come in reality as well."

"But those can be defeated."

"What if they can't?"

"Then I'll make them lose for once."

"How?"

"I'm me."

"Who exactly are you?"

"I used to be the Doctor. Time and space bend to my will...to an extent."

"To an extent?"

"Fixed points in time and all that. It doesn't matter. What matters is that we should get moving. We have a date with a few crystal ponies."

"I do not plan to have dinner with them." Soren sighed and face-hoofed.

"Shayden...expression."

"I know. I was merely testing how you would react. You did poorly."

"I think he did well," a new voice commented. Soren sighed even harder.

"Again with ponies appearing out of nowhere!" he exclaimed.

"Well it was your singing that probably lured them here," Shayden bluntly replied. The two looked at the two crystal unicorn mares standing before them.

"Shut up," he told Shayden. "I'm also irritated that crystal ponies show up everywhere. Not even these two have cutie marks! Is that a thing with crystal ponies? Anyway, what do you girls want?"

"We're here to bring you to Master, of course," said the green mare with a dark green mane. "My name is Jade, and this is Topaz." She gestured to the yellow mare with an orange mane.

"There's no way the Master is in this universe."

"Of course he is. Who do you think has been watching you all this time? Master Diamond will be please to meet your acquaintance."

"Master Diamond? Ok, so it's not the Master. I doubt he died and regenerated. And what if we refuse to follow you?" Soren looked at Shayden, who was gripping the dirt with his hooves and was slightly gritting his teeth. He wants a fight.

"Then I will have to ask you one more time to cooperate, or else we will take you there by force."

"Then force me." Soren readied himself. Jade sighed but smiled.

"I guess it's time to have fun." Her horn ignited.

"If you want fun, meet Pinkie Pie." Soren charged at Jade, who retaliated by throwing pony-sized rocks at him. He teleported away and reappeared behind Topaz. The yellow mare turned but was suddenly thrown at Jade, who caught her friend with telekinesis.

"Annoying foal," Topaz growled. After being put on the ground, she sent a pillar of fire at Soren. The fire, however, was being sucked towards another source. Shayden. He brought the smoke to him and swirled it around himself. He then thickened it and threw stream after stream at the two mares. They managed to dodge most of them but were hit by two or three. The streams cut their coats when it impacted.

Now it was Soren's turn. Realizing Jade and Topaz used Earth and Fire magic respectively, he was going to use spells they couldn't easily stop. He created a flowing stream of water from the lake and sliced it multiple times like a sword at Topaz. With her fire, she tried to create enough mist to hide and evade, but Shayden would always bring it to his person then send it at Jade, who easily protected herself with rocks. With a major blast of water, Soren sent Topaz to the ground. He nodded at Shayden, who teleported to Topaz and switched his focus onto her.

In the break of action, Jade took the opportunity to throw a boulder at Soren. The boulder knocked him to the ground and crushed one of his hind legs. He screamed in pain but immediately shot a lightning bolt at Jade. She tried using rocks to block the spell, but the bolt exploded through the rocks and blasted Jade to the ground. Now wobbly from his broken leg, Soren stood up on his other three legs and faced Jade.

"No wonder Master Diamond wants you. Your magic will be invaluable. Such diversity!"

"I don't care. I'm stopping him. He created the rift, didn't he?!"

"Soren..." Shayden called out worriedly. Soren looked to him and saw him backing up in slight fear. Topaz was acting strange. Her mane was giving off heat! She stood up and now Soren was a little worried. Her mane was now pure fire, her eye color the same, and her grin was wicked. Soren knew that eye color...

"Hello again, Soren," Topaz said in a familiar voice as she charged him. "Don't you recognize me?!" She threw a punch as she said each word. Soren dodged all but the last one. "I'm your pal the Fire Elemental. You didn't think universes would keep me from exacting my revenge, did you? I possessed this mare so I can end you once and for all."

"Why?! I defeated you!"

"You should have killed me. Now I'm going to kill you!"

"We both know you four can't die. Don't make me do this."

"Kill her or suffer!"

"Burn with me." Soren hugged Topaz and touched his horn to hers then tried to absorb the magical heat coming from her mane. Since Soren had no hope of handling such magic, this caused a white ball of light to form at the tips of their horns. It grew bigger and bigger until it developed both Soren and Topaz. A female yell was heard; Shayden used his remaining smoke to create a shield, as did Jade with her rocks. A massive fire explosion rocked the clearing, singeing the trees at the forest's edge and most of the grass in the clearing.

Shayden and Jade dropped their shields and looked at the two ponies still in each other's grasp. Upon a closer look, both ponies were unconscious and burned. A few seconds passed and both fell backwards and landed on their backs.

"Soren!"
"Topaz!"

Shayden and Jade rushed to their respective teammates then made eye contact.

"I will help him if you help her," Shayden bargained. Jade hesitated, looking at her injured friend. She gritted her teeth.

"Fine!" she finally blurted and teleported away with Topaz. Shayden looked at the unconscious and burned Soren.

"Fool. I went through psychological hell for as long as I remember, but you...you torture your body and soul just to protect. Why?" Soren coughed and breathed hard for air.

"Because it *cough* let us *cough* win." He coughed multiple times and grimaced in pain.

"How are we supposed to defeat them now?"

"You think I didn't have...a plan?" he grinned, still taking deep breaths to recompose himself. "Take me to...the TARDIS."

"Unless you have a medical bay in there, I do not see how that will be helpful other than the use of transportation." Soren grinned at him. "You have got to be joking..."

It took at least half an hour but Soren managed to let his broken leg heal. It will be sore but at least he can use it. His skin healed slightly, still damaged from the second-degrees burns, but it wouldn't hinder him. Stepping out of the Zero Room, Soren stretched and looked at Shayden.

"Not entirely healed but we don't have a lot of time to waste."

"Why not? Could you not fully heal so we have a bigger chance of winning?"

"Nope. As you may have forgotten, they have my friend, Sunny. She's in danger as far as I'm concerned." He opened the TARDIS doors.

"Couldn't we simply travel there in this?"

"Do you know the layout of the forest?"

"No."

"Neither do I, and neither does she. So...we're walking there."

"She?"

"The TARDIS."

"Soren...it is an inanimate object." The TARDIS made a deep groan.

"You might want to apologize to her."

"Umm, sorry, Miss TARDIS?"

"Good boy! Now come on. We've wasted enough time!"

Regret

Author's Note

Song used:
"Titanium" copyrighted by David Guetta (feat. Sia)

Regret

"Actually wait..." Soren stopped in the doorway. "We need to do something first." With an even expression, Soren trotted to the console then looked at Shayden. "So where did you and Lilly live?"

"...The Everfree." Soren paused. The very place they were at.

"I..."

"No need to say anything. Why did you need that information?"

"Right...I needed it for this." Soren pulled levers and pressed buttons, and the TARDIS made a light groan as it departed. One minute later, the machine landed. He took them about ten years in the past. Soren trotted to the doors and gestured for Shayden to walk through. He was a little confused but left the blue box.

He found himself in the Everfree but in a different location; a familiar one. In the short distance, he could see his and Lilly's cottage, fully intact. He began to run over to it but Soren teleported him back to the TARDIS.

"Don't. Just watch."

"B-but how? I left it in cinders and smoke! What happened?"

"Time travel happened. Look." Lilly walked out of the cottage then happily attended to her garden with a younger Shayden helping her.

Shayden fell onto his haunches, tears rolling down his face. "...why? Why are you showing me this?"

"In order to move on, one must have no loose ends. They must make peace with everything in their past. Plus...you need to try and feel joy again."

Shayden tried to fight his tears. "...this seems more like a torture session... There she stands and I am unable to speak to her?"

"I'm sorry, but you cannot disturb your timeline. Shayden, be happy to see her again. Not many ponies have that privilege with their loved ones."

He looked at Soren with pained eyes, the look quickly changing to understanding. He then looked back at Lilly. "...fine. She's so... happy... Blissfully ignorant of what is in store for her future. There I am beside her. Heh, still with all four hooves." He lowered his head. "Equally unaware."

"Death happens to all of us. We are both lucky enough to survive it at least once. We get to better ourselves and those around us because of that. Feel glad, for that is the pony you are about to avenge. We can leave whenever you are ready." Soren leaned against the TARDIS.

"Just... Just give me a moment. Please..." Soren wasn't sure he could trust Shayden from not running to Lilly. After quickly debating in his head, Soren walked into the TARDIS, leaving the doors open.

Five minutes passed and Shayden sauntered back in. He sighed. "So full of life..." He wiped away his tears. "If only it could have lasted. We have waited long enough. Return us to our time." Shayden walked to the railing and leaned on it, facing away from Soren. Soren worked the console again, not looking away from it.

"I'm still not over Nyra's death...not even after her spirit said she forgave me. She can forgive me, but I can't forgive myself, even though it wasn't my fault that she died. Do you blame yourself for not being there to save her?" Shayden fell to his stomach, mumbling to himself, seemingly oblivious to Soren's question.

Assuming something is wrong with him, Soren walked over. "Shayden?" He still didn't seem to hear Soren. Shayden curled into a fetal position, a new torrent of tears falling onto the TARDIS floor.

"Why her? Why why why why WHY?!"

"Shayden." Soren put his hoof on the unicorn's shoulder, but he didn't react. Between sobs, more rambling was heard.

"...I could have saved her... Should have known, SHOULD HAVE KNOWN... All my fault, should have known... Could have stopped it, should have stopped it, did not stop it!"

That's it! Soren thought. He grabbed Shayden and held him up so they could look at each other. "Shayden! Get a hold of yourself! Look at you! You've broken down from seeing the pony you care about the most. Would it have been better if I showed you her death again?!"

Shayden looked him in the eyes. "It should have been me!" He forcefully placed his front hooves on Soren's shoulders. "Me not her, me not her, me not her..." He kept whispering the line. Soren sighed...and smacked Shayden to the ground. The unicorn became quiet now, save for the occassional sob. "Why must there be evil in this world..." He looked at Soren. "It's not fair! She did not deserve what happened to her."

Soren sat in front of Shayden, putting one hoof on his shoulder. "Neither did Nyra. Neither does anypony that dies or becomes gravely injured from evil ponies. The most we can do is stop any evil we come across so there's less danger in the world... No matter the cost." Soren's eyes widened, his ears perked straight up, and the rest of his body stiffened. "That's it...that's my virtue."

Shayden's breathing evened out a little, still slightly ragged. He lowered his head and didn't speak. Soren hugged him and patted his back. "You're ok. Let it out if you have to. Just...don't lose yourself." He walked to the console. He landed the TARDIS then walked over to the doors, looking back at Shayden. "Need more time?"

He took a few deep breaths and looked up, "I believe I'm fine now... Thank you."

"No problem. Prepare yourself because the remainder of the day will not be fun."

Castle of Faust

Sunny was bored. Sure, she was captured, but she wasn't doing anything! She managed to find a ball in the nightstand drawer, so she spent the next half hour bouncing it off her hoof to the wall which then bounced off of the floor so she could continue the cycle. After the ball once again chose not to bounce high enough to clear the end of the bed, Sunny gave up. I'd rather fight whoever is out there than sit here the whole time. I feel like a damsel in distress...a princess locked in a tower waiting for my Prince Charming. Maybe I am though. Soren would fit the role nicely~.

The sound of knocking caused Sunny to instantly prop herself up. The red mare from before poked her head inside again.

"Miss Star? May I come in?" her rather innocent voice asked politely. Sunny was a little thrown off by that.

"Sure?" The mare walked in and shut the door.

"I finished an errand for Master Diamond and had just returned to my post, which is to guard your door. I figured you might be lonely or bored, but I also sense you are sad."

"What makes you say that?"

"You have had time to think. Also, because of this..." the mare tapped her half-horn, "...I can sense unease or discomfort in anypony, among other things. It is nothing major, but you could do with getting some things off of your chest."

"I guess I can. Wait, why should I trust you?"

"Well, I guess I can start by introducing myself. My name is Ruby. It is a pleasure to meet you, Sunny Star."

"Honestly, you don't seem like the kind of pony that foulnaps other ponies for some unity thing."

"So I've been told by Lapiz and Jade."

"Are all of you named after gems?"

"I am not sure if it was coincidence or not. It just worked out that way. I'm positive Topaz and Lapiz changed their names to match gems to fit in with me, Diamond, and Jade. For us three, those are our birth names."

"That's cool. So Diamond is the 'master' of all of you? What is his long term goal in all of this? And how did you find a pony like that and join him?"

"Diamond's goal is to strengthen all of us with his magic. By unifying ourselves with capable magical beings, we are able to receive their powers and in exchange, we give them something helpful to their lives." I highly doubt that, Sunny thought. "Topaz was somehow blessed with pure fire. Diamond said it was a gift from the Fire Elemental herself."

"I heard a worried voice that kept calling for Topaz as she was being taken somewhere." Ruby sadly nodded

"Topaz was injured from an encounter from Soren."

"About him. You said the others wouldn't listen to your warnings about Soren. Do you know him?"

"I...we all know him. Master tells us everything he finds out about our targets. We even know you are a great singer. May I request something? Singing is a good way to show emotion or pain. Maybe you could sing a song to relieve such pain?"

"Why not? I'm bored and could use a song right now. The only thing I feel like...I'm a burden to Soren. I thought I could be strong to follow him through these adventures. Guess not."

Ruby told her to wait one second before teleporting out of the room, which caused the shield to appear over the door. After a few minutes, she reappeared with an wood-painted electric guitar levitating next to her. Ruby sat on the bed and looked at Sunny expectantly.

"What? You don't even know what I'm going to sing." Ruby tapped her horn and smiled. Sunny sighed. Unicorns...

Sunny signaled for Ruby to play, so she began playing a few notes. Meanwhile, Sunny draped her forelegs over the windowsill, looking into the night longingly.

You shout it out,
But I can't hear a word you say
I'm talking loud, not saying much
I'm criticized but all your bullets ricochet
You shoot me down, but I get up

I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium

Sunny pushed away from the window and found herself immersed in the song. Everything else was shut out, except the guitar.

Cut me down
But it's you who'll have further to fall
One side mind and weakened love
Raise your voice, sticks and stones may break my bones
I'm talking loud not saying much

I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
I am titanium
I am titanium

She looked at the crescent moon outside and imagined a bust shot of Soren inside the dark part of it.

Stone-hard, machine gun
Firing at the ones who run
Stone-hard as bulletproof glass

You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium.

Sunny kept her sad expression as she moved away from the window to look at Ruby, who was moved by the song.

"How did he make you feel that way?" Ruby asked.

"He changed my life, but things prevent me from helping him."

"The same happened to me as well."

"Wha—"

BOOM!

Both mares froze from the deep explosion coming from down below. Within seconds, the door to the room burst open and in ran a blue crystal unicorn buck with a matching blue mane. The only way to tell it was his mane was the sparkling white dots. "Ruby! All of us are needed on the main floor. Lock the door and let's go!" Ruby glanced back at Sunny then did what she was told. Sunny smiled when they were gone.

"About time you got here."

Soren and Shayden exploded the ten ft. tall doors off of their hinges and jumped inside lobby of the castle. They were greeted by lovely decorations, clean furniture, polished statues and porcelain, and three crystal ponies at the top of a staircase on the opposing side of the room.

"Welcome, friends!" greeted a white, crystal alicorn with a shiny, silver mane. "So glad you could finally join us!"

"You're Master Diamond, I presume? I've been searching everywhere for the pony that brought me to this universe."

"Look no further. I'm sure Jade and Topaz have explained why I wanted you here."

"Actually, no. I refused their offer of escorting me here, so fighting came at lightning speeds."

"Ahh, then I guess I will have to explain it. For years, we have invited ponies with tremendous magical abilities to join us. To become part of one big family. The world has many evils that cannot be bested alone, so I have taken it upon myself to train unicorns to combat these dangers without the need of help. I take ponies with strong magic and join their minds to mine, taking hold of their abilities and scattering them to the appropriate one of my friends you see before you...however, we seem to be missing two at the moment." Diamond looked around at the room then to Topaz and Jade, who both shrugged.

"We're here! We're here," Lapiz shouted. "Had to grab Ruby and make sure the prisoner wouldn't escape."

"Oh yeah, another thing," Soren began with a little more energy. "You captured my friend and I would like to have her back." Diamond chuckled.

"I'm afraid she was selected to become a part of us, as are you and your friend there." Soren glanced at Shayden then had to fully stare at him because of how he looked. He was emanating smoke from his eyes and hooves as he slightly growled. Shayden...don't lose yourself again.

"I appreciate the offer, but I came here for Sunny and some answers."

"What kind of answers?"

"Answer about the dimensional rift you created and what you have been sending through it!"

"Haha, a smart pony indeed! However, your puny mind couldn't handle the truth."

"Ponies have also said I couldn't defeat them, but look at me now!" Soren was losing his patience fast; he was going to get his answers one way or another.

"They weren't as strong as me and you know it. Enough small talk! I will give you one last chance to join us or be destroyed." Soren smirked.

"I'll let my friend answer that." Shayden's horn lit up.

"Wait!" Ruby yelled at Diamond. "Just give him his friend, Master! This will not end well."

"We've already been over this, Ruby! This needs to be done or all of you could die."

"There has to be another way!" Soren flinched at her voice; she sounded familiar.

"Look at him, Ruby." Diamond saw Soren flinch. "He's catching on. Tell him." He spoke to Soren. "Look at this mare! Can you not see what she is?" How did Soren not see it before? The name, the color scheme...the half horn on her head...

"You're..." Soren gasped.

"Hello, Uncle." Then the entire staircase collapsed.

Unity

"Ruby!" Soren shouted as he held a hoof out. He looked at the angered Shayden. "They weren't doing anything yet!" Shayden had enough time to transform all of the supports to the staircase into smoke, collapsing the structure and bring the crystal ponies down with it.

"Good! I prevented them from delivering the first strike. Enough talking, time for action!" Soren grabbed him on the shoulder with one hoof and pointed his other hoof at his chest.

"You don't ever hurt Ruby again, do you understand me?" he warned in a dark voice, which Shayden noticed.

"She is with them now. If she tries anything against us, it will be her funeral."

"I don't care. I'll make sure you're buried first before she dies." The rubble was blasted aside, revealing a mildly irritated Diamond.

"Now that was uncalled for, but I guess this is a good way to start the fight as any. Say your prayers, Soren Melody."

"I pray to the princesses of my world! Where are yours?!" he yelled as he sent fireballs at Diamond. The crystal pony created hovering whirlpools of water to eliminate the attack. He then sent a tidal wave towards Soren and Shayden. The two teleported away and reappeared at separate parts of the room. Soren was facing Diamond while Shayden faced Jade and Lapiz. Topaz and Ruby were just now freeing themselves. We are so outmatched, Soren thought. Sunny...I need you.

Diamond sent magic bolts at Soren's face, but Soren ducked fast enough to let one shoot through his mane. He retaliated by levitating the floor underneath Diamond and throwing him in the air. The leader of the group recovered with his wings and grinned.

"Right...alicorn." Shaking his head as if disappointed with himself, Soren cracked off chunks of the ceiling to drop them on Diamond, who easily dodged or destroyed them. He then teleported in front of Soren, turned around, and kicked him. Before Soren could hit the ground, Diamond teleported in front of his path and hit him again. Teleport, hit, teleport, hit. All without letting Soren touch the ground.

"ENOUGH!!!" shouted Soren as his eyes flashed white for an instant and casted a concussive blast, sending Diamond reeling for a bit. Soren was already bruised. He glanced at Shayden, and, after seeing that his friend was fighting three opponents at once, growled in irritation.

Just then, a random fireball landed in the middle of Jade, Lapiz, and Topaz. Diamond, Soren, and Shayden looked at the incident in surprise. An angry mare landed behind the three ponies fighting Shayden. Sunny! Soren glanced at Ruby, who was standing at the entrance of the left hallway upstairs, smiling down at him. She must have freed her!

"You idiots wanted me to give up my magic just so you could have it?!" Sunny yelled. "Well then, let me show you how to use it!" Her body transformed into fire. Once she was 'Blazing Sun,' she snorted black smoke out of her nostrils and sprinted towards the three crystal ponies. Shayden also took this opportunity to blast Jade with his few known fire spells. He then used the smoke from said spells to bombard the group with piercing streams.

Soren and Diamond faced one another again; Diamond was quicker on the response as he punched Soren square in the nose. Soren wiped his nose on his leg. No blood yet, he smirked. He created a box around Diamond that was made of the stone floor. Soren then quickly built up a large fireball and shot it at Diamond, who had just demolished the box. The fireball impacted, sending him sliding on his hooves halfway down the room. Soon, laughter could be heard.

"I see you and I are a somewhat even match. Let me show you just how strong our unity has made us. Friends! Join me!" Every gem-named pony teleported away from their fight to join Diamond's side; Diamond had to teleport Ruby to them.

The leader closed his eyes, and the others mimicked him absentmindedly. All five horns lit up with colors that matched their respective coats. Lights flowed from their horns and created clouds of the same colors. They mixed together to create a bright white sphere. The five ponies levitated while the sphere grew to the size of three ponies. Once the white sphere reached critical mass, all of it shot into Diamond. All five ponies fell to the floor; the only one to pick himself up was Diamond, who was surging with power. The bodies of his friends were seemingly being absorbed by him.

Soren's own friends ran up to him as he scanned his opponent. Diamond's entire body was coated in diamonds, his eyes were pure white, his grin was pure confidence with a tinge of insanity, and his coat had faintly-colored souls floating around inside. His height was now almost twice as tall as Soren's. He has never seen such power fused into one pony. How could he even hold it?!

"I'll give you your answers, Soren. At least you will be at peace when I kill you and take your powers. In every adventure you were on, you blinded yourself. Appaloosa... blinded by anger from your Rainbow Dash being hurt. Battle of the Nyrs...blinded by giving second chances. The Master, Chrysalis, the Elementals, Coyote Colt...in every battle you were blinded by your loss of mercy.

"Can't you see? You were never able to discover who you were because you were so focused on trying to do good, trying not to cause harm, and trying to run away from your problems. That's who you are, Soren Melody. You're a desperate pony who simply thought his title of Elemental Guardian gave him the responsibility to do good. There is no such thing as the Elemental Guardian. The Elementals know it, your princesses know, and in a way, you do as well. It never meant anything. Your princesses simply used you as an experiment, or as a weapon; I still haven't figured that out.

"I played with your world as I did with mine. I sent Twilight and her friends to wreak havoc and take control of my world. I sent chaos to rain hell upon your pathetic, happy world. Every time you stopped it, but every time you took a step closer to me. A step closer to the truth."

Sunny and Shayden watched as Soren gritted his teeth and caused the ground around his hooves to slowly crack.

"I. Am. Your. God. I control what happens in both worlds. I can cause anything to happen. I brought Cain into Equestria by summoning him with dark magic. I resurrected Nightingale to capture our powerful, traitorous Ruby. Nightingale's nova surge killed herself and knocked Ruby unconscious. I found the site before anyone else and gathered the remains of the mother to resurrect her later. Then I talked Ruby into joining us so we could find you. You and the Doctor always seem to show up to stop evil, especially when your friends are involved. The universe tends to let you find allies when you least expect it. Surprisingly, I can't prevent that, even with my god-like powers.

"Oh, another thing that may surprise you: when Rainbow Dash explained that she didn't try to kill Nyra, she was telling the truth. Her aim was off on purpose...but I made it hit that pathetic bat pony. I also helped the Fire Elemental into your mind at Appaloosa so she and the others would learn your fighting styles. Unfortunately, that was too early before your actual fight with them, therefore you learned new tricks.

"I think my favorite part was aiding in Nightmare Moon's return. With a mixture of Luna's nightmares, her old Nightmare Moon armor, some dark magic, and general hatred and jealously from other ponies, I was able to aid the spirit of the mare of the moon to come back. Unfortunately, her spirit was still very weak; that was how you defeated her.

"So you see, Soren, I own you. I see everything you do and can send more your way without even breaking a sweat. Everything in your life was seen by me, and no TARDIS or title of Guardian will change that. What will you do now?"

"Break your fucking neck." Soren's horn cackled with electricity and his eyes burned white fire. He tore hoof-sized bits of stone from the floor and circled them around his body. He also created a sphere of rushing air mixed with lightning and fire, and created make-shift ice armor for himself. "Your power means nothing!!!" Soren flew like a bullet at Diamond's chest, sweeping up the huge alicorn and throwing him through the wall at the back of the room.

Diamond quickly returned to the hole in the wall and breathed fire into the entire area. Maintaining his angry and intense expression, Soren landed next to Shayden and Sunny, who both looked at him with worry. He created a stone shield with a gust overshield to protect them. Once the temperature dropped, Soren tossed the stone into the air, broke it into pieces, and sent needles of it towards Diamond.

The leader of the crystal ponies blocked them with his left foreleg alone then threw a medium-sized ball of electricity at Soren. The white alicorn defended himself by shooting a pillar of water straight through the ball, which didn't falter in its path but did conduct the water heading straight for Diamond. Both spells hit their assigned target. Soren was harmed by the electricity, but Diamond was harmed even more by the water mixed with electricity. Both fell down; Soren landed in the middle of the room, and Diamond next to the hole in the wall.

Eventually, Soren picked himself up. He heard muffled shouts coming from his friends. Looking forward, he saw Diamond flying and yelling at him. The giant alicorn tackled Soren back to the ground and attempted to slam a fiery hoof into his chest. Soren managed to use both hooves to stop it, but Diamond's hoof was much stronger and began slowly getting closer and closer.

"Soren!" Sunny shouted as she ran over to him. However, she was suddenly levitated. Looking behind her, Sunny saw that Shayden, with his now ghostly eyes and a partially open mouth, was levitating her. She turned back to Diamond. "Leave him alone! Please!" Sunny felt tears beginning to form.

"It's ok, Sunny," Soren strained with a smile, eyes still glowing. "It'll hurt to watch...but it has to happen. He doesn't know...that I'm trying...to—" The words were stolen from his mouth as Diamond's fiery hoof plunged deep into his chest.

"NOOO!!!" Sunny's scream echoed throughout the room. Crying, she stared at Soren, whose head was bent back with his mouth wide open. The white left his eyes, and he looked like he was screaming without a voice. Shayden fell to the ground, now unconscious, and Sunny sat down and continued to stare at Soren in disbelief. No...no...he can't be dead. He can't be dead! "SOREN!!!" she sobbed as she held herself.

"So much for being a hero," Diamond laughed. He looked at the weeping Sunny and began walking over to her. He was stopped by the sound of laughter coming from behind him. Turning around, Diamond saw Soren laughing and struggling to pick himself up. He was clutching the hole in his chest as ashes fell from it, but he didn't seem to care.

"Tell me, Diamond," Soren started with a grin as he refused to look up. "Just how powerful are alicorns? Are they...over powered? Or do they merely get their magical strength from the lives that in danger?" Soren looked up at Diamond to reveal his now intense, insane, yellow eyes. "I'd like to think that any unicorn can do the same! I've seen it!" Sparks of green magic crackled around Soren's body.

"S...Soren...?" Sunny sniffed, her voice now filled with worry.

Author's Note

I told myself, "Screw it. I'll just post the last five chapters at once."

Family

Shayden's eyes creaked open; his body was weak from the mind control spell that was used on him. All he could do was lay there and watch as two alicorns fought each other. One had a hole in their chest that had almost pierced through! Was that Soren?

Soren, with his crazy grin of determination, limped towards Diamond as fast as he could. The bigger alicorn gave one 'heh' and levitated Sunny over to him. Holding her with one foreleg, he created an ice blade and, with his magic, held it to her throat.

"Don't think I won't do it, alicorn."

"Kill her; see if I care," Soren commented immediately and without interest of Sunny's well-being.

"WHAT?!" Sunny exclaimed with horror.

"However if you do kill her, your death will just be that much more painful. I doubt this entire forest will be standing five minutes after Sunny's death."

"Very well then," Diamond said as he tossed Sunny over by Shayden. The drained unicorn looked at Sunny and mouthed the words 'Help him' as his horn lit up. Meanwhile, Diamond readied himself as Soren continued to walk to him.

Diamond stomped on the ground, tilting a chunk of the floor up and flinging Soren into the air. He caught him and threw him straight down into the ground. Soren created an indent in the ground that fit his figure. Groaning, Soren quickly stood up and growled. He heard a crack of air behind him and noticed that Sunny was now there. She smiled at him as she turned into Blazing Sun once again. A lightbulb went off in Soren head; he focused on the green electricity around him and brought it to his horn. As his horn shined brighter, his body started to coat itself in ice. Pretty soon, he turned himself into an ice pony. Soren grinned at Diamond then faced Sunny.

"I'm sorry," he said as he hugged her. A supernova of light filled the room, blinding Diamond and Shayden. When the light finally dissipated, Diamond and Shayden saw that Soren and Sunny were fused together. In their place stood a pony made of blue and red fire with brilliant yellow eyes and a yellow mouth.

Diamond was unsure how to feel about this, but it didn't matter to him. He created another tidal wave and sent it at the pony. The wave crashed through his target, but the pure blue fire pony continued to walk towards him. The pony then changed to purely red and slammed its hooves to the ground, creating many pillars of fire that rose from the ground in the direction of Diamond. He was bombarded with a few pillars but held his ground.

Suddenly, Diamond felt sections of the floor give out from under him; his hooves were now stuck in holes. He looked back and made eye contact with a grinning Shayden. 'No pony controls me,' his eyes seem to say. Looking back at the purple fire pony, Diamond's eyes widened as he saw it begin rolling forward. It picked up speed and cackled with blue electricity as its body was surrounded in a wheel of fire. The spinning wheel moved swiftly across the ground, rolled up Diamond's leg, and slammed into his chin. The alicorn's head was knocked back and his hooves broke free from the stone. Diamond landed on his back.

The fire pony turned blue once again and summoned dozens of icicles. When Diamond lifted his head, the fire pony threw all of them at him. Diamond teleported away, but when he reappeared elsewhere, the icicles that didn't hit the wall curved around and aimed at him again. This time they impacted. At least eight were lodged into his body, making him stumble. Every movement created pain, but Diamond wasn't down yet.

He summoned thunderclouds inside the room and aimed every lightning bolt at the fire pony. The pony turned red, and the bolts went through it. Not a single one made contact. The pony did something new; it turned purple then turned transparent. It floated over to Diamond, who created a strong gust from the clouds to blow the pony away. It was working, until Shayden took chunks from the clouds, turned them into smoke, and used them to strike Diamond in the legs, faltering his focus.

The purple cloud pony reached Diamond and flew into his nostrils, mouth, and ears. Once inside, the nebulous pony turned red and began to cook the insides of Diamond. The alicorn clutched his chest, stomach, and everything as he instinctively tried to rid his body of the pain. Diamond eventually fell onto his back, dying.

The fire pony left his body and rematerialized by Diamond's head. Another supernova of light later and Soren and Sunny were separated. Both fell over, but only Sunny was unconscious; Soren was just very weak.

"I told you...your power...means nothing," Soren strained, still clutching his chest which was merely a deep burn now.

"If you kill me, the rift will always be open," Diamond muttered with weak breaths. "What's it going to be? The rift or me?"

"At first...I didn't know what I wanted. But now...the answer is easy." With his last bit of magic, Soren pulled out an icicle from Diamond's leg and turned it into an ice sword. His horn popped with sparks constantly, but he didn't care. He walked up to Diamond's head, looked him square in the eyes, and brought the sword down without hesitation. He turned from the body as the head rolled away.

Another explosion of light occurred and four crystal ponies took the place of Diamond. Soren looked at all of them; none were moving. He limped as fast as he could to Ruby then held her.

"Ruby? Ruby, c'mon, speak to me. Please!" She coughed loudly and opened her eyes slightly.

"Hello again...Uncle."

"Are you alright?" She shook her head.

"We aren't meant to die in unity. I guess...this is the consequence." She motioned her hoof at Jade, Lapiz, and Topaz crawling or struggling to stand but instantly falling down.

"Are you all going to...?"

"Yes...sadly. But at least...*cough* I got to see you again. That's the real reason I joined." Her smile combined with her barely open eyes brought Soren to tears. Not again! Not like Nyra!

"W-What about Robin? Why did you leave her?" Shayden joined Soren's side. Ruby coughed with more force.

"Why did you leave the rift open?" she asked in a voice so sweet that it caused Soren to feel like his heart was being ripped out. It reminded him of when she was a filly.

"Because...I had to. If he closed it...I wouldn't be able to return home." He sniffed. "I've been on a downhill spiral ever since I left. I-I need to go back to the friends that kept me sane."

"That's good," she whispered. "Say bye...to Sunny...for me..." Ruby closed her eyes then went limp; she was still smiling. Soren cried until Shayden finally put a hoof on his shoulder.

"I am sorry. I did not know you had a strong connection with that mare." Soren wiped his eyes.

"It's...it's not your fault. It was Diamond's." He looked at Sunny, who was still unconscious. "We need to bring her back to the TARDIS. There's nothing for us here anymore." After walking over to Sunny, Soren pulled her over his back and began walking out of the castle lobby. Shayden looked at Soren then at all of the destruction inside. The lobby was now rubble, smoke, and fire.

"How much power do you have?"

"...Too much."

"Can you change that?"

"Considering the events of today, that would be stupid. I...I need to use it when ponies are in danger."

"What if it isn't a serious situation like today?"

"Well then...that will be up to me, now wouldn't it?" Shayden was a little unnerved by that statement. He looked at Soren's half-burned horn then back at the room once again. He stared at the alicorn walking away with an unconscious mare on his back. All that for one mare and some answers...

Ponyville

"Luna-dammit!" Rainbow slammed her hoof on the center table in the library, causing the history book to bounce in the air a few centimeters. Twilight looked at her growling friend, who was fighting back tears, with understanding eyes. "Soren, why?! Why does the universe have to do this to you?!" She buried her head in her crossed hooves. "why...?" she whispered. Twilight rubbed Rainbow's back to comfort her.

"It's almost over," she said in a motherly tone. "Let's just finish the rest."

In the TARDIS, Soren worked the console with a solemn expression; Sunny was laying next to him and Shayden sat against the railings, looking at him.

"Are you leaving for your universe now?" he asked.

"Not yet. I want to talk to Sunny before I go. Plus, there's still one more place you need see."

"And where would that be?"

"Your parents' graves." Shayden nearly fell off the railing, but regained balance and looked at him with wide, sad eyes.

"Must you crush me with more reminders of my past...?"

"Remember what I said about loose ends and moving on? You need to do this. I'm here for you." The TARDIS landed; Soren saw the desperate look on Shayden's face. "Alright, look...I won't make you do this if it will be that hard."

After a moment, Shayden let out a long sigh. "If I do not go, it might bother me for the remainder of my life... I must see it."

Both ponies walked outside into a lightly rainy day. Clouds covered the sky and the medium-sized graveyard was positioned close to the TARDIS. Shayden reluctantly walked out; he had never dared to visit here. Fear, depression, and an intense desire to run back into the TARDIS flooded him all at once. He ignored each and began to search the names of the graves for his parent's.

As Shayden scanned one side of the graveyard, Soren saw a stallion standing on the complete other side. Innocent curiosity got the better of him as he pretended to look for graves himself. He walked past the buck and glanced at the two graves he was staring at. Both had the last name Shine. Soren snapped his head to Shayden, who was still looking and was about to walk towards his parents' graves. Soren made eye contact with the buck. "Watch him," Soren said before sprinting away. The buck looked at Soren, then cast a glance towards Shayden.

He walked a good distance away before stopping at another grave, pretending to mourn at it but still keeping an eye on Shayden. The grey unicorn kept looking at names until he finally saw what he was hoping but dreading to find. The tears he had been holding back escaped him as he approached and read the graves.

Here lies Morning Shine
Suddenly stolen from us.
May she find rest in Faust's hooves.

His father's read the same way but with his own name. Shayden laid down in front of the grave and buried his head in his hooves. "All my fault..." he said all too loudly since the onlooking buck heard.

Stopping in the TARDIS doorway, Soren witnessed this and looked down with sadness. Right before he closed the doors, a sudden idea came to him. He left the door open as he rushed inside and came back as quick as he could with an object and paper in his mouth. He rushed to the buck and asked him to give this to 'that stallion.'

He looked to Soren then to the gray stallion crying at the graves. Why is he blaming himself for my parent's deaths? Is he at the wrong grave? He walked closer to Shayden; he cleared his throat, causing Shayden to lift his head, but not face him. "Did you know them?" he asked.

Shayden was not expecting anyone else to be here. "Y-yes. They were...close to me." The strange buck moved closer, stopping at five feet away.

"How did you know them?" Who is he? Why is he here? I have never seen him in town before. Shayden still did not look at him.

"It matters not, I don't deserve to be here." Shayden looked the opposite direction of the buck and saw, for the first time, a third grave next to his parent's graves. He should not have been surprised, until he read the stone. He gasped as he beheld a headstone bearing his old name. Shayden stood up and moved closer to his grave. Noticing this, the buck had had enough.

"Okay sir, I don't know who in Faust's name you are, but why are you crying at my parents' graves?" At this, Shayden froze. His parents? He slowly turned to look at the stallion. This earth pony had a messy purple mane and tail, with matching eyes and his coat was a brilliant white. He snapped his attention to the line of three graves. Only three? But where's... "Well?" the white earth pony demanded, "I want an answer!"

Shaysen almost didn't believe it. He was dead! But here in front of him stood... "D-dusk?!" he finally managed to say. Dusk's eyes narrowed as he looked at Shayden.

"How do you know my name?" Is this why the white alicorn wanted me to watch him? Shayden rushed forward and embraced him, which caused Dusk to go rigid in surprise, "Whoa, okay there! Looks like we have ourselves a hugger. Umm... do I know you?"

"Apolagies, you wouldn't recognize me." Shayden backed up to his own grave. Dusk's eyes darted between the grave and this strange stalion in front of him. His eyes widened.

"...What? B-but you can't be!" Dusk backed up. "You can't be him! You don't look anything like my brother! He's dead! Gone in that blast all those years ago! Stop playing these cruel tricks!"

"I can say the same of you. I thought I had killed you as well. I am glad I did not... But I am not lying. This headstone beside me does not belong here. Hello, brother." Shayden had never smiled wider in his life.

"But... you can't possibly be Dawn. He's white and pink! Why did that white alicorn want me to watch you?" At that, Shayden raised an eyebrow.

"I can prove that I am in fact Dawn!" He stood up and walked towards him, looking in his eyes. "We had a farm further north of here that was ravaged by a tornado when I was seven. I remember I was happy to help work on the gardens for the first time. We moved here, desperate to find work. I also went to school here. Our parents went to a conference with my teacher to talk about the bullies, of which there were five if you remember me telling you that all those years ago." His smile went away. "Then the explosion..." He looked towards the grave and began to cry once more. "My fault..."

There was now no doubt, Dusk realized. Nopony else could have known about any of that, since he had told nopony. "Dawn..." He embraced Shayden. "But how?"

Looking away in shame, Shayden replied "That explosion was me. I-I got out of control."

"If you want to talk about it we can, but first," he held out the letter. "The alicorn told me to give this to you."

Shayden levitated a necklace and took hold of the note. He unfolded it and began reading to himself.

Dear Shayden,

Sorry it had to be this way, but do not fret. I saw who I assumed to be a relative and left you with him. Now is the part where you realized that I left and are probably ticked off that I did so without telling you. That is where the necklace comes in. If you ever want to come to my universe and start a new life, activate the necklace by thinking of me. I will come as soon as I can. I hope you find comfort in whatever relative is there.

Your new friend,
Soren Melody

Shayden smiled. Friend. He looked to his older brother. "If you want to know what happened to me in those fourteen years, I suggest we get out of this rain first. My mane is getting quite damp and I do not like it."

"We can go to my house."

Loose Ends

An hour passed and Shayden had managed to tell his brother every detail of what he had gone through; both were now in tears. I had no idea. Dusk thought to himself. I'm amazed he has managed to stay sane through all of this. "It's okay, Dawn, I don't blame you." They embraced once more.

"You have no idea how long I have waited for somepony to tell me that."

"So now, if you want, you can go to another universe with your alicorn friend?" Shayden nodded.

"Correct. And before I forget, I need to tell you, I don't use the name, Dawn. I... believed I didn't deserve it years ago. Ever since the incident, I have gone by Shayden. Please call me by that name. Even after avenging Lilly, I still do not deserve that name" Dusk grinned.

"Little bro, you'll always be Dawn to me. You did nothing wrong!"

"Hmm, I guess I cannot stop you, but back to the necklace." He levitated it between the two of them. "I don't know what to do... He invited me to his universe, and thinking I had nothing left, I was going to accept." He put it down and looked at his brother. "But then I found you. The one thing in this universe that I have left to live for."

Dusk gave him a pat on the shoulder. "If you want to go, I understand. It's fine with me." Shayden didn't hear him; he just had a realization.

"Do you have any ties to this town? Aything like a good friend? A wife or marefriend?" Dusk was surprised at the sudden barrage of questions. He blushed.

"No, I don't have a special somepony, and I barely have friends here. I kept to myself all these years. What are you thinking?" With a small laugh, Shayden activated the necklace.

"Wait and see."

Soren stepped into the TARDIS. He technically just abandoned Shayden, but at least he gave him a way to signal that he wanted a new life. Stepping up to the console, Soren looked at Sunny. He thought she was so innocent, dependent on their adventures just so she could feel useful. She stirred and looked at Soren with sleepy eyes and a sincere smile. This only made Soren regret was he was about to do even more.

"Sunny?" he called softly.

"Yes?" she replied, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

"You still like these adventures we go on, yeah?"

"They're the best. Why do you ask?" Soren sighed.

"The night I met Shayden, he and I had a special conversation. We helped each other deal with things on our mind...about our past mistakes. How we failed ponies, how we endangered the ones we love. After that night, I made myself a promise...a promise to go back to the mare I love the most...and I think it's time to do just that."

"Soren...are saying what I think you're saying?" He didn't answer. "You-you can't just leave me! I have nothing back home! Those ponies still won't welcome me back completely, and even if they did, I would have to go back to a boring life where I would be ridiculed and cast away."

"I'm sorry, Sunny, I truly am, but remember how I told you I was running away from something." She nodded her head. "I was running from danger, I was running from the fact that I put my friends' lives in danger. It was a mistake that I ran from my friends. They deserve better than me, and I will never forgive myself for what I put Rainbow Dash through. I hurt her...more than anypony I ever met. More than what I'm putting you through right now. I know you can't bare to live without these adventures, but you need to listen to me." Soren put both hooves on both of her shoulders. "Live for me. Be happy...for me. I find joy in the fact that I didn't let you down. You're a tough mare, and I know you won't let other ponies push you around anymore. Can you do that for me? Can you go live your life, away from danger?" Sunny started crying. Soren pulled her into a hug. The two friends just sat there as she cried on Soren. Eventually, she spoke.

"I-I don't want you to go, Soren. Without you...I can't..." she stammered then looked into Soren's bright green eyes. "I love you, Soren." She hugged Soren again. "You're the nicest pony I know. You don't judge me, you encourage me. You don't turn your back on me, you protect me. How can I—"

"Shh, shh-shh-shh-shh, there there. It hurts me to do this almost as much as it's hurting you. I'm so sorry, Sunny, but it's time I left. I'm not the type of pony that travels. It's bad enough putting my friends in danger; I can't travel the world and put random ponies in danger too. I just can't. And no one says you have to go back to your town. I can drop you off anywhere you want."

"Can't I go where you're going?"

"No. It's best that you don't. I know there's a place out there, other than by my side, that will make you happy. So where can I take you?" She wiped away some of her tears.

"How about Canterlot? It doesn't exist in my world. Maybe I can make a living there?" Soren smiled. He then proceeded to work the TARDIS console to bring them to Canterlot in the year 980 C.E. Once the TARDIS landed, Soren trotted over to the doors. He turned to face Sunny, who was standing right behind him.

"Thank you, Soren," she said as she wrapped her hooves around his neck in a hug. "For everything."

"And thank you, Sunny, for keeping me in line. I would have been a wreck without you."

"Then why am I leaving?" she joked with a sad laugh. Soren chuckled sadly as well.

"Go," he said softly. "Go live your dreams in this beautiful city." Soren opened the doors for her. Sunny Star smiled, gave Soren a final kiss on the cheek, and walked out of TARDIS. The doors closed, and Soren walked back to the console. He stood there, thinking about Sunny and the life she will live.

"I picked that date for a reason, Sunny," Soren muttered to himself. "Now I know we will see each other again...and then I can ask if it was worth leaving my side." Soren walked back to the console but felt a ringing in his head. It grew loud enough to be a slight nuisance. "Is he honestly signaling me this quick?!" Soren patted the console as if soothing someone. "It's ok...just one quick trip there and back." The TARDIS groaned and departed to the other universe.

It was a bumpy ride, but the TARDIS managed to track the location of the necklace's signal and materialize inside of a house. With a history book on his back, Soren opened one
of the doors and was instantly greeted by a smiling Shayden and a shocked earth pony.

"Huh, didn't expect him to be here. You didn't warn him beforehoof, did you?" Soren asked.

"I figured it would be more entertaining," Shayden chuckled.

"So a ride for two for Ponyville?" Shayden nodded and had to drag his brother into the TARDIS, where he did his best to explain what was happening. As Soren worked the console, he shook his head with a smile. Shayden, you've only been in here once or twice. You're not going to be able to explain it.

After Soren dropped off the Shine family in Ponyville, he explained to them that he had important business that needed to be taken care of. Really important business. The TARDIS was going to be tired after all of this, he could tell, but she knew as well as he did that this had to be done.

First stop: Canterlot Caves.

Soren parked the TARDIS outside of the biggest room of the cave. The place where Nyra runs her army. He peeked around the corner and saw a much younger version of himself being released from what looked like a giant crystal. Nyra then used her magic to teleport the younger Soren away. To Ponyville, no doubt. he thought. He trotted into the cave and was immediately halted by six guards. Nyra turned around and smiled at the newcomer.

"Oh you just walked into the wrong neighborhood, friend," she smirked, apparently not recognizing Soren. My burnt horn is probably blending with the wall. Nyra then pounced on him. "Why are you here and why shouldn't I gut you?!"

"Because of this." Soren held her head to his and, using a Time Lord trick, focused on wiping away one vital memory from her mind: the fact that she knows who Soren is. Nyra fell backwards, signaling the guards to attack Soren.

Luckily, he jumped away in time and sprinted for the TARDIS. The guards chased him, but Soren closed the doors in time. They hopelessly pounded at the blue box as it disappeared. Soren wiped his brow then rubbed his horn. Burnouts suck. At least what I did explains why Nyra didn't recognize me when I first fought her. He sighed. Nyra...

One down, two to go.
Next stop: Canterlot

Soren travelled to the past to find a particular pony. He needed to tell him some important information. He walked through the streets of the shining capitol, only to find himself at his original home. Melody Manor. He walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell. Eventually, Maestro Melody opened the door.

"Hello, can I help you?" he asked.

"Definitely. Have you heard of the Shadow Horses?"

"Shadow...Horses? Is that some kind of ancient clan?"

"You could call it that. It's technically an army." Maestro stiffened. "Not a pretty word, is it? Anyway, I'm bringing this to your attention because you can help stop them. As far as I'm concerned, they could be forming soon. Equestria needs your help to uncover them and bring them to justice."

"But what can I do?"

"Anything in your power to know who they are. Use contacts or any other way to get information. Have spies, I don't know. It's really not my problem. I'm just the messenger. With that said, I bid you good day." Soren turned and walked away.

"Wait!" But Soren never stopped walking.

Twilight read the passage to Rainbow. "I then stopped in Ponyville yet again to give the alternate history book to a random couple and have them deliver it to the Ponyville Library. It took a day or two to write down everything that had happened to me. Twilight, and most definitely Rainbow, if you are reading this sentence, I'm almost there. I'm writing these last sentences as the TARDIS heads for present day Ponyville."

The TARDIS landed in one of its final destinations. Canterlot once more, but in the present time. Stepping outside, Soren was finally able to take in a deep whiff of his own time and world.

"It is sooo good to be back," he said to himself. "Now then...I'm sure she—"

"Soren?" an older mare's voice called. Soren smiled. There you are. When he turned towards the voice, he wasn't surprised to see a middle-aged red crystal mare with an orange mane. "Oh my goodness...it really is you!"

"Hello, Sunny. It actually hasn't been that long since I last saw you. Well, a younger you."

"I heard that noise, and I just had to run and find it. She looks exactly the same." She held a hoof against the TARDIS, which made an approving sound. "I think she remembers me."

"She'll remember anyone that keeps me safe. How has life been treating you?"

"It's wonderful in this city, although it can be a bit...uptight." Soren shrugged as if saying 'what can you do?' "I'm a singer here. I make a good living off of my performances. I followed my dreams...just like you wanted me to."

"I'm very happy for you. But I have to ask. How are your...powers?" Sunny laughed.

"I keep forgetting they are there. The last time I used my powers was when I was with you."

"That's good. Anything else important happen in your life so far?"

"Yes actually. I became a mother. My daughter is visiting the Crystal Empire right now. Her name is Ruby." Soren was beyond touched by that.

"I...I...thank you, Sunny. But how did you know?"

"The name just came to me, like any name does to a parent." Soren smiled and hugged Sunny.

"Was it worth leaving my side?" She shook her head.

"I always missed you, but...you were right. This was for the best. Take care of yourself."

"I'll try to." Sunny walked away and waved goodbye. Soren stood there waving until she was out of sight. The TARDIS opened her doors for him, so he faced her and was about to walk inside. Until...

"Soren! Melody!" an angry voice yelled. Soren turned around to see Octavia storming up to him. He gulped and sprinted for the doorway, only to have it close in his face.

"Wha...What was that for?!" he yelled at the TARDIS. Leaning against the blue box, Soren braced for the biggest scolding in his life.

Mommy...

Forgiveness

Author's Note

Songs used:
"Clocks" and "What If," both copyrighted by Coldplay.

Forgiveness

"After Octavia yelled at me for an hour, which was well-deserved, I travelled two days ahead of when I dropped off the history book in Ponyville. Surely that gave you enough time to read it all. There's really nothing else to say at this point. I stopped Diamond, helped whoever I could, made new friends, allowed some of those friends to start anew, and am now back home. I'm done talking, but you are not done listening. So close the book, sit outside, and listen." Twilight closed the history book and looked at Rainbow.

"How are you feeling, Rainbow?"

"I...don't know. I'm mad at him for leaving without telling us, but at the same time...he was lost. It sounds like he finally found himself."

"He wants to be with us and never leave our sides. However, he also admits he will have to help whenever he's needed." The mares stepped outside. It was midday; the sun was shining, creating the perfect temperature. Just an average day in Ponyville. Same sounds occurring, same voices talking, same ponies walking.

Rainbow's ears perked. There was one sound out of place. A...keyboard? She heard a relaxing beat.

1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-1-2-3, 1-2-3,
1-2-1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-1-2-3, 1-2-3

Tilting her head up, Rainbow smiled. Twilight noticed this and arced an eyebrow.

"Rainbow?"

"He's here." Twilight soon heard the music as well.

Finally home; Soren was finally home. Back in the place he never should have left. He flew upside down through the skies of Ponyville, playing his keyboard which rested on his stomach. Once he played the beat once, he pressed the repeat button then held the keyboard with his leg. He slowly flew over Carousel Boutique as he started to sing.

The lights go out and I can't be saved
Tides that I tried to swim against
Have brought me down upon my knees
Oh I beg, I beg and plead, singing

Come out of things unsaid
Shoot an apple off my head and a
Trouble that can't be named
A tiger's waiting to be tamed, singing

You are
You are

He landed atop Sugarcube Corner.

Confusion never stops
Closing walls and ticking clocks
Gonna come back and take you home
I could not stop that you now know, singing

Come out upon my seas
Cursed missed opportunities
Am I a part of the cure?
Or am I part of the disease? Singing

You are, you are, you are
You are, you are, you are

He flew past Town Hall and, when he finally reached it, hovered over. Ponyville Library.

And nothing else compares
Oh nothing else compares
And nothing else compares

Home, home where I wanted to go
Home, home where I wanted to go
Home, home where I wanted to go
Home, home where I wanted to go

Soren landed in front of the tree and turned off the keyboard. He looked at Twilight and Rainbow standing before him. Once he saw her, Soren never took his eyes off of his marefriend.

"Rainbow...I..." he started, only to have her hold up a hoof to silence him.

"You better have an apology so good that it'll make me cry. And I rarely cry."

"I figured I would...so I came prepared." He took a deep breathe.

What if there was no lie
Nothing wrong, nothing right
What if there was no time
And no reason, or rhyme

What if you should decide
That you don't want me there by your side
That you don't want me there in your life

What if I got it wrong
And no poem or song
Could put right what I got wrong
Or make you feel I belong

What if you should decide
That you don't want me there by your side
That you don't want me there in you life

Oooooooh that's right
Lets take a breath try to put it aside
Ooooooh that's right
How can you know it if you don't even try
Ooooooh that's right

The rest of Twilight's friends walked up behind her and remained silent as they saw Soren singing to Rainbow.

Every step that you take
Could be your biggest mistake
It could bend or it could break
That's the risk that you take

What if you should decide
That you don't want me there in your life
That you don't want me there by your side

Oooooooh that's right
Lets take a breath try to put it aside
Ooooooh that's right
How can you know when you don't even try
Ooooooh that's right

Soren hung his head. "I'm so sorry, Rainbow. I know I don't deserve forgiveness. I just want you to know that I never meant to—" Suddenly he was hugged.

"Shut up. I wasn't angry that you left; I was angry that you didn't say when you were coming back." She began poking his head. "You wouldn't leave us; we're too cool." Soren leaned his head back and smiled. She truly is the Element of Loyalty.

"Thank you. You know...that song uses a guitar and its pretty cool. Maybe I could teach it to you?"

"Alright, but I gotta warn ya, I'm a fast learner now."

"Oh? But you haven't been practicing the guitar for that long."

"Wanna bet? Where's your guitar?" She then realized something. "When is your horn going to be healed?" Soren rubbed it.

"No clue. I'll have Twilight look at it." He pulled out his sonic and brought the TARDIS to him. "I'm telling you, this is very useful." He ran in and came out with his guitar. It was a cyan guitar with Rainbow's cutie mark, just like the one he had in Sanctum.

"Heh, missed me that much?"

"I always do." Rainbow put the strap over her shoulder and stood on her hind legs. She then played a wicked solo that caused Soren's jaw to drop. She landed on four hooves and pushed his jaw up, but she left her hoof there.

"I practiced every chance I got," she smiled. She kissed Soren then hoofed him his guitar.

"I...umm...I missed that," he blushed with his wings unintentionally extended.

"We're so happy you're back, Soren," Twilight commented as the rest of the girls walked up to him and Rainbow. "Are you ok?"

"As 'ok' as I'll ever be. Things will be different now. A good different. A...healthy different."

"What are you talking about?"

"Screw traveling for one thing. I want to stay in Ponyville until I absolutely have to go somewhere. First things first, I need a new house. Preferably on the ground. My cloud house was fine, but most of you girls can't even visit. Plus, I have a new friend who probably can't walk on clouds either—"

"Soren?" Twilight interrupted.

"Yeah?" She hugged him.

"I missed your ramblings." He hugged back.

"Group hug!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she rushed to join the hug. The other four joined and buried Soren in affection.

"I was only gone for a few days," he chuckled. "But I swear...I'm never going to leave you girls again."

A Few Days

Later

Almost a week passed, and Soren found himself with a new house close to Rainbow's cloud home. He also received his old job with helping Twilight in the library and being mentored by her, and found a new job performing almost every week for Ponyville. His life could only go uphill from here.

Tonight was going to be his second scheduled performance. He finally had a full band that he loved to play with. It consisted of him as mainly a singer; Rainbow, the guitarist or singer; Twilight, keyboardist or singer; an old acquaintance, the Drummer Colt; and a new arrival to town that he befriended. His name was Chroma, and Soren noticed that he was pretty good at playing the bass. After playing with Chroma a few times, Soren offered him a chance to showcase his talents for Soren's first scheduled performance. He's been a part of the band ever since.

"Hey, Twilight?" Soren called. He was currently doing work around the library with her. He went to the hospital the other day, and they managed to heal his horn enough to do basic levitation.

"Yes?"

"How is your singing coming along?"

"My singing? Good, I guess. Why do you ask?"

"Well, Rainbow and I were wondering...since we wanted to make tonight huge to celebrate my permanent return...would you be willing to sing a genre you aren't entirely comfortable with?"

"I would assume not, due to me being uncomfortable with whatever genre you two are thinking of. But in good faith...which genre is it?" Soren smirked and Twilight knew this was going to be a bad idea.

Epilogue

Author's Note

Songs used:
"Here We Go" copyrighted by Lemonade Mouth.
"Paradise" copyright by Coldplay.

(Author's Note):
(READ AFTER EPILOGUE!!!)
[or don't. I'm not your mother. :P ]
STA is finally complete. I know it kind of ran its course after Part 3 but I couldn't think of any other way to end it. Thank you to the people who continued to follow it and don't think alicorns are stupid. I tried to think of a way for Soren to permanently change into a pegasus, but frankly he needed his magic, even if he preferred flight. Anyway, I wanted to give my personal arrangement of what I believe are the best Parts of this story.

From Best to Worst:

3: Loved the arcs and conflicts. It showed Soren's spiral downward and his loss of mercy.
4: Had my favorite arc: the Shayden arc. It showed Soren's ascent back to sanity and what his virtue is: protection.
1: Shows different personal conflicts for Soren to handle, and it creates the base of hell that begins to form for him.
2: Although it held the most shattering moment for Soren, I felt as though I could have done more with it other than show how Soren deals with Nyra's death.

There are more reason for my placement of the Parts, but those were the biggest. I also want to say that I find it odd how people who disliked the story didn't tell me how I can improve it. Also, if you didn't like the story just because of the type of story it is (alicorn-related), why thumbs it down? You could have just moved on to find a better story. Readers are weird. Of course, I'm not saying my story is amazing. It's clearly my first official story. I'm just saying that people need to help new writers or else they will not become better.

Epilogue

Twilight gulped as she heard the crowd cheering for their band. They couldn't think of a better name, so they just stuck with the Elements of Rock, one of their first choices courtesy of Rainbow. It somewhat fit the music they play, although they tended to play whichever genre suits them.

Smiling, Soren walked up beside Twilight and put a hoof on her shoulder. With his other hoof, he did a motion for her to breathe in and out. She followed his instructions and relaxed as best she could. Soren called for everyone to take their places. The stage was dark due to it being nighttime, so barely anypony would see them walk to their spots.

Soren took center stage; Rainbow was to his immediate left, and Twilight to his immediate right. Chroma (being left of Twilight) and DC (being behind the three ponies up on center stage) were ready, so the lights illuminated the stage. The crowd cheered then grew quiet. Soren winked at Twilight, who gave a nervous smile but recomposed herself. Her, Soren, and Rainbow would give the crowd their all.

[Twilight with (All)]:
"(Be heard, be strong, be proud)
I wanna make some noise
(Stand up, come on, be loud)
We're gonna raise our voice

(Come on, come on, come on)
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now"

[Rainbow]:
"Hey now, we no longer wait around
My team stronger then weights now
Keeps on growing
Our muscle keeps on showing"

[Soren]:
"We came here to make a change
We came here to rearrange
We came here 'cause we believe
We came here 'cause we achieve, yeah"

[Rainbow]:
"While I've got the microphone
Make sure how I feel is known
All for one, we rock the zone
How I feel to each his own"

[Soren]:
"All my people treat 'em right
We reserve the right to fight
For what we want, for what we need
To the front we shall proceed"

[Twilight]:
"Here we go now
We're ready to go, go, go, go, go
You better run
'Cause we don't take no, no, no
So come on"

"(Be heard, be strong, be proud)
I wanna make some noise
(Stand up, come on, be loud)
We're gonna raise our voice

(Come on, come on, come on)
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now

We're motivated
We're aggravated
We're dedicated
Oh, so now you better play fair"

[Rainbow]:
"Determination and will power
Come on, no consideration
We will devour"

[Soren]:
"We're on our own
But we are one
Shoulder to shoulder we'll fight
Until we see the sun"

[Rainbow]:
"It's just a matter of time
Before you see our way
We're fighting all our lives
We do this everyday"

[Twilight]:
"Here we go now
We're ready to go, go, go, go, go
You better run
'Cause we don't take no, no, no
So come on

(Be heard, be strong, be proud)
I wanna make some noise
(Stand up, come on, be loud)
We're gonna raise our voice

(Come on, come on, come on)
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now

(Be heard, be strong, be proud)
I wanna make some noise
(Stand up, come on, be loud)
We're gonna raise our voice

(Come on, come on, come on)
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now
You gotta hear me now"

The next day was the first moment where Soren had to leave Ponyville. It was nothing serious; just something that had to be done. He stood on a hill outside of Canterlot, facing Ponyville with the sun setting behind it. Playing on his keyboard, Soren sang his heart out for one more pony that deserved it.

Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo
Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo

When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach
So she ran away in her sleep

Dreamed of para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Every time she closed her eyes

Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo
Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo

When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach
And the spells catch in her teeth

Life goes on
It gets so heavy
The wheel breaks the butterfly
Every tear, a waterfall
In the night, the stormy night
She closed her eyes
In the night, the stormy night
Away she'd fly.

And dreamed of para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Whoa-oh-oh oh-oooh oh-oh-oh

She dreamed of para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Whoa-oh-oh oh-oooh oh-oh-oh.

So lying underneath the stormy skies.
She said 'oh-oh-oh-oh.
I know the sun must set to rise.'

This could be para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Could be para- para- paradise
Whoa-oh-oh oh-oooh oh-oh-oh.

This could be para- para- paradise
Para- para- paradise
Could be para- para- paradise
Whoa-oh-oh oh-oooh oh-oh-oh.

Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo
Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo
Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo
Oo-oo-oo, oo-oo-oo

After the song ended, Soren looked behind him at the lone grave that overlooked the rest of the graveyard.

Here lies Nyra

Known as nothing but a friend by
the pony who requested this
tombstone...Soren Melody

Soren didn't know if it was his imagination or him going crazy, but Nyra appeared before him again. Her spirit touched his cheek with her hoof. Soren smiled and a tears formed. He moved forward to hug her but fell to the ground. He lay there and cried for his lost friend. Rainbow Dash found him shortly after.

"Are you alright?" she asked softly.

"...I'll be fine."

"Ready to go?"

"Sure." Rainbow hugged him.

"Don't worry. We're going to spend some time together." Soren chuckled.

"*sniff* I'm pretty sure you meant to say 'quality time.'" Rainbow playfully punched his shoulder with a smile.

"From the day he arrived...

"...to the day when he came back.

"I have personally watched over him..."

"...and I have personally liked him."

"His uncontrolled magic..."

"...spells created with sheer imagination and passion."

"He saved his friends..."

"...and lost his friends."

"He was a troubled soul..."

"...but has the purest heart."

"He had a dangerous past..."

"...but has the brightest future."

"Sister..."

"I know...it is time I raise the moon."

"Soon it begins..."

"...the love triangle?"

"Much more than a love triangle."

"But the universe is tricky."

"It plays games..."

"...confuses the viewer."

"Some know the truth..."

"...others become lost in its mystery."

"Will these ponies know the difference...?"

"...or will they be consumed by the beautiful treachery of the universe?"

"Shall we watch?"

"We always do."

"One week."

"One week."

(THE END)

Prologue

"Soren Melody, do you know the charges being placed against you?"

"Yes, your honor."

"Do you accept the charges of attempting to destroy this town?" Soren looked around the courtroom and made eye contact with the dozens of ponies in the room, including his friends.

"May I plead my case to the court first?"

"Jury?" the judge asked, looking at the ten ponies that made up the jury. They silently conversed before one looked at the judge and gave their answer.

"We will allow the defendant to plead his case on the grounds that if he is still found guilty, his punishment shall be more severe."

"What say you, Soren Melody?" the judge asked.

"Let me start from the beginning of this little adventure. Keep in mind, yet some of you already know: I'm a time traveler. It all started when I left my own funeral..."

Ponyville

Months earlier

Ever since Soren left, Ponyville hasn't been the same. There is a slight dread that hangs over the town that believes their hero is dead. Only a select few believe or know that Soren is out there somewhere. Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle are two of them. After Applebloom showed them the TARDIS leaving at Soren's funeral, Twilight and her friends knew he was obviously alive, but why did he leave? This was the question that has been plaguing their minds for three days. So far, only theories have been made; none more accurate than the last. Everyday, Twilight and Rainbow, and sometimes the others, gather in the Ponyville Library to figure out a way to track down Soren.

"Do you think he went to a familiar place?" Rainbow Dash asked as she sat across from Twilight. Twilight shook her head.

"If he left, it was for a good reason. It may not be a decision we like, but he always has incredible logic behind his actions. All of us know that."

"I miss him, Twilight."

"We all do. That's why we need to find him before..." Twilight hesitated to continue.

"Before we go to an actual funeral for him?" Rainbow finished. Twilight's ears went back. "It's fine. Soren has been through a lot since arriving here. He can go through a lot more and still survive. Heh, kinda hard to pin him down when you think about it."

"I guess. I just wish—"

knock knock knock

Twilight stood up and walked over to the front door. Upon opening it, she saw a mare and a stallion, both middle-aged earth ponies. The stallion had a package strapped to his back.

"Is Twilight Sparkle here?" the mare asked.

"That's me. Can I help you?" The stallion unstrapped the box and hoofed it to Twilight, who accepted the strange package.

"It's a history book. A pony, whom I didn't know yet was strangely trustworthy, asked us to bring it to you specifically. He said there are instructions for you on the back of the front cover. We didn't read it of course."

"Oh, umm, thank you?" After being thanked, the two ponies bowed and walked away. Twilight tilted her head in confusion and proceeded to walk back into the library, the history book floating next to her. She walked up to the center table and placed the book on top.

"Who's it from?" Rainbow asked, walking up to the table as well.

"They couldn't say. However, they did say there are instructions behind the front cover." Twilight turned the cover and discovered a piece of paper taped to the back. Unfolding it with her magic, Twilight read the note.

Index...T

Following the instructions, Twilight flipped to the back of the book and found the index. She then scanned the T section and found a shocking word in it.

"Does that say...?" Rainbow started, just as shocked. Twilight only nodded as the two stared at the one word: TARDIS.

Only one page was connected with the TARDIS. Twilight turned many pages before finally coming upon the TARDIS page. Before they could read it, they saw a scroll on the page. Twilight unrolled the scroll and read aloud.

Greetings Twilight and any other of my friends that read this,

If you can read this scroll then it reached you and only you...the ones I love. I had the TARDIS create a psychic scroll that can only be read by the ponies I want.

As you all know, I left. I left and didn't look back, but now I see that it is impossible for me to only look forward. My actions haunt me...evil haunts me. You all were endangered multiple times because of the enemies I made, and I can never forgive myself for it. I am leaving to protect all of you and all of the ponies in Ponyville. No one needs me to save them when I can just leave and cause the harm to stop.

During my fight with Nightmare Moon, I only used two of the six items you all gathered for me: Applejack's boots and Rarity's vest. I also used my Lunar Medallion to aid in my fight, as Rainbow probably already mentioned. With me I still have:

One sonic screwdriver from Twilight

One golden chestpiece from Rainbow Dash

One party...something (party bomb?) from Pinkie pie

And one "Animals of Equestria Guidebook" from Fluttershy

Nightmare Moon was easily defeated due to her arrogance, overconfidence, and the fact that I outsmarted her.

Back to the subject of my leave. I feel as though I must partake in an odyssey of sorts to discover what it truly means to be a hero. I cannot classify myself as a hero if all I do is cause harm to those I love. If Rainbow Dash reads this...well, she knows how I feel. Twilight, if you're reading this, don't look for me. I guarantee it is impossible for you and the rest of our friends to reach me. I am writing this as the TARDIS and I slowly head into a rift in space, which captured us and which I cannot escape from. She assures me that I will be fine, so I trust her, as should all of you. She has taken care of me in past lives, so I know she will protect me in this one.

This is my decision to make, so it is my consequence to face as well. One day, I will be back. Until then, there must be no regrets, no tears, no anxieties. Just go forward in all your beliefs and prove to me that I am not mistaken in mine.

-Soren, Nyroc, Doctor

PS Quoting a past life is weird.

Author's Note

I wanted to least have the store up to show those following this that I am indeed working on it. Lately I've been heavily backed up by schoolwork, so I barely have time to work on this story right now. It will still be on hiatus, but be sure to check once in awhile. Thanks for being patient.

Tales of Marks

Author's Note

Song used:
"Cinderella Man" copyrighted by Eminem

Tales of Marks

As Soren traveled to the location the TARDIS was taking him, he couldn't help but think about his friends, both old and new. Twilight has to be worried, Rainbow is sure to be angry, and Robin...he wasn't sure how she was feeling. I meet a mare, I help her, and we become close friends within a week.

The TARDIS made a thud as she finally landed. Soren looked up, snapping from his thoughts. On the screen in front of him read "Destination reached. Magic fluctuation within the vicinity. Don't forget to enjoy yourself." Soren rolled his eyes and cracked a small smile. He then turned around and left the blue box.

Why is there a watering hole in every town in this version of Equestria? Soren thought as he walked the cobblestone streets of this quaint town towards a tavern. Maybe it's nostalgia or something else but Soren wanted to investigate this town's watering hole. And why haven't I found a bustling city yet, granted I haven't even been to Manehatten. This new town had two and three story buildings that dotted the land, but as a whole it was only slightly larger than Sanctum.

The colors of houses and buildings varied, allowing for a different atmosphere than the previous town, which felt gloomy half of the time. Soren has read and was told about the bigger cities of Equestria. During this acquirement of knowledge, he found it strange how either the Doctor never visited these places once upon a time or his old memories that Soren should have were truly gone. Shrugging off the thought, Soren walked through the entrance of the tavern, which had no doors. Come to think of it, in this town, most buildings he saw didn't have doors.

The watering hole was your typical Western-style saloon, complete with a jukebox, a bar, waitresses, many tables with drunkards sitting at them, and loud conversations filling the air. Soren shook his head. This world...I swear it's trying to be typical. What world have we been brought to?

Soren walked around the room, looking at different scenes and hearing different conversations happening. He saw at least two couples kissing (That doesn't help my longing for Rainbow right now), a group of five ponies laughing uncontrollably as their friend attempts to play darts, and a conversation about how a group of ponies got their cutie marks. Soren found interest in this.

"...and the bull just wouldn't shut up!" a stallion was explaining. "Arrogant thang he was. I took my rope and skillfully lassoed it around his mouth and brought 'im down. He broke three ropes, but I finally got 'im...or he gave up. In the end, that's how I got my lasso mark here."

"Very nice," another stallion commented. "Anypony see any cool marks yet? I hear the mares here in Trottingham have some interesting stories."

So this is this world's Trottingham? Soren thought.

"Nah," another younger colt interjected. "That's a bunch of bull, no pun intended. Ain't nobody else got an interesting story about their cutie mark."

"Wanna make a bet on it?" Soren interjected. The four ponies turned around to stare at him.

"Watcha sayin', colt? You think you got a good tale?"

"I might. Depends. Does this mark look 'cool?'" Soren flashed his cutie mark to them. Two of them widened their eyes slightly, but the other two were gawking at it. Soren's six-sided rainbow gem was definitely an interesting sight for them.

"Maybe you do got a story to tell. Care to share it?"

"Why tell the story when I can show you how I got it. You four just have to do something small for me. Here's what you have to do..."

The four stallions understood their portion of Soren's plan. Exchanging glances, the stallions began their alternation of two of them stomping the ground once (producing a bass drum sound) and the other two hitting the tabletop once (producing a lighter pitch sound). This was creating a nice beat for Soren. They also had to sing a few words to enhance the song. Soren was flying above the table as he began a song.

"Yeah,
You know, technically, I'm not even really supposed to be here right now,
So screw it, might as well make the most of it.

(Amen, Amen, Amen...)

Yeah, feels good,
Whooo, guess I'm lucky,
Some of us don't get a second chance.
But I ain't blowing this one.
Naw man, haha
Wow I feel like I can do anything now."

Who can catch lightning in a bottle? Set fire to water?
Comin' out the nozzle on the fire hose, flier than swatters?

(Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt.)

Smash an hourglass, grab the sand, take his hooves and cup 'em,
Spit a rhyme to freeze the clock, take the hooves of time and cuff 'em.

(Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt.)

There's a storm comin' that the weather mare couldn't predict,
I start the ball colt, you better flee cause I get ticked
It's a rap, I was down, when I was down I was kicked.
I got up I'm back to buck ya to the ground, ya trick,
It's a trap, screw the last city that crap's in my past,
I be goddessdamned if another singer gets on my back,
I hit the gas and I spit every rap as if it's my last.
You can die in the blink of an eye, so bat ya eyelashes,
And keep winking and blowin' kisses 'cause you're flirting with death
I'm destroying your livelihood. I ain't just hurtin' your rep',
I catch a flow and get goin',
No remorse I'm showin', ain't slowin' for no one,
Knowin' there is nothin' you can do about it
Zeroin' on the target like a marksman,
The target is you.
I shut ya lane down,
Took ya spot, parked in it too,
Arsenic flow, lighter fluid, saliva what can ya do?
Go get ya crew to hype you up stand behind you like whoooo!
That boy's hot enough to melt Hell, burn Discord too:
Fry his flank, and put his ashes back together with glue,
See you can hate him, he don't blame you frankly he would too,
This game could ill-afford to lose him, how bout you?

Now guess who (hey),
Here's a clue (hey),
He came to the ball in a uniform, lost his new horseshoe,
It's on your flank (hey),
He's in ya flank, he's all up in your psyche too,
Now what's his name?

(Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt)

If I had a time machine
I'd be
Cinderella colt

(Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,)

Music is my time machine, so call me

(Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,)

As the performance went on, a mare sitting alone in the corner of the watering hole watched the white pegasus. She kept to herself and everypony there knew that. Though she had to keep her tough demeanor, the mare felt moved by the singer's confidence and passion in his singing.

Buck catching lightning, he struck it
Screamed "Shut up!" at thunder,
And flipped the world upside down,
And made it rain upward

(Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt.)

Rewound the future to the present, paused it don't ask how,
Forget the past motherbucker he's the colt right now
He's...

(Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt, Cinderella colt.)

Cinderella colt
Send the fellow Doctor dane came to wrap the game up in cellophane,
Raise up from hell he came,
But didn't come to bore you with the Cinderella story,
Nor did he come to do the same,
Or can't afford to be a label in this day and age,
And at this stage of the game
Mediocrity can no longer be allowed to fly,
So say bye,
To the old H.I.
To the new, Que Sera
Consider it his last hurrah
Coup de grace
Raise 'em high in the sky,
Keep 'em up
Time to bring the place alive,
Thanks for being patient
I will make no more mistakes,
Crap my potato's baked,
Homie the veggies on my plate can fly,
My fillet is burning flies,
Yea filly the stakes are high
Dang I ain't even suppose to be here
By the grace of Her
The skin on my teeth
And the hair on my head I skated by,
Now y'all are on thin ice
With ankle weights I hate to lie,
How buckin' irritated are you?
How much in your face am I?
And ain't crap you can do but fear it
Proof is here in spirit and
And I'm the spittin' image
I'll mirror it
When I stand near it,
Your fussy lyric,
I can't hear it,
Who forms pyramids and raps circles around square lyricists?

Who?
Here's a clue.
He came to the ball in a uniform,
Lost his new horseshoe,
It's on your back, he's in ya back, he's all up in ya psyche too.
Now, what's his name?

(Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt)

If I had a time machine

(Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,)

I'll be...

Music is my time machine
So call me

(Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt,
Cinderella colt)

The song ends with Soren landing on the table. The four stallions, along with a few others, stared in surprise at the talent of this pony. A singer...here? That can't be good. Meanwhile, the mare in the corner was amazed more than anypony there. She let her mind wander and this caused her to blush. Realizing this, the mare quickly trotted out of the building. Since the mare was the only one moving, Soren easily saw her leave. One of the stallions realized who left and that the pegasus was looking at her.

"Don't mind Sunny. She's a solitary one, and for good reason too."

"Any reason why she left?" Soren asked.

"Probably to make sure she doesn't run into the Gang."

"The Gang? That's the group's name?"

"They're a gang of ponies that pretty much rules this town. They ain't merciful to artists and such."

"What?! Why?"

"They think they are weak. Ain't needed around these parts. They run 'em out of town...or worse if they don't leave."

"I could just hit them for that outrageous opinion!" Soren exclaimed. "Who gives them the right to torture certain ponies like that?!"

"Cuz we want to! Got a problem, little colt?" a deep voice shouted from the entrance. Soren, with his angry expression, looked at a group of three burly stallions standing in the doorway. I bet those mules tore down all the doors as well. Probably scouring the town for more artists to bully.

"Is there a problem?" the middle stallion asked again. Soren remained silent. "Thought so. Now! We heard singing a mile away and tracked it here. Who's the bastard in this joint?!"

Yin and Yang

"Shayden, I...I don't what to say...so I'll promise you something. We will defeat those mules, but can you not...do your thing until after we save Sunny?" Shayden breaths deeply then recomposes himself

"If-if we can." He looks at Soren intensely. "But if either of you get in my way... Well you know what to expect." Soren starts laughing; Shayden scowls at him.

"Sorry sorry, it's just that...you're threatening me. You are threatening me. Haha." The laugh instantly goes away. "Let me tell you something. Don't push your luck. You might have your smoke and mirrors, but they are nothing compared to what spells I have at my disposal."

"And you think that phases me? You are mistaken. As long as neither of you do anything to inhibit me, we can avoid conflict."

"Before tomorrow, before you even plan on confronting those sons of mules, I need to warn you. If you get out of control, even for a second, and put Sunny in danger, I will fight you, and you will lose."

"I find your terms acceptable. Just one thing: If worst comes to worst and we have an altercation, be sure I die."

"Never talk like that. Take it from somepony who has woken up from that thought. Killing yourself is never the answer. If we do fight and you surrender in order to end your pain, I will just leave you there. There is nothing for you on the Otherside."

"Then I will not stop fighting. Even if I have to drag my half-dead body to get you, I will not give in."

"Good. Now you're ready to fight them. However, I have to ask: what can you do? Which of your spells can even be used for fighting?"

"I will admit, I have not had much combat experience, but I know enough that I cannot rely on spell strength alone. I can create a copy of myself out of any nebulous material, directly controlled by me. For defense, I have an armor I invented myself. I can in fact show you." He raises a hoof and, using the smoke from the fire, covers it in the smoke and condenses it into armor.

Soren shoots a magic bolt at the hoof, cracking the armor. "It's weak. You weren't prepared for that, were you? They will drop spells on you faster than you can make armor. Plus, who knows how much smoke will be there?"

"This particular piece is purely for show; in battle it will be thicker. You are also an alicorn, the closest anypony can get to a living god. Your spells carry more punch than theirs will. And if there is a lack of smoke, I have a few fire spells that can either make some or burn our opponents. Not as potent as my nebulous magic."

"You do know their leader is an alicorn? A friend of mine, who used to follow the leader's orders, told me that. I think this will be a harder fight than you realize."

"I will not be deterred. If we can manage to work together than I have no doubts about us overcoming them."

"That's what I like to hear. I just wish you had stronger magic. Fighting four unicorns and one alicorn is going to be pretty difficult with just us two."

"Do you doubt my capabilities, Soren?"

"Considering you're going to fight them with clouds, I would be an idiot not to. Don't you have anything else in your arsenal? Clearly you are a smart pony; you had to have learned something." With a 'hmph,' Shayden stands, tired of Soren's belittlements.

"You believe I don't stand a chance. That the 'great hero' Soren is the only one capable of handling himself in this situation. Tell me hero, how many have you lost due to that false belief?"

"I'm not a hero! Those that have gotten hurt or killed was because of me. It wasn't my fault. There are some ponies you just can't save."

"Can't manage to save everyone? Not even that bat pony? Well now, looks like I am not the only incapable one standing here." Shayden continues to hold an even and emotionless face.

"You don't deserve to talk about Nyra! She didn't deserve to die...none of them did. She had a life ahead of her and I was about to give her that life." Shayden screams back at Soren.

"And do you think Lilly did not?! I do not give a DAMN about your Nyra! Your words shall not keep me from avenging her!"

"I'll stop you if I have to! I'm not afraid to kill anymore! My mercy was gone long ago. You may have been through two life-shattering events, but I go through hell almost EVERY. SINGLE. WEEK. In the end, you and I are both shattered to the point where we don't mind stomping on a few ponies to finally get some peace."

"I have NEVER had a moment of peace since I was seven! What I have done has always loomed over me! The only peace I can get with be that of death, and I will not accept that embrace until those motherbuckers up there pay! I will not allow you to get in my way!" Shayden takes an aggressive stance. Annoyed, he sends a few streams at Soren, who in turn draws water from the lake and stops it. As he does this, Soren appears laid back like it was nothing.

Soren and Shayden stare each other down. Soren grins with intense, almost wicked, confidence while Shayden stands unflinching.

"You have darkness in you," he says. "Has that happened before?"

"You can say that."

"Do you wish to talk about it?"

"Do you?"

Shayden stands normally now. "We both stepped out of line. If this is how we cooperate, neither of us have a chance against the crystal ponies. I apologize." Soren sighed.

"I do too. Let's look at the bright side: we both got things off our chest. I feel better. How about you?"

"A little. If you do not mind me asking, how often have you lost control?"

"Well...there was Appaloosa, fighting Nyra, fighting the Master both times, Queen Chrysalis, and then I lost myself in the last town I was at."

"I have lost control only twice. One almost cost an innocent life. The other destroyed the remains of Lilly's cottage. It needs to stop. For both of us."

"But that's the funny thing...it never does. Not for ponies like me anyway. We are opposites when we lose ourselves. Most of the time where I lost control, it helped everypony. Sure there were incidents, but the ends justify the means sometimes. I'm glad I get angry; it keeps the ponies I love safe."

"You're lucky then..."

"I'm really not. Every time something happens, every time I go on some...'adventure,' I put my friends in danger. I may save them, but I'm the one that put their lives at risk in the first place. If they just didn't know me, they would be safe."

"You would prefer loneliness ad solitude? Let me tell you that you have never been more incorrect. Ponies care about you. No matter what happens you have somepony to catch you if you fall. Imagine, for a moment, that you had never been there. Who would have stopped the resurrection of Nightmare Moon? What about the town with the purple alicorn? I barely survived that encounter. You made it safe once more. I have no doubts that they are thankful."

"I know that's the reason that I should keep helping, but it doesn't change the fact that I don't deserve my friends. Not after what I put them through. Heh, it's funny. I left in the TARDIS to find myself, and look at me know. Still wallowing in self-pity."

"If anypony at this fire deserves friends it's you. You have done more for them than they can possibly repay you for. If anything, and do not take this the wrong way, they do not deserve you."

"You're the one that has nothing but himself at this point. You lost everything." Soren paused. "After we're done here...do you want to come back to my Ponyville with me?"

Shayden looked surprised for the first time, even shocked. "W-what? You would do that for me? Take me to a world that knows not of woes such as this place? But how?"

"Exactly. I have the TARDIS. The reason I'm stuck here is because of that alicorn up in the castle. He created a dimension rift that sucked us here. I met Sunny along the way as I investigated the land, looking for the cause. I narrowed it down to this version of Ponyville, and I am here to stop him or her once and for all. After that, I will gladly take you with me. Start all over again, maybe befriend my friends, meet the princesses that don't exist here."

Shayden's jaw hangs open slightly; he is at a loss for words for a bit. "...start over?"

"Yes...start over. We all deserve a second chance, especially those with nothing left. I don't know when my time will come to refresh, but I hope it'll be after this." Soren looks at the full moon and the stars in the sky, remembering that it's getting late. "I think we've spoken long enough. We need our rest. Tomorrow will not be easy."

"Y-yes. I agree... Give me time to think on the offer."

"Just make sure you have an answer by the time we are done," Soren smiled. He and Shayden had set up their sleeping bags and had put out the fire. "Goodnight, Shayden."

"Goodnight, Soren."