The sword sinking in the anthro deer's cranium, the life leaving it as those eyes looked at me accusingly, wondering why did I take his life in this peaceful world...

I woke up with a gasp, my chest heaving rapidly. Cold sweat covered my skin, seeping in the little amount of clothes I had on. My right side was cold from the night's chill, while the left was pleasantly warm from the fire I had managed to light up a few hours ago... Why did they made it look easier on TV? Oh well, it didn't matter. There was fire that kept me reasonably warm during what sleep I could get between nightmares... Damn, those things' death hit me harder than I thought it would, even with knowing that they were rapist slaver anthros... Did that make me a good man or a bad one? I had no idea...

A whimper interrupted my musing, drawing my attention to the side where the mare I saved slept. It seemed that I wasn't the only one having nightmares, if the way her face was scrunched up in fear was any indication... It was to be expected though, with what she told me...

We spent most of the afternoon walking through this "Everfree Forest", having decided to cross it before thinking of our next move. Meanwhile, Blossom continued with her explanation of this world, the country of Equestria and the recent events. It sounded like the show... Well, my idea for the show, that is. I always thought that it was some girly thing, full of rainbow-farting unicorns, friendship, too much pink and other bright colors like that...

This world, this Equestria... It used to be like that. The last time they had conflict was when a species of insectoids called "Changelings" tried to invade, an endeavor that failed spectacularly when their Queen was banished with the power of "love"... Yeah, that sounded gay to me too. Especially when the Changelings, a species that at first I thought were some kind of Zerg or Tyranid counterpart to this world, turned out to be feeding on love... Can this get more gay without having same-sex couples banging each other on the streets?

I had one word for this world: Bleh...

Then these deer, or "caribou", had come, raping and twisting the ponies into rapists and servants... Those that resisted were either broken in or outright killed... Cherry Blossom had been one of the few that were lucky enough to stay sane from the effects of their... magic, and their training...

I grimaced. Just thinking about that made me clench my fists in anger. As a human coming from a world without Magic I thought it was something cool and amazing, or badass when two Mages duked it out... Yeah, I was a bit of a nerd. I used to read a lot of fantasy and science fiction in school, something which slightly influenced my career choice... Yeah, not the best thing overall, but I got to wear a cool armor... Anyway, the point was, Magic was supposed to be great. Not the thing that these deer, these caribou made it... I remember punching a tree in order to vent my anger at what I heard.

Anyway, there wasn't much I could do at the moment. I was just one human in a world full of anthros... If this was the original Equestria, with the "normal" ponies, then I would at least have the advantage of having fingers...

Another whimper returned me to here and now. Blossom was starting to toss in her sleep... Sighing I stood up and walked around the fire, stopping next to her. For a few moments I hesitated... What should I do? Should I wake her up?

"No... Please, don't..."

Those words quite literally made my heart hurt... Grimacing I reached down, placing my hand on her shoulder. The reaction was immediate... Blossom woke up with a start, her eyes wide with fear.

"Agh!" I exclaimed, falling backwards on my ass as she screamed. Damn, she had one hell of a voice... I think my ears rang for a few minutes after that... While I was clutching at my head Blossom tried to scramble away from me.

"Goddamn it!" I exclaimed, rubbing my ear. It seems that she recognized my voice... It was either that, or the strangeness of the curse made her pause long enough for her to recognize me.

"Jordan?" She asked, blinking at me. I bit back a sarcastic reply, instead just nodding... I doubt it would've made things better. "Oh Celestia, I'm sorry!" The mare was immediately next to me, checking my head. "Did I hit you? I'm sorry, I'm so sorry... I didn't mean to..."

"I'm fine, I'm fine..." I reassured her as I stood up. "Or I will be once my ears stop ringing..." I muttered before shaking my head and looking up at her.

When I arrived in this world I didn't have much on me... The decorative armor and sword that turned real for some reason, a pair of pants that kept my legs from chaffing, underpants, socks and shirt, my phone and my wallet... And I more or less listed my possessions in order of usefulness. Right now all but my clothing lay on a pile nearby, and only my shirt wasn't on me... I had given it to Blossom as soon as I saw her starting to shiver... Well, that, and after I managed to get the damn armor off. I must say, it was a good thing the shirt was a few sizes bigger for me... Even now her breasts were straining against the fabric, making for a rather nice view...

I shook my head, trying to keep my mind out of the gutter. Could you fault me? The mare wasn't bad on the eyes, even if she wasn't human, and I was a red-blooded straight guy...

You get the picture.

Shaking my head again I once more returned to the here and now, something that I had to do quite often in my life.

"You looked like you had a nightmare... Are you okay?" I asked her bluntly. I would've preferred to be a bit more subtle, but I wasn't in the mood after today's events.

"I... I'm fine..." Blossom said, looking away from me. "It was nothing..." Now this made me frown... I wasn't exactly good at reading people, and I was even worse at reading women... But then again, what guy is good at that? Still, even I could see the outright lying. She was scarred from what happened to her and just didn't want to bother me... So I did something impulsively.

I reached out and pulled her in a hug...

It was hard to tell which one of us was more surprised... I wasn't the kind of guy to just hug a girl. Normally I was too shy for that. But she just looked so... How do I explain it? Lost? Alone? Something like that.

For a few seconds she just stayed still, frozen in surprise. Then she wrapped her arms around me, clinging desperately as she cried in my bare shoulder while I rubbed her back.

I don't know how long did we stay like that since my phone was on the other side of the fire, but eventually she cried herself to sleep while she still clung to me. She looked a lot more peaceful now... Almost too peaceful for me to try and move her. Unfortunately my position wasn't the most comfortable... I moved slowly, trying to pry her hands off me...

But the mare didn't seem to like it...

She grabbed me one again in her sleep, causing me to stumble and fall on my back. This didn't seem to disturb Blossom much, as she just snuggled in my chest and continued to sleep.

"I guess I'm sleeping here..." I sighed lightly, so I wouldn't disturb the sleeping mare before looking down at her. A few strands of her pink mane were obscuring her face... Reaching out I gently brushed them away, revealing her peaceful-looking face. It was so different than the troubled mare that she was just half an hour ago...

I couldn't help but smile. This was how people should go to sleep... At peace, without trouble, without having to worry about tomorrow...

Without having to worry about being used and abused...

At that thought my smile faded. Damn these caribou... Damn them to hell and back. Nobody had the right to do this to even one person... And yet, they did it to an entire nation, to an entire sapient race...

Wrapping my arms around Blossom I made a silent vow, my face set in grim determination.

I would protect this mare with everything I could... And I would do anything to help her people. I may be one guy, one being who didn't even belong in this world... But sometimes all it takes is a single spark to start a fire... A single person to start a rebellion that could free nations... History had many examples like that.

And I was going to be that person, that spark... No matter the cost, I would help the ponies.

With that thought in mind I closed my eyes, allowing sleep to claim me once more...

I woke up reluctantly, like I always did. At least the light wasn't shining in my eyes this morning, like it usually does... And I hadn't kicked the covers off... Though... The blanket had a strange shape... And it felt oddly heavy and furry... And pleasantly warm... And breathing...

Wait what?

Okay, I guess it was time to properly wake up... Opening my eyes I looked up. The first sight of the day was something that my still-sleepy mind first mistook for cotton candy... A few blinks later I realized that it was just hair... Pink hair that belonged to an anthro horse...

My mind was slow on the uptake, but eventually it booted up and the memories of yesterday came back. With a sigh I dropped my head back and closed my eyes.

This was going to be one of those days... And something told me that any day in this world would be one of those days...

Oh well. I'd just deal with it when the time came. For now, it was time to get up... But first I would have to get the snoozing mare off me.

Looking down again I reached out, brushing Blossom's hair away. She looked kind of cute, sleeping like that. She was even drooling a little...

On my chest...

"Eww..." I voiced my opinion with a grimace. Strangely, that was enough to get her to stir.

I watched her as she tried to stay asleep for a minute before slightly opening her eyes and looking up at me.

"Mornin'..." She mumbled sleepily before laying her head back down on my chest. I grinned widely, realizing what the situation would turn into.

Comprehension in:

Three...

Two...

One...

"Huh?"

Called it.

Her eyes opened suddenly and she looked up at me in surprise. Next thing I knew she had shot herself up, scrambling away from me. I couldn't help but laugh at the situation, much to her confusion.

"Wha-? But... How..?" She actually looked quite lost... After laughing at the cliche for a few more seconds I yawned and stretched. A sigh escaped my lips as I heard a few satisfying pops.

"Good morning, Blossom." I greeted her after I stood up. "Sleep well?"

The mare blushed and mumbled something, looking away from me. I couldn't help but chuckle again. Blushing girls always amused me and...

Wait, what?

My chuckling ceased abruptly as my mind once again caught up and I stared at Blossom, causing her blush to deepen.

"What the..?" I voiced my confusion. How the hell was I seeing her blush? She had a coat of hair, for God's sake! And not only that, but the coat was red. Red! How was she blushing through that?

"Ugh... It's too early for things like this..." I groaned. I decided to throw this into the "deal with it later" pile along with other things I didn't feel like thinking about at the moment...

Or ever, for that matter...

Shaking my head I looked around. The camp was the same as when we went to sleep, with the exception of the fire having gone out at some point of time. Oh well... It wasn't like we'd need it anyway. There was nothing to cook, after all.

As if to add one more cliche to the slowly expanding list my stomach decided to let its presence known with a loud gurgle.

"Shuddup..." I scolded it, to Blossom's amusement.

"Well, looks like we're both hungry... How about we eat?"

Both my mind and stomach agreed with her. But the former pointed something out:

"What are we going to eat?"

The way she looked at me was as if I asked the most stupid question possible...

"Why, grass, of course."

I facepalmed... Of course my question would sound stupid to her... She was a horse. Of course she'll eat grass...

"That's good for you, but there's a problem... I'm a human." She gave me a confused look, prompting me to explain further:

"I can't eat grass." I said and showed her my teeth for emphasis. I had noticed that her teeth were flat, not unlike a horse's.

Blossom bent down to look at my teeth, blinking in confussion... Again.

"Why can't you eat grass? Is it bad tasting or something?" I rolled my eyes in exasperation.

"I don't know, I've never eaten grass. We humans can't even digest it..."

"Oh..." Was all she could say in return. There was a short pause, filled with uncomfortable silence before she spoke again: "What can you eat then?"

"Well..." I began, wondering what to say. If she was anything like a real horse then her diet would be strictly vegetarian, and if my (biased) opinion about the show was also correct then killing animals for their meat was a crime... I would have to gently break in the fact that I ate meat...

"I can eat fruits and vegetables... Dairy products... Bread, sweets, stuff like that. I can't eat grass, hay, flowers and leaves though..." I paused for a bit. There was no way to say it gently, or at least I couldn't think of one in the short amount of time I had...

"I also need some meat in my diet..." I put it bluntly. I guess that if I did it like pulling a band-aid - fast and direct, then it would mitigate the impact...

The reaction was instantaneous. Her eyes widened in fear and she started to move away from me.

Not the reaction I wanted...

"Y-y-you're a... C-carnivore..." Her voice trembled as she shook... Seriously? Was she thinking that I would eat her or something?

"Omnivore." I corrected her, raising a finger for emphasis. "And it's not by choice, just the way my species evolved. And before you freak out..." Okay, it was a bit late for that... "Further..." I added after a short pause. "I would never eat a sentient creature."

She seemed to calm down a bit at that... But not much.

"Look..." I sighed. "I had enough chances to eat you yesterday and during the night... Plus, there were the deer yesterday, which I killed..." I ignored the way my stomach churned at the thought. Now wasn't the time to get sick.

Though... They do say that venison is quite delicious... No, I shook my head. There was no way I could eat those deer anthros, even with the atrocities they committed.

"Besides..." I continued. "We humans would eat horse meat only in the direst circumstances."

"Really?" She asked, tilting her head in curiosity. I could see that my words were getting through to her, which was good.

"Yeah. Horses and dogs are two of Humanity's staunchest allies... They have been our companions, guardians and helpers throughout the ages. We have tribes that were almost literally born on horses."

"Wait, how?" Blossom interrupted me. "What do you mean born on horses?"

"What I said, of course. Mothers would climb on the horse to give birth."

She stared at me for a few seconds... I stared back... What was wrong with my explanation? I was...

Oh... Right.

I had forgotten something crucial - I was talking to a horse... Pony.. Thing.... You get it.

"Right, one detail you should know: humans are the only sentient species on my planet. Horses, dogs, deer, cows and such are just animals, like the birds in the trees around us." I was hoping I gave a good analogy... I wasn't going to ignore the possibility of the animals being able to think and talk like me and Blossom.

"Anyway, as I was saying, it is a sign of things hitting rock-bottom when we have to eat horses or dogs."

"That... Sounds strange..." Blossom admitted. I just shrugged in response.

"It's the way my planet works. If it's any consolation, this place is just as strange to me..." I paused for a bit before adding: "If not more..."

There were a few seconds of silence between us before Blossom spoke again:

"Can you tell me more about your world?"

"Sure." I nodded. "But first, I'd suggest we find some food... At least something that I could eat." A forest like this would surely have at least some berries or nuts that were edible... Right?

After doing my morning bathroom stuff I took my helmet and set on to search for something edible while Blossom stayed behind to guard the camp and graze... Okay, that one was a bit insulting, but she was a horse woman that was eating grass, what am I supposed to call it?

Anyway, it seemed that luck was on my side. It wasn't even five minutes after I set on to search for food that I stumbled upon a large patch of wild strawberries. That was good, since I was no Bear Grills... My stomach rejoiced as I devoured the tasty fruit without even thinking about washing them or anything like that. Once I was satisfied I started to pile the rest of the ripe fruits in my helmet for later consumption, as well as for Blossom. She would probably like them...

I was right, because when I returned to camp she gave me a tight hug before devouring a good portion of the strawberries. I chuckled as I watched her moan in delight at the taste before going to put my armor on. The lower body parts weren't easy to put on, but I managed.

Thankfully, Blossom was finished with her breakfast by then (and had even spent a few minutes watching me while I was putting the damn things on). I doubt I could've put the rest on if she hadn't helped me...

With that annoying task complete I collected the other stuff I had pulled out of the pouches on my waist. Blossom decided to hold the helmet with the strawberries for me, and apologized in advance for any that would get lost. I managed not to laugh at that... It was easy to see that she liked the strawberries and wanted to eat more.

"Alright, just don't eat them all." I said, chuckling at her blush as I started my phone. I wanted to see what was the time... That, and to see how long have I been in this world.

The digital clock said that it was 11:38 Earth time, and I think that it was more or less accurate for Equestrian time as well. It also meant that I have been here for about twenty or so hours.

I couldn't help but sigh. Twenty hours away from home... Twenty hours of missing... I briefly wondered what were people back home thinking about my abrupt disappearance. Were they worried? Was my boss furious about me leaving without telling him, or was he concerned because I hadn't taken my belongings? Were my friends searching our hangouts for me? Were my parents crying, wondering what happened to me? Was the police starting a nation-wide search for me?

I took a deep breath to calm myself down and rubbed the tears from my eyes. It wasn't the time to dwell on this... There was nothing I could do at the moment. It was better if I dealt with it when the time was right... Like when I had some sense of security in my life.

Reaching to the shut-down button of my phone I pressed it. No sense wasting battery... Just before the screen turned white with the Nokia logo I noticed something strange about the battery indicator... It showed it was full. And yesterday, when I shut it off, it was only at four out of seven lines.

"Damn thing must be glitching again..." I muttered under my breath before pocketing the device. After making sure that the fire was out (Only YOU can prevent forest fires!) me and Blossom continued our trek through the forest.

As promised, I started telling her about Earth. Her reaction was, as I expected, a mix of curiosity and appall. And I was only giving her a mild version, excluding a lot of the wars and other gruesome stuff like the Inquisition, slavery and such. I made sure to keep the history lesson on less bloody things, though that was only with the recent history. I told her about human rights activists like Gandhi and Martin Luther King, about great scientists and inventors like Archimedes, Newton, Einstein and many others.

Blossom seemed fascinated by that. But she seemed to want to ask me something, because she interrupted me:

"What does "Manowar" mean?" I paused at that and turned around to look at mare. She was staring down at the shirt I had given her, the Manowar logo stretched over her breasts. Below it was the image of the album art of what I thought of as the best music to come out since the dawn of time - Manowar's Warriors of the World. I remember her being a bit appalled at the image, but it was better than walking around completely naked and...

"Wait, you can read that?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes, it's written in plain Equish." I felt a twitch in my eye at that. What was next? Having an analogue of the French language? "So? Is that him? Is he a god of some sort?"

I couldn't help but chuckle at the question. It was probably a valid one for someone from another world.

"First, Manowar isn't a single man, but a group." I explained. I briefly considered lying to her, but then chased the thought away. It wouldn't do any good.

"They're a band. A Heavy Metal band." Blossom tilted her head in curiosity, a rather cute and amusing sight.

"Heavy Metal?" She asked, just as I expected.

"It's a genre of music. Usually it's loud and fast, though it can also be slower and quieter, melodic. There are many sub-genres. Symphonic, classical, trash, black, power, alternative..." I continued to list genres, only confusing her more. It took me a full minute to figure that out and I sighed.

"Why don't I just show you, hm?" I asked her, getting a nod in return. Fishing my phone from the pouch I turned it on. There was no sense in preserving the battery, it wasn't like I could call anyone here, and I would prefer to listen to some music while I could...

As the old-ish Nokia booted up I thought about which song should I put on. I had serious doubts that Blossom would like most of Manowar's stuff, but I was sure there would be a few songs she could like. Of course, I had other bands' music on the memory card, but we started our talk with Manowar and I wanted to introduce her to the wonderful world of Metal with my favorite band.

Hmm... Would she like Blow Your Speakers? Brothers of Metal? Or... Aha! I knew the perfect song!

As soon as the phone finished booting up I started the music player and quickly found the song.

"Come on, we can walk and listen." I told her, prompting her to look up from the phone and to me.

"Is that your gramophone?" She asked before looking at me confused (and maybe slightly offended) when I burst in laughter.

"No, it's not..." I said when I was finally capable of speaking again. "No, this is my phone. I told you about how we can communicate instantaneously with other parts of the world, right?" Blossom nodded at that. "Well, this is what we use for that. It also has other uses, like taking pictures, sending messages..." I smiled and started the song.

"And play music."

I had figured that she would like a song about friendship, and I was right. Blood Brothers was one of my favorite songs by the band, right up there with Warriors of the World itself.

We walked the next five minutes in silence, enjoying the song. Well, silence with the occasional singing from me... By the end we had emerged in a less foresty and more rocky part of the Everfree. As the song ended I hit the stop button and turned around to look at Blossom.

"So?" I asked, waiting to hear her opinion.

"It sounded odd... But I liked it." She smiled to me and I smiled back. It always made me glad to have good music appreciated.

"I'm glad to hear that. I have other songs that you might like... But I think that they should wait until we camp for the night." I said, switching my phone off and pocketing it before turning around to continue our trek. The day was going good enough. I wanted it to end well too, with some of my favorite songs. I had so many that I could show Blossom and...

A sound interrupted my musings, making me pause and look around. It sounded like... cracking...

I looked down. Indeed, the ground under mine and Blossom's feet was cracking apart...

"Look out!" I shouted and lunged forward, pushing the mare away from the forming hole. Unfortunately, I wasn't fast enough to escape it...

As the earth under me disappeared and I fell into the darkness I could only think of one thing:

"This is going to hurt..."

Author's Note

Whew... I know it has been a while, but I just couldn't get the muse to write this chapter... And now I made it in two days, using up all my spare time...

As you can see, not a lot of action, but some necessary development, showing how our Knight sets his goal. And I'm also trying to show how he copes with taking a life for the first time... Just like I think I would...

As for what I said about a single man being all it takes to start a rebellion, I'm more or less right. I know at least one example from my own country's history.

Now, for the songs... Manowar is an amazing group, and their songs have inspired me greatly in writing this chapter, as well as planning some future parts of the story.

As for those of you who expected some Caribou slaughter... I'm sorry. We'll get to that, but it'll take some time. But I'm sure that [can sate your bloodthirst in the meantime.

And with that I'm out and off to get some much-needed rest. As usual, read, review and point out any mistakes I made.](https://www.fimfiction.net/story/177794/the-fall-of-the-caribou The Fall of The Caribou)