The Shadow of Equestria

Stratus and Spike walked into the barn. Inside, Pinkie Pie had once again pulled party supplies from seemingly nowhere and decorated the interior. Streamers and balloons hung up in the rafters, confetti littered the floor, and a massive triple-decker cake sat on a table in the center.

The Apples, along with all their friends, were talking and laughing in the middle of the room. As the pony and the dragon entered, Applejack looked up. Upon seeing Stratus and Spike, she broke into a smile and walked over.

"Twilight told me what y'all did," she said. She shifted uncomfortably. "Listen, I know I said some things that I probably shouldn't have. I'm sorry about being a little nosy about your past."

"Don't worry about it," replied Stratus. He forced himself to smile. Applejack smiled back at him.

"Just out of curiosity," she said, "Where did you hide all the money? Flim and Flam are definitely gonna be looking for it, and if it's somewhere too suspicious, well..."

Stratus looked at her for a moment, then chuckled. "Like I told Twilight," he said, "I had nothing to do with that. But I'm sure that whoever did would hide the money pretty well. I wouldn't worry about it too much."

...

In the Everfree Forest, a massive green dragon slumbered. A small smile was on it's face. It's hoard had been greatly increased when a pony and another dragon had shown up and simply chucked several bags of gold into it's cave. They had left without saying a word. With a pleased groan, it rolled over on top of it's new wealth.

...

"So, Stratus."

Stratus's flashback was interrupted by the sound of Twilight's voice. The alicorn was standing next to him, along with Rarity. "Once this party's over, I want you to go over to Rarity's shop with her. She'll be teaching you about generosity." Stratus nodded without a word, then walked over to the cake. Twilight and Rarity watched him leave, then turned back to one another.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come?" Twilight asked with concern. "I'm still not sure if we can trust Stratus around all those gems. I could just pop over and cast a few anti-theft spells." But Rarity shook her head.

"Twilight, dear," she said. "I'll be fine. And beside's, how can we truly say that we trust him if we keep him under lock and key? After all, he helped Applejack, didn't he?"

"You're right," agreed Twilight. "I'm just a bit nervous. I mean, the only way he could think of to help Applejack was thievery. He's clearly not reformed. And of all of us, you probably have the most valuable goods..."

Rarity smiled. She could tell that Twilight was disguising concern for her friend as concern for her goods. "Twilight, you know I can take care of myself." She said calmly. Twilight opened her mouth to retort, but Rarity cut her off. "Ah, ah, ah! No buts!" Rarity said. "Now come along. I simply cannot pass up this magnificent cake!" And with that, she pulled Twilight over to the table.

...

Back at her shop, Rarity looked over at her newest student. She had only remained at the party a short time after her discussion with Twilight. Directly after she left, she had led Stratus to her shop. The former thief had surprised her with his exceptionally quick learning, and before long he was able to run a sewing machine almost as well as her!

Smiling to herself, Rarity turned back to the dress she was working on. It was a custom order from Sapphire Shores, made from white silk and studded with clear crystals cut as prisms. When the light caught them, tiny rainbows were flung about in every direction. Stratus was working on filling several of the smaller orders she had been having difficulty completing.

Stratus, for his part, worked diligently, speaking not a word as he operated the machine. Rarity, remembering what Applejack had told her about his outburst, had kept quiet. Finally, she could stand the silence no longer.

"So, Stratus," she began. Stratus turned to face her, taking a break from the machine.

"What?" He asked.

"I was just curious about you," she said. Stratus opened his mouth to retort, but she cut him off. "I know, you don't like talking about your past, but please. It will all be easier to bear if you just tell me what's wrong."

Stratus stood still for a moment, opened his mouth, then closed it. After a second, he turned around and walked out. "I need some more fabric," he called back over his shoulder, a hint of irritation in his voice. Rarity frowned, then returned to her own work.

"He'll have to tell some pony..." she muttered to himself. "Or that secret is going to eat him alive."

...

Stratus grit his teeth as he scanned the shelves. What did she know! She had no right to ask about his past. Why couldn't they all just leave him alone?

Couldn't they see that this was for the best?

Looking through the cloth, he selected one that looked about the right color. He took it in his teeth and gave it a pull. The cloth did not budge. Frowning, he took a harder tug. The cloth slid out, along with a small filly on top of it. Stratus dropped the cloth in surprise. The filly gave him a meek smile.

"Um... oops. Sorry, sir." Stratus looked down at her.

"Who are you?"

"Oh, my name is Sweetie Belle!" She cheerfully called out. "Me and my friends are trying to get our cutie marks in hiding." Just as she finished talking, two more fillies burst into the room.

"Aha!" One of them called out. "Found you!"

"Darn!" Shouted Sweetie Belle. "Guess none of us are getting our cutie marks in hiding."

"Yeah," they all sighed. Just then, the two new fillies noticed Stratus.

"Hey, who are you?" Asked the pegasus. As Stratus was opening his mouth to answer, the earth pony shouted out, "Wait a minute, you're that pony that saved our farm!"

"Really?" Asked the other two. Then, they all crowded around Stratus, clamoring questions faster than he could keep up.

"How'd you do it?"

"What are you doing in Ponyville?"

"How'd you get your cutie mark?"

At that last question, they all stopped and looked up at him expectantly. Stratus couldn't help but chuckle a little at their antics.

"There are some things about my past that are really left better untold," he explained to them. "Especially to young fillies."

"Well that's just silly!" Shouted the one named Apple Bloom. "You shouldn't hide your past from your friends!" The other two nodded in agreement. Stratus just sighed.

"Look, if I did tell about just SOME of the things that happened in my childhood, you'd wish I never had."

"How can we know if you won't tell us? Maybe it wouldn't seem as bad if you just said it out loud."

Stratus lifted his head a little, then shook it. He looked thoughtful for a moment. Then, picking up the cloth in his mouth, he walked back upstairs.

The three crusaders looked at each other.

"Was it something we said?"

...

Rarity looked up as Stratus entered the room. He walked back over to his work area, and resumed where he had left off. Rarity waited a moment, then turned to look back at her dress.

"It all started before I was even born."

Rarity jumped at the sound of the pegasus' voice. She looked over at him. His eyes were still on the dress. He continued.

"My father was in the royal guard. They say he was a good pony." He snorted. "Sometimes, I wish he'd been cowardly enough just to run. His squad was ambushed near the border. Changelings. His commander was pinned down, about to be killed. He just broke out of the line, pushed through the changelings, and started killing all of them. Everypony always assumed changelings felt nothing. They were wrong." He took a deep breath. "At that moment, they felt fear for the first time. They ran, but not before they-" His voice broke off. He paused a moment before continuing. "When his squad dug his body out of the pile of corpses he made, they could barely tell who it was."

Stratus's voice began to choke a little. Rarity began to move over, but he pushed her away.

"My mother found out the same week she was expected to have me. The grief made her too weak. She died, with me only halfway born. The doctors had to dig me out of her corpse. I was underweight, and they didn't expect me to survive the night. But I did, so I got sent to an orphanage." He shuddered. "I was beaten, starved, and abused. I stayed there a few years. Eventually, I learned how to fight back." He gave a small laugh, with no humor in it. "I was almost a murderer before I even had my cutie mark. I nearly killed a foal with a brick one day. I got no food for the next week, but no pony ever bothered me again. In fact, I don't think they even looked at me."

"Eventually, I ran away. I don't know what the final straw was, but I did. I raised myself on the streets. Learned how to survive." For the first time since the story began, he looked up at Rarity. "That's how I learned everything I know. That's why I was able to save you and your friends. That's why you're all still alive."

For a while, Rarity was speechless. She had always thought of her home as a paradise, a place where all ponies could achieve the same opportunities. But if what this pony was saying were true, everything she believed was wrong. For the first time, she began to question everything she believed about the Princesses, Equestria, even pony kind in general!

"I-I'm sorry," she said. It sounded sad and pathetic compared to what she had just heard, but she couldn't think of what else to say!

"Was there ever anything good in your life?" She finally asked. Stratus looked at her questioningly.

"What do you mean?" Rarity noticed how tired his voice sounded. Like he just wanted to give up.

"Was there ever anything good?" She repeated. "Surely you must have had friends?" Stratus simply snorted. Then he lowered his head, and continued in a quiet voice. Rarity had to lean closer to hear.

"Once," he said. "There was a pony I knew. The best friend I ever had. Always there for me when I needed it. Always believed in me, always supported everything I did."

Rarity waited a moment for him to continue. When no continuation came, she spoke up. "Where is that friend now?" She asked, hoping that this stallion had SOMETHING in his life that meant anything to him.

He simply gave her a sad smile. "Gone, now, but not before I learned one last lesson."

"Don't make friends. It just hurts all the more when you lose them."

...

In Canterlot, a stallion shivered. His boss had always been intimidating, yet now, with bad news to bring, that intimidation seemed much larger than ever before. He passed through the stone arch that lead to the underground hideout. Here, the thieves guild of Canterlot lived and worked. They controlled all crime in Canterlot, and most crime in Equestria. They were the largest criminal organization in history.

And now, he had to go tell the leader of that group that his plan's were failing.

In rooms branching out from the hallway, he saw ponies practicing their art. Picking pockets, opening locks, moving silently. Older, more experienced thieves taught younger recruits. Each recruit wore a small badge, with three rings on it. The ponies own badge held just one. A symbol that he was an elite member of the inner circle, one of the masters. He had worked hard and sacrificed much for that privilege.

Finally, he reached the end of the corridor. A large vault door hung there, guarded by two hulking earth ponies. As he approached, they opened it for him. He waited as the intricate door slowly unscrewed it's bolts. The gate's designs were the same as the door's of Tartarus. No pony, not even the princesses, could get in when they were sealed.

Stepping through, he was greeted by a magnificent sight. On the far wall hung the trophies of the guild. Exquisite masks, fine jewelry, even a crown that had once belonged to Celestia herself! All marked past heists, which had been chosen as particularly successful. He himself had put up quite a few. In fact, there were only three others with more trophies. And one of them was the pony he currently worked for.

In front of those trophies sat a throne made of solid gold. And on that throne sat a pale black unicorn, with a scarlet mane. His eyes glowed a vibrant red, and his gaze snapped to the thief as he entered. The thief shuddered as the doors shut behind him. The guild master's eyes seemed to pierce his very soul.

Silence hung in the air for a moment. Then, the unicorn on the throne spoke.

"What news do you bring, Light Show?"

The unicorn called Light Show swallowed, then replied, "I'm afraid I bring only bad news." At this, the guild masters brow furrowed. "Our efforts to shut down the Elements of Harmony are failing. First, Eldritch Blast was arrested by the royal guard, after the kidnapping went south. Then, Flim and Flam lost all of the money we loaned them to purchase Sweet Apple Acres. Some ponies are saying that fate itself has turned against us."

"And what do you think is happening?"

Light Show swallowed, then nervously replied, "I think that it could be HIM."

The leader grimaced. "After all these years..." he muttered to himself. He then turned to the thief and gave his orders.

"Kill all the ponies associated with both jobs. We don't want them giving away any information that could compromise our efforts. Make sure it appears to be suicide."

Light Show nodded. "I'll see to the matter personally, sir," he said, but his leader shook his head.

"No," he said. "I have a special task for you, Light Show." He said. "You've never failed me before, and I have full faith that you can complete this mission." He leaned forward.

"Take a small group with you to Ponyville," he said. "I want you to KILL Twilight Sparkle. Whoever is interfering is likely in Ponyville, or at least has a presence there. Find them, and kill them as well." His voice turned icy, and all traces of kindness were lost from it. "Is that clear?"

Light Show gulped. "Crystal, sir."