Fable: The Equestrian Chapters

"Be a good colt, Paladin."

These were the last words my father ever said to me. I will always remember these words. I dream about them every night. Every night I see the village I grew up in burning. The bandits that attacked it running rampant, taking prisoners and lives in equal measure. I dream of myself pressing my hooves against the gaping sword wound in his side, crimson flowing around my tiny hooves. I see the last vestiges of life flicker out of my father's eyes.

Every night I promise that I'll be a good pony. Every night I promise to protect ponies that need it. And every night, my father still dies.

The dream never ends there however. I turn to run, only to find one of the bandits attacking my village standing behind me. He's a unicorn, levitating a long sword with a curved blade. The smile he wears is a promise of a painful death. I back away, powerless to stand against him. He raises his weapon high, ready to bring it down upon me. The strike never comes.

"YEAH!" A battle cry, different from the ones from the bandits, echoes out. It is terrifying. Commanding. Awe inspiring. It belongs to the largest stallion I've ever seen. His coat is pure white, bulging with muscles larger than me. He doesn't carry a weapon. He doesn't need one. He is the weapon.

To prove this, he lifts the bandit high into the air and hurls him through a building. A cottage that, until that day, I had called my home. This stallion has saved me. Every night, I experience the same feeling of elation and terror as I look up at him. He turns to face me. I expect an expression that could send any bandit running, and in truth I am ready to run from him myself. Instead, I am given a warm smile.

"Let's get you out of here. My friends are saving the other survivors." I am drawn to the gentleness of his voice. He holds out a hoof. "I can take you somewhere safe." I hesitate, looking around at the carnage that was once my home. I take his hoof. A small circle pinned to the stallion's fur begins to glow and my vision is filled with a blueish light.

I awaken from my dream. I know where he's taking me.