I growled and said “I only have two children and they are currently safe.” They laughed at me and I growled forming a sword out of mana. They smirked as I rushed at them then blasted me back into the wall pinning me there with four different waves of telekinesis. I growled and said “What do you want?”

They laughed and said “Why to show you the truth of the world.” I growled and spat at them. They smirked and one said “Now that’s no way to treat your children daddy. After all we are formed by your taking the darkness from our mothers, darkness which you created when you vanished. After all darkness is not evil, now is it daddy?” I growled softly struggling against the hold they had on me and silently berating myself for not thinking they could do something like this to me. One of them lowered their hood, revealing a black version of Celestia with a black, crimson, and emerald mane. Her eyes were orange and she said “I’m the eldest of my four sisters. I am Flare Celeste. My three sisters are Solana Ray, Moonlight Dusk, and Fallen Star.”

I growled and asked “Alright Flare, what do you want?”

She smiled and said “Why to release your dark side daddy dearest. However it doesn’t seem to be there yet. Maybe it will take us hurting your mares, or our siblings, to bring out that side of you. For now you truly are just a writer. Where we come from you’re a warrior king. Writing is your hobby, but fighting is a thrill for you. Why daddy it’s a bloodbath when you’re challenged. You even have subjugated the griffons, zebras, and Minotaurs. Why you are so dangerous in reality that this nice guy act you show the ponies is just,” she stopped smiling here and frowned with a disgusted look saying “Sickening.”

I snorted and said “You act like I’m some monster who has given up on everything.”

She smiled and said “You’ve given up on believing in the good of others, instead you just watch out for your family and followers. Even the princesses here bow to your whim. Of course we’ve been alive a lot longer than that. I was born when you helped stop Eris, Solana when you helped stop Sombra. Moonlight when you first started turning to stone, and Fallen was born the day you turned to stone though we each took time to prosper and grow.”

I glared and said “I doubt your mother’s gave you much to feed off of then. They’re beautiful mares who wouldn’t give in to darkness.” She laughed and looked at Celestia, Solaria, Luna, and Artemis. I followed her eyes to see all four of them looking down. I said softly “Girls?” They looked even further down at my words they’re eyes held tightly shut as I asked “You didn’t let it consume you, right girls?”

Luna said softly “We did.” I wondered if she meant the royal we or her and Artemis. At a glance at Artemis I realized it was the latter. I swore and struggled trying to get to my girls to comfort them. I managed to free my hand and formed a fireball then lobbed it at the three who were still cloaked. Flare just caught it in her magic and seemed to absorb it.

She laughed and said “Now, now Daddy. Two of us wouldn’t have been hurt by that but two of us would have at least felt a slight sting. I can’t have you doing things to hurt my sisters. Mama why don’t you tell him about the dark days? When you lost control and burned the city of Griffonhelm to the ground for harming your little ponies? Or the time you executed General Arrow Heart for refusing to follow your orders? Or how about you Aunt Luna, tell him about the curse you placed on the weaver who spoke out against you before your fall to the darkness?”

I snarled and shouted “STOP IT! CAN’T YOU SEE THEY’RE HURTING FROM YOUR WORDS!!!! IF YOU TRULY SEE THEM AS FAMILY YOU WOULDN’T TORTURE THEM SO!”

She laughed and said “Oh they are my family, but weaker versions. They can’t stomach what they did. My mother was proud of the destruction of Griffonhelm, after you mind broke her and twisted her to be more fitting as your consort at least.” I struggled, feeling anger build within me at each of Flare’s words. She chuckled and said “Oh Daddy this is child’s play. If you were at your full strength you’d easily be able to overpower us. Why do you cling to your weakness?”

I closed my eyes focusing on my anger and slowly tamped it down. I said softly “What do you want? Why are you torturing Luna and Celestia? What sick game are you playing?”

She laughed and said “The only game is exploiting their weakness. What I want is for the warrior who crushed the griffons, the minotaurs, and even the zebras when they turned against him. I want the man who tamed the Lupus, and crushed the caribou. I want the real you. Of course Aunt Eris isn’t here yet so maybe you haven’t become that man yet. I can wait, but in the meantime I think I’ll leave you a present. Come sisters, let’s leave father to his playtime.” Their magic dropped me and I formed a sword then lunged at them. They stopped me with merely a thought and said “Get Stronger Daddy, for something much worse than us is coming, and only you can stop it. After all, only you can purify and corrupt both, being a creature of chaotic harmony or harmonious chaos.”

My sword vanished and I dropped to my knees as she walked past me with the other three and said “Let’s see if the royal guard is as strong as your fallen guard. After all dad, you said you trained the fallen guard yourself. The royal guard however is trained to fight for their country and even have an army. Let’s see the solar and lunar guards in particular stop the fallen regiments. Have fun saving lives, or let them fight until only one stands and you can claim your soldiers. Either way, it’ll be fun to watch.”

I growled forming a new sword and climbed back to my feet then said softly “Bring on your armies. I’ll lead the guard to defeat them. Bring on your dark magic; I’ll lead spell casters to counter. Block out the skies; our Pegasi will clear the sky in ten seconds flat. Doesn’t matter what you do, EQUESTRIA WILL STAND STRONG AND WE WILL WIN!!!!!”

She laughed and said “We’ll see.” Then the four stepped into a dark portal that made me think of Kingdom Hearts.
I chuckled and said “Just like Nobodies.” I heard the sound of a struggle at the door and rushed toward it. I kicked open the doors to see the two day guard surrounded by a group of six creatures. I lunged forward and stabbed one in the head dropping it. The guards slightly rallied by that and lunged piercing the chests of two of the remaining five.

They growled and the guards said “SIR! Are the princesses safe?” I nodded and got into a fighting stance the two guards smiling and said “Then we will guard them until our dying breath.”

I snorted and lunged forward piercing the shoulder of one of the beasts. It reared back roaring and I kicked it in the face. It roared again and I slammed my blade of energy down its throat causing it to choke. I smirked and said “Die mother bucker, Die.” As it fell I noticed the guards had felled the other two abominations. I studied them as I formed another sword the first vanishing. They were as tall as most ponies, but hey had sharp teeth, claws, and made me think of a cross between ponies and dragons with a bit of canine and feline mixed in. their tails were long and slim like a feline’s their ears and eyes were lupine in appearance, and their bodies were pony like with claws of a dragon.

I stared at the beasts and said “Well they’re obviously carnivores, but they’re a strange chimera.” The guards nodded and I said “The princesses are inside with my foals. They’re all behind a barrier that protects them, but I can’t lower it until the threat is gone. I’ll go help the guards, you guard the door.” They nodded and I rushed off to the sound of battle.

I ran through the halls and stumbled upon the nearest battle. I growled softly as a guardsman’s throat was ripped out by a beast then it started feasting on his body, it’s muzzle covered in gore and blood. I rushed forward and sliced its head off spilling black blood all over the floor. I turned and saw three other guards holding off three times their number in enemy beasts.

I threw a fireball at one knocking it back and burning it. It howled in rage and turned toward me the other eight following its attention. I smirked and said “Well then COME ON!” They lunged at me and I rolled out from under them and kicked the nearest into the spear of a guard killing it. However as I was getting to my feet two lunged and bit down on my arms immobilizing them. I winced and tried to fight them off but they just bit down harder. I swore and said “Great, HEY GUARDS I GOT THEM OFF YOUR TAILS! SO HOW ABOUT A LITTLE HELP HERE!!”’

The guards rushed over and helped me out, but they only saved me from having my throat ripped out. I kicked a beast in the head as it went for my throat and ended up on my back with the beasts slowly pulling my arms apart. I screamed in pain until a guard pierced the brain of the one on my left arm and it instinctively released me yelping. I started punching the one on my right arm over and over disorienting it and growled “Let go you stupid bucker!” I tried prying it off my arm, only for it to bite down harder digging into the bone.

I yelled in pain as it was stabbed over and over by the guard who then turned on the rest of the creatures and engaged with them. I pried the corpse’s teeth off my arms and formed two swords of magic in my hands. I jumped into the fray managing to surprise the forsaken beasts, as I started thinking of them, and slammed my blades through the skulls of two bringing their number down to four. I’d killed three with some assistance and the guard had killed the other two.

The guards worked together to flank the last four while I approached from the side. The guards were a pegasus, two earth ponies, and a unicorn. The unicorn was using his or her magic to keep them pinned, the pegasus flew overhead stabbing down at them, and the two earth ponies guarded the unicorn’s sides. I stabbed one in the leg causing it to drop for a few seconds, which was long enough for a guard to spear it in the neck. The other three howled out in rage and lunged at us breaking the magical grip holding them.

I jumped back out of their reach and slashed one across the eyes only for its claws to rake the armor of one of the earth ponies tearing it apart and leaving the pony open to attack. I pulled him back and stabbed the beast that lunged at him through the eye with his spear. He smiled at me in thanks and I nodded then watched the last two study the four of us. They couldn’t escape so they lunged and we quickly finished them off. I spat to the side and shouted “GUARD FORM UP!” They quickly did as commanded and I said “You three are with me. We’re going to go through and show these creatures what Equestrians are made of. Understood?”

They shouted “Sir Yes Sir.” After that we started walking the halls looking for any groups of guards that were being overrun and adding them to our small contingent. We lost a few to ambushes, but for every pony we lost we gained three more. Eventually we got to the throne room where the rest of our forces were barricaded in surrounded by four or five times their number of Forsaken Beasts. I growled realizing we were heavily outnumbered and tried to think up a plan.

I realized the easiest way would be to make the group split up and target us so that those inside could get a respite. I whistled attracting the attention of my Pegasi guards and said “I need you to take to the air and dive bomb the enemy. Hit and run tactics. The unicorns will give you some support while the earth ponies in our guard will stand back and form a shield wall. I’ll work with the unicorns as my magic seems to be effective against these things. When the way is clear double back and regroup then you will all be under the orders of Captain Gleaming Shield. It was an honor to serve with you.”

They realized that something was up and I didn’t plan on telling them just what that was. I didn’t plan on dying or anything like that, but there was a risk it could happen since I was going to be the target for the enemy once the unicorns and Pegasi fell back to the shield wall. I wasn’t joining the shield wall I was going to lead the fuckers on a merry chase and decrease their numbers little by little. I nodded at a pegasus to take the lead and blasted the rear of the enemy attracting their attention and killing a few in the blast.

They snarled as more magic blasts started hitting them from multiple hallways, and I whistled then grabbed a spear and threw it into their ranks. Most moved out of the way but one unlucky SOB got speared through the middle. I smirked and said “Come get some mutts.” They snarled understanding the insult and started chasing me. I chuckled as I ran and started using magic to set up traps along the paths I was taking.

All the magic use was starting to take its toll on me though. I had started out with enough magic to topple an alicorn, now I was about an average unicorn’s levels. Now the fact of the matter is my magic was like that after setting up all the traps, using my magic swords, and using magic to blast the forsaken. The forsaken were down to about twice the guards forces and were gaining on me. I was also starting to run on fumes from all the running, the injuries I’d gained, and the fact I’d been up since shortly after dawn.

I ducked into an alcove as the beasts ran past me then stepped out as the last one passed. However that one was smart as it turned around and slashed my back when I turned to leave. I swore and stabbed my blade into its neck severing its spine. I coughed and limped my way back to the throne room where the guard had gathered and the night guard had finally arrived allowing for us to have even numbers with the beasts. I smiled and fell flat on my face passing out as a medic checked me over. My last conscious thoughts were “The girls had better be ok. Hell if any of these bastardos touched a hair on my girls or my foals I’ll revive them just to destroy them over and over again.”

Author's Note

There we go part one. Jake had it rough, but his mares will hopefully help him through it. Is this the full might of the forsaken guard? Who are Flare and the others? All these and more will be answered as the story continues. I hope you are looking forward to reading the next part because it's already under way.