Author's Note
Credit to: Harmony Pie for editing my story and giving such motivating thoughts! 
Thank you!
Raven's Prophecy
It was because I was weak. It was because I was different. It was because they didn’t like me. Any way you put it didn’t change what they did to me, or why they did it. They had surrounded me and laughed at my small size compared to theirs. I was only thirteen at the time, but it didn’t matter to them. They threw me around, hit me with their hooves, bucked me in the face. Every time they knocked me down, they would yell at me, “GET UP!”, and every time I got up, they would knock me back down, laughing. My blood had been spilt all over the ground underneath me. My blue fur was covered in crimson, my face was a mess, and the bones inside my body were broken. I couldn’t take anymore ‘punishment’. Yet they continued, snorting and chuckling at my injuries and my weeping. Then the big one stepped up, and a scowl on his face told me that he wasn’t there to stop the fight. If anything, he was there to contribute. But it wasn’t the pain that hurt me the most, it was what he said; “You are nothing more than a waste of life. A creature who was brought into this world to suffer. A worthless pony who no one cares about.” Those words struck me hard. I curled into a ball and started to sob into my blood-covered fur. “Look at me, you piece of dirt,” the bigger pony growled, but I didn’t comply. “LOOK AT ME!” he yelled and I did, but I wished that I hadn't. He quickly brought his forehoof down upon my face, and then everything went black.
I was running at full speed. He was right behind me and I knew it. I quickly turned the corner and came across an open door. Without truly thinking first, I ducked through the doorway into a small closet, and closed the door behind me, leaving a small crack so I could see out. I waited for a couple of minutes, then saw a black figure pass by the door. I jumped back quickly, but then retook my position at the door and listened to the clopping of hooves on the wooden floor. I waited until sound died away before I pushed open the door. Immediately after that horrible decision, I was jumped by something that was hiding behind the door. Pinned to the ground, I had no way of escaping as the figure on top of me lowered themselves down, a wicked smile on their face.
“Guess what time it is?” he said as his hooves raised into the air. I struggled, trying to break free, but couldn’t and what happened next was unbearable. “TICKLE TIME!” His hooves rubbed the side of my stomach and I squealed in uncontrollable laughter.
“Stop! Oh... please... stop!” I yelled between laughs and the pony on top of me complied, getting off of me. I stood up and knocked him in the shoulder. “You know I hate that,” I said, clearly upset. The other pony shrugged.
“What are you gonna do about it, Raven? Take me on?” he said in a challenging manner. I lowered my eyes as a sign that I accepted his challenge before I jumped him, pinning him down. We rolled on the floor in a full out tickle war. This always happened when it got near our birthday. See, my brother and I, Midnight, were twins. We looked almost exactly the same with a few differences. While my mane and tail were gray with a darker strip of gray through the middle and my eyes were a nice emerald green, his mane and tail were a solid golden color and his eyes were a sapphire blue. Not only that, but between the two of us, I was the only one who had a cutie mark. I discovered my talent when I found my love for electronic music, which was pictured as three musical notes with bolts of electricity for the head of the notes. My brother didn’t have his yet, but that didn’t mean he was giving up. “Come on, little bro,” he said, walking towards the kitchen. “Mom has something special for us.”
“Little? I’m older than you.”
“Yeah, by five minutes," Midnight said, rolling his eyes. “Come on!” I quickly followed him into the kitchen. That was the last thing I remember before everything went so horribly wrong.
When I woke up, I found myself in a bed, with very little memory of the events that brought me here. When I looked around, I realized that I was inside a hospital room. I tried to sit up, but my body was so sore and hurt so much that I had to lie back down. I let out a sigh as the door to my room opened and a pony in a white dress and white cap that had a red cross walked in. She looked at me with eyes that didn’t care too much about my state, nor did she answer me when I asked her where I was. She just grabbed the clipboard that was at the end of my bed and looked it over. I tried to get her attention, but she ignored me as she flipped through the pages and read them carefully. The she placed it back where she got it, grabbed a pot of water and filled the glass on my table, then walked out. I sat there, uncertain of why she had completely ignored me, but I didn’t think about it for long as the doctor walked in.
“Well, Mr. Blake. You seemed to have gotten yourself banged up really badly this time. You should consider yourself to be very lucky. With the state you were in when you arrived three days ago, you could have died. I’m very glad that you managed to hang on as long as you did,” he said as he moved to my side, a clipboard of his own in his hooves. “I’m just here to see how you’re doing, that’s all.” The smile on his face comforted me a little, so I asked him what I had attempted to ask the nurse.
“Where am I?”
He looked at me with a hint of concern in his face. “Why, you’re in the hospital,” he said as he wrote a few quick notes on his clipboard. I shook my head and quickly asked another question. “What happened to me?”
He stopped writing and looked up at me.
“I was hoping you would be able to tell me. In my opinion, it looked as if you had been attacked. By whom and for what cause, I don’t know. But you are looking much better today.” His words brought little comfort to me and, for some strange reason, I felt a wave of depression wash over my body. I held my breath as I tried to not cry in front of him, but achieved little success. Tears rolled down my face as he placed his clipboard on the floor and moved next to me. “What’s the matter, Blake?”
I shook my head. “What they said is true. Everything they said to me is true! I am worthless…” I cried out, my head buried into my forelegs. The doctor patted me on my back in an attempt to calm me down.
“Now listen here, Blake. You don’t listen to what they have to say. What they say is nothing more than a bunch of nonsense. You aren’t worthless. In fact, I believe that your life has a greater meaning than what they know. You’re here for a reason, and a good one too. I just know it.” I looked him in the eyes.
“Are… are you sure?” I asked.
He nodded and replied. “Trust me, I know.” He picked up his clipboard and walked to the door. He turned back and smiled at me, then left. That was the last time I saw him. After several short weeks, I was released from the hospital. I returned to the orphanage, my little home for the past so many years, although now, it was no longer a home to me. I walked inside, past the desk at the front and into my room. It had been trashed. My clothes had been thrown all over the room, the bed was torn to shreds and pages from the books I had were torn out. I only sighed at the state the room was in before I grabbed a small suitcase from the small closet and packed whatever I could fit inside. Once I had completed this task, I shut it close, jumping on it to pack down the stuff inside, and dragged it out of the room. I went down the stairs, the suitcase thudding on every step behind me. I walked past the front desk once again, with no pony there, and walked out onto the street. I looked at the old building one last time before I walked down the street, never to return.
I don’t know why they were mad at my brother. I don’t know why he ran away. What I do know is that his disappearance left a huge hole in our family. It was only a few days until our birthday! Why did he leave? I would ask my father this question, but his reply only brought more questions.
“He couldn’t face the truth. We told him… no, we warned him! He knew that they were dangerous! We wanted him to stay away, but he wouldn’t listen. Why couldn’t he just listen to us for once?!” I tried to ask him who ‘they’ were, but it seemed that he was so caught up in his thoughts, he failed to realize that I was talking. I left, my head hanging low. I entered the next room and heard my mother crying, so I walked over to the couch and sat next to her. She looked up at me and attempted to smile, but she couldn’t hide her sorrow. I didn’t say anything, but instead I hugged her, nuzzling into her fur. She returned the hug and I could feel some of the ‘sad’ fade from her.
“Oh, Raven. I’m so sorry that you have to see me like this. I just wish… that your brother…" She stopped and started to cry again, her tears soaking my fur. We sat like that for a long time.
'Twas the night before my birthday when I awoke to the smell of smoke. I sat up in a slight daze and looked around, hoping to find the source. That’s when I noticed a light under the door. I got out of my bed and made my way towards the door. I grabbed the door with my hoof, only to quickly retract it. The knob was scorching hot! I decided to use my magic instead, grabbing the knob in a glow of red magic. I pulled and it flung open, a wave of heat hitting me as it did. Outside my door, orange flames danced as they burned the walls and ceiling. “MOM!” I cried out in fear.
“Over here!” I heard her voice call out. I looked down to my left and saw my parents down an open path. I started towards them when a beam engulfed in flames crashed from the ceiling. I stumbled backwards, keeping from the flames that scorched my fur.
“SON!” My father yelled to me. I looked up and saw him pointing in the opposite direction. “Head out the back! We’ll meet you in the front!” I looked at him, terrified, but the look on his face reassured me. I quickly nodded, then turned and ran down the path, through the flames.
I was terrified. The entire house was on fire and I couldn’t find my way through the flames. I somehow made it downstairs into the kitchen, but it was full of fire and the door was on the other side. ‘This is it," I thought as the flames closed in around me. My head hung low as I waited for the fire to engulf me as well, but that moment never came. When I looked up, I realized that the fire had made a ring around me as it remained a distance from me. I was confused, then a voice spoke to me.
“Don’t be afraid, my child.” I looked and found a figure standing in a open path between the flames. Even with the light of the flames, I couldn’t see their face, but I had a feeling that they meant no harm to me. “Come,” it said, turning down the path. I did what my head told me to do; I followed. I walked through the flames, not feeling the heat or any burning sensation, with my sight on the black figure before me. Before I knew it, I was outside, the chill of the night air rushing past my face as I looked for the black figure. There was no sight of it, so I raced to the front of my house where neighboring ponies had gathered. When they saw me dart from the darkness of my house, they greeted me with hugs and cries of concern. I hardly paid them any attention as I looked through the crowd for my parents, but I had no luck in finding them.
“They must still be inside,” one pony said as my eyes scanned each pony. I looked back at the building that was my home. Flames erupted from the windows and it groaned, as if it was about to give. ‘Please, Celestia, help my parents,' I thought as I watched the flames grow in size. Then it all happened. A loud crack sounded and the building collapsed on itself, the roof crashing onto the ground inside of what remained of the structure. I screamed as I watched everything fall apart, screamed for my parents, who were still inside, screamed at the pony that held me back, and just screamed in general. Several minutes later, the fire ponies arrived to stop the spread of the fire, but I knew that they were too late. My parents were dead… and so was my spirit…
Time passed quickly as I wandered across Equestria, looking for a place to call home. Unfortunately for me, life wasn’t as kind as I had believed it to be. It had been nearly six years since I left the orphanage and since then, I found myself thrown from one situation into the next, each one chipping away at what hope I had left until there was nothing left between me and my wish for death. At that point, I heard about a small forest that ponies stayed away from. They told of how monsters and beasts lurked within and entering this place would be like asking for death. That’s exactly what I did. I stood on the edge of the forest called ‘The Everfree Forest’, my mind racing between either entering the forest or walking back to the closest city, which was miles away. Then the thought of what those stallions said to me all those years ago entered my mind. ‘You’re worthless. You’re nothing.’ My head dropped as I took another big breath before entering the forest.
I don’t know how long I was walking through that forest, nor did I understand why I was still alive, but night had fallen and the small supply of food that I had brought with me ran out a few hours earlier. My stomach growled at me as I continued through the trees, my vision obscured by the leaves that rustled in the wind. My legs grew weak, each step becoming more painful than the last, yet I kept pushing. At times I half expected something or someone to jump from behind the bushes and attack me, but it never happened. Soon I found a river and after a short break to take a few sips from the water, I trudged through it and climbed onto the bank on the other side. I shook myself and continued. I don’t remember too much of what happened after that, but soon I found an opening in the tree line. Making my way through, I found myself outside the forest. I smiled slightly, knowing that I had crossed the Everfree Forest in such short time. Then I collapsed. The last thing I saw before passing out was the silhouette of a pony against the light of the moon.
Every night I would dream the same nightmare: my parents were trapped in a ring of fire that was burning them alive as they screamed for help. I was there to witness it happen, however, there was nothing I could do as a dark figure held me from behind and whispered the same thing in my ear each time, getting louder each time until I could hear what it was saying.
“You could have saved them, but you turned your back. You left without even trying.” Then, after I felt the presence behind me disappear, a shadow would be cast over my dream, waking me from the nightmare. This happened every night for several months and I couldn’t take it anymore. I soon refused to sleep in fear of seeing my parents die again, but my body was weak and I suffered it over and over. One night when I fell asleep against my will, I was greeted by a change of dreamscape. Instead of the ring of fire and the screams of my dead parents, I was surrounded by black. I couldn’t see anything in front of me for more than ten hoofsteps. I sat there, alone in the dark, until the sound of hoofsteps alerted me. My eyes scanned the surrounding area and I found myself staring down at another pony to my right. Their head looked towards the ground, so I couldn’t see their face, but the yellow mane and blue fur told me who this was.
“Midnight? Is that you?” The pony shook slightly at the mention of the name before he gave me a response. “Yes, Raven, it’s me…”
I let out a breath of relief, a smile forming on my face. "I’m so happy to see you, brother. It been so long. Where… where have you been?”
“I’ve been busy, Raven. I only have a short amount of time before they take me back, but… you need to know…”
“‘They’? Who’s ‘they’?” I asked, slightly confused by my brother’s tone. He sounded as if he was scared, but of what?
“You still remember the fire, yes?” he replied, ignoring my question. I nodded in response and he continued. “That fire… I… didn’t mean….” He started to cry while he spoke and I wanted to comfort him, but when I moved towards him, his head shot up and he screamed at me; “STAY AWAY FROM ME!” I jumped back by his sudden outburst, then realized something very… disturbing. I could now see the face of my brother, but his eye, his right eye was nothing more than a void of black, cracks forming around the edge. In the center was a white dot. It darted back and forth as he attempted to hide his face. “Don’t look at me! I don’t want you to see what I’ve become!” he yelled, his forehoof covering his face.
“Midnight, what happened to you?”
“They happened, alright?! Dad warned me to stay away, but I didn’t listen! Now… now I’ve become one of them… and I don’t want the same happening to you too.” His voice warbled as he started crying again.
“Why are you…”
“I DID IT!” he yelled, causing me to step back. “I KILLED OUR PARENTS! I SET THE HOUSE ON FIRE TO PROVE MY LOYALTY TO THEM! I KILLED MOM, RAVEN!” I looked at him in shock. He lowered his head in shame, tears running down his fur as he sobbed, saying how it was all his fault. Then something inside me snapped, as if a pent-up rage monster had finally awoken from its slumber.
“How could you?” I said, the frustration clearly audible in my voice. Midnight looked at me and was going to say something before I cut him off. “HOW COULD YOU!?” I screamed, making him step back in the appearance of my rage. “THEY WERE OUR PARENTS! THEY WERE YOUR FAMILY AND YOU JUST KILLED THEM!”
“Brother, I’m…”
“DON’T YOU BROTHER ME! YOU KILLED OUR PARENTS AND NOW… NOW I’M STUCK IN SOME HELL HOLE THAT YOU PUT ME IN!” I yelled at him. As my rage grew, so did a white light from my body. It grew brighter and brighter the more I yelled. “I HATE YOU! I BUCKING HATE YOU! LEAVE ME AND NEVER COME BACK!” And with that, the light surrounding my body flashed and a scream erupted from my brother. He raced back into the darkness as I regained my senses. As soon as he was gone, I regretted everything I said to him. I cried into my own hooves as the light died down around me, but not all the way. I remained there for Celestia knows how long, crying my heart out, when a voice spoke to me. This time, it wasn’t my brother’s, but somepony else's'.
“It wasn’t his fault, young one. The darkness forced him. His mind was corrupted. But you can save him.” I looked up, but saw nopony there.
“How?” I said, looking around. Then in front of me, six symbols appeared. Each one was different. There was a balloon, a diamond, an apple, a cloud with a lightning bolt, a butterfly, and a star. To me, they meant nothing, but the voice spoke once more.
“Seven heroes will rise to shatter the darkness… and reclaim that which has been taken…” Then the symbols surrounded me, each one lighting up in a different color before they engulfed me…
Then I woke up…
My entire body ached in pain as I rose from my slumber. I wasn’t sure if I was dead or alive, but my surrounding, from what I could see, were extremely friendly. I rubbed my head with my hoof and let out a groan. I tried to sit up, but found something had pinned my stomach down. I looked and saw a red fox lying on me. The strangest thing I saw about this fox was that one of its paws was wrapped up in a white bandage. Then I realized that parts of my body were wrapped in the same bandages. I moved slightly, only to wince as pain shot through my fore leg. ‘Must have strained a muscle,’ I thought as I massaged it. I looked back at the fox and noticed that it had vanished. Then a voice spoke up from another room of the small building. “Hey, Vixen. Why are you up so early. Oh? Is he awake? OK…” There was the sound of hoofsteps as a pegasus walked into the room. She had yellow fur and a long pink mane which hid most of her face. “Hi… I’m Fluttershy,” she said to me in a low voice. When I didn’t respond, she spoke again. “Are you… alright?” I quickly shook my head.
“Yeah… I’m fine… what happened?” She looked down to her hooves.
“I found you outside the Everfree Forest. It looked like you were hurt, so I brought you here and… patched you up…” Her voice started to fade the more she spoke.
“Thank you…” I said, a small smile on my face. She nodded in response, then looked behind as a little white bunny hopped into the room, carrying a plate.
“I… made you something to eat… If you’re hungry…” I looked at her in surprised.
“You… made me something?” I asked. She took a few steps in retreat as the white bunny gave me the plate. Using my magic, I levitated it up to my face and saw a daffodil sandwich, something I hadn’t eaten for so long. I lifted it up and took a bite and my head exploded in how wonderful it tasted. I sighed happily, my smile growing. Then I noticed Fluttershy walking away. “Hey, wait!” She jumped into the air, then turned to me, quaking in fear.
“You… you don’t like it?” she asked, her voice shaking.
“Don’t like it? I love it! It’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever tasted in so long!” I said with a smile. This seemed to make her happy. “I just wanted to know… why?”
“Why?”
“Why are you being so nice to me?”
“I just wanted to make sure that you were alright…” she said, slightly coming out from behind her hair. “Haven’t you ever had anypony care about you?”
“No… I’ve never had any friends or anypony who… cared for me. Not for a long time,
” I replied, looking down at the sandwich, small tears forming in my eyes. I quickly rubbed them away, then felt something wrap around me.
“Oh you poor thing… I’m so sorry that you don’t have any friends…” Fluttershy said, hugging me. Then she stepped back, looking at the ground again as she rubbed her hoof across it. “If you don’t mind… I’ll be your friend…”
You’ll… be my friend?” I said. She nodded in reply and I smiled again. “Thank you, Fluttershy…” I said, tears forming in my eyes again. I quickly wiped them before looking at her. “Of course… If we’re going to be friends, you’ll need to know my name.” She nodded again, looking back up at me with a smile. “I’m Raven… Raven Blake…”
“That’s a nice name,” she said, smiling. I returned her smile, feeling better both inside and out. Then the white bunny tapped her leg. “Oh yes, I didn’t forget you. Raven, this is Angel,” she said. I nodded at the bunny and it waved back. “Come along, Angel. Raven needs to rest,” she said, walking out of the room with the white bunny. As she disappeared around the corner, I saw her cutie mark. Three butterflies, each one looking like the symbol that I saw in my dreams so many years ago. Then a thought when through my head.
‘Was she one of the heroes?’