A Tyrant's Redemption, a Filly's Life

Chapter One

-Manehatten, After the Tirek Incident-

The city was in a state of disrepair, the rampage of Tirek and Discord caused far more damage than the citizens had been prepared for. Because of this, homes were destroyed, many businesses falling to the same fate or forced to close. Many ponies were either left without a job, a home, or both. Such a predicament caused those citizens to overlook a great many things within their city, including a cloaked stallion that would have, normally, caused many red flags to pop up. This was good, for him.

The abnormally tall stallion, adorning a tattered brown cloak with a rope keeping it together, did his best to avoid the anti-social Manehatten Citizens. When one got too close to him, the stallion quickly side stepped out of the way, a crimson red aura of magic pulling his hood down further. By the time they noticed such a strange reaction, said stallion’s quick walking pace had put him too far away or any quick questionings. In truth, avoiding any unnecessary contact was beneficial to him, after what happened over a year ago. Normally, the rag wearing stallion would not even stay in a town for more than a couple of hours, but Manehatten’s current condition meant he could stay a couple of days unnoticed, and actually rest.

The only problem, right now, was trying to find a decent place to rest for those days. All the decent places, both public and private, were taken by the homeless or closed off for construction. This irritated the stallion, making his fangs grind together. Had it not been for the risk of exposing himself to the princesses far too early, or possibly incurring the wrath of that strange shadow entity who allowed him to live again? He would have taken control of this city the moment he entered its concrete walls.

Yes, that would have been a more befitting option for him. The stallion stopped near an abandoned district, allowing him to contemplate in private. His hooded gaze searched all around, noticing how badly damaged this former housing district was. This condition, alone, told him enough about how badly Manehatten was in trouble. A wide, fanged, grin appeared on his muzzle. Oh how easy it would be or him to just over throw the current mayor of the city and-?

“M-Momma…” The voice was weak, filled with sorrow, and sounded rather young. It stopped his thoughts of overthrowing the current city government and drew the stallion’s attention towards a darkened alley, that he had somehow missed on his right. “Please, wake up…” The voice became more strained, as if they were trying to hold back the metaphorical dam of their emotions.

Slowly, and hesitantly, the stallion entered such a foreboding place. His mind kept telling him to ignore that voice, leave whatever it was to the fate decided. However, his curiosity proved to be much stronger, wanting to see what sort of cruel fate this was… He regretfully wished the former had been much stronger than his curiosity.

The scene before him was of a, very, dirty pegasus filly trying to wake her equally dirty mother. Said filly’s coat was a white color, stained with dirt, her mane having a red rose shade to it. Her mother was the opposite version of her, allowing him to know the filly gained majority of her mother’s traits. Far as the stallion could tell, the filly had no cutie mark, while her mother’s was a star and a spotlight. The two looked severely malnourished, but that did not stop the filly from trying to wake her mother up.

“M-Momma… Wake up…” The filly repeated, weakly. “I-I’m really hungry.” The stallion examined her further, it looked like this filly had been at this a while, or her body is so far gone that the simplest of tasks wore her out.

He further examined the situation, and what was in front of him. Clearly, from how the two looked, they were like this long before Tirek’s attack. Not to mention, depraved as he is, Discord would have never allowed said centaur to cause such a terrible and cruel fate. He was, for a lack of better words, a prankster and definitely not a monster. If the God of Chaos and Disharmony saw this, he knew for a fact the deity within said draconequus would have come out, and helped in some subtle way. Discord preferred laughing over sorrow anyways.

When the stallion accidently allowed his hoof to echo against the stone… The filly had immediately turned around, her sky blue eyes locked on to the abnormally tall, rag wearing, unicorn stallion. Tears started to well up within her eyes, the filly’s mouth wiggling into a frown. Before he knew it, said filly had clamped down on to his dark gray coated leg, revealing the pitch black hoof attached to its end. “P-Please, help… Mommy won’t wake up.”

Her words actually stung the stallion’s rather cold heart, not knowing how she could have done such a thing. But, that look within her eyes, that sense of dread and despair she had… Once, such a thing would have brought a depraved grin to his muzzle, and make him commit more acts of cruelty, but now? Now, he hated seeing such within an innocent foal. It disgusted him, and the stallion let out a deep sigh.

A crimson red glow started to appear behind his hood, incasing the filly within a matching aura. He sat her off to the side, allowing himself to examine the ‘sleeping’ mare. Carefully, he prodded her back, actually moving the mare a little due to is ever present strength and her malnourished frame. When her body simply rolled back, to where it was prior to him touching her, the stallion raised a confused brow. Normally, just by barely nudging one’s spine in such a condition, they would have shot up immediately through pain. This did not bode well, at all, and the stallion had one thought come across his mind, about this whole situation.

Just to be sure, he leaned over to examine the mare a bit more. The stallion slowly used his hoof to open her eye lids, while the filly continued to watch the stranger examine her mother. Glazed eyes, blank look, paled coat, and zero signs of breathing? Yep, he knew exactly why she would not wake up, and something made him not wish to tell the waiting filly behind him. There was a very good reason, as to why she would not respond to her daughter’s cries, when it would cause your average mother to shoot up and ready to fend off a manticore bare-hoofed.

She was dead.

He gave a deep, regretful, sigh. Both cloaked eyes were on the deceased mare, then back at the filly, and back to the mare again. From how bad her condition was, compared to the filly’s, the stallion determined that she gave majority of their scavenged food to the filly. An ill-advised survival tactic, but she was ensuring the survival another, over her own… Wanting the filly to survive such a dreadful fate, rather than herself. The stallion respected her for this, making sure her own daughter managed to get past this terrible fate, even if it cost her own life. A sacrifice any parent would have made, and he understood completely.

A faint crackling sound filled the stallion’s sharp ears, making him look down. Held within the mare’s wing, was a note written on tattered, and torn, paper. Using his magic, the stallion pulled it up to his hooded face, noticing she has used an old magazine page with a worn black marker of some kind. The hoof writing was shaky, like she had written it in her final moments. As he read it, the stallion could somehow see the rose colored mare, weakly, writing this note within his mind.

Oh, sweet Celestia, I hope somepony finds her or this note, before it is too late… I apologize for asking this so forwardly, but I can feel myself slowly slipping away. Please, oh please, take care of my little Delicate Rose, she is a sweet little filly. Once I am gone, she will have no pony left in the world. Her father was a high noble from Canterlot, and I was an upcoming star performer. He and I met at an after party for a show I had performed in, one thing led to another and she was born eleven months later. I tried, by Celestia, I TRIED to get him to realize that she was his daughter… But Blueblood would have none of it, refusing to listen to me, pretending that he did not know me or what I was talking about, claiming that I had been some street urchin trying to leech off him or ruing his ‘good’ name.

After having her, my parents disowned me for getting pregnant and trying to ruin a noble’s ‘image’ despite telling the truth, almost like his influence got to them. I was unable to perform, my figure having been somewhat lost due to the pregnancy, and found it harder to find work. The bills started to pile up one after the other. Before long, we had no home, and I was doing my best to keep her happy. I almost had everything back to normal, then THEY showed up and ruined everything.

Please, by Celestia’s grace, please help my sweet little Rose! Not for my sake, never, but for her’s! She has done nothing wrong, Rose is that good little filly who mines her underserving mother’s every last word, even happily brushes her teeth every morning and before bed without a fuss. I don’t care who you are, for all I know you’re evil incarnate, but I do not care… Just spare Delicate Rose of this cruel fate, do not let her end up like me, and give her a life such a good little filly deserves.

Polished Star

The stallion’s magical hold was shaking, doing everything within his power not to lose control. A dark purple mist escaped from his hood, coming from a pair of, glowing, green eyes. Tears were sliding down from those rage filled eyes. He knew the anger and rage building up within him, he survived off such emotions for so long, but the third was one he thought long dead inside. Sorrow. The anger mostly came from this ‘Blueblood’ and what he did to them.

Many would have called the stallion evil, and they would have been right to do so about the dark gray unicorn. But abandoning your obvious foal and pretending to have never met the mother, because of your image and status!? It boiled his cold blood to the point he wanted terrible vengeance, to allow his presence to be known for a short while so that he could torment this ‘Blueblood’!

He looked back at the patient filly, the mist and green within his eyes now gone. The stallion could tell, it was taking every ounce of willpower within her, just not to rush towards her mother’s side. He could see that he filly knew the truth about her poor mother, but obviously did not want to accept it, something he could help but respect. Though, for a split second, he no longer saw the pegasus filly sitting there. Instead, a dark gray unicorn colt, with a lack mane, staring up at him with a pair of, pleading, red eyes.

He was taken back by the orphan’s sudden appearance, who quickly turned back into the filly and she actually kept that very same stare! It pulled at his heartstrings, before his eyes went wide and recalled the shadow entity’s words. “I am giving you on last chance at life, to redeem yourself for what has happened. Your new fate was not because I wished it, if I had my way? You would live in sheer torment for all eternity, deep within my very shadow… But, another has stepped in and actually convince me to give this chance to you, so do not squander their good faith. Even I can see the good you can do, which she has opened my eyes to.”

Is this what he meant by ‘the good you can do’? His gaze went back down to the deceased mare, realizing that he would not wish such a fate on anypony either.

The crimson magic aura appeared around several abandoned sheets, each torn and dirty. They quickly swooped down, wrapping tightly around Polished Star’s motionless body. He did not have the time for a proper burial, nor could he spend what income he had left on it. For now, this will have to do, they shall have a proper ceremony later. He brought the filly over to his side, wrapping a hoof around her.

She knew what this meant, and knew what the stranger was about to do. “B-Bye bye, M-Mommy.” The filly choked, burying her face into the stallion’s dark cray coat.

He gave a nod, before his eyes flashed for a mere second. The body suddenly caught fire, by raging crimson flames. It would not take it very long for them to reduce Polished Star’s remains to ash. Magical fire burned far hotter than natural flames. Once it was done, the stallion quickly used his magic to create a red crystal casing for her ashes, sealing them inside before they could fly away upon the wind.

He levitated the crystal towards the filly, who gingerly accepted it before she was lifted upon the stallion’s cloaked back. “Time to go, Rose… We should not dwell here any longer, and get you something to eat before we leave Manehatten.” His voice growled, roughly, somewhat startling her.

“W-Where are we going, M-Mister?” Delicate Rose asked, holding the crystal close to her heart.

“To fulfill your mother’s dying wish.” He answered, walking out of the alley, and into Celestia’s bright sun. The stallion would have liked to have stayed within this city, and carry out his predetermined plans. But, with the filly suddenly thrown into the mix, that was out of the question. This city will forever be both a mental and emotional scar to her, and his newly acquired duty would not allow such a thing. Luckily, he saw housing adds for a quiet little beach town, where many social outcasts now live, the perfect hiding spot for him and he always did love the beach. “And I know the best place to do so.”

Delicate Rose wiped her eyes, trying to dry the tears, before looking up at the stallion’s tattered hood. “Who are you, Mister?”

He looked back at her, allowing the filly to see his red eyes and fanged, but strangely comforting, smile. “I am going to be your father, since the last was not worthy of such a filly, whose mother was willing to throw her life away just to keep safe… That, alone, means you are special, and I am honored to be the one who accepts your mother’s last wish and make you my own.” The stallion turned back around, and started his quick pace again. “We best hurry, if we are to get you something to eat, before catching the first train out of this city.”