Author's Note

Well, I finally did it.

The fifth chapter of The Equestrian Vagrant is up, and it was a struggle to finish, let me tell you all.

Please do leave commentary, as I am not exactly pleased with this results - in all likelihood, it will be rewritten at a later time if needed.

There will be spoilers for Vagrant Story in this chapter, but I made an attempt to keep the story itself self-contained - just so as to make it so that it isn't a requirement to know the source material. Then there are the liberties I took, in order to enhance the original storyline while taking into account all the sparse details that canon shows, in order to make an attempt to make Iron Ash make sense in every regard.

In case you want to know the whole deal, leave comments behind asking for it, and I'll post links for Youtube and the translation of Ultimania, which gives a broader look at what happens within the game.

In any case, I hope you enjoy this late release - as I'm on a roll, and will work on the one that comes after.

Have a nice evening.

Remembrance: Memoirs from The Dark (Unedited Version)

It is the afternoon, and several hours have gone by since Celestia was informed out about Luna’s reckless attempt at digging out for information from The Warden’s mind, looking at the prone bodies slumbering while a mist-like aura surrounded them—coming from the unconscious alicorn stallion, of all ponies—and couldn’t help but bit her lip in concern at the sight.

‘Why did you do it, Lulu? Just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse, this happened right under my snout.’

Celestia sighed despondently, before focusing on the ponies coming to the castle from Ponyville.

‘I hope Starlight Glimmer is giving some comfort to Spike—the news were grim, after all.’ The princess thought privately, a tear trying its best to escape its prison. ‘And then it is how Cadance and Shining took the news of this reckless action by them. Why is everything around me coming apart at the seams these days?’

---------8 hours after the Security Council Meeting----------

The sun rose over Canterlot, as Princess Celestia ensured its place in the sky—not before lowering the moon while at it, feeling curious as to why didn’t Luna do it in tandem with her—and teleported to the entrance of her sister’s quarters, intending to do one thing that she had left on the backburner for too long.

‘Luna, I’m so sorry for having left you out of the loop for so long about this … I hope you can forgive me not having informed you about what is happening with the Minos Alliance government, as the situation has gotten worse at a quick rate.’

“Luna? Are you in?” Celestia asked after knocking on her sister’s bedroom, only to receive silence for an answer.

Her ear twitched as she heard somepony clearing her throat, and turned to see one of the Moon Tower’s guards, a roussepony in dark blue armor who shifted nervously as her employer just looked at her.

“Hum … your Highness? Princess Luna is not here at the present time.” The guard said after standing to attention.

That brought Celestia’s attention, as Luna was normally very zealous of both her duties and her sleeping schedule. “Do you know by any chance where is she?” Celestia asked the nervous guard, before adding while sighing inwardly, “At ease.”

Relaxing, the guard replied to her dutifully, “Unfortunately no, your Highness. If you want me to, I can start inquiries as to her whereabouts—“ but was interrupted by another roussepony guard, who stood to attention in front of the princess.

“Permission to speak, your Highness!” She blurted out, eyes betraying her emotions—fear, this time, to Celestia’s frustration.

Celestia, taking care of placing her mask, asked in her trademark fashion. “At ease, guardsmare. What is it that you need to speak to me about?”

The guardsmare blinked once, relaxed a little and blurted out: “Princess Luna and the Bearers are at the medical ward’s restricted area with the alicorn stallion!”

Celestia blinked at that statement given in panic. ‘Alright, I know that Luna and the Element Bearers being there is no cause for alarm … I wonder what the issue is about.’ Out loud, she asked the guardsmare, “Guard? Report what is the cause of your alarm.”

The guardsmare started to scuff the ground, ears splayed on her head as she reported, “Princess Luna and the Bearers are linked to the prisoner's mind by an unknown spell with Princess Luna’s signature, and now a powerful force-field is being generated by the stallion himself—“

The answer to that statement was heard even in the foundations of Mount Canterhorn—where several cloaked figures were readying a ritual circle linked to the magical charges above them, deep within the depleted crystal mines at the roots of the mountain they were gathered in.

“My sister did what!?”

“My sister did what!?” echoed through the mountain city … and unbeknown to Celestia—the one she had a meeting later this day, Ambassador Silver Gauntlet heard the dismayed cry. Taking it in in stride, he refocused his attention at the status report that his roussepony contact had just given him—the status report concerning the mystery stallion—presumed to be the missing Iron Ash.

‘So Princess Luna and the former Bearers of the Elements of Harmony are now within Iron’s mind, and out of reach for all those around them.’ The minotaur thought grimly, as he tried his best to not crush the already crumpled metal vase on his hand. ‘And to think that I’ll have to see Celestia’s face again, and pretend that I know nothing … ‘

He turned his glare towards Canterlot Castle, and continued thinking, ‘We can always try a forceful abduction, but that would mean an act of war if the ponies keep thinking that Iron Ash is an enemy of the State—considering the fact that they have been unhelpful as they have been busy calming the populace about those portents in the sky, all I can think of is … King Grimara, what are you thinking?’

The minotaur huffed in impotence, as he tried to calm himself down. ‘Certainly, that’s a rhetorical question—we are way too reliant on their food and gem exports, all things that require growth from the earth. However … do we have to be chained to them?’

Now calmed down, knowing what is at stake, Silver Gauntlet couldn’t help but sigh despondently—shoulders lagging a little as he released the vase where he drank his mead, it making a thumping sound as metal struck well-seasoned wood. ‘My Liege, I sure hope you know what you’re doing.’

The minotaur glared a dossier that laid open on his bedside table and thought grimly, ‘If those reports are true, then things are coming to a head—and we have no way of knowing how to prevent it!’

‘I can only trust that the agents from the Riskbreaker Unit staying undercover are up to this challenge. And I must place my hope in the new Equestrian Riskbreakers that we took in our midst after their own futures were taken from them by circumstance.’

“Nononononono!” Celestia was muttering as she dashed through the corridors towards the castle medical ward. ‘Oh Luna, what drove you to this foolish act!?’

The princess was so focused on her trip to the restricted area of the ICU, that she failed to notice a unicorn wearing white medical robe placing a suspicious bundle behind some equipment—a bundle which began to glow with the glyphs sewn and carved in its surfaces with green, purple and red-hued lights.

Once the running ruler was out of sight, the mystery unicorn left the premises with the characteristic flash of a teleportation spell.

This flash, however … had a particular magical circle on the ground disappearing into the air as the white flames went out, leaving no trace behind.

Which led to her current situation—waiting inside the Royal Medical Ward after putting all court activities in hiatus—as she waited for the prone figures of her sister and shared friends to wake up and rise as nothing happened.

Of course, this meant she was feeling again the sense of uselessness that she loathed most—as well as waiting for her loved ones to rise again.

‘How can I help them, when my magic doesn’t even allow me to touch them?’

She felt bile rising to her throat as her thoughts darkened—until a squeak of surprise came from one of the nurses posted at that room. “The shield’s dispersing!” The unicorn nurse mare cried out, taking Celestia out of her spiraling thoughts—only to see the mares waking up in a jolt.

Luna and her escort—the former Element Bearers—woke up startled as they felt a shockwave coming from the stallion in front of them. Before Luna, Celestia or anypony present could generate a shield or brace themselves, the wave threw all the ponies present off the room—Luna, the former Element Bearers and the nurses bursting through the wall because of the shockwave—while causing several windowpanes to break and equipment to burst from the sudden peak of magic originating from him.

As the guards and several nurses and medics rushed towards them, Celestia and all the ponies who still had their wits after the deafening shock saw how the alicorn stallion started to unconsciously generate from the horn a mist that surrounded him—and began to chew out all that stood in its way, eroding even the thaumically inert floors and walls on contact.

“Princess Celestia!? What just happened!?” one of the guards asked her, while eyeing cautiously the display of power—while several sparks of magic flowed over The Warden’s coat, giving the appearance of lightning flowing over the fur.

“Check upon the nurses, my sister, and the Element Bearers, and send them to me when they are cleared off!” Celestia commanded, only to run towards Luna and Twilight to hug them fiercely, before starting her glare at Luna—who gulped from the sudden descent in temperature inside the room as she looked at her really angry sister, tears forming at the edges of her eyes.

“Lulu? Once the medics have given you and everypony a clean bill of health, you will come with me for a talk along with everypony here that joined you on your … adventure. Have I made myself clear?” Celestia growled at her sister, who meekly nodded at her in reply.

Tightening her wing-hug, Celestia’s face softened up as she whispered, “Truly, Luna? What would I have done if you, and everypony with you had died while inside him?” before doing her best to clear her eyes and nose, sniffling a little before rising from her place and leaving the ponies to the beleaguered medical practitioners—only for them to swamp the Lunar Princess, the Princess of Friendship, and the Element Bearers—as they started examining them despite their protests.

The sound of a guard crying out “Oh buck!” did little to distract the medics and nurses, but drew the attention of Luna and Twilight—

Who saw a guardsmare heaving in panic, as the spear she had apparently used to probe the mist surrounding The Warden had a clean cut—yet no spearhead, nor part of the shaft present.

Only dust could be seen at the base of the mist surrounding the one known as The Warden of The Dark, as it swirled around him.

Twilight couldn’t help but gulp at the realization of what that shield actually did as orders were barked to prevent injuries or deaths from touching that mist.

After an hour had passed with the medical ponies fussing over them, Luna and her fellow ponies were now sitting inside a private chamber with Princess Celestia waiting for them patiently to speak out.

Only to hear the knock on the wooden door, and Cadance speaking out. “Auntie Celestia? We came as soon as you called us!”

Relaxing a little, Celestia called out to her niece. “Come in, Cadance! We’re all here now!”

The door opened, and a worried dragon rushed towards Twilight, glumping her and crying out, “Twilight, you dummy! You had us worried sick!”

“Twilight? Everypony? Thank goodness you’re alright!” Starlight Glimmer ran towards them with a genuine smile as the seven ponies and dragon went into a group hug.

“Hum? Princess Celestia?” Fluttershy asked softly, causing the attention of all the ponies present to turn to her—making her squeak from the sudden focus of attention turned towards her.

“Yes, Fluttershy?” Celestia asked kindly to the pegasus.

“Hum. We have the ‘clean bill of health’ here if you want to see it.” Fluttershy offered as she took the paper out of her wing-hold and waved it shyly.

Celestia, despite the tension in the air almost choking her, tittered at her friend. “Please, we’re here because all of you entered the mind of one of the most dangerous and barely understood beings on the whole world … one which apparently has strong ties with the Minos Alliance leadership, of all people.”

This caused Luna’s eyes to widen in worry, as her ears splayed over her head. “How did you find out, sister?”

Celestia snorted before saying to Luna, “That was the reason I went to your quarters earlier this day, Luna … only to find out that you had beaten me to it. As to how I found out, I am not proud of my procrastination, sister. The ambassador from the Minos Alliance came to me earlier this week about the disappearance of one of their most discreet and influential members of their Elder Council.”

Twilight’s ear twitched as Luna broke the silence that ensued. “We—I knew.” Luna then set her gaze on Celestia, who waved her wing for her to continue. “It was while we were inside him, right at the end of his last millennia on this world. He founded the Minos Alliance, sister.”

Luna lowered her sight to the floor, soon followed by Twilight and the other Element Bearers, as their ears fell and sad looks appeared on their faces.

“Celestia? Remember my friendship report about Zecora?” Twilight asked her mentor, who nodded gently, as she raised her sight to meet Celestia’s while keeping her head down. “I failed again … and I fear that this time there won’t be forgiveness to be attained by me.”

Celestia blinked at that statement.

“Sister? Among the things we learned from him, we found out how his power works—and why he sought to prevent any investigation or exploitation of his power.” Luna said to Celestia, who perked at this comment.

“Why was it, Luna?” Celestia asked curiosity etched on her face.

“His power … it grants a great boost of power at the expense of eternity.” Luna’s eyes began to tear as her voice cracked. “We found the entire settlement of Hoofhousen and Star Swirl’s research team inside The Warden, in the form of souls tainted with his magic presence alone … he’s literally their refuge, as reality seems to harm them gravely, judging by the memories we found.”

“Celestia? I think we should start at the beginning, then continue onwards to prevent confusion.” Twilight suggested softly.

“Ah guess we should start right at the beginning … Fluttershy? Would ya do us the honors?” Applejack asked her friend, who meekly nodded and cleared her throat.

“We found ourselves inside within a black expanse, and … .”

Thus, Fluttershy—well against what most would consider her characteristic shyness, proceeded to narrate what they learned at the start—which felt really short for her when in fact an hour had passed by.

Until she stopped and sipped from her teacup, while her friends did the same.

“How is it possible? All these things you’re speaking of, they sound like madness.” Celestia said in shock to the story told by the pegasus.

“Oh, Princess! The story only gets worse after Fluttershy touched that phantom out of curiosity!” Rarity exclaimed while the aforementioned pegasus squeaked from the hoof pointing.

“Please, do tell. Who is The Warden?” Celestia asked, nudging them to continue their story.

“His name is Ashley Riot.” Rainbow Dash said softly, her eyes trying to find something within her empty teacup.

“And he had no family to call his own,” Applejack added, sadness in her voice as her eyes looked dull. “None but the Military. Ah wonder if I and mah brother and sister would’ve ended like that if not for Granny Smith if we hadn't been taken in by our extended family.”

Celestia’s eyes opened in shock with that statement. ‘Then, that means—’

Fluttershy continued her narrative, meekly continuing. “Hum … well, after I touched that ghostly child, the whole world changed around us…”

One moment, Fluttershy had touched the resigned human foal’s face with her forehoof—the next she was looking at an incredibly annoyed, infuriated, and scared Twilight Sparkle—causing her to squeak as she backpedalled, hitting something hard and wooden with her rump.

“Humm … Twilight? Are you alright?” Fluttershy asked behind her mane as if it would protect her from the irate Sparkle.

Twilight took a moment to breathe in, then said to Fluttershy. “No, Fluttershy … we got separa—”

“Hey! You’re here, too!” Rainbow Dash’s voice exclaimed from behind Twilight, whose face turned from annoyed to relieved as she turned from Fluttershy and looked at her friends. Everypony was accounted for as they came towards her, with a worried-looking Luna trailing behind them.

“You’re alright!” Twilight exclaimed in relief, while Fluttershy let go of her breath, relaxing now that Twilight wasn’t going to get … loud with her for her mistake.

“Twilight Sparkle? My spell is fully operating now, yet I can’t control it anymore!” Luna cried out in panic as her eyes shifted—and snapped open at the scenario in front of her.

It was a study, where a bearded human dressed in a white robe with red highlights on the sleeves and skirt—The Dark Sword in an upside down position adorning his barrel as it hung over his neck—was looking at someone.

The ponies present began to feel a myriad of emotions as the scene began to fully take form in front of them.

There was confusion, wonder, and one that wrenched their hearts, nearly making them gag.

For Fluttershy, it was a very familiar feeling—as it was one she had lived with through her entire life.

It was fear and sorrow, yet not knowing as to the why she felt that way.

Then there was an unfamiliar scent among the familiar ones—from smoke to dust, down to age-old paper—which seemed to emanate from the elder human.

It took them a moment to realize that all this perception was coming from the second figure sitting in front of the bearded, elder human. How they knew, on the other hand … was something that they would have liked to know as they took in the whole scene. In front of the elder human, It was a human child with nearly white skin, brown hair that ended up in antennae-like headlocks and brown eyes, dressed in a simple white shirt and brown pants.

A child who looked at the robed individual with wonder, as a voice spoke out in front of the mares, causing them to go silent. The adult spoke out with a stallion’s voice that sounded surprisingly soft. “Young one, do you remember how you came to Valnain? Or why were you found unconscious inside a restricted area, where Bishop Arreolas has his private study?”

The child just shook his head, only to return his sights on the adult in front of him.

The human adult kept asking the child in front of him. “What about your parents? Do you know their names? Where they live, or what is their trade?”

The child’s eyes dulled a little as he looked to the boots of the man in front of him.

The bearded man scratched his beard while looking at the child in front of him, before saying to him with a small smile on his face. “I am Brother Arcturus Astora, from the Priesthood of Iocus.”

The ponies looked at the scene in front of them with questions within their minds, before the child spoke out softly, “Br—brother … Arc—Arcturus? Iocus?”

The older human smiled before asking back: “And who might you be?”

The young child just shook his head, slumping down where he was seated as he looked at Astora’s boots.

After a few seconds in silence, Astora rose from his seat. “Come, little one. I believe I know what happened to you … and how to help you.”

The child rose from his seat and silently followed the priest—only for the scene to shift itself to the two of them being in front of a much older human male sitting behind a desk.

Here, along with the scents that they were smelling was the smell of wax coming from the candles, as well as an aromatic substance that felt overpowering to the ponies’ noses.

The one that is known to them as Brother Astora apparently continued speaking, as if his voice had been forgotten, then remembered as they heard him saying to his superior. “Sire, it is my belief that this child has been a victim of dark forces, as he doesn’t even remember his own self, much less the reason for his appearing at your study! He barely even knows how to speak, yet he’s demonstrated to be quick to learn—if we take him under our wing and teach him!”

The ponies watched how the human named Arcturus exposed his view to a much older-looking man that had gone bald—yet who exuded authority—who simply asked his subordinate: “What about his parent’s whereabouts?”

Arcturus just shook his head despondently. “The Guard hasn’t found any parents lacking children, and our guest doesn’t even remember his own name.”

The older human looked at the child appraisingly, and the mares noted a gleam passing through his eyes. Time seemed to go by before he grunted his assent in a gruff voice. “Very well, Brother Arcturus. Send him to be taken care of at our sponsored orphanage, and see if we can take his hand down Iocus’ faith in Ajora Glabados.”

Celestia asked in wonder to Fluttershy, “He was an orphan?”

“Yes, Princess … but the odd thing was, how to say it?” Fluttershy wondered out loud, before being beaten to the punch by Applejack.

“Well, Princess … the thing is, we weren’t the only ones inside the Warden’s … wherever we were in.” Applejack scratched her chin in thought as she continued telling their experience to their audience.

“This is our very first conscious memory.” The child’s voice said to the pony ears, making them turn around to see how the child that was in front of them spoke to them in the ear, finding no one present but themselves.

“Fie! Warden of The Dark! We came to learn about the matrices bearing thy mark, not to hear your life story!” Luna barked back, one eye noticing how the scene had frozen.

“You cast the spell linking yourself and your companions’ souls to our own … and yet you didn’t worry about the consequences?” The youthful Warden asked neutrally.

“Consequences? What do you mean?” Twilight asked out loud, her feathers ruffling as her tail swished repeatedly.

“Your companion wanted to know the why, and was the first to move towards our start—thus her wish to know us was granted, and your control over the situation has been all but taken away.” The Warden said out clearly, but without any resentment.

This time, it was Rarity who responded to the disembodied voice. “Well, dear. I remember those phantoms saying about how you sacrificed your soul to gain command of this … dark power. How come you’re talking to us still when you’re soulless—and Princess Luna’s spell was supposed to link our souls to yours?”

The youthful voice started to laugh merrily, before replying as the scene changed. “The reason is simple … this ‘dark power’ you speak of is the soul, and we don’t take lightly to invaders trespassing uninvited.”

“What do you mean by that!” Rainbow Dash roared in challenge as she took to the air.

“You’re here! Oh, thank Harmony!” The voice of Star Swirl the Bearded resounded as the shade approached them while trotting. “Since you’re already in Ashley’s memories, I might just as well accompany you through this journey!”

“It seems that you now have a guide … as for me, you will regret invading our self.” The young voice said with a growl at the end before going quiet and the scene changing again.

“I … I didn’t know that this realm knew how to speak.” Star Swirl said with eyes wide open as he had heard the last words coming from the aether.

Unknown to the ponies now sharing their story with the Princesses and friends, other events were unfolding within their host’s core essence while they were traveling through a literal memory lane … .

These hidden events occurring at the part of any sapient being that defines ‘I’.

How much time had gone by? In this white expanse, time seemed to be frozen—as he laid on the ground, seizures and contortions wreaking havoc in his consciousness as he felt himself change at a fundamental level against his will.

This feeling was a slowly creeping feeling of sheer wrongness that had taken a lot out of him to resist—push back; perhaps even repeal—yet kept moving on within, the cracks of bone resettling and flesh tearing as it reconfigured.

The ancient human who was known now as Iron Ash looked with dead eyes at what his forced changes consisted so far: he had lost one hand and one foot—them turning into hooves as the fingers melded into one another, pain receptors going haywire from the strain—as light brown fur already covered them, slowly creeping over his limbs as the unsettling sounds of bone and flesh echoed within his consciousness, slowly but certainly turning into one of those equines.

Permanently, judging by an extra limb growing close to his shoulder blade—which had never occurred before, when he conversed with Her in days gone by.

The pain that made his body cringe over his shoulder blades meant that there were changes happening at an internal level at that height, too. ‘I could have lived without the wings, though.”

And he could do nothing to reverse this curse inflicted by those beasts of burden masquerading as people.

‘Why, Harmony … why did you sell me out?’ the lone human thought, as he stared with dead eyes, all sign of contentment gone as he felt himself … getting sullied further with every passing moment.

‘Why do I feel violated? I know that your power is naturally a cleansing one … .’ Iron Ash thought to himself as the pain returned in force, and he used all his mental training and mental fortitude to oppose what was happening to him.

And yet he knew somehow, that whatever power Harmony granted those ponies had grievously harmed his very own archetype, if the rate at which he was being forcefully changed was anything to go by.

‘If I change … will I remain the same? Or what will I be turned into?’

He felt his temperature drop as a long-lost feeling started to crawl upon his guts, a feeling he believed to be all but gone due to his … circumstance.

‘Will I remain being Ashley Riot? Will my identity remain the same, or I’m bound to become nothing but a mockery of my old self? Will my existence afterwards consist of nothing but being a puppet at another’s mercy?’

His eyes took a dangerous glint as his resolve reignited.

‘No. I will not be another one’s puppet. That much I will fight against … then again, why am I reminiscing about my early years?’

This troubled Ash more than anything, as he wasn’t one to linger in his memories and past—or to his knowledge, lack thereof.

The ponies watched how in front of them The Warden—or ‘Ashley’, as their journey through The Warden’s memories had identified him—lived his early years at the Iocus Orphanage, being taught of many things, from their faith to rules, to social rules to what was expected of him and his brothers of home. What they didn’t comprehend, as they watched the speeding events unfolding—yet understanding every tidbit and detail shown briefly—was this question: ‘ We are looking at years of life shown in instants, yet we’re learning and knowing as well as if it were shown in slowly! How is this possible!?’

One interaction brought their attention to the fore, as the quick-moving yet informative scenes slowed down, and showed them this interaction between Ashley and a different elder, at a scene that reminded them of their own childhoods.

It was a school day, with other children in the classroom present—yet only Ashley and the elder human were colored.

“Father Morgan? Is this true?” Ashley asked with child-like curiosity at the elder man, wrinkles and white wisps of hair on his eyebrows and ears.

The old man spoke out loud with an authoritative voice. “Of course, little one! God is fundamentally Good, and is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent! Why do you question that?”

“If God knows all … does he know who I am? Where I came from?” Ashley asked innocently, the ponies noticing their very selves being filled with what was, in fact, hope, trepidation, and fear.

They noticed how the old man’s features changed from authority to … was that pity?

“Yes, young Ashley … if one being would know, that would be Him.” The old man replied carefully.

The unknown guests felt their hearts overflow with hope, desire, and … uncertainty?

“If I pray … if I’m a good child … will he answer me?” Ashley inquired again, his eyes focused intently on the old man in front of him.

The one known as Father Morgan chuckled gruffly before saying, “Only when you’re ready to receive your answer, young one—yet the answer may prove too much if you’re not careful! Truth is best taken as medicine—a little at a time, or you might get ill from it!”

The scene shifted again as the ponies digested this … intimate view of who they still saw as a terrifying creature.

The feelings that filled their spirits were no longer those of hope and willingness, but now it was hope intermingled with doubt, shame, self-hate and sorrow as the new scene started in front of their eyes.

Ashley was kneeling next to his bed, hands clasped together as he was talking to someone who wasn’t there.

No one but the same icon that the Iocus Priesthood used in all of their uniforms, and which hung upon their necks.

A young voice interrupted Ashley, and the ponies felt both relief and irritation within them as they heard the new child talk. “You know that god they talk about is nothing but an illusion, right?”

It was at this moment that the ponies noticed that Ashley looked older and taller than before.

Turning their sights, they met the sight of a boy who looked similar in size to Ashley—but whereas Ashley looked hopeful despite everything—this child had the eyes of one who had seen too much, understood too much, and was going to break the news to one who was naive.

“I still hope, Jan … that one day they’ll come back and take me back to their embrace.” Ashley replied innocently as he rose from his place and met the other boy in the eyes.

“Face it, Ashley! We’re orphans—the refuse of our world, ones forsaken by our own flesh and blood! Nothing will come our way if we only wait and have ‘hope’ as you speak!” Jan exclaimed to Ashley, who took a step back from the intensity of his roommate’s eyes and emotions. “We can only work at what we have, and you—” Jan pointed out towards a book that the ponies knew somehow that it was about The Knights of The Cross, “are aiming at impossibles!”

“To want to serve as a knight, in order to help those who cannot would be a good use of my time and life, Jan.” Ashley pleaded, only to stop and ask him back, “Wait, what do you mean by that? That I’m aiming at impossibles?”

Rosencrantz huffed. “The Knights of The Cross only accept noblebloods, Ashley … sorry to break it to you, but that is how things work! At most you’ll be a Brother like Astora, and then you know how that worked out for him in the end!”

The ponies felt in that moment several emotions drowning what they now knew were Ashley’s feelings at the time. Grief, pain, sorrow … self-hate and failure.

Tears unshed, as the scene blinked at Ashley looking down at the cloth-covered body of Arcturus Astora—them feeling Ashley’s heart breaking down, as well as growing wiser at the concept of mortality, and the consequences to prayers unanswered.

“Is it that bad, Jan … to want to reach something truly out of your reach? To perform … the impossible, and return home?” Ashley asked sadly at his brother of home.

“Home!? Now you’re pulling my leg! We are homeless, Ashley! The ones forsaken by both this world and our own flesh and blood!” Jan laughed bitterly as he shook his head, one hand rising to caress his own head as he did, only to change his demeanor and spoke again to Ashley in a much more jovial tone, “Since you want to play knight in shining armor so much … I heard from the monks here that in three days time, a representative from the Valendian Knights of the Peace will be coming here, to check for potential candidates for their rank and file! If I were you, I’d aim there instead! They don’t care about bloodlines, they care about potential!”

Ashley’s eyes opened wide, before asking Jan, “Are—are you going to apply then?”

“Of course, Ashley! I am aiming to become the best, and there I won’t have to worry about my future and purpose, as those will be things that will come from above … just like that god of the Iocus. The only difference being, that Parliament is actually real.” Jan exposed to his friend with a grin, before asking him, “Will see you in three days, ‘knight in shining armor’.” Jan lead himself out with a shit-eating grin on his face as he left behind the dumb faced Ashley, his face turning thoughtful as he digested the news.

The ponies heard the echo of his thoughts speaking out: ‘Would—will I be able to break out of my fate? Can I surpass this curse—the label known as Forsaken?’

“When we were given that insight on his life, I couldn’t help but feel … I don’t know!” Rainbow Dash said in a desperate outburst, interrupting Applejack’s narration of the events unfolding back then.

“What is there not to understand, Rainbow Dash?” Cadance replied kindly to the pegasus. “What you felt was empathy—and I imagine you went through something similar when young, right?”

The flapping pegasus stood still in mid-air, muzzle and brow scrunched in thought … right up to the moment she returned to the ground, ears wilted as she grumbled “Yeah. Back at Flying Camp, and even a few years ago at the Competition where I did the Sonic Rainboom.”

Shining Armor chipped in a comment, after having remained quiet for most of the conversation. “Rainbow Dash, I believe that feeling you had and still have shows that you’re a good pony at heart.”

Rainbow couldn’t help but blush as she muttered in reply, “Thank you, but you all know I’m awesome like that.” Sitting down and taking a pastry from the table, biting into it with a vengeance.

“Oh, Rainbow Dash! You weren’t the only one affected by that memory! I know for certain that it affected me too!” Rarity exclaimed before continuing, “Please do excuse me, Applejack—but I believe that this part is where I come in, as Rainbow here—as much as I know she’s smart—isn’t one that waxes poetics!”

Thus Rarity continued with the retelling of their experiences inside The Warden of The Dark and his memories … .

Out of the ponies present at that exchange and an intimate view of Ashley’s thoughts, the ones most affected by that scene were Rainbow Dash and Rarity—both ambitious in their own ways, yet for different reasons.

‘Why are we being shown this? What purpose does it gain in showing us what most would hide away?’ Rarity questioned herself, while the second line of thoughts went down this way, ‘I can relate to wanting to grow out of one’s place in life, to want to do the impossible to impress others … but why is he the way he is now?’

Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, was feeling more and more disturbed by the revelations and changing scenes in front of her. ‘He’s a monster that even enslaves souls! Why are we being shown that he’s not so different from a pony!? Why can’t we just take what we want and leave!?’

The scene in front of them changed—and was surprised to see Trixie Lulamoon on her first arrival to Ponyville, stirring some deep-seated conflicting feelings within the former Bearers of the Elements.

“Come one, come all! Come and see the Great and Powerful Trixie! See her shows of power and beauty!” The blue unicorn mare called out loud as the scene unfolded—and froze in place.

The one thought that crossed everypony’s mind, with the exception of Star Swirl—who looked confused at this sudden change of scenery—was: ‘Why is this memory within him!?’

“Ever heard the words: If you stare at The Abyss, The Abyss will stare back at you? Even if it pains me how … cliché it sounds to me to this day.” The youthful voice of Ashley boomed through the air, causing the hairs on their necks to stand on end.

“You’re reading our minds!?” Twilight screeched as the scene moved quickly down to the point where Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash started to complain about Trixie’s claims—with Spike’s complaints added to the mix as well.

“Your souls, in fact.” Ashley replied cooly before speaking again in Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s ears, “You who claimed her to be a fraud … you who called her vain and arrogant … you are nothing but hypocrites.” Ashley’s voice rumbled through the scene as the three alluded ponies saw themselves in Trixie’s place, all exclaiming to their counterpart—

“I am Rainbow Dash, the fastest, most awesome flyer of Equestria! And nopony, and no one can match my prowess in flying, weatherworking, and sports!”

“Ah am Applejack, and here at Sweet Apple Acres we have the best apples, cider and produce of all of Equestria! Take no substitutes!”

“I am Rarity Belle, fashionista extraordinaire! I, who can give—even the ugliest mare—a chance at shining like a polished jewel, to impress others with my fabulous designs!”

Rainbow Dash didn’t take this lying down, as she retorted by saying: “Well! She claimed to have been able to defeat an Ursa Major! She was nothin’ but hot air, when an Ursa Minor did appear!”

The scene shifted to Rainbow Dash rushing towards an equine sculpture made of wood while inside a library, where she exclaimed to her friends—”It is simple: We give him the boot!”—only for the scene to shift to Rainbow Dash rushing and bucking the smoke-puffing dragon … and flying for her life as the now-angry dragon rushed at her.

The scene changed back to the three doppelgangers staring at their counterparts.

“How loyal of you to endanger your friends with your desire to show just how awesome you were.” Ashley replied dryly, causing Rainbow to stutter, before interrupting whatever she was going to say with, “Ever heard of the concept of theater? Perhaps I need to dumb it down for you sorry excuses of civilization … does the concept ‘Entertainer’ or ‘Story Teller’ come to mind?”

Twilight took point, as she retorted, “Yes, we all have made mistakes that we regretted … and learned from them! Rainbow Dash isn’t the same mare that she used to be back then! And so we all! We are even now on speaking terms with Trixie nowadays!” She then snorted, “And yes! We know of those concepts!”

Rainbow and Pinkie Pie exclaimed at the same time, “Yeah!” only for Dash to look askance at Pinkie, who was grinning back at her.

“... You must feel so proud of your cleverness.” Ashley dryly commented at the mares.

Luna’s ear twitched, as her brow scrunched up in deep thought … and called out loud with steel in her voice. “You’re not The Warden, are you?”

The girls went still and looked quizzically at Princess Luna, who just paid attention to the surroundings.

“Hum. Now that you mention it, Princess Luna—Ashley isn’t the lecturing nor mocking type.” Star Swirl commented while rubbing his beard in thought. “His character is more within the lines of sarcasm, if not outright termination, rather than toying around with others like this … will given voice talking to us.”

A mirthless chuckle echoed in the scene as it dissolved back to the interaction between Ashley and Jan. “He’s one who is disconnected from his own self … and the power you unleashed upon him all those days ago will make certain to correct that.”

Luna’s eyebrows shot upwards as she realized the significance of what was happening now, while Star Swirl and Twilight’s minds were working overtime to discern what this apparition meant by that.

The three ghostly mares disappeared—and were replaced with Luna of all ponies.

But whereas Princess Luna had a calm demeanor and aura surrounding her, this simulacra felt off—her vanity, arrogance, and insolence seemed to surround her like flames from a oven as she stood in front of them, geared in armor from ancient times and a dark blue cape fluttering over her barrel as she stared at them with her chin held high and eyes barely looking at them.

“But you are so far the worst of this little group. Princess Luna, the one who is worth as much as dust.” Young Ashley said with scorn at the alicorn, who rather than fuming out … looked scared at the apparition.

“Princess Luna is an awesome pony, a good friend, and she’s been working hard to be a good ruler after her return!” Twilight roared in a challenge at the one mocking her friend.

Luna only whispered as tears began to form in her eyes. “Please, anything but this … I beg thee.”

“For someone who believed herself so deserving of attention and lavishing from all those around you, you always were less than your sister—and that is saying something, considering what I feel about her.”

The scenario changed, as Luna cringed as actual memories were projected from her self … .

And the ponies present were buffeted with rage, jealousy, and haughtiness, as they looked at this illusion Luna now in a scene roaring at her sister at her quarters.

“This is madness, Sister! Why do those ponies keep ignoring me despite my efforts to attain their attention!? Am I not good enough!?” Luna roared, tears of rage flowing down her eyes.

“Lulu! You know that isn’t true! You are Princess Luna, Guardian of Dreams and of the Night! You are important to us! You are important to me! Isn’t that good enough!?” Celestia cried out at her, trying to close the gap between them as Luna stepped back, teeth bared out as she glared at Celestia with a gleam in her eyes.

“Important enough to just be used to suppress those tribalist factions, yet not important enough to be even taken into account by the ponies I was sworn to serve! The ponies I went to help ran from me, Celestia! They called me monster after all I had done for them.” Luna snarled in response, causing Celestia to stop in mid-step—disbelief and horror written all over her face.

“They what—” Celestia managed to say before being cut off by Luna, as she began to transform in front of her, darkness beginning to seep through her coat and mane as if it were funneling from within.

“It is your fault! You’re the one who set everypony against me! They will love me once I’m done with you! The day will be forgotten, and the night shall be forever!!” The Nightmare roared as she launched a blast of magic to her sister, who barely managed to shield herself before being sent flying from the impact.

“A real ruler always places his subjects before his own needs.” Young Ashley stated to the weeping princess, as everypony there watched in horror how the Nightmare came to be, all while being buffeted by winds of madness and despair.

The voice continued, as the fight went on. “You could have always chosen to step down from the throne and leave your sister be the one ruling, and could have always chosen a different path in life. Your madness … your unfettered desire to be loved and appreciated above all, without regard for others.” Ashley paused, only to state coldly at her. “Would have cost this world more than what you can comprehend, by killing all life in it. Consider yourself lucky that we were still on our way to euthanize you when you were defeated by your sister and sealed in the moon.”

“You don’t get it! She was manipulated by a dark force from Tartarus! She wasn’t truly herself back then!” Twilight screeched in rage, as she placed a wing on top of the quivering Luna, who was weeping as she stared at the shade of her old self—her deepest shame exposed to everypony present.

Soon, Luna felt a more ethereal presence comforting her, and she turned to meet Star Swirl—who simply nodded once at her.

“Tartarus? What is Tartarus?” Young Ashley asked neutrally, before giving the impression of a psychic shrug—causing Luna, then Star Swirl to fall on their belly in pain as the voice changed pitch when he said to them, “How did you do it? We ascertained that no one but us and those whom Harmony wished could interact with … oh. So that is why … .”

Young Ashley began to laugh mirthlessly, the voice betraying too many things while the entire dreamscape shook and reasserted itself, as he spoke out loud in a higher pitch than the one he had been using earlier. “When the process is completed, we will be fully aware of what transpired here … I do not envy our conscious self when he realizes the consequences of what you did, and that all we went through to contain those evils was all in vain!”

“We didn’t know back then, what the entity that called itself his soul meant by those words.” Rarity finished narrating this part of their experience, shuddering a little before taking a dainty sip from her teacup.

“We found out the hard way, though—but that was at the end of our adventure, so that’ll have to wait.” Rainbow Dash chipped in, eyes lost in thought as she stared at her empty teacup.

“Well, what else happened then?” Celestia and Cadance asked at the same time, only to look at each other and giggle at the same time.

Once the voice of Young Ashley went quiet, the memories dug from the mares dispersed, and the scenes shifted further in time … .

Down to the point where the children were ordered into a line outside the stone building—the light from the sun illuminating their clothing, which now they saw was a uniform, with a human male that didn’t have a beard on his face—severe eyes and appearance, dressed in what the pony witnesses realized was some kind of uniform.

The emotions were blurry at this point, from hope to fear, down to feeling intimidated by the uniformed man taking notes as each child went forward.

Rarity, despite the queasy feelings invading her gut, looked intrigued at this example of alien fashion—one that resembled what the nobles and Royal Guard wore for office work, when not at war or wearing the traditional golden armor. ‘I wonder why the members of this religious sect favor white with red trimmings, while this military male favors dark grey with that coat of arms and golden details.’

Twilight’s eyes were drawn towards an artefact that was in front of this officer. From all appearances, it was a crystal slab with unknown letterings etched on its surface—held into place by strips of silver which had the same letters onto a wooden table, partially submerged into the surface. ‘What is that officer looking for? And how does this magical device work? What use does it have?’

Pinkie Pie’s thoughts were ‘Why are they so unhappy? The monkies were good ponies! Perhaps the lack of parties, or cake, or fun, or family is responsible … is it?’ as her mane and tail slowly deflated at the sight with every child that placed his hand on the slab and was sent back, them looking dejected as they marched back into the building—

Whereas those to whom the device reacted: light sourced from within the crystal slab, which shone brightly in response to some of the children. These ‘chosen ones’ stood at one side, waiting for the line to be done while they chatted among each other.

The ponies witnessed how the device reacted with sparks of lightning when Jan’s turn came, whereas when Ashley touched it … .

The device didn’t as much shine brightly, nor produced crackling lightning—but shifted in an assortment of colors before normalizing into a grey light that glowed dimly.

Twilight noticed how the eyes of the government clerk widened in shock for both cases, only to feign being not impressed and told them to join the ranks—showing that from two hundred kids present, only fifty were chosen.

‘Now, what are the elements being sought after that would require such a device? And why did it react so strongly to those two, and in such different ways?’ Twilight thought to herself, taking her mind off for a second from the fact that it was a military man who was taking kids with him for his purposes.

The scene shifted forward in time, where the kids were herded along to a different part of town, flanked by several soldiers with hands on the pommels of the swords and the shafts of the halberds. The shifting of time slowed down, when they reached a military fort at the edge of town, several of the kids sweating and breathing hard from the effort.

The feeling of being overwhelmed, intimidated and feeling genuinely frightened filled their hearts, in an echo of their owner’s memories.

The uniformed man who guided them, though—looked as if he had just taken a stroll, not a bit of sweat in his face. This man turned to face his charge, and after a moment’s silence where he breathed in, he started the induction.

“You Forsaken are now part of a greater being, which is the Valendian government!” Roared the uniformed military man in front of the children, making many step back as they cringed. “For as you see, your mother is now The Valendian Knights of the Peace! And your father is Parliament! I and my own are your new family, recruits!”

All the kids looked at the man with intrigue in their eyes, as the soldier grinned privately.

“I am Sergeant Vinheim! And to this day you have been pampered by those softies of the Iocus Priesthood! Now, you will be turned into men of good!” Sergeant Vinheim roared at the children, only this time they attempted to stand their ground despite their faces cringing from the treatment.

‘Good, good! I can work with these runts—hum? Who might this two be, that stood their ground?’ The sergeant wondered inwardly as he saw two of the kids at the end of the row remain in their places, faces neutral yet attentive.

“Now—I want each of you to take a step forward; introduce yourself; state what you want; then step back and wait for me to give you your second name! Have I spoken clearly!?” the sergeant ordered.

A chorus of “Sir, yes sir!” from the children gathered in front of him was enough to answer for him.

And as each child took his place and spoke out, the sergeant made notes of who would need … re-education to become a better asset, as he loudly stated second names for each of the kids, who grinned or looked in pain as they received their new second names.

The ponies looked in horror, especially Luna—who thought privately: ‘Children!? To train children as soldiers!? Not even when the three tribes were in conflict we did such things!’

Whereas Star Swirl thought, ignoring the faces of shock and horror from the companions of Luna and Twilight: ‘It is no wonder that his mind and personality are warped … to do this is a guarantee to break kids apart down at the foundations of their spirits.’

The group then paid attention to Jan’s introduction.

“I am Jan! And it is my vision to grow in both power and wealth! To no longer be a Forsaken!” The cynic kid stated smugly, before returning to his place.

“Jan Rosenkrantz!” The sergeant bellowed as Jan returned to his place.

Their audience paid attention to the mystery known as Ashley, or Warden of The Dark, as he stepped forward and spoke out.

“I am Ashley, and I want to become a knight and serve my country!” Ashley stated with vigor, as several of the kids started to laugh at his desire as he stepped back.

Fluttershy noticed, though, how the sergeant looked with eyes that she would recognize anywhere, as she had seen them herself.

Eyes of both concern, and pity.

Not missing a beat, the sergeant bellowed “Ashley Riot!” as Ashley took a step back.

“Why did the sergeant look at Ashley with pity?” Fluttershy asked herself out loud, only to be surprised as the scene shifted—

And they saw Ashley being interviewed by a female in a dark grey uniform, within a stone room that only had a wooden table in between two chairs and a guard at the doorway.

“I am Inquisitor Beatrice Galthena, young Ashley … and I was called due to certain concerns related to your behavior this last month.” She explained softly as she placed a dossier on the table carefully.

“I—I don’t exactly know what you mean by that, Inquisitor. I really don’t.” Ashley replied earnestly, a tinge of fear within his answer.

“You don’t need to be afraid, Ashley—despite our reputation, we have many purposes … among them, is counselling.” The inquisitor replied with a motherly smile, before asking him, “Tell me, Ashley … what is in your mind that keeps distracting you? What is it that is worrying about your friends and family?”

Ashley replied without any reservations, “I don’t even know myself … I don’t remember my parents—I only feel longing, for them to come back and to let me know why. Longing for a normal life, longing to be more than just an orphan—a Forsaken child—to know … if I was loved at all or was nothing but an accident. More to the point, to know who am I.”

Applejack interrupted Rarity’s narration, and said softly to the Princess, eyes watering a little as she spoke out sadly. “Princess? When ah heard that, I couldn’t help but feel my determination falter … all ah knew was that this Warden character was nothing but a no-good varmint, and there we were—hearing a foal trying to act grown up, with no real support for him and his fellow kids.”

“Applejack? We all did feel and believe that, too.” Twilight replied softly, as she nursed her teacup before taking the final drink from it and placing it on the saucer, it clinking as she released it.

With a grim look, Rarity cleared her throat and continued telling their experience within … .

The faces of all the ponies present changed as they heard that confession coming from what they believed so far to be a monster. Of them, Fluttershy and Pinkie even tore a little at the honesty in the display.

‘Even monsters love … right?’ Rarity thought privately as they kept seeing the scene unfold.

The Inquisitor kept making notes with a quill on the dossier, and said at the end of the interview to the kid in front of him, “I will arrange for treatment later this evening, Ashley.” She took the piece of parchment she had been writing on so far, and added, “take this to your superior officer, and rest until the appointed time. I’ll be waiting for you in the address written here, and don’t worry about getting lost—your superior officer will take you where the treatment will begin. Dismissed, Ashley Riot.”

Taking the parchment with one hand, Ashley saluted after standing from his seat and left the room.

“Treatment? What did she mean by that?” Luna asked herself—

Only to see how the scenario shifted and distorted, as Ashley’s perceptions of this point shifted … .

“Well, dear. I hope you know what you’re doing by becoming a recruit for the Valendian army.” A woman with flowing brown hair and loving eyes said to the child next to her—who to the ponies’ surprise was Ashley Riot—who nodded at her and the man next to her.

“Yes, we may not be nobles, but I want to make a career here, to serve the King as part of the Kingsguard!” Ashley exclaimed seriously, as the two adults tittered at his antics.

The scene shifted, as if suffering from interference, and showed Ashley seating on a chair, bands of leather and metal keeping him in place as he screamed out in pain.

On his head, a device similar to the one used to choose among the orphaned kids were glowing brightly—while an agent clad in grey was producing some sort of power that was being fed into the device.

“What—what is the meaning of this!?” Luna and Twilight exclaimed, while Star Swirl looked at the scenes now shifting between two stories that were too different to have the excuse of time for them … and frowned at the implications.

“This is troubling.” Was all that he said while his companions gawked at the now swirling confusion of images and emotions being cast upon them.

“Mind modification spellcraft.” Celestia spat venomously, causing the ponies present to look at her. “To think that his people would resort to those means … it is a wonder he remained sane after that.”

“Hum. Princess? It is way worse than that.” Rarity said nervously, while the other members of the impromptu audience only twitched their ears.

Clearing her throat, Celestia said to Rarity. “Please, Rarity … do continue. What did you all learn of next?”

Cries of pain echoed through the white expanse—physical pain, as the transformation, proceeded unabated—and emotional pain, as memories that he thought at first weren’t his own surfaced one after another, adding to the confusion and pain that he was feeling.

With a show of might and mental fortitude, Ashley Riot—known within the Minos Alliance as Iron Ash—grabbed the frayed edges of his sanity and mind, and attempted to make sense of what was happening to him.

Or at least, that was his intent, when an unwanted visitor showed up at his doorstep.

A coral-coated alicorn mare with a crystal tree symbol on her flank materialized within the expanse, and cried out in worry: “Ash!? What is happening to you!?”

Despite the pain, the fact that his mind was unraveling—and thousands of years of buried baggage being turned inside out from the depths of his self—and the fact that he was undergoing a transformation at a primal level, Ashley turned his glare to the approaching shape, and replied coldly to her—cutting off the physical and metaphysical pain he was suffering.

“This is your work, and of your puppets … Harmony, why did you sell me out to them? Did I fail in fulfilling my part of the contract?”

Harmony turned her head in shame, eyes watering out as she answered to his accusation: “I am sorry, Ashley … I hoped that my intervention would have assuaged any misgivings to your presence.” She attempted to nuzzle the fallen human—only to get her head shoved aside by his hand.

“Get off of me, deceiver.” Ashley ordered while gritting his teeth, his mind cracking under the pressure of what happened long ago.

All his preconceptions, all what he thought was long-lost and buried now being brought to the fore of his mind.

Harmony looked at him as if he had kicked her aside in spite, eyes now tearing up as she called softly, “Ashley? I—I didn’t want this happening to you!”

Ashley didn’t wait to reply in scorn, “It was your power. Yours, that you chose to give to those that don’t welcome strangers at all.”

As Harmony made an attempt at saying something, anything, Ashley added with barely contained fury, “You could’ve ceased your flow of power to them, to prevent my work from being undone … and you chose not to.”

Any further words that he meant to speak out loud died in his throat, as the plethora of changes and pain washed over him once more.

All that Harmony could do was stare in pain at what had occurred, and the results that were showing up to this point.

Her heart ached, for she meant what she said, and was made to be a liar to someone who valued truth above all things.

It didn’t take long for the memories to stabilize—and for the ponies to see the mindscape settling down—before they continued witnessing his growth as a member of the Valendian Knights of the Peace as years passed by in a blink.

Among those memories, was the part where he was trained in the Kingsguard’s combat foundations—which drew immediately Twilight, Luna, Rainbow Dash, and Star Swirl’s attention, as the scene unfolded … .

“One of the requisites for applying for the Valendian Armed Forces elite groups—the Royal Guard, known as Kingsguard; and the Dangerous Task Force Unit, also known as the Riskbreakers—is the capability to tap into one’s source of strength: The Soul! That is the reasoning behind the offensive and defensive battle abilities that we call the Life Spark Abilities and the Break Arts!” Roared the bearded man in front of the young teens, who stood still as he spoke out—several iron cages serving as backdrop for the trainer addressing the trainees.

“Life Spark Abilities? Break Arts? Soul-fueled skills? What in Tartarus does he mean by that?” Twilight asked herself as she heard the explanation … and gasped when several furious, big and muscular dogs were brought in metal prison-like boxes to that man.

The ones carrying the cages were armored individuals who were struggling with the dogs slamming the sides of their cages—joining the dog-containing cages to the larger-sized cages by the sides.

“For the next stage of your training, you must tap into your very souls to draw forth the power that fuels the Life Spark Arts!” The sergeant roared at the kids—many of whom were visibly shaking as the dogs barked in rage. “If you fail, you will die! So, do not die! Don’t waste my efforts in training you into the right mindset, so you can tap onto that source of strength!” The man roared again, entering one of the cages for the trainees, before nodding to one of the armored soldiers—taking the signal, the soldier opened the latch of the box and its occupant rushed at the sergeant.

Fluttershy couldn’t help but feel angry at the treatment given to those dogs, even if she feared what those jaws were capable of—if she believed her reasoning about the size of their heads and necks.

Dogs bred to maim and kill with bites of great force, plain and simple.

Managing to avoid the rushing sergeant’s fists, the dog got its chance and bit the weathered trainer at the shoulder-neck level, provoking a blood-letting wound—

—Only for a spark of light to repeal the dog, causing it to yelp in pain as the trainer bled through the bite wound given to him, spurts fountaining rhythmically from the wound.

Princess Luna didn’t say anything, as she saw that the wound was a lethal one, even if treated right away—

Or so she thought, as the sergeant rushed at the dog as it attempted a second rush, and started to punch and kick the animal in a methodical fashion—the aura of light manifesting with each impact, and the wounds closing to the point that they didn’t even appear in the form of scars.

This happened, while the once ferocious dog let out yelp after yelp of pain as it tried to escape its prey—now at the offensive.

Fluttershy couldn’t help but cringe at the show, sniffing at the brutal treatment of both animals and men as she felt herself wanting to weep from the pain it caused her heart. ‘Why? Why so much cruelty? Haven’t those kids suffered already? Why didn’t they remain with the monks, who were kind to them?’

In between strikes, the seasoned trainer exclaimed. “I trained you to both pay back the pain and harm given to you, and to heal yourselves the more you attack and use your soulfire to fuel the Life Spark Abilities!” The sergeant turned to the now scared-to-the-gills young teens, before barking to them while holding the whimpering beast in one hand by the neck, strangling it in the process. “Now! Each one of you to one cage! When inside, a dog will be released as well! You pass on to the next level of your training when you defeat four war dogs at the same time! Now get to it!”

The sergeant finished his phrase by throwing the dog inside one cage without any care, as the now tearing children entered each cage and prepared for the onslaught.

The scenes shifted away—while the ponies felt the pain of Ashley Riot, and his grim resolution to succeed or die trying—as the screams of pain from children forced to become soldiers in exchange for a place in society vanished into the dark recesses of his memories.

The mouths of Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Spike, and Starlight were open from both shock and rage at such cruelty for training children.

The one who broke the silence was Spike, who gulped before saying out loud their thoughts: “You were right … it did get worse.”

Twilight Sparkle felt her stomach grumble as her mouth salivated, feeling her guts churning and giving her grief, while her heart was upset at both the methods and the means to train from young the future soldiers.

‘Training to kill in close-quarter-combat; tactics; psychology; strategy; terror tactics; wilderness survival; metalsmithing; leatherwork; infiltration; espionage … so much being taught, and so little that is constructive for a life outside the military.’ The young princess thought, the scholar in her fascinated at such a look at an alien military life—whereas her equine side couldn’t help but feel wretched at the waste of potential for the lives lost—children denied their childhoods, as they were trained to become elite warriors.

Luna, however, was more preoccupied with what the training involving the Lifespark Abilities encompassed—as she herself had learned of something similar to it a long time ago, when she learned that some Zebrican tribes and Deerfolk—that lived at the outskirts and within the woods of the Everfree respectively—trained themselves in the same fashion that Ashley went through. At the time, found herself curious—down to the point where she learned that it was perhaps the most dangerous of magical thurgies of the entire world.

Soul Magic. Or at least it felt similar. Too similar … .

‘Warden of The Dark … Ashley Riot … what went through your mind when teaching others this magic?’

This was the unspoken secret to Tirek’s capabilities concerning the theft of harmonious magic—his capability to funnel his soul’s power to rip the magic of other living beings and add it to his own. A secret that both she and her sister had kept from Cadance and Twilight, as the implications were bad enough.

‘Didn’t those trainers know? What happens when one uses the essence of the self for this purposes?’

Twilight and Star Swirl, thought—they were intrigued by the way that the Lifespark Abilities were taught.

Twilight Sparkle wondered this: ‘How can this be possible? Humankind isn’t supposed to be able to harness magic—and the human world at the other side of the mirror obtained Equestrian Magic because of my Element and thaumical transfer—yet these people succeeded in weaponizing their own souls to have an equivalent! But why rely only on oneself, when team efforts are what give the best results? Why haven’t they taught those kids about making friends, or working as a team?’

Whereas Star Swirl couldn’t help but frown, as he remembered his own research on the power of The Dark that The Warden wielded and the conclusions that he managed to obtain before his end. ‘The Dark resembles too much this soul-fueled skills, even their reliance on emotions linked to power—the power to change reality at a really small scale … can it be possible … ?’

“We were exposed to his entire childhood and entry into adulthood, Princess … and ah think that was the turning point that showed us who he really was.” Applejack explained, ears drooped as she eyed the cupcake on her hoof.

“That’s very true, Applejack.” Rarity offered kindly in return, causing the farm-mare to smile wanly at her in return.

Luna added to the ongoing conversation, after taking a drink of her tea. “Verily, we saw how his government employed him and his companions—as state-sponsored assassins.” She spat at the end, “As the slaughter went on against those that their government branded as enemies of the state, criminals or destabilizing elements, more and more of the ones recruited from that orphanage and many others went mad, died from mission-related injuries, or both. Only very few remained at the end of those years in relatively good health.”

Shining Armor asked in a tone that the mares hadn’t heard from the Prince Consort, one that showed as his eyes were, in fact, tearing up as he spoke out. “Princess Luna? How many suffered that fate?”

Luna turned her sights on Twilight, who dropped a tear as she replied to him, “... The fatality rate was around seventy percent, and much of it could have been prevented had their superiors lessened the deployment of them … the Dangerous Task Force Unit, Riskbreakers—or at least given them some kind of therapy to lessen their burden somewhat.”

Pinkie Pie exclaimed in an outburst, forehooves raised in exasperation as what Twilight said sunk into their audience, “Not only they offered them a future, but lied about it! That’s not what good ponies do to one another! Many he saw die by the hands of their targets or those who guarded them, all while his heart went colder with each one he had known for so long go out like that!” Pinkie’s mane had deflated at this point, tears spilling out as she was wing-hugged by Fluttershy, taking her comfort like a lifesaver in the midst of a storm. “They even struck the ones who gave their all for them out of their registries! Not even a sign of recognition, no hope, no future, nothing!”

“So they used them as nothing but tools?” Cadance whispered, her heart aching at the description of such calculated cruelty.

“Yes.” Twilight and Rainbow said softly.

“What was it that you saw, the ‘turning point’ for your opinion of him changing?” Celestia inquired gently, eyes glistening a little as she looked at the thoughtful and affected ponies. ‘No one comes out unscathed from bloodshed, especially my little ponies who have not seen war for so long … oh, Twilight, everypony. I’m sorry you had to find out our burden the hard way, with this adventure you went through.’

Twilight cleared her throat before she continued from where Rarity had left the story, “We were introduced to Ashley and Jan working together as team on behalf of their government, as they were picked for both their grades and temperaments, both being top of their class—with Ashley being chosen as the head of the two-men team by their superiors.”

Twilight’s eyes became dull as she continued talking with less enthusiasm. “Unlike everypony else, they kept going mission after mission—with little rest in between—while keeping a spotless record of efficiency. Key assassination, robbery, man-hunting—they did it all.” Her eyes took a shine once more as tears fell from her eyes, as she said to them, “Until that last assignment, where Ashley finally showed who he really was … .’

The ponies were feeling sick at the scene in front of them—all sense of pity gone, nothing remaining but disgust at both Ashley for being nothing but a state-sponsored killer, and his superiors for taking advantage of the Riskbreakers’ impunity for their actions.

And yet … something stirred in the memories they were witnessing, as they glared at the image of Ashley standing still as he stared at the body of the woman—once a mother, once a wife—that he had killed, sword dripping with her blood as he stared and felt his heart churn a new feeling, one that he didn’t recognize from before, a pain and sorrow bubbling from within his deepest self … until his attention was drawn towards his teammate—Jan Rosencrantz, as he exclaimed to him, “Well done, commandant! Both stabbed through the heart!” as he examined the corpse of the simple dressed man, him and his son stabbed through the chest as well—their blood seeping into the soil.

The ponies were shaken out of their disgust by that heavy feeling in the memories of the one who they had grown to despise at this point—and heard the echoes of his thoughts back then. ‘Why am I feeling this now? Could it be, that their deaths were not meant to happen by our hand? Have I gone astray from what I hoped to become like a member of the Valendian Knights of Peace?’

“... What? They’re just peasants.” Jan stated in business-like fashion while Ashley’s sight turned from the downed man to the child whose future he had taken from by his blade—kneeling to examine his own handiwork as his heart all but cried out ‘Murderer! Sham of a knight! Disgraceful!’ at him, dulled emotions from the bloodshed bubbling and breaking the surface of his machine-like self-imposed separation from his actions. Unknowing of his remorse, Jan continued to twist the knife in his friend’s heart. “Their luck ran ill, that is all.”

‘Their luck ran ill!? Where did I go astray!? This—this isn’t what I signed up for!’

“All witnesses to our operations must be ‘dealt with’. It is in our code.” Jan continued speaking out while Ashley just remained silent, kneeling beside the corpse of the child. “They were wrong to picnic here.” A few more moments of silence, before Jan added “You are the hand of justice. We … we are the hand of justice. It is for the good of the realm. A few sacrifices are nothing—”

The ponies felt a shift in the memory they were witnessing. A shift towards rage and self-loathing, as Ashley coldly replied “A few sacrifices?” causing the ponies’ eyes to open wide, realizing that something had changed—something deep within him.

His rage rising as he rose from his kneeling position, Ashley confronted Jan and questioned with barely contained anger, “You tell me why these people had to die! Why we had to kill them!”

The anger and self-loathing gave place to sorrow, as they heard him cry out in pain, “They were innocents … Is it not our charge to protect these very souls!?” before he threw his bloodied sword at a side—the tip of the red-stained blade burying itself into the ground as he stood his ground to his teammate—

Only for him—and the ponies present—to feel themselves fainting, as several security wards placed within his mind went into action … causing Ashley to fall to his knees, as Rosencrantz exclaimed in disbelief, “What has come over you? You sound like an addle-pated preacher!” only for Ashley to fall to the side, consciousness going black as he heard his last words … “C—Commandant! What is wrong!?”

“This was the point where we questioned ourselves … have all we have done been twisted into evil? Were we nothing but killers, instead of Knights serving the Parliament?” Ashley’s voice spoke out—but this time it sounded older, the same voice that had confronted Jan in that field, the shade of the tree serving as a witness.

Before the ponies could say anything, the entire scene shook as glimpses of Ashley strapped to a chair with the same device on his head cried out in pain—and memories were apparently replaced and shifted to a room with one gray-uniformed man interviewing Ashley.

“Why are you interested in joining the Dangerous Task Force Unit? The Kingsguard is a proper post that will allow you to grow into a career.” The officer asked him.

“All of that no longer matters … I have nothing left, my wife and son were murdered by fallen knights—I want this, I need this … as I could do nothing to save them.” Ashley replied, the ponies shivering from the tone and the creeping chill into their very hearts … .

Only to hear the officer reply with all seriousness: “Welcome to the Dangerous Task Force Unit, Commandant Ashley Riot. We will arrange the paperwork for your transfer, and you’re expected to show up at this address.” The officer passed up a piece of parchment to Ashley, who took it without even checking it up. “You’re expected to arrive at 0800 hours. Dismissed.”

“Those buckers …. how dare they do that to him?” Shining Armor snarled hatefully, disgust seeping into his own heart as he heard this, with Cadance, Celestia and both Spike and Starlight Glimmer showing the same feelings concerning that act.

“That’s really bucked up—to force someone to keep serving you, even if this goes against any morals he might’ve had.” Cadance couldn’t help but whisper, as Shining nuzzled her for comfort.

“From a military standing point, I can understand this though.” Shining Armor said, causing everypony present to look up at him questioningly. He shrugged the looks and kept going, “If these ‘Riskbreakers’ were involved in what you described as black operations, espionage and assassinations, that’d mean that they possess delicate information that could get leaked at any point—thus being a security nightmare for those involved. So, the best option would be—”

“To keep them under watch, while availing to their services,” Celestia muttered, ears drooped as she looked down on the ground forlornly.

“Oddly enough, Prince Shining … that is what came up in later memories.” Fluttershy commented, as she shivered a little before speaking out. “Would anypony take it at this point? Just remembering what happens after is … way more scarier than dragons.”

Twilight and Applejack couldn’t help but wince in sympathy, as Applejack said to Fluttershy, “Ah can’t blame you on that one, hun. A hundred successful assignments without suffering another breakdown, while hatin’ yourself for not being able to save your loved ones can be a horrid thing to live through.”

Starlight and Spike went slack-jawed at this statement.

“A hundred assignments!? How many missions did he do in total without going mad!?” Starlight screeched in shock, feeling incapable of imagining herself in that position—or withstanding the regrets or the simple fact of having to kill others just because she was ordered to.

After a moment’s silence, Luna spoke up in a quiet tone. “I believe it was around one hundred and seventy assignments in total, Starlight Glimmer.”

Spike shivered as he hugged Twilight more tightly, and said softly, “I don’t think I could even stomach five missions like those you have spoken of, how did he do it? How did his heart stand up to that life?”

“His loyalty and self-hatred, plus a great desire to avert his life happening to others, Spike.” Rainbow Dash said to him, wings flexing a little as the feathers ruffled and settled into place.

“I have the distinct feeling that this wasn’t the end of the story, am I correct in that assumption?” Celestia asked them gently, ears twitching as she found herself willing to hear more of the mysterious figure that they had so far assumed was an adversary.

“Yes, there is more. In fact, we lived through his life—all ten thousand years of it—” Twilight began, only to stop suddenly and look at how Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Starlight Glimmer and Spike just stared at them … .

Until Starlight Glimmer asked her: “Seriously? Ten thousand years old?”

Twilight sighed, “Yes, Starlight, and it was a very long life with little highlights, as he went into hiding for the rest of his life,” before continuing the narrative. “The changing point was his last assignment as a Riskbreaker … when he pursued his prey to that place … .”

Joining Twilight, Luna and the other Element Bearers said at the same time, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie closing their eyes as if it brought them pain: “The cursed city … Lea Monde.”