To Feel Is To Understand: A My Little Pony Story

by ArthurPaige

Rating: teen
Tags: Profanity, Derpy Hooves, Violence, Death, Human, Twilight Sparkle, Drama, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Mystery, Adventure
Length: 14358

After meeting Derpy and her friend Dr. Whooves, Arthur accidentally makes another version himself? What could possibly go wrong? Probably everything for Arthur.

My name is Arthur.

This is a story about how a single book changed my (pony) life.

After a testing accident occurs, I released an evil that was was not supposed to be in our universe.

Me, and some of my friends, will have to jump through hoops to stop the evil that now roams Equestria.

But sometimes my worst enemy is myself.

*I do not own My Little Pony or its characters. I only own this story and it's OCs.*

Book 2/3  of Arthur's Story Arc

Published 2017-12-22 01:40:07 UTC
Last updated 2017-12-22 01:40:07 UTC

The Book

My name is Arthur. This is a story about how a single book changed my (pony) life.

During those two months, of me and my friends arriving in Equestria, Twilight has been helping me and Moon Walker find a job we were qualified for.

Archaeology, is the job me and Moon were most qualified for (we were mostly hired because of short staff).

When we were digging inside an abandoned cave village, we came across a book, of course little did I know, this book has bad juju following it.

"Hey Arthur you should see this book, I think it's a journal." Moon says.

Arthur walks up to Moon.

"Let me see." Arthur says, before snatching the book from Moon's hooves.

"Hey! Give it back!" Moon says, as he tries to get the book back.

"How much do you want for this?" Arthur says, as he holds the book high in the air.

"15 bits. Because, you’re a dick." Moon responds.

"15? That's too high for me. What about 10?" Arthur says.

"Ok since you are my friend i'll give it to you for 12." Moon says.

"Ugh. Fine." Arthur says.

Arthur passes the bits to Moon Walker.

"I can't wait to show this to Twilight! See you tomorrow, Moon." Arthur says.

"Yeah see you." Moon says.

Me and Twilight have been dating for a couple months (today is our anniversary).

She knows that me, Moon, Potato, and Uyada came through the portal, after all it is in her castle.

Twilight and her friends are the only ponies who know what we really are.

I walk up to Twilight's castle, then knock.

Spike answers the door, then asks "Hey, Arthur, what brings you here?"

"Me and Moon found a book and I thought i'd ask Twilight about it." I say.

"She's in the Map room. Come on in, we're having apple pie." Spike says.

"I could go for some pie right about now." I say.

We walk to the Map room together. Spike opens the door to the Throne Room.

"Oh, hi, Arthur. I didn't know you were coming today." Twilight says.

"Well, me and Moon found a book in a cave not so far from here. The book says something about a Spirit of Harmony, and The Elements of Disharmony. I came here to see if you know anything about it." I say.

"Elements of Harmony? Let me see." Twilight says.

Twilight reads it for a couple minutes.

"I have to tell the princesses! Spike!" Twilight says.

"I'm already on it." Spike says.

Twilight says, as Spike writes, "Dear Princess Celestia,

it has occurred to me that other Elements, like The Elements of Harmony, may exist.

Now I have proof.

My otherworldly friend, Arthur Paige, and his friend found an ancient journal.

It talks about a Spirit of Harmony, and The Elements of Disharmony.

The Elements of Disharmony are the bad versions of the Elements of Harmony.

I think it’s imperative that we should look for them, before anypony finds out they exist.

Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle."

"Your, friend?" I ask.

"Sorry, Arthur. But there is something I have to talk to you about. Spike, will you please leave the room?" Twilight says.

Spike leaves.

"What is it?" I ask.

"I think we should stop seeing each other. Please, don't make harder than it already is." Twilight says.

"What!? We only dated for two months!" I say.

"I'm sorry. But, I love somepony else." Twilight says.

"I love you, Twilight! Is that not enough!?" I say.

"I think you should leave. Now." Twilight says.

"Fine! if that's how you feel. But i'm going to tell you something. I respected you. I loved you. If that wasn't enough, then I'm sorry, but that's all I can give you. Goodbye." I say.

POV Swap

“I’m so sorry, Arthur. For everything.” Twilight says.

Omnia Causa Fiunt

I walk out of the castle, then it starts to rain.

Anger and sadness is the only thing that’s running through my mind.

I bump into a grey Pegasus.

“Oh, sorry! I didn’t see you there.” The Pegasus says.

“It’s ok. It was my fault.” I say

It rains harder.

“It’s really pouring out! Follow me! I know a place we can stay.” The Pegasus says

We run to a small house.

“Doc! Can you open the door?! It’s raining!” The Pegasus yells.

A spiky haired Earth Pony opens the door, then says “Oh it’s just you Derpy. Come inside.”

We walk inside.

“Sorry, I couldn’t introduce myself before, my name is Derpy Hooves, and this is my friend, Dr. Whooves, no relation.” Derpy says.

“Nice to meet you, Doc.” I say, before reaching out my hoof.

“Nice to meet you, too.” The Doc says, after shaking my hoof.

“And you are?” Derpy asks.

“Oh! My name is Arthur Paige.” I say.

The Doctor walks out of view.

“Why do you look so down, Arthur? If you don’t mind me asking.” Derpy says.

“Well, Derpy. Me and Twilight Sparkle were dating, and we broke it off.” I say.

“Really? Why?” Derpy says.

“She said she loves somepony else.” I say.

“You seem like a nice pony. I don’t see why she wouldn’t stick with somepony like you.” Derpy says.

“Thanks Derpy, but she is royalty. I guess it would make sense to marry into royalty. I should just face it, I won’t be good enough for anypony.” I respond.

“Hey now, do you want to know something funny? I used to think the same thing. Up until Doctor over there told me, “Everypony belongs to somepony”. From then on, i’ve just been waiting for somepony to walk into my life.” Derpy says.

The room goes silent.

The The Doctor yells from the other room “Derpy! Come see my new invention!”

Me and Derpy walk to the Doctor.

“What is it?” Derpy asks.

“It’s a teleportation machine, Arthur will you be my test subject?” The Doctor asks.

“Sure. It won’t kill me, though, right?” I say.

“It shouldn’t. I’ve tested it with objects.” The Doctor says.

“Okay. What do I do?” I ask.

“Just step into that chamber right there.” The Doctor says.

I step into the empty, dark chamber, then the Doctor shuts the door.

I hear electricity.

I keep thinking about the break up. Hate starts running through my mind, then I black out.

“What is that? Arthur is that you?” I hear Derpy say.

“I think it’s a human, I read about them but I didn’t think they exist.” I hear The Doc say.

“Hey, what happened?” I ask.

“I think I may have left an artifact in the chamber.” The Doc says.

I feel so weak.

I open my eyes.

I don’t believe it. I have my human body back, with the same clothes that I had on, before I went through that portal.

The Doctor opens the door, then says “Oh jeez, hey I said it wouldn’t kill you.”

“Arthur is that you?” Derpy asks.

“Yeah, it’s me.” I say, before I step out of the chamber.

Another me steps out of the other chamber, he now has a unicorn horn.

“Hello, me. I guess I should look for those elements, right?” Other Me says.

“I think I should reverse this.” The Doctor says.

The Teleportation chambers explode.

“I don’t think so, but I think I should have a name that’s not so confusing. From now on call me Nexus.” Nexus says.

Nexus disappears, in sparks.

“We have to go. Now! Grab anything that’ll help us. Supplies, food.” I say.

“Arthur what is going on?” Derpy asks.

“Do you know what the Elements of Harmony are?” I ask.

“Yeah, I do. Is that what Nexus was talking about?” Derpy asks.

“I don’t know. But, he could be talking about the Elements of Disharmony. The Elements of Disharmony are the “bad” versions of the Elements of Harmony, if somepony evil has them, then it would mean the end of Harmony.” I say.

Turned

“I think I know what happened, Arthur.” The Doc says.

“What happened?” I ask.

“When you transport matter through space and time, the matter, goes through a wormhole, that wormhole separates our universe, from another. Our wormhole was unstable, because of this artifact.” The Doc says, before showing me the Golden Horse Head.

“Where did you get that?” I ask.

“I’ll get to that. That artifact opened a wormhole to another universe, that wormhole got caught connected to ours. That’s how I think Nexus came here.” The Doc says.

“So, Nexus is from another universe?” Derpy asks.

“Yeah.” The Doc says.

“If he knows what the Elements are. His universe must be similar to ours.” I say.

“Or it could be very different.” The Doc says.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“This is my theory, there are infinite numbers of universes. All of these universes are different, but they all have the same origins. That could explain Deja Vu.” The Doc says.

“I have to warn Twilight.’ I say.

Six minutes later

"Twilight! It's me, Arthur! Open the door!" I say.

Spike answers the door then says "Hey Arthur, what are you doing h-. Arthur? Is that you?".

"Yeah Spike it's me, I have to talk to Twilight!" I say.

"There is something wrong with Twilight and the others, they don't seem like themselves." Spike says.

"Spike it's me, that pony who walked through that portal. That unicorn, that looks like me, is the one you can't trust. If anything goes wrong meet me at Dr. Whooves' house." I say.

I run to the Throne Room.

I open the door.

Twilight's friends are there.

"Am I the only pony seeing this?" Rainbow Dash says.

Everyone in the room looks at me.

"Arthur, is that Nexus?" Twilight says.

"What? Twilight there is another me walking around, he's a unicorn." I say.

"Do you mean me? I told you , guys, there is another me. You can't trust him, the warning clearly says "beware"." Nexus says, before smirking at me.

"Twilight it's me, Arthur. Remember when I said I loved you? I was telling the truth." I say.

"Freeze him Twi." AJ says.

Twilight aims her horn at me. Then a beam of magic flies towards me.

I use my arms to shield myself.

A magic shield appears in front of me.

The magic beam flies to the ground.

I run out of the Throne Room.

The girls chase me.

Rainbow Dash flies in front of the front door.

Unwillingly, I teleport outside of the castle.

I run inside a tent.

The group of friends run past the tent.

I run to the Doc's house.

“I’m so glad I took track in high school.” I say, while breathing heavily.

I knock on the front door then yell "Doc! Open the door!".

Derpy answers the door, then says "Arthur get in here!"

I walk inside.

Derpy asks "What happened?"

"Nexus turned Twilight and her friends against me. But Spike knows i'm me. He's on our side." I say.

"Your side. I'm sorry, but I can't endanger mine and Derpy's lives." The Doctor says.

"I see. Well can you help me?" I ask.

Derpy hands me a bag full of supplies.

"Arthur, be safe. I really want to see you again." Derpy says.

"Derpy, I want you to have this." I say.

I give her my wallet, then I say "It's no use to me now. Thank you for everything. I hope you find your special somepony.".

I say, to The Doctor, "Thank you for your hospitality.".

I walk out the door.

Three mysterious ponies grab me, then they cover me up.

The Descendants of Maximus

"Let me go!" I yell.

"Be quiet! The Royal Guards will hear you. Don't worry, no harm will come to you." I hear a female voice say.

Another female voice says "Your magic is out of control, you need to learn how to use it."

They walk for a while.

Then they uncover me.

I get blinded by the sun.

The three ponies uncover themselves.

Two female unicorns, and one male unicorn.

"My name is Scarlet Rose, this is Abdulia, and this is Dreamcatcher, he doesn't talk much. We are the Descendants of Maximus. Follow us, we are going to teach you." Scarlet says.

"How did you find me? And why are you helping me?" I ask.

"We put a tracking spell on the journal you stole, also Dreamcatcher had a vision, we thought that the human in Maximus' vision was the Evil One. But in Dreamcatcher's vision the unicorn is pure evil, but was defeated by the human. That human is you." Abdulia says.

"First of all, the journal was inside a cave, a cave that wasn't touched in years. Second, I'm not capable of fighting, let alone defeating anypony." I say.

"Walk with us, unless you want to be captured by the Princess' guards." Scarlet says

The three walk towards a treeline, then they disappear.

“Whoa! Just like in The Smurfs!” I say.

I follow them inside, I see a huge forest village, filled with ponies.

"Welcome to the Village of Harmony." Scarlet says.

I am speechless. It looks so beautiful.

The leaves of trees block the sky, but there is enough sunlight to see.

Homes of ponies are inside thick trees.

"Beautiful, isn't it? Maximus created the protective dome that surrounds the village. It is said it can keep out any evil." Abdulia says.

“Can you fill us in on any information, that can help us?” Scarlet asks.

“Yeah, I can. Nexus, or The Evil One, is not from this universe. He is looking for Elements.” I say.

“Elements? What kind?” Scarlet asks.

“He didn’t exactly specify which Elements he’s looking for.” I say.

We walk for a while.

We stop at a huge wooden structure, with a statue in front of it.

"This was Maximus' home, but it’s now a meeting place for us. It holds the ancient history of Equestria." Scarlet says.

"Do you know of the Elements of Harmony? Well there are more Elements that represent almost anything, good and evil. This village represents Harmony, in case you didn't know. There are also other villages that represent other Elements." Abdulia says.
An earth pony runs out of the house and says "Scarlet, you're back! You have to see this!"

We walk into the House of Maximus.

"What is it Ruby?" Scarlet asks.

"The Scroll of Prophecies is active. It is telling us something, but we don't understand it." Ruby says.

“Scroll of Prophecies? What’s that?” I ask.

“It’s pretty much self-explanatory. We’ve had it for tons of generations. Our ancestors give us information. It’s very rare, that it activates.” Abdulia says.

We walk into a room with an unraveled scroll in the middle of it.

We walk up to the scroll.

The four of us read it.

“Hmm. I don’t recognize this.” Scarlet says.

“What kind of language is this?” Abdulia asks.

"It's English. English is the language that most humans know." I say.

I read it.

"There will be new Spirits of Harmony. Sacrifice will stop the evil that takes the lives of others. Evil will present itself, but good will be there to stop it." I read.

Is That A Threat I Smell?

"Miss Rose, there has been a breach! A Pegasus and a Dragon have wandered into the village, we have them secured, outside of the House." A guard says.

"Bring them to me. I want to see if they are a threat." Scarlet says.

The guard nods his head, then walks out of the room.

A few moments later, four guards walk into the room with Spike and Derpy.

"Derpy? Spike? What are you two doing here?" I ask.

"You know these two?" Scarlet asks.

"Yeah, they are my friends.” I say.

"Very well, explain yourselves." Scarlet says.

Derpy says "After you left, Spike came looking for you. He said he needed to talk to you.

"He just left." I said.

"Do you know when he'll be back?" Spike asked.

"How do you know him?" I asked.

"He's one of my close friends. He told me to come here, If I needed to. That was earlier today." Spike said.

Then I remembered.

"The tracking device! I think I might be able to help you." I said.”

"Wait, a tracking device?" I ask.

"I put a little device inside your bag I packed for you. I told you I wanted to see you again." Derpy says.

“Spike, what did you need to talk to me about?" I ask.

Spike says "After you got chased away from the girls, Nexus, The unicorn, that looks like you, grabbed me with his magic.

A few moments later, the girls walked inside the Castle and saw Nexus holding me in the air.

"Arthur, what are you doing with Spike?" Twilight asked.

"My name isn't Arthur! My name is Nexus, and what does it look like? I'm holding him hostage. Don't even try anything, because if you do, I will turn him into glass and destroy him." Nexus said.

Glass starts forming around my feet.

"Just give me what I want, and I won't kill him." Nexus said.

"Okay! We'll do whatever you want, just don't kill him! What do you want Nexus?" Twilight says.

"I want to talk to Starlight Glimmer." Nexus says.

"Rainbow Dash, go get Starlight." Twilight says.

"Wait, before you go, don't tell her about any of this. You got 5 minutes, starting now." Nexus says.

Rainbow Dash takes off at the blink of an eye.

The glass makes its way to my knees.

"Wow, she's fast! Do you think she could make it back in time?" Nexus asks Twilight.

"If anything happens to Spike, I am going to-" Twilight says.

"Kill me?". Nexus cuts off Twilight, then continues on "If I kill Spike, I am going to make you work for me, and destroy Ponyville. With or without the ponies still living inside the town. If Starlight feels even a little uneasy about the visit, I will kill Spike, I hope you guys have had any experience with acting, I would hate to have to do anything to him. I will keep Spike in the glass state until I am finished here, do not tell anypony about this, oh I almost forgot, don't forget to fill in Rainbow Dash, on our little talk."

Starlight and Rainbow Dash walk inside the castle.

Nexus floats me inside a closet and shuts the door.

8 minutes later

I turn back into my normal self.

Twilight opens the door and says "Go to Arthur and tell him Starlight is working with Nexus."

We followed the tracking device here, and here we are."

Planning The Job

“Moon! Open the door!” I yell, while knocking loudly.

Moon Walker opens the door, then asks “What are you doing here? I told you not to come here, unless it's an emergency.”

“It is an emergency, i'm running out of time to pay Aro. I don't have any money to give him. I need a job.” I say.

“Come in.” Moon says.

I walk inside.

We walk into the planning room.

“I have been looking at a couple places. A jewelry store, a museum, or a bank. Pick your poison.” Moon says.

“Which one do you think has items that are worth thousands?” I say.

“All of them?” Moon says.

“What about the bank?” I ask.

“Almost impossible to hit, tons of security, you'll need to be invisible to get out clean. Besides, our best guys got pinched.” Moon says.

“How about the museum?” I ask

“Good choice, small tier security, nice take, I'd say about ten thousand, minimum, half a million, max.” Moon says.

“Are there any people who are good enough?” I ask.

Moon says “Well, there are two actually.
Some people call her “Ghost”, but she likes to call herself “Potato”, she is the last person the pigs would think to check, most places she hit had middle tier takes. She could get in and out without letting people know what hit them.

Another girl is Uyada Uchiha, this girl hits high tier anime museums. She makes mistakes, but she cleans them up, as if there were no mistakes.”

“Wow, how did I not hear of them sooner? I'll take them, call them up, fill them in. I gotta go somewhere, see you Moon.” I say.

“Yeah, see you.” Moon says.

I walk out of Moon’s house.

“Hey Arthur. I thought that was you.”. I hear the voice of my oldest enemy, Aro.

“Hey, Aro.” I say.

I felt fear, but I didn't let him know I did.

Aro always had two bodyguards walking around with him.

“You're two months behind, I need my money, Arthur. You know what the penalty is for not paying for 3 months. I would hate to have to take regretful actions.” Aro says.

“I need more time. I don't have your money yet.” I say.

“Your two months are almost up. You got five days.” Aro says.

“It won’t be a problem.” I say.

“It better not be” Aro says, before walking away.

Five days? Might as well give me five minutes. Planning the heist would take a couple days, doing the actual job will take a whole day, getting the money would take a couple days.

I get my phone out of my pocket and call Moon, the phone starts ringing.

“Come on, Moon. Pick up.” I say.

“Hey, Arthur, what is it?” Moon says.

“Moon, we're going to have to rush the job." I say.

Doing The Job

2 days and 18 hours later

“Alright guys this is simple, Uyada will distract the guards in the west wing of the museum.

Potato will go in on the east wing and take as much as she can. Arthur will be helping out Potato.

I'll be on getaway. I'll pick you guys up 5 blocks south of the museum.

Don't worry about tripping any alarms, I got it covered. I'll see you guys when it's done.“ Moon says.

The Crew splits up.

Me and Potato run to the east side of the building.

Potato tries to get inside the window.

I cut her off by saying “Not yet!, we have to wait for Uyada’s signal.”

A couple minutes later, we get a call from Uyada.

“The guards are distracted, you are good to go.” Uyada says.

I nod at Potato.

Potato enters the window, then I follow her.

We see a room filled with gold-plated artifacts.

“We hit the jackpot!” Potato says.

We start filling up our duffel bags.

Ten minutes later, we finally filled up our bags.

My phone starts ringing.

I answer it.

“AP! You guys gotta get going! Cops are on their way!” Moon says.

“Tell Uyada. We're on our way.” I say.

I hang up the phone, then say “Alright, Potato, we gotta go.”

We run out of the room.

“Wait! I forgot something!” Potato says.

She runs back into the room.

A few seconds later, she runs back, she's holding a golden horse head.

“Alright, let's go.” Potato says.

We resume running.

The lights turn on then off, they do that for a few minutes.

“Why is that happening?!” Potato asks.

“I don't know. But, keep running!” I say.

We stop at a door.

Potato tries to open it, then she says “It's locked.”

I kick the door as hard as I can. It breaks open.

“Let's go.” I say.

Potato breaks the window, then she starts crawling out of it.

A cop runs into the room.

The cop aims his pistol at me, then says “Freeze!”

Potato falls out of the window.

The cop shoots at me, a bullet hits me, then I fall out of the window.

I fall onto the ground, on my back.

I look at my body, there is a bullet wound somewhere in my right rib cage, with blood coming out of it.

There is no pain, only when I touch it.

A start feeling very lightheaded.

Potato helps me up.

“Come on, AP! Stay with me!” Potato says

Uyada runs to us, and helps Potato carry me.

“You came back?” Potato says.

“I couldn't leave you guys. We were friends, also, you guys have the take.” Uyada says.

Moon pulls up in a car.

“Get in!” Moon yells.

Cop cars come around the corner.

The girls help me get inside the car.

Potato sits beside me.

Uyada sits in the passenger seat.

“What happened?!” Moon asks.

“A cop found me and Arthur, and then he shot at us.” Potato says.

I black out.

8 hours later

I come to.

Potato, Uyada, and Moon walk me through a bright blue portal. I see seven horses, all different colors.

Then I black out again.

The Voice

"After a couple blackouts later, I came to.

I woke up in a hospital, but in a horse body, specifically an Earth Pony body.

A bandage covered my bullet wound.

Twilight came into the room and introduced herself.

After that, Moon told me that Aro killed my Mom and burned down my house.

He said this was a chance to start over.

I didn’t believe it at first.

When I did, I was filled with so much anger, I swear, I was going to go back through that portal.

Anger turned into sadness. Sadness turned into depression.

My depression was so bad, I had to go to a suicide prevention program.

I met a new friend there, he lives in Vanhoover, now." I say.

Derpy says "I'm sorry Arthur, I thought you were just another criminal. I'm sorry for your mother."

Derpy hugs me, then says "Your past doesn't decide your future."

“Thanks, Derpy.” I say.

Spike hugs me, then says "Is it bedtime yet?"

The three of us laugh.

"Come, Derpy, you can sleep with me, unless you don't want to." I say.

"Okay. I usually sleep with a stuffed animal, but you'll do." Derpy says.

Derpy smiles at me while blushing.

I climb into the biggest bed in the room.

Then Derpy climbs into the bed.

"Can you pass me two pillows? One for my head, and one to hug." She asks me.

I pass her two pillows.

"Good night, Arthur." Derpy says.

"Good night, Derpy." I say.

I close my eyes.

A few moments later I wake up inside of my house.

"Arthur! Come get your breakfast!” My mom yells.

“What the fuck? I’m home?” I ask myself.

I walk out of my room, then downstairs.

I see Aro holding my mom at gunpoint.

Aro shoots my mom in the head, then Aro shoots me. everything goes black.

Then I hear a voice saying "It was your fault. They will never truly accept you. Derpy will hurt you. They will leave you."

"Shut up. I know that's not true." I say.

"It was all your fault. They will never truly accept you. Derpy will hurt you. They will leave you." The voice says again

"Shut up!" I yell.

The Voice says "IT WAS ALL YOUR FAULT! THEY WILL NEVER TRULY ACCEPT YOU! DERPY WILL HURT YOU! THEY WILL LEAVE YOU!"

The Voice repeats it over and over again, it gets faster and louder each time.

"SHUT UP!" I yell.

I wake up, this time, in the bed I went to sleep in.

My heart is pounding, and I'm in a cold sweat.

I see a message carved on the side of the nightstand saying, "Did you enjoy that Arthur?
-N.".

Derpy and Spike are looking at me.

Scarlet runs into the room.

"What happened?" Scarlet asks.

To Track A Pony

After explaining my experience to Scarlet and the others, Abdulia says "Sounds like you got possessed. I know how that feels."

"Possessed by a living pony?" Scarlet says.

"Well, technically, he isn't a pony." I say.

"Right. But, only living, connected entities can switch between their vessels. I heard it takes a lot out of you." Abdulia says.

"Wait. Does that mean I can get inside Nexus' vessel?" I say.

"Yeah, actually. But the thing is, I don't know how to do the spell." Abdulia says.

All of us look disappointed, then Scarlet says "There might be somepony who does. Ruby bring me the Population Log."

Ruby trots to a bookshelf, then she comes back with a crystal book titled with "Population of the Village of Harmony".

Scarlet looks through the book, occasionally saying "S, St".

"Aha! Look!" Scarlet says, as she points to a page with her hoof.

"Starspiral The Bearded?" I say.

"I didn't know he had a foal." Abdulia says.

"We have to find him. Abdulia, use the tracking spell for ponies." Scarlet says.

"Somepony, get me a map of the village." Abdulia says.

Ruby pulls out a map out of her saddlebag, then lays it flat on the table.

Abdulia pulls her crystal necklace off of her neck, and holds it above the map, then says "Show me the home of Starspiral the Bearded."

The crystal starts to glow, then starts moving around the map.

I've seen magic. But not this kind.

It stops at an area beside a lake.

"There! I know where that is." Scarlet says.

"Let's go then." I say.

Abdulia puts back on her necklace.

"Dreamcatcher, watch over the House." Scarlet says.

Me, Abdulia, Scarlet, Spike and Derpy walk out of the house.

We walk for a while, occasionally stopping to talk to villagers.

We stop at a what looks like, an abandoned house.

Broken windows, broken railings, faded paint.

I walk up to the front door, then knock, then ask "Hello? Is there anypony here?"

A voice inside says "Who is it?".

"It's Scarlet Rose, we are looking for Starspiral." Scarlet says.
The door opens.

A brown-bearded unicorn appears in the doorway, then says "You found him, now what do you want?"

Scarlet says "We need your help."

Starspiral says "I don't help anypony anymore, unless they have something to offer."

I say "Listen ‘Spiral! The fate of Equestria, depends on us. Now we need your help."

"Who invited the hairless ape?" Starspiral says.

I take a swing at him. My arm gets electrocuted. I bounce back.

Scarlet asks "Are you okay, Arthur!?".

"Fuck! I’m fine!" I say.

"That's why you don't mess with a wizard." Abdulia says.

"Ex. I'm retired. Like I said, I don't help anypony, unless they have something t-. A Tracking Crystal! I have been looking for one of those!" Starspiral says.

The five of us look at Abdulia's necklace.

"No way! It was a gift from my mother." Abdulia says.

"If you don't give it to me, I won't help you." Starspiral says.

We look at Abdulia with a desperate look on our faces.

Abdulia breaks the silence by saying "Fine! Here!."

Abdulia starts to take off her necklace.

"Wait! I have something." Derpy says.

Derpy reaches inside of her saddlebag.

She pulls out a diamond necklace.

“I was saving it for my wedding, but you can have it.” Derpy says.

Starspiral says "That’s very generous of you.Thank you."

"My name is Derpy Hooves, by the way." Derpy says.

Derpy smiles at him. Derpy shakes his hoof.

And I lost her.

"Alright, but I'm helping her, not you. Come inside." Starspiral says.

Dead Ended

24 minutes later

"So, basically there is another you? But evil?" Starspiral asks.

"And I need to learn magic." I say.

"I'm sorry, Arthur, but I can't help you." Starspiral says.

"But you said-" I say.

"I said I was going to help her, not you." Starspiral says.

"Why? Why can't you? Why?!" I ask.

"Because magic ruined my life!". Silence fills the room.

"My father was too focused on his work, to notice me, to notice that I wasn't happy.

One day he was working on a new spell. The spell was supposed to enable him to time travel, but the spell backfired.

It made a dangerous reaction, it exploded and killed him.

I gave him a funeral, then moved away to Ponyville.

I came across this village and shut everypony out.

I took most of Starswirl's spells and tried to teach myself, I only learned a little bit of spells, but I had no idea what I was doing.

I gave up.

I am the last of my bloodline. All the wizards before me, were killed." Starspiral says.

Oh boy, we just hit a dead end.

"Was there a body?" Abdulia asks.

"I couldn't find one. So I arranged for some of his personal items to be buried." Starspiral says.

"Come on everypony, there is nothing to be here for. Thank you for your time." Scarlet says.

"Don't tell anypony that I live here." Starspiral says.

Everypony stands up then walks out of Starspiral's house.

Suddenly, my vision goes black, then I hear Nexus’ voice say, "Hello, Arthur. How's life?"

"Hello, Nexus. My life could be better." I say.

“Still complaining. After you have an almost perfect life. You should’ve seen mine!” Nexus says.

The room lights up, I am restrained with magic.

" I am giving you a chance to switch to my side, if you don't I will have no choice but to kill you." Nexus says.

"Kiss my ass. I'd rather die, than be on your team." I say.

Nexus smiles at me, then says "I was hoping you'd say that."

Nexus' horn lights up with an orange and red aura, he touches my forehead with his horn.

I start seeing old memories of me getting hurt, physically and mentally.

Nexus tells me "You don't need to be hurt like this again. Join me, and we'll make them pay for what they did."

"Stop it! You can't break me!" I yell.

I wake up on a bed with my limbs tied to bed posts.

The three ponies and dragon are watching me.

I groan then ask, "Oh, Jesus. It’s like from The Exorcist."

"Are you Arthur?" Scarlet says.

"Yeah Scarlet, it's me, now untie me." I say.

"Prove it." Scarlet says.

I sigh loudly.

"Starswirl had a foal." I say.

"It's him." Derpy says.

Abdulia starts to untie me.

"I think we need a code word." I say.

"What about “Muffins”?” Derpy asks.

"I'll use "Muffins" I say.

Abdulia unties the last knot.

"I think I know what Nexus is up to." I say.

"What is it?" Scarlet asks.

"Well, when he came here, he told me that he is going to look for The Elements.

Today when I didn't seem all there.

He tried to brainwash me.

I think he might be recruiting Spirits of Disharmony.

Starlight Glimmer is definitely working with him." I say.

"We need to stop Nexus, before he does any damage. We need the Elements of Harmony." Scarlet says.

A Tale of Woe

"We need your help Twilight." I say.

Twilight sighs, then says "Alright, Arthur. What do you need?"

I say "I need the Elements of Harmony."

Twilight says "Are you even connected to them?"

"I don't know. But, they might be the only things that can stop Nexus." I say.

"Okay. Since I trust you with them. They are inside a cave, in the Everfree Forest. I'll take you there. Just give me a couple minutes to get ready." Twilight says.

I nod at Twilight.

Twilight walks out of view.

I start seeing flashes of Derpy getting hit by what seemed like a reverse rainbow.

"Are you okay, Arthur?" Derpy asks.

My thoughts get interrupted by Starspiral's voice, he says "Hey everypony."

Everypony in the room looks at Starspiral, he continues on, "I know I said I wasn't gonna help you, but I found something I think you should see."

Starspiral pulls out a sheet of paper out of his saddlebag.

"It's a spell that allows you to contact anypony." He says.

I take the sheet of paper, and put it in my bag.

"Do you want to come with us?" I ask.

"I can't, but I'll be back." Starspiral says.

Starspiral disappears in magic sparks.

Twilight comes back, then says "I'm ready to go."

"Okay. Let's go, then." I say.

Me, Twilight, Scarlet, Abdulia, Derpy, and Spike walk out of the castle.

We start walking.

"So, what are the Descendants of Maximus, exactly?" Twilight asks.

"The Descendants of Maximus, are what the title says. We are the keepers of the ancient history of Equestria. Every generation must keep the organization a secret, because there are forces that wish to destroy us. We take in ponies that are orphans, lost and scared; or if they are special, like Arthur.

Our tenth great-grandfather, Maximus, made the Elements of Harmony, and The Tree of Harmony.

Maximus vowed to protect Equestria, with Harmony, but one fateful day, his brother, Commodus, wanted other plans.

Maximus had no choice, but to take actions, he turned Commodus into an obsidian statue.

Maximus became depressed, he stopped eating until he died.

Or, so we think.

He spent the rest of his days saying goodbye to everypony in our village." Scarlet responds.

"Wow, that's a lot to take in. But, you do know that Princess Celestia needs to learn about you." Twilight says.

"No one else should know, there could be serious consequences." Scarlet says.

We come to a stop at a treeline.

7 minutes later

CRACK! The sound of a twig breaking nearly gave me a heart attack.

"What was that?!" I ask.

"It was just a twig. Relax." Scarlet says.

"How in Equestria am I supposed to relax? There could be a serial killer in this forest." I say.

"Be quiet, Arthur. You'll scare Spike." Twilight says.

"Scare me? Good luck, I kept my cool when Nexus was holding me hostage, remember?" Spike says.

Twilight says "How could I forget?".

We continue walking.

Caged Anger

57 minutes later

After almost an hour of walking. We stop at a cave with a faint light coming from inside it.

"There it is." Twilight says.

"Let's go then." I say.

We walk inside the cave, to discover that the Elements of Harmony are missing.

"What?! They were right here!" Twilight says

"Well they aren’t here, now. Are they?" Scarlet says.

"Is that anger in your voice?

Aren’t you supposed to be the tenth great-granddaughter of The Spirit of Harmony?" Twilight says

"Are you calling me a liar?" Scarlet says.

"Yeah! Maybe I am!" Twilight says.

Scarlet says "You are so lucky you are a princess.".

"Hey! Calm down! Fighting about this isn't going to bring the Elements back, is it?! Besides, Princess Celestia probably has them!" I say.

"You're right Arthur. I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry Scarlet." Twilight says.

"No, princess. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have disrespected you." Scarlet says.

"We should start heading back." I say.

The cave starts rumbling.

"Did you feel that?" Abdulia says.

The rumbling starts again.

"The cave is collapsing! Everypony get out!" I say.

Twilight teleports half of the group out, leaving behind me, Derpy and Scarlet.

A rock falls from the ceiling hitting Scarlet's head, knocking her out, Scarlet falls to the ground.

"Scarlet!" I yell.

I pick up Scarlet, then run her out of the cave.

I run back, then I yell, "Come on Derpy! Follow my voice!"

I see Derpy run out of a cloud of dust.

A boulder comes loose from the ceiling, then starts to fall.

I push Derpy away from the boulder, saving her from being crushed.

I pick her up then start running out of the cave.

We make it outside, before the cave entrance collapses.

A voice coming from behind us says "Oh, bravo. Good job."

We look behind us, seeing Discord.

"Discord? What are you doing here?" Twilight says.

"Well, Twilight, I came here to stop you." Discord says.

Discord snaps his claws.

A cage starts forming around us.

"No! Discord, stop!" Twilight says.

The cage completes itself. Twilight tries to teleport, but fails.

"Oh, Twilight, you are so predictable." Discord says.

Twilight hits the cage in anger, then says "What about Fluttershy?"

"What about Fluttershy?

I don't care about her anymore.

Nexus told me, you ponies are not my friends, and never were.

You only wanted to save your own necks!

He told me you hate me." Discord says.

"Discord, that’s not true!" Twilight says.

"Nexus told me that everything that comes out of your mouth is a lie." Discord says.

"We have the Elements!" Twilight says.

Discord laughs, then asks "Do you?"

He laughs again, then snaps his claws and disappears.

Twilight hits the cage again, then snaps at me "This is your fault, Arthur!"

I say "My fault?"

"If you didn't make the suggestion to get the Elements, this whole thing would not have happened." Twilight says

"Twilight? What's gotten into you? You are acting like an asshole." I say.

"In fact, this whole thing is your fault. Teleporting yourself? What in Celestia's name were you thinking!? I should've sent you back through the portal!" Twilight says.

"I guess I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry, Twilight." I say.

"You guess? When this whole thing is over, I'm sending you back. Someone like you, doesn’t belong here." Twilight says.

“He almost got us killed!” Scarlet says.

“That’s another reason I should send you back! We could’ve died!” Twilight yells.

“Who knows? He could even be working with Nexus!” Scarlet says.

“Are you?! Are you?!” Twilight yells.

Twilight bucks me in the stomach, causing me to fall backwards, and almost throwing up.

“Answer me!” Twilight yells.

“No! Of course not! I would never work with someone like him! You know that!” I yell.

“Do I? Have you really changed for the better? Or are you just a criminal?” Twilight asks.

“Yes! Believe me! I changed!” I say.

A beeping noise starts coming from my bag.

The Plan

“This is the artifact that caused us to be separated.”

I bring the box to the Throne Room.

I open the box. There is a burnt, golden horse head inside; the very same artifact that Potato took.

“Where did he get this?” I ask myself.

I gasp to my realization.

“He got it from Doctor Whooves’ house! We have to check on him!” I say.

Me, Derpy, and Twilight run out of the Cutie Map Room.

Spike decides to sit this trip out.

11 minutes later

The smell of smoke gets stronger, as we get closer to The Doctor’s burning house.

The sound of crackling also gets louder.

“Doc!” Derpy yells.

She starts to fly to The Doctor’s burning house.

“Derpy!” I yell.

The flaming remains of The Doctor’s house collapse.

Derpy flies to the ground and breaks down in tears.

“This is all my fault.” Derpy says.

Derpy hugs me.

“No Derpy. This is my fault. I’ll make him pay for this, I promise.” I say.

I spot a piece of paper lying on the ground.

I grab it, then open it.

It says, “Dear Arthur,

don’t worry.

The Doctor is alive, as long as he follows my rules.

I’m going to make a deal with you.

You give me The Elements of Harmony, and surrender, then I’ll let The Doctor live.

If you do not answer me within a week, I will kill him.

Sincerely,
Nexus.”

“Twilight! I need to contact Nexus! I need your help!” I say.

“I think I can help you. There are ingredient for spells in the Library, at my castle.” Twilight says.

“Well, what are we waiting for?!” Derpy says.

Twilight teleports us to her castle.

We are greeted by Twilight’s friends.

“Twilight, where were you?”. Rainbow Dash asks.

“I needed to run an errand.” Twilight says.

“With this weirdo?” Rainbow Dash says.

“I'm right here, you know.” I say.

Rainbow Dash never liked me.

Probably because I'm a human.

AJ nudges Rainbow Dash, then says “We were just wondering. You have been disappearing a lot lately.”

“Yeah! You always disappear every time I make cupcakes. Then I have to throw them out.” Pinkie Pie says.

“Well, that seems like a waste. Why don't you sell them?” I say.

“Hmm. I never thought of that.” Pinkie Pie says.

“We are getting way off topic. Why are you disappearing?” Rainbow Dash says.

“She's helping me.” I say.

“With what?” AJ asks.

Oh man. Do I tell them the truth, or lie to them? Either way they can’t help me.

“Just tell them the truth Twilight. It’s no use lying to them.” I say.

Twilight sighs, then says “Derpy’s friend, The Doctor, is in trouble, and Nexus wants to make a deal with Arthur.”

“What are the terms?” Rainbow dash asks.

“Arthur has to surrender, and give Nexus the Elements.” Twilight says.

“I’m thinking of making a meet up place, and when he gets there we’ll ambush him with the Elements.” I say.

“How will you tell him?” AJ asks.

“That’s where Twilight comes in.” I say.

I pass Twilight the paper with the contacting spell on it.

Twilight reads the piece of paper with the spell on it. “Starswirl’s Traveling Spell.

This spell requires two unicorns or alicorns, if you want it to be more intense, a Griffin’s feather, a Pure Hearted Crystal, Alicorn magic, Dragon fire sage, Pegasus wind.

Be aware, the pony or any other species, who are in the center of the mind rune, will be transported and protected, wherever he or she will think about, the spell can be reversed my destroying the Pure Hearted Crystal.”

“Well all those ingredients, except the Crystal, can be obtainable.” Twilight says.

"I don't know, Twilight. Do you think we can chance it?" Rainbow Dash asks.

"What do you mean, Rainbow?" Twilight asks.

"Well, first of all, Arthur can't be trusted." Rainbow Dash says.

"Because he's a human? That we are lying? Spike was there too, you can ask him." Derpy says.

"Well we weren't. So how can we possibly know?" Rainbow Dash says

I say "That's enough, both of you. Rainbow Dash, we all know that you don't like me, but you have to-. What?".

Everypony starts to stare at my arm. The tattoo on my left arm is flashing.

War Stories

"The Map wants me to go where!?" I ask.

"Northeast Equestria. I didn't think the map would call you. There isn't anything out there, not that I know of." Twilight says.

I wonder why it would send me out there. I wonder why it would call me, in the first place.

“Do you think the train would go out that way, Twilight?" I ask.

"I don't think so. But I think you can ride the balloon. Do you know how to operate it?" Twilight says.

I shake my head.

"I know how. By the way, you aren't going without me." Derpy says.

"Us too." Potato says.

Moon, Potato, and Uyada walk towards me.

"I guess I should go too. You do need somepony to keep you out of trouble." Starspiral says.

I say "I guess we should pack some things?".

12 hours later
(Noon)

After going home, to sleep, the crew spent their morning packing. They are getting ready to leave.

As I place the final bag of supplies inside of the hot air balloon, Twilight walks up to me, and says "Good luck, Arthur. I know you will complete your task."

"Thanks, Twilight." I say.

"I'll fine tune your plan while you are gone." Twilight says.

"Try not to change it much." I say.

Twilight nods.

"Are we ready to go yet?" Potato asks.

"Yeah, we are. Alright, everyone, let's go!" I say.

Starspiral, Potato, Moon, Uyada, me, and Derpy, climb inside of the basket.

Derpy lifts up the anchors.

The balloon floats up.

"Whoa! Is that supposed to happen?" Moon says.

"It's a balloon, Moon. Balloons float." I say.

Twilight and Spike waves at us, I wave back.

We float above the houses of ponies, we keep floating, until the ponies start to look like ants.

Moon looks over the side of the balloon.

"Oh man! Why did I have to come?" Moon says.

I laugh, then say "After years of heisting and you are still scared of heights."

"Remember the Skyscraper Job?” Moon asks.

"That's what made you scared of heights?" I ask.

"The engine gave out, and we barely made it out." Moon says.

I chuckle, then say "I even got a scar to prove it."

I lift up my shirt, showing a scar going down diagonally from under my left rib cage to right above my left hip.

"The Museum wasn't the first time Arthur almost died." Moon says.

"It wasn't the second time either. I saved Moon's life, by taking a bullet for him. It hit my lung, luckily we had the best team." I say.

"Or the best luck." Moon says.

"Most likely the first one." I say.

"I miss Jens. He was the best of us, too bad he moved back to his country." Moon says.

"What about Abby? She kept us going, when we thought we weren't. She sacrificed herself to save me. Pushed me out of the way of a grenade explosion." I say.

"Sounds like you've had an action-packed life. Better than my boring life." Starspiral says.

"You still have a long way to go. It's a little too early to say it was." I say.

“Yeah. I guess you’re right. Maybe, when this whole thing is over, we should go do something, Arthur.” Starspiral says.

“Yeah. Maybe we should.” I say.

I look over the side of the balloon, seeing Canterlot.

"Wow. Now that's the type of scenery you'll never see in our world." I say.

"What type of scenery do you have in your world?" Derpy asks.

"Tall buildings, fortified cities, with giant walls, beautiful, untouched forests, filled with wildlife, tall mountains, grand canyons, snowy deserts, dry deserts, giant oceans, and billions of different humans." Moon says.

"It may seem like it's a good place to stay, it isn't. Corrupt governments rule the world, they trapped the society inside a system, guarded by wolves who only hunt themselves. Greed, hatred, and dishonesty, spread like butter on toast, in our world. Nexus will destroy this world, metaphorically and physically. I will do anything in my power to stop him." I say.

“Wow. You still know how to suck the life out of a conversation.” Moon says

The Discovery

"Are we there yet?" Potato asks.

I look around, only seeing trees.

"Not yet." I say.

1 hour and 27 minutes later

"Are we there yet?" Potato asks.

I look around, only seeing water, with little islands.

"Nope. Not yet." I say.

1 hour and 32 minutes later

"Are we there yet?" Potato asks.

I look around, only seeing mountains.

I spot smoke in the distance. I look on the map.

"Yep. We're there." I say.

"Good. I was starting to get annoyed. Now I know how Shrek felt." Moon says.

"Derpy, land us near that smoke over there." I say.

6 minutes later

"You smell that? Fire.". I say, as I climb over rocks.

"And what does that mean?" Moon asks.

"Dragons." Starspiral says.

We climb over the side of the hill, seeing a village made out of rocks, on fire.

"If there are dragons here, why are there houses?" Uyada asks.

"I don't know, but let's go check it out." I say.

"Why?" Moon asks.

"There might be someone that needs help." I say.

After minutes of walking, the smell of fire gets stronger.

"Oh, fuck!". I say before covering my mouth and nose.

Dead bodies of creatures that look like a cross between ponies and dragons cover the ground.

"Dragon Pony hybrids? I didn't know they exist." Starspiral asks.

"Let's go back to the bal-. Aahh!". I say before I get tackled to the ground.

"Who are you?! What are you doing here?!". A Dragon Pony hybrid asks me."

"Relax. We aren't here to harm you." I say.

"Then I have no reason to kill you. But remember this, if you ever try to harm me, I will kill you.

My name is Blaze.

My village got attacked just before you arrived.

An orange and red maned white unicorn pony lead the attack. My family barely made it out." The hybrid says.

"We know of the pony who attacked your village. We are planning to make a move on him." I say.

"Hm. Why should I trust you?" Blaze says.

"You did just let me live. His name is Nexus. He has the King of Chaos on his team, a merciless unicorn who uses magic at her will. I plan on making a meet up place, that is actually an ambush." I say.

"How will you tell him?" Blaze asks.

12 minutes later

After explaining what I need for the spell, Blaze tells me "I think I can help you earn a Pure Hearted Crystal."

"Earn? What do you mean earn?" I ask.

"You have to go through tests, to earn it.

It holds great power.

I assumed you knew about it." Blaze says.

"Tell me more about it. What will be tested?" I ask.

"Your courage, and your ability to forgive. No one has succeeded in this test in a long time. You'll be tested to see if you have a Pure Heart." Blaze says.

Everyone Has The Choice To Forgive

20 minutes later

After introducing themselves, the crew is helping set up a ritual. Arthur is going to test, to see if see if he has a Pure Heart.

"Do I just step here?" I ask.

"Yeah. That's perfect. I'll just activate the rune." Blaze says.

The wall blasts open, from magic, knocking me away from the altar.

Nexus, Starlight, and Discord walk out of the broken wall.

"Hey, Arthur." Nexus says.

Nexus' horn lights up, he aims it at me.

His horn releases deadly magic from it.

Starspiral jumps in front of the blast, killing him.

Blaze lands in front of me, breathing fire towards Nexus' crew, causing them to flee.

"I think they are gone." Blaze says.

“Spiral? Spiral!” I yell.

I run to Starspiral, who is laying on the ground.

“Arthur. Save Equestria. They need you.” Starspiral says.

“Okay. I’ll save Equestria. But, when i’m done, we’re going hang gliding. Okay, buddy?” I say, before tearing up.

“This is my end.

I didn’t want to grow on anypony.

But, you got me out of that house.

We went on a balloon ride.

We even saw Canterlot.

That was enough for me.

I’m glad I met you, Arthur.” Starspiral says.

At this point my eyes are drenched.

“Good bye, Arthur.” Starspiral says.

Starspiral closes his eyes.

“Good bye, Spiral.” I say.

"I can't believe he just did that." Potato says.

"You have a mission. We can't mourn him yet." Moon says.

"You're right, Moon. But, we should at least bury him." I say.

32 minutes later

After finding and digging a perfect spot for Starspiral’s grave. The members of the Crew, are doing a funeral for him. They have already placed Starspiral’s body in the grave.

"Anyone going to say anything?" Moon asks.

"Although he had a sad life, he is the one who helped in saving Equestria.

This hero, shall never be forgotten. His death will mark the death of Nexus.

He shall be avenged." I say.

6 minutes later

After burying Starspiral, Arthur is determined to complete the tests.

"Do you really wish to do this?" Blaze asks.

"Yes. If it means stopping Nexus, I'll do it." I say.

"Okay. Get ready. 1. 2. 3!" Blaze says.

My vision goes black.

"Did it work?" I ask.

I get no answer.

"Hello? Anyone here?" I ask.

Still no answer.

Suddenly I hear my mom's voice, calling from a distance, "Arthur! Come get your breakfast!"

I wake up inside my room.

"Oh no. Not this again." I say to myself.

I get up out of my bed, then walk to my bedroom door.

As I twist the doorknob, I hear a loud gunshot.

I run down the stairs, seeing my mom's body laying on the dining room floor.

"Mom! Mom! Who did this?!" I yell.

My mom points towards the kitchen.

"Hello, Arthur." Aro says.

"Why? Why would you do this?!" I ask.

"You know why.

You. Forgot. To. Pay!

You knew the penalty!

You knew what would happen!

Yet, you chose to ignore it!

You could've saved your mom, if you would have listened to me!" Aro says.

Aro gets up from his seat, and aims the gun at my mom.

"No! No! I have your money!" I say.

"Too late." Aro says.

He pulls the trigger, the bullet hits her head, killing her instantly.

"Mom!" I yell.

Aro puts the gun on the table.

"Do you want to kill me? Go ahead." Aro says.

Instinctively I grab the gun.

I aim it at Aro.

I hold it for a couple minutes.

"This isn't real.

This happened two months ago.

As much as I want to pull this trigger, doing it, won't bring my mother back." I say.

I put the gun back on the table.

"I killed your mother.

I have made your life miserable.

I even burned down your childhood home.

Yet you choose to let me live?" Aro says.

"I have lost everything that means something to me, in my previous life.

But I have a new life.

I've learned to cherish everything, because I know that anything can be taken away, at anytime.

I've learned that you can learn from your mistakes.

I've learned to forgive." I say.

My vision goes dark.

I hear a mysterious voice say "Well done, Arthur.

Everyone has the choice to forgive.

I see good in you.

Hopefully you will clear these tests.

There is a great evil coming.

You have to be ready to wield this tool, for it will save Equestria.

Go now. Prepare for your next test."

Courage Can Be A Powerful Tool

I wake up inside the Pure Heart Ritual room.

"What happened?" Derpy asks.

"I uh, I finished the Test of Forgiveness." I say.

"That's one out of two. Only one more. Are you ready for your next test?" Blaze asks.

"Yes. Yes I am." I say.

"Okay, 1, 2, 3!" Blaze says.

My vision goes black.

I wake up inside a burning room.

My worst fear.

"Oh, shit! Where the hell am I?!" I yell.

I hear a female voice yell "Help! Help me! I'm, i'm stuck!"

I get up from the ground.

"Where are you?!" I yell.

"In here!" The girl says.

I follow the sound of her voice.

I walk inside another burning room with two burning pillars laying on top of a girl.

"Help me!" The girl yells

I try to pull her out.

She won't budge.

"Hold on. I got you!" I say.

I begin to lift the two pillars.

I struggle for a couple minutes.

They get one foot off of the girl.

"Go! I can't hold them any longer!" I say.

The girl crawls out from under the pillars.

My arm catches on fire.

"Ow! Fuck!" I yell in pain.

I let go of the pillars.

I put out the fire on my arm.

"Shit! Follow me! Stay low!" I say.

I start to walk towards a fire escape.

I reach for the doorknob, debris falls from the ceiling, then blocks the door.

“Let’s go! Follow me!" I yell.

I walk towards another burning room, beside the fire escape.

I look behind me, to make sure the girl is following me, the girl looks at me.

"Let's go!" I say.

We walk inside the burning room.

I shut the door to block more flames from entering the room.

I look around the room, to find a window.

I see one across the door.

I break it open.

I look outside.

"Come here." I say.

The girl walks to me.

"What is your name?" I ask.

"It's Ditzy." The girl says.

"Okay, Ditzy. I am going to land us inside a pool. We are at least 12 stories high. I will break your fall. You are going to have to face your back to me." I say.

Ditzy asks "What do you mean?"

"I am going to break your fall, just in case we don't land in the water. I will most likely not survive the fall. Come here. You have to be brave for me." I say.

"Okay." Ditzy says.

I wrap my arms around Ditzy.

I lean back out of the window.

We begin to fall.

My vision goes black.

I hear the mysterious voice again.

It says "Very good work, Arthur!

Courage can be a powerful tool, if used properly.

You have one more test to go.

I have faith in you."

You'll Need Willpower To Succeed

I wake up inside of an empty room.

"Hello?" I ask.

A door forms in front of me.

I open it, then walk through.

I walk inside of my old house's kitchen.

Aro's gun is still on the table I placed it on.

I hear a voice say "Power. You can have limitless amount if you join Nexus."

"I don't care about power. I have what I want." I say.

"How about I give you a choice? Would you want that?" The voice says.

"It depends. What are my choices?" I ask.

The voice says "Number one, have all the riches in Equestria, but the princesses will be erased from existence.

Number two, be transported to Nexus, but leave your friends behind. Choose wisely."

What should I do?

The voice says "I'll state the facts. If you choose number one, Equestria will be yours to rule, no one will be able to stop your reign.

If you choose number two, you will be taken to Nexus, not knowing what he'll do to you, but your friends will not be there to help you."

I say "I choose-". The room starts disappearing.

The mysterious voice says "Arthur! Take this! Nexus has entered your test! Go! Now!"

A crystal floats down in front of me.

I take the crystal out of the air.

The voice says "You have passed. Use this to defeat Co-".

I wake up.

"Arthur! You did it!" Derpy says.

"Wow. You really did." Blaze says.

"How do I use it, then?" I ask.

"I actually, don't know." Blaze says.

Before I can say anything, the crystal slowly forms into a gauntlet on my right forearm.

I look at the gauntlet.

The appearance of the crystal that forms it, makes it look like it's made of diamond.

There are four gems on the knuckles, blue, red, white, and purple.

I lift up my arm, aiming it at a wall.

I channel my energy to the gauntlet.

One gem glows to a blue color.

I open my hand.

Snow flies out of my palm.

The snow hits the wall, freezing it.

I make a fist, the color changes to red.

I aim my fist at the frozen wall.

I open my hand, releasing fire from my palm, melting the ice on the wall.

"An elemental gauntlet? Awesome!" I say.

The End?

“I could use this to defeat Nexus!” I say.

Derpy asks “What about the spell?”

“Nexus already knows where we are. The spell wouldn’t be much use then.” I say.

“What if it isn’t enough?” Derpy asks.

I think for a moment.

“Nexus is mortal, like us. I think it will be enough.” I say.

“But it won’t be.” Nexus says from behind me.

“Go to the balloon! Go! Do not come back! Derpy, go!” I say.

Derpy runs away.

“That’s so you. Letting your friends go.” Nexus says.

“I do that to spare them of what i’ll do to you.” I say.

“What will you do? You are just weak! Just like Twilight. Just like your friends. By the way, I wonder who I should kill first, before I kill you.” Nexus asks.

“Leave them out of this! This fight is between me and you.” I say.

“Me and you?” Nexus says.

Nexus laughs, then says “You are more lost than I thought.”

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“This fight was never between me and you. It is between me and Twilight. You just got caught in the crossfire.” Nexus says.

“Why? Why are you doing this?” I ask.

“Well, let's start from when we’ve arrived. We overheard Twilight and Rainbow Dash, talking about us, the crew. She said that we were dangerous. That she should send us back right away. Then we heard Dash say “Just research him, to be sure.”. She played us from the beginning. She played with our emotions, toyed with our heart, and she still has to lie straight to our face!”. Nexus says.

“It was for a good reason!” I say.

“But she still did it! Why are you taking her side?!” Nexus asks.

“Because she...I.” I say.

“You what? You still have feelings for her? Wake up! Why would you go back to someone, when they hurt you?” Nexus says.

I think for a bit, then break the silence by saying “Everyone deserves a second chance.”

“She dumped you on your anniversary. She used you. I will never get you, Arthur.” Nexus says.

“It’s in the past. Leave it there. Twilight did the only thing she thought she could do. It’s not her fault!” I say.

“Enough!” Nexus yells

He blasts me with magic, from his horn.

I fly backwards into the wall behind me.

“I am so sick of your fucking optimism.” Nexus says.

I activate my gauntlet, it lights up with a purple aura.

I get up from the ground.

I blast, what seems to be lightning, from my hand.

The lightning hits Nexus.

Meanwhile

As Nexus and Arthur fight, Arthur’s friends are debating if they should stay or leave.

“We can’t just leave him! Nexus will kill him!” Derpy says.

“If he told us to leave, then it’s for a good reason.” Uyada says.

“It just doesn’t feel right. I’ve never left Arthur alone before.” Moon says.

“How about we take a vote?” Potato says.

“We should get this over with, we can’t stay in the open like this.” Blaze says.

“Wait. Arthur is a good guy, he saved a lot of people in his life, if we don’t go back now, will we be saving him?

We are his friends, and friends never leave each other behind.

Arthur is strong, but he won’t last in a fight with Nexus.

We have to make a choice.” Moon says.

“I have to say something. But please, forgive me.” Blaze says.

“What is it?” Moon asks.

Blaze starts getting nervous.

“Well what is it?” Potato asks.

“I gave you up to Nexus.” Blaze says.

“What?! Why the hell would you do that?!” Moon yells.

“Wait! Before you do anything, at least let me tell you why I did it.” Blaze says.

The crew backs off of Blaze.

“Thank you.

It was before you guys arrived, and after the attack of Nexus’ crew.

I made a deal with him.

The terms were, I distract you, while Nexus thinks of a plan to kill you, he said he wasn’t going to kill my parents.

I have nothing.

But you said we were friends, so that’s what made me want to speak up.

With you I have friends.

Without you I have nothing.

Will you find it in your hearts to forgive me?” Blaze asks.

“Guys, I think we should let her come with us.” Uyada says.

Moon says “No way! She practically killed Starspiral!”

“Oh please! We barely knew him!” Potato says.

“But he was still Arthur’s friend!” Derpy says.

Meanwhile

As Arthur’s friends fight, Arthur finds himself in trouble when Nexus releases Starlight on him.

“Okay! I May have underestimated you. Good thing I have a couple tricks up my sleeve. Starlight!” Nexus says.

Starlight and teleports beside Nexus.

Nexus says “Take care of him for me.”

“My pleasure.” Starlight says.

Starlight teleports in front of me, then strikes me with her magic.

I fly backwards onto the ground.

“You should have left us alone. Now I have to kill you.” Starlight says.

“What happened to you? What made you betray your friends?” I ask.

“Nexus happened! He opened my eyes.

He told me there was more to me than, friends.” Starlight says.

“Think about Twilight! Sunburst! Trixie! Your friends!” I say.

“Let it go! I sided with Nexus, and that’s final!” Starlight says.

Starlight strikes Arthur with lethal magic.

Arthur's crew walk into the fight.

Derpy yells “Arthur!”.

Arthur’s body falls to the ground.

The End

“Awaken, Arthur.” An unknown voice says.

I open my eyes, seeing a shadow of an alicorn with flowing hair.

“Hello?” I ask.

The alicorn walks out of the dark, revealing herself to be Princess Celestia.

“Princess Celestia? Why are you here? What’s happening?”

“One question at a time, Arthur.” Celestia says.

“I’m sorry, Princess. What’s happening?” I say.

“Right now, your soul is deciding whether or not, to leave your body.” Celestia says.

“I’m dying?” I ask.

“I’m afraid so, Arthur.” Celestia says.

“Can I stop it?” I ask.

“If you choose to. But, before you make a decision, I have something to tell you.

Finding that artifact was no coincidence.

That artifact chose you, Arthur, you and your friends.

I cannot give you an answer as to why it did, but i’m sure it wanted you to be alive for it.” Celestia says.

“I can’t! I died fighting against Starlight.” I say.

“Perhaps, we should look at your memories.” Celestia says.

I wake up in my old room, from when I was young.

My mom is tucking me into bed.

She tells my younger self “Arthur, when things get tough in your life, don’t give up.

If there are no ups or downs, then you aren’t living.

You may not understand me now, but, never lose hope.”

“This was the day before my younger sister died.

This won’t change a thing, I still have no family.” I say.

The room fades to black.

“That’s where you are wrong, Arthur.” Celestia says.

Celestia opens a portal, showing my friends beside my body.

Derpy, Moon, Potato, Uyada, and Blaze, are standing around my body.

“You inspired these ponies to come together.

They dropped everything to be beside you.

They are your new family.” Celestia says.

Through the portal, Nexus says “It’s about time someone shut him up.”

“You killed him!” Derpy says.

“Oh, you’re back! You know, you really should’ve listened to Arthur.” Nexus says.

“We aren’t scared of you!” Moon says.

Nexus laughs.

“You should be.” Nexus says.

“Why are they standing up to him? They should’ve went back to Ponyville!” I say.

“It’s the magic of friendship. You did this, Arthur. You influenced them.” Celestia says.

“They don’t stand a chance against him!” I say.

“Maybe without the Elements.

But imagine if they had them.” Celestia says.

“But, we don’t have them!” I say.

“What if I told you, I have them?

The Elements need new bearers, i’m sure you know who they are.” Celestia says.

“I can’t! I can’t do it!” I say.

“You can, Arthur. You just have to have faith in your team, in yourself.” Celestia says.

“Arthur, you can do this.” My mom says.

I turn around seeing a portal.

I walk towards the portal.

I see my mom pep talking me, for a soccer game.

“I can’t do it mom! They are too fast!” My younger self says.

“So be faster! You can do this. Never lose hope.

I have faith in you, Arthur.

I’ll always have faith.” My mom says.

“I’m too scared! What if I miss? What if i’m not faster than-.” Younger me says.

“Arthur! You can win this!

You are better than them!

Don’t ever doubt yourself.” My mom says.

I say “My team won that game, we would’ve lost if I didn’t carry my weight.

I had to help my team.

I had to help my team!

I get it now!

I have to help them!

I have to help my family.”

Meanwhile

Back into the real world. Nexus is trying to discourage Arthur’s crew.

“I can’t believe he’s gone.” Moon says, while trying to hold back tears.

“I can, and now it’s your turn.” Nexus says.

Nexus charges up an attack with his horn.

The magic from Nexus’ horn gets released towards Arthur’s crew.

Nexus’ magic gets deflected away.

The smoke from Nexus’ attack disappears, revealing Arthur with a magic bubble surrounding him and his friends.

“What?!

You’re dead!

I saw it!” Nexus says in disbelief.

“Arthur?! But I saw Starlight kill you!” Derpy says.

“I had a near death experience.

I have the Elements of Harmony.

We can use them.” Arthur says.

“Blaze needs to tell you something.” Moon says.

“I know, and I forgive her. I have a way to defeat Nexus.

Here, all of you, take these.” Arthur says.

Arthur hands his crew the Elements.

Nexus shoots magic at Arthur, Arthur deflects it away.

“Why wont you just die?!” Nexus says.

“It doesn’t have to be this way! We can talk this out!” Arthur says.

“Oh please. We are way beyond that! I’m going to kill you for real this time!” Nexus says.

Nexus teleports himself away from Arthur, out of view.

A boulder comes loose from the wall, then flies towards Arthur.

Arthur teleports away from the path of the boulder.

Nexus shoots magic at Arthur, Arthur blocks it.

Nexus teleports away from view.

“Get back here!” Arthur says.

Arthur hears Nexus teleporting around him.

Arthur predicts Nexus’ movements.

Arthur shoots magic where Nexus will teleport to.

Nexus teleports, the magic beams hits him.

Nexus starts falling to the ground.

Arthur catches Nexus with magic, then sets him down on the ground.

Arthur pins Nexus down with magic.

“It doesn’t have to be this way! Listen to me!

Let go of the past!

It’s not too late to forgive.

Take my hand, brother.” Arthur says.

Arthur releases Nexus.

Nexus stands up, then says “I have no brother.”

Nexus shoots Arthur with magic, almost killing him.

Arthur falls to the ground.

Arthur coughs, then says “Nexus, please stop this. There is another way!”

Nexus turns to Arthur, then says “There is no other way. These ponies need to know what it’s like to feel hopeless, sorrow, and anger.

There will be nothing to stop me when you are dead.”

“Wrong. I’m not dying today.

I have my crew, my friends, my family.

I have the Elements of Harmony.” Arthur says.

“Oh no! Not the Elements of Harmony!

If you couldn’t tell, I was being sarcastic.

Who’s going to wield them, you?

You couldn’t even use that useless gauntlet against me.” Nexus says.

“Maybe so. But that was because I was alone.

But, now, I have my family, the new Elements of Harmony.

Blaze, for coming clean to the crew.

You represent the Element of Honesty.

Uyada, for convincing the crew to forgive Blaze.

You represent the Element of Kindness.

Moon, for staying by my side for all these years.

You represent the Element of Loyalty.

Potato, for all those times that were hard for me, you were there to make me smile.

For that, you represent the Element of Laughter.

Derpy, for giving away your beautiful diamond necklace.

You represent the Element of Generosity.” Arthur says.

After Arthur’s friends get transformed, Nexus says “What’s wrong? Missing something? Like, say, the last Element?”

“Me, for realizing that I’ve had family ever since I left Earth.

I represent the Element of Magic.” Arthur says.

Magic blasts from the Elements, it shoots up into the air, then shoots towards Nexus.

Nexus gets hit by magic, the magic pulls Nexus towards Arthur.

“Wait! I was bluffing!” Nexus says.

Nexus yells, as he gets absorbed into Arthur, “No! You can’t get rid of me! I am that voice in your head! Your dark thoughts! No!”

Arthur’s body collapses.

The Elements Of Disharmony (Prologue)

Author's Note

This is my first story. Sorry if it's not what you're used to.

The Elements of Harmony have a different origin, in my story.

The Elements of Disharmony are introduced in this story.

I give Derpy Hooves a more of an independent personality, I give Twilight a more of an impatient personality, and make her shifty.
There are some other changes, but not too much.

Anyways, i'm gonna keep this short, so enjoy.

Peace.

-D

The Elements Of Disharmony (Prologue)

Equestria, the land of great beauty and danger, with many different creatures. Every story has a beginning and an end; our story starts a long time ago in Equestria, before the Two Sisters ruled the land.

"Maximus is the first half-alicorn and also the Spirit of Harmony, he watches over Equestria.

Maximus' brother Commodus, dislikes him, and seeks to rule all of Equestria.

One day Commodus set fire to one of the major forests in Equestria. Maximus learned that the arsonist was his very own brother.

Maximus was forced to put his hoof down; he created six elements that represent Harmony; Loyalty, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Kindness, and Magic; these elements, together, can banish and imprison any threat to Equestria.

Commodus learned of his brother's actions. Commodus then created six elements that represent Disharmony; Disloyalty, Despair, Greed, Dishonesty, Cruelty, and Chaos; to defend himself.

Maximus found Commodus in one of the deepest part of the Major Forest of Equestria.

Before Commodus can use the elements of Disharmony on Maximus, Maximus imprisoned Commodus and banished him to the Underground City beneath Equestria.

Maximus found the Elements of Disharmony, he then had a vision of a mysterious hairless creature that stood on two legs, he saw many ponies kneeling to the creature with five other ponies, he also saw the Elements of Disharmony.

Maximus tried to destroy the elements that his brother created, but it was no use, they were indestructible.

So he hid them all over Equestria where nopony would find them.

Maximus created a magical tree that can contain, and charge the Elements of Harmony.

He then put his vision to use, he made a warning saying: "Beware the Creature that stands on two legs, for he will be the one who ponies will kneel to.", he died a couple months later."

The Letter

4 hours later

After their arrival in The Village of Harmony, the visitors, got a brief tour. Spike will leave tomorrow.

Abdulia shows us to our room.

"Wow! It looks so nice!" Derpy says.

"Meh, I've seen better." Spike says.

"She's perfect." I say.

Spike and Derpy look at me.

"I mean, it's perfect! Heh." I say.

Spike sighs, then says "I miss Twilight. Oh, sorry, Arthur. What I really meant was, I miss Pinkie's cupcakes. Too bad we have to stay here."

"Yeah I feel you, Spike. I wonder why ponies jump to conclusions so much." Derpy says.

I say "Why did they think I was the bad guy? I tried to warn them."

"HRMPH!" Spike gags.

"Eww, Spike! Go to the bathroom!" Derpy says.

Spike shakes his head, then burps.

Fire and a letter comes out of his mouth.

"Whoa! Jeez, Spike, you couldn't warn-. Wait. What is that?" I say.

"It's a letter." Derpy says.

Me and Derpy look at Spike.

Spike opens the envelope, then pulls out a letter.

He begins reading it. "Dear Arthur,

I'm sorry I didn't listen to you.

There are rumors, some ponies are saying he is entering their dreams.

We tried to stop Nexus but, it seems that we aren't connected to the Elements anymore.

Nexus disappeared with Starlight.

Please stop Nexus, and please take care of Spike.

-Twilight Sparkle"

"There's more." Spike says.

He continues to read the letter "Dear Derpy,

I really hope you are safe.

The Lab is so quiet without you.

When you said you had to go, I didn't want to object.

When I was younger, I always wanted to adventure. I even wanted to travel through time.
Real life got me down.

I don’t want that to happen to you.

Sincerely, The Doc."

"Aww. I didn't peg him to be sentimental." Derpy says.

"Oh, there's more." Spike says.

He continues "Hey Arthur,

what did you get yourself into this time?

Just kidding, Twilight told us the whole thing.
Come on, we can back you up.

You can't break up The Crew.

Our last job is the thing that brought us here anyway.

Just promise us that we will do one last job before you retire.

Peace.
-Potato"

"The Crew? Your last job? Who are you?" Derpy says.

“You didn’t tell her?” Spike asks.

I sigh, then I say "I was hoping my past wouldn't catch up to me. I was a professional criminal, back in my world. Don't worry, I'm retired. Anyway, our last job went wrong and somehow me and my friends ended up here."

"What happened?" Derpy asks.

I say "I'll start from the beginning. Me and my family were having money problems.

My mom says "Arthur! Come here!"

I run down the stairs to see my mom holding a piece of paper.

"You need to pay Aro!" My mom says.

I grab the paper from her, then start reading it.

"I need help." I say.

Addressing The Elephant

1 hour later

After getting helped to escape from Discord's cage, the crew meets up to discuss plans. The Descendants have returned to their village.

"I am really sorry, Arthur. I didn't mean those things I said earlier." Twilight says.

"It really is my fault." I say.

"Hello, Princess Twilight Sparkle." Says a voice coming from behind us.

We look behind us, Starspiral is standing there.

"I'll let you guys introduce yourselves." I say.

I walk away.

I walk towards an open window.

It's night time, so most ponies are sleeping.

The stars are shining bright tonight, with the full moon.

"This whole place will be destroyed, if I don't stop Nexus." I say to myself.

I take a deep breath and sigh.

"If I can't stop him with the Elements, then I'll have to stop him with magic. But I don't know any magic, I'll have to ask Twilight if she can teach me." I say to myself.

Twilight walks up to me and says "You'll never guess who I just met."

"Who did you meet?" I ask.

"Starswirl's fifth great-grandson." Twilight says.

"I've met him, he is interesting." I say.

"You've met him, and you didn't bother to tell me?" Twilight says.

"I guess, there wasn't a good time to bring it up." I say.

"Yeah. Maybe you're right." Twilight says.

"Hey Twilight, do you think you can teach me magic?" I ask.

"There couldn't be a more perfect time for you to ask me. Starspiral gave me some of Starswirl's unreleased spells." Twilight says.

"So, can we start now?" I say.

"Well, I do need somepony to test these spells, to see if they are unstable." Twilight says.

I look at Twilight with a worried look on my face.

"I'm joking. But are you sure you can do magic?" Twilight says.

"It doesn't hurt to try." I say.

58 minutes later

"Wow. It really does hurt to try." I say.

"It's no use. We tried everything I know." Twilight says.

"So you're going to give up on me again?" I say.

"Oh, you are going to bring that up." Twilight says.

"Well, we do need to address the elephant in the room." I say.

Twilight looks around the room, then says "There is no elephant in the room."

"It's just an expression. People use it to say that they need to talk about something that should be addressed; like an elephant in the room." I say.

"Oh! I know what you mean. Kind of like exploding at somepony." Twilight says.

"Well that could get somepony's attention. Hey! Quit trying to change the subject. So why did you really want to break up?" I say.

Twilight sighs, then says "I thought about the future, and because, since i’m an alicorn, i’m going to live forever.

And you, you will eventually die.

I’m just going to keep on living, while all of my friends and family die."

Twilight starts crying.

I say "Wow. I don't know how to respond to that.".

Spike comes through to door then says "I think you should see this, Arthur."

Twilight stops crying.

Me and Twilight follow Spike, out of the castle.

There is a package outside the door. It says "To Arthur”

A New Beginning (Epilogue)

1 day later
After defeating Nexus, the Crew took Arthur back to Ponyville. They told Twilight, and the princesses, about the events that has happened. Arthur is in the hospital.

“Everything checks out. He’ll be fine.

In fact he should be waking up any minute now.” I hear a voice say.

I open my eyes, seeing two ponies in the room.

One being Derpy, the other being a doctor.

“Thank you, Doctor.” Derpy says.

The doctor leaves the room.

Derpy walks over to me, then says “I didn’t think you’d ever wake up.

The doctor says you’ll be alright.”

“Did we win? Is Nexus gone?” I say.

“Twilight said he’s gone.” Derpy says.

“I kind of have that feeling, that I’m missing something. You know?” I say.

My hair stands up as I hear, “Thought you’ve gotten rid of me, have you?

I told you, you can’t!

We are the same. Two sides, one good, one bad.

I am the nexus between you and this body.

I keep you living, and you keep me living.

For what you’ve done to me, I will destroy everything you love, while you sit in the passenger seat.” Nexus says.

Nexus laughs.

Author's Note

Hey. My name is Derrick.

I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my story. I'm also on Wattpad, if you want to check out my story on there.

If you have any questions feel free to message me.

Peace.

-D