Author's Note

Here is my long waited idea, now brought to life, The Alicorn and the Last Human. And I like to thank Israel Yabuki for helping me bring this idea to light.

Enjoy reading and Brony on!

{And another note, if any of you have any thoughts about any grammar or spelling errors in this story, you're welcome to say. BUT!... If you ever say anything that is very insulting and rude; you just earned yourself a banned format... meaning I'm blocking you.}

Chapter 1

Equestria wasn't always the only world that had existed. Truth be told, the world was once inhabited by these creatures called humans. They were the first dominant civilization and the first intelligent race to live on the Earth. But unfortunately, even with their superior technology, economy, and massive cities; humanity had slowly destroyed itself for so many centuries.

Their lust for power, greed, and hypocrisy proved to be their undoing. Even their society turns against itself, their waters and air become polluted, forests and grasslands decimated, and they continuously declare wars on one another. Which caused the genocide of millions.

Soon after the smoke cleared, the world that was ruled by humans, was no more. And humanity went extinct, and everything that was left behind by them; were lost with the hands of time. Until there was no evidence of their existence.

Over time, the world began to heal itself and life was flourishing once again and within 10,000 years, a new race of creatures inhabited the Earth: Equestrians. Anthropomorphic pony creatures that were far from what the humans were. Instead of destroying their land, the Equestrians worked with the environment to ensure the Natural Order and gain resources. And they never used any fossil fuel or nuclear energy, instead, they preferred to use energy that nature provided them; magic.

Furthermore, the Equestrian had become a more civilized race. One that thrived on helping each other. A place where life is lived through being kind, considerate, selfless, and respectful. It was a kind of upgrade that had given mother earth a 2nd chance to finally see the goodness of these new, majestic creatures.

But the Equestrians are unaware of the existence of humans before them, mostly because there was no evidence of their existence. Of course, the earth has its way of surprises and had a history of creatures that survived after extinction events. And soon the world of Equestria will never be the same.

As of today, Twilight was currently running her School of Friendship, her friends helping to teach their classes on the many ways of friendship. Aiding her is the newest Vice Principal of the school, Sunset Shimmer. Who was a former student of Princess Celestia; who also did terrible things in the past. But after changing herself for the better and learning the values of friendship like Twilight did, Celestia had Sunset become the Alicorn Princess of Empathy.

Having two princesses run the school was an unexpected turn for everyone, both faculty, and students alike. But the one who was most shocked was Twilight's adopted daughter, Nyx. Twilight was only a unicorn when she adopted Nyx. And was 17 years old when she adopted her daughter and raised her into the young lady she is now.

Nyx was now around 19 years old and was a big sister to her little brother and sister. Twilight had gotten married to one of Princess Celestia's sons almost 2 decades ago. Her brother's name is Burning Sparkle, age 14 and her sister is Blazing Sparkle, age 15. She also had a cousin named Sunrise Scorcher, age 16. He is also the son of Sunset Shimmer and her husband, Eternal Flames, Celestia's oldest.

Not to forget, Nyx has grown into a smart and beautiful alicorn mare over the years. And because of her amazing grades, she's been capturing the hearts of both boys and girls of every creature at the school. Though it was sweet, it was a pain to see her locker is filled with love letters almost every day.

It certainly didn't help that she had filled out nicely in certain parts of her body. Especially her chest area, her hips, and her sweet flank. She looked like one of those models who worked for Photo Finish. Heck, she was even offered a model shoot one time but turned it down. She preferred to help her mother out with the School of Friendship, even becoming part of the teaching staff. And she enjoyed teaching the young about the real meaning of friendship. Photo respected her decision and even gave her a business card.

Twilight admired the devotion her daughter had for wanting to help out with the school. She knows Nyx will make a fine member of the school one day.

As of now, Nyx was on her way to teach the next class. Passing by students in the hallways, with most of the boys and a few girls staring at her. Even though it was nothing she would mind, however, it felt a bit uncomfortable. And before she knew it, she accidentally bumped into another mare in the hallway and the two fell to the ground.

“Ow. What was that.” Nyx said as she sat herself up and saw that the mare she bumped into, was her friend and one of the CMC; Applebloom. "Oh, I'm sorry Applebloom, are you okay?" she asked, helping her back up.

“It's fine, Nyx. Ah, should’ve seen where Ah was goin’.” Applebloom replied. “Though, it's great seein’ ya again. The girls an’ ah never git ta see ya often.”

"I've been busy with helping mom out with the school. Being a teacher is a lot of hard work. It's a lot harder than when I was still a student here," Nyx said. "How have you and your friends been doing lately? Did you help any young fillies and colts discover their talents and help get their cutie marks lately?"

“Oh, ya know, same old. We helped out two foals yesterday discover their talents that they had trouble finding in themselves. So nothin’ much of today.” Applebloom stated.

"I see. Maybe one of these days, you could turn your talents into a business. You never know, it could be just the jumpstart you need. As long as you keep up your grades, you'll all go pretty far in life," Nyx said.

"Thanks, Nyx. Anyways, Ah'd better git to mah, next class. An’ Nyx, ya should really git out more. Maybe ya find yourself a stallion in the future.” She teased towards the dark alicorn before finally leaving the hallway.

“Hey! You know how hard it is to find a coltfriend in Equestria! I’ll tell you… About a billion to one!” Nyx shouted towards her friend, but Applebloom was out of reach. "Coltfriend, huh? I'm not even sure I'm ready for something like that. Luckily, I got an eternity before I can even think about a coltfriend," Nyx said to herself.

Of course, she has been thinking about having a special pony in her life, she is a grown mare, so she has the need to get out and explore her life more. But of course, it's difficult to find a suitable coltfriend, when all they do is eye her body like it's candy. And plus, most of the good ones are either taken or old enough to be the same age as her dad and uncle.

It’s best to think about it some other time. Right now she needs to get to her class, best not to keep her students waiting.

"Alright, students. For today's history lesson, we will be learning all about the Evil Tyrants and Dictators of Equestria. For starters, we will be learning about the former tyrant known as the Pony of Shadows, or more commonly known as one of your teachers, Professor Stygian."

"Over 1,000 years ago, Stygian once helped the Pillars of Equestria defend the land against many disasters and tyrants. It wasn't always about the villains themselves, but also things like erupting volcanoes, earthquakes that cause large cracks in the ground. Or more commonly known as fissures. Stygian was an ordinary pony just like everyone else. But then, one day, the Pillars of Equestria lost all respect for him for something they thought was treacherous. Can anyone tell me what he supposedly tried to do?" Nyx asked. "Raise your hand if you know."

Every student in the classroom raised their hands up instantly, and if this was a situation for a newbie teacher; this would be difficult in choosing a student. But Nyx was no ordinary new teacher. After a few seconds, she picked out a student in the classroom, who is a changeling.

“Yes, what is your answer?” Nyx asked the changeling student.

“He was only trying to make copies of the Pillar’s magical artifacts so that he could fully commit with his friend and fight alongside them. But instead, the Pillars only saw this as taking their artifacts for himself.” He answered.

"Correct. And in doing so, they exiled him from the group. This decision was poor judgment on the Pillars' part. In doing so, the Pillars later brought forth a new evil born out of hate. Thus, the Pony of Shadows was born. Of course, nobody had full knowledge of what the Pony of Shadows is capable of, but it seems that he must have been so powerful and frightening that the Pillars had no choice but to banish him to limbo. In a place where time has stopped.”

During the lesson, the students took notes of her lecture. At least some of them, while others were ogling her body. Nyx can tell where some of them were looking at but said nothing so she could tell them after class.

"Now, can anyone tell me how the Pillars and the Pony of Shadows were brought out of limbo?" Nyx asked. One of her students raised her hand and this time, it was her own younger sister. "Yes, Blazing Sparkle?"

"My mom and her friends gathered all of the personal items that each belonged to the Pillars of Equestria and brought them to Ponedge where she, Starlight and Sunburst combined their magical abilities to open the gate back up," Blazing Sparkle said.

"Correct and can anyone tell me what their original intention was?" Nyx asked. This time, her little brother, Burning Sparkle raised his hand. "Yes?" Nyx pointed.

"Originally, they wanted to bring just the Pillars of Equestria out of limbo, but because they sent themselves along with the Pony of Shadows into limbo in the first place, the Pony of Shadows was brought back, too," Burning said.

"That's right. And as a bonus tip, the Pillars of Equestria wanted to find a way to beat him that didn't revolve around being trapped in limbo. But there was no way to stop him and there was no telling what kind of catastrophe he was capable of doing. Nor did they want to chance it," Nyx said while her students kept taking notes and/or checking out her frame.

“And so they decided to use the power of the Elements of Harmony, along with a spell that Twilight Sparkle suggested, that will allow the Pillars to remain in Equestria and only send the Pony of Shadows to limbo. Of course, as they were near succeeding in banishing the villain, Twilight Sparkle saw the Shadow’s host, Stygian, from within and flew inside to see him for herself. And what do you all believe happened next?” Nyx asked her class again.

Then, Sunrise raised his hand and Nyx gave him the spotlight. "Twilight wanted to find out why Stygian took the items back then. She found out that he wanted to create his own copies of the items in order to help the Pillars of Equestria on their journeys. He wanted to truly earn their respect, not their powers."

“Ding ding! That's exactly right, Sunrise. And when he explained himself, the Pillars felt guilty for misunderstanding and discarding their friend, and soon they along with Twilight and her friends rescued him from the Shadow’s grasp and banished the evil entity to limbo while Stygian received apologies from the Pillars and so their friendship was restored.” Nyx finished the lesson. And as she finished the bell rang for class to end. "Class dismissed. And remember not to forget what we discussed today. And that means all… of… you," Nyx pointed at the students whom she caught staring at her during the whole lecture.

Soon every student got up from their desk and left the classroom while Nyx was cleaning up the board for her break. While she did, out of nowhere she felt somepony smacked her posterior. She turned around only to see that no pony was there, but she could hear some boys chatter down the hallway and chuckling about something. This action got Nyx upset and felt insulted.

Nyx used her magical abilities to track down who the culprits were, then walked over to where they are and cleared her throat, getting the boys' attention. "You do realize sexual harassment is against school policies, right? Perhaps 2 weeks of detention should teach you not to lay your hands on a mare," she said before taking them by the ears using her magic.

Nyx arrived at the door to her mother's office and knocked on it. Her mom answered the door, along with Sunset. "Nyx, is there something wrong?"

"I have a couple of trouble-making students who thought it was funny to smack my butt in my classroom. And I recommend that they are to be punished accordingly," Nyx replied.

'Come on, she knows she loved it,' One of the boys thought.

"You know I can hear your thoughts, mister," Sunset said. "And there's nothing likable about a mare being smacked on her butt without permission. Especially if she's a grown mare and you're still a young teen. I think we need to take this matter up with your parents, see what they think about your inexcusable behavior." she said, sternly.

Sunset then uses her magic and then harshly drags the boys out of the office and soon their screams can be heard from the other side of the door. Nyx and Twilight don’t really wanna know what was going on. So the two alicorns sat quietly in the room, in awkward silence, for a few seconds.

“So… How’s life treating you, Nyx.” Twilight asked.

"It's going alright. We just finished a lecture on Equestrian History. How about you?" Nyx asked.

“Oh, you know… A bit nervous for my coronation in the next 3 weeks. But I’m sure its nothing to worry about, hehe.” Twilight replied.

“You know you’re not fooling anypony, mom. I can see the anxiety in your eyes.” Nyx stated.

"Oh okay, I'm nervous. But I can't help myself. It was hard enough to run this school and teach so many students the meaning of friendship, but being a ruler of Equestria is a really big responsibility that I'm still not sure I'm ready to accept. But it doesn't mean that I'm not gonna accept that responsibility, I just want to make sure I'm physically, mentally and psychologically ready for it. Maybe one day, you'll understand," Twilight said.

“Oh, I'm not so sure about that. I don’t think I'll last a minute ruling a whole country.” Nyx jokes.

"Very funny, Nyx," Twilight said sarcastically with a smirk, shaking her head left and right.

“But still, you’ll be a great leader, mom. I know it.” Nyx replied.

"Thanks, sweetheart. It's good to know I have your support. And I'm sure you'll make a wonderful Principal one day when you've gained some more experience," Twilight said, hugging her daughter.

“I thought that was Starlight’s future job?” Nyx jokes again.

"Consider it payback for when she thought she could outsmart a princess during our time travel fight a few years ago," Twilight whispered, jokingly before chuckling. Nyx laughed with her before finally. "Alright, go ahead with your break and take care."

"I will and thanks again, mom," Nyx replied before taking off.

After leaving the main office, Nyx heads on over to the teacher’s lounge for her break. She had with her a bag of lunch and a container full of cold water. She arrives at the teacher's lounge and enters, meeting up with some of the other teachers, including Rainbow, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and even Nyx's foster father, Heat Blitz, and uncle Eternal Flames.

"Hi, Nyx. How were your lectures?" Heat asked before having a sip of his hot chocolate.

"Yeah, everything's fine. Aside from some handsy teenagers smacking my butt earlier, I'm doing pretty good. Sunset and Twilight are giving them a proper punishment," Nyx said.

"Heh, my wife. She's a scary one. One of the reasons why I love her," Eternal commented.

"So, what about you guys, were your classes alright?" Nyx asked.

“Well, nothing new. Just the same old boring stuff. And I still can’t believe Fluttershy won Teacher Of The Month… Again!” Rainbow said in disbelief.

"Fluttershy is loved by so many of her students. She's devoted to helping students learn, but also being fair towards them. Plus, she's so cute and adorable. I guess that's one of the reasons why her husband married her," Nyx said.

"I… well, gee that's so kind of you to say that," Fluttershy said, turning away a bit and blushing all cute.

"I'm still shocked that you never married Discord," Pinkie said.

"Well, he's sweet, but he's not someone I'd consider a husband. He already married someone before me years ago. Besides, he's more of a fatherly figure to me, which he is since I married his son," Fluttershy stated.

"I can respect that. So aside from the classes, what's been on all your minds lately?" Nyx asked.

"Well, recently… a rumor's been going around. Apparently, something's been happening in the Everfree Forest lately. Zecora told some of us that she caught sight of some creature she's never seen before," Pinkie said.

“A creature? What kind of creature?” Heat asked.

"We don't know. But from what Zecora told us, she could tell it runs on 2 feet and it's got no hair, except on its head and parts of its face. She thinks it might be some kind of hairless monkey that shaved a little bit too much off the top and bottom," Pinkie replied.

“A hairless ape? Never heard of a creature like that, but it does sound like it could be a relative of the primate family.” Fluttershy suggested.

"If that's true, how can it run on two feet? Don't they usually walk on all fours?" Eternal asked.

"That's not all, Zecora also said… it doesn't talk or make a sound. Practically, it's mute." Pinkie Pie mentioned.

"Mute? That's not good. Is it harmless?" Fluttershy asked.

"I don't know, she never saw it doing anything except run past her when it came face to face with her during her usual rounds. I say this is something worth looking into," Pinkie said.

"True, but we're gonna have to take some precautions. If this thing is hostile towards anyone, we might have to restrain it with magic and take it to Twilight's lab to perform some tests on it to see what it is," Eternal stated.

"Good point. And we should probably keep the students out of reach from this thing if it tries anything to hurt them," Rainbow said.

"Good point. But we're forgetting one thing: We're gonna have to inform Twilight on this matter. She's the head mare in charge of the school. And one of us will have to cover for each other's classes and decide who will go," Fluttershy said.

"Darn, you're right! And I have to prepare the students on their mathematics tests this Friday in 3 more days," Heat said.

"And I've got to get the boys in my P.E class for their triathlon on the same day," Eternal said.

"I could always go and take a look. I mean, I'm already on break until the 7th period.” Nyx volunteered.

“That's a super awesome idea!” Pinkie shouted.

“That's a super terrible idea!” Heat responded. "The Everfree Forest is too dangerous for just one pony to wander in all alone. Even in the daytime, the forest can be dangerous to outsiders. I think Nyx should go with one of us to make sure she gets out safely."

"I agree. I won't have my niece get ambushed by a pack of rabid timberwolves or a chimera," Eternal added.

"We can always ask Discord to look after her," Fluttershy said.

"Did someone say "Discord?" an elder male's voice echoed in the room. Moments later, a puff of magic smoke appeared in the lounge and lo and behold, the lord of all chaos and disharmony appeared before them, levitating in the air. "Forgive me for eavesdropping, but I couldn't help but hear you talking about a little rumor in Everfree Forest, and about little Nyx here won't be let into said forest unsupervised."

"Yes. I'm fearing for my daughter's safety, even if she is an accomplished mare. Can you keep her safe for us?" Heat asked.

"Hmmm, well, in my opinion, the young lady is an adult and should be treated as such, but if you insist, I will make sure she makes it back in one piece," Discord said.

"Thanks, Discord. I really owe you one," Heat said.

"Oh, no need to. But if you can, I would recommend you watch over my dear grandson, Asriel. He's been so socially awkward and kids seem to pick on the poor little guy. One time the poor little guy came home with a black eye. And let me tell you I will NOT have it," Discord said like the protective, worried grandparent he is.

"Seriously? Someone's bullying Asriel?" Eternal asked.

"Okay, consider this a favor. I'll try and get to the bottom of this and see who it was that bullied your grandson," Heat said.

"No need. I already peeked inside his mind and found out who the little scamper was that hurt my boy," Discord then gave Heat a vision of what his grandson went through, just by touching his shoulder and showed Heat who Asriel's bully was that landed him a black eye.

"Oh, dear. It's them again," Heat said.

"What's them?" Eternal asked.

"I'm talking about. . . Searing Shimmer and Danaus. A former heir to the changeling throne and Chrysalis' eldest daughter," Heat said.

"What? Her? But she's never violent towards others," Eternal said.

"She's not, but she is a witness to what your daughter did to Asriel," Heat said.

"Hmm… I see. Alright, I'll make sure this doesn't arise again starting right now." Eternal said.

"Thank you. Now, come along, Nyx, we've got some exploring to do!" Discord said, snapping his talons and changing into a safari ranger outfit.

"Alright then. I'll see you guys later," Nyx said.

"Be careful, honey. And don't step on any poison joke," Heat said.

Nyx nodded and followed Discord out of the lounge and teleported outside of the school.

After leaving school grounds, Nyx and Discord walked across town and soon arrived at the entrance of the Everfree Forest. "Oh, this is gonna be a smash. Now, remember, all tourists are to stay close with the tour guide for the duration of said exploration," he said over a megaphone he poofed out of nowhere. Nyx laughed at Discord's endless humor. "Thank you, thank you."

"Thanks for the information, Discord,” Nyx said.

"You're very welcome, princess," Discord said as the two walked inside the forest. "It's not every day someone appreciates my sense of humor. Especially in life-threatening environments, but others always seem to deem it "inappropriate" in those kinds of situations. All I do is try to liven up the mood. But at least you have a sense of humor."

“Well, I spend a lot of time with Pinkie Pie. So I've built a sense of humor for what I find funny.” Nyx said. She then looks towards the forest and soon hears eerie noises and growls of mysterious creatures hidden behind the dense trees. “You know the last time I was in the Everfree forest was when Twilight found me hiding in a bush, cowering in fear from a thunderstorm. And the time Diamond Tiara tricked me into going into the forest.” Nyx explained her history with the forest.

"I heard about it. I heard you cling to your mother because you were so relieved to see her again and weeping your cute little eyes out," Discord said, pinching Nyx's cheek.

"Discord, I'm not 5 anymore!" Nyx pouted with her puffed-up cheeks.

"My apologies. I still can't face the fact that you're all grown up. You may not be my daughter, but I still see you like one, just like my daughter-in-law," Discord said.

“Can we just go and search for the hairless ape that Pinkie told us about,” Nyx said as she entered the forest, leaving Discord behind where he stood. Discord poofed himself in front of Nyx, this time, having a flashlight on hand.

"You're better off staying behind me. Now… ONWARD!!!" Discord exclaimed proudly. Nyx rolled her eyes and smiled at the draconequus’s foolishness. Nyx followed Discord close behind, making sure she didn't get separated from him. She'd never admit it, but deep down, she's still a little bit scared of the forest. She felt more comfortable knowing Discord was there to keep her safe and humor her.

They walked through the forest for a little bit longer until they heard a rustling in one of the bushes, making Nyx jump, startled. "Did you hear that?" she asked.

"Stay behind me," Discord said, getting serious. He snapped his fingers and changed into an old cop outfit, pointing his flashlight at the bush. "Alright, pal. The jig is up, see. So come out with your hands in the air!" he said in a type of old school style gangster accent.

The two stood quietly for a few minutes as the rustling sound in the bushes continued to approach closer and closer to them. But soon they start to hear a weird whistling sound all around them, unsure of what it was, but it did however make whatever was causing the rustling in the bushes to leave the area.

“What was that? Where did that whistling noise come from?” Nyx asked as she looked around the area, only to find nothing.

"Beats me, but stay close. You never know how dangerous the situation can be," Discord said, poofing up a big shield.

"Again, I’m not a little filly anymore. I can take care of myself. So here’s my idea, you search the other direction, and I'll go search the other direction. And if we don’t see anything, we’ll meet back here.” Nyx stated. “Sounds like a plan.”

"You bet. But just remember, if you scream, yell or shriek, I'm teleporting right in front of you to act as your shield. No exceptions, no discussions. So… good luck," Discord said.

"Of course. You too," Nyx replied. She and Discord then split up and go their separate ways. Nyx kept a sharp watch of her surroundings by combining an illumination spell, as well as a motion detector spell around her in case some creature tries to sneak up on her. Being an alicorn herself, learning these two spells was a breeze, thanks to her devotion to learning the most advanced spells.

"Okay, Nyx. This is no time to be feeling scared. You can do this, you're stronger, smarter, and faster than ever before. You can handle a 3rd visit in the Everfree Forest.” Nyx said to herself.

She keeps venturing forth, staying cautious and ever-vigilant. Meanwhile, with Discord, he's got his Discord senses to count on. No predators or fatal objects can surprise him. As he's looking, light in his flashlight begins to flicker… until it dies out on him. "Oh, poo, this is just ridiculous. Oh well, time to change the old' batteries." he said. Reaching into his pockets, he pulls out a battery and changes it with the dead one still inside. "LET THERE BE LIGHT!" and with that, he turns it back on, only to be spooked by a Cragadile opening up its jaws at him.

The crocodilian creature snaps its jaws at the lord of chaos, with a bloodthirsty intention to devour the draconequus. Discord jumps out of the way to avoid the powerful crushing jaws of the cragadile.

"SMEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!" Discord yelled out. The ambitious carnivore kept coming at Discord, snapping its jaws at him, but the lord of chaos kept dodging its chomps swiftly. It almost got him by the tail one time, but he still kept his distance.

The cragadile snarls at Discord before attempting to lunge at him for a bite. Not before Discord magically formed a big caveman club in his paw. "Get back, you overgrown moocher! I've been the champion of Whack-a-crag for centuries and I'm not afraid to demonstrate my skills!" he says in a gallant voice.

The reptilian creature ignores his words and continues to charge at him, only to be met by a swift and hard whack down on his head from Discord’s club. Instantly, knocking the cragadile out unconscious. "Hmph! Next time, don't skip out on your meals, simpleton," he said while twirling his club around.

"Now, let's see what else I can pick up," Discord said, venturing onward.

Meanwhile, Nyx is still trying to find this alleged hairless ape within the forest. Of course, it proved a lot harder than it looks. So far, she hasn’t a single creature along with her search, only vines, trees, and a ton of bugs. She even nearly tripped a few times during her search and had got tangled up in a few vines once or twice.

“Ugh! How hard is it to find a hairless ape in this entire forest?" Nyx asked while kicking a rock into the air out of frustration.

After she did, she continued walking forward with stopping until she was forced to halt when she was a foot away from stepping into a river. The river was about 20 feet wide and from the looks of it, about 3 feet deep. And there were a couple of half-submerged rocks, which formed a path across the river about 25 feet to her right.

“Well… A river is better than a dense forest.” She said. Before she turned back, she then caught a glimpse of something standing on the rocks. It looked to be a bipedal creature, wearing a jacket with a bit of fur on it and cargo pants. It wore a winter fur hat on its head and its face was covered with a face mask and ski goggles on its eyes. It also had bandages wrapped around its hands and it wore rubber boots. It also had a backpack on its back along with a quiver filled with arrows. In its hand was a bow, and the other was holding a small ax in his hand.

Nyx hides behind the bushes as she watches what the strange creature is doing. The mysterious figure sets down its ax on the rock where it is standing, while grabbing an arrow from its quiver and places it on its bow. It then aims the arrow at the water for some reason and after a few seconds; it fires into the water, sticking up like it hit something. The creature then reached out and grabbed his arrow. When he pulled it up from the river, the arrow is revealed to have impaled a fish.

Nyx was a bit taken back by its bow and arrow skills. “Whoa… that was impressive.” She said. She watches this creature walk away with what she thinks is either his dinner or lunch. Nyx keeps a safe distance as she tails this creature to its hiding place.

After following where he was going, and then nearly lost herself in the woods, she began to lose sight of him and his tracks. She flew up in the air and looked above the trees to search for the creature, but was unable to. She lowers herself down in an opening between the trees and pouts in disbelief.

“I can’t believe I lost him! How did I even lose track of him?” Nyx said in frustration. “Of course, I'm in a forest, you can get lost in a forest!” she continues throwing a tantrum. "UGH!!! As if this day couldn't get any worse." Nyx soon regrets her statement as she hears a snarling noise coming from one of the bushes. "Uh-oh, me and my big, fat mouth." she covers her mouth with her hands when she says that.

Soon the rustling got closer and closer until the source of the noise crawled out of the bushes… which is a cragadile, snarling hungrily as it stares at the alicorn and approaches her.

“A cragadile, why did it have to be a cragadile?” She asks herself as her horn glows and then fires a warning shot with a magic blast. Which hit smack dab right on into the cragadile’s eyes, which only temporarily blinded and irritated it. It continues to approach the alicorn, while Nyx fires three more magic blasts; with of them accurately hit the cragadile’s head and the other two landed on its back. But her attacks didn’t faze the giant reptilian; it only made it even more furious.

Seeing that the overgrown lizard won’t back off, Nyx spreads her wings and attempts to fly away; however, the cragadile snapped its jaws onto her wing before she could get higher above the trees. Then the giant reptilian beast roughly pulls on her wing and then tosses her across the forest floor. She shrieks in pain after not only feeling the impact of the throw but also because her wing was tugged on so roughly. An alicorn's wings are sensitive and fragile, so having them tugged at like that was extremely painful on her part.

"Ouch! Damn it, that hurts, OW!" she exclaimed, grabbing her wing.

As she was wincing in pain, the cragadile approached her fast, attempting to make her its snack. Nyx was in so much pain that she could not run away and closed her eyes in fear. But before the cragadile could reach her, something came out of nowhere and pouched onto its back, and soon the reptile felt a stinging pain.

Nyx opens her eyes to see what was going on and to her surprise, what jumped on the cragadile’s back, is the creature she saw by the river. And in his hand, was a handmade dagger, and he was using it to repeatedly stab into the crocodilian beast’s neck and head. The cragadile became furious and irritated by the bipedal creature and then with a swift jerk of its body, it managed to toss him off. The bipedal creature quickly gets back on his feet before he is then brutally knocked into a tree by the cragadile’s tail.

The force of the impact left the mysterious creature dazed and mortally injured, but somehow he manages to get back up, shaken by the impact that is. The cragadile lunges its jaws at the creature, but he manages to get out of the way as the giant reptile’s jaws were now clamped onto the base of a tree. Seeing his opening, the creature then brings his dagger down and impales the cragadile’s eye, and pushes it deeper to impale its brain. The giant crocodilian struggled for a tiny bit before finally succumbing and died from the fatal blow.

The mysterious figure then pulls his dagger out of the cragadile’s eye and then walks slowly to Nyx. The alicorn could hear his tired grunts and heavy breathing before he collapsed on the ground in front of her, would seem that the forceful impact to the tree left him near-fatally injured.

Nyx crawled over to the bipedal creature to check its condition. She panicked a little from seeing that it was barely breathing. Its heart rate was slowing down. "Oh no. DISCORD!!! HELP!!!" she yelled out. Thank goodness for the draconequus' sharp hearing, he poofed right in front of her.

"Have no fear, the Great and Powerful Discord is here!" he shouted, while also wearing a copy of Trixie's cape and hat. "What seems to be the--" Discord was about to ask, but then he sees the injured bipedal creature and Nyx with a badly injured wing; and also the dead cragadile by the trees. "Oh dear, this is quite the pandemic. Fear not!" Discord then snaps his fingers, causing magic smoke to seep out of him. "It won't hold for long, I've only managed to pop its bones back into place and seal any and all wounds on his body. But it'll need time to fully recover from his injuries. Let's get him back to Ponyville and get it to a hospital."

“No! No hospital, we have no idea what they’ll do to him. We’ll take him back to mom’s castle, she's probably still at the school anyway.” Nyx said.

"Alright, but first," Discord snaps his fingers again and this time, Nyx felt her wing heal and pop back into place and heal her other wounds. "We can't have you limping back to the school. I'll teleport you back to school and I'll talk with Twilight about this creature you found. Hopefully, she'll find out what it is and help it recover quicker."

“Thanks, Discord… Now get us out of this forest before another cragadile decides to come to show itself!” She stated as she held onto the bipedal creature.

"Done," Discord said before snapping his fingers again, teleporting the three of them back outside the entrance of the School of Friendship. "Let's go, not a moment to lose!" And then Discord teleports away from the hallway and at the front door of Twilight's main office while taking the strange creature with him. Nyx ran off to one of the classrooms to teach the students who have her in the 7th period Magic class.

Discord arrives outside Twilight's main office and knocks on her door while keeping the bipedal creature secure in one arm. "Twilight, you might want to see this," he said.

The sounds of hoof steps were heard behind the door and soon Twilight opens the door and looks at Discord with an annoyed expression on her face. “If this is about putting you in charge of the school, as I said before, no means n--” She stops talking when her eyes landed on the creature Discord was holding. “What... Is... that? She asked in shock.

"Are you aware of a rare creature that Zecora came across?" Discord asked. Twilight nodded before she realized what Discord has in his arms. "Yup… apparently, the rumors were true. Nyx told me to give this creature to you to help it recover. She doesn't trust the hospital with an exotic creature like this. Think you can handle it?"

"I'm not sure how much help I can be, but I'll do whatever I can. Sunset, could you hold down the fort while I tend to the wounded?" Twilight asked.

"Sure, take all the time you need," Sunset assured.

"Thanks. I won't be long," Twilight replied. Soon after leaving Sunset in charge, Twilight took the creature in her hands.. or more appropriately, she tried to hold it in her arms, but it was a bit heavier than she thought. No matter, she was able to lift it in the air using her magic, then teleported off to her castle.

Upon arriving, Twilight took the creature to one of the guest rooms. She set it down on a bed and removed parts of its clothing. She gasps in surprise to see what it looks like. It has tan skin, medium-long, black hair, and it looked to be around 5’10” ft tall. But the most curious thing about it is that there are deep scars all over its body; most of them being new ones. And as she looks up its body, she gasps when she sees its neck look like something clawed at it. What's worse is that its entire body was skinny.

"Oh, dear. It looks like it's been out in the wilderness for too long. The poor thing," Twilight said. "Hmm… first things first, I've gotta rehydrate it." Twilight heads out of the guest room and makes her way into the kitchen. She gets one of her biggest cups she's got and fills it with water. She makes her way back inside of the guest room and sees the creature still sleeping, and slowly, steadily breathing. "You're gonna need a long road to recovery," she said to the sleeping creature while setting the cup of water down on the bedside table next to it.

"I wish I could do more, but until you wake up, that water's all I can give you," Twilight said.

She then leaves the creature in the room and closes the door behind her. Then she walks all the way to the castle throne room. Once she is there, she casts a spell to summon her friends in the castle; If she’s gonna solve the mystery of her new guest, she’s gonna need all hands on deck. Besides, she was sure that Nyx and the CMC could cover their classes for them…. Maybe.

Sure enough, All of Twilight's friends appeared in front of her inside the summoning circle. All of them were dazed and feeling a bit sick due to teleportation.

“Twilight! Warn us next time before you do that!” Rainbow stated loudly as she felt like her body was run over by a train.

"I'm sorry, girls. But I needed your help on a very urgent matter," Twilight said.

"For what reason did you call us during class, darling?" Rarity asked.

"Just follow me and I'll show you," Twilight replied. She guided her friends down the halls and led them to the door to the guest room. Twilight shushed the girls and then opened the door slowly, showing them what she brought into her home. The girls all gasped upon discovering this hairless creature sleeping away on the bed.

"Oh, so that's what the doozy was," Pinkie whispered.

"Twilight, what is that thing?" Rarity asked.

"I don't know, Discord and Nyx found it in the Everfree Forest," Twilight said.

"No way, that's the thing Zecora went on about? Looks kinda weird," Rainbow said.

"Shh! Rainbow, don't go insultin' the dang thing. Fer all we know, it might understand what we're sayin', so let's not offend it," Applejack suggested.

"The poor dear looks like it's starving. It's so skinny. It looks like it hasn't been eating well in decades and who knows how much abuse it's suffered. We have to do something to help!” Fluttershy said, feeling concerned for the creature's well-being.

"And let's not forget how filthy it is. Fear not, when the poor deary wakes up and has its fill, I will have it cleaned up faster than you can say "FABULOUS!" Rarity said, posing dramatically.

"Ah can fix up a nice big buffet with Pinkie's help but uh… Twilight?" AJ asked.

“What?” Twilight asked.

"Ah might have the remedy to heal the poor guy without magic. But Ah'm gonna need 4 kilograms of fructose an' a bucket full of water. 10 liters of it," AJ said.

“And how's that gonna help?” Rainbow asked. “And second, where are we gonna get those ingredients?”

“Already on it!” Pinkie stated as she pulled the ingredients required for the remedy, right out of her poofy pink hair. “Here you go,” she said as she handed them to AJ.

"Pinkie Pie, yer a genius," Applejack said, hugging her. Pinkie hugged her back and made a squeaking sound like a squeaky toy.

"You're welcome. OOH! Can I help with the dessert?" Pinkie asked.

"Sure, Ah don't mind," Applejack said.

“Woohoo!” Pinkie cheered happily.

"I can help disinfect whatever might be making it sick," Fluttershy said.

"So what am I doing here?" Rainbow asked.

"You can help get it back into shape after it's fully recovered and well-fed. No better way to burn off calories than a walk or jog around Ponyville," Pinkie said.

"Like a… trainer?" Rainbow asked. Pinkie nodded. "Hmmm… sure, why not. But it has to be early in the morning. 6 AM before classes start or if I have to go train with the Wonderbolts. Is that alright with you?"

"Sure, but for now, we've got to give him some time. So, we got ourselves a plan?" Twilight asked her friends.

"Agreed," all of them said in unison.

"Thanks. I'm glad I could count on--" Twilight's thoughts are soon interrupted by the sound of the bed rustling, startling her and her friends. The Mane 6 turns and sees the creature has woken up and is backed against the corner, breathing heavily. It looks around the room, confused and frightened of his whereabouts. Soon it eventually looks towards the Equestrians in the room and becomes frozen with fear.

“Uhhhh… What should we do?” Rainbow asked quietly.

"Just give it a little space, I have a hunch that this creature might not be used to seeing others aside from its own. Quite frankly, I've never even seen such a specimen before. This is definitely worth looking into," Twilight said.

"Twilight, I don't think it shares the same enthusiasm as you do," Fluttershy said. The animal lover then slowly approaches, attempting to calm the creature down. “Don’t worry, you're safe and sound now. Nopony here is gonna…” But as she was attempting to calm it down, the creature swiftly got off the bed and sprinted over to the other side of the room, cowering in a corner. This made Fluttershy hurt on the inside.

“Huh? Usually, when Fluttershy befriends new animals, they don’t tend to freak out at all.” Pinkie stated, with a confused look on her face.

“But Fluttershy is the sweetest pony in all of Equestria, what gives the creature the right to be afraid of her?” Rarity asked.

"No no, don't be afraid. I'm not here to hurt you. A good friend of ours found you and took you in when you were injured in the forest. What can we do to show you we're not enemies?" Fluttershy asked, staying where she was.

But the creature stayed where it is, even grabbing onto a nearby object and wielding it as a weapon to defend itself. Fluttershy backed up a bit. "I understand. There's no need to get hostile towards me. Is there anyone you do want to see?” she asked.

While the Fluttershy and the others try to persuade the creature to trust them, they don’t notice Nyx and Sunset entering the room, looking all confused about what was going until they saw the creature awake and scared for its life.

“Mom, what’s going on here? And how did he wake up?” Nyx asked Twilight while she was staring at the bipedal creature.

“What the? Nyx, Sunset, what are you two doing here? Who’s currently watching the school?!” Twilight asked.

“Don’t worry, Heat and Eternal promised to watch over the school in our absence… And we left Discord in charge of teaching the students.” Sunset answered.

"What?! Are you crazy? We want our students to excel, not get expelled! How can you be certain that he can be trusted? For all we know, the students won't even get their weekly homework and sit through his jokes nonstop," Twilight said, shocked.

"I told him if he helps the students study, I'll ensure that his grandson isn't bullied again and treat him and his entire family out to lunch," Nyx said.

"Truth be told, I was shocked when I learned my daughter was bullying Asriel. I'm going to give her a good lesson about this issue," Sunset said.

"Hey! Let’s focus on this situation and not anything… hey, hold on, what is he staring at?” Rainbow asked as she pointed to the creature. Soon the other mares looked back at it and saw that it was now calm and indeed staring at something, but what? Nyx looked over and took a step to the side. The creature's eyes followed her. She stepped to the other side, its eyes followed her.

"I think it's… staring at me," Nyx said. "Uh… can you understand me?" she asked the creature, not moving a muscle. The creature nods slowly. "What's your name?" However, it didn't respond with words, but instead, he started making hand signs in reply.

“Ooh, he’s using sign language. I know this because this is how I communicated with George the Gorilla when he had a sore throat.” Fluttershy said with glee.

“Nyx, you know that freaky… uh… hand speaking technique? What is he saying?” Rainbow asked.

"Yeah, I can make out what he's saying," Nyx said before reading the signs it's giving. "My… name… is… Ryder. Where… am… I? What… is… this… place? That's what this thing is asking right now."

"Ryder, huh? That's a pretty cool name. Pleased to meet ya!" Rainbow said, offering a handshake to Ryder. But he backed up and made more signs.

"It's saying this: "First off, I'm a boy and 2nd, keep away from me. I don't trust these other… whatever they are." Sorry, Dash, but it's gonna take some time before he gets used to all of you. But what I wanna know is why he's not freaking out with me,” Nyx said.

Ryder makes some more hand signs and this time, Fluttershy translates. "He says… he trusts you more because… he saw the same fear in your eyes when that… Cragadile attacked you?" Fluttershy, along with the other girls gasped upon hearing this.

“Nyx, you were attacked!?!” Twilight asked out of anxiety.

"Y-Yeah. Ryder saved my life, but he wound up getting banged up in the process. Discord and I helped heal some of his wounds and brought him to you, hoping you could heal him while I went to class. Discord healed me before we left," Nyx explained.

"What?! Oh, dear. Are you sure you aren’t hurt anymore?" Twilight asked, concerned, and checking Nyx for any injuries.

"I'm fine now, mom. As I said, Discord healed me after I was attacked," Nyx reassured. "And also, Ryder saved my life. If it wasn’t for him, I'd be giant lizard food.” Twilight is surprised to hear this news. She looks over to the silent creature.

"Ryder, I'm very grateful you risked your life to save my daughter. She means the world to me and if you ever need anything, I'll gladly aid you," Twilight said.

Ryder blinked for some reason, then made hand signs that made Nyx giggle. "Ryder, you're a real gentleman, you know that," Nyx said.

"What did he say?" Pinkie asked.

"He said "Wait, she's your mom? There's no way she can be your mom, she looks so young and beautiful, enough to be considered your big sister," Nyx said, making Twilight and the others giggle as well, but Twilight felt her face blush.

"That's nice of him to say that. But I'm actually older than I look and I'm happily married. Thanks for the comment, though," Twilight said. Ryder replied with an “Ok” hand sign.

“Why is he only using hand signs to speak? Can’t he just talk to us, I mean he can understand us after all?” Rarity asked.

"Maybe I can find out what's up by performing an x-ray spell," Twilight said. She lights up her horn and aims it at Ryder, getting him spooked again. "Relax, Ryder. I'm only going to take an x-ray to resolve the matter," she reassures. Twilight continues on with the x-ray spell and scans Ryder's entire body. She gasps and then stops. "Girls… his vocal cord is torn."

"Seriously? How'd you lose your voice?" Nyx asked. Ryder replied using his hand signs while Nyx translated. "I lost my voice when I was wandering in the White Tail Woods, hunting for my next meal to keep me fed for weeks. Until I was suddenly attacked by a large wolf made of wood and it clawed and torn at my body, even clawed at my neck. Luckily, I had my ax with me so I hacked the beast’s head off and crawled out of the woods with my life.”

"It sounds like he got attacked by a timberwolf. I heard they only travel to the White Tail Woods during the time their pups are being nursed. He must've stumbled upon a father timberwolf who was either trying to protect its mate and/or bring you to its mate to feed her," Fluttershy said.

"They're vicious even when it's not mating season. They're very territorial. But mom, do you think we can help Ryder get his voice back?" Nyx asked.

"It's possible, but not easy and instant. As long as it wasn't too long ago, there's a chance. Otherwise, it'll take more than one unicorn or alicorn," Twilight said.

"You do have a point," Nyx replied, then looked back at Ryder. "How long ago was it when you got attacked by a timberwolf?"

Ryder gave a hand sign and used his fingers as numbers, and his answer shocked the young alicorn. “2 ½ years?!?!” Nyx asked in disbelief.

"Ooh, this is gonna take some teamwork. Sunset, Nyx, we're gonna have to combine our magic if we're gonna have a chance to help get his voice back," Twilight said.

"Are you sure it'll work with just the three of us?" Sunset asked.

"We're the only ones who've trained in advanced magical spells. If not, he'll stay mute for the rest of his life. So, are you girls ready?" Twilight asked.

"If it means restoring his voice, I'm game. He saved me, now it's time I paid him back," Nyx said.

"Anyone who's brave enough to save my niece's life, I'll gladly help them out. So, how does this particular spell work?" Sunset asked.

"First, we'll need to hold hands in a circle and whoever the spell is for, they have to be in the middle of the circle in order for it to work," Twilight said.

"Okay, but… Ryder's still kinda scared of us," Nyx said. The three alicorns look to him and see that he was now shivering in fear for what they were about to do to him to restore his voice. As they approached him, he backed up instantly. Twilight and Sunset stopped when they saw his reaction; however, Nyx continued to approach him. While he was still afraid, Ryder then starts to calm down and doesn’t seem to move when Nyx gets close to him. The dark alicorn then brings her hand up and gently places it on his cheek, at first he tensed up, but eventually, he relaxes his body and feels at ease by Nyx’s caring nature.

"There's no need to be afraid. We're here to help. You're not gonna get hurt. You have my word on that. You can trust me, okay?" Nyx reassured.

Ryder was silent for a bit and soon he nodded his head in reply while he brought his hand up and placed it over Nyx’s hand; feeling safe and secured with her presence.

She eases him up nice and steady then walks him over to Twilight and Sunset. Afterward, Nyx and her mom and aunt hold hands together, closing their eyes and light up their horns. Ryder stood in the middle, a bit scared, but still remained calm, trusting Nyx's judgment. Soon, a light enveloped him and it felt so warm and bright. The light soon faded around his neck where his vocals were. Once it was done, the girls let go of each other's hands.

"Well? Did it work?" Rainbow asked.

"Yes, but as I said, the spell's not instantaneous. It'll take some time before his vocals are completely restored. They'll heal over time. Nyx, since Ryder is more comfortable around you, you'll be in charge of caring for him," Twilight said.

"Okay, but what about the classes I have to teach?" Nyx asked.

“Don’t worry, we’ll send word to one of our school graduates and ask them to take over your classes,” Sunset replied.

"You mean.. Sandbar, Yona, Ocellus, Gallus, Smolder, and Silverstream?" Nyx asked.

"That's right. So you'll have more free time to spend with Ryder and help him recover," Twilight said, nodding.

"Ooh! That reminds me! Ah gotta git cookin'. He still needs to eat," AJ said before leaving the room with Pinkie hot on her tail.

“Sunset and I will be heading over to the library. We’ll have to look through all of the archives to see what kind of creature Ryder is.” Twilight said before she and Sunset left the room and headed straight for the library.

"I'm heading out to get some medicines to help disinfect any injuries left on him," Fluttershy said as she left the room.

"I'll be heading out to get my supplies ready for when the boy is all cleaned up and ready for some new measurements," Rarity said, leaving the room.

"As for me, I'm heading back to the school to train my students. But I'll be ready for when he's all juiced up and ready for a workout. Best of luck to you, Nyx," Rainbow said. The athletic pegasus left the room, leaving Nyx and Ryder all by themselves.

After everypony leaves the room, Nyx then helps Ryder back over to the bed and helps him lay down. She sat down on the edge of the bed as she watched over him now fast asleep, due to his weak stamina. She felt awful and sympathetic towards him, not wanting to think about all he’s been through.

'Poor guy. He didn't deserve to go through so much abuse in that forest. But… what is he and how did I not know about him? I've never seen anything like him,' she said in her thoughts. She continues to watch over Ryder as he sleeps, with a major question on her mind.

“What, in Equestria, are you?”