Author's Note

Greetings, Reader! This is my very first fan-fiction I have ever written! I hope it is to your liking, I have spent a lot of time this year thinking about it before I decided to act upon writing it!

Besides being my first actual fiction, this is the first time I have written anything more than a couple paragraphs for something that wasn't a discord chat, so please feel free to point out any and all errors I have made. This includes grammatical, as well as story or even pacing issues!

Any and all criticism is welcome, constructive or not! Like the story, but disagree with something? Think it is the most heinous thing you have ever seen? I would love to hear your thoughts!

1 - Pushing Forward

KER-CHUNK

The violent sound of crystal-on-metal contact echoes in the small cave, as you toss a glowing, magically charged crystal chunk into the modified coal furnace. Shutting the hatch, you take a couple steps back and admire your handy work. Standing in front of you are two curved stone pillars which stand parallel to each other around nine feet tall, and spaced apart by roughly four yards. Hand carved from two large boulders outside your cave, wooden support beams lean against the jagged pillars, a last-minute attempt at some sort of structural integrity. The tips of the pillars curve inwards towards each other, the crystal-lined pointed tips meeting at the top with about a foot of space between them.

It was ugly, hastily built, and to be blunt, could probably be knocked over and destroyed by a child. Regardless, according to Sentinel blueprints, it was complete. Wiping some sweat from your brow, you turn your attention back to the coal furnace. The thing had been torn apart and re-assembled, various arcane components attached to the inner walls, turning it into a makeshift magical receptacle. As the chunk settles at the bottom of the furnace, a few magical sparks bounce from the chunk, shooting out and connecting to several coiled copper rods that had been duct-taped to the sides of the furnace walls. The magical reaction was all you needed to see to confirm the furnace is working as intended.

"The construction of the Slipgate is complete. I will now begin the testing phase." The tinny sounding voice of VEGA crackled out, being broadcast from the speaker of a gramophone . "This will take approximately five to ten minutes to complete. I will update you if I find any missing components or issues." Every time VEGA spoke, the gramophone was engulfed in a magical aura. Your helmet, which was resting on the plate designed to accept vinyl discs, would spin at varying speeds, depending on how much energy VEGA routed to it. This was a crude, yet sufficient way to allow VEGA to speak outside of your helmet, or your chest-plate.

Anytime VEGA activated or called one of his many functions, various contraptions and home appliances scattered around the dark cave would light up or activate. The power source to all of this was being drawn from the eight large, cyan crystals that lined the eastern wall. These crystals would cast a deep blue glow, that would vary in brightness and intensity depending on how much energy VEGA required. Each crystal was about the size of a fifty liter beer keg, and were not easy to acquire without going unnoticed. All of these devices and crystals were taken with one purpose in mind; giving VEGA power. Without the help of your sentient, and very intelligent friend, any chance of returning to Earth is a lost cause.

Turning around, you trudge your way over to the small fire pit in the middle of the cave, sitting atop your less-than-luxurious boulder throne. Speared by a wooden skewer and cooking above the dancing flames is tonight's dinner; the left thigh of the lion-esque beast which once resided in this cave. Said beast was slumped over in the corner of your cave. You really should dispose of that, it's starting to rot. With a deep breath, you find yourself staring down into the pit, eyes glued on the dancing flames which touched and licked the underside of the meat.

It wasn't supposed to be like this... ((Scene Music))

You're used to being ripped away from your main objective, that's not what is concerning you right now. In fact, you almost find it humorous the amount of times demonic entities or people have attempted to thwart your plans by casting you into another dimension.

Almost.

What is carving a feeling of dread in your tortured, rage filled soul is where you have been cast to. You had a gut feeling from the moment you arrived, and that was only confirmed once you saw the populace inhabiting the town about a mile and a half south from here. Equis, specifically somewhere in Equestria. You haven't a clue what year it is, but judging by the unfamiliar and massive forest your cave resides in, coupled with the minuscule town you still haven't found the name of, it's been awhile.

Hell, seeing traces of ponykind for the first time in eons brought memories flooding to the front of your clouded mind. Memories of exploration to unmarked territory with Ceolmund, first contact with Equestrians, the peace treaty, helping with construction of their castle. Nostalgic memories, but the ones that matter to you the most are the memories of her.

Your special Horse Lady, or as her subjects knew her, Princess Celestia.

The deep orange flames rise and fall, growing in size and strength before dissipating not a second later. Reaching a hand forward, you slowly turn the sizzling thigh, inspecting it to see if it has been cooked enough. Giving the thigh a squeeze, you watch beads of clear, bubbly juice leak out of every inch of the thigh, trailing down and falling into the fire. The smell is heavenly, a mix between a t-bone steak on the grill, and a pan full of bacon. Just a little longer...

The thought of finally returning to Celestia has been the only thing that has truthfully kept you going all this time. All the shit you have endured. The realms and dimensions you have saved from their destruction, the overbearing guilt of the billions of lives you were too slow to save. You've endured all of it for the possibility that you might once be able to return home, and see her pretty face again.

But this wasn't how it was supposed to be. Your arrival here was supposed to mark the end of your suffering, a happy ending to your immortal tale of vengeance and rage. Instead, it has become a terribly inconvenient roadblock on your crusade to release Earth, and humanity from the clutches of Hell once again.

You'll never fully come to terms with it, but it seems as if you live to silently suffer. Every time you have found happiness in the last thousands of years, it has been merely a temporary distraction from the pain, always torn away from you in the end. Is she even alive anymore? If enough time has passed for an entire damn forest to grow, whose to say she wasn't overthrown, or passed away by some means? If she was alive, would she even accept you for what you've become?

"Initial testing has been completed. Are you ready for my analysis?" VEGA's calm voice bounces across the stone walls of your tiny base of operations, and snaps you out of your inner monologue of suppressed torment. It's probably for the better that you don't stay here long enough to find out the answers to those questions.

On the bright side, your dinner looks ready. Holding the thigh by the exposed bone, you detach it from the skewer. Rising and turning around, you give your artificial friend most of your attention, but not before taking a large and eager bite. It tastes suspiciously like pork.

"While the structural integrity of the Slipgate may easily be jeopardized by minimal physical contact, my stress tests have proven its resistance to the arcane energy of this world to be adequate enough to form entry and exit portals." Bolts of magic arc across the crystals mounted on your wall, before VEGA continues. "There is an issue, however. While the eight crystals we have acquired supply enough energy to power my most basic functionality, as well as allow me to operate the Slipgate, in its current raw state it is too unstable to be usable."

Taking another bite of the leg, your eyes glance over to the aforementioned power supply, which was pulsing violently and unpredictably. VEGA had a point, and you were well aware of it. VEGA is only able to run off the unstable power source because of how optimized and cleverly engineered his systems are. He can accept a wide range of energy sources, and while he has to dial back his functionality accordingly, he can run off minuscule amounts of power.

"During the testing phase, I conducted seventeen small scale simulations to test the effects routing raw energy to the Slipgate would have. Out of the simulations, sixteen ended in the destruction of the Slipgate, as well as the collapse of the cave. Only one simulation ended in a successful portal being opened. If you were to enter a portal without the required stable energy flow there is a 97.8% chance of the portals being broken mid travel, which would leave you trapped in the void between time and space."

An old-timey looking projector which was mounted on a tripod is engulfed in a magical aura, spinning to life as it casts an image against the cavern walls. It's a picture, taken from footage your helmet was recording a couple days ago. Said picture shows multiple townsponies fleeing from you. Looks of shock and horror are plastered on their faces, as a small arrow is layered over the display, pointing to a store in the background. "There is a wizard's shop located in the town 1.3 miles south of our location. The poster on the window advertises that they sell arcane regulators. I have marked its coordinates on your map."

You take in the blurry sight of the store, memorizing the swinging, over designed and flashy sign that hung above the door. Guess dinner will have to wait until later. Tossing the leg into the fire, you walk over to the gramophone and detach your helmet from the disc. Pulling it over your head, the HUD flickers to life, as a cushioned rubber ring slowly tightens and compresses around your neck, creating an artificial environment. As your armor calibrates itself, you shrug your shoulders and crack your knuckles.

Looks like it's time to go grocery shopping again. Giving your cave a quick glance around, you face the entrance, emerging out into the dark forest.

Your horn lights up a bright orange, as the neon lights to the large, flashy sign slowly flicker out for the last time. Giving a quick glance around the empty streets of the small town, you head inside the store, and lock up for the night. With a sad sigh, you take a look around the shop. Wonderlight's Wizardly Wares, you had poured your heart and soul into this little store, it had been your dream to run ever since you were a little colt. You had everything a unicorn wizard of any kind could ever want. Spell books, potion ingredients, you name it, and this shop had it. For Celestia's sake, a whole section of the store was dedicated to only the top of the line, state-of-the-art magic powered machinery that has been sweeping the country!

...

...But perhaps it wasn't the wisest choice to set up shop in a tiny junction populated almost entirely with Earth ponies. Against the name of the store, most of your customers are business owners seeking new automated tech. You moved out to Dodge Junction after your dear friend Cherry Jubilee had sent you a letter, asking if you could supply her cherry orchard with some new technology. Soon enough, some other businesses began asking for more equipment. Word spread around the general area, and it seemed like ponies from all around were asking for your automated, magical goods. You figured since there was such a high demand, maybe ponies would be willing to travel to get the parts they needed?

Oh well, it's a mistake you have learned a valuable lesson from, and at least you're not going out of business. Just earlier today you had arrived back home after being in Manehattan for several weeks. You were there on a business trip, attempting to find a new storefront. With all the factories and businesses there, surely they need someone like you to supply them.

Cardboard boxes scattered your store, as stock and essentials were in the process of being packaged for shipment. Leaning on the checkout counter, you give out a tired sigh, your eyes finding their way onto the picture mounted on the wall. It was from a couple years back, and had you and your daughter Hazelblossom posing outside of the shop. Her hooves were wrapped around you in a hug, your elderly face caught up in the middle of a laugh.

Fond memories. Speaking of Hazel, it's a good thing she had come out from Vanhoover on a suprise visit, she's been very helpful with packing to move. She arrived around a month ago, with not even a letter informing you she'd be coming. You'll admit though, she hasn't been acting like herself recently. Her arrival is out of character as well, seeing as she was running her own artist shop in Vanhoover. Anytime you've tried to bring up old in-jokes between the both of you she either acts confused, or sometimes even gets offended. Maybe you're just not the comedian you used to be when you were a young stallion.

A muffled scream of panic from outside quickly snaps you out of your thoughts, as you rush over to the window to take a look.

"The beast! It's returned! Everypony inside, lock your doors!" The grey pegasus stallion cries out, holding his brown stetson to his head as he gallops down the road.

Lights from the houses and buildings all around began to turn on, some residence even poking their heads out of their windows, looks of terror plastered on their faces. Beast? What exactly has happened while you were gone? More curious than scared, you decide to go out and ask what all the commotion was about.

Trotting over and opening the door, you wave the stallion over. He notices you immediately and halts his sprint, dust kicking up in front of you.

"What's this beast you're so scared of, Sonny?" You simply ask, your elderly voice doing nothing to comfort him.

"I-It comes from the Everfree! N-near the castle ruins!" He stammered out, gasping for air as he tries to explain. "It... It comes almost every other day! It just takes whatever it pleases, and leaves!"

A bright white flash from behind the stallion catches your attention. Tilting your head to see, you spot a young mare poking out the window of her second floor, a camera in her magical grasp. Your attention is drawn down to what she was taking a picture of. Sweet mother of Celestia...

"That's him! Get inside, lock the doors!" The stallion shakes your shoulders, shoving you back through your door as he runs off to alert the rest of the town.

Doing as the young stallion suggested, you re-lock the front door, and take cover behind the window, eyes glued to the monster outside. It was tall, easily as tall as a minotaur, and even stood on two legs like one. That's where the similarities ended. Its body was covered in some sort of crazy looking armor, face being all but concealed by the deep blue visor of its helmet.

You can see what has everypony so distraught. Its very presence is the embodiment of rage. The way it carries itself, and walks down the town road as if it owns the place. The beast's hands are balled up into tight fists, nearly shaking as it snaps its head up to glare death at the mare who snapped a photo seconds earlier.

You can hear her muffled screech, as she slams the window and ducks down, before the beast strides over to her house, standing below her window. You can only watch in horror as the beast jumps up and clings to her wall, pulling himself up to her balcony. You can hear the mare yell and scream, throwing her body against the window as she desperately tries to keep it closed. It's a lost cause, and without even breaking a sweat or struggling, the beast rips open her window, entering inside. Cracking open your own window to try and get a better sight, you can hear her scream bloody murder, coupled with yelling that sounds like Mayor Buckington.

The curtain obscures the conflict from you, but after a few seconds the screaming comes to a stop, followed by the muffled sound of something being crushed into pieces. Dear Celestia... Did that thing just kill her? Moments later the beast trudges his way over to the window once again. Jumping out the window and landing on the dirt road with a mighty thud, he drops the broken remains of the mare's camera on the ground. He tilts his head to either side and shrugs his shoulders, before turning to look directly at your store.

You stare at him.

He stares at you.

Your head is poking out of your window, and he begins to walk his way over to you, fists clenched tighter than they were before.

Not good.

You slam the window closed and shove as many heavy objects as you can against the door. Through the corner of your eye you can see him closing in with terrifying persistence. Jumping behind the counter, your horn lights up as you get a magical missile spell ready. You've never been a fighter, but owning a store like this means you need to be prepared for intruders. Your legs begin to quiver as you see the thing walk up to the door.

Knock knock knock...

You're shocked to hear the sound of knocking come from your wooden door. Maybe he's trying to ambush you? Catch you off guard before he destroys you with his laser vision? You decide the best course of action is to stay silent.

KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK

"N-no pony is home! W-we're closed!" Your bladder is threatening to empty itself, legs on the verge of collapsing inwards. Seconds later, your ears are assaulted by the deafening sound of your door being smashed in. The wooden door swings against the wall as one of the hinges breaks in half. There it stood, its chest rising and falling slowly as it scanned your store. Without waiting for a welcome, the beast leans down and enters through the doorway, which was way too small for a creature of his size.

It's now or never. Your horn glows a bright orange as you jump up from behind the counter, squinting your eyes as you channel all your energy to fire a magic missile right into its chest, intent on ending this foul beast's life. His chest recoils at the impact, magical sparks flying everywhere as you shoot another. Missile after missile, you pump his body full of the most powerful magic you can muster. As you rain hellfire down upon him, you can hear him grunt in what sounds like pain. Dashing towards you with a sudden boost of speed you were not prepared for, you can feel him wrap a hand around your horn, causing your magic to fade out instantly.

"L-let go of me, foul beast! L-leave and never return!" You cry out, eyes closed as you await the end.

But it never comes. After several seconds of deafening silence, you risk cracking open an eye, to find a pair of small eyes glaring down at you, two brown eyebrows furrowed. His grip on your horn is firm, but shockingly gentle for how big and brutish he is. Despite being obscured by the visor, being this close you can actually make out details on his face. He's got pale, almost tan colored skin, with no mane or fur besides a small tuft on the top of his head. His eyes appear to be a light, almost greenish brown.

Despite the presence of unfiltered rage he gives off, the look on his face tells a different story. As he stares into your own eyes, his furrowed brows and tired eyes give off an annoyed look, as if he is silently asking, "Are you done yet?" As you fumble around in his grasp, he releases his grip on your horn. You slump down against the wooden floor, as he stands up and turns to scan over your many isles of products, taking interest in the section dedicated to your automated goods.

Is he... Shopping?

Getting your bearings, you slowly stand and walk up behind the creature, clearing your throat. "W-what... What are you here for?" You managed to squeak out. He turns his head towards you, before looking back towards the many isles. Being so close is absolutely terrifying. It seems like every inch of his armor could be used as a weapon. The gauntlets covering his hands look beaten and scratched, indicating how much use he gets out of them. It's hard to make out in the dark, but you swear you can see some blood staining the right gauntlet.

The beast walks down one of the larger, open isles, running a finger over the price tags on the shelves. This is isle G-8, it's dedicated to power supplies, and ways to either enhance or regulate power flow. Taking a chance, you trot in front of him, as you look back and forth between the shelves and his face, trying to figure out what he's looking for.

"I-I must apologize for my behavior back there... I didn't know you w-were a customer! I have only the m-most advanced in magical equipment here. I've got everything from power banks, fusion cores, arcane power flow regulators-" You yelp, as you feel a hand grab your tail, stopping you in your tracks. Looking up, you can see the beast has knelt down to meet you at eye level, a look of determination in those small eyes of his.

"A-ah... Are you interested in a regulator?" You squeak out, as the beast gives you nothing more than a small nod, releasing the grip on your grey tail. Swallowing the lump in your throat and fighting the urge to cry, you climb back on all fours and escort him towards said products. "Now I'm not sure what size you're looking for, b-but I can guarantee all of these are good for either industrial, or even home use!" You put on your best salespony voice, not doing a very good job.

His eyes scan over the various contraptions, before he reaches a hand out and picks one up, settling on the largest.

"S-she's a beauty, isn't she? Large ones like that are typically used for regulating magic that comes from natural sources, like a crystal-" Your cut off as the beast turns around, heading for the door with your product in his hand. It's clear by his direction that he has no intent to pay, and while the store-owner inside of you is screaming to try and stop him, the realist in you knows that will probably mean the end of your life.

You follow behind him as he leaves your establishment, a crowd of ponies that had gathered outside stare in awe as he simply begins walking back towards the Everfree. Ponies back up and separate as he nears them, clearing a path for himself as he leaves town. Once the beast is out of hearing distance, it seems like the entire town surrounds you, interrogating you.

"Did he attack you?

"What did he do? Are you hurt?"

"He just stole that thingy! He didn't even pay!"

"Did you try to stop him?"

"Did he make you do terrible things? Torment you in ways unimaginable?!"

"Enough!" You yell out, the beginnings of a headache forming from all the voices at once. Rubbing your temples with a hoof, you scan over the crowd, who is staring back at you awaiting your response. "No, he didn't hurt me. As a matter of fact, I tried to hurt him... I thought he was going to kill me, so I used magic missiles on him."

The crowd's eyes go wide, as murmured conversations wash over the townsponies. "He knows magic missile? I thought that spell was outlawed..." You can hear a mare ask to her friend, beginning to feel a tad ashamed for your choice of action.

It's about this time your daughter Hazelblossom slowly emerges from the store, standing by your side with a scared look on her face. "I-is it gone?" Her voice squeaked out, sounding raspy, and frightened.

Placing a hoof over her shoulder, you pull her into a comforting hug. "He's gone, Sweetie, and Papa's okay." You can see her peer up at you, giving a weak smile.

"This has gone on long enough!" The voice of the mayor yells out, shoving his way through the crowd and meeting you face to face. "I'm terribly sorry for this, Wonderlight. I've been so busy attempting to establish some sort of a neighborhood watch, that I forgot to inform you about what's been happening." Mayor Buckington extends a hoof towards you, which you slowly take hold of, giving him a firm shake. "For the past three or four days, this-" Buckington waves his hoof in the air, looking for an answer "-beast, as we've named it, will emerge from the Everfree and terrorize our town."

You release your grip on your daughter, who opts to stand by your side. "Well, I can tell you he's definitely spooky. He doesn't seem to have very good manners, either." You tried lightening up the mood with some classic Wonderlight sarcasm.

"The beast has raided and stolen from six establishments in the last 96 hours. That's including your shop, Wonderlight." Mayor Buckington remains stern as ever, before continuing. "Even if it hasn't harmed a single ponies' life, the cost of damages and stolen goods range in the thousands of bits. It wiped Cherry Jubilee's factory clean of her energy crystals!"

Oh, that explains why he took the largest regulator you had. Scratching the back of your head, you kick some dust up from the ground. "So... What are we going to do about him? The missiles I shot him with were powerful enough to kill a manticore, and all he did was shake it off like it was nothing.

Mayor Buckington gives out a sharp whistle, as the camera wielding mare from before emerges from the crowd, a traumatized look plastered on her young face. She shakily levitates a picture to him, which he slaps on the ground in front of you. "Tomorrow at sunrise I'm headed to Canterlot to meet with Princess Celestia. I'll show her this, and hopefully she'll take it serious enough to send us some much needed help."

The picture on the ground shows the beast in all his terrifying detail. He is facing down the road, away from the camera. With the flash, you are able to make out more specifics of the armor's design, how asymmetric it is, the various hues of green, orange, and brown used, and a distinctive runic symbol painted in red on his helmet.

"I'm not sending any of my townsfolk into the Everfree. Whatever that thing is, it's nothing that I've ever seen mentioned in any history book. This is a job for the Royal Guards." Mayor Buckington says, before giving another loud whistle. "Everypony, return to your homes! Keep the doors locked and stay inside at all costs. I'll only be gone for the day, but I don't want any of you hurt."

As the mayor begins commanding his townsponies, you wave your daughter to join you inside, as you wonder what will come of all this.