Save My Life: The Journey Home

by Microsoft_2016

Rating: mature
Tags: Porn, Tragedy, Starswirl the Bearded, Profanity, Violence, Sex, Twilight Sparkle, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Death, Human, Romance, Tirek
Length: 110488

The story of a human with a troubled past experiencing adventures in Equestria and finding something more than friendship.

The First Installment of the Save My Life Series

We all wonder what true happiness is in life. And then there is joy, something very different from happiness. For Caleb, he thought he knew what that was, but a series of tragic events in his childhood plus physical abuse in his household changed it all. With his hardened heart, he ends up in Equestria and eventually encounters the Mane Six. They try to reach out, but he distances himself from them. Twilight feels something is going on with him and tries to examine further, but his heart is filled with years of hatred and rage. He tries to find something more in life, but what if it was right in front of him with the pony that seriously cares about him? Can Twilight shatter and heal Caleb's stone cold heart, or will Caleb completely shut himself out from everyone he has come into contact with?

Disclaimer: I have "borrowed" the logo Save My Life from the Boston Trauma TV Show, so original credit for that logo goes to ABC. I do not own that nor do I claim to. I don't have the money for a lawsuit, so I ask that you don't sue me because I lack the funds for it.

The Mature tag is for sexual relations towards the end of the story and reliving of tragic events throughout Caleb's life in the story. If you do not want to see that, then please skip over it and I'll even give a heads up in the chapter that intercourse happens. If you do, please read at your own discretion. I am not responsible for causing any sort of trauma to younger audiences. So, I ask that if you can't handle that in this story, do not read it and that way, we won't have problems. Thanks and have a nice day!

Everyone in this story is 18+ so there is no child predation going on here. No need to send in the FBI in at my house.

Published 2022-06-20 22:10:00 UTC
Last updated 2022-11-24 02:30:19 UTC

Chapter 1: The Prophecy

[Start film with Paramount Mountain]

It was a quiet night in Starswirl's library. He was searching through different books and was writing in his journal. He had a difficult choice coming up ahead and he was doing all he could to research upon it. All of Equestria could be at stake here and if he made the wrong move, himself and the nation would be screwed. Nothing about this would be very easy, but he knew that he had to keep Equestria safe no matter what the cost may be. He stared at the journal for a second and then continued to write. The journal said:

Dear Journal,

Life can throw many challenges at us, yet they teach us so much on how to live it. I would have never anticipated that something so simple could be something very complex. Each of us have a role to play in this world and it's up to us to figure out what that means. As I write this down, I fear that Equestria is in grave danger. The Pillars and I have taken down many foes before, but this is far bigger than that. A pony that I once knew has turned to the darkness and has vowed for revenge on his enemies. He is inching closer and time is running short for me.

But we shall leave behind a seed that will grow into something one day that will stand against the darkness. I also sense that a great warrior shall come out of this as well. He will be filled with strength and courage, yet suffer tragedy and heartbreak at the same time. He will find solace, but it will be tested many times. He will also find a partner in life and they shall settle down together after issues are resolved. However, a great threat will emerge that will threaten to end all he has ever known. He will be tested and beaten down, but he will never break. I know that he will become something great one day and will serve to protect Equestria along with this seed. The hour is growing near and my time may come.

But anyone who comes along this journal must know that this was for the best. I wish I had a choice in the matter, but my foe has other ideas. Myself and the Pillars must make a grave sacrifice, but it will be for the greater good of this land. It is young and needs nurturing to become a nation that will be great. It will need protectors for this land to thrive and prosper. Which is why I leave with this seed planted and the great warrior I speak of. I do not know when he will appear, but he will show up when the time comes.

This could very well be my last entry in this journal and if anyone reads this, just know that Equestria is a much safer place now than it was before at the time I'm writing this. As for now, I must venture off to another location with the Pillars and contain this foe once and for all. I only hope that it will be enough.

Farewell,

Starswirl the Bearded

He picked up his journal and he ran out of the door from his library. He knew that it was probably his last entry in that journal, but he wanted to make it count just in case if he never returned to Equestria at all. Many will probably wonder where he disappeared off to, but he is doing this for the greater good of Equestria and shall leave it behind in good hooves. He's confident that the forces of good will be able to maintain this land and vanquish evil during his absence. But he's worried about the warrior that he spoke of in his journal. Sure, he will become a great and mighty warrior, but he'll have to suffer heartbreak and tragedy at the same time because that was what the prophecy spoke of.

He could only hope though that the warrior will prevail every single challenge thrown at him just like the prophecy states. He met someone before that seemed to fit this description, but he wasn't sure who it actually was. He only stated what the prophecy mentioned and he wrote it down in his journal to keep as notes just in case he ever witnessed it. The chances of that were unlikely at this point, but he wasn't sure if he would even survive this, so he had to write it down for all intensive purposes. He didn't want to have to face this foe again, but they had left him and the Pillars no choice, so this was what had to be done in order to keep Equestria safe from harm.

It took so long for the pony races to come together as one nation and this foe threatened to tear it all apart. Starswirl simply could not let that happen. The nation was far too young to endure such strain in its early beginnings. Yet, when he was on his travels, he noticed that the country he visited experienced the same issues when it first formed. He discovered many amazing things over there and he wrote down many notes about the place so he could keep track of this place he visited. It fascinated him how much technological advancements were there and he spent a lot of time in museums studying it and writing down more notes. Seriously, this dude took a lot of notes when it came to this stuff. So much stuff that Equestria had yet to experience and fully enjoy. Starswirl knew that Equestria would reach this at some point, but from what he read in the history books in libraries, Equestria was set more in ancient biblical times when he visited this place.

As much fun it was to speculate on the different adventures he had, he had a mission to complete. So, he picked up the pace and started running faster towards this location. It was time to contain the foe and restore Equestria with perfect balance in the world. Hopefully, the seed and the warrior will do their parts and they will protect Equestria from harm and maintain the realm from evil. He could only pray that this would be enough as he stared at the foe right in front of him who was ready to exact his revenge on his enemies.

Author's Note

AN: Well, the first chapter of this story is done. I'm back at it again. This is something new I wanted to try out and I came up with the idea after watching Sonic the Hedgehog 2 a few weeks ago. Great movie by the way and I definitely recommend you watch it with your family or by yourself if you want. It appears I can get it through auto moderation and it should be up very soon. If you're a moderator reading this, I know the rules and I don't think I broke any. So, I think we're good. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: Story time! Fast forward many years later and we get to see what Caleb is up to nowadays. He does a lot of cool things and once he is done fighting crime, he heads back home to relax. However, he notices how lonely he feels and stares at a photo of someone very close to him. He is on a mission to find an important artifact, but will he be able to find it and in time?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 2: Obliteration Without A Goal

It was a very busy night in the city of Baltimare. It was very rainy and cold throughout the city and ponies were gathering for the big holiday coming up in the next few days despite the inclement weather. However, this is the one time of year where crime is through the roof and many criminals are able to get away with their crimes. For example, one just robbed the store when everyone left and held the store clerk at gunpoint. Another one did slashing of tires. But the worst one was a small gang that was always known for getting into trouble.

They would do graffiti on public buildings, they would smash windows, and they would loot stores. After they would finish, they would run out into the streets, but when they saw the Moon in the sky, it would create fear. They would stare at the shadows in the dark alleyways and believe he was standing there. Caleb or known as Knuckles. They would get so scared that they would start backing away and they would get hit by the horse taxis. After getting yelled at, they would run away as fast as they could and seek shelter somewhere. Even if they dropped something, they would just leave it because they were afraid he would use it to his advantage.

They believed he was hiding in the shadows, but he was really part of the shadows. The train came to a full stop and one of the passengers got off to go home. He saw this group with makeup on earlier being very rowdy on the train and laughed as they did their crimes throughout the city. So, this pony got up and stood at the door as he wanted nothing to do with this whatsoever. However, the gang caught on to this and decided to ambush the guy when he got off the train. The pony saw this and after standing in shock for a few moments, he started running.

The gang took that as a challenge and started chasing after him. They eventually got him cornered and they dragged him over to the back of the wall. The pony screamed for help, but that didn't really do anything. The gang leader presented him to the recruit and the recruit noticed the Moon in the sky. The gang leader brought him over and commanded him to knock this pony out. The recruit was about to do it, but they all stopped when they heard a very loud noise behind them. They stared into the shadows and the leader pulled out his sword.

Knuckles stepped out and the entire gang just laughed at him as if he was stupid or something. Knuckles' eyes glowed red for a second and had a slight smile on his face. When he stopped, he glared at all of the gang members. The gang leader asked him who the heck he was supposed to be and Knuckles ignored him. The two stepped forward towards each other and stopped a few feet in front of each other. The leader asked "Are you trying to be the tough guy? Huh?! Because I don't see it from a guy like you whatever the [BLEEP] you're supposed to be."

The rest of the gang laughed along with it and Knuckles simply hardened his gaze. He said "It's none of your gosh darn business whoever the heck I am. I eat criminals for a midnight snack, not to come chat with them over some tea and biscuits." The gang winced at the burn he just did and the leader got mad at Knuckles' remark. This guy really had the nerve to show up in here and insult him like that in front of everyone. He said "So now you're a comedian?! HA! I've never seen a bigger loser in my life. You're gonna pay for that."

"You don't want to do this, dude. You're gonna regret it." Knuckles said as he watched the gang leader pull out his sword.

"I don't care, man! If you're so tough, show me what you got. Quit talking smack and fight me like a real stallion!"

"Fine, have it your way." Knuckles said. He balled up his fists and charged up his red lightning. The gang leader went for the first hit, but Knuckles dodged it and threw punches in every part of the gang leader's body. He headbutted the gang leader and knocked the sword out from his possession. He slammed him to the ground and landed the knockout punch to the leader's face. He glared at the leader and said "I told you not to mess with me, you annoying little prick. But dumb criminals like you never listen, do you?! You think you're the best criminal out there until you get your ass whooped by an alien human who lived in a city full of crime."

"W-who ar-are yo-you?" The gang leader asked, dripping with fear.

Knuckles just smiled and said "You can just call me Knuckles. I've seen this kind of thing happen many times throughout my lifetime, but they all keep making the same dumb mistake over and over again. Do you know what that is?" He gave a very creepy smile and the leader shook his head no in fear. Knuckles took that as a sign to continue. "They are always afraid of the shadows. Anytime a criminal sees that, they think I am there. I know I can't be everywhere at once, but they don't know where I am. Maybe if you paid more attention in school, you'd figure that out by now. Oh, and by the way, I'm vengeance." He reared up his fist and punched him one more time, which knocked the gang leader unconscious.

He stared at the rest of the gang and they all started whispering amongst themselves as they now knew who this guy was. They all charged towards him and Knuckles began fighting them off. He punched multiple guys in the face and tossed them away. When they tried to come down low, he would simply kick them with his feet and punch them in the face. One wrapped himself around Knuckles, but Knuckles side punched him with his arm and freed himself. He picked him up and body slammed him to the ground. He then picked him up again and spun him around in a circle as a tool to knock out the other gang members. After he was done spinning around the pony, he threw him once again and the guy crashed behind the wall while breaking the glass at the same time.

Knuckles sighed heavily to catch his breath and said "You all wanted to get crazy?! Well, you got crazy." He yelled out his battle cry and slammed his fist into the ground, which created a red shockwave across the station and sent everyone flying away. The ones that remained took off and Knuckles watched them leave. "Ahh. My favorite technique. Man, I love doing that one." After a few seconds, he looked at the pony that originally got jumped by the gang and the pony was trembling in fear.

"Pl-please d-don't hurt me!" He said as he watched Knuckles inch closer to him.

Knuckles stopped a few feet from him and said "Get out of here, dude. It's not safe out here. Always watch your back for criminals and never let them take you alive or dead." The pony got up and ran out as fast as he could.

Knuckles stared into space for a few seconds before leaving the train station. He hopped into his version of the Batmobile and took off into the sky. So, this was his personal vehicle he would take all the time whenever he was out. It had everything he needed in there. It had an infotainment screen in the center, navigation, radar to track enemies, machine guns, turrets, cupholders, heated and cooled seats, massaging seats, and last but certainly not least, his personal music playlist. He picked out a song and pressed play.

"Oh yeah! My favorite! The perfect song to finish off a great fight. I definitely have to turn this one up." Knuckles said as he heard the song Monster from Skillet being played. He turned up the volume and started to jam out a little bit. You see, he loved listening to rock music and Skillet was his favorite rock band to listen to on a daily basis. It helped him get through most of his life and it was encouraging for him whenever he felt down. He turned up the jet thrusters and he whisked through the city as fast as he could.

Flying past skyscrapers and going under the giant bridge that was right there. It created a wave of water behind him as the vehicle touched the water and he headed back to his place of residence: Brody Manor on Brody Island. Yeah, he had a small little island that was in Horseshoe Bay, but it was closer to Hayseed Swamp since he didn't want all of the attention living in the city. However, he could still see the city of Baltimare very easily and view all of downtown from his mansion. He was originally from the city of Baltimore, but when he came here, he noticed that there was a city similar to his hometown, so he moved there as soon as he could.

Unfortunately, he also noticed that this city had a similar crime rate as his hometown and that made him annoyed. But, it gave him an excuse to fight off crime during the night and terrify criminals just by him hiding in the shadows. However, it was now day time and he had to go home. He saw the pretty sunlight and an automated voice asked for the password. He said with enthusiasm "Criminals suck!" The computer thanked him and some buoys sprayed some smoke on the vehicle to cover it up from prying eyes. He opened the door and flew in between the caverns that resided underneath the island. He sped through the tunnel and pressed another button to open the hatch doors. He slowed down the vehicle and it came to a stop. He turned off the vehicle by pressing the engine start stop button and jumped out.

"Hey Vader, I'm home!" He said proudly as his voice echoed throughout the caverns. It was sort of awkward, but Knuckles could care less.

"Welcome home, sir. Initializing Knucklecave operating system." The bridge started connecting the pieces together and Knuckles just walked across.

"Hey Vader!" Knuckles shouted as he wanted its attention.

"What's up, Knuckles?" The computer asked with curiosity.

"Put this sword in the museum in for me, will ya?" Knuckles said as he pulled out the sword dropped on the ground from the gang leader at the train station.

"Certainly, sir." The computer said as it took it from his hands and put it up in his collection of stuff in his trophy room.

Knuckles said thank you and the computer said it was no problem. "Anything exciting happen while I was gone?" Knuckles asked to see if there was anything new that had happened while he was out fighting crime.

"You have four pieces of mail, sir." The computer said, letting him know that was how much mail he received.

"Great, what did I get?" He asked with curiosity as he wanted to know what kind of mail he received. He usually didn't get much mail because of being on a remote island, but when he did get mail, it made him curious to see what he would get.

"You have this weeks Bitsaver, two bills, and a coupon for Sofas and Quills. It is supposed to expire in two weeks. But I've heard that some stores will honor them past the expiration date." The computer stated, letting Knuckles know the contents of his mail that he received.

"Copy that." Knuckles said as he received the information that his computer was telling him.

"Also, Reginald is on the 17th floor, grouting tiles in the second bathroom of the fifth master bedroom. Do you want me to tell Reginald that you are home?" The computer asked with curiosity.

"No, that's cool, Vader. Thanks for the update. I should probably have some dinner." Knuckles said as he started to get hungry. He took off his outfit and hopped into his bathrobe that he wore around the house when he wasn't going anywhere.

"Reginald left your shrimp in the fridge." The computer informed him as it heard him speak about food.

"Oh, my favorite. I can't wait." He headed over to the elevator and pressed the button that would lead him towards the kitchen. The doors closed and he traveled up the elevator. After about 30 seconds, the doors opened again and Knuckles walked out. He opened the doors to the kitchen and went over to the fridge. He grabbed his shrimp and put it on a plate. He went over to the microwave and put it inside. He accidentally set the timer to 20 minutes and he realized his mistake.

"Oh, not 20 minutes. Stupid." He said as he attempted to fix it and put it on for two minutes. He pressed start and watched the food spin around in the microwave aimlessly. He sighed and started to click his tongue rhythmically as he was waiting for his food to be done in the microwave. Once it finished, he took it out and went back down to his mancave. He sat down in one of the boats he made and began eating away at his food. He thought it was quite tasty and it was the best alternative to meat since he kind of figured that this world didn't take too kindly to meat eaters. So, he thought it would be good to stick with seafood so no one could complain.

Of course, his butler was a little disgusted by it, but he understood that Knuckles needed to eat some sort of protein, so he went out of his way to get that for him, despite his own personal feelings for it. Knuckles put his plate away and he pulled out his guitar. One of his favorite hobbies was to play the electric guitar and he had a special V type that his grandparents gave him when he was young. He made sure to keep it in mint condition and it has been with him all of these years. He plugged in his amp and figured it was time to play a song.

He played very hard at this song and sung with passion. No one was around to tell him that he couldn't do this, so he did it to his heart's content. He even snapped his fingers to get extra instruments playing in the background so it could sound like an actual song and not just a guitar solo, even though that was pretty cool and he loved doing that. After he was done with that, he took his plate with him and put it in the sink in the kitchen. He washed it off and put it in the dishwasher. He walked down the hallway and went over to the theater room he had. He sat down in the front row and turned on the projector.

He pressed a button on the remote to reveal loudspeakers for that optimum sound quality and he scrolled down the source inputs. He selected HDMI 2 and the screen told him that there was no signal and the device was not detected. He said "Oh, wait. There, which is, uh... okay." He fumbled around a little bit and selected HDMI 3. He finally got a movie playing on the screen and began watching it. He was watching Jerry Maguire and picked up at the scene where Tom Cruise was staring at his wife. He turned it up to max volume and popped the popcorn in his mouth. He heard Cruise say "You complete me" and he laughed at that remark because of how funny it sounded to him.

He heard Renee Zellweger sniffle at those words and say "Shut up. You had me at hello." Knuckles just chuckled at that and said "Love it!" He looked around and sighed sadly as he noticed no one else was with him. He popped the popcorn in his mouth and continued to watch the movie. Once he was done, he came out into the living room and went over to the portraits on the wall. He saw the big picture of himself and his little brother together and stared at it sadly.

He said "Hey, David. I, uh... I stopped some more street criminals today. I wish you could have seen me. I think you would have been really proud." He felt guilt and attempted to walk away.

"There you are!" a new voice said. Knuckles was surprised at the voice and punched the dude away as part of natural instinct. Plus, he had really good reflexes. After a few seconds, he noticed it was just Reginald and felt embarrassed for doing that.

Reginald crashed underneath the piano and Knuckles said apologetically "Oh, Reginald! I'm so sorry! I have incredible reflexes." He rushed over to help his butler, but Reginald was able to get out just fine.

He said "No, it's all my fault, sir. I should have known better than to sneak up on you like that." He did have a habit for doing that and sometimes, he would pay the consequences for doing so because he was coming into contact with a supernatural human being who could knock anyone out with one punch.

Knuckles kicked the plate remorsefully and said "Sorry, I was just lost in thought, and as you know, when I'm in there, I'm in deep." Often times, whenever he is lost in thought, his mind wanders off and begins to think things that his mind tries to bury. But, sometimes he can't help it.

Reginald put the items back on the plate and asked "Were you looking at the old family pictures again?"

Knuckles pretended to act stupid and said "At the what? The old family... Oh, yes! I see what you mean. Look at that! The old gang. Yeah. No, I wasn't."

Reginald picked up on the denial and said "I see. Sir, if you don't mind my saying, I'm a little concerned. I've seen you go through similar phases in the last five years and it's getting more noticeable as time went on. Do you want to talk about how you're feeling right now?"

Knuckles had a glare on his face and told Reginald "I don't talk about feelings, Reginald. I don't have any, I've never seen one. I'm a night-stalking, crime-fighting vigilante, and a rock metal rapping machine. I don't feel anything emotionally, except for rage. 24/7, 365, at a million percent. And if you think that there's something behind that, then you're crazy. Good night, Reginald." For Knuckles, the last thing he wanted to talk about was his feelings. He had experienced so much trauma in his past that it would even make The Rock start crying.

He didn't want to talk about it then, and he definitely didn't want to talk about it now. Reginald stared at him blankly and said "Sir, it's morning." He pressed the button on the remote and the curtains opened up to reveal the Sunlight. Knuckles shielded his eyes and hissed at the bright light. Reginald said "Master Caleb, you live on an island, figuratively and literally."

Knuckles could care less about that and said with enthusiasm "Yeah, I love it." He didn't want anything to do with the city life at all, so he had this giant mansion 20 miles away from downtown Baltimare so that he could live in peace without any disturbances whatsoever.

Reginald shook his head and said "You can't spend the rest of your life alone, dressed in black, listening to angry music, and staying up all night. It's not healthy for you sir, and I'm worried that if this continues, your health will start to decline."

Knuckles denied that and said "Yes, I can, 'cause I'm Knuckles!" He pulled out his projectiles and got into a defensive stance to show off. This was his lifestyle and he couldn't have his butler tell him that he couldn't do this. If he stopped doing that, then he wouldn't be himself anymore. He would be this lovey-dopy, touchy-feely, soft wimp and the thought disgusted him. He was in that phase once and that didn't turn out well for him.

Reginald looked at him with concern and asked "But don't you think it's time you finally faced your greatest fear?" Knuckles didn't like the sound of that and he started asking which ones it was. However, Reginald kept saying those were not it and finally said "Caleb, listen. Your greatest fear is being a part of a family again." He pointed towards the family portrait and Knuckles stared with worry.

Knuckles denied it again and said "Nope, now it's snake clowns, because you put that idea in my head." Reginald attempted to talk once again, but Knuckles ignored him. He got down on the floor and started to do push-ups. He said "Time for push-ups! One, two... We're going to 1,000."

Reginald looked at him like he was ridiculous and said "I'm afraid that's not possible, sir."

Knuckles denied it and said "It is possible. I'm already at 20." He didn't care what his butler said. He did 1,000 push-ups before and he'll do it again. Doing this will help keep him at full strength all the time and be prepared for any bad guys that try to fight him.

Reginald looked at him and said "Sir, you're scheduled to go out and venture into the city."

Knuckles stopped what he was doing and said with anger "What?! No! I don't wanna do that!" He just wanted to go to his office and now his butler wanted him to go out into that city to socialize?! Absolutely not. Never in a million years. The last time he socialized with anyone, someone close to him got killed. So, he was not going to do that no matter how hard his butler tries to get him to do it.

Reginald didn't care and said "You're going to have a great time! You might meet some new ponies! You could even make some new friends." As he was saying that, Knuckles was saying no the entire time and rolling around on the floor in defiance. The last thing he was going to do was to socialize with a bunch of strangers in one of the biggest cities in the world and one that had the highest crime rate.

Knuckles glared at him and said "Look, Reginald. I appreciate you trying to do this for me, but I don't have time for this right now. I am currently on a quest to find the Master Diamond and I don't need to be wasting it spending time with a bunch of strangers in the most crime ridden city in Equestria. I just can't do that right now."

Reginald looked at him and said "But, sir. This could be really important for your mental health and you might even be able to fix it."

Knuckles didn't care and said "I said no, Reginald! My grandparents tried searching for that diamond for years and you know the rest of the story. I have to finish what they started. I didn't need friends then and I certainly do not need them now. I work alone and I prefer to keep it that way. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go up to my office space to see if I can find any clues on the location of the Master Diamond."

He turned around and headed up the stairs towards his office. Reginald sighed and said "If only you could see how alone you truly were, sir." Knuckles marched down the hallway and opened the doors to his office. He shut the doors and sat down in his office chair. He sighed heavily and leaned back into the chair.

"Darn Reginald. What was he thinking telling me that this could be "important for my mental health?" He should know better than to say something stupid like that after all of the tragic heartbreak I have suffered over the years. *sighs* It doesn't matter now. I just need to find the clues on the location to the Master Diamond and then I can rest here in my glorious mansion for the rest of my life. Now, where did I put that map? Hmm. A-ha! There it is!"

He grabbed the map and set it down on the desk. "Let's see here. Now, I have searched pretty much all of the major cities in Equestria at this point and I've found nothing. I know it's here somewhere, but I'm unsure where. I will find it though, no matter what it takes. And I will take out anyone and anything that gets in my way of finding it. Alright, so if it's not here in Baltimare or in Fillydelphia, Manehattan, Rainbow Falls, The Crystal Empire, Vanhoover, Las Pegasus, Appaloosa, Dodge City, or Canterlot, then where else can I look?" He looked around on the map and his eyes landed on a small town right outside of Canterlot.

He groaned and leaned back even further in the chair. "Not Ponyville. That's the last place I would want to go right now. That place just screams soft, happy, huggy-feely, type garbage and it disgusts me entirely. *sighs* However, this is the only other place in Equestria I have not checked and it could be there somewhere. I'll just have to lay low and hope that no one notices me at all." He really didn't want to do that, but what choice did he have? He was on a quest for the greatest artifact of his lifetime and he would even travel to Ponyville to search for it, even if it meant being surrounded by a bunch of friendship. Yuck! He just cringed at that and shivered in disgust as he thought about it. "I'll set out for Ponyville tomorrow morning and search for the diamond. I can only hope that I'll find it."

He started to put the map away, but he noticed the photo of his grandparents sitting on his desk. He sighed with sadness and stared at it. He said "I'll find it for you guys. I promise I won't let you down. I'll find it and restore our family legacy we once had." He got up and put the map away. He looked at the photo one more time and then closed the door on the way out. He was going to venture to Ponyville tomorrow, but he had to get some sleep first and once he did so, he needed to avoid as much socialization as possible so that he could find this thing. Once he found it, he could claim it as his once more and become something great that most people in his life doubted he could achieve. They may have laughed and mocked him when he was young, but he will get the last laugh in the end. They'll all pay for their mistreatment of him.

Author's Note

AN: Another chapter done! I have a good feeling about this one. This introduces Caleb to the storyline and we get some background context about him without spilling his deepest darkest secrets which will be revealed later on. Something I have noticed is my like to dislike ratio. I'm not sure what is going on, but it does seem suspicious to me. I understand that not everyone will like this story and that's okay, but don't dislike it just because you want to. That leaves a bad impression on me and I don't appreciate it. Of course, that won't stop me from writing chapters, but it is annoying. To those who liked the story and added it to your favorites, thank you. I appreciate your support and people like you is what keeps me going. So no matter how much I get hated from other people, I will continue to write chapters anyway because I know that someone likes it. I didn't want to bring this up, but it's starting to become an issue, so I wanted to address it. Hope you guys understand that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The Trip to Ponyville! When Caleb discovers that he has to venture off to Ponyville in order to find this important artifact, he is unhappy with it, but willing to go anyways so he could finish what his grandparents started. However, it will be a challenge staying low since this is the hometown of the Mane Six and at least one of them will take notice of him at some point. Will he be able to keep it on the down low and complete his mission, or will he get caught and have to explain why he was even here in the first place?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 3: Enter The Town

The next morning, Caleb leaned up in the bed and yawned quite loudly. He got out of bed and stretched his body, cracking his muscles a little bit to get them properly adjusted. He may constantly be at full strength, but it was always important to stretch every so often so that he wouldn't get muscle cramps. The last thing he wanted was to be unable to defend himself because his muscles hurt. That would suck and he could even lose his life because of it. He did have supernatural powers inherited from his grandparents, but he wasn't immortal. He could still be killed by the sword at any time.

So, if he fought anyone, he had to be careful. True, he might have been at master level with different forms of marital arts, but he had to stay focused when fighting. That is why he never tried to gloat before doing smackdown or even jumping into situations unprepared. He usually gave his opponents a warning, but if they refused to listen, he would have no choice but to give it to them. He didn't like to do it, he just had to because the people trying to fight him were complete idiots and they underestimated his abilities. But now was not the time to dwell on that. He had a mission to complete and yapping about useful idiots was not going to help. So, he had to get rolling.

He quickly put on his change of clothes and went into the bathroom to brush his teeth. After he was done with that, he headed out into the hallways and went towards the living room. He pressed a button that opened up the bookshelf and it revealed a giant airspace with an elevator sitting at the top. He stepped inside and pressed the button to go down. The doors closed and the bookshelf returned to its normal spot. He checked his watch to see what time it was and he started whistling as he was traveling down to the elevator. It finally stopped and the doors opened. He walked out into his Knucklecave and went over to his personal vehicle that he called Blackbird because it was mostly black.

He hopped in the driver's seat and put his seatbelt on. Even though this thing could fly at very high speeds, he always found it important to wear a seatbelt at all times since he typically liked the open rooftop when traveling through the city. He pressed the engine start stop button and the engine roared to life. He released the emergency brake and pushed the lever that acted as the throttle forward. The afterburners spat out thrust and it propelled forward. Caleb flew right through the tunnel and pressed the button on the garage door opener to open the door on the side of the island. The vehicle flew right out and the door shut after a few seconds.

Caleb steered the vehicle up higher towards the city and flew right by all of the skyscrapers. When he left the city limits, he pulled back the lever a little bit and maintained a cruising speed so he could not burn a bunch of fuel. While he did live in a mansion, he wasn't exactly flowing with cash, so he had to be careful when it came to traveling at high speeds in a flying vehicle that pretty much looked like the Batmobile in The Lego Movie made back in 2014. He activated Cruise Control and stared down at the beautiful scenery below. Even though it was mostly a bunch of fields, it was a nice change of pace instead of constantly seeing skyscrapers out of every window in your house. He looked up in the sky and saw that no clouds were out today which meant that there was supposed to be no rain today.

Even though he could never tell what the projected weather forecast was going to be for the day or week because there was no modern technology here, he could always guess simply by just looking at the sky. He turned on the radio to see what was happening back in his hometown and in the Washington Metropolitan Area, but after about 30 seconds, he didn't exactly like what he was hearing. There were more people that had been murdered last night and it just make Knuckles burn with anger. He blamed the terrible leadership in his hometown of Baltimore run by Democrats and he wished that things would change. However, he realized that he doesn't live there anymore and it's not the time to get angry about political issues. While he did have a master's degree in Political Science, there was no reason to talk about it right now. He had a Master Diamond to find and going on his soapbox about politics wasn't going to help things.

So, he decided to not get riled up about this and turned it off. He changed it over to the local rock radio station and there was a Skillet Marathon going on which peaked Caleb's interest. He turned up the volume and he jammed out a bit as he raced down to Ponyville. After a little bit, he could see some clouds in the distance and ponies moving it around. He knew that he was approaching Cloudsdale and Ponyville was probably not far behind. Soon enough, he saw the small town in view and he sighed. He didn't want to be here, but this was the only place in Equestria that he had not checked and he would do anything in order to complete the mission, despite his own personal feelings about it. He figured that most ponies would figure out that he arrived, so he put his vehicle into stealth mode and flew quietly over the town. He thought he was clear, but then he saw somepony napping on a cloud.

He knew that wasn't good and he had to do something. So, he steered the vehicle away from the cloud and went around to the back of the town. He eventually landed the vehicle and pressed the engine start stop button to shut it off. He hopped out and examined the map of Ponyville he held in his hands. This might have not been the largest place in Equestria, but there was quite a bit of area to cover. He walked through the alleyway and peeked through to see a bunch of ponies walking around.

"Perfect. It seems I have come at the busiest time during the day. That's just peachy." Knuckles whispered sarcastically as he noticed ponies walking up and down the streets and buying products. He figured that these ponies were getting ready for the holiday as well as it was a national event and they were probably preparing for it so that they were ready when the day arrived. He looked at the map once again and sighed. It was now or never. He rolled up the paper and started rolling around in the shape of a bowling ball very quietly. Every so often, he would hide behind a house and take a peek to make sure no one was looking. He asked his computer if there was any clues to the Master Diamond in these houses and it said that was a negative.

Knuckles did this for a bit until he pretty much covered the entire town. It left him very frustrated because he could not find jack squat in any of these houses and none of them offered any clues on how to find the Master Diamond. He heard some noises and peeked out to see Rainbow Dash having a conversation with another stallion. Knuckles thought it was a good idea to mess with the two a little bit and hatched a small plan. He made his eyes glow red for a second and smiled devilishly at the stallion. The stallion saw it and pointed it out. He fainted and Rainbow was confused. She turned around to see what he was talking about and saw nothing. Knuckles already pulled his head away and smiled to himself.

He turned around and started to head towards his vehicle that was parked nearby. He figured it was time to head out and go back to the drawing board to reevaluate. As he headed towards his vehicle, he heard very loud whisking noises. He started to get worried and he looked around to see where it was coming from. After a few seconds, he saw a pink pony staring right at him.

"HI! I'm Pinkie Pie!!" She said. At first, Knuckles didn't know how to react and his mind tried to figure out his next move. After a few seconds, he felt worry and anxiety because he did not want to get discovered at all.

"HOLY CRAP!" He yelled very loudly. He instantly punched Pinkie away from him and she got launched back towards the wall. She hit it and then fell on the ground. Knuckles didn't know exactly what to do next, but he knew he had to get out of there. So, he ran as fast as he could to his aerial vehicle and started it right up. He quickly put his seatbelt on and slammed the throttle lever as hard as he could forward. A ton of thrust came out of the afterburners and it quickly took off. He turned it around to head back to Baltimare and he got out of there as soon as he could.

"Hey! Wait! Come back!" Pinkie yelled desperately in hopes that Knuckles might hear her. He was too busy flying away and that told her Knuckles wanted nothing to do with this at all.

"Pinkie, what are you yelling about over here?" A purple Alicorn named Princess Twilight Sparkle asked. Pinkie turned around to see her friends running over to her after they heard the yelling and loud jet exhaust noises.

"I was trying to say hi to that dude and he freaked out on me. Next thing I know, he punched me and took off in that weird air vehicle." Pinkie told her friends as she could remember the events of that just a few moments ago.

"Do you know what he looked like, Pinkie?" Twilight asked. She was curious on who this creature might be and wanted to investigate.

"I think he was a human of sorts, but he had super large fists. They could probably fit through our entire bodies if the guy wanted to."

"Ugh, Pinkie, please do not give us that imagery in our heads. This creature already sounds bad enough and that does not help at all." A white Unicorn named Rarity said.

"Well, I say we follow this dude and kick his flank once we find him." A blue pegasus by the name of Rainbow Dash said. This was the same pony that Knuckles had spotted earlier napping on a cloud and talking to one of the stallions in town.

"Now, hold on there, Rainbow. We don't know how dangerous this creature could be and he could try to harm us." A orange Earth Pony named Applejack said. She definitely wanted to go after Knuckles for messing with her friend, but she didn't want to jump into a situation unprepared. She wasn't like Twilight, but she definitely didn't want to underestimate her opponent either.

"Umm, are you sure it's a good idea to follow this creature? It is slightly rude to follow others without permission and I don't think he would enjoy us barging into his place of residence uninvited." A yellow Pegasus named Fluttershy said. She didn't like the idea of Knuckles hurting her friend like that, but she understood that sometimes, creatures act in retaliation whenever they felt threatened. So, it could be just one of those situations.

"It might not be the best idea Fluttershy, but I think we need to investigate who this creature is. We don't know its motives and if its running away like that, it could be planning something very disastrous for Equestria." Twilight said. She understood Fluttershy's point, but this creature hit Pinkie and then dipped right out of Ponyville. They had to figure something out and soon. "I think we should just follow him to see where he is going and then just ask him questions politely." She said.

The rest of the group agreed that was the best option and moved forward with their plan. "Where could that creature possibly be heading though? It's clear that it doesn't live here in Ponyville, so it must be somewhere else in Equestria." Rarity said. Twilight tried looking around for Caleb's personal vehicle and she saw it flying very fast away from the town.

She said "I see it over there. He is headed slightly southeast which means he could only be going to one place: Baltimare. That's where he has to live. It's the only place of civilization that is in that direction. Come on, let's get on the train to Baltimare and follow him over there." The group ran towards the train station and bought tickets to Baltimare. They got on the train and it started going down towards Baltimare.

Knuckles was still busy flying very fast and he looked behind his vehicle every few seconds to make sure no one was on his bumper. Once he saw that Ponyville was out of view and no one was around him, he slowed down a bit to get down towards cruising speed. He said "Ugh. I knew I should have not gone to that town. It was only a matter of time before someone spotted me. It just happened to be the most polarizing pony in the entire town. She knows that I'm not from here and probably wanted to throw a party for me. Yeah, that's not happening. Not after last time."

He remembers what happened the last time he went to a party and the results were not pretty, so he wanted to bury that deep within his mind and never remember it again. "I know it was wrong to punch her like that, but she scared the absolute crap out of me. It was like staring at a killer clown at 3 AM in the morning. Freaky. It was probably not a good idea to just leave her on the ground like that, but I didn't know what else to do. My mind was caught off guard and it was so disorienting for me that the only thing I thought of was to leave. It might have not been the best choice, but sometimes, you gotta do what you gotta do. Hopefully, she isn't too mad and starts to follow me back home because that would suck."

Little did he know that Pinkie and her friends were down in the train below him as he was flying straight back to his mansion sitting on his island in Baltimare. He knew that if those six ponies managed to find him, he was screwed. He had been living in Equestria for five years and not once did they ever figure out that he was here in their country. He had to protect himself and his secrets. With that thought circulating in his mind, he pushed the throttle a little bit more forward and it increased speed towards his mansion.

After a little bit, he finally arrived in Baltimare once again and he could see his mansion in sight. The computer asked for the password and he said "Criminals suck!" The computer thanked him and the buoys out in the water sprayed some smoke on him so he couldn't be seen. The door to the side of the island opened and closed after he got inside. He flew through the caverns and made it to the tunnel once again. He pressed the button on the garage door opener to open it and he pulled the lever back as he was getting closer to the entrance. He eventually came to a full stop and the doors closed. He turned off the vehicle and hopped out. He sighed in relief and went over to his control room to check up for any breaches.

"Hey, Vader!" Knuckles asked with urgency. He had a crisis on his hands and he needed to resolve this quickly before it gets even more out of hand.

"What is it, sir?" The computer asked with curiosity since its owner was clearly upset about something.

"Scan the area around the mansion and see if there is any ponies around it. I got into a run in with six of them and they could potentially find me here." Knuckles said with authority as he wanted to let the computer know what he requested of it. He hoped that this wouldn't happen, but he wanted to check just to make sure.

"Right away, sir." The computer said. It began scanning the area and searching for any ponies that might be lurking around on the island or within 2,000 feet of it. "I cannot find anything sir. The area is clear and there is no signs of life in sight within 5 miles of the island."

"Thank you, Vader. I appreciate it very much. I don't know what I would do if those ponies found out where I lived. For five years, I have resided here on an island next to the city and have never run into the Mane Six. Now, I caught one of them which isn't good. The rest will be alerted and I know that they'll search for me. So, let's just hope that they don't come to Baltimare." Knuckles said with worry. He saw them gathering, but he didn't believe that they'll try to pursue him right then and there.

"No problem, sir." The computer said with gratitude. Its job was to serve its master and if he was distressed, it was up to it to reassure him that things would be alright.

"I'm going to go up to my office and try to figure out how to properly assess this." Knuckles said. He went over to the elevator and pressed the button to go up. The doors opened and he pressed the button to the floor he wanted to go. The doors closed and the elevator moved up through the system. Finally, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. Knuckles walked out and went over to his office to find out the best way to move forward.

The train arrived to Baltimare and the Mane Six stepped out. None of them had ever really been to Baltimare before, but it was considered a place of interest for some of them. However, they got turned off by it when they heard that it was the most crime ridden city in Equestria, which did not help their case whatsoever.

"Alright, keep your eyes peeled for this human creature. We need to find him and quickly before Equestria is in any further danger." Twilight said with authority. She seemed distrustful of this creature just like the others, but she at least wanted an explanation as to why he was in their home turf.

"But that could take forever, Twi! Baltimare is a big city and this dude could be anywhere. It could take hours trying to find him and what if he's not even in the city?" Rainbow asked with doubt. Baltimare might not have been the largest city in Equestria, but it was still very largely populated and covered a pretty good portion of southeastern Equestria.

"Rainbow does have a good point. There is only six of us and hundreds of thousands of ponies in the city. There has to be a way we can make this easier." Rarity said with concern.

"Wait. That's it. There's no way he could actually live in the city!" Twilight said with excitement. She had to think about it for a second, but then something clicked in her mind.

"What exactly do ya mean, Twi?" Applejack asked with suspicion.

"Think about it. He obviously ran away from us, so that says that he doesn't like crowds and a major city would do that. So, he would probably be isolated somewhere in the city." Twilight explained to her friends for the reasoning of what she said. If Knuckles didn't want to be around them, there was no way he wanted to be around a bunch of ponies in a major city. It wouldn't make sense. He would live somewhere where he could live alone in peace and never have to worry about disturbances.

"Hey, Rainbow. Could you fly up a bit to see if anything sticks out to you?" Twilight asked as she wanted Rainbow to get eyes on any potential places of residence that Knuckles might be at.

"Already on it, Twi!" Rainbow said with confidence. She flew up to where she could see the entire city and took a look around to see if anything stuck out to her. After looking around a bit, she saw something in the distance, but it was hard to see what it was. She squinted her eyes a bit and saw a mansion of some sorts sitting top of an island. There was probably no one else living in that and it had to be him. "Hey, Twi? You might want to come take a look at this."

Twilight flew up and Rainbow pointed to the island. Twilight couldn't see it for a second, but after getting a closer look at it, she saw the mansion on top of the island. She asked "Could this be it?" Rainbow nodded and Twilight knew they had to set off towards it. "Alright, everypony. We need to head down this major road in order to reach our destination. I believe we have found the place of residence for this human creature." The rest of the group got the memo and headed down the road towards Brody Manor on Brody Island.

Knuckles sat down in his office chair and set the map down on the table. He sighed and leaned back in a bit. "Well, even though that was a complete disaster, it's great to be back home, safe in my mansion away from any crowds or unwanted company." He said with relief. This was a disastrous occasion and he simply wanted to put it behind him.

"Sir, we have a situation here at the front door." Said a voice that came from the intercom that was sitting on Caleb's desk.

Knuckles pressed the button and went to talk into it. "What is it, Malcolm?" Knuckles asked his security guard. He figured that he couldn't be watching everything at one time, so he had a security guard that constantly checked the cameras to see if something was fishy and then alerted him if there was an intruder. It might seem useless, but Knuckles was a very strong individual. So, if someone wanted to harm him, he would simply manhandle them like it was nothing.

"It appears we have guests standing at the front door, requesting to get in." Malcolm informed him.

"Who are these guests? I hardly ever get guests and most of the time, they can't even get to the front door because they have no idea how to navigate the island." Knuckles said. He wanted to figure out who these guests were and why they were standing at his front door.

"It is six ponies, sir." Malcolm said as he stared into the security cameras on the monitors once more.

"Wait. Does one of them have a Rainbow mane?" Knuckles asked his security guard. If these ponies who he thought that they were, then he was in serious trouble.

"Yes sir. One of them does have a Rainbow colored mane." Malcolm said in confirmation.

Knuckles slammed his fist down on his desk and he yelled in frustration. "DANG IT! They just had to follow me here, didn't they?! I knew that they would follow me here. Ugh. Malcolm, can't you just get rid of them?"

"I'm afraid not sir. When I try to do that, they are insistent on remaining here." Malcolm informed his boss.

Knuckles sighed and said "Alright. I'll be down there in a second. It's clear to me I need to dispose of these pests and get them off my lawn." He sighed again and let out a groan of frustration. He thought he could get away from the Mane Six, but he didn't think that they would follow him back to his house. They must have been taking the train in order to get here because he saw a train moving below him when he was going back to his mansion.

He got out of his office and headed down to the security room. He stared at the cameras and sure enough, the Mane Six were standing right at the front door, waiting for entrance. He didn't exactly appreciate them being on his property, but he figured that this was he gets for showing up on their home turf unannounced.

He pointed the microphone towards himself and said "What is it you pests want?! I'm not here to buy any products nor do I want to move to Ponyville, so scram."

"Listen, we just want to talk. We're not here to sell you anything or to force you out of your home. If you could take a few minutes to just talk to us, then we would greatly appreciate it." Twilight said in a friendly tone. She didn't exactly like his greeting tone, but she figured he probably gets a ton of scammer ponies that come to his house to tell him to vote for this candidate or trying to sell him a product.

"I don't talk to complete strangers and I also don't talk to those who follow me home. That is an invasion of privacy and you are violating my Fourth Amendment right. This might not be the United States anymore, but if you already don't have the right to privacy in your Constitution, then you definitely should. So, I'm not going to say it again. Get out." Knuckles said with anger. He didn't care if the Mane Six just wanted to talk to him. He knew why they were here and he didn't want to deal with that right now. He had more important issues to worry about right now than hometown invasions.

"Why do you even have this camera thing on your front door?" Rainbow asked with irritation. She stared into the camera and Knuckles could see her face really close up as it was basically touching the camera at this point. It made him grossly uncomfortable and he pressed a button while giving a slight glare at her. The security camera launched a spider web at Rainbow and she fell to the ground. She tried getting it off, but it was very difficult to do so.

Knuckles simply stared at her and pulled a lever. They left him no choice. The Mane Six felt the ground below them disappear and they fell through the hole while screaming in horror. The door shut and Knuckles simply seemed satisfied. "I'll be back, Malcolm. It's time to take out the trash." Knuckles said mischievously. He gave an evil grin and patted Malcolm on the back. The security guard didn't know what to say, but he stayed silent.

Down below, it was pitch black. No one could see a thing. "Ugh, that ruffian could have at least given us a heads up. That was very rude." Rarity said with anger.

"What do ya expect, Rarity? We showed up at his house and he didn't like it. Of course, none of this would happened if Rainbow didn't decide to act stupid." Applejack said, glaring at Rainbow for messing up like that.

"What?! It's not my fault that stupid creature decided to launch a spider web at me through a security camera." Rainbow said with anger in her voice.

"Ya pretty much had yer face right up against the camera. He was probably creeped out by that and decided to get you to back away as a lesson." Applejack said as she tried to clarify Rainbow why the Pegasus was in the wrong.

"Alright, that's enough, you two! We showed up at his house, he didn't want to talk, we asked him a question, and he sent us down here. We can't dwell on that anymore. Now, let me see if I can get some light in here." Twilight lit up her horn a bit and she was able to provide some light to the group so that they could see. Rarity did the same and now it was bright enough for all of them to see clearly.

"So we finally meet. I never thought this day would come." Knuckles said as he stared at the Mane Six from a distance.

"Who are you?! Show yourself at once or else there will be consequences!" Rainbow declared to Knuckles with confidence.

"Consequences? Pfft. Yeah, like what? Let me tell you something. You do not want to go up against me. You'll regret it instantly, trust me." Knuckles said in a trolling voice.

"Enough! Tell us who you are and why you showed up in Ponyville uninvited." Twilight said in a commanding voice. She was not put up with Knuckles' antics today and she wanted answers as quickly as possible.

Knuckles refused and said "Before I answer any of your questions, you must answer mine. Why are you here on this island? This is my home turf and I don't appreciate strangers following me all the way home and then showing up at my front door. You tell me that, then we can talk." He didn't want to share right now why he was in Ponyville. He only wanted to know why they came to his house.

Twilight attempted to introduce herself and the group to him, but Knuckles cut her off and said "I already know who you all are. We got the nerd, the drama queen, the hillbilly, the psychopath, the rebel, and the coward. You guys are quite famous around here."

All of them expressed outrage at him for his insulting names he called them, but none more so than Rainbow Dash. She said with anger "I oughta show you why you don't mess with Rainbow Dash! You've made a big mistake and now you shall pay for it."

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "Bring it on then. I'll show you a "rebellion" alright. The mistake was believing that you had won." That made Rainbow even more angry and she launched herself to throw the first punch. The shadow stepped aside and Knuckles came launching forward as well.

His eyes glowed red and he had red lightning coming out of his right fist. He glared right at Rainbow and the pony expressed shock on her face when she saw that red lightning. Knuckles punched her pretty hard on the stomach and she crashed right on top of everypony else. Rainbow looked through the broken wall and saw Knuckles still glaring at her.

"Pitiful." He said as he couldn't believe that Rainbow was already one and done just like that. She had been talking all that smack and then she got a knockout punch from him.

"What? Wh-who are you?" Rainbow asked with anxiety. She had no clue who this guy was and clearly, he was a lot stronger than her which that definitely hurt her pride and bruised her ego.

The shadow came back and said "Where... are my manners? Rainbow, meet Knuckles. My new BFFAE. Bestest Friend Forever and Ever."

Rainbow glared at the shadow and said "Look, I don't know who you are, but you are never going to get my power." She didn't know who this creature was and to be honest, she was afraid that he could try to take it from her. He could have the power of Tirek for all she knew, but she couldn't let that happen at all.

Knuckles glared right back at her and said "Do I look like I need your power?" To him, her power meant nothing to him and was practically useless against his. He charged up his fist again and Rainbow came charging right at him. Knuckles punched her again and she crashed through another wall, straight into the outdoors. She groaned a bit in pain and looked to see where Knuckles was at.

He appeared before her once more and smashed his fists together with red lightning to show his dominance over her. Rainbow got up and looked right at him. Knuckles asked with a demanding voice "Where is it?!"

Rainbow took that as a challenge and said "Oh, you want it? Here it comes." She was going to teach this creature a lesson and get him to get out of here.

Knuckles did not care and glared at her. He said "I was expecting more of you. You're unskilled, untrained, and UNWORTHY!" As he was saying that, Rainbow charged up her power even more and got into position to launch at him.

She said "You forgot one: unstoppable." She charged right at him with her rainbow streak, but Knuckles stopped her with his fist. It was a very bright light, but he was able to keep it back. He moved her back slightly while maintaining a glare and yelled out his battle cry. He smashed his fist right into her and it created a very large red shockwave to go off. Time slowed down a bit and Rainbow groaned in pain.

Knuckles grabbed her with his fist and slammed her up against the tree. She tried to break free, but it was no use. He was simply too strong. He said with anger "It was my destiny to do what my ancestors could not. To restore the ultimate power to the home of my people." His grandparents were the last keepers of the Master Diamond and ever since he was a little boy, they were still trying to find it and could not do so successfully. So it was up to him to find it and restore his family legacy.

Rainbow was confused and said in a struggling voice "U-ultimate power? I don't know what you're talking about. You got the wrong pony."

Knuckles did not care and said "Don't play dumb with me, descendant of Flash Magnus." He held a tight grip on Rainbow and had his fist ready if she tried anything.

Rainbow was shocked to hear this and said "You knew Flash Magnus?" She couldn't believe that this random dude had heard about her favorite childhood icon and expressed some sort of hatred with it.

Knuckles said "Flash Magnus and his people were the sworn enemy to my tribe, the Echidnas. We fought and died at their hands and now you shall die in mine." Knuckles was about ready to end Rainbow's life with a single punch, but he suddenly got tackled by the rest of the Mane Six, which made him release his grip on her and set her free.

Twilight said "Go! Start flying out of here! We'll be right behind you."

Rainbow said "Are you sure about that?" One groan from Knuckles and that told her that it was probably a good idea to do so. "Alright, I'll get out of here." She flew off and the rest of them did the same. Knuckles got up and he growled with anger. He just got humiliated in his own home and now they were getting away. He almost had her, but her friends tackled him before he could finish her and that allowed her to get away. He needed to find that Diamond and she might be the only answer to it.

His eyes glowed red again and he ran as fast as he could. The Mane Six were currently running away from the island and headed towards the city so that they could lose him. But when Twilight turned around, she saw him right on their tail and he was running pretty fast as well. He had a red streak following behind him and his eyes were still glowing red while maintaining a very furious glare on his face.

They saw a giant building ahead of them and they all had to get past it very quickly. Twilight said "I think we lost him." Just as she said that, there was loud noises of glass shattering and they saw Knuckles coming right through it. It left them completely shocked and they had to start running again. They managed to get on the train and they started moving. However, Knuckles would not let them get away that easily.

He jumped up into the air and landed right on top of the train car that they were sitting in. He punched his fist right through it and started destroying it. He ripped the door off and threw it away so he could get easier access to his targets. He picked apart every little thing of the train car and nearly got them. He noticed that the train was headed right for the bridge, so he snapped his fingers and it caused a big explosion to occur at the middle of the bridge. The Mane Six panicked and they knew this wasn't good.

The train started falling into the water and Knuckles closed in on his targets. They tried to escape, but he tackled them all and teleported them back to his holding area that they escaped from by snapping his fingers again. They returned to the area and he restricted them all from leaving. He said "Did you seriously think you could get away from me that easily?! You underestimate my abilities and believe you can outsmart me. I have learned everything that there is to mortal combat in my entire life and have been training for this moment since I was a little boy. Now, we're going to try this again. Answer my question or else you shall die. Your choice. Why are you here at my house?!"

Twilight tried to say something, but she had to think about it for a second. She said "To answer your very rude question, we are here because we wanted to talk about why you showed up in Ponyville and attacked one of our friends."

Knuckles didn't like that answer and said "I did not "attack" your friend, your Royal Highness. She decided to sneak up on me, so technically, it was her fault."

Twilight wasn't sure about that, but there was something else she wondered as well. She asked "And what do you mean by ultimate power?"

Knuckles knew he couldn't talk about that and said "That is none of your business, princess. It is a secret that has been held within my tribe for generations and no one can ever figure out what that secret is except for those who are part of it."

Twilight said with annoyance "Don't talk to me like that. You should know to treat royalty with the utmost respect, but it's clear you fail to know how to do that."

Knuckles disagreed and said "I do not care if you are royalty or not. You fools were stupid enough to show up to my house and challenge me before your asses got handed right to you. So, do any of the rest of you foolishly want to fight me?!" When he saw that no one responded, he took that as a sign to continue. "Good. Now, I see you no longer useful, so get out of my property."

Rarity asked "Could you at least show us where the exit is, darling?" Knuckles seemed surprised at the more positive tone, but he wouldn't let it bother him. He would just use it to his advantage.

He said "Sure. You see that door right over there behind you? Yeah. Turn around. Take a look at it. Yeah, right there." They turned around to look at it and he snapped his fingers to make them disappear. He let out of a sigh of relief and said "Good riddance. I thought I was never going to get rid of those ponies. Now, they can just leave right back to Ponyville. I am going to watch the Godzilla movie made in 2014 now." He turned around and left for his personal movie theater room.

Outside, the Mane Six were still trying to grasp that very unpleasant visit. "I can't believe that brute had to make us disappear like that. Surely, he would know how to treat a lady better. Hmph." Rarity said with disdain.

"Rarity, he has no respect for anyone but himself. All we did is simply get in his way and he responded in kind. Clearly, he does not want us to disturb him and its best we leave him alone for right now." Twilight said. She really wanted to know more about him, but he wasn't interested in that idea. He just wanted to be left alone and not disturbed by outside company.

"Um, Twilight, are you sure that he doesn't have respect? I mean, we did come to his home uninvited and he told us to leave multiple times." Fluttershy said. She didn't like Knuckles' tone toward herself or the rest of her friends, but she understood why he would act that way. In fact, she probably would not be happy if someone else tried to show up uninvited and refused to leave.

"Fluttershy, I am positive. He literally said himself that he no longer found us useful and he didn't want us to know about "the ultimate power," whatever that is supposed to mean." Twilight said. She understood where Fluttershy was coming from, but the messages Knuckles conveyed were far different than what Fluttershy was describing them as.

"What if he is acting that way because he had a painful memory about it?" Fluttershy asked with curiosity. She saw how secretive Knuckles was about the Master Diamond, so she believed that he must have something to hide that he doesn't want others to know about.

"What exactly do you mean, Flutters?" Rainbow asked with suspicion.

"When he was fighting, I saw something I didn't expect to see. It almost as if it appeared to be rage. It looked like he had years of pain in his eyes when you stared at them and that could mean something." Fluttershy said as she explaining to her friends what she meant.

"Or it could just mean he's just a varmint that doesn't care about anypony but himself and has serious anger issues. Ah understand why yer tryin' to say Fluttershy, but just maybe he is doin' this because he has too much pride." Applejack said.

"The best thing that we can do now is head over to the train station and leave. There's nothing else we can do and he's made it clear we are not welcome here." Twilight added.

"Uh, Twi? How exactly are we going to get out of here? Knuckles literally destroyed the train with his bare hands and blew up the bridge that gets us back home by using the power of Discord." Rainbow said. She wanted to get out of here, but none of them could do so with the bridge destroyed and the train out of service.

"I think I have an idea. Everypony, come close as you can to me." They all stood close together and Twilight lit up her horn. She teleported them out of there and made back to her library within a few seconds.

"Alright. Now we have to write to Princess Celestia about our findings. Knuckles might want to be left alone, but that does not mean that he could not be a national security threat. Celestia must be informed about this as quickly as possible and come up with our next steps of action on where to proceed after this discovery." Twilight said with a sense of urgency. She pulled out a letter and began writing on the scroll to Princess Celestia. She had to know about this at once and prepare for potential military action if things got out of hoof. This was a serious crisis for Equestria's national security and the time to discuss it was now. Something had to be done.

Author's Note

AN: I apologize for the chapter coming out later than I originally wanted to. Things have been so busy this summer and it's prevented me from writing this latest chapter. But it is finally out now. A lot of you will probably recognize the reference made in one of the scenes and it adds to the development of this story. I'll try to be better about posting chapters more frequently, but it all depends if my schedule is permitting to do so. Also, it's been a crazy week with one of the most recent SCOTUS rulings. I have an opinion about this, but I won't discuss it here. Politics are not welcome here and if you want my personal opinion on it, just check it out on my Twitter profile. I'll probably get banned off of the platform, but go view it while you still can. It won't last forever. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The Royal Meeting! When Celestia receives a letter from Twilight about the discovery of Knuckles living in Equestria, she tells her to bring herself and her friends along so they could discuss this further. After gathering some intel about this creature, she decides to try to see this creature for herself while taking Luna along as well to see if they can get anything out of him. Will they be able to pry any information out of Knuckles, or will he just treat them the same way as he did the Mane Six?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 5: Striking A Deal

The next day, Twilight woke up and stretched her legs a little bit. Sometimes, those muscle cramps would occur and she needed to give them a good crack so it wouldn't cramp up every now and then. She went over to her mirror and saw that her mane and tail needed a good brushing since she basically woke up looking like a troll. Don't tell her I said that or else she'll kill me. Anyways, after brushing her mane and tail, she went downstairs to find Spike making breakfast. This was a far more common occurrence than you may think.

"Good morning, Spike." Twilight said as she saw her personal assistant making breakfast once again.

"Morning, Twi. I was making some breakfast this morning. Care to have some?" Spike asked. He would do this on a very frequent basis and most of the time, Twilight would want some as well.

"That would be wonderful, Spike." Twilight said with a smile. She loved it when her personal assistant would ask her about that even though she would want some most of the time. Her thoughts began to drift and it settled on Knuckles. Something about that dude just didn't seem right. He was very hostile and aggressive towards others, but there had to be a reason why he did that. If only she could figure out what that was and could get through to Knuckles about it. Of course, that was as easy as finding a needle in a haystack, but Twilight was not one to give up easily and she was determined to get her answer someway or another.

"Twi, are you alright? You seemed to be staring off into space there for a second." Spike said with concern. Sometimes, he would notice Twilight go off into space and not pay attention to what he was saying because she was so deep in thought.

Twilight sighed and said "I don't know, Spike. My mind has been on the entire situation me and the girls have had to deal with for the last few days. It's been crazy." Seriously, it has.

Spike asked "Oh, are you talking about that Knuckles guy? Yeah, he sounds like a very mean dude. Attacking Pinkie and then messing around with you guys and the Princesses."

Twilight said "Well, to be fair, Pinkie does have a bad habit of sneaking up on other ponies and she should have expected that to happen. But that does not give him the excuse to treat my friend like that. However, I understand why he would react that way. I would definitely not be happy if somepony tried to say hi very loudly right in my face." She knew that Knuckles should not have punched her friend like that, but she did understand why he reacted that way and Pinkie had it coming. If it wasn't from him, it would have come from someone else. It was only a matter of time.

Spike asked "Why exactly is this dude so hostile? I understand that Pinkie showed up out of nowhere, but why did he insult you all and the Princesses like that when you last met?" It left him really confused and he wanted to know why.

Twilight said "I don't know. I don't think it's just because he's a mean creature, but probably something else. I think that there is something more going on. He told us he didn't appreciate us coming onto his property and he didn't want anyone around. However, he seemed to be very evasive about something. He kept talking about something called the "ultimate power," but when we tried to ask what that was, he said that it was none of our business and only those who are part of his tribe could know."

Spike seemed astonished by that and asked "What exactly is the "ultimate power" and what is his tribe?"

Twilight said "Like I said, he didn't say and frankly, I don't know. I think it could be some sort of powerful artifact held within his family for generations, but it could be something else entirely. I would ask him, but that would be as easy as trying to figure out Pinkie Sense. As for his tribe, he said that he was part of the Echidnas which good luck trying to figure that out. I'm guessing it was some sort of native tribe that he was part of back in his homeland. I doubt he would want to share any of that with strangers and he would do everything he could to keep it a secret."

Spike suggested something by saying "Maybe this "ultimate power" could hold great power and he is afraid to have others find out because they might use it for evil. It's probably unlikely, but it could be a possibility."

Twilight thought about it for a second and said "You could be right, Spike. It would make sense that he would keep it a secret so that Equestria is not harmed. The last thing I would want is for Equestria to be in danger again because this "artifact" fell into the wrong hooves. So I understand why he wanted to keep this under wraps, but that doesn't mean he has to be so rude to us." She did understand that whatever this could be, it had to be kept a secret, but there was this strange thought in the back of her mind that maybe Knuckles was trying to protect them from taking the Master Diamond for fear of them using it for evil.

She didn't know if that was truly the case or not, but she needed to find answers. She wasn't as concerned about the Master Diamond, but she wanted to know more about him. From what she could tell, he had a very big mansion and he was probably alone for most of the time. She figured that he probably had someone in his life at some point, but that was probably only for a short time, considering how hostile he was towards strangers. Twilight definitely had her work cut out for her, but she believed she could accomplish this. It wasn't going to be easy, but she was not one to give up very easily.

"I think I'm going to go over there to talk to him." Twilight said. She was aware of the danger with that, but she figured the only way to get through to him is humility and not hostility. That would only make him more angry if she did that and she did not want to get involved with that. But if she treats him nicely, he'll eventually start to take notice and his anger will subside. She remembered reading something from one of Starswirl's books where he put in a quote that said "Hate does not drive out hate: only love can do that."

She found it fascinating how Starswirl wrote down all of these different things that he explored on another planet and she wished she was there for that. But, this was long before she was born, so that wouldn't have been possible.

Spike did not like this idea whatsoever and he said "No! You can't do that, Twilight! That guy is dangerous and if his muscles won't kill you, then the traps will!" Even though he wasn't there, he knew that it was a terrible idea to do that after what Twilight and their friends experienced over there. In other words, she was basically walking into a death trap and if she ticked off Knuckles enough, she would very well suffer that fate.

Twilight said "Spike, Knuckles only gets angry if you provoke him. If you treat him nicely and talk to him in a respectful manner, then he won't act as hostile." Even in her head, she seemed slightly doubtful about that, but she was determined to get through to him. No matter what the cost.

Spike said "I'm pretty sure he'll just tell you to leave even if you try to be nice to him. From what you told me, he doesn't like company of any kind and will do anything to get it away from him. He's just a grumpy dude that does not like to be disturbed and left alone."

Twilight said "Yes, but why would he act that way? That is the thing, Spike. No one acts that aggressive and hostile towards others for just no reason. There has to be something going on and the only way to find out is from the source."

Spike gave her a deadpan look and said "I'm positive that he won't tell you that. He made it clear that the artifact he spoke of is only something mentioned within his tribe and he will make sure that no one finds out about this artifact, whatever it may be. That's if it is an artifact. There's a very likely chance it is not."

Twilight looked at him with optimism and said "Then I'll just have to build up his trust. I know that sounds very difficult and it could take a very long time, but if he trusts me, he'll tell me more about his past and what this "ultimate power" is."

Spike said "The chances of that are a needle in a haystack. I don't know, Twilight. He might just be a lost cause. It's just not worth the effort in my opinion. If he doesn't make you give up himself, you probably will after a while."

Twilight said "I'm not giving up on him and he is definitely not a lost cause. Someone just needs to treat him with kindness and compassion and then maybe he will soften a bit. I firmly believe that something else is going on here that is making him act this way and I'll find out no matter how much he resists. I don't give up easily and he'll eventually relent."

Spike cast a doubtful look at Twilight and said "I'm not sure about that, but if that is what you want to believe, then you go right ahead. However, please be careful. I don't want that guy to physically harm you or capture you as leverage to take over Equestria."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "Knuckles wouldn't do that last part. Celestia said that he already made it clear that he has no intentions of taking over Equestria as long as he is not disturbed and I don't think he wanted to anyway. It was probably just a way of him saying for us to leave him alone or else there will be consequences. He was more focused on finding that artifact that his tribe has held for years rather than conquering Equestria. But anyway, I promise to be careful. If I get into trouble, I'll simply get out of there as quickly as possible. Hold the fort down for me and I'll try to be back as soon as I can."

Twilight and Spike briefly hugged each other for a few seconds and then broke it off. Twilight left and headed over to buy a ticket for the train to Baltimare. She waited for the train to arrive and once it did, the conductor called out one last time for anypony planning to board. Twilight got on the train and sat down. The conductor went inside and the train started moving. Twilight stared out the window as she was leaving Ponyville and going right towards Baltimare. She sighed and hoped that things would go well with Knuckles.

Meanwhile, in the Brody Mansion, Knuckles was busy reading a book about the legacy of Abraham Lincoln and he had the campfire going while he was sitting on his recliner in his robe in his living room. He realized he needed to use the bathroom and he got up to use it. After doing his business, he washed his hands and finished drying them up. Before he left, he stared at the mirror and he saw his reflection. He sighed and said with guilt "What have I become? She would be incredibly disappointed with me if she saw me now and might even disown me. Pretend like she never knew me. It sucks to be alone, but that is the only way to block the pain. Plus, I have a Master Diamond to find, so all of this stuff means nothing to me right now. Once I have it, then all of that will go away for good."

He knew that wasn't true in his heart, but in his head, that was the best way to avoid the pain. In other words, he knew deep down that what he said was absolute bullcrap, but the pain and traumatic heartbreak over the years on top of a stone cold heart made him believe it, despite what his conscious might say. His phone suddenly rang and he picked up the phone. "Yeah, what is it Malcolm? I'm busy reading about Abraham Lincoln right now." Knuckles said with annoyance.

Malcolm said "My apologies sir, but there is someone at the door."

Knuckles growled with anger and yelled into the phone "ARE THOSE SIX PONIES AND THEIR PRINCESSES BACK AGAIN?! I TOLD THEM NOT TO COME BACK!"

Malcolm said in a surprisingly calm voice "Only one of them is here sir."

Knuckles was slightly taken aback by that and said with bitterness "Which one is it?"

Malcolm said "The purple alicorn sir."

Knuckles stared into space for a few seconds and said with anger "Out of all of them, it had to the purple Princess! She's probably the worst one of them all! Ugh! She never listens, does she?! Was it she wants out of me?! *sighs* Alright, I'm going to put on a change of clothes and I'll answer the front door. See ya." Before Malcolm could say anything else, Knuckles hung up the phone and put it away in his pocket. "I swear, if she is trying to make friends with me, that's not going to happen. She's a stranger to me and I do not want her to know my dark past and diamond secrets. It's the best way to protect her for her sake and my own good."

He threw on a change of clothes and went to the door. He opened it and said right out of the gate "I told you never to come back here, and what do you do?! YOU COME BACK! Does no one ever listen to my simple requests?! If you don't want your precious homeland harmed, I suggest that you leave me alone or else you'll regret it!" He was glaring at Twilight and he had one of his fists balled up in case she decided to try anything funny.

Twilight said "Look, I'm not here to scold you nor to try to fight you. All I want to do is talk, nothing more, nothing less."

Knuckles hardened his glare at Twilight and said "You are still technically part of the Equestrian government, so I'm not telling you anything. It is my Fifth Amendment right to refuse to say anything to government authorities and foreign nations are supposed to honor that. You are never getting my secrets nor what I did as a child."

Twilight didn't seem fazed by that and said "I'm not here to talk about your artifact secrets or your childhood. I just want to talk about things not related to that."

Knuckles gave her a skeptical look and asked "What kind of things?"

Twilight said "Well, anything really. I only want to get to know you better because I know for a fact that it must suck living in that mansion by yourself."

Knuckles knew that Twilight had a point and she was in fact right. He was lonely in there, but it was for the best. He didn't really want to, but that was the only way to prevent himself from getting heartbroken again. He softened a little bit and then he glared at Twilight again. "I'm not lonely! I have my butler Reginald and my security guard Malcolm! They live with me, so that statement isn't valid!" He knew that was not what Twilight was talking about, but he didn't want to look vulnerable in front of her. The last time he was vulnerable, someone that he deeply cared for had died.

Twilight looked at him with curiosity and asked "But are they really your friends or just ponies you keep around in your house as a distraction?" Knuckles thought about it for a second and started to really question what role Reginald and Malcolm really played in his life. He suddenly realized that his defenses are faltering and Twilight was starting to get to him, but he could NOT let that happen. It was time for his counterattacks.

He glared at Twilight again and said "They are not my friends! They are simply acquaintances! They help me around the house with things and I couldn't ask for anything more! I do not need friends! They are a waste of time and mean nothing to me! I didn't need them then and I definitely don't need them now! So, I order you to leave my property now or else things will get ugly! Good day!" He slammed the door in her face and walked away. He heard the knocking on the door again and he groaned in frustration. He opened it again and said "WHAT?! I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE!"

Twilight said to him in a calm voice "What if I make a deal to you?" Knuckles was taken aback by that and began thinking. He didn't trust anyone, but anytime they tried to make a deal or establish an alliance together against a common enemy, he was willing to hear them out and most of the time, he would quickly agree. So, he'll at least hear this one out to see what it was she was suggesting.

He raised a brow at her and said "I'm listening."

Twilight sighed and said "As long as you let me visit whenever I want, I promise to never speak about your artifact secrets or your childhood." She genuinely meant this. While she did want to know about his childhood and the Master Diamond, she believed that this was going to be the only way to get through to him. It wasn't the best, but it was progress. She really wanted to get to know him so she could better understand him and if that meant not exploring secrets he didn't want to be public knowledge, then it would have to be that way. She could deal with it.

Knuckles stared at her with skepticism and asked "So you're telling me that as long as I allow you to visit my house whenever you want, you promise to never talk about the ultimate power or my childhood? In that case, you would be suggesting an alliance."

Twilight nodded and said "Yes. That's what I'm suggesting."

Knuckles thought about it for a few moments and weighed his options. On one hand, it sounded like a good idea because she would never speak of those things that are sworn in secrecy, and he would be able to have someone to talk to besides himself, Reginald, and Malcolm. But on the other hand, this could seem dangerous because if she tried to know him, then eventually, certain things may be revealed and then he'll relive those tragic events all over again on top of some evil individual trying to wield the power of the Diamond. However, something about this proposal seemed genuine. She didn't get angry at him nor did she return the yelling at him. She remained calm the entire time and spoke in that type of manner, which really shocked him since no one had done that before besides her and someone else that he rather not mention right now. She even stayed calm when he yelled and screamed at her at the top of his lungs. Maybe it was alright.

Knuckles looked at Twilight again and said "Alright, you got a deal. BUT, if you EVER try to talk about the ultimate power or my childhood, then IT'S OVER! Am I clear?!"

Twilight nodded and said "Yes, sir. I promise to not talk about that as long as I can come here whenever I want to." Twilight held her hoof out for a hoofshake and Knuckles understood the motion. He gripped onto her hoof and for Twilight, it hurt like heck. "Ow, ow, ow, ow! That hurts!"

Knuckles stared at his hand and said "Really? My hand is completely uninjured." It surprised him that Twilight got hurt by that and winced in pain. "But, I am now convinced of your commitment. Don't dishonor it or else you'll pay the price for it."

Twilight said "I assure you that I won't. But, I probably need to head back to Ponyville now because I'm sure my friends are scared out of Celestia's minds about me. So, I'll come back to visit as soon as I can." She turned around and teleported away. Knuckles shut the door and went back to his recliner.

"I sure hope she honors that commitment because I can't have her using me in order to get access to the diamond. It is my sacred duty to protect that diamond and fight off any enemies that may try to use it for evil. I don't believe she will do that, but it cannot become public knowledge. If all six of them knew, one of them would spill the beans at some point. Probably that pink one would be the first to do it. But as long as this purple alicorn honors her word, then the diamond will be kept safe and no one will ever have to know about its power."

Twilight returned to Ponyville and made it back to her home. When she opened the door, she said "Spike, I'm home!" She got no response and thought that was a little strange. She began looking around for him and asked "Spike, are you in here?" As soon as she saw him, she saw the rest of her friends standing there with very worried and upset glances. "Uh, are you guys doing okay?"

Applejack was the first one to speak up by saying "Do ya care to explain why you were in Baltimare for the entire morning?"

Twilight said "Yeah, I do. I was visiting Knuckles to see if I could try to talk to him."

Rainbow asked with anger "Why would you even go there?! He treated us lower than dirt and he threatened to take over Equestria if he was provoked!"

Rarity added "Darling, it is simply not safe for you to be going over there by yourself. That creature is very unpredictable and he is extremely powerful!"

Pinkie added "And he is a super duper grumpy pants!"

Twilight attempted to say "Listen, girls-" but all of them started protesting and refusing to let her speak which made her very irritated. She understood her friends' concern, but she had an important detail to share with them that might make this situation a bit more tolerable.

She eventually had enough and shouted "GIRLS!" All of them stopped yelling and looked at her with worry. "Listen, I know that what I did was not the smartest idea, but I wanted to try to get to know him as a friend."

Rainbow was skeptical of that and asked "Yeah, and how well did that go for you, huh?!"

Twilight said "Well, we managed to strike a deal. As long as I get to visit his home whenever I want, I would not talk about the "ultimate power" or his childhood."

Applejack asked "And he agreed? Just like that?"

Twilight nodded and said "He did. I know that seems strange, but he told me that he was fully convinced of my commitment right after completely crushing my forehoof with that hand of his."

All of them shrieked in fear about that and Rainbow said "That creature will pay for hurting my friend like that! He will deeply regret it!"

Twilight said "Wait! It wasn't his fault. He just has a stronger handshake than most bipedals typically do. He was somehow able to crush my forehoof, yet he said his hand was completely uninjured by that. And I thought alicorns have incredible Earth Pony strength, guess I was wrong about that."

Rainbow smirked at Applejack and said "Sounds like that creature could probably win arm wrestling, huh Applejack?"

Applejack's face turned slightly red in anger and simply let out a huff in frustration. She really wanted to go after Rainbow for that one, but she chose to hold her tongue rather than to speak something she may regret.

Rarity said "But even so, that still doesn't mean it's safe to be visiting him. We already saw his temper flare more than once, so what will happen if something really bad happens and he just snaps?"

Twilight sighed and said "Look girls, I understand your doubts, and to be honest, I have mine as well, but I have to at least try. Fluttershy could be right. He could have been suffering through immense pain throughout the years and simply chooses to act hostile towards others so that they don't find out the truth about him. All he needs is a friend to act kind to him and treat him like any other pony. He might be different in physical appearance, but he is still a creature who can express emotions the same way we can. I refuse to judge another pony or in this case, human without knowing what is causing that pain. I know this isn't easy and it will be difficult, but as long as I continue to be nice to him, he will eventually open up and our questions will finally be answered."

Applejack sighed and said "To be quite honest Twi, none of us like this idea at all, but we understand that yer just tryin' to help this creature out. And 'cause of that, we'll support you on this case, only for your sake, not his. We still don't trust him yet and it will take time before we do so." The rest of the group concurred with Applejack and Twilight smiled.

She said "I understand. I'm not expecting you to trust him yet, but I do ask that you support me on this task. I know I can count on you girls to support me and you'll have my back. Am I wrong?" The rest of the group said she wasn't and they all went in for the group hug. After a few seconds, they broke it off and they all headed back to their respective places, which left Twilight and Spike alone once again. Spike went upstairs and Twilight simply stared at her bookshelf. She sighed and knew that she had a long road ahead of her before she completed the journey. Knuckles was one of the most stubborn individuals she had ever seen, even more than Applejack during Apple bucking season, and he would do anything in order to evade difficult questions. It might be tough, but it was what needed to be done. She could only hope that it would be effective.

Author's Note

AN: Alright! We've come to the end of another chapter yet again. I was bored today, so I just decided to go ahead and write the fifth chapter of this story. Things are progressing nicely and this could be the first step towards Twilight healing Caleb's stone cold heart. We'll have to see as time goes on. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: Spending time with a potential friend! After Knuckles agreed to a deal from Twilight to allow her to visit whenever she wanted without mentioning the Master Diamond or his childhood, she comes to visit him as soon as she could. However, when she gets there, he had a surprise for her. What exactly could it be and will Twilight like it?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 6: Chasing Enemies & Making Friends

It was a very busy night in Ponyville and there was a lot of things going on. Tomorrow night was supposed to be Nightmare Night and ponies had to prepare for the big night by setting up decorations. This was the biggest event during the fall and everyone pitched in to help so that it would go smoothly. The Mane Six were leading the charge and were doing their own things to get everything set up.

"THIS IS GOING TO BE THE BEST NIGHT EVER!" Pinkie shouted at the top of her lungs. She would always get this excited anytime a big event would occur.

"Pinkie, would you please not yell so loud?! My ears are going to start bleeding if you talk any louder! I don't want to have Tinnitus for the rest of my life." Rarity complained as she heard Pinkie's shouting close by.

"But this the biggest night of the year, Rarity! How could you not get excited?" Rainbow asked with curiosity. This was her favorite holiday of the year because she was able to pull pranks on others and be able to get away with it most of the time.

"That doesn't mean Pinkie needs to shout it out to everyone and make us all go deaf." Applejack said with objection to Rainbow's statement. While this was an exciting time for Applejack as well, she didn't want to go deaf as a result of Pinkie's very loud shouting.

"I'm not so sure Nightmare Night is so great. It's all scary and terrifying." Fluttershy said as she shuttered with fear just thinking about the holiday tomorrow night.

Pinkie patted her on the head and said "Don't worry, your Aunt Pinkie Pie will take care of you."

Fluttershy gave her a deadpan stare and said "You do realize I'm still a year older than you, right?" It was always a common occurrence where Pinkie would forget she was younger than Fluttershy and act like she was the older one. It happens more than you think and it would always irritate Fluttershy every time that Pinkie did it.

Pinkie laughed a bit and said "Of course I know that, silly. Now, less talking and more decorating!" She said the last part very loudly and just bounced away.

Fluttershy was about to go back to work when she heard some noises. She stopped for a second and thought to herself that it almost sounded like music. She looked at her friends and said "Hey girls, I think I hear something in the distance."

"What do ya think it is, Fluttershy?" Applejack asked with curiosity.

"It almost sounds like music, but I can't really tell." Fluttershy said with hesitance. All of them stopped to see if they could pick it up and sure enough, they could hear the sound as well which almost did sound like music.

"Flutters is right. I do hear something that sounds like music." Rainbow said as she also heard this sound as well.

"But where could that sound potentially coming from?" Rarity asked with confusion. It almost sounded beautiful, but she had no idea where it was at.

Rainbow looked around in the sky and heard the sound get louder as she approached the Everfree Forest. "I think it's in the Everfree Forest. When I get closer to it, the sound gets louder."

Most of them were not too thrilled about that idea, but they were really curious about what this sound was, so they let it get the better of them. They figured that they could take a quick trip over there and make it back before Twilight notices that they are gone. They went over to the Everfree Forest and followed the sound through it. Eventually, they made it towards the Castle of the Two Sisters and they finally spotted something.

There out on the front lawn was Knuckles playing his electric guitar and standing on top of a stage that he probably summoned himself. He was basically doing a concert of Skillet music and running a marathon by playing the newest album "Rise" that was released on June 25th, 2013. Even though no one was there, he was still jamming out as if there was an audience watching him play. The group was amazed at his singing voice and his guitar skills, but they couldn't let that get the best of them.

They still didn't know who this dude was and frankly, he could still be very dangerous. They had no idea what his motives were, and some of them were unsure if they even wanted to know. Sure, Twilight got him to agree to a deal, but Knuckles could have been ingenuine in order to use her in some mischievous way. They needed to figure out what his motives were and they needed answers now.

After a little while, Knuckles finished his "concert" and started putting away his equipment. Just as he closed his guitar case, Rainbow came flying over and landed on top of it. She glared at him and said "Where do you think you are going?!"

Knuckles just frowned and said "Oh, it's you again. I thought I wouldn't have to see you again, but I guess I was wrong about that."

Soon, the rest of the gang showed up and turned to face Knuckles. Applejack said with anger "We know that ya made a deal with Twilight, so don't even try to act stupid. What are your true motives?!"

Knuckles seemed confused at the question for a second and asked "My true motives?"

Rainbow said with confidence "Yeah! We know that you're obviously up to no good and you're trying to use Twilight in order to conquer Equestria! So, you either tell us or you fight to the death!"

Knuckles looked at her like she was stupid and just started laughing. All of them were confused at that and drew blank stares in confusion. He said with laughter "Y-you seriously t-think that I am t-trying to t-take advantage of Twilight just so t-that I can conquer Equestria? HAHAHA! That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard!"

Most of them gave him glares and Rainbow said "That is not funny! Stop stalling and start actually being serious."

Knuckles stopped laughing and put on his serious look. He said "You want me to go serious? Fine, I'll go serious. I don't know where you morons even got that idea from, but I would never do something that dishonorable to a female, much less a princess. I would be dishonoring my tribe by doing that. Look, I only agreed to the deal she made because she was suggesting an alliance. Any time someone suggests that, I usually agree very quickly as long as it within reason. Your friend's deal did just that. So, you can put those stupid ideas back in your big fat heads and take your leave because I am taking mine! Good night!"

He threw his equipment into the cargo area of his vehicle and he took off after starting it up. They all watched him leave and took a second to collect their thoughts. Rainbow was the first to speak up and said "I can't take that dude anymore! He might have great guitar skills and singing, but he seriously lacks in social skills."

Applejack concurred and said "Ah've had about enough as well. He may be stubborn, but way too much."

Rarity added in to the conversation by saying "Indeed. He should know how to treat ladies better, but instead, he dares to mock them and put them lower than dirt!"

Pinkie said "I haven't met this big of a meanie-pants since I first encountered Cranky Doodle!" It was true and even that was hard to get around.

Fluttershy said "Um, I know he was being rude, but are you sure that is a fair judgement upon him? I mean, we did come here unannounced." She didn't like his tone to all of them either, but she didn't think it was really fair to judge him because he simply acted in reaction to them to showing up.

Rainbow glared at her and said "Of course it was, Flutters! That guy might be good in some stuff, but his bad deeds outweigh his good. He insults others in a degrading manner, has extremely dangerous superpowers, and is super arrogant!"

"Coming from the pony who believes they are the best one around." Applejack muttered to herself. She found it incredibly rich how Rainbow says that Knuckles is very arrogant when she herself is just as prideful and arrogant as he is.

"What was that?!" Rainbow yelled as she turned around at Applejack.

"Nothin'!" Applejack shouted, trying to deny that she ever said anything. The last thing she wanted to have happen was to get caught and then end up in another argument with Rainbow.

Rainbow turned back to Fluttershy and said "You get the idea, Flutters. He might seem like he has great qualities, but it just doesn't look that way at all, considering how hostile he is towards others."

Fluttershy tried to say something, but Rarity cut in and said "Darling, Rainbow is right. This ruffian is incredibly powerful and dangerous and we still have yet to figure out his true motives on Equestria. It's just for the best that this is the way he will act."

Fluttershy so desperately wanted to call them all stupid for still believing that, but she didn't have the courage to do so and she had the dissenting opinion, so she would get outvoted very quickly. All of them headed back towards Ponyville and when they returned, they saw Twilight there.

She asked with concern "Where the heck have you girls been?! I've been searching for you guys for about 20 minutes and I couldn't find you anywhere. I thought something happened to you guys!"

Applejack said to her "We apologize for sneaking off like that, Twilight. But we heard this sound and we went to investigate what it was."

Twilight raised a brow and asked "What was it?"

Rarity said "Well darling, it was coming from the Everfree Forest and we found the Knuckles ruffian playing on some sort of electric guitar on a stage that we have no idea how he got it there."

Twilight seemed surprised by this discovery and asked "You guys saw Knuckles playing on stage with an electric guitar?"

All of them nodded and Rainbow said "Yeah, he actually had incredible guitar skills and a perfect singing voice. But what was strange was that even though no pony was there, he was playing as if there was an audience listening to him play."

Twilight was fascinated by that revelation and said "It seems so cool how he could do that no problem. I will have to ask him about that at some point. Wait a minute. Did you go to investigate so that you could spy on him?!" Twilight looked at them all with a glare and demanded an answer out of them.

Rainbow said "Of course not! We wanted to ask him some questions. That's all."

Twilight seemed skeptical about that and asked "What kind of questions?"

Rainbow scratched the back of her neck and said "Well, questions about what his motives were and if he had plans on taking advantage of you so he could conquer Equestria."

Twilight was baffled by that for a second before shooting Rainbow an angry glare. She said "So you're telling me that you purposely harassed him during his time of solace and asked if he was going to defile me so he could conquer Equestria?!" Rainbow nervously nodded and Twilight hardened her glare. "Why would you ever think that?! Did you not hear Princess Celestia say that he had no intentions of conquering Equestria as long as he was not provoked?! I have never heard such stupidity in my life!"

Rainbow looked at her and said "Key words Twilight: not provoked. With you making this deal with him, that could potentially open the door for evil to walk in. You might try to encourage him to engage in behavior that he might not be comfortable with and then he'll enact revenge on anyone that made him do it!"

Twilight stood her ground and said "That doesn't mean anything, Rainbow! He's practically alone most of the time anyways! He usually minds his own business as long as no one tries to snoop in on his."

Rainbow was doubtful about that and asked "What about that "ultimate power" thing he spoke of? Surely, he would have to encounter others in order to retrieve it."

Twilight disagreed and said "That doesn't count either. From the way he spoke of it, he would rather do it alone and not have to take down anyone to get it unless he had to."

Rainbow still objected to it and said "But what if he does Twilight? What if he decides that he hates everything around him and uses this "ultimate power" to destroy it all? What do we do then?! I don't know if you can tell, he seems to be far more powerful than most of us and we still don't know the full extent of his powers. It's just not worth the risk."

The others agreed that was the case and Twilight had enough. She said "I don't care if it is not worth the risk! Something bigger is going on in his life and I'm determined to find out what it is, whether you like it or not!" She turned around and headed back to her library. Her friends tried to reason with her, but she didn't want to hear it. All of them were so quick to throw judgement around and while she understood their reasons why, it was too soon to cast them upon Knuckles just because of a few bad encounters. She forged this alliance with him and she shall capitalize on it to find out more about him. Nothing and no one was going to get in the way of that.

The next morning, Twilight had gotten on the train to Baltimare and headed southeast. When she arrived to the city after three hours, she headed over to Brody Manor and knocked on the door. Knuckles had come to the door and opened it. He said "Oh good. You're here. There is something that I want to show you that you might find very interesting."

Twilight seemed curious about it and asked "What is it exactly?"

Knuckles opened the door further and said "Well, come on in. I'll show you myself." Twilight walked in and Knuckles shut the door. "As you can probably tell, this is my humble abode. Don't touch anything and you'll be fine. Now, follow me." He started walking and Twilight followed close behind. As she was walking through the halls, she noticed all of the historic paintings on the wall and was very intrigued by it.

Knuckles eventually stopped walking and looked at double doors. He said "Here we are."

Twilight was slightly confused by the doors and asked "What is in there?"

Instead of responding, Knuckles simply opened the doors and gave a hand gesture for her to walk in. Twilight did so and when she saw what it was, she was overjoyed. Inside was probably one of the biggest libraries that she had ever seen and lines of bookshelves going from one end to the other. There was probably thousands if not hundreds of thousands of books in this room and all of them were unread by her.

Knuckles saw her reaction and said "I take it you like it. I come in here sometimes if I'm trying to look for a good book to read in case I am bored since this world is void of technology."

Twilight turned around and said "I don't like it! I love it!" She suddenly hugged him and it threw Knuckles off. No one had hugged him at all nor have any sort of physical contact since... her. His mind started to go into panic mode and he simply cleared his throat to let Twilight know that this was kind of awkward. She got the memo and laughed nervously. "Sorry about that. It's just I love reading books and I've never seen one this unique before. Thank you for showing me this."

Knuckles blankly stared at her and said "No problem. All of the bookshelves are labeled which area of study they cover and they are organized by the date it was published. I'm gonna do something else right now. If you need anything, press that button on the reception desk over there and I'll be up here as soon as I can." He walked out and headed towards his Knucklecave. Twilight stared at all of the books and she was in awe.

She said to herself "So many books and so many to choose. Where should I start? Hmm. A-ha! I think I'll start in the history section." She went over to that section and scanned the shelves. She picked up the book and began to read it. "The Legacy of George Washington: How He Demonstrated the Proper Role for the Modern United States Presidency." Hmm. Sounds like a cool book to read."

Meanwhile, Knuckles went down to his Knucklecave and walked over to the giant pond that housed all of his marine vehicles. He stared into it and the reflection said to him "You better not be getting soft, boy."

Knuckles glared at the reflection and said "I'm not getting soft! I didn't expect that pony to hug me as soon as I showed her library. I thought it would be a simple thank you, but she decided to give me an entire hug instead! Who does that?!"

The reflection smirked at him and said "The girl you last hung out with."

Knuckles growled at the reflection and said "We both agreed NEVER to talk about her EVER! That was a long time ago and it's time to move on! As long as you keep your mouth shut, no one will ever have to know."

The reflection rolled his eyes and said "Sure, keep telling yourself that. It's only a matter of time before you fall for that pathetic pony princess anyway!"

Knuckles hardened his glare at the reflection and yelled "HEY! Watch the insults!"

The reflection gave a grin at Knuckles and said "Oh, did I strike a nerve? Don't you see? You're already defending this weakling and it's destroying you from the inside."

Knuckles glared hard and said "She may be weaker than me, but I don't call females those kinds of insults! That is degrading them and being dishonorable."

The reflection scoffed at him and said "Oh, give me a break. You know it's true deep down. It is our duty to restore the Master Diamond to our tribe, to restore our legacy and show everyone that we are the superior power over everything. Our grandparents kept that Diamond for years and then, that group of ancient ponies STOLE it from them! We must get it back and restore balance for good, but we can't do that when you're dancing around hallways with con artists and showing off your house to a nerd who only reads books for a living."

Knuckles grunted and started to walk away. He said "I'll take care of it my own way. It will get done."

The reflection said "You better, boy. Because if you don't, you're screwed and you shall be disowned by your own tribe!" Knuckles ignored that and went back upstairs towards the first floor. He was walking through when he still saw the library doors open. He peeked inside and saw Twilight reading the book about George Washington. He thought that was a good book and if anyone liked American history, he recommended that to them.

He walked over to her and said "I see that you're reading the George Washington book. It's definitely a good one to read and in my personal opinion, it sets an example on how a U.S. president ought to act during their time in the White House."

Twilight looked at him and said "Yeah, I never knew you would keep books like this. This is so fascinating and it opens up so many different possibilities about your home planet."

Knuckles sighed and said "That might sound cool and all, but there are certain things about America you might not want to know about. Of course, I believe that all history should be taught regardless of how bad it was, but have it be served as a lesson on what not to do in the future. One of the most important quotes in history in my opinion came from British Prime Minister Winston Churchill where he said "Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it." It has been proven time again and again and I don't think it will be proven wrong any time soon."

Twilight took out her notepad and started writing all of this stuff down. If he was going to share this information, she had to record it as things to keep. Knuckles didn't really mind too much since this stuff was public knowledge, so it was okay to share it with her. He would not want to say anything about the Master Diamond or his childhood out loud. That would be bad.

He looked at her with curiosity and asked "Why did you come here as soon as you did?"

Twilight seemed confused by that question and asked "What do you mean?"

Knuckles said with clarification "Well, we had agreed upon the deal two days ago, and now you show up a short time later. I would have thought it would have been at least a week."

Twilight sighed and said "Well, I came here so quickly because I got into an altercation with my friends last night. They had the nerve to believe that you were going to take advantage of me and conquer Equestria! As if that was going to happen."

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said with annoyance "Oh. Yeah, those ponies are idiots anyways. They are the type to hear some sort of false rumor that is going around and believe it without challenging it whatsoever. Those morons were foolish enough to believe that I would defile a female like that despite having no idea about me at all. But, that's what you get with dimwitted Celestial skintags."

Twilight didn't exactly like the insults and she said with anger "Don't call my friends that! They genuinely care about me and I'm sure they would do the same if you treated them like friends instead of enemies!"

Knuckles just shrugged and said "What? It's the truth. Besides, I don't do friendship. That's for the stupid and the foolish. They already hate me, it's only a matter of time before they hate you as well." He started walking backwards out of the door and then left. Twilight shook her head and kept reading. But then, her mind was starting to wonder off.

Was he right that her friends would eventually hate her because they hated him? No, of course not! That's ridiculous! He is only trying to get under her skin and drive a wedge between herself and her friends. But she won't let him do that. She was stronger than that and it would take a lot of guts for her to eventually quit. She still had quite a bit of work to do on improving Knuckles' social behavior, but he'll eventually get on the right track with time. She's sure it will work.

Author's Note

AN: Alright! We've come to the end of another chapter! This is where things are really gonna start opening up and the two spend more time around one another. It might be good for now, but it will all eventually come crashing down at some point. Anyway, something really stupid happened the other day. I was trying to create a secondary Instagram account to post memes on, and they decided to ban me as soon as I created the account. I know. So stupid. Of course, I filed an appeal and I still have yet to hear back from them. I do not want to be waiting a month to get it up and running, but we'll see how that goes. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: More Social Interaction! Twilight tries to learn more about Knuckles, but that proves to be a challenge as he is a very stubborn individual and does not like to share sensitive details. So, he dodges those kinds of questions and instead directs them towards Twilight. Will he be able to keep up this charade forever or will Twilight eventually find out the truth?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 7: The Backstory of Princess Twilight Sparkle

A few days had passed since their first meeting and Twilight was headed back to Baltimare to visit him again. Even though it ended on a slight sour note, she was still going to visit as much as she could. Besides, this is only the beginning. Knuckles wouldn't change right away. It will take time. So, she would continue to be nice to him and show him compassion. If then and only then will Knuckles change and be open towards friendship again.

Form what she heard from him, he wasn't a very big friendship person. In fact, he hated it. Just like she did at one point in her life. Yes, there was a time where Princess Twilight Sparkle absolutely hated friendship and wanted nothing to do with it. She considered it a waste of time and invested her time in books instead. However, with the emergence of Nightmare Moon, it forced her to have to interact with others. At first thought, she thought these five ponies she met were nuts. But as time went on, she began to appreciate each of them and she eventually called them her best friends so she could defeat Nightmare Moon.

So, the two of them could relate a lot with each other. But he would be more closed off to talking about it than she would because she has seen the light and he has not. He will soon though. The result might be clear, but it's worth a try to see if he will talk about it. She arrived to his house and knocked the door. Knuckles came over to it and opened it. He said "Oh. Good morning, Twilight. I didn't expect to see you here."

Twilight smiled and said "It's been a few days since we last spoke and I wanted to check in on you. That isn't a problem, is it?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "No, not at all. Come on in. It's kinda cold out there." Twilight stepped inside the mansion and Knuckles shut the door closed.

Twilight looked at him and said "So, how are you doing right now?"

Knuckles didn't exactly want to answer that question, but he didn't want to be rude. He said "I'm doing fine, I guess. Not much happens here anyway. I'm usually pretty busy doing activities a lot." He darted his eyes around a lot to make sure no one picked up on that.

Twilight was confused on why he was doing that, but she decided to not press him about it. It wasn't really important anyways and she had bigger fish to fry at the moment. Knuckles said "There are some more interesting books in the library if you want to read them. I have to go do something. I'll be back in a bit." Twilight went inside and chose a book to read.

This one was a detailed book about American history. Twilight got excited at the title and started to read it. As she read through it, she learned many different things about the United States ranging from the Boston Tea Party to 9/11. She was horrified at how some of these events took place, but all of it was still important information to her. She took out her notepad and wrote down all of this information for safe keeping. After a bit, she heard noises coming from down the hall.

She stopped what she was doing and went out the doors to see where it was coming from. She heard it coming from the right and kept walking. The sound suddenly got louder and louder until she saw a huge bowling alley. Knuckles was busy bowling and Twilight watched him do it. She saw him throw the bowling ball with a lot of force and managed to knock down all ten pins easily. Her jaw dropped at it and she asked "How is that even possible?!"

Knuckles stopped what he was doing and turned around. He got into a defensive stance and charged up his red lightning. But when he saw Twilight standing there, jaw agape, he stopped the flow and cleared his throat nervously. He said "Sorry. I wasn't expecting you. You scared me for a second. Anyways, to answer your question, whenever you don't get visitors often, it gives you a lot of time to practice. I've always been pretty good at bowling for as long as I can remember. I actually used to be in a bowling league once. That was kinda cool."

Twilight seemed amazed at that and asked "Do you mind if I try?"

Knuckles said "Be my guest. Let's see what you got." He stepped back in courtesy and Twilight stepped forward. She rolled the ball down the lane and she knocked down all ten pins as well. Caleb's eyes went wide in shock and Twilight was excited about it as well.

She said "I did it! I have never gotten a strike before in bowling! Well, at least without reading something. That is the first time I have ever done so! Uh, are you alright?"

Knuckles was still shocked at that and was still trying to grasp the concept of her getting a strike. After a few seconds, he hardened his face and said "Oh, it is on! You want the competition, I shall give you one! Prepare to fall, Princess!"

Twilight took that as a challenge and said "I don't think so, but I'll spare you a little bit." The two of them started their lightning rounds of bowling and they were getting strikes time and time again. The scoreboard was moving back and forth and it got pretty close at the end. Once it was all said and done, Knuckles had 1,560 points and Twilight had 1,557 points, which meant Knuckles won by three.

The two of them sat down to catch their breath and talked about the results with each other. Twilight said "I was so close to beating you! I could have had you there!"

Knuckles grinned a bit and said "Ha! You've never been beaten so hard. It was a glorious victory and all shall proclaim it! Anyway, I'm curious. Where did you learn to get as good as being able to keep up with me? No one has been able to do that before."

Twilight rubbed the back of her neck and said "Well, it's a long story. But, I'll give you the short version. Basically, I read a lot of books on how to bowl properly and one day when I went bowling, I looked straight at the middle pin and next thing I know, I get a strike. After that, I tried to practice that as much as I could and pretty soon, I could do it pretty well. That's why I've been able to keep up with you."

Knuckles seemed pretty impressed with that and then said "I see. I have had a question that has been bothering me for a little bit now. Have you lived in Ponyville all your life or only move there recently?"

Twilight said "Well, I used to live in Canterlot for most of my life. But I have been in Ponyville for a little over four years now."

Knuckles said "I've never been to Canterlot before, so what exactly was it like?" That was clearly a lie, but he didn't want her to know that he had been there before in search for the Master Diamond.

Twilight said "Well, it's the capital city of Equestria, as you may know already, and there is a lot of interesting stuff there. There are plenty of places to eat, including Restaurant Row, and there is many plays and musicals to watch on Broadway. There is also the castle where Celestia and Luna rule and then there is the massive library. It was a great place to live, however, it's also where most of the nobles and dignitary ponies live as well. They are some of the most intolerable ponies around, but they still believe that Celestia finds favour with them even though she looks like that she just is not interested."

Knuckles could resonate with Twilight about that and he understood what that meant. His hometown was ravaged by crime because of the small minority of elitists trying to change the city into a war zone. The tyranny of the minority was definitely being lived out constantly. It was because of those bureaucratic fools that got... her killed and he will never forgive them for that.

Twilight noticed Knuckles' change of mood and asked "Are you alright? You seemed angry for a second."

Knuckles realized what he was doing and quickly changed demeanor. He said "I'm fine. Please continue."

Twilight didn't know how to respond to that, but she dropped it and continued with her story. She said "Well, I lived with my parents for the first few years of my life in Canterlot and during that time, I was obsessed with magic. I wanted to learn and study everything about it. There would be days where I stayed up all night and didn't go to sleep. Eventually, my parents decided to sign me up for Celestia's School of Gifted Unicorns and I was super excited. However, I had to take an entrance exam in order to get in."

Knuckles could see why that was the case. Something that fancy would require an entrance exam to see if they should let you in. It was probably one of those Ivy League schools where only "the best and the brightest" attended. That phrase sickened him and he hated it anytime someone brought up that they were sending their child to Harvard or Yale.

"I was never more scared in my life and I tried as hard as I could. But it just wasn't enough, even with the support of my parents. I was about to give up when there was a loud sonic boom explosion and I was able to hatch the dragon egg."

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "They made you hatch a Dragon egg? Where the heck did they even get it? It's not like they sell those things at the grocery store or something."

Twilight shrugged and said "I don't know. They just gave me that and told me to open it. Anyway, the explosion caused my magic to go haywire and I accidentally ended up turning my parents into potted plants and making Spike really huge. Celestia had seen it and was able to calm my anxiety. Everything was restored and after Celestia told me she was impressed with my raw magical abilities, she wanted me to attend the school. I wasn't sure at first, but my parents insisted I'd do it, so I accepted it. I was so excited that day, and Celestia told me that I had gotten my cutie mark as well. I found out years later that it was a sonic rainboom done by Rainbow Dash that caused me to be accepted."

Knuckles was shocked about that and asked "That red-headed stepchild of a pony did that?!"

Twilight gave him a slight glare and said "Yes, she did. And don't insult Rainbow like that!"

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "Facts don't have feelings, but if you want to play petty, then I'll shut up. Continue."

Twilight lessened her glare and said "After I got in, I studied for quite a bit throughout most of my childhood. I didn't really socialize with other ponies or hang out with them a lot. I did have a group of friends back then, but they weren't really my friends. I didn't take friendship seriously back then and I didn't value it as much as I do now."

Knuckles could also relate to that. He had a group of friends he hung out with at his job, but he sort of lost touch with them after a horrific incident that had happened to him in his personal life. Ever since that night, he hasn't really talked to them.

Twilight continued and said "Not long after, the threat of Nightmare Moon had emerged and it left me pretty distraught because the Summer Sun Celebration was right around the corner."

Knuckles said "I've heard about that holiday, but I never really understood what that holiday was supposed to be about."

Twilight explained by saying "Essentially, it was a celebration that occurs every year where citizens celebrate the rising of the Sun and Celestia defeating Nightmare Moon. For us ponies, it was a momentous day, but for Celestia, it was just a painful reminder that she had to banish her own sister." Knuckles seemed to wince at that. He didn't exactly like the sound of that, but there wasn't much Celestia could have done anyway.

Twilight continued and said "Anyway, I sent Celestia a letter addressing this crisis and instead of telling me that this is urgent, she told me to get my head out of "dusty, old books" and go out to make some friends. I was absolutely livid at the time and I didn't want to do it, but I figured that there was a way around it somehow. I took Spike with me and the two of us headed to Ponyville. I wanted to go to the Golden Oaks Library, which is where I currently live, and just read up on the return of Nightmare Moon. However, I ended up meeting five different ponies. By the time night had come, I was exhausted. I thought these ponies were nuts."

It was true. Take a look at the pilot episode of the series and then come back later when you are done. Anyways, let's move on.

Twilight went on by saying "When Nightmare Moon did return, I was determined to stop her myself, so I went back to the library so I could find something called the Elements of Harmony." That seemed to ring a bell with Knuckles because there was six small diamonds that had the word harmony in it that forged together into the Master Diamond. "I saw that the last known location was in the Everfree Forest and attempted to venture off through it. I told these group of ponies that while I appreciated them trying to help, I told them that this was something I had to do by myself and could not get outside help. However, they refused to let me go by myself and they tagged along as well."

Knuckles could relate to that, but he was currently listening to a story right now, so he would have to deal with that later after this was over.

Twilight continued talking by saying "I didn't want them to do that, but they refused to budge, so I went along with it. We went through a series of challenges and every one that we faced, my friends were able to help us get through it. I started to appreciate them more as time went on and I began to warm up to the idea of friendship. We eventually made it to the Castle of the Two Sisters in the Everfree Forest and found the Elements. Well, five of them at least. The sixth one had to be revealed when all five were present. I tried to figure it out myself, but Nightmare Moon put a quick stop to that. Then, when I thought all hope was lost, I heard my friends saying they were coming to help me. I finally got it and I declared them as my friends. That was when the sixth element was revealed and we defeated Nightmare Moon with all six elements."

Believe me. It's pretty cool if you ask me. Just watch it in case you are not convinced.

Twilight said "The Elements shattered the darkness in Nightmare Moon's heart and restored her to Princess Luna. Celestia was able to get released from her Sun prison and the two of them had a reunion after 1,000 years of separation. We would then go on to defeat several other villains such as Discord, Queen Chrysalis, King Sombra, and a human named Sunset Shimmer. Then there was the Everfree Forest incident and after the issue was resolved, things had been peaceful until now."

Knuckles seemed surprised and said "Wow. That is a very interesting backstory. It sounds very unique and a lot of stuff seemed to happen in 20 some years."

Twilight nodded and said "Yeah, 26 years worth of things in my life. How old are you exactly? I was curious about it, but I wasn't sure when it was a good time to ask."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "It's no problem. To answer your question, I'm 29. When I came here, I was 24 and I had a lot to learn, but as you could probably tell, I've managed just fine. Here. There is something I want to show you. Follow me." He got up and Twilight followed him. They went through some hallways and eventually made it outside in the backyard. "This is my backyard. It's a great place to come out to when you want some fresh air. Speaking of which, care to play catch with the football?"

Twilight seemed confused and asked "What's football?"

Knuckles sighed and said "The dictionary definition of football is a form of team game played in North America with an oval ball on a field marked out as a gridiron. But, the basic terms are you have offense, defense, and special teams. The offense is the one that tries to score points on the field, the defense tries to stop the offense from scoring points, and special teams score field goals, extra points, punt away the football, and return the football."

Twilight seemed intrigued by that explanation and asked "How exactly does football work? It almost sounds like Buckball, but there must be some differences."

Knuckles nodded and said "You would be correct. Buckball is more like soccer where you have goalies and teammates to try to score a goal. American Football is different than that. How it works is you have two teams that play each other in a game, and there is usually a coin toss. The visiting team always gets to pick heads or tails and whatever it lands on determines who gets the ball first. So, for example, if the visiting team called heads and it lands on tails, then the home team wins the toss, but if it lands on heads, then the visiting team wins the toss."

Twilight was actively listening to all of this and writing it down in her notes so that she could better understand the concept of American Football.

Knuckles continued and said "So, once the coin lands on something, the referee asks the losing team which way they want to kick and the team captain points which way they want to go. That's when the opening kickoff begins and you have someone called a return man which is basically a person that tries to run as fast as they can down the field before the defenders get to him. However, these type of players have to make split second decisions. If the defenders are too close, they call for a fair catch and defenders can't tackle them or else they'll get a penalty. But, if the runner has enough room, then they can try to take it out and only stop when they get tackled."

Twilight continued writing some notes and asked "What kind of penalty do you get if you tackle a return man when they have called for a fair catch?"

Knuckles thought about it for a second and said "I believe it is a 15 yard penalty on the kicking team and wherever the spot of the ball was gets moved up 15 yards which sets up the offense in good field position most of the time."

Twilight wrote that down and asked "So what happens after the return man runs with the ball?"

Knuckles said "Alright, so how far the return man can get out in the field is where the ball will be spotted when it stops. Sometimes though, you can get deep into the opponent's territory and near the end zone, or even go the entire distance and score a touchdown."

Twilight stopped writing and asked "How many points is a touchdown?"

Knuckles said "A touchdown is six points, but teams can opt for an extra point which would make it seven or they can try to go for the two point conversation to make it eight points. However, that is usually more difficult and it's not usually done by teams unless they are behind and are trying to tie the game so it can go into overtime. So, if the return man doesn't score a touchdown, the offense starts wherever the spot of the ball was when the return man was tackled. Their goal is to try to move down the field as quickly as possible before the defense tries to stop them. There are four downs and the offense has to make it ten yards in order to convert. If they fail to do so, they have to give it to the other team. Usually, after three, the punter kicks the ball away, but sometimes, the offense goes for it on fourth down, but that's if they are desperate and have nothing else to lose."

Twilight wrote all of this down and asked "So, what's the goal of the defense then?"

Knuckles said "I'm getting to that. So, whenever the offense is out on the field, the defense of the opposing team is trying to stop them from scoring. If they can tackle a receiver before they reach the first down marker, then the offense does not get a conversion. Of course, defenses can get bested at times when the offense has super speedy wide receivers and they score touchdowns. For a defense, you would want to limit the opposing offense to a field goal so that their offense can score some more points. If an offense can get close enough to the end zone, but fail to get a first down, then they can score a field goal which is three points. Let me demonstrate."

He pulled up an inflatable movie screen and showed Twilight a game between the Cleveland Browns and his hometown team, the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football in 2015. He showed her in action how the offense is supposed to work, along with the defense and special teams. He explained to her each position and what their role on the team is. He also explained what happens when the game goes into overtime and went over records, the postseason, and the Super Bowl. Twilight wrote all of this down and was very fascinated by how the game of football worked. She would have to tell her friends once she got home to Ponyville.

Knuckles looked at her and asked "So, do you understand now what the game of football is?"

Twilight nodded and said "I do, but what exactly is it that you're trying to get me to do?"

Knuckles said "All I want you to do is throw the ball to me, using your magic or whatever, and I'll catch it into my arms. It's sometimes part of my exercising where I try to test my speed and agility."

Twilight seemed unsure about it, but she went along with it anyways. She said "Alright, I'll throw you the ball and you'll catch it. Right?" Knuckles nodded and Twilight sighed. She levitated the football in the air and then threw it as far as she could across the field. Knuckles ran super fast and the football landed right in his hands. He kept running with a red streak behind him and he made it to the end zone within a few seconds.

Knuckles smiled and said "There you go. That's the basics of it. Now, try to keep doing that and you'll eventually get it." Twilight nodded and threw the football again. Knuckles ran super fast and caught it with the back of his hand, which left Twilight surprised. They did this some more and Knuckles did all sorts of catches. The tipped catch, the helmet catch, and the OBJ style one handed catch as well. That one left Twilight in the most amazement as she watched Knuckles turn around for the football, jump up high into the air, and landed on his back in the end zone with the ball in his right hand.

It was now night time outside and the two of them were sitting on the grass on the football field. They were staring at the stars and trying to find constellations. Knuckles said "I've always wondered what space was really like up there. I mean, man has already been to space and even the Moon, but I've never been up there myself."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "I've wondered that as well. It sounds incredible that your own kind made it up there, but I'm sure you'll figure it out someday."

Knuckles was taken aback by that statement and stared at the ground with complete shock. No one had really told him something like that in a very long time and the last person to do so, well... they're no longer around. Wait. He was starting to get soft and his mood was lightening up. He couldn't let that happen! She couldn't know the truth about him. The truth hurts and it stings to those affected, showing no mercy to anyone.

Twilight asked him "So how often do you come out here and stare at the stars?"

Knuckles looked at her with a worried expression and said "Well, more often than you think."

Twilight seemed curious and asked "If you come out here a lot, how can no one see you? Clearly, something like this would leave you exposed to the open."

Knuckles went to a neutral expression and said "Here. Watch this." He snapped his fingers and teleported up to the sky. "Can you see me from down there?"

Twilight nodded and said "I can. Can you see me from up there?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "No I cannot."

That left Twilight baffled and Knuckles came back down to the ground. Twilight asked "How is that possible? It seems so odd that I can see you from down here, but you couldn't see me from up there."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "I did that on purpose. You see, when I came here, I didn't want anyone to disturb me or find me somehow. I didn't want to be seen outside and then get reported to local authorities because they were scared. So, I created this invisible shield where I can see anyone from the outside, but no one could see me in the inside. Its purpose was to catch enemies off guard and I could spy on them without them seeing me before eventually striking on them."

Twilight seemed interested by that and said "That's really cool! Equestria could use something like that!" Knuckles did not believe so, but he didn't want to be incredibly blunt.

He looked at her and said "As cool as that might sounds, I don't exactly want to give that away. That is something exclusive to myself in order to keep myself safe."

Twilight seemed confused by that and asked "But don't you care about others potentially getting harmed?"

Knuckles said "Of course I do! What kind of stupid question is that?! All my life, I watched innocent people get murdered in broad daylight and have families torn apart because of terrible government policies. But this is not America anymore. I will defend innocent life if I have to, but it's not something that I try to go looking for. It has to come to me. Plus, I don't want everyone to know about my identity. It's best if it was kept a secret. It's better that way."

Twilight was about to question it, but one glare from Knuckles made her drop it. Knuckles laid down on the ground and stared up at the sky. Twilight did the same and looked at the stars. She saw a bright light for a second and then looked to the right of her. She saw a bunch of bright lanterns and watched them float in the sky. She looked at Knuckles and asked "What are those things floating in the sky?"

Knuckles looked up and said "Oh. Those are just lanterns. They are usually done once a year not long after Nightmare Night."

Twilight looked up at them again and asked "Do you know why they do that?"

Knuckles gave her a deadpan stare and said "Do I look like Rapunzel to you? I don't think so."

Twilight was confused and asked "Rapunzel? Who in Celestia is that?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Oh boy. This is going to be a long one. Rapunzel was one of the princesses that is part of a massive corporation called Disney back in America. The story goes like this: In the Kingdom of Corona, there was a King and Queen who ruled benevolently and was loved amongst their subjects. When the Queen got pregnant, she became very sick, so the royal guard had to find a flower to put in the elixir in order to heal the Queen. They say that a drop of sunlight fell from space and grew into a flower, but no one really knows."

As Knuckles was talking, Twilight seemed interested in this story and wanted to know more.

Knuckles continued by saying "Anyway, the Queen was able to have a baby girl and that flower used in the elixir made the baby's hair to glow whenever she sings. Not long after her birth, an evil woman named Mother Gothel snuck into the castle and stole Rapunzel away from her parents. The kingdom tried searching for her, but they could not find Gothel's tower which was where Rapunzel was at. For eighteen years, Rapunzel was trapped in that tower and Gothel refused to let her leave. It wasn't until a guy named Flynn Rider or his real name, Eugene Fitzherbert, came to the tower and found her. Of course, this guy was a thief and was the kingdom's most wanted person, so Rapunzel was dealing with a criminal here."

It left Twilight completely shocked that a princess had met a career criminal in a tower that was locked away from society. That must have been one crazy interaction.

Knuckles continued some more by saying "Rapunzel didn't exactly trust this dude, and rightfully so, but she made a deal with him that if he took her to see the lanterns in the kingdom, she would give him his bag back because she hid it from him since it contained the crown that originally belonged to her."

Twilight was confused and asked "Why did she want him to take her to the lanterns? What was so special about them?"

Knuckles said "Every year on her birthday, the kingdom would raise a bunch of lanterns in the sky hoping that the lost princess would someday return to them. So, this was pretty important to her. Flynn was hesitant about that at first, but he eventually agreed to take her there. The two of them went through some pretty crazy adventures ranging from singing about dreams with creepy dudes in a bar to barely escaping the royal guard in the valley. Eventually, the two of them made it to the kingdom and Rapunzel was filled with joy as she got to experience the festivities for the first time in her life."

Twilight could only imagine what that must have felt like to not experience it for eighteen years and then finally do it when you become a legal adult.

Knuckles continued on by saying "After a little bit, everyone had went to the boats and Rapunzel was able to see the lanterns up close instead of miles away from a tower window. She learned a lot in that moment and she then wished she could lift up one herself. Well, as if she was heard saying it, Flynn presented her with two lanterns and the two of them launched it into the sky. It was a happy moment, but Flynn eventually gets captured and sent out onto a boat for the royal guard to deal with as bait."

Twilight asked "Why was he getting sent to the royal guard?"

Knuckles said "Well, he was a thief obviously and he was the most wanted criminal in the kingdom. Stealing a crown was considered a punishable offense and the penalty for it was death. So, they were basically going to hang him for his crimes. It left Rapunzel pretty distraught, but Mother Gothel had just showed up at that moment before she could do anything. Gothel said that she was following Rapunzel the entire time and urged her to go back to the tower. Rapunzel wanted to save Flynn, but she didn't know what to do, so she ran to Gothel instead. Gothel took her back to the tower and told her to forget everything that had happened."

Twilight could only shake her head internally at that. How could a mother tell their child to forget everything that had just happened after seeing all of those events occur? This was the first time Rapunzel felt free in her life and now she had to go back to the life where nothing happened? That sounds extremely boring. It is true that the world is dark, scary, and cruel, but that does not mean you keep a child locked up in a tower until the day they die. That's not how it's supposed to work.

Knuckles moved along by saying "Eventually, Rapunzel found out the truth about her being the lost princess after staring at her ceiling and she connected the dots. From the Sun on her crib to the picture of her with her parents as a baby in the kingdom. Rapunzel told Gothel that she was never allowed to use her hair again and that's when Gothel decided to play the bad guy. Flynn wasn't fairing much better, but he was able to escape with the help of those bar guys and a horse named Maximus. The two had prior beef, but they briefly settled it for a common cause."

Twilight laughed a bit at the thought of a human and horse having beef with each other for some dumb reason, whatever it may be.

Knuckles ignored that and said "Flynn had made it to the tower and was able to get to Rapunzel. But he saw her with a white cloth over her mouth and chains connected to the wall so she couldn't escape. Yeah, Gothel was that cruel. She was basically showing her true colors at this point. Anyway, Gothel had snuck up behind Flynn and stabbed him across the stomach with the sword he held in his hand. Gothel tried to force Rapunzel to come with her, but Rapunzel refused to just let Flynn die and the secret about her remain hidden."

Twilight's blood boiled with anger as she thought about how this evil woman would seriously restrain her "child" like that and nearly kill off a man that clearly cared about Rapunzel.

Knuckles saw that anger and said "I don't blame you for getting angry. It was pretty cruel, but that was Gothel for you. Anyway, Rapunzel tried to make a deal with Gothel where she would go with her as long as she could heal Flynn. Gothel was very skeptical about it, but she eventually agreed to it. However, she put the chains on Flynn just in case he had any ideas about following Rapunzel. Flynn tried to stop Rapunzel, but she said she couldn't let him die. Flynn said that he couldn't let her die, but Rapunzel told him it was going to be okay. She was about to sing her song, but Flynn stopped her and then cut her hair. That made it turn brown and the glowing power had been lost. Gothel had returned to her true form and she eventually fell out of the tower in embarrassment because of how hideous she looked. She would eventually turn to dust because of how old she truly was."

Twilight could only imagine how hideous Gothel looked when Flynn cut Rapunzel's hair. It must have been the equivalent of an elderly woman at that point.

Knuckles saw that speculation and said "She was pretty ugly. Anyway, Rapunzel tried to save Flynn with her singing, but that did nothing. Flynn told her that she was his new dream and she said that he was hers. When all hope seemed lost, a single tear fell onto Flynn's face and the power of the flower was able to heal Flynn. When he woke up, the two of them hugged and there may have been some kissing involved. I'm not saying anything. Anyway, the royal guard told the King and Queen that Rapunzel had returned and they went to see for themselves. Sure enough, she was standing right there. Flynn had reunited the family and the Queen brought him in on the hug as well. After that, the kingdom rejoiced as the lost princess returned after eighteen years of absence and they celebrated for a week. Those bar guys were able to live out their dreams and Rapunzel and Eugene eventually got married and lived happily ever after. So, that's the story of Rapunzel."

Twilight was blown away by that story and said "Wow. That is an incredible story. It's a shame Equestria doesn't have something like that. Broadway would get a field day out of that. Are there other stories from your homeland like that?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "Not really. But there were a lot of movies made about Princesses by Disney. The one I just talked about wasn't made during the golden era of the 90's, but it was still a great movie to watch. During that time period, there were a lot of good movies to watch. But, now they have taken a nosedive and they aren't doing as well anymore."

Twilight was curious and asked "Why not?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Well, Disney decided to embrace something that should not be shown to a young child and parents started boycotting the company which made them lose a lot of money."

Twilight asked "What kind of things did they embrace?"

Knuckles said with sternness in his voice "You do not want to know. It was that bad. It was stuff that would make any logical person disgusted. That's all I'll say."

Twilight went wide eyed and said "Wow, it must have been that bad if you don't want to mention it explicitly. That seems really stupid for a movie production corporation to do that."

Knuckles said "Yeah, I know. It sucks, but that's corporate America for you. They're not the same as they once were 50 or 60 years ago. All I can do now is move on."

Twilight said "Well, that seems interesting, but I agree. Nothing can be done." Knuckles nodded and the two of them went back to staring at the sky. He noticed that things had gotten quite silent and he looked over to see Twilight already asleep on the grass. He frowned a bit and sighed. He got up and walked away. He said in a whispering voice "Everfree Forest, you say? It looks like that might be the next stop for me to find the Master Diamond." He chuckled a little bit and gave an evil grin as he walked into his house. That pony might have given him a possible location to the most powerful artifact of his lifetime. If he can find it, he will restore his family's legacy and hide it away from enemies' hands for good. He just needed some time to do so.

Author's Note

AN: It's sad that Disney had to go woke. They had a lot of good movies in the tail end of the 20th century and into the beginning of the 21st century, but they decided to throw it all away just because they had beef with Ron DeSantis in Florida. Pathetic. But that's woke liberal corporate executives in California for you. So, whatever. They may think they'll get away with this for now, but they will pay the penalty at the box office. Ain't that right, Lightyear? Anyways, I wanted to let you guys know that there will be no new chapter next week as I am going on vacation to San Diego on Monday and will be gone the entire week. But once I get back, I'll write chapter 8. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: More Quest Finding! After Knuckles hears Twilight's life story, he believes that the Master Diamond could be somewhere in the Everfree Forest. But while he is there, he tells Twilight about how he rose up into a crime fighting vigilante. However, he leaves out certain details and this quest is getting more difficult by the minute. Will he able to find the Master Diamond, or will he have to go back to the drawing board in order to find this artifact?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 8: The Rise of Knuckles

The next morning, Twilight woke up and got out of bed. She quickly got ready and ran out the door as fast as she could to the train station. You may be wondering why she was doing this, well, the reason why was because she had an important project that she had to do and she wanted Knuckles to come along. The books she needed could not be found in her library and only in the Castle of the Two Sisters of the Everfree Forest. So, she figured that since Knuckles had been there before, he might as well come as well. It might be a good bonding experience.

She got on the train and it headed off to Baltimare. After three hours, the train stopped and arrived at Baltimare. Twilight got off the train and started flying over to Brody Manor on Brody Island. As she was flying over there, she thought about their most recent interaction. She had learned so much during that time ranging from the history of the United States to the story of Rapunzel. It was a great educational experience and she hoped to learn even more as time went on.

She eventually landed on the ground and knocked on the front door. Knuckles walked over to it and opened it. He said "Oh, Twilight. What exactly brings you here?"

Twilight smiled a bit and said "Well, I have an important project that can only be done in the Castle of the Two Sisters in the Everfree Forest and I figured since you've been there before, you might want to tag along."

Knuckles seemed a little surprised by that and sat in thought. She literally sat in a train for three hours just to tell him that? Seems kinda pointless, but he wasn't going to judge. He then remembered that it could be the only place left that might house the Master Diamond and there could be clues that would lead right to it. So, this might be the perfect opportunity to find it. He just had to keep it lowkey so Twilight wouldn't find out because she would definitely start to ask questions if she caught him.

He looked at her with a neutral expression and said "Sure, I'll tag along, but don't believe that means I'm telling you ANYTHING about the ultimate power or my childhood."

Twilight said "I had no plans on it at all. You have nothing to worry about."

Knuckles gave a grunt of satisfaction and said "Good. Now, since you came all the way out here to tell me this, we shall begin our quest back to the Everfree Forest."

Twilight smiled and said "If you follow me to the train station, then we can move along."

Knuckles shook his head and said "Uh, no, no, no. We ain't doing that."

Twilight raised a brow and asked "Then how are we going to get there then? The train is our only mode of transportation and it's not like we can just walk there. That would take hours to do so."

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "Oh, ye of little faith. Do you not know who I am? Have you not met me? The train is way too slow to get over there. What I have will be much faster than some steam engine powered train. Wait right here." Knuckles disappeared for a second into his house and eventually came back out with his aerial vehicle. He said "I present to you: Blackbird. This thing is the fastest thing you will ever see and we'll get to the Everfree Forest in a matter of mere minutes. Come hop in."

Twilight was dazed in confusion for a few seconds, but quickly got on as she did not want to be left behind. Knuckles told her "Before we leave, make sure you put on the seatbelt. I don't want you to be flying out the window and killing yourself halfway through the trip because you forgot to use a piece of safety equipment."

Twilight said "I'm an alicorn, remember? I can fly. So, I fall, I can simply fly back up." Knuckles gave her a hard glare and that told her that she should just do it anyways, regardless of whether or not she was an alicorn. That was the least of his concerns and that meant nothing to him.

He said "With how fast this thing travels and the speed of the winds, you'll be glad you had that seatbelt on." Twilight questioned it no further and simply put that seatbelt on. Knuckles said "Alright, you ready to go? Okay, hold on tight because this thing can move." Knuckles pushed the throttle forward and the afterburners spat out tons of thrust before it propelled forward in a matter of seconds.

Twilight was thrown back in her seat and was holding on for dear life as the vehicle increased in speed. Once Knuckles was out of the city limits, he pulled back the throttle a little bit and put it on cruise control. Twilight let out a sigh of relief and basically ripped into him for driving this vehicle so fast.

Knuckles only shook his head and said "I told you that this vehicle moves very fast. I even warned you that it would be the best idea to put that seatbelt on because of how fast this piece of metal moves. So, you can't act all surprised Pikachu when you suddenly get launched back into your seat after you were warned that might happen."

Twilight tried to retort something, but then she realized Knuckles was right. He did in fact warn her this might happen and she still ripped into him for driving super fast in this vehicle. She hung her head down a little bit in shame and said "I'm sorry I reacted that way. I'm just not used to this kind of speed and you did warn me that could happen, so I should have reacted better."

Knuckles kept the neutral expression and said "It's good. It's not every day that you ride in something that can go almost 2,500 mph an hour."

After he said that, Twilight's jaw dropped when she heard how fast this thing goes. She said "2,500 MPH?! That's even faster than Rainbow Dash's top speed when she does a sonic rainboom!"

Knuckles grinned a bit and said "Indeed it is. When that pony does something like that, she's just breaking the sound barrier, but with this thing, it's traveling almost three times the speed of sound which is around 767 mph. That is what you call Mach 1 speeds. The vehicle we are traveling in is Mach 3.3 speeds which clocks in at about 2,450 mph."

Twilight was blown away by all of this and asked "So, what is the top speed of this thing and why is this called Blackbird?"

Knuckles sighed and said "The top speed of this is 2,445 mph and it is called Blackbird because I named it after the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird which was and still is known for the world's fastest jet aircraft."

Twilight was interested in this story and asked "What exactly made the SR-71 Blackbird so legendary?"

Knuckles said "Well, like I said, it can reach Mach 3.3 speeds and get to places very quickly. The purpose of this aircraft was actually to be used as a spy plane over the Soviet Union during the Cold War and it was the most effective spy plane to date. The reason why was because it could fly over enemy territories without being attacked and it had a ceiling of 80,000 feet which is double the height a regular commercial aircraft could reach. It was never shot down at all during its years of service and it was the best way for the CIA and Department of Defense to keep track of what was going on in the Soviet Union."

Twilight wrote all of this down and asked "Why were they spying on the Soviet Union?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Well, the Soviet Union was considered an enemy to the United States at the time and they were a bitter standoff with them in what was called the Cold War. It wasn't an actual war nor did it take place during winter. You see, not long after World War II and when Germany was split up, the United States and the Soviet Union had become global superpowers and they had different ideas about economic systems. America believed in Capitalism which was where the country's trade and industry was controlled by private owners instead of the government. The Soviets believed the opposite and believed in a system called Communism where everything is controlled by the government."

Twilight wrote more down and asked "Why was the United States opposed to it so much?"

Knuckles said "Well, in Communism, you have something called redistribution of wealth which essentially means everyone gets paid the same amount of money. It sounds great on paper, but in reality, it's a disaster because it gives the government a ton of power and they usually treat their citizens poorly. It has been proven to fail before and the only countries left that still have Communism are China, North Korea, and Cuba. If you really think about it, redistribution of wealth sounds like a terrible idea because if you are a brain surgeon, you should not be getting paid the same amount of money as a janitor. The jobs are totally two different areas and the tasks done aren't even comparable at all."

Twilight thought about it for a moment and quickly agreed. If you're getting paid the same amount as a job lower in the economic system, then it's just not a good idea to do so in the first place.

Knuckles said "The other problem with it is that it doesn't teach anyone to work hard at anything. If I'm going to get to paid as a fighter pilot the same rate as a fast food worker, then what's the point? It's not worth the work if I'm going to paid the same as someone who is flipping hamburgers at McDonald's. So, because of that, the United States tried to prevent the spread of Communism across the world, but that was met with mixed results."

Twilight raised a brow and asked "How so?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Well, during that time period, there was an arms race, space race, and two wars that occurred. The United States and the Soviet Union wanted to see who was the better superpower and they traded blow for blow for forty years. People say that the United States essentially won the Cold War, but there was really no clear winner. While America did outspend the Soviets when it came to weapons and beat them to the Moon, Korea split into North and South and Vietnam split as well. It's back to one country today, but it's essentially pretty close to the Communist way of economics."

Twilight wrote down this new information and asked "So, where does the SR-71 Blackbird fit into all of this?"

Knuckles said "There were some pretty bad time periods during the Cold War such as the Cuban Missile Crisis and the United States needed to figure out what the Soviets were doing so they could prepare for doomsday accordingly. The Blackbird is most famous for being the only aircraft to go from Los Angeles to New York in about an hour. That is essentially one end of the country to the other. The United States clocks in at about 3.8 million square miles if you include all 50 states and Washington D.C. So, being able to travel that fast is crazy and no other plane has been able to do so since its retirement."

Twilight wrote that down and asked "Do you know how long that would be here in Equestria?"

Knuckles said "Well, here in Equestria, the area is roughly about 200,000 square miles which is about the size of the states California and Texas combined. You could easily fit Equestria in the United States no problem because America is almost 20 times bigger than Equestria. How long it took you to get to my house by train is about the same amount of time it would take to get from my hometown of Baltimore, Maryland to Jersey City, New Jersey by car. Also, if this vehicle that we are sitting in was going its top speed right now, we could essentially get to the Everfree Forest in about 5 minutes. That's how quick this thing is."

Twilight's mind was officially blown and she asked "Then how come we aren't doing that right now?"

Knuckles said "Because I don't have infinite fuel, that's why. I might live in a mansion, but I'm not exactly flowing with cash right now, so it's important to limit how fast I'm going so that I don't break the bank on fuel costs. Gas ain't cheap these days."

Twilight looked around the vehicle a little bit and asked "How long have you had this vehicle?"

Knuckles said "About five years. When I came here, I figured I needed a way to get around and this was the best way to do so. I built it myself and after about two months of construction, it was good to go. After that, I took it out a lot and have been driving it ever since. Love it."

Twilight turned around and looked down below. She was fascinated by it and stared at it. Never before had she seen this view and when she did, it was down below on the ground when she was on the train. But clearly, things looked a lot better even if it was just a bunch of fields. Knuckles said "Great view, isn't it? This probably the best part of traveling Equestria. It's so calm and peaceful and it's a nice change of pace instead of seeing skyscrapers out of every window in your house."

Twilight looked back at him and said "Yeah, I've seen this view before on the train, but it just isn't the same as it is up here."

After a little bit, they arrived at the castle in the Everfree Forest and Knuckles landed the vehicle. The two of them hopped out and walked towards the castle. Twilight said "I do have to warn you that there are a lot of secret passageways and traps inside of this castle. My friends and I have stumbled upon them the last time we were here, so just be careful."

Knuckles laughed that off and said "Petty little castle traps are nothing for me. If you actually think that those things can truly get me, then you got another thing coming. They shall stand no chance against me. Now, let's begin our research." Twilight was about to say something, but she just stayed silent and followed Knuckles. She was astonished that he was able to walk through this castle with no problem and looked as if he knew where he was going. He eventually spotted the library and said "Ahh. The castle library. Exactly what I am looking for. Let's see if the answer is in here."

Twilight stood there agape for a second and then asked "How did you do that?"

Knuckles turned around in confusion and asked "What do you mean?"

Twilight said "You were able to walk in here and just find the library no problem. Most ponies would get lost just trying to find it. It even took me a while to figure out where it was."

Knuckles said "I've visited a lot of castles during my lifetime. Almost every single one I visited had the library in the exact same spot, so I just assumed that was the case for this one and I was right. It's no big deal. I still wonder where those "traps" were. I saw none and I'm wondering if you made that up just so you could scare me. Let me tell you, you're gonna have to try a lot harder than that to truly scare me."

Twilight was annoyed and said "There are traps here! I saw them myself! Even my friends did as well."

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "Sure you did. Plus, what makes you think I trust those "friends" of yours anyways? They believed some stupid lie about me because of one bad encounter they had and now I'm supposed to suddenly believe them? Yeah, no. That's not how I play things. If you want to continue to soak yourself in that disgusting "friendship" as if it were a tomato juice bath, then be my guest. But I want nothing to do with it at all and don't drag me into it either."

Twilight hardened her glare and asked "Then what am I to you?"

Knuckles returned the glare and said "A mere acquaintance is all you are to me. There might be some common interests that we have, but other than that, we are completely different individuals. Friendship means nothing to me and will always be nothing to me until the day I die. Now, if you excuse me, I need to do some research on some important information." He walked away and left Twilight standing there.

She was still trying to grasp what Knuckles had just said. He had insulted friendship entirely and slandered it as if it meant nothing to him. Wait. It did mean nothing to him. He said it himself. He even had the nerve to compare friendship to a tomato juice bath. It wasn't exactly the worst insult she had heard, but it was still pretty rude. The reason why is because no one likes to take a tomato juice bath whenever they get sprayed by a Skunk, but it's necessary. That's how he views friendship. Something that he doesn't want to do unless it's absolutely necessary. She wants to be really angry at him for that, but she remembered that she used to act that way, so she can't really judge him that much. She still has a lot of work to do and getting angry at him over something small like that won't do anything. It will only make it worse.

Meanwhile, Knuckles was busy traveling down the hallways looking for any information about the Master Diamond. As he walked along, he noticed all the traps and realized that Twilight was indeed telling the truth about this one. However, he dodged them with ease and just rolled down the hallways in a bowling ball formation as arrows, axes, and flames were being thrown his way. After a little bit, he arrived to another library and looked around a bit.

He was about to sit in the chair, but he wanted to check to make sure it was sturdy. He checked all four legs and three of them were solid wood. However, the left front one felt hollow to him. So, he picked it up and lifted the chair. But he noticed this metal thing come out and suddenly, the bookshelves revealed a secret entrance way into what looked like to be a private study. He got curious and wondered inside. He said "Now, if I were a book containing important information, where would I hide?"

He began looking around for anything that might give him clues about the Master Diamond and he could not spot anything in the room. He looked through books to see if there was any information in there, and every single one he read led to a dead end. He eventually got frustrated and slammed his fists down to the ground in anger. It caused loose items to be flown back and Knuckles sat on the beanbag in exhaustion. He said "I've looked everywhere and found nothing! How it can be so hard to find the most powerful artifact of all time?! I don't know where else to look!" He put his hands a little bit underneath the beanbag and felt something.

He got curious and pulled up the beanbag to see what it was. Sure enough, there was a map sitting right underneath the beanbag showing the location of the compass that would be used to lead him right to the Master Diamond. He said "Ah-ha! Now there is a lead somewhere. Perfect! This shows me where the compass is and then that can be used to show me the location of the Master Diamond. Better hide this somewhere so that Twilight doesn't see it. It's far too valuable for anyone to discover but me. This is my destiny and no one or nothing shall stop me."

He hid the map in his pocket inside his shirt and walked out casually as if nothing happened. He returned to where Twilight was and said "I'm heading out now. I've got what I needed out of here. Oh, by the way, you were right about those traps."

He was about to walk out, but Twilight asked him "Then how come you look completely unharmed? Are you some sort of warrior or something?"

Knuckles looked back at her and said "You could say that. I am many different things, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Things far beyond your understanding. To be more specific, I am a crime fighting vigilante who is part of the shadows and beats down any enemies that get in my way."

That caught Twilight's interest and she asked "How did you become that way?" If she could get him to talk about something he loved, then maybe she could move into more sensitive areas without making it so awkward.

Knuckles grinned with glee "Well, it's a long story. So you might want to get your popcorn out. But, I'll try to give you the executive summary. As a young child, I struggled to control my powers and didn't really know how to handle it as well as I do now. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was quite small at the time and I didn't think I stood a chance against anyone because I was a little kid that was easy to scare. But, I was training in several different forms of martial arts at the time such as Tae Kwon Do, Jujutsu, and Karate, so it wasn't a good idea to fight me if you got me angry enough. One day, I was at a tournament and I was fighting dudes who were bigger than me and I wasn't the most thrilled about it."

Twilight was confused and asked "How come?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Well, they thought they were better than anybody else and if you challenged them on that, they would beat the crap out of you whenever they got the opportunity, typically when there was no one around to tell them to knock it off. Anyway, I simply did what my master told me to do and I stayed calm the entire time. Unfortunately, I got hit pretty bad on the side at one point and everyone thought that I wasn't going to recover. However, that unlocked something deep within and when I got back up, I kicked those dudes' asses, so much so that they simply couldn't stop it and they eventually lost. They tried to fight me later after it was over, but I simply did it to them again, only with harder force."

Twilight was amazed at that and said "They must have really learned their lesson after that."

Knuckles said "Well, not exactly. After they got their ass beat, they complained to their master that I tried to kill them, but mine told them I was simply acting in self defense and they should know better than to try to engage in unnecessary combat. The other master agreed and they punished those boys pretty severely. After that, I was able to win every single tournament that I attended and I have many trophies stored in my house to remember my accomplishments. I was able to translate it over to crime fighting and I still yet to have a criminal beat me in a fight. So, yeah. That is the rise of the greatest crime fighting vigilante of all time!"

Twilight said "Wow, that actually sounds kind of interesting. How do you manage to survive those fights because some criminals out there are very dangerous."

Knuckles said "Well, with those who wield powerful magic, they cannot try to levitate me because I'm not part of the natural order in this world and for those who launch attacks against me, I simply dodge them and retaliate with my martial arts techniques. Those who try to use weapons against me, I just do the same thing as I do with magical attacks. I'm not one that likes to go into fights, but sometimes, I have no choice but to fight back. I try to give them a warning, but they usually ignore me anyway. So, after one round, they're done and they back off. Anyways, let's get out of here before it gets any later."

Twilight agreed and the two of them headed out. They were about to get outside, but the door started to close downwards. Knuckles saw that and ran as fast as he could to the door. He pushed his fists upwards and held it in place so Twilight could get through. She slid right down and Knuckles let go and made it to the other side. He thanked himself internally that he was still a bipedal, but if someone were to say it out loud, he would glare at them.

Twilight asked "What the heck was that? We were just leaving and all of a sudden, the door started to close."

Knuckles said "I really have no idea to be completely honest with you. Like you said, this place has a lot of different passageways and traps." He had a slight idea on what it was, but he didn't want to mention it because that would lead to a bunch of problems. Plus, he wasn't entirely sure if it was the case anyways. The map could have activated something, but he wasn't sure about it. He said "It doesn't matter though. We're out now and that's all that matters. Let's get out of here before something else crazy happens."

Twilight quickly agreed and the two of them got back in the Blackbird. He took her back to her library and dropped her off. She said to him "Thanks for dropping me off at my library. I appreciate it."

Knuckles said "No problem. Happy to do it for you. Now, I got to get home before it gets any later."

Twilight said to him "I had fun today. I hope we can do this some more." Knuckles was taken aback by that and didn't know how to react. But after a few seconds, he simply turned around the vehicle and took off in silence. It left Twilight slightly baffled, but it didn't bother her too much. He still wasn't into the entire friendship thing yet and it would still take time. She could only hope that he would come to accept it one day.

Author's Note

AN: I'm back bois! I have finally returned from vacation in San Diego and boy was that something. Southern California is definitely... different to say the least, but it's nothing like the D.C. area. It's good to be back home in Washington. Also, I finally started a memes account over on Instagram. Yeah, there was that one that got banned after I created it, so I ditched that one and created a different one instead. It's called wshmetro2022 and I usually try to post two memes a day. So if you enjoy that, feel free to check it out. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The quest continues! When Knuckles eventually finds the map of the location of the compass, he returns to his mansion to begin looking for the compass in order to lead him to the Master Diamond. However, he runs into some challenges along the way and has to get past them in order to retrieve the compass. Will he be able to figure out a way around it, or will he have to reevaluate how to get the compass?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 9: Hunting for the Compass

The next day, Knuckles rose up from his bed and stretched his muscles. He was able to stop another gang from killing someone last night and he gave them the proper punishment for it. He was really getting sick and tired of the constant crime in the city, but he knew that it will never change just like back home in Baltimore. They always said it would get better and change was coming, but it never did. It was always the same and it would continue to be the same as long as people voted the same way.

This city on the other hand, this wasn't truly his home, so he didn't care as much like he did for his hometown. He'll still fight street crime if he sees it, but he won't go out looking for it. However, it was time to find the Master Diamond. He now had the map that would take him to the compass and once he has that, the Master Diamond will be his once again. He put on a change of clothes and brushed his teeth. After he went to have some breakfast, he went up to his office so he could figure out where this compass was.

He went over to one of the bookshelves and grabbed the map. He set it down on the desk and rolled it out for him to look at. He looked for his map of Equestria and set it down on his desk. He said "Okay. If I found the map here in the Everfree Forest and if the compass is south of Baltimare, then that must mean that the compass has to be in the Forbidden Jungle. It's the only place that has a temple inside. Isn't that where Ahuizotl lives? Oh well. That's no matter. Some weird cat animal won't stop me from getting what I have searched so long for." He put the map of Equestria away and slid the other map into his pocket so he could navigate through the temple in the Forbidden Jungle.

He left his office and went to the living room. He pressed a button that revealed the elevator down to the Knucklecave and he stepped inside. He pressed the button to the bottom floor and the elevator went down. Knuckles stepped out of the elevator once it touched down and went over to Blackbird. He hopped in and pressed the engine start stop button to turn on the car. He pressed the throttle lever forward and the vehicle blasted through the tunnel with tons of pounds of thrust behind it. He went through the caverns of the island and eventually made it out.

He flew up high to view the skyline of downtown Baltimare and he saw life going on as usual. Typically, things were fine during the day, but the criminals would strike at night so they could get away with it more. It irritated Knuckles, but it made sense from their perspective. You would want to strike at night instead of the daytime so that you wouldn't be seen as much. At night, you can simply hide in the shadows. During the day, the Sun is shining down on you and there is nowhere to hide if you commit a crime. It sucks, but it's whatever.

Once Knuckles was past the skyline, he flew down a bit and activated cruise control as he was flying over the Celestial Ocean. He decided to turn on the radio and jam out to Skillet music because it was a way to get him motivated in the morning. A few hours later, he landed down in the Forbidden Jungle and turned off the car. He made sure to hide it well enough to where it was not discovered by wildlife and taken away. That was very expensive and the last thing he wanted was to have a predator destroy it in a matter of seconds, so safety was definitely important to him.

Knuckles took a look around and he was fascinated at the amount of nature that was in this forest. It was almost like walking through the Amazon Rainforest for him. He never got to visit during his time back on Earth, but this definitely makes up for it. He took a look at the map and tried to figure out which direction to go. He eventually figured out he had to go north and he walked that way.

After a little bit, he arrived to the temple and stopped to look at it. He said "This has to be where the compass is at. I have waited so long to find it and if all goes well, I am one step closer to the greatest artifact of all time, the Master Diamond." He began walking up the stairs of the temple, but some vines wrapped around him and dragged him back down to the ground. He tried to break free, but it was a little difficult. As he was struggling, a voice said "Where do you think you're going?" Knuckles looked up and saw Ahuizotl standing right there with an evil grin on his face.

Knuckles glared at him and said "That is none of your business, fool. I have something very important that I need to retrieve out of here and then leave."

Ahuizotl was unfazed by that and said "I believe not! Those pests already destroyed something valuable to me, I will not let another one do the same!"

Knuckles growled with anger and released himself from bondage. He said "How dare you call me a pest! I'll have you know that I am Knuckles and you should think twice before getting me angry. This thing is something held within my family for generations and I shall claim it once more. I will get it and nothing or no one shall stop me in the process."

Ahuizotl smirked at that and whistled for backup. After a few seconds, a Cougar, Panther, Tiger, and small Cat that was definitely aggressive showed up next to Ahuizotl and growled at Knuckles. Knuckles was not intimidated by that at all and said "So, you dare bring your little pets to fight me because I hurt your little feelings? Pathetic."

Ahuizotl grew angry at that and yelled for the creatures to attack Knuckles. Knuckles only rolled his eyes and charged up his red lightning. When the Cougar reached him, Knuckles threw a punch right at the jaw and kicked the creature in the stomach before launching it back quite a bit. The Panther and Tiger roared with anger and they charged at Knuckles. Knuckles launched himself into the air and had his fist out ready to punch them. The creatures saw it and opened their mouths to devour it. Knuckles quickly adjusted his body and then kicked the Panther in the weakest area: the groin.

The Panther roared in pain and Knuckles picked up the creature. He spun it around and knocked out both the Tiger and the Cat at the same time. Knuckles did a final power punch to the Panther's stomach and all of the creatures crashed into Ahuizotl. Ahuizotl got knocked down and he groaned in pain. Just when Knuckles thought it was over, Ahuizotl got back up and ran right towards Knuckles. Knuckles accepted the challenge and punched Ahuizotl in the face King Kong style. Ahuizotl was enraged by that, but before he could retaliate, Knuckles performed different forms of martial arts on him at master level that almost wiped Ahuizotl out.

Ahuizotl was barely moving at this point and Knuckles stared at him with a glare. He yelled out his battle cry and slammed his fist into the ground, which caused all of the creatures to be sent miles away. He simply huffed and said, turning around "Pitiful creatures thinking that they could stop me. Do they not know whose domain they are crossing? Whatever. They paid the penalty for their foolish actions and now, I shall find the compass." He went up the steps and made it to the top of the temple. He saw a trapdoor that he was standing on, but there was no way he could open it by forcing it.

He looked around a bit and then saw a little hole inside of a pedestal standing in the very center of the temple. He walked over to it and noticed that there was a handprint in there. Knuckles looked at his left hand and then placed it down. A bright light began to shine and the trapdoor began to open with a staircase popping out. Knuckles believed he didn't have much time to get in there, so he took his hand off and ran inside as fast as he could.

The trapdoor closed and Knuckles made it to the bottom of the staircase. He saw a long hallway that was lit by torches and started walking. He looked to the left of him and on the left wall was the entire history of the Master Diamond in hieroglyphic format. A lot of the history he already knew and he was proud of, but then he saw the group of ponies that stole the diamond from his grandparents.

He growled with anger and said "Bastards. Stealing the greatest artifact of all time from my family and they are deemed legends here in Equestria. They will most certainly pay for that. But no matter right now. I will get the Master Diamond once more and seal it away for good so NO ONE will EVER steal it again!" He noticed that he was acting louder than he expected and cleared his throat nervously. He continued walking down the hallway and eventually stopped at a bunch of traps that were surrounding the main entrance to the compass.

He growled with frustration and said "More traps, seriously?! First, that ancient castle in the Everfree Forest, and now this temple in the Jungle. Oh well. I can get through this no problem. Even something like this won't stop me." He rolled into a bowling ball and rolled through all of the traps without getting harmed whatsoever. He got back up in the upright position and stared at a giant statue of Starswirl.

Knuckles was enraged and said with anger "OH, YOU HAVE TO GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! I see this dude on the wall, and now, they have an ENTIRE STATUE OF HIM STANDING HERE?! WHAT KIND OF HERESY IS THIS?! These foolish ponies have a VERY unhealthy obsession with this moron. If I see this dude ONE MORE TIME ANYWHERE, I AM GOING TO LOSE MY F[BLEEP]ING MIND!" He grunted with anger and looked down at the map. He recognized the combination and rolled around the blocks to match it with the map.

The ground began shaking and Knuckles was confused for a second. He jumped down and stared right at the statue with a glare. The statue shined a bright teal light on Knuckles and then presented Knuckles the compass. Knuckles grabbed it with his left hand and secured it with his fist. He smiled and said "At last, I have the compass. Now, this will take me straight to the Master Diamond. My family legacy will finally be restored and all shall proclaim our great name!" Knuckles put the compass in his pocket and ran through the temple as fast as he could without getting hurt.

He made it out of the temple and zoomed right past Ahuizotl and the creatures with him who were still laying down weakly from the blast of Knuckles' punch. Knuckles eventually stopped running and made it to Blackbird. He turned it on and took off as fast as he could so he could return home back up north in Baltimare. This was a great achievement for him to possess the compass and it will take him to the Master Diamond. He was one step closer to finally getting it again and restoring his family legacy.

Meanwhile, in Ponyville, the Mane Six were busy sitting out in the fields having a picnic and reconnecting with each other. It had been a little while since they had an actual picnic, but with the Everfree Forest crisis and the Knuckles situation, it took up a lot of time, so now, they could finally slow down and relax.

Rarity said "What a gorgeous day out here! It has been so long since that horrid Everfree Forest incident and the ruffian situation."

The rest of them agreed with that, but Twilight wasn't really paying attention to that. She was currently in thought and was thinking about Knuckles. It had been a little bit since she last spoke to him and when she did, he just gave her the cold shoulder and left without saying a word. She hoped she didn't do anything to offend him and if she did, she truly didn't mean it.

Rarity noticed Twilight not listening and asked "Darling, are you alright? You seemed to be staring off into space there for a little bit."

Twilight snapped out of it and said "What? Oh, sorry. I've just been thinking, that's all."

Rainbow said with skepticism "Please tell me you weren't thinking of that Knuckles dude."

Twilight went wide eyed and said "What's the big deal about that? It has been a few days since I last spoke to him and it has me concerned." After she said that, the environment had basically shifted into "you just opened a can of worms."

Rainbow said "The big deal about it is that you shouldn't even be thinking about that creature in the first place! We have hardly had any time to spend with one another and you are still thinking about him?! He shouldn't even be in your head right now. All that guy has ever done was insult us like we're dirt, abduct us as if we're the foreigners, and use his powers as a form of dominance over us!"

Twilight did not like that and said "Rainbow! He certainly has not done that all of the time! In fact, I've gotten him to open up on some stuff and it seems like we are moving in the right direction."

Rainbow said "Yeah, but did he tell you any of his darker secrets that he has hidden for Celestia knows how long?"

Twilight said "Well no, but I'm not going to demand that out of him right when I meet with him. He still doesn't fully trust me yet and I have to build that up. Plus, it would make me a bad friend if I asked him those things. That would be an invasion of privacy."

Applejack said "How do ya know that what he is sayin' is honest? We don't know what he's capable of and to be quite honest, that is a dangerous thing to think about."

Rarity added "For all we know, he could be a master manipulator like Sombra was. He might sound genuine, but he could just be tricking you into believing that he values friendship!"

Pinkie said "And he's just a big meanie pants. He doesn't seem to like anything happy or party related."

Twilight looked to Fluttershy to see if she had anything to say, but the pegasus stayed quiet. She wanted to say something, but she was just too afraid to.

Twilight growled with frustration and slammed her hoof down. She said "Enough! I get that Knuckles might not be the best individual and he lacks in social issues, but he is not a super bad creature. I've seen him act nice before, and that's when I've asked him questions that were not super personal. I understand that he might appear to be a dangerous creature, but I refuse to believe that he is some demented, twisted individual that has no morals or emotions for anything!"

Rainbow didn't like that and said "Don't you see?! He's already changing you into somepony else so that you can believe his lies about us and Equestria! Whether or not you want to admit it Twilight, he is an evil individual! How can you take his insults and continue to defend him time and time again?! How can you not see what he is doing to you?!"

Twilight yelled back "Because I've been where he was at before!" That statement threw Rainbow completely off guard and she went silent. Twilight sighed and said "There was a time where I absolutely hated friendship and didn't want anything to do with it. Yes, I know that doesn't seem believable, but that did happen. You see, I had "friends" back in Canterlot, but I didn't value them as much as I did now. Even when I met you guys, I thought it would be a waste of time, but I learned how much you guys mean to me and I couldn't ask for better friends. I believe something happened to him during his childhood and as a result, he hated friendship for good. I want to ask him, but I have to wait for the right time. That's why I keep defending him."

Rainbow shook her head and said "You still don't get it, do you? The moment we met that creature, he has treated us lower than dirt and even if he wasn't to you when you visited, it was just him faking it as part of a bigger plan that we still don't know about. If you are willing to die on the hill that he'll somehow be radically be changed by friendship, then be my guest. But just know that I will never EVER trust him or anything that comes out of his mouth." She took flight and left. The rest of them soon followed suit and Fluttershy did so very slowly.

Twilight sighed and looked around. She knew that her friends didn't trust her on this and she didn't blame them. But, they were still missing the big picture that this creature is not who they believe he is. Why couldn't they see he was a caring individual? True, he did say he hated friendship entirely, but he was probably only saying that because he doesn't want to look weak. There was something bigger going on and she was going to find out what. She had her entire lifetime to figure it out, but Knuckles certainly didn't. He probably didn't even have immortality despite him having powers. All she can do now is continue to wait for the right time and bring him to the light. Her friends might not approve, but she'll get him to change. They just needed to believe.

Author's Note

AN: Well, we've reached the end of another chapter! Sorry this one is a little shorter, but I have been busy these last few days with IRL events and I was stuck in a writer's block, but it's out now. The heat is about ready to get turned up to level 11 and prepare yourself for some crazy events to go down. It's about to get real interesting. Make sure you stay tuned for that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The truth shall be revealed! When Twilight finishes up using the bathroom, she notices an open door in the hallway and goes to investigate. She eventually finds out the truth about a very dark secret that Knuckles has hid from her and is left in shock. Knuckles is furious about this discovery and forces her to leave. Will the two ever be able to recover from this, or will this shocking revelation keep them apart?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 10: The Truth Revealed

Notice: THERE IS VERY DISTURBING THEMES IN THIS CHAPTER! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE PEOPLE GETTING A BLINDSIDE HIT FROM ANOTHER MOTOR VEHICLE, THEN PLEASE SKIP TO THE NEXT CHAPTER WHEN IT COMES OUT! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY TRAUMA CAUSED TO YOUNGER AUDIENCES! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

A week later, Twilight had gotten up and got on the train to Baltimare. She still wasn't happy at her friends for still being so distrustful of Knuckles after quite some time, but she did understand their concerns. They have only known about his existence for about a month and during that time frame, they didn't always have the best interactions. Sure, Twilight has made some sufficient progress with Knuckles, but he still has that stubbornness within him.

All she has to do is keep trying with him and he'll finally open up to her completely. After three hours, Twilight finally arrived in Baltimare and headed for Brody Manor on Brody Island. She made it to the front door and knocked on it. Knuckles came over to it and opened it. He said "Oh, Twilight. I didn't expect to see you here. Come in. It's kinda cold out here." Twilight walked in and Knuckles closed the door. "I'm just reading a book over here in the living room, so if you need anything, let me know. If you want to join, just grab a book and sit in the other chair over there."

Knuckles walked away and went to sit back down in his chair. Twilight took a look around to find the library and then looked for a book. She grabbed one she liked and went back to the living room. She sat on the chair and began reading the book. After a few minutes, she looked up and examined the room. It was very nice to look at and the combination of the recliners with the fireplace made the environment very calming. She looked at Knuckles and asked "Is this something you do often?"

Knuckles looked up from his book and said "What do you mean exactly?"

Twilight said "Well, I know you like very loud music, so this quiet environment kind of surprises me. It kind of throws me off a bit."

Knuckles said "Oh, I see. You are technically correct. I love my rock music, but sometimes, I like the nice calm environment to block out all the noise. It's part of the reason why I live so far away from the city. I can't stand all of that noise and I would be constantly bombarded with a bunch of strangers trying to either sell something to me or fix my roof which I don't need either of those. This is just a nice relaxing way to destress and just enjoy life without being slapped in the face." He said that last part with bitterness in his voice and it made Twilight a bit unsettled.

She looked to the right of her and saw a bunch of different photos on the wall. She got curious and asked Knuckles "Hey, what are all of those pictures on the wall for?"

Knuckles looked up from his book and said "Oh, those? They are just photos of different people I met throughout my life. It's nothing too important." He looked back down and continued to read his book.

Twilight asked "Does that include your family?"

Knuckles looked back up again and gave her a hard stare which let Twilight know that was a subject she wasn't supposed to touch. She said "Sorry. I didn't mean to break that rule. I know you don't want to talk about it."

Knuckles sighed and said "It's fine. You were only asking a question. No reason to get mad over it."

Twilight examined the middle photo further and asked "Who is that in the photo next to you?"

Knuckles sighed again and said "That would be my little brother David. He and I were so close growing up and we were basically inseparable. He's the best little bro I could ask for. He went to the Top Gun school to become a Navy pilot and he became one of the best Navy pilots the U.S. military has ever seen. Our parents were so proud of his accomplishments."

Twilight asked "Did you have any accomplishments besides all of those tournaments you did?"

Knuckles said "Oh, sure. I definitely did. I have a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science and then a Master's in Political Science. I was working at the Pentagon at one point decoding hackers code and then getting them arrested. I was also a political analyst and strategist at one point and even had my own radio show going over how much the political climate had shifted in America and what it was doing to the country. I might have gotten a little... passionate to say the least, but I felt like it was important."

Twilight asked "Did your parents ever celebrate your accomplishments?"

Knuckles was about to say something, but then he experienced a flashback of his childhood. One day when he came home from a long day of work at the Pentagon, he wanted to go relax after catching the most wanted criminal on the FBI's watchlist, but his father told him to clean up the entire house. Knuckles said he was tired and his father asked rhetorically if he stuttered. He then repeated to Knuckles that he wanted him to clean the house or face consequences.

Knuckles wasn't putting up with it and told him to go kiss his butt because he wasn't doing that. His father got mad and punched him in the stomach. Knuckles winced in pain and retaliated by smacking his father's face with the back of his fist. The two of them began to go at it and fought each other. His mother came in and told her husband to stop for a second before landing a punch on her son's face as well. Knuckles tried to launch at the two of them, but his mother restrained him and his father swept his leg which caused Knuckles to fall to the ground in pain.

His parents kicked him in the stomach once more and left him lying on the ground. After a little bit, he heard his parents talking positively to his younger brother and heard them say that they were proud of his latest accomplishment. That made Knuckles really angry, but he was too weak to do anything about it right now. He tried to get up, but he fell back to the ground and passed out.

The flashback ended and Knuckles had a hard glare on his face. He said "That's enough story time, Twilight." He got up and left the living room. Twilight didn't know what to say and just sat there in silence. Clearly, she must have hit a very sensitive nerve with him and didn't want to talk about it. She went back to her book and kept reading.

A few hours later, Twilight had finished her book and went up to walk around. She was walking through the hallways when she suddenly heard some loud music. She followed the sound of it and stopped at a room that she had never seen before. She slowly opened the door and saw a bunch of weights all over the place. She realized she must have stumbled into the personal weight room.

She saw Knuckles bench-pressing and noticed that he wasn't currently wearing a shirt. Twilight blushed furiously when she saw his muscles and chest being exposed as he walked around to get a towel. Knuckles suddenly saw her and said "Oh, I'm guessing you're not used to me half naked? Alright. I see how it is. I should probably put on a shirt before you faint looking at my body." Twilight nodded and Knuckles threw a shirt on.

Twilight asked "So this is your personal gym?"

Knuckles said "It's more like a personal weight room. I listen to my rock music and I do my heavy weight lifting."

Twilight got curious and asked "How much weight can you lift?"

Knuckles said "Well normally, I lift 1,200 pounds by doing 600 reps of 60, but my max is roughly 6,000 pounds doing 800 reps of 80."

Twilight's jaw dropped and she said "1,200 POUNDS?! That's insane! That is three times the Equestrian record here. How are you not crushed instantly?"

Knuckles said "Part of my supernatural abilities is being able to lift very heavy objects without my spine being crushed. Of course, it took me quite a while to figure it out, but once I did, I tried to keep it as low key as possible so that I wouldn't abuse it. As for my max, it's roughly the weight of about three cars. I just do this so that I can stay in shape when I'm fighting criminals. It allows me to get better and hone my skills so I can fight more efficiently. I'll be done in a bit. So, you can just chill in the library or something while you're waiting."

Twilight nodded and left the room. She realized she had to go to the bathroom, so she went down the hallway and went to it. After handling her business, she went out to find the library. As she was about to walk over there, she saw a door slightly open and a light peaked out. She looked around carefully and then headed in that direction. She walked inside and called out to see if anyone was in there.

Suddenly, she was dragged into some area and she was now viewing a night sky inside of the city. This looked slightly different than Baltimare because of the cars and people walking around, but for the most part, it looked pretty similar. Twilight heard some laughter and saw a couple together walking towards some sort of vehicle. She wanted to get a closer look, so she followed them to see where they were going.

She saw your typical average girl and then she saw... Knuckles. What the heck was he doing with this girl? Who was she? Where did she come from? Was she related to him? Were they together? So many questions circulated through Twilight's mind and she intended to find out the answers. She watched the two hop inside the truck and then drive off. Twilight spread out her wings and flew after them.

She heard Knuckles say "I'm telling you Maddi, those guys were absolutely nuts! I've never seen such stupidity in my life! You would think that Sheetz would be more civilized unlike 7-Eleven, but in this crime ridden city, anything is possible."

Maddi. That's what this girl's name was. This either has to be his sister or girlfriend. She couldn't tell. She needed more details. She heard the girl say "Caleb, you shouldn't be surprised that this sort of thing happened. I understand your frustration, but complaining about it won't do you any good." Caleb? Who the heck is Caleb? That confused Twilight and she didn't know what to think about that one.

Knuckles sighed and said "You're right. *chuckles* What did I ever do to deserve you?"

Maddi giggled a bit and said "I don't know. Just a handsome individual I happened to stumble upon that somehow had a lot in common with me." She pulled him in and the two of them kissed. Twilight was blushing quite a bit looking at that, but she had to stay focused. They were definitely together, that's for sure. Unless there was some serious incest going on, the two were definitely not related by blood. She saw the vehicle moving again and she heard Knuckles say "It really is such a beautiful night. It removes the distractions of the world and zooms on the beauty of nature."

Maddi agreed and said "Yeah, who knew that the night sky could be so beautiful? It fascinates me how people were able to get to the moon over 50 years ago. It's still hard to imagine that." Knuckles nodded and the two of them laughed a bit. Twilight saw the light turn green, but then she saw some sort of car flying down the other road with police chasing right behind them and she knew that wasn't good.

She saw the truck move forward and then as the two inside were talking, that car came running straight into the side of it at a very fast speed. A bunch of glass was shattered instantly along with body panels flying off and airbags being deployed. Twilight was in a state of shock and she saw Knuckles eventually come out of the truck after pushing around some broken body panels. He was wincing in pain and holding his shoulder tightly as he limped over to the other side of the wrecked truck.

He looked for Maddi, but he saw her crushed body completely dead with her head resting on what was left of the dashboard. He realized he made it out alive, but Maddi wasn't so lucky. He now had tears in his eyes and shouted "MADDI!" He banged his fist against the hood and wept bitterly. Twilight eventually heard more sirens coming and that must have have been help. Next thing she knew, she was back in the room that she had stumbled upon.

She was in a state of shock and she didn't know what to say. She had just watched someone very close to Knuckles die instantly and have her die at the price of him living. He was probably alone after that and suffered greatly. Twilight suddenly felt a hand drag her out of the area and put her somewhere else. She turned around and saw Knuckles with a very angry glare on his face. He yelled "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! WHY ARE YOU IN HERE?!"

Twilight was starting to panic and said "I-I didn't mean to! I-it w-was an accident, I swear!"

Knuckles growled and picked up the crystal to see what was in that memory. He growled even more and said "NO! NOT THAT ONE!" He was breathing very heavily for a few seconds and then shot a deathly glare at Twilight. He grabbed her and slammed her against the wall. He said "YOU! HOW DARE YOU INVADE MY PRIVACY LIKE THAT! I LET YOU INTO MY HOME, FULLY KNOWING THE RISKS THAT CAME WITH IT, AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME?!" As he was saying that, Twilight saw all of the pain and trauma that he had experienced over the years in his rage filled eyes.

Twilight didn't know what to say and attempted to say "I-I'm sorr-" but Knuckles wasn't done yet. He said "SHE MEANT EVERYTHING TO ME AND THE FACT THAT YOU BOMBARDED LIKE THAT SHOWS YOU HAVE NO RESPECT FOR PRIVACY AT ALL! THAT WAS MY LAST MEMORY OF HER AND NOW IT IS GONE! SHE WAS THE BEST THING THAT COULD EVER HAPPEN TO ME AND THAT GOSH DARN CRIMINAL TOOK HER AWAY FROM ME! I NEVER FORGAVE HIM OR THOSE DEMOCRAT FOOLS AFTER THAT!" He was about to land a punch on her with his red lightning, but he let go and walked a little bit away.

Twilight now had tears in her eyes and she tried to apologize, but Knuckles turned around and yelled "GET OUT! DON'T YOU EVER COME BACK HERE! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN!"

Twilight said "But-" however, Knuckles shouted all the more "GET OUT! NOW!" Twilight didn't say anything else and ran out of the mansion crying. She didn't know where she was going, but all that mattered at the moment is she needed to go somewhere where she couldn't hurt him any further. She did not mean to stumble upon that at all, she just thought it was some cool room to explore. But that clearly wasn't the case.

Meanwhile, back at the mansion, Knuckles was still trying to grasp all of this occurring. Part of him felt bad for yelling at Twilight like that, but she had discovered one of his darkest secrets that he has tried to bury for years and now with that exposed, the other ones may soon follow and he didn't want that. As for now, he didn't know what to do. He walked very slowly up the stairs and then walked towards his bedroom. He opened up the door and closed it. After a few seconds, he crashed on the ground and just let the waterfalls come out at that point. He wept bitterly and held his arms tightly together.

Author's Note

AN: Well, things definitely got sour to say the least. I know this seems a bit intense and maybe unrealistic, but it's a fanfiction anyways, so who cares? Regardless, this is supposed to explain Knuckles' constant anger towards others. Also, I apologize if that notice seems over the top, but I wanted to give people the heads up so that they don't complain whenever they read it. But who knows? Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next chapter: The Aftermath! Twilight eventually returns home to Ponyville and she explains to her friends about the fallout that happened with Knuckles. Meanwhile, Knuckles is talking to his butler Reginald about how to move forward from this and how to handle it properly. Will the two ever see each other again, or will they forever remain apart?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 11: Hurt By History

It had been three days since the fallout Twilight had with Knuckles and she wasn't faring too well since then. She hadn't come out of her room in that time and Spike had started to get concerned about her. It eventually got so bad that he had to go to Twilight's friends in order to figure out what to do about it. After hearing about Twilight's current state, they immediately stopped what they were doing and ran over to the library to try to comfort their friend.

Spike knocked on the door and said "Twilight, could you please come out? It's been three days and I'm starting to get really worried about you. You barely eat, barely sleep, and have cried for Celestia knows how long." He had not seen her face for three days since she returned from Baltimare and he just wanted her to come out so they could talk.

Twilight didn't want to talk and yelled "Leave me alone!" She had hurt Knuckles in one of the worst ways possible and the last thing she wanted to do was talk to Spike or her friends. She feared that they would all tell her that they were right the entire time about Knuckles and she should just give up on him. She did not want to have that conversation with any of them about that.

Spike didn't back down and said "Even your friends have become worried about you. I know they weren't the biggest fan of Knuckles, but they just want to talk with you. They care about you just as much as I do." While they disapproved of Knuckles for the most part, they hated to see their friend in pain so much and they wanted to help in any way they could.

Twilight still didn't relent and said "No! All they'll tell me is that they were right about Knuckles being dangerous and I don't want to hear it! They would never understand the severity of what happened!" She buried her head further into the pillow and continued to cry.

Spike just sighed and went down the stairs. Down there were all of Twilight's friends waiting for Spike to tell them that it was clear for them to talk to her. Applejack asked "How is she?"

Spike sighed again and said "She still refuses to come out. No matter how hard I try to convince her, she continues to not budge at all."

Rainbow became frustrated and asked with anger "Why is she being so stubborn?! We are her best friends, for Celestia's sake! The last thing she would want to do is shut out her friends. She's being more stubborn than Applejack during applebucking season!" Applejack didn't like that and gave Rainbow a glare.

Spike sighed and said "She's afraid you will tell her that you were right the entire time about Knuckles and she should just stay away from him entirely. I know it seems stupid, but considering she knows how much you all were distrustful of him, she doesn't want to say anything."

Applejack sighed and said "Ahm gonna try to talk to her. The best way to help out a friend is to just listen to what they have to say before ya make judgement." She walked up the stairs and knocked on the door.

Twilight heard it and yelled "Go away! I don't want to talk!"

Applejack said "Sugarcube, it's just me. Listen, Ah know that you are afraid of us hammerin' down our judgement upon ya, but we care about ya more than ya may think and all that we want to do is listen. Nothin' else. Just talk to us and we'll listen. Ah promise."

Twilight thought about what Applejack said and began to wonder. Should she trust Applejack when she says that? Applejack is honest about situations, but sometimes she can be a bit blunt about things. However, she is acting very desperate and genuine when she says she just wants to listen. Maybe she should just trust her friend. She might get some good advice out of it. Twilight walked over to the door and unlocked it. She opened it and said to Applejack "Bring all of my friends up here and Spike too. They need to hear this story."

Applejack nodded and went down to collect the rest of the group. They went up to Twilight's room and sat down on the floor so they could listen to what Twilight had to say. Twilight took a deep breath and sighed. She said "You guys weren't wrong about something going on, but I promise it's not what you may think it is. There was a falling out between me and Knuckles, but it was entirely on me."

Rainbow interjected and said "I knew that guy's is dangerous! He will pay for hurting our friend like that!"

Rarity gave her a glare and yelled "Rainbow! Let her finish before you jump to conclusions! Continue, Twilight. We're listening."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "Thanks, Rarity. Anyway, I did not get hurt nor did he try to kill me. I accidentally stumbled upon a room that contained different memories from his younger years and I happened to find the worst one." She then went on to explain how she witnessed Knuckles and his girlfriend Maddi get into a horrible auto accident and that Maddi died at the price of Knuckles living. All of her friends were in complete shock and horror as they heard this story and they started to feel bad for Knuckles.

Even Rainbow Dash felt bad for him, but she was still very distrustful of him. She wanted to believe that all of that was true, but she didn't want to admit it because it would severely hurt her pride and ego if she was proven wrong about something. Twilight said "I know it might not have been the best for him to yell at me, but it wasn't really his fault. I take full blame and responsibility for this one. He let me into his home and I stepped into something I wasn't supposed to. He has every right to be angry at me for it."

Twilight then looked at Fluttershy and said "Fluttershy, you were definitely right about Knuckles experiencing years of pain. When he was yelling at me, I could see all of the pain and trauma that had happened to him throughout his lifetime in his rage filled eyes. I knew that he truly was suffering and what I had done was unleash something that I shouldn't have which made all of those memories resurface." Twilight folded her ears back and lowered her head in shame.

Rainbow was skeptical and asked "How do you know that he wasn't making all of that up? It could have been a fake memory that he had and believes that was what happened."

Twilight lifted her head back up and glared at Rainbow. She said "Do you seriously believe that Knuckles would make something like that up?! Something like that is ingrained in your head for the rest of your life! Sure, it came from a crystal, but that memory is just as real as you and me. You don't have to take my word for it, but it's still real regardless. Why do you think he has been so hostile with us all of this time?! It wasn't because he doesn't like others, it's because he's got very dark secrets and he doesn't want others to find out the truth. Does that sound made up to you?!"

Rainbow was about to say something, but then she realized that she had no answer for that. Twilight was correct that something horrific like that could never be made up because it's just not funny at all. It might have come from a magic crystal, but maybe he did that as a way to store his memories so he doesn't forget them when he gets old. She knew that Twilight was correct, but she wasn't going to say that out loud. So, she stayed quiet and didn't say anything at all.

Rarity then asked "So where do we go from here? Most of us are still distrustful of him, but after hearing about that, we are starting to have second thoughts. However, we still don't know how he is feeling right now and it could be hard to navigate."

Twilight sighed and said "I don't know. Honestly, I'm not sure if he truly means he never wants to see me again. Something like that could break you from the inside out and you might feel even more alone than you were before. I just hope he can forgive me and realize that I never tried to harm him like that."

Meanwhile in Baltimare, Knuckles wasn't doing much better. He still was up and about, but he was incredibly depressed. He looked like Batman in The Lego Batman Movie when it was announced that there would be no more crime in Gotham City because all of the criminals willingly self-incriminated themselves. His Butler Reginald tried to talk to him, but Knuckles just ignored him.

Knuckles didn't understand why he felt this way because he was alone all this time for five years, but now, he felt even more alone than he did before. It's almost as if interacting with Twilight brought something back in him that he thought was dead very long ago. Maybe seeing that memory renewed that pain and sadness he had in him when it first happened. He only saw part of the memory, but he knew how it played out in his head. It was like reliving it every day whenever he saw it.

Eventually, Reginald had enough and told him he needs to start talking. Knuckles was surprised that his butler dared to stand up to him like that after giving his butler a job and a place to stay, but Reginald stood his ground. Knuckles secretly respected that, but he figured that he had to start talking and the best way to get himself out of this depression is by talking to someone that he lives with.

So, Knuckles eventually relented and basically laid out what had happened between him and Twilight. After he was done explaining it, he said "I just don't know what to do and how to move forward from this. My privacy was violated, but I acted incredibly mean towards someone that was trying to be nice to me. What am I going to do, Reginald?" He put his hands over his face and lowered his head down in shame.

Reginald said "That is a tough one, Master Caleb. My personal opinion about it is it was wrong for you to yell at someone else like that, but at the same time, she should have respected your privacy. She simply didn't know that what she was witnessing was horrific, but sometimes, curiosity kills the cat. As to move forward, just give her time. She might not be willing to talk right now and when she is, she'll come to you. It might not be the greatest advice you have received, but it's the best I can give."

Knuckles sighed and said "Look, I understand you're trying to help in some way, but there should be no reason why she should be upset with me. She invaded MY privacy and found out the truth about an ugly secret that I have tried to bury for years. True, I may have yelled at her, but she deserved it. I knew the risks going into this and I decided to give her the chance because I thought she would honor her word, but she repaid me by going behind my back and learning about one of the worst things that happened in my lifetime! If she wants to talk at some point, that's fine, but I'm not trusting her again. She promised me something, and she used that to get to my dark secrets."

Reginald was baffled by this remark and asked "Master Caleb, are you sure that's a proper assumption to make? She only made one mistake and it was completely on accident."

Knuckles gave him a glare and said "Of course! I specifically told her not to touch anything except the library and she went into that room anyway because she got curious. She already discovered my biggest dark secret, it's only a matter of time before she finds out about the Master Diamond and that will have much bigger consequences if that happened. It's my sacred duty to keep that artifact hidden away from any outside eyes and protected from foreign enemies."

Reginald said "Don't you believe that Twilight might know how you feel after experiencing something like that?"

Knuckles scoffed at that and said "She will NEVER know what it's like to lose the best person you had in your life. My parents were never there for me nor was my older sister. All they did was talk trash about me. The only ones I had were my grandparents, David, and Maddi. That's it and all of them are gone from my life now. Three of them are dead and the other one hasn't seen me in five years, so now I have nobody except myself, you, and Malcolm. Even if Twilight experienced a little bit of that in her life, she will never REMOTELY comprehend of what happened throughout my life. I had my good times in life and now that's dead. I'll just be alone until the day I die."

Reginald gave him a deadpan stare and asked "Aren't you being a little bit overdramatic, Master Caleb?" All Knuckles seemed to talk about was how much he hated his life and he'll be forever alone until the day he dies. It was getting annoying at this point.

Knuckles was offended by that and said "Absolutely not! Do you know what it's like to have your parents despise you since birth and treat you lower than dirt while they praise your siblings' accomplishments and ignoring your own?! Where they have you do everything for them and give the others praise and gifts while they give you nothing?! To have the one person who truly loved me for who I am ripped away from you because of dangerous criminals being let out by the liberal DA's that are supposed to enforce the law instead of playing partisan politics?! NO! You have NEVER known what that is like and never will!"

Reginald tried to say something else, but Knuckles walked away before he could do so. He sighed and said to himself "Always stubborn. I have never seen a more stubborn individual in my life and I really hope he sees the error of his ways at some point. He's gonna need it."

Knuckles walked up to his bedroom and slammed the door. He sat down on the bed and growled with frustration. He didn't know what to do and how to go from here. He didn't want to push out anyone any more than he had to, but none of them could ever comprehend how much pain he went through most of his life. Only the last five years have been sort of dull where no tragedy happened to him in his life. Only the previous 24 had something like that happen at least once every day for almost two and a half decades. That is a lot of torture to go through in that amount of time.

The shadow appeared in his mirror and said "Still depressed thinking about all of this crap?"

Knuckles growled with frustration and said "Go away, you worthless piece of white trash!"

The shadow didn't take too kindly to that and said "Why would you call your own consiousness that? I am your voice of reason and you want to call me a "worthless piece of white trash?!" I thought you were better than that. Maybe then you're that worthless piece of white trash since you want to play petty with me."

Knuckles hardened his glare and said "What do you want?"

The shadow smiled a bit and said "I'm glad you asked. I know you're in a lot of stress right now, and I get it. Really I do. You are mad at Twilight for violating your privacy but at the same time, you feel kind of bad for yelling at her like that. Nothing about life is easy and we all have to make hard decisions from time to time. However, I can give you a simple solution that might end your problems entirely."

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "And what might that be, hotshot?"

The shadow gave him a devilish grin and said "Kill her."

Knuckles was shocked by that answer and said "Excuse me? What did you just say?"

The shadow said "I said to kill her. That would be your most prominent solution."

Knuckles didn't like that suggestion at all and said "NO! That's a horrible idea! Why the heck would I do that?! I might be angry and stubborn all the time, but I don't murder people whenever they make me mad! I only do that when they threaten my life and even then, that's self defense! Why would you ever suggest such a terrible idea?!"

The shadow rolled his eyes and said "Oh come on. Don't tell me you're that stupid. She invaded our privacy and found out the biggest dark secret that we have tried to bury for years! She could never understand the pain we went through and she must pay the penalty for doing that! Don't you want her to learn her lesson for messing with US?!"

Knuckles hardened his glare even more and said "I do want her to learn her lesson but not by committing murder. I'm not like that and that would be dishonorable to my tribe! I've had to watch families get torn apart from rampant violent crime in a Democrat run city all of my life and I ain't about to return the favor in that sense. It would only be adding fuel to the fire and I don't want that. I'm not going to do the same things those fools did that got Maddi killed. Although, my biggest secret has been revealed and Twilight could eventually find out about the Master Diamond."

The shadow smiled and said "Exactly! Now you're getting it! Like you said, one of our darkest secrets has been revealed to an Alicorn princess of Equestria and others may follow. If she ever found out about the Master Diamond, our existence would be greatly threatened or even ended because of what was brought to light. She can never find out about that artifact and it must stay hidden forever from others until we find it ourselves. So what are we going to do?"

Knuckles said with declaration "I shall keep the artifact secrets hidden from everyone and everything until I find it!"

The shadow grinned devilishly and asked "So what will you do if someone tries to find out about it?"

Knuckles glared with fury "Anyone or anything that tries to find out about it shall perish! No one can EVER find out about the greatest artifact of all time and once it's back in my possession, my tribe shall rise to power ONCE AGAIN!"

The shadow was loving it and said "YES! That's the spirit! You are the most powerful individual in the entire universe and NO ONE shall stand in our way!" The shadow disappeared and Knuckles still had that glare on his face.

After a few seconds, he went back to a neutral expression and said "I now have to find this artifact more than ever. I must do whatever I can to keep it under wraps. I have told both Reginald and Malcolm already that they must keep this sworn in secrecy and never mention anything, but this next part is something even they can't know. It's for their own good because they could never truly imagine how much power the Diamond holds."

He was about to walk out, but then he saw a picture of him and Maddi together and picked it up to stare at it. He sighed and said "I really miss you Maddi and I wish you were here to help me through this. I'm sure where you're at right now is much better than here, but it's hard living without you. I'm not the same person as I once was and I'm not who I used to be. I promise to make you proud and I hope that you are still living great even though you're no longer with me." He sat the photo down and walked out the door. Life might be tough without her, but he will still press on because she would have wanted him to. She may never see the Master Diamond, but she might one day. Knuckles just had to find it.

Author's Note

AN: Well, things are definitely heating up for sure. I apologize if this came out a little late, but life these days is busy. I wanted to release it yesterday, but I had some writer's block and I couldn't think of anything at the moment. But it's done now, so you have another chapter to read. It's been a crazy week down in Palm Beach, Florida, hasn't it? It's simply unbelievable what happened down there. If you want my personal opinion, go check out my Twitter. I'll probably get raided by the FBI by talking about this, but oh well. It's the truth and they need to be held accountable. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The showdown! After Twilight tells her friends what had happened between her and Knuckles, they return to Baltimare to try to talk to him about it. Rainbow was absolutely fed up with Knuckles' behavior and she wanted to duke it out with him. When he gets no response from the others, he agrees and takes them somewhere else to properly settle this. However, things get quickly out of hand and it ends up turning for the worse. Will the Mane Six be able to mend their relationship with Knuckles or will the supernatural human force them away for good?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 12: The Bloodbath

Several weeks had passed since Twilight had told her friends what happened in Baltimare and Knuckles sharing his perspective on the incident to his butler Reginald before storming out after yelling at him. Twilight figured that Knuckles needed that time to calm down before she tried to talk to him again. She was about to head to Baltimare, but her friends insisted on going. Twilight said that wasn't really a good idea considering how hostile he is towards them, but they argued that they would only come for support in case things go wrong.

After thinking about it for a few moments, Twilight agreed and let them come on the train for the three hour ride to Baltimare. When they finally arrived, they left the train and headed towards Brody Manor on Brody Island. This island has been confusing before, but Twilight eventually figured it out. She could tell Knuckles purposely made the island this way to confuse ponies and force them to leave him alone so they wouldn't have to deal with the consequences of their actions. But, there was ways around this; it just had to be carefully thought out. Most ponies would stop trying at the first roadblock, but Twilight would think about it more deeply.

Knuckles knew that most ponies were too weak and frail to try to venture up the island, but he knew someone would eventually figure out, so he left different passageways open that would get around all of the bad stuff in case they ever figured it out. Most didn't, but Twilight did and she knew that Knuckles could tell that she figured it out. Her friends were confused the first time they came here, but Twilight showed them how to successfully get through it without getting impaled in the process. They eventually made it up the island and arrived at the front door.

Twilight knocked on it and Reginald answered the door. Twilight seemed surprised at seeing him there, but he said "Oh, you must not know me. Master Caleb must not have introduced me to you. My name is Reginald. I am his butler. Are you trying to see him?"

Twilight nodded and said "Yes I am. I know it has been a few weeks since I last came here, but I thought it would be best to give him time to cool down after getting so angry."

Reginald agreed and said "I'll go get him. I'll be back in a minute." He was walking through the hallways and saw Knuckles sitting on the chair in the living room reading a book. He looked at him and said "Master Caleb!"

Knuckles looked up from his book and asked "Who was at the door?"

Reginald said "Your friend Princess Twilight Sparkle is at the door, sir."

Knuckles growled with anger and said "She is not my friend! I don't know what she is doing here, but she needs to leave NOW!"

Reginald said "Sir, she just told me she thought it was best to give you a few weeks to calm down and she didn't want any trouble."

Knuckles hardened his glare and said "A few weeks?! I don't think so! She invaded my privacy, found out my darkest secret, and now she wants to think I'll forget about it after a few weeks?! She is so wrong on that! She doesn't understand that I don't get over things very easily, but she will. I'll go take care of this." He got up and walked over to the door.

He saw Twilight standing there along with her friends and said "What are you fools doing back at my house?! I thought I told you EXPLICITLY NEVER to come back to my house EVER! But clearly, I was wrong. And YOU! I told you I never wanted to see your face again, yet you DARE have the AUDACITY to show it despite the WARNING?! How pathetic."

Rainbow didn't exactly appreciate the slander and yelled "HEY! Knock it off! Don't you dare yell at my friend or us like that!"

Knuckles took that as a challenge and said "I didn't ask for your opinion, moron! And don't you DARE RAISE YOUR VOICE AT ME, YOU HEAR ME?! You know absolutely NOTHING of what I have been through for almost thirty years! The abusive parents, the dangerous violent crime, and the tragic death of my girlfriend! None of you know ANY OF THAT! And you never will! None of you could EVER COMPREHEND what it's like to experience something like that! But guess what, fools?! I shall rise to power again and I will make every SINGLE ONE OF THOSE WHO HATED ME PAY FOR WHAT THEY DID TO ME! THEY TOOK HER AWAY FROM ME AND I SHALL DO THE SAME TO THEM! NOW GET OUT!"

All of them were taken aback by the loud yelling from Knuckles and Rainbow said "How about you stop talking smack and fight us like a real creature instead of a wimp?!"

Knuckles growled with anger and said "What did you just call me?! YOU DARE CALL ME A WIMP?! YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT MY POWER LEVELS OR WHAT KIND OF EXPERIENCE I HAVE! IS THAT WHAT YOU ALL CAME HERE FOR?! TO FIGHT ME?!" The rest of the group wanted to object, but his yelling was so loud that it made them scared to say anything, so they stayed silent.

Knuckles took that as a yes and he simply huffed in frustration. He said "Fine. If it's a fight you want, you shall get one. Let's get this crap over with." He snapped his fingers and teleported them all away to a separate area where they wouldn't have any interferences. Reginald saw them disappear and he said to himself "Oh no. This will go so wrong." He sighed and left.

When the group arrived at this new location, most of them were confused of where they were at. Rainbow turned around with a glare and asked "Where are we?!"

Knuckles hardened his glare at Rainbow and said "You foolish ponies should know exactly where you are. In fact, you were probably here at some point. I know I was. Just take a look around."

The Mane Six took a look at their surroundings and realized that they were in the Crystal stadium in the Crystal Empire. Knuckles was in fact right that they were here before, but what confused them is how he knew about it and when he was here.

Rainbow asked with anger "How in Celestia's name do you know about this place?! None of us had ever seen you in this city, much less even leave the city of Baltimare!"

Knuckles asked "Well, how often do you come here?" Rainbow tried to say something, but then realized it wasn't very often, so she stayed quiet. Knuckles continued and said "My point exactly. You hardly come over to this city, so I could have been here in between visits for you ponies. I am very good at laying low."

Pinkie asked "Then how come I found you snooping around town?"

Knuckles held out his hand and said "Just stop. I stopped listening when you started talking. You scumbags should really know better than to stalk and harass me like this. True, I might have acted hostile towards you, but you deserved it. If I didn't do it, someone else will."

Applejack said "Ya know, ya can stop talkin' the slander any day now. It's gettin' really annoyin' at this point."

Knuckles did not care and said "So what if I don't stop? What are you going to do about it, incompetent farm animal? Buck me in the face and kick me in the stomach? I would like to see you try that."

Everypony gasped with horror at Knuckles' insult and the farm pony was blood red in anger after hearing that. Rainbow had enough and said "That's it! You have crossed the line, buddy! You're gonna pay!"

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "Oh, I quiver with FEAR! Bring it on, you stupid cowards!" He charged up his red lightning and got into his defensive stance. Rainbow got into a defensive stance as well and lunged towards Knuckles, but Knuckles came prepared and punched Rainbow in the stomach. It sent the pegasus flying back and she hit the ground once again. "Is that all you got, YOU PATHETIC WEAKLING OR IS THERE MORE?!"

Rainbow snarled with anger and got back up. She flew as fast as she could into the air and then went around back to sneak up behind Knuckles. However, Knuckles saw it coming and before Rainbow could tackle him, he sent a backwards punch towards her jaw and she flew to the ground. He turned around and picked her up before body slamming her to the ground. He did several martial arts techniques on her and then tossed her back to the ground, which caused dirt to build up.

Applejack went to kick him in the face with her back legs, but Knuckles wasn't going to let that happen. He picked them up and threw her behind him to the ground. When Rainbow got back up to charge at him, he threw Applejack at her and the two ponies fell back against the wall. Knuckles did a victory motion with his left fist and smiled devilishly.

Rarity didn't like this and said "Ugh, I hate fighting and violence! I don't want to be here!"

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said with a sneer "I can fix that problem, you ungrateful drama queen and pitiful excuse of a fashion pony!" He snapped his fingers and teleported her to the stands where she wouldn't have to worry about getting involved, but she could still watch what was happening. Knuckles saw Fluttershy trembling and teleported her up as well since he didn't care too much about the pony and he wasn't going to fight someone who didn't want to. As for Twilight, she made no movement whatsoever, so he did the same thing to her as well so she wouldn't get in his way.

Rainbow and Applejack came running full steam at Knuckles, but he simply kicked them with the back of his legs and did another fist punch to the chin which made them land on the other side of the stadium after getting thrown in the air by the impact. Pinkie snuck up behind him and blasted the party cannon in his face. Knuckles did not appreciate that and growled at Pinkie.

He said "You know, I thought you would have been ashamed for stalking me like that, but it's clear to me now that you have no problem with it at all. Well, I can fix that for you no problem." He picked her up by the tail and yeeted her to the other side. He put something inside of the cannon and when Pinkie came running back for her cannon, Knuckles pulled the trigger and blasted it right back in Pinkie's face. It was entirely covered in black marks and her mane was nearly blown back entirely.

Knuckles picked up the party cannon and ripped it apart with relative ease. He then tossed it into space and walked away. Pinkie was left there speechless and didn't know what to say about that one. Twilight wasn't liking what she was seeing from up in the stands and tried to get out onto the field, but she was blocked somehow. She then thought that Knuckles must have put up an invisible barrier so that she nor her friends would try to interfere with his fighting.

She said "Knuckles, stop! I know you are angry, but this is not how you solve your problems!" Knuckles completely ignored it and kept fighting. He went to the other end of the field and waited for Rainbow to charge towards him. The pegasus did so and a blue trail followed behind her. Knuckles likewise did the same thing and had his red trail follow behind him. Rainbow flew as fast as she could at him and Knuckles jumped up into the air to meet with her. The two collided and began fighting each other profusely.

Both of them were trading blow for blow, but Knuckles was gaining the edge very quickly and they eventually took the fight to the ground. Rainbow went in for the punch to the face from her leg, but Knuckles punched her in the stomach again and Rainbow fell backwards while skipping a few times. Knuckles grunted and said "Too easy." He went to walk away, but Rainbow got into another defensive stance and stared at Knuckles with a glare. Knuckles was confused and when he got cut off by Rainbow, he started to fall to the ground and watched her very slowly fly around the sky.

She flew up and went down as fast as she could, slamming Knuckles down into the ground as hard as she could. After a few times, she flew back up and landed on the ground, letting out a sigh of relief. However, Knuckles was not done yet. He rose from the ground and yelled with anger. He started punching Rainbow with his red lightning as hard as he could and Rainbow had to dodge it very quickly because that stuff was dangerous.

She started to back up in fear and Knuckles yelled "Why don't you stay still and just DIE WITH HONOR?!" He was absolutely fed up with this pony at this point and he wanted to take her out of commission for good. He had been winning the entire time, but she kept coming back. It's as if every time he beat her down, she would get back up and continue to fight despite the disadvantage. Knuckles had never seen that in his lifetime and it made him frustrated. But, it would not last for much longer.

Rainbow said "I need to think about it!" She wasn't really going to do that, but she needed something to stall herself enough time from getting the knockout punch from Knuckles. He was already dangerous enough when he was annoyed, but when he was in full rage mode, that was even worse. She looked at him and said "Okay, I've thought about it and I pass!" Knuckles yelled out his battle cry and punched Rainbow right in the face, which made her land right on the ground.

Knuckles was going over to her, but Applejack and Pinkie stopped him from doing so. Knuckles was having none of that and simply beat them down. He then tossed them away like a piece of trash and inched closer to Rainbow. Twilight was banging against the barrier at this point and shouting at Knuckles not to do that, but he refused to listen. Twilight desperately searched for anything that might get her out of the stands and out onto the field so she can stop her friend from dying at the hands of Knuckles. She saw an exit and ran that way as fast as she could. She needed to save her friend before it was too late.

Rainbow groaned in pain and shook off any weird feelings she had. She looked up and saw Knuckles standing right there holding a giant rock in his hands. He glared at her and said "You fought hard, but you still lost in the end. Enjoy your last moments here in this pathetic world because you'll never see this again. Goodbye, pony!" He was about to throw down the large rock on Rainbow, but before he could do so, Twilight suddenly tackled him from behind and the rock dropped from his hands.

Rainbow was confused and quickly got away from the large rock. Knuckles grunted in pain and growled in anger. He pushed Twilight off of him and said "How dare you tackle me when I'm in the middle of something!"

Twilight glared right back at him and said "In the middle of almost killing my friend! What is wrong with you?! I understand you're angry, but that gives you NO RIGHT to murder someone in the name of revenge! You should be ashamed of yourself for even attempting to try to do that! I can't even believe you would do that!"

Knuckles did not care and said "Don't you even DARE TRY TO TURN THIS ON ME! You foolish ponies were stupid enough to challenge me to a fight and you got the consequences of it! And now you want to pin the BLAME ON ME?! I DIDN'T ASK FOR MY SH[BLEEP]Y PARENTS TO ABUSE ME, I DIDN'T ASK FOR FAMILIES TO GET TORN APART IN A VIOLENT CRIME RIDDEN CITY, AND I MOST CERTAINLY DIDN'T ASK FOR MY GIRLFRIEND TO BE KILLED IN A CAR ACCIDENT! But none of you fools will ever understand that. You never could."

He wanted them out of there at this point and he snapped his fingers to open a portal. He looked at them with a glare and yelled "YOU WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE ME OR HOW MUCH I'VE SUFFERED OVER MY CRAPPY LIFESPAN! It's best if you never came back and when I say stay out, I mean STAY OUT! Oh, and go tell Celestia and Luna to [BLEEP] themselves while you're at it as well. TELL THEM TO FIX THIS D[BLEEP] CRIME IN THIS CITY INSTEAD OF SITTING ON THEIR FAT ASSES DOING NOTHING! GOODBYE, PATHETIC LITTLE PONIES!"

He yelled out his battle cry and slammed his fist down on the ground. It caused a red shockwave to go off and the Mane Six got thrown into the portal. It eventually closed up and Knuckles huffed in anger. He said quietly "Stupid little ponies thinking they can challenge me to a fight and then get angry when I beat them. What kind of fool do they take me for?! Never mind them anyways. When I get the fearsome power of the Diamond, they will fear me and will do whatever it takes to get back into my good graces. Just you wait, ponies. Your end is near."

He walked out of the stadium and laughed evilly as he was leaving. He might not have ended them all today, but once he retakes possession of the Master Diamond, he will and there will be nothing they could do to stop it. Not even the Elements of Harmony could hold off that power. He knew that those artifacts were the most powerful weapon Equestria had, but compared to the Diamond, it was utterly useless and stood no chance against it. His return to glory will be coming soon and when it does, all shall proclaim his name and cower in fear before him.

Author's Note

AN: Sorry this chapter came out a little later than expected, but things have been so busy these days. I'm getting ready to go back to school on Monday, so I've been preparing for that for the last couple of weeks here recently. Things have reached the high point, but it will start to cool down. Eventually, Knuckles has to spill the beans about everything because not even he can keep that to himself. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The confession! After things turned south in the Crystal Empire, hope seemed lost. But Twilight was still determined to find out how all of those tragic events impacted his life the way it did. She goes to his house and says she just wants to talk, but Knuckles refuses. However, after some consideration, he agrees and eventually tells her everything. Will Twilight be able to help him in this pain, or is it too great for her to understand?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 13: Bleeding in the Family

Several weeks had passed since the ugly fight that broke out between most of the Mane Six and Knuckles and things haven't been great. Almost all of them were expressing their deep hatred for him, but Twilight was a different story. She was conflicted and didn't know how to feel. On one hand, Knuckles had almost killed her best friend, and if she hadn't stopped him in time, he would have succeeded. But on the other hand, Rainbow was the one to provoke him into a fight when she should have known better than to do that.

Nothing about this was easy and Twilight didn't know where to go from here. Should she just isolate herself from Knuckles? Should she try to talk to him again? If so, how would that go? What if things got ugly again like it did a few weeks prior? All of these things circulated through Twilight's head and the more she thought about it, the more frustrated she got. It should be easy on the surface, but once you take a good look into it, it gets more complicated. Sure, what Knuckles did was completely wrong and he should be ashamed of himself for doing that, but his past has been so tragic that it's not even funny.

Maybe violence is the only thing he knows because he hasn't been shown anything else in life and even if he did, it didn't last very long. Knuckles made a lot of overdramatic claims to say the least, but the one thing he was right about was all of them not being able to understand his pain that he went through over the years. None of them could ever comprehend how much that really hurt him and they probably never will. Twilight did have a similar story that has haunted her for her entire life, but it was only once and she had a great support system around it.

When Knuckles lost Maddi, it almost seemed like that support system disappeared and he no longer had it. Plus, the constant physical abuse from his parents definitely didn't help things. Twilight understood that the parents should be the biggest support system in a child's life, but not every single one is going to have that throughout their lifetime. Knuckles unfortunately was one of those kids that suffered that terrible fate. Twilight needed answers and she had to find out the missing pieces of his life. She knew that his parents were very abusive towards him, he lived in a city full of violent crime, and had lost Maddi in a terrible car accident, but there was still a lot missing.

Did he have any other siblings? If so, how did they treat him? What about his grandparents? Did they approve or reject his parents' raising style? Did he have any other family members at all? What was his tribe? Was it a big one or small one? How long has it existed? What was the ultimate power that Knuckles spoke of? Was it an actual artifact or was it something else? Twilight wanted to know those aspects and the only way to do so was to take another trip to Baltimare. She went to leave to the train station, but her friends asked her where the heck she was going.

Twilight didn't want to tell them that she was going to Baltimare because they would totally flip out and try to convince her not to go, but she had to come up with something on the fly. So, she said she had to go to Canterlot to settle a royal matter that required only her assistance. Her friends bought that excuse and told her to be careful. Twilight got on the train and sat down. The train eventually got moving and headed straight for Baltimare. This might not have sounded like the best idea, but Twilight needed to know what exactly caused all of this pain in Knuckles' life.

Meanwhile on Brody Island, Knuckles was busy practicing routes on the football field so he could get better at his overall strength and endurance. He always wanted to play for his hometown team Baltimore Ravens, but his parents shot down that idea real quick when he was really young. However, that didn't stop him from constantly practicing wide receiver routes just so he could stay in shape. He did eventually find the different forms of martial arts and that also helped him stay in shape, so it didn't bother him as much as he got older. But he still loved the game of football, so doing this gave him an opportunity to live out a childhood dream that his parents refused to let him do.

He may be aging technically, but physically, he still feels young when it comes to his athletic ability. It's almost as if he never aged at all kind of like how Tom Brady was throughout his playing career. Yeah, even in his freetime, he still watches football games every Sunday just to keep up with what's going on in the league nowadays. He has a secret way of doing so, but he can still watch it regardless. While he was running his routes, he had one of those automatic machines that would shoot out a football on a timer and he would catch it with both of his hands very easily.

He eventually took a break and stared out at the city of Baltimare from his backyard. He knew it wasn't quite the same as Baltimore, but it was still very similar. The only difference was it didn't have massive road bridges, highways, people, or cars driving around. All of the buildings were practically the same as it was back home in Baltimore, but the transportation was vastly different between the two cities. He also wished that this city didn't a very similar crime rate to his hometown. He remembers that Baltimore is notorious for it's ridiculously high crime rate where there is at least 200 homicides a year and it's much higher than the national average.

The people who lived there mostly deserved it because they voted for the same Democrat idiots who were soft on crime and completely ignored the victims, but these ponies didn't really deserve it as much. He didn't really know how the political party system worked here in Baltimare and across Equestria, but he knew there was probably some similarities with the two political parties back home in the United States. He really wished that these ponies didn't have to suffer the same fate families did back in Baltimore, but he couldn't control how these ponies voted every election year if that even existed here. A lot of countries today have that sort of system on the local level because they were inspired from America, but Equestria has no idea that the U.S. even exists, so that assumption can't really be made here.

Mankind was inherently evil and deserves death, but ponies aren't really supposed to suffer that fate because they are just part of the Earth's natural cycle and don't have the same intelligence mankind does. Although, if these ponies have the same sentient minds as humans, then they will probably fall to the sins of the world and also suffer death, so he couldn't weigh in on that either. All he could do was watch. He could only stop so much crime at night as he could, but even that effort would be in vain because the criminals would be out of prison before the end of the week anyways. So what was the point of doing it if the criminals don't seem to get the proper punishment they deserve and get released back out onto the streets a short time later?

He sighed and headed inside his mansion. He couldn't stand to stare at the skyline anymore because it just brought him bad memories and he couldn't deal with that after what happened in the Crystal Empire a few weeks ago. He eventually did figure out that he almost killed Rainbow and he felt awful about that. He was just so blinded by anger that he almost forgot that he was gonna do that. If Twilight hadn't stopped him, he would have committed murder and that would have been an entire legal mess which could have resulted in death because he had blood on his hands. Blood was shed from him, so his blood had to be shed in order to account for the one that already shed blood.

But Rainbow was the one to provoke him in the first place and she should have known better than to pick a fight with him. There is a reason why he is a master of several forms of martial arts and beats down criminals with relative ease. She should have expected that coming regardless of whether or not it was right or wrong. That is completely irrelevant to him. But it still felt wrong for him to do that. For him, this entire thing was conflicting and he wished Maddi was still with him to help him figure this out. But nothing he did could ever bring her back. She was dead the moment that Dodge Charger hit his truck from her side and it has been over five years already.

He was walking through the hallway when he stumbled upon the picture of his little brother, David. He looked at it and said "Hey bro. Hope Mom and Dad are treating you well back home and things are going good. I know they never treated me the same way you were, but that's not your fault in any way. They purposefully chose to do that because of the grudge they held with my grandparents over the Master Diamond. I know you miss me and to be honest, I miss you as well, but I can't go back home even if I wanted to. It's been five years now and you've probably forgotten me, but I haven't forgotten you. Take care, little bro. I love ya." He sighed and walked away.

The train arrived in Baltimare and Twilight stepped out of the train. She looked around to see where the mansion was and she spotted it in the distance, despite it being 20 miles out. She spread out her wings and took to the skies to get to the mansion. She found it unfortunate that he lived in this beautiful looking city, yet chose to live on an island 20 miles out and refuses to come out of it. But she did understand why he did. Baltimare is the most crime ridden city in Equestria and the amount of violent crime that happens here every day is unbelievable. Plus, he is a foreign creature that has been living here for five years, so he wouldn't want to reveal himself to the public because someone would call in the authorities to get rid of him.

However, he would have reveal himself at some point because he can't stay in that house forever. It's an unhealthy lifestyle and that will harm his mental health even more. Sure, there could be some risks with revealing himself to the world, but if he doesn't do it soon, he may never do it. He looks to be a supernatural human being, but that doesn't mean he'll be immortal. He'll probably die the same way any other creature does whenever they get old. The only way he would be able to be immortal is only through marriage from Twilight, but she didn't even want to think about that right now. She was struggling to hold on to him as a friend at this point, a relationship would be even worse.

He probably wouldn't even feel the same way and she could never replace Maddi. Maddi was considered Knuckles' world and to have that taken away from him is just heartbreaking. For now, she could only try to reach him through friendship and maybe it could turn into something more, but she's not holding her breath on that. That's still a very long time away and that's not even a guarantee. She's not seeing it like that right now and only focusing on making amends with Knuckles. If that moment comes someday, then maybe she'll do something, but until then, she will ignore it.

She eventually made it to the mansion and knocked on the door. Knuckles heard it and went to open it. As soon as he saw Twilight, he immediately got angry and yelled "WHY DO YOU KEEP COMING BACK HERE?! *sighs* I thought I made it perfectly clear that you were never to show your face again, yet you keep coming back time and time again! Why?! What is it that you see in me?!"

Twilight said "I just want to talk. Nothing more, nothing less. I know things got way out of hoof the last time we saw each other, but it was all stemmed from a misunderstanding."

Knuckles wasn't liking that and said "Absolutely not! You yell at me for nearly "killing" your friend and you dare to come back to just talk?! Yeah, I'm not buying that. Either you leave or I make you. Your choice."

Twilight said "I'm not leaving. I just want to talk. Is that really too much to ask?"

Knuckles glared at her and said "Did you not hear what I just said?! I refuse to be ridiculed for something I almost did and then just have a chat over tea and biscuits as if we were British and nothing ever happened! If you wanted to talk, you should have done that a long time ago! The time to talk is over and I don't want any interaction with you again! Goodbye!"

Before Knuckles could slam the door, Twilight said "Wait! I want to talk because I have a story to share that is actually very similar to what you have experienced."

Knuckles scoffed at that and said "Yeah, likely story. You're an Alicorn princess of Equestria. I'm just a nobody that no one in this pathetic land even knows exists. How can someone like you as royalty have something similar to a commoner like me?!"

Twilight gave him a deadpan stare and said "I wasn't always royalty. I just so happened to become that way because I finished an ancient spell from Starswirl the Bearded that he abandoned long ago. And just because I'm royalty does not mean I don't have problems or experience them the same way regular citizens do."

Hearing the name Starswirl again made Knuckles' blood boil and he clenched his fists just thinking about him. That foolish pony was the one to take the greatest artifact in his lifetime away from his grandparents from some dumb reason and keep it hidden away for generations. He then remembered that Twilight was indeed right about royalty. He knew that royalty weren't always perfect, but they had to keep that perfect image so their citizens wouldn't hate them. He may have never met any royalty, but he wasn't stupid. He had full understanding about that.

Twilight also said "Also, I want to know more about this Maddi that I saw in that memory. I know that's a sensitive area for you to talk about, but the cat's already out of the bag, so there's no point in hiding it now."

Knuckles wanted to object to that, but then he realized that Twilight was in fact right again. She did witness Maddi's death through a memory crystal and because of it, she got curious and since it's been revealed, he might as well tell her about Maddi. He just better not get emotional while talking about it because it's a very sensitive subject to talk about.

He sighed and said "Fine, but don't expect me to just forget everything that happened just like that. I ain't built like that. Go sit down in the living room. I'll be in there in a minute." Twilight nodded and walked over to the living room. Knuckles closed the door and went to go get some Gatorade out of his fridge. He grabbed a bottle and went to sit down in his chair in the living room.

He sighed and said "Alright, this is going to be a long story, so bear with me here. As you know, Maddi was indeed my girlfriend and we hung out a lot. We met in high school freshman year and started dating sophomore year. *chuckles* I remember it like it was yesterday. I was so disoriented being in a new environment and everyone bullying me because of my weirdness. Then I met Maddi, who also happened to be weird, and the two of us instantly clicked. You remember the story I told you about Rapunzel? Yeah, she looked a lot like that except her hair wasn't that long nor did it have magical healing abilities through singing."

Twilight seemed surprised at this at first, but then it clicked for her because that must have been the reason why he brought it up. It reminded him of Maddi and he shared a classic story without getting sappy in the process.

Knuckles continued and said "You would think that she would be chased after for her beauty because she was probably the prettiest girl in school, but because of her weirdness, no one wanted anything to do with her. That was good for me because I was able to sweep her right up where no other guy would dare come close to. Anyway, we had many good memories and I cherished our time together. I didn't care how my parents felt about it because they were total [BLEEP]holes, but it made me mad that they didn't approve at all."

Twilight asked "Why did your parents hate you so much?"

Knuckles sighed and said "That's a complicated thing to explain. The short version is they got mad at my grandparents over a dispute with the Ultimate Power and they took their anger out on me. How it works is that our tribe is responsible for protecting the Ultimate Power and anyone that tries to steal it will be defeated in battle. My parents were supposed to inherit the Ultimate Power after my grandparents died, but they got impatient and wanted to have it right away. They wanted it for themselves and one of the major rules about the tribe is you do not use the Ultimate Power for evil. When my grandparents found this out, they disowned them from the tribe and told them they will never inherit in the Ultimate Power. They went to me instead and started training me up to take it over."

All of this information blew Twilight's mind and she wanted to know more about this development because it sounded eerily similar to someone else she knew in her life.

Knuckles went on and said "My parents soon became angry that my grandparents chosen me to inherit the Ultimate Power instead of them and that's where the constant abuse came in. My grandparents also disowned my older sister from the Ultimate Power because she had the same goals as my parents as well and like them, she was also angry at them. So, she pitched in with the abuse, but more slander than physical assault. It made me so confused and angry why they were doing this to me, but my grandparents eventually told me the story and I never looked at them the same way again."

Twilight couldn't believe that his parents and older sister would treat him like that because they got obsessed with power, which she knows leads to destruction.

Knuckles asked her "Do you know what it's truly like to get beaten at least once a day by your parents for 24 years straight and then have your older sister pitch in as well with the slander from time and time?! I know I have said that before, but I've said that out of anger. I'm still angry at them for it and I will never forgive them for that."

Twilight asked "Who was your older sister?"

Knuckles sighed and said "My older sister's name was Brooke. She was about three years older than me, but she was a terrible role model as an older sibling. She did work in the medical field, but she always treated me like dirt for my entire life. She treated my younger brother David better than she did me. That's why I always tried to be the best big bro for David because I didn't want to make the same foolish mistake that my older sister did to me. No matter what happened growing up, I always got the blame, even if it wasn't my fault. Heck, even David tried to take responsibility for something he did one time, but my parents told him that he was simply brainwashed by me and he was too "innocent" to do any wrong, which is a bunch of bs in my opinion."

Twilight also believed that reasoning was terrible and she wasn't happy with the parents always blaming Knuckles for everything wrong that happened.

Knuckles continued and said "All I had was him, my grandparents, and Maddi. Maddi was considered my only real family I had and her family treated me a lot better than my own. They didn't like the constant slander and abuse that my parents and older sister did to me, and they told me that I was welcome in their household at any time. They knew that I wasn't a bad child at any means and was simply being raised the wrong way. To have Maddi ripped away like that was like having my "support system" if you would call it that, ripped away from me entirely and having to go back to that old lifestyle that I tried to run away from."

Twilight could definitely feel empathy for Knuckles, but it was best if she waited until he finished the entire story before she said anything.

Knuckles sighed and said "She was 24 at the time of her death, just two weeks after her birthday and three months after getting her master's degree. We were having such a good time that night and then it got ruined by that criminal. I was able to get out, but when I saw her dead body, it crushed me. SHE DIED IN MY HANDS and... I didn't do anything to save her. It's my fault she's dead."

He dropped down to his knees and went into a full breakdown crying. He had been holding that in for five years and kept it to himself for all of that time. Twilight just felt awful at Knuckles' pain and she went down to give him a comforting hug. Knuckles didn't really seem to think about it and accepted it willingly. They stayed like that for a little bit before Knuckles eventually got himself together. He got back into his chair and said "The worst part about it was that I never got to propose to her. I was just a few days out from getting the ring and proposing to her about a week later so we could be together for the rest of our lives. But that idiot with the stolen car didn't want that to happen and had other ideas."

Twilight felt even worse for Knuckles as she learned that he was so close to proposing to his girlfriend, but he never got the chance to because a criminal killed her in a car accident.

Knuckles sighed again and said "That night when I went home, my parents had beaten me so hard to near death and then tied me up against a tree to leave me out all night in a dangerous thunderstorm. I was lucky I didn't get killed because that would have been super painful. One strike and I was done for. The criminal eventually got convicted for the crime, but a bunch of people from Hollywood raised a crap ton of money to get him out of prison and they successfully did so. He was released and then did the same thing a week later that he did to Maddi, only this time he died when he did it. From that point on, I deemed all government bureaucrats corrupt and I wanted nothing to do with them."

Twilight's blood began to boil after hearing that Knuckles' parents would dare beat him to death almost and then leave him out in a thunderstorm all night tied up against a tree. It made her even more angry that this criminal was convicted of the crime he did, but got bailed out by a bunch of rich people a few weeks later and then committed the same crime a week after. Do these people seriously have no respect for the law?! Do they not care about law and order?! Apparently not, according to Knuckles.

Knuckles said "After that night, I went into a depression and lost contact with my "friends" that I had at my job at the Pentagon. Eventually, I saw some white square a few weeks later and then I got transported here, where I have been living for the last five years. I know that I have been incredibly violent and hostile towards you all, but I didn't want you to find out the truth about my very dark past because it's something I'm not proud of. All that hatred and abandonment for 24 years has made me take my anger out on all of you and I want to sincerely apologize for that. It was wrong of me to do and I should have known better."

Twilight was taken aback by the sudden apology from Knuckles, but she appreciated it regardless. It's true that he did almost try to kill Rainbow, but he seems genuinely sorry about it and apologized for doing so. It was almost as if he wanted to start anew after the way he has treated them all over the last few months.

Twilight said "It's okay. I accept your apology. But why exactly did Maddi call you Caleb?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Because Caleb is my real name. Caleb Brody. That's why where we're at is called Brody Manor on Brody Island. Knuckles was just my nickname because my fists got really big whenever I hit a person. Someone might as well know."

Twilight said "Now that you have shared your story, it's time I shared mine. This is something that not even my best friends know about because there is no way they could really fully understand the pain of this."

This seemed to throw Knuckles off a bit and he raised a brow. He said "Go on." He wanted to listen to this story because he figured that Twilight's best friends would know about what she was going to tell him, but instead, they don't know and she chose to tell him about it first, which means she must believe that she has a lot of trust in him.

Twilight sighed and said "Like I told you before, I was the protege of Celestia at one point. But that doesn't mean that everypony loved me. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Everypony hated me because I was the personal student of Celestia and they weren't. They constantly made fun of me for being Celestia's student and they said things about me that I dare not wish to repeat because of how horrible they sounded."

Knuckles could definitely relate to that because when he was growing up, he was constantly picked on and mocked at school because of how weird he was all the time. His super strength didn't help either because when he accidentally used it to beat someone out of anger or fear, that would only draw more attention and he was bullied even more. That was until Maddi entered the picture. She had calmed him down and from then on, he didn't care what others thought about him. As long as he had Maddi, that's all that mattered.

Twilight continued and said "I would often get help in certain subjects that I didn't understand as well by staying after, but that eventually proved to be a costly mistake."

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "How so?"

Twilight said "Well, one night when I had finished up a study session, I was coming home when these group of colts stopped me. They weren't exactly doing the best in my classes from what I remember, but they knew that I was the smartest one in the class. So, they wanted to prey upon me and demanded that I give them my homework. Of course, I said no like any rational pony would say, but they were not taking no for an answer. They took the paper by force, ripped it into shreds, beat me almost to death, and nearly raped me. Yeah, they were THIS close to doing that to me. Fortunately, one of the school counselors called them out and they disappeared into the night."

Knuckles was left speechless about that, but he wanted to wait until the entire story was done first before he commented on it.

Twilight continued and said "The counselor asked if I was okay and I said I was fine. They took me home and the next day, it got reported or at least attempted to. Those colts had managed to come up with some bogus story that I tried to kill them the night before and the teacher had somehow believed it. I was on academic probation for the next year and was constantly put in the corner of the room because I was considered "dangerous." The worst part about it is after they came up with that, they were never seen again and my one eyewitness to that situation got fired by the school because it didn't sound "believable" to them and it was "making the school look bad." I know it might sound a little different, but I do feel your pain."

For a few seconds, Knuckles didn't know what to say. But that soon turned into rage. He couldn't believe that those colts almost committed a sexual crime against an alicorn princess, make up some bs story to the teacher, and then get away with it before disappearing for good. He might have been hostile in the past, but even he had standards. No man, regardless of their age, was ever allowed to defile a woman like that. They might not be people in this case, but the principle is still the same. In his tribe, if a man did that, they would immediately get disowned from the tribe and they would be cast out for the rest of their lives because they took this very seriously.

Twilight said "I don't blame you for getting angry. My parents even bought the story and it took me almost three years to get back into Celestia's good graces. The truth was eventually revealed to them and they apologized for not believing me, but by that point, it was already too late. Those colts had done permanent damage to my reputation and they were now completely off grid. I never saw them again."

Knuckles wanted to say that this sounds similar to his situation, but he still didn't feel like it was. He knew that Twilight's story related very well with his, but he didn't want to admit that out loud because he hates having to admit he was wrong, especially after claiming otherwise quite proudly for several times.

He said "I understand that your story might sound similar to mine, but it still isn't quite the same. While I do believe that what happened to you was horrible and I sincerely apologize for that happening, my situation was still worse. That incident happened only once in your life. Mine had occurred every day for 24 years and it left me permanently scarred. At least you had a support system in your life, I didn't for most of my life. The only one I did have was ripped away from me before I could even ask for the chance to marry her. So, I appreciate you sharing your story with me, but you still couldn't fully understand the pain I went through. It's just best if you leave. I don't want to burden you with my tragic life."

Twilight looked at him with worry and asked "Will I ever see you again?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Don't count on it. It's just better if we stay separated for good. Too much damage has been done and there is no way to go back now. If I don't see you again, it was nice knowing you, Princess Twilight Sparkle. It's best if you go home now because your friends are probably worried. No need to worry about boring ol' me."

Twilight tried to say something, but Knuckles said "Just leave. Please. I don't want to cause any more damage than I already did. Go home, enjoy your life, and become the next ruler on the throne or something. I'll do my own thing and I'll eventually die where I'll reunite with Maddi, so there's no need to stick around."

Twilight sighed and headed out the front door. She looked back for a few seconds and then said "Goodbye Knuckles, or rather, Caleb. It's not over yet and I'm not giving up on you. This is just goodbye until next time." She turned her head back around and walked towards the train station back home to Ponyville.

Back at the mansion, Knuckles watched her leave and sighed. He sincerely didn't want her to go, but he didn't want her to feel pity for him. She has everything she ever wanted and the only thing he had was a mansion occupied by three people. Sure, it's a cool mansion and it's got great stuff inside, but what's the meaning of it if it means you're alone for the rest of your life? He said to himself "You don't have to sympathize with me, Princess. You have family, friends, status, money, and power. I have nothing and the one thing I did have was ripped away from me unfairly. You'll probably forget me one day anyways." He sighed once more and headed up the stairs towards his bedroom. This was going to be a tough one to swallow.

Author's Note

AN: Well, this is a little more toned down from the previous chapter. I know it doesn't seem believable that Knuckles had this sudden shift in behavior, but anger often makes us think irrationally and we don't always make the best decisions. He is very torn up about it and he regrets doing it. But maybe not everything is lost and there's still hope out there for him. We'll see. One quick thing to mention is that I have now started school today, so chapter production might slow down a bit, but I'll try to get these out to you all as soon as possible. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The return of Tirek! After several months of not talking to Knuckles, Twilight wonders how he's doing, but the return of the ancient villain Lord Tirek has drawn her attention elsewhere. Knuckles eventually finds out about the threat of Tirek by watching him rampage through Baltimare and sucking up the magic from the ponies. Knuckles then makes the decision to try to stop Tirek, but the only way to truly defeat him is with the Master Diamond. Will Knuckles be able to find it in time to save Equestria from Tirek, or will the Centaur rule over Equestria for the following centuries to come?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 14: A Brave Sacrifice

It was a beautiful summer day in the Crystal Empire and life was busy as ever. Spike was grinning ear to ear as he remembers what he did the last time he was here. You see, he had been crowned "Spike the Brave and Glorious" for the Equestria Games just a few weeks back because he saved the Crystal Empire from King Sombra when he returned almost two years ago. Since he was recognized for that, they decided to let him light the torch for the opening ceremony in the games. To say the least, it did not go well. Twilight had to light it for him and when Spike eventually heard about it, he was crushed.

He tried to redeem himself later by singing the anthem, but that was an embarrassment as well. How it works was you sung the anthem of the winner and since the winner was Cloudsdale, that was the song that needed to be played. But Spike only knew the one from Ponyville and they finished second, so he couldn't do that. Long story short, he had to wing it and after it was over, it was dead silence. After that, he refused to show his face for the rest of the games until Twilight forced him to come back out. As he was walking away, one of the clouds got hit with an ice arrow and started descending down towards the crowds because of the amount of weight it was carrying.

Spike knew he had to help and jumped up into the sky to blow fire onto the frozen cloud, which in hindsight, caused it to melt and made some rain fall from it. After that, the crowds cheered and Spike had saved the Empire again. Of course, he didn't feel it was that big of a deal, but Twilight told him that he felt that way because he was disappointed in himself and the only way he could change that was through himself and no one else. Cadence then told him that you can't turn back time, but you can move forward with the future and she suggested for him to light the fireworks for the closing ceremony.

Spike was hesitant at first, but after Twilight told him that he just saved the Empire, he agreed to it. Since then, Spike's confidence level has increased as time went on and returning here a few short weeks later brought all of that back to him. He was here with the Mane Six and he said to them "Seems like only yesterday I was saving this place from being totally destroyed. Hey, you guys remember that?" As he said that, he stood next to the giant statue that was sitting there in the middle of the city which really rubbed it in.

Rainbow was having none of it and said "You only mentioned it only 15 times on the train here." By this point, she had gotten really annoyed by Spike saying it so much. But what was funny about it is that's exactly how Rainbow does things as well often, so she was essentially getting a taste of her own medicine, which was pretty hilarious.

Rarity pointed this out and said "Yes, and we never hear a peep out of you about your exploits." Rainbow realized that Rarity was in fact correct and she was essentially get treated the same way everyone else does when she brags about random stuff to them.

She chuckled nervously and said "Point taken."

Twilight looked at them and said "I'm glad that you all wanted to come, but I don't think it's going to be that exciting. I pretty much just have to smile and wave as the dignitary ponies arrive." To her, it was nothing more as a simple business trip where she did one small thing and then go home. There wasn't really anything exciting about it nor was it considered fun. But she did appreciate her friends coming despite this essentially boring and useless task she had to do.

Rarity looked at her with glee and said "Yes, but you get to smile and wave like a princess."

All of them were confused by that statement and Applejack asked "How exactly is that different than smilin' and wavin' like not a princess?" Rarity tried to think of an answer, but she really couldn't come with one. It was essentially the same thing, but the only difference was who was doing it. That was it. Other than that, there was no difference at all.

That only reaffirmed Twilight's doubts and she said "It isn't." Her friends noticed her sudden change of mood and looked at her with concern.

Fluttershy looked at Rainbow and she shrugged. She turned back around and asked "What's wrong, Twilight?"

Pinkie came up and asked "Why the longgggg face?" As she was saying that, she literally stretched out Twilight's face until she couldn't anymore and hurt really bad.

Twilight scratched her chin and said "I've just been feeling a little unsure about things lately. It doesn't seem my new role in Equestria seems to equate to all that much."

Applejack thought that was a boatload of crap and said "That's just silly. Yahve got a real important role here in Equestria."

Fluttershy added "Princess Celestia wouldn't have asked you to come today if she didn't think so."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "I guess you're right, but that isn't the only thing that's on my mind at the moment."

Rarity asked "What else could it be, darling?"

Twilight sighed and said "I've been thinking a lot about Knuckles lately. I know I shouldn't be, but I do worry for him. I haven't seen him in quite some time and it leaves me unhappy to see him that unhappy."

Rainbow said "Twi, it's been six months since you last talked to the dude. He's probably already forgotten you and moved on in life. You should probably do the same. He is a very complicated individual and it's just not worth spending time with someone who couldn't even guarantee that he would stay in contact."

Twilight said "I see what you mean, Rainbow, but I can't really do that to him. I know the rest of you might not favor Knuckles that much after what has happened over the last eight months, and I don't blame you, but I've never seen so much misery and pain from a creature in my life. I'm probably the only sort of "friend" he's had since his girlfriend died over five years ago. It could have been his fiancee if it were any later, but he never got the chance to do so. I don't like that he's suffering like this, but it's been so long that I'm not even sure what to say about it."

Applejack said "Honestly Twi, there's not much ya can do with him. Ah feel bad for the fella, but he's even more complicated than Big Mac when he doesn't speak full sentences most of the time. The best thing for ya to do right now is wait for him to come around and then try to talk to him. He'll feel comfortable to talk when he's ready."

Rarity added "Applejack's right. While that ruffian definitely has a lot of baggage with him, he needs time to think about what he wants to do going forward. It might have been six months already, but those things can take years sometimes, so there's no need to fret, darling."

Twilight smiled a bit once more and said "Thanks you guys. I know he wasn't the best individual and had some serious issues, but at the end of the day, he's just like the rest of us as well. He just needs to be shown that when he decides to show himself again."

Rarity said "Alright, enough about that chatter. You don't want to risk having that important role diminished because you were tardy for your royal meet and greet." They headed into the castle and went up to the balcony.

A little later, the trumpets sounded off and Flash announced their arrival to the crowds standing outside. The Princesses of Equestria went out to meet them and Twilight unfurled the banner which was shown over the castle. The dignitary ponies exchanged bows with the princesses and they walked towards the castle. Twilight simply waved and after a few seconds, Spike said "That was it?! Princess Celestia made you come all the way to the Crystal Empire just to do that?!"

Twilight only bent her head down because she knew it was true and she didn't know what to do about it. Spike chuckled nervously and said "I mean, woah! Really regal and important." Eventually, Applejack hit him in the back of the head and he turned around to be met with glares from his friends because they were not happy he discouraged Twilight like that.

A while later, Twilight was pacing back and forth in one of the castle hallways and the doors suddenly burst open. She exchanged bows with the dignitary ponies and one of them said "Your highness, thank you for understanding our desire to keep the number of those privy to these confidential discussions to a minimum."

Twilight said "Of course." and the ponies walked away. She waved to them as they headed into their place of residence during their time here and she frowned after the doors closed. She heard the princesses come in and she asked "Is there anything else I can do to assist with their visit?"

Cadence looked at her and said "I'm sorry Twilight, but their visit is already over."

Twilight was disheartened by that and Luna asked "Something wrong?"

Twilight said "I guess I don't really understand why I'm here. Couldn't one of the royal guard unfurled the banner?"

Celestia said "Having all four of us in the Empire to greet them lets the dignitary ponies know that their visit is considered an important one."

Cadence added "Plus, it gives me an opportunity to see my favorite sister-in-law."

Twilight said "And I'm happy to see you. All of you." However, she still had that sad look on her face and the rest of them knew that something was up. She explained by saying "But I... Well, it's just that Princess Luna raises the Moon, Princess Celestia raises the Sun, you protect the Crystal Empire, and all I seem to do is smile and wave. It makes me almost feel like what Knuckles is feeling right now."

Cadence was confused by that and asked "Knuckles? Who's Knuckles?"

Twilight sighed and said "It's complicated, but he is essentially a supernatural human being currently living in Baltimare at the moment on an island that's next to Hayseed Swamp. I haven't talked to him in six months and there were things about him that I found out that he didn't want me to know. But, we both have now suffered terrible hardship. It just makes me sad. He feels useless and so do I." She turned around and walked away to come out onto the balcony.

As she stared out into the night sky, she really wished she could talk to Knuckles about this, but she hasn't seen him in so long. Maybe Rainbow was right. Maybe he had moved on and forgot about her because she was no longer considered significant to him. Little did she know that Knuckles was secretly watching from the top of the castle and as he heard her singing, he could empathize with her. Ever since he lost Maddi, he had no direction in life and he had no idea where to go. He was really amazed by Twilight's singing voice and it made him think of Maddi. He hadn't heard a such beautiful singing voice since her death five years ago.

When the princesses were flying in the sky, he ducked so that they couldn't see him standing on the very top of the castle eavesdropping on the interaction. Once they got back to the ground, he stared at the Northern Lights and it left him in awe. He always wanted to see the Northern Lights, but he lived too far away to see them. Plus, he was way too busy with his job to try to venture up to Alaska to see them. However, it looked like the ones here in Equestria were just as beautiful as the ones back in the United States up in Alaska. He was hiding in the shadows, but he definitely could see everything going on. He seemed amazed that these princesses who seem to neglect the violent crime in Baltimare was encouraging Twilight.

He wished he had that in his life, but there was nothing he could do about it now. After the song ended, Twilight stared up into the sky at the Northern Lights and hoped that Knuckles hadn't forgotten about her despite being six months since they last spoke to each other.

Elsewhere in Equestria, a pony was walking through the area, carrying a bucket of oranges, and looking around very nervously as it was night time and this place wasn't exactly the safest to be in during that time period. The pony heard a noise and looked around to see what it was. When he saw it was just a can, he sighed and went to continue walking. But before he could do so, he stopped to see a cloaked figure standing in front of him.

The pony apologized for running into him, but the cloaked figure threw a riddle at him, which confused the pony quite a bit. The cloaked figure told him that he was no friend and he was in fact Lord Tirek. He started draining the pony's magic and became stronger as a result. The pony dropped the bucket and looked up nervously. Tirek increased in size and laughed evilly.

Celestia suddenly awoke and was screaming in horror while at it. Luna burst open the doors and asked "Sister, are you alright?!"

Celestia said "I've had the most terrible dream."

Luna stepped forward and said "Why do you think I am here? You know as well as I that this was not a dream, but a vision."

Celestia got out of the bed and said "Then we haven't have much time. The stronger he becomes, the more we are all in danger." They both stared out the window and they knew they had to do something quickly before it was too late.

The next morning, the four princesses gathered in one of the rooms in the castle and Celestia opened the book on the history of Tirek. She said "Tirek and his brother Scropan came here from a distant land, intent on stealing Equestrian magic. But Scorpan soon came to appreciate the ways of Equestria, even befriending a young Unicorn wizard."

Luna added "Scorpan urged his brother to abandon their plans. When Tirek refused, Scorpan alerted us to Tirek's intentions."

Celestia said "Scropan returned to his own land and Tirek was sent to Tartarus for his crimes. But it appears he has found a way to escape."

Luna said "We believe it happened when Cerberus left his post at the gates." That confused Twilight since that was well over two years ago and she accepted the fact that nothing bad was going to happen. Well now, it turns out that when Cerberus was in Ponyville, Tirek saw that as an opportunity to escape and left before Cerberus returned to his post. In conclusion, Twilight was indeed correct about a disaster happening, but it came way later than she expected it to do so.

She said "But that was a long time ago. Why is he now just starting to steal magic?"

Celestia said "His time in Tartarus left him very weak. He has now gained enough strength to use his dark powers."

Luna added "But with each passing moment, he grows stronger still."

Cadence said "And I know just the princess who can stop him."

Twilight thought Cadence was talking about her, but before she could finish her sentence, Celestia interrupted and said "No Twilight. I'm afraid I must call in another to stop Tirek. Discord." All of them seemed shocked by that and were left speechless.

When Twilight returned to Ponyville, she told her friends the entire story and they were stunned as well. Applejack asked "As in Discord Discord?"

Twilight said that was the case and Fluttershy said "I don't think it's that big of a surprise. He can be very helpful." The rest of them were giving deadpan stares at her for simply being ignorant about Discord's nature and giving the Draconequus the benefit of the doubt.

Twilight said "He can sense when there's a magical imbalance. The next time Tirek steals magic, Discord will be able to track him down."

Rainbow asked Twilight "So what are you supposed to do in the meantime?"

Twilight sighed and said "Nothing. Unless of course one of you needs me to smile and wave." She turned around and started to walk away.

Spike seemed concerned and asked "Where are you going?"

Twilight turned around and said "To the Castle of the Two Sisters. I'm not really needed anywhere else. Might as well catch up on some of my reading." She continued walking away and the rest of them had to do something.

Rainbow flew up and asked "Do you want some company?"

Twilight didn't respond, so Applejack said "It has been awhile since we visited the castle. Might be fun."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "Maybe I could use a little company right now."

They all walked through the forest and they made it to the other side where the Tree of Harmony resides in the cave beneath the castle.

Rainbow sighed and said "I still can't believe we had to give up the Elements."

Rarity said "It had to be done or the Tree of Harmony wouldn't have survived."

Fluttershy added "But Twilight was right. Even without the Elements, our friendship is as strong as ever."

Applejack said "I just hope that another "friend" of ours makes us sorry that we had to give them up.

Suddenly, Discord came floating down and said "You're talking about me, I presume." He was in the Mary Poppins outfit and landed on the ground successfully.

Applejack raised a brow at him and asked "How'd ya guess?"

Discord said "My ears were burning." His ears were literally in flames and he splashed some water on himself to get rid of it. He then just smiled at them gleefully.

Rainbow asked with annoyance "What are you even doing here Discord?!"

Discord pulled out his reading glasses and said "Oh, just a bit of light reading before heading off on my extremely important mission. I'm sure you all know that I've been tasked to capture a certain escapee." As he was saying that, he shifted into the military outfit as if he were a five star general in the U.S. Army and pulled down the Equestrian flag to show what he is protecting against the enemy. He had his corn cob pipe in his hand and started blowing bubbles out of it.

Spike was not amused and said "Big deal!"

Discord looked at him and said "You're right, Spike. It is a big deal." Spike got compressed into the bubble and then eventually started falling before Rainbow caught him and put him back on the ground. He removed the outfit and said "Seems like I possess a magic that gives me quite an important role in Equestria. Maybe they should make me an alicorn princess." He changed into a royal outfit and started doing the self praise which Twilight did not appreciate whatsoever.

Rainbow wasn't having it either and said "In your dreams!" She knocked off the crown and Discord stopped what he was doing.

He said "Oh. I never dream of such things. Ask Princess Luna."

Applejack wasn't taking the antics and asked "Don't ya have a creepy, magic-stealin' villain to track down?!"

Discord didn't care in the slightest and said "Yes yes, of course." He brought them all together and teleported them inside the cave. He said "It's just that I couldn't help but notice that Twilight hasn't yet opened this little chest of hers." The group looked at Twilight and none of them had a clue what he was going on about. He continued and said "It got me thinking: what if what's locked inside is something that could help her with her royal worth? I only bring it up because she said she's been feeling her role as a princess doesn't equate to much."

Pinkie got suspicious at that and asked "Wait a minute, how do you know how she feeling?!"

Discord pretended to be the victim and said "Oh my. Is eavesdropping not the way you're supposed to find out what your best pals are up to? Woe is me! Will I ever learn the intricate nuances of being a good friend?" He looked up at them with a smirk on his face and he was only met with glares in return. It became awkward for him and cleared his throat nervously. He said "Well, in any case, I suppose now is a good time as any to make my exit." He hopped on the moped and disappeared.

Applejack was glad to see him gone and said "And good riddance!"

Just as she said that, Discord popped back in and looked at her from upside down. He said "Oopsy Doopsy. I almost left with the little journal you've all been keeping. What a fascinating read. Haven't you girls learned so much? I bookmarked a few with more interesting passages you really should take a look. We're still on for tea later, aren't we Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy smiled at that and said "I wouldn't miss it."

Discord smiled with glee and said "I'll bring the cucumber sandwiches." He opened a random door and then closed it on his way out.

Applejack said with annoyance "Sometimes, Ah think that the reformed Discord is more obnoxious than the before-he-reformed Discord."

Rarity agreed, but Fluttershy said "But he could be right, couldn't he? What if there is something important in that chest?"

Twilight thought about it for a second and then realized Fluttershy could be correct. She said "There's only one way to find out."

All of them went up to the castle above them and looked through the books in the library. Twilight picked one out and asked the group "Anything?" All of them said no and Twilight was left stuck on this one. She said "There must be something in this library that can help me figure out how to open it. The answer is in one of these books. I just know it." She looked around at the pile of books on the floor and eventually saw the journal sitting there. Twilight rolled her eyes and began reading.

Meanwhile, Tirek continued to drain magic and he got stronger as time went on. He saw another pony down the alley and walked towards him. But the second he reached the pony, Discord had revealed himself to Tirek. Tirek seemed shocked to see the Draconequus out here in the middle of nowhere and he stared at Discord for a second to make sure he was seeing things right. He said "Discord? You're free?"

Discord changed into a bird and said "As a bird."

Tirek bowed a bit and said "I commend you on your escape."

Discord changed back into his normal self and said "I'm afraid the feeling isn't mutual." He snapped his talons and Tirek saw he now had chains on his wrists to prevent him from leaving again. It was almost as if he was getting arrested by the Feds. Tirek shot a beam at Discord in anger, but Discord split his head in two in order to avoid the attack.

Tirek grumbled with anger and said "Oh, I should have known you would have wanted Equestria all to yourself."

Discord was wearing the police outfit and said "Oh, I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing it for my friends. Just between the two of us, it's mostly for Fluttershy."

Tirek seemed confused by that and said "Fluttershy? You're not saying that you're friends with ponies."

Discord jumped out of the cake that randomly appeared and said "Surprise!"

Tirek looked at him with honesty and said "I am surprised that someone of your intellect has not seen this "friendship" as another form of imprisonment. Clearly, you've had to abandon your true nature to stay in their good graces."

Discord was playing the harp with a halo over his head and then stopped what he was doing when he realized he was doing it. He said "I have done nothing of the sort." He tossed the harp away and shooed the halo away as well.

Tirek wasn't buying that and said "Oh please. I've seen this before, but he was always weak-minded. You are Discord. You are legend. You cannot fall into the same trap that claimed my brother. Help me to grow strong and be rewarded with something far greater than friendship: freedom!"

That threw Discord off a bit and his eyes widened in concern. Tirek continued and said "Once I've stripped these ponies of their magic, nothing would give me greater pleasure than to see their world turned upside down. Who better to do so than the master of chaos himself? Join me, Discord and reclaim your greatness. Unless of course, pony errand boy is the role you've always wanted to play in this world." Discord stared at his things and began to think about it.

Back in the castle, Twilight was reading through the journal and she smiled when she found something. She said "I think I found something. I've been reading our journal and there's something interesting about the sections that Discord bookmarked. Applejack, do you remember when you had to tell everypony that the tonic Granny brought from the Flim Flam brothers didn't really work?"

Applejack said "How could Ah forget? It was one of the hardest things Ah ever had to do." In the flashback, Applejack saw the light and knew what she had to do. So she went up to the crowd and announced to them that this tonic was a fake. Back in the present, Applejack said "But in that moment, Ah knew Ah had to be honest. Ah just knew it. But what does that's gonna do with openin' the chest?"

Twilight said "I've found that each of you has had to face a situation, where living up to the Element of Harmony you represent wasn't easy. Fluttershy, it was when you realized that the way to show kindness to the Breezies was by forcing them to leave your home."

Fluttershy remembered the painful memory and said "Oh, the looks on their poor little faces. But I knew as difficult as it was, it was the kindest thing I could do."

Twilight flipped to the next page and said "Rarity, even after Suri took advantage of your generosity at Fashion Week in Manehattan, you didn't let it cause you to abandon your generous spirit."

Rarity said "I simply couldn't have lived with myself if I didn't do something special for the friends who have always been so generous to me."

The group smiled and Twilight said "Rainbow Dash, you had the chance to fly with the Wonderbolts at the Equestria Games, but instead, you chose to compete with your friends."

Rainbow was about to say something, but before she could finish her sentence, Pinkie interrupted and said "Ooh, my turn! My turn!"

Twilight flipped the page again and said "Pinkie Pie, you realized that seeing your friend laugh was more important than proving you were a better party pony than Cheese Sandwich."

Rainbow came over with a smile and said "Best party I've ever had."

Rarity said "It's clear we've all had our moments to shine Twilight, but I'm with Applejack. What does any of this have to do with the opening of the chest?"

Twilight said "All of you had tough choices to make, but when you make the right one and embraced your Element, it helped somepony else make the right choice too. Each of you received something from the pony whose life you helped change. I know it sounds crazy, but maybe there's something special about those objects that could lead us to the location of the keys. The chest is connected to the Tree of Harmony, the Tree is connected to the Elements, and the Elements are connected to all of us. There must be a connection! I'd hate to admit it, but maybe Discord was trying to be a good friend after all."

They all returned to the Tree with the objects on the floor and Twilight said "I don't see anything on them that could give us a clue as to where the keys might be. They're just ordinary, everyday objects."

Pinkie picked up Boneless and said "Come on Boneless! Give us that key!"

Twilight seemed doubtful that would do anything and said "I don't think that's going to work." She went into high alert mode and ducked her head so she wouldn't get hit by the rubber chicken.

As soon as it touched the chest, it started to glow and be changed into a key which fit into one of the holes. All of them gasped in shock and now knew what the way was. The group put the other objects on top of the chest and they did the same things. Change into keys and fit into the other holes. That only left one remaining: Twilight's. She said "There's still one key missing. The key that represents the Element of Magic. My Element."

Fluttershy said "Oh, but I'm sure if we've gotten our keys, you have too, Twilight."

Rarity came over and said "Think, Twilight. When have you had to complete a difficult magical task and in doing so, encouraged another pony to do the same?"

Twilight said "I haven't. If I did, I would have written about it in the journal."

Spike said with encouragement "Don't worry, Twilight. I'm sure you'll get your key eventually." Suddenly, he felt something come up his throat and he had to burp it out. It was in fact a letter that was probably addressed to Twilight. The alicorn picked up the letter and Spike asked "What's it say?"

Twilight looked up and said "That I'm needed in Canterlot at once." Twilight flew as fast as she could to Canterlot and burst open the throne room doors. She said "I came as quickly as I could. Is something wrong? Is it Tirek?"

Celestia looked at her with a heavy heart and said "It appears I have put too much trust in Discord and the effect friendship would have upon him."

Luna said "Discord has betrayed the ponies of Equestria and joined forces with Tirek."

Twilight was horrified at hearing this news and she said with confusion "How could he do this?! I thought our friendship meant something to him. I thought he had changed!"

Celestia went on and said "Tirek has stolen enough magic that he now has the strength to steal flight as well. Without Pegasi to control the weather, there will be no rain in Equestria. There has been word that he has gone after Earth Ponies as well. Without their strength, they will not be able to tend the land."

Luna said "Ponies will no longer be in control of their world. That power will belong solely to Tirek."

Celestia said "There is no doubt that Tirek is after alicorn magic. With Discord by his side, we will not be able to stop him from taking it."

Luna added "Once it's in his possession, his powers will know no bounds and all hope will be lost. And with major cities like Vanhoover, Las Pegasus, Manehattan, Fillydelphia, and Baltimare getting ransacked by his invasion, that will only make things worse for us all."

Twilight heard the city Baltimare ring through her head and then she remembered that Knuckles still lives out there. She gasped with horror and said "Knuckles! He still lives out there in Baltimare! If Tirek finds out about his supernatural abilities, he'll try to take that as well! He needs help!"

Celestia said "We did think of trying to bring him in to stop Tirek after Discord failed to do so, but with how flawed that creature was, it wasn't worth the risk, which is why we went with one other solution. It is only with this sacrifice that Equestria and the lands beyond it might be saved: We must rid ourselves of our magic before Tirek has the chance to steal it from us!" Twilight gasped with horror and stood there in shock.

Out in Baltimare, Knuckles was just chilling in his house reading a book when he suddenly heard loud footsteps. He felt the Earth shake and went to look out one of his windows. There he saw Tirek ransacking the city stealing magic as if it were food. He hid behind the wall and gasped heavily. He said to himself "Lord Tirek! That's the Centaur that has the ability to steal magic and grow in size as a result. He can't take my powers because I'm not of this world, but if he finds out about the Master Diamond, we are all doomed! I have got to find a way to stop him some way. But how? *gasps* That's it! I need to find that Master Diamond more than ever! That is the only thing that can stop him! Once it hits him, he's toast. But I gotta find it first." He looked around and ran up the stairs to try and find any clues for the Master Diamond.

Back in Canterlot, Luna said "Tirek is set on possessing Alicorn magic. When he comes for us, we cannot have what he is looking for."

Twilight sighed inwardly and said "I'm more than willing to do my part and give up my magic."

Luna said "You misunderstand. Our magic cannot just disappear into thin air. Somepony must keep it safe."

Cadence walked over and said "That somepony is you, Twilight."

Twilight seemed confused by that and asked "Why me?"

Celestia explained by saying "We do not believe that Tirek is aware that a fourth alicorn princess exists in Equestria. If we transfer our magic to you, Tirek will not know where it is gone."

Cadence asked Twilight "Do you understand what we're asking of you?"

Twilight said "Yes... It's just I'm only now learning how to control my own Alicorn magic. To take on even more..."

Cadence interjected and said "Twilight. You represent the Element of Magic. If there's anypony who can do this, it's you."

Both Celestia and Luna nodded in agreement and that gave Twilight a boost of confidence. She said "Taking on this task will be one of the most difficult things I will ever do. But with the help of my friends..."

Celestia cut in and said "I'm sorry, Princess Twilight, but you must keep your new abilities a secret. I fear that your friends being aware of your new power could put them at great risk. Do you still think you can take on this responsibility?"

Twilight didn't exactly like the idea, but this was what needed to be done in order to protect Equestria from further harm. She said "This is the role I'm meant to play as a princess of Equestria. I will not fail to do my duty!"

Celestia then declared "Then we must begin at once!" All of them circled around Twilight and lit up their horns to begin the spell. After a few seconds, their eyes turned white and magic blasted up into the air. It became a large sphere and circulated a little bit. Twilight felt nervous and then a few seconds later, the magic shot down as fast as a lightning bolt and she braced for impact.

Outside, Tirek had gained some more magic, but Discord got a tingly feeling as he felt the transfer of power dramatically shift in a small amount of time. He said "That can't be right."

Tirek got concerned about this new development and asked "What can't be right?"

Discord wanted to dodge the question and said "Nothing! Carry on." Tirek accepted that answer and walked away with menace on his face. Back inside, Twilight had electricity circulate through her as the magic transferred to her and it calmed down a few seconds later. She ran to Celestia and noticed that their cutie marks were gone.

Celestia sighed and said "It is done."

Later that night, Twilight was busy pacing back and forth in her bedroom and she was worried as heck. Spike woke up and said "You weren't gone very long. Does that mean everything's okay?"

Twilight started to get worried because she wasn't supposed to say anything about this, so she said "Yep. Everything's fine." She threw around two books with that crazy magic of hers and chuckled nervously.

Spike accepted that answer and said "In that case, I'm going back to bed. Sun's not up, then neither am I."

Twilight found it strange that the Sun hadn't come out yet and said to herself "That's strange. The Sun should be up by now. *gasps* The Sun should be up by now!" Her magic got a little crazy at her slight panic attack and she rushed up to the window that was sitting on her bed. She sighed and said to herself "You can do this." She lit up her horn and the Moon began to move. Electricity was flowing through her body and she was levitating in the air while at it. However, she struggled a little bit. The Sun and the Moon kept moving around in very weird positions and it eventually stopped.

Shining Armor and two of the guards were walking on the bridge when they saw that happening and they thought that was really weird. The two guards suddenly started floating in the air and Shining's helmet randomly disappeared. Discord showed up and said "Shining Armor, why whatever are you doing here?"

Shining was angry at him for being a traitor to Equestria and said with anger "Back off traitor."

Tirek suddenly showed up and said "The only one Discord betrayed was himself. Abandoning his true nature to make friends with weak-minded equines who offer him nothing."

Shining was furious at him for saying that and blasted a beam of magic at him. However, Tirek blocked the attack and it turned into a small orb. He ate it like a piece of food and held Shining's mouth closed so he could drain his magic.

Shining's legs buckled and he eventually fell to the floor, which caught Discord off guard. Shining looked at him weakly and said "How could you do this?" He hit his head on the ground and laid there.

Discord started to have serious doubts about doing this, bue before he could say anything, Tirek came over and said "Why don't you go and have a little fun? I won't stand in your way!" Tirek walked away and Discord laughed evilly as he thought about it.

In the throne room, the princesses were sitting down when they suddenly heard loud footsteps. They knew Tirek had arrived and Celestia put on a defensive look when the enemy would come. Tirek destroyed the doors and walked over to the princesses. He picked up Celestia to drain her magic, but when he did so, nothing came out. He was shocked at this and yelled "What have you done?!"

Celestia just smiled at him and he tried Luna and Cadence to see if anything came out, which nothing did. Tirek was furious at this point and yelled "WHERE IS YOUR MAGIC?!"

Back in Ponyville, Twilight tried to open her door, but she blew up the door instead because of the overpowered magic that she currently has. She noticed that and said "I have to gain better control. I sure can't practice here." Twilight ran out the door and Spike noticed her leaving, so he followed after her.

He said "Uhh, Twilight, where we are going?"

Twilight noticed him right there and said "Oh, uh, hi Spike, uh gotta go somewhere else." She went up to fly away, but she created a sonic boom instead which left a crater instead and propelled her very high into the sky. She did the full 360 degree loop and flew very fast.

Rainbow was busy looking for any signs of trouble on a cloud when Twilight came flying by and the sonic wave left behind caused Rainbow to spin out a little bit. She saw Twilight's trail and was very confused. She was basically traveling Mach 1 speeds which was typically something only Rainbow could achieve, but Twilight was able to do so today. The rest of the group also knew something was up, so they decided to follow her.

Eventually, Twilight crashed back down on the ground and didn't really know what to say. Her friends showed up and Fluttershy asked "Oh my goodness, are you alright?"

Applejack asked "Jumpin' June bugs Twilight. When did ya learn to fly that fast?"

Twilight couldn't say anything on why that was the case, so she said "I must have caught a particularly strong breeze or something." She teleported to the other side and they were caught off guard by that.

Rainbow seemed doubtful about that and said "Must have been or something because there wasn't any breeze up there."

Twilight didn't have time to talk about this and said "I don't know what happened, but I really don't have time to figure it out right now."

She started to walk away, but Rarity said "Another visit to the Castle of the Two Sisters, I presume? We would be more than happy to accompany you!"

Twilight wasn't doing that and said "Not today. Tirek may still be a threat. I need you all to stay here and encourage everypony to stay inside." She was about to fly off again, but after remembering what happened just a few moments ago, she decided against it. So, she just started walking and her friends watched her leave.

Back inside the castle in Canterlot, Tirek was busy sitting on the throne and he had heard the princesses' entire plan which he thought was amusing because of how stupid it sounded to him. He said "Getting rid of your magic so that I cannot take it from you? That was your plan?!" The three princesses said nothing, so Tirek took that as a sign to continue. He said "How does it feel? Knowing that soon every Pegasus, Unicorn, and Earth Pony will bow to my will and that there is NOTHING you can do to stop it!"

Celestia hardened her glare at Tirek and said "You will not prevail, Tirek."

Tirek was unfazed by that insult and said "Give my regards to Cerberus." He opened a portal to Tartarus and sent them all in there before he closed the portal.

Discord overheard the conversation and asked "You meant our will, didn't you?"

Tirek got slightly nervous and said "Of course. Here, I want you to have something. This was given to me by someone very close to me. I give it to you as a sign of my gratitude and loyalty."

Discord was fascinated by the medallion wrapped around his neck and said "Oh my, I do love a good accessory. I suppose that's Rarity's influence."

Tirek laughed at the stained glass window of the two of them and said "Amusing. But we have no time for such things. With the princesses out of the way, we can now-" He stopped what he was saying and saw the stained glass window of Twilight, which confused him. He did not find this very amusing and said "Is this meant to be HUMOROUS?!"

Discord laughed it off and said "Oh no, I haven't touched that one yet."

Tirek wanted an explanation and said "There's a fourth and you did not tell me this?!"

Discord said calmly "I just needed some assurance that you truly considered this a team effort and now I have it."

Tirek didn't care and said "Then where can we find this "fourth" princess? Where is her castle?!" He grabbed Discord by the throat and glared at him for an answer.

Discord laughed at the question and said "Castle? Oh no, Princess Twilight lives above a library in Ponyville. Castle. Hahaha."

Tirek dropped Discord to the ground and growled with anger. He turned away and said "Not for much longer." He activated his magic and dragged down on the window of Twilight to show his hatred for the alicorn.

Back in Ponyville, everyone was locked inside and most of the Mane Six were still outside to make sure there was no one else still lingering out here in the open. Applejack said "Alright, y'all. Ah think we've warned everypony to stay inside."

Fluttershy said "I'm sure Discord will catch Tirek and this will all be over soon."

Rainbow wasn't buying that and said "I'm sure he's taking his sweet time."

Discord showed up and said "Or perhaps these things just take time." Fluttershy was so happy to see him again and went over to hug him.

She said "You're back! Did you bring the cucumber sandwiches?"

Discord made them appear and said "I did. I imagine this will your last decent meal for quite some time." He dropped the platter on the floor and summoned a cage over the group.

They were all confused and started shouting at him asking him what he was doing and what was going on, but Discord didn't care. He presented it as a magic trick and Tirek asked him "Did you gather up all of them?!"

Discord bent down and said "And her little dragon too." Spike tried to bite him in anger, but Discord pull his paw away so he couldn't sustain that.

Fluttershy was deeply hurt by this and said "Why are you doing this? I thought we were friends!"

Discord said calmly "Oh we were, but Tirek offered me so much more than just tea parties. Surely, you saw this coming?"

Fluttershy disagreed and said "I didn't. I really didn't."

Tirek had enough with the foolishness and lifted up the cage which caused the group to panic a bit. Tirek opened his mouth and drained all of their magic while Discord looked away with sadness. The cage dropped to the ground and Tirek got even bigger. He said "You really think she'd do anything for them?!"

Discord did the bow and said "If Twilight has magic to give, it will be yours. Soon, there won't be a Pegasus, Unicorn, or Earth Pony who will be able to stand up against us."

Tirek thought that was nuts and said "Us?! Who said anything about us?!"

Discord was confused by that and said quietly "You did." Tirek picked him up with his magic and dragged him over.

He said "You helped me grow strong, you provided the means by which I can obtain Princess Twilight's magic, and now you are no longer of any use to me." Tirek forcefully opened Discord's mouth with his magic and Discord's chaos magic disappeared from him in an instant. He dropped to the ground and Tirek started walking away.

Discord was incredibly confused by this betrayal and said "But... you said that this was a sign of your gratitude and loyalty. A gift from someone close to you."

Tirek did not care and said "My brother who betrayed me. It is as worthless as he is." He paid him no more attention and walked away to find Twilight.

The group saw what happened and Applejack said "Surely ya saw this coming."

For Discord, he really didn't. He thought Tirek was being genuine after he challenged the foundation of Discord's friendship with the Mane Six, but it turns out Tirek was just using him in order to reclaim the throne here in Equestria. Discord said "I didn't. I truly didn't."

At the Castle of the Two Sisters, Twilight was sitting on the ledge trying to think about how to best control her magic, but she wasn't sure she would be able to do something as basic as teleportation. She said to herself "I can do this." She lit up her horn and teleported. When she found out that she teleported a few feet, that encouraged her a bit and she smiled as a result. She said "See? Perfectly controlled teleportation."

She did it again, but this time, she appeared in random places. From Canterlot, to Neigharga Falls, to the Buffalo stampede in Appleloosa, right down to stuck in between a rock. She growled in frustration to herself, but when she heard Tirek call out her name, she started to panic.

Tirek was standing at the edge of the forest and said "You have something that belongs to me!" Twilight burst out of the rock and flew right past Tirek. The Centaur was incredibly confused by that and had a shocked look on his face. Twilight tried to stop, but she hit Tirek's leg as a stopping block. She saw his massive size and backed up a bit. Tirek glared at her and said "You're going to give me what I want." He attempted to steal the magic, but Twilight teleported away just in time.

Tirek was confused on where she went and Twilight looked through her telescope of the balcony of her library to see where he was at. He saw her looking through the telescope and blasted a large beam of magic towards her. She knew what that meant and teleported away just in time. The building exploded and Twilight crashed landed to the ground. She saw her library blown up and her pet Owl flew away.

Twilight was furious at this point and she gave Tirek a very angry glare. She spread out her wings and teleported over to meet him once more. She made it up in the sky and blasted a very large beam at Tirek to which he blocked the attack himself with a shield granted from everypony else's magic in Equestria. Eventually, the magic exploded a bit and Tirek glared at Twilight. Twilight landed on the ground and gave one right back at him.

Tirek simply smiled and said "Now I understand what you're fellow princesses have done." Twilight lit up her magic again and took off to the skies. The two traded blow for blow for a few minutes and the battle eventually ended with two blasts of magic colliding with each other Dragonball Z style. Tirek got out of the rubble and Twilight glared at him. He said "It appears that we are at an impasse. How about a trade, Princess Twilight?" He snapped his fingers and soon, all of Twilight's friends, Spike and Discord showed up in bubbles behind him.

Tirek went on and said "Their release for all the Alicorn magic in Equestria." Twilight gasped with horror at that proposal and all of them began to protest for Twilight not to do it. Tirek smiled and said "What's it going to be Princess?"

Twilight just stood in shock and had no idea what to do. After a few seconds, Rainbow yelled out "Don't do it, Twilight!"

Fluttershy added "We're not worth it."

Discord said "But you are Fluttershy. You're the pony who taught me the magic of friendship. I had magic and friendship and now, I don't have either."

Tirek was having none of it and said "ENOUGH! I want an answer and I want it NOW!" Twilight looked at all of her friends and saw the rainbow glow inside her eyes. She then realized what she needed to do and gave a firm glare at Tirek.

She said "I will give you my magic in exchange for my friends." All of them gasped in horror and Tirek smiled in glee.

He said "As you wish." He snapped his fingers and almost all of the bubbles came down and Twilight's friends were free. Discord was the only one left that was still in the air.

Twilight didn't like that and said "All of my friends."

Tirek was confused about that and said "After the way he has betrayed you, you still call him a friend?!" Discord looked with shame because he knew Tirek was right. He had betrayed them all and even though he was not the bad guy in the end, he did cause Tirek to be this way. So, his friends have every right to be mad at him for it.

However, Twilight wasn't going to hear that from Tirek and said in a demanding voice "Release him!"

Tirek relented and said "If that's what you want." He snapped his fingers and Discord landed on the ground as well.

He looked at Twilight and said "Thank you Twilight. I'm sorry."

Fluttershy had tears in her eyes and she said "I know."

Tirek turned around and said to Twilight "Your turn." Just as he opened his mouth, all of them heard very loud jet noises coming from the distance and then a bunch of small bullets hit Tirek. They turned to see who would do that and they found Knuckles sitting in his Blackbird firing away at Tirek with the turrets. The Mane Six were shocked to see him here and Tirek was confused on who the heck this was.

Knuckles growled with anger at Tirek and said "You think I would be gone just like that, you ugly Centaur?! THINK AGAIN!" He told the computer to put his vehicle into autopilot and the computer did so. Knuckles hopped out of his seat and jumped off the wing as a launchpad. He reared his fist and gave Tirek a hard punch to the face. Knuckles landed on the ground with his fist touching it and he stood up properly. He slammed his fists together and red lightning came out of it.

The group asked him why he was here, but before he could give them an answer, Tirek regained focus and laughed at the human who seemed so tiny compared to him. He said "Who the heck are you little weakling supposed to be?! Do you seriously believe that you could honestly beat someone who is 200 times your size?! I could crush you with my pinkie finger if I wanted to."

Knuckles was not amused and said "You mock me with your weak jokes, yet you know nothing about me, Centaur. Size is not a factor to me. I have been trained to fight threats much bigger than you and you are nothing more to me than some pest that needs to be dealt with."

Tirek laughed even harder and said "Well then, if you think you can defeat me, then BRING IT ON!" Tirek lit up his magic and was ready to blast him to pieces.

Knuckles took that as a challenge and charged up his red lightning as well. Tirek tried to drain Knuckles' power, but nothing happened, which left Tirek very confused. He yelled "WHAT KIND OF HERESY IS THIS?!"

Knuckles just grinned and said "Do you seriously believe that you could drain my power just like that as if it were a food source?! I am not of this world nor do I carry "magic" in the same way ponies do. I inherited these powers by birth and they could never be taken away from me, even from magic stealing morons like you!"

Tirek did not like the insult and yelled "YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!" He blasted a beam at Knuckles, but Knuckles dodged it very easily and began to give punches all over Tirek's body and other forms of martial arts techniques. It might not have done that much, but it did irritate Tirek a lot. He said "You know, you could just use that power on other enemies. We could be so much more powerful if you'd just join me."

Knuckles glared at him and said "I'm not Discord, you f[BLEEP]ing moron! That might have worked on him, but it won't work on me! I might be angry and hostile all the time, but I ALWAYS value loyalty! And a white trash piece of s[BLEEP] like you will never give that out to others!" He saw that Tirek was getting mad, so he decided to press some more buttons. He said "Oh, what's wrong, did your little feelings get hurt?! Is the truth too much for you to handle? Do you need to go cry to your mommy and tell her how much of a piece of s[BLEEP] you are? Oh wait. You don't have one anymore. All that's left is your brother and father. One actually has morals while the other is incredibly disappointed in you. It's no wonder your father thought you were a mistake. Such a shame."

Tirek was beyond furious at this point and yelled "ENOUGH! HOW DARE YOU INSULT ME LIKE THAT! YOU HAVE NOTHING WHILE I WILL BE THE GREATEST OVERLORD OVER ALL OF EQUESTRIA! YOU WILL REGRET DISRESPECTING ME LIKE THAT!"

Knuckles scoffed at that and said "Sure, keep telling yourself that, you stupid moron. How about you go f[BLEEP] yourself while you're at it as well? That might make you less of a motherf[BLEEP]ing b[BLEEP] who sucks his daddy's d[BLEEP] under the table in the throne room."

Tirek had enough and yelled really loudly. He tried to fight Knuckles, but Knuckles was a lot smarter than Tirek. He allowed Tirek to fight as hard as he could until he wore himself out and couldn't fight anymore. That proved to be effective and Knuckles said in a taunting voice "Are you done yet? You got all of your anger out? I expected you to behave better, but it's clear that you got some serious anger issues. Has anyone told you that? I doubt that they did because you were such an "angel" of a child and never did anything wrong. You want to talk about me being angry, you should see yourself. It's disgusting. Go clean yourself up and don't leave the pile of s[BLEEP] on the floor. I just got that cleaned yesterday for f[BLEEP] sake."

Tirek growled with anger and said "You're nothing but disloyal!"

Knuckles gave him a glare and said "Dis is how I roll!" He cracked his knuckles a bit and yelled out his battle cry. He charged up his red lightning and jumped up into the air. He punched Tirek in the stomach and flew up into the air, which caused the Centaur to land on his side because of how powerful the attack was. The group down below was shocked to see this happen and stared in silence. Knuckles landed back on the ground and saw Tirek that way. He simply huffed in anger and started to walk away.

However, Tirek eventually got up and was about ready to blast Knuckles to pieces. Knuckles heard some noises and turned around to see Tirek firing his beam right at him. Knuckles' eyes widened and he did a barrel roll right over to the ravine and fell down right in front of the cave that housed the Tree of Harmony. Knuckles groaned a bit in pain and went to get up so he could see where he was at. Soon enough, he saw the Tree in the cave and then something else: The Master Diamond. It was here the entire time.

It was right in front of the Tree of Harmony. He quickly got up and said "The Master Diamond. I found it! I've been searching for this for my entire life and it's in my possession once again. Now, I can restore my family legacy and be the protector of the Master Diamond." He felt so glad to finally hold it in his hands and it looked just as beautiful as ever like it never aged at all.

He was about to infuse it into his body, but then he heard loud stomping outside. He took a peek and saw that Tirek was winning the current fight and was about to crush Twilight with his giant foot. Knuckles looked between her and the Master Diamond and tried to make a decision. Does he help her out or return the Master Diamond back to its rightful place? Eventually, Knuckles made a decision and went to enact it. He quickly hid the Diamond somewhere where no one could find it and he rushed up the ravine as fast as he could.

Just as Tirek was about crush Twilight, Knuckles pushed her out of the way and got crushed instead. Twilight shouted in horror along with the rest of the group and Tirek just laughed evilly. He said "What a perfect ending to the stupid ape interfering with my plans!" He stepped away and the group saw Knuckles lying there on the ground. Twilight was the first one to rush over to him and she had tears in her eyes.

The group soon followed behind her and they saw the extent of his "injuries." Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "There is no need to weep over me. My life meant nothing anyways and I was always despised by others. I was nothing but a wretch anyway, so this is the ending I deserve. Death has been knocking on the doorstep for quite some time now and it looks like my time has come."

All of them protested that he couldn't leave them and die this way and Knuckles said "It was meant to be this way from the start of my miserable life. At least I can be reunited with Maddi. It was nice knowing you all for the short time we saw each other and Rainbow? I apologize for trying to kill you. It was wrong and I should have known better than to do that. Now you just need to forgive yourself. It might not change anything, but at least I can say that before I die. No one cared about my life then and no one has definitely done so now. Don't grieve over my death and don't tear apart your friendship because of it. It's very valuable to Equestria and you don't need me destroying that. I don't want that. Farewell, friends."

Tirek took that as a time to laugh and blasted right at Knuckles. After a few seconds, all that was left there was a skeleton which left everyone in horror. Their eyes shrunk down to pinpricks and Tirek laughed even more. "That pathetic little creature is gone! Now, I shall be the GREATEST OVERLORD IN ALL OF EQUESTRIA AND DESTROY ANYONE WHO GETS IN MY WAY!" He started to destroy trees with his magic and seemed to be enjoying it.

The group was left speechless and had no idea what to say. Discord broke the silence and said "Tirek tricked me into believing that I could get something more valuable than friendship, but there is nothing worth more. I see that now. He lied when he said that this medallion was given as a sign of gratitude and loyalty, but when I say that it is a sign of our true friendship, I am telling the truth."

Discord gave the medallion to Twilight and that's when she realized this could have been the last key needed in order to open the chest.

Applejack asked "Ya think that might be the last one we need?"

Twilight stared at it and said "There's only one way to find out." All of them rushed down to the Tree to see if it did anything, and lo and behold, it did the exact same thing as with the other keys. Twilight smiled a bit, but then heard the loud stomping outside. She saw Tirek destroying the forest, so she told them that they had to do this together. They all turned the keys and the chest began to glow. It connected with the Tree and turned them all into super forms.

Tirek saw this and tried to drain that magic, but nothing happened, which left him incredibly shocked. He said in anger "How is this possible?! You have no magic! I even destroyed that weird ape looking creature!"

Twilight was not fazed by that and said "You're wrong, Tirek! You may have taken my friends' magic, but I carry within me the most powerful magic of all!" The beam suddenly hit on Tirek and shrunk down his size back to his weakest form. He returned to Tartarus and the magic was returned all across Equestria. The princesses were also set free and they left to head back home. The Tree returned them to its original location and the chest closed. Suddenly, there was an Earthquake and a magic beam shot out into the sky.

The chest went inside it and was dragged all the way to Ponyville. It went into the ground and something started to come out of it. After a few seconds, it formed into a giant structure. The Tree took them to it and all of them were surprised to see a full fledged castle standing right in front of them.

Rarity said "Sweet Celestia! Are you all seeing what I'm seeing?"

Twilight was incredibly confused and asked "But whose it is?"

She heard Celestia say "I believe it is yours, Princess Twilight." She turned around and saw the princesses, Spike, and Discord standing right there. They all went into the castle and Celestia said "You've been wondering what you were meant to do as a princess. Do you know now?"

Twilight said "As Princess, I believe I have the power to spread the magic of friendship across Equestria. That's the role I'm meant to have in our world. The role I choose to have. But I didn't defeat Tirek on my own. It took all of us to unlock the chest."

Celestia smiled and said "Then it is unlikely that you are meant to take on this task alone." All of them gasped at the room they saw in front of them and were amazed. Celestia said "You are now Twilight Sparkle: The Princess of Friendship." They went to sit on the new chairs and were loving it. Celestia said "But what is the Princess of Friendship without her friends?" They came together and Twilight saw Discord hiding in the corner. Twilight smiled and brought him over to them. He gave them a hug and then realized something.

He said "Wait a minute. Where's my throne?"

Fluttershy flew up and said "I don't think you're quite there yet."

Discord chuckled a bit nervously and said "I suppose not."

After some celebration, Twilight looked out at her new balcony, staring at the night sky and sighing. While all of this was nice, it tore her apart that this had to come at the price of Knuckles dying at the hands of Tirek. They may have defeated him, but they couldn't stop him from killing Knuckles. She really wished that Knuckles was here to see all of this and be part of it. He might not have known him for that long, but she grew close with him. To see him leave her like that broke her heart.

She was eternally grateful for the sacrifice he made in order to keep her alive, but it had to come at the price of his death. She let the tears flow down her face and said quietly "I'm sorry Caleb. I wish I was a better friend to you, but I got all of this nice stuff while you got nothing for doing something heroic like that. You didn't have to go like that. You could have stayed here. I hope you are happy wherever you may be with your girlfriend Maddi." Eventually, she returned to her room and she hopped on the bed. She went into full breakdown mode and started to cry herself to sleep. Equestria may be safe once again, but she lost someone close in the process.

Author's Note

AN: I apologize for this chapter coming out so late, but I have been busy over the weekend with college work, hanging out with the boys, going to church, and doing fellowship with my pastor's family. Anyway, I bet you didn't really see this coming, but it's been in the works for a while. He might not be truly dead. We'll have to see. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: Fighting amongst friends! After the death of Knuckles, the Mane Six is completely torn apart about this and have no idea where to go from here. It's left them all really tense with each other and will eventually boil over. They start to blame each other and divide themselves even further. Will they be able to move past this and mend their friendship, or will his death impact them so greatly that their friendship be permanently damaged?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 15: The Internal War

It had been three days since the death of Knuckles and the Mane Six were pretty torn up about it. But none more so than Twilight. She didn't know Knuckles for very long and all of them didn't get along all the time, but she didn't want him to say goodbye like that. Sure, he was reunited with Maddi now, but he left behind someone who was more than willing to be his friend. Her friends felt awful as well because they treated him so horribly for most of the time and yet, he still sacrificed himself to save Twilight and them from suffering death's fate at the hands of Tirek in exchange for his own life being taken.

He might not have been the best individual, but he knows how to protect others when it's necessary. Twilight thought it would be best to orchestrate a funeral for Knuckles and her friends agreed. Most of Equestria had no idea about Knuckles' existence, but it was best that they tell them about him and honor his legacy that he left when he died. The day of the funeral had arrived and there was a sense of dread in the atmosphere.

All of Equestria had come for this funeral in Canterlot, but most of the ponies had come because they were curious about who this individual was that lived in their country for the past five years and also all of the princesses were there, so that made it a high priority event for most ponies. After everypony settled in, Twilight came up to the podium and said "Greetings everypony." She had to wipe a tear at this because she never had to do this before and it was just crushing to have to say this.

She continued and said "We are gathered here today to mourn the loss of Knuckles or Caleb Brody as his real name. Many of you probably have never heard of this creature and I don't blame you. He was often a very reserved individual and didn't come out of his house much. He was a supernatural human being that lived on a private island in Baltimare and often kept to himself. While he did stay in his mansion. he was often very hostile towards strangers and acted aggressively towards them. However, he did this because of his difficult upbringing and a terrible tragedy that happened in his early adult life."

This next part would be very difficult to say and she could only hope that she would be able to get through the entire thing without crying because she had to remain strong for the rest of the ponies there because after they hear this, they are going to feel crushed and feel greatly saddened by this.

She said "Imagine this: Let's say that you lived with your parents, who in turn despised you, they treated you like crap and would beat you to death at least once a day for 24 years along with your older sister joining in the abuse with slanderous words. That's what Knuckles' childhood and the first six years of his adult life was like. He met a girl in school when he was 15, and they ended up being together in a romantic relationship. However, a terrible car accident ripped her away from him and he was left alone after that. The person who did it effectively got bailed out by upper class folks and then died the next week after doing the same thing to someone else."

Everypony there was complete shock and they didn't know what to say to that. For some, that was the worst they had ever heard and for others, they had a similar story, so they knew what that felt like. However, no one would be prepared for this next part as this would be a first for any kind of creature in Equestria.

Twilight went on and said "After that horrific night, his parents believed it was a good idea to tie their son up against a tree and leave him out in a dangerous thunderstorm all night. I know that's unbelievable, but Knuckles got blamed for everything that went wrong in his household, even if it was not his fault. If others tried to take responsibility for what they did, his parents said that they were brainwashed and they would never do anything wrong because they were too "innocent" and "good people."

A lot of the crowd became angry at hearing how terrible these two people were. There were some who would admit that they were not the best parents, but they would never leave their child out in a violent thunderstorm all night after the tragic death of someone close to them and blame them for everything that went wrong when it wasn't their fault. Some of them didn't really care, but that was in the very small minority as most of the ponies there had standards when it came to raising up a child.

Twilight said "Knuckles was far from a perfect individual and he struggled a lot with social interaction, but with a life like that, can you really blame him? He might have seemed like a terrible individual at first, but he really is just like the rest of us. As the Princess of Friendship, I find it deeply troubling how we seem to embrace friendship, yet we seem to cast away outsiders because we don't know that much about them. I'll admit, me and my friends are guilty of this too, but it's time we move away from this. We can't say that we are happy and friendly all the time, yet turn around and cast out an outsider because we've never seen them before."

Most of the crowd was left stunned at that statement, but they wanted to hear the rest of the speech before they made judgement on anything since all four princesses were there and that could be a sign of trouble if someone yelled out something.

Twilight sighed and said "Even our interactions were not that great with him, but it wasn't entirely his fault. When he punched Pinkie, it was because he was scared and didn't know how else to react. When we showed up at his house, he didn't know what he was dealing with, so he had to be careful. After the fallout I had with him after discovering his darkest secret, he acted in rage because it was tough to deal with and he didn't want to think about it again. When Rainbow challenged him to a fight, he misunderstood what was being said because we were all too scared to say anything since he yelled so loud. When he almost threatened to kill Rainbow with a giant rock, he was so blinded by anger that he didn't realize what he was doing. I could go on forever, but the point is that even if he seemed dangerous, it was only because we made dumb decisions and he simply acted in anger as a response because that's what his brain has known his entire life."

At this point, most of the crowd was dead silent as they so desperately wanted to spark judgement, but they didn't want themselves executed in the process because they interrupted a princess.

Twilight continued and said "Even though things were not looking good, the threat of Lord Tirek made him come out of hiding and return to help us defeat him. But at a very grave cost. He was able to beat around Tirek with his incredible strength and insulted him in a way that I never heard before, but never to be repeated here because of how inappropriate it was. That was enough to anger Tirek and it allowed us to buy time to try to fight him again. Tirek was about to crush me with his massive hoof, when Knuckles came running out of nowhere and pushed me out of the way, which resulted in him getting crushed instead."

Twilight could already feel the tears coming and she wanted to break down right then and there, but she still had to remain strong because that would be bad form as a princess to do something like that in front of a crowd.

Twilight cleared her throat and said "We tried to save him, but it was unfortunately too late when we got there to him. He said that he was already living a miserable life and that death was the proper punishment for his actions. He even apologized to Rainbow for trying to kill her and when Tirek blasted him, all that was left was his... skeleton. After that, we were able to defeat Tirek and get a castle out of that, but he... was gone. He was a very troubling person, but he didn't deserve to die like that. He did call us many insulting things, but in the end, he risked his life for all of us and saved us from total domination from Tirek. Anyone who wants to wish him a final goodbye may do so now."

She walked over to her seat and as soon as she did, she started to break down crying. She didn't care who was looking at this point as she was completely devastated at the death of someone she called a friend. He might not have thought so in return, but he was there when it mattered most. Even thought most of the crowd was shocked to see a princess crying in public, they felt nothing but sympathy for her because they knew that something like this was extremely painful to go through.

Rainbow was the first one to step towards to the closed coffin and she sighed, She said "Hey, Knuckles. I want to apologize for being so rough on you. I simply thought that you were a bad individual, but in fact, you proved me wrong. You were simply a hurting individual who was alone all the time and had a bad childhood. Nothing I could ever say would make that pain go away, but I do want to say that you've earned my full respect now. Even when you threatened to kill me, you still apologized right before your death. Even when you hurled insults at me and my friends, you still saved us in the end against Tirek by paying the ultimate sacrifice of death so that we may live. You may be more stubborn than Applejack, but you're more loyal than I could ever be. You represent my element better than I did, and with that, I eternally thank you for that. Farewell, soldier."

Applejack was the next one to step up to the coffin and she took off her hat as a signal that she is going to have an honest talk. She sighed and said "Ah admit, Knuckles, ya were one of the most stubborn individuals Ah have ever seen in mah lifetime, maybe even more than me, but ya have an incredible amount of honesty. Maybe just a little too much though. Ah also thought Ah was the strong one, but ya proved me wrong as well on that. The amount of strength ya have is beyond amazin' and it's a shame ya threw all that away for us. Ah understand what ya were goin' through now more than ever, and after Ah lost Ma and Pa, Ah know what's like to lose someone close to ya. Ya deserve the Element of Honesty far more than Ah do and nothin' could ever express how grateful Ah feel for ya sacrificing yerself so we may live. Take care, partner."

Pinkie was the next one to go and she looked miserable. She looked the exact same way that she did when her friends were avoiding her in "Party of One." She sighed and said "Knuckles, I know we didn't talk much and you couldn't stand my personality, but you knew how to make Twilight happy. She would often come home from your house in a happy mood and you unleashed something in her that none of us have ever seen before. I'm... sure you are happy now to be reunited with your girlfriend and are living the great life up there on the other side, but you left behind this Earth as well. I might not have been there to see it, but Twilight always mentioned how you could get a good laugh out of something and for that, you represent the Element of Laughter better than I did. See... ya later Crocodile." She made it about three feet before she collapsed on the floor and Rainbow and Applejack had to help her back to her seat.

Rarity was the next pony to go and even she was wiping away the tears in her eyes with the handkerchief. She sighed and said "Knuckles, I didn't really know you too well and you seemed like to be a very rude individual at first, but my entire opinion changed after hearing about your terrible upbringing. No parent should ever do that kind of thing to a child like yours did and no older sister should say such slanderous things to her younger brother either. Hearing that made me realize I need to be a better older sister to Sweetie Belle and be the proper role model she needs to have in her life. Nothing could ever change the way how you lost your girlfriend in a terrible way like that. I have tried looking for that love life myself, but you showed me that I need to care about the individuals who are with you the most in your life because they can be ripped away from you at any moment. When you sacrificed yourself like that, I saw that you were truly a very generous person despite what had happened before. You will always represent the Element of Generosity better than I would and I am eternally thankful that you saved us from Tirek, even though you lost your life as the ultimate cost. Sleep well, darling."

Fluttershy was the next one up and she was struggling to try to figure out what to say. She eventually got the courage to speak and said "Knuckles, I knew from the beginning that you were suffering through immense pain and I could see all of that in your rage filled eyes when we first encountered each other. I know it was incredibly hard growing up with such abusive parents and then have your girlfriend ripped away from you when you least expected it. No words could ever express how much pain you truly went through, but you never seemed to give up despite being beaten down so many times. The way you sacrificed yourself was beyond anything I could imagine and I don't know what to say. You truly are the kindest individual for doing that for us and you deserve the Element of Kindness more than I do. I will miss you greatly and I hope life on the other side treats you well."

Twilight was the final one to step up to the coffin and even though she spoke before, she had a few things to say before he was buried. She sighed and said "Caleb, nothing could ever express how I truly feel about your death. It was the most reckless thing I have ever seen in my life, but also the bravest I have ever seen. I know your life was horrible, but you didn't have to go out that way. You might not have felt the same way, but I considered you my friend despite our challenges. You made me realize that we as a nation needs to do better when it comes to outsiders. Most of us thought you were dangerous, but in fact, you kept to yourself because you didn't want us to know the truth about your terrible past. When you sacrificed yourself, I realized I was being a terrible friend for the entire time and with that, I am deeply sorry. I've been terrible at being the Princess of Friendship and you represent my Element of Magic far better than I ever could. You may not be sad anymore, but I am with you gone. It will be hard, but just know that you always have a friend here. Goodbye, Caleb Brody."

After everyone was done, the other princesses put the coffin into the ground and put the dirt on top of it. Soon, everyone dispersed and went their separate ways. The Mane Six got back onto the train home and none of them said a word to each other. They were still hurting from all of this and they didn't want to say something they would regret because of conflicting emotions. As soon as they got home, they went their separate ways and did not speak a word to each other.

Weeks passed by and that eventually turned to months before they ever spoke to one another again. When they finally did, it happened by chance. However, the environment was still very tense and no one was sure on what to say because they could cause a firestorm amongst them.

Applejack was the first one to open up and asked nervously "So, how are y'all?" All of them said that they were fine and went quiet again. After a few seconds, Applejack asked "How did we get like this?" All of them looked at her with confusion and she clarified what she meant by saying "It seems like ever since... ya know, we hardly seem to talk to each other anymore and ghost 'em instead."

That proved to open up a can of worms and Rainbow was the first to speak by saying "Well gee, Applejack. You ever figure out why that was the case?! We just lost someone who happened to help stop Tirek and died in the process so that we may live!"

Rarity got angry and said to Rainbow "As if you actually cared about the individual in the first place! You even challenged him to a fight all because of a simple misunderstanding! Sure, he might have tried to kill you, but that never would have happened if you hadn't opened your mouth!"

Rainbow growled with anger and said "Neither did you! You constantly went on about how much of a "brute" and "uncivilized" creature he was and while he did call you a drama queen, he wasn't entirely wrong!"

Twilight was angry at both of them and said "None of you actually cared about him! I was the ONLY ONE that truly cared! I gave him the benefit of the doubt when you didn't! I tried to be friends with him when you didn't! I even went to his house to talk to him when you didn't! The only time you did start to care is when he was about to die! Had he not done that, you would have NEVER ADMITTED how wrong you all were about him! You would still have hate towards him in your hearts! Even after I told you about his childhood and the death of Maddi, you still REFUSED to believe that you were wrong!"

Pinkie jumped in and said "HEY! We're supposed to be friends here, and this is the EXACT OPPOSITE OF BEING FRIENDS! HE EVEN RIPPED MY PARTY CANNON APART AND THREW IT INTO SPACE! YOU DON'T SEE ME COMPLAINING!"

All of them started ripping into each other for how bad of a friend they were and Fluttershy just stood in silence because she didn't want to say anything. Things were already bad enough and she didn't want to add to it. Eventually, they all yelled that they didn't want to see each other again and they ran in their separate directions.

Nearby, a figure in the shadows was watching the entire fight go down from the top of the Castle of Friendship and he could only feel guilt as he watched. He shouldn't have done this to them. He shouldn't have given them some bs goodbye and then disappear from the scene. He even told them that they shouldn't do this to each other and yet, none of them called the other out for dishonoring his wish. As he watched them leave, he sighed and turned around to leave. He said "I'm so sorry girls. I wish you could truly understand what you're doing to yourselves." He went up into the air and disappeared.

Author's Note

AN: Well, things got a bit ugly to say the least. This was bound to happen and it was only a matter of time before this occurred. I'm sure you all knew the figure that was hiding in the shadows, but it will be revealed truly in the next chapter, so you want to stay tuned for that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: Amending Fences! After the huge fight that breaks out between the Mane Six, most of them eventually come back a few weeks later to apologize to each other. However, Twilight is still left heartbroken over Knuckles' death and she refuses to come out of her castle. Eventually, she is forced out and ordered to go to Canterlot to talk to Celestia about this. Will Celestia be able to help Twilight move on with life, or will Twilight be filled with too much pain to move forward?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 17: Comatose Comes Alive

Another year and a half went by and quite a lot of progress happened in that time frame. The Mane Six continued to improve on mending their friendship and they grew closer as time went on. Of course, there were still bumps in the road when times got tough, but they stuck to the vow they made and got through it without issues. Also, they went through some crazy adventures in that time frame as well. They were able to stop and reform Starlight Glimmer, have Twilight's niece Flurry Heart stop an entire snowstorm in the Crystal Empire and defeating Queen Chrysalis for the second time in four years.

All of this had occurred in three years since Knuckles had left them all and it kept them quite busy, but now with things settling down, it made them wonder a bit. Today was special though. It would be the Summer Sun Celebration once again to celebrate the defeat of Nightmare Moon, or rather, the reunion between Celestia and Luna. That's what it now represented after the Mane Six brought Luna back to Celestia from the darkness over seven years ago. However, this celebration takes a lot of time to prepare, so all of Equestria had to come to this event to help set it up when the first day of summer rolls around. It just so happens that this celebration is always on the first day of summer, which is the longest day of the year if you think about it.

Twilight was busy overlooking the setup going on and she was trying to figure out how to make this look the best. She turned to Starlight and asked "Hey Starlight, do you know where these tapestries would look the best at?"

Starlight thought about it and said "I would say to take those tapestries and hang them on both sides of the stage for the extra effect."

Twilight thought how that would look and said "I think you're right, Starlight. That would fit the entire theme for this year." She hung up the tapestries on both sides of the stage and took a good look at it. She was satisfied with it and walked away. As she was walking, she started thinking about Knuckles slightly. She really wished he was here for all this because there was so much to tell him that he had missed over the last three years, but she knew that it was a lost cause. He died three years ago, he would definitely not show up now. He paid the ultimate sacrifice for her and her friends to live and they were eternally grateful for it. He died so that they may live.

Rainbow saw Twilight's slight downcast look and asked "Hey Twilight, what's with the sad look?"

Twilight sighed and said "I know it sounds incredibly stupid of me to be even thinking about this, but Knuckles has still been on my mind." At that point, the rest of her friends had showed up and they noticed the same thing.

Applejack said "Ya miss him, don't ya?"

Twilight nodded and Rarity said "Darling, it's been three years since he left us all. We had all agreed to honor his wish and stay together so that Equestria doesn't lose it's greatest line of defense, but it makes it difficult when it bothers you this much."

Twilight sighed again and said "I know, I know. But I still wish he was here. So much has happened since he was gone and I want him to hear all of it. I know that nothing can be done about it, but I still think he was taken away cruelly from this world. He did not deserve to die that way."

Applejack said "And we don't disagree with ya Sugarcube, but we can't dwell on it forever. We all wished he was still here, but he died for a reason. He did so 'cause he cared about all of us and he didn't want to see Equestria fall. Of course, he wouldn't admit that to us, but that's the reality of it. It doesn't mean we forget about him, but we can let him hold us back, if that makes sense."

Twilight looked up at the group with hope and said "Thank you. I needed to hear that. I guess as long as I have my friends with me, then we'll be able to get through any challenge." The group nodded in agreement and they went to continue to set up.

Up in the castle, Celestia and Luna were watching the event being put together and ponies working to get it to the best as they could possibly could. Luna noticed that Celestia had a forlorn look on her face and asked "Sister, what is troubling you? I can tell that something is wrong."

Celestia sighed and said "I don't know, Luna. Something seems off about this day. I'm glad that the two of us are reunited again after so many years, but seeing how Twilight was feeling earlier makes me concerned. It makes me sad that she was sad. It's still really hard for her not to think about Knuckles, and I don't blame her. When something like that happens to you, it completely changes who you are. I just hope that she can stay strong and not completely crumble."

Luna looked at her older sister and said "Sister, Twilight will be fine. She has her friends to support her through this and they have each other. They have proven that their friendship is inseparable and they have only gotten closer as time has gone on. Also, it's been three years and she's been doing fine. There is no reason to worry. Things will be alright in the end."

Celestia sighed again and said "I hope you're right, Luna. I hope we're all right."

The day continued to go on and into the night where ponies were up the entire time still preparing for the big celebration. There was a figure in the shadows that was watching everything go on and he sighed. He said to himself "I really hope this works. It's been three years since anyone has last seen me anywhere and the last time they did, they had to watch me supposedly "perish" at the hands of some ugly Centaur. They thankfully honored my wish, but I hope they would welcome me again with open arms after what I did to them." He turned around and vanished from the area.

5:00 AM rolled around soon enough and all of Equestria were sitting together in the stands. They were murmuring to themselves about how excited they were for the event and soon, the trumpets sounded off and everyone looked towards the stage. They saw Celestia, Luna, and Twilight take the stage and get into their respective positions. The trumpet sounds died down and Celestia walked towards the crowd.

She said "We are here to celebrate the Summer Sun Celebration once again for another year and to welcome the first day of Summer. As we all know, this holiday was created after the defeat of Nightmare Moon, but thanks to Princess Twilight and her friends, it became a celebration of the return of my sister, Princess Luna, and our happy reunion. Without further ado, I hereby decree the start of Summer 2017!" The crowd gave loud cheers and Luna flew up into the sky to lower the Moon. Celestia took that as her cue and flew up to raise the Sun.

Everypony watched the Sunrise with amazement and Twilight pulled her stunt that she did in the Season 4 premiere over three years ago. She landed and she smiled at the two princesses. They went off the stage and Twilight said "For centuries, this holiday was always a solemn one, but for the last seven years, it has become a celebration of the reunion of the two rulers of Equestria. We also look forward to first day of summer here in the year 2017 and we can celebrate another year. Take this moment to appreciate the family you have because it won't last forever. It can be taken away from you in a heartbeat."

The crowd started murmuring to each other and it left Twilight confused. She was wondering why they were all whispering to each other and then she saw them have a shocked look on their faces. Twilight took that as an opportunity to turn around and she saw Knuckles standing right there with the Sun shining down on him. There he was. Standing right there behind her. He had a slight smile on his face and he said "I'm back."

Twilight couldn't believe it for a second and she didn't know what to do. She asked "K-Knuckles? Is... that really you?"

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "It's me. I have returned." Twilight was overjoyed to hear that news and she tackled him to the ground in a hug. The crowd roared with cheers and Knuckles finally stood up.

Twilight looked at him with excitement and asked "H-how are you alive? I thought you were dead! I literally saw you get blasted to death by Tirek's magic!"

Knuckles chuckled some more and said "I'll tell you a little later." Twilight had the tears running down her face out of happiness, but there was one thing she had to do first. She put her hoof back and slapped him across the face. That caught him off guard and he said "OW! What the heck did you do that for?!"

Twilight looked at him with pain in her eyes and said "Don't you ever do that to me again!"

Knuckles sighed and said "I guess I deserved that. Twilight, I want to sincerely apologize to you and your friends for my disappearance over three years ago. I never intended to dismantle your friendship nor ruin the fate of Equestria. I have no excuse for doing that and I'm deeply ashamed in myself. I was a coward and a fraud and I should have never put you through that pain. With that, I hope you can understand that and eventually find your way to forgive me someday."

Twilight still felt quite upset at him for putting her through emotional turmoil like that, but she could tell that he was genuinely sorry for what he did and he tried to make up for it. Twilight broke out a smile and said "I already forgive you." She hugged him again with a tighter grip this time and soon, Knuckles returned the hug.

Afterwards, Knuckles met up with rest of the Mane Six and he told them all the story of how he faked his death and escaped at the last moment. All of them were shocked to say the least and their minds were officially blown. Rainbow asked "So, you're telling me you rolled out of the way at the last second and got inside your vehicle to fly away without getting caught?!" Knuckles nodded and Rainbow said "That's awesome!"

Knuckles chuckled and said "That pathetic Centaur seriously thought he could take out someone like me, but he was wrong. I might have been beaten down, but I was never out. That fool could never truly defeat me anyways. I only made him believe that he had won." The group gave some loud cheers with that statement and they spent some more time together.

Eventually, Knuckles went up to Celestia and Luna and said "Your Highnesses, I sincerely want to apologize for my crappy behavior towards you two and I'm ready for whatever punishment you have for my crimes."

That threw off Celestia and she asked with a raised brow "Your crimes?"

Knuckles said "Yeah, you know, all the stuff I did. The abductions, attempted first degree murder, property damage, and assault. Surely, no one would let someone walk free like that after committing that many crimes against the crown." He wasn't entirely wrong because with that many bad things done by someone, that could serve you some time in prison.

Celestia seemed to get the idea and said "Oh I see. Normally, you would be correct, you would have to serve time, but a certain somepony was willing to bail you out of it in exchange for something else." Knuckles seemed confused for a second, but then, he had a giant rock thrown at him from the back which definitely did not feel nice. He turned around and saw the Mane Six laughing which made him slightly grumpy, but he knew it was coming.

He said "I guess I deserved that too. I was really that terrible, wasn't I? Anyway, who decided to bail me out?"

Celestia said "Look behind you."

Knuckles turned around and saw Twilight smiling brightly at him which allowed him to connect the dots. He said "You were willing to bail me out?" Twilight nodded and Knuckles was left speechless. He asked "Why?"

Twilight smiled and said "Because I believe all creatures deserve a second chance no matter what sins they may have committed in the past. You are no exception."

Knuckles didn't know what to say. Here he was committing so many sins and he was let go by the Princess of Friendship bailing him out. The amount of kindness she showed him blew him away and he didn't know how to react. After a few seconds, he hugged Twilight with a firm grip, but not too tightly, and he shed a few tears in the process. To him, it felt like walking out of federal prison and feeling the Sun for the first time in years. He looked at her and said "Thank you. Nothing I do could ever show how much I'm grateful for you doing this for me."

Twilight smiled and said "You are welcome." Knuckles set her down and he was still trying to take it all in. But soon, that turned to joy and he started shouting expressions of excitement like he was just healed from being unable to walk and moving on his feet for the first time. Some time passed to where Knuckles turned around and asked "What are the conditions I must follow?"

Twilight said "In exchange for you being a free man, you must study friendship. I'm not saying you must live in Ponyville, but you would come as often as you could to learn about it to the fullest extent and tell me your findings in however way possible."

Knuckles thought about it and then said "That seems like a fair trade to me. Although, I must warn you, I'm so rusty at it that I don't even know where to start."

Starlight came over and said to him "I've been in the exact same boat you were in. Trust me, they'll set you on the right track."

Knuckles seemed satisfied with that and the group caught him up to speed on what had happened in the three years he was gone. After they told him that, it left him in a whirlwind and he was left speechless most of the time. He couldn't believe that he missed that much in three years, but then he figured that was what happens when you rarely leave the city of Baltimare.

Some more time passed and Twilight had an idea. She knew about Knuckles' musical talents and guitar skills, so she wanted him to put on a concert showing it off to everypony. Knuckles objected to this idea at first, but after some strong convincing from Twilight, he agreed to do it. He never had done this before and it left him very nervous, but he must not show weakness to anyone. He let out a sigh and pulled out his electric guitar.

This was his favorite song from Skillet and he figured it would fit for his big return to Equestria. He sung the song with passion and jammed out to his heart's content. Everypony was amazed at his brilliant singing voice and amazing guitar skills and they listened intently. At this point, Knuckles didn't care what the audience was thinking, he was just focused on this song. This was a tribute to everyone he was close to in his life: his grandparents, David, and Maddi. If they were here right now, they would all be proud of him. After he concluded the song, he looked at the crowd and they all erupted with cheers.

It left Knuckles stunned that everypony was cheering him on. He was sure that there would be at least some boos because of the style of music being played, but not one could be heard. He smiled and said "You all like that one?" They all shouted yes very loudly and Knuckles had an even bigger smile on his face. He said "Alright then, well I got another one for you that I'll think you'll like." He changed the tune on his guitar and started playing it again.

Even though Skillet was his favorite rock band to listen to, he still liked Thousand Foot Krutch very much and he would play songs from them as well. Once again, everypony was amazed at Knuckles' singing voice and guitar skills and they were fully enjoying it. Most of them even joined in with the singing and sang along as well. Twilight was also amazed and she was excited that she was able to see Knuckles play and sing for the first time in her life. Her friends told her that he was good, but she didn't think he was this great. Nothing could ever compare to something like this. After the song was over, the crowd erupted with loud cheers and Knuckles waved his left hand as he left the stage.

The Mane Six met up with him and Rainbow said "That was awesome! That was the greatest performance I have ever seen in my entire life!"

Applejack said "That was some mighty fine work for ya, fella. From the guitar skills to the singin' voice, it did not disappoint."

Rarity said "Darling, you simply must tell me how you were able to perform like that! That was the first time I have ever seen somepony perform that well and you could even be part of the Canterlot Orchestra with how well you were playing."

Pinkie said "Best concert ever!" No one was surprised by that reaction because well, that's what Pinkie always does.

Fluttershy said "That was a great performance Knuckles. You should express your talents more often."

Finally, Twilight said "Words cannot describe how great of a performance you put on, Knuckles. I don't even know what to say. When my friends told me that you were amazing at singing and playing the guitar, they were definitely not lying. You have an extraordinary gift and you should take that to heart."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "Thanks guys. It was always something that I kept to myself for years, but I now see that everyone here also seems to enjoy it, so I might do this more often. Who knows? You'll just have to wait and see." For Knuckles, this was considered untapped potential and it could turn into something great if given some time. He thought that ponies would reject it, but so far, they seemed to love it which definitely boosted his confidence. So, whatever he does, he knows that he has the support of six ponies behind him.

Author's Note

AN: Well, we've reached the end of another chapter fellas! How did you like that grand entrance? I'm sure most of you saw it coming, but for those of you that didn't, this is what happened. Things have definitely settled down and are heading in the right direction, but there is some more left to go before we are finished. It doesn't have a romance tag for no reason. Hint for upcoming chapters. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: Friendship lessons! After agreeing to learn friendship in exchange for being a free man, Knuckles frequently travels to Ponyville to reexamine what friendship really was to him and how it's affected him. However, he starts to get weird feelings in his stomach anytime he is around Twilight, so he goes to Cadence to figure out what is going on. Will she be able to give him an adequate answer, or will Knuckles have to face this one alone on the road?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 18: Friendship Lessons & Dating Advice

Early in the morning, Knuckles woke up and stretched his arms and legs so he could start his day. He would this constantly every day to make sure his muscles wouldn't cramp up on him. He went downstairs to make some breakfast and whistled a Skillet song while he was doing that. Once he was done cooking it, he sat down at the breakfast table and ate quietly. It still felt kind of empty to him, but that's how he rolled most of the time. Considering his current situation, he was totally fine like this. It was a way for him to spend some time by himself in the morning before he would join the others in Ponyville 3 hours away. He finished up his breakfast and put in the sink. He washed it off thoroughly and put it in the dishwasher which he would run later tonight.

He left the kitchen and went to change into his gym clothes so he could get that morning workout in. He turned up the Skillet music and did his workout routines like he does every other day of the week. To put it into perspective, 600 pounds feels like a feather to him. To many, that would be incredibly heavy, but for him, that's nothing. He usually benchpresses, lifts, and squats 1,200 pounds, but even that is not really a challenge for him because of his super strength. What would be a challenge for him would be anything more than the weight of 3 cars or 6,000 pounds. So, if he tried to lift 5 cars into the air, he would struggle a little bit compared to 3 cars. Knuckles didn't really care though because he got stronger as the days went on. He felt good and healthier as well as time went on.

After doing his workout for about an hour, he went into the locker room to change out of the clothes he was wearing and took a shower. Thankfully, he never had to worry about others trying to beat him up or flogging him with towels since he was the only one who used this space. He had to deal with that in middle school and high school somewhat, but at least it was easier there because he had Maddi. He didn't have that in middle school. He didn't know how it happened, he somehow made through despite always being a handful since people would never leave him alone.

He dried off his hair and combed it to make look nice. He wasn't going anywhere fancy, but he wanted to make himself look presentable in front of company. One of the most important things about his tribe was hospitality. If you didn't treat your guests right, you had no honor and were considered a coward. So, it was important that you demonstrated proper hospitality or else you would get a whooping of a lifetime. It might have sounded super strict, but it established discipline amongst the young in the tribe and it make them very good people to interact with.

Knuckles threw some clothes on and combed his hair again just a little bit in order to make sure he didn't mess it up with throwing his shirt on. He left the locker room and headed for his bedroom. The other good thing about the locker room he had was it was always kept clean and it wouldn't smell so terrible all the time except when he stunk anytime he walked in there. But that usually evaporated as soon as he took a shower and after he would leave, it would smell nice and fresh, so that was another bonus.

Knuckles threw on a jacket because he knew it was relatively cold outside and he didn't want to freeze to death. He was wearing one of his black leather jackets that he would wear anytime he would jam out to his electric guitar. It would make him look like one of those rock stars or something. He grabbed his phone and keys and left his room. He went over to the elevator and pressed the down button so it could come up to where he was. The doors opened and Knuckles walked inside. He pressed the button to the bottom floor and the doors shut closed.

He whistled another Skillet song as the elevator was traveling below ground and he stared at the wall while doing so because it was a very decorated elevator. He didn't exactly know how the heck he was able to afford building this mansion, but considering how nice it was, he didn't really care. What annoyed him so much was how high the income and personal property taxes were in this area. He remembers how much his parents complained about the high Maryland state income tax rate plus all those other ridiculous fees that the State of Maryland loves to charge on its citizens.

Fortunately, there are no states here in Equestria, but he still has to deal with the income and personal property taxes. The income taxes aren't really as bad here in Baltimare as he originally thought, but because of what he lives in, that jacked up the price of the income taxes. In other words, the high personal property taxes caused the income taxes to skyrocket through the roof. He thankfully has enough money to pay the taxes every month, but he really wished that they were lower. However, considering where he is living and what he lives in, it makes sense why they would charge so much.

But he doesn't directly live in the city. He tried to argue that, but the city didn't care. They stated that as long as he lived in the metropolitan area, which would include where he lived, he would be charged the same rate as everypony else who lives in the city. It left him pretty frustrated, but he wasn't going to waste anymore time with a bunch of politicians who refused to fix the crime situation in the city. It just wasn't worth it to him. The elevator doors finally opened and Knuckles stepped out into his Knucklecave. It was still looking as good as ever and he went over to Blackbird.

He hopped into the driver's seat and pressed the engine start stop button to turn it on. Everytime he started it up, it always had that nice deep V8 rumble to it and when he stepped on it, it sounded like the supercharged Hellcat engine that he was so used to hearing. When he built it, he wanted it to sound like that, so the fact that it turned out so well made him quite happy. He put on his seatbelt and he pressed the garage door opener button to open the big doors ahead of him. He pressed the throttle lever forward and he took off.

He flew through the caverns inside the island and the doors leading outside opened as well. He flew right out and the doors shut. Knuckles enjoyed having the wind blow through his hair and it was a beautiful sunny day out here in Baltimare. He flew over all of the tall skyscrapers that resided in the city and once he left the city limits, he slowed down the throttle a little bit and activated cruise control. He looked down and saw all of the beautiful fields that rural Equestria had to offer. It was a much needed break from all the skyscrapers and city life that he dealt with on a daily basis in Baltimare.

As a kid, he always loved visiting his grandparents in Hampstead, MD which was about an hour from where he lived in Baltimore. They lived out in the country and they had a really nice house for the area that they were in. Of course, he always had to hitch a ride with another family member because his parents refused to visit them at all since they had beef with them and he was left on his own. By the time he could get his own car to drive, his grandparents were dead, but he always visited the property when he could just to maintain it's great condition.

It was also a place for him to talk to his grandparents by himself out loud without his parents trying to disturb him or something. He eventually showed Maddi the place and the two of them bonded really well over there. Let's just say they may have gotten into some mischief when they were there. If you watched the movie The Best of Me where the setting was 1992, you'll know what I'm talking about. Losing his grandparents was tough, but not as tough as it was losing Maddi. At least she was there when his grandparents died, but when she died, he had no one because that was his only support system. He literally had to watch it disappear like a cloud of dust after having it for almost half of his life at that point.

He needed to get the Master Diamond back soon though. He had hid it when he fought Tirek over three years ago, but as long as it was still out there, the world and the universe would be in great danger. None of them would ever be safe again because of how powerful it truly was. The thought worried Knuckles even more than it ever has. Before, he only had himself to worry about. But now that he has made peace with the Mane Six, they were in just as much great danger as the rest of the country was.

He needed to get that artifact back in his possession before it was too late and Equestria falls to its knees to whatever evil force has control of the Diamond. As he was thinking about it, he could see Ponyville in the distance and he sped up a little bit so he could get there a little bit more quickly. He looked around and found a spot to land at. He stopped the vehicle and turned it off. He hopped out of the vehicle and went up to the front of the alleyway. He noticed a lot of ponies walking through there and doing business as usual.

He remembered the last time he was in this situation, he was absolutely gagging over it and complaining how terrible it was. He still wasn't the biggest fan of friendship, but he rather do this than to be sitting in federal prison right now. So, he just had to roll with it. He sighed and went out to start walking through the city. He looked around nervously to see if anyone notice, but they only seemed to either greet with smiles or not even acknowledge him. It was sort of awkward for him, so he walked a little bit faster to get towards the edge of town.

He finally made it outside of the town and stopped at the Castle of Friendship: the home of the Princess of Friendship aka Princess Twilight Sparkle. He didn't think he had to be knocking on large castle doors, but that's what needed to happen. He sighed very heavily and gave a firm knock on the door. Who knew that he would be knocking on someone else's door? Usually, it's others knocking on his door, but now, it's him knocking on doors.

The doors opened and Twilight was standing right there. She smiled and said "Good morning, Knuckles! I'm glad that you came. I wasn't sure if you would or not. But it's good to see you here."

Knuckles said in a serious tone "When I make a promise to do something, I never back down from it at all. I might not like it, but I will always do it regardless. My tribe is all about honor and running away from your problems makes you a coward, so whenever a vow has been made, a man must honor it or else he has none."

Twilight smiled some more and said "It seems like your tribe has strong values. It looks like you have a pretty good grasp of loyalty. As you may know, loyalty is all about devotion and being committed to some sort of allegiance. It also means always having somepony's back whenever they are in crisis and always being there for them. I think even Rainbow would be impressed."

Knuckles said "You could say that, but between the two of us, she needs some work. I'm not trying to insult her character or anything, but sometimes she can be a bit of a hothead and that's me being generous. I could think of a lot worse."

Twilight agreed and said "Yeah, I can see your point. She has shown off her ego from time to time, but she is always there when it counts the most. If you had said that three years ago, I would have been incredibly insulted by the remark, but after everything that has happened in that timeframe, I'm totally fine with it. Just don't say it too loudly or else Rainbow might get offended."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "That pony stands no chance. If she gets offended by the tiniest thing, she'll have it coming for her. Now where do we begin our journey?"

Twilight said "I thought we would take a walk through town to get started. I know it can seem a bit nerve-wracking, but I promise that this will be an effective tactic to get the train moving."

Knuckles grunted a bit in satisfaction and said "Then let us begin our journey." He turned around and headed out towards town. Twilight knew she had some work to do, but it was nothing she couldn't handle. Considering where she was just six months ago, this was a lot better than that disaster.

They began walking together and Twilight said as they were walking into town "Thank you once again for making it out here. I know that you already said no, but you don't have to travel three hours out west just to get here to Ponyville. You could always stay here."

Knuckles sighed and said "I appreciate the gesture Twilight, but really, I don't need it. I don't mind making the three hour trip here. Besides, I can't leave my house in Baltimare. Someone's gotta watch over it. It might be a little far, but that's where home is for right now. Now, you can drop the gestures and gifts you are trying to give me. You set me free from prison and I am grateful for that. You agreed to teach me friendship and that's all I need. I'm good with just that. My tribe might be fed up with that, but I am the only one left here, so it doesn't matter."

Twilight said "That does remind me: I tried doing some research to see if there was anything about your tribe so I could learn about it more, but I seem to ran out of luck because I couldn't find anything."

Knuckles said "You wouldn't. We as a tribe kept many secrets from the public eye for years and we always controlled the narrative to make sure we didn't get discovered by the rest of the world. The Echidna tribe was rarely known by most of the world and those who did know were sworn to secrecy about it or else they would suffer death. We were actually very successful for a long time and as far as I know, the world never did discover us which was good."

Twilight seemed interested in the story and asked "Why is your tribe named the Echidnas? If I remember correctly, it is some sort of porcupine creature."

Knuckles said "My ancestors decided to come up with the name because we named it after the creature. We would act nice towards others whenever we were out in public, but when we were threatened, we would attack like a group of snakes. We would show no mercy. I remember it like this: Mercy is for the weak. We do not train to be merciful here. A man face you, he is enemy. Enemy deserve no mercy. That was also a quote from the Karate Kid II, but we were the original ones to come with it."

Twilight snickered a bit at the remark and thought it was funny that a great quote like that came from his tribe and got stolen to be put into a movie. That wasn't something she heard everyday.

Knuckles ignored that and said "Anyway, many years ago, my ancestors settled in the area that is now known as Baltimore, Maryland in the United States, which is my hometown. When they first got there, they struggled mightily, but we were able to figure out how to survive. All with the power of the Ultimate Power. The artifact was considered very sacred and no one except us who are in the tribe are supposed to know about it because of how powerful it truly is."

Twilight got curious and asked "What exactly is the Ultimate Power? I've been trying to figure that out for quite some time now, and I can't seem to figure it out."

Knuckles gave a hard stare and said "I cannot tell you that. You are not part of the tribe, so I cannot tell you those details. One of the major rules of the tribe is you have to be part of the tribe in order to know the secrets and you have to make an oath to swear to silence about it or else face death. The only ways you become part of the tribe is either through birth or marriage, so for you, that would be the only way to get to know the tribe's secrets. Sorry. That's just the rules."

Twilight said "Your tribe seems to have a lot of rules."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "Yeah, we do, but each rule has its own special purpose and they are there for a reason. We wanted to establish discipline and respect. Another reason why we named our tribe the Echidnas was because we had many enemies. So many people wanted our secrets, but we would not let them because the Ultimate Power was far beyond anything they could imagine. The Echidna has many predators, so we constantly had to fight for our lives in order to survive. Thankfully, we had a way to protect ourselves which allowed us to take down our enemies. They did not know our forms of martial arts and when they threatened us, they suffered the penalty badly. Our tribe thrived for 4,000 years and now, I'm the one who has to carry that legacy."

Twilight was mind blown by this shocking revelation and asked "Did your secrets ever get out after you defeated these people?"

Knuckles shook his head and said "Thankfully no. We were able to keep our secrets locked away from the world and when the enemy moved in, we attacked like a pack of Wolves. They say that if you want to kill the Snake, you go for the head, so that's exactly what we did. The enemy never saw it coming, so when they got hit, they never recovered and died as a result of it. It might sound brutal, but considering how valuable the Ultimate Power was, we were willing to fight to the death for it. We were the guardians of it and we were tasked of protecting it from the enemy like those who created it told us to do all those thousands of years ago. You know what's funny about those people that got beat up by us and survived, when they went to tell others, no one believed them and thought they were nuts because of how unknown our tribe was. We were able to stay in the dark and that worked to our advantage."

Twilight said "Wow. That's an interesting story. I guess you all had a good reason to keep everything about your history secret so that you guys wouldn't have your artifact stolen."

Knuckles nodded and said "If you ever tried looking up our tribe through history books or the internet, you would not find anything. We weren't even on the list of Native American tribes because we didn't want people to know about our tribe just by looking on Wikipedia. Anytime we went out in public, we wore regular clothes like everyone else so no one would recognize us and we would blend right in with the crowds. We didn't even wear our jewelry that was associated with our tribe because people would discover about it that way as well just by simply asking. When our ancestors were forming the tribe, they thought of everything. They left no stone unturned. Our motto has always been: If man has no honor, then he becomes death. What it means is that if a man has no honor in him, then he is face to face with death itself and they suffer its fate. Honor was always the most important thing in our tribe and if you did not have it, you were considered a coward."

Twilight asked "Did any of you guys get into fights out in public and if so, how were able to not get caught?"

Knuckles said "Ah, that. So you see, the way of the tribe is you try to deescalate things first, then if that doesn't work, you give them a warning to back away and if all else fails, you fight them to the death. Most of the time, people that caused problems wanted to fight us because they thought they were tough, but they were softer than a baby's ass. After they would get obliterated, people would ask where we got those fighting skills because it looked a lot of Karate and some of them had watched the Karate Kid series, so they got curious. All we told them was the internet and all of them bought that excuse. Not only were we very smart when it came to fighting, we were also very innovative as well. We were able to adapt to changes and we constantly stayed in the loop of what was going on."

Twilight seemed impressed by this and wanted to hear more of this story because she knew she could get a good friendship lesson out of this.

Knuckles continued and said "Most of us were computer geeks, so we were able to inform the rest of the tribe how the internet worked and what people normally do on it. So, we never had to worry about being outdated because our tribe instilled into our brains that we are always supposed to adapt to change and keep the enemy at its toes. Make them keep guessing and when they least expect it, you strike. In the Karate Kid movie series with Cobra Kai, you had the slogan: Strike First. Strike Hard. No Mercy. But we were the ones to invent that sort of concept. We didn't have it framed quite like that, but the idea was the same. We would normally play defense to get the enemy to back down, but if we needed to, we would go on offense and there was no stopping us after that. We always had that perfect balance of that, but if you got us angry enough, we would show no mercy."

Twilight nodded her head and said "I see. So, you like to seem to talk a lot. That's good. Nothing wrong with that. I liked hearing your story, but the first lesson of friendship I have to teach you is listening. You never want to have a one sided conversation. It's a bad idea and makes things very awkward. It tells the other pony that you're more important than them and their conversation becomes less relevant as time goes on. I'm not saying that you think you're more important than anypony else, but it does send that message."

Knuckles looked at her with a stunned look on his face and said "Wow. You really are that smart. I guess I forgot one of the most important principles of the tribe: hospitality. That was one of the most critical things established in our tribe. If we had guests over, we were to make them feel like family and treat them with respect. It was part of the bigger picture of being friendly with people. Anytime we spoke to other people, we always spoke kindly to them and never disrespected them. We usually tried to avoid fights with people, but if they wanted to throw hands and threatened our lives, we would have no choice. The point is I forgot that one sided conversations count as bad hospitality and I apologize for that."

Twilight smiled a bit and said "It's okay. I accept your apology."

Knuckles sighed and said "Dang, this is hard. I never knew friendship could be this complicated or difficult to figure out. I guess I still have a lot to learn about friendship."

Twilight smiled some more and said "Hey, I've been there. Learning friendship for the first time isn't easy and relearning it isn't any easier either. For you, it's been a long time since you learned about it and the last time you had it, it betrayed you and put it in a bad light. So I understand. But with time, you will get better. I promise. Now, come along. We must learn our next lesson."

Twilight walked away and Knuckles just sighed. He watched Twilight leaving and he seemed to notice she was looking a little bit prettier than he normally saw her. He hit his head in realization and called himself stupid. He could not be falling for the Princess of Friendship. He had treated her and her friends so terribly for so many years and now he's gained them as friends. He couldn't lose that. He couldn't afford to lose it again. His mind was playing dirty tricks with him. Now's not the time to be crushing over pony princesses. He had friendship lessons to learn. He shook his head and followed Twilight to catch up to her.

When he finally caught up, he noticed that Rainbow was snoozing on a cloud and he had an idea. He jumped up into the air as high as he could and he slapped her across the face just to see her reaction. She suddenly woke up and Knuckles went back down. Rainbow looked around and saw him and Twilight down below. She asked "Twilight, who decided to hit me?! That's not very funny."

Before Twilight could say anything, Knuckles said with sarcasm in his voice "That would be me, ma'am. I really hope that wasn't a problem. I thought you needed a good wake up call after sleeping for about 5 hours."

Rainbow wasn't amused with the sarcasm and said "You know, it's not very nice to hit other ponies when they are sleeping."

Knuckles retorted "It's also not very nice to follow people home, threaten them with fights, or spy on them during their personal private time."

Rainbow wanted to say something, but after a few seconds, she came up with nothing, so she kept her mouth shut.

Knuckles sighed a bit and said "But, like all humans or in this case, ponies do, we make mistakes. They might have been really dumb and stupid mistakes, but they're mistakes regardless. I do know that you regret doing that and you don't have to admit it out loud. I already know. You're not a terrible pony, you just need work like the rest of us."

Rainbow was stunned by the sudden kindness shown by Knuckles and she said "Wow. I did not expect that from you. I literally thought that you would rip me to shreds for having a massive ego, yet you show me kindness. Why?"

Knuckles said "In my tribe, one of the core principles taught about life is humility. You discipline others when it's necessary, but you still treat them with respect because those who have no respect in the heart has no honor. Anytime you interact with others, you don't insult them or degrade them in a demeaning manner. I unfortunately broke that rule, but in the tribe, when a man admits his mistakes, he has more honor than cowards who hide it away in their hearts. You always be kind to others even if they don't do the same. I think that's something we can all learn in life."

Rainbow was blown away even more and said "Dang. Your tribe has strong moral values and you're right. I didn't always give you kindness and doing that made you return the fire. I want to sincerely apologize for that and I should have given you the benefit of the doubt."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "It's fine, Rainbow. Don't focus on the past. In the tribe, it was taught that if you focus too much on the past, you will never be able to move on in the future. You'll never forget what you did in the past, but you must not let it hold you back. Those who let the past influence their decisions is a man with no honor. Come, let us continue our journey." He walked away and Rainbow didn't know what to say.

She looked at Twilight and said "This dude is truly something else. I literally thought he would yell at me for how cruel I was to him, yet he seemed to forgive me no problem."

Twilight smiled and said "Yeah, it is incredible seeing that. I was about to scold him for retorting the mistakes you made and slapping you across the face, but then he pulled a Fluttershy on us. His tribe has very strong values and even though he might not follow it all the time, he always remembers them when it matters most. He says that he's struggling with friendship, but considering how much he has cited his tribe's values, it makes me think otherwise. I believe he is learning friendship very well and I think he'll turn out fine. He might have to fix some things, but he's got the main ideas down."

Knuckles and Twilight were walking through the rural areas of Ponyville and Knuckles noticed Sweet Apple Acres in the distance. He also saw that Applejack was working in the fields bucking apples. He said "I think I might have another idea."

Twilight gave him a deadpan stare and asked sarcastically "Does it include slapping more ponies?"

Knuckles returned the sarcastic look and said "Oh sure, of course I would do that. I clearly did not learn my lesson from the last time. I just love to go around smacking the living s[BLEEP] out of ponies. Yeah, no s[BLEEP] of course I would not do that. Do you seriously believe that I would do that again? I only did it with Rainbow because I wanted to get a reaction out of her. I'm not gonna do it to anyone else unless they provoke me bad enough. What do you actually take me for? Come, we must not keep our journey waiting." Knuckles continued walking and Twilight did not know what to say. She just shook her head and followed right behind.

Knuckles decided to basically do island hopping between the trees in a similar way Earl got past people to reach Flint Lockwood in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. If you have watched that movie, then you know what I'm talking about, if you don't, oh well. Just go watch it and then come back here when you are done. Anyway, he hid in one of the trees and waited for Applejack to come over. Applejack walked over to the tree he was in and bucked it which caused some apples to fall and Knuckles himself.

That completely threw off Applejack and she said "What in tarnation?! Why the hay were you in a tree?"

Knuckles said "My apologies. I was sleeping there for the night and I slept in a little too long. I must say though that you do have incredible strength when bucking these trees. That's good. Hard work is part of all that. It's all about strength, courage, humility, respect, and honor. A man who does not work is a man with no honor and he does not eat. That was a core principle in my tribe. Also, a man is stronger when he uses teamwork, not when he works alone."

Applejack picked up on the sentiment and said "Can ya even buck a tree to make apples fall?"

Knuckles gave her a deadpan stare and knocked the tree behind him with a backwards punch which caused all the apples to fall easily. He said "Does a bear poop in the woods?"

Applejack was astonished by that and said "Well then, I guess ya got some work ahead of ya."

Knuckles grinned and said "I like that. Hard work makes a man stronger and teaches him respect and honor. If he does not work hard, he has no honor. Come, let us begin our task." The two of them went through the different rows of trees and with his help, they were able to get by much faster than normal. After they were done, he said "After a man does hard work, he rests. Come, let us take a rest." All of them did so and after a little bit, both Applejack and Twilight smelled something from the kitchen.

They went to take a look and saw that Knuckles was currently in the kitchen making apple pie and doing taste testing to make sure it wasn't a piece of crap. The smell was so strong that it even brought Granny Smith down from upstairs. She asked "Who the hay is cookin' in that kitchen?"

Knuckles smiled and said "Good morning, Granny Smith. How are you doing this morning?"

Granny returned the smile and said "Ahm doing alright sonny. Ya have more manners than Applejack here sometimes." Applejack did not find that very funny and gave her grandmother a glare.

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "It's part of my tribe's philosophy. A man who does not respect his elders has no honor. When a man disrespects his elders, he disrespects his tribe and has no honor. A man must always respect their elders no matter how crazy or terrible they are. A man has no respect in his heart, he has no honor."

Granny was impressed by Knuckles' words and said "Very wise words, sonny. Yer tribe has very strong values and they know how to function in society. Ah wish there were more like ya."

Knuckles smiled and said "Thank you, Granny Smith. I appreciate your kindness. May peace be with you." Granny Smith nodded and left the room. After a little bit, Knuckles finished what he was doing and said "Ah, there we go. Ladies, I present to you the great Echidna apple pie." They were hesitant at first and weren't sure what to do, but Knuckles encouraged them to do so. He said "Go on. I promise. It doesn't have poison in it. I'm not that cruel."

Both Applejack and Twilight went to try some of this apple pie and after a few seconds, they were blown away with how amazing it tasted. They've had apple pie before, but nothing on this level. Applejack said "Ah've made apple pies plenty of times in mah life, but never once, did Ah ever have somethin' this good."

Twilight added "Yeah, I agree with Applejack. How did you make it so great?"

Knuckles pulled out something from his shirt pocket and said "My special spice that I use for any dessert item. Never leave home without it. This was invented from my ancestors thousands of years ago and they have used it for all kinds of stuff. What makes this special is not only does it make your cakes and pies taste better, but it can also be used as a defense weapon. It's like pepper spray, but slightly different. If there is ever a situation where our lives are threatened and we need a quick distraction, this will do the job. It will cause them to be temporarily blinded and one of the rules when it comes to fighting is if a man can't see, he can't fight. Of course, that was the third and final rule of the Quicksilver Method from Karate Kid III, but it's still true."

Both of them were left speechless and Applejack said "Ya gotta give me that recipe because that simply is too good not to have."

Knuckles said "Alright, but none of y'all better go tell the entire country. Otherwise, it won't be special anymore. We can't expose everything that is part of my tribe."

Applejack nodded and said "Ah understand. Ah won't tell anyone about it."

Knuckles said "Good. You can feast on the rest of that pie if you want. Have some of your folks try it as well. I think they'll love it. Now come, let us continue our journey." He walked right out the door and closed it.

Applejack looked at Twilight and said "How have Ah never seen this side of him before?"

Twilight shrugged and said "I don't know. We're all still trying to learn his personality and when you think you have one thing down, he throws another at you. It's incredible and I have no way to perfectly describe it, but this is good. He's showing progress and I think he's on the right track right now in adjusting back to a normal society after being isolated in his mansion in Baltimare for eight years. I'll see ya later, Applejack."

Twilight caught up to Knuckles and she said "I had no idea that you could cook anything at all! I've had my fair shares of Apple Pie, but never something on that level."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "I can cook a variety of different things, but I just choose not to most of the time because I am lazy which I really do need to get out of that habit. Anyway, like I said before Twilight, I am many different things. Things that are far beyond your own understanding. There's a lot to my personality. You may think you know my personality, but what you know is only scratching the surface."

Twilight said "I figured as much. Anyway, what's with that idea you had? Sneaking up inside a tree and lying to Applejack about why you were up there? That brings me to my second friendship lesson to you: When you talk to anypony, you always tell them the truth no matter what the consequences are."

Knuckles said "Ah, that. Yes. That was another core principle of my tribe. If a man bears false witness, he has no honor and is a coward. That one I believe they stole out of the Bible or something, but they added their own touches to it. I must apologize. I should have not lied to madam Applejack. That was wrong of me to do. I'm sure you've heard about the term sarcasm, but that does not excuse my actions."

Twilight smiled and said "It's alright. You're making good progress right now. You may think that you are not doing so great at friendship, but you seem to be moving along just fine. I have absolutely no worries. Also, it seems like your tribe's values have a lot in common with friendship."

Knuckles thought about it for a second and then said "You're right, they are. But we did not create them to make friends with the world. It was to build character, honor, and dignity. We wanted respect from the world, not simple friendships. I know that seems ridiculous, but considering we had to protect the Ultimate Power from evil, we couldn't take any risks. If they found out what it was, our entire race would have been in great danger, so respect from the world was key."

Twilight sighed and said "I guess that makes sense. I guess I didn't think that not everything could be solved with friendship."

Knuckles said "Well, you should know that. After I faked my death, you probably questioned and doubted friendship to no ends. You are right though. We would always try to be friendly with other people, but we would only show hostility if they did so first. Mankind is inherently evil and they will do anything to grab onto a power like the Ultimate Power. So, you always had to watch your back. We constantly had targets on our backs, so whenever the enemy struck, we would strike right back and defeat them with honor. We swore to protect the Ultimate Power with our lives and we were willing to die for it if it meant keeping it safe. Now come, let's cease of this talk and continue our journey."

The two of them walked back into town and as they were walking by, somepony was walking out of Carousel Boutique and Rarity called out to the two of them. They walked over and Rarity said "Hello Darlings, is there a reason you are strolling through town?"

Knuckles said in a serious tone "Do I need to give you one?" Rarity didn't know how to respond to that and started stuttering a little bit. After a few seconds, Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "I'm just joking, madam Rarity. We were just out and happened to walk by through here."

Rarity said "My, someone has quite the manners. I never thought you had that in you."

Knuckles said "Ai. A man who disrespects ladies has no honor. Ladies are very valuable to our society, so a man must treat them with respect. A man who does not has no honor in his heart and is a coward."

Rarity was even more impressed and said "You are quite the gentleman. I do have something I need your help with, so please do come in."

Knuckles followed her in and Twilight was right behind. Knuckles said "So what is it that you need my help with, madam Rarity?"

Rarity said "No need for the formalities, darling. Rarity is just fine."

Knuckles nodded and said "Ah, my apologies. I will respect your wishes. No man should ever make a lady uncomfortable."

Rarity whispered to Twilight that Knuckles has such well manners and Twilight felt like maybe Knuckles was going over the top just to look good in front of her friends and to impress her, but this was the first time in a while he took friendship seriously, so maybe she should cut him some slack.

Rarity said "Alright darling, what I need you to do is to stand still so that I can take some measurements from you. I have an inspirational idea and I need to make sure if it will work or not."

Knuckles nodded and said "Of course. As long as you don't touch my body parts, we'll be good." Now that was more like the Knuckles Twilight knew. Something about him just felt off.

Rarity said "I promise I won't. I know that it would be considered sensitive." Knuckles stood in place and did as Rarity told him to do. After a little bit, she said "Okay darling, I'm done. I just need a few days and I'll send you something in the mail. I want you to be the first one to try it out."

Knuckles looked surprised and said "Oh my. No, I have plenty of clothes back at my house. I don't really need any more."

Rarity would not take no for an answer and said "No, I insist, darling. This is my gift to you as a way to say thank you for saving all of our lives against Tirek three years ago. First one is on me. It's part of my policy."

Knuckles said "Well thanks. I appreciate you doing that for me, but really, saving all of your lives was the least I could do after how horribly I treated you all for so many years. I won't try to fight receiving a gift. A man who refuses a gift has no honor and is a coward. Now come Twilight, let us continue our journey." Twilight thanked Rarity for the generosity and the two said goodbye to each other.

Twilight said "That was performed quite well by you. You seemed to get the idea of manners down which leads me to my third lesson about friendship to you. Always be generous towards others even if they don't return it in kind."

Knuckles nodded and said "That's a good one. It was said in my tribe that if a man did not show generosity towards others and refused gifts, he had no honor in his heart. I'll say that generosity is a difficult trait to have. The world is always going to be hateful towards you and even if you don't return the retaliation, they'll still hate you for it. I've had my fair share of it back home in Baltimore."

Twilight knew what he was talking about and said "It probably had to do with Maddi."

Knuckles nodded and said "Ai. She would always have a generous spirit towards others, but unfortunately, most did not take too kindly to that and abused it like crazy. However, that never deterred her and she continued to show it despite all the pushback she got. I just wished that more people would have appreciated that because that is a rare character trait in the world I live in these days."

Twilight nodded and asked "You still miss her, don't you?"

Knuckles looked at her with seriousness and said "Is that even a question? My whole world changed because of her death. As much as I hate to admit it, nothing I do could ever bring her back. I still miss her greatly and I know that she does not want me to sulk because of it, but I don't think it's something I will ever get over because of how terrible the pain was."

Twilight thought about what he said for a few moments and then got an idea. She said "Come follow me. I have an idea that might help you." She began walking away and Knuckles raised a brow. What could she possibly do to help him out with this? Sure, she watched the memory of Maddi's death, but that was only one moment of her life. There is no possible way that she could ever feel the pain on the same level he has. It's just not possible.

Wait a minute. Why was he even talking about this to Twilight in the first place? This was a very sore subject for him and he was just openingly sharing it with her. Has he gotten soft for her? There was no way he could be falling for THE Princess Twilight Sparkle. She was a princess while he was a commoner and that would dishonor Maddi's legacy. Because she had died, he would never be with anyone else. He would remain single for the rest of his natural life. He will weaken over time as he gets older, but at least when he ACTUALLY dies, he'll reunite with Maddi once again.

He shook his head and continued moving forward. He caught up with Twilight and noticed that they were both standing in front of Sugarcube Corner. Knuckles looked at her and asked "Why are we here? What this place could possibly offer me? It seems like a waste of my time."

Twilight didn't respond and instead stayed silent. After a few seconds, Pinkie stuck her head out of the window and said "Hi Knuckles! What brings you over here?"

Knuckles said with a serious look on his face "I'm still trying to figure that out, but it's clear to me that I have no choice to the matter, so I better roll with it."

Pinkie said "Well, don't be so downcast about it. It just ruins the mood."

Knuckles said "You know, you sound just like Maddi. I'm not gonna lie."

Pinkie raised a brow and asked "Really? How so?"

Knuckles smiled a bit at the memory and said "No matter where we went, she always had a cheerful spirit and you couldn't stay down in the dumps for long. However, like with her generosity, people didn't appreciate it the way they should have. Some mocked her, others spat back in her face, and some just ignored her as if she didn't exist. But she never let those people stop her from looking on the bright side of things. She was a light to say the least in the midst of a very dark and cruel world in the city of Baltimore and elsewhere. She had a lot in common with you when it come to energetic and bright personalities."

Pinkie said "That's amazing! It's a shame I never got to meet her, but if I did, we would be the best of friends. I'm sure that even though she's gone, things will turn out alright."

Knuckles felt touched by that and said "You would be correct. I know that if she were still here, the two of you would bond together like peanut butter and jelly. Another things I just remembered is if a man is downtrodden, he has no honor, but if he is joyful, he has great honor. I appreciate the support Pinkie. I'll catch you around. Come Twilight, let us continue our journey."

Twilight thanked Pinkie for her help and Pinkie said it was no problem. She caught up to Knuckles and said "See? Wasn't that effective?"

Knuckles stared at her with confusion and said "I do not understand the purpose of that was."

Twilight sighed and said "This brings me to my fourth lesson about friendship to you: If you let others into your life who are there for you, you will never be alone. We are here for you. I know that we may not fully understand the pain you had on the same level as you, but we are still there for you."

Knuckles gave her a glare and said "You weren't there for me before, so what makes you think you would be there for me now? You all seemed interested in me after I faked my death, so why would anyone care now? For so many years, nobody gave a s[BLEEP] about me except for my grandparents, David, and Maddi and I no longer have them in my life."

Twilight said "Don't talk like that! I'll admit that most of us did not do the best job for a long time, but we're trying our best to make up now, so cut us some slack, will you?"

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "Sure, Twilight. Even if most of your friends are trying now, it still doesn't change the fact I was treated so horribly for so long. None of your friends knew anything about the amount of s[BLEEP] I've had to deal with over the years and the second I faked my death, now they suddenly care after the constant slander I received for many months on end. I had to put up with so much and they didn't need to add on top of that. Not everything can be forgotten overnight. Maybe you should learn that." He put on his sunglasses and walked away.

Twilight was left standing there speechless and trying to take in what Knuckles had just said. It now seemed like this entire time, he had put on an entire facade and now, he was back to his old self like it was nothing. The very nerve! But then again, he had to put up with a lot over the years. He was right. None of them could ever understand the amount of pain he went through over the years and this sudden change of behavior seems strange to him because he's so used to everyone treating him like crap. Her friends certainly didn't help his case, but he didn't have to act so rude behind their backs. He just needs a little more time to see that they are all trying to make an effort to act better towards him.

Knuckles was busy walking down the trails and noticed the nature around him. Even though the world around him had a deep hatred for him and his tribe with a passion, he could always seek solace in nature. It was quiet and most of the creatures that passed through weren't as annoying as mankind was. He noticed some sort of cottage tucked in the corner and went over to discover it.

As he walked over, he noticed more woodland creatures and it brought him a sense of peace. He stopped in front of the chicken coop and watched Fluttershy feed the chickens. Fluttershy walked towards that direction and shrieked a bit when she saw him. But then she noticed it was just him and said "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know it was you."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "It's alright. I was just watching the brilliance of nature and happened to find this place out here."

Fluttershy got curious and asked "You like nature as well?"

Knuckles nodded and said "Sure I do. It brings a calming peace to the dark and cruel world that we live in and have to deal with everyday. Anytime throughout my life where I had a bad day, I would go out into nature to get away from all the pain and suffering I was dealing with and it helped me get through life. There was this one place that I really liked going to whenever I could and it was probably the best place that you could go. My grandparents place was something else and anytime you stepped into the backyard, you could see all the sorts of different animals out yonder in the fields and topped off with the beautiful flowers and trees, it was truly a sight to behold."

Fluttershy smiled and said "It sounds so beautiful. I wish I was there to see it."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "You would have definitely loved it. I was able to bring Maddi to the place and she was absolutely head over heels for it. We also might have gotten into some romantic mischief while we were there, but it was all in good fun. After I lost her though, it just wasn't quite the same. It was... *chokes up a little bit* hard to deal with."

Fluttershy could sense where this was going and asked "You still miss her, don't you?" Knuckles just nodded and began to cry a bit. Fluttershy just gave him a hug and stayed there for emotional support which only made him cry harder. Twilight was watching from afar and she couldn't believe that Fluttershy got him to crack so easily. She had asked the same question as Twilight did, yet got a different reaction out of him.

After a few minutes, Knuckles wiped the tears away and said "Thank you, I needed that."

Fluttershy said "It's the least I can do. I know when someone is suffering and the best thing that I can give them is kindness towards them."

Knuckles nodded and said "I agree. A man who hides his problems has no honor, but a man who shows emotion has great honor. That was always the way of the Echidna Tribe. It was great talking to you. I'll see you around." Knuckles put back on his sunglasses and walked away.

Twilight ran up to Fluttershy and asked "How in Celestia's name did you do that?"

Fluttershy was confused and asked "Do what exactly?"

Twilight said "I asked if he still missed Maddi and I got an annoyed retort in return, yet when you did it, that got him to cry. How is that possible?!"

Fluttershy shrugged and said "I don't know. Sometimes, even the toughest of creatures have a soft spot and that happened to be it. I showed him nothing but kindness and he seemed to take that very well. It wasn't the same case with you it seems."

Twilight became frustrated and said "I don't get it! He is so complicated! One moment, he treats you like your best friend, and then the next, he treats you like your worst enemy. It doesn't make sense! I tried to be nice to him about that subject, but he still was very sore towards me."

Fluttershy said "Sometimes, it's not about what we say, but how we say it. Maybe he felt more comfortable talking about it with me because of my very calm demeanor, but he didn't feel the same around you. You and I know very well that he has suffered so much pain over the years and he's just now learning how to live in a normal society. He's going to mess up from time to time, but that doesn't mean that he is still a terrible individual. He's used to others treating him horribly, so when others act nice around him, it throws him off guard because all he has ever known is anger. So, give him some time and he'll get better."

Twilight sighed and said "Thanks Fluttershy. I guess I got frustrated without considering his feelings. All of us have grown up with normal lives, but Knuckles' has been anything but normal. The amount of anger and hate that he's dealt with over the years has ruined his life and his brain has been taught to respond with anger because that's all he's ever known. So maybe, I shouldn't be as hard on him sometimes."

Fluttershy smiled and said "That's what friends are for. None of us are perfect, but sometimes, a little kindness can go a long way." Twilight thanked her again and left quickly.

She caught up to Knuckles and said "Knuckles, I want to apologize for acting like that earlier. I got upset without taking your feelings into consideration and with that, I am deeply sorry."

Knuckles sighed and said "It's fine, Twilight. It's really me that should be apologizing. I got short tempered and I shouldn't have acted like that. I'm so used to responding with anger over the years that any other emotion is basically a foreign concept to me. But now that's in the past thanks to the help of Fluttershy."

Twilight smiled and said "That brings me to my fifth and final friendship lesson to you for the day: The smallest act of kindness can make the biggest difference in someone's life. It even change somepony's day."

Knuckles nodded and said "Yes, it is said that if a man shows no kindness, then he has no honor and is a coward. I would say that kindness is probably the hardest character trait to have out of all of them. In a world that despises you and shouts words of hate and slander at you, it's really easy to fire that right back at them. But when you show them kindness, it kills the fire of hatred and it silences the anger. I wasn't always the greatest at that, but Maddi would always do that towards others despite the negative reactions she got out of people."

Twilight agreed and knew that he was trying to get to a certain point on something, so she just waited for him to finish.

Knuckles sighed and said "I know that you guys are trying your best and it means something that you are putting in an effort, but it will still take me some time for me to fully welcome it. For so many years, I've had to deal with the anger and hatred from mankind and now when you all started to treat me nicely, it left me confused and I didn't know how to act. Honestly, I should be more like my tribe because I have seemed to throw out a lot of the rules that were established so long ago."

Twilight looked at him and said "It's not your fault, Knuckles. You grew up in a very abusive household and had your only support system ripped away from you just before you were about to marry her. Nopony would blame you for that. Anypony would have been that way if they were the same situation as you. I see you try your best when it comes to following your tribe's rules, but it was your parents who screwed you up, not yourself. Remember that."

Knuckles smiled a bit and said "I will. Now, I must return home to Baltimare before it gets too late because I have a long road trip ahead. Thank you for the lesson and I plan to see you back here in a few days. Take care." Twilight said goodbye to him and Knuckles walked away. He went back to Blackbird and hopped inside. He started it up again and put his seatbelt on. He put back on his sunglasses and turned on the music to the local rock station. He pressed the throttle lever forward and he flew off straight back to Baltimare.

Twilight watched him leave and waved goodbye. It wasn't the best day ever, but he had made a lot of progress since she first met him. She had some time left to go, but she was on the right track. She turned around and walked away. Meanwhile, Knuckles was enjoying the nice breeze of the wind flowing through his hair and the rock music playing so good in the background. He had that premium sound system too, so it added for extra effect.

He eventually returned to Baltimare and flew past all the skyscrapers. There was still plenty of daylight out, but the environment felt slightly different since most ponies down below were wrapping up work and heading home. Knuckles flew under the big bridge and made it to his house. The computer asked him for the password and he said "Criminals suck!" The computer thanked him and the buoys sprayed out white smoke to cover up the aerial vehicle from prying eyes. The island door opened up and Knuckles flew right through the caverns. The garage was fast approaching as he was flying through the tunnel, so he pressed the garage door opener button and he flew right through. The door closed and he came to a complete stop.

He turned off the vehicle and hopped out. He sighed and said "Ah. Good to be home. Nothing is quite like it. I think I'll go watch a movie and eat some snacks while watching it." He headed up to the kitchen to grab some snacks and went over to the movie theater room to watch a movie. Weeks passed by and Knuckles was making more progress, however, it was getting tougher not to notice Twilight's natural beauty and Knuckles wasn't sure how to feel.

One day, he was hanging on a tree branch and watching Twilight have lunch with her friends outside. He sighed and said "She really is something else."

His reflection gave out a noise of disgust and said "Are you seriously going soft boy?"

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "What is it you want?"

The reflection gave him a sneer and said "I specifically told you before that you were not supposed to fall for pathetic pony princesses and yet, here you are, in lala land fawning over a book nerd who just so happens to be a princess by some miracle."

Knuckles didn't like how his reflection was talking and said "Hey! Don't talk about her like that!"

The reflection didn't care and said "You see? You're still defending her. Our tribe was the greatest on Earth and people feared us, and you want to throw it all away for some pony princess?! Pathetic. What would your ancestors even think? They would call you a disgrace to the tribe. We are not to show weakness and being in romantic land shows weakness. Do you seriously want to be a pu[BLEEP] or have balls? Because you can't be both."

Knuckles growled with anger and said "I do have balls, thank you very much. I'm not some stupid transgender person who doesn't have a clue who their gender is. You said the same thing about Maddi and I was perfectly fine, so how is this any different?" (AN: This is NOT trying to be hateful towards any LGBTQ+ person and I apologize if you're offended by that. It's part of Knuckles' personality. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!)

The reflection rolled its eyes and said "Did you honestly forget that Maddi died, boi? Do you seriously think that the same couldn't happen to Twilight? If so, you are truly more foolish than our parents were. Our tribe was built on respect and honor and doing s[BLEEP] like this is not going to help things. We had the Master Diamond in our grasp and then you decided to give it up just so you could save a bunch of motherf[BLEEP] bi[BLEEP] who don't appreciate a da[BLEEP] thing we as a tribe ever did!"

Knuckles gave the reflection a hard glare and said "You aren't exactly helping things either. I know very well that they don't know the pain I went through over the last three decades, believe me, I know, but they are at least trying to put in an effort to make up for how poorly they treated me."

The reflection simply laughed at him and said "You really are that ignorant, are you boi? How can you say that these bi[BLEEP] are even trying to make it up to us?! They treated us like f[BLEEP]ing s[BLEEP] and you seriously want to give them another chance as if that never happened?! You truly are a weakling and a coward. You are simply a disgrace to the tribe. I can't even believe you're still part of it."

Knuckles was getting fed up with this and asked with anger "Why are you even here?! All you're doing is talking s[BLEEP] about me and completely s[BLEEP]ing on Twilight and her friends! And somehow, me defending them is somehow "dishonorable" to the tribe. I'm not really seeing the picture here. I am aware I must not show weakness, but in case you forgot, our tribe established that if a man bears false witness, he has no honor and is a coward. I don't care what you say, but I will have more honor than you ever will."

The reflection laughed some more and said "Oh, you are in for a rude awakening, boi. Let me ask you this: How exactly are you going to tell you that you like her if you truly did? We are a simple commoner while she is a princess. If this nation found out you were dating a princess of Equestria, you would be on the front page of every newspaper out there. We don't like bringing unnecessary attention to ourselves, so anything you do is a lose-lose situation. Plus, you being with her would dishonor Maddi! She was our world, our rock and you want to replace her with a princess of Equestria?! How disgraceful."

Knuckles glared at him and said "I'm not replacing Maddi! She could never be replaced! But Twilight is so desperately trying to be a good friend. She is a lot like Maddi in many ways. She will never be Maddi, but she does share character traits with Maddi. She was the only one out of the entire group to give me the benefit of the doubt when the others didn't and no one has done that to me since Maddi had died and it's not like you could give me good dating advice anyway."

The reflection rolled its eyes and said "I am your conscience, so you would only be telling yourself dating advice. You just so happened to get Maddi because you stumbled around like a f[BLEEP]ing moron and she just happened to have a gracious personality and accept you as you were despite you being a f[BLEEP]ing disaster."

Knuckles had enough and said "Enough! I'm done talking to you. If all you're going to do is s[BLEEP] on the group of friends I have down there and tell me how much of a piece of s[BLEEP] I am, then you can just leave me alone because I don't want to hear it."

The reflection didn't really care and said "If you want to play stupid with yourself and defend a bunch of b[BLEEP], then be my f[BLEEP]ing guest. But don't come complaining to me when the s[BLEEP] hits the fan." Knuckles did not care and the reflection left him be. He simply huffed in anger and looked back down at the group of friends sitting at the table.

"You like her, don't you?" A new voice asked. Knuckles turned his head to see who it was and he saw Discord floating in the air next to him mimicking the same position he was in. Knuckles was not amused to say the least.

He glared at him and said "What is it you want, Draconequus?"

Discord said "Oh, you know, I was just checking in on my local human friend here to see how he was and what he was doing."

Knuckles gritted his teeth and said "We are NOT friends! I hardly even know you and considering your historical record, I don't find you very favorable. I don't exactly hang out with criminals, you know. That's not how I roll."

Discord laughed it off and said "Oh, come on. Surely, you would be more evolved after all the exploits you have had over the years."

Knuckles was having none of it and said "Cut the s[BLEEP], Discord! Why are you here and what is it you want? Answer the question NOW or else I'll make you answer it!"

Discord sighed and said "So angry. Anyway, I just happened to notice that you seemed to be staring at miss princess over there for excessive periods of time."

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "Why do you care? What's in it for you? It's not like you could do anything about it."

Discord scratched his goatee and said "I may not, but I think a certain pink princess in the Crystal Empire might be able to figure out your romantic issue."

Knuckles thought about it for a second and then said "Hmm. Princess Cadence. Yes. I'll think about it. Thanks, Discord." Discord nodded and then disappeared. That creature can be so annoying sometimes, but he can provide good insight from time to time. If what he's saying is true, then maybe Princess Cadence might be able to help him out. It looks like he'll have to take a trip to the Crystal Empire.

The next day, he got up and headed over to the Crystal Empire in Blackbird. It would normally take six hours to get there by train, but with his vehicle, it only took him about two hours, which cut about a third of the time it typically takes. He landed his vehicle in an undisclosed location that no one would find it and he began walking into the city. A lot of the Crystal Ponies were confused to see a very muscular supernatural human being with a leather jacket and shades on, but they were all too scared to do anything about it.

Knuckles didn't mind one bit and he kept on walking in peace. He finally made it to the castle, but the guard Flash Sentry attempted to say "In the name of Princess Cadence, I command you to stop-" However, Knuckles was having none of it and he yeeted Flash away where he could no longer be seen and was miles away. The rest of the guards standing there were completely shell shocked and they pointed spears at him.

Knuckles simply rolled his eyes and punched the objects right out. He then picked one of them up and rolled the rest of them down like a bunch of bowling pins. Knuckles simply laughed a bit and walked inside the castle. Guards tried to keep stopping him, but he kept tossing them away like pieces of trash that had to get taken out. The guards inside the throne room tried to warn Cadence and Shining Armor, but they got yeeted right out the window as soon as Knuckles opened the door.

He took off his sunglasses and said "Princess Cadence, I have come in peace from the great city of Baltimare and wish to have a formal audience with you. I come under the name of Knuckles and I apologize if my entrance was a little dramatic."

Both of them were still shocked by his entrance and had their jaws dropped, but then Shining's expression turned to anger and he said "What is it you want with my wife?!"

Knuckles turned to him with a glare and said "It's none of your d[BLEEP] business, s[BLEEP]head."

Shining became highly offended by that and asked with anger "What did you just call me?!"

Knuckles did not care in the slightest and said "You heard me. All I came here for was just a simple conversation and here you are whining like a little b[BLEEP] and thinking I'm going to steal your f[BLEEP]ing wife from you. I have standards you know. I'm not in the Echidna tribe for no reason. Now, are you going to let me talk to your wife here or are you going to continue acting like a di[BLEEP]?" Shining said nothing, so Knuckles took that as a sign to continue. He said "That's what I thought. Now, Princess Cadence, can I please speak with you on a private manner that I would rather not discuss here?"

Shining became angry again and said "What are you going to talk about?!"

Knuckles sighed with anger and said "What did I just say, you white trash piece of s[BLEEP]?! It's none of your motherf[BLEEP]ing business! Don't worry about it! I'm not going to steal your wife from you, you f[BLEEP]ing moron. I promise. Now stop acting like a little bi[BLEEP] and act like a man with balls. Good grief."

Cadence knew that this was going to turn ugly real quick, so she said "Follow me Knuckles. I have a spot in mind. I'll be back, honey."

Shining smiled at his wife and said "Alright dear, be safe." Cadence said that she would and she headed out the door. Knuckles glared at Shining one more time and did the motion "I've got my eye on you. I'm watching you." Shining tried to run over and hit him, but Knuckles simply punched him in the stomach and Shining fell to the floor. Knuckles simply grunted and slammed the door.

Knuckles made it to some sort of study room and Cadence shut the door. She turned to him and asked "Alright, so why did you come all this way from Baltimare, Knuckles?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Okay, so I have this friend who likes another friend of mine and he asked me to go ask you if you can give him any advice."

Cadence could easily tell that was a lie and she knew he was really talking about himself, but she decided to entertain the thought and said "Okay... Tell me what she likes."

Knuckles said "Well, from what my friend told me, she definitely loves to read books, seems to be very knowledgeable in a lot of subjects, and has a very nice personality."

Cadence said "Okay. Well, I'm sure you could tell how much you appreciate her for that."

Knuckles said "Yeah, I could totally- wait a minute. What?"

Cadence said "Knuckles, I know this trick all too well. It's part of being the Princess of Love. Many Ponies or in this case, humans, want to cast the spotlight away from them and ask romantic questions for friends that don't exist when they are really talking about themselves. That is the oldest trick in the playbook."

Knuckles sighed and said "Alright, you caught me, but this isn't exactly something that I want to tell everyone about. It's a very sensitive topic and it's not one I like to talk about."

Cadence nodded and said "I understand. So, who's the lucky pony?"

Knuckles raised a brow and said "Come again?"

Cadence said "Well, if you're coming to me for dating advice, I obviously got to know who the pony is so that I can tell you where to go."

Knuckles sighed again and said "I guess that's fair. I'm sure you would know exactly who this is because you have spent time with her and she's in the family."

Cadence spent a few moments thinking who it could possibly be and then she figured out who Knuckles was talking about. She gasped and said "Twilight? Have you fallen for Princess Twilight?" Knuckles darted his eyes around nervously to make sure no one was looking and then nodded. Cadence continued and said "Wow. I was not expecting that one. That's wonderful!"

Knuckles didn't share the same enthusiasm and said "Yeah, but I'm just a simple commoner while she is a princess of Equestria! If ponies found out I was with her, I would be on the cover of every newspaper out there. I hate the unnecessary attention and if that came along, it could seriously compromise my tribal secrets that I don't want revealed to the world. I don't want to put myself or her at risk like that. Also, I feel like that be dishonorable to Maddi. Twilight could never replace her and I already made a vow that I would remain single for the rest of my natural life after Maddi was gone."

Cadence said "I see. If you don't mind me asking, could you tell me about Maddi? She seemed like she was your first marefriend."

Knuckles said "Of course. She was my first girlfriend and I met her my freshman year of high school. Up to that point, I had a very rough upbringing and I was lucky just to get through the day. When my sophomore year rolled around, we started dating and it was probably some of the best times of my life. She was considered the most beautiful girl in school, but because of how weird she was, no one wanted anything to do with her. Well, except me of course, because I was an outcast at school as well. Long story short, we spent a lot of time with one another and just a few weeks after both of us got our master's degree, she was killed in a car accident. The guy who did it got let off the hook and eventually died after doing the same thing to someone else. It was hard and still is to deal with. She was considered my world, my rock, and to have that ripped away from me felt like half of my heart just disappeared. I never even got the chance to marry her, so it makes it sting even more. Even if I were to be with Twilight, I wouldn't want her to suffer the same fate that Maddi did. I couldn't handle it for a second time."

Cadence took all of that in and said "I see. I am very sorry to hear that your girlfriend had to suffer that fate. I had no idea that something like that could happen."

Knuckles sighed and said "You wouldn't be the first one to tell me that. It still is very tough to deal with and it will be something that I will probably never get over, but with time, I would be able to heal. I guess what I'm saying is I'm afraid to take that risk again after what happened to Maddi."

Cadence said "I understand. It's perfectly reasonable to feel that way and I'm glad that you care about her safety, but I must say that you don't have forever to make that decision. Twilight is a very beautiful pony and since she is a princess, she will be highly sought after by many stallions. You don't want to tell her when a stallion has already stolen her heart away or else you'll regret it for the rest of your life. So, tell her how you feel before it's too late. Also, it's not considered dishonorable to like somepony else after your first partner died tragically. Many ponies remarry after their spouse has died and they turned out just fine, so don't worry about dishonoring Maddi's legacy. She'll always be with you and I'm sure if she were here right now, she would tell you to go after Twilight."

Knuckles sighed again and said "I guess you're right. Thank you for your help, Princess Cadence. I'll take your advice into consideration and will think about it for a little bit before I make a final decision. It is greatly appreciated."

Cadence smiled and said "My pleasure. If you need anything else, come back at anytime because you are always welcome here." Knuckles thanked her again and walked out.

He was about to leave the castle when Shining spotted him and said "Where do you think you're going?!"

Knuckles glared at him and said "Where do you think, b[BLEEP]?! I'm leaving the castle. You got a problem with that?!"

Shining glared right back at him and said "Yeah, I do! We have unfinished business to settle."

Knuckles laughed at that remark and said "What "business" is there to finish? I already beat your a[BLEEP] and now you want a round two?! How lame. I'm already done with your wife, so you can take your a[BLEEP] out of here and leave me alone." Shining ran over to confront him, but Knuckles did the backwards punch on his chin and then punched him right into the wall, which left a giant crack in it. Knuckles simply grunted and said "Pitiful. I expected more out of you, but I see nothing more than some weak attempt at a prince who has no balls and gets his a[BLEEP] beat by total strangers." He put back on his sunglasses and walked out of the castle.

Cadence came back in the throne room and saw Shining still stuck on the wall. She asked if he was alright and he groaned in pain. He said "Remind me to never mess with that Knuckles dude ever again." Cadence could only shake her head and sigh. This pony still didn't get it. He will someday though.

Knuckles returned to Blackbird and headed back to Baltimare. What was the deal with ponies trying to start beef with him? Do these ponies seriously believe that anytime they come across anyone they don't recognize, they just automatically assume they're a threat? It was a good national security tactic, he'll give them that, but he's had to deal with this all of his life and he didn't need these ponies adding onto it.

Knuckles finally made it home and went upstairs to his office. He sat down in the chair and sighed. He saw the picture of Maddi on his desk and said "I really wish you were here right now to help me solve this. I don't know what to do and I don't want to put myself at risk again. I don't want to lose her the same way I lost you. What am I going to do? I need to come up with something and fast before it is too late." He sighed again and began working on his computer. If he was going to figure this out, he needed a solution so that he could solve this or else he was doomed. He could only hope that he found the right answer.

Author's Note

AN: I apologize for this chapter coming out so late again. I have just been so busy lately that I've hardly had time to write it, but it's out now. I'll try not to do this moving forward, but I can't make any guarantees. Regardless, we don't have too much left to go and things definitely got interesting to say the least. So stay tuned for the future chapters ahead. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The dates! After getting advice from Cadence in the Crystal Empire, Knuckles attempts to tell Twilight how he feels, but he gets too nervous and starts acting really weird. Twilight eventually picks up on this and asks him what is going on. He tris to hide it, but Twilight isn't playing around. Will he be able to tell the truth to Twilight, or will he keep it locked away?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 19: Something More Than Friendship

Knuckles woke up the next morning and stretched his arm muscles to start his day. He did all of his morning chores for the day and headed out to Ponyville in his aerial vehicle. After about an hour and a half, he landed in Ponyville and walked towards the castle. He had been doing this for several months now and he has made decent progress since he first started, but there were still some things that he had to work on. For one, he still definitely lacked in the social skills that were necessary. Sure, he could talk to others, but he would talk about the most random things ever and most wouldn't be able to understand what he was trying to say. You would have thought the guy was autistic or something.

The other thing is he's been acting quite strange around Twilight. Ponies have started to notice, but none of them wanted to say anything because they didn't want to get their tail beat. They figured that it was probably some sort of personal issue, so they stayed quiet and not get involved. Knuckles could tell that they all noticed, but he felt some sense of relief that they didn't say anything. However, it made him frustrated because he wanted to talk to someone about it, but he couldn't because of how embarrassing it sounded.

Even Twilight's friends could notice that something strange was happening with Knuckles, but they knew better to say anything because he would be set off by that. He would get incredibly offended and act with aggression towards them, which they had already witnessed the worst of it, so they did everything they could to avoid that again. Knuckles had no idea what he was supposed to do and thinking about it made him angrier by the minute.

This was one of those instances where he wished Maddi was here, but there was nothing he could do about it since nothing he did could ever bring her back no matter how hard he tried. Also, if she were alive, he wouldn't even be pursuing Twilight, but since she was dead, he guessed that it was different.

He walked through Ponyville and headed down to the Saddle River that was right outside of town. He sat down and thought about life. It definitely wasn't easy these days and he was only getting more frustrated with this issue about Twilight. Should he even tell her how he feels? Would she even feel the same way? Would she find him weird for telling her that? Would they even be friends anymore? How could he ever handle the attention he gotten?

All of these thoughts circulated through Knuckles' head and he didn't know how to properly deal with it. Twilight had come up behind him and asked "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

That had startled Knuckles and he was ready to attack, but when he saw it was just Twilight, he calmed down and lowered his fists. He sighed and said "Don't do that. I have no idea if you were an enemy or not, so you should better than to sneak up on me like that. I could accidentally take you out in two seconds without even realizing it."

Twilight said "My apologies, but I was curious to see why you were out here by yourself. Usually, you would at least stop by my castle before you spend any time alone here in Ponyville."

Knuckles said "Why does it matter? If I feel like I need some time to myself before we embark on friendship tasks, then it is fully within my right to do so. I only agreed to do this so that I wouldn't have to sit in federal prison for the next 40 years rotting away. So, forgive me if I need some time to collect my thoughts before we do anything."

Twilight said "It's fine to do so, but you shouldn't be doing this just so that you could stay out of prison and instead be doing it because you want to. Of course, I can't force that decision on you, but I would strongly encourage you to do so. I can only hope that you would listen to my advice because I believe it would help you in the long run."

Knuckles sighed and said "What is the friendship lesson we have to do today?" He got up and followed Twilight right behind him to see what the day had in store for him.

Some time had passed by and Knuckles was nowhere to be seen in Ponyville. The first few days, Twilight thought he must have gotten busy and couldn't make it, but that eventually turned into weeks and that got Twilight concerned. She wasn't going to jump to the conclusion that he was actively trying to hide from friendship lessons, but she did want to know what was going on.

She made the trip to Baltimare and went up to Knuckles' house. She knocked on the door and his butler Reginald had answered it. He greeted her and she said that she wanted to be taken to Knuckles. Reginald said he would do so and he led her up the stairs to where his Master was at.

Knuckles was busy working on the computer in his office and he was trying to get this project done before the end of the week. He heard a knock on the door and he said "Who is it?"

Reginald said "It is me, Master Caleb."

Knuckles thought it was okay for him to come in and he said "Come in." Reginald opened the door and Twilight followed right behind him. That confused Knuckles a bit and he asked his butler sarcastically "So what, now you're just going to let whoever in without my permission?! Good grief."

Reginald gave him a deadpan stare and said "I understand that you are my boss, Master Caleb, but I can make rational decisions on my own."

Knuckles was having none of it and said "I AM your Master, so I expect you don't disrespect me by talking back. Know that I was the one that gave you food, water, shelter, and a job when no one else did, so don't ever talk like that to me again. Now get out. I have business to finish."

Reginald sighed and said "Of course, Master Caleb." He walked out and shut the door.

Twilight couldn't believe what she was seeing and asked with anger "Why would you treat your Butler so horribly? He might be your employee, but you should still treat him with respect!"

Knuckles glared at her and said "Mind your own d[BLEEP] business! I expect nothing but respect from anyone who serves under me and those who dare to talk back to me like that have none, so as a result, they must be punished."

Twilight glared right back and said "That doesn't mean you don't treat him with respect! In case you forgot, respect is a two way street. If you want others to respect you, you have to respect them."

Knuckles had enough and said "I'm not having this conversation anymore. You clearly don't understand the way of the tribe and I'm not going to waste my time or breath arguing with a princess about it. Now, why are you even here?"

Twilight said "Well, to answer your very rude question, I noticed that you had been gone for a few weeks and I started to get worried about what was happening, so I came to investigate."

Knuckles said plainly "I've been busy with work." He then returned to his computer and continued to type.

Twilight said "You could have at least given me a heads up or something." Knuckles just said uh-huh and kept typing. Twilight was not appreciating the lack of attention Knuckles was giving her, so she closed his laptop and looked at him with a hard stare.

Knuckles let out a frustrated sigh and looked up at Twilight. He said "Can't you see I'm busy with work at the moment? What is it that you wanted me to do anyway? It's not like we have cell phones here in Equestria where we can send text messages to each other."

Twilight sighed and said "I want to know what is going on with you."

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "What exactly do you mean?"

Twilight said "You've been avoiding me for a few weeks, you have stayed very quiet, acted very strange around most ponies, and you're more irritated now than you were two months ago. So what's going on?"

Knuckles denied it and said "Nothing is going on. Everything is perfectly fine."

Twilight was not taking that for an answer and said "Everything is not fine! There is something going on with you and I want to know. You can't expect me to help you if you don't tell me what's going on. I can't read minds."

Knuckles gave her a hard stare and said "I know that. I'm not stupid."

Twilight said "Then why aren't you telling me what is going on?"

Knuckles denied it again and said "I told you already, nothing is going on."

Twilight was getting fed up and said "Stop lying to me! Just tell me what is going on! I don't understand why you keep hiding it!"

Knuckles had enough and shouted "I like you, okay?!"

That caused dead silence in the room and Twilight asked with confusion "What?"

Knuckles sighed and said "I said I liked you. Not just in a friendship sense, but also in a romantic way as well. I don't know how I feel this way, why I feel this way, or where this feeling came from. I shouldn't feel this way at all, but it's been tearing me up on the inside and I can't keep it in anymore."

Twilight didn't know what to say and she said with hope "Do you really mean that?"

Knuckles nodded nervously and he said "I do. If I was lying, I wouldn't tell you. But it's not like it would work anyway."

Twilight was confused by that and said "How come?"

Knuckles said "Well for one, I'm a simple commoner that has a sh[BLEEP]y life for my entire existence and you're a princess of Equestria. If ponies found out that I was together with a princess, I would be on the front page of every single newspaper publication out there. I couldn't handle all that attention. I don't really deserve you anyway. You have had everything good for most of your life while I had to scrape the bottom feeder in order to climb to the top where I am now."

Twilight looked at him with compassion and said "Knuckles, nothing should worry you. I never thought that you would even consider something like this, but fate seemed to have other ideas. It seemed like I would lose a friend just a few short months ago and now I have gained a potential partner. I am beyond words on what to say. on how much that means to me."

Knuckles sighed and said "But I feel like this would be dishonoring Maddi. I had vowed to stay single for the rest of my life after she died, but now, it all seemed to change. I just don't know if I can do that to her like that."

Twilight put her hoof on his left shoulder and said "Knuckles, ponies or in this case humans, get another partner after their previous one had passed away all the time. There's nothing to worry about all of that. I'm sure that Maddi would be just fine with it and you'll always carry on her legacy. She will always be with you wherever you go."

Knuckles said "Yeah, but would it even make any logical sense for me to be with you? It's like a demon chasing after an angel. I don't feel worthy of dating a princess after everything I had done to you and your friends."

Twilight smiled and said "I don't care what happened in your past. None of that matters to me. I am perfectly capable of choosing whoever I want to be with and you're the one I want to be with. I know I will probably never replace Maddi, but I will try my best to always be there for you and never leave or abandon you."

The room got quite silent and neither of them said a word, but they were inching closer to one another. They were in centimeters of each other's faces and the two eventually connected their lips together for a kiss. It wasn't the most passionate nor was it super light, but just one that showed that they cared about one another. They eventually broke away and the two were left speechless.

Knuckles cleared his throat and said "Just to be clear, this is a super private thing between you and me and NO ONE must find out at least for right now. That includes your friends as well. I know you so desperately want to tell your friends, but I'm worried that your pink friend would go tell all of Ponyville which would eventually to spread to all of Equestria. So if you can not tell them that for me, I would greatly appreciate it. Also, there will be no affection out in public. No kissing, no hugging, no pecks on the cheek, none of that. I don't want to be raising suspicion. It makes me uncomfortable and I don't want to have to deal with it right now. For dates, I would want it somewhere private like your castle or my house where no one could see us. Do you think you can do that for me?"

Twilight said "I can do that for you. I won't tell anypony. I'll even Pinkie Promise on it. Cross my heart, hope to fly and stick a cupcake in my eye. I'll do whatever it takes to make you comfortable."

Knuckles said "Thank you. Now, first date, my house on Saturday?"

Twilight smiled and said "Of course. I would love to do that."

Knuckles grinned and said "Great. Make sure you bring your best outfit. It might not be a fancy restaurant, but we can certainly dress like it!"

Twilight giggled and said "I'll make sure to wear my best outfit. See you Saturday?"

Knuckles said "I will see you Saturday." Twilight left the mansion and headed back home to Ponyville. Knuckles was still trying to take it all in and he was amazed that things turned so quickly. One moment, they were at each other's throat's and the other, they were talking about dates at his house. It was crazy how that worked. He was happy that he finally got it off his chest, but there was obviously still a lot to be done here. He could only hope that no one would ever find out about him being with Twilight or else he'll never have privacy again.

A few days passed and Saturday had come. Twilight had made it to Brody Island and she knocked on the door. Knuckles had opened it and he was wearing a full fledged suit. He noticed the dress Twilight had on and he was blown away. He said "Wow, you weren't kidding when you said you would bring your best outfit. Anyway, come out back to the backyard."

Twilight followed him to the backyard and she saw a table already set up outside right next to the football field and there were lights everywhere hanging down to create that "romantic" environment that most go for. Knuckles twiddled his thumbs and said "Do you like it?"

Twilight smiled and said "I think it's perfect. You did just fine on this."

Knuckles let out a sigh of relief and said "Alright, let's eat then." He pulled out the chair for Twilight and did the hand gesture for her to sit down. She sat down and he pushed in the chair for her. She thanked him for doing that and Knuckles said it was no problem. He sat down and scooted his chair in as well. The two began eating and talking about whatever, pretty much having casual conversation.

They talked about things that annoyed them in life, what they liked most in life, and what they found strange about it. It went on for about three hours and after finishing their dinner and dessert, they were definitely tired out from this. Twilight was curious about something and asked Knuckles "How were you able to afford everything that you have here? Surely, it must have cost a lot of bits."

Knuckles shrugged and said "I honestly have no idea. Not even my previous job at the Pentagon would be able to pay for all this I have here. It doesn't really cost much to live here in the city of Baltimare, but with what I am living in which caused the personal property taxes to skyrocket so much, it has made it so expensive to live here with the high income taxes. It's not like I'm making loads of money either. Sure, I'm making enough to pay the bills every month, but I'm not flowing with cash to where I can buy a private yacht or jet or one of those super expensive items."

Twilight said "I see. Well, I think you are very fortunate to be able to afford this, and it's a lot to take care of."

Knuckles nodded and said "Yeah, I am very blessed to have this and I always make sure to take good care of it whenever I can. I know this might sound strange, but how about you stay here for the night? I have plenty of room in my house and it's quite late. Of course, it is 9:00, but the last train for the day left an hour ago, so you wouldn't be able to make it home really. You can just stay the night here and then catch the first train back to Ponyville tomorrow morning. What do you say?"

Twilight thought about it and said "I think that is a good idea. I would want to go home, but the train is really my only way home. I could teleport all the way over there, but that is very long range for me and I haven't been the best at it and it's too far for me to fly back, so this is the best option."

Knuckles was satisfied with that and lead Twilight to her room for the night. He said "Here is your room that you can stay in for the night. Bathroom is to your right, closet is next to it and the bed is to the left. My bedroom is down the hall, so if you need anything, let me know."

Twilight said "Thank you. I had fun tonight spending time with you."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "I enjoyed it too. Anyway, have a good night. I'll see you in the morning."

Twilight said to him "Good night, Knuckles." She shut the door and Knuckles walked away. He walked back up to his office to work on a last few minute things before he headed to bed and he reclined in the chair.

He said "Talk about a crazy night. I honestly did not expect it to go so well, but maybe things will turn out for the better. If the timing is right, she could eventually have the opportunity to learn about the Master Diamond, but that will take time. Let's hope things continue to head in the right direction."

He finished up his work and he headed to his bedroom to get some sleep. He stretched his muscles and then got into the bed. He made sure to adjust his body so he was properly comfortable and he quickly fell asleep within 30 seconds. He was a heavy sleeper, so falling asleep was never really an issue for him. So, things were on the right track, but there is still a long way to go before they eventually reach the light at the end of the tunnel. Whether or not they actually get there depends on how the relationship develops over time. It could blossom or it could flop. Only time will tell.

Author's Note

AN: The romantic train has seem to have begun here in the story and it will continue to blossom as time goes on. It really did take some guts for Knuckles to admit that he likes Twilight. Now with that off his chest, he can only hope that things go well. We'll see if that holds up. I apologize for the chapter coming out late again, but I've been busy and I have plans for the weekend, so there will be nothing coming this weekend at all which is why this is coming out. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The Proposal and Wedding. After many months of going on dates and getting to know one another, Knuckles eventually decides to take the big step and make a bold move proposing to Twilight. But he has a trick up his sleeve on how to do so and after he does so, he starts to get nervous at the wedding because of the massive crowds. Will he be able to get past them all or will he bail on Twilight at the altar?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 20: A Powerful Commitment

Some more time passed and a lot had changed. Knuckles continued to have dates with Twilight as frequently as he could and every time they went, their bond grew stronger as time went on. There were some struggles along the way, but they were able to get past it every time so far. Today in particular though was special. Knuckles was ready to make the big move and he prayed in his head that it would not end in disaster like it did for Maddi.

He never got the chance to ask for Maddi's hand all those years ago and he certainly did not want to be unable to ask Twilight's hoof as well. He was walking down the stairs near the cave and Twilight was following right behind. She asked him "What exactly are we doing down here?"

Knuckles said without turning around "There is something that I need to look for in here that I may have forgotten a few years ago. Plus, I wanted to examine the Tree of Harmony a little bit more since it does sort of fascinate me." The two of them made it to the cave and Knuckles looked around to get a close up look of the Tree of Harmony. He said "Tell me Twilight, do you know how this tree came into existence?"

Twilight shrugged and said "I unfortunately do not know how it appeared. I didn't even know it existed until the Everfree Forest invasion a few years ago. How it got here is beyond me, but I know that however got here, it must have happened through some sort of magical way."

Knuckles nodded and said "I see. I would try to investigate, but I have more important things to worry about right now. Now, where did I put that thing?" He began searching through the cave to see if he could find the Master Diamond and sure enough, he was able to find it exactly where he had hid it.

Twilight was mind blown at this artifact and she asked "What in Celestia's name is that? I have never seen something like that before."

Knuckles sighed and said "This is the Ultimate Power or formally known as the Master Diamond. But, I have something more important I must do first." He set down the Diamond and stood in front of Twilight. He said "Twilight, when I first encountered you, I thought that you would be a pain in my side, considering how much s[BLEEP] I've gotten through over the years. I thought you would be like everyone else. But you weren't. You treated me like an actual human being and not some piece of white trash. You disciplined me whenever necessary, but you never once insulted me or degrade me as something less and nothing I do would ever fully express my gratitude for that. I thought after I lost Maddi, I would never be able love anyone at all again, but you proved me wrong. You showed me how to love again and I thank you for that."

As Knuckles was speaking, Twilight started to feel touched and continued wondering where he was going with this. Knuckles said "There's still a lot of uncertainty with all of this and I fear that the worst may still happen, but I will do everything in my power to prevent that from happening." He got down on one knee and pulled out the engagement ring. He said "Princess Twilight Sparkle, will you marry me?"

Twilight now had tears in her eyes and she had her hoof over her mouth. When she saw that ring, she stared at it for a few seconds. After Knuckles asked the question, she said yes and tackled him to the ground. She gave him a passionate kiss and hugged him. She said "I will gladly marry you Knuckles, or rather, Caleb Brody. Nothing would make me happier. I promise to be the best spouse that I can be to you."

Knuckles said with a serious tone "Only you can call me that. No one else can. I have a reputation to uphold." Twilight giggled and said she would do so. He put the engagement ring on her horn and they kissed again. They soon got interrupted by Twilight's friends clearing their throats and they stopped what they were doing.

Knuckles was quite embarrassed and said with slight anger "Were you spying on us?! That is very rude and an invasion of privacy on my part. You all should be ashamed of yourselves."

Rainbow rolled her eyes and said "We get it loverboy. No need to freak out on us." The rest of them expressed their enthusiasm for the two of them and Knuckles simply grunted at Rainbow's remark. He picked up the Master Diamond again and all of them were shocked to see that artifact. He told them what it was and Rainbow asked "What does it do?"

Knuckles pulled it away and said "I've already compromised myself enough just by showing and telling you what this artifact is, I'm not doing it any further by explaining its properties. My tribe would be furious with me at this point, but I'm the only one here, so whatever. However, that doesn't mean I can't uphold their values. It's nothing personal, it's just for your own safety. This is anything far beyond you could comprehend and if I told you what it does, it could put you all at great risk, so I must not tell you for the safety of everyone here. Maybe one day, I could tell you, but until that time comes, I have to keep it a secret."

They understood what he was saying and they decided to not press further. Knuckles said "After my grandparents lost this artifact, I thought I would never find it again. I've been searching for this my entire life and I finally have it. Now we have it. Now what? What comes next?"

Twilight said "Throughout history, it has been speculated that there were two orders of heroes who protected the Diamond from evil."

Knuckles said "But all of them passed onto the great battleground of the skies."

Twilight then suggested "Then we start a new world order. The seven of us together. Using our powers and magic to defend the universe." The rest of them agreed and were on board.

Knuckles said "This is no light task. We must declare a vow that we will use our powers only for defense and never for evil. To watch out for each other. Our new tribe."

Pinkie said "Oh, I know! A hoof bump!"

Knuckles raised a brow in confusion and asked "A hoof bump? What's that?"

Twilight said "It's like a fist bump, but only with hooves instead. It's an Equestrian custom. It means an unbreakable promise."

Knuckles seemed satisfied with that and said "Very well. A hoof bump it is."

All of them did a hoof bump and it was promised on that they would do whatever it takes to protect the Diamond. Speaking of which, Knuckles had returned it back home to his mansion where it had belonged. He hid it in a special place inside his house that he had designated in case he ever found the Master Diamond during his time here on this Earth.

Within the next few weeks and months, everyone was pitching in to help prepare for this wedding. The news eventually reached all of Equestria that Princess Twilight Sparkle was marrying the supernatural human being, Knuckles. It even reached the Crystal Empire and when Shining Armor had heard about the news, he was less than thrilled about it to say the least. Cadence reminded him that this was probably how Twilight felt when she found out he was getting married through a letter from Celestia.

Knuckles even had to meet with Twilight's parents since it was tradition and that meant he also had to ask for her father's blessing, which made him incredibly nervous. He really didn't understand why that was a thing, but he knew it was part of tradition to do that and he could not disobey his tribe on this one because a man that does not ask for the father's blessing to marry his wife, then he has no honor and shall be forever cursed. NightLight could tell that Knuckles was nervous and after messing with him a little bit, he said that he'll gladly give his blessing to marry his daughter since he had heard about everything that went wrong in his life and thought he was a good man that simply had a bad past. When that happened, he felt a lot better, but something still bothered him.

Knuckles was still nervous about all of this because he never thought he had to tell so many ponies about it and he would never have privacy again. He knew that he had to face the music about eventually coming out into the spotlight, but he tried to delay it as long as possible. However, he couldn't hide this forever because when you're marrying one of the alicorn princesses of Equestria, everyone is going to know about it since it's very large news. Everypony in Equestria had that marked on their calendars and make sure to clear their schedules so they could attend this event which made him even more stressed.

He was never in the spotlight before and now that he was, he absolutely had no idea what to do. At least his future wife had an idea to it since she was a princess and she was used to it, but he was a simple commoner who happens to have supernatural powers and has a lot of secrets that would put the country in danger. The day of the wedding had come and it was definitely a high stakes event.

When Knuckles had heard how many ponies were coming to this thing, his eyes shrunk down to pinpricks and he hid under the nearest bed he could find. He was visiting from Baltimare because all royal weddings traditionally were done in Canterlot and Twilight wanted to stick with the tradition which didn't exactly make Knuckles incredibly happy. But he wasn't going to fight with his future wife on that because he knew he would lose the argument very quickly.

Eventually, his disappearance was eventually known and a search party had to go find him. They eventually found him hiding under the bed in one of the rooms and Spike asked him "Why are you hiding under the bed? That seems like the most random place to hide."

Knuckles grunted with slight anger and said "Why do you think I'm here?! I had never had to deal with massive crowds in my entire life and now they are all here for probably the biggest moment in my entire existence! I can't go out there!"

Big Mac asked "Why not?"

Knuckles said "I'll make an absolute fool out of myself! I can't go out there looking like this! It would just be an impending disaster waiting to happen. Twilight will probably be relieved after seeing the mess I am!"

Spike was confused and asked "How can you say such a thing?!"

Knuckles looked at him with a glare and said "Well, just look at me! Here Twilight is looking as eloquent and beautiful as ever like an angel and I'm just the same old dirtbag I have been for my entire life. Even if I changed personality wise, I'm still that s[BLEEP] awful mess of a supernatural human being that so desperately deserves to die after everything I have done."

Spike sighed and said "Look Knuckles, I'll admit that I didn't always have the most favorable view of you, but Twilight was able to show me why she believed in you so much. You were able to prove that you were capable of change and not let your past consume you. Plus, you sacrificed yourself against Tirek to save all of Equestria when most of us still hated you. Everypony remembers that. They know about your past, but that act you did made everything else completely forgotten. Twilight loves you with all her heart. I have never seen her this happy in my life. So, don't you think she would want to marry you if she saw through those flaws?"

Knuckles tried to come up with a counterargument, but he could find none, so he sighed and said "I guess you are right Spike. I don't know what's going on. I have been one of the toughest creatures Equestria has ever seen and here I am acting like a complete fool on my wedding day. I don't know how it would have gone if Maddi were still around, but at least I know it would have been better with crowds compared to this."

Spike said "It's perfectly understandable, man. I don't think most could handle the pressure of all of Equestria being at an event like this without having some sort of anxiety. I've put up with Twilight for so many years with much smaller issues, so I'm used to it. I know you will do fine."

Knuckles sighed and said "Thank you Spike. I appreciate it." He gave Spike a hug and he walked out into the room where the wedding was taking place. He saw all of these ponies sitting in their seats and it made him sweat nervously. But, he persisted on anyways and tried not to focus on the massive crowds that were here. He made it up to the platform and waited for the ceremony to begin.

He looked around to see who has attended and he noticed everyone staring at him which made him sweat nervously even more. He just was about ready to faint, but Discord slapped him across the back and said "Get your act together! You're worse than Celestia during a major crisis."

Knuckles growled at Discord and said "Don't even compare me to that! You have no idea how I feel about this! It's not everyday that you're standing in the capital city of a foreign country getting ready to have the biggest moment of my life in marrying an alicorn princess and everyone and his mom is here watching you. I was just a simple commoner over the last 30+ years working a government job in a city that smelled worse than an actual swamp when it came to people's attitude, and now I'm getting ready to marry royalty! I have no idea how to handle that!"

Celestia overheard some of the conversation and asked "You're not getting cold feet, are you?"

Knuckles thought that was absolutely ridiculous and said "Cold feet? HA! That's the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Of course I'm not getting cold feet. Who do you think I am? A coward? I am one of the strongest individuals that Equestria has ever seen and you think I would throw that all out the window because I'm getting married?! I don't think so! Everything is perfectly fine!"

Celestia rolled her eyes and said "If you say so." She turned her head away and looked towards the crowds. Knuckles sighed and stared out the window.

He was fidgeting with his thumbs and darting his eyes around nervously because of the high stress levels he was currently experiencing. He asked himself "You don't think she bailed out yet, do you?"

Rainbow said "She's not late. The ceremony doesn't start until 3:00."

Knuckles' eyes went wide and he said "3:00?! What the heck are we waiting for?! I've been standing here forever!"

Applejack gave him a deadpan stare and said "Ya been standing there for five minutes. It's only 2:30 right now."

Knuckles didn't like that and said "But everyone's already here! Shouldn't we start by now?"

Discord was not having any of it and slapped him again against the back. He said "Will you cut it out?! It hasn't even been that long! Relax. You'll be fine."

Knuckles hissed in pain and said "Quit doing that! You're gonna kill me at this point by doing that! I might have incredible strength, but that doesn't mean I can't feel pain. Can someone at least open a window?! It's hot in here!"

He pulled out a fan and that made him relax a lot more. Discord rolled his eyes and said "We have literally been standing here for ten minutes at this point. It's not that long. You're only making it that long!"

Knuckles did not agree and said "Ten minutes?! It has felt like an eternity! You should know how that feels. You spent that entire time in stone!"

The music started playing and Discord told Knuckles "Put that fan away! It's starting!" Knuckles grunted about it, but he did so anyway.

Some of the important figures during a wedding went by and that made Knuckles question why he was here. He said in his head "Why am I even here? I should be safe in my house back in Baltimare where I have privacy and not standing with a bunch of ponies around. Maybe if I bail now..." Before he could even finish that thought, everyone gasped in awe and Knuckles wondered what was going on.

He looked in front of him and saw that the doors were opened to reveal the bride, Princess Twilight Sparkle. If Knuckles wasn't in awe before with Twilight's occasional style of clothing, he most certainly was now. He felt like he was literally staring at an angel and he had no words to describe it. Twilight began walking down the aisle towards the altar and everyone was blown away by her wedding dress.

Rarity had truly outdone herself and if you thought she did splendid on Cadence's dress, Twilight's basically blew hers out of the water in comparison. It had the finest silk that you could ever find and it was literally whiter than snow, plus the dress had a line of red and purple beads sowed together at the bottom as part of that intertwining of two becoming one flesh. Plus, she was wearing a necklace that Knuckles gave her on one of their dates back several months ago and it added that nice touch to the outfit.

Sweetie Belle had said "It's so romantic." Even though she was getting up there in age for being a flower girl, she still thought the whole thing was pretty amazing.

Apple Bloom expressed concern and said "Ah hope he doesn't go all berserk again." She may not have hung around Knuckles a whole lot, but she remembers the countless times her sister told her about how much of an awful individual he was for a while.

Scootaloo didn't express any doubts and said "He'll be fine. If anypony can handle that creature, it's Twilight." She knew that the alicorn was a strong willed individual and she would not let him fly off the hinges that easily, so there was nothing to worry about.

Twilight reached the altar and looked at Knuckles who was currently wearing a very fine suit. It was almost a tuxedo, but he went with the traditional tie instead of the bowtie. He thought that looked stupid and he wanted to keep his tribe's tradition alive by wearing ties with suits to formal events when it was required. He whispered to Twilight "You look very beautiful."

Twilight smiled and said "You look very handsome yourself." Knuckles smiled back at the remark and both of them turned to face Celestia.

Celestia cleared her throat and said "Ladies and gentlecolts, we are all gathered here today to celebrate the union of Princess Twilight Sparkle and Caleb "Knuckles" Brody." Knuckles didn't exactly want to reveal his real name to the crowds, but Twilight insisted on doing so because she said that most of them wouldn't even remember anyway, so it was fine. Celestia said "Never before in Equestria has there been a love so powerful, so strong, yet it started in the strangest and most unusual of circumstances. These two have proven that love surpasses all differences, all flaws, and all faults. I'll let the bride and groom say their own vows."

Knuckles cleared his throat and said "Twilight, when I came to this nation, I honestly thought that I would live alone for the rest of my life. If you had told me five years ago that a day like today would happen, I would have thought you were nuts. For so long, I was ignored, abandoned, abused, and neglected to the point of no return. I thought that after I lost my first love, I would never be able to recover. Even when I came to this world, the pain had continued, but you treated me different. You treated me with respect and never once insulted me or degraded me into something less. My heart had turned to stone and my words were as cold as ice, but you shattered my stone cold heart and showed me how to love again. Even though she is gone, I know that you will love me the exact same way as my first love did all those years ago."

Twilight wanted to simply cry because of how great it sounded, but she needed to act strong since she was a princess and she needed to be an example. She said "Caleb, I'm beyond words on how much this day means to me. When you first had come into this world, I was quite skeptical of you, but the more time I spent with you, the more I realized that you are just like the rest of us here in this room and across all of Equestria. It made me see that despite our claims to friendship, Equestria was still quite hostile to outsiders such as yourself. Even though I have a long way to go, I will make it my life mission that something like that won't happen again. I know I may never replace your first love, but I will try my best to be the best wife that I can be. I can definitely say that if she were here right now, she would have been proud of you."

Knuckles smiled at that and both of them turned back to Celestia. She cleared her throat and said "Do you, Caleb "Knuckles" Brody, take Princess Twilight Sparkle in marriage to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health until death do you part?"

Knuckles had stared at those big beautiful purple orbs that were looking back at him and he couldn't help smiling back at her. Discord nudged him and whispered "That's your cue."

Knuckles broke his train of thought and said nervously "Huh? Oh, uhh, uhh, yes! Yes, I most definitely do."

Celestia laughed a bit and said "And do you, Princess Twilight Sparkle, take Caleb "Knuckles" Brody in marriage as your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health until death do you part?"

Twilight stared at Knuckles and said with tears flowing down her face "I do." Knuckles smiled at her and he wiped the tears away and gave her a kiss on the head.

Celestia asked "May we have the rings please?" Spike held out the pillow for the two rings sitting on top and Celestia levitated them over to herself. Knuckles put the ring on Twilight's horn first and then she put the ring on Knuckles' ring finger with her magic. After that was done, Celestia said "With the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

Knuckles was about to kiss his new wife, but before he could bend over to do so, Twilight jumped up and gave him the passionate kiss that you would probably ever seen. Knuckles eventually returned it and most looked away because of the crazy shock of what happened. Eventually, there were loud cheers and a loud explosion occurred in the sky. Everyone turned to see what that was, and saw that Rainbow had done a rainboom. Both Knuckles and Twilight smiled at it and gave each other a hug.

Knuckles eventually took Twilight's hoof and they walked outside together on the balcony. They waved to the massive crowds outside and they smiled at them as well. Knuckles couldn't believe he was even doing this, but he didn't exactly care at this moment because now he was married to Twilight. Both of them went back inside and Shining Armor came over to congratulate his sister.

He said "Twily, I'm so proud of you!" Both of them hugged and Knuckles noticed some tears coming down his face. He wanted to point it out, but he figured it would be better to stay quiet and not say anything, so that's what he did.

Twilight did eventually notice the tears and asked "Are you crying?"

Shining quickly wiped the tears away and said in denial "Of course not! Like I said at your coronation several years ago, it's just liquid pride. It's a totally different thing." Knuckles rolled his eyes at that and looked away at the window. Shining turned to Knuckles and said with anger "You better take good care of her or else you're gonna pay for it."

Knuckles gave him a deadpan stare and said "Wouldn't dream of it, "master." I take commitments very seriously and this is no different. My tribe would cast me out if I dishonored their values, so you can relax."

Shining seemed to accept that as an answer and Twilight said "Don't be too hard on him, Shiny. He's had a very tragic life and went through a lot. He doesn't need anymore of that."

Shining sighed and said "Sorry Twily, I'm just only looking out for your safety. I only want what's best for you." Hearing that made Knuckles incredibly angry and he so desperately just wanted to tear into Shining, but he couldn't embarrass himself anymore than he already has by being in a compromising position, so he simply clinched up his fists as a way to contain his anger.

Before it could get any more ugly, Twilight's friends came over and Pinkie said "Best wedding ever!" Knuckles rolled his eyes playfully because he knew that was such a typical thing for Pinkie to say.

Fluttershy said "We love you Twilight."

Twilight smiled and said "I love you too girls." They all did a group hug and Knuckles gave a small smile. Twilight extended her hoof out to Knuckles and she dragged him into the group hug. He was a little surprised at first, but he got over it quickly.

Later on, the reception had begun and many ponies took the time to socialize with one another and talk about life. The chatter soon turned into clapping when they saw the guests of honor walking out. One of the castle staff said "Ladies and Gentlecolts, I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Caleb "Knuckles" Brody!" The claps got louder and so did the cheers. Both of them walked through the crowds and they threw random flowers and other items in celebration.

They went over to the courtyard to perform their first dance together as a married couple and both of them were definitely happy being in each other's presence. Even Celestia and Luna felt happy for their former student and friend.

Celestia said to Luna "I'm so glad that Knuckles was finally able to find happiness in his life. That horrific past is only something that most of us wished never happen in our lives, but he couldn't help it."

Luna smiled and said "I agree, sister. Twilight was able to shatter Knuckles' ice cold stone heart and show him love and compassion that I have never seen before."

Celestia asked Luna "Hey Luna, how come you never mentioned to me that Twilight told you he had serious emotional problems in his life?"

Luna said "You gave me a second chance, so why not do the same for him?"

Meanwhile, Twilight and Knuckles were slow dancing and they were enjoying the music as they danced to it. Knuckles stared in Twilight's eyes and said "Perfect. Absolutely perfect."

Twilight was curious what he meant by that and asked "What's perfect?"

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "You are. I never knew how much happiness I could feel from something like this. After I lost Maddi, I thought this day would never come in my lifetime, but you proved me wrong, so I'm grateful for that."

Discord cleared his throat and the two of them stopped what they were doing. Knuckles gave him a slight glare and said "Do you have a good explanation for that? I am having some one-on-one time with my wife in case you haven't seen already."

Discord rolled his eyes and said "Relax, man-child. I was just simply coming over here to congratulate you."

That threw Knuckles off guard and he said "Oh? Uh, thanks I guess. I didn't think I would expect that coming from you."

Discord smirked and said to himself "Fluttershy owes me 20 bits now."

Knuckles was highly offended at that statement and said "What?! You placed a bet on my marriage to Twilight?!"

Discord said "Well, me and Fluttershy were simply discussing it over our usual Tuesday Tea and we simply placed a casual bet on the eventual marriage. I said that it would happen after a year of dating and I was correct, so now I get 20 bits."

Knuckles was furious that someone had placed a bet on his marriage to Twilight and he said with anger "Bu-but HOW?! You weren't even there for the proposal and I never made it public until about six months ago! How is this possible?! You can't even read my mind!"

Twilight giggled a bit and said "Does it really matter, honey?" She did find it a little strange to have her marriage get betted on, but with how this country is these days, it doesn't really surprise her in the slightest.

Knuckles sighed and said "I guess not. Just don't make this a regular thing, Discord. You're lucky this time because I have my wife with me, but if you do it again, I won't be so lenient." Knuckles simply grunted and walked away. Some more time passed and after finishing up dinner and dessert, it was time for Knuckles and Twilight to go off on their honeymoon to Las Pegasus.

Spike opened the door to the carriage and bowed before Twilight as a greeting. the two of them hugged and Spike said "Be careful now. Don't get into too much trouble."

Twilight smiled and said "I promise you I won't. I love you, Spike."

Spike smiled back and said "I love you too." Twilight got into the carriage and Knuckles was about to join her. Spike said "You promise to take care of her now, you hear? I care very much about her and I don't want anything happening to her."

Knuckles chuckled with confidence and said "Trust me, nothing will happen to her. I will do everything in my power to protect her from harm. I understand how much you care about her, because that's how I felt about Maddi and still do even though she is gone. I will not let Twilight suffer the same fate. Take care, bro."

Spike smiled and said "Take care too, bro." Knuckles got inside and Spike closed the door.

Knuckles stared at Twilight and asked "Are you ready to go?"

Twilight was about to say yes, but then she remembered that she forgot to do something. She said "There's one more thing to do." She stuck her head out the window and threw the bouquet of flowers towards the bridesmaids. They were trying to catch it when Rarity jumped up and grabbed it like a hawk capturing its prey. The other ponies glared at her and she just laughed nervously.

The carriage started rolling away and all of Twilight's friends waved goodbye. They were now headed off to Las Pegasus to enjoy a wonderful honeymoon before eventually returning to Baltimare. Knuckles never imagined that this day would ever come after the tragic death of Maddi, but after Twilight changed him, it became a reality and he couldn't be happier. Now, he could enjoy the rest of his natural life with Twilight and the two shall get closer.

Author's Note

AN: Well, we've reached the end of the marriage chapter! This one was definitely interesting to write and the next one will definitely be as well. There are only two chapters left to go in this story, but they'll definitely be important ones. Sorry this came out late again, life has just been busy lately and I've been stuck on a writer's block, but hopefully, that will go away. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: A beautiful night! After Twilight and Knuckles arrived to their honeymoon destination in Las Pegasus, they decide to do it on the first night of marriage since they are now married. Of course, neither of them have a ton of experience with this, but they will learn along the way. Will they be able to figure it out, or will it get incredibly awkward?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 21: A Legendary Night

*WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS VERY EXPLICIT SEXUAL THEMES AND INVOLVES INTERCOURSE BETWEEN A SUPERNATURAL HUMAN BEING AND AN ALICORN PONY PRINCESS. IF THIS GREATLY DISTURBS YOU, PLEASE SKIP TO THE NEXT CHAPTER WHEN IT COMES OUT! IF NOT, YOU MAY PROCEED. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TRAUMATIZATION OF PEOPLE READING ABOUT VERY PASSIONATE SEXUAL INTERCOURSE! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!*

Knuckles and Twilight continued their journey across the country to Las Pegasus in southwestern Equestria and they got more excited to spend time alone with one another as they got closer. Knuckles had wanted to go somewhere other than the city he was living in and he thought that Las Pegasus would be the best option. Of course, he absolutely hated all the stuff that happens there because it reminds him a lot about Las Vegas and he hated that city with a passion with the amount of crap that occurred over there.

Regardless though, he was hoping for a nice quiet night with his wife without interruptions, but he was prepared to deal with crowds considering everyone now knows that he married one of the alicorn princesses of Equestria. However, he was going to remain optimistic and not let that bother him if he could help it.

They eventually arrived at the hotel and Knuckles could have sworn it looked like the Las Vegas strip in Equestria which was where all the crap that happens there goes down. They went up to their room and Knuckles just crashed on top of the bed in the bedroom because of how tired he was from the wedding. Twilight saw this as an opportunity and jumped in the bed next to him.

She asked him "Are you tired, honey?"

Knuckles sighed and said "Definitely. I've not had this much fun in ages. The last time I had this much fun was when Maddi was still alive." After he said that, it made him sad and he turned on his side because of the pain he still felt from it. Twilight felt bad for him and gave him a hug. Knuckles appreciated it and turned back around to smile at her.

She smiled back and the two seemed to inch closer towards one another. Twilight gave him the bedroom eyes and then proceeded to kiss him passionately on the lips. She then put an enchantment on the door and locked it to make sure no one would disturb them from what was about to occur. Knuckles was confused about that and attempted to ask Twilight, but she shushed him and pushed him lightly onto his back.

She gave him a very seductive look and she continued to kiss him. Knuckles did not know how to react, but Twilight said in a seductive voice "Shhhhh. It's okay. Let your princess take care of you." Knuckles quickly got quiet and didn't say a word after that. Twilight pressed further and she let out a weak groan as she was kissing him. Knuckles didn't let her do all the work and returned it as well.

Twilight took that as a challenge and then forcefully opened Knuckles' mouth with her own and connected her tongue to his. Knuckles was quickly thrown off by this, but he eventually got the hang of it and the two swirled their tongues around in a heavenly dance. Twilight moaned in delight and her tail swished in between Knuckles' thighs in excitement. Knuckles felt the bulge rising and tried to prevent it from doing so, but unfortunately, it rose anyway and touched Twilight's stomach.

She let out a yelp in surprise and immediately stopped kissing him when she felt that. She looked down and saw the rising bulge that was in Knuckles' pants. Twilight quickly took off her wedding dress in a matter of seconds and gave Knuckles another seductive look. Knuckles was incredibly nervous about where this was headed, but Twilight put her hoof on his shoulder as a way to tell him that it was going to be alright.

Twilight lit up her horn and she quickly ripped off Knuckles' clothes with relative ease, only leaving his drawers in front of her. She eventually saw all of his muscles to its fullest extent and most of the tattoos he had on his body as well. Just staring at all of that almost made Twilight leak bodily fluids excessively, but she held it out because it wasn't quite time to do that yet. She then noticed all of the scars and bruises and carefully examined each one.

Knuckles explained where and how each one came and it made Twilight really sad and angry that this had to happen to her newly married husband. If she was there with him back then, she could have at least tried to stop it, but there was nothing she could do at this point. They were together now, so that's all that mattered. Twilight looked back down at the apparent bulge and she forcefully pulled down the drawers with her magic, which left Knuckles' junk exposed in the open.

Twilight put her hoof to her mouth and gasped a little bit as she was staring at it. She looked at Knuckles and asked "Caleb, is that what a human penis looks like?" Knuckles awkwardly nodded and Twilight put her hoof down to touch it. It sent a shudder down Knuckles' spine and his penis leaked out some precum, which told Twilight that his body at least, was definitely in the mood.

She leaned her head down and she put his penis in her mouth. She started bobbing up and down and Knuckles grunted as Twilight was giving him a blowjob. It had been a long time since something like this had happened and it definitely felt weird after all of this time. Twilight continued to suck on his penis before she eventually came back up to lick it and then swallow it all over again to where it's halfway down her throat.

Knuckles felt the rush coming and he tried to stop the incoming pressure, but there was no way he could hold on for much longer. He warned her by saying "Twilight... ugh... I'm... about to - to..." but before he could finish his sentence, Twilight only sucked faster and eventually, the watergates opened and his penis exploded with fresh hot semen shooting down Twilight's mouth and into her stomach.

Twilight had an idea and decided to make loud slurping noises as she was greedily gulping it down her throat. It had clearly worked because it caused Knuckles to groan loudly and he cummed even harder, which only increased the temperature of the semen as it was traveling down Twilight's digestive system. Twilight was in pure ecstasy and she was enjoying the interspecies sex going on. Eventually, the flow of semen stopped and Twilight spat out his penis with a loud audible pop. She clearly had a lot of semen that was now sitting in her stomach and it had increased in size to the point where it looked like she was heavily pregnant.

Knuckles was surprised by this and said "Wow. I did not think I could put that much semen in someone's stomach."

Twilight seemed a little surprised as well, but didn't let it bother her. She gave him another seductive look and said "You gave me so much delicious cum to drink, and now I think it's time you get to enjoy me." Before Knuckles could even ask any questions, Twilight put her plot in front of his face and wiggled it a bit in front of him. It was already dripping liquids excessively and started creating a puddle on Knuckles' upper chest. That instantly turned him on and he began his assault on Twilight's marehood.

He stuck most of his fingers inside of her warm wet caverns and Twilight cried out a very loud moan while throwing her head back. Knuckles even sucked on her throbbing mounds and caressed both of her cutie marks, which caused her to leak out even more fluids. To say she was not extremely turned on at this point would be a massive understatement. Knuckles then returned to her marehood and started licking it. Twilight moaned some more and said "Oh yes, YES! That's it, honey! Faster! Mmmm... Faster!" Knuckles started going faster and even tugged her tail a bit. She said "YES! OH YES! FASTER, HONEY! MMMM... DON'T... STOP... PLEASE!"

She eventually went back to sucking Knuckles' penis and the two of them went at it for minutes at a time. Knuckles wanted Twilight to orgasm first, so he looked carefully inside Twilight's marehood to find her G-Spot and went to touch it. He pressed his thumb on it and that caused Twilight to scream with his penis in her mouth and spraying fresh hot marecum in his mouth as well. Knuckles did not waste a single drop there and Twilight began to suck faster on his penis so that he could orgasm for her too.

Eventually, Knuckles broke and his penis exploded again in Twilight's mouth, sending fresh hot semen down her throat once again. She greedily gulped down all of his semen and made loud slurping noises again to get as much as she could out of him as payback for making her cum just by pressing her G-Spot. All of that previous semen in her stomach had exited her body, so she would be regaining what she had lost before.

Twilight's loud slurping noises caused Knuckles to cum even harder again and it sent even more fresh hot semen down Twilight's throat. It filled up Twilight's stomach again and by the time the flow stopped, her stomach looked like she was heavily pregnant once again. Twilight spat out his penis with a very loud audible pop and turned around to make out with Knuckles again.

She looked at him and said "I'm ready."

Knuckles seemed surprised by that statement and asked with worry in his voice "Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you."

Twilight gave him a smile and said "I am. I wouldn't ask you if I didn't think I was ready."

Knuckles sighed and said "Alright. Top or bottom?"

Twilight said "I want bottom." Knuckles simply nodded and got into position. However, before he could begin, Twilight gave him a worried look on her face and said "Wait, wait, wait!"

Knuckles immediately stopped and asked "What's wrong? Did I screw up?"

Twilight shook her head and said "Not at all. But I have to tell you that if you have sex with an alicorn, you will gain immortality. Are you sure you want to proceed?"

That question really got Knuckles thinking and he thought about whether or not he should go on with this. Immortality sounds like a great idea on the surface since he'll never age and weaken over time, but it does come with its drawbacks. Any loved ones that he had would eventually die and he would no longer see them. But then again, it's been seven years at this point since he's last seen them and there's no way he was going to get back there now. That life sucked and now, his life is so much better, so he couldn't run away from that. Plus, he had pictures of them anyway, so he could always remember them after they die.

He looked at Twilight with a smile and said "I'm positive. There's no one else I'd rather spend the rest of my life with than my sweet, beautiful, sexy princess known as Princess Twilight Sparkle. My tribe always instructed us to never leave loved ones behind, so I'm not going to leave my wife behind either."

Twilight had some tears fall from her face and she hugged him. She said "Thank you. You really understand loyalty to the fullest extent." She then got close to his face and whispered in his ear "I want you to make me scream. Make me cum so much that it fills you up for a week. Buck me so hard that I won't be able to move for the rest of the month."

Knuckles' eyes shrunk down to pinpricks as he felt Twilight's hot breath hit his ear like a freight train roaring down the tracks and his penis got hard just thinking about it. He got back into position and slowly slid his penis inside Twilight's marehood. Neither of them had an incredible amount of experience with this, so it was going to be a challenge to figure out. For Twilight, she had never done this before and this is her first time. For Knuckles, it had been seven years since he had last done it with Maddi and it felt so long ago, that he doesn't even fully remember how he did it because of all the crazy events that have taken place in between.

Knuckles pushed further until he felt some resistance. Twilight groaned a little bit and Knuckles knew he had reached her hymen. Twilight eventually looked up and nodded for him to go ahead. Knuckles pushed through and broke the hymen. Twilight screamed at the top of her lungs in pain and tears started rolling down her face. Blood had even ran down Twilight's marehood because of painful it was. Knuckles immediately stopped and just stayed there for a few minutes. He held her hoof to offer support and he smiled at her to show her that he was with her the whole time.

Twilight appreciated it and after a few minutes, the pain subsided and she gave Knuckles the nod to continue. Knuckles started pushing back and forth slowly and then eventually picked up speed. Soon, that pain that Twilight had was replaced with pleasure and she told Knuckles to go faster. Knuckles did and Twilight said "Don't hold back, honey. Mmmm... Faster. Faster!"

Knuckles decided to tug Twilight's tail a little bit again and she moaned very loudly. She said "YES! YES, THAT'S IT, HONEY! BUCK ME HARDER! MAKE LOVE TO YOUR PRINCESS! PLEASE MAKE A MESS OF ME! FASTER! HARDER! MMMM.... DON'T.... EVER... STOP... PLEASE!"

Knuckles felt the pressure coming from his balls again and Twilight had excitement in her eyes. She said "Yeah, that's it, honey. Let it all out. Fill up your princess with all your delicious cum. I want to be so full that it's dripping down the sides of my marehood." The sounds of flesh slapping against flesh only got louder and the stink of sweat and sex filled the room as well. Their moans and grunts got louder as well and they were going to release at any moment.

Twilight was the first one to orgasm and she screamed at the top of her lungs as her marehood blasted marecum all over the bed sheets and across the entire room. She let it ride out and then Knuckles eventually cracked. His penis exploded inside of Twilight's soaking wet marehood and blasted massive loads of fresh hot semen inside of her womb and increased the size of her stomach once again. Twilight's marehood tried milking as much of Knuckles' semen as it could and whatever couldn't ended up inside of her womb.

She screamed at the top of her lungs again and said "AHHH!! YESSS!!! SO MESSY!!! OH CELESTIA!!! SO MUCH CUM!!! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH, CALEB!" The semen had become so excessive that is started leaking out of Twilight's marehood and onto the bed sheets.

The flow eventually stopped and Knuckles said with a smile "I love you too, Princess Twilight Sparkle." He pulled out and the two of them crashed in each other's arms. Knuckles could smell the awful stench in the room and said "We stink. I think a shower is in order."

Twilight agreed and said "I agree. That was the best thing that has ever happened to me. I've never been more happier in my life."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "Same with me. I enjoy making love to you all the time. Now come on. Let's take that shower before I pass out from the stink." Twilight couldn't agree more and she followed him into the bathroom. He stepped into the hot shower and it relaxed his muscles which definitely felt nice. Twilight had snuck in as well and said "Does that feel better, honey?"

Knuckles was a little surprised by Twilight's appearance for a second, but then said "Yeah, it definitely did. Are you sure that this is a good idea?"

Twilight giggled a bit and said "Caleb, married couples do this all of the time. There's nothing weird about that at all. Besides, I think it would go much faster if we helped each other get clean, don't you think?"

Knuckles sighed and said "I guess so. Just don't try any funny business, you hear?"

Twilight said "I promise." Just as Twilight was about to start cleaning Knuckles, he picked her up and held her close. Twilight saw his fingers moving and before she could ask what he was doing, he stuck his thumb inside her marehood and pressed her G-Spot again. Twilight screamed at the top of her lungs again and Knuckles aimed her body to where she blasted marecum from her marehood and Knuckles drank it all like it was Dr. Pepper. He was a fan of that and drank it all the time.

He put her down and she was not very happy for being tricked like that. She said "How dare you trick me like that! You said no funny business, and you pulled this!"

Knuckles laughed a bit and said "I just couldn't help myself. I had to do it because you're that beautiful. Surely, you couldn't stay mad at me forever."

Twilight sighed and said "Oh, I guess not." Knuckles picked her up and gave her a passionate kiss. Twilight gave him a devilish grin and snuck down to where his junk was. Knuckles looked down to try and stop it, but it was already too late. Twilight put his penis in her mouth and started sucking on it again. If he was going to make her cum unexpectedly, she would do the same to him.

Knuckles tried to stop it, but Twilight held too strong of a grip. Obviously, he knew that the groin was the weakest area of the body, so he wouldn't be able to resist as much. Twilight began to suck faster and come to lick even more before she swallowed it all over again. Knuckles felt the pressure coming from his balls again and eventually, his penis exploded again and blasted fresh hot semen down Twilight's throat.

Twilight did more loud slurping noises and that caused Knuckles to cum even harder once again which released even more fresh hot semen down Twilight's throat. The flow eventually stopped and Twilight's stomach was filled with semen that made her look heavily pregnant once again. Twilight spat it out with a very loud audible pop and said "That's what you get for making me cum without giving me a heads up."

Knuckles sighed and said "I guess that's fair. Alright, now that we got that out of our systems, let's go ahead and clean ourselves. I'm serious this time. No tricks." Twilight agreed and Knuckles began to clean her. Twilight let the water run down her hair and Knuckles' fingers run through her fur, which made her melt in bliss.

She said "Ah, that feels so nice. Those human fingers feel so good, like the finest silk and softer than toilet paper. How are you so good at this?"

Knuckles rubbed the soap across her body and said "I don't know. I guess it's just part of my anatomy or something. It's something that I've always had ever since I was born. Now hold still while I finish getting this soap on the rest of your body."

Twilight let him work his magic and once he was done, she was going to do him next. She took the body wash and spread it across his body. It caused his muscles to relax and he felt a lot better after that. Twilight asked him "Why is it that your muscles are so big, yet you can fit in regular clothes so well?"

Knuckles just shrugged and said "That's something I have no clue about. My super strength has been with me for my entire life and for as far as I remember, nothing has never been able to not fit me. I guess my body must be able to adapt or something."

As Twilight was cleaning his body, he remembered what happened whenever you blast semen into a female's womb without protection and that made him slightly worried. He asked Twilight "Hey Twilight, won't you get pregnant from this after dumping all that semen inside your womb?"

Twilight thought about it for a second and said "I guess it could. It all depends how our DNA meshes with one another. It may get me pregnant or it may not. We'll have to see in time whether or not all your delicious cum that completely overflowed my womb made me pregnant or not."

Twilight continued to clean his body and eventually, she was done. Both of turned off the shower and stepped out. They dried themselves off with the towels and Knuckles put on some new clothes. He sat down and brushed Twilight's mane and tail to make sure it looked good before they called it a night. She sighed in bliss and said "You know, you don't have to do all of that for me."

Knuckles smiled and said "But I insist. Part of the commitment of marriage is taking care of your spouse in any way possible. I'll always try to be there for my wife."

Twilight smiled and said "I'm so glad I have someone like you in my life. I couldn't have picked a better person to marry."

Knuckles smiled back and said "And I couldn't have married a better alicorn princess. Now come on. It's late and I want to get to bed. We have a very big day tomorrow."

Twilight climbed up his back and rested on his left shoulder as he transported her over to the bed. Both of them got in and smiled at each other one last time. Twilight said "Goodnight, my handsome human."

Knuckles yawned and said "Goodnight, my sexy princess." They both kissed each other one last time and then went to sleep. Both of them definitely had an eventful night to say the least, but it was all in good fun because they could experience the journey together. They still have a lot ahead of them, but as long as they could stick together as a team, nothing would ever be able to take them down. That was a fact that all married couples hope in life.

Author's Note

AN: Well, things were definitely eventful to say the least, but at least they turned out fine. I apologize if the events were terribly written. I'm not the best at writing chapters with sexual intercourse included in it, but I tried to frame it like how the Bible laid out marriage, so forgive me if it's not the best. The next chapter will be the final one, so stay tuned for that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The Epilogue! After Twilight and Knuckles return from their honeymoon in Las Pegasus, the challenges of the real world finally present themselves to them. A lot has changed and they'll need each other to be able to tackle them together. Will they be able to work together as a team to overcome these challenges, or will it be simply too much for them?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 22: The Power of Friendship

After that eventful night, Knuckles and Twilight continued to enjoy the rest of their honeymoon in Las Pegasus for the next two weeks which did involve a lot of romantic mischief. Even though Knuckles wasn't the biggest fan of the city, it was nice exploring it with his wife now. After the two weeks was up, they returned back home and Twilight moved in with Knuckles inside of his mansion in Baltimare since they were now married. She left Starlight in charge of her castle and she got permission from Knuckles to allow Spike to live with them as well so that he isn't so far away from Twilight.

Her friends were sad to see her move so far away, but she explained to them that she couldn't ask Knuckles to leave his home either since he has residents living there and he can't leave it unchecked from a security standpoint. However, she did promise them that Knuckles would allow them to visit at any time in Baltimare. That made them a little bit happier and it put that issue to bed.

Not long after Twilight moved in with Knuckles, he began doing music more often. He would do concerts as often as he could and even began writing his own music. He would put them on records and the albums that were sold brought in a record amount of money. The albums were so good that 4 million of them were sold within the first hour and would reach 200 million by the end of the week. The profits he made also cut his mortgage payoff date in half. So instead of having his house paid off in 40 years, it had shrunk down to 20 and because of his rising popularity with his music along with the money he made from it, the city lowered both his income taxes and personal property taxes after facing overwhelming pressure from the citizens.

Despite his rising popularity amongst the rest of Equestria, he often kept a very private life and never exposed personal information that he didn't want the public to know. He wasn't sure on how to handle it at first, but after returning the Master Diamond to its proper place, he knew what he had to do in order to live in a normal society, yet keep his family secrets hidden from the public eye. He did concerts from Manehattan to Las Pegasus in terms of different locations. In other words, he played concerts in every major city in Equestria.

As a result of his huge success in the music industry, he won many awards because of it and the highest award that is given to an artist every year had been renamed to the Madilynn Miller Gold Heart Award in honor of Knuckles' girlfriend, Maddi. It put a massive smile on Knuckles' face and he felt nothing but pure joy when they did that. He won a lot of them and became the only artist in the industry to have more than four, which was the average for the career.

One day, Twilight's friends came to visit her and Knuckles in Baltimare and they all had a great time. Rainbow was the first to knock on the door and Knuckles opened it. He smiled and said "Welcome all. So glad you could make it all the way out to Baltimare from Ponyville."

Rarity smiled and said "Of course, darling. We wouldn't want to miss an event like this for today even if it is a long trip over. But it's definitely worth it."

Twilight came to the door and said with excitement "Girls, you're here!" She went to hug them and they all gathered in for a group hug. Knuckles let them in and they began having fun together. Ranging from playing bowling to football, they definitely spent the time well. Knuckles even spent time with each of them in some sort of capacity by doing a certain thing of interest for them. For example, he showed Pinkie how well he could cook food and bake dessert items, showed Fluttershy all of the different birds that would fly by his house, showed Applejack and Rainbow how strong he was in the weight room, and last but certainly not least, he showed Rarity to the spa area.

Rarity was in hog heaven when she saw that he had a spa in his house and she demanded that all of them would have a session during the time they had together. No one protested at the idea and all of them definitely felt more relaxed. Knuckles told Applejack and Rainbow to show him what they got and then he would show them what he had. Both of them took that as a challenge and they performed really well for a pony. But after Knuckles showed them how it's done, their jaws completely dropped and they were speechless on how much weight he could lift without being crushed instantly.

He then decided to grill some dinner for everyone and he went outside to put the food on the grill. The rest of the group came outside and then played around on the football field with different types of balls being thrown back and forth. Knuckles simply smiled at them playing and continued to grill the dinner. It had been a long time that something like this had happened and he would have never imagined it would happen again in his adult life.

He noticed the flagpole that was next to the field and had an idea. He took one of his American flags that he had and raised it up to the top to show that even though he lived in Equestria now, he would always remain a citizen of the United States of America despite its flaws. Rainbow was curious about it and asked "Um, what kind of flag is that?"

Rarity scolded her for asking that question, but Knuckles was not bothered by it. He said "It's okay, Rarity. It doesn't bother me. Anyway, to answer your question Rainbow, that is the American flag. It is my home country and even though I live here now, every memory made outside of Equestria will always belong there. It serves me a reminder of where I was in life and where I am now. I might be an Equestrian citizen now, but I will always be a citizen of the United States of America as well even though it is not perfect."

Before anyone could say anything, Knuckles noticed that the food was done on the grille, so he took it out and carried it to the dining room table. He set it up for a proper banquet style and set it all in the middle. Everyone that was currently in his household was sitting at the table and Knuckles was sitting in his chair at the end of the table as Master of the household. They passed around food and they talked about the greatest and worst things about life. After finishing up both dinner and dessert, they all went to the theater room and they watched the same movie scene that Knuckles did a few years prior.

When they heard Jerry say "You complete me" and then Renee say "You had me at hello," all of them laughed hilariously because of how ridiculous it sounded to them and it was an inside joke. It made Knuckles smile because the last time he watched it, he had been alone for the last five years and he had no one to really talk to. But now, he had six friends that he could hang out with and interact with.

Knuckles went to his living room and he hung up a picture of him and the Mane Six right next to the picture of him and David. It made him grin a little bit and the rest of them smiled at the photo. Knuckles said "There's nothing I could ever ask for more than what I have right now."

Twilight said "I think your grandparents, David, and Maddi would be really proud of you if they saw where you are now."

Knuckles smiled at her and said "I think so as well. Even though I will still greatly miss them, I now have a new group of ponies that I can call family."

Rarity said "We want you to have the best life here even though you are no longer on your home planet."

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "I am home." He gave them all a group hug and they all smiled together. For Knuckles, he is in a much happier place than where he was when he came here back in 2009. No longer would he ever feel alone or abandoned. No longer would he have abusive parents or a cruel older sister to slander him. No longer would he have to worry about someone close to him being ripped away from him in a car accident. He could put all of it to complete rest and he had something new. Friends, family, money, status, influential power, and most importantly, a purpose again. He could have security with his friends and family and never worry about exposing secrets he wasn't supposed to. Finally, he could actually have privacy when he was in his own home. All of that was non existent in 2009, and now, he has it all back. Nothing could ever be worth more.

[Insert Save My Life from Sidewalk Prophets for End Credits]

Author's Note

AN: Well guys, we have reached the end of this story. This one was definitely a fun one to write and it took almost six months to write. Before I give out shoutouts, I want to say one quick thing: I'm going to be taking a break for the rest of the year and I will not make another story until January 2023 next year. It's already late enough in the year that I figured it would be better to just push it back to January rather than start a new one right away. I have classes to finish up for the fall semester and I need time off to relax and give myself a breather. So with that out of the way, I want to say thank you to everyone who read my story and gave it a like, a follow, or both. None of this would have been possible without your support and I greatly appreciate it. For the ones who didn't like it, thank you for giving me motivation to keep going despite the negative comments. I greatly appreciate it. There will be a sequel coming out for this story, so you all stay tuned for that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter and I wish you all a great Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year. See you all in January!

Next Chapter: None! Since this story has wrapped up, there are no new chapters to preview. But I'll say a few things about the sequel without giving too much away. It will be something that will definitely elevate the series to a whole new level and the characters that are involved in this one is going to blow your mind. At least I hope so. There will definitely be a lot going on, so you might want to make sure you keep up with that or else you might get lost. I definitely don't want that happening. It will come out in January 2023, so when you see the first chapter published, you know that it has come out. Be prepared for that.

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 4: Rebels with Wings and Authority

It was pretty quiet in the city of Canterlot right now. Ponies were moving around doing different things, but there was a sense of dread that lied within them. They didn't know what it was, but they knew that it wasn't good. Inside the castle, Celestia was busy sitting in day court listening to different ponies share their issues. She never really liked to do this, but she didn't want to be rude to her fellow subjects. However, some of these issues that they had would work better with a therapist than herself. At this point, she was absolutely bored out of her mind and wished there was something else she could do right now.

As if it was on cue, a letter popped out of thin air and Celestia picked it up. She was a little surprised by this, but still curious nonetheless. She read it through and knew that this took much higher importance than what she was doing right now. She told everypony that day court was closed now for the rest of the day and they could come back tomorrow. Many of them weren't too thrilled with that idea, but they filed out regardless. Once they left, Celestia pulled out the paper and quill and began writing back to Twilight telling her to come to Canterlot at once along with her friends.

She sent the letter and sighed. If what her former student was saying was true, then they were in serious danger. It had not been too long since the Everfree Forest invasion that happened during the Summer Sun Celebration and that was a mess. They did not want to have another national security threat and they must do whatever they could in order to prevent that. She figured with something like this, she would have to go wake up Luna. The younger sister might grumble at first, but after being told that there was a serious situation, she might change her mood very quickly.

She went into Luna's room and attempted to wake her up. She said "Luna, I need you to wake up." This was of the utmost importance and she didn't want to delay any further.

Luna grumbled and said with annoyance "Sister, why are you here in my room? Can you not see that I am sleeping right now? What is so important that you had to come wake me up from my slumber right now?" She was sleeping peacefully, and then she had to get disturbed from her sister from some reason. She wanted to know why.

Celestia said "Luna, I had just received a letter from Twilight about a strange creature that they ran into in Baltimare and described that this thing was quite hostile towards them. She believes that this could be a national security threat and I agree. If we have something like this residing in our home with so many of our subjects nearby, then we are in grave danger."

Luna could see the worry in Celestia's eyes and said "You are right, sister. This is important and this thing must be taken care of right away. Where are we to begin?"

Celestia said "I told Twilight to bring herself and her friends along to Canterlot so we can discuss what we do next with this creature."

Luna seemed satisfied with that answer and said "Very well, sister. I shall join you out there with the others."

After a little bit, the Mane Six had made it to Canterlot and they walked towards the castle. The guards opened the doors for them to the throne room and all of them except Twilight bowed before Celestia.

Celestia smiled and said "Hello, my little ponies. It is so nice to see you all again and I hope that you are doing well. However, as much as I would like to speak about your lives, there is a much more important topic at hoof here."

Rarity asked "If I mind by asking, Your Highness, how exactly are we going to deal with this creature? He is clearly quite powerful and acts aggressive towards others."

Celestia said "I'm not exactly sure quite yet. That is why I have called you all here so that we may discuss what our next steps of action are."

Luna stepped in and said "Hello again, my fellow ponies. It is wonderful to see you all again."

The Mane Six turned around and expressed happiness at seeing the night princess. Twilight asked with curiosity and excitement "Luna, what are you doing here?"

Luna said "My sister has alerted me to this dangerous threat that lies in Baltimare and I have decided to contribute as well."

All of them went over to the planning room and they began to discuss what they should do about Knuckles. After a little bit, it was agreed upon that Celestia and Luna would visit the creature's residence themselves while the Mane Six kept watch over Canterlot. The two sisters said that they would not be gone long and if anything goes wrong, they would just teleport out of there as quickly as they could.

The two of them set out for Baltimare and the Mane Six waved goodbye to them. After about 3 hours, they finally arrived and began looking around. Luna asked "Sister, where are we going to find this creature's residence? This city is huge and he could be anywhere." Baltimare might not have been the biggest city in Equestria, but it was definitely not small either. It had almost 600,000 ponies living there and that didn't include the entire metropolitan area which was just a little bit over 2 million. So, if they were going to find this creature, they had a lot of ground to cover.

Celestia said "Twilight said that we needed to look for a large mansion sitting on top of an island in Horseshoe Bay which shouldn't be too hard. According to her, that is where the creature lives and from what she described it as, it makes perfect sense. Someone who doesn't like to be disturbed would definitely live on an island away from the crowds so they can live in peace and never worry about outside interference from others."

Luna said "Indeed, sister. While this creature is a threat, it is very smart for him to be alone on an island if he doesn't want company. I can only hope that he would be less aggressive towards us."

Celestia said "I hope so as well, Luna. But he is probably not expecting us, so he might just be as hostile as he was to the Mane Six. But this creature shouldn't really stand a chance against the rulers of Equestria." If only she knew what she was really going up against.

Knuckles was busy inside exercising in his personal home gym. He might be really strong, but he needed to stay in shape whenever he fought enemies, especially ones that were really dangerous, such as ones that could wield powerful magic or try to kill him with the sword. He was currently bench-pressing 1,200 pounds and doing 600 reps in sets of 60. You would think he would be sweating like a pig, but was barely breaking a sweat. Part of his supernatural abilities was it being able to keep his sweat levels down so he wouldn't create a puddle on the ground of his sweat.

The point was that he was really strong and was easily over three times the record here in Equestria. So much so that even the most athletic ponies would be embarrassed at how much he could lift. He got up from the bench and used one of the towels to wipe the sweat off of his face. He might not get it from his armpits, but it had to go somewhere, so it would often appear on his forehead whenever he was doing his workouts. He heard his cell phone ring and he answered it.

Knuckles said "What is it, Malcolm? I'm currently in the middle of a workout right now and I usually do not like to be disturbed." Whenever he did workouts, he would usually like to blast very loud Skillet music on his speakers in the room and remove all distractions in the room so he could focus.

Malcolm said "I apologize for the interruption sir, but there is someone at the door."

Knuckles rolled his eyes and said "It better not be those six ponies again. I swear, if they are at my door, I am seriously going to give it to them."

Malcolm said "It is not sir, but it looks like these are even more important ponies."

Knuckles seemed curious at that and said "Oh? Who might that be?" If more important ponies were here, then it would be key for him to let them know that he does not wish to be disturbed and be left in peace.

Malcolm said "I think it's best if you take a look for yourself, sir."

Knuckles sighed and grumbled a bit. He had been enjoying his workout and now he had to pause it because more ponies were at his door. He said "Alright. I'm coming up. Just give me a minute." He hung up the phone and set it down. He was about to head out, but he figured that he needed to change his clothes and put on some deodorant to look more presentable. The last thing he wanted was to stink in front of guests. He might not have liked to have company around, but he knew about proper hospitality when guests were over.

After throwing on a change of clothes and spraying on some deodorant, he went upstairs to the security room and saw who it was at the front doors. He said "Huh. I did not expect them to show up. No matter though. I will dispose of them just as easily as I did with those six ponies." He pressed a button and the security camera launched two tranquillizers at Celestia and Luna, which knocked the two unconscious. He pulled the lever as well and the two princesses fell through the hole. "Alright. I'll be back, Malcolm. Just gotta take out the trash again."

Down below, the two princesses stirred and got up. Luna said with anger "How dare that creature shoot us with tranquillizers to put us to sleep and then trap us in this random place!"

Celestia got the tranquillizers off and said "Luna, this shouldn't come as a surprise to us. He did not expect us to come and he simply acted in retaliation. He probably felt threatened and sent us down here to see what it is what we want from him."

Luna huffed in anger and said "If you say so, sister. But he is getting no sympathy from me."

Knuckles said "Well, those six ponies sent the rulers of Equestria because they were beaten. How pathetic."

Celestia and Luna turned their attention to his voice and the latter said with fury "Who said that?! Show yourself at once, creature!"

Knuckles chuckled a bit and said "Now, now, princess. Now is not the time for violence. I simply saw you show up to my house and I wanted to have a chat."

Celestia raised a brow and asked "By shooting us with tranquillizers?"

Knuckles said "Of course. I didn't know what you were planning, so I had to do that and send you down here so that I knew you wouldn't try to harm me."

Luna didn't care about that and said with anger "You will pay for capturing the Princess of the Night!" Luna charged up her horn at Knuckles and Knuckles only shook his head.

Knuckles charged up his red lightning and said "If that is what you want." Before either of them could charge at one another, Celestia stopped them.

She said "Enough! Luna, fighting him in combat is not going to help things! And you! What exactly are your plans for Equestria?! Are you going to harm my little ponies?!"

Knuckles smiled and said "I have no such intention. As long as I am left alone, your ponies will be spared. You leave me alone, then we won't have problems. If you provoke me, then we are going to have issues."

Celestia hardened her gaze and asked "Why are you even here in Equestria? I can tell you are not from here nor have I ever seen something like you."

Knuckles glared at her and said "Last time I checked princess, this is my home and I can reside here if I so choose. It's quite comical if you ask me. I have lived here for five years and you have never noticed. But as soon as those six ponies got their ass beat, then you suddenly pay attention. Sad really."

Both Celestia and Luna seemed surprised at him saying that he has lived here for five years and they knew he was right. They never noticed until the Mane Six mentioned it within the last day or so.

Celestia asked "Alright, if you have been living here for five years, then how did you get here?"

Knuckles said "I do not know, princess. I was just sitting in my room one day and then I showed up here. That's how it's been ever since."

Luna asked "And what of this "ultimate power" you speak of? Do you plan on taking over Equestria?!"

Knuckles glared at her and said "Absolutely not! As I told those six ponies before, that is none of your business. It is something only my tribe has known and only those who are part of it can know. Our duty has always been to protect it, not to use it for evil. But a certain group seemed to not see that. However, they are long gone and now it is my responsibility to find it before anyone else does."

Celestia said "If that is what you wish, then we will not press any further on that question. We will take our leave now and you better not hurt my little ponies again or else you'll face consequences that not even your powers could save you from."

Knuckles said "Wouldn't dream of it. As long as I am left in peace, you have nothing to worry about. So, you can get out now."

Celestia asked "Do you mind telling us where the exit is?"

Knuckles said "Turn around behind you and if just keep walking straight, you'll get there." Celestia and Luna did so and after a few seconds, Knuckles teleported them out of there by snapping his fingers. He felt satisfied and let out a sigh of relief. "Finally those ponies are gone. Hopefully, they will be the last ones that ever show up to my house and I can live forever alone in peace. I'm starting to get hungry, so I think I'll have a snack." He turned around and left towards the kitchen.

Outside, both of them were not happy at him teleporting them outside. Luna said "He did the exact same thing as he did for Twilight and her friends! I swear, I have never met a creature that rude in my life. He better keep his word or else I'm going to give it to him."

Celestia said "I'm mostly sure he will, Luna. He could be lying, but he seemed pretty serious about not conquering Equestria. The only thing he seemed focused on was to find an ancient treasure that was within his family, which is nothing too bad. However, he needs to be careful because certain artifacts can overwhelm wielders and cause them to turn evil. Let's just hope that isn't the case."

The two of them headed back to Canterlot and after another few hours, they returned to the city successfully. The Mane Six were waiting for them in the castle and Twilight asked "How did it go, Princesses? Were you able to get any information out of him?"

Celestia said "I'm afraid we didn't have much success either. He mostly just told us the same stuff he told you all. Very vague and evasive. It looks like we may have hit a dead end on this one."

Luna added "He may have improved slightly in attitude because we were there, but he was still very aggressive and hostile towards us regardless."

Rainbow said "Well, that just sucks. I was looking forward to knowing why he was even here in Equestria in the first place."

Celestia said "However, there was something interesting we did get out of him."

All of their ears perked up at that and Twilight asked "What would that be, Princess?"

Celestia said "He told us that he had been living in Equestria for five years and no one seemed to notice he was there until you all showed up at his house. Unfortunately, he said he couldn't remember how he got here, but he didn't seem to care that he was here. Also, he said that he had no intention of threatening Equestria as long as he is not disturbed. But we have no idea if he is actually being truthful about that."

Applejack asked "What exactly could make him say he's bein' truthful?"

Celestia said "Well, he said that his tribe's duty was to protect the artifact that was known as the "ultimate power," and not to use that for evil. However, he said that a certain group didn't seem to understand that and stole it from him. So, now it was his responsibility to find this artifact and restore his legacy."

Rainbow said "He told us that "Flash Magnus and his people" were the sworn enemy of his tribe. Could this be the same group he was talking to you guys about?"

Celestia and Luna looked at each other and realized that Rainbow may have been onto something. Luna said "Starswirl never mentioned anything about stealing an artifact nor fighting a tribe. But neither of us did read his journal, so we have no clue about that."

Fluttershy asked with curiosity "So, what happens now?"

Celestia sighed and said "Well, it's best we leave him alone for now as he has made it clear he does not want to be interrupted, but we should just keep an eye on him just in case he decides to try something."

Everypony agreed that was the best course of action and the Mane Six left Canterlot to return home to Ponyville. As the train was going along, Twilight was staring out the window thinking about this entire situation. This creature had been really aggressive towards all of them, but maybe there was something more going on that she didn't know about. What if Fluttershy was right? What if he had been suffering through years of pain and didn't want to be around anyone?

Twilight had her fair share of tragic events, but she had always managed to push through regardless. She always had a support system since birth, but maybe Knuckles didn't have that. He could have had no one throughout his life to support him and he chose to be alone so he could ignore it. Maybe Knuckles was not as bad as they all thought he was. Twilight still didn't know what to do about it, but she would truly like to know more about him so she could figure out why he has become the man he is today. She just needed to figure out how to do it. It wasn't going to be easy, but she would find a way no matter what. It didn't matter to her what it would take, but she would get her answers regardless of what Knuckles thought. She could definitely guarantee that.

Author's Note

AN: Happy 4th of July everyone! It's wonderful living in the country called the United States of America where we can celebrate our freedom and live freely without government intervention. If you live in Britain, I hope you aren't offended by that. Anyways, I'm not happy with how things are going in our country right now, but I'm not ashamed to be an American. Enjoy the freedom while you still can because it will not last forever. In the words of Ronald Reagan himself, "Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people." Hope you enjoy your 4th of July and the chapter!

Next Chapter: More Investigation! After gathering intel from Celestia and Luna, Twilight begins to wonder if there is more to Knuckles than what they have all presumed. She is still skeptical about him, but she wants to find out more about him so she could get to know him. It won't be easy though as he made it clear he doesn't want company at all. Will Twilight be able to get him to talk, or will Knuckles still refuse to mention anything about himself?

Until then, my fellow readers

Chapter 16: The Highest Authority Steps In

Note: This chapter's been slightly modified because I didn't calculate my math properly and I had to rework it for it to make sense. Enjoy the chapter!

[Insert Slow Fade by Casting Crowns for Opening Song]

Saying that things got worse would be a massive understatement. Some might think that people or in this case, ponies, would come together to support one another after a terrible tragedy occurred. You would be wrong. In fact, most of the time, they often grow cold and distant towards one another and distance themselves further apart from each other. Some might ask why people or ponies would do that to each other and the answer to that is... complicated. The best answer that can be given is it's just part of sin.

You would think that they would be united after something like that, but they would do quite the opposite. The best reason why is because they all feel an influx of emotions and that typically causes irrationality to be thrown around a lot. They often want to blame each other and insult one another because they don't know how to properly deal with this. This was exactly how the Mane Six became after the death of Knuckles. They grew cold towards one another and would insult each other because of how conflicted they felt about his death.

For example, they would constantly throw insults at one another and even purposefully pulled things on one another as a way of revenge. So, Rainbow would be walking down the street one day, and Applejack would stick out her hoof which would cause Rainbow to trip and fall. This group did everything imaginable that you could think of. It was even worse than the Ravens vs. Steelers rivalry that would occur twice a year. To put it into context, they insulted each other with slanderous words, pulled cheap tricks upon one another, and went as far as destroying personal property. I'm not just talking personal items, I also mean buildings as well. Yes, they were this cruel to each other and it was hard to watch.

The weeks turned into months which eventually turned into years and all of Ponyville had to watch this divide going on. Most ponies didn't want to get themselves involved since most of the time it was just insults and cheap tricks, but they did find it extremely concerning that all of this was happening on a very frequent basis. As time went on, they got more and more worried that things would turn ugly and all of them would be in danger from a national security standpoint because they had destroyed their friendship.

Twilight didn't even bother coming out at all during this time period, she just stayed in her castle the entire time, but her friends were mostly the ones that kept spreading the divide even further. Eventually, it all came to a boiling point and they all met out in the fields at night time where they wouldn't have to worry about anyone trying to break things up. They hated each other's guts at this point and they were going to settle this issue once and for all.

They all met up and they began to talk smack in order to get the mood set. As insults were being thrown around, they all got angrier and angrier until it turned into a full on fight. Discord hadn't even changed them and they were still acting like this. They threw nasty hits on each other and anyone who would see this would think it was like a dogfight going on. As they continued to fight, they became even more enraged and their voices started to carry into town. Then all of a sudden, a voice yelled out "ENOUGH!" and everypony stopped what they were doing.

They turned around to see a very pissed off Princess Luna who was giving them the death glare and she couldn't concentrate on her duties because of all the yelling going on. She said with anger "Is this what all of you have come to?! Fighting amongst one another and trying to tear each other down?! You barely even knew this creature and yet, you're willing to throw away your friendship over that?!"

None of them dared to say a word to her because they knew that doing so would only make things worse. Luna softened her tone a bit and said "Listen, I understand all of you are going through a tough time right now, but that does not mean you treat each other as the enemy and resort to violence as the solution to your problems. You're supposed to work it out together, not figure it out yourselves. Now, this problem has become a national security issue and you must resolve it quickly before we are all doomed. You are to go to Canterlot in the morning and seek counseling from my sister. Is that clear?!"

They tried to protest that idea, but Luna stopped them and said "That wasn't a request, that's an order. Now, go to bed before things get even worse." They grumbled at that remark, but they complied and went their separate ways. Later that night, Twilight was walking through the city of Baltimore and watching people go by through the city. This was a dream of course and Twilight didn't exactly realize it at first. She didn't get in the mess with her friends had earlier in the night, but she was still just as bitter and distant as the rest of them.

As she was walking along, she heard a bunch of tire noises down the street. She looked to see where it was coming from and saw that Dodge Charger again flying down the road with the police right behind. She looked to the right and noticed the truck that was sitting at the red light. At that moment, she knew where she was and what was going to happen next. Twilight tried to run out onto the street and she put up a shield to stop the car. But, the car went right through the shield as if it didn't exist and smashed right into the truck on Maddi's side.

Twilight was absolutely shell shocked that this criminal sped right through a shield like it wasn't even there and still ended up causing that accident. The scenery suddenly changed to the decks leading out to the harbor and things were dead quiet. Twilight was confused about the scenery change, but she suddenly heard a voice that said "It is nice to finally meet you, Princess Twilight Sparkle." Twilight turned around and saw a girl standing right there with a smile on her face.

Twilight gasped and said "You're Maddi, Knuckles' girlfriend."

Maddi nodded and said "Indeed I am. A very brilliant observation. Caleb must have told you about me. That's like him to do that. But I did not come here to talk about how wonderful my boyfriend was. I want to ask you Princess Twilight, why has a rift begun to form between you and your friends?"

Twilight sighed and said "It's complicated. Normally, my friends were able to get past any conflict that we faced, but we have not been able to conquer this one ever since Knuckles died a year and a half ago. He was not always the nicest to my friends or even me, but he was there when it counted the most. I never thought that something like this would tear me up so much nor would it be for my friends. I just don't feel like they truly understand that pain since they didn't really seem to care about him until the day he died."

Maddi thought about it for a second and said "Do you now understand how Caleb felt after he lost me in a car accident?"

Twilight said "Of course I do, but even so, that is not even a sliver of everything that he ever experienced in his life. It's less than a tenth of the pain and suffering he has had to endure and he did not deserve to die that way. I understand he was not the best individual, but he was one that can express emotions the same way the rest of us can. His life was cruelly taken away before any of us could fully realize it."

Maddi gave it some thought and said "Caleb is not dead. He is alive."

Twilight's eyes widened in surprise and she said in denial "No, that can't be right. I literally saw him get blasted by Tirek's magic with my own two eyes! There's no way he could still be alive!"

Maddi said "Allow me to show you." She pointed towards the wall of a building and it showed Knuckles still walking around doing daily activities in his mansion outside Baltimare. As Twilight watched, her mind started to get blown that something like this could have even happened, but she still found it very difficult to believe. There's no way that he would lie like this, right? That would be considered being a terrible friend.

She looked at Maddi and said "There's no possible way that could be the case. He is almost 30 years old and that montage could be from any point in his adult life. There's just no way."

Maddi said "I can assure you that he is very much alive, but his heart in an emotional sense is still completely dead. I have only one request for you Princess Twilight, if you end up together, take good care of him for me."

Twilight blushed quite a bit at that remark and she tried to look away in embarrassment. She said "He doesn't even like me that much. I'm barely holding onto him as a friend, a relationship would be even worse."

Maddi said "Yes, but have you not seen how much he's changed since you entered his life? I haven't seen him like this since the day of my death over five years ago. I see the look in his eyes when he looks at you. You brought something back to him that I had previously left behind after my death. Don't underestimate yourself Twilight and try to amend that friendship you have with your friends. It is something beyond anything I ever seen and it's vital to keeping your homeland safe. My friendship with Caleb was lost after I died, but yours still has the chance to succeed. Don't dishonor Caleb's wish. He was already crushed enough as it was. He would hate himself even more if you dismantled your friendship because of him."

Twilight said "But he never really seemed to change that much over the course of my time with him. How could you possibly know that he has changed a lot?"

Maddi laughed a little bit and said "Caleb was never one to show his emotions a lot because he didn't want to look vulnerable towards others. I loved that about him and when the time came to cry, I was there for him except after I died. Then he had no one to lean towards. Because of that, he tends to hide his emotions a lot and try to act tough so no one can suspect anything. But underneath is the most loyal, compassionate, caring person I had ever met and I would have loved to marry him, but he never got the opportunity to propose which crushed him dearly. We had a future planned out, but God had different plans, so it's something we all must learn with. Until we meet again, Princess Twilight Sparkle."

She started to fade away into the background before she totally disappeared. Twilight was left there trying to figure out what she was going to do next and she was thinking about Maddi's words to her. There was a lot to take in and it would take some time to figure out where her next path will go.

Meanwhile, Knuckles was walking through some hallway and he noticed that he was in his old elementary school, Stoneleigh Elementary School, in Baltimore, MD. He saw a bunch of little kids walking through hallways as normal and it brought back a sense of nostalgia to him which left a smile on his face. He had always been great with little kids despite them being very crazy a lot.

Suddenly, a bunch of alarms went off and kids were running into the classrooms as fast as they could. The teachers rushed them all in and shut the doors. Knuckles was confused and ran into one of the classrooms to see what the deal was. He saw the kids hiding in the corner and they were scared out of their minds. The lights suddenly turned off and it left Knuckles confused. He heard very loud banging outside the door and then he heard gunfire. Knuckles turned around and saw out the window that there was a guy with a gun in there trying to kill people for whatever reason.

Knuckles now realized that he was reliving the active shooter incident as part of the mass shootings in schools around Baltimore that had occurred throughout the year. He then heard the door bust open and the shooter start firing rounds at people. He ducked underneath the teacher's desk to avoid the bullets, but he found someone else hiding there as well. He went to talk to the kid, but something seemed familiar about him.

Before he could say anything, he noticed that the kid looked familiar and then it clicked it for him. This kid was him a long time ago. He was six at the time of this attack and was currently going through first grade at that time. He then remembered that he had to watch his classmates die right next to him and having their dead bodies on the ground. It didn't help later that night when he found out that his uncle and cousin had been killed in Operation Desert Storm and the whole tribe had to receive the news. So, not only did he deal with a mass shooter, he also lost his uncle and cousin on that same day across the pond in Kuwait.

Suddenly, he heard a voice say "It was such a shame that happened to you when you were so young. I wish I was there to comfort you at the time." He turned around and saw Maddi standing there which left him speechless. He didn't know what to say. He has not seen her face to face in over five years and even though it's a dream, it felt so real. After a few seconds, Knuckles ran over to Maddi and hugged her very tightly.

He had deeply missed her and even though it was a dream, it felt real to him. He said "I've missed you so much, Maddi. Life has been so tough without you."

Maddi smiled and said "It's great to see you as well, but what is troubling you, Caleb?"

Knuckles raised a brow and asked "What do you mean?"

Maddi said "I know when something is troubling you and you should know by now that you can't hide anything from me. I'd hate to say it this way, but you are a terrible liar."

Knuckles sighed and said "I don't know, Maddi. I guess I just feel guilty bailing on Princess Twilight and her friends like that. I came up with some bull[BLEEP] story to them and then escaped at the last moment. They still think I'm dead and it's tearing their friendship apart. I haven't really cared about that most of my life, but since this was a direct result of my actions, it makes it my problem. It's my fault that their friendship is being torn apart."

Maddi pulled him close to her and said "Caleb, listen. It is not your fault. Sure, what you did might not have been the greatest idea, but they chose to isolate themselves instead of coming together and forging their friendship even stronger than before. In no way is that your fault."

Knuckles said "Yeah, but it was still wrong of me to do that to them like that. I despised friendship ever since you died five years ago and now all of a sudden, I seem to care what is going to happen to their friendship. How did that even happen?"

Maddi said "I see. Caleb, I have known you for almost 10 years and never have I seen you this torn apart. Ever since I left you, you have completely isolated yourself from anyone and have done everything on your own. But when Twilight came into your life, something changed in you. Something that I have not seen in five years. You were able to smile again, laugh again, and talk to others again. But then you ran away. Why would you do that?"

Knuckles sighed again and said "At this point, I don't really know why. I've always have felt like I was a burden to them and it was like that most of the time. Most of them hated my guts and looking back on it, they had good reason to. I treated them like complete crap and they returned fire. All except for Twilight. She didn't seem to return the hostility at me at all. She scolded me when it was necessary, but not once did she ever degrade me or insult me in a degrading manner which really shocked me. How could someone like her be that kind to me?"

Maddi tried to come up with an answer and said "Caleb, let me ask you this: Do you think that Twilight would do that because she saw a broken individual inside the same way I did when I met you freshman year of high school?"

Knuckles thought about it and said "Yeah, I guess so. But she could never replace you and to be quite honest, I don't know what my relationship with her is at this point. It's just a mixed bag of all sorts of [BLEEP] inside."

Maddi said "Don't you think that maybe she's doing it because she cares about you? Caleb, listen. I have watched you be miserable for the last five years and not once did I ever see an individual like that change someone so much that he started to feel free again after his girlfriend's death. Twilight is considered a valuable asset to you. You're right, she may never replace me, but at least she cares about you. You already lost me in that accident, you don't want to lose her as well."

Knuckles sighed and said "I wish you were here right now to help me solve this complicated issue."

Maddi smiled and said "I am here. Talking to you right now."

Knuckles gave her a deadpan stare and said "I meant in a physical sense. Sure, I could talk to you in my dreams, but that doesn't help with my real world issues."

Maddi said "Caleb, I want you to know something: I am always with you. I might not physically be there anymore in your life, but I will always be with you and so will God. I will never leave you nor abandon you. I will always be here so that you can talk to me. Never forget that. I love you, Caleb Brody."

Knuckles smiled and said "I love you too, Madilynn Miller." The two of them came closer to one another and gave a passionate kiss as one final goodbye to each other. Maddi started to fade into the background before she completely disappeared. Knuckles sighed and began to walk home. The dream ended and Knuckles woke up quickly. He looked around and remembered that it was a dream. He sighed and said "I now know what I need to do."

The next morning, most of the Mane Six were at the train station and were waiting for the train to arrive. Also, just to make sure that they would not back out at the last minute, Luna sent guards down there to make sure they did as they were instructed. They showed the tickets to the conductor and they went to sit down in their seats. They were still mad at each other from the night before and did not speak a word to one another.

After a little bit, they finally made it to Canterlot and they all got off the train. There were guards waiting for them right there and they got escorted inside the castle. The guards opened the doors to the throne room and then quickly left. Celestia stepped down from her throne and asked the group in front of her "Where is Twilight? I expected her to be here as well. I cannot start this without her. I need all six present."

The group just did a bunch of shrugs and idks to her and this frustrated Celestia. She sighed and said "Okay. I'll be right back. This shouldn't take long." She teleported out of the castle and right into Twilight's personal bedroom. Thankfully, she wasn't in a compromising position and was still sleeping. She cleared her throat and said "Twilight."

Twilight suddenly woke up in surprise and then saw Celestia in her bedroom. She was quite annoyed and said "Princess, what are you doing in my bedroom?! It's quite early in the morning and it's very rude to invade somepony's privacy like that."

Celestia gave her a deadpan stare and said "It's 10 in the morning. That's not late. Anyway, I need you in Canterlot as soon as possible."

Twilight raised a brow and asked "What for?"

Celestia said "Something very serious is going on and it requires your presence. Your friends are already there and are waiting."

Twilight wasn't too fond of that and said "Why do they have to be involved?"

Celestia sighed and said "Twilight, this is very important. So, please put aside your personal feelings about this and help us all out. I'm not going to ask you again. Is that clear?"

Twilight rolled her eyes and said "Yes, princess."

Celestia said "Good. Now get ready so we can head out. We don't have much time left. This issue is getting worse as time goes on. I'll be waiting outside."

Twilight sighed and did as she was told. After she was done, she went out and the two of them went back to Canterlot. Celestia said "Okay, now that all of you are here, I must address the current issue that we are facing."

Twilight raised a brow and asked "What exactly is this issue?"

Celestia looked at her and said "Your friendship. That is the issue." All of them started to protest about that issue, but Luna told them to be quiet. Celestia said "Listen, I know that you all don't like this idea, but this cannot continue. It is in great danger and it is what keeps our homeland safe. If it goes extinct, we would have lost Equestria's primary and most important defense system against foreign threats."

Twilight was very resistant to this and said "Pardon my rudeness Princess, but this isn't something that can be resolved with overnight. It has been a year and a half since Knuckles bitterly died the way he did and he unintentionally left a devastating effect in the process. If you want us to resolve our friendship, you have quite the battle to fight because it will be a tough uphill battle." The rest of her friends agreed and for the first time in a year and a half, they all agreed on something.

Celestia stood there in silence for a moment to try to think what she wanted to say and she said "I see. Well, I'm not expecting you to fix it overnight, but in order to do so, you must at least talk. All I ask of you all is just to talk it out. That's all. Nothing more. Nothing less."

Rainbow was the first one to speak up and she said "Well, I don't appreciate all the dirty cheap shots I have received over the last year and a half."

Applejack fired right back and said "As if ya never did them yerself either. Ah don't know if ya know this Rainbow, but ya ain't that innocent either."

Rarity jumped in and said "Oh really, Applejack? You are just as brutal as Rainbow when it comes to insults. Don't try to play innocent here!"

Rainbow looked at Applejack and Rarity with anger and said "Oh, so it's always my fault. You two never take the blame for anything bad that happens. It's always me! Maybe if you would admit you were wrong sometimes, we wouldn't have all these issues come up!"

Rarity scoffed at that and said "As if you don't do that yourself. How you described the rest of us is exactly how you are all the time! We don't nearly do it as much as you do! It's basically your entire personality!"

Rainbow growled at that and looked at Fluttershy. She said "What about you?! You always seem to stay quiet the entire time and never say one d[BLEEP] thing!"

Fluttershy got highly offended at the remark and said "I don't always need to say anything, Rainbow Dash! And don't you dare curse at me like that! You should know better than to use such foul language!"

Pinkie jumped in and said "It never helps when the rest of you keep bickering back and forth all the time and being so negative!"

Applejack glared at her and said "Well, do ya expect us all to just not think about it at all?! It ain't that easy, Pinkie! Not everythin' in life is all rainbows and unicorns! Times get tough and there's nothin' you can do about it!"

They continued to go at it with each other and Twilight was only getting more frustrated as time went on. "My friendship with Caleb was lost after I died, but yours still has the chance to succeed. Don't dishonor Caleb's wish. He was already crushed enough as it was. He would hate himself even more if you dismantled your friendship because of him." That quote rang in Twilight's head and it finally clicked for her. She now knew what to do in order to defuse the situation.

She looked at them with anger and yelled "ENOUGH!" All of them stopped arguing and stared at her with shock. They had annoyed looks at her, but Twilight wasn't going to take it. "Is this what we have all come to?! I understand that this is tough on all of us, but we can't keep going on like this. Maddi was right. She said our friendship was extremely valuable to protecting our homeland and if we dismantled it, it would only make Knuckles feel even more guilty."

No one was daring to say anything at all, so they made sure to keep quiet when Twilight was speaking and when she was done, then they could share their thoughts.

Twilight sighed and said "Let me put it into perspective: How would you all feel if one of us suddenly passed away and we would have to move on without them? Would you stay strong or completely crumble beneath the darkness?" They all said they would stay strong, but Twilight knew it was more complicated than that. She said "It's easy to say that, but if you were actually to go through it, you would say a very different answer. Let me put it this way: Knuckles always tried to stay strong on the outside when Maddi passed away, but on the inside, he's completely crumbled and his heart has turned as cold as ice."

The rest of them could see that analogy and they understood what Twilight was saying. It's easy to stay strong on the outside, but be totally weak on the inside.

Twilight continued and said "How would you feel if your parents constantly abused you for 24 years straight, praising your siblings' accomplishments while ignoring your own, blame you for everything that goes wrong in the world, and nearly get killed after your only support system died in a car accident? That's what Knuckles had to go through in his life. He didn't have a support system for most of that time and when he got one in high school, it was ripped away from him after college. It should make us all fortunate that we didn't have to go through that in our lives because not everyone is considered lucky."

The group thought about how their childhood was growing up and none of them could ever compare theirs to his in the slightest extent, except maybe Twilight, but even that came with limitations.

Twilight sighed and said "It took me a while to realize this, but Knuckles sacrificed himself for us. What would he say if he saw all of us bickering like this? We all dishonored his wish and if he were here right now, he would tell us to continue living our lives and protecting Equestria without him. I know that he was not perfect by any means, but he was there when it counted the most and that's what's important. It will take some time to move on from this, but with time, it should get better. He helped us defeat Tirek and it's up to us to keep Equestria safe. We will all miss him dearly, but he will always be with us on the inside. So, we should put our differences aside and forge our friendship back together. What do you say?"

It was completely silent and Twilight was starting to get worried. Before she could walk away though, Fluttershy was the first one to step up and said "I'm with you, Twilight."

Applejack followed behind and said "Yeah, Ahm with ya as well, Twilight. Knuckles would want us to stay together."

Rarity was next and said "I also agree with everypony else here. We should not fight amongst one another and continue to be friends."

Rainbow followed up and said "Yeah, we were all disloyal to Knuckles for not honoring his wish, but we now have the chance to make it right."

Pinkie was the last to join in and said "I'm in!"

They all went in for the group hug and reconciled. Celestia smiled and said "Well done, my little ponies. I do understand that this was tough on you all and your friendship could have ended, but you chose to stick together and put it back together."

Twilight smiled as well and said "Thanks princess. All of us have some serious work to do, but as long as we all stick together, no foe will ever be able to take us down and in case we might feel sad about Knuckles, we can just remember that he is still with us and he died so that we may live." The rest of them agreed on that and went in for another hug.

After a little bit, they headed back on the train to Ponyville and they had very good conversation for the first time in a year and a half. They still had a long way to go on the road to recovery, but this was a good start for them. The road might still get bumpy, but as long as they remembered the promise from Knuckles, they would be okay and make it out of any challenge.

Author's Note

AN: I apologize for this chapter being so late, but I have been so busy over the last few weeks that I just haven't had any time to do it, but it is out now. I want to say real quick for those that live in the UK, I give you my deepest apologies for the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. I was against the monarchy personally, but I still respected the Queen because she was a great ally to the United States. We were there when she needed us and she was there when we needed her like when she made Buckingham Palace play the Star Spangled Banner after the horrific events of 9/11. She will live a great legacy behind. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: The Return! Some more time passes after the reconciliation of the Mane Six in Canterlot and their friendship gets rekindled to its former glory. When the Summer Sun Celebration comes around, something big will happen and a certain someone will return to Twilight. Will their surprise return shock Twilight, or will she see it coming from a mile away?

Until then, my fellow readers