A Symphony of Frost and Flameby Heavy Weapons GuyChaptersThe Frozen ThroneThe Crystal EmpireApologiesCanterlot CastlePonyvilleThe Frozen ThroneA Symphony of Frost and Flame Frigid winds howled around the menacing spire known as Icecrown Citadel, Tirion Fordring spoke to his men "Rise up Argent Crusaders! The hour of justice has come!" ********************************** I walked towards the pedestal that held my blade, Frostmourne. I heard troubled spirits howling around the chamber and around the blade. Many spirits took form around me, My father, King Teranas appeared before me. "Can you feel it my son?... closing in all around you..... the Light's justice has been awakened. The sins of the past have finally caught up to you.... You will be called to account, for all the atrocities you committed... For the unspeakable horrors you let loose on this world..... and the dark, ancient powers you enslaved! Though my soul was the first was one of the first to be devoured by your evil, There are thousands more bound within this blade!... And they cry out for release.... "Look now to your defenses my son! For the Champions of Justice gather at your gates! The spirits vanished as I gripped Frostmourne. "Let them come....Frostmourne hungers...." ************************************************************* I stood around the fallen champions of the light, The results of battle evident. Corpses, the signs of my victory littered the top of Icecrown Citadel. Dark clouds were swirling around the spire creating a frigid whirlwind of air. I raised Frostmourne into the air, and spoke as I began to channel unholy energy into the champions who stood up to me. "No questions remain unanswered. No doubts linger. You truly are Azeroth's greatest champions. You overcame every challenge I laid before you. My mightiest servants have fallen before your relentless onslaught, Your unbridled fury. Is it truly righteousness that drives you?... I wonder..." I turned to Tirion, frozen in his block of ice. "You trained them well Fordring. You delivered the greatest fighting force this world has ever known.. Right into my hands, exactly as I intended. You shall be rewarded for your unwitting sacrafice..." I turned away from him "Watch now, as I raise them from the dead, to become masters of the Scourge. They will shroud this world in chaos, and destruction. Azeroth's fall will come at their hands... and you, will be the first to die. I chuckled triumphantly. "I delight in the Irony." I hear a faint cracking behind me, I paid it no heed. "ARRRGGHHH" *BOOOOM* Tirion had struck Frostmourne and to my utter disbelief my beloved Runeblade, Frostmourne shattered before my eyes. "Impossible..." "No more Arthas! No more lives will be consumed by your hatred!" The imprisoned spirits inside Frostmourne burst forth and I was lifted into the air. They spun me in circles. I was unable to move. A single form appeared from the swirling mass of spirits. My father. "Free! At last!" "It is over my son...This is the moment of reckoning!" "Rise Up, Champions Of The Light!" My father revived the champions and once they recovered from the shock they quickly resumed the assault. Tirion roared one last time. "The Lich King...MUST...FALL"** "Now I stand. The lion before the lambs. And they do not fear..." "They cannot fear..." The spirits swirling around me grew brighter and changed into a grand gold color. I felt my body tense as I felt my power leave me, pain became the main sensation throughout my body. The sound that came from me next was laced with agony,The deepest soul-shattering cry a man or equine would have the misfortune of hearing. The crusaders faltered for a moment, but as I fell to the ground, My vision turned black, and I knew nothing. The Crystal EmpireThe Crystal Empire I awoke half covered in snow, For the first time in years, I felt cold. With great effort I managed to get to my feet. I couldn't see 15 feet in any direction due to the howling snow blocking any sort of long distance sight. I was thinking clearly for the first time in years. I had lost my previous possessions and all I had in this blizzard was a simple leather tunic. I was not going to last long out in the blizzard so I started trudging through knee deep snow in one particular direction. I walked for what seemed like hours in the frigid cold, I was losing willpower fast. I did not understand how I was so weak. "Is this my punishment?" The irony of it all was absurd, The previous King of Northrend and master of all things dead freezing in a blizzard. I fell to my knees and cradled my arms around my body in a vain effort to prevent myself from freezing. I looked up and I thought I could make out a particular figure in the distance. "Over here!" I yelled out. Can't believe I had to call for help... I thought The figure seemed to notice and it got closer to me. It seemed... Equine? I lost the energy to hold myself up and fell forward face hitting the snow. Shining Armour was out looking for the one pony who had managed to bypass his shield spell. "When I find King Sombra I am going to make him pay for what he's done." Cadence was busy trying to maintain her shield spell so that King Sombra couldn't get into the Empire. I heard a voice shout in the blizzard. "Over here!" "Who else could be out in this blizzard?" I approached the source of the voice cautiously and was surprised to say the least. A creature I had never seen before laid face down in the snow. it looked about half frozen to death. It didn't look dangerous so I got closer and asked. "Are you awake?" I received no response so I levitated it and noticed that it's face was flat, it had a grey mane and it seemed to be a bipedal creature. Cautiously I touched the creature's neck where I assumed I would find a pulse. I did not. "It can't possibly have died so quickly... Whatever this is, I have to get it back to the Crystal Empire." I focused my magic and teleported back to the Palace. I appeared outside the palace and trotted through the gate. "Cadence I found something." ********************************************************** I awoke in a rather large bed and looked around. "It's been awhile since I have ever needed sleep..." I slowly got out of bed and walked around curiously. "Where in Azeroth am I?" I stood confused for several moments until I heard the door open and gave a dumbfounded expression at who stood in front of me. "Oh you're awake." The unicorn's coat was pure white and its mane had different accents of blue in it. Due to my unchanging expression he spoke again. "You can understand me right?..." I raised an eyebrow, "Where am I and how are you speaking to me right now." The unicorn returned my expression, "You are in The Crystal Empire, and all ponies can speak." "Ponies?...." "Where is this Crystal Empire you're talking about?" "Hmm, I can understand why some wouldn't know about it. It was lost for one thousand years before it reappeared. its on the northern border of Equestria." I gave him a frustrated expression, "Where in Azeroth is "Equestria"?" He gave me that same confused expression when a pink "pony" with wings and a horn walked through the door. "Hello, are you okay?" I gave one look at the winged unicorn and decided this was not the best time to be confused. I ran a hand over my face, "I am Arthas, what are your names?" "I am Shining Armour" The stallion responded, "And I am Princess Cadence" said the mare. I couldn't help but notice they both looked like they hadn't slept easy in days. "Is there any problems you may be dealing with at the moment? Unfortunately, I do not know anything about the land I am currently in." Shining and Cadence glanced at each other and they both nodded slightly. "There is a problem that has been troubling us for days now, There is this pony named King Sombra who is trying to break through my wife's shield and enslave the ponies of the Crystal Empire." I nodded thoughtfully, "Unfortunately, I am not new to violence, I know my way in and out of a fight. But without my... Gear... I won't be as effective as I could be." "Well take any help we can get." I nodded, "How come you two are the only... ponies I have met so far?" "Thats part of the problem, The ponies in the Crystal Empire can't remember who they are due to King Sombras dark magic." My brow furrowed in thought, "Surely you two can't be the only ones who wish to stop him" "We aren't, my sister and her friends The Elements of Harmony are on their way now." "I have heard of stranger forces." "Elements of Harmony?" "Long story short, they have saved Equestria three times now." I nodded again. "This is all very strange to me." Cadence smiled encouragingly and asked, "We've told you a bit about us. Would you mind tell us a bit about yourself?" I flinched, "Unfortunately I would prefer not to speak of my past at this current moment." "Ah, We understand." "When will the Elements be arriving?" "They should be here soon, I should get ready to meet them at the station." "I'll come with you." I said. "No, It's to dangerous out there." I scoffed internally. "I assure you I can handle myself out there." The glare he received was enough to convince him of the truth. "If you say so, Though I have to warn you, my sister Twilight can be quite the inquisitive one." I nodded and turned to Cadence, "You're not coming with us?" "No, I need to maintain the shield around the Crystal Empire." "Very well, let us be off" "If you don't mind me asking, What are you?" Cadence asked. "I..I am a Human." I remembered when Tirion Fordring had stabbed my heart and destroyed it in the Ebon Hold. "Undead for that matter." I left with Shining Armour and we walked through the streets where several spectral ponies were walking around with seemingly no purpose or happiness whatsoever. "You weren't lying when you said King Sombra was suppressing these ponies." Shining Armour nodded, "We really need to stop him before Cadence's shield fails." We walked at a brisk pace until we reached the shield at the edge of the city. "Get ready, its going to get cold." Shining Armour placed his mask back over his face and his horn glowed for a moment. "I'll protect you from the brunt of the storm." "With..Magic?." "Yes." It was not uncommon for mages to shield themselves with magic so I didn't press the issue. We stepped outside of the barrier and a sudden deafening howling could me heard. Shining Armour yelled over the wind. "We should find the train station a mile or two out of the city!" We trudged through kneed deep snow for about an hour before we could hear voices. "Ha! and you laughed at me for packing so many scarves." Shining Armour sped up and yelled out a name. "Twilight!" "Shining Armour?" "Twiley you made it!" They both rushed together and hugged, I watched neutrally until I heard a small "Eeep!" I looked towards the other Elements and noticed a cowering yellow.. pegasus? "W-whats that?!?" That caught the attention of the Elements and they looked at me fearfully for a moment. The one with a rainbow mane rushed forward and stood in front of me and Twilight. What caught my attention however was the purple scaled creature carrying what must be 10 times its own weight on its shoulders. "You stay away from us you got it?! or I am gona buck your flank into next week!" I raised my eyebrows in a skeptical way. Shining Armour quickly responded to her. "Rainbow, thats Arthas. He says he is a human and that he will help us with King Sombra." The "elements" grew confused. "Human? King sombra? What are you talking about Shining?" "I just met him outside in this blizzard, I helped him and later he said he would help us find King Sombra, As for Sombra himself... Well lets just say the Crystal Empire isn't the only thing that has returned." The Mane six exchanged nervous looks and I spoke up. "Normally I would ask for your names but we having pressing matters to attend to at the moment." "What do you care?! Who are you anyway!" "Rainbow thats enough," Twilight said Twilight looked at me curiously, I remembered the warning Shining Armour gave me. The pony with the cyan coat gave me a suspicious look and we started heading back towards the Crystal Empire. We marched through the snow when the storm died down for a moment and the shield around The Crystal Empire was visible "Princess Celestia sent me to find a way to protect The Crystal Empire, if there is already a shield around it shouldn't already be protected?" Twilight shouted. A loud menacing horn could be heard in the distance and a certain yellow pegasus yelped. "What was that?!?" Shining Armour glanced around nervously. "We need to get back to the Crystal Empire NOW!" They took off galloping and I rushed after them. The snow slowed them down enough that I could keep up with them when a large pillar of black smoke rushed into the air behind us. "We're almost there!" We kept running until I saw Shining Armour turn to face Sombra. I stopped for a moment and watched him fire two beams of magic into the smoke, It dodged them and engulfed Shining Armour. I grunted and dove in after him, Immediately I could feel as if I was standing in the noxious plague at the Wrathgate. I ground my teeth together and looked around, desperately trying to find him. I noticed a form standing in the smoke when I heard a voice. "I've never seen anything like you before." A black pony with smoke for hooves approached me in the dense fog. "What are you?" Sombra said as I felt him go digging through my memories, Memories I was forced to remember, Fighting the Scourge at Andorhal. The Culling of Stratholme. The Death of Mal'Ganis. The Murder of my Father. The Death of Uther the Lightbringer The Slaughtering of the Elves. The Horrors of Azjol-Nerub. All the way to the Defeat of Ilidan at the slope of the Frozen Throne Itself. I grew angry and clenched my fists together. He dug into my most sensitive memory I had. When my eyes opened for the first time wearing the Helm of Domination I roared and felt him retreat away from me. I grabbed Shining Armour and dashed towards the shield as fast as I could. When I reached it I heard the Mane Six arguing about coming to save us. "We can't just leave em out there!" Before any more could be said I stepped through the shield and collapsed. I heard Twilight yell, "Shining Armour! your horn!" I tried getting up but groaned. I was sapped mentally and physically from the black smoke. Suddenly I felt one of them trying to help me to my feet. I took a deep breath and slowly stood up. I noticed it was the pink one that helped me. Shining Armour was in a similar state. He groaned and his horn glowed for a moment before sizzling out, He shook his head and sighed. The shields around the Empire flickered. "Were running out of time, Girls we need you to figure out how to stop Sombra. Go to Cadence I need to talk to Arthas." They nodded and galloped off into the city. "Look, Thanks for saving me out there." "It was no problem." "I am going to go see if Cadence is alright, You should follow me." We headed towards the Palace and occasionally we would see one of the elements running around asking questions. When we reached the Palace Cadence was struggling to maintain the shield spell, She collapsed the moment we walked in. "Cadence!" Shining Armour rushed towards her and cradled her head. We heard the same menacing horn from the blizzard when Cadence's shield failed. King Sombra's magic started to engulf the Crystal Empire from all sides. "Cadence your shield!" Cadence shook her head and recasted the spell as quickly as she could. The approaching black smoke was repelled when the shield was replaced. Cadence groaned in effort and nuzzled Shining Armour. "I can't keep this up for much longer Shining..." Cadence said weakly. "I know, I'll be here for you." Shining Armour kissed the top of Cadence's head and we all waited for the Elements of Harmony to find a way to stop King Sombra. The shield was beginning to flicker occasionally due to Cadence's exhaustion, We could see the ponies in the streets having some sort of faire. Despite the impending danger, The crystal ponies looked to be enjoying themselves oblivious to the monster outside of the shield. The flickering became more frequent and Cadence was beginning to lose the strength to maintain the shield. The Crystal ponies began to notice the flickering shield and gathered at the palace worriedly. Suddenly that infernal horn sounded and Cadence clutched her head in what I assumed was pain. "I-I can't hold it!" Cadence yelled, She collapsed again shortly after. The shield flickered and dissipated and the black smoke approached once again. The crystal ponies began to panic as King Sombra showed himself to them. "Hello My Slaves!" Shortly afterwards I could see the dragon from earlier falling from the top of the palace after what looked like a crystal sculpture, Perhaps an orb? no it looked like a heart, A crystal heart. Sombra noticed this and his eyes widened. "Thats mine!" He dove into the ground leaving a trail of black crystals until he shot back out of the ground on a massive black crystal. At the rate he was going he was going to reach the heart before the dragon. Cadence was unconscious and unable to stop King Sombra from getting the heart. Eventually he reached it and we all could hear him laugh triumphantly. "The Crystal Heart is MINE! You all will pay for resisting me!" The black smoke shrouded the Crystal Empire in complete darkness, I could see Shining Armour clutching Cadence tightly. I stood up and gripped the side rails, This was almost familiar to me. I leaped off of the balcony and landed on concrete 50 feet below. I ground my teeth together as I walked off the pain in my legs. Ponies watched fearfully as I stomped towards King Sombra. He noticed me and his eyes widened. "You!" He rushed forward and slammed into me, I held him back and he stared into my eyes. "I've never met one quite like you." His horn glowed and I was sent flying back, I felt a spike of pain throughout my entire body. It felt like I had been struck by lightning as I convulsed on the ground for a few moments, King Sombra laughed. "Nothing can stand up to my powers!" The pain ended and I groaned, I stood up again and noticed the expression on Sombra was now fearful. "Thats not possible! I should have stopped your heart!" I closed my eyes tightly, My fists clenched together and when I opened my eyes they gave off an ethereal blue. King Sombra stood back. "Comilito equinus King Sombra was too shocked to move, I walked forward slowly. When I reached him he glared at me and charged his horn. I picked him up and slammed him up by his neck into the street before he could get anything out. I reached out to my old powers and attempted to call upon them, I received an answer. Dark tendrils wrapped around Sombras neck and strangulated his magic as well. "H-how i-is this p-possible!?... Wh- What are y-you!?" He choked out. "Your end." I tightened the grip around his neck and he started flailing around in my steel grip. He tried to charge his horn but it sizzled out on him. King Sombra grew desperate and started striking me with his hooves. I tightened my grip even more, on the verge of crushing his neck all he could do was try to pry off the tendrils to lessen the crushing pressure. I heard voices behind me, "S-stop! You're crushing him!" "Stop..Please.. I'll do anything." I paid no heed to the voice behind me, I was lost in a daze and I tightened the tendrils again. *Crack!* The sickening noise seemed to echo many times in the silence of the crowd. King Sombra's struggling ceased and I slowly withdrew my powers. "Y-you k-k-killed him..." The ponies around me stared in fear as if I had become the monster, The mane six, Shining Armour, Princess Cadence and the dragon gave me horrified and disgusted looks. They turned fearful once they saw my eyes. "He would have surrendered. You didn't need to kill him, at least not like that." Shining Armour said. "Thank you for your help, However I'm afraid I must ask you to leave now." Cadence said sternly. I crossed my arms. "I apologize I come from a less fortunate world then you all, Now I guess I take my leave." I turned away from them and walked away from the Crystal Empire. "Was that necessary Cadence?" Shining Armour asked. "Its not that he killed him alone, Its that he killed him almost completely devoid of mercy, I fear what he is capable of." Cadence turned to her friends and they all nodded in agreement. "I just hope that we don't see him ever again." *********************************************************** I walked away from the Crystal Empire fuming, "This was all just a waste of time." I felt a spike of pain lance into my head and I collapsed on the spot. I heard a very familiar and terrible voice. "Hello Again Arthas." "Ner'zhul..." ApologiesApologies They all watched as Arthas strode away with his fists clenched. Sombra lied dead, his neck disfigured. The Crystal ponies all had relief in their eyes but it was a solemn victory, nopony cheered. Arthas stomped until he was no longer visible to the crowd gathered in the central plaza. "This was all just a waste of time." I muttered as I walked away from the newly reclaimed Crystal Empire Pain lanced through my head and that bone chillingly familiar voice spoke into my head. "Hello again Arthas." "I see you have not forgotten me." "How could I possibly forget your corruption?" "Call it what you will; It doesn't matter to you anymore," Suddenly an agonizing pain raced through my head. I almost fell on all fours, barely maintaining any feeling at all in my limbs; all the while I could feel him taking control of my consciousness. "No! get out of my head you worthless spirit!" Ner'zhul chuckled. How can I? I can't resist taking over this world; its inhabitants’ minds are frail and weak. Their resistance would be laughable at best." I was fighting him as hard as I could: I wouldn't let him corrupt my mind again. "As for Frostmourne and the Helm...your helm..." I could only grunt response due to the pain lancing through my head and my fight against his control. "I can sense they are here." If Ner'zhul recovered Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination this world would be doomed. I would not let that happen I was fighting a losing battle against Ner'zhul. His superior strength proved too overwhelming, and I felt my will slowly being consumed by his dark power. I couldn't help but mutter one thing: "I failed them..." Suddenly a thunderous explosion boomed in the distance. ********************************************************* "King Sombra has been defeated... The Heart still needs charged." The Crystal ponies all looked to me with respect and gratitude for protecting them. Once Sombra was put to rest with dignity we all stood around the palace. I levitated the heart into position and all the citizens bowed, their coats sparkling like crystals "Today, after one thousand years of isolation, The Crystal Empire will rejoin the world of Equestria as a nation to be admired and respected." The crystal ponies cheered at their new rulers uplifting words. Their happiness and joy made the heart glow with a radiating light, blasting a blue wave of magic in all directions, clearing all signs of Sombra’s attack, followed by a spectral beam launching itself into the air. *********************************************************** "You've lost your strength "'Arthas'" the spectral voice mocked as my mind went foggy. “I won’t… let you…” Ner’zhul laughed at my pitiful attempts of resistance. Before my will left me, however, an ethereal, blue wall passed through me, causing me no harm. I felt the voice invading my mind sneer. "Gaahh?! What is this infernal magic!" The ground shook violently and a massive wave of magic passed over us in the sky. Just like that, Ner'zhul control vanished into thin air, As if he had never existed. I gained control over my body once again and collapsed, panting like an exhausted dog. "What.. Was that?" I had never heard or felt magic strong enough to toss aside Ner'zhul as if he was a child's play thing. Was he gone? Is part of him still in me? I knew not. * The ponies magic had saved me from Ner'zhuls' power. "I do believe that... Apologies are in order." My vision grew blurry and I lost consciousness ********************************************************* I watched as the magic from the Crystal heart exploded across the sky clearing any remnants of Sombra's attack on the Crystal Empire. I smiled cheerfully until I felt another dark presence on the outskirts of the Crystal Empire. After a moment I felt it vanish. "What was that?" "What do you mean?" Shining Armour said "There's something still out there" His eyes raised at this, "Is it a threat?" "I don't know, We should take the girls just to be sure, It could very well be Arthas." Shining Armour pursed his lips and nodded. "I'll gather the girls, It seems our work is not yet finished" Shining Armour left to gather the Elements of Harmony, I spread my wings and flew down to the ground to meet him there. Several minutes passed until he arrived with six confused mares. "Cadence? is something wrong?" Twilight asked. "When the Crystal heart was charged I sensed another evil presence on the outskirts of the Crystal Empire, I fear it could be Arthas. We need to make sure that the Crystal Empire is safe." They all nodded in agreement, I charged my horn and scanned the outskirts of the Crystal Empire. I triangulated the source to a general area, At least its a start. "Follow me" I trotted at a brisk pace, Crystal ponies gave us happy glances and the occasional word of thanks. I smiled at them lovingly, They were the reason I am fighting so hard to protect the Empire. After a few minutes of trotting we reached our destination, "Alright everypony, spread out and search for anything suspicious." * "Spread out and search for anything suspicious" "Oh I hope its nothing too scary." I thought I carefully looked around corners and passed through a dark alleyway. I got out of there quickly and continued looking for anything in the side streets. I could hear my friends searching all around me from a distance. Though I was glad I could be of help I hoped they would find whatever Cadance felt before I did. I tried asking crystal ponies in the area. They had seen it but hadn’t, for obvious reasons, stayed long enough to find out where it was headed. I turned another alley corner and when I saw a motionless, form in front of me. "Eeep!" I hid behind my mane and carefully peeked through to see it still hadn't moved. Slowly I stepped forward and I noticed it was the human from earlier. "Um… Mr Arthas?" I softly nudged him with my hoof. He gave no response. "Wake up please," I said as I nudged him once more. He shifted in his unconscious state, causing me to jump back in surprise. After a few tense seconds I slowly advanced on the biped lying a few feet before me. "Maybe he is hurt?" Carefully I extended my hoof to feel his neck, After a few seconds I gasped. "What?! But-" I nudged him hard enough to roll him over and checked his pulse again. "Oh he is hurt! Really bad!" Before I could gallop off to tell my friends his eyes shot open and grabbed my hoof. * "AHHHHH HELP!" "Hang on Fluttershy!" I heard her friends close in on the alley I had passed out in, I let her go and she cowered away from me hiding behind her mane. I stood up slowly and whispered to her soothingly, "Hey its alright, You just startled me is all." "Oh.. Uhm.. Sorry?" A rainbow blur smashed into my side, knocking the air out of me. I fell to the ground and saw the cyan pony was rearing up to stomp on my face. "Nopony hurts Fluttershy!" Before she could hit me I grabbed her hooves and threw her off of me. I got up quickly to face her only to fall flat on my face when something else smashed into my back. "Good job Applejack!" Applejack and the cyan pony grabbed onto my arms tightly and lifted me up, I saw the other ponies staring at me suspiciously. Twilight stepped forward, "What were you doing to Fluttershy?" "Nothing of ill content I assure you." Cadence was glaring at me while Shining Armour shared the expression of her sister. "Look, I wish to give you all a sincere apology for what I did back in the plaza, I was not myself." Cadence looked like she didn't believe me while the rest looked to Fluttershy "Did he do anything to you Fluttershy?" Twilight asked. "No, I found him in this alleyway asleep and I startled him when I tried to wake him up, He was apologizing for scaring me when you smashed into him Rainbow." Rainbow's grip loosened at this, As did Applejacks "It's the truth." I added Twilight looked at me inquisitively. She frowned lightly then turned to face her brother and the Princess. She glanced at me more once more before starting to walk towards the pair. The three moved a small distance away from the rest of us, no doubt to discuss the matter at hand. As the trio conversed I noticed the pink pony with a puffy mane eyeing me with a blank expression. Whether she was fearful or distrusting I could not tell. She was the only one looking relatively calm throughout this whole situation. In truth, I didn’t know if this could be a small comfort or a reason to worry further. Suddenly the pink mare moved to Applejacks side. She whispered something to her and I felt the grip on my arm loosening. I used my free arm for support and looked up at the orange mare standing in front of me. Her glare had softened, but there was still no sign of trust for me to be found in her eyes. She leaned in closer; making sure her emerald eyes met mine. “Were you planning to hurt Fluttershy?” she asked calmly, her expression more stern than before. I blinked at the question. Was she testing me? I glanced at the meek, yellow pony hiding behind her mane. After a small pause I met the orange pony’s gaze once more. I inhaled deeply before speaking. “I swear my intentions were never to harm anyone. I lost control at the plaza, and for that I am sorry.” The pony eyed me suspiciously before moving out of the way, just in time for the Princess, Shining Armor and Twilight to arrive. Their looks of suspicion had softened, though the Princess’ glare was still evident. She moved closer and looked me over. “What is your name?” she asked sternly while motioning for Rainbow to let go of my arm. I rose to one knee carefully. I now stood slightly above eye height with Cadence “Arthas Menethil,” I said; not including “prince” or “king”. Would my former titles or origin even matter now? It did not to me; why would it to them? “Arthas Menethil. You stand accused for the murder of a pony, an evil one, yes; but a pony no less. Furthermore, you have caused panic amongst the citizens of the Crystal Empire.” I lowered my head, unsure if punishment would be taken to account for my deeds. Her glare softened however, being replaced by a stony expression. “But your actions, while drastic, did without a doubt help us save the Crystal Empire and vanquish Sombra.” I looked at her with an eyebrow raised slightly. “For that… you have my and the Empire’s gratitude.” She nodded at me, though I suspected the gesture was somewhat reluctant. I hesitated, looking at the Princess, Twilight and Shining Armor. I slowly rose to my feet, towering above them all. Fluttershy and the white unicorn took a small step back, and Rainbow and Applejack dropped into a low stance. The pink pony and the trio before me however, remained in their place. Carefully selecting my words, I spoke, “May I inquire what will happen to me now?” The Princess turned to Twilight. “Like Princess Cadance said, you have stirred panic amongst the citizens. You being here in the Crystal Empire would only make everypony uneasy. Therefore…” She stopped. She looked at Princess Cadance who in turn looked at her expectedly. Twilight sighed. “…We have ultimately decided to take you with us to Canterlot for an audience with Princess Celestia.” "I'm assuming she is the leader of your country?" Twilight nodded. The pink one stepped in front of me for a moment before a grin shot across her face. I saw Fluttershy whisper something in Twilight's ear but It was drowned out by the excited pink mare. "So?! Do you like parties!?" ********************************************************* Meanwhile, Miles away a weakened spirit flew towards the Everfree Forrest where he felt spikes of dark magic erupting from the center. Canterlot CastleCanterlot Castle The one pony who I had come to know as "Pinkie Pie" was still asking me dozens of questions despite her friends' interference. I had almost tripped twice due to Pinkie Pie crawling in between my legs as we made our way to the train station. "Hey Arthas? Do you like parties? Why is your hair white? Are you really old?? My dad has white hair and he is old! How come you walk on two legs? Could I call you Artie? Or do you prefer Arthas? Personally, I like Artie!" "There will be a train waiting to take you straight to Canterlot when we get there." Cadence spoke over Pinkie Pie’s constant questions. "You're not coming with us?" Twilight asked. "I wish I could, But I have to stay here and watch over the Crystal Empire." Twilight and her friends shared looks of understanding when Princess Cadence glared at me. "You'd better not cause any trouble Arthas." "You have my word." I promised. Cadence nodded as we reached the train station. "Farewell Twilight, have a safe journey." "Thanks Cadence, good luck." "Bye Twilight," Shining Armor said. Twilight slyly smiled at her brother. "Be good to Cadence, alright BBBFF?" Shining Armor grinned, "That I will." We boarded the vacant train and it departed shortly after we arrived. I sat alone while the mane six were sitting together occasionally sparing me a glance. The silence was a bit awkward as none of the ponies trusted me wholeheartedly - even when I had given them my word. Though I suppose I couldn’t blame them… The train ride was long; it stretched into the night as various cities passed by through the windows. My eyelids grew heavy and I was out shortly afterwards. * Luna was traveling through her subjects’ dreams, easing their nightmares and keeping all of them safe from their fears. She was met with gratitude from her everypony whenever she quelled a nightmare or improved a dream. "If we had known of this method 1000 years ago we would have never been so selfish." She smiled. Then she felt a nightmare darker then the others. "What’s this?" She said as her eyes narrowed. Luna traced the source of the nightmare to a speeding train. It wasn't even a pony having the nightmare, but a strange creature. The creature looked bipedal and its rest was uneasy. The mane six were traveling with it on their way back from the Crystal Empire. "What is it?" Luna inquired. Luna took a deep breath and everything went black as she entered the creature’s dream. Luna's vision returned to her but it was not her own. She had entered the biped’s consciousness silently and undetected and now found herself sharing another’s vision. 'Luna' was walking towards a huge drawbridge with the mighty sound of bells chiming loudly as if to announce her arrival. The drawbridge lowered and collided with the ground with a deep thud. Luna watched as her host crossed the bridge with hundreds of other similar looking creatures cheering and hollering at his arrival. The biped stood in the middle of the street for a moment and caught one of the rose petals being showered upon him. The rose petal died in his hand and he tossed it aside. He began walking briskly towards a large door decorated lavishly by markings and insignias. The hooded creature did not slow down and he barged into the throne room with a menacing boom when the heavy doors collided with the walls. His heavy plate boots thudded loudly with each step as he approached what must have been the ruler of this castle. "Ah my son, I knew that you-“ "You no longer need to sacrifice for your people... You no longer need to bear the weight of your crown... I've taken care, Of Everything. Luna watched with growing horror as her host approached the older creature with his sword firmly in his grasp. "What is this?! What are you doing my son?" Luna felt the creature grin. “Succeeding you, Father.” Luna could do nothing but watch as the sword was plunged into the chest of her host’s very own father. His crown fell and rolled across the throne room breaking one of the tips. “This Kingdom shall fall. And from the ashes shall arise a new order that will shake the very foundations of the world.” To say Luna was disturbed at the creature’s nightmare would be a massive understatement. She exited the plane of the dreams and rushed to Celestia's chambers. * "-ey has wa- p" "Artie wake up!" I shot up and looked around quickly. When I saw where I was I sighed in relief. "Just another nightmare," I thought. "Arthas, are you okay? We're here." I nodded and stretched my limbs. We exited the train only to be met with a detachment of what looked to be like guards. Twilight spoke up. "Gentlecolts, please escort us to Princess Celestia immediately." "Yes, Miss Sparkle," they responded. I received disgusted and terrified glances as I walked through the city of Canterlot. I could pick up bits of conversations. "Ugh. What is a ghastly animal doing in our beloved city?" "Somepony should put it in chains." The insults continued all the way to the palace and stopped when we entered the courtyard. "Princess Celestia hasn't heard the whole story so you will be the one to tell her what happened." I nodded grimly and continued forward. When we stepped into the palace doors what I saw surprised me. I had much practice in reading the faces of royalty for I had once been a prince, however Princess Celestia sat upon her lavish throne and her mane seemed to blow in an invisible wind that only added to the serene look of the Princess. "Princess Celestia!" "Twilight Sparkle; I am very proud of you." Twilight rushed forward and hugged her mentor. Twilight seemed to be relishing the Princesses approval until she turned to me. For the tiniest of moments she looked at me accusingly. Her face changed to an impassive look that I wondered if it had been there in the first place. "Ah, you must be Arthas. I have received word that you helped save the Crystal Empire. Please tell me how this was done." I took a deep breath, "Your majesty, this is not a short story so please get comfortable." I retold the story of how I had arrived in Equestria, how Shining Armor and Princess Cadence found me and what I had eventually done to King Sombra. At the mention of his death Celestias' grin vanished and was replaced by a solemn look. "It seems there was no other way. I had hoped he would see reason and surrender." The Princess sighed and Twilight glared at me slightly. I cleared my throat, "That’s not the whole story..." Princess Celestias' eyes focused on me again and I told her the part of how I had ignored his pleas for surrender and the manner in which I killed him. Celestias' expression turned cold. "I have never heard of such a violent act for a millennia." "There was no other way Princess." Twilight quickly said. "Very well. Since you helped save the Crystal Empire I will not hold your actions against you. And as long as you do not bring harm to any of my subjects, I will allow your stay in Equestria to be as one of its own inhabitants. I sighed in relief. "However, I recommend that you do not return to the Crystal Empire." I looked up and smiled slightly. "Agreed, you have my word that I will not return to the Crystal Empire as that was nearly a given anyway." Celestia nodded and smiled. "I'm glad we could come to this understanding.” She turned to the lavender mare. “Twilight I do hope you don't mind if he stays with you in Ponyville, do you?" "Oh… Uhm, no, of course not Princess," Twilight smiled, barely disguising her skepticism. "Make sure you send me reports on his behavior in Ponyville, I fear that there is more to this individual then meets the eye." Celestia whispered to her. Twilight nodded in understanding. "I just hope he takes this as a chance to forget about his past and that none of this was really necessary." Twilight and Celestia shared one last look at each other when Twilight turned to leave the throne room. I bowed to Celestia once again and turned to follow Twilight. "I'm glad that I have been given a chance to mend my ways." Twilight looked up at me hopefully, I saw her friends waiting for us when we left the throne room. Twilight spoke to her friends. "Arthas is going to stay with me at the Golden Oaks Library. He has been given another chance by Princess Celestia." Pinkie Pie instantly brightened up at the news. "Woo hoo! Now I get to throw him a welcome to Equestria party!" Pinkie Pie dashed almost comically through the streets of Canterlot, quickly vanishing from sight. "What... just happened?" I hesitantly inquired. Twilight chuckled. "That’s just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie." I only grew more confused at this point but continued walking with Twilight and her remaining friends without giving the matter anymore thought. I was receiving even more looks then when I had arrived. Word must have spread throughout the city that I was here. I noticed a mob seemed to be forming in front of us by a particularly disgusted purely white unicorn with a blonde mane. "Oh no," muttered Rarity. "The most grand and prosperous city in Equestria was not built for filth like this… creature to walk around in freely." Typical nobles, always thinking they are above everyone else less fortunate or different than themselves. "And what have I done to become this 'filth' of which you speak of?" "Why, by walking among us. Just because you walk with the Elements of Harmony does not make you part of Equestrian society!" "Please Blueblood, just let us go. We were just leaving Canterlot." Twilight said. "Not until this beast is dealt with! I refuse to let him go, however you five may go if you wish." "We would never leave one of our friends behind!” I blinked at her referring to me as a friend. “Something you would not know about true friends!" Rainbow yelled. "Oh please,-" "We’re leaving Prince Blueblood, and Arthas is coming with us." Twilight stepped forward when Blueblood pushed her slightly back. "I don't think you realize-" All the noise was cut off followed by a loud gasp seeing as I now had Bluebloods horn in a tight grip. "Not one more step, or the horn comes off." "Do you have any idea who I am! I will have you arrested for-" My grip around his horn tightened and he fell to his knees. "I don't think you know who I am." "Arthas stop!" I immediately let go of him and faced Twilight. The look on her face was indifferent. "You have proved your point. Let’s go..." Twilights' horn started to glow and a bright flash surrounded Twlight her friends and I. The next thing I knew we were at the train station. "Teleportation - very impressive," I said with a smile. Twilight said nothing as we boarded the train to Ponyville; even here I received a few awkward stares but nothing too serious as in Canterlot. I hope that I had not just blown it by hurting Prince Blueblood. I sat down and the mane six, excluding Pinkie were also finding places to sit next to Twilight. The train ride back was short and quiet until Rainbow broke the silence. "I don't think any of us are that mad about it, Arthas. If I were you I would have done the same thing to protect one of my friends." I blinked in slight confusion at the use of the word ‘friend’. Eventually the other three ponies mumbled in agreement. Twilight had remained silent and I looked at her. Twilight glanced at me and nodded slowly. I was forgiven. "Rainbow, I am glad that I have you and your friends support in this world, For if I didn't I would have surely gone mad." "It's nothing..." Rainbow said modestly. A short while later we had arrived in Ponyville. "Welcome Arthas: this is your new home." Twilight said. The town looked peaceful and spacious. A nice quiet place to live; at least from the looks of it. "I think I'm going to like it here." I said with a satisfied grin. PonyvilleI apologize profusely for how long it took me to get this chapter out. School and medical issues have been making it almost impossible to find the motivation to write. This also isn't the finest chapter I've ever written so bare with me. And without further ado, A Symphony of Frost and Flame returns. Ponyville When we left the train station we couldn't help but notice that most of Ponyville seemed to be empty, I could only spot a few ponies and they were in to much of a hurry to notice us. "Where is every..pony here?" I asked Twilight shrugged, "No clue" Twilight turned to her friends and they all seemed to have grins on their faces, I was left to believe that this just contradicted Twilights statement. We approached a large tree dubbed 'The Golden Oaks Library' "Alright were here everypony," I waited for Twilight to invite us to her home but when I saw them all looking at me with barely disguised amusement I rolled my eyes. I marched up to the door and began to open it. "This has something to do with Pinkie Pie doesn-" "SURPRISE!" I gripped the door nob tightly in surprise, I chuckled after I noticed there was no threat. The cheers and laughter continued for a few moments until I stepped out of the dark and into the light of the tree house. There was a few silent gasps and the cheerful atmosphere vanished and was replaced by an awkward silence. Not wishing for the situation to get out of hand I took a deep breath and tried to speak in a calming voice. "Hello Every..pony, my name is Arthas Menethil and I mean you no harm." The atmosphere in the library was tense for a long moment untill Pinkie Pie broke the silence "Well what are you crazy ponies waiting for!? Lets party!" Music started playing and the ponies stopped staring at me although many were still throwing me concerned glances. I walked over to the table with at least four dozen cupcakes, one large cake and a few pies. I did not bother with all of the sugar filled cupcakes or pieces of cake. What caught my eye however was a delectable looking pumpkin pie. I cut out a slice and bit into it, My eyes closed and I remembered that fateful Hallows End so many years ago, Jaina had been there with me. I remembered how Jaina had looked under the night sky the only light coming from the moon and the giant flaming Wickerman. "Arthas, Are you alright?" I opened my eyes and Twilight was at my side giving me a concerned look. "I'm fine, I was just... remembering something." Twilight nodded "Hey Arty!" I jumped when Pinkie Pie had suddenly appeared from nowhere "Lets play a game!" I looked at her with a confused expression. "What kind of game?" I asked cautiously "Pin the tail on the pony!" Before I could ask what that was I was blind folded and being pushed towards a random part of the Library. Ponies were laughing at what I assumed were Pinkies antics. I was handed what I assumed was a pin. "Alright listen! I am going to knock on the pony and then you have to try to pin the tail on the pony!" 'Ugh, Pinkie has to be insan-' Before I could finish that thought I was suddenly spun around with the speed and ferocity that only an excited Pinkie Pie could replicate. When the whirlwind had stopped I stumbled a bit and heard Pinkie knock on a wall three times ahead of me. I almost tripped making my way over to where the noise had originated. "This is ridiculous" I said with a grin, Many of the ponies laughed. When I was close I tried to get an accurate pin, When I pulled the blindfold off I realized that I had moved too far to the right. "Better luck next time Arty!, Oh! watch me, I'm the master of pin the tail on the pony!" I assumed she would do the same thing that I did, However she reached over to a table and chugged what looked like two alcoholic drinks simultaneously. She then proceeded to blindfold herself and spin so fast It created a pink tornado. When she stopped she somehow managed to balance on one hoof and was facing the wall as well. I was shaking my head in disbelief as she steadily trotted over to the pony and pinned the pony right on its rump. Pinkie was laughing before she even had the blindfolds off and cheered enthusiastically when she saw where she had placed the pin. It was almost impossible to not be happy around this pony, It was really no wonder that they called her the Element of Laughter. The party lasted about an hour before everypony was to tired to continue, Excluding Pinkie Pie. When everypony had cleaned up and left the mane six were preparing to leave themselves. "Awww I guess the party is over, See ya later everypony!" Somehow Pinkie managed to bounce out the door even after all the partying she had done. "Oh... Um I should go to, I wouldn't want my animal friends to worry about me not coming home for the night." "Yeah, I've got to get up early tomorrow to work on the farm, See ya Twi." Applejack and Fluttershy left followed by Rainbow Dash and Rarity. "Bye Twilight, bye Arthas." I said goodbye to each of my new friends. After they had left I turned to Twilight, "Well uh... Where will I be sleeping." "Oh, um would you be okay sleeping on the couch, I don't have any other guest beds." I nodded and made my way over to the couch but Twilight had followed me. "Do you need anything before I call it a night?" "Well, I'm kind of curious to learn more about you. Would you mind if I tell you more about myself?" I crossed my hands and my eyes lifted curiously. "I wouldn't mind in the least." "If I go back as far as I can remember....-" *** Twilight finishes telling me about herself. *** "That was no short tale, However I think its time I told you about the land where I came from." Twilights eyes brightened, eager for the chance to learn about a new world. "I should warn you however, Azeroth can be a cruel and inhospitable place." "The beginning of my journey started at Strahnbrand, Where the Orcs attacked us. Orcs are vile and aggressive creatures. Heathens who warship demon gods and offer human sacrifices to appease them. We were given orders by King Terenas to defend the city." "I would rather not tell her I used to be a prince." "The men I served with were part of a holy order. We called ourselves paladins, paladins are warriors who use the power of the light to heal their friends, or fight their enemies. I was my prince's bodyguard, We defended the villagers as best we could from the orcs but they still managed to escape with many of the city people." "The leader of our order, Uther the Lightbringer called the prince for help in destroying the orc encampment. We combined our forces overwhelmed the orcs defenses and rescued the remaining villagers." I took a deep breath, "There was peace for a time, Until trouble began to brew once again. Rumors of a plague that was magical in nature spread throughout the kingdom. We were sent to investigate these rumors." "Turns out the Kirin'Tor had the same idea and sent one of their best mages down to investigate the matter with our prince. Her name was Jaina Proudmoure, You almost remind me of her with your love of books and all things magic." "Whats the Kirin'Tor? You also mentioned you used the light to heal, Is it like magic?" Twilight asked me. "In a way yes, If one pushes himself to far he will become exhausted. The Kirin'Tor are the finest mages in the land." "Also you mentioned a plague? What did it do?" I shuddered. "I don't think I should go into depth on what it did Twilight, But I will say that it caused the destruction of the Kingdom I lived in. Lordaeron crumbled and the Prince was ultimately responsible. "How was he responsible?" "He became so obsessed with saving his kingdom that he only hastened its destruction." "How is that possible?" "With every soldier that fell in battle, it only served to bolster our enemies ranks," "What?" "You really don't want to know Twilight." I yawned and laid down on the couch Twilight had lent me. "I am tired, I would appreciate it if I could retire for the night." Twilight looked disappointed but nodded anyway. She then started to climb the stairs to the second floor of the library. "Goodnight Twilight." I called up to her. "Goodnight Arthas." Twilight closed the door to her bedroom. No doubt staying up until the wee hours of the morning to study. I attempted to get some rest in the meantime, but sleep would not come. Minutes became Hours and soon enough I began to wonder. "I must be getting some of my powers back." First they showed up when I extinguished Sombra's life, and now my need to sleep is vanishing again. "I just hope Ner'zhul was destroyed by that prismatic explosion..." I got chills just thinking about him. "I doubt it." *Meanwhile in The Everfree forest.* "Trixie cannot believe she was run out of Hoofington! Ever since the Ponyville incident things have been going from bad to Worse!" Trixie had lost her wagon in Hoofington, It had been trashed by unsatisfied ponies. "Has Trix-" Trixie sighed "Have I lost my touch?" Ner'zhul took notice of her distressed spirit and planned to take advantage of her cracked ego. "Listen" "What? Who is there?" Trixie felt compelled to answer to the voice. "Trixie demands to know who you are!" "I am Ner'zhul I can offer you power beyond your wildest dreams, Even more then that mage Twilight Sparkle. Trixies heart began to speed up, "Surely you jest!" "I do not, Make your way to the castle in the middle of this forest! Obey!" Trixie did not quite trust the voice, But her now inflated pride would not allow her to decline the offering. She ran deeper and deeper into the perilous Everfree forest. However this was not the first time Trixie has been here. When Trixie reached the castle the doors opened for her and in the main chamber stood a shattered sword with runes and a menacing looking helmet. "Trixie has arrived, where are you?" Trixie was now mere steps away from the some of the most powerful artifacts known to Azeroth. When she approached a sharp pain spiked in her. Shaking the sudden pain from her head, the azure mare leaned in closer to the strange ornament. She looked to both sides believing someone was playing tricks on her, yet she turned her gaze back to the ornament before her. After a pregnant pause she, mostly out of utter confusion, spoke up. “Hello? Is somepony… there?” she hesitantly asked as she carefully poked the headpiece, as if asking it like she would have a sentient being. After a long silence she sighed and deflated slightly. “Trixie must have imagined things… Yes, the past few days must have been a lot harder on-“ “Trixie Lulamoon, my new companion. You have come at last.” Trixie jumped back at the sudden voice whispering to her. “Wh-who’s there?! The Great and Powerful Trixie demands you show yourself: I am in no mood for your silly games!” “Here, before you.” the disembodied voice whispered. Trixie tensed up as she carefully moved closer to the artefact. Standing mere inches away from it she blinked twice, and twice once more, at the apparent reality. “Who… what are you? Are you some sort of… magic show’s special effect? Or maybe Trixie’s mind has collapsed upon itself and she’s imagining everything?” “Neither of such things, young mage. I am but one who understands your pain.” The voice was silent for a short moment before it once again echoed inside the unicorn’s head. “One who shares your woes – a friend, if you will - one who can help.” Trixie snorted. “What do you know of Trixie’s woe- I mean, the Great and Powerful Trixie bears no woes! Ponies’ petty opinion of Trixie means little to her – if there is any woe at all it lies with them for shunning the Great and Powerful-.” “And yet, despite this, it is you who find yourself alone in the world. No friends. No home.” The azure unicorn deflated only slightly at the ownerless voice’s words, her attitude and posture starting to crack like glass. “No hope.” Trixie felt her eyes well with tears. It was right: the voice was right. She was alone. Cast out by her fellow ponies - exiled; forced to wander Equestria homeless and unwanted by everypony. Her tears of sorrow and self-pity soon fell freely down her cheeks and into the muddy floor, only to disappear forgotten and unnoticed by anypony. She huffed in an attempt to yet preserve her prideful attitude. “What does it matter what a talking piece of steel thinks? Because of that hussy Twilight Sparkle I am ridiculed or unwanted everywhere I go – in some places both.” “Yes. Your woes are great, caused only by the foolish and the weak-minded. Your magical talent scares them; they fear and envy you for your magical prowess, therefore they deem you a threat to be shunned. But where they see a threat, I see only potential.” Trixie turned to the metallic ornament, slightly raising an eyebrow at its words. “Why do you want to help me?" "Because we share the same woes, you and I - we have both been wronged by one who would see us beaten." "What would you have me do?" "Cast aside your life as a mere performer, and swear fealty to me." "Together we will reclaim our rightful glory, and take our revenge upon those who have wronged us!" Trixie was eager to enact revenge on the world that had shunned her so. And that insufferable Twilight Sparkle, she grinned at the helm, "Trixie swears to serve you." "Excellent..." Ner'zhoul promptly devoured Trixies soul.
The Frozen ThroneA Symphony of Frost and Flame Frigid winds howled around the menacing spire known as Icecrown Citadel, Tirion Fordring spoke to his men "Rise up Argent Crusaders! The hour of justice has come!" ********************************** I walked towards the pedestal that held my blade, Frostmourne. I heard troubled spirits howling around the chamber and around the blade. Many spirits took form around me, My father, King Teranas appeared before me. "Can you feel it my son?... closing in all around you..... the Light's justice has been awakened. The sins of the past have finally caught up to you.... You will be called to account, for all the atrocities you committed... For the unspeakable horrors you let loose on this world..... and the dark, ancient powers you enslaved! Though my soul was the first was one of the first to be devoured by your evil, There are thousands more bound within this blade!... And they cry out for release.... "Look now to your defenses my son! For the Champions of Justice gather at your gates! The spirits vanished as I gripped Frostmourne. "Let them come....Frostmourne hungers...." ************************************************************* I stood around the fallen champions of the light, The results of battle evident. Corpses, the signs of my victory littered the top of Icecrown Citadel. Dark clouds were swirling around the spire creating a frigid whirlwind of air. I raised Frostmourne into the air, and spoke as I began to channel unholy energy into the champions who stood up to me. "No questions remain unanswered. No doubts linger. You truly are Azeroth's greatest champions. You overcame every challenge I laid before you. My mightiest servants have fallen before your relentless onslaught, Your unbridled fury. Is it truly righteousness that drives you?... I wonder..." I turned to Tirion, frozen in his block of ice. "You trained them well Fordring. You delivered the greatest fighting force this world has ever known.. Right into my hands, exactly as I intended. You shall be rewarded for your unwitting sacrafice..." I turned away from him "Watch now, as I raise them from the dead, to become masters of the Scourge. They will shroud this world in chaos, and destruction. Azeroth's fall will come at their hands... and you, will be the first to die. I chuckled triumphantly. "I delight in the Irony." I hear a faint cracking behind me, I paid it no heed. "ARRRGGHHH" *BOOOOM* Tirion had struck Frostmourne and to my utter disbelief my beloved Runeblade, Frostmourne shattered before my eyes. "Impossible..." "No more Arthas! No more lives will be consumed by your hatred!" The imprisoned spirits inside Frostmourne burst forth and I was lifted into the air. They spun me in circles. I was unable to move. A single form appeared from the swirling mass of spirits. My father. "Free! At last!" "It is over my son...This is the moment of reckoning!" "Rise Up, Champions Of The Light!" My father revived the champions and once they recovered from the shock they quickly resumed the assault. Tirion roared one last time. "The Lich King...MUST...FALL"** "Now I stand. The lion before the lambs. And they do not fear..." "They cannot fear..." The spirits swirling around me grew brighter and changed into a grand gold color. I felt my body tense as I felt my power leave me, pain became the main sensation throughout my body. The sound that came from me next was laced with agony,The deepest soul-shattering cry a man or equine would have the misfortune of hearing. The crusaders faltered for a moment, but as I fell to the ground, My vision turned black, and I knew nothing.
The Crystal EmpireThe Crystal Empire I awoke half covered in snow, For the first time in years, I felt cold. With great effort I managed to get to my feet. I couldn't see 15 feet in any direction due to the howling snow blocking any sort of long distance sight. I was thinking clearly for the first time in years. I had lost my previous possessions and all I had in this blizzard was a simple leather tunic. I was not going to last long out in the blizzard so I started trudging through knee deep snow in one particular direction. I walked for what seemed like hours in the frigid cold, I was losing willpower fast. I did not understand how I was so weak. "Is this my punishment?" The irony of it all was absurd, The previous King of Northrend and master of all things dead freezing in a blizzard. I fell to my knees and cradled my arms around my body in a vain effort to prevent myself from freezing. I looked up and I thought I could make out a particular figure in the distance. "Over here!" I yelled out. Can't believe I had to call for help... I thought The figure seemed to notice and it got closer to me. It seemed... Equine? I lost the energy to hold myself up and fell forward face hitting the snow. Shining Armour was out looking for the one pony who had managed to bypass his shield spell. "When I find King Sombra I am going to make him pay for what he's done." Cadence was busy trying to maintain her shield spell so that King Sombra couldn't get into the Empire. I heard a voice shout in the blizzard. "Over here!" "Who else could be out in this blizzard?" I approached the source of the voice cautiously and was surprised to say the least. A creature I had never seen before laid face down in the snow. it looked about half frozen to death. It didn't look dangerous so I got closer and asked. "Are you awake?" I received no response so I levitated it and noticed that it's face was flat, it had a grey mane and it seemed to be a bipedal creature. Cautiously I touched the creature's neck where I assumed I would find a pulse. I did not. "It can't possibly have died so quickly... Whatever this is, I have to get it back to the Crystal Empire." I focused my magic and teleported back to the Palace. I appeared outside the palace and trotted through the gate. "Cadence I found something." ********************************************************** I awoke in a rather large bed and looked around. "It's been awhile since I have ever needed sleep..." I slowly got out of bed and walked around curiously. "Where in Azeroth am I?" I stood confused for several moments until I heard the door open and gave a dumbfounded expression at who stood in front of me. "Oh you're awake." The unicorn's coat was pure white and its mane had different accents of blue in it. Due to my unchanging expression he spoke again. "You can understand me right?..." I raised an eyebrow, "Where am I and how are you speaking to me right now." The unicorn returned my expression, "You are in The Crystal Empire, and all ponies can speak." "Ponies?...." "Where is this Crystal Empire you're talking about?" "Hmm, I can understand why some wouldn't know about it. It was lost for one thousand years before it reappeared. its on the northern border of Equestria." I gave him a frustrated expression, "Where in Azeroth is "Equestria"?" He gave me that same confused expression when a pink "pony" with wings and a horn walked through the door. "Hello, are you okay?" I gave one look at the winged unicorn and decided this was not the best time to be confused. I ran a hand over my face, "I am Arthas, what are your names?" "I am Shining Armour" The stallion responded, "And I am Princess Cadence" said the mare. I couldn't help but notice they both looked like they hadn't slept easy in days. "Is there any problems you may be dealing with at the moment? Unfortunately, I do not know anything about the land I am currently in." Shining and Cadence glanced at each other and they both nodded slightly. "There is a problem that has been troubling us for days now, There is this pony named King Sombra who is trying to break through my wife's shield and enslave the ponies of the Crystal Empire." I nodded thoughtfully, "Unfortunately, I am not new to violence, I know my way in and out of a fight. But without my... Gear... I won't be as effective as I could be." "Well take any help we can get." I nodded, "How come you two are the only... ponies I have met so far?" "Thats part of the problem, The ponies in the Crystal Empire can't remember who they are due to King Sombras dark magic." My brow furrowed in thought, "Surely you two can't be the only ones who wish to stop him" "We aren't, my sister and her friends The Elements of Harmony are on their way now." "I have heard of stranger forces." "Elements of Harmony?" "Long story short, they have saved Equestria three times now." I nodded again. "This is all very strange to me." Cadence smiled encouragingly and asked, "We've told you a bit about us. Would you mind tell us a bit about yourself?" I flinched, "Unfortunately I would prefer not to speak of my past at this current moment." "Ah, We understand." "When will the Elements be arriving?" "They should be here soon, I should get ready to meet them at the station." "I'll come with you." I said. "No, It's to dangerous out there." I scoffed internally. "I assure you I can handle myself out there." The glare he received was enough to convince him of the truth. "If you say so, Though I have to warn you, my sister Twilight can be quite the inquisitive one." I nodded and turned to Cadence, "You're not coming with us?" "No, I need to maintain the shield around the Crystal Empire." "Very well, let us be off" "If you don't mind me asking, What are you?" Cadence asked. "I..I am a Human." I remembered when Tirion Fordring had stabbed my heart and destroyed it in the Ebon Hold. "Undead for that matter." I left with Shining Armour and we walked through the streets where several spectral ponies were walking around with seemingly no purpose or happiness whatsoever. "You weren't lying when you said King Sombra was suppressing these ponies." Shining Armour nodded, "We really need to stop him before Cadence's shield fails." We walked at a brisk pace until we reached the shield at the edge of the city. "Get ready, its going to get cold." Shining Armour placed his mask back over his face and his horn glowed for a moment. "I'll protect you from the brunt of the storm." "With..Magic?." "Yes." It was not uncommon for mages to shield themselves with magic so I didn't press the issue. We stepped outside of the barrier and a sudden deafening howling could me heard. Shining Armour yelled over the wind. "We should find the train station a mile or two out of the city!" We trudged through kneed deep snow for about an hour before we could hear voices. "Ha! and you laughed at me for packing so many scarves." Shining Armour sped up and yelled out a name. "Twilight!" "Shining Armour?" "Twiley you made it!" They both rushed together and hugged, I watched neutrally until I heard a small "Eeep!" I looked towards the other Elements and noticed a cowering yellow.. pegasus? "W-whats that?!?" That caught the attention of the Elements and they looked at me fearfully for a moment. The one with a rainbow mane rushed forward and stood in front of me and Twilight. What caught my attention however was the purple scaled creature carrying what must be 10 times its own weight on its shoulders. "You stay away from us you got it?! or I am gona buck your flank into next week!" I raised my eyebrows in a skeptical way. Shining Armour quickly responded to her. "Rainbow, thats Arthas. He says he is a human and that he will help us with King Sombra." The "elements" grew confused. "Human? King sombra? What are you talking about Shining?" "I just met him outside in this blizzard, I helped him and later he said he would help us find King Sombra, As for Sombra himself... Well lets just say the Crystal Empire isn't the only thing that has returned." The Mane six exchanged nervous looks and I spoke up. "Normally I would ask for your names but we having pressing matters to attend to at the moment." "What do you care?! Who are you anyway!" "Rainbow thats enough," Twilight said Twilight looked at me curiously, I remembered the warning Shining Armour gave me. The pony with the cyan coat gave me a suspicious look and we started heading back towards the Crystal Empire. We marched through the snow when the storm died down for a moment and the shield around The Crystal Empire was visible "Princess Celestia sent me to find a way to protect The Crystal Empire, if there is already a shield around it shouldn't already be protected?" Twilight shouted. A loud menacing horn could be heard in the distance and a certain yellow pegasus yelped. "What was that?!?" Shining Armour glanced around nervously. "We need to get back to the Crystal Empire NOW!" They took off galloping and I rushed after them. The snow slowed them down enough that I could keep up with them when a large pillar of black smoke rushed into the air behind us. "We're almost there!" We kept running until I saw Shining Armour turn to face Sombra. I stopped for a moment and watched him fire two beams of magic into the smoke, It dodged them and engulfed Shining Armour. I grunted and dove in after him, Immediately I could feel as if I was standing in the noxious plague at the Wrathgate. I ground my teeth together and looked around, desperately trying to find him. I noticed a form standing in the smoke when I heard a voice. "I've never seen anything like you before." A black pony with smoke for hooves approached me in the dense fog. "What are you?" Sombra said as I felt him go digging through my memories, Memories I was forced to remember, Fighting the Scourge at Andorhal. The Culling of Stratholme. The Death of Mal'Ganis. The Murder of my Father. The Death of Uther the Lightbringer The Slaughtering of the Elves. The Horrors of Azjol-Nerub. All the way to the Defeat of Ilidan at the slope of the Frozen Throne Itself. I grew angry and clenched my fists together. He dug into my most sensitive memory I had. When my eyes opened for the first time wearing the Helm of Domination I roared and felt him retreat away from me. I grabbed Shining Armour and dashed towards the shield as fast as I could. When I reached it I heard the Mane Six arguing about coming to save us. "We can't just leave em out there!" Before any more could be said I stepped through the shield and collapsed. I heard Twilight yell, "Shining Armour! your horn!" I tried getting up but groaned. I was sapped mentally and physically from the black smoke. Suddenly I felt one of them trying to help me to my feet. I took a deep breath and slowly stood up. I noticed it was the pink one that helped me. Shining Armour was in a similar state. He groaned and his horn glowed for a moment before sizzling out, He shook his head and sighed. The shields around the Empire flickered. "Were running out of time, Girls we need you to figure out how to stop Sombra. Go to Cadence I need to talk to Arthas." They nodded and galloped off into the city. "Look, Thanks for saving me out there." "It was no problem." "I am going to go see if Cadence is alright, You should follow me." We headed towards the Palace and occasionally we would see one of the elements running around asking questions. When we reached the Palace Cadence was struggling to maintain the shield spell, She collapsed the moment we walked in. "Cadence!" Shining Armour rushed towards her and cradled her head. We heard the same menacing horn from the blizzard when Cadence's shield failed. King Sombra's magic started to engulf the Crystal Empire from all sides. "Cadence your shield!" Cadence shook her head and recasted the spell as quickly as she could. The approaching black smoke was repelled when the shield was replaced. Cadence groaned in effort and nuzzled Shining Armour. "I can't keep this up for much longer Shining..." Cadence said weakly. "I know, I'll be here for you." Shining Armour kissed the top of Cadence's head and we all waited for the Elements of Harmony to find a way to stop King Sombra. The shield was beginning to flicker occasionally due to Cadence's exhaustion, We could see the ponies in the streets having some sort of faire. Despite the impending danger, The crystal ponies looked to be enjoying themselves oblivious to the monster outside of the shield. The flickering became more frequent and Cadence was beginning to lose the strength to maintain the shield. The Crystal ponies began to notice the flickering shield and gathered at the palace worriedly. Suddenly that infernal horn sounded and Cadence clutched her head in what I assumed was pain. "I-I can't hold it!" Cadence yelled, She collapsed again shortly after. The shield flickered and dissipated and the black smoke approached once again. The crystal ponies began to panic as King Sombra showed himself to them. "Hello My Slaves!" Shortly afterwards I could see the dragon from earlier falling from the top of the palace after what looked like a crystal sculpture, Perhaps an orb? no it looked like a heart, A crystal heart. Sombra noticed this and his eyes widened. "Thats mine!" He dove into the ground leaving a trail of black crystals until he shot back out of the ground on a massive black crystal. At the rate he was going he was going to reach the heart before the dragon. Cadence was unconscious and unable to stop King Sombra from getting the heart. Eventually he reached it and we all could hear him laugh triumphantly. "The Crystal Heart is MINE! You all will pay for resisting me!" The black smoke shrouded the Crystal Empire in complete darkness, I could see Shining Armour clutching Cadence tightly. I stood up and gripped the side rails, This was almost familiar to me. I leaped off of the balcony and landed on concrete 50 feet below. I ground my teeth together as I walked off the pain in my legs. Ponies watched fearfully as I stomped towards King Sombra. He noticed me and his eyes widened. "You!" He rushed forward and slammed into me, I held him back and he stared into my eyes. "I've never met one quite like you." His horn glowed and I was sent flying back, I felt a spike of pain throughout my entire body. It felt like I had been struck by lightning as I convulsed on the ground for a few moments, King Sombra laughed. "Nothing can stand up to my powers!" The pain ended and I groaned, I stood up again and noticed the expression on Sombra was now fearful. "Thats not possible! I should have stopped your heart!" I closed my eyes tightly, My fists clenched together and when I opened my eyes they gave off an ethereal blue. King Sombra stood back. "Comilito equinus King Sombra was too shocked to move, I walked forward slowly. When I reached him he glared at me and charged his horn. I picked him up and slammed him up by his neck into the street before he could get anything out. I reached out to my old powers and attempted to call upon them, I received an answer. Dark tendrils wrapped around Sombras neck and strangulated his magic as well. "H-how i-is this p-possible!?... Wh- What are y-you!?" He choked out. "Your end." I tightened the grip around his neck and he started flailing around in my steel grip. He tried to charge his horn but it sizzled out on him. King Sombra grew desperate and started striking me with his hooves. I tightened my grip even more, on the verge of crushing his neck all he could do was try to pry off the tendrils to lessen the crushing pressure. I heard voices behind me, "S-stop! You're crushing him!" "Stop..Please.. I'll do anything." I paid no heed to the voice behind me, I was lost in a daze and I tightened the tendrils again. *Crack!* The sickening noise seemed to echo many times in the silence of the crowd. King Sombra's struggling ceased and I slowly withdrew my powers. "Y-you k-k-killed him..." The ponies around me stared in fear as if I had become the monster, The mane six, Shining Armour, Princess Cadence and the dragon gave me horrified and disgusted looks. They turned fearful once they saw my eyes. "He would have surrendered. You didn't need to kill him, at least not like that." Shining Armour said. "Thank you for your help, However I'm afraid I must ask you to leave now." Cadence said sternly. I crossed my arms. "I apologize I come from a less fortunate world then you all, Now I guess I take my leave." I turned away from them and walked away from the Crystal Empire. "Was that necessary Cadence?" Shining Armour asked. "Its not that he killed him alone, Its that he killed him almost completely devoid of mercy, I fear what he is capable of." Cadence turned to her friends and they all nodded in agreement. "I just hope that we don't see him ever again." *********************************************************** I walked away from the Crystal Empire fuming, "This was all just a waste of time." I felt a spike of pain lance into my head and I collapsed on the spot. I heard a very familiar and terrible voice. "Hello Again Arthas." "Ner'zhul..."
ApologiesApologies They all watched as Arthas strode away with his fists clenched. Sombra lied dead, his neck disfigured. The Crystal ponies all had relief in their eyes but it was a solemn victory, nopony cheered. Arthas stomped until he was no longer visible to the crowd gathered in the central plaza. "This was all just a waste of time." I muttered as I walked away from the newly reclaimed Crystal Empire Pain lanced through my head and that bone chillingly familiar voice spoke into my head. "Hello again Arthas." "I see you have not forgotten me." "How could I possibly forget your corruption?" "Call it what you will; It doesn't matter to you anymore," Suddenly an agonizing pain raced through my head. I almost fell on all fours, barely maintaining any feeling at all in my limbs; all the while I could feel him taking control of my consciousness. "No! get out of my head you worthless spirit!" Ner'zhul chuckled. How can I? I can't resist taking over this world; its inhabitants’ minds are frail and weak. Their resistance would be laughable at best." I was fighting him as hard as I could: I wouldn't let him corrupt my mind again. "As for Frostmourne and the Helm...your helm..." I could only grunt response due to the pain lancing through my head and my fight against his control. "I can sense they are here." If Ner'zhul recovered Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination this world would be doomed. I would not let that happen I was fighting a losing battle against Ner'zhul. His superior strength proved too overwhelming, and I felt my will slowly being consumed by his dark power. I couldn't help but mutter one thing: "I failed them..." Suddenly a thunderous explosion boomed in the distance. ********************************************************* "King Sombra has been defeated... The Heart still needs charged." The Crystal ponies all looked to me with respect and gratitude for protecting them. Once Sombra was put to rest with dignity we all stood around the palace. I levitated the heart into position and all the citizens bowed, their coats sparkling like crystals "Today, after one thousand years of isolation, The Crystal Empire will rejoin the world of Equestria as a nation to be admired and respected." The crystal ponies cheered at their new rulers uplifting words. Their happiness and joy made the heart glow with a radiating light, blasting a blue wave of magic in all directions, clearing all signs of Sombra’s attack, followed by a spectral beam launching itself into the air. *********************************************************** "You've lost your strength "'Arthas'" the spectral voice mocked as my mind went foggy. “I won’t… let you…” Ner’zhul laughed at my pitiful attempts of resistance. Before my will left me, however, an ethereal, blue wall passed through me, causing me no harm. I felt the voice invading my mind sneer. "Gaahh?! What is this infernal magic!" The ground shook violently and a massive wave of magic passed over us in the sky. Just like that, Ner'zhul control vanished into thin air, As if he had never existed. I gained control over my body once again and collapsed, panting like an exhausted dog. "What.. Was that?" I had never heard or felt magic strong enough to toss aside Ner'zhul as if he was a child's play thing. Was he gone? Is part of him still in me? I knew not. * The ponies magic had saved me from Ner'zhuls' power. "I do believe that... Apologies are in order." My vision grew blurry and I lost consciousness ********************************************************* I watched as the magic from the Crystal heart exploded across the sky clearing any remnants of Sombra's attack on the Crystal Empire. I smiled cheerfully until I felt another dark presence on the outskirts of the Crystal Empire. After a moment I felt it vanish. "What was that?" "What do you mean?" Shining Armour said "There's something still out there" His eyes raised at this, "Is it a threat?" "I don't know, We should take the girls just to be sure, It could very well be Arthas." Shining Armour pursed his lips and nodded. "I'll gather the girls, It seems our work is not yet finished" Shining Armour left to gather the Elements of Harmony, I spread my wings and flew down to the ground to meet him there. Several minutes passed until he arrived with six confused mares. "Cadence? is something wrong?" Twilight asked. "When the Crystal heart was charged I sensed another evil presence on the outskirts of the Crystal Empire, I fear it could be Arthas. We need to make sure that the Crystal Empire is safe." They all nodded in agreement, I charged my horn and scanned the outskirts of the Crystal Empire. I triangulated the source to a general area, At least its a start. "Follow me" I trotted at a brisk pace, Crystal ponies gave us happy glances and the occasional word of thanks. I smiled at them lovingly, They were the reason I am fighting so hard to protect the Empire. After a few minutes of trotting we reached our destination, "Alright everypony, spread out and search for anything suspicious." * "Spread out and search for anything suspicious" "Oh I hope its nothing too scary." I thought I carefully looked around corners and passed through a dark alleyway. I got out of there quickly and continued looking for anything in the side streets. I could hear my friends searching all around me from a distance. Though I was glad I could be of help I hoped they would find whatever Cadance felt before I did. I tried asking crystal ponies in the area. They had seen it but hadn’t, for obvious reasons, stayed long enough to find out where it was headed. I turned another alley corner and when I saw a motionless, form in front of me. "Eeep!" I hid behind my mane and carefully peeked through to see it still hadn't moved. Slowly I stepped forward and I noticed it was the human from earlier. "Um… Mr Arthas?" I softly nudged him with my hoof. He gave no response. "Wake up please," I said as I nudged him once more. He shifted in his unconscious state, causing me to jump back in surprise. After a few tense seconds I slowly advanced on the biped lying a few feet before me. "Maybe he is hurt?" Carefully I extended my hoof to feel his neck, After a few seconds I gasped. "What?! But-" I nudged him hard enough to roll him over and checked his pulse again. "Oh he is hurt! Really bad!" Before I could gallop off to tell my friends his eyes shot open and grabbed my hoof. * "AHHHHH HELP!" "Hang on Fluttershy!" I heard her friends close in on the alley I had passed out in, I let her go and she cowered away from me hiding behind her mane. I stood up slowly and whispered to her soothingly, "Hey its alright, You just startled me is all." "Oh.. Uhm.. Sorry?" A rainbow blur smashed into my side, knocking the air out of me. I fell to the ground and saw the cyan pony was rearing up to stomp on my face. "Nopony hurts Fluttershy!" Before she could hit me I grabbed her hooves and threw her off of me. I got up quickly to face her only to fall flat on my face when something else smashed into my back. "Good job Applejack!" Applejack and the cyan pony grabbed onto my arms tightly and lifted me up, I saw the other ponies staring at me suspiciously. Twilight stepped forward, "What were you doing to Fluttershy?" "Nothing of ill content I assure you." Cadence was glaring at me while Shining Armour shared the expression of her sister. "Look, I wish to give you all a sincere apology for what I did back in the plaza, I was not myself." Cadence looked like she didn't believe me while the rest looked to Fluttershy "Did he do anything to you Fluttershy?" Twilight asked. "No, I found him in this alleyway asleep and I startled him when I tried to wake him up, He was apologizing for scaring me when you smashed into him Rainbow." Rainbow's grip loosened at this, As did Applejacks "It's the truth." I added Twilight looked at me inquisitively. She frowned lightly then turned to face her brother and the Princess. She glanced at me more once more before starting to walk towards the pair. The three moved a small distance away from the rest of us, no doubt to discuss the matter at hand. As the trio conversed I noticed the pink pony with a puffy mane eyeing me with a blank expression. Whether she was fearful or distrusting I could not tell. She was the only one looking relatively calm throughout this whole situation. In truth, I didn’t know if this could be a small comfort or a reason to worry further. Suddenly the pink mare moved to Applejacks side. She whispered something to her and I felt the grip on my arm loosening. I used my free arm for support and looked up at the orange mare standing in front of me. Her glare had softened, but there was still no sign of trust for me to be found in her eyes. She leaned in closer; making sure her emerald eyes met mine. “Were you planning to hurt Fluttershy?” she asked calmly, her expression more stern than before. I blinked at the question. Was she testing me? I glanced at the meek, yellow pony hiding behind her mane. After a small pause I met the orange pony’s gaze once more. I inhaled deeply before speaking. “I swear my intentions were never to harm anyone. I lost control at the plaza, and for that I am sorry.” The pony eyed me suspiciously before moving out of the way, just in time for the Princess, Shining Armor and Twilight to arrive. Their looks of suspicion had softened, though the Princess’ glare was still evident. She moved closer and looked me over. “What is your name?” she asked sternly while motioning for Rainbow to let go of my arm. I rose to one knee carefully. I now stood slightly above eye height with Cadence “Arthas Menethil,” I said; not including “prince” or “king”. Would my former titles or origin even matter now? It did not to me; why would it to them? “Arthas Menethil. You stand accused for the murder of a pony, an evil one, yes; but a pony no less. Furthermore, you have caused panic amongst the citizens of the Crystal Empire.” I lowered my head, unsure if punishment would be taken to account for my deeds. Her glare softened however, being replaced by a stony expression. “But your actions, while drastic, did without a doubt help us save the Crystal Empire and vanquish Sombra.” I looked at her with an eyebrow raised slightly. “For that… you have my and the Empire’s gratitude.” She nodded at me, though I suspected the gesture was somewhat reluctant. I hesitated, looking at the Princess, Twilight and Shining Armor. I slowly rose to my feet, towering above them all. Fluttershy and the white unicorn took a small step back, and Rainbow and Applejack dropped into a low stance. The pink pony and the trio before me however, remained in their place. Carefully selecting my words, I spoke, “May I inquire what will happen to me now?” The Princess turned to Twilight. “Like Princess Cadance said, you have stirred panic amongst the citizens. You being here in the Crystal Empire would only make everypony uneasy. Therefore…” She stopped. She looked at Princess Cadance who in turn looked at her expectedly. Twilight sighed. “…We have ultimately decided to take you with us to Canterlot for an audience with Princess Celestia.” "I'm assuming she is the leader of your country?" Twilight nodded. The pink one stepped in front of me for a moment before a grin shot across her face. I saw Fluttershy whisper something in Twilight's ear but It was drowned out by the excited pink mare. "So?! Do you like parties!?" ********************************************************* Meanwhile, Miles away a weakened spirit flew towards the Everfree Forrest where he felt spikes of dark magic erupting from the center.
Canterlot CastleCanterlot Castle The one pony who I had come to know as "Pinkie Pie" was still asking me dozens of questions despite her friends' interference. I had almost tripped twice due to Pinkie Pie crawling in between my legs as we made our way to the train station. "Hey Arthas? Do you like parties? Why is your hair white? Are you really old?? My dad has white hair and he is old! How come you walk on two legs? Could I call you Artie? Or do you prefer Arthas? Personally, I like Artie!" "There will be a train waiting to take you straight to Canterlot when we get there." Cadence spoke over Pinkie Pie’s constant questions. "You're not coming with us?" Twilight asked. "I wish I could, But I have to stay here and watch over the Crystal Empire." Twilight and her friends shared looks of understanding when Princess Cadence glared at me. "You'd better not cause any trouble Arthas." "You have my word." I promised. Cadence nodded as we reached the train station. "Farewell Twilight, have a safe journey." "Thanks Cadence, good luck." "Bye Twilight," Shining Armor said. Twilight slyly smiled at her brother. "Be good to Cadence, alright BBBFF?" Shining Armor grinned, "That I will." We boarded the vacant train and it departed shortly after we arrived. I sat alone while the mane six were sitting together occasionally sparing me a glance. The silence was a bit awkward as none of the ponies trusted me wholeheartedly - even when I had given them my word. Though I suppose I couldn’t blame them… The train ride was long; it stretched into the night as various cities passed by through the windows. My eyelids grew heavy and I was out shortly afterwards. * Luna was traveling through her subjects’ dreams, easing their nightmares and keeping all of them safe from their fears. She was met with gratitude from her everypony whenever she quelled a nightmare or improved a dream. "If we had known of this method 1000 years ago we would have never been so selfish." She smiled. Then she felt a nightmare darker then the others. "What’s this?" She said as her eyes narrowed. Luna traced the source of the nightmare to a speeding train. It wasn't even a pony having the nightmare, but a strange creature. The creature looked bipedal and its rest was uneasy. The mane six were traveling with it on their way back from the Crystal Empire. "What is it?" Luna inquired. Luna took a deep breath and everything went black as she entered the creature’s dream. Luna's vision returned to her but it was not her own. She had entered the biped’s consciousness silently and undetected and now found herself sharing another’s vision. 'Luna' was walking towards a huge drawbridge with the mighty sound of bells chiming loudly as if to announce her arrival. The drawbridge lowered and collided with the ground with a deep thud. Luna watched as her host crossed the bridge with hundreds of other similar looking creatures cheering and hollering at his arrival. The biped stood in the middle of the street for a moment and caught one of the rose petals being showered upon him. The rose petal died in his hand and he tossed it aside. He began walking briskly towards a large door decorated lavishly by markings and insignias. The hooded creature did not slow down and he barged into the throne room with a menacing boom when the heavy doors collided with the walls. His heavy plate boots thudded loudly with each step as he approached what must have been the ruler of this castle. "Ah my son, I knew that you-“ "You no longer need to sacrifice for your people... You no longer need to bear the weight of your crown... I've taken care, Of Everything. Luna watched with growing horror as her host approached the older creature with his sword firmly in his grasp. "What is this?! What are you doing my son?" Luna felt the creature grin. “Succeeding you, Father.” Luna could do nothing but watch as the sword was plunged into the chest of her host’s very own father. His crown fell and rolled across the throne room breaking one of the tips. “This Kingdom shall fall. And from the ashes shall arise a new order that will shake the very foundations of the world.” To say Luna was disturbed at the creature’s nightmare would be a massive understatement. She exited the plane of the dreams and rushed to Celestia's chambers. * "-ey has wa- p" "Artie wake up!" I shot up and looked around quickly. When I saw where I was I sighed in relief. "Just another nightmare," I thought. "Arthas, are you okay? We're here." I nodded and stretched my limbs. We exited the train only to be met with a detachment of what looked to be like guards. Twilight spoke up. "Gentlecolts, please escort us to Princess Celestia immediately." "Yes, Miss Sparkle," they responded. I received disgusted and terrified glances as I walked through the city of Canterlot. I could pick up bits of conversations. "Ugh. What is a ghastly animal doing in our beloved city?" "Somepony should put it in chains." The insults continued all the way to the palace and stopped when we entered the courtyard. "Princess Celestia hasn't heard the whole story so you will be the one to tell her what happened." I nodded grimly and continued forward. When we stepped into the palace doors what I saw surprised me. I had much practice in reading the faces of royalty for I had once been a prince, however Princess Celestia sat upon her lavish throne and her mane seemed to blow in an invisible wind that only added to the serene look of the Princess. "Princess Celestia!" "Twilight Sparkle; I am very proud of you." Twilight rushed forward and hugged her mentor. Twilight seemed to be relishing the Princesses approval until she turned to me. For the tiniest of moments she looked at me accusingly. Her face changed to an impassive look that I wondered if it had been there in the first place. "Ah, you must be Arthas. I have received word that you helped save the Crystal Empire. Please tell me how this was done." I took a deep breath, "Your majesty, this is not a short story so please get comfortable." I retold the story of how I had arrived in Equestria, how Shining Armor and Princess Cadence found me and what I had eventually done to King Sombra. At the mention of his death Celestias' grin vanished and was replaced by a solemn look. "It seems there was no other way. I had hoped he would see reason and surrender." The Princess sighed and Twilight glared at me slightly. I cleared my throat, "That’s not the whole story..." Princess Celestias' eyes focused on me again and I told her the part of how I had ignored his pleas for surrender and the manner in which I killed him. Celestias' expression turned cold. "I have never heard of such a violent act for a millennia." "There was no other way Princess." Twilight quickly said. "Very well. Since you helped save the Crystal Empire I will not hold your actions against you. And as long as you do not bring harm to any of my subjects, I will allow your stay in Equestria to be as one of its own inhabitants. I sighed in relief. "However, I recommend that you do not return to the Crystal Empire." I looked up and smiled slightly. "Agreed, you have my word that I will not return to the Crystal Empire as that was nearly a given anyway." Celestia nodded and smiled. "I'm glad we could come to this understanding.” She turned to the lavender mare. “Twilight I do hope you don't mind if he stays with you in Ponyville, do you?" "Oh… Uhm, no, of course not Princess," Twilight smiled, barely disguising her skepticism. "Make sure you send me reports on his behavior in Ponyville, I fear that there is more to this individual then meets the eye." Celestia whispered to her. Twilight nodded in understanding. "I just hope he takes this as a chance to forget about his past and that none of this was really necessary." Twilight and Celestia shared one last look at each other when Twilight turned to leave the throne room. I bowed to Celestia once again and turned to follow Twilight. "I'm glad that I have been given a chance to mend my ways." Twilight looked up at me hopefully, I saw her friends waiting for us when we left the throne room. Twilight spoke to her friends. "Arthas is going to stay with me at the Golden Oaks Library. He has been given another chance by Princess Celestia." Pinkie Pie instantly brightened up at the news. "Woo hoo! Now I get to throw him a welcome to Equestria party!" Pinkie Pie dashed almost comically through the streets of Canterlot, quickly vanishing from sight. "What... just happened?" I hesitantly inquired. Twilight chuckled. "That’s just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie." I only grew more confused at this point but continued walking with Twilight and her remaining friends without giving the matter anymore thought. I was receiving even more looks then when I had arrived. Word must have spread throughout the city that I was here. I noticed a mob seemed to be forming in front of us by a particularly disgusted purely white unicorn with a blonde mane. "Oh no," muttered Rarity. "The most grand and prosperous city in Equestria was not built for filth like this… creature to walk around in freely." Typical nobles, always thinking they are above everyone else less fortunate or different than themselves. "And what have I done to become this 'filth' of which you speak of?" "Why, by walking among us. Just because you walk with the Elements of Harmony does not make you part of Equestrian society!" "Please Blueblood, just let us go. We were just leaving Canterlot." Twilight said. "Not until this beast is dealt with! I refuse to let him go, however you five may go if you wish." "We would never leave one of our friends behind!” I blinked at her referring to me as a friend. “Something you would not know about true friends!" Rainbow yelled. "Oh please,-" "We’re leaving Prince Blueblood, and Arthas is coming with us." Twilight stepped forward when Blueblood pushed her slightly back. "I don't think you realize-" All the noise was cut off followed by a loud gasp seeing as I now had Bluebloods horn in a tight grip. "Not one more step, or the horn comes off." "Do you have any idea who I am! I will have you arrested for-" My grip around his horn tightened and he fell to his knees. "I don't think you know who I am." "Arthas stop!" I immediately let go of him and faced Twilight. The look on her face was indifferent. "You have proved your point. Let’s go..." Twilights' horn started to glow and a bright flash surrounded Twlight her friends and I. The next thing I knew we were at the train station. "Teleportation - very impressive," I said with a smile. Twilight said nothing as we boarded the train to Ponyville; even here I received a few awkward stares but nothing too serious as in Canterlot. I hope that I had not just blown it by hurting Prince Blueblood. I sat down and the mane six, excluding Pinkie were also finding places to sit next to Twilight. The train ride back was short and quiet until Rainbow broke the silence. "I don't think any of us are that mad about it, Arthas. If I were you I would have done the same thing to protect one of my friends." I blinked in slight confusion at the use of the word ‘friend’. Eventually the other three ponies mumbled in agreement. Twilight had remained silent and I looked at her. Twilight glanced at me and nodded slowly. I was forgiven. "Rainbow, I am glad that I have you and your friends support in this world, For if I didn't I would have surely gone mad." "It's nothing..." Rainbow said modestly. A short while later we had arrived in Ponyville. "Welcome Arthas: this is your new home." Twilight said. The town looked peaceful and spacious. A nice quiet place to live; at least from the looks of it. "I think I'm going to like it here." I said with a satisfied grin.
PonyvilleI apologize profusely for how long it took me to get this chapter out. School and medical issues have been making it almost impossible to find the motivation to write. This also isn't the finest chapter I've ever written so bare with me. And without further ado, A Symphony of Frost and Flame returns. Ponyville When we left the train station we couldn't help but notice that most of Ponyville seemed to be empty, I could only spot a few ponies and they were in to much of a hurry to notice us. "Where is every..pony here?" I asked Twilight shrugged, "No clue" Twilight turned to her friends and they all seemed to have grins on their faces, I was left to believe that this just contradicted Twilights statement. We approached a large tree dubbed 'The Golden Oaks Library' "Alright were here everypony," I waited for Twilight to invite us to her home but when I saw them all looking at me with barely disguised amusement I rolled my eyes. I marched up to the door and began to open it. "This has something to do with Pinkie Pie doesn-" "SURPRISE!" I gripped the door nob tightly in surprise, I chuckled after I noticed there was no threat. The cheers and laughter continued for a few moments until I stepped out of the dark and into the light of the tree house. There was a few silent gasps and the cheerful atmosphere vanished and was replaced by an awkward silence. Not wishing for the situation to get out of hand I took a deep breath and tried to speak in a calming voice. "Hello Every..pony, my name is Arthas Menethil and I mean you no harm." The atmosphere in the library was tense for a long moment untill Pinkie Pie broke the silence "Well what are you crazy ponies waiting for!? Lets party!" Music started playing and the ponies stopped staring at me although many were still throwing me concerned glances. I walked over to the table with at least four dozen cupcakes, one large cake and a few pies. I did not bother with all of the sugar filled cupcakes or pieces of cake. What caught my eye however was a delectable looking pumpkin pie. I cut out a slice and bit into it, My eyes closed and I remembered that fateful Hallows End so many years ago, Jaina had been there with me. I remembered how Jaina had looked under the night sky the only light coming from the moon and the giant flaming Wickerman. "Arthas, Are you alright?" I opened my eyes and Twilight was at my side giving me a concerned look. "I'm fine, I was just... remembering something." Twilight nodded "Hey Arty!" I jumped when Pinkie Pie had suddenly appeared from nowhere "Lets play a game!" I looked at her with a confused expression. "What kind of game?" I asked cautiously "Pin the tail on the pony!" Before I could ask what that was I was blind folded and being pushed towards a random part of the Library. Ponies were laughing at what I assumed were Pinkies antics. I was handed what I assumed was a pin. "Alright listen! I am going to knock on the pony and then you have to try to pin the tail on the pony!" 'Ugh, Pinkie has to be insan-' Before I could finish that thought I was suddenly spun around with the speed and ferocity that only an excited Pinkie Pie could replicate. When the whirlwind had stopped I stumbled a bit and heard Pinkie knock on a wall three times ahead of me. I almost tripped making my way over to where the noise had originated. "This is ridiculous" I said with a grin, Many of the ponies laughed. When I was close I tried to get an accurate pin, When I pulled the blindfold off I realized that I had moved too far to the right. "Better luck next time Arty!, Oh! watch me, I'm the master of pin the tail on the pony!" I assumed she would do the same thing that I did, However she reached over to a table and chugged what looked like two alcoholic drinks simultaneously. She then proceeded to blindfold herself and spin so fast It created a pink tornado. When she stopped she somehow managed to balance on one hoof and was facing the wall as well. I was shaking my head in disbelief as she steadily trotted over to the pony and pinned the pony right on its rump. Pinkie was laughing before she even had the blindfolds off and cheered enthusiastically when she saw where she had placed the pin. It was almost impossible to not be happy around this pony, It was really no wonder that they called her the Element of Laughter. The party lasted about an hour before everypony was to tired to continue, Excluding Pinkie Pie. When everypony had cleaned up and left the mane six were preparing to leave themselves. "Awww I guess the party is over, See ya later everypony!" Somehow Pinkie managed to bounce out the door even after all the partying she had done. "Oh... Um I should go to, I wouldn't want my animal friends to worry about me not coming home for the night." "Yeah, I've got to get up early tomorrow to work on the farm, See ya Twi." Applejack and Fluttershy left followed by Rainbow Dash and Rarity. "Bye Twilight, bye Arthas." I said goodbye to each of my new friends. After they had left I turned to Twilight, "Well uh... Where will I be sleeping." "Oh, um would you be okay sleeping on the couch, I don't have any other guest beds." I nodded and made my way over to the couch but Twilight had followed me. "Do you need anything before I call it a night?" "Well, I'm kind of curious to learn more about you. Would you mind if I tell you more about myself?" I crossed my hands and my eyes lifted curiously. "I wouldn't mind in the least." "If I go back as far as I can remember....-" *** Twilight finishes telling me about herself. *** "That was no short tale, However I think its time I told you about the land where I came from." Twilights eyes brightened, eager for the chance to learn about a new world. "I should warn you however, Azeroth can be a cruel and inhospitable place." "The beginning of my journey started at Strahnbrand, Where the Orcs attacked us. Orcs are vile and aggressive creatures. Heathens who warship demon gods and offer human sacrifices to appease them. We were given orders by King Terenas to defend the city." "I would rather not tell her I used to be a prince." "The men I served with were part of a holy order. We called ourselves paladins, paladins are warriors who use the power of the light to heal their friends, or fight their enemies. I was my prince's bodyguard, We defended the villagers as best we could from the orcs but they still managed to escape with many of the city people." "The leader of our order, Uther the Lightbringer called the prince for help in destroying the orc encampment. We combined our forces overwhelmed the orcs defenses and rescued the remaining villagers." I took a deep breath, "There was peace for a time, Until trouble began to brew once again. Rumors of a plague that was magical in nature spread throughout the kingdom. We were sent to investigate these rumors." "Turns out the Kirin'Tor had the same idea and sent one of their best mages down to investigate the matter with our prince. Her name was Jaina Proudmoure, You almost remind me of her with your love of books and all things magic." "Whats the Kirin'Tor? You also mentioned you used the light to heal, Is it like magic?" Twilight asked me. "In a way yes, If one pushes himself to far he will become exhausted. The Kirin'Tor are the finest mages in the land." "Also you mentioned a plague? What did it do?" I shuddered. "I don't think I should go into depth on what it did Twilight, But I will say that it caused the destruction of the Kingdom I lived in. Lordaeron crumbled and the Prince was ultimately responsible. "How was he responsible?" "He became so obsessed with saving his kingdom that he only hastened its destruction." "How is that possible?" "With every soldier that fell in battle, it only served to bolster our enemies ranks," "What?" "You really don't want to know Twilight." I yawned and laid down on the couch Twilight had lent me. "I am tired, I would appreciate it if I could retire for the night." Twilight looked disappointed but nodded anyway. She then started to climb the stairs to the second floor of the library. "Goodnight Twilight." I called up to her. "Goodnight Arthas." Twilight closed the door to her bedroom. No doubt staying up until the wee hours of the morning to study. I attempted to get some rest in the meantime, but sleep would not come. Minutes became Hours and soon enough I began to wonder. "I must be getting some of my powers back." First they showed up when I extinguished Sombra's life, and now my need to sleep is vanishing again. "I just hope Ner'zhul was destroyed by that prismatic explosion..." I got chills just thinking about him. "I doubt it." *Meanwhile in The Everfree forest.* "Trixie cannot believe she was run out of Hoofington! Ever since the Ponyville incident things have been going from bad to Worse!" Trixie had lost her wagon in Hoofington, It had been trashed by unsatisfied ponies. "Has Trix-" Trixie sighed "Have I lost my touch?" Ner'zhul took notice of her distressed spirit and planned to take advantage of her cracked ego. "Listen" "What? Who is there?" Trixie felt compelled to answer to the voice. "Trixie demands to know who you are!" "I am Ner'zhul I can offer you power beyond your wildest dreams, Even more then that mage Twilight Sparkle. Trixies heart began to speed up, "Surely you jest!" "I do not, Make your way to the castle in the middle of this forest! Obey!" Trixie did not quite trust the voice, But her now inflated pride would not allow her to decline the offering. She ran deeper and deeper into the perilous Everfree forest. However this was not the first time Trixie has been here. When Trixie reached the castle the doors opened for her and in the main chamber stood a shattered sword with runes and a menacing looking helmet. "Trixie has arrived, where are you?" Trixie was now mere steps away from the some of the most powerful artifacts known to Azeroth. When she approached a sharp pain spiked in her. Shaking the sudden pain from her head, the azure mare leaned in closer to the strange ornament. She looked to both sides believing someone was playing tricks on her, yet she turned her gaze back to the ornament before her. After a pregnant pause she, mostly out of utter confusion, spoke up. “Hello? Is somepony… there?” she hesitantly asked as she carefully poked the headpiece, as if asking it like she would have a sentient being. After a long silence she sighed and deflated slightly. “Trixie must have imagined things… Yes, the past few days must have been a lot harder on-“ “Trixie Lulamoon, my new companion. You have come at last.” Trixie jumped back at the sudden voice whispering to her. “Wh-who’s there?! The Great and Powerful Trixie demands you show yourself: I am in no mood for your silly games!” “Here, before you.” the disembodied voice whispered. Trixie tensed up as she carefully moved closer to the artefact. Standing mere inches away from it she blinked twice, and twice once more, at the apparent reality. “Who… what are you? Are you some sort of… magic show’s special effect? Or maybe Trixie’s mind has collapsed upon itself and she’s imagining everything?” “Neither of such things, young mage. I am but one who understands your pain.” The voice was silent for a short moment before it once again echoed inside the unicorn’s head. “One who shares your woes – a friend, if you will - one who can help.” Trixie snorted. “What do you know of Trixie’s woe- I mean, the Great and Powerful Trixie bears no woes! Ponies’ petty opinion of Trixie means little to her – if there is any woe at all it lies with them for shunning the Great and Powerful-.” “And yet, despite this, it is you who find yourself alone in the world. No friends. No home.” The azure unicorn deflated only slightly at the ownerless voice’s words, her attitude and posture starting to crack like glass. “No hope.” Trixie felt her eyes well with tears. It was right: the voice was right. She was alone. Cast out by her fellow ponies - exiled; forced to wander Equestria homeless and unwanted by everypony. Her tears of sorrow and self-pity soon fell freely down her cheeks and into the muddy floor, only to disappear forgotten and unnoticed by anypony. She huffed in an attempt to yet preserve her prideful attitude. “What does it matter what a talking piece of steel thinks? Because of that hussy Twilight Sparkle I am ridiculed or unwanted everywhere I go – in some places both.” “Yes. Your woes are great, caused only by the foolish and the weak-minded. Your magical talent scares them; they fear and envy you for your magical prowess, therefore they deem you a threat to be shunned. But where they see a threat, I see only potential.” Trixie turned to the metallic ornament, slightly raising an eyebrow at its words. “Why do you want to help me?" "Because we share the same woes, you and I - we have both been wronged by one who would see us beaten." "What would you have me do?" "Cast aside your life as a mere performer, and swear fealty to me." "Together we will reclaim our rightful glory, and take our revenge upon those who have wronged us!" Trixie was eager to enact revenge on the world that had shunned her so. And that insufferable Twilight Sparkle, she grinned at the helm, "Trixie swears to serve you." "Excellent..." Ner'zhoul promptly devoured Trixies soul.
