Chapters Righteousness and Malevolence
PROLOGUE
You can't move, your body wrecked with pain as you struggle to keep yourself alive. You try opening your eyes to see where you are. As your eyelids slowly open you find yourself lying on the ground in the middle of a charred and destroyed battlefield. You look on with awe and despair, all you see is death and destruction, the bodies of your friends and family lying as still as rocks, machines of war battered and destroyed and in flames, the ground you lay on is charred black, several fires light up the night sky. As you begin to soak up all that you see, a single tear drop begins to run down your cheek, this is something that normally you've trained yourself not to do, but this particular scene is something you don't take lightly.
After a good, long amount of time looking, you decide to try pick yourself up. This action takes every fiber of your being to do so. As you begin to pick yourself up, you feel an ocean of pain run down every inch of your body, this, plus the weight of your armor makes it extremely difficult to stand. As you rise you pick up your sword and shield and begin to drag yourself forward. You slowly move forward, breathing heavily to keep yourself from passing out, remembering all that had transpired throughout the epic battle that had been waged; you and your brethren defending your once beautiful home land. As you walk you notice that you are stepping in some kind of liquid, you look down, and you see massive pools of crimson red. The sight of the blood mixed with the smell of the dead bodies nearly makes you vomit, but with what little strength you have, you manage to regain your composure. As you continue limping forward in you blood stained armor, you suddenly stop, denying the horrible sight you are seeing. You see your best friend, the one you have know your entire life, has been stabbed multiple times! You look to your left to stop looking at the carcass of your friend but you see something worse, your father. His limbs have been cut off, all but his head so people could recognize who he was. Your father was your biggest inspiration to become a Paladin, you looked up to him more than anybody else you have ever met, his strength, his wisdom, his tenacity, everything about him is what helped shape who you are, and now hes gone. You try to move away from this place but your foot kicks something, you look down at what you touched, almost instinctively. You mother, your once beautiful mother, lays dead at your feet, As if the failure in the battle wasn't enough, the bodies of your most cherished loved ones now lay out in front of you, as still as the cold air.
Witnessing the awful sight of your companion and family torn apart, coupled with the pain in your body and heart, you collapse to your knees and begin to cry. The tears you shed were the most emotional tears that had ever escaped your eyes, the guilt you felt for being unable to defend your home mixed with the death of those most precious to you were too much that not even the Light could heal the wounds in your soul. The curses you mouthed, the shouts that had escaped your throat, the begging and the pleading you screamed towards the Heavens: "WHY?! Why couldn't have been different?! For what purpose have I been cursed with this failure?! Why have you allowed ME to continue to breathe and not one of them?!?!" As you continue to sob in your grief and anger, trying to catch your breath, you hear something, something that sounds almost like a voice.
"Because your destiny does not reside here. I have chosen you to be the guardian of different land. A land that holds more value than this one. You are valuable to me, so I have decide to keep you alive."
The voice was female, it was beautiful, so beautiful that it almost made you forget about everything you just saw, however, being told that your homeland was less important than another begins boil your anger past its limit. "WHAT COULD BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE LAND I WAS BORN AND RAISED ON?! WHO COULD BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE ONES THAT I HAVE CARED ABOUT MY ENTIRE LIFE?! THE ONES THAT I HAVE FOUGHT AND BLED TO PROTECT?!" You shout off into the distance not knowing if something actually spoke to you, or all of your emotions are beginning to drive you mad. You await a response and after what felt like several hours you finally receive one.
"The answer to your question is something I can not just tell you, my Champion, that is something I can only show you" said the angelic voice.
You begin to ponder what this may mean, You brace yourself for whatever may happen, when suddenly.......
-Darkness-
-Silence-
You don't have any idea what just happened, all you see is darkness, stretching on for what seems like an eternity. You don't know whether you are alive or dead or possibly in between. "Where am I?" you think aloud. Then you hear a noise, it sounds like the same one you heard before everything went black.
"Do not worry my Champion, all will be revealed in time. I must inform you, however, that your decisions and your actions will help shape the destiny of not only yourself but of an entire race." You think about this, You don't know whether you have become insane or if you are actually listening to a person you can't see. "When you awaken you must not panic, you will see things you thought were impossible, but anything is possible given enough time and one chance."
As soon as that sentence ends You open your eyes, You see two figures standing in front of you but from all that you can gather, they aren't human, they look like.....horses? One has a light lavender coat with a purple mane and a stripe of dark pink and light purple, purple eyes,on its head is a.....horn? "That's not possible" You think to yourself. The other horse has an orange coat, with a long blonde mane and emerald colored eyes. The two mares notice you have awaken and they stare at you with puzzled looks on their faces and you stare back with the same puzzled look. No sound is made; you slowly, and painfully, raise your hand and wave it as if you were saying "Hello", trying not to show any of the pain you are feeling throughout your body.
The two mares look at each other, then back at you. There was a still silence in the air, until the purple colored mare began to speak "Hello....um may I ask, who *ahem* what are you?"
Author's Note
This is the first story I have ever written so please don't be too harsh =P
Righteousness and Malevolence
A New Land, A New Beginning
A NEW LAND, A NEW BEGINNING
EQUESTRIA: 30 MINUTES EARLIER
[2nd person: Applejack]
Today seemed like a normal day in Equestria for you. The sun was shinning bright; the wind was nice and cool as it blew through your mane, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. It's days like today that you've learned to cherish the most. You trot along, bucking tree after tree for their sweet delicious apples like you normally do. You reach the end of one row of apple trees when you hear a sounds in the distance, its sounds like moaning, very painful moaning. "Somepony must be in trouble!" You say aloud as you speed toward where you hear the painful noise. When you reach the site of the moaning, you slow to a halt, completely unsure of what you are seeing; a large creature you have never seen before. It appears to be in some kind of.....golden metal suit and what looks to be a sword and shield next to it. The metal is splattered with dark red paste, you realize what this paste is and begin to think about leaving this creature here, it might not be safe, plus it doesn't know you're here, its eyes are closed. You begin to back away slowly from this creature, trying to make sure to be a quite as you can but as you do so, you are stopped by a single word uttered from the creature, "H-help". You freezing, your mind racing with questions you don't have answers for, "What do ah do? Do ah leave it? What if it's friendly? What if it aint?"
After what felt like hours of debating with yourself, you've decided that the right thing to do is shelter and help treat the wounds of this creature. Using the amazing strength you have been blessed with when you were born. Fortunately you are one of the most athletic ponies in Equestria and you are able to carry this creature back to Sweet Apple Acres and you put it in the back of the barn for safe keeping, thankfully nopony saw you. You stare at the creature, it doesn't have hooves and it lacks a large coat of fur, no tail, and where your forehooves would be there are these long, fleshy, stick like things."What ever this thing is, it sure does creep me out, ah hope bringing it here wasn't a mistake, but I couldn't just leave it hurt out in the wild. Maybe ah should run over to Twilight's place, maybe she can explain what the hay this thing is." You start to leave the barn, you close the door and lock it so nobody can see the visitor you just brought.
You turn around, about to start off into town to talk to Twilight when suddenly "HOWDY BIG SIS!!". The sudden loud voice mixed with the anxiety of having a strange creature in the barn nearly made you jump out of your fur. "You look down and notice little Applebloom giving you a big 'ol smile at you, looking as cute as ever."Why are you lockin' the barn big sis?" she questions you with a confused look on her face.
"Uh....uh..." You mind racing, knowing you aren't a good liar, you try to come up with answer. "Ah got a wounded critter in there!" you rapidly say to your sister. "A was gunna go into town and talk to some people who could help it." Since this pretty much was the truth you give Applebloom a big smile, assuring her that everything is under control.
Fortunately, she believes you and leaves you with a big smile and a hearty "Okay!" as she trots along back inside the house.
"Phew!" you say aloud, but not loud enough for anypony to hear you. After the ordeal with Applebloom, you run off towards Ponyville in search of Twilight.
You run into town, some ponies here and there waving and saying "good afternoon" but you don't pay any attention to them. You finally reach the Library where Twilight made her home in Ponyville. You trot up to the door and knock a few times pleading that somepony is here. The door opens and Spike is standing in the doorway. "Hey ya AJ, what's up?" Spike asks you.
"Ah lot! Is Twilight here? I need to show her something." you ask urgently to the baby dragon.
"Yeah, she's upstairs looking through her books, as usual." As soon as you're informed that Twilight is here, you rocket past Spike and run upstairs. When you arrive in the second story of the tree home, you see Twilight looking though her books like Spike said, she looks up at you gives you a big smile.
"Hello Applejack! What brings you here?" said the lavender colored mare.
"Twilight! Ah need ya tah come tah Sweet apple Acres, ah got somethin tah show ya! It's mighty important!" You say to her in a serious tone. Twilight looks at you and makes a sad face. "I would but I need to catch up on my studies." she saidwith a frown.
"No! Twilight this is more important than books!" You say in a loud urgent voice. Twilight was very hesitant to believe you since books mean a lot to her, but knowing you wouldn't lie about something important, she closes her book, puts it away using her magic, nods her head and turns towards you.
"Very well then, let's go." You nod your head and start down the stairs. You begin to leave the Library and you overhear Spike ask Twilight something.
"Where ya going Twilight?" asked spike
Twilight responds "I'm going to go to Applejack's place for a while, could you clean up the place while I'm gone?". Spike lets out a smile, Twilight smiles back and you and her take off back to Sweet Apple Acres.
After a good amount of time walking back to Sweet Apple Acres, being bombarded by Twilight's questions, you finally reach home. "Alright Twah, I'm about to show you somethin' that ah really hope you can explain tah me." Twilight put a smug grin on her face, letting her ego get the better of her for a short time
"Don't worry AJ! I'll be able to answer any question you throw at me!" You give Twilight a worried look as you begin to open the barn door. You both trot along inside and show Twilight the "special visitor", Twilight's mouth agape, not believing in fact, not knowing what she is looking at.
"Any question huh? Well could you tell me what this is?" Almost as if the question bounced off of Twilight, she continues to stare at the creature completely dumbfounded. Twilight regains her awareness and tries to answer your question.
"I-I-I don't know", those three words send shivers up and down your spine. Twilight now asks you a question "Where did you find this thing?".
"It was out in the Apple orchard, ah was doing my normal routine, until ah hear something that sounds like somepony was in pain, ah ran over to see who it was and ah found this thing lying in the dirt moanin' and groanin', ah didn't want to have anything to do with this thing so ah was gunna leave and let somepony else deal with it but then ah heard a voice say "Help.". So ah decided that the right thing to do was to bring it here and rest up, ah couldn't let it stay out in the wild to get pounced bah somethin' nasty."
Twilight responds, "That was very noble of you Applejack."
You and your lavender friend continue to stare at the creature with interest and fear plastered on your faces, that's when you feel your entire body freeze, you notice that it begins to wake up. Its eyes slowly open. It stares at the both of you with a look of confusion and fear. You and Twilight stare awkwardly at the now awake creature and it stares back. Silence fills the barn, when It begins to raise its, what would be, right forehoof and waves at you both, as if it was saying "hello". You look over at Twilight, she looks at you. Simultaneously you both look back at the creature, then Twilight breaks the awkward silence, and speaks to the creature. "Hello" she says, "Um may I ask who *ahem* what are you?" The creature just continues to stare at the both of you, wide eyed and in silence.
Author's Note
this was chapter was a little longer than i thought it was going to be and i hope you all like it!
please comment, rate what you think it deserves and let me know how it was and if there is anything i could to to improve!
again this is the first story I've written so any and all feedback would be appreciated!
thanks all! =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
AWAKENING
[Second Person: You]
"It talked." You think to yourself." The purple horse with a horn on its head, just talked to me." You quickly assess the situation: You are in a land you have never been in before, you are wounded and, in pain, sitting in what appears to be a barn. There are two confused looking horses watching your every move and one of them asked "what" You are. The two mares, however don't seem to want to bring forth any violence so in turn you do not. "My name is...." you give your name as you answer the question at hand. "My people and I call ourselves humans. Who and what might you be?" You ask in response, trying to piece together just what in the Heavens is going on.
"What a strange name. Is there anything that we could call you that would be simpler?" the purple mare asks you with a soft and gentle voice.
You ponder the question, thinking of something easier to pronounce. After a good amount of thought you decide on a good name for the mares to identify you by. "Call me, Knight."
The two mares nod, acknowledging the name to be fitting judging by your appearance "Well, Knight, my name is Twilight Sparkle and I am a Unicorn" the lavender Unicorn replies to you cheerfully, "And this is Applejack..." she points to the orange colored mare to her left "...and we are from the wonderful land of Equestria!"
Applejack bows her head, "Howdy Knight." she greets you. You raise an eyebrow and continue to play along with the events that are transpiring before you.
"I guess that partially answers my second question. Where exactly am I?" You ask the purple Unicorn.
"You are in beautiful Equestria! Where ponies like myself and Applejack reside. We grow our own food, make our own homes and live in harmony. Where are you from? I don't believe I've ever come across anything such as yourself in my studies." says the Unicorn.
"Our people call our planet Earth and much like you ponies we also grow our own food and make our own homes; although we don't always live in harmony..." You attempt to inform the Ponies of what you mean by that but as soon as you try to, you feel a sharp pain pierce through your skin and run straight up your right arm. "Aahhh!" you yelp aloud as you clench your arm in pain. "...as you can clearly see."
"That's right ya'll is hurt! Ah'll be right back, Ah'm gunna go grab some bandages and help patch you up!" Applejack tells you. She darts off towards the door when you stop her.
"No!" you stop Applejack with your sudden outburst. "I'ts quite alright, watch I'll show you what I mean now that I have had some time to rest." You assure Applejack of your situation. She turns around and looks at you with a puzzled look on her face, as does Twilight. "Watch." You tell the two mares. They sit down and stare at you, trying to figure out what you mean. You sluggishly raise your left hand and hover it directly above the wounds on your right arm. Then slowly, you begin to channel what little energy you have into your left hand, then it begins to glow a bright gold color. You begin to feel a warm tingling sensation run up and down your entire arm. It feels like slowly dipping your hand into a tub of lukewarm water and getting the goosebumps at the same time, a feeling that you have come to treasure. You relish in the warmth and pleasure you feel as you see the cuts and bruises that once blemished your arm begin to slowly fade away and the pain beginning to subside. You stop your left hand from glowing, seeing that your arm looks normal again you wave it around, now feeling that there is no more pain residing within it. You look at the two ponies with a smile, "See? Nothing *cough* to worry about!".
They don't utter a word, the two mares just stare at you wide eyed, mouths agape not believing what that just witnessed, almost like the look you gave them when you woke.Twilight was, again, the one who broke the silence. "A healing spell? B-but that's not possible! Only some of the more powerful Unicorns in Equestria can use magic as potent as that! How were you able to do that?!" the purple Unicorn asks you in disbelief.
"What you mean this?" You say as you take your now good right arm and hover over your bad left arm. You repeat the process over again, your right hand begins to glow bright gold, your left arm produces the warm and tingly feeling; and just like with your right arm, your left is now fully healed. You slyly smile at the two mares, flexing your arms, revealing the now fully restored limbs. "I can do it again if you still don't believe it!" you say while you chuckle heartily at them.
Twilight is now full of life after watching your display "You can use magic! You can use magic just like Unicorns!" she tells you. Twilight's horn begins to glow and she begins to levitate herself around the room blinded by excitement and displaying her ability to use magic as well, squealing and smiling at you. "This is such an amazing discovery! A creature never seen before and it can use magic just like Unicorns!" Twilight begins to clap her hooves together full of glee.
"Well, not necessarily, I can't do what you just did, ya know they whole "levitating around the room" thing. I have seen something like that before however. There were these people, humans like me, blessed with the ability to utilized arcane energy to twist, bend, and manipulate the world around them. They were known as "Magi". "Magi were very rare but very distinguishable. I am known as a Paladin. You inform the two ponies. "Just think of a warrior who has been trained to call upon the Holy energy to assists their allies and damage their enemies."
The two ponies glance at each other with worried expressions on their faces. They both look back at you and Applejack begins to speak. "Hold on one sec; did ya'll just call yerself a warrior? Like fightin' and k-killin'?" Applejack asks you, her voice shaking very nervously.
You immediately realize just what the orange pony is implying by asking you this question. You gaze at her with a stern look on your face then you let out a long sigh. "Yes, it's true. I have fought many times and I have killed many times..." The two mares gasp aloud simultaneously, with fear and concern coursing throughout their bodies. "...but let me assure you!" you say with an uplifting tone. "Never have I once killed out of malice or spite. The only thing that would ever drive me to do something as horrific as that would be guarding those I have dedicated myself to preserve . I have sworn my life to fight for all that is pure and just. Never once have I fought for villainous or hideous cause. I fight to defend, not to destroy!" You gaze at the ponies with a stalwart look in your eyes and a steadfast image painted across your face.
Twilight and Applejack look at you worryingly not knowing if they should trust what you've said. "Well..." Twilight begins to state. "If you didn't have good intentions with you then I don't believe you would have communicated with us so passionately."
"Yeah and maybe if ya weren't as good as ya claim tah be, you might not have been as welcomin' as ya have been. Ya'll might have tried tah hurt us by now." says Applejack observantly.
You turn your head towards Applejack and say with a solemn tone "I would never even think to harm somebody...err...somepony in your case, for no reason! Especially not one who took me in and helped me when I needed it most!" Applejack give you a cute little smile and you smile back politely. After the conversation you start to heal the rest of your body starting from your legs and slowly moving up to you chest allowing the Holy energy to fully restore your wounds.
Now fully rejuvenated You pick yourself up from the ground. While doing so you pick up your sword from the ground by its hilt and sheathe it at your side then you grab your shield and put it on your back. Now fully standing the two ponies look up at you in awe, astonished by how tall you are. You raise an eyebrow "So! Now what?" you ask the stunned ponies.
Twilight shakes her head, releasing her from her trance. "Well." she says "I think we should take you to go meet the Princess. Hopefully she might be able to know how and why you're here, but before we do we need to get you cleaned up if you're going to be presented in front of royalty." Twilight lets out a small chuckle.
You look down and inspect yourself. Your wounds are healed. but as for your armor it's a different story. Your thick, heavy plate mail is splattered with dried up blood ranging from your feet all the way up to your shoulders. "Yeah, that would probably be for the best." you reply.
"And I think I know the right Pony who could help us out!" Twilight informs you. You see her look over to Applejack and they both nod their heads. "The only problem is we need to go into town and I don't think it would be wise to expose you to a large group of ponies at one time under these circumstances." Twilight explains looking back toward you.
"So how are you two going to get me into town without allowing me to be seen?" You ask the ponies, trying to think of an answer as well. Then Applejack's head perks up, You hope she has some good news.
"Ah have an idea. Ah've got a cart that ah use to get supplies from town. Maybe you could get in it and we'll cover it up with a tarp or somethin', then we'll pull ya inta town! Hows that sound Knight?" Applejack asks you. You proceed to contemplate this suggestion.
"Hmmm, do you think it'll work? It sounds easy enough" You say to Applejack with a look of deep thought on your face. Applejack confidently nods her head assuring you that nothing bad will happen. "Alright then, if it's the only plan we've got, might as well try!" You proclaim to the two Ponies. They both nod their heads in agreement and start walking towards the barn door. You follow closely behind them when, suddenly the doors open from the other side. You, Twilight and Applejack immediately freeze in your tracks as you three rest your sight at what looks to be a cyan colored pony with magenta colored eyes and a mane that appears to have every color of the rainbow in it standing in front of the doorway and she appears to have.......wings on her back.
"There you two are! I've been looking...all....over.....for.....you." Her speech slows to a halt as she shifts her glare over to you with a look of fear and animosity in her beautiful eyes. You realize that you're going to be getting looks like this a lot throughout your time in this land so you prepare to try and get used to it. Then suddenly you notice the winged mare leap out to attack you, perhaps believing you to be a threat to Twilight and Applejack. You quickly bring out your shield and brace yourself for whatever this pony may throw at you.
Author's Note
Thanks for the feedback so far! I know I'm kind of messy when it comes down to these chapters but I am trying my best to learn and change up my writing! =P
I'm glad that people are enjoying this so far, I'll try to keep it interesting for ya'll! =D
Thanks again for reading! =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
AFFIRMATION
Protected behind your thick metal bulwark, you anxiously await the first blow of the winged cyan pony yet nothing happens. You slowly move your shield away from your body to see why you haven't felt anything yet and you see Twilight and Applejack holding the cyan pony back from attacking you. You let out a sigh of relief knowing that the two ponies who you've met don't want any harm to occur to you.
"Let me go! There's a monster behind you!" the winged pony hollered at Twilight and Applejack. You take this statement rather harshly considering that throughout your entire life you have tried not to become a monster. You always helped other people when they were in need. Whether they were in need of food or money or even a friend, you had a burning desire in your heart to always want people to be happy. You don't see yourself as monster but you realize that when confronting creatures that don't know who or what you are that is how you are going to be judged as.
"Rainbow calm down! He's not a monster, you have to trust us!" Twilight yells, doing her best to hold the defensive pony away from you . "If he was a monster he would have hurt us by now and he wouldn't have tried to communicate with us!" The rainbow maned pony immediately stops struggling and looks at Twilight, taken aback by what she just said.
"Wait wait wait, you're telling me that you two talked to this thing and you actually trust it?!" Twilight and Applejack let go of the pony and nod their heads, trying to assure her that you are friendly. She looks at you still not totally convinced of this truth. "What is it?" she asks Twilight.
"We call it Knight." the unicorn answers. "It's not from our wold, from what we can tell and from what Knight has told us is that its race is known as "Human" and that it has sworn its life to protect all that is good; and yes, for the last time, we do trust it." The winged mare looks over to Applejack to make sure Twilight is telling the truth and she nods her head then the pony looks towards you.
Trying to think of a way to convince the pony yourself, you kneel down on one knee and meet the uncertain pony at eye level. "Don't worry, you have nothing to fear from me. I haven't hurt your friends nor do I plan on to." You say with a calm voice and a gentle smile. "You friends sheltered me when I was wounded, they showed me nothing but kindness and hospitality. I am more than grateful for these two ponies, I would never hurt them or anypony unless there was no other alternative and even then I would be hesitant!" you proclaim with much vigor in your voice and the cyan mare is immediately taken aback.
The winged pony stares and at you, looks back to her friends, they nod and smile, then she looks back at you and opens her mouth like she's about to speak but before she does she grips her wing in pain. "OW!" she exclaims "I must have pulled a wing muscle when I leaped out at you." Still being unsure if the pony believes you, you discover a way to perhaps gain some of her trust.
"Hold still I think I can help you with that." you take your hands and move them right next to the mare's wings and begin to charge them with your Holy energy and they begin to glow the bright golden color you've become so fond of. The pony's eyes widen and backs away from you. As she does this you stop gathering energy and gaze at her with a sad look in your eyes.
"No Rainbow, it's okay, Knight has the ability tah heal wounds, that's how it was able tah recover from its injuries!" Applejack says to Rainbow, you aren't sure if that's her name but you think that it's at least a start.
"She's right Rainbow, I've been trained to heal injuries and I can heal yours but only if you trust me." Rainbow looks at you with a worried expression then walks in your direction. As she does this you begin to build up energy in your hands again. Once ready, you hover your hands above Rainbow's injured wing and deposit the energy into it. Rainbow's eyes widen in disbelief after a few seconds of the golden energy flowing on her wing.
"The pain....the pain in my wing is....gone." Rainbow says as she stretches out her renewed wing. "You actually healed it even after I tried to attack you. Why?" you hear her ask and are immediately surprised by this.
Instantly thinking of an answer you reply to Rainbow's question with a smile. "Because I can't stand anything being in pain whether it be human, pony, or anything else, if I can help then I will."
Rainbow smiles at you but then begins frowning and looks towards the ground. "I'm sorry for trying to attack you. I thought you were going to hurt my friends so I took action, maybe I was a bit too drastic." You notice the regretful tone of her voice and can tell that she is telling truth.
You put a hand on Rainbow's head and gently pat it a few times. "It's fine Rainbow, I completely understand, I can't even remember how many times I've done things like that to protect my friends." She looks up at you with a smile and you return it with a smile of your own.
"Call me Dash." she said "I don't mind being called Rainbow, since it being my first name and all but I prefer Dash." Dash lets out a little chuckle.
"WELL!" you holler and look over to Twilight "Now that we've gotten all this business out of the way, are we still going into town?" you ask "The more time we waste the less we'll have to clean me up."
"Wait, how are you three going to get into town. I don't mean to offend or anything but Knight doesn't look like it could be able to blend in." mentioned Rainbow Dash
"Don't you worry none, we got that all under control. We came up with a plan tah get our new friend here intah Ponyville." said Applejack with a smile. "We're gunna roll him intah town usin' that ol' cart ah got and cover it up so nopony can get glimpse. Now just let me go to the back and ah'll fetch it for ya'll." Applejack began to walk behind the barn to get the cart.
Taking some to to survey the area outside of the barn you realize that it's safe to come out and that there isn't anypony else to see you other than Twilight and Rainbow. As you take a few steps outside it becomes increasingly difficult to believe the world you are seeing virtually for the first time. The bright colors of the land, the birds chirping in the distance, not a single cloud in the sky and the cool air that softly wraps around you. The peaceful scene you witness begins to remind you of your home before the war began. Every single detail was something that you just couldn't smile at and then that's when it hit you. This is that land that you have been chosen to protect. This beautiful world had chosen you to defend it but after realizing this you begin to ponder something. "What could possibly be in this land that could be a threat?" you ask yourself. You decide to abstain yourself from asking any of the ponies what danger there could be and decide on asking the Princess you've been told about instead. "Perhaps the Princes will know more about what dangers there are. I just hope she'll be willing to welcome an alien creature into her land and be willing to believe what I say." you think to yourself.
"Hey Knight?" you overhear Dash call for you which breaks you from your muse. "What exactly are you? I know Twilight said you are a "Human" but what exactly is that? You kind of look like a monkey mixed with an ape but with less fur and you walk upright." Dash asks as she examines you.
"Hmmm..." you begin as you ponder this question heavily. "You know that's really hard to say. Not very many us know exactly what we are or how we became to be. I believe we are creatures who were created from the Light. I believe my race was blessed by the Light's power and were given a home; however, as for why our bodies look and act the way they do, that's something I don't have the answer to."
"What is this "Light" you keep bring up? Is that like your Goddess or something?" asks Dash with a slightly annoyed tone.
"Well what I and many of my people believe the Light to be is the entity that created everything. It's not like a God or Goddess." you try to think of a way to easily explain what the Light really is. "Try to take everything you can think of that is good and form in into a single, all knowing entity that holds limitless power, but you can't see the Light itself. That privilege is only given to those who are deemed worthy when they pass over into the other world. I guess that's the only way I could describe it; something that is pure goodness and is all around us, but we can't see it."
Dash looks at you, seeming more confused than she already was "Uh...huh...." she murmurs.
"Since you ask me a question, mind if I ask you one?" you ask Dash and she politely nods her head. "What are you exactly? I know you're a pony but you aren't like Twilight or Applejack. I can tell by your wings."
"I'm a Pegasus and the best flyer in ALL of Equestria!" boasts Dash with a big proud smile on her face. You glance over to Twilight to confirm what Dash told you. Twilight simply nods in acknowledging what Dash just told you.
"That right she's a Pegasus. One of the three, well, four types of ponies that reside in Equestria. There are Earth ponies like Applejack who possess great athletic abilities, Unicorn ponies like me who can wield magic, Pegasus ponies like Rainbow Dash who can fly and control the weather, and finally there are Alicorn ponies. They are extremely rare but are extremely powerful. Our princess Celestia and her sister Princess Luna are both Alicorns; my brothers wife, Princess Cadence, is also an Alicorn." Twilight explains to you.
As you start to absorb this new information Applejack comes from behind the barn with a large cart. "Alrighty ah got it. It should be big enough for ya to fit in." Applejack points over to the cart, signaling you to get in and you do so. After climbing into the cart Applejack then cover the top with a large tarp concealing your presence. "Alright lets head on out!" say Applejack. You can feel the cart begin to move and you begin to try and relax in the cart not knowing how long the trip is going to be, but this proves very challenging as the cart can barely hold your body and large armor.
"How long is this going to take?" you ask hoping for a good answer.
"'Bout ten minutes, won't be too long." replied Applejack. You smile and let out a small sigh of relief. After a few minutes of traveling you begin to hear the Applejack and Twilight begin to mumble to each other back and forth and one thing catches your attention for a brief moment.
"Do ya think Rarity will be okay with this? What if she flips out like Rainbow did?" asked Applejack nervously.
Twilight answers "I think she will be, she does possess the Element of Generosity but I just really hope Celestia will be good to Knight and treat him fairly."
"Element of Generosity? What does that mean?" you think to yourself and you consider it a good question to ask later, but for now you decide to try and get comfortable and begin to close your eyes to get some rest as you continue your journey in Ponyville.
Author's Note
Id'e like to thank bladespinner4 for pre-reading and editing this chapter and Id'e like to express my gratitude to all of you who take the time to read this story. It means SO MUCH that people actually take interest into my story and have good things to say about it. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
If there is anything I could do to improve do not hesitate to say something. All constructive criticism is welcome! =D
Oh and sorry for they delayed update. A video game known as Borderlands 2 has begun to take over my life and I'm just now getting over being sick. I'll try to get another chapter done as quick as I can but I feel like there is going to be more content in each chapter as time goes on so bear with me =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
Conversation
"Alright we're here. And there's nopony 'round here tah see ya Knight." you hear Applejack say.
You peak your head out from under the tarp and survey the area to make sure the coast is clear. When seeing no other ponies besides Twilight, Applejack, and Dash, you jump out of the cart and stretch out your limbs "It may have been a short ride, but it was a small fit." You think to yourself as you regain feeling in your body. You turn around and as you do so you notice a large decorated two story building with light blue painted walls, big windows and a flag placed at the peak of the building. "What is this place?" you ask the three ponies
"This is Rarity's Carousel Boutique." answered Twilight "This is where we're going to clean you up."
"Are you sure it was a good idea to take ME to a boutique; or do boutiques serve a different purpose in this land?" you inquire.
"Where I'm from boutiques are usually for females who want to get well looking or elegant clothing." you inform the ponies.
"Well they serve the same purpose here too, but I wanted to take you to a place that had the materials to help make you look nicer and to a pony that I know and trust. Before you go in, however, I think the girls and I better go and talk to her to make sure we won't have another "Rainbow Dash" incident." Twilight says with a small giggle at the end
"Hey! I thought I was protecting you two!" Rainbow Dash roars at Twilight.
"Protect them from something that wasn't even going to hurt them?" you say as you raise an eyebrow with a smug grin on your face.
Dash gazes at you with narrowed eyes "Oh you know what I mean!" she pouts, crossing her hooves.
"Alright, enough dilly dallying, let's go talk to Rarity." said Applejack. The three ponies leave you to yourself outside as they made their way into the boutique. Eager to know how a discussion about an unknown creature that'll be entering a pony's boutique, you slowly approach the front door and put your ear next to it and focusing as hard as you can.
"...Trust us Rarity! Knight won't harm anypony! Rainbow Dash even tried to attack it but even then Knight didn't even try to hurt to her, in fact she had pulled a wing muscle in doing so and Knight healed it!" you hear Twilight say.
"Absolutely not. I refuse to let some unknown creature into my home! Also I have many orders that I need to complete, that's why I have Fluttershy over, she's giving me a helping hoof." you overhear a very elegant voice say.
"That must be Rarity" you think to yourself. The voice reminded you of some of your moments in your world when you went to meet higher class citizens, you never liked them but you always showed respect.
"....umm maybe Rarity is right..." you barely overhear an incredibly soft sweet voice say. "....what if it gets mad and tries to hurt us?" you assume this is Fluttershy.
"Girls you need to believe us Knight is friendly, and Rarity we need your help to make Knight look good for the Princess!" Twilight launched back.
"The Princess?!" you hear the elegant voice exclaim.
"That's right! Twi and ah thought it would be a good idea tah take Knight tah Celestia and see what she thinks of it being here; and if Knight looks good, then maybe Celestia will be impressed with tha pony who made it look so." said Applejack in a sly tone trying to intrigue her friend.
"Me....impress.....the Princess......." you hear the sophisticated voice struggle to keep its composure "...Alright Twilight, you've convinced me. Send in your new friend, but I must warn you, even a pony such as I has her limits."
You hear the sound of hooves approaching the door so you bolt back to the spot you were at before you began eavesdropping and try to look casual and composed. You even whistle a little to make extra sure. You notice Twilight step halfway out the door and she waves a hoof signaling for you to enter. You take a deep breath and prepare yourself for another meeting with another pony who will have no idea what you are. "Hope this doesn't end badly." you think to yourself as you approach the door. In your blood stained armor you slowly yet powerfully enter the boutique standing straight with a resolute face which quickly turns into a smile as you approach the group of ponies. You see Applejack and Dash standing next to each other and Twilight standing next to you, but then you see another Unicorn pony. She has a curled dark purple mane and tail with a white coat of fur. She's staring at you with wide sapphire colored eyes in awe of your presence. Next to her, however, is a yellow Pegasus with a long pink mane that covers a small part of her face, but unlike the Unicorn she seems to be cowering in your presence. Seeing the Pegasus like this makes your heart sink and fills it with sorrow. "Do I really look that bad?" you think to yourself "She barely saw me and she looks like she's about to pass out from fear."
"It.....looks......so.........EXOTIC!!!!" you hear the white coated Unicorn yelp. "So tall yet not gigantic, so large yet curvy, so rough yet so smooth." The Unicorn said as she inspected you. For her last analysis she placed one of her hooves on a part of your exposed forearm and rubbed it gently back and forth, her hoof was undoubtedly the soft and and most pleasurable thing you have ever felt IN YOUR LIFE. The slightest touch from her hoof made your heart skip a beat and you had to restrain yourself from giving the Unicorn a large hug so you could feel her on other parts of of your body. You wonder if that's how ALL the ponies here feel like.
"Well...thank you, miss Rarity I presume?" you say to the Unicorn as you take a bow showing your gratitude for her compliments. "I don't deserve such flattering from a beautiful Unicorn such as yourself." You say trying to make as good of a first impression as you can.
"Exotic AND well mannered. I think we'll get along just fine." the Unicorn replies fluttering her eyelashes at you. Over in the corner of your eye you see Dash stick out her tongue and pretend to gag, but you also notice the yellow Pegasus you saw, trembling with fear behind a large chair. You don't want her to continue feeling this way towards you so you slowly stand and and gradually start to walk in her direction to formally introduce yourself to her.
As you walk up to the chair that the Pegasus is hiding behind you see her poke her head from the side of the chair as she lets out a fierce "EEEP!" and quickly returns behind the chair. You finally approach the chair and kneel down to where her head would be but you don't immediately try to face her; you believe it's a better idea to let her face you.
She looks at you.
The looks at her friends.
Then back to you.
Her eyes are a shade of light blue. You could feel her gaze almost like she's not just staring at, but staring INTO you like she is learning about who you are from the inside. You knew that on the outside you seemed like a large terrifying animal to these ponies, but you also knew that on the inside you weren't. All you can do is stare back. You stare into her eyes for what feels like a lifetime until you're broken out of your hypnotic state by a small, nearly inaudible "...hi...." It came from her.
"...I'm..........F-flutter....shy-y....." you hear her voice shakes with uneasiness.
"Wow.....what a beautiful name." you reply trying to be as nice as you can.
"......T-thank...you...." Fluttershy replies still nervous.
"See, I'm not so bad." you say with a smile "Do you mind if I ask you something else?"
Fluttershy shakes her head slowly "N-n-no...I...d-don't" she utters.
"Can we be friends?" you ask. You're not sure if that's going to work, but you think it's better to try than to do nothing.
".....um...well.....since you asked nicely....I.....I guess so...." replied Fluttershy.
You smile in appreciation. "Thank you Fluttershy. You have my word I won't be mean to you or any of you." you say as you stand up and look towards the other ponies.
"Wow.....it even got Fluttershy to talk to it." said Rainbow Dash with a look of shock and disbelief on her face. "Fluttershy what made you believe him so quickly? Knowing you, I didn't think you would trust it so fast."
"Well..." Fluttershy starts "...It may be big and a little scary.....but when I looked in its eyes...I didn't see anything to be truly afraid of."
Hearing what Fluttershy said you look at her and smile knowing that's how she think about you. "Thanks Fluttershy. Okay, now that all our introductions are finished can we get down to business? If I'm going to meet your Princess I can't go looking like this!" you say with a chuckle and every pony giggles with you.
"Right! So to start lets get this armor off of you." Rarity tells you.
"Alright." you reply as you begin to remove your heavy armor piece by piece. You start with your shoulders and work your way down. As you remove each piece of armor you become more relaxed now that your body doesn't have to carry the weight of it all for now. You can't help but notice all five ponies staring at you awkwardly now that they see your actual body size. With the armor off your size seems to be cut in half. You're the same height but you look more slim now without the thick bulky metal on your body. You stare back at the five ponies they appear to be......blushing. "......What?"
"Well...judging by the condition those cloths are in I'm going to have to repair them...and that is going to require you to....take them off..." answered Rarity with her cheeks blooming with redness. You look at your pony friends and it seems like their blushes have intensified; even Fluttershy is blushing at you.
"Nopony said this was going to be easy darling." Rarity mentions.
You awkwardly attempt to take off your shirt and leggings and after looking like a fool, getting the ponies to make a few giggles, you finally take them off. Fortunately, you are wearing undergarments. "Thank the Light these are undamaged." you think to yourself, not wanting to reveal your "private" parts. "Rarity, could you get those repaired and cleaned first? This feels a little...strange to be standing half naked in front of five ponies I just met." you ask Rarity who is already at work on your outfit.
"Already on it dear. Here use this to cover yourself up." Rarity says as she tosses you a large towel. You grab the towel and immediately cover your body, fortunately it's large enough to do so. You look at the other four ponies and manage to put a goofy looking smile on your face then Twilight takes a few steps towards you and appears to want to say something.
"Well..." you begin as you take a deep breath. "...there's a lot to say so I would make yourselves comfortable." you say. The four ponies take a seat in front of you making a small semi-circle and you also take a seat in front of them. "Alright I guess I'll start off with the basics then. My people are ruled by a great and powerful King. He once ruled alongside his wife and son, but his son died in a war and the mother passed away from the grief she was struck with. Our race is usually very friendly and peaceful; we make our own food, grow our own crops, we 'live off the land' so to speak. However, as kind and gentle my race can be, there are those who seek to destroy our peaceful way of life. These humans are wretched things. Twisted by the lust for greed and power; manipulating others to join with them in their quest to take over the land. That is why I became what is known as a 'Paladin'. Paladins are a special few, chosen by the Light, to take up arms in the Light's name and fight those who were to bring chaos and destruction to those who are too weak to defend themselves."
Just as you are about to continue Rarity turns around interrupts you. "Pardon the interruption darling but I would like to ask what these markings on your sword are?"
"Oh those." you start "Well they are words in my peoples language. On this side of the blade it says 'Righteousness'." You flip the blade over. "On this side it says 'Malevolence'. The reason I had this engraved was to always remind me what I am fighting for.....and what I'm fighting against. My people can be the kindest, most loving, most charitable creatures you will ever meet, but we can also be the most evil, sinister, corrupt......THINGS...you will ever see. I live and breathe hoping to make a difference; hoping that one day my people will stop their fighting and one day live....in harmony." You let out a deep sigh and lost in your train of thought for a few seconds but you come to your senses.
"Hmm I think I know what I could do to this." you overhear Rarity say as she walks over to a large chest but you don't pay much attention to her and decide to let the designer focus on her work.
"Knight?" you hear Twilight call for you as she's raising a hoof. "Would you mind telling us about who YOU are? I mean like your past, from when you were younger and how you grew up. Also could you explain how you got to our world?"
"Well, I was born to a mother and a father. I attended school where I learned how to properly speak and write. I was a good child, made lots of friends. I never acted out of order even when some tried to make me. I lived a pretty normal quiet life until I was sixteen years old. My father began to teach me the ways of a Paladin. He thought that I had finally 'come of age' and was ready to learn how to fight and defend my people. The ironic thing was that only after a few weeks of training the War started. I was sixteen when it started......I'm twenty-three now. For seven years my people fought...for seven years the LARGEST war in Human history waged on. Then one day....during the largest battle of the largest war...me and my family....and friends....and fellow soldiers tried to hold the line and protect our Capital city, it was named 'New Haven' in honor of our dedication to the Light; and on that day, on that battlefield I witnessed the death of all that I had held dear. My friends slaughtered.....my family torn apart....HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of Humans died.....the ground became scorched black.....the sky, red with the blood of the fallen. Yet throughout all of the fighting.....all of the death.....all of the destruction....I survived."
You look up at the ponies and every single one of them, from Rarity to Fluttershy, are tearing. Frowns are painted across their faces and the sounds of weeping and sobbing fill the room. You regain your composure as you attempt to continue your story. "After falling unconscious from all the pain I felt from my wounds....I awoke to see a landscape full of mutilated bodies and pools of blood. I picked myself up and began to survey the the area. It was the worst few minutes of my life. The last thing......the last thing I remember seeing.....were......were my parents......" you begin to choke on your own words and begin to shed tears. "...they.......they...." you don't even finish your sentence and begin to sob uncontrollably with your hands covering your face. Every pony in the room, from Rarity to Fluttershy, begin to sob with you.
After several minutes of letting out all of your built up emotions you take a few deep breaths and try to relax yourself. "After seeing my parents....I shouted....in anger. I asked 'Why was I the one who was chosen to live?'. For a while there was no answer. Until a heavenly voice spoke to me. This voice told me that I had been chosen to be the guardian of a new land and that I was had become its Champion. The next thing I knew all I saw was darkness; then I awoke to Twilight and Applejack in your world.
"So.....a 'voice' told you that you were chosen to......protect our world; and that voice brought you here? Also, did it mention what you were going to protect our world from?" ask Twilight wiping the tears from her eyes
"Well Equestria DOES have some SOME enemies.....BUT we managed to defeat them using what we call 'The Elements of Harmony'!" Twilight says as she begins to smile proudly.
"What are these 'Elements'?" you ask completely puzzled
"It's sort of hard to explain. Each one of us, including another one of our friends, each possess a significant trait of friendship that pretty much defines who we are as a pony. Rainbow Dash possesses the Element of Loyalty being the most loyal and trustworthy pony in all of Equestria. Rarity, the Element of Generosity. she's always willing to give to others and to lend a helping hand. Applejack contains the Element of Honesty, always speaking the truth and never willing to go against her friends. Fluttershy, the Element of Kindness, she is the sweetest most thoughtful pony you will ever meet, but she is the shyest, as you were probably able to tell. Our friend Pinkie Pie, has the Element of Laughter, she's always full of life, happiness, and energy. She's kind of a 'loose canon' but in a good way. Finally there's me, my Element is Magic. By harnessing the power of the other five elements I can manifest that power to aid us in overcome any obstacle that is thrown at us. Using these element we were able to help defend Equestria from even the most vile enemies who have ever existed." Twilight finishes attempting to catch her breath from the long explanation.
You raise an eyebrow and try to soak in all that information at once. After a few seconds you attempt to give a simpler answer to what Twilight said. "So you're saying that, using the power of your friendships, you managed to defeat your enemies?"
"Yep! If you want to simplify it that much yeah that's pretty much it." answered Twilight.
"Interesting...." you respond. Just as you were about to say something else Rarity turns around with your garments fully repaired and begins to speak
"Here you are darling. Nice and clean and fully restored! Oh and for your sword, I hope you don't mind but I added a little something to it. For the engravings on it I was able to cut some gems I had and place them inside.On the side you called 'Righteousness' I used sapphires and for the side you called 'Malevolence' I used rubies. I thought it was a nice little edition if I do say so myself!" Rarity says with a large smile plastered on her face.
You put your cloths back on and Rarity gives you back your sword. You inspect your weapon; each side IS in fact gemmed where your inscriptions are. It's hard to believe Rarity was able to fit crystals into the small incisions in your blade, but nonetheless you are grateful. The precious stones plus Rarity shining the blade makes a great combination. It almost seems like the blade is brand new! "Why thank you Miss Rarity. I appreciate this more than you know." you thank her with with a large grin.
"Darling! It was no trouble at all. Now let me get started on your armor. That paint isn't going to clean itself off." Rarity says as she walks over to your pilled plate mail.
"It would probably be best if she didn't know what that is." you think to yourself. "Excuse me Twilight. You mentioned that this land has enemies. Who or what are they?" you ask Twilight extremely puzzled
"Well..." Twilight begins "...there are three main adversaries. There was Discord. He was the most powerful enemy we've faced. He holds the power to change the very fabric of our reality. His main goal was to change our world and to make disharmony rule the land. We managed to defeat him using the Elements of Harmony and turned him into stone. Next is King Sombra. He once ruled over the Crystal Empire; harnessing dark magic to enslave his subjects to do his bidding. He is, without a doubt, one of the most powerful Unicorns in existence. Using the power of the Crystal Heart we were able to turn Sombra into a crystal statue and we destroyed him. Finally there is Queen Chrysalis, ruler of the Changelings. Changelings have the power to take the form of anypony they wish. They gain their voice and body but not their personality. Queen Chrysalis had taken the form of Princess Cadence and began to mind control my brother Shining Armor in an attempt to weaken the defenses of our capital city of Canterlot and have her army of changelings invade and takeover the city. Fortunately I was able to find the real Cadence and she helped break my brother from Chrysalis' grasp. After my brother was freed, he cast a powerful spell to repel Chrysalis and her army out of Canterlot."
"Well THAT was more than I thought, but to be honest I didn't expect there to be any threats to this land. Although I do suppose that the most peaceful places attract the most horrific of enemies." you say sensibly.
"Yeah we've had to face a lot of mean jerks but we were able to kick their flanks outa here!" roared Rainbow Dash proudly.
"It sure does sound like it." you say to Dash as she begins to soak up every ounce of your attention as she can.
"Alright darling, I think I was able to scrape and clean off all that yucky stuff from your armor. Now it looks as good as new! I've even manage to make a few modifications to it as well! Hope you like it!" Rarity informs you. What was once a plain gold painted set off armor is now a bright, clean, white set of armor with beautiful golden edges and delicate silver linings. Each piece of armor became something new but still matched the overall set; white metal and the gold edging and silver linings. The one portion that stuck out to you the most was the chest piece. Rarity added an amazing blue cloak that had a thin gold trim around the entire edge of the cloth. In the middle of the cloak there was a custom design; it was a large, silver, pointed shield that looked much like yours with a sword that ran over the face right down the middle.
"Wow..." is the first word that escapes your mouth nearly breathless by the beauty of the intricate designs. "...this looks...this looks AMAZING! Rarity how were you able to do all if this in such a short amount of time? In my world it would have taken days to get all of these designs just right!" you say completely amazed as you begin to put your new armor on piece by piece.
"Well I don't mean to brag but I pride myself on completing my orders quickly and efficiently with my customers ALWAYS leaving with a smile." Rarity answers you. She lets out a happy sigh as she looks out the window and a look of surprise comes across her face. "My word! It doesn't appear to have been 'a short amount of time' like you thought." You look through one of the large windows and notice the sky is painted with an amazing orange glow with the large sun beginning to set on the horizon.
"Ow wow! Is it sundown already? Ah need tah head home before mah family starts to worry about me!" said Applejack a little alarmed.
"Me too. I've got weather duty tomorrow so I need to get some rest." said Rainbow Dash.
"Speaking of rest I need to start getting ready for my beauty sleep! One just doesn't look as gorgeous as I do by chance!" Rarity proclaims.
"Oh my....I need to tend to my animals! They're probably starving! Ooohhh I hope Angel won't be too mad." said Fluttershy.
"I should probably get going too. I don't want Spike to get worried about me." said Twilight. "Hmmm Knight? Since you really don't have a home here in Equestria I think I can make my place a nice suitable residence for you. What do you think?" she asks you.
"I would be grateful Twilight." you answer "Heck, I'm more than grateful for everything you ponies have done for me thus far. I am extremely blessed to fave met you ponies. I wouldn't think any other ponies would have been as gracious and kind as you all have. I'll take whatever help you are willing to provide while I'm in your world." you say to all five ponies with a large grin.
"It's settled then. We'll go home rest up and then tomorrow we'll go have a visit with the Princess." Twilight proclaims.
After several minutes of walking and enjoying the peaceful scenery, you and Twilight approach an extremely large tree that appears to look like a literal "Tree House". "We're here! Home sweet home!" Twilight says happily. "I should probably go in first and let my assistant, Spike, know you're here and prepare him for what you look like." Twilight giggles as she begins to open the door.
As she does, however, a pink pony with a large poofy pink mane comes rushing out of the door way.
"OHMYGOSHTWILIGHTTHEREYOUAREIHAVEN'TSEENYOUALLDAYANDIWASWORRIEDSOICAMEHERETOASKSPIKEWHEREYOUWEREAND........." Catching a large breath the energetic pink pony looks towards at you with her mouth agape. She lets out a large gasp and then bolts off away from your location.
"........uhh......okay...now.....I'm not sure about this.....but I think my brain just melted a little bit...." you slowly say to Twilight "What just happened?"
"Oh that is Pinkie Pie. She's the other pony I mentioned. Don't worry she's just being herself. I hope you enjoy parties because soon, you're about to get one whether you like them or not." Twilight chuckles. "Now let me go talk to Spike." Twilight picks herself up and enters the "Tree House". After waiting outside for a few minutes Twilight comes peaks outside and motions for you to enter. Upon entering the humble abode the first things you notice are book....lots...and...lots...of books. The next thing you see is Twilight standing next to a....purple scaled, green eyed, green spiked lizard creature?
Your eyes widen at the baby dragon. "A dragon....a real live.....dragon." you say completely astonished. "In my world they only existed in legend! The same can be said for Unicorns and Pegasi. I feel that this world may take a little more time to get used to that I thought. Can he talk like the rest of you?" you ask Twilight.
"Yes he can. Say hello Spike." Twilight requests
"....Sup." says the baby dragon
"Hi." you reply
"Oh don't mind him he can be a little shy when it come to meeting new people. Probably a little more so when meeting an entirely unknown species." Twilight chuckles a little. "Now let me see you to your room. Fortunately there's a spare bedroom in here. Hopefully the bed will be large enough to accommodate you." says Twilight as she begins to walk up the stairs in the house. You follow closely behind her. As you two are ascending to the second level of the abode you begin to notice a strange symbol on each side of Twilight's flank. Why your eyes were wandering around that area, you don't know.
"Yes?" she responds
"Might I ask what are those symbols on your flank?" you ask a little shyly and awkwardly mentioning her flank; which you didn't think was too polite.
"Oh..." she spoke "...that's called a Cutie Mark. Each pony receives one when they're young. It helps explain what are special talent is. For some it could be sports and others it could be cooking. Once we discover what we are really good at that's when it appears and it stays with us the rest of our lives. Now that doesn't mean we can't be good at other things but it shows others what we are best at." Twilight explains.
"Interesting. We humans don't have anything like that. It takes many many years for one of us to decide on what we are best at. Some of us can even go our entire life without finding what are best skill is. We just get too caught up in our daily lives of work and taking care of our families." you say.
"Wow. I feel that there is so much we could learn from each other! I just hope that the Princess will let you stay in our world. Oh here we are. I nearly missed it! This will be your room for the night. It isn't much but I hope you like it!" Twilight says as she smiles at you. You open then door into the room and see a large bed in the center of the room with a closet and dressers for clothes. This room is pretty bland. No decorations or ornaments hanging, but you don't mind. You're just happy that you've been given SO much in your short time in this land.
"Make yourself comfortable! I'm going to go catch up on my studies. Oh and welcome to Equestria!" Twilight says happily and loudly. Twilight begins to leave you to your new room but you stop her before she does.
"Twilight..." you start. This causes the lavender Unicorn to turn towards you. "....thank you. For everything. This all means so much." you say to her with a large grin. She smiles back at you nodding her head.
"It's no problem at all." she answers. Twilight turns back around and heads out of the room.
As she does you take another look at her flank. "That flank, it looks so plump and...... mesmerizing.....they way it rocks back and forth with her tail swaying from side to side." you think to yourself but immediately snap out of your stupor. "Pull yourself together man. This is no time to be thinking like that! Especially if it's not even the SAME SPECIES AS YOU!" you brain screams at you.
"Right." you say to yourself. "I think now it would be best to get some sleep. I'm going to need my rest if I am to be meeting royalty tomorrow." You take off your armor slowly; trying not to ruin Rarity's work. After removing your heavy metal suit and clothes until you are in your undergarments once again, you crawl into the bed. Fortunately it's long enough to fit your body. You slowly close your eyes, remembering all the events that have transpired throughout the day. You take one last deep breath as your eyes fully shut and your mind begins to create those blissful thoughts you call dreams as you slowly drift off to sleep.
[3rd Person switch to Celestia's Throne Room]
As Celestia was beginning to lower her large beautiful sun her sister Luna enters the large palace throne room of her sister.
"Sister, we came as soon as we could after you contacted us. What seems to be the matter?" the dark, elegant, Alicorn asks
"Sister..." Celestia begins "...I have felt a great disturbance. A dark power that has arisen in our land. It is beyond anything I have ever felt before. Stronger than Sombra and Discord ever were. This troubles me greatly, this power is faint yet so potent. I am frightened."
"Ah so you have felt it was well. Perhaps we should assemble the Elements and inform them. This something that we think they should know." Luna suggests to her sister.
"I thought as much. I shall summon them tomorrow and inform them. Please would you join with us. Having both of us here would greatly increase the seriousness of the situation." Celestia asks.
"Of course sister. We shall be by your side when you summon them." Luna acknowledges.
"Thank you sister." Celestia begins as she walks towards the balcony leading outside of the castle. "I shudder to imagine what this dark power could manifest into if it were to expand across our land........"
Author's Note
What do you all think I should do, try and keep the main character as a neutral gender so that ALL readers, male or female, can try to put themselves in Knights shoes or should I just make Knight strictly male or strictly female?
Also thanks for reading and for the great feedback. It really puts a smile on my face =D
Big thanks to bladespinner4 for being my chapter editor. Thanks bro! =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
RESURRECTION
"This had better work." muttered Queen Chrysalis.She appears to be in some sort of candle lit cave with several strange markings all around the walls and a pile of small crystals in front of her. She then closed her eyes, lowered her head, and began to repeat a strange incantation. As she does this, her horn begins to glow with a dark green hue. The markings on the walls begin to glow a crimson red, the cave begins to shake violently, and the pile of crystals begin to slowly levitate into the air spinning wildly. Each time Chrysalis repeats her chant, her strange mumbling turns into flat out roars. Her malformed horn glowing brightly towards the suspended pile of crystals as they begin to take the form of some kind of creature. The crystallized creature looks to be in the shape of a pony, a Unicorn to be exact, with a long and sharp. With the body of this Unicorn finally assembled, the crystals began to be replaced by bones, and the bones began to form a skeleton. The floating skeleton began to be wrapped by a think layer of red muscle. As the flesh began to envelop the skull of the Unicorn, loud screams of suffering began to emanate from its mouth. This did not stop Chrysalis however. Sparks of green magic began to spew out of her horn as Chrysalis struggles to keep the spell going; it's a miracle the small cave hasn't fallen apart . Now that the bones were fully covered with muscle, a layer of skin began to grown over the exposed tissue. After the skin completely blanketed the crimson red flesh the Unicorns coat of fur began to sprout from it. The coat was pitch black, so dark that fear and dread would suffocate all who would even dare take a small glimpse. With body and spell finally complete, the crimson markings on the walls die down and Chrysalis collapses to the floor as does this dark coated Unicorn.
The dark maned Unicorn slowly stands up and turns its head towards the Changeling monarch. His eyes glow green with blood red irises in the middle; giving Chrysalis a most ominous glare. The Unicorn turns his body to face his summoner's. ".......Chrysalis."
Chrysalis bows her head in respect "Sombra, it is good to have you back. Our plan is already under way." she says to the Unicorn.
"What of Discord? Has he arrived yet?!" Sombra asks with a slight growl in his voice.
"Two of my Changelings are already on their way with him. They should be arriving shortly and yes they replaced him with with a false statue as well, however, the ruse will not last long." Chrysalis explains.
"And of the Crystal? Has it been retrieved from it's location?" Sombra hisses
"I shall send some of my servants to retrieve it at once." Chrysalis says assuring Sombra.
"Good!" Sombra begins. "Once I free Discord from the stone prison in which he resides.....we shall begin the next phase of our plan."
"May I ask something Sombra?" Chrysalis requests to Sombra. He nods his head and Chrysalis continues. "How do we know if the crystal will work? And if it does, how do we use it on Celestia?
Sombra lets out a wicked chuckle and a nefarious grin grows on his face. "Simple." he replies "We test it on Luna!"
"Which will draw out her sister and we use the Crystal's power on her!" Chrysalis responds
"Yes! And after they are both harvested , EQUESTRIA SHALL BE RULED IN FLAMES AND DARKNESS!
Author's Note
This chapter is to be sort of a "mini chapter" in between Conversation and the next chapter.
Hope you all enjoy and thanks for all the support! I'll try to get the next chapter as soon as I can! =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
Revelation
"GET UP !" your father yells. "WE ARE ALL THAT IS LEFT BETWEEN THEM AND OUR CITY. THE SAFETY OF NEW HAVEN LIES WITH US!" your father yells as he picks you up from the ground as you try to regain focus on what is happening, Sounds of explosions from the massive steam tanks, the high pitched noise of the wind being cut by arrows speeding towards their targets, the clanging of metal as infantry put their skills to test in melee combat.
"Battle....protect.....New Haven....." is all you say before your train of thought is interrupted by a loud roar. You look to your left and an enemy soldier wearing a large dark suit of armor begins charging at you ready to strike you down! Almost instinctively you raise your shield prepared to block the attack. You hear a loud CLANG and see the your shield took the blow. You regain your footing and bash the foe with the face of your shield getting him off balance; seeing an opportunity you firmly grip the hilt of your sword and thrust the blade into the exposed body of your enemy. You hear the ripping of his flesh as he breathes his last breath.
You look to you're right. You see your father battling a dark hooded figure. The brawl between these two is the most impressive display of physical prowess you've ever seen in your life. Their blades clashing second after second, sparks fly with each strike and each fighter not giving the other even a hint of opportunity for an advantage. You want to help your father but with the skill that his opponent undoubtedly posses you realize that you would only get in the way. Then, whether it was a stroke of luck or skill, your father parries a blow from the dark figure which causes it to rotate its body to its right; however his body keeps rotating. The man's body rotates completely around and using the momentum gained, he bashes your father with his shield. The force of the blow is so strong it knocks your father off balance and even pushes you back a little. The hooded man then takes his blade and slices it right through your fathers throat.
"NO! " you scream. The the man then focuses his attention on you and quickly charges some kind of energy in his hand and blasts you with it. You body is thrown several feet back and you feel as if every bone in your body broke simultaneously.
"FATHER! " you yell as you sit up, but instead of seeing your fathers killer or any other human for that matter, you see little Twilight Sparkle sitting in front of your bed cowering with fear. The room fills with silence as neither you nor Twilight say a word to each other. Twilight begins to slowly move her hooves from her face and begins staring at you.
"I wanted to see if you were okay." Twilight began. "I heard some strange mumbling from your room so I came to investigate. When I reached the end oh your bed I saw you tossing and turning wildly. I tried to wake you but as soon as I began to approach you, you sat up and yelled. I....I got scared. I didn't know what you were going to do."
"Twilight...I'm...I'm sorry. I just....it was a bad dream. It was more like a flashback. It was about the events before my arrival in your world...." you inform Twilight. "....I don't really feel like discussing it at the moment."
"Oh....alright then." Twilight says sadly, realizing that's a touchy subject to chat about.
"When are we going to see your Princess?" you ask the purple unicorn curiously.
"Soon. I was about to have Spike make a lett-" Twilight is abruptly interrupted.
"Twilight!" Spike tuns in so fast and falls to the floor with a thud. "Twilight! I got a message from Princess Celestia!" he tells Twilight holding a piece of parchment in his claw.
"What does it say Spike?" Twilight asks
Spike clears his throat and begins to read the letter.
To: My faithful student Twilight Sparkle
I have sent this letter in the utmost of urgency. My sister and I have felt a great and terrible power residing in our land. I request that you gather your friends and see us as soon as you can so that we may discuss with you all the best course of action to combat this threat. I fear that if left unchecked, this power could grow out of control. We must act before that happens. We shall await your arrival.
"Well I guess this means we'll be stopping by soon than I thought. This also sounds extremely serious if she requested all of us and is her sister is there too.. I wonder what this power she mentioned is but I guess she will explain everything when we get there." Twilight says.
"Lets head out then, we wouldn't want to keep your Princesses waiting would we?" you ask Twilight
"You're right." stated Twilight "I'll go and get the girls and tell them. You should stay for now and use the shower to get yourself clean. I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be wise to meet the Princesses smelling like that."
It is true, throughout the battle at New Haven and the time you spent in this world your body has created a very distinct smell. However agreeing on your bad odor weren't the words that escaped your mouth. "....What's a shower?" Twilight looks at you with a confused and shocked face from what you asked.
"A shower his a device that runs hot and cold water through a pipe and onto the pony using it to help clean and rinse their entire body. You don't have them in your world?" the lavender unicorn asks bewildered.
"Not that I know of. Perhaps our people have gotten to work on something like that. We have complex machines like steam powered battleships and armored vehicles so I wouldn't be surprised if we have something close to that." you explain.
"So then how do you keep your bodies clean?" Twilight inquires
"Well we find the nearest stream of water or lake and clean ourselves using the water it provides." you clarify.
"How terrible! You'll like using the shower, it's much simpler and less time consuming. Follow me I'll show you were it is." she tells you. Being one not shy about learning new things you get up off your bed and begin to follow Twilight. As you walk behind Twilight through her humble abode you catch yourself staring at Twilight's behind once again and immediately avert your stare away from that area trying to look at something other than the unicorn in front of you. Not long after you both exit your room Twilight brings you to another. She opens the door and allow you to enter first and you do so. Upon entering the room the first thing you see is a large, empty, white tub. A thick, purple curtain is hung from a metal poll above the the tub.
Twilight gives you a quick lecture on using the contraption and an explanation on how "soap" is used to clean the body. Twilight lets you have the room to yourself and begins to exit the room. "While you clean up I'm going to go and get all the girls together and I'll teleport us all to the Princess' palace. I won't be too long so you'd better hurry." she warns.
"I'll try. No guarantees and you getting ALL of them? Even that pink one?" you ask.
"Who? Pinkie Pie? She's one of my best friends and, like I said, she contains one of the Elements. So we do need her to come along. Don't worry I'll keep her under control. She can just get a little excited when she meets some one new. I have to get going, I'll be back soon." Twilight says as she exists the room.
You undress and step into the shower and turn both nobs. Soothing water streams out onto your body. You awkwardly stumble around try to clean every part of yourself. "Clearly this wasn't made for something as big as me." you mumble to yourself as you nearly trip and fall out of the tub. After about ten minutes of washing and making sure every part of your body was clean you turn the water off, step out of the shower and dry yourself off. Fortunately your undergarments were still clean after Rarity washed them for you, it was just you who needed to be washed. Now completely dry you head back to you room and put on your normal attire of clothes and armor. Fully dressed you sit on your bed and wait for Twilight to return with her friends, but you begin to reflect on something. "What was I sent to protect this land from? From what the ponies told me it seems they've defeated all major threats. Maybe this is something their Princess could answer?"
With your mind ablaze with questions you suddenly hear the sound of hoof steps approaching your room. The door opens and you see Twilight enter. "I'm back! I take it your shower went well?" she asks
"Yes it did. It felt great! I don't just smell better I feel better as well; as if my entire body has been rejuvenated. I have never felt more relaxed." you answer with enthusiasm. "So are we going to head out now?" you ask
"Yes but before we do put this on." Twilight throws you a large brown cloak you grab it out of the air and look her puzzled. "I thought that it would be wise to not let anypony know of your presence for now so I had Rarity make this for you. Use it to cover yourself until we meet the Princess."
"That would be for the best at the moment." you agree as you wrap the large cloak around your body. It's a very loose fit, Rarity must have miss judged your size and made a bit too big, fortunately it had a hood which you use to cover your face and keep your identity hidden. "Alright, I guess I'm ready." you inform Twilight.
"Okay let's head downstairs and I'll teleport us all to the Princess' castle." You and Twilight leave the room and head down the stairs leading into the main room of the home. You notice the five other ponies all waiting for you and Twilight. When they notice that you have arrived they all give you a smile and greet you.
"Howdy Knight!"
"Hey Knight!"
":...hello"
"Good afternoon darling."
You then take notice to the pink coated mare that you saw the evening before in the room with an enormous smile. She looks like she's about to explode. You look at her not knowing what the best course of action is. You give her an awkward smile and wave your hand. "Hi there." you you say. Then pink maned pony instantly charged to you so hard that you nearly fall over due to loss of balance and wraps her hooves around your waist.
"HI! I'M PINKIE PIE! I SAW YOU YESTERDAY WITH TWILIGHT! ARE YOU NEW HERE? I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU HERE SO YOU MUST BE NEW! IF YOU'RE NEW THEN YOU HAVEN'T BEEN TO ONE OF MY PARTIES YET!"
"Pinkie Pie! Let him go! Don't freak him out!" yelled Rainbow Dash
You look over to Rainbow Dash and chuckle. "It's alright Dash. I've had family members who were wild like her." You look back down to Pinkie Pie. "Hello Miss Pinkie Pie, I'm Knight. I'm new to your world. Could I ask for you to let go of me before...I...suffocate?" you ask quickly running out of breath.
"Okay!" Pinkie lets go of you and you take in a deep breath regaining your composure.
"Alright is everypony ready?" asks Twilight. The five other ponies nod their heads. Twilight then looks at you and you give her a smile and nod. "Okay." she says. Twilight's horn begins to glow a light purple hue and a large bubble of the same color surrounds you and the group of ponies. Then suddenly with a flash of light and a loud sound you find yourself in front of a massive, palace-like, structure. The sheer magnitude and beauty is enough to leave your entire body breathless. Massive ivory towers are connected and surround one massive building in the center. "....ight.....Knight......KNIGHT!" Twilight calls for you. You break out of your daze and look at her.
"Sorry Twilight." you apologize. "I just haven't seen anything as magnificent as this before. I thought MY King's palace was big but this."
"It is a sight to behold. Come, lets go, Celestia and Luna are waiting for us." Twilight says
"Guards it's alright, he's with us; there's no need to worry. Please let us in; the Princesses have requested that we come here." Twilight asks as she presents the note the Princesses sent. The two Pegasus guards look at the note, then to each other, and step to the side allowing passage for the group. "Thank you." Twilight says. As you and your friends enter the massive palace the two guards eye you with increasing suspicion. You decide to pay no attention to them and focus on what is in front of you as you continue through the massive doors leading into the palace.
As you enter the large doors begin to close and you hear a faint voice "What was that?". You pay no mind to it and continue on forward. You and you group soon reach another large door inside the palace, no doubt leading into the main chamber where the Princesses await. Twilight then turns and looks at you.
"Alright, they're beyond this door. Let us go in first and I'll and get you once I let them know you're here alright?" Twilight asks and you nod you're head in agreement. Twilight acknowledges your reply, turns back around and opens the massive door just enough to let her and her friends enter without exposing your presence. After what felt like no time at all Twilight opens the door slightly and peaks her head through the opening and nods at you signaling to enter. You take a deep breath trying to remain calm and relaxed as you slowly walk forward towards the door. Twilight backs away as you extend your right arm pushing the door open.
The room is silent. You see your pony friends watching and smiling at you then you notice two larger ponies near what appear to be thrones. One of the ponies has a deep dark purple coat of fur with a long flowing mane and tail of the same color with a crescent moon as her Cutie Mark. She appears to have a pair of wings AND a horn. "She must be one of the Alicorns Twilight mentioned." you think to yourself. Next to her you see a larger Alicorn with a white coat and flowing mane and tail of several colors; she has a Cutie Mark of of what looks to be a sun. That's when you notice they both are wearing crowns! You slow your pace to a halt and kneel down on one knee and remove the hood covering your identity. "Your Highnesses." you say as you look towards the ground in respect. That's when you hear both Princesses gasp at the sight of you.
"A human? That can't be!"
"I should have known. YOU are the dark taint that we have felt!" You quickly look up at the two Alicorns in confusion and then you look at Twilight and her friends who stare back in shock.
"Celestia...are you sure? He has been everything but unkind to all of us in his time here." Twilight objects.
"I am more than sure Twilight." said the white Alicorn. "He is human, his race is one of evil and wickedness. They endlessly fight and kill each other for power and resources to fill their unquenchable thirst for greed. For countless centuries they fought until one day their anger and hatred towards one another caused a war that led to the extinction of their entire race."
"I don't believe you! My race may have been divided and we may have fought for selfish reasons but it's impossible for our entire kill each other, there's just too many of us!." you intrude.
"SILENCE!" the dark maned Alicorn roars with a deafening voice that even pushes your body back a few inches.
"If you don't believe me then I'll show you." Princess Celestia says as her horn begins to glow with a light gold hue. Instantly you, your pony friends, and the Princesses are transported into an empty voice with filled with nothingness stretching on endlessly. The. you see a small blue dot quickly approaching you all and rapidly growing in size. The dot grows large enough for you to identify what it is; Earth, your home. You and the ponies are then teleported to the surface of the planet. From there you watch as Celestia begins to set in motion the history of the human race. Starting at our creating as moronic cave dwellers who fought and killed among one another using sharpened sticks and stones as weapons. Then we evolved into more sophisticated creatures who lived in homes and wore clothes, yet still we fought and killed, this time using swords and arrows; this is when you existed. Once again time fast forwarded to a new time. A time of more advanced technologies and massive empires stretching across the entire planet, our numbers populating in the billions and yet we still fought and we still killed. Then Celestia stopped time from speeding forward and teleported us all above the planet. That's when you see strange, massive, tube-like objects begin to propel from nearly every continent on the planet spewing massive flames as they move through the skies. After only minutes of shooting through the air the metal tubes begin to descend back towards the planet with each one arriving at different destinations. Then, in the blink of an eye, at every spot where a tube landed, massive clouds of fire in the shape of mushrooms began erupting from the planet's surface. Every inch of land was covered in fire and the exterior of the planet was destroyed. After the fires that plagued the world died down Celestia took you all back to the surface of the planet that is now a charred and barren wasteland.
"This is what humanity had brought unto itself. Their advancement in technology mixed with their extreme passions brought about the end of their race and planet. It was after this moment when I decided to intervene. After humanity destroyed their world I began to rebuild it from its ashes. Everything you saw in Equestria was built from the destruction of the Earth. Every pony, every animal, every blade of grass had been created so every mistake Man had made could be swept away and replaced." Celestia explained with a stern tone of voice.
Celestia then teleports you and the ponies back to her throne room in Equestria. Stunned by every atrocious act of your race you fall to you knees, speechless, immobile, shocked. You don't dare look on the ponies behind you for you fear what they may think of you know that they've seen what your race has done.
"I will not sit by and let more destruction and death occur to this world." Celestia's horn begins to glow light golden again creating an aura around your body and lifting you into the air. "That is why you must not be allowed to stay."
"N-no! I wasn't brought here to simply be tossed away!" you yell. A strange feeling growing inside of you. What ever it is, it's making you stronger. You begin to squirm inside the magic field surrounding you as you regain feeling in your limbs. You assemble every ounce of strength in your body as you move your arms and legs towards your body then extending them out rapidly releasing a massive amount of energy outwards which shatters the aura around your body and causes you to fall down towards the ground.
The six ponies behind you gasp in shock at what you've done. "Impossible!" both Alicorns shout in terror now that you've broken free from their grip.
You land on your hands and knees and you then pick yourself up and glare at the the two Princesses with passion in your eyes. "In my time in this land I have done NOTHING to endanger any pony or creature. I wouldn't even conceive of it after Applejack found me dying in the middle of a forest and brought me to safety. Nor after Twilight tried to communicate with me not showing any malice or hatred towards what I am, something that even mighty rulers such as yourselves were unable to do. Even when Rainbow Dash lashed out at me when she thought I was a danger to her friends I didn't harm her. Rarity who exemplified her enormous generosity by making my wardrobe more appealing. Sweet Fluttershy who, at first was afraid of me, but never once did she show cruelty towards me. Pinkie Pie who I've only known for a short time has convinced me that no creature so full of life and energy deserves to be harmed but to be treasured and loved. I had been brought to an unknown world and had been deemed its Guardian and after befriending some of the nicest creatures I have ever met in my life and I'll be DAMNED if I just stand aside and do nothing!" you bellow towards the two rulers.
Silence fills the room once again as every pony in the room is at a loss for words. Then suddenly you hear the sound of hoofsteps approaching from behind you. You turn you're head to you're right and you notice Rainbow Dash standing next to you giving a confident smile. "He's right. I tried to attack him not knowing what he was but he didn't even try to hurt me back. In fact I had pulled a wing muscle and he use some kind of magic to heal it! I tried to hurt him but in doing so I hurt myself and he healed my wing. He's not evil or anything like what you've shown us. It aint fair if he gets punished! That's why I'm with him on this. He doesn't deserve to be treated unfairly because of what his race has done." Dash explained to Celestia and Luna. You look down at her and give her a grateful smile and she smiles back at you.
Twilight then steps up. "He always showed understanding and patience when dealing with us. Never seeing us as animals but as if we were like his people, always showing respect and politeness. Rainbow Dash is right, he doesn't deserve to be treated unfairly." she says walking towards your left side.
"He is sophisticated and well mannered creature that even when I looked absolutely horrid he still thought I was beautiful! One such as him should not be punished!" said Rarity
"Knight always showed us appreciation for everythin' we've done for him. He was always honest whenever we asked him anything and never tried hurtin' us!" Applejack said.
"At first I was scared of him because of how big he was but he was always kind to us. Especially me, I didn't want to meet him because he was so frightening but then I looked into his eyes and I saw how good he really is. He's not a monster at all and I don't think he should be treated like one." Fluttershy said calmly
"HE THINKS I SHOULD BE TREASURED!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie.
The four remaining ponies then walk up to you and stand boldly by your side. You look at them all and smile happily knowing they're willing to stand with you. You then look at the Princesses with an undaunted gaze. "So your Highnesses, it appears that your most loyal subjects stand with me. So I must ask what about you two. Will you head the counsel of the Elements of Harmony or will you still judge my race by the actions of many?"
After long contemplation Celestia begins to open her mouth and lets out a sigh. "Perhaps I may have jumped to conclusions rather quickly. If my most loyal of subjects have grown to trust you in such a short time then I don't see why I can't-" CRASH Celestia is suddenly interrupted by a loud noise. You and your six friends look to the left where the noise came from and as does Celestia and Luna. What you see are things you can't comprehend. You see a dark maned Unicorn with glowing red and green eyes, what appears to be an Alicorn-like creature but very thin with a malformed horn and insect like wings and her body filled with holes, and finally you see a very large creature who seems to have body parts of several other creatures all in one body.
You slowly unsheathe your sword and grab your shield preparing to defend yourself for these creatures do not look friendly. You look down at Twilight and ask "Friends of yours?"
Author's Note
sorry about the delayed update, been sick for a couple of days, hope you enjoy! =D
Id'e like to thank everybody for the Favorites and positive feedback, it really means a lot to me! =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
ABDUCTION
The three beings hovered ominously in their makeshift entrance of the destroyed palace window. Silence fills the room as you, your pony friends, and the two Princesses gaze on with scowls plastered on all of your faces.
"Friend's of yours?" you look down at Twilight and ask as you tightly grip your sword and shield.
"Not even close. These are the three I told you about." Twilight replies as you look back towards the three uninvited guests.
"What is THAT?!" the dark creature with insect like wings ponders out loud with a hint of disgust in her voice.
"Oh my, I don't believe my eyes! A human! Oh how I LOVE Humans, so chaotic and unpredictable. You know, your race was very entertaining when you were around; always so critical over meaningless reasons. Too bad you had to take the whole wipe-out-each-other path."
"How do you know of my race?" you ask suspiciously with a frown.
"Oh I've watch you all since your creation! I saw much potential for chaos in your species and so I took it upon myself to-"ENOUGH !" roared Princess Celestia. "You three will leave my throne room immediately or I shall be forced to remove you myself." and with that a horde of Pegasus guards come rushing in through the large door behind you.
"I'm afraid we cannot do that just yet. We have yet to retrieve our package." the dark maned Unicorn replies with a growl and an insidious grin that sends a shiver of worry down your spine. Just then you hear a strange noise coming from behind you; you turn around and your six pony friends follow suit for it caught their attention as well. Then you notice the Pegasus guards have disappeared and they have been replaced by small, black creatures with large turquoise eyes with insect-like wings and small horns. "NOW !"
The dark creatures lash out at and you raise your heavy shield over your body. One of the creatures leaps towards you and you swing your shield, slamming it into the body of you enemy with so much force it sends the creature clear across the room. The rest of the strange creatures become enraged and the entire horde rushes you and your friends. Your breathing becomes heavier, all sound in the room abates into pure silence and the rushing enemies seem to be running in slow motion. This feeling is one that you have felt several times before; your mind is in complete focus on the current fight. All of the small ponies next to you have begun to enter the fray, all except Fluttershy who you see is so afraid that she's not even moving. Then you see from the very corner of your eye, one of the dark colored creatures begins to rush after her. You move your body to the right as you try to intercept it before it reaches Fluttershy. You sprint towards her as fast as your body will allow you to. In a matter of seconds you reach Fluttershy and you place yourself in front of her and the horned creature lunges towards you exposing its chest. You grip your sword tightly and plunge it into the creatures body; the blade slices all the way through that it and sticks out the other end of the torso. The foe lets out a loud screech before it falls dead on your weapon. You kick the now dead enemy off your blade as you pull it back. Fluttershy slowly moves her hooves away from her face and glances at you. You look back at her and smile letting her know that she's alright. She smiles back at you but a loud shriek pierces your ears. You look up and see who made the noise and you notice that Luna is encased in a black and green aura and the large creature with various limbs has wrapped himself around Celestia distracting her from protecting Luna.
"Now that we have what we came for, I believe it is time for us to take our leave. If you want to see your precious sister again, Celestia, then I suggest you come and take her back; We'll be waiting." the dark unicorn says.
"SISTER !!!" Luna screams in fear as she and the three intruders teleport out of the throne room leaving behind an ominous laughter that echos throughout every inch of the room that is now occupied by you, you're six pony friends, and Celestia.
Several minutes pass as the the sinister laughter dies down and the room is filled with silence as you and the ponies are stunned at the events that have transpired. You feel a complete sense of confusion and concern as you try to make sense of what happened. "Twilight? Who were they? Why did they take Luna?" you ask.
"They were the three that I told you about. Discord, Queen Chrysalis, and King Sombra we defeated them all but I don't understand how Discord and Sombra are back to normal. We turned Discord into stone and we crystallized Sombra and destroyed him. They shouldn't be here!" Twilight explains with a hint of anxiety.
"Regardless of how they've returned, the fact of the matter here is that they have returned, they're working together and they've taken Luna and that we must find her and bring her back!"
"But Princess how in the hay are supposed tah bring Luna back? We don't even know where she was taken to!"
"Princess, is there some type of spell that you can cast that will locate Luna; or at least give us some kind of indication where to start looking?" you ask.
"Yes there is, however it takes a great deal of time and concentration to fully cast." Celestia replies.
"Then may I suggest that you start casting it your Highness; every second counts if we want to bring Luna back to safety!" you say urgently.
All the ponies agree with you as Celestia's horn begins to glow as she channels her power for the spell. Several minutes pass when Celestia's look of concentration fades away and her horn stops glowing. "From what I could gather, I believe she is somewhere in the Crystal Mountains far north. I couldn't pinpoint her exact location, there is some kind of magical distortion preventing me from knowing her current position."
"Do you think they could be trying to magically shield their location?" Twilight asks.
"It's definitely a strong possibility my student, however it could take an a strong amount of magical energy to make even me unsure." Celestia responded with a hint of worry. "Their combined power must be stronger than I had originally presumed."
"Princess, now that we have some clue to where Luna is being held, how exactly will we get to her?" you ask quizzically
"Simple, I shall accompany you."
"WHAT?!" the six ponies roar at their Princess, utterly confused.
"The combined power of Sombra, Discord, and Chrysalis is too much for you to handle by yourselves. You will need all the help you can to stay safe and I am not going to sit idly while my own sister is held captive!"
Celestia then turns to face you and takes a few slow steps in your direction with a serious look on her face. "Ah yes, one more thing. I must sincerely apologize for the way my sister and I have treated you. I had let my past prejudices cloud my judgement. If you really were a threat to us and this world then you would have done something to harm it by now; and you surely wouldn't be willing to help, for that I must say thank you and I am sorry."
"Your Highness, you were only doing what you believed to be the right thing for your land. I do admit, it might have been a quite hasty decision, but who am I to judge? You had good intentions and you wanted to protect those you cared about, it appears you and I have something in common. As well as another pony is this room." you look over to Rainbow Dash and give her smile; she blushes slightly and tilts her head down. "And as with that same pony I accept your apology. I'm a person who believes in forgiveness and second chances, a trait which is unbelievably rare back in my world; but please your Majesty, we should all get focused on the task at hand."
"You're right." Celestia replies as she turns her attention to the six you ponies behind you. "Girls, the time has come again for you all to wield the powers that bind your friendship together for this is the largest threat that has come to face Equestria. You must wield the Elements of Harmony once more and help me bring back Luna." You see Celestia begin to walk down towards the end of the room nearest her throne. You notice she stops in front of what appears to be a pair of large doors. Celestia then lowers her head and sticks her horn into the middle of the doors and her horn begins to glow. The center and edges of the door begin to glow a light blue and six circles on the door instantly glow from top to bottom. The doors then let out a massive discharge of blue light as they slowly begin to open, revealing a small gemstone encrusted chest. You see Celestia's horn begin to glow once more as she uses her magic to levitate the chest out of its cell and into the open; she then opens the container and levitates six pieces of jewelry out from it. Each piece looks similar to each other except for one that looks like a small crown, while the others appear to be necklaces. Each piece of jewelry has its own unique emblem: an orange apple, a red lightning bolt, a pink butterfly, a dark purple diamond, and a sky blue balloon which all rest in the center of each individual gold necklace. The last crest, however, is one you are not sure of exactly. It appears to be a dark pink, six legged star which sits atop the small golden crown. Each piece of jewelry then levitates towards each of the six young mares behind you. You then notice that each jewelry piece has the same design as each of the mares' mark on their flanks. The necklace with the lightning bolt goes to Dash, the diamond goes to Rarity, the butterfly goes to Fluttershy, the balloon goes to Pinkie Pie, the apple goes to Applejack and the star goes to Twilight.
You turn to Celestia a little perplexed. "Celestia, from what Twilight told me, I had thought that they possessed the Elements internally?"
"They do, but these help them manifest their powers for use."
"Interesting, so the jewelry is somewhat of a catalyst?"
"In a way yes. They do hold their power within themselves and these help them be in control and to materialize the raw power of their Element to be used against their foes. I will answer more of your questions in time, for you must have many, but we must take care of the situation at hoof. Since we are to enter the Crystal Mountains, I will see to it that we all receive appropriate attire before we travel north; the land is unforgiving and the wind chills to the bone. It would be unwise to stay there for a long period of time without enough warmth. I have a large storeroom of clothes that you can all wear for the journey." Celestia then fully turns towards you. "Unfortunately I do not have anything that would fit a human."
You perceive this as troubling but you quickly come up with a solution. "Perhaps Rarity could make me something that could keep me warm?" You look over to Rarity giving a small smile. "She has already gotten some practice with making clothes for a human. I think she would be the best pony for the job, that is, if she wouldn't mind."
You see Rarity give you a large smile and a small blush. "Darling of course! It would be no problem at all!"
"Rarity, I have a room where some of my subjects make me my own collection of clothes. You can use the room if you like; you will find all the materials you would need." Rarity shakes her head in excitement. "Then come, both of you, I will show you the way there. You and Rarity quickly follow Celestia to a large room filed with many different styles of clothing. Rarity wastes no time in getting to work. Within minutes, filled with measurements and precision, Rarity was able to assemble a large, thick, brown coat and pair of pants. You and Rarity agreed for you to be measured with your armor on so when a confrontation were to arise you would still be well protected. Now that she was finished and in warm attire herself, you and Rarity quickly head back to the throne room where the rest of the mares are waiting and dressed warmly as well; they take notice and Celestia begins to speak. "Alright, now is everypony ready? The trip will be harsh but if we all stick together and work with one another we'll make it back safely."
"Your Highness, if I may, what are we to expect in these mountains?" You ask trying to prepare your self as much as you can.
"That is something I can not answer. The Crystal Mountains are mostly unexplored and not even I know fully know what to expect; but do not fret, if we all stay together and look out for one another we will be fine. Now let us be off." You notice Celestia's horn begin to glow a majestic gold as her eyes close. A large gold bubble begins to surround you and the ponies. You close your eyes as well and begin to brace yourself for whatever may happen. That's when you feel as if somebody punched your in your stomach, all the breath and been sucked from your body, and your face begins to feel as if it were in a pile of snow.
Author's Note
I am SO SO sorry for this chapter taking an extreme amount of time to get through. There's just been lots of personal crap that's going on and is pretty much making me not want to do anything. So here is the next chapter, please let me know of any errors and how I could improve my writing skill. Thank you and once again I am sorry.
Also thank you to those who have Thumbs Up'ed and Favorited this, that has really made me happy and really helps drive me to finish this story! Thank you! =D
Righteousness and Malevolence
PREPARATION
"Are you certain they will come? How can we be sure that Celestia herself will be coming?" Chrysalis asks worried.
"Of course she will! She won't take the abduction of her only sister lightly. She will come; see to it that the traps are in place and that the crystal is read;. we shall begin harvesting Luna immediately."
"What about the Human? I was able to feel power emanating from him like nothing I've felt before. He may prove to be very dangerous and possibly put a dent in our plans." Discord mentions to Sombra.
"You're right, I witnessed him in combat at the palace. He'll be a dangerous foe indeed, but perhaps he may also be a great ally. From what you've informed me about his race, they can be easily corrupted. We'll just have to give him a little.....incentive."
"That will be difficult. From what I've seen he is a member of a certain group of his race that have dedicated themselves to being good . They are a boring bunch, always trying to do what is right and aren't easy to manipulate."
"He will either join us or we'll toss him out with the rest of the trash! NOTHING is going to stop my plan from coming to fruition; I've waited too long and sacrificed too much to fail!"
"I am curious, however, as to how he got here. His species wiped each other out several millennia ago." Discord ponders.
"It matters not, nothing shall hinder my operation. This planet and all its inhabitant WILL BE MINE !"
"Our's." Discord retorts. "Do not forget, Sombra, Chrysalis and I have a lot riding on this as well."
"Yes, yes I know, anyway, back to the situation at hoof. How are the experiments on Chrysalis' Changelings coming along?"
"Very......painfully, for the Changelings of course. Integrating your crystals with their flesh is a very long and agonizing process, yet things are moving according to schedule."
"Excellent, this "new breed" of Changeling will be much stronger and more durable than the previous ones; they should be able to preoccupy our guests long enough to restrain Celestia. Speaking of which, is the trap for her in place? We'll only have one chance at this so I want EVERYTHING to be ready." Sombra ask's Discord.
"Yes it is, but how are we going to get her caught in it?" Discord asks.
"You leave that to me, now bring Luna out. I would like to have a word with her." Sombra says with a nefarious grin stretched across his face. Chrysalis then uses her magic to raise a rectangular stone block from the ground with Luna held down onto the large stone by massive metal chains wrapped around her body and magically enchanted to suppress her from fleeing.
"RELEASE US THIS INSTANT OR SO HELP US!" Luna roars.
"I don't believe you are in any condition to be making demands Luna." Sombra says chuckling. "If you wish to speak, then please, answer a question for me." Luna raises an eyebrow at Sombra. "What is a Goddess without her power?"
"We refuse to partake in this little game of your..."
"NOTHING!" Sombra intervenes. "Nothing. That is what you, and your beloved sister, shall become. That which makes you both omnipotent and supreme, shall be mine. You shall no longer be the rulers of this land. I have been able, with the aid of my two colleagues, to create a crystal that has the ability to absorb and store one's magical essence and then distribute that essence into a new host. And congratulations, you are the first one to be tested."
"IMPOSSIBLE!" Luna shouts. "Magical energies are difficult to contain, especially in large amounts."
Sombra lets out a loud laugh from this, completely unconvinced. "So confident are you? How about we try and put your theory to the test? Lower the crystal and begin the extraction process!" Sombra orders Chrysalis.
Just as the order is given, a massive, crimson colored, crystal lowers from the ceiling. Suspended by thick metal chains the
Then suddenly, all of the light emanating from the crystal disappears and a beam of energy shoots out of the crystal heading straight for Luna's body. Upon impact Luna lets out a massive bloodcurdling scream of pain. Never before has something caused so much pain to her, tears began to stream down her cheeks as the mix of agony and fear is too much for her to bear. Several seconds of this torture passes the beam of light began to turn a dark purple, starting from Luna's end and began to creep it's way up towards the crystal itself. All Luna could do now was scream......
