The shaded guardian

As Fluttershy lies there, her body cowering before the manticore, she feels the wind she had felt from before brush by her once again. The wind this time was light but steady, the gust causing some of her mane to fall down in front of her face, covering her eyes and blocking her sight.

As her vision was blocked, she felt the wind get heavy for a moment. She felt it rush over her body quickly, her mind flooded with thoughts about her own life, the wind not even effecting her.

She had noticed that some time had passed since she had coward before the beast in front of her. She didn't know why the manticore would have stopped before taking her life. It had also grown quieter in that brief period of time, the manticore's breathing the only thing that was heard.

Fluttershy eventually worked up the courage to peek from her mane to see what the manticore was doing. She reached her hooves up and parted her mane so that just her cyan colored eyes peered out in front of her.

Her eyes grew wider as she saw two, larger hooves in front of her, that of which had long and lengthy fetlocks. They were a dark grey, fading into a slightly lighter grey coat.

Fluttershy looked up the hind legs of the pony before her, seeing that the grey coat belonged to a stallion, a rather large one as well. The stallion stood tall, taller than most of the normal stallions back in Ponyville.

Fluttershy couldn't see his face, only that he was standing there in front of her, in between her and the manticore. She didn't know why the stallion was standing there and how he exactly got to her, but she wasn't upset that there was another pony besides her in this forest

After closer inspection, she had noticed that he remotely resembled the figure that was watching her at the base of the cliff. He was dark, large, and very similar in physique. She thought about the possibility that he could have been the figure, but set it aside at the pressing matter at hand.

The manticore then growled at the stallion, staring him down as the stallion stared him down as well. The manticore than lowered itself, looking like it was about to attack. The stallion did the same, both of their eyes narrowing as they gazed over at each other.

The manticore then charged at the stallion, its paws making quick steps, sprinting at the stallion. The stallion then returned the charge and trotted towards the manticore at the same pace, lowering his head as he did.

Fluttershy looked up at the spectacle, seeing the stallion trot directly at the massive beast. She didn't know why a sane pony would do this, surely he wouldn't be able to best a manticore on his own.

She saw no stumbling or hesitation in the stallion as he trotted, he was fearless it seemed. Her eyes were wide at such bravery, her body though still coward behind them.

The manticore then pounced up into the air, his mouth agape as he let out a loud roar. The stallion looked up to the manticore with an emotionless face, still trotting fast at him.

Fluttershy watched on in awe, wondering how such an event would play out. She thought of what the stallion was doing, how he was protecting her from this monster.

A large, blue flash then shot out, Fluttershy having to quickly shut her eyes and turn away from the blinding light. She shielded her eyes from the clash, very worried and anxious about what had happened. After a while, she cracked her eyes open to see a whit mist surrounding her.

The area around her grew silent, like a cloak of quiet covering her. She turned her head towards where the stallion and manticore were, the thick, white smoke clouding the area that they were. At that point, Fluttershy was worried, unsure as to what was transpiring and how the stallion turned out.

The mist started to fade a little, the stallion's head could be seen through it, his darkened mare visible in the smoke. Fluttershy's mouth drew open, staring at the stallion closely, bewildered incredibly by him.

The smoke eventually subsided enough that she could see the manticore, laying there before the stallion, its body lifeless on the ground. The stallion only stared down at the manticore in his victory, his mane and tail lightly whipping in a breeze that rolled by.

Fluttershy, inside, was absolutely relieved that the manticore had been slain, all due to the dark stallion that stood before her. She looked to him with awe, her eyes peering straight at him, curious as to what his intentions were for saving her.

After a long moment of silence, the stallion turned around towards Fluttershy, his eyes closed lightly and his face still emotionless. He opened his eyes to reveal his crystal blue eyes, it seemed light there was a glow around them that would cut through the darkest of fogs.

Fluttershy looked up to him, her eyes transfixed on his, staring into them and losing herself to them. The stallion simply stared back at her, his emotionless face looking like it would never change.

He began a slow trot towards her, still staring down at her with his glowing eyes. He dwarfed Fluttershy in comparison, his body was most likely twice the size of hers, his hoofsteps very distinct as the fell upon the ground.

She was almost scared of him, his demeanor very strong and unmoving. Her body not even budging as she stared up at the very large and mysterious stallion.

The stallion soon reached her, still staring down at her with his emotionless grimace. Fluttershy looked up to him weakly, only able to move her lips slightly.

The stallion then moved his hoof towards her, motioning for her to grab onto his hoof in order to help her up. Fluttershy very slowly reached up and grabbed his hoof, standing up before him. She stared up at him with a slightly worried face, curious only as to who this stallion was.

She spoke out in a very light and quiet voice, staring into his glowing blue eyes "W-Who..... A-Are you?...."

The stallion then spoke in a deepened yet soft tone, still staring down at her "................Shade....."