There comes a point when you can no longer run from the things you've done. Ryan Williams believes that he has reached this point, but sometimes, just as we are about to close one door, another opens before us, changing our lives in ways we could never have imagined.

Update: Redemption now has a live reading! Done by Teraunce, you can find it here: https://youtu.be/W4vLoB3Lbk0
Go give it (and his channel) some love :D

Note: This was originally written between Seasons 1 and 2, and may ignore conflicting lore established by Season 2 or later. THIS IS REALLY OLD WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS

Twilight Sparkle and her friends are snowed into the library one evening, and they happen upon that rarest of specimens - a book Twilight doesn't recognise. However, the ancient tale of adventure and intrigue they find inside ends up shattering their worldview and sending them on an adventure of their own.

This is basically what came to my mind when I heard that Lauren Faust's original concept for the show was of a more arc-based, magical girl style (this turned out not to be true, but my mind ran with it anyway), but this story ended up a long way from magical girls and well into high fantasy by the time I started writing. Also draws on select Homestuck and Dungeons & Dragons themes, and plays with a lot of things the canon leaves unexplained.

Tag update: Reduced character tags to Mane 6, CMC, Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash. While the Mane 6 and CMC provide most of the ensemble cast, Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash are the primary viewpoint characters.

Additional Tags: Anthro, conspiracy, high fantasy, gryphons, war.

Sequel now posted!

In Equestria Humans are creatures that are things of legends. Stories are passed over the generations about a human that emerged from the forest over 1000 years ago. The human in these stories is an evil creature who prey on innocent ponies. But to the ponies they are just that: stories. No one really believes that story until a human shows up again. The ponies of Equestria are scared of the human but soon some warm up to his presence. After all humans have changed in 1000 years.

"Congratulations, Spike! You're the new Rainbow Dash!" Twilight may have said those words in the heat of the moment, but what if it were true?

Discord, spirit of chaos and infinite jest, manages to play yet another trick on Twilight and her friends by making her hasty solution more real than she could have imagined... in his own rather idiosyncratic way, of course.

...But how will the original Rainbow Dash deal with her chaos-twisted, semi-official replacement? And can Spike really take the place of everyone's favorite speedster?

Short answer: Probably no.

Long answer: Well, read the story and find out!

A/N: This is kind of against my better judgement since I usually publish entire rather than serially, but let's see how it goes. I can always delete it all and claim it never happened, later. 8 D

(Illustrations in this story are courtesy of Unnoticeableperson. Warning, rest of gallery may not be as work safe as this image is)

Have you ever had a dream that just seemed so real, that it was impossible to say for certain that it was even a dream at all? A dream that, despite all of its impossibilities, seemed to re-write your entire perception of reality, re-writing your sense of what—and indeed, who—you are? Accepting change is hard enough as it is. But when you're a somebody who wakes up as a somepony, how do you cope with the impact such a drastic change has on your mind and body? With changes like these, it must surely just be a lucid dream—albeit a suspiciously accurate one—just brimming with potential and ripe for exploration. So you might as well suck it up and make the most of these distressingly…unusual circumstances, and seize this psychological adventure before you wake up and the dream ends.
After all, this couldn't possibly be real, so the dream must come to an end eventually…right?

A human gets pulled into Equestria by a spell cast by Twilight. He has a lot to learn about this new world and all its inhabitants. Will he be able to cope and live among the ponies, or will he be treated as an outcast, forced to run and hide as he tries to find a way home?

This is an alternate universe.

This is my first attempt at a story, so be brutal. Don't be afraid to tell me if I messed up royally.

Edited by Lady-Kaeru

Cover pic by TheParagon

A seemingly average man in an dull life receives a Unicorn's horn, a magician's cape, and an ancient journal from his now-dead great grandfather after being lost in the postal service for more than 30 years. With only a few hints and a limited store of magic in a world that otherwise lacks magic completely he seeks to know the truth about his family's legends, and his heritage.
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This fic was written back before the episode with Iron Will was aired, so expect a few things to be different from what is canon with the show.
This fic was also written back before the 5-character-icon-limit was put into effect, so there may be a few more 'main' characters other than what is listed here.
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While the story itself is complete, as readers find errors and point them out to me I'll be going back occasionally to fix them. Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. The direct sequel is now in the works, as to the alternate continuation that lost the vote at the end if anyone cares to read it. I may or may not also work on that one from time to time depending on my mood.

Josh Schwartz is a normal human with a normal life. He has his computer, his TV, his pet cat, his love of sports, the works. Naturally, he doesn't approve or enjoy girly things that are obviously made for girls. However, when a mysterious and unexplainable series of events takes place, he finds himself in Equestria, a world with no humans and only ponies...well, mostly ponies. How will this sarcastic human boy adapt to this new world? And how will its residents take to their new visitor?

When your life is as dull a gray as the world that surrounds you, the mundanities can make it all seem meaningless. Sometimes all we need is a little color -- or six -- to reintroduce us to what truly makes life worth living.

*6-16-2017 Edit, added Rainbow Dash tag because it triggered knighty.*

There is a flood on the horizon. Equestria's enemies have united, and the coming tide will not only change the course of history on one world, but two, and bring about a monumental meeting that will bring brothers and sisters from those two worlds together.

At long last, the downtrodden will rise.

The battle begins.