The Lone Gaurdian

by 21latenighter

An alternate ending...

"5... 5 years... 5 years I've been here.." Fury said as he looked upon the earth from his place on the moon.

For some, it was a once in a lifetime sight, one that they would do anything to see, but for him... he had seen the sight for the past five years now, and it was only a reminder of what he was there for in the first place.

"One day more..." came a dark voice from the back of his mind.

"One day more and we will be released from this prison..." the nightmare said as it began knaw on the outer edge of Fury's sanity.

"I won't let you go back... I'll stay here forever.."

"You'll never rid me from the world, not really... ponies will always hate, and become jealous of one another, and so my spirit will grow until I can return and find a new host... while you rot here.." the nightmare said as it appeared as Fury's shadow.

"There must be a way... there must be.."

"There are none, Fury Flight... after all these years of you trying to stop me, you will never defeat me.."

Fury's horn crackled and lightning shot towards the shadow, but the nightmare only laughed.

"You can't hurt me Fury... I'm your shadow.. ha hahahaha!"

An idea suddenly sprung into Fury's head, which he quickly camouflaged.

"If I could create a new body for me, I could.."

"Stuff the nightmare in and destroy him... won't work.."

"If you would let me finish... you're right, I'll never destroy you, but if I could have a new body, if even for a day.. I could say goodbye to my family before you..."

"Hmmmm..... my own body.. the body of an all powerful alicorn... but, what body will you take?" The nightmare said as it threatened to swallow Fury whole.

"A Pegasus... with no magic.."

"Yesssss....... and then I will have power without equal.."

"But, there's a catch... to make sure you don't double cross me, I will keep my magic until my new body awakens..."

The Nightmare thought it over for a second before answering.

"Your terms are... ridiculous, but I accept.."

Fury nodded before focusing his magic... it was going to take a lot out of him to pull this off. Though he was a powerful alicorn, he wasn't the all powerful god alicorn that many took him to be.

For the next few hours, Fury worked tirelessly as he created his alternate persona. His magic was working flawlessly, and everything was in the right place, and he decided to try to bring his new body to life.

At first, the pony just laid there as he pumped magic into it... then a large breath entered its body, before the body stood and awaited its new soul.

"Good.. good... it's done... let us begin..." the Nightmare said as its shadow form drooled over the body it would solely possess.

"Here goes nothing.." Fury said as he began his soul transfer spell. The spell he was using was one he had found in the castle, and he had experimented on some other species, but never on ponies.

The spell began to shimmer as he began to feel himself losing consciousness... he only hoped that he could complete the spell before he passed out.

He took a deep breath as he closed his eyes as he lost consciousness in one body and gained it in his new body.

He took a deep breath in his new lungs before opening his eyes.

His first free breath in five years...

"Now... finish our deal!" The Nightmare said from Fury's old body.

"Yes... let us continue... with the rest of my trap..."

"WHAT!!!!" The Nightmare shrieked.

"Yes... my trap.. which you fell for perfectly.."

"I will have your magic!!" The Nightmare roared.

"Yes... you will have my magic," Fury said as he prepared himself, "all of it!!!" He yelled as he began to transfer his magic to the Nightmare, who looked dumbfounded at the Pegasus.

"You see Nightmare.. we both know magical power is based upon ones brain capacity..."

"Yes, and.."

"You allowed me to remove my magic.. and my mind from your 'perfect' body.."

"And now..." the Nightmare said as it realized it's grave mistake.

"You no longer have the space for all this magic... and so your mind will be crushed beneath it.."

"No..." it whispered.

"But why stop there... you can have it all... all my memories that my magic influenced..." Fury said as he pushed more magic into the already swelled head of the Nightmare.

"Memories of joy and sorrow... of love and losss, but why stop there, I know things... dark secrets that should never be told! Knowledge that should never be spoken!"

"No!! Keep your secrets!! Keep it all!!" The Nightmare screamed as it writhed.

Fury pushed the last fragment of his magic save for one spell into the already overflowing head of the Nightmare.

"No!! No More!!!!" It pleaded, it's mind shattered.

"One more spell.." Fury said as he used the last of his magic...

Luna awoke with a shattering pain in the left side of her head. She rose from her bed and walked to her balcony to ease the pain and nearly collapsed... her moon was in pieces. Her mind kicked into overdrive as she tried to correct the night sky, but a small falling object caught her eye.

"Fury..." she made out as she teleported from her balcony across the sky to the falling Pegasus.

She used he magic to slow the Pegasus' fall as she wrangled up a few clouds to catch him on.

When Fury hit the cloud, he had slowed to the point that it felt as if he landed in a pile of feathers. He looked up to see his savior to see his sister.

"Sister.... t-take me to her...." Fury made out as he lost consciousness.

Luna obeyed her brother's wish as she flew towards Ponyville, but also sent a telepathic message to celestia through her dream to brief her on the situation.

She arrived at the castle to find Celestia already there, telling Twilight and her friends the grave news.

"T-thank you s-sister..." Fury said as Luna landed gently on the balcony of Twilight's crystal castle. She gently passed by Celestia and Twilight, who backed up to let her and Fury through to the bed where Rainbow Dash had just been awoken.

"Whah... what's goin on... huh?" Rainbow said groggily as Rarity woke her.

"Rainbow darling.. you have to wake up.." Rarity said before backing away.

"Why? Is Equestria in danger? It wait till..." Rainbow said before her eyes met Fury's.

"Hello dear," Fury managed to say as Luna brought his cloud next to the Pegasus.

"F-Fury..." Rainbow said as a lump traveled into her throat. "W-What happened..."

"Dash... I-I'm dying..."

"What! N-No! You can't die!!" Dash yelled as she lept onto the cloud.

"T-Twilight c-can fix you, can't she?"

"Not this time Dash... not this time... but it's alright.."

"No it isn't! Your leaving me forever!"

"Rainbow dear..." Fury said as he brought a hoof to her cheek, wiping away a stray tear, "I know... I know... this isn't how you wanted me to come back, believe me.. this isn't what I wanted either, but this is the only way that I could defeat the Nightmare..." he said as his coat began to change from a bright brown to a dull gray. His mane blackened to charcoal as the rest of his body began to fade away into sand.

Fury smiled as he looked into Dash magenta eyes one last time...

"It's ok dash.. though I won't be out here... I'll always be in here..." he said as he placed a fading gray hoof on Rainbow's chest.

"I-I don't want you to go.." Dash said before Fury kissed Dash one more time before he faded away.

The sand of his former body danced around Rainbow as she heard Fury's last words.. "I love you..." before the sand made its way to the sky, where it created a new constellation in the sky, forming a shield for the great hunter...

The end....

Author's Note:

This chapter would take the place of Fury's return and the epilogue.