After decades of peace and the retirement of the Elements of Harmony, Rainbow Dash has died, the fourth bearer to do so. With only Rarity in her late 70s and Princess Twilight Sparkle left, can they possibly stop the newest threat to Equestrian livelihood? The better question is: Do they really have to?

"Most HiE's have a charismatic hero. Most HiE's are also more or less upbeat to start. This is not most HiE's..." -LucidTech

Ever had one of those days where everything's just gone wrong, one problem after another?

Of course you have.

Ever had one of those days when you wake up to find you've accidentally switched places with your counterpart in a world where you and all your friends are stallions?

...No?

Maybe that's just Twilight, then.

But the Princess of Magic isn't going to let a little thing like being in the wrong universe ruin her day. She has a schedule - a checklist! - and it matches up with this Dusk Shine's perfectly. Apart from the names and the genders, everything seems to be a match, and Ponyville has seen much weirder things since she moved here.

Being stallions or mares shouldn't make her friends that different. What could possibly go wrong?

TD Harrison Powell, the human first seen in No, I am NOT a Brony, GET ME OUTTA EQUESTRIA!!! is drafted by Fluttershy to go into the Everfree Forest after one of her missing chickens. Little does he know that what he finds there will change him forever...

Sweetie Belle doesn't really understand why she decided to spend the day with the young colt. Most ponies saw him as a bit eccentric, but Sweetie sees something far more familiar and comforting in his odd-ball behavior.

Based on the Button's Adventures Pilot, produced by JanAnimations. I'd advise taking five minutes to watch it if you haven't seen it yet.

Now on Equestria Daily!

Good morning, afternoon, night, or whenever you're reading this. My name is Edward, aka 'patient 42', and I am currently residing in an insane asylum.
Why?
I suppose it all started When the ruler of this place called Equestria tasked her personal student, Twilight Sparkle, to travel to Earth and study the human race.
Unfortunately for Twilight, when she teleported to our world she, well... she appeared in the middle of the road. Right in front of my car. Needless to say, this put a pretty big dent in her expedition. ...as well as my car's bumper.

Sounds crazy, right? But hey, maybe thats the reason why I'm in this cell.
Point is, The story I'm about to tell you is the tale of events sparked by that ill-fated night.

note: In this plane of existence, the franchise "My Little Pony" does not exist. In short; this is not, nor will it ever be, a 'brony meets pony' story.
Also, on a more recent note, I had this idea and began writing way back in S2, so this is in no way inspired by EqG. (also, its non-alicorn twilight)

Living in Equestria under a false name and racial identity is one thing. Finding out you're not the only one of your kind stranded here is another... especially when that someone and the element bearers are looking for you.

Being my first attempt at a first-person romantic comedy, this takes a slightly different approach to the concept of being a human stranded in Equestria.

Enjoy.

Big thanks to DVAN56 for editing. Go check out his work!

Long ago, before the banishing of Luna, Equestria was home to six races, not just three. In addition to the stewards of the weather, the earth, and of arcane magics, there were also the Changelings and their Queens, the harvesters, but not thieves of love, who spread it across the land, the Fel Ponies, those who guided the souls of the dead, and finally, the Noctus Ponies, or bat-ponies, who helped guard the night.

For a time, harmony between the six was maintained in full, but over time this once proud family grew distant. The Changelings became corrupt and greedy, and the Fel Ponies began feeding upon dark magic. The former left the lands and the latter were banished to Tartarus.

At that, only the Noctus Ponies remained... the strangest and most misunderstood of the three, due to their need for blood. A steady fear of them had always remained among of the populace, but with the help of Princess Luna, their reputation remained noble. However, when she became tainted by the Nightmare, they became tainted as well - at least in the eyes of the populace.

They were forced to flee. To hibernate for many years.

Now, two years after Luna's return, her, along with Princess Celestia and Twilight, have begun turning the wheels of change: their goal to unite the six races once more - starting with those who helped watch the night.

The minions of the night will return in full force.

On a dark night filled with even darker magics, an insane cult attempts to give Nightmare Moon a body and life of her own, utterly separate from Princess Luna. But, when the spell is interrupted by Celestia, something unexpected is created.

Now, a little black alicorn filly named Nyx finds herself living under the care of Twilight Sparkle, only to be haunted by memories and emotions from her past. Is she Nightmare Moon reborn or is she simply a doppelganger with a soul and mind of her own? Can Twilight Sparkle protect Nyx from those who refuse to see past her dragon eyes and black coat?

Or, will Nyx be forced to inherit the sins that may not even be hers and become the greatest evil Equestria has ever known?

My name is James. I'm your typical student: I sleep. I do my homework, all that jazz.

But, I mostly love to game. Gaming is my passion.
I have played a wide variety of video games throughout my lifetime. Some, I hate. Some I love. Some I haven't even played yet.

So, when I'm offered to have a chance to become a person in some foreign world, wielding the power of every video game I've ever played, I jumped at the chance.

...What the hell did I get myself into?

(My first, true HiE fic! All criticism welcome!)

I still can't believe it all started with a family camping trip gone wrong. One moment I was enjoying my time with my parents and brothers, then next thing I knew I was stranded on a world full of magic and mythological creatures. In one day, I went from worrying about the upcoming calculus test to worrying about my next meal. I remember how the only thing keeping me going was the hope that I might find a way home. Little did I know that some deities had other plans in store for me.

I remember all the promises I made, both those kept and betrayed. I remember the friends I made on my little adventure; the same friends I threw away when everything came crashing down. Oh, the memories I made... Oh, the memories I am now forever cursed to remember.

I suppose this is a just punishment. My only regret is that my friends may never hear my side of the story.

Set between Seasons 2 and 3 // Some deviations from canon post-season 2 due to when this was originally started.

Pre-read, Cover art, and Audio Reading provided by: Skijarama