This story is a sequel to Sunset's Crowning Achievement

The last time Twilight saw Starlight Glimmer, she threatened to kill Rainbow Dash when she was just a filly and ruin Twilight's life by going back in time. Only, when she failed to find Starlight in the past and returned home, Equestria wasn't a ruined wasteland, Ponyville was a lot bigger than she remembered, and all these new ponies in the castle were talking about some big pony they call Empress.

Meet the new bad guy, Eric McBad! He has tried to become a villain all his life, now that he can control an empire, he will make the world bend to his cartoonish villainy!

Meteors fall. There's a blaze of fire across the sky, a moment of impact and since everypony was lucky, nopony was hurt. It means there's a meteor embedded into the soil of the Acres and for just about everywhere else in Equestria, that zero-injuries landing would pretty much be the end of it.

But it's Ponyville. And for Applejack, the meteor was the easy part.

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.

I doubt anyone will ever get this message. Even if someone does, I seriously doubt anyone will actually be able to do anything about it. For the most part, I'm just venting here. I would love to be proven wrong, though.

My name is Mike Hassenfeld. Some time ago, I was an unexceptional man living an unexceptional life whose only worry was forcing myself out of bed in time to make it to work. One day, however, I opened the front door of my apartment and found myself in another universe.

I quickly discovered that I and my apartment had fallen through a crack in reality and have been thrust into a whole bunch of alternate versions of Equestria from My Little Pony.

Now, I bet I know what you're thinking. "Mike, what are you complaining about? That's like the majority of the stories on this site! What, are you going to meet the Mane 6 and discover the magic of friendship?"

I'm still holding out hope that that scenario will happen to me one day. Instead, I've been attacked by deranged killers, imprisoned by mad sorcerers, and been stranded in hostile wastelands. I've been attacked by Changelings, xenophobic ponies who want to forcibly turn me into one of them, comic-book supervillains, and insane cannibals. About the only thing keeping me from going insane (if I haven't already) is an alien amoeba who is serving as my roommate. Again, I'm not a hundred percent sure I'm not insane and living in a lunatic asylum.

It hasn't been all bad, though. I like to think I've done some good along the way. I know I've saved more than a few ponies' lives in my journeys, overthrown some tyrants, maybe even saved a couple worlds.

And I can't remember the last time I've had to sit through a car insurance commercial. That's got to count for something, right?

I've always wanted to visit Equestria (what brony hasn't), but I soon discover that things very rarely happen the way you intend for them to when I suddenly wind up there myself. The ponies all live in a constant state of fear as a dark gloom lingers over the land, many of them suffering from life-threatening afflictions. Not only that, but I find myself with strange new abilities.

What has happened here? What's happening to me? I will soon discover that I play a major part in the survival of the pony race, but am I up for the challenge that faces me?

Gore tag for some blood.

Part I in the "Guardian Of Equestria" saga.

Note: Potential spoilers in the comments section.

Cover Art by ThePleonasticPotato http://thepleonasticpotato.deviantart.com/art/Ponyville-at-Night-360066446

Ragar the Ageless has seen many things in his non-life. He has seen fields of cotton candy, the wails of the soon-to-be-dead chanting in chorus. Once he even saw a unicorn. Well, there are a lot of those in Equestria, so maybe that one was less noteworthy. But still, he's seen a lot. Now he wants others to see him in all his glorious evil. The only issue is he's not so good at it.

** EDIT **

Well crap, featured with every chapter. I feel all special and stuff. So let me give you all some love. You're all wonderful people, trees or whatever internet capable folks have been reading.

Dang, look at all those likes. I'm feeling the love. Thank all of you for enjoying my wonderful trip through insane necromancy.

Many Thanks to Locke_Jaw for his wonderful artwork that is my new cover.

Jack is scrolling through channels when he sees a new episodes of My Little Pony, he makes a comment about how dumb the villain is and says that he could be a better one, a mysterious woman appears and gives him a challenge, that if he can take over Equestria he wins if he can't then she wins.

Edited by the ever glorious https://www.fimfiction.net/user/272063/Organical

Initializing....
Source Code Identified......
Playback Audio Feed......Operation: World Jump 2463197......Subsection; Mission Parameters......

.........Um, hello, my name is Doctor Daniel Phillips, and I am the lead scientist overseeing the Gateway Project, one of the most cutting-edge technologies in existence today. With it, we can open wormholes to worlds far beyond the reach of conventional space travel, and even into other dimensions if we can work out the right frequency. As of late we have discovered over a dozen habitable worlds that have been slated for colonization, but as of yet no signs of intelligent life. Yet I hold out hope that one day we might find such a world, however remote, and put our best foot forward in opening relations with our new galactic neighbors. Yet not all of the planets we find are poppies and roses, so instead of sending in humans to explore them, we have these little babies.

Oh, right, you can't see me because this is an audio-only feed. My mistake. Well, I guess I'll just have to explain it to you. These cybernetic wolves, known in our group as the Mech Hounds, are outfitted with the most advanced computers in the world, along with some of the most cutting-edge robotics and weapons money can buy. Now right at the moment we only have a dozen of these little critters, but don't let that fool you. Each of these little babies carries enough firepower to level a small town, although it would take them a couple days to do so if they were working alone. They also have the programing to work out almost any situation in a matter of seconds, although they still have many of the logic problems that most computers face when confronted with something that does not fit within the established parameters of their programming. Yet, regardless of their possible shortcomings, they do the heavy lifting upon initial exploration where humans cannot, dealing with threats as they see fit in order to assess the habitability of a planet for human use. I could tell you more, but that would be breaking protocol.

So, without further ado, I'll turn you over to our logistics specialist, who will be happy to tell you all about how these little babies are going to change the world, or rather, worlds, that humanity has come to call home.................

End Audio Recording........

This is a story that delves into the boundary between life and machine, where AI is something that has only been dreamed of, even with the most advanced computers available. Then again, these machines have never encountered magic before, so who knows what might happen. I guess you'll just have to read the book to find out for yourself.

The girls had known that their friend had been researching something. They had watched as he pored over books writing notes in a private code. They had watched as he went to town hall and failing that, Canterlot archives looking through Cutie Mark registries. And know they watched, as he finished his personal quest. The only thought they could dredge up was a single word. Why.

Princess Celestia always thought she knew how her kingdom worked. The Unicorns used magic specialized to their jobs. Pegasi flew in the sky and handled the weather. And Earth ponies... Earth ponies... uhhmmm...
Huh. Maybe Princess Celestia didn't know everything about her ponies after all.
Princess Celestia realized this after Applejack came to speak with her about a tax unfair to Earth pony farmers. It was during their conversation that Celestia realized she needed help.
Huh, isn't that odd Princess Celestia has had to leave on emergency business, leaving Luna to raise and set the sun? And hey, is that a new pony living and working at Sweet Apple Acres? I think her name is Sunshine Meadow. Surely, it's just a coincidence. Surely.