//------------------------------// // Thorns Part 4 // Story: Short Hand // by Andrew Joshua Talon //------------------------------// - - - Okay, I'm just going to say it: Riding a manticore in full flight over the battlements of a city while hundreds of giant monsters are chasing you is fucking metal. I would have had an erection, but it would have been awkward on top of a semi-sapient lifeform and all. That and Spike was in my lap. Gross. The wind howled in our ears, as we flew for the central palace. The manticore roared happily, the bloodlust burning in his eyes. I found myself laughing with him, a feral grin on my face as my primal instincts roared to life. My blood was on fire, as I waved my machete. "PUNCH IT, CHEWIE!" I shouted, pointing right for the top of the tower. The manticore roared in agreement, and flew for it. I held up Spike, and the little dragon took a deep breath. He unleashed a massive blast of green fire, and the large glass window barring our way exploded. We burst into the top of the tower, roaring for battle. Which... We didn't get. We just got an empty room, save for a weird lantern in the center. We looked around, bewildered. "So... This isn't the throne room?" I asked. Bramble was shaking, as he clung to me. "N-N-N-N... No..." He managed to squeak. I slid off the back of the Manticore (who I decided to call Chewie, because fuck Disney that's why), and looked around carefully with my machete pointed out in front of me. Spike followed, also looking around. "So, I guess the throne room is below," Spike said. "Uh, let's go to the staircase!" "To the staircase!" I shouted. Bramble was still clinging tightly to me, scared out of his wits. "Uh... After Bramble calms down," I amended. I kneeled down, and gently pulled the shaking deer prince off my back. Which was very difficult, as he just kept wrapping his appendages around me. I pushed him off, and set him down. "Now calm down, calm down Bramble!" I said urgently. I looked him in his huge eyes. "Hey, hey! The worst part is over!" I said again, hugging the little deer. "Okay?" "Oh-Okay," he mumbled. I let him go with a smile. I pulled up the briefcase with the Elements of Harmony, and shook it in front of him. I gave him a happy grin. "See? We're going to be fine," I said. "Down there in the throne room-" "How do we know they're in the throne room?" Spike asked. I shrugged. "Where else would a megalomaniac take his prisoners to be executed?" I asked. Spike hummed, and nodded. "Good point," he said. "Anyway, down in the throne room are six mares who will fix this right up," I said cheerfully. I turned it around in my hands. "Now, let's just do the Captain Dummy check and make sure everything is fine." "'Captain Dummy check'?" Spike asked. "We've only got ten minutes before the deadline!" "And imagine how silly we'll look if we show up without the Elements of Harmony, just the case," I observed. Spike rolled his eyes, but waved a clawed hand. I nodded. I opened the briefcase. There they were, all six pieces of magic jewelry. I felt very relieved. I reached out and touched the crown. "There. Now we can have our reunion-" "It's been a while hasn't it, my consort?" Asked Nightmare Moon, looking down on me with her green, cat-slitted eyes. She grinned, her razor sharp teeth gleaming in the light of flames. I started and looked around. It was Ponyville... On fire. Everything was on fire. The Town Hall, Sugercube Corner... And bodies were everywhere. Everywhere. Spike, Doc, Ditzy, Bramble, even Chewie... Every friend I'd made in Ponyville since I got here. All dead. The wind was knocked out of my chest as I trembled. "Wha... This...?" I looked back at Nightmare Moon, but I got another surprise. I saw Twilight, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Dash, Pinkie Pie... All standing, frozen, smiling. Nightmare Moon loomed up behind them, a deadly blade of pure shadow forming next to her. She grinned horribly, her green eyes blazing with madness. She lifted the blade up, pointing it for the back of Fluttershy's neck. My eyes widened. "No... NO, DON'T!" I shouted. "DON'T!" The blade went right into her body, right through her heart. Fluttershy's eyes widened in shock and pain, as she crumpled like a marionette with her strings cut. "OH GOD NO! FLUTTERSHY!" I wanted to charge Nightmare Moon. I wanted to strangle her with my bare hands. I tried to run, but no matter how fast I went I never got any closer. I was stuck, as Nightmare Moon casually slaughtered the rest of the mares. Each time I begged, I screamed, I pleaded and cursed... None of it did any good. Every death felt like I was being stabbed with them. I only got to them as Dash fell, the last. My hands went all over their still forms, trying to find a heartbeat, warm breath, anything... I looked up at Nightmare Moon, tears streaming down my eyes. "You... This... This isn't real... This can't be real...!" I shouted. "Oh, but it will be, my dear little human," Nightmare Moon crooned. In front of me floated the metallic briefcase, the Elements already in black, magical tendrils."How thoughtful of you to bring the elements right to me. Just as I'd hoped..." She crushed each Element into shards with her dark magic, and laughed as the pieces rained down onto the bodies of my friends. I felt hollow, as every bit of goodness and hope fled my core. "You're dead! We defeated you! We-We killed you!" I blubbered. Nightmare Moon laughed horribly, the flames rising higher. Her shadow loomed up higher, taking on antlers. "Can you extinguish the darkness in every heart? The hate? The greed? The fear? Even the Elements can't do that..." She grinned horribly, blood dripping from her fangs. "I'm looking so forward to seeing you again, darling~..." "Shepherd! SHEPHERD!" I dropped the crown, shaking and covered in cold sweat. Spike was shaking my shoulder. Bramble stared in horror and concern, as Chewie loomed over me. The big manticore almost looked worried, but it surely was a trick of the light. "Shepherd? What happened?" Spike asked, staring at me in worry. I took several deep breaths, trying to calm down. "Ah... Um... Spike?" I asked. "Yes? Yes, what is it?" Spike said urgently. "Do... Have you heard of horrible, demonic visions being associated with the Elements of Harmony?" I asked. Spike blinked a few times, but shook his head. "Uh, no," he said. "Is that was you saw?" I nodded. I looked down at the Elements, still intact and still in their briefcase. The detail in the vision... "I... I saw Nightmare Moon," I managed. "She said... I'd brought the Elements... Just as she'd hoped." I stared down at the magic jewelry. "Like, like she was expecting this," I muttered. "But that's not possible," Spike said, "Nightmare Moon was defeated! Princess Luna is fine!" Spike shook his head. "Why would you have a vision of that?" "I don't know," I muttered. I looked up at Spike. "I mean, it can't be... It couldn't be too easy, could it?" "I've never stormed a castle before," Spike admitted, only half sarcastically. I nodded, raising my eyebrows. "First time for me, too," I said. I rubbed my cheek. I kept staring at the Elements. "We-We can't just sit here!" Bramble cried. I nodded hard. "You're right," I said. I took another deep breath. "We've got a Plan B," I said, "and it's good. But I'd feel a lot better if we had a Plan C." Spike raised his scaly brows. "Plan C?" He asked. Chewie growled in confusion. I smiled at the little dragon. "Yeah. Hand me your back pack, will you?" - - - Getting down the stairs was easy, and travelling through the palace was even easier. The entire thing was like one, gigantic shaped forest, with all the branches of the trees warped into grand staircases, balconies and hallways. Bramble's directions got us to the huge throne room, with huge vaulted ceilings. Lanterns filled with fireflies lined the walls, as turquoise-tinted windows kept what little sunlight let in by the Everfree Canopy out. We walked out into the throneroom, our steps echoing loudly in the empty hall. "I'd feel better if we were fighting our way through all this," Spike admitted. I nodded slowly. "Yeah," I muttered back. I really didn't need the hellish vision to make me think something was up. So why had I gotten it? It felt too real to have been a hallucination. The throne of course was made of wood too, built into the living wood of the palace. And in front of them were six balls of spiky branches-Improvised cages, no doubt. Within each was one of our friends, tied up and gagged with vines and flowers. I rolled my eyes, and felt Spike do the same nearby. I could tell easily. "Gotta stick with a theme, huh?" I muttered. They all awakened as they saw us, and Fluttershy's eyes became wide. She shook and struggled, whimpering. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Dash all began grunting and screaming through the gags. My bad feeling increased severely, and yet, I pressed on. I spotted Twilight, and walked up to her cage. Some weird stone ring was around her horn, probably suppressing her magic. I bet the creep did it to all the cute unicorns. I knelt down, and her eyes widened in shock. She immediately began shaking her head. I reached out and yanked out the gag. She spat out some berries and then said: "Get out! GET OUT! It's a trap!" She cried. The door we'd walked in became barred by thorny black vines. The throne erupted in dark fire, and a tall, gracile deer stag appeared. He wore a crown, and a heart-shaped necklace over his chest that glowed a dull, bloody red. He smirked down upon us, as the shadows lengthened around us. He could only be King Aspen, judging from Bramble's gasp. "Father!" Bramble cried. Aspen chuckled, his eyes narrowed. "You walked right in!" The monarch laughed. "Without a bit of caution or hesitation! So courageous!" He grinned, his teeth gleaming sharply in the dim light. I could see fire reflected in his fangs. "Father! Please! We've come to help you!" Bramble shouted. "You can stop this! You can end the war! Please!" Aspen laughed darkly, his eyes flashing green. "Such terrible pain and anguish, my son," he said, "it's so... Invigorating." He laughed again, looking mock apologetic. "I'm so sorry. I'm practically giddy! I've been looking forward to this for so very long. Seeing Twilight Sparkle, her little friends..." His eyes locked onto me. "And their little pet monkey," he hissed. "You, I wanted to get too. To complete the reunion." Oh good. That word. That didn't make me shiver and shake internally in terror. Thankfully, when I'm really, really scared, I try to channel it into being snarky. Like Spider-Man. "Um," I began, blinking, "have we met before? Because you're starting to sound like any of my ex-girlfriends. I don't think I'd have been drunk enough to bang a deer. Well, a male deer." Aspen began laughing harder. His eyes... Became green, with cat slitted eyes. The shadows grew longer, and thicker, as tendrils of darkness waved around him. Twilight's jaw dropped, and despite the hellish vision... Or because of it... I was barely able to keep my composure. "That's impossible," Twilight whispered. "That's impossible!" "Hello, my consort~," the Nightmare crooned. - - "Nightmare Moon?" I found myself asking in disbelief. I held up the briefcase. "But-They rainbow nuked you! You're supposed to be gone!" I looked over at Twilight Sparkle, who was equally filled with disbelief. "These things were supposed to make her dead!" "They didn't kill her! I mean, they freed Princess Luna from her darkness!" Twilight cried. The thing on the throne cackled in an all too familiar way, its tendrils waving about as Bramble cowered next to me. "I split off one part of myself before the hit. I'm weakened, yes, but I survived. You can't eliminate all evil, you silly little pony. No matter how hard you try," the Nightmare thing hissed, whipping its long tongue out at us. I made a face, and reached down to pat the back of Bramble's head. Poor kid. First his dad goes evil, and now he's become a demon-possessed transsexual. It's a lot to take in a few days. "Oh, I had years to merge with Luna-To become one with her," the Nightmare hissed, "how I miss her. This king is a poor substitute-So stiff, so out of touch and arrogant. Thinking a land developer was an attacking force! But he was so easy to subvert... And enough power for my plans. After all, I feed on fear. On rage. On jealousy and hatred, so-" "Wait, wait, let me guess," I impulsively called out, lifting up my hand. "So you can make sooo much misery and rage you can feed off it, become all powerful and then..." I paused faux dramatically, "take over the world?" The Nightmare glared, its green eyes glowing. Faux wings made of shadow rose behind him-her-whatever. It hadn't given me any pronouns to work with. "You really do take all the fun out of things, consort," the Nightmare stated. "Well you're not exactly a fun villain," I shot back. "So predictable!" The Nightmare snarled. "You stood up to me despite having no powers. I remembered that," it replied. "That's why I had to wait for you: I needed you all here again, just as before." "So you know how this ends," I replied loudly. I held up the briefcase again. "The best mares in the world get these on, rainbow nuke you, and off to oblivion! Again!" The Nightmare laughed mockingly, thorny vines beginning to emerge from the walls around us. I could feel the disbelieving looks the mares were shooting at me. I'd gotten it more than enough from them in the past, though never quite this intense. Even Spike was rolling his eyes. Chewie just growled, ready for a fight as he spread his wings. Manticores apparently get the idea of pre-fight banter and posturing. "Oh really? Is that what you think is going to happen, monkey?" The Nightmare growled. "I don't know," I shot back, "you're the magic body hopping parasite, you tell me." The Nightmare's eyes flashed in rage, and I could feel the floor shake. I shoved Bramble and Spike towards the Mares and ran to the right, as Chewie followed me. It was enough to get us out of the way of the first tendril, which shot up and slammed down like the hammer of Thor between us. The vibration nearly knocked me off my feet, but I stayed up. My heart was pounding in my ears, even as I looked up at the seething monster. I almost wet my pants at this, but it was crucial I stayed calm. I had to. Everyone was counting on me. Well, the little metal briefcase I was holding, anyway. Me? Maybe not so much. "Shepherd! Just throw us the case!" Twilight shouted, as Spike clutched at her cage in terror. I ignored her, and glared at the Nightmare. "I'm sorry, did I touch a nerve?" I shouted. "Parasite! Leech! Bloodsucker!" I shot a defiant smirk, as Chewie roared at the monster behind me. "COMMUNIST!" The Nightmare snarled, and leaped right off the throne. I yanked out my revolver, and fired every shot at the charging Nightmare. The bangs were deafening without any ear protection, echoing loudly in the huge throne room. I honestly didn't know what these shots would do to Nightmare or Aspen... And as the Nightmare charged through the bullets without slowing down, I guess the answer was "nothing". "YOU DARE MOCK ME, YOU PITIFUL APE?!" The nightmare roared, swinging a tendril at me. I barely ducked under the blow, the wind whistling loudly over me. Chewie leaped up over the blow, his claws and stinger raking down on the monster. I threw my revolver at the Nightmare, as a further distraction as my Manticore pounced! He drove the Nightmare down, pinning it to the wooden floor. I pulled my machete and sprinted across, hoping to add my blade to the weapons driving into the monster. The Nightmare looked up in defiance, the manticore venom pumping into it. "YOU THINK THIS IS ANYTHING TO ME?!" It shrieked, and darkness erupted in an explosion of power. Chewie was blasted off the monster, and I was knocked off my feet. I slammed down into the floor hard, and I rolled as more tendrils erupted below me. I saw one massive vine wrap around Chewie, and slam him up against the wall. I gaped in horror, taking my eyes off the monster for just a moment. "CHEWIE!" I shouted. I got up, my hand scrambling for my semi-auto pistol in my belt. I wasn't fast enough though-The Nightmare was on me in an instant, black tendrils lashing out to grab my arms and neck. I was choked as they lifted me up, my eyes bulging. The Nightmare was now in my face, sharp fangs practically glowing in its venomous grin. "How pitiful," the Nightmare sneered, "this is your idea of defiance? You think you're the hero here, boy? You're just the pet monkey! The sidekick!" I would have snarked something back, but my windpipe was in the middle of being crushed. I struggled frantically, trying to get loose from the grip of the shadows. Nothing doing-They held like steel, not giving an inch as I flailed. The Nightmare laughed, and then threw me. I slammed into the wall, tumbling like a rag doll before I fell down. I tried to bite back a scream, but it echoed above me anyway. "If only you'd minded your own business," the Nightmare taunted, "just fled. You might have been able to live a quiet life, for a little while longer. Before I found you. If only you didn't care about these mares so much..." I managed to look up, breathing hard. My wrist felt broken, as did my leg. It was painful, but I could deal with pain. "I would rather die," I gasped out, "than forsake any one of them...!" Hey, I managed to make an anime reference despite everything. I guess I'd been getting hurt enough the pain didn't register as badly anymore. Or maybe I'm just a masochist-It would explain a lot. The Nightmare laughed, and held up the briefcase with one tendril. My eyes widened, as the demonic thing turned it in its appendages. "Well I'm glad you planned on dying! Because that's what you'll do in front of them! Die, slowly, along with your last hope," the Nightmare jeered. It pulled at the fastenings, and opened the briefcase. Its green slitted eyes widened in shock, a look I would treasure forever. "Wh-WHAT?!" The Nightmare roared. It threw the empty briefcase down, and snarled at me. "WHERE-?!" "You know," Twilight Sparkle called from across the throneroom, "Shepherd's right: You are predictable." The Nightmare looked over, and I managed to turn my head to see it too. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie-All looking royally pissed off-stood with the Elements of Harmony on and glowing with power. Spike and Bramble were at their side, Spike holding up his empty backpack. Zecora, the Doctor, and Ditzy flanked their other side, the Doctor holding up a chainsaw he'd taken from the human junkyard. The Nightmare gaped in shock, and looked at me in growing fury as the light grew stronger-Like the sun rising. I managed a grin. "Gotcha," I managed. The Nightmare roared and leaped at me, as the massive energy blast washed over us. The Nightmare pounced on me, tendrils lashing at me in rage and desperation. I struggled back, the pain exploding even worse across my body. Its green eyes bored into mine, and I felt something in my mind...! "Think you're so clever, Shepherd?!" The demon roared. "I'll turn your victory to ASH!" And despite the intensity of the light... Everything went black. - - - There are moments in life that just seem to paint how much it can fucking suck to be a human being. Moments that just seem to reinforce the dark parts of your mind that say you are nothing, that life has no meaning, and you don't deserve to be happy. Moments that you rerun in your mind, over and over and over again, and wonder to yourself: How was I that fucking stupid? You can't stop picking at them, like a scab on the sole of your foot. No matter what you do, it's gonna hurt but you can't stop trying to figure out a way to fix it. But you need to try something. Anything. "I'm sorry sweetie," my girlfriend said, a wan smile on her face. I'd opened the door to her house, and seen her sitting on her couch... Another man sitting there with his arm around her shoulder. My entire body felt as numb and useless as the flowers in my hand. "I'm sorry. You're just not the one for me. But I'm sure... I'm sure you'll find love again someday?" Her smile was full of pity. Like I was a broken doll lying on the ground. Just a brief look, before she stepped over it and went about her day. That was it. That was all I was to her. The year we'd spent together and this was the way she ended it. Treated it. I didn't even see the look on the face of the guy. He wasn't even looking my way. And who would? I could have screamed. I could have yelled. I could have picked up something and thrown it. Instead I turned and walked out, letting the door swing shut behind me. I got behind the wheel of my car and I drove. I just drove, listening to music as loudly as I could. I found some isolated place outside the city. I got out of my car, and then? Then I screamed. Then I kicked and punched whatever scraggly trees were in my path. Then I walked around, ranting and raving and throwing my hands every which way. I hated her. I hated that guy. I hated God. I hated the entire universe. But most of all? I hated myself. I sat there, sitting on the bumper of my car, staring out at the magnificence of the mountains as the sun set. I felt hollow, all of my insides ripped out with just the ragged remains hanging left inside me. I was... Somewhere else, wasn't I? Just a second ago? I looked around. Every was stopped, still, like a frame on a paused movie. All of it was so artificial, faded, as though a faded photograph. I felt something sit down next to be on the hood of the car, and I sprang away. I turned around. It looked like Nightmare Moon... As a spectacularly beautiful woman. Her skin was pale and smooth, as a black bodysuit hugged the rest of her muscled, curvaceous form. Over this was armor, midnight blue in color, that also left little to the imagination. Her narrow lips were painted jet black, as her green, cat-slitted eyes glowed in malicious glee at me. Her long hair flowed behind her head, as her wings folded tightly against her back. "What's wrong, Shepherd?" The Nightmare simpered, "this not a good look for you?" "What the hell is this?!" I demanded. Nightmare laughed, and the world seemed to turn gray and lifeless in response. "We're in your mind, silly human," Nightmare explained, spreading out one hand. She spread her clawed fingers, and they burned with a hellish flame. One soon reflected in her eyes. "I had to jump somewhere to escape, didn't I? And I found such a painful memory I had to see!" She smirked. "So many like this. You love the girl and she doesn't. Over and over again. Doesn't it get old?" "Oh yeah, smart move," I mocked her, "hide in the human who's also being hit by the Friendship Deathlaser! Fucking brilliant! So what, you're tormenting me in the few seconds you have left? One last act of pettiness?" I pointed my finger at her. "Because if this is your idea of my worst memory, bitch, you're way off-!" "Andrew?" The scent of heavy cleaners. The sound of beeping medical devices. The plain, earth toned walls, linked by cold, colorless tiles floors and ceilings. All of these are the impressions of a hospital. And I've always hated hospitals because of this memory. "No," I murmured, "no... Not here... Not now..." "Andrew... Your mother is waiting," the nurse said with a smile. She towered over me, when I was eight. And ahead, the room seemed just as vast. The distance, impossible. My father was already over the hospital bed, holding my mother's hand. He was already crying, his warm hand so huge around her deathly pale one. My little brother was crying too-He was six, but even he could understand the coming loss. I locked eyes with my mother, in that moment. Her brown eyes in that tired, pale face, her thinning black hair all almost gone. Plastic tubes were all over her body, the only things keeping her alive. "Andrew...?" She asked, raspy and dry. "Andrew...?" I turned and I ran. The nurse was calling after me, my father too. I didn't care. I ran through the hospital, trying to escape... Everything. I ended up in a small garden for the patients. There was a statue of Saint Mary on a pedestal in the center, with a gentle and caring smile on her granite face. I fell on my knees and curled up behind a bench, tears running down my cheeks. I couldn't... I couldn't do it. "No," said my tormentor. I looked up, and in the place of the Virgin stood the Nightmare. She loomed over me, her huge dark wings blocking out the sunlight as she smirked down at me. "You couldn't say goodbye to her, could you?" The Nightmare asked mockingly. "And when the nurse found you to bring you back... She was gone. Your chance lost." She shook her head, and pointed her clawed finger right at me. "You killed her," she accused. I shook my head wildly, even as my guilt and anger and sorrow crashed down on my reason. "I... I didn't!" I tried. "It was the cancer-I was eight! I-I couldn't do anything-!" "LIAR!" The Nighmare roared. She leered at me, her face filling my vision, "you killed her. Your pathetic human mind tried to justify it, rationalize it, so you decided that you'd killed her." She grinned horribly. "So you did. Kill. Her." "I-I didn't! I-I couldn't-!" I cried. The Nightmare laughed terribly, rearing back up. All around us, more memories from my life seemed to shine forth like television screens. Every moment just another painful reminder... No... I can't give in...! "Fight on? But why, my consort?" The Nightmare crooned in my ear. "Your entire life, you've let yourself be twisted by this pitiful, childish reasoning. You let it turn you into a barely functional manchild-Unable to be the man those women wanted, or needed." "Shut up! SHUT UP!" I shouted, swinging at her. My eight year old body wasn't exactly suited for combat though-She laughed at my ineffectual hits against her gigantic, armored form. "You think your little heroic actions will make up for being YOU?!" The Nightmare mocked, kicking me in the stomach and sending me tumbling. I curled up again, shaking, as she laughed harder. "'Oh look at me! My own life in my world was so boring and mediocre! Surely I'll be better in a world of magic and imagination!' Isn't that what you pitiful humans do?! Isn't that what you tell yourselves, as you withdraw from your own lives?" I couldn't look at her. Memories of chances I could have taken, opportunities I should have had, things I could have done to improve myself... All things I'd turned down, or messed up. I wanted to think, I wanted to resist, but it felt like every emotion I'd ever had from these painful moments was being forced upon me all at once! All the pain. All the sorrow. All the rage. All the self-hatred and loathing and guilt... "That's why you were willing to be the bait, Shepherd," Nightmare sneered, again kicking me. She seemed to savor my cries of pain and anguish. "That's why you fight on. So that somehow you can make up for the disgusting, wretched failure you are." She grinned, her sharp fangs glistening as she stomped on my hand. I screamed in pain, weakly trying to pull it away. "The most delicious part of this? Ponies here do care about you," Nightmare laughed, "but you'll never accept it! You'll never allow yourself to trust it! You'll play the fool and withdraw and hide, and let them choose someone else. Someone better. Because let's face it, Shepherd," she hissed, "everyone else IS." "W-Why...?" I managed. "Why... Are you doing... This...?" The demonic entity laughed again, even harder. "Why?! WHY?! Because your pain gives me power! Power enough that I'll be able to hide inside you and survive." Her eyes gleamed. "I'll stay inside your mind, guide you, make you into something a bit better... And when the time is right? I'll kill every Holder of the Elements. I'll slit their throats in the night. And whoever survives, and is strong enough? Will be my new host." She leaned in closer, and whispered harshly. "You didn't save anyone, Shepherd. You just doomed them all," she taunted. I whimpered. I struggled to breath. The sorrow, the pain, it was suffocating... My fists clenched. Move... Move... DO SOMETHING! I screamed in my mind. ANYTHING! I closed my eyes, the horrible mocking laughter just battering away anything resembling hope, or happiness, or- "Hello...? Are you all right?" I opened my eyes. The sun was shining down on me. I was dressed in ragged clothing, and wore a messy beard. I was dirty and sticky and sweat covered. I probably smelled really bad, too. Yet some angelic being was descending from on high, hand extended, her wings spread. Her long hair waved in the wind, and she smiled down on me. "Huh?" I managed. Fluttershy landed a few feet away, still smiling gently. "It's all right. I won't hurt you," she said, "my name is Fluttershy. What's yours?" "... Andrew Shepherd," I said. I blinked. This... This was the memory of the day I'd first met Fluttershy. "Yes, it is," Fluttershy said with a nod. I stared. "You didn't say that," I said. Fluttershy smiled. "No... It's complicated, um. I think Twilight might explain it better?" "Twilight-WOAH!" And now I was in a pile of rubble, body broken and covered in blood. I looked up at Twilight Sparkle, still in the grips of the laughing Nightmare Moon. "Shepherd!" Twilight shouted. "I'm using the Elements to tap into your mind! I saw what the Nightmare was doing and, since the Elements exponentially increase my ability to process information, I quickly devised a spell to access your unconscious mind and-!" "Geez, can't that mare say anything quickly?" Rainbow Dash shouted. She was performing incredible acrobatics above me, and I was watching while taking notes. Trying to help her improve. "Anyway, we're all in here, Shepherd! We're in here with you!" Another memory, this one of Rarity and I reading a bedtime story to Sweetie Belle. The little filly beamed up at me in her sleep, as I talked to her elder sister with the story book in my hands. "We're fighting back," Rarity explained, "though I don't completely understand it myself, Twilight is using our own memories of you-Of our friendship-To fight back against the Nightmare!" In another instant, I was sitting in a giant donut and rafting down a river of hot chocolate, a whooping Pinkie Pie in my lap. "And we'll make it so you can knock her out of your mind and we can REALLY let her have it! WOO HOO! Marshmallows?" She asked, holding a cup of them out to me. "I don't remember this ever happening," I said. Pinkie giggled. "Silly, I just took it from the list of things I want us to do together!" "But," Applejack said, sitting next to me on the porch of her house as we watched the sunset, "ya ain't got much time! Ya got one shot! Hit her with every bit of positive energy you can!" She looked intently into my eyes. I hesitated. She shook her head, and put her hoof over my hand. "Whatever she been sayin'... Remember: She's an evil monster tryin' to take over the world," she said. "Ah know ya've got issues, Shepherd. Ah know you've been runnin' from things-Probably for yer whole life. Ah know you've got pain and regrets, and made a lotta mistakes." "But," Twilight said, standing next to me as we got an ancient human radio to work in her lab, her pride evident in her warm smile, "so have we all. And I know-I know-You can do this." "You can do it," Fluttershy whispered, watching over me as I slept in her bed, covered in bandages. "You can do it!" Pinkie Pie cheered, this time when we were hunting for snipes with butterfly nets. "So go on, darling," Rarity encouraged, smiling as I tried on the first shirt she ever made for me. "Go on!" Applejack cried, as we carried apples from her orchard in buckets. "And KICK HER FLANK!" Rainbow Dash bellowed as she tugged me on a bicycle, both of us laughing over the bumpy road. I was eight. I was in a dark void, surrounded by my mistakes and tragedies. Above me, Nightmare Moon laughed, her eyes glowing. "So," she said, "would you like to break now? Or is there still some fight left in you? Please tell me the latter." I muttered something, so quiet even I could barely hear it. She leaned in, holding a hand up to her ear mockingly. "What's that, Shepherd? I couldn't hear you-" I thought of my father, my little brother, my friends and family who I all missed back home on Earth. I thought of the rolling fields, the mountains, the oceans I had seen. I thought of the stars and the moon in the sky overhead. I thought of Ponyville and the wonderful beings who had accepted me as one of their own. And I thought of the six amazing mares, and the whole world of beings who were counting on me. I punched Nightmare right in the face with all of it, as I glared up at her with every fiber of my being. "I said you're an ugly bitch!" The rainbow power exploded from my fist, and right into her. She screamed in agony as it consumed her, and she clawed at her face and body in desperation, trying to put it out like she was aflame. She let out a soul wrenching shriek of rage and anguish, and then-without warning-exploded into a bright flash. Everything went white... And then, seven familiar pairs of eyes were staring down at me. Six of them wearing shiny jewelry. Another head loomed over them, and growled in concern. "Shepherd? Are you all right? Are you awake?" Twilight asked. I blinked. I blinked again. "I dunno," I managed. "Are we... Purple?" Twilight nodded. "We are... Well, I am." I nodded back. "Then we're awake." Many sighs of relief, and much cuddling ensued. I returned it happily-Though I couldn't resist giving Spike a noogie. The little dragon yelped, and hit me back with a titty twister. Totally uncool, dude. But I hugged him anyway. Little brat. - - - Princess Celestia and Luna soon arrived, with an army of Pegasi guards and a fleet of heavily armed airships. King Aspen was there to greet them, and humbly apologize for what had happened. They were very understanding, and worked out a deal with the King to not only pay for the damage and rebuild, but to improve relations between the two kingdoms to avoid this ever happening again. Which involved the arrest and prosecution of Well-To-Do, the minotaur land developer whose stubbornness had set off Nightmare Aspen. He would get a fair trial though, as he hadn't known King Aspen would take a court summons as an act of war in his state. But given how much damage had been done to Equestria, neither he or Aspen were going to be popular or sympathetic for a long time. I was glad I wasn't going to have to make those decisions. Though more than likely we'd be dealing with the issues of Thicket opening up to a world it had wronged for an equally long time, that wasn't my chief concern right now. It was sitting in the back of an airship stateroom, on a large couch, with six very tired mares and an exhausted baby dragon all cuddled up to me. They'd been at my side non stop. Even while King Aspen thanked us, and Celestia and Luna had done the "you saved the world again" speeches. Luna had then suggested we retire to her airship-And frankly I was in no condition to walk myself there. So my protectors stayed with me, brought us to the couch, and fell asleep. Here I was, thinking, over soft snores and sighs. The hatch opened, and a tall, white form entered in silence. I would have stood up but six mares and a dragon are heavy. "Princess?" I asked softly. Celestia smiled gently, her hair waving in the ethereal breeze. "Just wanted to check on you," she said softly, trotting in silence right up to us. She looked over all of us, her smile growing. "They are remarkable, aren't they?" She asked, beaming in pride. I smiled back with the biggest grin I could muster as Pinkie Pie giggled in her sleep about cupcakes. "The most remarkable," I said firmly. Celestia nodded slowly. "Luna is hunting down any remnants of the Nightmare now," Celestia said. "She's very determined to keep you safe." My smile grew, thinking of the awkward Moon Princess. "I'll have to thank her," I said. I looked up intently at the princess. "Um... So..." The Princess stared at me, silent. I began to feel uneasy. "So... Uh... Anything else?" I asked. Celestia giggled. "It's been a long time since I got to make a potential suitor uncomfortable. I'm just savoring the moment." I blushed a bit. "Listen Princess. It's not that I don't care for them. I do. I really earnestly do." "That was never in doubt," Celestia said, "but your responses to their advances seemed to suggest something else going on." She looked at me compassionately. "The species gap is still quite large, isn't it?" I almost looked away. But after the day I'd had, I decided to be honest. "That's still a part of it," I admitted, "but it's... I'm adjusting. Slowly. The biggest issue was just..." I shut my eyes. "I've lost people I loved. In the worst ways. And I've had my heart broken. Shattered really, by people I got close to. It... it takes time to heal from that." I opened my eyes up slowly. "It doesn't help I ran from it." Celestia nuzzled me softly. "I know," Celestia said. "I've lost so much myself. Sometimes there's the temptation to just hide behind a smile and never ever open up again." She looked at the sleeping Elements and then back to me. "So I must ask you, Andrew Shepherd: After today, can you run any longer?" I held her gaze, as Fluttershy yawned and shifted against me. I reflexively reached out to run her head, and she slipped back into slumber. "No. I can't," I said. I shook my head. "I... It will take time but-" "This is new for all of them," Celestia said gently. "So take it slow. One day at a time. And please, safeguard their hearts as best you can. They protect all of us. But they need a knight to protect them where they are weakest. Can you do that, Shepherd?" I looked into her ancient eyes, and nodded slowly. I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I'll do it, Your Majesty," I promised. Celestia smiled at me, and gave me another nuzzle. "Thank you," she said. "Goodnight, Shepherd." She vanished in a subdued flash of magic. I leaned back as Twilight drooled a bit on my jacket. I saw Spike curled up between Twilight and Rarity, sleeping like a happy log. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were on my other side, with Pinkie snoozing on my legs and Fluttershy on my chest. I sighed and smiled. I had a lot of things to work on. But I knew where to start for tomorrow. I leaned back against the pillow, closed my eyes, and slept.