//------------------------------// // Prologue: Monsters by consensus // Story: The Empathy of Monsters // by OnixQuill //------------------------------// The swamp. A deep, dark expanse of plants and animals. An environment so mysterious that strange elements seem instinctively drawn to it. And so unfathomable, it may threaten to consume all who dare enter. You are a part of this domain. Once a brilliant man tasked in the creation of a formula that promised to help people, you were betrayed and attacked. In your escape, you ingest the serum to keep it out of vile hands. Just then tragedy struck and you crashed into the swamp. As you sank the serum in your body combined with the natural and mystic elements of the bog, transforming you into... a beast. With mere shadows of memory, and compelled by intuition and the emotions of others, you roam the marsh lands aimlessly. But should you come across a living being, if their emotions and intentions are positive, you will give them no trouble. If their intentions be wicked, they will know your wrath. And, should they show fear, they will burn at the touch of The Man-Thing Else-ware, a young girl with crimson and gold streaked hair, reflects on events from the past week, and actions committed throughout her life. Actions that haunt her both in waking and slumber, for to her they seem more like the deeds of a monster rather than a misguided child. This young woman's name is Sunset Shimmer, and her past just may be almost as strange. Sunset hails from another dimension, one of magic and wonder, though with plenty of its own dangers as well. The stranger parts being that the peoples of this word were not humans, but fantastical creatures. From dragons to griffons, to Sunset's people; the three pony tribes: earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns which is what Sunset once was. She ended up running from her world over a dispute with her former mentor and came to our world, where she enrolled in a school known as Canterlot high. In the three years that fallowed, her anger and bitterness clouded her judgment and she took on the roll of queen bee, ruling the student body with an iron fist. That was until she decided to briefly return to her world and steal an artifact of great power, the owner of which, princess Twilight Sparkle, fallowing after. With the assistance of five others, Twilight was able to retrieve the artifact, but not before a final showdown with Sunset, which saw her try to use the stolen magic only to be corrupted and turned into a giant winged demon. With the power of the bonds the six girls had forged, Sunset was defeated and returned to normal. But this victory did take its tole. The powers used on Sunset forced her to open her eyes and relive every awful deed she had committed. This process left Sunset a shell of her former self. But thankfully before her departure, Twilight requested her friends to watch over fragile girl and help her on the right path. About a week has passed now, and though with some trepidations, the five girl have tried to make an effort to include Sunset in their activities. But sadly, with her current state, progress has been slow going. Not helping maters is the fact that the rest of the school has no intentions of forgetting what Sunset had done to them, as well as the large wave of aggression being directed at her in retribution. Which brings us all to now, where after having escaped an ambush, Sunset finds herself walking on a road on the edge of a swamp just out side of the city. With her mind dwelling on the difficulties of redemption, she is unaware of the pair of head-lights coming down the road, or you in the shadows, having been drawn to the girl's strong emotions. What fallows is possibly the start of an amazing, and honestly, vary strange friendship.