Greetings I am The Book of Existence, and I am an Artifact to be more specific I am the strongest of my kind. Right about now you maybe asking why do I look like a pony in an astral form? Well that's a tale for another time for now let's focus on balance. As you may know both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna keep a balance of harmony in Equestria however equestria is just one nation in the world, there are many nations all of which are aiming to rule over all...Equestria being the exception to this because they are content with what they have and have been so for the past thousand or so years since the fall of Discord. But this fragile balance of power is always swinging from one direction to the next never staying they way it should, and this is do to the fact that so many powerful creatures exist in the world.
Of these many creatures however is a Leviathan the last of its kind who took notice of this problem; so it sought out anyone, and even anything that would be willing to take on all the hatred of the world for the soul reason of protecting the world. Fortunately, he was able to find a small band of such creatures - or ponies I should say - that were willing to take on this task, knowing full well they would be hated and shunned for all time despite their intentions of creating a balance of power and keeping the rulers in check. They were never related through blood but shared a deep kinship, calling each other father, mother, son, and even daughter. It was this bond that allowed them to continue the most difficult endeavor that could have ever been asked.
Now let me ask you a question; when you hear the word thief, what comes to mind? For many it's a criminal, for some it's somepony that has fallen on hard times. But the rest only see a pony that made a poor choice. They are all correct; however, in the instance of the ponies that the Leviathan enlisted, becoming thieves was both a choice as well as a necessity in order to save a rotting world. Well with the exception of the first pony he came into contact with.
Starting with the first one in line who gave up his life to spare the Leviathan from death, the ones that followed kept his name calling themselves Greymane, always keeping their faces hidden and spending all of their life till their death bed alone where they are kept company by the next Greymane in line we go now to see the new Greymane who had grown too full of himself, believing that the line should end with him; so that no pony would have to deal with the hardships that come with being known as a legendary thief. This arrogance caused him to search for immortality and led him on a quest to find the one thing in this world that would grant him what he wanted. This quest has led him to Tartarus where he is now locked away for his attempted theft.
While there the demons tortured him without mercy or care, this was not just physical mind you it was emotional, mental, and even spiritual. But despite their efforts he held on to one belief that he would be free from his captors and once he was he would see his beloved again. And without fail he would do all he could to return to the world he knows and loves.
However during his time there he has planned his escape believing that it has only been a few months. Unaware that the passage of time in Tartarus is far too different than the world he knows and loves, and strangely enough the balance of power sat still for the time he was gone as if all the leaders of the world waited to see if and when Greymane would come out of hiding...or if Greymane was just a myth. For many of them that's all he was, a myth, or a story meant to tell young ponies to keep their imagination alive in the hopes they could shoot for the sky and reach the stars. The real question, though, the one that begs answering, is this: What do you believe?
Before too long Greymane broke free and stole the key to the cells that surrounded him, this allowed him to set free all the condemned souls that had been trapped there. He wasn't too worried as to what they would do as they all had a score to settle with the demons, and the resulting chaos would be all he needed to set his plans in motion. But even here in the depths of Tartarus Greymane knew that he would need some kind of help in the event things didn't go as planed.
As Greymane made his escape he gained the help of two very dangerous ponies. The first was a pegesai known as Gereon the bloodless, and the second was a unicorn known as Sharia the Shade. Both had been executed for crimes against their fellow ponies. Both hated each other for being what they were, but hated Greymane even more for stealing from them at one point in time though they both where generations before him. Greymane knew it had to be one of his predecessors who stole from them...and for good reason.
They had agreed to set aside their differences so they could get out of tartarus. But more for their own revenge, Gereon swore revenge on his former lieutenant who later became known as Commander Hurricane, as well as her descendants for her betrayal. Sharia wanted revenge on the hierarchy that had killed her while she slept. But it had never occurred to either of them that they were in tartarus for the many lives they took for their own pleasure.
What made the trip easy for them was that one of the minions sent to torture Greymane had succumb to laziness on many occasions and took short cuts to both the treasury and the exit, beating him across the walls while he was wrapped in razor sharp barbed chains. As they went up the side paths that Greymane was able to draw upon his memories for the path that led to the treasury, once there Greymane had managed to get both of them to agree that stealing as much as they could; saying that it would be of great use to them. Gold and silver would fetch a good price and help both on their path of revenge, Grey Mane on the other hoof wanted one thing. To the others it seemed to be just some gaudy trinket made out of stone and glass with some cheap carvings both in side of and around the image of the ouroboros. Unaware it was the one thing that could grant immortality to whomever possessed it, though this gift came at a cost that many regretted paying for later on.
As they rushed toward the exit Gereon feared for the guard dog Cerberus who for some reason had gone missing at the time.
This only caused Sharia to boast, "What a stroke of luck for us wouldn't you say Greymane." Her vote of confidence was only brought about her lack of knowledge that she was still dead.
To Greymane however this posed ill omen for not just him but to the world above, he had hoped to use the guard dog and the greed of the other two to betray them and make his escape. Shrugging it off as he gave a faint smile as if to agree with her, running to the ferrymare Kharon they could almost taste freedom but feared she might not be there; as she had often brought any and all who would dare to speak to the dark lords themselves across the river as well as the dead themselves. It was here Greymane was able to leave them behind, their greed caused the two of them to stop and collect the coins that had been dropped into the river as a means of payment to Kharon; allowing a few guards to recapture Gereon and Sharia as Greymane jumped on the boat and set sail across the River of Styx.
Though full of regret for his actions Greymane shouted back, "So long you two, and I thank you for all your help. For without it I would never have escaped with the medallion. May we never cross paths again." Watching them being dragged away he could hear them cursing his name.
As he started to relax he saw the great guard dog return chasing what appeared to be a ball, 'Well I guess even he can have a soft spot for something as simple as that.' He thought to himself.
With a sigh Greymane felt that he had won but took notice that he wasn't the only one in the boat, across from him sitting next to the Kharon was a hooded figure whose skin was the only thing he could see. Though red in color Greymane saw that his lower half was similar to that of a pony the cowl he covered himself with allowed Greymane to see he was a centaur of some kind, while he still had his shackles on Greymane almost didn't bother to care for the time being. The other was to his right and though his body was formless it was clearly a black cloud of smoke that stayed close to itself, the only thing he could tell was the green glowing eyes and the red horn that seemed to stick out like a sore hoof.
Laying back he pulled out the medallion and gave it one good look and pondered the many lives that had been claimed just so any one pony could have it. He knew the old tales surrounding it stated there was a price to be paid for such a gift. He scoffed at the thought about it, turning on his side he closed his eyes to get what felt like the only rest he had gotten in weeks. After feeling the boat come to shore he stood up and took notice that the other two were gone; not thinking any further on the topic he tipped the Kharon and jumped onto the land, putting on medallion he took a deep breath feeling confident he succeeded. As he slowly walked away he heard shouting behind him, looking back he saw three demons chasing after him.
Two were just your typical 'mindless' minions, but the third was was an archdemon he knew only by description from what his predecessors had written down. Luckily there was enough information on the archdemon he could bind his power, but outnumbered in this fashion all he could do was run and hope to catch them off guard later. Luring them away from the river he hoped for the best, but quickly saw they were not going to give up. Nor would they let him put any distance between them, till he found himself cornered at a cliff by a waterfall.
Turning to face them as he took a defensive stance Greymane prepared for the worst as he smiled, "Never thought I would get to face the great Abaddon."