The Rider Of Darkness

by GaleWind

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Five years ago, three of Equestria’s deadliest enemies: Discord, Queen Chrysalis and King Sombra formed an alliance. Their combined magic created monsters known as Rezythes, creatures that followed their commands without hesitation and Obsidians, the commanding officers of these mindless soldiers. Together, they stormed Canterlot, defeated its army, sealed the Elements of Harmony and captured the Princesses in one day. Before anyone else could do anything, they combined their magic to affect the ponies, even the princesses, senses and memories. The implanted memories and the altered senses depicted them as alicorn siblings from a destroyed, faraway country, The Kingdom of Vilotan, that have come to join and ally with them. The trio’s magic also showed their monsters as the kingdom’s pony inhabitants and army. They helped advance their technology to allow them to create two wheeled vehicles for transportation powered by gems and allowed their soldiers to attack periodically, free of their disguise only to be driven away by disguised soldiers. They said they were their country’s enemies called the Seracs and will help Equestria defeat them. This allowed them gain everything they need: Chrysalis gained their love for her changelings, Sombra has a country under his control, Discord enjoys the chaos that happens and no one could stop them.

However, unknown to them, a plan was set in motion. Two days before the attack, Princess Luna sensed the danger that was coming and sent a message to a friend of Twilight Sparkle and the other elements of harmony, telling him to go to the ruins of the old castle in the Everfree Forest and wait for further instructions. On the night he received the letter; he traveled to the ancient ruins of the alicorn sisters and waited. The clouds parted revealing the moon and its light shined through the roof onto the stallion, revealing his form.

He was a black coated earth pony with a silver mane and tail. He wore blue jeans and a yellow t-shirt. His hands were in the pockets of his gray jacket while his blue eyes scanned the ruins for any signs of life. In a flash of light, a small chest appeared in front of him and landed on the floor with a thud. He was shocked at first but, noticed the moon emblem on the lid and picked it up. There was a note on the side that read ‘In a week’s time, return here and open the chest and thy shall know what to do.’ He didn’t understand why the princess would ask him to do this but, he accepted the task and left the ruins.

A week had gone by and he didn’t see any changes accept for the arrivals of the new alicorn siblings and their subjects. He went home for the night but noticed that his door was opened. He cautioned himself as he heard growls when he entered the house. In the middle of his living room, was a small timber wolf made of black oak and in its maw was the small chest. It darted past him and he gave chase after it, running all the way to the ancient castle ruins. The small timber pup dropped the chest and he went over to it and picked it up. He remembered the note and wondered if the small creature had leaded him here on purpose. He decided to open it to find out what was so important. When he opened the lid, he was engulfed in a blinding light. He felt something enter him which caused slight pain and when he opened his eyes an image of Princess Luna in a regal dress was in front of him.

“You have followed my instructions and now you must listen to what I must say. Equestria has been captured by enemies thought to be defeated. They have manipulated the minds of all the ponies in our land, including myself and my sister. This chest had a spell incased inside that dispelled the effects of their magic from you. Inside, you will find an artifact that will allow you to change into a warrior not seen in a thousand years. You must train yourself with it to be able to fight this enemy one day. Know that due to the magic, myself, my sister, your friends and others may try to stop you but, you must push forward in order to save them from the darkness that holds us. The small timber wolf will assist and help you through this blight. Even if others view you as evil, I know you will become our greatest hero. Farewell.” Then, her image faded away.

He could barely understand of what just happened to him. He looked in the chest and found an object that looked like a weird belt buckle with glass in the center, a book that contained techniques an earth pony could use and five gem stones. A black gem that looked like a crescent moon, three different colored gems he recognized were elements of harmony: honesty, kindness and magic, and was shocked that the fifth gem was grey and shaped like his cutie mark: sound waves going outwards. He placed everything back into the box and told the small timber wolf to stay here as he walked out. He noticed the sun was already setting and walked back to town to collect his thoughts. When he was at the outskirts he stopped and was shocked at what he saw.

Monsters were everywhere and nopony has even noticed them. He saw a green tint around the eyes of ponies that passed by. He closed his eyes in concentration and when he opened them all the monsters were gone and were replaced by ponies but, he could see the magic that concealed their true form. The princess must have had the spell allow him to sense which ponies were monsters. Knowing that what Princess Luna said was true, he put a note on his door saying he was going to travel for a while and left the town he called home and returned to the castle ruins. He saw the pup obediently stayed where it was and opened the chest. He looked at the contents, took out the artifact and knew what he had to do. He would train himself inside the forest and prepare himself for the battles to come. The small pup, who he named shadow, would train with him to aid in battle. To rescue all the ponies of his home, he would become a warrior that strikes from the shades of darkness, a rider that goes into the unknown that protects the innocent from evil.The stallion’s name is Echo Wave and this is my story.

Five Years Later…

”I still can’t believe that in past five years, so much has changed.” Twilight said as she talked with her friends. They were in the park for their usually pet play date, dressed in clothes that fit their personalities.

“I know sugarcube. New royalty, new ponies and they helped improved everything with what they know.” Applejack said.

“Still, I could do without those walking stone creeps that followed them. I know if I could fight them they wouldn’t stand a chance.” Rainbow Dash said confidently which earned rolling eyes from her friends. They were enjoying themselves when Winona smelled something and took off running.

“Oh my, where’s Winona going off too? Fluttershy said. The girls got up from the picnic table and followed the Border collie with their pets. They stopped when they saw her being petted by a pony.

“Darling, I thought Winona didn’t like strangers?” Rarity asked.

“She doesn’t let anypony pet her unless she knows them.” Applejack explained. That meant that Winona knew this pony. They walked closer to identify the unknown pony. They were close enough to notice it was a black earth stallion wearing a gray jacket and blue jeans. They instantly recognized him when he looked up and smiled at them.

“ECHO WAVE!” they yelled happily.

“Hey girls, it’s been a long time.” I said while smiling at them. They immediately got me into a group hug.

“It’s so great to see you. How were your travels?”

“They were fine but, I’m glad I came home.” I said. In reality, I stayed in the Everfree Forest must of the time training. I did travel to parts of Equestria but, I only did that to hone my skills by defeat roaming seracs and see how deep the magic’s influence went. I did see the green tint of the magic in my friends and their pet’s eyes and could only hold in my anger.

The girls said they took care of my house while I was gone and I appreciated it. Pinkie had immediately dragged me by my arms to my house where a party to welcome me back started as soon as I was through the front door. The party went on and I noticed a few disguised monsters in my sight. The girls pulled me away for a moment to introduce me to somepony.

“Echo Wave, this is our friend, Breaker.” Twilight said as she introduced me to a yellow, unicorn stallion wearing a guard uniform. I already saw the magical aura around him and just kept a blank face.

“Nice to finally meet you. The girls have told me a lot about you.” He said while holding out his hand. I just stared at it for a few seconds before shaking it. He said he was friends with them for the last two years and was part of the town guard.

The party went on into the night and all the party goers had left. Twilight was the last to leave but not before she told me that the three alicorn siblings will make an appearance here tomorrow. I noticed that it will be my time to show those three that their time of reckoning is upon them.

The next day, all the ponies in town gathered in the center of town waiting for the siblings to arrive. Breaker was with the other town guards and I noticed four of them were the monster's foot soldiers. In a flash of light, the three siblings appeared on stage and while everypony applauded their arrival, I got my first good look at them.

Prince Scythin was a black alicorn wearing a red regal suit, matching his red flowing mane, tail and eyes. Prince Chaon was a tan alicorn wearing brown regal suit matching his flowing mane, tail and eyes. Princess Morpha was also a black alicorn wearing a green regal dress that matched her flowing mane, tail and eyes.

Twilight asked me how I saw them in person. I said “They look just like the princesses.” However, I didn’t need a second glance to know who they really were: King Sombra (Scythin), Discord (Chaon) and Queen Chrysalis (Morpha). Before any of them could speak, a yell could be heard in the back.

”MONSTERS!” Everypony turned around and while they were scared, I have seen these abominations before, they were Rezythes. Their appearance resembled suits of armor coated in black stone wielding swords. They engaged the guards in combat and breaker lead the charge. I took a glance at Sombra and he had a grin on his face. Breaker had yelled that he will lead the monsters to follow him and his troops while leaving the others to protect the town and the royalty. This was my opportunity.

“Don’t worry; Breaker has always come back after the attacks.” Twilight said. However when she turned to look at me, I was already gone.

“Echo?”

In a clearing outside of Ponyville…

Breaker was laughing to himself while the ‘monsters’ and his ‘soldiers’ stood silently, waiting for the next order. He was about to give their next order when he heard a voice.

“I must say, that’s quiet the little stunt you thought of. The valiant heroes going off to defend the innocent from the monsters.”

He turned around to find the source of the voice, only to find me, leaning my back against a tree.

“Echo, how did you get here. Quickly, run before the creatures attack!”

“You can drop the act Breaker. I must say, the snake look fit’s your personality, slimy. That’s right I can see what you really are.” I said. He wore a shock expression at me. He really looked like a crocodile with the lower body of a snake. He then wore an evil smile at me.

“So, a little dog has broken free from his leash. What are you going to do?”

“I’m here to stop you.” I said and all he did was laugh.

“What can one pony do against us?” He asked. I didn’t answer and simply took out the artifact. It was silver; oval shaped, a handle on the right side and a black pad on the left. I placed it below my stomach and shadows formed around my waist, creating a dark belt and locking the artifact in place. I pulled out the handle, took out the grey gem, placed it in the slot the handle opened and said one thing before slamming the handle back into place.

The gem appeared in the center of the buckle and started spinning in place rapidly causing shadows to erupt from it, encasing me. The shadows receded from me, revealing my new form.

I wore a grey body suit with black arm and leg guards and a sword was on my back. My head was encased in a helmet that resembled wolf’s head with two blue, circular lenses in the middle for me to see. Breaker was confuse by my appearance but, smirked at it.

“What, you want to die in a suit, fine. You, go take care of him.” He said while, directing one of the monsters to attack me. It lifted its sword and charged right at me. I merely placed my hand on the handle of my sword and waited. Before it even swung the sword down, I was already behind, my sword in my hand. The blade of my sword is solid black with a single white line running through the center of the blade. The enemy behind me was still for a moment before falling to the ground. The magic that created it was gone and all that was left a pile of armor shaped rocks. Breaker wore a face of shock before it turned into rage.

“ATTACK!!!”

The main six, town guard and Vilotan siblings followed the path Breaker made in hopes of finding Echo Wave. They heard Breaker shout and quickened their pace, hoping that he found Echo. When they got to the clearing, they saw a different sight. The girls and the guard saw a stallion in a gray body suit and helmet attacking monster and guard alike with a sword. The three disguise villains only saw their soldiers falling one after the other.

“Why is he attacking the guard as well?” Twilight said through fearful eyes.

I had slashed through one more enemy until only Breaker remained. His face looked shock; seeing all your soldiers be destroyed by one enemy might do it. I reshethed my sword and turned my head to see the group that had arrived. I saw the looks of horror in my friends’ faces and noticed the guard ready to charge. I sighed loudly and clenched my hands together and slammed my right fist into the ground. Four lines of light shot out in different directions from where my fist impacted. When they were far enough, the lines connected and a barrier formed, encasing the area around us in a dome of light. The others were pushed back by it and Sombra tried to use his magic to dispel the barrier, only to have his spell absorb into it.

“WHAT!?” He yelled in confusion. He placed his hand on the barrier and it pulsated and turned the color red. His eyes went wide when he saw what kind of magic it was. ‘Archaic magic!’

“This barrier will prevent all from entering. It’s just you and me.” I said. I sprinted forward and immediately kicked him in the head. He staggered a bit and I transitioned into a hard left punch to the gut. I kept my onslaught of attacks going until he tried to run. I pointed my right arm and daggers flew out of my armguard, pinning him in place right in front of my friends as he yelled in pain. I walked and stood a few feet away from him, pulled the handle back out and pulled out the black gem. Breaker looked behind him, noticed the group and looked back at me with a smug grin.

“Your friends are right behind me. They’ve known me for two years. Are you going to destroy me, cause them saddness and have all of Equestria as your enemy in your foolish attempt to free it?” He said. I heard this but, my friends heard him begging for his life and asked if I was going to kill him. I looked at the girls behind the barrier and saw tears in their eyes. I closed my eyes and remembered why I am doing this, to free my home from this evil. I opened my eyes and said one thing before continuing my actions.

“Yes.”

I placed the gem in the slot and slammed back into place.

The black gem replaced the first one in the center of the buckle and started spinning. A blue mist surrounded my chest and when it dissipated, a dark blue regalia chest plate was in its place. A white crescent moon appeared in the center of the chest plate and my helmet. I pulled the handle back out and slammed it back in.

The blue mist returned and focused on my right leg. I got into my fighting stance and jumped into the air. I flipped forward and launched myself forward into a kick. I uttered one phrase when I connected with him.

“May the darkness, consume this evil.” The mist that surrounded my leg jolted forward and encased him. He yelled in pain for a minute before there was silence. When it cleared, all that was left was his guard helmet. I looked up and saw fear in the guards, sadness in the girls and disbelief in the three alicorns. I crossed my arms and spoke.

“Know this, Vilotan siblings. I will not stop until you and all your monsters have been vanquished. This day marks that your reign is coming to an end and soon, all of Equestria will be free from you. I know who you are.” Shadows started to engulf me. Before they engulfed me completely, I said one more thing that shocked the three right to their core.

“I know who you really are.” When the shadows faded, I was gone.

The group returned to town and the girls found me ‘unconscious’ in a cart full of hay and were thrilled to find me safe. I told them that it was my first time seeing them and looked for a hiding place and hit my head when I landed in the cart and blacked out. They told me what happened and was ‘saddened’ to know what happened to Breaker and his guards. The siblings gave the town their condolences and will return to their temporary castle to discuss on who this unknown assailant is and disappeared in a flash of light. I stayed with the girls until they calmed down returned to their homes and I went to mine.

As I was in the darkness of my home, I knew the lengths I will need to go. Even if all my friends and my home see me as evil, I will continue my mission to free them from this evil. I am Echo Wave.