//------------------------------// // Back Where I Belong // Story: Change My Life // by JasontheDemon //------------------------------// As I walked the halls of the Canterlot palace, something felt... off. I was returning to report my success at yet another mission given to me by Celestia, but in the back of my mind I felt a voice screaming to run. I couldn’t do that, however, because it was my job to report my latest findings to the princess directly. It was night and the only light source was Luna's moon shining through the tall castle windows. I hadn’t seen a single pony since I arrived, which gave the whole place a desolated and eerie atmosphere. I neared the door to Celestia's chambers and focused my magic on the doorknob, but as I turned it a feeling of dread filled me. What the cause was, I didn’t know, so I pressed onward. Upon opening the door, I was blinded by a bright light. My vision cleared and I found myself in a very different castle than the one I started in. It was dark, sinister, and very familiar… I knew where I was and that made my heart drop into my stomach. My heartbeat quickened as I heard the voice of the one I thought I defeated so long ago. “Hello... my faithful apprentice.” Discord said, a serpentine hiss accenting his words as he stepped out from the shadows. “What’s the matter? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost…” “What are you doing here?!” I shouted in absolute shock. “I sent you hurtling into deep space! You should be gone!” He arched an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? You have been working for me for nearly a year now, see?” He pointed out the window and instead of the beautiful landscape I would normally see, there was nothing but chaotic wasteland. The dark swirling clouds shooting out red crackling lightning, the ground scorched and ravaged by dark spines that jutted out from the earth. Floating in the air were orbs of what appeared to be blood… weightless like gravity had been shut off. “Oh and nice job on your latest chore… now be a good lad and clean up the mess.” I looked at him in confusion before following his gaze to the floor near my hooves. What I saw horrified me beyond belief. There… at my hooves… was everypony I cared about. All dead and splattered in their own blood. Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Vinyl, Octavia, Gilda, Luna, and Celestia… they were all scattered around me. Their dead eyes frozen in fear… staring at me. There was one thing that was on my mind the whole time though: ‘where's Twilight’? My question was soon answered. “Hey before you bother with that, I would actually like your opinion on this. Should she be mounted over the fireplace, or my throne?” Discord asked, levitating a crucified Twilight above a brightly burning fire. Twilight was dead… dried blood streaked under her eyes as if she had been crying the red life essence and a hole in her chest showed that her heart had been ripped out. Right when I thought things couldn't get worse, her eyes opened and she let out a horrible scream. * * * * * * I awoke with a gasp, trembling from the nightmare that had been plaguing me for several months now. “Whoa, easy there buddy. It’s all alright.” said the gruff stallion pulling the cherry cart. It then came back to me. I was finally heading back from my latest quest and hitched a ride on the stallion's cart. His name was Crafty Crate, he was a pegasus, and he had been selling cherries since he was fired from his last job for not checking to see if the newbie closed the back of the shipping van. It's kind of hard to keep from getting fired when you let a pony get crushed under a piano. He was heading to Ponyville as well, and after my ‘adventure’ I needed some rest. I told him I would pay him for the ride at Manehatten and he agreed to give me a lift as long as I gave him the money once we arrived at our destination. Vlad flew down and landed on my chest, looking at me with those big concern filled eyes. I gave him a small smile and pet his head to show that I was okay. “Hey mac, we're almost at Ponyville. While you’re there, you should stop by the library. The pony that runs the place is one heck of a psychologist. I was havin’ some pretty bad dreams myself and after one visit with her, it cleared up like that.” The stallion advised. “I’ll make sure to do that.” I replied with a smirk, knowing that the one he was talking about was someone I would be seeing whether he told me about her or not. Once we stopped I hopped out of the cart and started to walk, but before I could get too far I was interrupted by Crafty Crates clearing his throat. “Hey, you forgetting something buddy?” He asked holding out his hoof. “Oh, right. Totally spaced it. Here you go.” I said pulling out two bits from my jacket pocket and levitating them into his awaiting hoof. It was obvious by his expression alone that he wasn’t pleased. His glaring eyes fell on me. “Excuse me, but what is this?! We had an agreement! You said-” “I said that I would give you every bit I had on me after getting to Ponyville. Two bits is all I had. It's not my fault you were so eager agree to the deal. Really, what did you expect to get from a wandering pony with a ragged jacket, a long shaggy unkempt brown mane, and a dirty brown coat?” I asked, stopping his oncoming rant in its tracks. Since Crafty Crate knew he was beaten, I left him with his two bits and returned to walking towards Twilight's place. I didn’t make it far though, and was soon sent tumbling to the ground from a sudden impact. Once I stopped rolling, I saw the double image of my assailant. “Hello Rainbow Dash! How are you this fine day?!” I said, apparently unable to control the volume of my voice, which in turn made it sound like she knocked a couple of my screws loose (probably because she did). Her lips were moving, but I couldn’t make out what she was saying. Her words were warped and obscured by the dull ringing in my ears. I didn’t want to make her any angrier at me, so I said the only thing that I could without knowing what she was actually going on about. “That’s nice, see you tomorrow! Bye bye then!” I said, still sounding a little broken while I waved. She simply scowled at me and said one last thing before flying off. Knowing her it was probably something like, ‘you had better believe you’ll see me tomorrow, and next time I won't be going easy on you’. Since my face off against Discord, her and three of the other mane six hated me… thank god Fluttershy and Twilight was still on my side. Rarity was sort of indifferent and we were more acquaintances. I only went to see her when my jacket needed repairs. I payed for her work and we didn’t fight, which was good enough for me. She also gave me some coffin shaped saddlebags for Hearths Warming, complete with a cross shaped latch, so that was nice. My vision started to clear and the first thing I saw was a scaley purple claw. “You know I think that was a bit too much, even for a nerdy jerk like you.” I gave Spike my hoof and allowed him to help me up. “Meh, it’s not all that bad… she does restrain herself enough to keep from doing serious damage. So how is my favorite mailbox doing?” Spike's outlook had changed greatly from when we first met. We were almost like best friends at this point. I would now often find myself hanging out with him and carrying on a pleasant conversation like he was just any guy back on Earth (which meant we would occasionally flip each other crap like all good friends did). Spike shrugged. “Same old, same old. Twilight has been getting pretty restless though. She’s worried that you will end up not coming back. I told her that you were too stubborn to let that happen.” “Heh… well, I can’t argue with that.” I said while testing out my shoulder, rolling it in its socket to ensure the kinks were all worked out. “Okay, everything seems to be in working order… let's surprise a certain lavender mare.” * * * * * * We soon arrived at the library. The large hollowed out tree brought back a lot of memories and gave off the distinct feeling of home. I no longer lived there, but the connection to the place still remained. Spike opened the door and let me walk inside first. Twilight was busily reading a rather large book and sipping at some cider. A small smile graced my lips as I looked at her. Without even turning my way, she levitated her now empty glass towards me and said, “Hey Spike, can you get me a refill on this?” Thinking that this was too perfect to pass up, I replied, “Wow, seriously? I get back after all this time to protect Equestria and the first thing I hear is ‘get me a refill’? I’m sorry but I don’t care if you are a princess now, that is just plain rude.” She gasped and nearly dropped the glass on the floor but I caught it with my magic just in time. I was then barely able to set it down before being tackled and embraced by a hug… well, actually it was more like being strangled but I knew she wasn’t doing it on purpose because she didn’t follow through and soon released her hold. She gave me a heartwarming smile… then proceeded to slap me once across the face. “OW! What the hell was that for?!” I shouted rubbing my sore cheek. “Do you have any idea how long you’ve been gone?! It's been-” “Three weeks, four days, eighteen hours, and thirty-seven minutes. Wait… thirty-eight minutes.” I said, cutting her off. “I know it's been a long time, but this is what I do now. You have to realize that there are some things that will come up that will take more than a few days to solve, but you don't have to worry… I will always come back. This is my home now, and nothing can stop me from returning to you. Not even four out of the seven Dragon Lords.” As soon as those words left my mouth, Twilight looked like she was about to have a heart attack. “THE DRAGON LORDS?! Don’t you know how powerful they are?! They are the seven strongest dragons on Equus! Tell me you didn’t actually fight them!” “Me? Fight them? Oh hell no. They would obliterate me if I tried that. I was just there to convince them to not attack Equestria. Turns out the peace treaty Celestia sent was taken and a much more threatening letter was put in its place…” * * * * * * “...And so after I caught the pony responsible for hiring the mercenaries and writing the forged letter, I let the Dragon Lords decide the punishment for him and his treasonous acts against them and Celestia.” I said, concluding the tale of what kept me away for so long. Spike had gotten popcorn as he always did when I told of my adventures to save Equestria from its next threat (which happened a hell of a lot for some unseen reason). Twilight, though, was not as enthusiastic. She didn’t enjoy hearing about me risking life and limb. I saw how much it scared her, but it was my duty to follow Celestia's orders. I was the only defense against class 5 threats (a.k.a. doomsday scenarios), especially since the elements were no longer available for use. Discord managed to plant some literal ‘seeds of chaos’ before Celestia and Luna had first banished him. I was busy applying a retainment spell for some ancient jerkbag in Tartarus at the time. He kept going on about how friendship was only a way to imprison me and keep me from my full potential. I humored him by saying that I agreed, then he asked me to join him. Of course I declined and he asked why… I merely replied ‘because look where it gets you. I may be a prisoner to care for others, but it beats being a prisoner in hell any day.’ But I digress, I was now out of work because my last little quest was all that Celestia could foresee as a threat to harmony within the near future. She may not have had as much power as me but she was wise and could tell when there was the slightest shift in balance or if something bad may happen (yes, like a psychic). There was supposedly nothing left to do in part of preventing life threatening disasters. Or at least that was what I thought at the time. Vlad flew to the nearby table and his eyes lit up with a bright red as he opened his mouth. He was receiving a call from Celestia. “Jason, I am sorry for any inconvenience this may bring you but I need you at Canterlot as soon as you are able.” Her voice came from Vlad's vocal chords. It was odd, but the spell I created made our pets the first functional cell phones in Equestria. The few phones that existed already were far more insignificant than our own, so it was necessary for us to do this for quick communication. I wasn’t too happy about her message this time though. “Seriously?! Can’t the report wait? I just got back! I haven't even had the chance to get back home to relax! I don't mean to complain, but I’m on my last legs here.” “I know, and I apologize but this is not about your report on the previous mission. I have a ‘special’ task that I need you to take part in. Twilight will need to assist you as well.” That caught Twilight's attention and she rushed up to Vlad. “Really?! That’s great! I’ve been bored to the edge of tears here!” I placed my hoof on her shoulder and looked at her sternly. “No, not great. You aren’t going to involve yourself when I can do it. I won’t put you in harm's way, no matter who tells me otherwise.” Celestia’s light and airy chuckle caused us to turn our attention back to Vlad. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, but it won't be necessary. The task poses little physical threat and I promise neither of you will be harmed by it.” I raised an eyebrow suspiciously. “If it’s so safe then why have us both participate? Better yet, why ask for my help on it if it’s that simple?” Another laugh. “I never said it was simple. No, this will take much of your undivided attention and will cause a great deal of stress from time to time. So much that it really would be better for you both to split up the burden.” “What the hell are you talking about?! Either it’s easy or it’s not! Make up your mind!” I said getting frustrated from the lack of logic she was using to explain. “It might just be easier to show you when you arrive. Please come at once, and don’t forget to bring Twilight along.” After that there was a click sound and Vlad went back to his usual self. “This had better be good or I’m going to shove my hoof up Celestia’s royal-” I was suddenly cut off by a squeal of excitement. “I can’t believe we’re going back to Canterlot! We haven’t gone together since the time you met my parents!” I frowned at that. Since I fought Discord, things between me and the rest of Twilight's family were more than a little tense. Her mother was never happy to see me and her father was a bit like Shining Armor… which is to say they wanted nothing more than to see me dead. Her parents were more reserved on the matter and knew that I was powerful enough to level their house without breaking a sweat (not that I ever would, but I was capable). Shining Armor was different though. The first time he saw me, he put my arms behind my back, shoved me against the nearest wall, and whispered into my ear, ‘you’re lucky you’re under Celestia’s protection or you wouldn’t get off this easy...’. Most of the time I tried to avoid him so it wasn’t too big of an issue. After Twilight and I boarded the train, I decided to take a nap. We left Spike in charge of the library like always. I told him to stay away from my saddlebags until we got back since I always brought back a ‘souvenir’ from my escapades and he would always want to play with whatever I picked up… which was bad because the things I got were normally powerful artifacts. I guess it was about half an hour later that I felt something lay on top of me and cuddle up against my chest. Cracking open one of my eyes, I saw it was Twilight. She was resting on my chest as I leaned back towards the window. The gentle smile on her face was all I needed to feel like all my work was worthwhile. She had no idea how grateful I was to have met her. Simply being near her gave me joy… something I never thought I would feel again. I just wished that I could somehow be worthy of her love. Everyone knew me as the disrespectful, ill-tempered, dark, and brooding stallion of Ponyville. Some liked me, others were indifferent, and a few hated me for defiling their quaint little town. In a peaceful kindhearted place like Ponyville, you tend to stand out for being negative, but I couldn’t help how I was. Twilight was the only one that truly loved me though, and being as kind as she was, I couldn’t figure out why she was drawn to someone as dark as me. The most puzzling thing was that she still loved me even though I had come within an inch of killing her nearly a year ago while under Discord's influence. It felt like she had given me life and I had nearly taken hers away at the same moment. How do you make up for something like that? I liked to keep things balanced but this was so far off to one side that balancing it out seemed absolutely impossible. Even though I had been gone for most of the year fighting to keep everyone safe, I still felt like a monster. I would do my best to keep up a smile around others (and by ‘a smile' I mean my usual apathetic expression), but when I was alone I would often ask myself if I was even safe enough to be around. I had done things that even astounded myself. I cured a village of ponies from a mutated strain of poison joke, I fought my way through Tartarus and back twice to keep Equestria from going to hell, and I even trapped an evil stallion who could see into the future in a temporal loop. I did all that alone, and that horrified me. If I happened to lose control, I would be an unstoppable time bomb of armageddon. One stallion protected Equestria from total destruction, but the real question was… who was protecting it from him? Twilight suddenly opened her eyes, a mix of confusion and worry clear in them. “Jason? Is there something wrong? Your heart is beating faster than normal.” “No… everything's fine.” I replied, before thinking to myself, ‘for now, anyways’. After reassuring her, Twilight went back to resting back on my chest, her wings covering us like a feathery blanket. For the first time in nearly a year… I allowed my hoof to rest on her back and enjoyed the simple fact that we were together in each other's embrace. I only hoped that she could see how much I cared for her as well. Right at that moment though, it was just us… nothing else mattered.