Pixel sat alone on his cloud. He looked down on the gardens of the crystal palace. Peaceful. The same could not be said for his mind. It was clouded with questions without answers, problems without solutions. He rolled over onto his back and stared into the sky. He thought back. What made him so special? Nothing came to mind. He thought back to his colthood.
He had got his cutiemark fairly early compared to his classmates back in Fillydelphia. He had been one of the quieter ones. He never went over to the hoofball field with his friends. He usually sat outside his class with a book. A lot of other ponies thought he was weird because of it, but he never really cared about what others thought of him. He enjoyed his alone time. It helped him unwind. He still visited the library every so often. By now, every single staff member knew his name by heart.
He got his cutie mark, three blue pixels with a green waveform behind, after he had visited the Fillydephia University's supercomputer on a school field trip. It fascinated him. From then on, he worked his flank off to collect enough bits to buy himself his own computer. And when he did, he worked that thing to death. He still had that computer. So, as time went on, he became this weird computer geek that hung out in the library all day. He didn't mind though. He did get a few odd looks from time to time, but he didn't mind.
His backstory was a bit boring, but he had a skill that not many Equestrians had bothered to learn. But that was pretty much the only thing he had over anypony else. Apart from that? Nothing. Just some autistic computer geek. Then why had he been chosen like this? He placed his head in his hooves and thought it over. Coming to no decisive answer, Pixel dipped down into the coolness of his cloud, content in it's dark embrace. Other ponies had to sleep inside a cold room so that they wouldn't overheat while they slept, but pegasi had the more comfortable option.
He slowly let his consciousness leave him, drifting into the dark, inky abyss.
Sleep did nothing to calm his mind. Nightmares consumed his subconscious. Pixel watched as the dreamscape formed around him. The inky black void quickly formed into a field, grass coming up to his neck. In the distance, he saw a massive gemstone looming above the endless expanse. A purple six point star. The element of magic. It was calling to him. As he got ever closer, the gem was slowly consumed by a mass of shadow, slowly expanding. A strong wind swept up, casting the shadow away, leaving the gem a sickly green colour. Pixel heard the ear piercing scream of a certain purple alicorn.
He turned. No longer was he in the field. He was standing on the outskirts of a town. He knew this town. Ponyville. The buildings were nothing but smouldering husks, and any life that had filled these streets had since left. Torn banners hung from bent lamp posts. Pixel could almost hear a wispy tune played on the wind and see ghostly figures laughing and dancing. This had been a happy place. But no more. He launched into the air, kicking up dust and ash in his wake.
He flew through the ravaged Ponyville, observing the utter destruction and chaos. Life could never be happy here. Not after all this. Landing in the remains of the town square. He was scared. Terrified even. Suddenly, the ground shook, and the hall was engulfed in shadow. He looked up and his ears flattened against his head. He saw the former protectors of Equestria looming over him, each with a deranged grin plastered across their muzzles, each made up of rows of razor sharp teeth. The six were gargantuan. Taller than even the blood red crystal castle itself. Twilight stared at the cowering pegasus in the remnants of the hall, her eyes glowing red. She flared her wings, and with a laugh that instilled fear directly into Pixel's subconscious mind, engulfed him in the shadowy grasp of her wings.
Pain rocked Pixel's body and he awoke in a cold sweat. Or condensation. He couldn't really tell. That was one of the downsides to sleeping in the clouds. It tended to get quite… Damp. His breathing heavy, he rose up from the cloud and let the sun dry his coat. He shivered at the sudden change of temperature and flared his wings. He stood on the cloud, more stressed than he had ever been in his life. Between the princess' request and what he had just endured, he felt trapped. He wasn't sure his sanity could take another hit. One more little tap,
and he would break.