Bright Lance, the batpony night-guard on duty in the archives of Canterlot Castle, was bored.
Every night, the same drill. Walk past one hundred and fifty bookcases. Pause for ten seconds. Right turn, walk past the twenty bookcases. Pause for ten seconds. Right turn.
Repeat ad naseum.
So it was a slight surprise when he was informed the Princesses were in the Restricted Section of the Archives for the foreseeable future, and all visitors there were to be detained.
That made for some change in his routine, but not much.
They weren't in his patrol route of the Archives, so it didn't matter much to him.
Had he thought about why they felt they needed to be here, he might not have been surprised halfway into his shift.
Howdy, a voice said.
Bright merely nodded and continued on his route before his brain registered what had just happened.
Someone had spoken to him.
He paused for a second, then backpedaled and looked to his right.
There was a suit of armor that looked like it was made for a minotaur. An extremely beefy minotaur that also wore boots.
Dark blue and embossed with gold in some places, it was wearing a slightly tattered red cape that nearly reached the floor. Hanging off the side was a scabbard that held a sword that seemed to be a few feet long.
The neck, however, was missing a helmet. And it was this that drew his attention.
Because the armor was also missing someone to wear it.
Instead, blue fire danced in the place of where a helmet, or even a head, would normally be.
Say, I don't suppose you know where my shield is, do you? 'bout half as big as me, made of a similar metal, looks like a roaring manticore?
Wordlessly, Bright Lance pointed towards the Restricted Section of the Archives, where the Princesses, and all the other artifacts, were.
Ah, thank you very much. Take care.
And with the sound of a thousand pounds of shifting metal, the suit of armor clomped off.
-----
What a helpful guard.
The glow provided by my presence inside my armor helped illuminate the archives, making sure I wouldn't run into any bookcases by accident.
Seriously helpful. If I remember what he looks like, I'll give him something. Not like all those other guys who tried to get me to halt. Had to put half the castle to sleep.
Up ahead, there was a massive set of wooden doors with the words 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here uninvited' written on them. I merely snorted at the warning and pushed them open easily.
Let's see here. Journal of Starswirl, pfft. Bastard had the audacity to tell me what I was doing was no real magic and I should learn from him. Sword of the Elements, also known as MINE, thank you Discord for taking it. Artifacts of Unification, not interested. Aha!
Placed on a stand was my shield. I could feel the thrum of power from it.
What? No, the shield itself had no special properties. It was what I had hidden in the shield that I wanted.
...Well, and it was rightfully mine anyways. Ponies couldn't use the darn thing without some massive strength training.
"Hello again, Dullahan."
I groaned at the sound of a familiar voice and the sensation of a set of familiar auras coming into range. Clearly, the aura my shield was emitting had blinded me. That, or my own idiocy. I hadn't thought to check for other auras, and to think they'd let me walk in and pick it up! Celly Celly Celly. We should really stop meeting like this.
I turned to see Celestia and Luna appear out of the shadows near the entrance to the archives, blocking me off from escaping. That made me feel a little better, they hadn't been lying in wait, they'd just teleported in when they saw I was nearing the prize.
"How didst thou find thine shield so quickly? We made sure a perfect replica was on display at the museum!"
I merely snorted at them. Puh-lease. Replica or not, you never managed to open MY shield up to find what I hid within it. If you had, you wouldn't have bothered with the replica!
"Explain," the solar diarch commanded.
Not a subject of yours, I don't have to! So let me guess the ploy here. You sent the Elements to the replica in an effort to finally trap and exorcise me. Meanwhile, in case I got free, you stood guard here over the real one, because you wanted to make sure I couldn't get my mitts on it.
"I am obligated to tell you nothing, Dullahan."
I merely continued on with my rambling. But the thing is, I knew where my shield was the moment I entered Canterlot. So your museum ploy has failed, and now it's just you two against me. Granted, you're blocking my way out. And I am not yet whole. So this might actually present an issue to me.
Celestia's horn flared once, and she smiled at me. "And I have just sent a message to my student about where you are, so the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony will soon come here to exorcise you, once and for all."
I merely growled at her. You...you have the gall...
They that would block the return of the shadow should face the wrath of the darkness!
I drew my sword and pointed it at the both of them. They merely lowered their horns and scraped the ground with a hoof.
Y'know, there's a song I once listened to. I don't recall all of it, but there's a line that'll apply here soon enough. Element swap, Mars! Inferno!
My sword flashed red, and a ridiculous amount of fireballs sprang from it, arced towards the sisters...
...And sailed past them, into the Archives, setting alight all the accumulated knowledge there.
The sisters stared at the destruction I had caused while I grabbed my shield. The sudden rush of being nearly whole was nigh intoxicating.
Since every piece of my armor was like a part of me, getting any of it back was a big deal. It was like someone who had a need for a prosthetic hand suddenly getting a much better one. I turned to the sisters and chuckled.
What was that line again? Oh yeah! Burn, baby, burn!
Luna and Celestia whipped their heads around to see that I had reclaimed my shield and actually snarled at me. "Thou wilst pay for thine crimes, Dullahan!"
Yeah, I think not. Either because this'll work, or it won't, and I'll come up with something. Element swap, Venus!
The sword glowed brown, and if I had a face, I would have grinned at the sheer cheek I was about to show the sisters. Retreat!
And instantly, I was gone.
-----
I reappeared on the outskirts of Canterlot, dizzy and slightly worse for wear, but overall fine. Glad I don't have a stomach anymore. Might've thrown up my lunch.
I looked down at my shield and would have smiled. Right, I've got you now. Time to find a glade in the Everfree I can use to make a zen garden so's I can call them back to me. But first, I need to see if all your charges are intact. What was the password? The Golden Sun shines but once?
There was a cracking noise from the front of the shield, and I turned it around and opened the mouth. Four shining spheres, one brown, one red, one blue, and one purple, greeted me.
Nice to see the stars are still intact after all this time...
-----
(3rd POV - Celestia)
"My student, I regret to inform you that our plan failed."
Twilight groaned and hung her head. "Princess Celestia, I did everything I could and exactly according to your specifications. We hid ourselves near the display, and we even managed to arrange a gap in the patrol routes this creature could take advantage of. We even had a 'now we have you' speech planned!"
Pinkie nodded a few times. "I was even gonna throw a 'we caught the evil armor, hooray' party! How'd he get away?"
Celestia sighed. "I forgot that one of Dullahan's abilities is to sense strong magical auras. And apparently, one emanates from his shield. He never went to the museum, because he knew where his shield was all along."
Twilight cocked her head to the side. "So the one in the museum was a fake? So where was his shield then?"
"In the Archives, in the Restricted Section, where we store all the old artifacts. Luna and I were there waiting for him, hoping that we could contain him, but he managed to distract us, seize his shield, and escape."
"How'd he distract ya, yer highness?"
Celestia turned to Applejack and said "He used a small fire spell-"
"INSIDE THE ARCHIVES?!"
All eyes were on Twilight as she started hyperventilating at the thought of lost knowledge.
"Oh...dear..."
-----
(Dullahan POV)
I'd only really begun my trek down the mountain when I heard what sounded like an explosion of sound, with some very faint words mixed in.
"Dullahan you animated pile of junk! When I find you I'm going to take you apart piece by piece with a rusty pair of pliers! And then-"
I merely shrugged. Celestia really needs to calm down. It was only a medium-sized fire.
Ah, a anti-hero with sanity. Or at least that is how he seems to me.
Short, but good, can't wait to see what happens.
this is so funny
Yeah, that's wasn't Celestia, Dully. You just made yourself one hell of an enemy, one that will not forgive until the end of time.
Also Checklist.
Tasks completed
Retrieve Shield
Tasks to be completed
Retrieve Djinn
Give both Princesses a smack
Help save Equestria… Extremely begrudgingly.
Dullahan has made a mortal enemy in Twilight Sparkle.
I do not like that little blue voice...
Anyway, what's so powerful about his shield? I need to know this.
3968803
It completes the 'set'. Which he was bonded to upon arrival.
It's like regaining feeling in a sleeping limb.
He intends to use the stars for a thing as well.
Heh…Wasn't like those artifacts were gonna see the light of day anyway.
Awesome!
I just want Celestia and Luna to be put in their place already. I'd love to see them get judged by the elements.
So uh.
What's the proper protocol for getting featured?
Passing out? Getting drunk? A combination of the two?
Love this story and I can't wait to upload my own.
Also, did you mention where your character originated from?
I'm just adding some other peoples characters that my guy notices at the con that most of them are usually are at before the go to Equestria.
If your OC did come from a con could I mention yours somewhere?
3968875
Halloween party, sadly. But hey, feel free to mention him if you want.
3968936
Shh.
Backstory next chapter.
I decided to do a little digging around Dullahan, apparently Dullahan is from Irish folklore. Okay now get this, big bad dullahans are Irish folklore FAIRIES. Allow me to elaborate. *Ahem*
The dullahan is a powerful fairy from Irish folklore, and is essentially the Irish version of the Grim Reaper (its name means "dark man"). It takes the form of a horseman who carries his head under his shoulder. This head has tiny, constantly flitting black eyes, a hideous ear to ear grin, and flesh the color and texture of moldy cheese. Often, the horse itself is headless, and the dullahan may drive a coach pulled by several such headless horses. Gates cannot stop the dullahan's journey, they just unbar automatically as it approaches. Once the dullahan stops riding, it calls out a name. The mortal who is named dies, and the dullahan drags his or her soul to the afterlife. Those who try to spy on the dullahan riding across the country are rewarded with a bucketful of blood splashed in their faces. Curiously, dullahans are terrified of gold--even a gold pin can drive them away from their task.
Needless to say, a fairy Grim Reaper? Sounds pretty laughable and badass at the same time.
Also I'm not getting how long ago he did stuff. It said in Chapter 2, back 1505 he was a normal human getting things ready to make a costume. BUT in Chapter 3 it states that 1501, thats four years back from when he was a human, that he was talking and struck Sombra.
Did I miss something here, or am I correct?
If every chapter name is going to be a head pun I don't know if I will even be able to read this no matter how good it is,
3968870 Nope, you just drink and drink and drink and drink and then we'll drink some more.
We'll dance and sing and fight until the early mornin' light,
then we'll throw up, pass out, wake up and then go drinkin' once again.
So Celestia and Luna waited for him this whole time to ambush him, and when he arrived, they just stand there and did nothing until he finally cast his spell, enough to distract them, sigh...
Do there is not a single story where Celestia and Luna actually do something useful instead of failing over and over?
3969112
Well you just had to get your head over it
3968936
From the look of it, Frank (Dullahan) got send to Equestria prior 1500 years ago. Because his look and his power (which always accidentally) cause the princess think that Dullahan some sort of evil ghost. I think
3969021
of course 1505 years ago he is human, prior after that he is Dullahan
I think you got the timeline wrong though
3968818
BUT THE STARSWIRL JOURNAL!
3968870
Making a great story
3969112 Don't get ahead of yourself.
3968870
Good on you, mate.
You deserve it.
I love stories where the main character makes Celestia look like an idiot.
You're walking on thin ice right now...
Will Bright Lance make another apperance?
3968870 Celebratory everything. Cake, beer, dancing...perhaps a chapter even. *not-so-subtle nudge.*
In all seriousness, this thing is awesome. Congrats! Keep up the good work!
Its stunts like that that make Dullahan so many pony enemies.
Dully seems like he has read and understands most of the entries in The Evil Overlord's List., or at least has an instinctual understanding of them.
3969258
Psh, that old thing? It was more like his diary, if anything else. Starswirl was a very secretive stallion.
I mean, sure there was a dozen or so spells and conceptual inventions that could have ushered Equestria into a new age, but other than that, just scribbles and gripes about noisy ponies interfering with his work.
3968748
I don't think hes the antagonist here, just misunderstood because of a bad
firstfew impressions.I only just read this, and I like it, despite never playing golden sun (que lastima)
Neat, can wait for the next chapter, might write a story for the LHAV group that is a competant evil overlord with a geeky side ending up in Equestria through means unknown to all but him.
3968870
All three!
3969406 I give you points for the TVTropes reference… even though that's my gig…
3968748 More like Anti-Hero with a side of immaturity.
very nice
Not bad, but where's the backstory? For that matter, where's his mount? Dullahans are also horsemen, but I think it might be better to have a dragon or something...
3968878
Aw... Dang...
Well, a chance encounter really only happens if they meet each other in Equestria and you're already doing a collaboration thing with Jimmy The Grape.
I mean, i'd be kind of rude for me to write something because eventually you'd write your character's reaction when he meets mine based on what I write and sometime's that's a little unfair.
Still, thanks for the input!
Why brown? Isn't Venus Green, in Golden Sun?
3969112
Now, you don't need to be headed in that directon
3969855
Well Dully did reply to Solaire in chapter 3.
Who's to say others didn't hear him as well?
*Wink wink, nudge nudge, saynomore*
3969908 I have one word for you good sir: BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
3969926
Oh...
But the thing would be if Jimmy The Grape is willing to put me in as well, and I'm not sure if he'd be willing to do that.
Besides, I'm still working on my first chapter so I'm a little bit a ways away.
Though I guess I do have a funny idea at the beginning of my story at the con.
I thought that maybe the dude that try's to fight Solaire's staff from him could be the friend that drives my guy at the con so that when he disappears my character turn to him and say.
"The fuck did you do this time!?"
I thought it'd be funny but I still need to ask him.
nice chapter have a thump up and an ( i need MOAR ) with a pretty please and a cherry ontop
First I saw the title and I was all, "I'm not gonna read this". Then I read the summary and I began to feel like, "Totally not gonna read this." Then I was the name of the first chapter, Heading Out.
You glorious bastard you.
3969221
And if he can't, he'd better head to the bar to drink his troubles away...
MOOOOOOOOREEEEEEEEE
He doesn't really seem like a villain. More like an idiot that couldn't control his powers at first and doesn't want to be exorciesed ( a legitimate concern). Seems like a good guy really.
I love how quickly and consistently this is updating! The story is also a ton of fun, and the crossovers are entertaining, albeit I had to look up some references.