Spero

by Piemaster128

Prologue: Her Unseen Guardian

Twilight Velvet let out a tired, yet joyful sigh. She was exhausted, to say the least. The last few hours had been long, painful, and an emotional rollercoaster with more ups and downs than her first time bungie jumping. There were a few parts of it where things got hazy, but those were few and far between.

She remembered her water breaking just as she was about to sit down for lunch. She remembered the frantic rush to the hospital as she was carried by her husband’s magic. She remembered the contractions increasing in frequency, the pain escalating as she came closer to delivering the bundle of joy she had been carrying these past eleven months. She remembered pushing and pushing until at long last, the pressure abated, and a shrill cry pierced the delivery room.

She remembered clutching her baby just after she had come out, not caring for the fluids still clinging to her soft purple coat. She would remember all of those moments for the rest of her life…

Though she had a feeling that her husband, Night Light, would most remember her crushing his hoof to death and screaming ‘YOU DID THIS TO ME!’ right before they could see the baby’s head. Thankfully, he only had bruises, nothing an ice pack wouldn’t fix, and he had accepted her apology with a kiss on the forehead and a nuzzle like the sweet, understanding stallion he was.

It had all been worth it.

The small bundle of cloth in her hooves giggled, its occupant looking up happily at the first pony in its life. The very same pony that had brought her into this world. Velvet lowered her muzzle and gently nuzzled the small bundle she held, prompting more cooing from her brand-new purple filly. Both the gestation and the delivery had been far tougher than she remembered them being for Shining Armor, but she wouldn’t change a single thing. Now, after eleven months of cravings and mood swings and everything else, she had a brand new member to add to her family.

A new filly, named Twilight Sparkle. A filly, that filled her with hope…

Later that night…

The Newborn’s Nursery was calm. All the little fillies and colts were wrapped snugly in blankets and sleeping soundly, drifting for the first time through the never-ending sea of dreams.

All, except for Twilight Sparkle.

In her small bed, the filly fidgeted in her cloth prison, tossing and turning, whimpering in fear as her first rest was tainted by an awful nightmare. Normally, the monitoring nurse would notice this and move to comfort the small filly, but now, no onlookers could see through the powerful illusion that had just been woven inside the room’s walls. An illusion that would ensure the small filly was not disturbed.

The air to the left of Twilight Sparkle seemed to move as an invisible pony slowly released his spell, allowing him to fade back into view as he extended a dark black hoof extended and gently brushed the mane out of Twilight’s face.

“Shhhh, shhh, it’s all right, little one,” a deep, smooth voice whispered. A soft yet bright orange glow gently touched the filly’s horn. Almost immediately, Twilight stopped fidgeting and relaxed, her horn letting of a small burst of purple magic. When the purple touched the orange, the two energies mixed and burst into a miniature aurora of all the colors of the rainbow.

It only lasted for a second, but it was enough to wake the small filly. She let out a little yawn and looked up curiously. She didn’t even cry.

“You have such beautiful eyes…” the stallion said softly, his hoof still brushing the filly gently. Twilight giggled and tried to free her hooves from her swaddled blanket. The stallion chuckled, and flicked his magic, undoing the cloth and freeing the small filly’s hooves. Twilight immediately reached up to grab the hoof above her. Chuckling at her enthusiasm, the stallion moved it so that it was now resting just above her stomach. This greatly pleased her as she could now use all four of her hooves to hold it.

“So young, so carefree…” he mused, smiling as he used his hoof to lightly tickle her. The filly laughed and tried to squirm away from her new friend, but he was just too strong. Twilight’s giggling was loud, but with all the spells surrounding them, the other foals slept soundly. The stallion closed his eyes, listening to her joy.

But alas, their time was short. Slowly, the hoof began to recede and vanish as the invisibility spell once again took hold, prompting a protest from Twilight. She began to sniffle and reach back for her new friend.

“Don’t worry, little one,” the voice said, moving his hoof to her head again so he could pet it affectionately. “I have a gift for you, so that I might always be with you.” Slowly, a small doll appeared and was gently pushed towards the young filly by the bright orange magic. It was grey, had a red button for the right eye and a blue button for the left eye, had grey yarn for hair, and wore blue pants with white polkadots. It was smaller that Twilight, but not by much.

The stallion placed the doll into Twilight’s hooves and the newborn foal babbled happily, squeezing the doll with all of her six-hour-old might. She attempted to eat some of the yarn, but immediately spit it back out, grimacing at the taste. Chuckling, the stallion lowered his head and softly kissed the young filly on the tip of her horn, prompting another small burst of magic that left the foal staring in awe at the pretty colors. He retracted his head, and the blanket under Twilight glowed a bright warm orange. It wrapped itself around the small filly, tucking her and the doll in so snugly only their heads were sticking out.

Twilight didn’t seem to mind, nuzzling her new toy and letting out a small yawn. Despite her excitement over her new friend and the doll, she just didn’t have the energy to keep her eyes open for much longer, and as the stallion began to hum a soft, soothing melody, she quickly lost the battle and submitted to slumber once again. But this time, she slept with a smile on her small face. The stallion smiled down at her.

“You have a great future ahead of you, my dear,” he whispered, a single tear falling onto the blanket that held the small filly. “And I promise, I will always be there when you need me the most. I will not fail again.”

And with that, he vanished completely, the room now just as it was before he had arrived.

Twilight’s third Hearth’s Warming…

“Mommy, Mommy, wake up!” a high-pitched voice squealed excitedly as its owner happily bounced on her side of the bed. "It's Hearth’s Warming, it’s Hearth’s Warming!”

“Hmm? Oh, ok, ok, I'm up, I’m up…” Velvet yawned, sitting up and rubbing her eyes as she glanced at the clock. It was 7:00 am right on the dot. Granted, that was the time she said the Twilight was allowed to wake her up, but it was still far too early for her. But with two excited and very awake children, sleeping in for once in her life was just a pipe dream at this point.

Plus, seeing how Twilight and Shining reacted to their gifts was always priceless in her eyes. The way their eyes got big as they proceeded to bounce around like they had springs on their hooves was just too adorable. Good thing Velvet had bought all that extra film for the camera.

Twilight, getting rather impatient like all young fillies on Hearth’s Warming, began to try and push her mom out of bed so she would move faster. It didn’t work at all, but Velvet still found it adorable. Still, sitting here was pointless, so she obliged the small filly’s request and dropped down on all four hooves so she could start walking. She could already see that Shining Armor had pulled her husband halfway out the door, a sight that made her chuckle softly as she moved to join her boys.

Not wanting to get left behind, Twilight leapt off the bed and dashed to the door, stopping only to bounce up and down a few times before dashing after Night Light and her Big Brother Best Friend Forever (or BBBFF as she called him).

As the family moved through the house, Velvet was able to spare a glance out the nearby window as her daughter continued to nudge her to move faster. The sun had yet to rise, yet the moonlight still reflected beautifully off the snow that continued to fall, just like it did every year on Hearth’s Warming. She never got tired of seeing Princess Celestia’s work.

She would have loved to stop and watch it, but her daughter demanded her as they approached the stairs. Despite her speed and energy, Twilight was still a little too short to easily get up and down the stairs. Yet Velvet also knew that Twilight would protest any assistance and claim that she was a big filly who didn't need any help. So rather than try and stop her mad dash, Velvet just made sure to keep her magic at the ready just in case she tried to accidentally take the fast route down.

She could also see light sparking on Shining’s horn and knew he has the same idea. It made her smile. He was such a great brother, and Night Light seemed to think so too as he gave their a warm pat on the back. Ever since Twilight had been born he had taken on the role of protective big brother, and it was always sweet to watch him with her.

Thankfully Twilight didn’t trip, and the family was able to enter the family room without any delays. But once they crossed the threshold, Velvet and Night Light stopped short and gasped. There were more decorations than there had been the night before, and there were extra gifts under the tree, gifts wrapped in unfamiliar paper. The tree looked bigger and had a few new ornaments on it, ornaments that Velvet had been saving up for ever since the holidays began. And even then she had accepted the fact that she wouldn't be able to use them until next year since she would likely need to by them after the holiday.

But the biggest shock was what was sitting on a rainbow-colored present right at the base of the tree.

“Mr. Smarty Pants!” Twilight cried excitedly, rushing forward to hug the small grey doll. To this day, Velvet and her husband had never managed to find out where that doll had even come from. Even the hospital staff had been clueless about it, and it had only been because of Shining Armor insisting that the doll made his sister happy that she and her husband had decided to let Twilight keep it. It did always seem to calm Twilight down when she was upset, even now, but Velvet couldn't help but wonder about it from time to time.

Said doll had also gone missing almost a week ago, and no matter how many times Twilight had searched every nook and cranny of the house, she couldn’t find him. She had even levitated the refrigerator and enlisted Shining Armor to help her, but their search had been fruitless. But now here he was, looking brand new, and even having a small quill and notebook attached to each arm. Something that Velvet had NOT been responsible for, despite the fact that she was the only one trusted by Twilight to repair Mr. Smarty Pants.

Twilight grabbed the doll and spun around with him before scolding him about running away when she wasn't looking. While she was distracted, Velvet noticed a letter sitting on the box where the toy had been sitting. When Shining went to see if he could find his own gifts, she levitated the letter over to her, broke the seal, and began to read.

‘Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I’m very sorry that Mr. Smarty Pants had to leave for a while, but he had a special Hearth’s Warming gift he wanted to give you. So he made the journey to visit me and tell me what it was you wanted more than anything this year. I was so impressed, I cleaned him up, gave him a new quill and notebook, and gave him a quick ride home. So sorry for the long wait, but I thought it would be best to surprise you this morning.

Happy Hearth’s Warming,

Santa Hooves’

Velvet blinked in pure confusion before passing it to her husband. As Night Light read, she could tell he was just as clueless.

Neither of them had written the note, nor could they think of who did.

Before they could duck out of the room to talk, Twilight saw the letter in their hooves and they couldn’t help but pass it to her. She read it excitedly (if slowly) and gasped. Quickly placing Mr. Smarty Pants on her back, she dashed over to the rainbow-colored gift and went to town on the poor paper, causing Shining to look up from his own gift hunt as paper flew in every direction. Once the small flakes of colored gift wrap had calmed down, both parents gasped in shock.

Sitting there was the newest edition of the Full Equestrian Encyclopedia, a book so packed with content that it cost nearly a hundred bits for a single copy. Not to mention that the special cover and rim told them this was the LIMITED EDITION version, which was upwards of THREE HUNDRED bits. Twilight had been dead set on getting this book, but the sheer price (because there was such a limited stock) and the popularity (because Celesta had created it) had meant Velvet and Night Light hadn’t been able to even find a copy (or at least one more reasonably priced).

But now some stranger had just GIVEN it to Twilight! FOR FREE!

Velvet glanced at Night Light again, who gave her an unsure but unafraid shrug, and Velvet found herself relaxing a little. The idea of some mysterious intruder making its way into their home was unsettling, but after the decorations and the lovely gift for her daughter…Velvet couldn’t see how the intruder would want to hurt them after that.

Nevertheless, she made a mental note to ask Night Light about better locks for the windows. But not today. She was not going to let uncertainty ruin or consume their Hearth’s Warming.

The night of the Summer Sunset Celebration…

Nightmare Moon scowled as she watched the six naive ponies enter the Everfree Forest. What fools. Did they truly think they could even come close to stopping her? She was a GODDESS! They were just insignificant bugs, bug that should bow in fear and respect to her!

But here they were, entering the forbidden forest on some sort of ‘heroic mission.’ She would laugh at their stupidity if she wasn't so annoyed by their resistance to her display of power.

Oh, what to do about these little interlopers? She could just kill them all, but what was fun about that?

Kill half of them, and send the others back in fear of her might, to spread stories of her greatness and invulnerability? That could work.

Or perhaps she would just enslave them. A ruler needed servants, after all, and they might make good maids in her new castle in Canterlot.

She did like that idea very much. All of those ‘brave’ little brats bowing and scraping and tripping over themselves to please her.

Oh, the possib—

Then something cold, metallic, and unrelenting pressed into her neck, freezing her in terror.

There was a knife held to her throat.

No. That was IMPOSSIBLE!

She would have detected an intruder. She was invincible! Nothing could get past her protective wards!

But something had, and that something sounded very VERY pissed off.

“Should you harm a single hair on their heads,” a deep snarling voice echoed behind her, “I will strike you down where you stand and rip Luna from within you, parasite.”

He…He knew Luna still existed!? But…But…But even CELESTIA thought she might be gone for good!

Who? HOW!?

“The only reason I don’t do so now is because I know the separation would hurt Luna for years to come,” the stallion continued. “I obey the will of Concordia, and as such I know that it is not my place, nor my destiny, to destroy you, parasite, but don’t think I am not willing to break the rules in order to protect those six mares. THIS is your ONLY warning.”

And with that, the blade withdrew.

Nightmare spun to face her adversary, but he was already gone. A quick flash of her horn confirmed it.

He had, somehow, obliterated her wards without even alerting her to his presence and managed to escape just as easily.

For the first time in her life, the Nightmare shivered.

Whoever that was far too strong for her to match. He could even be watching her now for all she knew.

It was…a terrifying prospect.

And who was this…Concordia? If they were anywhere near as strong as he was…

The Nightmare shook her head. If that stallion wanted to stop her from conquering Equestria, he would have done so. But he didn’t, so she saw no reason to stop her plans even if she couldn’t harm those six mares.

That did still leave the problem of six mares wandering into HER territory in search of a weapon that could defeat her, and there was no way she was going to just LET them find one. Fine. If she couldn’t hurt them, then she would convince them to turn back the best way she knew how.

Through FEAR!

She wasn't call The Nightmare for nothing!

Later, in the abandoned castle throne room…

WHAT THE ACTUAL BUCK!?

Not only had the mares evaded all her traps, but they NOW HAD THE ELEMENTS! EVEN AFTER SHE HAD SMASHED THEM TO BITS!

THIS COULDN’T BE HAPPENING!

SHE COULDN’T LOSE!

SHE WAS A GODDESS!

And they were just…JUST A RANDOM GROUP OF MARES!

But wait…the magic…

It was FADING.

The elements weren't going to fire!

Oh, the look on their faces when it would fail. The fear, the horror, the desperation! These mares would rue the day they messed with Nightmare Moon! She woul—

Suddenly, a beam of bright orange magic shot through the nearby window and struck the crown above Twilight’s head. The power returned to the Elements of Harmony as the small purple mare opened her eyes, revealing a blinding white light as multiple streams of rainbow-colored magic flew between the six mares. The Elements united, forming something the Nightmare had hoped never to see again.

The massive rainbow of magic that had banished her to the moon.

Only this time, the magic felt different. It was whole, COMPLETE! Celestia had only managed to use a FRACTION of the power available, but THESE STUPID MARES WERE ABLE TO USE ALL OF IT!!!

She knew she wouldn’t be walking way from this one.

She tried to jump up, to fly, but an orange glow locked her back hooves to the floor, paralyzing her.

She screamed as the rainbow vortex engulfed her.

She had lost…

A small blue alicorn with a light blue mane appeared from within the rainbow as the inky form of Nightmare Moon was burned away. The orange magic that had held The Nightmare down rose to catch the smaller pony as she collapsed.

As the power of the elements began to subside, the six mares who had been bearing the energy started to collapse as well, but the orange magic caught them as well and lowered all the unconscious ponies gently to the stone floor of the castle.

There was a brief displacement of air as the stallion that had threatened Nightmare Moon teleported into the throne room. He let out a soft chuckle as he knelt down next to the still unconscious Twilight.

“Well done, my dear. It was only fitting that you would save Luna from that parasite. How I wish I could congratulate you in person…” he sighed as he gently brushed the mane off of Twilight’s face. “But you’ve made an important step today. One that has only brought the day that I can finally meet you all the closer. Be sure to keep your friends close, my dear. You will need them for the road ahead.”

Smiling softly, he reached forward and planted a small kiss on Twilight’s forehead, just below her horn. Twilight mumbled something about encyclopedias and smiled slightly to herself.

The stallion was gone less than ten seconds later, just as Pinkie Pie began to wake.

During the invasion of the royal wedding…

“Sir, are you sure we shouldn’t intervene?” a unicorn with a brown short-cut mane asked as he looked down at the city of Canterlot, a pair of binoculars held in his pink magic. The Changelings were now in full control, and just moments ago he had seen Twilight and her friends being led into the castle after their brave fight across the invaded city ended in failure.

“I’m sure,” the stallion said, his horn aglow with bright orange magic as he watched the city intensely. Both of them were standing on a cloud overlooking that city, the stallion’s spells hiding them from the invaders. “Concordia has told me that I can’t interfere unless she says so. As much as I hate this, we need to wait.”

“Seems like waiting won’t really be an option soon,” the unicorn said, watching as more Changelings emerged from the castle and began to hunt down the remaining ponies not yet captured.

How the unicorn would love to teach them a lesson. It was bad enough that they just had to sit and wait for both Nightmare Moon and Discord to be defeated, but watching an army invade Canterlot — an army that was vastly inferior to their own army, nonetheless — was just painful.

What was the point of all his training and work on perfecting his magical combat if he was never going to use them? Especially when he was LITERALLY so close to the action he could spit on the Changelings if he so chose.

At the very least, the unicorn knew he wasn’t the only who hated sitting around like a bug on a log. The stallion next to him was pacing, his black hooves stomping the cloud restlessly as he continued to stare down at the city.

“I know,” the stallion said, before taking a deep, calming breath. “But we need to trust Concordia. She’s never been wrong before.”

He WAS right about that, but still. Couldn’t they at least try to minimize the damage? Even just a dozen of their ponies would make a big difference. Not to mention he still didn’t know how the Element Bearers would be able to get out of this one, seeing how they were already captured.

“Still. I don’t even see how they can get out of thi—”


BOOM!

A massive pink shockwave suddenly emanated from the throne room of the castle, flinging the Queen Changeling and all her subjects out of the city. Both ponies on the cloud could hear her scream as she was carried outward at an incredible velocity. The slime that had begun to coat the city was obliterated as the wave passed, freeing the captive ponies. Both ponies on the cloud braced themselves as the energy approached, only to blink in confusion as it passed over them harmlessly, simply blowing their manes back.

Both of them turned to watch as the Changelings were flung across the sky, heading right towards their home in the badlands. Blinking again, they both turned back to the city. It looked almost back to normal…except for the craters the Changelings created when they dive-bombed Canterlot during the invasion.

There was silence for almost a minute before the stallion chuckled.

“HAHA! See! I told you Concordia wouldn’t let us down!”

The unicorn just let the binoculars fall and face-hoofed.

“Of course…” he muttered, relieved that the Changelings had been defeated and slightly exasperated that he had been forced to sit on the sidelines for the third time in a row. “It’s always something.”

“Not always,” the stallion replied. “Remember when we had to stop those griffons who planned to kidnap the students at Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns on their camping trip? We had to intervene there.”

“But that was EASY! Not some…apocalyptic event like the sun not rising! I just want to be able to HELP when these disasters come around. Is that too much to ask!?” the unicorn cried, throwing his hooves into the air before face-clouding. The stallion just chuckled and gave his companion a reassuring pat on the back.

“You will get your chance, my friend. But look on the bright side. We don’t need to help with cleanup and repairs.”

“Other than making sure ponies don’t start going on witch hunts to root out Changelings?” the unicorn asked with a knowing look.

The stallion chuckled. “Well, yes, but I think Celestia and Luna will be able to handle most of that. Benefits of them being the most trusted rulers in the known world and all that.”

“But you are still going to send agents around Equestria to make sure other ponies don’t start accusing innocent creatures of being Changelings, right?”

“Of course. I will take no more risks than I have to.”

Twilight’s ascension…

The stallion smiled as he stood in the massive crowd of ponies. He was currently in the guise of a blue unicorn with a white mane and a gemstone for a cutie mark. He didn’t normally risk disguises, both because of the high magic cost and the risk of it being disrupted, but there was no way in tartarus that he would miss experiencing this day with the rest of Equestria.

Also, it was hard to buy a large, over-the-top top hat with Twilight’s coloration and cutie mark when you were invisible. And he REALLY wanted one.

The little filly he had sworn to protect had just been awarded her crown, her title, and most importantly, her wings. Well, most importantly to him, anyway. They were a symbol to him, a symbol of just how unique she was and just how important she would become.

Maybe everypony else would focus on her title and crown, but he didn’t mind.

She had earned her wings, and that was all that mattered.

He had known for years that this day would come, and yet it still brought tears to his eyes to see it finally happen. Despite the odds, despite the hardship, despite all her trials, Twilight had persevered and done what many thought impossible, and with only minor assistance from himself. She deserved to be recognized for her accomplishments, her success, and with her new authority, he knew she would continue to make Equestria a better place.

Twilight was now riding down the streets, waving to her new subjects as they cheered and yelled for her. As she got closer and closer to his spot in the crowd, the stallion stretched his neck up so he could see her up close.

Oh, she was beautiful.

Her mane was smooth and flowing, almost sparkling in the bright sunlight of the day. Her dress was perfectly tailored to her, hugging her body’s curves flatteringly. The sunlight was shining down on her in just the right way, enhancing her already lovely face without making her squint.

And her eyes…

Her eyes shone like amethyst, bright and full of life and joy…just like Star’s had been on their wedding day…

Suddenly, the stallion felt the overwhelming urge to abandon his disguise and run to her. To hold her, congratulate her, kiss her, and…and…

And he couldn’t.

That single thought was like a hard buck to the chest, so forceful and intense that he almost burst into tears right then and there.

Even after all this time, after all this work, he still couldn’t hold her or even congratulate her in person. He was still just a stranger, a lone stallion who had helped her and watched over her for years, but could not tell her his name. Or how proud he was of her.

Or how much he loved her.

He had a new urge now. To just leave the crowd so and go and cry in peace, to let his sorrow overtake him just like it did at least once every year…

No.

This was not the time for him to have another breakdown. This was her day, and he should spend all of it being happy for her. He wasn’t going to miss this, because even if it hurt, her happiness made the pain worth it.

Star would have wanted him to be happy for Twilight’s sake, and there was no way he would let her down.

His time would come.

He just had to be patient.

And with that final thought, he tossed the bouquet of roses that he had bought earlier directly towards Twilight. She caught them, casting a smile of thanks at the crowd as she sang a song of how everything would be just fine…

After the defeat of Tirek…

Discord was nervous, to say the least. Sure, little Princess Sparkle and her friends — well, he guessed they were his friends too, but still — had defeated Tirek, gotten a new castle (that was FAR too tacky for his taste), and had even been willing to forgive him. Even after betraying them and selling them out to Tirek, they had forgiven him.

It…It really was something he had never expected.

It filled him with this strange warmth he had first felt from Fluttershy.

And he couldn’t even enjoy it, because something WEIRD had happened.

Weird even for HIM.

After being freed the second time, he had received a rather…terrifying threat. This pony (or creature, given that Discord had never actually SEEN him) had not only been completely immune to Discord’s magic, but had even managed to turn the god of chaos’ hands and tail to stone, leaving him powerless.

It had been so jarring that all Discord could think was ‘How could this guy turn the god of chaos to stone?! I am the freaking GOD of CHAOS and even I DON’T THINK THIS MAKES SENSE!’

He had been so surprised he hadn’t even had time to freak out about being turned back into a statue.

This crazy powerful creature had then left a rather simple rule: if he hurt or betrayed the six mares that had reformed him, he would pay.

This, combined with the fact that this guy’s magic was VERY similar to the magic that helped ignite the elements when Discord had first broken out, said that he was be more than capable of delivering on his threat.

And now Discord had just broken that one rule.

So now, he was hiding in the deepest depths of the deepest cave he could find, hoping above all hope that this mysterious creature wouldn’t be able to find him. He wasn’t even using chaos magic for fear that it might give away his location. All he had to do was lay low here for a few years and the—

“You seem tense, Discord.”

YIPE!

WHERE THE HECK DID YOU EVEN COME FROM!?!?!

Discord jumped in surprise, something he thought he was incapable of feeling until he met Pinkie.

Oh, if only it was her he was dealing with. Being shot to the moon via party cannon sounded like a much more pleasant experience than being turned to stone again.

“Oh, you know, just an itsy bitsy teeny weenie bit worried that I’m about to become a statue again,” Discord said, trying, and failing epicly, to act cool while desperately trying his best to think of an excuse.

He had none, which was quite surprising even to him.

He didn’t turn around, knowing that he would never be able to find the source of this creepy voice no matter how hard he tried. Just as well. He wasn’t exactly keen on watching some smug pony smirk at him as he turned into a statue.

But then the voice chuckled.

“As much as I love watching you, the mighty god of chaos, squirm in fear, I’m not here for that. At least, not this time.”

Discord blinked.

Then he blinked again.

Then three more times just for good measure.

“You’re…not? But, I—”

“Yes, you broke the rule I laid out nearly a year ago. Yet, when the time came, you saw your mistake and were willing to admit you were wrong. You even helped Twilight find the key she needed to unlock the Chest of Harmony. I am willing to let you off the hook, this time, if only because you already received a rather fair punishment. In fact, I should actually be thanking you.”

Ok, now Discord was REALLY confused.

“I break your rule, which leads Twilight to fight Tirek and get tackled through a MOUNTAIN, lose all the magic of Equestria to a mad tyrant, and nearly get KILLED, and you want to THANK ME!?”

Either Discord was the luckiest creature on Equis, or this guy was crazier than the lord of chaos.

“I would have never let her get killed,” the voice said. “All that alicorn magic made her body harder than diamond and more magic resistant that perhaps anything in the entire world. And even if Tirek had tried to hurt her once she was depowered, he wouldn’t have gotten very far. You didn’t think I wasn’t nearby, did you? I saw everything.”

Because THAT doesn’t sound creepy at all, Discord thought, but he certainly didn’t want to test his luck with Mr. Super-Powerful-Very-Crazy-Surprisingly-Unvengeful-Maybe-Pony. “You still haven’t answered my question,” he said instead. “Why thank me?”

“Because with your help, she has begun the next stage of her journey, bringing her all the closer to her destiny. She will only grow stronger now, both in raw power and in the ties she has with others.”

So, what? He was Twilight’s personal trainer, only in regards to her destiny? Does that show up on his resume?

“You seem to be taking quite the interest in our little princess. Am I allowed to ask why?”

“Let’s just say I have been waiting to meet her for a very long time, and that because of you, the day I finally can has just gotten a whole lot closer.”

A brief pulse of magic emanated behind Discord, signaling to him that his visitor was gone again. He sighed. He hadn't been this relieved since he was finally able to scratch his nose again after 873 years of having it itch.

But he still had so many questions, and for the first time he well and truly wanted answers. The biggest one was why that guy was so interested in the nerdy purple princess he loved to tease?

And what plans did he have for her?

The night after Starlight’s graduation…

Within the Crystal Castle, Princess Twilight Sparkle slept soundly. Today, her student Starlight Glimmer had graduated in her studies of friendship, becoming more independent and being recognized along with Trixie, Thorax, and Discord as saviors of Equestria. Together, the four of them had saved her friends Celestia, Luna, Cadence, Spike, and her personally from the grasp of Queen Chrysalis.

She had never been more proud.

But alas, the stress of deciding to let Starlight graduate had worn Twilight out so much that she was asleep less than a minute after she hit the pillow that night. It had been a good day, and to her, the future looked bright.

However, just outside, a lone timber wolf emerged from the Everfree Forest. Unlike normal timber wolves, this one was massive, almost twice as large and twice as fierce. Its wood was far darker than that of its brethren, and its eyes glowed a dark purple color that was full of malice.

Without hesitation, the timber wolf charged towards the castle and jumped. It landed on the wall halfway up to Twilight’s balcony, its claws glowing with dark magic that turned the crystal as black and brittle as rotten wood. Digging its claws into the weakened wall, the wolf slowly began to scale the castle, drawing closer and closer towards the balcony. With the moon obscured by clouds and all the lights in the castle shut off for the night, the beast was all but invisible to everypony’s eye.

Except for one.

With a blinding flash, the part of the castle not being damaged by the dark magic attacked the timber wolf, the crystal under the creature’s head exploding outwards and punching the beast off. The wolf howled in shock and pain as the crystal struck, losing its grip as it plunged a good thirty feet to the ground. But it was still in one piece. The creature scrambled to its feet and opened its mouth, launching a ball of inky magic at the castle. The castle responded instantly, erecting a magic shield around itself that easily stopped the attack.

The timber wolf growled and prepared to charge, only for an orange metal sword to suddenly appear in the side of its skull. The force of the thrown weapon sent the wolf sprawling, its body breaking up into thousands of pieces.

But this was not the end of the fight.

The dark magic that had been possessing the timber wolf had evacuated its host just before the blade had struck, and was now hovering above the pieces of wood, twisting and coiling like a serpent. The sword’s handle glowed bright orange as it reversed course to strike at the snake-like creature. The dark magic twisted and spun, forming itself into solid blades to try and deflect the sword, but was caught off guard as a stallion leapt from atop the castle. Orange magic blast erupted from his horn as he crashed to the ground, smashing the snake’s blades almost as soon as they appeared.

Knowing this wasn't a battle it could win, the dark magic tried to retreat, to slip back into the forest where it could escape, but the sword, the stallion, and the castle were having none of that. The top spire on the Castle of Friendship lit up, a bright rainbow light firing off and blocking the dark magic’s escape route. Recoiling from the light, the snake could not stop the gleaming orange sword from finally landing the perfect strike, cleaving it in half.

The dark magic let out an otherworldly scream as the light permeated its being and destroyed it from the inside. It dissolved into small wisps until there was nothing left. With the dark presence defeated, it was as if the whole world let out a breath it was holding. The air suddenly felt lighter and fresher, as though a wind had blown everything away.

The stallion let loose a breath he hadn’t known he had been holding, relieved that the battle was over as he turned to see the castle repairing itself and retracting the crystals had struck the wolf. However, that calm only lasted for a few seconds before he caught sight of Twilight Sparkle, frantically looking out from her balcony in search of the disturbances.

All these years, all that time spent hiding in the shadows, all his hard work.

Down the drain…

Or so he thought, until he saw the telltale flicker of magic around the castle, and around himself and the wolf’s remains. He quickly lit his horn to check the nature of the spell, only to truly collapse as relief flooded his mind.

Concordia had created an illusion spell while he had been panicking about and fighting the timber wolf. Oh, he had never been so happy to have that crazy lady intervene in all his life. If it weren’t for her…

The stallion shook his head as he got back to his hooves. Thankful or not, there was still a chance that Twilight would come to investigate where he was, so he had best determine the source of this dark magic as quickly as he could.

The metal sword vanished back into its pocket space as the stallion moved to inspect the ground where the dark magic had been. He knew he could not stay for long, but he would not leave until he identified the source of this threat. A soft orange glow covered the land as the figure searched for any clues as to just what the magic was. It almost wasn’t necessary. He had a sinking feeling that he already knew exactly what had sent the magic.

His scan confirmed it.

“Akumu,” he whispered, ice filling his veins.

It had been so long since he had felt this magic, but he knew for certain that it was Akumu’s. There was no way he could ever mistake it for something else’s.

‘Indeed,’ a voice sounded. The stallion tensed, until he realized he heard the voice echoing inside his head.

He knew that voice.

‘Concordia?’ he asked, reaching out with his magic to connect to the source of the voice. It was one thing to have her help him, but for her to contact him…

‘Yes, my child, it is I. You must come visit me as quickly as you can. There is much we must discuss.’

He nodded, wasting no time as he vanished in a pulse of magic, leaving nothing but the destroyed remains of the timber wolf behind.

Shortly after the timber wolf attack…

“Sir, please stop pacing,” the brown-maned unicorn said, watching unsurely as his king moved.

“I…I can’t,” the stallion said, his normally stoic voice strained and worried. “How could it have come to this? With Akumu making moves now, it’s no wonder Concordia would want Twilight brought somewhere safe, but this!? I...don’t know if I can do this…”

“But you KNOW it’s what has to be done,” the unicorn said. “If she stays where she is, it’s only a matter of time until sh—”

“I KNOW!” the king roared.

When the first tear fell, it was like a dam breaking, and he plopped to the ground, water flowing steadily down his face. "I know…” he whispered, voice completely broken, “but this…this wasn't how it was supposed to go. I was going to protect her, keep her safe, wait for her to fulfill her destiny all on her own. Then, and only then, I would reveal myself. I would explain everything, tell her…But now…now I need to engage in this… ugh, I don’t even know what it is, but…”

“Sir,” the unicorn said as the stallion moved to sit near his king, “what is it you truly fear about this? Truthfully?”

The king sighed.

“I…I fear she will hate me. That this plan of Concordia’s will drive her away from me. That…That I will lose her . Even if this plan does succeed, will her hatred for my actions make all of my work, my patience, meaningless? Will I ever really have the chance to be with her, or will I be alone for another two thousand years…”

“You won’t be alone,” the unicorn said, placing a hoof on the king’s. “My family has served you over the past two millennia, and even if I may not be as old and wise as some of my ancestors, that doesn’t mean I will abandon you should the worst come to pass. Everyone here on the island will be there for you, and if she does come to hate you for this, then we will all speak up on your behalf. You know we will.”

The king said nothing, but smiled ever so slightly as he nodded.

His companions words were true.

They always were.

“Plus, since when has Concordia ever steered you wrong before? It’s because of her that you even have this chance in the first place. You just need to have hope,” the unicorn continued, grinning as his king finally allowed a small smile to grace his lips.

“I always have hope. But thank you for reminding me of that. How is it that you always know just what to say?”

“Well, it IS my talent.”

“Good point,” the king said as he stood up and stretched. “How long until our forces can mobilize?”

“A week at max, sir,” the unicorn said, saluting. The king nodded.

“Good. Twilight will be in Canterlot then, which will give us the perfect opportunity to act. In the meantime, I will tell the rest of our people what has happened, what will happen, and what will hopefully happen. I will join you in the preparations once that is completed.”

The unicorn nodded in acknowledgement and turned to leave before the king called out, “And make sure you tell my ponies that I want absolutely NO CASUALTIES on either side. We do this quick, clean, and with as little disruption and damage as possible. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!”

“Good. You are dismissed.”

And with that, the king’s companion left the room and the large stone doors slammed shut behind him. The king sighed and turned to look out the window overlooking his kingdom.

“Twilight, please find it in your heart to forgive me…” he whispered as the plan was set in motion.

Author's Note:

Whelp, this only took about 7 months to publish. Though it's mostly my fault since I kept writing and giving my editor/girlfriend more work so she never managed to get to this story, but ho well. It's out now and that's what matters

Sorry for those of you expecting more Flashlight, but I do promise that I am still working on the How to universe and Freedom Shall Ring. I just really wanted to get this done first, as I have never really tried a story like this one before, and it was mostly just a spur of the moment story during last November. Hope you all like it

Comments

[PrincessLaLa]

I think this is off to a great start hardly Any grammar problems, decent pacing, and overall great beginning. But please please please please don't be an Alicorn OC and if it is I hope you write him well .

[Orrm]

8982694
Eh, by the looks of it it's an immortal unicorn oc. A weak one(compared to an alicorn), though if the end was any indication. I like.

[Asolem2]

Either Discord was the luckiest creature on Equis, or this guy was crazier than the lord of chaos.

Now isn't that an interesting thought

[PizzaculousPony]

WHAT THE ACTUAL BUCK!?

The best part is I can imagine NMM flipping out and saying this 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[Piemaster128]

9988122
I know right

[Linh]

What an amazing stories, I love it so much looking for the next update.

[Piemaster128]

10152026
Glad you enjoy it

[Piemaster128]

10362834
It is the pony equivalent of the English curse word f***. I’m not sure how that would translate

[Piemaster128]

10370760
Can you please clarify what you mean?

[Kokos]

Hi. / this is the designation of between characters who are in a romantic relationship. It seems to me that this question was previously asked in vain.

[dannny43]

this guy comes off as a creepy stalker/groomer.